Book of Bone and Ebony

More documents

Recommendations

Info

147 CHAPTER SIX • CREATURES OF THE UNDERWORLD CHAPTER SIX CREATURES OF THE UNDERWORLD Ghosts fear the monsters of the Underworld, but their fright over the creatures’ existence rise even above mere fear of known dangers. While they sometimes display some intelligent thinking through they way they behave and respond to changes in a given situation, these creatures are unable to act rationally in response to different circumstances, to comprehend emotions or to engage in communication. Instead, all these creatures can do is to perform their role, which was set at the moment of their creation, until the day when something obliterates them and sends them to Oblivion. PLASMICS AND SOCIETY Many ghost savants have dedicated their existences to journeying across the realms in hopes of uncovering the origin of each type of plasmic and then cataloguing them in the archives of the Underworld, including the one in the Halls of Ebony and Bone, located 100 miles south of Stygia. In previous centuries, their task was not an easy one, since each savant had her own theory on how these creatures came to be and what purpose they served in the Underworld. Eventually, the savants realized that it was futile since there are as many different origins as there are types of creatures. Some rise as the embodiment of strange and maddened Malfean dreams, others are byproducts of failed sorcery, while the vast majority awakens without any substantial explanation as to from whence they came. For ghosts in general, plasmics are nothing more than menaces to civilized undead existence, and if it looks strange or dangerous, it is destroyed and then examined. PLASMIC FAMILIARS No Exalt or god has ever succeeded with the morbid attempt to bind their souls to the monsters of the Underworld. Charms and spells remain incapable of forming prolonged bonds between Essence wielders and these creatures. Scholarly oriented individuals are of the opinion that plasmics share the emptiness of a hollow soul only found in summoned demons of the Third Circle. PLASMICS OF THE UNDERWORLD The Underworld divides into five major areas that mirrors Creation’s outlook. Naturally, North, East, South and West constitute four of these five domains, with the fifth being the Isle of Stygia. Yet, there’s a sixth, uncharted, area that is just as important to the ongoing conflicts and ancient mysteries that plagues the Underworld. It’s an even
EXALTED • BOOK OF BONE AND EBONY darker and more desolate place where loss of logic and rationality is commonplace. In one word, it’s the Labyrinth. This chapter presents plasmics from all six of these locations before taking on the fulfillment of the Mask of Winter’s plans, the children of Juggernaut. EASTERN PLASMICS The following plasmics have the Eastern Underworld as their natural habitat. CHAMELEON MONKEY Chameleon monkeys are common creatures in the southeastern landscape. The creatures always dwell inside or just outside village (or city) walls, for they desire to be close to ghosts. Yet, they are extremely hard to detect (something which is reflected by their high Stealth score) and often pass unnoticed. This is not due to a special ability, but rather the creatures’ inaptitude at rising with fully formed Essence bodies. They are merely translucent and decayed images of panic monkeys (see Creatures of the Wyld, p. 46), moving in large packs of at least 20 creatures. In death, they are unable to sound the well-known chattering monkey laughter that they do in Creation. Instead, they are silent, somber beings that rarely engage in violent actions; preferring to cause chaos by stealing equipment from one individual and placing it with another’s in order to gain attention. It is not unheard of that entire villages end up fighting due to their failure to realize that there are chameleon monkeys present. HURA Each hura appears as an old woman, clothed in layers of green veils and death trappings. Underneath the veils, there is nothing but a pale, decayed female body. History records them as a humanoid race in Creation during the First Age, which was forced to flee into the Underworld during the Dragon-Blooded uprising against the Solars. The huras’ duty was to guard children from dematerialized dangers, for they possessed the talent to view the spirit world and strike back at incorporeal creatures. Driven insane by being trapped in a pale imitation of their oncebeloved Creation, their purpose has switched, and all that drives them now is an intense hatred of the Dragon- Blooded. Yet, Dynastic ghosts are rare due to the practice of the Immaculate Philosophy on the Blessed Isle, so the Huras spend much of their time dreaming up terrible things to do to the rare ghosts that does fall into their hands. Huras operate in groups of four; moving in after nightfall to steal ghostly children, who they bring to their abandoned ruins in the deepest East, where few are able to tread due to the heavy vegetation. Their captives never meet a final end and remain locked up in cages hanging high up in the treetops. Ghosts who have been captive for centuries eventually lose hope and fall into Oblivion or 148 Lethe after enough years without anyone arriving to answer their calls for aid. These creatures are able to use what little winds blow to engage in slow flight up among the trees. This ability is never used to engage in fly-by attacks, only to lift Huras into safety or to move the battle onto the treetops. In combat, their veils also function as whips, and each Hura is able to perform one attack each turn against anything that is within the whip’s reach (three yards) without suffering any dice pool penalties. LETHE SERPENT Exalted: The Abyssals (p. 47) mentions serpents hiding in among the roots of the dead Eastern trees, waiting for ghosts to bite and infect with a poison that sends them into Lethe — these are the Lethe serpents. It’s no secret to the Easterners that there are serpents with the power to enforce Lethe upon a ghost, and every dead with sense of self-preservation makes sure to cover their feet and legs carefully when entering densely vegetated areas. The serpents are especially dangerous since they’re easily mistaken for regular roots, but once their pale eyes and bodies shimmer in the sparse light of the forest, ghosts know that the end might well be near. After being bitten, roll the ghost’s Stamina + Resistance, difficulty 3. If the roll fails, the ghost immediately enters Lethe. A botch sends the ghost straight into the horrifying emptiness that is Oblivion. A successful roll makes the ghost immune to future encounters with the poison, although additional exposure may cause great discomfort in the form of weeping warts that cover the body (two-die impairment for two weeks). While it’s uncommon to spot more than a handful of Lethe serpents working together, they actually reside in large underground colonies that consist of hundreds of these plasmics. Should someone disturb an entire colony, the ghosts in the area would have a difficult time on their hands. Lethe snakes are also seen in the hands of assassins, who find their attacks a useful way to speed enemies to their rebirth. PULSE BLOSSOM Underworld shamans and scholars interesting in the Eastern flora are familiar with pulse blossoms. They grow in the Northeast, close to the Empire of Aki, where ghosts clothed in gloves and armor attempt to harvest the plasmics in order to extract their liquid Essence and manufacture pulse draughts. The actual flower consists of hundreds of gray and red colored petals attached in the form of a multilayered flower bowl with a luminescent black Essence liquid at the center. The pulse blossoms display a malevolent intelligence and will do anything to discourage ghosts from continuing the practice of harvesting them, even if it means dying. The
Page 1 and 2:
AND A Compendium of Necromantic Lor
Page 3 and 4:
EXALTED • THE BOOK OF BONE AND EB
Page 5 and 6:
Page 7 and 8:
Page 9 and 10:
Page 11 and 12:
Page 13 and 14:
Page 15 and 16:
Page 17 and 18:
Page 19 and 20:
Page 21 and 22:
Page 23 and 24:
Page 25 and 26:
Page 27 and 28:
Page 29 and 30:
Page 31 and 32:
Page 33 and 34:
Page 35 and 36:
EXALTED • BOOK OF BONE AND EBONY
Page 37 and 38:
Page 39 and 40:
Page 41 and 42:
Page 43 and 44:
Page 45 and 46:
Page 47 and 48:
Page 49 and 50:
Page 51 and 52:
Page 53 and 54:
Page 55 and 56:
Page 57 and 58:
Page 59 and 60:
Page 61 and 62:
Page 63 and 64:
Page 65 and 66:
Page 67 and 68:
Page 69 and 70:
Page 71 and 72:
Page 73 and 74:
Page 75 and 76:
Page 77 and 78:
Page 79 and 80:
Page 81 and 82:
Page 83 and 84:
Page 85 and 86:
Page 87 and 88:
Page 89 and 90:
Page 91 and 92:
Page 93 and 94:
Page 95 and 96:
Page 97 and 98: EXALTED • BOOK OF BONE AND EBONY
Page 147: EXALTED • BOOK OF BONE AND EBONY
show all

Book of Bone and Ebony

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?