Thursday, January 5, 2017

More d20 System superpowers: The Dreamwalkers

Here's another minor power feat and talent tree to expand upon it. It will probably end up in the upcoming d20 System book about the Atlantean survivors and descendants  that walk among us in the modern world, or maybe in the one about Satan's offspring that are also among us. Or maybe it will sit around until the superpowers system finally becomes a reality.

The rest of this post is presented under the Open Game License, and it may be reproduced in accordance with those terms. Copyright 2017 Steve Miller.


Dream Viewer [Minor Power Feat]
 You are able to passively observe the dreams of others and with a great exertion of willpower calm nightmares.
   Prerequisite: Wisdom 12
   Benefit: Before you go to sleep, focus on a person you have previously met and make a Will save (DC18 if only met in passing, DC12 if a conversation was had, DC8 if a great deal of time was spent together, DC4 if close family member or loved one). If that person is also sleeping, you will share his or her dreams as if they were your own. You will generally speaking only be a spectator, but you will follow the dreamer as closely and as unnoticed as his or her shadow. If the dream is a nightmare, you may roll a second Will save, with a +4 increase to the DCs as above, to calm it and make it less terrifying to the dreamer.
   When you awaken, you always remember the dream witnessed with crystal clarity. As you watch the dream, you are able to recognize which parts of it are the most important, even if they are metaphorical dream symbols. If they are especially obscure, the GM may ask you to roll a Knowledge (Psychology) skill check to recognize them instead of simply revealing them. If the skill check fails, you will have a sense that something is important about a particular element of the dream, but you will not be able to quite put your finger on what it is.






Dream Walker Talent Tree
When you are sleeping, you may move as easily between the dreams of others as you move from one room to another when awake.
Dream Walker: After entering a target's dream using the Dream Viewer feat, you may attempt to enter the dreams of someone they know by picturing that person in your mind and making a successful Will save (DC18 if only a passing acquaintance, DC12 if a conversation was had, DC8 if a great deal of time was spent together, DC4 if a close family member or loved one. If you succeed, you may now observe or control that person's dream to the extent your talents will allow.
   Prerequisite: Dream Viewer feat
Dream Hub: Once you have entered the dream of a target, you able to bring an additional number of sleepers into the dream equal to the total of your Wisdom and Charisma modifiers. If those you wish to draw into a shared dream are unwilling or unprepared to enter the dream (like you, they must have focuses on the target prior to going to sleep, although they need not have met him or her), you must make a successful Will save (DC6, plus the individual's Wisdom modifier). The characters drawn into the dream can interact with the environment at the level permitted by the feats possessed by the character with Dream Hub.
   Whether willing or not, characters who are drawn into a dream must roll a Wisdom check to realize they are in a dream. If they fail the roll, their actions are dictated by the direction of dream rather than their own. The GM temporarily gains control of the character. Additional Wisdom checks may be made whenever something particularly strange or the character does something that is usually against his or her nature. The player decides when such rolls are to be made, and once the check is successful, the player once again fully controls the character.
   You can also use Dream Hub to draw others into your own dreams in the same fashion. To do this, you must first have constructed a Dream Palace (see the Dream Shaper talent).
  If you draw a character into your own dream or a dream you control, and that character possesses the Dream Shaper talent, they can collaborate with you to create complete Dreamscapes within your Dream Palace (see the Dream Shaper talent) that others can be drawn into.
  Prerequisite: Dream Stalker, Dream Shaper
Dream Stalker: You have the ability to enter the dreams of any person who you have at least seen a picture of. From there, you can determine his or her exact location by making a successful Wisdom check (DC11). The location is revealed within the context of the dream, as a map or a picture of where the target is, and you remember the location when you wake up.
  Prerequisite: Dream Walker
  Dream Shape: Create a second character. When you enter a dream using the Dream Stalker talent, this is your basically who you are. All attributes are 12, but one is increased by +6, one by +4, one by +2, and one by +1. Your character classes and levels remain the same, but you may reassign skill points and feats for this dream character in any way you like, except that your dream-self always possesses the Dream Viewer minor power feat and whatever talents from the Dream Walker talent tree you possess. Additionally, you gain three bonus Minor Power feats and three bonus talents from any trees except the Dream Walker talent tree.
   With a Will save (DC12) you may change the appearance of your dream character, but all attributes remain the same.
   Prerequisite: Dream Stalker
   Dream Shaper: With a successful Will save (DC11 plus the total of the target's Wisdom and Intelligence bonuses), you may alter the dream of that you have entered. You can choose to control the behavior of characters in the dream, change the setting of the dream, and any other change you wish to make. The Will save target is the same DC whether you are attempting a minor change or a major change. Each change you wish to make to the dream requires an separate roll. (Changing the behavior of minor characters or location of the dream can be done with one roll each, but important characters require a separate roll for each one.)
   If you attempt to impact part of the dream and fail, you may attempt that change again, but the DC increases by +2. The DC increase is only for the retry on already failed changes; if you try something different, the DC is still at the base.
   If you attempt to alter a person's dreamworld in a way that they find too shocking or upsetting, you risk losing control. This triggers a Will save on the part of the target (DC15) and if it is successful, you are ejected from the dream and you cannot reestablish contact for at least three days. (The target's subconcious mental defenses realialized something was up, and natural mental defenses kicked in.)
   Dream Shaper can also be used to create a "Dream Palace." This is a mental structure that exists in your mind, with any appearance you wish it to have. Each room is either a memory you wish to examine, or a pre-constructed dreamscape that either you or another character with the Dream Shaper talent can create in collaboration with you--and into which you may draw other dreamers if you desire.
   If using the Dream Palace to examine your own memories, you watch as an invisible spectator as events unfold. You may make Knowledge, Search or Spot skill checks (with a +10 bonus) to see something out of the ordinary or notice whatever it is you are looking for in your own mind. You may also roll Sense Motive skill checks (also with a +10 bonus)
This environment is one that is under your control, and the targeted dreamer that you wish to draw into it will not receive a second saving throw due to extreme changes, and any changes you or other characters allied with you wish to make to the dream environment are made with straight DC11 Will saves with no DC increases due to failed attempts.

Saturday, December 24, 2016

The Christmas Rangers!

Here's a Christmas brainstorm! Maybe someday, we'll flesh this concept out with game stats and more!


INTRODUCING... THE CHRISTMAS RANGERS!
From their secret headquarters somewhere on the North Pole, the Christmas Rangers stand ready to assist Santa when those who are particular naughty try to ruin Christmas for others, or when the forces of evil try to target Santa directly (such as agents of the Martian Diktat, Americans for Freedom from Religion, or the Iranian Republican Guard), they leap into action, wielding supernatural powers and clad in hi-tech battle armor.
   The Christmas Rangers wear colored armor from which they derive their individual names and which matches the powers they wield. The armor fully encases the wearer so their race is concealed, and it is styled in such a way that it hides the wearer's sex so each Christmas Ranger is a representative of all of humanity.
   Thanks to their armor, all Christmas Rangers can fly as fast as Santa's reindeer, can fire multi-colored, powerful laser beams from their wrists, and have strength that rivals that of the legends such as Sampson, Herakles, and Chuck Norris. The powers of the individual Rangers are as follows:


   The Green Ranger: The power to cause Christmas trees to manifest, as well as to heal those who are injured or sick.
   The Gold Ranger: The power to inspire generosity of spirit in even the most self-centered and greedy person, as well as bolster the confidence and sense of community of all people of good will.
   The Red Ranger: The power to tell the naughty from the nice, as well as to reinvigorate the tired and fill those who feel defeated with renewed strength and purpose.
    White Ranger: The power to cause snow to fall in the nearby area in even the hottest of climates, as well as the ability to freeze enemies in their tracks and to muffle sound.


The White Ranger, unmasked.

Happy Christmas from NUELOW Games!

Happy Christmas to someone who never gets any Christmas well-wishes--Allah!





Our biggest desire is a worldwide ceasefire, because Santa is up in his sleigh!

"Merry Christmas, Allah!"

Harpy Feather of Caroling

This is a magic item that is simple to create and fun for the entire adventuring party. All actions described must be taken by the characters who will ultimately wear the Harpy Feather of Caroling.

First, one has to acquire a harpy feather. Any feather will do, but it must take taken from a live harpy... and the harpy must be alive after the feather has been acquired.

Second, the feather must be taken to the Grove of Yule where the Spirit of Christmas must be asked to bless it. This can be done on the night of the 24th into the 25th of every month of the year. Characters must enter the grove unarmed.

Third, the feather must be mounted in a setting and put on a necklace (Craft [jewelry] DC7). The setting and necklace can be made of any permanent material, and may be created by a third party, but the assembly must be performed by the character who will be the owner and wearer of the Harpy Feather of Caroling.

Once the item is complete, whenever the character wears it, he or she will unfailingly remember the lyrics to any uplifting or joyful song that he or she has read or heard at any point in her life. The item also grants a +10 bonus to Perform (singing) skill checks when such songs are sung by the character.

The Harpy Feather of Caroling radiates faint Enchantment magic, but it never works for any person but the intended wearer... unless that wearer gifts it to another person out of kindness and love, Then the magic transfers.

(The preceding text is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright Steve Miller 2016.)


Friday, December 23, 2016

You won't find more Christmas action this side of 'Die Hard'!

For some different Christmas action this Holiday Season, you need to get yourself A Christmas Box from NUELOW Games! It's got comics and battle scenarios featuring NUELOW stars Jill Trent & Daisy Smythe, the Black Cat, and Judy of the Jungle; it's got Santa and his daughter Sugar Plum, Jesus Christ, Martians, Bill Clinton, and many more, all battling with the Spirit of Christmas in their hearts; it's got a collection of horror-themed short stories; and the core rulebook for ROLF!: The Rollplaying Game of Big Dumb Fighters....


Basically, it's everything you need to have a different sort of gaming experience with the family and loved ones this Christmas, and to otherwise entertain yourself while you are waiting up for Santa to bring the presents. (You can even ask Santa if he wants to play himself and join you for a ROLF! battle or two!)


Click here to get A Christmas Box--which features 8 fantabulous NUELOW Games Christmas-themed releases for a super-low price!







Random Superhero Background/Origin Tables

Do you want to play a superhero character but are having a hard time coming up with an origin story/background? Use the following random tables to help jump-start your imagination. (This material is system free, and it's presented under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it.)

How did the Hero Get His or Her Powers?
Roll 1d12. Consult the Table.
1. Rocketed to Earth from an Alien Planet
2. Learned Mysticism from Tibetan Monks
3. Learned to Unlock the Full Potential of Your Mind and Body from Secret Cult of Mystics
4. Scientific Accident
5. Industrial Accident
6. Purposeful Scientitic Experimentation
7. Inventions of Your Own Design
8. Inventions Stolen from Evil-doers or Alien Beings
9. Blessed or Cursed by a god.
10. Born into a lost/hidden civilization that you left behind.
11. You're a Ghost or Some Other Kind of Supernatural Being
12. You're Just a Person Who Has a Unique Set of Skills, a Passion for Justice, and a Cool Costume.


What is the Hero's Sex?
Roll 1d12. Consult the table
1-4. Male
5-7. Female
8-10. Alien (roll an additional 1d6 to determine superficial sexual characterisitcs; 1-2 Male, 3-4 Female, 5-6 Shapeshifter with no specific sex.)
11-12. Android (use the tables in NUELOW's Dynamic Man for additional details

What is the Hero's Gender?
(You can also use this table to determine sexual orientation.)
Roll 1d12. Consult the table.
1-4. Male
5-8. Female
10-11. Fluid/Bisexual
12. Asexual.

What is the Hero's Race?
You can use the table in this post ("d20 System Racial Templates") to determine that. You can ignore the game mechanics if you are using a different game system than the one it was intended for, or if they don't fit with the character generation system used in your game.