d100 Border Barriers for hexes in Psychon

Ok so you can see from space Psychon is covered in coloured hexes. Some feature radically different terrain and have simple physical mostly natural barriers. Beings from either adjacent hex may be encountered and such zones often good hunting (always roll an encounter here 1-3 from old hex 4-6 from new hex on a d6). More mana intensive barriers exist too and are incredible feats of the gods power.

When exiting a hex into a new one it often (1-3 on d6 same) has same basic terrain (with shifts in population and some colour shade differences). When a hex is different roll on the barrier table to see what kind if any there is.

d12 Barrier table between different terrain hexes
1-6 Gradual fade into each other
7-10 Common Barrier
11-12 Fabulous Barrier

d12 Common Barriers 
These are all a bit hazardous and require some clever care to avoid. Flight can avoid most of these the easiest
1 Water like a river, lake or the sea. Treacherous and monster filled
2 Wall of natural rock like mountains, possibly a plateau
3 Huge pit or canyon often with another hazzard in the bottom4 Glacier of ice riddled with caves and creatures
5 Foul swamp polluted by chemical weapons, teeming with weapons
6 Toxic wasteland hazardous to life like plague, radiation, chemicals
7 Psychotronic and Hallucinogenic weapons still active
8 Invisible Force Barrier or maze
9 Monsters swarm and attack, undead  or automatons fairly common
10 Geothermal area, lava flows, boiling mud, geysers, poison or burning gas
11 Roll 1d10 twice
12 Roll 1d10 1d4+1 times 

d100 Fabulous Barriers
1 A god blasts the intruder with fire from heavens 

2 A god shakes the earth and uses geological phenomena

3 A god sends demons, angels, elementals or other servitors

4 A petty god guards the passage

5 Lightning rakes area, blasting intruders to ash heaps

6 Weird auras start affecting minds, magic or technology

7 Strange weather phenomena drives travellers away

8 Sphinxes guard the way demand a riddle to pass

9 Strange old man demands riddle to cross or roll again for another hazard
10 A gargantua eats anyone passing the territory
11 A great flaming barrier appears 

12 A god personally turns travellers back

13 A sacred monster guards the way like a dragon or warborg

14 Savage humanoid tribes swarm here eating travellers

15 A sinister cult peruse and seek to sacrifice transgressors

16 Giant crystals drain your life force (HP) slowly if crossed

17 Swarms of some creatures attack, form walls and flood area like bugs or nanobots or rats or birds

18 A huge band of scarified primitives kill and eat those who defile their sacred land

19 Undead soldiers from past burst up with advanced weapons that only work for them
20 Fearsome Illusions drive away fearful, often personal
21 Mutants swarm here and get more horrible as you go deeper into contaminated zone

22 Grass gives of sleep or hallucinatory gas

23 A saucer comes and blasts intruders from air

24 Doppelgangers or pod people or replicants appear and attack, some resemble loved ones and friends instead if clones fail

25 Robots or androids dont let stupid meatbags here

26 Beastmen horde hates humans and like to hunt and torture and eat them

27 Squirming red alien vegetation here smothers all life

28 Ancient mine field

29 Magical curse runes cover ground for miles
30 May keep walking but never get closer, time distorting
31Teleported somewhere completely different

32 AI cult or servitors kidnaps all passers to live in his bunker of paradise

33 Cold barrier or wind and super chilled air

34 Vacuum area

35 Flash floods drive travellers back again and again

36 Ground covered in living mutants as big as hills, eat passes by

37 Hungry Morlocks guard this area

38 Derro beam hate rays at party and make them increasingly turn one another till they go beserk

39 A beam from the sky transports any significant life into a sky habitat
40 Transported to another plane if do not heed warnings
41 Temporarily sent to different time zone

42 Random transformations such as gender or race or colour or all

43 Turned to children temporarily

44 Turned to geriatrics temporarily

45 Grey ooze turns everything into ooze

46 Swarming with modular robots form into angry god

47 Ground bursts into flame

48 Confusion field, lost for possibly days

49 Warnings of undead plague, save or infected so one day will rise when dead
50 Reality becomes confusing liquid chaos, cant tell up from down
51 Time slows down, beings up ahead frozen in stasis

52 Strange beings and phantoms phaze in from over space and attack

53 Starving and disease ridden desperate hordes swarm well fed travellers

54 Muddy trenches cover land. automated weapons systems

55 Muddy trenches cover land. undead soldiers fix bayonetes

56 Adorable pakuspawn microkaiju swarm and eat you

57 Wasteland area covered in statues. Gorgon, medusa, baslisk or cockatrice in area

58 Swarming with rust monsters of various colour types

59 Swarms of gremlins rise up and try to eat you
60 Transported to underworld
61 Huge pits, sinkholes and canyon entrances to subworlds and hordes of monsters

62 Strange vapours rise from earth, immortal locals welcome you to stay forever

63 Hunters stalk intruders for ritual torture or just sport if advanced

64 Hideous inbred hermaphrodites cave troglodytes seek new lovers

65 Intruders are tormented with tests by competing AIs for a bet

66 Intruders start to turn into vegetation or fungus from skybourne spores or seeds, reversed if you head back

67 A powerful mutant hero challenges all comers or his cult kill and eat you

68 Deadly road gangcult in dune buggies, crucify travellers

69 Priests only let intruders of right religion pass
70 Warriors and martial artists duel travellers for right of passage
71 Bleeding weeping corpses arise and form a wall blocking you, drive mad if you continue

72 Satellite above has a mutation ray they test on those who enter their firing range

73 Eldren with ornithopters and firelances destroy intruders in forbidden zone

75 Blood thirsty druid sect sacrifice strangers to ancient monoliths

76 Intruders teleported to gladiator pit

77 Intruders tormented by Djinn with hallucinations of treasure and terrain or food

78 Visions of souls being tormented because you transgress here

79 All who come here compelled to build huge monument, daily save to escape
80 A huge brick wall

81 Angel with flaming sword guards a passage through huge wall of flame
82 Ancient ruins crawling with armed survivalists with mines, mortars and sniper rifles
83 Wall of water filled with winged satan fish
84 Ground or air craft with battlesuits demand your papers
85 A mecha or robot or golem with huge guns demands huge toll
86 Gods wish to weigh your soul to see if you are worthy to pass
87 Ancient undead filled city rulled by crumbling lich or mummy
88 Huge garbage heaps strewn for miles in unstable heaps, if sucked under awake in garbage heap in distant land
89 Saucers kidnap and probe travellers here
90 Soldiers of ancients believe fighting some old war, different eras set to battle each other like AI chess game
91 Fictional or historic characters appear to fight intruders
92 Huge spacegod titan in spacesuit hovers over region judging the fitness of travellers to live or be able to reproduce
93 Huge land leviathan and army use tavellers for target practice
94 Travellers fall through crust into subworlds of molemen, mutants and morlocks
95 Everyone starts turning into orcs or other unlovable species
96 Modrons test travellers with maths and logic puzzles and IQ tests for right to pass
97 Electric razor wire fence with ancient border crossing run by robots, wont let you in without valid passports
98 magic princess will let you pass hazard if you accept a quest
99 Eldren guards want you to pass a personality test to confirm your alignment, blacklist you if wrong
100 A huge dionysian multispecies ritual rave festival in progress, save to resist joining, daily save to escape, local law frown on party goers and harrass them

will do a d100 weird geology feature table sometime

Edition Wars Poop Slinging 2

Last post of a similar title I wrote at start of several months of being bed ridden with pain. I came to regret some of what i said and saw with horror how many people read it as it climbed up my top 10. I even considered removing it. Immediately after I joined larger Sydney scene and ended up living above a game club and involved in two other clubs and am next to be in the local con as a gm.

I have made effort to try new versions of DnD to give them a chance and am finding myself wanting to play RQ and TSR Marvel again instead. I never stopped playing Call of Cthulhu and have updated grudgingly to 6th ed and have next ed quickstart book a friend got at gencon.

Plenty of guys playing first Ed warhammer fantasy roleplaying and 1st ed rogue trader in my club. Warhmmer fantasy wargame seems to not be of interest and apparently mutated away from 40k.

So I encounter strange looks from DnD fans at my choice of AdnD and older BX and Cyclopedia versions. So someone asked me what is the gist of oldschool DnD, what is the difference and is it just dungeon crawls and killing new characters off.

If it aint broke dont fix it
I grew up with 80s basic dnd and have gone back - i use adnd to fill in holes and blanks and even some second ed. I have tried to play more recent editions and while the dm is most important element over rules, playstyle now is so slow and engineered to make me buy stuff and has too many choices.

My games play 40 rooms a session, more modern games taking same time to play get about 4 - I have seen this again and again with over a dozen post adnd DMs. Old game feels like a creative frame work - adnd seems like a bunch of ideas to cherrypick for a dnd game (remember books came out years apart - white  dwarf was only source of to it tables for a long time).

As nothing happening in these post 2nd ed games I'm in after months I'm quitting them all without concern.

DMs tell me  can be anything I want "wolverine" "batman" "thor" any epic fantasy you want. I dont want this. I like being a humble beginner who works at being awesome over time. I would rather play a game that did this better with less rules like a superhero game. Id rather RQ or even Warhammer FRP as I feel I really can do anything in play without character classes and a truck load of rulebooks that dont feel play tested. I like post 70s wargamer pseudo historical fantasy not the anime/computer game/comic hero game it has become. Im not into hyper realism. Pathfinder I like look of art but not for my world or heroes - too over the top like final fantasy. I like a mix of artists and even vulnerability of heroes (more like Roman Polanski's Fearless Vampire Hunters not Marvel Conan or warcraft with axes nobody ever used in armies). Overdesign in layouts visually a turn off too - I like textbook looking rulebooks not a cofee table snowjob.

One thing I find is since joining local scene is I hear same criticisms of old DnD from people who have never played it. PPL look at me with amazement and horror when i say play BX-cyclopedia edition.

"dungeon crawls, randomness, and butchery of 0- and 1st-level characters" I hear hatefully by people weekly who have not even played AdnD. We manage to not die, spend sessions with sometimes very few rolls and I have never run a megadungeon but I might try such a campaign once. I like random tables because they let me run total sandbox games where players can do anything and I get to have fun with NPC's.

I think oldschool gaming is far more creative than stereotyped by newer gamers. Anomalous Subsurface Environment is genius and is a megadungeon and is one of best DnD products ever. Old DnD and its pick and miss rules and lack of canned game setting to me made it more about creativity. DnD was creative and that is the spirit I see in the oldschool blogosphere. While I see modern games where everything from a product - boxes of npc cards, piles of monsters, mountains of world books that players read anyway and are not really very special. I remember when Greyhawk and DnD gameworld (later called Mystara) were only published DnD worlds - so open and yet to be detailed you could do anything with it and every DM did them different. Even the Fighting Fantasy world Titan  felt like anything could happen.

Herodotus better than any game source book ever published - Id rather read a real book about swords than a game book. I dont want to see a whole page in a monster manual on dolphins with their behavior explained when a real book or net does this fine. So many rules and so much detail on monsters and worlds feels like less room to move.

I dont have feeling I will die in these games other players remark on my bravery after mocking me for playing fighters (less choices less reading and books). I have Played FATE and almost passed out through recklessness and other players amazed. I never felt at risk in a fight. I handled poison without fear. I only bother to be cautious when at my bottom few HP. Low level DnD 1-3rd is among my favorite. It is more like Call of Cthulhu, scary at every turn. The secret of survival is to have as many followers as your CHA can stand and you can afford. Meatsheild NPCs numerically reduce your odds of dying. Sensible play is key to survival. DM doesnt have to be a killer and can maintain terror easily without actually harming a character. This seems to be an often misunderstood element and followers dont seem to be a big part of current game now. In my game CHA one of most popular stats.

Now DnD has taken an RQ like skill system with more maths, gurps/champions advantages and disadvantages and prestige character classes like warhammer rpg. It feels like a mess and less like game I grew up on. I could claim to be just an old stuck in mud fan boy with romantic delusions of the past but I know plenty odd 20 something oldschoolers are out there who agree with some of what I have said here.

Editionitis, overdesign and bloat have plagued other games too to be fair too. If anyone asks me about starting DnD now I would send them to free upload of blueholmes edition or osric or labyrinth lord or even red and blue BX or cyclopedia books I grew up with for a few bucks. Being old doesn't make something better but something new is not necessarily better than 99% of history because it is new either. I have read far more games and settings than I will ever play because they inspire me and I like fictional settings in a non fiction format to fiction if that makes sense (eg I prefer to read game of a series of books than original books in many cases). Why I had most of GURPS 3rd ed and have stopped following it now.

Mind you a few hundred bucks of games I want in stock at my game shop now (mostly Chaosium or BRP licensed). I did see several people claim oldschool and OSR are just marketing tools for greedy salesmen with no meaning. Harsh. Ive spent under a hundred bucks in last year, more than 99% of everything I have read or used was free from other blogs mostly. Look at all the cool stuff for Star Frontiers coming out free for a game that has been dead for over 20 years.

Games I still want to run but struggle to get reliable or interested players. Getting new players in my club will be good. Getting serious duration even 6 game campaigns are tough. My Cthulhu 1490 was meant to be a one off but now 2 months and still going.

Gamelog: Gold, Gore & Glamour

Well the party has gone through a few shakeups and changes since looting the great dungeon of the archmage Iggwilv. First the party got back to gnome vale and gave some cockatrice crowns to the gnome king and queen. Divided up gold to 50 000 each and a mountain of gems and items. So party have claimed the mountains of personal property and taken a valley each for a private domain and settled the cave dwelling refugees they met earlier into the awesomely named Mountainville. They are famed collectively as the Mountain Lords.

The artifact was claimed by the Highland King and the Emperor but the Barron of Shadelport sent a well done letter and said he made no claim and artifact wasn't worth bother. So party gave it to the Elfking. Taking the secret Druid gateway to Elfland beyond the mountains he rewarded them with some stat points and some nice items (he is a god). Emy who has loved him from afar got to talk to him as she has 22 INT, he thought her a good conversationalist for a mortal (she has been very lucky).

Linden the bard is an emisary of the Highland king and has taken over the serpent temple as a bard school and resort for the rich of Shadelport near the Marshtown village. Dwarf friends chiseled away all cult insignia and cleaned place up. Saved 20,000 and expects trouble from reptilian cult. Has kept a storehouse in Dwarf dungeon near Whitetower, formerly the Dukedom of Goblin Mountain (goblins extinct there after party visit). Has a log cabin in a valley for secluded writing and privacy. His loyal servant Bambi has a small gang in Shadelport from parties old house. BarBar the Dwarf has made contact with the mountain Dwarfs. Linden kept some shiny jeweled scabbards and bling for himself. Most awesomely has some magic musical horns, a hat of disguise and a cloak of flying (with bat wings). Has new students acting as tutors and  one year old Gnoll named Shannon (Australian gag sorry). He rides a bear around.

Emy the wizard has gone into the postal business, setting up a bird messenger service with branches in 5 places. Also setting up spybirds and has made personal connection to king of Elfland so party may adventure there. Has giant eagle friends, a magic owl figurine that comes to life, two baby troglodytes, two young pet cockatrices and other avian friends. In bad areas she sends undead buzzards. Has her own secret valley inaccessible without flight for her tower were her students train. Douglas her bodyguard (F8) and her shool friend Hel (W8) and two senior apprentices (W4) still serve her and work in her post offices. She has the Demonomicon and spells to seriously mess with evil demons. With her godlike brains not many spells are secret to her for long. She got helm of reading languages and a esp medallion from the Elfking.

Humblezorg has renamed himself Righteous Zorg the first and taken on the evil Black Lotus Cult to a standstill and is now the supplier for the Island. Wanted to go east and take over the cult but actually they have a cruel mountain kingdom of evil monks and sorcerers on the great eastern continent. The city secret police were pleased and and gave him thanks. He has a tavern with a hidden pleasure chamber beneath it in the drains and has a hidden valley pleasure dome for his cult in the mountains. Recruited fanatics over apprentices who will die for his whims. His hellcat departed having failed to turn him evil. Modrons came down showering him with praise and gave him visions of the Modronic plane (a bit like Tron). Wasn't impressed and rejected offers of more power of being a champion of cosmic law. Kept his LE witch clarrissa as his girl and she runs day to day business of his drug cult he doesn't want to know about. He calls himslef lawful indifferent. His old man at arms Garry turned up to serve him now cat gone. Elfking gave him an intelligent teleportation staff and a protection ring.

Bloodknock built a stone circle in a valley by tricking Giants then sacrificed them. Then threw a evil smart sword into a volcano and abandoned his blood druid path. Has a gnome wife and daughter to think of so wants to be nicer so renamed himself Milknog. Has taken all his followers as goats. Built a temple also. Spent his time appeasing new druid order. Has a healing and snake staff in one and some other nicknacks. His gnome allies are pleased and he is a pillar of the community. Still hopes to befriend sea kingdoms and has used water breathing powers to explore sea and subtereanean rivers there. With a little help from divination power.

A few old enemies including the fishcult and whitelady returned. The party followers wiped out the fish cult and chased the leader off again. They also nabbed the white lady and handed her to the Duke of Whitetower and they burned her for her crimes. Party cant be bothered with crap like this now.

We have gotten to major change in play style here more like Pendragon rpg. Party now affect kingdoms and fate of the Island with many enemies. Record keeping and rule checking time for spells etc increasing too. Will keep going a while yet but I believe our desire to play high level dnd will be sated by this. Also increasingly hard to join a game at this stage.

Have a few battles to finish control of mountains then will face the Giant Wars!

Will rewrite classic giant-underdark-lolth adventures and should get party to 16th level over at least 7 sessions. After that will be plane hopping and demigod slaying till 20th level. In my game that means apotheosis. Godling status and retirement.

EMO DnD Classes pt 14: Beastmen

OK so Psychon PDF done so i should actually do lots of work related paper chasing for a bit. Summer cumming and I have lots of upcoming jobs, reasonable health and opportunities for my art over next few months. So I will cut off some non old edition DnD games Im playing in as my spare time will be shrinking away. 

My main EMO DnD game changing to Wednesday night. Party all 10th level and have loot for strongholds and will be getting bonus followers and responsibilities. Am jumping a year ahead and will be resuming more pendragon style and political for a while. Have offered them a chance to have built everything and developed allegiances among island factions. Will lead into giants-underdark-Lolth campaign after that phase. I presume they will by more planar after that.

Beast men Ive mentioned in many blogs but have not done a post on yet. The warhammer goatman version is derivative of Rune quest Beast men which I played a few of in anon Gloranthan setting as ancestor worshiping shaman. Other fantasy ideas like apemen, catmen, bug men, lizard and serpent men are pretty cool and very handy to get away from typical DnD stuff like orcs and the gazillions of humanoids in monster manuals. Wolfen in Palladium FRP are a beastman race and probably so are the Vagr in Traveller.

A few things make it time to do them now. One is they really suit Psychon and the other is the introduction of changing class which makes beast men be able to change to wizard or priest or other class to go some other direction. I'd imagine most serpent men would go spell caster pretty fast while a bullman would probably be happy as a beastman. A catman or ratman might go Rogue. The possibility of using them in Psychon, DnD SF and post apocalypse settings was pretty worth it too.

Basically they most resemble a warrior, slightly dumber and with more HP, with initialy no armour but able to learn



Beast Man
Savage animal men of the wild places

HD: 1d12
Prime Stat: Str
WP: 3 (+1/1nd Lv)
NWP: 3 (+1/3nd Lv)
Non-WP mod: -2
Languages: 1d3 (+1/3rd Lv) S=spoken and W=written

Spells: none
NWP: Warrior or Rogue
Shield: Any
Armour: None but able to select and learn armour use WP
Weapon: Any
Fight as: Warrior
Save as: Warrior

Weapon Skill Advances: One specialist+3, two mastery+2 and any amount of experts+1
Classes Available: Any non racial class, often with sub type specialties

Beastmen are human animal hybrids with various accounts of their creation. Some brand them as evil and from witches fornicating with animals. Others claim wizards create them in laboratories. Priests and Druids create them as curses for sinners. Some are remnants from the dawn age and may even be the distant ancestors of barbarian tribes with beast totems. Some claim they are a race of lesser demo seperated from otherworldly power and earth born. Whatever the truth they come in many sub species and breeds with many peculiarities. Beastmen are of savage backgrounds, some barely able to speak, few are literate. Some speak animal languages and interact with their animal kin. Like barbarians they can assimilate rapidly, learning languages, Armour use and many choose human type careers once they have found their feet. Beast men are omnivorous despite their animal origins but many eat meat by choice. Many feel resentment to humans for being weak, for betraying nature, human land use and for persecuting beast kind. Some beastmen blame humans for their condition and suffering and persecute them, often dwelling in hordes. If pressured with extinction they rapidly adopt service to powers of chaos and otherworldly evil.

-all beastmen see in night but need some ambient light to see such as moonlight or luminescent cave fungus
-all beastmen have brawling and can inflict 1d4 damage, some even specialize in unarmed combat
-beastmen resist poison and disease saves by +2
-beastmen get +2 on track, smell, listen, climb, jump and survival NWP
-beastmen can jump 50% base further for their height (6ft tall jump 9ft across 4'6 up in a standing jump, double if running)
-can inflict critical hits as per weapon , can buy extra weapon proficiency slots to raise this chance (other must pay for this skill)
-can learn weapon mastery and specialization
-xtra +1 attack at 6th lv then +2 at 12th etc
-lv 4 use next larger damage dice vs larger than human creatures on one dice
-lv8 Warriors can use next dice up with any weapon vs any target eg d8 sword becomes d10, only effects one dice so 2d4 becomes 1d4+1d6
- lv 6 attract either a 1st 1v follower or other pet like a war dog or wolf  and one more per level afterwards
-create a tribal horde at 10th
-After 10th can select exotic creatures or mounts instead or 1d6 followers per level if they have a horde
-can add level to command radius and control ten 1st or zero level militia or 1HD beasts per level, at 10th level this includes 2HD, 15th includes 3HD, and at 20th raised to 4HD



Subspecies

Name:
Description
Example weapon proficiencies (usualy take weapon groups for 2 slots)
Example exotic weapon proficiencies
Example Non weapon proficiencies
Example Languages

Goatman
From benign friend of forest and mountains to savage demon worshiping slave of chaos
Flail, Battleaxe, Javelin, Sling
Critical
Jump, Climb, Track
Common, Goat, local barbarian

Catman
Kin to cats of many types from wild to house cats, can be kind or cruel
Sword, Shuriken, Dagger, Chakra
Ambidextrous
Acrobatics, Wallrunning, Climb
Common, Cat, Empire or most civilized in area

Ratman
Fiendish sewer dwellers and plague spreaders
Mace, Dagger, Lasso, Hand Axe
Fast Draw Weapon
Climb, Sneak, Hide
Common, Rat, Local City

Wolfman
Fierce wilderness warriors of the wasteland
Spear, Sword, Battle Axe, Javelin
Expert Weapon
Track, Intimidate, Ignore Terrain
Common, Wolf, Northman

Dogman
Most friendly and willing to dwell as humans of all beastmen
Mace, Spear, Dagger, Shortbow
Expert Weapon
Track, Alertness, Bravery
Common, Dog, and preferred local human

Apeman
Most like humans but often hostile to rival naked kin
Sword, Club, Whip, Crossbow or Musket
Expert
Climb, Leap, Jump
Common, Ape, and preferred local human

Lizardman
Hostile scaled reptilians
Sword, Spear, Shortbow, Club
Critical
Swim, Climb, Alertness
Common, Lizard, Serpent or Draconic

ToadmanHideous fat toadmen can be kind or cruel
Mace, Dagger, Handaxe, Javelin
Shout of Fury
Listen, Eating, Leaping
Common, Toad, local urban human

Crowman
Sinister feeders on the slain who bring ill tidings
Mace, Spear, Shortbow, Dagger
Broken Movement
Spot, Sneak, Hide
Common, Crow, local urban human

Falconman
Nobel guardians and fierce killers
Spear, Sword, Javelin, Dagger
Critical
Spot, Hunting, Alertness
Common, Crow, local urban human

Serpantman
Despicable pre human slavers often become spell casters
Sword, Spear, Crossbow pistol, Dagger
Shoot into melee
Poison Lore, Run Away, Disguise
Common, Serpent, local urban human

Bullman
Huge angry cow folk
Battleaxe, Mace, Maul, Halberd
Strike to Slam
Muscle, Bravery, Endurance
Common, Bull, local barbarian human

Mantisman
Carnivorous insect folk, quite alien, can use for many insect folk
Javelin, Shuriken, Halberd, Staff
Fast draw weapon
Foraging, Eating, Survival
Common, Mantis, local barbarian human

Fishman
Hideous sea folk who some long to flood the world others are teachers of humans
Net, Trident, Javelin, Dagger
Sea Legs
Swim, Climb, Listen
Common, Fish, local seafaring human

Foxman
Crafty robber and swindlers who trick others from hard earned goods
Shortbow, Spear, Handaxe, Staff
Shoot&move
Sneak, Hide, Pick Pocket
Common, Fox, local rural human

Bearman
Huge gluttonous forest folk
Battleaxe, handaxe, club, spear
Berserk Frenzy+1
Foraging, Climb, Fishing
Common, Bear, local barbarian human

Pigman
Feared forest warriors who menace farmlands
Battleaxe, shortbow, sword, spear
Critical
Foraging, Eating, Intimidate
Common, Pig, local human victims

Boarman
Savage hairy woodland warlords
Battleaxe, javelin, handaxe, spear
Berserk Frenzy+1
Survival, Track, Hunting
Common, Boar, local human victims







RevisionsAlso class curently in game called abhuman

5th level gain minor beast power
x2 leap
full speed swim
+50% run,
d6 unarmed dam
+2AC
glide
+1 unarmed att

10th level gain major beast power
fly
breathe water
xtra unarmed attack
venom
double carry capacity

PLANET PSYCHON PDF v2

HERE!

126 pages of poorly edited fever dreams in table form

Feedback appreciated

Any amusing uses of this setting material please share

Thanks to all for the last year on blogger

Blogs for the Blog God!!!

Some Little Rule Mods and Class Struggle

A few ideas Ive had of late

Poison Resistant NWP or a 2nd lv spell mod?Effect:
10% off effect durations -1 per dice from damaging poison effects
lethal poisons death = alive 1 hp, cannot heal till poison perged in a month or remove poison spell

I prefer some people surviving as an ability or spell than everybody not being scared and  not caring about poison because you just lose a few stat points for a  few days. Yet is still dangerous it can be dealt with a bit. This could have a duration if a spell 1ur/lv as well if too good and make players rush more to save someone while later spell makes easy to not worry. Cast on a sucker if poisoned to bring them back from certain death by poison (CON Rounds after coma effect). I prefer this to slow poison. I have allowed a healer NWP to cpr a body for hours to save someone with a breathing paralysis based poison that lasts an hour.

Bards
Seeing bard in play for a while and playing other DnD and watching bards im tempted to make them able to sing and fight or cast a spell and play instrument NWP plus some power enhancing fx NWP. Bard did seem to struggle a bit at 3-6 but kept up and saved all a few times and language and knowledge good. Letting bard take choice spell list/system was gold. Druidic bard at tenth lv can summon well, rides a bear which he restores to life with a raise animal spell. Has stopped many threatening encounters and has good followers.

Im gonna time warp my party next DnD session a year at least. Has become very handy and now turns humanoids to fight each other. Song got used more and more but probably not a lot early on. Has been fun to test. Monk a bit broken. Rest fine.

Multi Classing for BX
Planet Psychon got me thinking about funny combo BX classes like Elf3/Dwarf3 to be bizarre but if i exclude weird class=race combos it doesn't seem so silly now.

Need a trainer of name level who will teach you (harder to un-train you dolt!) for first new level until you exceed the old level then you can grow just lie any other character.

INT 13-15 one additional class max may change at 5th level
INT 16-17 two additional class max may change at 4th level
INT 18-19 three additional class max may change at 3rd level
INT 20-21 four additional class max may change at 2nd level
INT 22+ change from class to class as please and back

1st level NWP/Languages/WP are the most you ever get in game. When changing class just add all your levels then compare to when your current class says you would get new class skills. Use same formula for saving throws. Spells use level in relevant class for power of effect.

Your new class does not automaticly train you in use of better armour or shields, you have to learn that yourself with WP slots. Otherwise default to your first class armour and sheild use. You must train in the weapons allowed by your new class but may still use any previous armour or weapons. You can use all powers at the level of the class that uses them.

9HD max even if split into multiple classes

Humans can pick a new class but not a race based one in most cases (a wish or a god would help or a reincarnation spell).

Race based classes can pick these non race classes:
Elf - warrior, bard, druid, priest, sorcerer, wizard, rogue, monk
Dwarf - warrior, priest, rogue, bard, monk
Halfling - warrior, bard, priest, druid, rogue
Tako - warrior, bard, rogue, sorcerer, wizard, monk
Gnome - warrior, bard, sorcerer, wizard, druid, priest, rogue

All living races have Psionics and Shamen as options

Changing back to an old class costs the same as if a new class - require mentor and have a limit on changes ever based on INT, but changing between classes you already have levels in can be changed every level rather than intelligence limit. Races can change back to their own racial class.
I could just keep simple and use int mod for total changes too

I have tried in play now - possibly works better for nonhuman and physichal types for 3 levels then go magic or weird. Most classes would suffer a bit really. Monks surprisingly a good option at any stage. Could suit some campaigns and means monster races problem solved. Better role playing choice than raw power mostly but 3 levels as a monk or rogue or warrior then change to a magic class. Could be theme of campagn. Good for beast men, monster humanoids and more.
Elves and bards can pick any spell list. Bards allow races to acess spell types not normally possible.

As my elves can pick any spell list taking another caster class can can be interesting.
This gives another reason to not have paladins and rangers yet i still keep thinking about them. I like cyclopedia where a warrior can adopt a prestige class type role. Despite my creating now about 3 systems to make irrelevant im still temped. This could let a warrior turn to a priest and be a paladin?
Clever class choices like monks best for WP and NWP at 1st level

This is a great halfway house to adnd seperate class race system

Will save other race projects Beastmen and humanoid races
Best of all makes suggesting interesting villains and characters

eg
17 INT start as elf
changes to monk at 4thchanges to bard at 4th
finished but...
If he spends level gain stat points on Int....
by 3rd level can have int 18
and change back to a monk at 11th

did npc follower as 6th level warrior and 3rd level gome that worked well

catman wizard fun too

Class Struggle
Mostly i do things in groups of four, i have cast a wide net of maybes here

Have considered "a book of beast" some good for SF too:
Beastmen - savage animen hybrids made by gods and magicians
Animal Spirits - sophisticated shape shifter folk of spirit world
Sacred Beasts - awakened magical animals from other side
Lycanthropes - were beast shape shifter killers of many species

Other Dumb Ideas I'm fighting but might do for fun anyway:
Paladin - holy hunters of undead and other planar evil
Ranger - sylvan holy hunters of the woods
Assassin - old school or newschool magic ninja?
Barbarian - every bodies fave berserk wizard killing damage sponge

Put Gnome in with elf, dwarf and halfling and make up a gonzo race group with tako and others...

Tako
Dragon
Flumph
Dryad/Swanmay
Maybe this is a silly idea

Considered classes to play gamma world
beast men and sacred beast would work fine here too

Robot
Mutant
Android
Cyborg

I liked dragon 72 version of cavalier, but just take a warrior and lotsa horse skill and weapons of your culture and maybe be an alignment fanatic to represent honour - do same for an elf

Revise my humanoids orcs and hobgoblins will get bigger command radius leadership like warrior also with the multi-classing rules. Need to revise orcs most.
Considered giants - dumb fighter d12 hd, 1st lv 6 foot tall, grow a foot per level +1 STR every second lv - bloodline powers might be fun

Alchemist can just alt spell casting system really but i am inspired by some art of alchemists creating life and dragons in bottles which i never have seen in fantasy really

Runes or diabalist (paladium) script based magic - scrolls or stones are read or activated
My friend doing a tatoo wizard i have seen a few

I always liked idea of race like character Orlando immortals who change gender but an elf subtype would hit it. Elves probably need a rewrite. Beast men might be way to go as next one i do.

Kazzaran Battlock the Black Metal Warlock Catman

  I stuck this pick on FB and player asked if it was a Psychon character. It is now.

Catmen are fairly common on many of Psychons hexes and some in large groups or more often loaners. Cat men drifters are often seen as suspicions and tricky but sometimes that is just what locals Need.

Kazzaran Battlock is a warlock catman and guitarist of ill repute. He has been in many bands and often joins up in hopes of finally making the tour circuit  but things often go wrong. Not like warrior tiger men, Kazzaran is a mighty magician and has been luck enough to find an impressive guitar for life on the road. It is a d6 Axe and light crossbow with a +1.  He prefers stealth to direct assault. But will fluff him self up and spit and jump about to intimidate others. Kazzaran cant wait to command demons, devils and elementals and is sure he has some part hellcat in him on his Mom's side. He met a cat with magic boots and other cool stuff so he checks out any boots he sees for magic to make him cool.

He is often met on the road, in prison, being hunted by a mob or just being kicked out of a band. Kazzaran is basically Chaotic Neutral but pretends to be evil and bad ass when he is really a bit of a pussy.

Eldren (Elf)

Beastman Level 2
Wizard Level 4

Strength:  13 +1 Damage
Constitution: 14 +1 HP
Dexterity: 16 +2 Hit & AC
Inteligence:  17 +2 NWP
Wisdom: 9
Charisma: 13 +1 Follower

HP: 34 AC: DEX+2 Beastman+1 Dodge+1 =+4

Weapons Proficiencies:
Claw or Bite 1d4 (beastman unarmed attack)
Double Punch (xtra unarmed attack)
Axe (Mastery+2) 1d8
Xbow 1d6+1
Dodge +1AC
Dagger 1d4

Non Weapons Proficiencies:
Sing
Spot
Listen
Song Lore
Climb
Magic Lore
Play Guitar
Diabolic Lore

Abilities
See in Dark
Natural Weapons 1d4

Cast Spells:

First x4
-Magic Missile
-Burning Hands
-Comprehend Language
-Detect Magic

Second x4
-Smoke Form
-Fire Shuriken
-Levitate
-Cats Grace

Stash:
Guitar-axe-xbow with 20 bolts inside, amplified power +6 (1-11 scale)
Spellbook (stored in guitar) on rat vellum
A few snack mice
Catnip in moneybag

Psychon Pregens for Con

 

These are for my con game. Players pick a basic zero level band character, then pick a portrait card for front and fill in name, rock performers name.

Harder than id like to find images i wanted but at least some choices.

When they get transformed into 3rd level adventurer with a BX dnd type class will roll for skin colour and possibly for mutations.

Hoping to make customisable con characters so every party of 5 games im running will be different.

I will post adveture and all sheets after con. Have done full a4 sheets for transmog character versions. Need to do flight passengers lists and detail 2 hexes with encounter tables yet.

Did some PC gen tonight as regular game cancelled - all we did was treasure from the 4 session Gygax dungeon came to 50 000 gp each more than i have given out in all my games last two years.

Steve did a Tangerine Morlock with stubby horns, 4 fingers and toes per limb, who had just escaped from being kept by demons and devils in another dimension. He longs to return to his home colony, beneath the earth in an ancient automated warehouse bargain store. Where the great robot arm would bring treasure from the highest shelves. They have goods to last till end of time. He upset the local order when he discovered that a demon cult was trying to infect middle management who serve the store AI: VVallmaar. He is skilled in guns (blackpowder and energy), machine lore and other craft. He has his favorite axe (his specialization), a musket, a flintlock pistol and a one use disposable 4 shot laser from a vending machine in the home subworld. He also has a slave Eloi with a rope around his neck as back up food. Has 4 protection from evil biscuits in a tin, and 6 water breathing pills.

Matt did a Tangerine Eldren with no weapons skills (only defensive skills). He comes from a nomad satellite habitat of Eldren under the care of ASLAN, an AI who edited out every bad thing the nomads looked at from above. Unaware of why numbers thinning over last 400 years he teleported down to find out what the deal is. All the Eldren from ASLAN have pointy teeth, yellow manes and lion tails but have no knowledge of violence. Has some holy water. Uses divine spells, especially ones that control others behavior and healing. While ASLAN (Automated Satellite Layered Artificial Nueral device) is the god of his people, the greater goddess Pheonix has plans. Besides being chosen holy one, he is a barber, story teller, healer, musician and party animal socialite who thinks he can talk his way out of anything. Has a pet riding bird (a giant yellow and copper intelligent peacock).

Well proves my PC gen rules are crazy.

Cthulhu 1490 Darklands

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Psychonia Botanica

d100 Weird Vegetation, fungi and Slimes
Just to give you ideas for killer plants and gross stuff growing of Psychon  

1 Wolf weeds - spherical hunter like plants, used to herd meat beings by some plant folk like dogs
2 Triffid plantation - bred as mobile food, medicine and fuel plant of ancients
3 Strangle Vines - gripping vines snare and strangle victims
4 Giant Tree Men - walking ancient giant trees
5 Pod People - plant grown replicates infiltrate and spread their kind
6 Vegemen - savage competitive tribal plant folk
7 Pitcher plants - grab creatures with tentacles and stuff in stomach to dissolve, tempt close with sweet fluid and shelter, some lack tentacles use bait to lure into one way mouth
8 Giant Flytraps - jaws snare and trap or swallow whole
9 Darkspawn - huge vegetal tripod spawn of the dark gods who hide in forests and eat meat
10 Dryads - seduce humanoids and enslave them
11 Killer trees - evil mobile trees that eat meat and share dread lore
12 Saliva Trees drop slimy nuerotoxin tendrils then dissolve in saliva mass in branches
13 Yellow Musk Creeper - eats brains and spreads zombies
14 Mushroom men - not too hostile but dislike intruders none the less
15 Killer Nut Trees have flingable explosive nuts or cones or pods
16 Mandrake - this plant has a killer scream and is enslaved be evil wizards with a spell
17 Needlemen - humanoids who shoot needles growing all over them
18 Lotus Fruit trees turn eaters into drug addicted slaves who take it wherever they go
19 Psychon Poppies - spray psychedelic dust, tries to eat helpless prey
20 Slaver willow - connect tendril to life forms to enslave and feed, let slaves loose for missions
21 Symbiote Tree - has birds or insects plague inside it uses to attack and feed itself
22 Gamma Tree - huge glowing flower when in bloom can kill with radiation, may open if startled
23 Explodestools - ancient bio mine explode if disturbed
24 Kelpie - this aquatic slime uses illusions to pretend to be a trapped horse or lady to trap suckers
25 Green Slime - infectious killer infection converts meat and life into more slime
26 Crystaline structures resembling plants may have psionics or drain life or make slaves
27 Gasbag Plant floats about feeds with acidic tendrils
28 Vampire Willow strangles with creeper tendrils and drains blood
29 Organ limbs growing human organs for transplants, some gibber madly, often cared for by cult or robots
30 Mirror flower - grow in huge patches reflect sun into energy beam to defend patch
31 Riding Cactus - horse shaped mobile cactus can be tamed
32 Shooting Cactus fires spines at intruders by heat sense

33 Mortar Plant - cluster of tubes shoot explosive missiles at moving beings near colony
34 Gamma Fungus - looks lie tasty animal but explodes if hit infecting those close with fungus that converts them, delicious smell and taste if you can prepare it somehow
35 Space Grass, often grows in areas around certain meteors, infects target and turns them into grass men
36 Tree has colony of humanoids attached by tubes to belly button, they defend tree as their god and welcome new family members
37 Space Shrooms - colourful shroom colony initiate telepathic contact if you eat one, if you displease them they torture you with fevered nightmare hallucinations to drive you off
38 Crystal Slime - looks a bit like water but can jump 5 foot and burns like acid 2d6 for a small one
39 Mood Slime - psycho reactive based on mood around it, peaceful mostly but violence and evil make it attack everyone with emotional feedback loops and it may even drown victims, some as big as lakes
40 Blood Slime huge rolling spheres of blood drinking gelatin
41 Holy Berries come in colours of psychon, each bush has different table for effect, some good some bad, bigger trees more powerful
42 Mutation Fruit if broken infects area with mutagens, juice may be sucked out to effect one consumer with no saving throw
43 Grey Slime a dangerous jelly that destroys metal armour or weapons on touch
44 Mana Jelly - eats spells and magic items, eats spell casters
45 Murder Fruits - tree with coloured fruits which are delicious but sentient and scream when picked or eaten, dropped ones may attack as a swarm and defend their kin
46 Hangman Tree has noose vines which it snares feet and necks

47 Slip and slime - covers area in frictionless goop that makes travel difficult
48 Flame Tree bursts into flame if harmed or scared, nearby trees do same, comes in miniature variety and ground creeper too
49 Skull Tree kills and eats men and absorbs heads and knowledge, skulls decorate its boughs and indicate how smart it is
50 Killer Stump looks like a tree stump and grows attractive bait on top like a bunny or crying baby, or tasty raw meat or food or tech, actually mobile with saw roots and sideways tooth filled mouth
51 Giant explosive puffballs detach from ground and blow in the wind
52 Snapdragon Bush has fruits resembling dragon heads that breathe flame
53 Spasming kidney shaped jelly blobs on glowing rainbow colours cover areas of ground, psionicly make higher life go to sleep to be dissolved and absorbed
54 Stuff Bloom, a mass of yoghurt like crap in a pit or well, can form into humans or animals to lure victims closer, collective intelligence, has been known to inhabit a town with people to lure in traders
55 Sawblade tree cuts other trees down and builds fences with remains, semi mobile and cooperative
56 Sword bush stabs near by animals with vegetal blades, some varieties mobile, and some strains grow in hedge mazes
57 Brain Plants, a parasite plant which grows on trunks of other trees resembles a coloured brain in a flesh sack with plant like bladed tendrils, will animate local plants to defend self, and different types have mental mutations
58 Shambling Horror, a colonial mass of living compost heap that forms a powerful giant humanoid
59 Rose Warriors, mobile killer roses each colour hates every other colour and has a different tribal mutation and poison effect thorns, some are leaders, others can shoot thorns
60 Eye Macrobes, resemble an eye with a sucker often live in colonies and have telepathic communications over a large area. Have other psionic powers and may be curious about technology and machines or new things
61 Ball Macrobes grow from the ground in chains of organic spheres of various colours, swaying in the wind. Will flagellum like batter colony intruders and often host to other creatures. Balls drop off and float away to spread the colony occasionally and burst or colony may fling balls as weapons
62 Audrey plants come from meteors and start small feeding on blood from critters they nip that wander past. Can grow into huge tentacled horrors with a great maw, can talk (and sing) may try to dupe persons into being friends but are domineering and manipulative
63 Cactus men are a succulent breed of needlemen who if killed may provide water or hallucinogenic flesh
64 Sword macrobe, levitating slug like blob with two tendrils with force knives
65 Land Sargassum, 2-4 meters high thick vegetal structures swarming with vicious lice and worse, a major obstacle
66 Land Coral, huge jagged rock walls formed by tiny life forms, if living the reef harbours other creatures and plants. If injured by coral and any fragments remain inside will begin to grow in the host body, seizing up joints, growing weird horns and other spikes from the body usually fatal in long run
67 Nerve Grass, 2-4 yard high swaying, thick plastic like succulent cables, twitch if touched and spasm if injured, releases neurotoxin if damaged that paralyses victim, most generally die and become plant food
68 Crab Crass, looks like short stubby grass but nips anyone walking on it,not a ig threat but covers large areas
69 Spheracles are plants that grow in clusters and produce spheres from basket ball to rain water tank size semi translucent spheres. Some creatures defend them furiously, others even live inside them, spending part of their life cycle inside then going to a body of water. Baby aquatic humanoids sometimes are found inside. The spheres are quick to seal up entry points which animals exploit
70 Mustard Grass are stubby ground cover but bushes have been found. If disturbed they release toxic gas most often irritant with some long term sores and blisters in bad cases.
71 Sundew tendrils up to 4 yards high, covered in a super sticky biopolymer traps creatures then feeds of them, some natives use glue, mostly larger ones a menace to humans
72 Amber tree is a huge tree that secretes sweet sticky gum that imprisons creatures attracted mostly by accident but does keep predators down, has many uses for craft, remains of creatures trapped in hard resin are creepy, the biggest trees are 40 yards tall
73 Trapper Leaves, gigantic flat leaves on ground or water surface roll up and squeeze life from creatures
74 Pyrotriffid, as a normal triffid then gene-hacked as a weapon, has a built in flamer instead of the usual stinger
75 Chemotriffid looks like a normal triffid then gene-hacked as a weapon, delivers molecular hyperacid, disease or some other effect other than the nuerotoxin
76 Trumpettriffid was gene-hacked as a weapon and has a sonic attack 3d6 within 30 foot and only 2d6 at medium and 1d6 long with no range penalties
78 Ground Fungus grows to cover acres underground and bursts through soil to grab legs and hold till they die then feed fungus
79 Cave Clam is actually semi mobile fungus that grabs mens legs, possibly severing them or at least imprison them till they grow weak and die, the beasts have a hook to grip rocks stronger than several men
80 Killer Palm these trees hurl coconuts and some species they burst like a grenaide, others bury themselves becoming a minefeild to protect the tree, some use chemicals like gas or stench instead
81 Stench Plant, shoots a stream of revolting stick skunk juice that makes target save vs vomiting every round CON which is incapacitating, vinigar or alcohol helps get goop off, water makes it tolerable
82 Meat Flower, a giant pink fleshy flour that smells of rotten meat to attract flies or animal into its mouth, if stench gets in person then things attracted to them
83 House Tree with rooms, food growing inside, running water, nests and an ecology of bugs that clean your waste, popular with Eldren as homes
84 Vampire House Tree looks like above but eats guests and enslaves some to welcome new tenants in so as to save themselves
85 Haunted House Tree as 83 but is haunted by ghosts who can control parts of the house like doors to trap and torment the living and the poor house
86 Snake tree a huge 60 yard high tree that sends dozens of mile long tendrils that act like huge pythons looking for food, closer to the tree more tentacles can team up
87 Booster Tree is a solid fuel biological rocket, if exited by combat inside or near it the tree will accelerate to the moon (or try), initially pulling 20 G
88 Vegemen pygmies using blowpipes, vegetable bow and arrows, venom and pet plant monsters, hatch from bulbs fully armed and ready to fight
89 Sentient mutant tree men with different mutations and varieties in area
90 Sentient mutant plants folk, mostly non humanoid with different mutations and variants in area
91 Pod People have fully taken over local peoples and act as local tribe or village
92 Eldren plant hybrid gang angry at meat sacks eating their kind and causing trouble
93 Morlocks which have become mobile fungus zombies
94 Vege orcs have been hatching from the soil, spores from who knows where
95 Some plants actually plastic with electronic sensors linking them to an AI so everything in area watched by a god for some reason
96 Plantman Shamans with psionics roam area with followers and pets
97 Plantmen with vege pets herding naked humans into living plant cages
98 Ground Pitcher grows a pit of acid underground in a spot where animals wold make a trail, fall in disguised pit and very hard to climb out
99 Franken Plant Hybrid 1d3+1 rolls above in one unholy creature grafted together
100 Killer GMO plantmen warriors with vegetable biological guns

i forgot mold...