It’s a small town at the foot of a hill, under a very dramatic cliff with a tower at the top.
There’s no Casa Montana or Casa Petrocchi, but there is a Casa Capone, which is a jeweller’s.
There’s also a street named after ‘Guido of Caprona’.
It’s set a little back from the River Arno (the same river that Florence and Pisa are on) but you can imagine that Caprona 12A could have expanded down to the river and across to the other side.
Pisa is only 7 miles away which seems awfully close for another city-state that Caprona might go to war with.
It’s clear though that when Diana Wynne Jones imagined Caprona she was mainly thinking of Florence.
This world is full of subterranean caverns and tunnels where demons and monsters lurk. Some only appear to be subterranean but are actually extra-dimensional. One particularly large example is a land called Pellucidar: home to primitive men and prehistoric beasts from all sorts of eras as well as creatures that once lived with them--pure demons and monsters. Openings to this lost land of dinosaurs and monsters can be found in only a few select tunnels in Africa and the poles. These openings lead men to portals to the hell where the sun never sets but remains a hazy color to prevent madness in the inhabitants. It is never day or night, only perpetual dusk. Most humans are of a stone-age level of development, though some bronze-age civilizations exist along the coasts.
There are many strange creatures found in Pellucidar that never existed in earth's history. Among them are the Mahars: psychic pterosaurs who rule a section of this world due to an alliance with the Wolf Ram and Hart. They employ Mangani-speaking Gorilla-men called Saggoths to due the heavy lifting and foot-soldiering. Other creatures include: wild Ape-Men a.k.a. Pakuni (as standard Mangani, but with -2 strength and Brachiation (they live in tree huts)); the Turok-Han (called Sabertooth Men by the natives); the peaceful, farming, sheep-faced gorillas called Brute-Men; the giant, flesh-eating Azarians; the bison-like Ganaks (use basic demon stats with horns instead of claws, the same amount of damage); the reptilian, dinosaur-ridding Horibs a.k.a. Sleestaks (Use Serpent Folk stats in The Slayers Handbook); the subterranean Coripies (normal humans with light sensitivity and Albino (attractiveness -2) and Gorbuses.
The First Evil opened a doorway to this place when it attempted to destroy the Slayer line in 2003. Beyond the initial discovery and visits from Tarzan and Predators, the land of Pellucidar has swept up several families into its prehistoric hell.
Pellucidar is just one place where prehistoric monsters still roam. In this dimension: Maple White Land (best known from the novel The Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) hosts many species of dinosaurs and prehistoric mammals from Early Cretaceous Onward and Skull Island was once home to a myriad of dangerous prehistoric beasts. These two isolated locals are the best known, and most studied. Other localities of note include Thunder Island, Mystery Island (both of which share fauna with Skull Island); and the Lost Land region of Australia (located in a valley in Queensland), which preserves Australia's unique Pleistocene fauna.
The oddest land that houses prehistoric beasts is the land of Caspak or Caprona in the Antarctic (called The Savage Land in Marvel comics). This place is a massive experiment set up by the creators of the Gyaos and Gamera to observe the evolutionary process. Here, however, creatures do not evolve. Instead, they go through a process of individual metamorphosis into ultimate forms. The metamorphosis seems to end around the Neolithic era (and the limits of the Antarctic region). Strange creatures abound there as well--from the evolved monster of Skull Island to strange metamorphic mutants such as winged humanoids. In recent years, a group of elemental 'super animals' have taken control over Caprona and seem to be guiding the place in a new direction. What it means for the alchemical animals and plants of Caprona is yet to be fully understood.
These two are often used as monstrous minions by unscrupulous individuals. When these animals die, they tend to dissolve into bio-plasmic goo.
Name: Sagoth
Motivation: Orders
Critter Type: Demon Ape
Attributes: Str 8, Dex 5, Con 6, Int 2, Per 2, Will 3
Ability Scores: Muscle 18, Combat 16, Brains 10,
Life Points: 75
Drama Points: 0-3
Special Abilities: Attractiveness -2, Hard to Kill 3, Armor Value 1, Natural Toughness, Obligation (Serve Mahar Masters), Severe Cruelty Negative Buoyancy, Atavism
Name - Score - Damage - Notes
Punch - 16 - 20 - Bash
Whip - 16 - 20 - Bash
Kick - 15 - 22 - Bash
Ax - 16 - 40 - Slash/Stab
Sagoths are the foot soldiers and slave masters of the Mahars. They are strong, stupid, and cruel--just what the Mahars need in a warrior army.
Name: Brute-Men
Motivation: Farm
Critter Type: Ape-Man
Attributes: Str 6, Dex 2, Con 4, Int 2, Per 2, Will 2
Ability Scores: Muscle 18, Combat 10, Brains 10,
Life Points: 50
Drama Points: 0-3
Special Abilities: Negative Buoyancy, Natural Toughness, +4 Farming, Pacifist
Name - Score - Damage - Notes
Punch - 10 - 14 - Bash
Pitchfork - 10 - 23 - Slash/Stab
Brute-men are sheep-faced gorillas who have taken to subsistence farming to survive. With giant predators around them, the lifestyle is rather odd.
Name: Azarian
Motivation: Flesh
Critter Type: Demon
Attributes: Str 12, Dex 2, Con 4, Int 2, Per 2, Will 2
Ability Scores: Muscle 30, Combat 14, Brains 10,
Life Points: 74
Drama Points: 0-3
Special Abilities: Attractiveness -2, Carnivore, Natural Toughness, Armor Value 2, Low Intelect
Name - Score - Damage - Notes
Punch - 14 - 27 - Bash
Club - 14 - 42 - Bash
Handaxe - 14 - 39 - Slash/Stab
Azarians are 12-foot tall giants who subside on the flesh of creatures they catch. This includes humans. They use only the crudest and simplest of tools.
Name: Gorbus (Mole Person)
Motivation: Food
Critter Type: Human Offshoot
Attributes: Str 6, Dex 4, Con 4, Int 1, Per 4, Will 2
Ability Scores: Muscle 18, Combat 14, Brains 12,
Life Points: 50
Drama Points: 0-4
Special Abilities: Natural Toughness, Burrowing, Light Sensitivity, Natural Armor 4, Natural Weapons (Claws), Attractiveness -4
Name - Score - Damage - Notes
Claw - 14 - 21 - Slash/Stab
Grab - 16 - None - Impairments Vary
These human offshoots were once slaves of the Coripies, but a revolt in the 1950s lead to the society's destruction. The humans developed to be strong, durable and, oddly enough, grew claws that allowed them to burrow through soft earth and sand. They are feared by the other humanoids of Pellucidar as cannibals and subterranean horrors. They aren't that bad, they just have no compulsions about treating your dead body as a food source. Food is scarce in caves after all.
Name: Pyrosaur
Motivation: Meat
Critter Type: Demon Dinosaur
Attributes: Str 6, Dex 4, Con 5, Int 0, Per 2, Will 2
Ability Scores: Muscle 18, Combat 14, Brains 9,
Life Points: 54
Drama Points: 0-2
Special Abilities: Natural Toughness, Natural Armor 4, Supernatural Attack (Minor, Ranged), Low Metabolism
Name - Score - Damage - Notes
Bite - 14 - 21 - Slash/Stab
Fire - 14 - 23 - Fire
This strange inhabitant of Pellucidar is a stout, toad-like creature, males with a large dorsal sale that preys upon medium-sized creatures (like humans). Its oddest feature is its ability to expel flames from its mouth in a sizeable jet. This flame is used in both defensive means and as displays of power.
Name: Sauron
Motivation: Dominance
Critter Type: Mutated Dragon
Attributes: Str 5, Dex 6, Con 6, Int 5, Per 5, Will 6
Ability Scores: Muscle 16, Combat 18, Brains 18,
Life Points: 54
Drama Points: 5
Special Abilities: Telepathy 4, Natural Armor 6, Flight (winged) 4, Hypnosis 2, Attractiveness -4, Adversary (lots), Supernatural Attack (fire breath)
Name - Score - Damage - Notes
Grasp - 20 - None - Picks up a target if able
Claw - 18 - 15 - Slash/Stab
Bite - 17 - 17 - Slash/Stab
Mesmerism (Meet My Gaze) - 19 - None - Causes Hesitation
Mesmerism (See What I Wish) - 18 - None - Creates Illusions
Flames - 18 - 35 - Fire
The Mahar that calls itself Sauron is perhaps the deadliest of his breed, as he is a throwback. All other Mahars are female and reproduce via asexual reproduction. He is a quick mutation, an atavism, that makes shim male. He has been mutated further due to exposure to certain atomic wavelengths and rules a portion of Pellucidar with an iron grip.
Name: Mahar
Motivation: Dominance, Keep Safe
Critter Type: Dragon
Attributes: Str 4, Dex 5, Con 3, Int 5, Per 5, Will 6
Ability Scores: Muscle 12, Combat 16, Brains 14
Life Points: 38
Drama Points: 2-4
Special Abilities: Telepathy 3, Natural Armor 6, Hypnosis 2, Attractiveness -4, Flight (Basic), Partial Biped, Wild Card (mental Powers) +4
Name - Score - Damage - Notes
Grasp - 18 - None - Picks up target if able
Claw - 16 - 10 - Slash/Stab
Bite - 15 - 13 - Slash/Stab
Mesmerism (Meet My Gaze) - 19 - None - Causes Hesitation
Mesmerism (See What I See) - 18 - None - Creates Illusions
Mahars are psionic pterosaurs who rule a good portion of the hell dimension. They have enslaved Sagoths to serve them as soldiers and have them conquer humans to act as the true slave labor (given their higher reproductive rate, higher intelligence, and larger population). They are often linked directly to the scourge of the Gyaos, and accurately so since those creatures were molded after their DNA. Most Mahars are only 5-6ft in height.
Name: Mew
Motivation: Curiosioty
Critter Type: Capronan
Attributes: Str 10, Dex 10, Con 10, Int 7, Per 7, Will 10
Ability Scores: Muscle 26, Combat 22, Brains 20
Life Points: 100
Drama Points: 10
Special Abilities: Resistance ('Special Attacks') 12, Reduced Damage (1/2 Psionics), Telepathy 3, Magic 10, Hypnosis (Meet My Gaze), Increased Life Points 1, Armor Value 10, Weakness (Demonic/Dark attacks, Insect Attacks)
#TheLandThatTimeForgot, book 1 of the #Caspak series written by #EdgarRiceBurroughs, first published #OnThisDay in 1924 1st edition #CoverArt by #JAllenStJohn #CoolArt #Art #Books #BookCover #BookCoverArt #Dinosaurs #ERB #Caprona https://www.instagram.com/p/Byr_jdsgdyy/?igshid=93pbf50c0s2x
Great thing about the pulps is the way they endure. H.P. Lovecraft wrote in the 1920s and 30s but his Cthulhu Mythos is strongly felt in all of American horror and much of science fiction. Robert E Howard’s Conan appeared in “Weird Tales” in 1932 and created icons for fantasy and adventure. Ray Palmer invented American flying saucer mythology in the pages of “Amazing Stories” and "FATE” in the 1940s.
The granddaddy of them all is Edgar Rice Burroughs. His lost world story “The Land That Time Forgot” appeared in “Blue Book” 100 years ago this fall. I was delighted on a recent visit to the comic shop to see this new series set in dinosaur-haunted Caprona.
