Thursday, October 1, 2020

The Ranger of the Tomb, or; the Prophecy (GLOG Class: Ranger)


To the dark grave we go, bearing the proud and great,
    where quick decay will know no title or estate.
Pour forth the solemn strain, wail for the mighty dead;
    for dust has come to dust again and the warrior spirit fled . . .

Source: Ancient Temple Explorers by Suirebit

    The ground in these parts is full of hollows and the ruins of graves: empty spaces surely made by giants, who dug through stone like a gravedigger through soft earth, and who left behind many wonderful things to amuse them in the afterlife. If you make your living by retrieving these wonders, or guiding parties of others, you are a tomb ranger.
    As a tomb ranger, you can wear light and medium armor and can carry shields. You never fumble while using knives, whips, pistols, grenades or bows.

Skills: 1. Burial Rites 2. Ropes & Knots 3. Mechanics.

Starting Equipment: heavy work clothes (as leather), an exotic mask (see below for equipment list) a bullwhip (light), a bronze lantern , three doses of kerosene (⅓ slot each, burn for twelve hours) and one other piece of kit of your choice .
  • A Bloodstained, Light Foot, +1 HP
  • B Ghost Friend +1 to-hit
  • C Eyes in the Dark, Trophies, +1 AC
  • D Darkness in the Eyes, +1 to-hit

Bloodstained
    Horrors of the deep haven't bothered you in years. You can track fresh undead by scent like a bloodhound, and always know if there is a human corpse within 30'. After the DM gives you the Omen of an encounter, you can choose to encounter an appropriately large horde of undead instead.
Light Foot
    You have been trained for extended periods in the field — underground. You suffer no combat penalties from rough terrain, cramped spaces or dim light. If it comes up; you also have no strong objections to utter darkness, wading in stagnant water, or eating shoe leather.
Ghost Friend
    You have attracted a friendly (or at least curious) spirit. It has 2 HD and follows you around. Roll a d6 to learn its name and general outlook:
  1. Robert Logsville, ex-tomb ranger. Doesn't quite remember what killed him, but he knows a lot about the underground. Identifies most undead on sight.
  2. Jone Ries, ex-tomb raider. Endlessly fascinated by modern technology, especially guns. Can scout climbing routes to find the easiest path.
  3. Ogedei, a King who once inhabited the underground halls. Can't speak your language but likes to sing. 4-in-6 chance of pointing out traps and secret doors.
  4. The Sheer Veil, an old ghost without a name. Those it envelops are blind but take half damage from all sources. Usually follows directions.
  5. Shadow-in-the-corner-of-my-eye, an ancient ghost without a form. You cannot be surprised if you're paying attention to its gestures. Likes to hover behind attractive people.
  6. AGHDHS!, an antecataclysmic thing. Huge. Displaces other spirits, friendly and hostile alike.
Eyes in the Dark
    At will, your eyes project ghastly light for five feet. This is bright enough to allow reading text, and is visible for a long way in open space.
Trophies
    Wearing or wielding cursed equipment, which grave goods and evil swords tend to be, gives you proportionate bonuses to AC, to-hit and damage. Negotiate this with your DM, I don't have time for your bullshit, but a small inconvenient curse should give a +1 while a big terrible curse can be a +2 or 3.
Darkness in the Eyes
    At will, walk into a deep shadow and declare that you have disappeared. Nothing can affect you or be affected by you while you are so vanished, and you may reappear in another area of darkness at will unless it is literally impossible for you to have reached it unseen.

 

 Tomb Robbing Kit:

  1. Sturdy Work Clothes. Waterproof boots with soles that grip through dampness, big sturdy overalls that won't be torn up by squeezing through narrow passages, fuzzy fleece underthings to protect you from the deathly chill. As leather armor. 0/2 slots.
  2. Exotic Mask. Looks like a skull, or a monkey, or any other totem you have encountered in the underground. Some ghosts respond well to it.
  3. Bullwhip. A light weapon, has the reach of a thrown weapon without needing to be thrown. On a fumble it tangles itself in the environment and you must spend a minute retrieving it. ⅓rd slot.
  4. Bronze Lantern. Fine specialist gear, sheds light for 15' for twenty-four hours on a dose of kerosene. 1 slot.
  5. Silent Revolver. Astonishing bit of clockwork, makes no more noise than a fat man covering up a sneeze in an opera house. Deals 1d8 damage at a range of 10', with a -1 to-hit every 5' past that. Comes fully loaded with six shots. ⅓rd slot.
  6. Stick of Fluorescing Chalk. Glows in a color of your choice when exposed to even the faintest light.
  7. Sputtering Flares. Burns for five minutes, illuminating poorly for 5', and blinking slightly brighter once a second. Useful as a timer, or can be dropped down a hole to measure distances. Packet of ten. 1 slot.
  8. Scented Bandanna. Renders many inhaled poisons harmless, or at least down to ½ damage, and prevents you from tracking the undead by scent.
  9. 100' of rope and clip.
  10. First-rate Crowbar. Useful as a light weapon, and doubles your effective strength when lifting objects. ⅓rd slot.
  11. Curlicue Bow. Exceptionally small, exceptionally powerful for its size. The manufacturers promise it can be fully drawn and fired from the inside of a coffin. Deals 1d8 damage at 10', with -1 to-hit every 10' past that. Comes with a pack of ten steel darts. ⅓rd slot and 1 slot respectively.
  12. Three sticks of dynamite. One stick of dynamite explodes for 1d6 in 10', two for 2d6 in 20' &c. ⅓rd slot each.
  13. 30' of Ghostproof Cable. Steel mesh with a core of alchemical sapphire. Opaque and impassible to non-physical entities (ghosts, angels, astral projections). 1 slot.
  14. Waterproof Bag. Protects up to three slots of objects from the damp, or can be inflated to help you float on bottomless ebon pools of the underworld.
  15. Cave Helmet. Sturdy, to protect your head, with an attached carbide lamp.
  16. Pouch of 100 Ball Bearings. Useful as a weight, an obstacle to foes, probably fucking with mechanisms somehow. It's also a good way to move around large blocks of stone if you can lift them up a little bit with a lever. ⅓rd slot.
  17. Solar Compass. A crystal disc with an adamant pin. Always points to the sun, even underground. Sometimes confused by large, moving shapes in the darkness.
  18. Climbing Harness. All the bits and bobs, the straps and the hooks, for you to hook yourself on to a rope or carry important gear.
  19. Bronze Knife. A light weapon. Guaranteed not to spark or cause harm to fairy. ⅓rd slot each.
  20. Gilt Climbing-axe. A light weapon. Deals full damage to the undead.
  21. A strange or inexplicable curio. Roll 1d6 on the following list:
    1. Sociopathy detector. Worn around your neck, this small crystal will vibrate in the presence of a sociopath.
    2. Heat Bracelet. Gold and rubies in an ancient style. Detonates in 4MD Fireball when it hears its command word (you don't know what its command word is).
    3. A head of Diamond Garlic. Black garlic is made by heating whole bulbs over the course of weeks; diamond garlic by heating whole bulbs over the course of centuries. About ten doses of perfect garlic ambrosia.
    4. A bee whistle. Produces a sound only audible to bees and elfs.
    5. A jar of hatred. Lovely example of ancient glassblowing. When smashed, creatures within 20' must save against hatred. ⅓rd slot.
    6. A writ of divine mandamus. Directed at someone, or something, named Charm Person, who refuses (on ethical grounds) to perform their duties. Found in a decaying mailbag three miles beneath the earth.


No comments:

Post a Comment