Spawn Of Devastation Drive-In — 'Maximum Overdrive' (1986) (Part 1)

(American One-Sheet)

Setting Seeds:  Morn Of The Murder Machines

According to legends (and sparse archaeological evidence), The Ancients lived in a wondrous world of technological marvels, where fanciful gadgets controlled all facets of life. But then, on one horrific day, the skies swirled with emerald energies...

...and the machines upon which humanity depended malfunctioned, and instead of operating as designed...

...THEY BEGAN A BRUTAL CAMPAIGN OF SAVAGE, SADISTIC SLAUGHTER!!!

An entire Mutant Future setting can be shaped around a cataclysmal revolt of all devices—toys, appliances, computers, weapons, and even vehicles—against their makers.  The blame lies on a viridian nimbus (perhaps unleashed by extraterrestrial malefactors...?) that envelops the Earth.

The post-apocalyptic world is a primitive and brutal place, devoid of almost all useful technologies.  Only small vehicles—cars, motorcycles, motorboats—still operate as designed. Small clusters of Pure Humans, Mutant Humans, and Mutant Animals eke out a hardscrabble existence under the constant threat of mechanized death, and Mutant Plants thrive unchecked.  Androids and robots run amok (and are disallowed as PCs, for obvious reasons.)

Environmental Hazard:  Murder Machines

The all-purpose mantle of "murder machines" applies to each and every Ancient contraption powered by fuel, batteries, and/or energy (solar, atomic, etc.).  The green radiations imbued all devices with sensory awareness and all-consuming bloodlust, and they seek to harm as many beings as possible in the most spectacular, painful, and ironic of fashions.  Even non-lethal gadgets become dreadful irritants.  The Mutant Lord should find a way to turn each and every Artifact into an instrument of annoyance, mayhem...or death.

Advanced weapons fire at will on targets of their choosing, and don't work when wielded by PCs.  Medical devices inflict damage instead of healing.  And woe be to anyone who encounters a set of Ancient battle-armor....

Any time the Mutant Lord needs to roll for a Wandering Monster, or determine the contents of a treasure hoard containing technology of any sort, consult the table below:

Murder Machine Encounter Table

d20	Device	HD	Description / Effects
1	Lawnmower	2 HD	Moves at 90' (30'), and relentlessly pursues closest target. With successful hit, knocks down victim, doing a continuous 5d6 damage per round. Target must make an Ability Check Versus DEX at a +2 penalty to rise and escape further damage.
2	Music Player	1d4 hp	Player (cassette or digital) lies dormant until victim puts on the earbuds/headphones; seconds later, device blasts raw sound at maximum volume. Wearer takes 3d6 damage, and must make a Saving Throw Versus Stun. Success means they are Deafened for 1d10 days; failure means permanent hearing loss.
3	Drive-Thru Menu	2 HD	When PCs get within 45', speaker blares: "HUMANS HERE. HUMANS HERE." in computerized monotone until destroyed. Increases risk of attracting Wandering Monsters to 1-5 on 1d6.
4	Vending Machine	4 HD	When PCs get within 15', machine launches high-velocity flurry of soda canisters that deal 2d6 continuous damage per round to all targets in a 30' long, 20' wide cone. Continues to fire long after all targets have fled or fallen, out of sheer spite.
5	Remote-Controlled Toy	1d4 hp	Small AC 3 contraption continually rams feet and ankles, and gets underfoot.  Target must make an Ability Check Versus DEX to maintain balance; failure means falling for 1d4 damage. Prone targets must make a Saving Throw Versus Stun or get choked into unconsciousness as toy works way into mouth and esophagus.  Death occurs in 2d4 rounds.
6	Video Screen	1 HD	Assorted signage, billboards, marquees, etc. flash insulting and profane messages.  Irritates PCs.  (And perhaps drives them to wrath with a failed Ability Check Versus WIL.)
7	Carving Knife	1d4 hp	Lashes out at nearest target,  going for jugular or wrists. Does 1d6 damage with successful hit, and 1d4 continuous damage per round until bleeding stopped.  15' (5') movement limited to length of power cord (unless cordless).
8	Hair Dryer	1d4 hp	Blasts super-heated air, causing 1d4 heat damage. Ignites combustibles after 1d4 rounds of exposure.
9	Clock	1d4 hp	Digital timers prematurely set off explosives for maximum havoc. Alarm models blare incessantly, drawing Wandering Monsters on 1-3 on 1d6.
10	Arcade Game	3 HD	Screen shows mesmerizing display, hypnotizing all targets in visual range who fail a Mental Attack from WIL 13. Those enthralled move to the machine to touch it, and must make a Saving Throw Versus Stun; success means taking 6d6 electrical damage, while failure indicates death by electrocution.
11	Sprinklers	1 HD	Automated sprinklers/sprayers douse PCs with appropriate liquid (water, halon, fire-retardant foam, pesticide, etc.). Effects and/or damage determined by Mutant Lord.
12	Jukebox	2 HD	Always manages to play music most hated by PCs. Flashing lights and sound increase chance of Wandering Monsters to a 1-4 on 1d6.
13	ATM / Coin Changer	1d6 hp	Discharges d1000 units of currency or 5d1000 coins. Angrily.
14	Hydraulics	Varies	Elevators, drawbridges, dams, etc. open and close and will, crushing any trapped within.  Can also create barriers, impasses, deadfalls, and other  hazards.
15	Computer	1 HD	Monitor taunts PCs with obscenities to distract them, while sending alert to 1d4 renegade robots that arrive 2d4 rounds later.
16	Gas Pump	2 HD	Discharges precious petrochemical fuel (Poison Class 4; causes Blindness for 1d6 days) in faces of PCs foolish enough to look down nozzle.
17	Electric Shaver	1d4 hp	Leaps up to 6' at target, targeting mustaches, beards, and/or hairstyles.  Victim loses -1d6 CHA until grown back.  The better the hair, the more determined the shaver.
18	GPS	1d4 hp	Displays detailed maps and instructions to closest safe zones, food stockpiles, weapons caches, fuel depots, etc...but info is utterly false, and leads to environmental hazards, traps, and/or monster lairs.
19	Fax	1 HD	Blares out ear-piercing Shriek (as the Mutation), affecting all targets in 20' radius. Prints out blurry photographs of gory human casualties to traumatize the weak-stomached.
20	Marital Aid	1d4 hp	Furious buzzing forces all observers to make Ability Check Versus WIL at a +5 penalty, or be paralyzed with paroxysms of laughter for 2d6 rounds and suffer 1d2 coughing / choking damage per round. Chance of attracting Wandering Monsters escalates to 1-5 on 1d6.

Spawn Of Devastation Drive-In — 'Invasion Of The Bee Girls' (1973)

Artifact:  Hivemaker

Shattering the boundaries of known Ancient genetic science, comely renegade entomologist Dr. Susan Harris fabricated a machine that merged human and animal DNA...

...BUT INSTEAD OF BETTERING MANKIND, SHE UNLEASHED AN ARMY OF VOLUPTUOUS, VAMPING VIXENS IMBUED WITH LASCIVIOUS LUSTS MOST LETHAL!!!

Fashioned with materials purloined from the Brandt Research Corporation, the Hivemaker is a complex and cumbersome contraption designed to transform Pure Human females into sex-starved she-insects.  The device is a 12' tall, 20' diameter, dome-shaped lattice crisscrossed with multi-colored wires, and at its heart is a booth large enough for a single person.  Thick cables connect the Hivemaker to multiple generators, mainframe computers, gamma ray projectors, and assorted fanciful instruments.

The metamorphic process from human woman to "bee girl" is elaborate, indeed.  The subject (usually drugged) is stripped nude, and then placed inside the dome and bathed with euphoria-inducing radiations for 2d4 rounds until Paralyzed and compliant.  Then, she is hand-slathered from head to toe with a viscous mutagenic compound, and placed in the central chamber.  The Hivemaker operator then flips a switch on the control panel, and mutated bees flood the enclosed space and envelop the subject with their bodies. Mysterious energies bombard woman and swarm alike for 1 full turn, during which the Hivemaker induces "forced mutation...and rearranges [her] cellular structure with hormones."¹  After the process completes, the subject is extracted, and the now-solidified, rubbery coating is peeled away...revealing a newly-spawned apifemme [see below] consumed with but one overwhelming drive:  TO MATE!!!

The "birthing" of a new apifemme triggers a collective hormonal response in her sister-creatures, and all present are Paralyzed with orgiastic bliss for 3d6 rounds.

The Hivemaker was at the vanguard of genome manipulation and splicing technologies, making it amongst the rarest of Ancient artifacts.  While individual components have been unearthed, no intact machine has been discovered in the Mutant Future...meaning a working model would be of unimaginable value.

The effects of using a Hivemaker on Pure Human males, Mutant Humans, Mutant Animals, and/or Mutant Plants are completely unknown.  Androids are unaffected, though they risk clogging from gunk and bee carcasses.

Apifemme — Drone

No. Enc.:  1d6 (2d6)
Alignment:  Neutral
Movement:  120' (40') 
Armor Class:  7
Hit Dice:  8
Attacks:  2 or 1 (2 claws, or weapon, or Special)
Damage:  1d6 / 1d6, or by weapon, or See Below
Save:  L8
Morale:  8
Hoard Class:  VII, XIV
XP:  4,560

Apifemmes appear as beautiful Pure Human women with a penchant for revealing (and often impractical) attire, no matter the circumstance or occasion.  They are fashionable, enchanting, and flirtatious, and generous with their time and attention.  Most Pure Human and Mutant Human men immediately succumb to their charms, so apifemmes usually have little need for their amplified Fragrance Development mutations (which affect heterosexuals with less than 18 CON).

No matter how a target becomes enamored, an apifemme lures him to an isolated location (usually a residence, but any place will do, even if it lacks ambiance and comfort: overgrown glades, back alleys, abandoned ruins, derelict vehicles, etc.) with the promise of carnal delights. Such pleasures are short-lived, however, as after 2d4+3 rounds of coitus, an apifemme's eyes turn jet black, and she generates a rumbling buzz audible to any within 25'. Her partner must immediately make a Saving Throw Versus Death at a -2 penalty, with failure indicating he expires from a heart attack caused by "extreme sexual over-exhaustion."² Success means he can try to fight her off by making an Ability Check Versus STR at a -2 penalty.  If the Ability Check fails, another round of intercourse takes place, requiring another Save, but now at a -4 penalty...and success leads to another Ability Check with the same -4 penalty.  This process of sex-Saving Throw-Ability Check happens each round, with the penalties increasing by -2 each time, until the male succumbs to coronary thrombosis, or fends off the creature.  And apifemmes don't take kindly to being spurned....

Apifemmes are truly masterful mimics, but keen observation reveals their hidden natures.  The she-beings fancy sugary treats, and over-sweeten their beverages.  They are allergic to smoke, and register on gamma-sensitive radiation detectors ("photosynsetive gamma-count synthesizers"³).  And apifemmes' eyes shift to their black compound forms when aroused or agitated, so they always accessorize with some form of concealing eyewear.  (In Ancient times, such blackened eyes were the only physical manifestations of the apifemmes' true natures, but the strange radiations of the Mutant Future further mutated them into insectoids covered with yellow down.)  They are also particularly vulnerable to electricity-based attacks, taking an extra +2 damage per die.

Although apifemmes are incapable of feeling remorse for the deaths they cause (even if their spouses and family members are amongst their victims), they aren't intentionally murderous. They are simply slaves to their own warped biologies, tragically rendered sterile and "endlessly driven to repeat the mating cycle."^⁴  Apifemmes also slavishly obey the malevolent orders of their Queen....

Mutations:  Fragrance Development (Modified), Frailty (Electricity) [D], Metaconcert, Metamorph (Modified), Unique Sense (360-Degree Vision)

Funeral Attire

Apifemme — Queen

No. Enc.:  1 (1)

Alignment:  Chaotic

Movement:  120' (40') 

Armor Class:  5

Hit Dice:  10

Attacks:  2 or 1 (2 claws, or weapon, or Special)

Damage:  1d8 / 1d8, or by weapon, or See Below

Save:  L10

Morale:  9

Hoard Class:  XIX, XXII

XP:  8,000

Outshining their minions in every regard, apifemme queens are even more gorgeous, vivacious, glamorous, and seductive specimens of femininity...but they are also diabolical masterminds intent on transforming all Pure Human females into "bee-girls". These cunning creatures know all the secrets behind the wondrous Hivemaker techology, and direct it towards purposes most nefarious!

A queen's modus operandi is to infiltrate a community near a hidden—and functional!—Hivemaker, and then draw Pure Human women into the machine via drugs, trickery, coercion, or brute force so as to build an amorous army of nubile nymphs.  A queen initially targets the most attractive, intelligent, and influential women so as to expand her power base...and then cruelly assassinates anyone capable of interfering with her schemes (plus those immune to her pheromones).  Queens never kill women, though, as even the strongest wills fall before the unholy emanations of a Hivemaker.

As a queen's army grows, so do the sudden sex-related (but wholly non-infectious) deaths of heterosexual males of all ages and fitness levels—in regions beset by apifemmes, it is not uncommon for a dozen men or more to expire each and every night. Ironically, these rampant fatalities usually prove to be a Queen's undoing, as panicked communities usually hire adventurers to root out the cause.

A Queen possesses all of the abilities and vulnerabilities of a standard apifemme, plus increased manipulation powers and gifted technological aptitude.  They are also uncannily aware when being scanned by radiation detectors, even if at an extreme distance.

Given that all apifemmes were originally Pure Human women exposed to a Hivemaker machine, just how a queen arises in the first place is unknown....

Mutations:  Empathy, Fragrance Development (Modified), Frailty (Electricity) [D], Intellectual Affinity (Tinkerer), Metaconcert, Metamorph, Quick Mind, Unique Sense (360-Degree Vision), Unique Sense ("Detect Radiation-Detectors")

A Queen's Many Guises

1-4 :  Invasion Of The Bee Girls dialogue

Spawn Of Devastation Drive-In — 'The Eye Creatures' (1965)

Oculoid

No. Enc.:  2d4 (3d6)
Alignment:  Chaotic
Movement:  60' (20')
Armor Class:  6
Hit Dice:  10
Attacks:  2 (2 claws)
Damage:  1d8 / 1d8
Save:  L10
Morale:  10
Hoard Class:  None
XP:  5,200

In the Ancient era, "lovers lanes" were places where teenagers, vehicles, isolation, and debauchery all combined to form a heady, hormonal, Saturday-night stew...

...but the predators drawn to such revels were no mere woodland beasts...

...FOR THEY WERE SINISTER STALKERS FROM THE STYGIAN ABYSS OF SPACE!!!

The nocturnal oculoids are plodding, corpulent, 6' tall beings with lumpy, greenish-gray hides. Their bulbous, malformed heads are covered with 6d4 randomly-placed eyeballs that grant 360-degree vision (meaning they are never Surprised).  Viscous, sanguinary drool dribbles from their gaping, toothless maws.  Despite their hefty bulk, oculoids are uncannily quiet, and Surprise victims on a roll of 1-4 on 1d6.

Oculoids are drawn to those remote locations where randy Pure Human and Mutant Human youths go to revel far from parental disapproval.  They attack teens en masse with their deadly claws, and collectively gain a +1 To Hit (up to a maximum of +4) for each oculoid in the fray.

If an oculoid loses its hands/arms in combat, the severed parts still locomote and attack.  Detached oculoid claws possess 1 HD, crawl at a rate of 9' (3'), do 1d6 damage, and climb rough vertical surfaces with ease.  They function even if the original host is deceased.

Oculoids have one bizarre—and crippling—physiological vulnerability:  they combust when exposed to even the smallest amount of manufactured light.  One round after being subjected to the luminosity from a flashlight, camera, headlamp, or other electric source, an oculoid erupts in a fiery explosion that kills it instantly, doing 5d6 damage to anyone (including other oculoids) in a 6' radius.  As oculoids have never been encountered during daylight hours, it is presumed that sunlight has the same deadly effects.

Interestingly, oculoids favor the same types of satellites/spacecraft as those hijacked by other Venusian races, but how they came by them is unknown.  And while this clearly indicates intelligence, the creatures exhibit neither the ability nor the inclination to communicate with other races. 

Mutations:  Extra Parts (Eyes), Frailty ("Explosive Photosensitivity") [D], Increased Sense (Vision), Unique Mutation ("Dismemberability")

—

Designer's Notes:  As this film was an authorized made-for-TV remake of Invasion Of The Saucer Men (1957), no official poster exists (necessitating use of the VHS cover).