Sunday 17 March 2024

A Plethora of Mimics

From this Facebook post:

So, I’m wanting to do a box of fish sticks mimic for my RED TIDE campaign and I’m wondering what Daniel J. Bishop would have up his sleeve here? I’m thinking there will be sizes: freezer box, case of freezer boxes (pictured), a pallet of cases and a shipping container of pallets.

These will be starting life in Captain Morgan’s fish processing plant and then be shipped through out the land for their chain restaurants.  I’m having a blast making this stuff and I hope others are digging the process.

Have a suggestion? Let her rip in comments!

So, here we go!

Box of Fish Sticks-Sized Mimic: Init (always last); Atk pseudopod +2 melee (1 plus sticky); AC 12; HD 1d6; MV 5’; Act 1d20; SP camouflage, half damage from slicing and piercing weapons, sticky (Strength DC 15 to break free); SV Fort +4, Ref -2, Will -6; AL N.

These creatures are made of primordial slime, which has a rudimentary intelligence able to reshape itself into an object that appears to fit within the area it inhabits. Shape, texture, and colors are all reproduced – even the patterns of colors enough to appear as a box of Captain Morgan’s frozen fish sticks. A suspicious character may see through the disguise with a DC 16 Intelligence check. The mimic otherwise gains surprise automatically.

Creatures that touch the mimic or are hit by a pseudopod are stuck to the creature, and cannot break free without a DC 15 Strength check, granting the mimic a +2 bonus to future attacks. Weapons which strike the mimic also become stuck, taking a -2d shift to damage, unless pulled free or the mimic is slain. A weapon stuck to a mimic stuck to a PC is useless until either the PC or weapon is freed.

Case of Freezer Boxes-Sized Mimic: Init (always last); Atk pseudopod +4 melee (1d4 plus sticky) or bite +2 melee (1d8); AC 10; HD 2d8; MV 5’; Act 1d20; SP camouflage, half damage from slicing and piercing weapons, sticky (Strength DC 19 to break free); SV Fort +6, Ref -4, Will -4; AL N.

These creatures are made of primordial slime, which has a rudimentary intelligence able to reshape itself into an object that appears to fit within the area it inhabits. Shape, texture, and colors are all reproduced – even the patterns of colors enough to appear as a case of Captain Morgan’s fish freezer boxes. A suspicious character may see through the disguise with a DC 20 Intelligence check. The mimic otherwise gains surprise automatically.

Creatures that touch the mimic or are hit by a pseudopod are stuck to the creature, and cannot break free without a DC 19 Strength check. Stuck creatures have a -2 penalty to attack rolls, spell checks, and skill checks until they pull free. Weapons which strike the mimic also become stuck, and therefore useless, unless pulled free.

Pallet of Cases-Sized Mimic: Init (always last); Atk pseudopod +6 melee (1d6 plus sticky) or bite +4 melee (1d10); AC 10; HD 4d8; MV 5’; Act 3d20; SP camouflage, half damage from slicing and piercing weapons, sticky (Strength DC 21 to break free); SV Fort +8, Ref -6, Will -2; AL N.

These creatures are made of primordial slime, which has enough intelligence to be able to reshape itself into an object or group of objects which appears to fit within the area it inhabits. Shape, texture, and colors are all reproduced – even the patterns of colors enough to appear as a case of Captain Morgan’s fish freezer boxes. A suspicious character may see through the disguise with a DC 20 Intelligence check. The mimic otherwise gains surprise automatically.

Creatures that touch the mimic or are hit by a pseudopod are stuck to the creature, and cannot break free without a DC 21 Strength check. Stuck creatures have a -2 penalty to attack rolls, spell checks, and skill checks until they pull free. Weapons which strike the mimic also become stuck, and therefore useless, unless pulled free.

Shipping Container-Sized Mimic: Init -4; Atk pseudopod +10 melee (1d8 plus sticky) or bite +6 melee (1d12); AC 10; HD 8d8; MV 5’; Act 5d20; SP camouflage, half damage from slicing and piercing weapons, sticky (Strength DC 24 to break free); SV Fort +10, Ref -8, Will +0; AL N.

These mimics are intelligent enough to speak, and can reshape themselves into reasonably complex objects or groups of continuous objects. Shape, texture, and colors are reproduced well enough that even a suspicious character may see through the disguise with a DC 22 Intelligence check. The mimic otherwise gains surprise automatically.

Creatures that touch the mimic or are hit by a pseudopod are stuck to the creature, and cannot break free without a DC 24 Strength check. Stuck creatures have a -2 penalty to attack rolls, spell checks, and skill checks until they pull free. Weapons which strike the mimic also become stuck, and therefore useless, unless pulled free. Unlike lesser mimics, mimics of this size can choose to release creatures or objects, or suppress their natural stickiness to lure creatures into a false sense of security – possibly getting creatures to enter the “shipping container” before the doors slam closed and the creatures attack!

Because these mimics possess a low intelligence, there is a chance of parlaying with them.

 

Sunday 3 March 2024

Preserving Statblocks

I’ve done a few statblocks away from this blog, including some on the Goodman Games website. I am not reproducing those here, because that was paid content, but I did try to include some gameable material in each of the “Real Life Adventures” posts I wrote. You can find them here: Scotland and Orkney, Gilmorton Cove, Algonquin Park, and Halburton Canopy Walk and Wolf Centre. The first and last of these have statblocks which may be of interest to you.

I’ve also done statblocks as part of other posts, for the sheer fun of it. I am reproducing them below in case the original posts go to 404 Error heaven.

Atali’s Brothers

If you go back and read some of the Howard stories from when Conan was younger, such as Rogues in the House or The Tower of the Elephant, you can actually see a progression from a less-powerful and canny warrior to the Conan who can survive crucifixion and recover enough to take on a demon a month later.

In The Frost Giant's Daughter, we see Conan after all of his nearby companions have died in battle - clearly just after the 0-level funnel and having a first solo adventure at level 1. In DCC terms, this adventure might actually have been part of the 0-level funnel (PCs level as soon as they reach the needed XP), and consists of Conan failing his saves against the Frost Giant's Daughter's “allure” ability, making some Fort saves to avoid being too tired by the time he meets the frost giants, and fighting the same. His last Vanahiem combatant might have occurred at level 1 or at level 0; what occurs in the story is possible in both cases in the DCC rules. If Conan has an 18 Stamina, he has a maximum of 7 hp at level 0 and 22 hp at level 1 (minimums of 4 and 10).

If we assume Conan is a level 1 warrior with an 18 Strength, using a weapon that does 1d8 damage, we know that he can do 8 + 3 + 3 (Deed Die), or 14 points of damage on a non-critical hit, or an average damage of 10 on a hit. Conan was born on a battlefield, so his Luck affects his damage rolls; he might be able to do as much as 17 points on a hit, if he was so lucky as to gain 3 "18"s in his initial rolls, but I am going to say he only gains +1.

As a result, we can stat these creatures out easily enough:

Atali's Brothers: Init -2; Atk axe +5 melee (1d10+4); AC 13; HD 2d10; hp 10 each; MV 30’; Act 1d24; SP crit on 20-24 as giant; SV Fort +5, Ref +0, Will +6; AL C.

(And that, thank Crom, is a complete statblock in this system.)

Cyclopean Deep One Pugilist

Cyclopean Deep One Pugilist: Init +2 Atk fist +4 melee (1d3+3 subdual); AC 16; HD 5d8+10; hp 35; MV 20’ or swim 40’; Act 2d20; SP See future; SV Fort +5, Ref +4, Will +4; AL C.

The Cyclopean Deep One pugilist has but a single eye, yet that eye can see into multiple potential futures simultaneously, allowing the pugilist to choose the best possible future. His hit points, attack modifier, and saves all reflect this. If somehow blinded, these each suffer a -2 penalty, in addition to normal penalties for blindness. In the event of a successful Mighty Deed, the Deep One pugilist should be granted a saving throw (DC equal to attack roll with all modifiers) to avoid being blinded (representing its ability to avoid unpleasant futures, unless all futures are unpleasant).

The Cyclopean Deep One pugilist beats captured land-dwelling slaves to a bloody pulp in the arenas of the Deep Ones to stave off boredom on the long nights of winter.

Friday 1 March 2024

The Dreaded Grebnenorc

Grebnenorc: Init +0; Atk claw +4 melee (1d6) or bite +2 melee (1d3 plus venom); AC 14; HD 6d6; MV 20’; Act 4d20; SP venom (1d3 Stamina damage plus Fort DC 16 or additional 1d3 Agility damage), slowing aura (100’ radius, -4 to initiative and -10’ to move speeds), cannot be surprised, immune to mind-affecting, amphibious; SV Fort +7; Ref +3; Will +0; AL C.

The dreaded grebnenorc is a creation of those forces beyond the ken of mortal minds which lie dreaming in dead cities below the deepest oceans. They are formed by merging lost (but not dead) sailors, eels, crabs, and other unsavory things of the depths into fused beings of horror. Although the dead, dreaming minds which create them are beyond the petty concerns of Law and Chaos, once they are created they naturally gravitate toward the service of those chaotic deep-sea beings which oppose the conquest of the surface oceans by land species. In short, these beings hate us.

Grebnenorc (singular and plural) are completely amphibious, and are able to survive away from the ocean for extended times. They radiate a slowing aura, which affects the movement and initiative rolls of all creatures within 100’ except themselves – the judge can determine that slowed flying or swimming is not fast enough to be successful, within context. Their bites are venomous, regardless of which mouths are used, but the venom cannot successfully be harvested from the creatures. They are immune to mind-affecting magic and abilities and cannot normally be surprised due to the plethora of eyes studding their vile forms. Grebnenorc are always facing other creatures, even when surrounded, due to their amalgamated structure.

These creatures not only guard the palaces of sinister submarine entities, but they are sent to infiltrate docks and ports, or are sent to destroy the shrines of human-friendly oceanic deities. Luckily, grebnenorc are not built for swimming – they can only walk along the sea floor – so ships are in no danger from them when not at port. A grebnenorc can potentially (and laboriously) climb an anchor chain, but it has no particular skill at doing so. Indeed, its body proves a hindrance to such activities rather than an asset.

(Illustration by Noble Hardesty, used with permission. You can check out more of the artist's work here!)

Tuesday 16 January 2024

Gary Con Events

 Have now been posted. Hope to see you there!

Update: Changes in health and finances will prevent me from travelling. My apologies. I will really miss what has been the highlight of my year.



Thursday 4 January 2024

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to Andy Markham, who ran The Fence's Fortuitous Folly to usher out the old year and bring in the new! Andy made a player handout for the chase mini-game in the adventure, and was kind enough to share it with me. Moreover, he was kind enough to allow me to share it with you.

Without further ado, here is a Birthday Mathom from Andy!



Saturday 23 December 2023

Snow Miser and Heat Miser


The strange beings known as Snow Miser and Heat Miser are brothers, two of the many children of Mother Nature. Each views the other as his primary antagonist, so that a being bonded with one cannot be bonded with the other – indeed, their patrons will instruct them to actively work against those who bond with their rival sibling! The only thing potent enough to make the Miser Brothers work together is the chance to foil another of their siblings’ plots, such as the North Wind.

Snow Miser dwells in an arctic land, while Heat Miser lives in an active volcano. Somehow, their lands share a common border. They have divided the world between them, and although their agents make frequent forays into the territories of their opposite patrons, the Miser Brothers usually disavow active knowledge of these raids. Heat Miser seeks to frighten mortals with tales of an unending Fimbulwinter, while Snow Miser’s agents warn of global warming. In preindustrial campaign milieus, a new ice age may be a viable threat, but if the campaign takes place in a post-industrial world, it eventually becomes clear that Heat Miser is winning, and Snow Miser’s warnings about global warming are not just hot air.

In order to bond with Snow Miser, a postulant must travel to a cold location, either due to climate or season. In order to bond with Heat Miser, a postulant must travel similarly to a hot environment, such as a desert, volcano, or steaming jungle. Those bonded to Heat Miser may not cast spells creating or manipulating cold without gaining the ire of their patron. Likewise, Snow Miser forbids his devotees from magic creating or manipulating heat or flames.



Invoke Patron check results

1

Lost, failure, and worse! Roll 1d6 modified by Luck: (3 or less) corruption + patron taint; (4-5) corruption; (6+) patron taint.

2-11

Failure. Unlike other spells, invoke patron may not be lost for the day. Depending on the results of patron bond, the wizard may still be able to cast it.

12-13

It becomes noticeably colder or hotter in the immediate vicinity of the caster as their patron’s attention is drawn to them. This change in temperature may be harnessed by the caster, granting a +4 bonus to a spell check made in the next Caster Level rounds.

14-17

A cloak of ice or flames surrounds the caster, providing a +4 bonus to AC for 1d5 rounds. At the end of this period, the bonus is reduced by 1 as the cloak dissipates, until it is gone when the bonus reaches +0.

18-19

All enemies within 100’ must succeed in a Will save vs. spell result or begin to sing about how great the caster’s patron is. This song-and-dance number lasts 1d5+CL rounds. An enemy targeted with a spell or attack during this period (successfully or not) is immediately freed from the enchantment. Otherwise, enemies take no move or other action except singing and dancing.

20-23

The caster chooses 1d3+CL targets within 500’. These take 3d6 damage due to either cold or fire (depending upon the patron). A Fort save vs. the spell check result is allowed to reduce damage by half.

24-27

The caster is shrouded in ice or heat, which increases the caster’s AC by 1d4+CL. Each round, the caster may send either a bolt of ice or fire (depending upon their patron) to a range of 500’ (5d6 damage, Reflex DC 15 for half), but doing so reduces the AC bonus by 1. The AC bonus lasts until expended or 1d5 hours have passed. Once the AC bonus is gone, the caster can no longer spend it on attacks.

28-29

A single Miser Imp is sent to assist the caster in whatever manner the caster commands. The Miser Imp remains until reduced to 0 hp or until the next dawn.

Miser Imps are half-sized versions of Heat or Snow Miser which act as aides to their master. They can turn small non-magical objects into snow or melt them by touch (if attended, the holder gains a DC 15 Reflex save to prevent this). Objects up to the size of a shield or two-handed sword may be affected, as determined by the judge. When reduced to 0 hp, Miser Imps explode in cold or heat, doing 1d6 damage to any creature within 5’ (no save). When not otherwise commanded, Miser Imps spend their time dancing and singing the praises of their patron.

 

Miser Imp: Init +2; Atk touch +2 melee (1d6 cold or heat); AC 12; HD 3d6; MV 30’; Act 1d20; SP transform/melt objects, death throes; SV Fort +4; Ref +5; Will +7; AL N.

30-31

The temperature within 500’ of the caster immediately raises/lowers by 1d4 x 10 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition, enemies of the caster within this range are chilled/heated even more, taking 1d8+CL damage each round they remain within this area (no save). The damage remains in effect for 1d5+CL turns, but does not move with the caster. The change in ambient temperature remains until natural (or supernatural) conditions cause it to change (as determined by the judge).

32+

For the next 1d6+CL hours, any non-magical weapon striking the caster melts or turns to snow (no save), doing only half damage. Further, the caster is charged with heat or cold, and all their physical or magical attacks do an additional 1d14 damage during this period as this power is conducted by, or embodied within, them.

 



Spellburn

The Miser brothers can lend aid to their supplicants when requested. If a supplicant is casting a spell related to their patron (such as control ice for Snow Miser or fireball for Heat Miser), they gain an additional +2 bonus to the spell check when performing spellburn. When a caster utilizes spellburn, roll 1d4 and consult the table below or build off suggestions to create an event specific to your campaign.

Roll

Spellburn Result

1

Casting the spell causes uncontrolled shivering or sweating, which manifests as Strength, Agility, or Stamina loss. The shivering or sweating subsides as this damage is healed.

2

As part of the casting, the caster must perform an elaborate song-and-dance routine praising their patron. This temporarily drains part of the caster’s soul, manifesting as Strength, Stamina, or Agility loss until it is recovered.

3

Conflict with the other Miser Brother prevents the patron from devoting full energy to the caster. Regardless of the amount of spellburn, the caster only receives the benefit of 1d4 points, and any remaining amount is lost.

4

In a moment of magnanimity, the patron offers to double the bonus from the caster’s spellburn, if the caster will agree to undertake a quest sabotaging some scheme of the other Miser Brother’s. The nature of this task is left to the judge to detail, but if not completed in a reasonable time (as determined by the judge), the patron removes all access to spells save those used in direct support of the quest.

            


Thursday 23 November 2023

Happy Thanksgiving!


 

Tiamurkey: Init +5; Atk peck +7 melee (1d3+4) or claw +5 melee (2d6) or breath weapon; AC 20; HD 12d6; MV 40’; Act 5d20; SP breath weapons, relatively stupid, death throes; SV Fort +8; Ref +5; Will +5; AL C.

Breath Weapon 1: Sonic gobble: 60' cone, 1d6 damage and Fort DC 15 or be knocked prone.

Breath Weapon 2: Hot grease: 80' line, 2d8 damage (Reflex DC 15 for half).

Breath Weapon 3: Stuffing: 10' x 10' space, creatures therein cannot move until they succeed in a Strength check DC 15 to escape the stuffing and leave the space.

Breath Weapon 4: Barrage of giblets: 30' cone, 3d6 damage (Reflex DC 15 negates).

Breath Weapon 5: Somnambulance: 30' diameter cloud up to 30' away, Will DC 15 or fall into a torpor, being able to take no actions and move at only half normal speed for 1d8 rounds.

Tiamurkey, King and Master of Evil Turkeys, dwells on a hell plane amid giant mutated turkeys, primordial cranberry jellies, and other evil four-clawed birds of the nether realms. Once every year, on the fourth week of November, he rises from his fetid breeding grounds to roam the Fields We Know in search of those who have put up decorations for other holidays too early in the season.

Each of Tiamurkey’s five heads has its own breath weapon, and each of these can be used three times each day. Although Tiamurkey is a genius among turkeys, he is still not that bright by human standards, and cunning PCs may find a way to outwit him. It is said that he only appears this late in the year to avoid rain – in times past, he has been defeated when all five heads looked upward into the rain until he drowned. Snow doesn’t present this problem.

When reduced to 0 hp (or otherwise “killed”), Tiamurkey is not slain, but merely banished back to his hell plane to recover until his next sojourn to the mortal realm. He will seek to extract vengeance upon those who defeated him, but, not being that bright, his vengeance is likely to target the wrong people.  

 


Sunday 29 October 2023

Conversion Crawl Classes 20: The One Ring: Tales From Wilderland (2): Of Leaves and Stewed Hobbit

I feel terrible about last CCC post, wherein I described how railroady an adventure was without commenting on its name, Don’t Leave the Path. Of course, we know that this is taken from Gandalf and Beorn’s advice to the company in The Hobbit, while traveling through Mirkwood, but it still seems a touch on the nose to have not mentioned. If you want to understand the basic philosophy behind the conversion methodology here, it is recommended that you read that post.

The second adventure in Tales From Wilderland is Of Leaves and Stewed Hobbit, in which the PCs are invited to rescue a hobbit from goblins on the High Pass of the Misty Mountains. I am entirely of the opinion that the choices the players face, and the consequences of what they choose, is the most important part of adventure design. As a consequence, while Of Leaves and Stewed Hobbit offers more player choices than Don’t Leave the Path, I am going to suggest that the judge increases the number and quality of choices available when converting this adventure.

Part One – The Easterly Inn

The first part of the adventure describes how it came to pass that a Hobbit opened an inn in the middle of the Wild, the history of the Brandybuck brothers, and the fate of the missing Dinodas. The Easterly Inn is described in detail, as the company may return here again and again on their travels.

The Easterly Inn is described well enough to use in play, but is not described in the same detail as, say, the Inn of the Welcome Wench in The Village of Hommlet. No map of the Inn is included. There is a great deal of background, which may be useful for the judge when framing the Inn and its inhabitants within the game milieu.

The one thing that the judge should change in this section is the adventure hook. Variable levels of success is great, but I would not tie this directly to skill checks. Or, rather, the judge should determine how much Dodinas trusts the adventurers based on their conduct, and then roll a Personality check using a die (from 1d8 to 1d30) based on that determination.

In the last post of this series, I suggested setting 1 point of treasure at approximately 10 gp. I feel that still works well enough for this adventure. This might not be enough recompense to motivate your players, and that is okay. The real treasure is the friends the PCs make along the way – a safe base of operations. The real danger is that the PCs’ refusal sours their reputation. Judges should take into account their PCs’ previous actions when role-playing NPCs, for good or ill.

Another thing the prospective judge might do is have the Easerly Inn appear in previous game sessions. If the PCs know the halflings – conversion to DCC, remember? – they might be a lot more willing to help. A note of caution here: players who believe sympathetic NPCs only exist to pull their characters into danger will generally resist becoming too attached to anyone. Use this type of plot hook sparingly!

Part Two – Searching the High Pass

This section deals with the journey across Wilderland to the foothills of the Misty Mountains and the High Pass. The company encounter several dangers on this journey, and pass through the ruins of a town built many centuries ago. They find signs that the caravan was attacked.

As with the first adventure in this volume, there is nothing inherently wrong with the encounters suggested herein, but they are linked to GM whims and resolved via die rolls, and they could be made more meaningful. For example, Summer Storm catches the company in unexpected weather, where a check is used to determine whether they find shelter or suffer an increased chance of fatigue. Instead, a judge could allow the PCs to find shelter in exchange for a lost day of travel, or travel while taking a -1d penalty to all rolls until they gain a proper rest. With a random encounter table and a consequence for delay, the choice becomes meaningful. This also makes the Beornings encounter potentially meaningful.

The judge will need statistics for the Eager Feet encounter, and probably for A Stranger on the Road. The judge is directed to A Stranger in the Road as an encounter resolved almost entirely based on PC choices. In DCC, an Intelligence check (DC 12) can recognize Longbottom Leaf – smokers and halflings roll 1d20; all others roll 1d10.

Most of the creatures in this adventure either appear in the core rulebook, or are easily extrapolated therefrom. The Night-Wight in this section is the most interesting creature in the adventure, and that is what we will be converting to DCC.

Remembering that monsters don’t have to play by the rules, we need to deal with this bit of text and turn into DCC goodness:

The company’s Look-out Men must make Awareness tests; the Target Number for this roll is determined using the table on 168 of The One Ring Roleplaying Game, and ranges between TN 14 and TN 18 depending on how wary the characters are. If the roll fails, then the Night-Wight automatically places one of the company in an enchanted slumber and carries him off to its lair. The Look-out men must then make more Awareness tests, dropping the TN by 2 each time. For each failed check, another member of the company is taken by the Wight.

And a bit later:

Those kidnapped by the Wight are dragged away to the brook nearby. There, the wight submerges them in the muddy banks of the river, pushing them into boggy graves so that only the victims’ faces remain at the surface. They are entombed alive in the clinging mud.

Once battle is joined with the Wight, the victims may make a Valour test every round to awaken (starting at TN 16, and dropping by 2 each round of battle). Once awake, escaping from the mud needs a successful Athletics test. A hero who was buried in the mud is considered to be temporarily Weary, until he is able to wash away the clinging dirt.

In DCC terms, we can say that the Night-Wight has a special ability we will call “Enchant and Submerge”. Anyone on watch may make an Intelligence check (DC 18; cumulative -2 to DC per failed check), or the Night-Wight steals away a companion (lowest Luck first). The stolen companion is placed in an enchanted slumber (no save) and submerged in the river mud with only their faces above the surface. Once combat is joined, an enchanted PC may attempt a Will save (DC 16, cumulative -2 per failed save) to awaken. The round after they awaken, a PC may act with a -4d penalty to all die rolls, which decreases by 1d per round thereafter until the PC is rolling normally.

Init: “The Night-Wight is a thing of shadow, haunting the remains of a warrior who once fell into corruption. It attacks using a wicked spear with a barbed head, and will resort to using its claws if disarmed. Let’s say it was a level 2 warrior in life, and give it a +2. But wait…Fell Speed. Let’s say +5.

Atk: A spear does 1d8 and claws 1d3, but we can also take the warrior’s deed die (from life) into account and grant a +2 attack and damage bonus. Spear +2 melee (1d8+2) or claw +2 melee (1d3+2).

AC: The monster has Parry 7 and 4d Armour, based on the difficulty of harming its semi-corporeal shadow form. Let’s make it AC 18.

HD: Endurance 54 is again indicated as a result of the Night-Wight being difficult to damage with corporeal weapons. The design suggests to me that driving it off with fire is the best option, so I will happily say that the creature has 8d12 Hit Dice, and also say that it only takes half damage from any non-magical source.

MV: The creature has Movement 3 and “Fell Speed”, which I am going to interpret as giving it MV 50’.

Act: 1d20 seems right to me.

SP: In addition to the things already described, the Night-Wight has Fear of Fire. From the text, “Hate” appears to indicate a creature’s motivation (and hence willingness) to fight. “Based on its special abilities, the Night-Wight loses 1 point of Hate at the end of the first round of combat for each companion wielding a torch (Fear of Fire) but still profits from its enhanced power at night (Denizen of the Dark). When reduced to 0 Hate, the Night-Wight flies away into the night shrieking in frustration (Craven).

We can say that the Night-Wight must make a Morale check at the end of each round it faces an enemy armed with fire. It takes a -1 penalty for each fire-wielder it faces, and an additional -2 for each successful save it has already made.

Let’s also give it a good bonus to Stealth. +10 seems right to me.

SV: Reflexes are important for a creature with “Fell Speed”, but Fortitude less so. A craven creature probably has a low Will, but as we are dropping save bonuses due to fire, choosing a high Will bonus is better. Fort +3, Ref +7, Will +12.

AL: Chaotic.

Crit: Following the table on page 385 of the core rulebook, we get a result of U/1d12.

Put altogether, our statblock looks like this:

Night-Wight: Init +5; Atk spear +2 melee (1d8+2) or claw +2 melee (1d3+3); AC 18; HD 8d12; hp 54; MV 50’; Act 1d20; SP Un-dead, enchant and submerge (see below), stealth +10, half damage from non-magical sources, fear of fire (see below); SV Fort +3, Ref +7, Will +12; AL C; Crit U/1d12.

Enchant and Submerge: Anyone on watch may make an Intelligence check (DC 18; cumulative -2 to DC per failed check), or the Night-Wight steals away a companion (lowest Luck first). The stolen companion is placed in an enchanted slumber (no save) and submerged in the river mud with only their faces above the surface. Once combat is joined, an enchanted PC may attempt a Will save (DC 16, cumulative -2 per failed save) to awaken. The round after they awaken, a PC may act with a -4d penalty to all die rolls, which decreases by 1d per round thereafter until the PC is rolling normally.

Fear of Fire: The Night-Wight must make a Morale check at the end of each round it faces an enemy armed with fire. It takes a -1 penalty for each fire-wielder it faces, and an additional -2 for each successful save it has already made.

Of course, if the PCs just sleep with no one on watch, it is time to either roll up some new characters or pick up the action in hell.

Part Three – Battle at the Ringfort

The company comes upon the survivors of the caravan, and aid them in a desperate battle against a Goblin host. The company is victorious (or else perish in the battle!), but discover that the Goblins carried off Dinodas as they fled.

For the most part, this section can be run as presented. Statistics for goblins, orcs, and men-at-arms can be found in the core rulebook, and judges should find this fairly easy to adapt. The difficult part is allowing players full agency, as the adventure assumes the kidnapping of Dinodas. There is even a sidebar acknowledging this!

My personal recommendation is to try to distract the PCs with attacks on the ringfort – which is, after all, the goblin’s plan – but allow the PCs to prevent the kidnapping if they keep their wits about them. There is nothing worse than having a brilliant plan and having it thwarted because the plot has plot armor!

It should be noted that the Allies in Battle table (and similar) can be reformatted as a normal d12 table – there is no requirement for special dice! Likewise, the benefit of the defensive fortifications can be described as a +4 bonus to AC as long as the defensive ramparts are held.


Part Four – Under the Hills

Following the Goblin kidnappers brings the adventurers into the tunnels under the Misty Mountains. After braving these dark passages, they find that the Goblins have  imprisoned Dinodas with an unbreakable chain.

Spend the time to draw up even a basic map, and know the way that the goblins have gone. Most of the potential hazards should be consequences for choosing the wrong path; many of these make no sense in terms of hazards along a regular route. Consider a long curving route where the PCs can risk hazards to get ahead of the goblins. And don’t regard this in terms of ten-foot squares – the goblin tunnels run for miles.

Part Five – The Goblin Feast

The reputation of Hobbit cooking has reached even the caves of the Goblins, and they demand that Dinodas cook them a feast. The adventurers can use this feast to trick the Goblins into fighting amongst themselves, or to steal the key and free Dinodas from his bonds.

The situation and map as the PCs first discover it is fine. The goblins owning an unbreakable chain with an unpickable lock? Once the PCs are on the scene, don’t try to force a particular outcome. In the case of an escape, you still have a potential running battle in the goblin tunnels (look to The Hobbit for inspiration). Besides, this is DCC – a high enough roll on sleep or charm person can resolve this part, as can knock.

Remember, as a judge, it is your job to discover what happens along with your players. It is not your job to force what you deem is most dramatic to be what happens. Dice and system will create drama. Let your players have their moment!

(Another way to look at this is that players going through early adventures, such as The Keep on the Borderlands, faced situations. When they talked to other players, how they faced those situations and what happened as a result made for lively conversation. Of Leaves and Stewed Hobbit attempts to narrow the potential solutions so that the situation can only be resolved in one way – by acquiring the key to Dinodas’ chains. There may be a small range of options within the only possible resolution, but the PCs are very much following a path laid out by the writer’s plot. This is not great design.)

Epilogue - Back to the Inn

After rescuing Dinodas, the company returns to the Easterly Inn for their reward.

There is nothing wrong with this section, but you should consider how it is changed if thieves attacked the inn while the PCs were away. There is, after all, a potential encounter pointing in that direction. The judge may also want to include one or more encounters on the return journey. Even if these are only flavor encounters, they provide an opportunity to lay new adventure hooks!


Next: Hawkmoon!

Tuesday 3 October 2023

Now Live!

This is just a reminder that Prisoners of the Secret Overlords, which I talked about here, is now live!