CARCOSA Device/Item/Cool Stuff Workshop

[crusssdaddy]

Infernal Pigments

As a result of centuries of prejudice and persecution, the Bone Men have developed an assortment of colored pastes (one for each of the colored races) to be used as a means of disguise. 'Infernal Pigments' is a catchall moniker used by the other races in stories passed down over generations - Bone Men refer to the pigments by a number of different names based upon their color, eg. 'Crimson Skulk' (red), 'Midnight's Secret' (black), etc.

Crafted from naturally occuring dyes and stains, these pigments have been rendered into an oil-based paste which can be quickly applied to bare skin. After about thirty minutes, the paste is completely absorbed into the skin, and the Bone Man so treated will be effectively indistinguishable from a member of the matching race. Only chirurgical, sorcerous or advanced technological examination will reveal the physical deception.

Once applied, Infernal Pigments will retain their effectiveness for 2D-3 days (minimum 1 day), and are not affected/diminished by weather, activity, etc. For the final six hours of 'effectiveness', the color will fade markedly and the ruse will be evident to any observer. Prior to use, they may be stored indefinitely in any sealed container.

Combining different pigments simultaneously in the same Bone Man provokes an immediate roll on the Mutation Table.

If a Bone Man disguised by Infernal Pigments is used in any part of the casting of a sorcerous ritual, the ritual will automatically fail in the most spectacularly disastrous manner possible for both the Bone Man and the Sorcerer.

For the special effects of element-based weaponry, any Bone Man affected by Infernal Pigment is treated as being of the race of the color in question.

Bone Men will deny the existence of Infernal Pigments to all outsiders. Within the Bone Men communities, Infernal Pigments are rare and precious commodities and are generally not available for purchase, but bartered for in exchange for some great service or need of the community. They are usually saved for times of great travail, when the community must pick up and leave hastily to avoid extermination.

Ironically, while the Infernal Pigments were developed as a defensive measure to help avoid persecution, as the use of such products has trickled into legend and superstition, fear and hatred of the Bone Men has only grown.

[Deleted]

Very nice work. I will have to see if I can top that post an addition to Carcosa of my own.

[geoffrey]

This is brilliant. I particularly love the danger sorcerers face of thinking a Bone Man was one of the other 12 races of Men, and sacrificing him as such, thus triggering catastrophic results.

I also love the fact that these pigments make Bone Men even more shunned, since "they could be among us, disguised as one of us".

It is precisely for stuff such as this that I published CARCOSA: So people could invent and share Carcosan stuff that I would have never thought of.

Well done!

[terje]

On my way home from work today my mind received inspiring transmissions from Carcosa – this is what came through:

Yix’Caahl
This Great Old One is a ten feet tall biped with six arms and neither head nor face. Its body is composed of ruby red crystal and from within its depths shines a soft vermillion glow. Yix’Caahl lives by consuming the spiritual substance of sentient beings. It only needs to touch its victims skin to suck its spirit out unless the target makes a saving throw against Dragon Breath. If the attack is successful the victims body dies instantly. Within the Great Old Ones crystal body one can see the tormented faces of the spirits that are currently trapped within its digestive system. One soul will give Yix’Caahl nourishment for one week. If it has not found a new prey after that period it will go into a state of torpor where it will be completely immobile until some curious fool lays his or her hand upon it. Yix’Caahl retains all memories from all spirits that it has eaten and therefore possesses knowledge of many things. It is quite willing to give truthful answers to any questions in return for sacrifice, one sentient being per question. It only takes half damage from normal weapons but magical and high tech weapons make their usual damage. AC 1 Move 12 HD 25

Enslaver
This is a microorganism that infects the brain of humans and turns them into raging beasts. The disease spreads through body fluids, such as blood and saliva, often through wounds. Anyone who is hurt by the bite of an Enslaved must make a saving throw against Poison or be infected. That is one saving throw for every hit that does damage. An Enslaved will lose control over his or her own body and turn into a feral predator that attacks all other humans encountered. The transformation starts within an hour after being infected and rarely takes more than five minutes. The victim retains consciousness and can control facial expressions and speech. Enslaved humans will often cry out for help or try to warn their victims and tell them to run away. After a week or two the face becomes devoid of expression, the eyes become empty and nothing but growling and whimpering rises from the throat. The Enslaved have the same values as ordinary humans.

If healing magic (or technology) is available in the campaign an Enslaved can be cured by a spell or device or potion equivalent with Cure Disease. It is likely that the possibility to save the Enslaved will make it a whole lot worse when one is being attacked by them.

[geoffrey]

More good stuff. Thanks, and stay open to those Carcosa vibes! ;D

[Deleted]

Crussdaddy ... private message has been sent. I'd like you use your pigments in an upcoming Carcosa module to be released by "Brave Halfling Publishing".

[crusssdaddy]

dubeers... private message received and enthusiastically responded to! Sorry for the delay, I've been out and about in Hex 2205 gathering some incense for a little 'project'...

[Deleted]

@ Terje: private message sent regarding inclusion of your monsters in "The Carcosan Grimoire".

[crusssdaddy]

Festerblunt

The dank, stifling nests burrowed by the giant jungle ants are breeding grounds for all manner of noisome tropical putrescences, and thusly the ants have developed a natural remedy to annihilate even the most vigorous microbial predators. Festerblunt is a coarse crimson grit, slightly moist and with a sharp odor of ammonia. Produced internally by specialized worker ants and regurgitated for storage in chambers deep within their warrens, festerblunt is a powerful antibiotic and anti-fungal agent, with a number of compelling uses to those able to brave the giant jungle ants in order to obtain it.

Festerblunt affects the following vermin thusly:

Black Puddings and Grey Oozes: A half-handful of festerblunt scattered across a corridor or tunnel floor will act as a complete barrier to movement – a Black Pudding or Grey Ooze will absolutely not cross such an application of festerblunt. Twice that amount used successfully as a missile weapon against these creatures will inflict 6 dice of damage, and provoke fleeing movement at twice normal speed in the opposite direction.

Ochre Jellies: A full handful of festerblunt delivered by a penetrating thrust into an Ochre Jelly (it is wise to pre-measure, as any unprotected hands used in such an application will be lost) will have an immediate and spectacular effect, leaving the jelly entirely dead, somewhat shrunken, and altogether resembling a hard-boiled egg. Any lesser amount, or any amount that does not penetrate the outer cell wall, has no effect. (Note: A jelly killed thusly is a delicacy among the Brown Headhunters, and will have great value in barter.)

Green Slime: This foul corruption is evaporated by festerblunt at the ratio of one normal pinch per cubic yard. The reaction is all-consuming, leaving nothing behind but a brief flash of sanitizing heat.

Yellow Mold: This dangerous growth is cleansed by the scattering of one full handful of festerblunt per ten square foot area. The mold will release its spores immediately (save with a +5 bonus if within the area of effect), but will thereafter wither away and die.

Additionally, water may be made potable and all manner of beverages cleansed of biotic contagion (poisons or lotus compounds are unaffected) by application of festerblunt, at the ratio of one tiny pinch per gallon of liquid to be freshened. Solid foods may not be detoxified in this fashion.

Compresses and medical treatments containing festerblunt are particularly effective at promoting healing. If at least one normal pinch is used per hit die needed to heal, then healing will take place at twice the normal rate (i.e. two hit points per day, and four hit dice per week).

Festerblunt is exceedingly rare, virtually unknown in civilized lands, and may only be obtained in the following ways:

· As a gift from one of the wild Red Tribes of the steaming jungles, who alone possess the secret of where it may be found. Such a gift is given only to those who have rendered service to save the life of a chief or an entire tribe.

· In trade from those few wandering merchants whose caravans sometimes stray through the jungle fringes. Amounts are typically a handful or less, pricing is extravagant, and it will be offered only to those whom the merchants are certain will be able to pay.

· As recaptured spoils from the Brown Headhunters who haunt the jungles and war fiercely with the Red Tribes, and prey incessantly upon any caravans that penetrate too carelessly and deep into the be-misted, trackless wilds.

Festerblunt remains effective for up to one month if stored carefully in an airtight container; otherwise, it will dry out in a single day and be rendered inert.

[apeloverage]

Feb 4, 2009 13:28:09 GMT -6 terje said:

Enslaver
This is a microorganism that infects the brain of humans and turns them into raging beasts.

I like it - but I think 'Enslaved One' is a better name for the victim. partly because it's more distinct from the name of the organism.

[terje]

Apr 16, 2009 8:44:29 GMT -6 apeloverage said:

Feb 4, 2009 13:28:09 GMT -6 terje said:

Enslaver
This is a microorganism that infects the brain of humans and turns them into raging beasts.

I like it - but I think 'Enslaved One' is a better name for the victim. partly because it's more distinct from the name of the organism.

Yes I agree, thats a better name!

Glad you liked it. I was thinking of zombies, but of the virus-variety (especially as portrayed in 28 days later and Resident evil) rather than the magical undead.

[crusssdaddy]

I'm sandboxing the Icy Wastes using a scale of 3 miles per hex - here's a couple sample encounter areas:

The Crippled Machine

This area is home to an aggressive robot and the recharging station that sustains it. Originally a large (7’ tall by 12’ long) and robust model of arachnid morphology, the intervening millennia have seen several of its legs damaged or destroyed, and the robot is now forced to drag itself fitfully along with only three working legs.

Its main sensors are functioning and it can only be surprised on a 1, while it usually attacks from ambush (surprises on 1-5).

The only programming that remains intact instructs the robot to kill all life forms, except for White Men. However, its color receptors are degraded and there is a 50% chance each time it tries to attack a Bone or Yellow Man that it will become confused, and its attack for the round will be forfeit.

Additionally, millennia of combat and neglect have left some of its vital circuitry vulnerable to attack – any to hit roll of a natural 19 or 20 is a critical hit that will instantly destroy the robot.

If the robot is destroyed, the recharging station will be found if the PCs search the area. This unit is a small terminal that extends far into the ground (the power is drawn from geothermal sources deep within the planet), and the couplings are unique to this model of robot – a successful check vs. INT is required to jury-rig the unit to recharge any items of technology the PCs may be carrying. A new check must be made for each item the PCs wish to recharge. Two consecutive failures will result in an electrical discharge that does 1 die of damage to anyone within 10’. A third consecutive failure will result in an explosion that deals 3 dice damage to anyone within 30’ and destroys the unit.

The robot has internal systems that are able to harvest scrap metals for repairs – accordingly, there is no treasure to be found in this area.

Arachnid Robot Form 109Z-27K8: AC4, MV6, HD6, Neutral.


Lost Fane

This area radiates an intense evil that is obvious to anyone who approaches. Within a shallow, bowl-shaped depression some one hundred yards across is a shattered and long-forgotten fane to I’thaqua. No matter the weather at large, an icy gale will ceaselessly whip the snow here into whirling sheets that tatter clothing and rend flesh (anyone here must save vs. dragon breath each turn or suffer 1 die of damage).

At the center, all that remains of the fane are two shattered columns that jut like broken ribs from a pile of snow-crusted rubble. This rubble contains nothing of value, but anyone actively searching through it will incite the wrath of I’thaqua – sometime in the next 48 hours (DM decides when), the interloper(s) will be attacked by a revolting minion of the enraged Old One.

Obscenity of I’thaqua: AC5, MV18, HD6, Chaotic. This detestable abomination is a huge, rotting polar bear animated by the malice of I’thaqua. Hits from this beast have a 5% chance of inflicting The Creeping Freeze upon the victim (see Special Rules section). This creature will track and hunt fleeing quarry to the boundaries of the Icy Wastes.

Haven't decided what The Creeping Freeze is yet, so use your imagination!

[geoffrey]

More awesome stuff! ;D

[Deleted]

Snagged to here for possible inclusion in the Carcosan Grimoire Vol. II. (not counting the material already included in Vol I)

[terje]

Memory philtre
An alchemical concoction of black and jale lotus, if a deceased brain is liquefied in it and consumed the memories of the dead person can be acquired. There is a slight risk that the brew will bring permanent madness (5%) or even death (2%), but despite this the receipt for the memory philtre is sought by many eager sorcerers who can not wait to partake of their master’s knowledge.

[crusssdaddy]

Three sorcerous items from the CARCOSA supplement I will be releasing in the next week or so:

Crown of Unspent Days: Of unknown origin, this iron crown is plainly fashioned and otherwise unremarkable. If worn by a sorcerer of Chaotic alignment, the wearer will never suffer aging effects as a result of performing a ritual. Additionally, his minions need never check morale so long as the sorcerer remains within their sight. Any sorcerer of non-Chaotic alignment or non-sorcerer who wears the crown must save vs. spells or fall into a deep swoon, losing 1-8 points from each ability score; if any ability is reduced to zero or less death is immediate, otherwise one point is recovered per week after the crown is removed.

Crystal Chimes: This is a small set of three chimes, each one 5” long. They are made from a milky green crystal that is similar to jade, though much stronger (they are in fact impervious to damage). The jangling timbre of this instrument is extremely unpleasant to any of the named Old Ones (Cthulhu, Hastur, etc.) – any such being within 100' when they are played must save each round vs. spells at -6: success means no effect, failure means it suffers 1hp of damage and is unable to attack that round.

Gong of Distant Weeping: This immense nipple gong is a 12' iron disc with a copper/indium boss. The face is sculpted with a profusion of overlapping and intermingling polygons, and staring at the gong for more than a few seconds causes confusion for 2-8 rounds (no save). Striking the disc creates a sonic weapon effect with a range of 100'; striking the boss creates an effect identical to the sorcerous ritual The Curse of the Violet Mist.

[crusssdaddy]

How about some hex spam?

Hex 1204: A stinking heap of bloated grey flesh is being devoured by a frenzied swarm of 104 Giant Jungle Ants. The heap of flesh is the carcass of a Giant Slug that strayed too far from the moist safety of the jungle. The ants will not attack unless they are molested. In twelve hours time no trace of the slug will remain, save the Elder Sign that had been lodged in its gullet, and the ants will return to their jungle nest.

[crusssdaddy]

Spawn of Shub-Niggurath (AC9, MV 6[land] 9[fly], HD4, SA immobilizing vapors & acid spray, SD infra- and ultra-vision, AL C): a grey amoeboid with no external features but exceptional vision, it continuously wafts paralytic vapors that are effective at melee range and require a save vs. paralysis at -3 to withstand.

This skulking fiend flaps down from starry skies to feed upon the helpless. It typically selects small children, the infirm, or the disabled for victims. It is a silent killer – the unfortunate is rapidly engulfed, the paralytic fumes ensuring that any struggle is stifled. Powerful digestive acids dissolve the body within an hour and the spawn then makes its escape. It has no standard attack (although its fumes are effective against melee attackers), but can spray a stream of digestive acid (2D damage) up to 30′ three times per day.

This beast’s ectoplasm can be distilled into several vials of a potent contact anesthetic, quite valuable if a sophisticated buyer can be found.

[crusssdaddy]

Posted a blow-up of CARCOSA hex 1109 on my blog. Working on a crawl, more details to come...

succubicurious.wordpress.com/

[Deleted]

Angular Shapeshifter. # Appearing: 1; AC 9; Move 9/12; HD 15; % in Lair: 99%; Treasure: Nil.

ANGULAR SHAPESHIFTER : Above the planet Carcosa, floating in the
interstellar void is an impossible polyhedron. One can not say if it is
convex or concave. It escapes all qualifiers, or rather deserves them
all : it regular and irregular, isotoxal and uniform, semi-regular and
quasi-regular, ordered and disordered : it is the purest manifestation
of the chaotic law. It is constantly changing, losing faces, building
others. The only thing for sure about this entity is that it is evil,
sentient and terribly cold (its black surface is covered by cosmic
frost). In combat, the Angular Shapeshifter drains 1D energy levels by
succesful hit.

Psionics: 1-3 powers up to three times per day

to conjure: The Non-Euclidean Formulas
to banish: The Fifty-fourth Dark Theorem
to bind: Sublimation of the Highest Dimension
to imprison: The Spherical Perfection
to torment: Obliteration of the Null Polytope

The Non-Euclidean Formulas: This five-hour ritual will conjure the Angular Shapeshifter. The sorcerer must perform the ritual while writing hermetic calculations on the tanned skinned of five Bone Men flayed with an obsidian knife whose knob is set with a red opal worth at least 2,000 gp. As the ritual is completed, the sorcerer must ignite the skins with Greek fire. Then the Angular Shapeshifter will appear.

The Fifty-fourth Dark Theorem: This ritual takes 5 minutes to complete. At the end of the recitation, the sorcerer must attract the Angular Shapeshifter in a pool filled with honey. Once it is fully submerged, the Angular Shapeshifter will return to the interstellar void.

Sublimation of the Highest Dimension: This one-hour ritual can be performed only during a total solar eclipse in the Icy Wastes. The sorcerer, the face smeared with the blood of a throat cut Jale child, must fire a Neodymium ray towards the Sun. At the ritual’s end, the Angular Shapeshifter will obey the sorcerer at daytime until the next solar eclipse.

The Spherical Perfection: To complete this twenty-minute ritual, the sorcerer must be at the center of a circle formed by the skulls of seven sorcerers he defied and killed on top of which he has placed seven candles made ​​with grease levied on Green virgins. The candles then burn for twenty minutes whereafter the Angular Shapeshifter is trapped in the molten core of Carcosa. But if a candle burns too fast, too slow or turns off the sorcerer spontaneously ignites and melts like a candle, slowly drying out in atrocious suffering.

Obliteration of the Null Polytope: This nine-hour ritual can be performed only in hex 0808 in the largest crater of a very old volcano. There, the sorcerer must cast five blind and albino Dolm men in the fiery pit as he psalmody mysterious formulas.He must then pour three ounces of virgin quicksilver (collected in a basin of hex 0204) in the lava. During the ritual, the volcano will erupt while the Angular Shapeshifter, buried deep in the liquid core of Carsosa, struggles, plagued with unspeakable torments. At the ritual’s end, the Angular Shapeshifter will be bound to the sorcerer’s will for the next solar year.

[eaterofkittens]

Phial of Entropic Solution: This silver trimmed blue glass bottle contains a thin milky white fluid which corrodes metal and withers flesh. Its actually the ichor of a brightly colored centipede called a Yelekti which flourish in the mushroom jungle in the deep south.

[Malcadon]

I was watching this video where this '80s-dude gets a strange organic implant that looks like a Primordial One hand-puppet. I thought that would be a cool thing for Carcosa - with or without all the crazy '80s effects. It would be like the Hand of Vecna, in that you have to loose a hand - any one would do - but it would be a device of the Great Race that grants strange powers (and maybe some unforeseen side-effects to go with it ).