Tayce Bloodyblades
"Nursery Rhymes are said
Verses in my head
Into our childhood they're spoon-fed
Hidden violence revealed
Darkness that seems real
look at the pages that cause all this evil..."
--KoRn, "Shoots & Ladders"
Can I please get some feedback? Any thoughts/comments/questions at all?
One problem might be that it may be a bit too powerful for an average Ravenloft hero, but the great thing is that it doesn't have to attack them to be scary. The "Corner of the Eye" thing is just brilliant, and with the phylactery this thing is nigh-unkillable. I'm a bit low on time here, so sorry for not giving you a more in-depth response.
The reason you haven't got many answers is probably because most of the community is over at www.fraternityofshadows.com and you'd probably get far more (and better) response there.
As for power, well, aren't Darklords supposed to be far more powerful than the characters? ;) But yeah, thanks for the tips on tightening his story
As for power, well, aren't Darklords supposed to be far more powerful than the characters? ;)
Most of them are, but there are exceptions, such as Dominic d'Honaire. And there are also a lot of quite powerful characters who are not Darklords, just think of Jaqueline Montarri, Inajira, Vladimir Ludzig, Lady Kazandra, etc.
In fact, I'd say that this critter would be more scary not being a Darklord. After all, escaping from a Darklord is as easy as leaving the domain... this guy will follow you anywhere.... but maybe that's just me.
Oh, and exactly what does this mean?
"Name me twice, call me thrice,
Name the one who'll go away
A knock, a knock, a broken glass
and Tayce shall come to play."
It is, obviously, the summoning "ritual," but how exactly do you say it?
And, with fear of sounding like a broken record, this is probably the best monster I've ever seen.
Most of them are, but there are exceptions, such as Dominic d'Honaire. And there are also a lot of quite powerful characters who are not Darklords, just think of Jaqueline Montarri, Inajira, Vladimir Ludzig, Lady Kazandra, etc.
Um...I'm rather a RL newbie, so with the exception of Dominic (and Jaqueline to a lesser extent), I recognize none of those names...:embarrass
In fact, I'd say that this critter would be more scary not being a Darklord. After all, escaping from a Darklord is as easy as leaving the domain... this guy will follow you anywhere.... but maybe that's just me.
Yeah, I'm actually torn between making him the Darklord of the domain I've been working on for my game and letting him just roam free to terrorize the players wherever they may roam.
Oh, and exactly what does this mean?
quote:"Name me twice, call me thrice,
Name the one who'll go away
A knock, a knock, a broken glass
and Tayce shall come to play."
It is, obviously, the summoning "ritual," but how exactly do you say it?
The ritual is slightly vague, intentionally, to let DMs decide just how it works themselves, but for the game I'm going to be using him in, the summoning works like this:
Calling up the Bloodyblades is far simpler than it should be. The poem written on the dagger is actually a riddle, showing the proper way to call the fiend, as well as how to know you've done it right.
To call up the Bloodyblades, all one must do is say,
Tayce! Tayce! Bloodyblades!
Tayce! Tayce! Bloodyblades!
Tayce! Tayce! Bloodyblades!
Come and make [name here] go away!
That's it. That is all it takes to call Tayce from the darkness. If the chant is done correctly, whether or not the person who finished the chant really ment to summon him up, he will arrive the next time the person is inside a structure at night. Once the call has been made, Tayce is bound to answer it, and there will be a knock at the door of only two raps, then the sound of something inside the house, usually a glass or mirror if one is available, shattering. And by these signs you will know he's come...and the killing will start.
It doesn't have to be the door Tayce knocks on. There are tales of raps coming from the windows, the walls, and once even from the floorboards directly beneath the poor fool who called him. The surface isn't the important thing...the rapping is. So is the breaking, which always happens somewhere inside the dwelling where the summoner is. Tayce prefers breaking things that make a lot of noise, like a clay pot, a mirror, or other fragile object, but again, it isn't the object being shattered as it is the shattering itself.
Once Tayce has been called, he is magically bound to perform one service for whoever called him up. Much as he'd like to, he can't attack his summoner until this service has been performed, though as one unlucky caller found out, obviously suicidal services (such as standing in a field during broad daylight, the man was trying to kill Tayce once and for all) can be ignored, and if such a request is made Tayce is freed from his obligation to the summoner (and takes great glee in slowly slaughtering the man who had the gall to think that would actually work to get rid of him). Tayce is effectivly under a geas when called up, but once the service is fullfilled, he doesn't go away. And unless the one who called him up posseses his phylactery, Tayce can and eventually will kill the one who called him up, though he usually decides to delay the person's death until he's killed everyone close to him in a gruesome and horrific manner as punishment.
And, with fear of sounding like a broken record, this is probably the best monster I've ever seen.
Why thank you! :D I've worked on this guy for a while, and the praise is gratifying. BTW, I've posted him on in the Cafe de Nuit, on your reccomendation.
Originally posted by The Stray
Um...I'm rather a RL newbie, so with the exception of Dominic (and Jaqueline to a lesser extent), I recognize none of those names...:embarrass
Don't worry, they're not among the most famous creatures in Ravenloft.
Dominic is, as you know, the Darklord of Dementlieu.
Jaqueline is the leader of the Red Vardo Traders, and due to a freaky Vistani curse hasn't got a head. (She can put on other people's heads cut off with her vorpal sword)
Inajira, the Pariah Fiend, He Who Deceives, etc. is an Arcanaloth fiend trapped in Ravenloft due to a number of unfortunate events. Read Gaz 1 and/or the adventure Roots of Evil (download for free from the WotC site) for more info on him.
Vladimir Ludzig is the vampyre slumlord of... Levkarest, I think, but it might well be another city in Falkovnia.
Lady Kazandra is the current leader of the... Corvia Kargat, methinks. She's a vampire, and perhaps Azalin's most trusted servant.
Yeah, I'm actually torn between making him the Darklord of the domain I've been working on for my game and letting him just roam free to terrorize the players wherever they may roam.
Understandable, as both options are great. You might have a domain where this guy holds complete sway, where all shadows are threats and where everyone lives in fear of Bloodyblades, etc.
Or you can have him as some sort of universal threat in Ravenloft, making players extremely paranoid... aaah, paranoid players make me smile :D
The ritual is slightly vague, intentionally, to let DMs decide just how it works themselves, but for the game I'm going to be using him in, the summoning works like this:
Calling up the Bloodyblades is far simpler than it should be. The poem written on the dagger is actually a riddle, showing the proper way to call the fiend, as well as how to know you've done it right.
To call up the Bloodyblades, all one must do is say,
Tayce! Tayce! Bloodyblades!
Tayce! Tayce! Bloodyblades!
Tayce! Tayce! Bloodyblades!
Come and make [name here] go away!
That's it. That is all it takes to call Tayce from the darkness. If the chant is done correctly, whether or not the person who finished the chant really ment to summon him up, he will arrive the next time the person is inside a structure at night. Once the call has been made, Tayce is bound to answer it, and there will be a knock at the door of only two raps, then the sound of something inside the house, usually a glass or mirror if one is available, shattering. And by these signs you will know he's come...and the killing will start.
It doesn't have to be the door Tayce knocks on. There are tales of raps coming from the windows, the walls, and once even from the floorboards directly beneath the poor fool who called him. The surface isn't the important thing...the rapping is. So is the breaking, which always happens somewhere inside the dwelling where the summoner is. Tayce prefers breaking things that make a lot of noise, like a clay pot, a mirror, or other fragile object, but again, it isn't the object being shattered as it is the shattering itself.
Once Tayce has been called, he is magically bound to perform one service for whoever called him up. Much as he'd like to, he can't attack his summoner until this service has been performed, though as one unlucky caller found out, obviously suicidal services (such as standing in a field during broad daylight, the man was trying to kill Tayce once and for all) can be ignored, and if such a request is made Tayce is freed from his obligation to the summoner (and takes great glee in slowly slaughtering the man who had the gall to think that would actually work to get rid of him). Tayce is effectivly under a geas when called up, but once the service is fullfilled, he doesn't go away. And unless the one who called him up posseses his phylactery, Tayce can and eventually will kill the one who called him up, though he usually decides to delay the person's death until he's killed everyone close to him in a gruesome and horrific manner as punishment.
Thanks. It wouldn't have been much of a problem to come up with something that fits the rhyme, (a good ting) but it's always best to know the creator's original intent.
And, with fear of sounding like a broken record, this is probably the best monster I've ever seen.
Why thank you! :D I've worked on this guy for a while, and the praise is gratifying. BTW, I've posted him on in the Cafe de Nuit, on your reccomendation.
Yeah, I saw it over there, and you'll probably (hopefully) get a lot of responses. This guy truly deserves to be the masterpiece of a netbook.
Understandable, as both options are great. You might have a domain where this guy holds complete sway, where all shadows are threats and where everyone lives in fear of Bloodyblades, etc.
Or you can have him as some sort of universal threat in Ravenloft, making players extremely paranoid... aaah, paranoid players make me smile :D
Hee...that was the general idea of Miir, the City of Living Shadows...:D See, I had this idea for a domain built around a city that was actually alive, and at the same time I had this great monster that stalked the shadows. So I thought "Hey! Why not make one the Darklord of the other?"
But to preserve the terrifying aspects of Tayce's fredom to go anywhere, I'll have to think up a Darklord for Miir, the Living City, and I was also playing with the idea that the city itself is the darklord of it's domain...but that begs another question:
Can a Phantasmagorum be a Darklord?
Especially given the human tragedy inherent in the Gothic setting?
Thanks. It wouldn't have been much of a problem to come up with something that fits the rhyme, (a good ting) but it's always best to know the creator's original intent.
Thanks for thinking along those lines. Honestly, though, when I wrote up this description, I was trying to make it as generic as possible, so it could be as useful as possible to other DMs who'd want to use him but wanted to tweek him for their games.
Also, the rhyme isn't ment to be hard to figure out. That's the whole point. However the DM decides to use it, it should be far too easy to do.
Originally posted by Sedriis
you're character has more depth then jason vorhees thats for sure
:D :D :D :D :D :D
Thaks muchly. I was actually inspired by Candyman and A Nightmare on Elm St., and I like to write, so to hear that is quite gratifying.
For the same reason, although it'd be fairly cool to have a city as a darklord, unless you're going to make it human-turned-city, it might not work. If it is sentient, whoever is the darklord is going to have very close ties to it.
Originally posted by pddisc
Most darklords are cursed to relive their mistakes, and are eternally cursed by pursuing something they will never have. Tayce is a very cool, very RL creature, but I wouldn't make him a darklord. The players have to understand their enemy, maybe even sympathise with their plight, but the actions the darklords have already taken have damned them. Whether it is up to the players to end their misery is another thing, and although the darklords are inevitably miserable, they are always given the hope of redemption, or love, or whatever else it is that they desire, and so won't want to be put out of their misery at all.
For the same reason, although it'd be fairly cool to have a city as a darklord, unless you're going to make it human-turned-city, it might not work. If it is sentient, whoever is the darklord is going to have very close ties to it.
Thank you. Since I wrote the above post, I've already decided not to make Tayce the DL or the Realm I'm creating. I did decide to go with the city-as-Darklord idea...the original Darklord of Miir had a machine built into his tower that would imprint and play back emotions. He used some pretty horrific terror tactics to keep the machine "fed" with emotional resonance that he could, in turn, use to manipulate the emotions of anyone else near him. What hedidn't seem to realize was that the machine was also feeding off of his emotions, and a side effect of the machine addicted him to using the emotional warping power as often as he could. Eventually the machine, having abosrbed his emotions for decades, gained his personality, while the lord himself became an emotionally burned-out husk. This is how the city became "alive." By absorbing the Lord's ambitions, it gained a desire to conquer and dominate an empire, but to keep itself fed it must continually keep the city in a state of near civil war, ensuring that it will never be stable enough to pose a military threat to anything.
For more information on what I've developed about this city, go here
Again, thanks for your input...but I would argue that the very act of becoming a Darklord would be the ultimate extention of Tayce's curse to never be free to do as he wishes...
Tayce is a great npc/DL, who inspired me to create my own "boogeyman" for my campaign. What exactly is the reason of your "bumpy" nature?
No need to bump, my dear stray (heeeeeeeeere kitty kitty kitty :P )
Tayce is a great npc/DL, who inspired me to create my own "boogeyman" for my campaign. What exactly is the reason of your "bumpy" nature?
Purrrrrrrrrrrr...I just felt like bringing some attention to it again...it's been a while and I didn't know how far down it had gotten in the stack. It's good to know he's been inspiring monsters...what was YOUR boogieman like?
First, an introduction. I have been gamer for about 13 years, and DMed for most of them. Back in 2nd ed. I ran a fairly successful Ravenloft campaign, and have always held that setting dear. Also, I rarely post on these threads... I prefer ghosting about a bit and reading other people's stuff... stealing cool ideas and ignoring the rest.
I must say, your Tayce Bloodyblades has rekindled in me a painful desire to get lost in the Mists once again. This personality, this legend I think capture the spirit of Ravenloft better than just about anything I've seen. Kudos to you! What a fabulous monster! Keep up the great work!
Thanks for your work with Tayce. He has now officially found a way into my homebrew campaign!
I gotta go... someone's knocking on my door. Oops... damn... I just dropped my glass of water...
Dear Mr. Stray,
First, an introduction. I have been gamer for about 13 years, and DMed for most of them. Back in 2nd ed. I ran a fairly successful Ravenloft campaign, and have always held that setting dear. Also, I rarely post on these threads... I prefer ghosting about a bit and reading other people's stuff... stealing cool ideas and ignoring the rest.
I must say, your Tayce Bloodyblades has rekindled in me a painful desire to get lost in the Mists once again. This personality, this legend I think capture the spirit of Ravenloft better than just about anything I've seen. Kudos to you! What a fabulous monster! Keep up the great work!
Thanks for your work with Tayce. He has now officially found a way into my homebrew campaign!
I gotta go... someone's knocking on my door. Oops... damn... I just dropped my glass of water...
:D Wow. Thanks! It's always a pleasure to hear that one's creation has inspired someone else...I guess it's time to work on trying to come up with yet another compelling character! :D