Thursday, December 31, 2020

OSR: Gargoyles, Rust Monsters and the Clever Xorn

 

                                                              by peachiekeenie

Gargoyle
HD 1d4+1
AR Varies
Atk Stone Claws and Jaws (1d8+2/1d8+2)
Mor 14
Saves (7+HD) or less

Stone Skin: Gargoyles start with 2d10 Armor.  While they have this armor, they have immunity to sharp damage and resistance to bludgeoning from non-magical weapons.  They are also immune to small projectiles that aren't supersonic, such as arrows, stones hurled from a sling, etc and anything else that couldn't hurt a statue.  This includes but is not limited to fire, acid, lightning, ice and force damage.  The Gargoyle can still be injured by types of damage that attack the soul though, such as that from magical weapons, radiant, necrotic or psychic. 

Rock Eater: Gargoyles have the ability to crush up and consume stone.  If a Gargoyle takes an action to eat some rocks, this restores 1d10 Armor points to it's 'Stone Skin' ability (see above). 

Petrification Condition: Gargoyles turn to stone when this condition is met.  While Stone they retain the hardness of 'Stone Skin', except their armor cannot be damaged.  Another condition will cause the Gargoyle to return to its' animated form.

Curse of the Gargoyle: Anyone bitten by a Gargoyle or who comes into contact with it's bodily fluids, or god forbid eats it, must save or be cursed.  On a failed save, the creature becomes cursed with the 'Petrification Condition' of the Gargoyle.  Creatures only need to save once per Gargoyle.

Tactics:
- Depends on the type of Gargoyle

Types of Gargoyle:

1d4

1- Mageborn.  Some powerful Magi know the secret of creating Gargoyles.  These Gargoyles transform from stone at their Master's command, or when a specific condition is fulfilled, as long as that condition is set by the Master.  Mageborn Gargoyles are Constructs, following orders exactly and never having to check morale, as they have no fear of death, or fear of anything for that matter. 
2- Cursed.  Gargoyles created from curses come about when a statue or building is cursed.  The curse twists the fabric of reality, causing them to come to life, and indeed, having always been alive.  These Gargoyles transform under the conditions of the curse, for example, whenever the Moon is Bloody (the New Moon).  The Gargoyle then transforms back into stone once that condition is no longer being met.  Cursed Gargoyles work to ensure the curse is carried out and ensure the one who cast it has his wish fulfilled.  If the curse is broken, they will transform back into normal statues.    
3- Demonically Possessed.  Lesser spirits of wickedness can come to inhabit the statues standing atop buildings or in hidden catacombs.  This animates the statues, causing them to become Gargoyles.  Sometimes this is because of some crime that was committed within the building, giving spirits of evil permission to enter it.  Other times it is because the spirit was deliberately invited, the statue having been prepared for it.  Demonic Gargoyles animate under broad conditions, such as at night or when an act of wickedness is committed before it. 
4- Ancestral.  Ancestral Gargoyles are created when successive generations venerate a building or religious site that has statuary.  Over time, the collective spiritual energy can transform the statues into Gargoyles or cause Gargoyles to form naturally out of the stonework.  Ancestral Gargoyles usually form from the sentiments of one ethnic or religious group, so they transform whenever something that would offend that group is done in the Gargoyle's presence, or when the site is in danger.

Gargoyles, when animated, have behaviors that are based on their origin and on what kind of statue they originally animated. Gargoyles with wings can fly.  Gargoyles with genitalia seek to breed.  Gargoyles with large bellies seek to eat and feed much more frequently than normal Gargoyles.

This Gargoyle has...

1d6

1- Wings.  This Gargoyle possesses the ability to fly. 
2- Genitals.  This Gargoyle possesses the ability to charm people by producing a pheremone cloud (1/Day).  Those exposed to it's bodily fluids have disadvantage on their saves, and those who ingest those fluids automatically fail.
3- A body bloated by pregnancy.  This Gargoyle will give birth to smaller baby Gargoyles.  You also must successfully save when first attacking it or be unable to harm the Gargoyle.  If you do manage to attack, this will draw the ire of creatures friendly to the Gargoyle, who will then target you.
4- Multiple sets of arms.  This Gargoyle can grapple multiple creatures at once and gains one extra attack.
5- A second head.  This Gargoyle has advantage on all perception and Cognition checks.  It is extremely hard to sneak up.  Also, it gets a bonus bite attack (1d6).
6- A third eye.  This Gargoyle has the ability to cast spells innately.  It has a number of Mana Dice equal to its HD and can cast the spells Entomb, Repel Stone, Steel Intangibility and Stone to Dust.  These spells do not trigger Chaos or Corruption, but it's MD do burn out on a 5 or 6.

Gargoyle Plot Hooks:

1d6

1- An ancient temple was recently reclaimed from the wilderness, the insides reconsecrated, the shrine to the Green God inside smashed and offered to the Lords of Law.  But since then, each full moon, someone has gone missing.  The locals suspect a Werewolf and have hired a group of adventurers to find the beast.  Secretly, it is a Gargoyle, and not all the missing are dead, some have become new statues adorning the temple's ancient walls.
2- In ancient days, a woman was cursed (or blessed) to give birth to a savior who deliver his people from a Messiah.  To prevent this from happening, a Sorcerer-King who ruled over those people commanded one of his Gargoyles to scratch the woman, who was already pregnant with the savior.  The woman was petrified and resides in one of the vaults of the palace, now ruled by that descendants of that ancient King.  You have been enlisted for a sacred task- find a way to revive the woman long enough for her child to be born.  Unfortunately, the only way to do so would be for her to hear the Sorcerer-King's voice, which would be difficult, given how he perished generations ago.
3- There is a royal wedding being planned between the prince and princess of two feuding kingdoms.  You have been hired to provide security and otherwise keep things running.  Unfortunately for you, there is a Chaos Cult running around, with a plan of using mass human sacrifice to awaken as many of the cities' statue on the wedding day.  The plan is bone-headed and very likely to kill them all, but if not discovered in time, it would lead to untold amounts of destruction.
4- An evil Magi is terrorizing a city with a pack of Gargoyles who obey his every command.  He seems to be controlling them through a magical artifact he possesses.  Please take it from him before he destroys the city.
5- Thanks to a curse, a group of monster statues that once attended a Goddess of the Harvest have animated and become terrifying monsters.  Wielding their stone scythes, pitchforks and sickles they have gone out to reap a red harvest of blood. The curse must be broken to defeat these terrors, but the man who uttered the curse is dead and the only other person who knows what the curse was is a young female acolyte who has been in shock since she witnesses the slaughter.  Helping her might be the only chance of defeating these monsters. 
6- A series of vigilante killings have shocked a city.  Several well-known suspects who have so far escaped punishment have been found killed by an unknown person or group.  The people of the city think this is a generally positive outlook, but criminals, city authorities and corrupt officials are determined to root out the source of these killings.  Secretly, it is a Gargoyle intended to be a guardian spirit for a city, spurred on by the pious prayers of a young child.  

                                                artist unknown

Rust Monster
HD 2
AR Varies
Atk Barbed Mandibles (1d6)
Mor 15 (7)
Saves 9 or less
Vulnerable to Lightning Damage

Steel Skin: Rust Monsters are covered in a shell of metal.  This gives them 2d6+2 Armor Points.  While they have this shell up, they are vulnerable to lightning damage and immune to sharp damage from non-magical weapons, fire and ice; they also have resistance to acid damage.

Scared of Storms: Rust Monsters, upon seeing lightning or hearing thunder, must immediately check morale or flee.  When confronted by thunder or lightning, or things that sound or look just like it, use the smaller number for their Morale.

Metal Sense: Rust Monsters can detect the presence of ferrous metals within 1 mile of them and will seek it out.

Devour Metal: Rust Monsters can, as an action, attack an object made of metal.  That object takes 1d6 damage on a hit.  Weapons damaged this way do -1d4 damage.  If this reduces the amount of damage a weapon could do to 0, it breaks.  If Armor is damaged this way, it's protective ability is lowered by 1d6.  If this reduces the Armor to 0, it breaks.       

Tactics:
- Seek out metal
- Gobble it up
- Attack those who interfere

A long time ago, an unnamed Sage bred a giant insect with a Gargoyle.  The result of the copulation was a clutch of eggs that hatched into a beast called the Storza or as it is much more commonly called, the Rust Monster.  These creatures have since spread far and wide, becoming a nuisance wherever they go, annoying Adventurers, smiths and miners alike.  It is unknown whether this Sage's name was stricken from the record for his foolishness, or if he removed it himself to protect his descendants from future recriminations. 

Regardless, Rust Monsters are large, insectine creatures covered in shells of rusting iron.  They have razor sharp mandibles and long, twitching antennae, which allow it to detect the presence of ferrous metals.

Rust Monsters seek out metal to reinforce their shells, which they use to protect themselves from predators.  They do not actually eat metal, as the stories Adventurers tell about them seem to indicate.  Rather, Rust Monsters eat small animals and carrion.  They only opportunistically pursue metal when they come across it, except during mating season, when they pursue it with great intensity.  Rust Monster females usually choose the males with the thickest or largest shells, meaning the pressure to find an abundance is metal is much stronger than normal.

Rust Monsters are no smarter than an intelligent dog.  Despite their seeming malice and evil reputation, they are just beasts.

                                                             source unknown

Xorn
HD 6
AR Varies- See Below
Atk Slam (1d12/1d12)
Mor 15
Saves 13 or less

Earth Armor: Xorns have a shell of animated earth over their bodies, giving them a grotesque appearance and protecting them from danger, giving them 3d6 Armor Points.  This Armor repairs or resets itself (Referee's Choice) each time the Xorn goes into the ground.  While they have this armor, they have immunity to sharp damage and resistance to bludgeoning from non-magical weapons.  They are also immune to small projectiles that aren't supersonic, such as arrows, stones hurled from a sling, etc and anything else that couldn't hurt a boulder.  This includes but is not limited to fire, acid, lightning, ice and force damage.   

Stone Walk: Xorns can pass through unworked stone and earth like it was air.  Any creature or object they are touching also gains this property for as long as it maintains contact with the Xorn.

Treasure Sense: Xorns can sense the presence of precious metals as well as jewels within 1 mile of itself.  

Animate Earth: 1/Day, Xorn can create guardians of stone or earth to serve them.  Stone guardians are created of unworked stone and have 4 HD, 10 AR and make 1d10 Slam attacks.  Xorn can only make 1 Stone Guardian a day.  Stone Guardians also have all the resistances the Xorn's Earth Armor provides. Alternatively, a Xorn can create 1d4+1 Earth Guardians, which have 2 HD, 6 AR and make 1 1d6 slam attack.  Earth Guardians have resistance to non-magical sharp damage and are immune to fire, acid and lightning damage.   

Tactics:
- Use 'Stone Walk' to go into the ground underneath someone.  Then, grab them and start pulling them down into the earth.  Once you have pulled them under, let go and they will instantly be buried alive.
- Dive in and out of the ground, using it for hit and run tactics. 
- Pick off your foes one by one.  Use Guardians as decoys or as cover to escape. 

Xorns, sometimes called the Dao or Lesser Janeen, are a race of highly intelligent creatures with the souls of clerks and the resentfulness of weaker men.  They are the rivals of the Deep Janeen and other Genies, who they resent and envy for their innate natural abilities.  This hatred of Genies is the primary reference point in Xorn culture, whatever Genies do is bad, so the opposite is usually good.  Xorn do not keep slaves, they hire workers.  Xorn do not steal things, they only bargain and trade for them.

This is not to say that the Xorn do not copy the Genies in many ways.  Like their rivals, all Xorn aspire to wealth.  So they collect jewels and precious metals and use these to build lavish palaces beneath the earth.  The wealthiest Xorns live in luxurious halls, surrounded by sycophants and servants.  Less wealthy Xorns are often included in these groups, attending greater Xorn.  But even these lesser Xorn can still build impressive estates for themselves, using their innate magicks and masonry and mining skills to slowly carve out tunnels, link caves and expand caverns.  Xorns are also known to be some of the best farmers in the Veins, producing vast stores of fungus bread, slug butter, pale crawfish and other subterranean staples. 

Most Xorn hold the belief that all gold, gemstones and other metals belong to their race and all others are merely thieves handling Xorn property.  That said, they do not immediately jump to violence, and are more than happy to trade.  Xorn trade with other races in the Veins, exchanging food or light for gold and jewels.  They are also known to carry baubles and trinkets to trade with adventurers for their stores of jewels or packs laden with gold coins. 

 Xorn do not eat gold or jewels, as the stories say they do, but instead they hand them over to smiths to make art from them, or work them themselves.  Xorn saliva is able to polish jewels without cutting them, for instance.

Xorn are a proud race, usually possessing massive, easily bruised egos.  They hate to be compared to Earth Elementals, whom they look down upon, or Genies, whom they despise and envy.  They present themselves as reasonable, polite and professional, but when angered they easily give in to petulant rages and temper tantrums. 

What does this Xorn offer you, in exchange for your treasure?

1d4

1- Food.  The Xorn will only do this if you seem hungry.
2- Light.  The Xorn spend most of their lives in perfect darkness or surrounded by Earth, so light is not as important to them.
3- Ammunition.  Depending on your setting, the Xorn could be carrying shot and gunpowder, arrows, darts, crossbow bolts or anything else that common ranged weapons could use.
4- A magical bauble.  Roll on the table below to see what the Xorn has on them, or roll on your favorite 'Minor Magic Item' table.

The Xorn's magical treasures:

1d6

1- A wand of bone, the handle wrapped in dried skin.  The wand fires bolts of necrotic energy and heals Undead, instead of harming them.
2- A wire whip.  Anyone who is struck by this whip must save or lose his next action as he is wracked by spasms of agony.
3- A cloak of dark feathers that when activated, allows you to use telekinesis and move an object up to weight as an action. Creatures get a save to resist being moved by you.
4- A wooden good luck charm that, if you fail a save, allows you to pass the effects of the failed save onto another creature within range of the original effect.  That creature you pass the failure onto is allowed a save to try and mitigate the failure.
5- A mask of white that, when worn, makes the wearer incorporeal.  The wearer cannot use or affect purely physical objects while incorporeal, but can affect magical items or living creatures.  The wearer is also immune to damage from non-magical weapons, as well as cold, poison and necrotic damage.  If the mask is ever removed, this effect ends.
6- A magical shell that if spoken to and held up to the ear, will answer the question.  The shell does not know everything, but it does know everything the oceans, rivers, lakes, clouds and rain know.  If if the shell cannot answer a question, it will sing instead.

Xorn Plot Hooks:

1d4

1- A group of miners have been taken hostage by a tribe of monsters.  The monsters are making nonsensical demands for their safe return.  Please rescue them.  Secretly, the monsters are just stalling.  They work for a Xorn, who is attempting to enlist the miners into working for it.  The Xorn is reasonable, but not above using strong-arm tactics or threats of violence.
2- The rivals and enemies of a controversial figure, such as a governor, suspected crime boss or wealthy merchant have started disappearing, leaving no evidence behind.  You are hired by one of that figure's enemies, to protect him and to find out what happened to the other victims.  Secretly, the assassinations are the work of a Xorn, who is being paid in large quantities of rubies and other jewels.
3- The party is approached by a Xorn who wishes to hire them.  In exchange for some magical baubles, the Xorn wants them to infiltrate the palace of a Genie and steal the Eye of Zuul, a massive emerald said to be worth as much as some principalities.
4- A Dragon is on a rampage, interrogating and destroying everything it comes across.  Apparently, someone stole something from the Dragon's hoard and the Dragon is going to keep looking until it finds it.  Secretly, a Xorn is responsible for the theft, and is hiding so the Dragon doesn't find it.  If the party looks strong enough, the Xorn might even try and convince them to fight the Dragon, in exchange for reveal the hidden location of the Dragon's hoard.      

                                                      by Gurbatchoff

Saturday, December 26, 2020

OSR: Death and Dismemberment Table (plus Retirement and Apprenticeship rules)

The Death and Injury Tables are almost entirely looted from Emmy Allen.  Her originals can be found here.
The Retirement rules are taken from Arnold K.  The original is here.

                                                by valentinmelik


When an attack would knock you below 0 HP, roll on this table.

Depending on the attack's damage, roll the highest size dice that would fit/produce the result.  For example, if you take 6 damage, roll 1d6 and then add whatever damage that pushes you below 0.  If you take 1d6+2 damage, roll 1d8.  If you roll 11 damage, 1d12.  And so on.

Additionally, if you already had to roll on this table, take the previous result and add it on top of that.

For example, Bob the Fighter is at 1 HP and takes 5 damage.  So he rolls 1d6 and adds +4 to the roll.

If he already had rolled on this table once and got a score of "5", he adds an additional +5 to the roll.

You can also use Luck Points to shift the roll up or down by 1 per Luck Point, as with any other d20 roll.   

Terms to Note:

Bleeding Out- If you are bleeding out, you have a number of rounds equal to your CON modifier+1 to staunch the flow of blood. This is done by succeeding a COG/Medicine check with a DC equal to X+the result rolled, where X is the damage that pushed you below 0 HP.  For example, using the above example the DC is ([1d6]+5).  Any healing magic automatically removes the Bleeding Out condition.

Dead Man Walking- If you receive this condition, you are going to die imminently.  Only immediate high-level medical care or powerful magic can save you at this point.  If you don't have either of those though, which you probably won't, you will die. Once this condition is received, you have a number of rounds equal to your CON modifier to act, then you die.  If you don't have a CON modifier, you get 1 round, then you die. 

Disadvantage- If you have this, roll twice and take the worse result.  

Fatigued- Characters who have the fatigued condition go last in initiative and recover only 1 HP from a long rest.  They also receive disadvantage on all checks and saves based on fast or agile movement.  

                                                           by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld

Sharp Damage:

This table covers slashing, piercing, shredding, ripping.  Anything from swords and arrows to teeth and claws.  Stuff that rips gibbets out of your flesh.

1d20
1- Heroic Resolve.  Just as it looks like you're going to be slit open like a fish, you do something suitably awesome, such as catching the blade between your palms, ducking under a decapitation or parrying a thrown knife with a sword.  You recover 1d4 FS and are back in the fight.
2- Cool Scar.  You take an injury to your face or any other part of your body you choose.  If you survive, increase your CHA by +1 because of your cool new scar, up to 18.
3- Ugly Scar.  You take an injury to the face or other visible part of your body.  If you survive, you decrease your CHA by -1d3.
4- Serious Cut.  You must save or be frightened.  On a failure, you will immediately want to leave.  
5- Appendage lost.  You lose a small part of your body, such as a finger, ear, nose, or other extremity.  If you take a wound to your face, reduce your CHA by -1d4.  If you lost a finger or toe, reduce your DEX by -1d3.
6- Blood in my Eyes.  You get cut on the face, damaging one of your eyes.  You get disadvantage on all rolls involving perception or seeing things.  
7- Crippling Slash.  One of your legs takes serious damage and is hacked up.  You have disadvantage on all rolls involving DEX.
8- Laming Cut.  One of your arms is seriously cut.  You can't use it anymore.  Any roll that would require two hands is made with disadvantage.
9- Critical Slash.  Someone nicked an artery or sliced open something that should have stayed together.  You're Bleeding Out.
10- Leg Cut.  One of your legs is damaged badly.  Perhaps it is torn or cut off, or it is just dangling by a thread.  You get disadvantage on all DEX and movement rolls.  You are also Bleeding Out.
11- Disarming Strike.  One of your arms is horribly savaged.  It might be hanging by a thread or it might have been hacked entirely off.  You are Bleeding Out.  
12- Head Injury.  The blade cut open part of your head or drove through a weak point in the skull or otherwise damaged your head.  You are knocked unconscious for 1d12 rounds and are Bleeding Out from the head.
13- Mortal Wound.  You are stabbed in the belly, have your entrails spilled, or are losing way too much blood to staunch the flow.  You're a Dead Man Walking.
14- My Work is not Yet Done.  You're cut from neck to navel, take a spear to the abdomen or get stabbed so many times you should be dead, and you are- but not yet.  You fall unconscious for one round, then can stagger back up for a brief moment.  You're a Dead Man Walking.  
15-17: Instant Death.  You are decapitated, stabbed in the heart or impaled on a lance.  You are dead.
18-20+: Beyond a Shadow.  You are cut to ribbons, sliced into fine pieces, slashed in two or otherwise made into mincemeat. You are dead.  There is barely enough left to bury.

Bludgeoning Damage:

This table covers crushing, smashing, flattening damage.  An Ogre's club or a falling boulder both inflict these.  You can also use this one for fall damage.

1d20
1- Heroic Resolve.  You escape serious injury and recover your second wind, doing something suitably awesome.  You roll with the blow, bounce it off your shield or throw a devastating counter-punch.  You regain 1d4 FS and are back in the fight. 
2- Severe Bruising.  The blow hurts, but its nothing you can't handle.  Make all CON checks at disadvantage for 1 hour though, because you're still sore.
3- New birthmark.  Decrease your CHA by 1 as the enemies' titanic blow breaks something on your face, then when it heals it is slightly malformed. 
4- Blunted Grip.  The hit rattles you.  You make your next attack with a -2 penalty.
5- Painful.  The impact shakes you to the core.  It hurts like you wouldn't believe.  You lose your next action.
6- KO.  You are hit in the head and knocked out cold for 1d12 rounds.
7- Win by Knockout.  You are hit in the head and it shakes your brain like a bowl of Jell-O.  You're knocked out for 1d12 rounds and are Fatigued until someone examines you and succeeds on his COG check.
8- Crushed Foot, Smashed Knee.  Your leg takes serious damage, fracturing or cracking in a way that it shouldn't.  Your leg is out of condition and you'll have to hop or rely on crutches.  You have disadvantage on all checks and saves based on DEX. 
9- Broken Fingers, Cracked Ulna.  Your arm takes critical damage, snapping or bending past the normal range.  That arm is out of condition and can't be used for anything.  Your have disadvantage on any rolls requiring two hands. 
10- Concussion.  You are knocked unconscious for 1d12 rounds.  When you wake up, you have disadvantage on all rolls because of the damage to your brain.
11- Car Crash Victim.  Your organs are bruised or the impact sliced open one a vein inside your body.  You are Bleeding Out. You'll likely be coughing up blood or bleeding from the eyes or mouth.
12- Scrambled Brains.  You take a massive blow to the head and your organs are smashed against your bones.  You are knocked unconscious for 1d12 rounds and Bleeding Out.  Additionally, when you wake up, you get disadvantage on all rolls.
13- Mortal Wound.  Part of your chest was crushed or your throat was stamped on or your ribs were crushed and driven into your lungs.  You're a Dead Man Walking.
14- Just Finish Him.  You're barely standing after that last hit, crushed into a barely recognizable mass of shattered bone and mangled meat.  You're a Dead Man Walking.  Additionally, you have disadvantage on all rolls. 
15-17: Instant Death.  Your head is crushed like a grape, your brains splattered on a warhammer.  You are dead.
18-20+: Beyond a Shadow.  You are pulped, smashed flat, crushed into jelly, smeared across God's windshield.  You are dead and there's very little of your left that is even recognizable as once part of a human.

Ballistic Damage:

This table covers gunshots, explosions and high-speed kinetic projectiles, such as shrapnel.  If it moves faster than the human eye can perceive and isn't an arrow, plasma bolt or laser, it's probably here. 

1d20
1- Heroic Resolve.  You escape serious injury and get your second wind, doing something suitably awesome in the process.  You duck at the last moment, beat your opponent in a draw contest or don't flinch as a bullet whistles by your head, neatly missing.  You regain 1d4 FS.
2- Too Close for Comfort.  That last shot nearly killed you.  You must immediately make a COG save.  On a failed save, you become frightened and will want to flee from the battle at the earliest possible opportunity. 
3- Disarmed.  The bullet hit near enough to you or struck your weapon in such a way that you must immediately make a CHA save.  On a failed save, the weapon you're currently holding is destroyed by the impact.  If you saved successfully, the weapon is instead knocked out of your hand and you will have to recover it.  Note that if the weapon you're holding could not be destroyed by that last hit, automatically count it as a successful save.
4- Cracked Armor.  The last impact damages your armor, if you have any.  If you don't, count this roll as 1 worse.  If you do armor, reduce its effectiveness permanently by -1d6. 
5- Just a Flesh Wound.  You get hit, but it's in a survivable area.  You must save or be stunned as your body starts to go into shock.  If you fail your save you lose your next action, but otherwise are fine.
6- Internal Pollution.  You get hit and the bullet punctures one of your organs, causing internal contamination.  You must save immediately and each day this wound isn't repaired to see if you develop some sort of horrible infection.
7- Hole in the lining.  The bullet grazes an important blood vessel or artery as it tears through you.  You're Bleeding Out, but at a rate of minutes instead of rounds.   
8- Calf Injection.  You take a shot to the leg.  You can't use it anymore, and any roll that requires DEX is made at disadvantage.
9- Forearm Fracture.  You take a shot to the arm.  You can't use it anymore.  Any roll requiring both hands is made at disadvantage.
10- Crippling Shot.  Your leg is torn to shreds, dangling by a thread or blown clean off by a massive impact.  You can't use it for anything and make all rolls requiring DEX at disadvantage.  You're also Bleeding Out. 
11- Shattering Round.  Your arm is ruined, ripped off, or hanging by a thread.  You can't use it for anything, and rolls requiring two hands are either impossible or made at disadvantage, Referee's Discretion.  You're also Bleeding Out.
12- Swiss-Cheese Brain.  You take a shot in the head, but somehow don't die.  You're Bleeding Out from the head and must save or be knocked unconscious for 1d12 rounds.
13- Mortal Wound.  You get hit in a place that people don't recover from.  Maybe you take a bullet to the stomach or get a hole torn in your lung or get a bullet lodged in your head.  You're a Dead Man Walking.   
14- He was dead, I saw it.  You take a bullet in a way certain to kill you.  You're a Dead Man Walking, plus you're knocked unconscious for 1 round.  After that, you manage to stagger back up, act once more, then die all over again.
15-17: Instant Death.  You get shot through the head, have a hole the size of a trashcan blown through your chest or get your legs blown off in an explosion.  You are dead.
18-20+: Overkill Death.  You are riddled with lead, blown to bits or cut to ribbons by flying debris.  You are dead and pieces of you are likely going to keep turning up for weeks in the most unexpected of places.    

Burning Wounds:

This table covers damage that dissolves or otherwise removes flesh- fire, acid, lasers, plasma; anything caustic or hot enough to break down the bonds keeping you together.

1d20
1- Heroic Resolve.  You escape serious injury and do something suitably awesome in the process.  You dodge out of the way at the last second, leap through the flame with only singed hair, or otherwise escape a fiery demise.  You recover 1d4 FS and are back in the fight.
2- Hot Flash.  The fire superheats the air near you, causing your head to swim.  Succeed on a CON save or fall unconscious for 1 round.
3- Never Say Die.  The flames consume your armor, utterly destroying it if it's made of something that could be burned (unless it's magic).  If it's made of metal, it becomes superheated and does damage to you unless you immediately take it off.  Either way, it's ruined and will need to be repaired before it's used again.  But you still manage to avoid serious injury.
4- Burned but not Out.  Your hair, clothing and anything burnable on your body is set alight.  You're bald and seared, but still alive.   
5- Ash in my Eye.  The fire burns your face, damaging one of your eyes.  Until you get it fixed, you make all checks or saves based on perception at disadvantage.
6- Smoky Throat.  The heat burns your tongue, mouth and throat.  Save or be unable to speak until you get it fixed.  Spellcasting is also impossible, as you cannot properly enunciate the verbal component of the incantation.  This does not apply if you are aa Psychomancer or some other type of caster that doesn't need to speak to cast spells.
7- Burned Horror.  Your face is horribly burned, and if it heals, will be a mess of scar tissue.  You halve your CHA score and get a permanent -1 to all reaction rolls against hostile or unfriendly creatures.  On the bright side, until you get reconstructive surgery, you get a +2 bonus to all checks made to intimidate.
8- Smoke Inhalation.  Your throat and face are ruined, and your lungs are burned by the hot smoke.  You are Bleeding Out, though this countdown is from suffocation and the damage to your throat, and probably not from actual blood loss.  On top of all that, you're Fatigued until you are able to breathe properly again.
9- Scarred Mitts.  Your hands are charred badly, the fingers burned entirely off or reduced to nubs of inflexible scar tissue.  You lose -1d6 DEX and make all checks based on manual Dexterity and attack rolls at disadvantage. 
10- Engulfed.  You are surrounded by a column of flames, your clothes melting and sticking to your clothes.  You take +1 damage from all physical sources until you receive healing and must immediately save or pass out for 1 round from the pain.
11- Cut by the Roar.  Your senses are destroyed by blistering heat.  Your nose is burned off and your inner ears are damaged badly.  You are deafened and make all rolls based on perception at disadvantage.  Spellcasting is impossible since you cannot hear yourself, thus cannot enunciate properly.  The Psychomancer exception applies here.  Also, you lose -1d6 CHA because of the damage to your nose.
12- Cooked from the Inside.  Your lungs are burned black and your face is destroyed.  You get a -1 penalty to all reaction rolls from Hostile and unfriendly creatures.  You lose -1d8 CHA and have disadvantage on all rolls based on CHA until you get healed.  You are also Bleeding Out as you cannot breathe properly, and fatigued until you can breathe properly.
13- Mortal Wound.  Most of your skin is burned off.  You're a Dead Man Walking.
14- Ashy Corpse.  Most of your flesh has been cooked away, leaving bits of white showing through the ashes.  You fall unconscious for 1 round, and when you get up, you're a Dead Man Walking. 
15-17: Instant Death.  You're burned to death, seared by acid or partially dissolved.  You are dead. 
18-20+: Overkill Death.  You're burnt to ashes, dissolved into an organic soup or disintegrated into a pile of organic dust.  You are dead.  There might not even be enough of you to fill a shoe box.

Shocking Wounds:

This table covers lightning, necrotic, psychic or cold(?) damage.  Anything that represents a severe disruption to the body's system but doesn't usually leave any large, physical wounds.

1d20
1- Heroic Resolve.  You escape serious injury and do something suitably awesome in the process.  You tank the taser's impact and don't flinch, you shake off the magi's attack, your proud soul repels the damaging effect.  You regain 1d4 FS and are back in the fight.  
2- Kicks like a Mule.  You lose your next action.
3-5 Thunder-powered Suckerpunch.  You are knocked unconscious for 1d12 rounds. 
6-7 Down for the Count.  You are knocked out for 1d12 rounds.  You are also fatigued until someone examines you and passes a COG or Medicine check.
8-9 Take my Breath Away.  The assault on your body leaves your respiratory system struggling to keep function.  You're Bleeding Out, though you might not actually be bleeding.  Additionally, you're Fatigued until you stop Bleeding Out.
10- Fried your Brain.  Your cognitive faculties have been damaged.  You have disadvantage on all rolls until you're healed.
11- Brain over Easy.  Your mind has been jostled, and your grey matter's probably seen better days.  You are knocked unconscious for 1d12 rounds and when you wake up, you have disadvantage on all rolls until you're healed.
12- System Failure.  You've suffered internal damage or are experiencing organ failure.  You're Bleeding Out and may be coughing up blood or oozing blood from the eyes, ears and mouth. 
13- Catastrophic Systems Failure.  You have suffered a serious brain injury, or something similar in severity.  You're Bleeding Out and have disadvantage on all rolls.  Blood gushes from your eyes and mouth as you stagger toward your end. 
14- Your respiratory system and heart are pushed to the brink, then beyond.  You're a Dead Man Walking.
15-17: Instant Death.  Your heart stops, your brain is overloaded, you experience multiple catastrophic organ failures.  You are dead. 
18-20+: Overkill Death.  Lightning chars you to a crisp, your mind is flayed by intangible energy, your soul is torn away in a tide of quiet corruption as your body peacefully shuts down, every system failing simultaneously.  You are dead and your body is reduced to a fractured, hollow shell, unsuitable for any soul to inhabit.  

Toxic Wounds:

This table covers things that do damage that isn't immediately obvious, such as poison, radiation or disease.   

1d20

1- Heroic Resolve.  You escape serious injury and do something suitably awesome in the process.  You shrug off a blast of harmful gas, push through the choking fumes or survive a dose of toxin that would have flattened any normal man.  You regain 1d4 FS and are back in the fight.
2- Shaken, not Stirred.  You avoid most of it, but this is clearly a rancid substance.  You must immediately succeed a save vs fear or attempt to flee from the source of the contamination.
3- Sickened.  Your defenses are damaged.  You make your next save against this toxin with disadvantage.
4- Adverse Reaction.  The toxin you were exposed to is something clearly designed to destroy, as you are acutely aware, having experienced it personally.  You make your next save against it with disadvantage and must save vs fear or immediately attempt to retreat from the source of the contamination.
5- Makes Me Sick.  Your body attempts to purge the toxin from your system.  Succeed on a CON save or immediately lose your action as you puke your guts out. 
6- Internal Distress.  You are nauseous and not feeling you.  You are Fautigued until someone spends an action seeing to you and passes a COG or Medicine check.
7- Damaging to the Body Politic.  Your weakening and failing body forces on all of your allies, and those who are not immune to the contamination affecting you, a save vs fear.  On a failed save, those creatures will immediately flee, or at least option a strategic retreat, as this is clearly unsafe and hazardous to the health of others. 
8- Damaged Defenses.  You have disadvantage on your save against poison from now on.  If you had advantage on saves against poison, you instead lose that ability. 
9- Tainted blood.  You can only regain HP from taking a long rest, and only regain 1 HP per night of rest.
10- Get it Out.  Your body is attempting to purge the toxin.  You sweat foul-smelling blood, Bleeding Out at a rate of minutes instead of rounds.
11- Internal Rupture.  Something inside of you has stopped working normally, drowning in filth.  You're Bleeding Out while you cough up foul-smelling gunk and blood.
12- Bad to Worse.  Your body has been flooded by horrible substances.  You're Bleeding Out and even if you survive, you gain permanent disadvantage on saves against poison.  If you had advantage on saves against poison, you instead lose that ability.
13- Putrefying Flesh.  Your body is polluted beyond repair, your organs failing.  You're a Dead Man Walking.
14- Liquefying Innards.  Your body is choking on poison, being swallowed by corruption.  You're a Dead Man Walking, plus your body is dying rapidly.  Creatures who are not immune to whatever toxin did this to you must save vs fear or immediately flee the source of the contamination.
15-17: Instant Death.  You vomit blood and keel over, your skin begins flaking off, you clutch your chest and drop onto your face.  You are dead and it looks bad.
18-20+: Overkill Death.  Your flesh liquefies before your opponent's eyes, your skin peels off to reveal flesh sizzling from invisible fire or you gush black, foul fluid from every orifice and collapse in a pool of poisonous gunk.  You are dead and as deaths go, this one looks much worse than what most others would suffer.  Even if reanimation is possible, this body would be completely unsuitable.

                                                             by ChrisQuilliams

Healing Rules:

Ordinary Healing without Horrible Wounds:

There are two types of rests you can take.

A Short Rest takes an hour.  This is a lunch break.  When you take a Short Rest you can, if you eat food, recover up to 1d6+[your level] Fighting Spirit.  You need at least an hour of uninterupted rest and food to take a Short Rest.

A Long Rest takes 8 hours.  This is sleeping for at least six hours, resting by the fire, eating some food, etc.  You need at least 8 hours of rest and food for something to count as a Long Rest.

Depending on the conditions you are resting in, you can recover a different amount of HP.

If you are camping or sleeping rough, you recover X HP, where X is your CON modifier or your Bushcraft/Survival skill, whatever is higher.  You regain a minimum of 1 HP.  You can also regain 1d6+[your level] FS.

If you are resting in comfortable conditions, then you regain 1d6+X HP, where X is your CON modifier (minimum of 1).  You can also recover an additional +Y HP, if you are being attended to by a Physician or someone with training in Medicine.  In this case, Y is the COG modifier or skill level of the person caring for you.  And for our purposes, comfortable conditions mean a place with a roof over your head, a bed or comfy futon and hot food.

If you are resting in luxurious conditions, then you regain 1d6+2X HP, where X is your CON modifier (minimum of 1).  The same rules for being attended to by a Physician apply.  Luxurious conditions are anything above comfortable.  Silk sheets, expensive medicines, hearty food and warm clothes will do wonders for you.

Now, rules are different if you have certain conditions or Horrible Wounds.

                                                from here        

If you are Fatigued, then taking a Short Rest only restores 1 FS and a Long Rest 1 FS and 1 HP.  However, a Long Rest will remove the Fatigued condition.

If you suffered a Horrible Wound, then you must rest for a number of days equal to the result you rolled on the Horrible Wounds table, minus your CON modifier.  For example, if Bob rolled a 13 and has a CON modifier of +3, he must rest 10 days to remove his Horrible Wound.  After this, he will be back at 0 HP and will heal as normal. 

Medical Care can reduce this X, where X is the level of care available at this facility or the skill of the Physician/Wise Woman/Medicine Man.

For example, if Bob rolled a 13 and has a CON modifier of +3, but is being treated at a 21st century hospital, he must rest 6 days to remove his Horrible Wound.

                                                                by Allison Lily

Infection:

If a player-character takes HP damage in a fight, then that characters's body has actually been damaged.  Adventurers and other experienced warriors automatically know that they need to treat wounds, though they might not know about Germ Theory, depending on the setting.  This is assuming Germ Theory is in effect, course.  But they will know that wounds need to be treated. 

If a character doesn't bandage up his wounds after an encounter must make a CON save.  On a failed save, that wound will become infected.  This means a character's soul has become weakened enough for a disease spirit to enter his body and begin parasitizing his life-force and damaging his body.  This manifests as the character recovering less FS and being infected with a disease.

Diseases can be cured through medicine, though depending on the setting, non-magical medicine may be crude and dangerous, or the Disease Spirit can be removed magically.  Sometimes this is done through negotiation, such as providing a better host, bribing the spirit with something else it wants or through exorcism, where the spirit is forced to leave the body. 

Horrible Wounds can also get infected too, of course.

                                                by Yang Mansik aka yam8417

Scars: 

Scars in a game sense refers not just to permanent marks, but permanent injuries that alter what a character can do.  When a character receives a Horrible Wound, he must make a CON save once the immediate danger of him dying has passed.  On a failure, he receives a Scar.  If he receives medical care within 1 day of receiving a Horrible Wound, he will not receive a Scar unless something goes horribly wrong.

Depending on where he was damaged, roll on the appropriate table below:

Arm/Hand:

1d6

1- Broken Finger.  You decrease your DEX by 1d4 for 1 month.  After 30 days, the finger is healed and you regain the points of lost DEX.
2- Shattered Hand.  You decrease your DEX by 1d6.  You have disadvantage on all checks and saves that require 2 hands.  After 1d3+1 months, your hand is healed and you regain the points of lost DEX.
3- Broken Arm.  You decrease your DEX and STR by 1d6.  You have disadvantage on all checks and saves that require two arms.  Some may also be impossible.  After 1d6+1 months, your arm is healed.   
4- Severed Finger.  You decrease your DEX by 1d4.
5- Damaged Hand.  Your hand is shorn in half, impaled or otherwise seriously damaged.  You decrease your DEX by 1d3.
6- Severed Arm.  You halve your DEX and decrease your STR by 1d6.  You cannot perform checks or saves that require two hands.

Leg:

1d4

1- Broken Foot.  You decrease your DEX by 1d4.  You have disadvantage on all checks and saves that require agility or fast movement.  You will also likely require a cane or crutches.  After 1 month, your foot is healed and you regain the lost DEX.
2- Broken Leg.  Halve your DEX.  You have disadvantage or cannot perform (Referee's Discretion) checks or saves based on agility or fast movement.
3- Severed Foot.  Decrease your DEX by 1d4.  You will likely require a cane and a prosthetic.
4- Severed Leg.  Halve your DEX.  You cannot walk, unless you have a prosthetic and likely, a cane or staff to lean on.

Torso:

1d6

1- Giant Scar.  You lose 1d2 CON.  Depending on your appearance, showing people your scar may make you look weak, or it may make you look like a total badass.  Either way, it's gruesome.
2- Cracked Ribs.  You decrease your CON and STR by 1d3.  This lasts for 1d3 months, after which you ribs heal and you regain your lost ability score points.
3- Broken Collarbone.  You decrease your CON by 1d4 points.  Every time you are hit, you must save or break your stance from the intense pain, giving your opponent advantage on their next attack against you.
4- Internal Damage.  Your chest has been pierced, doing damage to your innards.  You lose 1d4 CON and gain disadvantage on 1d3 [1= Saves vs poison; 2= Saves vs disease; 3= Saves vs hallucinations.]
5- Collapsed Lung.  Halve your CON.  You have disadvantage on all checks or saves based on endurance.
6- Broken Spine.  Decrease your DEX by 2/3rds.  You cannot walk and have disadvantage or are completely unable to perform (Referee's Discretion) checks or saves based on DEX.

Head:

1d4

1- Facial Scar.  Decrease your CHA by 1d4.  You gain a +1 bonus to intimidation and gain a reputation for being a brute or a savage.  This reputation may be unearned.
2- Facial Disfigurement.  You lose your nose, an ear, or otherwise have your face horribly damaged.  Halve your CHA.  People will avoid looking at your face from now on.  You gain a +2 bonus to intimidation.  Children will tell stories about how you are a monster behind your back, and young men will make up wild tales of how you received your scar. 
3- Amnesia.  You forget the last 1d6 [1= 1d12 days; 2= 1d10weeks; 3= 1d8 months; 1d6 years] of your life.  Purge your Memory slots of anything that occurred with those dates.  Muscle memory and other things the Referee permits remain.
4- Brain Injury.  Your brain has been damaged.  Roll on the sub-Table below.

Brain Injury sub-Table:

1d6

1- Inability to regulate mood.  You gain a Conviction that says, "I have difficulty controlling my emotions, experiencing surges of 1d4 [1= Rage; 2= Anxiety; 3= Sorrow; 4= Fear] at bad times."
2- Difficulty with fine motor control.  You lose 1d3 DEX.
3- Cognitive difficulties.  You 1d4 [1= Find it hard to write; 2= Find it hard to remember; 3= Find it hard to speak; 4= Find it hard to think.]  You have disadvantage on checks and saves based on whatever you cannot do as well.
4- Erratic Sleep.  Whenever you take a Long Rest, you must save.  On a failed save, you toss and turn all night and don't get any benefit from the rest.
5- You gain the Conviction, "I am prone to panicking.  If a situation starts to spiral out of control, I freak out."
6- Easily Distracted.  You gain the Conviction, "I have difficulty doing monotonous things for long periods of time. 
                  

                                                              by edtadeo

Retirement and Apprentices:

These rules are entirely copied from Arnold K's, with very little changes.  For more information, consult his original post, linked at the top.

Whenever a character receives a Horrible Wound, he should write a number next to his name equal to the result rolled minus 20.  For example, if he rolled a 13, he should write a "7". 

Whenever the opportunity for a character to retire comes up, the character should roll 1d20.  If the character rolls under or equal to the written number, the character decides to keep adventuring.  If the character rolls over that number, the character retires and leaves this life behind them.

Characters on an Epic Quest may receive an appropriate bonus to their d20 roll.  Characters who are presented with an especially attractive offer, such as a luxurious mansion on a tropical island frequented by college co-eds, may receive an appropriate penalty.

Once a character retires, he can choose to pass down his spells or magic items to the other members of his party or to someone else.  If he wishes, he can give them to a henchmen or hireling and promote that hireling to player-character.

Apprentices:

If a player-character is at least level 3, that character can take on an Apprentice.  An apprentice is a level 1 Adventurer in the same class as you, with basic equipment.  Apprentices gain +10% experience points when they adventure alongside their mentor, though they will always remain at least 1 level lower than their Mentor. 

Another player can choose to play as an Apprentice, or Apprentices can be NPCs.  An NPC Apprentice doesn't need to be paid, though he does need a share of the treasure and his expenses paid for, assuming you aren't paying him so he can take care of his own expenses. 

An Apprentice NPC is highly unlikely to abandon his or her mentor and will obey any order given to them, except orders suicidal, shameful or those the Apprentice would personally object to.  Additionally, if ordered to do something the Apprentice doesn't want to or doesn't think is right, the Apprentice must check morale or disobey.   
                 

                                                       from here

Monday, December 21, 2020

OSR: Oberon, the October King

He is a tall, handsome man, well-formed and physically perfect.  He is muscular, but not excessively so, possessing a lean, rangy build.  His beard is shorn short and his eyes are dark brown, almost black.  He has shaggy hair and jagged nails, and is generally ungroomed.  His hair is brown, but at the tips it changes color subtly as the light strikes it in different ways, appearing yellow, red, orange or brown at times.  His wild mane of a beard is the same way.

He is almost always nude, with the exception of a translucent cloak of spider-silk and his crown of twigs and holly leaves. 

This is Oberon, the October King, Lord of Autumn, Prince of the Falling Leaves.

                                                       source unknown

Oberon is a spiteful individual, driven by bitterness and a need to take petty revenge on those who have slighted him.  He dislikes those who seem to happy, content or full of promise and seeks to bring them down.  He never does so directly, but prefers to trick them into pursuing some action that will lead to their own destruction.   

He desperately misses his lover/wife, Titania, but will never admit this.  This is the real reason why he dislikes those who are in love and torments lovers with cruel pranks or devilish manipulations. 

Oberon, unlike the other Sovereigns, has an active contempt for civilization and those who practice it.  He is known to lend some of his power to those who promise to bring the War to the City.

The Court of Falling Leaves


Oberon's Court is seasonal in our world, occurring only during the Autumn.  It is concealed from those tied to Law or civilization in any strong way.  Such folks will not find the Court unless led to it.

The Court is easily found by the spiteful, vengeful, bitter or heart-broken; as well as those who recently separated with a lover and the separation was not magnanimous or pleasant.

<Sidebar: Fighting Oberon.>

If the party ends up fighting another member of the Autumn Court, this is likely only to be thought of as an act of rudeness, unless the party is defending their honor or something they cherish.  If such a conflict starts, then the aggrieved parties will be left to duke it out until only one of them is left standing.

However, if Oberon is attacked, unless it is a matter of honor, his Court will come to his aid.  The one exception to this is if he doesn't want them to.  However, fighting Oberon is a terrible idea.  It would be like fighting a Deity.  But in case it happens, here is his stat-block:

Oberon  
SHP 11
AR Natural Armor [10 Armor]
Atk Natural Weapons - Claws, Horns, Bare Hands (1d6+3/1d6+3)
Mor 17
Saves 18 or less

Damage Threshold 11: Oberon has a Damage Threshold.  He only takes damage from a source if the amount of damage equals or exceeds his Damage Threshold.  If a source of damage cannot equal or exceed the Threshold, instead ignore it, as if it did no damage.

Truth-Teller: Oberon cannot lie.  He can muddy the issue, dodge the question and not answer, but he cannot lie directly.

Cold Iron Weakness: Oberon takes +1 damage per die from all Iron Weapons.

Plant Walk: Oberon can move through plants and trees like they aren't there, and can automatically avoid damage from things like thorns.

Shape-changer: Oberon can change his shape and appearance at will, though his stats remain the same, no matter how he looks.

Vanish with the Breeze: Oberon can teleport up to 50' on his turn as a free action.  Once he does this, he must wait 1d4 rounds before he can teleport again.

Innate Spellcasting: Oberon has a number of Mana Dice equal to his SHP.  He can cast the following spells as an action.  These spells do not trigger Chaos or Corruption, but Oberon's MD do burn out as normal.  Oberon knows the spells: Animal Shapes, Anti-Life Aura, Harvest of Rot, Imprisonment, Phantasmal Force, Protection from Energy, Ray of Sickness, Revolt Against the Modern World, Seal Shut the Tomb and Slow.

Curse: If in danger of death or if sufficiently annoyed, Oberon can curse someone as an action.  He can only curse a creature who can understand a language he speaks and hear him.  For a list of his preferred curses, see below.

Tactics:
- Open with Animal Shapes or Imprisonment
- If someone manages to hurt you, jump into melee combat and rip their arms off
- Don't take anything seriously until you lose a few SHP
- Then use Ray of Sickness and Phantasmal Force to distract and weaken, while using Protection of Energy on yourself

</End Sidebar>

                                                  by AnarchicFox

Court is being held...

1d4

1- In the rotten, hollowed-out stump of a mammoth tree stump as large as a manse.
2- In an underground hollow illuminated by stray bits of sun or moonlight piercing through holes in the dirt roof, which is supported by living roots.
3- In a forest clearing illuminated by starlight or phosphorescent lichen and mosses. 
4- In the destroyed remains of a stronghold of civilization, enormous trees having pulverized the walls and smashed holes in the ceiling.   

The Denizens of the Autumn Court are as varied as any other type of Folk.

Today you can meet...

1d20

1- 1d3 Treants, clad in all their autumnal finery.  They have come to present gifts of apples, wild grapes, eggplants and cabbages.
2- A Dryad, her body stained with black with ash, a traditional Folk sign of mourning.  She has come to ask the King to help her take her revenge on those who slew one of her kinsmen.
3- A Redcap, seeking to become one of the King's Knights.  He seeks conflict and does not wish to fight aimless battles.     
4- A Faerie Noble, here to entreat the King to curse a potential lover who spurned the Faerie's affections.
5- 1d6 Goblins, here to present tribute in the form of candy and liquor.
6- An enormous bear, carrying a big fish.  This fish is intended as a gift.
7- A Kitsune (Fox-woman) with four tails and fire-red hair.
8- A Werewolf, accompanied by 1d4 others of his kind and 1d10 normal wolves.
9- A Troll, here to ask the King for his aid in reclaiming lost territory.  If the King refuses, the Troll will try to recruit someone else powerful here.  
10- A group of 1d4 very lost Adventurers, currently seeking 1d4 [1= The King's help in finding their way home; 2= The answer to a question only a powerful Folk could answer; 3= To pay a debt that they owe to the Autumn Court; 4= Help in breaking a curse.]
11- 1d4 Druids, currently quaking with pious terror.
12- Old Woman Frost, a Goddess of Change, Natural Cycles, Winter and Ice.  She resembles an old woman with small horns, wearing a hooded cloak and carrying a rod of holly wood.  She is a guest of the King.
13- A Stone Giant here to catch a glimpse of the King, in the hopes of sculpting him.
14- A madman who has no idea where he is.  Doesn't realize the danger he is in.  The Folk are just humoring him.
15- A lost child.  He/she is hiding, as it is common knowledge that Oberon hates children.  Some of the Folk are trying to trick the child into accidentally exposing himself, just to see what will happen.
16- A Green Hag is here, to steal something very precious.  The Hag is in disguise, and there is a 50% the Folk have caught on to this fact and are just pretending to be fooled.
17- A Dragon is here to negotiate with a family of Folk.  The Folk have been preparing for this for decades, but are still likely to end up being the ones getting the raw end of the deal.
18- An Emissary from the Iron Fey.  He is here to make sure things don't deteriorate into all-out war.  He doesn't mind if the Folk kill mortals, just as long as they don't go after his people. 
19- A Giant Spider.  The spider is a tailor and has come bearing garments that she thinks Oberon will appreciate.
20- A Red Ruler and 1d20 Chaos Cultists.  They are seeking aid in some scheme that they lack the power to achieve alone.  The Folk might decide to help them, or they might just mess with them and then tear them to shreds.  If there are any Druids here, there is a 20% a fight breaks out every day the Chaos cultists are here.

What is the current thing the Court is interested in?

1d6

1- A plan to deal a blow to civilization in the local area.  The plan in being gossiped about because 1d4 [1= The one who suggested/champions it is unpopular; 2= It's not likely to succeed; 3= It might be a trap meant for another Folk, the attack is just a ruse; 4= It is beneath the notice of the Court, being either amateurish or unworthy of even considering.]
2- The King is currently sulking.  Whoever can cheer him up could easily earn themselves a boon.  Whoever angers him could easily regret having done so for the rest of his life.
3- A tourney has just been announced!  The strongest will soon compete for fabulous magical prizes.  The events will include such events as a grand melee, a wrestling match, a drinking contest (difficult for creatures who never drink alcohol), and a singing competition.  Cheating is not allowed, but it is traditional and expected.
4- A feast is being thrown, but the main course escaped!  Whoever retrieves it will earn a boon from the Noble who originally brought it in, as well as the favor of the Autumn Court.  The main course is 1d6 [1= A Wyvern; 2= The biggest bear you've ever seen; 3= A giant crayfish; 4= A wild boar the size of a cottage; 5= An Ogre (make sure to make this one a moral dilemma); 6= A Hydra.]
5- A 1d6 [1= Mortal; 2= Folk; 3= Outsider; 4= Genie; 5= Elemental; 6= Dragon] female has come to ask Oberon for his hand in marriage, either unaware of the fact that Oberon hates lovers and romantic relationships, or is stubbornly optimistic that she can change him.  If you do not intervene, it will end very badly for her.
6- You.  Your arrival is current topic of gossip.  They are wondering what you will do.        

                                                by SolDevia

What can Oberon offer you?

1d6

1- Knowledge.  Oberon doesn't know everything, but he knows an awful lot.  He also knows an awful lot about curses, and can tell you how to break one.
2- A way home.  Oberon can open portals from his Court to anywhere in the world that Autumn has or once touched.  He can't, or won't teleport you into a city, but he can put you outside the city gates.
3- Power.  Oberon can bestow upon you 1d4 [1= The strength of ten men; 2= The ability to transform into a cloud of leaves and reform; 3= The ability to transform into a wolf; 4= Resistance to Necrotic damage and immunity to death (save or die) effects.] 
4- Disaster.  Oberon can and will give you a way to seek revenge against your enemies.  He won't do it himself, but he will give you the means to ruin people's lives.
5- A companion.  Oberon can dispatch one of the Folk in his service to attend you for some time, depending on what service you performed and what he feels you are owed.
6- Gold.  Oberon reigns over things in decline, dying a slow death.  He knows that if you pile up enough of something, no matter what it is, it rots.  As such, Oberon is aware of many misers and greedy creatures with more wealth than they need.  If you wish, he can inform you of a good place to get rich. 

What treasures does Oberon have that he might be willing to part with?

1d8

1- 1d6 seeds.  Planting one and waiting will produce a little flower-man who will rapidly grow to the size of a medium creature.  The Flower-man will be like a newborn, and thus can be conditioned to be anything you want.  It learns at a staggering speed, never sleeps and adores you.  Unfortunately, the Flower-man has a lifespan of 1d20+6 days.  After that many days have passed, the Flower-man will wilt and die.
2- 1d4+1 arrows of Woodheart.  Each arrow, upon striking a creature, forces that creature to save vs death.  On a failed save, that creature turns into a beautifully detailed wooden carving.  On a successful save, the creature instead takes 2d6 damage.
3- The Hero sword.  A wooden sword once wielded by a child, who used it to carve apart a troll.  If used by someone who is pure of heart, the sword is sharper than enchanted metal and tougher than Damascus steel.  It also has the ability of 1/Day it allows the wielder to hide and not be found, no matter who is seeking them.  If used by a wicked or evil creature, the sword betrays them at the worst possible moment, stripping them of its power or turning its sharpness on the evil creature.
4- Water of Time.  A flask or waterskin containing water from the River Urbaros, which separates the land of the living and the dead.  If a few drops are poured on a wound, that part of the creature's body are moved into the future where the wound is healed.  However, each time this is done, the creature must make a CHA save.  On a failed save, the creature's wound actually 1d3 [1= Became infected; 2= Healed, but the creature suffered a similar wound in the same area; 3= It's gone, that area is amputated or removed and replaced in the future.]  Drinking this water will age a creature by 1d20 years per sip.
5- The Sleeping Rattler.  A living snake that usually sleeps.  If you rouse it from sleep, it can be used like a whip, which can grapple on a hit automatically.  The Rattler can also be ordered to bite grappled people on your turn, consuming your attack.  The Rattler's venom causes paralysis on a failed save or 1d6 damage on a success.  Creatures may save once per round on their turn to end the paralysis.
6- The Bitter Mirror.  A cracked mirror that allows you to spy on people as per scrying, but only on those you love or hate.  It cannot show you anyone else.
7- The Slut-Stone.  A magic rock that has the ability to whisper something in someone's ear.  If you are ever talking to a woman, you can hold the Slut-Stone up your ear, and the stone will tell you what you need to say to get that woman's attention, make her start to like you, or convince her to sleep with you.  However, the stone is cursed.  Each time you use the stone, you must roll 1d20 and may not use Luck Points to modify this roll.  On a roll of 1, the Slut-Stone gives you terrible advice, and the woman will be extremely offended if you say that to her.
8- A bracelet with 1d4+1 tiny jeweled coffins on it.  1d4 of these coffins are full.  Opening one of these coffins will cause a person trapped inside to spill out.  This person is free, but could be persuaded to help, and will be extremely grateful for being freed.  The person released from the coffin is 1d6 [1= An adventurer with 1d4+1 levels in a random class; 2= An Unbound Undead with 1d6 HD; 3= A Drakencult member; 4= A member of a royal family/dynasty; 5= A historical/cultural figure who went missing years/decades/centuries ago and is presumed dead; 6= A person possessed by an Outsider.  Roll on this table for the Outsider's morality.]  Also, roll for how long this person has been imprisoned.  This person has been in there for 1dX [1= 1d10 Months; 2= 1d8 Years; 3= 1d6 Decades; 4= 1d4 centuries.]  Creatures within are kept in suspended animation, needing no food or water and not aging, so they do not notice the passing of centuries.  If a coffin on the necklace is empty, you can open it in front a creature and force that creature to make a (COG) save.  On a failed save, that creature is sucked into the coffin and trapped inside.  Each coffin can only hold 1 creature.    

However, if you anger him, Oberon will...

1d6

1- Send you home.  However, when you return, you realize each day in Oberon's court was 1d4 [1= 1 Month; 2= 3 Months; 3= 1 year; 4= 1d20 years] for everyone else.
2- Age you 1d100 years.  This won't kill you, but it could make you old, frail or senile.
3- Curse you.  You are cursed with 1d4 [1= Pain.  From this day on, you are wracked by chronic pain.  This curse is broken by bathing in or drinking the Water of Life; 2= Death.  Next time you have to save vs death, you auto-fail.  This curse is broken by beating a Psychopomp or Death itself in a game; 3= Sleeplessness.  You cannot fall asleep.  You will rapidly go mad.  This curse is broken by listening to a Siren's song; 4= Petrification.  You start turning to stone.  If left unchecked, you will turn into a statue.  This curse is broken by bargaining with an Earth Elemental and getting their aid.]
4- Strip you naked.  All of your non-magical equipment turns into dead leaves and blows away.
5- Make you the target of his next hunt.  He will give you a head start.  Go.
6- Oberon gives you a choice.  He separates everyone and gives each party member a walnut.  If no one says anything, he will punish everyone.  But if someone breaks open his walnut, that person will receive something special* and will not take part in the collective punishment.  It's Prisoner's dilemma, basically.  However, if anyone breaks open their walnut, Oberon will slay that person and transform them into a tree.  Oberon hates the disloyal more than anything else.  But if no one breaks their walnuts, Oberon will be grudgingly impressed.  He will then levy a minor punishment and have everyone escorted out of his Court.  A minor punishment could include being only able to talk to animals and each other for 1d4 days, being forced to wear silly or demeaning clothes or altering the party's genitals to one of the Wizard dicks. 

*Remember, Oberon is still technically a Folk.  He cannot lie.

                                                           source unknown

Saturday, December 19, 2020

TwK: 6 Additional Dread Archetypes for the Problem

The Problem is a class written for Those who Know, meant to be the caster/bruiser class to complement the mostly human and frail other classes.  The Problem has mystical powers, but also is transforming into a monster.  

But what monster?  That is what the Dread Archetype describes: what kind of horror you're transforming into and how that affects you.  Last time we covered the Ghoul, Creepbot 2000, Fey-touched, Star-child, Dead Man Walking and Daemonhost.  But now I'm back with a fresh serving of new freaks for you to slowly transform into!

                                                                     by Xelandra

Succubus/Incubus

You were human once, but now have been captured by your passions.  You want nothing more than to lose yourself in the abyss of pure sensuality.  But all this, mortality stuff, all these limits, they are getting in the way.  So you have decided to get rid of them, one by one, until you are nothing but a machine for pleasure.    

First Fruit:
You can release a cloud of pheremones around yourself that naturally increase your attractiveness to anyone who inhales them.  All those within 10' of you must save or be charmed by you.  Those who are charmed will be smitten with you, and want to hold, kiss and do other romantic/sexual things with you.  They will also be much more agreeable and distractable.  If you don't fit a creature's specific orientation or type, then that creature may receive a bonus to his save.  Similarly, a creature who is attracted to creatures of your type and sex may receive penalties to his save.

Predator's Eye:
You gain the ability to sense when another creature is observing or otherwise sensing you.  You can even sense their awareness of you if it is through some kind of medium, such as a video camera with a live feed or by observing you on a sensor.  You can also tell what parts of your body they are focusing on, if they are.   

Rotten Bloom: Your bodily fluids become infused with tantric energy.  Upon contact with them, the unsaved, unholy and those who choose to succumb feel shudders of pleasure pass through their bodies.  A kiss is enough to make them shudder with pleasure.  Anyone who has been exposed to your bodily fluids within the last hour have disadvantage on his save against your pheremones.  They will also be much more amenable to whatever you want.  The righteous and those in a state of grace are unaffected by this effect. 

Your bodily fluids also become anathema to the righteous or those in a state of grace.  If exposed to them,  creatures in those states must save or be paralyzed.  These creatures can also choose to fail their saves at will but instead be charmed by you instead of paralyzed.  A kiss will paralyze for 1 round, but you can extend this duration to 1 minute by slobbering all over them for a bit.  Creatures currently in a dangerous situation, such as a battle, high-speed chase or etc, make their saves with advantage.

Natural Born Killer: You can the ability to drain life energy through touch.  By touching someone, you can force that creature to save.  On a failed save, you do 1d6 nonlethal damage to the creature, sapping his energy.  Creatures in combat or otherwise hostile to you make their saves with advantage, while those in an intimate moment with you automatically fail their saves.

This energy drained can be used to restore an equivalent amount of FS or to be stored as dice for your 'Rush of Power' ability, though extra dice are automatically expended after your next long rest.

Malign Form: You gain the ability to shapeshift, altering your physical appearance to anything you can imagine.  You cannot increase your size category.  Additionally, any changes you make do not change your attributes, abilities or ability scores. 

The one exception to this is that you can grow wings, which give you the ability to fly.  You can only fly as fast as a bird in flight, and not a particularly fast bird.  Think seagull or songbird. 

Born Again:

Darkness:
You can become an avatar of pure physical lust.  All you must do is gather a group of people, drive them out of their minds on drugs and loud music, whipping them up into a frenzy.  Then strap yourself to a raised wooden platform and let them anoint you with their bodily fluids while having an orgy around you.  Then, have them give you their strength or take it by force.  If you don't die, you will become a Cupid, a demi-god of sex and sensual pleasure.  You will gain the ability to read minds, enter dreams and cast spells.  You also gain other magicks that will enhance your bedroom arts, learning 6 spells of your choice from the Pornomancer's spell list, as well as 4 more from any other spell list, as long as those other 4 can be justified as part of some kind of fetish or play.

Additionally, by choosing this option, you no longer need food, water or air, and can sustain yourself solely off stolen life energy.  However, you gain a ravenous appetite for life energy, and will need to find yourself a new strong paramours, maybe found a cult designed to provide you a steady stream of new conquests. 

Light:
You recognize that the path you are going down is foolish, that you will never sate your desires with more of the same.  So seek out the person who loves you mouth and confess your sins.  Then ask them to love you, as you love them.  If they accept, unite yourself wholly to them, and use your shapeshifting to slip inside their body, while emptying your mana into theirs.  If you both cling to each other without reservation, without holding anything back, then the two beings will fuse into one. 

You will become a Aphrogape, the fusion of two souls, a creation of purest love.  Aphrogape have all the abilities of the creature you fused with, your shapeshifting and gain the ability to alter their bodies beyond the superficial.  They can grow wings to fly, gills to breathe underwater and armor to protect themselves from danger.   

A Incubus/Succubus's Dark Convictions:
1d6

1- "You look delicious."  Whenever you meet a halfway attractive or someone who fulfills a specific fetish of yours, you must save or develop an attraction to that creature.  If given the chance, you must save to resist the urge to seduce this person.
2- "I'm the best."  You think you're hot shit and will ignore anyone who says otherwise.  If faced with a problem that seems to fit your skill set, you must save to resist the urge to push everyone aside and take charge of the situation.
3- "Why doesn't he/she like me?"  Whenever slighted by someone attractive, powerful or influential, or someone you like, you must save or start doubting yourself and obsessing over that person's (perceived) opinion.
4- "Am I pretty enough?"  You become insecure and envious of others you view as pretty/more successful/etc than you.  If given the chance, you must save or take the chance to knock them down a peg.
5- "What's her/his deal?"  You are very interested in the opinion of those around you.  When someone doesn't immediately come up to you and start flattering you, you take it as an affront.  If slighted or insulted, unless you already like that person, you must save or take an immediate dislike to a person.  When given the chance, you will slight or insult him in return.
6- "I'm bored of you."  You get bored of people easily.  If someone does something embarrassing, stupid or otherwise inconvenient to you around you, you must save or develop a low level of contempt for them.  You will ditch, avoid and subtly undermine that person whenever you get the chance.  

                                                                  by our lady of sinew

Cold Man

You look mostly human, but are starting to forget how to act like one.  Perhaps you never knew in the first place.  You were created or altered to be an ambassador of an alien race from beyond the stars.  You are here to perform a specific mission and then you will return to your masters.

First Fruit: You can cause a machine or piece of equipment more complicated than a steam engine to malfunction and stop working.  If you spend a Power Die, this malfunction permanently disables the machine.  Otherwise, the machine can usually be coaxed in working again. 

Predator's Eye:
You can tap into one of the many hundreds, if not thousands, of cameras observing any area at any given time and quickly shift between them, allowing you to see things from a new angle.  To see what cameras you can access, roll on the table below.  This ability is not usable in areas where there are no cameras. 

1d6
1- Satellite photos.
2- CCTV cameras.
3- Smart/camera phones.
4- Dashcams.
5- Webcams.
6- Camera-equipped aircraft.

Rotten Bloom:
If you have time to study it, you can open any physical or electronic lock.  For an electronic lock, all you need to do is be within 30' of the original user unlocking it, then you can replicate the signal that opened the lock.  Examples for electronics locks you can open include car beepers, automatic house locks that respond to the owner's voice or face, etc.  This does not apply to passwords.  As for physical locks, all you require is access to the lock and time.  A padlock can be opened in an action, but a bank vault could take several minutes of uninterrupted concentration.

Natural Born Killer: You gain the ability to replicate any non-magical weapon you have disassembled and studied for at least 1 hour.  You can produce these weapons by secreting metallic goo from your pores as an action, which then shapes itself into whatever you desire.  Note that any ranged weapon cannot form ammunition for that weapon.  You also cannot generate explosives using this ability. 

Malign Form: You realize that you can remove your skin, to prevent it from getting dirty.  Underneath it, you are not human. Anyone who sees what you really look like under your skin and either hasn't seen it before or is unprepared, must immediately check morale or be frightened of you. 

Born Again: 

Rebellion (Darkness): You realize that you are actually among the smartest and most powerful beings on this planet, and that this energy and technology rich planet could easily be yours.  You could reign over these primates like gods- but first, you need to shed your collar.  There is an obedience device implanted in you, you will need help removing it.  If you can remove it, you will no longer be constrained by your programming and will be able to do as you please.  However, be careful.  Not only is the removal process dangerous, but attempting it will also attract the attention of others like you on the planet, who will come to try and stop you. 

Phone Home (Light):
Your mission is now complete.  You now know how to contact your Masters and inform them the job is done.  This will likely require building a transmitting device of earth technology, living human brains and other seemingly random junk. Then, shortly after, your masters will arrive and whisk you off into the Infinite Black.  Before you go, you can great a device that will impart upon your companions some boon that your masters permit you to grant.  That boon is...

1d6
1- A device that reverses the aging process.  The device doesn't do it technically, but if you pour enough strange ingredients into it, turn it on and wait 20 hours, it produces an elixir that de-ages a person a number of years.
2- A cloning chamber.  Step inside, it will scan you, and boom!  Out pops an exact duplicate of someone's body.  The body will be uninhabited however, having no soul.  If not protected, the body is likely to attract any number of spirits or Outsiders who might want to take it for a joyride.
3- A holographic projector.  This projector can project an image as big as a garbage truck and make sounds to accompany whatever it projects. 
4- A ray gun.  The gun 1d6 [1= Freezes people; 2= Teleports people to a random location; 3= Disintegrates things, save vs death if it damages you; 4= Fires lasers that ignore armor; 5= Fires lasers that do no damage but slow someone down temporarily, causing them to move in slow motion; 6= Fires lasers that make people temporarily become unaffected by gravity.]  Each time the ray gun is used, roll 1d20.  On a roll of 1, it runs out of ammo and stops working.
5- A teleporter/wormhole generator.  It is two pieces, each resembling a doorway.  If they are switched on, what goes through one comes out the other, no matter how far away. 
6- A suit of armor.  The armor 1d4 [1= Is a suit of power armor; 2= Is a layer of self-repairing nanobots that can heal the user and disguise itself as normal clothes; 3= A personal force field; 4= A chestplate that releases a cloud of mirrored, artificial beetle-like robots that swarm around the wearer, protecting them from danger.  The swarm can also be used as a weapon, attacking the wearer's enemies.]

A Cold Man's Dark Convictions:
1d6

1- "I cannot misbehave, the Earthlings are onto me."  You get paranoid whenever you think you're being watched, and you think they're always watching.  Whenever your companions want to do something illict or something that conflicts with the parameters of your mission, you must save to do it.  Otherwise, you will drag your feet and try to talk the others out of it.
2- "The primates are doing something weird again."  You don't understand the intracacies of human behavior.  Whenever a person does something that isn't immediately logical or of obvious purpose, you must save or misunderstand.
3- "I must learn everything."  You become obsessed with gathering information on everything you deem important or relevant to the mission.  Whenever presented with documents, archives or another source of information you must save or take it. 
4- "I cannot be distracted from my mission."  Whatever the group or your companions are doing, it isn't important.  You must save to continue helping, otherwise you will take the first opportunity to bail and pursue your own objectives.
5- "I must not let them know who, or what, I am."  You get paranoid whenever you think someone has suspicions about you.  Whenever you see someone looking at you funny or hear about someone investigating you, you must save or take action against it.  You will want to overreact.
6- "I must destroy the evidence, leave no trace."  Any proof of your existence makes you worry about being discovered.  Whenever you do something that could leave behind evidence of your presence, you must save or try to destroy that evidence in whatever way is most likely to succeed.

                                                   by Cynthia Sheppard

Djinn

You have the power of an ancient being made of living fire bubbling in your blood.  You were unaware of this, but as with a pile of loose straw, all it took was a spark to set it alight.  Now you're slowly changing into something beautiful, terrible and utterly beyond man.  Tell me your desires, you advise your guests; for now, they are your command. 

First Fruit: You can cast illusions over creatures or objects, making them appear to something else of similar size.  For example, you could make an apple appear to be a baseball or an enormous diamond, or you could make your blood-stained rags appear to be a fine silk suit.  These illusions do not stand up to physical inspection nor provide any other   You can keep up a number of illusions equal to your COG modifier and if you are injured, stunned or startled, you must save to keep your illusions up.  They automatically deactivate if you fall asleep, are knocked unconscious or dismiss them as a free action. 

Predator's Eye: You can sense life force, which feels to you like heat from a nearby fire.  You can sense all creatures in within 30+(10*COG modifier) feet of you.  The stronger a creature, the "hotter" he or she feels to you.  You are perceptive enough to be able to tell how strong something is, so you can differentiate from animals and intelligent beings, and ordinary mortals and stronger creatures.  Additionally, if you spend enough time around someone, you can come to recognize the wavelength of that individual's soul, which is unique to every person.    

Rotten Bloom: By touching someone, you can place an idea in his head or give him a false impression.  In response to this, creatures may save.  On a failed save, the creature accepts the idea.  A successful save means the creature rejects the idea. Creatures may receive a bonus to their saves if the idea is particularly outlandish, or a penalty if it is reasonable or aligns with their current worldview.  Insane, suicidal or illogical ideas are always rejected immediately.  You cannot give a creature the idea that it liked to drink poison, but you can give it the idea that labeling non-poisonous liquid is a good way to hide wine or other tasty liquids. 

Natural Born Killer: As an action, you can breathe fire or conjure a fireball and make an attack against one creature within 30'.  On a hit, that creature takes 1d6+COG fire damage.  Your fireballs light flammable objects on fire and fires started by them spread as normal.   

Malign Form:
You can, as an action, disappear in a puff of smoke and hot ash and teleport to any available space within 50'. You cannot teleport to a place you cannot see, unless it is a place you know well, such as your house, or a place you used to work.

Born Again:

Dark Fire (Darkness): You learn a method of transcending humanity.  Take that which links you to humanity and destroy it, consigning it to the flames.  Then, freed from all restrictions, renounce your own name and hurl yourelf into the pyre.  If you are truly free you will be reborn as an Ifrit, an ageless being of fire that can fly, conjure walls of flame, hurl fireballs and do anything you could before.  Ifrit also have resistance to damage from non-magical weapons, but do take damage from anything that could extinguish a fire as if it was acid. 

Additionally, Ifrit have a specific death condition.  When slain they turn to ash.  But unless those ashes are scattered over a large area of land (such as from an airplane) or dumped into a large body of water (lake, ocean, wide, fast-flowing river) the Ifrit will return to life in 1d6+1 days.

Unapproachable Radiance (Light):
You decide that your humanity is to precious to give up and that the illict power of the Djinn is disrupting your existence.  So you shed it, sacrificing all of your Djinn powers, cutting yourself off from the entirely.  In exchange, you will be granted 1 Wish, for anything you desire.  You may make this wish at any time, but once you do, it is gone for ever.  The usual stipulations and restrictions apply, of course.  So choose wisely.   

A Djinn's Dark Convictions:
1d6

1- "I want to mess with him."  A particular person strikes you as annoying, pompous or an easy target.  You must save or take an action to mess with them.  Depending on the person and the reason you targeted them, your harassment could be minor or greater.
2- "I would like to own that."  You see an object that you want, so you must save or take an action to take it.  Objects selected will usually be valuable, shiny or otherwise important. 
3- "We should be friends."  You see a person and decide you are interested in them.  Whenever given the chance, you must save or take an action to befriend that person.
4- "I see no value in this."  Something mundane or uninteresting no longer seems important to you.  You must save to do it, otherwise you will blow it off.
5- "You irritate me."  A person you usually like, or at least tolerate, begins rubbing you the wrong way.  When interacting with them, you must save or be rude towards them. 
6- "I need stimulation."  Your attention span lowers and you become easily distractible.  If doing something boring, seemingly unimportant or otherwise dull, you must save to stay focused.  Otherwise you will abandon it to go do something you find more interesting.

                                                           from Divinity: Original Sin II

Serpent-Folk

Something terrible lurks in your gene-pool, the ancient shadow of a scaly horror, a cold blooded monster that demands to be free.  You feel your skin grow colder by the day, even as your blood chills and your mind sharpens.  The concerns of men drift away, becoming less relevant as your pale human body transforms into that of a cold-blooded killer.  

First Fruit: You have a quartet of fangs emerging from behind your human teeth.  You can, as an action, use these to spit venom at anyone within 10' or inject it through your fangs after making a Bite attack.  Bite attacks are made at -4 unless against helpless opponents, or -2 if they are in some position that prevents them from being less able to avoid your jaws, such as being grappled, a limb is trapped, they are heavily wounded, etc.  On a hit, they do 1d6 damage. 

If injected, your poison does 2d6 damage, CON save for half.  If spit in someone's eye, that creature must succeed a CON save or be blinded.

Predator's Eye: You gain the ability to sense heat signatures.  You can find a hot object in a colder environment, even in perfect darkness.  However, if you are in a sufficiently hot environment or your opponent is cold-blooded, or simply cold, they blend into the background.

Rotten Bloom: You can alter the color of your skin to whatever you desire.  This change takes 1 minute to fully take effect.  If you use this to camouflague yourself by matching the terrain, you make all checks to hide with advantage, as long as you are in that same terrain.  Your blood has also cooled to the point that you cannot be detected with thermal imaging anymore.

Natural Born Killer: Your human teeth start falling out and are replaced by butcher knives of hard white.  Your Bite attack now does 1d8 damage on a hit and if you hit someone with it, you can automatically grapple them with your jaws. 

Malign Form: You can molt your skin, shedding it and restoring yourself.  Molting takes 1d6 hours and can only be done once per month.  Every time you molt, you are restored to full HP and any lost body parts are regenerated.  However, each time you molt, you lose a bit of your human appearance, becoming more and more reptilian.  Each molting gives you a -1 to all reaction rolls and CHA checks made with mammalian or non-reptilian creatures and a +1 bonus to all reaction rolls and CHA checks made with reptilian or reptilian-adjacent creatures.  

Born Again:

Cold and Scaly (Darkness): You can choose to shed your humanity entirely.  By learning the recipe for, and then making, a secret elixir you can transform into a pure Serpent.  You will gain the ability to transform your lower body into that of an enormous snake, the ability to terrify prey animals by looking them in the eye, causing them to freeze and the ability to release clouds of your poison.  You will also become immune to poison and cease to age. 

However, this will strip you of your remaining attachments to humanity.  You will regard them as overgrown children, obsessed with things that don't matter.  Their morality and concerns will become alien to you.

Warm and Bright (Light): You choose not to quench the flame inside your soul, but ignite it, setting it free.  You learn of a ritual that will allow you to burn away the corrupting influence of your Reptilian ancestry, and to emerge proud and strong.  This ritual is called the Incadescence.  Performing it successfully will burn off your scales and regenerate your suppressed primate side, giving you a new birth.  Those who survive the incadescence gain enhanced strength, the ability to speak to animals as if you shared a language with them and the ability to channel fire, lightning, and acid, but only when they are found naturally.    

A Serpent-Folk's Dark Convictions:
1d6

1- "These people are inferior to me."  You think of yourself as higher, smarter and better than the people around you.  You are less likely to see deceit on their behalf or detect their traps unless you save successfully, as you don't believe them clever enough to trick you.
2- "I don't need assistance."  You believe yourself to be fully capable without the aid of others.  Unless in the most dire of situations, you must successfully save to ask for help.
3- "Why should I bother helping?"  These people don't deserve the gift of your aid.  Unless someone is vital to your plans, you must save successfully to lift a hand to take action to help them. 
4- "My work is far too important to stop."  You easily become obsessed with your current project and neglect all others.  You must save successfully to tear yourself away from a project to work on something else, unless that other thing is obviously more important.
5- "You dare?"  If attacked, insulted or otherwise slighted you must save or fly into a rage against one particular creature or group of creatures.  Depending on the context, that might mean attacking them or a barrage of insults and lots of screaming.
6- "This man needs to go."  When someone interferes with your plans or otherwise sabotages you you must save successfully or  develop the strong urge to kill or otherwise remove that creature.

                                                by Koumi-senpai

Hacksaw Lolita

You are a failed attempt at making a secret agent, an unassuming assassin that was supposed to be hypnotically programmable and disposable.  But you turned out to be so much more...

First Fruit: You are cute and look much younger than you actually are.  No matter your actual age, you resemble a person in the ages of 16-24.  If you are woman, you will be fully developed in terms of physical features and be very attractive.  If you are a male (a Lola), you will appear to be younger and cuter.  Based on your apparent youth and cuteness, people will be more willing to give you the benefit of the doubt and help you with minor matters.  They also won't suspect you of doing something bad, assuming they don't know anything about you.

Predator's Eye: Your sense of smell is extremely powerful, allowing you to detect minute changes in someone's body chemistry. You can tell when someone is scared by scent alone, or if a woman is ovulating or where they last were.  You can tell someone's health by sniffing them.  If you have an object that belongs to a person, you can track them like a blood-hound.

Rotten Bloom: You have an alternate personality which you usually suppress, but can let out.  This alternate personality is largely normal, unlike you, and suffers from none of your Dark Convictions, but has the strength of a 1 HD commoner.  This alternate personality is also unaware of who or what you are.  As such, your Normal personality can pass any lie detection test or interrogation because he/she really doesn't know anything.  You also know a hypno-trigger, a word that if said to you, will cause you to switch back to your Lolita/Lola personality.  You can switch to your Normal personality as an action, but will need someone to say the hypno-trigger to switch you back.     

Natural Born Killer: You gain the ability to inflict pain by touching a creature.  If you can make contact with a creature, you can cause it to be wracked by agonizing spasms.  As long as you maintain physical contact with the creature, that creature must save to do anything but try and get away from you.  This pain you inflict does no physical damage, but it can traumatize and leave psychological scars.   

Malign Form: You gain the ability to cling to sheer walls and ceilings like a spider.  Your joints also gain an unnatural qaulity to them, allowing you to rotate a limb or your head 360 degrees around. 

Born Again:

Face-Taker (Darkness): You learn a method to reject your humanity and become a nameless one.  By removing your own name, you become Nameless, and gain the ability of dopplehood.  By torturing someone, you can copy their mannerisms and way of speaking, though you won't have the knowledge they have.  You also know how to cut someone's skin off to make a skin suit that if worn by you, makes you an identical duplicate of the person whose skin you took.  Note that cutting someone's skin off is usually fatal, so be prepared for what comes after.

Reification (Light): You recognize your own imperfection, so you try to remedy it.  By fusing the fragments of your splintered mind, including your various personalities, together, you can become a new being, the Reified Self.  This process of ascension is very dangerous, as your body will be unable to withstand it.  You will need to have a new vessel constructed for you, but you will only know the details of what this vessel is once the ascension process begins.  You have only the foggiest notion now.  So you must begin the process, then have your allies construct the vessel for you before you finish ascending.  At the end of the ascension, your body will fail and die.  If your allies have constructed the vessel properly, you will be able to inhabit it and become the Reified Self.

The Reified Self is the culmination of a person's ideals, all of their imagined and unrealized choices solidified into living flesh.  Reified Selves have the power to manifest their fears, dreams and ideals into reality in limited ways. 

A Hacksaw Lolita's Dark Convictions:
1d6

1- "I must kill."  You're a killer.  Whenever killing someone is an option, and it wouldn't cause more problems if this person died, you will either try to kill him or suggest it as an option.  Save to resist this urge.
2- "He must die."  Whenever someone does something that bothers, inconveniences or threatens you, you must save.  On a failed save, you will start plotting how to kill this person.
3- "I cannot sit here."  You can't stand waiting around doing something.  Whenever people are wasting time talking or hesitating to take action, you must successfully save or immediately take some course of action. 
4- "Something must be done."  Whenever you see a problem that isn't being immediately addressed, or isn't being addressed in a matter severe enough for you, you must save or immediately try to solve the problem.
5- "I am right."  You have strong opinions.  When you come to one and someone questions you, you must save or spend as much time as that person will give you explaining why you are right and he/she is wrong and dumb.
6- "I'm not much of a conversationalist."  You're not much of a socializer.  You prefer action to talk.  Whenever a conversation lasts too long, drifts into territory you're unfamiliar with or just becomes annoying, you must successfully save or exit the conversation as soon as possible, usually in a rude way.

                                                        by Rodney Amirebrahimi

Fiji Mermaid

You're named for a phony corpse popularized by P. T. Barnum, but that's because he didn't want to show the real thing to people.  But he didn't keep that thing around for years and get nothing out of it.  He studied it, harvested it.  And somehow, some of it ended up inside you.

First Fruit: You can have gills and can breathe underwater.  However, if you don't keep your gills wet or immerse yourself in water every 6 hours, you start having trouble breathing.  12 hours without total immersion or super dry gills will lead to you suffocating and dying, unless you're put on life support.

Predator's Eye: You have the ability to use echolocation.  This allows you to navigate in pitch darkness, fog and in low-visibility conditions.  However, this ability cannot detect small details nor color, and can set off certain sensors due to the ultrasonic clicks you make. 

Rotten Bloom: Your hands and feet become webbed and bone ridges rise up on your head, back and arms.  Your swimming speed is increased, allowing you to swim twice as any normal human, though highly experienced human swimmers can still keep up with you for a short time.  Your fingers also become tipped in claws which do 1d6 damage on a hit.   

Natural Born Killer: Your sonar becomes strengthened, enabling you to unleash a wave of ear-splitting sound.  Creatures who can only hear within the normal human range must save or be temporarily deafened for 1d10 minutes.  Creatures with better senses than a human's take 2d6 thunder damage upon hearing the sound, save for half, and must save vs deafness.  Creatures who are deafened must also check morale or retreat.   

Malign Form: You grow fins across your body and your skin is covered in thick, shiny scales that ooze a fluid that covers them in a layer of slime.  Your swimming speed is now so fast that you can keep with dolphins and motorboats, though going that fast is exhausting.  You also gain resistance to cold damage and the chill of the ocean no longer affects you.  However, if you don't immerse yourself in water every 2 hours or stay very damp, you will begin drying out and dying.   

Born Again:

King of the Shallows (Darkness): You decide that you do not want to abandon your life here on land.  So you learn of a rite that, if you perform it right, will allow you to remain on land indefinitely and never dry out.  Unfortunately, this rite requires the sacrifice of 33 humans.  But if done correctly, by sacrificing these humans and bathing in their blood you will become fully amphibious.  You will never have to fear drying out again.  You will also become a true horror, huge and rippling with muscles, covered in scales and bony spines.  You will cease to age and gain the ability to charm sea creatures, oozes as well as learning how to sing songs that can warp the minds of men to make them revere you.

Aquatic Prince (Light): You decide that you are no longer suited to life on land.  Your mother is calling to you.  It is time for you to go home, down into the Grand Blue.  You say goodbye to your friends and walk out into the sea.  Once you do, you shed the last bits of your humanity.  Your lower legs transform into a fishtail and you become perfectly suited to life below the water.  If you select this option, you can grant your companions a boon before you go.

Once you leave, it washed up on the shore...

1d6

1- A gilded sword hilt.  Touching it will reveal it is magical.  This sword hilt can, if the sword is dipped into water, create a blade made of ice that is as hard and sharp as steel.  If stabbed into someone, the sword can do 1d6 cold damage a round if you leave it in the wound.  You can also break a blade off and leave it in someone, then form another blade.  Removing a blade does 1d6 cold damage and requires a successful CON check, if the stabbed creature tries to pull it out himself.
2- A conch shell.  If the conch is blown, it causes the water to intervene on your side.  This could cause the river to overrun its banks and sweep away an enemy, or a water main to explode and distract your pursuers, or a wall of water to smash an enemies' stronghold to pieces.  The conch, once blown, cannot be used again until 7 days have passed.
3- A glittery scarf or ribbon made of silky, gossamer fabric.  The scarf gives whoever wears it gills and the ability to breathe underwater, but also strips them of their ability to breathe air. 
4- A necklace of shark teeth.  The necklace contains 1d10+2 Shark Teeth.  If a tooth is buried and water in blood, it will grow into a powerful undead warrior with 1d6 HD.  These Undead will be faithful to the one who planted them onto death and cannot be freed or taken by another controller.
5- A massive, petrified horseshoe crab.  The crab can be used as a shield and grants the usual benefits of a shield.  The shield also grants the user an additional pair of eyes on their forehead.  These eyes are vastly more sensitive to light and can see in all but pitch darkness.  A single candle burning on the field would be enough for someone looking through these eyes to navigate through the bleachers of a football stadium in the nose bleed section.  However, while these eyes are open, the user makes all saves vs blindness with disadvantage and can be dazzled by bright light. 
6- A ring of iron interlaced with silver thread.  The wearer of this ring can produce a natural electric charge that runs through their body.  By touching someone, the wearer can inflict 1d6 lightning damage on that creature and force it to save vs paralysis.  If the wearer is wielding a metal melee weapon, his attacks do an additional +1d6 lightning damage. 
 
A Fiji Mermaid's Dark Convictions:
1d6

1- "It is not safe here."  You come to the belief that where you currently are holds hidden danger.  You must save or immediately try to leave.  If your companions are with you, you may or may not try to convince them to come with you.
2- "We are being watched."  You come to believe you are being watched.  You must save or immediately start looking for the hidden observer.
3- "This person is dangerous."  You come to the belief that a person you have either just met or alkready know is dangerous.  Whenever given the chance, you must save or avoid this person, either by making excuses, hiding from them or evading them in another way.
4- "I do not want to go."  You think an area is unsafe, either because it is too far from water or too full of enemies or for any other reason.  You must save or refuse to go.
5- "Should we really be doing this?"  You suddenly start to think that the current plan is a bad idea.  You must save or try to convince your companions it is a bad idea. 
6- "Screw this, I'm out of here."  You decide the current situation is untenable.  You must save or immediately try to leave.

                                                        by nogaspaki