Shadows

Shadows are creatures from the dark land of the god Tholendhu. They are living embodiments of the shadows that it spews forth into the world. They are extremely rare, thankfully–they are very dangerous and hard to fight.

Description

Shadows are incorporeal creatures that come from the Land of the Gods. Specifically, they come from the land of Tholendhu, the god of darkness. They are amorphous, taking the shape of any normal shadow that may be nearby. When they attack, they always take the shape of the shadow of the creature they are attacking.

These evil creatures must be summoned to the Mortal World, through dark magics or evil rites. They bring the fear of that land with them, and cause all creatures who encounter them to pass a 3/IQ test or flee for 2d6 at their full MV value.

When they attack, Shadows attach themselves to their victim and grab them in a deathly embrace. This grip causes 2d6+2 damage every turn.

They can only be damaged by magical weapons or spells. All other weapons have no affect. The only mundane weapon that affects them is light. Normal light causes them to move away to other places of shadows, but magical light causes an additional 1d6 damage to the Shadow.

After a Shadow has completed its task, it will return to its own dark land.

Stats

Encounter: 1d3.
ST: 14-24.
DX: 12.
IQ: 5.
MV: 10.
AR: Special.
DM: 2d6+2 (touch).
Size: 1.
TR: None.
Behavior: Aggressive (14).
Habitat: Underground, Urban.
Category: Fantastical Creature.
God: Tholendhu (Xho’al Quuz).
Element: None.
Special:
Incorporeal. Shadows have no physical body, and are immune to all non-magical attacks. They can be harmed only by magic weapons, spells, and other spell-like effects (especially magical light).
Fear. Creatures that encounter Shadows must pass a 3/IQ test or flee in terror at the unnatural wrongness of the Shadows. Creatures will move away at their top MV for 2d6 turns.
Soul Eating. Shadows consume the souls of their victims. When a creature is killed by a Shadow, it will take 1d3 turns to hover over its victim’s body and take its spirit into itself, and take it back to the dark world of Xho’al Quuz. Creatures whose souls have been eaten by a Shadow cannot be brought back to life or communicated with by sorcerous or divination means.
Vulnerability to Light. Shadows are vulnerable to bright light, and will avoid it at all costs. Light spells cause +1d6 damage, and bright lights cause Shadows to move away to another place of shadow.

Other Info

Mood: Hostile, Aggressive, Focused.

Omens:
1 – Room seems darker.
2 – Sounds are muted.
3 – Body with a look of absolute horror on its face.
4 – Body that has been drained white.
5 – Feeling of terror.
6 – Shadows seeming to move on their own.

Rumors:
1 – Lurking evil at a location.
2 – Unexplained murders.
3 – Sorcerer engaging in dark research.
4 – Evil cult performing unspeakable rites.
5 – Feeling of terror at a location.
6 – Shadows have been seen moving on their own.

Design Notes

As with the spell that summons them, this version of the Shadow monster from other RPGs is based on the shadows in the Karl Edward Wagner’s book, Dark Crusade. I wanted an unnatural monster that was both dangerous and hard to fight. I also wanted a monster that players themselves would be afraid of.

That’s a hard ask, but with the way these monsters are summoned and then appear, I hope I added a little bit of that.