An abandoned dungeon...

[D&D/Pathfinder]

Radius: Approx. 20 feet.

Saving Throw & Effects: The Deja Vu Trap affects its victims psyche, trapping them in a mental loop state, where, although not truly confined in any physical way, the individuals are prevented from progressing because they continue to re-live the small series of actions they have already performed not long ago.

A Wis/Will Save with a DC of 10 + 5 + the key ability modifier of the psion setting up the trap prevents its effects from taking over.

If it does take effect, a repeated wave of amnesia begins affecting those within its radius. Mechanically, the individuals are forced to take the same actions, as they were the natural urges and ideas they felt upon first arriving at the scene where the trap is located. However, the affected individuals can roll an Intelligence Check with a DC of 25 minus 1 per loop previously experienced to see if they figure out something is wrong by quickly enough analyzing inconsistencies. Ex. in each loop, the party investigates the room, and one of the members had previously stepped on a liquid substance that has been leaving his shoe's imprint on the floor as they move about. The successful Intelligence check reveals to the character performing it that there are too many of his fellow party member’s footprints in the room for the "small amount of time the party has actually been in there". Otherwise, characters continue to perform the exact same dialogue and actions they did right before the memory wipe. Each loop consists of roughly 24 seconds (4 rounds), typically short enough for a new loop to take effect again before the victims leave the radius of the trap.

Naturally, a change in the environment or circumstances would affect the individuals' actions and ideas, however, any previously experienced memories do fade away, and as such, these changes in the location do not cause any suspicion themselves despite leading the trap's victims into changing the initial actions performed, the new ones now matching their current circumstances.

Also, previously rolled Spot/Perception Checks would have to be re-rolled, otherwise any details caught before are missed this time, furthermore affecting the new actions taken by any characters or creatures.

The Deja Vu Trap is, by its nature, more effective the less characters are around, simply because the odds; the more individuals there are, the bigger chance there is that one of them resists the effects or figures out the party is being affected by the trap. Additionally, on its own, the trap does not serve much of a purpose other than delaying the progress of the affected, however, when paired with the right environment, obstacles, or threats, it can prove to be quite dangerous.

Artifact Legendary Melee Weapon

Simply put, this blade cuts all. It really is as simple as that.

That which is physically hard, so solid that it cannot be cut by blade or a sufficient force, can be effortlessly split using this legendary weapon. It's as if the molecules simply obey a command given by the edge of this blade; "release your bonds" it says.

It is not a question of sharpness. It simply cuts.

The immaterial and fluid- it is split, too. Specters and elementals, and all things alike, their nature nullified by the artifact's edge.

Its as if the blade splits the very nature behind them. It is irrelevant to it. It simply cuts.

Mechanics:

Solid Creatures/Objects:

Attacks done to these types of creatures and objects are treated as Touch Attacks. That is to say, they ignore Armor Bonuses and Hardness.

Intangible or Fluid Creatures/Objects: Attacks done to these types of creatures and objects ignore the typical properties that make them untouchable. Additionally, the section sliced by the blade, despite the formless nature of the creature's body, remains affected. In other words, it must be cured by magical means before it has the capacity to shape itself anew. For example, in the case of a creature like the water elemental, a sliced segment located on its left cannot be reformed. If the creature takes on different forms, this would manifest itself as always having an area in its left section that cannot reshape properly.

In both cases, damage done by the blade cannot be healed by either biological regeneration effects or traditional medicine; it must be healed by magical effects, such as those of spells. Attack Roll: A traditional attack roll, but Dexterity is applied to its Attack Bonus instead of Strength (see below).

Have you ever wondered how long it would take for your D&D travelling companions to notice that you're building an existing popular character from a movie/comic/videogame/book? Well, why don't you find out!

This is the first of several character builds I plan on doing. I'll be choosing characters which I think would not only be fun to play as, but would bring a unique playstyle to the game. I'm going to be writing everything you need to stay true to the character, and explain specifically why it is important to have it. Additionally, I'll going to make a handful of characters based on popular requests, so feel free to suggest anything you'd like to see. Of course, I don’t be making any medieval fantasy characters, as they would simply be more of the same of what you usually see in the game already. Finally, this specific build is for Pathfinder/3.5 D&D, so you might not be able to adapt it on a different system unless it has many of the same features.

Now, on to our first character!

Metal Gear's Snake:

(A bit of both Big Boss and Solid Snake)

Classes:

+Rogue - The rogue class will give you most of the Skills necessary to build the character (Move Silently, Hide, Sleight of Hand, Open Lock, Escape Artist, Climb, Tumble, Disable Device, Listen, etc.) Sneak Attack will be useful to take out weaker foes in one blow, whether you're going for the kill or just knocking them out, provided you've been successful in remaining unnoticed. Thanks to Evasion you'll be able to fully dodge many of the crazy attacks, spells, and abilities thrown at you. The Snakes have experience with having to dodge all the crazy shit the bosses in the Metal Gear Solid games throw at them. Uncanny Dodge and Improved Uncanny Dodge will give you Snake-tier reflexes! Finally, for Special Abilities, you'll want to get any of these: Crippling Strike, Defensive Roll, Improved Evasion, and Skill Mastery. Although Snake is more than capable of all of these, you probably won't be able to get all of them in your playthrough unless you reach epic levels.

+2 levels of Monk - The monk levels will give you unarmed strike and flurry of blows for some CQC action, as well as some free bonus feats.

+All 5 levels of Reaping Mauler (Complete Warrior p.75) - Important prestige class for simulating Snake's grapple game. At first level you get both the Improved Grapple and Mobility feats, at second and fourth level you get bonuses on all your grapple checks, on third level you can counter grapple and perform the Sleeper Lock, probably the most important tool in Snake's grappling game, and at fifth level you get Devastating Grapple, which lets you kill an opponent that you have pinned for three consecutive rounds.

+Several Combat Trapsmith levels (Complete Scoundrel p.34) - This is a class you need for the crafting of several of the useful tools used in the MGS games, such as flashbangs and sleeping gas. It requires you to put several ranks in trapmaking, search, and disable device before being able to pick it up.

Ability Points:

Dex  > Str > Int > Con > Wis/Cha

Dexterity is by far the most important ability score due to it being used for so many of the skills, your reflex, ranged attacks, as well as some knife play thanks to the Weapon Finesse feat.

Strength is the second most important because of CQC and any climbing, jumping, and running.

Intelligence will give you plenty of points for all your skills, which you'll need more than Constitution because, while an increase in HP certainly not bad, more often than not you'll be avoiding being damaged in the first place if you employ the correct playstyle.

Gear:

Weapons:

Darts + Tranquilizing poison - Whether you're throwing them or using a blowpipe, if you're going to stay true to Snake, your character should always have a decent supply of tranquilizing venom and darts. Learning where to acquire the specific kind of venom that functions as a tranquilizer is important early on, whether it's extracted from an animal, plant, or made with basic alchemy.

Dagger - You don’t need me to tell you how knives are an integral part of Snake’s arsenal. Always have it accesible.

Crossbow - Things don't always go as planned. Your CQC works wonders when you manage to close in on your opponent, but in the case that it's too risky to close the gap, or there's just not enough time before they try to act or alert others, you'll be glad to have a crossbow.

Armor:

Light - Preferably something skin-tight. You want it to allow you to be fast and flexible.

Tools:

Spyglass- Mark your enemies, Snake.

Mirror - To look around corners or signal your allies.

Thief's Tools - For all your lock-picking needs.

Grappling Hook - Let there be nothing you cannot climb.

Box - Look. I'm not exaggerating when I say the success of your mission hinges on how you use that cardboard box.

Anything else that fits the character - Just think of the medieval fantasy equivalent of the different tools you get throughout the Metal Gear Solid series.

Skills:

Prioritize:

Move Silently and Hide are your bread and butter. You're a stealth operative.

Listen and Spot can be very important to make sure you spot every foe and keep tabs on their location and movement.

Tumble is important for complex maneuvers.

Jump, Climb, Open Lock, and Balance, for getting in, on, out, and off a variety of places.

Less priority, but still important:

Escape Artist. You do need 5 ranks of this to get the Reaping Mauler class.

Disguise

Sleight of Hand

Heal and Survival. You don't get either of these from the rogue or reaping mauler class, but you should pick them up if you want to go full Snake Eater on any wilderness missions.

Feats:

Must get:

Improved Initiative- If you're ever spotted, it's good to be the first to react. You'll be glad to stop someone before they call for help.

Weapon Finesse - With your Dex having the highest modifier, this feat allows you to use it in place of Str for attack rolls with your knife.

Clever Wrestling (Complete Warrior p. 97) - Needed for acquiring the Reaping Mauler class.

*Improved Grapple -You'll get this for free with your first Reaping Mauler level.

*Mobility - You'll also get this with your first Reaping Mauler level.

Combat Expertise

Improved Disarm - The better you are at disarming, the closer you'll look be to looking like a boss. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vi4FekY5kVw

Alertness - You've gotta stay sharp on the battlefield. Locate foes even in the hardest of circumstances.

Stealthy - The extra Hide and Move Silently points come in handy to make sure you're never noticed. You can improve them furthermore with Skill Focus if you don't have any other feats in mind.

Point Blank Shot - Considering darts have a low range increment of 20ft, you'll more often than not be throwing them from within the distance that grants you the +1 on ranged attack roll with this feat.

Optional:

Lightning Reflexes

Acrobatic

Athletic

Deft Hands

Investigator

Nimble Fingers

Quick Draw

Track

Precise Shot

Self-Sufficient -  I'm still in a dream, Snake Eater~

Language:

Solid Snake is a polyglot. If possible, find a way to make your character learn multiple languages.

Misc:

If you don't incorporate the box into your gameplay you are a failure.

Remember to eat a snake at some point, just make sure it's not the druid's animal companion.

Have a thirst for destroying deadly siege engines.

Write down the lyrics to Snake Eater and hand them to your party's bard.

Conclusion:

A Statue of a Samurai lies at the front of the doorway into the next room; this large, thick door that won't budge lies between the party and progress. An interesting message is carved at the base of the statue:

"Front to front, let our eyes meet, if carry onward's what you seek. A tick and tocking begins at blue, prepare to strike both fast and true, for when a 10th click's time has come, the first to draw and struck has won."

An obstacle for dungeons, the Quick Draw Doorway pits the party's fastest melee fighter against a samurai statue in a contest of speed. The mechanism that begins the contest triggers only when two conditions are met:

The representative party member is standing on the clearly distinct stone square, face to face and within reach of the statue, as the rhyme requests.

Their weapon is sheathed, their hand ready on its hilt.

If so, the stone statue's closed eyes slowly open, their blue glow signaling the start. Then follows the suspenseful countdown of 10 clicks, the last of which causes the statue to swiftly unsheathe its weapon and slash forward, all in a single motion.

To outspeed the statue, the participant must first beat an Initiative check from the statue, which can be adjusted at the GM's discretion. Following the initiative check, an attack roll must be made. In this case, the attack roll is not simulating whether or not the statue is successfully hit, but rather is determining the execution of the attack. Having to swing from a sheathed position, as well as having to do it incredibly quick requires an attack roll of 20 or higher. Characters with the Quick Draw feat get [3.5/Pathfinder: a +4] [5e: advantage] on this attack roll.

Success

Striking the statue first interrupts its slash, stopping the moment the player character's weapon has made contact with the statue. The statue then returns to its neutral position, its eyes closed, and the unlocking mechanisms can be heard over at the door.

Failure

Upon failure, aside from the damage taken from the stone katana's slash (which you might want to adjust depending on the party's attributes), you may decide to add some sort of additional punishment (ex. creatures being released into the room, toxic gas coming out of vents on the floor, etc).

Aside from that, you have to consider if you want the challenge to be re-playable. If it's not, a loss means the party forfeits the opportunity of entering that room (or even continuing in the dungeon, depending on which doorway you've placed it!), that, or it forces the party to find an alternate way into the next chamber, that is, if you have provided one when crafting the dungeon in the first place.

Raising the stakes, either with a very serious threat after failure or by setting a limit number of tries, makes victory more meaningful. It also makes the challenge more suspenseful, and it guarantees that it will be taken seriously by the party (perhaps forcing them to use spells, concoctions, or any other tools at their disposal so that they may lower the risk of failure, upgrading the challenge from just a simple roll into something that requires a little more thought).

Of course, for the consequences to be known by the party in the first place there have to be pre-existing tells. The simplest way would be by adding those dangers to the rhyme: Dangerous Consequence: "Failure brings dangers untold, so blunder not or pay the toll."

No Re-tries: "A single try is all that's granted, so blunder not or lose all chances."

Swinging Early

[5e D&D]

Prerequisites Weapon Master, Longsword

Benefit: You are proficient at the half-swording technique, giving you two additional combat options when attacking with a longsword (as illustrated above).

1] When performing an attack, you may grip the central part of your sword's blade with your non-dominant hand to land a precise thrust. When using this technique, the attack is considered Piercing instead of Slashing, and it benefits from additional accuracy and Advantage where it applies (up to the DM’s discretion).

2] You may also choose to perform the Mordhau, holding your sword upside down, gripping the central part of your sword's blade with your non-dominant hand, to strike heavily-armored opponents with the hilt. When using the half-sword technique in this way, your attack benefits from Advantage against heavily-armored opponents, and the attack is considered Bludgeoning instead of Slashing.

You must have your non-dominant hand free to perform these techniques.

Reference video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vi757-7XD94

[3.5 D&D/Pathfinder]

Prerequisites Base Attack Bonus +2, Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus: longsword.

Benefit: You are proficient at the half-swording technique, giving you two additional combat options when attacking with a longsword (as illustrated above).

1] When performing an attack, you may grip the central part of your sword's blade with your non-dominant hand to land a precise thrust. When using this technique, you get +1 bonus on the attack roll, and the attack is considered Piercing instead of Slashing.

2] You may also choose to perform the Mordhau, holding your sword upside down, gripping the central part of your sword's blade with your non-dominant hand, to strike heavily-armored opponents with the hilt. When using the half-sword technique in this way, you get a +2 bonus on attack rolls performed on heavily-armored opponents, and the attack is considered Bludgeoning instead of Slashing.

You must have your non-dominant hand free to perform these techniques.

[5e D&D]

You've been drenched. So what? Well, in tabletop RPGs, being soaked affects more things than what one would think.

(These rules apply for targets soaked with water and similar liquids only. More peculiar liquids would have different or additional effects.)

Invisibility:

Invisible targets soaked with water are slightly easier to detect due to the layer of liquid on them, that is, if it is unaffected by the invisibility effect itself. Any roll used to become aware of a drenched invisible creature benefits from Advantage, and furthermore, a successful check will now also reveal its location aside from just making the individual aware of its presence.

Weather:

Rolls made to resist the negative effects of cold weather suffer from Disadvantage, while the rolls made to resist the negative effects of warm weather suffer from Advantage.

At times, strong winds in chill enough environments will trigger rolls usually reserved for lower temperatures.

Elemental Damage:

Ice-based damage inflicted on a soaked character deals 1d12 more HP than usual, while fire-based damage is reduced by the same amount. The usual after-effects of ice-based damage become harder to resist, suffering from Disadvantage, and the effects themselves are more potent, the opposite happening to those based on fire.

As for electric-based damage, a soaked character doesn't loose more HP than usual, but rather has a significantly more difficult time avoiding the effects. Because of this, t rolls done to avoid or resist the effects of electricity suffer from Disadvantage.

Acrobatic Checks & Slipping:

All acrobatic maneuvers suffer from disadvantage when performed by a soaked character.

Additionally, the ground of certain environments (for example, moss covered rocks), poses a high risk of slipping. A soaked character crossing such terrain has a average 40% chance of slipping (sometimes more, sometimes less, depending on the environment). This percent chance is doubled when a character is walking hurriedly or running. Players may choose to use a full-round to walk carefully (at half speed) instead, cutting the percent chance of slipping by half.

Firearms:

A soaked target's firearms and other weapons or devices that rely on either gunpowder or other water-sensitive materials are not functional until completely dry.

Electronics:

A soaked target's electronics and high-tech weaponry, aside from not functioning while soaked, run the risk of suffering a catastrophic failure and becoming damaged if they are powered on or activated. That is a 30% chance that, aside from powering down, the device becomes nonfunctional until fixed.

[3.5/Pathfinder]

You've been drenched. So what? Well, in tabletop RPGs, being soaked affects more things than what one would think.

(These rules apply for targets soaked with water and similar liquids only. More peculiar liquids would have different or additional effects.)

Invisibility:

Invisible targets soaked with water are slightly easier to detect due to the layer of liquid on them, that is, if it is unaffected by the invisibility effect itself. The DC needed to become aware of an invisible creature is reduced by 2, and additionally, a successful check will now also reveal its location aside from just making the individual aware of its presence.

Weather:

The DC of rolls made to resist the negative effects of cold weather are increased by 4, while the rolls made to resist the negative effects of warm weather are decreased by just as much.

At times, strong winds in chill enough environments will trigger rolls usually reserved for lower temperatures.

Elemental Damage:

Ice-based damage inflicted on a soaked character deals 1d12 more HP than usual, while fire-based damage is reduced by the same amount. The usual after-effects of ice-based damage become harder to resist (-5 on their saving throws) and the effects themselves are more potent, the opposite happening to those based on fire.

As for electric-based damage, a soaked character doesn't loose more HP than usual, but rather has a significantly more difficult time avoiding the effects. Because of this, the DC for rolls done to avoid or resist the effects of electricity is doubled.

Acrobatic Checks & Slipping:

Balance, Climb, Tumble, and Acrobatics all suffer a penalty of -2 when performed by a soaked character.

Additionally, the ground of certain environments (for example, moss covered rocks), poses a high risk of slipping. A soaked character crossing such terrain has a average 40% chance of slipping (sometimes more, sometimes less, depending on the environment). This percent chance is doubled when a character is walking hurriedly or running. Players may choose to use a full-round to walk carefully (at half speed) instead, cutting the percent chance of slipping by half.

Characters with Woodland Stride avoid these penalties, but only in such natural environments.

Firearms:

A soaked target's firearms and other weapons or devices that rely on either gunpowder or other water-sensitive materials are not functional until completely dry.

Electronics:

Trap: Magic, Explosive Trigger: Designated by caster.

This magical trap is the classic red wire/blue wire bomb dilemma with a fantasy twist.

For those unfamiliar with it, it is a common entertainment media trope where a timed explosive must be stopped from going off, the only way of doing so being the cutting of either its red or blue wire. Cutting the correct wire will neutralize the bomb, while cutting the wrong wire causes it to explode early.

In its non-technological incarnation, a non-living target is marked for explosion by a large, white magical candle affixed to it- the time left represented by the candle's longevity. To each of its sides resides a red and blue candle, one which when put out will dispell the magical effect, while the other causes the explosion to go off. Unlike the other two candles, the white candle cannot be put out by non-magical means.

The candles are lit when their trigger condition is met, but they can also be manually activated by a spellcaster. In either case, the disarming candle and the time limit is pre-designated by the caster, the white candle burning at a rate according to the time left.

Like the classic bomb dilemma, the Explosive Candles trap can have additional colored candles, lowering the odds of success.

Aside from blowing on the correct candle, this particular trap can only be disarmed with Dispell Magic, a failure causing it to go off.

Dispell Magic DC: 15 + Spellcaster level of the person that set it up.

Explosion

Infrared Vision, also known as Thermal Vision, allows the perception of infrared radiation, which is most commonly used to detect the presence of creatures, objects, or effects by their temperature.

This thermal vision functions similar to Darkvision in that it allows users to see with no light source at all. Furthermore, Infrared Vision allows the perception of invisible creatures and objects. Infrared vision may also be used to detect whether or not containers or rooms have something within them, however, it does not show what is inside in detailed form, only a vague heat signature.

[5e D&D]

School: Conjuration Level: Cantrip Casting Time: 1 action Range: 30ft. Components: Visual or Somatic Duration: Instantaneous

Salinate is a spell that does as its name suggests: it adds a concentration of salt on the target.

While being a simple and straightforward spell, it can have its creative uses. Aside from spicing up bland food and turning regular water into salt water, the salt can be used to keep frost off of important surfaces (such as a spyglass lens or a compass) or to keep snail/slug-like creatures at bay.

Salinate can also be useful in combat. When used on a target's open wounds, it induces intense pain (Condition: Pained). The target must succeed on a CON Save of 15 or become Pained until the affected wound is cleaned.

The amount of salt applied is dictated by the caster, but can be no more than 5 pounds, roughly enough to cover a 5ft. square surface if sufficiently spread out.

[3.5 D&D/Pathfinder]

School: conjuration (creation) [salt]; druid 1, shaman 1 Target: Surface, Food or Liquid Casting Time: 1 standard action Components: Visual or Somatic Range: 25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels Duration: Instantaneous Spell Resistance: no

Salinate is a spell that does as its name suggests: it adds a concentration of salt on the target.

While being a simple and straightforward spell, it can have its creative uses. Aside from spicing up bland food and turning regular water into salt water, the salt can be used to keep frost off of important surfaces (such as a spyglass lens or a compass) or to keep snail/slug-like creatures at bay.

Salinate can also be useful in combat. When used on a target's open wounds, it induces intense pain (Condition: Pained). The target must succeed on a Fortitude Save of 13 or become Pained until the affected wound is cleaned.

[System Neutral]

Pain is of no concern to the seasoned adventurer, as its something that lurks in every corner of their perilous journey. Sometimes, however, too much pain can be unbearable.

Those who are in so much pain that it interferes with their ability to function are considered being affected by the Pained condition.

Pained characters may only take actions if they succeed in a Constitution/Fortitude/Resistance/Toughness/Etc. roll [Difficulty: D~A, depending on amount of Pain]. They also suffer penalties on attack rolls and rolls that would be hindered by pain, an amount proportionate to the pain being suffered.

Additionally, a Pained character may only move a distance equal to half their speed unless they succeed on a Constitution/Fortitude/Resistance/Toughness/Etc. roll [Difficulty: D~A, depending on amount of Pain].

Pained characters are also have difficult charging or grappling others, their rolls suffering penalties for performing such actions.

When being grappled on the affected area, a Pained character suffers a minor amount of non-lethal damage for every turn the grappling lasts.

[5e D&D]

Pain is of no concern to the seasoned adventurer, as its something that lurks in every corner of their perilous journey. Sometimes, however, too much pain can be unbearable.

Those who are in so much pain that it interferes with their ability to function are considered being affected by the Pained condition.

Pained characters may only take an Action if they succeed in a CON Save with a varying DC, one proportionate to the pain being suffered. They also suffer Disadvantage on attack rolls and Ability Checks. 

Additionally, a Pained character may only move a distance equal to half their speed unless they succeed on a CON Save with the previously established DC.

Pained characters are also have difficult charging or grappling others, suffering from Disadvantage on any related rolls.

When being grappled on the affected area, a Pained character suffers 1d4 non-lethal damage for every turn the grappling lasts.

[3.5 D&D/Pathfinder]

Pain is of no concern to the seasoned adventurer, as its something that lurks in every corner of their perilous journey. Sometimes, however, too much pain can be unbearable.

Those who are in so much pain that it interferes with their ability to function are considered being affected by the Pained condition.

Pained characters may only take a Standard Action if they succeed in a Fortitude Save with a DC of 16. They also suffer from a –3 penalty on attack rolls, skill checks, and ability checks.

Additionally, a Pained character may only move a distance equal to half their speed unless they succeed on a Fortitude Save with a DC of 16.

Pained characters are also unable to Charge or attempt a Grapple.

[3.5 D&D/Pathfinder]

Exotic Thrown Weapon

Aerodynamically designed to be thrown over a long distance, the Combat Discus is an adaptation of the classic Olympic discus, now turned into a formidable flying weapon.

Damage: (S)1d4, (M)1d6 Critical: x2 Range: 50ft. Weight: 5lb Type: Bludgeoning Special: Curved Shot & Ricochet Shot

Curved Shot & Ricochet Shot can only be performed by a character who not only is proficient with the throwing discus, but also has the Weapon Focus (link) feat for it.

Curved Shot: The combat discus can be thrown in such a way that it reaches the intended target by following a curved trajectory. This allows for throws that bypass obstacles and targets that would otherwise block its path.

The combat discus may only curve when thrown a minimum distance of 30ft. (between the Attacker and the Target), and may only deviate 5 feet away (which is included in any distance calculation).

Ricochet Shot: The combat discus can be thrown against walls and other surfaces with the purpose of bouncing it off and towards other targets. Of course, the surface's hardness must first allow it.

This useful feature can be used to attack targets outside of visual range (ex. someone just around the corner in intersecting hallways) as well as attacking multiple targets (by bouncing it off of one to another). The number of times a character may efficiently ricochet a the discus is equal to 2 x every Weapon Focus feat taken for the Throwing Discus.

The combat discus looses a significant amount of its momentum after each bounce. After each one, the remaining distance it travels is lowered by 10ft., the attack roll suffers a -2 penalty, and the damage done is lowered by 2.

A critical throw of the discus causes it to ignore these penalties.

A character with a Dex modifier of 1 or more can effortlessly catch a returning discus, otherwise, they must roll a Dex check with a DC of 10.

Bouncing off of different surfaces:

Irregular: When bouncing off of an irregular surface (such as off of a person), the discus has a 30% chance of spiking into the ground (typically 5 feet away from where it struck).

Rubber-like: When bouncing off of a rubber-like surface, the discus retains all of its momentum and thus doesn't suffer any of its regular penalties.

Artifact Ring

Jack's Eye is a magical ring originally crafted for use by specific individuals, high ranked members of the clergy of Jack, that grant special perception to its user, one which reveals all sorts of information pertaining to the dark arts and creatures.

Detailed Effects: Jack's Eye allows its wearer to percieve/sense the following within a 100ft range:

-Those of the evil alignment. -The true form of any dark being in disguise. -The original form of any objects transformed by dark means. -Objects hidden or made invisible by dark effects or effects hailing from someone or something dark (even if the effects themselves aren't considered dark). -The presence and form of every single type of phantom. -If a humanoid is a lycanthrope and what type it is (both if its natural or afflicted, and of which animal). -If a being is a minion or if it worships any sort of dark being. -If a being is under the effects of someone or something dark (even if the effects themselves aren't considered dark). -If a being is cursed and a general idea of what type of curse it is. -The presence of undead, aberrations, or other similarly dark things (in a similar manner to Detect Evil). -The presence of dark individuals (in a similar manner to Detect Evil). -The initial traces of  infections and diseases related to the undead or such similar things. -The remnant energy of dark arts performed in a location during the last 24 hours, including information on how powerful and how long ago they were performed.

In addition it grants its wearer darkvision (link), immunity to fear effects, the ability to command minor vermin and bats, as well as making the user's eyes glow orange and red in a fiery manner.

The ring's visual enhancements will compound with other visual enhancing effects (ex. a spell that grants vision to a far away location will also have the revealing effects of Jack's Eye applied to it). It does not, however, allow the wearer to see these things through the indirect means of electronics (such as the live stream of a security camera). That being said, a mechanical/electronic user will indeed be given the ring's enhanced perceptions, and in that case, any electronics they use to enhance their natural vision will have Jack's Eyes effects applied to them, but only as long as the device is a part of them (what exactly is or is not considered part of the electronic/mechanical being is up to the discretion of the GM).

The perception granted is a sort of vision/sense hybrid, meaning it is unaffected  by the user's own visual limitations (ex. A blind user is granted the very same effects of the ring except for its darkvision).

Side Effects:

Jack's Eye has side effects which begin to affect the user's mental health following a total amount of time worn (combined over different uses).

1 minute: User begins to experience extremely feint visual and auditory hallucinations. These hallucinations are primarily related but not limited to the following: blood, bats, vermin, the undead, severed body parts, disease, lycanthropes, laughter, faces, etc. 5 minutes: User now also begins to experience tactile and olfactory hallucinations. 10 minutes: Hallucinations increase in intensity. They now affect Concentration, Spot/Perception, and Listen rolls, suffering a penalty of -2 each. 15 minutes: Hallucinations increase in intensity. Previously affected skills now suffer a -3 penalty. 20 minutes: Hallucinations increase in intensity. Previously affected skills now suffer a -4 penalty. 30 minutes: Hallucinations increase in intensity. Previously affected skills now suffer a -5 penalty. Furthermore, user begins to feel a sensation of burning within their head. The sensation at this point is light, and although warm, does not cause any sort of sweating or fatigue. The user furthermore begins to find grim and dark matters amusing (if they previously didn't find them so). 40 minutes: The burning sensation increases in intensity, although still not affecting the user in any way other than in feeling the sensation itself. The grim and dark matters which previously amused the user now easily cause them to chuckle. Their eyes begin to get a faint, red-ish glow. A desire to behave in a more uncontrolled fashion begin to grow within them (were they not like so already). 50 minutes: The burning sensation now feels like a torch within the user's dome. Although intense, it is clear it won't affect the user physically. Grim and dark matters and circumstances now cause the user to laugh uncontrollably, a laughter that now sounds maniacal and as if echoing. Their eyes now glow the same as they do as when Jack's Eye is being worn. Their desire to behave in a more uncontrolled and chaotic fashion grows even more and now clearly becomes part of them. Due to this, were the user previously of lawful alignment, they now aren't. 60 minutes:  The user now gets some sort of twisted pleasure out of the fear of others. The intense desire to experience the feeling is so strong that it becomes uncontrollable unless regularly satisfied. For example, characters that do not wish to inflict terror on innocent people or their own fellow companions must make the best out of antagonistic encounters, causing enough fear in their enemies to satisfy the thirst. These effects make a character of good alignment near impossible to remain as so.

Clarifications:

Dark: This entry uses the word dark to describe certain types of creatures and actions.  Since this can be vague, the artifact being directly related to the Jack deity, it specifically refers to the type of darkness you typically associate Halloween and the things it represents. Ultimately, however, this is left up to the interpretation of the GM.

Related Entries:

Magic Consumable Candy

A result of Jack's Halloween Night, regular sweets will temporarily become enchanted throughout its duration. These now magical sweets have a faint glow to them (noticed only after a Spot/Perception check with a DC of 18), earning them the name of Glowing Candy, and will bestow upon the consumer miscellaneous magical effects.

Like most of Jack's Halloween Night effects, their purpose is to spread fear and panic throughout the unsuspecting consumers and those around them, while at the same time bringing joy and amusement to those fascinated by the effects.

A 1d20 roll determines a Glowing Candy's effect on its consumer:

1. Makes consumer completely blind until dawn (Condition: Blindness).

2. Makes the consumer laugh uncontrollably for 3 minutes, as if under the effects of Hideous Laughter (link).

3. Turns consumer one size category smaller until dawn.

4. Turns consumer one size category bigger until dawn.

5. Makes consumer glow intensely until dawn. Spot/Perception checks performed on them have a +10 bonus.

6. Makes consumer immune to fire damage and makes their head emit flames for an hour.

7. Applies the effects of Feather Fall to the consumer for an hour. (link)

8. Regardless of race, covers the consumer with hair until dawn. In hot climates, this serves to make them more susceptible to the consequences of extreme heat, while in cold climates, it provides bonuses against the cold weather (environmental rules).

9. Consumer begins to see others as horrific beasts for 3 hours. If the subject is aware that the effects are a direct consequence of the candy, they are mostly unaffected except for simply being disturbed by some of the more repulsive forms. Otherwise, the subject is considered to be Frightened (link).

10. Consumer hallucinates about bats until dawn. As consequence, they suffer a -2 penalty on Concentration and Spot/Perception checks.

11. Consumer looses their ability to communicate properly until dawn, instead croaking like a frog whenever attempting to do so.

12. Consumer attracts tiny vermin towards themselves until dawn.

13. Consumer becomes severely claustrophobic until dawn, and begins to hallucinate of walls closing in whenever indoors. Characters suffering from this effect are considered Shaken (link) while indoors.

14. Consumer begins to bleed from their eyeballs for 3 minutes, but not enough to be a health risk. Characters suffering from this effect are immediately considered Shaken (link) upon becoming aware of their condition.

15. Consumer's vision is turned black and white until dawn. As consequence, Spot/Perception and Search checks suffer from a -3 penalty unless the victim’s natural vision is already monochrome.

16. Consumer is paralyzed (link) for an hour.

17. The consumer's senses are tricked into feeling the world is turning sideways, usually causing their reflexes to kick in and hold onto nearby objects or tumble around. They are treated as having the Dizzy condition (link) until dawn.

18. The consumer becomes nauseated (link) for the next hour, whatever regurgitated contents changed to the color of their blood.

19. Make it up, GM.

20. The piece of sweet consumed tastes like the most delicious piece of sugary delight ever to grace the consumer's palate.

The effects of Glowing Candy cannot be resisted by saving throws.

[The Blind Jack-o’-Lantern, Jack’s symbol]

Other titles & names:

The Grim Chuckler The Lord of Halloween Fear Itself The Duke of Spook Pumpkin Jack

Home: Setting Dependent Alignment: Chaotic Neutral Favored Weapon: Scythe Sacred Animal: Black Cat Symbol: Blind Jack-o'-Lantern Portfolio: Fear, Repulsion, the Psyche, Illusion, Vermin, Fire, Nightmares

Domains: Fear, Chaos, Darkness, Madness, Fire Sub-Domains: Whimsy, Night, Moon, Arson, Nightmare

Contrary to popular belief, Jack and his followers, known as the Jackolytes, don't look to celebrate the dark arts themselves but rather people's perception of them. This is why- while not actually being inherently dark or evil- spiders, bats, blood and death are among the celebrated: because the masses associate them with the wicked.

Jack himself is a playful and chaotic deity, driven primarily by a fascination for the influence that such topics have on the individual. His religion promotes experimentation with and the appreciation of exactly how those concept affect the behavior of others, often pushing limits in unsavory ways.

Fear, being a major factor in the perception of that which is dark, plays a central role in Jack's religion; in their quest for influence, Jackolytes look to control and convert others using terror and taboo. However, their true goal is to eventually make the individual rise above fear so that they may grow to appreciate it and its role in life. Those who agree with such sentiments on a deep level are not only drawn to this religion, but remain as some of Jack's most faithful followers. The mentally ill, specifically those suffering from schizophrenia and similar conditions, tend to become such followers, because, precisely, it is they who understand the most importance of rising above terror, the alternative being giving in to the fear that their twisted perception presents them with each day.

Halloween Night

Halloween night is part of any setting that contains Jack, however, it is not as the real life celebration we know well. It is a time when Jack goes all out with his dealings and experiments. His bag of tricks burst open, Halloween Night is one of the most, if not the most chaotic yearly occurring event, or at least to the average citizen.

The biggest towns and cities attempt to protect themselves from the effects of Halloween Night, mostly by appealing to their own gods for protection, but even so, lesser effects will often manage to be manifested, if not because of the good relations Jack might have with said deities, then because of how negligible the effects are.

Halloween Night Effects: Onset: The moment the last bit of sunlight has faded. Conclusion: The moment the first bit of sunlight graces the lands. The DC of all Halloween Night related effects is 38 unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Amnesia: Being a yearly occurrence, the first of Halloween Night's effects is a mass amnesia to the current day it is and the effects that come with it, so that every consequent happening is completely unexpected by the masses. A Will/Wis save can ignore the amnesia effects, while long-time followers of Jack (for at least 3 years) are immune to it.

Vermin & Bats: Furry flyers and creepy crawlers are influenced so as to behave more active, aggressive, and reckless throughout the night, ensuring many unpleasant encounters with them. Even companions, pets, and familiars are affected (so long as they are either vermin-like or bat-like. Ex: Hybrid companions containing some vermin-like qualities, even if they aren't full vermin, are affected as well. Ex2: Fire Bats, while actually technically being elementals, are affected just as well). Although all these creatures do have a chance to resist the effects with a Will/Wis save, the effects are typically too strong for them be able to do so. The effect is magical and continuous, so any calming related checks and spells will only calm the them temporarily before the effects simply re-agitate them. To stop them from being affected, the effect has to be successfully dispelled or shielded from by other forces.

Distant Laughs: A collection of maniacal laughs can be heard throughout the night, always seemingly coming from far away. After a while, they cause most individuals to become uneasy. After 15 minutes from their onset, it becomes too much for most; a Wis save must be surpassed by both animals and humanoids or they go into a Shaken state (Condition: Shaken).

Sinister Silhouettes: Killers are on the loose, or at least it feels that way. Many shadows and dark silhouettes take on the shape of something sinister, most commonly killers with knives and other sorts of beings with malevolent intentions. Their size and shape is contorted in just the right way to give them a clearly menacing appearance, and will sometimes even seem to move.

Individuals that glance at one while already Shaken have to surpass a Wisdom save or become Frightened (Condition: Frightened).

Nightmares: Since Jack's antics rarely cause any actual harm on the masses other than the ocasional heart attack and the spreading of yellow and brown on throughout the masses’ undergarments, one would consider just sleeping throughout the whole ordeal to avoid such unpleasantries. However, even during sleep, Jack's reach is far and true, any deciding to sleep at all during Jack's very much anticipated night suffering from nightmares the instant they doze off. It takes quite the solid mind not to, only a successful Will/Wis save allowing for a good night's rest. This particular effect is Jack's way of ensuring everyone goes out to play.

Glowing Candy (link): Sweets of all kinds will temporarily become enchanted during Halloween Night. These now magical sweets get a faint glow to them (noticed only after a successful Spot/Perception check), earning them the name of Glowing Candy. They bestow upon the consumer miscellaneous magical effects, ones designed to cause chaos and panic amongst the unsuspecting (see Glowing Candy entry).

The Blackest of Cats: The warping of probabilities makes it so that the people are unusually unlucky during Halloween Night. All natural 20 rolls are instead treated as 1′s.

Phantom Flames: Flames begin sprouting at random places, growing furiously as time goes on. The people see their homes and most prized possessions go up in flames. In actuality, it is all an illusion, but the dread in their eyes is very much real. The illusions, aside from their visual aspect, do consist of both sound and smell, and only a Wisdom save can recognize them for what they are before they are actually interacted with. Characters that believe they have lost their home or other important property are affected in different ways depending on their personality and general attitudes.

Revenge of the Dead: While justice is not in particular part of Jack's portfolio, a good dose of it is always satisfying. Those who have unjustifiably wronged others in the past are relentlessly haunted by their victims' spirits throughout the night. In actuality, the dead are undisturbed; the specters haunting them actually being illusions projected from the abuser's mind. This particular effect of Halloween Night is one that other gods tend to allow through any town/city their are shielding, especially if they agree with that form of justice.

Morning After: As the amnesia fades away and all other effects cease as well, the masses are typically so overwhelmingly exhausted from the whole ordeal that they will collapse on the spot. Most characters at this point are must perform a Con/Fortitude save to stay awake if they choose to do so, otherwise they collapse, remaining unconscious for the next 12 hours. The DC is lowered for characters that didn't surpass the Shaken state of fear, and remained relatively still during the night. Any characters that managed to remain awake are considered exhausted (Condition: Exhausted).

Clergy:

Clerics of Jack have access to the Fear Domain (link).

In line with their deity, they try to maintain a terrifying appearance. Aside from achieving this through their style of equipment, they will also often avoid wiping fresh blood off of their weapons or armor unless circumstances call for it.

Follower Bonuses:

Faithful followers of Jack who have been practicing his teachings for more than 2 years gain Advantage on absolutely all Fear related rolls.

Artifacts:

Jack's Eye (link)

Related Entries:

Fear Domain (link)

Glowing Candy (link)

A domain option created for clerics of Jack (link).

[3.5/Pathfinder]

Most of these spells are pre-existing in either Pathfinder and 3.5, and have been linked to their respective online pages.

Granted Power: You project a terrifying persona.

Grim Atmosphere (Ex): In whatever your dealings are, the aura about you makes it difficult for others to stay poised. Outside of your comrades, those around you suffer a -2 penalty to their Bluff, Concentration, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Perform, Sense Motive, and Sleight of Hand rolls when such checks are performed in your presence. Intimidate attempts directed at you feel absurd to try in the first place, characters considering to do so having a 50% chance of changing their mind.

1. Cause Fear (Link) 2. Remove Fear (Link) 3. Scare (Link) 4. Curse of Fear (Link) 5. Phantasmal Killer (Link) 6. Night Terrors (Link) 7. Symbol of Fear (Link) 8. Weird (Link) 9. Doomsday Visions (Link)

[5e D&D]

Available For: Fear Domain School: Illusion [mind affecting] Level: 9 Casting Time: 1 Action Range: Touch Components: Visual or Somatic Duration: 24 hours (Dismissable) Saving Throw: WIS Save

Over the course of a day, the target's head is periodically filled fake visions of impending doom of cataclysmic proportions. With it, the target is instilled the feeling that their visions are absolutely destined to come true.

The visions, from their point of view, become more clear as time goes on, with each subsequent vision complementing the previous one. During each individual vision's duration, the target is unable to act due to temporarily being in a dumbfounded state. Even while not actively occurring, the contents of the visions have been so disturbing that the victim is considered Frightened.

Twelve hours after it's initial effects, the target may re-roll a WIS Save to stop the visions from pouring in, however, even if successful, whatever visions the target already experienced continue to haunt them significantly, and although they now have stopped feeling overwhelmingly true, they target continues to feel they very well may come true. An unsuccessful saving throw causes Frightened condition to increase in intensity.

Twenty four hours after their second roll, the target can attempt one last saving throw, which if unsuccessful, let’s through one final grand vision which causes them to go into an absolutely horrified state in which they can take no actions because of being considered helpless for 5 minutes before finally fainting for 1d4 hours. Furthermore, the relentless barrage of visions has led the affected to permanently suffer from schizophrenia, particularly related to world ending visions. (See: Schizophrenia)

[3.5 D&D/Pathfinder]

School: Illusion [mind affecting] Fear Domain 9 Target: One Creature Range: Touch Casting time: 1 Standard Action Components: Visual or Somatic Duration: 24 hours (Dismissable) Saving Throw: Will negates

Over the course of a day, the target's head is periodically filled fake visions of impending doom of cataclysmic proportions. With it, the target is instilled the feeling that their visions are absolutely destined to come true.

The visions, from their point of view, become more clear as time goes on, with each subsequent vision complementing the previous one. During each individual vision's duration, the target is unable to act due to temporarily being in a dumbfounded state. Even while not actively occurring, the contents of the visions have been so disturbing that the victim is considered shaken (Condition: Shaken).

Twelve hours after it's initial effects, the target may re-roll a Will saving throw to stop the visions from pouring in, however, even if successful, whatever visions the target already experienced continue to haunt them significantly, and although they now have stopped feeling overwhelmingly true, they target continues to feel they very well may come true. An unsuccessful saving throw causes the penalties from the shaken state to increase from -2 to -5.

Twenty four hours after their second roll, the target can attempt one last saving throw, which if unsuccessful, let’s through one final grand vision which causes them to go into an absolutely horrified state in which they can take no actions because of being considered helpless (Condition: Helpless) for 5 minutes before finally fainting for 1d4 hours. Furthermore, the relentless barrage of visions has led the affected to permanently suffer from schizophrenia, particularly related to world ending visions. (See: Schizophrenia)

[5e D&D]

School: Enchantment [curse, emotion, mind-affecting]  Level: 4 Casting time: 1 Action Range: 25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels  Components: Visual or Somatic  Duration: 1 Week Saving Throw: WIS Save

You place a curse upon a creature, causing it to avoid the sight of a specific trigger, which is a kind of creature, object, or condition designated by you. When the target is within 30 feet of a trigger and is aware of the trigger, it gains the Frightened condition and feels an urge to leave. A successful WIS Save negates the urge to leave, but the Frightened condition persists as long as the target is within 30 feet of a trigger and aware of it.

[3.5 D&D/Pathfinder]

School: enchantment [curse, emotion, mind-affecting]; Fear Domain 4 Target: one creature Casting Time: 1 standard action Components: Visual or Somatic Range: 25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels Duration: 1 Week Saving Throw: Will negates Spell Resistance: yes

A variant of Curse of Disgust (link).

You place a curse upon a creature, causing it to avoid the sight of a specific trigger, which is a kind of creature, object, or condition designated by you. When the target is within 30 feet of a trigger and is aware of the trigger, it gains the shaken condition and feels an urge to leave. A successful Will save negates the urge to leave, but the shaken condition persists as long as the target is within 30 feet of a trigger and aware of it.