Spes Magna Games

Spes Magna Games has been in business since December 2009. In that time, I’ve published more than 50 PDFs for various game systems. About two years ago, I released The Four Color Hack. At the time, I had vague plans of eventually releasing TFCH as a print-on-demand game.

Well, eventually has arrived, and TFCH is officially Spes Magna’s first real book.

You can get TFCH as a 6-by-9-inch 80-page black-and-white softcover for $10.95 (not including shipping and handling). The softcover includes the $3 PDF. If you’ve not checked out TFCH yet, start with the PDF. If you like what you see, and you want the book, use this link right here to get the print-on-demand version for $7.95. Caveat: The discount link in the previous sentence expires at the end of September 2018.

Ms. Jessica Dow deserves a big “Thanks!” for picking up the dropped ball of formatting TFCH for print-on-demand. I hope to work with Ms. Dow again on another print-on-demand job in the near future.

But enough of that. Let’s head back into the Chinese Mythos from the AD&D Deities & Demigods. Today, we meet Mu Yuan, the 70-foot-tall killer of the gods, for use with 5E D&D.

This monster has 3 eyes in his tyrannosaurus-shaped head, and has 4 large humanoid arms. He has the strength of a storm giant…. He also has a powerful magical device shaped in the form of a small triangular piece of stone that has the power to turn into any weapon [Ma Yuan] wishes, magical or otherwise. (Deities & Demigods, page 40)

Ma Yuan
Gargantuan monstrosity, chaotic evil

Armor Class 24 (natural armor)
Hit Points 615 (30d20+270)
Speed 60 ft., fly 60 ft., swim 60 ft.
Ability Scores STR 29 (+9), DEX 10 (+0), CON 28 (+9), INT 13 (+1), WIS 14 (+2), CHA 13 (+1)

Saving Throws INT +9, WIS +10, CHA +9
Skills Religion +9
Damage Resistances fire (due to Morphic Stone); bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from non-legendary attacks
Damage Immunities bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Senses passive Perception 12
Languages Abyssal
Challenge 28 (120,000 XP)

Amphibious. Ma Yuan can breathe water and air.

Frightful Presence. Each creature of Ma Yuan’s choice that is within 120 feet of him and aware of him must succeed on a DC 22 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to Ma Yuan’s Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours.

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Ma Yuan fails a saving throw, he can choose to succeed instead.

Magic Resistance. Ma Yuan has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Magical Weapons. Ma Yuan’s weapon attacks are magical.

Siege Monster. Ma Yuan deals double damage to objects and structures.

Actions

Multiattack. Ma Yuan can use his Frightful Presence. He then makes up to five attacks: one with his bite and four with his claws. He can make a Morphic Stone attack in place of one or two claw attacks, depending on whether the Morphic Stone takes the form of a one-handed weapon or a two-handed weapon.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 48 (6d12+9) piercing damage. If the target is a Large or smaller creature, it is grappled (escape DC 22). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and Ma Yuan can’t bite another target.

Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 22 (3d8+9) slashing damage.

Morphic Stone. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 37 (8d6+9) slashing damage plus 14 (4d6) cold damage. As an action, Ma Yuan can transform the Morphic Stone into any melee weapon, magical or otherwise, that he wants to wield. Quadruple the weapon’s damage dice since Ma Yuan is Gargantuan. The preceding attack and damage values reflect Ma Yuan using a Gargantuan greatsword frost brand.

Legendary Actions

Ma Yuan can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary option can be used at time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Ma Yuan regains spent legendary actions at the start of his turn.

Change Morphic Stone. Ma Yuan can change the Morphic Stone into a different melee weapon and then attack with that weapon.

Move. Ma Yuan moves up to half his speed.

Swallow (Costs 2 Actions). Ma Yuan makes one bite attack against a Large or smaller creature it is grappling. If the attack hits, the target takes the bite’s damage, the target is swallowed, and the grapple ends. While swallowed, the creature is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside Ma Yuan, and it takes 49 (14d6) acid damage at the start of each of Ma Yuan’s turns.

If Ma Yuan takes 60 damage or more on a single turn from a creature inside it, Ma Yuan must succeed on a DC 20 Constitution saving throw at the end of that turn or regurgitate all swallowed creatures, which fall prone in a space within 10 feet of Ma Yuan. If Ma Yuan dies, a swallowed creature is no longer restrained by it and can escape from the corpse by using 30 feet of movement, exiting prone.

Tags: 5E D&D, Deities & Demigods, monsters, TFCH

Today, our journey through the AD&D Deities & Demigods looking for material for use with 5E D&D continues with our first steps into the Chinese Mythos.

Direct quotes all come from Deities & Demigods.

Canon of Changes
Wondrous item, legendary (requires attunement)

“This is a book of the gods that deals with redistribution of matter and motion.” By reading the canon of changes, you can create objects. “It takes 72 hours of constant reading to learn the words for one given thing, and after uttering them it takes another 72 hours for another creation of even the same thing to take place.” It requires enormous stamina to read the canon of changes. After 8 hours of reading, if you’re mortal, you must must make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw. For every additional 8 hours of reading, you must make another Constitution saving throw, and the DC increases by +2 each time. Each failed saving throw imposes one level of exhaustion. If you successfully complete the 72 hour regimen of study, you can create one object of up to 25,000 gp value that isn’t a magic item. The object can be no more than 300 feet in any dimension, and it appears in an unoccupied space you can see on the ground.

Dancing Sword of Lightning
Weapon (any sword), legendary (requires attunement)

You can use a bonus action to toss this magic sword into the air and speak the command word. When you do so, the sword begins to hover, flies up to 30 feet, and attacks one creature of your choice within 5 feet of it. The sword uses your attack roll and ability score modifier to damage rolls. While the sword hovers, you can use a bonus action to cause it to fly up to 30 feet to another spot within 30 feet of you. As part of the same bonus action, you can cause the sword to attack one creature within 5 feet of it. Instead of attacking, up to four times per day, you can use a bonus action to cause the sword to shoot a lightning bolt (as the spell). The stroke of lightning is 100 feet long and 5 feet wide. Each creature in the line must make a DC 19 Dexterity saving throw. A creature takes 8d6 lightning damage on a failed save or half as much damage on a successful one.

After the hovering sword attacks and/or fires lightning for the fourth time, it flies up to 30 feet and tries to return to your hand. If you have no hand free, it falls to the ground at your feet. If the sword has no unobstructed path to you, it moves as close to you as it can and then falls to the ground. It also ceases to hover if you grasp it or move more than 30 feet away from it.

Fire Gem
Wondrous item, legendary (requires attunement)

This “extremely rare and magical hand-sized” gemstone shoots flame upon command as a ranged weapon attack that uses your Dexterity score modifier to modify your attack roll. On a hit, the target takes 6d10 fire damage. A fire gem has a range of 40/160 feet, and it can be used once per turn. A fire gem has 2d6 charges when found. A fire gem becomes worthless glass when it expends its last charge.

Giant Black Pearl
Wondrous item, legendary

“This 3 foot sphere negates all wind and earth turbulence in a one mile radius. It does this of its own accord and cannot be controlled to make it stop.” Spells or magical effects that manipulate the wind or earth to cause damage to creatures or objects do not function. Spells or magical effects that would manipulate air, the wind, weather, or the earth to cause hostile conditions also do not function.

Iron Wand
Wondrous item, legendary (requires attunement)

When held, invisible creatures and objects become visible as long as the creature or object remains within 30 feet of you. This wand has 7 charges. It regains 1d6+1 charges daily at dawn. If you expand the wand’s last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the wand crumbles into rust and is destroyed. The wand has these other functions:

* Climbing Pole. You can use an action and expend 1 charge to cause the iron wand to “grow to a length of 100” feet. The wand becomes “roughened for easy climbing” (DC 10).The wand has AC 20 and 20 hit points. It regains 1 hit point every 5 minutes as long as it has at least 1 charge. If reduced to 0 hit points, the wand expends a charge and returns to normal size. If it has no charges left, it is destroyed. Otherwise, another action and 1 more charge causes the wand to return to its original size.

* Strike. The iron wand can be wielded as a magical club that grants a +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. When you hit with a melee attack using it, you can expend up to 3 charges. For each charge you expend, the target takes an extra 1d6 force damage.

* Superior Invisibility. You can use an action to expend 1 charge to turn a creature invisible. The creature remains invisible for up to 1 minute or until its concentration is broken, whichever happens first.

Jade Scepter of Defending
Wondrous item, legendary (requires attunement)

When you hold the jade scepter of defending and take the Dodge action, you gain a +3 bonus to AC and resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.

Wind Fire Wheel
Wondrous item, legendary (requires attunement)

The wind fire wheel is a 1-foot diameter circular fan. It has 50 charges. It regains 4d6+2 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 20, the wheel regains 1d12+1 charges. While holding the wheel, you can use an action to expend some of its charges to cast one of the following spells (spell save DC 19): conjure elemental (air or fire only, 7 charges); control weather (8 charges); fireball (12d6, 7 charges); flaming sphere (2 charges); fly (3 charges); gust of wind (2 charges); wall of fire (4 charges); wind walk (6 charges); or wind wall (3 charges).

Tags: 5E D&D, Deities & Demigods, magic items

Event Horizon arrived yesterday. By John Reyst and Johua De Santo, this 59-page introductory adventure for White Star takes that game system into the realm of space horror, a genre that I’ve dug since seeing Alien in the theater way back in 1979.

I read the adventure last night. It hits many of the high points of space horror, and presents some really interesting gaming possibilities related to sanity (Sanity Events) and becoming unmoored in space-time (Time Dilation). Sanity Events come into two sizes: Minor and Major. The precise descriptions of Sanity Events are largely left up the GM. The module offers some suggestions to get the imagination working.

In game terms, Sanity Events cause a reduction of Wisdom. If Wisdom gets too low, the affected character becomes a dangerously unstable NPC. Time Dilation events unstick one or more characters from their present time and/or location. For example, a character may “flashback” to an earlier scene in the adventure or “jump” forward in time to experience something that might happen. Like with Sanity Events, examples and advice about Time Dilation effects appear throughout the module.

Without going into too much more detail about the adventure itself, it’s noteworthy that the scenario starts with new characters waking up from cryosleep after Bad Things have happened near a black hole. Event Horizon is a race against time that draws on elements from Alien, Pandorum, and the movie Event Horizon, among others. The characters must beat the clock, repairing their ship before it gets either sucked into a black hole or destroyed by alien invaders.

At first glance, Event Horizon is an attractive book. The cover and interior artwork is well-done, except for the pictures of the aliens, which still aren’t horrible. My aged eyes appreciate the single-column layout without obscuring background art or funky colors. I’d have used a different font for the headers, however; the header font in the book tricked my eyes into misreading a few words.

Similarly, while the ship’s maps are well done, the nebula background behind the maps is pretty but unnecessary, and the maps perhaps could been a bit larger. I found myself squinting at them, especially on the lower and middle deck maps where numbers appear in black over dark grey shading. In the main body of the adventure, italics are used to denote descriptive, read-aloud text, and these sections tend to blend into the main text. Boxed text or different spacing would have helped.

Most distracting, however, are the tables. Their layout is quirky, and some of the time text is missing. Table 5, for example, which uses 1d6, has results for 1, “3 thru 5”, and 6. Nothing for the number 2. (See the pic to right.) These details don’t ruin the look of Event Horizon, but they do distract from it as well as slightly muck up the coherence of the text.

All in all, however, I like Event Horizon, and I want to give it a run. I’d probably use Stars Without Number rather than White Star, since I prefer to form to the latter for sci-fi/space gaming, and that’s another selling point in favor of Event Horizon. It’s for White Star, but it’s still generic enough that Event Horizon would work well with just about old-school game.

Kudos to the d20pfsrd Publishing team!

And now, as promised, the twin heroes Hunapu and Xbalanque converted the AD&D Deities & Demigods for use with 5E D&D.

Hunapu and Xbalanque were conceived when their mother Xquic, daughter of one of the lords of Xibalba, the rulers of the land of the dead, spoke with the severed head Hun, Xquic’s dead husband. The skull spat in Xquic’s hand, and the twins were conceived in her womb. Hunapu and Xbalanque are great adventurers and resolute foes of demons and the undead. Both men love games, especially competitive sports.

Hunapu & Xbalanque
Medium humanoid (human), lawful good

Armor Class 14 (20 with barkskin)
Hit Points 153 (18d8+72)
Speed 30 ft.
Ability Scores STR 22 (+6), DEX 18 (+4), CON 18 (+4), INT 16 (+3), WIS 12 (+1), CHA 18 (+4)

Saving Throws Strength +10, Dexterity +8, Intelligence +7, Wisdom +5
Skills Athletics +10, Investigation +11, Insight +9, Medicine +9, Perception +9, Survival +9
Damage Resistances cold, fire
Senses passive Perception 19
Languages Abyssal, Common, Infernal, Sylvan
Challenge 11 (7,200 XP)

Clever Minds. The twins make Intelligence and Wisdom saving throws with advantage. Their proficiency bonus for Intelligence and Wisdom skills is doubled.

Favored Enemies. The twins have advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks to track fiends and undead. The twins also have advantage of Intelligence checks to recall information about fiends and undead.

Innate Spellcasting. Hunapu’s and Xbalanque’s innate spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 16). They can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:

1/day each: barkskin, call lightning, divination, freedom of movement, plant growth, spider climb

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If either of the twins fails a saving throw, he can choose to succeed instead.

Magical Weapons. Hunapu’s and Xbalanque’s weapon attacks are magical.

Spellcasting. Hunapu and Xbalanque are 10th-level spellcasters. Their spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 15, +7 to hit with spell attacks). They prepare spells from the druid and wizard spell lists, gaining the latter without need of a spellbook. Neither twin can prepare 5th-level wizard spells, but either may use a 5th-level slot to cast a lower level wizard spell. They have the following spells prepared:

Hunapu

Cantrips (at will): druidcraft, fire bolt, message, produce flame
1st level (4 slots): charm person, cure wounds, disguise self, jump
2nd level (3 slots): darkvision, pass without trace, phantasmal force
3rd level (3 slots): conjure animals, dispel magic, slow
4th level (3 slots): grasping vine, polymorph
5th level (2 slots): tree stride

Xbalanque

Cantrips (at will): guidance, message, prestidigitation, shocking grasp
1st level (4 slots): burning hands, cure wounds, grease, longstrider
2nd level (3 slots): blur, darkvision, spike growth
3rd level (3 slots): counterspell, haste, speak with plants
4th level (3 slots): conjure woodland beings, polymorph
5th level (2 slots): wall of stone

Wild Shape (2/Day). As a bonus action, a twin can magically assume the shape of a beast that has a challenge rating of 1 or lower that the twin has seen before. The twin can stay in a beast shape for 5 hours. He then reverts to his normal form unless he expends another use of this feature. He can revert to your normal form earlier by using a bonus action on your turn. He automatically reverts if he falls unconscious, drops to 0 hit points, or dies. While in beast form, the twins attacks count as magical for the purposes of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.

Actions

Multiattack. A twin makes three hand axe attacks, or one ranged weapon attack with a blowgun.

Hand Axe. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (1d6+6) slashing damage.

Blowgun. Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, ranged 150/600 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d4+4) piercing damage plus 21 (6d6) poison damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned for 1 minute. A target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

Reactions

Foe Slayer. When a fiend or undead creature within 5 feet of a twin hits or misses a twin with an attack, either twin can use his reaction to attack that creature immediately after its attack, provided the twin can see the creature.

Legendary Actions

Both Hunapu and Xbalanque can take 3 legendary actions each, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary option can be used at time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The twins regain spent legendary actions at the start of their respective turns.

Detect. The twin makes a Wisdom (Perception) check or a Wisdom (Insight) check.

Move. The twin moves up to half his speed without provoking opportunity attacks.

Tackle. The twin makes a Strength (Athletics) check against an adjacent creature contested by the creature’s Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. If the twin wins the contest, he either knocks the target prone or pushes it 5 feet away from him. In either case, the target takes 8 (1d4+6) bludgeoning damage.

Tags: 5E D&D, Deities & Demigods, horror, NPCs, reviews

It’s been more than a month since I wrote anything that converts content from the AD&D Deities & Demigods for use with 5E D&D. (If you missed those other posts, you can check them out here.) Since I left off with the Celtic Mythos, it’s time to move across the Atlantic and into ancient Mexico for a look at the Central American Mythos.

When we start our look, we find eleven deities and two heroes. Six of those deities are evil, which makes sense given the mind-boggling lust for blood that was part of Aztec life. Of the five remaining deities, two of them are good-aligned. Also, there’s a dearth of material for conversion. I’m not converting deities into 5E versions. I am willing to give it a go with the two heroes, the twins Hunapu and Xbalanque, but I’m going to save them for a later post. So, that leaves me for this post with the last paragraph of the introduction to the Central American Mythos, that explains why “[f]irst level clerics must choose a compass direction for their own (east, west, north or south)”.

Facing the Sacred Direction

A 1st-level cleric that serves a deity of the Central American Mythos must choose a compass direction (east, west, north, or south). Once this choice is made, it cannot be changed. The cleric prays and meditates facing his sacred direction. Failure do so means the cleric regains no spells after resting. Each day, when the cleric starts off to adventure, he must travel at least four steps in his sacred direction before moving in any other direction. Failure to abide by this requirement incurs the deity’s displeasure. At some time during the day, the cleric is sure to experience bad luck (roll with disadvantage on any single attack roll, saving throw, skill check, or ability check of the GM’s choosing). Furthermore, the cleric’s sacred direction dictates the color of his vestments: red for east, yellow for south, black for west, and white for north. These vestments must be worn in plain sight, or else the cleric either suffers disadvantage with spell attack rolls or else his target’s gain advantage on their saving throws against the cleric’s spells until a long rest is spent that includes proper supplications and abasements.

In exchange for these restrictions, the cleric enjoys these benefits when casting a spell while facing his sacred direction:

* The cleric makes spell attack rolls with advantage.
* The cleric’s targets make saving throws against the cleric’s spells with disadvantage.

In situations where the cleric’s facing may not be immediately obvious, simply roll 1d4: 1 equals east, 2 equals west, 3 equals north, and 4 equals south.

******

In Spes Magna news, I’ve ordered the second proof copy of the print-on-demand version of The Four Color Hack. I should have the book in my hands in about a week. If it looks good, the POD version will go on-sale as quickly as possible.

I’ve also released Map Collection II, which presents thirteen hand-drawn maps, including two decades-old campaign maps, one for a historical-fantasy world and the other for a post-apocalyptic world. There are also eleven other maps, including isometric dungeon maps. Each map’s minimalist style maximizes your ability to customize the dungeons. Print a page, and add your own key and encounters for your favorite game. These maps aren’t fancy, but at a about dime each, they’re a bargain. Also, they’re all released under the terms of the AttributionShareAlike 2.0 Generic license.

Tags: 5E D&D, Deities & Demigods, Spes Magna Products, TFCH

As promised, here’s part two of my trip through the Celtic Mythos from the AD&D Deities & Demigods. Today, I bring you the Wild Hunt converted to D&D 5E.

Called by Evil. “The Wild Hunt exists in all lands where Druids and their deities dwell. It is a physical manifestation of ‘life force’ that always take on the same form. The Hunt is made up of one huge black-skinned man with antlers growing from his head and his pack of hounds.” The Wild Hunt “appears whenever there is evil in the land”, always arriving after sundown. The Wild Hunt “begins ten miles from the source of evil that ‘summons’ it”, and it races toward the source of that evil.

Call of the Hunt. The Wild Hunt confines itself to a 10-mile radius around the initial location of its prey, around the evil which summoned it. As the Wild Hunt races, the Master’s horn and the hounds’ baying “can be heard for miles in the night.” Those who end up too close to the Wild Hunt, whether by accident or design, may fall under the Hunt’s spell, joining it as either predator or prey.

One More Chase.. Neither the Master nor the hounds can die for long. If slain, the Master and the hounds “disappear in the darkness and appear somewhere else the next night, proving that the force that creates the Hunt is eternal.”

Master of the Hunt
Large fey, neutral

“The Master has jet black skin and glowing green eyes. His head is crowned by a set of stag antlers, and he wears a suit of black leather. The Master never speaks.”

Armor Class 20 (leather armor, natural armor)
Hit Points 142 (15d10+60)
Speed 45 ft.
Ability Scores STR 23 (+6), DEX 18 (+4), CON 19 (+4), INT 18 (+4), WIS 19 (+4), CHA 18 (+4)

Saving Throws DEX +9, STR +11
Skills Athletics +11, Perception +9, Survival +9
Senses passive Perception 14
Languages Sylvan (doesn’t speak)
Challenge 16 (15,000 XP)

Legendary Resistance. If the Master fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.

Magic Resistance. The Master has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Master Hunter. The Master has advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks to track a target. It can also move through nonmagical difficult terrain with no extra movement cost. The Master can pass through nonmagical plants without being slowed by them and without taking damage from them if they have thorns, spines or a similar hazard.

Skillful Evasion. Opportunity attacks against the Master are made with disadvantage.

Spellcasting. The Master is a 15th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 17, +9 to hit with spell attacks). Its verbal components consist of growls, hoots, and other animal noises. The Master knows the following ranger spells:

1st level (4 slots): ensnaring strike, hunter’s mark, jump
2nd level (3 slots): darkvision, find traps
3rd level (3 slots): protection from energy, water walk
4th level (2 slots): freedom of movement, locate creature

Trackless. The Master can use the Hide action as a bonus action on its turn. It cannot be tracked by nonmagical means unless it chooses to leave a trail. In a natural terrain, the Master gains a +10 bonus to Dexterity (Stealth) checks as long as it remains motionless and takes no actions.

Actions

Multiattack. The Master can attack twice on its turn with its spear.

Spear. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +14 to hit, reach 5 ft. and range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (1d8+9) piercing damage, or 14 (1d10+9) piercing damage if used with two hands to make a melee attack. If the creature hit by the Master with its spear is below it’s maximum hit points, the creature takes an extra 5 (1d10) piercing damage. The Master fights with a +3 spear. If thrown, the Master’s spear flies back to its hand immediately after the attack.

Hunter’s Awareness. The Master becomes supernaturally aware of the region around it. It can sense the types of creatures within 1 mile of it. This ability does reveal the creatures’ location or number.

Whirlwind Attack. The Master can make a melee attack against any number of creatures within 5 feet of it, making a separate attack roll for each target.

Reactions

Uncanny Dodge. When an attacker that the Master can see hits the Master with an attack, the Master can use its reaction to halve that attack’s damage against it.

Legendary Actions