Today begins a series of posts featuring ghosts created using Ghosts -- The Incorporeal Undead. The first is Jeebes, a presence haunting a school for magic-users...
JEEBES*
No. Enc.: 1 (1)
Alignment: Chaotic (Evil)
Movement: N/A
Fly: 240’ (80’)
Armor Class: 4
Hit Dice: 1******
Hit Points: 7 hp
Attacks: 1 Touch
Damage: 1d4 plus Fear
Save: F1
Morale: 12
Intelligence: 8
XP: 28
Jeebes is a presence that haunts the Great School of Magic;
there he causes grief for students and teachers alike, though his pranks on the
teachers are far less dangerous than the pranks he plays on the students.
Jeebes is the ghost of one of the nameless, faceless servants of a noble
student at the School; decades ago the clumsy, foolish servant walked into the
wrong room at the wrong time, interrupted a class while they were experimenting
with several dangerous magical spells, and ended up causing a magical disaster
that took his life and injured dozens.
He continues to haunt the students and teachers, believing
them to be at fault for his death, even though it was his own foolishness.
After several decades of threats of destruction from the teachers, his pranks don’t
become deadly dangerous unless the students match his ferocity and stupidity;
the teachers don’t mind this, as it weeds out the stupid and foolish, and
cleaning up after the ghost’s messier pranks gives teachers something to assign
to troublesome students.
Jeebes looks much like he did in life, an oafish sort of
fellow with a big bald head, large potato-like nose, squinty little eyes,
scrunched-up face, sneering lips, and jug-handle ears. His body looks like a
potato sack, from which spindly arms writhe and wave; he has no legs, his torso
simply ending in a wispy trail. His vocalizations are barely understandable,
even when he tries to make words, as his rustic bumpkin accent is several
generations out of date. He rarely takes time to talk as it is, as he prefers
to announce his presence by upending statuary, flinging books and tomes out of
hands, and causing clothing and accouterments to fly and flutter at random.
ORGANIZATION: Jeebes operates alone, though there are other
ghosts at the Great School of Magic. The other ghosts consider him beneath
their notice, because of his weak nature, poor intellect, and his lowly status
in life. Living students who are bullies, upon first hearing of his existence,
often try to join up with him, but quickly learn that they are his preferred
targets, as he was bullied during life and likes to take vengeance on living
bullies in death.
TREASURE: Jeebes has a small collection of rings; any ring
lost or left alone for any time in the Great School of Magic ends up in his
hidden trove, which can be found in a crack high in the Tottering Belfry.
During life his master always told him to “work for that shiny brass ring,” and
in death Jeebes believes that if he finds that brass ring, he might come back
to life. There are more than two dozen rings total, worth almost 600 gp, plus a
magical ring of protection +1 and a ring of wishes (with one wish remaining).
Jeebes has no idea of the real value of the two magical rings, and does not
even know they are magical. If his trove is discovered and looted, he will go
on a rampage that could be dangerous even to the teachers and ends only when
all of his rings are returned.
RANGE: Jeebes is limited in range, chained to the Great
School of Magic and its grounds, able to wander up to 60’ from the edge of the
grounds. He rarely leaves the buildings of the school itself, where he can
remain active both night and day.
COMBAT: Jeebes prefers to use his Poltergeist ability, as it
enables him to cause the most mischief. Another favorite is to use his
Ectoplasmic Blast on students who are running late for class. Though he is
dead, he still fears direct physical conflict, and usually remains a distance
from anyone that might try to hit him. If threatened by any force that might
harm him, he simply flies through a wall into the next room… after throwing
curses and imprecations at any being so bold as to threaten him.
CHAINED GHOST [LOCATION] (L): This ghost must remain near
the site of its death. It must remain within 60’ of the point at which it died
per hit die of the ghost. The ghost has no connection to its earthly remains;
casting an exorcism on its earthly remains has no effect on it. The exorcism
spell can be cast on the site of the ghost’s death, with the same effect as
though the spell had been cast on its earthly remains.
ECTOPLASMIC BLAST (*): This ghost can shoot a line of slimy,
sticky ectoplasm; sometimes the line is from the hands, often it is vomited
forth from the mouth. Range is 10’ plus 5’ per hit die in a line 5’ wide. All
those caught within the line must make a saving throw versus Breath Attacks;
failure indicates that they are struck by the line of ectoplasm and covered in
the sticky slime.
Those covered in the sticky, slimy ectoplasm are effectively
paralyzed for 1d6 rounds per hit die of the ghost; all they can do is writhe
around and try to scrape the slime off. It is a form of mental compulsion, as
the mind of the victim rebels at the unnatural stuff stuck to him. The time is
halved for each companion who helps to scrape the slime off of the victim.
Ectoplasm created by an Ectoplasmic Blast is a lesser form
of ectoplasm, not useful for magical purposes.
FAST GHOST (*): This ghost’s speed is twice as fast as
normal when manifesting on the Material Plane, five times as fast when
exclusively in the Near Ethereal, and ten times as fast when exclusively in the
Deep Ethereal.
FEAR ATTACK (*): Any being struck by a presence must make a
saving throw versus Spells or be affected by the fear spell.
Spawn Ghost: If a presence slays a creature while that
creature is under the effect of its fear ability, the slain creature must make
a saving throw versus Death or rise again 24 hours later as a presence.
INCORPOREAL (*): All incorporeal undead share the following
abilities, immunities, and weaknesses: Bodiless, Ectoplasm, Flight, Powerless
in Sunlight, and Weapon Immunity (see below for specifics for the presence).
Weapon Immunity: Presences suffer only half damage from
non-magical weapons; all damage suffered from such weapons is fully regenerated
at the end of the round in which the damage was dealt if the presence is not
reduced to 0 hit points. If dealt a total amount of damage in one round from
non-magical weapons equal to their hit points, a presence is disrupted, and
disappears, seemingly destroyed. However, it merely retreats into the Deep
Ethereal, where it regenerates 1 hit point of damage per round, returning again
at the same spot when it reaches full hit points.
Presences suffer full damage from silver and magical
weapons, and do not regenerate damage from such weapons.
POLTERGEIST (*): This ghost has the ability to
telekinetically move physical objects in the Material Plane. The ghost can move
a total weight of objects no greater than 50 pounds per hit die of the ghost.
Unlike the telekinesis spell, these can move at a slow pace or a very rapid
pace, as though they were being thrown in combat. The ranges at which objects
may be grasped and the distance objects may be thrown are the same, 20’ plus
10’ per hit die of the ghost.
Poltergeists often just fling items randomly, not seeking to
attack in combat. When they attack with this ability, they have little finesse,
and thus usually fling all they can at a single target or bunch of targets as
an area effect. Damage is 1d4 per hit die of the ghost, in a diameter to the
area of 10’ per hit die of the ghost. All those caught in the area must make a
saving throw versus Breath Attacks; success indicates they suffer only half
damage.
For example, a 1 HD presence flings 50 pounds of detritus
from a ruin – stones, bricks, shards of wooden beams, etc. – at a group of
three adventurers. The area of effect is 10’ in diameter, and all are caught in
the area; each must save versus Breath Attacks. Those who fail take 1d6 points
of damage; those who succeed take half damage.
A Poltergeist can also select a single item – such as a
weapon, an altar, or a statue, depending on the maximum weight it can lift –
and fling it at a single target. In this case the target must make a saving
throw versus Wands; failure indicates the target is hit by the object and
suffers full damage, success avoids the attack entirely. Weapons do their
normal damage, plus 1 point per hit die of the ghost. Other objects deal 1d6
points of damage per 50 pounds of weight or portion thereof.
A Poltergeist can also pick up an individual who weighs,
together with its equipment, less than the maximum weight the Poltergeist can
lift. The target gets a saving throw versus Spells; if the save succeeds, the
Poltergeist cannot lift the target on this attack. If the save fails, the
Poltergeist lifts the target and can do with it what it wishes; often, it
throws it with great force against a nearby wall, dealing damage as though the
target had fallen the same distance, plus 1 point of damage per hit die of the
ghost.
A Poltergeist can use this ability as many times per day as
it wishes to merely throw objects around. It may also attack with the ability
as many times as it wishes provided the targets continue to fail their saving
throws. However, every time a target succeeds a saving throw counts as one
failure against the Poltergeist, which has a maximum number of failures equal
to its hit dice. A group attack counts as a failure only if all the targets in
the group succeed in their saving throws.
Once a Poltergeist has used up all its failures for the day,
it no longer has the patience or willpower to continue to attack with this
ability, and can only cast about with objects in blind rage.
UNDEAD (*): All undead creatures share the following
abilities, immunities, and weaknesses: Infravision, Mindless, Poison Immunity,
Silent as the Grave, and Susceptible to Turning.
Excellent!
ReplyDeleteI am printing this out to put into my GAZ3.