Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Monsters - Brad Neely Inspiration

Sometimes inspiration can strike in the strangest places.
 

Going by the above picture; let's build some criteria. We're going to write up these monsters similar to the ones that we already know from the picture. So Goblins and Trolls are our baseline.

  • Semi-Intelligent demihumans
  • Are living creatures, nothing too inherently "supernatural"
  • Have social groups, but are probably primitive / barbaric
  • Are low to high level threats to adventuring people, but not ultra powerful


Womps (4 HD, +2 to hit, -2 AC, big fists at 1d6+1, slam bonus at +2)
Morale- 10
Number- 2d4

The Womps are a monsterous species of large fisted individuals. They are quite dull, with square heads that collect their sweat in pools on top to cool off when they think too hard. Being quite slow and stupid, they are easy to strike in combat and are not known to wear armor or use weapons. Instead, they use their fists, which are quite physically powerful.

The Womps like to crush and smash things, and deal +2 damage when slamming someone into a wall or ground repeatedly. The preferred Womp battle tactic is to isolate or knock down an opponent, and then gang up on them and slam them with their fists until they are squished flat and quite dead.

 

Twumps (3 HD, +1 to hit, +1 AC, weapons at 1d6, sponge lichen)
Morale- 12
Number- 1d8 in patrol, 3d10 in pool

Twumps are an ugly between child of trolls and goblins. They are roughly human in height, but are not strong and powerful like an orc. Instead, they are slender and lean, and have long sucker mouths fitted well for sucking up scum and lichen from underground pools and chambers where they live.

Higher then in intelligence then most other related creatures; they have a culture, language, and know the secrets of metalworking and fire. Typically, only their leaders are afforded iron armor, in which case bump up their AC to 15 for rough chainmail, but standard warriors go with cloaks and shawls of cave-creature skin. They live in semi-agricultural societies that stay around the most fertile underground chambers, and defend them to the death from intruders. Warriors and scouts outside of these chambers will carry sponge lichen; a useful source of food but also medicine. If a warrior is injured after a fight, the lichen can be put in the wound to suck up the blood and staunch bleeding; healing 1d4 hit points. Each warrior carries enough for about one use, and the party can make use of these for themselves.

 

Sklorgs (5 HD,  +3 to hit, 1d8+3 bite, ravenous, grapple+1)
Morale- 14 (9 once 'fed')
Number- 1d6 (if result is 1- it's a yellow sklorg)

Sklorgs are large headed monsters with gaping mouths filled with many sharp teeth. They are a dull red in color, but a few are yellow. The yellow sklorgs are loners, kicked out of their social groups, and may be more intelligent and reasonable then the others. Sklorgs only care about eating and as such they always attack immediately (reaction roll of 2) unless they are a yellow sklorg, in which case they have the intelligence of an ogre or troll and are mostly food motivated.

Sklorgs have hands, but prefer to only use their mouths to attack and eat. They only use their arms to grab and steady prey before biting- as a demihuman species they have increased strength and count as grappling +1 (as though they had Strength modifier of +1 for grapple contests) if their teeth are broken or mouth is forced shut, they can make a weak punch that deals 1d2 damage instead.

Once a Sklorg has done a total of 15 or more damage, they have bitten off enough flesh that they are considered "fed". They will no longer jump into swords or spears to try and bite off more flesh, but will eat anyone knocked out or held by other members of their group. If all the Sklorgs remaining alive are 'fed', roll a morale check as 9 and for every other morale check beyond that point.

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