taking another’s life this foul beast not

only absorbs the victim’s soul, but also

In this issue we feature an array of awe- Speed-Writing, we simply cannot reply
somely unpleasant creatures, chosen to everyone who sends in monsters; but
from the many hundreds sent in by we do read every contribution, and we
readers. will continue to publish a selection in
Even though our letter-writing Out Of The Pit. So keep on sending us
gnomes live on a diet of Tablets of your horrible creations!
inherits his skills.
From the waist up the Soul Stealer
resembles a decaying human body;
except that it has no mouth, and its fin-
gers are tipped with suckers which it
fixes to its victim and through which it
drains life forces. The lower part of its
body is a serpent’s tail.
Some very powerful Soul Stealers
have hypnotic powers: the adventurer
must Test his Luck and, if unlucky, he is
mesmerised by the creature and is at its
mercy.
During combat, S T A M I N A is deducted
normally from either the adventurer or
the Soul Stealer; but with every two
rounds of combat lost by the adven-
turer, 1 point of his S K I L L is transferred
from him to the Soul Stealer, which thus
becomes progressively tougher as the
fight continues.
A Soul Stealer’s victim dies when
either his S T A M I N A or S K I L L is reduced to
zero. The victim’s soul is dragged down
to the nether regions, while his mortal
remains are dissolved in the corrosive
slime which the Soul Stealer secretes
from a cluster of globules on the lower
part of its face.
KILLER DICE
by S Wilson
Skill: None
Stamina: None
Type: Inanimate
Habitat: Anywhere
Number Encountered: 1 or 2
Reaction: None
Intelligence: None
These dice can be encountered any-
where, at any time-but usually during
combat. They will hurtle down cor-
ridors, and any adventurer in their path
must Test his Luck to see if he can dive
out of the way. If he fails, roll one dice
to find out which face hit him, and
deduct that number of S T A M I N A points.
Adventurers have a superstitious
fear of these mysterious objects, and
claim that they are the playthings of the
gods.

THE SOUL STEALER

Anonymous

Skill: 11
Stamina: 14
Type: Undead/Demon
Habitat: Ruins, wilderness
Number Encountered: 1
Reaction: Hatred
Intelligence: High

The Soul Stealer is a creature born in

the pits of hell, its sole purpose being to
draw the souls from living beings. In

6
 carnivorous appendages – “mouths”
with small, sharp teeth that cling to
their victim. Several mouths attacking
together can reduce even a large animal
– or adventurer – to a torn, bloodless
corpse within minutes.
Whistle Buds can detect movement
in their vicinity – only the stealthiest
movement will fail to alert them. When
they detect movement, they emit a
piercing. high-pitched whistle at a very
high volume. Ear plugs will protect an
adventurer; without them, he is par-
tially incapacitated by the pain caused
by the loud whistling, and must fight
with his S K I L L reduced by 2 points.

SEWER BEAST
by Matt Gillman

Skill: 8
Stamina: 16
Type: Animal
Habitat: Sewers
Number Encountered: 1 to 3
Reaction: Unfriendly
Intelligence: Very low

The result of genetic experiments on

sea-creatures by the evil alchemist
Plidor, Sewer Beasts have escaped to
proliferate and infest the drainage sys-
tems of most towns. In some of the
most wretched areas of some cities they
are worshipped as gods: it is rumoured
that human sacrifices have been made.
Sewer Beasts will eat any living crea-
ture.
Each Sewer Beast has eight strong
tentacles with powerful suckers. It can
live in or out of water, and uses some of
its tentacles to cling to sewer walls or
ceilings: the rest are available to attack
passers-by and draw them into the
enormous, giant clam-like mouth that
makes up most of its bulk. When cor-
nered, it can use all of its limbs to
defend itself, and can therefore attack
up to 4 times per combat round.
WHISTLE BUDS
THE CLOUD OF CHAOS
by M D Freake
Skill: 11
Stamina: 16
Type: Non-terrestrial being
Habitat: Marshes, moorland
Number Encountered: 1
Reaction: Neutral/Unfriendly
Intelligence: High
The Cloud of Chaos is a creature from a
different plane of existence, trapped on
our earthly plane. It inhabits lonely
places, where it miserably accumulates
gems and precious metals. which it
believes to have magical powers (where
it comes from, they do).
Very occasionally, a traveller will
find a hoard of treasure under low
marshland vegetation or in a cranny in
a windswept rock. Such hoards are said
to be a Cloud of Chaos’ collection.
When an adventurer encounters a
Cloud of Chaos, the Cloud will demand
an offering. It will accept any precious
metal, including coins, or gems, and
allow the adventurer to continue on his
way. But it the adventurer refuses to
make an offering, or attempts to pla-
cate the Cloud with provisions, or clo-
thing, for instance, the Cloud will
attack.

by Paul Croley

Skill: 7
Stamina: 11
Type: Plant
Habitat: Forests, Swamps
Number Encountered: 1 to 3
Reaction: Unfriendly
Intelligence: Very low

This strange plant can be found in

Darkwood Forest or the depths of
Scorpion Swamp. Each Whistle Buds
plant is a flat creeper covering areas of
ground and occasionally tree trunks. Its
foliage is red, and it bears what appear
to be dark red buds which are in fact