Super Beings in the T&T Universe: Part 3

Super Beings in the T&T Universe
by 'Mad' Roy Cram

Professor Whenn and Yorrdamma Vrash are doing research on entities of the Troll World that possess unusual or extraordinary talents and/or abilities which make them superior to ordinary beings. If anyone has comments or questions they may trollmail Yorrdamma Vrash via Trollhalla, who will be happy to respond to any inquiries.

Manbat

At night, in the skies above the city, flies a dark, mysterious figure. Seldom seen, he is a presence felt by those who go about the alleys and back ways of the town on errands of evil or injustice. He is the Manbat, and he hates that men should commit crime and inflict injury on their fellows without good cause. Many a thief or mugger has come to harm at his hands, and their activities have declined since he began his silent patrols. He has left many of them unconscious in the streets for the Watch to arrest. The Thieve’s Guild has offered a reward for anyone who can help rid them of this gadfly, but so far none have been able to learn his secrets or stop him.

Years ago, in a land far away, a bad Wizard was obsessed with bats, and labored to create a race of batmen who would serve him. He managed to create a race of creatures that could change into a manbat, with wings and arms and bat senses. A rival wizard hired a group of heroes to put an end to his works and kill the creatures, but one of the youngest escaped and fled. This poor creature was not evil by nature, and took up refuge in the ruins of an old church near an abbey. He was found there by a kindly monk who tended to him and taught him, and eventually brought him into the monastic brotherhood. Now, when in his human form, Brazi Tadani (for so the brothers named him) had a large hump on his upper back. And at night he would sneak out and change and fly, for he loved the freedom and joy of it. Alas, some of the brothers that did not like him spied on him, and discovered his secret, so he was once again compelled to flee. But now he knew how to behave as a man, and he could read and write. So he came to the city, where he found work as an animal handler in the stables of the Carter’s union, and often drove a cart for them himself. When local criminals and gangsters began to shake down the Guild for ‘protection’ money, Brazi was outraged and began to strike back at the villains in his Manbat form. He lives alone in a high tower on a hill in the city, and can fly from and return there with little risk of being seen.

His attributes are as follows:


Human
STR 18
CON 15
INT 16
WIZ 22
DEX 22
SPD 12
LCK 21
CHR 7
Adds 25

Manbat
STR 36
CON 30
INT 16
WIZ 22
DEX 22
SPD 24
LCK 21
CHR 6
Adds 45


He has extremely good hearing and sight (+6 in Manbat form). With his bat sonar, he is capable of echolocation in the dark. He can summon and control bats to help him. His tough bat hide is equal to leather armor (takes 5 hits) and he wears a leather vest and cowl which give him 5 extra points protection. If injured he heals at the rate of one point per hour of rest. He is an excellent flier, and very quiet on the wing, unless he is in a big hurry. As Manbat his head becomes like the head of a large bat. The cowl lets his ears stick out as to not interfere with his hearing. When he changes, his hump becomes an impressive set of leathery bat wings. He fights with a pair of 2 dice Brass Knuckles on each fist and also batters foes with his tough wings which get 3 dice each. If he rolls 4 or more sixes, he has used the claws on his feet to rip the target, and gets to roll the sixes again and add them to his combat total. He has a natural Fly Me spell which helps him carry a man sized load (he often drops criminals in the courtyard of the City Watch building). He gets surprise on most targets on a die roll of D6: 1-5, and carefully chooses good opportunities to strike from above. In his human form he looks like a thin, 6’ 6” man with a large hunchback. He is not pretty to look at, and he has few if any friends. He truly loves his animals and takes excellent care of them (+5 Animal Handling). He can change to Manbat form and back easily at no Wiz cost. Other Supers know him and he sometimes will work with them to help if he can, but he prefers to work alone.

Other GM’s may like to play him as a bad Super, but I like to pit him against the characters who enjoy playing monsters or thieves. Or he can be added to a group of Supers who are fighting some unusual foes.

Copyright © 2012, 'Mad' Roy Cram

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T&T 7.5 Creature Feature # 27

A new kindred by your humble host here at TROLL HAMMER...

Kindred: Boglyn

Attribute Modifiers:
STR      .50

CON      .50

DEX      2

INT       2

LK        1.5

CHR      .50

WIZ      1.5

HT        .40

WT       .40

Type: Boglyns are their own Type and Kindred

Level Attributes: Dex, Int, Wiz, Lk

Special Damage: Normal Spite Damage; Extra Attack: Tail Whip (4 dice).
Special Abilities: Magic use (see below); may have Talents; tough, thick skin absorbs 5 hits.

History and Description:

Boglyn history is a complete mystery, and they are loathe to speak of their past. Some say they come from another world, others say another dimension. Only solitary males have ever been encountered, and of those, virtually all are hermits living in caves, towers, or woodland cabins. They often dwell in bogs, swamps, woodlands, or broken lands to facilitate their love of privacy. Despite their seemingly xenophobic nature, they do like to establish their dwelling within a few days journey of some sort of settlement where they may trade for or purchase supplies and equipment. Boglyns do not get along with one another, and will always act with hostility when encountering their own kind. They will occasionally leave their solitude to search for and acquire magic and treasure, most often solo, but very rarely they will join a party of delvers. Boglyns are usually NPCs, but player characters are possible, with a strict limit of one per delving party.

Boglyns are slightly less than half the size and weight of a human. They appear as short, old human men, but twisted and gnarled. They have thick, tough leathery skin (absorbs 5 hits as armor) that ranges from a creamy tan to a deep chocolate brown in color. They never wear armor, but rather dress in normal or magical clothing. They have stiff, wiry grey, white, or black hair. Eye color ranges from a pale yellow to a piercing, fiery golden. They have tiny, jagged teeth, bony fingers, and large, long noses. They also have thin tails that are as long as they are tall, which they can use as a whip (4 dice). This whip attack acts as an extra attack each combat round during melee and is in addition to any other missile or melee attack. Boglyns favor daggers or staves for melee and hand crossbows, blowpipes, chakram, and especially gunnes/pistols (when they can get them) for missile weapons.

Due to their lives of solitude, intense magical study and practice, and deep attunement with kremm, Boglyns automatically learn 1 level of spells per level they have attained, cumulative. For example, a 3^rd level Boglyn would receive 1 level of spells for 1^st level, 2 for 2^nd, and 3 for 3^rd, for a total of 6 levels of spells. So, he may choose six 1^st level spells, or four 1^st and a 2^nd, or three 2^nd, or a 3^rd and a 2^nd and a 1^st (they may not choose spells at levels higher than their Type Level), etc. This applies even for a starting character. Selections may not be changed, when a spell is selected, it is forever. Boglyns may not use foci.

Boglyns have a deep love of all things magical, and of mechanical gadgets of all types. They are obsessed with acquiring such items, and will go to great lengths to do so. Their choice of Talents often reflects this: Alchemy, Magic Lore, History, Tinkering, Engineering, and Scribe, to name a few. They are also very fond of missile weapons, and many have a Talent for Marksmanship. As any other character, a starting Boglyn receives one Talent, and they may gain additional Talents when gaining levels. Higher level Boglyns may create magic items as wizards.

As mentioned, Boglyns are generally solitary hermits, and most have a fairly gruff and rude personality. While they will sometimes ally themselves with others, there must be some clear cut benefit to the Boglyn, and when the usefulness of the alliance has expired, the Boglyn will quickly move on. Developing a true friendship with a Boglyn is an extremely rare event, but, conversely, Boglyns are known for some level of loyalty to former allies they parted with peacefully.

Sample Boglyn

Name: Morug Invan Dulin

2^nd Level Boglyn

Str: 5

Con: 8

Dex: 18

Spd: 12

Int: 24

Wiz: 20

Luck: 18

Cha: 4

Ht: 2’6”

Wt: 60 lbs.

Adds: +8

Talent: Magic Lore (Int + 5)

Spells (3 levels total): Detect Magic, Omnipotent Eye

Weapons: Staff, Dagger, Blowpipe (darts laced with Hellfire juice), Fire stick pistol

Notes: Morug has recently ‘acquired’ a small cabin in a thick stretch of forest less than 10 days walk to a large town. He has been studying magical items and their history and usage for a long time, and is now ready to begin accumulating his own collection. He recently began studying Alchemy as well, and is on the lookout for further texts and manuscripts to aid in his studies. His tiny cabin is relatively neat, but is crammed full of books, scrolls, and ancient manuscripts, as well as a small set of Alchemical equipment he is using in his self-education. Morug also wishes for a familiar, some sort of beastie that can act as a companion and guardian, so he is always on the lookout for an opportunity to get one.

Copyright © 2012, Paul Ingrassia
Artwork is free for use clip art

M'OSKQORRG'S ODDITIES #2

M'OSKQORRG'S ODDITIES
Discoveries from Time in Exile
by David Moskowitz


Hobbtoons

What transformed little people of Floopsyre into a shipbuilder’s holy grail of raw materials? Most theories involve the Floopsyre version of “Bobbing for Kittens” and a litter sacred to the priestesses of Ellehra. But whatever happened, their hobb bodies—lifeless and desiccated- are enchanted so no part will ever go beneath the surface of any liquid. A single hobb can keep a leaking a galleon afloat, but such a ship must have the infrastructure to maintain the balance a hobb body cannot. Many vessels have capsized because their builders failed to accommodate for how this magical buoyancy might alter calculations related to the still applicable laws of physics.

In terms of their weight, toughness—against both physical blows and corrosive elements (they will float on lava and acid for example, but still be affected by the heat and vapors respectively)—treat hobbtoons as petrified wood. The enchantment vanishes when 25% of the mass is gone, and any severed or broken off piece retains no enchantment (and again, once ¼ has been removed, the remaining corpse loses its magic).

The price of a hobbtoon is mostly dependent on its size and the positioning of its limbs. The difference between a spread eagle specimen and one in fetal position—not even good for log rolling contests—is about 15-fold, depending on the market. There are rumors that the Death Empress paid 200,000 gold for one of middling quality, but the credibility ends not with the price, but with the suggestion that Lerotra’hh had to pay for something.


Copyright © 2012, David Moskowitz

Super Beings in the T&T Universe: Part 2

Super Beings in the T&T Universe
by 'Mad' Roy Cram

Professor Whenn and Yorrdamma Vrash are doing research on entities of the Troll World that possess unusual or extraordinary talents and/or abilities which make them superior to ordinary beings. If anyone has comments or questions they may trollmail Yorrdamma Vrash via Trollhalla, who will be happy to respond to any inquiries.

Vampyres

Of all the Undead, Vampyres are perhaps the most dangerous and powerful. The old experienced master Vampyre wizard-warrior can give even strong groups of players a run for their money. Fortunately, not all Vampyres start at that level of prowess, nor do the majority easily achieve such levels. Let us begin with a general discussion of these dreaded creatures and their advantages and disadvantages.

Vampyres are made, not born. When a Vampyre drains the blood of a victim, it may either leave it to rot (in which case it may rarely return as a blood drinking zombie which has none of the Vampyric advantages, but all the disadvantages), or the Vampyre may elect to initiate the victim and ‘bring them over’. This involves returning some of the blood from the Vampyre to the victim who is then buried. On the next night the victim will rise from their grave, usually as a slave or servant to the creature who made them. Most Vampyres are not keen to create these new members of their race; they do not get along with each other in most cases, and they despise rivals. Most powerful Vampyres were powerful as humans, and the transformation to the Undead state only enhances the powers they had when they were human. The usual slave or servant Vampyre rarely has any of the significant magical abilities of the Masters, and is usually obsessed with the need to drink more and more blood. In most cases the Master will be compelled to destroy his progeny.

So, what powers do Vampyres, old or new, possess in common?  From the start, they all have enhanced attributes (STR x 2.5, INT and LCK x 1.5). As they gain experience the original value of these attributes, as well as the others, may be increased.  Vampyres are all immune to most poisons that would otherwise harm living tissues. They do not have to breathe. Vampyres have the ability to climb up or down walls like a spider. They are not effected by any spells that would effect them mentally, such as Oh-Go-Away or Yassa-Massa. Normal weapons only do them spite damage. They heal one point of damage for each point of blood they drain from a victim.

For spells, the Vampyre must learn the spell from another Vampyre or a Wizard like any other character. If the Vampyre was a Wizard before he was brought over, he will gain spells as a Wizard. Otherwise, he will gain spells as a Rogue does. Vampyres will not, and perhaps cannot, do magic involving fire of any kind. 

There are several special spells that are unique to these creatures:

OBEY-ME: is a variation of the common charm spell or Yassa-Massa. It costs 10 Wiz to cast, but the Vampyre can cast it on one person per round by simply looking into the subject’s eyes. The victim does not have to be subdued, but if the sum of his STR + INT + DEX is less than the Vampyres attribute’s total, he will become the Vampyre’s willing slave. The Vampyre can’t cast this spell while he is actively engaged in combat.

SHAPE-CHANGE: Costs 10 Wiz, and allows the Vampyre to take on the form of a Wolf or a Giant Bat. His clothes disappear when he changes, and reappear when he returns to his Vampyre form. This spell doubles his SPD, and he can do whatever the creature whose form he has assumed could do. He cannot cast other spells or use weapons or armor while in these forms.

MIST-ME:  Costs 10 Wiz to cast, and turns the Vampyre into a cloud of mist or fog that can move at walking speed, but can only be harmed by fire, spells, or sunlight. The Vampyre cannot do any harm to anyone in this form, or use any other magic.

Other favorite Vampyre spells include Hidey Hole, Little Feets, Fly Me, and Rock-A-Bye.

Vampyres can call and control rats or bats if any are about, and, in the woods, can call wolves to their aid, if any are near. The older and more powerful the Vampyre, the more effective they are in doing this.

Now for the disadvantages of the Vampyre. The Vampyre must feed frequently and can only drink blood, human (preferred) or animal. Unless he feeds at least every other day his desire for blood can drive him literally to madness. This unquenchable thirst is especially acute in the young Vampyres.

The Vampyre cannot endure direct or even indirect sunlight. In his first round of exposure, he will suffer 6+1D6 loss of CON points, and, beginning in the second round of solar exposure, he will lose the same amount from each of his attributes each round thereafter, until he gets out of the sun or is burnt to ashes. Smart characters will know to scatter the ashes as some Vampyres can be revived by mixing their ash remains with fresh blood.

A wooden stake through a Vampyre’s heart will paralyze him. His mouth must be filled with garlic, and his head cut off to kill him. If a Vampyre is decapitated, care must be taken to separate the head from the body, for if they are buried together, old, powerful Vampyres may rejoin and rise from the grave.

Vampyres must rest in the daytime in a coffin that contains at least a cup full of the soil they were buried in. They become helpless if they cannot return to their proper resting place when the sun rises. Older Master Vampyres may still fight, but will suffer a 50% reduction in all their attributes in these situations.

Most young Vampyres cannot cross any body of moving water (a stream or river) under their own power. Older Vampyres may do it, but not without some difficulty. Immersion in running water has the same effect on Vampyres as exposure to sunlight.

Vampyres, though not harmed by garlic or holy objects find them intolerable, and will not be able to approach such objects. Holy Water, however, will burn them like an acid.

Vampyres can be wounded normally by magic or enchanted weapons, or by fire. Cold based spells don’t effect them, but fire magic gets 50% more damage than normal.

Vampyres cannot enter Temples or Churches of good deities.

They also cannot cross the threshold or enter a house or home without being invited by someone inside.

Sample Vampyres

Count Rasulki Hemo was an Earl in one of the Kasar duchies, and was a student of dark magics and occult things. When political problems and an internecine war reduced him to desperate straits, he was approached by a powerful old Vampyre who offered him ‘immortality and great power’, and he accepted the offer. Rising from his tomb he found that he was now the slave of his maker. He served the Master for many years and kept his sanity until his powers increased to the point where he was able to kill the Master. That was 300 years ago. Over the years he grew stronger and wiser, until one day he attacked a pilgrim on a lonely forest road. The pilgrim was a powerful holy man, and he showed Rasulki a vision of Hell and the punishment that awaited his kind there. Horrified at the prospect of eternal hopeless suffering, the Count foreswore his evil ways and vowed to make amends.

Now he dwells in Kasar city where he seeks to root out and destroy evil beings and persons. He still needs to drink blood, but never drains a victim to the point of death, and he never attacks any good or decent citizen. He has several well hidden coffins in secure places in the city, and he is very cautious in all his activities. Let the wicked beware him though. They have put a large bounty out on him, but he continues to plague them and bring them to justice.

The Count is a 6’ 2”, 220 pound man. He is very handsome, but is also a master of disguises. He is a third level wizard, and adept at most of the spells up to that level.

He possesses a Rapier with a permanent Zapathingum spell (9 Dice + 12 adds). He wears a suit of Zaparmored Leather that takes 18 hits. He has a lot of gold and gems well hidden near his resting places.

The Count is very wise and risk averse. He does most of his hunting during the wee hours of the night.

Count Hemo’s attributes:

STR: 38

CON: 31

INT: 33

WIZ: 30

DEX: 24

SPD: 16

LCK: 42

CHR: 22

Combat Adds: 72

Though other ‘Supers’ in the city fear him and do not trust him, he does what he can to assist them when he can. He is very good at getting information, and frequently passes it on to the Watch or to those who, like him, are dedicated to fighting evil in whatever form it takes.

Tunos Ferat was a devilishly handsome and successful Rogue who was ‘drafted’ into the Vampyre community of the city, not entirely, it must be said, of his own free will. But, once he had a chance to experience his new abilities he seemed to grow into the role, and was soon becoming a major player in the group.

Then one night he tried to bite a pilgrim on his way to one of the city temples who turned out to be a Weird Holy Man. The very annoyed saint then cursed the hapless would-be blood sucker. He made him ugly as a ten mile stretch of unpaved road. All his beautiful hair fell out, he grew long and skinny, his perfect teeth formed into hideous bucktoothed fangs protruding down over his lower lip, and for a final touch he was given a body odor of amazing properties. Any human who gets a whiff of it has to make a level four saving roll on their constitution or be nauseated and blinded for as many rounds as they missed the SR by.  But worse, any vampyre  that gets within ten feet of Tunos is immediately rendered helpless.

When he tried to return to his new ‘family’, they were horrified and tried to destroy him. He was forced to flee and take refuge in the sewers of the city by day, an act that did not improve his odor problem.

No longer able to prey on victims using his former beauty, he was now compelled to prey on his former Vampyre friends, or to feed on unconscious drunks or gutter scum he could find asleep in the slums and alleys of the city. Thus he became the Vampyre’s Boogey Man. In this role, he found an ally in the person of Count Rasulki Hemo, who at least would talk to him (from a safe distance upwind), and the two shared information on the Vampyre community.

Tunos likes to leap down on victims from a roof top or ceililng, and gets surprise on his targets on a roll of 1-4 on a D6. He will only attack lone or single persons or Vampyres.

Tunos Ferat’s attributes:

STR: 24

CON: 36

INT: 16

WIZ: 20

DEX: 16

SPD: 20

LCK: 24

CHR: 1

Combat Adds: 34

He can fight with a sword or dagger, and knows the Fly Me and Yassa Massa spells. He wears cloth armor.

The GM should play him as very mean and angry. He thinks life has been really unfair to him, and he takes it out on his victims, especially on the Vampyres he destroys.

Copyright © 2012, 'Mad' Roy Cram
Artwork is free for use clip art