Libris Monstrum #3: Worm That Walks

We are back with the third entry into the Libris Monstrum. This time I chose the subject, but next week I will be posting a Twitter poll looking for your input again. This week's monster is a creature I have always been fond of, mostly for the creep factor, but also for all the ways these creatures can exist.


Person Or Swarm?
The worm that walks is a crazy creature that is actually a lot of smaller creatures. Well, sort of. For those who have never heard about the worm the walks, its most common form in Dungeons & Dragons is that of a hooded figure. Perhaps it is a priest, a mage, or a cultist. Silhouetted the creature looks humanoid, can pass as humanoid without a look at its body, but if you do grab a look at it you realize it is nothing like that. No, this creature is one made of a writhing mass of worms that just happens to be human-shaped. Despite this form, it is somehow one, powerful creature that moves and acts like the person it pretends to be.


Before There Was Kyuss
Well before the advent of the famous demigod who would herald the Age of Worms, there was Lovecraft. To be fair, H.P. Lovecraft wrote about indescribable horrors and many of those descriptions are vague or wild enough that there are plenty of interpretations. Nevertheless, there are a few descriptions that are commonly interpreted as a worm that walks. For one of those accepted references, just read The Festival. Of course, this isn't the instance of the worm that walks outside of fantasy RPGs, but we can talk about some examples in a little bit.


Kyuss And His Wormspawn
As a fair warning I do not know a great deal about the Greyhawk setting. Nor have I run Age of Worms or gotten to go crazy with that concept (awesome as it is), so if I am incorrect in any of my specifics, just leave a comment! Anyways, Kyuss used to be a simple priest but now he is a demigod bent on bringing about the end of the world. The Wormgod appears to be the original Worm that Walks within this context and has created a great deal of spawn for a variety of reasons. In the Age of Worms itself, this was not limited to the undead followers of Kyuss, but also minions that may have once been living lizardmen, dogs, dragons. Basically, you think it and a Kyuss worm could turn it into an undead monster aiding the undead entity in its quest.

I'd start running right about now. Great art from dungeonsanddrawings.blogspot.com

But What Is It?
So we haven't really discussed what the worm that walks is. First off, it doesn't have to be a mass of worms, it could be a mass of any small creature. Vermin are common and things like bugs, spiders, or worms are most common. There are two major things that go with the worm that walks, no matter what. First is that it is a swarm that moves together well enough to act as if it is a single human. Secondly, the swarm has a hive mind. While not necessarily required, there are a few other common qualities. One of these is the idea that the worm that walks will always be back. Often this is the result of the idea that as long as one of the individuals of the swarm survives then the worm that walks, that greater being, also survives to return after it has recovered. Because the creature is a swarm, and people are people, fire is generally the answer, as in: kill it with fire!!


Unique Versions
There are plenty of monsters that would qualify as the worm that walks, but lets talk about some interesting ones. The rat-king is one such creature, sort of. So the legend of the rat king is from before there were New York sewers. Dirty "modern" (for the time) cities have always had lots of rats right? What if there were so many their tails started growing together? That is the rat-king: a horrible mass of writhing, angry, tangled rats. The truth of the matter is rats are pretty clean animals. Sure they go in sewers and trash, but they won't create a situation where there are so many of them together and certainly not long enough for a rat-king to develop. But in your world, why not. Hells, go one better and make it some magical accident and it is a smarter creature that will re-create itself from a single surviving rat.

Another great example is Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas. The villain of the movie, the afforementioned Oogie Bogie, is the worst of all the Halloween monsters. He wants to take over the town and is generally an asshole. When he is finally defeated it is when his body falls apart. The thread holding the burlap together into his body is pulled out and all of his insects and spiders and such escape. With that, Oogie Boogie is defeated. Of course there was also a snake in there and if it escaped, perhaps Oogie will be back.

Who would I be without pushing Doctor Who? In the introductory episode of the character River Song, there is a horrible creature that kills people within the library planet that the episode takes place on. That creature is called the vashta nerada and it is an unseeable swarm of shadow things. These live in the shadows and even get into the space suites of the characters. They are then devoured and only their bones and the suite are left. What makes these more than just a swarm is the odd ability to take over and animate the suites. With in-lit helmets, the skeletons that walk around are terrifying. Add the repetitive nature of causing the suits to transmit the last thing the victim said, "hey, who turned out the lights?" and these creatures become one of the creepiest on the show.


Using The Worm And More
As a GM, there are some pretty simple ways to use the worm that walks. You can take the undead cult of demigod worshiping monsters. You could also do a recurring unique villain. Those are simple methods of using them, and there are even more you can find in various horror and supernatural films. I have some ideas for you though. First is by creating a recurring mummy villain. Screw the lich, he is a little over done and everyone knows to look for the phylactery. Take a mummy instead. He can be the powerful undead priest equivalent for some long-dead god. Now, instead of a phylactery (or in addition if you are really mean) do the "from a single maggot" part of the trope. If one gets away the creature can eventually reconstitute itself. Perhaps even if it dies than the villain has a phylactery. You will drive your players nuts! You could also take the idea and apply it to a rogue group of druids who become so one with their vermin swarm forms that they too can regrow from surviving shapeshifted from a single worm.


Do you have any ideas for how to use the worm that walks trope? Any good stories or a movie to watch for ideas? Leave comment and let us know!

Libris Monstrum #2: The Mimic

Welcome back to the Libris Monstrum! Last time, I talked about nagas and their rich history within the myths of the real world. The incarnations of naga have remained pretty stable over the years, at least within D&D, but we will get back to naga later. Tonight, I want to talk about something that doesn't come from the real world: the mimic!

Why talk about the mimic? Because you asked me to, and you voted on it! The mimic is a classic monster and virtually every person who has played more than one game of Dungeons & Dragons knows what it is. It is a creature that sits on a list of iconic monsters encountered at the table, alongside beholders and gelatinous cubes. Some of you were curious as to why to include them as an underutilized monster, so common as they are. Well, the mimic isn't so common.


Man-Eating Treasure Chests
The mimic is seen quite often in lower level dungeon crawls to trick players and punish them for blindly opening, or attempting to open, random treasure chests. But do we ever see them after that? Sometimes we do when we start new games, have forgotten our lessons, or take part in classic adventures, but not often enough. And certainly we are nearly guaranteed to see them as chests. It is, after all, the classic look. In fact, it is so classic its an entire trope with these types of creatures showing up in video games and other artistic works outside of D&D.


Getting More
Mimics are capable of so much more than that, though. Early on it was decided that those wizards who held many valuable items, and made their homes in strange dungeons, needed something to protect their hoards. Why not a magical shapeshifting treasure chest that eats people? They have been able to transform into a lot more, anything made of stone and wood at least: door frames, short walls, statues, bookshelves, all the common dungeon decor. Aside this ability is the ability to secrete a glue that holds attackers firm to them, making the kill all the more easy. Of course don't forget that there are smaller ones, smarter than their killer cousins. These can be fed and befriended, even speaking to those who have pleased them. Just look at some of the images below by Vempirick on Deviantart for some terrifying ideas.

Similar Ideas Or Different Species?
OK so the mimic doesn't corner the market pretending to be something it isn't. Of course, I know these aren't the same thing as the mimic, often very different, but the idea is fun to think about. It also benefits you, the game, and the poor mimic if you change it up once in a while. Wouldn't it be something if they treat a cloaker like a cloaker when it is really a mimic!?

So, let's look at some of those creatures now. The cloaker is as good a place as any to start, and a great one to be sure. Hanging up on a rack, alongside many other cloakers, the cloaker looks just like the rest. Some nice buttons and some bone clasps, or are they? Nope they are extra eyes and terrible claws and this thing will eat you as soon as you try to put it on. Oh, and they can fly. If you want to be even more devious just use the trapper, a creature that molds to the floor it is on, becoming the floor. Walk on it and you will become food. Or the piercer. One of those stalagmites looks odd, maybe loose? You don't understand the truth until it lets go stabbing you from above and hoping to kill you outright!

The grey ooze is another fantastic classic! Sure oozes suck in all their forms, but the grey ooze is fun for its ability to look like stone. Fill a whole in a wall with the ooze or create a small half wall with a few of them. Your players never know what hit them. My favorite, though, is the one that doesn't live in dungeons, but in the woods. The wolf-in-sheeps-clothing is an awesomely odd and fun creature. While it looks like a tree stump with a small wounded animal atop it, it is actually a horrible carnivore. Heroic characters can never resist the urge to help a small creature, especially when there is a druid. When they discover that its a woodland anglerfish, well you players may never trust you again.


Mimic-Like Cousins
Not all not-quite-treasure-chests are mimics. Some of them are a lot more fun. Take the Luggage for example. This creature is from the Discworld series and is unmistakable unique. It is, essentially, a combination treasure chest, bag of holding, and batman-butler. It's determination and ability is amazing, but it is no true mimic. Similarly, the next two things are incapable of shapeshifting, but they do act as other objects and are likely to try to eat you. The Bag of Devouring is my favorite cursed item. It acts as a bag of holding, most of the time anyway. When it isn't, it is eating your stuff...or you. There is always a chance that the bag eats something you have put into it and can never retrieve it again. Of course, it could just try to pull you inside as you try to retrieve an item. While not as terrible, the Monster book of Monsters from the world of Harry Potter is a book equally likely to eat you. If you know how to treat it, you will be able to read from the text, but it is still a dangerous creature.


Dungeons, The Mimic, & You
A lot of this entry to the Libris Monstrum hasn't, technically. Unlike other entries, the mimic doesn't have a culture. In fact, its major lacking feature is the tendency to use it as a chest and forget about it. So how can we get the mimic to come back to the table? First off, I believe we need to consider the second, more intelligent species to be quite a useful device. Perhaps an old familiar or just the secret leader of a dungeon, the mimic would be difficult to find if it didn't want to be.

Then, of course, a mimic can eat and grow and eat and grow. There are two ways to make a great dungeon from that fact. First off, if it is reproductively active (which is just through fission!), then a dungeon might end up being full of the creatures. Every time goblins, treasure hunters, bears, or anything else moves in they just get eaten. This would leave an eerily empty dungeon, not only clean but with plenty of loot!

On the other hand, we could say the mimic does NOT reproduce. Or, at least, not a lot. We could have a dungeon with one small section controlled by one or a couple, extra large mimics. Imagine a high level party, already having overcome the trouble of mimics and dragons, only to find a mimic the size of a bed or a desk or even bigger! It would be surprising to say the least and quite dangerous. Any of these options utilize the mimic in a much broader and fuller sense than it generally gets.

I suggest you take it and go crazy, get creative. That is how we can stop the mimic from being so under utilized while still being so well known.

Libris Monstrum #1: Naga

Welcome to the very first entry in the Libris Monstrum! Here shall be a series of entries going over some of the most commonly included monsters in game manuals. But, no, I am not going to be going over things like dragons or goblins. At least not at first, because those monsters are not just included but staples of games like Dungeons & Dragons. My goal is to talk about the monsters that often get missed and forgotten. To begin I want to talk about one of my favorites from mythology: the naga!


Serpent Entities

Naga, or nagini as the females are called, are serpent creatures of various Asian mythos. Most notably, nagas are part of the various Indian religions. The spread of religions like Hinduism and Buddhism throughout Asia caused quite a diversification of nagas over time. Nevertheless, nagas are almost always related to the king cobra and thus have similar hoods. Aside from this, there are a few other common physical features. The more frightening, and interesting, are the human faces. How human the faces are can vary. Still, the image of a serpentine creature whose head is very human, but whose eyes and forked tongue are still snake-like, is unnerving. Some even have multiple heads like the hydra of greek mythology. Nagas can also be capable of shapeshifting into human form, disguising themselves among people.


Purpose

There are mixed stories about the type of beings that naga and nagini are. Generally speaking they are seen as evil creatures, capricious and deceitful. Sometimes though, they can act as a neutral party or may even be willing to be good and helpful. Regardless though, there seems to be a general regard of nagas to be guardians of some kind. Treasure is one such thing, but more often they are natural resources, especially water. Rivers, lakes, and underground springs can be the home of guardian naga. Even those helpful naga must be shown respect and their sacred water source treated well.


Nagas In Dungeons & Dragons

Nagas have been included in D&D for decades, always showing up in the monster manuals as serpentine entities. These come in a couple varieties, each of which tends to focus on a specific aspect of the mythos. Common types include guardian, dark, and water nagas which become associated with sacred places / treasure, evil, and nature protection respectively. This division is also tied to alignment with guardian naga being good and dark naga being evil, for example. This variety is kept throughout the edition, though there are often more added in various books. These days the naga have a very cobra-like appearance and slightly human faces. They are considered immortal monstrosities and all are capable of some form of spell casting.


Nagas In Pathfinder

Pathfinder is one of my favorite games in regard to the treatment of creatures from a variety of mythos and sources. Nagas are no exception. Like D&D, Pathfinder links different types of naga to some aspect of the mythos, as well as alignment. There is a little less emphasis on guardianship, but a strong linking to other specifics. That list of things has been expanded and explored by Paizo and includes interesting naga types like royal, slime, and dream. The nagas in Pathfinder art have much more human faces and their serpent forms divert from the cobra occasionally, providing a nice variety. Like D&D nagas, these ones can cast spells, but they are mortal beings. Instead of one naga lording over a place or people, a lineage of nagas take the name of a predecessor allowing the shorter lived races to assume it is but a single individual.


Nagas At The Table

The obvious use of a naga is to act as a guardian of a certain area or item that the party may be looking for. While interesting and different in the moment, this does not do the naga justice. D&D has emphasized the naga in 5th Edition by discussing their connection to the Yuan-ti, another serpent people. The war between the two go so far back that the yuan-ti even have a horrible ritual which kills a naga and raises it as an undead known as the bone naga. This enmity could be the basis of an entire setting or campaign. Perhaps the PCs must choose sides in a developing war, or maybe they get caught as a third party between the two sides. Another idea I had was to have the two groups working together. What would cause such unprecedented and dangerous agendas?

My favorite use of the naga is completely different, however. There are a multitude of powerful entities or persons that can act has NPCs, but why not naga? Utilize the mythical predilection towards guarding something and helping those who help them, as well as their ability to look human (or some fantasy race). Give them age, knowledge, and power beyond what is the base stat block. Their ability to cast spells naturally make them even more formidable. I would argue that ancient nagas (with levels in some spellcasting class) would be more powerful than many dragons, and they certainly provide a different way of filling a similar role. Hey, you could even give them a treasure hoard like dragons have!