Project Pegasus, Deathlok, Gamma World

My recent post about my acquisition of the Deathlok TPB. Got me thinking about the first comic I picked up that had Deathlok.

That was Marvel Two-In-One #53.   Featuring The Thing and Quasar.  This was my first time reading about Quasar, and Deathlok (spoiler) with Deathlok only showing up near the very end of the comic.

 This comic also featured Project Pegasus. The timing of this comic was pretty important to my formative gaming GMing years/experience. You see as I have mentioned a few times in the past. D&D was NOT my first RPG to GM. It was actually Gamma World.  I started playing Gamma World in 1979, at the age of 10. Marvel Two-In-One #53 came out in 1979. It had cyborgs, weird powered beings and Project Pegasus!

For those who don't know Project Pegasus was presented as a massive underground energy research station in the Marvel Comics.  Getting this comic at the same time I was starting to run/play Gamma World made for a perfect match. My Gamma World game needed underground installations of the ancients and Project Pegasus was the prefect fit! On the surface it looked like just a small outpost or collection of buildings on a rocky outcropping. Perfect to plug into my Gamma World Campaign.

Just a few years prior the Planet of the Apes TV series being on TV (I have treasured memories of watching these with my grandfather), and eventually I got to watch the original movies.  So of course the Apes were a major faction in my first Gamma World Campaign. Oh and on a side note the 1976 King Kong movie remake was fresh on my mind, so yeah there was a giant ape (or two) roaming about the Post Apocalyptic Wasteland..Anyways back to project Pegasus
My 10 year old imagination knew I needed underground vaults, bunkers and installations for my Gamma World game, and Project Pegasus was perfect for this, there were even maps!

These were perfect to use as inspiration for my Gamma World games. I didn't know the term at the time, but Project Pegasus formed the foundation of my first Mega-Dungeon, although it was for Gamma World and not D&D. Different sections of the massive installation had different purposes, one held energy powered heroes/villains. Can you say perfect material for a Gamma World game!  

While my players, the most consistent being my cousin and my best friend Tormentor, although there were many others that floated in and out over the years, were the ones that played in my Gamma World Campaign the longest (over 10+ years) they didn't always know just how much of a power player the factions within and around Project Pegasus were controlling/influencing the Campaign. The Knights of Genetic Purity wanted to obtain it, The Created worked hard to maintain control of their sections of it and to continue "their" research.  Restorationists saw it as a way to restore civilization. And the apes! Well they wanted to destroy any hint that humans once dominated the planet. Many years later (1986) I discovered and hungrily read the first of the Deathlands series (Pilgrimage to Hell). That series heavily revolved around secret installations with a special connection between them. I adapted that concept to my ongoing Gamma World campaign and tied it in to my Project Pegasus original campaign concepts. But that is another story for another time. 

Part of the reason I mention this whole history of my early Gamma World Campaigns, is that Christmas makes me nostalgic for Gamma World. You see, over the Christmas holidays from school, my cousin would come into town and my buddy Tormentor would come over and we would play Gamma World non-stop for days at a time, we'd go without sleep, overly caffeinate  and it was glorious! So spend time with friends, family roll some dice and have fun! That's the best kind of memories. -Tis the Season!