“El sueño de la razon produce monstruos” - Francisco Goya
The sleep of reason produces monsters. Or in my case right now the lack of sleep produces monsters.
Yesterday I watched The Baztán Trilogy and it featured, or least talked about, three monsters from the Basque region of Spain.
While I have seen variations of these creatures from other myths and regions, this was the first time I had seen them under these names. So let's give them a bit love.
Large Monstrous Humanoid
Frequency: Very Rare
Number Appearing: 1 (1d4)
Alignment: Neutral [Neutral Good]
Movement: 120' (40') [12"]
Armor Class: 4 [15]
Hit Dice: 5d8+10* (32 hp)
Attacks: 2 fist slam
Damage: 1d6+3, 1d6+3
Special: Stay hidden 95%.
Size: Large
Save: Monster 5
Morale: 6 (6)
Treasure Hoard Class: None
XP: 525
The Basajaun is a type of large wild man of the forests similar in many respects to the Sasquatch and Yeti. It also has commonalities with the Wood Wose due to it's more benign and protective nature. They are tall (9') humanoids covered in course black and brown hair.
The name Basajaun means "Lord of the Woods". The plural is basajaunak and the female of the species is a basander. They are suspected of building megaliths with their immense strength and keep flocks of sheep. They are a shy and reclusive species, speaking only their own language, although a few know the local languages. They are averse to fighting but will protect their lands if necessary.
They can avoid being spotted 95% of the time. Often they are just confused for a large bear. They can be recognized though by the whistling they do to communicate with others of it's kind.
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| By Luistxo eta Marije originally posted to Flickr as Izenaduba-Olentzeroren etxea CC BY-SA 2.0 |
Large Fiendish Humanoid
Frequency: Very Rare
Number Appearing: 1 (1)
Alignment: Chaotic [Chaotic Evil]
Movement: 120' (40') [12"]
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 6d8+12* (32 hp)
Attacks: 2 fist slam or by weapon
Damage: 1d6+4, 1d6+4 or 1d10
Special: Magic required to hit, evil eye
Size: Large
Save: Monster 6
Morale: 6 (6)
Treasure Hoard Class: See below
XP: 660
The tartalo is another large creature found in the Basque region of Northern Spain. It appears as a cyclops or as a one-eyed ogre. It has a fiendish glint in it's one large eye. Many scholars of the occult believe they are connected to demons, either by birth or by actions.
The tartalo lives alone in caves. They are 10' tall and only speak in simple grunts. They do seem to be intelligent, it is just speech is beyond them. Only males have ever been spotted leading scholars to conclude they seek out young maidens as their "wives."
Anyone wandering into the cave of the tartalo runs the danger of becoming the monster's next meal. They prefer the taste of young men and women, especially ones that have not been baptized (or dedicated to a god). Their tactic is to use their "evil eye" to stun (treat as a Hold Person spell) their victims. They will kill and eat any young men and anyone over marriage age. They will keep the young unmarried women to birth their monstrous sons. These women when then also be killed and eaten.
The only treasure a tartalo has is a fine wrought golden ring. The ring is a curse and anyone wearing it will be known to any other tartalo in the region and they will seek the wearer out to kill them.
Small Fiend (Demon)
Frequency: Unique
Number Appearing: 1 (1)
Alignment: Chaotic [Chaotic Evil]
Movement: 180' (60') [18"]
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 12d8+12* (66 hp)
Attacks: 2 claws, nightmares
Damage: 1d4, 1d4 or 1d10
Special: Magic or +2 weapons required to hit, cause fear, nightmares, ability drain
Size: Small*
Save: Monster 12
Morale: 10
Treasure Hoard Class: See below
XP: 1,900
Inguma is a demonic lord of sleep and dreams. He is believed to create incubi and can give his followers riches if they give him his preferred sacrifices, that of baby girls before two years of age. He commands a small sect of Mara Witches.
Though small, he is a powerful demonic lord. He can cast Fear and Nightmare three times per night. His physical attacks are weak, but he can gain entrance into the minds of sleepers, save vs. death to avoid. Once there he will invade the dreams and learn all the victim's secrets. Their sleep is disrupted so they can't heal normally nor will spellcaster regain their spells. By the third night of the invasion, the victim begins to lose Constitution points at the rate of 1 per night. Only an exorcism (cleric) or cleanse (witch) spell will remove the influence of Inguma. Often Inguma forces his victims into suicide long before they succumb to his draining effects. Each night the victim must make a save vs. death. A failed save means they will kill themselves.
Inguma rarely takes physical form. When he does magic is required to attack him. When he does manifest it is always as what the viewer fears the most.
It is believed that Inguma is the father, or at least the ancestor and patron, of the Tartalo and possibly the Imps of the Perverse. Some incubi revere him as their lord.
Basque Mara witches see him as their lord and patron and will offer sacrifices to him. He rewards them with riches.
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