Thursday, December 31, 2015

Twelve Days of Christmas -- Christmas Pudding (for d20 System Games)

Continuing with the Christmas celebration. The text in this post is presented under the Open Game License and may be reproduced accordingly. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.

CHRISTMAS PUDDING
Made with mysterious ingredients and with highly secretive methods, these miraculous food items take several hours to prepare and must be kept in ceramic or tin containers for 1d6+6 months before consumed by those they were prepared for--friends, family, or members of an adventuring party. Each Christmas Pudding contains 12 portions, and a character who eats a portion gains a +1 bonus to morale checks and Fortitude saves for 8 hours.
   The recipe for Christmas Puddings can only be obtained through dangerous quests (or from grandmothers). They can be purchased in many village stores around holiday times for 2d6gp each. They can be carried and stored like standard adventuring rations once obtained--but they are really a dish best served at feasts and holidays.


Wednesday, December 30, 2015

The Twelve Days of Christmas--Jingle Bells

The Twelve Days of Christmas continue with another magic item for d20 System games (such as Pathfinder or d20 Modern). The text in this post is released under the Open Game License. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller

JINGLE BELLS
This item is a pair of small bells joined together on a bright red leather strap radiates enchantment magic, and when shaken, they emit a soft, harmonious ringing sound.
   As a standard action, the user can shake the bells. All creatures, save the user, within 20 feet must roll Will saves (DC15) or be filled with a sense of good cheer and fellowship toward each other. Hostilities instantly cease and the creatures will join together in singing songs and enjoying each other's company. If anyone attacks a creature under the enchantment of the jingle bells, all affected creatures turn on the attacker.


Tuesday, December 29, 2015

The Twelve Days of Christmas -- The Little Drummer Boy's Drum (for the d20 System)

On the Fifth Day of Christmas, NUELOW Games brings to you... the Little Drummer Boy's Drum. All text in this post is presented under the Open Game License, and it may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.

The Little Drummer Boy's Drum (aka The Drum of Bethlehem)
Art by William Morris Hunt
This item appears to all inspection to be a well-used and extremely well-made tabor-style snare drum. It does not appear to be magical, but attempts to break or destroy it fail. The word "Bethlehem" is painted onto the drum's head in Aramaic script.
   Powers: When a character with 5 or more ranks in Perform (drim) plays it, he or she gains a +10 bonus to any related skill checks. If the performance is done using the Little Drummer Boy's Drumsticks, the bonus increases to +15. Additionally, the performer  can designate one target within 60 feet to be subjected to an affect similar to a sleep spell. The target receives a Will save equal to the character's Perform (drum) skill check. If the saving throw fails, the target falls into a magical slumber that lasts a number of hours equal to the character's total Perform (drum) skill. (The first power--the bonus to the Peform skill--is evident to both the user and those witnessing the performance, The second power is only evident if an identify spell, or similar means, is used to examine the drum while it is being played with the Little Drummer Boy's Drumsticks.
   Drawback: None.
   Method of Destruction: The Little Drummer Boy's Drum loses all enchantment if its head is pierced with one of the Little Drummer Boy's Drumsticks. It can then be destroyed without problem.
   Special Note: Despite its name, this drum is not the one that legend holds was present in the manger where Jesus Christ spent his first few nights on Earth. It was created in 1612 by Maltorn MacRae, a Scottish wizard who had come into possession of the Little Drummer Boy's Drumsticks and desperately wanted a drum worthy of those precious items. If someone should damage the Drum, it can be repaired using MacRae's original enchantments... if his book describing them can be located.

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Monday, December 28, 2015

Twelve Days of Christmas --The Little Drummer Boy's Drumsticks (for d20 System)

It's the fourth day of Christmas, and here's another tidbit for use in your d20 System games. As usual, all text in this post is released under the Open Game License.

The Little Drummer Boy's Drumsticks (aka the Drumsticks of Bethlehem)
These appear to be a set of well-used drumsticks carved from oak wood. When they are checked for magical aura (though the use of spells, devices, or abilities), they radiate faint abjuration magic or a divine nature.
   Powers: Reported to have been touched by the Christ Child and his mother days after his brith, these drumsticks are a single artifact in two parts. When separated, they have no apparent magical function. Each stick radiates magic, is seemingly indestructible, and can used as improvised piercing weapon that deals 1d2 points of damage. While the item can be considered an enchanted weapon at +1 level, it does not grant bonuses to hit or damage.
  When the sticks are carried by the same person, he or she gains a +1 bonus to all saving throws. He or she gains a +6 bonus to all Perform (drums) skill checks when using the Drumsticks of Bethlehem. Once per day, the character may designate a target and cast a sleep spell upon it while playing the drums using the drumsticks.
   Drawbacks: Whenever carrying the Drumsticks of Bethlehem, the character must roll a Will save (DC18) whenever idle, or near a cute baby. If the save fails, he or she is gripped by an urge to start using the drumsticks on any available surface. If there is a snare drum available, the save is against DC24).
   Destruction: The Drumsticks of Bethlehem can only be destroyed by being tossed into the fires of Hell itself.

If you found this material interesting or amusing, please support NUELOW Games by getting one or more of our offerings through RPGNow.

Sunday, December 27, 2015

Twelve Days of Christmas -- Selfless

On the third day of Christmas, we have another feat for you! The text is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with its terms. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.

SELFLESS
You are ready to support those in need.
   Benefit: Give up one of your character's actions. Designate another player. The character under that player's control gains a +4 bonus to the next d20 roll made. You may use this ability as many times each round as you have actions.
   Special: When this feat is chosen, gain 2 character points that must be spent on skills immediately.




 

Saturday, December 26, 2015

Twelve Days of Christmas -- Naughty or Nice Feat (for d20 System games)

One the second day of Christmas, NUELOW brings to you... a feat that lets characters emulate Santa's ability to tell the Naughty from the Nice!

OGL d20 SYSTEM FEAT: NAUGHTY OR NICE
You can tell someone's good or evil by just looking at them.
   Prerequisite: Intelligence 12, Wisdom 12
   Benefit: As a standard action, you may look at a living person or being and immediately know if they have good or evil intentions toward you, your allies, or innocent beings. (This does not necessarily reflect their alignment--although it is revealed if the d20 System variant includes the alignment mechanic--but rather what the moral ramifications of their immediately past or near-future actions will be. You may use this ability a number of times each day equal to your Wisdom bonus.  
   Targets must have Intelligence and Wisdom scores of at least 4 for the ability of this feat to be effective. Spells and abilities that prevent scrying or other divination magic or spell-like and supernatural powers also impede this feat. The target appears "nice" when studied.
   Special: This feat is considered a "minor power feat" for the purposes to acquiring superpower talents.

Friday, December 25, 2015

Twelve Days of Christmas -- The Tidings of Comfort and Joy Feat (d20 System)

Happy Christmas from NUELOW Games everyone! Here's a feat to go with the season that's suitable for any d20 System game. The following text is presented under the Open Game License. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.

NEW FEAT: TIDINGS OF COMFORT AND JOY 
You spread joy and cheer.
   Prerequisite: Wisdom 12, Charisma 14
   Benefit: Take a full round action to make a Concentration check (DC8). For the duration of the next encounter, all other PCs and allied NPCs present when you make the check gain a +2 bonus to all saving throws and morale checks.
   Special: The bonus is increased to +4 for present PCs and NPCs who join together and sing a Christmas carol (or other campaign-setting appropriate song of a similar nature) while the skill check is being made. Skills checks of Perform (sing) (DC4) are needed to stay on key.


If you found that feat amusing or useful, support NUELOW Games by buying some of our other d20 System releases at RPGNow.

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

The Power of the Spirits (a d20 System feat and talent tree)

Here's a feat and a talent tree that you can use to add some spellcasting and mysticism to a d20 Modern campaign without adding full-blown spellcasting classes. (It's designed to model Lady Satan as she appears after she gained her mystical powers, as seen the forthcoming NUELOW Games book Lady Satan 1944.)

The rest of this post is presented under the Open Game License. Copyright 2015 Steve Miller.

SPIRITUALIST FEAT
You hear voices. You're not crazy... it's the Spirits revealing secrets to you.
   Requirement: Cha 14, Wis 14
   Benefit: Take a full round action to make a Concentration check (DC8). If successful, add 1/2 of the result as a bonus to your next Bluff, Gather Information, Intimidation, Research, Search, or Spot skill check. (The spirits are assisting you with whispers at the back of your mind.)
   Special: This feat is a prerequisite for talents from the Spirit Channeler talent tree.


SPIRIT CHANNELER TALENT TREE
You can call upon nature spirits, spirits of the dead, and other incorporeal beings for advice and assistance. Some of the assistance comes at a cost.
   In the mechanics of the game, this means you can cast spells at will. The traits that give you the ability to cast spells replace any material components of the spell, and negates any armor penalty. Other aspects and restrictions remain the same. Your character level is used in place of caster level when required.
   Elemental Attunement: When this talent is chosen, specify an Elemental school of magic (air, earth, fire, or water). You may cast a number of 0- or 1st-level spells equal to your Wisdom bonus each day. These spells are added to any amount of spells you can cast from class benefits, feats. or other traits. You may select this talent up to four times, with a different elemental school specified.
   Prerequisite: Spiritualist feat
   The View from Beyond: You may cast a number of 0- 1st-, or 2nd-level spells from the Divination school equal to your Wisdom bonus each day. These spells are added to any amount of spells you can cast from class benefits, feats. or other traits.
   Prerequisite: Spiritualist feat
   The Power of Life and Death: When this talent is chosen, specify either the Healing or Necromancy schools of magic. You may cast a number of 0- or 1st-level spells equal to your Wisdom bonus each day. These spells are added to any amount of spells you can cast from class benefits, feats. or other traits. You may select this twice, with a different elemental school specified each time.
   Prerequisite: Spiritualist feat.
   Summon Spirit: Take a full round action to make a Concentration skill check (DC12). If successful, you summon forth a poltergeist that will do your bidding for a number of rounds equal to your Wisdom and Charisma bonuses combined.
   The poltergeist manifests next to you. Commands are issued mentally, and there is theoretically no limit to the range of which they can be issued to the spirit. Once the time is up, the poltergeist returns from whence it came unless you have taken no action other than commanding it. In this case, you may continue to command it, but the creature receives a Will save at the beginning of every other round (against the Concentration result that originally brought it forth). Once the spirit is free, there is a 50% chance it attacks you in anger over having been forced to stay. Otherwise, it departs. You can also command it to return to the spirit realm at any point before it breaks loose of your control.
   Prerequisite: One trait from the Spirit Channeler talent tree
   The Price of Power: You may cast a number of spells of any level equal to your Wisdom bonus each day. These spells are added to any amount of spells you can cast from class benefits, feats, or other traits. Every time you cast a spell gained from this train, you lose a number of XP equal to 100 times the spell level. This is the price the spirits exact for their assistance.
   When using this talent, you can't lose more XP than the absolute minimum of your current level. You cannot use this trait if the XP cost would cause you to lose a level.
   Prerequisite: One trait from the Spirit Channeler talent tree.


If you found this post interesting or useful, check out NUELOW Games's OGL d20 System supplements at RPGNow and DriveThruRPG. Please support my blog posts by supporting my my actual publishing operation.
  
  


Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Return to Egypt with NUELOW Games!

NUELOW Games has just released its third Egyptian-themed comics/rpg hybrid book. Titled Terrors of Egypt, it has tales that span the ages from the Old Kingdoms through modern day. Vengeful mummies, strange curses, and unknowable mysteries... this one has it all!

Khafra.
Art by Cesar Lopez
The main attraction of the book is "The Mummy Khafre". It's the tale of one of the many "horror-mood" characters that Alan Hewetson created for Skywald's magazines in the mid-1970s... and her story has now been collected in one place for the first time ever. I'm sure you'll agree, after reading this story that Khafre is a worthy addition to our line-up of female characters... and that she may even give the Sorceress of Zoom or the Queen of Evil a run for their money when it comes to nastiness.

You can click here to see previews or to get your own copy of Terrors of Egypt (which features art by Cesar Lopez, Ricardo Villamonte, Xavier Villanova, and Norman Nodel). It also has a fun add-on to d20 System character creation that lets you determine a character's sign under the Egyptian zodiac.

One tidbit that I briefly considered for the book, but ultimately rejected, were rules that let you randomly determine a character's exact birth date. So they don't go completely to waste, I'm posting them here (modified so the don't rely on the material in Terrors of Egypt, as the original version did).

Everything in this post from this point forward if released under the Open Game License.

Random Character Birthday Generator
Copyright ©2015 Steve Miller

   Step One: Determine month of birth by rolling 1d12. The result is the month in which the character was born.
   Step Two: Roll 1d6. Record the result.
   Step Three: If the d6 roll was 1-2, roll 1d12 to determine the birth date; 3-4, roll 2d12-1 to determine the birth date; 5-6 roll 3d12-2 to determine the birth date. If a result of 3d12-2 puts you outside the number of days in the month, the birthday is on the last day of the month.

Available Now!

Sunday, December 6, 2015

d20 System Feat: Chosen

When writing fiction or designing and developing roleplaying game, oftentimes what seems like a great idea at the start is replaced by something far better. Such is the case with the feat presented below. It was part of an early approach I took to adapting the story of Lady Satan 1974 to the d20 System, but I ultimately axed it because much better ideas presented themselves as the project evolved. If you find this feat interesting or useful, you should check out the book by clicking here!

The following is released under the Open Game License. Copyright 2015 Steve Miller. It is fully compatible with the d20 System magic rules from Feats of Mysticism and Magic and other NUELOW Games OGL d20 System releases.


Art by Pablo Marcos. From Lady Satan 1974,

CHOSEN
You have a special relationship with a powerful supernatural creature—an angel, demon, or perhaps even a god.
    Benefit: Once per week, you may call upon your supernatural patron to grant you a chance to change fate. You may re-roll a single d20 roll. You must accept the second result.
    You gain a +4 bonus to skill checks relating to rites and rituations involved with your patron, and any summoning and ward spells you cast function as if cast at one level higher than your caster level.
    Special: If the character is killed, he or she may make a final Will save (DC18). If successful, the character continues to exist as a disembodied spirit on the mortal plane instead of moving onto the afterlife, with the full blessing of his or her patron. The character gains the Disembodied template, if in use. If not, the character exists formless near the location of his or her demise until a suitable living vessel comes along. The character may attempt to possess the being. The target receives a Will save (DC12+your character level) to resist. If the target is injured or somehow emotionally vulnerable or frightened, the Will save is DC8+your character level.

Sunday, November 29, 2015

On November 30, it's Black Monday at NUELOW Games...

... because we can't keep the whole Black Friday/Cyber Monday thing straight, we decided to merge the Friday and Monday sales into one. We also wanted an excuse to post this picture someone took at a Japanese department store.

Nothing can describe NUELOW's Black Monday sale better than that!
All our rpg/comics hybrid books, OGL d20 System supplements, fiction collections, and stock art collections are on sale for 20% for JUST ONE DAY! So, if you have any money left over after this weekend of shopping for deals, maybe you can throw some our way? Our comics collections and fiction anthologies are cool... and our d20 System supplements are oddball.

The sale runs at RPGNowDriveThruComicsDriveThruFiction, and DriveThruRPG from 7am November 30 to 7am December 1 (Pacific Time).

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Wildfire strikes at NUELOW Games

The latest comics/rpg hybrid product has been released, and it stars one of the greatest superheroines to ever be forgotten by comics readers--Wildfire.

Cover for NUELOW's Wildfire. Art by Jim Mooney.
Wildfire is secretly Carol Vance. As a young child, she laughed in the face of the mighty Lord of Fire, even as he was burning everything around her. As a reward for her courage, he made her a Mistress of Flame--a status that gave her protection from fire and a range of powers related to manipulating and harnessing fire. In her late teens, she began using her powers to fight crime and injustice.

Wildfire from NUELOW Games contains five tales of Carol's exploits, written and drawn the team who created her--Robert Turner & Jim Mooney. Turner was a pulp fiction writer, and Mooney spent fifty years drawing comics starring characters like Wildfire... including Supergirl. In addition to the comics, the Wildfire book contains an OGL d20 System character template and a pair of feats designed to let you create characters like Wildfire with the version of the d20 System you currently enjoy playing. You can click here to see previews of Wildfire, or to download your own copy from RPGNow. (It is also available at DriveThruComics and DriveThruRPG.)

As always, if you have feedback or suggestions regarding our releases, don't hesitate to get in touch. We don't know what we're doing right or wrong unless you tell us!




Thursday, November 19, 2015

Music of the Sorceress

There aren't many of the characters featured in NUELOW Games releases that have music that is officially written for them. There may even be only one who has so moved a composer... so it's only fitting that character should the deadliest femme fatale to ever travel the multivese--the Sorceress of Zoom!

In May of 2015, the Esperanza Ensemble performed the world premiere of Justin E.A. Busch's "The Sorceress of Zoom, Op. 98." Here it is:




The Sorceress of Zoom has starred in two books from NUELOW Games. A third one, which will reveal her never-before-told origin story, will be released in 2016.

You can read sample pages from the existing books at the Shades of Gray blog by clicking here. You can see more previews, or get your own copies at the links below.

See Previews or Buy at DriveThruComics
See Previews or Buy at DriveThruComics.

The superpower for unlucky sad sacks

The text in this post is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright 2015 Steve Miller.

Art by Kerry Callen

Between the Legion of Substitute Heroes and the Great Lake Avengers, even mainstream comic book universes have their superpowered failures and comic relief. This little expansion to NUELOW Games' superpower system is for heroes who make the most out of their flubs. In fact, failing IS their superpower.




THE POWER OF EMBARRASSMENT [Minor Power Feat]
Your failures make you stronger!
   Benefit: Whenever you fail a skill check tied to the Charisma attribute, you gain a +2 bonus to a future skill check or attack action that is not Charisma-based. The bonus must be used before the end of the encounter during which the initially failed skill check took place.

HUMILIATED TALENT TREE
You must have at least one Minor Power Feat to qualify for any of the talents from this tree.
  Clumsy: Whenever you fail a Dexterity-based die roll (including ranged attacks) or a Reflex save, you gain a temporary +4 bonus to Charisma. This benefit lasts for the duration of the encounter during which the original failed roll took place.
  Slow on the Uptake: Whenever you fail a Wisdom-based die roll or a Willpower saving throw, you gain a temporary +4 bonus to your Intelligence. This benefit lasts for the duration or the encounter during which the failed roll took place.
   That Which Doesn't Kill You, Makes You Stronger: Whenever you fail a Constitution-based skill check, or a Fortitude save, you gain a temporary +4 bonus to your Strength. This benefit lasts for the duration of the encounter
  Focus On the Negative: Choose one other talent from this tree that you've already selected. The temporary bonus lasts for a number of hours equal to your Will save bonus. You may choose this talent up to three times, each time applying it to a different talent from this tree.
  Destined to Fail: Once per session, when you fail a skill check to a horrendous degree (more than 8 below the target number), you may invoke this trait. At the speed of thought, the realization as to how actions you took earlier set you up for this failure flash into your mind. If you describe the event that preceded this disaster, and if the GM things it's plausible or amusing, you may immediately re-try the action. (You make the re-try on the same initiative that you already acted on.)
  Prerequisite: The Power of Embarrassment minor power feat

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If you found this amusing or useful, please consider getting some of our many OGL d20 System releases that are available here.

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

For those who want Caliphate Compliant d20 characters

I have been informed that it's important that we understand the mindset of those who wish to bring us all under the rule of the Caliphate of the Daesh (or ISIL, if you're US President Barack Obama and you're already recognizing their claim on all the land between Turkey and Egypt). Since roleplaying games can be good educational tools, I have devised this talent tree so you can all create d20 Modern characters that in the mold of the mightiest of Daesh fighters! (These talents should be added to those available for Tough Heroes and Strong Heroes.)


The rest of this post is released under the Open Gaming License and may be reproduced in accordance with its terms. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.

DAESH FIGHTER TALENT TREE
You are a psychopathic killer, or a moron who's deluded himself into thinking he's a heroic Lion of Islam You get to pick talents from this tree,
   Champion of the Caliphate: Gain a +2 bonus to all attack and damage rolls. Gain a -2 modifier to all Intelligence- and Wisdom-based skill checks.
   Allah's Sword: Select a religion or religious denomination (other than the one you fancy yourself as part of). Gain a +4 bonus to Gather Information checks made to ferret out the religious beliefs of a target, and gain a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls if they are of the selected denomination, You gain a -2 modifier to all Bluff, Diplomacy, and Sense Motive checks.
   You may choose this talent as many times as you like, each time selecting a different religious denomination.
   Prerequisite: Champion of the Caliphate.
   Misogynist: You gain a +2 bonus to hit and damage against female characters. You gain a -4 modifier to all Bluff, Diplomacy, and Sense Motive checks involving female characters.
   Prerequisite: Champion of the Caliphate.
   Cry Like a Little Girl: When you come face-to-face with American, British, or French soldiers, gain a +4 bonus to Bluff and Diplomacy checks to convince them that you were forced into being a killer for the Caliphate. The bonus increases to +6 if you are facing Americans. The bonus increases to +8 if you're giving an interview to BBC, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, or al-Jazeera, and it applies to their viewers and reporters working for those news outlets.
   Prerequisite: Champion of the Caliphate.
   Take It Like a Man: When engaging in homosexual orgies with your fellow Daesh Fighters, you always take it up the ass, but you can walk just fine the next day. You gain a +4 bonus to Bluff checks when trying to spot closeted homosexuals and recruit them to the glorious cause of the Caliphate. If they refuse to join, you gain a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls against them.
   Prerequisite: Misogynist.

The Official Flag of the Caliphate

Monday, November 16, 2015

Reintroducing Zaza the Mystic

Last year, in the pages of News Hounds #1, we included a scenario for Lester Smith's CORE RPG where the Black Cat and reporters Ace Williams and Foggy Gibbons meet Zaza the Mystic and team up to defeat a Swami who has marked them all for death.

Now, Zaza returns in her own self-titled book, Zaza the Mystic, starring with her boyfriend, police detective Lt. Bob Wilson in four thrilling tales of mystery from NUELOW Games. In addition to the classic comics written by Jerry Seigel and drawn by Charles Nicholas, Rocco Mastroserio, and Jon D'Agostino, the contains OGL d20 System rules that will let players create "fake psychics" like Zaza, as well as criminal profilers, who use their powers of observation and insight into human psychology to get one step ahead of criminals and other enemies. This material, fully compatible with d20 Modern and NUELOW Games' other OGL d20 releases, was designed by our own Steve Miller.

In addition to the original game material, Steve also filling in tiny bit of information about Zaza's background, including her full name and a little bit about her childhood. Her original publisher, Charlton Comics, never explained much about where she came from or where she learned her cold-reading skills, other than to describe her as the "Queen of Gypsy Mystics." (A total of six Zaza stories were published in 1956, in issues 10 and 11 of Zaza the Mystic. (The numbering continued from Charlie Chan Comics.)

Here's how Steve summed up how Zaza came to be a crimebuster:

How do you rebel if you're a teenager who's been raised in a circus to be the Gypsy Queen of Fortunetellers and to bilk the rubes out of money? If you're Zaza Kamlo, you run away to the big city, date a police officer, and use your talents to catch criminals rather than being one.

Zaza the Mystic is on sale now at RPGNow, DriveThruRPG, and DriveThruComics. Click on the name of your favorite Onebookshelf site to get your copy today!

Friday, November 6, 2015

A Talent Tree and Feat for Urban d20 Modern, Dawg!

For your Urban d20 Modern games...

(This material is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller)

Gangbanger Talent Tree (By Steve Miller)
Talents from this tree may be selected by Tough Heroes or Strong Heroes when they gain talents.
   Weapon Skilz!: Your non-proficiency penalty with the use of small arms is reduced to -2. You can also hold an automatic or semi-automatic weapon in the most idiotic fashion you want while firing, without dropping it or being hit by ejecting cartridges.
   Fashun Senz!: You can wear oversized pants with no belt and only suffer -10 feet to your movement rate when running. You penalty to Climb, Jump, and Run skill checks is reduced to -4.
   Colur Senz!: Pick a color. When you wear that color, you gain +2 Defense Rating. Pick another color. When you see someone wearing it, make a Will save. If you fail the save, you must attack them. You gain +2 to all attack and damage rolls against the target. (This talent may be chosen up to five times. You must select different other color each time. The +2 bonus to the Defense Rating only applies once.)
   Help, Help! I'z Bein Oppressed: You gain +4 to all Bluff and Diplomacy checks when dealing with reporters if you're anything but white and end up on the news. The bonus increases to +6 if you were looting a shop, setting a car on fire, or protesting policing at the time.


Homie-flage Feat (By Dave Mendez)
You may go onto enemy turf wearing their colors without getting caught.
   Benefit: Gain +5 to Bluff skill checks while disguised as a member of another gang in their territory.
  Special: If one of your own homies sees you wearing your enemies color, he starts tripping and calls you out as a buster. You suffer -5 to all skill checks when dealing with your own crew til you improve your rep with your homies.

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If you enjoyed this material, please consider getting one of our actual d20 System products! Click here to check them out!

Friday, October 30, 2015

Rulah, Jungle Goddess, joins NUELOW's line-up

In 1947, daredevil Jane Dodge vanished while flying her plane over Africa... and that's when her life really began.

NUELOW Games has just released the first volume in a new series of comics/rpg jungle adventure books--Rulah, Jungle Goddess. It's a series that occupies a middle ground between the straight-up adventure stories found in our Judy of the Jungle titles, and the fantasy/horror-tinged tales in The Three Lives of Fantomah books, as Rulah battles foes who are both natural and supernatural.

Rulah, Jungle Goddess contains the story of how Jane Dodge became Rulah, as well as three other adventures that sees her battle Nazis, evil priests, and monstrous harpies. In addition, it features OGL d20 Modern rules that are geared toward letting players make characters who are living gods and goddesses like Rulah... and even ones who have supernatural powers like Fantomah. (The game section has a new starting occupation, two new talent trees, and several feats fit for a living goddess.)

Click here to see previews of Rulah, Jungle Goddess, or to get your own copy at RPGNow. You can also get the book from DriveThruComics by clicking here..

The OGL d20 Modern rules in Rulah, Jungle Goddess make great additions to the material presented in Modern Basics: Jungle Action, and they're fully compatible with all the feats- and talent tree-based d20 superhero mechanics that we've published.


Monday, October 26, 2015

HAPPY 68th BIRTHDAY TO HILLARY CLINTON!

Former Watergate investigation staffer, former lawyer, former Senator from New Yrok, former Secretary of State, present candidate for President and wife of a former President--she's Hillary Clinton and today, October 26th, we're celebrating her birthday!

Instead of giving Hillary a present--she's the woman who has everything but her own slippers with the presidential seal on them--we're giving one to you! For the next 24 hours, we're selling the Hillary Clinton Birthday Bundle! It contains ROLF!: The Rollplaying Game og Big, Dumb Fighters, two ROLF! battle scenarios where a lucky gamer gets to take on the role of Hillary herself (the ROLF! classics Bill Clinton Meets a Girl Scout and Super Muslim Bros.) and two other releases that feature ROLF! game stats for her greatest foes--the Girl Scouts from Jupiter and Donald Trump! With the material included in this bundle, you will be able to create your own ROLF! battle scenarios with Hillary fighting for truth, justice, and her way--and the way to 2016!

Click here to see previews of the individual products in the Hillary Clinton Birthday Bundle--or to get it for yourself. The bundle is 47% what it would cost you to get them separately.


Sunday, October 25, 2015

More of the Immortals

Art by Storn Cook
The latest release from NUELOW Games--Secrets of the Immortals for the d20 System--complies and expands upon material that first appeared on this blog. Secrets of the Immortals contains everything you need to include Immortal characters in your d20 System-based roleplaying game--the Immortal character template, how it is obtained, and feats exclusive to Immortals, and information about a race whose highly advanced, spacefaring civilization is to a large extent built around the Immortals and their activities.

If you saw the original posts here on the blog, you could probably tell what the main source of inspiration was the sort of Immortals who travel about in vehicles that are bigger on the inside than the outside. This post provides a feat that lets you add ones to the mix that are similar to ones who have names like Connor or Raven or McCloud while adding a second race to the mix of aliens who also have Immortals at the center of their culture.

Like the Secrets of the Immortals book, all text in this post is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.

NEW FEATS
These feats is available only to Immortal characters who meet the prerequisites. It may be chosen under any circumstance that the character selects a feat.

Sense Immortal [Immortal] 
You can sense when you are near other Immortals.
   Prerequisite: Immortal Template, Spot 4 ranks.
   Benefit: When you are within 60 feet of another Immortal, the GM tells you you feel as though something is "off" or as if "someone just walked over your grave" or some other statement to show you are sensing something unusual. Upon making a successful Spot skill check (DC15), you can identify the source of your unease--another Immortal. If the Immortal is out of your line of sight, you know exactly where he or she is. (The sense of unease ends as soon as you recognise the other Immortal.)
   The sense of unease also ends if the Spot check reveals some other threat or mystery that draws your attention.
   Note: GMs may or may not be calling your attention to another Immortal. Sometimes, it's something entirely different that's going on. Whichever is the case, the sense that something is wrong is dispelled once your attention is caught by something in the area.

Art by Permission of OWC
There Can Be Only One [Immortal] 
You absorb the extra life force in other Immortals you kill.
   Prerequisite: You must have used the Pool of All at least twice.
   Benefit: When you kill an Immortal and are within melee range when he or she dies, you make a Fortitude save (DC20). If the check is successful, the Recreation Process happens to to you instead of the Immortal slain, and you gain 1/2 (round up) of the lives the now-dead Immortal had remaining. If the check is unsuccessful, still go through the Recreation process, but you only gain a bonus feat and suffer 2d6+the number of lives the now-dead Immortal had left, as the energy is blasted into the universe.
   Special: Upon selecting this feat, you may replace any single other feat you possess with another feat from the Immortal feat group that you qualify for. If the replaced feat was a prerequisite for other feats, you lose their benefits until you have the prerequisite again.

NEW CHARACTER RACE: THE CAEDENS
The Caedens are a race of feline humanoids who first encountered portals to the Pool of All when they when were at an Iron Age stage of development, at a very clannish and war-like stage in their history, and still very much in touch with the predators they had evolved from.
   While Caeden civilisation as a whole has left the barbarism of their ancient history in the past, the Immortals among them keep the predatory side of their nature very much alive. While Caeden Immortals are the first to come to the defense of their own people, they habitually see other races as prey to be toyed with--either with mean-spirited games of intellectual one-upsmanship, or through tests of strength and battle prowess. They also delight in hunting other Immortals, be they of their own race or an alien one. They hunt them for sport, and to enhance their own immortality, as the Caedens long ago discovered the dark ways through which one Immortal can steal the Recreation of another and make it his or her own. Some Caedans have accumulated hundreds of lives by killing other Immortals.
   For millenia, the Caeden Immortals have been hated and feared by other Immortals, but they have slowly been abandoning their predatory ways, as they have come to realise that only by banding together with other Immortals will they be able to stand against the most serious threat the galaxy has ever known: The life-destroying and increasingly powerful Anaki.

Caeden Characters
Caeden characters are generated in the same fashion as Humans in your preferred d20 System variant, with the following changes:
   Racial Bonus: When created, Caeden characters gain ability bonuses of +2 Strength and +1 Charisma. They are naturally powerfully built and agile.
   Bonus Feat: Caedens must choose Athletic, Agile, Jump, or Run as their bonus feat during character creation.

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If you found this post interesting or useful, check out Secrets of the Immortals by clicking here. If you like the content of this blog in general, please consider supporting the creative efforts of myself and other NUELOW Games contributors by getting some of our releases. You can see the entire line-up by visiting our shop at DriveThruRPG.

 (By the way, I also designed a different set of immortality rules that works with NUELOW's superpower system of feats and talent trees... you can see that material by clicking here.)

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Two new templates for the OGL d20 System... and comics!

The latest in release from NUELOW Games is in perfect keeping with the season of October, as it loaded with ghosts, werewolves, and general weirdness.

Art by Bernard Bailey and Dave Berg
Ghost Woman... Also Featuring Spooks contains two early works from Dave Berg, best known for his gentle ribbing of American culture in the pages of MAD Magazine, a tale from Bernard Bailey, and two new templates, a talent tree, and feats for d20 System that bring new twists to life and death .

The Berg stories tell the tale of a college professor who, after being murdered by an embezzler, returns to Earth in spirit form to fight injustice. The story from Bailey, featuring ghosts, undead werewolves, and the origin of a monster hunter, manages in eight pages to present a sketch of a game setting more interesting than many source books manage in 80.

The RPG material is by Steve Miller, who worked on the Ravenloft gothic horror game setting. It includes a template that allow player characters to remain in play even after they've suffered a final and irreversible death, a template that introduces a new kind of werewolf that more closely resembles the ones of folklore, and a new talent tree and feats that support the templates. (Talent trees are used in the OGL d20 Modern game, but the templates and feats are usable in any RPG that is based on the d20 System.)

Ghost Woman... Also Featuring Spooks is available at RPGNow and DriveThruComics. Click on your preferred site to see previews or to get a copy.




Monday, October 19, 2015

NUELOW Games offers the world an apology

We're sure you've all heard about the flying city that appeared in the sky over China. It looked like this:



There have been all sorts off theories posited regarding what that is. Some say it was a Fata Morgana. Others say a dimensional portal opened, and we got a glimpse into an alternate reality. Yet others say that China was experimenting with highly advanced laser holographic projection technology, or that they've created a flying city using anti-grav technology.

The Sorceress of Zoom.
Portrait by Bradley K. McDevitt
All of those theories are wrong.

The truth is that what everyone saw was the City of Zoom, the dimension-traveling home of the Sorceress. And we apologize for the panic and confusion it caused.

NUELOW head-honcho Steve Miller was discussing with the Sorceress what to include in the third volume of our Sorceress of Zoom series. During that conversation, Miller was munching on one of those black Halloween burgers from Burger King. He mentioned that eating one reportedly turns your poop green, and the Sorceress decided she wanted to acquire some to feed to her minions. Miller, unfortunately, referred to Burger King as "B-King" and the Sorceress thought he said "Peking."

We apologize to the world for the panic this has caused. We apologize specifically to the hundreds of Chinese citizens that were abducted by the Sorceress in her search for black hamburgers, especially those she temporarily turned into komodo dragons or bowls of egg drop soup.

Miller has promised that he will never interact directly with the Sorceress again, but will instead leave all communications with her to Chuck  Norris or L.L. Hundal. Please don't sue us.

For more insights into the truth behind the flying city that appeared in the sky above China, read The Sorceress of Zoom and The Sorceress of Zoom: Down to Earth from NUELOW Games. During 2016, we plan on releasing a third volume in the series. The Sorceress has asked that we include rules describing her in the OLG version of the Traveller game system. It's her favorite, because characters can die during creation. You can read sample pages from the existing books at the Shades of Gray blog by clicking here.

See Previews or Buy at DriveThruComics
See Previews or Buy at DriveThruComics.

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Two new releases in the 'NUELOW Stock Art Collection'

There are two new releases for the NUELOW Stock Art Collection, our series of low-cost, royalty-free art covered by a license so generous you can use the covered material for almost any conceivable project. Whether you need something to illustrate your home game, your website, or that grand RPG you've designed, one of our genre-focused art packs may contain just the art you need. And our low prices make them even more attractive.

Art by Everette Raymond Kinstler
NUELOW Stock Art Collection #12: Restless Spirits focuses on the vengeful dead, as brought forth by illustrators Everette Raymond Kinstler and Lee Elias.

Art by Maurice Whitman
NUELOW: Stock Art Collection #13: The First Americans is our first to focus on the western genre, specifically Native Americans in this case. Most of the art in this set consists of great drawings from Maurice Whitman, but there are also a few that have been adapted from NUELOW Games' Warrior Maiden Starlight by Ralph Mayo.

Each set comes with a  PDF that carefully indexes each illustration included in the set. Most of art files are included in both 72ppi and 300ppi resolutions, the latter being good for many print projects.

Friday, October 9, 2015

The Staff of the Flesh Golem (for D&D/d20 System/OSR games)

Here's a magic item that was made up on the spur of the moment as I ran my D&D game today.

Staff of the Flesh Golem
This staff acts as a +4 weapon when wielded against flesh golems. It functions as a +1 weapon under all other circumstances.
   Once per day, the user can summon a flesh golem by striking the staff on the ground and shouting, "To me, my minion!"

A sorceress prepares to use her staff of the fesh golem. (Photo by Bexxin)
   The summoned flesh golem appears in a cloud that reeks of sulfur and embalming fluid. It follows simple commands from the summoner, and will fight to defend or to get him or her to safety even if the summoner is unable to issue that direct command. The summoned flesh golem exists for up to six hours before vanishing in a puff of putrid-smelling smoke. If destroyed, it vanishes in the same fashion.
   The Staff of the Flesh Golem can be wielded by any character that can cast spells.

(The text in this post is released under the Open Game License. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.)

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Another Doomsday That Wasn't...

Damn it. It looks like we're going to have to pay our bills and visit with the in-laws this weekend after all. Another end-of-the-world prophesy has failed to come to pass. (The latest one was April 23, 2018.)



This post was originally made in response to a failed End of the World prediction a group called the eBible Fellowship. Their founder, Chris McCann, claimed the world would be anniahlated on October 7, 2015--a date he came up with after the world didn't end on his previously predicted doomsday in May of 2011. You can read all about him here.

Although my disappointment in still having to figure out where to get them money to pay my bills is threatening to throw me into a deep depression, I will instead return to pounding my keyboard and designing game material and writing fiction. The first item in this renewed existence is a d20 System feat celebrating the powers of Chris McCann and his fellow doomsday prophets (profiteers?).

The text in this post is presented under the Open Game License, and it may be reproduced within its terms. Copyright 2015 by Steve Miller.

The Doomsday Prophet feat is suitable for just about any RPG using the d20 System as its foundation. The reference to a Wealth bonus is a d20 Modern specific mechanic. It can be ignored or  replaced with whatever mechanism that exists to grant characters bonuses to treasure earned.


DOOMSDAY PROPHET [Bard, Cleric, Dedicated Hero, Charismatic Hero]
You regularly predict the end of the world... and you continue to be taken seriously when it doesn't come.
   Prerequisite: Cha 15, Do As I Say, Not As I Do feat.
   Benefit: +6 to all Bluff and Diplomacy checks. Make a doomsday prediction (Bluff check DC 18). If successful, your Wealth bonus increases by +2 until the Date of Doom arrives. The date must be within one year of the day you make the prediction.
   If the world doesn't end, make another Bluff check (DC22) to revise your prediction and give satisfactory reasons for why you were wrong the first time. Your Wealth bonus remains if the second check is successful. When the new date arrives, you can roll another Bluff check to revise the date yet again. If the check fails, you lose the Wealth bonus.
   You can only make a completely new Doomsday Prediction every 12 months minus your Charisma bonus.
   Special: Whenever you make a Doomsday Prediction that fails to come to pass, the bonus provided by this feat is reduced by one point. When the bonus is reduced to 0, this feat is replaced with the Deceptive feat.

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If you find any of the posts on this blog amusing or useful, please consider supporting my creative efforts by buying some of the many e-books and booklets available from NUELOW Games. Click here to visit the storefront at RPGNow.

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Disembodied 2: Talents and Feats for the character who won't call It quits

A couple months ago, I posted a different sort of approach to handling player character (or even major NPC) deaths with the Disembodied Template. This post expands on that concept with a talent tree and feats. (Finally.)

As with the previous post in this series, all text is presented under the Open Game License and may be reproduced under the terms detailed in it. Copyright Steve Miller 2015.

DISEMBODIED TALENTS AND FEATS
As previously mentioned, Disembodied characters continue to earn XP and gain levels. As such, they may gain new talents, and they certainly gain new feats. Here are some talents available only to the Disembodied, as well as feats they may choose from.


THE DISEMBODIED TALENT TREE
Characters with the Disembodied template may select one of these talents in place of any provided by their class when they gain a level.

Affect Electronics and Electrical Devices: With a full round action and a successful Will save (DC12), you can cause an electrical appliance or electronic devices to turn off or malfunction--such as give strange readings, emit bursts of static and so on--or you can cause electrical lights in a room to dim or switch off. You can continue to effect the device until you choose not to. You may perform other simple actions, such as moving about, while controlling the device.
Prerequisite: Disembodied Template

Solid Form: With a successful Will save (DC22), you can cause yourself to manifest a physical form that roughly resembles your original body. You may also manifest a solid form that doesn't appear like you did in life, but it is more difficult. With a Will save of DC24, you may appear different enough that those who knew you in life won't recognize you, but you are still the same sex and race that you were originally. With a DC25, you may change everything about your apperance. With a DC28, you appear like specific person or creature, although those personally familiar with what you are imitating receive Spot checks (DC12) to realize something isn't "quite right."
You have all the same ability scores you had in life, and once again have access to all the skills and feats you once possessed, no matter what form you adopt. Anything that effects living, corporeal beings now effects you, except for Mind-Affecting spells and spell-like abilities. You only have 13 hit points, however, and your form will dissolve into a fine mist that quickly disperses if you are reduced to 0 hit points.
You can cause your solid form do dissolve voluntarily with a full-round action. You may attempt to assume a different solid form after a number of rounds equal to your Wisdom bonus have passed.
If you attempt to manifest a solid form and fail, of if your solid form is destroyed, as opposed to you voluntarily dispersed, you cannot attempt to manifest another solid form for a number of days equal to your Intelligence bonus subtracted from 20.
Note: When you are in a solid form, you cannot use any of the talents or abilities gained from the Disembodied template. You are, essentially, a mortal, living being once again.
Prerequisite; Disemboided Template, Telekinesis Minor Power Feat

Speed of Thought: With a full round action and a sucessful Will save (DC18), you can instantly transport yourself to the location of someone you have previously met. The Will save is made with a +4 bonus if it's someone you have an emotional attachment to.
Prerequisite: Disembodied Template

DISEMBODIED FEATS
Here are a list of feats from the OGL d20 Modern SRD that characters may choose whenever they gain a feat, or in place of a bonus feat provided by class advancement. They are considered part of the Disembodied feat group.

Alertness, Animal Affinity, Attentive, Cautious, Confident, Creative, Deceptive, Educated, Focused, Gearhead, Guide, Iron Will, Meticulous, Nimble, Studious, Track, Trustworthy
.
NEW FEAT
The following feat is part of NUELOW's evolving d20 Superpowers system (featured in many of our rpg/comics hybrid books, and posts on this blog). It gives access to the Telekinesis talent tree, but it is also part of the Disembodied feat group.

Telekinesis [Disembodied, Minor Power]
You move objects with nothing but the power of your mind and the force of your will.
Benefit: You may move or manipulate objects that you would be able to carry or handle with one hand. The difficulty depends on the action you wish to perform, and the weight of the object.
To use Telekinesis, you focus on the object or creature you wish to effect and roll a Will save with a base DC8.
Objects and creatures can be moved horizontally or vertically, at a speed of up to 10 feet per round. Objects and creatures can be hurled at targets, but this is one of several factors that
The following cumulative modifiers apply, depending on what you are attempting to do. (These are just sample actions.)

+2: Objects weighing between 0.5 and 5 pounds
+4: Objects weighing between 5 and 10 pounds
+8: Objects weighing between 10 and 15 pounds
+12: Objects weighing between 15 and 20 pounds
+20: Objects weighing between 20 and 25 pounds
+2: Turn a switch on and off, turn a key in a lock, write a short message in sloppy penmanship
+4: Accurately press more than two keys or buttons in a round, insert a key in a lock
+8: Type a message at 15 words per minute, write a message in your handwriting
+12: Operate a complex piece of equipment (+24 if it usually requires two hands)
+2: If the object is out of your physical reach
+4: If the object is 5-10 feet away
+8: If the object is 10-15 feet away
+16: If the object is 15-20 feet away
+24: If the object is 20-25 feet away
+32: If the object is more than 25 feet away, but within clear line of sight (with the naked eye).
+40: If the object is at all obscured or so distant it's hard to see with the naked eye.
+2: Throwing an object at a target to deal 1d3 points of damage (also requires attack roll)
+4: Throwing an object at a target to deal 1d6 points of damage (also requires attack roll)
+8: Throwing an object at a target to deal 2d6+1 points of damage (also requires attack roll)
+12: Throwing an object at a target to deal 2d8+2  points of damage (also requires attack roll)
+16: Throwing an object at a target to deal 3d8+4 points of damage (also requires attack roll)

When launching an object at a target, the range increment is 5xWis bonus. The hurled object or creature suffers half the amount of damage as the target upon impact (round up). If the attack is unsuccessful, damage is still rolled and applied to the object or creature thrown.
Unwilling living targets of as successful Telekinesis use  receive Will saves (DC10+Your Wis bonus) to resist.
If the power is to be maintained, a new check must be rolled every round, with adjustments made to modifiers as needed, such as if you are levitating an object away from your location.

Monday, September 28, 2015

Feats for the Immortals

Among the benefits granted to characters with the Immortal template is access to the Immortal group of feats. These feats may be selected whenever the character gains a feat, or in place of specified bonus feats. The character must still meet any other prerequisites in the feat's description.



The text in this post is released under the Open Game License, and it may be reproduced in accordance with its terms. Copyright Steve Miller 2015.

EXISTING FEATS INCLUDED IN THE IMMORTAL GROUP
Details on the following feats can be found in the SRD for OGL Modern (and many other d20 System games), They are part of the Immortal group. If a character possesses any of these feats before entering the Pool of All, they are considered to belong to the Immortal group for the purpose of the It's Never Over and Time for a Change feats.

Acrobatics, Aircraft Operation, Alertness, Animal Affinity, Athletic, Attentive, Cautious, Confident, Creative, Deceptive, Defensive Martial Arts, Dodge, Educated, Focused, Gearhead, Guide, Iron Will, Low Profile, Medical Expert, Meticulous, Nimble, No Profile, Quickdraw, Run, Stealthy, Studious, Surface Vehicle Operation, Track, Trustworthy, Vehicle Expert, Weapons Focus, Windfall.

In addition, these feats previously presented on the NUELOW Games blog here and here are part of the Immortal group.

NEW FEATS
It's Never Over [Immortal]
Prerequisite: Immortal Template
Benefit: You gain 1d4+2 additional lives when this feat is chosen.
Special: Whenever your character is going through the recreation process, you may select any single [Immortal] feat and replace it with this one. If the selected feat was a prerequisite for other feats, you no longer gain the benefits of those feats until you have again possess the prerequisite.

Predictable Recreation [Immortal]
Prerequisite: Immortal Template
Benefit: As the character is going through the recreation process after death, you may specify whether or not the ability scores, the character's sex, general physical appearance, age, alignment (in games that use such rules) is impacted. You do not roll on the random table to see how that aspect of the character is effected, but instead choose a specific result, or to let that part of the character remain unchanged.
Special: This feat may be selected up to five times. The player identifies a specific character aspect to remain unchanged during the recreation process.

Time for a Change [Immortal]
Prerequisite: It's Never Over
Benefit: When this feat is chosen, immediately gain a bonus feat from the Immortal group.
Special: When your character goes through the recreation process, you may switch any feat from the Immortal group either for 5 skill points or for any other feat for which your your character meets the prerequisites, If the feat switched was a prerequisite for other feats, those benefits are lost until the prerequisite is replaced. Alternately, you may take up to five skill points from a particular skill and assign them to other skills. (This step takes place at the very end of the recreation process.)


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The content of this post has been revised and combined with additional material in the NUELOW Games product Secrets of the Immortals. If you what you found here, consider buying a copy, as it will encourage us to create more.

For OGL d20 System Games: The Pool of All

There are those among us who are virtual Immortals. They age slowly, and when they die--no matter what the circumstances--they are nearly instantly recreated in a new body. This post reveals where these men and women come from.

The text in this post is released under the Open Game License, and it may be reproduced in accordance with its terms. Copyright Steve Miller 2015.

THE POOL OF ALL
Located deep within the Halls of the Immortals--at a point that its Guardians claim is the exact center of Reality--this perfectly circular, 10-foot radius pool is filled with a swirling liquid that glows brightly with everchanging and bright colors. It is surrounded by a marble lip, with three steps leading up on the outside, and steps leading down and vanishing beneath the surface on the other.

Individuals deemed worthy, or those who fight their way here against the wishes of the Guardians, can submerge themselves in the pool. If they survive entering the strange and turbulent waters, they emerged, reborn and recreated, as one of the Immortals.



The Mechanics of the Pool of All
As the person enters the Pool of All, his or her body begins to tingle and a strange sense of dread forms in the back of his or her mind--a sense that continuing on will result in certain death. A Will save (DC15) is required to continue--and a failed save means the character leaps from the pool in panic and may not attempt to enter it again before he or she has gained a level.

Once the individual is fully submerged, all is quiet for a round. Then, a blinding burst of white light shoots upward from the pool. Moments later, a form bobs to the surface--the person who entered the pool, now recreated and reborn as one of the Immortals.

The character who entered the pool has gained the Immortal Template and has been recreated. Whatever gear or clothes he or she was wearing are gone forever, and he or she is a different person than before. Rolls should be made on the Recreation Tables to see how different the character is in this first of his or her many new lives. (See this post for details.)

Immortals and the Pool of All
Characters who already have the Immortal template and enter the Pool of All must roll a Fort save (DC22) in addition to the Will save mentioned above. If the Fort save is successful, they go through the transformation process and gain 2d6+1 lives. If the Fort save fails, the character emerges from the pool hideously scarred and crippled. Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution scores are all reduced by half their values before the character entered the pool (round down). The character is reduced to a single life, no matter how many he or she had before entering the pool.

The only way to undo this horrible fate is for the character to either gain more lives through the It's Never Over feat, and then die and be recreated, or to test their luck with the Pool of All again.  If any of the character's attributes are reduced to Zero, he or she is absorbed by the poor, dying a final and eternal death. No even a wish spell or the power of a god can restore the character to life.

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The content of this post has been revised and combined with additional material in Secrets of the Immortals. If you enjoyed the material here, consider buying a copy, as it will encourage us to create more.

OGL d20 System Template: The Immortal

This template is for characters who seem immortal. Not only do they age very, very slowly, but whenever they die, they are almost instantly recreated--transformed in death--and can continue on into a new life. While these characters may still eventually come to an end of their existence, their enemies will have to work very hard to bring that end about.

The text in this post is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced within the terms described in it. Copyright Steve Miller 2015.

IMMORTAL TEMPLATE
To acquire this template, the character must submerge him- or herself (or be submerged) in the Pool of All.
Size and Type: Unchanged. However, creatures of the Undead or Outsider types may not take this template, nor may any beings that are mechanical or otherwise artificial in nature. Only mortal beings from the Prime Material Plane can take this template.
Hit Dice: As base creature.
Speed: As base creature
Armor Class/Defense Rating: As base creature.
Attack/Full Attack Bonus; As base creature.
Special Attacks/Special Defense: As base creature, plus the following:
*The character gains 2d6+1 lives (the GM secretly records this number and keeps track of them). Whenever the character reaches -10 hit points, an automatic process begins that recreates him or her, in body and spirit. For details, see "The Recreation Process" below.
*The character ages very slowly, with 100 years passing before the character ages the equivalent of one year.
*+6 to all saving throws to resist level draining, attribute draining, and aging attacks, spells, and spell-like effects and special abilities.
Abilities: As base creature, but subject to change, as described under "The Recreation Process."
Skills: All skills are retained, and may be improved in accordance with class and level advancement.
Feats and Talent Trees: Unchanged, but the character gains access to the Immortal feats and may select from that list whenever he or she gains a feat or bonus feat. See "Immortal Feats" below.
Terrain: Same as base creature, although many Immortals tend to travel to the most distant corners of the universe, in search of new horizons and experiences.
Organization/Allegiance: Solitary/Same as base creature, and other Immortals. Many Immortals who have been around for centuries also sometimes take to traveling with non-immortals to keep themselves humble and reminded of what they once were.
Challenge Rating; Same as base creature +1
Advancement: By character class.

All versions of Aspen Lee together (1 and 2 are in the center, 8 is behind the camera).
Time travel: It's the latest government secret (in 2692).
[Photo by Noe Montes]

THE RECREATION PROCESS
When a character with the Immortal template falls to -10 hit points, a process that reconstitutes his or her being automatically begins.
Immediately upon reaching -10 hit points (or lower in the case of catastrophic damage), the character's body, clothes worn, and all carried equipment disintegrates with a burst of energy that deals 2d6+2 points of damage to all creatures within a 10-foot radius, An energy bubble with a 10-foot radius and centered on the place where the character's body had been forms. Creatures within the bubble who attempt to leave must roll a successful Fort save (DC12) or be stuck within it. They suffer 1d6 points of damage while pushing through the bubble if the save is successful.
If the Immortal died in an area with an environment that is lethal to him, the energy bubble moves to the nearest safe location. Any within it are ejected, even if they failed a saving throw in an attempt to exit, taking 1d6 points of damage. The bubble moves at a rate of 120 feet per round.
If the bubble does not move to a different location, 1d6 rounds following the death of the Immortal, the energy bubble collapses onto its center with a blinding flash. Any beings within the 10-foot radius suffer 2d6+2 points of damage. Any who witness the flash must roll Fort saves (DC15) or be blinded for one round.
In the wake of the flash, the immortal character has been returned to his or her physical form. He or she has been recreated--fully healed, cured of any ailments such as impaired senses, poisons or diseases, and with all equipment carried and clothes worn at the time of death likewise restored. However, the immortal isn't quite the same... the recreation process isn't perfect, and whenever the immortal undergoes it, he or she changes to a greater or lesser degree. Sometimes, it's just the color of his or her eyes that change, but more often than not, the change is so drastic that even those who have known the immortal for years will not recognize him or her. In some cases, the Immortal might not recognize them either, as his or her mind is sometimes effected by recreation process as well.

Changes to the Character as a Result of Recreation
Almost everything about a character can be impacted during Recreation, except his or her levels; even feats can be impacted under certain circumstances. To determine how the recreation process changes the Immortal, the character's player rolls the die specified on each table below and compares it to the results. The changes are then made on the character's sheet--or, ideally, the information is recorded on a new sheet entirely.

Attribute Changes
The player should roll 1d12 to determine which ability score changes, then roll the die indicated under the individual results to see to see by how much it changes.

1. Strength: Subtract 1d4 (to a minimum of 11)
2. Dexterity: Subtract 1d4 (to a minimum of 11)
3. Constitution: Subtract 1d4 (to a minimum of 11)
4. Wisdom: Subtract 1d4 (to a minimum of 11)
5. Charisma: Subtract 1d4 (to a minimum of 11)
6. No change to any ability scores.
7. Strength: Add 1d4 (to a maximum of 18)
8. Dexterity: Add 1d4 (to a maximum of 18)
9. Constitution: Add 1d4 (to a maximum of 18)
10. Wisdom: Add 1d4 (to a maximum of 18)
11. Charisma: Add 1d4 (to a maximum of 18)
12. Roll on this table twice, apply results.

If an attribute change causes the character to no longer qualify to have a particular feat, the feat may be replaced with any from the [Immortal] group, If that feat was a prerequisite for other feats possessed, those feats remain, but the character no longer gains any benefits from them until the prerequisite feat is once again acquired.

Sex Change
Roll 1d12 to see if the character's sex changes.
1-11. No change.
12. The sex changes to the opposite (male to female, or female to male)

General Physical Appearance Changes
Roll 1d12 and apply the change. Some results have sub-results that are determined by rolling 1d6.)

1. The character is 1d10% shorter (to racial minimum)
2. The character is 1d10% taller (to racial maximum)
3, The character's skin is paler (player can choose to what degree)
4. The character's physical frame becomes lankier or more willowy
5. The character's physical frame becomes more sturdy or bulkier
6. The character's facial profile changes (1. Weaker Chin, 2. Stronger Chin, 3. Bigger Nose, 4. Smaller Nose, 5. Higher Cheekbones, 6. More Pronounced Forehead)
7. The character's skin is darker (player can choose to what degree)
8. The character's race changes (GM chooses)
9. The character's eye color changes (1, Blue, 2. Green, 3. Brown, 4. Gray, 5. Violet, 6. Ice Blue.)
10.The character's hair changes (1. Curlier, 2. Straighter, 3. Streaked with White or Silver, 4. Same Color, but Darker, 5. Same Color, but Lighter, 6. Redhead)
11. Voice change (1-2. Much deeper, 3-4. Much higher, 5. Different regional accent than previously, 6. Player's choice of results)
12. Roll on this table twice, apply results.

Age Change
With Immortals, age is a relative term, since they age so much slower than other beings. To determine the impact on changes to the character's apparent physical age, use the guidelines for his or her original character race and apply any resulting changes to the physical ability scores (Intelligence and Wisdom are unaffected by this change).

1. 2d20 years older (maximum 70)
2-3. 2d10 years older (maximum 70)
4-9. No change
10-11. 2d20 years younger (minimum 14)
12. 2d10 years younger (minimum 14)

Alignment Change
For systems that use this mechanic, this table is used to determine of the character's alignment changes. Roll 1d12. If the character is not of the indicated initial alignment, there is no change.

1-2. Lawful changes to Neutral
3-4. Lawful changes to Chaotic
4-5 Neutral changes to Lawful
6-7 Neutral changes to Chaotic
8-9 Chaotic changes to Neutral
10-11. Chaotic changes to Lawful
12, Good changes to Evil.

Any class abilities, spells, or magic items that are alignment dependent are no longer usable for the character if his or her alignment becomes incompatible with them.

FEATS FOR IMMORTALS
You can find them in this post.

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The content of this post has been revised and combined with additional material in Secrets of the Immortals. If you enjoyed the material here, consider buying a copy, as it will encourage us to create more.