zilch / agony

Entry Format

Monsters always follow the simple 4-Suit Zilch rules. They are presented using the following format:

NAME (Parent type)
Size subtypes type
#C #S #D #H (hp)  [suits]
DR: damage resistance and armor
ER: energy resistance
Dmg: physical attacks, damage, and effects 
SA: special attacks...
ST: Special talents... 
SQ: special qualities...
Movement: modes and speeds
Senses: senses
Language:
CR: challenge rating
Description:
Strategy: 

If a particular line is not relevant to the given monster, it will be omitted.

Monster traits and abilities are either natural (Nat) or magical (Mag). Unless specified as Magical, assume a monter's ability is natural. A Magical ability can be countered or supressed with an anti-magic field, etc.

Name

Each monster entry has a unique name.

Many monsters are specializations of a more general type of monster. Their entries will be found listed under the given parent type. For example, entries such as Peasant (Human) and Soldier (Human) would be found listed under Human.

Size

Though the math gets a little trickier, you may want finer granularity on size differences. After all, there are a lot of mythical creatures that are only about 8 or 9 feet tall; treating these as Large can be a bit deadlier than desired.

With this variant, here is a half-step between each size category designated with a + or -. As an example, Large- is the same as Medium+ (except when not using this rule, where Large- is instead treated as a Large creature but Medium+ is treated as a Medium creature). When using half-step sizes, split the difference between the two sizes for purposes of dmg modifier.

Here's a table for quick lookups:

Type and Subtype

Each monster is of one of the following types:

Aberration

Beast

Construct

Elemental

Humanoid

Outsider

Outsiders are primordials formed from the outer planes. They fall into three categories: Angels, Devils, and Demons.

In the beginning, Celestials of Heaven sought to preserve the world through Order and Life, while the Demons of the Abyss fought for its destruction though Chaos and Death. However, Heaven grew divided between the laws of Order and the mercy of Life. The schism grew and those that followed the Law grew more militant, seeking righteousness, justice, retribution, vengence. They were eventually cast out of Heaven. Still waging their war against the Demons in the Abyss, these "fallen" become Devils. Carving out their own Hell from what was once part of the Abyss, they become darkened and corrupted by the enivornment there. Now the three factions wage a balanced war, each against the other two forces: the Angels of Good, the Devils of Law and Evil, and the Demons of Chaos and Evil. The term Feind refers to either a Devil or Demon.

Outsiders come in three levels: Minor, Lesser, and Greater. Minor outsiders can enter the Material plane through any opened gates and naturally-occurring rifts that they find.

Major outsider have true names and must be invited into the Material plane by a native. For some, this can be as simple as reciting their name or title 3 times. Outsider can always refuse the invitation, though fiends rarely do so. Powerful casters that know an outsider's true name can compel them to come. Summoned outsiders--either invited or compelled--can turn on the person that brought them there. Once summoned, the outsider can then remain in the world until banished. Many will often try to start cults or religions to lure other material dwellers into inviting more of them companions into the world.

Major outsiders can be divided into Lesser and Greater. Lesser outsiders physically enter the Material world. Greater outsiders cannot physically manifest in the world. Instead, they are incorporeal, though they can possess creatures and objects, often shaping them into more comfortable forms. Though their hosts can be destroyed or their spirits banished, Greater outsiders cannot be slain on the material world. To be truly destroyed, they must be slain in an outer plane.

The outer planes are also home to a number of other creatures that seems to be primiarly Beast or Humanoid, but shaped by life in the outer planes These are often called Angelic, Devilish, or Demonic creatures.

Plant

Undead

A monster may also have one or more subtypes. The type is always listed last. Types can also serve as subtypes. The following are also subtypes: Good, Evil, Fire, Cold, Acid/Earth, Electricity/Air

• Fey: Magical in some way
• Cold: Immune to Cold, Vulnerable to Fire
• Fire:
• Earth
• Air
• Good: +1 dmg from unholy weapons
• Evil: +1 dmg from holy weapons
• Aquatic: Can breath water, swim
• Amphibious: Can hold breath, swim

IDing (if not encountered before):
S: recognize Type/Subtype. (Additional test may recal features common to that type/subtype)
CS: species, including some salient feature

Suits

The following table gives a rough guideline as to how different Suit values map to human ability for a Medium-sized creature.

Suit Value	As a Human	Diamonds
A	Beyond human ability	Ex: Great wyrm dragon, ancient lich
K	Pinnacle	Ex: Gifted eidetic genius
Q	Grand Master	Ex: Aged scholar
J	Master	Ex: Subject specialist
10	Expert	Ex: Scholar
9	Skilled	Ex: University grad, young scholar, respectable bard, well-read noble.
8	Practiced	Ex: Young tutored noble
7	Trained	Basic education: reading, writing, simple math, some basic history. Speaks Common. Ex: Innkeeper, market merchant, city dweller, rural village elder.
6	Some causal/amateur experience	If has a racial language, also speaks Common (poorly). Functionally illiterate: Able to make out most letters, but struggles to read anything more than a simple sentence or two. Ex: Village dweller.
5	No (or very little) personal experience	A primitive, uneducated humanoid. Can speak clearly in its local dialet. May know a few words of another language used in common trade. May draw pictures or some significant symbols. Ex: Slave, barbarian, poor serf.
4	Sub-human	Semi-human. May have a crude language of its own, or can learn one, albiet poorly.
3	Handicapped	Canny. Capable of learning a vocabulary of a couple hundred words. Can follow simple orders. Ex: Chimp, dolphin.
2	Very Handicapped	Animal. Exhibits some proto-personality. Can be trained to very simple one-word tricks or responses. Ex: Cat, dog, skeleton.
(1)	Bare minimum	"Mindless". Reacts to stimuli, capable of feeding itself. If under magical control, can be directed to attack a specific target or attack at will or made to stand down. Ex: toad, zombie.
(0)	Nonexistent	Unconscious (comatose or dead)

* shields
* hps

Damage Resistance (DR)

Some creatures have additional protection from physical damage beyond armor. This is often due to special protections that can be overcome with certain kinds of materials, holy/unholy weapons, etc. The creature's total DR is given, followed by any special kinds of physical attacks that may modify this total. For example: DR: 5 (-2/holy, -1/silver). This creature has DR 5 against most physical attacks, DR 4 against silver weapons, DR 3 against holy weapons, and DR 2 against holy silver weapons.

When a creature is immune to physical damage (DR: Imm), other modifiers are used. For example: DR: Imm (#1/magic) means this creature will take up to 1 damage from magic weapon attacks, but is otherwise immune to physical dmg. DR: Imm (=3/ethereal, -1/cold iron) means DR 3 vs an ethereal attack (or one that affects ethereal creatures), or DR 2 vs an ethereal cold iron attack, but is immune to all other physical attacks (including regular cold iron).

Energy Resistance (ER)

Protects from one of the 4 elemental engery types. Comes in 3 degrees for monsters. Immune means the creature takes no damage of that type. Resistant means it takes 1/2 dmg. Vulnerable means it takes double dmg. (Magically-granted energy protection instead reduces the damage taken by -3; see R).

Physical Attacks (Dmg)

Attack Effects

• Death Attack Save or die (as if reduced to 0 HP and 0 Strength).
• Disease (Nat): An attack that deals damage also inflicts a particular Disease.
• Drain (Mag): An attack that causes a given Suit to be Drained by the given amount. There is no save. This may replace or be in addition to normal physical damage from the attack.
• Paralysis
• Poison (Nat): An attack that deals damage also exposes the victim to a given Poison.

Special Attacks

• Breath Weapon (Mag): As the Blast spell: (I/R/S♠:½ dmg) - Deals ~3 dmg of a specific elemental energy, adjusted for the size of creature. Usable only from a Reckless stance.
• Constrict (Nat): Provided you have at least 1 offensive pip, spend an attack to automatically deal this damage (usually 3 dmg for Medium-sized monsters) to a already-grappled foe.

• Engulf: Creature or object moves into square.  Swarms, oozes, and the like.
  S(Acrobatics) to avoid (CS,S: Escape; F: suffer attack; CF: fall prone and take attack)
  [S: narrow miss: 1 dmg?]
  Slow, Medium (diameter): +0 mod.  +2 for each larger or faster; -2 for smaller or slower
  Worse if cramped or can't move out of swquare
  Avalanche
  

• Gaze (Mag): Imposses a spell-like effect on those that meet the creature's gaze. Potential victims are subject to the passive gaze at the start of their turn, making a save as a free action. If you are aware of the danger, you may avert your eyes (treat you as Threatened and target as Occluded) to avoid meeting its gaze. Even if a victim has its eyes averted, a gazer can make a melee "attack" to actively meet the victim's gaze and force it to save (again). Blindness (even such as closing your eyes tightly) provides complete protection.

  Call (Mag): An audio version of gaze.
  

• Grab (Nat): Can make a Grapple attack without sacrificing damage. (That is, even a normal attack can then start a grapple if the victim fails to save.)
• Grappler (Nat): Is not Entangled/Slowed while controlling a Grapple. (Usually the result of having multiple limbs, especially tentacles).
• Natural Weapons (Nat): Includes claws, talons, slams, tentacles, and stings (usually as per light weapon/2 dmg) or bites, gores, or tailslaps (usually as per heavy weapons/3 dmg). Monsters can fight with natural weapons as if 2WFing.
• Charge (Nat): Deals this extra damage when Charging.
• Pounce (Nat): As a full action, you can still 2WF as part of a Charge.
• Rake/Rend (Nat): A more powerful attack (usually 3 dmg for Medium) usable only against a grappled foe. (Unlike Constrict, a successful attack is required.)
• Swallow Whole (Nat): Swallow a smaller creature already grappled in the mouth: treat as going for a Pin (does not deal damage, even if monster has Grab). The swallowed creature is still considered to be grappled (but not pinned); the swallower is no longer grappling. A swallowed creature is then subject to the given damage (usually 3 dmg for Med) each turn, 1/2 of which (round up) is acid damage. It can try to cut its way free with any heavy or smaller edged weapon by dealing a cumulative total of 1/2 the swallower's normal HPs; swallower is defenseless against these attacks but retains 1/2 its normal DR. Or the swallowed creature can try to escape the grapple to crawl back up into the mouth.

Other attacks are possible. A creature may have unique rules following the Description.

Special Talents

• Change Shape (Mag): You only physically change shape to a new form while retaining your mind. This has the following results:
  • Gain the lesser of your ♣ and ♠ scores or those of an average member of your new form. (You are not familiar enough with your new form to gain any benefits, but the new form may still be limiting.)
  • Gain all the Natural qualities of your new form; lose any of your own qualities or abilities that you cannot logically use due to your new form.
  • You retain all your mental abilities. Your new form needs fingers and the ability to speak clearly to cast spells normally; otherwise, you must cast them purely mentally.
  • If changing to a creature of the same base type (usually Humanoid), retain your gear (which changes size to fit your new form). Otherwise, your gear is absorbed into your new form where it becomes non-functional. You may choose to drop gear during the transformation. Any new gear you gather drops to the ground when your revert to your real form.
  • Any severed body parts or your slain body will immediately revert to their true form. True seeing will reveal your true form. Only a CS ♠ (Read Person) test will indicate that you are not a normal member of your new form.
• Antimagic
• Charm / Compulsion
• Fear / Frightful Presence
• Psionics
• Transformation (Mag): You truly become another creature, essentially becoming an average member of your new form. (The easiest way to do this is to lay out Suit cards for a new character, duplicating any token state in your new form.)
  • You gain all the Suits, Natural, and Magical abilities of your new form.
  • If your new HP capacity is greater, do not gain new HPs (until you rest). If less, lose any extra HPs.
  • Retain any drain, taint, or similar state (except if your new form is immune).
  • Lose all physical traits of your old form, including any class, talents, and spellcasting ability.
  • Retain only your memories and personality, though only to the extent allowed by your new form. If your new form is of a different type or has 2♦ or less, test ♦ each day when you wake to retain these; otherwise, you will forget who you once were. (These memories will return upon resuming your old form, except if you lost them to a CF--which may be quite likely in your new form.)
  • Your gear drops to the ground during your transformation.
  • Any servered parts or your slain body retain their new form for the duration of the effect. True-seeing reveals only a faint misty shadow of your original form to indicate you were once something else.

Special Qualities

• Ethereal (Nat): On the Twilight plane. You cannot be seen or affected except via effects that specifically cross planes or effect the ethereal targets. (You can be affected normally from the Twilight plane itself, though.) You can experience a hazy/Occluded material plane and can fly relevant to it, even passing through material plane objects. However, you cannot affect the material plane or any targets there objects (except by plane-crossing magic). Many ethereal spirits can manifest as a minor action, becoming Incorporeal.
• Incorporeal (Nat): Lacking a physical body. Immune to physical dmg or contact, though a Magic weapon deals 1 dmg (DR: Imm (#1/magic)). Energy dmg does 1/2 dmg (ER). Usually invisible; always transluscent and dim/Occluded. If gaseous, can pass through small cracks; otherwise, can pass through solid matter. Usually unable to lift/move physical objects or inflict physical dmg.
• Invisible (Nat or Mag): Cannot be seen by a visual sense, including infravision. May be due to magic or simply due to having a gaseous or incorporeal body. Attackers must guess or deduce the invisible creature's location and then, even when they are right, attacks are made at -5.
• Fast Healing (Mag): Whenever you take damage, set the removed chips aside as done for non-lethal damage. At the start of each turn, heal 1 non-lethal damage. Depending on the creature, some types of damage (such as starvation, fire, or silver) may bypass fast healing, meaning that any damage from such sources is not set aside to be recovered later.
• Regeneration (Mag): As per Fast Healing, but recover up to 2 non-lethal damage chips per turn. In addition, you can regain 1 Hearts drain per hour, reattach severed limbs instantly, or regrow severed limbs in a few minutes. (Wily creatures with Regeneration will fall unconscious after taking sufficient damage, lie still for a couple rounds, and then get back up after healing. This means that it is usually wise to hack such creatures to pieces and so drain them to 0 Hearts.)

Other qualities are possible. A creature may have unique rules following the Description.

Movement

Monsters have a different mode of movement than walking/running, such as: burrowing, climbing, flying(wings), flying(perfect), and swim. If a creature has a different mode, it can move in that way as easily as humans walk or run (no checks required), though it may still experience certain terrain handicaps. Flying(perfect) means the creature can hover or move vertically or backwards at will (like a hummingbird or will-o-wisp). Flying(wings) operates like winged flight: the creature must spend a minor action each turn to flap its wings, either to move forward or to hover (though hovering may be of limited duration, as per holding breath); it may be able to glide for free for a turn or two, though.

In addition, monsters may move at different speeds than their ♠ would suggest:

• Very Slow = 1/4 speed; can't take a free 5' step
• Slow = 1/2 speed
• Fast = 2x speed
• Very Fast = 4x speed

Senses (Nat)

Visual senses include Normal (human-like), Lowlight, and Darkvision. Depending on the current lighting conditions, you may be able to able to see normally (OK), Visually Impaired (Occl), or Blinded (X), as shown in the following table.

Light Level	Notes	Normal	Lowlight	Darkvision
Sunlight	Direct natural sunlight, which may also have special effects on some monsters.	OK	OK	Occl
Bright	Well-lit. The brightest level of magical lighting.	OK	OK	OK
Lowlight	Includes moon or star light, phosphorescence, or torch/fire light.	Occl	OK	OK
Darkness	Pitch-black, as underground or on a moonless cloudy night.	X	X	Occl

Darkvision is normal low-light vision combined with an infravision Blindsense. Such an adaption to darkness means that the brightness and heat of natural sunlight is hard to tolerate, however.

Other possible senses include:

• Blindsense: Using some heightened sense (infravision, tremorsense, keen scent or hearing, etc.), you can locate creatures without using normal sight but you cannot pinpoint them. You know their location but their form is hazy and Occluded to you. Otherwise, when relying only on blindsense, you are treated as habitually blind (Slowed but not Threatened). You are cannot read, etc, and are not subject to gaze attacks when relying only on a blindsense.
• Blindsight: Using a keen non-visual sense (such as echolocation, vibrations, clairvoyance, etc) or an unusual visual sense (such as keen infrared or ultraviolet vision), you can "see" normally without vision or light. Thus, light levels and effects that rely on sight do not affect creatures relying on blindsight. Depending on the nature of the Blindsight, this ability may not allow a creature to read text or see pictures, differentiate color, etc.
• Trueseeing: Capable of seeing invisible creatures, through illusions, and perceiving a transformed creature's true form. Such a creature is immune to any glammers (G rune) spells provided that it can current "see".
• Scent: Can automatically detect the presense of Close creatures. Can spend a minor action to determine direction to a Close creature or track a fresh trail. Can determine location of target once Adjacent. Wind, precipation, other smells, strength of smell, etc. may affect performance.

Language

Trade Tongue
Human [by region]
Dwarven [Giant, Old Dwarven, Deep Dwarven, Common Dwarven] -> (Terran)
Elven [High Elven, Wild Elven, Dark Elven] -> (Gnomish)

Undercommon [Common, Dark Elven, Terran, Abyssal]

Beastial [(Trade), Abyssal]
Goblin [Orc, Hobgoblin, Crude Goblin]
Sylvan [High Elven, Gnomish, Druidic, Halfling]

Draconic [] -> (Elemental)
Elemental [Aquan, Auran, Ignan, Terran]

Outsider [Celestial, Abyssal, Infernal, True Speech]

Telepathy: 
Speak directly into another's mind.  That creatures "hears" your speech as if in 
their first language.  Thus, you can only be understood if the target creature can 
speak a language.  You can also pick up conscious surface-level thoughts.

If Telepathy(empath) you can send and receive only emotions and fuzzy sense 
impressions (images, tastes, etc).

Challenge Rating (CR)

Combat Rating: 1 to 7.
(No Threat), Very Easy, Easy, Average (3), Hard, Very Hard, Dangerous, Deadly.
Earn this much swag for "defeating".

Before combat, roll under (6 = 0) to see one of these is an item.
If so, randomly generate quality/specifics based on threat.
If creatures uses item, give +1 swag to replace.

Description

Strategy

Home (in lair, etc) vs Away
Adv (ambushing; on home ground)
Disadv (most allies injured or one dies; surpised)
Injured (taken damage; half # of original allies)
Hurt (half hp or less)
Cornered (fight or flight

R: Savagely attack, generally closest or recently damaging
B: Attack, intelligently: most dangerous (to extent possible by cognition)
C: Aid each other, retreat to better poition, thwart
G: Flee

Specific Monsters

files

home