"The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

[Jkeown]

...and that's where the trouble started.

 

Jeffery's nose wrinkled. Laura stopped her own character's narration and Dan looked like his face was gonna cave in.

 

After 22 years of gaming in Caleon with me, he'd never heard the word "Grax." Not once. He'd know if I had. (So would I)

 

"What is a Grax?" they pleaded in unison.

 

Thinking quickly, I began ad-libbing my butt off.

 

"Um... Grax (it is both singular and plural) are a large class of creature made up of pure magic, Wizards often summon them to gaurd places. They come in a bewildering variety of forms, most commonly, a Wizard will know one or two Grax spells, and some wizards actually specialize in them, knowing no other magics." (pause to breath, await fallout)

 

Now they all want the Grax spells to spend their piles of unspent XP on. So, I'm going to write a Summoning Sub-College, complete with a Do-It-Yer-Darn Self Grax Table. Before next week... Next week being a much publicized Geek-gathering a few miles up the road. I'm like 5 miles from Gen Con.

 

Might slip it to Steve when I go up to him to give him my paycheck.

 

Anyway, my son and I brain stormed on this idea at the grocery store while shopping for home-made pizza fixings and ogling the girl in the black tank top and far-too-short camo miniskirt. Here's a list of the Grax we came up with (All Grax can be unsummoned with Dispels and Drains, and I don't know how that affects the creature's points, but does it affect the mage's cost)

 

Assault Grax (Fast, with HTH Attacks)

Seige Grax (Strong, with Ranged attacks)

Stealth Grax (Um... Stealthy HTH)

Sniper Grax (Stealthy, Ranged)

Anti-Mage Grax (Dispels and Drains, Personal Immunity)

Health Grax (Hops around Healing your Allies)

Brute Grax (Strong, HTH blunt attacks)

 

(I'm sure there are more... but I might stop short of Grax Grax, whose job it is to summon other grax... that breaks a rule somewhere, I think...)

 

I'll post it to this thread later this week, or something.

[Curufea]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

You could just use the stats for elementals and golems and rename them Grax as well.

[Thia Halmades]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

Ayup. And yes, you can create a "Grax Grax" - a lead point Grax that summons other, minor Grax. Actually a pretty good (and probably frustrating, for the players) idea. You can field a whole army of these things.

 

But, next time, CYA. Figure out what it is first, and THEN have the ability to say "What? It's not possible there's something you've never heard of?" Works all the time for me.

[Lucius]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

How about a Gaireeguy Grax?

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Which way did it go?

[Susano]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

How about a Gaireeguy Grax?

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Which way did it go?

 

Beat me to it....

[Labrat]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

"If the Grax attacks

It wouldn't be lax

And if the Grax lays back

It may not attack

Its endurance is taxed

From the towns it sacks

It's power is a-wax

Thus attacks the Grax..."

 

Sir Seuss (right before he was eaten)

[Killer Shrike]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

Use the random superhuman generator from CHAMPIONS (or a subset of it).

[Killer Shrike]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

Actually, just remembered, there are some template Demons / Divine Servants / Elementals in the back of the Valdorian Age that you could probably use as is.

[PhilFleischmann]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

Oh, a grax isn't so tough. Just wait 'til they come across the dreaded ... Gazebo!

 

Distract Grax (does something annoying and gets the PC's to chase it away from where the wizard doesn't want them to go)

Labor Grax (Strong, for menial tasks, little combat ability)

Entertaining Grax (Sings, dances, plays Grax Sax)

Guard Grax (Tough, bars the entry, has some means to distinguish between those allowed in and those who aren't, can see through disguises, etc.)

[Markdoc]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

Actually' date=' just remembered, there are some template Demons / Divine Servants / Elementals in the back of the Valdorian Age that you could probably use as is.[/quote']

 

What I have done for years (and it's even easier now with the templates in the bestiary) is simply make mashups. If I want a fire demon, I simply grab the powers and stats from (say) a fire elemental and a giant. If I want a stealthy, stalker type demon I might mash (say) a wolf, a snake and a human assassin to get a scaly, poison-drippin' fanged thing that tastes the air with its long tongue as it hunts its assigned victim.

 

Fast and simple.

 

cheers, Mark

[Killer Shrike]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

I do something similar -- I just use modular templates / packages for everything and mix and match to suit. Object Oriented HERO, as I think of it.

[Cancer]

Re: "The sign reads 'Beware of the Grax..."

 

There was an old B.C. cartoon with the sign that said, "Beware of the Trund". Fall guy character in that strip goes down in the last panel, felled by a large rock accompanied by the sound "TRUND".