Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Alright, listen / WESTERN WILDWOOD

i'm just going to start posting my notes. i don't have time*, ever, to update a blog with actual posts / essays / etc, although i admire very much those who do.  so instead, i'm just going to start posting my notes, in unadulterated and unedited format.  many of them will not be original, good, or even faintly coherent, but i dunno.  maybe there will be some ideas here and there for people to swipe.  here's an example




WESTERN WILDWOOD

Ferocious caws are audible from up to a half-mile distant.  Here, a murder of 15 Gorecrows are attempting to fight off an invasion of 5 Chop-Hawks.
The Gorecrows have been living in the branches and in a hollow halfway up a large tree hanging out over the cliff for many generations now, but the Chop-Hawks
want it because of the superior vantage point it offers over the nearby Wildwood.  Both groups are willing to fight to the death, although if the Gorecrows
become badly wounded they can be seen flying into the large hollow in the tree order to hide (where they will make a last stand).  Gorecrows are well-knowwn
to collect trinkets, and they have a few objects in the hollow of the tree (which is somewhat dangerous to reach).  Inside, amidst a huge amount of nesting,
eggshells, some lizard and mammal corpses, and other bird stuff, can be found
a) a human skull with some shreds of flesh & hair still attached.  belongs to a former member of a gang in Amble Edge and is inhabited by his ghost.  if touched, capable of communicating very faintly that it desires to be returned there, where it will haunt the gang forever (because they drove the skull's original owner off, hence his ignominious death at the hands of birds)
b) a simple gold ring consisting of two paralell bands.
c) a necklace of 2 large gold coins strung together, each about half the diameter of your palm.  One coin bears an emblem of a shield, and the other a spread-winged eagle.  belonged to a member of a defunct knightly order
d) a small, cheap, gold earring, with a setting where a gem was once attached.
e) some junk - part of a belt with buckle, a tangle of copper shavings, and a dented and battered tin cup.


COMMON CREATURES d20
1. Carnivorous Goats (infinite number)
2. Fanged Impalas (3 herds of 3d12)
3. Gem-Spiders
4. Gore-Crows
5. Chop-Hawks
6. Lizards
7. Lowder
8. Kraw
9. Giant Slugs
10. Fire-Flies (night only)
11. Yard-Long Crawler
12. Bale Snail
13. Screaming Crickets
14. Snakes (Boa, vipers, Stake)
15. 1 Tyrannosaur lives in eastern Wildwood (there was a mated pair, but one was slain by a man with a sword.  The remaining dinosaur is a female who is afraid to leave her eggs)
16. 1 flock of Blaggers sometimes floats overhead
17. 1 Bagu lives in south-eastern wildwood
18. 2 Leopards roam the forest.  Their lair is a willow tree
19. 1 Giant Bear roams the forest
20. 2 Corbins (not affiliated with each other- night only)


SAPIENT CREATURES d8
1. Ulnot the Leaf Collector - strange little blue man on the run from intergalactic mercantile authorities.  sells potions at illegal prices.  rare things  = better potions.  Mercane will pay a hefty reward for his whereabouts
2. The Blue Knight - challenges everybody to duels for some reason.  very insistent.  very skilled fighter.  wears blue platemail, rides a giant blue horse, and has a blue sword + lance + shield + tent + flag.  when armor is removed he is revealed to be a giant half-blue half-normal human with stupifyingly bad hygiene.
3. The lonely carnivorous goat herder - nice old guy.  can talk to goats.  sells goats / goat-related products.  desirous of news from the outside world.
4. Gunder the evil animal trainer - travels with 1d8 random mammals (1. Bear 2. Leopard 3. Wolf 4.Double-Wolf 5.juvenile giant leopard).  trains his animals to kill people and bring back the treasure.  feared throughout the forest
5 - 6. Hunter (1d4:
   1. Amble Edge Hunter - amiable, folksy, violent
    2. Amble Edge Gang Member - conducting nefarious business
    3. Northman Hunter Group - 1d3 northmen, friendly but taciturn, willing to trade walrus tusks, sea-lion       pelts, or even their famed Giant Longbows for metal goods
    4. Tark the Croc-Man: very friendly for a crocodile-man; exiled from Crocodile-Man society for religious crocodile reasons)
7.-8/ A small tribe of Ape-Men.   act like the apes from the beginning of 2001: a Space Odyssey.  Led by a shaman who can summon ape-ghosts in the form of flying screaming ape skulls that harass enemies

OTHER STUFF
1. Fallen pukel pole.  Connects to two defunct Pukel generators and 1 inert Pukel Man (stats as stone golem).  Can only be operated/understood by devout Kos worshippers
2. Mortally wounded tyrannosaur atop man with silver sword - sword is Space Alien
3. Corpse has some *minor random treasure but a viper beneath - Ref save or get bit then Fortitude or take 1d6 damage per round for 1d6 rounds
4. Treasure-Moth - glowing moth always leads to nearest major treasure.  attacking it is a dire sin (-1d100 respect from ancestors, superstitious people)
5. Yellow area... (see DUNGEON ALPHABET)
6. The birds here have a defense mechanism in the form of song that makes beings become confused and fall asleep, and there are carnivorous vines and lichens nearby to reap the spoils.  Fieldcraft save of best Fortitude character or everyone falls asleep for 1d20 hours and finds they have lost most of their treasure to sticky trees.  if you roll a 1 you are being swallowed by a carnivorous tree when you wake up. no treasure
7. There are a number of sticky slime-covered vines here, and a small but opportunistic hyena pack lurks nearby.  the vines stay sticky even if cut, and can be used for various purposes including making a powerful glue; they are highly flammable (but resistant to acid).  Fieldcraft save of most Skilled character or get stuck + attacked by hyenas if you make any noise trying to get free (Violence check or something better)
8. Touching a shriek-vine will cause it to emit a high-pitched ultrasonic whine, which predators have learned means
there is food nearby.  Fieldcraft save of most Skilled character or +85% chance of encounter
9. Candlebloom is a small, wierd little plant that emits light at night to attract insects.  Useful as a dim candle.  Goes
out 2d2-1 hours after being plucked, growing gradually dimmer in the meanwhile
10. SERPUS ATTACK














*by "time", i mean motivation

2 comments:

  1. This is interesting and fey and gonzo, reminds me a little of Valley of Blue Snails. I'd like to see more.

    ReplyDelete