Wik
First Post
So, here's my idea. Imagine a campaign where PCs can make bids for power, but in a very Call of Cthulu, "contact Elder Gods" sort of way. They can petition a deity in some sort of ritual, and gain bonuses. Or penalties, depending on where they fall on the power's scale.
What I'm thinking of is a character making a devil's bargain to get powers, and then slowly succumbing to the whims of that being.
Characters would start at, say, level one on the scale, and get a slight bonus. However, every extended rest, they have to make a related test (just like a disease, though Endurance wouldn't necessarily be the skill used). If they fail, they move down one. If they beat the DC by 5, they move up one on the "disease" scale. Imagine it looks something like this (for the record, this is an example - I'm making it up on the fly, and it's not intended to be "balanced" or anything):
Embrace of Cthulu
Level Four: Your skin takes on a slimy hue. All of your defences increase by 1.
Level Three: You gain the use of (Insert a thematic power here)
Level Two: You can breathe in water normally, and have a swim speed of 6.
Level One (Start): You are faintly drawn to the sea. You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls when standing in water.
Level Zero: Cthulu is unsure of your faith. You heal one hit point less whenever you spend a healing surge.
Negative One: Your connection to dark energies is taking its toll on your body. You lose one healing surge, and cannot get it back while at this stage.
Negative Two: You are beginning to revert into a sea creature. You gain the ability to breathe water, and have a swim speed of 6. However, your land speed is reduced by 2, and you suffer a -1 penalty on all attack rolls and skill checks while not in the water.
Negative Three: You turn in a deep one. Once you hit this stage, you are permanently a deep one, and no longer have to make checks on this table. Your character becomes an NPC in the campaign.
now, to make the thing even more interesting (and dark and horror-like), PCs can take certain appropriate actions to get bonuses on this check - making sacrifices to the sea, silencing enemies of the Cult of Cthulu, and so on.
What's the general opinion on this idea? I'm not really thinking of taking this in a cult of cthulu fashion, by the way... I was just using Cthulu because he's a well-known object in geekdom.
What I'm thinking of is a character making a devil's bargain to get powers, and then slowly succumbing to the whims of that being.
Characters would start at, say, level one on the scale, and get a slight bonus. However, every extended rest, they have to make a related test (just like a disease, though Endurance wouldn't necessarily be the skill used). If they fail, they move down one. If they beat the DC by 5, they move up one on the "disease" scale. Imagine it looks something like this (for the record, this is an example - I'm making it up on the fly, and it's not intended to be "balanced" or anything):
Embrace of Cthulu
Level Four: Your skin takes on a slimy hue. All of your defences increase by 1.
Level Three: You gain the use of (Insert a thematic power here)
Level Two: You can breathe in water normally, and have a swim speed of 6.
Level One (Start): You are faintly drawn to the sea. You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls when standing in water.
Level Zero: Cthulu is unsure of your faith. You heal one hit point less whenever you spend a healing surge.
Negative One: Your connection to dark energies is taking its toll on your body. You lose one healing surge, and cannot get it back while at this stage.
Negative Two: You are beginning to revert into a sea creature. You gain the ability to breathe water, and have a swim speed of 6. However, your land speed is reduced by 2, and you suffer a -1 penalty on all attack rolls and skill checks while not in the water.
Negative Three: You turn in a deep one. Once you hit this stage, you are permanently a deep one, and no longer have to make checks on this table. Your character becomes an NPC in the campaign.
now, to make the thing even more interesting (and dark and horror-like), PCs can take certain appropriate actions to get bonuses on this check - making sacrifices to the sea, silencing enemies of the Cult of Cthulu, and so on.
What's the general opinion on this idea? I'm not really thinking of taking this in a cult of cthulu fashion, by the way... I was just using Cthulu because he's a well-known object in geekdom.
