Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Totems: Bear, Part III

Totem Tests
1-9. Bearishness awakens from its slumber, and the devotee loses access to some of his spells or special abilities (50% chance for each one) until he performs some task. Roll 1d6 for each one lost to see what he must do.
[1] Immediately destroy everything possible in a 1d6 x 5' area. All who don't get out of the way will face the same.
[2] Sleep in a comfortable cave or other area for 1d4 hours, attacking any who might be foolish enough to try to wake him.
[3] Devour the first substantial area of foodstuffs he finds. He must eat everything and will only feel a bit tired after.
[4] Commune with bear spirits, doing nothing else but drum, dance, chant, or the like for 2d6 turns.
[5] Do something to honor the old ways, whether punishing one who violated them or teaching others about them.
[6] Destroy a non-bear shamanic magic item.

10-13. 
The bear demands more of the follower, causing him to undergo effects that last for the next 7d4 days. Each may only be resisted by saving vs. spell/ making a Will save DC 15 during this time. And if the same is experienced twice in a row, it becomes permanent. Roll 1d4.
[1] Whenever he sleeps, the only has a 1 in 4 chance of awakening to sounds, but when awakened, he must drive off anyone around.
[2] Whenever he eats, he must consume everything else available in the area too.
[3] Whenever he fights, he must use either melee weapons or his bare hands, getting in close to grapple.
[4] Whenever he encounters something new, he must forcefully tell those doing it that it's wrong, attempting to stop them if possible.

14-16. The follower becomes more visibly bearish now, gaining some bear trait along with a cumulative 15% chance of causing fear and/or revulsion in any non-bear types who notice it. The trait also increases the chances of experiencing the totemic side-effect Get Out of My Way! by one by replacing another totemic side-effect with it too. Roll 1d4 to see which trait is bestowed, rerolling if the same is rolled more than once, as the follower increasingly becomes a bear hybrid.
[1] Bear Ears: gain excellent hearing, with a +4 bonus to such checks.
[2] Bear Snout: gain an excellent sense of smell, with a +8 bonus to such checks, along with a bite attack for 2d4 +STR mod damage.
[3] Bear Claws: gain 2 claw attacks for 1d4 + STR mod damage. Can also hug foes hit with both for the same damage each round- an opposed STR check is needed to break it.
[4] Bear Hide: gain a +2 AC bonus, +4 vs. bludgeoning attacks.

17+ Someone has poked the bear. The follower is tested for the next 4d6 hours per totem test result over 16. And if he dies in the process, he can save vs. spell/ make a Will save DC 15 and be resurrected- otherwise it will be grizzly. Roll 1d4.
[1] The devotee is turned into a werebear, full of famished rampaging.
[2] The devotee is turned into a normal bear fitting for the local area, though for 4d6 weeks instead.
[3] An enraged cave bear with a HD equal to the totem test result tracks and attempts to eat the devotee and his comrades, arriving within half the time remaining of the test's duration. It will continue until either slain or the test's duration expires.
[4] The devotee is sent to a Bearlike Otherworld, his body lying comatose and his spirit returning with 1d10 hit points lost per 3 hours gone.


Next week: Totems: Bear, Part IV!