The Carnifex
PatronDCC ANNUAL · p.50
Open source p.50Patron Taint
| 1 | The PC acquires a wasting disease, ensuring that only the Carnifex finds him attractive. Over the course of 1 month the character is reduced to naught but skin and bones, resembling a walking skeleton held together by sinew and skin. If the result is rolled a second time, the PC’s skin is covered with leprous lesions, boils and scabs, and he constantly gives off the stink of rotting flesh. If the result is rolled a third time (and every time thereafter) one of the PC’s limbs withers, rots and falls from the body. |
| 2 | The Carnifex desires obeisance. At the next reasonable opportunity, the PC must create a shrine dedicated to the goddess, including statuary, precious metals, and stones worth no less than 500 gp, along with sufficient staffing to guard the same. If the result is rolled a second time, the champion must design and commission a chapel with opulent icons and relics worth no less than 5,000 gp. If the result is rolled a third time, the champion must erect a cathedral in her honor. A worth of 50,000 – 500,000 gp is suggested, but left to the judge to determine specific to the campaign. Regardless of the actual worth, the construction must be built to inspire fear and awe in worshippers down through the ages. |
| 3 | The Carnifex desires a new trophy for her demesne; a lesser scion of Law will do. The first Law-aligned creature the champion meets with HD matching or exceeding the champion’s HD must be slain and offered up in sacrifice. (At the judge’s discretion this may include Law-aligned PCs.) If the result is rolled a second time, the champion must seek and destroy a Law-aligned creature with CL + 5 HD. If the result is rolled a third time, the character must sacrifice a Law-aligned creature with CL +10 HD. |
| 4 | The Carnifex desires that her champion sire an heir. A godling fetus is conceived within the PC; the godling’s presence grants the PC +1 to all Will saves, while draining the PC of 1d3 hp daily. If the result is rolled a second time, the godling has grown significantly in size, protruding from the PC’s stomach or back, and distending the PC’s flesh to the point where sleep is almost impossible. The nascent godling grants a +2 bonus to all Will saves, while consuming 1d5 hp daily. If the result is rolled a third time, the godling bursts from its sire, forcing a DC 20 Fort save to avoid death. If the PC survives, he earns 1d3 points of Luck and forever more receives a +3 bonus to all Will and Fort saves. |
| 5 | The Carnifex doubts the PC’s affections and demands a sign of fealty. The PC must carve the sign of the Carnifex into his body, smearing a mix of salt, ashes and dye into the wound, inflicting 1d5 damage and requiring a DC 10 Will save to retain consciousness. If the PC successfully completes the act without succumbing to the pain, he earns 1 Luck point. If the result is rolled a second time the PC must peel back patches of his own flesh to illuminate the sigil, inflicting 1d14 damage and requiring a DC 20 Will save to remain conscious. If the PC completes the ritual without succumbing to unconsciousness he earns 1d3 Luck points. If the result is rolled a third time, the PC must drain all of his own blood, reducing himself to 0 hp and forcing a DC 25 Will save. If by some miracle the PC survives, he is henceforth sustained not by blood, but by his own force of will. Mundane attacks on his physical body are reduced by two on the dice chain. (For instance, a longsword would be reduced from 1d8 damage to 1d5, and a dagger would be reduced from 1d4 to deal a mere 1d2). Magical weapons, spells, etc. are unaffected. |
| 6 | The Carnifex craves the PC’s company. At the earliest opportunity the PC must enter a trance to commune with his patron. Once entered, the trance lasts for 1d5 hours. Ending the trance prematurely (e.g., shaking the caster awake) inflicts mental trauma as the PC is shorn from distant realms; the PC must succeed on a DC 15 Will save or lose the ability to cast spells for an additional 1d3 hours. The second time the result is rolled, the trance lasts for 1d5 days. Awoken early, the PC takes 1d20 damage and must succeed on a DC 20 Will save or lose the ability to cast spells for 1d3 days. The third time the result is rolled, the caster mentally retreats to the Carnifex’s realm for 1d5 years. Ending the trance early inflicts 3d20 damage, and the caster must succeed on a DC 25 Will save or be unable cast spells for an additional 1d3 years. If the result is rolled a fourth time, the caster vanishes from existence, whisked away to the gray, shadow realm of the Carnifex, never to return. |
Spellburn
| 1 | The Carnifex demands amorous service, whisking the PC to her realm. While but an instant has passed before he returns, the caster has aged 1 year for every point of spellburn. |
| 2 | The Carnifex demands material tribute: the PC must cut off a body part (an ear, finger, eye, nose, etc.) and offer it up to his mistress. |
| 3 | The caster must make a gift to his patron, valued at no less than 100 gp per point of spellburn. The items vanish with the burn. |
| 4 | His jealous mistress expects absolute devotion. In the next 24 hours the PC must track down and slay a former lover. Failing to do so doubles the points of the spellburn (i.e., if the caster had burned 4 Strength, he is treated as having burnt 8 instead). |
hen gods turn their affections to the mortal realm, it must invariably end in tragedy. The mortal vessel is unfit for divinity, and the gaze of any god is both a gift and a curse. Yet some gods delight in toying with the lives of mortals, and may – for a short while – even fall in love. The Carnifex is one such goddess. Once a millennium, the saint of executioners, lepers and outcasts takes a mortal for her own. But should the character make overtures to another patron or — worse — share his or her affections with another mortal, the wrath of the spurned goddess will know no bounds. As a rule, the Carnifex only bestows her affections upon one character at a time. Entire empires may rise, fall, and fade from memory before she favors another. Note that the Carnifex’s tastes span the multiverse and all its children, and her chosen one may be of any sex or race. Invoke Patron check results: 12-13 The ground erupts with heaving maggots exhaling the stench of corpse-breath. The PC can direct specifically where the maggots emerge, designating one 5’ square per CL. Human-sized or smaller characters within the area must succeed on DC 10 Ref saves or slip beneath the earth to drown in a pool of maggots (escape requires a DC 10 Strength check, modified by armor). With a large enough area of effect, walls and foundations can be undermined, halls or corridors can be blocked, etc. The maggots vanish after +CL rounds, leaving gaping holes in their wake. 14-17 The fickle goddess delights in the petitioner’s plea, and sends a swarm of rats to her lover’s defense. All foes within 30’ take damage, and must make DC 10 Fort saves or contract flesh rot, losing hit points per round until succeeding on the Fort save. The rats attack for but a single round, and refuse to attack any character bearing fire (e.g., torches or flaming brands pulled from a campfire). 18-19 Death and disease come to all that harm the Carnifex’s favorite. The PC is “blessed” with a flesh-eating disease that infects anyone he touches: lesions erupt within and without the victim, flesh blackens within moments, and fingers and toes peel off like scabs. Anyone struck by, or striking, the caster must succeed on a DC 15 Fort save or be infected. Infected PCs suffer damage per round until healed or succeeding on a Fort save. 20-23 The Carnifex conjures a murder of crows that descends in a swirling, cawing cloud of feathers and talons. Sight is obscured to less than 5’ for all but the caster. Foes must succeed on DC 15 Ref saves each round or take damage; on a natural roll of 1-3, the target’s eyes are plucked from his skull. The murder attacks for rounds before dispersing. 24-27 The mask of death descends over the caster. All foes and non-magical animals within line of sight of the caster must attempt a morale check or be shaken, suffering a penalty to attacks for the remainder of the battle. 28-30 The Carnifex sends an envoy to aid the caster. A tide of rats appears, bearing a hideous rat king (composed of + CL rats). The rat king can be spellburned (with the caster receiving 1 point per rat) or it can answer questions posed by the caster. The rat king is incredibly knowledgeable, being able to report anything that a rat or mouse might have reasonably overheard. 30-31 Soul-Burn: The caster feeds off the death of his foes and allies alike, using their dying energies to fuel his own powers. For +CL rounds the Carnifex’s champion receives 1 point of spellburn for each HD of creature that dies within 30’. The spellburn must be spent the following round or be lost. Example: A 5 HD creature dies, granting the caster 5 points of spellburn. The caster must then spend the 5 points the following round. If the caster fails to spend the 5 points, they are lost. Note: If the champion elects to spend the souls of fallen allies, these PCs cannot be saved by further healing or by recovering the body.