1601 The Slumbering Giant

Steep, bramble-clad hills interspersed with tranquil pools where woodland animals sup contentedly.

• Terrain: Hilly forest (3), Aldweald
• Lost/encounters: 2-in-6
• ### The Slumbering Giant
• In the hilly north-eastern reaches of the hex, the mossy earth quivers, and a rank, whistling, halitotic wind sways trees and stirs leaves. Pursuing the source of the wind and

stench leads to the recumbent body of a gigantic (200′ tall) humanoid: Fergus the Famished. The last true giant in all Dolmenwood, he has lain here in deep slumber for several centuries.

Appearance: Lain upon his back, with limbs splayed out and great head resting upon the mighty trunk of a fallen oak. Moss and lichen cover his body, and small trees sprout upon the summit of his belly, which rises and falls in a slow, snoring rhythm. His hair sprawls across the forest floor in a tangled mass, slowly writhing with an eerie life of its own.

Breath: The snoring wind and awful reek pervading the region emanate directly from the giant’s nose. Those coming within 10′ of the nose’s noisome exhalations must Save Versus Blast or become physically ill and unable to act for 1d6 Turns.

Chance of awakening: Climbing upon the giant or damaging him has a 2-in-6 chance of awakening him.

If awoken: Fergus furiously shakes off his blanket of vegetation in 1d3 Rounds and rears up to his full height. He seizes a tree trunk and attempts to bludgeon, kill, and eat all present. He pursues any fleeing characters for 1d4 Rounds (though he may have trouble finding them amongst the trees). He then roams Dolmenwood for 1d6 days, hunting and devouring large game and humanoids, after which he returns to hibernation in this hex.

Harvesting Treasures

Those who dare meddle with a sleeping giant may be able to harvest the following useful items.

Risk: Each attempt to harvest from the sleeping giant, roll 1d6: 1. Fergus awakes, 2–3: Fergus sleepily swats/kicks at the character (roll a stamp/fist attack), 4–6: nothing.

Hair: The giant’s hair is extremely strong, immune to fire and mundane weapons, and functions as a Rope of Climbing (p420) for one week. Anyone cutting the hair (requires a magical weapon) must Save Versus Hold or become entangled in it for 1d4 Rounds (each Round, roll 1d6 as per Risk). Cutting any more than 10′ of hair at a time requires contending with the giant’s Breath.

Fingernail fungus: A pungent, yellow fungus (Shaggy Sage, p428) grows beneath the giant’s ragged, crooked nails.

Toe cheese: The grey clods of stinking sludge accumulated between Fergus’s toes are large deposits of the rare Mawbarg’s Jam (p428).

Fergus the Famished

An ancient giant of gargantuan proportions (200′ tall), with shaggy, greenish hair, muscular, thickset frame, and a prodigious pot belly. Fergus is naked but for the curly hair that covers his entire body.

Demeanour (Neutral): Frustrated rage, fuelled in equal parts by indignation and gnawing hunger.

Speech: A stream of bellowed, barely articulate threats. Woldish, Old Woldish.

Desires: To avenge himself on those who dared awaken him prematurely. To fill his insatiable gullet. To take care of both needs at the same time.

Large Mortal—Sentient—Neutral

Level 24 AC 14 HP 110 Saves D2 R2 H2 B2 S2 Att Stamp/fist (+14, 3d6) or tree trunk (+14, 4d8) Speed 80 Morale 9 XP 5,050

Damage reduction: Suffers half damage from area effects (e.g. Fireball), one-quarter damage from directly targeted magic (e.g. Ioun Shard), and but a single point of damage from petty, human-sized weapons, which are little more than a nuisance (2 points of damage for magic weapons).

The Giants of Dolmenwood

In ages long past, Dolmenwood was home to giants so great that the trees of the forest merely brushed their knees (300–400′ tall). In the modern age, no such creatures dwell in the region. Fergus the Famished is their last remaining descendent—a mere stunted dwarf compared with his titanic forebears.