Across the grand hall from room 7.
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| Image by kjpargeter on Freepik |
This room is also empty.
I figure many of these rooms on level 1 will be empty. As the magic gets greater, there will be more and more encounters.
Sunday, January 8, 2023
Saturday, January 7, 2023
Friday, January 6, 2023
Character Creation Challenge: Ethyl Critchlow for NIGHT SHIFT
Running a bit late on this one. Today I am going to show how to use NIGHT SHIFT with one of my often-forgotten witches, the Hedge Witch for Hero's Journey RPG, First Edition.
The Hero's Journey is a great RPG from James M. Spahn. Designed to capture the feel of a bygone time when people would go on adventures for the sake of adventure. The rules are close enough to Swords & Wizardry to be, oh, 95%-97% compatible. In truth, it is my favorite presentation of the Swords & Wizardry rules.
The class I designed for it is the Hedge Witch. Someone that dabbles in magic but was not a full-on wizard.
The Hedge Witch
These are lower-powered witches and are thus perfect for dabblers or supernatural species that also gain other abilities.
The Hedge Witch has the following powers.
Level 1: Supernatural Awareness. This acts as a Detect Evil spell, and the Hedge can determine if someone is a supernatural creature in disguise or not.
Level 4: Craft Potions. The stock and trade of the Hedge witch are her potions. Guidelines are the same as in the Witch for the Hero's Journey book. Essentially she can replicate any spell she knows.
Level 7: Evil Eye. She can cast the Evil Eye spell once per day at any target.
Level 10: Curse. The hedge witch can curse one target per day.
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I did Ethyl Critchlow a while back as an Urban Hag, but I always wanted to give her some levels in witch.
9th Level Hedge Witch / Urban Hag
Strength: 17 (+2)
Dexterity: 17 (+2)
Constitution: 18 (+3) s
Intelligence: 16 (+2) P
Wisdom: 16 (+2) S
Charisma: 8 (-1)
HP: 78
Alignment: Dark / Chaos
AC: 2
Attack: +1
Fate Points: 1d10
Check Bonus (P/S/T): +5/+3/+1
Melee bonus: +2 Ranged bonus: +2
Saves: +3 against spells and magical effects
Witch Abilities
Arcana, Supernatural Senses, Spells, Arcane Powers
Arcane (Occult) Powers
Supernatural Awareness, Craft potions, Evil Eye
Skills
Knowledge (supernatural), Knowledge (occultism), survival
Background
400 year-old hag
Spells
First Level(4): Bad Luck, Far Sight, Glamour, Minor Curse
Second Level(3): ESP, Evil Eye, Night's Companion
Third Level(3): Clairvoyance, Mind Shield, Scry
Fourth Level(2): Discern Lies, Remove Curse
Fifth Level(1): Primal Scream
Note Ethyl uses Intelligence as her prime for spell casting.
Every child, whether human or witch-born, knows to stay away from the house on the corner of Taylor and Bell. Here sits an old run-down house that everyone thought would either fall in on itself or the city would have condemned.
But it is not the house that frightens the children, though it is frightening. Nor is it the small angry dog everyone remembers from their childhoods, making it at least 25 years old or older. Rumor in the neighborhood is that once the dog got out and bit the fingers off of a boy who could not run fast enough.
It is not the dog or the house. It is the owner of both that keeps people away.
Ethyl Critchlow looks like a stereotypical old witch, but this is just a glamour, her true form is that of an ancient and hideous old hag. She is an Urban Hag and has been living in West Haven for nearly as long as there has been a West Haven. She hates all children and takes glee in terrorizing them, but a pact made with the City Council keeps her from doing any actual harm to them. Though if their toys land in her yard she will keep them and if any child climbs her fence to get these toys then she will send her "dog" (in actuality a glamoured Hell Hound) Maximillian after them.
Ethyl would also admit that at her age (almost 400), eating children, especially modern ones, gives her terrible heartburn. Though she did eat a couple of missionaries from East Haven back in the 1960s, but no one came looking for them.
She stays in West Haven because she has nowhere else to go. The city tolerates her and is just waiting for her to finally die of old age or a magical mishap. She is also a great source of magical knowledge and history. She can be bribed with 18-year-old single malt scotch. Ethyl is a heavy drinker, so bring more than one bottle if you plan to use this for information. Also, fair warning, as Ethyl drinks, her glamour begins to fade. Her glamour will be gone when she has worked through two bottles.
Urban Hags are hoarders. Her home is a falling apart pit of junk she has collected over her nearly four centuries of life. Amongst the filth, garbage, and debris of decades, there are also some magical treasures. In particular, Ethyl has several magical scrolls with spells that can be used by any witch or scholar. There is also a magical pipe that can lure the undead to sleep. Though one is advised not to go looking for such treasures.
You can get NIGHT SHIFT in print and pdf. You can get my the Witch for Hero's Journey RPG here.
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Want to see more of the #CharacterCreationChallenge? Stop by Tardis Captain's Blog and the #CharacterCreationChallenge on Twitter for more!
OGL 1.1
I am sure by now you have seen/read/heard of the potential leak of the new OGL 1.1.
I mentioned last month that we knew very little, which is still true, but we have heard some troubling things.
Here is a brief rundown.
Dungeons & Dragons’ New License Tightens Its Grip on Competition
Bat in the Attic - Rob Conley's Blog
- The proposed OGL 1.1 is not an open license. Fight for your hobby.
- Section 9 of the Open Game License
Designers & Dragons - Article: Is the OGL Era Over?
Ryan Dancey -- Hasbro Cannot Deauthorize OGL
There is more. A lot more really, but a lot of it is rehashing what is known above.
Lots of people, who are not lawyers, are saying their piece. Lots of people whom this affects their livelihood are saying their piece as well.
The truth is we really don't know much of anything just yet. At least not until the OGL 1.1 is released and not until some clarification on what this means for the OGL 1.0a.
Which kind of sucks, honestly.
I had plans this year. I had my Monstrous Maleficarum I was doing for 5e. I had my Basic Bestariary I wanted to do. Another monster-related project and even something I was calling my last witch book. All under the auspices of the OGL. I liked working under the OGL. It gave me room to move, it let me know what was and was not allowed. Now all of that is up in the air for me.
What I can say for sure is this.
NIGHT SHIFT will continue. With the material released in the Night Companion, we have moved away from needing the OGL or OGC. The base mechanics are generic, and the newer character advancement rules are not OGC or SRD derived.
Jason is planning on releasing his new fantasy game using the same system as NIGHT SHIFT (O.G.R.E.S.) with the modifications suggested in the Night Companion. But more on that from him later.
So there will be continued, if not more vigorous, support of NIGHT SHIFT.
For all my other projects?
Damn, if I know yet.
#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 1, Room 6
Level 1, Room 6: Giant Rats
Ten feet ahead from the bottom of the stairs (across from Room 5), there is another small room (inset 5 feet, 20 x 20 feet, no door, same as Room 5).
Inside this room are two giant rats.
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| The Dictionnaire Infernal, 1863 |
They are hungry and will attack on sight. They are already aware of the party (their hearing is keen) and cannot be surprised.
Their treasure consists of a few copper cups (1d4+2) they have found worth 1d6 CP each.
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For monster stats, I will defer to whatever game you are using with this, though giant rats have the least amount of differences of all the monsters in all editions of D&D.
The notion here is to ease the players (and characters) into this dungeon and figure out why something is where it is. Rats are easy. They are everywhere.
Thursday, January 5, 2023
Character Creation Challenge: Katherine Montblanc for NIGHT SHIFT
Moving on to one of my older witches, one of the first I did for Swords & Wizardry.
The Aiséiligh, or "reclaiming" tradition, is pretty much my "Social Justice Witch" book. I never come out and say that, but that is what they are and what I was thinking when I wrote it.
While they are not 100% living up to their potential in Swords & Wizardry, they could shine in NIGHT SHIFT. Especially in the "Nocturnumverse" and "Ordinary World" Night World settings.
The Aiséiligh
These witches also have a strong connection to NIGHT SHIFT. When I worked for Eden Studios and worked on the WitchCraftRPG line, I had a group of Wicce known as the Daughters of the Flame. I am sure if you are a long-time reader, you have seen them here before. The Daughters of the Flame were a coven dedicated to the Goddess Brigit. They started in my old AD&D 2nd Ed Witch netbook and were modernized for WitchCraft.
Well, when Eden opted not to produce more Unisystem books, I took those notes and let them stew on my hard drives.
The Daughters of the Flame were brought back as part of a new Tradition, the Aiséiligh. You can still be a member of the Daughters coven, but now there were other covens too.
The same notes would later go on become NIGHT SHIFT and my two Night Worlds, "Generation HEX" and "Ordinary World."
There was a quote I scribbled down in my notes back then. It was for the Daughters, but it now applies to the Aiséiligh and explains what they do well.
"The world is in peril. The forces of evil in the guise of law and weal threaten all lands.
The people of good conscience scream out for champions.
The Witches of the Aiséiligh Tradition hear those cries and are charged by the Goddess to be Her hands and Her mortal representatives on this plane.
And the Goddess is angry."
In NIGHT SHIFT these are your activist witches. They are part of the movements for social justice. They are the ones volunteering at the Sanctuary houses to help others. These are the ones fighting for more LGBTQI+ representation. They are the ones making noise. That is not everyone's cup of tea, but for some it is exactly what they want.
Arcane Powers from Occult Powers
The Aiséiligh are somewhat unique among my witches since they do not receive familiars by default. Instead, they are said to hear the voice of their Goddess directly. In the case of the Daughters of the Flame they look into the flames to get their insight and learn spells. This has given them the somewhat joking nickname of "Campfire Girls."
Level 1: Healing Touch. The Aiséiligh witch can heal by touch. Once per day she can heal a 1d4+Level+Cha mod in HP. She can parse this out to multiple uses, but not exceed that maximum.
Level 4: Protection. Once per day, the witch can invoke Protection from Evil, 10'. This lasts for rounds equal to half her level.
Level 7: Immune to Fear. The Aiséiligh witch is so focused in purpose she becomes immune to the effects of fear, either mundane or magical.
Level 10: Psychic Power. The witch can choose a psychic power.
Level 13: Mantle of the Goddess. Greater protection as described in the Aiséiligh tradition book.
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10th Level Aiséiligh Witch
Strength: 14 (+1)
Dexterity: 13 (+1)
Constitution: 13 (+1)
Intelligence: 16 (+1) S
Wisdom: 14 (+1) S
Charisma: 17 (+2) P
HP: 38
Alignment: Light
AC: 9
Attack: +
Fate Points: 1d10
Check Bonus (P/S/T): +5/+3/+2
Melee bonus: +1 Ranged bonus: +1
Saves: +3 against spells and magical effects
Witch Abilities
Arcana, Supernatural Senses, Spells, Arcane Powers
Arcane (Occult) Powers
Healing Touch, Protection, Immune to Fear, Psychic Power (Bio-Feedback)
Skills
Knowledge (medicine), Insight
Background
Trust-fund rebel
Spells
First Level(4): Burning Hands, Feel My Pain, Sanctuary, Sleep
Second Level(4): Augury, Calm Emotions, Evil Eye, Mind Obscure
Third Level(3): Clairvoyance, Remove Disease, Witch Wail
Fourth Level(3): Discern Lies, Instant Karma, Remove Curse
Fifth Level(2): Dispel Evil, Primal Scream
Katherine "Kat" Montblanc is one of the more notorious rebels in the Montblanc family. She wants nothing to do with her family at all except for when she can rub their nose in her defiance. An aspect of her personality she admits is a character flaw. She works as a social worker in her family's hospital but only accepts the salary paid to her by The Sanctuary, where she also does volunteer work. She specializes in trauma inflicted by other supernatural types, though she will go on to say that some of the worst monsters out there are humans.
Kat does not get along with, nor trust, Katia Crane. The feelings are mutual.
You can get NIGHT SHIFT in print and pdf. You can get my Aiséiligh Witch book pdf here.
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Want to see more of the #CharacterCreationChallenge? Stop by Tardis Captain's Blog and the #CharacterCreationChallenge on Twitter for more!
#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 1, Room 5
Level 1, Room 5: Empty Room
Ten feet ahead and to the right, there is an open doorway.
It is difficult to say what this room was for. It is now completely empty. The carvings on the walls appear dwarvish, but they are too worn and too old to determine what they say. Some have even been scratched out.
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| Photo by Francisco Ortiz from Pexels |
Careful inspection of the dwarven runes by anyone that can speak dwarven will reveal it is a protection sigil. But protection from what is not clear.
At this point any magic using characters (magic-users, elves, gnomes, witches, warlocks, bards) should make a save vs. Spells. Success means they feel fine. A fail means they have a growing sense of unease.
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