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  1. #1
    Site Moderator geeman's Avatar
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    Here`s yet another new awnshegh. Comments welcome.



    Gary



    ---oooOooo---



    BOLGAR THE BRUTE

    It was not difficult to find the awnshegh that has come to be known as

    Bolgar the Brute. He left a path of destruction where ever he

    went. Broken tree limbs and giant footprints littered his path, and even

    had I been a blind man I could have followed the directions of those who’d

    witnessed his passing, for those who saw the creature would never forget

    the sight. When I found him he was devouring what looked like it had been

    a small herd of deer atop a small hillock in Aaldvaar. I observed him for

    several minutes before announcing my presence. He’d built a great fire and

    sat before it cooking his meal the way a man might dangle a hare on a spit

    over a fire to roast it. He would use a claymore to roughly dress the

    animals and sharpen a tree limb to spit them. In his giant hand the heavy

    blade was like a knife.

    The Brute ate with gusto if not with grace. His face was smeared with

    animal fat and bits of meat. He wore a mish mash of hides and furs, but I

    could see that his body was much changed by the taint of Azrai. Though he

    was hunched he stood at least twice the height of a man. Yet his arms

    reached nearly to his ankles. He was nearly as broad as he was tall, and

    his every movement conveyed great strength and vitality. His face was

    bestial with a thick brow, a short stub of a nose and small, close set

    eyes. His head has a few thin tufts of hair, but his scalp was clearly

    visible beneath showing a strangely misshapen skull. His jaw was thick and

    the teeth that filled his mouth were as blunt as a donkey’s.

    Yet for all his bestial looks there was something child-like about his

    face. A roundness to his cheeks, or the depth of his clear blues eyes gave

    him the look of an innocent. Or perhaps it was spoiled innocence that I

    saw there? Yes, it was the face of a babe the moment that he first knows

    betrayal.

    I was unarmed and alone and I made no attempt to conceal myself as I

    approached for I did not wish to startle him. The babbling of the brook at

    the base of the hill, however, may have prevented him from hearing my

    approach, so my appearance may have surprised him. It may seem odd that

    such a being would fear a lone manlet alone one as small and inoffensive as

    myself-but one must understand that the Brute has been driven from a dozen

    communities in recent months and he must now avoid contact with people for

    his own safetyand possibly for his own state of mind. How many times can

    one be rejected by humanity before being driven mad? I held a palm up

    before me to show I had no intention of attacking him. Still the beady

    eyes below his heavy brow grew suspicious and he reached for a giant

    clubthe trunk of a treethat rested against a stone beside him. He growled

    at me, and I froze.

    “I mean you no harm, my big friend.”

    “What you want?” His voice was predictably deep and rough, but I heard

    a note of panic in it.

    “Only to share the warmth of your fire, and perhaps to talk to you. I

    am alone. I will not try to hurt you or take your food. I have some of my

    own, you see?” I moved slowly to display the field rations I had brought

    with me.

    “You are not afraid of Bolgar? No fear....” he seemed to muse for a

    moment, almost forgetting my presence. “Good. You come. Sit. No

    tricks!” He continued to watch me warily, but he put down the club and

    returned to his meal.

    “No, no. No tricks. Thank you sharing your fire.” It was a very large

    blaze, too hot for me to sit very close, so I sat as near as to be made

    uncomfortable by the flames. It was also far enough that he did not seem

    to fear I would attack him, but within the reach of his club.

    I introduced myself as a wandering bard from the south, which he seemed

    to approve of, and asked him who he was and why he was in such a lonely

    place. Was he an Anuirean as well?

    “Eh? No, I am a north man! I come from Rjurik lands. They hate

    Bolgar. Drive him from village. I hate them all now! Smash them! Gaah!”

    The boulder beneath his hand crumbled like a clump of sod. I tried not

    to show my fear, but changed the subject quickly to calm the creature famed

    for his temper.

    “What of your family, Bolgar? Your mother?”

    “I have no mother. She died. Bolgar too big. When I was born… she

    died. Bolgar was a buh... buh... bru... breee...”

    “A breach? Your birth was breached?”

    “Yes. Breach. Mother died, so I never know her. No brothers or

    sister. Father was sad. He died too. Raiders killed him when I was

    young. Stay in clan. Live with uncle. He was good to Bolgar, but Bolgar

    grow too much. Eating and eating. Scared the people. They hate Bulgar,

    so I hate them back. See much. Learn much. Hear much. People

    talk. Fear Bolgar. They say Bolgar eats too much. Grows too big. Too

    strong. They are fraid of Bolgar. Bolgar get mad. Smash village. Hurt

    people. Not mean to. They are small. Get in my way. All of them hate

    Bolgar then. Bolgar hate them! Hate them all! Aaaaagh!”

    The fury of the creature was astounding. He beat the ground with his

    makeshift club so powerfully that the log shattered into flinders, and it

    was these flinders that saved my life, for they knocked me from the stone I

    had been sitting on. I tumbled down the incline and splashed into the

    muddy creek below while the Brute vented his rage on the trees and stones

    around him. My bumps and bruises were nothing compared to the devastation

    he left upon the hill. I lay in the cold water until I heard his rampage

    end and he stomped off into the distance.

    ---oooOooo---

    It is not known from which Rjurik clan Bolgar the Brute is from, though

    it is known he was driven from his home soon after his bloodline

    manifested. In recent months he has wandered the Highlands in search of a

    place of refuge. Aside from his intimidating appearance and demeanor, the

    Brute’s becomes enraged at the slightest provocation, and the destruction

    he has wrought make him an unwelcome resident of any habited area. Torn by

    his hatred of those who have driven him into the wilderness and his own

    loneliness, the Brute is a tormented soul.

    For months Bolgar actively resisting his transformation into the Brute,

    but the very nature of his degeneration made it more and more difficult for

    him to do so as time when on and his loneliness overtook him. Recently he

    has begun to despair of ever finding a place in the world, and his anger

    has begun to consume him. He knows that he will never be able to live the

    normal life that he so desperately desires, and that knowledge has forced

    him to embrace aspects of his transformation that help him to survive.

    Bolgar the Brute now wanders Cerilia, not only in search of some refuge,

    but fleeing his past and the monstrosity that he has become.

    An appearance by the Brute can be used as a Monsters or Brigandage

    random event.



    Bolgar the Brute

    Large Awnshegh

    Hit Dice: 5d12+3d8+40 or 56 (99 or 115 hp)

    Initiative: +1 (dex)

    Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)

    Armor Class: 14 or 12 (+1 dex, -1 size, +1 natural, +3 hide armor, -2 rage)

    Base Attack/Grapple: +7/+21 or +23

    Attack: Large Greatclub +16 or 18 melee (2d8 +15 or 18)

    Full Attack: Large Greatclub +16/+11 or +18/+13 melee (2d8 +15 or 18)

    Space/Reach: 10 ft./10 ft.

    Special Attacks: --

    Special Qualities: Fast Movement, Illiterate, Uncanny Dodge (Dex bonus to

    AC, can’t be flanked), Trap Sense +1, Rage 3/day.

    Saves: Fortitude +12 or +14, Reflex +4, Will +3 or +5

    Abilities: Str 30, Dex 12, Con 22, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 9

    Skills: Intimidate +7, Spot +8, Survival +11

    Feats: Cleave, Great Cleave, Major Transformation, Power Attack

    Environment: Any land

    Organization: Solitary

    Challenge Rating: 9

    Treasure: None

    Advancement: by character class

    Level Adjustment: +1

    Bloodline: Tainted, Azrai, 11

    Bloodline in BP Format: Az(2/1) DivWrth(1/2/1)



    The Brute is a large humanoid of degenerate or pre-historic

    appearance. He wears filthy furs that give him the benefit of hide armor

    and wields a large, wooden greatclub. He speaks Rjuven.



    Combat

    The Brute often flies into a rage at the slightest provocation lashing

    out at anyone and anything around him. While raging he will fight to the

    death, but if his rage should end before the fight does he will usually try

    to flee combat, horrified at his own actions and the destruction that he

    causes. If he is pursued he will rage again.

    Divine Wrath: Any time the Brute is attacked, hurt, annoyed or otherwise

    threatened he must make a Will save (DC 15) to avoid going into a murderous

    rage similar to that of a barbarian. His strength and constitution scores

    increase by +4, but his AC is reduced by 2. Unlike barbarian rage,

    however, the Brute will lash out at anyone and anything around him, friend

    and foe alike. His rage lasts for six rounds. Though the Brute often

    rages involuntarily he may also do so intentionally.

    Unlike barbarians, the Brute is not fatigued after raging, and he can

    use this ability more than once per encounter. In all other ways (skills

    he can use, magic items he can employ, etc.) the Brute’s rage ability

    conforms to that of the barbarian.

    Modifiers and characteristics for the Brute when raging are given as the

    alternate figures in the description above.

  2. #2
    Senior Member RaspK_FOG's Avatar
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    [Insert BIG thumbs up here!]

    One note on Bolgar, though... I am still having difficulties on how to introduce the frenzy berserker, now with 3.5e barbarians, but you could use some of the rulings that are introduced there, mostly the increased bonuses to Strength and Constitution and the inability to just rage on at your enemies, but possibly harming friends as well; and since you can voluntarily fail a saving throw, you can assume that most of the time Bolgar won't make such a check, but if he really has to... I hope that helped a little.

  3. #3
    Site Moderator geeman's Avatar
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    At 12:08 AM 1/11/2004 +0100, RaspK_FOG wrote:



    > [Insert BIG thumbs up here!]



    Thanks.



    > One note on Bolgar, though... I am still having difficulties on how to

    > introduce the frenzy berserker, now with 3.5e barbarians, but you could

    > use some of the rulings that are introduced there, mostly the increased

    > bonuses to Strength and Constitution and the inability to just rage on at

    > your enemies, but possibly harming friends as well; and since you can

    > voluntarily fail a saving throw, you can assume that most of the time

    > Bolgar won`t make such a check, but if he really has to... I hope that

    > helped a little.



    Interesting. When it comes to just about any kind of check (skill checks,

    saves, etc.) that could have a sliding scale I like it when there are

    examples of DCs ranging from 5 to 30 or so. I considered writing up a

    little table of DCs to give a scale his Will save to avoid raging, but

    decided it might be a bit much for a single character description.... If

    it could be used for other characters, however, it might be more

    worthwhile. The Brute is meant to be extraordinarily touchy--raging at the

    slightest provocation--so if one does come up with a table that scales DCs

    for the frenzy berserker the DCs of his checks might be +5 more difficult.



    Gary

  4. #4
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    Quite nice. A lot of work to make a fine monster for us!

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