These monsters
only come out when you foolishly leave the safety of Garden or if the
power goes out, letting them in. All of the monsters here hate light
and have -1 or more hit dice when illuminated by something like a
stadium light or when trapped in a brightly lit room. If this drops
the creature to 0 HD they become comatose and they take 1 damage per
Turn until they die.
Some creatures
have extra powers in darkness, which means once the lanterns and
flashlights of the players are out or destroyed the creatures will
become stronger. Only roll a 1d6 on this list if you're close to
Garden; the city is surrounded by bright lights and walls that keeps
the worst ones away. Sometimes, in the dimmest streets and dark black
alleys of the city, one of the weakest monsters (1d4) may be lurking
in wait.
 |
| Nightmouth (12) |
-12 Midnight Monsters-
[1] Many-Tail
Panthers (1 HD, 1d6+2
claws, each panther has 1d4+1 tails that become tail worms when they
die, if damage roll of 1 a tail is shot off and becomes a tail worm)
Number Appearing:
1 if near Garden, otherwise pack of 1d6
In Darkness
the panthers can drop from the shadows to bite the necks and throats
of explorers, dealing 1d10 damage that ignores armor.
The Many-Tail
Panthers are the most classic of the monsters outside of Garden and
are among the most well understood. They prey upon the residents of
the city and seem to be pets and act like hunting 'dogs' for the
Torchlight society. The Panthers do not have a gender and instead
seem to reproduce by biting off one of their own tails and dropping
it on the remains of a corpse.
When removed from
the body the fleshy, bleeding stump end of the tail actually has a
mouth with lamprey-like teeth that bites any warm flesh nearby and
tries to bore into it, as well as being able to grapple with prey by
wrapping themselves around it and choking them. The tails eat corpses
and grow into a juvenile panther with no tail; tails seem to grow
with age and by eating lots of lost city folk.
Tail Worms
(Dies on first hit, 1d4 bite each round, grapples prey to prevent
escape and fighting back; save to break free, +4 cover bonus from
firearms due to size and worm body)
[2]
Shakeyshroom
(1 HD, hops around and releases spores when in melee, releases spore
cloud on death, spores cause suicidal hallucinations)
Number Appearing: Usually 1
Shakeyshrooms look like giant, 3foot tall mushrooms that appear
perfectly normal, but can hop around when threatened or when not
observed. They are nearly totally silent. It is unknown if they are
actually fungus, or some creature that pretends to be fungus to blend
in. Shakeyshrooms like to follow explorers in the woods and shake
their spores onto their food, sleeping bags, or over them when they
sleep. Spores that are ingested take 1d6 turns to take effect.
When the spores are inhaled or take effect, the target suffers
audio and visual hallucinations and needs to make a save to see
anything clearly as it really is. Failing this save causes 1 psychic
stress, so those who try to resist the effects often just fall in
deeper. The hallucinations drive the victim to suicidal thoughts or
actions, such as seeing their gun as an ice cream spigot and the
trigger as a button that dispenses it, or walking off a cliff because
they see a bridge over it. The spore effect fades over 1d4 turns, but
lasts 2d6 turns if the target has more then 7 points of psychic
stress.
The Shakeyshroom has no defense besides its spores and is basically
helpless if attacked, though spores it releases in melee can turn
allies against each other in suicidal confusion. The fleshy head of
the shroom releases some spores each time it is bumped or struck, but
plenty of gangs and drug-dealers in Garden will buy it from you for a
very specific high and to synthesize special Psychic drugs. The head
can be sold for $40 on an open market, but expect Enforcers and other
do-gooders to try and stop you from selling or keeping this
contraband. Strangely, the shroom does not grow or reproduce with the
bodies of those who die from its effects, instead preferring to hop
away and allow other predators of the forest to consume the body.
[3]
Black Scratch
(2d6 Turns, harries or deals 1d4 damage, warded off by light and
fire)
Number Appearing: Unsure/NA
In
Darkness
the Black Scratch deals 1d6 damage with deep, bleeding claw marks
that ignores armor and any target killed by this simply vanish along
with their equipment.
Instead of having health, the Black Scratch follows the explorers
around for a number of exploration turns equal to their 3d6 roll. The
Black Scratch is seemingly invisible, though some claim to see
'something' out of the corner of their vision when faced with one,
and they often seem to teleport to different locations nearby. It is
not possible to hit a Black Scratch with any weapon, except maybe for
a psychic assault. Instead of attacking directly, the Black Scratch
harries their prey, tugging at their clothes, ripping off cords and
ropes hanging from your person, and delivering small 1d4 damage
scratches to you. It tends to attack about once a turn, or whenever
someone is alone or especially vulnerable. The scratches it delivers
appear as light pink marks instead of bleeding wounds.
Black Scratch can be held back by bright lights, but seems to either
move incredibly quick or have some control over electricity since the
moment the light flickers they can still attack, often trying to
throw an item you're carrying just out of reach to lure the group to
split up. The Scratch is one of the few creatures that is almost
stronger in the dark parts of Garden then out in the forest, as it
can snuff out streetlights and hallway bulbs to isolate victims in
the city itself.
The one thing a Black Scratch cannot stand is light from a fire,
which wards it away. It never attempts to attack someone carrying a
torch and anyone standing within a campfire's light is safe from the
scratch until it gives up and goes away. The Scratch also seems to be
the one “creature” of the forest that the Torchlight society have
not tamed, instead many of them have deep scars from the creature's
fingernail-like wounds, which they proudly show on their bodies.
[4]
Flaming Fox
(1 HD, +4 evasion from bullets, 1d8 pyroclastic flames, 1d4 brain
burn)
Number Appearing: 1 or 2
Small, fox-like creature that appears to be made of simmering embers.
It's tail gives off sparks when it moves and its long whiskers wisp
out of its face like open flames. When the creature is running or in
combat, its body flare up much brighter and hotter. It can flick its
tail to produce long jets of flame that torch everything they touch;
lighting up huge sections of the forest's underbrush while the trees
themselves seem not to be much harmed by it. These flames have a
similar range to a firearm, but armor grants no protection.
Any psychic who attempts to use their powers on the fox itself or on
its flames in an attempt to control or extinguish them will take 1d4
damage each round they do it- the fox making the temperature of their
forehead extremely warm. Psychics killed by this move burst into
flames. This effect also happens on anyone who gets within 15 feet or
closer of the fox, their head heating up from the foxes intense
psychic aura.
The flaming fox is a creature that seems to have been bred or totally
domesticated by the Torchlight Society. The vast majority of them
wear flame-proof collars or sometimes even little bells. The
Torchlighters use these foxes as a mobile source of fire and warmth
in the forest it seems, and as weapons of war. Nobody knows if they
intentionally let some into the city as an act of arson or if the
foxes that end up near Garden are just strays or runaways.
[5]
Flying Frogs
(2 HD, +1 Armor, d6 choking tongue, can detach tongues, flight)
Number Appearing: 1d4
Frogs with the power of flight and can 'stand' on air with their
webbed feet. They have oily dark gray skin and must stay wet or dry
out and perish. These frogs use their long tongues to choke people
from above, similar to a hangman's noose. These frogs can detach
their tongues and glue them to tree trunks and branches, holding
their prey in place and slowly choking them to death.
These frogs can constantly float and fly, meaning they run when they
can't surround an enemy. The forests around Garden are filled with
decayed, rotten fibers hanging from the canopy, occasionally wrapped
around the next of an unfortunate corpse. The frogs don't eat the
corpses, instead merely eating the warms of insects that are
attracted to the decay.
[6]
Rakemen
(3 HD, +1 armor, slow, d8 rake attack- if doesn't deal damage destroy
target's armor)
Number Appearing: 1d4
The Rakemen appear as creatures shorter then the average human with
dark brown skin and fur that covers any sort of facial features,
which travels down to their groin. Their hands are unnaturally bent
metallic rakes with four points each, connected to their stump wrist
by a metal pole. It seems all of the bones of the Rakemen are made of
metal, as they move very slowly and stiffly and despite their size
are tremendously hard to kill.
Using these metal claws, the Rakemen deal significant damage to any
beings who cross their path. They also use these Rakes to rip apart
bulletproof vests, metal straps, and other forms of armor that an
explorer may wear. They use their Rakes on dead foes to cut them up
into thin strips, which they suck up into a mouth hidden underneath
their head-fur covering.
These Rakemen don't seem to speak any language but have some mild
levels of intelligence and tactics, usually preferring to wait and
hide around trees before creeping up to attack forest explorers which
also helps due to their lack of ability to give chase. Their
territory is marked by long scratches in the trees, dirt, and on
rocks. When deployed by the Torchlight society in raids or assaults
on Garden city; they will sometimes have Rakemen equipped with simple
armor, as the Rakemen don't seem capable of tool use on their own.
[7]
Lurklei
(2-6 HD, +3 armor, d4 lurk water spit, d8 engulf- if small save or be
swallowed)
Number Appearing: Always 1
In Darkness
over the lurk pool, the Lurklei can sense all nearby creatures. It
can exit the body of water in absolute silence if no light source
illuminates its blackness.
This creature appears as a large bony fish with two strong humanoid
legs underneath it that allow it to exit the water. Unlike almost any
normal creature, this creature continues to grow and grow and grow to
fill its habitat, destroying and absorbing all other life. Lurkleis
eat all other fish, eggs, insects, and use their great sucking mouths
to even absorb all the pond scum from where they live. Eventually
they are the only thing left, alone, at the bottom of the pond.
The ponds they live around are called Lurk pools. The first time
people encounter them, they notice the quiet and unsettling lifeless
water, which has a dark black color. Lurklei's don't excrete waste
save for black liquid that dribbles from their mouth constantly. This
liquid corrupts the pond and makes it poisonous. Lurklei's can hold
their breath out of water for a number of combat rounds equal to
their HD. When their time is up they will bolt for the water to
refresh; as such they prefer to fight as close to the water as
possible and not get walled off from their pond.
Lurk water is
toxic. Getting it sprayed on you deals 1d4 damage from tiny amounts
entering your eyes, mouth, and nose. If you brace yourself for a
round or are wearing a gasmask/scuba gear you can avoid taking the
damage, but the liquid soaks its way into clothes and bags and makes
those things deal 1 damage per exploration turn of carrying them
around until they are properly cleaned with hot water and soap and
dried out.
If a character is physically small enough, then the Lurklei's bite
can engulf them in its toxic black mouth, dealing d8 damage. If they
fail a save when attacked, then they are swallowed and are trapped
inside its belly, causing death unless cut out within a few minutes.
If they succeed the save they can attack the Lurklei inside it's
mouth, thus ignoring it's high armor or just wiggle out. If a
character is too large for the Lurklei to swallow at the creatures
current size, it cannot engulf them and instead just spits on them.
The size the Lurkeli's can swallow is equal to the characters height
in feet equal to HD. So a 3 HD Lurkeli can swallow very small 3 foot
or shorter explorers, etc.
[8]
Roving Columns
(2 HD, +4 armor, d10 trample and knock prone, always attack different
targets, if prone when trampled causes instant impalement and death,
take double damage from payloads)
Number Appearing: 1d6+2
They look like crudely carved humanoid columns made of a soft, craggy
stone. They are vertical and when dormant simply stick in the ground,
but when moving they quickly raise up and then spike themselves back
down again after traveling parallel to the ground for some distance.
The columns in a group or formation always move one after the other,
each one taking a moment to stay in the ground as another moves, as
if they were the feet or shoes of some giant, unseen, intangible
monster. As such it doesn't attack the same character twice in a row;
with a new pillar moving to run over and smash into another character
as soon as the last one lands.
The danger is amplified by the bottom of each pillar, which is
sharpened inwards somewhat. If a character is prone or sleeping then
this pillar will land on them with enough force to impale them and
instantly kill them; meaning one must keep moving to avoid being
slain by the roving columns.
Due to their material; the soft stone breaks apart easily with enough
force so a concussive blast such as from a psychic with powers over
sound or from an explosive weapon such as a payload grenade launcher
will cause double damage and easily break the pillars apart.
[9]
Leachbear (4 HD, +1
armor, 1d6+3 hair attack dehydrates victims)
Number Appearing: 1 or 2
In Darkness
the bear is less effected by gravity and can float over people to
attack any target, or to easily avoid melee attacks. Mechanically
they gain +3 armor in darkness.
The Leachbear appears as a large flat bear-like skin of a creature
that crawls across the ground or wraps itself around trees and
branches above to get the jump on prey. It's shaggy, coarse fur is
its primary weapon, of which each hair is a proboscis and can drain
fluids from things it grapples and wraps around the victim. Armor is
the only real protection against this attack.
Those harmed by a leachbear are rapidly dehydrated and cannot be
healed with regular first aid alone, requiring clean water to restore
what their body has lost. Each item of first aid used to heal them
also requires drinking a full ration of water or another liquid. As
the bear attacks prey it swells larger and larger from the stolen
juices and becomes heavier. It can spray out these juices as a last
resort, which causes firearms soaked by them to jam.
Some
other animal furs having similar powers and aggression as the
Leachbear
have been reported in connection the Torchlight society. Since many
Torchlighters wear animal furs when trading with or in war with
Garden; these furs could be animated as the Leachbear is and act as a
sort of guard for the person wearing it, or be used as a weapon of
assassination and terror.
[10]
Speartides
(2 HD, +2 armor, 2d6 spears attack OR 1d10 spear rain, bulletproof,
reforming)
Number Appearing: 3d6
Mass of sharpened wooden pikes, one end hardened and brunt by a fire,
moving together like a massive snake with each end rotating to face
forwards as the rest pull back to to give it motion. These wooden
spears have no flesh or physical body, and are given motion by
psionic powers. Because they are made of wooden stakes bullets cannot
harm them unless it is an explosive or incendiary round.
These creatures do possess a lesser “mind” created by a psychic.
Mostly it is a simple and warlike emotion of aggression. Psionic
attacks deal damage to it instead of stress, and can unravel the
forces that keep these stakes moving and fighting. The spears either
lurch forward to stab an enemy from many angles or rear back and
fling themselves to rain spears on foes.
Speartides seem to be the living barricades of the Torchlight society
that can move as commanded, but are just as powerful on offense and
defense. The speartides can roll into each other to reform up to
their full strength if needed, and can freely add more carved or
crafted spears into their mass as they go.
[11]
Twisted
(3 HD, +4 evasion from bullets, 4d6 psychic attack dice, minor
telekinetic, minor pyrokinetic, minor electrokinetic, minor dowsing)
Number Appearing: 1
In Darkness
the Twisted gains an
addition +1 psychic attack die and automatically deflects 1d6 bullets
fired at it per round with psychic barriers.
Appear as a twisted, tangled up slender mass of roots, vines,
branches, and grass that levitates in the air a few feet off the
ground. The being is incredibly psychically potent and its presence
can be felt as a painful throbbing sensation in the head of psychic
explorers when nearby.
The
creature may split up its psychic attack die freely among whoever it
is fighting each round. Psychics can attempt to fight back by rolling
their own psychic attack die against it. The roll with a higher
result inflicts that much psychic stress on the loser. If enough
stress is accumulated then a save must be rolled or the character
faints. Characters who are not psychic do not get this defense and
simply must endure the psychic stress they receive until overwhelmed
or until they defeat the monster. Usually, the Twisted focus on
psychic characters first before moving on to non-psychic characters.
The Twisted has many minor psychic abilities including telekinesis,
that lets it move objects, as well as pyrokinesis and electrokinesis,
which lets it avoid fiery attacks against itself and also try to
short out lanterns and electrical devices that explorers carry. Once
all threats have been defeated the Twisted bores into the minds of
unconscious people to mentally torment them, playing traumatic and
terrifying false memories and experiences in their head until they
become so mentally regressed is simply absorbs their psychic energy
and leaves them a vegetable shell.
[12]
Night-Mouth
(7 HD, +2 Armor, 2d10 big bite, 1d6 punch- stuns on 6, chew through
anything)
Number Appearing: 1d8
In Darkness
Night-Mouths move twice as fast, and replace their 1d6 punch attack
with a second 2d10 bite attack.
These massive lumpy humanoids are one of the most terrifying known
monsters in the woods away from Garden. They are almost 10 feet tall
with small heads, but a massive mouth that stretches down to their
chest. Their large flat teeth glow white even in the darkness, and
are able to chew and bite through almost anything. The creatures are
also smart enough to bite at the guns that explorers bring with them;
making them useless and making their prey easy kills. Their lumpy
fists are also quite strong and can punch people into trees to stun
them.
Despite having functioning 4 fingered hands, they don't seem to use
tools, merely using their hands to grab foes still to bite them into
pieces or to punch, grab, or throw. Their level of intelligence is a
mystery. Always hungry and seeking things to devour, the Night-Mouths
gladly eat rocks and trees, but keep some area around their territory
clear to 'ambush' travelers.
The Night-Mouths usually appear in groups and without talking, they
can maneuver themselves into basic tactically formations. Some
believe this was taught to them by the Torchlight society, or perhaps
the Night-Mouths have a rudimentary society all their own, or some
yet undiscovered psychic link. Night-Mouths used by the Torchlighters
are in chains and are usually alone, which leads some Garden scholars
to believe that they are only semi-domesticated and are closer to
being enslaved by the Torchlight society then raised and used as
living weapons by them. For this and other reasons; some believe that
the Night-Mouths are the original inhabitants of the dark forest
before Garden city was built, and its cursed electric lights sent
them away into the woods.
