"It's Alive!" Topic

So I am shamelessly stealing this from something robert piepenbrink said. The discussion centered around "sci fi" (let along sf/vsf/pulp) is too big a genre to reasonably pick a top five terrain pieces (or possibly a top five anything). So, let's focus in a bit …

Top Five things (not necessarily terrain pieces) you need in your Mad Scientist's Laboratory (pronounced lah-BORE-ua-tohr-ee):

Bookshelves
Dissection Table
Theremin wires below the floor
Flashy Seizure Lights
Working Jacob's Ladder
Brain in a Jar!
Robot
I-gor
Eye Gore?

Some giant ray machine and a giant lever in the floor.

Okay, what in that list alows you to hold the world ransom for a giant payoff? Maybe you also need machinery to control the worlds weather.

That's what the ray gun is for isn't it?

Jim

The DeathRay is a must.

I think the Weather Machine is a separate item. It's more likely to need a Jacob's ladder and seizure lights than the DeathRay.

C'mon peeps …
Trapdoors
Cells
Wild Animal Cages

… or maybe we don't have enough labs out there?

Some kind of lightening rod is a must…Flasks are pretty important, too. Not sure a top five is possible.

Yes, I think you need to start with some Tesla coils.

Chemistry equipment.

work tables (duh), desk(s), etc, but those don't count as critical. Bookshelves, too.

An experimental table in the center.

For a more modern mad scientist, add some large computer support.

inlgames.com/letsgocaps.htm

How about a sexy assistant?

"an experimental table in the center."

with a captive tied down, who must be rescued before she/he/it is killed/maimed/destroyed/changed by the experiements.

Is the captive the sexy assistant?

No … the pretty one is not the one that gets experimented on.

Pretty assistant:

the one you experiment on:

Well, you certainly need a table you can strap people to, but dissection is too limited. There's transplants, of course--brain transplants in particular--and attempts to create new, superior people.

Hmm. On second thought, those tables should always be sold in pairs, just in case you need to do a mind transfer or brain transplant.

I don't think we should under-estimate flasks and beakers, though. It's the presence of the liquids in those spilled and broken glass containers during the battle or the lightning strike which permit the result which can never be duplicated.

Vision screens are not mandatory here, as they are for the Head Villain's lair, but they're still pretty important--and mandatory if the mad scientist IS the Head Villain.

Oh. And pretty--more often beautiful--assistants are the Mad Scientist's daughter or niece. If there are none available, then the Mad Scientist is permitted to attempt to operate on any available beautiful woman, but he never gets away with it. At worst, there's an easily reversible brain transplant.

Oooo eto you ARE bad!!

A horse walks into a bar, the bartender says, "Why the long face Ms. Parker?"

Thank you, thank you, I'll be all week, don't forget to tip your server!!!

Are you commenting on the picture of the dog that has a chihuahua's body attached to it?

Heh heh … But, yes the assistant and the experimentation specimen are definitely two different people. After all, if you experiment on your assistant who will get you brains and coffee?

Also, if this becomes a poll, it should be "Top five miniature needs for a mad scientist's lab (excluding the mad scientist)".

Of course, I thought it was a horse with a dogs body attached, silly ole me!