DIY 30 #6: Star Elves

In the depths of space, strange things lurk, things alien and inscrutable to man. When the stars themselves were singing over the world, singing for their lost child, the players in my Greyhame Game came into contact with just a few of these bizarre entities; meanwhile the townsfolk of Brakeridge and its surround were threatened by the slavers of the Star Beasts, who descended in their black ships to carry men and women away to the stars.

But the Star Beasts in their black ships are not the only dwellers in the vast abysses. Shining in the depths, singing their eerie songs, sailing on the solar winds that blow ethereally across the void are luminous beings without body--the Star Elves. Not truly Elves, nevertheless of all terrestrial races they resemble Elves the most, and their language is rooted in the same starsong that sounded over the world when the Elves first stepped down under starlight.

One such of this race of star-beings walks the earth now, clad in flesh and accompanying the Greyhame characters. Ikasha is her name, and she looks like this (of course):

She was lured down from the solar winds by the ancient magic of the Lord of Werewolves, and given a body of flesh by the Goblin King, and then was held in the dungeons of the Greyhame Mountain as the Goblin King and Lord of Werewolves attempted to negotiate some kind of alliance with the star-things. But the stars and the other Star Elves were uninterested in anything terrestrial creatures might attempt to offer them; they only wanted their child back, and so the stars began to sing above the world, calling for her (but she couldn't return to them!) and slowly approaching the world ....

But the characters rescued her from the dungeons beneath the Howling Tower (I don't think I wrote a play report for that session). It turned out that Ikasha loved having the sensations of a corporeal body, and wanted to remain on the earth for a time. The characters had her communicate with the Star Elves on a Throne of Seeing in the dungeon, and the Star Elves agreed that so long as Ikasha was happy with her body and sensations, they would allow her to remain.

And so the doom of the world at the hands of the Star Elves and their fellow alien creatures was averted ...

------

Star Elves
AC 0 (or 9/as-armored when embodied)
HD 1-12 (per level, max level 12 like Elves)
THAC0 per level
damage: touch 1-6 cold fire + 1 radiation damage

irradiating presence -- revealed in their full luminosity, a Star Elf irradiates the area immediately around itself (in melee range), causing 1 radiation damage per round (metal armor is enough to shield against this radiation damage); undead are also affected by this radiation

turn undead -- per a cleric of a level equal to the Star Elf's hit dice

semi-ethereal -- not truly ethereal, Star Elves may pass through anything through which light may pass, e.g. a Star Elf could pass through glass, or through a chink in a door, but would not be able to pass through solid stone

cast spells as an Elf of the same level as their hit dice, though the magic of the Star Elves is alien and unknown to Earthly magic-users

save as Elves
240' ethereal movement, or as an Elf when clad in flesh or otherwise embodied
morale 9

Star Elves are luminous beings, literally shining bodies of coherent light. If they require a body for some reason, they have a kind of magic that allows them to form a body of stardust or nebular material which to inhabit; this body could resemble anything, but the Star Elves tend to prefer a slender Elfin form.

DIY 30 #5: Slaves of the Star Beasts

(This post was written several months ago concerning a development in my Greyhame Game in which Star Beasts were descending to terrorize the land; the trouble has since been dealt with, but I haven't written about my Greyhame Game here for a while because the number of games--two per week--got to be too many ... anyway, I'm posting it as DIY 30 to save a bit of time!)

My players ignored the descent of the Black Ships of the Star Monsters three times (session 30, 31, and 32 of the Greyhame Game, none of which really appear on this blog), other than to send hirelings off-screen to aid with the defense (and/or to die, killed by bizarre star-things). In a kind of Blackmoorian fit, they continued to delve into the dungeon, ignoring the crisis in the realm of men, and so a great number of the people of Brakeridge and its nearby towns have now been captured and carried away to the stars as slaves of inhuman monsters ... Well, such is player agency! I figured I'd post this, now that the Star Thing has generally been settled, and there's little chance of encountering them again for some time.

------

The Star Beasts are re-worked Moon Beasts from Pathfinder and from Matt Finch's Swords & Wizardry version of them in the Cyclopean Deeps and its sequel. Likewise their associates, the Denizens of Leng ...

They dwell as parasites on the vast Star-Things that carry the Star Elves here and there across the cosmos, following Solar Winds and Star Seeds, and whatever else may be "Out There". In the way that humans and cats dwell one by another, neither quite subduing the other, never quite communicating, yet nevertheless associated, so the Star Beasts and the Star Elves dwell ... and which is which in the terrestrial analogy??

Regardless, where the Star Elves are content to travel and Sing among the Stars, the Star Beasts descend and take slaves wherever they may, and sell them on the next terrestrial or jovian world, OR across dimensions in some other Place unknown to the ken of those not well versed in the secrets of the universe ...

These Star Beasts descend in Black Ships, preceded by a silvery mist, upon which their black shape may be seen against the starry night; then their slave-contingents and their crew of Beasts and Leng-Denizens descend to round up the next batch of slaves ...

---

Each Black Ship of the Star Beasts carries 1-3 contingents of slaves (d20 roll for each contingent):

1
18 P'wek, tripedal and three-armed creatures from a distant world. They each wield 2 spears with wickedly barbed blades (1-6 damage) and carry a shield; they advance with the shield in front and thrust over it with their spears.
AC 4 / HD 2+2 / THAC0 17 / MV 120' / ATK 1-6/1-6 / Save as Fighter 2 (SF2) / M 8

2
20 Tachii, reptillian creatures with finned heads and without tails. Once per day they can spit up to 10', and the target must save v. breath weapons or be blinded (-4 to attack, +4 to AC) for 1-3 rounds.
AC 6 / HD 1* / THAC0 19 / MV 180' / ATK 1-6 / S F1 / M 7

3
24 Klackons, insectoids with armored carapaces like plate armor and armed with spears. They need never check morale, as they are united in purpose by shared pheromones and consider any individual's life worth only what it offers to the greater good.
AC 3 / HD 1 / THAC0 19 / MV 120' / ATK 1-6 / S F1 / M 12
(source: Master of Orion and Master of Magic games)

4
24 Humans, from another world, pallid and miserable. They speak no known tongue. Four of them are armed with laser wands, which when directed against someone, force the target to save v. death rays or take 2-12 damage, half of which is radiation damage.
AC 7 / HD 1-6 hp / THAC0 20 / MV 120' / ATK 1-6 / S Normal Man / M 6 (8 with leader)

5
24 Sectoids, small humanoids with grey skin, bulbous heads, no nose, and large black eyes. They are armed with light crossbows (1-6 damage); 2 are psionic, and 1/day may mind control (as charm person) or cause panic (as cause fear), and may use ESP within 60' at will.
AC 8 / HD 1-1 / THAC0 20 / MV 120' / ATK 1-6 or psionics / S NM / M 6 (8 with leader)
(source: X-Com games)

6
18 Mutant Humans, taken from a Tomb World from across the stars. 6 have useful mutations (d12): (1) spit acid 20', 2-12 damage (save v. breath for half); (2) third arm, gain second attack; (3) acid blood, causes 1-3 damage to opponent when struck in melee; (4) immune to fire, even fireball-type sells; (5) poisonous bite, 1-3 damage and save v. poison or die in 1 turn; (6) horned skin, AC 5; (7) defensive vomit 1/day, all within melee save v. poison or at -2 to attack for the rest of the melee; (8) psionic, may use ESP 30' at will; (9) third eye, able to see invisible; (10) redundant organs, take only half damage from all attacks; (11) stinking sweat, all in melee save v. poison or nauseated and at -2 to hit and damage; (12) super-chameleonic skin, able to become invisible at will
AC 7 / HD 1 / THAC0 19 / MV 120' / ATK 1-6 / S F1 / M 8

7
8 Kzinti, ferocious bipedal cat-men with naked rat-tails, ears like naked bat-wings, and who only speak the Heroes' Tongue. Each is armed with a wtsai short sword with which he can deal 3-8 damage, in addition to a claw and a bite attack.
AC 6 / HD 3+3 / THAC0 16 / MV 210' / ATK 3-8(wtsai)/2-5(claw)/2-7(bite) / S F4 / M 10
(source: Larry Niven's Known Space stories)

8
24 Alkari, bird/pterasaur men from a low-gravity world. Because of their keen eyesight, they are at +2 to hit with their light crossbows (1-6 damage). They cannot fly in normal gravity.
AC 7 / HD 1-1 / THAC0 18 (ranged) / MV 180' / ATK 1-6 / S NM / M 8
(source: Master of Orion games)

9
12 Synths, synthetic humanoids that are immune to charm person, sleep, illusions, poison, or cold (and maybe some other effects, appropriate to androids). They strike with their fists, each dealing 1-6 damage.
AC 5 / HD 2+2 / THAC0 17 / MV 180' / ATK 1-6/1-6 / S F3 / M 10

10
18 Kuo-Toa, amphibious fish-men ancient enough to evolve in parallel on other worlds. They suffer a -1 "to hit" in direct sunlight, but due to their slippery skin, they are only grappled or affected by a web 25% of the time.
AC 4 / HD 2 / THAC0 18 / MV 90' / ATK 1-6 / S F2 / M 9

11
18 Slug Men, disgusting and slimy slugs with arms that leave trails of slime wherever they go. They have a decent armor class because of the secretions from their skin, and take only half damage from blunt or piercing weapons because of their rubbery make-up.
AC 5 / HD 2 / THAC0 18 / MV 90' / ATK 1-6 / S F2 / M 8

12
8 Green Men of Mars, genetically modified for normal gravity--so, 10' tall and with four arms. They disdain shields, but may fight with up to 4 weapons or 2 two-handed weapons (or 2 normal and 1 two-handed).
AC 7 / HD 3+3 / THAC0 16 / MV 120' / ATK (by weapon) 1-6/1-6/1-6/1-6 / S F3 / M 9
(source: Edgar Rice Burroughs' Barsoom stories)

13
18 Hlaka, grey-furred creatures with 2 leathery wings and 3 eyes on their flattish face. They have a tail with a poison sting (save v. poison or die in 1 turn), and may attack with it (2-in-6 chance) or their weapons (4-in-6).
AC 5 / HD 2 / THAC0 18 / MV 150'/fly 300' / ATK 1-6 or 1-4 plus poison / S F2 / M 6
(source: MAR Barker's Empire of the Petal Throne RPG; same for entries 14, 15, and 16)

14
12 Hlyss, vaguely insectoid creatures with 4 segmented legs, 2 arms, and a chitinous exoskeleton. They have a tail that stings (save v. paralysis or paralyzed for 1 turn). They may attack with both their weapon and sting in the same round.
AC 4 / HD 2 / THAC0 18 / MV 90' / ATK 1-6/paralysis / S F2 / M 9

15
18 Pe Choi, creatures vaguely like man-sized walking sticks with black chitin that provides an armor class like plate+shield. Their broad senses of hearing and vision (which extends beyond the spectrum humans can sense) allows them to see invisible within 200' with a 60% success rate. Furthermore, they are surprised only on a 1 in 10 chance because of their natural ESP.
AC 2 / HD 1+3* / THAC0 18 / MV 120' / ATK 1-6 / S MU2 / M 8

16
12 Shen, black-scaled, dragon-like humanoids with beak-like snouts and glittering crests along their skulls. Their tails have a knobbed, bony appendage with which they strike on a 2-in-6 chance, while they have a 4-in-6 chance of striking with their weapon.
AC 2 / HD 3 / THAC0 17 / MV 90' / ATK 1-6 weapon or 1-4 tail / S F3 / M 9

17
8 Mutons, buff humanoids skinned with green cybernetic and nano-reactive armor. Their muscles are similarly enhanced, and their organs are doubled in order to be redundant, and they take only half damage from any physical attack (even magic weapons). But for all that, they have no mind to themselves and are extra susceptible to mind-influencing effects, saving at -4 vs. charm person, suggestion, illusions, etc.
AC 3 / HD 4+1* / THAC0 15 / MV 210' / ATK 2-7 / S F5 / M 11
(X-Com)

18
12 Silicoids, creatures whose structure is silicon-based. They are essentially rock-men; their outer hides are tougher than plate armor, they are immune to poisons, and any type of fire-damage heals them for a number of hit points equal to the damage that would have been dealt (by a fireball, for instance). And yet, their silicon nature makes them slow so that they automatically lose initiative ...
AC 1 / HD 3+3 / THAC0 16 / MV 30' / ATK 1-8 / S Dwarf 5 / M 9
(Master of Orion games)

19
8 Tentaculats, otherworldly things which resemble nothing so much as brains with a single beak, held up by a fringe of a dozen tentacles. They float through the air rather than supporting themselves upright, and may attack with 4 tentacles, each of which forces a save against paralysis or the target is paralyzed 1-4 rounds, plus 1 bite attack for 1-8 damage.
AC 7 / HD 3 / THAC0 17 / MV 120' / ATK x4 paralysis/bite 1-8 / S MU3 / M 8
(X-Com 2: Terror from the Deep)

20
18 Taxxons, ever-hungry, sapient, centipede-beings. Their soft flesh is easy to cut, but their voracious mouths deal 1-4 damage and may bite twice, and if they strike with both bites, they may seize a character to deal 3-12 damage per round automatically until thrown off some how; moreover, given their hunger, their morale is almost unbreakable as they seek to devour the next creature (unless strongly commanded not to by their masters).
AC 8 / HD 2+2 / THAC0 17 / MV 180' / ATK 1-4/1-4 plus seize 3-12 / S F3 / M 11
(K. A. Applegate's Animorphs series)

DIY 30 #4: Wood Wights

Not a form of undead, in this case "wight" is meant in the semi-obsolete sense of "a human being/a living being" (per the dictionary).

the Wood Wight
AC 3 (7 for tree)
HD 5 (8 for tree)
THAC0 15 (12 for tree)
damage: 2 slams 1-6 / 1-6 + petrification (2 slams 2-12 / 2-12 for tree)
petrification -- 3/day may "breathe" a 10' x 10' x 10' cloud of pollen, those within save v. petrification or transform into wood over 2-7 rounds
piercing and missile weapons never deal more than 1 damage to a wood wight or its tree, bludgeoning weapons deal half damage, fire deals double damage
immune to hold, sleep, charm, and other enchantment-type spells
save as a Elf 5, -2 on all saves versus fire or lightning
180' movement (0' for tree)
morale 9

Wood wights are a kind of evil forest spirit, similar to a dyrad, but malicious where a dryad is shy. Like dryads, wood wights are attached to a particular tree in the forest, and will discorporate if that tree is destroyed; unlike dryads, the wight's particular tree is capable of animated movement in defense of itself and its wight (it cannot actually uproot itself, but it strikes with its limbs as a treant). Just what the relation between wood wights and dryads might be scholars are still arguing; and too, it is unknown whether the wight is a spirit that springs up sui generis within a particular tree, perhaps one struck by lightning but still living, or ancient enough to develop a will of its own; or if the wight is rather some wandering form of spirit that alights in a tree when the conditions are right, and thereafter remains attached to it and the woodland around it.

Wasn't sure just what a wood wight looks like until
a Google search for "dryad" turned up with this

Being suddenly attacked by the tree animated by a wood wight's presence is certainly a fear any seasoned woodsman might have (wood wights and their trees surprise on a 1-4 on a d6); but more fearsome is the wood wight itself, which possesses an ability similar to the gorgon (the iron-scaled bull version), that is, a wood wight is able to "breathe" a cloud of pollen in a 10' x 10' x 10' area three times per day. All who inhale this pollen must make a saving throw versus petrification or begin to stiffen as their limbs and then their entire bodies are transformed into hard wood. This transformation takes from two to seven minutes (2-7 rounds). A cure disease spell cast during the time of transformation will undo the effects; but once the transformation is complete, only a wish or a wood to flesh spell will restore the transmogrified individual. (Magic-users in areas known to be haunted by wood wights will often research wood to flesh as a variant of stone to flesh, which spells will both be of the same level, and may grant access to their spellbooks to those in need ... for a fee; without recourse to that, it is up to a magic-user to research the spell for himself).

The wooden bodies of those transformed by a wood wight's pollen make excellent base-bodies for the creation of wood golems, and can be sold to powerful magic-users for large sums of money. Prudent would-be creators, however, make sure to expel or destroy the life-force remaining within the body (just like in the case of flesh-turned-stone, the spirit of the one transformed is trapped within the unliving body until the body is restored or destroyed ... woe to those ancients petrified by Medusa of old and now forgotten!). For if the spirit is not expelled in some way from the wooden form, there is a significant possibility that a wood golem created therefrom will become self-willed and attack the creator in a berserk rage. Such free-willed golems do not possess any actual memories of their former life; but they are instinctually drawn to familiar things, e.g. family, home, or friends. And drawn there, but incapable of understanding why, it is almost inevitable that the spirit's impotent anger transforms into a berserk rage by the golem!

Greyhame Mountain Dungeon Expedition 22

Orcs have returned to the caverns of the Glimmervaults ...
the Goblin King and the Lord of Werewolves have renewed their ancient alliance beneath the Howling Tower ...
and the secret treasury of the Bronding Kings is said to lie hidden behind the Brokenbrand Falls, haunted by enchanting naiads ...
...
and Jaer the Windlord looks down on the world below from the Eyries of the Eagles on Greyhame Mountain itself ...

while the Stars themselves are singing an eerie, eldritch song, night after night ...

26 February's roster:

Aethelwulf (paladin 3)

Lead (cleric 4)

Baby Face (thief 5)

Valor Justice (Elf 1, first return since first session, played as Baby Face's retaine)

Blackleaf (Elf 3)

Koko (woman-ape 2)

Kord (half-orc fighter 3/cleric 3)

Ham (cleric 4)

Little Bob (traveling-man)

and all their army of hirelings and dogs ...

First things first, town stuff:

Axxl the Mask, one of two local sages, identified the black-bladed magic sword won from the wyvern hoard last session--it's name is Drinker, and it was made in imitation of the Black Swords, but is not actually such a weapon (those weapons were forged of old with demons bound inside; Drinker just looks like them). Drinker is a sword of life draining, and so will be able to drain life energy levels when Aethelwulf wishes ... as a paladin he feels slightly uneasy with the sword, but is not barred from wielding it.

Meanwhile, Morholt's son, Morrow, returns injured from a hunting trip, having been mauled by an animal in the woods. He was brought into Oakridge Castle badly savaged; Morholt, the local usurper of lordly power, sought around town for help and both Aethelfwulf and Kord were willing to offer magical healing for Morrow. Aethelwulf received a silver ring from Morholt as a token of his appreciation.

Furthermore, Morholt asked Aethelwulf to gather the party for an audience in the castle. When everyone was gathered, Morholt declared that though the adventurers' presence and meddling in town an in the dungeon was generally aggravating to him, "Perhaps now we can come to some sort of agreement of mutual benefit." He then called in and introduced another character--one Amrohir, an Elf of the Dwimmerholt. Indeed, the Elf that the party had run into last time on their way out to the Greyhame mountain, and who had sneered at them!

This Elf Amrohir now launched into a tale: he told the group that he was in search of the Elf-princess Amaltheia, who some while ago had been ensorceled and seduced by the Goblin King and left with child, and who had thence fled from the Courts of the Dwimmerholt fearing that her mother and the other Elves would have her half-goblin child exposed to die. Other Elves are out seeking her throughout the land, but Amrohir believes that she has fled into the Glimmervaults, and he thought he would enlist the aid of adventurers in discovering her. "And of course her fears are ridiculous--you must find her and bring her back, and assure her that all will be well."

Well, the party didn't trust Amrohir at all; once they had left the audience, Baby-Face used his sending bone to attempt to send a message to Amaltheia that they were on her side and wanted to help. Alas, the spirit-sending was not able to find her, and returned without delivering its message.

The party, however, had goals other than seeking and saving Amaltheia. They were rather more disturbed by the news received from Jaer the Windlord that the stars are singing because star-things are coming, looking for something or someone, summoned because the Goblin King and Lord of Werewolves are meddling in deep magic. The arrival of the star-things will be very bad, and so our protagonists hoped to find and stop whatever evil the goblins and werewolves are up to.

So to the Howling Tower they went. Arriving at the top of the ridge where the tower rises like a spike above the treeline, they observed the pyres out in front of the tower; and, approaching the doors, they observed three wolves who observed them back and then ran to the door, stood up, opened it with hands, and then disappeared into the tower.

Somewhat worried, the party pressed on nonetheless. And worried for good reason as they soon learned--passing through the rooms on the first level of the tower, the party came up against a large party of wolves (about 14 altogether--and as they ultimately learned, not all were mere wolves ...).

Blackleaf put three of the normal wolves to sleep, and then battle was enjoined. The party was poorly organized, though, and several of the wolves who seemed to have extra cunning in their yellow eyes set about waking their sleeping comrades while the party struck other wolves at random. All the wolves were ultimately slain, even a half a dozen who received multiple wounds from normal arrows and weapons without taking any hurt, but which were ultimately killed with silver-tipped arrows and swords; the party, meanwhile, lost the hireling Dorcas, and no others. Aethelwulf managed to skin five of the wolves, and then the party continued deeper into the dungeon.

We were short on time, but ultimately the party discovered the stairs down to the second dungeon level in the northern section of the first dungeon level; pushing down they explored in a few directions, gathered several broken pieces of marble sculpture that they thought they could resell, and then found themselves in a strange room with a pool in its center. From the pool the singing of the stars came through very clearly; but moreover, the pool seemed to open out to the stars, and didn't seem to have any bottom.

A magically lighted stone thrown into the pool passed through the water and then seemed to sink away into infinity. Then Lead jumped in, caution thrown completely out, and dragged Baby-Face into the pool with him. They splashed briefly and then began to sink, and it didn't quite seem that they were sinking through water. Fortunately the party had rope, and using it was able to drag out the hapless Baby-Face and Lead.

And then something turned within and approached. Something impossible to describe, something Lovecraftian and squamous and tentacled, and it looked at and into Lead, reached out and through the pool in an attempt to grasp at Lead. Fortunately, it rolled poorly.

Faced with such an empyrean horror, the party had no desire to look upon it any more and they fled.

They fled all the way out of the dungeon and back to town. With so little treasure, their shares of experience were pitiful. Finally, nobody wanted to carouse except Kord, who made his save.

------

Remembrance for the Fallen:

Dorcas, Frida, and Johann Haybaler (normal hirelings), Hauka and Wilmerand (weasels), Blade and Boar (dogs), Hubert the Peacock and Lysimmachus (normal men), a nameless mastiff, Livy (normal man), Orkie (orc mastiff), Fang (boarhound), Droopy and Snoopy (mastiffs), Dream Destroyer (ghosthound), Arrow (pack dog), Freyja (normal woman), a nameless cur, Hot Dog and Cross (mastiffs), Orion II (lion dog), Bacon (boarhound), Tore (half-orc fighter 1/cleric 1), Jimmy the Snitch (dog), Orion (lion dog), Harambe (man-ape 1)

and for those Enchanted Away:

Dol (fyrdman hireling)

(I don't know what's going on with the format of this post)

the Strangler Fig

I was in Panama for Christmas with my dad, uncle, and granddad (Granddaddy was stationed in the canal zone during the 70's, so my dad went to high school here and it definitely captured the family imagination), so I thought I'd try to come up with some D&D stuff related to Panama or tropical environments in general.

To that end, the other day I saw some pretty cool banyan trees, aerial prop roots hanging down from above, stretching for the ground, ready to create more and more trunks in an ultimate banyan grove all centered around a single huge trunk of intertwined trunks. Some quick Wikipedia research informed me that banyans are sometimes called "strangler figs" for the way that they grow around a victim tree and "strangle" it with their roots; and further that, as a fig tree, they are home to fig wasps, which developed symbiotically and cospecialized with fig trees, the fig providing the wasp a place to lay eggs and mate, the wasp pollinating the fig.

Hence the double feature of Strangler Figs and Fig Wasps ... Today, the Strangler Fig:

or Banyan Tree ...

Called a "strangler fig" because it is a parasitic organism that "strangles" its host--the banyan tree actually grows atop another tree, its seed having landed somewhere in the host's upper branches, and grown like a vegetative octopus from there. Early on, the banyan actually looks like tree roots growing down around the trunk of the host tree; later, as the banyan swallows or "strangles" the host and sends out limbs of its own, these down-growing roots actually become almost trunks themselves, creating the illusion of a small grove where the reality is one large down-growing organism (as opposed to an aspen grove, all one organism, but growing upwards).

After enough time, the banyan actually kills its host (after it has grown large enough to sustain itself), and as the host tree decays within the banyan's central trunk, it leaves behind a hollow space, perfect for any variety of spirits, jungle-creatures, or bandits to dwell within or inside which to store their valuables ...

And so, to D&D-ize the banyan tree ...

Strangler Fig
No. Appearing 1 (1-6)
AC 0
HD 8-12
THAC0 per HD, e.g. 12-10
attacks: suggestion or 7-12 roots
damage: 2-7 or charm
no movement
treasure: F

A strangler fig large enough to attack a party of humanoids has grown into a veritable grove of its own, with prop-roots resembling entire trees and aerial roots hanging down from the canopy throughout the "grove"--hence its hit dice of 8 to 12; feel free to shrink or expand the number according to the age/size of the "grove".

The grove feels to be a place of peace, which is the will of the fig attempting to lull prey into a sense of security. There is a 1 in 3 chance that from 1-4 animals of various kinds (e.g. monkeys, lions, agouti, etc. etc.) are resting beneath the banyan's limbs, subtly tapped by its roots, charmed, and succumbing to its appetite. These animals may be used by the banyan to attack intruders if the intruders are hostile.

Suggestion: All those who enter the grove (i.e. pass into the shadow beneath its canopy) must save against spells (or a make Will/WIS save), or they find the grove to be a perfect place to make camp, and make an argument for settling down for the day, or at least for returning before day's end ("Look at how peaceful the animals are here--lions and monkeys lying down together!").

The banyan being a slow-moving tree, creatures must spend at least 10 minutes under its canopy before its roots can act. At that point, those beneath must make a save against paralysis or be tapped by an aerial root. After that, 7-12 roots may act each turn, either directly attacking characters or charming them.

A root that attempts to charm a person descends and rests on their body, attempting to "tap" into them; the character must make a save against paralysis (fortitude or reflex? constitution or dexterity? choose what you want in newer editions). Characters who fail are "tapped" and cannot leave the vicinity of the grove, and can be compelled to fight against hostile intruders. Over the course of the root's accelerated growth, they become part of the banyan in 1-6 days, entombed within a new root-trunk. A cure disease spell will dissolve the root's connections inside the body, though a character thus freed will suffer 3-18 damage from separation.

Otherwise, the roots attack with slams like treant-limbs, dealing 2-7 damage per blow.

Any treasure is to be found within the main "trunk" (which may be hollow), or embedded in the down-growing aerial roots, in either case being the treasure of those entombed within--which will, of course, entail 10 minutes or more work to extract ...

Parasitic though they be, banyans are also often symbiotic homes to other creatures as well.

One half of banyan trees are home to a swarm of Fig Wasps, insects that co-developed with fig trees in a relationship even closer than that of the normal process of bees pollinating flowers.

One in three banyan trees is also home to a dryad, a bisan (from Oriental Adventures), or some other tree spirit; these are (1-2) the spirit of the host tree, desperate for help destroying the banyan, (3-5) the spirit of the banyan or some other spirit dwelling within the hollow of the "trunk" and which will rise to its defense, or (6) an unaffiliated spirit that dwells within the hollow trunk or spreading branches, but which is itself independent of the banyan.

Further relationships are eminently possible:
Consider an entire human keep, made of stone, swallowed by a vast banyan and now home the ghosts of its former inhabitants!
OR, a peaceful banyan, converted to (Buddhism) by a saint in expectation of better future lives and escape from the wheel of suffering, which holds under its branches/roots a permanently peaceful gathering of merchants and wanderers, guarded from evil by the power of the tree.
(the etymology of "banyan", according to Wikipedia, is that "banyan" meant "merchant" in Gunjurati Indian; and such merchants would spread their wares beneath the shade of certain [banyan] trees)

the Fig Wasp

I was in Panama for Christmas with my dad, uncle, and granddad (Granddaddy was stationed in the canal zone during the 70's, so my dad went to high school here and it definitely captured the family imagination), so I thought I'd try to come up with some D&D stuff related to Panama or tropical environments in general.

To that end, the other day I saw some pretty cool banyan trees, aerial prop roots hanging down from above, stretching for the ground, ready to create more and more trunks in an ultimate banyan grove, all centered around a single huge trunk of intertwining roots. Some quick Wikipedia research informed me that banyans are sometimes called "strangler figs" for the way that they grow around a victim tree and "strangle" it with their roots; and further that, as a fig tree, they are home to fig wasps, which developed symbiotically and co-specialized with fig trees, the fig providing the wasp a place to lay eggs and mate, the wasp pollinating the fig.

Hence the double feature of Strangler Figs and Fig Wasps ... Today, the Fig Wasp:

So there are two varieties of fig wasps, pollinating and non-pollinating (and many species of both). The pollinating fig wasp is pictured above, and has an elongated head with spurs, with which it burrows into the syconium (what will become a fig fruit), where it both deposits pollen in some of the female flowers while laying eggs in others. Non-pollinating fig wasps look more like other wasps, except that their ovipositors are ridiculously long, at least as long as their bodies--these they use to pierce the syconium and deposit eggs within from outside. I'm going to focus on a pollinating species.

Fig Wasps
No. Appearing 3-18
AC 9 (but they can't be hit by weapons--hands can slap them on a body, or squash them in the air)
hp 1
THAC0: 16 (they're small and pretty good at crawling through chinks in armor)
damage: 1-3 as they burrow in
movement: fly 30'

Fig wasps surprise on a 1-3 on a d6, being small and seemingly innocuous. Their attack roll is merely to land; with surprise, they can immediately begin to burrow in, otherwise a character can swat at 1-3 of them on their body before the wasps can act again.

After the wasps have landed on a humanoid, they begin burrowing into flesh using their specialized heads and mandibles. This causes 1-3 damage, partially from the painful sore, partially from the inflammation of the flesh around the sore.

Once inside, the wasp lays its eggs and then dies. At this point, the host character must make a save against poison to avoid a severe allergic reaction as the body responds to the presence of foreign bodies inside itself. Success indicates a mild reaction--itching hives above where the eggs were laid, rather like a nasty chigger-bite; failure indicates severe anaphylaxis: roll on a d6

1) eyes swell shut -- blind for 1-6 turns
2) severe hives -- penalty of -1 on all rolls for 1 day
3) swollen throat -- can't eat for 1-3 days, may grow weaker from hunger
4) ill for 1-3 days -- penalty of -1 on all rolls
5) violently ill for 1-3 days -- may not act other than to rest
6) death in 1-6 turns

A neutralize poison spell will halt the anaphylaxis, but the eggs will remain. A cure disease spell will destroy the eggs and also neutralize the anaphylaxis.

If the eggs are not destroyed, they will incubate for 2-4 weeks, during which time the eggs hatch, the hatched larvae pupate, and at the end of which time adult fig wasps split out of the pupae. The males' only purpose is to fertilize the females and then burrow a way out of the fig for the females to fly away. Unfortunately for the wasps, the females cannot survive in a human or demi-human host, and are ultimately absorbed into the body--BUT the males still burrow their way out, causing 1-20 damage as they do so (they might be burrowing out of an arm or leg, or on the dangerous side, burrowing out through vital organs in the abdomen!).

I've Been Doing Werewolves Wrong

Well, not completely wrong, I mean they're creatures that change between the forms of man and wolf, struck only by silver or magical weapons; and yes, one of the characters that semi-recently faced off against werewolves ended up needing a cure disease spell to prevent his becoming a werewolf himself (that was Kord during Expedition 12, just for the record).

But wrong for my game. I actually have a backstory as to what these werewolves are and how they came to be werewolves, and both times parties have encountered them in the Howling Tower, I've completely forgotten that backstory and just described super basic werewolves. "... And he transforms into a wolf-creature and attacks you ... Your silver arrow strikes him in the heart and he falls down, slain, and the wolf-form sloughs away as he returns to his man form." That kind of thing; and technically, that is the description in the B/X books.

But my werewolves were supposed to be slightly more elaborate!

So hopefully by writing this out, I'll force myself to remember the difference the next time my players run into werewolves in the Greyhame Mountain Dungeons.

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It is well known in Brakeridge, as well as the other remnant realms of the old Kingdom of the Brondings, that there is a great stone in the forest of the Dwimmerholt, called Anduril Rock, around which gathers the annual Thing of the Wolves. During high summer, under a full moon, the packs of the Dwimmerholt congregate there, howling their ancient paeans to the moon and the night, passing gossip and information from pack to pack, and trading members from one group to another. Hunters do not pass near Anduril Rock during the summer, for fear of attracting the attentions of the wolves, or perhaps ending up as a ritual feast on the rock itself.

Not only do the wolves use Anduril Rock as the landmark for their Thing, but it is storied (and sometimes corroborated by tales from unwise hunters or adventurers who stray too near) that the goblins of the Dwimmerholt meet in its shadow under the darkness of the new moon to plot against their masters, the Elves. Free goblins often join their enslaved brethren there to offer aid; and it is well known, too, that the wolves and goblins are ancient friends, and that the wolves will be there to scheme as well.

Now, during the reign of Durand-King, last of the Brondings, Durand was corrupted by his love for a serpent, and made war against his staunchest knights, those of the Galad-tribe and others, and had many men put to death and crucified for high treason, or even mere alleged "conspiracy" against him. Dozens were impaled and crucified on the slopes of the Greyhame Mountain itself to intimidate the remnants of the Galads, whose holdings included that mountain.

This might have ended with mere rebellion and death, but that the rise of Chaos in the realms included the coming of one of the Wolves of Drand, terrible spirits anciently bound to the world which possess the bodies of wolves and knowledge of dread magic. This Wolf came to his lesser brethren in the Dwimmerholt, and taught them to take down the crucified bodies men and to take their skins, and with terrible rituals and sorcery, to don the skins of dead men and to live in them among men as wolves in sheep's clothing. And this is the origin of the werewolves in the Howling Tower and the Dwimmerholt.

No one remembers why the huge stone is called Anduril Rock--it's probably a name passed on by the tribes of the Getae who ruled the land and the Dwimmerholt before the coming of the Brondings. (I can say though, that despite my clearly cribbing "Anduril" from Tolkien, the accent I place on it is different, so "AN-du-ril Rock", rather than the canonical sword "an-DU-ril" that Aragorn wields.)

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Clearly, this doesn't have any huge ramification for game rules, but is more of a cosmetic change. The main thing I keep forgetting is that these werewolves are wolves wearing the skins of men, and so when transforming, they should literally be ripping these skins away (as often portrayed in movies for a body horror effect), but also when slain, they should remain as wolves (transform into wolves if in man-form).

The Wolf of Drand (or Greater Werewolf) of course has completely different stats, but I'll be keeping them closer to my chest until my players encounter it, of course. (and just like I cribbed "Anduril", I took the name "Drand" for a kingdom of Chaos from some blog many years ago, and I've forgotten whose blog ... if anyone knows whence it comes, I would be glad to credit the author)

the Chaos Spawn

Another installment from Master of Magic, the Chaos Spawn, an obvious rip-off of D&D's iconic Beholder:

I actually like this design better than the Beholder,
with its weird mouth and bite attack ...

A terrifying creature summoned by a wizard with Chaos spellbooks, the Chaos Spawn is a thing with virtually no melee capability, and which nevertheless cuts through units of normal men with ease using its various gaze attacks ...

Probably a couple months ago, my wife asked me why she and her brothers-in-law, who all play a semi-weekly game in a non-Greyhame dungeon, have never encountered a beholder before. I expect the question was prompted in part by the appearance of the beholder (and thri-kreen, lich, and dragon) on the cover of the 2e Monstrous Manual, which I was perusing at the time.

My first basic answer was just that they're still not at a level where an encounter with a beholder would make any sense--with its death gaze, stoning gaze, disintegration ray, antimagic cone, etc. etc. they just wouldn't stand a chance. And yes, I want dungeons to have high level things that will destroy the party if they just blithely attack it ... but beholders are just so dangerous, and their highest level character is 8th level.

But honestly, that isn't the full answer--as I gave it, I also realized that I just don't like beholders much. They're iconic D&D, sure; and I like the idea of a thing with eyes that each project a different kind of ray or magic effect (especially if the effects aren't the same for every monster!); but I just think they look terrible, with that great gaping mouth (and I also remember all the frustrating fights I've had against beholders in Baldur's Gate 2 or Icewind Dale, and I just don't quite want to inflict that frustration on others ...)

So I don't like beholders much; but I do remember liking the aesthetic of the Chaos Spawn of Master of Magic (pictured above), so I thought I'd give a look at them to see if they might be a beholder rip-off that I could stomach to use in my games.

Per MoM the Chaos Spawn has stats: Chaos Spawn -- Magic (Chaos) -- Upkeep 12 (mana/turn) -- Melee (1) -- Defense (5) -- Resistance (10) -- Hits (15) -- Movement (1 Flying) -- Special (Death Gaze -4 save; Doom Gaze strength 4; Stoning Gaze -4 save; Poisonous Bite strength 4)

Death Gaze -- in melee, each figure in the unit opposing the Chaos Spawn must save at -4 or die without any chance to deal melee damage
Doom Gaze -- in melee, the entire unit opposing the Chaos Spawn automatically takes damage equal to the strength of the gaze, without any chance to resist or defend; figures killed by the gaze do not receive a chance to deal melee damage
Stoning Gaze -- in melee, each figure in the unit opposing the Chaos Spawn must save at -4 or be petrified without any chance to deal melee damage
Poison Attack (bite) -- in addition to melee, the unit opposing the Chaos Spawn must save with their resistance once per each point of strength of the poison attack or take that damage; figures killed by poison still deal damage during melee

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So, the Chaos Spawn
AC 4
HD 8
THAC0 12
attacks: 1 stinger, 5 gaze attacks
damage: stinger 1-6 plus poison (save v. poison at -2 or die in 1-3 rds)
movement: fly 90'
special: death gaze (save v. death ray or die)
doom gaze (take 1-8 damage, no save)
stoning gaze (save v. petrification or be turned to stone)
fear gaze (save v. wands or affected as by a wand of fear effect)
confusion gaze (save v. spells or confused as per the spell)

considering gaze attacks, each gaze affects one character in melee, determined at random (there's no guarantee any particular character will ever meet any particular gaze, regardless of the creature's intentions); otherwise, characters in melee may choose to fight "from the corners of their eyes" taking -2 on their "to hit rolls" and taking a +2 penalty on their AC, but receiving a commensurate +2 bonus on saves; OR, characters in melee may choose to fight blind (blindfolded, eyes closed, fighting backwards with a mirror, etc.), attacking at -4 "to hit" and with a +4 penalty to AC, as if against an invisible creature, but also not vulnerable to the gaze attacks

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It's still a pretty nasty monster, and not really all that different from a beholder ... but I'd be slightly more likely to use it in my own game.

Phantasmal Warriors

Those blue dudes up to the left are Phantom Warriors,
defending a Sorcery Node; later-game they'd be joined
by Phantom Beasts ...

In keeping with the idea of transposing Master of Magic monsters into D&D, I've always thought Phantom Warriors would be great, so here goes.

These guys are like mirror images that can also fight. They strike with phantom weapons that ignore armor, allowing them to hit often, and yet themselves being insubstantial, a single hit destroys one figure.

I figure there are two ways to look at these, one as monsters, the other as a spell:

Phantasmal Warriors (the monster)
No. Appearing 3-18
AC 9
hp "1" (any "hit" kills it)
THAC0 19
damage 1-6
movement 120'
special: all hits by phantasmal warriors ignore physical armor, striking both an unarmored man and a character in plate as if AC 9; BUT dexterity adjustments and magical bonuses to armor still count as AC against these attacks

Phantasmal Warriors (the spell)
level 4
range 1 (allied) creature
duration 6 turns
2-7 phantasmal representations of the target creature appear, randomly armed and armored. Each "phantom" is allowed one attack per round at THAC0 19 (but treating natural or worn armor as AC 9; dexterity adjustments and magical bonuses to armor still apply to this AC), doing 1-6 damage; furthermore, each "phantom" is struck as if AC 9, and any "hit", regardless of damage, dissipates the "phantom" thus struck

the Nightstalker

Before I publish the next Greyhame Dungeon play report, here's a monster recreated from one of my favorite games: the Nightstalker

Summoning a Nightstalker

A significant amount of my mental landscape when it comes to fantasy was laid by the old Microprose game Master of Magic (1994). Back in elementary school before I had any actual D&D rulebooks, I made up monsters according to their stats in Master of Magic; and though I may have ultimately switched rather completely to 3E in highschool, and now to B/X in 2012 onward, still Master of Magic stands as an ur-source, like The Lord of the Rings, or the Timelife Books: The Enchanted World series, or The Flight of Dragons cartoon.

The Nightstalker is a summoned creature from Master of Magic, which is in hindsight clearly a rip-off of the invisible stalker in D&D; and yet, the Nightstalker is undead, only able to be conjured with a wizard with Death spellbooks; moreover, the Nightstalker has a formidable death gaze attack, which the invisible stalker clearly lacks.

Here's the Nightstalker's abilities per Master of Magic (drawn from a PDF download of the manual):
Nightstalker -- Magic (Death) -- Upkeep (1 Mana) -- Melee (7) -- Defense (3) -- Resistance (8) -- Hits (10) -- Movement (2) -- Special (Death Gaze -2 save; Invisible)

From which I will draw this (soft) D&D version:

the Nightstalker
AC 0 (4 if one can see invisible)
HD 5
THAC0 15
damage 2-12 + death gaze
death gaze -- all characters in melee with the Nightstalker save against death or die (+2 on save, -2 "to hit" if characters look sideways; +4 to save, -4 "to hit" if characters fight with eyes closed/face averted/etc.)
save as a Fighter 6
180' movement
morale 11
immune to charm, sleep, cold
turned as an undead of HD+2 (i.e. 7 for this write-up)

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Such a monster is, of course, terrible to use against a party that has no way to detect invisible ... and nevertheless, I wrote a small dungeon that included something along these lines as a possible wandering monster within (though that version was for 5E, rather than B/X D&D)

Naturally, I rolled its appearance a couple times, and whenever it showed up, the party was in a high dudgeon of terror given the fact that it's naturally invisible and can strike when it pleases--and with a death gaze to boot! Two lower level compatriots died under the horror of its death-gaze; and ultimately, the party looted what they wanted without ever killing the invisible monster stalking the dungeon below ...

The stats don't necessitate any particular HD, AC, or anything, I'm just spitballing according to what I know of the Master of Magic wargame system, and still downplaying the monster a bit. The Nightstalker could easily be scaled up or down depending on what you want to do with it--maybe it's semi-visible for low level parties (note that it doesn't have immunity to normal weapons, and may be struck by any old sword!); maybe it has HD 10 for a high level group that may or may not have see invisible.