The Quintessential Chaos Mage
The Quintessential Chaos Mage front cover
| Author | Patrick Younts |
| Series | Quintessential Series |
| Publisher | Mongoose Publishing |
| Publish date | 2003 |
| Pages | 128 |
| ISBN | 1-904577-54-7 |
| OGL Section 15 | qcmg |
Note: Material in this section may be "mature" in nature.
The material below is designated as Open Game Content
The Path of Teratic Progeny
Chaos is found in the growth of all living things and, in some cases, chaos causes such growth. For those who find themselves upon this path, their bodies slowly transmogrify, becoming a fertile ground for teratic growths and tumourous pregnancies. In its final stages, the path leads the chaos mage toward his new life as a distorted womb, from which spill countless nightmarish and deformed children.
Step 1 – Humps of Life
Small lumps begin to appear just beneath the chaos mage’s skin. These are quite tender to the touch and the surrounding tissue is clearly engorged with blood.
Step 2 – The Eyes of a Child
Roughly one-half of the lumps on the chaos mage’s skin split open and begin weeping a clear, viscous fluid. Clearing away the fluid reveals a small eye in the centre of each of the lumps, perfectly formed but marred by a thick cataract over the pupil. These eyes are clear after a day or so of weeping, after which covering them causes the chaos mage a great deal of pain.
The additional partial perception granted adds a +1 bonus to any Spot checks – providing they are uncovered. However, the disgust anyone will display upon seeing them will inflict a –1 penalty to all Diplomacy checks whilst they are uncovered.
Step 3 – Vomitous Resilience
The other half of the lumps found beneath the chaos mage’s skin burst open, revealing tiny mouths lined with chalky teeth and filled with forked tongues. Whenever the chaos mage suffers damage, these mouths vomit up chunks of damaged flesh in a stew of vile-smelling fluid.
The vomiting mouths endow the benefit of converting 2 hit points of damage from any physical attack the chaos mage suffers into nonlethal damage.
Step 4 – Babe’s Cries
The mouths that opened on the flesh of the chaos mage begin mewling and loudly clicking their teethat random times. The creatures are so uncomfortable\ that wearing anything except loose robes is highly painful.
This wailing causes a –2 penalty for any Hide or Move Silently skill checks the chaos mage makes. He also doubles the armour check penalty and arcane spell failure of any armour worn.
Step 5 – Tears of Venom
The opened eyes begin weeping more copiously, releasing thick, cloudy streams of fluid from the chaos mage’s flesh. Though disgusting to see, this fluid actually helps the chaos mage by removing toxins from his system at a much faster rate than normal.
This provides the chaos mage with a +2 bonus to any Fortitude saves made to resist poison. The freakish growths now stretch onto his face, so it no longer possible to hide his deformity – the penalty to Diplomacy checks is increased to –3.
Step 6 – Freakish Gestation
The teratic growths within the chaos mage’s body begin to mature, draining away his vitality as they accelerate toward birth. They are never still anymore, continuously rippling underneath the chaos mage’s clothes.
The chaos mage must consume three times as much food and water each day as he would normally require and suffers the loss of 2 points of Constitution and 2 points of Charisma. Bizarrely, the mage’s physical transformations now grant him a +1 bonus to all caster-level checks to use Transformation effects on any living creature other than himself – he understands the processes of mutation far better than anyone could possibly imagine…
Step 7 – Gestative Coma
The eyes from Steps 2 and 5 of the path close and are sealed with a thick crust of black mucous. Even if cleared way, this substance reforms within moments, keeping the eyes sealed as they enter the final stages of their development.
Unfortunately, this means that the bonuses gained from Eyes of a Child and Tears of Venom are no longer available to the chaos mage. All penalties remain in place, however.
Step 8 – Chaotic Gravity
The body of the chaos mage begins to swell to nightmarish proportions, reducing his ability to move and sapping him of his strength. The teratic mouths are still active – indeed, they become voracious in their appetite for anything they can bite.
The teratic children growing within his body are so large now that he suffers a loss of 2 points of Dexterity and 2 points of Constitution. However, anyone attacking the chaos mage with an unarmed attack will automatically take 1d6 points of piercing damage as the mouths sink their teeth in….
Step 9 – Squirming Ejecta
The first horrific births take place as the sections of the chaos mage’s body burst open to eject thick, wriggling creatures formed from waste tissue and chaotic energy. These creatures live only moments before their horrific forms collapse into reeking scraps of corrupted flesh and oily liquids.
1d4 of these creatures are birthed each day, causing 1d6 hit points of damage to the chaos mage each time. While the damage caused by their births can be healed, this is offset by the loss of an additional 2 points of Constitution when this step is gained. The chaos mage’s bonus to all caster-level checks to use Transformation effects on any living creature other than himself is increased to +3.
Step 10 – Womb of Madness
The chaos mage’s entire body is disrupted and reformed to operate as a womb for all manner of chaotic creatures. Horrific beasts, all with Hit Dice equal to or less than the chaos mage’s level at the time of his transformation, emerge wriggling from his bleeding birth canal to rampage across the earth.
