Converting World of Greyhawk monsters

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BOZ

Creature Cataloguer
and freaks they are!

but you can't say that to their faces, because... they don't have any. ;)
 

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Filby

First Post
Re: The Eye and The Hand... I recall that their stats were also given in the very late 2E Greyhawk/Ravenloft/Planescape cross-over adventure, Die, Vecna, Die! (the best adventure title ever), if you desire a second reference source.
 

BOZ

Creature Cataloguer
i'm sure it would be... the butt of many jokes. ;)

and filby thanks, but i don't have that one. anyone else have it?
 

BOZ

Creature Cataloguer
got myself a copy of Die Vecna Die! ;)

OK, you ready? Here they come… (walking down the street, they get the funniest looks from everyone they meet…)

from Vecna Lives:

The Hand
CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any
FREQUENCY: Unique
ORGANIZATION: Solitary
ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any
INTELLIGENCE: Low (5-7)
TREASURE: Nil
ALIGNMENT: Lawful evil

NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: 0
MOVEMENT: 12
HIT DICE: 13
THAC0: 7
NO. OF ATTACKS: 3
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-8 (x2, weapon) + 7/1-10+7
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Strength drain
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil
SIZE: M (4'6")
MORALE: Champion
XP VALUE: 7,000

The Hand is the second of the cult of Vecna's two lieutenants, the other being the Eye. Like the Eye, the Hand is a created being, a human modified by powerful spells to become what it is today. Only one has ever been identified, and given the difficulty of creating the Hand, it is likely that only one exists.

The Hand is a squat, heavily muscled humanoid, almost dwarven in size and shape. As part of the transformation, the Hand no longer has a head. Instead, a giant hand sprouts from its neck. There are no indications of mouth or sensory organs, yet the Hand does not seem impaired for the lack of these. The Hand dresses In a pleated kilt, decorated with colorful swirls and jagged stripes. A thick leather girdle, festooned with daggers, is its only other garb. In public it wears a blue-green robe with a large hood. It grips an embossed leather mask to hide its "face."

Combat- The Hand was intended to fight, to be the muscle of the of the Cult of Vecna. It is well-suited to the task. The Hand has a 19 Strength (+3 to attack rolls and +7 to damage). It fights with weapons in its two normal hands and crushes with the third, strange appendage.

The Hand normally begins a battle by throwing daggers (1d4 +7 points of damage), two per turn. It carries 12 daggers on Its belt. Just before closing for a melee, it draws the two swords carried on its back. It can fight with both of these with no penalty. The third hand is used to seize and crush the opponent, causing 1d10 + 7 points of damage with a successful attack (and holding on to squeeze for the same damage each round after a successful attack).

It is by this third attack that the Hand feeds. Lacking a mouth, it finds nourishment by drawing the strength from other things, living and non-living. Gripped in its third hand, steel becomes brittle like glass until It finally crumbles into dust. Living creatures lose 1d6 points of Strength each round they are held. The Hand can maintain Its grip from round to round, both causing damage draining Strength. Held characters can break free by rolling a successful Strength check. If a character is drained to 0 Strength or less, he dies. Lost Strength is regained at the rate of one point per day,

Habitat/Society: The Hand was created, through spells, by the wizard-priests of Vecna. The process is incredibly complex and torturously painful – indeed, so much so, that it peels the essence of humanity away from its subject. What is left is a barely intelligent, bestial thing. Unable to speak, the Hand can only express its rages through mute gestures. Like the Eye, the Hand is marked by strange behaviors. Fawning submissiveness, gently stroking a friendly hand, suddenly becomes hysterical rage, as he blindly flings himself at walls. Even when calm, the Hand is never still, trembling and twitching uncontrollably.

Since it lacks mouth and ears, the priests communicate with the Hand via telepathy. Although it lacks sensory organs, the Hand is endowed with magical senses equal to or slightly better than a normal person's. The Hand is immune to darkness, blindness, deafness, and other attacks that would affect a normal creature’s sensory organs. A dispel magic renders it blind for one round.

Ecology: Among the cultists of Vecna, the Hand Is ranked after the high priests and the Eye. It is held in great fear by the cult's followers, since it carries out the pronouncernents of the high priests, but Its brute physical quality does not inspire the icy terror of a more sinister being like the Eye.



The Eye
CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any
FREQUENCY: Unique
ORGANIZATION: Solitary/cult
ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any
INTELLIGENCE: Exceptional
TREASURE: W
ALIGNMENT: Lawful evil

NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: 2
MOVEMENT: 12
HIT DICE: 12
THAC0: 9
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-10 (weapon)/gaze
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Gaze
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to surprise, - I to Initiative
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil

SIZE: M (5'-7' tall)
MORALE: Champion (15)
XP VALUE: 6,000

The Eye is one at the chief lieutenants of the Cult of Vecna. Although only one has ever been seen, it is impossible to be certain that there is only one of these creatures. The Eye is a creation of Vecna's and, thus, It is entirely possible that more than one exists.

The Eye stands seven feet tall. Once It was human, but to become the Eye it has been transformed. Its head has been replaced by a giant eyeball. Its body is slender and moves with a quick, light grace. The Eye normally dresses In long green robes, trimmed with red. Eyes, embroidered in golden thread, decorate the hems. In public, it covers its robes with a gray cloak, and its head is concealed by a deep hood,

Combat: The Eye's main purpose is not to fight, but to gain Information. It is not, however, without combat ability, The Eye normally fights with a two-handed sward. It also keeps two dirks hidden, one strapped, hilt down, to each arm In situations in which it cannot use the sword, it crosses its arms, then whips out the two daggers to fight two-handed. It is lightning quick (19 Dexterity) and astoundingly graceful.

The Eye has several powers derived from its transformation. The least of these is that it cannot be surprised, as long as it is awake. It gains a -1 bonus to all initiative from a limited form of clairvoyance.

It is the gaze power of the Eye that is most fearsome. The Eye no longer eats in the normal sense, but it feeds on the souls of others drawn In by its gaze. Each round, the Eye can use its gaze attack on one target. Unless previously said to be avoiding the Eye's gaze, the victim must roll a saving throw vs. death. Those who succeed suffer no ill effect that round; those who fail are claimed by the Eye. Their life force is drawn Into the Eye and held there. (This Is seen by others as a ghostly form being sucked into the Eye.) The victim's body falls inert. The Eye cannot consume Its metaphysical prey until the body is destroyed but once that Is done the trapped life-force is devoured and can never be recovered by any means short of divine power.

If the Eye is slain, those life forces it has trapped but not devoured instantly return to their proper bodies, The Eye can voluntarily release any undevoured life forces. As a side effect, the Eye gains access to all the memories of those it traps.

Habitat/Society: The Eye is a creation of the wizard-priests of the Cult of Vecna, possibly through the intercession of Vecna himself. The process of creating the Eye is unknown to all but the highest ranking members of the cult, but it Involves wish and other high-level spells. Because the process Is difficult, time-consuming, and dangerous, there is believed to be only one Eye at a time.

Whatever the process is, it strips the Eye of all humanity. The Eye feels no emotional bonds or noble virtues, and it displays several peculiar mannerisms. Limited precognition causes the Eye to finish the sentences of others before they have a chance to say them. The Eye surrounds Itself by mirrors and is fascinated by reflections. Sadistically cruel, the Eye purges Its own pain and frustrations on helpless victims.

According to the cult priests, the Eye's purpose is to be Vecna's senses on the Prime Material plane. The Eye has a limited precognition (as described in the combat section) that is constantly in effect. It can use clairvoyance, detect magic, and find traps at will. The Eye automatically detects all illusions.

The Eye's primary purpose is as a psychic tracker for the priests of Vecna. Once the Eye has seen an intelligent being – either directly or through scrying - it can sense that creature's aura over large distances. The range depends on the abilities of the player character. Those with no spellcasting ability can be detected only within a one-mile radius. Those with any spellcasting abilities are detectable at a radius in mules equal to their spell level. Thus a 12th level wizard (who is able to cast spells up to 6th level) is detectable within a six-mile radius.

The Eye's tracking ability is not infallible. Large concentrations of magical energy can shield a target's aura. Artifacts, stockpiles of magic items, or even areas with a high preponderance of spellcasters all have this effect. For example, simply entering the Guild of Wizardry is enough to block the Eye's tracking sense. In doubtful cases, the Eye must roll a successful saving throw vs. spell to retain the "scent."

The Eye is able to communicate telepathically with whomever it wishes.

Ecology: The Eye is only one part of the Cult It of Vecna. Because of Its peculiar properties and specialized creation, it is regarded with awe by the rank and file. It Is not a priest or part of that priesthood, but rather a tool they created. It is utterly loyal to the high priest of the cult and will take commands only from them.



“Die Vecna Die” had the following stats for this pair, but there is a lot of text from the module itself regarding them.

Hand Servitor: AC 0; MV 12; HD13; hp 104; THACO 7 (6 with longsword +1,5 with longsword +2); #AT 3; Dmg ld8+8/ld8+9/ldlO+7 (longsword +l/longsword +2/grasp); SA grasp, Strength drain; SZ M (4'6"tall); ML champion (16); Int low (7); AL CE; XP 8,000.

Special Abilities: Grasp —a successful attack by third hand allows the Hand Servitor to retain its hold, automatically doing ldl0+7 hit points/round in crushing damage, unless victim can break free with successful Bend Bars/Lift Gates roll. Each round the grasp does damage, it also automatically drains Id6 Strength points from victim, killing victim if Strength reaches 0; otherwise lost Strength returns at 1 point/day.

Eye Servitor: AC 2; MV 12; HD 12; hp 96; THACO 9 (7 with two-handed sword +2); #AT 1; Dmg ldlO+2 (two-handed sword +2); SA death gaze, cast clairvoyance, detect magic, and find traps at will; SD immune to surprise, -1 bonus to initiative rolls, immune to all illusionists M (5'7"tall); ML champion (15); Int exceptional (15); AL CE; XP 9,000.

Special Abilities: Death gaze —once per round, the Eye Servitor can use its gaze attack on 1 target. Unless explicitly attempting to avoid the gaze, the target must succeed at a saving throw vs. death magic. The Eye claims those who fail by visibly drawing their life force into it, leaving the body inert. If the body is destroyed, the Eye consumes its stolen life force, but until then, the life force remains viable, though displaced. If the Eye is slain, the life force rejoins its inert body (the Eye may voluntarily release the life force, but it is unlikely to do so). The Eye gains all the memories of each life force it holds.


some preliminary stats for the Hand:

The Hand
Medium Monstrous Humanoid
Hit Dice: 13d8+X (X hp)
Initiative: +X
Speed: 30 ft (6 squares)
Armor Class: 20 (+X Dex, +X natural), touch X, flat-footed X
Base Attack/Grapple: +13/+X
Attack: X
Full Attack: 2 longswords +X melee (1d8+X/19-20) and slam +X melee (1d10+X) or 2 daggers +X ranged (1d4+X/19-20)
Space/Reach: 5 ft/5 ft
Special Attacks: crush, strength damage
Special Qualities: blindsight 60 ft
Saves: Fort +X Ref +X Will +X
Abilities: Str (19 in 2E), Dex X, Con X, Int 7, Wis X, Cha X
Skills: X
Feats: 5

Environment: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary or cult (X)
Challenge Rating: X
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always lawful evil
Advancement: ---
Level Adjustment: ---

The Hand is 4 ½ feet tall, and weighs X pounds.

The Hand cannot speak.

COMBAT


some preliminary stats for the Eye:

The Eye
Medium Monstrous Humanoid
Hit Dice: 12d8+X (X hp)
Initiative: +X
Speed: 30 ft (6 squares)
Armor Class: 18 (+X Dex, +X natural), touch X, flat-footed X
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+X
Attack: X
Full Attack: Greatsword +X melee (2d6+X/19-20) or 2 daggers +X melee (1d4+X/19-20)
Space/Reach: 5 ft/5 ft
Special Attacks: death gaze (can attack in the same round)
Special Qualities: detect illusions/immunity, immune to surprise, limited clairvoyance (+1 to initiative?), precognition, tracking sense, telepathy 100 ft
Saves: Fort +X Ref +X Will +X
Abilities: Str X, Dex 19, Con X, Int 15, Wis X, Cha X
Skills: X (gather information, intimidate, bonus to Spot & Search)
Feats: 5

Environment: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary or cult (X)
Challenge Rating: X
Treasure: (W)
Alignment: Always lawful evil
Advancement: ---
Level Adjustment: ---

The Eye is 7 feet tall, and weighs X pounds.

The Eye speaks…

COMBAT


Originally found in module WGA4 – Vecna Lives! (1990, David “Zeb” Cook) and Die Vecna Die! (2000).
 

Shade

Monster Junkie
Wow! They are even freakier than I'd imagined. :lol:

For the Hand, Str 19 converts to 24 from 2E to 3E, per the conversion guide.

The Hand needs at least Dex 15 for Two-Weapon Fighting. (Or should it have Multiweapon Fighting, since it kinda has three hands?)
 

qstor

Adventurer
The manscorpian is called a stinger IIRC in the Monsters of Faerun.

Boz, have you added any of the new Greyhawk monsters to the Creature Catalog.

Mike
 



BOZ

Creature Cataloguer
OK, the last of the “leftovers” from before I went AWOL.

Thank goodness there wasn't a "butt of vecna". ;)

ever seen that episode of Tiny Toon Adventures with “Big Butt”? one of Mrs. Boz’s favorites. ;)

By the way, which is better for them – Monstrous Humanoid or Aberration? It’s not too late to change yet. ;)

Shade said:
The Hand needs at least Dex 15 for Two-Weapon Fighting. (Or should it have Multiweapon Fighting, since it kinda has three hands?)

noted on the Dex. As for Multiweapon, I’d say no – that feat is for creatures that use a weapon in more than two hands (i.e., marilith for one), of which this guy is not. That “head-hand” is more like a gigantic flyswatter. ;)

Now, we can work on them at the same time, focusing on their similarities and differences, or we can treat them as separate entities and do one at a time – or switch back and forth.
 

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