And the Dukes of Chaos reached into the flesh of the living, taking whatever their power could command turning it unto the purposes which they saw best. From such works were the Elder Brood delivered – a horde of flesh driven to pinnacles far beyond the pale boundaries of nature.
This scroll describes the creation of the essyat – one of several races “bound to the service of the Galchutt and all who would follow them”. Names such as the akop, nyogoth, solesik, and tilaxic are given as others among their ranks.
Of the essyat, the scroll says this: “From the living were claimed the heart, the throat, and the stomach. Of the rest, different purposes were rendered. Of the stomach, it was placed upon the rack of the zaug and distended into a bloated form possessed of both legs and arms. Of the heart, its four chambers were transformed by the rites of alchemy and placed within the stomach. Of the throat was fashioned a mouth of horrors.”
THE FOUR HUMOURS
“Each of the four chambers within the essyat is tempered so as to produce, according to bio-alchemical principles, one of the four classical humours: Black bile, blood, phlegm, and yellow bile. Each of these, in turn, is tempered to heighten its potency. In this fashion, the essyat may serve as the infernal, living artillery of chaos.”
The essyat are apparently capable of vomiting forth the potent humours distilled in their stomachs. Their black bile produces severe melancholy, rendering anyone struck by it incapable of action. Their blood fills victims covered in its sticky gore with ecstatic happiness. Their phlegm engenders extreme cowardice. And their yellow bile invites wild and random wrath.
THE RACK OF THE ESSYAT
Vivid (and disturbing) description is given to their odious treatment of captives: The essyat will force-feed captured enemies with gouts of humour. When their victim is bloated with blood and bile, but not yet quite dead, the essyat pops the grisly meal into its mouth and swallows it down.
There are descriptions of essyat upon the field of battle bloated and distended with the “grisly contours of those hapless souls thrust into their limitless, pliable gullets”.
ALCHEMIC ARTS
With a cooperative essyat, it is apparently quite easy to harvest great quantities of bile. Once separated from the potent conditions of the essyat’s belly, however, the potency of the bile will quickly equalize.
With supplies worth 25 gp, however, and a successful Intelligence (Alchemist’s Supplies) check (DC 15), the potency of harvested bile can be maintained as a single-use splash weapon:
- Black Bile: Subject is incapacitated, standing still and wrapped in their own morose thoughts.
- Blood: Subject is filled with joy, optimism, and good cheer. They cannot take any offensive action.
- Phlegm: The target becomes filled with cowardice and must flee as if frightened (although this is not a fear effect).
- Yellow Bile: The target is incited to violence and vengefulness. They turn on the nearest creature, friend or foe, with their most powerful attack or spell.
The primary target is affected for 1d4 rounds. A secondary target is affected for 1 round. A Wisdom save (DC 17) negates the effect in each case.
