Ultimate NPCs

Author	Ian "Lizard" Harrac
Publisher	Mongoose Publishing
Publish date	2004
OGL Section 15	unpc

The material below is Open Game Content

Introduction

Welcome to Ultimate NPCs! This book is an essential tome for any harried Games Master who must keep his world populated with a nearly infinite variety of beings. In addition to a large stock of pre-generated NPCs, complete with equipment, this book features rules, charts and tables to enhance the creation and running of NPCs.

Roleplaying games model an odd universe. A small number of beings each controlled by an independent mind. The entire rest of the multiverse, from peasant farmers to demon lords, from city guards to the greatest of gods, share a single mind – a mind which is also concerned with issues such as ‘Where are the cheetos?’ and ‘Dammit, I know my notes were around here somewhere!’ Small wonder, then, that Otto the barkeep switches from a faux-German to a faux-British accent between visits, or that the mysterious druid who drops in to give cryptic warnings never spells her name the same way twice.

Nonetheless, NPCs matter. Without them, the game world is empty of things to talk with, bargain with and, of course, slay.

This book is designed to help Games Masters create NPCs, either prior to the game or during it. There is a special focus on complex NPCs, such as multiclassed characters, monsters with templates and the like. There are charts and tables of all sorts; to enable the rapid creation of detail where none was planned or to serve as an important ‘nudge’ for the Games Master looking to make the gate guard in North Hambrook slightly different than the gate guard in West Hambrook.

NPC Creation

This chapter discusses the various NPC classes and offers several more. It also includes a lot of notes on craft skills, professions and Lesser Feats, allowing you to give even first level commoners some variety.

The Role of the NPC
NPC Classes
Lesser Feats (Traits)
Feats
Mooks and Loyalty