Candlewerm [Wermspittle]

One of the first creatures one learns to Summon, Call or Bind at the Academy is a Candlewerm. The little beasts make excellent 'first servitors' for those students who've never yet had a pet or gained a Familiar. Besides carrying around candles or torches, these things can be taught simple tricks...like the time a student trained a Candlewerm to wield a wand...with rather mixed results.

---

Candlewerm
No. Enc.: 1
Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 30' (10') [Climb Walls]
Armor Class: 8 [as Leather]
Hit Dice: 1 hit point
Attacks: 1
Damage: 1 point
Save: MU1
Morale: 6 [11 if made a Servitor]

Special: Blind (Immune to visual illusions, Glamers, Figments), Able to climb vertical surfaces, Vague Empathy allows them to mostly understand a few verbal commands.

Candlewerms are among the most common, minor forms of Servitors known in Wermspittle. The little things are not suited to service as Familiar, but they are intensely loyal and surprisingly clever--if one takes the time to train them to do more than just lug around a lit candle or carry a torch in their specialized mouth-parts.

Certain obscure treatises claim that it is possible to enhance minor servitors like the Candlewerms, but few spell-casters ever make that much effort as it is considered a waste of time.

---

A spell-caster may choose to invest as much as 10% but no less than 1% of their recently earned XP to enhance their Candlewerm, allowing the creature to gain additional hit dice as if advancing as a magic-user at 10% of the normal XP cost and never gaining the ability to cast spells...unless further measures are taken to elevate the simple wermic-brain of the creature...but this sort of thing is strenuously discouraged on campus...

Fleshwrought Servitors of Varug

Quote-bit

---

Fleshwrought Servitors of Varug
(Standard Order Servitor)
No. Enc.: 1 (1)
Alignment: Neutral (Inimical)
Movement: 120' (Fly/Levitate)
Armor Class: 3[16]
Hit Dice: 5
Attacks: 2 or 1 (Weapons or bite)
Damage: 1d6, 1d6 or 2d4+2
Save: F7
Morale: 12 (Suffers -4 penalty when confronted with the Sign of Drallik)

---

Standard Servitor Abilities: Tactile sight (90'), Telepathy (only human languages can be used), Teleport (Once per day). Immunities/Resistances: Electrical, Poison and Gas attacks only do half-damage. Immune to Illusions/glamers, but can be Charmed and are reported to be very susceptible to Suggestion or Hypnosis.
Take double damage from bronze, bone, stone or wood weapons.

---

The Fleshwrought were once human beings. Once, but no more. Their bodies were left behind on alien planes by their comrades, abandoned within unwholesome places by circumstance or design, or otherwise lost to the forces beyond the comforting boundaries of the mortal world. There they were found by the prowling hound-things of Varug and subjected to the foul ministrations of his bone-masked minions. The flesh of these forlorn and fallen adventurers has been remolded in mad and bizarre ways, restructured to eliminate their faces, extinguish their former identity, and to make them fitting slaves to the Keepers of the Bone Cages and the Lords of Squirmkeep.

The Fleshwrought are called forth by use of a variation of the Conjure Servitor spell:

Conjure Fleshwrought Servitor
Level: 4
Duration: 1d6 rounds per hit point sacrificed
Range: 10' per level of caster

This spell can only be cast if there is a sufficient amount of living flesh arranged within the Six Nested Hexagons chalked on a suitable flat surface. None of the extant sources give any hints as to what constitutes 'a sufficient amount' of flesh, so one must use their ingenuity or invest some time and effort trying to get that worked out through divination, interrogation or whatever means gets best results.

Fleshwrought Servitors called forth by this spell are not brought under the control of the summoner; that requires another spell, rite or device...or special dispensation from Varug or his cult.

If the caster has possession of one of the authentic Amber and Bone Orbs of Kilushak from before the grievous inundation, they are said to gain the option to call forth stronger Fleshwrought Servitors than usual by a simple expenditure of one's personal hit points at a rate of one hit point granting 1d4 additional hit points to the conjured servitor. Of course, those servitors that have higher HD than the summoner's level as a spell-caster tend to be much more difficult to control and have been known to devour the one who called them forth as it was far easier than the task they were assigned.

---

Zaloth (Minor Servitor)

Obscenity, which is ever blasphemy against the divine beauty in life, is a monster for which the corruption of society forever brings forth new food, which it devours in secret.

Percy Bysshe Shelley

---

Zaloth
No. Enc.: 1 (1d4)
Alignment: Chaotic
Movement: 60' [aerial levitation]
Armor Class: 7
Hit Dice: 3+Summoner's INT mod.
Attacks: 1
Damage: 1d4+Summoner's INT mod, or by spell
Save: F1+Summoner's DEX Mod, if any.
Morale: 6+Summoner's Char Mod, if any.

Misshapen masses of convoluted flesh arranged in an unseemly pile that floats through the air like nasty balloons, the Zaloth are minor servitors called forth as guards, watchers and sentinels by those unable to call up something more substantial or menacing. Once summoned, a Zaloth remains trapped within a 30' radius on that site for 1,000 years. At the end of their service these things must make a Save to avoid dying and leaving a foul, greenish residue behind. Succeeding on their Save allows them to fade back through the interstitial regions to some far better place, at least according to their curious standards. Zaloth use both Detect Magic and See Invisible at will, and cast any spells they are taught at a level equivalent to their current HD. A Zaloth can be taught three spells of third level or below. The burden of instructing the Zaloth falls to the summoner who called them forth, who must take the time to teach them personally. They cannot and will not read. Anything. Ever. At all.

---

Summon Zaloth is an obscure second-level variant of Summon Entity most often transcribed in Lower Aklo or Middle-Blue Thrushic. It would be far more common if it didn't require the summoner to permanently sacrifice 1 hit point from their normal/daily healing rate. Of course, those summoners who do take this step also gain a permanent +6 to all Reaction Rolls with Zaloth and are granted the ability to Commune With Zaloth as a spell-like ability that enables them to communicate with any Zaloth they encounter in their travels...

Twelve Lesser Servitors of Kudara

Of t all the myriad hosts that lurk or prowl about the threshold of the world of mortal beings, waiting for the call of whosoever would dare to become their master, if only for an hour or for the commission of one desperate act, the twelve beings recorded by Kudara within the Scroll of Seven Scintillant Shadows remain a mainstay of many a sorcerer's arcane arsenal.

---

Call of the Twelve
Level: 2
Duration: 1 Round +1 round per two levels of caster
Range: 20'
Caster causes a glimmering black dodecahedral umbralith to form between their outstretched hands. The twelve-faces of the object correspond to a particular minor plane and the caster suffers 1d4 damage per round that they hold onto the thing. Once cast, the umbralith crumbles as it rolls and randomly summons forth one creature per level of the caster, each with 2 HD. Only those beings specified by Kudara can be summoned by this method. Tampering with the underlying structure of the spell is strenuously discouraged. Exploration of Kudara's spells in particular are best left to advanced students working under direct supervision.

---

Kudara also provided instructions for fashioning alternative forms of Umbraliths for use in a variety of summoning operations, unfortunately much of her work was lost in the Fall of Urnassos during the Eleven Year War. Kudara herself died in a refugee camp on the outskirts of Wermspittle from Black Smoke inhalation. Quite a number of spurious works and dangerous forgeries bearing her name have cropped up ever since.

---

Twelve Lesser Servitors of Kudara

1. Oltrinnugarri. Inscrutable twelve-limbed land-dwelling pseudoctopi savages with six eyes, the Oltrinnugarri wield slender wire-wrapped javelins and poisoned darts with exceptional accuracy (+1 to hit). Unfortunately the poison that coats their darts tends to be nullified by their transition into this strata of reality. They are immune to Charms and most coercive spells. When summoned, the caster can only point to a foe or a direction and get out of the way. It is rumored that if more than three Oltrinnugarri are called forth at the same time, they might have the means to hold open the connection and call more of their cold-blooded brethren through the aperture. So far there has been no record of such a thing happening, but still, one does wonder.
   
   [AL C, MV 90' (90'), AC 6, HD 2, #AT 1d4, DG 1d4+1 per javelin/dart, SV F2, ML 6]
2. Ujjaleer. A massive mound of slow-moving green sand that wails mournfully as it drifts against the wind at an odd angle. Whether it is sentient or not is pointless; this sand is highly toxic and seems to be attracted to all forms of water. It abrades everyone within a 12' radius for 1d4 damage, those so damaged need to Save at -1 penalty against the contaminants in the sand, failure indicates that the wounds inflicted by the Ujjaleer's abrasive attacks become necrotic (double previous damage), success allows the wounds to crust-over to leave gruesome scars that will throb painfully near other planar portals and the like.
3. Blue Eels. Screeching, gasping predators from a vast ocean realm, these beasts flop about fitfully outside of the waters of their home. There are those who suspect that this is a flawed transcription error, that these aren't the creatures actually intended to be called by Kudara.
   
   [AL N, MV 90' (30'), AC 6, HD 2, #AT 1, DG 1d4 (bite), SV F1, ML 3]
4. Pojigon. Maroon and ochre ape-things in octagon-linked chain-mail, wielding crescent-shaped bardiches, muskets and war-clubs. They are the descendants of a mercenary band of Marmosets stranded far away from their ancestral lands due to the treachery of a duplicitous abhuman sorcerer they know only by the name 'Naragol.' Punctilious and professional, the Pojigon will seek to accept the surrender of any foe they face under the command of a summoner.
   
   [AL L, MV 120' (40'), AC 4, HD 2, #AT 1, DG 1d6+1/3d4/1d4+1, SV F2, ML 10]
5. Glivver Pok. Garishly-plumed six-limbed weasels who chitter insanely as they seek to gnaw or claw their designated prey into gibbets of raw, red flesh. They really, really like the color red, but are not intelligent enough to attempt to barter or parley. They simply attack until killed or the summons expires.
   
   [AL C, MV 150' (50'), AC 6, HD 2, #AT 2 or 1, DG 1d4/1d4 or 1d6 (bite), SV T2, ML 8. Special: If for any reason the Glivver Pok taste the caster's blood, they gain the ability to summon themselves back to that spell-caster once again.]
6. Green Snails. Fat, bulbous green snails in iron-reinforced war-shells. They wield special dart-knives attached to their reproductive organs, which they plunge into the bodies of their opponents. Sedentary and flabby, they prefer to watch over things or to perform guard duties when possible. Each time a specific caster summons the Green Snails, they accrue an additional 5% chance of attracting the attention of the Snail's masters.
   
   [AL N, MV 30' (10'), AC 2, HD 2, #AT 1, DG 2d4+1, SV F2, ML 4. Special: Take double damage from salt-based attacks.]
7. Yiggo Bosh. Levitating yellow and white-banded anemone-things. The Yiggo Bosh despise all beings exhibiting bilateral symmetry. They can lash out in any direction, up to a distance of 10' and deliver a painful sting that ignores any organic material used as armor. Metals cause them 1d4 damage on contact. They fear mirrors and will seek to flee if confronted by reflective surfaces.
   
   [AL C, MV 60', AC 6, HD 2, #AT 1d4, DG 1d4+poison per attack (Save or take double damage), SV MU 2, ML 6 (drops to 2 if presented a mirror).]
8. Ochre Swarm. A buzzing cloud of translucent flies. They are blind, but capable to sensing body heat. they swarm their intended victims in an attempt to fill their guts to bursting.
   
   [AL N, MV 90', AC 8, HD 2, #AT 1, DG (Special), SV MU 2, ML 11. Special: Swarm Attack roll 1d4 and consult following--1) Take 2d4 damage. Save to take half. 2) Take 1d4 damage per round. If victim takes in excess of 10 points of damage, they take an additional 3d6 from ruptured stomach. Save for half. 3) Take 3d4 damage. Successful Save indicates reflexive vomiting expels swarm before it can do further damage. Victim unconscious for 1d4 Turns. 4) Take 2d4 damage. Save or take double damage.]
9. Rudigoth. Blue-salt encrusted skeletons of vaguely humanoid beings with overly-long limbs and egg-shaped and crested skulls. They flicker with the dim memory of lives exhausted in their perpetual service to merciless deities best not named. Those they slay, they take back with them.
   
   [AL N, MV 90' (30'), AC 5, HD 2, #AT 1, DG 1d4 +2 (cold-metal spears), SV F2, ML 10. Special: Immune to all mind-influencing spells. Cannot be turned, only destroyed.]
10. Pelx. Dun colored four-legged and four armed mice with four digits on each limb. They constantly mutter and whine to themselves, switching to another language once they realize anyone can understand them. Each of their four eyes glows with a virulent form of gray energy that corrodes magically-embedded items as though they were so much zinc in an acid bath. Their bite is poisonous, causing the victim's skin to slough off in nasty strips.
    
    [AL C, MV 120' (40'), AC 5, HD 2, #AT 1, DG 1d6 weapon or bite for 1d4 + Poison (Save of take 1d4 per round for 1d4 rounds as skin sloughs off), SV MU 2, ML 6]
11. Sadinax. Sixteen-foot tall, four-ton walruses who carve their great scything tusks into skrimshaw totems. Their hide is thick and heavily scarred, often deliberately scarred to show their history and to commemorate great battles, and so forth. Called forth by this spell, The Call of the Twelve, they will not deign to serve, but instead will send twice the usual number of 2' tall shaggy, spindly lemur-like hominids clad in rattan armor and wielding an assortment of smaller forms of combat cutlery. These nameless, mindless creatures charge screaming into battle, frothing at the lips and heedless of any and all threats. They collapse into frothy masses of gray foam that leaves a sweet-smelling black sediment wherever they fall in battle.
    
    [AL N, MV 120' (40'), AC 5, HD 2, #AT 2, DG 1d4/1d4, SV F2, ML n/a: Frenzied.]
12. Jonnov. Bipedal turtle-things with no visible head or face. They waddle into battle with an uncanny sense of their immediate surroundings that makes it all but impossible to surprise them. They are grenadiers and crossbow-users, preferring to keep their enemies at a distance as much as possible. Pink gill-lung palps are located beneath their arms, retracted into the shell during combat.
    
    [AL N, MV 90' (30'), AC 3, HD 2, #AT 1, DG 1d6 or 3d6 (affects 12' radius), SV F2, ML 10]

Ten Wicked Little Things (plus Dalrin's Lesser Call)

Wicked things can sometimes come in tiny packages like these minor horrors from unsavory otherplaces and dubious otherwhens. Each creature can be summoned forth via Dalrin's Lesser Call, a very minor variant of Monster Summoning. Of course, those who are familiar with that spell could also substitute these things for the usual creatures called forth by their more powerful summons, should that appeal to their sorcerous sensibilities...

---

Dalrin's Lesser Call (Flawed Transcription)
Spell Level: Magic-User, 1st Level
Range: 150 feet
Duration: Requires 1d4 minutes to take effect
The caster gains the ability to summon forth a very minor monster in exchange for a small quantity of their own blood. For every 1d4 points of self-inflicted damage the caster invests into the spell grants them either one additional 1 hp monster summoned, or gives the summoned creature 1 additional hit point. The creatures called forth obey commands of fewer than six words and dissolve into a foul black stain after half an hour or less.

---

The uncorrected version of this spell is left in circulation among apprentices and other students of sorcery as a sort of test or object lesson in the making. It is rumored that Dalrin copied the original over from a banned grimoire that corrupted and twisted his mind, thus explaining his penchant for self-mutilation as a core-mechanism and component in all six of his surviving his spells. Cheap block-printed scrolls of this spell are often available for a few coppers.

Dalrin's Lesser Call (Corrected Transcription)
Spell Level: Magic-User, 1st Level
Range: 60 feet
Duration: Immediate
The caster summons forth a number of minor monsters equal to their level. Each creature so summoned has 1 hit point per caster's Level and they persist for 10 minutes per caster's Level. In some versions of this spell the summoned creatures do not fade out when the spell expires, but rather they collapse into lumps of protoplasmic goo that dries into a dull, yellowish grit.

---

This spell is never revealed to a first-year student. Until they acquire enough sophistication in their spell-work there's no point in confounding them with too many variants and alternatives to the spells they are already attempting to commit to memory.

---

Ten Wicked Little Things (1 HD)

1. Bulazing. Blue-veined sagebrush-like plant-things that clump epiphytically onto any exposed flesh they can reach. They cause 1 hp of damage forcing their roots into the host's bloodsteam, then begin to purge the blood of all toxins. Effectively, this is a hostile application of Neutralize Poison (LL. p.24). The area surrounding the root-wound is rendered a distinctive splotchy blue. Those who have been touched by the Bulazing gain a +1 bonus to all reaction rolls and morale checks in relation to plant-based organisms for the next hour, unfortunately, they also reek of rotten cabbage and attract wandering monsters at double the normal frequency for the duration of the effect.
   
   [AL N, MV (See above), AC n/a, HD 1 (1hp), #AT 1 (Root-bite), DG 1hp (See above), SV MU 1, ML 8]
2. Delve Urchins. There are six varieties of Delve Urchin listed in the Animalum Malificarum. All of them categorized by coloration patterns depicted in elegant watercolor illustrations. They exude a somnolescent venom from their spines that causes those stung to fall into a deep, restful sleep for 1d4 hours per hit point of the urchin. spell-casters often summon these things when having bouts of insomnia. they are otherwise harmless. The venom dissipates quickly and tends to evaporate before any significant quantity can be harvested.
   
   [AL N, MV 3' (1'), AC n/a, HD 1 (1d2), #AT 1 (sting+venom), DG none (Save or Sleep), SV MU 1, ML 3]
3. Tulush-Noy. Tiny bronze skeletons with scissor-like claws and horrible grinning mouths that drool a foul translucent blue ichor. The blue ichor is highly flammable. The scissor-claws are too small to inflict more than 1 hp of damage on anything larger than a mouse, but they are eager to try. Note: If using the Uncorrected Form of Dalrin's Lesser Call (see above), these creature's hit points are determined first, then the corresponding damage is inflicted on the caster automatically. All part of the service.
   
   [AL N, MV 60' (20'), AC 7, HD 1 (1d4), #AT 1 (scissor-claws), DG 1 hp, SV MU 1, ML 10]
4. Kir-Vhoff. Smoky gray globs of a buttery material that does not float,. It isn't clear whether the Kir-vhoff are extraplanar lichens, strange mold-colonies, or something altogether other. All that is known about the stuff is that it seeks out fingernails, latches on to any such that it encounters and promptly dissolves them. Those who loose finger or toe-nails to the Kir-Vhoff suffer a -1 penalty to all actions, move at half normal speed, and must keep the perpetually-seeping wounds bandaged for 1d4 weeks unless a Remove Curse or Cure Disease is used, in which case the wounds close-up in under an hour and new nails begin to grow naturally. A more robust form of Kir-vhoff are known to be bound into particular books, scrolls and instruction manuals either originating in Yukovia, or pertaining to things related to the exiled monarchs of that troubled state.
   
   [AL N, MV 3' (12'), AC 7,  HD 1 (1hp), #AT 1 (Nail-Bite), DG 1hp (Save or lose nails), SV MU 1, ML 3, unless within 30' of finger/toe nails in which case it's 9.]
5. Pig on the Wing. This swine flies through the air on a pair of membranous pink wings. It leaves a spotty trail of feculence in its wake, but the meat is delicious, if you can cook it before it fades away, according to certain self-declared authorities. It doesn't really have an attack, but it is well-suited to disrupting rituals, interrupting spell casts, making stairs even more treacherous and slippery, and soiling journals, workbooks and grimoires. The stains these things leave behind will permanently obscure any section of a recorded spell exposed to it, making that copy useless for anything other than a partial reference.
   
   [AL N, MV 50' (150'), AC 8, HD 1 (1), #AT 1 (dive crap), DG none (Save or Stain), SV MU 1, ML 6]
6. Nervik. Delicate, root-like masses of disembodied nerves drawn away from a richly flooded realm. The Nervik flutter and flit through the air, latching onto their victim and phasing into their body, to merge with their nervous system. Those affected by a Nervik experience momentary vertigo (1d4 minutes) before having their senses re-tuned to the bizarre undersea realm of these creatures for the next 1d4 Turns. During this time, the victim is completely unaware of their immediate surroundings and incapable of defending themselves. However, this effect is immediately broken upon their taking even 1 point of damage. Those under the influence of a Nervik are immune to all Charms, Sleep, and Suggestion spells for the duration of the bond. There is a slight chance of the observer becoming observed, with a corresponding chance that some thing that preys upon the Nervik might somehow latch onto the nervous system of the person bonded to it. But that almost never happens.
   
   [AL N, MV 30' (120'), AC n/a, HD 1 (1hp), #AT 1 (nerve-merge), DG (See above), SV MU 1, ML 4 Note: Driven of by color yellow.]
7. Chalamigan. Pink and green phlegmy-mass that oozes slowly, obscenely through the air, never quite fully there. Should the Chalamigan  succeed in touching a victim, it will form a nasty, slimy layer across their outer surfaces, blinding them and requiring a Save against suffocation--but because the Chalamigan is not entirely manifest, a failed Save only means that the victim has passed-out.
   
   [AL N, MV 30' (120'), AC n/a, HD 1 (1hp), #AT 1 (nerve-merge), DG (See above), SV MU 1, ML 4 Note: Those touched by a Chalamigan gain the ability to Speak with Slimes 1d4 times before the ability fades. Each time this ability is used, another Save is required, failure indicates that they have choked themselves into unconsciousness hacking up another Chalamigan.]
8. Drivi Clams. Black and brown whorled shellfish that form a layer covering just under 5', (This can be extended by investing blood/damage, of course).  The vicious little things will snap closed on anything that gets near them, causing 1 hp of damage per foot of surface traversed. A very minor nuisance, completely inedible, and reputed to cause dysentery if summoned inside a keg or wine barrel.
   
   [AL N, MV n/a, AC n/a, HD 1 (1 hp), #AT 1 (bite), DG 1hp (See above), SV MU 1, ML n/a]
9. Yovire. Three-winged tongues of bloated, unhealthy-looking grey-mauve flesh, the Yovire are considered an atrociously disgusting form of sensory vampire--they devour their victim's sense of taste--by attacking the tongue in a wet, sloppy, nausea-inducing assault. Those ravaged by the Yovire never really regain their sense of taste.
   
   [AL N, MV 5' (120'), AC 8, HD 1 (1hp), #AT 1 (Tongue-lunge), DG (Save or vomit; see above), SV MU 1, ML 8. Note: The fit of vomiting induced by the Yovire has a 60% chance to clear ingested poisons. Recovering from their attack, regaining one's sense of taste, can take weeks unless Cure Disease is used.]
10. Zumimi Leeches. Squiggly pink leeches speckled with yellow pustules and trailing streaks of noxious slimy filth, the Zumimi Leeches are notorious for attacking the toes of their victims. They do very little real damage with their raspy bites, however their saliva suppresses the immune system of their victims, exposing them to infection, pox and parasitism. Unlike other creatures summoned by Dalrin's Lesser Calling, these things have a base 40% chance to persist past the expiration of the spell. Many a soldier confined to half-flooded trenches or forced to march through muddy fields have run afoul of these despicable little monsters, often losing a toe to the gangrenous rot brought on by untended little nicks and pricks.
    
    [AL N, MV 10' (30'), AC 7, HD 1 (1hp), #AT 1 (bite), DG (% chance of infection), SV MU 1, ML 3.  Special: Repelled by Black Smoke Residue, otherwise known as Trench-Salt.]

You might also like the three variant spells and minor monsters such as the Squiggling Sores, Scabrous Servitors, or Fingerling Demonlets featured in our recent Spell Design Challenge post...or perhaps you might like to see another dozen Exotic Bivalves from Wermspittle?

Kthoim: A Servitor for Petty Gods

It Is Said...
...The Ancient Witch Queens of Amatradigor took their elite palace-guard from the ranks of the Kthoim. Of course, they also knew the secrets of the Mauve Trapezoid and how to bind these entities to their service with various runes and unsavory pacts. Such knowledge has since been long lost or forgotten, but occasionally there are unsubstantiated reports of spell-bound Kthoim standing guard over strange tombs or certain unhallowed palaces within long-dead cities, but so far nothing has come of any such traveler's tales. So far...

From The Third Azure Scroll of Parlavak

---

Kthoim

Keepers of the Wyrd

Minor Servitor Species Devoted to Various Unnameable Powers Probably Best Left Unnamed

No. Enc.: 1 (1d4)

Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Movement: 90' (30')

Armor Class: -2

Hit Dice: 10

Attacks: 2 (weapon/special)

Damage: 3d6/special

Save: F10

Morale: 10

Hoard Class: IV,VI...

XP: 120

The Kthoim are void-warped humanoid molluscs who serve a host of ruthless alien masters with unpronounceable names. They wait deep within the interstitial voids between the Known Planes for the Call of those who would open the way for them. 

In combat a Kthoim wields a terrible +2 bastard sword that inflicts 3d6 damage and on any modified attack roll of 20 the target must Save or have one random limb severed (can include the head).

A Kthoim will sometimes forgo an attack with their dread sword in order to spew a viscous green phlegm upon any severed limbs within 15' of them. After 1d4 turns, Kthoim-phlegm will have reduced the severed limb so treated into a shapeless protoplasmic mass that takes on a life of its own as a 1HD Blobling (Al CE, Move 30' (10'), AC 8, HD 1, ATK 1, DMG 1d4, SV F1, MRLE 5, Hoard Class: nil, XP 6). This amorphous mass is mindless, ravenous and autonomous, and the limb so lost is non-recoverable, though it could possibly be replaced. Bloblings created in this manner are under the mental control of their Kthoim masters, but they are only capable of obeying very simple commands.

Unlike many otherplanar beings, Holy/Unholy Word does not send them back to their unnamed realm in-between the planes. Instead these types of spells inflict damage upon the Kthoim at a rate of 1 point of damage per level of the caster.

Summon Brethren: All Kthoim possess the ability to Summon one additional Kthoim after successfully inflicting 60 hit points of damage in battle. The Kthoim's attempt to summon reinforcement is automatically disrupted if they take damage before they can complete the elaborate summoning process (2d4 turns). They reduce that time by 1 turn for every Kthoim already successfully summoned...so things can get out of hand quickly if they are not stopped soon enough.

---

The Eighth Contingent
Certain ancient scrolls warn that every eighth Kthoim summoned forth is a Fighter/Magic-User wielding both a sword and a staff that blasts minds or withers flesh. [Stats as above, except 12 HD (Fighter 6th/Magic User 6th), Save as 12 HD Cleric, Morale 11, and spell-casting capabilities as 6th level magic user with 18 INT, XP 1200. The Kthoim-Staff is a Chaotically-aligned +2 weapon, has 3d6 charges, and functions either as a Staff of Striking or a Staff of Withering, depending on the whims of the Kthoim wielding it. These staves are often very intelligent and will always attack any non-Kthoim that tries to wield them without first ascertaining the stave's name, usually through some form of divination or identification spell.]

They Make Wastelands of Worlds...
On those worlds where the Kthoim have successfully conquered large domains, as soon as the Kthoim consolidate their hold over their new territories, they enslave any survivors and set them to work erecting a suitably huge and powerfully fortified tomb-redoubt for the Lich-Lord whom their Unnameable Masters have selected to oversee these blasted and ruined places. Each Lich-Lord is progressively more insane than the others, but few non-Kthoim could ever hope to tell the difference.

To Call Forth These Beings...

The Kthoim are summoned by way of the Mauve Trapezoid or by use of the spell 'Calling Forth the Kthoim' (an uncommon variant of a VI^th level Summoning Monsters spell that opens the way for only one of these creatures...which is often more than enough). This spell has been banned and stricken from most reputable spell-books, but every now and then an archaic copy of it surfaces on some tattered old scroll some adventurer recovered from a dismal delve.

Mauve Trapezoid

Cold, oily mauve stone faceted into an irregular trapezoid and set to levitate above an ornate bronze bowl cast or carved with a spiraling pattern of overlapping waves or ridges that seem to move slowly of their own accord. The Mauve Trapezoid radiates Fear in a 30' radius and has an INT, Willpower, Ego equivalent to a +2 magic sword. It has 2d4 random magical powers in addition to its primary power which is to serve as the focus for opening a Gate into the Interstitial Void between universes. This gate function can be operated by anyone willing to sacrifice 3d6 hit points to the eldritch mechanisms within the bowl. Such a Gate will only remain open for 1d4 turns, after which there is a 30% chance of the item teleporting away. The ancient words of power for commanding and controlling this item have been lost, but if it is true that the Tombs of the Witch Queens have been found, then it may be possible to barter with one of the mummified rulers of ancient Amatradigor for the secret knowledge necessary to operate the Mauve Trapezoid...if one were foolish enough to trust such a being in the first place.