L is for Lich Lantern

Continuing our RPG design trek through the alphabet, here's another entry in the A to Z April Blogging Challenge. The entirety of this post is Open Gaming Content and is published under this license. Please give copyright acknowledgement to Steve Miller if you chose to reproduce the content.
   Although nominally designed for d20-based RPGs, this item is easily adapted to other games,.

The Lich Lantern (By Steve Miller)
Looted from within a labyrinth of tombs beneath a temple so ancient no one remembers the gods it was devoted to, this item is a storm lantern made from fused bones inset with glass that has a slight green tint. A sputtering black candle burns within, seeming to always be on the verge of going out yet never doing so. In other words, it always shines with a pale green light that can only be dowsed by covering it with a thick cloth or putting it inside a box. It radiates powerful necromantic and abjuration magic.
   The Lich Latern has the following effects:
   1/ All invisible creatures within the 20-foot radius of the lantern's light become visible.
   2. Ghosts and other non-corporeal beings lose any damage reduction, spell resistance, and abilities tied to being non-corporeal  while within the 20-foot radius of the lantern's light; these beings essentially briefly become corporeal..
    3. If the latched face covering on the lantern is opened while turned toward a ghost or other non-corporeal spirit, the creature must roll a Will save (DC 24) or be sucked into the lantern. The candle burns a little brighter for each entity so captured, and the person carrying the lantern gains a +1 bonus to Armor Class (or Defense Rating) for each spirit trapped.
    4. By spinning the lantern while spirits are trapped inside, the character causes it to send forth a burst of energy that harms all undead creatures within the 20-foot radius of the lamp's light. The damage is 1d6 for each ghost or spirit trapped in the lantern. This use destroys the trapped creatures.

Drawback
The Lich Lantern is actually a lich's phylactery or soul cage. The spirit of a powerful and deeply evil necromancer slumbers within, having retreated into the item when the adventurers who first recovered the lantern destroyed his undead body. If the person carrying the lantern ever has more than five ghosts or spirits trapped within it at once, he or she must instantly roll a Will save (DC 24) or be possessed by the lich. The bearer's spirit is then trapped in the phylactery.

K is for Kissing Booth

We fell down on the A to Z Blogging Challenge this week, but today we play catch-up! Everything in the paragraph under "Kissing Booth OGL d20 Stats" is Open Gaming Content and published under this license. Please give credit and copyright acknowledgement to Steve Miller.
   While the game stats for this item are nominally for d20-based games, it can easily be adapted to any system.

The Kissing Booth (By Steve Miller)
Located at the end of a carnival midway or near the entrance to a circus tent, this small, wooden structure has a bright red, heart-shaped front. Through the opening in it, you can see either a very beautiful man or woman, Below the opening is a sign that reads "One Kiss, One Copper Piece." The person within the booth calls out to passerbys who seem homely, lonely, or are themselves handsome, encouraging them to come brighten both their days with a kiss. "And all the money goes to the local orphanage," the person promises. The kisser will chat up the kissee both before and after the kiss, asking about their occupation and where they're from and complimenting them on their appearance, dress, and so forth.
  While its absolutely true that the money taken in at the booth will be donated to the local orphans, the Kissing Booth is also a means by which the operator's seek to rob wealthy attendees of the event where it is found.
   The Kissing Booth is operated by half-elf Callum Ceptor and his four associates, two very comely human men and women. They travel from carnival to carnival and are known and well-liked by other traveling entetainers and circus folik, who have no idea Callum is a thief. He is believed to be a retired adventurer who is spending his money on charity and eccentricity. (Callum actually is an adventurer, but he's  not exactly retired; he has simply found a means of getting richer that doesn't involve a constant threat of death. His companions are low-level rogues with a great deal of skill in Bluff and other personal interaction skills.)

Kissing Booth OGL d20 System Stats
The GM should roll a secret Spell Resistance check for the character being kissed (DC20). If the save fails, the person in the booth gains the ability to shapeshift into a perfect copy of the character for 24 hours. In additional, the kisser gains brief and limited telepathic powers that lets him or her know the subject's recent thoughts--hence the questions and compliments before and after the kiss, as they give the kisser information about where the target lives, how wealthy they might be, and so on. Then, while the target continues to enjoy the show, the kisser leads to his place of residence with some compatriots to steal any valuables they can find.

J is for Jester's Regalia

Today's Blogging Challenge entry is a collection of magic items for the d20 System. All text in this post is Open Gaming Content and is published under this license. If you wish to reuse this material, please give credit and copyright acknowledgement to NUELOW Games and Steve Miller.

The Jester's Regalia (By Steve Miller)
The Jester's Regalia was created for Berlan, the renegade son of King Erlash the Third of Reyla. The young man wanted to spend his life singing and dancing rather than leading armies and royal courts, and he commissioned some of the realms finest magic craftsmen to create a unique costume for him that would enhance his abilities as an entertainer.
   The outfit that was created for him has been named the Jester's Regalia by historians, as Berlan spent time performing as a roaming jester and comedian in the neighboring kingdom of Desilain after fleeing from his father's court.  It is crafted from the finest silks and linens and is bright purple, green, and gold in color. Small bells along the seams of the cap and the tunic's arms tinkle when the character moves.
   Berlan's career in show business ended abruptly when he was murdered and dismembered by a troupe of wandering minstrels who were envious of his rapidly growing fame. To hide their crime, they scattered the elements of the Jester's Regalia throughout the lands they traveled through. While individual pieces have since been reported in the possession of this collector or that adventurer, no one has ever managed to gather all give pieces together since Berlan's demise.

D20 System Stats
Each of the five pieces that make up the Jester's Regelia give the wearer a specific bonus.

   Jester's Cap: When worn, grants the character a +2 bonus to all Charisma-based skills, as well as a +2 bonus to Disguise checks as part of it hides the wearer's face and provides a slight magical distortion to his or her voice--making it more high pitched.
   Jester's Gloves: When worn, grants the character a +4 to Sleight of Hand skill checks.
   Jester's Shoes: When worn, grants the character a +4 bonus to Climb skill checks.
   Jester's Tights: When worn, grants the character a +2 bonus to Tumble skill checks.
   Jester's Tunic: When worn, grants that character a +2 enhancement bonus to armor class or defense rating..

   When all five pieces are worn together, the character  gains the fascinate ability, and can cast the following spells twice per day as if he or she is a 15th level caster: animate rope, dancing lights, ghost sound, mass charm monster, prestidigitation, sculpt sound, suggestion, tiny hut, zone of silence.

   Drawback: Unfortunately, the Jester's Regalia carries a potentially lethal downside, one that was inserted into the item during the creation process by an agent of King Erlash III who wanted to stop his son from embarrassing himself and the royal family. Whenever a character with 5 or more ranks in any Perform skill watches anyone perform in the entire Jester's Regalia, there is a 10% chance that character will be filled with an instant dislike and disgust for the performer. If the affected character fails a Will save (DC20) that dislike turns into a homicidal rage that prompts the character to instantly attack the performer. The dislike and/or rage remains until the effected character is subjected to remove curse cast at 20th level.

I is for Icing Death and Twinkler

Another day, another entry in the A to Z April Blogging Challenge from NUELOW Games! Today, we offer a couple of magical items with stats for OGL d20 System games, OpenD6 Games, and ROLF!: The Rollplaying Game. Everything under the headers OGL d20 System Stats and OpenD6 System Stats is Open Game content, and is published under this license.

Icing Death and Twinkler (By Steve Miller)

Worldstrider and dealer of curiosities Tanner P. Valentine became fascinated with a certain Drow adventurer from a distant world. Discovering the drow was quite famous, Valentine decided to market miniature replicas of his famous matched magical swords in the form of cake knives. He named his products Icing Death and Twinkler and he marketed them through the Planestrider chain of interdimensional rest-stops. They were only on the market for a brief time before Drow, admirers, friends and enemies of the famous adventurer alike, decended on stores carrying them and destroyed the items and the stores itself. The Drow's friends felt they were an insult to him, and the Drow's enemies felt they were an insult to them--that such powerful weapons and their owner would be trivilized in such a way filled everyone who knew the Drow with indignation or fury. (And then there were the lawyers who filed suit on behalf of the Drow and his trademarkable image....)
  As for Tanner P. Valentine, he still has to give both Worldstrider reststops and Drow enclaves a wide berth. He still has a few cake knife sets he is willing to quietly sell to interested parties he meets.

D20 System Stats
Icing Death and Twinkler are matched cake knives with curved blades and ornate black handles. If used as weapons, they function as +1 daggers. They were mass-produced in elven magic item sweatshops and they are therefor not safe to use to actually cut cake. If they are used to cut cake (or any other food substance), there is a 33% chance that the magical energies leaking from the knives will poison the food. In such a case, any who eat it must roll a DC 15 Fort save or be sickened for 1d6 hours, suffering a -2 penalty to all attack rolls and skill checks.

OpenD6 System Stats
Icing Death and Twinkler are matched cake knives with curved blades and ornate black handles. They are mildly enchanted and deal STR+2 when used as weapons. They were mass-produced in elven magic item sweatshops and they are therefore not safe to use to actually cut cake. If they are used to cut cake (or any other food substance), there is a 33% chance that the magical energies leaking from the knives will poison the food. In such a case, any who eat it must roll a Strength check against a target number of 12 or suffer a -1D penalty to all rolls for 1D6 hours.

ROLF! System Stats
Icing Death and Twinkler are small melee weapons that carry a dangerous enchantment. They inflict 1 point of damage that ignore armor and 1 point of regular damage.

H is for the Higgs-Bozo Particle Generator

Today's offering in the A to Z April Blogging Challenge is by Dave Mendez and Steve Miller. It features stats for OGL d20 System games and  NUELOW Games's ROLF!: The Rollplaying Game. (The paragraph labeled "OGL d20 System Stats" is Open Gaming Content and may be republished under the terms of the Open Gaming License.)

 Higgs-Bozo Particle Generator (By Steve Miller and Dave Mendez)
This device is a 3x3x3 smooth black cube that weighs 100 pounds. A large red button is located at the direct center on one of its sides. When pressed, the cube hums briefly and the smell of cotton candy and sawdust and stale sweat wafts momentarily through the air.
    The Higgs-Bozo Particle Generator emits an energy field that weakens Hell Harlequins and Killer Klowns within a 60-ft radius. Once the button is pushed, the generator remains active for 24 hours, unless damaged. It requires 10 hours to recharge between each use.

OGL d20 System Stats
Hell Harlequins and Killer Klowns suffer a -2 penalty to all attack rolls and saving throws while within range of an active Higgs-Bozo Particle Generator.
    The particle generator has 50 hit points and a damage reduction of 5/+1. It stops working after suffering 25 hit points of damage, but can still be repaired. It is damaged beyond repair after suffering 40 hit points of damage.

 ROLF! System Stats
Hell Harlequins and Killer Klowns suffer one point of damage that ignores armor for each round they are near an active Higgs-Bozo Particle Generator.
    The particle generator has 20 Brawn points and it can only be damaged by weapons or combat maneuvers that ignore armor. It stops working after it has taken 10 Brawn points.

G is for Ghost Spotter and Ghost Whisperer

Today's offering for the A to Z April Blogging Challenge is another pair of ghost-related d20 System feats from Dave Mendez and Steve Miller. All text in this post is Open Gaming Content and is published under this license. If you wish to reuse this material, please give credit and copyright acknowledgement to NUELOW Games and Steve Miller.

GHOST SPOTTER [General]
You can see things that otherwise can only be heard by captured by electronic photography/videography.
   Prerequisites: Wisdom 15.
   Benefit: With a brief moment of concentration and a sucessful Spot check (DC 10), the character can see ghosts with the naked eye. The higher the skill roll total, the clearer the character can the ghosts. This can be two-edged sword, as the sight of particularly gruesome ghosts may force a Fear check
Special:

GHOST WHISPERER [General]
You have a knack for convincing ghosts to "move on" or otherwise behave.
   Prerequisite: Charisma 15, Diplomacy 2 ranks, Ghost Spotter
   Benefit: The character gains a +4 bonus to Bargain and Diplomacy checks when speaking to ghosts and other incorporeal beings.

F is for the Fount of All Wisdom

Continuing the A to Z April Blogging Challenge with another tidbit for use in your OGL d20 System RPG sessions. All text in this post is Open Gaming Content and is published under this license. If you wish to reuse this material, please give credit and copyright acknowledgement to NUELOW Games and Steve Miller.

The Fount of All Wisdom (By Steve Miller)

On a windswept plateau, high in the mountains that marked the northeastern border of the falled kingdom of Reylar stands a decaying, sprawling complex of temples. These buildings are so ancient that not even Reylar's earliest historians knew who built them or the names of the gods who smile down at explorers from wallcarving and giant statues. The only facts known is that Reylar's first Warrior-King rose to power with wealth and magical artifacts gained from the catacombs and hidden temples in the maze-like tunnels beneath the structures, and that for centuries that followed, adventurers who braved the wilderness and scaled the forbidding mountains also returned with great wealth.

Although the main treasure troves of the ruins have long since been emptied, occasional small rewards can be had by those who explore them, mostly in the form of gear recovered from the bodies of less skilled explorers. Such trinkets are not why modern adventurers and explorers make the long and deadly journey to reach the ruins--the come in search of the legendary Fount of All Wisdom,.Reportedly located deep within the tunnel complex below the ruins, those who drink from it gain wisdom possessed by the gods themselves. But gaining such insight carries with it possible price--the weak-minded are unable to handle divine wisdom and they are driven hoplessly mad.

OGL d20 System Rules
The Fount of Wisdom consists of a large marble basin and three life-sized, highly detailed statues of human females--one representing a young girl, one representing a full-grown woman, and one representing an old woman--pouring neverending streams of crystal clear water from tilted goblets in their hands.

Each character can drink four times from the fount in a lifetime--once from each individual stream and once from the basin. The proper order to drink is from the basin, from the young girl, from the full-grown woman, and finally the old woman. Drinking out of order counts as one of the four time, but it gives no benefit other than slaking a character's thirst. When used in the proper sequence, characters can gain random benefits (or drawbacks) as described on the following tables. Each table is keyed to a d6 roll. Benefits and drawbacks are permanent, unless otherwise noted, and they stack with other results from using the fount.

Effects of the Basin
1. No effect.
2. Survival becomes a permanent class skill.
3. Listen becomes a permanent class skill.
4. Sense Motive becomes a permanent class skill.
5. +1 to Wisdom attribute.
6. +1 to Strength or Constitution attribute; player's choice.

Effects of the Young Girl
1. Character becomes 2d6 years younger, with any appropriate age-based attribute adjustments 
     occurring instantly.
2. Roll again on Effects of Basin table. If result has already occurred, no effect.
3. +2 permanent bonus to Listen skill checks.
4. +2 permanent bonus to Sense Movie skill checks.
5. +2 permanent bonus to Handle Animal skill checks.
6. +1 to Wisdom attribute.

Effects of the Grown Woman
1.Character loses 1d3 Charisma attribute points, round up.
2. Roll again on the Effects of the Basin table. If the result has already occurred, no effect.
3. +1 permanent bonus to Listen checks.
4. +1 permanent bonus to Sense Motive checks.
5. +2 permanent bonus to Spot checks.
6. +2 to Wisdom attribute.

Effects of the Old Woman
1. The character is subject to a permanent confusion spell effect. Only a healing artifact or a god itself can
     restore the character to normal.
2. Roll on the Effects of the Grown Woman table, If the result has already occurred, no effect.
3. Roll on the Effects of the Basin table. If the result has already occurred, no effect.
4. Whenever the character rolls a successful critical attack, he must roll a Will save (DC30) or fall victim to the effects of the hideous laughter spell (as if cast by a 20th level caster),.
5. The character instantly ages 2d6 years, with any modifiers to attributes applied immediately.
6. +4 to Wisdom attribute.