Category: Archive

Archive of all posts prior to October 2021, including the interviews, reviews, and theory posts about tabletop roleplaying games.

Monsters – Doppler


Doppler


One of the most frightening things for many people, next to public speaking, is to have their identity – their personhood – taken away and used for nefarious purposes. That’s what the Doppler is all about. They can duplicate any living being down to DNA with ease and accuracy.


Dopplers in their natural state are long-limbed, light grey creatures that are about 7 foot tall. They are emaciated. Each hand has three long claws, and each foot has two short claws with a third larger, curved claw. Their legs are shaped like a dogs leg, to enable them to leap higher and run on all-fours if they prefer. They are intelligent, but not very smart unless they are mimicking someone who is more intelligent. Their eyes are small slits in their face, and they have no nose. Their ears are shaped similar to bat ears, and they are nearly as large as the head of the Doppler.

The Doppler has found its pray, by Emily Vitori. 



Dopplers find their prey by using echolocation – above human hearing, but able to be heard by many other creatures. They do not need to touch their victims – they only need to get near enough to them to identify them with their screeching, and then they can easily replicate their form. Like Hanging Men, Dopplers rest in peripheral vision, normally undetected by humans. They often take the form of furniture or small animals to track people. Their goals with their mimicking are varied, from hired identity theft to personal desires for a human body.


Today’s art is by Emily Vitori. Thanks to Emily for her contribution to the project! 

Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.







THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – Siren

Siren

On the coast of every ocean, there can be found one shore – it may be rocky, or sandy, or a moist clay, but one may always find a Siren. To the naked eye, the Siren is their viewer’s greatest desire – a chiseled, muscular man; a beautiful, voluptuous woman; a statuesque androgynous being. Whatever the beholder wishes, the Siren takes on their visage and draws their victim nearer.

The Siren has a distinctive call, a long, sad song they call out in a clear, haunting voice. They sing of loneliness and longing. The call has a strong effect on landlubbers and sailors alike, gripping at their heart and mind and pulling them ever closer into their arms.

A Siren viewing its true reflection, by Jason Cox.

However, like the myths say, it is a lie. Beneath their unearthly beauty lies a monstrous creature. Their body is like that of a human, but is dirty and covered with lichen and barnacles. Their face is where the horror lies – wide open and unblinking eyes that take up the sides of their face, and a vertical mouth lined with sharp teeth. When they capture their victim, pinning them, they devour them face first, drawing out the life energy and filling their bellies with raw flesh.



Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.

Today’s art is by Jason Cox. Thanks for contributing to the Monsters collection!



THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2013. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – The Kid


The Kid


The Kid is five foot nothing, snotty nosed and petulant. The Kid is every bully in elementary school, and every kid who is bullied. He sneers and cringes all at once. He never meets your eyes, but can see into your soul. The son of the Flesh King never sleeps.

The Kid, by Susan Knowles.



The Kid is always around. He just finds a couch in every town and never seems to leave. He’s only one person, but he’s everywhere. Everyone knows The Kid. He eats everything in your fridge. He rubs his nose on his sleeve and spreads the common cold like a plague. When you’re feeling down in the dumps, The Kid knows just the right thing to say to make you blame yourself.


If you talk to The Kid, he will flinch away like you slapped him. If he talks to you, he’ll find any weakness you have – any feature you have that you are sensitive about – and exploit it. He’s the Kid who got beat up at recess. He’s the Kid that locked someone in a locker. An enigma wrapped in a bologna sandwich.




Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.


Today’s art is by Susan Knowles. Thanks, Susan, for your contribution to the project!

THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – Ravener


Ravener


A Ravener (rah-ven-ur) is the result of a corruption of the blood that alters the physical and mental substance of a human until they are barely recognizable.


A Ravener is typically a person who has done something they regret, but that they don’t want to feel guilty for – they hunger for validation, or they are starved for other people’s approval. When they are affected, the person will begin to feel sick when they eat regular food and drink, and their stomach will gorge, and they will no longer digest the food but simply regurgitate it. They develop a taste for flesh, first raw red meats, but they hunger most for the flesh of humans and corpses.


Their skin starts to flake, stripping off to raw skin that eventually becomes rubbery, like lizard skin, with rough scales on the elbows. The Ravener’s teeth fall out, and their bones become brittle and thin. Along their throat, muscles develop that flex when the Ravener eats, pulling the food down whole. Their stomach distends and they regurgitate large masses of hair and bone mixed with bits of skin and bile after eating.

A Ravener after their transformation, by Emily Vitori. 


Eventually, the Ravener develops small spines on the palms of their hands that help them cling to their food and to other slick surfaces. These spines also cover their tongue, which grows three times in length. Their fingers and toes lengthen, although some may break off from the thinning bone. Their eyes will burst open, revealing many dark tendrils that reach out and act as additional sensory organs, sensing the heat of the living and near dead. Raveners, due to their unsavory appearance, often retreat to live in sewers, cemeteries, or near large bodies of water, becoming somewhat amphibious over time.

Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.
Today’s art is by Emily Vitori. Thanks to Emily for her contribution to the project!


THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – Gremlings


Gremlings


Gremlings are small critters, about the size of a small cat. They are bipedal, with long clawed toes and fingers. Their skin is a ruddy green, lizard-like in texture.


A Gremling about to smash, by Khairul Hisham.



Gremlings are harmful helpers. They came into existence along with the innovation of computer and electric technologies, and their primary purpose is to damage and break anything that runs on electric power. They typically work in the dream world, reaching through the boundaries to press buttons, scratch screens, and gnaw on cords.

Some people manage to become infected with Gremlings. Something they have done frustrates the creatures, or perhaps they just have bad luck, but the Gremlings latch on and invade their space. Tens of little Gremlings will bash, smash, and break the pieces inside computers or telephones, blocking out communication outlets. They will stick around until they get distracted, or until there’s nothing left to break.


Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.

Today’s art is by Khairul Hisham. Thanks for contributing to the Monsters collection!



THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – Shadow Man


Shadow Man


The Shadow Man is a special breed of Bogeyman. As the name suggests, he lurks in the shadows, an undefined shape creeping along behind each step, hiding in every corner. The Shadow Man does no physical harm and cannot be captured by normal means.

He creeps. By Laura Hamilton.


His victims suffer no physical harm and no trauma, but are constantly plagued with self-doubt. They will become more uneasy the longer he walks behind them. Many victims of the Shadow Man will become anxious, ill at the thought of being seen, and lock themselves in their homes. By doing so, they cause themselves greater suffering, because he can surround them and overcome the light.

The Shadow Man can spread himself thin to haunt any number of people, but the more he tries to haunt, the weaker he becomes. It is always best to find him in a crowd. He fears light, and enough light will disrupt him. Even if he is disrupted, he always comes back to instill again the anxious doubt he inflicts.



Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.

Today’s art is by Laura Hamilton, finaira on Deviant Art. Thank you to Laura for her donation to the Monsters project! 


THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – The Magician


The Magician


Pick a card, any card, and the Magician will answer your wish. The Magician stands on the street corner, traveling city to city, offering a trick for whatever you’re willing to pay. His tricks come with a price. The Magician looks unassuming, just a lanky fellow with a pot belly standing on the corner with his table of tricks.

He doesn’t look scary at all. by Jaydot Sloane


The Magician is represented in the Tarot as a diviner – and divine he does, all of your future. He will flip a card or two and tell you what is to come. If you find that your future is unfavorable, he’ll make an offer. He’ll promise to delay your suffering – a few years, a few months, to give you time to prepare and fulfill all of your wishes. His promises, though, cost your soul.


When your time is up, your suffering will come along tenfold, and if you even survive the Magician will keep hold of your future. The moment your life ends is the moment you belong to him – an agent of bad fortune, an enforcer of bad will. The consequence of delaying your fate is no delayed gratification but his.




Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.

Today’s art is by Jaydot Sloan. Thanks to Jaydot for contributing to the Monsters collection!


THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – Two-Nosed Hounds


Two-Nosed Hounds


When someone is lost in time and space, there is a need for something more than just a standard search party. There is no greater expert in tracking than a Two-Nosed Hound. The hounds are intelligent beasts, but they are easily distracted, hard to control, and aggressive. They can be captured and domesticated to a degree, but once they have a master, they will trust no one else.

Nocturnal by nature, Two-Nosed Hounds only track at night, and will fight against any urging to do anything in daylight. They are able to find the scent of their targets through dimensions, in the mundane and dream worlds, and even can track people hundreds of years out of time, but their communication of the locations and time are limited to shared telepathic images. Not every species is equipped to withstand the mental strain of telepathic communication, so an untrained master of a Two-Nosed Hound may risk a stroke in trying to understand their hound.



Two-Nosed Hounds bounding through dimensional tears. Art by Laura Hamilton.


The hounds have two heads, each with a long snout and a very large nose. Their face is shaped similarly to the mundane Bloodhound. They have very long ears. The beasts are covered in a thick, matted fur. Their fur is resistant to fire, acid, and allows them to survive the most extreme cold, but they are vulnerable to parasites and they have a weak immune system, so they are always at high risk of illness. Two-Nosed Hounds have a howl that echoes beyond the mundane world, and their howl risks drawing attention from monsters in the dream world.


Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.

Today’s art is by Laura Hamilton, finaira on Deviant Art. Thank you to Laura for her donation to the Monsters project! 



THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – Grabber



Grabber


The world of dreams may be ruled by the Flesh King, but his enforcers and beasts of nightmare are many – and they do not always obey his instruction. One of these beasts is the Grabber. Born of hunger and greed, Grabbers climb up from the grimy muck of perverse cruelty, and live on the sustenance of humanity’s evil.


Grabbers smell, at first, like an overpowering cologne, until they move nearer and it turns to the acrid smell of sweat and rot. Most people are struck with fear or pure revulsion upon seeing the creature scrambling towards them. If a target manages to resist this fear, the Grabbers will become uninterested, and crawl away to find a more frightened meal.

A Grabber about to latch on to it’s victim, by Jaydot Sloan.


Grabbers are shaped like a human, but instead of a body, they are a mass of outstretched arms. Each arm has a hand with a gaping mouth in the center of the palm, with small spiny teeth that jut outwards. Grabbers have no difficulty moving on any terrain, and in the world of dreams this is especially valuable. Killing a grabber is very difficult. Once they grab hold of their target, they will not release. They will suck their prey dry of all bodily fluids, the spiny teeth gnawing and shredding through any tissue.




Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.


Today’s art is by Jaydot Sloan. Thank you to Jaydot for this donation to the Monsters project! 









THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.

Monsters – Dryads


Dryads

A Dryad turning her victim, by Kyrinn S. Eis.

Dryads are creatures of myth, painted by the Greeks as passive beauties of the oak trees. It may be that once, that is how they were. The dryads, with their sisters Meliai of the ash, the Caryatids of apple, the Epimeliad of the walnut, and the hamadryads who sleep in the trees, all protect the earth.

These creatures stand in the earth in the day, and wail when they are cut down and killed by the cruel machines of the modern world. They hold back throughout all of the seasons, but midsummer is when they are freed from their static forms. They step forth, creatures of wood with the slow sap pouring through their veins.


Dryads whisper through their leaves to draw their victims close, almost like Sirens singing, and they do no more than touch the humans who murdered their fellows. Upon the touch, the human is paralyzed, and roots burst forth from their feet, holding them to the ground. Their skin turns to a rough, thick bark, which breaks apart as wood branches tear through their flesh. The Dryads will watch in satisfaction as their victims bones break, and as the blood pouring from them turns to slow, sticky sap. This transformation cannot be stopped, and in the end, the victim is no more than another tree in the forest.

Today’s art is by Kyrinn S. Eis, creator of 

. Thank you Kyrinn!


Note: If you decide to use any of the monsters in a campaign, please let me know! I’d like to see how they work out.


Would you like to contribute art for the Monsters collection? Contact me at briesheldon@gmail.com.

Thank you!





THOUGHTY LOGO © JOHN W. SHELDON 2010. USED WITH PERMISSION. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
ALL CONTENT WITHIN THIS BLOG AND ANY OF THE ALTERNATE SITES LINKED ARE SUBJECT TO FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAWS. THE OPINIONS AND CONCLUSIONS WITHIN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO REPRESENT ANY CORPORATION OR OTHER ENTITY.