Creatures Mundane and Supernatural

by Catherine Newton

Dwarfs
Short, Cold, Hard and Brutal creatures, somewhat
related to humans, but different enough in a disturbing
way that no one in their right mind wants to explore
that relationship very far. Typically pagan or atheistic
in their beliefs. Their religious beliefs are complicated,
to say the least and often involve blood sacrifices and
metals or stone. Heaven help anyone who accidentally
interrupts one in process, most likely the intruder would
wind up chopped up and eaten. Metal and stone items
made by them are superior in quality, but often possess a
‘dark’ feel to them as well. Dwarfs, if you really wish to
look for them, can be found in areas just like them, Deep
in the dark, cold, hard and brutal lands. Often deep in
mountain areas where it’s difficult to get to them. They
are known to have a hold somewhere deep in the Alps
and Deep in the Urals. The Bohemians and Transylvanians are said to share their
blood somewhere way back and they can actually be found upon occasion in small
villages deep in Transylvania. If you make a deal with one, just remember that they
are Craft, Tricky and seldom give up anything without some type of ‘sacrifice’ to seal
the bargain.

Atlantean Tribes
Mostly a proud, aloof people, in tune with the natural world
around them. Proud warriors who can vanish in a forest as
quickly as most folk could blink. An almost preternatural
way with the wild. At least that’s what the old timers in
Atlantean colonies say. They say the ones most people deal
with are pretty much like anyone else, but there are some
tribal elders or some of the tribes out to the western areas
that are very mystical and savage.

Page 1
Giants
There are legends throughout Europa and Persia of men
who stand half again to twice as tall as a normal man,
giants who often have a fondness for the taste of human
flesh and a fondness for robbing the virtues of a maiden.
You’ll often find a person who will swear that they have
met such a person, and often you will hear of a ‘Giant’
entering a town, but most often that giant is simply a
person of a stature only a head or so taller than the folk
who are telling. Perhaps they are real, perhaps they are
legend, but it is said that they also exist in the great
mountain range that runs down the western border of
the colonies, the Allegheni, and that while the males of the species are thuggish and
brutal in appearance that their females, although of the same stature are, by and large,
quite pleasant upon the eye.

Gobolyns
A stunted, misshapen, vicious minded people, the Gobolyns, or Goblyns as they are
often called, are said to live in deep, dark places in the earth. Cunning and cruel, they
are blamed for many things that happen on the edge of civilized lands, whether cows
giving soured milk or children and goats going missing. It is said that they have a
dislike of the light that is common among creatures associated with Satan, and it is
highly doubtful from the tales that exist that these are a goodly or christian creature.

Ogre
A term used to define men and women who have forsaken the rules of a just God and
have developed an unholy and unnatural taste for the taste of their own kind. An
Ogre is a horrific creature not only due to it’s perverted tastes for the meats of their
own kin, but because they can, with care, blend in with any normal and goodly society
of people. Vigilance is the best weapon against these abominations and it is said that
they eventually develop a strange joint in their smallest fingers and toes, likely a sign
from God to those upon whom they prey.

Troll
A creature that plagued the Nordic folk and much of Prussia in previous centuries, it
is believed that the Troll is either extinct or has been driven deep into wilderness areas
by the expansion of mankind into what was once his territory. Known for a penchant

Page 2
for the flesh of goats, trolls often demand a tribute of one or more goats from those
who pass through their territories. As with many other creatures of Dark natures,
the Troll finds the pure light of the Sun to be both repugnant and painful, often
paralyzing them with fear until they are as immovable as a stone. They are said to
be unimpressed by the bravest of men, but cowed by the least of enchantments. Troll
society, such as existed was said to be matriarchal.

Beasts of Great Size

There are, upon rare occasion, exceptional creatures amongst
most all species, mammal, insect, ophid or arachnid, among
others, that grow to a size most unnatural to behold. Spiders
or Ants the size of ponies, rats the size of dogs, snakes that
grow to lengths of twenty feet or more and girths as big
as a small tree. All of these things exist, albeit rarely and
examples have been shown to men and women of Science
time enough to confirm that they are not but a hoax or the
ravings of drunkards and fools. Most of these creatures
retain the weaknesses and tastes of their normal sized brethren.

Dragons and Dragon-Kin

It is said that Saint George slew a dragon, it
has also been said by Castillian explorers to
the lands below the new colony of Georgia, that
there are many dragons, or at least the kin of
dragons to be found in the marshy lands of the
south. Possessing a very durable, scaly hide,
large claws, teeth, and according to some stories,
the ability to breath forth fire or noxious fumes,
Dragons are formidable foes, so take care if
traveling the marshes of the south lands, for not
only dragons are reported there, but snakes of
Great Size are reported to be most common in
those climes.

Page 3
The Restless Dead
There are times when the souls of the dead are not accepted into either Heaven or
Hell, nor do they spend their time learning from their sinful ways in Purgatory, but
some souls are so vile and reticent that they refuse to leave their decaying bodies
and drag themselves from their graves and either attempt to follow some twisted
semblance of their previous existence or seek vengeance upon the living.

These dead, or Undead as some priests have called them, take many forms, from
rotting corpses dripping bits of flesh from their decaying bodies, to those so long
passed that they are naught but animated skeletons, occasionally wearing some bits
and rags of their former garments and possessed of a malevolence that betrays itself
with eye sockets in the empty skull that glow with a glimpse of pure hellfire and
twisted evil.

There are said to be the occasional individual whose

will to defy death was so strong that their bodies do not
decay as normal and that they maintain a semblance of
life by draining the very blood of the living to sustain
themselves. The peasants of lower Prussia and the
Transylvania region call these creatures “Wamphyr”.

It is said that the Restless dead cannot stand the touch

of holy items, pure sunlight, silver and that the force
of faith of a truly faithful man can render them fearful
and cause them to recoil away from the proof of true
goodness.

Salt and running water are also defenses against these

vile creatures, and dogs, cats and horses will oft give
warning of their presence as they find them as repulsive
as any living, thinking creature should.

Page 4
Shapeshifters – Were Wolves and the like
There are those who are cursed with receiving the wild, hungry spirit of the wolf, so
strong that it actually changes them.

The Romani have a legend; Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by
night may become a wolf when
the wolfbane blooms and the
autumn moon is bright.

These individuals change into

a full grown wolf, although
some take a shape somewhere
between that of man and wolf.

These individuals are often

more dangerous than those
who become fully wolf formed,
for they have within them
the bestial urges of the wild wolf and the darker urges of man uncontrolled battling
within them. It is said that magick, silver, fire and wolfbane are the only things that
can harm them, although some say that feelings of selfless love can also make them
vulnerable to physical harm.

Page 5
OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a
The following text is the property of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc
(‘Wizards’). All Rights Reserved.
1. Definitions: (a)’Contributors’ means the copyright and/or trademark owners who have contributed Open Game
Content; (b)’Derivative Material’ means copyrighted material including derivative works and translations (including
into other computer languages), potation, modification, correction, addition, extension, upgrade, improvement,
compilation, abridgment or other form in which an existing work may be recast, transformed or adapted; (c)
‘Distribute’ means to reproduce, license, rent, lease, sell, broadcast, publicly display, transmit or otherwise distribute;
(d)’Open Game Content’ means the game mechanic and includes the methods, procedures, processes and routines
to the extent such content does not embody the Product Identity and is an enhancement over the prior art and
any additional content clearly identified as Open Game Content by the Contributor, and means any work covered
by this License, including translations and derivative works under copyright law, but specifically excludes Product
Identity. (e) ‘Product Identity’ means product and product line names, logos and identifying marks including trade
dress; artifacts; creatures characters; stories, storylines, plots, thematic elements, dialogue, incidents, language, artwork,
symbols, designs, depictions, likenesses, formats, poses, concepts, themes and graphic, photographic and other visual
or audio representations; names and descriptions of characters, spells, enchantments, personalities, teams, personas,
likenesses and special abilities; places, locations, environments, creatures, equipment, magical or supernatural abilities
or effects, logos, symbols, or graphic designs; and any other trademark or registered trademark clearly identified as
Product identity by the owner of the Product Identity, and which specifically excludes the Open Game Content; (f )
‘Trademark’ means the logos, names, mark, sign, motto, designs that are used by a Contributor to identify itself or its
products or the associated products contributed to the Open Game License by the Contributor (g) ‘Use’, ‘Used’ or
‘Using’ means to use, Distribute, copy, edit, format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of Open
Game Content. (h) ‘You’ or ‘Your’ means the licensee in terms of this agreement.
2. The License: This License applies to any Open Game Content that contains a notice indicating that the Open
Game Content may only be Used under and in terms of this License. You must affix such a notice to any Open Game
Content that you Use. No terms may be added to or subtracted from this License except as described by the License
itself. No other terms or conditions may be applied to any Open Game Content distributed using this License.
3. Offer and Acceptance: By Using the Open Game Content You indicate Your acceptance of the terms of this License.
4. Grant and Consideration: In consideration for agreeing to use this License, the Contributors grant You a perpetual,
worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license with the exact terms of this License to Use, the Open Game Content.
5. Representation of Authority to Contribute: If You are contributing original material as Open Game Content,
You represent that Your Contributions are Your original creation and/or You have sufficient rights to grant the rights
conveyed by this License.
6. Notice of License Copyright: You must update the COPYRIGHT NOTICE portion of this License to include the
exact text of the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any Open Game Content You are copying, modifying or distributing,
and You must add the title, the copyright date, and the copyright holder’s name to the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any
original Open Game Content you Distribute.
7. Use of Product Identity: You agree not to Use any Product Identity, including as an indication as to compatibility,
except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the owner of each element of that Product Identity.
You agree not to indicate compatibility or co-adaptability with any Trademark or Registered Trademark in conjunction
with a work containing Open Game Content except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with
the owner of such Trademark or Registered Trademark. The use of any Product Identity in Open Game Content does
not constitute a challenge to the ownership of that Product Identity. The owner of any Product Identity used in Open
Game Content shall retain all rights, title and interest in and to that Product Identity.
8. Identification: If you distribute Open Game Content You must clearly indicate which portions of the work that you
are distributing are Open Game Content.
9. Updating the License: Wizards or its designated Agents may publish updated versions of this License. You may use
any authorised version of this License to copy, modify and distribute any Open Game Content originally distributed
under any version of this License.
10. Copy of this License: You MUST include a copy of this License with every copy of the Open Game Content You
Distribute.
11. Use of Contributor Credits: You may not market or advertise the Open Game Content using the name of any
Contributor unless You have written permission from the Contributor to do so.
12. Inability to Comply: If it is impossible for You to comply with any of the terms of this License with respect to some
or all of the Open Game Content due to statute, judicial order, or governmental regulation then You may not Use any
Open Game Material so affected.
13. Termination: This License will terminate automatically if You fail to comply with all terms herein and fail to cure
such breach within 30 days of becoming aware of the breach. All sublicenses shall survive the termination of this
License.
14. Reformation: If any provision of this License is held to be unenforceable, such provision shall be reformed only to
the extent necessary to make it enforceable.
15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE
Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
Legend Core Rulebook, Copyright 2011, Mongoose Publishing Ltd
Swashbucklers of Atlantis, Created 2012, Anthony Hunter

Addendum to OGL Statement: All Swashbucklers of Atlantis specific rules and information is Open Game Content.