D20x4 Odd Others

JMFenner91

    I am once again inspired by RowanAMon of The Bottomless Sarcophagus, in particular his ROGUE class. It's basically required reading for these tables, since he explains the concept of Others far more poetically than I can. My take is that they're creepy weirdo killers loosely aligned with cosmic death. Anyway, here are the tables:

This Other appears to be...

1. A plain-looking accountant. He has an air of stuffy mediocrity around him.
2. A moderately famous poetess known for her vivid descriptions of strange colors.
3. A thin librarian. They are very chatty and a master in the subtle art of small talk.
4. A human-sized doll carved from whorling dark wood. It doesn’t make any noise.
5. An alcoholic who can always seem to find more drinks.
6. A fluffy black cat with rose-colored eyes.
7. An obscure President of the United States. He smells of dust and old age.
8. A portly man in a filthy fast food restaurant uniform.
9. A brilliant neurosurgeon. Performs more eccentric operations for a high price.
10. A nineteenth-century sailor with a tangled gray beard.
11. A White Elf dressed in fashionable pale clothing.
12. An elderly barber. She has a jagged scar across her face in a disturbing pattern.
13. A stunningly beautiful androgynous figure dressed in dirty rags.
14. A skeleton wearing a fancy hat. It is fluent in many sign languages.
15. A cosmonaut that reeks of decay. It speaks only in whispers.
16. An unkindness of ravens. They seem to share one will.
17. A polite and aristocratic vampire that bleeds poison.
18. A mummy, wrapped in rotting linen. She misses her home.
19. A giant serpent the color of oily darkness. It has no eyes.
20. A nice old lady that exudes innocence. She just gives kind grandma vibes.

This Other is known for...

1. Nothing. Maybe they’re new. Maybe they just like the mystique.
2. The elaborate schemes and traps they lay for their victims.
3. The ludicrous amount of people they’ve murdered.
4. Their obsession with paintings.
5. Their efficiency.
6. Throwing ostentatious parties where only Others are allowed.
7. Their patriotism, which borders on xenophobia.
8. The kindness and compassion they show their victims.
9. Their literal silver tongue.
10. The vicious companion they call a “dog.”
11. Having died multiple times.
12. Their zealous belief in a deity.
13. Being connected to organized crime.
14. A famous botched job that haunts them to this day.
15. Their magic sword, SET AGAINST SEA.
16. Their horribly ugly personality.
17. Their fascination with snakes.
18. Their knowledge of the occult and the hidden.
19. Having four eyes.
20. Stealing from their victims.

This Other can...

1. Speak to and understand the silence in an absolutely quiet room.
2. Shed their flesh to become a cloud of freezing mist.
3. Turn invisible when in light.
4. Stab you really well with their collection of ornate collectible knives.
5. Fly on wings the color of the night sky.
6. Shift their form into that of a moth.
7. Use wozerdry.
8. Shoot beams of supernatural cold from their eyes.
9. Divine the past through tarot readings.
10. Summon demons.
11. Temporarily blind people by stabbing them with a magic pair of scissors.
12. Move almost imperceptibly fast.
13. Turn loose teeth into swords.
14. Talk to their shadow, which whispers secrets from their subconscious.
15. Easily access a massive amount of funds.
16. Use the ancient martial art of Durability.
17. Project an aura of stifling silence around themselves.
18. Command bugs and vermin to do their bidding.
19. See magic and the truth behind a lie.
20. Breathe poisonous gas.

This Other desires...

1. To kill as many people as they can in their lifetime.
2. Wealth. More, more, more!
3. The death of a rival who, knowingly or not, humiliated them long ago.
4. Books on an incredibly niche topic.
5. To wander this earth free from consequence.
6. Drugs. The more exotic and powerful, the better.
7. To travel to the underworld.
8. To find true love.
9. The truth behind the moon.
10. The financial ruin of a prosperous business.
11. The completion of an ancient arcane ritual.
12. To end the anthropocene era.
13. To please their fairy patron.
14. To fight someone of their own skill.
15. To not be an Other anymore.
16. To kill a family member or close friend.
17. To indulge in every pleasure, every food, every feeling.
18. A very powerful enchanted diamond.
19. To go to space.
20. To kill a BARD, their hated foe.

Best GLOG Posts of 2023

     What the hell, another year has passed? I guess it's time to do another roundup of the best GLOG posts of the last year. All images are from their respective blogposts, and all opinions are objective.

Past Years:

(2021) (2022)

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BEST ADVENTURE: Ghosts So Quiet by Phlox

    I've always appreciated what Phlox calls a "Gygaxian version" of history, so it's natural Ghosts So Quiet makes it on my list. This hexcrawl of the British Isles is tightly-packed with enough materials for a campaign or two, full of Victoriana, vampires, and the English. I ran a fun oneshot in Ghosts So Quiet, where the disposable characters ran around London and assassinated the rival to an English vampire.

    I highly recommend you check this hexcrawl out for its wealth of material and well-executed concept.

BEST DELTA: Inadvisable Decisions by Locheil

    All is not right with the night sky. The darkness between the stars, it crawls and shifts. Inadvisable Decisions is a collection of related delta templates themed around corruptive alienism. Form a theory on the nature of grues. Summon the Headless Oracle. Get lost in the hidden corners of reality forever. Find oblivion.

    Although technically for Aclas, Loch's industrial fantasy setting, it is adaptable for any setting and a source of creepy inspiration.

BEST SYSTEM: Copper GLOG by Arnold K

   Ever wanted to play a simple game of GLOG in a short amount of time? Arnold K (hi goblinpope) has you covered. Created in one day, Copper GLOG requires only a single coin. I actually played several "sessions" of Copper GLOG and found it satisfactory. It's easily hackable and good at passing time while you're traveling between realities.

BEST MODULAR PIECE OF LORE: VVIZARDRY by PRIMEUMATON

    Arum, the primordial caveman wizard, bringer of fire, is a great idea by PRIMEUMATON. Helped along by the author's wit and willingness to go along with this absurd concept, Arum barely managed to beat these other GLOG wizard-kings (who are also cool). You can easily insert Arum and his Stone Blade Men into your campaign setting or a random dungeon to add flavor.

    I think this post is good because of its unique concept.

BEST NON-CASTER CLASS: Armature by deus ex parabola

    Have you ever felt the urge to play a walking tank with a chainsaw sword and 24 strength? Well, now you can! The Armature is an Unfinished World class but is... well, not "easily adaptable"... if your GM is cool they'll let you play it.

    I think this post is good because of... y'know what, I don't need to justify myself to you of all people. Go read it.

BEST CASTER CLASS: Ring-Bearer by Kachow

    I like stealing ideas from fiction to put into my RPGs, and Kachow is apparently of the same mind. His Ring-Bearer class maintains the balance between being easily customizable (why not necklaces or swords instead of rings?) and staying true to the archetypal character. His slight tweaking of Magic Dice to Corruption Dice has a small but notably positive effect on the class's succinct characterization.

BEST CLASS WITH UNIQUE MECHANICS: Counselor by Vivanter

    I find this concept really interesting. You are rewarded for not killing people (something Locheil's Angelologist class also rewards) and your main ability is not related to combat or magic. At template B, you gain "Discerning Eye", which further adds to your repertoire of atypical abilities. The Counselor represents a unique fantasy combined with differing abilities.

BEST CLASS WITH UNIQUE FLAVOR: Braid by TheFirstGokun

    TheFirstGokun was hard at work in 2023 creating the setting of Cath Celdaenn, a massive weird fantasy city ruled by a divine tree. He released a series of classes (including the Urbanist) and while they were all great, the best is the Braid, the Captiol Tree's chosen agent. He manages to weave together a coherent and beautiful class from several different aesthetic and design choices.

    In other words, I want to play a magic tree mathematician princess.

Secret Santicorn 2023

     A totally not late Secret Santicorn for Henry George. His prompt was "1d20+ worldbuilding questions for romance and courtship. Bonus points for generating non-cringe mechanics/procedures for pursuing romance based on these questions."

    I only came up with eight questions, but I figured something is better than nothing.

1d8 Worldbuilding Questions about Romance

1. What are the “love languages” like in your world? How does magic and local culture affect them?
2. What are some common courting rituals in your world? When is the common time to start courting?
3. How are dating, marriage, and divorce treated?
4. How are romantic relationships between different species perceived?
5. Why is romance important to [insert culture] and not important to [insert culture]?
6. How is romance affected when some species are immortal/live for centuries?
7. How is the adventuring profession perceived when it comes to romance?
8. What are some romantic taboos in [insert culture]?

A Small Simplistic System for Romance

    Over the course of one date, you have a natural CHA-in-20 chance of moving to the next romantic stage in your relationship. +1 for every 100 gp you spend on the date and for every personal trait that your potential partner finds attractive. -1 for every personal trait your potential partner finds unattractive, and -2 for every major cultural taboo you break.

2023 Retrospective

    I thought it would be neat if I recapped my year on my blog. I know people probably won’t read it, but I endeavor to do it nonetheless. This list isn’t in any particular chronological order.

This year I...

Watched A D&D Movie

    And it was pretty good! I thought it had some good “player characters” that retained the quirkiness usually found through play and although the plot wasn’t necessarily unique, I thought it was archetypal in a good way.

Discovered A Wicked City

Joel Heard

    I took this page and read every single link on it, revealing to me a foreign land of taigas and vast deserts, clockwork machines and cloud spirits, deep-seated corruption and hope. I really appreciated a setting that drew upon a different mythology! If I had to select my favorite non-basic articles of Against the Wicked City, I’d pick the Unkindness class, the Crimson Lake, the Children of the Pines, the wrestling rules, and the Dahākans. Of course I think you should read all of it, but those are my personal favorites.

Tried Being A Cultist

Weather Factory

    Don’t worry, I failed miserably. I am not one to usually play video games but I managed to push through my normal languor and really tried my hand at Cultist Simulator. It was a pleasant surprise not due to the mechanics (which are not really my style) but the lore. By the g_ds, the lore. I have spent a dozen hours on Cultist Simulator, and probably a fourth of that on the Secret Histories wiki researching the game’s esoterica and symbolisms. That’s not cheating, you’re cheating.

Read A D&D Comic

Stephanie Hans

    DIE is an amazing comic. It blends traditional fantasy, D&D meta humor, emotional horror, and some breathtaking art all in one amazing package. If asked to describe it in one sentence, I’d say “traumatic D&D Jumanji”. I also recently received a physical copy of the DIE RPG and am very excited to look through its pages. Shall I run a game? Perhaps, perhaps not…

Started Jujutsu Kaisen

Kariyen

    It’s good! Not Chainsaw Man good, but I’ve only gotten through volumes 1 through 7 so far, so I’ve got a long way to go. Akutami is very good at succinct, flavorful characterization and has developed an engrossing power system.

Learned About Radical Catgirl Anarchists

avvart

    No, this isn’t particularly relevant or important, but I thought it’d be funny to include anyway. In mid-November I clicked on CHASE THE BLACK RABBIT by Throne of Salt. I was then swiftly whisked away to an oneiric realm of internet links and hyper-focus. An eternity later I emerged a (not so) changed man, but it was still an entertaining ride. I read this and this an this, and one of my goals for 2024 is to read through the Stealing Solidarity series.

Played In An Open Table

sackcloth and ashes

    I both played and ran games in the Shattered Coast GLOG server, as referenced here and here. It was quite a fun time with lots of chaos, adventure, and growing pains. Most of the time I played Alexander, Warmind B, but near the end of my stint there I played Alice Gardener (whose picture you can see above), a PALADIN. She was present for one adventure which was never really completed, and ended her career with a sum total of 0 XP, but she was a blast to play and has officially taken up residence in my brainspace.

    I also met a lot of new people through Shattered Coast who I now talk to semi-frequently! Shoutout to the esteemed personages Gorinich, Vivanter, and the ever-elusive Abyssin.

Got A New Best Friend

    By which I mean dog. Readers of my blog, meet Copper, a very good boy. He loves to go on walks but the rest of the time is a very dedicated couch potato.

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    There you have it, the highlights of my year. I wish the readers of this blog a peaceful and successful 2024.

Live By Them, Die By Them

MyCKs

    The tengu is a wild spirit of violence and death, preferring isolation and hermitage in hidden mountaintop monasteries and secluded, mist-covered valleys. Their appearance varies: most of the time they are flightless bird-like humanoids, but they also come in dog-like and flighted bird-like variants. They are universally master swordsmen, able to perform supernatural feats of blade work, and are thus regarded as some of the best teachers of the fighting disciplines.

    Those who would seek one out should be wary, however. It is known that if you fail a tengu’s test of strength (usually made up on the spot), you shall be forever turned away, or, more likely, sliced into teeny, tiny pieces.

TENGU

HD: 4 (22 HP)

AC: 14 (warrior reflex)

Attacks: two +3 sword attacks OR 2x +1 unarmed attack 1d4

Move: 40' normal, 35% chance of having a flying speed of 20'

Inventory: 1d4 swords of varying make (see below), fearsome battle mask.

Mien: vain, viciously cunning, wise.

Goal: to kill the weak and train the strong, to be alone.

Parry: A tengu may parry an incoming melee attack as a reaction once per round, reducing incoming damage by 3.

Killer of Cowards: Tengus disdain the use of magic and refuse to use it. They have a +2 on Saves versus Magic, and have an additional +1 to hit full casters.

Kensei: Once per day, a tengu may turn swords. Treat the HD of the wielder as the HD of the sword for purposes of the turning attempt. Magic swords may have bonus HD. Swords with HD fewer than 3 are turned, while swords with HD fewer than 1 are destroyed.

cobaltplasma

On a Tengu's Tools

    Tengus love swords. They like to meticulously explain every single detail of a particular blade right before killing someone with it. They are collectors and connoisseurs, snatching them from the corpses of prospective students.  Folklore also mentions that a few tengu (maybe a 10% chance) will trade a free apprenticeship for a particularly rare sword, though mentioning this upfront to a tengu is likely to get you screeched at and stabbed.

    A tengu starts with 1d4 swords. For each sword, roll type and material.

1d6 Sword Types

1. Katana. A medium blade that lets you add your initiative bonus to your first attack's to-hit and damage.
2. Wakizashi. A small blade typically used by a samurai as a secondary weapon or status symbol.
3. Nodachi. A heavy blade.
4. Naginata. A medium blade that has the properties of a spear, if that matters in your system.
5. Longsword. A medium blade from a faraway land.
6. THREE WORD SWORD. A sentient blade with varying properties.

1d10 Sword Materials

1. Steel. Functions as normal.
2. Bronze. Easy to repair when broken.
3. Silver. Can hurt ethereal creatures and reverts shapeshifters to their true forms.
4. Obsidian. Breaks on a roll of minimum or maximum damage.
5. Chardun. Described here.
6. Meteoric Iron. If broken, randomly teleports the user 60'.
7. Ossgold. Described here.
8. Titanium. A purified version of iron. Destroys the souls of its victims.
9. Adamant. Described here.
10. Roll twice and combine the two.

Anato Finnstark

On a Tengu's Students

    If you can get past all its trials and challenges, a tengu is a valuable teacher. If you train with a tengu for a season, you may choose one of the following: gain +1 to-hit with swords, or, if you have enough XP, gain a template in your local Fighter class. Regardless of what you pick, you also gain a cool scar (describe its location and the story behind it) and now know 1d4-1 fellow students of the tengu. Use this generator to ascertain their details.

My Sky My Hour My Night

    In this post I steal from my betters, namely RowanAMon of The Bottomless Sarcophagus. I highly recommend you check out his two posts on the White and Red forms of elves to read about his unique take on a classic fantasy species.

    All art in this post is by hoooook.

A White Elf.

White Elves

    As a White Elf, you get a +1 bonus to your Intelligence score (or +2 SKLL if you're playing G20) at character creation. Additionally, you may speak and write Elvish, a highly complex language with several layers of symbolic meaning hidden in every word. Most mortals will have no idea what you are saying, but other elves and spirits might.

    Your outdated immune system means that you suffer a -4 penalty to saves versus disease, infection, and mutation.

An elf in their terrible Red form.

Red Elves

    You get a +1 bonus to your Charisma score (or +2 SAVE) if you are a Red Elf. As a tough and sexy bastard, you start with an additional +2 HP (or the equivalent in a different system).

    Red Elves are flighty and violent creatures, however. Whenever you are disrespected or slighted by someone new, save versus animalistic rage. The GM may also call for you to save versus rage if you are grievously insulted, even if it's by someone you already know.

The Red Queen, the goddess who both saved
and cursed the elven species.

The Sea Hag

    A patron for your necromancer character, a local source of dead or lost knowledge, a creepy encounter, etc.

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SunderedWorldDM

    She lives on a small rocky islet off the eastern coast. There, in a half-ruined tower of shattered glass and rusted steel, she practices some of the last remaining magic in the world. The journey is difficult, but you manage to finally reach her wretched abode.

Who are you?

1. A Zouave with a haunted, bloody past. You seek the shade of your murdered loved one, to learn who killed them so that you may enact vengeance.
2. A Hedge-Knight desperate for wealth and glory. You seek a legendary magic sword said to be hidden in the witch's lair.
3. An ambitious, arrogant Sword King. You seek a dead king's crown to cement your rule.
4. A Divided who seeks to learn the dread art of raising the dead. Army of zombies, anyone?

Silviu Sadoschi

    You trudge through the murky, knee-high water within the witch’s tower. Various corpses, all without arms, are strewn about the muck. You had heard from the townspeople of the neighboring village that she wears masks to commune with the shades of the dead, and to let them communicate through her.

    It isn’t until you see her, shrieking to herself on her throne of dead, waterlogged hands, that you truly believe them.

What mask is the witch wearing when you meet her?

1. The white mask of the child. While wearing this mask, she is eager and curious about the outside world and will not initiate violence.
2. The black mask of the skull. While wearing this mask, she speaks in an aggressive, guttural voice. She really wants to kill you.
3. The purple mask of the elder. While wearing this mask, she speaks in an old woman’s voice, and is far more willing to talk and negotiate.
4. The yellow mask of the serpent. While wearing this mask, she hisses wordlessly like a snake. She is hungry, so hungry.

Wizards of the Coast, idk

    You ask the masked witch to give you what you seek. The hag is not known for giving out things for free, however.

What does she want?

1. The skull of another witch. You don't want to know.
2. Your voice in a jar. Lose your ability to vocalize and 1 point of CHA.
3. A hulking creature of bone and muscle is lurking in the wilderness on the island. Destroy it.
4. A rare book or text in a dead language.

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    Wait, you want to fight her? Well, in that case, she has 4 HD, natural armor as leather, claw attacks twice, each as a dagger. She also has 2 points of damage reduction against spells, 3 MD, and access to any necromancy spell you deem necessary. The goal of killing her is made harder by the fact that she has hundreds of undead hands in her tower that she can animate with a thought.

    Perhaps you'd like to hire some strangers to help you with the task?