NeoExodus Hostile Environment.pdf

LPJ9700

Hostile

Environment

Written By Neal Bailey

Requires the use of the Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook, Third Edition, published by

Wizards of the Coast, Inc. This product utilizes updated material from the v.3.5 revision.

Hostile Environment

Exodus is a world defined by intensity and conflict.

Endless marches of hills, deepest eldritch forest,

burning desert- these are the realms faced by the brave

travelers and explorers of the land. In Exodus, the

land has a hard heart, and punishes those who aren’t

prepared to follow the laws of the wilderness with

death.

Granite Storm

In the highlands and lowlands of Abbaddon, powerful

winds tear across the landscape with the ferocity and

power of a tiger. Sweeping up loose soil, shredding

the ground, and sending chunks of rock the size of a

man’s fist skyward, these storms are death to all who

come across them unprotected. Ruined farmsteads,

battered houses, and dead livestock lay in the wake of

such a storm’s churning black cloudhead.

Much of the danger for an adventurer lay not in the

machinations of a bandit king, nor in the primal

hunger of a fell beast. Instead, the very world lays in

wait to destroy the unaware. Read on, adventurer, for

this is a survival guide, and may one day save your

life.

Most Granite Storms occur during a change of

seasons, especially from fall to winter, but move

quickly, usually passing across an area within half an

hour. Being within a Granite storm is deadly to the

exposed. Anyone who doesn’t take shelter ( a wooden

shack at least ) will begin taking damage on a round

by round basis.

Abbaddon

The rocky crags of Abbaddon hide both wonder and

peril.

Cover Type Damage

Inside a sturdy structure None

Inside a flimsy structure 1d6 from stray stones/

half an hour

Under heavy brush 1 damage per minute of

exposure

Under light brush, or prone 1 damage per 5 rounds

of exposure

Ekatar’s Shawl

This deadly and terrifying effect, although most

commonly associated with the Dead Mountain,

can actually be found in smaller, isolated patches

throughout all of Exodus. Near invisible and cloud-

like, this lacy network of negative energy drifts list-

lessly across the land, drawing the life out from within

any entities that it touches. Named Ekatar’s Shawl

after a strange death totem worshipped by Abbaddon’s

ancient inhabitants, the Shawl is unique in that it

leaves tiny white fibers on those it touches- who have

often been left little more than desiccated corpses.

In the open

1 damage per round of

exposure

Obviously exposure for more than a minute or two

spells death for the average person. On the bright

side, the damage from a granite storm is reduced by

damage resistance.

Ekatar’s Shawl occurs in patches as wide as a 20 foot

radius burst, and can move 10 feet in a random direc-

tion each round, with no regard for wind. The Shawl

can move freely through solid objects or even force

barriers, but sinks into the ground if hit by bright

sunlight. Ekatar’s Shawl is far more deadly to the

mighty than the weak, seeming to feed from valor.

Spotting Ekatar’s Shawl is difficult, requiring a DC 20

spot check- it appears as a faint white shimmer in the

air. But once you’re in it, you’ll feel it. There is no

save to prevent its effects.

Movement during a Granite Storm is also difficult;

a DC 10 strength check is required to make any

headway against the winds at all. If successful, speed

is still halved.

Vision is highly obscured when a storm is in full

force, the thick grey dust blots out the sun, reducing

all vision ranges to 10 feet, and a -6 penalty is

imposed on spot and search checks. It has a similar

effect on the sensations of smell and vibration- trem-

orsense, scent, and similar abilities are not effective

when within the storm.

Ekatar’s Shawl does not have any special effect on

the victims it claims, but there is an added problem

of ghouls and ghasts who follow it about, often in

force. These creatures not only benefit from the nega-

tive energy of the Shawl, but also devour the dead left

behind.

Shades of the Sorcerer

Kings

The Spirits of the Sorcerer Kings, destroyed by the

Arman Protector, have grown weak and faint in the

ages since their bodies perished. Trapped between

life and death by powerful enchantments intended to

prevent the activation of numerous contingencies, the

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Hostile Environment

Ekatar’s Shawl

Character type

Undead 1d6 hit points restored per round of contact

1-5 hit dice or character levels Loss of 1 hit point per round (negative energy damage)

6-10 hit dice or character level Loss of 1d6 hit points and 1 point of constitution per round

11-15 hit dice or character levels Loss of 2d6 hit points and 2 points of constitution per round

1 6-20 hit dice or character levels Loss of 6d6 hit points and 4 points of constitution per round

Shades of the Sorcerer Kings

Level of

% of a Sorcerer King

Spell Cast

Appearing in the wild

Appearing in the Godpointe

6th

7th

10%

8th

20%

9th

10%

30%

Shades sometimes manifest if magic is released within

Abbaddon. The chance of one appearing varies by the

level of the spell cast.

Cordel

To call Cordel a desert is to do it a disservice. Cordel

is the desert, the ancient form from which all other

deserts were molded, and to which none can compare.

When a Sorcerer King does manifest in response to a

spell being cast, the energy of the spell is absorbed by

the shade, causing the magic to automatically fizzle.

The shade can then remain visible ( but intangible )

for 1 minute per level of spell absorbed. During this

time, the shade has limited ability to interact with its

surroundings- but a knowledgeable character has the

ability to converse with such a being for the short time

it is manifested.

Speakers of the Lost

Tongue

Deep within the Troll Wastes, the racing winds mold

siltstone into alien shapes and forms. The howling

of the wind is not all sound and fury- a strange logic

seems to coil up from the noise, whispering in hollow,

breathy tones. As one’s journey through the Wastes

lengthens, the impression of voices, of whispered

words and muttered curses, becomes more and more

real.

Diplomacy DC Shade Will Answer Questions

About the history of his kingdom

About himself

About the war between his people

and the Arman Protector

The Speakers of the Lost Tongue are the source of

these unknowable words, but the knowledge they

speak of comes with a great and terrible price. The

speakers came from parts unknown, and most only

hear of them as a legend. But they do exist; and

listening to their song leads only to madness and

death.

About lost magic and treasure

One question can be asked for every 3 minutes that

the Shade remains. If a diplomacy check fails, the

shade will not speak to the questioner or his associ-

ates again, unless another spell is offered up to be

devoured. Of course, doing so does not automatically

result in the Shade choosing to absorb the arcane

power- the chart above must be consulted once more.

At first, the snippets of words caught on the winds

seem enticing; scraps of poetry and beautiful music,

singing of a city long gone and vanished from the

pages of time. The words come from no obvious

source, but appear to lead one deeper into the Wastes

with the promise of knowledge and respite.

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Hostile Environment

Speakers of the Lost Tongue

Time Spent in Wastes Listen check Effect

1 day DC 30 Single words, distant sound of a reed instrument

2 days DC 28 Snippets of conversation, chords of a song

3 days DC 25 Beginning of a tale, a song as if heard from far away

1 week DC 20 Pieces of strange lore, a song of hope for the city

2 weeks DC 15 A complete song, with a choir, singing ancient tales

More than 2 weeks DC 10 A cacophony

Unless the players are actively trying to avoid

listening to the voices, these listen checks should

be made every few hours. Although hearing the

sounds does not provoke any penalties ( until more

than 2 weeks have passed ); it can be confusing and

distracting. Once the cacophony begins, clearly

hearing the song ( a mere DC 10 ) actually strips the

spirit from a person, leaving their body to crumble

as dust in the wind. The listener has heard the great

secret of the ancient city, and now goes to join the

Speakers of the Lost Tongue as one of their own. It is

impossible to raise a character killed in this manner,

although you can hear his voice in the choir if you

listen carefully.

Rank Reflex DC Effect if save is failed

1 14 Stunned

2 16 Prone

3 18 Buried in 1d6 feet of sand

4 20 Crushed for 10d6 damage in

sands

Every time you fail a save, you suffer an effect,

starting at the effect listed for rank 1. On the next

round, you must make a save against the next rank if

you failed; otherwise, it is a save for the same one you

succeeded against. This continues each round until

the sandquake ends.

Sandquake

The Shifting Sands of the desert of Cordel are usually

slow-moving and benign. True, they confound

mapmaking attempts, and render the landscape almost

impossible to navigate without magical aid- but

people traveling the desert have known this for ages,

and have adapted themselves to travel in such climes.

At least the shifting sands aren’t deadly.

Gavea

Gavea is known as a realm of seasonal extremes.

Storms surge across the sky, leaving behind spec-

tacular sunsets as rich and red as blood. Cold winds

chase after freezing sleet, mists flow and flood into

valleys as if alive. Caught between climatic extremes

and spread across a broken and highly variable topog-

raphy, Gavea’s chief dangers are a result of an intense

present grafted onto an unusual past.

Unless, that is, you happen upon a Sandquake.

A combination of high winds and seismic activity

sometimes churns in such a way as to cause the very

ground to buck and weave, flowing like an ocean

for brief moments. Although they only last seconds,

sandquakes can move thousands of tons of sand

hundreds of yards, flatten dunes, and kill anyone

foolish or unlucky enough to have been in the area.

Pollen Mists

The summers in Gavea are an exhausting combina-

tion- deadly hot, and highly humid. Humid enough,

in fact, to produce a hot, flowing mist in the deepest

valleys, where moisture condenses and runs in rivu-

lets from the dense greenery. Under regular condi-

tions, exposure to this mist would be little more than

a danger from regular exposure. But this is not the

case in Gavea, where the passing of a mist has an

effect on the local flora- when the mists come, the

pollen is released. As cloud rolls down the path

toward you, you can see the plants react, like a wave

of color. Blossoms open, seedpods swell and burst,

fronds uncoil. The first time, it is beautiful, almost

enchanting. The second time, it is terrifying, because

Sandquakes last an average of 2d4 rounds, during

which time it is pretty easy to lose your balance, sink

into the sands, and be ground into a paste. They range

from 50 to 200 feet in radius- the larger ones are

capable of collapsing an entire hill.

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Hostile Environment

Pollen Mists

% of Occurrence Save type and DC Effect

Fort, DC 19 Death from choking vines erupting beneath the skin

10%

Will, DC 17 Euphoria followed by catatonia for 1d4 hours and 2d6

charisma damage

15%

Fort, DC 18 Intense skin rash that results in a loss of 2d4 dexterity

due to pain from movement

20%

Fort, DC 15, each round Nausea for each round the save is failed

25%

Will, DC 15 Blinded by hallucinations for 1d4 minutes

25%

Fort, DC 20 Itchy lesions cause a -1 penalty on attack rolls and saves

for 1d6 hours.

nobody wants to be exposed to the cloud of spores

and pollen that follows these mists.

and the perception of colors also tends to shift (colors

look metallic and glossy when inside a pocket). Each

pocket may be up to 50 feet in radius, but the majority

are smaller, and merely produce a series of flashes in

the air, accompanied by loud bangs.

The effects of the pollen mists vary by region and the

exact mix of plants and fungi in the area. As a general

rule, a GM can simply choose one from the list, or

roll on the percentile chart provided. Checks are only

made once upon contact with the mist, unless other-

wise noted.

If you are inside a big pocket, things get messy.

• Movement is slowed, like trying to run in a

dream. All movement in rolling thunder is treated

as if characters are in rough terrain- this applies to

all movement types, including flight.

• Perception is altered; all spot, search, and listen

checks are penalized by -2.

• When the pocket finally does explode, all within

must make a DC 20 fort save or be deafened for

1d4 hours. Not only this, but the pocket deals

force damage according to its size. Consult the

table below.

Rolling Thunder

This strange magical phenomenon can be found

upon and around Thunderheart Peak. Although it is

believed by some to be produced by winds echoing

in a series of deep grottoes around the base of the

mountain, this is not the case. Instead, rolling thunder

is actually a small series of elemental explosions,

caused by pockets of unstable extradimensional

space suddenly imploding as their magic fades. This

produces a bang, a faint flash, and a brief gust of

wind.

Size of Pocket Damage and Save DC

1-10 foot radius 2d6, DC 15 reflex for half

11-20 foot radius 4d6, DC 16 reflex for half

21-30 foot radius 6d6, DC 17 reflex for half

31-40 foot radius 8d6, DC 18 reflex for half

41-50 foot radius 10d6, DC 19 reflex save for

half

Rolling thunder is an isolated occurrence, tied into the

fact that the Thunderheart peak seems to have been

called in from another dimension. The magic that

keeps it in place is constantly preventing the cosmos

from rejecting the mountain like a mismatched

implant. Tension between our world and the moun-

tain results in dimensional eddies which produce

the unstable pockets of extradimensional space; the

phenomenon was named ‘rolling thunder’ before

anyone had a clue what it really was.

Koryth

Koryth is home to the most violent weather on the

planet. This isolated locale, though rich in resources,

is so wild and difficult that its bounty is largely

ignored. Those who do risk a journey into the wilder-

ness often come face to face with hazards that cannot

be found in any other locale.

The pockets appear and disappear around the moun-

tain at seemingly random times- so it is possible to

be simply standing still, and then suddenly become

enveloped in a pocket of rolling thunder. Passing

through one of these pockets has some strange effects

on a character. There is usually a change of pressure,

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