Fatal Lurks

FATAL LURK

Most lurks are small predators that impersonate other creatures. Normally not deadly under normal circumstances, it is known through the sparse records recovered that these creatures were experimented on in Darkmoor during the rise of the Zuhn Empire. If they were ever used is unknown, but at some point specimens escaped and evolved into the common forms known today.

Lurkers are wide and very flat creatures that cover ceilings in caverns. The top of their bodies resemble rough stone, making them hard to spot, while the bottom is covered in tiny legs that anchor it and can be used to grab victims. When prey passes under it, the lurker drops onto it and attempts to constrict its victim. Lurkers gain a +2 bonus on surprise checks if not found before attacking. The lurker’s initial attack gains a +2 bonus on the ‘to hit’ roll. When a lurker hits, it attempts to wrap its victim (+4 bonus to the wrestling check). Once successful it will wrap itself around the victim and crush for 2d8 points of damage.

Mimics are an advanced form of fatal lurks that can change into a couple of different objects, Most common are chests, wardrobes or other closable objects. They are hard to detect and gain surprise (+2) if unnoticed. When a victim opens the mimic it strikes, snapping shut on any appendages stuck within (Dodge saving throw to avoid if not surprised). Mimics can extend a sticky pseudopod to strike victims as well. Victims struck must succeed at a strength check on 4d6 or be drawn to the mouth and bitten every round until freed. Rumors about of mimics that emulate larger objects and one large as a small house exists, but none have been confirmed.

Piercers are fatal lurkers that populate large caverns and other open underground places. When prey passes under a piercer they drop from their position and attempt to lance their target. Victims failing a Dodge saving throw are run through and knocked down. If a piercer is successful it secretes an enzyme that breaks down flesh, inflicting 1d6 points of damage per round. On the ground, piercers will climb the nearest wall to get high so it can drop again. Until then they fight with a pseudopod that inflicts 1d4 points of damage.

Trappers are much like lurkers but they lie on the rough floors of caverns and ‘wrap up’ their victims.

Lurker / Trapper (L) - AC 2[18]; HD 8; Att slam (2d4+wrestle); Save 8; Morale 8; MR Nil; Special surprise (+2), crush (2d8), wrestle (+4); Move 30 ft (10 ft) swim; TC A; CL/XP 10 / 1,400

Mimic (M) - AC 4[16]; HD 4; Att bite (1d8) + pseudopod (1d8+wrestle); Save 13; Morale nil; MR Nil; Special surprise (+2); Move 60 ft (20 ft); TC A, K; CL/XP 4 / 120

Piercer, 1HD (S) - AC 0[20]; HD 1+1; Att pseudopod (1d4); Save 17; Morale 6; MR Nil; Special enzyme (1d6), lance victim, surprise (+2); Move 30 ft (10 ft); TC A; CL/XP 1 / 15

Piercer, 2HD (S) - AC 0[20]; HD 2+2; Att pseudopod (1d4); Save 16; Morale 6; MR Nil; Special enzyme (1d6), lance victim, surprise (+2); Move 30 ft (10 ft); TC A; CL/XP 2 / 30

Piercer (M) - AC 0[20]; HD 4+4; Att pseudopod (1d4); Save 13; Morale 7; MR Nil; Special enzyme (1d6), lance victim, surprise (+2); Move 30 ft (10 ft); TC A; CL/XP 4 / 120

The Gaunt

GAUNT

The gaunt are a horrid degenerate race found in the Great Waste and the Ironsands Desert. Some say they have been found in the Deserts of Uln as well. Certain places in these regions have a destructive effect on living creatures that enter them for prolonged periods of time. Those not spared the painful mutation by being killed soon after entering are turned into the Gaunt.

So far as has been seen, any creature can be turned into a gaunt. They resemble zombies, with patches of rotting flesh and tight leathery skin, but gaunt are far more dangerous. They still possess a feral intelligence, with most of their higher brain functions being destroyed by their mutation.

Gaunt move with a surprising quickness when they discover prey. In combat they attack with whatever natural weapons they possess. Humanoids for example will attack with fists and bite. The primary goal of a gaunt is to wrestle its opponent (+4 on wrestling check) and score a pin. Once a victim is held they will begin to feed immediately by biting. The bite of a gaunt is extremely dangerous, as it will infect the victim with the gaunt’s mutated cells and start the process in them on a failed Toughness saving throw. After 1d6+1 hours a System shock is needed for infected individuals, failure meaning they die. On a success, each hour afterwards the victim loses a point of Constitution until they reach a zero, whereupon they become gaunts themselves.

Gaunt (M) - AC 8[12]; HD 4; Att wrestle (special) or bite (1d8+disease); Save 13; Morale Nil; MR Nil; Special disease, immune to sleep, charm and hold, wrestler (+4); Move 150 ft (50 ft); TC A; CL/XP 6 / 400

Frogligators

FROGLIGATOR

Some say once long ago, during the Zuhn Empire’s reign, the experiments carried out on monsters and animals in Darkmoor’s halls of science produced these monstrosities. These creatures resemble huge frogs nearly 10 ft around with short, sharp claws and topped by the head of an alligator. Frogligators are excellent swimmers in water and hop fast on land.

Frogligator hides have a slight adaptive ability, granting them a +1 bonus to be hidden and on surprise rolls. They possess the same lashing tongue attack of their normal-sized cousins, able to reach up to 15 ft distant. On a successful ‘to hit’ roll, the victim must succeed at a Strength check on 4d6 or be dragged into the mouth for automatic bite damage. Up to four smaller than man-size creatures, such as gnomes and halflings, can be swallowed whole and take 1d8 points of damage per round until retrieved.

Frogligator (L) – AC 4[16]; HD 6; Att claw (1d6) + bite (2d8) or tongue lash; Save 12; Morale 8; MR Nil; Special camoflague (+1), swim, tongue lash; Move 90 ft (30 ft) / 150 ft (50 ft) swim; TC A; CL/XP 7 / 600

[DISCLAIMER - Image used from the 'Alligator Frog' minaiture from Center Stage Miniatures site.]

Tunnel Horror

Inhabiting the dark places under the earth, tunnel horrors are large, bug-like terrors best avoided by those that know of their existance. Tunnel horrors are beetle-like creatures that walk upright on four thick legs, their other four legs ending in wickedly sharp and strong pick-like claws. They can feel the vibrations of creatures moving on stone (a type of tremor-sense) within 200 ft. Tunnel horrors have the a fanged maw as well and a single, compound eye on their heads. Their eye glows with a soft limunescence and at a distance can be mistaken for a faint lantern. In combat, those looking at the eye (25% chance per round unless the attacker is avoiding looking at the monster's upper half, suffering a -2 penalty on 'to hit' rolls) suffer the same effects as a confusion spell for 1d3 rounds, plus the difference of the failed saving throw. They can burrow through solid rock at the rate of 10 ft per round. A favorite tactic of tunnel horrors is to wait behind a wall of rock a few feet thick and then burst through when the feel something approach the other side, gaining a +1 suprise bonus.

Tunnel Horror (L)
Armor Class:	2[18]
Hit Dice:	8
Attacks:	4 claws (1d6) + bite (1d8)
Saving Throw:	8
Morale:	8
Magic Resistance:	Nil
Special:	burrow, confusion
Move:	90ft(30ft) / 30ft(10ft) burrow
Challenge Level/XP:	10 / 1,400

Carrion Worms

Now of course you can't have a low level game without familiar catepillar-like, tentacle ringed mouth monsters that climbs walls and eats whole parties at once. For the World of Onn, an old favorite, with a slightly new take.

CARRION WORM

These odd creatures resemble a 10 ft long armored and segmented caterpillar. On the monster’s head are two large black eyes and a beak surrounded by six long tentacles. Carrion worms inhabit deep places and popular ruins, places where animals and people die frequently so they can feed off of the corpses. A carrion worm has no qualms about killing for its meal either and will attack groups of smaller creatures in the hopes of securing something to take to a safe place and let ripen for feasting on at a later date. In combat the carrion worm lashes out with its tentacles. The tentacles are covered in a slimy substance that causes paralysis to those creatures struck (Toughness saving throw negates), so they are rightly feared by those that know of them as well. Sages suggest these creatures were once one of the experiments of the ancient Zuhn Empire in their magical laboratories.

Carrion Worm (L) – AC 5[14]; HD 4; Att 6 tentacles (1 hit point + paralysis); Save 13; Morale 7; MR Nil; Special causes paralysis; Move 120 ft (40 ft); TC A; CL/XP 6 / 400

The Scorn

Scorn (L)
Armor Class:	0[19]
Hit Dice:	6+6 to 9+9
Attacks:	great spear (1d6+4) + tail (1d6+poison)
Saving Throw:	11 (6HD), 9 (7HD), 8 (8HD), 6 (9HD)
Morale:	8 (6-8HD), 9 (9HD)
Magic Resistance:	Nil
Special:	Strong poison
Move:	150 ft (50 ft)
Challenge Level/XP:	7 / 600 (6HD), 8 / 800 (7HD), 9 / 1,100 (8HD), 10 / 1,400 (9HD)

Once long ago the Scorn were natives to the midlands of Var-Ultar, before the Fire in the Sky. When the Fire carved its path of destruction through Ossus and Var-Ultar, the land and people that dwelt there were changed horribly - the land became a dry desert where only the hardiest plants could survive. Of the people, the few not killed outright by the event were horribly mutated. Most of these died off as well, but those who call themselves the Scorn are a tauric combination of man and giant scorpion that thrive in the dry wastelands. Scorn combine the body of a giant scorpion, but where the ‘face’ should be sprouts a bloated humanoid torso. Occasionally a slight mutation leaves a newborn scorn with the claws of the giant scorpion as well, granting 2 additional attacks for 1d6+1 damage each. The scorn are divided into tribes that criss-cross the Ironsands Desert. For the right price, they can be hired out as guides...but most enjoy the life of desert raiders.

"Scott's Gnolls"

One thing of note, I introduced the party to Gnolls for the first time during Session 10. Around the gaming tables of both groups I play in, "Scott's Gnolls" evokes a sense of uncertainty and dread. Scott (who plays with Brian in the Saturday 3.5e game) ran games way back in the AD&D days and his Gnolls were every bit as crafty and dangerous as PCs. They hunted in packs, they used tactics, they tracked you down and hunted you to exhaustion, then they would play with you like a chew toy until they were ready to go in for the kill. As much as we came to admire and hate Brian's Orcs for their military might and regimen, we outright feared Scott's Gnolls for their intelligent application of their feral skills.

Imagine your common wolfpack (or hyena pack) but man-shaped and just as intelligent, possessing the natural abilities and tendencies practiced over hundered or thousands of years. Now you just attracted their attention. You know there's a pack of them and you see a few, but you know and feel more...watching, waiting...for just the right moment when the packlord signals them in for the kill...

You run...thinking you got away, but then you feel it...that dread...that sense that you're wrong...heart racing, scanning the brush, trees, squinting into the tall grass...

You feel something on your side, look down and an arrow, slick with your blood is sprouting from you. You look up again and as things go dark, you see them circling and closing in, sensing their Hunt is at an end...

Yeah...Scott's Gnolls are something to rightly be feared....even after all these years...

Forsaken Knights

Forsaken Knight, Undead (M)
Armor Class:	-1[20]
Hit Dice:	9
Attacks:	2 weapon (1d10+2) or 2 touch (1d8+2)
Saving Throw:	6
Morale:	10
Magic Resistance:	15%
Special:	DR 9/Blessed, immune to sleep, charm, and hold, aura, harmful touch, spell-like abilities, command undead
Move:	90ft(30ft)
Challenge Level/XP:	14 / 3,000

Divine Champions are rare enough that when one turns from his Deity, his Deity takes notice. Low level Divine Champions are given sufficient leeway, but after a Divine Champion’s deeds become part of his church’s lessons and he becomes a shining example of his faith, transgressions can have severe consequences. The greatest is turning away from one’s faith in a crucial moment. For breaking this vow, the unfortunate Champion is laid with a Curse of the Forsaken - on his death he will be denied the peace of an afterlife, bound in his body to forever roam the mortal realm - in effect becoming a powerful undead.

No matter what type of armor a Forsaken Knight wears, it appears tarnished and worn, his holy symbol blackened and twisted. If the Knight’s features can be seen he appears much as in life, but with leathery, mummified-looking skin and a hollow voice. His eyes glow with a feral red to sickly orange color.

In combat, Forsaken Knights are devastating melee opponents. In addition to their martial abilities, they produce an aura of blight 10 ft radius that inflicts a -2 penalty on all enemies’ attack rolls, their touch inflicts 1d8+2 points of damage from the death energies that sustain them and 3 times per day they can use in any combination spiritual weapon (1d6+1 damage), consecrate* and finger of death (at 9th level Clerical ability) as a spell-like power. Once per week they may perform a word of recall as well. Lastly, Forsaken Knights can command undead and cast spells as a 3rd level Anti-cleric.

For a conversion into Swords & Wizardry, the Forsaken Knight's movement score is 9 and XP Value is 2,600.

Orbulous Servitor (Lesser Golem)

Orbulous Servitor Golem (Lesser, S)
Armor Class:	4[15]
Hit Dice:	1 (6 hp)
Attacks:	1 claw (1d3) or flaming oil (1d8 for 2 rounds)
Saving Throw:	17
Morale:	Nil
Magic Resistance:	Nil
Special:	Immune to sleep, charm and hold, flight
Move:	150ft(50ft) fly
Challenge Level/XP:	2 / 30

Orbulous servitors are metallic spheres that float about 3-5 ft off the ground. They have a single red eye that tracks from side to side and a single claw that hangs from the bottom of their body. While not very good combatants, orbulous servitors have a higher degree of agility than other golems and can make good use of grenade-like weapons if available. They mainly see use as an assistant to handle dangerous reagents or tedious work like pot stirring and the like.

For a conversion into Swords & Wizardry, divide first number of the base movement rate by 10, so Orbulous Servitors would have a S&W movement of 15.

Headless

The manual for Ultima IV had a beastairy in it that was illustrated. One of my favorite opponents was a creature called a Headless. The picture was of a hairy, fuzzy creature in a loincloth and wielding a spear. It didn't look dangerous at all (except for the spear) and they were like Kobolds for Britannia I guess cause they were dirt cheap XPs and always seemed to be near max numbers for encounters. Another way Ultima has affected Onn I guess.

Headless (S)
Armor Class:	6[13]
Hit Dice:	1d4 hp
Attacks:	bite (1d4) or weapon (1d6-1)
Saving Throw:	18
Morale:	5
Magic Resistance:	Nil
Special:	Blindsense
Move:	90ft(30ft)
Challenge Level/XP:	A / 5

Headless are small (3 ft tall) humanoids with a fanged mouth set in the center of their torso, but with no head or visible sight organs. Their squat bodies are covered in short fur and they wear primitive furs for clothing and can wield primitively constructed weapons (spears, daggers, slings, clubs, etc). They sense their surroundings through air movement and can ‘see’ invisible and hiding creatures as plainly as visible ones.

For a conversion into Swords & Wizardry, divide first number of the base movement rate by 10, so Headless would have a S&W movement of 9.

Black Orcs

Again, thinking Brian Freed is some sort of German-loving and PC-hating machine, we ran into a different breed of Orc in his games - the Black Orc. Now, Brian's orcs were a thing to behold. They used tactics, they hunted down PCs that let one get away and eventually, we discovered that sometimes they went for the kill in more covert but just as deadly ways. We had a usual encounter with some orcs in the early sessions of one of Brian's campaigns in Moi Greke (his game world) and in the interest of avoiding any further 'Orc-perial entanglements', when they fled we let them go so we could limp away alive. BIG mistake! When the orcs never regrouped and came back for us, we thought we were free and clear. What we didn't know was the orcs put a bounty on us and one of their assassin's decided to try to collect. This big black-skinned orc started to pop up every once in a while and another player, Brad (whose character I can't recall anymore), foiled it once and added a few choice insults to the injury...this made Brad's character the orc's first target after that. This badass orc would trail us, sometimes figure out where we were headed and lay traps for us and in general was one of the most annoying, scary and thorough off the cuff nemesis I've had part in dealing with over the years. Some of the actual villian bad guys were easier to deal with than this orc. And every time he popped up he got Brad but couldn't finish him off, which made both even more driven to kill the other. Eventually Brad got that orc, but it was one of the most memorable not-planned party enemies I've dealt with in a long time. Hats off to you Brian, as a player I hated these things, but they are fun to throw!

Orc, Black (M)
Armor Class:	5[14]
Hit Dice:	3
Attacks:	1 weapon (1d8+1)
Saving Throw:	13
Morale:	7
Magic Resistance:	Nil
Special:	Sunlight blindness, sneaking, backstab
Move:	120ft(40ft)
Challenge Level/XP:	5 / 240

Orcs are normally stupid, brutish humanoids with pig or boar-like features that gather in tribes. Most are subterranean dwellers, and fight with a penalty of -1 in sunlight. There is a type of orc known only by their skin color and not by their tribe - the black orcs. These orcs are born with the favor of the demonlord Fuleni, Lord of Treachery. Black orcs are assassins of the highest caliber, able to sneak with proficiency (+1 to suprise rolls) and every attack they make is considered a backstab attack.

For a conversion into Swords & Wizardry, divide first number of the base movement rate by 10, so Black Orcs would have a S&W movement of 12.

Shifter Cat

Shifter Cat (M)
Armor Class:	4[15]
Hit Dice:	6
Attacks:	2 tentacles (1d8) + bite (2d6)
Saving Throw:	11
Morale:	8
Magic Resistance:	Nil
Special:	Shifting
Move:	120ft(40ft)
Challenge Level/XP:	7 / 600

These large cats are comparable to the size of a panther and have a mottled grey and black fur hide. In poor lighting, they seem to be nothing more than large cats, but when angered or seen in bright light, two wispy, ethereal-looking claw-tipped tentacles seem to sprout from the creature’s shoulders. Characters attempting to strike a shifter cat find that they are not totally of this plane, existing simultaneously on the Ethereal Plane as well. This results in the first attack any creature makes is an automatic miss against a shifter cat. All attacks made thereafter suffer a -2 penalty. Because of their dual nature, shifter cats can attack creatures in the Prime Material and Ethereal Planes at the same time.

For a conversion into Swords & Wizardry, divide the first number of the move score by 10, so a shifter cat would move at 12.

Ghosts of Onn

Ghost (M)
Armor Class:	0[19]
Hit Dice:	9
Attacks:	1 touch (1d6 + aging) + gaze (fear)
Saving Throw:	6
Morale:	9
Magic Resistance:	15%
Special:	Immune to sleep, charm and hold, DR 9/+3 magic, fear gaze, aging touch, ethereal, flight
Move:	210ft(70ft) fly
Challenge Level/XP:	13 / 2,500

Ghosts are the restless spirits of powerful mortals that become trapped between worlds - unable to return to life or cross over to true death, they become bitter of everything living. They resemble the form of their former body, pale and translucent and misty. They can pass through solid objects while ethereal but may only attack other ethereal creatures while in this state. The gaze of a ghost causes fear (Ego saving throw negates) and their touch drains the vitality of the living, aging then 1d10 years (System Shock reduces this by half). Ghosts usually attempt to lead adventurers to their doom and feast on their remaining lives just before death. In some cases, a ghost can be laid to rest if its physical remains can be properly taken care of (not that the ghost will allow their bodies to be taken peacefully however).

For Swords & Wizardry, simply divide the first number of their movement score by 10, so movement is at 21 (fly). XP value would be 13 / 2,300.

Crawling Horrors

Crawling Horror (S)	Foot or Hand	Head
Armor Class:	7[12]	6[13]
Hit Dice:	1d4 hp	1d6 hp
Attacks:	1 rake or kick (1d2)	1 bite (1d4)
Saving Throw:	18	18
Morale:	N/A	N/A
Magic Resistance:	Nil	Nil
Special:	Immune to sleep, charm and	hold
Move:	120ft(40ft)	60ft(20ft)
Challenge Level/XP:	A / 5	B / 10

Crawling horrors are the severed appendages of a human or humanoid creature animated through the use of necromantic arts. They crawl, hop and roll along to their victims and inflict light damage, but their true danger lies in their numbers and the fact that they gain a +1 bonus to surprise opponents due to their size.
Crawling horrors can be made with the animate dead spell, with double the amount of being animated by the caster. Crawling horrors turn as skeletons and count as 1/2 HD each.

For Swords & Wizardry, simply divide the first number of their movement score by 10, so Feet or Hands move at 12 and Heads move at 6.