HORRORS

The Horrors presented on the following pages are known to exist in Barsaive. Other, unknown Horrors doubtless lie in the corrupt places, or wander through Barsaive’s Tainted and Open areas. No one knows how many Horrors remain, or can tell whether new ones occasionally enter Barsaive from the polluted wastes of astral space.

Horror Powers

As in the case of dragons, not every Horror has every Horror power. The powers listed below are those most extensively documented; as far as anyone knows, the Horrors may have any number of additional, fearsome abilities.

Animate Dead: In order to animate a corpse, the Horror must touch a portion of the deceased body. To use this power, the Horror makes a Spellcasting Test against the Spell Defense of the deceased; a successful result raises the dead man for three days, turning him into a cadaver man (see Cadaver Man, in this section) under the Horror’s control. The Horror may use blood magic to extend the animation beyond the three-day limit. By taking 1 point of damage the Horror can cause the cadaver man to exist for a year and a day, at which time the cadaver man collapses into dust unless the Horror continues the blood magic. The Horror controls the cadaver man at a range of 150 to 400 yards. Though the Horror must concentrate to control the dead, it need not make any tests to give it orders. Because the cadaver men are telepathically linked to the Horror, its orders to them do not depend on speech or line of sight.

Corrupt Karma: This power allows the Horror to alter another being’s use of Karma. The Horror first makes a Spellcasting Test against the target character’s Spell Defense. If the Spellcasting Test is successful, the Horror then makes a Corrupt Karma Test against the target’s Karma step. A successful result allows the Horror to override the character’s use of Karma, preventing the character from spending a Karma Point on tests made against the Horror. Though normally this power works only through line of sight, the power can work against a Horror Marked character who is several hundred miles away.

Cursed Luck: Many of the Horrors can bring bad luck to opponents. Use of this power reduces the results of at least one die a target rolls for any action to 1. The Horror makes a Spellcasting Test against the target’s Spell Defense; the success level of the test determines how many of the target’s dice that he rolled for a particular action have their results reduced to 1. An Average result reduces one die, a Good result reduces two dice, an Excellent result reduces three, and an Extraordinary result reduces the result of four dice rolls to 1. Note that Cursed Luck automatically reduces the highest numbers that the target character rolls. For example, if a character rolls a 2 and a 6, the Cursed Luck power reduces the 6 to a 1. If the success level achieved by the Horror allows it to reduce more dice than the target character has rolled, the power affects all the target’s dice and gives the character an automatic result of 1, meaning that his action fails. For an explanation of the Rule of One, see Game Concepts. A character may not use cursed dice as Bonus dice; the curse has already reduced any result from such dice to 1 before the character can gain the benefit of Bonus dice. Cursed Luck only affects the results of one test.

Damage Shift: This power allows a Horror to shift damage it has taken onto a target character. Though the Horror spends a Karma Point to accomplish this, it rolls no Karma dice; the Karma Point simply enables the Horror to make the necessary Damage Shift Test to use its power. Damage Shift is an additional action, and does not use up one of the Horror’s attacks or Spell actions available in a Combat Round. The Horror may use Damage Shift whenever it takes damage by making a Damage Shift Test against the target’s Spell Defense. A successful result shifts all damage the Horror has just taken to the target character. Each use of Damage Shift lasts for five Combat Rounds; the Horror may make a new Damage Shift Test in any of those rounds, transferring the damage it takes in each round to the target. Damage Shift works by line of sight, meaning that the Horror must be able to see its chosen target.

Horror Mark: This terrible ability allows Horrors to mark victims, thereby linking the Horror and the target character. To use Horror Mark, the target character must be in the Horror’s line of sight. The Horror makes a Horror Mark Test against the target character’s Spell Defense. If the target character has used raw magic, use the Horror Mark Test method given in Spell Magic rather than the Horror Mark Test. Any character who has used raw magic may use only his original Spell Defense to resist the Horror mark. If a character has not used raw magic, he may increase his Spell Defense by using magical items or spells.

The Horror mark links the Horror to the target over vast distances, and allows the Horror to use any of its abilities against the target character when the character is within 10 miles of the Horror. For a range up to 100 miles, the Horror Mark power allows the Horror to take actions against the character that do not directly cause damage, and communication between the Horror and the target extends for 5,000 miles.

Horror marks last a year and a day. The Horror may renew the Horror mark whenever the target character is within 100 miles of the Horror.

Karma Points: All major Horrors have Karma Points. Every Horror may use Karma Points on any test, though they may spend only 1 Karma Point per test. Horrors regain Karma Points at a rate of 1 to 5 points a day, until they reach the maximum listed for each Horror.

Karma Tap: This ability allows a Horror to suggest actions to characters. The Horror makes a Spellcasting Test against the target character’s Spell Defense; if the test is successful, the Horror forms a telepathic link with the character. If a character is Horror marked, the Horror adds 3 steps to its Spellcasting step. The Horror then makes a Karma Tap Test. The result is the number of days the link lasts. If the character accepts a suggestion, the Horror substitutes its Karma step and accompanying use restriction for the character’s when the character embarks on the suggested course of action. Though the influenced character must still spend his own Karma Point, he may spend it on any action, and uses the Horror’s Karma step rather than his own to carry it out. The telepathic link extends for 1,000 miles.

Skin Shift: This gruesome ability allows the Horror to mutilate a target’s body. The Horror makes a Spellcasting Test against the target’s Spell Defense; if the test is successful, the Horror then rolls the Skin Shift dice to determine damage. The target takes Damage Points equal to the result of the Skin Shift dice roll; his skin tears loose from muscles and ligaments, twisting and rotating about his body. During the first round in which the Horror uses this power, Skin Shift inflicts 7 Wounds on the target in addition to the damage of the Skin Shift dice roll result. Skin Shift lasts for 3 rounds.

Spells: Horrors often learn spells from sentient captives who follow a particular spell Discipline. Horrors can learn every spell from their captives’ listed Disciplines and Circles, except for those spells that affect entities. Though Horrors may learn the spells from a Discipline, they acquire none of that Discipline’s other talents. Though Horrors cast all spells as raw magic (see Spell Magic), they take no damage, and tend to ignore raw magic spells cast by other Horrors. Also, Horrors do not use spell matrices, though they must weave spell threads where required. To determine the effect of Horror-cast spells, use the Horror’s Willpower step. Note that Horrors do not have Willforce.

Terror: Terror allows Horrors to instill intense fear into their targets. Each use of Terror costs the Horror 5 Strain Points. The Horror using its Terror ability makes a Spellcasting Test and compares the result to the Spell Defense of all characters within 50 yards of the Horror. If the test is successful against any character, the Horror rolls the Terror dice, and the result becomes the Difficulty Number for any test a character subsequently makes to resist Terror. An affected character must make a successful Willpower Test against that number before he can perform any action against the Horror. Until the character makes a successful Willpower Test, he can take no other action. His speech becomes a piteous wail, and any movements become random twitches.

Thought Worm: This power allows a Horror to create a telepathic link between itself and a target. The target character must be within the Horror’s line of sight for the Horror to place a Thought Worm within the character’s mind. The Horror makes a Spellcasting Test against the intended victim’s Spell Defense. A successful result places the Thought Worm within the mind of the victim. A Thought Worm lasts for a year and a day, and the Horror may renew it at the price of 1 permanent point of damage for each year of renewal. If the target character dies, the Horror regains the spent Damage Points.

A Thought Worm allows the Horror to make telepathic suggestions to a target within 1,000 miles of the Horror. If the target resists the suggestion, the Horror rolls the Thought Worm dice and the character takes Damage Points equivalent to the result. This damage is extremely painful. When a character resists, the gamemaster records a number of Legend Points for the Thought Worm equal to the target’s Circle Number x 100. For example, when a Fifth Circle character resists the Thought Worm, the gamemaster records 500 Legend Points. Because Horrors enjoy rewarding their faithful servants, each resistance adds to the total Legend Points; if the character subsequently acts upon a suggestion from the Thought Worm, he gains all of the Legend Points the Thought Worm previously accumulated by his resistance. Unfortunately, in addition to the Legend Points, the character also automatically gains a Horror mark. For more information, see Horror Mark.

Unnatural Life: This ability allows a Horror to give a corpse the “gift” of unnatural life. This ability only works on corpses dead for less than a year and a day. To use this power, the Horror touches the dead body and makes a Spellcasting Test against its Spell Defense. If the Spellcasting Test is successful, Unnatural Life revives the corpse. Though not as dreadful to behold as a zombie or a ghoul, the corpse remains visibly decayed, and retains the distinctive odor of rotting flesh. Aside from a horrific appearance and smell, the animated character can function as he did in life; Unnatural Life revives him with all of his Attributes and talents intact.

Characters animated by Unnatural Life are hard to destroy. They may make a Recovery Test during any Combat Round, which counts as their action for that round. Beyond that, the unnaturally living may make unlimited Recovery Tests in the course of a day.

The Horror loses 1 Damage Point when it uses this power, and regains it when the Unnatural Life ends. The Horror may stop the effects of Unnatural Life any time the unnaturally alive character is within 100 yards of the Horror.

BLOATFORMS

Initiative: 20	Physical Defense: 16
Number of Attacks: (2)	Spell Defense: 19
Attack: 20	Social Defense: 18
Damage: 15	Armor: 32
Number of Spells: 3	Mystic Armor: 30
Spellcasting: 22	Knockdown: 13
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 7
Death Rating: 110	Combat Movement: 25
Wound Threshold: 25	Full Movement: 50
Unconsciouness Rating: Immune
Karma Points: 30	Karma Steps: 12
Powers: Corrupt Karma 12, Horror Mark 12, Spells: Circle 7 Wizard, Terror 12, Thought Worm 12
Legend Points: 25,000
Equipment: None
Loot: Usually none

Commentary
A catch-all name for a diverse class of Horrors, bloatforms often look like slugs or jellyfish. Other bloatforms appear as impossibly bloated, bubbling corpses.

Bloatforms rarely kill their victims directly, preferring to encourage suicide or murder. They especially enjoy insinuating themselves into small settlements and manipulating a community into self-destruction. Bloatforms enjoy chatting with victims they have marked. They cajole, threaten, taunt, and negotiate with the victim, all with the aim of getting the victim to destroy himself.

Some bloatforms have other talents from a variety of Disciplines as well as the average bloatform’s powers and spells. Often, they lie dormant until a delicious whiff of pain crosses their path and rouses them. Horribly patient, bloatforms can wait years for the destruction of a particularly succulent victim.

CHANTREL’S HORROR

Initiative: 22	Physical Defense: 20
Number of Attacks: 2	Spell Defense: 21
Attack: 23	Social Defense: 21
Damage: 30	Armor: 32
Number of Spells: 2	Mystic Armor: 30
Spellcasting: 23	Knockdown: 22
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 10
Death Rating: 220	Combat Movement: 100
Wound Threshold: 25	Full Movement: 200
Unconsciouness Rating: 200
Karma Points: 40	Karma Steps: 15
Powers: Cursed Luck 19, Horror Mark 19, Karma Tap 15, Spells: Circle 8 Elementalist, Terror 15
Legend Points: 50,000
Equipment: None
Loot: Frame contains retrievable fragments of orichalcum, worth 40,000 + (1D10 + 1D6) x 1,000 silver pieces. The orichalcum counts as treasure worth Legend Points.

Commentary
Chantrel the Troubadour first dreamed of the Horror that now bears her name. In her dream, she saw a demonic humanoid suspended from a razor-sharp frame. Blades protruding from the frame moved constantly, sculpting the Horror’s appearance. At first it looked trollish, then got whittled down to a mangled ork, then had pieces added and rearranged to make it look like an obsidiman built from bloody bits. For having such a dream, Chantrel’s kaer threw her outside. She is the only citizen to survive the Horror’s appearance, and from her stories, tales of the Horror spread across Barsaive.

No one knows what this Horror wants, or how it operates. Chantrel remains the only living person who has seen it, and she had only a brief glimpse in a nightmare. No one else has seen it and survived.

CRYSTAL ENTITY

Initiative: 5	Physical Defense: 7
Number of Attacks: NA	Spell Defense: 10
Attack: NA	Social Defense: 12
Damage: NA	Armor: 13
Number of Spells: 2	Mystic Armor: 5
Spellcasting: 16	Knockdown: Immune
Effect: 16	Recovery Tests: 4 (13)
Death Rating: 80	Combat Movement: NA
Wound Threshold: 18	Full Movement: NA
Unconsciouness Rating: 70
Karma Points: 20	Karma Steps: 10
Powers: Horror Mark 19, Karma Tap 20, Spells (see below)
Legend Points: 600
Equipment: None
Loot: Blood as treasure, 1D6 elemental earth coins worth 100 silver pieces each. These items count as treasure worth Legend Points.

Commentary
Crystal entities drop into the world from the astral plane. They must inhabit an object or structure at least the size of a coffin, and commonly infest huts, garden sheds, or similar small structures. The infested structure looks built of glass, quartz, or ice. When an entity is wounded, its rock-hard skin ruptures and oozes an oily liquid. When killed, its skin shatters and its blood coagulates into 1D6 elemental earth coins, worth 100 silver pieces each. These count as treasure worth Legend Points.

Crystal entities attack opponents and defend themselves by using spells. Though a crystal entity can make no direct physical attack, it can cast the following spells: Astral Sense, Counterspell, Death Spikes (see below), Dispel Magic, and Mind Dagger. When casting spells at a target, a crystal entity makes the Spellcasting Test required by the spell’s description (see Spell Magic). If the test is successful, the crystal entity then makes the applicable Effect Test or rolls the Effect dice to determine damage. For details on Effect Tests and dice, see Spell Magic.

Death Spikes
Threads: 0 Difficulty: NA/NA
Range: 150 yards Duration: 24 hours or until dispelled
Effect: 16 steps damage
Difficulty Number: Target’s Spell Defense

To use the Death Spikes spell, the entity makes a Spellcasting Test against the target’s Spell Defense. If the test is successful, the spell alters the joints and bones of a victim within the spell’s 1,000-yard range, forming crystalline spikes that pierce the skin from the inside out. To determine damage, the entity rolls the Effect dice. Neither Armor nor Mystic Armor can protect a character against the effects of this spell. In addition to other damage done, Death Spikes cause 1 Wound. The spikes remain for a day, or until dispelled. For dispelling purposes, treat Death Spikes as a Circle 5 spell. During each round of the spell’s duration, it can cause damage, but determining the actual damage caused requires the crystal entity to make an Effect Test against the victim’s Spell Defense. The crystal entity may cast Death Spikes on up to three different characters in three different rounds, causing damage to one character in each round as long as that character stays within the spell’s 1,000-yard range.

DESPAIRTHOUGHT

Initiative: 8	Physical Defense: 8
Number of Attacks: 2	Spell Defense: 10
Attack: 10	Social Defense: 10
Damage: 15	Armor: 8
Number of Spells: Special	Mystic Armor: 7
Spellcasting: Special	Knockdown: 13
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 12
Death Rating: 80	Combat Movement: 30
Wound Threshold: 18	Full Movement: 60
Unconsciouness Rating: 73
Karma Points: 20	Karma Steps:
Powers:
Legend Points: (see below)
Equipment: Legend Points:
Loot: NA

Commentary
The despairthought resembles a giant, white larva, ranging from the size of a sheep to the size of several horses. It has white, sightless eyes and a huge maw tipped with large fangs. Along its body are child-sized arms, on which it scrambles around.

Although a formidable foe in physical combat, the Horror prefers psychic attack. The despairthought usually hides in a cavern or within ruins, far from civilization, and travels through the astral plane seeking victims. It can roam a limitless range in astral space, keeping its attention on both the physical and astral planes simultaneously.

The creature must have aid from one of its victim’s loved ones to use its powers, and for this reason it often attacks children. It frequently seeks out cruel, selfish, or especially fearful parents who might sacrifice their own children to save themselves. Taking the form of a white shadow that drifts in and out of amorphous shapes, the creature tells the victim’s loved one that it will kill him unless he helps the creature take the victim. It promises not to kill the victim, but swears to kill the loved one unless he assists the Horror. In reality, the despairthought can do no harm without the help of the loved one, but few people realize that the death threat is pure bluff.

If the loved one cooperates, the creature describes a pattern to its newfound accomplice. The loved one must trace this pattern, a special Horror Mark, upon the flesh of the victim. Though invisible, the mark lets the despairthought follow the victim until he dies or the Horror is killed. The Horror cannot leave its chosen victim; both remain trapped with one another until one of them dies.

Once the Horror’s accomplice has made the mark, the creature enters the victim’s thoughts. When the victim tries to speak, the creature takes control of the victim’s voice, making horrible sounds and grunts issue forth instead of words. The victim often spasms and loses control of his body, and his noises torment those who hear them. Anyone within hearing range of the victim’s voice must make a Willpower Test against the despairthought’s Willpower step. If the test is unsuccessful, the listener automatically suffers a knockdown. He clutches at his head as his consciousness drowns in agony for all the painful actions, large or small, that he has ever committed against anyone. The horrible sounds amplify these memories to such a degree that the listener is rendered incapable of taking any action. Some listeners cry, howl, or roll back and forth on the floor in agonizing pain. The effects of the Horror’s terrible voice last until the listener makes a successful Willpower Test, or until the victim makes a successful Willpower Test against the despairthought’s Willpower step.

The despairthought also renders its victim suicidal. Inside the victim’s mind, the Horror constantly feeds him bleak ideas, cynical notions, and hopeless views of the world. To reflect this process, once a day the creature can make a Willpower Test against the victim’s Willpower step. The Horror can make this roll at any time, and usually does so when the victim is in danger. If the test is successful, the victim can take no action of any kind. He cannot fall to the floor, take shelter, or do anything potentially useful. Most despairthoughts affect their victims this way to get the victim killed, though some despairthoughts simply enjoy causing the victim inconvenience, embarrassment, or trouble. The creature’s influence lasts a number of rounds equal to the Willpower Test result.

Also, once a year the Horror can attempt to force the victim to commit suicide. In this case, the Horror and the victim each make three sets of Willpower Tests against each other’s Willpower step, and compare the results of the tests. If the Horror’s results exceed the victim’s for each of the three tests, the victim commits suicide within 24 hours. The Horror usually does not invoke this power for at least a full year after invading the victim, preferring to wallow in the pain it can cause the victim during that time.

HATE

Initiative: 19	Physical Defense: 24
Number of Attacks: (3)	Spell Defense: 24
Attack: 20	Social Defense: 20
Damage: 26	Armor: 20
Number of Spells: 4	Mystic Armor: 20
Spellcasting: 23	Knockdown: 19
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 10
Death Rating: 140	Combat Movement: 100
Wound Threshold: 25	Full Movement: 100
Unconsciouness Rating: Immune
Karma Points: 40	Karma Steps: 15
Powers: Animate Dead 19, Cursed Luck 19, Damage Shift 19, Horror Mark 21, Skin Shift 30, Spells: Circle 8 Illusionist, Terror 18
Legend Points: 125, 000
Equipment: None known
Loot: None known

Commentary
Hate destroyed at least two kaers during the Scourge. He also penetrated two others, Coppertail and Menkin Town, but left those intact. To this day, most Barsaive citizens harbor deep suspicions of residents from Coppertail and Menkin Town, assuming that the Horror left the kaers alone because the residents promised him something better. No one can guess what they might have promised, and few care to try.

Hate appears as a glowing, well-proportioned male human. From the top of his back sprout twelve multi-jointed limbs. As Hate speaks the limbs move, each limb producing grating speech in a different tone. The limbs can extend in front of Hate, and the Horror uses them to strike opponents. When Hate attacks traveling parties, he horribly mutilates some members of the party and leaves others virtually unscathed. Most residents of Barsaive treat survivors of such attacks with even more suspicion than people from Coppertail and Menkin Town.

KREESCRA

Initiative: 10	Physical Defense: 12
Number of Attacks: 1	Spell Defense: 8
Attack: 11	Social Defense: 8
Damage: 12	Armor: 8
Number of Spells: 1	Mystic Armor: 7
Spellcasting: 10	Knockdown: 7
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 4
Death Rating: 47	Combat Movement: 30
Wound Threshold: 13	Full Movement: 60
Unconsciouness Rating: 40
Karma Points: 15	Karma Steps: 12
Powers: Cursed Luck 13, Talents (see below)
Legend Points: 400
Equipment: NA
Loot: NA

Commentary
Most kreescra stand 3 feet tall, a few as tall as 4 feet. Their bodies are misshapen travesties, all twisted limbs and jaws and faces that seem about to slide off their heads. Despite their crippled appearance, kreescra are surprisingly nimble and difficult to catch or strike.

Kreescra usually attack by approaching wounded individuals deep in slumber. Finding such a victim, the Horror places its hands on the victim’s head and makes a Spellcasting Test against the victim’s Spell Defense. If the test is successful, nightmares of horrible events from the victim’s past overwhelm the dreamer and disrupt his sleep. The victim does not wake from these terrors; he stays asleep, sweating and tossing and turning. The kreescra can use this power at a range of up to 100 yards, keeping the victim under its influence for at least one hour each night. During the day, the kreescra hides near the victim’s sleeping place. When the victim travels, the kreescra trails him, keeping out of sight and only using its powers while the victim slumbers.

During the horrible nightmares, the victim makes a Willpower Test against the kreescra’s Willpower step. If the Willpower Test is unsuccessful, the victim receives no Recovery Tests the next day despite his full night of sleep. For every continuous week that the kreescra haunts the victim, whether or not it successfully keeps the victim from making daily Recovery Tests, the victim takes 7 Damage Points. If possible, the kreescra stays with the same victim until the victim dies, slowly killing him with nightmares and the effects of unhealed wounds. If the victim gets an Extraordinary success on one of his Willpower Tests against the kreescra, he has forced the Horror from his mind. Once a victim recovers from the damage done by the kreescra, the creature seeks out another victim.

To help it claim victims, the Horror can use the magical abilities of Climbing, Lock Pick, and Silent Walk. To use these talents, the Horror substitutes its Spellcasting step for the talent step. For more information on the kreescra’s magical talents, see descriptions in Talents.

MINDSLUGS

Initiative: 8	Physical Defense: 8
Number of Attacks: 1	Spell Defense: 10
Attack: 7	Social Defense: 7
Damage: 8	Armor: 0
Number of Spells: 1	Mystic Armor: 6
Spellcasting: 10	Knockdown: 6
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 3
Death Rating: 43	Combat Movement: 45
Wound Threshold: 12	Full Movement: 90
Unconsciouness Rating: 35
Karma Points: 10	Karma Steps: 7
Powers: Corrupt Karma 13, Spells (see below)
Legend Points: 100
Equipment: None
Loot: None

Commentary
Mindslugs feed off the pain caused by their attacks on a victim’s skull and brain. These mindless creatures usually travel in groups of 3, seeking out victims as a poisonous spider might. Six inches long and black in color, mindslugs have no sensory organs typical of Earth creatures, such as eyes or a nose. Instead, each possesses several tentacles that it uses to crawl along the ground, walls and ceilings. The tentacles are lined with small, silvery hooks that give the slug sensory information.

The mindslug hides in dark places where a potential victim might rest, and attacks as the victim sleeps. Piercing the victim’s skull, the mindslug worms its way into the victim’s brain and begins to feed. The Horror has two magical abilities that give it an advantage over its prey: Gain Surprise, which allows the creature to sneak up on its victim by crawling up his back or dropping down from the ceiling, and Lacerators, which adds 4 steps to the mindslug’s Damage step. To use Gain Surprise, the Horror makes a Spellcasting Test against the victim’s Perception step; if the test is successful, the creature has surprised the victim.

Once the mindslug’s attack has succeeded, the creature makes a Damage Test in every round without needing to make an additional attack. The mindslug continues these Damage Tests until the victim removes the slug or dies, at which point the mindslug leaves the corpse and seeks out a new victim.

Removing the creature is no easy task. The mindslug’s body is slippery, and it uses the small hooks along its tentacles to grip the inside of its victim’s skull. Both of these characteristics make these creatures difficult to dislodge, assuming that a character can catch one. To catch the creature with fingers, tweezers or some similar tool, the character doing the catching must make a successful Dexterity Test against the creature’s Physical Defense Rating. Once he has grabbed the slug, the character must make a Willpower Test against the mindslug’s Willpower step. If the test is successful, the victim can remove the mindslug, causing 6 steps of damage and 1 Wound to the character. If the Willpower Test is unsuccessful, the mindslug continues to worm its way into the victim’s brain.

Starting with the second round in which the mindslug inhabits the victim’s skull, each round that the creature remains in the victim’s head raises its Physical Defense Rating by 2. For example, by the third round after a successful attack the creature’s Physical Defense is 8 + 2 + 2 = 12. Also, each round that the mindslug remains in the victim’s head increases the Difficulty Number for removing it (its Willpower step) by 2. Once plucked out of the victim’s skull, the creature attempts to wriggle away and escape.

VERJIGORM

Initiative: 35	Physical Defense: 34
Number of Attacks: 3	Spell Defense: 36
Attack: 38	Social Defense: 30
Damage: 40	Armor: 40
Number of Spells: 3	Mystic Armor: 40
Spellcasting: 40	Knockdown: 33
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 20
Death Rating: 400	Combat Movement: 150
Wound Threshold: 30	Full Movement: 300
Unconsciouness Rating: 375
Karma Points: 50	Karma Steps: 20
Powers: Animate Dead 40, Corrupt Karma 40, Cursed Luck 40, Damage Shift 40, Horror Mark 25, Spells: Circle 8 Wizard, Thought Worm 20, Unnatural Life 20
Legend Points: 2,000,000
Equipment: None
Loot: None known

Commentary
To see Verjigorm is to behold the true nature of the Horrors. Verjigorm stands 15 feet at the shoulder. The face of this hideous creature features six eyes, three-inch fangs, and spiked horns. Its horrifying head is connected to its torso by a flexible, 10-foot-long neck. Its skin gleams with a metallic sheen, and razor-sharp spikes protrude from its body. Each of the creature’s four legs end in three sharp talons, and though it most often stands on all four legs, Verjigorm can stand on its rear legs to fight.

The scholars of Throal heard of Verjigorm only through tales told by the great dragons it hunted during the last Scourge. No one knows whether this hideous creature came into the world during this Scourge; but if it did, it hunted no dragons this time around. Verjigorm’s goals and whereabouts remain a mystery.

WORMSKULL

Initiative: 13	Physical Defense: 17
Number of Attacks: 2	Spell Defense: 17
Attack: 17	Social Defense: 18
Damage: 23	Armor: 18
Number of Spells: (2)	Mystic Armor: 18
Spellcasting: 19	Knockdown: 12
Effect: See below	Recovery Tests: 6
Death Rating: 60	Combat Movement:
Wound Threshold: 120	Full Movement:
Unconsciouness Rating:
Karma Points: 20	Karma Steps: 9
Powers: Animate Dead 24, Skin Shift 24, Spells: Circle 6 Nethermancer, Terror 25
Legend Points: 8,000
Equipment: None
Loot: Breastplate pieces made of elemental earth. Characters can pry out pieces of armor worth (1D20 + 1D8 + 1D6) x 100 silver pieces, which count as treasure worth Legend Points.

Commentary
Wormskulls are a class of Horrors that vary in appearance but have one feature in common: their skulls look like masses of writhing worms. Often, their hands and feet also end in worm-like appendages. Wormskulls range in height from 5 to 8 feet tall. Their bodies are partly made of armor, and pieces of this armor count as treasure worth Legend Points. Because wormskulls prefer dry environments, their presence tends to remove moisture from an area 1,000 yards in circumference around them. Occasionally, wormskulls serve other Horrors.

A wormskull may move into or out of astral space by making a successful Spellcasting Test, using the wormskull’s Spell Defense as the Difficulty Number.