101 Preservation Level The potential worth of a given specimen is greatly affected by how long ago it was killed and how well its remains have been kept since. Fresh – Killed within a day, raw and still dripping. Preserved – Most parts can be preserved with a successful Outdoor Survival Test and access to the appropriate materials; e.g., you must have salt, a great deal of brine/alcohol and a sufficient sized urn, a smoke house, etc. A failed Test contaminates the meat, rendering it useless for esoteric purposes. Preservation must be done while the parts are still fresh. While preserved parts may appear to the untrained eye as still ‘acceptable’ they will count as ‘Gamey’ after 6 days, ‘Rotten’ after 9, and worthless after 12 to discerning buyers. It is far more difficult to specifically preserve parts known for their poisons or toxicity. It takes a Difficult (-10) Outdoor Survival Test or a Trade (Poisoner) Test to do so. Gamey – The parts have begun to decay, but are still usable. Unpreserved parts turn Gamey in 2 Days. Rotten – The parts have turned rancid and corrupt. Only Exotic parts still have any value once rotten. Unpreserved parts turn Rotten in 5 days. After 7 days, Rotten parts are totally worthless, degenerating into a corrupt, maggot-filled mass. PRICE MODIFIER Fresh Preserved Gamey Rotten 2X Standard Half 1/8 (only Exotic) Note – Wizards can use the spell Conserve to keep 1 or 2 Encumbrance worth at a Preserved status indefinitely. Attempting to do more can cause disruptions in the Winds and will likely destroy the esoteric properties that make the parts valuable to the majority of buyers. We have all been there. Exhausted from the hunt in a strange locale, with our opportune wealth slowly decaying in a cart — no buyer to speak of. In such cases you must act quickly. If there are no reputable alchemists or apothecaries signposted in the area, seek out local hunters or fishers. Often they will know of some local scholar or poultice slinger who has a vested interest in the strange beasts caught in their traps and nets. If all else fails, and you retain a suitably large portion of a monster’s corpse, you may even find some success in simply pitching your cart in the market, and charging spare brass to let children and curious customers view the grizzly remains. Though a distasteful practice by many, word of such attractions has a habit of travelling through civilised areas at speed, and may just catch the attention of someone with a more meaningful use for the remains.
102 Example: Our heroes have the great, erm… fortune… of encountering (and surviving) a Cockatrice – an Exotic, Large, and very Deadly monster. The base cost for useful Cockatrice parts is thus 6GC and its body holds 4 Encumbrance worth, for a total 24GC. They easily make their Lore Test determining that much of the value is in its infamous eyes, its poisonous talons, and strangely, the burnt ash of other portions of its body. Unfortunately, they are high in the Grey Mountains, far from civilization and they lack the materials to properly preserve the beast. Still determined to get something out of this, it takes the Characters 6 days to haul what’s left to a likely city, by which time it is Rotten; however, since a Cockatrice is an Exotic beast, their efforts are not entirely in vain. If they can quickly find the right buyer, they could still potentially make up to 3GC, though they are very likely to be haggled far lower. Finding a Buyer Unless the Characters know exactly where to look or who to talk to from previous encounters, they’ll have to find a proper ‘market’ for their unusual new ‘wares’. Finding an interested buyer in a Village or Town may be impossible, as there just may be no one interested, but there is nearly always someone looking to buy unusual flesh in the cities of the Empire. It takes an Easy (+40) Gossip Test to find a likely buyer in a City, a Challenging Gossip Test to find one in a Town, and a Very Hard (-30) Gossip Test to find one in a Village. Buyers typically range from apothecaries and alchemists to Wizards, along with wealthier folks interested in trying out rumoured cures or unusual properties attributed to certain creatures. Know that if you are looking to sell off parts of monsters specifically because they are infamously poisonous, your buyers are likely to be unscrupulous sorts and you should plan accordingly. Such buyers may very well be willing to hand over money with no questions asked, but a failed Gossip Test while searching for Criminal buyers will attract the attention of the law. Depending on the circumstances, you may wish to simply run the sell of monster parts like an Endeavour. Alternatively, you may want to create a specific buyer or use a likely NPC, and roleplay out the transaction with all the discussions, counter offers, and haggling that might entail. COMMISSIONED HUNTS Fresh monster parts are obviously hard to come by but, sometimes, they are specifically what a buyer needs and no other material (or level of preservation) will do. In such a case, the buyer typically commissions a specific hunt for the beast and/or parts in question. The prices listed here can give you an idea as to what parts go for and, thus, what a buyer may be willing to offer to a group of Characters willing to undertake such a task. While Wizards can have access to unusual boxes that can preserve items for their purposes, e.g., ‘Once you kill the fen worm, put its liver in this', other folk may want to accompany the Characters, or require that they bring the target alive to a place of their choosing.
103 Unguents Unguents are very similar to the poultices made by herbalists and apothecaries. However, poultices are typically made from soaked plant material and applied topically to a wound or sore, while unguents are usually prepared as a cream or paste containing animal tissue, blood, or other extracts. Unguents made from Fresh or Preserved ingredients can be stored for up to a month before loosing their effect, or in some cases becoming toxic. Unguents made from Gamey ingredients last a week, while Rotten ingredients are completely unsuitable. Unguents may be applied topically, or may be smeared on weapons or armour depending on their effect. Safely applying an unguent to a weapon does not typically require a test. However, to apply an unguent to a bladed or pointed weapon as a single action during combat requires an appropriate Challenging (+0) Melee Test. Failure by -5 SL or more indicates that the user has cut themselves in some way, exposing them to the Unguent exactly as though they had been hit by a weapon coated in it. One Unguent contains sufficient material to coat one weapon or three bolts or arrows. Unguents require the Trade (Alchemist) Skill to prepare, but may be attempted by those with the Trade (Herbalist) skill at a penalty of -20. Raw Raw preparations are exactly what they sound like — one simply chews, swallows, drinks, or otherwise ingests the raw ingredient to benefit from its effects. Occasionally ingredients may be cooked in some way, but this is usually to make them more palatable and has little other effect. Fresh ingredients must be used in raw preparations, which even when cooked rarely last more than a day or two before they spoil. No special skill is required to create or consume a raw preparation, aside from the knowledge of what parts of the beast to consume. The use of the Trade (Cook) or Trade (Poisoner) Skill allows a Character to disguise the taste of unpleasant ingredients, for good or ill. Potions and Unguents Many wizards find uses for the parts of various monsters, typically as spell ingredients or in the process of creating magical items. However, the eyes, bones, bile and blood of such monstrosities has been used in folk remedies and alchemical concoctions for arguably much longer. Alchemists often commission hunts for such useful ingredients, and their particular expertise means they often provide the means of preserving the desired materials as well. Unfortunately, such brews often involve material from the most exotic and dangerous creatures found in the Old World. Some posit that this is because less dangerous creatures were hunted to extinction by the alchemists of old, and only the most lethal monstrosities with useful alchemical properties have survived. Some who have hunted these creatures claim that it is because alchemists take grim pleasure in sending adventurers to their deaths, though such thoughts are normally expressed while raising a toast to dead companions and missing limbs. What follows are a selection of poisons, draughts and unguents that talented herbalists and apothecaries may wish to create. Potions The terms potion and draught are used somewhat interchangeably, but generally speaking draughts are carefully brewed and distilled mixes of herbal ingredients, while the term 'potion' is reserved for mixtures that wholely or mostly consist of blood, organs, or viscera harvested from beasts. Respect for this nuance is hardly universal, but holds true for those who learned their trade in Altdorf. Potions are typically created using the Trade (Alchemist) Skill, or the Trade (Apothecary) skill at a penalty of -20. A properly prepared potion created using fresh ingredients will last for one year in a well sealed glass vial or bottle. Potions made with Preserved ingredients last for six months, while those made with Gamey ingredients last for a month. Rotten ingredients are useless for preparing Potions in most cases.
104 A treated weapon must be used within the hour or the poison will evaporate harmlessly. Blades coated with this venom take on a dappled greenish hue that rarely fades, marking their wielders as extremely untrustworthy. A weapon coated in Flesh Blister which inflicts at least 1 Wound automatically inflicts an additional 1d10 Wounds. Anyone unfortunate enough to consume Flesh Blister in any form must make a Hard (-20) Endurance Test or suffer an immediate Critical Hit to the torso. Longsleep Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Darkwald Mancatcher Venom Sac (1 Enc) The venom of a Darkwald Mancatcher is bad enough just in the creature's bite. However, when properly prepared by an expert, it becomes even more deadly. This poison is almost impossible to detect, applying a -40 penalty to any attempt to do so. If a full dose is imbibed, the victim must pass a Hard (-20) Endurance Test. If they pass, nothing happens. However, if they fail the victim notices nothing amiss save that they become tired a little earlier than usual. At this point it is still possible to save the victim via a powerful antidote or magical means. Once they fall asleep however, it is almost impossible. At this point the victim must make a Hard (-20) Endurance Test. If they fail, they never awaken. To most mundane observations, they will appear to have suffered from some sort of heart failure. It is not known how many important nobles, generals, and other people of note have fallen victim to Longsleep over the years, but it is certain to be far more than commonly thought. Poisons Poisons are popular the world over, and the reason that many important people employ a taster to sample their food and drink before they themselves risk consuming anything. This risky position is often held only for a short while, though an unfortunate few do find that they wind up working as an official taster for the rest of their life. Most poisons are created from herbal ingredients, though quite a few employ venoms extracted from various beasts. The additional effort of harvesting such ingredients is sometimes justified, as antidotes to these poisons are just as hard to create. The Trade (Poisoner) Skill is used in the application of these poisons, estimating the dose required, disguising the taste, and so on. It may also be substituted for Trade (Alchemist or Apothecary) when creating poisons only. Flesh Blister Preparations: Potion, Unguent, Raw Notable Ingredients: Arachnarok Venom Sac (1 Enc) Unlike most animal derived poisons, which are typically concentrated by the alchemist to increase their efficiency, poisons derived from Arachnarok venom must be weakened in order that they can be safely stored and deployed without killing the poisoner. The very touch of this poison is enough to make flesh blister and melt away, and consuming even a dose is almost always lethal. The apothecaries of the Old World have long suffered the indignity of having their craft associated with the vile practice of witchcraft. More than one unfortunate leech-seller has been run out of a village by the very people they were attempting to help. In most civilised areas of the Empire this confusion is rare. However, those apothecaries who dabble in creating alchemical potions and unguents do so at their own risk, as the line between upstanding medical professional and witch becomes blurred indeed. If an apothecary intends to make a habit of creating such concoctions, they would likely be better off becoming a licensed Alchemist (see Winds of Magic) and seeking the protection of the Colleges of Magic or Middenheim's Guild of Wizards and Alchemists. APOTHECARY OR WITCH?
105 Bezoar Solvent Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Goat Stomach (1 Enc) An extremely useful preparation, Bezoar Solvent is named for the stones swallowed by goats to aid with digestion, and which are widely believed to cure any poison. In fact the stones have little effect on their own, and purportedly function as claimed only when combined with powerful magic. Bezoar Solvent is a mixture of alcohol and other liquids, held in a goat's stomach overnight before being distilled into a potion. On its own this does nothing — however, a single drop of any poison will turn this potion into an antidote for that poison. This is naturally extremely useful, though this utility is curtailed by its specificity. The antidote only works if a drop of the exact poison to be treated is used. Similar poisons, even fresh preparations using the same ingredients, are useless. The exact poison must be used. This is not impossible when dealing with the bite of a venomous animal, as the offending creature can often be captured and its venom extracted. However, treating deliberate poisonings is more difficult, as the perpetrator is unlikely to keep any evidence as damning as a sample of the poison they used. Once a drop of the offending poison is added to a potion of Bezoar Solvent, it may not be used to treat any other poison. Adding further poisons simply makes the mixture slightly poisonous itself. Lurek’s Cure Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Blood from a Rhinox or Wolf (1 Enc) Named for a famous diplomat from the Three Emperors Era who was a renowned heavy drinker, but occasionally needed his quickwits to be swiftly returned to working order, this vile stuff can make a stone puke. Made from a combination of various marsh plants and creature parts, it forcibly expels alcohol from the body in a variety of uncomfortable ways, swiftly turning a drinker painfully sober and likely in need of a fresh change of clothing. Within a minute of consumption, any Characteristic penalties due to failed Consume Alcohol Tests or the state of being Stinking Drunk are eliminated. The drinker is thereafter Fatigued for a number of hours equal to 10 minus their Toughness Bonus — nothing but time and rest can eliminate this penalty. Wheeze Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Rhinox Liver (1 Enc) Another difficult to detect poison, Wheeze has never been a terribly popular concoction. For six hours after consuming a dose of Wheeze, the victim becomes extremely easy to fatigue. Even minor tasks should as climbing a ladder or taking a short walk become extremely tiring for even fit individuals. Any task involving even a little physical stimulation causes the victim to gain a Fatigued Condition. Any activity which would normally inflict a Fatigued Condition inflicts two instead. At the end of each hour, the victim may attempt a Challenging (+0) Endurance Test to shake off this effect. If they pass they no longer gain Fatigued Conditions solely due to the effects of the poison — however, any Fatigued Conditions they already had remain until they have rested. Wyvern’s Kiss Preparations: Unguent Notable Ingredients: Wyvern's Sting (2 Enc) A powerful contact poison created using venom directly taken from a Wyvern’s tail stinger sac. Victims who take a Wound from a blade, arrow or bolt coated in Wyvern’s Kiss must succeed at an Endurance Test or immediately take an additional 5 Wounds that ignore Toughness and Armour. As Wyvern’s Kiss dissipates quickly on contact with air, a treated weapon must be used within 2+1d10 Rounds or the poison will evaporate harmlessly. Antidotes For as long as people have been aware of poisons, they have sought antidotes to save themselves from their harmful effects. While antidotes can be created for most poisons, the trick is in knowing which one to apply. This requires a great deal of knowledge of the art of poisoning, and many an apothecary has fallen into the poisoners craft while ostensibly researching how to combat it.
106 Useful Concoctions Detailed below are various concoctions used across the Old World. The details of their creation are often carefully researched secrets known only to a few, though many have survived in folk tales and among the practices of Hedgewitches. A few preparations have been formalised by Alchemists of Altdorf, Middenheim and beyond, though most licensed Wizards see the creation of such brews as beneath their dignity. Bloodblind Preparations: Potion, Raw Notable Ingredients: Stomach bile of a Squig (1 Enc) Most who try Bloodblind do not take it a second time. Though doubtlessly useful, the cost of relying on it is often high. Imbibing this substance grants the user the Painless Creature Trait, allowing them to ignore the effects of most Critical Wounds short of an amputation. Users have been known to fight on when perforated with a dozen arrows, or while deathly pale from blood loss. This effect lasts for one hour, after which it dissipates and the full effect of all the imbiber's wounds come crashing down at once. Note that this does not prevent the user from acquiring a Critical Wound or dying from one. It merely allows them to ignore most of their effects. Carroburg Fire Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Amoebae jelly (2 Enc) At one time, the method by which the Fire-breathers of Carroburg practiced their craft (by imbibing and then spitting out high-proof alcohol) was a carefully held secret. Many alternative explanations were generated, from their having swallowed a small dragon to having consumed a pint of dragon's blood. One particularly credulous alchemist took this latter suggestion at face value, and set about recreating the potion that was supposedly used to achieve this. To the surprise of almost everyone save the rather self assured alchemist herself, the result was a potion which allowed the brave to — very briefly, and at great person risk — breath fire. Two-Headed Tincture Preparations: Potion, Unguent, Raw Notable Ingredients: Amphisbaena blood (1 Enc) A mixture of Ambhisbaena venom taken from each head is commonly cited as a cure for most poisons. This is not entirely true — Amphisbaena can be used to create a powerful antidote, but it is in fact the blood that is the key ingredient. It is said that this is because each head so often bites the other that the blood of the creature becomes a powerful antidote. A preparation of Amphisbaena blood grants a +40 bonus to resist the effects of any poison.
107 Last Gasp Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Wight Bones (1 Enc) If forced down the throat of a corpse no older than a day, this brew returns the body to a brief semblance of life. It can barely move, speaking in a deathly whisper that is barely audible. The former corpse may be asked three questions. It need not answer, but will not lie, similar to the spell Dying Words. Unfortunately, the alchemical concoction is unstable. If the creature is asked only three questions it will return to restful slumber after a few minutes. However, if it is asked a fourth, the body will rise as a Thing from the Dead Wood, hostile to everyone it sees. Liquid Fire Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Great Taurus Blood (1 Enc) Alchemically treated Great Taurus blood comes in small, sealed vials. Pouring it out starts a fire immediately that will catch and burn for a time on any surface, even the marshiest or most frozen, though it will go out eventually without a fuel source. While it is too precious and hard to come by for most to employ it as a weapon, if used in this way treat it as an Incendiary bomb (WFRP page 295.) However, any Ablaze Conditions which result from this attack cannot be put out for 3 rounds, even if the subject becomes completely immersed in water. Preyton's Fury Preparations: Potion, Unguent, Raw Notable Ingredients: Preyton Biled (1 Enc) Preytons are a furious creature, and many myths ascribe various reasons to this fury. One thing is certain however — it is a simple thing to draw out that fury out from their blood. By imbibing this potion, the user immediately becomes subject to Frenzy (WFRP page 190.) This Frenzy lasts 1d10 Rounds, and may not be ended sooner. After consuming the potion, the imbiber gains the Breath +10 (Fire) Creature Trait. (WFRP page 338) They may activate this trait once without spending any advantage to do so, after which the effects of the potion end. Immediately after making breathing fire, the user must make a Hard (-20) Endurance Test. If they fail, they gain an Ablaze Condition. Given the potion's cost and substantial drawbacks, the Firebreathers of Carroburg continue to rely on their tried and true methods during their performances. Clearmind Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Blood of a Horned One (1 Enc) Rare due to the difficulty of acquiring the necessary ingredients, this mixture has the effect of strengthening the mind of the imbiber, allowing them to make decisions requiring cold, rational thought that might be clouded by emotion. However, those unused to it find that they often struggle to react quickly when surprised. On consuming this potion, the imbiber gains the Cold-blooded Creature Trait and may reverse any failed Willpower based Tests. If they gain a Surprised Condition, this Condition is not lost the first time it should be (which is typically at the end of the Round or if they victim is attacked). Forge Shield Preparations: Unguent Notable Ingredients: Dreadmaw Slime (1 Enc) This gelatinous substance is derived from Dread Maw slime and occasionally used by Dwarfs when they must deal with particularly hot substances, or a Dragon. Coating oneself and gear with it effectively makes one temporarily immune to some of the ill effects of fire. A single jar’s worth offers AP 4 against damage from fire of any sort, including magical, and immunity to the Ablaze Condition. The user also suffers a -20 penalty to their Agility and Initiative, however, due to the ongoing efforts they must put in to not lose their footing to the slippery stuff. The contents of a single jar lasts for an hour, though it can be removed earlier with alcohol.
108 Seer Snake Liquor Preparations: Potion, Unguent, Raw Notable Ingredients: Amphisbaena Venom (1 Enc) An exceedingly powerful brew distilled using small amounts of Amphisbaena venom, which supposedly causes an imbiber to have accurate visions of past and future events. The drinker has no control over what they perceive, if anything, leaving any information imparted to the GM’s discretion. An imbiber must take a Consume Alcohol Test. If they succeed, as a result of whatever potential futures they glimpse, they can spend a Fortune Point within the next hour to reverse the dice of any failed Test. Stag's Ward Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Great Stag Kidney or Liver (1 Enc) A potion crafted from the organs of a Great Stag, it is often confusingly referred to as a universal antidote. However, Stag's Ward is completely useless in the treatment of poisons that have already been consumed. Instead the potion comes in to its own when used before the imbiber has been exposed to a poison, natural or otherwise. For one hour after consuming this preparation the imbiber is immune to all Poisoned Conditions, along with any other effect of a poison. The Great Stag is considered sacred to many, most especially the Eonir of the Laurelorn and their cousins in Athel Loren. Those known for creating this potion are often marked for death by Wood Elves who learn of it. Spite Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Chimera Blood (1 Enc) A legendary and infamous tincture, supposedly derived from Chimera blood mixed with many exotic ingredients and strong Dwarf ale, this substance turns a drinker’s blood into a deadly weapon. A drinker must make a Difficult (-10) Endurance Test. If they succeed, for a number of rounds equal to 3+ their SL, they have the Corrosive Blood Creature Trait. If they fail, they acquire 2 Poisoned Conditions. Any being with the Bestial Creature Trait that bites them and takes damage will not bite them again during a hostile encounter, though the creature may still attack them in other ways. Razorburn Preparations: Potion, Unguent Notable Ingredients: Razorgore Bile (1 Enc) A potent and corrupt form of natural naphtha made from the tainted vital fluids found within Razorgors. Razorburn is used to make particularly insidious flammable explosives. Incendiary bombs made with Razorburn create unnatural flames that sear the spirit as readily as flesh and count as a Magical attack. An unguent of Razorburn may be smeared on any weapon and set alight, granting the weapon the ability to inflict a single Ablaze Condition with each strike. The fire lasts for 1d10 rounds, during which time the weapon also counts as Magical. Use of Razorburn as a weapon is considered heretical by many faiths of the Old World, especially the Cult of Morr who have seen first hand the pathetic spiritual remains that emerge from those killed by the substance. In some provinces the punishment for being caught with a vial is to be burned at the stake. Naturally, the confiscated Razorburn is used to start the fire.
109 Tide Blood Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Merwyrm Blood (1 Enc) One of the most infamous ‘curatives’ in the Old World, Tide Blood’s main ingredient is blood taken from the liver of a mature Merwyrm as well as bits of other organs, and hence its name. It has phenomenally powerful regenerative qualities — it is also, conversely, highly toxic. The imbiber immediately takes 3 Poisoned Conditions that cannot be resisted at first, recovers a number of Wounds equal to their Toughness Bonus, and acquires the Regenerate Creature Trait. It’s then up to Ranald if their regenerating can outpace their poisoning. When all Poisoned Conditions are lost, so too is Regenerate. Troll Acid Preparations: Potion, Raw Notable Ingredients: Troll Bile (1 Enc) The exceedingly caustic secretions of a Troll’s digestive system are generally transported and sold via specially treated flasks. Used by alchemists, wizards, smiths for engraving, and precision cutting in difficult to reach places by engineers, it is slow to lose its potency and users of it are rightfully wary, or swiftly lack a few fingers. A single flask’s worth can ‘eat through’ 8 Encumbrance of Equipment and causes a base +9 Damage, along with the Penetrating Quality and the Dangerous Flaw if employed as a crude weapon. A 'Potion' of troll acid is really just the raw bile — the work goes into preparing a bottle of sufficient quality to hold the stuff. To use its 'raw' form one must either have a highly inconvenienced troll nearby, or have cut out its gallbladder or stomach to act as a container. If tavern tales are to believed this is a dangerous practice, as trolls are said to be able to regenerate from even a scrap of unburned flesh.
110 Treemeld Preparations: Unguent Notable Ingredients: Chameleoleech Flesh (2 Enc) Treemeld is occasionally prepared and used by the Wood Elves when even their vaunted forestcraft is insufficient to hide them from especially perceptive prey. Slathered on to any surface, it slowly takes on the appearance of the surroundings, allowing the user to blend in far more easily. It does stink rather fantastically, however, so is usually used to stalk those who lack a refined sense of smell, such as human intruders to the woods. Despite the name, Treemeld works just as well in any other environment, with the users skin taking on the grey of cut stone or the mottled browns of an Imperial midden just as well as the lush green of the forest. The smell remains a problem, but by the standards of most Empire cities it is not particularly remarkable. Covering oneself fully in Treemeld grants the user a bonus of +40 to any Stealth Tests that rely on sight. More conservative use, such as only covering one's face and hands, grants a +10 bonus and only uses a quarter of a dose. Veinpowder Preparations: Potion, Unguent Notable Ingredients: Nightraven Talon (1 Enc) Though not as commonly used as Faxtoryll, in places where the herb is rare this mixture is sometimes used to treat severe bleeding. When prepared as an unguent, it may be smeared on a wound to remove all Bleeding Conditions without the need for a Heal Test. When prepared as a potion its effect is less dramatic, but more prolonged. After imbibing a potion of Veinpowder, a Character may remove one Bleeding Condition at the end of each of their Rounds. This effect lasts for one hour, and is occasionally used by pit fighters and other professional brawlers in advance of a particularly challenging fight. Using Veinpowder in either form can be dangerous however. If a Character uses a second potion or unguent while already under the effects of an earlier dose of Veinpowder, they must make a Challenging (+0) Endurance Test or lose 1d10 Wounds and gain a Fatigued Condition, as their blood begins to thicken in their veins. A secondary, and far less well known use for Veinpowder potions is in battling Vampires and other Undead. The blood of those under the effect of Veinpowder provides no sustenance to Vampires and other creatures with the Vampiric Trait. These creatures do not heal any Wounds when biting victim who has recently consumed a potion of Veinpowder. Always you are ask me about exciting formulas, theo! A potion for fire breathing, or an acid to melt any metal. Do you know that there are myriad other uses for the alchemical arts? It is not glamorous, but did you know that certain amoebae may be refined into a useful substance for caulking boats? Many diseases can also be cured by finding the right mixture. Many... though not all.
111 Witchbane Preparations: Potion Notable Ingredients: Dreadmaw Tooth (2 Enc) The Dreadmaw is a horrific beast, and much ink has been spilled on their exploits. They have been known to devour many greater beasts alive, and from the inside. Such is their voracity that they consume not merely flesh, but whatever essence of the winds of magic themselves is wrapped up instead their target. It is this trait which Alchemists exploit when they create the potion known as Witchbane. Using ground up teeth taken from the creature, a potion is created which grants the imbiber some measure of protection from magic. After consumption, the user gains the Magic Resistance 3 Creature Trait, reducing the SL of any spell affecting it by 3. This effect lasts for one hour. Multiple doses may be consumed at once, with each one adding an additional 1 to the Magic Resistance rating and increasing the duration by one hour. It is said that, should enough be consumed, the effect may even become permanent. This is ill advised, however. For each dose consumed after the first the imbiber must make a Challenging (+0) Endurance Test. If they fail, they begin to ooze the thick, poisonous slime that coats every Dreadmaw. They receive one Poisoned Condition each round, as does anyone touching them without taking appropriate protective measures such as the use of thick gloves. This lasts for ten Rounds, after which, if they are still alive, the effect ends and all Poisoned Conditions gained from this effect are removed. Item Cost Avail. Forms POISONS Flesh Blister 3GC Rare Potion, Unguent Longsleep 3GC Rare Potion Wheeze 1GC 10/- Rare Potion Wyvern's Kiss 12GC Exotic Potion, Unguent ANTIDOTES Bezoar Solvent 10/- Scarce Potion Laurek's Curse 1GC Scarce Potion Two-Headed Tincture 4GC 10/- Exotic Potion, Unguent CONCOCTIONS Bloodblind 1GC Rare Potion Carroburg Fire 1GC 10/- Rare Potion Clearmind 3GC Rare Potion Forge Shield 18GC Rare Unguent Last Gasp 15 GC Exotic Potion Liquid Fire 6GC Rare Potion Preyton's Fury 9GC Rare Potion, Unguent Razorburn 1GC 10/- Rare Potion, Unguent Seer Snake Liquor 4GC 10/- Rare Potion, Unguent Stag's Ward 3GC Rare Potion Spite 27GC Rare Potion Tide Blood 18GC Rare Potion Treemeld 3GC Rare Unguent Troll Acid 3GC Rare Potion Veinpowder 1GC Rare Potion, Unguent Witchbane 36GC Rare Potion Poisons, Antidotes, & Concoctions
112 Weapons & Armour From swords quenched in dragon blood to arrows fletched with Griffon feathers, the creatures of the Old World provide many useful ingredients to the creation of useful, magical weapons and ammunition. Some of these require the intervention of magic, while others merely require a skilled artisan with the appropriate Trade Skill to create. Mundane Items The rules for creating mundane items such as weapons and armour maybe found on WFRP pages 197–198. These items are rare enough that they are almost never available for sale, and their creation must be commissioned by a suitably skilled artisan. This is, in fact, a good starting point for an adventure. In addition to the usual requirements, the more exotic components harvested from dangerous monsters will typically have to be acquired by the Characters themselves. Eagle Shank Type: Dagger Notable Ingredients: Great Eagle Talon (Enc 1) The Dwarfs of the Grey Mountains will occasionally take one of the claws of a particularly large Great Eagle they’ve slain and turn it into a weapon. While the claws do make for exceptional ‘blades’ in the hands of a Dwarf smith, they do it mainly to antagonise the Wood Elves of Athel Loren. I am told by those who know a little of dwarf smithery, but not a lot, that it is strange to see a dwarf smith working with anything other than metal or, at a stretch, well dried oak. In fact this is balderdash — the practice of incorporating the useful parts of beasts into weaponry is an ancient practice, and a respectable one. Fell Dagger Type: Dagger Notable Ingredients: Cockatrice Talon (Enc 1) A weapon favoured by assassins and unscrupulous pit fighters, Fell Daggers are often crafted from a Cockatrice’s talon. They are typically used rarely, as they are relatively brittle and prone to breaking, but they naturally exude a deadly poison. Victims that take at least 1 Wound from a Fell Dagger immediately take a Poisoned Condition resisted with a Difficult (-10) Endurance Test. Each time the blade is used, the GM should secretly roll a d10. On a 1, its poison has run dry, and the next time it is employed it will shatter. Fell Daggers are illegal in all provinces of the Empire.
113 Leviathan Plate Type: Plate Armour Notable Ingredients: Leviathan Scale or Carapace (1 Enc per Enc of armour piece to be created) The term Leviathan refers to all sorts of massive sea creatures, but most have some form of armour, be it incredibly thick scales or the shell of beasts such as Il Potente Granchio. Though the slaying of such creatures is rare, the Imperial Navy does occasionally manage it, and some individual Leviathan do occasionally shed their scales. Regardless, armour crafted from such materials is sought after, especially once it has been rendered free from the stench of rotten fish. Though bulky it is surprisingly light, which is perhaps to be expected from the outer layer of a creature that must float for most of its life. Leviathan Plate armour weighs one Enc less than standard metal plate armour. Antler Hilted Blade Type: Hand Weapon Notable Ingredients: Great Stag Antler (Enc 1) Occasionally found among the hunters of Talabheim, but more often in the hands of Wood Elves, a blade mounted in a hilt of antler taken from the Great Stag enjoys certain benefits. This effect varies, depending on how the antler was obtained. Stags, even Great Stags, shed their antlers yearly. Even so, they are vanishingly rare. A sword using such a hilt will never break in battle. It may rust, crack, bend or even be shattered from a fall outside of battle, but it will never break when its wielder is using it. It is theorised that this echoes the essence of the often violent locking of antlers that goes on between male Stags in the autumn. If the antler was acquired by violence, a sword mounted on a hilt made from it will always inflict one Bleeding Condition on both its wielder and its victim every time it is used to inflict a Critical Wound. The blade carries with it an echo of the violence committed against one of Taal's chosen creatures, and it behaves accordingly. Dragonblood Quench Type: Any Melee Weapon Notable Ingredients: Dragon blood (1 Enc per Enc of weapon) Not a weapon in its own right, but rather a material which can enhance the forging of any metal weapon. During the forging process, smiths often use a liquid to quickly cool a piece shortly after it is removed from the heat of the forge. This sudden cooling is known as quenching, and it hardens the item substantially. Though exceptionally expensive, Dragon blood can be used to quench any weapon during the forging process. This imbues the weapon with some of the great beast's permanence. Any weapon treated in this way gains the Durable Quality without requiring any additional SL during its creation, and results in a blade that will never lose its edge. It is said that some materials worked by the best Dwarf and Elf smiths can only be quenched in this way. If this is the case, the secret is not known to any human artisans.
114 Ammunition Arrows and bolts often integrate components from rare beasts to improve their performance. Beyond the obvious method of applying poison derived from dangerous venoms to a weapon, other methods can also yield results. Griffon Fletching Type: Arrows or bolts Notable Ingredients: Griffon Feathers (12 per 1 Enc) Often created by the master-fletchers of Ostermark and employed by the very best hunters, these arrows act as Elf Arrows and are greatly prized. Shard Tips Type: Arrows or bolts Notable Ingredients: Shard Dragon Scales (12 per 1 Enc) The razor sharp scales that cover the bestial Shard Dragons, which are occasionally encountered in the deep tunnels beneath the world, make dangerous tips for an arrow or bolt. They are impossibly sharp, and when damaged the cutting edge merely flakes away to leave an equally razor sharp point behind. Any attack with such ammunition which inflicts at least one Wound, also inflicts one Bleeding Condition. Item Cost Type Avail. WEAPONS Eagle Shank 8GC Dagger Rare Fell Dagger 8GC Dagger Exotic Antler Hilted Blade 6GC- Hand Weapon Rare Dragonblood Quench 20GC/ Enc Special Exotic AMMUNITION Griffon Fletching (12) 1GC Arrows/Bolts Rare Tregara Sap (6) 4GC Arrows/Bolts Rare Shard Tips (12) 3GC Arrows/Bolts Rare Prices for Weapons and Ammunition Tregara Sap Type: Arrows or bolts Notable Ingredients: Tregara Sap (6 per 1 Enc) The ichor that Tregara use to repair their shells is kept in tightly sealed earthen jars, as once a jar is opened it starts hardening upon contact with the air. One jar holds enough ‘sap’ to coat up to 6 crossbow bolts, which must then be used within a day for the hardening sap will shiver the bolts rendering them useless. Crossbow bolts so treated acquire the Penetrating Quality.
115 WIZARD'S WORK To create a magical item, a Character must have the Lore (Magick) Skill as well as the Arcane Lore Talent. This is not an effort to be undertaken lightly, as outside the armouries of powerful nations such as the Empire, magical items are rare indeed and possessing one is certain to draw unwelcome attention. When using the Crafting Endeavour, creating a magical item typically requires 20 SL on the Extended Test (WFRP, page 198). When crafting an item that requires using another Trade Skill, such as a magical blade requiring Trade (Smith), the Wizard in question must make both a Very Hard (–30) Lore (Magic) Test and an appropriate Trade Test with a Difficulty set by the rarity of the item being made. For example, Hand Weapons are Common and therefore would require an Average (+20) Trade Test. It is acceptable for a Wizard and a suitable artisan to collaborate when creating an artefact, each focusing on their own specialty. However, in this case, both Characters must spend a Crafting Endeavour to work together. Once the Character has made both Tests, add the SL of only the lower result to the running total for the Extended Test. Once you have achieved the required number of SL, the item is ready. While the typical SL required to create a magic item is 20, gathering the correct ingredients can make this somewhat easier. This is reflected in the SL provided alongside each item. Bone Smasher Type: Warhammer SL to Create: 18 Notable Ingredients: Stegadon Bones (3 Enc) The head of this hammer has the powdered bone of a great beast used in its forging, and each time the hammer falls their mighty bellows can be heard. If the hammer is used to strike an opponent dead, these bellows rise to a deafening crescendo. Every living creature within 10 yards, other than the wielder of the hammer, must make a Challenging (+0) Endurance Test or gain a Deafened Condition and suffer 1d10 Wounds which bypass armour but not Toughness Bonus. Magical Items Creating a magical item is not dissimilar to creating a mundane one, though different skills are required. The rules for creating magical weapons, armour, and other items are full explored in Archives of the Empire II, but a few example items are explored here, and the basic rules for creating new items can be found under Wizard's Work on the right. The Difficulty of the Lore (Magic) Test may be lowered by seeking out particularly obscure and exotic ingredients — a Giant’s stomach bile, skin from a Razorgore, and so on. Once the Crafting Endeavour is complete, you may proceed to the next step. The creation of any magic item requires starting from the raw materials. It is not possible to permanently enchant an existing piece of armour or weapon, as the magic must be imbued into the item during the crafting process. Weapons The very concept of magical items is so wound up with weaponry that one might be forgiven in thinking that no other form of arcane object might exist. There are several magical weapons at large in the Empire, by far the most well known being Ghal Maraz, the Emperor's own Hammer inherited from Sigmar, and the Runefangs wielded by the Elector Counts. Though such grand weapons loom large, there are many lesser blades, hammers, and so on in the hands of nobles — and the occasional lucky vagabond — across the Empire.
116 Clothing and Armour While magical armour is more popularly known, there are several examples of magical clothing that provides little protection beyond whatever magic has been woven into it. Throttler's Gloves Type: Gloves SL to Create: 19 Notable Ingredients: Giant Ligaments (1 Enc) Imbued with the raw might of the Giant whose ligaments were sewn together to create these grisly garments, wearing a pair of Throttlers Gloves grants something approximating the strength of a much larger creature. For the purposes of Opposed Strength Tests and similar rolls only, the wearer counts their size as one step larger than it actually is. Typically, this will allow the wearer to Overpower most similarly sized opponents easily — see WFRP page 341 for more on the effects of Size on such Tests. Wulfshawl Type: Cloak SL to Create: 15 Notable Ingredients: Pelt of a Chimera (2 Enc) Created from a Chimera that troubled Middenheim through several winters, Wulfshowl was created from the beasts carcass and imbued with magic in the hopes that any future attacks by similar beasts might be more easily repelled. Wulfshowl appears to be a typical wolfs pelt, though close observation will show that beneath fur lie iridescent scales. The wearer of the cloak causes Fear 2 in Wolves, Lions, Goats, and Chimeras. Presumably if other examples of this cloak were created, the effect would extend to whatever animals made up that particular beast. Silence Type: Hand Weapon (Sword) or Dagger SL to Create: 15 Notable Ingredients: Siren Hair (1 Enc) Blades of this sort have been forged on many occasions, though among those who know of their history it is considered terribly unlucky to do so. The blade itself must be well made, imbued with various rare minerals and special powders to hold the winds of magic within it. In addition the hilt must be hollow, and stored within it should be a lock of Siren hair. It was long said that this should be freely given, but this has since been proven to be unnecessary. Once forged, the blade cuts deep and true, gaining the Damaging Quality. However, the user is unable to speak while wielding the weapon, or indeed utter any sound at all. Though their footsteps and other incidental noises can be heard, no attempt to talk, scream, or otherwise cry out will be audible. This also applies to anyone wounded by the weapon, no matter how grievous the injury. If the hair used to make the sword was freely given, there is no other effect. However, if it was taken by force, the wielder may not make use of the Luck Talent while holding or wearing Silence. Wightseer Type: Shield SL to Create: 14 Notable Ingredients: Wight Bones (2 Enc) A shield created using the powdered corpses of Wights, this item grants the bearer the ability to see any Undead creature as they looked in life. This removes the Fear Trait of any Undead, unless whatever creature they were in life would naturally have this Trait. This effect does not grant any special ability to communicate or command such creatures — it merely shows how they looked just prior to their deaths. However, this is something of a double edged sword, as it can also make it difficult to identify opponents in the midst of battle. There are several tales of warriors who used the shield turning on their erstwhile companions, shouting encouragement to the very people they were striking down.
117 U n u sual Ite m s While much ink is spilled on the matter of magical arms and armour, wizards have found use for all sorts of magical devices. The Last Toast Type: Cup SL to Create: 18 Notable Ingredients: Skull of a Thing from the Dead Wood Created by binding Shyish into the skull of certain kinds of Undead, if the Cult of Morr knew of these items they would take special care in hunting down and destroying each and every one. By drinking from the cup — any liquid will do — the imbiber becomes able to perceive spirits, ghosts, and other ethereal entities not normally visible to them and who have not yet passed through Morr's gate. Users may also hear and converse with these entities, who will perceive the user as a spirit much like themselves. This effect lasts for one minute, though it may be extended by taking further sips from the skull. Once the effect ends however, the trouble frequently starts. From the spirits perspective, another entity like themselves will in one moment be talking with them, and in the next fade away and seem to become corporeal again. This has led to many misunderstandings, the most common being that the skull has some means of restoring the dead to life. This frequently leads to the owner of the skull being haunted by an increasing number of spirits, many of whom eventually turn hostile at the users refusal to share the secret of 'returning to life'. The Thristy Stone Type: Ruby, often set into a ring or amulet SL to Create: 19 Notable Ingredients: A Ruby taken from the body of a great Shard Dragon, such as La Fantasma Created by magics first perfected by a Brettonian duke, this stone seems to absorb any blood spilled on it. In return, it grants the wearer the Ward 9+ Creature Trait for 1d10 Turns. However, the Stone is insatiable. If the wearer gains a Bleeding Condition they must immediately make a Challenging (+0) Endurance Test. If they fail, the stone begins to feed on them, attaching itself to their skin like a leech. Until the stone is forcibly removed by an Average (+20) Strength Test, the Bleeding Condition cannot be removed.
118 his gore-spattered tunic, the light of my lantern afforded a clear view of his back. His old scars didn’t look like scars anymore. They resembled something else entirely. ‘Where will you go?’ I asked quietly. ‘North,’ he replied. ‘Back to Ostermark then? Kislev?’ ‘North.’ I looked to my desk, where my sheathed sword rested, and then to the mark on his back. Sigmar forgive me, but I could not do it. He finally found an old shirt that barely fit. ‘Theo, you are good fighter and even better friend. Should you see me on a battlefield in the future, you run, da?’ He did not look at me as he left. I learned soon after that he had butchered six men during that ‘little brawl’. Jorunn had not fared so well during our journey, saying that her joints were greatly troubling her. She was so stiff at times that Erich had to rub some life into her limbs. Necessity has made him a deft hand at the healing arts over the years we’ve travelled together. She told me that she would finish my promised chapter, but thought it might be a few weeks. I told her to take her time. I’d decided to include it in a new work I was thinking about, a more practical volume than the highly scholarly tome expected by the Zoo, the University, and Herr Massenbach. I finished the commissioned book and turned it over. The professors who read the final draft were highly impressed, Afterword At the end of our time in Tilea, my surviving compatriots and I took a fast ship bound for Marienburg. The voyage was uneventful, but I doubt I would’ve noticed if it were otherwise, for I was lost in grief. When we reached the great trading port, Lynathryn announced it was time to return to Laurelorn Forest. I asked the Elf when we would next meet. They regarded me with those beautiful eyes for a very long time before answering. ‘I doubt we will, Theodosius Schreiber. I have seen the state of this world, and it is faltering. I return to report to my Queen and then await the end in the home I love.’ I tried for a lighthearted response, ‘Which end would that be?’ The hunter’s smile was heartbreaking. ‘The last one.’ I began writing what would be the final chapters of the book commissioned by the Imperial Zoo as we sailed up the Reik to Altdorf. They were slow going, as my heart was not truly in the work. The faculty at both the Zoo and Altdorf University were thrilled by our return and filled with questions about the journey and what we saw in Tilea. Only Warnicke commiserated with us over the loss of Kistiane. Two weeks after our return to Altdorf, I was awoken late at night by a persistent knocking. A blood-soaked Ghorshkov stood in the doorway of my flat. He claimed that he had gotten into a ‘little brawl’ and the time had come for him to take his leave. I set him to rummaging for some clothes that would fit and, failing that, maybe cutting one of my old cloaks to suit. As he took off
119 ‘Will you help me take her home?’ was all I asked. ‘Of course,’ he replied, through tears. I write these words in the Grand Loremasters Hall of Karak Ziflin. The Dwarfs have been kind. They have given me time and space to finish this book. I have assembled Erich’s magnificent art, my rough travel journals, my notes, and the comments of my friends into the volume that now lies before you. Jorunn Gromsdottir’s final labor has been attached to this. I hope you find this work of value. There are many that would see truth crushed, but I believe the shadows grow overlong in the Old World, and we must fight against ignorance and deception. Erich has broken from his father and intends to take vows with the Shallyans. For my part, I will return to my family and resume the duties I abandoned. While I hope my choice will help me to do many things of greater value, it also has the useful effect of allowing me to publish this rough volume in a way that it cannot be suppressed. I know of a fearless publisher in Altdorf, and a noble is not so easily stopped as a penniless scribe. I am so very tired of lies. In Sigmar’s name, I will tolerate them no more. but greatly disturbed by some of the entries, especially the chapter on Skaven. Nevertheless, they committed to its publication. Over three thousand copies were printed on the Altdorf University Press. The day it was to be released, Warnicke called me to her office at the Zoo. She told me the entire print run had been impounded by agents of the Komission of the Imperial Archives accompanied by several Witch Hunters. Apparently, they had some questions for me. Warnicke told them she didn’t know where I resided. As fate would have it, a message awaited me when I returned to my flat. Jorunn had sent a courier: ‘It is finished. Come collect it.’ Jorunn had rented a room above a small apothecary shop run by a colleague of hers. She did not answer her door, but I found it unlocked. Her neatly handwritten pages were bound and awaiting me on her desk, along with a small note. ‘I keep my oaths. Do not mourn, Theo. I’ve found the cure at last.’ Her body was on the bed. Spars of crimson-purple crystal thrust out of the joints of her hands, her legs, one eye. She was a skilled apothecary; I hope whatever she took was painless. Erich arrived not long after. I looked at his bandaged hands, cut to shreds by Jorunn’s crystallised, mutant blood, and wondered how long he had helped her keep her secret. Baron Tobias ‘Theo’ Ulster von Loningbruck
120 Expected Expeditions The Imperial Zoo itself is a fine patron for any would be adventurers. It has ample reason to send people out to dangerous hinterlands in search of all sorts of beasts. It is in Altdorf, which has ever been a melting pot of people of all backgrounds, and so very diverse parties can be accommodated. Campaigns built around furnishing the Zoo with creatures to entertain the crowds also has the added wrinkle that these beasts must be brought back alive, which in general is far more difficult that simply slaying an unwanted monster. Pit-fighting rings have a constant need for new beasts, though this is certainly less glamorous than furnishing a respected Institute of Zoology. In Tilea the practice is more respectable, especially if working for an institution such as the Grand Coliseum in Miragliano. Fresh Meat When calculating how much a live beast is worth, you may use the figures provided on pages 99-101 to create a rough estimate based on how much useful material the creature would provide if it were all harvested and preserved. For the additional difficult of returning the creature alive, you may multiply this final figure by 10 — perhaps more if a trip overseas was called for. For example, using this method a Griffon, being Rare (1 GC per Enc), Enormous (8 Enc of useful materials), and Hazardous (a 1 X multiplier), would be worth 80 Gold Crowns if returned alive to an interested buyer. This may seem low, especially given the price of a well-trained war horse, but bear in mind that Griffons must be raised from birth to have any chance of taming one. A wild Griffon will never be anything more than an interesting curiosity, which will happily rip your throat out should you come too close. Of course, some beasts are worth far more alive than the sum of their parts, and these prices remain entirely up to the GM. The costs involved in capturing, storing, and transporting such creatures is very high, and payments must be split among all involved. Still, a game in which the Characters make a substantial amount of money by tracking and capturing dangerous animals is unlikely to be dull, at least not in the short term. This book presents a selection of the Old World’s creatures through the writings of Theodosius 'Theo' Schreiber, presenting these beasts as he and his comrades encountered them during their expeditions, sharing their views and collecting the stories told by troubled locals. Not everything Herr Schreiber recorded is strictly true, but it does reflect the legends and stories people tell of these creatures. Hopefully, having read of these expeditions, you will find yourself inspired to undertake some travels of your own. Those seeking to brave the wilds of the Empire and beyond, though, should keep a few things in mind. Patrons of Prominence While there are many ways to drag an adventuring party together, a tried and true method is to find a patron who can make gainful use of a band of vagabonds and place the Characters in their employ. For a game focused on the beasts of the Old World, there are several obvious choices for this role. THE IMPERIAL ZOO The great Imperial Zoological Garden of Altdorf sits on Goellner Hill. It houses many strange and exotic plants and creatures from across the Old World and beyond. A high stone wall with sturdy wooden gates encloses and protects the gardens. A hastily scrawled notice nailed to the gate reads: ‘Wanted, gryphon and dragon eggs, highest prices paid.’ It is unclear whether this is a request from the management, or a very mischievous prank. From the gate, a long walled corridor leads to the zookeeper’s cottage in the centre of the complex, which provides access to all the enclosures. There are Arabyan Zedoncs, Lustrian Tiguanas, Bretonnian Pegasi, Tilean Murs, Estalian Bordles, Baffins from across the Great Ocean, and even reptilian creatures from Lustria. Deathclaw, the Emperor’s famous battle mount, is sometimes displayed here. But the mighty Griffon inevitably gets restless for campaign, and eats the other exhibits. The Imperial Dragon is also housed here occasionally, but utterly resents the indignity.
121 Wanted, Dead If the idea of carting back dangerous beasts while keeping them fed and safely contained seems too arduous, there is always the option of bringing them back in pieces rather than peacefully. As seen earlier in this book, many dangerous beasts make for useful Alchemical ingredients, and a wealthy Apothecary could serve as an employer. Equally the Gold College, which has formalised many Alchemical practices, has a constant need for new and unusual ingredients. Local Heroes Of course, Characters taking up the evergreen practice of slaying troublesome monsters for profit is always an option. Communities across the Empire are plagued by creatures from the deep woods. With official assistance sometimes far away or even insensate to the troubles of minor villages, these communities must often rely on the services of mercenaries and other sellswords. While such pursuits are often rewarding as a brief distraction for a larger adventure, they can make an interesting adventure on their own if the GM is inventive. Perhaps creatures are being pushed out of their usual habitats in the deep woods by an even greater danger? Perhaps a group of local Nobles have released the creatures into the area to hunt for sport, heedless to the trouble they will cause for locals? There are many opportunities to make such adventures more interesting than simple monster hunts. Being Mindful of Maps The map of the Empire provided at the back of this book is more than enough to plan interesting expeditions into the wilds of the Empire. If you are looking for more detail, information on the Grand Province of the Reikland can be found in the WFRP Core Rulebook and the WFRP Starter Set. Middenheim and it’s surrounds have been detailed in Middenheim: City of the White Wolf, and the Nordland city of Salzenmund is explored in the book of the same name. Future WFRP products will take adventurers even further afield. Keeping Things Interesting The single most useful thing to bear in mind when running any campaign is that keeping the focus on the Characters will, as if by magic, keep things interesting. By building a game around the Characters, their personal goals and struggles, the players are almost certain to have a good time. As grim and perilous as the Old World is, everyone wants their time in the spotlight, be it to grasp victory or perish tragically on the cusp of redemption. Getting Started Tot his end, on the following pages you will find pre-generated Character sheets packed with secrets and intrigue, suitable for immediate play. Each depicts one of the members of the expeditions whose exploits you have been reading. They make an interesting addition to any party intent on searching the wilds for beasts to drag back to the Imperial Zoo.
Name: Erich Massenbach Age: 21 Species: Human Status: Silver 3 Career: Artist Player: Career Path: Artist ERICH MASSENBACH ARTIST CHARACTERISTICS WS BS S T I Ag Dex Int WP Fel Initial 24 29 31 38 38 29 39 31 30 36 Advances 5 5 5 5 Current 24 29 36 38 43 29 44 31 30 41 BASIC SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Art (Painting) Dex 44 10 54 Athletics Ag 29 29 Bribery Fel 41 41 Charm Fel 41 41 Charm Animal WP 30 30 Climb S 36 5 41 Cool WP 30 8 38 Consume Alcohol T 38 5 43 Dodge Ag 29 29 Drive Ag 29 29 Endurance T 38 5 43 Entertain Fel 41 41 Gamble Int 31 31 Gossip Fel 41 15 56 Haggle Fel 41 5 46 Intimidate S 36 36 Intuition I 43 5 48 Leadership Fel 41 41 Melee (Basic) WS 24 24 Melee WS 24 24 Navigation I 43 43 Outdoor Survival Int 31 31 Perception I 43 10 53 Ride Ag 29 29 Row S 36 36 Stealth Ag 29 29 FATE Fate 4 Fortune 4 RESILIENCE Resilience Resolve Motivation 2 2 Master your craft MOVEMENT Movement 4 Walk 8 Run 16 EXPERIENCE Curent Spent Total 0 1000 1000 GROUPED & ADVANCED SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Animal Care Int 31 3 34 Evaluate Int 31 8 39 Language (Classic) Int 31 5 36 Ranged (Bow) BS 29 5 34 Stealth (Urban) Agi 29 5 34 ARMOUR Name Locations Enc AP Qualities Leather Jerkin Body 1 1 TALENTS Talent Name Times taken Description Artistic 1 Acute Sense (Hearing) 1 Hear impercetable sounds Doomed 1 A silent death, but not unheard. Perfect Pitch 1 Pure Soul 1 Read/Write 1 WEALTH D SS GC ENCUMBRANCE Weapons 1 Armour 1 Trappings 2 Max Enc. 6 Total 4 WOUNDS SB 3 TBx2 6 WPB 2 Hardy Wounds 11 INITIAL WEALTH You begin the game with 2d10 brass pennies. 1 gold crown = 20 silver shillings = 240 brass pennies WEAPONS Name Group Enc Range/Reach Damage Qualities Bow Bow 1 Dagger Basic 0 Very Short TRAPPINGS Dagger Fine Clothing Personal Grooming Kit Reams of Paper Writing Kit Brush Trade Tools (Arist) Letters to Father (unsent) Bow and 12 arrows
SECRETS Your core secret is part of your Character, but you may choose additional secrets. You begin with an additional 1d10 Silver Shillings for each additional secret chosen. • Core Secret: You are a true pacifist, and generally abhor violence. You will always try to talk, or bribe, your way out of fights if at all possible. If forced to fight, you will defend yourself and nearby innocents, but you will not attack. • You belong to a Ranaldan order called the Brotherhood. You absolutely despise greedy merchants and will actively try to disrupt their plans if you are able, hopefully in ways that make them public laughingstocks. • You can take or leave alcohol and other stimulants, but you absolutely cannot resist confections. If you can’t buy them, you’ll steal them. • Your favourite paint pigments are all greatly enhanced with Halfling blood. You have to regularly add small amounts of fresh material to keep them from spoiling. • You fled from accusations of a crime in Tahme, one serious enough that Bounty Hunters are now after you. What did you do to that merchant? Or are you innocent? PERSONALITY AND APPEARANCE ‘Never look a gift horse in the mouth, not that I have much choice with horses, at my lofty height.’ If Erich could be anywhere else in the Empire other than its wildernesses, that is surely where he would be. To an attractive, well groomed young man with an artist's sensibilities, a city like Altdorf has so much more to offer than even the most impressive mountain vista. Still, Erich intends to make the best of things, and the expedition does offer many interesting subjects for his art. While studing illustration, Erich always had a particular appreciation for the animals depicted in the Bestiaries that are occssionally published in Altdorf. He naturally assumed they were accurate. Now, having seen some of these creatures in person and realised they look nothing like their depections, Erich is beginning to wonder if the artists he so admired had seen the creatures they claimed to depict at all! BACKGROUND Son of a wealthy merchant from Tahme, Erich has never wanted for much in life, except inspiration and a cure for boredom. He was an indifferent merchant at best, but a fairly talented artist. His father has ordered him to accompany the Imperial Zoo's expedition in part because thier family sponsored it and he wishes to keep an eye on how his money is spent, but also because he hopes it will ‘toughen up’ his son and show him a bit of the world. Erich only got talked into it because he was assured some of his art could be in the final book — and because his father threatened to cut him off entirely if he didn’t agree. NOTES Head Body Left Leg Right Leg Shield Right Arm Left Arm (or primary arm) (or secondary arm) 01-09 45-79 80-89 90-00 25-44 10-24 ARMOUR POINTS 1 NOTES CHARACTER BACKGROUND
Jorunn Gromsdottir Age: 97 Species: Dwarf Status: Silver 1 Career: Apothecary Player: Career Path: Apothecary JORUNN GROMSDOTTIR PROWLER CHARACTERISTICS WS BS S T I Ag Dex Int WP Fel Initial 44 33 24 46 31 19 39 36 55 20 Advances 5 5 10 5 Current 44 33 24 51 31 19 44 46 55 25 BASIC SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Art Dex 44 44 Athletics Ag 19 19 Bribery Fel 25 25 Charm Fel 25 5 30 Charm Animal WP 55 55 Climb S 24 24 Cool WP 55 5 60 Consume Alcohol T 51 10 61 Dodge Ag 19 19 Drive Ag 19 19 Endurance T 51 5 56 Entertain Fel 25 25 Gamble Int 46 46 Gossip Fel 25 25 Haggle Fel 25 5 30 Intimidate S 24 24 Intuition I 31 31 Leadership Fel 25 25 Melee (Basic) WS 44 44 Melee WS 44 44 Navigation I 31 31 Outdoor Survival Int 46 46 Perception I 31 5 36 Ride Ag 19 19 Row S 24 24 Stealth Ag 19 19 FATE Fate 2 Fortune 2 RESILIENCE Resilience Resolve Motivation 2 2 Knowledge MOVEMENT Movement 3 Walk 6 Run 12 EXPERIENCE Curent Spent Total 5 995 1000 GROUPED & ADVANCED SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Evaluate Int 46 3 49 Heal Int 46 5 51 Language (Khazalid) Int 46 5 51 Language (Classical) Int 46 5 51 Lore (Chemistry) Int 46 5 51 Lore (Medicine) Int 46 10 56 Lore (Plants) Int 46 5 51 Melee (Basic) WS 44 3 47 Trade (Apothecary) Dex 44 10 54 Trade (Poisoner) Dex 44 5 49 Stealth (Urban) Ag 19 5 24 ARMOUR Name Locations Enc AP Qualities Leather Jack Body, Arms 1 1 TALENTS Talent Name Times taken Description Concot 1 One free crafting Endeavour Magic Resistance 1 -2 SL to spells that affect you Night Vision 1 See well in natural darkness Read/Write 1 You are literate Resolute 1 +1 SB when charging Sturdy 1 x2 Encumbrance (included) WEALTH D SS GC ENCUMBRANCE Weapons 3 Armour 0 Trappings 4 Max Enc. 14 Total 7 WOUNDS SB 2 TBx2 8 WPB 5 Hardy Wounds 15 INITIAL WEALTH You begin the game with 2d10 brass pennies. 1 gold crown = 20 silver shillings = 240 brass pennies WEAPONS Name Group Enc Range/Reach Damage Qualities Sword Basic 1 Average +6 Dagger Basic 0 Very Short +4 Crossbow Crossbow 2 60 +9 Reload 1, Impale TRAPPINGS Clothing Dagger Pouch Sling Bag Writing Kit 9 Parchment Sheets Book (half filled) Healing Draught Pestle and Mortar Guild License Trade Tools (Apothecary) Fishing Rod
SECRETS Your core secret is part of your Character, but you may choose additional secrets. You begin with an additional 1d10 Silver Shillings for each additional secret chosen. • Core Secret: You are concealing a terrible disease. A small, but growing, part of your body just above your heart has turned to stone and traces of crystalline structures can be found in your bloodstream. • You regularly take advantage of particularly devout Sigmarites, as you know their religion compels them to help you. • You detest bullies of any sort, but you especially loathe Witch Hunters, and will seek to do them harm whenever you can. • Though you profess otherwise, if the coin is good, you have no qualms at all about selling lethal poisons to shady individuals. • Unlike most Dwarfs, you love horses… they taste divine. You go out of your way to regularly acquire and consume horse flesh, doing whatever it takes to do so. PERSONALITY AND APPEARANCE ‘Pass me the vial. No not that one! Mix that in here and we'll both be joining the ancestors. Now, while I mix these, you go find the thing's liver. Shouldn't be hard, they have three.’ Jorunn was once rather personable, at least by Dwarf standards. An unexpected betrayal by a trusted friend left her somewhat untrusting of those who seek her friendship. She walks with just a hint of stiffness that might indicate an old injury, but has no interesting in explaining her woes to those who ask. Jorunn wears her hair in practical braids, in the fashion of Karak Ziflin, and is always on the lookout for her kin in hopes of hearing word from home. While she has yet to finish her studies in the wider world, however, but does dream of one day returning to the hold bearing new alchemical secrets that will impress even the Dwarf elders who were so dismissive of her efforts. BACKGROUND Jorunn hails from the Dwarf Hold Karak Ziflin in the Grey Mountains. Exceedingly intelligent and far more ‘scientifically’ minded then her peers, Jorunn at first trained as a healer, but eventually left to learn more than what her home could teach. She travelled into Kislev where she eventually apprenticed with a Wise Woman for a time, swapping herbal and healing knowledge. After several years, without warning, the Wise Woman tried to murder Jorunn, and the terrified and confused Dwarf was forced to kill the woman in self defence. As she fled back south into the Empire, she discovered that she had somehow been infected with a curious disease. She has spent the last few years adding to her lore by studying with various apothecaries, physicians, and scholars. NOTES Head Body Left Leg Right Leg Shield Right Arm Left Arm (or primary arm) (or secondary arm) 01-09 45-79 80-89 90-00 25-44 10-24 ARMOUR POINTS 1 1 1 NOTES CHARACTER BACKGROUND
Name: Kirsten Krank Age: 295 Species: Wood Elf Status: Brass 1 Career: Hunter Player: Career Path: Prowler LYNATHRYN NIGHTSONG HUNTER CHARACTERISTICS WS BS S T I Ag Dex Int WP Fel Initial 45 52 31 30 55 40 42 41 38 31 Advances 5 5 5 5 Current 45 57 36 35 55 40 57 41 38 31 BASIC SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Art Dex 57 57 Athletics Ag 40 40 Bribery Fel 31 31 Charm Fel 31 31 Charm Animal WP 38 5 43 Climb S 36 10 46 Cool WP 38 5 43 Consume Alcohol T 35 35 Dodge Ag 40 40 Drive Ag 40 40 Endurance T 35 10 45 Entertain Fel 31 31 Gamble Int 41 41 Gossip Fel 31 31 Haggle Fel 31 31 Intimidate S 36 3 39 Intuition I 55 55 Leadership Fel 31 31 Melee (Basic) WS 45 5 50 Melee WS 45 45 Navigation I 55 55 Outdoor Survival Int 41 10 51 Perception I 55 5 60 Ride Ag 40 40 Row S 36 36 Stealth Ag 40 40 FATE Fate 1 Fortune 1 RESILIENCE Resilience Resolve Motivation 1 1 Find Hope MOVEMENT Movement 5 Walk 10 Run 20 EXPERIENCE Curent Spent Total 0 1000 1000 GROUPED & ADVANCED SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Entertain (Sing) Fel 31 5 36 Language (Eltharin) Ag 40 5 45 Lore (Beasts) Int 41 5 46 Melee (Basic) WS 45 5 50 Ranged (Sling) BS 57 5 62 Ranged (Bow) BS 57 10 67 Set Trap Dex 57 5 52 Stealth (Rural) Ag 40 10 50 ARMOUR Name Locations Enc AP Qualities Leather Jack Body, arms 0 1 TALENTS Talent Name Times taken Description Acute Sense (Sight) 1 Notice impercetable sights Hardy 1 Add your TB to Wounds Night Vision 1 See well in natural darkness Read/Write 1 You are literate Rover 1 Easier to hide in rural areas Strider (Woodlands) 1 No movement penalties WEALTH D SS GC ENCUMBRANCE Weapons 3 Armour 0 Trappings 2 Max Enc. 6 Total 5 WOUNDS SB 3 TBx2 6 WPB 3 Hardy 3 Wounds 15 INITIAL WEALTH You begin the game with 2d10 brass pennies. 1 gold crown = 20 silver shillings = 240 brass pennies WEAPONS Name Group Enc Range/Reach Damage Qualities Elf Bow Bow 2 150 +7 Damaging, Precise, Impale Sword Basic 1 Average +7 Dagger Basic 0 Very Short +5 TRAPPINGS Cloak Clothing Dagger Pouch Sling Bag Rations (2 days) Animal Traps Elf Bow and 6 Arrows
SECRETS Your core secret is part of your Character, but you may choose additional secrets. You begin with an additional 1d10 Silver Shillings for each additional secret chosen. • Core Secret: Though you hide it, you suspect the world is doomed and this knowledge fills you with anguish that occasionally overwhelms you. You gain the Malaise Symptom for 1d10 hours if you fail a Test derived from your Willpower. • You always take the time to appreciate beautiful works of art and will not hesitate to break into a closed museum or a noble’s palace in order to do so. • You respect Kurnous, but you also revere Anath Raema, the Elven Goddess of Savage Hunts. You habitually offer one in every three worthy kills to the Savage Huntress in a bloody ritual. • Raptors are a personal totem and you will not suffer them to be hurt in your presence. You despise Falconers and will always seek to free their charges. • Humans are so delightfully gullible; you compulsively blatantly lie to ones you don’t know without hesitation, even if doing so could later cause you trouble. PERSONALITY AND APPEARANCE ‘I walked this land in the time of your grandfather's grandfather, and strung my bow to defend it from the Ruinous Powers. I shall go where I please.’ Lynathryn is tall for an Elf, but stands a little shorter than most adult humans, and moves as softly as a falling leaf. They left the Laurelorn with a cheerful disposition, eager to see the realm that Magnus the Pious set out to rebuild at the end of the Great War Against Chaos. Every grimey hamlet, tossed bucket of slop, and starving peasant Lynthryn has passed since has made it that much harder to maintain a smile. Still, it can't all be bad, can it? Perhaps all that's needed is to stretch ones legs and see some more of the human lands. An expedition sounds like just the thing. BACKGROUND Lynathryn has been a scout and hunter for the Eonir of Laurelorn for centuries. They fought in the Great War Against Chaos a mere two hundred years ago, serving as a scout on the very edges of the enemy lines and often beyond. The experience changed Lynathryn forever. While it was doublessly horrific, the war brought together a diverse alliance of Elves, Humans, and even Dwarfs, all in defiance of a common foe. This has left Lynathryn with an unusually plesant attitude toward non-elves, even this sometimes comes off as condescension. It was due to their experience, limited as it is, with Humans of the Empire, that the Queen has set Lynathryn forth once more to learn what they can of the current state of the world beyond their forest. For their part, Lynathryn is excited to see just what the humans of the Empire have done with the gift of peace that so many elves died to provide them with. Head Body Left Leg Right Leg Shield Right Arm Left Arm (or primary arm) (or secondary arm) 01-09 45-79 80-89 90-00 25-44 10-24 ARMOUR POINTS 1 NOTES CHARACTER BACKGROUND NOTES 1 1
Name: Theodosius Schreiber Age: 29 Species: Human Status: Silver 2 Career: Scholar Player: Career Path: Scholar THEODOSIUS SCHREIBER PROWLER CHARACTERISTICS WS BS S T I Ag Dex Int WP Fel Initial 32 28 30 38 26 31 31 42 31 27 Advances 5 5 5 5 Current 32 28 30 43 31 31 31 47 36 27 BASIC SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Art Dex 31 31 Athletics Ag 31 31 Bribery Fel 27 27 Charm Fel 27 27 Charm Animal WP 36 36 Climb S 30 30 Cool WP 36 5 41 Consume Alcohol T 43 5 48 Dodge Ag 31 31 Drive Ag 31 31 Endurance T 43 43 Entertain Fel 27 5 32 Gamble Int 47 5 52 Gossip Fel 27 10 37 Haggle Fel 27 8 35 Intimidate S 30 30 Intuition I 31 5 36 Leadership Fel 27 3 30 Melee (Basic) WS 32 32 Melee WS 32 32 Navigation I 31 31 Outdoor Survival Int 47 47 Perception I 31 5 36 Ride Ag 31 31 Row S 30 30 Stealth Ag 31 31 FATE Fate 3 Fortune 3 RESILIENCE Resilience Resolve Motivation 3 3 Educate someone MOVEMENT Movement 4 Walk 8 Run 16 EXPERIENCE Curent Spent Total 0 0 1000 GROUPED & ADVANCED SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Art (Writing) Int 47 10 47 Entertain (Storytelling) Fel 27 5 32 Language (Classical) Int 47 5 52 Lore (Heraldry) Int 47 5 52 Lore (Reikland) Ag 31 3 34 Melee (Fencing) WS 32 5 37 Research Int 47 5 52 ARMOUR Name Locations Enc AP Qualities TALENTS Talent Name Times taken Description Acute Sense (Hearing) 1 Hear impercetable sounds Carouser 1 Reverse failed Consume Alcohol Doomed 1 The hound bays for brass Noble Blood 1 You are of noble birth Read/Write 1 You are literate Saavy 1 +5 Int, already included Secret Identity 1 You have a secret alter ego Sixth Sense 1 GM may warn you of danger WEALTH D SS GC ENCUMBRANCE Weapons 1 Armour 1 Trappings 2 Max Enc. 6 Total 4 WOUNDS SB 3 TBx2 8 WPB 3 Hardy Wounds 14 INITIAL WEALTH You begin the game with 2d10 brass pennies. 1 gold crown = 20 silver shillings = 240 brass pennies WEAPONS Name Group Enc Range/Reach Damage Qualities Dagger Basic 0 Very Short +5 Rapier Basic 1 Long +7 Fine, Fast, Impale TRAPPINGS Clothing Dagger Pouch Sling Bag Writing Kit 30 Parchment Sheets Reference books Back Pack Alcohol
SECRETS Your core secret is part of your Character, but you may choose additional secrets. You begin with an additional 1d10 Silver Shillings for each additional secret chosen. • Core Secret: You are not who you claim to be. You hide your past as the scion of an Averland noble house. Your real name is Baron Tobias Ulster von Loningbruck. • You are an atheist (Priests are just deluded Wizards). • You did terrible things to survive your time amidst the Border Princes. Gain +4 Corruption. • You have never met an illicit vice that you weren’t willing to sample. You have to take a Challenging Cool Test to avoid trying any new vice offered to you. • You have a real soft spot for old, broken soldiers and down-on-their luck mercenaries. You will always try to help them, if you can. PERSONALITY AND APPEARANCE ‘My accent? I'm certain I don't know what you mean. Now either step out of my light so I can see what I'm writing, or let's both step outside and get some air.’ Theodosius has seen, if anything, a little too much of the Old World. His wirey frame and scholarly dress disguise the fact that he is surprisingly quick on his feet, and a practiced hand with the oddly ornate rapier he keeps by his side. His accent is hard to place, and in forgetful moments he sometimes uses words more appropriate for a courtly dinner than the dingey bars he favours. What is not an affectation is Theo's love of knowledge. He is determined to learn as much about the Old World as possible, and sees spreading this knowledge as being an inherent good in and of itself. BACKGROUND Theodosius was raised to be the next Baron von Loningbruck, a destiny he abandoned just shy of his 17th birthday to flee south over the Black Mountains to the Border Princes and ‘freedom’. Several years of such ‘freedom’ almost destroyed him, before he managed to slip north once more, travelling with a wandering motley troop. He ‘reinvented’ himself several times as he travelled from place to place before writing a well-received book on mounts (mostly focusing on horses with some vaguely useful material on Pegasus and Demigryphs) as ‘Theodosius Schreiber’ and settling in Altdorf. His drinking buddies call him ‘Theo’ – he has few real friends. NOTES Head Body Left Leg Right Leg Shield Right Arm Left Arm (or primary arm) (or secondary arm) 01-09 45-79 80-89 90-00 25-44 10-24 ARMOUR POINTS NOTES CHARACTER BACKGROUND
Name: Vasya Ghorshkov Age: 25 Species: Human Status: Silver 2 Career: Pit Fighter Player: Career Path: Pit Fighter VASYA GHORSHKOV PIT FIGHTER CHARACTERISTICS WS BS S T I Ag Dex Int WP Fel Initial 41 31 43 36 28 34 25 31 34 26 Advances 5 5 5 5 Current 46 31 43 41 33 39 25 31 34 26 BASIC SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Art Dex 25 25 Athletics Ag 39 5 41 Bribery Fel 26 26 Charm Fel 26 26 Charm Animal WP 34 3 37 Climb S 43 43 Cool WP 34 5 39 Consume Alcohol T 41 41 Dodge Ag 39 5 41 Drive Ag 39 39 Endurance T 41 5 46 Entertain Fel 26 26 Gamble Int 31 31 Gossip Fel 26 8 34 Haggle Fel 26 5 31 Intimidate S 43 8 51 Intuition I 33 33 Leadership Fel 26 26 Melee (Basic) WS 46 12 58 Melee WS 46 46 Navigation I 33 33 Outdoor Survival Int 31 31 Perception I 33 5 38 Ride Ag 39 39 Row S 43 43 Stealth Ag 39 39 FATE Fate 3 Fortune 3 RESILIENCE Resilience Resolve Motivation 3 3 A Good Fight MOVEMENT Movement 4 Walk 8 Run 16 EXPERIENCE Curent Spent Total 10 990 1000 GROUPED & ADVANCED SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Entertain (Taunt) Fel 26 5 31 Lore (Ostermark) Int 31 5 36 Melee (Flail) WS 46 15 61 Ridge (Horse) Ag 39 5 41 ARMOUR Name Locations Enc AP Qualities Leather Jack Body 1 1 TALENTS Talent Name Times taken Description Doomed 1 Not the Raven, but the Hound Hardy 1 Add TB to Wounds Lightening Reflexes 1 +5 Agi (included) Menacing 1 +1 SL to intimidate Warrior Born 1 +5 WS (included) Very Strong 1 +5 S (included) WEALTH D SS GC ENCUMBRANCE Weapons 2 Armour 0 Trappings 2 Max Enc. 8 Total 4 WOUNDS SB 4 TBx2 8 WPB 3 Hardy 4 Wounds 19 INITIAL WEALTH You begin the game with 2d10 brass pennies. 1 gold crown = 20 silver shillings = 240 brass pennies WEAPONS Name Group Enc Range/Reach Damage Qualities Flail Flail 1 Average +9 Distract, Wrap Sword Basic 1 Average +8 Dagger Basic 0 Very Short +6 TRAPPINGS Clothing Pouch Cloak Bandages Buckler
SECRETS Your core secret is part of your Character, but you may choose additional secrets. You begin with an additional 1d10 Silver Shillings for each additional secret chosen. • Core Secret: In your dreams a veiled women regularly appears. She whispers to you of the glories you will one day achieve and some of the things she has told you have already come true. You are certain she is a god, but you don’t know which one and that frightens you. • You are not proud of all of your matches. The worst still haunt you. Gain +3 Corruption. • The scars on your back itch constantly. You suffer a -10 penalty to Initiative until you’ve caused Wounds in a fight. For the rest of the day after you’ve done so, you lose the penalty, and instead gain a +5 bonus to Initiative. • You cannot stand to see children abused and will always interfere, without a thought for the consequences. • You will happily fight anything that bleeds. The dead, however… You suffer a -10% penalty on any Cool Test caused by the Undead. PERSONALITY AND APPEARANCE ‘Theo, you with your pretty words in your pretty book! Very smart. But can smart words beat Vasya's axe?’ Vasya is tall, well muscled, and prefers to keep his head shaved bare. He enjoys little more than a good fight, especially now that he picks his own battles. He has known very little but fighting for much of his adult life, and frames all things through a lens of expectant violence. Vasya is much more than a bloodthirsty brawler, however. His career as a Pit Fighter taught him how to work a crowd, and he finds an easy smile and a biting quip easy to come by. While Vasya finds the idea of expedition to aquire unusual animals to be quite sensible and appealing, he does not fully understand what the Zoo intends to do with the animals. He assumes that eventually someone — ideally Vasya — will get to fight them. BACKGROUND Vasya was born a villager in a desolate area of Ostermark, squarely between the Dead Wood (where the ruins of dread Mordheim lie) and the Eerie Downs (which border Sylvania). His parents were slain by ‘things’ from the Dead Wood when he was a teen and he only survived by destroying one with a rock. The thing's corpse landed on Vasya, hiding him from the others. His Uncle Dima took him in and soon realized the boy was a fighter born. Dima turned his nephew into a lucrative Pit Fighter, setting him to wrestling bears and other, stranger creatures. Eventually, after years of progressively deadlier bouts, Vasya realised his uncle was using him and was, in fact, becoming increasingly scared of him — choosing more and more deadly matches in the hopes of getting him killed. He confronted Dima and ended up killing him, leaving Ostermark soon thereafter for Altdorf. NOTES Head Body Left Leg Right Leg Shield Right Arm Left Arm (or primary arm) (or secondary arm) 01-09 45-79 80-89 90-00 25-44 10-24 ARMOUR POINTS 1 NOTES CHARACTER BACKGROUND 1 1
Name: Kistiane Brockdorf Age: 29 Species: Human Status: Silver 3 Career: Wizard Player: Career Path: Wizard KISTIANE BROCKDORF WIZARD CHARACTERISTICS WS BS S T I Ag Dex Int WP Fel Initial 26 29 25 33 34 38 29 43 38 37 Advances 5 5 5 5 Current 31 29 25 33 34 43 29 48 43 37 BASIC SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Art Dex 29 29 Athletics Ag 43 43 Bribery Fel 37 37 Charm Fel 37 3 10 Charm Animal WP 43 43 Climb S 25 25 Cool WP 43 5 48 Consume Alcohol T 34 34 Dodge Ag 43 5 48 Drive Ag 43 43 Endurance T 33 33 Entertain Fel 37 37 Gamble Int 48 48 Gossip Fel 37 3 40 Haggle Fel 37 5 42 Intimidate S 25 25 Intuition I 34 5 39 Leadership Fel 37 37 Melee (Basic) WS 31 5 36 Melee WS 31 31 Navigation I 34 34 Outdoor Survival Int 48 48 Perception I 34 8 44 Ride Ag 43 43 Row S 25 25 Stealth Ag 43 43 FATE Fate 3 Fortune 4 RESILIENCE Resilience Resolve Motivation 3 3 Show magic is useful MOVEMENT Movement 4 Walk 8 Run 16 EXPERIENCE Curent Spent Total 5 995 1000 GROUPED & ADVANCED SKILLS Name Characteristic Adv Skill Channelling (Ghyran) WP 43 10 53 Language (Magick) Int 48 10 58 Language (Wastelander) Int 48 3 51 Lore (Magic) Int 48 5 53 Lore (Reikland) Int 48 5 53 Melee (Polearm) WS 31 5 41 ARMOUR Name Locations Enc AP Qualities TALENTS Talent Name Times taken Description Arcane Lore (Jade) 1 Cast spells from Lore of Life Aethyric Attunement 1 Fewer Channelling miscasts Doomed 1 Beneath the eart, a final bloom Luck 1 +1 Fortune Perfect Pitch 1 +1 SL to Language Tests Petty Magic 1 Cast Petty spells Read/Write 1 You are literate Saavy 1 +5 Int, already included WEALTH D SS GC ENCUMBRANCE Weapons 2 Armour 0 Trappings 2 Max Enc. 5 Total 4 WOUNDS SB 2 TBx2 6 WPB 4 Hardy Wounds 12 INITIAL WEALTH You begin the game with 2d10 brass pennies. 1 gold crown = 20 silver shillings = 240 brass pennies WEAPONS Name Group Enc Range/Reach Damage Qualities Dagger Basic 0 Very Short +3 Quarterstaff Polearm 2 Long +6 Defensive, Pummel TRAPPINGS Magical License Tent Backpack Writing Kit 10 sheets of Parchment Grimoire containing Lifebloom, Regenerate, and Blast
SECRETS Your core secret is part of your Character, but you may choose additional secrets. You begin with an additional 1d10 Silver Shillings for each additional secret chosen. • Core Secret: The Peerage have caused your family a great deal of grief and though you try to conceal it, you cannot stand them. You have Animosity (Nobles). • You openly venerate an older aspect of Rhya, but you are completely certain that Sigmar is not a god. • You fear using destructive magic not because you find it distasteful or immoral, but because, in the moment, you find it absolutely wonderous. • You are deeply sympathetic to the plight of mutants in the Empire and will quietly help them whenever you can, so long as they do not worship the Ruinous Powers. • You seek to learn the secret of how to raise a Fenbeast as the Jade College is not being forthcoming about it, and having one would help settle any number of grudges back in Altdorf. PERSONALITY AND APPEARANCE ‘You know, the Chameoleech is, in its own way, quite charming. I tried to keep one once. Kept losing the thing!' Kistiane is tall for a human, with a joyous smile and an enthusiastic personality that people find either quite plesant or extremely exhausing. She is fascinated with the unusual properties of various beasts – especially rare properties, even if they happen to be particularly dangerous. By the standards of most Wizards, Kistiane isn’t very scholarly. She talks more about ‘impressions’ of different creatures, and the various swirls and eddies they cause in the winds of magic. Kistiane is certain that magic can be used more productively in the Empire, for the good of all its citizens. She is reluctant to use harmful magic, and finds it somewhat distressing when she is forced to do so. BACKGROUND Kistiane is the daughter of a successful Altdorf family that found, to their dismay, that she had the ‘gift’ of magic. Fortunately, she was eventually accepted into the Jade college and excelled in her studies. Kistiane wants the citizens of the Empire to realize that magic can do a great deal of good for them and has put on free lectures in Altdorf to extol magic’s positive virtues. After a horrible accident involving experiments with a Bloodsedge specimen, Kistiane’s was 'encouraged' to go on a ‘sabbatical’ away from Altdorf for a time. The expeditions commissioned by the Zoo provided the perfect excuse. NOTES Head Body Left Leg Right Leg Shield Right Arm Left Arm (or primary arm) (or secondary arm) 01-09 45-79 80-89 90-00 25-44 10-24 ARMOUR POINTS SPELLS CHARACTER BACKGROUND Spell CN Range Target Duration Effect Animal Friend 0 1 yard 1 1 hour Make friends with a smaller creature Bearings 0 You You Instant Know which way is North Drain 0 Touch 1 Instant Does 4+SL damage that ignores AP. You heal 1 Wound Light 0 You You 43 Minutes Create a light similiar to a torch. You may moderate its brightness to that of a candle Forest of Thorns 6 43 yards 4 yard AoE 4 rounds Area requires Hard (-20) Agility Test to cross. Failure inflicts 1 Entangled and 1 Bleeding Condition
134 Creature Traits WFRP contains quite a few Creature Traits — abilities attached to creatures which grant them an ability, quality, or specify some behaviour they are prone to. These can be difficult to keep track of in combat, and a few changes have been made to how they are presented in The Imperial Zoo to aid in this area. Armoured to the hilt You will notice that the Armour trait now includes a second number in brackets after the amount of AP the armour provides. This is the combined total of the creatures Armour Rating and its Toughness Bonus. This number is presented for ease of reference, as it is typically subtracted from most incoming damage. Traits and Attack Traits You will also notice that Attack Traits has been added as a new heading in stat blocks. This is purely for ease of reference — Attack Traits are simply Creature Traits that allow the creature to make some kind of attack or take an action. They have been placed in their own category to let you know at a glance what actions a specific creature is capable of. It is still recommended that you read all the Traits in full, as many of them can have a big impact on how a creature behaves in battle. A Skilled Rhinox? You will also notice that many of the creatures presented in this book have skills. In the case of bestial creatures this is usually constrained to straightforward skills such as Melee or Stealth. This represents innate talent and raw determination rather than any formal training, and allows threats to remain a challenge to Characters who may have spent quite a bit of XP becoming extremely proficient in combat. Quick Reference On the following pages you will find a quick reference table that summarises all of the creature traits in WFRP. This is a very useful reference to keep at hand when running an encounter. Grim Tidings The Imperial Zoo introduces a new Creature Trait, called Grim. Creatures with Grim are particularly terrifying, competent monstrosities whose mere presence is enough banish any thoughts of gaining a battlefield advantage over such a beast. Grim gives a creature a minimum amount of Advantage to use on each of its turns. This immediately makes the creature a very formidable threat, as it will gain a +10 bonus to most actions it takes for each level of the Grim Trait it enjoys, more or less permanently. However, merely hitting harder and more frequently is not very entertaining. It is recommended that you use this Advantage to activate special abilities the creature may have, such as a Troll's Vomit or a Dragon's Breath attack. As it is difficult for lone creatures to generate much advantage while under constant attack from a band of adventurers, many of these iconic abilities would otherwise be rarely employed. Creatures with Grim are extremely dangerous, and you may wish to use the trait carefully. In particular, if a creature has more levels of Grim that there are Characters in the encounter, consider removing or reducing this trait. New Creature Trait: Grim This creature is particularly dangerous, and fighting it means never truly being able to gain the upper hand. If, at the beginning of its turn, this creature does not have at least Rating Advantage points, its Advantage pool immediately increases to Rating. If the creature currently has a Surprised, Unconcious, or Entangled Condition, it does not gain this Advantage.
Trait Description Afraid (Target) The creature gains Fear (0) to the Target. See WFRP, page 190 for Fear rules. Amphibious The creature adds its Agility Bonus to the SL of all Swim Tests and move at full Movement through water. Arboreal The creature adds its Agility Bonus to the SL of all Climb and Stealth Tests. Animosity (Target) The creature dislikes the Target. See WFRP, page 190. Armour (Rating) (Including TB) The creature has Rating Armour Points on all Hit Locations. The number in brackets after the Rating is the creatures TB + Armour Points. Most damage is reduced by this number. Belligerent If the creature has more Advantage than its opponent, it is Immune to Psychology. Bestial The creature fears fire and gains a Broken Condition if struck by it. It defends only with Dodge. If it loses more than half its Wounds, it will attempt to Flee. If protecting young or Territorial it enters Frenzy instead. Big The creature is a large example of its species. It receives +10 Strength and Toughness, and –5 Agility. Bite (Rating) The creature may make a Free Attack by spending 1 Advantage, inflicting Rating damage. Blessed (Various) The creature is Blessed and can enact Blessings; the relevant deity is indicated in brackets. Bounce When Charging or Running, it doubles its Movement Characteristic and ignores all terrain. Breath Rating (Type) Cost: 2 Advantage. Range 20+Toughness Bonus yards. All characters within SB yards are struck, as are all characters between the creature and the target. Perform an Opposed Ballistic Skill/Dodge Test against all affected targets. All targets that fail take Damage equal to the attack’s Rating. See WFRP 338 for breath types. Brute The creature is heavy and brutish. It receives –1 Movement, –10 Agility, and +10 Strength and Toughness. Champion If the creature wins an Opposed Test when defending in melee it causes Damage as if it were the attacker. Chill Grasp Cost: 2 Advantage. As an Action, attempt an Opposed Weapon Skill/Melee or Dodge Test. If it wins, its target loses 1d10 + SL Wounds with no modification for Toughness Bonus or Armour Points. This attack is Magical. Clever The creature receives +20 Intelligence and +10 Initiative. Cold-blooded The creature can reverse all failed Willpower Tests. Constrictor Any hit gives the target an Entangled Condition and the creature may Grapple. See WFRP, page 163. Construct The creature is a construct of magic. It has no Intelligence, Willpower, or Fellowship. If it has no Wizard controlling it, or does not possess the Territorial Trait, it meanders mindlessly. For the purposes of calculating its Wounds, it uses its Strength Bonus whenever Willpower Bonus is required. All its attacks are Magical. Corrosive Blood When Wounded all Engaged characters take 1d10 Wounds, by TB and AP, to a minimum of 1 Corruption The creature is tainted by Chaos. The Strength of the Corruption is marked in brackets. See WFRP, page 182. Cunning The creature receives +10 Fellowship, Intelligence, and Initiative. Dark Vision The creature can see in the dark as daylight. Daemonic (Target) Does not require food, water, or water. All attacks are Magical. Roll 1d10 after any blow is received; if equal to higher than Target number, the blow is ignored, even if it is a critical. On zero wounds, the creature disappears. Die Hard If death occurs and all parts are in place, creature may attempt a Challenging (+0) Endurance Test requiring an SL of 6 at the start of every round for TB Rounds. If successful, the creature revives with 1 Wound. Disease (Type) The creature carries a disease, and others will have to Test as appropriate for Contraction. See WFRP, page 186. Distracting All living targets within TB yards suffer a penalty of –20 to Tests. Does not stack with other Distracting traits. Elite The creature receives +20 to Weapon Skill, Ballistic Skill, and Willpower. Ethereal The creature’s form is insubstantial, may pass through solid objects, and can only be harmed by Magical attacks. Fast The creature receives +1 Movement and +10 Agility. Fear (Rating) The creature causes supernatural Fear in other creatures, with a rating equal to its Rating. See WFRP, page 190. Flight (Rating) As a Move can fly up to Rating yards. It may use this move to Charge. If it starts its turn flying, it must choose to Fly for its Move. If it cannot do this, the GM decides how far the creature falls (see WFRP, page 166). When targeting it increase range by 1 step. When flying the creature takes –20 to all ranged combat.
Trait Description Frenzy The creature can Frenzy. See WFRP, page 190. Fury Cost: 1 Advantage; Become subject to Hatred to close combat opponents. Cost: 3 Advantage; Become subject to Frenzy, and lose all Advantage. See WFRP, page 190. Ghostly Howl Cost: 2 Advantage. The creature howls as a Free Attack and loses all Advantage. Living targets within Initiative yards gain 3 Deafened Conditions and suffer 1d10 Wounds ignoring TB and AP, and must pass an Average (+20) Endurance Test or gain a Broken Condition. Grim (Rating) At the beginning of the creature's turn if it has less than Rating Advantage, and it is not Surprised or Entangled, its Advantage increases to Rating. Hardy Increase Wounds by a number equal to its TB, applied before any Size modifiers. Hatred (Target) The creature really hates the Target. See WFRP, page 190. Horns Rating (Feature) When the creature gains an Advantage for Charging, it may make a Free Attack with its Horns, performed as normal, using Rating to calculate Damage. Hungry Must pass Average (+20) Willpower Test eat a fresh or incapacitated body, losing next Move and Action. Immunity (Type) All Damage of this type, including from a Critical Wound, is ignored. Immunity to Psychology The creature is utterly fearless. It ignores the Psychology rules. See WFRP, page 190. Infected If the creature causes a living opponent to lose Wounds, it must pass an Easy (+40) Endurance Test or contract a Festering Wound (WFRP, page 187). Infestation All opponents suffer a penalty of –10 to hit it in melee combat. Leader The creature receives a bonus of +10 to Fellowship and Willpower. Magical The creature's attacks count as Magical. Magic Resistance The SL of any spell affecting the creature is reduced by Rating. Mental Corruption Roll on the Mental Corruption Table (see WFRP, page 185). Miracles (various) The creature can enact Miracles; the relevant deity is indicated in brackets. Mutation Roll on the Physical Corruption Table (WFRP, page 184). Night Vision The creature has the Night Vision Talent. See WFRP, page 141. Painless All non-amputation penalties from Critical Wounds are ignored, although Conditions are suffered as normal. Petrifying Gaze Cost: All Advantage, minimum 1. As an action perform an Opposed Ballistic Skill/Initiative Test or Ballistic Skill/Language (Magick) Test, adding 1 SL per Advantage spent. Inflicts 1 Stunned status per 2 SL. If it wins by at least 6 SL, its target is turned to stone. Prejudice (Target) The creature just doesn’t like the Target. See WFRP, page 190. Ranged Rating The creature has a ranged weapon. The weapon does Damage equal to the Rating. Rear For its Move, the creature may make a Stomp attack if it is larger than its opponent. Damage is SB+0. Regenerate At the start of each round, if more than 0 Wounds remaining, regenerate 1d10 Wounds. If 0 Wounds remain, it will regenerate 1 Wound on a 1d10 roll of 8+. If it ever rolls a 10 for regenerating, it also fully regenerates a Critical Wound. Critical Wounds or Wounds caused by Fire may not be regenerated. Skittish The creature is easily scared by magic or loud noises. If such occurs, it receives +3 Broken Conditions. Spellcaster The creature can cast spells; the specific Lore of Magic will be indicated in brackets. Stealthy The creature adds a number equal to its Agility Bonus to the SL of all Stealth Tests. Size If attacker is 1 Size larger, attacks are Damaging, and successful attacks activate Deathblow (WFRP 160). The attacker causes Fear, and wins Oppossed Strength Roll unless smaller creature gets a Critical. If attacker is 2 or more Sizes larger, as above and attacks gain Impact. Multiply Damage by size difference. Causes Terror equal to Size difference. Automatically wins any Opposed Strength Roll. Cost: 1 Advantage. Larger creatures may Stomp smaller creatures. Damage is SB+0. If attacker is smaller, they gain a bonus of +10 to hit Size effects the number of Wounds a creature has — see WFRP 341.
Trait Description Stride Multiply Run Movement by 1.5 when Running. Stupid If creature is near allies without Stupid, ignore this trait. Otherwise, it must pass an Easy (+40) Intelligence Test at the start of each round. If it fails, it loses both its Move and Action for that Turn. Swamp-strider The creature suffers no Movement penalties for moving through boggy ground. Swarm Swarm counts as a single Creature and ignore Psychology rules. May ignore the Engaged rules when moving. Successfully strikes activate the Deathblow rule (WFRP 160.) All Engaged opponents lose 1 Wound at the end of every Round. The Swarm has five times the Wounds of a normal creature and gains +10 Weapon Skill. Attempts to shoot the Swarm gain a bonus of +40 to hit. Swarms ignore all the Size Creature Trait rules. Tail Attack (Rating) Cost: 1 Advantage. Attack with Tail as a Free Attack, which does Rating Damage. Smaller Opponents who suffer at least 1 Wound also gain the Prone Condition. # Tentacles (Rating) The creature has # tentacles. It gains one Free Attack Action per tentacle, which does Rating damage. If it Wounds an opponent, it inflicts an Entangled Condition and that tentacle Grapples the target. If a tentacle is Grappling, use the tentacle's Free Attack Action to resolve that Grapple (WFRP, page 338). Territorial This creature will fight to the death to protect its territory, and will not pursue enemies if they flee this area. Terror (Rating) The creature causes Terror. Targets must pass a Cool Test or gain Broken Condition. See WFRP, page 191. Trained Broken: Ignore Bestial, gain 2d10 Fel. Guard: Gain Territorial Trait. Drive: Trained to pull a cart, coach, etc. Home: Return if released or lost. Entertain: Add +10 to Entertain, Perform or Play Tests. Magic: Ignore Skittish when it comes to magic Fetch: Fetch small objects on command. Mount: Will accept a rider with correct skill. War: Animal gains +10 WS, and may ignore Skittish when it comes to loud noises. Tongue Attack Rating (Range) Cost: 1 Advantage. Make a Free ranged Attack. Inflicts Rating Damage. If hit, target receives 1 Entangled Condition. If smaller, it is dragged to the creature and becomes Engaged. The creature may then either release the target, perform a Free Attack using its Weapon Trait, or initiate a Grapple (WFRP, page 163). Tough The creature receives +10 Toughness and Willpower. Tracker The creature adds SL equal to their Initiative Bonus to all Track Tests. Undead The Undead are not reliant on the usual prerequisites for life: air, food, water… Some spells effect this Trait. Unstable Whenever the creature ends a Round engaged with any opponents with higher Advantage, the creature loses as many Wounds as the difference between its Advantage, and the highest Advantage engaged with it. At 0 Wounds, the magics holding it in place collapse, and it ‘dies’. Vampiric Whenever the creature performs a successful Bite attack against an appropriate opponent, it heals as many Wounds as its opponent loses. Drinking blood in this way is the only way it can heal. Venom (Difficulty) When the creature causes Wounds, its opponent gains a Poisoned Condition. If no Difficulty is marked to resist the Venom, it is assumed to be Challenging. See WFRP, page 169. Vomit Cost: 3 Advantage. As a Free Attack, choose 1 target the creature can see within TB yards; all targets within two yards are also hit. The creature performs an Opposed Ballistic Skill/Dodge Test against all affected targets (its single roll opposed by each individual target). The Test is typically Easy (+40) for the vomiting creature, due to the close range, and Challenging (+0) for opponents. Targets hit suffer Damage equal to creature's TB+4 and receive a Stunned Condition. Armour and Weapons carried by targets suffer 1 Damage Ward (Rating) Roll 1d10 after any blow is received, if the creature rolls Rating or higher, the blow is ignored. Wallcrawler Moves at full Movement across any appropriate wall or ceiling, and automatically pass all Climb Tests. Weapon (Rating) Make a melee attack, causing Damage equal to Rating. Web (Rating) Whenever the creature successfully hits, opponents gain 1 Entangled status, with a Strength of the Rating given. See WFRP, page 168.
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