Apparatus of Magic Gathering.
C Mitchell Flogstrout, the illustrious and ambitious Mage who has lived in in near mythical status for the past 30 years devised a magic re-charging apparatus many years ago that would allow him to re-charge magical items such as wands, staves and rods without requiring him to spend his time and magical energies on such mundane tasks.
The apparatus is more of an antennae to capture magical energies. It is then a simple matter (to him) to then have the apparatus re-direct those energies into the item needing to be re-charged.
This magical device has only been built once and supposedly still sits somewhere in the ruins of Master Flogstrout's castle. However, sometime ago, a thief made off with a scroll lent to one of Master Flogstrouts former allies. That scroll was copied seven times and thus there are now seven copies of the designs of that magical apparatus in the world. The original scroll has long since disappeared and many say that Master Flogstrout himself re-claimed his scroll at the cost of the thief's life who originally took it.
The device can re-charge a magic item with up to 20 points per day (1d20). Thus, an item with 100 points can take at no less than five days to complete a re-charge of an item.
The cost to build the device, with all of it's highly valuable components, is nearly one million GP (958,250 GP to be exact).
Master Flogstrout, if he would re-charge anyone's items besides his own, would charge no less than 5GP/magic point of charging.
How the device operates is that the item to be charged is placed in a holder at the top of the apparatus which resembles a very large incense burning board. It is about as big as a surf board. The apparatus must be located in a high place such as in the uppermost chamber of a tower, to be most effective. This is not something that is easily carried or transported.
A sigil, representing the spell to be charged, is drawn into the magical fine white sand that covers the bottom of the apparatus. For each spell to be charged, the proper sigil for it must be drawn in the sand prior to beginning the charging session. first one spell, followed by the next spell followed by the next and so on. Multiple spells CANNOT be charged at the same time. In the attempt to do so, the apparatus will irreparably destroyed.
The Mage doing the charging must know the proper spell and the proper sigil to draw for the spell. If the sigil is drawn incorrectly or the wrong sigil is drawn, the charging will not work.
No one knows if or how many of these have been built by mages in the world. One thing to be sure is that if they have one, they will not sell it. "IF" you were to find one that could be bought, it would surely cost 1.5 to 2 million GP easily, if not more.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Saturday, April 4, 2015
A Metaphor For Life? Maybe a little
We began playing a module from DragaonsFoot called, "Halls of Chaos" just yesterday. It's one of those rare times that I play a published module rather than just write my own. I like this one a lot so far. Lots of common elements and style.
Go to town, posse up, gear up, go get the bad guys, get the loot.
I experienced a realization though during the game that made everything come to a sudden stop. My son still hasn't learned how to strategize in-game yet. When we first started playing, my oldest daughter, my son and I were playing, I as the DM.
As I look back on things though, my daughter always took the leadership of the party though. My son became more of a responsive player. Now my daughter has "fallen out" with AD&D but my son still maintains an interest. So I am running games for him and toss in a few NPC's to help him fill party number requirements.
Yesterday however, after watching him totally disregard his ranger's, acting as a scout, advice about concerns with something in the road, I think I figured out what's wrong.
He's still being a reactive player and not thinking like a leader. He's not pro-active and he doesn't plan or strategize utilizing the resources, both people and weapons he has at hand.
So, I put the game down and started discussing the resources he had available to him. What characters were there, what were their specialties, their strengths, etc...Next we looked at other resources available such as weapons and magic items, etc...
I think I finally started getting him to see that it was up to him as the leader of the pack, so to speak, to plan, assign tasks and duties, strategize and organize.
We'll see how it goes from here.
Go to town, posse up, gear up, go get the bad guys, get the loot.
I experienced a realization though during the game that made everything come to a sudden stop. My son still hasn't learned how to strategize in-game yet. When we first started playing, my oldest daughter, my son and I were playing, I as the DM.
As I look back on things though, my daughter always took the leadership of the party though. My son became more of a responsive player. Now my daughter has "fallen out" with AD&D but my son still maintains an interest. So I am running games for him and toss in a few NPC's to help him fill party number requirements.
Yesterday however, after watching him totally disregard his ranger's, acting as a scout, advice about concerns with something in the road, I think I figured out what's wrong.
He's still being a reactive player and not thinking like a leader. He's not pro-active and he doesn't plan or strategize utilizing the resources, both people and weapons he has at hand.
So, I put the game down and started discussing the resources he had available to him. What characters were there, what were their specialties, their strengths, etc...Next we looked at other resources available such as weapons and magic items, etc...
I think I finally started getting him to see that it was up to him as the leader of the pack, so to speak, to plan, assign tasks and duties, strategize and organize.
We'll see how it goes from here.
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Hello again
Yes, I know I've been away for a while. Haven't had any games going on for awhile. Life happens. kids getting older. Some becoming disinterested, some just adjusting to new things.
For me, it's usually bees or the bee club that takes my attention.
Right now, only my son has any interest to continue gaming and he has a lot of things on table right now so it's sporadic at best that we get to play.
As for me, I spend most of my 1E interest time trying to come up with adventures to share with others who might them interesting. Create enchanted items that are awesome and characters who are equally awesome and can be dropped into any 1E/OSRIC game.
So, I will try to post more frequently here to share things that I think are cool to game with and maybe someone else will think so also.
Let me know in the comments as we go along.
For me, it's usually bees or the bee club that takes my attention.
Right now, only my son has any interest to continue gaming and he has a lot of things on table right now so it's sporadic at best that we get to play.
As for me, I spend most of my 1E interest time trying to come up with adventures to share with others who might them interesting. Create enchanted items that are awesome and characters who are equally awesome and can be dropped into any 1E/OSRIC game.
So, I will try to post more frequently here to share things that I think are cool to game with and maybe someone else will think so also.
Let me know in the comments as we go along.
Sunday, November 16, 2014
We Have Daemons, Now What?
Now that I have Daemons that I like, or at least think I like, the next step related to using them in a game is to figure out how to use them and in what situations to use them.
The adventure I have in my head is a situation where a party has to go to a structure and retrieve something. A quest more or less. What the party doesn't know is that the structure in question is possessed by demons.
I think in most cases, a greater daemon would get more food by possessing a structure and feeding off of the fear, pain and suffering of the entire group of people within. More people terrorized means more food.
Possessing a person might provide less quantity but perhaps a higher quality of sustenance for them. So, a greater daemon who has not fed for a long while might possess a structure first in order to get enough sustenance to build their energy. After that has been accomplished, the greater daemon might prefer to possess people in order to satisfy it's "sweet tooth" or craving, so to speak.
Lesser daemons get what they can get. While having the same cravings as a greater daemon, they do not have the strength to be choosy. If they are lucky enough to possess a weak person, hey, they hit the lottery. Lesser daemons are more likely to possess animals and small structures. It might require more than one to possess a larger, multi-level structure where the larger structures are easily possessed by greater daemons.
What's the difference between a structure being possessed and being haunted? A house that is haunted is said to have a ghost or phantoms, etc lurking within that are doing whatever they can to keep people away and preserve the solitude.
A house that is possessed is literally the new body for a Daemon . Think "Amityville Horror". The house itself moves it's parts on its own. While a ghost haunting might be in the same room with a person and slam a door or a window the people are in, the possessed house can slam any door or window or all the doors and windows simultaneously.
That's because the ghost has to move to each door or window to shut it but to the Daemon possessing the house, opening the doors and windows is the same as you or I flexing our fingers.
Ok so now we have a possessed structure in which at least one daemon has taken possession of. Is it a lesser daemon or a greater daemon? Could be either. Which is more likely? I'd say in this particular case, it is a greater daemon.
I am fairly certain that daemons of any sort do not possess the faculties to even feel "fear" or to be afraid of any other creature. They are not afraid of deities or devils or Planars or anything really. It's not even that lesser daemons are afraid of greater daemons. They just know their place in the order of daemons.
There are likely innumerable lesser daemons but a limited number of greater daemons. Greater daemons are named when they reach their full strength and have been identified by sentient beings they have encountered and named by. Usually by those in temples and churches that regularly battle daemons and follow or track their activities.
Daemons, especially greater daemons, never forget losing a battle or who they lost to. They are sore losers who will track down and re-challenge the person who defeated them again and again until they finally defeat them. Such defeat is usually not a good thing for that person who will be made to suffer for as long and as painfully as the daemon is able to make possible.
For GM's/DMs, an exorcism initiated by a Cleric essentially casting an Exorcism spell. The Exorcism spell, for those unfamiliar with it, is not foolproof. It is begun with a base chance of success, which is left somewhat arbitrary in the books. I would suggest though that once a daemon has effectively possessed a person, an animal or a structure, it has the upper hand in staying so established. I also think that the morale of the victim should be checked and a modifier based on that be included. The lower the morale of the victim, the bigger the modifier to reduce that base chance of the exorcism spell succeeding. If we say that a lesser daemon is possessing, the minimum, un-modified base chance of success a Cleric has would be 50%. Modifiers based on victim morale, cleric morale, differences between the Cleric and the daemon's levels will then affect that base chance. If a greater daemon is the possessor, I would suggest a lower unmodified base chance between 30 and 50% is warranted. If the Cleric rolls within their modified chance, they have succeed. if the Cleric rolls above the modified chance, the spell is not broken, but the demon then takes a turn to attack. It goes back and forth like this until the Cleric is interrupted in the exorcism somehow. The Cleric can take damage during the process and can be made unconscious or killed if they lose the requisite HP, thus also ending the exorcism.
The level and HP of the Cleric or Paladin performing an Exorcism should determine (according to the Player's decision) how often they attempt to cast Exorcism. Do they have enough HP left to do it more than once a day? Is there a second Cleric present to assist and heal the exorcist if need be? Lots of things for Players to consider before beginning an exorcism.
Daemons gain or improve their health every round by 1-4 HP which is the physical/mental/spiritual damage they inflict on the possessed. That is if they are possessing a person or animal. If they possess a structure, they can only gain HP back at the rate of 4 hp/day with no people inside or taking 1-4 HP from each person they cause direct damage to.
Surviving a deamon possession is no picnic and the GM is encouraged to check the Insanity/mental Illness tables after they are freed from possession. Don't forget that from all the physical damage inflicted during the possession, there will be great chance of diseases and maladies due to open sores, cuts, scrapes, scratches, impalements, broken bones, etc....
Anyone witnessing said events of someone else being possessed may warrant a check to the insanity table as well.
Clerics losing an exorcism face being possessed themselves. They might be killed outright or driven insane (check the table). Daemons will always try to possess a losing Cleric to punish them and savor every drop of misery by torturing the cleric mentally.
The Faith score mentioned in the Demons/Daemons post before this could easily be affected by morale and morale of the cleric should be checked regularly during the exorcism. Daemons are relentless even in the face of losing so morale doesn't really affect them. They are essentially insane to begin with.
The Faith score of the possessed should also be checked regularly and can impact the outcome. Someone with a high morale due to seeing a cleric arrive to help could give the daemon a lower chance on their attack roll due to the increased resistance of the victim. Consequently, a low morale check could make it easier for the daemon and give a bonus to the attack roll.
Because daemons can possess structures and animals as well, an exorcism may not be what is warranted. This is where Paladins make excellent adversaries to daemons. Devising ways to destroy structures and kill possessed animals in a way that ends the daemon's time in the Material Plane is right up their alley.
Paladins can carry Holy Swords and use them to their full potential. Using a Holy Sword on an animal that is possessed or a re-animated corpse (a sort of a ghast for all intents and purposes) kills the animal or ghast and removes any possibility for the daemon to "jump" to another body.
The one area in which a Paladin can be out-matched is when an exorcism is requested or demanded. A very high level Paladin actually can perform an exorcism as at higher levels, they can cast Cleric spells. For example. It takes a 15th level Paladin to be able to cast a 4th level Cleric spell, which "Exorcism" is.
The adventure I have in my head is a situation where a party has to go to a structure and retrieve something. A quest more or less. What the party doesn't know is that the structure in question is possessed by demons.
What Daemons Are
I would say that daemons are spiritual creatures that reside in the Astral Plane. I think that in most cases, greater daemons prefer possessing a person because they get more out of it. If deamons eat or "consume" anything, it would be the pain and suffering of people and maybe even animals.. That could be the driving force that motivates daemons to persistently enter the Material Plane so as to get the "food" they need from us.I think in most cases, a greater daemon would get more food by possessing a structure and feeding off of the fear, pain and suffering of the entire group of people within. More people terrorized means more food.
Possessing a person might provide less quantity but perhaps a higher quality of sustenance for them. So, a greater daemon who has not fed for a long while might possess a structure first in order to get enough sustenance to build their energy. After that has been accomplished, the greater daemon might prefer to possess people in order to satisfy it's "sweet tooth" or craving, so to speak.
Lesser daemons get what they can get. While having the same cravings as a greater daemon, they do not have the strength to be choosy. If they are lucky enough to possess a weak person, hey, they hit the lottery. Lesser daemons are more likely to possess animals and small structures. It might require more than one to possess a larger, multi-level structure where the larger structures are easily possessed by greater daemons.
What Daemons Do
What's the difference between a structure being possessed and being haunted? A house that is haunted is said to have a ghost or phantoms, etc lurking within that are doing whatever they can to keep people away and preserve the solitude.
A house that is possessed is literally the new body for a Daemon . Think "Amityville Horror". The house itself moves it's parts on its own. While a ghost haunting might be in the same room with a person and slam a door or a window the people are in, the possessed house can slam any door or window or all the doors and windows simultaneously.
That's because the ghost has to move to each door or window to shut it but to the Daemon possessing the house, opening the doors and windows is the same as you or I flexing our fingers.
Ok so now we have a possessed structure in which at least one daemon has taken possession of. Is it a lesser daemon or a greater daemon? Could be either. Which is more likely? I'd say in this particular case, it is a greater daemon.
I am fairly certain that daemons of any sort do not possess the faculties to even feel "fear" or to be afraid of any other creature. They are not afraid of deities or devils or Planars or anything really. It's not even that lesser daemons are afraid of greater daemons. They just know their place in the order of daemons.
There are likely innumerable lesser daemons but a limited number of greater daemons. Greater daemons are named when they reach their full strength and have been identified by sentient beings they have encountered and named by. Usually by those in temples and churches that regularly battle daemons and follow or track their activities.
Daemons, especially greater daemons, never forget losing a battle or who they lost to. They are sore losers who will track down and re-challenge the person who defeated them again and again until they finally defeat them. Such defeat is usually not a good thing for that person who will be made to suffer for as long and as painfully as the daemon is able to make possible.
Exorcism
Clerics and paladins who specialize in exorcising or defeating daemons should beware they are likely gaining lifetime enemies who will perpetually pursue them in doing so.For GM's/DMs, an exorcism initiated by a Cleric essentially casting an Exorcism spell. The Exorcism spell, for those unfamiliar with it, is not foolproof. It is begun with a base chance of success, which is left somewhat arbitrary in the books. I would suggest though that once a daemon has effectively possessed a person, an animal or a structure, it has the upper hand in staying so established. I also think that the morale of the victim should be checked and a modifier based on that be included. The lower the morale of the victim, the bigger the modifier to reduce that base chance of the exorcism spell succeeding. If we say that a lesser daemon is possessing, the minimum, un-modified base chance of success a Cleric has would be 50%. Modifiers based on victim morale, cleric morale, differences between the Cleric and the daemon's levels will then affect that base chance. If a greater daemon is the possessor, I would suggest a lower unmodified base chance between 30 and 50% is warranted. If the Cleric rolls within their modified chance, they have succeed. if the Cleric rolls above the modified chance, the spell is not broken, but the demon then takes a turn to attack. It goes back and forth like this until the Cleric is interrupted in the exorcism somehow. The Cleric can take damage during the process and can be made unconscious or killed if they lose the requisite HP, thus also ending the exorcism.
The level and HP of the Cleric or Paladin performing an Exorcism should determine (according to the Player's decision) how often they attempt to cast Exorcism. Do they have enough HP left to do it more than once a day? Is there a second Cleric present to assist and heal the exorcist if need be? Lots of things for Players to consider before beginning an exorcism.
Daemons gain or improve their health every round by 1-4 HP which is the physical/mental/spiritual damage they inflict on the possessed. That is if they are possessing a person or animal. If they possess a structure, they can only gain HP back at the rate of 4 hp/day with no people inside or taking 1-4 HP from each person they cause direct damage to.
Surviving a deamon possession is no picnic and the GM is encouraged to check the Insanity/mental Illness tables after they are freed from possession. Don't forget that from all the physical damage inflicted during the possession, there will be great chance of diseases and maladies due to open sores, cuts, scrapes, scratches, impalements, broken bones, etc....
Anyone witnessing said events of someone else being possessed may warrant a check to the insanity table as well.
Clerics losing an exorcism face being possessed themselves. They might be killed outright or driven insane (check the table). Daemons will always try to possess a losing Cleric to punish them and savor every drop of misery by torturing the cleric mentally.
The Faith score mentioned in the Demons/Daemons post before this could easily be affected by morale and morale of the cleric should be checked regularly during the exorcism. Daemons are relentless even in the face of losing so morale doesn't really affect them. They are essentially insane to begin with.
The Faith score of the possessed should also be checked regularly and can impact the outcome. Someone with a high morale due to seeing a cleric arrive to help could give the daemon a lower chance on their attack roll due to the increased resistance of the victim. Consequently, a low morale check could make it easier for the daemon and give a bonus to the attack roll.
Anything Other Than An Exorcism
Because daemons can possess structures and animals as well, an exorcism may not be what is warranted. This is where Paladins make excellent adversaries to daemons. Devising ways to destroy structures and kill possessed animals in a way that ends the daemon's time in the Material Plane is right up their alley.
Paladins can carry Holy Swords and use them to their full potential. Using a Holy Sword on an animal that is possessed or a re-animated corpse (a sort of a ghast for all intents and purposes) kills the animal or ghast and removes any possibility for the daemon to "jump" to another body.
The one area in which a Paladin can be out-matched is when an exorcism is requested or demanded. A very high level Paladin actually can perform an exorcism as at higher levels, they can cast Cleric spells. For example. It takes a 15th level Paladin to be able to cast a 4th level Cleric spell, which "Exorcism" is.
Friday, November 14, 2014
Demons, Daemons
I have decided that I don't like AD&D 1E or OSRIC Demons. Well, I mean, they are fine for what they are. I just want my demons to be more "demon-ey"
By that I guess I am thinking about an adventure I want to write that involves a house and a person who are haunted/possessed by Demons. As Demons go by AD&D 1E/OSRIC standards, that's just not working.
When I think of Demon possession, I think automatically of "The Exorcist". Even a little bit of movies like "The Exorcism of Emily Rose". I want my demons like the ones that possessed "The Amityville Horror".
So, from here I am creating my own Daemons. Yes, they are the ultimate Chaotic Evil same as the others. One difference is that there are only two types of Daemons. Lesser Daemons and Greater Daemons.
Lesser Daemons are 8HD monsters that really have no physical body manifestation in the Astral Plane where they are found. If they take any type of physical form in the Material Plane, it will be that of a large or over-sized animal such as a pig/hog, hyena, etc... Only on a roll of 1 to 3 when rolling 3d6 will a Lesser Daemon take it's own physical form in the Material Plane. If it is summoned to the Material Plane by an evil Cleric or some such individual, it will have a 50% chance of taking possession of an inanimate object or a 10% chance taking possession of a mortal being.
(roll1d100) 1-50 possesses object (nearby structure; ie mausoleum, house, etc...), 51-90 animal possession, 91to 00 possesses mortal within 100 yards of summoning or so named person within that area.
If unable to take possession of an object, animal or a person within 1d10 rounds of summoning, there is a 90% chance the Lesser Daemon will return to the Astral Plane and a 10% chance they will try to possess the summoner.
If a character has a Faith score of 15 or higher (WIS and INT combined then divided by 2) they reduce the odds of being possessed by 15% each attempt.
If a character is of Good alignment and has a selected deity and are in the good graces of said deity, they can petition the deity for intercession (immediate casting of the demon to the Astral Realm) once per attempt at possession. If all conditions are met for intercession, there is 50% chance of successful intercession. If not all conditions are met (not in good graces, etc...) then only a 20% chance of success.
Greater (Named) Daemons are 10HD monsters that really have no physical body manifestation in the Astral Plane where they are found. If they take any type of physical form in the Material Plane, it will be that of a large humanoid, usually wearing a cover, robe, cowl, etc... Only on a roll of 1 to 6 when rolling 3d6 will a Greater Daemon take it's own physical form in the Material Plane. If it is summoned to the Material Plane by an evil Cleric or some such individual, it will have a 25% chance of taking possession of an inanimate object or a 50% chance taking possession of a mortal being.
(roll1d100) 1-35 possesses object (nearby structure ie. mausoleum, house, etc...), 36-50 animal possession, 51to 00 possesses mortal within 100 yards of summoning or so named person within that area.
If unable to take possession of an object, animal or a person within 1d10 rounds of summoning, there is a 50% chance the Greater Daemon will return to the Astral Plane and a 50% chance they will try to possess the summoner.
If a character has a Faith score of 15 or higher (WIS and INT combined then divided by 2) they reduce the odds of being possessed by 15% each attempt.
If a character is of Good alignment and has a selected deity and are in the good graces of said deity, they can petition the deity for intercession (immediate casting of the demon to the Astral Realm) once per attempt at possession (the GM should ask the PC to roll percentile die or GM can roll themselves). If all conditions are met for intercession, there is 76% chance of successful intercession. If not all conditions are met (not in good graces, etc...) then only a 15% chance of success.
A character that becomes possessed by a Demon takes 1d4 damage per round of being possessed until they die.
In the case of the possessed dying during the process of possession, there is a 50% that the Daemon will continue to animate the corpse, which then functions as a 4hd Ghast. Upon destruction of the animated Ghast, the Lesser Daemon is cast back to the Astral Plane and the Greater Daemon will have one final attempt to possess the nearest object, animal or person with a 25% chance of success.
The act of possession by a Daemon in an animal or person is to insert their own Astral Presence into the body of the possessed and take control of the possessed's mind entirely while the possessed is fully aware of what is happening but unable to stop it once it has become a successful possession.
Only deity intercession or a successful exorcism by a Good Cleric can end a Daemonic possession. This causes the Daemon's Astral presence to be cast from the mind and body of the possessed and back to the Astral Plane.
Characters with a device or spell to see into the Astral Plane will be able to see the Daemons for what they are and to see that a character is being possessed.
During an established possession, a PC will act as a conduit and the Daemon's abilities will be able to be carried out while in the possessed. The body of the possessed will attain the HD of the Daemon while being possessed (thus allowing the possessed to be tortured longer and giving the Daemon more time to carry out the possession)
A Paladin with a Holy Sword (+10 vs Chaotic Evil), upon killing an animal or person that is possessed will immediately send the Daemon back to the Astral Plane with no chance to animate the corpse.
Lesser Daemon
Frequency: Common
No. Encountered: 1d3 or 1d6 (in the Astral Plane)
Size: Large
Move:120 ft;
Armour Class: 0 (character assumes same AC while possessed)
Hit Dice: 8
Attacks:2 claws/1 bite (while in animal form taken or character possessed)
Damage: 1d8/1d8/1d6
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defences: See below
Magic Resistance: 50%
Lair Probability: 5%
Intelligence: Low
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Level/XP: 7/1,275 +10/hp
Description:
they can cause darkness, but only in a 5 ft radius. They also possess the following special abilities which they may use at will: detect invisibility (objects only, otherwise as per the 2nd level magic user spell), gate in another Lesser Daemon (10% chance of success), or telekinesis (as the 5th level magic user spell, up to 200 lbs).
Greater Daemon
Frequency:Uncommon
No. Encountered: 1 or 1d6 (in the Astral Plane)
Size: Large
Move: 90 ft
Armour Class: -4
Hit Dice: 10
Attacks: 2 claws/1 bite (in robed form or while in possession of a character)
Damage: 2d6/2d6/1d4+1
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defences: See below
Magic Resistance: 60%
Lair Probability: 15%
Intelligence: High
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Level/XP: 8/2,400 + 14/hp
Description:
At will, they can cause darkness in a 10 ft radius. Additionally, they may use the following abilities at will, one at a time: Cause fear (as the 4th level magic user spell), levitate (as the 2nd level magic user spell), pyrotechnics (as the 2nd level magic user spell ), polymorph self (as the 4th level magic user spell), telekinesis (as the 5th level magic user spell, up to 400 lbs), gate (as the 9th level magic user spell) another Lesser or Greater Daemon (30% chance of success).
By that I guess I am thinking about an adventure I want to write that involves a house and a person who are haunted/possessed by Demons. As Demons go by AD&D 1E/OSRIC standards, that's just not working.
When I think of Demon possession, I think automatically of "The Exorcist". Even a little bit of movies like "The Exorcism of Emily Rose". I want my demons like the ones that possessed "The Amityville Horror".
So, from here I am creating my own Daemons. Yes, they are the ultimate Chaotic Evil same as the others. One difference is that there are only two types of Daemons. Lesser Daemons and Greater Daemons.
Lesser Daemons are 8HD monsters that really have no physical body manifestation in the Astral Plane where they are found. If they take any type of physical form in the Material Plane, it will be that of a large or over-sized animal such as a pig/hog, hyena, etc... Only on a roll of 1 to 3 when rolling 3d6 will a Lesser Daemon take it's own physical form in the Material Plane. If it is summoned to the Material Plane by an evil Cleric or some such individual, it will have a 50% chance of taking possession of an inanimate object or a 10% chance taking possession of a mortal being.
(roll1d100) 1-50 possesses object (nearby structure; ie mausoleum, house, etc...), 51-90 animal possession, 91to 00 possesses mortal within 100 yards of summoning or so named person within that area.
If unable to take possession of an object, animal or a person within 1d10 rounds of summoning, there is a 90% chance the Lesser Daemon will return to the Astral Plane and a 10% chance they will try to possess the summoner.
If a character has a Faith score of 15 or higher (WIS and INT combined then divided by 2) they reduce the odds of being possessed by 15% each attempt.
If a character is of Good alignment and has a selected deity and are in the good graces of said deity, they can petition the deity for intercession (immediate casting of the demon to the Astral Realm) once per attempt at possession. If all conditions are met for intercession, there is 50% chance of successful intercession. If not all conditions are met (not in good graces, etc...) then only a 20% chance of success.
Greater (Named) Daemons are 10HD monsters that really have no physical body manifestation in the Astral Plane where they are found. If they take any type of physical form in the Material Plane, it will be that of a large humanoid, usually wearing a cover, robe, cowl, etc... Only on a roll of 1 to 6 when rolling 3d6 will a Greater Daemon take it's own physical form in the Material Plane. If it is summoned to the Material Plane by an evil Cleric or some such individual, it will have a 25% chance of taking possession of an inanimate object or a 50% chance taking possession of a mortal being.
(roll1d100) 1-35 possesses object (nearby structure ie. mausoleum, house, etc...), 36-50 animal possession, 51to 00 possesses mortal within 100 yards of summoning or so named person within that area.
If unable to take possession of an object, animal or a person within 1d10 rounds of summoning, there is a 50% chance the Greater Daemon will return to the Astral Plane and a 50% chance they will try to possess the summoner.
If a character has a Faith score of 15 or higher (WIS and INT combined then divided by 2) they reduce the odds of being possessed by 15% each attempt.
If a character is of Good alignment and has a selected deity and are in the good graces of said deity, they can petition the deity for intercession (immediate casting of the demon to the Astral Realm) once per attempt at possession (the GM should ask the PC to roll percentile die or GM can roll themselves). If all conditions are met for intercession, there is 76% chance of successful intercession. If not all conditions are met (not in good graces, etc...) then only a 15% chance of success.
A character that becomes possessed by a Demon takes 1d4 damage per round of being possessed until they die.
In the case of the possessed dying during the process of possession, there is a 50% that the Daemon will continue to animate the corpse, which then functions as a 4hd Ghast. Upon destruction of the animated Ghast, the Lesser Daemon is cast back to the Astral Plane and the Greater Daemon will have one final attempt to possess the nearest object, animal or person with a 25% chance of success.
The act of possession by a Daemon in an animal or person is to insert their own Astral Presence into the body of the possessed and take control of the possessed's mind entirely while the possessed is fully aware of what is happening but unable to stop it once it has become a successful possession.
Only deity intercession or a successful exorcism by a Good Cleric can end a Daemonic possession. This causes the Daemon's Astral presence to be cast from the mind and body of the possessed and back to the Astral Plane.
Characters with a device or spell to see into the Astral Plane will be able to see the Daemons for what they are and to see that a character is being possessed.
During an established possession, a PC will act as a conduit and the Daemon's abilities will be able to be carried out while in the possessed. The body of the possessed will attain the HD of the Daemon while being possessed (thus allowing the possessed to be tortured longer and giving the Daemon more time to carry out the possession)
A Paladin with a Holy Sword (+10 vs Chaotic Evil), upon killing an animal or person that is possessed will immediately send the Daemon back to the Astral Plane with no chance to animate the corpse.
Lesser Daemon
Frequency: Common
No. Encountered: 1d3 or 1d6 (in the Astral Plane)
Size: Large
Move:120 ft;
Armour Class: 0 (character assumes same AC while possessed)
Hit Dice: 8
Attacks:2 claws/1 bite (while in animal form taken or character possessed)
Damage: 1d8/1d8/1d6
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defences: See below
Magic Resistance: 50%
Lair Probability: 5%
Intelligence: Low
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Level/XP: 7/1,275 +10/hp
Description:
they can cause darkness, but only in a 5 ft radius. They also possess the following special abilities which they may use at will: detect invisibility (objects only, otherwise as per the 2nd level magic user spell), gate in another Lesser Daemon (10% chance of success), or telekinesis (as the 5th level magic user spell, up to 200 lbs).
Greater Daemon
Frequency:Uncommon
No. Encountered: 1 or 1d6 (in the Astral Plane)
Size: Large
Move: 90 ft
Armour Class: -4
Hit Dice: 10
Attacks: 2 claws/1 bite (in robed form or while in possession of a character)
Damage: 2d6/2d6/1d4+1
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defences: See below
Magic Resistance: 60%
Lair Probability: 15%
Intelligence: High
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Level/XP: 8/2,400 + 14/hp
Description:
At will, they can cause darkness in a 10 ft radius. Additionally, they may use the following abilities at will, one at a time: Cause fear (as the 4th level magic user spell), levitate (as the 2nd level magic user spell), pyrotechnics (as the 2nd level magic user spell ), polymorph self (as the 4th level magic user spell), telekinesis (as the 5th level magic user spell, up to 400 lbs), gate (as the 9th level magic user spell) another Lesser or Greater Daemon (30% chance of success).
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Playing the Deux Ex Machina Card
In our game, there have come times when something comes out of the blue (we like to keep things really random in our game which can lead to some nasty, unexpected surprises) and it looks like a TPK might be inevitable.
Now, I play this game for what it is. It's a game, people play it to have fun. Because of that, sometimes it's just not in the best interest of the game to allow that random TPK to happen. Now, some people out there might cry out about DM fiat and other such things but whatever. Play your game your way, we'll play our way.
What we've begun to do is allow the DM to play a DEM (Deux Ex Machina) card in certain situations to allow the game to go on. It's not just a DM decision though, In a situation where it's fairly obvious that a random roll has brought about something that just will not end well, the DM can tell the players that this is an opportunity for a DEM.
The Players are the ones who actually decide on whether to play the DEM card or not though. It is the Players decision because to play a DEM Card will cost the players a certain number of XP, like 5,000 XP or more, at the end of the game, for each DEM Card played.
This way, the game can go on if the players decide it would be more fun to continue onward or to just let things happen as they will, risking almost certain TPK. Only the DM can offer to play the DEM card though, the players cannot ask for it. The players can only vote to take it or not when it is offered and whatever they choose, the DM will go with.
Doing it that way allows the DM to keep things from getting out of hand because of poor playing on the players parts.
So far, we like it and in the last few weeks, it really hasn't been used very often at all despite them knowing it can be used. It has actually been turned down a couple of times.
Now, I play this game for what it is. It's a game, people play it to have fun. Because of that, sometimes it's just not in the best interest of the game to allow that random TPK to happen. Now, some people out there might cry out about DM fiat and other such things but whatever. Play your game your way, we'll play our way.
What we've begun to do is allow the DM to play a DEM (Deux Ex Machina) card in certain situations to allow the game to go on. It's not just a DM decision though, In a situation where it's fairly obvious that a random roll has brought about something that just will not end well, the DM can tell the players that this is an opportunity for a DEM.
The Players are the ones who actually decide on whether to play the DEM card or not though. It is the Players decision because to play a DEM Card will cost the players a certain number of XP, like 5,000 XP or more, at the end of the game, for each DEM Card played.
This way, the game can go on if the players decide it would be more fun to continue onward or to just let things happen as they will, risking almost certain TPK. Only the DM can offer to play the DEM card though, the players cannot ask for it. The players can only vote to take it or not when it is offered and whatever they choose, the DM will go with.
Doing it that way allows the DM to keep things from getting out of hand because of poor playing on the players parts.
So far, we like it and in the last few weeks, it really hasn't been used very often at all despite them knowing it can be used. It has actually been turned down a couple of times.
Monday, July 21, 2014
Playing with Magic Users again
I still find Vancian magic too clumsy and, in my opinion, incompetent. However, I am still working out a system that works better for my table. I have been testing this in my game and so far, I like it and the Players seem to like it as well.
What we are doing is allowing MU's to cast any spells within their ability to cast as determined by the tables in the PH and as long as they have the spell in their spell book. Kind of like free-casting in that way.
However, their ability to cast spells cost them Hit Points from their current total. ach spell costs as many points as what level spell it is. Thus a 3rd level spell reduces the MU's current total by 3 and so on.
By doing this, it seems the players have really gotten an greater appreciation of the value of magic items such as wands, rings, staves, rods, and scrolls as those items do not incur a HP loss when used.
I've also noticed that the players now also tend to put more thought into what spells they cast and when they cast them a lot more. It seems most tend to favor casting defensive and utility spells from their own strength and favor using magic items for casting offensive and some utility spells if the have them.
It's a pretty simple change that seems to make things more interesting for my players with MU's. The MU still uses only a d4 for gaining HP at each new level so it encourages conservative spell casting.
I have made one concession on the issue of XP and HP gained when they level up. I have a spell that can be cast by them or on their behalf by a Master who is training them to level up that allows them to auto max the HP gained at level up at a cost of a certain amount of XP. (Right now we're using 1,000 XP as the cost but no one has gotten to try it yet. We'll see how and if it needs to be adjusted when we get to that part.)
What we are doing is allowing MU's to cast any spells within their ability to cast as determined by the tables in the PH and as long as they have the spell in their spell book. Kind of like free-casting in that way.
However, their ability to cast spells cost them Hit Points from their current total. ach spell costs as many points as what level spell it is. Thus a 3rd level spell reduces the MU's current total by 3 and so on.
By doing this, it seems the players have really gotten an greater appreciation of the value of magic items such as wands, rings, staves, rods, and scrolls as those items do not incur a HP loss when used.
I've also noticed that the players now also tend to put more thought into what spells they cast and when they cast them a lot more. It seems most tend to favor casting defensive and utility spells from their own strength and favor using magic items for casting offensive and some utility spells if the have them.
It's a pretty simple change that seems to make things more interesting for my players with MU's. The MU still uses only a d4 for gaining HP at each new level so it encourages conservative spell casting.
I have made one concession on the issue of XP and HP gained when they level up. I have a spell that can be cast by them or on their behalf by a Master who is training them to level up that allows them to auto max the HP gained at level up at a cost of a certain amount of XP. (Right now we're using 1,000 XP as the cost but no one has gotten to try it yet. We'll see how and if it needs to be adjusted when we get to that part.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)