Shout The Name of Your Enemy and He Will Be Punished
Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0708
I had a D&D dream last night. I love it when I dream about games, but it happens so rarely.
This dream was about a magic tome. It’s a cool enough idea I will be using with modification on the Murder Hobos.
As always, the dream was weird and scattered. I’ll spare you the details.
Do you remember the Twilight Zone episode where a guy gets a magic box?
If I recall correctly, he just needs to open the box and he gets what he wants. Unfortunately, someone in the world will die as a result. Someone the guy doesn’t know or care about.
What would you do?
I think they made a movie with this concept in the last decade, too.
So here’s how the magic tome works, tweaked a bit from how I originally dreamt it.
The musty, dusty, crusty book subtly appears beside a PC. Only if players ask do I tell them it magically appeared. Else, it might have been there all along.
If a character picks it up, the pages magically flutter open to the middle. On the page revealed is this message:
“Shout the name of your enemy and he will be punished.”
If no one shouts a name, the book disappears when everyone stops touching and looking at it.
The other pages are blank.
If someone shouts a name, the letters of that name slowly, magically scrawl onto the page.
Then the pages magically flap madly again and the book turns to an earlier page.
On that page is the same message:
“Shout the name of your enemy and he will be punished.”
And on that page is written the name of a PC!
Suddenly demons pour out and attack. (Demons for Hobos because that’s their recurring enemy this season. For you it should be a thematic foe.)
During the battle, the book disappears.
A little karma never hurt the PCs too much, eh?
Something I’d like to tweak is the blank pages. It would be cool if there was interesting stuff in the book if the PCs paw through it.
Do you have any ideas?
A quick thanks to Jacob Hurst for fast delivery of Hot Springs Island loot. You can see in the pic the book Night Axe, Lapis Observatory, and Hot Springs Field Guide. Also a couple of location cards he threw in.
I’ve only skimmed the books. Jacob sure likes the F bomb. His ideas are also weird, interesting, and amazing. I’ll be definitely be looting these books for my campaigns. Night Axe Ogres a slave race created by the Ash Barons out of clay only found in the flooded deltas of Lethe? Yoink!
You can find more about the books and others at http://www.swordfishislands.com/ (Magic Tome image credit: Bryan Ochalla)