Supernatural Threats/Horrors

[Keith Senkowski]

Hey,

I think I like Supernatural Horrors better... Anyway I thought I would post a possible creature/bad guy that can be created with the game for those not entirely familiar with it (or at all for that matter).  He was made using the expanded Supernatural Threat creation rules found on the Bob Goat Press Website.  Feel free to ask any questions you might have about the process or their use in the game.

Keith
-----------------

Radek the Everdying

Concept: He is a combination of Koshchey the Deathless fromo Russian myths and Imhotep from the movie "The Mummy."

Motivation: Radek the Ever Dying is driven by his desire to become a mortal man once again so that he once again enjoy life's pleasures, such as physical sensation.  He can only attain this by sacrificing his power for true love.  However he is hindered in his quest by his need to maintain the very  power he must give up.

Physical Description: Radek the Ever Dying looks like handsome Dasian man, with a shock of black hair, piercing blue eyes, deeply tanned skin and a fit figure, but only during the night.  During the day he takes on the appearance of an ever-rotting corpse with scarab beetles scuttling across his decaying frame.

Mark: Radek the Ever Dying is Marked during the day by the smell of rotting flesh that precedes and follows his passing.  At night, when he is a handsome man, he is marked by a great blue tattoo of a scarab beetle that covers his back.

Powers:
   • Attack, Physical (Wind Gusts)
      Instant, Others
   • Attack, Physical (Lightning Strike)
      Instant, Others
   • Glamour (Swirling Winds)
      Permanent, Self
   • Immunities (Unblessed Weapons)
      Permanent, Self
   • Immunities (Old Age)
      Permanent, Self
   • Immunities (Disease)
      Permanent, Self
   • Immunities (Poison)
      Permanent, Self
   • Marks (Scarab Tattoo)
      Permanent, Others
   • Movement (Walk on Water)
      Permanent, Self
   • Shapechange (Thunderstorm)
      Permanent, Self

Weaknesses: True Weakness (He is vulnerable to attacks made by those who have known true love and lost that love.)

Traits: Power Rank [8] Cunning Rank [10]

Wake: His Wake is that the weather changes to match his mood for a mile around him.  When he is angry, lightning strikes from dark clouds.  When he is happy, the skys clear and the warm breezes pass through the area.

[urbwar]

Keith,

Two quick questions (which came up as I was designing a supernatural threat of my own):

The alternate rules mentions 3 traits, but only lists Power and Cunning. What happened to Vitality Levels for Supernatural Threats? I notice your example for Radek does not include any. It's kind of confusing, sice you have a paragraph called "Damage and the Supernatural" in the Alternate rules, but don't list any info on how to determine how much damage said Supernatural can take. For now, I'm just going to go with the original rules on Vitality levels, until you inform me otherwise

About Mark: Mark seems to be for marking targets, etc. However, your example of Radek has Mark affect him personally. You might want to consider editing that section of the alternate rules to reflect that it can be for both marking targets and for marking the creature as a supernatural being. (I realized this as my critter also has marks that reveal it isn't human, and doesn't mark prospective targets)

Will post my critter in a few

[urbwar]

A follow up question:

How would you represent a weakness such as a creature being vulnerable to sunlight? The way the Weakness rules are written, it doesn't seem doable (unless you'd have sunlight do 2d6 damage per turn if a True Weakness, or 1d6 per turn if it's a minor one?)

[Keith Senkowski]

Hey,

Hope these answers help...

The alternate rules mentions 3 traits, but only lists Power and Cunning. What happened to Vitality Levels for Supernatural Threats?

Looks like I missed something eh?  The third trait should be Vitality Levels which are determined by adding ten to the Power Rank of the Supernatural Threat.  I'll have to fix that...

About Mark: Mark seems to be for marking targets, etc.

I should have figured there would be some confusion with this.  There are two different types of Marks.  The first, which all threats have, is the thing that gives them away to others.  The second is the power Mark (which in hindsight should perhaps be renamed) which is the Threats ability to mark his territory (think the humans that work for vampires in Blade) or to harm someone emotionally.

For example, I Marked three of the players in my semi-regular (bastards and their grad school nonsense) game  with a Mark of their veins slowly turning black and becoming visible under their skin.  It does nothing, but it is a nice way to strike terror in their little hearts.

How would you represent a weakness such as a creature being vulnerable to sunlight? The way the Weakness rules are written, it doesn't seem doable (unless you'd have sunlight do 2d6 damage per turn if a True Weakness, or 1d6 per turn if it's a minor one?)

You got it right.  That is what I would probably do.  You're thinking about pop culture vampires right (not traditional or even Bram Stoker's) and how they burst into flames?  I would make it a True Weakness and have them suffer per Round 2D6.  Or if it is supposed to be instant death, simply make it instant death.  

The rules really don't accomidate for Threats that can be insta-killed by anything.  This was done on purpose, but I can see where it might be an issue.

Keith

[urbwar]

Hey,

Looks like I missed something eh?  The third trait should be Vitality Levels which are determined by adding ten to the Power Rank of the Supernatural Threat.  I'll have to fix that...

That's what I thought. I made sure to include the Vitality levels in my write up for Melka

I should have figured there would be some confusion with this.  There are two different types of Marks.  The first, which all threats have, is the thing that gives them away to others.  The second is the power Mark (which in hindsight should perhaps be renamed) which is the Threats ability to mark his territory (think the humans that work for vampires in Blade) or to harm someone emotionally.

Ok, that is where the confusion started. In Radek's writeup, he has the power Mark, which is a blue scarab tattoo. It's also listed in the writeup for Mark, so it looked like it was just a Mark for him in his human form

For example, I Marked three of the players in my semi-regular (bastards and their grad school nonsense) game  with a Mark of their veins slowly turning black and becoming visible under their skin.  It does nothing, but it is a nice way to strike terror in their little hearts.

Sweet! Was that the plague demon thing in the actual play writeups?

You got it right.  That is what I would probably do.  You're thinking about pop culture vampires right (not traditional or even Bram Stoker's) and how they burst into flames?  I would make it a True Weakness and have them suffer per Round 2D6.  Or if it is supposed to be instant death, simply make it instant death.  

Gotcha. I was trying to replicate that Melka, like the Tooth Fairy in the film, was vulnerable to sunlight. Since I wasn't sure, I opted for the weakness I gave her, which I think fits more in line with her being a dark version of some fairy tale being.

The rules really don't accomidate for Threats that can be insta-killed by anything.  This was done on purpose, but I can see where it might be an issue.

Keith

Yeah, I wasn't looking for an insta-kill weakness, but I kind of like the idea of it being possible (kind of like a troll or ogre that turns to stone in sunlight, ending it's life)

[Keith Senkowski]

Sweet! Was that the plague demon thing in the actual play writeups?

Yeah.  He is kind of the mastermind of the whole thing.  A plague demon who is masquerading as a Child of the Worm God.  He is using the cult of the Worm God as a cover for his own aims.  Unfortunately we have not been able to get together regularly lately so we are moving to playing one-shots of stuff for a while...

Yeah, I wasn't looking for an insta-kill weakness, but I kind of like the idea of it being possible (kind of like a troll or ogre that turns to stone in sunlight, ending it's life)

Well I would just make it a True Weakness and instead of 2D6 just make it instant death.  I suppose I should have made that an option huh?  Just have to do a little editing...

Keith

[urbwar]

Yeah.  He is kind of the mastermind of the whole thing.  A plague demon who is masquerading as a Child of the Worm God.  He is using the cult of the Worm God as a cover for his own aims.  Unfortunately we have not been able to get together regularly lately so we are moving to playing one-shots of stuff for a while...

That's a nice plotline. Sucks about not being able to get the game going again though

Well I would just make it a True Weakness and instead of 2D6 just make it instant death.  I suppose I should have made that an option huh?  Just have to do a little editing...

Keith

It would be a nice option, and allows for more of the darker fairy tale like beings that are tough, but once exposed to their weakness, die. Plus I really want to make a troll under the bridge :-)

Oh, and I had this thought this morning for a variation of the Wild Hunt, but based in the Narlacchi peoples. I saw ghostly mongol warriors firing spectral arrows, riding skeletal mounts, and aided by red eyed demonic hunting dogs....

[Keith Senkowski]

That's a nice plotline. Sucks about not being able to get the game going again though.

Yeah I'm clever like that sometimes.  Right now our plan is to one-shot it for a while until schedules settle down.  It's a mixed blessing cause it gives me more time to work on my for-sale/free-shit for CoS.

Oh, and I had this thought this morning for a variation of the Wild Hunt, but based in the Narlacchi peoples. I saw ghostly mongol warriors firing spectral arrows, riding skeletal mounts, and aided by red eyed demonic hunting dogs....

Oh, I updated the October Issue to fill those gaps you pointed out.

This totally rawks.  Make this now, dude.  Who leads the wild hunt?  Need to know...

Keith

[urbwar]

Yeah I'm clever like that sometimes.  Right now our plan is to one-shot it for a while until schedules settle down.  It's a mixed blessing cause it gives me more time to work on my for-sale/free-shit for CoS.

Well, I hope you can get your game going again.

Cause I want to read more actual play reports :)

Oh, I updated the October Issue to fill those gaps you pointed out.

Cool.  I am going to download it now.

This totally rawks.  Make this now, dude.  Who leads the wild hunt?  Need to know...

Keith

I might work on it tonight, since I am bringing my laptop to work

Not sure who leads the group as of yet. I was considering some really big looking Mongol guy with a ghostly looking curved blade, and owning a horn made of bone (maybe even human bone; I am thinking  the end of the horn where the sound comes out is the skull of a man, so instead of a normal horn sound, it actually sounds like moaning).

I also need a cool name for said Wild Hunt. I don't want to just call it the "Wild Hunt". Something cool, and Narlacchi fitting is needed. Any suggestions?

Oh, and I just had an idea:

How about collecting stuff like this, and making a pdf file with a kind of "Bestiary" for people to use? I'd be more than happy if you use any thing I write up. I was thinking of making an expanded background for Melka, explaining how she became what she is now.