I left the title somewhat vague with "creations" for a reason. Some of these will be monsters, others will be NPCs. All will be created with the Monster Builder.
I am sharing these here for multiple reasons. None are more important than the others. Really, none are actually all that important at all. First, I rather enjoy playing with the Monster Builder and making new things. Next, I know I like it when people share their creations. I also know that some DMs don't have the time or desire to create their own stuff and like to be able to take what they use from others online. Finally, I would happily welcome any and all feedback on these creations. I don't think any of them are broken or really need it but maybe I missed something or someone else has ideas that could improve my work.
I will also include my own notes on the creature/character so you can use them in the same context, if you choose. These will just be my notes, however, so there will likely be incomplete sentences, unfinished thoughts or ideas, and references to other things. If you have any questions about any of that stuff, I'll answer them. I know most people won't care about it, though.
In any case, here they are. I will update this first post to add the new creations. I will also probably post to announce when I have done so.
The Slave Catchers
The campaign will begin with the PCs as slaves. They could have come to be slaves in any way, maybe even just recently. In any case, they are now locked up on a wagon with a bunch of other slaves, heading into the Great Ivory Plain toward Nibenay because someone thought they had found a clever shortcut. These 5 are slave catchers. They are the ones who would have caught the PCs, if they were only recently captured. There is one elf, one dwarf, and three humans (two of those are brothers). There is a skirmisher, a brute, a soldier, a lurker, and the elite controller leader. Together they make a decent encounter for 4th level PCs and a few odd workers could even be added into the fight to make it a little tougher. Since the campaign will be pretty much a sandbox, these may turn out to be allies and not enemies. One of the goals, however, was to make just the PCs taking them on right away a terrible idea. They'll either need to get some experience and equipment first, or find stronger allies. Either way, they'll have a chance to get to know each other a little before busting loose from the caravan and running off into the Ivory Triangle alone.
The slave catcher to have most recently joined the caravan. With his experience in group fighting, he has become a valuable member of the group. In combat, he points out weak spots to allies, not because he genuinely cares for them or their well being but because he doesn't want a mistake they have made to cost him his prize. He moves around quickly but not recklessly. He is capable of delivering solid blows but usually relies on others for the kill or capture.
He left his tribe to seek fortune (and profit) on his own. He felt that the tribe held him back and he could do better without having to take all the others into consideration. He started out doing standard mercenary work but eventually took to “acquiring” new slaves. He did that independently for a little while but later joined up with the caravan. He claims he did it for the job security and resources but in truth, he enjoys the company. After growing up among an elven tribe, it was difficult to live alone and fighting alone was often more dangerous than he liked.
The first of the slave catchers recruited, he was a childhood friend of one of the people in charge. Slow moving but strong, the others rely on Krov to take enemies down so they can be bound. When in combat, he gives his all, focusing on taking his enemies down to exclusion of all else -- even protecting himself. He refuses to rely on others in a fight but has no problem with them handling cleanup (binding slaves).
As a youth, was in a small all-dwarf gang. The others were as young as himself and it was never anything serious but they have stuck together ever since. As a young adult, was once caught while attempting to steal from the farm of a noble in Tyr. He was spared his life but forced to become a slave to the one he had wronged. He didn't stand for that long. One day he killed the head of the guards overseeing the slaves and escaped back into the city. There he got back with his gang and they all set out on the next caravan to find their fortunes in the south.
The Brothers
Ever since they were young, the two brothers had been bullies and thieves. They made their living by taking from others, often killing their marks. They drew the attention of templar in Tyr when they chose to live in the dwelling of a dwarf family they had killed (a father and his two sons) and were caught a friend of the family (the girlfriend of one of the sons). They left Tyr on the same caravan as the gang of dwarves and have been with them since.
Recruited along with his brother, Tanner. When he selects a target, he pursues it with a single-minded ferocity that some would deem insane. He will not stop until his his prey totally escapes him or he is commanded to by someone he respects (usually Tanner). He has been known to continue on until killing a target he was supposed to keep alive and will likely do so unless he is monitored.
While Dak is not a simpleton, he is not nearly as intelligent as Tanner. He craves excitement in his life. He sees himself as dedicated, most others think of him as insane. He is not particularly quick to anger but is dangerous if pushed too far.
Recruited along with his brother, Dak. In combat, he will focus on the enemy that Dak is currently pursuing whenever possible. He makes sure the enemy stays alive (if that's the goal) and calls Dak off if the target has had too much. If Dak has no enemies marked, he tries to flank any enemy that he can. Once an enemy is sufficiently weakened, he tries to bring them down so they can be captured.
He is very intelligent for someone who grew up living on the streets of Tyr. He is the brains behind pretty much everything he and Dak do. He is greedy and only continues to work with the dwarves because they pay well and Dak enjoys the lifestyle.
Recruited upon the founding of the slave trading caravan, tasked with leading the slave catchers. She uses her combat rope, with a hook on one side and a heavy weight on the other, to trouble her enemies greatly. She drag them toward herself as well as knock them flat on the ground. She leads the other slave catchers and instructs them to hold prisoners down as soon as they have been weakened enough to put up less of a fight. She then binds the prisoners so that they may be loaded into the slave wagons.
Little is known about her past (and she does nothing to change this) other than she had been a mercenary most of her life. She came highly recommended and willingly joined up for the steady (and easy) work.
Salt Zombies
As I stated above, the campaign is going to begin as the PCs (along with others) are just going into the Great Ivory Plain. Sure, I could allow them to just roleplay with each other as the caravan safely crosses. I could also have some difficulties arise and solved through a skill challenge...but this is Dark Sun. There are going to be zombies and people are going to die. If they're lucky, all the PCs will make it through. If they're stupid, the campaign will end here and I'll start over with a new batch of players and / or characters (oh, the joys of online play). I think salt zombies are cool but the Dark Sun Creature Catalog only gave us one. Sure, it's level 1 and that's good for this but I want more variety and I am not a fan of throwing in a sorts of nonsensical enemies just to round the encounter out. So I made me some salt zombies. Here you will see three minions (and, yes, I am aware that they are all pretty much the same but I wanted to be thorough), one brute that is sort of the freak of the bunch, and two (potentially) terrifying controllers. I welcome feedback and you may, of course, feel free to steal these as you want.
I was also considering creating a disease that anyone that came in contact with the salt zombies would have a small chance of getting. The disease would basically make them dehydrate, even after they left the salt flat, and if they died with it they would turn into a salt zombie. I was thinking that this would be a good hook to try to draw the characters back to the area to investigate the source of the salt zombie and maybe find a way to break the curse/cure the disease. That would be just one hook. Since I'm going to run the campaign very sandbox, I'll be dropping little hooks (and associated minor quests) all over the place. Any thoughts on that?
-----
Sometimes salt zombies are encountered that are no longer complete corpses. It is not uncommon to come across individual specimens that are missing one or both arms. Sometimes they are seen with only one leg or even with no legs at all. In some rare cases, there have even been reports of salt zombies persisting without a head. These startling anomalies only hint at the untold power of whatever strange and twisted magic animates these creatures.
It may be difficult to tell causes such damage to these incomplete examples of unlife. Normal decomposition can be ruled out because of the mummifying effect the salt flats have on corpses. Beyond that, little can be said with any certainty. Perhaps some were unlucky even after joining the hordes of the undead and were struck by large or plentiful debris during a bad windstorm out in the open on the Great Ivory Plain. Others may have suffered an attack from another creature in search of food and not intelligent enough to avoid such abominations. Maybe some are even the final survivors of battles with caravans crossing the flats and their missing parts now lie among the wreckage of wagons and drying corpses men, dwarves, even kank, all forgotten equally.
Whatever twisted curse creates salt zombies seems to select a few small number of individuals from among the herd to ensure the perpetuation of its dark and unknown purpose. These few radiate the evil reality of what it is to be one of their kind. In their presence, moisture is sucked from the air until skin dries and cracks. Those unlucky enough to fall to darkness near them rise again as mindless, eternally thirsty salt zombies.
When approached by more than one threatening creature, these salt zombies will often release a haze of corrupted, ultra fine, salt powder. This powder is incredibly corrosive and can damage nearly any substance, burning skin and ravaging open wounds.
An ancient few among the zombies that roam the Great Ivory Plan and the other salt flats of Athas seem determined to continue on until the final days of the world itself. They are terribly difficult to put down, often returning to their feet prepared to kill almost as soon as they fall. To make matters worse, they seem able to spread this awfully persistent state of unlife to others, calling them back into action just when desperate travelers thought themselves safe.
There exists a rare variety of salt zombie that has actually gorged itself on the salt of its home. They appear distended and their skin has a rough, pebbly texture because of the salt that fills nearly all of their body, having long ago ruptured and escaped the stomach of these hideous creatures that were once men.
There are some that would suggest that these particular zombies do not share a common origin with the others that are called 'salt zombie'. A popular theory for their creation are that they are the animated remains of someone who was driven made by thirst and desperation on a salt flat. The turned to drinking what water could be dug up there and eventually died from it. After their death it is thought that their body continued on, consuming salt in an effort to purge itself of the tainted water.
This variety does not seem to be interested in acquiring moisture for itself as the others do and do it is not fully understood what causes them to wander or attack living creatures that they encounter. Even through their undead existence, these monstrosities continue to consume salt. They will attempt to replace lost salt if they become damaged and are so stuffed full that, upon their destruction, salt burst out with some force.
I am sharing these here for multiple reasons. None are more important than the others. Really, none are actually all that important at all. First, I rather enjoy playing with the Monster Builder and making new things. Next, I know I like it when people share their creations. I also know that some DMs don't have the time or desire to create their own stuff and like to be able to take what they use from others online. Finally, I would happily welcome any and all feedback on these creations. I don't think any of them are broken or really need it but maybe I missed something or someone else has ideas that could improve my work.
I will also include my own notes on the creature/character so you can use them in the same context, if you choose. These will just be my notes, however, so there will likely be incomplete sentences, unfinished thoughts or ideas, and references to other things. If you have any questions about any of that stuff, I'll answer them. I know most people won't care about it, though.
In any case, here they are. I will update this first post to add the new creations. I will also probably post to announce when I have done so.
The Slave Catchers
The campaign will begin with the PCs as slaves. They could have come to be slaves in any way, maybe even just recently. In any case, they are now locked up on a wagon with a bunch of other slaves, heading into the Great Ivory Plain toward Nibenay because someone thought they had found a clever shortcut. These 5 are slave catchers. They are the ones who would have caught the PCs, if they were only recently captured. There is one elf, one dwarf, and three humans (two of those are brothers). There is a skirmisher, a brute, a soldier, a lurker, and the elite controller leader. Together they make a decent encounter for 4th level PCs and a few odd workers could even be added into the fight to make it a little tougher. Since the campaign will be pretty much a sandbox, these may turn out to be allies and not enemies. One of the goals, however, was to make just the PCs taking them on right away a terrible idea. They'll either need to get some experience and equipment first, or find stronger allies. Either way, they'll have a chance to get to know each other a little before busting loose from the caravan and running off into the Ivory Triangle alone.
The slave catcher to have most recently joined the caravan. With his experience in group fighting, he has become a valuable member of the group. In combat, he points out weak spots to allies, not because he genuinely cares for them or their well being but because he doesn't want a mistake they have made to cost him his prize. He moves around quickly but not recklessly. He is capable of delivering solid blows but usually relies on others for the kill or capture.
He left his tribe to seek fortune (and profit) on his own. He felt that the tribe held him back and he could do better without having to take all the others into consideration. He started out doing standard mercenary work but eventually took to “acquiring” new slaves. He did that independently for a little while but later joined up with the caravan. He claims he did it for the job security and resources but in truth, he enjoys the company. After growing up among an elven tribe, it was difficult to live alone and fighting alone was often more dangerous than he liked.
The first of the slave catchers recruited, he was a childhood friend of one of the people in charge. Slow moving but strong, the others rely on Krov to take enemies down so they can be bound. When in combat, he gives his all, focusing on taking his enemies down to exclusion of all else -- even protecting himself. He refuses to rely on others in a fight but has no problem with them handling cleanup (binding slaves).
As a youth, was in a small all-dwarf gang. The others were as young as himself and it was never anything serious but they have stuck together ever since. As a young adult, was once caught while attempting to steal from the farm of a noble in Tyr. He was spared his life but forced to become a slave to the one he had wronged. He didn't stand for that long. One day he killed the head of the guards overseeing the slaves and escaped back into the city. There he got back with his gang and they all set out on the next caravan to find their fortunes in the south.
The Brothers
Ever since they were young, the two brothers had been bullies and thieves. They made their living by taking from others, often killing their marks. They drew the attention of templar in Tyr when they chose to live in the dwelling of a dwarf family they had killed (a father and his two sons) and were caught a friend of the family (the girlfriend of one of the sons). They left Tyr on the same caravan as the gang of dwarves and have been with them since.
Recruited along with his brother, Tanner. When he selects a target, he pursues it with a single-minded ferocity that some would deem insane. He will not stop until his his prey totally escapes him or he is commanded to by someone he respects (usually Tanner). He has been known to continue on until killing a target he was supposed to keep alive and will likely do so unless he is monitored.
While Dak is not a simpleton, he is not nearly as intelligent as Tanner. He craves excitement in his life. He sees himself as dedicated, most others think of him as insane. He is not particularly quick to anger but is dangerous if pushed too far.
Recruited along with his brother, Dak. In combat, he will focus on the enemy that Dak is currently pursuing whenever possible. He makes sure the enemy stays alive (if that's the goal) and calls Dak off if the target has had too much. If Dak has no enemies marked, he tries to flank any enemy that he can. Once an enemy is sufficiently weakened, he tries to bring them down so they can be captured.
He is very intelligent for someone who grew up living on the streets of Tyr. He is the brains behind pretty much everything he and Dak do. He is greedy and only continues to work with the dwarves because they pay well and Dak enjoys the lifestyle.
Recruited upon the founding of the slave trading caravan, tasked with leading the slave catchers. She uses her combat rope, with a hook on one side and a heavy weight on the other, to trouble her enemies greatly. She drag them toward herself as well as knock them flat on the ground. She leads the other slave catchers and instructs them to hold prisoners down as soon as they have been weakened enough to put up less of a fight. She then binds the prisoners so that they may be loaded into the slave wagons.
Little is known about her past (and she does nothing to change this) other than she had been a mercenary most of her life. She came highly recommended and willingly joined up for the steady (and easy) work.
Salt Zombies
As I stated above, the campaign is going to begin as the PCs (along with others) are just going into the Great Ivory Plain. Sure, I could allow them to just roleplay with each other as the caravan safely crosses. I could also have some difficulties arise and solved through a skill challenge...but this is Dark Sun. There are going to be zombies and people are going to die. If they're lucky, all the PCs will make it through. If they're stupid, the campaign will end here and I'll start over with a new batch of players and / or characters (oh, the joys of online play). I think salt zombies are cool but the Dark Sun Creature Catalog only gave us one. Sure, it's level 1 and that's good for this but I want more variety and I am not a fan of throwing in a sorts of nonsensical enemies just to round the encounter out. So I made me some salt zombies. Here you will see three minions (and, yes, I am aware that they are all pretty much the same but I wanted to be thorough), one brute that is sort of the freak of the bunch, and two (potentially) terrifying controllers. I welcome feedback and you may, of course, feel free to steal these as you want.
I was also considering creating a disease that anyone that came in contact with the salt zombies would have a small chance of getting. The disease would basically make them dehydrate, even after they left the salt flat, and if they died with it they would turn into a salt zombie. I was thinking that this would be a good hook to try to draw the characters back to the area to investigate the source of the salt zombie and maybe find a way to break the curse/cure the disease. That would be just one hook. Since I'm going to run the campaign very sandbox, I'll be dropping little hooks (and associated minor quests) all over the place. Any thoughts on that?
-----
Sometimes salt zombies are encountered that are no longer complete corpses. It is not uncommon to come across individual specimens that are missing one or both arms. Sometimes they are seen with only one leg or even with no legs at all. In some rare cases, there have even been reports of salt zombies persisting without a head. These startling anomalies only hint at the untold power of whatever strange and twisted magic animates these creatures.
It may be difficult to tell causes such damage to these incomplete examples of unlife. Normal decomposition can be ruled out because of the mummifying effect the salt flats have on corpses. Beyond that, little can be said with any certainty. Perhaps some were unlucky even after joining the hordes of the undead and were struck by large or plentiful debris during a bad windstorm out in the open on the Great Ivory Plain. Others may have suffered an attack from another creature in search of food and not intelligent enough to avoid such abominations. Maybe some are even the final survivors of battles with caravans crossing the flats and their missing parts now lie among the wreckage of wagons and drying corpses men, dwarves, even kank, all forgotten equally.
Whatever twisted curse creates salt zombies seems to select a few small number of individuals from among the herd to ensure the perpetuation of its dark and unknown purpose. These few radiate the evil reality of what it is to be one of their kind. In their presence, moisture is sucked from the air until skin dries and cracks. Those unlucky enough to fall to darkness near them rise again as mindless, eternally thirsty salt zombies.
When approached by more than one threatening creature, these salt zombies will often release a haze of corrupted, ultra fine, salt powder. This powder is incredibly corrosive and can damage nearly any substance, burning skin and ravaging open wounds.
An ancient few among the zombies that roam the Great Ivory Plan and the other salt flats of Athas seem determined to continue on until the final days of the world itself. They are terribly difficult to put down, often returning to their feet prepared to kill almost as soon as they fall. To make matters worse, they seem able to spread this awfully persistent state of unlife to others, calling them back into action just when desperate travelers thought themselves safe.
There exists a rare variety of salt zombie that has actually gorged itself on the salt of its home. They appear distended and their skin has a rough, pebbly texture because of the salt that fills nearly all of their body, having long ago ruptured and escaped the stomach of these hideous creatures that were once men.
There are some that would suggest that these particular zombies do not share a common origin with the others that are called 'salt zombie'. A popular theory for their creation are that they are the animated remains of someone who was driven made by thirst and desperation on a salt flat. The turned to drinking what water could be dug up there and eventually died from it. After their death it is thought that their body continued on, consuming salt in an effort to purge itself of the tainted water.
This variety does not seem to be interested in acquiring moisture for itself as the others do and do it is not fully understood what causes them to wander or attack living creatures that they encounter. Even through their undead existence, these monstrosities continue to consume salt. They will attempt to replace lost salt if they become damaged and are so stuffed full that, upon their destruction, salt burst out with some force.
Last edited:
