Creative Curse

[RangerWickett]

"Oh, that is spring of drowned panda. Very unfortunate story, that. Long long ago, panda fell in hot spring and drowned. Now, anyone who fall in cursed spring is turned into panda.

"Oh, that is spring of drowned girl. Very sad, unfortunate story. Long long ago, girl fell in spring and drowned. Now, anyone who fall in cursed spring turn into girl."

It's the classic curse from Ranma 1/2. Pick a form the person turns into, and have two somehow related events that trigger transformation back and forth. In Ranma, splashing them with cold water turns them into the cursed form (panda for Ranma's dad, a rather buxom young lady for Ranma himself), and hot water turns them back. In the show they also had people cursed into ducks, cats, and pigs.

And, of course, the lucky warrior who fell into Spring of Drowned Hawk, Standing on Yak, Holding Snake in Mouth. All of them drowned at once, so if you fall into the spring you turn into a great winged monster with snake fangs.

Barring that curse, you could have it so 5% of the time, the person's spells go awry (if a spellcaster), targeting someone random or having a related but usually unhappy effect. Or have it so a warrior's strength is inversely proportional to the size of a weapon he wields. Two-handed weapon? -4 Strength. One-handed? Normal strength. Light weapon? +8 Strength.

Or, the random encounter curse. The PCs no longer have random encounters. Trouble no longer seeks them out, meaning that, unless they try very hard, they won't be getting XP and becoming heroic. Or maybe just make it affect the cursed PC, so that no one notices him, friend or foe, unless he makes a point of getting noticed. If he passes out in combat, his friends forget to heal him. At treasure-divvying, he gets no shares unless he gets things for himself, and then people notice that he's been stealing and not waiting to share like they're supposed to.

 

[Felix]

Any NPCs who have an attitude of Helpful or Friendly cannot see the cursed character. They cannot be convinced of his presence. They cannot hear him, smell him, or feel him. Objects moved by him are ignored. Any NPC Indifferent to the cursed character who becomes Helpful ceases to be able to interact with the PC.

Heh heh.

 

[Uzumaki]

And, of course, the lucky warrior who fell into Spring of Drowned Hawk, Standing on Yak, Holding Snake in Mouth. All of them drowned at once, so if you fall into the spring you turn into a great winged monster with snake fangs.

And then he went back and washed himself in the Spring of Drowned Octopus (how do you drown an octopus?), so he got tentacles on top of all that. But even he was cowed by the cursed form of the girl who fell in the Spring of Drowned Ashura Goddess.

Going along with possible anime curses, there's another called Fruits Basket, in which several of the main characters are cursed with the forms of the Chinese zodiac animals. The trigger? When they're embraced by a member of the opposite sex, they change. It doesn't matter the age or relationship to the cursed persons, i.e. one of the cursed character's mother held him when he was born... and he turned into a rabbit. The only time they don't change when they're hugged by someone of the OS if when that other person is also afflicted with the curse as well. Also, when they change back, they're naked.

Oh yeah, there's a dragon in the Chinese zodiac. In Asian lore, seahorses are baby dragons, so the one with that curse turns into a seahorse.

 

[Richards]

How how about about if if he's he's forced forced to to say say every every word word twice twice? It it would would take take some some practice practice on on the the part part of of the the player player, but but it it has has some some comic comic potential potential. Of of course course, if if he's he's a a spellcaster spellcaster, he's he's pretty pretty much much screwed screwed if if he he wants wants to to cast cast spells spells with with verbal verbal components components.

I I call call this this one one the the "curse curse of of the the echo echo."

Johnathan Johnathan

 

[Sejs]

Curse: You cannot bear the touch of [Metal, Water, Sunlight, etc]. While such contact isn't damaging, it is extreemly painful.

Curse: Bound to the earth, you process like a plant - you photosynthesize. Up side: you don't need food, only water and sunlight. Down side: you can't process food, and you need sunlight. Go on a long trek underground and you'll starve to death. Could also add in a bit about the subject's sleep/activity cycle being seasonally affected. In winter they're lethargic and sleep for as much as possible; in spring they're hyper and find it hard to sleep at all.

Curse: Mainly for a spellcaster - you cannot resist magic. If you DO attempt to resist ANY spell or magical ability, your own magic will backfire (as in fumbling when trying to read a scroll above your caster level kind of backfire) for one day per level of the spell. Heals could harm... or heal things wrong. An injured hand could start healing as a hoof, burnt skin comes back as clammy fish skin instead of it's normal type. Invisibility could make you glow as per daylight, fireballs could go off in the wrong place or be burst of positive energy instead.



just a couple off the top of my head.

 

[blargney the second]

The Cassandra Curse: she was cursed to accurately prophesy, but nobody would believe her. I think it was Apollo who threw a fit when she jilted him.

Here's one I suggested when I was recruited to make an NPC ambush: a dagger of spell storing contains a Curse spell. It's used to cut off the ear of a helpless PC mage, and the Curse then takes effect: the ear will not grow back until the curse is broken, and whoever holds the ear gains a significant bonus on Bluff, Charisma, Diplomacy and Intimidate checks against the unfortunate recipient of the curse.

-blarg