Monday, October 28, 2013

Mo' Mummies

For Secret Santicore last year, I wrote a piece on variant draculcas (vampires). I think that most neglected of classic monsters, the mummy, deserves a similar treatment.

MUMMY, BOG
These mummies were naturally created but are instead products of being buried in peat bogs. They aren't wrapped in bandages, their skin in tanned black, and they are more flexible than their fellows due to calcium phosphate in the bones being dissolved by bog acid. They only do 1d8 damage and have one less hit dice, but they can vomit acid for 1d4 damage.


MUMMY, GIANT
Humans weren't the only ones to be mummified, or to rise as fearsome undead monsters. Giant mummies have hit dice one better than what ever giant humanoid their size resembles or one better than standard mummy hit dice, whichever is better. They have all the standard mummy abilities, except (in some cases) mummy rot. (Check out Gomdulla above statted here.)

MUMMY, LOVELORN
These mummies got caught in a forbidden romance and were mummified as punishment. When first revived, they look like regular mummies and have all the pertinent abilities, but within 1d4 days, they shed their wraps (and most of their powers) in favor of a brooding, exotic charm. They typically become convinced someone is the reincarnation of a long dead love, and will go about trying to woo the lost lover, killing those that get in the way. They are able to Charm (as per spell).


MUMMY, WELL-PRESERVED
These mummies have several unusual traits--most obvious of which is they are as attractive as the day they died, instead of being desiccated corpses. They don't have the mummy rot or the fearful reaction, but to do possess a charm ability (as per the spell). Typically, some sort of ritual is needed to fully resurrect one (involving some sort of item important to them in life and several blood sacrifices) of these mummies, but until then they are able to exert their will by control of others.

8 comments:

Jack Guignol said...

Mo mummies, mo problems.

garrisonjames said...

Nice selection. There are a lot of little charms, talismans and other magical widgets wrapped-up inside all the bandages on an Egyptian mummy. Not counting all the loot adorning them, loaded into their box/sarcophagus, and all around the tomb. Amazing. These wicked old things can seriously rival dragons for hoards. They could also benefit from having more variations and options available to them. There are a lot of other cultures where mummification was used, and several instances where it was an unfortunate outcome (Arctic Exploration gone bad, bog burial after execution/sacrifice, etc.) Fascinating monsters. Loads of potential still there to be brought into a gaming session...

Boric Glanduum said...

Niiiice. Very nicely done. I've always thought that there should be more variants.

Mystic Scholar said...

And what, pray tell, is wrong with Mummies?

The world doesn't have enough Mummies!

Mwahahahahahahahahahaha!

Excellent work!

Chris C. said...

I dig the lovelorn mummy. But then I've always been a romantic.

Stefan Poag said...

I love the picture of the lovelorn mummy with tasteful sideboob; what film is that from?
By coincidence, I was reading about 'mummia' this morning (a medieval medicine made from ground up mummies). So mummies probably hate and fear apothecaries as much as adventurers.

Trey said...

It's from Blood from the Mummy's Tomb.

Justin S. Davis said...

Are there any mummies out there with spells written on the inside of their bandages, so that they can unwrap themselves and use 'em like scrolls?

Someone has to have done it before, right? Because that totally needs to be a thing.