Quaggoths are primitive subterranean humanoids who are often forced into slavery by dark elves and other evil races. Also known as “deep bears” for their superficially ursine appearance, quaggoths are brutal, fearless warriors.
Typically standing just over six feet tall and weighing 250 pounds are more, quaggoths are muscular humanoids covered in shaggy white fur. Their fanged muzzles resemble those of bears, though quaggoths are actually more closely related to sasquatches and yetis. Quaggoths have razor-sharp claws and usually wield only simple weapons, if any. They wear no clothing.
Quaggoths are violent and self-interested hedonists who only care for sating their desires for food and carnage, flying into a vicious rage when challenged to combat. They inhabit underground warrens strewn with rubbish, rotting meat, and other filth, often rife with disease. When left to their own devices, quaggoths are ruled by the most powerful warrior or shaman, but they are more commonly found enslaved by other races, particularly drow. Due to their immunity to poison, dark elves often charge their quaggoths with handling giant spiders and other monstrous vermin.
Long ago, the quaggoths were more peaceful and civilized, ruling a nascent kingdom deep in the Darklands. This changed following Earthfall, when the newly-created drow invaded and slaughtered or enslaved all the deep bears they could find. The survivors were hunted mercilessly by the dark elves and duergar, growing more and more feral with each generation, and to this day free quaggoths despise all elves and dwarves.
This post was originally from a FAQ, but since the original link is now defunct, I am re-posting it here.
There are many things to keep in mind when naming the town or city in your novel:
1) Genre/Theme/Tone
It’s very important to consider the genre and theme of your story when choosing a town name. Take these names for example, each of which indicates the genre or theme of the story:
King’s Landing (sounds fantastical) Cloud City (sounds futuristic) Silent Hill (sounds scary) Sweet Valley (sounds happy and upbeat) Bikini Bottom (sounds funny) Radiator Springs (sounds car-related) Halloween Town (sounds Halloween-related) Storybrooke (sounds fairytale-related)
2) Time/Place
It’s also important to consider the time and place where your story takes place. For example, you wouldn’t use “Vista Gulch” as a name for a town in Victorian England. You probably wouldn’t use it for a town in modern day North Carolina, either. Vista is a Spanish word and would normally be found in places where Spanish names are common, like Spain, Central and South America, the southwest United States (including southern California), Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Florida.
3) Size/Settlement Type
An isolated town of 300 people probably won’t be Valley City, but a sprawling metropolis of 30 million could be called Windyville, because it could have started out as a small town and grew into a large city.
4) Geography
Words like gulch, butte,and bayou tend to be regional terms. You probably wouldn’t find Berle’s Bayou in Idaho, or Windy Butte in Rhode Island.
Words like mount, cape, and valley are dependent upon terrain. Most of the time, you won’t have a town named “mount” something unless there are hills or mountains nearby. You wouldn’t use “cape” unless the town was on a cape, which requires a large body of water.
5) History
Is there a historical person or event that your town might be named after? The Simpsons’ hometown of Springfield is ironically named after its founder, Jebediah Springfield. Chattanooga, Tennessee is named after the Cherokee town that was there first. Nargothrond, in The Lord of the Rings, is an Elvish town with an Elvish name.
6) Combination of Words
person name + geographical term = Smithfield, Smith Creek
group name + geographical term = Pioneer Valley, Settlers’ Ridge
descriptive word + geographical term = Mystic Falls, Smoky Hill
person name + settlement type = Smithton, Claraville
landmark + settlement type = Bridgton, Beaconville
How has the world’s militant forces impacted global history?
Do armies exist within this world? If so, do they more resemble town-wide militias, tribal warriors or massive groups of armed soldiers throughout a nation? Certain nations can specialize in different areas - fighting from land or on sea, close-quarters combat or long-distance, with weaponry or with magic. What is each nation’s speciality?
What is the most powerful military force on the planet known to man? What is the weakest known to man? Are there forces beyond the scope of human understanding more powerful than either, or technology created behind the scenes that could overpower the strongest army?
How does one join the army? Is joining the army a common occurrence? Is it done of one’s own free will, or is it, at times or always, forced upon the citizen? What does joining the army cost someone, be it financially or otherwise? Is joining the army considered an honor or a disgrace?
How have these militaries affected the events of their world? What was the greatest source of physical conflict involving the military? Do they continue to war with one another, or otherwise wreak havoc, in the present day? Have these military forces evolved over the years?
[
“There
is a beast dwelling here whose form resembles a goat’s body with a human’s
face. Its eyes are behind its armpits and it has tiger’s teeth and human hands.
It makes a sound like a baby and is called the Paoxiao. It is a man-eater.”
The combination of human, carnivoran and ungulate traits makes me think of the leucrotta, and I wonder if the pao-xiao is also a garbled version of a hyena. This also meant that I had to work hard to make sure the stats weren’t just a leucrotta ++]
Pao-xiao This gray beast has the hindquarters
of a goat and paws that look disturbingly like human hands. It has one yellow
eye set in each of its flanks. Its face is like a porcelain mask, with a
grotesque maw opening beneath it.
The
pao-xiao is a ferociously gluttonous predator, whose favorite prey is terrified
sapient creatures. Their bizarre anatomy has led some to speculate that they
are an artificial lifeform of some sort, but they breed true and are found in
open woodlands and hills around the world. Their mask-like face resembles a
pale and androgynous humanoid face, and it can change its expression as the
pao-xiao wills. These eerie expressions and their high-pitched, whining howls
lead to folklore that they are undead in many parts of their range.
Pao-xiao
typically approach prey from ambush, getting as close as they can before
striking. Their gaze can paralyze a victim, and they enjoy leaving a single
paralyzed enemy untouched for a few rounds to truly savor its plight as the
pao-xiao tears its allies apart. They can charge their jaws with devastating
energy, tearing at their own skin and muscle almost as quickly as it does at
the pao-xiao’s quarry.
Most
pao-xiao are greedy for treasure as well as meat, and they may simply rob
travelers through their domains rather than slay and eat them. They may hunt
solo or cooperatively, and packs of pao-xiao are typically composed of related
individuals. Authority among pao-xiao is governed through violence, and
(usually non-lethal) fights for dominance are fairly common. They are social
with other monstrous creatures, and have something as a reputation as gossips.
Some pao-xiao find themselves in positions of authority over monsters that
share their territory, such as ogres, trolls or goblinoids.
[
“There
is a bird here on Mount
Zhang’e whose form
resembles a crane with a single foot, red markings on a green ground and a
white beak. It is called the Bifang and it makes a sound like its name. If seen
by people, it is an omen of an inexplicable fire in the town.”
According to A Chinese Bestiary, the bifang was associated in some traditions with wood and others with fire. This inspired the “flammable aura” ability.]
Bifang This crane-like bird stands a head
shorter than a human, and has red and orange highlights across its green
feathers. It has only a single leg, and its eyes smolder like coals.
Bifangs
are birds of elemental fire that occasionally appear as omens of destruction.
They are not evil, but their very presence accelerates fires and makes objects
more flammable. Even small fires may quickly spread out of control, and large
fires might be started as the bifang fights against anyone trying to kill it or
chase it off. Knowledgeable summoners may call a bifang to the Material Plane
in order to act as a distraction or a weapon of war, but the fires they create
can easily spread past their intended targets.
Bifangs
eat ash and smoke, and seem to gain pleasure from the ruins of more expensive
materials. If given a choice, a bifang would rather burn silk than linen, and
magical cloth before either. This destructive habit makes them poor choices to
guard treasures for all but the most fireproof of hoards, but they are
sometimes used as guards by efreeti or salamanders on the Plane of Fire.
Mephits covet them as mounts, and a mephit mounted on a bifang can usually
bully other mephits into doing its bidding.
Bifangs
lay eggs, which are easily mistaken for oversized fire opals by the untrained.
Although bifangs are protective parents, these eggs are sometimes stolen by
collectors and end up on the market. Some buyers know the provenance and seek
to train the magical bird, whereas others may be taken by the beauty of the
“stone” and gain an unpleasant surprise when the bifang finally hatches.
Bifangs migrate long distances across the Plane of Fire when left to their own
devices, responding to seasonal cues obscure to all but the natives of that
plane.
[The wormcaller isn’t terribly interesting in its original form, being pretty much a collection of spell-like abilities. The text description in the module doesn’t mention the overlong arms or the circular mouth seen in the art, so I suppose those were additions made by the artist. I gave them full channel negative energy, and stole the name “invoke the worm” from the sword of Kyuss to apply to a different ability.]
Wormcaller This hunched, skeletal figure appears to have once been
humanoid, but its arms have extended to the point where it runs on all fours.
It moves with disturbing quickness despite its armor. Green worms writhe along
its limbs, and a single massive worm makes up its throat and mouth—its human
skull perched atop a circular, ravenous maw.
Wormcallers are
undead horrors that draw power from Kyuss to serve as priests of his dark
faith. Much as the first swords of Kyuss were created from the warriors that
served Kyuss in life, the original wormcallers were Kyuss’ acolytes before the
Wormgod ascended to his current monstrous form. They serve as a literal
mouthpiece for Kyuss, as a worm has replaced their mouth and throat, and the
grave pronouncements they make are in a wretched rasp redolent of the Worm that
Walks.
Mortal clerics of Kyuss view conversion into
a wormcaller as the greatest honor.
Wormcallers are
among the cleverest of the wormtouched, and they use that intelligence to
coordinate the tactics of other undead. Even the knights of Kyuss do well to
listen to the council of wormcallers. They act primarily in a support position
in Kyuss’ armies—they heal the undead, harm the living and strip enemies of
magical protections. They can unleash a litany of awful prophecies, tales of the Age of Worms that bolster the wormtouched and enervate all other creatures.
Avolakias and wormcallers view each other with some envy, both seeing themselves as the favored vessels for the wisdom of Kyuss.
Kyuss himself tolerates this vying for attention as long as it manifests itself in competing for glory
rather than sabotaging each other. Despite this rivalry, the two types of monsters function best in complementary roles–avolakias acting as spies and recruiters, and wormcallers serving as battle priests.
Wormcallers stand
between three and four feet high in their stooped postures. Some larger or
smaller wormcallers exist—use the giant and young simple templates to model
them.
[
“These
is a beast dwelling here whose form resembles a horse but with a white body,
black tail, a single horn and tiger’s teeth and claws. It makes a sound like a
drum and is called the Bo.”
We’re heading back to China, for more of the creatures appearing in the Guideways Through Mountains and Seas. One of the things I find particularly interesting about that book is that, even for the kind and friendly creatures, it tells you what diseases they cure or other benefits you gain by eating them.]
Bo This creature looks like a
muscular horse, except that it has a single horn growing from its head, and the
clawed forepaws of a predatory beast. Its hindquarters bear stripes, and it has
a black mane and tail.
The bo is
a feral kin to the unicorn, less intelligent, but stronger and more bestial.
Despite their carnivorous nature, they are goodly creatures. A bo’s favorite
meat is that of other predatory creatures, and they help to keep the
populations of animals and magical beasts low enough to support villages in the
forests and plains they call home.
A bo is
among the fastest of all beasts, although they can reach their top speed only
for short bursts. Their hide turns away weapons, and this quality is coveted by
warriors of all kinds. The unscrupulous and cruel will kill bo to make armor or
ointments that grant damage reduction, but a bo will also share its protection
with a goodly rider. They can be persuaded to join an army if the cause is just
and if they are well fed (the meat of big cats is a particular favorite).
Bo vary
in size as horses do, but tend towards large and muscular forms. Although their
teeth are sharp, they prefer to fight with their horns, biting at enemies only
if they are held in the front claws or during feeding.
[I don’t even remember the encounter with the raam when I ran my college group through Age of Worms. Maybe they never fought these guys, or maybe it was such a slaughter that it didn’t stick in the mind. The original seemed to have changed from undead to giant in the writing process, and the published version still seems unclear as to which they should be.]
Raam This grey skinned giant has an expression of melancholy on
his sunken face. He wears little more than tattered rags, and his skin is drawn
tight over his frame.
The raam, or cairn
giants, are the last of a dying race. Legend says that the raam were once a
colorful and vibrant people, but when they stopped being able to have children,
their hearts grew bitter and the color literally leached from them. The
remaining raam turned to alchemy and necromancy to preserve themselves
eternally, and they do not age and only die by violence. The raam culture is
all but lost, existing only in the songs raams sing and the monuments they
build to glory days gone by.
Most raams are
dangerous recluses, lashing out with violence against any that would interrupt
their reverie. Those that approach them with respect and value their ancient
wisdom may be able to learn much from them. A few raams live within the
societies of other evil giants as advisors and sages. They are sometimes
mistaken for undead, and their powers certainly draw on those of undeath. Most
raams rise again as undead creatures when they finally, truly die.
[Like several of the original monsters in Age of Worms, the wind warrior was a bit overpowered. Not as much as, say, the Ebon Aspect, but enough so that both parties I ran through the Whispering Cairn were on the ropes with two of them being their only fight of the day.]
Wind Warrior This creature appears to be a living suit of fine ceramic
armor carrying a sword in each hand. Its cape and the plume of its
helmet blow in a breeze seemingly coming from within the armor.
Wind warriors are
minor elemental spirits bound into a suit of decorative armor. They were
created by a long-lost empire of air elemental beings, and knowledge of their
creation is mysterious and highly sought after. They can be found in service to
other elemental beings as mercenaries, guards or jailers. Wind warriors
naturally lack ambition, and so typically work for another creature
rather than pursuing their own agendas.
Wind warriors are
capable combatants, able to fight with two weapons with incredible ease.
Different wind warriors may favor different weapons, but longswords are the
most common. Although they can create their own weapons magically, if offered a
magical weapon or one made of an exotic material they will not hesistate to use
it. Although they are not creative enemies, they work well together. Wind
warriors advance by character class, and advanced wind warriors usually take
teamwork feats to improve their cooperative fighting styles.
[More monster syncretism, using the visuals from The X-Files’ Flukeman but the flavor text from Hackmaster. I was pleasantly surprised that Hackmaster made its leech monster men non-evil.]
Leechfolk This wrinkly humanoid has a
gaping, fanged maw occupying most of its face. Webbing stretches between its
fingers and toes.
Leechfolk
are strange, blood-drinking humanoids native to warm swamps and tropical lakes.
Despite their monstrous appearance, they are not evil. Rather, they are an
insular and religious people whose lives are typically devoted to the
veneration of a pantheon of gods and nature spirits. The center of leechfolk
life is their temple, which is typically guarded by the strongest, best
equipped leechfolk. Inside are shrines and idols to all manner of divinities,
from fey entities to gods of plants, animals and nature to some of the more benevolent
Great Old Ones, such as Yig and Yog-Sothoth. Although leechfolk are as
comfortable below water as above it, these temples are always at the
surface—the better to catch sun, moon and starlight during religious festivals.
Leechfolk
are obligate blood feeders, but prefer to feed non-lethally if they can.
Leechfolk territory is typically rigged with a variety of snares, nets, and
other traps. The leechfolk regularly patrol their traps, take a blood meal from
a captured animal, and then set it free. The saliva of a leechfolk contains
anesthetic chemicals, slowing the reactions of their victims but reducing the
pain they feel. They prefer the blood of mammals and birds, and their slow
metabolisms mean they rarely need to feed more than weekly.
A leechfolk
stands between five and six feet tall, and has a lifespan that can reach 100
years if not beset by violence or disease. They are hermaphroditic and lay eggs
into a cocoon of thick mucus. Leechfolk are caring parents, regurgitating blood
into their babies’ mouths until they are large enough to leave the village and
hunt for themselves.
[Because sometimes, you need a slightly more powerful pallet swap of an existing monster. I don’t know why, but the idea of a venomous bear is hilarious to me.]
Poison Bear This massive bear has greenish
bristles growing from its fur. Its claws are unusually long and curved, almost
like the fangs of a snake.
Poison
bears are artificial creatures, the creation of a mad druid with a grudge
against all humanoids. As such, they instinctually seek out humanoids to kill
and consume, and are much more aggressive than ordinary bears. They live in the
same areas as ordinary bears, and in fact are reproductively compatible with
them. The offspring of a cross between a poison bear and a grizzly bear are
always poison bears. The influx of aggressive, man-eating venomous bears is of
obvious concern, and many druids have reluctantly begun to work to eradicate
this new invasive species.
Beyond
their aggression, poison bears have mostly the same habits as their mundane
cousins. They are omnivores with a wide territory range, although their food
stuffs tend towards the toxic. Poison bears gleefully consume nightshade and
foxglove, poison toadstools, snakes and amphibians. Due to this constant diet
of toxins, some poison bears have different poisons stored inside their bodies.
Although the default poison bear deals Con damage with its poison, a poison
bear can instead have a poison that deals 1d3 points of damage to any other one
ability score.
[Yes, I will be using the original Hackmaster art for some of these. Most of these, in fact. Because a lot of these creatures are going to be capital W Weird. Unfortunately, Kenzer has the same problem that WoTC did–that is to say, individual artist credits are thin on the ground. I’ll be providing them when possible.]
Augerlisk This reptilian quadruped stands
tall and lean, with a tail ending in a bony club and a single, spiraled horn
growing from its forehead.
Augerlisks
are basilisk-like creatures that, unlike their more familiar kin, are fast and
ferocious melee combatants in addition to bearing a petrifying gaze. An
augerlisk is so named for its drill-like horn, which it uses to chisel through
stone. Like an ordinary basilisk, an augerlisk feeds entirely on stone created
from living creatures, which it breaks into rubble with its powerful horn and
tail.
Augerlisks
are social creatures and frequently live in family units. Each family maintains
a large territory which it defends viciously from other augerlisks. For the
most part, augerlisks are mobile within this territory, forsaking permanent
lairs for temporary burrows dug out from the stone and abandoned when the
beasts move again. Augerlisk territory can be recognized by these regular
depressions, which frequently contain shattered fragments of their petrified
kills.
Because
of their size and speed, augerlisks have been tempting candidates for some to
domesticate and turn into mounts, but their petrifying gaze and wild temper
make this a highly dubious proposition. Some medusa have had limited success,
but the medusa’s preference for marshy habitat and the augerlisk’s for drier
climes leads to friction. Augerlisks are perfectly able to survive without any
water, and augerlisks in moist environments tend to develop creeping rashes
resembling lichen. An augerlisk stands six feet high at the withers and is ten
feet long from nose to tail
Gummy
Fiend This multicolored
creature looks something like a slug with eight long tentacles. Its eyestalks
swivel to observe its surroundings, and barbels and feelers twitch and probe
the air.
Gummy
fiends are bizarre adhesive monsters that consume everything in their path.
They are nearly mindless omnivores that lair in cool caves, and frequently
emerge to carve a trail of destruction, dissolving and digesting all organic
matter they come into contact with. Gummy fiends will battle to the death
against nearly all opponents, having little sense of self preservation. The
exception comes from enemies wielding fire—fire suppresses their regenerative
abilities and their sticky ooze, and they flee it when they can.
A gummy
fiend has no internal organs, being composed of a homogenous gelatinous mass.
The skin is slightly thicker on its exterior, but it can dissolve this easily
to engulf an opponent and then firm back up to resist blows. Due to this
bizarre physiology, most sages assume that gummy fiends are artificial
creatures, perhaps an attempt to infuse an ooze with intelligence or even a
bizarre construct given true life.
Gummy
fiends reproduce asexually, with one splitting into two after being
particularly well fed. These two fiends will ignore each other briefly as they
go their separate ways. The only interactions otherwise between gummy fiends is
if two of them attempt to subdue and consume the other. A gummy fiend grows to
ten feet tall, weighs 3000 pounds and has a slightly sweet odor.
