The Creatures of the Night

[DiDoomDi]

I'm just wondering if there is anything in Esteren like a Therianthrope or a Vampire.

[Clovis]

That's for the Game Leader to decide! The main supernatural threat of Esteren are the Feondas, which can have very different aspects and powers, so you can invent a shapeshifting Feond or a bloodsucking one. Official examples of Feondas will be presented as more of the series's books are released, but in the meantime, feel free to let your imagination speak.

Moreover, a Morcail that transforms into an animal with a corrupted Ogham for nefarious purposes can be a therianthrope-like being ; or the unfortunate result of an organic Flux-based experimented can create a vampire-like creature.

There are many possibilities, which I encourage you to share with the community!

[DiDoomDi]

I was actually thinking of using a Morcail with a corrupted Ogham. I was mainly asking to find out if there was anything already published that I'd overlooked or missed that was closely related to these ideas.

[Clovis]

So far, there are no such creatures in Book 1 and Book 0, so go ahead and make yours! I also encourage you to share the results with the community, for feedback and advice.

[iznurda]

No common creatures of the night in Esteren. The magic is different so magical creatures may too. As Clovis said, you can imagine feondas having some similar particularity or astonishing morcail powers. Idem with magienstist experimentations.

If you want you can play with common creatures of the nights but it's not my approach of this universe. My desire as a leader is to offer something different, not a transposition of existing in another universe.

iz

[DiDoomDi]

I'm looking into a different approach. It's more for a scenario that will incorporate the idea's of one of the more iconic creatures of the night and then end up being something very different. Having your players think they've pinned down what it is only to find out they are woefully prepared to fight what the creature truly is does add a real sense of danger. If done the right way it also instills caution into them which my group seems to lack in all the other systems we've played.

[Glass]

I already posted something about this in the French part of the message board but here's my point of view on vampires, werewolves, etc. in Esteren, this time in English :

Because Esteren is influenced by gothic works (Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Ravenloft, Edgar Alan Poe and Lovecraft), this idea doesn't seem far-fetched. It's up to the GM really.

There is a good supplement for Pathfinder entitled ""Classic Horrors Revisited" which lists a dozen classical gothic monsters/ennemies to use during your game sessions. Everytime they present the archetype, explain what type of fear they represent and how to use them in a new, non-cliché way. It can be useful.

What difference is there between a vampire hunting for blood and a crazy magientist killing for flux ? A morcaìl and a witch ?

I'm an avid fan of Clark Ashton Smith's Averoigne stories. They are all set in a fictional region of France in the Middle Ages populated by a lot of gothic/weird creatures (werewolves, vampires, living gargoyles, lamias...). I think these stories (at least the good ones) can easily be transposed to the Esteren universe.

[Dragoslav]

I think those are great ideas, Glass. Anyone who wants to run an Esteren campaign should brush up on their classic Gothic literature.

[Clovis]

Indeed! The first part of Dracula, when Jonathan Harker meets the Count and becomes a guest-prisoner in the mysterious being's castle? Pure gold!

[Daïn]

Hey folks,

In the end, it's always up to the GL of course, but creating such creatures would waste (To Me, no offense) several aspects of the game, which seem quite important to say the least: The thrill, the mystery and doubt.

SoE looks to me very atmosphere oriented and I don't see the point to create such a creature. I would rather acts like it already exists. A bad guy/ opponent could be a simple human acting to simulate the damage caused by a Vampire or some damn bloody feond. This way you would put the idea of a Vampire in the head of your PCs, who would seek for one. The real Opponent would never be suspected.

I mean no offense, but SoE brings matter to allows us not to jump into old school easy-to-take bashing creatures but rather set up subtlety and doubts into PC's reflexions.

Just my thoughts anyway