A Demon of Fearsome Power

The scaled demon is another update of a monster from the d20 version of Gary Gygax’s Necropolis, a mammoth Eyptian-themed adventure/campaign supplement.

This monster has an interesting history, bearing a more-than-passing resemblance to the cataboligne demon featured in Gygax’s Saga of Old City (1985), “a demon of fearsome power.” The illustration to the right is from Clyde Caldwell’s cover painting for the novel, which was one of Gygax’s last published works for TSR. Although the cataboligne demon was never statted out in AD&D, Sean Reynolds published a 3.0e version in Dragon 295, “Monstrous Denizens of Oerth.” This was subsequently updated to 3.5e in Expedition to the Ruins of Greyhawk.

The following text is Open Game Content:

Demon, Scaled

This creature is humanoid in appearance, with metallic blue, scaly skin, and a comb-like crest of spines running from the top of its knobby skull to between the shoulder blades.

Abyssal Outcasts. Scaled demons are rarely encountered monsters, shunned and hated even by other demons.

Haughty and Cruel. These arrogant demons enjoy taunting and tormenting their opponents during combat.

Fearsome Guardians. Scaled demons are occasionally bound by powerful spellcasters as guards for ancient treasures.

A demon of this sort is 8 feet tall, broad, and fast. Its tail is prehensile, barbed, and poisonous.

0e

Scaled Demon CL 13 (2,300 XP)

Scaled demons can cause darkness in a 10ft radius, are immune to electricity, can cause Fear at will, can polymorph themselves, and are 50% resistant to magic. These demons have a 30% chance to gate in another scaled demon.

HD 9; AC 0 [19]; Atk 2 claws (1d6), 1 bite (1d8) or tail (1d6 + poison); Save 6; Move 15; Al C; Special Magic resistance (50%), +1 or better weapon to hit, demonic magical powers.

3.5e

Scaled Demon CR 13

Always CE Large outsider (chaotic, evil, extraplanar)

Init +2; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +28, Spot +28

Aura fearful gaze (DC 20)

Languages Abyssal, Celestial, Draconic; telepathy 100 ft.

Defense

AC 27, touch 11, flat-footed 25
(-1 size, +2 Dex, +16 natural)

hp 110 (13d8+52 HD); DR 15/cold iron and good

Fort +12, Ref +10, Will +12

Immune electricity, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 26

Offense

Spd 40 ft.

Melee 2 claws +18 (1d6+6), bite +16 (1d8+3) or
tail sting +18 (1d6+9 and poison)

Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.

Special Attacks abyssal strike, improved grab, poison (DC 20, 1d6 Con/2d6 Con), summon demons 1/day

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 20th)

At will—blasphemy, cloudkill (DC 17), deeper darkness, desecrate, detect good, detect law, greater dispel magic, greater teleport (self plus 50 pounds of objects only), magic circle against good, read magic, telekinesis (DC 17), tongues (self only), unhallow, unholy aura, unholy blight (DC 16), wall of fire

1/day—implosion (DC 21)

Tactics

During Combat A scaled demon loves to do battle, and uses its spell-like abilities to attack foes before tearing them apart using its talons and fangs. It rarely uses its barbed tail in combat, except when it grabs and holds a foe, which is then stung to death.

Morale A scaled demon usually fights to the death.

Statistics

Str 23, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 18, Wis 18, Cha 14

Base Atk +13; Grp +23

Feats Ability Focus (fearful gaze), Blind-Fight, Cleave, Multiattack, Power Attack

Skills Bluff +18, Concentration +20, Diplomacy +22, Knowledge (any two) +20, Intimidate +20, Listen +28, Move Silently +18, Search +20, Sense Motive +20, Spellcraft +20, Spot +28

SQ change shape

Ecology

Environment a chaotic evil-aligned plane

Organization solitary or troupe (1 scaled demon, 2–5 hezrous)

Treasure standard coins, double goods, standard items

Advancement 14–19 HD (Large), 20–39 HD (Huge)

Special Abilities

Abyssal Strike (Su) A scaled demon overcomes damage reduction as if its natural weapons and any weapons it wields were chaotic- and evil-aligned.

Change Shape (Su) A scaled demon can assume the form of any Small,
Medium, or Large humanoid.

Fearful Gaze (Su) Fear, 30 feet. A creature that meets the scaled demon's gaze must succeed on a DC 20 Will save or become panicked for 1d6 rounds. Whether or not the save is successful, that creature cannot be affected again by the same scaled demon's gaze for 24 hours. This is a mind-affecting fear effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Improved Grab (Ex) To use this ability, a scaled demon must hit with both claw attacks. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold and stings.

Poison (Ex) Injury, Fortitude DC 20, initial damage 1d6 Con, secondary damage 2d6 Con. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Summon Demon (Sp) Once per day a scaled demon can automatically summon 4d6 dretches, 1d4 hezrous, or one glabrezu, nalfeshnee, or scaled demon. This ability is the equivalent of an 8th-level spell.

Telepathy (Su) A scaled demon can communicate telepathically with any other creature within 100 feet that has a language.

Skills Scaled demons receive a +8 racial bonus to Listen and Spot Checks.

5e

Scaled Demon

Medium fiend (demon), chaotic evil
Armor Class 18 (natural)
Hit Points 168 (16d10 + 80)
Speed 40 ft. ft.
Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
21 (+5)	15 (+2)	20 (+5)	18 (+4)	16 (+3)	14 (+2)
Saving Throws. Str +10, Con +10, Wis +8
Skills. Perception +8
Damage Resistances. cold, fire, lightning; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities. poison
Condition Immunities. poisoned
Magic Resistance. The demon has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Senses truesight 120 ft.; passive Perception 18
Languages Abyssal, telepathy 120 ft.
Challenge 13 (10,000 XP)
Actions
Multiattack. The demon makes four attacks: 1 with its bite, 2 with its claws, and 1 with its sting.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (1d10 + 5) piercing damage.
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d6 + 5) slashing damage.
Sting. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d8 + 5) piercing damage plus 17 (5d6) poison damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Frightening Gaze (Recharge 5–6). The demon fixes its gaze on one creature it can see within 10 feet of it. The target must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw against this magic or become frightened for 1 minute. The frightened target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a target’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the target is immune to the demon‘s gaze for the next 24 hours.
Teleport. The scaled demon magically teleports, along with any equipment it is wearing or carrying, up to 120 feet to an unoccupied space it can see.

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Dungeons of Doom

I backed the first couple of Dwarven Forge Kickstarters, and I’m pretty sure I’ll be in on this one, too. Looks like this will be a great, dungeon-focused set.

Magyar Sector in the Rim War: Background

Although not nearly as bloody as the Diaspora or Old Expanses campaigns, and certainly not as celebrated as the fight for the Solomani Rim, Magyar sector proved to be an important and dynamic theatre of the Rim War. The Magyar campaign was notable for featuring two of the most colorful and talented admirals in either the Imperial or Confederation navies: Kemper and Coglan.

Both commanders were natives of Daibei sector, and their storied naval careers had many parallels and intersections. Admiral Miiri Elixabeth Kemper, who directed the Imperial forces, was an incomparable strategist who orchestrated a brutally efficient invasion of Magyar. She was opposed by Confederation Admiral Arturo Coglan, whose cunning and resourceful defense may have prevented the complete destruction of the Solomani Confederation.

Although the two admirals probably never met prior to the Rim War, their relationship has been subject to many fanciful dramatizations that sometimes portray the two as star-crossed lovers. Although this speculation has resulted in several saccharine novels and holovids, the beloved “Kemper & Coglan” symphony is widely regarded as one of the best pieces of Neo-Terran orchestral music composed in the last century.

Early Lives

Kemper was born in 956 on Warinir/Edge (Daibei 0507) to an upper middle class family with a long tradition of service in the Imperial Navy; her own father had retired a lieutenant. From an early age she was fascinated with Terran history and particularly Solomani naval traditions. In 973 she was admitted to Imperial Naval Academy (Daibei Branch), then located on Warinir. Ferociously competitive, she received numerous commendations for her scholarship, fencing, and chess play. Her senior thesis, which won the prestigious Lisiani Prize, was on emerging differences between Imperial and Solomani military doctrine. Kemper graduated at the top of her class and received her pick of assignments with the Imperial Navy. She chose the Ftahalr Enforcement Fleet, where she rapidly rose through the ranks until she gained her first command in 985.

Coglan was born on Kimel/Narya (Daibei 2239) in 957 to a working-class family. At the time Kimel was a major Solomani Confederation port, hosting both the Daibei Fleet Headquarters and a Confederation Naval Academy. Bright and inventive, Coglan won admittance to the Academy in 975. While popular with his classmates and possessing tremendous talent, he was a poor student inclined to mischief, graduating near the bottom of his class. Like Kemper he also was a skilled fencer and chess player. In fact, his innovative chess play caught the eye of Sector Admiral Zion Taskill, who hand-picked the young ensign for his personal staff. Although he longed for his own command, Coglan shone under Admiral Taskill and quickly became one of the chief planners for the Daibei Sector Fleet.

Runup to the Rim War (988–990)

In 988 the Solomani Confederation’s Naval High Command, based on Luna, ordered Admiral Taskill to develop plans for an invasion of Imperial space in Daibei sector. The goal was to retake worlds that had originally been part of the Solomani Autonomous Region, and to capture neighboring  worlds with significant Solomani populations.

In Daibei the original border of the Autonomous Region, established in 704, had stretched spinward from the rimward edge of Conda subsector through Dudin and Mulaar and into Gaalorn subsector. Hermes, Narya, Orvon, and Cruxway subsectors were almost entirely within the Sphere.

However, numerous border worlds within the Autonomous Region did not sign the Charter of Confederation in 871. And after Empress Margaret II revoked the Region’s charter in 940 the Imperium gradually reabsorbed many of these border systems despite the protests of the Solomani. Eventually the Imperium reclaimed most of the Daibei worlds within three rimward parsecs of the border. Several worlds deeper in Confederation space considered themselves Imperial or at least independent and began formally reestablishing ties to the Imperium, especially if they had once belonged to the Imperium. Such worlds opened Imperial consul offices and recruiting stations and appointed noble representatives in anticipation of reintegration.

One of the first Daibei worlds to return to the Imperium was Durgaarurkim/Conda (Daibei 2720), a high population world with a majority Vilani population. Subsequent worlds included the entire Tukera Cluster and Corve/Dudin (Daibei 1729). The Tukera Cluster contains the homeworld and many colony worlds of the Evantha, winged sophonts native to Temeraire/Conda (Daibei 3020). Corve was the homeworld of the Bruhre, a massive, hexopedal race accustomed to a high atmospheric sulfur content. The Bruhre are complex and remarkably intolerant species, and for this reason, are usually isolated from the mainstream of other Imperial cultures. Neither the Evantha nor the Bruhre fared well under the Solomani and the Imperium felt intervention was necessary for the protection of both species.

In response to the High Command's request, Admiral Taskill turned to Coglan, his ablest planner, to develop the invasion plans for Daibei. The brilliant but pessimistic Coglan expressed reservations about the viability of an invasion: while the Confederation might be able to achieve early victories, Coglan argued that the Confederation could not withstand a sustained war with the Imperium. Despite Coglan’s protests, his plan was approved by High Command with only few comments.

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Flayed Man

Here’s a 3.5 update of a monster from a sourcebook on necromancy, revised from an earlier attempt. The following text is Open Game Content:

This creature has the shape and gait of a man, but its horrible red face is nothing but exposed flesh and muscle, as if all its skin had been ripped or torn away.

In Death as in Life. Flayed men are created from the body of a dead spellcaster who in life was devoted to death and necromancy. The process for creating a flayed man requires that the body first be skinned, revealing the musculature underneath, and then treated to prevent quick decay.

Grisly to Behold. The bones and muscles of a flayed man are all visible. It can still speak in its former voice and gesture as fluidly as a living creature. As a consequence of its creation process, the flayed man’s touch and footprints are not bloody; a flayed man does not bleed.

Controlled by Forces of Darkness. A flayed man retains much of its former intelligence but seeks to destroy all living things. A flayed man is an even more powerful conduit for energies from the Negative Energy Plane as an undead creature than it was as a living spellcaster; it suffers none of the limitations of the flesh.

Flayed Man CR 7

Often NE Medium undead

Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +3, Spot +3

Languages Common, Elven, Dwarven

Aura grisly face (30-ft. radius, DC 19)

Defense

AC 19, touch 11, flat-footed 19 (+1 Dex, +8 natural)

hp 68 (10 HD)

Fort +3, Ref +6, Will +8

Immune undead traits

Offense

Spd 40 ft.

Melee slam +10 (1d6+7)

Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.

Typical Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th)

1/day—animate dead, bestow curse (+10 melee touch, DC 18), chill touch (+10 melee touch, DC 15), death knell (DC 16), disrupt undead (+6 ranged touch, DC 14), enervation (+6 ranged touch), ghoul touch (+10 melee touch, DC 16), quickened ray of enfeeblement (+6 ranged touch), touch of fatigue (+10 melee touch, DC 14), vampiric touch (+10 melee touch)

Special Attacks black touch 4/day (+6 ranged touch, 5d6), rebuke undead 7/day (+6, 2d6+14 HD, 10th)

Tactics

During Combat A flayed man uses its link to the Negative Energy Plane both intelligently and ruthlessly to destroy the living, especially other spellcasters. It initially fights from the rear with its spell-like abilities behind a wall of lesser undead, then engages in melee when its spells run out.

Morale A flayed man fights until destroyed.

Statistics

Str 20, Dex 12, Con –, Int 15, Wis 12, Cha 19

Base Atk +5; Grp +10

Feats Alertness, Lightning Reflexes, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (ray of enfeeblement), Toughness

Skills Concentration +17, Hide +14, Intimidate +17, Knowledge (religion) +15, Spellcraft +15, Use Magic Device +17 (+19 using scrolls)

SQ dying energies (DC 19, 1d8+10)

Ecology

Environment Any

Organization Solitary

Treasure Standard

Advancement 11–20 HD (Medium)

Special Abilities

Black Touch (Sp) A flayed man can fire a ray 4 times per day as a ranged touch attack with a range of 50 ft. A successful hit does 5d6 points of negative energy damage. Since undead are powered by negative energy, this effect heals any undead struck of as much damage as it would deal.

Dying Energies (Su) When a flayed man is reduced to 0 hit points or less it releases a burst of negative energy in all directions with itself as the center point. The circular effect has a 20 ft. radius and inflicts 1d8+10 damage; DC 19 Will save for half. The save DC is Charisma-based. Since undead are powered by negative energy, this effect heals any undead within the area of effect of as much damage as it would deal.

Grisly Face (Su) A flayed man’s horrific appearance and seemingly normal voice and demeanor are extremely unnerving. Creatures within 30 feet that view a flayed man are affected as if by a fear spell from a 10th-level caster (Will DC 19 partial). Creatures that successfully save cannot be affected again by the same flayed man’s grisly face ability for 24 hours. This is a mind-affecting, fear effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Spell-Like Abilities A flayed man is created with the ability to use eight different spells as spell-like abilities (two each of levels 0 through 4th), each one once per day. These spells can vary and are either arcane spells from the necromancy school or divine spells from the Death domain. The save DCs are Charisma-based. The caster level is equal to the flayed man’s HD.

Rebuke Undead (Su) A flayed man rebukes undead as a cleric of level equal to its HD.

Flayed Man Lore

Characters with ranks in Knowledge (religion) can learn more about flayed men When a character makes a successful skill check, the following lore is revealed, including the information from lower DCs.

DC	Result
17	Flayed men are undead spellcasters that retain the ability to use necromantic spell-like abilities.
23	The mere appearance of a flayed man is enough to induce terror in onlookers.
27	Flayed men have strong ties to the Negative Energy Plane and are able to cast rays of pure negative energy.
32	Destroying a flayed man results in a dangerous blast of negative energy.

Advanced Flayed Men

As flayed men advance in Hit Dice, they gain additional spell-like abilities, as detailed in the following table:

Advanced Flayed Men

HD	CR	Additional Spell-Like Abilities
11	7	–
12–13	8	2 5th-level spells
14–15	9	2 6th-level spells
16–17	11	2 7th-level spells
18–19	12	2 8th-level spells
20	13	2 9th-level spells

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12. Inability to Comply: If it is impossible for You to comply with any of the terms of this License with respect to some or all of the Open Game Content due to statute, judicial order, or governmental regulation then You may not Use any Open Game Material so affected.
13. Termination: This License will terminate automatically if You fail to comply with all terms herein and fail to cure such breach within 30 days of becoming aware of the breach. All sublicenses shall survive the termination of this License.
14. Reformation: If any provision of this License is held to be unenforceable, such provision shall be reformed only to the extent necessary to make it enforceable.
15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE
    
    • Open Game License v 1.0a, Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
    • System Reference Document, Copyright 2000-2003, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Rich Baker, Andy Collins, David Noonan, Rich Redman, Bruce R. Cordell, John D. Rateliff, Thomas Reid, James Wyatt, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
    • Secret College of Necromancy. Copyright 2002, Green Ronin Publishing; Authors David "Zeb" Cook and Wolfgang Baur.
    • Flayed Man. Copyright 2017, R. Dorman.

Magyar Sector

When I am not playing around with the Great Dungeon I am often tinkering with Traveller in its various forms. Not only do I believe that Marc Miller’s 1977 science fiction game is a genius design, but I find the Third Imperium setting to be endlessly fascinating. I developed four frontier sectors of the Solomani Confederation for submission to the Traveller Map: Canopus, Aldebaran, Neworld, and Langere. These sectors have relatively limited canonical information and I tried to stitch the few references together into a coherent whole.

Limited existing canon might be why I am drawn to Magyar sector, which has seen very little development over the last 40 years. There are maps of the Ziru Sirka borders in Vilani and Vargr, Terran Confederation borders and settlements in CT Solomani, and a map of “Wars of the Imperium” in the Imperial Encyclopedia. A subsector and some worlds were detailed in Traveller Digest 14, and then? Only scattered references here and there.

And yet, Magyar occupies an interesting place in the Third Imperium setting. Located between the Solomani Rim and Dark Nebula, it is the intersection of three different major polities: the Aslan Hierate, the Solomani Confederation, and the Imperium. Magyar was the far edge of the Vilani Ziru Sirka, and the site of many early Terran colonies. During the Long Night Magyar would have been subject to Reaver attacks and would have both benefited and suffered from Aslan encroachment. All of Magyar was part of the Solomani Autonomous Region and incorporated into the Solomani Confederation. During the Rim War the Imperium invaded the sector and drove further rimward and spinward than in any other theater.

One of the really intriguing pieces of Traveller is the ability to spin detailed stories out of just a few data points. As I am interested in the Rim War campaign in Magyar, one of my side projects has been to develop a sort of wargame to simulate the progress of the Imperial campaign. Traveller has two boardgames that use mechanics that can be readily adapted to just such a venture: Invasion Earth, which is set during the Rim War, and the Fifth Frontier War. But in order to start, I first needed to develop regressed sector data to reflect the sector in 990.

The 1105 data shows a battered and backward subsector, with few decent starports and a signficiant tech lag compared to the Solomani Rim. No Imperial world in the sector has reached TL 15.

Until fairly late in the Rim War, Magyar would have been fairly insulated from much of the fighting. So presumably in 990 the sector was reasonably prosperous.

Combined with the Imperial Encyclopedia map, which shows battles in subsectors D, G, H, J, K, L, and P, I’ve assumed that many Magyar systems were hammered during the War in a “Sherman’s March” type of campaign that destroyed what might have been a significant industrial base, including many starports and shipyards. Post-war reconstruction efforts have generally failed, as the sector plunged into a deep economic recession resulting in the closing or downgrade of even more ports and yards—all of which is reflected in the 1105 data.

I assumed that subsectors untouched by the War would have relatively fewer changes between 990 and 1105 than subsectors that were subject to combat. These subsectors would have even less changes than those worlds that were occupied by the Imperium after the armistice.

To reconstruct Magyar in 990 I went through the following steps:

• I regressed the sector population by reverse-engineering T4’s Pocket Empires formula for growth and by adapting T5 economic extensions. In general this resulted in slightly less population but in a few cases I had worlds with significantly more population in 990 than 1105.
• I then looked at the expected distribution of starports based on Solomani and Aslan’s world gen mods, which are supposed to make better quality starports much more common in Solomani space—something not reflected in 1105 data for Magyar. This provided some soft targets for 990 starport distribution. Using the 1105 starport distribution as a base, I regenerated the starports. Worlds in the spinward half of the sector and not directly affected by the War had slightly lower quality starports in 990, showing slow but positive post-war growth. Worlds in the trailing half of the sector tended to have much better starports in 990, showing the ravages of the Imperium offensive.
• Based on this assumption I generated new government codes using population but influenced by the 1105 code. Worlds in the spinward half of the sector generally had the same government type in 990 and 1105; worlds in the trailing half were much more likely to have a different code.
• I then regenerated law levels based on the revised government for all worlds.
• I calculated new TL values, capping the Solomani at 13 with limited exceptions for TL 14.
• Then I regenerated the rest of the T5 extensions. I removed a few Confederation bases in the spinward half of the sector and added a few bases in the trailing half.
• I looked at the Confederation member-states and shuffled the allegiance of several worlds around. The Dootchen Estates, infamous for its slavery system, would have been a pariah state to the Imperium and was right in the path of the Imperial onslaught. I assumed then that the 1105 holdings are much reduced from what the Estates controlled in 990.
• Based on owned worlds I conjectured a couple of “lost” member-states: the Interstellar Kingdom of Tolson and the Allied Acaran Worlds, neither of which survived the Rim War. The Acaran Worlds, also in the path of the Imperial offensive, collapsed and never reformed. The Tolson Kingdom was dissolved upon admittance into the Imperium.
• With all of these changes to UWP data I made several name changes to various worlds to reflect the turmoil from the War. In a couple of instances I assumed that, for a couple of systems, the 990 mainworld was a completely different world than the one listed by the Scouts in 1105: Amon (2507) and Hyalin (2602).
• I seeded several non-aligned worlds and Aslan populations in the spinward half of the sector; I assume these were forcibly integrated, displaced, or even purged by the Confederation in a nasty bit of post-war cleansing.
• Finally I redrew trade routes to reflect the “new” data.

The result is unofficial sector data for Magyar sector in the 990 Milieu, generously hosted on the Traveller Map. This reflects a period fairly early in the War after the Solomani have pushed the borders several parsecs coreward, reclaiming old Autonomous Region systems and even occupying systems never ceded to the Region. I also created 990 data for Daibei and Diaspora sectors using similar principles. The T20 sourcebook Fighting Ships of the Solomani provides some helpful baseline information on the Diaspora borders at the start of the Rim War.

Copyright Information

The Traveller game in all forms is owned by Far Future Enterprises. Copyright © 1977 – 2017 Far Future Enterprises. Traveller is a registered trademark of Far Future Enterprises. Far Future permits web sites and fanzines for this game, provided it contains this notice, that Far Future is notified, and subject to a withdrawal of permission on 90 days notice. The contents of this site are for personal, non-commercial use only. Any use of Far Future Enterprises’s copyrighted material or trademarks anywhere on this web site and its files should not be viewed as a challenge to those copyrights or trademarks. In addition, any program/articles/file on this site cannot be republished or distributed without the consent of the author who contributed it.

Materials produced by Digest Group Publications (DGP) are copyright © Roger Sanger. Any use of Digest Group Publications' copyrighted material or trademarks anywhere on this Web site and its files should not be viewed as a challenge to those copyrights. Usage is intended to follow the guidelines announced by Roger Sanger on the Traveller Mailing List for preserving the overall Traveller milieu.

Hobgoblin Warbeast

The Monster’s Handbook (2002) was an early d20 supplement written by a then up-and-coming freelancer named Mike Mearls. It was a handy guide to tweaking and enhancing monsters with feats, prestige classes, templates, and other mechanisms. The hobgoblin warbeast was a prestige class that appeared in a web supplement for the book. While interesting and flavorful, a prestige class probably wasn’t the best mechanic to model the concept.

Meanwhile, the Monster Manual II contained a warbeast template based on warhorses and riding dogs; this simple template models the training and breeding needed to create a mount capable of riding into battle and is probably the best mechanic to use here. Although closed content, the basics can be easily reverse-engineered out of Open Game Content in the SRD.

The following template, then is loosely inspired by the hobgoblin warbeast class and is Open Game Content:

Hobgoblin Warbeast Template

When the grim legions of the hobgoblin kings march to war, they commonly enter battle alongside terrifying creatures they have captured, mercilessly trained, and broken to their needs. The techniques used by hobgoblins leave the creatures scarred for life. Under the harsh care of a hobgoblin trainer, the warbeast slowly transforms into a disciplined marauder. Driven by the pain and torment, warbeasts launch themselves into battle with a vicious abandon.

Creating a Hobgoblin Warbeast

“Hobgoblin Warbeast” is an acquired template that can be added to any animal of Large size or smaller and 8 Hit Dice or less (referred to hereafter as the base creature).

A hobgoblin warbeast uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.

Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature + 1.

Armor Class: Natural armor improves by +1.

Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +2, Con +4, Wis +2.

Feats: All hobgoblin warbeasts gain Iron Will. Hobgoblin warbeasts with 2 or more Hit Dice also get a second bonus feat chosen from the following: Alertness, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, or Toughness.

Special Qualities: A hobgoblin warbeast retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains one extraordinary ability from the following list:

• Fast Movement: The hobgoblin warbeast’s land speed increases by +10 feet.
• Improved Attack: The damage for one of the hobgoblin warbeast’s natural attack forms increases as if the creature had taken the Improved Natural Attack feat.
• Ferocity: The hobgoblin warbeast is such a tenacious combatant that it continues to fight without penalty even while disabled or dying.

Hobgoblin Training (Ex): A hobgoblin warbeast is proficient with light, medium, and heavy armor. A warbeast can utilize hobgoblin augments (see below). Unlike other animals, the DC of a Handle Animal check does not increase if the warbeast is wounded or has taken any nonlethal damage or ability score damage. A warbeast is trained to attack all creatures (including such unnatural creatures as undead and aberrations). If feasible, a warbeast can be trained for combat riding while in battle. Such a warbeast can fight while carrying a rider, but the rider cannot also attack unless he or she succeeds on a Ride check.

Hobgoblin Augments

Hobgoblins are ingenious at devising equipment that can augment the natural attacks of their warbeasts. These range from wickedly spiked gauntlets, iron overlays for fangs, or bladed metal caps for tusks. An augment can only improve one of the warbeast’s natural attack forms. When worn, the augment changes the natural attack to do both piercing and slashing damage and increases the critical threat range of the attack by +1. Only animals with the hobgoblin warbeast template can effectively use a hobgoblin augment. An augment weights 1/2 pound for every HD possessed by the warbeast and costs 20 gp for every HD.

Sample Hobgoblin Warbeasts

A hobgoblin war-ape uses an ape as the base creature.

Hobgoblin War-Ape CR 3

Always N Large animal

Init +6; Senses low-light vision, scent; Listen +7, Spot +7

Defense

AC 18, touch 11, flat-footed 16
(+3 armor, +2 Dex, +4 natural, -1 size)

hp 37 (4 HD)

Fort +8, Ref +6, Will +5

Offense

Spd 30 ft., climb 30 ft.

Melee 2 claws +8 (1d6+6/19–20), bite +3 (1d6+3)

Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.

Statistics

Str 23, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 2, Wis 14, Cha 7

Base Atk +3; Grp +13

Feats Alertness, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Toughness

Skills Climb +14, Listen +7, Spot +7

SQ ferocity, hobgoblin training

Gear studded leather armor, hobgoblin augment (claws)

Special Abilities

Ferocity (Ex) The war-ape is such a tenacious combatant that it continues to fight without penalty even while disabled or dying.

Skills War-apes have a +8 racial bonus on Climb checks and can always choose to take 10 on Climb checks, even if rushed or threatened.

A hobgoblin warpig uses a boar as the base creature.

Hobgoblin Warpig CR 3

Always N Medium animal

Init +0; Senses low-light vision, scent; Listen +8, Spot +6

Defense

AC 20, touch 10, flat-footed 20
(+3 armor, +7 natural)

hp 31 (3 HD)

Fort +10, Ref +3, Will +5

Offense

Spd 40 ft.

Melee gore +5 (2d6+4/19–20)

Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.

Statistics

Str 17, Dex 10, Con 21, Int 2, Wis 15, Cha 4

Base Atk +2; Grp +5

Feats Alertness, Great Fortitude, Iron Will, Toughness

Skills Listen +8, Spot +6

SQ ferocity, hobgoblin training

Gear studded leather armor, hobgoblin augment (gore)

Special Abilities

Ferocity (Ex) A warpig is such a tenacious combatant that it continues to fight without penalty even while disabled or dying.

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13. Termination: This License will terminate automatically if You fail to comply with all terms herein and fail to cure such breach within 30 days of becoming aware of the breach. All sublicenses shall survive the termination of this License.
14. Reformation: If any provision of this License is held to be unenforceable, such provision shall be reformed only to the extent necessary to make it enforceable.
15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE
    
    • Open Game License v 1.0a, Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
    • System Reference Document, Copyright 2000-2003, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Rich Baker, Andy Collins, David Noonan, Rich Redman, Bruce R. Cordell, John D. Rateliff, Thomas Reid, James Wyatt, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
    • Monster’s Handbook Web Preview, Copyright 2002, Fantasy Flight Publishing, Inc.
    • Hobgoblin Warbeast, Copyright 2017, R. Dorman.

RIP, Google Hangouts

Yesterday was the last day for third party apps using the Google Hangouts API. I ran a rocking Age of Worms campaign for a little over two years and 70 sessions with Roll20 and Google Hangouts, and in general it was a very slick setup: easy to use and fairly reliable. The group got all the way “Kings of the Rift” before new babies and schedules finally sunk the campaign.

Like all unfinished campaigns, I still harbor fleeting hopes that we will someday be able to pick up where we left off, though the likelihood of that happening diminishes with each passing day. I hope Roll20 is able to find a video solution that works as well as hangouts did. Is Skype a possibility? In the last couple of years my firm has been integrating Skype video and phone into our conference calls and I‘ve been impressed with the results.