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Undead Origins
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<blockquote data-quote="Voadam" data-source="post: 7848780" data-attributes="member: 2209"><p><a href="https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/3723/Book-of-Vile-Darkness-3e?affiliate_id=17596" target="_blank">Book of Vile Darkness</a></p><p>3.0</p><p><strong>Eye of Fear and Flame:</strong> The eye of fear and flame is an undead creature created by the gods of chaos and evil to spread destruction and darkness. Through their malevolent divine power, they take the dead soul of a chaotic evil madman and give him an animated skeletal form with which to roam and do their will.</p><p><strong>Vilewight:</strong> Vilewights are undead creatures, the remains of those that delved too far and too long into the black arts.</p><p><strong>Bone Creature:</strong> Sometimes creatures that rise as undead skeletons retain their intellect and abilities.</p><p>Bone creatures cannot be the result of a simple animate dead spell, but could arise from a create undead or create greater undead spell, as undead of their equivalent Hit Dice.</p><p>“Bone” is a template that can be added to any nonundead, corporeal creature that has a skeletal system.</p><p><strong>Bone Creature Bugbear Rogue 5:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Corpse Creature:</strong> Not all corpses risen as undead are shambling, slow-moving zombies. Some retain their intellect and abilities.</p><p>They cannot be the result of a simple animate dead spell, but could arise from a create undead or create greater undead spell, as undead of their equivalent Hit Dice.</p><p>“Corpse” is a template that can be added to any nonundead, nonconstruct, nonplant corporeal creature.</p><p><strong>Corpse Creature Human Barbarian 3:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Vecna:</strong> After he died and rose as a lich, Vecna transcribed the scrolls into a bound book, creating its cover from the flesh of a human face and the bones of a demon, magically transformed into a dull metal binding.</p><p><strong>Reynod, Human Vampire Rogue 6/Assassin 4:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Orcus, Tenebrous:</strong> After becoming complacent with his wars against Demogorgon and Graz’zt waning, Orcus was murdered and deposed. But then, Orcus rose from the dead—an undead demon—and took the name Tenebrous for a time, hiding in the shadows and waiting to take his revenge.</p><p><strong>Kauvra, Half-Orc Vampire Barbarian 16:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Hartoon, Human Lich Sorcerer 19:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>The King of Ghouls, Unique Fiendish Ghoul:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Hand:</strong> <em>Grim Revenge</em> spell.</p><p></p><p><strong>Wight:</strong> Any humanoid slain by a vilewight becomes a wight in 1d4 rounds.</p><p>If a 9th-level soul eater completely drains a creature of energy, the victim becomes a wight under the command of the soul eater.</p><p><strong>Undead:</strong> Even a short act of violence or a minor act of evil can have lingering effects after the event has passed. This type of evil can mentally scar a person who experiences or watches a horrible event. It can leave a sinister mark in a location where some act of evil once occurred. These events can also cause undead to rise of their own volition: A ghost might haunt the place of its murder, or a mohrg could linger in the spot where it was wronged. Acts that can cause this degree of lingering evil include the following.</p><p>• A gruesome, bloodthirsty murder.</p><p>• The proclamation of a foul edict, such as one that mandates the murder of infants to keep a new king from being born.</p><p>• A single sacrifice to an evil god or fiend.</p><p>• The animation of dozens of undead creatures.</p><p>• Abuse, starvation, and mistreatment of captives.</p><p>• Casting a permanent or long-lasting spell with the evil descriptor.</p><p>A bad feeling shows its effects in the following ways.</p><p>Creatures: People can have nightmares after exposure to this degree of evil, but there are usually no lasting physical effects. Certain types of undead can rise after even a single act of wrongdoing. The spectre of a murder victim might linger where he was slain, for example.</p><p><strong>Bodak:</strong> For example, a bodak’s victims rise the next day as new bodaks.</p><p><em>Bodak Birth</em> spell.</p><p><strong>Spectre:</strong> Certain types of undead can rise after even a single act of wrongdoing. The spectre of a murder victim might linger where he was slain, for example.</p><p><strong>Incorporeal Undead:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Corporeal Undead:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Ghost:</strong> These events can also cause undead to rise of their own volition: A ghost might haunt the place of its murder, or a mohrg could linger in the spot where it was wronged.</p><p><strong>Mohrg:</strong> These events can also cause undead to rise of their own volition: A ghost might haunt the place of its murder, or a mohrg could linger in the spot where it was wronged.</p><p><strong>Lich:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Nightshade:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Vampire:</strong> If Kauvra instead brings the victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower by means of her blood drain, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD and as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD.</p><p><strong>Vampire Spawn:</strong> A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by Kauvra’s energy drain attack rises as a vampire spawn (see Vampire Spawn in the Monster Manual) 1d4 days after burial.</p><p>If Kauvra instead brings the victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower by means of her blood drain, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD and as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD.</p><p><strong>Ghoul:</strong> In most cases, the King of Ghouls devours his victims. From time to time, however, the bodies of his humanoid victims lie where they fell, to rise as ghouls in 1d4 days. Casting protection from evil on a body before the end of that time averts the transformation.</p><p><strong>Shadow:</strong> Graz’zt enjoys blood sacrifices made in his name, and sexual rites are important in services dedicated to him as well. His temples are dark, secluded places where orgies are common. Some section of the temple is often shrouded in magical darkness. From there, clerics use create undead on sacrificial victims to bring forth shadows that guard the temple.</p><p><strong>Wraith:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Mummy:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Nightwing:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Skeleton:</strong> ?</p><p><strong>Zombie:</strong> Cauldron of Zombie Spewing Diabolic Engine.</p><p>Death Rock major artifact.</p><p></p><p>Bodak Birth</p><p>Transmutation [Evil]</p><p>Level: Clr 8</p><p>Components: V, S, F, Drug</p><p>Casting Time: 1 minute</p><p>Range: Touch</p><p>Target: Caster or one creature touched</p><p>Duration: Instantaneous</p><p>Saving Throw: None (see text)</p><p>Spell Resistance: No</p><p>The caster transforms one willing subject (which can be the caster) into a bodak. Ignore all of the subject’s old characteristics, using the bodak description in the Monster Manual instead.</p><p>Before casting the spell, the caster must make a miniature figurine that represents the subject, then bathe it in the blood of at least three Small or larger animals. Once the spell is cast, anyone that holds the figurine can attempt to mentally communicate and control the bodak, but the creature resists such control with a successful Will saving throw. If the bodak fails, it must obey the holder of the figurine, but it gains a new saving throw every day to break the control. If the figurine is destroyed, the bodak disintegrates.</p><p>Focus: Figurine of subject, bathed in animal blood.</p><p>Drug Component: Agony.</p><p></p><p>Grim Revenge</p><p>Necromancy [Evil]</p><p>Level: Sor/Wiz 4</p><p>Components: V, S, Undead</p><p>Casting Time: 1 action</p><p>Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)</p><p>Target: One living humanoid</p><p>Duration: Instantaneous</p><p>Saving Throw: Fortitude negates</p><p>Spell Resistance: Yes</p><p>The hand of the subject tears itself away from one of his arms, leaving a bloody stump. This trauma deals 6d6 points of damage. Then the hand, animated and floating in the air, begins to attack the subject. The hand attacks as if it were a wight (see the Monster Manual) in terms of its statistics, special attacks, and special qualities, except that it is considered Tiny and gains a +4 bonus to AC and a +4 bonus on attack rolls. The hand can be turned or rebuked as a wight. If the hand is defeated, only a regenerate spell can restore the victim to normal.</p><p></p><p>Cauldron of Zombie Spewing: The devils that created this device wanted to mass-produce undead. This artifact is a mass of strange tubes, bubbling glass containers, and liquid-filled troughs all focused around a gigantic black cauldron 13 feet in diameter. When fifty Medium-size corpses are thrown into the device and mixed with strange chemicals and a single dose of liquid pain, the contents of the cauldron stew and boil for 24 hours. Then, great horizontally pivoting levers spew forth onto the ground 4d12 Medium-size zombies. Not every corpse becomes a zombie because some are liquefied and mulched as a part of the process. The zombies obey the commands of any devil present within the first 3 rounds of their creation.</p><p>The cauldron has hardness 10, 250 hp, and a break DC of 35. However, the glass portions and tubing can be destroyed much more easily (hardness 1, 20 hp, break DC 12).</p><p>Caster Level: 16th;Weight: 5,000 lb.</p><p></p><p>Death Rock: This object is said to be the heart of an evil demon lord or evil demigod, cut from his chest in a terrible battle with a woman invested with celestial powers who sought vengeance for the wrongs of the evil being and its cult. The Death Rock is a crude black stone the size of a fist that pulses like a beating heart.</p><p>Anyone possessing the Death Rock gains the spellcasting abilities of a sorcerer of a level equal to his own. The character knows only spells of the Necromancy school. If the character is already a sorcerer, the new spells known and extra spells per day are in addition to his own.</p><p>The Death Rock has a drawback. Once per week, the closest companion or dearest loved one of the Death Rock’s owner is automatically slain and turned into a zombie that serves the owner. The owner may forsake the Death Rock to prevent this (or he might run out of companions or loved ones), but then the Death Rock immediately fades away.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Voadam, post: 7848780, member: 2209"] [URL=https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/3723/Book-of-Vile-Darkness-3e?affiliate_id=17596]Book of Vile Darkness[/URL] 3.0 [b]Eye of Fear and Flame:[/b] The eye of fear and flame is an undead creature created by the gods of chaos and evil to spread destruction and darkness. Through their malevolent divine power, they take the dead soul of a chaotic evil madman and give him an animated skeletal form with which to roam and do their will. [b]Vilewight:[/b] Vilewights are undead creatures, the remains of those that delved too far and too long into the black arts. [b]Bone Creature:[/b] Sometimes creatures that rise as undead skeletons retain their intellect and abilities. Bone creatures cannot be the result of a simple animate dead spell, but could arise from a create undead or create greater undead spell, as undead of their equivalent Hit Dice. “Bone” is a template that can be added to any nonundead, corporeal creature that has a skeletal system. [b]Bone Creature Bugbear Rogue 5:[/b] ? [b]Corpse Creature:[/b] Not all corpses risen as undead are shambling, slow-moving zombies. Some retain their intellect and abilities. They cannot be the result of a simple animate dead spell, but could arise from a create undead or create greater undead spell, as undead of their equivalent Hit Dice. “Corpse” is a template that can be added to any nonundead, nonconstruct, nonplant corporeal creature. [b]Corpse Creature Human Barbarian 3:[/b] ? [b]Vecna:[/b] After he died and rose as a lich, Vecna transcribed the scrolls into a bound book, creating its cover from the flesh of a human face and the bones of a demon, magically transformed into a dull metal binding. [b]Reynod, Human Vampire Rogue 6/Assassin 4:[/b] ? [b]Orcus, Tenebrous:[/b] After becoming complacent with his wars against Demogorgon and Graz’zt waning, Orcus was murdered and deposed. But then, Orcus rose from the dead—an undead demon—and took the name Tenebrous for a time, hiding in the shadows and waiting to take his revenge. [b]Kauvra, Half-Orc Vampire Barbarian 16:[/b] ? [b]Hartoon, Human Lich Sorcerer 19:[/b] ? [b]The King of Ghouls, Unique Fiendish Ghoul:[/b] ? [b]Hand:[/b] [i]Grim Revenge[/i] spell. [b]Wight:[/b] Any humanoid slain by a vilewight becomes a wight in 1d4 rounds. If a 9th-level soul eater completely drains a creature of energy, the victim becomes a wight under the command of the soul eater. [b]Undead:[/b] Even a short act of violence or a minor act of evil can have lingering effects after the event has passed. This type of evil can mentally scar a person who experiences or watches a horrible event. It can leave a sinister mark in a location where some act of evil once occurred. These events can also cause undead to rise of their own volition: A ghost might haunt the place of its murder, or a mohrg could linger in the spot where it was wronged. Acts that can cause this degree of lingering evil include the following. • A gruesome, bloodthirsty murder. • The proclamation of a foul edict, such as one that mandates the murder of infants to keep a new king from being born. • A single sacrifice to an evil god or fiend. • The animation of dozens of undead creatures. • Abuse, starvation, and mistreatment of captives. • Casting a permanent or long-lasting spell with the evil descriptor. A bad feeling shows its effects in the following ways. Creatures: People can have nightmares after exposure to this degree of evil, but there are usually no lasting physical effects. Certain types of undead can rise after even a single act of wrongdoing. The spectre of a murder victim might linger where he was slain, for example. [b]Bodak:[/b] For example, a bodak’s victims rise the next day as new bodaks. [i]Bodak Birth[/i] spell. [b]Spectre:[/b] Certain types of undead can rise after even a single act of wrongdoing. The spectre of a murder victim might linger where he was slain, for example. [b]Incorporeal Undead:[/b] ? [b]Corporeal Undead:[/b] ? [b]Ghost:[/b] These events can also cause undead to rise of their own volition: A ghost might haunt the place of its murder, or a mohrg could linger in the spot where it was wronged. [b]Mohrg:[/b] These events can also cause undead to rise of their own volition: A ghost might haunt the place of its murder, or a mohrg could linger in the spot where it was wronged. [b]Lich:[/b] ? [b]Nightshade:[/b] ? [b]Vampire:[/b] If Kauvra instead brings the victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower by means of her blood drain, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD and as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD. [b]Vampire Spawn:[/b] A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by Kauvra’s energy drain attack rises as a vampire spawn (see Vampire Spawn in the Monster Manual) 1d4 days after burial. If Kauvra instead brings the victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower by means of her blood drain, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD and as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD. [b]Ghoul:[/b] In most cases, the King of Ghouls devours his victims. From time to time, however, the bodies of his humanoid victims lie where they fell, to rise as ghouls in 1d4 days. Casting protection from evil on a body before the end of that time averts the transformation. [b]Shadow:[/b] Graz’zt enjoys blood sacrifices made in his name, and sexual rites are important in services dedicated to him as well. His temples are dark, secluded places where orgies are common. Some section of the temple is often shrouded in magical darkness. From there, clerics use create undead on sacrificial victims to bring forth shadows that guard the temple. [b]Wraith:[/b] ? [b]Mummy:[/b] ? [b]Nightwing:[/b] ? [b]Skeleton:[/b] ? [b]Zombie:[/b] Cauldron of Zombie Spewing Diabolic Engine. Death Rock major artifact. Bodak Birth Transmutation [Evil] Level: Clr 8 Components: V, S, F, Drug Casting Time: 1 minute Range: Touch Target: Caster or one creature touched Duration: Instantaneous Saving Throw: None (see text) Spell Resistance: No The caster transforms one willing subject (which can be the caster) into a bodak. Ignore all of the subject’s old characteristics, using the bodak description in the Monster Manual instead. Before casting the spell, the caster must make a miniature figurine that represents the subject, then bathe it in the blood of at least three Small or larger animals. Once the spell is cast, anyone that holds the figurine can attempt to mentally communicate and control the bodak, but the creature resists such control with a successful Will saving throw. If the bodak fails, it must obey the holder of the figurine, but it gains a new saving throw every day to break the control. If the figurine is destroyed, the bodak disintegrates. Focus: Figurine of subject, bathed in animal blood. Drug Component: Agony. Grim Revenge Necromancy [Evil] Level: Sor/Wiz 4 Components: V, S, Undead Casting Time: 1 action Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level) Target: One living humanoid Duration: Instantaneous Saving Throw: Fortitude negates Spell Resistance: Yes The hand of the subject tears itself away from one of his arms, leaving a bloody stump. This trauma deals 6d6 points of damage. Then the hand, animated and floating in the air, begins to attack the subject. The hand attacks as if it were a wight (see the Monster Manual) in terms of its statistics, special attacks, and special qualities, except that it is considered Tiny and gains a +4 bonus to AC and a +4 bonus on attack rolls. The hand can be turned or rebuked as a wight. If the hand is defeated, only a regenerate spell can restore the victim to normal. Cauldron of Zombie Spewing: The devils that created this device wanted to mass-produce undead. This artifact is a mass of strange tubes, bubbling glass containers, and liquid-filled troughs all focused around a gigantic black cauldron 13 feet in diameter. When fifty Medium-size corpses are thrown into the device and mixed with strange chemicals and a single dose of liquid pain, the contents of the cauldron stew and boil for 24 hours. Then, great horizontally pivoting levers spew forth onto the ground 4d12 Medium-size zombies. Not every corpse becomes a zombie because some are liquefied and mulched as a part of the process. The zombies obey the commands of any devil present within the first 3 rounds of their creation. The cauldron has hardness 10, 250 hp, and a break DC of 35. However, the glass portions and tubing can be destroyed much more easily (hardness 1, 20 hp, break DC 12). Caster Level: 16th;Weight: 5,000 lb. Death Rock: This object is said to be the heart of an evil demon lord or evil demigod, cut from his chest in a terrible battle with a woman invested with celestial powers who sought vengeance for the wrongs of the evil being and its cult. The Death Rock is a crude black stone the size of a fist that pulses like a beating heart. Anyone possessing the Death Rock gains the spellcasting abilities of a sorcerer of a level equal to his own. The character knows only spells of the Necromancy school. If the character is already a sorcerer, the new spells known and extra spells per day are in addition to his own. The Death Rock has a drawback. Once per week, the closest companion or dearest loved one of the Death Rock’s owner is automatically slain and turned into a zombie that serves the owner. The owner may forsake the Death Rock to prevent this (or he might run out of companions or loved ones), but then the Death Rock immediately fades away. [/QUOTE]
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