MOTF 2: Piast (Lake Dragon)

Monster of the Fortnight: Piast (Lake Dragon)

Waxing Flocktime, CY 612

[Note: still under construction.  Will be complete very soon.]

The Piast (Pl. Peiste) is a chaotic good, inland aquatic dragon which guards the watery entrances to Faerie and other worlds found at the bottoms of the deepest glacial lakes.  Peiste are able to spit a toxic venom either in a stream as long as its body (50 yards) or in a cone of mist twenty yards long and ten yards wide.  The venom is a neurotoxin, causing all creatures hit by it to save against poison or suffer a burning sensation which causes the affected individual to run toward and jump into the nearest available body of water.  Usually, this happens to be the very lake occupied by the dragon.  Although usually lake dragons use this technique to catch and eat land mammals such as horses, cattle, and sheep, they will also use it against enemies in a fight.

Piast (Lake Dragon)

Gargantuan dragon, chaotic good

Environment

Aquatic (inland water)

Organization

Wyrmling, very young, young, and juvenile: solitary or clutch (3-6); young adult, adult, mature adult, old: solitary, pair, or family (1-2 and 3-6 offspring); very old, ancient, wyrm, or great wyrm: solitary, pair, family, or hold (1-2 and 3-6 families, only one family of which dwells on the near side of the otherworldly gateway).

Challenge rating

Wyrmling 2, very young 3, young 4, juvenile 5, young adult 6, adult 8, mature adult 10, old 12, very old 14, ancient 16, wyrm 18, great wyrm 20.

Lake Dragon Characteristics By Age

[Table 1 under construction]

Lake Dragon Abilities By Age

[Table 2 under construction]

Damage Immunities

poison, cold

Condition Immunities

poisoned

Senses

underwater echolocation, 500 yards

Languages

Wyrmic (an ancient form of Draconic)

Divine Susceptibility.

Clerics of lawful gods may turn or rebuke lake dragons according to age: juvenile or younger, as ghosts; young adult to old as wraiths; and very old and older as vampires.  Note: a "destroyed" result gates the dragon to the adjacent plane to which the gate it is guarding leads.

Bioluminescent effects.

While underwater, lake dragons may use their bioluminescent fringes to perform feats of illusion upon attackers.  See table below.

Actions

[Under Construction]

MOTF 1: Uylak

Monster of the Fortnight

Waning Flocktime, CY 612

The Uylak (Pl. Uylaklar) is a demi-demonic creature from the Abyss often found hunting in large warbands in the Plains of the Paynims (or the Asian Steppes in the Earthly Realms), a devotee of the underworld deity Erlik and a descendent of one of Erlik's many sons via human mothers.  Uylaklar are mortal enemies of the Yarondlar (steppes centaurs), and will fight and pursue them relentlessly upon contact, using the Yarondlar as burnt offerings to their God.  Uylaklar are not lycanthropes, but often interact and cooperate with werewolves and wereboars, immune to the disease themselves.  It is said that a high-level cleric may concoct a potion to cure lycanthropy from an Uylak's ichor.

Uylak

Medium humanoid (tiefling, shapechanger), chaotic evil

Armor Class

12 in human or horse form (leather armor/barding), 13 in wolf form (natural armor), 11 in other forms

Hit Points

78 (12d8 + 24)

Speed

30ft (40 ft in wolf form, 50 ft in horse form)

Damage Immunities

lycanthropy

Condition Immunities

exhaustion

Senses

darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 14

Languages

Paynim, Common

Challenge

4 (1,100 XP)

Shapechanger.

The Uylak's default form is a humanoid of Tiefling appearance, but it may use its action to transform into a wolf, horse, or moth at will.  Furthermore, once per day, the Uylak has the ability to polymorph into any non-unique, non-magical animal or inanimate object for up to 12 turns.

Trample (Horse form only).

If an Uylak charges at least 20 feet straight toward a target and then makes successful hits with both hooves, it can then proceed to trample the opponent for an additional 7 (2d6) points of bludgeoning damage.  If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.

Actions

Multiattack.

In horse form, the Uylak makes two attacks with its hooves.  In wolf form, it makes one bite attack and one claw attack.

Hooves (horse form only).

Melee weapon attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.  Hit: 5 (1d6+2 each) bludgeoning damage.

Bite (wolf form only).

Melee weapon attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.  Hit: 6 (1d8 +2) piercing damage.

Claws (wolf form only).

Melee weapon attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.  Hit: 7 (2d4 +2) slashing damage.

Compound bow (tiefling form only).

Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, ranged 150/600 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d8 + 2) piercing damage.

Earthly Realms Methods

This is where I will be introducing my own ideas about how to design an Earthly Realms setting, as well as receiving and incorporating ideas from those who follow this blog.

Sample Milieux

The Eldritch Flowering of Prydain

Period:

Fifth to Tenth Century

Locale:

Britain and surrounding lands

Points of Difference:

• King Arthur is real.
• His successor, Bedivere, establishes British hegemony in the Old North and what are now Mercia, Wales, Wessex, Cornwall, Devon, and Brittany.
• The West Germanic invaders (Angles, Saxons, etc.) remain limited to Bernicia, Deira, Essex, and Kent.
• The Goths successfully retain Rome, establishing an Arian Holy Roman Empire and disseminating knowledge of antimagic to its clergy.
• The Byzantines embrace the teachings of the Hypatian School, an hermetic order which, though it upholds Trinitarian Orthodoxy, does not oppose the use of ancient magical knowledge and practices.  A new kind of clergy emerges which practices Theurgy, or Divine Magic.
• Clovis establishes a new Trinitarian papacy in Trier, relocating Roman Trinitarians to his domain.
• The Saxons of Northumbria embrace the Roman Gothic Church, gaining knowledge of antimagic from its clergy.
• The Celtic Church, both Trinitarian and Hermetic, in close alliance with the Byzantine Church, establishes its own Patriarchy at Iona.  Its clergy combine Byzantine Theurgy with native Druidic magic to form a new kind of Theurgist called a Culdee.
• Kent, remaining Trinitarian in alliance with the Franks, gains knowledge of Gothic Antimagic and uses it to oppose the Culdees and push westwards into British territory.