Sunday, November 22, 2009
The Selfish Succubus
I picked up a copy of "Instant Antagonist: The Selfish Succubus" last week. Instant Antagonists is a new product line from Flames Rising. Now full disclaimer here, I know Matt McElroy and I am a fan of his site and his work. IF you are a horror gamer you really can't help but be a fan really. Horror news, gaming news, interviews and now products like IA.
What is IA? Well it is actually a very cool idea. They spend a few pages to fully develop a character to use in any system. This is quite a good idea really. Most often you get character stats, but not much in the way of background or story. The IA aims to change that. So how do they do? Well I have the first one here.
Lily Sinclaire is a succubus. Not in the metaphorical sense, but a really honest-to-the-devil succubus and for whatever reason she is out of Hell and here to have a good time. In "Instant Antagonist: The Selfish Succubus" we are introduced to Lily, also known as Lilis, through some fiction and a description. She is beautiful, looks and sounds exotic and has a prehensile tail. Yeah a tail. She has to cut it off every night, but otherwise it is a tail. In what might be a preview of how future Instant Antagonists might be like, we are given descriptions of how she looks, about how smart she might be. WE are also given insight to what they might be like, powerwise, through their systemless system of Mind, Body and Spirit. Things like "she thinks quickly on her feet", or "she knows a lot about ancient history". I found this to be a very effective way to describe the character. So I have an idea of what she might be like in say Tri-Stat or Unisystem, stats wise.
Multiple origins are given for her to help place her in your favorite system better. Or even as rumors about her. Despite the fact that the book is all fluff, there is no waste.
And finally there are story hooks, ways you can pull her into your game. Either as the titular antagonist or as someone the characters are likely to interact with. Though given how detailed Lily is, she likely to be elevated to the level of "Guest Star" and not "Monster of the Week". So all the plot hooks can be used one way or the other.
I think that the idea behind Instant Antagonists is a great one. Often times it is too easy to come up with stats and forget the character they are supposed to represent. Lily is the opposite. By presenting her as a character, sans stats, you are forced to think of her as a character, with background and motivations, first and not a collection of numbers.
So what would Lily look like. Mind you here is the other plus of this. I can make as powerful or as weak as I need her to be. Given this background I see Lily as a fringe player in the supernatural world. Yes she is evil, and yes she will need to be stopped sometime, but her introduction will be one of a succubus, freed from Hell making her way in the world. Like a demonic Mary Tyler Moore.
So let's build a Lily Sinclaire using Ghosts of Albion/Angel. Using the Mind-Body-Spirit guide in the book lets convert her to some stats. Her Mind says she knows a lot about ancient history, can manipulate others, has a lot of occult contacts. Ok, so To me that says a better than average Intelligence, say 3 or maybe 4, but maybe a higher Willpower and Perception. I would give her a higher level in some skills and maybe keep her Intelligence at 3. Body says she is very attractive, so Appearance 3, a good dexterity 3, but maybe only a 2 in strength. She has a high tolerance for drugs and alcohol (party girl) so a 4 in Constitution. Her Spirit supports a higher Willpower and even some obsessions or mental problems. She is a succubus, so she gets some demonic powers too. So where does that leave us? I fill in the rest with my own guesses and what I need her to do.
Name: Lily Sinclaire
Motivation: To get what she wants
Creature Type: Succubus (demon)
Attributes: Strength 2, Dexterity 3, Constitution 4, Intelligence 3, Perception 4, Willpower 4
Life Points: 37
Drama Points: 15
Qualities and Drawbacks: Addictions (Sex 2), Adversaries (anyone that knows her true nature), Attractive 2, Contacts (Supernatural 3), Covetous (lecherous 2), Emotional Problems (Cruel 3, Arrogance 2), Hard to Kill 1, Immortal, Innate Magic, Regeneration, Resources (Well off), Secrets (3, many), Supernatural Form (1, has a tail)
Skills: Armed Mayhem 1, Art 2, Athletics 3, Crime 3, Driving/Riding 1, Engineering 1, Fisticuffs 2, Influence 4, Knowledge 5, Languages 4 (English, Latin, Sumerian, Greek), Marksmanship 0, Notice 4, Occultism 4, Physician 1, Science 1.
Maneuvers
Name Score Damage Notes
Dodge +5 Defense action
Grapple +7 Resisted by Dodge
Punch +5 4 Bash
We can also do her up for Witch Girls Adventures using the same guidelines, though I am going to have to guess about her magic and what powers succubi have in this world.
Lily Sinclair, Succubus
Rank: 3
Body: d6 Mind: d6 Senses: d8
Will: d8 Social: d8 Magic: d6
Life Points: 12 Reflex: 9
Resist Magic: 9 Zap Points: 12
Skills: Athletics +2, Basics +2, Dancing +4, Fighting +1, Hear +1, Leader +3, Look +2, Magic Etiquette +2, Mundane Etiquette +3, Mysticism +2, Mythology +4, Streetwise +3
Abilities: Beautiful, Mysterious
Heritage: Demon
Spells: Lily does not know any spells save those magics all Succubi can use.
Looking forward to more.
Saturday, April 10, 2021
#AtoZChallenge2021: I is for Incubus
The Monster Manual and medieval demonologies are replete with all sorts of "male" demons. The Monster Manual itself only has two female demons, the succubus and marilith, and only one female devil, the Erinyes. Four if you include the Night Hag (but more on that later). Because of this, I have never really seen a need for the Incubus. There is one "Species" the Succubus and she can shapeshift however she feels fit. And for what it is worth that is still true. Though I got to thinking what if the incubus was something else.
Going back to my cover, Fuseli's The Nightmare, there is an imp sitting on the chest of a sleeping woman while a ghostly horse, a Nightmare, looks on. There are two versions of this painting, but both are the same.
The creature on her is an incubus. This got me thinking. What if the incubus is NOT the male version of this:
But rather the demonic version of this:
An incubus is an imp-like demon that is a demonic mockery of the cherubic cupids of Renaissance and Victorian art.
I like it to be honest. They invade women's dreams and appear to be a tall strapping male that makes love to them all night, leaving them drained (Constitution drain). They are kin to the Succubi (they are both Lilim) and might even be the offspring of succubi and humans.
Now...I am still working on a few things for the demon book. One of the reasons they are not in the Basic Bestiary is because I have not worked out all the issues with their stat blocks and all the demonic families I have. I mean are succubi Chaotic Evil, Lawful Evil or Neutral Evil? I have seen them done all three ways. Is the Lamia a monster or are they demons? Still too many unanswered questions. But until then, here is an Incubus.
Incubus
Small Fiend (Demonic, Lilim)
Frequency: Very Rare
Number Appearing: 1 (1)
Alignment: Chaotic [Neutral Evil]
Movement: 90' (30') [9"]
Fly: 120' (40') [12"]
Spirit: 240' (80') [18"]
Armor Class: 6 [13]
Hit Dice: 5d8+15** (38 hp)
Small: 5d6+15** (33 hp)
THAC0: 15 (+5)
Attacks: 1 claw or special
Damage: 1d4
Special: See below
Save: Monster 5
Morale: 10 (8)
Treasure Hoard Class: None
XP: 575 (OSE) 660 (LL)
The incubus is sometimes considered to be the male counterpart to the succubus. While a succubus can change shape to male, the incubus is a different, but a related creature. Like the succubus, the incubus can invade the dreams of their victims. This is often how they make their first contact with the victim. In this form, the incubus is merely a spirit and cannot attack or damage. But once they have made contact and their victim, usually a woman of pure and good standing, they will begin their nightly visits.
The incubus can appear as any sort of creature or person the woman desires. If that desire is say forbidden such as the love of a man married to her sister or the head of a church, then incubus' connection will be stronger. During these nightly visits, the incubus will drain 1 point of Constitution from the victim. Any incubus typically has a few victims he sees every night, so one sign of an incubus problem would be many women wasting away over the course of a week. When they reach zero Constitution the incubus will take their soul to be bartered in the lower planes.
The true form of an incubus is that of a gargoyle-like imp creature about 3' to 3½' tall. It has small leathery bat-like wings, a pinched evil little face with a mouth full of sharp teeth, and tiny hands with small sharp claws. They are covered in fur and smell of soured milk, body odor, odor, and brimstone.
An Exorcism spell will remove their spirit forms. A Protection from Evil spell will keep them at bay for the duration. They can only be harmed by magic or magical weapons. Killing an incubus sends it back them the lower planes. Once the threat is abolished victims can heal at the rate of 1 Constitution point of bed rest each week.
Talismans and amulets that protect wearers from demons will work, but only if they are specifically crafted for incubi or succubi.
--
Not bad. Not 100% perfect yet, but I have some time. I still need to work in magic resistance and what demonic abilities all Lilim share.
The Incubus has three different kinds of movement and of course, has the reduced hp of a small creature.
Sunday, October 11, 2020
October Horror Movie Challenge: The Devil's Nightmare (1971)
The DVD transfer I had is good, but not great, transfer. Still a lot of hisses and pops from the source. But still viewable. It does seem to have some material cut from it, or I am remembering it wrong.
We start the movie with a woman giving birth in Nazi Germany near the end of WWII. The woman's father is a Nazi officer and wants to know if the child is a boy or a girl. The woman dies in childbirth but the baby survives...until the Nazi officer stabs and kills the baby.
The story follows a group of seven tourists as they become waylaid in a creepy German castle. Turns out the Baron of the castle is the same Nazi officer from the beginning.
The guests gather and we begin to learn a little about each one. As they begin to talk about the family curse the Baron is under, another guest, Lisa Müller, arrives. One known to the housekeeper, Martha. In pure succubus fashion, she is a beautiful redhead with blue eyes. I'll be honest, I watched this movie for the first time early in my D&D years so a lot of what a succubus *is* for me comes from this movie. Or. Rather, my memory of this movie.
Each guest is revealed to represent each of the seven deadly sins. The deaths are really what makes this movie fun. Seven Deadly sins deaths years before Brad Pitt screamed: "What's in the box!" Makes it worth seeing again.
As soon as six of the guests die, the remaining living guest, the seminarian, Alvin Sorelle, trades his own soul to Satan to bring the other guests back to life. There is a nice twist at the end which really makes the movie memorable.
The succubus, Lisa, was played by cult horror figure Erika Blanc. Her demonic make-up effects are both understated and extremely effective. While I know others could see them as cheap, I rather liked it. Plus regardless, Erika Blanc is great to look at. It is no shock looking back on this that I have had so many witchy characters with red hair and blue eyes.
The BluRay is so much better than the old VHS I watched back in the 80s and the DVD copy I watched just a couple of years back. Well worth getting. Mondo Macabro really puts out a great disc.
Watched: 21
New: 13
Wednesday, April 4, 2018
Areelu Vorlesh, Witch Queen of the Worldwound
A trio of wicked witches, Iggwilv, Areelu, and Skylla |
Her Pathfinder stats are crazy. She is a 10th level witch, 10th level demoniac and an 8th level archmage. Plus she has a lot of her half-succubus powers. She has some truly outrageous stats too.
Areelu Vorlesh
The human that would become the witch Areelu Vorlesh has been lost to time. It was known that she was a witch in Deskari’s cult. She was researching the nature of the separation of the worlds and planes (Plot hook!). It was her success at opening the Worldwound that caused her Patron to transform her into a half-fiend.
Areelu Vorlesh (28th level witch)
The Witch
Strength: | 14 | Death Ray, Poison | 3 | |
Dexterity: | 18 | Magic Wands | 4 | |
Constitution: | 18 | Paralysis, Polymorph or Turn to Stone | 3 | |
Intelligence: | 18 | Dragon Breath | 6 | |
Wisdom: | 18 | Rods, Staffs, Spells | 5 | |
Charisma: | 19 |
Alignment: Chaotic (Evil)
AC: -2 (Bracers of Defense, +3 Amulet of Protection)
Occult Powers (Malefic Tradition)
Familiar: "Gimcrak" (Quasit, Enhanced)
7th level: Evil's Touch
13th level: Devil's Tongue
19th level: Curse
25th level: Polymorph Other
Succubus Powers
Fly (at normal movement rate).
Drain Constitution (1 point).
Immune to fire damage and poison.
Half damage from cold and electricity.
Takes double damage from "holy" items.
Spells
Cantrips (7): Arcane Mark, Detect Curse, Ghost Sound, Mend Minor Wounds, Message, Spark, Summon Vermin
First (8+3): Bewitch I, Cause Fear, Charm Person, Command, Increase Sex Appeal, Mend Light Wounds, Protect Familiar, Quicken Healing, Shattering the Hourglass, Silver Tongue, Spirit Dart
Second (8+2): Ecstasy, Enhanced Familiar, Enthrall, Evil Eye, Hold Person, Invisibility, Phantasmal Spirit, Rite of Remote Seeing, Scare, Twisting the Heartstrings II
Third (7+2): Bestow Curse, Clairaudience/Clairvoyance, Dispel Magic, Enlarge Familiar, Feral Spirit, Fly, Ghost Ward, Tongues, Witch Wail
Fourth (7+2): Abomination, Charm Monster, Confusion, Divine Power, Intangible Cloak of Shadows, Moonlit Way, Phantom Lacerations, Spiritual Dagger, Withering Touch
Fifth (6): Baleful Polymorph, Feeblemind, Greater Command, Nightmare, Teleport, Waves of Fatigue
Sixth (6): Bewitch VI, Break the Spirit, Geas, Mass Suggestion, Repulsion, True Seeing
Seventh (5): Draw Forth the Soul, Eternal Charm Monster, Maze, Binding Ritual (Ritual), Gate (Ritual)
Eighth (5): Bewitch VIII, Damming Stare, Destroy Life, Wail of the Banshee, Imprisonment (Ritual)
So this version of Areelu Vorlesh is pretty powerful, though still not as powerful as the Pathfinder version (551 hp!) but still a very formidable foe and a worthy Witch Queen.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Undead: I Don't Like Level Drain
I have never liked them. I also don't like 3.x "Negative" levels solution either, although it is getting closer.
See "Level" to me has always been an abstraction, a short hand way of saying you are of a certain skill and power. But the level itself doesn't mean anything. Loosing them is not even properly scary. Really it isn't.
Play some Call of Cthulhu or Kult where there is no such thing and I can tell you, things are scary enough.
I also don't like them since it has nothing to do with why an undead needs them or even would be able to do this. If you say the undead "feed" on levels I counter with "ok, why do they even bother with 0-level humans?" OR more to the point, how do 0-level humans survive as long as they can/could/need-to-for-plot-reasons?
Take the example of Dracula. Are you saying Lucy, who we can assume was attacked by Dracula multiple times, but let's just say three, was at least 6-level? 6th level in what? Mina and Harker too?
Lets look at this from the perspective of a low-level character. Loosing a level is bad news. How about from a higher level one, well...bad yes, but not as bad.
Look at the example of the Magic-User. At 8th level they can cast 2 4th level spells, but after a vampire attack they...forgot them? Ok so memory loss is not an uncommon thing after an attack, but something that specific? Ok, so maybe you can stretch and justify it there, what about a Cleric. He doesn't memorize spells, he prays for them. Now after an attack from a vampire he is no longer worthy for these magics? Lost me there.
For me, level drain never made much sense at all. If it is an abstraction of "Life Force" then we already have that in something much more precious than a level and it fits better. Ability Scores.
Constitution is listed in the AD&D 1 Player's Handbook as:
"Constitution is a term which encompasses the character’s physique, fitness, health, and resistance. Since constitution affects the character‘s hit dice and chances of surviving such great system shocks as being changed by magic spell or resurrected from the dead, it is of considerable importance to all classes."Instead of levels I say Vampires (and I'll get to other undead) should drain 2 points of Constitution. It fits better. The more blood loss you have the weaker you become. The less likely you will survive a system shock.
Let's say the average Constitution Score for everyone is 10. Some one like Lucy, described as frail and weak might only be an 8 or even a 6. Certainly enough to survive multiple attacks, not more than say oh... three. Mina, who is described as robust and full of life survives more attacks.
The draining attack needs to be tied into the type of undead, how it was made and what it needs. We already have a precedent for it; the AD&D Shadow drains Strength. Vampires, who feed on blood (or was that forgotten in AD&D?) should feed on Constitution. Other undead then fall in line.
The Monsters
Skeletons, Zombies, Ghouls and Ghasts
The various members of the "Walking Dead" typically do not have drain attacks, though some could have fear based ones. Zombies, Ghouls and Ghasts can also number among the "Hungry Dead" where they eat the flesh, living or dead, of others.
Ghosts, Banshees, Poltergeists
These creatures feed on fear for the most part, so causing fear is their primary goal. The Banshee can kill with her scream and the Ghost can prematurely age a victim.
Drain: None.
Restore: Damaging, HP restored as normal, aging can be reversed
Lich
The mere touch of a Lich is a paralyzing cold attack that has less to do with actual temperature and more to do with the chill beyond the grave.
Drain: None. Paralyzing
Restore: Damaging, HP restored as normal
Mummy
The rotting disease of the mummy is well known, but mummies can also attack via a draining attack. This attack, sometimes known as the Mummy's Curse, will drain the victim of Dexerity and Charisma. Worse yet, the curse is applied after only 1 successful attack and the the abilities are drained at the rate of 1 point each per day till one of them reached 0. At this point the victim dies and can not be raised. They will then on the next full moon become a zombie.
Drain: 1 point of Dexterity and Charisma.
Restore: Remove Curse, Heal or Wish only.
Shadows
Shadow already drain Strength. As intangible, incorporeal creatures they lack the physicality needed to interact with the world. Draining Strength then makes them feel more alive, but it is temporary.
Drain: 1 point of Strength.
Restore: Natural healing, 1 point per hour of rest.
Spectres
These frightful ghostly shades are the result of a curse. They are removed from the physical world, but loathe it. Like the Shadow, the Spectre drains away Strength, but it can also drain Wisdom. Strength is lost much the same way and for the same reasons as a Shadow. Wisdom, the center of reason, is drained because it was something the Spectre lacked to get itself cursed in such a way.
Drain: 1 point of Strength or Wisdom
Restore: Magical healing via Restoration or Heal spell.
Vampires
These apex undead predators feed on the life force of their victims. They drain the blood (and thus the Constitution) from their victims. A vampire can choose to drain 2 points of Constitution per attack, but many will toy with their victims, draining only once per night.
Drain: 2 points of Constituion
Restore: Natural healing, 1 point per week of complete bed-rest.
Wights
Most wights were soldiers or fighters in their lives. Some of that keen intelligence lives on in undead flesh. Since their lives were cut short due to their physical prowess, or lack thereof, the wight jealously steals Strength from it's victims. It does this with a cold touch from beyond the grave.
Drain: 1 point of Strength
Restore: Magical healing via Restoration or Heal spell.
Wraith
The Wraith is a more power incorporeal undead than the shadow, but not quite the twisted evil of the Spectre. The wraith attempts to drain any ability score it can, targeting the lowest score and draining it till the victim reaches 0. They do this not so much out of malice, though that is certainly true, but because they need the life force the ability provides.
Drain: 1 point of lowest Ability Score.
Restore: Magical healing via Restoration or Heal spell.
Succubus
The kiss of the succubus is as deadly as it is desirable. Men (and women) who have survived it can barely describe it, but all agree that no mortal embrace can ever compare again. While the succubus can withhold the draining feature of her amorous attack at will, she won't often do so. This is because the attack of the succubus will drain Wisdom as well as Constitution. Any victim that has lost more than 1/3 of their total Wisdom score becomes hopelessly in the thrall of the succubus. Only a Wish or similar magic can save them. Once the succubus has used up her pawn she may opt to drain Constitution as well or only to finish of the hapless mortal and return to her master with their soul.
Drain: 1 point of Wisdom and Constitution, or 2 points of Wisdom or 2 points of Constitution
Restore: Magical healing, till 1/3 is lost then only via a Wish
Guidelines for Abilities Drained
Other undead or other demons may also have a level draining attack, here is how to convert those attacks to Ability Draining and how to choose which ability is the most appropriate.
Strength or Dexterity: Any attack where the creature is incorporeal, lacking a true body or is otherwise reminded of their own past physical life. Ex. Shadows and Wraiths lack true physical forms and Wights were mostly fighters.
Constitution: The basis of life-force. It is used in system survival roles and adds to hitpoints. Any creature that drains life will drain Con.
Wisdom: The basis of willpower and the desire to continue on. Also the "mature" side of our minds. People with less wisdom give in to temptation easier.
Intelligence: The domain of the mind. Anything to do with mental prowess, psychic awareness or magical talent lies here. Ex. Mind Flayers feed on the minds of others, they "eat" Intelligence.
Charisma: The personality of the character. Also tied to willpower. Some faerie creatures will drain the life and personality out of a person by draining their Charisma. Ex. The Leanan Sidhe or Psychic vampires.
There are certainly other ways to do this and we can even argue which ability various undead can drain. But I think ability drain is far superior to level drain.
Saturday, April 13, 2013
L is for Lilith and Lilim
Lilith by Isra2007 |
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 |
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.
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
Thursday, October 20, 2011
October Challenge: Succubus Hell Bent
Succubus: Hell Bent (2007)
So simple story here. Stupid rich kid with stupid best friend go on spring break to hook up with some girls. The rich kid, Adam (see what they did there?) meets a really hot woman, Lilith, and they go back to his hotel for sex. She demands to be on top and then claws him up during sex. Then there is the whole gowing eyes deal. It was kind of like watching a metal video from the 80s.
Anyway stupid rich boy goes back to LA. And Lilith tracks him down. She then goes about screwing him and killing all his friends.
We get a Lamas cameo and even Gary Busey makes a brief appearance as Sentinel the Demon Hunter for Hire (who should get his own movie where he does nothing but talk to his sword).
Stupid kid finally manages to kill Lilith and then goes to jail for her murder.
I really wanted to like this one. But the the plot is to weak and the editing was done by a blind guy I think. There is a certain charm about this flick though. Natalie Sperl is good as Lilith and plays the role with enough creepy-stalkerness and humor to make you root for her instead of stupid kid. Plus she is easy on the eyes, which is never a bad thing.
The special effects are not too bad really. I did like Lilith's demonic form.
Though we all know Lilith is a red head.
Here are a couple of links with longer reviews. Both are good sites.
http://www.succubus.net/wiki/Succubus_Hell_Bent
http://www.1000misspenthours.com/reviews/reviewsn-z/succubushellbent.htm
Still searching for a really good succubus movie.
Tally 20 movies, 18 new.
Game content: Gary MOTHEREFFING Busey as a demonhunter for hire? Hell yes!
Trouble is we get so little of him that it is hard to know what any of his stats should be. He is older, maybe washed up. Has connections to the church and has a magical sword named Lucille.
Sunday, October 11, 2020
October Horror Movie Challenge: Succubus (1968)
Well not so much.
Succubus, also called "Necronomicon – Geträumte Sünden" has nothing to do with Lovecraft and maybe nothing to do with succubi.
The lovely (and almost 40 at the time) Janine Reynaud plays Lorna, the star act of a live S&M show at some seedy European nightclub. A voice-over by the club owner leads us to believe that Lorna here has sold her soul to the devil. She is called "Faustina" at various points and "the essence of evil... a devil on earth!"
Lorna manages to move through the movie is a semi-languid daze, that is when she is not killing people she almost has sex with. There is plenty of nudity, drugs, and killings. You are never sure if Lorna is possessed by a demon or just crazy. Either could be true.
Since this is a Jesús Franco flick Jeanine Reynaud is front and center and spends more time undressed than dressed. She is supposed to be a succubus after all.
The ending is also what should be expected. But it is still a fun romp. Very 60s.
Watched: 19
New: 13
Monday, July 11, 2022
Monstrous Mondays: Basic Bestiary Movement (& updates)
Frankly, I could not be happier!
I love monster books. I have said this here a thousand times. And more monster books are always welcome. I'll spend some time with these other books later this week.
But I still want to get my own book out.
I am NOT going to do a Kickstarter for it. Nothing against it, but I don't want want to go there yet. So that means the art will be what I can buy when I can buy it with money from my other books. So that means it will be a bit longer.
I also believe that my monster book will be a value add to all the other monster books out there. There are a lot of great monsters and monster books out there. Mine will be influenced by what I have read and played over the last decades.
Also, instead of saying mine is "Labyrinth Lord" or "Swords & Wizardry" compatible or even the very popular "Old-School Essentials" compatible, I am sticking with my own "Basic-Era Compatible." That might end up costing me some sales or promotions, but my stat block here is not something that is pure for any one system. In truth, I could very well put "Advanced-Era Compatible" on these books as well since I am designing the stat block to cover both systems, even if the style esthetic is going to be Basic-era. I talked a bit about this in my "Detailing a 'Universal' Stat-block" post and that is where I want to go today. All based on the question "how many miles per hour is that?"
Movement
One of the things that always tripped me up moving from Holmes Basic to Moldvay Basic and then to AD&D was movement rates. Let's go back to my universal stat block breakdown and look at the movement rates for the Orc.
Holmes: 90 feet
Moldvay: 120' (40')
Mentzer/BECMI/RC: 120' (40')
AD&D 1st ed: 9"
AD&D 2nd ed: 9 (12)
D&D 3: 30 feet (6 squares)
D&D 4: 6 (8 while charging)
D&D 5: 30 feet
These speeds all are "per round" though what a round is can differ. Holmes' speed is more in line with AD&D. D&D 3 to 5 are all the same despite different notation.
In my Basic Bestiary I note it like this:
Movement: 120' (40') [12"]
With "AD&D" notation in the brackets. Note that my orcs then look faster. Rounds in Basic are 10 seconds and rounds in AD&D/D&D3-5 are all 6 seconds. This means that my 120' movement rate orc in Basic has a different "Real-time" speed in AD&D. My converted orc moves at 12" and not the 9" listed. Is this a problem? Actually, no. I don't feel that it is.
According to the Labyrinth Lord RPG book, 120' is the exploring speed per turn and 40' is the combat speed per round and 120' is the full running speed per round. So my question. How fast is this in MPH?
120' per round is 120 feet per 10 seconds or 720 per minute or 43,200 per hour or 8.18 repeating. I opt to make the miles an easier 5400* feet to get 8 miles per hour. So an orc can run full-on at 8 miles per hour.
(*5400 is divisible by 2 and 3 so it gives me better numbers to work with.)
This brings up an interesting notion. How fast can a particular monster move?
I looked at my entry for Archangel and see they fly at 360', which translates into 24 MPH. Not very fast from our point of view, but fast when compared to a mundane horse. Maybe they have a Haste at-will spell and can fly at 48 MPH? If it is a "Greater Haste" say at x3 then 72 MPH feels a little more respectable. Fantasy creatures don't always translate well into the real world.
Ideas like this have been helping drive my design philosophy. When working on a monster I often ask "how do they relate to the PCs?" or "what sort of situations will this monster be in with the PCs?" since the Player Characters are the focus of all adventures. Now I do also ask "How does this monster relate to Normal Humans?" and this has shifted my view on many creatures, in particular the undead. There are consequences to both of these.
On the PC-centric side, we get the Succubus/Whispering Demon issue I mentioned a while back when I covered the BECMI Immortal Rules. To quote:
A Succubus in AD&D is a 6+6 HD creature (average hp 33), her physical attacks are not great, but her kiss drains 2 life energy levels. In BECMI a Whispering Demon has 15* HD and 70 hp! Oh and her AC is -6.
A 6 HD creature is more than enough of a challenge for normal humans, it is also a pretty good (and scary) challenge for low-level characters. But a 15 HD succubus? That is a challenge for many! But I do notice that in nearly every movie or tale about a succubus the demon is defeated in the end.
6 HD is what you get when you aim for Normal Humans. 15 HD is what you get when you aim for PCs.
The Basic Bestiaries will take on the point of view of Normal Humans for the most part. So my succubi (I have a couple) will be more along the lines of 6 HD. My Archangels however will likely be flying at 72 MPH.
Sunday, October 13, 2019
October Horror Movie Challenge: Satanic Saturday
Jaws of Satan (1981)
Druids, Witches, Cursed Priests, and Satan. It sounds like a great mix. And a young Christiana Applegate and her real-life mother to boot! Well... the movie is not great, but for 1981 it is not bad.
Satan comes to terrorize a small town in the form of a snake. Not a giant snake, just a regular-sized snake. But I guess it does some strange things to the corpses and moves really fast, so that is something right?
Well, the Devil-as-a-Snake controls all the other snakes in the area so that is kinda fun. This is more of a snake movie than a Satanic one. Though I am not sure what is worse though, the snake or the casual misogyny and racism. Well, this is the danger I knew I would run when I decided to go through every horror movie in the "Basic Era" (1977-1981).
The priest does have a nice "magical" battle with the Satan Snake, so that is cool. Something I would have loved my cleric to have done back in the days of Basic D&D.
Monster Idea: Demonic Snakes.
Demonoid (1980)
A mine in Mexico uncovers a Satanic cult long buried. The soundtrack is pure 70s, but the movie stands up to be honest. Again, if you don't mind the casual racism and sexism (are nurses supposed to show that much cleavage?). The movie is not great mind you, but the basic premise is solid. The movie doesn't really pick up until about a third of the way in. At no point, however, do the events depicted in the poster actually occur in the movie itself.
Though I expected a little more emotion from the protagonist. She takes the death of her husband and then him getting up and walking from his grave in stride.
I could not help but think about how this would be a good set up for any sort of evil hand-like artifact focused adventure. The hand gives up strange powers but at a cost. Combine it with a bit of the Doctor Who serial "Hand of Fear" and the Hand of Vecna.
Monster/Plot Idea: Demonic Hands.
Evilspeak (1981 or 1982)
An evil priest, Father Estaban (an almost unrecognizable Richard Moll), is excommunicated by other priests in Middle Ages Spain. Estaban shows how evil he is by cutting off the head of a perfectly nice Spanish girl.
We come to the modern age where we meet Stanley Coopersmith, an orphan in a military-like school played by B-Movie stalwart Clint Howard. Coopersmith is picked on by everyone, the other kids, the teachers, even the priest. While cleaning the chapel he finds Estaban's diary. The diary, of course, is full of Satanic fun. Coopersmith in true early 80s fashion types it all into a computer and it translates it automatically. He begins to put more information into his schools' Apple 2e and soon he has the power. Not sure if this is first mix of Satanic rites and computer technology but I am hard-pressed to name something that would have scared the Religious Right of the 1980s more. I do love the Atari 2600 sound effects though.
This movie follows a cliched formula of the odd kid getting picked on and the kid turning to evil to get revenge. We saw this to better effect in "Fade to Black" and the trope turned completely around in the Harry Potter books and movies.
The ending though is really fun with Coopersmith getting revenge on everyone by summoning up undead pigs from hell. Interestingly enough, in the end, Coopersmith was admitted to the Sunnydale Asylum. I have to admit this one was a lot of fun.
Monster Idea: Devil Swine
Lorna the Exorcist (1974)
Ok, this one is fairly notorious even by Jesús Franco's normal standards. When I did my Franco October series a while back I had heard about it, but could not find a copy. This year I did and saved it for tonight. After all, if Hall of the Nephilim can make Succubus Sundays a thing, I can contribute.
So right out of the gate. "Lorna" is not an Exorcist. Nor are there any exorcists in this movie. I can only assume that the English name was used to capitalize on the recent "The Exorcist" movie. The original title in French is "Les possédées du diable" or roughly "Possessed by the Devil". That's a better title really.
There is another bit to get over too. There are two versions of this movie, an 81 minutes NR version and a 99 minute X rated one. The X rated one features some rather graphic scenes featuring Lorna (Pamela Stanford) and Linda (a very young Lina Romay).
The plot is basically Rumplestilskin with demons. Patrick Mariel is an out of his luck man who makes a deal with a woman named Lorna. She will make Patrick wealthy, but in 18 years he must give her his daughter. He doesn't believe her but becomes wealthy all the same. Nearly 18 years later his daughter Linda is a wild teen and Lorna has come back to make her claim on the girl.
Lorna can only really be described as a succubus (that would also explain the green eye makeup). She seems to invade Linda's dreams where the two have some fairly graphic sex. Likely these are the part of the edited out 18 mins. There are also a few other scenes that are fairly notorious like the crabs' scene and one between Linda and her father Patrick. The most notorious has to be the one where Lorna finally claims Linda as her own.
There are plenty of Franco hallmarks in this. Gratuitous nudity, jazzy soundtrack, casinos, weird almost psychedelic cinematography, and Franco himself making a cameo appearance. He once talked about how much he loved seeing Lina Romay (aka the future Mrs. Franco) in all these scenes and how much she enjoyed them herself. I will give her credit in this one. She actually is putting forward a good performance. There is a marked difference in Linda before and after Lorna. It also seems to me that Lorna turned Linda into a succubus herself.
There is also a bit with a madwoman, who I took to be a former lover of Lorna who still seems connected to her.
Franco is hit or miss, and mostly miss, to be honest, but this is one of the better ones I have watched.
Monster Idea: Succubus
Watched: 19
New: 14
Friday, April 19, 2013
Q is for Quareen
In a game I would treat them much like another demon I created a while back called the Never Was. Though I would give them a much darker edge.
Quareen
These creatures are lesser Jinn also known as Personal Demons. Occult scholars suspect that everyone has at least one, maybe even several. Unlike other demons, the Qareen rarely if ever manifest in our world as physical beings. They influence their host by goading them on to do evil. The Qareen are also unique in that they work with nearly any demon. If a succubus has targeted a particular mortal in order to steal his soul, his Qareen will aid the succubus in the temptation by suggestion. The succubus gains the soul on the death of the victim. It is unknown what the qareen get. They seem motivated by evil for evil’s sake.
If the qareen is made manifest (some rare magical books detail how this can be done) they have the same stats as the person they belong too. Killing the qareen doesn’t affect the person, save for making them feel “good” and want to do good. Sooner or later another qareen will take over.
A carefully worded remove curse spell can remove a qareen, but they usually return when the character is faced with temptation again.
Game Stats:
The Quareen uses the same stats as whatever person it is attached to. They can't normally attack and do not physically manifest. Though the days when a Qareen is most active the character must make a Wisdom-based save (or Will or Magic with Wisdom mods) to avoid giving into temptation.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
V is for Vampires vs. Demons
When doing research for this blogfest and for my game books in general the first thing you notice is that the myths of the world do not organize themselves in nice logical units.
This could not be more pronounced when trying to figure out what the difference is sometimes between a Vampire and a Demon.
Game books and novels that feature both often make pretty clear lines. This is a vampire and they do X, Y and Z. This is a demon and they do A, B, and C and sometimes D. But go to the myths of the world and then you find creatures that do X, A, B and D but never C, Y or Z.
When getting ready for this I was also researching various vampires. This was almost an A to Z of Vampires (maybe next year). what some cultures call a vampire another call a ghost and another a witch and another a demon. Sometimes with the same names. A lot of creatures from China, Japan and the Philippines are like this.
The Succubus and most of what I call the Lilim are a great examples. While they are classified as demons they have a lot of vampire like qualities. In some games a "Succubus" is even just another type of Vampire (World of Darkness and WitchCraft). Yet in others a Vampire is a type of demon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer).
Even is games where the distinctions are really, really clear there can still be a lot of overlap.
The succubus is one good example, but so are the Nabassu. Nabassu, also known as Death-Stealers, are described as demons that are close to undead. They even look like the true form of the vampires from Lifeforce and the Red Court Vampires from the Dresden Files.
Looking at them it is hard to tell which one is the vampire and which one is the demon.
So the issue for writers putting mythological creatures in their books (novels, stories, games) and that is what sort of creature is this?
Have a look at the Mayan god Camazotz. His name is roughly translated as "Death Bat". In a book he could be a god, a demon or a very powerful vampire. Lilith is another great example. Is she a demon, witch, vampire or just a human. Of even the Baohban Sith, is she a faerie or a vampire.
Of course the one other option is "All the Above". Creatures that blur the lines a little are nice to have.
EDITED TO ADD: Other vampires from today
http://coffintreehill.tumblr.com/
http://r-moran.blogspot.com/2013/04/v-is-for-vampire.html
http://noreecosper.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-z-blog-hop-vampires.html
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
October Movie Challenge: Demon Hunter (2005)
Billy Drago stars as Asmodeus. Basically he is playing the same character he did on Charmed only now he surrounds himself with more naked women. Drago chews up scenery as a slimy bad guy like no one else save for maybe Eric Roberts.
Tania Deighton plays his succubus lieutenant. She has the look, but I can't tell if her fake fangs make it hard for her to talk or if she is just a bad actress. Her succubus looks really cool. The wings were a nice touch. Yes, she is also featured on the Succubus.net website.
The movie though is predictable, even to the "surprise" ending. But it has some good moments.
This movie has me curious though. Here Asmodeus is played as the Demon of Lust as he is depicted in many older texts and not so much as the King of Hell. I wonder why Gary picked him as the ruler of hell and devils in D&D? Was it because of him being described as the King of Hell in some books? Curious. The classic "Politics of Hell" notwithstanding I am curious about his rise over other names like Baalzebul or even Mephistopheles.
Stats
18 Watched / 13 New
Thursday, July 9, 2020
One Man's God: Basic Demons (BECMI Demons, Part 2)
One of the Usual Suspects. ePic CG |
One of the Unusual suspects, ePic CG |