Woot woot!

It’s a classic old-school megadungeon with an undead theme. It fits well with the campaign background of Mutants & Magic, involving the overthrow of the Necromancer Kings prior to the rise of the Affiliation.

I’ve got ideas of how to convert the Nergal/Orcus/Set concepts from Barrowmaze to fit the mythology of Chardros the Reaper in Mutants & Magic (hint: It involves the Tomb of the Iron God), and there are several other aspects (such as mongrelmen) which can apply without any tweaking.

I don’t have any megadungeons yet in the Grass Plains region (in the Outer Territories, east of the Free City), so I think I think it will make a good location for this adventure…

In Mutants & Magic, Mor was an Ancient domed metropolis which continued to be inhabited after the Fall as an independent city-state until it was conquered by Beastmen. Lesserton was founded by the refugees, who then came under the domination of the Necromancer Kings until the founding of the Affiliation (see the Campaign Background for more info). I think I’ll place Lesserton and Mor near the Dismal Swamp (not too far from Krake’s Borough, actually).

In terms of game rules, the Tainted are actually near-humans and Lesserton Orkin are mutants instead. Halflings use the rules from my recent demihumans post. Instead of Orkin, it was a Beastmen army which conquered Mor (this is a source of much distrust against Beastmen in the Affiliation).

I recommend this supplement for referees looking for an interesting mini-setting. You can also download the free Player’s Guide to Lesserton. If I get a campaign going for Mutants & Magic, then Lesserton & Mor will certainly be an option for characters.

In a

The flavour text is quoted from the demihumans post on Henchman Abuse (and can also be found in the module itself).

Demihuman Level Limits

(Add the character’s Prime Requisite modifier to all level limits.)
^† Elves cannot become clerics of Law, and thus this class option is not available to PCs.
^F Favoured class; can freely multiclass. (Halflings have no favoured class.)

(Note that multicassed characters require 13+ in the Prime Requisites for both classes.)

Dwarf

Dwarves are [shorter than humans], and strangely proportioned, with wide barrel chests and dense musculature. They also have gray skin, and their eyes are entirely black, giving them the wide-spectrum vision that they share with elvenkind. … [T]heir hair color varies from brown to black. They prefer to live underground, as they find the sun’s light irritating (although they suffer no penalties for being in bright sunlight). After achieving adulthood, they do not appear to physically age. Despite this, some aging process must be occurring, as they fall sick and die after three centuries, give or take a few decades. They have a creation myth that involves escaping from their creator and his goblins. They cannot abide the presence of goblins, and will almost invariably attack them.

Ability Scores: Dwarves have minimum scores of STR 6 and CON 9. They have a maximum DEX of 17 and CHA of 17 (before adjustments). In addition, they receive a +1 to starting CON and -1 to CHA.

Special Abilities: All dwarves have Infravision and Ultravision. Dwarves have a keen attention to detail, gaining a +1 on Search checks. In addition, they are able to able to detect slanting passages, shifting walls, and new construction on a successful Search check. Dwarves favour the fighter class, and may multiclass as fighters. Dwarves add 1 to starting hit points.

Restrictions: Dwarves may advance up to 9th level as fighters, 6th level as thieves, 5th level as hunters, and 3rd level as psionicists. Dwarves can never gain spellcasting abilities. They may not employ Large weapons more than four feet in length (specifically, great axes, great swords, polearms, long spears, and long bows).

Saving Throws: Dwarves receive a +4 bonus on saves vs. poison or death effects, vs. mind-influencing effects, and vs. magic.

Elf

Elves are the strangest of the demihuman races. They are nearly man-height, average five feet tall, and well-proportioned. They have gray skin, large black eyes as the dwarves have, with the attendant wide-spectrum vision, thin pointed ears, thin noses with narrow nostrils, and a mouthful of sharp, pointy teeth. They have either jet-black hair, or pigmentless snow-white hair. Like dwarves, after achieving adulthood, they do not appear to physically age. They may be immortal, as no elf can recall any that has died of old age, although their memories fade after a [century or two]. They do not feel a need to keep written records, experiencing most of history first-hand, but the limits on their memory mean that they have no notions of their origin. Elves prefer to live among their own kind, in villages deep in the wilderness, away from humanity.

Attributes: Elves have a minimum scores of DEX 6, INT 9, and CHA 6. They have a maximum STR of 16 and CON of 17 (before adjustments). In addition, they receive a +1 to starting DEX and -1 to CON.

Special Abilities: Elves possess Infravision and Ultravision. They have keen senses and gain a +1 to Spot/Listen checks. In addition, an elf is so observant that he has a 1 on 1d6 chance to find a secret door with just a cursory look (no Search required). Elves favour the magic-user class, and may multiclass as magic-users.

Restrictions: Elves may advance up to 9th level as magic-users, 8th level as clerics, 5th level as fighters or thieves, and 3rd level as hunters or psionicists. Elves cannot become clerics of Law, and thus this class option is not available to PCs.

Saving Throws: Elves receive a +2 bonus on saves vs. petrification or paralysis and vs. magic.

Halfling

Halflings are very short, well-proportioned humans, with gray skin. Their eyes have pupils slightly larger than normal, but their vision is not particularly enhanced over normal human vision. Their hair color varies from brown to black. Halflings prefer to dwell near humans, either living in the actual human cities and towns, or forming villages near the humans. They have no particular origin myth, and if questioned, would state that they have always lived around humans. They live no longer than normal humans.

Ability Scores: Halflings have minimum scores of DEX 9 and CON 6, and a maximum STR of 16 (before adjustments). In addition, they receive a +1 to starting DEX and -1 to STR.

Special Abilities: Halflings are unusually accurate with all sorts of ranged weapons, gaining a +1 attack bonus when employing them. When attacked in melee by creatures larger than man-sized, halflings gain a +2 bonus to their Armour Class. Halflings are quick-witted, thus adding +1 to personal Initiative rolls. Halflings gain +1 to Sneak checks.

Restrictions: Halflings may advance up to 7th level as thieves, 4th level as fighters or hunters, and 3rd level as psionicists. They can never gain spellcasting abilities. Halflings may not use Large weapons, and must wield Medium weapons with both hands. Halflings subtract 1 from starting hit points. Halflings cannot multiclass.

Saving Throws: Halflings improve their base Saving Throw value by 2.

During the minimalist one-page RPG buzz last year, I put together another little post-apoc game, called ‘Tempora Mutantur‘. Since then, I’ve added a number of (one-page) supplements and grafted something resembling a campaign setting around it. You can find the results of my work here:

• Go To: Tempora Mutantur

Tempora Mutantur uses Simon J. Bull’s “SotU Refired” as a basis, which was itself inspired by Nicolas Dessaux’s original “Searchers of the Unknown”.

Comments and feedback are welcome.

One element that I’ll definitely swipe for my wahoo post-apoc setting is the concept of “Gods Eyes”. Here is some text from the module:

The gods of men in these latter days are also the creations of men, though no divinity will admit to this history…

High above the atmosphere, enormous satellites containing the hardware necessary to run these AI’s orbit the planet. They number in the hundreds, and communicate directly to their followers through “eyes” installed in their temples below. These eyes are massive screens through which a god may directly observe its followers, and appear to them.

The gods, through means unknown to simple organic minds, are able to grant spells to their priests. The priests must pray for renewal of their powers at certain times of the day. These times are linked directly to when the AI’s are in orbit directly overhead.

I’m thinking that the Church of Law is devoted to the orbital gods, worshiping them via the gods eyes.

The first four posts deal with wizard subtypes and sorcerer variants, mostly inspired from D&D 2e and HackMaster. The next one tackles old-school variants of pact magic and the binder class from the closing days of D&D 3e. Finally, the glyph mage and summoner attempt to be D&D variants of wards and circle magic from the Palladium FRPG.

I’ll keep this post current to compile the material as it’s published. As always, feel free to add any comments or suggestions.

• Specialist Wizards (Schools of Magic)
• Sole Practitioners (Extreme Specialists)
• Sorcerers (Non-Vancian Spellcasting)
• Warlocks (Elemental Sorcerers)
• Binder (Split Class) (Pact Magic)
• Glyph Mage (Split Class) (Magic Symbols)
• Summoner (Split Class) (Summoning Circles)
• Diabolists (Non-Spellcasting Ritual Mages)

(I also did a first draft of the Glyph Mage, called the Ward Mage, using different rules.)

It’s been a while since I’ve posted new material on this gameblog. I see there are at least a few of you who still stop by; hopefully there will be something here that you find can find useful in your games.

(This post is still seriously in draft, but it’s the final entry in my ‘Magic March’ series and I wanted to get it online it while it was still March. I may clean it up when I get the chance.)

Diabolist Progression

Level	XP	Hit Dice	BAB	Save
1	0	1d4	+0	16
2	2,000	2d4	+0	15
3	4,000	3d4	+0	15
4	8,000	4d4	+0	14
5	16,000	5d4	+0	14
6	32,000	6d4	+0	13
7	64,000	7d4	+0	13
8	120,000	8d4	+0	12
9	240,000	9d4	+0	12

Game Rule Information

Prime Requisite: A diabolist’s prime requisite is Intelligence; a character must have a INT score of 11 or higher to become a warlock. In addition, diabolists cannot be weak-willed, requiring WIS and CHA scores of 9 or higher.

Alignment: Diabolists cannot be Lawful. Their dealings with summoned creatures from the netherworld and pacts with inhuman entities are Chaotic in nature.

Hit Dice: A diabolist receives 4 starting hp (plus CON modifier, if any). Diabolists gain 1d4 hit points + CON mod per class level.

Combat Ability: Diabolists have a poor Base Attack Bonus progression. They are proficient with any low-tech melee or thrown weapon that can be wielded one-handed, plus staff. They are proficient with light armour only (no shields).

Saving Throws: Diabolists have relatively poor saving throws, but gain +2 on saves vs. mental influence (including enchantment, charm, and contests of will).

Level and Multiclass Restrictions: Diabolists have the same level restrictions as magic-users. Due to the dedication required to their studies, they may not multiclass.

Special Abilities

Monster Summoning: As the summoner.

Glyph Magic: As the glyph mage.

Scroll Use: Starting at 2nd level, the diabolist learns how to cast spells from arcane scrolls. Treat the diabolist as a magic-user of half his class level.

Bind Vestige: As the binder.

Diabolist Special Abilities

Class Level	Glyphs Known *	Glyphs per Day	Special Ability
1	1	1	Monster Summoning I
2	3	1	Scroll Use
3	6	2	Monster Summoning II
4	10	2	Bind Minor Vestige
5	15	3	Monster Summoning III
6	21	3	Bind Medium Vestige
7	28	4	Monster Summoning IV
8	36	4	Bind Major Vestige
9	45	5	Monster Summoning V

* A diabolost with high INT may add additional glyphs
as described in the glyph mage class description.

(Earlier in the month, I wrote up the ward mage class based on the Truename rules from the 3e Tome of Magic. In the end I wasn’t really pleased with it, and am making another attempt here. This time I’m using “Glyphs of Cerilon” by Larry DiTillio in Dragon #50 as inspiration, and am calling them Glyph Mages.)

A glyph mage is an arcanist dedicated to the study of symbols – specifically, magic symbols. These men of magic cast no spells but derive their power from the drawing of symbols and invoking of power words. Their knowledge lies in dusty tomes, arcane symbols, and (especially) glyphs. They believe glyphs to be the very first type of magic, and the basis of all other arcane traditions.

Although the secrets of glyph magic is now obscure and largely forgotten, glyph mages are adept in their use – a lore that they guard jealously.

Glyph Mage Progression

Level	XP	Spellcasting Prerequisite	Glyphs Known *	Glyphs per Day
1	10,000	2nd-lvl Spells	2	1
2	20,000	3rd-lvl Spells	6	2
3	40,000	4th-lvl Spells	12	3

* A glyph mage with high INT may add additional
glyphs as described in the class description.

Game Rule Information

Prerequisites: To learn glyph magic, a character must be literate in at least three languages and be an experienced spellcaster. Both arcane and divine casters are eligible, and must be able to cast 2nd-lvl spells before becoming a glyph mage. To learn more powerful glyphs, the character must meet the spellcasting requirements as given in the table above.

Alignment: Glyph mages can be of any alignment, but tend to be Lawful or Neutral.

Split Class Restrictions: Glyph magic is difficult and exacting, requiring focus and dedication. Glyph mages are restricted from advancing in any other split classes, and characters who already possess levels in a split class are unable to advance as glyph mages.

Special Abilities

Glyph Magic: Glyphs are ancient mystic symbols capable of possessing or directing arcane energies. Similar a magic-user and his spells, a glyph mage will have mastered only a certain number of glyphs (as indicated in the table, above). However, glyph mages of high intelligence may add their INT bonus to the maximum number of glyphs known. A 1st-lvl glyph mage with INT 16, for example, could learn up to 4 glyphs.

All glyphs are harmless until activated by the appropriate power words. Then – and only then – are they filled with magic. The mage is drained each time he activates a glyph. Although he can prepare/create an arsenal of glyphs, he is limited to activating one glyph per day per class level.

Before activating a glyph, it must first be inscribed. Glyphs can be carved or drawn on floors, doors, walls, trunks, books, weapons, armour, ships, and just about anything else including people. They can be obvious or cleverly concealed. A quick glyph may be drawn in paint, ink, blood, chalk, or charcoal – although it will not be very durable and can be activated only once. An engraved or inlaid glyph will take longer to create, but are more difficult to damage may be activated multiple times. At minimum, a glyph requires one turn to inscribe.

Glyph Descriptions

(Game effect conversions for 44 of the Glyphs of Cerilon are provided below; for pictures and full descriptions please refer to Dragon #50. Alternately, you can check out the Dragon Compendium from Paizo for D&D 3e descriptions.)

• Akme: Fire damage to non-Lawful creatures, 1d6 per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Azedul: Paralysis for 1 round/lvl, save each round.
• Beel: Electrical damage, 1d6 per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Bora: 1d4 damage per every 2 lvls, plus amnesia. Lose 1d4 memorized/known spells or class skills for 1 hour/lvl. Save for ½ damage and reduces amnesia to 1 round/lvl.
• Cand: Prevents Chaotic outsiders from approaching within 5 ft of ward. Save to resist.
• Cino: Drains strength. Target suffers -1d6 STR penalty, or -1 to melee atk and dmg for creatures without STR scores. Save to resist.
• Dage: Reverse of Akme. Fire damage to non-Chaotic creatures, 1d6 per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Dam: Blast of flame. 1d6 fire damage per every 2 lvls in a 5-ft radius/lvl. Save for ½.
• Ejo: Balance. Electrical damage to non-Neutral creatures, 1d6 per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Ez: Magicbane. Drains 1 charge per caster level from wands and similar items; uncharged items such as weapons and potions are unable to function for 1 round/lvl.
• Fola: Causes uncontrollable muscle spasms for 2 rounds/lvl. Victim drops held items, falls prone, and can only move at half speed. Save negates.
• Ginmore: Order. Electrical damage to non-Lawful creatures, 1d6 per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Glyl: Confusion, as spell, for 1 round per every 2 lvls. Save negates.
• Han: Blinding flash of light; those within 10 ft are blinded for 1 round per every 2 lvls. Save negates.
• Inda: Metalbane. Heat Metal, as spell. Save negates.
• Ik: Baleful Polymorph transforms target into earthworm for 1 round/lvl. Save negates.
• Jend: Fire damage to Lawful creatures, 1d6 per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Kuan: The witherer. If touch, limb becomes useless. Target moves at half speed if leg effected, or is considered one-armed if hand touches. Save negates.
• Lenden: The shortener. Reduce Person, as spell. Save negates.
• Lumat: The freezer. Chill Metal, as spell, but also affects targets not wearing metal. Save negates.
• Mot: Paperbane. Causes ink on all items of paper to disappear. Each item gets a saving throw.
• Myb: Drains dexterity. Target suffers -1d6 DEX penalty, or -1 to ranged atk and AC for creatures without DEX scores. Save to resist.
• Nolon: Madness. Target flees in terror for 1 round/lvl. Save negates.
• Ors: Life drain. Target suffers -1d6 CON penalty, or -1 hp/HD for creatures without CON scores. Save to resist.
• Ozha: 1d6 acid per every 2 lvls. Save for ½, plus armour must save vs. corrosion or suffer -1 penalty to AC.
• Pel: The silence. Target suffers blindness and deafness for 1 round/lvl. Save negates.
• Pogen: The raiser. Hurled upwards for 10 ft per every 2 lvls, taking falling damage as normal (in both directions). Save negates.
• Qin: 1d6 fire per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Quolat: Poison. 1d6 poison damage per turn, starting after 1 turn. Duration is 1 turn per every 2 lvls. Save negates.
• Rimesh: The sanctifier. 1d6 damage per every 2 lvls to undead. Save for ½.
• Sovin: Disease. Contagion, as spell. Save negates.
• Syat: The sleeper. Sleep, as spell. Save negates.
• Tarrat: Drains intellect. Target suffers -1d6 INT penalty. Save to resist.
• Unkin: The bleeder. Wounds bleed until attended to (1 hp/round) for 2 rounds/lvl. Does not affect creatures with full hp. Save negates.
• Uvas: The web. Web, as spell, centered upon the glyph.
• Vana: Reverse of Cand. Prevents Lawful outsiders from approaching within 5 ft of ward. Save to resist.
• Vig: Electrical damage to Lawful creatures, 1d6 per every 2 lvls. Save for ½.
• Weirkan: The stoner. Petrification for 1 turn per lvl. Save negates.
• Wod: The scream. Stuns those within 30 ft for 1d3 rounds. Save reduces duration to 1 round.
• Xaj: Icy blast. 1d6 cold damage per every 2 lvls in a 5-ft radius/lvl. Save for ½.
• Mot: Paperbane. Causes ink on all items of paper to disappear. Each item gets an item saving throw.
• Yagsha: The traveller. Transports target as per Dimension Door to a spot of creator’s choosing. Save negates.
• Ylmis: Regression. Feeblemind, as spell, for 1 turn/lvl. Save negates.
• Zannit: Death. The target automatically fails his next saving throw (no save).

The summoner is among the most feared of al the men of magic; he is feared because of the sacrifices and self-inflicted wounds required to activate the summoning circles; feared because of the malevolent forces that are controlled; feared because of the evil that walks within the shadows of the summoner.

Like the Glyph Mage, I’ve been inspired by the Palladium FRPG, but am using rules from a different game system in the implementation. This time, I’m just swiping the Monster Summoning spells from HackMaster.

Summoner Progression

Game Rule Information

Prerequisites: To become a summoner, a character be an spellcaster with no restrictions from using the Conjuration/Summoning school of magic. Both arcane and divine casters are eligible. The rituals of summoning are actually quite easy to learn, but the experience requirement typically discourages low-level casters. To summon more powerful creatures, the character must meet the spellcasting requirements as given in the table above.

Alignment: Any but Lawful. Summoners are almost always Chaotic, but a few rare ones are Neutral instead. The study of pact magic is forbidden by the Church of Law.

Split Class Restrictions: Summoning requires a particular blend of willpower and obsession. Summoners are restricted from advancing in any other split classes, and characters who already possess levels in a split class are unable to advance as summoners.

Special Abilities

Monster Summoning: Through study of arcane circles and rituals of summoning, the character has learned to conjure up servants from other planes of existence. To summon one of these creatures, the appropriate circle, symbols, components, and sacrifices must be made, requiring one full turn. A summoner can only summon creatures via circle magic once per day, and may only have one summoning in effect at any given time.

Summoning is a chaotic form of magic, and the summoner usually has no control over the creature summoned. It is rumoured that certain expensive material components or unusual sacrifices can influence the result, but these secrets are closely guarded and must be discovered through gameplay.

Summoning circles are divided into various grades – I, II, III, IV, and V. As the summoner gains experience, he is able to summon more creatures or more powerful creatures. By default, only a single creature is summoned. However, a higher-level summoner using a lower-grade circle will conjure more creatures. A 2nd-lvl summoner using a Grade I circle will conjure 1d4 creatures, for example. Similarly, a 3rd-lvl summoner gains 1d4 creatures from a Grade II circle, 2d4 from a Grade I circle, and so on.

A character can control a summoned creature (or group of creatures) for one day per summoner level. After this, the creature(s) gains a saving throw once per day to break free from the summoner’s control. For this reason, most summoners will try to ensure that the thralls are ‘used’ before this period expires, though any obviously suicidal commands will grant a saving throw to break free.

A summoner may prematurely relinquish control of a thrall, but may be unable banish a monster that he has summoned. A creature unwilling to be sent back to its home plane may attempt a saving throw to resist. If it succeeds, it remains in the summoner’s world permanently. Slaying a summoner will release thralls from his control and will usually banish them to their home plane, though unwilling creatures may attempt to resist.

Summoning Descriptions

(For now, I would recommend simply using the Monster Summoning spells in the AD&D/OSRIC rules, found on pages 90-92. They’re okay, but I’d prefer lists with a more extraplanar bent, so I’ll probably end up modifying them if I get the chance.)

(UPDATE: I just looked over the HackMaster Monster Summoning tables from page 319 of the GM’s Guide. They are truly awesome – use them instead.)