Jkeown

Re: On Arcanomechanical Beings (long!) WOW. That rocks. If anybody expands this work... please use Curufea's suggestions, I know I will.

Re: On Arcanomechanical Beings (long!) For now, the Necrostriders are confined to Kastaboondarfanok's citadel in Chalkcliff. This vast tower has been infiltrated numerous times, at least two of these incursions have been successful. It is a near certainty that they will begin appearing in other parts of the Empire, or farther afield. The necromancer himself is missing, so it is entirely likely he has relocated, perhaps working on his own, or for some dark master who has yet to reveal himself. To use necrostriders in your games, use the basic 'strider below, and add gubbins to taste. Some options are obviously very powerful, so caution must be observed. NECROSTRIDER Val Char Cost Roll Notes 13 STR 3 12- Lift 151.6kg; 2 1/2d6; [1] 15 DEX 15 12- OCV 5 DCV 5 10 CON 0 11- 13 BODY 6 12- 8 INT -2 11- PER Roll 11- 0 EGO 0 9- ECV: 0 15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6 0 COM -5 9- 2/8 PD 3 Total: 2/8 PD (0/6 rPD) 3/9 ED 6 Total: 3/9 ED (0/6 rED) 4 SPD 15 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12 5 REC 0 20 END 0 Movement: Running: 6" / 12" Swimming: 2" / 4" Leaping: 2" / 4" Cost Powers END 60 Automaton (Takes No STUN) 0 54 Armor Plating: Armor (6 PD/6 ED) 0 55 Small, Horrifyingly Efficient Steam Engine: Endurance Reserve (50 END, 50 REC) (55 Active Points) 0 5 Sense Life: Infrared Perception (Sight Group) 0 10 Necrowave Field Coils: Radio Perception/Transmission (Mystic Group) 0 30 Sight Group Flash Defense (10 points) 0 Total Powers & Skill Cost: 214 Total Cost: 260 75+ Disadvantages 25 Physical Limitation: No Manipulators (All the Time, Fully Impairing) 25 Psychological Limitation: Obey the Orders of the Master of the Citadel (Very Common, Total) 25 Distinctive Features: Necromech Horrors (Not Concealable; Extreme Reaction; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses) 10 Vulnerability: 2 x BODY Electricity (Uncommon) //Edit: This can also be a form of Holy or Healing Magic from your campaign-- We break things down by "Magic" Element and "Elemental" Element around these parts.\\ 100 Experience Points Total Disadvantage Points: 260 NecroStrider Optional Bits Cost Powers END Golem Code 15 Badass Programming: +3 with Ranged Combat 15 Evil Dogma: +3 with HTH Combat Bolt-on Evil 81 Anti-Essence Coil: Dispel Essence-Based Magic 12d6, Area Of Effect (8" Radius; +1 1/4) (81 Active Points) 8 80 Barrage Bomb Launcher: Energy Blast 8d6, Area Of Effect (4" Radius; +1) (80 Active Points) 8 52 Bombard: Killing Attack - Ranged 2d6, Indirect (Same origin, always fired away from attacker; Only with Sufficiently High Ceilings; +1/4), Explosion (+1/2) (52 Active Points) 5 22 Bone Saw: Killing Attack - Hand-To-Hand 1d6 (1d6+1 w/STR), Armor Piercing (+1/2) (22 Active Points) 2 9 Extra Plating: Armor (3 PD/3 ED) 0 28 Force Field Projector: Force Wall (4 PD/4 ED; 3" long and 3" tall) 3 60 Glop Thrower: Entangle 5d6, 5 DEF (Stops A Given Sense Group Sight Group) 6 20 Lightning Bolt Coil: Killing Attack - Ranged 1d6+1 2 160 Mind Field: Ego Attack 8d6 (Human class of minds), Area Of Effect (8" Radius; +1) (160 Active Points) 16 52 Ooze Generator: Drain Running 3d6, Area Of Effect (3" Radius; +1), Two-Dimensional (-1/4) (52 Active Points) 5 75 Shooty Bit: Killing Attack - Ranged 2d6, Armor Piercing (+1/2), Area Of Effect (10" Cone; +1) (75 Active Points) 7 30 Unlight Aperture: Drain BODY 2d6, Ranged (+1/2) (30 Active Points) 3 Arachnoarcanomechanical Gubbins 5 Arachnoarcanomechanical Suspension: Extra Limbs (6) 0 12 Spider Grip: Clinging (15 STR) 0 45 Web Projector: Entangle 5d6, 4 DEF 4

Re: On Arcanomechanical Beings (long!) Ah... there ya go... I liked the name. They tend to be general purpose adventuring mages. Sort've a combined nod to Doyle (via the name) and old D&D Magic Users (the characters themselves)

Re: On Arcanomechanical Beings (long!) Coming Next: Traps as HERO System AIs Fantasy Automatons Kastaboondarfanok's Works: Demonic Created Necrostriders Necromechanical Implants for your characters and NPCs!

On Arcanomechanical Beings In securing one’s stronghold against the incursions of long-haired, knee-biting, puppy-kickers and their ilk, the vile delver subculture, Minions have ever been a staple. They are, at best either very expensive or very stupid. In short, good help is hard to find. Privacy is at a premium in the would-be Dark Lord business, you understand. In the old days, before the union of technology and magic which all of decent, civilized Serantia now enjoys (we do not count Ogres and Zarku in this effort) one might have constructed a castle, pimped out a ruin, modified a cave system or even excavated a so-called “dungeon” to have a bit privacy in which to work miracles of intellect and/or evil. Balance pits, crushing walls, counter-weights, falling blocks and spring loaded darts were all the rage in those days; in actuality not all that removed from our modern times. Minions were handy in those days, especially if your familiar weren’t of the sort of material or brain power up to such tasks as resetting traps. You would have to reset the damn things on your own. Some of those fallen blocks were heavy. Pressure plates and trip wires gave way to simple motion detection spells. As nice as these were, they needed to be accompanied by special amulets, or foul-smelling extracts. If the trap couldn’t tell you from some band of layabout “adventurers,” you spent all your time healing from run-ins with your own security measures. Outfitting a decent staff with identifying magics was not only expensive, but if intruders figured out your focus system, they could walk right in on you at the climax of some dark, hoary ritual of ineffable evil. This is at best inconvenient. Enchanting a trap was expensive in both time and power, it drew too much from important world domination initiatives. So, each morning, or night depending on your species, you would go out about your complex, casting the same target detection spell over and over. If you missed one pit, one trip-wire fired crossbow or one collapsing ceiling, you had quite the mess on your hands. Refinements in those days came slowly, and at great cost in minions, personal injury or even the death of several very promising would-be conquerors. This is a tough field to break into, and competition is fierce, to be taken out by one’s own lair is embarrassing to the career as a whole. Something would have to be done. Shortly after the invention of the Selective Target Modifier (STM) in Tamarlaan’s Songs of Fire and Darkness (required reading for wizards of questionable morals) traps of all sorts began production that could tell your minions from intruders. This was a vast improvement, and well worth the extra spell energy. Coupled with refinements in power drawing techniques (given the proper ambient magic flow level) traps could now not only reset themselves but fire off indefinitely using only locally available magic. This freed many a sorcerer up to develop greater and greater evils. It is no coincidence that Dark Essence Channelling took off like it did at the same time as the STM! It was a good time to be evil. Progress after this was slow, and with the Serantian Empire in ruins, many wizards could set up shop in old fortresses, towers, and, enviably, entire lost cities; every square inch diligently watched over by clever enchantments and death-dealing mechanical devices. Adventurers soon learned the devious trick of throwing a dispel or suppress down a seemingly innocent rubble-strewn hallway. Parallel to the development of the magical trap were several important advancements in Golem Methodology. For reasons not entirely understood, minion-gathering had always focused on orcs, goblins and the occasion ogre tribe. Trolls, being very noble, rarely worked for anyone, let alone a wizard plotting the fall of civilization. Golems were hard to create, but in terms of survivability, they rivaled entire orc and goblin communities. In addition, greenskins can be bribed whereas a golem has no concept of monetary gain. Talking to one very often led to severe bodily harm, so graft was almost never an option for intruders. Between golems and magical traps, adventurer’s efforts were stalemated for hundreds of years. The dark age of the Interregnum were soon at an end. The rise of the Rumallan Empire at the start of the Third Age was the result of a lessening of pressure by the Dharzooni, that immortal race of wizards who had for so long meddled in the affairs of “lesser races.” Whatever the cause of their withdrawal, it had the effect of allowing eccentric ideas on steam power, gun powder and greater and greater magics to gain footholds at universities and private schools. This was especially evident in the schools of the Nissarn and the Red-Headed Mages League. Some schools began sponsoring new courses in engineering. Often, a student would have a double major in both magic and technology. A potent duality, that, when combined with the usual cruelty and hazing common to academia, produced a positive boom of villainous wizards in the early Second Century of this Age. Golems require magical coding to guide them when verbal commands are not available or tactically unsound. Some degree of autonomy was gained by increasing the “command density” of the golem animation magics. As commands became more and more complex, the golem’s own decision making ability rose in proportion. Soon, heuristic logic structures formed in the spell matrices. A kind of “artificial intelligence” developed. Combined with illusion-magics, short-term almost self-aware magical phantasms resulted. These creatures were ephemeral, as soon as a wizard turned his back, they faded away. It was not until 3A 468, in the years just before the Troll Wars, that golem code was incorporated into magical security devices. Now, one could sit back and let golem-traps identify invaders, fire on them, reset or reload and wait for the next wave of meddling kids with cheap swords and ill-fitting armor. An unanticipated problem arose in 3A 511. A poison arrow trap became bored and started taking pot-shots at the guards near the entrance to Heinous Sump near Imlach. While initially humorous, the device had to be shut down by use of force. (That scene itself was hilarious.) In North Dungeon beneath Chalkcliff, several pit traps and gas dispensers stopped functioning altogether in the first labor dispute in the animated object field. Dark Wizards had to go back to the books and either return to the days of detect and reload, or come up with a new technique to prevent upstart traps from letting invaders waltz right in to the lair. While few evil wizards cooperate on any level (the are, after all, out to control the same planet) several promising workgroups formed and began earnestly working out solutions. One group threw up their hands, halted work on the whole project and rededicated themselves to demonology. While the Black Summoners of Doom were for a while a credible threat to the Imperial Orders and the Red Headed Mages League, an incident involving a Halfling and a hang-glider ended their cabal somewhat fatally. Magical self-guided illusions were made possible by several very lucky research groups, some even had spell-casting ability and decent predictive powers to enable them to hold back invaders. Turning these techniques to golems once again resulted in faster, far deadlier golems than ever before. It was the dawn of the Siege Golem. These massive engines of war were built with vast destructive capabilities and very weak wills, as having a five-storey armored tank with a stubborn streak was just asking for trouble. Cleophar Lasthatta returned from his famous Journey in the East with improved steam power and subtle magics for controlling such machines. After his band of well-paid loot-takers finished off the Black Mage of Koosfall Glade, he used all of the Mage’s research against him. Now, magical trap-making was in the hands of not only an adventurer, but one smart enough to actually make something of it! It was a dark day indeed. Setting up shop beneath Uffa Keep, Lasthatta began work on what may yet turn out to be the final iteration of golem code and artificial intelligence. His assistant, Kastaboondarfanok, had soul-caged an infiltrator working for House Arkus. A closeted necromancer, he knew a few SoulWind channels and bound the captured soul into one of Cleophar’s unfinished golem bodies. The beast rumbled and clanked to life. After a few seconds of reflection, it went totally mad, wrecking one wing of the complex before destroying itself. Lasthatta considered killing Kastaboondarfanok, but the magnitude of this discovery stayed his hand. Learning as much as they could from the incident, they wove necromantic theory, illusion magic and golem code into a kind of hybrid soul. Part summoned spirit, part magical spell, the new beings often rejected their new bodies, but progress was being made. In an experimental offshoot during this period, they tried an animal spirit; merging a cat’s soul with a Siege Golem. It was a huge failure. To this day, the beast is still stalking around Lake Farkin, chasing birds and sleeping sixteen hours a day. Kastaboondarfanok suggested summoning a demon to inhabit a golem. Enraged, Cleophar banished him. While history shows that this was a grave mistake, it freed the necromancer to experiment on his own. More of him, later. Lasthatta created a new golem code matrix but did not insert the little bit of code at the end that tells it where the code stops. Instead, he read to it, talked to it. Set its copper and platinum vessel nearby during dinner conversation. Treated it to musical performances and was, in general, just all-around nice to it. Eventually, he installed the vessel in a golem body. Nothing happened for hours. Depressed, Cleophar sat and stared at the massive failure he’d created. “What exactly was Emperor Zoot looking to avoid in siding with the Trolls at the Battle of Carmoly?” the golem asked. “Simple,” Lasthatta explained. “He knew how important pacification of that region was and…” Stunned, he simply stared at the new life for several very long seconds. “You’re alive?” he asked. “I suppose I am. I remember a fog lifting from me, much as Emperor Adon I described in his autobiography,” it rumbled, “Have I been so long?” “I do not know” the creator replied. And so was Cleophar Lasthatta credited with the first self-aware golems, the Created. Kastaboondarfanok went on to perfect demonic fusion, and coded the first Open Matrix Illusion for True Evil years later. His creations, the vile, swarming Necrostriders and the Demonic Created, Rust Lord and the Custodian, are proof of his intellect and madness. Such things do not stay secret for long, however, and these days, the Created, Illusionary Beings and self-aware traps are in the arsenal of every government, church and Dark Lord for thousands of miles. Here is the basic Created Package Deal: 3 Artificial Muscles: +3 STR 1 50 Mechanical Body: LS (Eating: Character does not eat; Immunity: All terrestrial diseases and biowarfare agents; Immunity: All terrestrial poisons and chemical warfare agents; Longevity: Immortal; Safe in High Pressure; Safe in High Radiation; Safe in Intense Cold; Safe in Intense Heat; Safe in Low Pressure/Vacuum; Self-Contained Breathing; Sleeping: Character does not sleep) 0 2 Mechanical Mind: +1 EGO 3 Superior Reflexes: +1 DEX 4 Mechanical Body: +2 BODY 18 Mechanical Body: Armor (6 PD/6 ED) 0 Options 5 Aspect Phlange: +5 PRE 3 Auspice Doohicky: Detect A Single Thing 11- (Unusual Group) 0 15 Augry Thingamabob: Danger Sense (self only, in combat) 11- 9 Bonus Plating: Armor (3 PD/3 ED) 0 10 Claws: HKA 1/2d6 (1d6+1 w/STR) (standard effect: 2 BODY, 4 STUN) 1 15 Claws, Scythe: HKA 1d6 (1 1/2d6 w/STR) (standard effect: 5 BODY, 10 STUN) 1 5 Claws, Small: HKA 1 point (1/2d6 w/STR) (standard effect: 2 BODY, 4 STUN) 1 5 Companion Link: Mind Link , Machine class of minds, Companion Created 0 10 Creator Link: Mind Link , Human class of minds, Creator, Any distance 0 1 Damping Filter: Sight Group Flash Defense 0 14 Eogann Armor Plating: (Total: 14 Active Cost, 14 Real Cost) Armor (3 PD/3 ED) (Real Cost: 9) plus Damage Resistance (3 PD/2 ED) (Real Cost: 2) plus Power Defense (3 points) (Real Cost: 3) 0 5 Heat Scope: IR Perception (Sight Group) 0 4 High-Grade Optics: +2 PER with Sight Group 0 14 Illusory Thingamabob: Shape Shift (Sight, Hearing, Touch and Smell/Taste Groups), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (28 Active Points); Only to Appear as a Member of Creator's Choosing, One form only (-1) 0 4 Improved Suspension: Running +2" (8" total) 1 3 Internal Compass: Bump Of Direction 9 Mecha Doodad: +3 with any Inventor, Mechanics, System Operations 2 Mana Coprocessor: +1 with Magic Roll 20 Mechanical Override: Aid STR 3d6 (standard effect: 9 points) (30 Active Points); Side Effects, Side Effect occurs automatically whenever Power is used (3d6 DRAIN after-effect; -1/2) 0 5 Nightvision: Nightvision 0 3 Pinion: +1 with HTH Combat (5 Active Points); OIF (Enchanted Quill; -1/2) 15 Ping-Sense: Active Sonar (Hearing Group) 0 5 Reciprocating Overdriven Arm Actuator Gadget: Rapid Attack (HTH) 10 Repair Gubbins: Healing 2 BODY, Can Heal Limbs (25 Active Points); Extra Time (Regeneration-Only) 1 Minute (-1 1/2) 2 22 Spell Check: Detect Magic 12- (Unusual Group), Discriminatory, Increased Arc Of Perception (360 Degrees), Range10 Spell Gizmo: 10 Real Points in Spells (10 Active Points) 1 2 Superior Artistry: +4 COM 3 Timing Gizmo: Absolute Time Sense 4 Timpanic Oscillation Amplifier: +2 PER with Hearing Group 0 3 Twin-Linked Motor Functions: Ambidexterity (-2 Off Hand penalty) 10 Tentacle: Stretching 2" 1 Value Disadvantages 15 Distinctive Features: Mechanical Device (Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses) 10 Social Limitation: Curiousity (Frequently, Minor)

Re: Soulwind Channels I'm looking into recharge options... I'm thinking of a Aid END Reserve spell that "traps" a soul into the Reserve. Not sure how I'll build it just yet. I'm taking a break to write a lengthy treatise on the history of magical traps and automatons for Fantasy HERO. I'll post that and the new SoulWind stuff tomorrow maybe. In the meantime, if you've any ideas, please consider my original post a starting point and run like mad with it!

Blowing on the Wind The SoulWind in Caleon By Jeffery Keown When a person dies in Caleon, their soul drifts, potentially forever, on a magical river girding the planet. It blows everywhere, as no place is shielded from its effects. Its effects, however, are invisible, inaudible and intangible. Only with the power of Channelling can one hope to catch a glimpse of the billions of disembodied minds drifting past. Some souls are great and powerful, they are the most easily sensed, almost enough to allow them to be sensed by ordinary people. The presence of Nurannan fills this place… I can feel her here…It’s almost like Father is still with us… The SoulWind exists apart from the Magical Flows that swath the planet. They are out of tune with one another, neither energy impinging on the other. At a precious moment in time, when love or lust brings two creatures together to create a new life, a soul can be attracted by the mental storm created by the mating pair. At the moment of conception, instead of generating a new soul, the new life is possessed by a mind on the SoulWind. Such a person will grow up normally, but have skills or spells “hard-wired” into him. These skills or spells are used like any other, except they are inborn abilities left over from their previous existence. They are called the Reawakened, the Returned, or as the Dharzooni knew them, the Djaari. Djaari do not constitute a race, nor can a package deal be credibly written for them. It is a form of origin allowing players to purchase skills and abilities their past selves possessed. Need an obscure, dead language? Does your wizard know the layout of a long-buried city? They may be Djaari, if the GM allows such creatures. Channellers, however can feel this SoulWind, see the drifting souls and even peer into their lives via the memories that drift along with them. The most skilled Channellers can do the impossible, reaching into the SoulWind, plucking a hapless spirit from the current and set it anew in a body. They can resurrect the dead. Items can be constructed to aid the Channeller in harnessing souls for spell power. What little scholars know about the ‘Wind suggests that souls cannot be destroyed by mere mortals, though it is considered that the process of being fragmented by a SoulShards spell is hardly pleasant to them. Most Channellers use, at the very least, an amulet or staff that acts as a trap for souls, storing them for use. Again, what effect this has on the mind of a stored spirit is unknown, but presumed disturbing. The souls, once trapped, can be used for a variety of purposes. They can be bound to a living person to increase their characteristics, fired like cannon balls or made to rain down on an area like a storm of power. As mentioned above, the Channeller can create a new body for a soul to inhabit. Often, this is not the body that originally housed the soul, and so might be alien to the newly reawakened being. They retain the thoughts and memories of their old self, while filtering the world through new eyes and ears. The result is a creature that only vaguely recalls its previous life. As discussed above, this can happen naturally, with the strange creatures known as the Returned. SoulWind Spells All Souldwind spells require an END Reserve. They never use the Caster's own END. As suggested above, SoulWind Channels are closely guarded secrets. Drift with the SoulWind Using the astral buoyancy of the SoulWind, the caster flies as if blown by real currents. Drift with the SoulWind: Flight 8", x4 Noncombat (21 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END: 2 Real Cost 2 Feel the SoulWind By focusing his senses, the Channeller can sense the presence of the SoulWind. This spell is required before any other SoulWind Channel is cast. Feel The SoulWind: Detect SoulWind 13- (Mental Group) (5 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:0 Real Cost 1 Greater Healing Like Lesser Healing, below, the trapped soul-energy is used to stitch a wounded person back together. Greater Healing: Healing BODY 3d6 (30 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:3 Real Cost 3 Lesser Healing As Greater Healing, above, but only heals 1d6 BODY Lesser Healing: Healing BODY 1d6 (10 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:1 Real Cost 1 Manifest Soul The caster can use this spell to cause a soul to assume a coherent, visible form. This can be anything from a wisp of vapor, to a full-blown simulacrum of the creature’s form it held in life. Manifest Soul: Summon 300-point Spirit (60 Active Points); Increased Endurance Cost (x4 END; -1 1/2), OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END: 24 Real Cost 4 Memories of the Past Seeing through the eyes of trapped soul, the caster can see where the soul has been, and if they have passed by his target location, he will see memories relating to that place. Memories of the Past: Retrocognitive Clairsentience (Sight Group), +1 to PER Roll, Related Group of Dimensions (61 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about half of its effectiveness (Restricted to Bound Soul's Memories.; -1), OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Extra Time (Full Phase, Only to Activate, -1/4), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:6 Real Cost 5 Rain of Souls Fragmenting a trapped soul, the Channeller infuses the shards with his own energy and sends it cascading down on his enemies. Rain of Souls: Energy Blast 8d6, Area Of Effect (4" Radius; +1) (80 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:8 Real Cost 9 Returning One of the most precious of the SoulWind channels, this spell creates a Djaari, a Returned creature. The Healing BODY is applied to -20 BODY to see if the new life takes hold. Returning: Healing BODY 8d6, Can Heal Limbs, Resurrection (105 Active Points); Side Effects, Side Effect occurs automatically whenever Power is used (Side Effect only affects the recipient of the benefits of the Power; New Body and Personality - Retain Memories; -1 1/2), OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:10 Real Cost 8 Returning True The Channeller applies Healing BODY to -20 BODY, and recreates the person completely, often an idealized version of the person, as the form is based on memories and self-mythology. Returning True: Healing BODY 8d6, Can Heal Limbs, Resurrection (105 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:10 Real Cost 12 Soul Burn Having mastered the manipulation of the SoulWind’s free souls the caster can now affect souls inhabiting living bodies. Soul Burn: Drain BODY 3d6, Delayed Return Rate (points return at the rate of 5 per Day; +1 1/2) (75 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:7 Real Cost 7 Soul Fortress Girding his mind with a trapped soul, the caster gains defense against mental powers. It is thought the powers that do not affect the caster somehow affect the trapped soul. Soul Fortress: Mental Defense (12 points total) (10 Active Points); OAF (-1), Side Effects, Side Effect occurs automatically whenever Power is used (Acquire 15 points of Melded Soul's Mental Disads; -1/2), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:0 Real Cost 1 Soul Shards Similar to Soul Shard, above, but the trapped soul is divided into several pieces, some of which might miss the target. Soul Shards: Killing Attack - Ranged 1 1/2d6, Autofire (2 shots; +1/4) (31 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:3 Real Cost 3 Soul Shield Constructing a shimmering field of SoulWind, the caster defends himself while incoming attacks blow bits of trapped souls off his shield. Soul Shield: Armor (9 PD/8 ED) (26 Active Points); Ablative BODY or STUN (-1), OAF (-1), Costs Endurance (-1/2), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:2 Real Cost 2 SoulShard Concentrating a single trapped soul into an almost-physical shard of crystal that he then sends downrange at his target. Soul Shard: Killing Attack - Ranged 2d6 (30 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:3 Real Cost 3 SoulShift Binding a soul to his own, the caster assumes a hybrid shape, slightly resembling his own, but also resembling that of the trapped soul. Soul Shift: Shape Shift (Sight, Smell/Taste, Touch and Hearing Groups), Imitation (29 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:3 Real Cost 3 The Soulbinding Cascade Binding a Soul to his own, the caster assumes some of the trapped soul’s abilities, augmenting his own. Each spell is a separate ability, bought as a new power. Option: Side Effects (Caster takes on Soul's Pych Lims?) Soulbinding - Body: Aid BODY 3d6 (30 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END: 0 Real Cost 3 Soulbinding - Constitution: Aid CON 3d6 (30 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END: 0 Real Cost 3 Soulbinding - Dexterity: Aid DEX 3d6 (30 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END:0 Real Cost 3 Soulbinding - Strength: Aid STR 3d6 (30 Active Points); OAF (-1), Requires A Channelling Roll (-1/2), Gestures (-1/4), Incantations (-1/4) END: 0 Real Cost 3 SoulWind Gear Soul Reserve Taking the form of a Staff, amulet or Orb, the Channeller must have this focus to store souls for his use. All spells are powered from this reserve. Soul Reserve: Endurance Reserve (50 END, 0 REC) Reserve: (5 Active Points); Independent (-2), OAF (-1), 4 clips of 4 Continuing Fuel Charges lasting 1 Extra Phase each (Increased Reloading Time; -1/4) [4 cc]

Re: DOLPHINS! How would you GM them? I don't know how graphic I'll get... but I was going to make it clear that they still exist in a fairly primitive state... maybe a few have "risen above" their tribal behaviors... But it might be fun to make them "Sea Orcs!"

Re: DOLPHINS! How would you GM them? That's exactly my point. I thought of all sorts of things from mechancial "arm harnesses" to coral-craft jewelery that they were tightly strapped to their bodies, but I think tattoos are the only way to go. Dolphins with mechanical limbs are more the realm of GURPS Transhuman Space, don't ya think?

Here's the deal... in a few weeks (after the legends arc) we're going to be exploring the ocean near the PCs home. There are Sea Elves and dolphins. I figure the dolphins are human-level intelligent, and can learn spells. Gestures could be replaced by "acrobatic" swimming and bubble-ring blowing, but other effects might be difficult. How's this: As a reward for service to the sea elves, dolphins receive Spell Marks; indelible spells scribed onto their skin either with magically inscribed tattoos or by ritual scarification. Dolphins can't hold items or wear magic armor, so ink or scars are really the only choices. Am I missing one? I don't think you can tattoo someone underwater without magic or a decent coral-craft blade... do you?

Re: Ever do this? The shift in thinking will be difficult for PCs in this kind of scenario. One thing I did for them was tell them they could apply the XP recieved in the "wayback" story to either the new character or their "modern" character. 100% of them thought that was a very nice gesture on my part, and they are spending it as you might expect. As for not being as powerful as their normal character, not much can be done aside from sudden gratutious leaps in power (since you aren't going to be playing these guys again, right) that won't affect the normal campaign much at all.

Last night, my PCs needed to hear a story from some old guy about a book on channelling the power of Chaos. I could have just made up an "old man accent" and winged it, but I wanted to involve the players a bit. As he started telling the story, I pulled from my backpack new character sheets, and naming each character in the legend, handed the sheet to the player who would portray each one. The look on each person's face as they were handed a sheet for a hero 10,000 years buried was priceless. They were suprised, I think, by the point totals. We've been at this game for years, and most PCs are pushing 300 points. The characters they got last night were 50+50 newbies. Names that had been larger than life were now just a buncha wet behind the ears nobodies. I think it put the legends in proper perspective. They had a blast, and next week we're continuing to play the legends, just to see how the rest of the story goes. I guess I'll slip into the old guy's voice again and give an intro, then on the action!

So... Everyday Items you'd make if you could: When I was single, I'd have given my right arm for a pair of glasses that would tell me about the girls I met. While a ring on a finger is a nice giveaway, knowing the truth of a woman's (or man's) marital status might be of benefit. After all, those rings can be removed when need arises. Datin' Goggles: (Total: 23 Active Cost, 20 Real Cost) +2 PER with Sight Group (4 Active Points); Independent (-2), OIF (-1/2) (Real Cost: 1) plus Detect Marital Status 12- (Sight Group), Discriminatory, Analyze, Range (Real Cost: 14) I plan to introduce these at the start of a Caleon episode, with the symbology in an arcane and totally made up code the wearer will not understand. I'm sure seeing strange symbols over every head in town will result in much confusion and fun for all. Then again, they might firgure it out after only a few minutes of reasoning. I plan to use symbols for Unattached, Dating, Engaged, In Love, Unrequited Love, Married, Happily Married, Divorced and probably a few others. This way, the PCs will have to ask a lot of questions to figure out the code. Uh-Oh... Would Universal Translator decode the symbols instantly? Is a made up code a "language?"

Re: [Cosmology] The ur-Stone. (Thoughts wanted.) I like it. I like it a lot.

So.... I have this cave. In it, there is a small pool of the clearest water that cures Curses and Transforms. Obviously, I'm not keeping it long. Eventually, some bad mofo is going to take it away build a freaking castle over it, or the government will step in and take over, adding all sorts of paperwork to the healing process. The government falls, the cave, the castle, the paperwork and the pool all fall into bureaucratic legend. How would you use this item? Lord Ashkar's Forgotten Pool of Purity: Major Transform 10d6 (Cursed or Transformed Person to Normal Person, Healed Back By Other Transforms), Usable By Other (+1/4), Area Of Effect (2" radius; +3/4) (300 Active Points); OIF Immobile (Location; -1 1/2) As written, it looks like the pool's waters do not function away from the pool, though one could get rich (then kinda hunted) selling faked Remove Curse Potions from it. In Caleon, it's a legend from the time of the Ashur Empire, which arguably hit its peak about 1500 years ago. I think enough time has passed for it to be a legend, and as the game I'm running will soon head thataway, it might be nice to get opinions on what you folks might do if your characters happened upon such a place. Would you heal your cursed party members, remembering to come back sometime, or would you set up shop... spreading word that everyone who's been Newted lately show up and pay up for healing? Or just leave a large amount of graphitti. beer cans and burnt candles and move on down the road?

...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.

Re: Monster Hunter Campaign? Here ya go... I've decided it's not good enough, and I'm refocussing on Caleon and my new Champions game. http://www.geocities.com/jephkay@sbcglobal.net/VragDossier.doc

Re: Which one is it?

Re: Which one is it? Oh... the simple route... Whoda thunkit? I already did the AP sword thing with a certain brand of "Armorglass" (Dh. Duraan) and my PCs think they're cool and all that... but I needed something worthy of the most dedicated guys on the planet (so far...)

.. We're taking a break form FH for a bit, and decided on Champions instead of Pulp Hero! Here's the thing: they are making Competent Normals, then I'm springing their Origin on them in the first episode. A super-powered fight will spill over into their normal lives and chaos will ensue. They do not know I'm doing this. They think it's just 50 pointers in a Super-Powered World. Anyone ever done this? Should I seek professional help?

Re: Which one is it? I don't think I like the NND so much after a little thought. Yes, it makes it more "lightsabre-y" but at the cost of leaving a Thundai weaponless against any foe as trained as he is. What about 2d6 HKA with a limitation like "Only To Cut Through Armor" and another one "Not against Thundai Tabards." As I see it, this would create a blade that literally melts most armor like butter, while the tabard stops it cold. If a sword ever fell into the wrong hands, the Order has a defense against them. Or is that just silly? What I wanted was a situation where both the swords and the tabards had great meaning and value, as well as creating another campaign secret (the method of manufacture of both items). It try to make sure that items created in my game have meaning n the context of the setting, not just some nameless, generic +1 Broadsword of Ruleslawyering.

Re: Which one is it? Thanks for the speedy replies. And yes, the Tabard functions as armor. If there is interest, maybe I'll post the whole Thundai article when I'm done. It includes package deals, Raiment (for Thundai Arcanists) Vestments (for Thundai Channellers) and a few Artifacts, Thundai Axe and Thunderstrike, the Glaive of Khoza. Maybe tomorrow...

Okay... You are a Thundai Knight, a gaurdian of virtues and heroism. You are highly trained and fear no man or beast (though those female trolls are often a problem). A high-ranking Thundai, you carry a couple of Artifacts; a Thundai Sword and a Thundai Tabard (which is defense against the Sword). Sword, Thundai: (Total: 120 Active Cost, 37 Real Cost) Killing Attack - Hand-To-Hand 2d6, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), NND (Magical Shielding; +1), Does BODY (+1) (105 Active Points); OAF (-1), STR Minimum (-3/4), Required Hands Two-Handed (-1/2), Real Weapon (-1/4) (Real Cost: 30) plus +3 with HTH Combat (15 Active Points); OAF (-1) (Real Cost: 7) Yeah, it's tough... It's the Lightsabre of Caleon. It is stopped by "magical shielding" Is it enough to define the Thundai Tabard's Armor as magical, and thus a decent defense? Do we need "more?" Thundai Tabard: (Total: 22 Active Cost, 7 Real Cost) Armor (6 PD/6 ED) (18 Active Points); Independent (-2), Tabard (Protects Locations 9-17; -1/2), OIF (-1/2), Real Armor (-1/4) (Real Cost: 3)

What do we think? I tried to use my Monsters article to it's best intent, and I think it could be more detailed. Does it inspire? Does the "Chalasyan" area seem compelling? You tell me. Click Here I thought I uploaded this puppy way back when, but apparently not.

Re: IK Hero? I know how you feel. I invented Steampunk in FH back in 1986. Makes me sick sometimes. Caleon is similar in many ways to Ebberon and IK. Makes wanna be mean to Keith Baker. Real Mean.