Saturday, June 29, 2019

OSR: The Servants of Chaos

In Nukaria, alignment and morality are objective.  We can discuss Good and Evil some other time.  For now, let us discuss the other axis on the Nukarian alignment chart, Law vs. Chaos.

As defined before in this post, Law represents a series of beliefs and practices most succinctly defined as "the belief that rules, whether they be laws, customs or traditions, are generally Good."  Law produces things like organization, obedience, hierarchy, order, tradition, government, statutes, constitutions and etc.  It is a stabilizing, organizing force.  This need not be good organization, though.  Law can produce tyrannies as easily as it can produce peace and tranquility.

Chaos, on the other hand, is a series of beliefs that can most succinctly be defined as "the belief that rules are generally bad."  Chaos believes in freedom, liberation, the reformation or outright abolition of various harmful structures.  It is a force of creativity, vitality and regeneration.  However, chaos is like fire.  Unshackled, it can easily consume everything and leave behind nothing but a wasteland.

We will be discussing those who follow the latter philosophy in this post.

                                                      by WickedStar

The First Commandment

The only thing all servants of Chaos agree on is that the First and greatest edict of Chaos is 'Do as thou wilt'.  For them, that is the whole of the Law.  Anything beyond that is negotiable.  Some servants of Chaos say that the true servants of Chaos do not allow their freedom to be taken, but also do not impose their will on anyone else.  Others disagree severely, claiming that the only true path to Chaos requires everyone to follow the Path of Chaos, and often their specific ideology of what "True Chaos" or "True Freedom" is.

To put it mildly, there is a vast breadth of disagreement and debate within the Servants of Chaos.

Hired Hands

We will discuss this more later.  First, let me talk briefly about the accidental servants of chaos, the so-called "Hired Hands".  These are the individuals or groups who are not directly aligned with the cause of Chaos, yet sometimes work in concert with the true Servants.  Whenever there is a major incursion or operation by Chaos, one or more of these groups can often be found nearby, either assisting directly or waiting for the right moment to jump in and exploit the chaos.  To see who is nearby, roll on the table below.  

1d6
1- Wild Dragons.  Wild Dragons are proud, vain and greedy, just like all Dragons.  That being said, these are not the only things that motivate Dragons.  Wild Dragons will often assist the true Servants for gold or glory, or for the chance to humiliate a Civic Dragon*.  Civic Dragons, which believe that is okay for Dragons to live near creatures it doesn't rule over as a God, run businesses, or speak, Wild Dragons do
2- Druids.  Druids are already working to destroy civilization, they only need to be aimed.  The only problem is that the Druids regard you as bad as the people you are fighting and are likely to betray you; or more likely, refuse your initial offer and try to cut your throat with a stone handaxe. 
3- The Folk.  As Druids, but with less self-righteousness.  The problem with the Folk is that they cannot be trusted.  They can't lie, but that doesn't make them any more truthful.  A Folk is the type of person who will transform into a horse and seduce your wife, then make her get pregnant with half-mortal changelings, a fact you'll only discover 9th months later after the babies gestating in her womb turn out to look like some unholy fusion between male model, tree and salamander.  Asking something like that to support you in battle is asking for trouble.  
4- Amazons.  Amazons are fiercely independent, relentlessly self-interested, and they refuse to take orders from any man.  They will take polite suggestions, but usually they will ignore those too.  Only a female Servant has a reasonable chance of getting the Amazons to listen, and even then, Amazons are not exactly known for their internal cohesion.
5- The Orc.  Orcs are violent, mysterious creatures.  No one knows what exactly they are or where they come from.  They are truly effective, however.  An Orc will sometimes aid the Servants of Chaos, but only so long as it furthers the Orc's own goals. 
6- The Handsome Men.  Handsome Men are slightly more trust-worthy than the Folk.  That isn't saying much, though.  In fact, that says nothing at all.  No one with any sense trusts the Handsome Men and even fewer trust the Folk.   

*Civic Dragons are Dragons who believe it is okay for Dragons to live near intelligent creatures that it doesn't rule over as a God, run businesses, or practice other works of mortal civilization.  Though civilizations like this are uncommon, with most Civic Dragons living in the Bizoan Republic to the Far South or in the Oasis Kingdoms to the Distant East.  The one notable exception to this rule is the "God" Lord Messenger Godflesh, Dragon of Frogs and Sulfur.  Wild Dragons obviously disagree with the choices and ideology of the Civic Dragons and duel with them, whenever they see fit.


True Servants of Chaos:

Chaos Cultists


Chaos Cultists are the core of any Chaos operation.  They make up the soldiers, spies, saboteurs and lay-members of any Chaos Cult.  They are the backbone of any successful Chaos incursion.  If a Red Ruler does not have sufficient Cultists, he is doomed to failure.  However, this is not usually a huge problem.  For contrary to popular belief, there are many true Servants out there acting as Chaos cultists and easily twice as many potential Chaos Cultists.  For you see, unlike the Minions of the Dark Powers, Chaos is not regarded as universally evil.  The Minions represent suffering and violence for its own sake, it often seems.  This is not true with Chaos.  Chaos represents freedom, mortal ingenuity and equality; all noblem high ideals.  The Red Rulers, the commanders of Chaos Cults and Cultists are very good at presenting Chaos as freedom and her true Servants as agents of liberation.  This isn't even necessarily a lie.  Chaos does end up breaking down barriers wherever it gains power.  That is not in dispute.  What is in dispute is whether or not people are better off that the barriers are broken.

Due to the high ideals and natural allure of Chaos generated by its soaring idealism, there are many who wish to join or support Chaos Cults.  Those who favor such organizations tend to come from the lower classes, the poor, downtrodden or disenfranchised in any society.  Of course, Cultists join for other reasons too, but that personally depends on the Cult and the prospective Cultist.  You see, for the leaders of Chaos Cults, the trouble is usually not in recruiting eager souls, but in keeping them.  Chaos teaches one to break off the shackles of authority.  It is a democratization of decision making, sometimes literally, a flourishing of freedom.  That, however, makes keeping hold of your Cultists especially difficult.  After all, even a fool recognizes the inherent contradiction in "'Do as thou wilt' is the only law" and "Now come, follow me and do what I say!"

That's not to say that all Chaos Cultists defect, but many do.  And unlike in the Minions of the Dark Powers, where once you join you are an outcast from all conventional society, Lawful or Chaotic, there are Chaotic societies out there.  Additionally, one can always just go back to pretending to be a normal subject after the Chaos Cult you put your faith in collapses under the weight of Law's military forces.

To determine what a specific chaos cult or Servant of Chaos believes, roll 1d6 times on the table below.

To follow the path of true Chaos requires one to...

1d20

1- To never use money, only to barter
2- To own nothing but the clothes on their backs
3- To work to destroy civil government
4- To reject any form of organized religion
5- To reject the belief in objective truth, meaning or value
6- To reject all belief in morality or ethics
7- To reject all beliefs that do not personally come from your sense experience
8- To stop trusting your senses and believe they are unreliable
9- To only wear clothes when necessary
10- To join no organization and to leave the ones you have already joined
11- To take whatever you desire through any means you desire
12- To reject the social norms of your society
13- To never get married
14- To never have children
15- To create or join an organization that will further the cause of Chaos, secretly or otherwise
16- To have children
17- To create art that glorifies chaos
18- To rebel against any society that does not uphold your ideals
19- To work from within the system to change the institutions of society to uphold freedom   
20- To reject any additional bylaws but the First Commandment of Chaos

Statblock:


Chaos Cultist
HD 1  AC 11 Atk (+0) Weapon 1d6
Mor 9  Saves 7 or less is a success

Disguise: Chaos Cultists rarely wear uniforms or even insignias that mark them as the Servants of Chaos.  If they aren't wearing something like that right now, and they usually aren't, they look identical to normal people.
 
Tactics:
- Only attack if you have numerical superiority or the element of suprise
- Gang up on one opponent
- Attack, then flee; use guerilla tactics

Chaos Cult Lieutenant
HD 1d4  AC 13  Atk (+1) Weapon 1d6/1d6
Mor 7  Saves 8 or less is a success

Disguise: Cult Lieutenants rarely wear uniforms or even insignias that mark them as the Servants of Chaos.  If they aren't wearing something like that right now, and they usually aren't, they look identical to normal people.

Call Targets: A Cult Lieutenant can take an action to call out a target.  If they do so, any Cultist or other Cult Lieutenants will prioritize attacking that target.

Tactics:
- Call out Targets
- Let others do the fighting
- Discretion is the better part of valor

                                                         by Sergey Urpalov
Chaos Sorcerers

The Servants of Chaos will tell you that Chaos is fount of all magic, which isn't an uncommon statement.  The true Servants also claim that Chaos is the origin of all light, life, fire, art, and emotion in this world.  But while the latter are disputed, the first one seems to be at least partially true.  To some Agents of Law, Magic is problematic, as it entails a rejection of a mortal's role in submitting to the Gods by defying the laws they laid down to govern this world.  This is not a widely accepted belief, but there is a definite strain of anti-sorcery sentiment in Lawful philosophy.  Chaos, on the other hand, has no such issue. 

To the true Servants, magic is the embodiment of Chaos, the flowing power of the Primordial World, the blood of Great Mother Isfet, the Dragon Goddess of the Primordial World, Master of the Sea of Night, Ruler of the World Before and the World to Come.  The Chaos Sorcerers are embraced by Chaos Cultists and Red Rulers alike as divinely-touched, with their bodies protected and their words heeded.  This is because partially of the religious and ideological implications of the holistic worldview of Chaos, but also because Chaos Sorcerers are capable of incredible feats.  Many a chartered Wizard has faced a Chaos Sorcerer, confident that their training would prevail, only for the rambling hedge-mage wearing a leather apron and a necklace of rabbit's teeth to take them to the cleaners with a whispered word.

Statblock:

HD 2  AC 12  Atk(+0) Throwing Axes 1d6/1d6
Mor 9    Saves 8 or less is a success

Spellcasting: Chaos Sorcerers have 1d6+1 spellcasting dice and 1d4 spells prepared.  To determine which ones, roll on the Chaos Magicks table below.  Their spellcasting dice burn out as normal.

Chaos: If a Chaos Sorcerer casts a spell with 2 or more spellcasting dice, they have a 2-in-6 chance of invoking Chaos.  If they do invoke Chaos, roll on the table below.

Chaos of the Chaos Sorcerer
1d6
1- One person of your choice within 100' is trapped in a six-inch thick cube of solid iron that forms around their whole body.
2- A statue of you is formed out of nearby materials.  The likeness is uncanny.  The statue has a 1d10% equal to the number of dice you used in the spell that induced chaos of coming to life.
3- Every person within 100' should save.  The first person to fail their save projectile vomits glowing, rainbow sludge.
4- For the next 1d10 minutes, any Magic-User within 100' who casts a spell must save.  On a failure, they accidentally cast Prismatic Ray, targeting a random target.
5- You develop a mutation.  Save after ten minutes.  On a failure, it becomes permanent.
6- You burst into flames.  The flames are normal and can be extinguished like any normal fire.  While on fire, you take 1d6 damage a round.

Tactics:
- Cast spells, focus on strong things
- Uses axes to affect what spells cannot
- Finish the fight in the flashiest way possible 

 Mutants

For all the errors that His Imperium, the Emperor of Joyous Exultation, Lord Unquaro's prayers be upon him has commited, he has done at least one thing that is right.  As of several years ago, he has officially ended the Mutant Pogroms.  For centuries, if not for millennia, mutants have been persecuted by their better-formed brethren.  Mutation is still widely believed to be a curse sent by the Gods, a sign of internal corruption.  It may even be that- no one knows.  Regardless, whether this was the reason or the excuse given for the persecution of Mutants is irrelevant.  What you need to know is this; in almost all lands, Mutants are persecuted.  In some they are hunted down like criminals or forcibly expelled, but this is less common these days, especially in Imperial lands, since the previous Emperor, the Emperor of Beneficent Mercy, banned them.  The current Sovereign, the Emperor of Joyous Exultation, has maintained this policy.

That being said, while state-sponsored persecution is rarer, Mutants face many other problems.  Most societies exclude them from civil society to greater or lesser extents, as well as restricting their opportunities and legal rights.  Generally Mutants cannot enter into the presence of a King or Priest or they will be under penalty of law, for example.  There are also cultural obstacles as well, people cross the street when they see a Mutant approaching, gangs of thugs will sometimes harass and beat Mutants for no reason other than because they can and many will refuse to buy, sell or hire Mutants.  If Mutants do not end up working for another Mutant, they will usually end up working back-breaking tasks alongside slaves or bondsmen. 

For these and many other reasons, some Mutants become bitter and hateful.  They desire bloody revenge against the people who wronged them and the system which enabled them to be wronged.  For this reason, Chaos often flourishes among the Mutant population.  Additionally, because many Servants of Chaos also have Mutations, this leads to excellent relations with many Mutant communities.  When the Servants of Chaos emerge and call upon the people to liberate themselves, the Mutants are the first to answer the call.  The fire rises, brother.

Statblock:
Mutant Marine
HD 2  AC 12  Atk (+1) Spear 1d8 and (+0) Club 1d6
Mor 9    Saves 8 or less is a success

Javelin: Mutant Marines can throw their spears, doing 1d8 damage on a hit.  If they do so, they may make two club attacks instead.   

Tactics:
- Use the spear on the strongest
- Use the club against weaker people in melee range
- Throw spears at those who refuse to get into melee combat

                                          by Zdzislaw Beksinski

Chaos Cursed

Chaos Cursed are those scorned by the Gods of Chaos, those mutated badly by Chaos Sorcerers, or those who were are exposed to Pure, Elemental Chaos.  This transforms them from ordinary mortals into Chaos Cursed.  Chaos Cursed are always horribly mutated, but to think their condition is cosmetic is to badly underestimate it.  Chaos Cursed are broken in body, but it is their souls that suffered the most.  A true Chaos Cursed is created when a mortal's mind is shattered into a million disparate pieces by unrefined Chaos.  Chaos Cursed are self-aware, but usually live tortured existences, their thoughts and memories a swirling vortex of half-formed ideas.  They are pitiful creatures, as pathetic as they are dangerous.

Chaos Cursed usually cannot speak or even understand what they are doing.  They have been reduced to little more than beasts, acting largely on muscle memory and half-glimpsed memories peeking through the haze of madness and confusion.  Chaos Cursed are sometimes kept by Chaos Cults who have some sympathy for the people who were transformed, either by accident or through malice.  However, just as often, Chaos Cursed are abandoned or put down.  There is no known method of turning a Chaos Cursed back and no known method of rehabilitating them, though with time and effort you can make them into something approximating a guard dog.    

Statblock:


Chaos Cursed
HD 1d4  AC 10  Atk (+0) Natural Weapons 1d6
Mor 5 or 12 (50%)  Saves 7 or less is a success

                                           by Sickbrush

Turned Elementals

These guys will get their own post at some point.  However, I will mention them here.  Besides the Courts of Earth, Fire, Water and Air, there are also several sub-Courts.  Some of these sub-Courts are formed through legal authorization of the other Courts.  Some are not, however.

There are six sub-Courts.  The Legal sub-Courts include the twin Courts of Magma and Lava, the Court of Steam and the Court of Auroras. 

The Traitor Courts include the Court of Mud, the Court of Dust and the Court of Storms, or as it is more commonly called, the Court of Bubbles.      



Red Rulers

Some Chaos puritans will tell you that any Chaotic organization with hierarchies is illegitimate.  Other, more moderate adherents to Chaos will say that hierarchy can be justified, if the situation demands it.  It's an endless debate and not one that will be addressed here.  However, most adherents of Chaos believe that currently, hierarchies are necessary to organize against the agents of Law.  Those elevated to lead the forces of Chaos are known by a hundred names, but the most common one for non-adherents is Red Ruler or Chaos King.  These titles are frowned upon by the central adherents of Chaos though.

Many who do not follow Chaos are fond of comparing the Servants of Chaos to the Minions of the Dark Powers and equating the Red Rulers to the Secret Masters, but this comparison rarely works.  For while the Secret Masters are almost univerally wicked and vicious, this isn't necessarily true for the Red Rulers, who are as varied as the Cultists they rule over.

To generate a unique Red Ruler, roll on the tables below:

This Ruler is...

1d6

1- A Prophet of one of the nameless Gods of Chaos.  They have 1d6 HD and bear one of the Secret Names of God.
2- A Chaos Sorcerer.  The Ruler has 1d4+1 HD and knows 1d6+2 spells, with an equivalent number of spellcasting dice.  
3- A Fighting Man.  The Ruler is a level 1d3+2 Fighting Man with an equal amount of HD and training in one of the Martial schools.
4- A Monstrous Mutant.  The Ruler is a hideous freak, with 4 HD, a STR of 18 and the ability to: 1d4 [1= to spray cones of acid every 1d4 turns; 2= To regenerate 1d6 HP a round; 3= To make an extra attack because of their second set of arms; 4= To grapple on a hit with their sticky tentacles.]
5- A schemer and a talker, but with no combat ability.  The Ruler is very smart, but possesses almost no individual combat ability.  This ruler will work behind the scenes, manipulating events in their favor.
6- A monster or magical beast, such as: 1d6 [1= A Dragon; 2= A mostly invisible creature that uses human corpses as puppets, a fact which the Cultists pretend not to know; 3= A Sludge Vampire; 4= A Ghast; 5= The real Ruler is actually dead and this is just a Doppleganger pretending to be them; 6= A Psychoplasm.]

The Ruler fights with...

1d6

1- A magic weapon.  Example: An Axe named Skulleater.  Anyone struck by this takes 1d6 DEX damage as the Axe steals calcium from their bones.  If this damage ever equals or exceeds someone's DEX score/HD, that person's skeleton changes to the consistency and properties of cartilage. 
2- A bow and arrow.  This Ruler can make double the normal amount of attacks, as long as they are archery attacks.  He can also do anything you see here.  Finally, he never gets into Melee Range.
3- A wand that fires bolts of magic.  The bolts of magic: 1d4 [1= Light people on fire; 2= The rays transform into snakes under the Ruler's control when they strike an object; 3= Explode on impact, doing extra damage; 4= partially and temporarily paralyze whatever body part they hit.]
4- A firearm.  Use the Firearm rules from here.
5- An axe guitar.  Attacks as a great axe or fire 2d6 blasts of fire.
6- Magical explosives.  Each one explodes for 3d6, save for half.  The Ruler can be hurt by these explosives.  The explosives can be set to explode from remote control or because of some trigger.

This Red Ruler is...

1d6

1- A true believer.  The Ruler is a fanatic, who whole-heartedly believes in the cause.  Weakness: The Ruler will not alter any of their ideological beliefs for the sake of pragmatism.
2- A revolutionary.  The Ruler does believe in the cause, but is no fool.  He is smart and capable.  Weakness: The Ruler will make any sacrifice he deems necessary to achieve victory; he could be baited into foolish gambles.  Additionally, his Cultists are not very loyal. 
3- A narcissist.  The Ruler is doing this to glorify themselves.  He doesn't care about his men or the cause, only for himself.  Weakness: The Ruler will not back down from a challenge.  Additionally, any insult will send him into a rage against whoever is responsible. 
4- An opportunist.  The Ruler is using chaos and the cause as an excuse to accumulate money and power.  He doesn't care about the cause.  Weakness: The Ruler is cowardly and will flee at the first sign of danger to himself.
5- A blood-thirsty madman.  The Ruler is advancing the cause because it brings him blood and battle, which are the two things he lives for.  He is terrifying on the battlefield.  Weakness: The Ruler will not ignore a chance to fight, no matter how small, unless the foe is too weak to be worth the trouble or so powerful fighting it would be suicide.
6- A competent individual.  The Ruler is wise, compassionate and hard when he needs to,  He is a father to his men, well respected and liked.  His cultists would follow him to Sheol if he ordered them to.  Weakness: The Ruler will not leave his underlings to their own fates, but will always try to help or rescue them.          

This Ruler believes Chaos is...

1d4

1- A force of liberation, a Good in and of itself.  The Ruler wants to increase Chaos.  He fundamentally believes that Chaos is good and will help people.
2- A fundamental part of the universe.  To fight Chaos is foolishness, the Ruler insists, for Chaos is the universe.  The Ruler just picked the winning side.
3- A necessary evil.  The Ruler attempted to change things through other means, but all legal and Lawful avenues failed.  Now, Chaos is all that's left.
4- A tool.  The Ruler has only become a Servant of Chaos for his own reasons and this is obvious by the way he talks about Chaos.  He does not seem to practice the Red Faith or even believe much Chaotic philosophy.  He sees Chaos only as a tool, a force to be directed so that he can achieve his desires.



Angels of Isfet, Demons of Tyranny

Chaos is more than just a worldview, a way of looking at the world.  It is also a religion, a faith, and a fact.  And like any Faith, Chaos has its tempters and seducers seeking to waylay the faithful, as well as its comforters and helpers, seeking to keep them on the red road to salvation.

Angels of Isfet


These are the Angels that would be chief among the Sons of the Great Mother, at least if her sons bothered to organize themselves into hierarchies, which they do not.  These creatures resemble evershifting, ever-fluid masses of flesh and bone.  Their faces shift whenever you shift away and they naturally and easily change shape with their moods, shifting into various forms to do whatever they are to do.  It could be said that they have a different body for every occasion, but that would imply a sense of organization that these creatures simply do not possess.  Along with their natural mastery of shapeshifting, Angels of Isfet have the power to disrupt complex systems or machinery with a breath, induce mutations with a touch and exhale clouds of freezing wind, blistering air or burning acid. 

Cultures who do not share the values of Chaos call these creatures Demons of Chaos or Demons of Disorder, though some Chaos Cults use the former term as well. 

Angel of Freedom


There is nothing sweeter than Freedom, which is why the Angels of Freedom are so darn persuasive.  All desire to be free, or at least, to feel free.  Despite the lectures from every authority figure, from parents all the way up to His Imperium, that order is there for your own good, even under legitimate authority, men still chafe to be free.  Thus, the Angels of Freedom. They resemble birds, with glossy, color-changing feathers that can glow in the dark and long, delicate limbs ending in six-fingered hands.  They appear to slaves to stir revolt, beside petty kings and governors to encourage rebellion against distant overlords, they even creep into the bedchambers of hurting young people with magical talent to encourage them to lash out at the world, to free themselves.  They possess silver tongues and rhetorical training that would astound any demagogue. Along with this, they possess the ability to open locked doors or containers with a touch, make someone's organs attempt to revolt and leave their body, and cause someone's DNA to unwind as the proteins within their cells attempt to make a break for it.

Cultures who do not share the values of Chaos call these creatures Demons of Rebellion or Demons of Destruction.  

Angel of Exemption


Chaos iconography is always full of images of the Cultists as conquerors, smashing the rod of the taskmaster and bringing about an era of freedom and peace.  This is the dream of Chaos, of the utopia that will arise once the bonds of Law have been smashed, once and for all.  It is what motivates Chaos Cultists to keep fighting.  But it is hard, living in secret, laboring for something you might never see.  So to help them, the Gods of Chaos send the Angels of Exemption.  These Angels come disguised as merchants and traders, bearing impossible goods to the right people and the right price.  While these Angels primarily seek to encourage and comfort the Servants of Chaos, they also love to spread discord and confusion among the unsuspecting Agents of Law.  They do this by selling unsuspecting people powerful magicks, pouring mind or body altering chemicals into the water supply, impersonating officials then making nonsensical rulings and any number of other acts of criminal mischief.  They are despised among the Agents of Law for this, because while they are not the most directly dangerous, they are easily the hardest to catch.  Angels of Exemption can ignore attacks against them, turn invisible, and phase through solid objects.

Cultures who do not share the values of Chaos call these creatures Demons of Theft or Demons of Discord.        

Demon of Tyranny

Juvenile and simple-minded Servants hate the System, the Law and the Man because he restricts their freedom.  However, the truly erudite among the Servants recognize that the problem with the current system is not that it restricts freedom, though that is a problem, but because it is based on coercion.  If the system was entirely consensual, there could be no valid critique against it based on the logic of Chaos.  That is, assuming you recognize the Laws of Logic.  Nevertheless, the Servants dislike Law because Law enforces itself at the tip of a blade.  This is why the System must be destroyed. 

These creatures disagree, however.  They come to ask pointed questions and urge the Servants to reconsider.  They shelter refugees and raise strongholds in the wilderness, transforming the wilds into gardens.  They offer safety, food and peace.  Of all the outsiders arrayed against the Servants of Chaos, the Demons of Tyranny are worst of all; because no Servant who encounters them can resist the urge to wonder, even if for just a moment, if they are on the right side.  Demons of Tyranny can cause spells to vanish and turn the elements against their foes, subjecting them to quicksand, chasms in the earth, dust storm and blasts of wind, while using the same to protect others and themselves.    

Cultures who do not share the values of Chaos call these creatures Angels of Order or Angels of Refuge.

Demon of Oppression
 

The Demons of Oppression are related to the specific aspect of how Law takes away freedom.  These creatures come to justify the claims of the Agents of Law, insisting that there is some kind of difference between a governor and his soldiers and a band of robbers.  Demons of Oppression are extremely well studied in law, custom and rules of all sorts.  They are strange creatures, composed of dozens of interlocking metal cubes, each one rotating and warping perpetually, making the Angel's body ripple with constant, but predictable changes.  When threatened, Demons of Oppresion have the power to disassemble, each cube moving independently, to form cages out of themselves, and to fire bolts of electricity from their faces. 

Cultures who do not share the values of Chaos call these creatures Angels of Law or Angels of Obedience.

Demon of Judgement

Law is never kind.  It is cold, unyielding.  Even in the case of extenuating circumstances, even in the case of excellent reasons, it must still be enforced.  To not do so would weaken the entire system.  Magistrates must act, even if they find the action unbearable.  To do otherwise is impossible.  And for those on the other side of the Magistrate's ruling, they must obey or face the consequences.  To refuse to do so is an additional violation.  This is why the Servants of Chaos seek to undermine the Law wherever they go, by means covert or otherwise.  The Demons of Judgement hate them for this, and come to stop them.  These Demons are flinty-eyed, cold-souled monsters with wings of smokeless flame and eyes on their palms.  They wear cloaks of shimmering silver and diadems of cold steel.  In combat, they can fire lasers from their eyes and bolts of fire from their wings.

Cultures who do not share the values of Chaos call these creatures Angels of Justice or Angels of Vengeance.


Daemon Princes

These guys are definitely going to get their own post as well.  Daemon Princes are not a thing exclusive to Chaos, but they are most commonly found here.  Daemon Princes are mortals who have achieved pseudo-immortality through Daemonhood.  They are the martial counterpart to the Lich, and possess a similar level of power.  Every Daemon Prince is a unique and terrible foe, each one easily being able to match a Dragon or the Highest of Outsiders in terms of power.  For not only do they possess the toughness of an Outsider, but they possess all the unique powers that mortals can hew out for themselves.  For this reason, they are generally superior to a conventional Outsider.

But that is a story for another day.


                                                      by Joe Slucher

Chaos Magicks

This is all the information you need to make or play as a Chaos Sorcerer.  If you are doing the latter, remember that Chaos Sorcerer is just a sub-class of the Base Wizard, and you can find all the information about them here. 

Power: You can create harmless showers of light, sounds no louder than a human shout, small illusions no bigger than something you could hold in your hand, cause an object person-sized or smaller to become dirty or clean, and light or snuff fires no bigger than a torch with a word or gesture as a free action, though any fires started like this cannot damage anyone on the first round they are created, and must burn for at least a round and consume some non-magic fuel before they can do damage.  Referee's discretion applies, of course.

Drawback: You start with a mutation.  Mutants are usually scorned in lands where people will realize it is a mutation.  Some places even expel mutants from their lands or hunt them down.  This is rarer, however, and usually the worst thing you will have to face is harsh words and exclusion from most of public life. 

Spell List:

Chaos Sorcerer Starting Spell List
1d12

1- Dimension Door
2- Finger Gun
3- Flesh to Stone
4- Gamma Infusion
5- Induce Mutation
6- Malignant Portal
7- Prismatic Ray
8- Polymorph
9- Salamander's Roar
10- Secret Door
11- Spell Deflection
12- Street Shark

13- Bubbles of Pure Madness
14- Defy Death
15- Immatize the Eschaton


Dimension Door
-------------------------------------------------
R: touch    T: [dice] creatures    D: one action

Up to [dice] creatures you can touch, counting yourself as one of the creatures, teleport up to 10*[dice]'.

Finger Gun
---------------------------------------------------
R: 50'        T: creature        D: one action

Point your finger at one creature.  That creature takes [sum] damage as a bolt of magical energy blasts from your fingertip and strikes them.  If you cast this spell with more than 1 [dice], you may also damage up to [sum] additional creatures, as long as they are adjacent to the original creature you targeted.

Flesh to Stone
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R: 30'        T: creature        D: [dice] hours

One creature within range must save.  If the creature has more HD than [dice], it adds the difference to its save.  If it has 3x more HD than [dice], it automatically passes.  A creature that fails its saving throw is turned to stone.  After the duration, the petrified creature turns back to normal, unless the spell was cast with 4 or more [dice], in which case the caster may make the duration as long as they wish, including permanent.

Gamma Infusion
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R: 30'        T: creature            D: one action, then [sum] minutes

One creature within range takes [sum] nonlethal damage.  If the damage the spell causes equals or exceeds its HP, the creature then transforms into a monster.  This monster gains [sum] HP, gains a STR, DEX and CON scores equal to 12+[dice] and regenerates [dice] HP a round.  The monster then proceeds to fly into a rage, attacking and destroying everything in its path.  It is stupid and feral, driven only by a primitive desire to destroy.  And while it cannot plan, it will retain its personality from before transforming, and any antipathies had before.  If it disliked you before you cast this spell on it, it will probably try to find and pull your limbs off.  The creature continues its rampage for [sum] minutes or until it is killed.  After that, it transforms back.  If this spell is cast with four or more spellcasting dice, you can choose to make the duration for as long as you want, or permanent.

Induce Mutation
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
R: 10'        T: creature            D: one action

Disfigure one creature by molding its flesh into some aberrant shape.  The creature must make a save vs. spell, minus [sum].  On a failure, the creature gains [dice] mutations.  If 4 or more [dice] are used to cast this spell, you may specify the mutations.

Malignant Portal
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
R: 30'        T: a flat surface within range        D: [dice] rounds

You create a portal on a flat surface that begins sucking up everything near it.  Everything within 10*[dice]' begins to feel suction as if a creature with a STR score equal to [sum] (maxing out at 19(+4)) is pulling on it.  Any creature that fails to resist this pull is sucked off their feet and into the portal.  The portal also pulls in loose objects, air, gases in the atmosphere, and etc.  Note that the caster also knows that whatever ends up going through that portal is probably gone forever.

But in case you do end up falling through it...

Where does this Portal lead to?
1d8

1- Sheol.  The grey, sunless land of the dead, where the dead walk through the wastes forever, occasionally being hunted by unimaginable monsters and each other.
2- The Sun.  This isn't instantly fatal.  You arrive in the golden offices of the Burning Bureaucracy, the heart of the Elemental Court of Fire.  You are likely to be instantly arrested and seized as you will stick out like sore thumbs, but if you manage to escape that, you will find the Sun has parks and taverns and cities.  The only long term problem you might have is finding food.  Being arrested might not even be a bad thing, as you might be able to convince the Pyrocrats or the Sultan  to send you back.  
3- The Moon.  The moon is covered in strange forests and red oceans.  It is mostly humid and tropical, with the exception of the poles, which are quite cold.
4- The Veins of the Earth.  Enjoy starving to death forty miles below ground.  Also, read the book if you haven't.
5- A parallel universe.  Nothing seems different at first.  Soon you might realize that this is not your world.  Or maybe you won't.  Who knows? 
6- Heaven.  The Domain of the Law Gods.  It's not full of mortal souls, but the Law Gods, their Angels and their Celestial Bureaucrats.  A really swanky place, but if they catch you, they will send you back.
7- The middle of the wilderness.  You have no idea where you are.
8- New York City.  The air is warm and the sky is blue, but everything else looks different.  The roads are paved in solid slabs instead of individual stones and there are metal towers that reach halfway to Heaven it seems.  You have no idea what to make of this place.  

Prismatic Ray
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R: 50'        T: [dice] creatures    D: one action

Fires [dice] rays at up to [dice] targets.  Each ray requires an attack roll.  On a hit, each ray does 1d6+[dice] damage.  To determine what ray is fired, roll 1d8, rerolling duplicates.  All additional effects last [dice] minutes.

What ray is fired?
1d8

1- Red.  Does fire damage.  All hit by this are set on fire and take 1d6 damage a round until they take an action to put out the fire.
2- Orange.  Does necrotic damage.  All hit by this must save or age 1d6+[dice] years.
3- Yellow.  Does radiant damage.  Undead, enemies of the Court of Fire or those hated by the Sun take double damage.
4- Green.  Does acid damage.  All hit by this must save or go insane for [dice] minutes.
5- Blue.  Does cold damage.  All hit by this are trapped in a thin shell of ice and cannot move until they take an action to free themselves.
6- Indigo.  Does psychic damage.  All hit by this must save or become overcome with delusions of grandeur.
7- Violet.  Does electrical damage.  All hit by this must save or be scared of the caster for the duration.
8- Double Strike.  The caster fires two rays because of this result.  Roll again twice.  If you roll this result again, treat it as '7'.

Polymorph
--------------------------------------------------------
R: 30'        T: creature        D: [dice] hours

One creature within range must save.  If the creature has more HD than [dice], it adds the difference to its save.  If it has 3x more HD than [dice], it automatically passes.  A creature may also choose to fail its save, if it wishes to.

On a failed save, the creature is transformed into an animal.  If appropriate, Referee's discretion, the person transformed gains +[sum] FS when transformed.  This should only be if the animal is something large and more difficult to kill then the creature's original form.

After the duration ends, or whenever the caster wishes to, the transformed creature returns to their original form.

Salamander's Roar
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R: 30'        T: creature        D: one action

You breathe fire from your mouth, spewing flames in a line 10*[dice]' long.  This line is wide enough to engulf one Medium sized creature.  If you breathe fire at a creature, that creature must save.  On a failure, it takes [sum] fire damage.  On a success, it takes half damage.  Creatures directly adjacent to the targeted creature must save as well.  On a success, they take no damage, but on a failure they take half of [sum] in fire damage.

Secret Door
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R: touch    T: a surface, object or creature    D: [dice] minutes

One surface, object or creature you touch has a door appear on it.  You can open this door and pass through it.  If cast on a surface, the Secret Door allows you to pass through the surface to the other side.  If cast on an object or person, the door allows you to access the inside of an object.  If cast on a creature, opening a door created on/in it does not hurt the creature.  After the duration, the door vanishes, leaving no sign it was ever there.  

Spell Deflection
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R: self        T: a spell            D: one free action

You may cast this as a reaction.  A spell that is targeting you is instead reflected against a random target.  If this spell is cast with 4 or more [dice], you can redirect the spell to a target you choose.

Street Shark
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R: 30'        T: flat surface        D: [dice] rounds

You conjure a Street Shark, which is a finned creature that can swim through stone or earth like it is water.  The Street Shark will remain for the duration or until is killed, taking an action each round to jump out and attack a random target.  The Street Shark has [sum] HP and makes attacks as if it had a STR of 12+[dice].


Bubbles of Pure Madness
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
R: 100'        T: anyone who touches the bubbles    D: [dice] minutes

You conjure [dice] colorful, opague bubbles about the size of a carriage.  These bubbles float around randomly, bumping into things.  Anyone who touches one of these bubbles passes through it, without popping it.  Instead, anyone whose head passes through the bubble takes [sum] WIS damage as they are suddenly assaulted with horrible cosmic revelations.  Additionally, if this WIS damage would equal or exceed someone's WIS score, they instead take no WIS damage and receive a Conviction.  To determine what Conviction they receive, roll on the table below.

What Conviction have you gained from your exposure to the Void?
1d6

1- You see the stars fall out of the sky.  The sky goes dark and something vast and terrible emerges from the Night to devour the Sun.  Darkness reigns eternal.  The world's new masters crack the moon into pieces and hurl it down to earth, where it crashes down with terrible force, shaking the pillars of Heaven.  You gain the Conviction, "The world is going to end soon and I must prepare."
2- You see the skies covered with maroon clouds.  A rain of blood descends upon the earth.  Those hit by the rain begin going insane, mindlessly attacking anything that moves until killed themselves.  A violinist wanders through this scene, her silk dress soaked in blood, her expression one of wild glee as she plays her heart out.  None of the creatures touch, or even seem to notice her.  You gain the Conviction, "A Wizard is going to do something terrible near me, I must be ready."
3- You see your own funeral.  Your friends and family are there, weeping over the grave.  You gain the Conviction, "I must take all precautions to prevent my own demise."
4- You see a great, stone idol with a diamond, ruby and emerald eye.  The idol seems to call to you, demanding you reach into its open mouth.  You do, albeit reluctantly, and remove a massive, living pink tongue from the stone.  The idol then begins to speak, asking you why you have torn out your own tongue.  You realize this is the case, but you cann't respond, as you are choking on your own blood.  You gain the Conviction, "I will not trust any stranger."
5- You see yourself seated on a throne, wearing a fur cape with a diadem on your head.  Before you, men from a dozen lands present tribute, zebra hides and onyx jewelry and fine silk and all the other treasures of the world.  Your beautiful wife and children gather around you, and you should be happy.  But the bodies, the living dead staring at you with silent, accusing eyes from the base of the dais, from the shadows in the hall and through the windows rob you of your peace.  You gain the Conviction, "I must not kill anyone if I can help it."
6- You see yourself walking down a street, being showered in flower petals.  Women sing and play the tambourine and shout with joy as you return at the head of an army, laden with booty and captives.  The King rides at your side, but this is no unknown King.  This is the current King of your homeland.  In your dream, you call this man you call "Father," and he rejoices with you.  You gain the Conviction, "I must return home, something grand awaits me there."    

Defy Death
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R: 10*[dice]'    T: all within range    D: [dice] minutes

For the duration, no one within range can die.  This spell does not stop or mitigate pain, madness or anything else.  After the spell ends, anyone suffering from a mortal wound will begin dying as usual. 

Immatize the Eschaton
------------------------------------------------------
R: special    T: special        D: one action

The sky turns an unnatural color, crows fly backwards, or slain animals laugh in your nets.  Time jumps forward by [dice]  days.  This does not affect living creatures, but all natural forces and spells will be affected as if that many days happen. This spell does not do damage, but if someone was in a particular situation, such as being in a very cold place or close to a rapidly advancing fire, it could cause them to take damage indirectly.


Chaos and Corruption of the Chaos Sorcerer:
When you roll doubles, roll on the Chaos table.  The spell still goes through.  You receive 1d3 Doom Points.
When you roll triples, roll on the Corruption table.  The spell automatically fails.  You also receive 1d4 Doom Points.
At 10 Doom Points, you invoke the Doom of Fools.
At 20 Doom Points, you invoke the Doom of Kings.
At 30 Doom Points, you invoke the Ultimate Doom.

Chaos of the Chaos Sorcerer
1d6

1- One person of your choice within 100' is trapped in a six-inch thick cube of solid iron that forms around their whole body.
2- A statue of you is formed out of nearby materials.  The likeness is uncanny.  The statue has a 1d10% equal to the number of dice you used in the spell that induced chaos of coming to life.
3- Every person within 100' should save.  The first person to fail their save projectile vomits glowing, rainbow sludge.
4- For the next 1d10 minutes, any Magic-User within 100' who casts a spell must save.  On a failure, they accidentally cast Prismatic Ray, targeting a random target.
5- You develop a mutation.  Save after ten minutes.  On a failure, it becomes permanent.
6- You burst into flames.  The flames are normal and can be extinguished like any normal fire.  While on fire, you take 1d6 damage a round.


Corruption of the Chaos Sorcerer
1d6

1- One person of your choice within 100' must save.  On a failure, they explode and are killed instantly, unless they could somehow survive being blow up from the inside out.
2- You take 1d8 damage as a 1 HD clone of you is born.  The clone is a new entity with no inherent allegiance to you, but it also has no knowledge.  If raised, it could be a useful ally.  If rejected, it will flee and return at a later time to take revenge.
3- Every person within 100' should save.  The first person to fail their save is horribly mutated, gaining a lobster claw, a lion's mane, 1d6 extra eyes and 1d4 extra arms.
4- For the next 1d10 minutes, any Magic-User within 100' of you who casts a spell must save.  On a failure, they accidentally cast Gamma Infusion, targeting a random target.
5- You develop a mutation.  It is permanent.
6- A cloud of thick, green fog centered on you forms, extending for 100 cubic feet.  The gas is highly flammable.  If exposed to any sparks or open flames, everyone takes 1d6 fire damage from the initial blast as the gas cloud ignites, then 1d6 damage for the next 1d6 rounds as the gas cloud burns.  After that time is up, the gas is gone, having all been burned up.  

Dooms:
Doom of Fools- You gain an impressive mutation.  The Referee should select one from his favorite table, or roll below.

1d6

1- You grow a pair of functional wings.  You can now fly, if you have a running start.
2- You grow gills.  You can now breathe air and water.
3- You grow claws, furry ears and a cute tail.  Your unarmed attacks do 1d6 sharp damage and you get to double your STR bonus when you try to climb.  
4- You grow a badass tentacle arm.  The arm does 1d6 damage on a hit and grapples automatically. 
5- You grow a third eye in the middle of your forehead.  This eye gives you a bonus to perception and observation checks.
6- You grow chitinous armor all over your body.  Your base AC is 13.  Ignore any armor worn if it has an AC lower then that. If you are wearing armor over that, ignore your natural armor if that armor has a higher AC, unless it is something like a shield or helmet. 

Doom of Kings- You gain a horrific mutation.  The Referee should select one from his favorite table, or roll below.

1d6
1- You lose 1d6 points of STR as all the meat falls off one of your arms, leaving you with only bone.  You can still use the bone as an arm, but it is much weaker than a normal arm.
2- You lose 1d6 points of DEX as your feet turn into hands.  You can use your feet-hands as hands as well, but they are much more sensitive and hard to move on.
3- You lose 1d6 points of CON as your Spleen crawls out of your mouth, falls to the ground and transforms into a cloud of butterflies.
4- You lose 1d6 points of WIL and your body begins automatically changing color based on your mood.
5- You lose 1d6 points of WIS as your eyes become mouths and your mouth is replaced by a single, massive eye.
6- You lose 1d6 points of CHA as you lose your face, leaving the space where your face would be entirely smooth.  You can still eat, even with your mouth gone, but the process is horrific to witness.

Ultimate Doom- You degenerate into a Chaos Cursed. 

This Doom can be avoided by pledging your allegiance to a person or organization that serves Law and serving them faithfully, or by tracking down the person who taught you magic and consuming them.


                                         from Batman: Arkham Knight


Treasure of the Servants of Chaos

1d8


1- A Nonsense Number.  The player gains access to an imaginary number, such as i, the square root of pi or qark.  At any point, the player may substitute anything they roll on any dice with this imaginary number.  This frees the imaginary number and the player loses it, but it also changes the outcome of the roll.  They should then roll on this table: instead of what would have normally happened happening 1d6 [1= One random intelligent creature within 100' turns into a frog.  No save is permitted; 2= Everyone's weapons are teleported to random locations and replaced with vegetables; 3= A chest full of money appears in front of the number's previous holder; 4= As three, but the money is stolen; 5= A giant snake slithers out from a space and begins acting like a giant snake would; 6= A God of Chaos shows up and demands you make a wish.  If you wish for anything good, the Chaos God will twist your wish to make it hurt you.  If it is something bad, the Chaos God will give you exactly what you ask for.] 

2- Electro-Gauntlet.  It is a weapon, a gauntlet of steel and copper wire.  The user may make a touch attack.  Anyone hit by this takes 1d8 electric damage and must save or be paralyzed for as long as the user is touching them.  However, if the user ever rolls a natural "1" when wielding this weapon, it stops working. 

3- Potion of Duplication.  It is a potion.  Any non-magical item that has this potion poured on it will duplicate.  Any creature who drinks this will have an exact duplicate of them as they are then pop into existence next to them.  If poured on a magical item, it instead produces a cloud of stinging, but non-damaging gas.

4- Hotel Key for a room in the Infinite Hotel.  Roll to see what type of room yours is: 1d4 [1= positive number; 2= Negative number; 3= Fraction or mixed number; 4= Imaginary number (you have to do some serious drugs to find and enter your room).]  Also, beware the Night Manager, as he has a habit of waking people up at 2 am and asking them to switch rooms for some reason.

5- Starchild-Egg.  It looks like a translucent crystal with a small embryo inside.  It also radiates energy like a wood stove radiates heat.  If dropped off a high place, hit with an attack that does at least 12 damage or struck by fire hot enough to melt steel, the egg hatches and unleashes a massive explosion.  Everything that has less than 5 HD or a Damage Threshold of 4 or less within 100' of the egg is instantly vaporized, all others must save or die.  For the next 1d10*100 feet, all take 6d6 explosion damage, save for half.

6- Powered Armor.  Treat this armor as if you gained a STR and CON of 18 and gained an additional +20 FS.  You can also run as fast as a horse, bend steel and smash through anything less solid than a brick wall.  However, each time you activate the suit, roll a 1d20 and add no modifiers.  On a roll of "1", the suit shuts down forever and stops working. 

7- Page from the spellbook of Zuul the Accursed.  It contains three spells from the list above that the players don't have and 1 rare spell from any spell list that none of them have even heard of.  The page also has a 50% chance of being cursed.  If it is cursed, anyone who tries to access the spells contained within it is cursed with illiteracy, and cannot read or write.  They also cannot learn.  For Wizards or Magic-Users, this means they can put their spells back into their spellbooks, but they can't take them back out again.  

8- Bronson's Revolver.  It's a gun with six bullets left.  Each of these bullets is made of silver and are magical.  Anyone shot by this gun must save or die.  The bullets work on anything, from Outsiders to Giants to Dragons to Gods.     


Sunday, June 23, 2019

OSR: Incubi

Like their sisters, the Incubi are seducers and stealers of souls.  However, because of their male nature, the Incubus proceeds in a radically different way than the Succubusses.


"I'm You, but stronger."

First, the Incubus will select a target.  It will observe the target from afar for a while, learning about them.  This is when the Incubus is at its weakest.  Then, once its reconnaissance is done, the Incubus will transform itself into a near-exact replica of the target.

Except, not quite.  The Incubus' form will always be mostly identical, with one or two key differences.  Namely, the Incubus will be the target but better.  If the target has a High STR but a low DEX, the Incubus has a DEX to match his high STR.  If the target is ugly as sin, the Incubus is a more handsome version of them.

The Incubus will then approach the target and infiltrate any group the target is a part of, always with some plausible explanation for why they exist.  He will claim to be that person from another world, or the future, or a clone that was generated magically.  He will then begin befriending the target's friends and stealing the target's thunder at every opportunity, while always trying to appear to be a good-hearted individual who is not trying to do that.

The Incubus' goal is to get others to prefer him over the original and to make the original jealous.

                                                     by SkadefroDane

The Pitch

A Succubus steals your soul once you've done three evil acts at her behest.

For an Incubus, the goal is slightly different.  At the right time, the Incubus will approach the target and tell him that the Incubus cannot do this anymore.  The Incubus will then agree to transfer all of his powers to the target, to transform you permanently into the ideal version of you that he currently is.  All you have to do is pay his price.  I'll give yuou three guesses what he wants and the first two don't count.  If the target accepts, the Incubus disappears in a flash of smoke and light, laughing all the way down to Sheol, with the target left with a lingering emptiness in their breast and a Soul Contract.

<Referee's Note>

Soul Contracts are enchanted pieces of paper that link to a living person's soul.  Anything done to that piece of paper will also be done to the person.  For example, if the Contract is ripped in half, the person will shortly thereafter be cut in half, either in battle or through some kind of freak "accident".  The Contract will also repair itself over time, as long as it is not utterly destroyed.  After the person dies, his soul is dragged into the Contract and the creature he sold it to him come to collect.

</Referee's Note> 

Alternatively, the Incubus may make a different pitch to the target's friend, framing the original target as evil or insane and trying to get the target's friends to kill the target.  If their friends do so, the Incubus receives their souls instead, and leaves as per above.

If anyone refuses his offers, the Incubus will always try to kill him, usually through manipulation of the target or others, or through other covert means.     

                                                     by bluewickedbehemoth

Incubus Base Form
HD 3   AC 14  Atk (+1) Stinger - see below
Mor 8  Saves 7 or less is a success

Stinger: As a full action, The Incubus can attempt to sting someone.  Anyone stung takes 3d6 poison damage, save for half. 

Superior Shapeshifting: The Incubus can shapeshift into anything he desires.  However, if he wishes too, his stats can change to whatever he transformed into.  However, to transform into something stronger than himself and to replicate its abilities, he must absorb some of its mana each day.  He can do this through touching them or making contact with hot blood freshly spilled from the person he has transformed into.

Invisibility: As a full action, the Incubus can turn invisible.  This gives him +4 to AC and +4 to hit.  He turns visible as soon as he does something strenuous or makes an attack.

Flyer: The Incubus can use his 'Superior Shapeshifting' ability to grow wings and fly.  If he already has his wings out, he gets +4 to initiative.

Tactics:
- Stalk someone once you've selected a target
- Then transform into him
- Replace your target, steal his place in the group
- Bargain for his soul
- If he refuses, kill him and flee

                                                   by KishiShiotani

Saturday, June 15, 2019

OSR: Lich Generator

<author's note>
A quick update.  I'm very busy with work so don't expect as much content as usual for the immediate future.  Rest assured, I will get you guys as much as I can manage, but I'm rather busy these days.  So don't worry if I drop off the face of the Earth and stop updating for a few weeks.
</author's note>

I don't really know why, but I have been thinking about Liches.  Despite the fact that I've never even used one in a game, I kind of want too now.  So I decided to write up a generator for quickly customizing a Lich for your game.  Not that you should be using a Lich quickly and off the fly, but I digress.

Further reading on Liches can be found here and here.

                                                 by Adrian Dadich

The Lich appears to be...

1d10

1- A child.  The Lich appears to be a small child.  The Lich has a 2-in-6 chance of being able to act like a real child and a 4-in-6 chance of not being able to quite pull it off, leaving its impression of a child lacking, like any creepy child in a horror movie.
2- A maiden.  The Lich appears to be a defenseless young woman (or a handsome young lad, if you prefer).  The Lich has a 4-in-6 chance of being able to appear like a normal person, and a 2-in-6 chance of appearing to be some kind of monster.
3- A young man, in the prime of his youth.  The Lich resembles itself as it was when it was young.  This will be an idealized version of the form the Lich once took. 
4- A Ghost.  The Lich appears to be a ghost.
5- A dream.  The Lich does not appear before you physically, but instead walks invisibly through the world, only stopping by those it wishes to manipulate.  When it reaches those people, it sticks its intangible fingers into their minds and sends them dreams of whatever the Lich wishes.
6- A skeleton.  The Lich may appear as a moving skeleton with glowing eyes and tattered robes, or it may play dead as an unimportant skeleton lying in the corner, surrounded by rusting armor and a rotting shield.
7- A passing fancy.  The Lich wanders the Dreamlands, sending arrows of thought out into the waking minds of those it wishes to influence.  Those struck by these arrows of thought suddenly have brilliant, odd ideas leap into their heads like a bolt from the blue. 
8- An Angel or A Demon.  The Lich disguises itself as an Angel to encourage and as a Devil to frighten, as well as to ensure that no matter what side wins, the Lich will benefit.
9- You.  The Lich pretends to be an alternate version of one person the players will know intimately, one of them!  The Lich will have some plausible story, such as that it is from the past or future, or from an alternate universe or something like that.
10- A God.  The Lich is pretending to be some minor God you've never heard of.  Still, the Lich seems to have most of the traits a God would possess.     

This Lich's real body is...

1d12

1- A skull.  The skull has a 50% chance of being adorned with gold and jewels and a 50% of being nothing odd.  The skull can levitate, shoot blasts of fire out of its mouth and speak telepathically to anyone within 100'.  The Lich may pretend to be an ordinary skull, however.   
2- A skeleton.  Can't beat the classics.  The Lich is a skeleton, but decked out in fashionable duds and jewelry.
3- A great, corpulent mass of dead tissue.  The Lich was a Ghoul before they became the Lich.  They have the best of both world's, the Ghoul's lethal touch with the Undead mastery of all impulses, including the Ghoul's hunger.
4- A tall, inhuman thing covered in dead, white flesh.  Frankenstein wishes he could make something this lethal.
5- A greatly modified corpse.  Skeletons are so three centuries ago.  This Lich has a skeletal body, but one modified with extra arms, heads or legs.
6- A perfectly preserved corpse surrounded by an aura of perpetual, sub-zero chill.  Cold prevents decomposition, so what better way to keep yourself together for the rest of eternity.  This Lich can cause ice to form over objects it touches and its' blood super-chills anything it touches like liquid nitrogen
7- A skeleton with metal reinforced bones with an immensely hot fire burning inside its chest.  This Lich stole fire from Heaven to fuel their immortality.  It almost worked.  This Lich's body is immensely hot and can burn through or melt most things.
8- 1d6+1 undead bodies.  Each of the bodies is one of the Lich's real bodies, as while the Lich has many bodies, it has only 1 mind.  The Lich controls all these bodies simultaneously and they all don't have to be in the same area.   
9- A small, animal looking thing that is actually small and pathetic.  For example, a skeletal snake made out of a human spinal cord and a skull, . 
10- A brain in a jar.  Need I say more?  The brain in the jar can't actually do anything, unlike the skull, but destroying it will only allow the Lich to return to its full, normal body.     
11- A semi-living body, operating on manual control.  The Lich hasn't killed itself yet.
12- A living body.  The Lich Who Yet Lives.  You should probably start running.  

The Lich's phylactory is...

1d8

1- A rare treasure hidden in a dungeon somewhere.  The treasure has some other magical ability so no one would think it was also a phylactory.
2- A baby.  A baby, escorcelled to age normally, but once it takes lethal damage or 50 years old, to transform back into a baby.   
3- A sacred treasure belonging to a world famous religion.  The Lich probably planned this, somehow.
4- A town or city important to the Lich when it was alive.  The town or city need not be totally destroyed, enslaving the inhabitants and burning it to the ground would probably do it.
5- The Phylactory is attached to a bloodline, remaining with one member of the bloodline and passing down the line of succession matriolinearly.  It is currently attached to the soul of a maiden who is about to be married.
6- A magic sword being held by someone else.  As "1".
7- The Phylactory is secretly hidden inside someone else's body, perhaps unwillingly.  Removing the phylactory would probably require killing the person it is currently inside.      
8- The Phylactory is a small, seemingly unimportant trinket that the Lich always carries with them, such as an ancient arrowhead, a smooth stone, a petrified piece of bread, etc. 

The Lich's phylactory works by...

1d4

1- Regenerating its body after it is destroyed.  This takes 1d4 hours.
2- Pulling its soul out of a damaged body and placing it into the next available one.  The Lich has a number of spare bodies concealed somewhere in the world.
3- Healing the body that the Lich is in.  The Lich will pretend to "die", then once the danger has passed, the phylactory will heal the "dead" body. 
4- Enabling the Lich to try and possess one of the other bodies near him, even if it is occupied.  The Lich will then modify a body to suit its needs. 

The Lich fights with...

1d8

1- A ranged weapon.  The Lich fights with: 1d4 [1= A magazine fed, fully automatic crossbow, 2= a longbow that fires magic arrows, 3= The Lich has 1d8 metal spheres orbiting it at all times as per Meteor Guard; 4= A gun.]
2- A melee weapon.  The Lich fights with: 1d4 [1= One of the Nine Angel Blades, Scorch; 2= A buzzblade (2d8 damage on a hit); 3= Electrified Gauntlet 1d6 blunt + 1d6 lightning + save vs paralyzation;4=  Greenglow Sword 1d6+STR damage on a hit, plus any living creature within 50' of the blade when it is unsheathed take 1d6 damage as invisible radiation grows cancers in their bodies.]
3- Bare hands: The Lich is a master of one of the Fist Arts.  Which one?  1d4  [1= Demon Flips the Cart; 2= Pattram Swordhand; 3= 49 Empty Palms; 4= Leisure Kicks.]
4- Bare hands: The Lich is strong and fast enough that it needs no arms.  The Lich acts twice, once at the start of initiative order and once wherever it rolled.  Additionally, the Lich's bare hands do 1d6+3 blunt damage on a hit.
5- Bare hands: The Lich's touch is dangerous enough.  It: 1d4 [1= Does 1d6 HP damage as it drains life energy, healing the Lich for the same; 2= All the Lich's bodily fluids are ludicrously toxic, if exposed, you take 3d6 poison damage, save for half; 3= The Lich has a neuro-electric charge flowing through its body, anyone who touches it must save or be paralyzed, as well as take 1d6 lightning damage a round; 4= The Lich The Lich can superchill its body by vaporizing all the water in certain parts, causing anyone who it touches with those body parts to take 2d6 ice damage and have that part of the body be covered in ice.]
6- Spells.  All Liches are spellcasters, but some revel in that fact more than others.
7- Rays of energy.  The Lich can fire blasts of energy that: 1d6 [1= transform into chains, tying any person struck to the nearest solid object or person; 2= melt holes in objects, doing 2d6 fire damage; 3= Do 1d6 WIL damage.  If this damage ever exceeds your WIL score, you turn into a vermin animal.  A frog, perhaps; 4= Do 1d6 DEX damage.  If this damage ever exceeds your DEX score, you turn to stone; 5= Anyone struck must save or lose one of their senses, starting with sight, then hearing, touch, smell then taste; 6= Anyone struck must save or get -1 to all rolls for the next 1d10 minutes.  This stacks.  Additionally, if anyone under the effect of these rays rolls a Natural "1", they suffer a critical failure.]
8- It doesn't.  The Lich has a powerful, passive ability that protects it from almost all harm.  It: 1d4 [1= The Lich has tendrils growing out of its head which strike with the force of a bullwhip and will automatically attack anyone who comes close to the Lich; 2= Any living creature who walks within 10' of the Lich without the Lich's permission takes 2d6 damage from the Anti-Life shell the Lich constantly exudes; 3= The Lich is constantly thronged by 1d8 semi-real mirages who will become real creatures and attack anyone who threatens it; 4= The Lich is enscorcelled so that any attack targeting it will always miss.  On an attack targeting the area the Lich inhabits or one unaimed and striking it purely by accident can harm it.]

The Lich also has the ability to...

1d12

1- Fire a laser that can cut through almost anything.  This laser can be fired once per battle and does 1d20 (roll twice and select the higher result) fire damage.  Save to avoid being hit.
2- Command people to "Fall."  The Lich may do this once per person it encounters.  All who can hear the Lich must save.  Those who fail their saves collapse and cannot move anything more than their eyes.  Those who pass their saves make all rolls at -4 for the duration of the battle.
3- Blot out any light sources in the area.  At the Lich's roar, all light sources are extinguished, plunging the area into perfect darkness.  The Lich can see perfectly fine in this darkness, of course.  What is physical darkness to the spiritual dark of the grave?
4- Teleport.  The Lich can teleport up to 100' as an action.  It can only do this every 1d4 turns.
5- Breathe clouds of highly toxic gas.  As an action, the Lich exhales a cloud of toxic gas that does 2d6 damage a round and forces anyone inside it to save or be blinded.  The gas covers 30 square feet and is otherwise normal.  The Lich may use this ability every 1d4 turns.
6- Drain life energy with a touch.  As an action, one person the Lich touches takes 3d6 HP damage as the life is drained from their body.  The Lich is then healed the same amount.  The Lich may do this once every 1d4 turns. 
7- Create walls of fire.  As an action, the Lich may create a wall of fire.  The walls of fire are up to 20' high, 5' thick and up to 50' long.  Anyone who gets within 5' of one takes 1d6 fire damage and is set on fire.  Anyone inside one takes 2d6 fire damage and is set on fire.
8- Summon swarms of animals to fight for it.  The Lich can summon a swarm of 1d4 [1= Rats; 2= Bats; 3= Wasps; 4= Crows; 5= Snakes; 6= Spiders.] 
9- Transform into something that cannot be hurt.  The Lich can, as an action, transform into 1d6 [1= A puddle of water; 2= A cloud of smoke; 3= A pillar of fire; 4= A gust of wind.]
10- Curse people.  If you can hear the Lich's voice, you can be cursed by it.  It may only curse 1 person or group of persons per day.
11- Turn people into animals.  As an action, the Lich may cast a spell on one person.  That person must save.  On a failed save, that person is transformed into a giant, vicious animal under the Lich's control. 
12- Kill with a Word.  As an action, the Lich can speak a magical word to one person.  This person must be able to see or hear the Lich.  That person must save.  On a success, that person's health is cut in half.  On a failed save, that person dies.  The Lich may only speak the Killing Word once per battle. 

The Lich is served by...

1d6

1- Lesser Undead.  The Lich may have bound the Undead to it magically, or they may be serving it willingly.
2- Demons.  As Undead.  The Demons may be honest in their intentions or they may be acting under compulsion.
3- Degenerated Mortals.  They were once a normal band of mortals, but under the Lich's foul influence they have become wretched caricatures of what they once were.
4- A group of clueless mortals.  The Lich is pretending to be an eccentric or powerful mortal and has rather ordinary mortal servants.  The mortals might not even realize the Lich is a Lich, or even an undead. 
5- A cult that worships it as a divine being.  These cultists have never met anything that matches a description of a God other than the Lich.  When it offered to grant them their wishes, they were eager to serve.
6- The pre-Liches.  The Lich is served by thousands of versions of itself culled from alternate universes, parallel realities and dead timelines.  Time travel may be involved and shenanigans definitely are.

The Lich's goal is...

1d12

1- To exact vengeance on a grand, impossible scale.  Imagine a plague that kills 90% of mortals, plucking a star out of heaven and slamming it into the Earth or setting the whole world on fire.  That kind of revenge. 
2- To take over the world and fix it.  The Lich has big plans that it wishes to achieve with minimal bloodshed.  This will take decades of grooming and plotting, but that is perfectly acceptable.
3- To build an Empire of ageless, magical beings.  An immortal race living in paradise until the End of Time.  The only problem is getting there.
4- To kill a God.  The killing is easy.  The harder part is getting the God to stay dead. 
5- To create a utopia.  The eschaton will be immatized, one way or another.
6- To reach the (entirely theoretical) Oververse.  The Lich is the one who came up with the theory.
7- To groom a successor, lover or opponent.  As self-explanatory as it is rewarding.
8- To bring about the next apocalypse.  The Lich is tired of all the noise and would like a little peace and quiet, or at least to distract the Gods and mortals from its current activities.
9- To discover the True Nature of the Universe. 
10- To travel through Time.  The Lich may have been told to do this by a future version of itself.
11- To create the perfect being.   
12- To return to life.  Being undead is no fun, even for a Lich.

The Lich's current project is...

1d12

1- Building inconceivable weapons.
2- Brewing potions of eternal youth.
3- Stealing and reading the diaries of influential people.
4- Trying to gain access to Heaven.
5- Building small-scale models of a city in the middle of a wasteland and using them for tests, before abandoning them to build a new one.
6- Crafting a working network of teleporters.
7- Growing soulless bodies in test tubes.
8- Designing a new hybrid race.
9- Keeping fastidious notes about everything that is happening at all hours of the day.
10- Attempting to cause an earthquake, tsunami or volcanic eruption.
11- Sending out loose souls and seeing if they will return to the Lich, either willingly or with "encouragement".
12- Playing chess with a being of a similar stature.

The Lich's current problem...

1d6

1- An incredibly powerful weapon has gone missing.
2- A lesser being or group of beings is interferring in their plans.
3- A very powerful being has invited the Lich over for tea and the Lich is searching for a polite reason to refuse.
4- Some of the Lich's servants have escaped, rebelled or are otherwise causing trouble.
5- A very dangerous magical power source or resource that the Lich has is distorting the environment in troublesome ways.
6- The Lich has forgotten something.  That should be is impossible.  The Lich is attempting to piece together what it did that made that possible. 

                                                 by Tania Sanchez-Fortun