Things Found in Walls

Whether intentionally or on purpose, part of a wall in the old house has been demolished, revealing a hidden space... and the secrets it contains. What are those secrets? Well, the following random tables can help GMs determine that, quickly providing ideas for what has been found and what adventure seeds may be planted with it.

Roll 2d6 and find the result on the table below, then roll 1d6 against the sub-table or sub-tables. (Of course, these tables can be used to determine items found anywhere.)


2d6       Things Found in Walls
2           A pair of black-lacquered chopsticks with silver inlay patterns on the
             handles that 1-2. when crossed on an empty plate, cause a tasty and
             filling meal to appear; 3-4. when put on a plate with food, causes the
             meal to become poisonous and cause those who consume it to die in
             severe agony within 1d3+1 hours; 5-6. open a puzzle box when one
             is inserted into its lid, and the other into its left side.

3          A hunting knife, wrapped in cheesecloth. It is 1-2. the key to solving a
            decades-old murder mystery; 3. haunted by the restless spirit of a
            woman murdered with it who wants to be avenged; 4. haunted by the
            spirit of a serial killer who will try to possess the person who retrieves
            the knife from its hiding place; 5-6. an enchanted weapon that does
            double damage against spellcasters and lycanthropes.

4          A battered high school geography book from the 1950s. When read 

            1. nothing happens; it's just an old book; 2-3. a hand-drawn map falls 

            out. A legend reads "The evidence of my sins is under Lincoln High"; 

            4-5. a map of Africa has been adjusted with handwritten notes, and 

            an additional hand-drawn detailed region is folded up within the 

            book, with a legend that reads "Amazons? Atlanteans?"; 6. the book 

            automatically flips to a map of  Argentina, and the reader and 

            everyone within a 30-foot radius in transported to a secret Nazi 

            hideaway there.

5          The skull of 1-2. a monkey, covered in occult symbols, engraved in 

            gold.; 3-4. a horned humanoid, engraved with the symbol of an Elder 

            God.; 5. a human baby, partially crushed.; 6. a human adult, partially 

            crushed.

               Additionally, the skull 1-2. is haunted by a vengeful spirit; 3-4. is a 

            key part of a ritual to commune with an Elder God; 5-6. is a key clue 

            in a series of cult-related murders.    

     

6          A leather suitcase with 1. $10,000 in currency; 2. $10,000 in currency,

            $100,000 in fake currency; 3. $15,000 in uncut diamonds, along with

            three phone numbers written on the back of a Denny's napkin; 

            4. A black ceramic sculpture of falcon, containing $10,000 in rubies 

            that are wrapped in red silk; 5. 13 15th century Spanish gold 

            doubloons that are cursed and give whoever claims them a streak of 

            catastrophic luck until he or she dies or has the curse lifted; 

            6. a famous painting by a Dutch Master that was stolen by Nazis

            and presumed destroyed during WW2.

7          A cache of documents that 1-2. reveals the existence of Immortals 

            and a secret war to control the fate of the universe; 3-4 describes 

            a world-wide demonic conspiracy; 5-6. provides solid evidence 

            that a now-powerful politician brutally murdered an entire family 

            when a young man. 

                The information in the documents is 1-3. true; 5-6. false.

8          A 19th century Ouija board and bejeweled planchette that 1-3 is 

            worth at least $2,400 to the right collector; 4-5. can unerringly 

            answer 1d6 "yes" and "no" questions up to three times per day, 

            which a written note on the back explains; 6. predicts that users will 

            die, and then subjects them to a deadly curse.

9          A mummified 1. human infant; 2. headless body of an adult male; 

            3. tangle of rats, their tales knotted together; 4. slender human 

            female with horns on her forehead and clawed hands; 5. pair of 

            adults--one male, one female--that were strangled with silk cords 

            that are still around their necks; 6. humanoid cat creature, wearing 

            bejeweled golden bracelets.

10        A small leather bag with 1. antique buttons, with $100 to the right 

            collector; 2. cut diamonds worth $5,000; 3. three modern house 

            keys; 4. three antique skeleton keys of different sizes; 5. A 

            mummified woman's hand, mounted on a stand with wicks 

            inserted into the fingers; 6. a round obsidian disk with razor-sharp 

            edges and the symbol of two different Elder Gods carved on it, a 

            different one on each side.

11        A hatchet that 1. has four symbols of the Elder Gods engraved on 

            its blade; 2. never misses demons when thrown at them; 3. does

            triple damage against the undead; 4. doubles the Strength bonus 

            of the person wielding or carrying it Strength bonus; 5. does double 

            damage against lycanthropes; 6. the wielder suffers the same
            damage that is inflicted on the target.

   

12        Roll two more times on the table. Both indicated results are found. 

            If 12 is rolled again, do not re-roll but treat as "no result." If 12 is
            rolled three times in a row, nothing is found in the wall but dusty
            cobwebs and rodent droppings..

The World of Starvania, Part Two

We're presenting a campaign setting over a few posts here at the blog. You can see the first one here.

THE WORLD OF STARVANIA: CHARACTER CREATION

Design & Editing: Steve Miller & L.L. Hundal

Artwork: Frank Godwin

This post covers the first steps in creating a Starvanian player character. As with most of our posts in these parts, this is geared toward d20 System games. The material here modifies and generally takes the place of the character creation methods featured in the rules system you are using. If something isn't addressed here, assume that whatever is printed in the character generation section of the main rules still holds.

  There are portions of this character generation method that are not usually randomized in d20 System games. DMs can allow players to review the Character Creation section and pick what the race and other traits they want their character to have. Given the ever-increasing obsession with issues of racial equality and representation and so on in non-existent places and imaginary among gamers, we included this random mechanic to underscore our viewpoint that a person's genetics/race is a completely random factor in how he or she turn out as a human being. Whether someone is a good person or a scumbag, a hero or a coward, has jack-all to do with "race" and everything to do with a person's character and the culture within which they were raised. (And even with culture, people are not slaves to their background.)

STEP ONE: Generate Ability Scores
Roll 4d6, ignoring the lowest die, six times. The result is six totals ranging from 3 to 18, and these are ultimately assigned as a character's attribute score (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma) as the player chooses. For now, they should just be noted and set aside. We'll come back to them later.

STEP TWO: Determine the Character's Race

There are four Human races/subtypes in Starvania. Each has a mechanical bonus and penalty. Players roll randomly against the following table to determine their race. (There's a small chance that the player may roll Elf, Dwarf, or Witchkind. If those are not used in your campaign, the player should reroll.)

   We encourage players to use these random tables, but it's just as legitimate for GMs to allow players to simply pick the race (and attendant attribute modifiers) that reflect the character they want to play.

Table One: Player Character Races
1d100 Result       Player Character Race

001-030              Moronican. +2 Charisma, -1 Dexterity.

                           (See "Moronican Characters" below for more information.)

031-060              Salvian. +2 Strength, -1 Wisdom.

                           (See "Salvian Characters" below for additional information.)

061-070              Sketish. +2 Intelligence, -1 Charisma.

                           (See "Sketish Characters" below for additional information.)

071-085              Woovian. +2 Wisdom, -1 Strength.

                           (See "Sketish Characters" below for additional information.) 

086-093              Mixed. Roll on the "Table Two: Mixed Ancestry".)

094-095              Amazon (See Amazonian Characters" below for additional information.)

096-097              Elf. (See "Elf Characters" below for additional information.)
                           (If race not in use, roll on "Table Two: Mixed Ancestry.")
098-099              Dwarf. (See Dwarf Characters below for additional information.) 
                           (If race not in use, roll on "Table Two: Mixed Ancestry.")
100                    Witchkind. (If race not in use, roll on "Mixed Ancestry Table.")

Table Two: Mixed Ancestry

1d100 Results      Player Character Race

001-045               Moronican/Salvian. +1 Strength, +1 Charisma.
                            (001-050: See "Moronican Characters" for more
                             information; 051-100: See "Salvian Characters" for more
                             information.)
046-055               Moronican/Sketish. +1 Intelligence, +1 Charisma.
                            (001-050: See "Moronican Characters" for more
                              information; 051-100: See "Sketish Characters" for more
                              information.)
056-070               Moronican/Woovian. +1 Charisma, +1 Wisdom.
                            (001-050: See "Moronican Characters" for more
                              information; 051-100: See "Woovian Characters" for more
                              information.)

071-080               Salvian/Sketish. +1 Strength, +1 Intelligence.

                            (001-050: See "Salvian Characters for more information.)

                             051-100: See "Sketish Characters" for more information.)

081-090               Salvian/Woovian. +1 Strength, +1 Wisdom.

                            (001-050: See "Salvian Characters" for more information;

                             051-100: See "Woovian Characters" for more information.)

091-095               Sketish/Woovian. +1 Intelligence, +1 Wisdom.

                            (001-050: See "Sketish Characters" for more information;

                             051-100: See "Woovian Characters" for more information.)
096-097              Multi-Racial. +1 Strength, +1 Constitution, +1 Wisdom.
                           (001-050: See "Salvian Characters" for more information;
                            051-100: See "Woovian Characters" for more information.)
098-099              Multi-Racial. +1 Dexterity, +1 Intelligence, +1 Charisma.
                           (001-050: See "Moronican Characters" for more information;
                            051-100: See "Sketish Characters" for more information.)
100                     Multi-Racial. No race-based attribute modifiers.
                           (001-025: See "Moronican Characters" for more information;
                            026-050: See "Salvian Characters" for more information;
                            051-75: See "Sketish Characters" for more information;

                            076-100: See "Woovian Characters" for more information.)

STEP THREE: Apply Ability Score Modifiers
Apply the appropriate adjustments to the attributes generated in Step One. Record them on the character sheet.

STEP FOUR: Determine the Character's Sex, Gender, and Sexuality
Like race, a person's sex is a random quirk of Fate. Like the tables for race, we provide them here for players to randomly generate their characters' sex and gender.
    Players roll 1d10 against the following tables. While we encourage their use, GMs may allow players to just decide what their characters sex and gender is. Finally, if GM and players don't want to deal with things like genders and sexual preference, they can just stop at determining the character's 

Table Three: What is the Character's Sex?
1d10 Result    Sex
1-5.                 Female
6-10.               Male

Table Five: What is the Character's Gender?
1d10 Result    Gender
1-4.                 Female
5-6.                 Fluid (The player can choose/switch the character's gender
                       during any relevant situation.)
7-10.               Male

Table Six: What Does the Character Present As?
1d10 Result    Apparent Gender
1.4.                Female
5-6.                Fluid. (The character is equally comfortable in the
                      dress and roles of either gender.)
7-10.              Male

Table Seven: What is the Character's Sexual Preference?
1d10 Result   Sexual Preference
1-6.                You prefer relations with the sex opposite your own.
7.                    Bi-sexual, with leanings toward the sex opposite
                       your own.
8.                    Bi-sexual, with leanings toward the sex same as your
                       own.
9.                    Bi-sexual, with no particular preference whatsoever.
10.                  You prefer relations with the sex same as your own.

Next Up: The Character Creation Rules Continue
(Coming Soon...)

The World of Starvania, Part One

Welcome to a new post series/project. How long it will be, or if it will ever be completed is anyone's guest. No one can be sure how often posts will show up, either. It's being started on the spur of the moment, and despite the fact that time could be spent on more serious projects.

This first post is just going to be a little background on the setting. The second post will be some player character generation rules with additional setting information. The third post will be more character generation rules, with more setting information. (If this gets that far...)

And now... we bring you The World of Starvania!

THE WORLD OF STARVANIA: A CAMPAIGN SETTING

Design and Editing: Steve Miller

Based on "Starvania" by Felix Adler & Clyde Bruckman

A BRIEF HISTORY OF STARVANIA
In the beginning, the land of Starvania was ruled by cruel, alien gods from the Stars, foremost among them being Yog-Sogoth. Then a band of heroes banished those dark entities and the Age of Man dawned.
   For countless millennia, the peoples of Starvania warred against each other, building up and tearing down civilizations and generally rampaging back and forth across the landscape to prove who was superior and who deserved to rule others. The wars were on racial, ethnic, or national lines--and often a mixture or all three at the same time. The biggest animosity existed between the Salvians and the Moronicans, the two most populous races in Starvania. The less numerous Woovians and Skets could try to keep their heads down, or join with one side or the other... whatever they needed to do to keep what little life and liberty they could hang onto.

   Then, 654 years ago, the mighty bard-king Froot deLoom of Moronica succeeded in his life-long quest to unite all the peoples of Starvania in a shared love of beer-battered fish-sticks and accordion music. By the time King Froot passed the reins of power onto his eldest daughter, Loup, these cultural touchstones had become the foundation of a golden age of peace and prosperity.  

   This union of once-warring nations eventually came to be loosely governed by an elected parliament led a mostly ceremonial prime minister who, by law and tradition, had to be the current reigning monarch of  Moronica. Under the banner of Starvania, the people lived and worshiped and worked and played, in peace and equality, side by side. Nonetheless, discontent bubbled below the surface in some parts of the union. 

   For centuries, the citizens of the Isle of Cork and Great Mittens had resented Moronicans in general, but specifically those from the states of Moronica and Cast Toria. The islands had been settled by Salvians fleeing Moronican oppression two thousand years ago, but the waters around them had always been controlled by the Moronicans; the islanders have, ironically, never been great ship-builders but they have always excelled at sinking them. 

   Mainland Salvians felt great solidarity with their island-dwelling cousins. They had long insisted that control of the Corkscrew Straights and the Hot Sea, as well as all ports and harbors on the coasts, be surrendered to their exclusive controls. With the exception of some merchants and industrialists, and a minority of islanders who felt Salvians were superior in all ways to other Starvanians, the islanders in general didn't care terribly that the ports were controlled by Moronicans. But, this majority usually just let the radicals rant and rave, because nothing would come of their antics because no sensible person would listen to them. 

But five years ago, the Salvian Unity Party weaponized the simmering resentment in the loud minority and their allies elsewhere in Starvania. Using the rationale that the Moronicans had for too long denied the Salvians their birthrights of controlling Starvanian seas and harbors, they orchestrated a coup and overthrew King Herman of Moronica. A charismatic, but dimwitted, army corporal-turned-interior decorator named Moe Heilstone was named Grand Leader of Starvania, and any members of parliament and local governments that didn't swear allegiance to him specifically were at best hounded from office but more often than not imprisoned.

   Unsurprisingly, the people of Starvania tried to fight back against the overthrow of their government and the 600-year peace came to an end; even the Salvian-majority state of Bulge-Area . Also unsurprisingly, since the Salvians, both islanders and mainlanders, have long made up the majority of Starvanian armed forces, the rebellious states were swiftly subdued (but often with a great cost of life and property). Surprisingly, especially to Heilstone and his loyal supporters, the citizens of Great Mittens and the Isle of Cork did not accept him as their Grand Leader, but instead sent a steady stream of insults his way, declared themselves the home of the true Starvania and set up a Parliament-in-Exile with King Herman's youngest daughter, Princess Maddie as its ceremonial prime minister. 

By Jamie Patterson

CURRENT DAY STARVANIA

Grand Leader Heilstone rules mainland Starvania with an iron fist, ensconced in his palace where the states of Moronica, Jug o' Salvia, and Staywayoff share borders. His troops and paramilitary forces are everywhere, and his secret police and informants lurk among the population, looking for anyone who might express even the slightest negative views of him and his government; when found, such people are swiftly arrested and anyone who failed to report their treasonous thoughts risks the same fate. King Herman and his family (aside from Princess Maddie) remain under house arrest in their ancenstral castle, high on the cliffs above the Lake of Loons in Moronica.

   All across Starvania, groups of rebels fight either against Heilstone's secret police, his army, or foreign troops who have been sent to the region from distant lands with whom the dictator has made alliances. Some even find themselves fighting threats from other worlds, because mystics and cultists on both sides of the the battle for Starvania's future have been setting about harnessing the power of the ancient gods that once held sway over the lands, hoping to use it to destroy their foes. So far, all anyone has managed to do is unleash demons upon the land, turn the population of villagers into zombies, and attract the attention of outside threats that hadn't been present in Starvania for 1,000 years. 

   Great Mittens and the Isle of Cork has so far been able to repel all attempts to force them to join Heilstone's Starvania. Although they have been joined in their by powerful allies--including a rumored ancient dragon--it is unclear how long they will be able to hold out. So far, they have resisted the temptation to seek power from the Elder Gods, but the calls to do so are getting louder...

   Things are growing evermore bleak in Starvania. The people's suffering grows greater with each passing day. Now is the time for heroes....

Next Up: Some Rules for Creating Starvanian Player Characters!

(Coming Soon)

The Amulet of Leng (for the d20 System)

Scattered across the world, are many artifacts that are legacies of ancients gods who ruled over long-dead civilizations in bygone eras; or that have been carried here from other dimensions by the dread beings that dwell in them. One such item, which was stolen from the Dreamlands by the Witchkind, and which many have sought because they either wish to harness its power or to return it from whence it came, is the Amulet of Leng.

THE AMULET OF LENG (for the d20 System)

Carved from a piece of green jade, this circular amulet is roughly four inches across and half an inch thick. It is usually found attached to a leather thong or sturdy silver chain so that it can be worn around a being's neck.

    The front side of the Amulet of Leng features a winged, sphinx-like creature with face that combines both human and wolf-like features; the eyes and forehead human, but the nose and mouth are snout-like and vicious fangs protrude from it. The back of the amulet is engraved with the image of a humanoid skull with an abnormally large cranium. Beneath that image are three symbols that appear vaguely Chinese in origin, but the meaning of which can only be discovered through magic (such as a read languages spell) or a Arcane Lore / Knowledge (Arcane) skill check against a DC22 for each of the three symbols. (From left to right, the symbols mean Time, Immortality, and Annihilation.)

   If examined through means that reveals magical properties of an item (via spell or devices), the Amulet of Leng registers a strong aura of protection and summoning enchantments. Its exact functions cannot be determined through any means short of a wish spell, or by direct communication with a god-like being.

Powers

When claimed and then worn by a sentient being, the Amulet of Leng provides the following protections to the wearer.

   * Immunity to aging, from natural or magical sources

   * Complete immunity to damage from all blunt or edged weapons, as well as missiles and falling damage. (Natural weapons, such as claws and fangs, are not covered by this effect.)

   * 50 percent reduction of damage suffered from spells and other magical sources.

   * 25 percent reduction of damage suffered from natural environmental sources, such as vacuum, extreme heat and extreme cold.

Drawbacks

The Amulet of Leng only bestows its magical protection on characters who have claimed it as their own, either by receiving it as a gift, purchasing it, stealing it for their own use, or looting it for their own use. The protections gained from Amulet of Leng only last for as long as it is worn. Once removed, the wearer once again ages at the normal rate, suffers full damage from attacks, and so on. 

   The great benefits of the Amulet of Leng are outweighed by hidden dangers. They are as follows.

   * Every time the wearer goes to sleep, he or she has dreams of large wolf-like creatures, apparently made partially of flames, roaming an alien landscape dotted with ruined towers. The character feels like the creatures are searching--hunting--for something. As time passes and dreams continue, the character in the dream comes to the realization that they are looking for the Amulet of Leng. The character must roll a successful Fortitude Save (DC15) upon waking, or be fatigued during the day (per the Condition). Spells may be memorized or recovered as normal.
   * The GM keeps a running total of how much damage the character would have suffered if he or she had not been wearing the Amulet of Leng. Once that damage is equals or exceeds an amount that would have killed the character, the character is filled with a sudden, paralyzing fear and cannot take any more actions that round. He or she must roll a successful Will save (DC22), or be set upon by 1d3+1 Hellhounds (with maximum possible hit points)--the Hounds of Tindalos.
   The Hounds emerge from different corners in whatever area the character is in, one at a time in successive rounds until all our present. Each Hellhound rolls initiative on the round it arrives, and attacks the wearer of the Amulet. They only attack other characters if they come to the defense of their target. (If the character is outside, the Hounds emerge from angles made by branches, rocks on the ground, or other natural conditions.)
   If the wearer survives the attack of the Hounds, the Amulet is "reset" and the GM starts a new running total of hit points avoided. The new tally starts at -10, so the character can suffer "free" damage.
   If the wearer does not survive the attack, one of the Hounds tries to grab the Amulet with its fiery jaws and tear it from around the wearer's neck, but as soon as it and other Hounds dissolve into wisps of smoke and seem to evaporate. The Amulet of Leng remains with the mangled corpse.
   * When the character who has claimed and worn the Amulet of Leng takes it off, he or she must roll a Will save (DC18). He or she is filled with a sudden, indescribable dread and hears the sound of wolves howling in the distance. No one else can hear this sound.
   If the saving throw was successful, the character instinctively knows that unless he or she puts the Amulet of Leng back on, certain death is coming. If he or she does not put the Amulet back on within two rounds, 1d3+1 Hounds of Tindalos arrive and attack as described above. If he or she puts the Amulet back on, he or she hears a mournful wolf-howl fading into the distance.
   If the saving throw failed, the character is paralyzed with overwhelming fear for 1d2+1 rounds. Hounds of Tindalos begin to arrive at the end of first round and attack as described above. They continue to arrive, one at a time on successive rounds to a maximum of 8, until the possessor of the Amulet is dead, or until someone has put it on. If the possessor dies without wearing the Amulet, a Hound snatches it up and takes it with it when the Hounds dissolve into smoke and vanish.
   If the possessor of the Amulet of Leng took it off and survives the attack of the Hounds, he or she is free of the Amulet's magic... at least until he or she decides to wear it again.

Safely Removing the Amulet of Leng

A character can only safely remove the Amulet of Leng while submerged in the legendary Pool of All. While submerged, the character must make a Fortitude save (DC22). 

   If the save is successful, the character has a vision of a shadow-draped figure that offers him or her the opportunity to join the ranks of the Immortals or to leave the Pool as he or she entered, but free of the Amulet's magic. Whether the character chooses to be transformed and become an Immortal or not, he or she emerges with the Amulet of Leng in hand and free of its magic. 

   If the save fails, the character is transformed into an Immortal, as per the regular effects of the Pool of All, but is still liberated from the Amulet of Leng.

Destruction

While on this plane, the Amulet of Leng cannot be destroyed. It must be returned to the Dreamlands from whence it was stolen. Once there, it can be shattered with an magical weapon with a +1 or better enchantment.

--
The text from the "Powers" heading" through the end of the section labeled "Destruction" is released under the Open Game License. It may be reproduced in accordance with its terms. Copyright 2020 Steve Miller.