Monsters
" So, all the people turned to the deep horizon, and saw a giant demon surging far away… "
Wick the Old, famous storyteller
Balrog | Giant Eagle | Moonlit Knights | Black Troll | Baldreads | Drahul
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CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any land FREQUENCY: Unique ORGANIZATION: Lord of all demons ACTIVITY CYCLE: See below DIET: Omnivore INTELLIGENCE: Supra-genius (20) TREASURE: See below ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Evil (Neutral)
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 Art by David J. Drage |
The legendary Balrog is the most dreaded demon of the Near World. The creature is a scaly biped with two horns on its head, a lashing tail and a tough skin covered by flames. His eyes are just like two small suns, and his face resambles the most terrible nightmares. Around the creature there`s an aura of infernal flames that burns everything on it`s path. Also, the Balrog is always followed by an infernal hord of flying, human-sized demons (5d10x10 Winged Demons).
The Balrog seen to only speak a specific demon tongue, that nobody could ever understand, for giving orders to his demon army.
Combat: The Balrog is a nihilist being, and when he`s permited to attack the civilization (see below), he`s most likely to end it. Normal attacks are with two forelimb claws (1d12 points of damage each), a sweeping tail lash (2d12 points of damage), a savage bite (4d10 points of damage), and two thrusting horn attacks (1d10 points of damage each).
Also, he can summon a giant flame whip to his hands, and make one single, but devastation attack, with it. The whip does 5d10 points of damage in a common slash, plus acts as a sword of sharpness, severing a limb on a natural attack roll of 18 or better. The demon can choose to make a called shot (-4 to hit) with this whip, grappling the target on a sucesfull attack. A target grappled by this whip will suffer 50 points of damage per round, and the only way to get free from it by physical moves is by rolling a natural attack roll of 18 or better. Normally, the Balrog will use this whip when attacking specific heroes trying to stop him.
Once every turn, the normally slow-moving Balrog can rush forward at a movement rate of 15, making all horn attacks cause double damage and trampling anything underfoot for 4d10 points of crushing damage.
The mere sight of the Balrog causes creatures with less than 3 levels or Hit Dice to be paralysed with fright (no saving throw) until it`s out of their vision. Creatures of 3 or more levels or Hit Dice flee in panic, although those of 7 or more levels or Hit Dice that manage to succeed with a saving throw vs. paralysation are not affected (though they can still decide to run away).
The Balrog`s body is surrounded by an aura of infernal flames. Those who dare to engage in a melee combat with him must save vs. breath weapon for every turn of fight to avoid 2d10 points of bruise damage. Also, normally flamable items will burn away, and magical items must suceed the same saving throw to avoid the damage. Needless to say that any metal armor will stun it`s wearer and make the fighting impossible. Note that this aura isn`t magical, it`s just normal flames spreading from the creature`s body.
Obviously the Balrog is totally immune to all heat an fire, and it regenerates hit points at a rate of 1 hit per round. Only enchanted weapons (+1 or better) have any hope of harming the Balrog.
Habitate/Society: The Balrog only showed himself a long time ago, and the legends say that only the might Galtar Karan with the Sword of Eternal Fire was able to stop his anger and send him to another long sleep. Some say that the Balrog only surge when the civilization starts to loose his union, and that he only attacks to finish what the beings themselves started… Anyway, the only objective that this dread demon follow is the objective of destroy all civilization, every being alive. Nobody knows the exact time of the creature`s sleep, but it`s surely measured by centuries.
Ecology: Slaying of the Balrog is said to be impossible. Even if the monster is reduced to -30 or fewer hit points, he will just be carried away, piece by piece, by his army, to be regenerated in a safe place. Not even a wish spell can defeat him, althought it can surely make his regeneration time a lot longer. Legends say that only the ancient artifact called the Sword of Eternal Fire can end his anger and send him to another sleep, but this relic is believed to be permanent lost from the Near World.
Another tales say that when the Balrog is defeated and sent to another sleep, every step that he takes goin out of the lands leaves a great amount of gold, jewels and the most powerful magical items on the ground… But, who knows the truth?
The location of the Balrog remains a mystery, as it rarely leaves witness in its wake, and nature quickly grows over all remnants of his presence.
Defeating the Balrog is the main objective of any KaranBlade campaign, and normaly the campaign will end after the final battle with the demon, making all the victorious players legends alive on the Near World. But, if the DM and the players want to continue playing, it`s suggested to start playing at another campaign seeting: Planescape. This basicaly cause when the Balrog leaves the world, all the powerful monsters that surged on the campaign will vanish with him. Anyway, the campaign paths is always chosen by the DM, of course.
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CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Eagle Rocks FREQUENCY: Rare ORGANIZATION: Solitary or clan ACTIVITY CYCLE: Day DIET: Omnivore INTELLIGENCE: High (13-14) TREASURE: Nil (In lair: O, P, Q) ALIGNMENT: Neutral Good
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These are the intelligent and honorable giant eagles of the Eagle Rocks. They are very loved by the defenders of good, because they doesn`t hesitate to aid any adventurer against monsters and evil beings... Also, they often serve as transport for a lucky few. The torannian giant eagles can spoke torak, and also have their own tongue, based on loudy screams.
Combat: The torannian giant eagles stand 10 feet tall, and have wing spans of up to 20 feet. They share the coloration and fighting methods of their smaller cousins. However, if a giant eagle dives more than 50 feet, it adds +4 to its attack roll and doubles its claws damage.
Giant eagles have exceptional eyesight and hearing and cannot be surprised except at night or in the lair, and then only 10% of the time.
Habitate/Society: Far more social than normal eagles, up to 20 nests can be found in the same area, one nest for each mated pair. Also, there`s a few known clans that have dozens of nests hidden at some cave among the Eagle Rocks... There`s a few brave thieves who hunt these nests to steal it`s rare eggs. These eggs sell for 2000 to 3500 gp.
Ecology: Torannian giant eagles are very bound with their habitat, and it`s almost impossible to see one of them out of the Giant Rocks area. Some evil hunters managed to capture some of them, but jailed far from their home they become weak and die in several months... These marvelous beings are very intelligent, tough, and can serve as a sky army if the world is in imminent danger. A few lucky rangers managed to befriend one of these animals, and use him as a mount.
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CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any FREQUENCY: Very Rare (Legendary) ORGANIZATION: Solitary (Army??) ACTIVITY CYCLE: Night (Full Moon) DIET: Nil INTELLIGENCE: High (13-14) TREASURE: Nil ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Neutral
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Art by Rafael Arrais (click to see it bigger) |
The legendary Moonlit Knights are powerful and lunatic undead that once were ranked among the most noble warriors of all Near World. They`ve fought the first Red War, and lost something more than their lives, they`ve lost their honor, and now are seeking redemption during the scariest of the full moon nights...
Combat: A moonlit knight retains the fighting skills he had in his former life. Since he has little regard for his own safety and an intense hatred of most living creatures, he is an extremely dangerous opponent.
Still, a moonlit knight retains a semblance of the pride it held as a Round Table Knight and fights honorably: He never ambushes opponents from behind, nor does he attack before an opponent has an opportunity to ready his weapon.
Surrender is unknown to a moonlit knight, and it will parley only if he senses his opponent has some information about his past life as a warrior of the legendary Torannia.
A moonlit knight has a strength of 18(00). He usually attacks with a sword; 60% of the time, this is a magical sword. When a magical sword is indicated, roll 1d6 to determine which type of magical blade it is: (1) Long sword +2
(2) Two-handed sword +3 (3) Two-handed sword +4 (4) Short sword of quickness (5) Short sword of dancing (6) Short sword of life stealing
A moonlit knight wears the same armor he wore in his previous life, but regardless of the quality of the armor, it always has an AC of 0. Hit points for a moonlit knight are determined by rolling 10-sided dice.
This hopeless being often brings with his corpse the lethal injuries that killed him centuries ago. That injuries can be very bad, such as missing body parts, but amanzigly, they have no influence at the combat abilities of such a warrior...
By example, a moonlit knight with a decapited head will fight carrying his head at a pouch or something, but it won`t have any influence on his fighting skills at all! Anyway, the odor of death surrounding the moonlit knight is so potent it cause
horrible effects in those who breath it. On the first round a character comes within 30 yeards, he must save vs. poison or be affected in some way. The following results are possible: (1) Weakness (as the spell) (2) Cause disease (as the spell)
(3) -1 point of Constitution (for 2d6 weeks!) (4)Contagion (as the spell) (5)Character unable to act for 1d4 rounds due to nausea and vomiting. (6) Character dies instantly and becames a zombie under control of the moonlit knight (he will carry his backpack, try to clean his armor and such...)
Finally, a moonlit knight cannot be turned, but he can be dispelled by a holy word spell. Undeads with 9 HD or less often run away from these scary beings!
Habitate/Society: The moonlit knights are former Knight of the Round Table of Torannia who have betrayed their country and joined the forces of the first demon surge. They`ve tried to save their lives during the first Red War, but now they know that they`ve lost
much more than just a life... They`ve lost their honor, and cannot die yet. To reach their so wanted rest, they must first pay for their sins, and reach redemption. That`s what legends say, but the few ones who actually saw one of this knights told that they are completely lunatic, screaming to the
moonlit skies their eternal shame and endless pain. They are not evil, but one cannot entirely foresee what one of this beings will do next minute, sometimes they can even attack innocent people as if they were the demons of the first Red War, killing them in no time!
They`re further condemned to remember their crime in song on any night of full moon; few sounds are as terrifying as a moonlit knight`s chilling melody echoing through the moonlit countryside. They are likely to attack any creature that interrupts their songs.
Ecology: Moonlit knights have no physiological functions. They are sometimes accompanied by skeleton warriors, zombies, and other undead who serve as their aides. They are very unlikely to appear during nights with no full moons, but we never know...
3rd
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CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Barren Mountains & Mahul Maakh FREQUENCY: Very Rare ORGANIZATION: Solitary ACTIVITY CYCLE: Night DIET: Carnivore INTELLIGENCE: Semi- (2-4) TREASURE: Q ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Evil
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Art by Rafael Arrais |
Trolls are horrid carnivores found to the west of the Barren Mountains. Most creatures avoid these beasts, since trolls know no fear and attack unceasingly when hungry. The black trolls are very much like the others, exept for their reduced intelligence, superior health and high vulnerability to the sunlight. Black trolls have dark-brown skin, and long deep eyes that glows yellow at dark.
Combat: Black trolls attack with two clawed hands and their bite, and they can attack at multiple opponents. In the rare case that a black troll wields a weapon, it attacks with +9 damage bonus. Black trolls regenerates at an amazing rate. Starting three rounds after first blood, the creatures recovers 4 hit points per round until healed. Black trolls reduced to 0 or fewer hit points fall to the ground, prone but not slain. Prone trolls continue to regenerate and stand up to fight as soon as they have a positive number of hit points.
Unlike his cousins, black trolls are not vulnerable to fire nor acid. Instead, they can only be defeat by the sunlight. Since exposed to the very thin ray of sunlight, black trolls
starts to petrify. The petrified statues of black trolls decompose and meld with the earth (if there`s no earth nearbly, which is very unlikely, they just vanishes) in about 10 rounds of exposure.
If the exposure is shorter than 10 rounds, its possible for the black troll to regenerate again from 0 hit points.
Habitate/Society: Black trolls are solitary ferocious carnivore creatures, and they are only interested on eating their food. Its not rare to see a black troll carrying a large sack at which they mantain the bodies of their prey (some of which maybe still alive, and suffering...) for later eating. Nobody knows exactly how these scary monsters ever appeared at the Mahul Maakh forest, but its having been a problem for the elves even before the demon surge. As well, nobody knows if the decomposed black trolls really dies, or if they just melds with the forest ground and surge again at night... Its a big mistery.
Ecology: Black trolls pray on all but the most powerfull creatures, having no fear at all. The black troll`s green blood is used to manifacture both poison antidotes and healing potions. The blood from one black troll, worth 400 go, can make three such potions.
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- CLIMATE/TERRAIN: FREQUENCY: ORGANIZATION: ACTIVITY CYCLE: DIET: INTELLIGENCE: TREASURE: ALIGNMENT:
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Lesser Any land Uncommon Servers of the Balrog Any Carnivore Average (8-10) Nil Chaotic evil
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Greater Any land Rare Servers of the Balrog Any Carnivore High (13-14) Nil Chaotic evil
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Commander Any land Very rare Servers of the Balrog Any Carnivore Genius (17-18) Nil Chaotic evil
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The winged demons, known best as the baldreads, are the servers of the Balrog. Some say that they are created and maintained alive by the Balrog`s own forces, but it maybe not true... Anyway, it says in the legends that once the Balrog start to sleep again, all this demon fiends vanishes, burned to ashes by their own fires!
This monsters have various forms and appearances, but almost all of them are humanoids with wings, sharp claws, red skin and other demoniac looks. The most common and weak are called lesser baldreads, the ones who managed to get more fighting skills and strength are called greater baldreads, and finally, the few ones who reached the glorious position of army leaders are known as the baldreads commanders.
Combat: Baldreads can breath fire three times per day in a cone 30 feet long with a 10-foot base diameter. Damage depends upon the type of demon breathing. Lesser amd greater baldreads cause 3d6 and 5d6 points of damage, respectively, while commanders inflict 7d6 points per breath attack. A sucessfull saving throw vs. breath weapon reduces damage by half. Baldreads tend to use their breath only when they are in eminent danger, or if they can kill lots of beings with one.
All baldreads are immune to charm, hold, sleep, polymorph, and fear spells. Greater and commanders are also impervious to weapons with less than a +2 bonus. Many of these creatures are invulnerable to one or more additional forms of attack (e.g., cold, fire, eletricity). Lesser baldreads have 50% chance, while greater baldreads have 80% chance of being impervious to one additional attack form. Commanders are resistant to magic (25%) and are always immune to two additional forms of attack. They can also make a suggestion, as the spell, once per round, even when engaged in combat.
Baldreads doesn`t wear any type of armor, but they can wield any kind of weaponry, attacking with them instead of his claws and bites.
Habitate/Society: Generally, baldreads are always besides their master, the Balrog, but sometimes they are seen around cities spying the plans of the governors. While alone or in small groups, probably these demons will not fight to death, trying to evade if they get serious damage. After all, this folks are absolutelly nihilist and evil, and will never accept any treats or pacts for betraying their master. The baldreads serve the Balrog to the death and beyond...
Ecology: Baldreads are carnivore, and can eat almost any type of meat, although they always try to eat recent killed beings.