Remains of Atlantis: The Codex of Doom (Part One)

This is the first of a pair of posts that tie into our Atlantis-rooted products, like Secrets of the Witchkind and Love Witch. The posts stand on their own, however.

THE CODEX OF DOOM: LETHAL LORE
The Codex of Doom is an ancient tome originally created by Atleantean sorcerers as an addition to Atlantis's magical arsenal. It was deemed too dangerous by the Triumpharate of Poseidon to be left in mortal hands, yet it was too imbued with too much magic to be destroyed. Instead, it was hidden away in a cavern, in a region on the far northern shores of Greenland that was then covered by a perpetual storm.
   The creators of the Codex and their allies were unhappy with their masterpiece being so consigned to oblivion, and they feared a day would come when their descendants would need the magic contained within it. They hid maps to the Codex's resting place throughout the Atlantis and its far-flung colonies. Several of those maps have survived to modern times, just waiting for those brave enough and power-hungry enough to retrieve the Codex of Doom.
   The maps mark two locations on what appears to be a highly stylized map of the Earth with different coastlines on some continents and a large island in the Atlantic Ocean where none exists today--Atlantis.
   The first location is that of the Cave of the Codex, where the Codex of Doom has been placed. The second is quite literally at the the other end of the world, as it shows a location on the South Pole where something called the Time Cube can be found. Notations on the maps indicate the Time Cube will transport the person holding it to one of six locations, one of which is the Cave of the Codex.

GETTING TO THE CAVE OF THE CODEX
The Codex is in a cave, located at the end of a fjord between Cape Morris Jessup and North Station. It can be reached by rappelling down a steep cliff-face from the landward side, or sailing int the fjord from the ocean side, and taking the last of the trip. But there's the magical storm to deal with.
   Unless there's already bad weather in the area, the area seems safe to approach, but once the characters are within two miles of the cave, a violent ice storm suddenly forms around them. Within moments, the temperature drops to lethal sub-zero levels and the water in the fjord turns to solid ice almost instantaneously, trapping any ships. Even the mightiest of ice breakers will find itself flash-frozen in the fjord. Eventually, the ice will crush any ships so trapped and cause them to sink to the bottom.
   Characters exposed to the storm suffer 1d4+1 points of cold damage per round (Fort save for half, round up) until they find shelter. The only natural shelter in the area is the Cave of the Codex). Magical protection from cold negates the damage.
   Visibility in the storm is reduced to near-Zero. Characters that aren't tethered to each other must roll Survival skill checks (DC19) to not be separated from each other. Survival skill checks (DC15) are also necessary to continue in the right direction to reach the cave. Attempts to climb down the cliff-face to the cave require the appropriate gear as well as Climb skill checks (DC15).

THE CAVE OF THE CODEX
The mouth of the cave is ten feet wide and seven feet high, and it provides shelter from the raging ice storm. It narrows to a natural tunnel that is roughly six feet wide and six feet high. This tunnel winds its way in total darkness,sloping slightly downward until is opens into a round, obviously carved cave that's 13 feet in circumferance with a dome-shaped ceiling that's 13 feet from the floor at its highest point. The floor, walls, and celling are At the center of the cave, a massive, closed tome rests on a reading stand that is fixed to the cave floor--appearing as if it was carved from the rock itself when the cave was formed. The book is the Codex of Doom.
   As soon as the first character enters the cave, they trigger the guardians, who have remained dormant under the snow on the shore outside. These guardians, the frozen and cursed corpses of those who have previously tried and failed to acquire the Codex, come shuffling down the tunnel, intent on adding the party to their number. Use ghoul stats, but all damage inflicted is cold-based, including the paralysis. There are two guardians per party member.

Guardians of the Codex [Ghouls] (OGL Content)

There will be details on the Codex of Doom itself and the Time Cube in "The Codex of Doom (Part Two)", coming soon to this blog! In the meantime, here's the song that inspired this post (and the one to follow.)



Open Game Content: The Guardians of the Codex are Open Game Content and may be reproduced in accordance with the Open Game License. The rest of this post is defined as Product Identity. Copyright 2018 Steve Miller. Special Thanks to Alestorm for the inspiration. (And, yeah, we know where their inspiration for the song came from. I will echo that in the next post, but am also going in a different direction.)

Who Killed the Clown?

They say "Everybody loves a clown." Well, someone didn't love HoHo the Clown, because she's been murdered. Can the player characters unravel the mystery surrounding HoHo's death and catch the killer?

HoHo the Clown in Happier Times
(like the ones before she was murdered)

WHO KILLED THE CLOWN?
Roll 1d12 against the tables below to randomly generate a murder mystery adventure outline for your campaign.

WHERE WAS SHE FOUND?
  1. In a crate of uninflated balloons.
  2. Stuffed into a clown car.
  3. Inside the illusionist's "vanishing lady" trick box.
  4. On the playground.
  5. In the mailroom of a high-rise building of luxery condos.
  6. At home, in her bedroom.
  7. At home, in her shower.
  8. In the sauna at the health club.
  9. In the alley behind a seedy nightclub
 10. In the cemetery.
 11. On the beach.
 12. In the pool at the bank president's home.

HOW WAS SHE KILLED?
  1. Hanged.
  2. Stabbed.
  3. Choked by a balloon animal forced down her throat.
  4. Garrotted.
  5. Suffocated.
  6. Strangled.
  7. Multiple blows to the head.
  8. One blow to the head.
  9. Shot once through the back of the head.
 10. Shot once in the chest.
 11. Shot 1d4+1 times.
 12. Drowned. (Roll an additional 1d12 to see what kind of water she drowned in. 1-3. Chlorinated Water, 4-6. Salt Water. 7-9. Soapy Bathwater, 10-12. Fresh Water.)

WHO KILLED HER? (This is also a list of suspects.)
  1. The Retired Clown.
  2. The Up-and-Coming Clown.
  3. The Illusionist (for whom she had once been an assistant).
  4. Her Male Lover. (Roll an additional 1d12. 1-6 it’s her ex-lover.)
  5. Her Female Lover. (Roll an additional 1d12. 1-6 it’s her ex-lover.)
  6. Her Estranged Relative (Roll an additional 1d12 to determine which relative; she was estranged from her entire family. 1-2. Father, 3-4. Mother, 5-6. Brother, 7-8. Sister, 9-10. Uncle, 11-12. Aunt.)
  7. Her College Drama Instructor.
  8. The Bank President.
  9. The Television Producer.
 10. The Human Trafficker.
 11. The Baptist Minister.
 12. Killjoy the Demon Clown.


WHY WAS SHE KILLED?
  1. So she couldn’t reveal a dark secret to the world. (Roll on WHAT IS THE DARK SECRET table.)
  2. To protect the killer’s dark secret. (Roll on WHAT IS THE DARK SECRET table.)
  3. To protect a secret organization.
  4. Shame.
  5. Jealousy.
  6. Revenge.
  7. Hatred.
  8. Lust.
  9. To stop her plan to open a clown-themed strip club.
 10. As a sacrifice to Killjoy the Demon Clown.
 11. It was an accident. The killer and the clown were engaged in a weird sex game that went horribly wrong. (Roll an additional 1d12 to determine the identity of the killer. 1-3 the Up-and-Coming Clown; 4-6 her Male Lover; 7-9 her Female Lover, 10-12. the Baptist Minister. The person originally indicated as the killer helped move the body--if the location and the method by which HoHo was killed don't line up--or otherwise helped cover up and serve as the killer's alibi. If the person she was having sex with is the same person as indicated here, the killer acted alone.)
 12. Roll again on this table. Both reasons apply for why she was killed. Ignore repeated results.


WHAT IS THE DARK SECRET?
  1. She had discovered that several of her fellow clowns were part of cult dedicated to Killjoy the Demon Clown. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is the cult's leader. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved with the cult, but the leader might not know who the murderer is, or even why HoHo was killed.
  2. HoHo was part of a cult that worshipped Killjoy the Demon Clown. She was killled to prevent her from performing the ritual that would make her displace Batty Boop in the Demon Clown Ranks.
  3. A terrorist and kidnapping-for-ransom cell is using party clowns to identify targets, and HoHo discovered this. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is in charge of this evil enterprise. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved, but the leader might not know who the murderer is or why HoHo was killed.
  4. She uncovered a plot to drive clowns insane using poisoned greasepaint. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is in charge of this evil enterprise. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved in the ring, but the leader might not know who the murderer is.
  5. The Human Trafficker is using circuses to transport victims, and HoHo was killed to stop her from revealing the enterprise. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is in charge of this evil enterprise. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved, but the leader might not know who the murderer is or why HoHo was killed.
  6. The Baptist Minister has a homosexual clown fetish, and HoHo was killed to put an end to her blackmailing him. The killer identified on the WHO KILLED HER table committed the murder on behalf of the Baptist Minister--with his full knowledge.
  7. The Bank President raped her as a teenager and she was going to go public. The killer identified on the WHO KILLED HER table committed the murder on behalf of the Bank President--with his full knowledge.
  8. She was going to reveal the Illusionists secrets on a TV special. The killer identified on the WHO KILLED HER table committed the murder on behalf of the Illusionist--with his full knowledge. If the killer is the TV Producer, HoHo was killed because she backed out of revealing the Illusionist's secrets.
 10. She found the long lost wreck of a Spanish galleon while skindiving in the Carribean. The killer murdered her to keep the entire treasure .
11. Her 1-4 Estranged Mother, 5-8 Male Lover, 9-12 College Drama Instructor is a Russian assassin, and his or her secret had to be protected.
 12. Roll twice on this table. The two results are intertwined in one monstrous conspiracy. Ignore repeated results and roll again.


--
This random murder mystery contains completely and totally unauthorized references to Full Moon's demonic clown characters from the Killjoy movie series. My apologies to Full Moon and Charles Band if they take offense. (Click here to read more about the films featuring Killjoy, Batty Boop, and the rest of the demonic clown gang at the Charles Band Collection.)

Now available: 'Tricks of the Mind' for d20 Modern

We've just released our latest supplement for the d20 System--Tricks of the Mind. It lets you add psychic powers (both real and fake) to your games that use feats and talents without needing to layer additional systems onto the game, like psionic points or keeping track of how many spells of which level per level. Click to get a copy, or see previews, at DriveThruRPG or RPGNow.

Cover art from Tricks of the Mind by Jack Kirby.

Since we like to do added value to our promo posts, here's a new starting occupation, for any all-new psychics you want to create! (The rest of this post is presented under the Open Game License. Copyright 2018 Steve Miller.)


STARTING PROFESSION: PSYCHIC
You either have a supernatural gift, or you have a talet for flim-flam. You may have been prepared for life as a professiona psychic from an early age, or it's a life you stumbled into. Either way, you were good at it--good at seeing people's inner needs and helping them through their problems... or maybe just helping seperate them from their money.
   Prerequisite: Age 18+
   Skills: Choose two of the following skills as a permanent class skill. If a skill the character selects is already a class skill, he or she receives a +1 competence bonus on checks using that skill. Bluff, Concentrate, Knowledge (Arcane Lore), Knowledge (Mysticism), Move Silently, Perform (Acting), Search, Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand, Spot.
   Feats*: Select one of the following feats to receive as a bonus feat. The character must meet any prerequisites. Dream Viewer, Empathy, Foresight, Informant Network, Shameless.
   *All feats listed are contained in Tricks of the Mind, but may also have appeared (possibly in a different form) on this blog or in other NUELOW Games releases.