Another Set Piece for the Dungeon

I just finished mapping up another set piece for the dungeon, and I think most players will like how I mixed a pair of RPG and myth tropes to get something a little different and potentially terrifying. This set piece is all about ambiance, but that foreboding atmosphere will be backed up with one heck of a level boss.

This time around, I'm trying to make heavy use of the environment, which direction doors open, locked versus unlocked doors, and a general degree of creepiness to keep the players on edge, catch them off guard, and ultimately hit them hard with a single monster that will use the environment to its full advantage.

Granted, a typical GURPS party is horribly deadly when facing a single opponent, but that's where the environment comes in. The players will have their mobility noticeably limited, with any mistake in movement resulting in the sort of debilitating condition that can ravage defenses and leave a PC helpless at a critical moment. I'm piling on top of this doors that open in specific directions and locked doors to make running away more difficult, unless they specifically prepare a path of retreat as they advance.

My hope is that these two things will combine to make for the sort of encounter my players will talk about with horror and gratification (once they get past it!) for years to come.

What sort of things have you done in your games to make a single monster actually effective against a well-prepared party?

A Monster a Day Part II

I've been trying to keep up this pace, but I've slowed down. I honestly don't know how Enraged Eggplant does it over at Generic Universal Eggplant. Making a monsters, crosschecking rules, checking sources, and fitting them to the setting has proven more time consuming than originally anticipated, but still, I have produced about twenty new monsters since I started. I'm hoping to maintain that pace for another month or so, or at least until I have a few areas mapped out.

On the upside, I have statted up 14 mephits and a variety of demons and undead, so there is that. I need to work on some not-so-supernatural baddies, too. I have some ideas for the inhabitants of the local forests and their link to the Abbey, so I'm guessing they'll be next.

The Mephit to My Madness

I like mephits. I don't know why, but I just do. They're impish little elementals with a nasty disposition who, if used effectively, can either be a real nuisance or downright deadly in a mixed group. Also, they're elementals, and I like elementals. So it probably comes as little surprise that I am writing up and planning to include the little buggers in my dungeons.

Now, I could post my write-ups, and I may just do that at some point, but today, I'm going to take a different tack. Today, I'm going to explain how mephits fit into my vision of the world.

Mephits are small, weak-minded, dimwitted elementals that faun over their masters in an attempt to ingratiate themselves to the most powerful entity in the room. This is their form of social climbing, since a big, powerful master means a big, powerful protector - not that any mephit would admit to needing protection!

Of course, this also means that larger foes may well have these winged nuisances on hand when adventures encounter them. This does not bode well for adventurers. In combat, mephits are masters of the hit-and-run. They make good use of their flight to stay out of range and use their elemental powers to inconvenience, if not incapacitate, adventurers. On their own, this is annoying, but when a big honkin' demon is trying to make macrame place settings from your entrails, things can go south really quickly.

And speaking of demons, I'm starting to flesh out four of their lords. They don't have scary-sounding, difficult-to-pronounce names yet, just epithets as working names. But these guys don't just use other demons as pawns. They command undead, elementals, and some mortal abominations, too. So is it any surprise that they have mephits in their employ? It shouldn't be!

Now if there is one thing most people know about mephits, it's that their variety is staggering. Elementals came in four (maybe five, if you prefer Chinese- or Vedic-inspired fantasy) flavors - Air, Earth, Water, and Fire. There are around a dozen published mephit types. I am maintaining that tradition by including the following list of mephits: Air, Ash, Dust, Earth, Fire, Ice, Lightning, Magma, Mist, Salt, Slime, Steam, and Water. And since that picture was labeled "Shadow Mephit", I think I'll add that in, too. That's a lot of mephit variety, but it suits these guys. And with their association with demons, I think variety is completely appropriate.

What have you done with mephits in your games?

A Monster a Day...

Mapping this abbey has made me realize how few demons I have statted up at present. To that end, I have done a little work on developing a couple of demon lords and am working on the kinds of demons, spirits, and undead they command. So far, I've already beefed up my list a little and am trying to maintain a pace of one to two monsters a day until I feel comfortable stocking a dungeon thematically.

A nice side benefit is that I'm accruing some Hidden Lore (Demons) and Hidden Lore (Undead) information that players might discover depending on what they investigate. Of course, even if they don't look into such things, it will provide a structure that should provide that much-needed cohesion amidst gobs of otherwise desperate monsters. I know funhouse dungeons are a staple in the genre, but I prefer there to be more internal logic. It helps maintain an ambiance.

What sort of background do you use to help seat your monsters in the worlds you create? Do they just exist on a whim or do they have deeper origins?

Monster Lists & Mapping

As everyone who has read this blog for any time knows, my system of choice is GURPS, mostly out of laziness. Yes laziness. GURPS can handle any play style and genre pretty well, even if specialized systems might potentially outshine it on a case-by-case scenario. So what that means for me is that, while I might not get optimal performance for each genre I enjoy, I only need to know one system. That is valuable to me. It doesn't hurt that GURPS handles my two favorite genres pretty well, too!

This post isn't a plug for GURPS, though, so I'll get to the point. I use GURPS. I am lazy. These are sometimes at odds. GURPS does not have a dedicated bestiary in the way that Dungeons & Dragons does. There's no single book I can open and get my hands on hundreds of premade monsters. Sure, Dungeon Fantasy has four books of monsters, now, and I use them, but two are toolkits for making specific types of monsters - oozes and dragons, and the other two have 60 monsters combined, at most. My point here is that as a GM, if I want monsters, I very regularly have to make them myself.

Of course, I've been doing this for a while and have my own repository of monsters at this point. I've even posted some of them on this blog. So that helps, but that doesn't mean I always have the monsters I need on hand when I start placing them on maps. So this is what I do.

As I map, I jot down notes of what goes where and keep a running list of every monster I've placed. This includes different flavors - e.g., Goblin Archer, Goblin Mook, Goblin Priest, Goblin Fighter, Goblin Kamikaze (don't ask), etc. I also jot down monsters with affix combinations - e.g., Possessed Berserk Killer Minotaur of the Juggernaut and such. Some of these will eventually turn into monsters in and of themselves. Lastly, I jot down any monsters that might be traps or traps that might be monsters. Sometimes there are gray areas.

This list becomes my To Do List for monster creation. Anything that doesn't come in flavors or with affixes are just base monsters. Those that have flavors get a base monster and then flavors built on those base monsters. The same goes for monsters with affixes. Finally, those that blur the lines with traps get a final sorting at this stage, and those that make the monster cut get statted. Usually, inspiration or tangents grab me during this process and spawn a few other monsters for the ever-growing folder of That-Which-Paper-Men-Were-Not-Meant-to-Survive.

So if you're mapping and have an idea for a monster, jot it down on a list. Keep that list handy. It's nice to know what's in your dungeon or wilderness area. It's also nice to have a ready-made list of stuff to do when you find some down time.

Goblins

Goblin

These man-sized faeries are known for their ugly appearance and brutish behavior. They have dull grey-green, wart-covered flesh, long and misshaped ears, a porcine nose, and sharp pointed teeth, bilious eyes, and are completely devoid of hair. The height of a man, most goblins have extremely bad posture that makes them appear shorter than they actually are.

Goblins are unfortunately common in dark, foreboding places, and prefer to hole up near human settlements. This gives them better access to prey and loot, and the pervasive superstitions surrounding anything fae-touched reduces reciprocity from the locals. In thankfully rare circumstances, massive hordes of goblins have been known to gather before going on grand hunts. These are usually called by nigh deific Sidh kings and queens, but sometimes arise in a manner similar to sharks entering a frenzy.

Individual goblins are not much more dangerous than a typical human warrior, but they are virtually unaffected by darkness and are possessed of a cruel streak. And most people are lucky to encounter an individual goblin, because goblins are every bit as canny as any person. They can and do sneak around, use tactics, evaluate situations, and use every opportunity to their advantage before, during, and after a fight.

Gnolls (Starfall)

I posted my concept of gnolls two or three years ago, but they've changed a little for Starfall. So today, I present their updated statistics, as they are believed to be by the general population of Starfall, and specifically, Alnwich.

The gnoll presented here is a typical gnoll with no special training or adventuring experience to hone its deadliness. This is not a normal state of existence for gnolls and probably represents a juvenile or new recruit.

Pegasus

Pegasi are majestic winged horses akin to coursers in size and speed. Their tremendous eagle-like wings allow pegasi to soar through the sky or dive in fast swoops. If threatened, a pegasus will take to the air and fly away. Pegasi are rare creatures who inhabit high altitude plateaus – the more inaccessible, the better.

Wyvern, Young Adult

Today I offer up my take on the classic wyvern. These are massive beasts have enormous wings, powerful muscles, and breathe fire, but they aren't the intelligent dragons of Lord of the Rings or D&D. These are animalistic monstrosities that carry off cattle to devour in their mountain eyries. That is, I suppose, a kindness to those seeking to slay them.

One other big difference between the classic dragon and perhaps a bit of a pedantic note, wyverns, while dragon-like, have only four limbs - two hind legs and two wings. This is an implicit assumption in this and any other creatures in the sphere of that which is dragon. So without further ado, here's a young adult wyvern:

Malk

Malks are horrific faerie mockeries of grayish-white tigers with overly-fluffy tails and a raspy growl. They are cruel, intelligent, ferocious, and completely given to the power of the Winter Court. Like more mundane cats, they enjoy playing with their food, and will often torture hapless adventurers into madness before finally consuming them.

The malk are sometimes called displacer beasts because of the preternatural illusions that impregnate its fur. Anyone who tries to actively find or aim at a malk almost always finds himself pointed in the wrong direction. This is purely the result of an illusion; the beast was never where he thought it was in the first place. If this isn’t bad enough, malks can fade from sight and move in complete silence. These two abilities make them consummate hunters and brutal predators.

Cateblepas

This sorry-looking faerie beast resembles an auroch or wisent, but with an elongated neck and oversized head, the sheer weight of which seems an onus the creature simply cannot bear. Some believe they are the result of an ancient hag’s curse, but such stories are hardly worth the air spent telling them. In any case, they are gentle creatures who prefer the desolation of swamps and bogs where they can relax partially submerged in the still waters in solitude. If threatened or spooked, it will exude a noxious cloud that rapidly turns anyone caught within it to stone.

Bulette

These heavily armored nightmares combine the most horrid characteristics of wolverines, sharks, and armadillos. They burrow through the earth hunting anything the sheep-size or larger underground or above ground. When stalking terrestrial prey, a bulette will burrow beneath its prey and then burst through the earth beneath its feet with maw gaping. This almost always catches its prey by surprise. Fortunately, however, bulettes are solitary creatures and generally hunt alone.

Ankheg

Ankhegs are giant burrowing insects that can grow as long as nine feet. They usually hunt along by burrowing undergrown and waiting for unsuspecting prey to walk overhead before bursting from the earth and attacking with fangs dripping with acid. This usually catches its quarry by surprise. When threatened, ankhegs will spray acid from glands in its mouth in an attempt to blind its attackers before fleeing underground.

Update to Monster Template

I have been thinking a bit about other information that would be useful to include in my monster template, and I noticed I missed a couple of things.

Colossal Monstrous Moth

Monstrous moths are strange creatures of unearthly beauty and grotesque size. They usually inhabit forests and large caverns where they can fly out of reach of prey while stunning them with their beauty and cooking them with their burning beams of light. When not hunting, they can shed light at will, and are often seen dancing in the night sky like the aurora.

Shocker Lizard

CER 14 (OR 8 and PR 6)

Everyone’s hair stood on and as they approached the green reptile. Arcs of bluish-white light dances across its skin. Thankfully there was only one, or things would get hairy fast.

A three-foot long lizard with bright green scales and a yellow underbelly, the shocker lizard is a unique and frightening predator. It gets its name from its ability to discharge an electrical shock that can stun or kill prey. Alone, they are a nuisance, but a nest of shocker lizards rapidly grows to pose a lethal threat to any party!

Ents

With a creaking, cracking gate, the animate oak strode forward at an easy pace. It seemed little worried about the dozen gnolls arrayed before it, and hardly noticed their arrows. But once one buried its axe in the ent’s thick bark, the treebeast croaked with rage and sent the loathsome fae sailing through the air with a single swipe of a branch.

Ents are ambulatory, sapient trees who tend the most ancient forests.  They serve as gardeners and wardens, although they rarely pay any heed to any member of the animal kingdom unless a reasonable threat is posed.  Ancient by mortal standards, ents are extremely slow to action, do things slowly, and are very slow to embark on any endeavor.  Only a threat to the forest can readily mobilize the local ent population with any degree of rapidity, and "rapid" for an ent can take weeks.

Wraith

CER 106 (OR 27 and PR 79)

Tendrils of cold, cloying darkness crawled from the shadows and snuffed the life from every candle in the room. The four travelers huddled together, back to back, and prepared for the wraith’s assault.

Wraiths are partially incorporeal undead that boarder on the demonic.  Little more than shadowy, animated hatred, they haunt the darkness of night seeking to drain the life from those they encounter, and when they succeed, their victim, tainted by the wraith's intense loathing of life, becomes twisted into a mirror of his executioner's – a weaker wraith serving its creator.

ST: 14                                                     HP: 15                                                   Speed: 6.00

DX: 12                                                    Will: 15                                                  Air Move: 12

IQ: 10                                                     Per: 12

HT: 12                                                    FP: N/A                                                  SM: 0

Dodge: 10                                              Parry: N/A                                              DR: 0

Punch (15): 1d(0.5) crushing + linked Life Drain (see below).  Reach C.

Life Drain (15): 3d+2 months of life drained per second.  Reach C.  This can only follow a successful grapple – often a choke hold (see Strangle Hold below).

Strangle Hold (12): On a successful attack, the wraith grapples his victim's neck.  On the victim's next turn, he may attempt to break free; the wraith is at +5 in this Quick Contest for using two hands.  On the wraith's next turn – and each turn thereafter, until its prey breaks free – it may strangle.  Roll a Quick Contest of the wraith's ST+3 vs. the victim's HT.  If the wraith wins, its victim takes crushing damage equal to its margin of victory.  DR protects normally, but multiply injury to the neck by 1.5.  If any damage – even blunt trauma – penetrates the victim's DR, you also start to suffocate him.  On his next turn and every subsequent turn until he escapes, he loses 1 FP; see Suffocation (B436).

Terror (Will-3): When a wraith moans or screams menacingly, anyone who hears it must make a Fright Check at -3.

Aura of Hopelessness: Anyone who fails a Fright Check in the wraith’s presence suffers -3 to all rolls. Every turn, the victim rolls against Will at a penalty equal to his margin of failure on the triggering Fright Check; on a success, he snaps out of his self-doubt.

Firebane: Wraiths suck the energy out of the area around them. Within two yards, candles are extinguished, torches burn as candles, and campfires burn as torches, and bonfires burn as campfires.

Light Weakness: Wraiths take quadruple damage from light attacks, 1d injury/minute from direct, natural sunlight, and lose their ability to interact with the physical world in any lighting conditions that impose a Vision penalty between +0 to -4.

Shadow Body: Wraiths are composed of partially insubstantial shadowstuff.  They can flow through any opening like a vapor; flight through the night air; take only 1 point of damage from impaling and piercing attacks and 2 points from all other non-area attacks.

Traits: Bloodlust (9); Callous; Can Be Turned by True Faith; Combat Reflexes; Darkvision; Desecrator; Detect (All Life; Precise); Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink; Doesn’t Sleep; Dominance; Dread (Sunlight; 1 yard); Flight; Fragile (Unnatural); Frightens Animals; High Pain Threshold; Immune to Metabolic Hazards; Indomitable; Injury Tolerance (Diffuse; Infiltration); Insubstantial (Accessibility, Not in Darkness less than -4; Affect Substantial; Always On); Intolerance (The Living); Lifebane; No Legs (Aerial); Obscure 5 (Vision; Area Effect, 2 yards; Defensive; Emanation); See Invisible (Ghosts); Temperature Control 5 (Cold; Emanation); Uncontrollable Appetite (Life Force) (9); Unfazeable; Unkillable 3 (Achilles’ Heel, Sunlight).

Features: Affected as Evil; Affected as Dead; Functions and Detects as Evil.

Skills: Brawling-15; Hidden Lore (Undead)-10; Intimidate-15; Stealth-22; Wrestling-14.

Notes: Wraiths can speak and may be willing to negotiate, but rarely bother to. They often know much about other wraiths, if not undeath in general. A wraith's spawn usually have the same stats as its parent, with -2 ST.

Peryton

CER 57 (OR 42 and PR 15)

A loud snorting sniff rang through the treetops. Jack heard the scuffle of rabbits and squirrels running for their dens. Another sniff, closer this time, sent the boar he was stalking into a startled retreat. Then with a swift stoop, the peryton struck Jack, grabbed him by the belly and thigh, and lifted the boy into the air.

Perytons are omnivorous beasts with the front half of a stag and the back half of a bird. They are fleet of foot and swift of wing, often taking to flight when startled. Perytons supplement their largely herbivorous diet with protein from small deer, lambs, and other mid-sized mammals. They have been known to take children when

ST: 18                                                     HP: 18                                                    Speed: 6.00

DX: 13                                                    Will: 10                                                  Ground Move: 7/14

IQ: 4                                                       Per: 12                                                   Air Speed: 14/28

HT: 11                                                    FP: 11                                                     SM: 1 (4.5 feet)

Dodge: 10                                             Parry: N/A                                             DR: 2 (Tough Skin)

Bite (14): 1d crushing. Reach C

Hooves (14): 1d+2 crushing. Reach C, 1.

Talons (14): 1d+2 cutting or impaling. Reach C.

Antlers (14): 1d+4 impaling. Reach C, 1.

Traits: Bad Sight 4 (Motion Sensitive); Bad Temper (12); Discriminatory Smell; Flight (Cannot Hover, Winged); Night Vision 6; Panic (12); Parabolic Hearing 2; Perfect Balance; Peripheral Vision; Quadruped; Temperature Tolerance 1 (Cold); Terrain Adaptation (Undergrowth); Ultrahearing; Wild Animal.

Skills: Brawling-14; Intimidation-10; Jumping-12; Stealth-12; Swimming-11; Wrestling-14.

Encumbrance: None 64.8 lbs.; Light 129.6 lbs.; Medium 194.4 lbs.; Heavy 388.8 lbs.; Very Heavy 648 lbs.

Nymphs Part 4: Water Nymphs

The crystal clear water of the icy pool shimmered and rippled in the still air of the morning. Gradually, the ripples grew in an upward undulation that formed shapely calves, then thighs, and eventually a fully formed woman of surpassing beauty.

Nymphs are loci geniuses that inhabit various natural places. While similar to what are sometimes called “fae”, they more closely resemble elementals of a specific locale. They are inherently tied to the location they inhabit; indeed, their very existence depends on the wellbeing of the environment. And they defend it vehemently.

All nymphs exercise a measure of control over their homes and use this, in combination with their preternatural beauty to ward off attacks. Their beauty is terrible and captivating, and they use this mercilessly to their advantage.

As dangerous as nymphs can be, they are excellent sources of information on the area in which they dwell, and if befriended, they make powerful allies. However, their legendary shyness makes this difficult, and their sadistic impulses make it doubly dangerous!

Water Nymph

CER 68 (OR 26 and PR 42)

Water nymphs are spirits of place associated with bodies of fresh water. They are closely attached to springs, lakes, rivers, etc. and may not stray more than a short distance from their home without becoming seriously ill. They defend their homes fiercely by luring those who threaten it to a watery death. Some water nymphs are experienced mages, but most are simply guardians. All command great knowledge about their environment.

ST: 8                                                       HP: 8                                                      Speed: 6.00

DX: 12                                                    Will: 10                                                  Ground Move: 6

IQ: 10                                                     Per: 11                                                   Water Move: 6

HT: 12                                                    FP: 12                                                     SM: 0

Dodge: 9                                                Parry: 10 (Unarmed)                           DR: 0

Punch (14): 1d-2 crushing. Reach C.

Animated Environment: Water nymphs can animate the environment around them to grapple (Binding or Telekinesis) intruders with ST 10 or strike at them (1d crushing or impaling) with branches and bushes near the shore.

Intoxicating Beauty (Resisted at Will): Anyone within 16 yards of a nymph who can see her must make a Will roll or gain the Lecherousness (12) disadvantage for a number of minutes equal to their margin of failure.

Kiss of Death (Resisted at HT): A corporeal nymph can kiss a foe (roll against 14) and send him into unearthly ecstasy (see p. B428) if he fails his HT roll – assuming he even wants to resist – that lasts minutes equal to his margin of failure.  Even if he does not resist, the roll must be made, because any failure by 5 or more results in him suffering a heart attack (see p. B4249).

Stunning Beauty: By striking even the slightest pose, anyone who sees her must make a Fright Check at -5 and roll on the Awe table.

Threshold Entity: This being doesn’t breathe, drink, eat, or sleep, is immune to metabolic hazards, and is either insubstantial and invisible or substantial and visible.

Traits: Acute Hearing 1; Appearance (Transcendent; Universal); Berserk (9) (Special Trigger, harming the wilderness); Callous; Can Be Turned with True Faith; Curious (15); Dependency (Home Lake or Spring; Daily); Dislikes Loud Noises; Divine Curse (Keep to the letter of any promise); Fearlessness 2; Higher Purpose (Protect Home Spring); Impulsive (12); Odious Personal Habit -1 (Capricious); Sadism (15); Sense of Duty (Home Spring); Shyness (Mild); Terrain Adaptation (Water and Wetlands); Unaging; Vulnerability (Iron x2).

Features: Affected as Spirit.

Skills: Area Knowledge (Local)-12; Brawling-14; Camouflage-12; Intimidation-17; Naturalist-12; Sex Appeal-17; Stealth-14; Swimming-14; Wrestling-14.

Notes: Most nymphs won't negotiate because they are too shy.  Those who do are amiable enough, but dealing with such an astounding beauty is often disconcerting – especially while under the effect of her intoxicating beauty (see above).  Always scars from wounds inflicted by iron.