Freak People (Gateway GLOG)

Now that I'm headed down the road of "running" "a campaign" again, I returned to Gateway, my scheme for a pick-up game to play with the one or two people who are guaranteed to show up when the rest of my players flake. 

While poking at it I realized - what's the point of an overly-colorful, largely non-serious Fantasy Setting™ without the opportunity to play as some variety of nonhuman weirdo? I normally lean towards all-human settings, but Gateway is, as much as it's anything, a winking revival of the way I wrote in 2017; powered purely by half-memories of 3.5e homebrew websites.

And thus - freak people.

1. Human
They sure are.

Reroll nothing.

Benefit: keep a 2nd item between sessions.

that's it. i don't know what to tell you. go get a job.

2. Ogre
Some say every ogre is the reincarnation of a saint from ages past.

Reroll STR and take the higher.

Benefit: put a * next to your STR score. Roll checks with it only for superhuman tasks (picking a guy up and hucking him like a catapult, benchpressing a car, crashing through a stone wall).

Drawback: you must fail a STR check to not immediately destroy pathetic human items (doors, levers, tools, pets) when interacting with them. Your soul is immense - you glow like the sun to anyone who can see them.

3. Millisecond Dragon
Each of the 23 hours of the day has a grand dragon for a living avatar - and it continues downward, with dragons of half-hours and minutes and seconds and tenths-of-a-second and so forth becoming more humanoid as their domains shorten.

Reroll DEX and take the higher.

Benefit: once a session, shoot a 3d6 damage cone of either ice (for the pinkish-orange brood of the dragons of the Dawn), fire (for the sky-blue brood of the dragons of Noon) or lightning (for the purple brood of the Dusk). Probably best used to melt through steel, make ice platforms, or do some other OSR puzzle gibberish.

Drawback: save or pick up shiny objects.

4. Cultivator
Bug-men of the prismatic wastelands to the west of Gateway, emerging from their holes to see what all the fuss is about.

Reroll CON and take the higher.

Benefit: burrow through soil as fast as a person walks, climb walls at running speed.

Drawback: bright light provokes a save vs. fear.

https://www.artstation.com/artwork/1d9X - yes this is the same picture i used for cultivators in 2018 we already agreed that i get to be lazy with gateway

5. Elf
Immortal(?), meditative wanderers of the desert of ice.

Reroll INT and take the higher.

Benefit: around your neck is an amulet, holding the soul of a parent, a favored aunt, a friend from the army, or so on. As long as you wear it, you can speak with the dead. If you shatter it, the soul within possesses a target of your choice, then escapes to the afterlife. You could still speak with the dead - but all they would do is howl.

Drawback: dogs and other domesticated animals attack you on sight.

6. Visitor
Honestly, nobody knows what your deal is. Worshipers of living iron stars, they say. 5 feet tall and stick-thin, covered in multicolored scale-petals and ridged patterns.

Reroll WIS and take the higher.

Benefit: once per session, release petal-dust that forces all nearby to Save versus murderous wrath.
 
Drawback: when startled, save versus doing the aforementioned. (doesn't count towards your limit, at least)

7. Myconid
A statuesque social form of the Motherland, sent to aid that vast fungus's geopolitical ambitions.

Reroll CHA and take the higher.

Benefit: your mycelial form is silent when walking or falling. You never make any sound you did not intend.

Drawback: once, when it is least convenient, your sleeper agent programming will switch on.

The City of Gateway, Two GLOG Classes (sort of) and a Sign I Play Too Much D&D

Essentially all of the dicéd gaming I've done in the last four years has been online, providing great opportunity for all manner of flaking. I've heard the reasonable solution to this problem is to "not have a session that week", but my solution has tended to be taking whatever one or two severely brainwormed players actually made it and forcing them to throw together OSE characters for a one-shot. 

As these impromptu games have repeated, I started thinking about solidifying them - keeping the same setting on the GM's end and the same characters on the players' end, mostly just to see if it would be fun. And so, I did - creating a (rather thin) framework for some picaresque gaming, with an assumed few months between sessions, both for players and PCs.

System and Classes

The rules are minimal, bordering on nonexistent. Stat checks, attack rolls, HP, death, whatever, are all as G20 (by deus ex parabola) (except for the derived stats thing because I can't be bothered). The only changes are in equipment: players choose a Kit during character creation. They start every session with everything listed in their kit, and have two slots for items they want to keep between sessions. During the adventure you can carry more, or accidentally drop all your kit's gear down a bottomless pit, but during the assumed weeks of carousing between sessions, you lose all the former and regain all the latter.

This also applies to money - in between sessions, you spend everything on food, booze, and company, like any sword-and-sorcery protagonist worth the name. Then, when yet another vast hoard is spent (and turned into XP), you return to adventure.

In an attempt to reduce the tax on memory for characters you're probably only playing a few times a year, their rules and progression are part of their character sheets: one for the Rogue, a thief/fighter, and one for the Gestalt, the setting's wizard.

The Setting

Is, because I thought it would be funny, the first setting I ever had. Gateway, the last stop. A city on the edge of an empire that rewrote the earth; an empire that summoned a great and terrible god, who now stretches across the sky with the moon at his feet and the sun as a jewel in his crown. 

But their capitals and their glories are distant - Gateway's imperial governor rages and foams in his new-built palace, but his conscript-legions are thin and his hold on the city frail, even after a roving army was sent to put a troublesome district to the torch a decade ago. 

Gateway heaves with thieves, refugees, four-eyed Gestalt deserters, ogres, bugmen, and so on. A minidungeon waits under every manhole cover, and a heist in every locked room. "Deep worldbuilding", "complex sociology" and other such things are thrown right out.

Six One-Shot Ideas So I Can Remember Them In Like Six Months When I Actually Have Cause To Run This

1. The distant Motherland, a vast fungus slowly crawling onto the stage of geopolitics, has sent a delegation of myconids (tall, chiseled, androgynous, and impeccably "dressed", as all the Motherland's social forms are) to make inroads with Gateway's governor - and like any Motherlandic mission, they come with a convoy of gifts. Valuable gifts...
2. A week ago, the crime lord Iazelmei promised you generous payment in return for a certain gem. You fulfilled your end of the deal, but she won't. Steal it back from her ship, the Sky Flashed Bright - and don't mind the fact she's a dragon.
   
3. An Imperial paladin is spending a week in Gateway to do something or other for the Governor. Make sure he never leaves. Don't worry, he'll be easy to notice with all the bells, and all the spikes.
   
4. Out in the lavender desert past Gateway, where the stars shine through the day, the sand is interspersed with shards of ice, and the light breaks into the secret 8th color (which, it turns out, is Ghosts), sigils are being drawn. One at dusk, one at dawn, each one in a straight line closer to Gateway. Someone should probably see... why.
   
5. A trio of runaway Gestalts are moving through Gateway, pursued by Imperial scouts. Get the wizards out before the Governor gets involved.
   
6. The ol' Bricked Up Noble Mansion (Demons In It).

And if they ever tire of city adventures, I can drag the PCs to the door of any prewritten dungeon I wish. It's Efficient™.

The City of Gateway, Part 1

Gateway is part of Age of the Ecclesiarchy, an abandoned setting where the ur-god, Ilephoth, looms above the world, wearing the sun as a crown. The world is (mostly) ruled by the Ecclesiarchy: worshippers of Ilephoth, Archon Above Heaven, He Who Struck Down the Hateful Moon.

The city of Gateway is placed just on the edge of the Desolation, where the Ecclesiarchy's territory ends. Gateway is so far from the capital that the Divine Legion can't reach it without months of marching, meaning it's left almost entirely alone (as well as being almost the only place you'll see an elf).

Major Figures of Gateway

The most important person in Gateway depends on who you ask. If you ask a loyal Ecclesiarchist, they'll say Governor Tiberius, a weak-willed pitiful man terrified that Gateway is slipping out of his control.

If you ask anyone else, they'll probably say Sashiseth Iazelmei, one of the 4 prospective leaders of the Hand of Acor, a criminal organization/rebellion/cult. The last leader, Solana Aelrue, died in the Rain of Embers, where the Divine Legion burned down half the city in a demonstration of force. If anything, the Rain of Embers made the problem worse: the death of Solana lead the rest of the Hand to collapse into infighting as Solana's officers made a grab for power after her death.

As unstable as it is, the Hand of Acor is the government in Gateway, as far as the people are concerned: the Watch spends most of its time being manipulated by Commander Acosta as she tries to climb the ranks of the Ecclesiarchy, leaving Sashiseth's private security the job of keeping the town from sliding the rest of the way into anarchy.

The other three prospects for leader are less well-respected. One, an illiterate ogre Solana kept as an enforcer, took the name Tagnor Bonecrusher after being told people would find it intimidating. (Most people just laugh.) Elissa Grove, one of the Hand's spies, wants to be leader, but she knows her followers couldn't win in a straight fight against Sashiseth or Tagnor's.

Imbril Arasys is the last candidate, and one of the few magic-users in the Ecclesiarchy to have escaped conscription into the Divine Legion. In Solana's time, he trained her wizards for use in the Hand. Since the Rain of Embers, he's dug a 5-story basement into an abandoned home, where it is said he works with the Lich Queen Amara Naumys to overthrow the Ecclesiarchy: a cause he wants to turn the Hand to.

The Desolation, Part 2: The Elves

The Elves of the Desolation

Image Credit: Muglo

The elves of the Desolation work in a loose caste system, with the despicable common folk and disgusting foreigners at the bottom, and knowledgeable necromancers and noble council members at the top.

Elven cities are led by a Council, chosen through a convoluted system of nepotism, backstabbing, false elections, true elections, and then some more backstabbing for good measure. Members of the Council will either have a very short lifespan or an incredibly long one, depending on how well-protected they are.

Even outside of the Council, confusion, deception, and other such nonsense is commonplace. Because of this, even money must have a place in defending you. Instead of using gold, copper, or other metals, elves use Amulets of Shinnae, necromantic objects that contain souls. The Amulets of Shinnae are built by the noble necromancer caste, with souls taken from criminals, foreigners, and anybody an elven noble didn’t like very much. The Amulets inflict a geas on the soul, forcing them to protect their holder.

In case it wasn’t already easy to see, necromancy is far from taboo in elven society. The necromancer caste is one of the two noble castes, spending much of their time in their own towers, built by the other nobles.

Image Credit: Paizo, I think.

Necromancers are taught to replace most normal solutions to problems with urban living with their magic. Without easy sources of light, elven cities are lit with Soulamps: a fragment of a soul stored in a heavy, iron-bound lamp. When shattered, a Soulamp’s prisoner escapes with a deafening screech.

Elves are very isolationist, refusing to leave the Desolation. Some say they've found something, deep within.

The Desolation, Part 1: Creatures of the Desolation

The Desolation

The Desolation is an ice desert, comprised of tiny fragments of ice and sand and irradiated with horrible magics. With the rising sun, it becomes a hellscape of blinding light and wandering Prismwraiths. At night, the cold can crack even the most hardened adventures (if the creatures that awaken with the darkness don't first).

Cultivators

The Cultivators go through a metamorphic life, being born as small worm-like creatures and buried in some of the deeper chambers of their underground Hivecities. Decisions are made by the Queen's Circle, made up of the queens of every Hivecity.

The Cultivators are the only source of plants in the Desolation, and thus are often under attack by some creature or another, or under siege by the elves. To protect themselves, they fabricated the Wyrm Eaters, and military service is mandatory if a Hivecity comes under assault.

Cultivators worship the Inner Gods: ancient titans buried beneath the earth, revealed through fault lines. It is said some of the deepest Hivecities have burrowed all the way down to where the Inner Gods live. Cultivator clerics of Inner Gods such as Ursek, Ar-Torak, and Om-Tira are common in the larger Hivecities.

Image Credit: Cloister.se

Cultivator

Medium Monstrosity, Lawful Good

---

• Armor Class 12 (Natural Armor)
• Hit Points 10 (2d8)
• Speed 30 ft., burrow 15 ft.

---

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
10 (+0)	8 (-1)	12 (+1)	14 (+2)	14 (+2)	6 (-3)

---

• Senses Darkvision 120 ft., Passive Perception 12
• Skills Arcana +2, Survival +2
• Languages Cultivator
• Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)
• Damage Immunities Cold

---

Actions

Multiattack: The Cultivator can make 2 claw attacks

Claw: Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d8 + 1) slashing damage

Maidenfly

Maidenflies are bioengineered pollinators created by the Cultivators, with multiple pollen sacs, often filled with poisonous or irritating pollens, and their large proboscis, they can be somewhat dangerous, although they are very passive, and do not attack without a command from the Cultivators.

Image Credit: Cloister.se

Maidenfly

Tiny Monstrosity, Lawful Neutral

---

• Armor Class 12
• Hit Points 8
• Speed 10 ft., fly 65 ft.

---

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
6 (-2)	14 (+2)	10 (+0)	3 (-4)	14 (+2)	5 (-3)

---

• Senses Darkvision 20 ft., Passive Perception 11
• Skills None
• Languages -
• Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)
• Damage Immunities Cold

---

Actions

Jab: 1d4 piercing damage, +2 to hit, 5 ft. reach, one target

Stunning Pollen: All creatures other than Maidenflies, Cultivators, and Wyrm Eaters in a 30 foot dome around the Maidenfly must make a DC 5 constitution save or be stunned for two turns.

Irritating Pollen: All creatures other than Maidenflies, Cultivators, and Wyrm Eaters in a 30 foot dome around the Maidenfly must make a DC 10 constitution save or have disadvantage on to hit rolls as well as attackers having advantage on affected targets for the next 3 turns.

Vitalizing Pollen: All Maidenflies, Cultivators, and Wyrm Eaters within a 30 foot dome around the Maidenfly gain +10 ft. of movement, +1 to hit rolls, and 5 temporary hit points.

Prismwraith

Prismwraiths are formed by the reflected light of the Desolation reacting with the magical radiation contained within. They spend their single day wandering, with their fragmented minds racing to understand what they are. Large amounts of them congregate to Elven cities, where they can find the light they need to survive.

Prismwraiths are not always immediately aggressive, but often lash out in confusion. They vanish at sunset, with the loss of the light that makes them up.

Prismwraith

Medium Celestial, Chaotic Evil

---

• Armor Class 14
• Hit Points 65
• Speed 0 ft., fly 80 ft., (hover)

---

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
6 (-2)	16 (+3)	16 (+3)	12 (+1)	14 (+2)	5 (-3)

---

• Senses Passive Perception 16
• Skills None
• Languages -
• Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
• Damage Resistances acid, fire, lightning, thunder; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks that aren't silvered
• Damage Immunities necrotic, poison, cold, radiant
• Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained
• Incorporeal Movement: The wraith can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. It takes 5 (1d10) force damage if it ends its turn inside an object.
• Solar Powered: The Prismwraith disappears if not touched by sunlight.

---

Actions

Radiant Cone: 2d10 radiant damage, 15 ft. cone

Radiant Beam: 2d8 radiant damage, 75 ft. range, one target

Wyrm Eater

Wyrm Eaters are bred and kept by the Cultivators for use as protectors. Their circular antennae connect them to the energies of magic, and their large size and destructive mandibles make them formidable opponents in close combat.

Wyrm Eaters fight quickly and violently, but each has been trained to minimize collateral damage.

Image Credit: Cloister.se

Wyrm Eater

Medium Monstrosity, Lawful Neutral

---

• Armor Class 18
• Hit Points 37
• Speed 30 ft.

---

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
15 (+2)	10 (+0)	14 (+2)	11 (+1)	12 (+1)	6 (-3)

---

• Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 16
• Skills None
• Languages -
• Challenge 2 (450 XP)
• Damage Immunities Cold
• Charge If the Wyrm Eater moves at least 30 ft. straight toward a target and then hits it with a Slam attack on the same turn, the target takes an extra 3d6 bludgeoning damage.

---

Actions

Slam: 1d10 bludgeoning damage, +2 to hit, 5 ft. reach, one target

Kinetic Blast: 1d8 force damage, 100 ft. range, one target

Acid Spray (Recharge 4-5-6): Deals 2d6 acid damage in a 30 ft. line, 5 ft. wide

Kinetic Storm (Recharge 5-6) Fires 4 blasts, each dealing 1d8 force damage with a range of 100 ft. You can direct the blasts at the same target or at different ones. Make a separate to hit roll and attack roll for each blast.

Silentwyrm

Silentwyrms burrow under Cultivator farms, hiding their heads by folding the leafy flaps behind their head over their titanic maw, waiting for a Cultivator to come by. Silentwyrms will focus on killing or knocking one person unconscious, then dragging them away.

Even if their camouflage is broken, Silentwyrms are big, violent, and destructive: perfect for DMs to use against players who think there's nothing to be afraid of in the Hivecities.

Image Credit: Cloister.se

Silentwyrm

Large Monstrosity, unaligned

---

• Armor Class 18
• Hit Points 154
• Speed 30 ft., burrow 30 ft.

---

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
18 (+4)	8 (-1)	18 (+4)	11 (+1)	12 (+1)	6 (-3)

---

• Senses Darkvision 120 ft., Blindsight 120 ft., Passive Perception 16
• Skills None
• Languages -
• Challenge 8 (3,900 XP)
• Damage Immunities Cold

---

Actions

Multiattack: The Silentwyrm makes 2 Claw attacks.

Bite: 1d10 bludgeoning damage, 1d6 piercing damage +3 to hit, 30 ft. reach, one target, then attempts to grapple.

Consume: The Silentwyrm makes one bite attack against a Medium or smaller creature it is grappling. If the attack hits, that creature takes the bite's damage and is swallowed, and the grapple ends. While swallowed, the creature is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside the Silentwyrm, and it takes 21 (6d6) acid damage at the start of each of the Silentwyrm's turns. If the Silentwyrm takes 30 damage or more on a single turn from a creature inside it, the Silentwyrm must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw at the end of that turn or regurgitate all swallowed creatures, which fall prone in a space within 10 feet of the Silentwyrm. If the Silentwyrm dies, a swallowed creature is no longer restrained by it and can escape from the corpse using 15 feet of movement, exiting prone.

Claw: 2d10 slashing damage, +5 to hit, 60 ft. reach, one target