The Petersen Bestiary

Volume 2
by David Petersen

Illustrations copyright © David Petersen

Torchbearer RPG Free Supplement January 2014

burningwheel.com | torchbearerRPG.com
Frogmen

Might: 2 Nature: 3
Descriptors: Leaping, Spawning, Guarding Scholars and bards often wonder aloud at the origins of the
Conflict Dispositions Conflict Weapons frogmen. Were they once a great people now fallen? Or were
Drive Off: 6 Drive Off Weapons they beasts raised up into a mockery of intelligent peoples?
Attack: +1s, Leaping Attack Regardless of their origins, frogmen inhabit lost, forlorn
Defend: +1D, Make-shift weapons swamps, bogs and marshes. Their abiding drive seems to be
Feint: +1D, Chameleon Skin to spawn and fill the world with their progeny. Thus they are
Capture: 8 Capture Weapons always in search of safe, remote places to lay their eggs. One
Attack: +1s, Leaping Attack finds them inhabiting sunken ruins, ferociously guarding their
Defend: +1D, Make-shift weapons spawning pools.
Feint: +1D, Chameleon Skin
They piece together their gear, adorning charms, and weap-
Convince: 3 Convince Weapons
ons from fallen travelers and scavenged goods. Nothing they
Defend: +2D, Easily Confused own or wear is ever clean or honed; it is twisted and broken
Armor: Patchwork scavenged armor—as leather armor but and covered in moss, rust, and decay.
only works on a 6.
Instinct: Always protect the eggs and tadpoles The Frogmen travel in groups of 5-12, but it is not unusual
Special: Frogmen must keep their skin damp and moist, thus to see one alone scouting for lost pits in which to lay eggs.
they can never stray too far from their boggy homes. If dried Frogmen like their meals cold, raw, and slightly rotten, so
out, they are -1s to all actions. Frogmen speak their own any adventurer who dies at their hands is given a shallow wet
degenerate tongue. grave to keep until ready.
 Strix

Might: 2 Nature: 2
Descriptors: Blood-sucking, Flying, Swarming
Conflict Dispositions Conflict Weapons A single strix alone sounds like a colony of bats
Kill: 4 Kill Weapons beating towards you. One can only imagine what a
Attack: +1D, Needle-Sharp Probiscus swarm of Strix must sound like, since that is likely
Feint: +1s, Leathery Wings the last sound you hear before all the blood and hu-
Flee: 5 Flee Weapons mors are drained from your body. Two sets of leath-
Feint: +1s, Leathery Wings
ery wings lift a body that’s little more than a leathery
Maneuver: +1D, Tiny stature
sack, meant to swell with the life fluids of its victims.
Drive Off: 3 Drive Off Weapons A long rigid proboscis protrudes from the maw. It
Feint: +1s, Leathery Wings is capable of piercing flesh, bone, and organ alike.
Maneuver: +1D, Tiny stature Their claws serve them to cling to their victims while
Armor: none they drink their life’s blood.
Instinct: Always drop silently from above.
Strix dwell in subterranean caverns, clinging among
Special: Strix cannot be convinced or otherwise persuaded.
the stalactites, like nightmarish bats. They drop down
Drain blood: A successful Attack or Feint indicates a strix has
on unsuspecting prey to feed in swarms if four to ten;
inserted its probiscus into the acting character’s flesh. Once
the only warning is their hideous chitter.
so attached, the character loses one point of disposition
every action until the strix is removed or all of the character’s So feared are strix swarms, that other underworld
hit points are lost. Even characters with the Stubborn ability dwellers like kobolds or orcs will circumnavigate
can be knocked out in this manner. infested caverns and give them a wide berth.
Cinder Imp

Might: 4 Nature (Demonic): 3

Descriptors: Hiding, Tricking, Burning
Conflict Dispositions Conflict Weapons
Drive Off: 7 Drive Off Weapons
Cinder imps manifest in hearths of homes, inns and Special: +1s, Nasty Attitude (as sword)
fortresses in which the fire has burned for too long, Attack: +2D, Burning Ash
or in which anger feeds the flames. They are, how- Maneuver: +1D/-1s, Acrid Smoke
ever, more mischevious than murderous. They cause Trick or Riddle: 6 Trick or Riddle Weapons
hearths to flare up even when the flue is closed. Attack: +1s, Nasty Attitude
They fling sparks onto the carpet even with the Feint: +2D, Mischevious
fire is properly banked. And they’ll clog a chimney, Capture: 4 Capture Weapons
chuckling as smoke billows out into the chambers. Special: +1s, Nasty Attitude (as sword)
Attack: +2D, Burning Ash
Cinder imps are not related to the similar mischief-
Maneuver: +1D/-1s, Acrid Smoke
causing fey, but they are often mistaken for them.
Armor: None
When they are set upon by brave homeowners or
Instinct: If slighted, repay the insult ten-fold
innkeepers thinking to rid themselves of a cluricaun
Special: Cinder imps are fond of flattery. If flattered by their
or brownie, cinder imps become nasty and show
interlocutor in a trick or convince conflict, they suffer -1D to
their demonic nature. They spew sparks and ash their action.
and choke dwellings with clouds of acrid smoke. Glowing: At will, the cinder imp can glow as an ember give off
There are tales of cinder imps as useful companions light like a candle.
and helpers if treated well, but those making the Hearth Imp: A happy cinder imp can heat a home and give
reports may have been urged to say so as hostages all residents +1D to recover from being exhausted, injured
or sick.
in their own homes.
 Elder Nixie

Might: 6 Nature: 8
Descriptors: Shape-shifting, Sea-Dwelling, Scourging
Conflict Dispositions Conflict Weapons
Kill: 13 Kill Weapons
Attack: +2s/-1D, Storm Fury
Feint: +1D, Protean Form
Flee: 9 Flee Weapons
Attack: +1D, Unearthly Fluke
Feint: +1D, Protean Form
Drive Off: 17 Drive Off Weapons
Special: +1D, Submerged
Elder Nixies are ancient nixies who have slowly over the aeons lost much (as sword)
of their human-like appearance. Elder Nixies are dangerous and power- Feint: +1D, Protean Form
ful, and among their people they are the god kings and god queens of the Armor: Ancient scales (as leather but also works against
seas, lakes, and oceans. They exist in both salt and fresh waters and view magic)
the world above water mostly as inconsequential—just the civilized people Instinct: Always punish defilers.
would see ant-hills. Elder Nixies lay dormant in the silent deeps, sleeping Special: Elder Nixies may command any nearby aquatic
and dreaming of strange worlds. If disturbed by wrecks or debris sinking life to help them, including nixies. Help grants +1D
from above, by foolhardy souls delving too deep, or fouling the water with outside of a conflict, and +1D in a conflict if assigned a
their arrogance, an Elder Nixie will rise from the depths to scourge the hit point.
Shape-shifting: Elder Nixies can transform themselves
surface dwellers and exact punishment on the transgressors.
into a variety of creatures including black horses and
With the creatures of the deep at their disposal, they can bring down fair maidens.
mighty ships, flood valleys, and kill hundreds of land-dwellers. That is not to Reflection: Giving a clear mirror to an Elder Nixie will
say an Elder Nixie is not above fighting their own fight. So as not to disturb confuse it either delaying it momentarily (outside of a
the other beasts below, an Elder Nixie will reach above surface with long conflict) or if used as a weapon, granting +1D to Feint
spindly arms and drag land-dwellers below. or Maneuver.
Giant C yclops
These lumbering giants are rumored to be the off-spring of
the Lord of Forges. Once, they helped him at his labors,
­hammering against chthonic anvils to create mighty works.
But it is said they were cast out for an offense now long-
forgotten and cursed to wander, hungry only for the meat
and bones of men.
They hunch their shoulders in remote mountain
valleys, tending to flocks and herds of sheep and
mountain goat. But every year or three, their
anger at their condition bubbles to the surface
and their hunger overwhelms them. They
rampage among the civilized lands, scoop-
ing up houses and dumping the wriggling
contents into their cavernous maws.

Might: 7 Nature: 9
Descriptors: Cooking, Smashing, Herding or Crafting
Conflict Dispositions Conflict Weapons
Drive Off: 16 Drive Off Weapons
Attack: +1D, Massive Cudgel
Maneuver: +1s, Tremendous Stride
Kill: 12 Kill Weapons
Attack: +1D, Massive Cudgel
Maneuver: +1s, Tremendous Stride
Flee: 8 Flee Weapons
Attack: +1s, Unceasing Tread
Feint: +1s, Baleful Eye
Trick: 4 Trick Weapons
Defend: +1D, Dull
Armor: Thick Hides (as leather but works on a 3+)
Instinct: Always curse those who trick me.
Special: The cyclops wields a massive cudgel that ignores all
armor. Plate and chain are automatically crushed by it. Shields
provide no bonus and if used are automatically splintered.
Mighty Grip: It takes four successes (rather than three) to
disarm a giant cyclops.
One-Eyed: If blinded, reduce its disposition to 1.