Day of the Sarsen

Dedicated to
Children of the Stones UK Kids TV
Dro Who Stones of Blood
Susan Cooper

Sarsen Stone elemental guardians, Balanced-Neutral
AC as Plate&shield HD 8* or 16** or 32*** Mov 6 or 3 or 1
Attack 2d8 Crushx1 or Touch, save or sticks to with limb, second attack traps the whole body
Once victim stuck can automatically crush each round or drain attribute points
Each stone drains one specific attribute such as STR , victim drained to zero dies in agony
-8HD=1 drain & cling one victim 16HD=d3 drain and cling two 32HD=d6 drains and cling four
Clerical healers can restore all lost stats with a spell or recover one point a day from rest
Dead arise as wights next full moon who worship and defend the stones by night
Immune to non-magical weapons hits from such weapons save or break
Immune to gas, poison, non-magical fire, paralysis, petrification, charm or sleep magic

These ancient elementals were worshipped and sacrificed to. The beings are intelligent prehistoric petrified earth elementals bound to earth by evil powers. Lives they drink from their victims are beamed to the void beyond the stars to feed their masters. Wizards of those days used standing stones for all kinds of magic so the creation of these was made to hide shrine and temples guarded in the open. The Sarsen sleep for aeons at a time but they can be commanded to await a magical alarm or curse or blood spilling to awaken them. Often they start with animals or loners or homeless. Once awake they become hungry and begin to hunt again more obviously, even destroying a cottage to devour those living inside. Some leave them sacrifices and hide till they sleep again.

Smaller sarsen are most often found toppled over or broken near old cult centres and might even be in a village. Medium ones are on hills or special places often in circles or rows. The largest are great monuments that seem impossible for simple people to move. A sarsen makes the sound of dragging through the earth. A medium stone displaces a ton of earth as it moves 3meters and you can hear rubble. The very largest displace tons and shake the earth while moving which may cause damage in the area.

Later peoples might build on top a fallen sarsen or use a laying one as a foundation. Some find abandoned ones then move them unaware for thousands of years what the stones are. Some might fave some signs or runes one them or be carved into great heads or beasts or giants. Local folk stories warn of them often attributing them to giants or ancient priests.

They are intelligent elementals but think very very slowly and don't speak. They communicate telepathically with any earth elemental based being,

1in6 are magically silent
1in6 can move through the ground without leaving a trace
1in6 when killed HD equal to own by draining emit a red glow and gain +3 Mov
1in6 once a year this sarsen awaken and move but will take animals or sacrifice
1in6 non-magical metal weapons stick to sarsen and become trapped by magnetism
1in8 if killed split into two half-size sarsen
1in8 create ghouls or some other undead type
1in8 form a stone mouth to eat those killed messily might be horizontal or verticle
1in10 radiate intense cold or heat that can be felt
1in10 have beating stone hearts that you can feel coming while moving
1in10 have ESP range 9 that help them predict what they stalk
1in10 can create illusions to draw victims towards them
1in12 when in a group gain an additional centre stone, a petrified greater demon
1in12 has a giant constrictor snake with horns coiled around it as an ally
1in12 has a band of savage goat folk cultists who bring it blood
1in12 can summon shadows once per day 8HD=d4 16=2d4 32=4d4
1in12 regenerate 1hp/round but acid stops it regenerating
1in12 when killed releases something d4 1=druid 2=demon 3=bard 4=warrior
1in12 chant creepily causing fear to all in radius equal to HD
1in12 can levitate at a speed of 9 but makes a crackling and buzzing sound
1in20 can cast call lightning once a day only in a storm
1in20 drain energy levels instead 8HD=1 16HD=2 32 HD=3
1in20 crystalline and speak telepathically to any being demanding blood sacrifices

d12 Sarsen Story Seeds1 Innkeepers children climbing on old witch stone got a scrape and that night hungry stone wants more, at night the inn is attacked, a sarsen smashing through walls
2 Wights have become more aggressive making locals afraid to go out at night. Nobody can figure to where they came from but some say they worship a mysterious stone in the woods
3 A cult have been sneaking into the village disguised as travelling workers and other inn guests and leaving goat blood on local stones trying to awaken a sarsen to worship
4 A local hill had a farmer find a stone door into the hill. Inside the entry, a sarsen pillars hold the roof up at certain points. When they are awakened by intruders and follow them doorways of stone will collapse sealing intruders inside them
5 Locals await the dread night of the stones as there no criminal sacrifices to leave outside. Then they are pleased when guests arrive. They will try and drug and kidnap strangers but will if tables turn and lose beg visitors to catch them some bandits or even fight the bloodstone
6  Locals have seen ghosts and heard voices near the old stones and avoid them but now a cult has come to awaken the stones. Each night the cult kidnap and sacrifice someone till all 13 of the witch stones awake and the cult leader hopes will obey their wishes
7 Near a camping site on a distant road, an awakened sarsen has been murdering travellers. Usually, it takes a guard or a straggler. Now it has awakened and is hungry enough to kill a whole group of travellers
8 A scholar claims local stones were moved since a study made a century ago and locals won't comment. A local drunk has been found ground into mincemeat in an old quarry
9 Dark elves have been awakening sarsen to terrorise locals
10 After blood was found on an old witch stone locals have rounded up an old woman they say murdered the drunken labourer, she begs crowd for mercy as they build a fire pit to burn her
11 A cliff in the woods has four strange carved pillars guarding a cave. Locals say a treasure is inside but nobody ever comes back
12  An evil wizard is served by demon-worshipping goat folk, now he is served also by a black crystal pillar that levitates and has glowing symbols on it as it moves