Saturday 26 February 2022

I Strip the Body and Put on the Soiled Robes

With The Inn in the Forest starting to appear in the mailboxes of Kickstarter backers, here is a little extra. You can use it with the aforementioned adventure, or just about any adventure where the PCs discover a cadaver. What happens when they strip the body and decide to put on what it was wearing?

If you have ever seen clothing left outdoors for any length of time, you will realize that these items are probably not going to be immediately wearable.

Time to roll 1d20 and add your Luck modifier! The results exceed 20 because thieves and halflings may spend Luck to adjust the result.

(0 or less)  You poor unlucky sod. Attempt a DC 20 Will save or the spirit of the cadaver possesses your body. You gain a new save after 1 hour, 1 day, and 1 week. If all of these fail, the possession is permanent.

Whether you or the spirit is in control, your body has a 2d3 penalty to both Agility and Personality. The Agility penalty only lasts while the clothing is worn, until it is properly laundered. The Personality penalty lasts as long as the unlaundered clothing is worn. Even then, 1d3 points of Personality penalty persists until you (or the spirit) can bathe and succeed in a Luck check. Only one attempt is allowed per 24 hour period.

Even if you succeed in your initial save, the spirit tries again so long as you continue wearing the garments (laundered or not): You must make a new DC 20 Will save after an hour, a day, and a week, with the same risk as the initial save. Should you succeed in each of these saves, the spirit departs the garments.  Probably.

(1)  The clothing is extremely foul and stiff, and the decaying odor of the body clings to the garments. You have a 2d3 penalty to both Agility and Personality. Worse, donning these garments requires a DC 15 Will save to avoid being cursed from beyond the grave! In this case, you lose 1 point from each ability score (including Luck) until the curse is removed. Burying the body (with or without the garments) may be sufficient, at the judge's discretion. Maybe more is required.

The Agility penalty only lasts while the clothing is worn, until it is properly laundered. The Personality penalty lasts as long as the unlaundered clothing is worn. Even then, 1d3 points of Personality penalty persists until you can bathe and succeed in a Luck check. Only one attempt is allowed per 24 hour period.

(2-5)  The clothing is excessively foul and stiff, with a lingering stench of death. You have a 2d3 penalty to both Agility and Personality. Worse, donning these garments requires a DC 10 Fortitude save to avoid becoming infected with a rotting disease causing 1d3 Stamina damage each day. Every hour, another save is required until the disease is contracted or the garments removed and you bathe. A cleric's Lay on Hands can remove the disease, but if you continue to wear the garments you might contract it again.

The Agility penalty only lasts while the clothing is worn, until it is properly laundered. The Personality penalty lasts as long as the unlaundered clothing is worn. Even then, 1d3 points of Personality penalty persists until you can bathe.

Laundering the garments may also remove the contagion; roll a Luck check each time you put them on following proper washing. If it succeeds, the disease can no longer be caught by wearing the garments. If it fails, roll a Fort save....

(6-10)  The clothing is both foul and stiff. You have a 2d3 penalty to both Agility and Personality. Worse, it is infested with parasites that now infest you! These parasites cause a 1d3 penalty to Stamina. The Agility penalty only lasts while the clothing is worn, until it is properly laundered. The Personality penalty lasts as long as the unlaundered clothing is worn. Even then, 1d3 points of Personality penalty persists until you can bathe. The parasites are harder to get rid of. Every time you bathe, you are allowed a Luck check to be rid of them. Once the parasites are gone, Stamina penalties go away at the rate of 1 point per day. A cleric may also remove these parasites with a successful Lay on Hands check.

(11-15)  Unfortunately, the clothing is both foul and stiff. You have a 2d3 penalty to both Agility and Personality. The Agility penalty only lasts while the clothing is worn, until it is properly laundered. The Personality penalty lasts as long as the unlaundered clothing is worn. Even then, 1d3 points of Personality penalty persists until you can bathe.

(16-20)  The clothes are somewhat foul and stiff. You have a 1d3 penalty to both Agility and Personality. The Agility penalty only lasts while the clothing is worn, until it is properly laundered. The Personality penalty lasts as long as the unlaundered clothing is worn. Even then, one point of Personality penalty persists until you can bathe.

(21-25)  The clothes are stiff but not as foul as they could be. You have a 1d3 penalty to Agility so long as they are worn, until they have been properly laundered.

(26+)  Lucky you! Against all odds, there are no ill effects.

Saturday 19 February 2022

Gary Con

 


There are still some seats available in The Arwich Grinder, and one in The Dread God Al-Khazadar. I intend to be there in person!