Propitiating the Ancient Angry Gods

 

Prayer & Supplication

The gods and demons enjoy proper propitiation. Each has their own favorite offerings. They also respect those with great personal power. Champions and heroes or villains, those who take hold of the reins of Fate and direct its course. There is no dedicated Priest or Cleric class. Anyone can pray. To see if the god responds make a d100 roll. Calculate the TN as follows: The 10’s place is determined by what sacrifices you make or oaths you offer. An oath is a promise to perform a service on behalf of the god. The DM assigns a value to the offering between 10% and 90% based on its worth. The 1’s place is equal to your level. If you are a dedicated Champion of the god double your TN. If you are on bad terms with the god halve your TN instead. If the Prayer Check succeeds the god grants you a vision or omen that answers your question (though their answers are rarely straight forward and easy to interpret). They can also perform miracles on your behalf.

Perigor is a 4th level Fighter (+4%), if he offered a bottle of wine (+10%) he would have a 14% chance of having his prayer heard. If he was a Champion his chance increases to 28%. If the god he’s addressing hates him, it drops to 7%.

Offering Table

Sacrifice	Oath	Prayer Bonus
Bottle of fine wine (75sp)	Give 100sp as alms	+10%
Chicken or small animal	Aid the next devotee of the god you meet	+20%
Fine incense or perfume	Three services to be named later	+30%
3 small animals or 1 medium animal	Complete a minor quest	+40%
Exotic herbs or resins. Fine gems.	Build a shrine to the god	+50%
3 medium animals or 1 large animal	Complete a difficult quest	+60%
Magic item or piece of fine art	Build a temple to the god	+70%
3 large animals or 1 unwilling human	Complete a legendary quest	+80%
Willing Human	Lifelong Fealty (renouncing all other gods)	+90%

Miracles
If you appeal to a god for a miracle and they answer your prayer, they may decide to grant or withhold their aid. The DM makes a Reaction Check. If the god is favorable they will do one of the following:

• Grant you the immediate benefit of up to 3 Fate Dice, Magic Dice or Ritual Dice.
• Grant the effect of one spell or ritual related to their domain. It is cast with up to 6 MD. Demi-gods use d12’s and gods use d20’s for MD.
• Create an advantage through coincidence. If you desperately need a weapon, you find one. The guard accidentally drops something you can use to pick the lock on your cell door. A sudden rainstorm makes the dogs chasing you lose your scent. The miracle can be unlikely, but it must be something that could happen naturally, something an onlooker would explain as a stroke of luck.
• Heal an injured creature to full HP.
• Save a dying creature (restore them to 1 HP).
• Break a spell or curse. The god must have a domain related to the spell or the spell’s Empowering Demon must serve them.

 

Void Knight

 

This GLoG class is based on this (as well as Miyazaki). I took the basic mechanics and reworked it to be less Princess Mononoke themed. Tied it in with some of the demons in my game (the kind that want to devour all matter in the cosmos).

VOID KNIGHT

You are a curse in human shape. An instrument of destruction in the hands of the unfallen anti-cosmic gods. You may call upon their terrible power to rend the world into bloody tatters, but the price they demand may do the same to you.

Starting Equipment: Black Crystal Blade (d6), One weapon of your choice (and 12 ammunition appropriate to the weapon if it is ranged), one small weapon of your choice, medium or heavy armor, a light or heavy shield, the bloody skull of a recent enemy.

A: Annihilation, Monstrous Doom, Void Knight Skills
B: Heretical Monasticism, Inward Turning Carnage
C: Obliteration, Negation’s Door
D: Deathless Knight

A: Annihilation
Your crystal sword can channel the destroying fires of the void. If you spend 1 point of Max HP your next melee attack automatically hits. A nameless NPC is utterly rent asunder, dying in a shower of gore. Against a boss or important NPC this attack becomes a Crit instead. Those that die by Annihilation cannot return as Discarnate Souls, be controlled by necromancy, or raised from the dead. Their soul is ripped away and devoured by the Bornless Ones. Maximum HP spent on this ability can never be regained.

A: Monstrous Doom
When you die you’re reborn as a Void Devil obsessed with the destruction of all life and matter in the cosmos. Its HD equals your Level (roll its Max HP). It has all of your Templates, spells, and abilities, as well as d3 Demonic Powers. All of its Attributes are 3 higher than yours initially were. It has your memories and takes perverse pleasure in killing everything you cared for.

A: Void Knight Skills
You gain 5 + ¼ Might points to spend on the following Skills: Archery, Heretical Doctrine, Martial Arts, Weapon Master (Sword). You can ignore the Skill Cap for these Skills.

B: Heretical Monasticism
Gain 6 Max HP and +1 Might.

B: Inward Turning Carnage
The fatal flames have taken root in your soul. You can make Annihilation attacks bare-handed, or channel them through mundane weapons. Missiles are automatically destroyed by the terrible energy imbued into them. Melee weapons break on a 2-in-6 chance. Magic weapons on a 1-in-6 chance.

You can sacrifice Attribute points in place of Maximum HP when fueling your abilities. Each point is worth 2 Max HP (any remainders are lost after the battle ends).

C: Obliteration
Your Annihilation attacks no longer require a weapon or physical contact. You can tear reality apart through sheer force of will. This costs 2 Max HP and destroys (or Crits) all enemies you can see within 30’. All that’s left is a fine red mist and piles of viscera.

C: Negation’s Door
You can use your Black Crystal Blade to tear open a rift to the Void. It remains open for d3 rounds. Each round spent traveling in the Void allows one to cover 50 miles in the real world. Each round a mortal is in the Void they take d2 damage. The DM should make an Encounter Check every round. This ability can be used again to return to reality.

D: Deathless Knight
You can take an arrow through the heart and keep walking. The freezing black fire of an inverted sun burns in your blood, it moves you when flesh should fail and reason crumble. Once per day when an attack would reduce you to 0 or lower HP, you can choose to instead spend any amount of your maximum HP and prevent 10 damage from the attack for each point spent. Maximum HP spent on this ability can never be regained.

 

Imp Breeding

Imp Breeding

I need to flesh out my take on Spell Breeding. This is an expanded look at the Cantrip Imps Template from my Witch class. [Rules inspired by: https://goblinpunch.blogspot.com/2016/05/mutant-spells.html]

B: Cantrip Imps

Having more than one Familiar invites an unpleasant but useful opportunity. When Familiars breed they lay Devil Spawn in your soul. At the start of every session roll a d20. If you roll under the number of Familiars you possess, an Imp is born. Imps are just like regular Familiars, except they only know one Familiar spell and one random cantrip from any spell list. Randomly determine their parents.

After successfully casting their cantrip nine times they mature and become a regular Familiar (gaining all the Familiar Spells). They lose their cantrip and gain either one of their parent’s unique spells or a Mutant Spell derived from one or both of them. Roll a d6:

1: Parent Spell with Drawback
2-4: Parent Spell
5: Parent Spell with Improvement & Drawback
6: Parent Spell with Improvement

Random Improvements Table

d20	Improvement	Effect
1	Improved Effect	The spell does more of whatever it does. 2d6 damage becomes 3d6, charm becomes obsession, etc.
2	Improved Range	The range of the spell improves by one category.
3	Improved Area of Effect	The spell affects a wider area (+50%), or more targets (+d4).
4	Improved Duration	The spell improves its duration. It becomes [Original Duration]+d4.
5	Improved Applicability	The spell affects a broader category of targets. Charm person becomes charm biped.
6	Cascade	If the spell is successful, a half strength version will jump to an adjacent area or target.
7	Fast	You can cast the spell as a free action.
8	Potent	Targets get -4 to their Save.
9	Subtle	You can cast this spell quietly and without being noticed.
10	Graceful	You have more control over your spell. You can create gaps in your fireball, for example.
11	Elemental Transmutation	The spell changes elements or orientations. Fireball becomes lightningball, protection from evil becomes protection from good, charm person becomes charm bird (or perhaps infuriate person), web becomes freedom of movement.
12	Vitalizing	Casting the spell heals the witch for d3 HP.
13	Elemental Infusion	The spell gains an additional elemental type. The DM reworks the spell as needed to account for this (after all, what does Burning Teleport do?).
14	Imp Vortex	All Imps you possess merge with the Familiar. All of their Cantrips combine with the Familiar’s Unique Spell (like in Demonic Fusion).
15	Blood Sorcery	Each d3 damage you elect to take allows you to add an extra MD to the spell.
16	Demonic Rebirth	Your Familiar awakens to it’s full infernal potential and becomes a more potent demon. It has 2HD and Will 14 and gains a second Unique spell. It still serves you but must be paid twice the usual amount of HP.
17	Imp Litter	d3 additional Imps are born, they all have the same spell when they mature.
18	Demonic Fusion	Your Familiar has fused with another one of your Familiars, rolled at random. Their Unique Spells merge together into something new and strange. Fireball+ cure light wounds becomes cureball (which is broken as all hell, but just roll with it). Charm person + heat metal becomes charm fire (and once you befriend a fire, it will do favors for you). Cure wounds + cause wounds becomes Open void rift (because that's like dividing by zero or something). If there is no other Familiars in your body to fuse with, your Familiar dies of loneliness. As it rots away inside your soul, you digest it. Gain one free Witchblood Template.
19	Infernal Witch	Your Familiar has fused with you irrevocably. It no longer takes up residence in a specific body part and it can’t be cast out or removed. It loses all of its spells. In return you either gain a related Demonic Power chosen by the DM or the inherent ability to cast its Unique Spell spell 2/day.
20	Double Improvements!	Roll for two Improvements (ignoring further results of 20).

Random Drawbacks Table

d20	Drawback	Effect
1	Worsened Effect	The spell does less of whatever it does. 2d6 damage becomes 1d6, charm becomes placate.
2	Worsened Range	The range of the spell worsens by one category. A helpful spell with a range of 'touch' is reduced to 'self only'. Re-roll if this would reduce a damaging spell's range below 'touch'.
3	Worsened Area of Effect	The spell affects a smaller area (-50%), or fewer targets (-d4). Re-roll if this would reduce a spell to fewer than 1 target.
4	Worsened Duration	The spell shortens its duration. It becomes [Original Duration]-d4. If the duration is instantaneous but creates a permanent effect (such as with knock or cure light wounds), the spell's effect becomes temporary. For example, the door would re-lock itself and the wounds would reopen after 10 minutes.
5	Worsened Applicability	The spell affects a narrower category of targets. Charm person becomes charm man or charm thief.
6	Sacrifice	The Familiar requires a unique reagent or offering to cast the spell. This item always takes up an inventory slot.
7	Weak	Targets get +4 to their save.
8	Dawdling	The Familiar takes one extra round to cast the spell.
9	Exhausting	You are stunned for one round after casting this spell.
10	Smoke Bound	The Familiar requires you to take a dose of Strange Drugs to cast the spell.
11	Maddening	You take 1d4 Wis damage when you cast this spell. It heals 1 point / day.
12	Aneurysm	You take [dice]d3 damage when you cast the spell.
13	Greedy	You must burn an MD to cast this spell.
14	Casting Conditions	The spell can only be cast under certain conditions (time of day, environment, etc).
15	Unreliable	The spell has a 2-in-6 chance of fizzling.
16	Erratic	The spell has a 1-in-6 chance of going off in a random direction or targeting a random target (including yourself).
17	Willful	Your Familiar becomes more strong willed and stubborn. It’s Will increases to 15. It often talks to you. Roll a random starting personality and goals. If it is angry at you, it may refuse to be cast its spells. If it is especially pleased, it may enhance its spells in a way that you request. If mistreated it may request (or plot) its release, or the release of all of your Familiars.
18	Corruptive	The spell is tainted by anti-cosmic power. Every time you cast it you gain 1 CD.
19	Luckeater	You must burn one Fate Die to cast the spell.
20	Double Drawbacks!	Roll for two Drawbacks (ignoring further results of 20).