Session 5: Remnants of a Fallen Kingdom

Remnants of a Fallen Kingdom Campaign: Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition Campaign ran on Roll20.

Session Log Written by our Ranger Anna
Session from 2/18/15
Players:

Danice: 1st level Half-Elf Ranger
Azurith: 2nd level Elven Cleric: Couldn't make the session
Taurnil: 1/1st level Elven Thief/Mage
Rin: 2nd level Human Paladin
Shnozola: 2nd level Gnome Druid

After a well needed rest the group heads off to the hamlet of Green Spur. Once there we find a few goblins sitting around a fire enjoying a nice meal. Shnoz and Taurnil investigate a house and find it abandoned. Across the main path into town a rather feminine looking "male" can be seen tied up in the stables. Upon investigation 6 men are found to be tied up in the stables and are freed. The feminine looking prisoner is actually Danica under disguise and she agrees to help liberate the town.

The professor warns of an ogre and several goblins plus one that seems to be the chieftain of the goblins and another one that seems to be able to summon fire at his will. Rin and Shnoz go to try to distract the goblins so that the villagers can get away only to find themselves facing an ogre in a tight corner against a building and a mound of firewood. The entire group together defeats the ogre facing it head on instead of sticking with ranged attacks.

After getting the villagers to safety in a house we explore around a bit more to find 2 more abandoned houses. As we are investigating 4 goblins try to surround and surprise us, but fail. After striking them down Rin investigates a statue that has an inscription on it "the serpent will come down the hole on the brown day of the bride but there should be three feet of snow on the flat ground". He also discovers the opening to a ruined temple. Shnoz sees a goblin cross the entrance to the temple as the goblin sees him.

Rin charges into the temple blade drawn to deal with the goblins. The goblin is not alone he is accompanied by two other goblins one of which matches the description of the shaman. After defeating the goblins Shnoz squeezes through a small goblin sized hole in the wall to find the mayor tied up. Once freed the mayor tells us that the goblin chieftain was taking the women to the east. And that no child has been born in this town for the 3 or 4 years that he has been mayor.

Coming back to the town the professor tells us that there has been no children born since the temple was destroyed ten years ago which is also when the tower appeared in the ocean. He also told us that every ten years adventurers go into the tower and emerge with a different colored pearl and always lose it somehow. At that time a Goddess of Fertility Temple falls...

We decide to go after the women who were kidnapped and follow tracks leading to the south east into the Shutter Woods. The tracks are that of 6 females and 1 goblin. As we follow the tracks we find one of the females tracks disappear and large cats prints appear. Danica gets charged by a panther like creature that has scaly skin and various blades poking out of it. After a few members take a bit of damage the panther like creature is defeated. Deciding we all need it we decide to rest here for a while as our elven cleric decides to join us again.

Castles & Crusades Black Box

A couple of weeks ago the Trolls were running a sale and I decided to pick up a couple of books. I own all the hardcover books from the Trolls but missed out on the Storyteller's Thesaurus Kickstarter so I decided to grab a copy plus the Castles & Crusades Black Box. The thesaurus is very useful for finding the right word or simply inspirations. The little black box I picked up on a whim and I am happy I did.

The Castles & Crusades Black Box is somewhat of a mini rules expansion. It has four new character classes, new spells, ready made equipment sets, info on gods & monsters, and a 1st level adventure. The Boxset has 3 booklets, a set of black dice, and three cards showing the various incarnations of the Trolls logo. The boxset is not a complete game though and requires the Players Handbook. Overall I was pleasantly surprised by my impulse purchase.

I took a few pictures of the books and the black box content if anyone was curious to see what was inside.

Bloody Bones

This creature appears as a skeletal humanoid with bits of muscle and sinew hanging from its body. Four long, sinewy tendrils writhe from its midsection. The entire creature constantly oozes a mixture of blood and mucus. Its eye sockets are hollow and show no pupils.

Source: Tome of Horrors Complete Pathfinder

     From a distance this undead creature appears as a normal skeleton. Upon further inspection you notice that blood and sinew hangs from it's body. Four tendrils move and twist about ready to attack. This intelligent undead lurks in the shadows waiting on prey. Typically found in caves, caverns, and unholy places. 

     Little is known about the true origin of the Bloody Bones but some scholars speculate that mortals who desecrate an evil temple are cursed by the dark gods for their sacrilegious sins. As their bodies decay they animate into this bloody form. Constantly dripping blood and seeking victims to sedate their appetite. Littered throughout a dungeon you spot dry blood leading you into a trap. From the darkness fleshy tendril grab at you. Seconds later your feel your body being pulled towards this unholy monstrosity.  

Combat: Bloody Bones are medium undead and are challenge rating of 4. 

-Slippery: The Bloody Bones body constantly flows with blood and mucus. Spells that snare and try to contain them fail. Spells like Web, Entangle, or similar spells have no effect on them. Other forms of confinement like grappling is extremely difficult. The Bloody Bones receives a +15 bonus to escape artist checks. 

-Tendril: The Bloody Bones can fire up to four sinewy tendril at their victims. This attack has a range of 30ft and is resolved with a ranged touch attack. The tendrils then attempt to grapple the victim and on the following round pull it towards its bloody claws. Each tendril is relatively strong with 10 hit points each. The tendril can be severed with a slashing weapon or a sunder check.  

-Other Abilities: Undead Traits, Fire Resistance 10

Spellwaste

This pool of scintillating slime glistens and glitters like a prismatic liquid.

Source: Monster Encyclopaedia: Ravagers of the Realm Vol. 1 D&D 3.5 by Mongoose Publishing

     Spellwaste is a by-product of a wizards experiment that has gone wrong. This by-product first appears as arcane energy gone wild. The wizard attempts to control this arcane energy before something more sinister goes awry. If the wizard fails in his attempt to control this energy it sometimes will congeal into a slime known as a spellwaste. This arcane slime feeds upon magic and will generally devour the unfortunate mage.

     All Spellwaste require arcane energy to survive. So once that pesky wizard is eaten they will often die off. If an abundance of food is readily available the Spellwaste will continue to survive. Either by draining the environment which is rich in magic or finding other practitioners to consume. A Spellwaste will thrive in a place of magic or maybe an arcane academy. A single cantrip can feed a Spellwaste for days while spells of higher level is like a feast that can sustain them for weeks.

     There are even some wizards who keep the Spellwaste locked away in a dungeon and feed them their leftover magical experiments.

Combat: The Spellwaste is a Large Ooze and a Challenge Level 5 creature. Their main tactic in combat involves making a straight run at a wizard or a person holding an object of magic. These mindless oozes always goes for the juiciest prey.

Spelldrain: If a Spellwaste slam attack hits in combat it automatically drains magic from the victim. Magic drained is done in the following order:
1. If the target has any spells currently active on him, it drains the highest level spell.
2. If the target has any prepared spells, it drains the highest level spell prepared.
3. If the target has any spontaneous spells, it drains the highest level spell slot left unused.
The Spellwaste Absorb Magic ability is automatically activated by Spelldrain

Absorb Magic: Any spell that targets the Spellwaste or absorbed through Spelldrain heals this arcane ooze 1d6 points per level of the spell. An area radius spell that catches the Spellwaste heals it 1 point per level of the spell. Otherwise it has no effect on it. Spells have no effect on the Spellwaste except for healing it.

Scent Magic: Can automatically detect any magic or spellcaster within a 60ft radius

-Misc Abilities:  Ooze type immunities, Damage Reduction 10/slashing

Blackball

This five foot diameter ball of black energy slowly moves toward you. Everything in it's path that it touches instantly disintegrates. 

Source: AD&D 2nd Edition Mystara Moustrous Compendium Appendix

     The Blackball is also known as the Deadly Sphere. A ball of black energy that destroys everything in it's path. This rare creature is immune to almost all forms of attacks. When a Blackball appears it is more of an event then an encounter. How do you contain this destructive force? Simply rushing into combat will result in death.
     There are a few theories of the Blackball existence. Some believe that a powerful fiend was captured by Immortals and transformed into this deadly orb. Although some scholars have debunked this theory since Blackballs are neutral in nature. A second theory is an unknown race created this creature to transport victims to another plane of existence. Scholars also have doubts since it appears the individual is quite obviously disintegrated.
     The most popular theory is that the Black Balls were created by Old Ones. Outer Gods of immense power that easily surpasses any mortal deity. Thankfully the existence of a Blackball is very rare.

Combat: The Blackball is worth 8,000 experience in AD&D 2nd Edition. It has no HD and an AC of 10. It is one of the few creatures that doesn't actually have hit points since everything from melee attacks to spells have no effect on it. It doesn't avoid attacks and wants to be hit since anything touching it simply vanishes.

-Disintegrate: Any magical or non-magical object or person who simply touches the Blackball is destroyed. There is no saving throw. You are dead. Your items are gone. Life sucks. Only artifacts at the DMs discretion might survive being touched by the Blackball. Since the Blackball is extremely slow(only 3 movement) any player character can attempt a Dexterity check to avoid touching this deadly sphere. Best tactic is simply evading this creature or running far far away.

-Lifesense: The Blackball senses all intelligent lifeforms within a 60ft radius. It randomly chooses a victim and moves in a straight line to destroy that individual. Those who move beyond the 60ft radius are not detected. The Blackball can simply detect you from an upper level or lower level as long as you are within 60ft. It can drop down from the ceiling destroying all the stonework that is in it's way.

-Spell Immunity: Blackballs are immune to all spells with the exception of a couple. A very carefully worded wish might suprress the Blackball. Also a gate spell cast within 60ft of the Blackball will have it gravitate towards the portal and head off in a new domain. Now you might have trouble if you piss off another world since you sent a ball of destruction their way.

     Blackballs aren't really meant to be a random encounter. A whole campaign can based around the appearance of this orb. This event can spawn a number of side adventures to find a way to contain or destroy this threat. Conventional means are simply ineffective and the PCs must be resourceful in figuring out a solution. Maybe seeking an audience of the Gods for advice or finding a long lost artifact to halt it's destructive path.

Mordnaissant

Floating before you is a horrid, shriveled human fetus nested within a translucent sphere of dark energy. Its jet-black eyes glitter with intensity as it twitches and spasms slightly, as if in great pain.

Source: Tome of Horror IV Pathfinder

Originally appearing in Rappan Athuk 

     When a woman who is carrying a child dies in an unholy place her unborn fetus may continue to grow. Infused with dark power and negative energy this fetus will burst through her belly as a new horrid undead creature. Floating within this black sphere of dark energy is an unborn baby who is warped and deprived. The Mordnaissant lives in a constant state of depression and pain. The only relief is through harming others.

     The Mordnaissant can be found in any environment but tends to continue to haunt their place of birth. From temples of Dark Gods to the catacombs of the dead. They do avoid places of bright light. Even though not harmful to them they shun it if they can. 

Combat: The Mordnaissant is a Tiny Undead with the ability to fly. They are Challenge Rating of 7.

-Death Curse: The individual who finally puts the Mordnaissant to rest must make a DC 20 Will save or be cursed. The cursed character reduces all subsequent experience by 50% until cured.

-Lash of Fury: The Mordnaissant can lash out with negative energy with a ranged touch attack with a 30ft range. The Mordnaissant can pick up to three effects of the lash: whip the flesh(as inflict moderate wounds for 2d8+9 points of damage), whip the mind(1d4 points of intelligence damage), and whip the soul(stunned for 1d4+1 rounds). A DC 22 Fort save is needed to halve damage or resist the effects.

-Lifesense: It notices and locates all living creatures within a 60ft radius

-Pain Wail: As a swift action the Mordnaissant can produce a terrible wailing sound. All creatures within a 20ft radius must make a DC 20 Will save or be dazed for one round. For every 20 points of damage the Mordnaissant takes the DC increases by 1. 

-Shield of Agony: The Mordnaissant adds it's Charisma modifier as a deflection bonus to AC. 

-Others Abilities: Undead Traits, Channel Resistance +2 

     The Mordnaissant is a disgusting creature with a gruesome circumstance of birth. The fact that you are fighting an undead fetus is both disturbing and awesome at the same time. They do have an interesting mechanic with the Death Curse ability. Having your experience reduced by 50% is torment to any player. Especially if you are trapped inside a dungeon with no cure readily available. I also like the fact that you have Pain Wail as a swift action and then you can continue to harass your PCs with different Lash of Fury effects each round.

     The Mordnaissant can compliment a dungeon with various undead. Maybe filling up a catacomb with skeletons, zombies, and wights with the final confrontation being the undead fetus. 

     Another possibility is that a Demon Lord or Evil God of Fertility has gathered together woman who are pregnant. Then slaughtered them in a ritualistic fashion to create the Mordnaissant. A den of evil undead babies....how fun....

     For the OSR crowd there is a version of the Mordnaissant that is found in the Sword & Wizardry Version of Tome of Horror IV.

Cockatrice

This hideous avian creature has the body of an emaciated rooster, the wings of a bat, and a long, scaly tail.

Source: AD&D 2E: Monstrous Manual. Original Source Dungeons & Dragons Set(1974).

     The Cockatrice is a hybrid of a lizard, cock, and bat. It's known for it's ability turn flesh to stone. The Cockatrice main habitat is the wilderness where it hunts insects, small lizards, and the like. It does not use it's petrification ability when hunting for food. It only uses this ability when its lair has been threatened.

     The Cockatrice has a nasty temperament. The female is the rarest of the genders and tend to be the most dominant. Males will fight for the privilege of joining their female counterpart's harem. A cave will usually house a flock of Cockatrices. Inside the cave the Cockatrices build nests and decorate them with shining objects such as coins or gems.

Combat: Cockatrices are small creatures no bigger then a large turkey with the ability to fly. They are worth 650 experience points. They have a weak beak attack that does only 1d3 points of damage. The defining aspect of that beak attack is the ability to petrify their victims. Their petrification attack will only work on those wearing fabric based armor like leather or no armor. It will not work through metal armor.
     The Cockatrices know their limitations. A flock of Cockatrices will gather around the least armored individual to delivery their beak attack.

-Petrification: The Cockatrice try to attack expose flesh and those wearing only fabrics. If a large area of flesh is exposed it is assumed they attack that area. Those attacked by the Cockatrice must save vs petrification or be turned to stone. The level of AC will reduces the chance of penetration by 10% per AC value. So an AC 7 opponent has a 70% chance of the beak penetrating to the skin.

     Cockatrice feathers are sought out by certain wizards for their quills which can be used to scribe certain scrolls. Also the unhatched eggs are prized for those seeking to raise one from birth. Both of those details open a couple of adventure plots. Having a wealthy merchant hire the player characters to sneak into a Cockatrice lair to steal eggs makes for an interesting adventure. For those not heavily armored the risk of this encounter can be quite deadly and trying to actually avoid the confrontation can be exciting.

     Cockatrices are generally used as low level opponents. Without the proper spells or equipment an encounter with them can ruin a players day. So any DM should use them with a bit of caution.

Session Report: Remnants of a Fallen Kingdom

Session 4 of my current AD&D 2E campaign. Last session the group finished up the DCC adventure Tower of the Black Pearl.

Played on 2/11/15

Cast of Characters

Lefira: 1st level Halfling Fighter  Dead
Azurith: 2nd level Elven Cleric: Couldn't make the session
Taurnil: 1/1st level Elven Thief/Mage
Rin: 1st level Human Paladin
Shnozola: 2nd level Gnome Druid

When we last left off the group was investigating the town of Tarnwood about the mysterious Hobbs family. They also lost the Black Pearl to a group of ravens last session. So the group had two objective this session. First they found out that the small hamlet of Greenspur was sacked by goblins and second they needed to heal the Druid since he had taken a lot of constitution damage. Luckily for them the fey that could cure the druid was in Shudderwood and so was Greenspur.

So this session was mainly about travelling to Greenspur and meeting the Oakman, a fey who could cure Shnozola.

Bullet Points of the Session

-Group travels to Shudderwood. They come across three stone statues next to a wooden signpost. The signpost is pointed towards Greenspur but has the hamlet name crossed out. Upon further inspection of the statues they notice bite marks and come to the conclusion that they were petrified. They also notice giant chicken leg tracks....they decide it is best to move on.

-On the dirt road they come across a fallen tree. Written on the tree in the druid language is weird ramblings....

" I have lost my way.....dear forest........dear earth......never have I heard such voices.....speak in such a way.....the eggs are gone.....the tribe is lost.....stop the voices.....I cannot bring more...the balance is gone...."

Group continues to move on.

-They come across two dead horses on the road. Dozens of feet away is a destroyed wagon and four dead bodies. They inspect the bodies and as they do they rise as zombies. Fight breaks out and the PCs win. They loot the bodies and then burn them.

-Time to rest. They rest up for the night. In the middle of night watch they hear a lone wolf howl from the east. In the morning the druid wants to investigate the howl to the east. The group agrees and they come across a cave with an entrance covered up by a bunch of branches. Outside of the entrance are four flower pots. Two of them are empty. Two of of them have clay inside and water. They light a fire inside one empty pot and blow into the other. The branches burn up and reveal the entrance to a cave complex.

-The Cave of Doom! Not really but it smells like rancid flesh. They explore the cave and find the Druid of the forest body. He's dead and his belly was torn open from the inside. Also the cave was a Kobold community. In one room dozens of Kobold are found piled up and dead. Also their eggs have been shattered. The mystery deepens.....

-Babbling can be heard. Half the group is hypnotized and an Allip appears before them(possible cause of the Druids madness). The Allip is a tough fight and drains the halfling fighter Lefira to zero wisdom and she dies. The group uses holy water to kill the Allip. They decides to get out of the cave and continue their journey. They mourn Lefira and give her a proper burial.

-They come across the remnants of a ruined tower. Inside a semi-circle of foundation is a giant oak tree and a table with pies made of leaves and fungi. From the trees around them they hear a voice. The voice starts to insult the party. After a few minutes of being insulted. He invites them to eat his homemade pies which might cure the Druid or kill him. After two unsuccessful pie attempts and further injury the druid picks the right pie to eat and is fully healed.

There is were we ended for the night.

In Search of Monsters

I am always in search of monsters. My favorite role-playing game supplements are monster books. They usually have evocative art and interesting opponents to harass my players with. Since I tend to DM 95% of the time I enjoy flipping through the various entries and finding unique monsters to spice up your typical encounter. Also the nice thing about monster books is you don't have to read them cover to cover. You can find the entries that entice you and just focus in on them.

I am also a collector by nature. I probably have way too many rpg books. I know my wife always complains that we will one day run out of room for my collection. When that happens I tell her we have to sell the Condo and buy a house.

Over the past month I picked up five new monster books. I have some pictures of my finds.

Monster Manual 3 for D&D 4E: I have to admit I haven't really played 4E all that much. I DMed one session when it first came out and didn't really enjoy it. I did play a few encounter sessions at my local gaming shop but never had the desire to fully explore the system. I picked up MM3 on the cheap. As with most of Wotc products it has very high production values.
     The artwork is gorgeous. I probably will only use MM3 to showcase art and use the monster lore fluff from each entry. I do own most of the 4E monster books with the exception of MM1 hardcover. I have the Monster Vault, Threats from Nentir Vale, and MM2. I will eventually pick up MM1 one day but haven't since I think the Monster Vault and MM1 overlap a lot.

Legends & Lairs: Elemental Lore: This monster book was published by Fantasy Flight Games in 2003 and uses D&D 3.0/D20 system. It's 64 pages devoted to elementals and their subtypes. The artwork is black & white and above average in quality. Since I have ran a lot of Pathfinder over the past five years I can steal monsters from here since the system chassis are fundamentally the same. Might have convert a few things here and there.

Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendices I & II: This Ravenloft supplement combines two of the loose leaf appendices into one 128 page softcover. Half the book is devoted to horror themed monster. The other half is unique NPCs with a gothic horror twist. Nice selection of monsters for a darker themed game. Plus my current campaign is AD&D 2E so this will probably get some use.
     By picking up this book I mostly complete my 2E softcover collection for monster books. I even have a softcover print of Savage Coast Monster Compendium which was only released online. There is a Birthright monster book which I don't own but I don't think it is a standard monster book. Now I have to work on picking up the rest of the loose leaf 2E monster appendices.

Malevolent and Benign: An OSRIC/1E Bestiary published by Expeditious Retreat Press. This 128 page book has nice black & white art and over 150 monsters. More then half of them are illustrated. The two other notable 3PP monster books for OSRIC are Monsters of Myth and Teratic Tome. This rounds out my 1E collection quite nicely. Also can be used for my 2E game.

D20 Menace Manual: This D20 book was written for D20 Modern which is a variant of the D&D 3.X system. Half the book is monsters and the other half is organizations. I probably won't touch the organizations but might use the monsters in a 3.X/Pathfinder game. This book is full color and has high production value. If you are interested in throwing some aliens or weird monsters into your typical fantasy setting this might serve as good inspiration.

Most of these books I got on the cheap. The only one that I paid higher then cover price was the Ravenloft Monster Book.

Interior for Malevolent and Benign

Allip

This malignant cloud of shadows boils in the air, its skeletal maw eerily babbling as the creature's claws manifest from the darkness.

Source: Pathfinder Bestiary 3.
Originally from Monster Manual 3.0
Monstrosities S&W for OSR Version

     When an individual goes insane and decides to commit suicide there is a chance they will return as an Allip. An intelligent incorporeal undead who seeks to inflict terror, confusion, and rage upon the living. The Allip will often seek revenge on those who might of played a part in it's madness. They will ignore all targets to focus revenge on the perpetrator who caused it's mental decline. An Allip is utterly insane and seeks spread psychoses on all who crosses it's path.

     The Allip uses it's babble ability to hypnotize it's victims. As their prey stands there helpless the Allip approaches them and touches their soul. While no physical harm is done their mental sanity is eroded. When all their wisdoms has been wiped away the victim falls unconscious.When it awakes it has developed a form of insanity. 

Combat: The Allip is a medium undead with the incorporeal subtype. They are a Challenge Rating 3 opponent. Since they are incorporeal creatures they do not deal physical damage. They instead deal wisdom damage.

-Babble: The Allip constantly mutters to itself. All sane creatures within 60ft must make a 15 Will Save or be fascinated for 2d4 rounds. The Allip can approach without breaking this effect. An attack by Allip will break the fascination condition.

-Madness: Anyone who makes direct contact with an Allips mind takes 1d4 points of Wisdom damage.

-Touch of Insanity: The touch of an Allip causes 1d4 points of wisdom damage if a DC 15 Wisdom save is failed. If the Allip critical on an attack it deals 1d4 points of wisdom damage plus one point of wisdom drain. (Losing Wisdom can make subsequent saving throws harder since your Willpower save is modified from Wisdom.)

-Special Defenses: Incorporeal, Undead Traits, Channel Resistance +2

     The Allip makes for a great low-level undead foe. They can be used to haunt an old sanitarium. Maybe they were mentally tortured to the point of suicide. Now they seek revenge on the torturer and all those who are associated with him. Learning the history of this tormented soul can create a grey area. Maybe the Allip in it's former life was an innocent child who was driven to suicide by external forces.

OSR Version
     The Allip is converted to an OSR Version for Sword & Wizardry Complete. This version has a couple of differences. First the babble works as a suggestion spell. Second if you lose all your wisdom you die and become an Allip is 2d6 days.

     In my last AD&D 2E game our halfling fighter was killed by an Allip and I used the OSR version. The fighter was killed once she lose all her wisdom.

• Allip: HD 4; AC 5 [14]; Atk 1 strike (no damage, 1d4 points of wisdom lost); Move (fly 6); Save 13; AL C; CL/XP 7/600; Special: drains wisdom, hypnosis.

Types of Insanity

Taken from the Pathfinder GameMastery Guide and found on the Pathfinder SRD is a quick list of possible mental impairments if your character loses all it's wisdom and you wish to make them insane.

When a creature goes insane, roll on the following table to determine what form of insanity strikes. Alternatively, you can assign the insanity to match the cause.

d%	Insanity
1–11	Amnesia
12–48	Mania/Phobia
49–68	Multiple Personality Disorder
69–78	Paranoia
79–84	Psychosis
85–100	Schizophrenia

Random Wilderness Encounters

I put together a quick random encounter table for my current campaign. This table can be used for any fantasy game like Dungeons & Dragon, Pathfinder, Retro-clones, etc.


Roll 1d6. 1-2 no encounter. On a roll of 3-6 you have an encounter. Look at the corresponding table and roll 1d20.

Random Encounters

d6

1-2: No Encounter
3: Mundane Object
4: Interesting Things
5: Creature
6: Event Seeds

3. Mundane Objects

D20

1: Water Tight Boot. The boot is filled with water and there are a couple of fish swimming about.
2. Wagon Wheel. Half buried in the dirt.
3. Wizard's Hat: Lonesome on the road. Has a note tucked inside
4. Box of Nails: Inside the box are rusty nails.
5. Daggers: A tree has a dozen daggers punched into it's trunk.
6. Broken Hourglass.
7. Empty Satchel.
8. Dirty Trousers.
9. Ancient Coin
10. Holy Symbol
11. Copper Ring
12. Broken Mirror and Frame
13. Sack with Toys
14. Chisel
15. Bucket with rolls of parchment paper.
16. Bear Trap
17, 50ft of Silk Rope. Separated in three spots.
18. Five Bags of Sand
19, Rusty Spoon
20. Canteen filled with ale.

4. Interesting Things

D20

1. Tree with Markings: The Tree has Druid markings etched on it.
2. Signpost: Points to the nearest town. Has the name of the town crossed out
3. Wooden Sculpture of an Elven Warrior.
4. Small Graveyard
5. Obelisk
6. Rickety Bridge over a River
7. Shrine to a Nature God
8. Burnt Down Orphanage
9. Greenhouse
10. Tree house
11. Mushroom Field
12. A Shed filled with hand painted garden gnomes.
13. Bubbling Cauldron and Cabin
14. Enclosed Garden
15. Druid Grove
16. Monument inscribed with names of famous heroes
17. Broken Down Catapult.
18. Battlefield. Area filled with remnants of a recent battle.
19. Circular Holes: Huge holes created by a giant burrowing creature.
20. Mound of Bones: A 10ft high pile of skeletal bodily remains.

5. Creatures

D20

1. Patch of 1d3 Assassin Vines
2. Solitary Grizzly Bear
3. Gang of 2d4 Goblins
4. Band of 2d6 Pixies
5. Pair of Satyrs
6. Nest of 2d10 Giant Wasp
7. Dire Wolverine
8. Colony of 2d4 Giant Spiders
9. Band of 2d6 Wood Elves
10. Pack of 3d4 Wolves
11. Group of 2d4 Boars
12. Solitary Pegasus
13. Pride of 1d3+1 Manticores
14. Pack of 1d4+1 Werewolves
15. Flock of 1d6 Cockatrice
16. Flight of 3d4 Harpies
17. Grove of 2d4 Dryads
18. Nest of 1d6+1 Ettercaps and 2d4 Giant Spiders
19. Yellow Musk Creeper and 1d6 Yellow Musk Zombies
20. Solitary Young Green Dragon

6. Adventure Seeds

D20

1. Cocooned: This area of the forest has heavy webbing. Throughout the webbing you find cocooned humanoid bodies waiting to be eaten. In this area lurks Giant Spiders sneaking about ready to attack via the treetop canopies.

2. Big Oak Tree: The largest oak tree in the forest. The oak tree is home to the Oakman. A fey who can treestride about and loves to insults adventurers. At the base of the giant Oak Tree is a table with pies. The pies are made up of leaves and fungi. Each pie has a different effect. One pie might heal you. One pie might poison you.

3. Sword in the Pond: You find a pond. 10ft deep in the center of the pond is a sword glowing. Inside the pond a water elemental patiently waits. The sword is also curse.

4. Topiary: Walled off in a squared hedge boxed. A dozen Topiary are crafted to appear as large forest animals. While exploring this Topiary garden two of them animate and attack.

5. Wagon Trouble: Two horses are recently slain on the road. A dozen yards away is the remnants of the wagon. Four human bodies are scattered about. If disturbed they animate as zombies and attack.

6. Sacked Hamlet: A small hamlet in the forest has been sacked by a tribe of goblins. All the women have been kidnapped. The men tied up. The goblins hired an Ogre to help secure the town. The adventurers hear about the sacked hamlet from a lone woman escaping through the woods.

7. Wolf Howl: A Druid has died. His animal companion was a wolf. A lone howl in the night always comes from the east. Every night the group hears the howls. If they follow the sounds it leads to a Druid Cave and his grim remains.

8. Mad Dwarf: An Insane Dwarf has started construction on a staircase to the Sun. He tries to enlist the Player Characters to help him finish his project. He claims that the Sun is a perfect mining opportunity.

9.Petrified: A pair of petrified humans. Closer inspection you notice they were bitten. Every 100ft or so you find another petrified body. A Flock of Cockatrice has made a lair in a nearby cave.

10. Abandoned Town: You stumble upon a town that has been abandoned for about a year. What drove these folks off?

11.Falling Comet: A Comet has fallen to the earth. While camping at night they see the fiery trail crash land with a huge explosion. If they investigate they notice strange other worldly aberrations springing forth.

12.Sinkhole: Part of the forest has a recent sinkhole. Dozens of feet into the earth you notice stone chambers leading to a dungeon from the ancient past.

13. Knights on Patrol: A band of Knight are searching the forest. They have a warrant out for the arrest of a suspected murderer. One of the Players Characters fits the description of the murderer.

14. Cabin with Cats: The group stumbles upon an abandoned cabin. A Colony of Undead Cats have laid claim. Any disturbance causes them to stir. Once the cats are killed an Old Lady approaches the Cabin claiming the group are a bunch of murderer for killing her little kittens.

15. The Well: A lonesome well in the middle of the forest. If you listen closely you can hear screams echo from down below.

16. Tea Party: A devious fey has arranged a table with chairs under a large tree. There are a dozen chairs and half the occupants are dead. Their faces have been painted to appear smiling.

17. Cauldron: The group bumps into a young child. The Child claims that a group of them got kidnap by a witch. All his friend are currently being prepped by the Witch to be cooked in a Cauldron. He was able to escape and was looking for help.

18. Caged: Dozens of human sized cages form a circle. Inside the cages are the skeletal remains of criminals. They were left to starve in these cages. One cage has a lone half-orc on the brink of death. He pleads for the group to save him.

19. Blind Man: A lone human with no eyes has lost his way. He also doesn't know who he is.

20. Vault: Buried under a mound of dirt you can make out a circular metal door. Once cleared you find the the metal vault door and it's dials. If you can figure out the right combination you can find a treasure of a lifetime or unleash death upon the world....

For more encounters, mundane items, fun tables, etc check out my

Random Encounter Index

Chain Golem

Striding towards you is a body composed entirely of shifting chains that vary in size and shape. Some are thin and some are thick. Most of them are mounted with barbs, spikes, and blades.

Source: Monster Manual II 3.0

     Created by the Kytons as guardians of devils and protectors of unholy places. The Chain Golem obeys it's wicked master until it's destruction. Should it's master be slain the Chain Golem will seek another Kyton to be it's new master. The Chain Golem has been known to travel to the prime material world on missions to either retrieve a message or deliver a message. They will often also be used to acquire an object for it's master.

    The Kytons are the only known beings who can create a Chain Golem. They value this knowledge and keep it secret at all times. Should another being find out how to create a Chain Golem the Kyton will go to great lengths to assassinate the offender.

Combat: Chain Golem are Medium Sized Constructs. They are a Challenge Level 5.

-Chain Barrier: As a full round action the Chain Golem can surround itself in whirling shield of chains. This is similar to a blade barrier and if activated while an opponent is adjacent that person must make a DC 17 Reflex save or take 7d6 points of damage. Those entering or passing through the barrier automatically take the damage with no save. The Chain Barrier moves with the Golem and grant them a one-half cover bonus of +4 to AC. Maintaining the Chain Barrier is a standard action.

-Wounding: A wound from a chain rake attack causes 2 points of bleed damage. Multiple wounds are cumulative. A heal check or a cure spell is needed to stop the bleeding.

-Resistance to Ranged Attacks: Chain Golem receive a +2 bonus to ranged spells or ranged magical attacks that target it.

-Magic Immunity: Immune to all spells, spell-like abilities, and supernatural effects with the exception of electricity that slows them for 2 rounds. A fire effect breaks any slow effect and cures 1 points of damage per 2 damage dealt.

Crypt Thing

Shreds of leathery flesh cling to this skeletal figure’s body, while twin motes of fiery light glow deep in its eye sockets.

Source: AD&D 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual. Originally from AD&D 1E Fiend Folio.

     Crypt Things are undead creature who guard tombs, graves, and corpses. The sole purpose of this guardian is to protect those who have been laid to rest. They are not your typical evil guardian but neutral in nature. It only animates when a grave robber/adventurer have disturb the sanctity of their lair. Until that point they lay motionless and appear as nothing more then a cloaked skeleton.

     Once animated they spring into action. Their main line of defense is to teleport offenders away from their lair. They have been known to teleport an adventurer directly over a pit or chasm which usually ends in their unfortunate death. There are two types of Crypt Things ancestral and natural. Ancestral Crypt Thing are not created but mysteriously appear when someone of significance needs protection. Natural Crypt Things are created by wizards or priest to guard an important tomb. 

Combat: Crypt Things are worth 975 experience. Once it has exhausted it's teleportation trick it resort to a claw attack that deals 1d8 points of damage.  

-Teleportation: Once per adventuring group the Crypt Thing can teleport them in a random direction. Each character is allowed a saving throw vs spell to resist this effect. The victim won't appear inside a solid object but they don't necessarily appear on level ground. They can appear several hundred feet in the air and fall to their death. The following table is used as a guideline or can be rolled randomly if you choose. 

1d100	Destination
01-20	1d10×100’ north
21-40	1d10×100’ east
41-60	1d10×100’ west
61-80	1d10×100’ south
81-90	1 dungeon level up
91-00	1 dungeon level down

-Immunities: Only magic weapons can deal damage to a crypt thing, Like most undead they are immune to mind-affecting effects. The magic that binds them to their lair makes them immune to turning. 

-Vulnerabilities: They are harmed by Holy Water and Holy Symbols.

     It is rumored that the powdered marrow of the Crypt Thing can be used to create a potion of undead control. The bones of the Crypt Thing can be used to manufacture pipes of haunting that imposes -2 penalty to saving throws and is twice as effective.

     The Crypt Thing makes a great guardians. A city with a large Necropolis could have an entire order of Crypt Things protecting it. Since they are intelligent undead they can be used as the keepers of the catacombs. Maybe a great artifact is lost in the catacombs and the final confrontation is against one of these undead. 

     Another option is the adventurers have reached the Crypt. They face multiple Crypt Things. The group fails it's saving throws and is teleported to a secret dungeon level which they must brave to get back to their original destination. The second time around the Crypt Things can't use their teleportation and the climax of the adventure can take place.

Ved

This hairy humanoid giant's misshapen head appears too large for its body. It wields a lumpy, primitive club.

Source: Pathfinder RPG: Irrisen: Land of Eternal Winter. 

     When Baba Yaga invades a northern domain she brings with her clans of Veds to help as physical enforcement. Once she has secured her domain she let's the Veds fend for themselves. The Veds are clannish giants who are brutal in nature but dim-witted. Once left on their own they gravitate to cold hills and mountains. Once they establish a community they tend to shun society.

     The only contact one receives from the Veds is when they need to stock up on supplies. Raids into the local mining towns are common. Their they capture live humanoids since they enjoy the taste of raw flesh. The defining aspect of a Ved is the ability to suck massive amounts air into it's lungs. Then it releases the air into a gale force effect that blows foes to the ground.

Combat: Veds are large humanoids with the giant subtype. They are a CR 5 opponent.

-Gale Breath: Once every 1d4 rounds the Veds can draw in a mighty breath and expel it in a 30ft cone. Those within 10ft of the Ved must make a DC 18 Strength Check or be knocked prones. The breath also acts like a gust of wind spell for those who are beyond the 10ft effect.

-Feats: The Veds posses Awesome Blow, Power Attack, and Improved Bull Rush as feats. Awesome Blow can be used as standard action. If a bull rush maneuver is successful the target takes damage normally and is knocked 10ft away and falls prone. They are moved in a straight line. If an obstacle is in the way they take 1d6 points of damage from impact. 

     The Veds make great entry level Giants. They are a notch below Hill Giants. The Gale Breath mechanic is also a nice variation from your standard giant assault.

Quesar

This gaunt humanoid creature has blue skin and tall white hair. A slender torso joins two graceful arms, powerful legs, and a noble head. This form is obscured, however by the incredible amount of radiant energy emanating from the creature.

Source: Book of Exalted Deed D&D 3.5. Originally from Planescape Planes of Conflict.

     Created by a lawful group of Aasimon on the Outer Plane of Elysium. They were formed from marshy mud to appear as a human shaped form. In a hidden fortress the Aasimon enable this mannequin so that it could absorb energy from daylight. Within this construct is a fire deep within that blossoms into a cascade of might. The Aasimon named their creation the Quesar meaning "borrowed from heaven's crown".

     After centuries of servitude the Quesar questioned their existence. They would not be merely servants or slaves to the Aasimon. There was a war in heaven. This short conflict was intervened by the Gods who proclaimed that the Quesar are at the command of no one. Since that time the Quesars have been pondering their true purpose. They are servants of light but chained no more.

Combat: Quesar are intelligent medium extraplanar constructs who never use weapons preferring to manifest their offense through the energy the infuses their bodies. They are a Challenge Rating 7.

-Blinding Radiance: Quesars can increase the brightness of their energy halo to 120ft (240ft in shadowy conditions). Any creature within this radius must make a DC 14 Fortitude save or be blinded for 1d10 rounds.

-Consuming Brilliance: Three times a day the Quesar can create a burst of energy so intense that all creatures and objects are turn to fine dust. A 14 Fortitude save is needed to avoid 22d6 points of damage as a disintegrate spell. Those who pass the save take 5d6 points of damage.

-Searing Burst: After the Quesar has had the Blinding Radiance active for at least one round it can create a burst of energy similar to a sunburst spell. All creature within 30ft take 6d6 points of damage unless they make a DC 14 Reflex save. A successful save reduces that damage in half. This ability can be used six times a day.

-Energy Halo: At all times the Quesar radiates 20ft of bright light. 40ft in shadowy illumination.

-Fast Healing: Quesars heal 5 points of damage each round while in daylight. Even if slain they will continue to heal if light is present.

-Misc: All the immunities from being a construct, darkvision 60ft, low-light vision, immunity to electricity and fire, spell resistance 18, and damage reduction 10/adamantine.

     Thank God the Quesars are good guys. The Challenge Rating of 7 is completely jacked up. This construct has a boatload of immunities and can dish out a massive amount of damage. The Consuming Brilliance ability is wicked. You do that for 3 rounds in a row and you potentially have 66d6 points of damage plus destroying your gear. This creature is ridiculously overpowered for it's CR level.

     I guess if your party ever turns evil just send the Quesars in........campaign over........make some good characters this time around.

Peryton

This creature has a stag’s body, a hawk’s wings and talons, and the head of a slavering wolf with a rack of sharp antlers on its brow.

Source: Pathfinder Bestiary 2

     Peryton combine the features of a stag, wolf, and great birds of prey. They are intelligent predators who prey on those weaker then themselves. Their delicacy is humanoids. Especially the taste of a still beating heart. Peryton are solitary creatures who hate even their own kind.

     In a rare instance a female will sometimes lead a strong family flock. The flock is usually composed of females with up six fledglings. This flock will attract an unpaired male who attacks hoping to make off with a female. Mating for the Peryton is brutal affair. Usually ending with the death of the male mate. Afterwards the female lays a single black egg and 7 months later it hatches.

Combat: Peryton are chaotic evil medium magical beast. Challenge Rating 4. They have the ability to fly and attack three times with a gore attack and two hooves.

-Horrific Critical: A Peryton gore attack threatens on a 18 - 20. If the Peryton slays a foe with a critical it can tear out the victims heart. All observers must make a DC 13 Fortitude save or be shaken for 1 round.

-Shadow Mark: As a free action the Peryton can mark a foe. With a ranged touch attack that is within 300ft.  If successful its shadow matches the shadow of the creature struck. It gains a +2 morale bonus on attack and damage rolls against that target. If the target is attacked by the Peryton while marked it must make a DC 13 Will save or become frightened for one round. 

-Misc Abilities: It has Damage Resistance 5/Magic, Darkvision, and Low-Light Vision.

Inner Sea Pawn Box

     Recently picked up the Inner Sea Pawn Box for the Pathfinder RPG. The Pawn set is a big box of thick cardboard pawns of various NPCs. It contains over 200 NPCs. If your miniature budget needs a break these guys make a great options for the table. Great thing about them is they can be used for D&D, Retro-Clones, AD&D, etc. I have some images below and I copied the NPC list from Paizo for those curious to see what's in the box.

Small
Aspis Consortium Spy (2) Balazar, Summoner Bellflower Tiller* (2) Bellflower Tiller* (2) Bleachling Lunatic	Charau-Ka Warrior (5) Chuffy Lickwound Daggermark Poisoner (2) Eagle Knight Halfling Enora, Arcanist	Mogmurch Okeno Liberator Pathfinder Loreseeker Poog of Zarongel Priest of Desna	Priestess of Nethys Priestess of Norgorber Priestess of Zon-Kuthon Reta Bigbad Usaro Rebel (3)
Medium
Absalom Guard (6) Adowyn, Hunter Adril Hestram Alahazra, Oracle Alain, Cavalier Aldori Swordlord* Aldori Swordlord* Alkenstar Shieldmarshal (4) Anaphexia Assassin (4) Android Monk (2) Android Warrior (2) Arcanamirium Sorcerer (2) Arclord of Nex Aspis Consortium Commander Aspis Consortium Soldier (3) Aspis Consortium Thug (3) Averaka Giant Slayer (2) Belkzen Warchief (2) Blackfire Adept Summoner (3) Blackraven Scout (4) Bloatmage* Bloatmage* Blue Warder (3) Chernasardo Sniper (3) Crowe, Bloodrager Cyphermage* Cyphermage* Daggermark Poisoner (2) Damiel, Alchemist Decemvirate Member Drow Matron Duergar Slaver (3) Duskwarden (3) Eagle Knight Commander (2) Eagle Knight Soldier (4) Eando Kline Feiya, Witch Fierani Demon Hunter (4) Geb Blood Lord Gillman Warrior (3) Gillman Wave Rider (2) Grandmaster Torch Gray Gardener (4) Gray Maiden (4) Gray Maiden Commander Green Faith Druid (4) Green Faith High Druid Hakon, Skald Half-Orc Pit Fighter (2) Harbinger Disciple (3)	Harrower* Harrower* Hayato, Samurai Hellknight Armiger (4) Hellknight Signifer* Hellknight Signifer* House of Perfection Monk (3) Imrijka, Inquisitor Ironmaster Ytharia Vulane Iroran Champion Jinx Eater (2) Jirelle, Swashbuckler Keleshite Entertainer Kess, Brawler Kitharodian Academy Bard Kitharodian Academy Performer Knight of Ozem* (2) Knight of Ozem* (2) Knight of the Ioun Star Kortash Khain Korvosan Shingles Runner (3) Kuru Cannibal (4) Lantern Bearer (3) Lion Blade of Taldor (4) Lirianne, Gunslinger Low Templar (3) Magaambya Arcanist (3) Magaambya Instructor Maurya-Rahm Advisor Mendevian Crusader* (3) Mendevian Crusader* (3) Molthuni Soldier (4) Mushfens Cabalist (3) Night Herald Cultist (3) Old Ones Cultist (3) Old-Mage Jatembe Oloch, Warpriest Order of the Chain Hellknight (3) Order of the Gate Hellknight (3) Order of the Godclaw Hellknight (3) Order of the Nail Hellknight (3) Order of the Pyre Hellknight (3) Order of the Rack Hellknight (3) Order of the Scourge Hellknight (3) Pactmaster of Katapesh (3) Padrig Pain Taster (2) Pathfinder Braggart Pathfinder Chronicler Pathfinder Explorer	Pathfinder Hunter Pathfinder Priest Pathfinder Sneak Pathfinder Spellcaster Pathfinder Venture-Captain Pathfinder Wanderer Pathfinder Warrior Pirate Marauder (4) Priest of Abadar Priest of Asmodeus Priest of Calistria Priest of Cayden Cailean Priest of Erastil Priest of Gorum Priest of Gozreh Priest of Iomedae Priest of Irori Priest of Lamashtu Priest of Nethys Priest of Norgorber Priest of Pharasma Priest of Rovagug Priest of Sarenrae Priest of Shelyn Priest of Torag Priest of Urgathoa Priest of Zon-Kuthon Priestess of Abadar Priestess of Asmodeus Priestess of Calistria Priestess of Cayden Cailean Priestess of Desna Priestess of Erastil Priestess of Gorum Priestess of Gozreh Priestess of Iomedae Priestess of Irori Priestess of Lamashtu Priestess of Pharasma Priestess of Rovagug Priestess of Sarenrae Priestess of Shelyn Priestess of Torag Priestess of Urgathoa Prophet of Kalistrade* Prophet of Kalistrade* Puddles Peddler Pure Legionnaire (4) Pure Legionnaire Commander Quinn, Investigator	Razmiran Cultist (4) Razmiran Priest (2) Red Mantis Acolyte (2) Red Mantis Assassin (5) Red Mantis Elite (3) Red Mantis Leader Reiko, Ninja Riftwarden (4) Risen Guard* (3) Risen Guard* (3) River Kingdoms Brigand (4) Rough Rampager (3) Sable Company Marine (3) Sczarni Crime Boss Sczarni Mystic (2) Sczarni Thief (4) Seltyiel, Magus Shackles Pirate* (4) Shackles Pirate* (4) Shackles Pirate Captain* Shackles Pirate Captain* Shardra, Shaman Shoanti Gladiator (3) Silent Enforcer (4) Sister of the Golden Erinyes (4) Sleepless Detective (3) Sodden Scavenger (4) Strix Warrior (4) Strix Witch Taldan Noble* Taldan Noble* Technic League Spellcaster (2) Thrune Agent* (2) Thrune Agent* (2) Tian Monk* (2) Tian Monk* (2) Tian Sage Ulfen Guard Commander Ulfen Guard of Taldor (2) Ulfen Hunter (2) Ulfen Longboat Captain Ulfen Raider (5) Usij Cabalist (3) Uskwood Druid (2) Ustalavic Duelist Varisian Merchant (2) Varisian Wanderer (3) Way of the Kirin Agent White Witch (2) Zadim, Slayer
Large
Absalom Wave Rider (3) Alain on Donahan God Caller with Eidolon	Jarl Gnargorak Knight of Ozem, Mounted (4) Mistress of Blades Maidrayne Vox	Mounted Hellknight (4) Qadiran Horselord (4) Ruthazek the Gorilla King	Sable Company Marine, Mounted (3)