We continue our journey in the realm of the damned with staples of any bestiary of the ghostly terrors of Creation.
When I first read the old Exalted: The Abyssal book and the section on ghostly powers (or 'Arcanoi') one line of powers which jumped to me immediately are those which allow a ghost to remake and reshape their form, eventually gaining the power to grow claws, horns and assume a monstrous form called a Ghost-Devil. Being a fan of the more monstrous and eldritch ghostly critters of folklore it come to no surprise the Ghost-Devils have found a place as a permanent fixture of my games as those ghostly beings who willingly reshape their bodies into weapons, ranging from reclusive monks to ghostly berserkers.
The Ghost-Devils are well-suited to representing monstrously mutated undead, possibly changed by the madness of the Uncreated Night. This unlocked in them the ability to willingly transform themselves.
Appearance Table: Ghost-Devil and either Deformed or Inorganic.
Ghost-Devil
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AC: 4*
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Move: 30’ Float or Walk
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HD: 6
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Saves: 14+
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Attacks: +6 x2
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Damage: 1d10+3
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Morale: 11
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Effort: 3
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Ghost-Devils have learned to reshape their plasmic form to not only become powerful and monstrous warriors but also to anchor themselves to the realm of the livings. Ghost-Devils can assume the form of other ghosts and individuals with the exception that highly specific forms require a great amount of time and skill and cannot be done on the stop. They cannot use their combat-related gifts without transforming into their Ghost-Devil form. More advanced Ghost-Devils have more HD, obviously.
Ghost-Devil Gifts
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D4
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Offensive
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Defensive/Support
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1
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Unerring Blade
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Lick Your Wounds
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2
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Surge of Strength
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Harder Than This
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3
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The Claw that Catch
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Contempt of Distance
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4
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A Knife in the Dark
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Fear No Steel
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D6
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Ghost-Devil Tactics
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1
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Attack the most exposed/vulnerable target.
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2
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Use all available actions to destroy the last foe which damaged it.
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3
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Dart away from danger and attempt to recuperate.
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4
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Regroup with allies and prepare to counter-attack.
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5
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Change shape and attempt to confuse foes.
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6
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Spend a turn reshaping it’s Ghost-Devil form.
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| The Monk by faustie. |
Nephwracks
The dreaded Nephwracks are spectres which have turned to the worship of the dark powers of Oblivion. This devotion and the warping exposure of the forces of death and unmaking has slowly stripped these creatures of their humanity just as much as it empowered them into beings far more dreadful than their mortal selves could have ever hoped to be. They are the priests and evangelist of Oblivion.
The Nephwrack statlines offer a bit more variety in origin for use in vanilla Godbound: are they the 'relatives' or masters of the Ghost-Devils, twisted by the Uncreated Night and having learned to harness the chaotic powers for themselves and, where the Ghost-Devils changed their bodies the Nephwracks changed body and mind? Are they deliberate creations of some dark power, maybe some dreadful impossibly-powerful Made or Parasite God of Death and Oblivion? Do they form the upper echelon of an established religion which is accepted in a Realm? Are they a form of liches?
Appearance Table: Fading Humanity and either Ectoplasmic or Inorganic.
Baroque Nephwrack Rank or Title
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D4
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D8
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Title
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1
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1
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Bishop of
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Suffering
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2
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Pastor of
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Damnation
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3
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Priest of
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Annihilation
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4
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Deacon of
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Despair
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5
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Abess of
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Madness
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6
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Priest of
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Obliteration
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7
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Inquisitor of
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Scarification
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8
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Guru of
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Pain
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2
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1
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Destroyer of
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Pleasure
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2
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Eraser of
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Life
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3
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Annihilator of
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Meaning
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4
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Obliterator of
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Fertility
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5
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Corruptor of
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Sanity
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6
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Defiler of
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Continuation
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7
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Undoer of
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Memory
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8
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Executioner of
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Souls
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3
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1
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Grey
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Destroyer
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2
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Joyous
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Defiler
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3
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Ebony
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Iconoclast
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4
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Pyrelight
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Despoiler
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5
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Jade
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Apostle
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6
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Bone
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Deacon
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7
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Ashen
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Guru
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8
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Void
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Missionary
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4
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1
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He/She Who Scream Joyous Praise
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2
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He/She Who Bring Gifts of Oblivion
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3
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That Which Teaches Undoing
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4
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The Wise Priest of Blessed Unmaking
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5
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The Bone And Iron-Garbed Missionary
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6
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Ten Thousand Lessons of Oblivion
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7
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The Whispering Monk Who Bring Despair
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8
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Pastor of the Torturous Revelations
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| Undead Priest by ARTek92. |
Least Nephwrack
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AC: 3*
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Move: 40’ Float or Walk
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HD: 10
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Saves: 10+
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Attacks: +10 x2
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Damage: 1d8 Straight Magic
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Morale: 11
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Effort: 4
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*If used as regular undead, Nephwracks require magical weapons to hit and damage.
Even the least and weakest of the Nephwrack is a dangerous and unique foe. It has been touched and changed by the powers of oblivion, giving it power and mastery over a Word. This creature is less of a true ghost and more akin to a minor godling or spirit of death. They are never encountered alone and they invariably have minions both alive and undead. Nephwracks of greater power should be modeled as Eldritch. Nephwracks are able to take two actions per turn.
Suitable gifts for the Nephwracks are best found in Death, Entropy, Fear, Madness, Murder, Underworld and Vengeance. However some more unique Nephwracks could have different approach, method or even creed and could develop gifts more suited to these thematic, such as a crusader-Nephwracks with Sword and Command gifts or an hedeonistic whore-priestess using Desire and Passion. There is no possible limit to the forms of corruption and destruction the Nephwrack bring about with their unholy evangelism.
D6
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Nephwrack Tactics
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1
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Spend an action using Miracles to debuff/impair foes as it sing praises to Oblivion or go on some long-winded and maddening speech.
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2
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Use a Gift or Miracle to empower or heal undead allies. If it lack such allies, spend all available actions in a ritual/spell summon a small mob of 4 HD Hungy Ghosts.
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3
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Use all available actions to attempt to obliterate the most healthy foe.
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4
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Use Gifts or Miracles to attempt to confuse or sway to it's side the most weakened foe.
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5
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Use Gifts or Miracles to summon or call to it's aid more minions. If it lack such Gift by default, spend all available actions in a ritual/spell summon a small mob of 4 HD Hungy Ghosts.
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6
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Boost their minions with a Word, granting them an immediate extra action and inflicting 1d12 damage on all foes from the Word’s side-effects.
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