[OT] My Mini IRON DM contest...

[Creamsteak]

Iron DM contest guidelines: Iron DM is a competitive game to test a person's ability to take a set of 6 "ingredients" and turn it into a workable character class, prestige class, feat, feat-chain, or scenario.

The ingredients are elements that must be used in the designing of a scenario/adventure - which should be written up in overview form - players can be as specific as they like - but detailed stat-blocks and the like are not weighed as heavily as uniqueness and playability of the ideas.

I judge the final results.

Your challenge: Create a character class, feat, or scenario using six elements.

Elements
Action: Lock-picking
Item: A normal samurai sword
Creature: A single hamster
Place: Graveyard
Random: Sacred Tortoise
Random: Grandfather

I will not base any of my selections on this poll. I am polling out of curiousity. I am testing my applicants based on their IRON DM submissions to me, as I feel this contest is truely an example of "how to test a DM." I made some basic changes, to fit my goals more correctly. I'm happy to bring you some competitors from my IRON DM HOMEGAME. Submissions will be posted below.

 

[Creamsteak]

Sei's Submission
Prestige Class: Hamster Clan Ninja
The Hamster Clan is a Clan of noble warriors, trained in the arts of
stealth and assassination. Because of this, the fiercest of the Clan are
seen as ninja-like figures to outsiders.
Over the centuries, the Hamster Clan has developed a feud between
themselves and the warriors of the Reptile Clan, as well as their idol,
the Sacred Tortoise.
The ceremony to induct someone into the clan most often takes place in a
graveyard, often where there lie bodies of fallen Reptile Clan members.
The grandfather of the inductee ceremoniously gives a katana to said
inductee, and a necromancer raises the bodies of the fallen Reptile
Clansmen. The prospective Hamster Clan member and her grandfather take
to battle, slaying the enemy, or dying in the process. If the
prospective survives the ceremony, the warrior is now a member of the
Hamster Clan, and the grandfather retires his sword, unless he is unable
to defeat the Reptile Clansmen.
The weapon of choice for the Clan's warriors is the katana, a normal
sword commonly used by samurai and ninja.
Hit Die: d6

Requirements:
Skills: Disable Device 5 ranks, Open Lock 5 ranks, Knowledge (Hamster
Clan), Hide 5 ranks, Move Silently 5 ranks, Listen 5 ranks
Feats: Weapon Proficiency (Katana)
Character must be from a town with a Hamster Clan temple, and must go
through the above-described ceremony in her hometown to take the first
level.

Class Features:
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Members of the Hamster Clan do not gain
any proficiency when taking this Prestige Class. Upon induction into the
clan, most members renounce armor and all weapons other than the katana
that slowly becomes a part of the warrior.
Favored Enemy: Reptile Clan: At 1st level, the Hamster Clan Ninja gains
preference to fighting members of the Reptile Clan. This works the same
as the Ranger special ability of the same name.
Weapon Specialization: Katana: At 4th level, the Hamster Clan Ninja has
gotten enough practice to be a specialist in the katana. This acts the
same as the Fighter special ability of the same name.

Table: Hamster Clan Ninja
Base Attack Fort Ref Will
Level Bonus Save Save Save Special
1st +1 +0 +2 +0 Favored
Enemy: Reptile Clan, Evasion
2nd +1 +1 +3 +0 Weapon Focus:
Katana
3rd +2 +1 +3 +1 Dodge
4th +3 +2 +4 +1 Weapon
Specialization: Katana, Power Attack
5th +4 +2 +4 +2 Cleave
6th +4 +3 +5 +2 Great Cleave
7th +5 +3 +6 +3 Sunder
8th +5 +4 +6 +4 Lightning
Reflexes
9th +6/+1 +5 +7 +5 Mobility
10th +7/+2 +6 +8 +6 Improved
Initiative

Tony Mack's Submission
The Ghost of Calamin, an adventure for a party of PCs about level 4

Background:
In the metropolis city of Urthgard, religion doesn't play a very large part in
most peoples' lives. Partially due to the highly advanced technology, partially
due to the liberal beliefs/laws of the council of 5 rulers, peoples' belief in
their gods has waned. Of the churches that remain, the church of Calamin is the
largest. Just this morning, however, their guiding spirt, a sacret tortoise,
has ceased communication with the head clerics. A tortoise was always Calamin's
favored animal, and therefore chooses that to communicate with his clerics. A
new initiate to the order, Grolin McAllister, has been charged with finding a
group of adventurers to delve into the caverns beneath the church's graveyard to
find out what has happened to the remains of Calamin.

Adventure:
The PCs can either live or be passing through Urthgard when they are approached
by Grolin. He received the names of the PCs from one of the PCs grandfather,
the head cleric of the church of Calamin. They are summoned to him (the PC can
choose the name if he wishes, or use Dylan Rochester) and given their mission:
to descend into the 2 levels of tunnels and descern the fate of the urn of
Calamin. Grolin is sent with them to aid them. He is a level 4 cleric of
Calamin (whose favored weapon is a katana). In addition to Grolin, the PC that
is most "thief oriented" (Thief, Bard, etc.) will receive "Gloves of Calamin", a
set of gloves there were worn by Calamin himself, that continually "bless" (as
the spell) all friendly people within 20 feet, and give +10 morale bonus to that
PCs open lock checks. Grolin leads them to the graveyard behind the church into
a large crypt.
Sitting at the foot of the stairs that leads down below the crypt, there is a
hamster. He stays out of reach of the PCs, but is determined to follow them
down the stairs. Eventually, the PCs (who get much use out of the lock pick
gloves) come to a door enscribed with the following:
"Here lies the remains of Calamin, brave fighter from the dark years and
banisher of evil"
Behind the door, a cleric of Zarpheus, a diety opposing Calamin is chanting to
his god, and has set up a circle of black candles around the pedestal holding
Calamin's remains. If the PCs don't realize it, point out (through Grolin) that
if this were to continue, the remaining followers of Calamin would probably
leave in droves, further weakening Calamin's power.
The cleric of Zarpheus is a level 6 cleric wielding a morning star. Should the
PCs survive and destroy the evil cleric, Grolin proceeds to purify the altar by
destroying the candles and applying holy water, while saying a prayer.
Immediately afterwards, the hamster transforms into a man wearing a suit of
shining silver armor and wielding a katana....the avatar of Calamin. Grolin
instantly recognizes the man and bows profusely, while Calamin thanks them for
restoring his remains. He proceeds to reward the PCs as fit, and returns to his
native plane.
The PCs and Grolin return to the surface, and are greeted happily by Dylan.
The sacred tortoise has once again been dishing out Calamin's divine will, and
his first act of business is a retaliatory strike at the church of Zarpheus, in
a neighboring town. The PCs are invited to help and can do so if they wish.

Chaotica500's Submission
The situation: Your Grandfather Zaitsu, a powerful wizard and leader of the Sacred Tortoise Clan, sends you lead by his faithful and well trained hampster familiar, Tichi, to the Family Graveyard to retrive your Great-Great-Great Grandfather, Ikinichi's, samurai sword. Although not magical, due to the fact that Ikinichi was the founder of the tribe, his sword, a respected and honored symbol of the clan's strength, is well guarded in the crypt where it lies with many traps and locks, where your unique lock-picking and trap disarming skills will come in handy rather than your arrogant cousin, Samariku's, brute strength. You must retrieve it before first light tommorow or the Clan will go to civil war, however.

Nigel Joseph O'Rear's Application
Scenario.

One of the PC's Grandfathers, a great adventurer in his days, has recently
passed away. He has made the rather odd request that the PCs bring a single
Hamster to the graveyard where he is buried.

If the PCs bring the hamster during the day, nothing happens. If
the PCs bring it during the night, the ghostly image of the old man
appears and uses the hamster as a medium. The tiny creature urges
them to find an ancient samurai sword buried somewhere in the largest
crypt in the graveyard.

The sword is a +2 katana that can only be wielded by ghosts, ghouls, and
ghasts. It cannot harm the living, only ghosts and
other forms of undead. The old man plans on using it to slay the vengeful
spirits that haunt the graveyard, that he and the other occupants may rest
in peace. Before they leave, the hamster burrows into the old man's
grave and retireves a small sliver of something.

The PCs travel to the largest crypt, an imposing visage of rough hewn
stone with a bizzare turtle motif. Past traps and mazes of a difficult
calibur, they come to one last door. Magically sealed, the door seems
impossible to open. Just as the PCs have exhausted everything, the
hamster gives the resident lock-picker the object he retireved from his
grave. It is a thin sliver of a tortise shell. Not any tortise, claims
the hamster, but the Sacred Tortise of Quinarr. Thanks to the holy powers
of the sliver, the magic barring the door can be broken with a lockpick
check.

Inside, the PCs find the sword, named Benevolent Shell, resting on an
alter of stone and ivory, carved into the shapes of turtles and tortises.
The sword itself is decorated in a turtle theme, a green and brown
scabbard, mottled to resemble a turtle shell, and a turtle-shaped pomell.
This crypt, explains the hamster, is one of the grandest crypts of the
Quinarr religion. Their saints and high priests are buried here, as well
as their most sacred artifacts. As they reach for the sword, the ghostly
guardians appear, demanding the lives of the heroes for the trespass they
have made. The heroes try to defend themselves and their actions, but the
spirits will not listen, so blind is their rage.

The fight is difficult, but not impossible. The hamster channels enough
astral and ethereal energy so the ghosts become corporeal enough to be
harmed by non-magical weapons.

The battle won, the hamster is freed of his possession, and the old man's
spirit appears one last time. He triumphantly plucks the sword from the
alter, and unsheathes it. Whispering a prayer of forgiveness to Quinarr,
the party is teleported back to the grave of the Grandfather. The old man
thanks them, and invites them to watch as he dispatches the spirits.

The End.

Erickei's Application
"There can be only one: the last Highlander"
-----

setting: condemned, old empty warehouse, dark, wet and windy from a storm that has broken through the old windows

chara: Immortal with great speed, but relatively low strength

item: he (speedy) has a light cavalry saber; has Improved Critical with it

chara: Immortal with great strength, but low running speed

item: he (strong) has an off-hand dagger/swordbreaker and is highly proficient in its use (can potentially break the saber in two on a successful parry+STR test)

situation: They are the last two "Highlander"-class Immortals. Both have well over a century of active combat experience. Either can die if decapitated (no other way). Only one will leave...Which one?

=====================

The scenario is
"Death Becomes Her/Him"
-------

chara: a (SailorMoon-type) "transforming superhero"

true form: an average guy, married to a devoted wife whom he loves dearly...btw she doesn't know about...

"hero" form: the standard "magical girl"

problem: changing forms saps (his) life essence; he has maybe 2 more "changes" before he risks dying when he shifts back to his true self

bigger problem: bad guys doing what they do best: killing innocents

dilemma: he has to choose between being stuck as a female permanently or dying...either way, he'll probably lose his wife (unless he never goes "super" again and leaves ths innocents to die...)

Crocodilus23's Application
Hooks:
1)The adventurers are entering or in a town with a strong ancestor veneration tradition, preferrably close to an Oriental setting. The villagers tell them they desire help to appease a spirit watching over their graveyard. They have left food and gifts outside the shrine, but the spirit demands that the shrine be opened, and gifts be placed inside, but none of them have the key. They hope the adventurers have magic or skills that will help them appease the "sacred tortoise spirit". Should the adventurers destroy or damage the shrine, they will become angry. Should they please the villagers with success and due respect, their stay and meals will be free for a day.

2)The adventurers come across the shrine at the side of the road. Fuj, the tortoise, has become increasingly irritable, and demands they open his shrine and pay him respects as the "guardian of this road". If the adventurers are unwilling or unable to open the shrine, he becomes very angry and begins pronouncing threats and dire omens upon them. Should the adventurers succeed, he explains himself, and asks them to help him restore their master to life.

3)The adventurers slay a sorcerer when he attempts to rob them. His diary leads them to the locale of his most recent planned theft, a sword reputed to be wielded by a great samurai. Inside are Fuj and Thip, waiting for their master's return, troubled by his death, and hoping to find a way to return him to life, and correspondingly regain the powers lost by his death.

DM Information: In a graveyard is a small enclosed shrine, commemorating a samurai's grandfather. Locked within are two ex-familiars of a powerful sorcerer who put them inside while attempting to rob the shrine, left when the sorcerer fled rather than being caught by town guards, but abandoned when he died before he could return for them. The two ex-familiars, a hamster and a tortoise, both capable of intelligent thought, have been trying to persuade others to set them free. The tortoise can speak Common, due to the power of his master's ability, and has extorted the people into believing he is a sacred tortoise spirit, blessing the shrine, who desires them to open the doors of the small box, and put food and gifts inside (and therefore allowing the two to escape). The hamster, nervous and unable to speak to those outside, frantically claws at the inside of the box-like shrine trying to get out, but the locked metal box is no match for his tiny teeth and claws. Soon the food offerings will run out, and the two ex-familiars will starve. However, none of the villagers have the shrine's key, or the skill to pick the lock, and will not defile the shrine by damaging it. Should they defile the shrine, the samurai descendant of the venerated elder will hunt the party, seeking vengeance.

Contents of Shrine:
Thip, Hamster Familiar
Fuj, Tortoise Familiar
Another day's worth of food (presumably for the samurai's ancestor spirit, but eaten rather swiftly by the two greedy familiars)
A beautifully masterworked (but not otherwise remarkable or magical) katana, the blade of the samurai's grandfather. (500 gold value)
A few candles and incense
Pictures of the grandfather, a strong and mature human samurai of around 60 years.

DC to pick the lock of the shrine: 20
DC to break open the shrine with raw force: 15
The shrine's case has a hardness of 5, and 10 hit points. The doors have only 5 hit points, as they are very thin metal.

Robert Richards' Application
Stealth Shogun.-Prestige Class
Requirements:
Base Attack: +5
Proficiency with Samurai swords. Weapon Focus Samurai sword.
Ranks: Hide(8)
Open Lock(8)
Pickpocket(8)
Special: Must have pet stealth hamster(only one)
Note: If hamster dies at any time, the Stealth Samurai loses her abilities until
she obtains a new one.
Must have dug up a grave.

100% BA bonus.
Strong Fort/Reflex

Special Abilities:
Graverobber: At first level, the Stealth Shogun gains the ability to dig up a
grave with amazing speed, and lay the dirt back perfectly, and it takes a check
Spot DC: 20+Stealth Shogun level+Dexterity Modifier(at time of digging, if the
shogun levels up later the dirt does not become harder to detect). If this check
is failed, it cannot be made by the same person for 24 hours. This must be used
in a graveyard.
Super lockpicking: At first level, Stealth Shogun gains a +4 competance bonus on
picking locks.
Mug: At second level the Stealth Shogun gains the ability to mug grandfathers
with extreme supremacy. The Stealth Shogun is able to steal twice as much gold
as the man may be carrying, and has a +4 competance bonus on doing this.
Ride: At 5th level the Stealth Shogun gains the ability to ride turtles
excedingly well. Any turtle that the Stealth Shogun rides moves at a speed of
40ft/round walk, 50ft/round swim, and aids the Stealth Shogun in defense, adding
DR 1/+2.
Improved Coup de Grace: At 7th level, If wielding a samurai sword in both hands,
the Stealth Shogun has the ability to make a Coup de Grace as a standard action,
instead of a full round action. Still requires a helpless victim.

If you like I can add more abilities here, but I figured I would just do the
basics. And one pertaining to the sword, cause I like it.

Tom A Barry's Application
Prestige Class: Hamtaro Slayer
The Hamtaro slayer is a perfect japanese warrior of slaying annoying, if
cute and easily marketable, hamsters. Realizing that this uber cute market
of creatures is dishonorable to the entire country as japan, making anime
itself seem like childs play, this warrior, known merely as the Hamtaro
slayer, takes up a wakizashi or katana and goes on a ritualistic killing
spree, so as to not dishonor japan and, in turn, his grandfather, and
ancestors before him.
Requirements
Pickpocket: 4 ranks (Remember, hamsters are always locked in cages!)
Hide: 4 ranks
Move Silently: 4 ranks
Favored Enemy bonus: Animals, Magical Beasts or Abberations (Chibis)
Speak Language: Japanese (Or english, for the crappily dubbed) or
Hamster
Weapon Focus: Wakizashi or Katana. Most Hamtaro Slayer's are samurai who
don't realize that they've somehow been transposed into a 20/21st century
reality, and still think that they're Himura scouts.
Special: Must have slain a single hamster that has anime qualities: A
normal hamster does not count for this purpose.
Class skills
Animal Empathy (Cha), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Disguise (Cha), Handle
Animal (Cha), Hide (dex)*, Iaijtutsu Focus (Cha), Move Silently (dex)*, Open
Lock (Dex), Ride (dex)
Skill points: 4 + intelligence modifier per level.
Class Features:
Weapon and Armor proficiencies: Hamtaro Slayers gain no further weapon
proficiencies, although they must already be proficient in either the katana
or the wakizashi. Hamtaro slayers are trained in the use of light armor, but
they may also wear hide armor if made from the bodies of either hamsters,
chibi's, or Pokemon.

Midget on Midget: While they don't deserve it, Hamsters are not to be slain
without giving them a chance. A Hamtaro Slayer must fight a creature smaller
he at that creature's size: Thus, a Hamtaro slayer learns to shrink in size
to a minimum size of diminutive. The Hamtaro Slayer is allowed to fight fine
sized creatures, but he does not get cute kill points for them, nor does he
obtain cute kill points for slaying creatures while greater than their size.
A Hamtaro Slayer suffers penalties regarding size while in a smaller form,
but all equipment shrinks with him; the Hamtaro Slayer does not suffer a
loss of natural armor.

Honorable lock picking: If using the honor system from Rokugan, a Hamtaro
Slayer does not suffer dishonor from undergoing the action of lock picking;
Hamtaro slayers are far too important to the world to have such an important
aspect looked down upon.

Cute Kill Points: Any time a Hamtaro Slayer slays either a pokemon, a chibi,
or any other creature with a sickening level of cuteness which is not
deserved to be within this world, that also has a challange rating at least
equal to two less than the character's character level, that character gains
a cute kill point. For every CR the creature is above the character's
character level, the Hamtaro Slayer gains an additional cute kill point, up
to five cut kill points; a Hamtaro Slayer may not have more than twice his
class level in cute kill points at any one time. A Hamtaro slayer may expend
Cute kill points in a number of ways.
Ignore Magic: The Hamtaro slayer may spend one cute kill point per spell
level of a spell to be treated as if he were not in the area of that spells
effect; epic level spells are treated as 10th level spells for this purpose.
A Hamtaro Slayer may also ignore the effect of a supernatural or spell like
ability of a chibi, pokemon, or other annoyingly cute animal, expending one
cute kill point per 2 hit dice of the creature.
Wounds that kill: A Hamtaro Slayer may spend three cute kill points to
treat a non-critical hit as a critical threat. A Hamtaro Slayer of at least
8th level may spend ten Cute Kill points to deal an additional amount of
damage to a chibi, a pokemon, or an overly cute anime animal equal to the
amount of damage it requires to cause death from massive damage.
Increased disbelief: A hamtaro Slayer of 7th level or higher may spend a
cute kill point to add 2 to his SR for a number of rounds equal to his
wisdom modifier.

Disbelief: The Hamtaro Slayer is annoyed by all forms of pokemon and the
like, and has come to believe them as illusions. This actually doesn't give
him any effect against pokemon and chibis, but the Hamtaro Slayer does gain
a +4 bonus to will saves to disbelieve illusion effects, and they also take
half damage from colossal mallets that are somehow pulled out of nowhere.

Immunity to the impossible: Starting at 6th level, the Hamtaro Slayer
gains SR 20 + his class level against spells and spell like abilities of
chibis, pokemon, and overly cute animals.

Chibi's can die too: at 9th level, the Hamtaro Slayer learns that
chibi's, being wusses, dislike graveyards. As thus, the Hamtaro Slayer gains
a +2 circumstance bonus on attacks while fighting a chibi in a graveyard.
Only chibi's are affected by this.

I just hate them all: At 10th level, the Hamtaro Slayer has epitomized
on his vengeful fury, respecting traditional kami such as the sacred turtle
(Kamenokami). Thus, he gains a +5 luck bonus on saving throws, attacks, and
damage, against Chibi's, Pokemon, and overly cute animals. In addition, he
uses his highest favored enemy bonus for all three of these forms of
creatures.

Base attack: +1
Good Saves: Fortitude and Will
Hit Dice: d8

David Rittenour's Application
Grandfather Sword

Assuming of course, that you mean Grandfather Sword, here is the scene. A lone Samurai by the name of Fei, is standing in the middle of a graveyard at dawn. The Sacred Tortoise, fortold in legends past, is the key to purging the land of the plague of undead. The tortoise speaks to Fei telepathically - Warrior, My power is held within the acient blade known as the Grandfather. It alone has the power to destroy the undead, and prevent their ressurection. Go now, into the tomb before you, and claim it so that you may save your people. - On the way down, he comes across a wounded hamster. Unconcerned with it, Fei moves on, ever intent on saving his people. He comes upon a door, embroidled with the symbol of the Sacred Tortoise. at the center of the shell, is a lock, but there is no key around. Luckily, Fei has some experience at lock-picking. Just as he is about to attempt picking the lock, the hamster enters the room, but it is no longer the poor little creature he met earlier. No, it has grown exponentially, it's body a hulking mass of decay, blood dripping from it's fangs, as it glares at the one who had left it to die. Aparently, it had died - sort of - Now infected with the plague, it intends to devour our hero, in turn making him a zombie, and forever damning the hope of the villagers. The choice, is yours. Will you attempt to pick the lock? Or fight the beast?

Bernie Klein's Application
Family Honor
An adventure for PCs of any level.

Background:

Long ago in Kemensu, an ancient oriental country in the land of FarMord, there was a proud and righteous family that had served the Emperor faithfully for generations as bodyguards. This family, the Tar’Etto, believed that magic was a crutch for those without skill in the blade. The Tar’Etto family were master samurai and none could defeat them in battle. Each family in the Empire of Kemensu had a religious artifact of that bound that family to their animal spirit. In the case of the Tar’Etto, their artifact was known as the Sacred Tortoise.

A rival family, the Ryo'Dara, coveted the prestigious position of bodyguard to the Emperor. They were known for three things; First that they were weak samurai at best. Second that they dappled in the black magics known as necromancy, and third they were not given much respect because their spirit animal was the Hamster. Rin Ryo’Dara, second son to Master Ryo’Dara challenged the first son of Tar’Etto, Shing. Since Tar’Etto got challenged they got to choose the medium of combat. Shing choose the samurai sword and combat to the death. As the challenging party, Rin got to choose the battlefield. He choose the Tar’Etto Burial Ground at midnight.

The Tar’Etto was angered at the lack of respect shown by the Ryo’Dara but not wishing to lose face they accepted the battleground. This is exactly what the Ryo’Dara family hoped would happen. Rin Ryo’Dara was a vampire and with his unnatural strength he could best Shing as they both would be using normal samurai swords, and Shing’s normal sword would be unable to hurt Rin.

The battle took place and through Shing fought bravely and was able to damage Ryo, he was not able to defeat him and died. Master Ryo’Dara used great necromantic magic that required the blood of a fallen Tar’Etto to activate and cursed the Tar’Etto family. The Tar’Etto family quickly fell out of favor with the Emperor and with the other houses. The Tar’Etto Burial Ground became haunted. Their graveyard was filled with walking spirits of the Tar’Etto family. In addition to the curse Rin Ryo’Dara also store the Sacred Tortoise artifact and placed in the main vault in the center of the graveyard. He put one of the most complicated locks on the door and destroyed the key. Rin knew that the only way for the curse to be broken was for someone of Tar’Etto descent to get the Sacred Tortoise from the vault. And since the vault was designed to be unbreakable and that the Tar’Etto family was so noble and honorable that they would never lower themselves to lock picking, the Tar’Etto family would forever be out of favor and have their family’s ancestors tormented for eternity.

Player Hooks:

The PCs need to meet Grandfather Tar’Etto, and they can do this in one of several ways.

Either another family the PCs are trying to curry favor with owe Grandfather Tar’Etto a family debt from long ago and ask the PCs to aid him.

PCs learn of the curse of Tar’Etto and decide to aid Grandfather Tar’Etto.

PCs need the power of the artifact known as the Sacred Tortoise and speak to Grandfather Tar’Etto to learn how they can get it.

They come across a mansion that appears to be vacated and rundown and decided to investigate.

Summary:

The PCs meet with Grandfather Tar’Etto at the old rundown mansion that was once the stronghold of Tar’Etto strength. Here they learn that Grandfather Tar’Etto is the last of the Tar’Etto family. He knows that if they can pick the lock on the Vault and get the Sacred Tortoise he can use the power to restore himself to a youthful state, return his ancestors to their rest and attempt to restore the honor of Tar’Etto. If the PCs are here because they need the Sacred Tortoise, Grandfather Tar’Etto will journey with the PCs after getting the Sacred Tortoise and use it on their behalf in thanks. He always seems to have his hand resting on the pommel of a samurai sword. Grandfather has learned that each of the animal spirits gives a great power and a great weakness to its family. The Tar’Etto family refused to accept change and were as slow in changing beliefs as the Tortoise at moving. He has learned from that weakness and has learned how to pick locks but he is the not the best at it, but he will attempt it for his family’s honor. He also warns the PCs that there could be a guardian left behind by Rin. If there is someone in the party has a great Open Lock skill and they ask Grandfather to stay behind, he tells the PCs that he must venture into the graveyard with the PCs because the spirits of his ancestors will attack anyone not with a Tar’Etto descendant.

As they journey through the graveyard they come across mindless undead that attack regardless if Grandfather is present or not. The path is winding and long filled with fallen trees and the howling voices of the dead. When they arrive at the Vault see the door and the lock fashioned out a hamster skull. Opening the lock will trigger an enervation spell on whoever opened it and whoever assisted with the roll. Inside the chamber they find the Sacred Tortoise but it’s block by a single giant vampire hamster. After they fight the creature, Grandfather will be attacking with the same samurai sword that lost to Rin so long ago, they can recover the Sacred Tortoise. Since he is still the Grandfather of the family will we still insist on being called Grandfather.