Class Consciousness

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Eleven years ago, some dumb idiot drew these:

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Image by me, a dumb idiot

Feel free to read the original post, but I think this sentence from the last paragraph sums it up: “I don’t know if I have any insightful points to make.” But I guess that’s one of the primary reasons Tumblr exists: to show your ass to the whole of the internet. Also, for those of you playing 5th edition, the class options have expanded so much that any character can do any thing, so this schema is wholly obsolete.

I like the character class as an RPG sub-system, they’re a neat textual shorthand for the various roles a player-character can fill. I enjoy the way they flavor the world of the game and the way they let players interact with that world in different ways. I was never into the character optimization scene that started with 3rd edition D&D, but I like pulling from the array of options (race/species, class, feat, skill, etc.) many games offer to put together a character concept that interests me. This appeals to the part of me that is perpetually adolescent, that desires to be an individual with the competence and confidence to survive in a dangerous world.

Of course, there’s also a part of me that likes dealing with whatever random freak I get handed when I sit down at the table. This has crystallized relatively recently, as I’ve mostly played in pick-up games. The characters I play in these games are there for a good time, not a long time, so to speak. It’s not about making an interesting character, but making a character interesting. Mörk Borg is great for these games; the doomed bastards that SCVMBIRTHER spits out are a blast to play. This appeals to the part of me that wants to make the most of a few hours of precious free time to pretend to be some schmuck trying not to die in a hole.

How many distinct character classes does an elf-game need? Current D&D has like, twelve, with three or four sub-classes each; the Vanilla Game has two. As much as I scorned it at the start, I keep coming back to this, a tidy eight:

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You could even convince me to pare it down to six – I’d probably ditch the paladin and the druid. (In this version of the fantasy heartbreaker game in my head, I’d give clerics the choice of either smiting or laying on hands (thus absorbing paladins), and druids can be emulated by any spellcaster through choice of spells.)

JOESKY TAX:
ROCKFIST
(Conjuration)
A shell of solid stone coalesces around the spellcaster’s clenched fist.

While the spell is active, the caster can make melee attacks that deal 2d6 bludgeoning damage. The attack and damage rolls are modified by the caster’s spellcasting ability modifier. Whenever doubles are rolled for damage, the target of the attack must succeed a Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.

The spell lasts for one round per caster level. At any time before this duration ends, the caster can hurl the rockfist as a ranged attack against a single target they can see within 60 feet. This also ends the spell.

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CRASS MENAGERIE

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I’ve been having a hard time coming up with anything substantive to write about, so I’mma just drop a bunch of creatures for adventurers to tangle with out in the wilderness.

REAPER LEECH
Large beast

An armored worm the size of an anaconda, capable of striking with blinding speed.

No. Appearing: 1, prefers swamps and marshes, but could also be found in city sewers
Hit Dice: 4d6 (14 hp)
Armor Class: High (chitinous plating + high Dexterity)
Movement: Moves two-and-a-half times the speed of an unencumbered human. Cannot be knocked prone.
Attack: Razor fangs +4 x2 (1d8 damage, and target must succeed a Strength or Dexterity saving throw or leech latches on.)
Special – Blood Drain: At the start of the leech’s turn, it deals 1d6 Constitution damage to a creature it has latched on to.
Loot: A single reaper leech yields enough chitinous plating for a skilled craftsperson to make a suit of Medium-sized armor with the protection of Plate/Heavy armor but the encumbrance of Chain/Medium armor.

HUNTING PLASM
Medium aberration

Amorphous quadrupedal pack hunter, also know as a flowolf.

No. Appearing: 2d4
Hit Dice: 1d6 (3 hp); takes half damage from bludgeoning attacks and can’t be backstabbed.
Armor Class: Low (protoplasmic body)
Movement: Twice as a fast as an unencumbered human. A hunting plasm can squeeze through a space as small as 12 inches in diameter.
Attack: Stinging tendrils +1 x2 (1d4 damage + 1d4 Strength damage)
Special – Fission: When a hunting plasm is dropped to 0 hp, there’s a 2-in-6 chance that it splits into two smaller plasms instead (1 hp, 1 stinging tendril attack).

VORPAL NEWT
Medium beast

Amphibian ambush predator with a powerful bite; it lurks in murky freshwater.

No. Appearing: 1, lives in rivers, lakes, and wetlands
Hit Dice: 2d6 (7 hp)
Armor Class: Medium (slimy, rugose hide + above average Dexterity)
Movement: As an unencumbered human. A vorpal newt can also swim as fast as its land speed.
Attack: Severing jaws +2 (1d6 damage. When maximum damage is rolled, the vorpal newt severs a target’s limb; roll 1d8: 1 – right hand, 2 – right arm, 3 – left hand, 4 – left arm, 5 – right foot, 6 – right leg, 7 – left foot, 8 – left leg) OR
Stinging tail +2 (10 ft reach, 1d4 damage and target must succeed Constitution saving throw or be poisoned, taking 1d4 damage at the start of their turn, Con save for half, effect ends after 3 successful saves.)

SQUAWK
Small beast

Flying cephalopods adapted to living out of water.

No. Appearing: 1d4, found in forests, particularly near a coast.
Hit Dice: 2d6 (7 hp)
Armor Class: Low (rubbery body + average Dexterity)
Movement: Can fly twice as fast as an unencumbered human can walk; half as fast as an unencumbered human on the ground.
Attack: Nipping beak +2 (1d6 damage) OR Spit acid +2 (15-foot range, 1d6 damage)
Special – Active Camouflage: Squawks can rapidly change the color and texture of their skin to mimic their surroundings. This ability imposes Disadvantage on any ability checks made to spot a hidden squawk.

SHRYCHOPATH
Medium monstrous humanoid

Gaunt avian bipeds with enlarged craniums, shrychopaths mark their territories by hanging the picked over carcasses of their prey from tree branches or rock formations.

No. Appearing: 1d6; shrychopaths telepathically communicate with each other. Make their lairs in ruins or caves.
Hit Dice: 3d8 (13 hp)
Armor Class: Low (unarmored + above average Dexterity)
Movement: As an unencumbered human; can move across vertical surfaces at their normal movement speed.
Attack: Grasping claws +3 (1d6 damage and target is grappled) OR Serrated beak +1 (1d8 damage; automatically hits grappled target).
Special – Psychic Shriek: Living creatures within 30 feet of a shrychopath must succeed a Wisdom saving throw or be stunned for 1d4 rounds. After using this ability, it has a 1-in-6 chance of recharging at the start of the shrychopath’s next turn.
Loot: Shrychopaths keep small hoards of objects left over from intelligent prey – 4d6 gp worth of trinkets and coins per individual in a given group.

SPELLS FROM THE XANTHIC CODEX

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Inspired by listening to a bunch of Yellow Eyes lately, and also to some extent by the novel Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez.

So far, only fragments of the Xanthic Codex have been found, and from those fragments these four spells have been deciphered.

A Forgotten Corridor

  • Requires a length of wall of at least 10 feet.
  • Wrenches open a 5-foot-wide hallway that can connect to another wall up to 100 feet away, multiplied by 10 for every level of the spellcaster (1,000 feet at level 2, 10,000 feet at level 3, and so on).
  • The exit of the hallway must be in a location the spellcaster knows and can visualize
  • The interior distance of the hallway is always 100 feet.
  • The hallway exists for one minute after the spellcaster crosses the threshold of the exit, after which the walls seal shut and everything still inside is gone forever.

The Scent of Black Mud

  • Transforms a 10’x10’-per-spellcaster-level area of ground into a foot-sucking morass.
  • Creatures moving through the transformed ground move at half-speed and have disadvantage on Dexterity ability rolls.
  • A powerful stench exudes from the muck; living creatures that start their turn within the affected area must succeed a Constitution saving throw or become so nauseated that they suffer disadvantage on attack rolls and skill checks. A creature that fails three consecutive saving throws is overcome by the smell and falls unconscious.
  • The spellcaster is immune to all effects of this spell.
  • The area remains transformed for up to one round per level of the spellcaster, or until dismissed by the caster.

Gold Door to Blindness

  • Summons a portal of blazing yellow light, as bright as the sun, in an unoccupied 5’x5’ space the spellcaster can see within 15 feet.
  • All creatures within a 60-foot cone emanating from the portal (direction determined by the spellcaster) are blinded by the light. A successful Dexterity saving throw indicates a creature was able to protect their eyes and are only blind until they move out of the portal’s area of effect. Creatures that fail the saving throw are permanently blind.
  • The spellcaster can use a move-equivalent action to adjust the direction in which the portal faces.
  • Creatures that are harmed by sunlight are similarly affected by the light from the portal.
  • After a number of rounds equal to the caster’s spellcasting ability modifier (minimum of 1 round), at the start of each subsequent round the portal remains open, the caster makes a Constitution saving throw, suffering 1d6 damage on a failure.

Many Long Fingers Bent in Pain

  • Creates a warded area up to 10 feet-per-caster level by 10 feet-per-caster level.
  • Creatures that enter the area of effect (except for those chosen by the spellcaster) are beset by the feeling of countless cold, clammy hands pawing at them. Standing still provokes no additional effects.
  • If a creature persists in moving through the affected area, they suffer 1d6 damage for every 5 feet of distance traveled, accompanied by the feeling of sharp nails tearing at their body.
  • Creatures with the ability to perceive magical effects will see disembodied hands crawling over the affected area and anyone standing within it.
  • The spell lasts for up to one minute per spellcaster level, or until dismissed by the caster.

TENEBROUS GLYPH

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A ring forged from heavy, drab gray metal, bearing an arcane sigil. Characters with knowledge of magic can identify it as a combination of runes that meaning “I call upon the darkness within” with a successful Intelligence check.

While worn, the ring heightens the wearers senses at night and in darkness: the penalties for poor illumination are lessened by one step (treat low-light like normal light, and darkness like low-light). However, they become irritated in the presence of bright light (including sunlight) suffering disadvantage on Charisma ability rolls and reaction rolls due to crankiness and ill temper. Also, while in possession of the ring, a character will find their attention drawn to its sigil (have the PC roll a Charisma saving throw; if they fail, their fixation on the ring will be noticeable to others, if present).

By spending downtime in research, a character will learn that the ring’s sigil is known as the Tenebrous Glyph, and further power can be unlocked by giving in to the sigil and staying awake from sunset to sunrise covering every available of surface of a room with iterations of the Tenebrous Glyph. A character that completes this ritual achieves level one, Shady. In addition to the previous benefits, a character wearing the ring becomes more attuned to that which is hidden – they have a 2-in-6 chance of detecting falsehoods and a 2-in-6 chance of detecting hidden doors and traps. The character begins to see the Tenebrous Glyph briefly, tenuously, in the swarming movements of birds or in wisps of smoke. They can remove the ring if they like, albeit grudgingly.

Through further research, the character can learn that if the wearer of the ring spends a day and a night in total darkness and silence, they will reach level two, Dim. Now, the character no longer needs to sleep (though they still have to rest for 8 hours to restore spent resources like hit points or spell slots), however they will always look like they haven’t slept – sallow, with dark circles under their eyes. Also, their senses become even sharper in the dark (they can act in total darkness as if it were daylight).

More studying will reveal that the next ritual instructs the character to sleep for three days straight so that they can commune with the Tenebrous Glyph, which will require powerful narcotics, or magic, to accomplish. When (If) they awake from their slumber, the character will have arrived at level three, Gloaming. The wearer’s eyes turn solid black, and their light sensitivity worsens; daylight causes migraine-like symptoms that incur disadvantage on Dexterity and Wisdom ability rolls. Spectacles with darkened lenses will negate these penalties. At this point, the character will be reluctant to ever take off the ring, but can do so if they succeed a Charisma saving throw. As their action, the wearer can invoke the Tenebrous Glyph to cause their shadow to deepen and expand, becoming a 15-foot-radius sphere of impenetrable darkness, for up to one minute. Maintaining the sphere requires great concentration, so the wearer cannot cast spells at the same time. The Glyph can be invoked a number of times per day equal to the ring’s level.

The wearer will begin to feel an internal pull, subtle but insistent. If they follow this feeling, it will lead deep underground, to a place where natural light has never reached. If they invoke the Tenebrous Glyp here, it will speak to them; if they listen for seven days, they will attain level four, Occult. The wearer can now invoke the Tenebrous Glyph to detach their shadow and project it out to a range of 30 feet. The shadow can manipulate and carry solid objects that weigh up to 10 pounds. Controlling the shadow requires the wearer’s attention and concentration, so they cannot perform a separate action of their own. At this level, the wearer will never willingly remove the ring. Perceptive characters might notice that wearer’s shadow will sometimes move of its own accord, contrary to the wearer’s movements.

There is one final ritual to uncover, performed during a total solar eclipse. If the wearer invokes the Tenebrous Glyph moment at the exact moment the sun is fully obscured, they will truly perceive the darkness within. They must make a Charisma saving throw; if they fail, they lose 1d4 Wisdom as their mind recoils from the darkness. Success means they accept what the ritual has shown them and reach level five, Umbral. Now, the wearer can invoke the Tenebrous Glyph to merge with their shadow. While in this state of living shadow, the wearer exists as a two-dimensional being that can move along any lighted surface. They are immune to non-magical damage, poison, and disease, but take double damage from light-based spells and abilities. The wearer cannot communicate vocally and cannot manipulate or carry any solid object weighing more than 10 pounds. Transitioning into or out of this form is a move-equivalent action. At this level, the wearer will sicken and eventually die from exposure to sunlight; without protective clothing, they suffer disadvantage on all Strength ability rolls and lose 1d8 hit points every minute (a successful Constitution halves this damage).

TOFELBROCK

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illustration by me

Medium beast
No. Appearing: 1
Hit Dice: 3d8 (13 hp), saves as a fighter
Armor Class: 13 (hide + above average dexterity)
Movement: As a normal, unencumbered human. Tofelbrocks can burrow through earth at half their movement speed.
Demeanor: Highly territorial, stubborn, unsubtle; ability checks to placate a tofelbrock are made with disadvantage.
Attack:
– Headbutt +2 (1d8 damage and the target must succeed a Strength saving throw or be knocked prone; the tofelbrock gains a +1 to hit and +2 to damage for every 10 feet of straight-line movement it made before the headbutt) OR
– Lashing Tentacles +2 (1d4 damage ) x 3
Special:
– Blindsense: The wringling tendrils on a tofelbrocks neck, shoulder and back are sensory organs, allowing it to perceive its surroundings in a 30-foot radius regardless of light conditions. Creatures have disadvantage on ability checks to sneak through this area.
– Prehensile Tongue: As it’s action, a tofelbrock can extend its tongue out and attempt to grab a creature it can see up to 10 feet away. The target must succeed a Dexterity saving throw or become grappled. Instead of moving, a tofelbrock can pull a creature grappled by its tongue towards it. A successful Strength saving throw is needed to resist the pull or break free. 

Tofelbrocks are truculent, burrowing omnivores that live in temperate forests and hills. They are solitary creatures, spending most of their time patrolling their territories, foraging and challenging intruders.

Their meat is considered unsuitable for eating, unpleasant in taste and texture – except for their tongues, which are sought after by some gourmands. The horny plates that cover their heads, necks, and shoulders can be made into armor – enough plates can be harvested from a single tofelbrock to make a suit of medium armor

TORMENTOR

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We’ve all been there, Tony.
(The Torment of St. Anthony, by Michelangelo.)

Demons are a lot like humans, some of them are devious schemers… and some are just jerks.

Tormentors are the second kind.

Medium outsider (demon)
No. Appearing: 1d6+2
Hit Dice: 2d8 (9 hp); saves as a fighter. Tormentors are immune to poison and disease and resistant to fire.
Armor Class: Medium (Otherworldly flesh + above average Dexterity)
Movement: As a normal, unencumbered human
Demeanor: Gleefully sadistic, boundlessly contemptuous of mortal authorities and institutions. Tormentors have no plan other than to move fast and break things.
Attack:
– Raking claws +1 (1d6 damage) x2. If both claw attacks hit the same target, they become grappled by the tormentor. OR
– Gnashing jaws (2d4 damage). A tormentor can make 2 gnashing jaws attacks against a target it has grappled.
Special:
– Fiery Death: When a tormentor’s hit points are reduced to 0, it explodes, dealing 3d6 damage to everything in a 5-foot radius, leaving behind a cloud of noxious smoke that fills a 10-ft x 10-ft x 10-ft cube. The cloud blocks line of sight and living creatures that start their turn inside it must succeed a Constitution saving throw or be unable to do anything but cough and choke on the fumes. A strong wind will disperse the cloud instantly; otherwise, it will dissipate in 1d4 rounds.

Demonic Detail (roll 1d6):
1 – Wings: The tormentor can fly as fast as they can walk. Flying tormentors like to drop grabbed targets from great heights.
2 – Spikes: The tormentor is covered in long spines. A creature making a melee attack against a spiked tormentor takes 1d4 damage if they miss. As an action, a spiked tormentor can pluck off a spine and hurl it like a dart (+1 ranged attack, 30-foot range, 1d4 damage).
3 – Second Face: The tormentor has another, complete face somewhere on their body. They cannot be surprised and they gain Advantage on saving throws to resist mind-affecting spells and effects.
4 – Club: The tormentor wields a gnarled cudgel (replaces 1 claw attack, +1 to hit, 1d6 damage, when it deals max damage against a living creature, that creature must succeed a Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the start of the tormentor’s next turn).
5 – Taloned Feet: The tormentor has clawed feet as strong and prehensile as their hands. They can move along vertical surfaces as fast as they can walk. Creatures grappled by a tormentor with taloned feet have disadvantage on ability checks to break free.
6 – Proboscis: Instead of gnashing jaws, the tormentor has an extendable, blood-sucking proboscis (melee attack, 1d6 damage and target must succeed a Constitution saving throw or suffer Disadvantage on Strength-based rolls for a number of rounds equal to the damage inflicted).

WINTER WARLOCK

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Winter warlocks are the mortal agents of the otherworldly entity known as Ithaqua, the Wind Walker. They haunt the coldest corners of the world, where the nights are long and the wind howls louder than the wolves.

Medium humanoid (human)
No. Appearing: 2d3-1, often accompanied by winter-aspected seely wights or itinerant berserkers in their thrall
Hit Dice: 5d8 (23 hit points); saves as a magic-user. Winter warlocks are immune to damage from cold-based spells and abilities.
Armor Class: Low (frost-encrusted furs and hides + average dexterity)
Movement: As a normal, unencumbered human. Winter warlocks are unaffected by snowy or icy terrain. When walking through snow, they can choose to leave no tracks or misleading tracks.
Demeanor: Cunning and callous; occasionally distracted as they listen for Ithaqua’s words on the wind. Bright lights and open flames make them uncomfortable.
Attack: by weapon, usually spears or axes (+3 melee or thrown, 1d6 damage)
Special:

  • Boreal Fiends: As their action, the winter warlock makes weird, discordant music. 1d3-1 rounds later, 1d4 boreal fiends appear out of a freezing mist. The boreal fiends will obey the commands of any winter warlock; if none exist, they will disappear back into freezing mist. Boreal fiends can only be summoned once every 24 hours.
  • Grip of Winter: As their action, the winter warlock can grab a creature within reach (a +3 melee attack). On a hit, the target suffers 2d6 damage and is grappled by the warlock. Every subsequent round, if the target is still grappled on the warlock’s turn, they suffer another 2d6 damage. Breaking free from the warlock’s grasp requires an opposed Strength check, which the warlock makes with a +5 bonus. After using this ability, there is a 1-in-6 chance it recharges at the start of the warlocks next turn.
  • Winds of Limbo: As their action, the winter warlock summons powerful, bitterly cold winds that swirl in a 10-foot radius around them, forcing out creatures that fail a Strength saving throw. The affected area is considered difficult terrain and creatures have disadvantage on missile attacks targeting the warlock. The winds last as long as the warlock maintains concentration. The warlock can end the effect by concentrating the winds into a blast targeting a single creature. If the target fails a Strength or Dexterity saving throw, they are hurled backwards 50 feet; if they strike a solid obstacle before reaching that, they suffer damage as if they had fallen from a height equal to the distance they moved. A warlock can also end the effect early to propel themself into the air, flying a maximum of 5 miles before landing. After using this ability, there is a 2-in-6 chance it recharges at the start of the warlocks next turn.

I Loot the Body (roll 1d8):

1-3: Rawhide pouch of animal grease. A character that slathers this gamy-smelling paste over their body gains Advantage on saving throws to resist cold-based spells and effects. Can also be used as rations in a pinch, but characters with a Constitution score of 12 or less must succeed a Constitution saving throw or become sickened for 1d4 hours after eating. The pouch contains 2d3 applications.
4-5: Ivory effigy: Scrimshawed carving of a humanoid with its head thrown back in a howl. A character that succeeds an Intelligence roll can identify it as a depiction of Ithaqua. May be of interest to scholars or occultists. While in possession of the effigy, a character has a 1-in-20 chance every time they go to sleep that they dream of a wind-swept, frozen wasteland where a giant humanoid figure can be seen prowling on the horizon.
6: Carnivore Mask. A chimerical construction of bones from various predatory animals. The wearer gains the ability to speak and understand the languages of carnivorous animals, but has Disadvantage on all rolls related to interacting with prey animals.
7: A flute made from a human thigh-bone. When played, a boreal fiend will arrive out of a cloud of freezing-cold mist 1d3-1 rounds later. The creature will obey the commands of the flute-player for 24 hours, after which it will disappear back into rapidly dispersing mist. There is no limit to how many times the flute can be use, but unless the player is a winter warlock, there is a cumulative 1-in-20 chance per use after the first that the instrument breaks, releasing all of the summoned fiends to act as they wish.
8: A book bound in human leather containing rambling screeds and unsettling diagrams. A character that succeeds an Intelligence saving throw can discern from the contents the instructions for summoning the Winds of Limbo. Non-spellcasters who study the text can use the ability once per day. Spellcasters can add Winds of Limbo to their list of spells known. Whether or not a character is a magic-user, every time they summon the Winds of Limbo, they must succeed a Wisdom saving throw or lose 1d3 Charisma as Ithaqua claims a piece of their soul.

BOREAL FIEND
Fragments of Ithaqua manifesting on the Material Plane, boreal fiends look like the corpses of humans who have died of exposure – pallid, emaciated, noses and lips frostbitten away, fingertips worn to jagged bone.

Medium outsider
Hit Dice: 1d12 (7 hp); saves as a fighter. Boreal fiends are immune to cold-based damage and effects, but take double damage from fire.
Armor Class: Medium (otherworldly flesh + above average Dexterity)
Movement: 50% faster than an normal, unencumbered human. Boreal fiends are unaffected by snowy or ice terrain.
Demeanor: Malevolent and aggressively hostile. Boreal fiends are immune to fear-based spells and effects.
Attack: Bony claws x2 (+2 melee, 1d8 damage)
Special: Fiendish Frost – As its action, a boreal fiend can unleash a terrible cry, exhaling a 15-foot long conical blast of ice. Creatures in the area of effect that fail a Dexterity saving throw suffer 1d10 damage and have Disadvantage on Strength- and Dexterity-based rolls until the start of the fiend’s next turn from the numbing cold. Targets that succeed the saving throw take half damage and don’t suffer Disadvantage. After being used, this ability has a 1-in-6 chance of recharging at the start of the fiend’s next turn.

CARNIBURR

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illustration by me

Medium beast
No. Appearing: 2d4
Hit Dice: 4d6 (14 hp); saves as a fighter, has advantage on saving throws versus lightning-based spells and effects.
Armor Class: Medium (Calcareous exoskeleton + above average dexterity)
Movement: As a normal, unencumbered human. A carniburr can move across walls and ceilings as if they were floors.
Attack:
– Sharpened limb-end +2 (1d6 damage and the target must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the target is incapacitated with a fit of laughter for 1 minute; on a success, they suffer disadvantage on rolls until the start of the carniburr’s next turn, due to uncontrollable giggling.)
OR
– Bite +0 (2d6 damage)

Carniburrs are terrestrial, carnivorous cousins of sea urchins with the curious ability to secrete a substance that induces hysterical laughter. Their roe is prized as a delicacy. (Requires a successful Intelligence check to identify and a successful Dexterity check to extract the roe intact. Extremely perishable and worth 1d4x100 gp.)

IT’S THE GREAT PUMPKIN BLIGHT, CHARLIE BROWN… RUN!

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photo by Zakar.ion

Often used by professional dowsers (and charlatans pretending as such) as a reason farmers should hire them, a pumpkin blight (also known as a calabasher) is the result of planting a pumpkin patch on the site of a great bloodletting. Some scholars of necromancy posit that the burgeoning gourds, full of vitality and potential life, are a magnet for any unquiet spirits linked to the area. Others suggest that the psychic residue of so much violence and death is a potent mutagen.

Whatever the case may be, eventually a monstrous agglomeration of pumpkin vines, wormy earth, and moldering bones erupts. A pumpkin blight exists for only a few days, after which the plant matter holding it together rots away, leaving behind a mound of stinking, mushy debris.

Large undead (plant)
Hit Dice: 10d10 (55 hit points), saves as a fighter.
Armor Class: Medium (Made of bones, dirt, and plants; low dexterity)
Movement: Half the speed of a normal unencumbered human, but a pumpkin blight is unaffected by difficult terrain.
Demeanor: Hungry and hostile. A character attempt telepathic contact with it must succeed a Wisdom-based saving throw or be stunned, paralyzed by visions of terror and violence.
Attack: 
– Slam attack +5 (10-foot reach, 2d6 damage; when doubles are rolled, target must succeed a Strength-based saving throw or be knocked prone) OR
– Chuck pumpkin +5 (30-foot range, 2d4 damage; when doubles are rolled, target must succeed a Strength-based saving throw or be knocked prone)
Special:

  • Vicious Vines: As its action, the pumpkin blight launches a web of tendrils in a 30-foot long cone. Creatures in the area of effect must succeed a Dexterity-based saving throw or become entangled in the vines. As a move-equivalent action, the pumpkin blight can attempt to pull entangled creatures into its body; targets can resist this forced movement with a successful Strength-based saving throw. The vines can also be severed by dealing any amount of damage directly to them (this damage doesn’t count against the pumpkin blight’s hit points). Creatures pulled inside the pumpkin blight take 1d10 damage every round as they are simultaneously crushed and suffocated. Creatures can dig their way out with a successful Strength check

I Loot the Body: A character digging through the remains will find 1d4 intact pumpkins (GM’s call as to whether they’re just pumpkins) and 1d4x10 gold pieces worth of buried trinkets.

Some Semi-Organized Thoughts on Draw Steel

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No Land Beyond, 108 W. North Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland

This past Sunday, I visited No Land Beyond for the first Flagons & Dragons in their hip new digs.

Firstly, for any readers in the greater Baltimore area, y’all should really check this place out. Full service bar, tasty food, well-stocked game library, impeccable vibes. With that out of the way, let’s get down to brass, er, steel tacks.

On more than one occasion, I’ve gone on record here as standing up for Fourth Edition D&D. Draw Steel seems to be directly descended from it – it’s a leveled, class-based system where every class has distinctive powers.

The first big difference is that Draw Steel is not a d20 system; it uses 2d10 plus a modifier. The next big difference is that those 2d10 rolls don’t determine success or failure, but degree (or “Tier,” to use the game’s parlance) of success. In the demo encounter I played, the PCs never missed an attack, but neither did their foes.

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Each pre-generated character had their own little booklet. As the demo scenario progressed, more of the character’s features would be explained, which I think is a smart way to run an introduction to a new game.

If you’re at all familiar with 4E mechanics, you can get a handle on the system. There are healing surges (called “Recoveries”). There is advantage and disadvantage (called “Edges” and “Banes”). Instead of hit points, you have “Stamina.” Some things didn’t get covered in the demo; I don’t know what “Stability” does or what “Project Points” are for.

Every character class has a unique resource. For example, the character I played, a monk analog, generated “Discipline” every round; different levels of discipline granted additional effects. I didn’t get a chance to look through all the other characters’ booklets, but most of the typical fantasy archetypes were covered: in the group I played with there was a “Fury” (barbarian), a “Censor” (paladin), a “Troubador” (bard), and a fire-based spellcaster whose class name I can’t recall. Also, there was a “Talent” in the party, which is a psionic controller-type character. My character, the “Null,” was also psionic. (Sidebar: I think “Null” is a bad choice for a class name. It evokes… well, nothing. Imagine you’re sitting down to make a character and looking over list of options, does seeing “Null” pique your interest compared to “Fury” or “Troubador”? Honestly, it sounds like it could be slur: “Watch out for that null over there.”)

The bulk of the demo consisted of a combat encounter against some goblins. It was very tactical, with a lot of forced movement being thrown around. In Draw Steel’s action economy, pushing a target away from your character is what in 4E would be called a minor action (or a bonus action in 5E) – a character could attack with their main action and follow up with a push. Also, pushing a creature into an obstacle (or another creature) deals damage, so we were further incentivized to knock those little guys all over the place. Initiative was handled a little bit differently than other games I’ve played – while it alternated between PC and Goblin, there was no set order of initiative for the either side. Thematically, I think it worked; it felt like a chaotic fight scene, while preserving the game-ness of it all.

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Draw Steel is not what I would call a “casual” game. This is not something you can whip out two or three beers deep on a Saturday night. You’ve gotta put your whole ass into playing it. For one thing, you really have to be paying attention to what the other player-characters are doing. I mean, you should be paying attention no matter what game you’re playing, but Draw Steel characters often have features and abilities that are contingent on each other. For example, the Talent’s player didn’t realize until after the encounter was over that they should’ve been accumulating their character’s resource (“Clarity” in this case) every time a creature was subject to forced movement. Another thing: using miniatures on a grid during combat is pretty much a necessity. Y’all would have to be a bunch of chess grandmasters to play this in the theater of the mind. But that was generally true of Fourth Edition too, so whatever – give me hell, Quimby.

In my 4E games, it always bummed the players out when they missed with their cool-sounding powers. Playing Draw Steel, it seemed to me that everybody was satisfied with what their character did at the end of their turn. I’ve only got the one experience with the system to go off of, but it seems that Draw Steel supports a wide-screen, action-oriented style of play. Hell, rather than a game master or referee, that player is called the “Director.”

Maybe my fond memories of Fourth Edition are biasing my opinion, but I had a great time playing Draw Steel.