The Bzou, or Charming Wolf-Man

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The Bzou is inspired by the adversary in the earliest known form of the “Little Red Riding Hood” story, sometimes known as the “Tale of Grandmother”. The Bzou is a form of were-wolf, but differs significantly from the modern pop-culture conception of lycanthropes.

BZOU (Charming Wolfman)
A vicious wolf-man with an unusually charming demeanor.

NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1
SIZE: Medium
HD: 5 (d12)
MOVE: 40 ft.
AC: 16
ATTACKS: 1 Bite (1d4), 2 Claws (1d3+3)
SPECIAL: Twilight Vision, Regeneration 1, Charming, Strong, Lustful
SAVES: P
INT: Average (but High cunning)
ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Evil
TYPE: Monstrous Humanoid
TREASURE: 5
XP: 260+5

A Bzou is a human who has become overwhelmed by perverted desires and devolved into a bestial form. The Bzou retains its upright posture and humanoid shape, but it bears sharp claws and teeth, and a body covered in hair. The facial features have a lupine cast, and its ears are long and pointed. The eyes of a Bzou are human, but they seem to burn with unspeakable lust.

Unlike an ordinary Lycanthrope, a Bzou is not affected by the phases of the moon. Nor can they easily change back and forth between human and wolfman form. Once a human devolves into a Bzou, they remain in that form until their compulsions are satisfied, anywhere from a single night to a period of years. Bzous are solitary, never forming packs. Once a Bzou returns to its human form it loses all special abilities, becoming a normal person in every way. The person may not even remember the time they spent as a Bzou. Those bitten by a Bzou do not become Bzous themselves.

Bzous can speak, and they do so in a perfectly normal human voice. They are cunning creatures, and like to create elaborate traps for their human prey. They are also disturbingly attracted to young women, and will usually play twisted games with them before attacking.

Unlike a normal Lycanthrope, a Bzou is subject to attack from normal weapons. Bzous have their own set of unique powers and abilities, however.

Combat: A Bzou attacks withs its claws and teeth. They are perfectly capable of using weapons, but prefer the savagery of employing their natural weapons. On the other hand, it is not unknown for a Bzou to use a knife and fork to consume a victim that has already been felled.

Regeneration: A Bzou is hard to kill, regenerating at a rate of 1 hit point per round. They can no longer regenerate after being reduced to 0 hit points, however. Unlike a troll, they cannot re-bond severed limbs, although they can re-grow them over a period of a week.

Charming: Despites its bestial appearance, a Bzou is extremely persuasive. Anyone speaking with a Bzou must save versus Wisdom (Challenge Level 5) or be effectively under the effects of a Charm Person spell for a turn. Persons so affected can also be convinced that the Bzou is not actually a monster but instead a trusted figure (such as a guardsmen, or a grandmother). A Bzou will sometimes even wear the clothing of the figure it pretends to be. Bzous especially enjoy using their charm ability to trick ordinary people into engaging in cannibalism.

Strong: A Bzou is extraordinarily strong, having an equivalent Strength rating of 18. It receives a +3 modifier to all appropriate SEIGE checks and combat rolls.

Lustful: A Bzou is cunning, but entirely the thrall of its desires. If confronted by such temptations as a pretty woman or fresh raw meat, a Bzou must save versus Wisdom (challenge Level 5) or stop whatever it is doing to devote its attention to the temptation. A Bzou will even break off combat and subject itself to life-threatening situations in order to indulge its desires.

Optional Rules For The Magician Class

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OPTIONAL RULES FOR MAGICIANS
The following optional rules would allow CKs and players to tailor the Magician class to their own Campaigns. Some create role-playing challenges, some replicate the qualities of Magicians from cultures other than medieval Europe, and some greatly increase the power of Magicians.

POETIC INCANTATIONS: Instead of the Magician using a Magical Implement, she would create her Incantations through Poetry. Every time such a Magician wants to use an Incantation she knows, the player must spontaneously create a rhyming couplet that indicates the spell effect desired, and its target. The player must create a new couplet each time she wants to use an Incantation. This option would replicate much of the magic of Celtic legend, which often relied on just such Poetic Incantations.

MULTIPLE TALISMANS: Instead of having only one Talisman active at a time, the Magician could keep many charged at the same time. The total Levels of active Talismans would be equal to the Magician’s own Level. Therefore, an 8th Level Magician would be able to keep 8 total levels of spell effects constantly bound in Talismans. This option would more faithfully replicate the historical employment of Talismans, but also increase the power of the Magician class. It is only recommended if the CK is somewhat stringent in his placement of magic items in treasure. The Magician might also pay for this power with a 20% penalty to earned Experience Points.

PERSISTENT TALISMANS: Instead of Talismans only lasting 28 days, they could persist until the Magician either discharges them, or dies. By itself, this option would increase the power of the Magician slightly. If combined with the Multiple Talismans options, Magicians would become much more powerful than any other character class. The CK is advised to decrease the availability of magic items severely if both the Multiple Talismans and Persistent Talismans options are employed in the Campaign. The CK might also decide to inflict a 10% penalty on the Magician’s earned experience points to pay for the power to make Talismans persistent.

EMPOWERING ACT: Instead of having a Power Object, the Magician could draw her strength from a obsessive daily ritual. Typically, this would mean a period of silent meditation, but acts of a more illicit nature have also been used by the Magicians of legend. The Magician character would have to perform her Empowering Act every day, for a number of minutes equal to her character Level times 15. For example, a 10th level Magician would have to perform their Empowering Act for at least two and a half hours each day. Failure to perform the Empowering Act would deprive the Magician of the ability to use magic until the next day.

EMPOWERING BANS: Rather than possessing a Power Object, the Magician might be inflicted with mysterious Bans, or Taboos. This option would replicate the taboos of shamans, the as well as the geasa of the Irish Druids. The Magician would acquire a new Ban every Level. Bans might include never wearing a certain color, not eating a certain kind of common meat, never saying a certain word, never refusing a request from a certain kind of person, etc. For every Ban broken, the Magician would lose one Level for the remainder of the day. Naturally, CKs should try to create situations where the Magician might break his Bans!

GRASPING AT POWER: Using this option, a Magician could attempt to cast a spell that he knows, but is normally above his Level. The player would roll a d20, and add their character’s Intelligence modifier. The result would be compared to the chart below, to find the result of the Magician’s Grasping At Power.

Effect of Grasping At Power:
1-2 – Spell fails, and the Magician is slain, body and soul. Resurrection is impossible.
3-4 – Spell fails, and the Magician is killed from physical strain. Can possibly be Raised or Resurrected with appropriate magic.
5-6 – Magician is bodily transported to another plane of existence and imprisoned there.
7-8 – Spell occurs, but backfires. If it was an offensive spell, it affects the caster. If the spell was a Summoning, the Summoned creature is extremely hostile, and can ignore any of the Magician’s spells intended to hinder or harm it. If the spell was intended to help the caster, it instead harms him. Ability increases become penalties, healing spells inflict damage, and protection spells that backfire inflict total vulnerability (i.e arrows always hit, etc.)
9-10 – Spell occurs and assumes a life of its own, becoming permanent until someone dispels it. The Magician has no control over the spell. If it is a offensive spell, it continues perpetually in its original area of effect, but not necessarily against its intended target. If the spell was a Summoning, it continues to Summon its intended subject (which is under no kind of control) once every day in a perpetual loop. Spells like Telekinesis or Unseen Servant can create an effect similar to a Poltergeist haunting. A Spell like Teleport could cause the caster to randomly and constantly disappear and re-appear in strange locations. Spells that are personally beneficial will inevitably become twisted curses, such as a perpetual increase in Intelligence eventually causing the Magician’s brain to swell and explode. A creature inflicted with perpetual healing may turn into a regenerating freak covered with bizarre growths. A perpetual Wish might trap the Magician in an alternate reality where everything he says becomes literally (and horribly) true.
11-13 – Spell simply fails, with no side effects.
14-15 – Spell is cast, but the Magician is reduced to 1 hp, and falls into a deep slumber from which they cannot be roused for a number of days equal to the Level of the spell they attempted.
16-17 – Spell works, but the Grasping At Power attracts the notice of an extraplaner creature inimical to the Magician, who will thereafter become a constant annoyance.
18-19 – Spell works, but is only minimally effective (minimum damage, etc.).
20+ – Spell works as normal, with no side effects.

If the player rolls a natural 20, the Magician also attains new insight into magic, and gains Experience Points equal to 1,000 x the Level of the spell.

TEST OF ALLEGIANCE: If this option is used, every time time the Magician uses a Pact there would be a percentage chance, equal to the Pact’s Level, that the granting Power will demand an appropriate service from the Magician for the right to continue using the Pact. Tests of Allegiance appropriate to specific powers might include:
Angels: Rescue an orphan from a pack of werewolves. Anonymously deliver food and money to a starving family.
Demons: Throw a rotting dog down a local well to poison it. Unseal the terrestrial prison of a Demon.
Devils: Seduce a local beauty studying to enter a chaste religious order. Falsely accuse an innocent woman of being a witch.
Fairy Folk: Help a Fairy gain a human lover. Secretly replace all the holy hymnals at a temple with bawdy songs.

Note: Thanks to Serleran for suggesting the The Grasping At Power and Test of Allegiance options on the Troll Lord Games Forums.

New Class – The Classic Magician

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The following is an attempt at a magic-using class that replicates the feel of “real” medieval and Renaissance magic, as expressed both in legend, and the actual grimoires. Such things as the Magician’s ability to Encipher were inspired by the works and exploits of such notables as John Dee and Johannes Trithemius. The Magician is much more versatile than the standard C&C Wizard, but has certain unique limitations that create role-playing challenges. The first draft of this class was posted to the Troll Lord Games Forums. This draft includes some minor modifications to the original version.

MAGICIAN

One who works wonders with strange incantations, bizarre ceremonies, enchanted talismans, and secret pacts.

Standing aloof from the mundane crowd, the mighty Magician twists reality itself to suit his will. Wielding strange powers gained by stranger means, he is alternately a figure of admiration, fear, wonder, and disgust to ordinary men. Through his arcane arts, the Magician can do such things as kill his enemies; gain wealth, power, and love; destroy armies; cure and cause wounds and diseases; create illusions; divine hidden knowledge; and transform into other shapes. Some Magicians work to improve the world through arcane means. Many more, however, pursue private schemes that range from merely insane, to terrifyingly malevolent.

An ordinary person cannot simply decide to become a Magician. Rather, the aspiring Magician must be initiated, either by another Magician, or by an extra-planer entity. Often, the aspirant enters into an Apprentice-Master relationship with a single, experienced Magician. Other times, the neophyte becomes a member of one of the existing Magical Orders, secret organizations generally characterized by strange rites, hierarchical structures, and secret agendas. If the Magician was Initiated by an extra-planer being (such as a Devil, Demon, Angel, or Fairy), he or she must have located and performed a summoning Ritual that attracted the attention of the initiating entity. Some such Rituals are well known and relatively simple (such as that which attracts a Black Man of the Crossroads), while others are far rarer and more complex (such as that which contacts a holy Guardian Angel). Some Magical Orders actually summon extra-planer entities to their induction ceremonies, to serve as the actual initiators of new magicians. Under no circumstances can an Initiation ever be coerced – in order to be efficacious, it must be voluntarily conferred.

Some tension exists between those Magicians who are members of Magical Orders, or have mortal Masters, and those who answer only to extra-planer entities. Many Magical orders are not above attacking, or causing legal trouble for, those renegade Magicians who refuse to submit to the orders’ authority.

The term “spells” refers both to the effects created by Magicians, and the techniques used to create them. The acquisition of new spells is a constant concern of the Magician. These can be gained in a number of ways. Those Magicians who have personal Masters, or are members of Magical Orders, are usually taught such spells as their superiors deem fit. Spells can also be learned from the Spirits themselves, who are generally able to teach the ones that correspond to their own magical powers. Magicians also constantly experiment with magic, often creating new spells through their own research. Finally, spells can be gleaned from ancient texts, or even stolen from other Magicians!

Magicians are usually Humans, Elves, or Gnomes. Humans often focus on Ceremonial Magic, while Elves prefer Incantations, and Gnomes are masters of Talismans. Halflings are often afraid of true magic, while Dwarves suffer both from a lack of aptitude, and severe social sanctions against extra-religious magic. There are few Half-Orcs Magicians, but they are not unknown.

Magicians often have a complicated relationship with society at large. Secular nobility often look to Magicians to counter the temporal power of the Clergy. Many human nobles will employ a court Magician, asking occasional magical favors in return for a generous stipend, and ignoring any unsavory habits the Magician may posses. Human Clerics, of course, almost always despise Magicians, and may endeavor to eliminate them. Magicians generally despise Rogues and Assassins, except for those the Magicians employ against their rivals. Many Magicians in fact come to prefer the company of ensorcelled monsters to any human society.

Due to their love of secrets, ability to uncover information by strange means, and facility with codes and ciphers, Magicians are often involved in espionage. Many a court Magician is actually a spy for some other power, and many are even triple and quadruple agents!

Magicians may actually be of any Alignment. Those who were Initiated by extra-planer beings usually share those beings’ Alignment. Most magical orders have agendas that correspond to a particular Alignment, and their members will usually have Alignments close to that of the organization as a whole. When an Apprentice and their Master differ radically in Alignment, it almost always eventually ends in a magical duel of some kind. Whatever a Magician’s Alignment, however, frequent contact with arcane forces and strange entities eventually serve to disconnect her from the concerns of ordinary people. Even Good Magicians of long years may seem unsympathetic and inscrutable.

ABILITES

INCANTATIONS : An Incantation is a spell effected by means of magically potent words of power, or else spontaneous poetry that states the desired effect. Typically, they are used to do such things as Charm victims, cast invisible Magic Missiles, throw Fireballs, and cast Lightning Bolts. Incantations do not utilize hard-to acquire materials, and can be used at any time. They require the use of the Magician’s Magical Implement, however, and are physically exhausting.

Every time a Magician uses an Incantation, he suffers Subdual Damage equal to the Level of the Spell. As usual, every 5 points of Subdual damage inflicts a point of real damage. 0 Level Incantations can thus be used freely, but all others represent a potentially dangerous mental and physical strain.

A Magician can use any Incantation he knows, at any time. Of course, overuse of Incantations will cause the Magician to fall unconscious.

Magicians who rely heavily on Incantations are called Incanters, Conjurors, or Sorcerers .

CEREMONIAL MAGIC : A magical Ceremony is an intricate series of symbolic actions that create a magical effect. It differs from a Ritual in that anyone can attempt a Ritual, but only a true Magician can use spells of Ceremonial Magic. Many Magicians begin their careers with a Ritual that summons an Initiating entity, but thereafter turn to the practice of actual Ceremonial Magic.

Ceremonial Magic is typically used for such things as summoning entities, gaining lovers, changing a social situation, or creating permanently enchanted items. Ceremonial Magic takes a long time to perform, require expensive materials, and is limited in the times and places it can be successfully used. Unlike the use of Incantations, it is not dangerously exhausting. Typically, Ceremonial Magic creates much more powerful effects than other types of magic. It also allows effects to occur outside of direct sensory range, as long as the magician has a piece of the person or place that will serve as the point of origination for the spell’s effect. Thus, Ceremonial Magic can be used to attack enemies that are halfway around the world.

Often, a Ceremony’s effects can be held “in reserve” until the Magician wants them to occur. In such cases, the player should write the Ceremony’s effect on an index card, and present the card to the CK at the time when he wants the effect to happen.

Assume that there is a 1 in 6 chance that a particular Ceremony can be performed on a desired day, and in a certain location. (This roll can be made in advance to determine where and when a Ritual can actually be performed.) Failure represents that the stars are wrong, it’s the wrong moon phase, the weather is inappropriate, etc. Magical Ceremonies require half an hour per spell level to perform, and require materials with a worth in gold piece equal to 10 times the spell’s level squared. 0 Level rituals cost nothing, and take a mere 10 minutes.

For purposes of determining the ability to perform a Ceremony, a “location” is an area of approximately 20 miles square, or 1 day’s journey across. It is therefore common for Magicians to undertake long journeys, in order to be in a place where they will be able to perform a certain magical Ceremony.

Alternately, the CK may specify an exact time and place where a Ceremony must be performed, as well as the specific items that must be acquired. Such items should be strange, hard-to-obtain, and deeply symbolic in nature. It is suggested that the CK insist upon explicit terms for Ceremonies that create permanently enchanted items, while allowing the more abstract method for ordinary works of Ceremonial Magic.

The total Levels of Ceremonial spell effects a magician can keep “in reserve” is equal to their own character Level. Only one instance of a Ceremonial spell can be held in reserve at a time.

Magicians who specialize in Ceremonial magic are naturally called Ceremonial Magicians. The terms Evoker and Invoker are also common.

TALISMANS : A Talisman is a spell bound into an object, which when put in contact with a subject confers an effect constantly. For instance, a “Shield” Talisman provides the constant protection of the Shield spell, for as long as it is worn or carried. Other Talismans may do such things as make the wearer smarter, protect him from arrows, or provide constant warmth. Typically, a Talisman will be made as a pendant or small disk to be kept in a pocket. It is possible, however to create other types of Talismans (such as rings, daggers, etc).

A Talisman must be made for a particular person, object or place, and will have absolutely no effect on anybody or anything else. A Magician can make a Talisman for a friend, for example.

A magician can only have one Talisman active at a time. Every time a magician charges a new Talisman, all other Talismans created by that magician are discharged and deactivated.

A Talisman can only be charged at certain times and in certain places. In game terms, there is only a 1 in 6 chance that a certain Talisman can be made and charged on a particular day, and in a particular location. This roll can be made in advance to determine when and where a Talisman can be created. Failure means the planets are (or will be) in the wrong positions, the day desired is inauspicious, etc. As with magical Ceremonies, a “location” is an area of approximately 20 miles square, or 1 day’s journey across. Therefore, Magicians will often relocate, in order to successfully charge a desired Talisman.

Creating the physical basis of a Talisman requires rare materials worth 100 times the square of the spell’s Level, in either gold pieces, or XP value of creatures. Charging a Talisman takes 1 hour per spell Level. For example, the Talisman of a 6th level spell requires materials with a total value of 2,400, in terms of gold pieces and/or the experience point value of needed monsters. It require 6 hours to charge. A 0 Level Talisman is made from common materials, has no real cost, and takes just 10 minutes to create.

The physical basis of a Talisman that has been discharged can be later recharged and reused. If anyone other than the Talisman’s maker or its subject touches a Talisman, it is instantly discharged. Likewise, a Dispel Magic spell instantly discharges a Talisman. A Talisman can also be discharged at will by its maker, from any distance away. A Talisman’s charge lasts only 28 days (1 moon), after which is must be recharged.

Those magicians who become known for their Talismans are often called Enchanters.

PACTS : A Pact is an agreement with an extra-planer creature, who will cause a specific magical effect to occur, but demand a particular payment each time The terms of payment demanded differ from creature to creature, but usually involve the gradual degradation of the Magician’s abilities and resources. The player of a Magician character must record the terms of each Pact that the character can employ.

A typical pact might require the sacrifice of specific creatures with a total HD approximately equal to the Level of the spell, the permanent loss of wealth equal to 100 gp per spell level, the loss of a point of Constitution (or other Ability) per spell Level for a day, or cause 1d4 hit points of actual (not subdual) damage per spell Level to the Magician. Sometimes the spiritual powers will demand that the magician perform a specific act in order to activate the spell’s power, or specify that the spell can only be cast for certain uses. 0 Level pacts generally require the sacrifice of a small animal of less than 1 HD, the loss of 1 hp, or the destruction of materials worth only 1 gp. The CK should design each pact to reflect both the nature of the spirit granting the power, and the overall impact for the Campaign.

Pacts of Levels 0 – 3 are often implicit, working without requiring an explicit prior agreement between the Magician and the empowering entity. They can be learned like any other spell. For example, the Magician knows that if he properly sacrifices a dog to the demon princess Gyzarath, he will be temporarily transformed into a dog himself, even if he has never actually spoken to Gyzarath. Pacts of Level 4 and above are always explicit, however, and must be granted directly by extra-planer creatures. Generally, an extra-planer creature will grant Pacts that allow a Magician to replicate the entity’s own abilities.

A magician can use a given Pact spell only once a day. Almost any effect could be created through a Pact, but miracles of healing and restoration are particularly likely to be granted in this way.

A Magician who primarily employs Pacts is often called a Witch (if female), or a Warlock (if male). Magicians who serve the will of the Devils are furthermore differentiated by the term Diabolists, while those whose Pacts are Demonic in origin are called Demonolaters. Those who have many Pacts with the Fairy Folk are often called Fairy Doctors, while those who receive their powers from Angels are often called White Witches, or Theurgists.

ENCIPHER (Intelligence) : Magicians love codes, since they serve to further distinguish the learned Magician from from the ignorant masses. Furthermore, the threat of persecution from religious authorities often forces Magicians to conceal their knowledge. With a successful Intelligence Check, the Magician is able to encode information (such as a written text) in a baffling way. Unless the Magician reveals the the cipher’s key, information so encrypted requires an Intelligence Check (with a CL equal to the Level of the Magician who encoded it) to be deciphered. Alternately such codes can become in-game puzzles to be solved by players, at the CK’s discretion. Magicians often encipher the written forms of their spells, or sometimes even play elaborate jokes by passing off meaningless texts as encoded works of magical power.

ESOTERIC KNOWLEDGE (Intelligence) : In the course of their arcane studies Magicians learn much strange and occult lore. Whenever the Magician is presented with another Magician’s cipher, a bizarre symbol, a fragment of a dead language, magical runes, or another bit of esoterica, they are entitled to an Intelligence check to see whether or not they have some idea of it’s meaning. At the CK’s discretion, a Magician could use this ability to read any glyphs inscribed on an enchanted item, thus identifying it.

INITIATE: Starting at 3rd Level, a Magician is able to begin others on the magical path. This simply allows the person initiated to become a 1st Level Magician – the new initiate must still learn or be taught actual spells in order to create magical effects. As previously stated, no person can become a Magician without being Initiated by an existing magician, or else by an extra-planer entity.

WEAKNESSES

MAGICAL IMPLEMENT: A Magician must employ a special implement in order to use their Incantations. This implement is separate from any object(s) required to perform specific magical Ceremonies. The Magician can choose their Magical Implement, and each choice has certain advantages and drawbacks.

Typical Magical Implements include:

Staff: A staff’s advantages are that it can be used offensively, and can be carried as a walking stick without arousing undue suspicion. It’s drawback is its size and awkwardness in tight situations.

Wand: A wand has the advantage of small size, making it concealable. Its drawback is its fragility.

Sword: A sword has the advantage of also being extremely effective in hand-to-hand combat, if needed. Its big drawback it that it is an obvious offensive weapon, and the Magician may not be able to carry it in certain social situations.

Dagger: A dagger can also be used in combat, like a sword, but it is smaller, concealable, and less likely to be banned from social situations.

Book: The advantage of using a small book of arcane writings as a Magical Implement is that it can easily be carried without suspicion (provided nobody else can read it), and, easily concealed (up a wide sleeve, for example). It’s disadvantage is that it can be easily destroyed, and has no other use (except perhaps as a coaster for the Magician’s ale).

Pantacle: The Pantacle is an arcane design painted or engraved on a flat object, typically circular. Its big advantage is that it can take the form of a buckler or small shield, adding to the Magician’s defensive capability. Its disadvantage is that a Pantacle is the most obvious form of Magical Implement, and thus an easy target for the Magician’s enemies.

A Magician character starts play with an appropriate Magical Implement of the player’s choice. Replacing a lost Magical Implement generally costs 100 gp per Level of the Magician.

POWER OBJECT: Every Magician possesses an object that embodies their magical power. Sometimes, this object is identical with the Magician’s Magical Implement. Other times, it take the form of a separate ring, pendant, crown, or other article of clothing or jewelry. Often, the Power Object is a large book that contains the written forms of all of the Magician’s spells. The Power Object could even be a tattoo. In cases where the magician received their power by means of a contract with a Devil, the Magician will often have a copy of the contract as their Power Object.

If a Magician does not have their Power Object on their person, they use magic as if they were one Level lower. In the case of a first Level Magician, this means they would lose all ability to use magic at all, until they are back in contact with their Power Object. If any Magician’s Power Object is ever actually destroyed, the character will likewise lose the use of all their spells, until they can recreate the object exactly as it was. In cases where the object cannot be replaced or recreated, (such as in the case of a Diabolical contract), the character will lose all magical abilities permanently. Thus, many Magicians will leave their Power Object in a secure place when adventuring, accepting a reduction in abilities in return for peace of mind.

Replacing a Power Object will cost 1,000 gp per Level of the Magician.

PRIME ATTRIBUTE: Intelligence

HIT DICE: d4

ALIGNMENT: Any

WEAPONS: Blowpipe, Cat-O-Nine-Tails, Club, Dagger, Dart, Dirk, Katar, Knife, Light Crossbow, Longsword, Pistol (if used), Poniard, Scimitar, Scythe, Shortsword, Sickle, Sling, Staff, Trident, Whip

ARMOR: Breastplate (Bronze or Steel), Buckler, Helmet (any), Leather Coat, Mail Shirt, Small Shield

ABILITES: Incantations, Ceremonial Magic, Talismans, Pacts, Encipher, Esoteric Knowledge, Initiate

WEAKNESSES: Magical Implement, Power Object

Level Hit Dice Basic To-Hit Bonus Maximum Spell Level Experience Points
1 d4 +0 1 0
2 d4 +1 1 2,251
3 d4 +1 2 5,001
4 d4 +1 2 9,001
5 d4 +1 3 18,001
6 d4 +2 3 35,001
7 d4 +2 4 70,001
8 d4 +2 4 140,001
9 d4 +2 5 300,001
10 d4 +3 5 425,001
11 +1 HP +3 6 650,001
12 +1 HP +3 6 900,001
13+ 7, and so on. +250,000 per level

MAGICIAN STARTING SPELLS:

A Magician character starts play knowing four 0 Level Spells, and two 1st level Spells. These spells can represent any mix of Incantations, Ceremonies, Talismans, or Pacts the player desires. The Magician is assumed to automatically gain 1 new spell per Level gained, which can also be of any kind the player desires (Incantation, Ceremony, Talisman, or Pact), and any Level the Magician can currently employ. All other spells learned must be gained in the course of regular game play.

The player of a Magician character must keep a current list of all the spells that her PC knows, broken down by Incantations, Ceremonies, Talismans, and Pacts. The same spell may in fact be found as a Incantation, Ceremony, Talisman, or Pact, but each version must be learned separately.

The strongest level of spell that the Magician is able to use is equal to one half his Level, rounded up.

Note: Extra-planer sources who teach spells can choose to impart the spell as an Incantation, Ritual, Talisman, or Pact.

Typical titles for Magicians:

Level 1-2: Apprentice, Neophyte, Tyro

Level 3-8 : Journeyman, Fellow, Adept

Level 9+: Wizard, Magus, Magister, Thaumaturge

Magician’s spells are identical in most respects to the versions in the Player’s Handbook, except the casting times and costs (if applicable) are uniform for each type of spell (as stated above). Also, the spell components listed in the Player’s Handbook do not apply.

INCANTATIONS

Magical Implement required to cast.

Suffer Subdual damage equal to spell’s Level.

MAGICAL CEREMONIES

1 in 6 chance that a Ceremony can be held on a given day in a desired 20 mile square area.

Can take effect at a distance, if the Magician has an item belonging to the subject.

* Indicates that an effect that can be held “in reserve” until the Magician wants it to take effect. The total Levels of Ceremonial spell effects a Magician can keep “in reserve” is equal to their own character Level.

TALISMANS

Constant effect for the intended possessor of Talisman.

1 in 6 chance that a Talisman can be charged on a given day in a desired location.

Discharged if touched by anyone other than Magician and intended possessor.

No more than 1 Talisman active at a time.

Talismans last 28 days before needing to be recharged.

PACTS

The following list is not exhaustive, since extra-planer beings can potentially grant Pacts that replicate any of their spell-like abilities, but represents suggested Pacts the Magician might possibly know at First Level, or gain by an increase in Levels.

The terms of each Pact must be defined, using the guidelines given in the Magician class description, and bearing in mind the character of the entity that fulfills the Pact.

0 LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

0 LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Cast Freely

Dancing Lights

Endure Elements

First Aid

Ghost Sound

Influence

Know Direction

Light

Mage Hand

Mending

Message

Open/Close

Prestidigitation

Purify Food and Drink

0 LEVEL CEREMONIES – No cost, 10 minutes to perform.

Arcane Mark

Feather Fall*

Ghost Sound

Influence*

Magical Aura

Mending

Message

Purify Food and Water*

0 LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 1 gp of materials, 10 minutes to charge.

First Aid

Know Direction

Prestidigitation

0 LEVEL PACTS

Aid

Create Water

Endure Elements

First Aid

Influence

Light

Mending

Purify Food & Drink

1st LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

1st LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 1 point of Subdual damage per use.

Alter Size

Burning Hands

Cause Fear

Change Self

Charm Person

Color Spray

Comprehend Languages

Create Water

Detect Chaos/Evil/Good/Law/Neutrality

Detect Illusion

Detect Magic

Detect Poison

Detect Secret Doors

Detect Undead

Erase

Feather Fall

Hold Portal

Hypnotism

Invisibility To Undead

Jump

Magic Missile

Obscuring Mist

Protection From Chaos/Evil/Good/Law

Read Magic

Remove Fear

Shield

Shocking Grasp

Silent Image

Spider Climb

Unseen Servant

Ventriloquism

1st LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 10 gp worth of materials, 30 minutes to perform.

Cause Light Wounds

Charm Person*

Cure Light Wounds

Identify*

Summon Familiar

Unseen Servant

1st LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 100 gp, or the body parts of 100 xp worth of creatures. 1 hour to charge.

Detect Chaos/Evil/Good/Law

Detect Magic

Detect Poison

Endure Elements

Light

Mage Hand

Purify Food And Drink (personal effect)

1st LEVEL PACTS

Alter Size

Animal Friendship

Bane

Bless

Cause Light Wounds

Cure Light Wounds

Darkness

Identify

Invisibility to Undead

Protection From Chaos/Evil/Good/Law

Resist Elements

Sanctuary

Shield

Shillelagh

Sleep

Spider Climb

Summon Familiar

Unseen Servant

2nd LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

2nd LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 2 points of Subdual damage per use.

Acid Arrow

Alter Self

Blur

Darkness

Detect Thoughts

Fog Cloud

Hide Thoughts

Hypnotic Pattern

Knock

Levitate

Lock

Minor Image

Misdirection

Mirror Image

Pyrotechnics

Ray of Enfeeblement

Rope Trick

Scare

See Invisibility

Shatter

Sleep

Web

2nd LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 40 gp worth of materials, 60 minutes to perform.

Augury

Continual Flame

Enhance Attribute*

Diminish Attribute*

False Trap

Fire Trap

Lesser Restoration

Locate Object

Magic Mouth

Polymorph (each form is a separate spell)*

Speak With Dead

Summon Swarm*

2nd LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 400 gp, or the body parts of 400 xp worth of creatures. 2 hours to charge.

Darkness

Detect Illusion

Feather Fall

Pass Without Trace

Resist Elements

Shield

Unseen Servant

2nd LEVEL PACTS

Aid

Alter Self

Augury

Delay Poison

Lesser Restoration

Protection From Arrows

Remove Paralysis

Speak With Dead

Summon Swarm

3rd LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

3rd LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 3 points of Subdual damage per use.

Blink

Fireball

Fly

Gaseous Form

Gust of Wind

Haste

Hold Person

Invisibility

Lightning Bolt

Locate Object

Major Image

Polymorph (into a single specific creature)

Slow

Stinking Cloud

Suggestion

Tongues

Wall of Wind

Water Breathing

3rd LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 90 gp worth of materials, 90 minutes to perform.

Bestow Curse

Clairaudience/Clairvoyance

Continual Flame

Cause Serious Wounds*

Cure Serious Wounds*

Explosive Runes

Magic Circle

Nondetection

Remove Curse

Remove Disease

Summon Lesser Monster*

Tiny Hut*

3rd LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 900 gp, or the body parts of 900 xp worth of creatures. 3 hours to charge.

Calm Animals

Comprehend Languages

Detect Secret Doors

Detect Snares & Pits

Enhance Attribute

Protection From Chaos/Evil/Good/Law

Read Magic

3rd LEVEL PACTS

Animate Dead

Bestow Curse

Bestow Disease

Blind/Deafen

Call Lightning

Cause Serious Wounds

Create Food and Water

Cure Serious Wounds

Dispel Magic

Fly

Haste

Nondetection

Polymorph (into a single specific creature)

Prayer

Remove Blindness/Deafness

Remove Curse

Remove Disease

Slow

Stinking Cloud

Summon Lesser Monster

Water Breathing

4th LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

4th LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 4 points of Subdual damage per use.

Air/Water Walk

Arcane Eye

Charm Monster

Confusion

Control Plants

Detect Skrying

Dimension Door

Discern Lies

Dismissal

Divination

Emotion

Fear

Fire Shield

Hallucinatory Terrain

Hide Lies

Ice Storm

Illusory Wall

Invisibility Sphere

Minor Creation

Minor Globe of Invulnerability

Neutralize Poison

Quench

Rainbow Pattern

Repel Vermin

Resilient Sphere

Seeming

Shadow Conjuration

Shout

Sleet Storm

Solid Fog

Suggestion

Wall of Fire

Wall of Ice

4th LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 160 gp worth of materials, 2 hours to perform.

Animate Dead

Charm Monster*

Divination*

Fire Trap

Hallucinatory Terrain

Healing Circle

Ice Storm

Locate Creature*

Minor Creation*

Mirage Arcane

Phantasmal Killer

Polymorph (any form)

Reincarnate

Remove Curse

Restoration

Scrying

Secure Shelter*

Seeming

Sending

Summon Animals*

4th LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 1,600 gp, or the body parts of 1,600 xp worth of creatures. 4 hours to charge.

Charm Person (constant effect)

Detect Traps

Invisibility To Animals

Misdirection

Plant Growth (Talisman is usually buried)

See Invisibility

4th LEVEL PACTS

Antiplant Shell

Control Water

Cure Serious Wounds

Dismissal

Dispel Magic

Divination

Fear

Fire Shield

Healing Circle

Healing Circle

Minor Creation

Neutralize Poison

Phantasmal Killer

Polymorph

Repel Vermin

Restoration

Secure Shelter

Seeming

Shadow Conjuration

Summon Animals

Wall of Fire

Wall of Ice

5th LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

5th LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 5 points of Subdual damage, & 1 point of regular damage, per use.

Animate Dead

Bind Elemental

Cloudkill

Cone of Cold

Control Winds

Dispel Evil/Chaos/Good/Law

Dispel Magic

Faithful Hound

Feeblemind

Flame Strike

Greater Shadow Conjuration

Hold Monster

Ice Storm

Insect Plague

Locate Creature

Mass Suggestion

Mirage Arcane

Passwall

Persistent Image

Polymorph (any form)

Project Image

Shadow Evocation

Telekinesis

Telepathic Bond

Transmute Rock and Mud

True Seeing

Wall of Force

Wall of Iron

Wall of Stone

Wall of Thorns

5th LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 250 gp worth of materials, 150 minutes (2.5 hours) to perform.

Awaken*

Commune With Nature*

Commune*

Contact Other Plane

Cure Critical Wounds

Dream

Ethereal Jaunt

Faithful Hound*

False Vision*

Flame Strike

Guards and Wards*

Insect Plague*

Major Creation*

Nightmare

Permanency

Plane Shift

Secret Chest

Summon Beasts or Plants*

Summon Monster *

Teleport*

5th LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 2,500 gp, or the body parts of 2,500 xp worth of creatures. 5 hours to charge.

Alter Self

Alter Size

Detect Scrying

Freedom of Movement

Neutralize Poison (effective immunity)

Protection From Arrows

Remove Curse (effective immunity)

Remove Disease (effective immunity)

Speak With Plants

Tongues

Water Breathing

5th LEVEL PACTS

Awaken

Commune

Commune With Nature

Contact Other Plane

Cure Critical Wounds

Death Ward

Dispel Chaos/Evil/Good/Law

Ethereal Jaunt

Faithful Hound

Feeblemind

Flame Strike

Guards and Wards

Hold Monster

Ice Storm

Insect Plague

Major Creation

Permanency

Plane Shift

Raise Dead

Scrying

Summon Beasts or Plants

Summon Monster

6th LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

6th LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 6 points of Subdual damage, & 1 point of regular damage, per use.

Banishment

Blade Barrier

Chain Lightning

Delayed Blast Fireball

Disintegrate

Feeblemind

Find The Path

Fire Seeds

Geas

Globe of Invulnerability

Greater Shadow Evocation

Instant Summons

Ironwood

Mass Suggestion

Mislead

Move Earth

Permanent Image

Phase Door

Power Word, Stun

Programmed Image

Project Image

Repel Wood

Shades

Transmute Flesh and Stone

Transport Via Plants

Veil

Wind Walk

Word of Recall

6th LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 360 gp worth of materials, 180 minutes (3 hours) to perform.

Control Weather

Create Undead

Geas*

Globe of Invulnerability*

Harm*

Heal*

Legend Lore

Move Earth

Raise Dead

Stone Tell*

Summon Elemental*

Transmute Flesh and Stone

Word of Recall*

6th LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 3,600 gp, or the body parts of 3,600 xp worth of creatures. 6 hours to charge.

Commune With Nature

Discern Lies

False Vision

Hide Lies

Minor Globe of Invulnerability

Protection From Elements

Telekinesis

6th LEVEL PACTS

Anti-illusion Shield

Antilife Shell

Antimagic Shell

Blade Barrier

Control Weather

Create Undead

Disintegrate

Globe of Invulnerability

Guards and Wards

Harm

Heal

Ironwood

Legend Lore

Move Earth

Permanent Image

Programmed Image

Shades

Stone Tell

Summon Elemental

Transmute Flesh and Stone

Veil

Wall of Stone

Wind Walk

7th LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

7th LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 7 points of Subdual damage, & 1 point of regular damage, per use.

Changestaff

Control Weather

Control Weather

Creeping Doom

Finger of Death

Fire Storm

Insanity

Mass Invisibility

Power Word, Stun

Prismatic Spray

Repulsion

Sequester

Shadow Walk

Summon Elemental

Transmute Metal To Wood

Vanish

Vision

7th LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 490 gp worth of materials, 210 minutes (3.5 hours) to perform.

Creeping Doom

Finger of Death*

Fire Storm

Greater Restoration

Greater Scrying

Instant Summons*

Limited Wish

Refuge*

Regenerate

Resurrection

Simulacrum

Summon Greater Monster*

Summon Magical Beasts or Fey*

Teleport Without Error*

Transmute Metal To Wood*

7th LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 4,900 gp, or the body parts of 4,900 xp worth of creatures. 7 hours to charge.

Air/Water Walk

Antiplant Shell

Control Plants

Death Ward

Emotion (inflicted upon wearer)

False Vision

Insanity (inflicted upon wearer)

Invisibility

Nondetection

Prayer

Repel Vermin

Word of Recall

7th LEVEL PACTS

Control Weather

Creeping Doom

Finger of Death

Fire Storm

Greater Restoration

Insanity

Limited Wish (Note that entities will only grant Limited Wishes that ultimately further their own agendas, and under no circumstance will grant any Limited Wishes to do away with the payment terms of Pacts!)

Mass Invisibility

Regenerate

Resurrection

Sequester

Summon Greater Monster

Summon Magical Beasts or Fey

Teleport Without Error

Vision

8th LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

8th LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 8 points of Subdual damage, & 1 point of regular damage, per use.

Animal Shapes

Binding

Command Plants

Discern Location

Find The Path

Incendiary Cloud

Mass Charm

Maze

Mind Blank

Polymorph Any Object

Power Word, Blind

Prismatic Wall

Repel Metal or Stone

Screen

Sunburst

Symbol

Whirlwind

8th LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 640 gp worth of materials, 240 minutes (4 hours) to perform.

Antipathy

Binding

Clone

Create Greater Undead

Discern Location*

Disjunction

Distort Reality*

Earthquake

Mass Heal

Mind Blank*

Screen*

Sympathy

Teleportation Circle

Trap the Soul*

8th LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 6,400 gp, or the body parts of 6,400 xp worth of creatures. 8 hours to charge.

Anti-Illusion Shield

Ethereal Jaunt

Feeblemind (inflicted on wearer)

Find The Path

Globe of Invulnerability

True Seeing

Repulsion

8th LEVEL PACTS

Animal Shapes

Antipathy

Clone

Command Plants

Create Greater Undead

Discern Location

Distort Reality

Earthquake

Mass Charm

Mass Heal

Mind Blank

Polymorph Any Object

Summon Planer Ally

Sunburst

Sympathy

9th LEVEL MAGICIAN SPELLS

9th LEVEL INCANTATIONS – Suffer 9 points of Subdual damage, & 1 point of regular damage, per use.

Astral Projection

Distort Reality

Earthquake

Energy Drain

Freedom

Meteor Swarm

Power Word, Kill

Prismatic Sphere

Shapechange

Storm of Vengeance

Weird

9th LEVEL CEREMONIES – Require 890 gp worth of materials, 270 minutes (4.5 hours) to perform.

Astral Projection

Gate

Soul Bind

Summon Elemental Swarm*

True Resurrection

Wish

Imprisonment*

Time Stop*

Temporal Stasis*

9th LEVEL TALISMANS – Requires 8,900 gp, or the body parts of 8,900 xp worth of creatures. 9 hours to charge.

Anti-Life Shell

Anti-Magic Shell

Astral Projection

Improved Invisibility

Mind Blank

Regenerate

Shadow Walk

9th LEVEL PACTS

Astral Projection

Disjunction

Energy Drain

Freedom

Gate

Imprisonment

Meteor Swarm

Shapechange

Storm of Vengeance

Summon Elemental Swarm

Temporal Stasis

Time Stop

True Resurrection

Weird

Wish (Note that entities will only grant Wishes that ultimately further their own agendas, and under no circumstance will grant any Wishes to do away with the payment terms of Pacts!)

The Redemptive Spirit – A Ghostly Agent of Atonement

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It shouldn’t be too hard to figure out the primary literary inspiration for this creature!

REDEMPTIVE SPIRIT
An apparition who seeks to bring people back to the path of Good.

NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1-4 (in one night)
SIZE: Medium
HD: 8 (d8)
MOVE: 30′, 240′ (fly)
AC: 17
ATTACKS: 1 Slam (1d4), or 1 Weapon (by weapon type)
SPECIAL: Undead Immunities, Darkvision 60′, Atonement, Read Memory, Selective Invisibility, Ethereal Shift, True Sight, Spell-Like Abilities
SAVES: M+P
INT: Average to Genius
ALIGNMENT: Any Good
TYPE: Undead (Unique)
TREASURE: Special
XP: 2475+8

Often, the hardships and vicissitudes of life cause people to lose faith in Goodness, and become greedy, cynical, and hardhearted. Those who once embraced Good, but have turned from it, are sometimes given a second chance to return to the way of benevolence. To such people Redemptive Spirits come, to show sinners who they once were, to demonstrate the damage done by selfishness, and to reveal what will happen if the malefactor does not turn from their path.

Redemptive Spirits are sometimes the souls of people who embraced Goodness only near, or after, death. Having escaped Hell and the Outer Darkness, but unable to enter Heaven, they try to earn the company of the Angels by redeeming the lost. Other Redemptive Spirits are the souls of Good people who voluntarily foreswear the peace of Paradise, in order to help the living enter Heaven.

Redemptive Spirits generally appear around times of great significance, either on holy festivals, or on the anniversaries of events personally important to the people the Spirits visit. Indeed, some Bards and Sages speculate that it is only upon such days that the Redemptive Spirits may interact with the material world. Often, Redemptive Spirits will announce themselves to be the Spirits, Ghosts, or Specters of the day on which they appear.

Although they are ultimately agents of Mercy, Redemptive Spirits are quite willing to use any means necessary to redeem souls to Good. Possessing great powers of illusion and divination, they do not hesitate to use them. Humans who encounter Redemptive Spirits will often be made to face extremely disturbing visions, and may even be subject to violence if the spirit thinks it necessary.

Redemptive Spirits can appear in any humanoid or partially humanoid form. They take such shapes as they believe will most affect their human charges. Often, these forms are dark and frightful, designed to strike fear into the heart of the one to be redeemed. Other times, the Spirit’s appearance will be completely benign. Always, the form taken by a Redemptive Spirit will be deeply symbolic. Example forms include:
The enemy knight that could never be defeated in combat.
A child, dressed in white and silver, and carrying a candle.
A leprous beggar, with a bowl full of blood.
A jolly king, whose robes conceal ghastly figures.
A man chained to a chest full of gold.
An old woman in rags, covered with frost, and appearing as if she has died from exposure.
A young woman, forced into prostitution to care for the sick baby she holds in her arms.
A faceless human figure, clad entirely in black.
A skeleton, with an hourglass representing that time is running out for the sinner.

Because they serve the powers of Good, Redemptive Spirits cannot be turned by Good-aligned Clerics. Evil Clerics, who seek to destroy all Hope, can actually Turn (but never Command) Redemptive Spirits. Such actions can easily cause an escalation of spiritual warfare, with Heaven perhaps sending an actual Guardian Angel, the powers of Evil responding in kind, and the whole ending in in true battle for the soul of the sinner.

Combat: Redemptive Spirits have no interest in anyone except the person they are redeeming. In fact, they can use their Selective Invisibility power to insure that they are not bothered by anyone but that person. They will readily use violence if they feel that it is the only way to reach their target’s heart. They may use their extensive powers of illusion to create symbolic monsters for a sinning warrior to fight, for example. On certain occasions, the Redemptive Spirit may even strike the sinner themselves, but always with a blunt weapon, and for subdual damage. Under no circumstances will the Redemptive Spirit allow the sinner to be actually killed, but they may want that person to believe that they will die at the Spirit’s hands. On those rare occasions when others can actually perceive the Redemptive Spirits, and try to interfere with their work, the Spirits will strike for real damage, and use their magical powers to deadly effect. Curiously for so powerful an entity, a materialized Redemptive Spirit can be damaged by normal weapons.

Atonement: The entire reason for the Redemptive Spirit’s existence is allow redeemable people the chance to atone for their misdeeds. Therefore, the Redemptive Spirit is capable of granting full Atonement, as the Clerical spell, once per night.

Read Memory: A Redemptive Spirit has full access to the knowledge and memories of its intended subject. This allows the Spirit to create flawless illusions that faithfully replicate entire scenes from the sinner’s life, or any place where the target has been. The Spirit also knows everything their chosen target is thinking and feeling. Note that a Redemptive Spirit only possesses this power with regard to the person to be redeemed.

Selective Invisibility: A Redemptive Spirit enjoys the benefits of constant Improved Invisibility, but they can choose to allow specific people or creatures to perceive them normally, while remaining invisible to all others. Furthermore, the Spirit can make its chosen subject Invisible in the same way, choosing whether or not certain other people will be able to perceive the sinner during the time he is with the Spirit.

Ethereal Shift: Redemptive Spirits can become Ethereal or Material, at will. When they do either, however, they can take no other actions that round. The Spirit can also bring the chosen target into and out of the Ethereal plane, but cannot so affect anyone else.

True Sight: Redemptive Spirits enjoy constant True Seeing, as the spell.

Spell-Like Abilities: A Redemptive Spirit can us any of the following abilities as often as they like, but no more than one per round: Clairaudience, Clairvoyance, Divination, Light, Persistent Image, Major Creation, Mirage Arcane, Phase Door. Three time a night they can use Greater Shadow Conjuration. Once per night they can use Time Stop. The Redemptive Spirit can also grant another the ability to Endure Elements, Phase Door, or to Fly at great speed (240′). Once per night they can grant a Limited Wish, but only if the the request is completely unselfish. All powers have an effective caster level of 12.

Special XP Award: Characters who actually Atone for their misdeeds and become Good after encountering a Redemptive Spirit receive the Spirit’s XP value as an experience point reward, just as if they had otherwise defeated it.

CK’s note: Players who have lost Good, or once Good, PCs could have their characters return as Redemptive Spirits for a special session aimed at restoring the Good Alignment, or Paladin status, of another player’s current character.

Adventure Seed:

The once gallant Knight has fallen from grace, and lost his status as a Paladin. After yet another night of drunken carousing, he is awoken by the ghosts of his former adventuring companions. The Knight is reminded of all the people he once helped, and then shown the horrors that await everyone unless he reclaims his holy mission and destroys the evil force now awakening in a forgotten vault.

Races & Classes of Lore

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Races & Class of Lore (Basic Text Edition) is now available for download. This free PDF collects six Races and six Classes intended for use with the Castles & Crusades RPG. All are inspired by classic folklore, mythology, legend and art.

The Races of Lore include:
CAMBION – The child of a human and an Infernal creature.
CHANGELING – A fairy replacement for an ordinary human.
DHAMPIR – The strange offspring of a living human and a Vampire.
NEPHIL – The product of a human mother and an Angelic father.
THERIANTHROPE – A hybrid of man and beast.
WOODWOSE – Savage, hirsute people who dwell on the fringes of civilization.

The Classes of Lore include:
BARE WARRIOR – A brave and savage fighter who eschews armor.
DEMON HUNTER – One who studies and hunts the horrors of the dark.
NATURAL PHILOSOPHER – A savant who works apparent miracles through superior knowledge of natural law.
POLYMATH – A multi-talented individual whose interests span the scope of human endeavor.
SCAVENGER – A feral survivalist, able to endure the most extreme environments.
WARRIOR-WIZARD – A combatant who combines magical mastery with martial skill

Add a touch of authentic lore to your Campaign with Races & Classes of Lore!

Concerning Hell: The Pit of Envy

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What follows is the first in series of articles focusing further on the Pits of Hell. It’s meant solely as inspirational text for fantasy gaming, and is a companion piece to my articles on folklore-based Devils for the Castles & Crusades game. It is not intended as a serious work of theology.

The Pit of Envy

The Pit of Envy waits for those souls who in life loved malicious gossip, who spread lies for their own pleasure and gain, or bore ill will against those more fortunate than themselves. No being need fling such souls into the Pit against their will. All the Pits of Hell are baited traps, which the vice-ridden willingly enter.

After death, souls weighed down by the vice of Envy will hear the echoing sounds of whispered secrets and outrageous accusations. If those sounds are followed, the soul will come to a place of mists, where a gigantic sea-serpent’s head lies with its mouth agape. The echoing gossip will seem to emanate from within the monster’s mouth. This is the Hell-mouth of Envy, and might also be found in the Ether, in the Astral Plane, or even on any of the Material Worlds. The powers of Envy cannot, however, extend their maw into the gardens of Heaven, or the Planetary Spheres.

The Hell-mouth of Envy is large enough to enter, and richly dressed people, possessing all the objects the dead person desired in life, will be walking in and out of it. When the soul enters the maw, it is revealed to be the opening of a long, slimy cavern. Eventually, the soul will wander into a dead end that resounds with their own voice, screaming accusations against the people the deceased hated most in life. Suddenly, a sinkhole will open beneath the feet of the envious soul. The damned person will fall for what seems like days, until she impacts a surface of muddy slush and ice.

The Pit of Envy appears to be an endless frozen swamp under a solid gray sky, without sun, moon, or stars. Although cliffs and buildings will be visible on every far horizon, it seems impossible to actually reach them. In places, the icy surface of the swamp gives way to islands covered with dead weeds, or leafless, rotted trees. The ice is also occasionally riven by great slush-rimmed cracks, from which massive walls of steam, and jets of fire, will erupt. Everywhere in the Pit are the sounds of invectives and allegations, for the Pit of Envy is the courthouse of Hell.

The newly arrived damned soul will be left to wander across the desolation for some time, only to be unexpectedly apprehended by one or more Tormentor Devils. The soul will be beaten, bound, and dragged across the waste to a crowd of fellow damned souls, who seem to be attending a trial of some kind. The newly arrived damned soul will be pushed through the surrounding crowd and find herself in a fully appointed court, set up on the filthy ice. Behind the grotesquely carved bench will be a Marquis of the Accuser Devils, dressed in a parody of the attire worn by human judges. The sinner has arrived at her own infernal trial.

The damned will be thrown to her knees, as another Accuser Devil begins to read from an absurdly large scroll, exposing every one of the defendant’s crimes and embarrassing secrets. From time to time, the fellow damned who have been herded to the trial will be forced to step forward, identify themselves, and accuse the defendant of some wrongdoing, either real or fictitious. The trial will cover every hour of every day of the defendant’s life, with the prosecuting Devil dwelling at length upon how stupid, disgusting, worthless, and unforgivable the defendant is. If the defendant doesn’t answer a charge, they will be flogged, or otherwise tortured until they do. Often, the damned will be forced to torture their fellow damned, in order to instill resentment. Whenever the defendant speaks, she will also be charged at every turn with violating various arcane courtroom procedures, all of which add to to the time she must serve in Hell. Denying a charge, for example, carries a charge of slander against the prosecuting Devil. Simulacrums of all those the defendant has wronged (along with recreations of any relevant objects or places), will be brought before the court, where the counterfeit people will recount how much they were harmed by the damned soul in life.

When the trial is completed, after what seems like decades (during which no recesses will have been called), the defendant will be judged, using the most degrading and obscene language possible. Naturally, the sentence will add up to millions of years in the Pit of Envy. Afterward, the convicted will be flung into the crowd of damned, and a random former spectator (and witness) will be dragged before the court, and subjected to a trial. The whole process will be repeated, but the new damned soul will have the opportunity to revenge themselves upon their former accuser, by bringing a charge against them (and perhaps torturing them).

Every so often, one of the damned who has been especially enthusiastic in condemning or torturing their fellows will be given a gaudily jeweled amulet, which exempts her from being tortured. Of course, the Devils will also explain to all the other damned souls that if they steal the amulet and wear it, they will themselves be exempted from torment.

The sham trials in the Pit of Envy continue into eternity, forming the entertainment of the Accuser Devils. In fact, the Accuser Devils are entirely the prisoners of their own obsession with the failings and crimes of the damned. Sometimes those damned who indulged in multiple vices in life will be subjected to a trial attended by various castes of Devils, in order to determine which Pit the sinner will spend eternity in. From time to time a trial may actually be attended by an Angel of Death, who will serve as the Defense Attorney. In Hell, such Angels take the form of black, raven-winged skeletons. Some say that deserving souls are even sprung from Hell by the efforts of the Angels of Death.

There are many courts scattered about the Pit of Envy, handling not only the trials of the damned, but also the disputes of the Devils. Thus, all castes of Devils can be found in the Pit of Envy, but the Accuser Devils are naturally the most numerous. When they are not handling the suits of others, the Accuser Devils will sue each other for wrongs both actual and imagined.

In the center of the Pit of Envy is the great Archdevil of Envy, known as the Crooked Serpent and the Father of Lies. He appears as a titanic, serpentine creature with numerous small legs, fins, and wings, with his tail stuck in the ice of the swamp. A second look reveals that his body actually consists of a series of grotesque reptilian monsters, eternally trying to swallow each other from behind. He is attended by a host of Accuser Devils, who perpetually read him accounts of all the trials conducted in the Pit. The horrible monster is said to know all the secrets of anyone it encounters, including having use of all magic spells those people carry in their memories. The Crooked Serpent cannot escape the imprisoning ice of the Pit, because that ice is the manifestation of Envy itself, the cold inability to ever feel joy for the good fortune of another.

Harrowing The Pit of Envy

Although the frozen swamp of Envy can seem endless, it is actually contained within a vast, deep crater. Built into the cold, steep cliffs are elaborate facades that each mark an entrance into a palace, legal library, or evidence vault tunneled out of the solid rock. The facades are set at various heights along the rock face, linked to the icy floor of the pit by an extensive network of exterior ramps and staircases. The structures are owned by various Accuser Devils, and inspection of the facades will reveal that every one appears to have been vandalized and subsequently rebuilt, sometimes unskillfully. That is because each Accuser Devil employs a gang of Tormentor Devils to deface the facades belonging to its rival Accuser Devils, and another band to protect its own facades and repair damage.

The palaces, libraries, and vaults are perhaps the most interesting areas of the Pit of Envy, from the point of view of someone who wishes to wrest treasure from Hell. The subterranean palaces of the Accuser Devils themselves are richly appointed, but subject to constant pilfering at the hands of the gangs of Tormentor Devils employed by rivals.

The libraries of the Pit contain volumes that detail the laws that govern not only Hell, but every other place in the Cosmos. Also present in the libraries are books that contain the secret sins and crimes of every sentient being, although finding the desired volume is a exercise in boundless danger and crushing frustration.

The evidence vaults of the Pit contain the simulacrums that are presented at the various trails in the Pit. Although these simulacrums look and react as if they were real, they are actually masses of rotted flesh, insects, and serpents, disguised by illusions. Also stored in the vaults are the instruments of torture that are used in court (the actual torture itself being performed publicly, so all can enjoy it).

The tunneled-out areas of the cliff wall connect to an extensive series of slimy caverns infested with various reptilian monsters. These caverns link up to the seemingly endless cave and tunnel system that eventually leads to the other Pits of Hell, and even the mundane world. The cave system is sometimes exploited as a backdoor method of entering the Pit, by other spirits and their mortal agents.

The Phantom Traveler – Haunt of the Lonely Road

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The Phantom Traveler is inspired by the plentiful legends of vanishing hitchhikers and prophetic ghosts associated with roads around the world. More of a plot device than an ordinary monster, it makes a great way to set up other adventures.

PHANTOM TRAVELER
A strange traveling companion who often utters secrets, and always disappears suddenly

NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1
SIZE: Medium
HD: 5 (d8)
MOVE: 30′
AC: 15
ATTACKS: 1 Weapon (by weapon type)
SPECIAL: Undead Immunities, Darkvision 60′, Immune to Non-Magical Attacks, Chilling Revelation, Indelible Mark, Sudden Disappearance.
SAVES: M+P
INT: High
ALIGNMENT: Lawful Neutral
TYPE: Undead (Unique)
TREASURE: Special
XP: 320+5

Phantom Travelers are the restless souls of those who died, or suffered some other traumatic tragedy, on or by a stretch of road. Sometimes they are encountered as potential companions, eager to join in otherwise lonely journeys. Sometime they are hitchhikers, begging for rides on carts and in carriages. Other times they simply wait by the side of the road, perhaps speaking, perhaps holding to an unnerving silence. However banally the initial meeting with a Phantom Traveler may begin, the end of the encounter is always unsettling.

A individual Phantom Traveler may be or any age or gender. They always appear to be solid and substantial, never translucent or ghostly. Usually the only indication of their nature is a pallid complexion. Sometimes, they will be dressed in a manner inappropriate for the current weather, a possible indication that the Traveler may not be an ordinary person. If touched, the body of a Phantom Traveler will appear to be actual flesh, although the skin will usually be very cold. Only very rarely will a Phantom Traveler appear in an obviously cadaverous, mangled, or otherwise ghastly state.

Typically, an encounter with a Phantom Traveler will start with the spirit asking to travel for a time with the encountering person. While many Phantom Travelers are taciturn, others can be quite talkative, even personable. Either way, the encounter will usually end with the Traveler revealing a Chilling Revelation, either of a coming disaster or some disturbing secret, and suddenly disappearing thereafter. Usually, it is not until their Chilling Revelation that the Phantom Traveler reveals themselves to be one of the restless dead.

If a Phantom Traveler is ever given an object (such as an article of clothing, for example), it will also disappear when the being vanishes. Should the Traveler’s grave or final resting place be found, the object will also be found there. Often, Phantom Travelers will be traveling in the direction of their mortal remains, disappearing before the place is reached. Many tales speak of hitchhiking Phantom Travels actually asking to be taken to a place that turns out to be their grave.

Combat: Phantom Travelers do not normally attack, or engage in combat. If given a weapon they may sometimes fight to preserve the lives of their traveling companions, if only so those people will be able to later hear the spirit’s Chilling Revelation. If attacked by a current (or potential) traveling companion, a Phantom Traveler will simply reveal a Chilling Revelation and disappear. Since it is impossible to damage them without the aid of magic, and they can become Ethereal at will, it is rare that anyone manages to actually destroy a Phantom Traveler by aggressive means. Should one actually be destroyed, it’s apparently solid body and clothing dissolve back into the Ether.

Immune to Non-Magical Attacks: Phantom Travelers can only be damaged by magic spells or weapons.

Chilling Revelation: Created by tragedy, Phantom Travelers know when other catastrophes are about to occur. They also know all the dark secrets of everyone they meet. When a Phantom Traveler reveals such information, it will unnerve anyone affected by it. For example, if the Phantom Traveler reveals that a bridge in town will soon collapse, anyone who might cross that bridge in the future will be affected. If the Phantom Travels reveals that one of its traveling companions is a murderer, only that person and those who trust him are affected. Those thus affected by the Chilling Revelation must save versus Charisma (Challenge Level 5) or be overcome by dread, doubt, and paranoia, suffering a -1 penalty on all their rolls until the tragedy either comes to pass, or the guilty parties are punished for their misdeeds. Affected people receive a new saving throw each morning, allowing them to possibly regain their composure before the terms of the Chilling Revelation have been fulfilled.

Indelible Mark: Once a night, a Phantom Traveler is able to leave an indelible hand print on an object, or even on a creature’s skin! The Indelible Mark will look like either a dark stain, or the effects of great heat. If left on a creature, the Indelible Mark does not hurt in any way, and the subject may not even realize they have been marked until some time later. While all Phantom Travelers possess the ability to leave an Indelible Mark, they only use it if they want to leave visible proof of their appearance.

Sudden Disappearance: A Phantom Traveler can become fully Ethereal at will, and will always end an encounter by suddenly disappearing into the Ether. Anything the Phantom Traveler carries will also become Ethereal.

Special XP Award: It is suggested that CK’s award the Phantom Traveler’s XP Value to all those who complete an encounter with it, not just those who actually destroy or turn it. This is because the creature is not really meant to be fought, and such an award also serves to mollify those players who might feel as if the spirit, and it’s Chilling Revelation, amount to an unfair ambulatory trap.

Adventure Seed:

On the road to a previously unvisited town the party picks up a hitchhiking young woman, who asks for a coat, and to be taken home. Before they party reaches the gates of town, she turns to them and says “It’s a pity the old dragon is going to burn this place down”. She then suddenly disappears. If the party asks in town about a dragon, they will find out that one is rumored to dwell in a nearby cave, but that no one alive has ever seen it. If the party does nothing, the dragon will indeed rise and destroy the town. If the party describes the girl to locals, the characters will be informed that she matches the description of a local girl who was murdered by highwaymen over a decade ago. If the party visits her grave, the coat they gave her will be atop it.

The Amorous Revenant: Love After Death

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Inspired by such stories as that of Philinnion, related by the classical writer Phlegon of Tralles, the Amorous Revenant can be used to either add a touch of dark romance to your campaign, or as the ultimate squirm-inducing monster.

AMOROUS REVENANT
A corpse returned to pursue love amongst the living

NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1
SIZE: Medium
HD: 3 (d8)
MOVE: 30′
AC: 13
ATTACKS: 1 Weapon (by weapon type), or 1 Grapple & Bite (1d3+Drink Blood)
SPECIAL: Immune to Most Attacks, Undead Immunities, Glamor of Life, Drink Blood, Darkvision 60′
SAVES: M+P
INT: Average – Genius (as in life)
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
TYPE: Undead (Unique)
TREASURE: 3
XP: 65+3

Sometimes love is not extinguished by the grave. On rare occasions, men who die away from their wives, new brides who expired on their wedding nights, or those who perish with unfulfilled desires, will rise from their graves and return to their lovers, or pursue new affairs with living people. Such Amorous Revenants are alternately the subject of fearful tales and romantic ballads.

Amorous Revenants are often mistaken for Vampires. There are a number of similarities, but also important differences. First and foremost, while Amorous Revenants are usually nocturnal, they are not actually harmed in any way by sunlight. They appear to eat and drink the same food as living people, although like Vampires they actually require blood to sustain themselves. Such blood need not be human, however, and the Revenant only requires a small amount each night (about an once). Unlike Vampires, Amorous Revenants are not evil. They are motivated by a desire for love, and drink blood only incidentally to sustain themselves. Vampires, on the other hand, are condemned to a restless death and cursed with an all-consuming hunger for human blood. Amorous Revenants are no stronger or faster than human beings, nor can they change their true forms. While they can disguise themselves as living beings through an illusion, the real body of an Amorous Revenant may actually be in an advanced state of decay.

Whispered tales speak of children fathered by Amorous Revenants, or even more outrageously, of living infants born from the dead wombs of Revenant mothers.

Combat: Amorous Revenants will usually flee combat, as they have no desire to risk returning to the grave a second time. If cornered and forced to fight, the Revenant can use any weapons he or she knew how to use in life. Alternately, the Revenant will attempt to grapple opponents, thereafter automatically biting and drinking blood.

Immune to Most Attacks: Amorous Revenants can only be destroyed with blessed objects, magical weapons, fire, or lightning. No other attacks will have any damaging effect on the creatures. In particular, it is pointless to drive a wooden stake through the heart of an Amorous Revenant.

Glamor of Life: Anyone who encounters an Amorous Revenant must first save versus Illusion magic (Challenge Level 3). Failure means the person will perceive the Revenant as they were in life. The actual body of an Amorous Revenant, however, remains as rotted or mangled as it was when it first rose from the grave. An Amorous Revenant’s Glamor of Life extends to all the senses, so the creature will seem to look, feel, smell, and taste alive. Once a someone succumbs to the Revenant’s Glamor of Life, that person is thereafter unable to perceive the creature for what it is until the Revenant is actually destroyed.

Drink Blood: An Amorous Revenant who successfully grapples an opponent in combat will automatically bite and inflict 1d3 points of damage. Thereafter, the Revenant can drain blood equal to 1 point of Constitution from their victim each round, for as long as the grapple is maintained. When a victim reaches 0 Constitution they are completely drained of blood and dead. Those killed in this way do not automatically become undead. Note that Amorous Revenants do not suffer from the blood lust of Vampires, and under ordinary circumstances most will not drink the blood of their lovers. Since the creature lacks any kind of fangs, the aggressive bite of an Amorous Revenant is extremely painful and traumatic.

Adventure Seeds:

After spending the night at the inn with a lovely and charming woman who seems to be his perfect mate, one of the PCs tries to find her the next morning. The innkeeper is horrified when the PC describes the woman, because she is no common tavern wench. She is the innkeeper’s own daughter – who has been dead for a month. In addition, a local Demon Hunter has overheard the conversation, and decided to destroy what he sees as a foul abomination. Do the PCs protect the Amorous Revenant, or join in the hunt for her?

The seemingly-endless wars are finally over, and the PCs have been released from their military service. Before they return to their families, they have to fulfill a promise, and inform the the widow of a fallen comrade that her husband won’t be coming home. They are shocked when they come to the house and find the widow pregnant. They are even more shocked when they see their dead comrade – who they saw slain by an enemy’s sword over a year ago!

The kingdom’s greatest lover has no intention of stopping his conquests, just because he was murdered by a jealous husband last week. Everyone knows he is dead, however, so when he keeps showing up at the same parties where he used to seduce local noblewomen, the PCs are hired to put him to final rest.

The Reclaiming Revenant

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Just in time for Halloween, here’s a frightful fellow from folklore. He’s just the thing to spring on players who are a little too cavalier about looting old tombs! Students of old tales will notice the echoes of some familiar stories in the adventure seeds that follow…

RECLAIMING REVENANT
A restless corpse arisen to retrieve its property

NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1
SIZE: Medium
HD: 4 (d12)
MOVE: 20′
AC: 16
ATTACKS: 1 grasp (1d4+4), or 1 weapon (by weapon type+4)
SPECIAL: Unnatural Strength, Faultless Tracker, Obsession, Undead Immunities, Darkvision 60′
SAVES: P
INT: Average – Genius (as in life)
ALIGNMENT: Neutral Evil
TYPE: Undead (Unique)
TREASURE: Special
XP: 130+4

A Reclaiming Revenant is a reanimated corpse, returned to claim something from the living. Those who carelessly despoil burial grounds, or otherwise steal from the dead, have reason to fear the Reclaiming Revenant. Sometimes, the dead rise not just to reclaim rightful property stolen from them, but also to take things that they never actually possessed, but always wanted. If their corpse still retains flesh and bone, however rotted, the soul of such a person may come to re-inhabit the body. The reanimated corpse will rise from its grave, and set out to claim its property. If it succeeds, the Reclaiming Revenant will then return to the grave.

The Reclaiming Revenant is entirely focused on fulfilling its desire. It will not attack anyone not connected with taking the object, unless they try to hinder it in some way. If that happens, the obstructing people will be mercilessly slain. Regardless of their Alignment in life, all Reclaiming Revenants become Neutral Evil.

When first encountered by a guilty person, the Reclaiming Revenant will softly ask the location of its property. Sometimes, the Reclaiming Revenant will visit, but not actually attack, for several successive nights, giving its victim the chance to surrender the Revenant’s property. Other times, the creature will quickly grow impatient and repeat the question several times, in a progressively louder voice, until it screams. If it is refused, or lied to, the Revenant will mercilessly attack.

If the object of a Reclaiming Revenant’s search is voluntarily returned to it, either by being given to the corpse, or placed on or in its grave, the creature will usually be satisfied. If for some reason the object of the Revenant’s search can never be returned to it, it will kill everyone involved in the loss. On rare occasions, a Reclaiming Revenant will kill all guilty parties, whether or not they return its property.

Destroying the physical body of a Reclaiming Revenant is sometimes futile, as the inhabiting soul may eventually return as an even more fearsome Ghost.

Combat: Most Reclaiming Revenants attack by grasping with their unnaturally strong hands, either strangling their prey, or breaking bones and twisting flesh. Those Revenants who were buried with weapons, however, will use them instead. The Revenant will not attack before asking the location of the object of its desire. Once a Reclaiming Revenant attacks, it will always continue until either it is destroyed, or its target is dead.

Unnatural Strength: A Reclaiming Revenant has an effective Strength score of 20. It receives a +4 bonus to all relevant rolls, including to-hit rolls, melee damage determination, Saving Throws and ability checks.

Faultless Tracker: The guilty can never escape a Reclaiming Revenant. The creature will always be able to find those responsible for taking whatever the Revenant wants, wherever they go. Strangely, however, the creature cannot automatically locate the actual object of its desire. For that reason, the Revenant will always demand to be told where that object is.

Obsession: The Reclaiming Revenant cares only about the object it has arisen to claim. Attempts to engage it in conversation on other topics are fruitless. Short of such things as an Exorcism, Limited Wish, Wish, or Raise Dead, the Revenant can never be directed away from its task. Even if Turned by the faith of a Cleric, the creature will only stop temporarily. If put into chains, the Revenant will still attempt to bust free and resume its hunt. If the creature’s body loses limbs but has not received enough damage to destroy it permanently, whatever remains will continue to move and attack as best it can.

Adventure Seeds:

The banker’s young widow had been forced to marry him, in order to pay off her family’s debts. She was therefore overjoyed when her disgusting husband died. Now her family claims he has returned from the dead, killed his former wife’s lover, and abducted her to his tomb. The family offers a rich reward to anyone who is brave enough to enter the tomb and get her back.

The Golden Princess was renowned for her hair made of actual gold, the gift of a Fairy. After the PCs are hired to exhume her body and steal the hair for the collection of a wealthy patron, she returns to claim it and punish those involved in its theft.

A once famous knight was buried with his magical sword, thereafter needed to help defeat a supernatural evil marauding across the countryside. The jealous spirit of the knight doesn’t care about the worthy motives of the PCs, so after they steal his sword from his grave he rises to take it back. Hopefully, the PCs can manage to use the sword to defeat the supernatural evil, before the Reverent of the knight prevents them.

The local church has decided to send soldiers to extort more religious taxes out of its flock. Out of desperation, the now destitute family of one of the PCs resorts to eating the guts of a recent burial. The corpse, however, objects to the loss of its organs. When the PC returns home to his starving family, he must protect them from the Revenant, now come to get back its innards. Since they can’t return its consumed organs, the Revenant will simply kill the family if it can.

An Overview of the Devils

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Advisory: The following overview of the Devils and their Infernal home contains certain imagery that some may consider disturbing. I do not believe it is gratuitous, as a depiction of true manifest Evil is bound to contain some mature themes. The Hell I describe is not simply the bad neighborhood of the spiritual realms, but the ultimate expression of unfettered Vice. Likewise, the Devils are not just fascists with magic powers, but actual incarnate Evil. So, this depiction is definitely not suitable for every game or campaign. That being said, I present the emissaries of remorseless Sin, and the hopeless prison they call home.

Concerning the Devils and the Pits of Hell.

At the nadir of the Cosmos are the seven spiritual prisons of Hell, as known as the City of Dis. There suffer the Damned Souls of those who selfishly indulged their own wicked desires at the expense of others. Presiding over them as their tormentors, yet also prisoners themselves, are the Devils. Also known by such names as the Infernals, and the Diabolical Legions, the Devils are the great enemies of the Angelic Hosts of Heaven. The Devils seek to destroy Virtue and promote Vice everywhere in the mundane world. Most of all they are known for the endless and intricate schemes by which they entrap and trick mortals into becoming the willing pawns and prisoners of Hell.

The seven prisons that comprise Hell are known as Pits, because each seems to consist of a terrible landscape at the bottom of a vast rift or depression. Each Pit corresponds to a particular Vice or Sin: Envy, Greed, Lust, Wrath, Gluttony, Sloth, or Pride. Each Pit also has it own associated caste of Devils, the members of which are wholly obsessed with indulging their particular Vice. To do this they require victims, forming one motivation for the Devils’ well-known zeal for obtaining mortal souls.

Devils are famous for binding mortals to contracts where a person receives worldly power or love into return for surrendering their soul. Most of the Damned Souls, however, did even require formal contracts to consign themselves to Hell. Still longing to indulge their wickedness after death, they followed visions of Vice that Hell projects as traps. Like flies to a pitcher plant, the Damned are attracted to the mouths of Hell, willingly entering for the chance to indulge themselves for all eternity. By the time they realize their mistake it is too late, and they must suffer an eternity of the same kind of misery and torment they once inflicted on others in life.

The most commonly told story regarding the origin of the Devils states they are former Angels, fallen from Heaven after they lost their Virtue and tried to usurp the Lord of Hosts. Even the powerful Luminous Devils claim this story to be basically true, although the Devils add that they did not fall of their own free will, but were unjustly exiled for simply demanding to be respected. Lending the support to that idea is the fact that the natural forms of Luminous Devils do actually resemble Angels. The other castes of Devils, however, claim to have no memory of ever having been present in Heaven, and know only their existence in Hell. The Cosmic Archons are known to claim that both Angels and Devils are rebel Archons, illegitimately occupying spiritual realms that were meant to respectively reward or punish those who either obeyed or disobeyed the Natural Law of the Demiurge. When Demons speak of Devils, they will deride them as severely deluded former Demons who try to imitate the tyranny of the Archons. The Fairy Folk regard Devils as they do all other spirits – as corrupt versions of themselves.

Devils are both very Evil and very Lawful. They will scrupulously obey the letter of any contract or agreement they enter into, while at the same time seeking ways to ultimately turn any relationship to their own benefit. All except the Luminous Devils are utterly devoid of mercy, love, or any of the finer emotions. Thus, while magicians find Devils to be far more reliable than Demons, the Infernal beings invariably harbor schemes to bring about the downfall of whoever they seem to serve.

The Devils exist in a strict hierarchy, determined by relative power and evil. Each caste possesses its own nobility, and all members of a caste are ultimately under the command of an Archdevil. The Archdevils are among the most evil beings in existence, each one wholly consumed by a particular Vice, and capable of inflaming that Vice in any being that stands in their presence. The more powerful and vice-ridden a Devil is, the more they are bound to Hell, and unable to stand the goodness and virtue that yet exists in the mundane world. The Diabolical nobility, for example, can only enter the ordinary world if summoned, or at times and in places associated with deeds of great wickedness. The Archdevils can only enter ordinary reality after the performance of disgustingly evil ceremonies, involving outrageous sacrifices and the most debased acts.

Like Demons, Devils can be summoned to teach spells and other magical lore. Unlike Demons, the terms of any such arrangement will be specific and strictly obeyed, but always crafted in such a way to ultimately benefit Hell. Typically, a formal contract signed in blood will be required. Only the most powerful magic will require the surrender of a soul; the terms for a a lesser arcanum will typically only specify some wicked service to be performed at a later date.

The gates of Hell are known as Hell-mouths, and take the form of monstrous heads with gaping maws. Notably, the heads appear to be identical with those of the Archdevils themselves. When a Hell-mouth is encountered there will often seem to be people and Devils walking in and out of it, and the sound of a particular Vice being indulged will echo from beyond the entry. The mouth will make no motion to close, and the surrounding figures will entice souls to enter. Woe unto any so foolish as to do so.

The Seven Pits of Hell and Their Inhabitants

The Pit of Envy: The Entrance to this Pit is through the head of gigantic sea-serpent. The Pit takes the form of a frozen swamp surrounded by cliffs, and is the Courthouse of Hell. Here the Envious are eternally subjected to humiliating and torturous trials for the amusement of the Accuser Devils. Such trials are presided over by the Accuser Devil nobility, who each hold the title of Marquis (ordinary Accuser Devils often adding “Esquire” to their names). Ruling the Pit is the Archdevil known as the Crooked Serpent, or Father of Lies, a howling reptilian monster whose tail is stuck in the ice that covers the vast polluted lake at the center the Pit.

The Pit of Greed: The Pit of Greed is a complex of miserable treasure vaults that form the Banks of Hell. The Mouth of Greed resembles a giant old man with avaricious eyes, whose lips surround an open set of iron doors. The Damned who enter the Pit are branded and periodically herded from vault to vault, becoming the actual currency of Hell. As they loved money in life, so they become money in death. No attempt is made to deliberately torture the Damned in the Pit of Greed; they simply suffer as a result of the indifference and neglect born of avarice. Each cold and filthy vault represents a particular Devil’s bank account, and each collection of vaults comprising an Infernal Bank is headed by a President. All the Presidents of the Pact Devils report to an Archdevil known as Devil Money, Old Scratch, or sometimes simply The Man. Old Scratch is chained to his desk at the crossroads in the center of the Pit, forever counting and gloating over the souls he owns.

The Pit of Lust: The Pit of Lust is reached through a mouth that resembles a gaping ram’s head. At the center of the Pit of Lust is a sweltering city of juxtaposed decay and barbaric splendor – not just a festering hell-hole of depravity, but THE festering hell-hole of depravity. Surrounding the city is Green Hell – a mountainous landscape of scalding geysers and dark jungles filled with monstrous carnivorous plants. In the Pit of Lust those who once made others serve as instruments of their pleasure are themselves hunted by the Seducer Devils, brutally abducted, and forcibly incorporated into diabolical harems. They are then subjected to the foul desires of the Devils, until the new bodies of the Damned succumb to agonizing deaths. Thereafter the Damned awaken back on the streets of the city, to repeat the cycle. The Dukes and Duchesses who rule the Seducer Devils will select certain of the Damned to be delivered to the Archdevil known as the Prince of Darkness, also called the Lord of Lust. This polymorphous being is chained by a lame foot to an ornate bed in his harem-zoo, where he engages in a desperate and eternal quest to obtain the ultimate sensory experience.

The Pit of Wrath: Reached through the mouth of a fearsome dragon, the Pit of Wrath is an endless shallow sea of bloody entrails and severed body parts, interrupted by volcanoes, rocky outcroppings, and torture poles. Here hateful and violent souls are flayed, tortured, hunted, and made to engage in endless gladiatorial combats for the amusement of the Wrath Devils. From their burning iron and basalt fortresses the Counts and Countesses of the Wrath Devils plot the destruction of all innocence. Imprisoned in a vast pit in the center of a titanic fortress is the Marshall of Hell known as The Destroyer. The only joys of this vast dragon-like monster are tearing and searing the bodies of the Damned souls fed to him, and dreaming of the day when he will rampage through Heaven.

The Pit of Gluttony: When first entered through the gaping mouth of humongous goat, the Pit of Gluttony appears to consist of piles of delicious food. Quickly the Damned Soul learns that all the apparent food is just disguised dung and filth, and the only thing to eat in the Pit are the Damned themselves, served up alive in banquets for the Corrupter Devils. The entire Pit is in fact made of excrement that often explodes with blue flame, and the rain is urine and bile. Presiding over the infernal feasts are the Corrupter Devil Prelates, who serve the Archdevil known as the Lord of the Flies. He sits imprisoned in a gaudy gilded pulpit atop the largest of the dung heaps, as Damned Souls fattened on the flesh of their fellows are wheeled up to him to sate his eternal hunger.

The Pit of Despair: The Pit of Despair is a series of miserable factories filled with steam, blazing forges, disused trash piles, and abandoned constructions. Reached through a rusted pipe held in the mouth of an old man with small horns and tired eyes, the Damned are here chained together and made to labor unceasingly on bizarre, pointless, and usually impossible projects. The Craft Devils at whose command the Damned work are never actually satisfied with any results. Periodically, they will destroy all the work that has already been done, and force the hapless laborers to start again from the beginning. The Masters of the Craft Devils constantly present new devices to the Archdevil known as the Grand Engineer of Hell, or the Lord of Evil Inventions. This perpetually bored being broods in eternal ennui atop a wheeled contraption of a throne. Only the throne is actually chained to the ground, and while the Engineer might get up at any time, he never does.

The Pit of Pride: The gate to the Pit of Pride is through the mouth of a titanic, youthful king. The Pit of Pride is the deepest of all the pits, and its floor is flooded by the vast Lake of Fire. In the center of the burning lake is an island that seems to be an incongruous piece of Paradise. The island is filled with palaces and gardens, each seemingly more splendid than the last. Here the Damned Souls of kings and potentates are contorted into living furniture, and become abused, menial slaves. The Luminous Devils believe that none but the rulers of the mundane world are fit to perform even the most humiliating work for them. The Luminous Devils are ruled by arrogant Kings and Queens, and their grand palaces surround a structure of astounding magnificence. In that grandest of palaces sits the Archdevil known as the Light Bearer, a breathtakingly beautiful being that dares to title himself Emperor of Hell. He is eternally chained to a throne formed from the bound souls of the world’s proudest conquerers. Ceaselessly the Light Bearer curses the Heavenly Lord of Hosts, whose station the Archdevil believes himself to rightly deserve.

The Rulership of Hell

The entire hierarchy of Devils appears to serve two nearly-omnipotent embodiments of Vice. The first is a horror usually called alternately The Adversary, or simply The Beast. As The Adversary he is said to be similar in appearance to a gigantic, crowned satyr, with a barbed tail, enormous bat-like wings, and holding a red-hot trident. As The Beast, he resembles a red-hued dragon whose seven heads are the seven Hell-mouths. His consort is the Queen of the Night, also known as the Great Scarlet Whore. She is usually seen as an incredibly beautiful, intoxicated woman with a cruel smile and flowing red hair, dressed in immodest clothing of red and purple, and covered with gold and jewels. When the are seen together, the Scarlet Whore often rides the back of The Beast. The Luminous Devils are known to claim that the Adversary is actually just a form taken by the Light Bearer, and the Queen of the Night is the first mortal woman, who exceeded all other beings in her devotion to sorcery and Vice.

All Devils share the following characteristics:

Extraplaner Type: As natives of the Outer Darkness, Devils are subject to all magic that targets Extraplaner creatures. Despite being generally unable to enter mundane reality without aid, Devils are notable in that they can often be summoned by non-magical rituals.

Whiff of Brimstone: Devils can sometimes be detected by the stink of sulfur that occurs whenever they appear. Any time a Devil is Summoned or teleported into an area , the oder of burning brimstone will be momentarily noticeable in a 30′ radius. This smell occurs even if the Devil is invisible or in another form, unless the creatures uses magical precautions to mask its oder.

Silver or Magic Weapons To Hit: All Devils, no matter how powerful, can be damaged by weapons crafted from, or coated with, silver. Devils hate silver, and will not willingly touch it. Otherwise, only enchanted weapons can harm them.

Barred From Holy Ground: All Devils, with the notable exception of Accuser Devils, are unable to enter any area consecrated to the powers of Good.

Weakness To Holy Water: Like Demons, Devils are burned by Holy Water as if it was acid. They take 1d8 damage for every full phial they are doused with.

Subject To Turning: Devils can be turned by the faith of sufficiently powerful Good Clerics. Treat Devils as Unique Undead for turning purposes. Seducer Devils are singularly immune to the power of faith.

Darkvision: Devils can see perfectly regardless of illumination.

Spell Resistance: Like most spirits, all Devils have some measure of resistance to magic.

Spell-Like Abilities: All Devils can speak and understand all languages; become Invisible; assume the form of a snake, black dog, black cat, goat, toad, raven, or owl; cause Darkness; perform feats of Prestidigitation; and instantly Know Alignment. They can also roam the Ethereal and Astral Planes. Most Devils also have additional Spell-Like Abilities, often related to their associated Vice.

Summoning: If hard pressed, every Devil can attempt to Summon Diabolical aid. Not all Devils are assured of success, however. In addition, any Devil that has been Summoned by another loses its own ability to Summon until it returns to Hell again.

Diabolical Immunities: Devils are immune to all diseases (magical or mundane), all poisons, and all magic that influences minds or perceptions.

Fire Immunity: Devils are completely immune to fire based attacks.

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