Appendix N Cinema and Phantasm|Goodman Games

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Appendix N Cinema and Phantasm

by Thorin ‘SonOvThrain’ Thompson and Clay Liford

Goodman Games new show celebrating movies and the impact they can have on our games continues (and you can get caught up over on YouTube). Their second episode focused on the cult classic, Phantasm. And now the hosts of the show are bringing you some distilled gaming material for you to use.

NOTE: This is all fan-created material, and is not official in any way. It’s unauthorized and meant just for fun.

Good evening boys and ghouls! It is your hosts, Thorin the Maleficent Mystic and “Baleful Clay of the Dark and Reddish Wastes,” writing to you from our shadowy domain in the Cavern of Cinema. For Episode 2 of Appendix N Cinema we watched and were inspired by the horror classic Phantasm! Look if you dare upon our latest write up which features a few new monsters, some ridiculously lengthy new spells and a classic muscle car!

The Tall Man: Init +4; Atk dagger +3 melee or spell; AC 17 ; HD 10d10; hp 55; MV 25’; Act 1d20+1d16; SP spellcasting (6th lvl wizard: chill touch, Ekim’s Mystical Mask, ESP, Jebediah’s Nightmare Interloper, mind purge, phantasm, paralysis, scare, transmute severed appendage to aerial attack arachnid), undead traits, immune to turning, inhuman strength (can lift or throw objects weighing up to 200lbs), create/command necro-dwarves, command sentinels, cold compulsion (see description), illusion (self only, replicate any known humanoid, DC18 Will Save to disbelieve), regenerate (1d4 hp/round, including lost limbs at a rate of 1 body part/day), telekinesis (can control objects or people (opposed Will saves to resist) within 100ft range); SV Fort +6, Ref +4, Will +6; AL L.

The Tall Man appears as a tall older white-haired man usually posing as a mortician wearing a tailored black suit who rarely speaks, preferring rather to express himself with one raised eyebrow. Yet under this thin veneer of respectability lies an evil entity hailing from the Crimson Dimension who steals the dead and transports them to his dimension where they are said to meet unspeakable ends. In order to lure the living to their doom, the Tall Man is able to weave an illusion around himself so that all who gaze upon him may see a handsome or beautiful person.

The Tall Man can create and control a small force of necro-dwarves. How this is achieved is currently unknown, but sages and scholars both agree the secrets lay within the underground dungeons of the Tall Man’s embalming laboratories.

Should the Tall Man stumble or be forced into a cold fog or similar, he must automatically roll a DC 15 Will save or succumb to his cold compulsion and pose menacingly for up to 1d3 rounds. Anyone witnessing this must also succeed a DC 13 Will save or be gripped with fear, reducing all their attacks by -2 while in the presence of the Tall Man.

Necro-Dwarves: Init +0, Atk claws +4 melee (1d4 + bite attack if both claws hit), bite +4 melee (2d3); AC 12; HD 4d4; hp 10; MV 20’; Act 2d20; SP undead traits, unhooded (must roll morale check or become enraged, +2 to atk/dmg on the following round), scare (see description), instant death (should their creator be destroyed all necro-dwarves are instantly killed), death throes (see description); SV Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +2; AL (same as creator).

Creations of the Tall Man, the necro-dwarves serve his every whim and desire. It is whispered that these creatures were once full-grown human cadavers, but have since been raised from their eternal slumber and shrunken so that they reach a height of no more than 3-4ft. How the Tall Man achieves this is unknown.

Should any PC unhood a necro-dwarf they will become enraged, adding a +2 bonus to their attack/damage rolls. At the same instance, the PC unhooding the creature must roll a Luck check or suddenly find themselves staring at the face of a dead companion or loved one and suffer the effects of a scare spell (14-15 spell result).

When a necro-dwarf dies it may succumb to following death throes:

Roll (1d4)	Death Throes
1	Explodes! Spewing steaming embalming fluid in all directions up to 10ft (DC 15 Ref or suffer 1d8 damage).
2	Robes burst into hellish flame (faster than a child’s Halloween costume), anyone within 5ft who fails a DC 12 Ref catches fire, burning for 1d6 damage per round for 1d4 rounds or until the save is rolled.
3	A wailing death screech so horrible anyone within line of sight of the creature must succeed a DC 10 Will save or be stunned for 1d2 rounds.
4	Melts into a gory puddle (harmless unless touched). Acts as a (potentially usable) acid that causes 1d3 dmg/round of contact.

If their master is destroyed, any and all necro-dwarves created by the fiend will soon follow suit, instantly succumbing to their death throes on the following round.

Sentinels, Mark I (Standard “Flying Silver Sphere”): Init +6; Atk +5 melee (2d4 + DC 14 Ref save or Blood Drain Drill); AC 19; HD 3d4; hp 7; MV 60’ fly; Act 1d20; SP Blood Drain Drill (when activated deals 1d6+1/round, DC 12 STR check to remove), immune to non-bludgeoning attacks, enhanced cyber-infravision (120’); SV Fort +3, Ref +6, Will n/a, AL n/a.

The sentinels are semi-sentient silver spheres working for or commanded by the Tall Man to protect his lair. They are extremely adept hunters able to seek their prey swiftly.

1971 Plymouth ‘Cuda: Whether spawned through an inner-dimensional time portal or summoned mistakenly by a wizard seeking a barracuda to ride, this timeless muscle car can serve your party well.

When found or summoned the PC must roll a percentile die to determine the amount of fuel in the car’s tank. This roll is adjusted by the character’s Luck mod x 10%, (i.e. +2 = 20%). The final score is then rounded up to the nearest whole number (i.e. 46% is rounded up to 50%). Every 3 miles traveled burns 1% of available fuel (roughly equaling 15 mpg on a 20gl tank). Performing mighty stunts (see below), whether successful or not, burns up 5% of fuel.

Unless magically summoned (it will be assumed the wizard has pertained supernatural knowledge of how to operate the vehicle) or if your setting has motorized vehicles, a DC 13 Intelligence check is required to properly operate the vehicle. Failing this check still allows the PCs to operate the ‘cuda, but any Mighty Stunts performed must be rolled with a -1d penalty.

Mighty Stunts: Anyone driving the ‘Cuda may attempt to perform 1 mighty stunt every 3 rounds. Similar to a warrior’s Mighty Deed, to perform a stunt the driver must succeed a DC 15 Agility check and roll a 3 or higher on a d5 (warriors may use their current Deed Die if higher). A stunt can be anything from using the vehicle to ram another vehicle off the road, jumping a ravine, burning rubber to create an obscuring cloud of smoke, etc.

The ‘Cuda’s haul has 71 hp and an armour class of 15.

Damage Threshold: Any damage from a single attack, equal to or under 10hp, is ignored.

While inside the ‘cuda all characters gain a +2 to their individual AC.

More Fuel! As a side effect to the dimensional shift that (presumably) brings the ‘Cuda to your non-terran campaign world, the combustible element that triggers the vehicle’s powerful locomotion often randomly mutates from fossil fuels to… something else!

Roll (1d10)	*Fuel Type (materials* may change, volumes do not)**
01	No change! Good ol’ fashioned composted dino bones still does the trick!
02	The precious Life Blood of a sentient being. The more sentient the better! Add the donor’s INT modifier x 10% to available gas mileage (negative mods reduce mpg accordingly)!
03	The liquefied Night Soil from your average, domesticated swine. Direct exposure to said “juices” requires a DC 12 Fort Save to not barf up a lung (-1d3 temp STA)! We’ll leave the liquefaction process up to you!
04	The caustic bile or slobber (1d3 dmg/round from direct contact) from a garden variety Hell Hound (courtesy of the personal Hell of your choice)! Mind you, most hounds of this nature aren’t quick to part with such things.
05	The mysterious proto-matter known simply as “Phlogistion…” either somehow collected directly from the ether of the material universe… or potentially gathered as a liquid by-product from your typical Phlogiston Disturbance (mayhap from an errant Wizards’ Duel).
06	The fey-touched Waters from a nereid/slyph/kelpie/siren infested lake, loch or pond. Such fickle and potentially malicious beings rarely take kindly to the uninvited extraction of their treasured baths. Write up your best “fickle aqua fey” stats and let ‘em rip!
07	The fetid swamp Ichor gathered from the inner sanctum of a fane dedicated to his high holiness, our “frog-of-frogs,” Bobugbubliz. The thick, repellant film must be gathered on a moonless night during or just after the cults putrid fertilizing rites. They won’t be pleased to see you either! Ribbit!
08	The gnarly eye “gunk” or “pus” from a devout disciple of everyone’s favorite giant eyeball with chicken legs, Klarvgorok! A single cultist can actually produce 1d3 gallons of this grody substance… but only if you squeeze real hard! Alternatively, the very brave or foolish may attempt to “drink straight from the fire hose” and source the pus from the Chaos Lord itself! Such divine juices will boost your gas mileage by 2d4 mpg!
09	Magic Potions! As fate would have it, any beneficial magic potion (only seems to ever work with the sort of potions you hate to “waste”) provides approximately 1 gallon of suitable fuel for your sweet-a$$ ride. Any magical potions may be combined (but all must be of the variety/value that you’d normally wanna save for a rainy day). If an adventurer seems particularly attached to a certain potion, maybe that one’s worth 2 gallons? Temptation Island awaits!
10	Liquid Gold…! Literally…! Like you gotta melt some gold pieces. Using Pherod the Wise’s “precise” alchemical calculations, 20 standard gold pieces weigh roughly 1 pound, and (essentially) 8 pounds comprise a single gallon. Pherod tells us that this would set you back roughly 160 gold coins per gallon of “gas.” Ouch!

Transmute Severed Appendage to Aerial Attack Arachnid

Level: 1

Range: n/a

Duration: Varies (see spell result)

Casting Time: 1 action (after which, the actual transformation requires 1d4 rounds to complete)

Save: None

General: Using any severed appendage the caster is able to transmute the body part into a deadly flying demonic arachnid. Common traits shared by arachnids of all spell results include:

120’ Infravision, Burrow (moves through sand/dirt at its normal flying speed), Multifaceted Eyes (cannot be surprised/snuck up on), Coarse Hairs (any unarmed strike against it automatically inflicts 1 hp dmg to the attacker), and Stealth (+10 bonus to Move Silently attempts). Other special abilities emerge per spell result below.

Manifestation: Roll 1d4: (1) Boils form and cover the appendage before popping and revealing the arachnid; (2) A festering slimy cocoon wraps around appendage which then hatches the arachnid; (3) The digits of the appendage mutate into limbs of the arachnid, while the rest slowly follows suit; (4) The appendage explodes, instantly revealing a gore soaked arachnid.

Corruption: Roll 1d3: (1) The caster’s hair turns into a Small Flying Arachnid (spell result 12-15), tearing free from the scalp and uncontrollably attacking the party; (2) The caster accidentally turns 1d10 of their fingers into minuscule arachnids that rip away from the caster’s hands (non-combatants, escape same round); (3) One of the caster’s eyeballs pops out of their skull, transforms into an arachnids and quickly crawls into the nearest crevice (non-combatants, escape same round).

1 – Failure. Lost. And worse! Roll 1d6 modified by Luck: (0 or less) corruption + patron taint + misfire; (1-3) corruption; (4) patron taint (or corruption if no patron); (5+) misfire.

2-11 – Lost. Failure.

12-15 – The caster creates 1 small flying arachnid that lasts for 1d4 rounds. Small Flying Arachnid: Init +0; Atk mandibles +3 melee (1d4); AC 12; HD 1d4; MV fly 30’; Act 1d20; SV Fort +0, Ref +2, Will as Caster; AL varies. Additional SP: Reflex Fear (All within 5’ must succeed at a DC 10 Will Save or flee for 1d3 rounds).

16-17 – The caster creates 1 average-sized flying arachnid that lasts for 2d3 rounds. Average-Sized Flying Arachnid: Init +1; Atk mandibles +3 melee (1d4+1); AC 13; HD 1d5+1; MV fly 40’; Act 1d20; SV Fort +1, Ref +2, Will as Caster; AL varies. Additional SP: Reflex Fear (All within 5’ must succeed at a DC 12 Will Save or flee for 1d4 rounds).

18-21 – The caster creates 2 average-sized flying arachnids that last for 2d4 rounds. Average-Sized Flying Arachnids (2): Init +1; Atk mandibles +3 melee (1d4+1); AC 13; HD 1d5+1; MV fly 40’; Act 1d20; SV Fort +1, Ref +2, Will as Caster; AL: varies. Additional SP: Reflex Fear (All within 10’ must succeed at a DC 13 Will Save or flee for 1d4 rounds).

22-23 – The caster creates 1 large flying arachnid that lasts for 2d5 rounds. Large Flying Arachnid: Int +3; Atk mandibles +5 melee (1d6+1); AC 15; HD 1d8; MV fly 50’; Act 1d20; SV Fort +3, Ref +4, Will as Caster +1; AL varies. Additional SP: Reflex Fear (All within 10’ must succeed at a DC 14 Will Save or flee for 2d3 rounds), Diseased Bite (Anyone bitten must make a DC 14 Fort save or lose 1 pt from each ability score for the remainder of the day until magically healed).

24-26 – The caster creates 2 large flying arachnids that last for 2d10 rounds. Big Flying Arachnids (2): Int +3; Atk mandibles +5 melee (1d6+1); AC 15; HD 1d8; Move fly 50’; Act 1d20; SV Fort +3, Ref +4, Will as Caster +1; AL varies. Additional SP: Reflex Fear (All within 20’ must succeed at a DC 14 Will Save or flee for 2d3 rounds), Diseased Bite (Anyone bitten must make a DC 12 Fort save or lose 1d3 points from each ability score for the remainder of the day until magically healed).

27-31 – The caster creates 2d4 large flying arachnids that last for 3d6 rounds. Big Flying Arachnids (2d4): Int +3; Atk mandibles +5 melee (1d6+1); AC 15; HD 1d8; Move fly 50’; Act 1d20; SV Fort +3, Ref +4, Will as Caster +1; AL varies. Additional SP: Reflex Fear (All within 30’ must succeed at a DC 15 Will Save or flee for 2d3 rounds), Diseased Bite (Anyone bitten must make a DC 12 Fort save or lose 1d3 points from each ability score for the remainder of the day until magically healed).

32+ – The caster permanently creates 1 greater flying arachnid. Greater Flying Arachnid: Init +5; Atk mandibles +8 melee (2d6+2); AC 17; HD 3d10; MV fly 60’; Act 2d20; SV Fort +6, Ref +5, Will as Caster +3; AL varies. Additional SP: Reflex Fear (All within 10’’ must succeed at a DC 14 Will Save or flee for 2d3 rounds), Diseased Bite (Anyone bitten must make a DC 14 Fort save or lose 1d3 points from each ability score for 1d6 days), and Regeneration (regains 1d3 hp per round. Damage from fire/acid does not regenerate).

Jebediah’s Nightmare Interloper

Level: 3

Range: Same plane of existence

Duration: Varies

Casting Time: 1 round

Save: Will vs spell result

General: The caster materializes in the target’s dreams, producing various effects, including fear, the transmission of short messages, and potentially even physical damage. All messages are subject to the spell result word limit (with the added caveat that one of the words must always be “BOOOOY!”). The caster also influences the dreamscape (terrain, objects, etc – depending upon the spell result) up to and including additional phantoms which may also harm the target(s) in the dream world… damage that carries over into real life!

Despite the max duration indicated by the spell result, the caster may elect to end the spell at any time. The afflicted target recalls the dream perfectly upon waking, at the caster’s discretion. If the target is awake when the spell is cast, the spell instantly fails (no corruption/misfire) and is lost (except with higher spell results, where the caster is allowed to invade the target’s’ waking mind). Afflicted target(s) may not choose to wake while under the influence of this spell, except at the sole discretion of the original caster.

Manifestation: Roll 1d4: 1) Caster bursts from “floor” of dreamscape, sending a shower of consecrated earth in all directions. 2) Caster appears in/emerges from a large, mysterious mirror, somehow ever-present in the target’s immediate periphery. 3) Caster’s arrival is heralded by a throng of hallucinatory, decaying zombies. (Though not capable of combat, these zombies may inspire fear per spell result). 4) An opaque, icy fog engulfs the target. As it slowly dissipates, the caster is revealed, standing before the target.

Corruption*: Roll 1d3: (1) The caster’s mind falls into their own conjured nightmare experiencing a fright to their heart that causes 1d6 permanent Stamina damage; (2) A phantasm pulled from the caster’s nightmare follows the caster around for 1d3 days, causing mishap and lowers their spellcasting die by -1d; (3) The caster can scream nothing, but “BOOOY!” for the next week. *The Tall Man is never susceptible to corruption.

Misfire: Invade the wrong dream! Roll 1d3: Enter the sleeping world of… (1) A random ally of caster; (2) Any random (sentient, sleeping) creature (within 5 miles of Caster); (3) A random ally of the original target.

1 – Failure. Lost. And worse! Roll 1d6 modified by Luck: (0 or less) corruption + patron taint + misfire; (1-3) corruption; (4) patron taint (or corruption if no patron); (5+) misfire.

2-11 – Lost, Failure.

12-15 – Failure, but spell is not lost.

16-17 – The caster targets 1 creature and invades their dreams for 1d4 rounds. This nightmare manifestation of the caster, automatically causes a moment of shock, which deprives them of any benefits/healing typical from a full night’s rest. The caster may utter up to 1d3+CL words, always in the dreamer’s native tongue. After the spell’s duration, the caster fades into the mists of dream. If desired, the caster may choose to “shock” the target awake at this time (or any time prior). If shocked, the target must immediately flee in a random direction for 1d4+CL rounds. Neither caster nor target may make physical contact with each other.

18-21 – The caster targets 1d3 creatures and invades their dreams for 1d5+CL rounds. This nightmare manifestation of the caster, automatically causing a lasting shock (-1 temp Stamina damage each round until the original Will save is rolled), which also deprives them of any benefits/healing typical from a full night’s rest. The caster may utter up to 1d5+CL words, always in the dreamer’s native tongue. After the spell’s duration, the caster fades into the mists of dream. If desired, the caster may choose to “shock” the target awake at this time (or any time prior). If shocked, the target must immediately flee in a random direction for 1d4+CL rounds. No further damage may be inflicted by/to the caster, however temp Stamina damage carries over to the waking world.

22-23 – The caster targets 2d3 creatures and invades their dreams for 2d4 rounds. Targets of 1 HD or less are automatically invaded. This nightmare manifestation of the caster, automatically causing a lasting shock (-1d3 points of temp STA damage each round until the original Will save is rolled), which also deprives them of any benefits/healing typical from a full night’s rest. The caster may utter up to 2d4+CL words, always in the native tongue of the dreamer(s). All afflicted targets share the same dreamscape for the purposes of combat, and only 1 message may be delivered to all present.

Additionally, the caster manifests in such a manner that it’s dream attacks cause physical damage to any targets struck, melee only (attack bonus, if lower, raises to +4, 1d6 hp dmg only). Both hp and temp STA damage carry over to the waking world.

Finally, and only upon being attacked, the target may attempt a further Will save vs original spellcheck, to manifesta dream weapon (1d6 dmg), however, any damage against the phantom caster merely affects it in the dream world (phantom dematerializes upon reaching 0 hp), unless a critical hit is struck at which point the damage transfers to the caster in the waking world. Note: any changes to the physical landscape is merely cosmetic, however the judge may allow difficult terrain to be conjured, lowering the movement of the target(s).

After the spell’s duration, the caster fades into the mists of dream. If desired, the caster may choose to “shock” the target(s) awake at this time (or any time prior). If shocked (no save), the target(s) must immediately flee in a random direction for 1d4+CL rounds.

24-26 – The caster targets all creatures within 100’ radius and invades their dreams for 1d10+CL rounds. Targets of 2 HD or less are automatically invaded; others receive a Will save (vs the spellcheck result) to resist the intrusion. This nightmare manifestation of the caster, automatically causes a lasting shock (-1d3 points of temp STA dmg per target each round until original Will save is rolled), which also deprives them of any benefits/healing typical from a full night’s rest. The caster may utter up to 2d6+CL words, always in the native tongue of the dreamer(s). All afflicted targets share the same dreamscape for the purposes of combat, and only 1 message may be delivered to all present.

Additionally, the caster manifests in such a manner that it’s dream attacks cause physical damage to any targets struck, melee only, (attack bonus, if lower, raises to +4, 1d6+CL hp dmg only). Both hp and temp STA damage carry over to the waking world (recovering 1pt/night’s sleep).

The caster can manifest up to 1d3 additional servitor phantoms (AC 12, 1d8 hp, +2 melee atk, 1d6 dmg + DC 12 Will save or -1 pt temp STA dmg, SVs as caster) which may be employed in battle. Each servitor phantom appears as an undead humanoid of the caster’s choice. Note: any changes to the physical landscape is merely cosmetic, however the judge may allow difficult terrain to be conjured, lowering the movement of the target(s).

After the spell’s duration, the caster fades into the mists of dream. If desired, the caster may choose to “shock” the target(s) awake at this time (or any time prior). If so shocked (no save), the target must immediately flee in a random direction for 1d4+CL rounds.

27-31 – The caster targets all creatures within 500’ radius and invades their dreams for 2d7+CL rounds. Targets of 2 HD or less are automatically invaded; others receive a Will save (vs the spellcheck result) to resist the intrusion. This nightmare manifestation of the caster, automatically causes a lasting shock (-1d3 points of temp STA dmg per target each round until original Will save is rolled), which also deprives them of any benefits/healing typical from a full night’s rest. The caster may utter up to 2d7+CL words, always in the native tongue of the dreamer(s). All afflicted targets share the same dreamscape for the purposes of combat, and only 1 message may be delivered to all present.

Additionally, the caster manifests in such a manner that it’s dream attacks cause physical damage to any targets struck, melee only, (attack bonus, if lower, raises to +6, 1d8+CL hp dmg only). Both hp and temp STA damage carry over to the waking world (recovering 1pt/night’s sleep).

The caster can manifest up to 3d3 additional servitor phantoms (AC 14, 1d10 hp, +5 melee atk, 2d5 dmg + DC 14 Will save or -1 pt temp STA dmg, SVs as caster) which may be employed in battle. Each servitor phantom appears as an undead humanoid of the caster’s choice. Note: any changes to the physical landscape is merely cosmetic, however the judge may allow difficult terrain to be conjured, lowering the movement of the target(s).

32+ – The caster targets all desired creatures within the same plane of existence and invades their dreams fo 3d8+CL rounds. Targets of 3 HD or less are automatically invaded; others receive a Will save (vs the spellcheck result) to resist the intrusion. This nightmare manifestation of the caster, automatically causes a lasting shock (1d4 points of temp or permanent (caster discretion) STA dmg per target each round until original Will save is rolled), which also deprives them of any benefits/healing typical from a full night’s rest. The caster may utter as many words as desired, always in the native tongue of the dreamer(s). All afflicted targets share the same dreamscape for the purposes of combat, and only 1 message may be delivered to all present.

Additionally, the caster manifests in such a manner that it’s dream attacks cause physical damage to any targets struck, melee only, (attack bonus, if lower, raises to +8, 1d12+CL hp dmg only). Both hp and temp STA damage carry over to the waking world (recovering 1pt/night’s sleep).

The caster can manifest up to 3d6 additional servitor phantoms (AC 16, 2d10 hp, +6 melee atk, 2d7 dmg + chill touch (DC 15 Will save or 1d3 points temp STA dmg), SVs as caster) which may be employed in battle. Each servitor phantom appears as an undead humanoid of the caster’s choice. Note: any changes to the physical landscape is merely cosmetic, however the judge may allow difficult terrain to be conjured, lowering the movement of the target(s).