Robot Character Class - adding some flexibility

PC Race – Robots  

Requirements: none   Prime Requisite: CON   Hit Die: 1d8   Maximum Level: 10

Robots are uncommon in the anomalous world, but the ancients made vast numbers of them (“Why do the scientists keep making them?”) and many have been reactivated.  While robots in general vary widely in size and capability, all player character robots are humanoid in shape and size.  Robots are distinguished from computers by having positronic brains, endowing them with a degree of will and flexibility not seen in even the most powerful conventional AI.  

A robot PC is not an especially rugged or dangerous model at first but as it gains levels the robot improves itself with new parts, motors, sensors, and weapons.  These are built from random bits scavenged from other robots, found in storage, or purchased from Scientists.  A robot does not wear conventional armor, doing so interferes with their sensors.  They may wield any weapon or shield as a human does.  All robots start with an unarmed attack that does 1d4 damage.  This can be a pincer, drill, simply a blow from a metal hand, or whatever seems appropriate.

Robots are immune to poison, disease, parasites, and ‘person’ affecting magic.  Their positronic circuitry is sensitive to negative energy, meaning robots can lose levels, and they need oxygen for catalytic reactive purposes—basically the same as people need to breathe.  Robots attacked by rust monsters or similar effects take a 2d8 points of damage from each ‘hit’. 

Lvl. Breath Poison/ Death Petrify/ Paralyze Wand Magic 1-4 14 11 12 14 15 5-7 11 8 9 11 12 8+ 8 5 6 8 9

Robots can self-repair at a rate of 1 hit point per 8 hours.  The raw materials needed to do this are nothing special, either an environment providing miscellaneous techno-junk, or 1 GP of Robot Parts per HP.  Healing spells have no effect on robots, but those with the science skill can jury rig repairs to a robot, each success heals 1 HP per level of the robot.  This can only be done to a robot once per day. 

Level	XP	HD	THAC9	Robo-Points™	AC
1	0	1	10	1	9
2	2500	2	10	2	8
3	5000	3	10	3	7
4	10,000	4	9	3	6
5	25,000	5	9	4	5
6	50,000	6	8	4	4
7	100,000	7	8	5	3
8	200,000	8	8	5	2
9	350,000	9	7	7	1
10	500,000+	10	7	7	0

RoboPoints™ and robot advancement: when a robot gains a level it gains RoboPoints that can be spent on various improvements.  There is some expense, 100 GP of robot parts per RoboPoint spent. The first time an improvement is purchased it costs 1 RoboPoint.  Buying it again costs 3 points, then 5, then 7.  Most improvements are limited to four ‘levels’. 

StatBoost: adds 1d3 to any ability score to a maximum of 18.  Each score is a separate improvement.

MultiSwing: adds one unarmed attack per round.  Every level beyond the first represents an extra arm as well.  No more than three levels can be purchased.  The first level of this improvement costs 3 RoboPoints, then 5, then 7.  No extra attacks are gained with weapons held, only unarmed attacks.

HitBoost: improves the robot’s unarmed attack damage by a die type (d6, d8, d10, then d12).  This can represent buzz saws, retractable spikes or blades, etc. 

HoverJets: Repulsor motors allow the robot to hover, and at higher levels thrusters allow forward movement.  Max height equals 15’ x improvement level.  Speed equals 20 x (improvement level – 1).

Built-in ranged weapon: the weapon must be provided.  It can be a crossbow, gun, or energy weapon.  Ammunition must be provided.  All built in ranged weapons can be fired as a single action.  This improvement can only be purchased three times.

Modularity: doubles the effects of normal repairs (x3, x4, x5 at higher levels).  Each level purchased also allows the robot to be jury-rigged an extra time per day.

SensorBoost: the first level adds IR vision.  The second adds tremor sense.

CommandVoice: each level gives a one point benefit to reaction rolls from other robots.  A robot with at least one point in this can establish a Secret Base at 8^th level, gaining five robot followers per level of CommandVoice.  Max of four levels of improvement.

GroundPounder: each level adds 10’ to tactical move, 30’ to normal move.  Max of four levels.

Load Bearing: adds 30#, cumulative per level to carrying capacity (+40/+80/+120/+160)

Install Device: any non-weapon technological device obtained can be installed inside the robot.  It can’t weigh more than about ten pounds.  Some degree of self-power or free uses per day may be possible, this is too variable a factor to give rules for.  The DM will determine any such benefit before you do it.

PositronShield: grants a saving throw vs. magic to avoid energy drain.  Each extra level adds four to the roll. 

Reslilience: one level in this removes the need to breathe and grants immunity to vacuum.  Each level beyond that grants resistance (+4 saves, -2 per die of damage) to either fire, cold, electricity, or acid.

Haunting Custodian

The name 'Haunting Custodian' comes from AD&D but I always found the creature (aka the 'Drelb') somewhat dull.  Here's my take on a creature of this name:

No. Enc: 1
Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 90'
AC: 3
HD: 3+1
Attacks: 1
Damage: 1d4 + root
Save: F6
Morale: 8
Hoard: none

Haunting Custodians, also known as Drelb, are a type of earth elemental summoned and bound to a particular building or dungeon to maintain it.  They 'put things to right', resetting traps, closing doors, repairing damage and generally trying to keep things as they are.  

These creatures appear as 4' tall stone humanoids with brass beards.  Though quite strong they do not use weapons, and can only strike with a fist in combat.  However anyone standing on stone who is struck by one must save vs. magic or have the stone flow up over their lower legs, rooting them in place until the stone can be broken away (8 points damage from blunt weapons or picks, any excess damage being taken by the trapped creature).  They generally do not fight in any case, as they can move through stone as easily as air and tend to avoid confrontations.

Drelb can cause a variety of sounds to emanate from stone that they are within.  Knocking, tapping, even their rasping voice.  They will use this ability to annoy or disturb interlopers, or to draw dungeon dwellers to various locations, usually with a view toward making trouble for destructive invaders.  

As far as custodial functions, consider a drelb to be able to accomplish the work of five skilled and equipped miners or stonemasons.

Binding a drelb to service requires a fourth level MU spell.  The spell requires that the Custodian's 'pay'--one 100 gpv gem per year of service--be placed in an elaborately cast and carved stone and metal vessel that is  placed inside a magic circle in a room in the place to be guarded.  The magic allows the drelb to remove a single gem per year from this vessel.  (More can be added to extend the term of the binding.)  If the magic circle is broken so is the Custodian's binding.  If freed it will often try to seize whatever of it's 'pay' remains before departing forever.

Rhino Men - an ASE Race

Picture source: http://dankatcher.deviantart.com/art/The-Rhino-86064039

No. Enc: 2d6 (5d6)

Alignment: Neutral

Move: 120’ (50’)

Armor Class: 6

HD: 2

Attacks: 1

Damage: d4+1 horn or by weapon + 1

SA: charge, yellow mold pots

SD: immune to disease, gas, mold

Save: F2, +2 on saves vs poison

Morale: 10

Hoard Class: individual - II, Lair - d6x100 gpv precious metal, d6-1 technological items

Rhino men (and women) are a highly factionalized race unique to the ASE.  These heavily muscled, horned humanoids are enemies of the hinge-headed—unsurprising, given that the schema o­f the rhino men race was emanated into the universe by extra-dimensional rivals of the hinge-headed specifically to thwart them.  

Rhino Men are well-suited to a dungeon environment, being able to eat almost any organic material and breathe easily in all but the most noxious atmosphere.  Smoke doesn’t bother them.  They exude chemicals that smell like cloves and render them immune to attack or infestation by any sort of mold or fungi. The clove smell is quite powerful; often it will be detected before the creatures themselves appear.   Anything that tracks by smell will have no trouble following their trail.

Rhino men are quick, bulky, and strong.  They are also relentlessly athletic and competitive.  If you use any sort of skill system grant these creatures bonuses to anything involving running, jumping, climbing, etc.  

For every four encountered one will be a brute.  For every seven encountered one will be a sage.  For every ten encountered one will be a hetman.

Brute: +1 HD, +1 damage

Sage: knows d4 of the following: Cure Light Wounds, P/F Normal Missiles, Resist Fire, Mirror Image, Dispel Magic, Magic Missile.  Caster level = the d4 roll.  After a spell is cast roll d6; on a ‘1’ it is expended for the day.

Hetman: +2 HD, +2 damage

In battle they favor spears and throwing axes, often unleashing a round or two of missiles before charging.  A charging rhino man who attacks with his horn may knock his opponent to the ground (50% if human sized, 25% for ogre, 75% for halfling, etc.).  The rhino man is allowed an immediate weapon attack if the knockdown is successful.    

For each leader type present, roll 1d4.  The total is the number of yellow mold grenades the group has.  These fragile clay pots do 1d6 on a direct hit, and fill a 5’ radius with spores—save vs. poison or d6 choking damage.   Of course the rhino men themselves are completely immune to the mold.  They often cultivate the stuff as a defense in their lairs.

DIY GM Screens

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_ppU1H40QIXVXZCZmZVYVVhTWJqRVJnU2lsdmpDNThxVTNB/edit?usp=docslist_api

Secrets of the Old City, and a map

Immersive Ink have published a revised version of their winning entry in the 2009 one-page-dungeon contest, Secrets of the Old City.  You can get a copy over here.  It's specifically for Delving Deeper, but of course easily converted to similar systems.

I liked it enough to prepare an unkeyed map for use with "fog of war"-enabled software.

This was just made by taking Simon Bull's original map, as rendered by Tim Hartlin, and carefully stripping out the location numbers and hidden elements (traps, mostly).  I also blocked out walls in front of all the secret doors so that if you're revealing the map one room at a time you can show a room without necessarily giving away the fact that there's a secret door in there.  Most of them had a fairly obvious "non secret" side, which made that a lot easier.  I also moved the torch sconce icons so that they were more-or-less entirely on the side of the wall where the torch exists, with no overlap across walls into other rooms.

I may gin up some notes on making this all a bit more "Anomalous"--I suppose the fact that my players have just returned to Denethis had something to do with my interest in an urban module.  So we'll see about that.

Films Found in the ASE

Here's a description of some films I created for the players to find in the ASE, leftovers from the old Dynamat days:  The Three Films

Anomalous Books: The Revelations of T'Son

The Revelations of T’son is a book which can be found in the Anomalous Subsurface Environment.  No one seems to know who T'Son is, but a few copies of the book have been circulating for at least a few hundred years.  It is a rambling manifesto of the sort written by paranoid maniacs in cabins in the woods.  All known copies are hand-written in tiny, crabbed script, usually on parchment of questionable origin.  It’s uncertain whether T’son himself produces all the copies, or others who wish to enshrine his ideas.

Revelations is a volume of natural philosophy centered on the four elements as building blocks of the universe.  All objects and creatures are composed of varying proportions of the four elements.  There is nothing uncommon about that but T’Son goes on to propose that earth (‘stone’ is his preferred rendering) is primary, and the father of the other three. All consciousness and will resides in stone except insofar as it chooses to impart these characteristics elsewhere. 

This theme is developed at great length to some surprising conclusions:

• The deeper one goes the more blessed one becomes.
• The Will Lies Below.
• T’Son’s Hell is a shuddersome ‘abovestone’ location where the damned are tormented by ceaseless buffeting of uncontrolled waves, wind, and flames.
• Liquid mercury is the distilled will of Stone and the fundament of the philosopher’s stone.
• The undead are considered ambivalently.  They are ‘the blessed’ because they do not need to breathe, and are more are at one with stone in that regard.  However most human consciousness is insufficiently refined to withstand Stone’s rigor, which accounts for their malevolent and basically insane nature when turned into undead.  T’Son varies between envy and wariness in speaking of them.
• The female is considered more earthly than the male and thus generally superior.  (T’Son’s own sex is strangely hard to discern from the book, pronouns and other self-references shift from largely male to mostly female as the book goes on.)  
• Earth > Fire > Water > Air.  Air is equated with death, though he seems to conflate all manner of noxious vapors with air for this purpose.  Air with some degree of fire inhering in is breathable.

The book is at once a testament to the power of the ASE in promoting research and discovery, and evidence that Dynamat’s scientists were not the only ones to make use of this.  If T’Son had developed his strange philosophy in the customary Lunatic’s Cabin in the Woods all his furious concentration and theorizing would have led to nothing more than an unreadably long and tedious book, and perhaps the mailing of some pipe bombs.  However The Revelations is a fully functional spell book containing several novel elemental spells.  Magic Users and Elves can make use of these in the usual way.

Create Spring

Level 1

Duration: 1d10 hours

Create Spring causes a stream of water to emerge from earth or stone.  It produces one gallon of water per minute.  If a clear gem or crystal of 50gpv or more is used up in the casting the spring instead lasts for d10 days—and on a ‘10’ it is effectively permanent.  The surface upon which the spell is cast must be connected to the earth in general, not a mere block of stone sitting in a wagon, for instance.

Extract Fire

Level 2

Duration: instant

This spell can affect up to ten pounds per level of any flammable material, causing it to be immediately consumed in a blast of flame.  In the case of relatively flammable materials such as wood or coal this flame is substantial enough to damage those within five feet of the material, causing a d4 of damage per five pounds of material.  Less flammable things such as leather or mold will only cause half this amount of damage.  Other nearby materials may of course be set on fire as well.  If the item to be affected is carried by a creature it is allowed a saving throw to stop the spell from taking effect. 

Any item affected is reduced to a light, pumice-like, ashy stone skeleton of its former shape.

Trueflame

Level 2

Duration: until extinguished

Trueflame causes fire to act more in accordance with the odd elemental philosophy of T’Son.  It can be cast on any existing fire.  So long as it burns the fire produces no smoke (but twice the usual quantity of ash).  Oxygen in the air nearby is not consumed by the fire, in fact ‘dead’ air becomes refreshed and breathable once more(!)   More fuel can be added to a Trueflame fire, but the effect is localized.  Any flaming items removed from the enchanted fire do not convey the effect and burn normally.

Embrace of Stone

Level 1

Duration: one combat (d6 rounds per level if you’re into that sort of thing)

The Embrace of Stone can only be cast if standing on a stone surface.  It causes the stone to flow up and around the caster, providing an armor class equal to six minus the 'level' of the dungeon one occupies, to a minimum of zero.  However the effect is ponderous.  Any dexterity modifier to AC is lost and the caster’s movement rate is reduced to 90/30.  Above ground it has no effect other than to shower the caster with dirt.  

Stone Shape

Level 2

Duration: one minute per level

The caster is able to work solid stone as if it were heavy clay, though only with his bare hands.  Crude tools or weapons can be formed at the rate of one per minute.  Tunnels can be dug, though only at a rate of one cubic foot per minute.  A door can be dismounted from a wall with one minute’s work.

Voice of the Earth

Level 3

This largely duplicates the level 6 cleric spell Stone Tell.  The stone, however, is not compelled to answer specific questions.  Instead make a reaction roll to determine its disposition toward the caster.  On a negative reaction a dungeon elemental (or any indigenous creature outside the ASE) may be dispatched to bedevil the party.