Black smoke (The War of the Worlds) Black smoke (The War of the Worlds) The black smoke, or black powder, is a fictitious poisonous gas in H. G. Wells' 1898 science fiction novel "The War of the Worlds", used by the Martians to eliminate groups of humans, especially artillery crews, and conveyed by shells fired from a gun-like ""black tube"" carried by the Tripods' whip-like tentacles. Any animal inhaling this deadly smoke is killed almost instantly, but the smoke becomes harmless on contact with water. The Martians would dispel it after each use with jets of steam, leaving only a residual, "cindery" black powder, which reminds the
The War of the Worlds II The War of the Worlds II The War of the Worlds II is a 1974 board wargame published by Rand Game Associates. "The War of the Worlds II" is a science-fiction game on a planetary scale, with various starfaring races fighting over an uninhabited, resource-rich star system. David M. Redding reviewed "War of the Worlds II" in "The Space Gamer" No. 3. Redding commented that "I unloaded the game at a small fraction of its cost to a rather dense, now ex-acquaintance and he surely got less than he bargained for." Tony Watson reviewed "War of the Worlds II" in