• Home
  • About
  • TABLES!
  • Gods
  • Monsters
  • Reader Requested Content
Rolang's Creeping Doom

Category Archives: Content

DCC Magic Items to playtest

March 28, 2016 7:03 pm / Leave a Comment / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

I don’t give out a lot of magic loot in my Dungeon Crawl Classics campaign and one of my players was just telling me she likes it that way. So of course now I have to hand out some magic loot!

The first is a way to get ley lines and places of power into the game by giving the players a diving rod. There’s several mentions of ley lines and places of power in the DCC core rulebook but not much about detecting them.

The second brings the consult spirit spell into the game, which the Judge’s section suggests as a way to drop clues and adventure hooks into the campaign. I’d rather not wait for our casters to get high enough in level to get that spell (which there’s no guarantee they would take anyway). I’ll report back after they’ve had some use. Feel free to post your experiences here or ways you have brought these elements into your game.

LEY DIVINING ROD
A forked stick that can be used to find ley lines or place of power. The user must be a wizard or elf and must concentrate. The longer the concentration period, the further away the user can find such a place. (see table below)
A place of power can only be found if the user knows a spell that would benefit (ex. fireball’s might be enhanced in a volcano). Using this drains 1d4 HP of damage for each 15 minutes (or fraction thereof) of use. Magical healing cannot be applied during this time, but any regeneration powers or spells in effect when the user begins is in effect. If the user dies while attempting to find a ley line, he or she must be buried in a ley line within a week or become a lich (NPC) or some other awful fate.

Each 15 minutes beyond what is required for the radius adds ‘+1 to the spell check for finding space.

Radius:
5 minutes = 20m
10 minutes = 50m
15 minutes = 100 meters
30 minutes = 250 meters
1 hour = 1km
1.5h = 2.5km
2h = 10km
3h = 50km
5h = 200km

There is a spell check involved:
1-10 Failure to detect presence/absence
12-13 Yes/No there is one in this general area
14-17 Yes/No presence, general direction
18-19 General Direction and Distance +/- 20 percent
20-23 Direction, Exact Distance
24-27 Location, Size and Shape of line/place of power
28-29 Location, Size, Shape and shortest route to line/place of power
30-31 As per 28-29, plus extra +2 on applicable spell checks when on the line, within the space
32+ As per 30-31, plus location of connected lines, connected places of power within 100 miles

SKULL TRUMPET
This item can be used to consult spirit (as per the spell) once per month. The user speaks into and listens to this conch-shaped bone horn that has been twisted from the skull of a powerful medium.

Share
Posted in: Dungeon Crawl Classics, magic items, Uncategorized

Side Hustle – Bandits and a Wizard

March 27, 2016 6:47 pm / 1 Comment / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

This is an in-betwener I ran when my crew was headed from a town to a river, escorting a wagon. I run DCC.

The trail heads through a notch between mountains. It’s about fifty meters long and three meters wide. Bandits have set up rubble in piles on top of logs, allowing them to send down boulders and trees at the entrance and the exit of the notch.

The bandits are waiting to use the rubble to 1) block the wagon and 2) separate the party/guardians from the wagon to make it easier to take.

An overgrown trail forked off the main road a few miles back. The overgrown trail leads about a half mile into the woods to a one-room cabin. Bandit guards with crossbows are in the trees about a quarter mile up the trail.

The cabin has glassless windows on three sides. It’s about 30 feet by 12 feet. With only one door. There’s a roof hole or chimney on the far side from the players the side with no window. There’s a fireplace/fire pit on the far side from the trail.

Bandits are level X fighters or thieves where X is a good level for bandits in your campaign. In mine they were level 2. There are two outside the front door sitting on stump stools. One is dozing off. Both have had some drink.

Inside the cabin are eight more bandits. Four are thieves in studded leather armed with bows and longswords. The other six are fighters wearing chain mail with longswords and shields.

Their boss is a level 3 wizard wearing a wicker head mask shaped like a crow and indigo silk robes. In my game, the wizard was an air-breathing octopoid manipulating a skeleton under the robes. Spells included color spray and mage armor. When disabled, it dove into the fire to create smoke as a distraction. It then went down the throat of a bandit, possessed him and escaped out a window.

At the first sign of trouble, the wizard will summon an invisible companion, as per the DCC spell with a spell check of 22: AC 20, 60 ft per move, can fly, 18 HP, all hits have a 50% chance of missing anyway, +5 attack bonus. It wields a magical spear detailed in treasure (the +2 has worn off). This is cool because the PC’s just see a floating spear.

If the wagon owners were captured alive they are bound, gagged and beat up in the corner. The wagon will be out back. There’s a small stable and if the horse(s) hauling the wagon are alive, they are in a small stable to the far side of the cabin.

Treasure:
Yamabushi Spear
Forged in the Land of Rising Sun
+2 hit & damage, melee or ranged
INT 4
Communicates via Urges
Extra ‘+1 vs Lycanthropes or any human<->animal shape changer
Can detect water within 40 feet
Loses +2 bonus when wielder has spent 1 week in the presence of other sentient beings. Other benefits remain. Wielder must spend 1 month as hermit to regain +2 bonus.
Value to collector: 5,000 SP

TREASURE
Longswords and bows as what remained when the bandits were killed.
638 silver
6 rings of turquoise and silver (worth 18 each)
1 prayer wheel
3 sutra texts in Chinese
1 scroll of invisible companion
5 healing waters (1d6+1 HP) 200 sp each

TRAPPINGS
Assorted blankets, cookware, straw, food, drink, rope, etc.

Share
Posted in: Dungeon Crawl Classics, encounters / Tagged: bandits, dcc, encounter, side hustle

Bogpiggie Stats for Fifth Edition D&D

February 19, 2015 5:59 pm / Leave a Comment / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

As I lie there with the bogpiggie’s deadly poison spreading through my body, the wizard Freamon assured me I could be cured with ettin’s earwax. The elf was certain it wasn’t deadly, just lycanthopic. The vile thief Carron’s “peepaw” had told him the venom turned people to gold.

Bogpiggie

Small beast, unaligned

Armor Class 12

Hit Points 9 (2d8)

Speed 30

STR 8 (-1) DEX 14 (+1) CON 11 (+0) INT 2 (-4) WIS 11 (0) CHA 11 (0)

Senses passive perception 9

Languages –

Challenge 0 (10XP)

Very Dangerous. The bogpiggie resembled a tailless beaver covered with porcupine quills. Anyone stuck by a quill knows the quills are tipped with a deadly poison that kills within a few hours. Anyone in the same party will, if they wonder if there is an antidote to be applied, remember a different antidote or effect of the poison.

The quills are in fact not poisoned at all but naturally magical. Unless a party member has magical reisstance/immunity, the magic takes effect. Those immune or resistant to magic will not recall hearing anything about the bogpiggie.  Those skeptical about the the tales of bogpiggie poisoning may make an Intelligence check DC 20 to realize that whatever they might remember could be an old tale.

Some examples of what party members will remember about the bogpiggie’s poison (make up or roll 1d8):

1- A special pink mushroom will cure it

2- It is a magic poison. Rubbing any magic potion on it will cure it.

3- It’s best to cut near the wound and suck out the venom.

4- Ogre spittle cures it.

5- It’s not poisonous. But it does carry lycanthropy.

6- The victim will turn to gold if he dies.

7- Singing will slow the poison.

8- The venom bestows magical powers.

Actions

Quills. The bogpiggie’s quills automatically hit anyone touching them. If startled, the bogpiggie throws its quills, hitting all targets in a four foot radius (Dexterity check 15 to avoid).

Hit: One hit point.

Share
Posted in: 5e Content, monsters

Table of Wilderness Traps

July 16, 2013 7:25 pm / 2 Comments / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

Scrap Princess
 requested a table of wilderness traps.

Number Bait Mechanism Direction (1d6/2) Effect
1 None Snare Above Save or Die
2 Pool or spring* Tripwire Below Immobilize
3 Food Pit Even Dismember
4 Chased into Trap Crushing Object Confuse
5 Honey Gas Gunfire
6 Opposite Sex (real or illusory) Spiked Panel Arrow or spear
7 Weapons Box Unable to move without slipping
8 Gold Ore Net Sleep

 

*Immobilization begins process drowning according to your rule set.

 

Look, this table is OK, but you really should read this:
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17093/17093-h/17093-h.htm

Share
Posted in: content, legacy D&D, Traps / Tagged: tables, traps

Table of untested, untrustworthy and somewhat incompetent henchmen

July 15, 2013 5:51 am / 6 Comments / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

John
on said: 


Actually I just got done rewriting CSIO to give it a slightly more low-magic, swords-and-sorcery feel… a table of possible henchmen for hire…

Here’s a table of untested, untrustworthy and somewhat incompetent henchmen.

Roll 1d20 for each column Former Occupation Incompetence Motivation Attribute
1 Barkeep Bad at fighting Sick relative Nervous
2 Gravedigger Equipment upkeep On the Lam Tells bad jokes
3 Town Guard/Jailor Falls asleep on watch Just greedy Overconfident
4 Headsman Coward Pride (wants to jump class/caste) Obsessed with bathing
5 Prostitute or madam Easily confused Owes money to a wizard Glutton
6 Knight Clumsy Under a spell Drunkard
7 Farmer Sociopath The thrill Angry
8 Shepherd/cattleman Easily discouraged Spoils of war Young
9 Bard Hero worship Tales of old Religious
10 Sailor Oblivious Misplaced sense of chivalry A witch
11 Craftsman Wooden leg Redemption Sings off key
12 Librarian/scholar Loud Prove self/earn money to marry Good medic
13 Clergy (non adventuring) Very stupid Daddy/mommy issues Insomniac
14 Sewer cleaner Physically weak Just crazy Afraid of or dislike of non-humans
15 Printer Wanders off No other options in old profession Hedonist
16 Cook or household servant Can’t count Wants to travel far away A boor
17 Actor No sense of direction Voices in head giving orders Lecherous
18 Town bureaucrat Absent minded Mean Think of self as equal or superior to employers
19 Street vendor Kleptomaniac Death wish A fan of gladiators/adventurers
20 Town crier Generally mildly incompetent -1 to all attempts to do anything Prove worthy to god Knows many local legends, all untrue or the details are wrong in some crucial way
Share
Posted in: legacy D&D, NPC / Tagged: bring it, henchmen, tables

Minor Noble’s Entouage

February 4, 2013 1:53 pm / 1 Comment / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

Claytonian
on said: 


Members of the noble’s entourage. Interesting and dangerous characters that attend to the noble and protect him while doing in vogue things too.

This request is from the Mundane Request Thread.

Minor nobles will allow almost anyone into their entourage for the sake of having an entourage, which is of course a sign of great importance.

 

Firstly, there is the body man or handmaid—the servant who knows the noble most intimately as They also know what wig powder to use, which eau de toilette to use as the most recent bath fades further into memory and gernally deal with the soiled handkerchiefs, spurned milkmaids/stable boys and stained smallclothes of the minor noble.

 

The Cook. They are generally quite bad, as the good cooks are already taken, but he entire entourage is obliged to publically praise the food so as not to shame the noble for not being able to hire a good one.

 

The Syncophant: Usually a cousin or even lesser noble, this person desperately hangs on to the nobles ever word, laughs at the worst jokes and secretly hopes to have a torrid affair with the noble.

 

The Guard: This is by far the most well-paid member of the entourage, for without the guard, any number of people might kill the noble out of sheer loathing. The Guard, in fact, would be first in line were he not paid well.

 

The Secretary: The minor noble may have been tutored (see tutor below) but when it comes to actually writing an eloquent letter, the secretary puts quill to paper. He also keeps the schedule and acts as a social director (begs for invitations).

 

Driver/Groomsman: takes care of the horses, carriage and does the driving.

 

Protégé: Every noble must have a protégé artist in order to be called a patron. Poet, musician or painters only. Actors are gauche. Jesters are for kings.

 

Prostitute: some nobles have a bed-warmer. If so, this person is near the top of the hierarchy.

 

Beast: A noble will typically have a deformed person or beast (read: orc) hanger-on who serves as the bottom of the pecking order.

Banker: Entourages are expensive and many minor nobles are deep in debt in order to support them. The banker is a minor representative of the bank that keeps the noble afloat. Why? Influence.

Share
Posted in: campaign window dressing, legacy D&D, NPC / Tagged: bring it, mundane, npcs

The Ratmen

February 3, 2013 5:34 pm / Leave a Comment / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

Arr Mateys. I be answering your requests in a mundane way. Don’t be askin for no potion mishaps or magical codpieces in the request thread.

Trent B
on September 27, 2012 at 1:29 am said:

Well if you like you could create a small selection of ‘things some nonchalant 3ft ratmen pirates might be doing when they have stolen basically all of the ships/supplies and are now sitting pretty on an island off the coast which might have just been landed upon by some unscrupulous adventurers and their mysterious meatshroom tavern’? 
If you’re bored or whatever =P

Here’s your mundane answer, ya lubber:

The “3 foot ratmen” are a gang of nine brothers known for their longish faces and short stature. They are horrible sailors but excellent gunners, usually tasked with mending sails and swabbing decks when not in combat. Last August they were hired as crew on board Galadriel’s Garter, a privateering vessel backed by the Dutch. The garter’s officers were greener than their crew and at first encounter with the English frigate HMS Astonishment, the captain, first mate and both lieutenants were taken by chain shot. The Ratmen were the highest ranking left on the ship and they never, ever stop firing. They managed to cripple the English vessel so badly the remaining officers surrendered in exchange for a tow.

Which they did, after slitting the English throats. Alas, as I have mentioned, they are horrible sailors and managed to steer both vessels into the Fog of the Unknown and have landed on DedSkull Island.

Unaware of the dinosaurs, oversized animals, witches, fishmen, truant officers and weresharks surrounding them, the Three Foot Ratmen and their crew have declared a shore leave and have hauled the English rum and tinned beef to the beach. What are they up to when the party arrives?

 

  1. Drinking
  2. Burying “treasure”, mostly gold buttons and swords taken from the dead.
  3. Buggery
  4. Arguing over who is captain, first mate, “leftenant” and cook.
  5. Trying to figure out maps
  6. Making time with the native women
  7. Trying to open a hatch in the ground
  8. Target practice on oversized tree-living sloths
  9. Industriously harvesting lumber and straightening out nails to repair the ships
  10. Torturing a native to get the location of the lost city of gold from him
  11. Cooking a giant sloth over a spit
  12. Singing filthy sea chanties while (roll again)
Share
Posted in: content, encounters, legacy D&D / Tagged: bring it, firearms, mundane, naval, pirates

Fantasy Tibet on Santicore

January 13, 2013 4:25 am / 2 Comments / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

I’m publishing this here and on Santicore. It’s rough and way late, but here it is.

Also on the Santicore blog.

Campaign Setting: The Roof of the World

DM’s note: This is a rudimentary setting description based EXTREMELY loosely on Tibet in the 9th or 10th century or so. It’s not meant to be any more detailed than most RPG settings and of course there are elements that are inaccurate or grossly simplified because gaming.

 

I think this would work best as a place for a party of outsiders to venture. That way, the characters themselves (and the players) will experience the fun of exploration, not having little or no ‘common knowledge’ of how things work there.

 

The Roof of the World lies between the grand empires of the south and the horsemen of the north. The humans are mostly nomadic yak herders, distant cousins of the northern horsemen. Because the climate is so cold, the geography treacherous and the air thin, life here is harsh and generally short.

 

Why would a party of adventurers venture to an isolated wasteland so hard to get to? There have been persistent rumors that the god of wealth lives in the mountains. The locals themselves tell of a hidden paradise where men live as for centuries and never get sick. Sorcerers have been known to return from trips to the mountains with great and terrible new powers. Dwarves have an old legend about the largest vein of gold being under the world’s tallest mountain. Clerics may have heard that the priests of the southern beliefs have had success subduing demons and taming the wild folk. A thief might find sanctuary from the long arm of the law or the longer arm of the thieves’ guild here.

 

Getting to the plateau is difficult and dangerous. Not only are the paths from the south guarded by xenophobic clans of horsemen; there are monsters on the trails and demons in the mountains.

 

Adventurers will be extremely conspicuous here. They will look different, sound different and most will have a fortune in steel and armor with them. Ordinary arms and armor are rare here and very valuable. Men have been killed in their sleep for their armor. The best approach is to keep one’s best weapons hidden and wear the local leather armor (which is more comfortable in such cold climates anyway). Demihumans are almost non-existent so cover those pointy ears with a knit cap.

 

Adventures must take care to not offend the representatives of The Way (see below). Locals respect and revere these men and women. Most lamas, monks and yogis are dedicated pacifists, but if they need to resort to force to protect others, they will. After all, they are also protecting the wayward from earning bad karma and coming to a worse rebirth. Horesemen and mercenaries will act first and attempt to purify their karma later.

 

The air here is thinner. All party members suffer a -1 to constitution while in this climate and dwarves suffer -2.

 

Every mountain, every river, lake and forest has a spirit or demonic inhabitant. Small features such as ponds, small crags and streams are home to small elemental spirits who make only minor trouble for men and can be appeased by offerings of food and drink left at dusk (torma). Larger features such as mountains are the home of demons and gods, the original inhabitants of this land. Everyone knows what demon lives on the closest mountain and they take great care to avoid its notice and failing that, stay in its good graces. Caravans have been known to leave a great deal of wealth at one end of a bridge, hoping that will distract the spirits of a gorge while they rush across to the other side.

 

 

History

For millennia the people of the plateau have scraped by as nomads and traders of furs, butter and salt. Kingdoms are small here, as the weather makes widespread warfare and continued control difficult. Most of the ‘action’ takes place in the form of clan and family squabbles, which were generally resolved by marriages, contests or payoffs. In every clan or village, there were families that maintained the equestrian traditions of the north. This meant every small dispute could potentially become an extended, bloody feud. Petty kings employed these horsemen in their wars.

 

Legends tell of a great time of unification, when the people rode from the north and drove out the previous inhabitants, who are described as savage and demonic.

 

If there is great treasure to be had here, it is certainly not in the hands of the people.

 

The Way

 

A hundred years ago, a great caravan from southern kingdoms climbed the paths to the plateau. They brought with them great scholars and meditators who had been sent north at the behest of the gods, it is said, to tame the wild peoples of the north and to turn the demons of the sky toward the path of kindness. These Great Gurus, as they are called, defeated the demons of several high peaks in contests of logic and displays of miracles. These mountains became safe for people again, so long as they respected the newly reformed protectors living there. Despite these miracles, they taught the people a simple, pacifistic way of life called “The Way”. It combined meditation with a monastic tradition and quasi-magical utterances (mantras) meant to turn the mind away from evil karma, which they said was the cause of the plateau’s troubles.

 

Villages and cities were established around monasteries in the southern and central provinces. Much of the male population destined to become warriors, bandits or merchants instead took on robes at the monasteries and put their energies to good use, crafting items of protection, performing healing rituals and studying and copying the Thousand Scrolls of The Way. Because the missionaries were so successful at taming the demons and spirits of the wild and reducing strife in the community, The Way has become influential. With that has come of course the corruption and strife that comes with human institutions, and of course the demons and spirits are capable of subterfuge.

 

The average home has a small shrine to the Enlightened One, the Great Gurus or to a local protector deity. They leave offerings outside their tents and sing mantras as they go about their day. This focus on protection and good deeds has enabled the family to live longer and feel safer. They believe their bad deeds could lead to rebirth in the hells, or as animals or hungry ghosts. Their goods deeds cold lead them to rebirth in the heavens, but if they devote themselves to the Great Guru or one of his servants, they will be reborn in a secret land where one may meditate and work toward enlightenment for many eons.

 

NPC Classes

 

There are four main NPC classes here. Horsemen replace fighters, Monks are clerics and cleric/illusionists, Lamas are cleric/rangers and Yogis are Illusionists (with psionic powers if applicable in your game).

 

Horsemen

If your rules have a barbarian class, this is an excellent fit for the plateau. Take the class, add riding and archery skills and apply no penalty to attacks when shooting from horseback. Their horses are able to travel a quarter further than common warhorses without tiring. In mountainous terrain that would normally slow a mounted party, native horsemen suffer no penalty.

 

While some clans have specific traditions and codes, just as many serve as mercenaries to local lords, demons and wizards. In lands of the peaceful way, warriors have either become bandits or anointed themselves protectors of holy men and pilgrims. These last can be found on the paths leading up from the south, sometimes turning away foreigners and adventurers while allowing pilgrims and monks through.

 

Monks

Monks are not the AD&D masters of the martial arts. A few of them are low level clerics, capable of casting various spells protecting, blessing, healing, curing and clairvoyance. While individuals might live up to their code and vows to varying degrees, all monks follow a lawful good path. Even those who have previously been thieves and murderers are allowed to follow The Way (albeit with careful supervision).

 

Treat most monks as simply 0 level humans of Lawful Good alignment. They have renounced the world and joined a monastery where their energies are turned towards copying books, building holy sites hard labor to improve their karma. They follow a strict code of pacifism and renunciation. There are literally hundreds of vows of renunciation they must take.

 

Monasteries are headed by an abbot, who is the spiritual head of the community. Treat NPC abbots as cleric/illusionists with no combat ability They can cast spells simply by concentrating, without the need for speech or gestures. They usually have healing, curing, protection, clairvoyance and illusionist spells prepared. They emanate a bless spell and protection from evil spell at all times with a radius of 10 feet/ cleric level. Abbots typically have one level in both classes for every 50 monks in their charge. High-level abbots are revered as avatars of saints and Buddhas.

 

Monks are easily recognized by their maroon and yellow robes and shaved heads. They always have rosaries called malas with them. They have taken vows of celibacy, non-killing and will not take intoxicants or steal. (In extreme situations, they would if it prevented harm to a living being). All monks can cast a protection from evil spell ritually. The power of this spell should ‘stack’ if cast by multiple monks.

 

Monastaries

Monasteries serve many functions. The spiritual had often acts as a magistrate if no local warlord exists. Monasteries buy many blankets and consume great quantities of firewood, butter, milk, and salt. Well-respected monks travel the countryside performing protective ceremonies, pacifying ghosts and teaching practices meant to pacify the spirit and generate positive karma. There are a few nunneries, but their locations are kept secret to protect their inhabitants.

Monasteries serve as stand-ins for keeps. Use them as sources of shelter, quests or mysteries. A haunted or abandoned monastery works well.

 

Nunneries also exist, although they are rare and their locations kept quiet.

 

Lamas

Lamas are trained in ritual practices. They are capable meditators, healers and lore masters. In some cases they are also monastics, but they are usually part of the lay populace. Some even have families and homes. Many travel between villages. Depending on your rule system, treat them as non-combative ranger/clerics. In addition to their normal spell allotment, they can perform ritual versions of any healing, curing or protective spell. These require material components (hallucinatory herbs, pure water, rice, gold, etc.) and take one hour per spell level to perform. Lamas are sitting ducks to physical attacks during these, but magical protection circles are a standard beginning for all rituals.

 

Lamas who have taken monastic vows are still part of this class, although they are also 0 level monks.

 

Yogis

Yogis and yoginis are men and women who have abandoned their homes (or monasteries) to pursue meditation in remote places. Most of them are normal 0-level people, but once in awhile one of them will attain a level of realization that immediately puts them at the level of an illusionist of fifth or higher level. These accomplished yogis and yoginis usually want to be left alone, but are often hounded by jealous demons or eager students. They will use their powers of illusion to avoid detection or to educate these eager passersby.

 

A Note on Morality

Monks, lamas and yogis, are prohibited from taking life or causing harm in all but the direst circumstances. In fact, a monk, lama or yogi would not kill in self-defense. For this reason, they make poor player character classes. In no circumstances would they associate with “murder hobos” who kill monsters and loot them. They would, however, do harm if it were necessary to prevent a great tragedy (harm of a child or of many innocents) and it were clearly the only option. Morality in this land is not what the law or tradition or a king says, but what causes harm. Also note: don’t play these NPCs as hippies or wimps. They are also not vegetarian as there are no vegetables here. Adventurers should not assume, however, that everyone they meet in a robe is trustworthy. There are charlatans, thieves, spies, doppelgangers and weak-willed individuals as well.

 

 

 

Other Beings

Demons

Demons here can mean genuinely evil-minded demons of most RPGs, elementals or semi-spirit creatures such as dryads or sirens. Many have a reputation with the locals who know them by name. They feed on ignorance, fear and conflict. They resist the monasteries by killing wandering monks, caravans bringing goods to monasteries and in some cases hiring mercenaries or infiltrating the monks.

Many demons have a sorcerer apprentice who does their bidding.

Demons are the main Bosses of this setting and while are spoken of a great deal, they shouldn’t be over-used.

Some demons are converted to The Way by powerful lamas and gurus. Lower-level demons might become dakinis or helper spirits. Medium-level demons convert to guardians of locales or protectors of sacred treasures. The most powerful become wrathful deities who use their horrific appearance in the service of The Way.

Demons do not suddenly lose their powers or become sweetness and light after conversion. A demon might continue to protect his mountain, for example, from those whose greed has lead them to try to steal treasures. Instead of actually killing adventurers, he might enslave them for a few centuries or polymorph them into animals or make them experience death only to awake in a remote village.

If killed, demons are banished to another plane. In this case, we’ll say the hells of the Buddhist cosmology.

 

Dakinis

These powerful female spirits might manifest as old crones, young demon girls or as giant dancing goddesses half-dressed in bone garlands. Their appearance and energy is always feminine. Treat them as efreet or djinn. They travel between planes, see the past and future. They absolutely might kill someone and then immediately resurrect them to show the illusory nature of the world. They are pure mischief and generally mean trouble. They are excellent for giving quests to parties.

 

Nagas

These Monster Manual staples are human-headed snake demons. They are usually dangerous and untrustworthy, but a few employed as guardians of great treasures of The Way.

 

Undead

Most bodies are ground up and fed to vultures, so undead are not so common here. A sorcerer might animate a corpse to do his bidding. These are called rolangs. They are mid-to-high level undead and should not be treated as zombies. Rolangs, it is said, can kill by casting their shadow upon someone. Those dead become a rolang at the next sunset unless burned and there is a ninety percent chance they will not be under the control of any master at all. Rolang walk stiffly, with their arms out. Every house has a low door to keep them from entering at night.

 

Lamas, monks and yogis know rituals to dispel them. If a DM wanted to have PC monks, lamas and yogis, a party or rolang-hunters would be appropriate.

 

Ghosts

There are lost-spirit ghost and there are hungry ghosts, or pretas. Lost spirit ghosts are the same as in your game–undead spirits and/or plot movers. Pretas are spirits with giant stomachs and small mouths, who are always hungry. For gaming’s sake, you can make them hungry for human flesh, brains, blood…

 

Animals

There are animals that speak human languages here. They are rare. Most will not be helpful unless bribed or caught. Treat them as the animals behave in fairy tales.

 

Witches, Sorcerers, Dopplegangers, Penengalens, Giant Animals and Bandits

The plateau should be just rife with these.

 

Dragons

Use Chinese dragons, not western wyrms.

 

Treasure

Many of the world’s most powerful artifacts and magical items can be found on the plateau, often on the world’s highest peaks. These are usually items that cannot be destroyed but also cannot be allowed fall into human or demi human hands.

There is almost no gold, silver or diamonds on the plateau, but lapis, turquoise and other precious stones serve as currency in the larger markets. Salt, meat, butter and livestock are the most important items of barter. Iron, steel, tin and precious metals are brought in via caravan.

Relics are considered great treasures. Any body parts of holy people such as bones, hair, skull cups, femur horns and so forth are considered sacred and valuable. You can use these as the macguffin for many adventures.

Hidden Lands

Even the locals will tell you there are places that fold and twist between the mountains, cities that can only be found during the worst snowstorms and valleys from which travellers never return yet are never found frozen.

Some of these are secret lands occupied by saints and yogis of centuries past. Others hide entire communities hidden from the ravages of time, war and disease. Some conceal doors to other planes. Shambhala, or Shangri-La, is one such hidden land.

 

Death

If you want, replace resurrection in your game with some form of reincarnation. Coming back from the dead was not an option in the Way. Moving forward is, however. Have a PC roll a new character but with the same memories. How did he get old enough to adventure? You figure out a way. One tradition is the magical transference of consciousness at death into another being. But whatever you do, don’t make it a respawn. Make it something that has to be worked through.

A TPK is an opportunity to take the party through the bardo, a place between lives. Here they could encounter tests, traps and peaceful and wrathful demigods within a mandala-shaped palace. Google it and have fun.

 

Cultural Flavor

Clockwise is good. It keeps the clean hand toward the center. Many pilgrimages and rituals involve circling a holy object or structure in a clockwise direction. Counter-clockwise is bad.

Prayer wheels, cylinders with mantras printed on them, are ubiquitous in civilized areas and common in the nomad’s camps. They can be small and handheld or giant and part of the architecture. They are always rotated clockwise. They can be used for designing puzzles where specific syllables or letters must be matched.

Wheels used for transportation or work are considered tasteless. The wheel is a symbol of The Way.

Flags with prayers printed on them provide protection from evil in windy places. Count them as minor protection spells whenever the wind blows.

Tea is served with butter and salt. Butter is also used in lamps.

Hospitality is a paramount virtue. Even an enemy would not dishonor his name by harming a guest or turning away someone in need of shelter if anyone might know about it. Guests are expected to behave themselves and accept any and all food and drink offered until full. One does not refuse a meal because it displeases, only when one has already had enough to reasonably claim to be stuffed.

The dead are fed to vultures. If the vultures do not eat the body, this is seen as a sign of bad deeds.

It is a great honor for a family when a son is accepted as a monk or lama in training.

 

The Way

I have taken care not to tie this setting to closely to Buddhism, but it is a natural fit. If you want to add realistic flourishes, research specific historical figures such as Padmasambhava, Milarepa and Gesar of Ling. Real meditative deities and art can be used. In most cases, it is the trappings that matter in the game, not the actual beliefs. Using made-up names and ideas is perhaps more respectful.

At its core, the Way, which is the stand-in for Buddhism in this setting, should be about non-harming. This sets the stage for tension with the violence-loving demons and the warriors who have ruled for millennia. This also prevents high-level locals from becoming a deus ex machina.

I have left out some important aspects in the name of simplicity: tantric aspects of Buddhism are very misunderstood in the west and I think better to leave out. There is also a long tradition of reincarnated teachers who take over their predecessor’s role (the Dalai Lamas are the most famous of these). I have left this out as well, but you can do a little research if you want to use these elements.

 

Adventure Ideas

  • For foreigners, just making your way up the paths to this part of the world is dangerous. Sprinkle steep paths with classic giant animal monsters (a vulture-like roc) and of course a (or the, your choice) Yeti. Mounted warriors seek to turn away anyone they don’t deem a holy man, scholar or genuine pilgrim.
  • A hidden terma (treasure scroll) has a spell that repels the rolang. You are given a few clues and must escort a lama to find it. She is, however, a demon in disguise.
  • A prominent abbot has passed, and a stupa (tomb) is being prepared for his interment. Protect the body from relic-seekers and the stupa from demons that would ruin it before it is finished. A single drop of blood on the unfinished stupa defiles it completely.
  • There is a monastery that has abandoned the belief of non-violence and is training its monks in destructive sorcery. You must bring as many of them back into the fold as you can, but cannot trust them all. You have been given a bound rolang to help you sniff out deceivers. Be careful not to break that leash.
  • A dakini has tasked you with hiding the path into and out of Shangri La. Will the party be able to resist the temptation to stay? Why would they need to obscure the way out?

 

 

Geography

 

The high plateau sits about 5000 meters above sea level. It should be the highest or nearly the highest region in your gaming world. To the north and far below are vast grassy plains. To the east and northeast, a desert. To the west are lower mountains and hills and to the south there is a large, rainy subcontinent. This geography assumes the wind and moisture comes from the south, hits the side of the mountains and returns down as mighty rivers. The rain shadows are north and east. If the winds come from another direction, adjust the rain shadow accordingly.

 

The southern part of the plateau is warmer and more humid, but never getting warmer than 16 degrees C (60 F) during the rainy season (May to September). In winters, it gets to -16 C (3 F). In the north, it ranges from a high of 10 degrees C (50 F) in the rainy season to far below freezing depending on altitude and wind.

 

 

Share
Posted in: content, legacy D&D, Santicore, Uncategorized

Bring on the Ordinary: Post Your Mundane Requests Here

September 27, 2012 12:03 am / 14 Comments / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

It’s been quiet around here, thanks to some gainful employment that fries my brain on a daily business. On the good side, I’ve been playing 1e fairly regularly and am helping wrangle submissions to this year’s Secret Santicore. I gotta hand it to Jez, Secret Santicore is a real crown jewel in the DIY/OSR community.

I did write one encounter for someone’s personal use (and thus didn’t blog it) and it was an unusual one for me in that there was no magic. Just the woods, an archer and a road. I purposely avoided anything fantastic as a key element of the encounter and I was quite pleased with the results.

Being one of Santicore’s helper elves also showed me where people’s minds are in terms of what they want from their D&D and I have to say this year will be pretty gonzo. With DCC and Carcosa coming out, I’m not surprised people are in a gonzo state of mind. I’m not immune–I read and want to play in DCC and appreciated Carcosa and I damn sure expect some top-notch stuff from the 2012 Santicore.

But then I’ve been playing 1e AD&D as a fighter with the New York Red Box crew. A dumb one–a pregen in a rules-as-written campaign using a Judges Guild module. And our magic user is reluctant to cast his spells, so in a lot of ways, there’s hardly any magic in this game. And I kind of like being a simple fighter.

And then I saw 13 Assassins. There has GOT to be some sort of kick-ass adventure there. And if this doesn’t make you want to break out Oriental Adventures or Legend of the Five Rings or Ruins and Ronin, you are a fool.

And then today I get my package from Sir Raggi, which had The God That Crawls and The Magnificent Joop Van Ooms, both of which are set on EARTH (thank you) and one in my favorite foreign city, Amsterdam. The God that Crawls scratches that shambling doom sort of itch, as its name should tell you. I expect I’ll give it a try. Joop does me a real solid with a wharf encounter table with only the tiniest bit of magic or the weird and more than 40 encounters that could really have happened in 1615 Amsterdam.

To make this short story long, I’m in the mood for the non-magical.  I don’t mind that most of the OSR is running solidly toward the gonzo, but I think I’m going to spend some time working out a table of brigand encounters and a dictionary of con games to run on your players. Low, low magic stuff that can be used every day and which should make your gonzo stuff stand out.

Keeping what I said above in mind, I’m going to take requests again. If you want some sort of material that is low or non-magic for your campaign, post something in the comments below. As I did last year with “Bring It”, I’ll get to it when I can, which might mean you’ll get it this year.

How is everyone doing, by the way?

Share
Posted in: commentary, content, legacy D&D, product recommendations / Tagged: bring it, dcc, lotfp wf rpg, low-magic, santicore

Random God Generator

May 23, 2012 11:53 am / 13 Comments / Chris
Print Friendly Version of this pagePrint Get a PDF version of this webpagePDF

This last post in the Bring It series of reader requests comes from Twitter (my handle = @creepingdoom). [update: I got a request in the comments yesterday, so this is penultimate. I will take a short break from reader requests to get some ideas out of my system then we’ll get back to reader requests.]

All right, Daniel (may I call you Daniel?). I hope this is useful to you.

Random God Generator for Fantasy Campaigns

(also makes saints, bodhisattvas & demigods)

Nature of Being

First, if you haven’t decided what this being is, roll for nature

Roll 1d8 Nature of Being
1 Saint
2 Avatar
3 Demigod
4 Reincarnated Emanation/Bodhisattva
5 Local Diety/Spirit
6 Titan/Being/Alien
7 Omnipotent/Omniscient
8 Personified Concept (no strictness or jealousy)

Domain

Then, you can either skip ahead to roll the Deity’s purview or you can roll here for a domain.

Roll 1d10 Deity’s Domain
1 Household
2 Household + roll again
3 Human Endeavors
4 Human Endeavers + roll again
5 Nature
6 Nature + roll again
7 Personal
8 Personal + roll again
9 Spirit
10 Spirit + roll again

Deities in the personal domain are or were living beings who either were gods/demigods/avatars or they became them after death, coronation, etc. They might not have a particular purview or they might develop one after generations of worship.

Purview

Roll d100 for a totally random purview in any domain or if you already have a domain chosen, roll 1d20 and consult columns 2 and 3. Note that some purviews are opposite sides of a coin. You can choose, flip a coin or make the same god responsible for both sides of the coin (one might pray to the goddess of slavery for freedom, for example).

Roll d100 Domain Roll 1d5 for Domain then 1d20 for Purview Purview
1 Household 1 Play
2 Household 2 Fertility/Harvest/Babies
3 Household 3 Health/Disease
4 Household 4 Hunt
5 Household 5 Hearth
6 Household 6 Doors/Household Safety
7 Household 7 Baking
8 Household 8 Wine/Beer
9 Household 9 Sewing/Weaving
10 Household 10 Wealth
11 Household 11 Household Item
12 Household 12 Food (particular)
13 Household 13 Important Commodity
14 Household 14 Male Virility
15 Household 15 Bridges/Gates/Crossing/Crossroads
16 Household 16 Fidelity/Adultery
17 Household 17 Animal Husbandry
18 Household 18 Gossip/Reputation
19 Household 19 Books/Scrolls
20 Household 20 Important Domestic Animal/Insect
21 Human Endeavors 1 Invention
22 Human Endeavors 2 War
23 Human Endeavors 3 Indulgence
24 Human Endeavors 4 Theft/Kidnapping
25 Human Endeavors 5 Travel/Hospitality to Strangers
26 Human Endeavors 6 Sailing
27 Human Endeavors 7 Building
28 Human Endeavors 8 Exploration/Adventure
29 Human Endeavors 9 Cannibalism
30 Human Endeavors 10 Honor/Justice/Vengeance
31 Human Endeavors 11 Trade/Commerce/Unexpected Windfalls
32 Human Endeavors 12 Slavery/Freedom
33 Human Endeavors 13 Learning/Ignorance
34 Human Endeavors 14 Hiding
35 Human Endeavors 15 Art/Poetry
36 Human Endeavors 16 Healing
37 Human Endeavors 17 Protector of Our People
38 Human Endeavors 18 Mining
39 Human Endeavors 19 Sport
40 Human Endeavors 20 Gambling
41 Nature 1 Animal
42 Nature 2 Mountains
43 Nature 3 Night
44 Nature 4 Oceans
45 Nature 5 Season (1d4: Spring/Summer/Autumn/Winter)
46 Nature 6 Plants/Woods
47 Nature 7 Predominant Local Climate/Weather Type
48 Nature 8 Fresh Waters
49 Nature 9 Natural Disasters
50 Nature 10 Thunder / Storms /Monsoon Season
51 Nature 11 Death/Destruction
52 Nature 12 Sun
53 Nature 13 Moon
54 Nature 14 Planet/Stars
55 Nature 15 Air
56 Nature 16 Fire
57 Nature 17 Earth
58 Nature 18 Water (all)
59 Nature 19 Natural Beauty
60 Nature 20 Decay (and rebirth)
61 Personal 1 King/Pharoah/Emperor
62 Personal 2 Queen/Empress
63 Personal 3 Consort
64 Personal 4 Parent of (roll again)
65 Personal 5 Child
66 Personal 6 Aescetic/Hermit
67 Personal 7 Bastard
68 Personal 8 Hero
69 Personal 9 Villain
70 Personal 10 Monster
71 Personal 11 Traitorous Advisor
72 Personal 12 Criminal
73 Personal 13 Folk Hero
74 Personal 14 Wise man/Wizard
75 Personal 15 Brother/Sister
76 Personal 16 Twins
77 Personal 17 General
78 Personal 18 Physician
79 Personal 19 Martyr
80 Personal 20 Roll Twice
81 Spirit 1 Wisdom
82 Spirit 2 Compassion
83 Spirit 3 Tricks
84 Spirit 4 Protection from Spirits
85 Spirit 5 Miracles
86 Spirit 6 Afterlife
87 Spirit 7 Pre-life
88 Spirit 8 Karma
89 Spirit 9 Undead
90 Spirit 10 Laughter
91 Spirit 11 Song
92 Spirit 12 Love/Sex
93 Spirit 13 Destiny/Fate
94 Spirit 14 Dreams
95 Spirit 15 Fear/Bravery
96 Spirit 16 Greed/Generosity
97 Spirit 17 Jealousy/Equanimity
98 Spirit 18 Hate/Love (non-romantic)
99 Spirit 19 Abstinance/Indulgence
100 Spirit 20 Bardo (Trial grounds between lifetimes)

Form

Roll 1d8 for appearance (if applicable). If you roll twice, combine the two (animal headed human, panther made of swords, whatever).

Roll 1d8 Form
1 Human
2 Humanoid /Demihuman / Unusual Human
3 Animal
4 Object from Nature
5 Natural Process (wind, fire, etc.)
6 Man-made Object
7 Monster
8 Roll Twice

Symbol

Roll 1d8 for a symbol. If you roll twice, there are more than one (cross and fish, tree and wheel, fire and winged man, etc.). Or combine those as well.

Roll 1d8 Symbol
1 Weapon
2 Tool/Household Object
3 Animal
4 Manmade Symbol/Letter
5 Natural Object
6 Monster
7 Body Part
8 Roll Twice

Colors

Every team needs a color or two. Roll 1d10.

Roll 1d10 Color(s)
1 Red
2 Orange
3 Yellow
4 Green
5 Blue
6 Indigo
7 Violet
8 Black
9 White
10 Roll Twice: Mix or Pattern

Offerings

This is what you have to bring to appease/propitiate the deity. Obviously roll again if the result doesn’t fit your campaign.

Roll 1d10 Offerings
1 Animal Sacrifice
2 Plants
3 Humans
4 Money
5 Work
6 Art
7 Goods/Commodities
8 Food/Water/Drink
9 Fasting/Deprivation
10 Help Others

Other Aspects

Roll 1d10 to determine other aspects of that deity on a scale of 1 to 10.

Strictness 1 = Forgiving 10 = Unforgiving
Jealousy 1 = No Proselytizing 10 = Convert the World
Opacity 1 = No Revelations 10 = Many Scriptures
Posse 1 = Random Lone believers 10 = Ecclesiatical Hierarchy

There you have it. As always, these tables are meant to inspire and you should feel free to pick and choose, ignore rolls or entire tables if you already have some ideas where you care going with this.

Any ideas for additions? Post them below.

Still reading? You must love Tables or Clerics!

Share
Posted in: content, legacy D&D / Tagged: bring it, clerics, gods, tables

Post Navigation

← Older Posts
 
Creative Commons License
This work by Rolang's Creeping Doom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Norse elves classes table magic-users halflings mundane Greek Freamon rules labyrinth lord vornheim death frost doom bring it ettin npcs gods swords and wizardry tables recess meta humor art dcc nerdnyc kids urban hydra familiar monsters religion clerics santicore spells magic items Medusa story-arc lotfp wf rpg undead zombie Metropolitan Museum classical content poison rethinking

Recent Posts

  • Santicore 2015
  • DCC Magic Items to playtest
  • Side Hustle – Bandits and a Wizard
  • Simple pleasures are the best
  • One Day Left to Get in on Santicore 2015

What People Said

  • Emmy on LotFP Illusionist Class: Please Help Me Kick the Tires
  • Chris on Side Hustle – Bandits and a Wizard
  • Powder Miner on Random God Generator
  • Len Brennan on The RPG Hydra
  • Chris on Random Hermit Generator

Suggested Reading

  • Ancient Vaults & Eldritch Secrets
  • Blog of Holding
  • Dreams of Mythic Fantasy
  • Giblet Blizzard
  • Grognardia
  • Jeff's Gameblog
  • Lamentations of the Flame Princess
  • Lord Kilgore
  • Old Guard Gaming Accoutrements
  • Planet Algol
  • Playing D&D with Porn Stars
  • Sea of Stars
  • Swords & Wizardry
  • Swords and Dorkery
  • The Mule Abides
  • The Society of Torch, Pole and Rope
© Copyright 2021 - Rolang's Creeping Doom
Infinity Theme by DesignCoral / WordPress