The pages of this volume are filled with disturbing and highly detailed diagrams of the most horrible physical deformities and mutations. A closer reading quickly reveals that these deformities – referred to as “the touch of the ebon hand” – are venerated by the writers as the living personification of chaos incarnate. Particularly prized are those functional mutations – an extra eye or oversized arms, for example.
The rest of the book describes horrid rites which make it clear that the Brotherhood of the Ebon Hand not only idolizes deformity and mutation, but seek to inflict it and spread it as well: Ritual scarring. Magical alteration. Alchemical experimentation. Chaositech-induced mutation.
Members of the cult have no distinctive garb, but they usually bear the symbol of a black hand in some form: A tattoo. A charm. A small embroidery on their clothes. Or so forth. Of course, most of them are also marked by their mutations.
BLESSINGS OF MUTATION
Blessing of Mutation
Transmutation [Chaotic]
Level: Clr 5
Components: V, S, M, DF
Casting Time: Standard action
Range: Touch
Target: One living creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates
Spell Resistance: YesThe target gains the minor mutation template (see Chaositech, Chapter 4). These mutations manifest over a period of 1d2+1 weeks. If this spell is cast every other day during thatperiod, the mutation template becomes moderate. If the spell is cast every day during the period, use the major mutation template.
A target gaining the minor mutation template reduces his experience point total to halfway between his current level and the previous level. He does not gain a new level again until he actually reaches a total that would qualify him for the next level. Thus, if the target is 6th level, his experience point total becomes 12,500 (but his level remains unchanged). He does not gain another level (7th) until he reaches 21,000 XP. A target gaining the moderate mutation template reduces his experience point total to midway between his previous level and the level before that. A target gaining the major mutation template reduces his total to the midpoint between the levels two and three levels below his current one. Characters whose experience point totals fall to zero in this fashion drop into a coma for 1d2 weeks. They awaken with no template but a permanent mutation drawback (see Chapter Four).
This spell does not work on targets that are already mutants.
Material Component: 1,000 gp worth of various chemicals and mixtures, requiring an Alchemy check (DC 20) to concoct. Failure indicates that the chemicals are wasted and ruined.
DESIGN NOTES
Some material on this page is covered by the Open Gaming License.
In the version of this lorebook that I gave to my players, I also attached the entirety of Chapter 4: Blessed Mutation from the Chaositech sourcebook. I won’t reproduce that here for obvi0ous legal reasons, but this is an example of how you can use lorebooks to introduce new mechanical elements to the game. I love pulling material from sourcebooks and packaging it as a lorebook reward for the players. Sometimes this will result in the players engaging deeply with the new material, but even when they don’t, I’ve found that they nevertheless get excited by the material.
