--FANBOYS-- Letters to a Comics Mailbag

fanmail for the World of Mystery...

Hello! ;-)
I am a Fantaseum member and I took your advice on the F-site and followed the link.
How many superheroes are there in your campaign? As many as in a comicbook universe, or are there just the Silver Knot and a few others?
-blade2000

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

There are indeed as many superbeings as in a comicbook universe. There is even a set of older generations of superheroes and villains going back centuries and millennia. All the original module characters are part of continuity and where appropriate they are interpreted as having birthright powers or superpowers that match their description. This is easier than it sounds because most types of D&D have a surprisingly large number of game-breaker NPCs. Our campaign just evens up the odds in favour of superhero PCs!

Hi,
We were searching for D&D books online and found your site from a google search. My brother thought your site was for villains and vigilantes for a second but we realised that it is a D&D page.
...
It sounds like you guys have a lot of fun. How often do you play?
-bengrimm1944

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

We try and play religiously every Sunday, and very occasionally during the week. Sometimes people have to drop out for a week or a month but as you probably know yourself it is possible to arrange play so that different characters get the spotlight or whatever until everyone can assemble again.

Dear Knights Below,
I found your homepage from the Nightside page, via the Pisces page..!
I liked to read your site. You sure have put a lot of work into it.
I wanted to email you to say how much I liked the Metropolis Gazette. I loved reading the newspaper style stories. I have been collecting all of the gazetee pages to make my own sourcebook for our game. We play Dragonlance Fifth Age but I ran out of ideas a while ago so now I look everywhere for new stuff..! How do you manage super-powers?
-4eva

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

Superpowers are treated basically like extremely sophisticated and powerful FEATs. Score a copy of the old Marvel Superheroes Game online and peruse its tables, then relate the effects back into D&D terms. Or go back to the Pisces All Media page and download my superhero D&D rules for free from the Downloads page of that site..! Excelsior!

Dear Knights,
I love reading your site. I make sure I look at it at least once per week. But could you have some sort of list of updates on your index page?
-RX

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

That is a good idea that a couple of us had raised in the past. We'll do it as soon as we can.

Dear Silver Knot,
Ape X is finally dead! Ding-dong the lich is dead. I find it amusing to see that after months of stalling and preparation with talk of super-team-ups to take on the evil genius what finally kills one of the most dangerous of foes ever is simply Blackfoot's welcome-back-warm-up. Why was she written out for so long? How will Watchdog's new totem animal, the Hummingbird, affect his powers? Now will we finally get to see Watchdog at full speed instead of having him slowed down every single encounter? And why doesn't Ironthorn teach the rest of the Silver Knot martial arts? Surely his skills could help them defend themselves in hand to hand. I did like the Ironthorn & Captain Rock vs the League of Injustice battle. The question I have regarding that is as both of these heroes are martial strategy students, surely they know of the adage "he will triumph who knows when to fight and when not to fight". So while their stand was brave, didn't they knew it was suicide! Why did they stay to fight? One last question, what will happen with the Silver Knot and Knightwatch? Are they allies?
Questioner#[email protected]

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

But -- it WASN'T suicide for the boys to slug it out with the two toughest members of the Monster League of Injustice... They lived. As for what is going to why Ironthorn hasn't taught anyone martial arts, there could be a couple of reasons. Firstly Ironthorn is a ninja, sworn to secrecy in relation to his warrior's art. Secondly, the poor devils in the team haven't had longer than eight hours peace at a stretch for the last TWO SOLID MONTHS!
You raise an interesting question about the interplay between the realm's favourite team - KNIGHTWATCH - and the world's favourite team -- SILVER KNOT! If KNIGHTWATCH survive the upcoming "Earthfall" mini-series, I guess we'll find out!!!

Dear Silver Knot,
While I am glad to see the appearance of the Emerald Avenger and the Knight Watch, does this mean a new focus for the team at Knights Below. Will we see less Silver Knot and more on other heroes? Is Mythtropolis big enough to support two super-teams AND the Emerald Avenger? And when can we see Blackfoot make a return to the Silver Knot team?
Fanboy.
(And Captain Rock's greatest fan, who can't get his accursed yahoo email to work.)

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

Whilst it's true there have been a lot of guest stars recently, rest assured that the team will be settling back into the spotlight soon enough. If you are a fan of the Emerald Avenger, look for the new GREEN LIGHT FOR DANGER series; if you liked what you saw of the Knightwatch, pick up a copy of KNIGHT WATCH: BROKEN PROMISES, covering the first four appearances of this popular team of off-the-wall new heroes, as well as all new fiction by Gardner Kane, with art by Gil Kubert.

"Dear Knotmails, Is it true that THE DREAMER is getting his own comicbook soon? I read in Wazzard that you had decided to give him his own book based on the strength of his appearances in STRANGE DREAMS OF THE UNKNOWN ("Dragon Blues") and MYSTERIOUS HOUSE OF THE UNCANNY ("War of the Elements part XI"). If you are going to give him his own book, make sure he keeps using all those crazy poems for his spells! My brother and I love to read them, and our English teacher Mrs. Sandiego says that they improve our wordpower! Anyway, thanks for all the great reads [email protected]"

Truculent Trudi replies:

Dreamer is definitely getting his own book, scripted by yours truly and illustrated by fan fave James Versace... look for it at your local newsagent soon!

"Dear Silver Knot, Last issue we saw the much awaited Ironthorn v Captain Rocco. I was unimpressed. One punch? All that build-up and all we get is one punch? These two have been angling for a match-up for months now. (Years if you take into account their back-story.) So why is the "fight" such a small trivial exchange? I thought both of these men wanted to beat each other to a pulp - so why didn't they? Captain Rocco only threw one punch and Ironthorn almost seemed disinterested when he flipped Captain Rocco over and pinned him. I pay my 10c and I want blood! -Frustrated"

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

As two students of the World of Mystery's equivalent of Sun Tzu, perhaps they knew that the greatest battle is that which is never fought. Or maybe they're both chicken!

"Dear KnotComics,

as a female reader, it is nice to see a comic that presents a strong female character without the bondage gear and chainmail bikinis. I do however have one complaint: Blackfoot is the most powerful character of the group and comes up with their most brilliant plots, yet Rocco is the spokesperson??? Enter the millennium - Blackfoot must have her day!"

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

Perhaps Blackfoot is wise enough to know that she would get no peace if she tried to take Rocco's place as mouthpiece... besides, it makes Rocco the first target - now THAT's smart!

Gregarious Greg also wanted to make answer to the Blackfoot and Rocco question.

Dear Curious,

Blackfoot has no bigger fans than her team-mates. If you will notice there are very few times when the others do not follow her lead. Yet Blackfoot's profession as "wise-woman" makes some people nervous (witness her exclusion from several temples in Mythtropolis). Captain Rocco has the background to know what to say to the many levels of society - and his profession as sea-captain allows him access to many places his companions cannot enter. For all he is a half-dragon, Rocco is the best suited of the team to act as spokesman in many parts of society. As for being sexist, if you ever spot Rocco being so let us know - but I imagine a man who has seen Blackfoot's power firsthand is the least likely to talk down to the lady.

"Dear KnotComics,

Who is stronger, The Hulk or Captain Rocco?"

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

The Hulk. But Rocco dresses better.

"Dear Silver Knot team, I'm not sure if I liked Cpt Rocco's 'comic' demeanour in the last issue. Is he the leader of the team or not? If he is, then shouldn't he be taking things more seriously then what he was when the Silver Knot went into the Elemental Plane of Air? The "fight" against the Throne-using magic-user seemed more comic releif than anything serious, and Cpt Rocco's antics once he had the throne seemed almost child-like. Surely he is aware of how dangerous the Elemental Plane of Air can be, especially during a war between the elements? I would like to see Cpt Rocco acting more like a hero, and less like a clown."

Gregarious Greg replies:

Thank you for your letter. Rocco is a troubled man, with repsonibilities for his team and his company. Remember though that while he is a hero and the leader of the Silver Knot, he is also only nineteen years old. If you had a magic throne that could fly around the sky, wuldn't you want to play with it for a while? Rocco is very confident of his team-mates. He knows that Blackfoot, Dog and Ironthorn will come up with sensible solutions for dealing with the Elemental Plane of Air. Therefore, when Rocco had some spare time he thought he would enjoy himself with his new 'toy'. Alas it ended badly and it seems Rocco now has to learn that a hero is always 'on the clock'.

"Dear Knotmails,I have never written to a comic before but I felt I had to after reading SILVER KNOT #4 ("Bloodline Battle"). Way back in the old title THE FOUR BLADES reference was made to Aquarian having spent time on the docks in Ivyriensteine. Knowing what a retcon buff Jonathan is, I have figured out what the clue the Silver Knot found refers to - AQUARIAN is on the Mythtropolis docks! Do I qualify for a Knot-Prize?"

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

Well by now you will have read issue 6 and all has been revealed... It was indeed Aquarian who was referred to in the bad-guys' letter. Keep watching at your KnotLetterbox, because a Knever-Knever Knot-Prize is knot winging its way to you even as we type..!

"Dear Greg and co.,

Surely you are not going to try and tell us Aaron Arvo is the new Emerald Avenger??? Sure, he's sneaking around a lot, but that means nothing. Jonathan - please, please, please - do NOT make Aaron Arvo the new Emerald Avenger. Let Aaron reconcile with his father and family, especially a certain Urban Ranger of the same last name..."

Jumpin' Jonathan replies:

I can guarantee you - Aaron Arvo will not be revealed to be the new Emerald Avenger!

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