Special Conversion Thread: Moldvay's Undead
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demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
I think we should change the flavor text around a bit; a lot of this looks to be copy-paste from the lesser entry.
Thoughts on flavor:
They lead their lessers in wild, frenzied revels on holy days like the winter solstice and fall equinox. They often invite cruel nymphs, satyrs and other fey to join them, giving rise to rumors of witchcraft.
The great are smart enough to be favored by the Queen of Air and Darkness, and they try (without much luck) to get their lessers to show Her the reverence She deserves.
They lord over lessers regardless of the lesser's power, taking great pride in bullying around advanced lessers the size of houses.
Thoughts on flavor:
They lead their lessers in wild, frenzied revels on holy days like the winter solstice and fall equinox. They often invite cruel nymphs, satyrs and other fey to join them, giving rise to rumors of witchcraft.
The great are smart enough to be favored by the Queen of Air and Darkness, and they try (without much luck) to get their lessers to show Her the reverence She deserves.
They lord over lessers regardless of the lesser's power, taking great pride in bullying around advanced lessers the size of houses.
demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
I'd put the name of the monster into the flavor text I provided... I didn't because I can't spell the damn thing!
demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
Looks good!
Shade
Monster Junkie
Dark lords
CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any, often subterranean
FREQUENCY: Very rare
ORGANIZATION: Solitary
ACTIVITY CYCLE: Not applicable
DIET: Carnivore
INTELLIGENCE: Exceptional to godlike
TREASURE: 25% H
ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evil
NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: - 2
MOVEMENT: 12
HIT DICE: 13 +
THAC0: See below
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2
DAMAGE/ATTACKS: 1d12 each
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Energy drain, aging
SPECIAL DEFENSES: See below
MAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%
SIZE: M
MORALE: Fearless
X.P. VALUE: 13 = 17,000 xp;
14th = 18,000;
15th = 19,000 xp, etc.
A dark lord is an extremely high level, chaotic evil NPC who was slain by a sphere of annihilation and has managed to return to the world as one of the undead. In essence, when the dark lord was killed, it was sucked into another dimension. The creature joined the ranks of the undead and has struggled its way back across the dimensions with one goal in mind: revenge on the living. In so doing, the dark lord has gained a number of powers dealing with other dimensions, gravity, and the space-time continuum.
A dark lord looks like the shadows of a person, but looks are deceiving. The monster is actually composed of material from the Negative Material Plane.
Combat: Any character who comes within 200’ of a dark lord is slowed due to the effects of heavy gravity (no save allowed). On each successful hit, a dark lord not only causes 1-12 points of damage, but drains one energy level if a save vs. death is failed. It also ages its victim 10d4 years if a saving throw vs. spells is failed. Both the energy drain and aging apply to each of the dark lord’s physical attacks. Thus, an unlucky character might lose two levels and age 80 years in one round.
In addition to its physical attacks, a dark lord can cast one spell per round. Consider the spell to be an innate power without the usual spell-casting requirements (e.g. no somatic gestures, incantations, or special components are needed). The dark lord has only nine spells that can be cast, but they are extremely powerful ones: disintegrate, duo-dimension, alter reality, reverse gravity, maze, astral spell, gate, imprisonment, and time stop.
The THAC0 of a dark lord depends on its level: 13th-14th = 7; 15th + = 5.
A cleric of level 9-13 can turn a dark lord on a roll of 20. A cleric of level 14 + can turn a dark lord on a roll of 19-20.
A dark lord can be hit only by magical weapons with a +2 or greater bonus. The following spells, or attack forms, have no effect on dark lords: charm, sleep, enfeeblement, hold, cold, electricity, teleportation, polymorph, fear, magnetism, insanity, slow, disintegrate, maze, imprisonment, gravity, time, paralysis, or death (including poison). Holy water will do only half normal damage on a dark lord. A raise dead spell will destroy a dark lord, but it is allowed a saving throw versus spells.
Note: Dark lords are even more powerful than liches and should be used cautiously by the DM.
Habitat/Society: Dark lords are strictly solitary and thus have no society. They prefer to inhabit lonely, forlorn places, especially ones that were once the abode of great evil. Graveyards, ruins, battlefields, isolated caverns, and wild wastelands are their preferred dwelling places. Sunlight does not harm dark lords, but they will stick to darkness or shadow if at all possible, making them harder to notice, and better fitting their mood and temperament.
Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #210 (1994).
CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any, often subterranean
FREQUENCY: Very rare
ORGANIZATION: Solitary
ACTIVITY CYCLE: Not applicable
DIET: Carnivore
INTELLIGENCE: Exceptional to godlike
TREASURE: 25% H
ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evil
NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: - 2
MOVEMENT: 12
HIT DICE: 13 +
THAC0: See below
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2
DAMAGE/ATTACKS: 1d12 each
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Energy drain, aging
SPECIAL DEFENSES: See below
MAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%
SIZE: M
MORALE: Fearless
X.P. VALUE: 13 = 17,000 xp;
14th = 18,000;
15th = 19,000 xp, etc.
A dark lord is an extremely high level, chaotic evil NPC who was slain by a sphere of annihilation and has managed to return to the world as one of the undead. In essence, when the dark lord was killed, it was sucked into another dimension. The creature joined the ranks of the undead and has struggled its way back across the dimensions with one goal in mind: revenge on the living. In so doing, the dark lord has gained a number of powers dealing with other dimensions, gravity, and the space-time continuum.
A dark lord looks like the shadows of a person, but looks are deceiving. The monster is actually composed of material from the Negative Material Plane.
Combat: Any character who comes within 200’ of a dark lord is slowed due to the effects of heavy gravity (no save allowed). On each successful hit, a dark lord not only causes 1-12 points of damage, but drains one energy level if a save vs. death is failed. It also ages its victim 10d4 years if a saving throw vs. spells is failed. Both the energy drain and aging apply to each of the dark lord’s physical attacks. Thus, an unlucky character might lose two levels and age 80 years in one round.
In addition to its physical attacks, a dark lord can cast one spell per round. Consider the spell to be an innate power without the usual spell-casting requirements (e.g. no somatic gestures, incantations, or special components are needed). The dark lord has only nine spells that can be cast, but they are extremely powerful ones: disintegrate, duo-dimension, alter reality, reverse gravity, maze, astral spell, gate, imprisonment, and time stop.
The THAC0 of a dark lord depends on its level: 13th-14th = 7; 15th + = 5.
A cleric of level 9-13 can turn a dark lord on a roll of 20. A cleric of level 14 + can turn a dark lord on a roll of 19-20.
A dark lord can be hit only by magical weapons with a +2 or greater bonus. The following spells, or attack forms, have no effect on dark lords: charm, sleep, enfeeblement, hold, cold, electricity, teleportation, polymorph, fear, magnetism, insanity, slow, disintegrate, maze, imprisonment, gravity, time, paralysis, or death (including poison). Holy water will do only half normal damage on a dark lord. A raise dead spell will destroy a dark lord, but it is allowed a saving throw versus spells.
Note: Dark lords are even more powerful than liches and should be used cautiously by the DM.
Habitat/Society: Dark lords are strictly solitary and thus have no society. They prefer to inhabit lonely, forlorn places, especially ones that were once the abode of great evil. Graveyards, ruins, battlefields, isolated caverns, and wild wastelands are their preferred dwelling places. Sunlight does not harm dark lords, but they will stick to darkness or shadow if at all possible, making them harder to notice, and better fitting their mood and temperament.
Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #210 (1994).
demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
Alright. What are we going to do about the aging, first off? There's no aging effects in D&D these days... ability drain? I recall recommending the touch of years spell from Complete Mage for an aging-type effect earlier.
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