Squirm's page

The Horror of the Hive

In the small hours of the morning A light rain drizzles down in the alley behind the inn. A bead of sweat runs down the dwarf’s cheek to be gently wiped away by a writhing tentacle emerging from the darkness. Bruised, bloodshot, eyes stare blankly into the distance. A clipped, humming voice echoes down the alley.

”I think you understand fear now yes? You’ll live. Just stop picking on people yeah?!

Skittering, uneven footsteps disappear into the distance, leaving the dwarf slumped against a bin, alone.

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As the caravan makes its slow way up to the city gates a figure swathed in a leather cape limps from the packed crowds directly into its path, causing the lead driver to curse and reign in his horses. A chitinous arm emerges and lowers the hood revealing the shining black head and twitching antennae of a dromite. Dressed in sensible travelling clothes, Squirm the Wanderer is careful to keep its left half covered in the heavy leather.

”Excuse my waylaying of you sirs. I need out of town!”

Squirm looks around anxiously before continuing

”I have got myself into a bit of trouble with some folk you don’t want to get into trouble with, you see. Nothing serious, a beating is all I’ve got coming... but one I’d really like to avoid. I hear you’ve been looking for guards? I’ll accept your offer.”

The driver could swear the little thing was smiling.

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Squirm, like many Dromites, was born in a hive city, ready to serve its people. Unlike other Dromites however it was born different, and to be born different in a culture of uniformity is to be an outcast. Squirms left leg was malformed at birth, this may have been permissible were it not for what formed in the place of its left arm. The mass of ‘squirming’ tentacles that grows from its shoulder and the single ‘appendage’ that it uses as an arm were too much. It narrowly escaped from the hive with its life. Since then it has crawled from settlement to settlement making his way with a casual charm and a knack for numbers. It can never stay in one place for too long though, Horror builds around him like water behind a dam and soon enough the floods come.

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Squirm draws on many sources. Picture a mash up of a lovcraftian horror, Stark from farscape, Twist from the malazan book of the fallen, with a seasoning of Mal Reynolds cheek. He it is a nice character most of the time, looking for a place/community to call home. But one with a dark secret that inevitably moves him on, people just can't handle the way he makes them... Squirm

Disturbing Blow, Gutstrike, Inner Sense, Strength of Hell,

Black Seraph’s Glare

DC 14
Unearthly Terror, Empathy,

DC 15
Untouchable Aura,

You gain a +1 trait bonus on Bluff checks made to fool someone. You also gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks, and Diplomacy is always a class skill for you.

You have studied the art of the psionic duel (see sidebar) and trained for advancement within the Protectorate. When participating in a psionic duel, you gain a +2 trait bonus to the opposed rolls. In addition, your experience has broadened your psionic understanding, giving you a +1 trait bonus to Spellcraft checks. Finally, Spellcraft is always considered a class skill for you.

Dromites receive a +1 natural armor bonus and energy resistance Fire 5, this resistance stacks with any future energy resistance gained through other effects.

Dromites gain the following psi-like ability: 1/day—energy ray. This dromite always deals Fire damage. The manifester level for this effect is equal to 1/2 the dromite's level (minimum 1st).

This special quality allows a dromite to detect approaching enemies, sniff out hidden foes, and track by sense of smell. Dromites with the scent ability can identify familiar odors just as humans do familiar sights. Dromites can detect opponents within 30 feet by sense of smell. If the opponent is upwind, the range increases to 60 feet; if downwind, it drops to 15 feet. Strong scents, such as smoke or rotting garbage, can be detected at twice the ranges noted above. Overpowering scents, such as skunk musk or troglodyte stench, can be detected at triple normal range. When a dromite detects a scent, the exact location of the source is not revealed—only its presence somewhere within range. The dromite can take a move action to note the direction of thescent. When the dromite is within 5 feet of the source, it pinpoints the source's location.
A dromite with the scent ability can follow tracks by smell, making a Wisdom (or Survival) check to find or follow a track. The typical DC for a fresh trail is 10 (no matter what kind of surface holds the scent). This DC increases or decreases depending on how strong the quarry's odor is, the number of creatures, and the age of the trail. For each hour that the trail is cold, the DC increases by 2. The ability otherwise follows the rules for the Survival skill. Dromites tracking by scent ignore the effects of surface conditions and poor visibility.

Dromites receive a +2 racial bonus on Perception checks.

When a dromite takes a level in a favored class, it can choose to gain an additional power point instead of a hit point or skill point.

With a light weapon, elven curve blade, rapier, whip, or spiked chain made for a creature of your size category, you may use your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on attack rolls. If you carry a shield, its armor check penalty applies to your attack rolls.

When you take this feat for the first time, you gain 2 power points.

The disciplines available to him are Black Seraph, Sleeping Goddess, and Veiled Moon. In order for the nightmare to recover maneuvers, he must draw on the fear of his enemies by activating his frightful claim class feature; the nightmare recovers a single expended maneuver whenever he Claims a creature, and he recovers a number of expended maneuvers equal to his nightmare initiation modifier (minimum 2) whenever a creature he has Claimed is reduced to 0 or less hit points. Alternately, the nightmare may concentrate on his deepest fears and draw strength from them to recover a single maneuver as a standard action.

As a swift action, the nightmare may Claim an opponent that he can see (including with special senses such as blindsense or tremorsense) within close range (25 feet + 5 feet per 2 nightmare levels) for a number of rounds equal to ½ his class level (minimum 1 round). A nightmare can have a maximum number of creatures Claimed equal to his nightmare initiation modifier (minimum 1), and may not Claim a creature he has already Claimed until or unless the Claim expires. Claimed creatures take a –2 penalty on saving throws against fear effects. This penalty increases by –1 at 6th level and every six levels thereafter, and stacks with the nightmare’s aura of fear class feature. In addition, the nightmare automatically knows the position of creatures he has Claimed. Any opponent the nightmare cannot see still has total concealment (50% miss chance) against him, and the nightmare still suffers the normal miss chance when attacking creatures that have concealment. The nightmare is still denied his Dexterity bonus to his AC against attacks from Claimed creatures he cannot see.

The dread has an insight bonus to Intimidate equal to half her class level (minimum +1).

To use this ability, a dread must make a melee touch attack as a standard action on a living target. If the attack hits, it deals 1d6 points of damage plus 1 point per class level. The dread does not add his Strength modifier to the damage of this attack.

Using a terror is a swift action. Some terrors are channelled through her devastating touch class feature. These terrors charge a dread’s touch (and later her weapon) until her next successful attack that round. Some terrors can be augmented by spending power points, similar to manifesting powers, to increase their effect. When augmenting her terrors with power points, the dread cannot spend more power points than her manifester level on any single use of a terror. A dread can use her terrors a total number of times per day equal to her dread level + her Charisma modifier.

Terrified Escape: The dread’s attack causes the target to flee from the dread on its next turn unless it makes a successful Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 the dread’s class level + the dread’s Charisma modifier). This is a mind-affecting fear effect.

Once per round as a free action, the nightmare can channel a terror through his weapon when initiating a strike or using his devastating touch class feature against a creature he has Claimed.