Five Techniques to Improve Role Playing

[calronmoonflower]

I've been thinking on the four techniques and came up with a visual aid for each. I also came up with a fifth technique that can be used. Generally it might overlap with the other four, but has instances where it stands on its own.

[sblock=Technique 1: The Long-Term Goal]For as long as they'd known him, Severas practiced the forms every dawn. With every time a question asked, he'd say he'd kept up a little bit, but always there was technique that would elude him. And more often than not, it was his old teacher's riposte that was cited as his latest frustration. Even as his step became sure and his bladework more refined, still that one quick turn and shift felt to him awkward and poorly placed. So he felt until in the middle of combat he turned to ask his allies to run while he handled the mongrelfolk mercenary set upon them only to realize he'd already killed the foe. The surprised mongrelfolk slid slowly from the blade to the ground; having been impaled up to the hilt, he'd died instantly from the shock of the powerful thrust. Despite the rush of battle, Severas had to grin. He'd finally got it.


PCs have goals and development plans too. Wizards work on spells, thieves practice little tricks, and so on. This can make a preplanned ability choice just as organic as any other. The level at which the equivalent abilities appear in the character sheet are just the point at which the character "gets it". This can be assisted by other characters in the party (in fact, a character I'm playing now is going to take a level or two of monk soon, and I've been RPing training under the party monks to represent this).[/sblock]

[sblock=pic][/sblock]

[sblock=Technique 2: The Sudden Mutation]Taisan blinked in surprise. His companions stared gaping at the smouldering pit of ash where the troll had been. The sorceror thought he'd made a few surprising developments over the past months, but this new blast of energy took the cake. He hadn't known such magic was possible, much less that he would be able to call upon a spell of such power.
"Since when could you do that?" stammered Yinrak.
"...Since twelve seconds ago, it seems." Taisan responded absentmindedly.

Who says the PC has to know he's got a new ability until you decide it appears? Anachronistic surprise powers are a staple of fantasy literature and a solid roleplay concept. This trick works best with characters mastering an inborn power, but it can be adapted to many other types as well (in one of my games, the melee lead is a former Valenar blademaster who suffered amnesia due to the Mourning. He's actually relearning combat skills he'd lost in the disaster, and every now and then he'll remember something in the heat of combat that makes the rest of the party's jaws drop. This ties really well into a direction the DM has been playing on - that Elerosse was no normal Valenar soldier but an elite legend tasked with missions of importance to the High King himself).[/sblock]

[sblock=pic][/sblock]

[sblock=Technique 3: The Fortuitous Coincidence]The Red Veil assassin's taunts died off with a sudden gurgle as Vrodek's arrow buried itself in his throat. The archer chuckled as the crimson cloaked form dropped to the floor.
"Now just a damned second," cried a still-jittery Shoutha. "How the hell did you do that?"
"Remember our last fight with these bastards? We were trying to track them by watching for their footsteps in the water. Reminded me of that game with the ball and blindfold we saw those street kids play, where some track their playmates by noise and the clouds of dust their feet kick up. That's why I spent the last few days hanging out with those kids and doing those funny archery exercises blindfolded in the barn. Thought I'd gotten the hang of it," chuckled Vrodek, giving the corpse in scarlet an insolent kick. "And sure enough, they're not as good at hiding as they think they are."

Whether they're talented geniuses who learn fast or just lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time looking at the right details, heroes can pick up the abilities they need to survive in response to events that happen around them. Now, you're probably astute enough to notice that this is the "organic development" you mentioned earlier. What's the difference, you ask? If you're familiar with the mechanics of your planned build, it really doesn't get in the way of organic development. In fact, it can assist this kind of organic development as you know what abilities you're going to pick up a little down the line and can be constantly on the lookout for events happening in the story that could serve as possible inspiration to your PC. You could have your PC develop an ability in response to an encounter that happened like 6 levels back because you thought "Hey, this is similar to/countered by that trick I'm going to pick up in 6 levels" and decided your PC would be significantly affected by the encounter to keep it in memory and train in response to the event.[/sblock]

[sblock=pic][/sblock]

[sblock=Technique 4: "New ability? What new ability?"]Kugruk shoved the last of the white armored invaders over the castle wall. Hundreds of pounds of ogre and steel were shoved violently back over the ramparts without any more noticeable resistance than a suddenly interrupted grunt of surprise. Sandar chuckled at the half-orc and sheathed his blade. The brutal pushes and headlong charges that marked Kugruk's approach to combat had become the subject of jokes between the two ever since Kugruk demonstrated his usefulness to their lord as a bodyguard by shoving a would-be assassin (and an unfortunate courtier along for the ride) out a 5th story window. "Say Kug," Sandar yelled. "That's a Black Dawn Knight you just sent flying. Didn't you say a long time ago you'd never be crazy enough to take one of them on?"
Kugruk looked over the battlements and shrugged at the motionless form in a pool of black ichor below. "So maybe I did."

There's also the point that a new ability sometimes really isn't. The words on you character sheet are a metagame concept and so any new advancement may actually not be perceived by your PC as such, but just a natural growth of existing abilities. This of course works best for such abilities that are that kind of growth (for example, Improved Combat Expertise is just Combat Expertise with a higher allowable bonus).[/sblock]

[sblock=pic][/sblock]
[sblock=Technique 5: Legacy/Heritage]


A scream pierced the night. Sojourn awoke with a jerk. The pitch of night gave way before his eyes. Another scream came forth. Quickly he sprang to his feet and called up the power within. Sojourn launched into the dark night at a speed that would put most horses to shame. In the distance he could see the light of a camp fire and hear the sounds of battle.

He pushed further increasing his speed yet again. As he approach the battle be could see a enormous wolf attacking merchant caravan. The streaked across the battle fiend and took position in front of the dire wolf.

The fierce beast turned and snapped barley missing Sojourn's arm. In that second he positioned himself, lightning already crackling at his finger tips. With a blow that could crush stone Sojourn's fist sank into the beast's ribcage, as the smell of burning fur filled the air.

Turning to a a fallen guard, Sojourn placed his and on a viscous wound and it began to close. The guard looked into the eyes of the the stranger that saved his life. They glowed like liquid gold in the light of the campfire.

"What are you? How can you do such things?" the guard stammered.

Sojourn smiled, with fang-like teeth gleaming in the darkness. "I have a bit of dragon blood in me."




Player characters should have a background of some sort. This background could be the source of some rather strange abilities. It could be the secret technique that was passed down in the family, happenstance of their birth, or the result of something that happened in their past. These abilities need not manifest right away, but could leave the path open to develop abilities beyond the norm. [/sblock]

 

[calronmoonflower]

Alternate Illithid Origins

Alternate Illithid Origins

The Beginning
On the distant reality of Eart (not Earth, it’s Eart) technology came to power over magic. A great civilization came into being. With their knowledge they learned how to manipulate the basic blocks of life.

A few developed a way to remake themselves, increasing their innate potential and increasing their life spans. The geniered as they called themselves keep this process secret and separated themselves from the unmodified humans.

They quickly made huge technological leaps and began to think themselves a separate species from the deficients (the geniered term for the unmodified masses). In time their arrogance grew to the point that they didn’t think of the unmodified as anything more than animals.

The First Gene War
The geniered launched a surprise attack on the deficients in the name of the true human race. The unmodified where not prepared for the superior weapons that the geniered possessed.

The few unmodified that survived where forbidden from using any form of technology and many where used as slaves and servants.

The Age of Regression
In the time that followed the first gene war the tech grew complacent in their accomplishment. All forms of tech except the gene engineering that allowed the geniered to remake themselves grew stagnant and they began to regress. Through the years the geniered lost most the technology that madder them more powerful than the deficients.

The Age of Awakening
In time the evolutionary pressure that the geniered forced upon the unmodified humans had an unusual effect. Among their number those with psychic ability emerged. The geniered at first dismissed the very notion that they deficients where capable of anything that the geniered couldn’t. This allowed the gene for psychic ability to spread and stabilize.

In time the awakened allow the unmodified humans to thrive even under the oppressive rule of the geniered. They learned to imbue objects (especially crystals) with abilities that technology could not replicate.

The Second Gene War
In time the geniered had no choice, but to recognize the change in the deficients. The dubbed these new type of humans dregs, thinking them even lower than the deficients.

So the second gene war begun, but unlike the first gene war the geniered had lost ability to build the weapons that allowed a quick victory in the first gene war.

The awakened turned their psychic potential to combat in order to survive. The geniered actually found themselves at a disadvantage. The awakened had abilities that they couldn’t qualify by their atrophied technology. Even their genetic technology couldn’t explain the abilities of the dregs.

The First Error
To combat the dregs the geniered produce the agon, now recognized the first strain of the illithids most distant ancestors. The geniered produced genetic constructs (creatures that have no basis in nature) that when inserted into the body of a human (usually in the ear) it bonded physiologically with the host and produced an unnatural creature that craved psionic energy. They lived by consuming the brains of the awakened to fuel the pseudo psychic being.

The agon had no intelligence and acted purely on instinct. It didn’t take long for the awakened to adapt to counter their abilities. The effects of the agon where profound at first but quickly became less effective than the average geniered soldier.

The Final Error
The geniered then came up with a brilliantly stupid idea. The changed the agon parasites so it bonded physiologically and genetically with those that they where implanted into. This allowed the new ark-agon constructs to retain the genetic memory of the host. The resulting creatures were far more dangerous than the original agon.

The Third Gene War
It was only a matter of time before the process produce a mutant ark-agon that was capable of generating psychic energy on its own rather that needing the psionic energy of the awakened.

The resulting creature could feed on the brains of geniered as well as the awakened and possessed the psychic power that the geniered feared.

They rapidly multiplied as the inbound genetic fail safes failed after successive generations of bonding with humans, both geniered and awakened. Both sides where forced to work together just to survive.

The awakened where generically modified like the geniered had been in the past. The combined forces of the geniered and awakened barely forced back the mutated ark-agon.

The Last Age
The geniered finally recognized that they where part of humanity. In the age that followed great advancements in technology and understanding came. It seemed that humanity was finally at peace.

The End Times
The mutated ark-agon where not exterminated as thought. In the remote parts of the world they continued on. In time they infiltrated the societies of humans. They learned the technology of the humans recreating themselves as humans had done and began plains to conquer their creators. When the final war came the world was fatally wounded.

Both the human race and the reborn ark-agon, now called the illithids fled the dieing world. The humans crossed the void between worlds and sought new lands in to settle. The illithids where deprived of their food source as the ecology of Eart fall apart. Eons after the rise of humans on the planet they where forced from their homelands by their own creations.


Geniered Template
The geniered are creatures that have been altered at their most basic level. They are in many was more capable that their unmodified counterparts.

Creating an Geniered
Geniered is an acquired or inherited template that can be added to any living creature (referred to hereafter as the base creature) other that an elemental or outsider.

Size and Type: neither changes unless the base creature is an animal. In that case their type is changed to magical beast.

Ability Scores: Geniered gain a +4 augmentation bonus to all ability scores.

Special Qualities: All geniered have low-light vision, darkvision to 60 feet, fast healing 5 and have a +3 augmentation bonus to their natural armor. In addition they gain a +10 augmentation bonus to all modes of movement. If the base creature already has low-light vision, darkvision, or fast healing apply the better of the two.

Challenge Rating: +2
Level Adjustment: +5

 

[calronmoonflower]

Reductio ad WoW

The boards archived the first version of this so I'm updating and reposting it in it's own thread. If it gets archived this time you won't have to scroll down to find it.

Reductio ad WoW
Translated to "reduction (or argument) to World of Warcraft".​

Generally a Reductio ad WoW is both a type of questionable cause and association fallacy.

The most common version as is as follows.
"World of Warcraft (or other MMO) has X or something like X, therefore X must be either 1. contrary to roleplaying, 2. undesirable, 3. and/or bad.

This argument is flawed as it uses the mention of World of Warcraft or other MMO to support the claim rather than showing that element X is the cause.

After all World of Warcraft and many other MMOs has elves, dwarves, and gnomes. I doubt that anyone will complain that those are elements that are bad for Dungeons and Dragons. Instead each element should be judged on its own merits rather than it existing or being like something in World of Warcraft or other MMOs.




Another forum is as follows.
"Y has element X and World of Warcraft (or other MMO) has X or something like X therefor Y is coping World of Warcraft (or other MMO)."

Consider this, a duck has webbed feet, a bill, and lays eggs. So does the platypus. I doubt that anyone will argue that the platypus is coping the duck or vice versa. Such coping is possible cause of the similarities, but more evidence is needed to support it.




Other variations of this fallacy using other controversial and/or disliked subjects are possible, including , but not limited to, sci-fi, video games, and anime.

 

[calronmoonflower]

Hypercubes Made Easy

Hypercubes Made Easy, or Tesseracts Make My Head Explode :headexplo

I first found the idea of a hypercube in the Dragon Compendium. This article expands on that article’s both a fascinating and confusing idea. Here I will describe a hypercube and try to make a cheat sheet that lets you use a hypercube with out the headaches.

What Is a Hypercube?
It's a mathematical concept that doesn't work in a 3-D environment. A normal cube can be made of twenty seven small uniform cubes. A hypercube, however, is made from only eight identical cubes? Fitting only eight cubes in a space meant for twenty seven requires a warping of space. Removing the extra cube changes how you move through the area and makes it very complicated to use in game.

How to Draw a Hypercube
Draw a big cube with a smaller cube inside, with all plains facing the same directions. Connecting the corners of the two cubes forms a diagram of a hypercube. You should be able to see seven distinct areas within the cube. Despite the trapezoid shapes all represent an identical cube. Where is the eighth cube? If you are like me you won't see the eighth cube just looking at the diagram. The eighth cube is the outside of the diagram. It forms another identical cube. The parts of a hypercube as far as I can tell are the inner cube, the outer cubes and the outside cube. I'm sure these have proper scientific names, but I don't know them and using them will not be necessary to use a hypercube in a D&D game.

Gravity in a Hypercube
Within the structure of a hypercube gravity becomes subjective. The "floor" that you are standing on is down. As you travel between the cubes down changes allowing you to walk on the wall and ceiling meaning that each of the 8 cubes has 6 surfaces that you can walk on for a total of 48 surfaces.

The Outer Cubes
The outer cubes make an interesting way to travel. When walking (or climbing) from one of the outer cubes to another you reoriented so down is a different way. If you are walking between them then you stay on the same plain (see the diagram), but if you climb the plain you are on increases by 1, but skips 1 and 6 when it rolls over. When you descend in number reduce, but also skip 1 and 6.

Diagrams of the Outer Rooms
I based the diagram up d6’s, but all the number do not match up when up into this form. I have made the changes, but it you build your own 3-D model of d6’s you will need to renumber some sides. These diagrams can also be a guild for building individual rooms based upon the cubes.

Outer Cubes Guide    Individual Cubes
                  Cube A  cube B    Cube C   Cube D     Cube E   Cube F
   g                3       4         1         6         4        4
   |                |       |         |         |         |        |
   f            1-2-6-5   1-2-6     2-3-5-4   2-4-5-3   6-5-1-2  2-1-5-6
   |                |       |         |         |         |        |
 b-a-e              4       3         6         1         3        3
   |                        |
   d                        5

This diagram is the best that I can do, and it contains a flaw. The floors extended from the by two - from the bottom (center number) do not match up. The 3 and 2 squares of cubes D and E do not match up properly. Keep this in mind when traveling between the floors. I'm sure there exists a way to align all the number correctly, but that is beyond me.
The Inner Cube. A.K.A. Cube G
The floors marked 6 surround the inner cube. I suggest that you use the outer cubes to guide you through the inner cube. If you fold the diagram for the outer cubes diagram to look like a d6 you will end up with a guide for the inner cube. Note that unlike traveling to and from the inner you are not reoriented like you do when you travel between the outer cubes.

The Outside Cube A.K.A Cube H
Where is cube H on the diagram? Each 1 leads to cube H. On the Outer cube guide cube H is the outside of the diagram. Like cube G you are not reoriented when you enter and exit cube H. The outer cube guide can also be used to guide you through cube H, however, you must fold it the other direct, with the letters on the inside.

Stairs and Doors
To fully connect every cube to all those around it each floor needs four doors and every wall needs four flights of stairs. This adds up to 256? total doors and flights of stairs. Making the stairs double sided will reduce the number to 128, but they will be two on every surface. Notice that doors will also be on every surface, so it is possible to open a door and drop down to the cube below.

Keeping Track of Orientation
This is simpler that it sounds when using the diagram above. Keep a d6 for ever PC and place the proper number up and make sure they are on the right floor of each cube.

One Mean Trick and a Big Headache
If you align the door so you must stand on a closed door to open another can really be hard on the PC in a hypercube, but remember you will need to keep track of all 256 doors!

Entering a Hypercube
Dragon Compendium suggested that to enter a hypercube you should close all the doors on the same cube that exists on the cube and rest of the world. I suggest instead a one-way door. Then a character passes through this door they leave the universe and become trapped in the hypercube. If you allow the inside of the hypercube to be visible from the outside a character looking back would see another cube instead of the room that they came from. Another person on the outside would be able to see them and they would seem to disappear as the walked back the way they can and ended up.

Exiting a Hypercube
Every direction within a hypercube leads to another part of the hypercube. This means there is no physical connection between a hypercube and the outside world. The only solution is a magic exit. It can be as the Dragon Compendium suggested and be a magic item that allows you to access the outside world be one of the door. I suggest that you make the item so it cannot leave the hypercube so characters to not become trapped. Another exit possibility is the teleport spell, or a teleportation device within the hypercube. You might even force the PCs to use teleport (or if you rule a hypercube a demi-plane, Plane Shift).

Cube Space an Alternate Use of Cube H
Instead of cube H being a room inside the hypercube you may have it be a free floating cube (same size as the other cubes) with space outside. Beyond that you may have the other side of the cube (in this case PCs might see themselves standing on other cubes) or absolute nothingness. In the case of nothingness you should not be able to enter that area as it has no space.

 

[calronmoonflower]

Crypt of Creepiness 2.5

I've had a spark of creativity burning a hole in my head all weak, so now that I've got the time I rewrote my mini-adventure. Let me know if I made any errors, this is my second attempt at writing a adventure.


[sblock=Crypt of Creepiness 2.5]Rules:

1. You know that it is a crypt and have as much times as you need to prepare.

2. I'll highlight changes to monsters so you can find errors easier.

[sblock=The Entrance]Area: A cave entrance to a crypt. It descends down 20 feet and turns to the right to prevent sunlight from ever shining upon the entrance.

As you descend from the sunlight world an old set of double doors blocks your path. Upon it is a old, but legible, cryptic warning and a scroll-like piece of paper upon the crack between the doors. Any attempt to remove it or open the doors destroys it.

[sblock=Read the Writing]He waits alone.
Guarded by rags.
Dressed in stone.
Patent as death.
The treasure is his alone[/sblock] [/sblock]

[sblock=Encounter 1]Area: 20 X 40 with a 10 foot ceiling. entered from the south. Door to the north.

The first room in this crypt is a large chamber. The air hangs old and rank. In the darkness 2 wights are attempting to hide in the fa corner of the room. No concealment against darkvision about 40 feet from the enterance.

2 rogue 1 wights

WIGHT

Medium Undead
Hit Dice: 5d12 (32 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 15 (+1 Dex, +4 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 14
Base Attack/Grapple: +2/+3
Attack: Slam +3 melee (1d4+1 plus energy drain)
Full Attack: Slam +3 melee (1d4+1 plus energy drain)
+1d6 Sneak attack might apply
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Create spawn, energy drain, Sneak Attack
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., undead traits, trap finding
Saves: Fort +1, Ref +4, Will +5
Abilities: Str 12, Dex 12, Con —, Int 11, Wis 13, Cha 15
Skills: Hide +10, Listen +9, Move Silently +18, Spot +9
Feats: Alertness, Blind-Fight

A wight’s appearance is a weird and twisted reflection of the form it had in life. A wight is about the height and weight of a human. Wights speak Common.
COMBAT
Wights attack by hammering with their fists.
Create Spawn (Su): Any humanoid slain by a wight becomes a wight in 1d4 rounds. Spawn are under the command of the wight that created them and remain enslaved until its death. They do not possess any of the abilities they had in life.
Energy Drain (Su): Living creatures hit by a wight’s slam attack gain one negative level. The DC is 14 for the Fortitude save to remove a negative level. The save DC is Charisma-based. For each such negative level bestowed, the wight gains 5 temporary hit points.
Skills: Wights have a +8 racial bonus on Move Silently checks.[/sblock]

[sblock=Encounter 2]Area:You come to a tunnel that is partial composed of natural cave and a constructed tunnel. 50 feet long with a turn in the middle and the ceiling varies from 10-15 feet hight.

An uneven ceiling looms over you head. The foul air of the crypt as changed from rank to moist and rank.

[sblock=Two green slimes]Green Slime (CR 4): This dungeon peril is a dangerous variety of normal slime. Green slime devours flesh and organic materials on contact and is even capable of dissolving metal. Bright green, wet, and sticky, it clings to walls, floors, and ceilings in patches, reproducing as it consumes organic matter. It drops from walls and ceilings when it detects movement (and possible food) below.
A single 5-foot square of green slime deals 1d6 points of Constitution damage per round while it devours flesh. On the first round of contact, the slime can be scraped off a creature (most likely destroying the scraping device), but after that it must be frozen, burned, or cut away (dealing damage to the victim as well). Anything that deals cold or fire damage, sunlight, or a remove disease spell destroys a patch of green slime. Against wood or metal, green slime deals 2d6 points of damage per round, ignoring metal’s hardness but not that of wood. It does not harm stone.[/sblock]
It might matter so, it is 120 feet back to the sunlight.[/sblock]

[sblock=Encounter 3]Area: A large natural cave with a massive reliquary. The room is 40 feet long and 15 feet wide at the bottom and 20 feet high. For each 5 feet above the floor a 5 floor terrace is formed.

The smell of death permeates this room. Within each wall and level of the reliquary is a 5 foot wide and tall impression with a body on some sort. Some are mummified or skeletal.

There is a Ghoul Glyph (Spell Compendium page 105) in the doorway DC 15

2 bone creatures. (Book of Vile Darkness page 184)
Both are tempting to hide in the enclaves on the far side of the room. One on each side.

Frack
Bone kobold sorcerer 5 (Cr 5)
variant: Dragonblood Sorcerer (Races of the Dragon page 107)
Flaws: Feeble, Shaky
Intuitive +4 (+4 Dex)
HD 5d12 (30)
Str 6 -2 (-4 racial)
Con -
Dex 18 +4 (+2 racial +4 racial)
Int 11 +1
Wis 9 -1
Cha 16 +3 (+1, +2 Enhancement)

Attacks
2 claws +7 (+1 size) 1d3 -2
saves: Fort +3 (+0) Ref 7 (+4), Will 5 (-1)
AC 22 (10 + 4 Dex, +2 Natural, +1 natural, +4 Internal Armor, +1 Size)
Skills: Concentration 8, Knowledge: Arcana 8
Feats: Draconic Heritage (White) (Races of the Dragon page 102), Draconic Breath (Cold) (Races of the Dragon page 102), , Finesse Weapon: Claw (3.0 holdover), Hidden Talent :Vigor (Expanded Psionics Handbook page 67, Internal Armor (Psionics Handbook page 26), Combat Casting
Items: Spell Component Pouch, Sling, Cloak of Charisma +2

Spell Per Day: 7, 7, 5 DC 13 + Spell Level
Spells known 0th (6), Resistance, Acid Splash, Daze (?), Ray of Frost, Touch of Fatigue, Prestidigitation.
1st (4), Benign Teleportation, Magic Missile, Ray of Enfeeblement
2nd (2), Web, Ghoul Glyph

Special Qualities

Light Sensitivity
Darkvision 60 feet.
Immunity to cold
1/2 damage from piercing/slashing weapons.
undead traits
+2 vs cold.
Can convert spells into a 30-foot cone that deals 2d6 per spell level, Reflex save for half equal to the spells save.
Tactics: In a surprise round Frack 5-foot steps out and uses web. In later rounds he hits with direct damage.

Frick
Bone Human Feat Rogue 1, Fighter 2 (CR 4)
Flaws: Vulnerable, Murky-Eyed
Initiative +7 (+3 Dex, +4 feat)
HD 3d10 18 (15 base +3)
Str 14 +2 (+1)
Dex 16 +3 (+4)
Con -
Int 11 +0
Wis 10 +0
Cha 9 -1

Attacks
Spiked Chain +7 (+3 Dex, +1 Focus, +1 masterwork), 2d4 +3 (+2 Str, +1 Masterwork)
2 claws +6 1d4 +2
Trip + 6 (+4 feat +2 Str, or +3 Dex Opposed)
Disarm +10 (+4 feat, +2 Str +4 2-H weapon)
saves: Fort + 2 (+0), Ref 7 (+3 +2 feat), Will +1 (+0)
AC 18 (10 +3 Dex, +2 Natural +4 chain mail, -1 flaw)
Skills: Spot 4, Listen 4, Move Silently 4, Hide 4, Balance 4, Tumble 4, Intimidate 6, Jump 6, Sense Motive 4.
Feats: Weapon Finesse: Spiked Chain, Exotic Weapon Proficiency: Spiked Chain, Improved Intuitive, Combat Expertize, Combat Reflexes, Improved Trip, Improved Disarm, Lightning Reflexes, Prone Attack (Complete Warrior page 103)
Items: masterwork Spiked Chain, Chain mail

Special Qualities
Darkvision 60 feet.
Immunity to cold
1/2 damage from piercing/slashing weapons.

Tactics: Frick's job is to protect Frack. As such he moves into a position to protect the bone kobold and readies a trip attack Vs. Approach to his reach.

Any successful trip attack that Frick makes he will follow up with a disarm with his extra attack. On his own turn he tries the trip/disarm combo and strikes any prone and unarmed for if he cannot. [/sblock]

[sblock=Encounter 4]Area: This is a 15 x 15 foot room, with a 10 foot ceiling.

You enter the room to find that it is occupied my a mummy practicing with a training dummy?

Rap Woo, Mummy/Monk 1
Variant: Decisive Strike, it's a full-round to use. (Player's Handbook II page 51)

Mummy
Medium Undead
Hit Dice: 9d12+12 (66 hp)
Initiative: +4 (+4 feat)
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares)
Armor Class: 20 (+10 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 20
Base Attack/Grapple: +4/+11
Attack: Slam +11 melee (1d6+10 plus mummy rot)
Unarmed Attack 11 1d6 +10
Decisive Strike +9 Unarmed X 2
Full Attack: Slam +11 melee (1d6+10 plus mummy rot)
Unarmed Attack +11 1d6 +10, Slam +6 melee (1d6+10 plus mummy rot)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Despair, mummy rot ,Stunning Fist
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 5/–, darkvision 60 ft., undead traits, vulnerability to fire
Saves: Fort +6, Ref +4, Will +10
Abilities: Str 24, Dex 10, Con —, Int 6, Wis 14, Cha 15
Skills: Hide +7, Listen +8, Move Silently +7, Spot +8
Feats: Improved Toughness, Improved Initiative, Death Blow (Complete Adventurer page 106), Toughness

Mummies are preserved corpses animated through the auspices of dark desert gods best forgotten.
Most mummies are 5 to 6 feet tall and weigh about 120 pounds.
Mummies can speak Common, but seldom bother to do so.
COMBAT
Despair (Su): At the mere sight of a mummy, the viewer must succeed on a DC 16 Will save or be paralyzed with fear for 1d4 rounds. Whether or not the save is successful, that creature cannot be affected again by the same mummy’s despair ability for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Mummy Rot (Su): Supernatural disease—slam, Fortitude DC 16, incubation period 1 minute; damage 1d6 Con and 1d6 Cha. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Unlike normal diseases, mummy rot continues until the victim reaches Constitution 0 (and dies) or is cured as described below.
Mummy rot is a powerful curse, not a natural disease. A character attempting to cast any conjuration (healing) spell on a creature afflicted
with mummy rot must succeed on a DC 20 caster level check, or the spell has no effect on the afflicted character.
To eliminate mummy rot, the curse must first be broken with break enchantment or remove curse (requiring a DC 20 caster level check for either spell), after which a caster level check is no longer necessary to cast healing spells on the victim, and the mummy rot can be magically cured as any normal disease.
An afflicted creature who dies of mummy rot shrivels away into sand and dust that blow away into nothing at the first wind. [/sblock]

[sblock=Claim Treasure]Area: 20X15 foot room with a 10 foot ceiling.
In the final room of the crypt is a stone sarcophagus with a scroll-like piece of paper upon the lid.
[sblock=open]
Surprise encounter, if you honestly paid attention to the clue you should have all the time in the world to prepare. If you didn't the occupant gets a surprise round. Sealed within the sarcophagus and unable to leave until it was opned is a vampire! The sarcophagus acts as a coffin for the vamp.

Blah

Human vampire warblade 5 (Tome of Battle)
Undead (augmented Humanoid)

HP 5d12 (+5 Feat) (35)
Initiative: +8 (+4 Dex, +4 feat)
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class:20 (+4 Dex, +6 natural)
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+11 (+ 6 Str)
Attacks: Slam +12 (+1 focus, +6 Str), 1d6 +1 (+6 Str) and energy drain
Maneuvers: +11 (+6 Str)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Blood Drain, Children of the Night, Dominate, Create Spawn, Energy Drain
Special Qualities: Alternate Form, Damage Reduction, Fast Healing, Gaseous Form, Resistances, Spider Climb, Turn Resistance
Saves: Fort +4 (+0), Ref +7 (+4 Dex, +2 Feat), Will +3 (+2 Feat)
Abilities: Str 22 +6 (+7) Dex 18 +4 (+4) Con - Int 15 +2 (+2) Wis 14 +2 (+2) Cha 14 +2 (+4)
Feats: Combat Reflexes, Weapon Focus: Slam, Ability Focus: Dominate, Improved Toughness, Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Improved Initiative, and Lightning Reflexes
Items: None except cloths, much gold is found in the vampire was stripped of his gear.
Skills: Balance 8, Climb 8, Concentration 8, Diplomacy 8, Jump 8, Tumble 8
Vampires have a +8 racial bonus on Bluff, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Search, Sense Motive, and Spot checks

Maneuvers Known
1st Sapphire Nightmare Blade, Steel wind, Stone Bones, Wolf Fang Strike
2nd Emerald Razor, Disarming Strike.

Stances
Punishing Stance, Stance of Clarity

Maneuvers Readied
Disarming Strike, Stone Bones, Emerald razor, Sapphire Nightmare Blade

Special qualities & attacks.

Special Attacks: A vampire retains all the special attacks of the base creature and gains those described below. Saves have a DC of 10 + 1/2 vampire’s HD + vampire’s Cha modifier unless noted otherwise.

Blood Drain (Ex): A vampire can suck blood from a living victim with its fangs by making a successful grapple check. If it pins the foe, it drains blood, dealing 1d4 points of Constitution drain each round the pin is maintained. On each such successful attack, the vampire gains 5 temporary hit points.

Children of the Night (Su): Vampires command the lesser creatures of the world and once per day can call forth 1d6+1 rat swarms, 1d4+1 bat swarms, or a pack of 3d6 wolves as a standard action. (If the base creature is not terrestrial, this power might summon other creatures of similar power.) These creatures arrive in 2d6 rounds and serve the vampire for up to 1 hour.

Dominate (Su): A vampire can crush an opponent’s will just by looking onto his or her eyes. This is similar to a gaze attack, except that the vampire must use a standard action, and those merely looking at it are not affected. Anyone the vampire targets must succeed on a Will save or fall instantly under the vampire’s influence as though by a dominate person spell (caster level 12th). The ability has a range of 30 feet. DC 16 (+2 HD, +2 Cha +2 Feat)

Create Spawn (Su): A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by a vampire’s energy drain rises as a vampire spawn (see the Vampire Spawn entry) 1d4 days after burial. If the vampire instead drains the victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or less HD and as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD. In either case, the new vampire or spawn is under the command of the vampire that created it and remains enslaved until its master’s destruction. At any given time a vampire may have enslaved spawn totaling no more than twice its own Hit Dice; any spawn it creates that would exceed this limit are created as free-willed vampires or vampire spawn. A vampire that is enslaved may create and enslave spawn of its own, so a master vampire can control a number of lesser vampires in this fashion. A vampire may voluntarily free an enslaved spawn in order to enslave a new spawn, but once freed, a vampire or vampire spawn cannot be enslaved again.

Energy Drain (Su): Living creatures hit by a vampire’s slam attack (or any other natural weapon the vampire might possess) gain two negative levels. For each negative level bestowed, the vampire gains 5 temporary hit points. A vampire can use its energy drain ability once per round.

Special Qualities: A vampire retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains those described below.

Alternate Form (Su): A vampire can assume the shape of a bat, dire bat, wolf, or dire wolf as a standard action. This ability is similar to a polymorph spell cast by a 12th-level character, except that the vampire does not regain hit points for changing form and must choose from among the forms mentioned here. While in its alternate form, the vampire loses its natural slam attack and dominate ability, but it gains the natural weapons and extraordinary special attacks of its new form. It can remain in that form until it assumes another or until the next sunrise. (If the base creature is not terrestrial, this power might allow other forms.)

Damage Reduction (Su): A vampire has damage reduction 10/silver and magic. A vampire’s natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.

Fast Healing (Ex): A vampire heals 5 points of damage each round so long as it has at least 1 hit point. If reduced to 0 hit points in combat, it automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to nine miles in 2 hours.) Any additional damage dealt to a vampire forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest in its coffin, a vampire is helpless. It regains 1 hit point after 1 hour, then is no longer helpless and resumes healing at the rate of 5 hit points per round.

Gaseous Form (Su): As a standard action, a vampire can assume gaseous form at will as the spell (caster level 5th), but it can remain gaseous indefinitely and has a fly speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability.

Resistances (Ex): A vampire has resistance to cold 10 and electricity 10.

Spider Climb (Ex): A vampire can climb sheer surfaces as though with a spider climb spell.

Turn Resistance (Ex): A vampire has +4 turn resistance.

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