TEXT:  
   
   
  Some years ago a movie was made entitled The Valley of Gwangi, in which a 
  group of cowboys stumble across a lost valley in the American Southwest 
  populated by prehistoric dinosaurs and mammals. In the course of an impromptu 
  rodeo, the cowboys encounter the uncrowned king of the valley: a great 
  Tyrannosaurus Rex known as “Gwangi.” The rest of the film is reminiscent of 
  King Kong, with the capture of Gwangi, the attempt to exhibit him commercially, 
  his escape and final destruction. Did the movie have to end this way? Maybe not.  
  The following scenario is freely adapted from the movie, and was designed to fit 
  in with an ongoing Boot Hill™ campaign if desired, or as a one-evening 
  adventure unconnected with the regular goings-on. It should provide some lively 
  entertainment for the players (and for the BH gamemaster as well; the look on 
  the player’s faces when he describes the figure towering over their characters will 
  be something to treasure until the referee is old and grey.) Rather than creating a 
  Lost Valley and the characteristics of the hordes of other beasts therein, an 
  alternative method of getting “Gwangi” into play is given.  
  The Scenario  
  It is spring in El Dorado County. For two weeks thunderstorms have lashed at 
  the countryside; flash floods and landslides are reported in the hills and 
  mountains around Promise City. As the weather subsides (“the worst gully-
  washer in forty-odd years,” say the old-timers) rumors of a great “devil-beast” 
  are heard by traders doing business with some Indians in the mountains. The 
  monster was supposedly released by the powers beyond during the height of 
  the storm’s fury, and now roams the hills at will. Some of the Indians believe 
  that the beast, which they call The Avenger, was sent to destroy the white man 
  and return the land to its original occupants. Other Indians, including most of the 
  ones claiming to have seen the beast, regard the creature as evil and potentially 
  hostile to all men.  
  These rumors are heard in the bars and taverns of Promise City, but are 
  usually told with great derision and obvious amusement or contempt. Soldiers 
  from Fort Griffin regard the rumors as a possible prelude to a general Indian 
  uprising, believing the story to be the vision of a medicine man.  
  As time progresses, ranchers near the mountains discover the tracks of some 
  unknown creature, unlike any tracks ever seen before. Many people regard them 
  as a hoax, though the ranchers finding the tracks swear they aren’t. Some 
  reports of missing cattle are made known in the same area. Finally, a lone rider 
  enters town, obviously panicked and having ridden hard for most of the day, and 
  tells a tale of having met a huge reptilian beast in the mountains that attacked his 
  party. He doesn’t know what has happened to his friends, who rode off into a 
  canyon to escape the creature.  
  When a posse is organized and goes into the area, the men discover the 
  
  bodies of two of the missing men, partially devoured, and their mounts. Giant, 
  three-toed tracks cover the area and lead away from the site, but the trail is lost 
  as it enters rockier ground. The bodies of the men and animals show the marks 
  of teeth larger than anything known, and the members of the posse believe it is 
  impossible for this to have been the work of Indians or any other humans. The 
  town marshal posts a reward of $50,000 for the killing or capture of the 
  monstrous predator.  
   
  Referee’s Information  
  The thunderstorms caused a landslide, opening a natural cavern in the 
  mountains. Through an unusual combination of geological circumstances, a 
  Tyrannosaur was trapped in that cavern millions of years ago and preserved 
  alive but in hibernation; the rain waters washed away the surrounding rock cover 
  and awakened the slumbering giant. It is now roaming about the country in 
  search of food, and relishes the new diet of horses, cows, and humans it finds in 
  the rough terrain. It has no established lair, but wanders freely in a fifty-mile 
  radius around the place it emerged from. It fears nothing. Unless cut short by act 
  of man or God, it has a life expectancy of another 50 years.  
  Some basic information on the Tyrannosaurus Rex will be helpful in running the 
  adventure. The creature, by the best paleontological figuring available today, 
  weighed eight tons in life, stood twenty feet high and had an overall length of 
  forty to fifty feet. It moved with a waddling gait, using its tail to counterbalance its 
  head and chest as it moved. It was fairly fast-moving, despite the apparent 
  clumsiness of its motion.  
  While Tyrannosaurs existed, some sixty million years ago and more, they were 
  at the top of the ecological food chain and preyed on any and all creatures 
  across the American West and Asia. Their jaws were four feet long and jammed 
  with four- to six-inch-long teeth. Tyrannosaurs had thick hides and were 
  probably dark in color (black, grey, or reddish). Their forelimbs were useless as 
  weapons and served only to help them get up from the ground after resting.  
  One of the books listed in this article’s bibliography (The Day of the Dinosaur) 
  discusses some of the finer aspects of dinosaur hunting, supposing that such 
  was possible to the modern sportsman, and tells about shooting Tyrannosaurs in 
  particular. It ain’t easy, pard. First of all, it is difficult to say what the best place is 
  to shoot at. A Tyrannosaur has a very tiny brain (though with highly developed 
  reflexes and senses), and head shots are not necessarily fatal. The heart is the 
  best aiming point, but the de Camps note that the average Tyrannosaur heart 
  weighed somewhere between fifty and one hundred pounds and a direct hit with 
  an elephant rifle would probably only slow the creature, rather than kill it 
  immediately. Shots put elsewhere are a waste of time, and are dangerous for the 
  hunter besides (who, in such cases, quickly becomes the hunted).  
  The Boot Hill characteristics of an adult Tyrannosaur given below are arbitrary, 
  of course, but are based on all available information. The statistics may be 
  modified as desired, but in any event, it is recommended that it be very hard for 
  a character to kill a dinosaur of any kind with only one shot. The stopping power 
  of weapons in the 1800’s was not as great as the weapons the de Camps spoke 
  
  of in their discussion, and besides, a prolonged gunbattle will generate more 
  excitement in the game.  
  An interesting side note: Paleontologists (fossil-hunters) and other scientists 
  were unaware of the existence of Tyrannosaurs until the late 1800’s and early 
  1900’s, when several skeletons were discovered in Montana. Any scientists in 
  the time of Boot Hill, might, however, be aware of the fossils of related species, 
  such as Megalodon and Antrodemus (which were discovered earlier than 
  Tyrannosaurus),  
   
  Tyrannosaurus Rex in Boot Hill:  
  Strength: 250 
  Speed: 27” tactical scale; 4 hexes/turn strategic scale. (Tactical scale 
  turns are 10 seconds long; strategic turns are an hour long.)  
  Attacks: One every turn (10 seconds) for 2-11 wounds (1d10+1) per bite. 
  Roll for the effects and location of each wound separately.  
  To hit: 85% base chance; modifiers for target condition (obscured, moving, 
  etc.) apply, as well as modifiers for the wounded condition of the Tyrannosaur.  
  Range of Attack: From where it stands, a Tyrannosaur has a “reach” of 
  three hexes, tactical scale (about 18’), when it leans down to bite at someone. 
  The Tyrannosaur will attack last in order in each turn that it attacks.  
  Morale: 100%. Absolutely fearless.  
  Additional notes: A Tyrannosaur cannot be stunned unless dynamite is 
  used (see Dynamite Rule below). All minor characters must make an immediate 
  morale check at -60% upon first confronting this monster, fleeing immediately if 
  they fail. Characters firing weapons or shooting bows at a Tyrannosaur have a 
  +15% to hit due to its large size.  
   
  Hit Location Chart for Tyrannosaurus  
  Light   
  Serious  
  Mortal 
  Dice  Location  
  Wound  
  Wound  
  Wound  
  01-20 Tail 
   
   01-80  
    81-00 
     --  -- 
  21-50  Rear Leg**   01-60  
    61-00  
     -- -- 
  51-55  Forearm**   01-70  
    71-00  
     -- -- 
  56-75  Abdomen  
   01-50  
    51-99  
      00 
  76-85  Chest  
   01-40  
    41-95  
    96-00  
  86-00  Head & Neck 01-40  
    41-98  
    99-00  
  ** 01-50 = Left, 51-00 = Right.  
  A result of Light Wound means a deduction of 3 points from the 
  Tyrannosaur’s strength; a result of Serious Wound deducts 7 points. If a Mortal 
  Wound is received, the Tyrannosaur will continue to fight for 1-10 turns before 
  collapsing and dying. During that time it will move at half normal speed and have 
  a base chance of 45% to hit a target, making one attack every two turns until 
  death.  
  If the Tyrannosaur’s strength is reduced to zero or less from non-mortal 
  
  wounds, it becomes unconscious and has a 30% chance of dying 1-10 hours 
  later. Thereafter, if it survives, it regains one strength point per day, to a 
  maximum of its original strength. If captured alive, it must be fed its own weight 
  (8 tons) in raw meat every month to keep it healthy. It will also be active and 
  extremely dangerous, and any keepers will have their hands full!  
  Using the above chart, there is a 1% chance of inflicting a mortal wound 
  on the Tyrannosaurus with any single shot. Referees should adjust hit location to 
  take into account attacks made from ground level, since these beasts had hips 
  10’ off the ground and knees 6’ high. An Indian warrior with a tomahawk would 
  score a hit on a location between 01-50 on the above chart (a leg or tail) unless 
  the dinosaur bends down to bite him; if that happens, hits may be registered 
  elsewhere on the body or head. 
   
  The Dynamite Rule  
  For every two sticks of dynamite used against a Tyrannosaur in one 
  attack, there is a cumulative 50% chance of stunning it for one turn (10 seconds), 
  a 25% chance of inflicting a wound or wounds (d10: 1-2 = one wound, 3-5 = two 
  wounds, 6-8 = three wounds, 9-0 = four wounds), and a cumulative 10% chance 
  of killing it outright. This percentage is reduced by 20% (for stunning, wounding, 
  and killing) for each 2” (12’) that the monster is distant from the explosion. For 
  example, 20 sticks of dynamite exploded 4” (24’) from a Tyrannosaur has a 
  460% chance of stunning it (500-40= 460), a 210% chance of wounding it (250-
  40=210) and a 60% chance of killing it (100-40=60). Treat any amount of 
  dynamite greater than 40 sticks as 40 sticks.  
  Good luck, and hoping you have a fast horse! 
   
  Bibliography  
  de Camp, L. Sprague, and Catherine Crook de Camp, The Day of the 
  Dinosaur, Curtis Books, N.Y., 1968, paperback.  
  Desmond, Adrian J., The Hot-Blooded Dinosaurs, Warner Books, N.Y., 1977, 
  paperback. 
   
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Boot Hill/3rd Party/Boot Hill - This Here's Tyrannosaurus Tex.pdf