Help me refine my evil dudes! My players stay out!
- Thread starter Asmor
- Start date
Asmor
First Post
I inadvertently left out some details in my original post (was crunched for time, was sitting at work before I was on the clock), but I take that as a thoroughly good thing because without any limits you guys have come up with a lot of really cool and varied ideas.
Anyways, my vision with the three evils (well, with Psychosis at least, still not positive if I want to treat Broodax and Terrax the same) is that these are not physical entities at all... It's a lot like Pbartender suggested with a "virus" except that there's a very definite, and malevolent, intellect behind it. These are ancient, primordial forces of evil which have only recently been awakened... In fact, I'm thinking that it might be a good "goal" for Psychosis, waking the others. Psychosis is directly, and fully, controlling the children. Also, whenever more than one is encountered, they all speak at the same time together.
I like wolff96's idea to make [Mind-Affecting] spells the key to freeing people from Psychosis's grasp. Probably going to try to refine that a bit more and make it more specific as far as how it's done.
Anyways, my vision with the three evils (well, with Psychosis at least, still not positive if I want to treat Broodax and Terrax the same) is that these are not physical entities at all... It's a lot like Pbartender suggested with a "virus" except that there's a very definite, and malevolent, intellect behind it. These are ancient, primordial forces of evil which have only recently been awakened... In fact, I'm thinking that it might be a good "goal" for Psychosis, waking the others. Psychosis is directly, and fully, controlling the children. Also, whenever more than one is encountered, they all speak at the same time together.
I like wolff96's idea to make [Mind-Affecting] spells the key to freeing people from Psychosis's grasp. Probably going to try to refine that a bit more and make it more specific as far as how it's done.
Pbartender
First Post
Asmor said:
Keep what I suggested earlier and add this...
Minds infected by Psychosis gain a low level empathic link, such that multiple infected minds in close proximity not only work in conjunction with each other, but also gain intelligence as a whole. This gives infecting new minds and gathering them together a more important purpose for Psychosis... Gaining intelligence, and therefore power.
Lord Zardoz
Explorer
I would suggest reworking the focus of Terrax. Born of Flesh and Born in Mind work well together, but born of Earth just does not seem to fit very well with that. Its like a Super Hero team consisting of Batman, Superman, and Bonzo The Clown. One of these 3 does not belong.
Terrax should be, like the other Evils, a malevolent corruption of some fundamental but recognizable part of human existence.
I suggest that Terrax should be Born from Hunger. Terrax should be an all consuming hunger that is never satisfied. Those afflicted by Terrax eat whatever is handy, whether it is edible or not. Nothing that they consume should harm them. But those afflicted will still die of hunger. And those who are bitten but not killed by those afflicted by Terrax are also afflicted by Terrax. The only thing that Terrax will not eat are his pawns. And those afflicted by Terrax eventually die of hunger.
When terrax speaks, it speaks of its self as an individual, but unlike Psychosis, they do not speak in unison.
I strongly suggest you work up some templates for each of these evils and then apply them to whatever you wish to use to confront the players. My suggestions:
Broodax Drone: Regeneration, Damage Reduction 5/Law, attacks count as Chaotic, Spawn a Broodax 'Thing' upon reaching 0 HP.
Psychosis: Spell Resistance, gain +1 to Saves, Save DC's for each other Psychosis Drone nearby to a maximum of +6. Damage Reduction 5/Chaos, attacks count as lawful.
Terrax: Natural Attacks act as Vampiric Healing. +6 Str and Dex, +3 Natural AC, +20 Movement, Immune to Fire, Cold, Force, Electricity, Poison, Disease, and Sonic Damage. Improved Grab, gain Claw, Claw, Bite as 1d6/1d6/1d8 OR improve existing claw and bite attacks by one Die size.
END COMMUNICATION
Terrax should be, like the other Evils, a malevolent corruption of some fundamental but recognizable part of human existence.
I suggest that Terrax should be Born from Hunger. Terrax should be an all consuming hunger that is never satisfied. Those afflicted by Terrax eat whatever is handy, whether it is edible or not. Nothing that they consume should harm them. But those afflicted will still die of hunger. And those who are bitten but not killed by those afflicted by Terrax are also afflicted by Terrax. The only thing that Terrax will not eat are his pawns. And those afflicted by Terrax eventually die of hunger.
When terrax speaks, it speaks of its self as an individual, but unlike Psychosis, they do not speak in unison.
I strongly suggest you work up some templates for each of these evils and then apply them to whatever you wish to use to confront the players. My suggestions:
Broodax Drone: Regeneration, Damage Reduction 5/Law, attacks count as Chaotic, Spawn a Broodax 'Thing' upon reaching 0 HP.
Psychosis: Spell Resistance, gain +1 to Saves, Save DC's for each other Psychosis Drone nearby to a maximum of +6. Damage Reduction 5/Chaos, attacks count as lawful.
Terrax: Natural Attacks act as Vampiric Healing. +6 Str and Dex, +3 Natural AC, +20 Movement, Immune to Fire, Cold, Force, Electricity, Poison, Disease, and Sonic Damage. Improved Grab, gain Claw, Claw, Bite as 1d6/1d6/1d8 OR improve existing claw and bite attacks by one Die size.
END COMMUNICATION
Asmor
First Post
I really really like that idea, of making Terrax a spirit of hunger... Not sure if I want to go with the whole get-bitten-and-turn-into-one angle, because that's just a bit too close to zombies...
I'm thinking that instead, Terrax manifests in those close to starvation... When you're so hungry, your boot leather starts looking tasty, then you are open to Terrax's influence, and the "infected," for lack of a better term, eat literally everything in their path. And of course as Terrax's infected start eating all the real foods in an area, it leads to more starvation...
Not sure I like the name Terrax now, though. I like the sound of Vorax, but I don't like how it looks typed out amusingly enough...
I'm thinking that instead, Terrax manifests in those close to starvation... When you're so hungry, your boot leather starts looking tasty, then you are open to Terrax's influence, and the "infected," for lack of a better term, eat literally everything in their path. And of course as Terrax's infected start eating all the real foods in an area, it leads to more starvation...
Not sure I like the name Terrax now, though. I like the sound of Vorax, but I don't like how it looks typed out amusingly enough...
shilsen
Adventurer
Asmor said:
As you move cautiously through the woods, the soft sounds of childish laughter floats to you. The direction is easy to decipher and you soon locate its source. In the middle of a small clearing, a group of children are gathered, laughing and playing. At least you assume they're playing, since you can't actually see what they are focused on, kneeling or squatting in a tight circle. As you move forward, none of the children respond, continuing to laugh and focus on something in the middle of their circle.
As you near them, you notice a very soft sound, which has underlaid the children's innocent laughter. It's impossible to identify, but sounds like a series of very soft, muffled grunts. And then, as you reach the children and see what is in the center, you realize its source. In the center of the circle is a small animal. Two of the children are holding it stretched out on its back between them, and another has her delicate little hand clamped over its mouth, muffling the sounds it would otherwise make.
It takes a couple of seconds before you realize that it is a rabbit, mainly because it is almost unrecognizable. The creature's flesh has been torn from the bottom of its neck to its groin, and it - and the ground around it - is bespattered with blood, as well as small pieces of fur and meat. The source of the wounds is evident, as one of the children reaches two of his fingers into the mass of meat and flesh and rips free a small piece, before lifting it to his mouth.
Amazingly, the rabbit is still alive, and it shudders under the latest assault, though the hands holding it down give it almost no space to do so. Its madly rolling eye meets your gaze for a moment, and you feel a painful jolt, as a sensation of incredible pain overwhelms you. For a couple of brief instants, though the agony makes it seem much longer, you actually are the rabbit, feeling your skin, flesh and internal organs slowly and methodically being removed while held down and incapable of finding even the tiny release of a scream, dumbly uncertain of what is happening to you or when it will end. And then, as the sensation flares unbearably, you feel something crack and tear within your little, ravaged body, and everything goes quickly - thankfully - dark.
As you shake away the sensation, you look down to see the children relax their grasp and drop the now dead creature to the ground. There is one last trill of laughter, ending with soft murmurs of disappointment. Only then do the children notice your presence and turn to you. The closest, a little girl of perhaps five, looks up at you and smiles beatifically. Her face is angelic, pale white skin and ruddy red cheeks surrounding two bright blue eyes, her head topped with golden curls. Or would be angelic, if it were not for the fact that the cheeks are ruddy with smears and spots of blood. She lifts a gore-speckled hand towards you, and you notice the tiny speck of white fur stuck to the top of her middle finger.
"Hello," she says, smiling sweetly, "Will you play with us?"
Last edited:
CruelSummerLord
First Post
One particularly wicked idea might be that Psychosis is controlling people and turning them into mindless slaves, only as a distraction from its true plan. Psychosis is only doing all this to distract any would-be heroes and others from whatever it is you decide Broodax and Terrax are up to. Being the cold, icy intellect that it is, Psychosis knows that good-aligned humans are especially protective of children, and that serves as a distraction to any would-be heroes, particularly if Psychosis possesses an evil wizard, a mind flayer, or something else that could conceivably be seen to be possessing children.
Little clues and hints, like the fact that psionics or magic don't necessarily work to break mental control in the normal manner, could tip astute players off to the fact that something else is going on. Seeing the wizard or mind flayer act like automatons in the same way as the children, as well as their confused and hostile reaction when and if the players break the control over them, can also serve as clues.
As to how the mind control is broken, charm spells, psionics, and other similar spells might work to break the spell, as could magically putting them to sleep and then waking them up by tapping them across the face, might work. If all else fails, a simple bucket of ice-cold water or a similar shock might also break the spell. That would be one of Psychosis's weaknesses: its victims' mental functions cannot be disrupted by suddenly being startled, shocked, charmed, or in any other way, otherwise it risks losing control over them (roll a Will save, using the DC of the character who is possessed, to see if control is broken).
Children are less resistant to Psychosis's intrusions and possession, but by the same token Psychosis, when he's in there, doesn't have much in the way of mental resources he can hijack. By the same token, a powerful cleric or wizard might be harder to take control of, requiring more time, but once Psychosis is in there...he's much, much harder to dislodge, as one of his most fiendish powers is his ability to use the mental faculties of his victims for his own benefit. Again, children are both easy to dominate and easy to liberate, but powerful minds are much harder on both counts.
Even this can be an advantage: if the players simply kill the puppet Psychosis is passing off as the true kidnapper of the children, without realizing that the supposed villain is suffering the same way as the children, they might just view the matter as over and done with, and stop prying into his affairs, leaving Psychosis and his fellows to carry on with their evil.
Little clues and hints, like the fact that psionics or magic don't necessarily work to break mental control in the normal manner, could tip astute players off to the fact that something else is going on. Seeing the wizard or mind flayer act like automatons in the same way as the children, as well as their confused and hostile reaction when and if the players break the control over them, can also serve as clues.
As to how the mind control is broken, charm spells, psionics, and other similar spells might work to break the spell, as could magically putting them to sleep and then waking them up by tapping them across the face, might work. If all else fails, a simple bucket of ice-cold water or a similar shock might also break the spell. That would be one of Psychosis's weaknesses: its victims' mental functions cannot be disrupted by suddenly being startled, shocked, charmed, or in any other way, otherwise it risks losing control over them (roll a Will save, using the DC of the character who is possessed, to see if control is broken).
Children are less resistant to Psychosis's intrusions and possession, but by the same token Psychosis, when he's in there, doesn't have much in the way of mental resources he can hijack. By the same token, a powerful cleric or wizard might be harder to take control of, requiring more time, but once Psychosis is in there...he's much, much harder to dislodge, as one of his most fiendish powers is his ability to use the mental faculties of his victims for his own benefit. Again, children are both easy to dominate and easy to liberate, but powerful minds are much harder on both counts.
Even this can be an advantage: if the players simply kill the puppet Psychosis is passing off as the true kidnapper of the children, without realizing that the supposed villain is suffering the same way as the children, they might just view the matter as over and done with, and stop prying into his affairs, leaving Psychosis and his fellows to carry on with their evil.
I would run with the creepy possessed kids, but I'd take it one step further. Now, this can veer dangerously close to "Ha, ha! Screw you!" territory if done in too heavyhanded a manner, but, if done well, I think this could heighten the experience.
The party cleric falls to his knees, exhausted. The rest of the party look warily with weapons still drawn at the now-crying children. "By the divine hand of Pelor, it is done," the priest says wearily. "Psychosis has been driven off, though I fear he may return. For now, let us bring these children home."
"Ho there, headman!" the broad-chested fighter booms as they enter the council house. "We bring you your children, safe and sound! The devil Psychosis has been driven off!"
The gathered elders eye the party warily, confusion and apprehension plain on their faces. "Wh... children? Who are you people?" One stammers out. "We're not miss- Get out of here."
The party looks around suddenly as if suddenly awoken from a dream. They don't have children in tow, but rather various strange bits of refuse from the forest. The cleric has drug a large branch into the council house. Trailing flies and bits of ichor, the warrior holds the legs of a long-dead, half-eaten deer carcass. The wizardess carries an armful of dirt and leaves wrapped as if it were a baby.
Now what? What really happened out in the woods? Who's crazy, the party or the council? Were they hallucinating before, or are they hallucinating now? I just feel that something like a manifestation of insanity should involve more than a hackneyed cliche like possessed children. If done well, something like this (possibly replacing the things the party dragged in with something more gruesome) will make the players question what's really going on. Psychosis should genuinely affect the PCs, rather than simply being a scary ghost. Again, if played poorly by the DM, it can be a complete waste of time. Heck, I don't think I could pull it off, myself. Seems like a neat way to drive it home, though. Leaves the PCs with more questions and answers, and all that.
The party cleric falls to his knees, exhausted. The rest of the party look warily with weapons still drawn at the now-crying children. "By the divine hand of Pelor, it is done," the priest says wearily. "Psychosis has been driven off, though I fear he may return. For now, let us bring these children home."
"Ho there, headman!" the broad-chested fighter booms as they enter the council house. "We bring you your children, safe and sound! The devil Psychosis has been driven off!"
The gathered elders eye the party warily, confusion and apprehension plain on their faces. "Wh... children? Who are you people?" One stammers out. "We're not miss- Get out of here."
The party looks around suddenly as if suddenly awoken from a dream. They don't have children in tow, but rather various strange bits of refuse from the forest. The cleric has drug a large branch into the council house. Trailing flies and bits of ichor, the warrior holds the legs of a long-dead, half-eaten deer carcass. The wizardess carries an armful of dirt and leaves wrapped as if it were a baby.
Now what? What really happened out in the woods? Who's crazy, the party or the council? Were they hallucinating before, or are they hallucinating now? I just feel that something like a manifestation of insanity should involve more than a hackneyed cliche like possessed children. If done well, something like this (possibly replacing the things the party dragged in with something more gruesome) will make the players question what's really going on. Psychosis should genuinely affect the PCs, rather than simply being a scary ghost. Again, if played poorly by the DM, it can be a complete waste of time. Heck, I don't think I could pull it off, myself. Seems like a neat way to drive it home, though. Leaves the PCs with more questions and answers, and all that.
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