-
NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.
Special Conversion Thread: Moldvay's Undead
- Thread starter Shade
- Start date
- Status
Shade
Monster Junkie
Get ready to do some reading. 
Callicantzaros
FREQUENCY: Rare
NO APPEARING: 2-20
ARMOR CLASS: 5
MOVE: 15"
HIT DICE: 6
% IN LAIR: 10%
TREASURE TYPE: D
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Nil
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Stand
INTELLIGENCE: Low
ALIGNMENT: Neutral evil
SIZE: L (6-8' tall)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
Great Callicantzaros
FREQUENCY: Very rare
NO APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: - 1
MOVE: 18"
HIT DICE: 18 (90 hp)
% IN LAIR: 10%
TREASURE TYPE: I
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 6-36
SPECIAL ATTACKS: See below
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Very
ALIGNMENT: Neutral evil
SIZE: L (10' tall)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
In Greek folklore, the callicantzari are hideous, man-eating monsters that sometimes take on human form. They are described differently in different regions of Greece, but in general there are two main types of them: small and large.
The small callicantzari are not maneaters, and are less hideous to look at and less numerous than the larger variety. In fact, the small callicantzari are closer in nature to the European faerie races than to any kind of undead. The larger callicantzari are malicious and deadly. Their size varies from human-size to twice the height of a cottage. Usually, they are about 6-8' tall.
Callicantzari have dead-black skin. Most of them are covered with a coat of shaggy black hair, but a bald variety is sometimes mentioned. Their heads are huge, out of all proportion to the rest of their bodies. Their faces are dark black, and their eyes glare redly. They have the ears of goats or asses. From their huge mouths, blood-red tongues loll out, flanked by ferocious-looking tusks. Their bodies are generally lean and tall, but some are shorter and thick-set.
Callicantzari have the arms and hands of monkeys. Their nails are as long again as their fingers, and are curled like the talons of a vulture. Some have the legs of a goat or an ass, some have one human leg and one bestial one, and some have human legs with the foot so distorted that the toes come out where the heel should be. Hence, it is not surprising that these monsters are often lame, but even so, they are swift of foot and terrible in strength. They run with a peculiar shambling gait which, while appearing awkward, still allows them to run quickly.
Sometimes a callicantzaros (the singular form of callicantzari) appears to be a normal human; sometimes a callicantzaros appears in completely animal shape. In general, the callicantzari are neither wholly human nor wholly bestial but a blend of the two. It is possible that, in ancient times, "callicantzari" was a general term to describe animal-human combinations. Creatures like the centaurs, satyrs, and sileni (like satyrs, but part ass) were specific kinds of callicantzari. If so, the generic meaning has long been lost, and callicantzari has evolved into a term to describe specific monsters.
From dawn to sunset, the callicantzari hide in dark and dank places - in caves or beneath mills - feeding on the loathsome food there (snakes, snails, insects, etc.). But at night, they issue forth and run wildly to and fro, rending and crushing those who cross their paths. Destruction, waste, greed, and lust mark their courses.
Despite their uncouth shapes, the monsters delight in dancing. Sometimes a person can trick them into dancing all night. But people must beware, for the callicantzari delight in the taste of human flesh.
Fortunately, the callicantzari are stupid, gullible, and extremely quarrelsome. They have little discipline or sense of planning, which adds an interesting aspect of roleplaying to an adventure as the PCs try to figure out ways to trick these monsters. A smart, alert person usually has no difficulty getting the better of them, as the following story from the island of Scyros shows(related in Modern Greek Folklore and Ancient Greek Religion, by John Cuthbert
Lawson):
A man of Scyros was returning home from a mill late at night, driving his mule before him laden with two sacks of meal. When he had gone about halfway, he saw before him some callicantzari in his path. Realizing his danger, he at once got upon his mule and laid himself flat between the two sacks and covered himself up with a rug, so as to look like another sack of meal. Soon the callicantzari were about his mule, and he held his breath and heard one say, "Here is a pack on this side and a pack on that side, and the top-load in the middle, hut where is the man?"
So the callicantzari ran back to the mill thinking that the man had loitered behind. But they could not find him and came back after the mule, looked again, and said, "Here is a pack on this side and a pack on that side, and the top-load in the middle, but where is the man?" So they ran on in front, fearing that he had hastened on home before his mule. But when they could not find him, they returned again, then went back a second time toward the mill. This went on many times. The mule needed no one to guide it; it had traveled the path many times. While the callicantzari were running to and fro, the mule steadily trudged home. When the beast stopped at the door of the man's home, the callicantzari were close behind. The man called to his wife, and she opened the door and he entered safely.
When the callicantzari saw how he had tricked them, they knocked at the door in great anger. The woman, fearing that the monsters would break in by force, promised to let them in on the condition that they first count the holes in her sieve. To this they agreed, and she let the sieve down to them by a cord from an upper window. Straightaway, the monsters began to count the holes, and they counted round and round the outermost circle of holes in the sieve and so never got to the middle. Frustrated with the lengthy counting process, they only counted more and more hurriedly as a result.
Meanwhile, dawn was breaking. Soon the neighbors saw the callicantzari, and they hurried off to the priests and told them. The priests immediately set out with censers and sprinkling vessels in their hands to chase the callicantzari. The monsters fled right through town, spreading havoc in their path as they were hotly pursued by the priests. At last, when they were clear of the town, one callicantzaros began to lag behind, and by a great effort the foremost priest ran up to him and struck him on a hind foot with a sprinkling vessel. At once the foot fell off. The callicantzaros replaced it as best he could, but he got it on backward. Thus came about the phrase "callicantzaros foot," to describe their peculiar kind of lameness.
Callicantzari are on the borderland between the undead and other monsters. While the final choice of whether or not to make them undead is up to the DM, I have classed them as undead because, in legends, they operate only at night, can be scared away by unarmed clerics, take damage from holy water, are man-eaters, and traditionally appear only at the 12 days of Christmas - a time, like Halloween, when the harriers between the dead and the living are weak.
Callicantzari are a kind of undead mixture of animal and human traits. They have black skin and shaggy hair, oversized heads with goat ears, and red eyes. Their feet are either animal feet or distorted so that the heels are where the toes should be. Callicantzari are big, stupid, malicious man-eaters that roam at night seeking prey. Daylight does not actually hurt them, but they will avoid it if at all possible.
The traditional leader of the callicantzari is the Great Callicantzaros. He has the power of confusion (as per the magic-user spell, usable three times per day); anyone who fails the saving throw against it will be influenced toward mindless destruction, greed, and lust as long as the Great Callicantzaros is within sight. Clerics and cavaliers of good alignment, including paladins, are immune to the confusion. Any other character of good alignment gets a +2 on the saving throw.
The callicantzari are hopelessly stupid and easily tricked. They often work at cross-purposes since they are incapable of organized action. The Great Callicantzaros, by himself, acts in an intelligent manner. But even he cannot exert enough influence to alter the stupid behavior of his fellow callicantzari.
Clerics can turn callicantzari with the same chances as they have against wights. The Great Callicantzaros cannot be turned, but he will flee if the majority of the callicantzari flee. Holy water causes 2-8 hp damage per vial against callicantzari.
Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #138 (1988).
Callicantzaros
FREQUENCY: Rare
NO APPEARING: 2-20
ARMOR CLASS: 5
MOVE: 15"
HIT DICE: 6
% IN LAIR: 10%
TREASURE TYPE: D
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Nil
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Stand
INTELLIGENCE: Low
ALIGNMENT: Neutral evil
SIZE: L (6-8' tall)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
Great Callicantzaros
FREQUENCY: Very rare
NO APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: - 1
MOVE: 18"
HIT DICE: 18 (90 hp)
% IN LAIR: 10%
TREASURE TYPE: I
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 6-36
SPECIAL ATTACKS: See below
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Very
ALIGNMENT: Neutral evil
SIZE: L (10' tall)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
In Greek folklore, the callicantzari are hideous, man-eating monsters that sometimes take on human form. They are described differently in different regions of Greece, but in general there are two main types of them: small and large.
The small callicantzari are not maneaters, and are less hideous to look at and less numerous than the larger variety. In fact, the small callicantzari are closer in nature to the European faerie races than to any kind of undead. The larger callicantzari are malicious and deadly. Their size varies from human-size to twice the height of a cottage. Usually, they are about 6-8' tall.
Callicantzari have dead-black skin. Most of them are covered with a coat of shaggy black hair, but a bald variety is sometimes mentioned. Their heads are huge, out of all proportion to the rest of their bodies. Their faces are dark black, and their eyes glare redly. They have the ears of goats or asses. From their huge mouths, blood-red tongues loll out, flanked by ferocious-looking tusks. Their bodies are generally lean and tall, but some are shorter and thick-set.
Callicantzari have the arms and hands of monkeys. Their nails are as long again as their fingers, and are curled like the talons of a vulture. Some have the legs of a goat or an ass, some have one human leg and one bestial one, and some have human legs with the foot so distorted that the toes come out where the heel should be. Hence, it is not surprising that these monsters are often lame, but even so, they are swift of foot and terrible in strength. They run with a peculiar shambling gait which, while appearing awkward, still allows them to run quickly.
Sometimes a callicantzaros (the singular form of callicantzari) appears to be a normal human; sometimes a callicantzaros appears in completely animal shape. In general, the callicantzari are neither wholly human nor wholly bestial but a blend of the two. It is possible that, in ancient times, "callicantzari" was a general term to describe animal-human combinations. Creatures like the centaurs, satyrs, and sileni (like satyrs, but part ass) were specific kinds of callicantzari. If so, the generic meaning has long been lost, and callicantzari has evolved into a term to describe specific monsters.
From dawn to sunset, the callicantzari hide in dark and dank places - in caves or beneath mills - feeding on the loathsome food there (snakes, snails, insects, etc.). But at night, they issue forth and run wildly to and fro, rending and crushing those who cross their paths. Destruction, waste, greed, and lust mark their courses.
Despite their uncouth shapes, the monsters delight in dancing. Sometimes a person can trick them into dancing all night. But people must beware, for the callicantzari delight in the taste of human flesh.
Fortunately, the callicantzari are stupid, gullible, and extremely quarrelsome. They have little discipline or sense of planning, which adds an interesting aspect of roleplaying to an adventure as the PCs try to figure out ways to trick these monsters. A smart, alert person usually has no difficulty getting the better of them, as the following story from the island of Scyros shows(related in Modern Greek Folklore and Ancient Greek Religion, by John Cuthbert
Lawson):
A man of Scyros was returning home from a mill late at night, driving his mule before him laden with two sacks of meal. When he had gone about halfway, he saw before him some callicantzari in his path. Realizing his danger, he at once got upon his mule and laid himself flat between the two sacks and covered himself up with a rug, so as to look like another sack of meal. Soon the callicantzari were about his mule, and he held his breath and heard one say, "Here is a pack on this side and a pack on that side, and the top-load in the middle, hut where is the man?"
So the callicantzari ran back to the mill thinking that the man had loitered behind. But they could not find him and came back after the mule, looked again, and said, "Here is a pack on this side and a pack on that side, and the top-load in the middle, but where is the man?" So they ran on in front, fearing that he had hastened on home before his mule. But when they could not find him, they returned again, then went back a second time toward the mill. This went on many times. The mule needed no one to guide it; it had traveled the path many times. While the callicantzari were running to and fro, the mule steadily trudged home. When the beast stopped at the door of the man's home, the callicantzari were close behind. The man called to his wife, and she opened the door and he entered safely.
When the callicantzari saw how he had tricked them, they knocked at the door in great anger. The woman, fearing that the monsters would break in by force, promised to let them in on the condition that they first count the holes in her sieve. To this they agreed, and she let the sieve down to them by a cord from an upper window. Straightaway, the monsters began to count the holes, and they counted round and round the outermost circle of holes in the sieve and so never got to the middle. Frustrated with the lengthy counting process, they only counted more and more hurriedly as a result.
Meanwhile, dawn was breaking. Soon the neighbors saw the callicantzari, and they hurried off to the priests and told them. The priests immediately set out with censers and sprinkling vessels in their hands to chase the callicantzari. The monsters fled right through town, spreading havoc in their path as they were hotly pursued by the priests. At last, when they were clear of the town, one callicantzaros began to lag behind, and by a great effort the foremost priest ran up to him and struck him on a hind foot with a sprinkling vessel. At once the foot fell off. The callicantzaros replaced it as best he could, but he got it on backward. Thus came about the phrase "callicantzaros foot," to describe their peculiar kind of lameness.
Callicantzari are on the borderland between the undead and other monsters. While the final choice of whether or not to make them undead is up to the DM, I have classed them as undead because, in legends, they operate only at night, can be scared away by unarmed clerics, take damage from holy water, are man-eaters, and traditionally appear only at the 12 days of Christmas - a time, like Halloween, when the harriers between the dead and the living are weak.
Callicantzari are a kind of undead mixture of animal and human traits. They have black skin and shaggy hair, oversized heads with goat ears, and red eyes. Their feet are either animal feet or distorted so that the heels are where the toes should be. Callicantzari are big, stupid, malicious man-eaters that roam at night seeking prey. Daylight does not actually hurt them, but they will avoid it if at all possible.
The traditional leader of the callicantzari is the Great Callicantzaros. He has the power of confusion (as per the magic-user spell, usable three times per day); anyone who fails the saving throw against it will be influenced toward mindless destruction, greed, and lust as long as the Great Callicantzaros is within sight. Clerics and cavaliers of good alignment, including paladins, are immune to the confusion. Any other character of good alignment gets a +2 on the saving throw.
The callicantzari are hopelessly stupid and easily tricked. They often work at cross-purposes since they are incapable of organized action. The Great Callicantzaros, by himself, acts in an intelligent manner. But even he cannot exert enough influence to alter the stupid behavior of his fellow callicantzari.
Clerics can turn callicantzari with the same chances as they have against wights. The Great Callicantzaros cannot be turned, but he will flee if the majority of the callicantzari flee. Holy water causes 2-8 hp damage per vial against callicantzari.
Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #138 (1988).
demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
OK, that confusion effect might be better modeled by song of discord or non-core spells like miser's envy (which makes the victim violently defend its treasures).
From the description, I wouldn't call them undead, but I would allow it if they were (say) the undead remnants of wicked fey.
From the description, I wouldn't call them undead, but I would allow it if they were (say) the undead remnants of wicked fey.
demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
Tomb-tainted fey (harmed by positive energy, healed by negative, hurt by holy water, light sensitivity, able to be turned) works for me too.
Shade
Monster Junkie
That sounds like the best way to go.
Let's figure out ability scores.
Int is Low (5-7).
Decent Str and Dex?
Low Wis?
Con could be average to good, and Cha might be OK due to their abilities of disguise and Perform (dance).
Suggestions?
demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
Those ability scores look pretty good. I might boost Cha a bit to 16, but other than that...
- Status
Similar Threads
