After Sundown Expansion Material
Posted: Fri Feb 21, 2014 10:24 pm
So someone suggested that I should get off my ass and actually post some of these instead of just studying for my USMLEs. So sure.
For After Sundown, 2nd edition, one of the things that is going to happen is that there will be more stuff. More creatures, more spells, more denizens of the nightmare worlds. For Vampires, Lycanthropes, and Leviathans, I'm pretty happy adding three to each. Which means you get one new Astral, Infernal, and Orphic option.
Vampires
New Vampires
Lycanthropes
New Lycanthropes
Leviathans
New Leviathans
Now, the Witches are not getting extra types. But the traditions of Witchcraft are getting opened up. Witches simply get much fewer fixed powers and the opportunity to select magical sorceries in their field. So they are pretty much a "build your own splat" splat now. As long as the splat you want to build is basically a sorcerer of some kind.
I do not think that there is any great call to add more types of Transhumans, so I don't think I'm going to.
New Animates?
One of the things that is being added is provisionally playable types. Creatures which might be playable, but only in specific types of games. So for example: you can play an Asura in an In Media Res game, but you can't play one in an Origin Story game. They have magic powers all the time and never even transiently believe that they are humans, so if all the players are makin monsters you can play one and if they are all making human Luminaries who are going to become monsters you can't. In keeping with that notion, there's going to be the Beast splat, which is all provisionally playable types.
-Username17
For After Sundown, 2nd edition, one of the things that is going to happen is that there will be more stuff. More creatures, more spells, more denizens of the nightmare worlds. For Vampires, Lycanthropes, and Leviathans, I'm pretty happy adding three to each. Which means you get one new Astral, Infernal, and Orphic option.
Vampires
Vampires are immortals who gain power by consuming the blood of living humans. So long as their heart is not punctured with wood, they can recover from any injury. Even mortal wounds need not be the end for these creatures, as power to restore a Vampire's body can be infused into even a severed body part, and a wooden stake can always be removed. Vampires lose their powers in sunlight, but do not burst into flame or turn to dust.
Strigoi
Steeped in tradition and nobility, the Strigoi are vampires with rulership in their blood. Possessed of powers over the mind, the Strigoi once ruled most of Eurasia from China to Europe. And if you give them a few nights, they'll tell you all about it.
Nosferatu
Hideous or unnerving to behold, Nosferatu do not put people at ease in face to face meetings. Nosferatu skulk in shadows and steal secrets and blood to power their endless schemes. Nosferatu excel as spies because they can see through the eyes of vermin and become invisible to onlookers.
Daeva
Blessed with an infernal beauty and the power of flight, these fire proof vampires seem more demon than undead. They have bat traits such as little wings that do nothing to alleviate the confusion. Originally from the Americas, the Daeva are still more common than other Vampire types in the United States.
Strigoi
Steeped in tradition and nobility, the Strigoi are vampires with rulership in their blood. Possessed of powers over the mind, the Strigoi once ruled most of Eurasia from China to Europe. And if you give them a few nights, they'll tell you all about it.
Nosferatu
Hideous or unnerving to behold, Nosferatu do not put people at ease in face to face meetings. Nosferatu skulk in shadows and steal secrets and blood to power their endless schemes. Nosferatu excel as spies because they can see through the eyes of vermin and become invisible to onlookers.
Daeva
Blessed with an infernal beauty and the power of flight, these fire proof vampires seem more demon than undead. They have bat traits such as little wings that do nothing to alleviate the confusion. Originally from the Americas, the Daeva are still more common than other Vampire types in the United States.
Sagbata
Bringers of the plague wind, the Sagbata can pull the blood and health out of people at a distance. These vampires bring sickness, weakness, and storms. Unique among Vampires, the Sagbata do not actually have fangs, and drink the blood of their victims as it flies through the air.
Endala
Probably the oldest supernatural creatures still extant, these vampires claim to remember a time before man had fire. Possessed of spider traits, the Endala drain blood from victims caught in their metaphorical webs. Or their literal webs.
Penanggalan
These vampires can and do detach body parts, fly them arround, and reattach them later. Their eyes can be floated around as spies, their hearts can be hidden in safety, and most famously their heads can be sent to find victims and entangle them in viscera.
Bringers of the plague wind, the Sagbata can pull the blood and health out of people at a distance. These vampires bring sickness, weakness, and storms. Unique among Vampires, the Sagbata do not actually have fangs, and drink the blood of their victims as it flies through the air.
Endala
Probably the oldest supernatural creatures still extant, these vampires claim to remember a time before man had fire. Possessed of spider traits, the Endala drain blood from victims caught in their metaphorical webs. Or their literal webs.
Penanggalan
These vampires can and do detach body parts, fly them arround, and reattach them later. Their eyes can be floated around as spies, their hearts can be hidden in safety, and most famously their heads can be sent to find victims and entangle them in viscera.
Lycanthropes
Lycanthropy is a curse that is transmitted like a disease. Once cursed, the victim transforms into a rampaging beast when the moon is full or they are very stressed. When the rampaging beast savages but doesn't quite kill a Luminary, the Luminary becomes a Lycanthrope themselves on the next full moon. All Lycanthropes heal at amazing speeds, presumably any Lycanthropes that did not would not survive having the curse transmitted to them. Non-Luminaries do not survive the process. Lycanthropes are vulnerable to silver.
Werewolf
The most common of the Lycanthropes, sometimes people use the word “Lycanthropes” to mean just Werewolves. Werewolves can transform into a wolf or a giant man-wolf monster. The war form of a Werewolf is the archetypical avatar of rage and destruction.
Bagheera
Hated by natural animals, those cursed as Bagheera find themselves transforming into great ghostly cats. Whether they are best described as jaguars or tigers is debatable, as they are black as night and no stripes or spots can be discerned. Bagheera are incredibly destructive in beast form but are still a stealthy predator.
Nezumi
Unusual among Lycanthropes, the “beast” form of a Nezumi is a large rat. They are possessed of magical powers, and carry plagues. While stealthy and useful, their beast form is of little threat in physical combat, sometimes making their lycanthropic fury as dangerous to themselves as those around them. Nezumi can speak to and command the obedience of animals, but have difficulty with human social structures.
Lycanthropy is a curse that is transmitted like a disease. Once cursed, the victim transforms into a rampaging beast when the moon is full or they are very stressed. When the rampaging beast savages but doesn't quite kill a Luminary, the Luminary becomes a Lycanthrope themselves on the next full moon. All Lycanthropes heal at amazing speeds, presumably any Lycanthropes that did not would not survive having the curse transmitted to them. Non-Luminaries do not survive the process. Lycanthropes are vulnerable to silver.
Werewolf
The most common of the Lycanthropes, sometimes people use the word “Lycanthropes” to mean just Werewolves. Werewolves can transform into a wolf or a giant man-wolf monster. The war form of a Werewolf is the archetypical avatar of rage and destruction.
Bagheera
Hated by natural animals, those cursed as Bagheera find themselves transforming into great ghostly cats. Whether they are best described as jaguars or tigers is debatable, as they are black as night and no stripes or spots can be discerned. Bagheera are incredibly destructive in beast form but are still a stealthy predator.
Nezumi
Unusual among Lycanthropes, the “beast” form of a Nezumi is a large rat. They are possessed of magical powers, and carry plagues. While stealthy and useful, their beast form is of little threat in physical combat, sometimes making their lycanthropic fury as dangerous to themselves as those around them. Nezumi can speak to and command the obedience of animals, but have difficulty with human social structures.
Zhu
Those infected with the demonic boar have their eyes turn red and flames leak from their body. In bestial form they are sulfurous black hogs with wicked tusks and crawling skin. The hooves of a Zhu leave marks that are blackened by flames and decomposed by neglect.
Nanuuk
Possessed of a great stillness, the Nanuuk transform into monstrous white bears. They are defined not just by an absence of color, but by a void in all things. The Nanuuk can take away sound, heat, and even your ability to care. The bestial form of a Nanuuk is indefatigable, cold, and relentless. They are heralded by nothing, and leave nothing behind.
Nanaue
In human form, the Nanaue has a ravenous shark mouth which migrates around their body, usually coming to rest on the back. When the shark mouth covers their human mouth, they transform into a terrifying beast that is neither shark nor man. Nanaue are supernaturally attractive in human form and can breathe water in any shape.
Those infected with the demonic boar have their eyes turn red and flames leak from their body. In bestial form they are sulfurous black hogs with wicked tusks and crawling skin. The hooves of a Zhu leave marks that are blackened by flames and decomposed by neglect.
Nanuuk
Possessed of a great stillness, the Nanuuk transform into monstrous white bears. They are defined not just by an absence of color, but by a void in all things. The Nanuuk can take away sound, heat, and even your ability to care. The bestial form of a Nanuuk is indefatigable, cold, and relentless. They are heralded by nothing, and leave nothing behind.
Nanaue
In human form, the Nanaue has a ravenous shark mouth which migrates around their body, usually coming to rest on the back. When the shark mouth covers their human mouth, they transform into a terrifying beast that is neither shark nor man. Nanaue are supernaturally attractive in human form and can breathe water in any shape.
Leviathans
Leviathans are those who carry within them the powerful but cursed blood of ancient inhuman monsters in their veins. Most Leviathans inherit the power from their ancestors, where it may yet well up unexpectedly in families where the blood has grown thin (or expectedly where the blood has remained strong in certain monstrous inbred families). But the blood can also be acquired by feasting on the flesh of a Leviathan. All Leviathans are immensely long lived, and may never die of old age. As they grow in age and power, the inhuman traits of the ancients become more and more apparent, until they are unrecognizable as having been members of the human species. Non-luminaries who show or acquire the taint become hideous mutants. Leviathans are cthonic creatures that do not belong in the modern world, and are weak to iron.
Deep One
Deep Ones are descended from a benthic monster fish. They breathe water and gradually become more fishlike over time. Even before puberty they have queer narrow faces with flat noses and bulging stary eyes, and this gradually transforms into a fully icthyous countenance. The mere presence of Deep Ones has a corrosive effect on the sanity and morals of humans, a fact that Deep Ones can use to read and dominate minds.
Mi-Go
Mi-Go are descended from a writhing mass of crawling bugs possessed of a hive mind wholly alien to human thought. As a Mi-Go ages, the insides of their bodies are hollowed out and filled with grubs and flying insects. They can release these worms and vermin through their skin, and retain a consistent “self” with them. They can send out individual vermin as scouts or swarms of insects as a weapon.
Troglodyte
Troglodytes are descended from a pale, tunnel crawling mole beast. They are pale and have dark eyes. Their nails become long and claw-like and their incisors grow ceaselessly, becoming rodentlike. Troglodytes can burrow through history, sifting through time to see important events around things they touch. They can also burrow through the ground and create tunnels in which to nest.
Leviathans are those who carry within them the powerful but cursed blood of ancient inhuman monsters in their veins. Most Leviathans inherit the power from their ancestors, where it may yet well up unexpectedly in families where the blood has grown thin (or expectedly where the blood has remained strong in certain monstrous inbred families). But the blood can also be acquired by feasting on the flesh of a Leviathan. All Leviathans are immensely long lived, and may never die of old age. As they grow in age and power, the inhuman traits of the ancients become more and more apparent, until they are unrecognizable as having been members of the human species. Non-luminaries who show or acquire the taint become hideous mutants. Leviathans are cthonic creatures that do not belong in the modern world, and are weak to iron.
Deep One
Deep Ones are descended from a benthic monster fish. They breathe water and gradually become more fishlike over time. Even before puberty they have queer narrow faces with flat noses and bulging stary eyes, and this gradually transforms into a fully icthyous countenance. The mere presence of Deep Ones has a corrosive effect on the sanity and morals of humans, a fact that Deep Ones can use to read and dominate minds.
Mi-Go
Mi-Go are descended from a writhing mass of crawling bugs possessed of a hive mind wholly alien to human thought. As a Mi-Go ages, the insides of their bodies are hollowed out and filled with grubs and flying insects. They can release these worms and vermin through their skin, and retain a consistent “self” with them. They can send out individual vermin as scouts or swarms of insects as a weapon.
Troglodyte
Troglodytes are descended from a pale, tunnel crawling mole beast. They are pale and have dark eyes. Their nails become long and claw-like and their incisors grow ceaselessly, becoming rodentlike. Troglodytes can burrow through history, sifting through time to see important events around things they touch. They can also burrow through the ground and create tunnels in which to nest.
Wendigo
Wendigo are descended from a titanic man-eating snow-ape. They become shaggy and gaunt, their feet and hands growing large for their bodies even as they become tall. Wendigo are horrendously strong and by feasting on human flesh can become even stronger. They can call upon their power to increase in size, becoming giants for periods of time.
Tengu
Tengu are descended from a horrible crow-like monster. Possessed of long, beak-like noses even as children, Tengu gradually become more bird-like as they age. Eventually, they sprout black feathers and wings. Tengu can command winds and fly, as well as being able to create illusions.
Naga
Naga are descended from a great, multi-headed snake. As a Naga grows in age and power, they develop reptilian traits. Forked tongues, slit pupils, and patches of scales are not uncommon. Naga have poisonous bites, hypnotic eyes, and can transform into serpents.
Wendigo are descended from a titanic man-eating snow-ape. They become shaggy and gaunt, their feet and hands growing large for their bodies even as they become tall. Wendigo are horrendously strong and by feasting on human flesh can become even stronger. They can call upon their power to increase in size, becoming giants for periods of time.
Tengu
Tengu are descended from a horrible crow-like monster. Possessed of long, beak-like noses even as children, Tengu gradually become more bird-like as they age. Eventually, they sprout black feathers and wings. Tengu can command winds and fly, as well as being able to create illusions.
Naga
Naga are descended from a great, multi-headed snake. As a Naga grows in age and power, they develop reptilian traits. Forked tongues, slit pupils, and patches of scales are not uncommon. Naga have poisonous bites, hypnotic eyes, and can transform into serpents.
I do not think that there is any great call to add more types of Transhumans, so I don't think I'm going to.
New Animates?
Animates are a bit of an odd case. The three basic types (Frankensteins, Androids, and Golems) represent more than just Flesh, Clay, and Iron constructs, they represent betrayals of the social contract. The Frankenstein is a rejected child, the Android is a jilted lover, and the Golem is a castoff worker. These are iconic bonds of trust which when broken can be expressed effectively in the terms of monster fiction. It is possible to add additional types of Animates, but not by the simple D&D expedient of adding more materials (Pinocchios, Calzone Golems, etc.). There's nothing stopping an Android from being made out of stone, or a Frankenstein from being made out of wood. New Animate types would have to come with new relationships to have fundamentally go wrong.
The most obvious place to add one is also the worst and isn't going to happen: Friendship. Having an Animate who has lost their friends and longs for simple camaraderie that is eternally denied would make a pretty good story. You could do something based on children's toys set aside or imaginary friends no longer spoken to. It could be tragic and effective and fit perfectly in the genre. But it can't fit into the game. In the game, you get a team of friends who are in your coterie represented by the other player characters. There is no "forever alone" possible on that scale for player characters. The limits of the medium mean that there cannot and will not be a Velveteen Rabbit or Raggamoffyn.
But that doesn't mean that there can't be more Animates. Parents as well as children can be rejected, and there is a great deal of source material of evil holograms who are innately maternal yet objectively and tragically horribly bad at the duties of caretaking. There are also built things such as statues and homes that have been abandoned and left to the elements, and one could imagine doing some sort of Gargoyles / Happy Prince type deal off of that. But of course, that's two rather than three, and also it rather has the problem that neither of those concepts especially meshes with the Origin Story game because those aren't really things that start as humans. But that might be OK because...
The most obvious place to add one is also the worst and isn't going to happen: Friendship. Having an Animate who has lost their friends and longs for simple camaraderie that is eternally denied would make a pretty good story. You could do something based on children's toys set aside or imaginary friends no longer spoken to. It could be tragic and effective and fit perfectly in the genre. But it can't fit into the game. In the game, you get a team of friends who are in your coterie represented by the other player characters. There is no "forever alone" possible on that scale for player characters. The limits of the medium mean that there cannot and will not be a Velveteen Rabbit or Raggamoffyn.
But that doesn't mean that there can't be more Animates. Parents as well as children can be rejected, and there is a great deal of source material of evil holograms who are innately maternal yet objectively and tragically horribly bad at the duties of caretaking. There are also built things such as statues and homes that have been abandoned and left to the elements, and one could imagine doing some sort of Gargoyles / Happy Prince type deal off of that. But of course, that's two rather than three, and also it rather has the problem that neither of those concepts especially meshes with the Origin Story game because those aren't really things that start as humans. But that might be OK because...
-Username17