But for all the Company knows, and they know quite a bit, their are still things that are mysterious to them. So if they cannot figure things out, what chance do an isolated group of Those who Know have? And in truth, neither of them have a very good chance. The world is full of mysteries, unexplained happenings, and generally oddity. For every fact you learn, you get two free questions. And this applies most heavily to the other inhabitants of our world.
Their are monsters that stubbornly refuse easy classification, and straddle the line or actively play jump rope with it. This is some notes on one of those things monsters.
The Telly-Heads
They look like Humans, but with Televisions for heads. Their Televisions never display faces, but quickly flash through images to communicate their emotions. They are bad liars, because of this. The exception to this is when they are fighting, where they lose focus on their screens, so the screens tend to fixed on an action scene from a movie or a real film of someone fighting, taken straight off Liveleak or World Star Hip Hop. But while they may ape some aspects of humanity, they do not borrow others. They do not seem to eat or rest, and when injured, they bleed mercury.
They come in three varieties, Vacuum Tubers, LCDers, and 4Kites.
Vacuum Tubers
HD 6 AC 12 Fists 1d6
Mor 10 Saves 12+
Influence: A Telly-Head can play something on the televison that functions as its head. This doesn't affect its ability to see. As an action, they can roll on the Random Channel table and then play whatever the result is. Anyone who sees it must save or suffer the effect. You can cover one eye (-2 to hit, -2 AC) to give yourself a bonus (-2) to your save. Closing both eyes doubles both sets of numbers, increasing it to (-4 to hit, -4 AC) but makes you immune.
To determine what a Telly-Head can play on its head, roll on the Random Channel for the appropriate type of Telly-Head. For Vacuum Tubers, roll 1d6. For LCDers and 4kites, roll 1d12. Additionally, all Telly-Heads can switch to the same channel as another Telly-Head, unless that is an ability specific to that type of Telly-Head, such as the Influencing Machine Channel.
Indestructible Screen: All attempts to break the television screen will fail. Blades slide off, bullets bounce off, and your fists hurt like you just bunched an unbreakable piece of glass.
Bunny Ears: The Vacuum Tubes have antennae on top of their heads. Hitting these requires an attack roll of 16. If you do hit them, the Telly-Head cannot influence, and gets -4 to hit until it takes an action to straighten out the antennae.
- Pair off with an opponent
- Don't influence if you don't need to
- Always respect an honorable fighter
The oldest type of Telly-Head. Have a limited number of channels. Have antennae that if knocked loose, they don't work properly. They're also the roughest and toughest of all the Telly-Heads, with unbreakable glass screens and the most HD of all varieties. However, they are very finicky and annoying to talk to. They're too old to give a shit about anything anymore, but if you're rude to them, they'll kick your ass. Act like grumpy old people, constantly talk about the, largely imaginary, "good ole days", quaint and old fashioned, but they have a stubborn pride that means they won't take an insult sitting down. Pretty racist as well. Most likely to cause problems just by being in the way, but can take malicious actions. Sometimes accompany their younger kin.
LCDers
HD 4 AC 12 Fists 1d6
Mor 8 Saves 12+
Influence: A Telly-Head can play something on the televison that functions as its head. This doesn't affect its ability to see. As an action, they can roll on the Random Channel table and then play whatever the result is. Anyone who sees it must save or suffer the effect. You can cover one eye (-2 to hit, -2 AC) to give yourself a bonus (-2) to your save. Closing both eyes doubles both sets of numbers, increasing it to (-4 to hit, -4 AC) but makes you immune.
To determine what a Telly-Head can play on its head, roll on the Random Channel for the appropriate type of Telly-Head. For Vacuum Tubers, roll 1d6. For LCDers and 4kites, roll 1d12. Additionally, all Telly-Heads can switch to the same channel as another Telly-Head, unless that is an ability specific to that type of Telly-Head, such as the Influencing Machine Channel.
Breakable Screen: If an LCD Telly-Head's screen is broken, they die instantly and dramatically. However, anyone trapped inside their screen will die as well. The Screen has an AC of 17 and 8 HP.
Influencing Machine: The LCD Telly-Head, as an action, can target someone who has already failed a save to resist being influenced. This person is then sucked inside the screen, where they occupy whatever the Telly-Head currently has on screen. They cannot see outside the screen, and whatever is on the screen will be real to them. You can see them in whatever the Telly-Head is playing, if they are tuned to a news broadcast they will be standing somewhere in the studio, if they are in a zombie movie they will likely be one of extras running for their lives, etc.
If no one has failed a save, it can turn to the Influencing Machine Channel.
- Work together to isolate weaker opponents
- Use Influence on stronger ones
- Run if things get too bad
These ones are slightly younger than the Vacuum Tubers. They have no need for antennae, but unlike the Vacuum Tubers, their screen is breakable. They have more channels and more power to influence. Additionally, they can suck people into their screens, not merely entrance them.
In personality, they act like a bunch of worried corporate executives, desperate and jealous and bitter at being passed over. They have a very large amount of nostolgia for the 90s, and think everything has been going downhill since then. They hate the internet and anything associated with it. Additionally, they will pretend to be morally upstanding, but they secretly love carnage and death.
4Kites
HD 4 AC 12 Fists 1d6
Mor 6 Saves 12+
Influence: A Telly-Head can play something on the televison that functions as its head. This doesn't affect its ability to see. As an action, they can roll on the Random Channel table and then play whatever the result is. Anyone who sees it must save or suffer the effect. You can cover one eye (-2 to hit, -2 AC) to give yourself a bonus (-2) to your save. Closing both eyes doubles both sets of numbers, increasing it to (-4 to hit, -4 AC) but makes you immune.
To determine what a Telly-Head can play on its head, roll on the Random Channel for the appropriate type of Telly-Head. For Vacuum Tubers, roll 1d6. For LCDers and 4kites, roll 1d12. Additionally, all Telly-Heads can switch to the same channel as another Telly-Head, unless that is an ability specific to that type of Telly-Head, such as the Influencing Machine Channel.
Plug-in: If a 4K Telly-Head can plug itself into a wall outlet, it can roll on the I reject your Reality Table, and make whatever it rolls real, as long as it is plugged in. If it is unplugged or the Telly-Head killed, then whatever was projected into our reality ceases to be real.
- Plug yourself in and roll on the I reject your Reality table
- Stay out of Melee Combat
- Run if you are going to lose
Random Channel Table:
1d6/1d12
1- Corny old sitcom. Make a WIS save. On a failure, you cannot swear, not attack anyone or doing anything unpleasant. This lasts as long as the Channel is playing, or until the Telly-Head attacks you or someone else who is charmed.
2- Cowboy Movie. Make a Charisma save. On a failure, all those who did fail will want to fight the Telly-Head one on one. "Draw, let's see who is the fastest gun in the west." Those who failed will fight amongst themselves for that honor.
3- Commercial. Make an EGO/INT save or be convinced that whatever you just saw advertised was the best thing ever, and will try to pay for it. If you have money, you will give it to the Telly-Head, and the item will appear in your hand. If you don't have any money, you can pay in Hit Points. Start from FS. 1 Hit Points equals 100 dollars. All items are 1d6*100 dollars. See Sub-table A for what you just bought, and Sub-table B for how accurate the advertising was.
4- Sermon. If your character is a Christian, then they will be reassured and regain 1d6 FS. If they are not, then they must save vs fear or be hesitant to fight. Every round they hear the sermon, if they failed their save, they take 1d6 Cha damage. When this exceeds or equals their Charisma score, they will flee. From now on, they will be terrified of churches, crosses and priests as they are reminders of what punishment awakens wicked ones after death (and they beleive they are wicked). They will have nightmares about hell for 1d6 days after this, and then occasionally for the rest of their life.
5- Technical Difficulties. When the Telly-Head plays this, all machines that are not magical in the area begin malfunctioning. Cars will not start, guns jam or misfire, elevators arrive too late, etc.
6- Killing Noise. Sounds like TV static, but when you listen, you start seeing flecks of static in your vision. When you first see this, you must make a DEX save. On a failure, you get -1 to hit per round you listen to the Telly-Head. The static flecks go away at a rate of 1 per hour, but they stack.
7- Lullaby. All who hear this must make a Con save. On a failure, they take 1d6 STR damage each round they do not have both eyes shut. If this STR damage ever equals or exceeds your STR score, you fall asleep for 1d8 hours. Someone screaming at you, slapping you, poking you with a sharp object or etc gives you a save to wake up. without both eyes
8- Old Cartoons. All who see this must make a Wis save. On a failure, they start hallucinating. Everyone who fails this save will see the same hallucinations.
9- An old Christmas Movie. It fills you with nostalgia. CHA save. On a failure, you must do what you did last round. Closing your eyes means you do not have to keep repeating your actions, but if you failed your first save, you need both of them closed not to repeat yourself.
10- Music Video. Everyone who sees this must start dancing, no save. All LCD Telly-Heads are adept dancers, and will be largely unaffected by this. However, for everyone, they get -4 to attack and AC until they learn how to weave their movements into their dance. They can do this by making a free DEX check at the beginning of each turn, with the DC equal to 20-their Dexterity score. On a success, they reduce the penalty by 1, to -3, -2, -1, and -0.
11- Scary Movie. STR save or on a failure, find yourself unable to attack with your usual ferocity (-4 damage). Also, if you have anyone who can cast spells and failed their save watching the Telly-Head, then there is a X-i-6 chance that whatever horrible thing depicted on screen becomes real, and tears its way into our reality. X equals the number of spellcasters (Alices, Problems, and Agents of API count as spellcasters for our purposes).
12- Animal Planet. Make a Cha save. On a failure, you start receiving subliminal messages that you are turning into an animal. The programming playing will usually determine what kind of animal you turn into, but the Telly-Head will usually tune to something not dangerous, like a documentary on whales or beetles. However, the DM should note that the players are not actually turning into animals, they merely think they are if they failed their save. Anyone who passed their save realizes they are not. However, telling them will not make them believe otherwise.
Influencing Machine Channel: When you see this one, you get no save. It looks like a blank white set. For every round spent with any amount of eyes open takes 1d6 CON damage. If this damage equals or exceeds someone's CON score, they are sucked into the Telly-Head's screen as Influencing Machine.
Sub-table A:
What is this commercial selling?
1d6
1- Delicious Food!
2- A minor magic item.
3- A blessed charm that will protect against evil.
4- Insurance. If the policy was legit, 1d10*1000 dollars in the form of a check is sent to a member of the party if you died.
5- Transportation. If it was legit, you will find a ride nearby, an envelope with your name written on it tucked under the windshield wipers. The keys are in their, along with any other documentation you'd need for the vehicle to be legal. Can be anything from a car to a taxi company.
6- Whatever you need. If the players need something, a specific macguffin or want something, then the Telly-Head will be advertising that. This one has a variable price, it can anything the DM feels appropriate.
Sub-table B:
Was it bullshit?
1d6
1: Yes. It doesn't work at all.
2: Mostly. This items works at 5 to 10% of the promised quality.
3-5: As advertised.
6: It works way better than the commercial said it would.
I reject your Reality table:
1d10
1- Explosion. Makes a 3d6 fireball, save for half.
2- Face the bloodshed. Summons some creatuers loyal to the 4K Telly-Head. Roll 1d6 to find out what was summoned. [1= 1d10 Zombies. 2 HD, AC 8, Attack at +0, fists 1d6; 2= 1d8 Medieval Knights. 1 HD, AC 15 Attack at +1, swords 1d6+2; 3= 1d6 World War II era Soldiers. 1 HD, AC 12, rifle 2d8; 4= 1d4 Hollywood Vampires. 1d4 HD, AC 13, attack at +2, Claws and teeth 1d8; 5= Some Big Movie Monster. 1d4+2 HD, AC 10, attack at +4, 1d12 bite; 6= Action Movie Hero. 1d6+2 HD, AC 14, attack at +6, weapon 1d8].
3- Battle scene. Does 2d6 damage at first, save for half, then 1d6 damage a round as blows and projectiles fly out of the screen and slam into those who are in 30' cone. Closing your eyes does not stop you from being hurt.
4- From the Hubble Telescope. The 4K Telly-Head's screen suddenly becomes an entrance to the void and starts sucking everything in. Make a STR save. If you fail, you are sucked through and dumped into the upper atmosphere, thousands of feet up. But even if you fail a save, you get one last action to do something before you are sucked through.
5- Perspective Trick. This channel reverses gravity. The floor suddenly becomes the ceiling, and vice versa. Everyone suddenly falls toward the sky. Hopefully you're indoors.
6- Car Chase. A car flies through the screen and at one unlucky individual. This is difficult to aim, so the the Telly-Head makes this attack at -4. Does 3d6 damage on a hit, also you're stuck under a car.
7- Lawrence of Arabia. A massive sandstorm floods the area, 100' if outdoors, or enough to fill the space you're in. Visibility drops to 5', and you get -4 to hit. Additionally, doing anything difficult or precise may be made harder, DM's discretion.
8- Paranoia. The 4K Telly-Head says something mysterious or ominous and vanishes. Then you start hearing strange noises coming from a different part of the building/dungeon. Sounds you could here include but are not limited to: footsteps, guns cocking, growling, sniffing, gurgling stomachs, sharpening of knives, etc. However, this is all an illusion. The Telly-Head is actually where it once was a second ago, and the sounds are just its way of either getting away, or getting in a free backstab. 9- Darkness. Pitch black. Absolute darkness. The darkness of a cave a half mile underground and your flashlight just died. You cannot see. Even infravision or darkvision or any other type of magical vision cannot pierce this darkness.
10- Noah's Flood. A jet of water as strong as a fire hose begins blasting out of the Telly-Head's screen. Does 1d8 damage on a hit, but you subtract your armor from it. So if your AC is 16, 1d8-6. Also, anyone hit by it must save or be knocked prone. Additionally, the amount of water that can come out is practically unlimited, so if you're underground or if circumstances permit it, the Telly-Head may try and fill up the area and drown you. It doesn't need to breathe.
No comments:
Post a Comment