2012-12-22 More Monsters

/pics/8295888903_a351136729.jpg

Recently I started extracting the monsters from my Caverns of Slime adventure and posting it on this blog. The idea is that this way, people might spot something they like without having to go through the thirty or fourty pages of the adventure. It also makes it easier to leave a comment on a particular element.

Caverns of Slime

When I wrote *Caverns of Slime*, I decided that all of the magic-users in the adventure would have a complete spell book with new names for all the spells. I hoped that referees would then pick the effects from obvious matches in their rule book or improvise something interesting. That’s how I handle it. Does this work for you? Would you have preferred me to use the standard spell names and list new spells at the end as appears to be the standard approach these days?

• *ghoul*: HD 3; AC 6; Atk 2 claws and 1 bite (1d6 each); MV 9; victims need to save vs. paralysis or be paralysed; these ghouls prefer to eat their helpless victims during combat; in subsequent rounds roll a d6 and loose 1. eye, 2. arm, 3. other arm, 4. liver, 5. heart, 6. brain; mutilated corpses rise as ghouls within the hour and grow terrible claws if an arm or two was lost
• *bulbous demon*: HD 13; AC 6; Atk 1 bite (2d6); MV 3; victims need to save vs. paralysis or suffer the same fate as a ghoul victim; can only be hit by magic weapons
• *lemur*: HD 1; AC 6; Atk 1 bite (1d6); MV 3
• *psychic lampreys*: HD 5; AC 5; Atk 1 bite (2d6) and 1 psi storm (save vs. paralysis or faint for 1d6 rounds); MV 3 fly
• *spider warrior*: HD 5; AC 3; Atk 2 weapons and bite (1d8, 1d8, 1d6); MV 9 climbing
• *Kilistrexta*, arachnid queen: HD 12; AC 3; Atk 1 bite (1d6); MV 6 climbing
• *giant spider*, intelligent: HD 6; AC 3; Atk 2 claws and bite (1d6 each); MV 9 climbing; save vs. poison when bitten or fall unconscious as your internal organs are slowly digested; terminal damage after one hour; these are effectively spider barbarians, cruel and angry, always trying to rob and steal from their city dwelling relatives; they respect violence
• *giant ant*: HD 4; AC 3; Atk 1 bite (2d6), acid spray (3d6); MV 9
• *great mother* of the ants: HD 15; AC 4; Atk 1 bite (3d6), MV 3; pheromone powers: all giant ants will know when their queen needs help; the acid vapours in the queen’s cave require a save vs. poison every round to act
• *gargantuan centipede queen*: HD 12; AC 3; Atk 1 bite (3d6), MV 6; save vs. poison or die in excruciating pain within three rounds
• *Atraxaka*, arachnomatrix, is willing to trade in spells and information: no stats given but I’d base her on the arachnid queen: HD 13; AC 3; Atk 1 bite (1d6); MV 6 climbing

Spells of the arachnomatrix (level 13):

+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+
|           1st level            |           2nd level            |           3rd level            |           4th level            |
+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+
| *the friendship of lesser      | *hunting and webbing*          | *the tongues of strangers*     | *jumping through space on the  |
| minds*                         |                                |                                | strands of our forefathers*    |
| *power of mimicry*             | *triangulation of know         | *electric powers of            | *subjugation of reason*        |
|                                | objects*                       | destruction*                   |                                |
| *communion with animals*       | *conquest of gravity*          | *powers of flight*             | *arachnophobia of the highest  |
|                                |                                |                                | degree*                        |
| *telestrangulation using       | *detection of magical          | *silken words of binding*      |
| strands of webbing*            | energies*                      |                                |
| 5th level                      | 6th level                      | 7th level                      |                                |
| *travel to the shadow lands*   | *communicating with the        | *mysteries of astral chords    |                                |
|                                | ancient earth spirits*         | and travel to foreign worlds*  |                                |
| *contacting the spider lords   | (unassigned)                   |                                |
| of the beyond*                 |                                |                                |
| (unassigned)                   |                                |
+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+--------------------------------+

Atraxaka also knows how to build a *rod of electric destruction* (shoots *lightning bolts* for 3d6 at will with a 5% chance to hit somebody near the intended victim unless the wielder has four arms to aim it with).

​#RPG ​#Old School ​#Monsters ​#Caverns of Slime