Happiness is a BAKEMONO-SHO!

BAKEMONO-SHO (#27/28, #27/365) [OOTP IV]

SKILL: 6

STAMINA: 6

ATTACKS: 1

WEAPON: Shortsword, Spear, or Shortbow

ARMOUR: Leather Hauberk and Small Shield

DAMAGE MODIFIER: None

HABITAT: Dungeons, Ruins, Forests, Marshes, Hills

NUMBER ENCOUNTERED: 1-6 or 3-18

TYPE: Humanoid

REACTION: Unfriendly-Hostile

INTELLIGENCE: Average

From the distant hermit kingdom of Hachiman, in the south-eastern corner of the Dark Continent of Khul, are to be found many strange and horrible creatures known from few other places across Titan. One such example are the BAKEMONO-SHO, thought to be an obscure variant of the more ubiquitous Goblin, and also related to the Orc-like Shikome. They are short ugly humanoid creatures, with warty orange-brown skin, and typically clad in leather armour while brandishing crude weapons such as shortswords, spears and shortbows.

For every six Bakemono-Sho that are encountered, one will be a more experienced individual with SKILL 7 STAMINA 8. They are known from a variety of regions in Hachiman, including the Forest of Shadows and the Mizokumo Fens, as well as hilly uplands and dark dungeons. While the Bakemono-Sho may aggregate in small hamlets of three to eighteen individuals, they are more likely to be found in the service of an evil lord, such as Ikiru, the Master of Shadows and lord of Onikaru, the Pit of Demons. 

Although not as powerful as the Shikome, the Bakemono-Sho are cunning and devious, and equally capable of setting traps and snares or infiltrating human settlements using stealth and subterfuge. Ultimately though, they are cowardly creatures at heart, and a savage show of might will usually cower them into submission or send them running to the hills, depending on whatever the Bakemono-Sho consider their best hopes of survival to be!

GODS OF TITAN reviewed!

 

This review of Gods of Titan by Darcy on DrivethruRPG is worth reading:

"This is an incredible world-building lore-book.

You get a long list of gods, each with their own individual powers, holy colours and symbols, and descriptions of their worshippers and cults.

You get a clear vision of the Macrocosmos, with its varied planes of existence, from the elemental to ethereal, from Celestial to demonic.

You are given a calendar of years, months, days and hours, each associated with a specific god, a great cycle of time. And there's constellations associated with specific gods.

It is this astrological information that makes 'Gods of Titan' so interesting. Not only can constellations affect the starting traits and abilities of Heroes, but can affect gameplay, boosting enemies or Heroes on different days. Further, astronomical objects and events can also effect gameplay, from eclipses and solar flares to comets passing and meteorites crashing. You are given rules and effects (and the option to mine a meteorite for star-metal or fight whatever weird aliens rode it to earth) that make the world feel fully lived in, can create immersion and throw a confident Hero off balance, just as astronomical objects and events do in the real world. I've never seen anything like it in another RPG lore-book (admittedly, I'm not an expert).

An incredibly detailed lore-book, 'Gods of Titan' is deep, but also straightforward. It builds on thirty-odd years of development of Advanced Fighting Fantasy lore, without complicating it.

Worth the AUD$23 I paid."

Thanks Darcy!

You can get your copy of Gods of Titan as a PDF, softcover, or hardback POD book, here: 

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/550284/gods-of-titan 

Again with more random plants I have encountered from across the Titan-o-sphere...

GRIPWEED (#24/28, #24/365) [TTHA]

Appearance: This is a variety of grape whose small spherical fruits are a pale red in colour, and whose vines grow in thorny thickets with ragged-edged leaves.

Distribution: Plains and hills across the Old World.

Effects: The grapes of the Gripweed can be used to make Gripweed Wine. When drunk, this powerful alcoholic beverage is refreshing, and will restore 2 STAMINA points, but it also has unpredictable side-effects on the imbiber; roll a die to see what:

Roll Effects

1 Happy and light-headed

2-4 Slur speech and lose co-ordination; -2 SKILL for 30 minutes

5-6 Become violent and attack nearest person!

Cost: City 3gp, Town 6gp, Village 6gp (per flask)

Availability: Common

MILLWEED (#25/28, #25/365) [TTHA]

Appearance: This is a type of semi-aquatic plant with long creeper-like yellow stems and small round green leaves.

Distribution: Marshes and on the shores of rivers and lakes across the Old World.

Effects: A bunch of Millweed can be used to make a healing poultice that can be applied to a wound during first aid (see Advanced Fighting Fantasy, p. 65), and will allow a healer to deduct two from the dice roll when testing their Healing Special Skill.

Cost: City 5sp, Town 4sp, Village 3sp (per poultice)

Availability: Common

Further Notes: Millweed takes its name for its habit of fouling the wheels of water-mills if its growth is not checked and cut back regularly.

 

MUSTIK (#26/28, #26/365) [TTHA]  

Appearance: This is a thin-stemmed herb with ragged green leaves and clusters of lobed mauve flowers.

Distribution: Plains, hills and wildernesses across the Old World

Effects: Mustik is a powerful herb that can be ground down to create a vial or thumb-sized container of ointment. A salve of pure Mustik can make one believe anything; inhaling its delicate fragrance makes one quite giddy and susceptible to suggestions, allowing a +4 bonus to any Con Special Skill rolls.

Cost: City 4gp, Town 6gp, Village 8gp (per vial of ointment)

Availability: Uncommon

GODS OF TITAN available in hardback!

Like, OMG, all your prayers are answered and you can finally get my eighth book GODS OF TITAN as a hardback, which should be its default state. 

Buy it here: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/550284/gods-of-titan 

Gadding about like a GADDON!

GADDON (#24/28, #24/365) [POT]

Warrior Knight 

SKILL: 7 9

STAMINA: 8 10 

ATTACKS: 1 

WEAPON: Sword, Spear or Long Bow 

ARMOUR: Plate Armour

DAMAGE MODIFIER: None 

HABITAT: Caves, Dungeons

NUMBER ENCOUNTERED: 1-6 or 6-36 

TYPE: Humanoid 

REACTION: Friendly-Neutral 

INTELLIGENCE: High

The Gaddon or Feelbrethren people are originally from south-west Khul. They migrated to the deep chasms (for no known reason, although some authorities claim religious persecution) and created their own culture. They began to give birth to blind babies soon after constructing their complex system of tunnels. Their other senses were greatly enhanced and they became masters of the dark. The Gaddon Knights – the Sensewarriors – are supreme fighters in the dark. They are rarely to be seen in the Toplands (as they call Khul) since the time of Tancred the Magnificent.

From Treatise on the Kingdoms of South-west Khul by Ignatius Pommfritte.

One race of humans has gone further than most in adapting to an inhospitable corner of Khul and making it their own. The GADDON people of south-western Khul have left the lands above and gone underground, where they can be found dwelling in the subterranean Dark Chasms that tunnel beneath the Kingdom of Gorak. Here they have evolved numerous adaptations to the cave systems they now call home. Despite their blank sightless eyes, the Gaddon have excellent and powerful senses of hearing, smell, touch and taste. Their skin is pale, with slightly pointed ears and long dark hair, which is usually styled into mane- like mohawks, beards and moustaches for the men.

All Gaddon are trained in the skill of Sensefight, which is the ability to fight blind, or in complete darkness, with no combat penalties. This skill is sometimes taught to worthy heroes from the Toplands, and to learn it requires the use of a Dark Helm and the spell of Darksight. For battle, Gaddon warriors arm themselves with swords, spears and long bows, and wear plate armour, though those on missions to the Toplands may wear more typical mercenary garb. They also ride the horned Koyunlu into battle and harness them to carts and war-machines. Gaddon will usually be encountered in patrols of one to six warriors, and if five or six are present then one will be a Gaddon Knight who leads them, with combats scores as given above.

Normal Gaddon are SKILL 6 STAMINA 6 and armed with a dagger but no armour. They wear leather clothes made from the hides of Koyunlu and other underground beasts. These Feelbrethren can be found dwelling in small fortified cavern settlements of six to thirty-six inhabitants, of which around half will be male and female warriors. There are also great subterranean fortress-cities such as Caverndown and Govanthian, which house thousands of Gaddon in winding tunnels, fortified keeps and chambers cut from bare rock. These guard the fabled iron mines from which the Gaddon extract ore to forge their weapons, tools and armour. Smaller settlements exist; the infamous below-ground tavern known as the Dragon’s Breath Inn (which serves Scorchspark Brew), is run by Bosak the Gaddon and his daughter, while the Tower of Orghuz used to be a Feelbrethren stronghold until they abandoned it to fell creatures but not before trapping every single room.

The Gaddon have developed a unique writing system, known as Cyphers, which are a series of raised dots and sunken pits arrayed on a three-by-three grid. Different combinations of dots and pits signify different things, and even encompass a Spellbound number-counting system used by Gaddon sages and artificers. The Secret Cyphers of the Feelbrethren are only taught to the most trusted of Toplanders, by scholars such as the ancient Gaddon hermit known as the Old Man in the Iron Cave. These mystics also craft magic items such as Gaddon Rings (one use only: makes bearer invisible in combat and can win one battle without STAMINA loss) and Crystals of Darkness (bring darkness upon a torch-lit cavern to allow for a mass-escape but may require the sacrifice of zero to two warriors).

The term Sensewarrior encompasses all Gaddon fighters, whether rank-and-file warriors or the more elite Gaddon Knights. These knights are led in turn by mighty heroes known as Gaddon Battlemasters, and many are their tales of valour and bravery. The Sensewarriors were originally entrusted to guard the Malice-infected Orghuz and his Khuddam spawn for all eternity, when Kevin Knucklesap was the legendary Gaddon hero who fought alongside Tancred the Magnificent, the first king of Gorak, against the forces of his evil-tainted brother Orghuz.

The greatest Battlemaster is Alkis Fearslicer, originally of Govanthian who is sometimes found on missions in the Toplands, and leader of thirty Gaddon knights. His deputies are a black-bearded man called Saliac and the warrior-woman Chorista. Two such Battlemasters hail from Caverndown, the hero Gorodin and the lady Khazara, one of the greatest of the Sensewarriors. Also worth mentioning is Aspra Smoothcheek, a Toplander mercenary-girl raised by the Gaddon who now roams the caverns with a rogue band of Dwarfs.

We really need to talk about WANDS... (part three)

Dark Elf Wand (#21/28, #21/365) [EA:V2] (Enchanted Item)

This is a twisted black wand usually made of Hawthorn or Thornwood. It provides a +1 spellcasting bonus to the following types of magic: Arcane Magic, Chaos Magic, Black Sorcery, Conjuring, Demonology, and Necromancy. Such wands were typically used by Dark Elves, particularly when casting long and difficult ritual magic spells.

Unavailable to buy 

Dwarf Wand (#22/28, #22/365) [EA:V2] (Enchanted Item)

This is a small wooden wand bound with iron. When found it will contain one random spell which can be rolled for as follows:

Roll Spell Type

1   Sleep

2   Befuddle

3   Light

4   Darkness

5   Fear

6   Invisibility

This spell can be cast simply by pointing at a target and muttering the appropriate command word. In addition, when found, the Dwarf Wand will have 2-7 charges; each successful hit drains one charge and once these are used up the wand is useless unless recharged. While Dwarf Wizards and Sorcerers are rare, they do exist, and such wands are usually used by them or other magically-attenuated Dwarfs. In particular the Dwarfs who dwell in the Dark Chasms beneath the kingdom of Gorak in south-western Khul, are known to employ Dwarf Wands in the many battles against the evil creatures that infest this subterranean realm. 

Unavailable to buy

Release the NYMPH!

NYMPH (#19/28, #19/365) [TTHA]

Appearance: This is a plant-spirit that takes the form of a beautiful woman with light green skin, long dark green hair, and clothing that varies from diaphanous gowns to leafy vines.

Distribution: Forests and jungles across Titan.

Effects: A lock of Nymph’s hair can be used as a ward against carnivorous plants and the like; causing the vegetative monsters to suffer a -1 penalty to their Attack Strength when attacking the Nymph-hair lock-bearer.

Cost: City 5gp, Town 7gp, Village 9gp (per lock)

Availability: Rare

Further Notes: Nymphs are thought to be related to Dryads (see p. XX) and Wodewoses (see p, XX)

 

NYMPH (#20/28, #20/365) [OOTP IV]

SKILL: 7

STAMINA: 6

ATTACKS: 1

WEAPON: Unarmed (Human) or Dagger

ARMOUR: Light

DAMAGE MODIFIER: None

HABITAT: Forests, Jungles

NUMBER ENCOUNTERED: 1-3

TYPE: Humanoid/Plant

REACTION: Friendly

INTELLIGENCE: High 

The NYMPH is a nature-spirit that inhabits woodlands and jungles across Titan. In appearance they resemble a beautiful woman with light green skin, long dark green hair, and are wreathed in diaphanous gowns or leafy vines. Nymphs prefer not to attack, but instead to charm and distract their way out of danger, but, if forced to fight, will respond with strong fists or a wooden dagger they may have. Anyone fighting a Nymph in combat in a wooded area must reduce their Attack Strength by 1, as all the surronding vegatation comes to the Nymph’s aid, with roots tripping, branches swatting, pollen blowing and other types of plant-based nonsense interferring with the assailant’s combat actions. In addition, once per day, a Nymph may attempt to charm any one opponent, as per the Command spell; the victim is allowed to Test their Luck every day until the effects finallly wear off.

Friends of Satyrs, Nymphs are also known to associate with Wood Elves, and some say the Elven adventurer Ophelia Lapwing bears traces of Nymph-like ancestry. In historical times, during the reign of Goldhawk the Great in the Kingdom of Karazan, the Howling Tunnels were reputed to contain the Banshee-guarded statue of a petrified Nymph water-bearer who wore the powerful artefact known as the Wristlet of the Golden Hand.