D is for Duergar - A to Z Psionic Monsters

Duergar pack more punch than you would expect. Not only are they evil dwarfs, they are PSIONIC evil dwarfs! According to the book, every single last one of them is psionically endowed. That makes them quite unique in the humanoid realm, placing them on similar footing as the Gith.

They are nasty and evil in the extreme. Their HOLY MEN are dual classes ASSASSIN-CLERICS! You gotta admit, that is pretty bad ass. Of course, they love to keep slaves. They can work their way up to 9th level as fighters or assassin/clerics.

I imagine these nasty little beasties to be one of the central players in the battle for underdark supremacy, their natural psionic talent making them effective shock troops against the Mind Flayers and Aboleths, for example. It would only take small group of Duergar to overwhelm the slavers with psionic attacks alone. Those slaver races probably hate the Duergar for that reason, and so they would to organize their slave and client races to get the Duergar out of the way.

They have so many supplementary powers, they would be quite formidable opponents, not the least of which is their psionic Invisibility power. They are surprised only 1 in 10, they save vs magic at +4, and they are immune to paralysis and poison.

For illustration, let us imagine our adventurers attempt an invasion into a Duergar lair. The Duergar will be lead by a genius-level intelligence, and they are lawful, so their defenses will be well-organized.
--The 9th level leader will be able to Expand into the size and strength of a Frost Giant.
--Imagine their 9th level assassins using Reduction to drop to the size of a fly, or their psionic Invisibility (which affects the minds of up to 45 hd of enemies) to sneak up on you.
--Their 9th level assassin-clerics and fighters can cause your metal items to become blistering to the touch, to the tune of a Heat Metal spell in 2 rounds.
--Of course, they will have some nasty pet monsters guarding their lair as well.

HD: 1+2, up to 9

INT: average to genius

Psionic Ability: 71 + 2/hd

Attack Modes: Mind Thrust, Ego Whip, Id Insinuation

Defense Modes: Mind Blank, Thought Shield, Mental Barrier

Psionic Powers:

Expansion, Invisibility, Reduction, Molecular Agitation

Now, to be sure, the description actually says Molecular Attraction, but that is not a psionic power. They must have meant either Molecular Agitation, Manipulation, or Rearrangement. Given that Agitation is the only minor discipline of the three (and they only have minors otherwise), and it begins with A, I am pretty sure that is the correct one.

C is for Couatl - A to Z Psionic Monsters

The Couatl is pretty crazy if you think about it: half bird, half snake, genius intelligence creatures of lawful good who are worshipped as gods in the rainforests. It is not hard to surmise that this beast was based on the Mayan/Aztec god Quetzlcoatl. Clearly, any Meso-American campaign would benefit from the presence of Couatl.

I think most depictions of the Couatl over-emphasize its "serpent-ness". By contrast, I would tend to emphasize its "bird-ness", which highlights its 'lawful goodness' and essential friendliness. The 1st ed. classic picture of it does it no favors, emphasizing that wicked-looking snake eye staring right at you, with slithering tongue and sharp teeth, with its scaley body dropping off behind it. I imagine that if it kept its mouth shut, having large wings and covered with colorful feathers, it could easily pass for a bird with a long body.

Keep in mind, though, because they can polymorph self at will, they will most likely NOT be encountered in their natural form. To humans, they would no doubt appear as a "feather-plumed" human, with spooky-looking snake eyes and an aloof personality. If it came down to combat, we would get one of those dramatic moments when they would suddenly assume their true form before opening the can of whoop ass. They could also assume their true form in the context of the culmination of a religious ritual. Whatever the case, their polymorph self power should provide some good dramatic role-playing fodder.

The 1e MM description of its psionic powers in vague, basically leaving it up to your creativity, suggesting only 2 major/4 minor disciplines with "commensurate attack and defense modes". They are definitely NOT psionically overpowered, with one of the lowest psionic ability points of any psionic god-like creatures out there. However, consulting the relevant table in Appendix I, we see that the combination of 4 minor/2 major disciplines is actually at the top of the chart. "Commensurate" attack/defense abilities, if we follow the "top of the chart" logic, would imply they have them all, and as that makes the whole thing much easier, I'm just going to go with that.

As for filling out their power package of psionic disciplines, given that they are often worshipped by the locals, we can imagine a fairly typical and appropriate set. Powers like Cell Adjustment (healing/cure disease), Object Reading, Precognition, and Molecular Rearrangement (transmute metals) would be especially likely to draw human worshippers.

HD: 9

INT: Genius

Psionic Ability: 60-110 (50 + 10d6)

Psionic attacks: All

Psionic defenses: All

Special Powers:

Etherealness, at will

Polymorph self, at will

Spell use: d100: 01-45 --> 5th level magic user, 46-80 --> 7th level cleric 35%, 81-00 --> both

[Typical clerical package: Bless, Protection from Evil, Create Water, Know Alignment, Hold Person, Silence 15' radius, Dispel Magic, Remove Curse, Neutralize Poison

Typical magic user package: Sleep, Charm Person, Affect Normal Fires, Identify, Detect Invisibility, Locate Object, Monster Summoning 1]

4 minor disciplines (suggested choose from): Cell Adjustment (healing/cure disease), Clairaudience/Clairvoyance, Detection of Good/Evil, Object Reading, Precognition, Sensitivity to Psychic Impressions

2 major disciplines (suggested choose from): Telekinesis, Energy Control, Molecular Rearrangement (transmute metals), Molecular Manipulation (weaken objects)

The Other Psionic Monster starting with C

The Crysmal (of the 1e MM2) is listed as having psionic powers, as well. As some sort of weird sentient crystalline creature, sure why not! Like some of the "sentient plants" that develop psionic powers, it could definitely throw your players for a loop.

B is for Baku - A to Z psionic monsters

Yes, the Brainmole is classic and pretty cool, but I'm going with something that has a bit more campaigning potential: the Baku!


The Baku are creatures of the "Guardian/Watcher" genre. They are Good creatures of great power, who typically just hang out and observe things invisibly, waiting to intervene if some great evil should arise. This characteristic can give rise to a tremendous number of cool plot hooks.


Their natural form is like some kind of weird mutated elephant, but the PC would probably never encounter them in that form. At least, not without great dramatic import, like in the midst of a great war against great evil, when the PC's "mysterious helper" suddenly transforms himself in huge elephant/dragon beast and starts kicking major ass.


You see, the Baku is gifted with the psionic power of Shape Alteration, which means it can appear as whatever it wants to. Not to mention Reduction, which, at the 12th level of mastery, means it could get as tiny as a mouse if it needed to. They could also spy on things in astral or ethereal spirit form.



HD 12+12
Magic Resistance: 20%
INT: exceptional to genius
Psionic Ability: 180 + 2d12
attacks: Mind Thrust, Psychic Crush
defenses: Mind Blank, Thought Shield, Intellect Fortress


psionic powers:
Animal Telepathy (12th - with everything but plants)
Body Control (6th - withstand deadly environments up to 6 hd of damage for up to 6 turns)
Body Equilibrium (6th - walk on water & feather fall)
Cell Adjustment (12th - healing and cure disease up to 48 hit points)
Detection of Good/Evil (12th)
Reduction (12th - shrink to flea size)
Shape Alteration (12th - polymorph self to any size)


Other powers:
Invisibility, at will
Anti-Evil Trumpet
Etherealness, at will
Astral Travel, at will

A is for Aboleth - A to Z psionic monsters

The theme for my A-Z compilation will be, naturally enough, PSIONIC MONSTERS!

Aboleths are sweet, meaning, they have lots of potential.

Although they have the bodies of giant fishes, they are clearly related to Mind Flayers, as they are also highly intelligent, lawful evil, psionic slavers, with four tentacles and slimy skin, who prefer to live deep underground.

Fitting them in the average campaign is not easy, as they are not really a random-encounter kind-of-monster, so they more or less demand their own underdark-related milieu. If you aren't creating a whole milieu for them, they could at least be fit into a good "underground lake" scenario.

I am in the process of fleshing out an underdark war scenario in which they will play a major role. Something along the lines of Aboleth vs Mind Flayer vs Kracken, with proxy human/morlock/drow armies, that kind of thing.

HD: 8

Psionic ability: 250

attacks: Ego Whip, Id Insinuation, Psychic Crush

defenses: Thought Shield, Intellect Fortress, Tower of Iron Will

Special powers: illusions, enslavement

The illusion and enslavement powers aren't really spelled out in Appendix I of the 1e PH. Is enslavement equivalent to Domination? Or more like Hypnosis? DM call on that one, the way it is described, it actually sounds like Telepathic Projection to me. DM decision-making called for on that one.

Also, you have to get creative on the illusion-making thing, as there is no such psionic power listed in Appendix I.

I would also think they would be great candidates for Telepathy, as they would otherwise have no way to communicate with their slaves.

If you really want to throw your players for a loop, give 'em the Shape Alteration feature as well, so they would walk around as men. Or even Mind Flayers! The whole point of an underdark milieu of battling psionic slavers would be to really screw with your players minds! Aboleths, with their illusion-making ability, would be perfect for that.

On the Creation of Magic Items

Humans are mundane, non-magical, having no natural magical abilities.  In order to effect magic, they must have substances which are embued with magical energy.  By harnessing the power of these magical ingredients, humans can "do magic". 

 

Different magical ingredients have different magical properties and different power levels.  Dragon tonsils, for example, are known to be highly charged with magical energy related to the dragon's breath weapon. Magicians have found, for example, that Red Dragon tonsils make the best base ingredient for fire-related spells, while Blue Dragon tonsils are ideal for electricity-related magic.  

 

Storage Techniques

 

Wizards have found various techniques for the storage of these magical ingredients. 

 

Potions

 

One of the most basic methods is incorporating the magical substance into a liquid potion.  The potion can be drunk to internalize its magical power, although this method can be dangerous and lead to unpredictable results.   The potion can also be poured out, dispersing its magical effect upon whatever it is poured upon. 

 

Powders

 

Through the process of distilation of liquid potitions, magical powders can be created.  On the plus side, powders are more concentrated than potions, but on the downside, they are more volatile.  Magical powder is the base ingredient for most types of dynamic, on-demand, spell casting.   Powders are also appropriate for distributing magical effect carefully and evenly over specific areas.  Warning: Sprinkling magic dust on intelligent creatures can lead to highly unpredictable results! 

 

Wands, Staffs, and Rods

 

The most primitive wands began as pieces of wood which were soaked in magical liquid. The wood asborbed the magical properties of the liquid, and magicians learned to channel the magical power, usually with magical power words.  Superior wands are made of wood from magical trees, as they have proven to absorb and store much greater magical power.  Experiments are also being conducted with hollow-core wands, which allow magic power objects to be contained within them, greatly amplifying their magical powers.  Rods and especially staffs are particularly useful for that purpose, as they are larger and more easily cored. The techniques of wand making continue to be advanced.

 

Scrolls

 

Scrolls are best used for channeling the power of magic power words.  The fiber of the scroll is embedded with magical power at its creation, using magical plants, liquids, and powders in the process of crafting the paper.   The magical power word or phrase, usually stolen from one of the intelligent magical races, is then enscribed on the scroll itself, with magical ink if possible.  A tremendous amount of magical energy can be stored in this way.

 

Clothing Items

 

Cloaks, boots, gloves, hats, and so on, are usually created from the skins of magical creatures.  Fire Giant skins have proven to provide excellent fire resistance magic, for example.  Another popular method of creating magical clothing is by soaking natural fiber clothes in the blood of magical creatures. 

 

Metal Items - rings, weapons, etc.

 

Items made of precious metals are excellent at absorbing magical energy directly, storing the energy like a battery.   Wizards have found that metals can direcly absorb spell power cast at them, storing it for later use.  Metal items can also be charged up with magical power, when placed in a location where such magical power naturally accumulates.   Locating such natural "magical vortex" areas is a cherished goal for many in the magic using community. 

Hot Elf Chick - Sexy Drow edition

Since I am in the middle of Queen of the Demonweb Pits, I had to go Dark Elf on this one!





originally from here: http://reapers-angel.deviantart.com/art/Sexy-Drow-71127035?q=favby%3Abarzhiel%2F7166671&qo=64

The Importance of Persistent Conflict - and implications for XP

In my previous post, I talked about the importance of three top-level adventure design elements: temporality, monster agendas, and overwhelming force.

Thinking about what makes a really good adventure, I thought of another key element: persistence of conflict. What this means is, really good conflicts are not just resolved in a one-room battle.

Setting these conflicts up requires the DM to think about "better", not just "more". Rather than just upping the ante in the "powergamer sweepstakes", the DM should get smarter, and more devious.

For example, to challenge your players, you could have 24 trolls hanging out in a cavern. In the next cavern, down a small passage, there would be, what... 8 wyverns? Or 3 ancient red dragons? Next to a cavern with a lich (15th level mage)? And 8 frost giants are hanging out in the adjacent cave... And 3 mind flayers in the next....

I don't know, I guess in my old age I am just looking for something more.... hmmm, not really "challenging" per se... I guess the word I am looking for is -- sophisticated.

I mean, what if the cave complex is not stocked with monsters in every cave? What if not everything wants to "fight to the death". What if the monster who lives in the cave is clever, and wants to live? So it sets up traps, and does a lot of hit and run type stuff? What if it refuses to be baited into a "final battle"?

That is what I mean by "persistent conflict". Giving the players the feeling they are having to CHASE SOMETHING DOWN. Or, perhaps the opposite, that they are being STALKED, isolated, cut off, picked off one by one...

Oh no, "spending the night" in the dungeon is hardly an option now, is it, poppets? How much sleep are you going to get, knowing "that thing" is out there, scheming how to do you in, waiting for one slip up....

Game Design Implications for XP

This is one of the reasons I am not a fan of the original XP reward system. If XP is only earned for monsters slain and treasure looted, the type of game design I am talking about is highly discouraged. If the players spend the entire session dicking around with one monster, they've gained nothing, in game turns, even if they finally end up defeating it.

If you are clawing up the "blood and treasure" ladder, a cavern full of 34 trolls is exactly what you want and need!

But if you are using my "successful adventure" metric (http://oldschoolpsionics.blogspot.com/2011/02/advancement-rules-easy-way.html), just defeating one foe may be enough, if he is played in a clever and dangerous fashion.