[Inktober 2016] Day 13—Shrine of Banael

Shrine of Banael, Undergod of Fear

(Key word: scared)

In the middle of the Sanktar Plains stands a tall, solitary knob of rock. As one enters the cavern and follows the steep, curving slope, the actual shrine is reached.

Legend says that Banael himself was last seen within this shrine and that it was his touch that released the flow of dark viscous ooze in the fountain.

The ooze and the altar radiate fear—crippling to most mortal creatures. Dread builds as a creature climbs the sloping passage. A hideous statue of Banael stands in the shrine.

[Inktober 2016] Day 5—The Temple of the Weeping Goddess

I'm a little embarrassed and quite frustrated tonight.

It's amazing what impact a migraine can have on mapping and creativity. But my more-than-two-day-long migraine is starting to fade; this was a bad one, as I usually don't have significant visual impairment. It hit before I could post this map.

But now I can try and get caught up with Inktober. Bear with me for the next couple days?

The Temple of the Weeping Goddess

(Key word: sorrow)

A thousand years ago, Isaidai—the favored one of Loarier, the Goddess of Dreams—defended her temple against an attack by Scoak—the champion of Scir, the goblin war-god. Mortally wounded, Scoak threw his sword, skewering Isaidai, whose killing spell went awry, striking the enormous bust of her god and carving holes in the eyes of the statue. As both champions died, a trickle of water inexplicably began to flow from the statue's eyes, the water pooling around Isaidai. The water's flow steadily increased to a briskly moving fountain. The fountain has flowed steadily ever since, inexplicably, as no source has ever been found for the water..

Loarier's adherents have since modified the temple to channel the god's tears into a stream leading to a pool of holy water. Loarier has since become known as the "Goddess of Sorrows" or "The Weeping Goddess."

[A to Z April] F is for Fel Column (item)

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

In the city of Orcweepmere there is a street known as the Way of Gods. Similar streets exist in many cities: it is a place where every conceivable religion--practiced or forgotten--maintains a place of worship. The entrances to and exits from the Way of Gods are always in the same place; however, the distances between the entrances and exits vary from day to day and from traveler to traveler. If asked how big is the Way of Gods, those who know the best invariably answer, “As big as it needs to be.”

In one secluded corner is a square, or town commons. Various temples and places of worship dedicated to minor, forgotten deities fill the buildings surrounding the square. In the center of the square sits a column known as the Fel Column.

The column is 113 feet tall; it is 11 feet wide at the rounded tip and 13 feet wide at the base. Mages and scholars make a great deal out of these numbers; those who best understand divine power understand that these numbers have incredible unholy power. Despite its great height and relative narrowness, the column has no surrounding structure or visible support at the base; it is a free-standing column.

A free-standing column of bile.

The column is a liquid in a constant state of movement, fluid swirling and spinning, seemingly spiraling ever upwards towards the top. It never splashes or sprays outside of the column, even in the strongest winds or tempests. It never varies in size or shape. It never varies in color, it is an unearthly greenish-yellow. No one knows from whence it came or exactly when it first appeared. Everyone who claims to know cites a different date. No one knows what it represents, whether it is a tribute to a deity or a deific being itself.

One thing is certain, however: the bile is incredibly toxic; any who come in contact with the column suffer both physical damage and physical weakness. (In game terms, any creature that touches the Fel Column instantly suffers 1d2 points of permanent CON damage and 1d2 points of permanent CHA damage. Because of the nature of the fluid, there is no save and the damage cannot be cured, reversed, or restored by any means short of divine intercession by means of a miracle spell.) Even creatures who are resistant to or immune from the effects of acid receive damage from the Fel Column.

In addition, the smell which emanates from the Fel Column is disgusting--overwhelmingly so. The stench causes any living creature that comes within 10 feet of the Column to make a Fortitude save (DC 15, Charisma based). Failure causes the creature to be sickened for 2d6 minutes. If the creature is successful with his save, he cannot be affected again by the odor for 24 hours. The sickened effect can be removed by either a delay poison or neutralize poison spell. If the creature is immune to poison, it is unaffected by the smell; creatures who are resistant to poison receive all normal saving throw bonuses.

If any creature attempts to bottle or store the bile or remove any portion of the fluid from the column, in addition to the creature taking the aforementioned damage from both the acid and the smell (as applicable), the bile instantly becomes inert and harmless upon removal from the column.


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Previous "F"s:
2014: F is for Flying Frost (spell)
2013: F is for Frost Wound Patch (locale)
2012: F is for Flesh Alliance (spell)
2011: F is for Found Items

[From the Mailbag] Mythoard January 2015

So.... Bad day yesterday, all day. As you may know if you read yesterday's post, it was a bad day made much better by the arrival of the Storyteller's Thesaurus.

Then I get home, and by 11 p.m. Google+ feed has blown up with people raving about the receipt of their January Mythoard package.

Wait a second, I think. I'm a subscriber...where's MY package?!? So I turn to my son (who was the first one home yesterday) and I ask, calmly: "BOY!" (for often I call him "Boy") "Boy!" I say, "Was there any kind of a package in today's mail for me?"

"Oh, yeah. There was one."

(silence for a moment or two)

"Um...son.... Where is it?"

"Oh, I left it on the table by the front door."

(facepalm)

(second facepalm as my boy has not yet moved to retrieve said package)

"Um.... Could I have it please?!?"

For those of you who may still not know about Mythoard, Mythoard is the first Tabletop RPG Subscription box! From the website: "From modules, minis and maps to rules supplements, accessories and dice, you'll be sure to find some great RPG treasure in every single box! Sign up today for your own hoard!"

Quest for the Mythoard, No.1  Randy Musseau 2015

And oh, baby...did it make my day even brighter. I didn't have my camera with me, so I don't have pics, but let's look at a quick roster of what was inside:

• First was a pair of polyhedral dice in orange and black vortex: a d4 and a d8--these match the orange and black d6 from last month's Mythoard offering. Sweet, especially considering my motto. [Aside: for any new readers, I am firmly convinced that there is no such thing as "too many dice" because, well.... Hey! Dice! Ahem. Period. Your argument is invalid. End aside.] . Courtesy of Chessex Games.
  
• A button featuring Thopas, the gnome. Courtesy of Lesser Gnome.
  
• An unpainted metal miniature version of Thopas. Also courtesy of Lesser Gnome.
  
• Two Mythoard two-pocket folders with front cover art by Randy Musseau (see above), back cover art/maps/text by Monkeyblood Design and Chubby Monster Games. I found it kind of humorous that the map was for "Tenkar's Tomb." I can only imagine this refers to the infamous Tenkar, and that he went out in a spectacular fashion.
  
• Inside one of the folders were two cardstock sheets: one a preview of Old West firearm rules for the DCC game: Black Powder, Black Magic and the other a copy of "The Brimstone Epitaph," an Old West newspaper. Both courtesy of Stormlord Publishing.
  
• Next out was an encounter card deck of 54 system-neutral "monster inspiration" cards rather than stat cards. Clever idea; they'll be useful for at-table random encounter generation. My deck was the Fey, Constructs, and Wildlife deck. I understand that there were two other decks and inclusion in each package was random. The artwork is fantastic; I'm definitely going to try and pick up more of these. Courtesy of Inkwell Ideas. A pair of solid-cover card sleeves were included as well, for use with these encounter cards.
  
• Last out was a Pits & Peril supplement, "The Powers That Be." There's always room for another couple deities in a pantheon. I need to devote a bit more time to this one, but there's likely something good there for mining, at the least.
  

So. All in all, Groundhog Day came up good for me. I feel content today, and can't wait until the next Mythoard. The first two have been really great, full of good stuff. Well worth the price, in my opinion. As of this writing, there's 180 spots left of 250 for the February package...swing over and sign yourself up!

[A to Z April] J is for Jade Temple (map)

The Jade Temple is a subterranean temple carved out of an enormous lode of magnificent jade. The temple was originally dedicated to the worship of Daiurai, the Goddess of Spring. Recently, however, it has been taken over and corrupted by worshipers of Thosli, the God of Destruction and Wrath. Thosli desires the secrets and treasures he is sure reside in the temple. For every 10 minutes the adventures are in the Jade Temple, there is a 25% chance of encountering a group of 1d4 followers of Thosli. Each group will contain one magic user or cleric.

1. The 10-foot-wide hallways in this entryway and the parallel hallway to the east are lined with ornate bas relief sculptures depicting epic battles between avatars of Daiurai and Thosli and their followers. Worshipers of Daiurai attain a morale bonus to any combat maneuvers performed in line of sight of the sculptures. In the eastern hallway is a representation of Daiurai falling to Thosli’s sword. The floor immediately in front of that image is trapped; any creature that stops to pay respect to Thosli and his victory over Daiurai triggers the pit trap.

2. This chamber is entered by one of four doors. Each door is locked with excellent locks and are trapped with one of four different traps: explosive rune, acid spray, poisoned needles, and electrical discharge. The stone floor forms a cross and is suspended over a bottomless chasm. In the center of the cross is a small pedestal on which rests an urn. The urn is purported to contain the ashes of Daiurai’s first prophet, Fawai the Bountiful. Removing the urn from the pedestal will cause the room to be filled with a pillar of divine fire. Stone golems stand in the four alcoves in the hallways around this chamber as protectors of the urn; if they sense the urn’s presence outside the chamber, each of them will become active and seek to (1) recover the urn and (2) punish those who are responsible for moving the urn. They will pursue and attack until either their target(s) are destroyed or they are destroyed.

3. The door to this chamber is protected by two of four different traps: rune of disintegration, spiked floor, spore cloud, and a falling block trap. Inside the chamber is a stone circle suspended over a bottomless chasm. The floor of the chamber is treacherous and covered with ice. At the north end of the stone circle is an altar on which rests a frozen heart, rumored to be a trophy taken from an avatar of Thosli after his death at Daiurai’s hands. The air temperature itself will cause cold damage every round to any creature that spends more than one minute in the chamber. If allowed to close, the door will automatically lock and the alternate two traps will be set.

4. Four sarcophagi fill this chamber. They are the final resting place of four of Daiurai’s greatest clerics: Enoundro the Learned, Bez the Faithful, Nol Adouk the Unlucky, and Krop the Silencer. 1d4 of these sarcophagi have been infiltrated by rot grubs. Each of them contain various minor treasures and oddly well-preserved funerary vestments.

5. This is the treasure room for the temple, where donations were stored. There is a 50% chance that the bulk of the treasure has already been removed from the temple by looters or followers of Thosli.

6. The chapel of Daiurai has been desecrated. The altar has been doused with the blood of some unidentifiable creature–possibly even human–while the pews and statuary have been vandalized, broken, and burned. A crude image of Thosli has been drawn in soot over the altar. Any evil creature will attain a significant morale bonus to attack rolls while in this chamber, while any good creature will suffer a similar morale penalty.

7. A massive stone guardian fills this alcove and will immediately attack any non-good creature it sees. It will pursue and attack until it either destroys its target(s) or is itself destroyed. Gore and shredded cloth is scattered around the alcove, floor, and ceiling.

8. Followers of Thosli have, apparently, somehow found their way into this room, the living quarters for the current priest of Daiurai in residence, Dominus Jere. Upon entering this room, one will immediately see the tortured, slaughtered remains of Dominus Jere hanging from the wall over his personal shrine to Daiurai. A thorough search of this chamber will uncover little in the way of typical treasure. However, a letter significant to one of the adventurers’ personal quests will be found in Jere’s desk. In addition, there is a massive tome entitled “Revised Inscriptions of the Hallowed.” Taking at least one hour to read this tome will impart knowledge of Daiurai to one reader. If read by a good cleric, it will also grant the knowledge of a random minor clerical spell of the DM’s discretion.

9. The doors leading to this hallway are locked from the outside. Warning runes are scribbled hastily in chalk on each door. Within the corridor are 2d4 ghouls who followed the smell of carnage into the temple and who were trapped in the corridor by followers of Thosli, some of whom were trapped with the ghouls and have been killed and partially consumed.

The long hallway bisecting the temple from east to west contains two pit traps for the unwary infidel. There are signs on the ceiling above each trap that warn of the traps to those whose eyes are turned heavenward seeking for Daiurai’s assistance and favor. Unfortunately, they are in the ancient language of Obi and can only be read and understood by a student of Obi or Daiurai.

The usual applies to this image: free to use, just drop me a note to let me know if, where, when, and how it was used. The PDF can be grabbed HERE.


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Previous "J"s:
2013: J is for Jade Skull (item)
2012: J is for Jalbion’s Liquid Jewel (spell)
2011: J is for Juniper Ale (beverage)

[A to Z April] D is for Duk (npc)

Duk’s earliest memory was of a ferocious battle in which her parents were brutally killed by a band of filthy dwarves. The fact that her father was human did not deter the dwarves; the simple fact that he was living with elves was his crime. The marauding dwarves would likely have killed her too, but a more powerful being intervened: she insists to this day that her life was saved by an angel.

Above her in the air she saw a female elf of blinding beauty: bronzed skin, black hair, and eyes the color of the night sky. This figure towered over her, red and aquamarine robes fluttering in a non-existent breeze. The figure held out her hand to Duk and lifted her from the ground, encircling her in her arms, and before Duk knew it, she was alone in a glade of trees. The angel pointed and Duk saw a village. This village, a conglomerate of outcasts from various races, became Duk’s home.

The people of the village were considered barbarians by those in the nearby cities. It was a difficult existence; farming was nearly impossible and animals were nearly non-existent for hunting. It was a dirty, spare, hardscrabble existence. But they survived, largely by their worship of the dark elven goddess, V’rixus. In fact, although Duk has not yet realized it, it was V'rixus herself that saved Duk from the dwarves.

Duk’s talent with hunting and thievery has brought her great respect and trust within the small community. She has grown to love V’rixus and entered the service of the Goddess of Avarice, Strength, and War with great fervor. However, she is sought after--with a price on her head--by members of the Hammer and Shield guild. She finds protection within the arms of the village; her neighbors warn her, hide her, and lie for her when strangers come into town.

Her hatred for dwarves and extreme avarice drives Duk in her daily life. She fears all that is Good-oriented. Her cynicism has amplified that fear; she will now flee if confronted with too much Good. Despite her fear of good, her experience has made her an easy mark for individuals in distress.

She remembers a massive gemstone that belonged to her parents. Her mother would set it in the window and let Duk “chase” the rainbows cast by its prisms. She is convinced the gemstone contained magic; unfortunately, when she returned as a young woman to the ruins of her family home, the gemstone was nowhere to be found. She knows in her heart that the dwarves took the gemstone with them. More than anything else in her life, she wants that gemstone back; not only does she seek its magic, she seeks to recover that connection with her mother. She also believes that between that gemstone and her devotion, V’rixus will somehow restore her mother to her.

Duk is considered to be mildly attractive; she is nothing that would start a riot, but neither is she homely. Her brown eyes are deep pools of pain set off by her striking blonde hair. She is average height, thanks to her father, but stands out in a crowd because of her unusual thornbush-like tattoos that wind their way up both arms and up her neck turning into mystic shapes that appear as lines of power on her face.

Duk CR 7

Female Half-Elf Barbarian 5/Cleric 4
Chaotic Evil Medium Humanoid
Init: +1
Senses: Low-light Vision
Languages: Common, Elven
____________________________________
AC 15 (Dex +1, Hide +4), touch 11, Flat-footed 14
hp 68 hp
Immune: Sleep
Resistance: Enchantment +2 save
Fort +10, Ref +3, Will +6
________________________
Speed: 40
Melee: +12 Scimitar 1d6+4 or
Ranged: +9 Sling 1d4
Full Attack: +12/7 Scimitar 1d6+4
or +9 Sling 1d4(range 50)
Space/Reach: 5/5
Base Atk 8; Grp 11
Atk Options: Rage (+4 Con, +4 Str, +2 Will save, -2 AC) 2 per day; Turn Undead (3 +Cha bonus / day)
Combat Gear: Scimitar, Sling, Hide Armor
Spells Known: (CL 4)
2nd — (DC 13): Bulls Strength*, Silence, Sound Burst
1st — (DC 12): Bane, Doom, Enlarge Person*, Entropic Shield
0 — (DC 11): Detect Magic, Detect Poison, Guidance, Inflict Minor Wounds, Light
*Domain Spell. Domains: Strength, War
_________________________
Abilities: Str 17, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 11, Wis 12, Cha 9
SQ: Fast movement, Illiteracy, Improved Uncanny Dodge, Trap Sense, Uncanny Dodge
Feats: Blind-fight, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Heavy Armor Prof., Light Armor Prof., Martial Weapon Prof., Read/Write Languages, Shield Prof., Simple Weapon Prof., Weapon Focus (Scimitar)
Skills: Climb 6, Concentration 4, Diplomacy 1, Gather Information 1, Heal 3, Intimidate 5, Jump 5, Know arcana 0, Know history 0, Know religion 2, Know the planes 0, Listen 6, Search 1, Sense Motive 3, Spellcraft 0, Spot 5, Survival 6, Swim -3
Possessions: Combat gear plus Acid (flask), Bag of Holding (1), Boots of Elvenkind, Flint and steel, Potion of Bull’s strength, Potion of Cure light wounds, Potion of Cure moderate wounds, Waterskin, Whetstone, 207 gp, 9 sp, 9 cp

**Many thanks to WotC's "PC Portraits" Archive for the image.


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Previous "D"s:
2012: D is for D’leth Inemas
2011: D is for Drake, Carrion

Deities of Dran, Part 1

Bil is the Goddess of the Sun and War worshiped by the Humans on the continent of Dran. She typically appears as a human woman, one who is divinely beautiful with fair skin, long, swirling bright red hair, and eyes the color of black opals. She is very tall and of hearty build, and often seems stern or angry. She usually wears worn, ragged clothing dyed red-violet and yellow-green, often with a breastplate and a helm for protection. Her favored weapon is the mace.

The symbol of her power is a stylized sun image: the orb of the sun appears as an unblinking, ever-vigilant eye with radiating sunbeams (signifying power) encircling the orb. On either side of the sun image are wings, representing Bil’s strength and speed.

In addition to the Sun and War, she is also associated with arrogance, valour, and mountains. Her typical follower is generally quite youthful; most of her followers fall away from her worship as they mature and grow older. Her few followers can be primarily distinguished by their daily prayers. These prayers are often chanted to the accompanying sound of a mace striking a surface (usually a resonant surface). There are many shrines to her on lonely mountain roads to bring courage and strength to random wanderers. Her largest actual temple structure is in the city of Coldtreath.

Because of her love of war, she has occasionally been known to appear in person to great mortal leaders with the intent of misleading them and bringing about large-scale conflicts. Clerics and paladins who worship and act for Bil come from every walk of life and from nearly almost every alignment. However, those who most often seek out Bil are those who love war and conflict; while she herself is Chaotic Neutral, many of her followers tend to be some shade of evil.