[Ogre] Gottlos! (No spoilers)

[Jpattern at aol.com]

I *finally* got around to buying a copy of the November 1969 issue of  
Science Fiction Analog that includes Colin Kapp's novelette "Gottlos". This  story, 
often cited as an inspiration for Ogre, hasn't been collected in  paperback 
since "Analog 8" way back in 1971 (check abebooks.com and Ebay for  cheap 
copies).
 
It's not a great story, but it is interesting, especially as an Ogre  
forebear. It opens with a large war machine named Fiendish fighting off many  smaller 
armored vehicles in its attempt to destroy an enemy command post. Sound  
familiar?
 
The biggest differences between Fiendish and an Ogre:
 
1. The addition of "manipulator arms" with which to rip apart infantry  and 
flip over tanks.
2. Fiendish is not self-directing like an Ogre, it's remotely operated  by a 
human behind the lines.
3. As a result of 2, it's much slower in its reaction time.
 
The opening battle is only part of the story. Suffice to say that Fiendish  
runs up against Something Worse, and that leads to some interesting  
developments.
 
I'm glad to finally have this gap in my Ogre literature filled in.
 
Hey, Steve, if you're reading this, any chance of getting the rights to  
reprint Gottlos, either online or in a future Ogre sourcebook?
 
Jeff Moore
_jpattern at aol.com_ (mailto:jpattern at aol.com) 

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