Sci-Fi Airshow

This site may be of interest to the sci-fi aficionados out there. Keep those Vipers flying!

Inspirational Art - Dulac

South of Nabu and Pwenet one will find the tangled jungles of Cush. Beyond Cush, there are the wooded highlands of Djangala and the infamous Four Cities of Ende, where Law and Chaos meet on neutral ground to frolic and play.

When I finally get around to detailing that sandbox, these are some of the images that will guide my imagination ...



All drawn by Edmund DuLac, and found via Golden Age Comic Book Stories.

Inspirational Art - Mazes and Wanderers

Just a couple images I found on the web today ...



So the party is making its way along a stream or canal and comes across this maze. The interesting thing here, I think, is not so much the challenge of navigating through it, but the mystery of why it was put there in the first place.



This is like inspiration after the fact. I was just recently contemplating a weird PC class called "The Traveler" (no, it doesn't involve a red umbrella), and this image (by E. Gorey) popped up.

JMS

On the Beastmen of Nabu - Part Three

Two more beastmen round out the blog series. Click to read Part I and Part II. The final article that will appear in NOD #3 will include cattle people, horse people, monkey people, raven people and swine people.

Aigosy (Goat People)
The aigosy are an eccentric race of mystics who dwell in irregularly shaped, or stepped, towers made of sun-dried bricks. Aigosy men always cultivate beards, sometimes small and neat, often curly and tangled, and all aigosy have thick, tangled hair that is usually black. Aigosy are tan to dusky in complexion and have long, flat noses. They traditionally wear felt skullcaps with small felt horns on them, rough tunics, cloaks and leggings and thick leather sandals. Aigosy have little use for jewelry, but do appreciate colored beads, especially glass beads, and often wear strings of them as necklaces and bracelets. Aigosy warriors wear ring mail under their robes and carry shields covered with leather and such weapons as flails, maces and slings. Most aigosy carry a set of pan-pipes.

An aigosy village consists of a dozen or so “towers”, each housing anywhere from three to seven aigosy. Aigosy men and women do not marry, and often do not even live together. Children are raised by the community, with the men cuffing any child that gets out of hand and women, after nursing, doing their best to mother any child within reach. The towers are decorated simply, with the most noticeable articles of furniture being the tall stools and chairs that they prefer. Each aigosy community has a large oven in which they bake their daily bread; flat loaves decorated with seeds in mystic patterns.

The aigosy live by herding goats and sheep and growing a few crops. Rugged and tough, the aigosy have an amazing ability to grow crops in very difficult environments. For this reason, they are considered lucky by many farmers, and should a family of aigosy wish to establish themselves on the fringes of a human settlement, they are usually welcomed (though not too warmly, for they are known to be a bit odd and disruptive).

The aigosy are unflappable, ignoring danger and keeping their cool in just about every situation except being near attractive members of the opposite sex. The truth is, the aigosy are a bit lecherous. They are also eccentric in their speech and manners. They have a cackling laughter that is more unnerving than contagious, and their eyes never seem quite right. They enjoy pondering things over, smoking a clay pipe and, if male, pulling on their beards. When they finally come to a decision, they become a flurry of excited activity.

Racial Characteristics: Aigosy are natural climbers, climbing very difficult surfaces on the roll of 1-2 on 1d6, and rarely failing to climb a surface that provides even small hand and foot holds. They enjoy a +1 bonus on saving throws against spells and effects that affect the mind (i.e. fear, charm, etc). An aigosy’s iron stomach allows them to digest just about anything and makes them more resistant (+2 bonus on saving throws) to poison and disease from ingested articles.

Aigosy Racial Class
The aigosy are often considered to be wild-eyed mystics and, frankly, weirdos. They come by their odd mannerisms honestly, though, for most aigosy are born with what one might call “fairy-sight”. Many aigosy can see spirits and can glimpse the future and past. Besides the racial characteristics mentioned above, a member of th aigosy racial class also gains some spell casting ability and the ability to see spirits.

Prime Requisite: Wisdom (13+ gets +5% bonus to earned experience).
Hit Dice: 1d6 (+2 hit points per level after 9th).
Weapons Permitted: Club, dart, mace, sling, staff.
Armor Permitted: Leather and shields.

Spells: Aigosy can cast divination spells in the same manner that clerics cast spells (i.e. they do not need spellbooks).

Level 1: Comprehend Languages*, Deathwatch*, Detect Evil, Detect Magic, Detect Secret Doors*, Detect Snares & Pits*, Detect Poison*, Detect Undead*, Hide from Undead*, Identify*, True Strike*

Level 2: Augury*, Detect Invisibility, ESP, Find Traps, Locate Object, Speak with Animals, Status*

Level 3: Clairaudience, Clairvoyance, Darkvision, Speak with Dead, Tongues*

Level 4: Detect Scrying*, Discern Lies*, Divination*, Locate Creature*, Speak with Plants, Scrying*, Wizard Eye

Level 5: Commune, Contact Other Plane, Prying Eyes*, Speak with Monsters

Level 6: Analyze Dweomer*, Find the Path, Legend Lore, True Seeing*

* - New spell - see end of article

Spirit Sight: Aigosy are capable of peering into the ethereal plane, and thus have a 1 in 6 chance (increasing by 1 every three levels) of spotting creatures either on the ethereal plane or creatures that are invisible.















Esou (Sheep People)
The esou live in tight-knit communities of 100 to 300 men and women led by a lord and his retainers. Esou communities are herding communities, keeping cattle, sheep and sometimes goats and swine. The esou are skilled at controlling their animals with horns, thus relieving them of the necessity of keeping dogs, which make them nervous. They build their communities on hills, usually constructing a large shell keep. Animals are, as much as possible, kept within the walls of the keep or very near, for the esou tend toward paranoia and are always certain that rustlers are just over the hill waiting to pounce.

Esou have dusky skin and curly blond hair. They wear woolen clothes, including long tunics, leather aprons and sandals. Most esou wear steel skullcaps with a curled ram-horn motif worked into the sides. Warrior equip themselves with ring armor or chainmail, shields and maces that are often tipped with steel heads shaped like a ram’s head. The esou are close-minded and suspicious. It is difficult to work oneself into their confidence, and easy to lose that confidence. Many esou expect visitors seeking hospitality to prove themselves with painful, physical ordeals.

Racial Characteristics: Esou are trained in defensive combat, giving them a base armor class of 8 [11]. They are only surprised on a roll of 1 on 1d8 and sense dangerous traps on a roll of 1 on 1d6.

Esou Racial Class
Esou warriors are experts at defensive combat, and thus very valuable to armies and parties of adventurers. Once an esou adopts a band of adventurers or soldiers, he becomes very protective of them. Esou are always on the lookout for danger, and often drive their comrades crazy with their constant fretting.

Prime Requisite: Constitution (13+ gets +5% bonus to earned experience).
Hit Dice: 1d6+2 (+3 hit points per level after 9th).
Weapons Permitted: Any.
Armor Permitted: Any.

Defensive Stance: When adopting a defensive posture, an esou gains a +1 bonus to hit and damage, a +2 bonus on all saving throws and a +2 bonus to Armor Class. In exchange, he cannot move during combat. A defensive stance lasts for 4 rounds, after which he suffers a -1 penalty to hit and damage for the remainder of the encounter. An esou can adopt his defensive stance a number of times per day equal to his level divided by two, rounding up.

Ignore Damage: At level 6, an esou can ignore 1 point of damage from melee, missile and spell attacks.

Trap Sense: Besides his 1 in 6 chance of noticing traps, an esou who takes levels in this racial class also gains a +1 bonus on saving throws to avoid traps.















NEW SPELLS –

ANALYZE DWEOMER
Level: Magic-User 6
Range: 30 ft.
Duration: 1 round per level

You learn all of the magical functions, effects and triggers on any magic item or any person under the effect of a spell that you look at. The person being analyzed or holding an object being analyzed may make a saving throw to foil your analysis. Casting this spell requires a tiny lens of ruby or sapphire set in a small golden loop, costing approximately 1,500 gp.

AUGURY
Level: Cleric 2
Range: Personal
Duration: Instantaneous

An augury can tell you whether a particular action will bring good or bad results for you in the immediate future. The base chance for receiving a meaningful reply is 70% + 1% per level, to a maximum of 90%; this roll is made secretly. A question may be so straightforward that a successful result is automatic, or so vague as to have no chance of success. If the augury succeeds, you get one of four results: Weal (if the action will probably bring good results), Woe (for bad results), Weal and woe (for both) or Nothing (for actions that don’t have especially good or bad results). If the spell fails, you get the “nothing” result. A cleric who gets the “nothing” result has no way to tell whether it was the consequence of a failed or successful augury. The augury can see into the future only about half an hour, so anything that might happen after that does not affect the result. Thus, the result might not take into account the long-term consequences of a contemplated action. All auguries cast by the same person about the same topic use the same dice result as the first casting.

COMPREHEND LANGUAGES
Level: Cleric, Magic-User 1
Range: Personal
Duration: 10 minutes per level

You can understand the spoken words of creatures or read otherwise incomprehensible written messages. In either case, you must touch the creature or the writing. The spell enables you to understand or read an unknown language, not speak or write it.

DEATHWATCH
Level: Cleric 1
Range: 30 ft.
Duration: 10 minutes per level

You can determine the condition of creatures near death within the spell’s range. You instantly know whether each creature within the area is dead, alive and wounded with 3 or fewer hit points left, alive with 4 or more hit points, undead, or neither alive nor dead (such as a construct).

DETECT POISON
Level: Cleric, Magic-User 1
Range: 30 ft.
Duration: Instantaneous

You determine whether a creature, object, or area has been poisoned or is poisonous.

DETECT SCRYING
Level: Magic-User 4
Range: 40 ft.
Duration: 24 hours

You immediately become aware of any attempt to observe you by means of a scrying spell or effect. The spell’s area radiates from you and moves as you move. You know the location of every magical sensor within the spell’s area. If the scrying attempt originates within the area, you also know its location; otherwise, you and the scrier immediately make opposed caster level checks (1d20 + caster level). If you at least match the scrier’s result, you get a visual image of the scrier and an accurate sense of his or her direction and distance from you.

DETECT SECRET DOORS
Level: Magic-User 1
Range: 60 ft.
Duration: 1 minute per level

You can detect secret doors, compartments, caches, and so forth. Only passages, doors, or openings that have been specifically constructed to escape detection are detected by this spell.

DETECT SNARES & PITS
Level: Druid 1
Range: 60 ft.
Duration: 10 minutes per level

You can detect simple pits, dead falls, and snares as well as mechanical traps constructed of natural materials. The spell does not detect complex traps, including trapdoor traps. The spell detects certain natural hazards, including quicksand, a sinkhole, or unsafe walls of natural rock.

DETECT UNDEAD
Level: Cleric, Magic-User 1
Range: 60 ft.
Duration: 1 minute per level

You can detect the number of undead creatures within range of the spell and their relative strength (i.e. hit dice or challenge level).

DISCERN LIES
Level: Cleric 4
Range: 30 ft.
Duration: 1 round per level

You know if the subject of your scrutiny deliberately and knowingly speaks a lie. The spell does not reveal the truth, uncover unintentional inaccuracies, or necessarily reveal evasions.

DIVINATION
Level: Cleric 4
Range: Personal
Duration: Instantaneous

Similar to augury but more powerful, a divination spell can provide you with a useful piece of advice in reply to a question concerning a specific goal, event, or activity that is to occur within one week. The base chance for a correct divination is 70% + 1% per caster level, to a maximum of 90%.

HIDE FROM UNDEAD
Level: Cleric 1
Range: Touch
Duration: 10 minutes per level

Undead cannot see, hear, or smell the warded creatures. Even extraordinary or supernatural sensory capabilities cannot detect or locate warded creatures. Non-intelligent undead creatures are automatically affected and act as though the warded creatures are not there. An intelligent undead creature gets a single saving throw.

IDENTIFY
Level: Magic-User 1
Range: Touch
Duration: Instantaneous

The spell determines all magic properties of a single magic item, including how to activate those functions (if appropriate), and how many charges are left (if any).

LOCATE CREATURE
Level: Magic-User 4
Duration: 10 minutes per level

This spell functions like locate object, except this spell locates a known or familiar creature.
You slowly turn and sense when you are facing in the direction of the creature to be located, provided it is within range. You also know in which direction the creature is moving, if any.

PRYING EYES
Level: Magic-User 5
Range: One mile
Duration: 1 hour per level

You create a number of semi-tangible, visible magical orbs (called “eyes”) equal to 1d4 + your level. These eyes move out, scout around, and return as you direct them when casting the spell. Each eye can see 120 feet (normal vision only) in all directions. Each eye has 1 hit point and an AC of 18. You give each eye some basic instructions of where to go, and it returns and replays in your mind what it has seen.

SCRYING
Level: Cleric 5, Druid 4, Magic-User 4
Range: See text
Duration: 1 minute per level

You can see and hear some creature, which may be at any distance. If the subject succeeds on a saving throw, the scrying attempt fails. If you have no knowledge of the creature, it gets a +10 bonus to its saving throw. If you have only secondhand knowledge of the creature, it gets a +5 bonus to its saving throw. If you have a picture or likeness of the creature, it suffers a -2 penalty to its saving throw. If you have a possession or garment of the creature, it suffers a -4 penalty to its saving throw. If you have a piece of the creature (body part, fingernail clippings, lock of hair), it suffers a -10 penalty to its saving throw. If the subject is on another plane, it gets a +5 bonus on its saving throw.

If the save fails, you can see and hear the subject and the subject’s immediate surroundings.

STATUS
Level: Cleric 2
Range: Touch
Duration: 1 hour per level

When you need to keep track of comrades who may get separated, status allows you to mentally monitor their relative positions and general condition. You are aware of direction and distance to the creatures and any conditions affecting them. Once the spell has been cast upon the subjects, the distance between them and the caster does not affect the spell as long as they are on the same plane of existence. If a subject leaves the plane, or if it dies, the spell ceases to function for it.

TONGUES
Level: Cleric 4, Magic-User 3
Range: Touch
Duration: 20 minutes per level

This spell grants the creature touched the ability to speak and understand the language of any intelligent creature, whether it is a racial tongue or a regional dialect.

TRUE SEEING
Level: Cleric 5, Druid 7, Magic-User 6
Range: Touch
Duration: 1 minute per level

You confer on the subject the ability to see all things as they actually are. The subject sees through normal and magical darkness, notices secret doors hidden by magic, sees the exact locations of creatures or objects under blur or displacement effects, sees invisible creatures or objects normally, sees through illusions, and sees the true form of polymorphed, changed, or transmuted things. Further, the subject can focus its vision to see into the Ethereal Plane (but not into extradimensional spaces). The range of true seeing conferred is 120 feet. True seeing does not penetrate solid objects. It in no way confers X-ray vision or its equivalent. It does not negate concealment, including that caused by fog and the like. True seeing does not help the viewer see through mundane disguises, spot creatures who are simply hiding, or notice secret doors hidden by mundane means.

TRUE STRIKE
Level: Magic-User 1
Range: Personal
Duration: See text

Your next attack roll (if it is made before the end of the next round) gains a +10 bonus to hit.

On the Beastmen of Nabu - Part Two

Two more beastmen for your enjoyment. Part One, detailing the cat and lion people, is here.

Kawa (Fox People)
The kawa are mostly known as highwaymen and thieves. They wander the River of Death in bands that are like extended families of 10 to 20 individuals, usually under the command (such as it is, for they are a deeply chaotic folk) of the eldest member. The arrival of a band of kawa in a settlement is met with mixed emotions, for while they are known to be thieves, they also bring news and the crafts of their wise women and cunning men to isolated villages.

The kawa are short (4 feet tall, on average) and wiry. They have ruddy skin and platinum blond hair, and eyes they gleam with cunning. They dress in beaded tunics, jaunty leather caps and leather sandals. Belt pouches hold charms and bundles of useful herbs. Kawa warriors carry short, thin swords and long knives, as well as short bows or slings. The kawa are friendly folk, but dishonest and always on the lookout for a sharp deal. They have soprano voices and demoniacal laughs that are deeply unnerving. Kawa often get drunk at night and play tricks, often very cruel ones, on whoever is close at hand.

Racial Characteristics: Kawa are sneaky and cunning. They surprise foes on the roll of 1-2 on 1d6, and because of their acute hearing are only surprised on a roll of 1 on 1d8. Most kawa have a working understanding of herbs and their supernatural and medicinal uses, enough so that their ministrations afford creatures a +1 bonus to save vs. poison and disease. A kawa’s fluid fighting style gives it a +1 bonus to Armor Class.

Ka’wa Racial Class
A ka’wa, despite his reputation, is a useful person to have around on an adventure. Quiet and clever, they make excellent scouts and can help a party of adventurers survive in a hostile wilderness. Moreover, their wandering ways exposes them to useful bits of lore and gossip, including a handful of minor charms. Besides their normal racial abilities, dedicated ka’wa scouts have some minor spellcasting ability and the ability to sneak about and survive in the wilderness.

Prime Requisite: Intelligence (13+ gets +5% bonus to earned experience).
Hit Dice: 1d6+1 (+2 hit points per level after 9th).
Weapons Permitted: Club, dagger, hand axe, javelin, light crossbow, flail, mace, short bow, short sword, sling.
Armor Permitted: Leather and shields.

Herblore: Kawa can spend time each day they spend in the wilderness looking for herbs. There is a 1 in 6 chance each day that they discover a combination of herbs that, with their store of herbal knowledge, can be used to brew a tea that acts as a potion. Roll the type of potion randomly, using the minor potions chart in the core rulebook.

Move Silently: When concentrating and not carrying particularly noisy objects, ka’wa can move about without making any sound. A kawa moving silently and scouting ahead of a party can avoid an encounter entirely if his opponents are surprised.

Perception: A kawa successfully listens at doors and finds secret doors and hidden traps as well as elves (2 in 6 and 4 in 6 chance respectively), and can find pits and traps as well as a dwarf (1 in 6 chance of just noticing, 3 in 6 chance if searching).

Spells: At level 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12, a kawa learns to cast a level 1 magic-user spell. They can cast each spell they know once per day. The kawa’s player can choose to learn a spell known by a magic-using comrade or roll randomly for the spell he learns.



Qamouli (Camel People)
The qamouli are tall, lanky folk often standing over 7 feet in height. They have long arms and a stride that, while loping and ungainly, makes them quite fast. Qamouli have tan skin and curly, golden or reddish hair. They decorate their faces with jewelry, but otherwise dress in simple saffron robes. They cover their misshapen heads, which give them no end of embarrassment, with brightly colored turbans and scarves. Warriors wear ring mail over their robes and carry long spears, sickle-shaped swords (treat as battle axes) and slings. They are obsessive about collecting holy symbols of all kinds of gods and goddesses – major, minor or forgotten, good, evil or otherwise. A qamouli never speaks ill of a divinity, no matter how ancient, unknown or foul.

The qamouli are desert traders. They have thick pads on their feet that protect them scorpion stings and the heat of the desert sands, and so never wear shoes. They roam in bands of 15 to 30 individuals, their long strides and amazing endurance carrying them swiftly across the sands from one village to another.

Racial Characteristics: Qamouli are generally not bothered by heat and cold, though they do suffer normal damage from fire and cold attacks. They need only half as much food and water as normal humans, and are usually (75%) capable of finding food and water in any environment. A qamouli can carry 1.5 times as much weight as a normal human. They have a base movement of 15, but their clumsiness gives them a -1 penalty to Armor Class.

Qamouli Racial Class
Qamouli are natural explorers and adventurers. They like to stay on the move, and always have an eye open for items of value. Besides their racial characteristics, qamouli also know how to protect themselves from wild animals and wicked spirits.

Prime Requisite: Constitution (13+ gets +5% bonus to earned experience).
Hit Dice: 1d6+2 (+3 hit points per level after 9th).
Weapons Permitted: Any.
Armor Permitted: Leather, ring and chainmail and shields.

Desert Songs: The qamouli are especially superstitious, and learn from a young age the secrets of warding away bad luck (+2 bonus to save vs. curses). They also learn ancient songs that keep away dangerous animals and wicked spirits. These songs are sung in a nasally baritone and, in fact, are fairly useful for keeping anything with hearing at bay. In play, these songs act as a cleric’s “turn undead” check, but can be used against normal animals and the undead.

Languages: Qamouli characters are allowed to know 2 bonus languages above and beyond what is allowed by their intelligence score.

On the Beastmen of Nabu - Part One

In 1671 AD, a fellow by the name of Charles Le Brun produced a series of illustrations for his treatise on physiognomy – or a study of facial features. Included among these were fanciful illustrations of people with animal characteristics. Approximately 350 years later, a gaming geek is using these illustration to produce this ...

The Beastmen of Nabu

Nabu was once a lush savanna cut by a river, the banks of which supported a highly advanced civilization. At the center of this civilization was the city-state of Nabu and its attendant empire that stretched from the jungles of Cush to the rocky hills of the Wyvern Coast. This empire was ruled by successive dynasties of scientist-kings, men and women who, it is said, were as above other humans as humans are above beasts. These kings and queen and their attendants produced wonders for their empire. And then, they apparently went too far. The cataclysm has been attributed to many possible occurrences, though most scholars would place the blame squarely on Nabu's competition with its rival, Irem, over the verdant hills and forests of Venatia. The two powers, they believe, finally destroyed one another in a final clash of sorcery and science. In the wake of the cataclysm, both lands were turned to waste - wind-swept deserts and buried ruins replacing farmland and city, beastmen and corpses replacing men and women.

The beastmen of Nabu are, for the most part, human beings. Their habits and their faces, however, carry the mark of beasts and keep them separate from other humans, incapable of interbreeding with normal humans and often unwilling to manage their passions sufficiently to fit into to human society. There is no doubt that the beastmen were created by the energies unleashed during the cataclysm, but the process by which this transformation was accomplished is lost to modern theoretic wizardry.

Bubasti (Cat People)

The bubasti are a race of cat-like demi-humans who dwell on the margins of the River of Death. Bubasti appear as short (average 3 feet tall), slight humanoids with dusky skin and glossy, blue-black hair. They have furtive, piercing eyes and are prone to staring. The bubasti are chaotic down to their little souls, and often cruel and malicious. They dress in simple tunics and enjoy decorating themselves (when not on the hunt) with silver trinkets. In fact, bubasti place such a high value on silver that silver coins can be considered to be double in value when trading with the cat people.

The bubasti live in small communities of 10 to 30 individuals. They dwell in the tall reeds that clog the banks of the river. The bubasti construct tiny huts from the reeds. Each little den is separated by several yards from the others, and they are so cunningly camouflaged that it is possible to walk through a bubasti village without ever knowing. Villages are mostly made up of females and young, with a few older males living on the outskirts of the village and claiming it and its inhabitants as their territory. The females put up with this so long as the males keep mostly to themselves and make no attempt to assert political control over the village. Most males belong to no village, instead living the life of wanderers and adventurers.

The cat people mostly make their living as fishermen, but they are also skilled at hunting small birds with weighted nets. Bubasti give most of their religious devotion to the mythic Cat Lord, who the Nabu know as Bast but the cat people call Pasha. In turn, they enjoy Pasha's special attention and protection, with people hurting a bubasti running a slight (5%) chance of attracting a curse (per the spell).

Racial Characteristics: Bubasti characters enjoy a +1 bonus to make saving throws against breath weapons and triggered traps. They only trip pit traps on a roll of 1 on 1d8, and take only half damage from falling. Bubasti can see in the dark as well as elves and dwarves. Bubasti speak their own language, a dialect of the common tongue of humankind, and the language of felines.

The Bubasti Racial Class

While you can use the bubasti as a race, like elf or halfling, capable of taking levels in the basic classes, you might also want to treat the bubasti as a class of their own. In addition to the racial abilities listed above, members of the bubasti class gain the ability to cast a limited number of spells and the chance to escape certain death.

Prime Requisite: Dexterity (13+ gets +5% bonus to earned experience).

Hit Dice: 1d6+1 (+1 hit points per level after 9th).

Weapons Permitted: Club, dagger, javelin, light crossbow, short bow, short sword, sling.

Armor Permitted: Leather, ring, shields.

Magic Spells (1st): The bubasti are granted access to a small number of spells by their divine patron. The bubasti spell list is described below. Bubasti cast spells as clerics.

Level One: Detect Evil, Detect Magic, Expeditious Retreat#, Feather Fall#, Jump#

Level Two: Detect Invisibility, Dexterity*, Find Traps, Invisibility, Speak with Animals

Level Three: Bestow Curse**, Dimension Door#, Locate Object, Summon Cats***

* As the magic-user spell Strength, but applies instead to dexterity. Bubasti gain 2d4 points of dexterity from this spell.

** The reverse of remove curse.

*** As Monster Summoning I, except the spell summons 2d6 normal cats from the aether. Cats have the following statistics: HD 1d2; AC 5 [14]; Atk 2 claws (1 damage), 1 bite (1 damage); Move 12; Save 17; CL/XP A/5; Special: None.

# New spell – see below.

Evasion (1st): The bubasti can roll with a potentially lethal blow to take less damage from it than she otherwise would. Once per day, when a bubasti would be reduced to 0 or fewer hit points by damage from a weapon or other blow, she can attempt a saving throw. If successful, she takes only half damage from the attack.

Keen Hearing (1st): A bubasti's hearing is so acute that they are only surprised on a roll of 1 on 1d8.

Light Footed (1st): Bubasti are so quiet when they move that they are capable, when surrounded by equally quiet creatures or alone, of surprising their foes on the roll of 1-2 on 1d6.

					Spells
Level	XP	HD	Attack	Save	1	2	3
1	0	1	+0	14	1	-	-
2	1,900	2	+0	13	1	-	-
3	3,800	3	+1	12	2	-	-
4	7,600	4	+1	11	2	-	-
5	15,200	5	+2	10	2	1	-
6	30,000	6	+2	9	2	1	-
7	60,000	7	+3	8	3	2	-
8	120,000	8	+3	7	3	2	-
9	240,000	9	+4	6	3	2	1
10	360,000	+1 hp	+5	5	3	2	1
11	480,000	+2 hp	+5	4	3	3	2
12	600,000	+3 hp	+6	4	3	3	2

New Spells –

Dimension Door

Level: 3 (bubasti), 4 (magic-user)

Range: 300 feet

Duration: Instantaneous

You instantly transfer yourself from your current location to any other spot within range. You always arrive at exactly the spot desired, whether by simply visualizing the area or by stating direction. You may bring one additional willing man-sized or smaller creature per three caster levels.

Expeditious Retreat

Level: 1

Range: Personal

Duration: 1 minute per level

This spell increases your land speed by +12.

Feather Fall

Level: 1

Range: 30 feet

Duration: Until landing, or 1 round per level

The affected creatures or objects fall so slowly that they take no damage upon landing.

Jump

Level: 1

Range: Touch

Duration: 1 minute per level

The subject of this spell can easily leap 10 feet horizontally or 6 feet vertically.

Belcwn (Lion People)

Unlike their small, furtive kin the bubasti, the lion people, or belcwn, are tall and broad of shoulder. The lion people have tanned, muscular bodies, golden eyes and curly blonde or red hair that is always worn long and loose. Belcwns dress in leather tunics. Warriors wear leather or ring armor and carry heavy flails, hooked swords or pole arms and sometimes shields. They are expert at using their weapons to knock their enemies prone, opening them to a vicious pounce. The male leader of a pride wears a heavy, animal skin cloak and receives visitors sitting on a beautifully carved wooden stool.

The belcwn live in prides, pitching their animal skin tents on grassy meadows near groves of acacia trees. Each pride consists of 6 to 12 female warriors and either a single male or a pair of brothers who rule as titular kings and defenders. While the women work as hunters and gatherers, the kings tutor their children in fighting and in the legends and lore of their people. The males also fill their time working on crafts necessary to the tribe's survival – mostly weapon making, but also basket weaving and leather working. Males without a pride live as mercenaries and adventurers. Their foul tempers and penchant for violence make them useful to nobles, but poorly regarded by common folk.

The belcwn worship Pasha, the ruler of all felines, as well as deities of war and solar divinities. Males act as priests for their prides, and thus often have the magical abilities of low-level adepts. Many belcwn kings are attended by bubasti viziers.

Racial Characteristics: Belcwns are usually tall and muscular, but are generally not known for their intellects. New belcwn characters receive a +2 bonus to their strength attribute, but a -2 penalty to their intelligence. These modifications cannot take an ability score higher than 18 or lower than 3. Belcwns can see in the dark.

Belcwn Racial Class

Belcwns are roudy, eager warriors who enjoy coming to blows with their enemies. Their ear-shattering battle cries cause enemies to quake in their boots, and their powerful charges often send them scattering. In addition, belcwns possess an innate ability to command normal beasts.

Prime Requisite: Strength (13+ gets +5% bonus to earned experience).

Hit Dice: 1d6+2 (+3 hit points per level after 9th).

Weapons Permitted: Any.

Armor Permitted: Leather, ring, chainmail and shields.

Battle Yell: The belcwn usually enter battle with a terrible, throaty yell, not unlike a lion's roar. Creatures with fewer hit dice than the belcwn (and no more than 5 hit dice in any event) must pass a saving throw or be struck with fear, suffering a -1 penalty to hit and damage during combat.

Charge: When belcwns charge into a fight, they enjoy a +1 bonus to hit and damage for one round, but suffer a -2 penalty to Armor Class and always lose initiative to troops who have set their spears against a charge. Foes that are damaged by a belcwn's charge must make a saving throw or be knocked prone.

Command Animals: Belcwns possess a natural aura of command over natural, normal animals (i.e. not mythic animals like unicorns or giant versions of normal animals). Against these creatures, a belcwn can make a "turn undead" roll as a cleric of the belcwn's level. If successful, the animals fall under the belcwn's command as the undead fall under the command of an evil cleric, though the duration is only 1 hour.

Level	XP	HD	Attack	Save
1	0	1	+0	16
2	2,000	2	+0	15
3	4,000	3	+1	14
4	8,000	4	+2	13
5	16,000	5	+2	12
6	30,000	6	+3	11
7	60,000	7	+4	10
8	120,000	8	+5	9
9	240,000	9	+6	8
10	360,000	+3 hp	+7	7
11	480,000	+6 hp	+7	6
12	600,000	+9 hp	+8	5

Quick Review - Fantastic Voyage

Before I begin - there are some spoilers in here. Since the basic plot of this book has been imitated so often, though, I don't expect it will spoil things for too many people. It's like worrying about ruining the "chicken crossing the road" joke for someone ...

This is a tough one. Fantastic Voyage is a classic, and it is written by Asimov, a giant in his field. And, frankly, I didn't find it all that impressive. Now, this is partly no fault of the author. The fact is, were I reading this when it first came out, the novel concept of shrinking people down and injecting them into a human body might have really floored me. Unfortunately, many years later, I've not only seen the movie adaptation, but also many, many rip-offs of the concept, the latest being in an episode of Phineas and Ferb (which I highly recommend).

So, the first problem is certainly no fault of the author. Unfortunately, the first problem is exacerbated by the second problem, which is only due to Asimov - the characters are so wooden and hollow that plodding through half of the book waiting for them to be shrunk is just mind numbingly boring. The characters aren't just stereotypes, they are stereotypes of stereotypes. And after the stereotypes are finally miniaturized and injected, the book really doesn't get much better. The description of the human anatomy from the point of view of the miniaturized explorers is sometimes interesting, but occasionally difficult enough for me to picture that any wonder was just lost. But then every step of the story involves entering a new part of the anatomy, introducing the "problem" and then solving said problem, often in obvious ways.

In one important way, Fantastic Voyage was way ahead of its time. Just as many (okay, most) modern movies sacrifice story to special effects, Fantastic Voyage ignores compelling (hell, even mildly interesting) characters and conflicts for the supposed wonder of seeing white blood cells up close. For me, the anatomy lesson and the make-believe physics of the miniaturization process just wasn't enough. If you haven't read the book, I recommend sticking with the movie.

JMS

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And now I need to finish my Beastmen of Nabu article and then get busy with the illusionist, a low-level adventure set in the catacombs of Ophir, and I need to begin plotting out the next chunk of sandbox ...