Spes Magna Games

Thy heart be lifted up, and thou remember not the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage: And was thy leader in the great and terrible wilderness, wherein there was the serpent burning with his breath, and the scorpion and the dipsas, and no waters at all: who brought forth streams out of the hardest rock, And fed thee in the wilderness with manna which thy fathers knew not. And after he had afflicted and proved thee, at the last he had mercy on thee, Lest thou shouldst say in thy heart: My own might, and the strength of my own hand have achieved all these things for me. (Deuteronomy 8:14-16)

Fire Serpent
Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 4
Attacks: Bite
Special: Breath weapon, immune to fire, poison
Move: 12
Save: 15
HDE/XP: 6/400

Fire serpents, magical beasts that hunt during the heat of the day in certain deserts, appear much like normal snakes except for their brilliant scarlet coloration and the heat shimmer that surrounds them. An adult fire serpent may reach lengths between 12 and 16 feet. A fire serpent is uncomfortably hot to the touch, but not hot enough to cause immediate damage. When startled or threatened, this creature curls into striking position and exhales a gout of flame in a line 5 feet wide and 30 feet long. The blazing heat of this breath weapon inflcits 4d6 points of damage (a successful saving throw indicates half damage). A fire serpent’s bite packs a deadly poison. Those that succumb to this toxin burn from the inside.

Dipsas
Armor Class: 7 [12]
Hit Dice: 2
Attacks: Bite (1d6-1)
Special: Induce thirst, surprise foes
Move: 9/6 (burrowing)
Save: 17
HDE/XP: 3/60

Another rarer sort of magical snake found in certain deserts is the dipsas, also known as the thirst snake. These snakes lurk near oases, waiting buried in the sand or within the spaces between rocks. A dispas surprises its prey 4 in 6 times. Its bite forces a saving throw to avoid magically induced thirst. This thirst is so powerful that the victim will ignore even attacks for 1d6 rounds in order to slake the maddening hunger for water. Dipsas prefer to attack prey gripped by overwhelming thirst.

Tags: Catholic, monsters, Swords & Wizardry, WhiteBox Adventures

The hanged undead of Galgenwälder are not the only defense present in Galgenbaum. Aside from the town watch, mostly volunteers who patrol certain neighborhoods in small groups armed with clubs and whistles, there are the bailiffs, court officials with some martial training who are empowered to determine guilt and mete out minor punishments on the spot for lesser infractions of the law or offenses against the public order.

More serious threats to law and order might be met by a Henker backed up by a squad of guards and possibly some of the watch as well. A Henker is a religious official who answers only to Galgenbaum’s Mayor-Justices. Each Mayor-Justice has several Henkers under his or her command. Because of their devotion to the gods of law and due process, a Henker possesses certain magical abilities that help defeat and punish scofflaws. Whereas the guard is authorized to only mete out minor punishments, such as a fine or a mild beating, a Henker enforces the law with stiffer penalties, up to and including summary execution.

A Henker is recognizable by the distinctive uniform of black leather, white gloves, high-collared cloak, and hangman’s hood. He wears a noose around his neck as a badge of office. In combat, a Henker fights with a stout rope, one end of which is tied into a noose. He can strike with the rope, using it as a bludgeon or a whip.

He may also command the noose to ensnare a foe’s neck, after which he releases the rope, which snakes up into the air, jerking the foe several feet off the ground. A successful saving throw avoids this attack; otherwise, the foe takes 2d6 points of damage each round from strangulation. The rope can be severed as normal, and the Henker can command the rope to cease its attack.

Once per day each, a Henker may use Darkness 15-Foot Radius and Fear. A Henker is immune to sleep and hold magic.

Hit Dice: 3
Armor Class: 6 [13]
Attack (Damage): By weapon (1d6)
Move: 12
Save: 14
Alignment: Law
Challenge Level/XP: 5/240
Special: Darkness, fear, hangman’s noose, immune to hold and sleep

Tags: monsters, place of power, Swords & Wizardry

Lent is over, and the Easter season has begun. It’s been a trying Lent. My goal was to give up making lame excuses. Overall, I don’t think I did well. My three main projects — The Grimms Fairy Hack, The Four Color Hack, and Boogie Knights of the Round Table — have all languished, neglected and sad. It’s not that I’ve done nothing with them. Well, except for Boogie Knights. That one I’ve not even looked at. It’s also not that I’ve been a complete failure. In no particular order:

I have managed to post a few new monsters. I also took the posts I did converting the skaven to Swords & Wizardry White Box and formatted them into this simple PDF. As the school year winds down, so too do the number of sessions left with Ludi Fabularum, the story game club I facilitate where I teach. For our last meetings this month and next, the students are playtesting the core of The Grimms Fairy Hack. I’m using Adventure Most Fowl by Howard Beleiff and Michael Garcia for the scenario. So far, the sessions have worked pretty well, but we’ve not hit any really crunchy parts yet. Next session, the children almost certainly find the goblins.

Part of what has slowed progress has been bouts in illness that started with my wife, moved to me (including the discovery of a class of antibiotics to which I am allergic), then to my son Christopher. Now the dog is sick. Wife Trina and daughter Adrienne are taking Sammie to the vet as I type this, which means we’re splitting up Mass times this Eastern morning. I need to make the 0800 Mass since I usher and Christopher’s in the choir. Later today, we’ve got two sets of in-laws to visit with, one for lunch, the other for dinner.

Tomorrow, for the first time in years, I’m not going to work. It’s nice having Easter Monday off, but I also have a stack of school work to do, including grading and lesson plans. I’d also like to get some writing done. We’ll see. Tomorrow evening, I’m going to hit a very small, local gym for a fitness assessment, have my body mass index measured, et cetera. If Christopher’s up to it healthwise, he’s coming along. We both need to lose some weight and get into better shape, and this seems like the place to do it. I’d rather give my money to a local business than a chain like 24 Hour Fitness.

Well, that’s my life in a nutshell lately. Good times.

Tags: monsters

More monsters inspired by Domenico Neziti.

Mamac
Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 2
Attacks: Bite (1d6)
Special: See below
Move: 6/12 (when swimming)
Save: 17
HDE/XP: 3/60

Mamacs are humanoid creatures that dwell in murky coastal waters. They appear more fish than man, with webbed fingers and toes, a prominent doral fin, an eel-like tail, and a large head split by a wide mouth. Long barbels grown from the upper and lower jaws, and mamacs have large, lidless eyes. A fleshy esca grows from a mamac’s head. This organ glows with a soft, comforting light. A mamac’s barbels pick up vibrations in the air or water, making mamacs difficult to surprise (half normal chance) and enabling the monster to fight in melee even when it cannot see. A creature not already engaged in combat who sees the light of a mamac’s esca must make a saving throw are be lulled into a passive trance that lasts as long as the light is visible or until the victim suffers damage.

Kriti
Armor Class: 7 [12]
Hit Dice: 6
Attacks: Beak (1d6)
Special: See below
Move: 6/12 (when flying)
Save: 13
HDE/XP: 7/600

Kritis are magical avian humanoids. They are darkly feathered with heads like those of crows or ravens. Wings grow from their shoulders, as do human-like arms. Their legs resemble those of a great bird. A kriti can don a few items of clothing in order to create about itself the illusion that it is whatever humanoid creature the clothing is common to. They use these disguises to move about villages in order steal shiny objects and abduct particularly beautiful children. Kritis can Speak with Animals, and once per day each they can use Phantasmal Force and Confusion.

Fenjer
Armor Class: 7 [12]
Hit Dice: 3+3
Attacks: Touch (see below)
Special: See below
Move: 12
Save: 16
HDE/XP: 4/120

Fenjers are a type of ghost it seems, perhaps the spirits of those who died while lost. They appear much as they did in life, but are obviously not corporeal. Fenjers pass through most solid objects as if those objects weren’t there. They can only be harmed by magical weapons and by spells, except for those that cause sleep, charm, or inflict damage via cold. A fenjer’s touch is painfully cold. With each successful hit, its touch drains one point of Dexterity. If a victim is brought to 0 Dexterity, he freezes solid and dies. Dexterity points return after an hour, assuming death has not occurred. All fenjers carry a lantern. These lanterns cause night-time darkness in a 20-foot radius.

Tags: Domenico Neziti, monsters, Swords & Wizardry

Ledpauks are monstrous spiders that are difficult to immediately distinguish from the more common web-building giant spider. In combat, however, the differences between giant spiders and ledpauks become evident, revealing why the later are the more dangerous monster. Ledpauks are immune to fire, even magical fire such as a fireball. The bite of a ledpauk is poisonous. A victim must save versus poison or be killed. Ledpauks spin their sticky webs horizontally or vertically so as to entrap any creature which touches them. The web is as tough and clinging as a web spell. Any creature with 18 or greater strength con break free in 1 melee round, a 17 strength requires 2 melee rounds, etc. Webs spun by ledpauks are are invulnerable to fire. Worse still, these webs grow instantaneously upon contact with fire. If a torch, flaming oil, or a fireball contacts the webs, they row 2,4, or 8 times their size as they “feed” on the heat.

Ledpauk
Frequency: Rare
No. Appearing: 1-4
Armor Class: 4
Move: 3″*12″
Hit Dice: 4+4
% in Lair: 70%
Treasure Type: C
No. of Attacks: 1
Damage/Attack: 3-9
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defenses: Immune to fire
Magic Resistance: Standard
Intelligence: Average
Alignment: Any evil
Size: L
Psionic Ability: Nil
Attack/Defense Modes: Nil
Level/X.P. Value: V/320 + 5/hp

The link at the top of the next stat block takes you to another excellent illustration by Domenico Neziti.

Rojîyan
Armor Class: 3 [16]
Hit Dice: 4
Attacks: Claw (1d6)
Special: See below
Move: 15
Save: 15
HDE/XP: 6/400

Rojîyans are embodied spirits sent to punish sinners. Each rojîyan is attuned to a particular sort of sin, such as one of the seven deadly. A rojîyans can always detect such a sinner out to a range of 120 feet. These monsters are immune to all non-magical weapons. Against sinners to which they are attuned to punish, rojîyans drain 1 level per hit, and they take only one-half damage from the sinner’s attacks. Rojîyans are immune to sleep, charm, and hold effects.

Tags: AD&D, Domenico Neziti, monsters, Swords & Wizardry