Dolmenwood: The Tumulheights - (Hex 1609)

One-page settings seem to be making the rounds as a concept, and while I'm totally in favor of that sort of framework I'm also really big on the three-hex starter situations as well. So I figured to combine a sense of those both, thwap together a map in a hex, and then place it in a setting near and dear to my heart. This is a hex-as-setting, meant to provide just enough to get the ball rolling. So these are the Tumulheights, a series of hilly barrow mounds located in Hex 1609; which on the Dolmenwood regional map is a few south of Castle Brackenwold and can be located beneath the map key. It is a thematically low level area, a place to learn a little bit about the setting, defeat some lesser villains, and to get away from the woods for a little bit. '

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Hex 1609: The Tumulheights

A patch of rough hills, scrubland and sparse woods to the south of Castle Brackenwold, the Tumulheights are a sacred burial ground or the ancient Emeraude warriors who beat back the Gomans. Man, Goat, and more than a few other stranger things lay buried beneath the mounds. 

From Culderhill, the Lichwards see that the anointed dead stay buried and at peace. But villains out of Pook’s Way know all too well that the Watchers and fouler sorts in High Hankle and Havenland would pay well for the blessed bones. 

Throughout the mounds swine gather in large numbers, trudging through the forest in troupes, snuffling the pungent hilly air for the seductive scent of truffles and other pungent fungal spores. On nights of the full moon, the Black Pig is said to be seen in the woods, and those who gaze upon his baleful magnificence will find themselves forever cursed. The Lichwards, as well as academics of folklore out of Castle Brackenwold, have their own theories as to the origin myth of the Black Pig; but the locals out of Pook's Way claim it to be a wicked fey prince.

All manner of bogun and goblin from the Dolmenwood make their occasional appearance upon the mounds, often as spectators watching the spirits of ancient Emeraude warriors butchering the damned shades of Goman legionnaires upon the blessed earth. When the bones of the fallen are removed from their mounds, these displays change. The Goman begin to win. The spirits, be they man or goat, fall into despair and in time become tortured and wretched wraiths who devoid of their stories, cast forth oblivion.

Mortal man does not tarry upon the mounds at night, lest the pucklemotes swarm them and steal them away to the Dredgemoot; where the Black Pig is said to slumber all other nights of the year in corpulent hateful bliss.

Key Features:

• Hilly - The grounds of the Tumulheights ebb and flow like waves upon the sea, and under each hill lie countless dead heroes from ancient days.
• Haunted - If not for the Lichwards out of Culderhill, the actions of the dead would be far more vicious to outsiders. They only appear deep underground, in the Dredgenmoot, or on starry nights.
• Windswept - Between the hills, the air blows quick and fierce. Smells carry for miles, as does laughter and whispers upon the wind.
• Wooded - The woods, while sparse, are primarily old pines that have long succumb to the rot and weight of bracket fungus which clings to their trunks.
• Temperate - It is as temperate here as in the rest of the Dolmenwood, though being just south of the wood proper, winter can be found here in its season--albeit reduced by proximity.
• Colors - The flora here is like smoke-stained juniper leaves, the browns are of deep earthy slate. The pigs are all black, but not as black as the Black Pig or the Pucklemotes.

Points of Interest:

Culderhill Abbey: A small, fortified tower of rustic stones hewn in elder days. Two stories, with a large stables which due to a lacking of many horses has been turned into a make-shift training grounds for those who make use of scourges and maces. A large stained glass window depicts St. Signis upon a hill, tending to flowers which grow from the skeleton of a woman whose spirit looks upon the incident fondly. Matron Superior Muccshab is almost always present here, alongside 1d8 acolytes (usually nuns), and 1d4 warriors, generally seeking blessings or knowledge of the undead.

Pook's Way Taphouse: A rickety wattle and daub building built like the long halls of old, with ramshackle gutters and the occasional chicken running wild outside its coop. A burnt wooden sign nailed above the door depicts a large orb-headed fairy of black, pointing a finger towards the door while a lantern sits on its lap. The interior is decrepit and the floor is uneven, with many loose boards and whole sections of dirt floor. The kitchen is well-stocked with sausages and rotgut beverages, and the goatman Tarridan Gresh is often singing a jaunty tune when not being berated by moss dwarf or more thuggish customers.

The Dredgenmoot: A section of the Otherwold, an underground maze where the mycellum of fungal deities once lived. They were consumed by the Black Pig and its predecessors. There are many ways out of the Dredgenmoot, but they require crawling through loose soil, eating hallucinogenic fractal molds, and being subsumed by slime molds that reflect forbidden suns on their shimmering masses. Moss Dwarfs can easily find there way out of here, often leading back to the real world by coming up under a garden of mushrooms. 

Cast of Characters:

Matron Superior Muccshab of St. Signis:
A grizzled woman in her late 60s, allegedly older if the hateful gossip of novice lichwards are to be believed. She bares an unearthly pallor and the chiseled face more befitting a mountain than a mortal; her habit is reinforced with leather tassets and she never leaves her chamber without her blessed jack-of-plates hauberk. A lover of poetry but a long sufferer of the ravages of the undead, she maintains many spells and trains others in the profession of a lichward cleric. She has long enjoyed her time in the Tumulheights, but recent bone thievery has forced her to take a hardline approach to any strangers she or her lackeys come across. She works from Culderhill Abbey.

[AC 9, HD 3 (12hp), Att 1 x scourge (1d6), THAC0 19, MV 90' (30'), SV D11 W12 P14 B16 S15 (CL3), ML 9, AL Lawful, XP 45]

• Spells: Matron Superior Muccshab can cast three spells from the Cleric list as a Level 3 Cleric, and she can Turn Undead as though she were a Level 5 Cleric.

Tarridan Gresh:
A freshly twenty-year old goatman, child of deserters who fled Lord Malbleat's wrath, and apprentice-turned-propreitor of the Pook's Way taphouse. Easily mislead and with a voice like an angel, Tarridan has fallen under the coercion of Bashwick and his goons, and has long suffered the abuses of moss dwarf truffle hunters even before his former master was devoured by a "fog of shadows." Is overworked but likes the challenge. Has never consumed human flesh and will become an insatiable man-eater should he develop the taste.

[AC 5, HD 1 (4hp), Att 1 × Frying Pan (1d4-1), THAC0 19, MV 120’ (40’), SV D8 W9 P10 B13 S12 (D1), ML 6, AL Neutral, XP 10]

Bashwick of Great Lunden:
A bastard of a Havenlander, he shows signs of ensorcellement to those with the gift to see it. He drinks with hooded men and talks of expeditions into the mounds and the profits he's made selling pagan bones and old Goman scrap to high society folk in Lunden. He knows the Watchers and speaks kindly of their patronage. They plan to kill him once he's unable to fund further mercenary endeavors which might steal the bones and disrupt the joyful entertainment of faerie-folk.

[AC 5, HD 2+1 (14hp), Att 1 x Goman Sword (1d8+1, Masterwork), THAC0 19, MV 120' (40'), SV D12 W13 P14 B15 S16 (F2), ML 8, AL Neutral, XP 35]

• Bashwick is supported by a network of goons, lowlifes, and general thugs from Bellthorp and the Midderlands, all functionally equivalent as low morale henchmen. He has at least 1d4 with him at any time, and 1d12 when out in the field personally appraising or stealing bones.

The Black Pig:
A powerful fey spirit in the form of a repugnant and gargantuan swine the size of a cottage. It belches forth spoors, and breathes deep the sorrows of the damned. While it has a rapacious love of honey wines and stump dryads, it is a known enemy to moss dwarfs. Their scent is often too much for the Black Pig to readily tolerate.

[AC 4, HD 7 (32hp), Att 1 x Gore (2d4), 1 x Trample (1d8+1), or 1 x Spore Belch (3d4, Save vs Breath to halve), THAC0 13, MV 180' (60'), SV D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 (F6), ML 11, AL Chaotic, XP 450] 

• Spore Belch targets all within a 90' cone in front of the Black Pig's mouth, those struck by it can be tracked with supernatural ease by pigs, pucklemotes, and moss dwarfs until the half-moon. Moss Dwarfs struck by this spore belch are instead healed an equal amount of damage, with any bonus HP over their maximum threshold blossoming into an equal number of random edible mushrooms.
• The Black Pig becomes enraged in the presence of less than it's HD in Moss Dwarfs, and dazed for 1d6 turns in the presence of more Moss Dwarfs than its HD.

The Pucklemotes: 

Lesser fey spores, sentient bits of black puffballs that chase and harass mortals who walk the mounds at night. They are attracted by candlelight and campfire, but oil lanterns perplex and disturb them. They serve the Black Pig and other faeries who watch the spiritual melee, acting as house servants and bootlicks. If they engulf a mortal, they will transport them into the Dredgenmoot. 

[AC 7, HD 2 (9hp), Att 1 x Swarm (d4) or Engulf, THACO 18, MV 90' (30') flying, SV D14 W15 P16 B17 S18 (NH), ML 9, AL Chaotic, XP 35, NA 1d3]

• Engulf: Engulfing an enemy requires the swarm to collapse into the area directly around a single enemy and succeed at dealing maximum damage on a Swarm attack. If successful the victim must make a Save vs Spells or find themselves taken to the Dredgenmoot.
• Size: 20' x 20' area, typically, acting like hooligans and shuffling about as though gravity didn't matter.
• Swarm Attack: Unlike normal swarms, Pucklemotes will be half biting and nipping and half attempting to cast a spell to pull the victim into the Dredgenmoot. Roll 1d4 to determine damage, and halve any HP loss on those wearing armor (to a minimum of 1).
• Warding Off: Characters wearing cold iron force a morale check to be attacked by the Pucklemotes.
• Escaping: Fleeing the Pucklemotes is hard, as they are quick and vicious when finding someone scared of their violence. Characters who serpentine in their movements or throw distracting mushrooms or shiny objects can flee from the inside of the swarm by doing so for 3 rounds.
• Pursuit: A damaged swarm of Pucklemotes will chase characters until they enter a religious establishment or an area where they must otherwise ask for permission to enter. If a character enters the "home" of another creature like a wolf's den, a bear's cave, or an owl's tree, there is a 50% chance the Pucklemotes will not pursue.

Randomizers for the Tumulheights:

Some specific and specialized randomizers for use in this Hex, or anywhere really. 

What is Tarradin singing? [d6]

1. O Darling Fangbone - And what a sight was she, with a bone so biting brutal, it stretched from mouth to knee. 
   A jaunty and comedic love song about a man who fell in love with an ogress and sang her a tune while she slowly cooked him, eventually he sings from inside her gullet.
   
   
2. Malbleat's Many Follies - "As boundless as the skies, as foolish as a goblin rump, as pointless as his spies!"
   An insulting tune about the idiocy and wretchedness of Lord Malbleat, mocking his abuses and his foolishness. Popular in Lord Ramius's army.
   
   
3. To Dine Again in Bellthorp - "Crying, Cockerels and taters, and turnips, my boy! Oh bloat me, oh save me, my sweet Bellthorp girl."
   A drunkard's tune about better times and family, sung in Bellthorp and by those who wish to mock the Emeraudish over in the Midderlands.
   
   
4. Blind Eyes Me God - "So I'm sure as a Wolder, with Drunegelt I came, and in my wyrm's greed, I feel now His shame..."
   A lament for shameful actions in the eyes of the One True God, generally based around pride and greed. Can be sung as a comedic tune, as if God is not judging but rather it is all in one's head.
   
   
5. Waulking the Elf-Maid's Tartan - "We washed her great gown, with starlights and lamb's silk; we wash-ed her veil, festooned with pearls..."
   A washing song, generally getting more and more embellished with each verse until someone sings a line of how the elf-maiden is crushed under the weight of her luxury and goblins pick her corpse clean. Gallow's humor tune. 
   
   
6. Lament of the Deorlings - "The Wood King bred me, for nine months and better, he stole me fair heart, and my soul to fetters..."
   A song about the King of the Woods, the deorling, and the loss of station and sense of self; a ballad of ego death. 

Concerning Truffles [d6]

Type...

1. Robust Black Truffle
   The robust black truffles of the Tumulheights grow only near the mounds, and to the common eye they look like either the spoors or eggs of some terrible basilisk. The taste is too rich to be consumed raw, leading to a drunken state if not properly prepared. When cooked it fills the belly as full as any steak or hauk of ham. If prepared into an oil, it is a bit greasy but greatly contributes to the speed of the cooking process and if left to ferment with garlic in it, can create a robust cordial. 
   
   
2. Ivory White Truffle
   A robust truffle that tastes like the richest and most earthy of breads, commonly found by both dogs and swine. When shredded or cut, it compliments most meals and greatly adds to their qualities. The most common sort of truffle to find itself exported both raw, and as an oil. Worth silver in either case.
   
   
3. Grue-apple Truffle
   Cluster truffles that sprout like red fungal caps deep underground, often consumed by woodgrue and lesser fey as they enjoy the taste---something akin to blue berries over a stinky cheese and onion skins. Grue-apple can be used to make exceptional cooking oil which allows flavors to fully reveal themselves; and if coated to flesh this same oil can make poisons all the more powerful. Worth silver raw, worth gold in high amounts or in oils.
   
   
4. Broom Truffle
   A truffle that grows like a bracket fungus underneath the bark of ancient trees, popping through the trunk of a tree like bristles on a broom. Bark must be carefully peeled back to allow for harvesting, which requires the use of specialized awls to fully dig out the fungus. Salty but sweet, like a baked apple left to ferment. Used to make fine cooking oils that peasants can afford. Worth silver.
   
   
5. Scag's Tuber
   A false truffle, but still a favorite of pigs and moss dwarfs alike. Scag's tuber is a fungus that grows in wild onions, tasting much like fermented garlic and robust earth. Worth copper pennies in an open market, silver to someone buying in bulk. Can be used to ferment semi-spoiled food back to satiability. 
   
   
6. Swinefavor Truffle
   A common truffle, most often consumed by boars, devil swine, pig seers, and common farm pigs. Seldom seen in kitchens for this reason. Cheap, worth copper pennies. Tastes salty but savory, almost like caramel. 

Quality...

1. Dreadful quality, barely ripe, molded over and maggoty. Worth 1d4 its coinage.
2. Poor, broken, and poorly harvested. Possibly half-bitten by swine. Worth 1d4x2 its coinage.
3. Harvested too early, not robust with spoors, or insufficient size and vintage. Worth 1d4x3 its coinage.
4. Adequate form, good shape, little damage. Worth 1d6x3 its coinage.
5. Perfect size, good shape, no damage, robust texture, and fine scent. 2d8x3 its coinage.
6. Huge, powerful, bountiful, possibly sentient. Almost a burden to carry, but too perfect and astounding not to. Worth 3d10*5 its coinage.

Random Encounters (Day)

1. Huntsmen with Truffle Hogs and Hounds, (1d3+1d8)
   1. Open to conversation. 2. Polite but cagey. 3. Professional and willing to barter. 4. Caustic.
2. Havenlander and South Emeraude Thugs and Lackeys (2d6)1. Casing a mound. 2. Hunting deer. 3. Arguing with leader (Bashwick, if present), 4. Drinking.
3. Lichward Friar and Exorcist Disciples (1+2d4)1. Ritual prayers for protection. 2. Contemplating signs of a struggle. 3. Reciting scripture in the field. 4. Contemplating signs of recent excavation.
4. Deer (2d12)
   1. Bounding over hills. 2. Grazing on grasses. 3. Fleeing wolves. 4. Fleeing hunters.
5. Swine (2d12)
   1. Consuming truffles. 2. Horrifying noisy sex. 3. Consuming a dead body. 4. Sleeping.
6. Pilgrims (2d6)
   1. Singing songs as they march. 2. Discussing philosophy. 3. Praying. 4. Foraging foods.

Random Encounters (Night)

1. Swine (2d12)
   1. Consuming truffles. 2. Horrifying noisy sex. 3. Consuming a dead body. 4. Sleeping.
2. Havenlander and South Emeraude Thugs and Lackeys (2d6)1. Excavating a mound. 2. Camping. 3. Fleeing from undead, 4. Drinking.
3. Deer (2d12)
   1. Bounding over hills. 2. Grazing on grasses. 3. Fleeing wolves. 4. Fleeing hunters.
4. Pilgrims (2d6)1. Camping around a fire. 2. Warding away Pucklemotes to little effect. 3. Praying. 4. Sleeping.
5. Moss Dwarfs (2d6)
   1. Hunting for truffles. 2. Hunting swine. 3. Tracking the Black Pig. 4. Making truffle oil.
6. Undead (Ghosts, 1d8 or Ghouls, 1d4)
   1. Fighting Goman Ghosts. 2. Making merry upon the mound. 3. Cavorting with faeries. 4. Seeking justice for bones stolen.
7. The Black Pig (if Full Moon), Elf Hunters (2d6, if not Full Moon)
   1. Reflecting upon nature's majesty. 2. Gazing upon the moon in strange sadness. 3. Rubbing bone weapons against fungus-infested trees. 4. Digging in the dirt, as if looking for something.
8. Pook Morels (Wormskin 8, p.35, 2d10)
   1. Speaking ghost stories upon the wind. 2. Mocking the party for their terrible fate. 3. Turning acorns into beetles. 4. Throwing centipedes and roaches at one another.
9. Pucklemotes (1d3)
   1. Laughing and giggling. 2. Engulfing a pig. 3. Bursting from the ground. 4. Eating truffles.
10. Lichward Nun (Unique)
    1. Seeking to prove her bravery. 2. Romantically embracing a spirit. 3. Praying above a corpse. 4. Eating bread upon a corpse. 5. Meditating as a ghoul sucks upon her breast, burning. 6. Cavorting with additional Random Encounter.

State of the Goblet: Q1/Q2 2019

Howdy folks, 

I apologize for the inactivity on the blogosphere front, as I've been busy or otherwise preoccupied. I'm going to breakdown below what I've been up to, what I'm working on, and what I expect to have done by prospectively the end of the summer.

Rakehell:

I put out a zine called Rakehell, it's about 44 pages of content for 3 bucks; currently undergoing revisions which will add considerable more value in page count for the same price. Rakehell is a KNAVE-zine, a setting, and many a set of randomizers for small towns, giants, dragons, fiends, and other strangeness in an area called The Rift of Mar-Milloir---a sort of weird northern hinterlands between a pseudo-French and pseudo-German set of kingdoms; and war is likely to come.

Rakehell, its first issue anyhow, was released on my 28th birthday and it was a pretty great success. I was able to afford to pay my layout person decently (I'm learning the skill myself, but wouldn't expose any purchasers to my freshman efforts there), and also get myself some PB&J materials. The copy detail for it can be found on its page, which I've linked to.

Revised items to be added to the first issue before it goes POD on Lulu, DTRPG, et cetera include generators for The First Men (ancient barrow wights), more notes on the factions (including specialized gear to purchase from them, rough interactions between them, and things like that), a black market system (for selling items to the Kingdoms without leaving the Rift), new basic equipment descriptors for weapons/armor both into and out of the Rift, a home base to start out from, and a few micro-dungeons.

I expect to be done with the rest of these added bits by the 20th, so I can hopefully get the total thing out on the 27th. It will also feature illustrations by a good friend of mine.

With the first issue of Rakehell finished, the second issue---an urban one which I've pitched as "what living in a city does to people" will see its way to digital marketplaces sometime in late April to early May; depending on whether or not one of my roomies moves out of my apartment and I'm forced to struggle and spend more of my time working a proper dead end gig.

The Monsoon Ghats:

This is sort of my big new project, though in truth I've been working on it for a good long while. It's been mainly a means to decolonize myself and gain a better appreciation for a cultural heritage I didn't really get to embrace growing up. It's something that is working out pretty well right now, and I remain immersed in constant research to try to do it right. The end results are starting to shape up; it won't be a total recreation of India---but it'll hopefully do it enough justice that people can see how metal and awesome it is without having to deal with issues like Kali in fantasy-land.

I hope to have something to show for it by June or July; in addition to blogposts about it. Time will tell, depending on if things go tits up in my life or not.

It uses the same set of rulings as the Wildwood Manuscripts; and while it has not fully supplanted Wildwood; I would sooner do the Ghats and then Wildwood proper. Give me a chance to see what works for a more niche market before entering the saturated generic market of settings.

Comics:

The Sisters is still trucking on pretty good, not that I expect people here read it. We're almost at the end of our third story arc, one issue left after our current one before we get to go whole hog on horror shenanigans. 

Dolmenwood:

I fully expect to be running another local Dolmenwood game again, so I'll be able to get back to blogging on Dolmenwood as a setting. I like it in collaboration with the broader Midderlands world; so expect that kind of intermingling.

Yoon-Suin: 
While I intend to put most of my research focus towards the Monsoon Ghats, I have an online group that is all about Yoon-Suin; so possibly expect some material specifically for that setting rather than applicable to both it and the Ghats project.

Branding:I was able to spend some money over the holidays on a logo which was crafted by the awesome Imogen Mangle, and it'll be on the back of products. We negotiated a nice two year long exploitation use contract and it was an entirely enjoyable experience. She's a great young creator and I'm happy to have gotten to work with her.

General Conclusion:

It's going all right. I have probably a month and a half before uncertainty takes hold. 

I hope to be accomplished in that time. 

Thank you all for reading in general, and if you have any specifics you'd like to see in terms of content; hit me up. 

- Brian

The Monsoon Ghats: Skyclad & Linen Armor

Depending on one's varna, luck, and worldliness is how one dresses while adventuring in the Ghats. Regional styles of decoration, the influences of the Bel Shahih from the northwest, and the variety of dyes available for the cotton, camel hair, and silk of the land make the Monsoon Ghats an eclectic and colorful region. Those wise in the way of fashion can tell where a man is from, what a man has lived, and what a man does by virtue of their dress. 

What follows is a partial set of armor rules I'm using in my home game that I'm playtesting on the weekends; but the randomizer tables will certainly be useful even if you personally do not like my armor rulings. 

Said armor rulings are as follows:

• AC = 10 + Dexterity Modifier. It ascends.
• Shields, Helmets, and other such items have a Protection Value, which can reduce damage at the cost of reducing the dice of the Protection Value. A roll of 1 means the breakage of the item. 
• Poor Quality Items last one expedition before they must be replaced or repaired.
• Adequate Quality Items may suffer 1d3 expeditions, in need of replacement or repairs after a roll of 1. 
• Exquisite Quality Items must be destroyed or tarnished through violence or hardship to be in need of repairs or replacement. 
• Magical Items are of Exquisite appearance and can only be destroyed by magical means.

As I am at work, and have much more work to do before this is worthy of being a total article (randomizers for each category and type of armor by quality), here are simply the first two items: Skyclad depictions and Linen Armor.

Armors

Skyclad: To go skyclad is to wear nothing, to put your faith against the metal of your foe and to let fortune divine the victor. When fighting skyclad you gain your Charisma Modifier as a bonus to AC, but enemies inflict a critical hit on a 19-20 range rather than just upon a 20. A naked character is not necessarily considered to be skyclad.

What it looks like (d8):

1. You have dusted yourself in bhasma, sacred ash, caking yourself in grays.
2. You have painted the mark of your patron daeva upon your brow, it makes you daring.
3. You have been painted with the face of a great beast upon your belly, like a tiger. You feel as though you are connected to this totemic image.
4. You have painted upon your brow a devotional tilaka, for the achievement of central focus.
5. You have dribbled red vermilion across your face, pulled down over your eyes as though expectant of blood to shed.
6. You keep a single red upward brushing of the thumb upon your brow.
7. You have ornate calligraphy inscribed upon your nude form in henna, devotional mantras.
8. You have danced in audacious, gaudy kumkuma, embracing the illusory spirit of the world made manifest.

Linen Armor: Composed of finely quilted linens, reinforced beneath by studding of nail, scale, or metal plates. Clothing of quilted linens caries no social stigma, can be tailored to fit a variety of styles, and can be worn comfortably when travelling in arid climates. (AC +1) [If you prefer to, use this to replace any generic Light Armor by using a different value.]

What color is it (d30):

1. Yellow, like mango blossoms.
2. Yellow, like the desert sky before a storm.
3. Yellow, like the soft light of a morning sun.
4. Blue, like the ocean on a summer day.
5. Blue, like a peacock's cerulean feathers.
6. Blue, like the hottest and most sacred of flames.
7. Green, like a fresh hog plum.
8. Green, like a forest in a valley gazed from a nearby hill.
9. Green, like a skittering lizard's scales.
10. Red, like the bitter clay of the desert.
11. Red, like the blush of a young lover.
12. Red, like the warmth of a heart illuminating a home in evening.
13. Orange, like the wings of an evening moth.
14. Orange, like an evening sun.
15. Orange, like the baked flesh of an unfortunate wayfarer.
16. White, like snow upon the mountain.
17. White, like foam upon the river waters.
18. White, like teeth, like bone.
19. Black, like the midnight sky on a starless night.
20. Black, like back of a sun bear.
21. Black, like the hair upon a child's head.
22. Pink, like coral from the bay.
23. Pink, like the last bright light before evening takes hold.
24. Pink, like a sunburnt elephant's chapped hide
25. Violet, like pressed lavender flowers.
26. Violet, like the twilight sky.
27. Violet, like the bruises upon a fighting-man.
28. Brown, like the down upon a chick.
29. Brown, like the richest of coffees.
30. Brown, like the tan upon a well-traveled man.

Poor Quality Modifiers (Cloth, d6)

1. ...which always smells of mildew.
2. ...which is stained with incriminating and embarrassing colors.
3. ...which is torn and ratty from years of use.
4. ...and it itches fiercely.
5. ...which looks like you stole it off a pauper.
6. ...which looks like you stole it off a corpse.

Adequate Quality Modifiers (Cloth, d6)

1. ...patterned with images of stylized fauna in silver thread.
2. ...patterned with images of stylized flora in contrasting thread.
3. ...which carries with it a scent of perfumes.
4. ...patterned with geometric symbols.
5. ...which brings you some small comfort when worn.
6. ...which shows signs of clear care from the one who crafted it.

Exquisite Quality Modifiers (Cloth, d8)

1. ...elaborately patterned with scenes of aquatic life in golden thread.
2. ...elaborately patterned with depictions of cosmic powers in golden thread.
3. ...inlaid with small gemstones which shimmer like starlight.
4. ...feathered with the plumage of peafowl and birds of paradise.
5. ...crafted from only the finest silks, imported from beyond the northern mountains.
6. ...sewn with thread woven by the hands of the divine at a loom beyond this realm.
7. ...which scintillates through various colors dependant on how the light hits it.
8. ...which is always comfortable and lavish to wear, regardless of climate.

Next time: Rattan Armor & Styles, Hide Armor & Styles, and Poshteens I've got a good few books on the textiles of India back at my apartment, and I really want the inventory/armory for this project to allow for interesting looks and interpretations for each type of armor. Outfits, and regular clothing, are deserving of the same sort of love but I might save this for things like clan/tribal groupings/varnas or regional purposes.

Just doodling up further randomizers while at work, as today is a very slow day.

The Monsoon Ghats: The Naga-Malla [Race-as-Class + Generators]

So I've been working with some folks to try to do an Indian setting right. As an Indian person, even as far removed from my cultural heritage as I am, I have always found much of the representation to be...not great. An Indian setting should not be Kali-ma and Ganesha in Fantasylands, because generally you don't get Jesus Christ in Fantasylands because that's a bit insulting. You generally get a "One True God" wherein you can make commentary on the religions at play without directly insulting or disrespecting them. And India, is of course, much more than its religions. It is a beautiful land of many cultures and clans, amalgamated and accommodated to create a unique place that's worthy of proper research and representation in the gaming sphere. 

I'm going to try to do that, in a setting called The Monsoon Ghats, and I am sure that I will also fail on some level; but from the bones of it someone better than myself might be able to do an even better job. I acknowledge that given how utterly colonized I am, I cannot be the true Scotsman some folks might want me to be in regards to representation; but I'm willing to put in the efforts and to try. Making an Elephant race-as-class is sort of its own kettle of fish, but I was inspired because the party I'm playtesting with work for a Crocodile; so I figured I ought to make a class for the rival city-state.

The basic rulings for The Monsoon Ghats are based in Ben Milton's Knave, White Box S&W, and some stuff from the Black Hack that I'm not opposed to.  It does have classes, which grant a Hit Dice, as well as abilities and drawbacks. No saving throws beyond ones base Attributes. Usage dice come into play for item quality.

It works pretty well. I'm playtesting it on my weekends.

What follows is a race-as-class, the Naga-Malla, a reincarnated elephant warrior who hold a vaunted place in the modern society of the Ghats, and who adventure to help scour evil from the land. You could even use this in Yoon-Suin, for an interesting ruler of one of the Hundred Kingdoms.

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The Naga-Malla, (The Fighting Elephant)

HD: d12

Prime Requisite Attributes: Constitution & Wisdom of 14+

Starting Karma: 55 + 2d10

[If using another system, the Naga-Malla saves as a Cleric and Advances as a Dwarf]

The Lord of the Universe ignited the twin suns of soul and life, and from their crackling heat the earth was given solidity. As the illusory world of promise and sin began to solidify at the dawn of creation, the sounding of the primal thrum, “Om” rang out into the cosmos. It brought comfort to the Lord of the Universe, it expanded out like ripples upon the sheer surface of a pond.

From the first of the earth, he created beings to carry the sound. Unburdened by his virtues or his doubts, he created the elephant, as stewards of the land, wise enough to be kind, wiser still to be cautious. As time progressed, as the world fell into flux and disarray, as truth and falsehood warred for wounds and for the right of dominion over the world; the elephants stood on the side of the primal truth of an unsullied sound. When river dragons and their falsehoods came to be known as the catalyst for such great suffering, some elephants took up arms.

These were the Naga-Malla, and to this day their breed exists above all others, for their nobility and righteousness. Fewer in number than in times past, they nonetheless carry great respect where it is they tread; and many a mannish house will placate them in hopes of receiving boon or blessing. You are the reincarnated soul of previous Naga-Malla, come once again to ensure the world is held only by the righteous.

Special Abilities:

Arms & Armor - The Naga-Malla, due to being an elephant, is limited in what arms and armor it may wear. It naturally possesses an Armor Class equivalent to Hides, though it may instead choose to go Skyclad if properly anointed and painted for it. Armor for a Naga-Malla must be specifically crafted by artisans, and many armors for war elephants are too crass and vulgar to suit a Naga-Malla. In regards to weaponry, the Naga-Malla can wield any weapon it desires to in its trunk, though it possesses natural weaponry and might be better off not using man-crafted arms at all.

Natural Weapons: The trunk of a Naga-Malla deals d8 damage, its trample deals 2d4, and its tusks deal d8. When used against creatures of significantly vile alignment (Impure, Wicked, or Vile), the damage dice are increased by a degree.

Elephantine - You are an elephant, large and cumbersome, but blessed with divine grace. You may always know, psychically, the general compass directions due to your connection with the earth. You have four legs, tusks, and a trunk; you may trample things, gore things, or strangle things. Your trunk is your only true manipulator limb, and it acts with amazing dexterity.

Spellcasting - The Naga-Malla has the capacity to cast spells from the Earth, Heavens, and Fate domains. They know a number of spells equal to their Level + Wisdom Modifier. They may learn spells from other temples, provided they spend at least one month’s time there or perform a great service for said temple.

My Skin, the Rumbling Earth - The Naga-Malla are proficient in Earth Magic, and may cast spells from this domain as though they were a level higher. Additionally, Naga-Malla possess a tremor-sense that extends out from them in a 30’ aura. If a Naga-Malla meditates or otherwise remains motionless, they can sense the presence of impure or wicked souls.

Remover of Obstacles - The Naga-Malla are blessed by the Lord of the Universe as masters of tribulations and the removal thereof. The Naga-Malla gain advantage on all saves meant to remove barriers, unlock or lock items, break through doors, or to secure a location. You may shrink your form to one the size of a mule, and suffer no disadvantage due to your size or weight when bypassing obstacles (such as walking a narrow precipice, or fitting through a cramped corridor.)

Speaker of the First Thrumming Sound - The Naga-Malla came into being with the first thrumming sounds of existence. The Lord of the Universe, having blessed them with the origin of all sound, granted them the capacity to communicate with all natural things. The Naga-Malla speak through a thrumming psionic voice which radiates out from behind their eyes and the center of their brow; it sounds as it should sound. They can speak any language in the Monsoon Ghats this way, and can communicate gentle commands to animals of lesser intelligence.

Disadvantages

Enemy of Serpents - During the Wounding War, the Naga-Malla gained their title when they struck out at the River Dragons for their dark whispers and mistruths. The Naga-Malla retains this bias towards all serpent-kind, regardless of how many cycles of reincarnation they have fallen through. When confronted with serpents, river dragons, naga, or other sorts of makara, the Naga-Malla must make a morale check or fall into a berserk rage against the creature; shouting condemnations from on high.

Sacred Dharma - The Naga-Malla suffers terrible sickness of self if their actions directly lead to the harm of innocents or those of good karma. If a Naga-Malla suffers a loss of alignment, they suffer Disadvantage until they have made a pilgrimage to the closest shrine and sought out an act to atone for their sins. If a Naga-Malla ever falls into Impure or lower alignment, their tusks begin to burn at their mouth, causing them to speak only lies as they suffer from necrosis of the mouth.

Ignorance of the Illusory - The Naga-Malla exist so firmly as a truth that they have a hard time parsing through the illusory elements of the world. The written word is an utter riddle to them, the study of which perplexes them to the point of headaches. They tend to take men at their word, and for spiritual entities, assume only the concept they’re based around to be truth with no conditions to be applied. Thus to a Naga-Malla, all raksha are wicked and all vanara are good; and any action to the otherwise simply does not make any sense.

Names

1. Yamavarna
2. Gazalikhan
3. Mataangakha
4. Arjundrona
5. Pilliayak
6. Gajachandra
7. Gajara
8. Varanakandi
9. Ihrawani
10. Kaimmati
11. Ibhanoq
12. Gajumanda
13. Mohandes
14. Yamagna
15. Sudraganta
16. Rishikara
17. Varumoksha
18. Dandagaja
19. Rajarukh
20. Ganamali

Titles

1. The Mountain Peak
2. The Lotus of the Caves
3. The Churner of the Seas
4. The Knower Under the Mountains
5. The Long Marcher
6. The Herald of the Sound Primeval
7. The Lord of Elephants
8. The Breaker of Naga
9. The Drinker of Skies
10. The Pillar of Strength
11. The Opener of Ways
12. Of Great War-Wisdom
13. The Noose of the Vile
14. The Inheritor
15. The Mighty
16. The River Lord
17. The Temple’s Might
18. The Herald of Great Truth
19. The Stone Made Shattered
20. The First of their Name

Appearance Randomizer (Hide)

1. Rough hide of charcoal greys, as though coated in ash.
2. Mottled hide of light browns and reds.
3. Supple hide of black, like a starless sky.
4. Soft hide, muddy grey; as though slathered in river clay.
5. Reddish hide like teakwood, covered in small fuzzy hairs.
6. Rough hide of white, smooth as bone to the touch.
7. Leathery hide of blue, as if bathed in cerulean as a babe.
8. Pink hide, with white hairs; like a peach.
9. Tough leathery hide of black, like wood after a forest fire.
10. Grey and ruddy hide, like that of an elephant unburdened by its dharma.

Appearance Randomizer (Tusks)

1. Two tusks, of ivory white, which splay out as if to greet the world.
2. Two tusks, of bone yellow and unequal size, one has seen wounds the other has inflicted them.
3. Three tusks, of pearlescent white, two wrapped over one another like embracing vines, the other curved outward to give them privacy.
4. A single tusk, stained in blood and mottled with pits. The other tusk was lost, and it is felt freshly like a phantom limb.
5. Two tusks, carved short and tipped in gold. Marks of nobility and station.
6. Two tusks, long and ancient, they almost drag upon the ground with the weight of their age.
7. Four tusks, two on each side, bitter and vicious bones. They pierce and rip with the fury of a crocodile or a young bull in musth.
8. Two tusks, one discolored by the foul magics of a witchburner man who sought your tusk for profane rites.
9. Two tusks, carved in the visage of serpents, banded in the leathers of those you’ve slain.
10. A single tusk, cut to half length. In place of a missing tusk, a prosthetic of hateful metal which causes discomfort on a cold night but allows you to feel whole. 

Mark of Reincarnation

1. Depigmentation around your face and eyes displays celestial events from times immemorial. At night they sparkle like stars in the heavens. 
2. Those who stare too deeply into your eyes hear the thrumming of the primal sound in the back of their minds.
3. The tip of your trunk displays patterns of shimmering gold when you use it to manipulate things.
4. You were born with scars from an ancestral soul’s conflict with the River Dragons. 
5. Egrets which land upon your back take the color of celestial peafowl.
6. One of your eyes glows brightly like your inner sun, the other is mournful in its hopes like a midnight’s moon.
7. Your flesh is deeply grooved with edifices of triumph and spells known by distant ancestors.
8. The trumpeting of your trunk can play sweet melodies.
9. The dust at your feet when you walk takes up beautiful colors that suit your mood.
10. You have a full body of wooly hair, like that of a saddhu, marking you as a most ancient soul.

Yoon-Suin Appendix G: Explained List of Suggested Traditional Monsters Found in Yoon-Suin - Part 2.

A continuation of a previous post, for the reions of Lower Druk Yul, The Mountains of the Moon, and Sughd. I actually really enjoyed attempting to incorporate these generic monster listings into a more specific setting, even if it is just set dressings. Some are better than others, (my favorite probably being the Will o'Wisp from the first entry), but I'm enjoying this regardless.

Lower Druk Yul

Bulette - Wayward backwash of dragons, the bullete is a vicious ambush predatory who lurks in the yellow-dappled hills of lower Druk Yul. Each bullete exists in a state of perpetual rage. In life they live in endless hunger, seeking to feast upon man and beast who should be filial chattel to draconic masters, a position they will never hold. In dreams, they turn and churn in froth-mouthed loathing envy for wealth, status, and the ability to fly upon the moonlit skies. Few, save for the most bold of royalty, seek to make a bulette part of their menagerie. Most know well enough to avoid their path.

Ankheg - The Grasshopper men of lower Druk Yul are territorial and barbarous, and among the most violent of them are those who undergo the five-fold murderous right of the Ankheg. Baptized in the blood of larvae and of a herd caterpillar, the Grasshopper man enters a feral state, melting itself down in vitriol and cocooning itself in the flesh of those it seeks to avenge. After a week of horrid rebirth, the Ankheg emerges, now a tunneling beast who sprays acid and who rampages until it has bloated itself to death on the flesh of any who would get in its path.

Gargantua - Beneath the tall grass lurk the colossi of old, half-buried in ruins consumed by the rough, rugged countryside. Flesh melded with ancient black stone, old and calloused, dead but alive. Fifty to a hundred feet tall, sometimes larger, in the form of insects, lizards, man and beasts alike. Their eyes shine with a piercing white cunning which fades to dim starlight when its eyes are closed or obscured. Scholars debate if they are ancient war-men from distant Xinjiang, constructs of the Dwarfs meant to combat the eldritch threats of Upper Druk Yul and the Mountains of the Moon, or the derelict eidolons of once powerful deities who held sway over this sparse territory.

Cyclops - Paragons birthed of the Elephant Demon's most profane rituals, the cyclops are towering humanoids of blue-black skin with a solitary eye, dropping ears, ragged tusks, and violent mien. The eye of a cyclops can be wielded by wizards, sorcerers and sages for the purposes of discerning cosmic but malign truths or to scry curses upon their foes. Cyclops in Lower Druk Yul are often deployed as the shock troopers of a crusading colonization effort by the cult, attempting to pacify grasshopper men or any belligerent intelligent beings who might stand in the way of the faith. Those who are not attached to the cult often seek to inhabit caverns with strange acoustics, howling out mournful songs for ten thousand nameless dead. The Ogre Magi of Syr Darya look upon Cyclops with uncharacteristic pity, in whispers they contemplate if a Cyclops might be a means of binding a Magi's soul into a wretched, bestial, shackled form. 

Hook Horror - The apex natural predator of the borderland, the hook horror is a vaguely insectoid avian creature which dwells in the tall grass. It uses its acute hearing and slithers on its belly across the grasslands, lying in wait for caravans of traders or wayward pilgrims; striking under cover of darkness, flaying the victims alive. Hook horrors leave behind ravaged campsites of skinless corpses. It is not unknown for these creatures to drag skin husks into sinkhole lairs and engage in foul bartering with others of their kind. Slugmen and the Ogre Magi, whose flesh they find to be unpleasant to taste or wear; occasionally engage in trade with these skinflayers; trading slave chattel for the pelts of their enemies.

Jackalwere - Fewer creatures in this world are more insidious than the Jackalwere. Emissaries of the vestiges of long dead deities once worshiped in the Oligarchies and Druk Yul, birthed in the black flame of dragon's spite and given wicked form of man or carrion dog for purposes of bringing ruin and strife to those who cross their path. They infiltrate the camps of pilgrims and travelers, making use of their charisma and charm to lull their prey into a false sense of camaraderie. Once drinks of tea have been shared and kind words of friendship spoken, the Jackalwere mesmerizes the unfortunate soul with a lullaby to nightmares played on a gilded kora. In dreams their victims are at the mercy of dead, decaying, decapitated gods who seek to find any lineage to those who were once loyal and to subjugate the dreamer into an unending insane state of torpor. If caught in the act, a Jackalwere fights with brutal swords and flees in animal form only if confronted by holy-men or overwhelming force.

Manscorpion - Known to scholars as the Girtablilu, the manscorpion are a race of guardian spirits given form. Appearing at gateways into the underworld, these raksha-faced entities guard the border between spirit and man, punishing those who try to trifle between such places. They can remove their faces, revealing a cosmic truth that has been storied as a glance which melts the face of those whom they gaze upon. With their face removed their spiritual side appears as a star-light smoke of gold and blue, rising to the heavens and casting forth a terror to those who view it; a hallucinogenic trance in which the victim feels as though thousands of scorpions are attempting to burst forth from their flesh. All wield wicked glaives in antiquated stile, embellished with lapis lazuli and cruel barbs. They will hold counsel only with demigods or the blind, and in neither case do they enjoy it.

Medusa - The Protectress of a long damned apotropaic spell, the Medusa and her wards have made their home in Lower Druk Yul so as to make her many pursuers further burdened in their hunting. Originally a daitya of Upper Druk Yul, she was brought low and cursed by dragons for her refusal to aid in the cosmic wars between their kind and the eldritch creatures from the Mountains of the Moon. Each thread of her hair was given serpentine form and each whispers terrible paranoid secrets into her ears. She fled her home only to be hunted by Slugmen warlocks who had learned of her warding spells of petrification. Shackled by their foul magic and told by her serpentine locks that she awaited eternal humiliation and indignity at the slugmen's hands, she carved her spell into her eyes such that any who met her gaze would find themselves locked eternally in stone. After generations of flight and pursuit by hubristic wizards, cabals, and cults; she began to carve her victims in her own image, granting them similar abilities. She is now pursued by the Cult of the Elephant Demon who has discovered there is but only one true Medusa, and who seek to force her to grant them her spell.

Mummy - In ancient times, there were kingdoms here. Mound-dwellers and nomads with their own traditions and cultures, who once reigned over Druk Yul, paid homage to dragons and fouler things. The horse-lords of the Pallum Jun, eternally debauched Belshum Pel, the gold-tusked royals of Sahbassiq, the masked folk of Khemmendruk, even ever-frozen Gelun; all surpassed the prior in bitter wars and genocide, all undone in hubris and ambition. Their dead were shrived and ritually buried, regardless of the corpse being mangled by grasshopper men, eternally scorched in dragon's flame, or host to a legion of foul spirits. Hundreds, even thousands of years since their fall, they still thirst for dominance and treasure. The jingling of coins, the misplaced desire of settlers looking for a new home, will see these mummies rise from their deep places. Silently they stalk their prey, blighting the earth and carrying the curses of their fallen kingdoms in their wake.

The Mountains of the Moon & Sughd

Giant Crayfish - These crustaceans were in ancient times, the livestock of otherworldly entities who conjured them from baleful moonlight and the cosmic milk of lingering distant stars. Not until great wars and calamities against the Dwarves of Sangmanzhang, were they pressed into use as mounts for extraterrestrial cavalry and eventually Dwarven Irregulars. The breed found commonly in the Mountains of the Moon are opalescent in color, their meat a soft sour that when properly brined can inhibit trans-dimensional visions. Some are stilled use in the armies of the oligarchies, others roam the deep and hidden places, submerged in reflected starlight, and hungry for the flesh of mortal beings.

Tentacled Blink Cat - The Tentacled Blink Cat is an emissary of the long night, an heir to ancient wars between the Celestial Blink Hound written of in texts in the ancient halls of Sangmanzhang. One would chase the other, never would the two meet, and so the legends go that whenever one grasped close enough to another they would tear into the curtain of the void and reveal a bit of light. The tentacled blink cats of our modern era are surely less legendary, though no less savage in the destruction they can bring. They possess a hateful intelligence, utterly alien, which reviles all life. While their young will sadistically kill their prey to be nourished by the meat, elder examples of the species are able to sustain themselves on the psionic evocations of pure terror and dying memories--often allowing their lairs to be overgrown with rotting corpse mounds as a sign of stature. When confronted with a mountain dog they will either attempt to chase it or flee from it, explaining in many cases the use of shishi or foo dog statues that line the roads of the Oligarchies. Such cats fear the overwhelming numbers of a pack and will cling to their hidden places in the face of these icons; though such safety is never assured.

Dwarf - See Dwarves of Sangmanzhang. Most encountered will be waging ancient blood feud wars, performing profane rites to invoke the void lotus, bartering with old enemies to spite even older enemies, or attempting to find the location of ancient Sangmanzhang -- in all its fallen glory.

Galeb Duhr - When the wind blows strangely through the Mountains of the Moon, they ring out in frozen chants "Ga Leb Du Hr." The Dwarfs know the meaning of this phrase, which causes the rocks of the Mountain to spring to life in sorrowful imitations of long dead soldiers; but the truth of the matter is not something they will readily speak aloud to foreign scholars. The Ogres of Syr Darya believe it to be a cleansing chant, "All Wicked Spirits Be Gone From Here", though in translation this would be an incredibly flawed reading. The rocks which take form and fight during this time, speak only these words, and to the Oligarchies they are known as the Galeb Duhr. Those wise enough to know the weathers, or those skilled in wind sorcery, often attempt to rouse the rocks from their slumber while enemies move through their territory; but such an art is hard mastered and harder still to perform to perfection.

Genies (in Sughd) - In Sughd, as much as in any other place of civilization, the wheels of society move very slowly. The Genies, or Jinn, are that which move it just a little quicker at the behest of their masters; bound and shackled to labor for all eternity by magicians and wizards alike. Though once creatures of primordial elemental power and chaos, they were drawn through the veil of reality and bound into sick and weakly shapes by mortal hands. They perform minor miracles and serve as a celestial bureaucracy bound to the mortal world, attending to matters on the authority of their human betters, hateful of every moment in which they are denied the powers of their original existence. Occasionally a genie may break free and resume its original form as a dao, ifrit, marid, or whatever elemental title it clung to; such beings often take up the task of waging war against Sughd with armies of elementally-blessed mercenaries enticed by the promise of wishes which might better their lot in life. The Yellow City knows well enough not to bind genies, it is far easier to torment meat into doing as they are demanded than to trifle with such raw and hateful magics. Some claim they learned this lesson the hard way.

Cloud Giant - Vicious dharmapala, the sky-painters, the word-thieves; the Cloud Giants dwell among the stars and the frozen-most points of the Mountains of the Moon, wherein they reign as judges and masters of their stratospheric realm. When the year is right, they paint tales of ancient days in the auroras, breathing to life alien lights from their mouths and eyes. They dance a dance of the end times, of avalanches, or meteor showers. Their arms move in and out of existence, causing the appearance of anywhere from four to six limbs at any given times. Their eyes shift places in much the same way, gazing into past, present, future, below, above, beneath, and to the land of the dead with pulsating and dizzying fervor. The words spoken to them by mortals of weakened wills are frozen in the air, lost forever from the mortal mouth; some of the Cloud Giants wear such words as jewelry, others devour them and mock eternal the victim in their own voice.

Storm Giant - Beneath the Cloud Giants, in the storm-hidden caves of the mountains, dwell the drum bangers, the thunder-brewers, the man-burners. Gathering in pairs, these behemoth men of ebony and rain-cloud-made-meat whoop and holler at the tribulations and melancholies of men. These mahakala loathe silence, revile politeness, and love only those whose hearts overflow with violent ambition. Many tales of a heroic Storm Giant exist, often depicting the character shifting and ebbing through humanity and monsterful cruelty. Those of age and experience can temper their outbursts, often working forges and finding patience in the slamming of mighty ono hammers upon cloud forges. Such giants produce weapons of legend, for both heroes and villains alike.

Stone Giant - The great ogres, the daityas, the scribes of earth's truth; they dwell in and around the oligarchies, in the dark places, in the hidden places, in the lost places. They intone low thrumming sounds and hear back the echoes of the world. Notably man-eaters, this has not prevented many a delver and adventurer from seeking out their insight in search of hidden cities and places of great wealth. To one another they call themselves the gönpo, and they are known by this name in certain esoteric texts, far-flung city-states, and within the annals of Syr Darya where they are noted as bitter protectors of sacred oaths. Few ogre magi will comment on what this means, though secret sacrifices to deep-built ashrams occur thrice a year, via caravans out of Syr Darya. These stone giants are spoken of in tales for their taste for virgins, though the truth of what it is they hunger for is open to interpretation. More than a few wayang plays have been dedicated to the gönpo who eat away a virgin's innocence so they might better fight a foe who would otherwise manipulate their humanity.

Roc - Praise is oft given to the divine bird of the Tree, the Ziz of the Mountains of the Moon, the genus loci of Yoon-Suin itself. Resplendent in size and feathers, the Roc is the immortal enemy of the Elephant Demon; known to swoop down from the heavens and steal away the Demon's avatars to feast upon their knobby grey flesh. Their shaking head horn, easily the size of a horse, is said to herald the coming of the monsoon. Many a legendary magicians, slug-man, fakir, and monster hunter have hunted the Roc for the golden ivory of its horn; which when brewed in tea can allegedly heal any poison, and when carved into netsuke is said to produce wondrous living figurines. They are known in frescoes and carvings from the earliest ages of man-kind in the region, with some claiming the pestilent feces of the great Roc is the cause for the many powerful strains of tea to be found throughout the Purple Lands. Folkwives tell tall tales of offering up serpents to the Roc, who upon devouring the serpents will bless the anointed worshipers with wealth, yak, and divine guidance. Just as many wayfarers cast the Roc as a harbinger of doom; if one is seen near the road, even from a great distance, it knows of you; and it will cast you down into torments unless its great appetite is appeased.

Next: Probably some notes for the Monsoon Ghats, as I've been deep into research for that and it's been fun to look into the cultural upbringing I was denied.

Yoon-Suin Appendix G: Explained List of Suggested Traditional Monsters Found in Yoon-Suin - Part 1.

I've been dealing with existential dread, so here's some very late Yoon-Suin Encounter tables and an attempt to incorporate the Yoon-Suin Appendix G additional monsters into said tables with my notes on how I'd run them beneath it all. Monster context is important, it is what makes the setting the setting. Below are the first three regions in the Appendix G, twisted a bit to incorporate consolidated lore from other editions or to just try to play off regional items I'm into.

The Yellow City & The Topaz Isles

Sahugain - Degenerate fishmen and shark-kin, the Sahugain haunt the brackish reefs near the Topaz Isles. The Sahugain are said to be born by the last hateful breath of drowned Hayai nomads, cursed now to swim the sea in endless hunger for the flesh of their former people. They war with the kraken-men and can be found, occasionally, in the employ of adventuring guilds and head-hunters who seek to contend with beasts of the deep.

Locathah - Sand and ochre-colored fishmen who can be found in the lower docks and markets of the Yellow City, often seeking to purchase foreign intoxicants. The Locathah encountered by most are pilgrims, searching for the "the true dream of the haunted sea" which is an alleged primal god-head state that can be tapped into by those of the right sensibilities. Many a cult or magus can count Locathah among their henchmen as a result of this.

Giant Crab - The giant crabs of the Bay of Morays are naturally occurring animals that feast upon the detritus of the Yellow City. Less scrupulous managers of crab-fighting troupes will make use of the far stronger but far less intelligent giant crabs rather than deal with the potential rebellions of crab-men proper. This practice would be frowned upon, but few are able to tell the difference between the two creatures.

Tako - As goblins are to man, tako are to the kraken-men. These octopi-folk wage petty wars among themselves and anyone unfortunate enough to stumble into their coastal cave-dwellings. Of note, a tako can be bargained with so long as their payment is made in knives. Tako view knives as the teeth of a great leviathan, and those who would use such "teeth" in treachery invite upon themselves misfortune.

Selkie - Shapeshifting female spirits of Hayai folktales, the Selkies of the Bay of Morays take either the form of a tropical monk seal or a manatee depending upon their age and power. Young Selkies are intensely curious about the surface world and take upon the lithe form of seals as a show of their playfulness and exuberance. Older Selkies, who know well the cruelties of the Bay, take the form of manatees, their hides pock-marked by the sufferings inflicted upon them. The Slugmen of the Yellow City have heard tales of marrying Selkies for dominion over the sea, and though a fool's errand, many seek to abduct these creatures for such a union.

Basilisk - Imported from deep underground and from across the sea, Basilisks are a companion beast that were for many decades considered to be en vogue by the decadent Slugmen of the Yellow City. Their popularity comes and goes as pets, with those discarded by their Slugmen owners either ending up captured by poisoners and freelance torturers or running wild in the slums, gorging themselves on cockroaches and pariahs.

Reef Giants - These titanic anchorites dwell deep beneath the Bay, meditating in contemplation of some greater being to whom they owe their loyalty. Occasionally one awakens, instructed by strange whispers to pilfer and plunder the riches of other beings and bring them to the deepest trenches of the sea. Though usually solitary, they occasionally gather in family groups best comparable to a brahmin household in both opulence and hierarchy.

Giant Squid - While often noted as warbeasts of the Kraken-men, the giant squids of the Bay of Morays are naturally occurring entities which seek only to feed upon whales, manatees, and other large ocean-dwelling creatures. When spurred on by Kraken-men, they seem to possess a hive-mind and a cruel cunning that allows them to take delight in twisting men apart.

The Hundred Kingdoms & Lahag

Beholders - Conjured into being in ages past by a cabal of magicians who studied among Sangmenzheng, the Beholders are aberrant elder entities of paranoia made flesh. Originally intended to protect fakirs and shahs from the plots of their enemies, the Beholders engaged in horrifying tortures of the flesh and consumption of potential beings who could harbor thoughts of harm in their hearts. Many early kingdoms were destroyed to the last by Beholders who sought to protect their charge, only to consume them to protect them from the threat of these degenerate kings taking their own lives.

Ettercap - Ettercaps in the Hundred Kingdoms are foul champions of the Spider Goddess, formerly high ranking cultists who have lost their minds and humanity to be blessed with her venomous mien. These spider-faced demons can be found in sealed temple rooms where they are fed failed aspirants, in the wild where they hunt those who do not bare her mark, or on the fringes of settlements that worship the Elephant Demon--as such places are always ripe with gore to feast upon.

Gloomwing - These gigantic moths dwell within the haunted jungle of Lahag, and those who know of them claim them to be the cause for many an angry ghost. Making use of baleful pheromones and hypnotic powers, gloomwings ensnare their prey, eat their physical shell, and leave their shadow to wander the jungles as a wraith. The unfortunate soul who is implanted with the eggs of a Gloomwing has their spirit devoured, casting their immortal soul from the cycle of reincarnation and into oblivion.

Intelligent Plants - Lahag and the fringes of the Hundred Kingdoms are rife with terrors, including the very flora of the land. The haunted jungle is filled with carnivorous spidery white creeper vines which throw pollen-coated thorns the size of knives, those struck by them suffer extreme necrosis and rot away into rich soil within a matter of hours. Mantrapper plants are common both in the jungle and the private gardens of the Hundred Kingdoms, where such plants dissolve their victims in acid and produce hallucinogenic "corpse honey." Though of the dozen additional dangerous plants of the jungle, the most notable is the Yellow Musk Creeper, whose musky puff ball flowers can grant angry spirits physical form and infect the living into becoming mindless thralls.

Stirge - The Stirges of Lahag have the bodies of brightly colored birds and cruel, adaptive proboscises made from draining away blood from specific body parts. Some can inject a venom which liquefies muscle, others melt away bone, but all are known to cause paralysis in victims. Jungle Stirges gather in large colonies, building nests from the rotting bodies of their victims. Due to their large "noses" and general horrifying abilities, Stirges are considered to be heralds of the Elephant Demon and can be found building their nests as far away from Lahag as Runggara Ban.

Wraith - Derelict shades, wraiths cling to the mortal world by way of their last dreadful memories. Ancient kingdoms can be overrun by wraiths who exist in perpetual agony of their city-state's downfall, attacking outsiders in the hopes of infesting their bodies and fleeing the calamity that seems nascent. Wraiths produced by gloomwings exist in pure torment, lashing out at the living in the hopes of displacing their souls and fleeing the jungle.

Wight - Wights in Lahag are formed from the cursed bodies of royalty, drowned in the God River by demons. At night they crawl from the waters, seeking to devour outlanders and those who would not pay them homage. Their bones are carved with hellish embellishments and their flesh painted in rot that tells the stories of their downfall. Those of their bloodline or who pay them a respect may learn from the wights the true names of demonic entities.

Lamarakh

Bullywug - Along the God-River there are many degenerate tribes which have entered into more devoted unions with their totemic gods, and among the most notable are the toad people who dwell in the muddy mangroves. Cannibalistic to their young, eternally hungry, bloated and corpulent, these batrachian people view anyone other than their own people as a threat. Lamarakhi hunters who travel through their areas will often wear elaborate horned frog masks and slather themselves in mud, as this is often enough to fool a Bullywug.

Catoblepas - These creatures are meandering swamp beasts with long necks, pig-like snouts, and matted hair which obscures their face and vision. They eat brambles and pond weeds, gnaw upon ginger root, and only upon nights of the full moon do they become a true threat. On such nights the Catoblepas desires to feast upon the flesh of virgins, and their eyes become visible and to gaze upon them causes madness.

Dryad (Jungle) - Dryads of the Lamarakh are the spirits of mangrove and swamp baobab, and thus are either guardians who dilettante the river from the land or predatory demons who seek to allow for the destruction of man's influence. They manifest themselves, typically with flowers woven in their hair and whorls painted upon their bare flesh. Those who lay with men, depending on their predilection, either grant the man divine rite to protect their people from the evils of the River, or they absorb their mate into their own flesh, making use of his soul as a homunculus meant to render the tribe into ruin.

Grippli - If the Bullywug are degenerate tribesmen, then the Grippli are what they once venerated before falling into horned frog totemic degeneration. The Grippli are a breed of jungle spirits who dwell within the low-hanging fruit that hangs above the river. When they fall into the river they are born as brilliantly colored frog-people who will help lead people back to known paths, villages, or show them rich fishing areas.Though now in an age where the Bullywug exist in force, the Grippli are seldom kind to those who do not prove themselves worthy of their boons.

Weretiger - Dwellers of the river-forest know well the tale of the Weretiger. A lost prince from the Hundred Hundred Kingdoms came to the jungle in the hopes of beseeching it for aid against those who butchered his family. He was a timid and kind man, but now he saw enemies everywhere and had become a vicious man himself. The jungle took pity on his soul and bifurcated his essence. In times of peace, when his enemies were not around him, he would be a man as he once was. But in times of rage, a demon would burst from his skin in the form of a tiger. The lost prince may have passed away many moons ago, but his spawn and some of his victims possess a similar curse--unburdened without his empathy.

Intelligent Plants - see Hundred Kingdoms entry, but in Lamarakh they are water-logged, vicious, and often aquatic.

Vodyanoi - If the River is divine, then the vodyanoi are its crusaders. Hulking entities that resemble powerful pot-bellied pit fighters with the heads of knobby-hided whales; all obfuscated under endless tangles of strangling reeds and feasting eelings who suckle for the blood of the river's chosen. Some tribes of the river hold the idea that the vodyanoi were once objects of worship and deserving of respect, while others have legends of profane and vicious sacrifices in which the creatures would maul and rip apart the flesh of virgins until the river ran red. Regardless, when the river demands blood, the storm clouds gather, the air grows rich with thickness, and the vodyanoi seek out enemies with terrible claws and the rippling energy of electrical eels.

Will o'Wisp - The shadow fires of Lamarakh dance along the edges of the river, inside the mouths of totems, behind the eyes of jangseung statues. They are the spirits of the ancestors, mischievous and baleful as often as they are kind and a boon to travelers. They delight in wayang puppetry, often joining in to increase the lighting quality and better animate their chosen heroes and villains. In the event of a wicked encounter with such beings, they are known to accept coinage (or even just coin-shaped items) thrown to the river. They will dive for such items, snuffing out their lights, and ceasing to be for a time.

Next time - Part 2.

Happy Holidays - Gifts for Dolmenwood Classes

Gifts for Dolmenwood Classes PDF

It has been several long months since I've been able to properly work on some Dolmenwood content for public consumption. Yesterday I challenged myself to make amends for this by writing a holiday adventure in a single day. I'm not exactly done with it yet, but people certainly seem to think the concept has promise.
That being said, I did finish one of the bigger parts of this adventure: an appendix of gifts to be given to adventurers of every Dolmenwood class/race-as-class by a Host. The adventure is written to be played by 2nd-3rd level characters, the sort who are starting to get known; as such nothing gift-wise is outlandishly expensive or powerful. They are merely nice little utilities. For some of the newer classes mentioned on the Dolmenwood MeWe, I've operated on my own assumptions. I've also operated on the assumption of Dolmenwood being in Emeraude, meaning that Havenland and the Midderlands exist in a broader setting. I hope that I might have the adventure done by Christmas Day, or even New Year's at the latest. Looking at layout, it is about 40 pages long including all appendices.

As for other projects and such in my life, they are chugging along, slowly as ever. But progress is being made and I've wisened up to being more than just a one man operation. Things will get better, more efficient, more interesting. In time.

Regardless, have a wonderful holiday.
- Brian Richmond.