Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day: The Witch

Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day

Today is Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day hosted by Tenkar of his eponymous Tavern.

Nearly 150 blogs are gathered to talk about S&W.  He did the same thing a few months back for Basic Fantasy Role-Playing and it was a huge success.   I am a fairly late comer to the world of S&W, having read it and then dismissed it.  I have recently come back to it and detailed my findings in  review and post. 

I do have to hand it to Frog God Games to have gotten me re-interested in this game with their Complete Rulebook.
If you would like to get some products for this game here's a coupon you can use at the D20PFSRDshop.com, thanks to  John Reyst: SWAD252013

So what should I post about today?  Well really there is only thing I can and should do.  I get a some emails asking me for me for a S&W compatible version of the Witch.  Now to me ALL the retro-clones are largely compatible, but sometimes a ready to go product is also nice.  So for you, the S&W fan, here is the Witch for S&W.

You will still need my book, The Witch: A sourcebook for Basic Edition fantasy games, and a copy of the S&W rules.  But this will get you going. 

I am also including a new Tradition for you to use with ANY version of the Witch you might want to play.

OGL Notice: The following text is considered OPEN under the Open Gaming License. 

Section 15: "The Witch for Swords & Wizardry" and "Amazon Tradition" copyright © 2013 Timothy S. Brannan.

Art is not considered open and copyright is retained by the artist, Toby Gregory and is used here with permission. 

Witch

Prime Attribute: Charisma
Hit Dice: 1d4 per level up to 10th level.  At 11th level, +1 hit point per level.
Armor: Cloth, Padded or Leather only, no shields.
Weapons: A witch may only use a dagger, staff, flaming oil, holy water, net, thrown rock, sling, and whip as weapons.
Special Abilities: Occult Powers; witch spells, ritual spells, herb use.
Race: Elves, Half-elves and Humans may be Witches. Dwarves and Halfings may be NPC Witches.

Witch Experience Table					Spells / Level
Level	XP	Hit Dice (d4)	Saving Throw	Occult Powers	1	2	3	4	5	6	*7	**8
1	0	1d4	15	Power	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
2	2,600	2d4	14	Herb Use	2!	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
3	5,200	3d4	13		2	1	-	-	-	-	-	-
4	10,400	4d4	12		2	2!	-	-	-	-	-	-
5	20,800	5d4	11		2	2	1	-	-	-	-	-
6	40,000	6d4	10		3	2	2!	-	-	-	-	-
7	80,000	7d4	9	Power	3	2	2	1	-	-	-	-
8	160,000	8d4	8		3	3	2	2!	-	-	-	-
9	320,000	9d4	7		3	3	2	2	1	-	-	-
10	440,000	10d4	6		4	3	3	2	2!	-	-	-
11	560,000	10d4+1	5		4	3	3	2	2	1	-	-
12	680,000	10d4+2	4		4	4	3	3	2	2!	-	-
13	800,000	10d4+3	4	Power	4	4	3	3	2	2	1	-
14	920,000	10d4+4	4		5	4	4	3	3	2	2!	-
15	1,040,000	10d4+5	4		5	4	4	3	3	2	2	1
16	1,160,000	10d4+6	4		5	5	4	4	3	3	2	2!
17	1,280,000	10d4+7	4		5	5	4	4	3	3	2	2
18	1,400,000	10d4+8	4		6	5	5	4	3	3	3	2
19	1,520,000	10d4+9	4	Power	6	5	5	4	4	3	3	2
20	1,640,000	10d4+10	4		6	6	5	5	4	4	3	3
21	+120,000	+1 hp/level	4		6	6	6	5	5	4	3	3

* 7th Level Spells usable only by Witches with CHA of 16 or greater
** 8th Level Spells usable only by Witches with CHA of 17 or greater
! A Witch may take a ritual spell at 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 10th, 12th, 14th, and 16th levels.

Witch Class Abilities

Saving Throws: The witch gains a +2 bonus to any save verse charm or hold spells.

Spell Casting: The witch owns a book of spells called a “Book of Shadows” this is similar to the books used by magic-users, but each book is unique to each witch.  A Read Magic spell will not enable another witch or magic-user. Witches may cast up to 8th level spells.

Familiar: The witch gains a familiar at 1st level.  This is a supernatural creature that often appears to be a normal animal such as a cat or frog.

Occult Power: At first level and every 6 levels hereafter the witch gains an Occult Power.  These powers vary from Tradition to Tradition.

Ritual Magic: At 2nd level the witch may opt to choose a Ritual Magic spell. These spells have special requirements in terms of components needs and multiple participants. 

Coven: at 13th level a witch may leave her coven to form her own coven. 

New Tradition: Amazon

Witches of the Amazon tradition are one of the most misunderstood witches.  To begin, “Amazon” is a misnomer.  These witches are only remotely related to the legendary female warriors of the same name.  Also these witches are not a group of female warrior-witches, though they opt for fighting professions more often than members of other traditions.

Witches of the Amazon Tradition can only be female; no man may enter this Tradition. This attitude of superiority further extends beyond their own Traditions and covens.  Amazon witches believe that no man should be allowed to be a witch regardless of Tradition.  An Amazon witch will always refer to a male witch as a warlock.

These witches also share an honoring of the Goddess Diana with their warrior cousins. They are associated so much with the Goddess Diana that many call their Tradition The Cult of Diana.  Nonetheless, some small groups of Amazon witches do worship other Goddess, such as Freya, Artemis, Brigit, or even Hecate.

Despite stereotypes, not all Amazon witches are man-haters.   Some are happily married with children. This is not viewed as a problem for these witches as Diana is also viewed as the Patron of children and of women in childbirth. They just believe that men should not be witches.

Humans make up the majority of the witches in the Amazon traditions.  Elves, dwarves and halflings, from a racial standpoint, do not share the Amazon’s philosophy.  Elves in particular gravitate more towards the Faerie tradition.  Dwarves have a special type of Amazon-like tradition that is embodied in the Xothia, the Dwarven witch.

Role: Amazon witches represent, what they believe, to be the righteous anger of the Goddess.  It is believed that these witches may have began as part of the Classical tradition.  When witches began to be hunted and killed, mostly by the priesthoods, the Amazon rose up to fight this oppression.

This tradition overlaps, geographically at least, with areas that are common to Classical traditions and druids.  Thus there have been successful attempts over the years to work for each group’s mutual benefit.  The philosophical differences between the groups have always been the greatest hurdle.

Joining this Tradition: There are no special ability scores required to be an Amazon, although high Strength and Constitution are entirely desirable. The only requirement to becoming an Amazon Witch is the character must be female.

Amazon Witches usually meet in groups, called Meets, during the time of the waxing moon till the full moon.  These meets are very secretive and there is a rumor that any man viewing one will be put to death.
Amazons for the most part are neutral, with some gravitating towards lawful.

Leaving this Tradition: The belief system of the Amazon witch are deeply ingrained into her personality and culture. So most will never leave this Tradition.  Generally, an Amazon who leaves the Tradition will be warmly welcomed into the arms of the Classical or Craft of the Wise Traditions.

Occult Powers:
Minor: 1st Level: Minor Fighting Prowess.  The Amazon witch gains some minor fighting ability and may add one of the following weapons to her skill set; long sword, large axe, long bow or spear.  She may use one of these weapons as she chooses.  She still uses the Magic-User attack tables, but she adds +1 to her “to hit” rolls.  The Amazon witch may also sacrifice one spell per day to give her a bonus to hit and damage equal to that spell level.  This will allow her to overcome the natural resistance that require some creatures to only be hit by magical weapons.

Lesser: 7th Level: Immune to Fear. The Amazon witch becomes so focused in purpose and drive that she becomes immune to the effects of mundane and fear.  She also gains +4 to any checks versus magical induced fear.

Medial: 13th Level: Shape Change. The Amazon witch may shape change as per the Druid ability Wild Shape or Polymorph Self. This may be done once per day at 13th level. The witch may only change shape to a natural animal that is within one size category of her normal size. So a Medium sized witch may only change to a Small, Medium or Large animal.

The number of times the witch may do this per day increases with every other level.  So 2 times per day at 15th, 3 times per day at 17th and 4 times per day at 19th.  The witch may opt to sacrifice one of these times to go outside of her normal range of sizes.  So a 17th level Amazon witch could shift to Huge or Tiny once and her normal sizes the other two (total of 4 shape shifts per day).

Greater: 19th Level: Charge of the Goddess. The Amazon witch at this point is such a force for her Patron that she can summon the Goddess’ own power into herself.  The witch radiates an aura of Fear at 15’ to all her enemies.  She gains a bonus of +3 to all her saves and AC.  She also gains +2 to all offensive attack forms, spells or weapons.  This charge lasts for a number of rounds equal to the witch’s Wisdom or Charisma score, which ever is better.  It may be performed once per day and takes one full action to perform.

Special Restrictions:  Only women may join this tradition.

Equipment:  None required. Amazon witches are more likely to use martial weapons, such as a longbow or spear, than any other Tradition.

The ritual tool of the Amazon witch is the cauldron (representing the Goddess). If adventuring, the witch can or will use a staff, which can double as a weapon.  Both items may also be used for more mundane purposes.

Preferred/Barred Covens: This Tradition is suited mostly to all Amazon covens. Amazon Witches will join covens with other Traditions, but the coven must be exclusively female.

Relationship to the Goddess/Patron: Diana is the protector and guardian of the Amazon witches; they are Her children and heirs to Her world.

Source/Views of Magic: Magic comes from the powers of Creation.  As the bearers of children, only women can be true receptacles of creative forces.  Men can only destroy or pervert this pure and sacred power.

Wealth: Amazon witches start with the amount of wealth allotted to any witch.

Other: Amazon witches generally get along well enough with other traditions, in particular Classical and Craft of the Wise.  The Amazon’s views on male witches usually leads to the Amazon being seen with distrust by the other traditions. Amazon witches do not get along well with clerics of any type, even if they have the same alignment and similar world outlook. They view priests and wizards as patriarchal tyrants.
Amazons will always burn the body of a deceased witch as a proper funeral. It is also common that the coven will burn the witch’s Book of Shadows with the body.

You can download this a PDF file from my Box.com service.

My A to Z post is here: http://timbrannan.blogspot.com/2013/04/o-is-for-ordog.html

O is for Ördög

I first saw the word Ördög in the pages of Dracula. It was the Hungarian word for Devil I came to learn.  As is my habit, I wrote the name on my bookmark and went on.  It was not till later that I saw the name again that I starting thinking it would make a good devil-type.

The Ördög is part of the Hungarian folk tradition. They appear much as a satyr or faun; humanoid with the upper torso of a human male and lower portions of a goat.  Their hooves are black and cloven.  Their features are bestial and they have long ram-like horns.  It is sometimes remarked that the best way to know the difference between an Ördög and a Satyr is by the size of  their horns, but this is not always foolproof.
The Ördög also has a long black tail that ends in a blade.  They can't attack with it, but it looks frightening.  Another part of the ördög that is frightening is their overtly large phallus.

The Ördög shares more than surface similarities to the satyr.  Like the satyr, the ördög can be found in rural or wooded areas. Also, the ördög is summoned up most often to partake in the sabbats and rituals of witches.  These devils partake in the infamous orgy-like sabbats of witches, held at midnight.   Children born to the witches after these orgies become ördög themselves if male or witches if female.
One of the more famous (or infamous) Ördög was Caliban, son of Sycorax.

An Ördög can appear as human male, albeit one with thick black hair and black eyes, or as a large fox.

Some occult scholars believe that ördög share the same relationship to hags as satyr's do with nymphs.
Consequently, the offspring of  an ördög and a nymph is a Forlarren.

Since today is Sword & Wizardry Day, here is the ördög in S&W format.

Ördög
Hit Dice: 6
Armor Class: 4 [15]
Attacks: 2 claws (1d6)
Special: Magic resistance (45%), regenerate (1 hp/round), shape change (human, fox)
Move: 18
Save: 11
Alignment: Chaos
Challenge/XP: 7/650

Ördög are among the lowest of the Shedim. They spend quite a bit of time in the prime material plane where they work as messengers for higher level demons.  Much like imps, they can teach witches of the Malefic, Diabolic or Demonic traditions spells.  A witch can learn one new spell per interaction with an Ördög; once per sabbat.  The ördög needs payment for learning this new spell; usually in the form of a sacrifice or sexual congress.
Ördög are wild demons, they attack with their claws like that of animal; often ignoring weapons even when they are handy.


Swords & Wizardry post is later today.

Adventures Dark & Deep is here!

Got home today and look what I found at my door.

My Adventures Dark and Deep hardcover is here.
It is really nice and my hat is off to Joesph Bloch on this one.

Look for a review after a bit.  gotta survive this month first.

White Dwarf Wednesday #61

It's Wednesday...er Tuesday!  And that means it's time White Dwarf.
Ok, with the A to Z posts and the S&W Appreciation Day it is going to be a busy day of posting tomorrow.
Today. Not so much.  So instead of giving you WDW late, I figure early is better.  So let's begin.

White Dwarf Magazine #61 is our first issue of 1985.  The first thing we should notice int he increase in price to 95p or $3.00 here in the US. Well that and the cool cover, which is again a Chris Achilleos one, but I think it must be an older one. Ian Livingstone has some bits about things coming up in future WDs, but no mention of the price increase.

Oliver MacDonald is up first on more alchemy for RuneQuest.   I devoured all sorts of articles like this; I always wanted more out of the magic I was doing in AD&D and games like RQ seemed to have all those things.  Or at least that was my perception at the time.

Open Box is a BIG one for me personally. Let's dive in.
First up is the review of the LONG awaited Companion Rules for the D&D Basic game.  I discussed my own history with the Companion Rules before, but long story short I had already gone the route of AD&D (and other games) by this time.  To me, this Companion Set was too little, too late.  Megan C. Robertson (whom I also consider a friend and have worked together a number of times) gives it only a 7/10.  At the time I would have given it lower, but today it would have fared better.  So I can't disagree with her logic.
Next is TimeMaster from Pacesetter.  Man I really, really wanted this game back then.  I was (and still am) a HUGE Doctor Who fan and at the time this seemed like my best bet for getting a Doctor Who game going.
I never got to play TimeMaster though I do own it today. Steve Norledge gives it and it's associated adventure both 7/10.   Also reviewed is a game I never get tired of talking about, Chill. Also from Pacesetter, Chill was MY horror  game.  Not as in "I wrote it" but as in I loved it.  Angus M. McLellan gives it 7/10 and the adventure Village of Twilight a 6/10.  I would have given it more myself.
Witch Hunt is an odd little game and it is next.  I also owned this game. While playing it and Chill I came up with a number of things that would later become part of my games today.  Certainly my Witch book has some DNA from these two games. Jon Sutherland only gives it a 5/10.  Actually that is reasonable since re-playability was low in my opinion and the rules were not great.
Lastly we have Indian Jones.  A lot has been said about this game.  Andrian Knowles gives it a 7/10 and that is very generous.

A bit on Critical Mass.  Dave Langford reviews Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert A. Heinlein. I read Job at about this time as well and really, really enjoyed it.  It might very well be one of my favorite RAH books along with Friday.  I have never seen this cover for it before.

Part 3 of Eye of Newt is back.  Great ideas that didn't see an official counterpart till 15 years later.  Mix it with the Alchemy article for some good magic-based fun.

Andy Slack has some Traveller ideas on how to motivate characters (other than just money).

Beyond the Shadow of a Dream is next. It is an adventure for Basic D&D or Fighting Fantasy, though it is not a programmed adventure.  Kudos for WD for trying something new.  There is a defiant influence of Traveller of Call of Cthulhu here in this adventure design.

Letters talking about how boring the letters page is.

A programmed Fighting Fantasy adventure is next. Four pages and 104 entries.

The last part of Superhero games by Simon Burley.  In particular he looks at various other world for Supers games like high fantasy and sci-fi.  I have seen similar treatments in various Supers books out now, but it is still interesting to read this system-free point of view.

Fiend Factory continues with AD&D stats (thought we would be going to CoC or RQ stats as well).  Al sorts of weird bugs.  Perfect if you were running Q1 at the time (and we were).

RuneRites has some treasures, including the Ray Harryhausen inspired Fang Warriors.
Treasure Chest has an adventure contest.  They provided the map you provide the scenario.
Tabletop Heroes gets shoved to the back of the magazine. Must be all those letters they got.

Rumors: A new West End Star Trek Game. Mayfair gets Sanctuary. More Marvel Superhero books coming out.

Followed by ads and small ads.

A good issue. 1985 starts out big for WD and it will get bigger.
Issue 62 has one of my favorite adventures and soon we will see the end of an era.

N is for Nergal

Nergal comes to us from Mesopotamian mythology, the same that gives us Pazuzu, Tiamat and Lilith (after a fashion).  He is an old god of the noon day sun, war, pestilence, disease and the planet Mars.  It could be said that he even symbolizes the worst aspects of the god that would later go on to become Ares/Mars.
Like most old gods he was later demonized by Christian authors.  He even appears in the Hebrew and Christian bibles as one of the few named demons (2 Kings, 17:30).
Christians would equate him with the Devil.  Earlier Zoroastrianism would connect him with the Angra Mainyu, or their evil spirit.

In many of the myths/stories of Nergal he is the lord of underworld, but not the sole lord.  It is a task he shares with his lover Ereshkigal, or as I like to call her, the world's first Goth chick. Depending on the story Nergal either rapes Ereshkigal, she tricks him into staying in the underworld or they have a loving relationship.  All could be true.

In various games Nergal usually gets demoted. In AD&D 1st ed and D&D 3rd ed he gets only a mention as being one of the Rabble of Devilkin.  Again this is unfortunate since it lacks a lot of what Nergal interesting.  He gets a much better writeup in the 1st Ed Deities & Demigods and his girl friend is central to many adventures and games.  I used her in my Army of Darkness/D&D mash up and again in my current 1st ed game with my kids.

Nergal

Alignment: Neutral Evil
Movement: 120'
Armor Class: -3
Hit Points (Hit Dice): 110 hp (19 HD)
Attacks: Rod (x2)
Damage: 1d8/1d8 +save vs. death on critical hit
Special: +1 or better weapon to hit, command undead, immunity to fire, electricity and poison, regeneration (1 hp/round), see in darkness, magic resistance (55%), telepathy 150 ft.
Save: F19
MORALE: 11
XP: 13,000


Nergal is the Lord of the Underworld.  While his origin is more closely aligned to the Baalseraph, he is closer in nature to a Demondand or Shedim.  He is a demon that had been a god, but was killed and returned.  He shares this quality with a number of other demon lords including Orcus.
He appears as a tall, older man with thick black hair and beard.  He stands 7' tall, but can appear taller.He wears clothing fitting a king of his time (ancient Babylon) and carries a long rod that he uses in combat.
Like most kings he prefers to stay out of combat himself.  Instead he can summon up to 4 dead enemies from a person's past to fight on his behalf.
He can also command any undead as if he were a 19th level evil cleric.
When angered his countenance changes to that of a lion with a long black mane and skin pocked as if with disease.
Nergal prefers to stay out mortal affairs except in times of war.  Other powerful demon lords (typically Shedim and Baalseraph) employ him as a general or war marshall for their wars against each other.
While Nergal has lost much of his former power he still considers himself a god and not a demon.

Links
http://www.gatewaystobabylon.com/gods/lords/undernergal.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nergal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ereshkigal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nergal_(Dungeons_%26_Dragons)
http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Nergal_(deity)
http://zyntara.com/VisualAstrologyNewsletters/van_April2006/VAN_april2006.htm

M is also for Migraine, MRIs, May, Mars and Majus

So what's on my mind lately?  Well. Have a look for yourself.

Yeah that's my brain stuff.  I have had migraines my entire life, recently though (two weeks in fact) they have been turned up to 12.   So we are trying to figure out what is causing them.
My posting will be sporadic   It's hard to think with a constant pain in your head.  Harder when I am taking the drugs to dull the pain.

But that is a cool picture though.   I still remember enough of my psych to id all major parts.  Good news is that my doctor does not expect to see anything "devastating" in his words. But who knows.  The pain sucks.

Anyway...other things are going on.

I am SO woefully behind in reviews that I am going to spend a lot of time in May catching up.

I'd also love to detail a Mars/Barsoom game using OD&D or S&W.  That would be awesome really.
Something like this, Warriors of Mars.

Don't forget that the Majus Kickstarter is still going on.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1895361773/majus-a-magic-noir-pacesetter-game

M is for Mammon

Mammon, also know as the "Lord of this World" or "Lord of Greed" in my games made his AD&D debut in "From the Sorcerer's Scroll: New Denizens of Devildom," in Dragon #75 from 1983.  He later was featured in the Monster Manual 2.  Though the Mammon he is based on is actually a much more interesting character. He appeared in the Milton's Paradise Lost, Edmund Spenser's The Faërie Queene, the New Testament and has roots in earlier myths as well.  There is a lot of debate about the roots of his name, but it is almost always connected to money and/or greed.

He is almost always depicted a large, fat devil with red skin, bald head.   I most respects his appearance is supposed to represent the over-indulgence that greed and avarice can lead too. Compare if you will the AD&D version and the DC Comics version I posted on Saturday.

Not really all that different.

In my games Mammon is the lord of Greed and one of the Baalseraph.  Not all characters have to be complex and Mammon is a good example.  He fell because he wanted more. He was greedy and that lead to his downfall.

It is believed that he is akin to the Roman god Pluto who also protected the riches of the world.  This in a way makes him kin to Dispater (another AD&D Devil) who also has his roots in Pluto/Hades.  So in my games I would make Mammon and Dispater bitter rivals. Each trying to out-do the other in opulence and overt expressions of wealth and greed.  Mammon would be the physically more powerful devil, but Dispater may have more influence.

It is not a stretch to think of Mammon a bit like Jabba the Hutt. In fact that may have been the idea on his new form in the 3rd and 4th edition materials.  Another good example is Kingpin from Marvel Comics.
Mammon is the archetype of the fat, bloated crime boss surrounded by loyal henchmen, women (in this case Succubi) and wave upon waves of goons.

Mammon

Alignment: Lawful Evil
Movement: 90'/180' (flight)
Armor Class: -2
Hit Points (Hit Dice): 140 hp (22 HD)
Attacks: sword (x2)
Damage: 1d10/1d10 +flame
Special: +2 or better weapon to hit, immunity to fire, electricity and poison, regeneration (2 hp/round), see in darkness, magic resistance (75%), telepathy 250 ft.
Save: F22
MORALE: 10
XP: 17,500

When a mortal makes a deal with a demonic entity for riches, it is most often Mammon at the root of it all.   His "standard contract" is wealth and power for a set number of years. Afterwards the contracted party forfeits his soul to the Baalseraph lord and all the riches return to him.  There are plenty of tales where the summoner, knowing his time is running out, attempts to trick or fool the devil into letting him out or granting him more time.  Mammon is very cunning and usually gets his way.
He rarely if ever enters into combat himself. He has a retinue of lesser Baalseraph, Pit fiends and other demons to aid him.  If he must enter into combat he is perfectly capable of defending himself.

Sunday Updates

Here we go another weekly round up of stuff I find interesting.

New Kickstarter for Atlantis the Second Age
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1269000670/atlantis-the-second-age-rpg
Not sure how it is different from this product yet.

Orphic Vellum Books
I love old books. Orphic Vellum is an online book store that specializes in odd books on all sorts of topics from spiritualism, witchcraft, myth and psychology.  So my kind of place and it is run by Oddities own Wednesday Mourning.
http://wednesdaymourning.com/zencart/

DriveThruRPG Map Tiles & Terrain Print Program
DriveThru is teaming up with publishers Fat Dragon Games and Drama Scape to print high quality map tiles and terrain you can use a dry-erase marker on.
You can see a video and some photos here: http://youtu.be/BQdgyJSydUQ

Dungeon: http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/images/site_resources/photo%201.JPG
Medieval Ship: http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/images/site_resources/photo%202.JPG


To kick off the launch of these tiles and terrain, they are offering two very special introductory low prices.
Fat Dragon Games' E-Z TILES: Medieval Ship is only $2.99!
DramaScape's Power Room and Computer Room is only $5.99!
All of the tiles and maps can be seen here: http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/index.php?filters=0_2210_0_44294_0&affiliate_id=10748

Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day
Tenkar is doing a Sword & Wizardry Appreciation Day on April 17, 2013 and it keeps getting bigger and bigger.
http://www.tenkarstavern.com/2013/04/spes-magna-games-is-adding-to-swords.html

Big Give-a-way
I am keeping the details on this one a little close to the chest right now.  But I am planning something big in May or June and want to give away some prizes to readers.  Keep watching this space for some more details!
It will be big though!

L is for Lilith and Lilim

Lilith by Isra2007

Lilith.  Ah, Lilith.

I have written so much about her over the last 20 years I hardly even know where to start today.

For those that don't know, Lilith is from the ancient Talmud and Jewish texts as the First Woman.  The woman created before Eve at the same time as Adam.  She rebelled against God and Adam and became her own thing.  She is not really a demon, but something else.

As a horror author who loves witches, demons and vampires, Lilith is all of those rolled up into one thing.
As an Atheist, Lilith is a great example of a "glitch" in the "Source code" of the bible.  Contradictions in the text that show that Genesis was even written by a number of different people over the ages.
As someone that considers themselves a feminist she is a "recent" icon.  In short what is not to love?

Lilith was a major character in my "Willow & Tara" game Season of the Witch (a Buffy game where I playtested the rules for Ghosts of Albion).  Characters (and players) didn't know if she was the Big Bad or on their side. In the end she was on her own side, but was not after the characters.

In my "Willow & Tara" games Lilith plays not just a central role in the events of the season, but in my revised mythos of world.  Lilith was not just the "mother of demons" and possibly the mother of vampires. She is also the mother of all witches and even the Slayer.  (See "Every Angel is Terrifying").  I like it since it gets rid of Whedon's overt rape metaphor and makes the Buffy game more compatible with the mythos of the WitchCraft game.

Back in the 2nd Edition AD&D days I "created" a new race of demons called the Lilim.  They were the "Daughters of Lilith" and included the Succubi and a number of related all female demons.  I later used these demons in my Buffy/Willow & Tara games "The Dragon and the Phoenix" and "Season of the Witch" along with Lilith herself.

I am revising these races once again for Eldritch Witchery.

Lilith by John Collier

These demons have their creative origins from Lilith, but also the Lilin, Lilu, and Lamashtu.  I have included creatures such as the succubus, the night hags and other related creatures.


Lilim
The Lilim are an old race of demons, though some scholars debate on whether they are a true race unto themselves or not.  Lilim are also known as the daughters of Lilith, the “Queen of Demons”. A title she abhors.  Each subrace of Lilim is believed to have come from Lilith herself and her congress with other demon types such as the Baalseraph, Eodemons and Shedim.

The Lilim all share a number of unique qualities in addition to the powers all demons share. Lilim are also fully immune to poison and poses Nightvision instead of Darkvision.
All Lilim have a draining attack, as detailed below.  Most Lilim can switch between a “human” and a “demonic” form.  The human form allows them to infiltrate society and collect the souls they require.  Any time the lilim is under stress or in combat she will revert to her demonic form.  Both types of forms are detailed below.
Nearly all Lilim can cast spells as if she were a witch.

Alrunes: These demons are legion. It is most commonly believed that they are the offspring of nymphs, sayyrs and other fey with other Lilim, in particular Succubi. A succubus will sometimes shape change to a male to seduce fey creatures, and sometimes they are even seduced themselves. These demons have only the most basic of the powers of the Lilim and indeed they only have one form, a “human” one.  Though many have features can give away their demonic heritage.  They posses small vestigial horns, wings and sometimes even a tail.  Most opt for some demonic form of witchcraft.  Like all members of this demonic race they are female.  Of all the Lilim only Alrunes are not wholly evil, though very, very few are ever good.  Alrunes do not have a draining attack per se, but their kiss can lure a victim into a deep sleep as per the spell.

Batibat: These are among the weakest of the Lilim.  They prey on people in their dreams.  They house themselves in a tree near where their victim is sleeping and invade their dreams.  They have only a weak physical attack (1-3 hp) but their dream attack requires a Wisdom saving throw each night or the victim looses 1 point of Constitution.  When their victim dies (reaches 0 Constitution) they can summon a Nightmare and return to their master with the soul.  During the day they sleep in their tree and are helpless. These deams appear to be small, elfin like women and are sometimes mistaken for a dryad.  Their hair though is dark black.

Empusa: These are the daughters of Lilith and various calabim demons, most likely the Utukku.. They are the most “demonic” of all of the Lilim.  The Empusae (or “forcers-in”) like all Lilim can appear as a stunningly beautiful woman or as a demon.  The demonic form of the Empusa is the one of the most hideous of all of the Lilim.  The body remains mostly humanoid and female, but covered in fine scales.  It’s legs become like those of an horse or ass and end in hooves that are made of brass or bronze.  It’s back supports a set of large leathery bat-like wings, similar to that of a succubus.  It is its head that features it’s most horrible transformation.  The creature’s long following tresses are replaced with a mass of snakes similar to that of a medusa.  It’s facial features are blocked by an area of complete darkness, only it’s glowing eyes are visible.  It is said among sages that face of the empusa is not shrouded in darkness, but it is so horrible that our minds block the vision from us.  It is also said that other demons can actually see the empusa’s face and run in fear from it.  Its former delicate hands now end in razor tipped claws.  A long reptilian tail completes the picture.

An empusa can appear as human or it can also shape shift into a large dire wolf (statistics as per Dire Wolf).  Unlike the combat shy succubus, empusae live for battle. They can either use their natural claw/claw/bite routine or use a flaming sword that strikes for 2d6 points of damage plus 1d6 of flame damage.  Empusa gain to hit and damage bonuses due to their high strength (21) as well.

The touch of an empusa drains the Intelligence of the victim at 1 point per bare handed, not weaponed, attack.

Lamashtu: Are powerful demons, close only to the Lilitu themselves.  Believed to be the offspring of Lilth and the various Eodemons. These demons are old even by demonic terms.  Their natural form is a horrid hybrid of a linoness’ head, donkey ears and teeth, a hairy human female body, with the hind quarters of a pig.  They are commonly holding a large snake.  In their “human” form they prefer to disguise themselves as old women or nursemaids.  This gives them access to their preferred prey, new born babies.  Once she has gained access to  a new-born babe she will carry it off till she can find a safe place to eat it.  Lamashtu are not tempters, they hunger and only flesh will satisfy them.  They can be held at bay if a witch prepares a special talisman.    Her song drains Constitution to all who hear it, 2 points per night.  Anyone so drained must make a Consititution based save or fall asleep.  

Lamashtu may cast spells as a 7th level witch.

Lamiae: Lamiae can appear as any female type humanoid they choose.  They typically choose to emulate humans and elves of high charisma.  Their demonic form is less innocent.  The Lamiae has the same upper body of a beautiful woman, but her features have become twisted to show only evil.  The lower half of the creature becomes serpentine.  This gives them a look similar to the Marilith,  much to both races displeasure and distaste.  Other Lamiae appear to be women with the lower body of a lion.  It is believed they are the offspring of Lilith and various Animal Lords. 

Lamiae will most often attack her prey when they are sleeping.  They have a song that acts a sleep spell cast as a Witch of 14th level.  They may use this song once per day.  Lamiae then embrace their victim to drain their wisdom or blood (1d6 hit points).  Typically a lamiae will spend many nights corrupting a single man by draining his wisdom, all the while laying with other men to drain them of their blood.  A Lamiae will not let the corpses stack up to betray her nature. 

If forced into combat a Lamiae can use a weapon or change to her normal form and use a claw/claw/bite routine. A Lamiae will avoid open combat at all costs except to save her own life.  She would rather poison a rival, or better yet, get someone else to do the killing for her. 

While a Lamiae can gate in 1-4 Empusa to aid her, she rarely does.  But if her life is threatened she can and has a 1-4 on a 1d6 chance.

Lamiae drain Wisdom, up to 2 points per touch.  The touch must be with their bare hand and not a damage causing hit.

Lilitu: The Lilitu are not only the most powerful of the Lilim, but they may be among the most powerful demons, outside of the Balor. The Lilitu are the daughters of the Goddess Lilith and powerful spirits.  Every Lilitu are millennia old. A Lilitu’s human form is unearthly beautiful. Unnaturally tall, they have perfect voices and skins.  Their beauty is only matched by their minds; intelligent, witty and full of grace. Their personalities are in a word, formidable.  Of course this is all a façade, the Lilitu are demonic and should not be underestimated. Their demonic form is very similar to that of their human form.  Their beauty remains, but their unearthliness becomes apparent.   A set of large dark feathered wings spring from their back, alternately described as looking owl or crow like. Their once fine fingers curl into razor sharp talons.  Their legs are replaced with those of a giant predatory bird complete with claws for feet.  Despite appearances lilitu are not related to harpies and to suggest so to one invites certain death.

Lilitu do not avoid combat.  While they would rather have someone else do their fighting, they are perfectly capable of protecting themselves. Lilitu can attack open handed with both hands or with a weapon in both hands with no penalty.  They are also preternaturally strong (Strength = 20) and gain the appropriate bonuses to hit and damage.  Their touch or kiss can drain 2 points of Strength and 2 points of Constitution per hit.

Lilitu may also cast spells as if she were a 10th level Witch.

Moromo: The Mormo, or Momolyceia (“frightening wolves”), may the most frightening of the Lilim.

The mormo can appear fair and beautiful, but such forms are only an illusion, their demonic form is horrible to behold. The are tall, 7’-8’ feet tall and appear to much like a type of hag.  Their lower half is that of a wolf and they have a set of large bat-like wings on their backs.  The mormo is covered with a fine coat of gray or black hair.  Their hands end in long talon like nails and their mouths are filled with large, sharp canine fangs.

The Mormo have no fear of combat, in fact they relish in it..  They can fight in their demonic form with a claw, claw, bite routine.  She may also choose a weapon, but rarely do. They can also drain Strength points.  Typically they withhold this power to use among her victims; draining a point here and a point there to keep them weak in body so that she can work on their wills.

Like the Empusa, the Mormo feeds on human blood and human children.

Night Hags: Night hags spend much of their time moving between the worlds of men and that of demons.  They are the couriers of souls of humans to their demonic lords and can found in the employ of any demon greater in power to themselves.  Though night hags have their pride and only sell their services to most power of the demon lords and ladies.  Since most Lilim have little regard for their “sisters” Night Hags are most often found with Shedim or Baalseraph masters.

The Night Hag appears as other Lilim, as a tall humanoid female, but unlike the others they do not have a natural “beautiful” form and must accomplish that with any magic they have.  Night Hags can cast as a Witch of 8th level.   In addition to the powers in common with all Lilim night hags can cause a deep paralysis so they may drain a victim of their vital essence (constitution, 1 point per night).

They have a claw/claw attack, but avoid using it since their goal is to drain their victims to 0 Constitution. Night hags also have a horrible bite that can inflict a disease known as Demon Fever.  This fever causes an additional 1d6 points of Constitution damage and leaves the victim bed ridden.

Night hags also may form coveys with other hags if they choose.  Occult scholars have not determined why this might be the case, but many speculate that night hags are the offspring of other lilim and the more common hags.

Succubi: Succubi are the most common of the Lilim.  These female demons are not found in great numbers and never working together.  These demons, while not physically very powerful, are capable of controlling other demons that are far more powerful.  Succbi are charged with the tempting of mortals, a task they relish in.  They appear as unearthly beautiful women (or men if needed), in their true form they stand 6' high and feature small horns, a tail and large bat-like wings growing from their backs.

A Succubus can cause Darkness 5', have Nightvision, can Dominate any one (1) PC and can become Incorporeal at will.  The succubi lures her victim into acts of passion and drains their life force with a kiss.  This Energy Drain takes 1 life level/hit dice.  She can also use the following spells as a Witch of 6th level, Charm Person, Detect Good, Continual Flame, ESP, Clairaudience, Hold Person, and Polymorph Self. Succubi also have Spell Resistance against fire based magic.  If pressed they can attack with two claw attacks (dagger -2), if each attack succeeds then she can also grapple for her energy drain attack/kiss.

A succubus can gate in another demon (expect another succubus) but prefer not too since that would compel the succubus to a service for that demon or it’s master. 

They can also with a touch, kiss or embrace drain 1d6 points of strength and constitution.  Often this accomplished by touch as the Lilitu see humans as little more than animals.  As with all Lilim, they choose whether or not their touch will drain life energy or not.

Posts about Lilith here:
Every Angel is Terrifying: The Secret and True Origins of the Slayer
- Pseudo Slayers
Going Up to Hell: Cosmology
Sympathy for the Succubus
- Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Let's Talk About Sex(y)
E is for Eodemon
The Dragon and the Phoenix: Episode 7
Season of the Witch: Episode 2

Zatannurday: Zatanna vs. Demons

Been doing demons all week and Zee has had her own share of run ins with them.  Not as much as say Constantine, but enough.


The arc of her recent Paul Dini helmed run had Zee in Vegas battling the whims of the demon Lord Mammon.

And runs into some minor demons.

Of course this is not the first time. She even battled Satan.  Well. The Satin Satan.

There are many more examples, but my scanner is acting up. 

K is for Kôkabîêl

The fallen angel Kôkabîêl is not just another fallen angel.  He was one of the 20 Watchers or Angels that were supposed to watch over mankind.  Instead he, like his brothers, fell in love with human women.  The offspring of these unions were the Nephilim. The angels themselves became the Grigori.

Kôkabîêl then is not just a demon or even a Baalseraph. The Baalseraph openly defied their Lords and were cast into Hell, the Grigori betrayed the trust of their lords and were cast out.  While the differences between these groups can be somewhat academic at least the Grigori do not hate humankind.

Kôkabîêl is/was the angel of the stars and constellations. He taught men and women the secrets of astrology.  He can provide a boon of good luck if he knows a person's birth date and time.  This boon is a one time +4 on any one roll at a specific date and time.

He appears as a tall handsome man with dark skin and black wings. He wears loose, flowing robes of regal nature favoring whites, purples and deep blues.  His head is bald and his eyes glow with star light.

Kôkabîêl

Alignment: Lawful Evil
Movement: 120'/240' (flight)
Armor Class: -4
Hit Points (Hit Dice): 180 hp (26 HD)
Attacks: sword (x2)
Damage: 1d12/1d12 +flame
Special: +3 or better weapon to hit, immunity to fire, electricity and poison, regeneration (4 hp/round), see in darkness, magic resistance (75%), telepathy 250 ft., undead destruction
Save: F26
MORALE: 12
XP: 20,000

Like all Grigori Kôkabîêl has a sword of flame.  He loathes to enter combat, but he is more than capable of it.  Also like all Grigori he can invoke the remains of his angelic powers to destroy undead as cleric of 20th level.

Grigori
There 20 Grigori that were cast out of Heaven.  They seem most similar to the Baalseraph; both were agents of good, angels and now evil.  But there is where the similarities end.  Each Grigori commands 10 fallen Angels and any number of their own monstrous children, the Nephilim. Unlike the Baalseraph they are not bound to Hell and do not need to be summoned.  They may roam any plane they choose, save for the upper planes they were removed from.

If you like Nephhilim then please check out Halls of the Nephilim!

J is for Jann/Jinn

Yesterday I talked about Iblis and the demons he rules, the Shayṭān  Today I want to talk about the lesser races of the Shayṭān, the Jann or Jinn.  Now Jann have appeared in games before (and still) but they felt a little watered down to me. So if the Baalseraph are the fallen Angels or forces of good, then the Shayṭān are the fallen forces of the d'Jinn and other elemental creatures.
Jann are the weakest, being made of all the elements.  Jann are also one of the most common of the lesser demons.

Jann look human, and that is also their greatest strength. They can move about human society without anyone being the wiser.  They are not human and are quick to remind anyone that knows them that they are not.  The purpose of Jann is sow discord in human lives.  They do this through lies, theft, seduction and murder.  Their methods are very human, but they can also use magic as if they were a magic-user of 5th level.
Their demonic natures though show up in their propensity for quick anger and violence.
When Jann reach 0 hp their bodies are consumed in smokeless fire leaving only ashes.

Jann
Alignment: Chaotic (Evil)
Movement: 60'
Armor Class: 6
Hit Dice: 5 (20 hp)
Attacks: sword or by spell
Damage: 1d8
Special: Elemental protection (+1 to saves against all elemental magic)
Save: W5
MORALE: 7
XP: 300

Jann have elemental protection. Any attack that is connected with an element (fireball, lighting bolt, breath weapon) they gain a +1 bonus on their saves. This includes poison, but not gaze attacks.

Jann fill a niche for me.  Let's call them the Charmed demon-niche.  Many of the demons on Charmed looked human. They did this because it allows demons to move around in the human world easier (since there were no real restrictions on demons getting out of the Underworld) and it is cheaper on special effects.
I also like the idea of a low-level demon that can move about in society AND look completely human till you fight them.

Want to read more about Jinn?  Head over to Clare Dugmore's blog.  She is doing them today too!
http://claredugmorewrites.blogspot.com/2013/04/j-is-for-jinn.html#more

White Dwarf Wednesday #60

The beginning of the 60s takes us to the end of 1984 which may have been one of the best years in gaming.  Issue #60 comes to us from Dec. 1984.  Let's talk about the cover for a bit.  Two warriors on horseback, one with a woman behind, either fighting or raising their weapons in salute to each other.  Majestic castle in the background.  I think I like to think these are not enemies; their stances do not scream combat to me though that is what the artist had in mind I think.  Doesn't matter. The cover is 30 years old and I get to see what I like now.  Again, we have Chris Achilleos to thank for this one.

Ian Livingstone kicks things off with an editorial about the price of metal minis and how they have tripled in price.  I never bought many metal minis myself, price being one of the factors, but mostly I can't paint worth a damn.  It seems odd to me that the idea of doing plastic minis didn't catch on then.  I think that the metal ones were very detailed (still are) and preferred by the people that do the painting (still are).  Hard for me to say really, not at all my area of expertise.

Up first is First Issues or how to start a supers game.  Really, if you are looking to start up, re start up or even just reboot a supers game then this is a must read.  They suggest minis, which I like and is not really as needed as they say, but you can also use good old fashioned action figures.

Open Box has a few classics on hand.  The Elfquest RPG from Chaosium is up.  I dismissed this game as a "kiddie" game back in the day.  Yeah, yeah I know how wrong I was now.  Murray Writtle rubs salt in that old wound by giving it a 9/10.  Three modules from TSR are up.  In case there was any doubt that this is the Silver Age of Gaming, included in this group is DL1 Dragons of Despair, the first Dragonlance module.  Now at the time I liked this and thought the concept was cool, new and exciting.  Graham Staplehurst agress and gives it an 8/10.  I have to admit I hated (and still do to far lesser degree) the Kender.  Also up are the next two UK modules in the new trade dress. UK2 and UK3 get 8/10 and 7/10 respectively also from Graham Staplehurst.

Graeke Davis has part 2 of the magical item manufacture rules.  This time covering rods and potions; ie things all characters can use.  Again, these have been superceded by similar rules in 3.x, but the flavor is great and it is much more than a list of spells and XP expenditures.  When dealing with magic in games, flavor text is often everything.

Steve Williams and Jon Sutherland are up with The Bleeding Stone of Iphtah (god choice for I day!) this scenario for Call of Cthulhu featuring one of my favorite races, the Yithians or Great Race.  CoC works best when it works in small doses like this. A mystery, some investigation, 1 (and not much more) monster or race and really nothing from the Great Old Ones.  If Cthulhu shows up in your game then play D&D.  This adventure is nearly perfect for me.  I'd love to try it either as a Cthulhu by Gaslight one or a Ghosts of Albion one.

Marcus Rowland has some tips for Scifi gaming.  If I was smart I should scan these in or copy them and put them in a folder for the next time I try Traveller.

Stuart Hunter as an AD&D adventure "The Fear of Leefield" for 4-6 characters of 3-5 level. The adventure is longish. It uses a new race from a whle back (Mandrake people) and has a new spell and magic item.  The scenario involves slavers and drugs, so it could be used just about anywhere.

Microview is back with some computer games.  Games Workshop was in the Sinclair Spectrum games biz for a bit and gives us Tower of Despair (also known as Argent Warrior). This game lives up to it's claim of "State of the Art" graphics and gets a 9/10 from Kevin Westbury. D-Day is also reviewed and gets a 9/10 from Andrew Miller. Lindsay Paton gives Lords of Midnight 9/10 as well.
Now here is an interesting thing going on here.  The Atari for all intents and purposes is seeing a decline in the home game market at this point while computer games are getting better and better.  Is the silver Age of RPGs related to the rise of computer games?  Or visa versa?  There were certainly some interesting things going on in 1984/85 on both fronts.

Ars Arcana details the uses of various new 8th and 9th level spells from AD&D.  I have read lots of articles like this over the years, a DIY in D&D (not DIYD&D) if you will.  Doing more with the tools you already have. Always a good idea or two.

Fiend Folio is up with some new AD&D monsters.  Felines, Fungi and Phantoms is the subtitle. We get a Bush Cat that changes stats as it ages. Also there is the Helghost, or an undead magic-user that was particularly vile in life.

Letters tackles such topics as Thrud and why won't WD cater to every type of gamer everywhere.

RuneRites has some monsters. I think. Hard to say really. There are pictures of monsters, there are stats, but I am not sure if I am supposed to take the Furballs, Wereballs, and Dragonballs seriously or not.  They look like Pokemon to be honest.

Table top heroes details brushing techniques.

News is up. First note is the Mayfair / TSR dust up is over. some rumors of Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers getting into the RPG market. Major new British RPG is on the way Dragonroar is set to take the world by storm.

Ads, and finally that last nail in the coffin of the Golden Age, an ad for software graces the back cover. Not only that but for Adventure Writer, a program that allows you to create the adventure in English on your computer.

If there was ever a doubt that we are in a new age, look no further than issue 60.  1984 was a big year in gaming. Lots of changes. Even the covers of the now classic AD&D are changing.  Next time it's 1985.

If you are looking for my A to Z post, just scroll down.

I is for Iblis

Iblis or ʾIblīs is the name of the Devil is Islamic texts such as the Koran/Quran.  He is a very powerful being, though he has no power over good men and women.

And oddly enough I had never heard of him.  Well. Let me rephrase that.  Never heard of him as a devil mind you.  There was this old Battlestar Galactica (1979 flavor) episode that dealt with a devil like creature.  A Count (or was it duke?) Iblis.  It became obvious he was a bad guy and Apollo associates him with other names like Satan, Lucifer and Mephistopheles.  Now that is exactly the time I was reading a lot of D&D and lot of religious texts and I had never heard of Iblis before.  So I had to go and find him.  In 1979/1980 that meant going to the library.  Of course I had no idea how Iblis was even spelled since it was pronounced "IB-blee".  When I saw the name written I pronounced it "EH-bliss".  Took me a bit.

Iblis interestingly enough is missing from the 1st Ed AD&D rules Monster Manuals.  Satan is missing too, but that is another day.  Iblis though could be something very special.  He is described as a ruler of the Jinn, or least one that did not bow down to humans.  D&D (and many other games) have D'jinn/Jinn in them, so adding him is not a big stretch.  If Islam can have good, neutral and evil Jinn then so can I!

Shayṭān are corrupt, evil spirits of elemental forces.  They are similar in many ways to the D'jinn/Jinn and Efreet/Ifrit. In fact most scholars believe they are the same as Jinn and Ifrit save that they follow Iblis.  All are evil.
There are five basic types of Shayṭān; air, water, earth, fire and dust.  Iblis rules them all.

ʾIblīs 

NAME: Iblis
Alignment: Chaotic (Evil)
Movement: 120'
Armor Class: -4
Hit Points (Hit Dice): 180 hp (22 HD)
Attacks: claws (2), or by sword or by spell
Damage: 1d10/1d10 or 2d10+5
Special: Fear gaze, spells, summon shayṭān, +3 or better weapon to hit, immunity to fire, electricity and poison, regeneration (4 hp/round), see in darkness, magic resistance (75%), telepathy 200 ft.
Save: F22
MORALE: 12
XP: 12,000


ʾIblīs (Iblis) appears as large man or Iftit as his mood takes him. His form changes and he never appears the same way twice. He is jovial, but quick to anger and prone to violence.  For this reason he is often classified as part of the Rage Demons or even the Baalseraph or Eodemons.  He claims no kinship to any group and maintains that he alone is the source of evil in the world (a dubious claim at best). Iblis can command 1-3 shayṭān at will and summon 2-12 elementals to do his will.  He can also command any Djinn or Ifrit in the area, but he can't summon them to him.
Iblis is very knowledgeable about magic and there is no wizard spell that he does not know or have access to. He does not learn clerical magic and loathes witches. Wizards often seek him out to learn secret lore, but the summoning of Iblis is a secret itself and to do so incorrectly invites his wrath.


White Dwarf Wednesday will be posted later today.

H is for Hellhound

Hellhounds are an interesting beastie.  In many RPGs they are the first monster one runs into to let you know that there is something "else" out there.  But they are far more interesting than that.  The Hell Hound, spectral hound, barhgest, black shuck, Cu Sith, or any other number of spectral, ghostly or otherworld hounds represent one of our deepest fears; that something familiar we have let into our lives is in reality a demonic being.

Even before there were demonolgists or even Christians, Muslims and Jews, we had "hellhounds" of one sort or another.  Greek myths had them as companions to the Goddess Hecate.  Likewise the Norse had them as companions to the Goddess Hel.  The also, respectively, featured unique hounds like Cerberus and Garm that guarded the gates of the afterlife.

Hellhounds though also are also popular in popular literature. The most popular story of a hell hound was Sherlock Holmes and the Hound of the Baskervilles.  Though it could have been more about a Black Dog or even Black Shuck.  In the end it wasn't any of those of course.

Dogs of course are one of humanity's oldest companions.  When we were just figuring out what to do with civilization, dogs were there with us.  They have evolved much as we have.  As a psychologist and atheist I find it very fascinating that we can demonize them so.   As a gamer I find them equally as fascinating.

Hellhounds were introduced to the D&D game back in the earliest days in the Greyhawk supplement to the Original D&D rules. This book included another dog-like creature, the Blink Dog, which seems to be the "good" counterpart. They appeared next in the classic Monster Manual and have been in every edition of the game ever since.

Given the horror aspect, and out of respect to ACD, here is the hell hound for various game systems, but focusing on Victorian age ones.


Hellhound
Ghosts of Albion, Unisystem

Creature Type: Demonic Animal
Life Points: 30
Drama Points: 1

Attributes
Str: 4
Dex: 4
Con: 3
Int: 1
Per: 5
Will: 4

Ability Scores
Muscle: 14, Combat: 14, Brains: 5
Special Abilities: +10 to Brains Score for smell and hearing sensing, Demon, Fear, Hard to Kill, Lesser Sensing, Cold Vulnerability, Breathe Fire, Resistance (Fire).

Anyone seeing a Hellhound for the first time must make a Fear check (Willpower x2).
Hellhound do not take damage from fire but take double damage from cold.

Manoeuvres
Name Score Damage Notes
Bite +14 11 Slash/stab
Fire Breath +14 15 fire* (extra fire damage based on SL)
Deflect +9 - Magic defence action; deflects spell 45˚


Hellhound
Savage Worlds (Rippers / Gaslight)

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4, Spirit d6, Strength d10, Vigor d8
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d8, Notice d8, Stealth d6, Survival d4, Tracking d10
Pace: 8; Parry: 5, Toughness: 9
Special Abilities:
• Bite: Str+2
• Breathe Fire: A hellhound can breath a jet of flame that causes fire damage (Spirit +2)
• Fear: Anyone that sees a hellhound must make a Guts roll.
• Fleet Footed: Hellhounds have a d10 running die.
• Go for the Throat: If a Hellhound gets a raise on its attack roll, it strikes its opponent’s least armoured location.
• Resistance (Fire): Hellhounds take n damage from fire.
• Weakness (Cold): Hellhounds take +4 damage from cold or cold based weapons.

Hellhound
Victoriana 2nd Edition 

Rank: 2 (Generalist)
Physical competence: 6
Mental competence: 4
Health: 5 (10)
Signature Skills: Conceal +5, Hide & Sneak +5, Perception +5,
Traits: Fire immunity, Night Vision

Armour: 1 (thick fur)
Combat Abilities: Bite (2 dice), Breath Weapon (3d)
Damage: Bite (3d), Fire (4d)


Hellhound
Victoriana 1867 Edition 

Mental Competence: 10
Physical Competence: 15
Health: 35/15 (surrounded by flames)
Skill Picks: Hide & Sneak (10), Dodge! (8)
Combat Picks: Bite 2d+4 lethal (10), Gaze (8) – opposed roll against opponent’s resolution, or the target is stunned for 2 rounds, Breath Fire (10) for 4d+4.

Hellhounds are 1st circle demons, slightly above imps.


Hellhound
Basic Era D&D / The Witch (because I can)

Armor Class:  3 [16]
Hit Dice: 4d8+4* (22 hp)
No. of Attacks: 2 claws / 1 bite / breath weapon
Damage: 1d4 / 1d4 / 1d6+3 / 1d8 (fire)
Special: fear, low-light vision (120’), scent
Movement: 90’
No. Appearing: 1 (1-3 in lair)
Saves As: Fighter 5
Morale: 7
Treasure: None
Alignment: Evil
XP: 150

Hellhounds cause fear as per the spell (Save vs. Paralysis to negate).  They also breathe out a lick of flame while attacking, save vs Breath Weapon for half-damge. 

Five systems is pretty good.  That's a whole pack of hellhounds.

G is for Geryon

Every D&D player from the late 70s and 80s knows about the Arch Devil Geryon.  He never really seemed to fit well with the other Arch Devils/Dukes of Hell.  For example, most devils have horns, Geryon did not.  The other devils were fallen angels or appeared in various Christian demonologies.  Not so for Geryon.
He was described as "The Wild Beast" which I took as being a reference to the Great Beast, but still he wasn't more or less beastly than some of the other devils.

Geyron is based on the character from Dante's Inferno who lives between the Seventh and Eighth Circle of Hell.  He bares no resemblance to the mythical Geryon of the Twelve Labors of Heracles.

In later Planescape-related D&D Geryon gets kicked out of Hell, though he is still around.  In my campaign from the late 90s, A Sojourn in Hell, (which merged my old 80s D&D game with my more modern horror ones) Geryon was killed outright.  In the official treatments he was exiled because he thinks that there is some task he needs to do so terrible that he could not perform it as an Arch Devil. I have to admit I kinda like that.

Maybe it was the classic Clash of the Titans, but I have always thought Geyron needs a huge bow.  Play up his hunter-like qualities.

Despite my previous use of him I think I might take him back to his hunter-like role.  He haunts the wilds of the Seventh Circle of Hell

In my update Geyron is no longer a devil or Baalseraph, but he is the archetypical rage demon or a Shedim.

NAME: Geryon
Alignment: Chaotic (Evil)
Movement: 90'/120' (flying)
Armor Class: -2
Hit Points (Hit Dice): 150 hp (20 HD)
Attacks: claws (2), tail sting or bow
Damage: 1d10/1d10/1d8+poison or 2d8+posin
Special: Fear gaze, spells, bull’s horn, summon shedim, +2 or better weapon to hit, immunity to fire and poison, regeneration (3 hp/round), see in darkness, magic resistance (65%), telepathy 100 ft.
Save: F20
MORALE: 11
XP: 10,000

Geryon is a massive beast. He towers over most creatures at 15' tall. His head is massive, nearly three times as wide as a human's with features of both human, lion and ape.  His head can rotate 180 degrees around, so he can see directly behind himself. He is barrel chested, with massive arms that resemble that of a gorilla ending in lion-like claws.  His 40' long body ends in a snake like tail tipped with a poisonous tip like that of a scorpion.  His massive bat-like wings gives him the overall impression of wyvern.
His eyes burn with intelligence and hate.

Geryon patrols his lands in search of prey to hunt. Normally he hunts the wild kine of the hells, his favorite prey of course is human.  He can attack with his massive claws (he has the strength of a cloud giant) and his tail sting.  The poison of the sting does no additional damage, but the victim must save vs. poison or die in agony.  He prefers to hunt with his bow.  The arrows from this massive bow do more damage than mortal weapons and the arrows are also often tipped with the same poison found in his tail.  The bow itself is so huge that a normal human can not use it and it would require a Strength of 24 to use.

Geryon can be pressed into service by occultists that know the secret means to do so.
Geryon himself can summon other, lesser Shedim to aid him.  He rarely does this though as he sees himself as superior to all around him (save for maybe the Baalseraph Dukes).  Because of his renown as a hunter in the Hells he is often sought after by Baalseraph and Calabim Lords as an assassin.

OGL Section 15.

Geryon from the Tome of Horrors Complete, Copyright 2011, Necromancer Games, Inc., published and distributed by Frog God Games; Authors Scott Greene and Clark Peterson, based on original material by
Gary Gygax.

Sunday Updates

Moving this to Sunday since there are people hitting the blog then and I generally don't post on Sundays.
Plus I can collect these all through out the week and report them back to you.

Jeff Dee on the recent Villains and Vigilantes lawsuit:
http://my.deviantart.com/art/Villains-and-Vigilantes-RPG-News-360833993

An interesting Kickstarter, Monster Tome:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/monstertome/monster-tome

Tenkar is doing a Sword & Wizardry Appreciation Day on April 17, 2013.
http://www.tenkarstavern.com/2013/04/spes-magna-games-is-adding-to-swords.html

Wizards has put up some humorous walk throughs for two of their classic modules.

• S1 Tomb of Horrors
• S2 White Plume Mountain

Additionally Tomb of Horrors will be redone in Dungeon #213 for D&D Next.
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/TOC.aspx?x=dnd/4new/dutoc/213

You all might know this, but I just found it.  D&D T-shirts at DNDMerch.com.

Have a great sunday!

F is for Foras and Furcas

Today's demons come to us from the Lemegeton of Of The Arte Goetia (Lesser Key of Solomon) and  Dictionnaire Infernal.

Foras is an interesting demon.  He is described as a President.  Now the use of the term president is not the same as our modern usage. In this case President means to "preside over". Like one does a meeting, club or college.

From the Lemegeton (Keys of Solomon):

The 31 spirit in order, [as Salomon saith,] is named Foras, he is a mighty great president & appeareth in ye form of a strong man, in humane shape he can give ye understanding to men how they may know ye vertues of all hearbs & precious stones, & [he] teacheth them ye art [of] Logick & Ethicks in All their partes if desired, he maketh men Invisible, witty, Eloquent & to live Long; he [can] discover Treasures and recover Things lost, & he ruleth over 29 Legions of spirits, his seale or Character is thus to be made & worne as a Lamen.

So he is a powerful demon who controls 29 legions.  He is also one of the knowledgeable demons so it is likely he is summoned for his knowledge of herbs and medicine.  It is claimed he can teach men the secrets of longevity.

Up next is a demon that is often confused with Foras, Forcas.  Also known as Furcas.  Furcas is also found in the Lemegeton and  Johann Wier’s Pseudomanarchia Daemonum.
He is known to teach logics and the secrets of plants and gems, gives invisibility and reveal hidden treasures.
What is most interesting about Furcas though is his rank.  He is known as a Knight of Hell.  A rank unique to him.  Given the picture of him, and old knight on an old horse, I can't help but think of Don Quixote.

 

He is described in the Pseudomanarchia Daemonum as:

Furcas is a knight and commeth foorth in the similitude of a cruell man, with a long beard and a hoarie head, he sitteth on a pale horsse, carrieng in his hand a sharpe weapon, he perfectlie teacheth practike philosophie, rhetorike, logike, astronomie, chiromancie, pyromancie, and their parts: there obeie him twentie legions.

So despite what sounds like a lower rank he still commands 20 legions of lesser demons. Given his name the "sharp weapon" is assumed to be a fork of some sort.  The AD&D 1st Ed Monster Manual 2 attaches him to Dispater, the oldest of the Arch Dukes.  It could be that Furcas was a knight in whatever service he was in before his fall and he still considers himself such.  This might given him some sort of twisted sense of honor; somewhat like the character Orcini from Doctor Who.  I think it would be interesting to know more about his background.  Maybe he was once and noble and honorable knight till following his Master to Hell.  Maybe he is just as evil all the same.