Another Forgotten Classic Sunday -Titan A.E.

Cale: Hey, for your information, I happen to be humanity's last great hope. 

                                                         Preed: I weep for the species.
Titan AE is one of the better science fiction films to grace the screen. Its one of the first films that I know of where the Earth is destroyed in the first couple of scenes. Plot is pretty standard for its fare : A young man learns that he has to find a hidden Earth ship before an enemy alien species does in order to secure the survival of humanity. Now the real plot is  right over here Titan_A.E.
 To my mind this film should have been a hit! The problem is that it simply couldn't make up its mind as to what it wants to be! Is it a kids movie, an adult animated feature, or simply an animated science fiction film

 Personally I think Roger Ebert summed it up nicely "Notably, though, film critic Roger Ebert enjoyed it, giving it 3.5/4 stars for its "rousing story", "largeness of spirit", and "lush galactic visuals [which] are beautiful in the same way photos by the Hubble Space Telescope are beautiful." He cited the Ice Rings sequence as "a perfect example of what animation can do and live action cannot" 






Titan A.E. & The OSR 


There is lots for the enterprising dungeon master to borrow from this film. Seriously this movie has some excellent visuals that make great adventures or the beginning of a campaign all on their own! Here's a quick list 

Alien scrap & Salvage yard

• the Drej - These are perfect mid level baddies for a space game. They have the right elements for being blown out of the sky. They are an energy based, xenophobic, & pretty nasty. The perfect enemies for PCs

 

No. Enc.: 1d4

Alignment: Inimical

Move: 180' (60')

            Fly: 240’ (80’)

Armor Class: 7 

Hit Dice: 7

Attacks: 2 (see below)

Damage: 2-12

Morale: 11

The Drej, a race of energy beings, attack and destroy the earth;appear to be solid beings, but are actually composed of plasma-like energy. This ends up proving handy when they are lured into a trap that siphons away their energy to power theTitan, a ship built to recreate Earth after the Drej had destroyed it years before after an apparently Self-Fulfilling Prophecy warned them that humanity would destroy THEM
Super Science Powers 

• Pure Energy - The Drej is a able to merge with any electrical system around them & flow along the lines of it 
• Fist of Plasma -The Drej creates a weapon of plasma from one of its limbs allowing it to fire a burst of plasma that does 1d8 points of damage & has a range of 60 ft. This can be done 6 times per day 
• The Merging - The Drej  is able to merge with its fighting craft & able to use the system as if it was a part of its body. 

The races of Titan A.E. are very cool & can easily  be converted to any number of games. The the humans who survived the destruction of their planet become the homeless of the galaxy, living as laborers for alien species or on cobbled-together drifter colonies. This alone can be used for a number of cool adventure ideas with humans drifting through the cosmos like homeless refugees. 

I recommending a reviewing of the movie for more ideas!