serried ranks of the dead

The undead are many and varied; while some would conflate the dead into a band of homonymous animated cadavers and restless apparitions, they have distinctions and diverse motives that not only serve in their understanding but also in their destruction.  Mistaking one for another often ends badly for the would-be undead hunter.  This kind of knowledge is hard-won and often surrounded by folklore of dubious merit, consider the lore surrounding vampires as an example of the misinformation that can be spawned.  This skims the surface of undead creation.  Detailed analysis reveal cultural mores behind the death masks.  Necromancers work against these to perfect their arts.

Necromancy brings us many forms of undead - from the relatively simple animation of skeleton or zombie to the complex rituals that create ghouls, ghasts, mummies or mohrgs and even those said to grant their adherent lichdom or vampirism.  There are other rituals for undead like crawling claws, juju zombies or wights.  The motives behind such workings are never benign, sophists argue for using skeletons as tireless labourers in an eternity of service without parole.  More malevolent undead have even less justification for existence - arguably no just regime would consider this punishment fit for a crime.  Creating undead as a curse is tradition - one with horrific consequences.

Yet necromantic practices aren't the only motivation to pass into undeath; sheer malevolence is enough to spawn certain undead.  The eyes of a wight bear malice that rooted in it's life.  Wraiths are spawned of 'evil and darkness'. A sobering thought next time you hear of an evil warlord or wizard slain; will they rise again?  This may be doubly true for those denizens of the Underdark slain before their time, many are evil-natured and powerful and proper burials are often ignored.  The truly evil may arise as a spectre though this will only happen following the most heinous of crimes.

The violation of taboo raises corpses and causes spirits to abjure the next world for this one.  Ghouls and ghasts arise from cannibalism and terrible hungers.  Huecuva rise from heretics or fallen priests. Spectres and wights may arise from murder and violence, which makes the ever-turning wars between dwarves, giants and orcs a likely breeding ground.  Perhaps most horrific is the revenant whose focus on the murderer and things precious to it makes it an unpredictable foe.  Unquiet spirits show equal variety - the allip rises from suicide brought on by madness.  Ghosts and spectres are denied eternal rest - the latter possibly due to their deeds or nature.  Even the poltergeist is bound to it's place of death.  Banshees are unique to elvenkind, yet the drow are plagued by them.  Betrayal is frequent with dark elves who perhaps have powerful clerics out of necessity...

The shadow is an anomaly, existing solely to destroy amid ancient ruins yet these denizens of the Plane of Shadow pale against the horrors of the nightwalkers, spawned of raw entropy capable of destroying cities.  The otherworlds hold horrors capable of blasting life and soul from the unwary, twisting them into bodaks or devourers.  Whether this is taboo violation or the corrupting nature of evil is something for clerics to debate.  The perils of worlds like the Plane of Shadow or Negative Plane and the Lower Planes are increased further by the presence of undead.

This skims the surface of undead creation.  Specific races and cultures have their own intepretations of undeath, necromancy and protections against them.  More detailed studies may follow, though such knowledge comes with risk.  Philosophers claim we become what we think about.  If this is so, there is a danger knowing too much means a fate worse than death.

plagueridden

No. Enc.: 1d6 (2d4)
Alignment: Chaotic
Movement: 90' (30')
Armor Class: 5
Hit Dice: 4d8
Attacks: 1 (sickle or claw)
Damage: 1d6, disease
Save: C4
Morale: 8
Hoard Class: XXI

These skeletal undead are created by foul sorcery and the sacrifice of a diseased person. Plagueridden have a horse's skull for a head and wield sickles caked with blood and filth., a successful attack causes 1d6 damage and forces a saving throw vs. Poison or makes the victim suffer a virulent disease which will kill them in 1d6+1 days unless a cure disease spell is used. Their very presence has a 5% chance of infecting someone with a disease in the same manner as a giant rat. Like other undead, they are unaffected by charm, sleep or hold spells or poison. Clerics turn them as wights.

just a job to do

This month's RPG Blog Carnival hosted by Roleplaying Tips deals with assassins. Sun Tzu argues for assassination as a tactic in The Art of War and Machiavelli warned against the hired assassin as political tool of the people. Yet assassins rarely think of themselves or others beyond the job - to them, it's not personal.  While the assassin may get to know their target in intimate detail, they maintain a detachment that a serial killer cannot have.  Murder by sudden or secretive attack is a profitable trade and effective method of shaking up politics, religion and ideologies.  Yet there is variation within the profession.

Death For Sale
The hitmen of Murder, Inc had a regular salary as retainer as well as fees for killings.  Their families also got payments and in the event of arrest, the hitmen could depend on heavyweight legal support.  They were contracted for assassinations across the United States as part of a loosely-organised, multi-ethnic syndicate (the National Crime Syndicate). Some were hardened killers versed in rope, ice-pick, knife and gun.  Others were opportunists.  Murder Inc was finally brought down due to internal betrayals, a consequence of being purely for proift.

Humble Mercenaries
The shinobi (or ninja) were mercenaries.  Everything samurai were not, recruited among the poor, they worked in secret to topple their targets.  Stealth, disguise and subterfuge enabled their roles as spies, terrorists, arsonists and assassins.  During the Sengoku era, families formed villages to train specialists famed in their prefecture.  A demand for untraceable agents capable of dirty deeds ensured the shinobi would survive.  Families became clans and guilds.  Manuals were found describing techniques based around the elements of fire, earth, water, wood and wind and common disguises.  Devices and weapons used by shinobi worked on utility and concealability.  Their mystique was such that magic was attributed to their abilities.  The shinobi were hierarchical, genin (lower man) worked for chunin (middle men) who in turn worked for the jonin (upper man) who represented the clan or family to potential employers. 

Tools Of State
The fida'is (self-sacrificing) who served Alamut served a political and religious cause.  Maligned as rabble and drug-addicts, the truth was more complicated.  As Assassins took contracts for money, they played a long game, accepting only contracts that helped their own cause even where contracts were paid for by Crusaders.  The network of mountain fortresses held (Alamut was one of many) provided a defensive strategy that required the power of the Mongols under Hulegu to finally break.  Even though a fida'i was a pawn in greater schemes, they were extensively trained.  Learning language and culture as well as stealth and disguise skills.  Their youth gave them physical advantages and these were married to a cultivated patience and cold calculation.  They worked for rafiq (companions) and propagandists who in turn took orders from the enigmatic 'Old Man of the Mountain'.

These iconic assassins have distinctive approaches yet their hierarchy stands at odds with the lone wolf favoured in some media and games.  Assassins are in a deadly business, collaboration with allies ensured their survival.  Even James Bond has Q-branch and M's supervision before working with a varied mix of other agents.  These examples provide blueprints for assassin characters, yet anyone with the appropriate detachment and correct aptitudes could sell their services.

megadungeon mercantile

"Entrance" by Ian Mcraig

This discussion of merchants in the dungeon opens up interesting ideas.  While having hobgoblins treat their weapons like heirlooms is nice flavour, supply of commodities like polearms, food and basics like clothing take on new significance.  Set routes like a "Spider-silk road" used by drow traders linking up megadungeon sections make useful design elements.  Routes establish relationships, suggest potential treasure and add flavour.  Trade routes have made and destroyed kingdoms.  Even in the smaller scale,  smuggler runs and trade discoveries make interesting adventures.  Profit is always popular with NPC adventuring types...

Underdark commodities - Metals and minerals are obvious choices, including gold, iron, salts, stone, gemstones, oil and coal.  Animal and insect-based products are plentiful.  Fabrics include assorted leathers (e.g. chitin, giant snakeskin), woven material (e.g. cloth of gold, cloth of silver, mohair and spider-silk), furs (e.g. cave bear, displacer beast) and exotic hides.  Parchment and vellum make scrolls and books with ink (e.g. cochineal, sepia) bound with metal plates or inlaid bone marquetry.  Ivory (antler, horn) and related trades (scrimshaw) replace wood-craft (scabbards, hilts and smaller hafts) bearing equal decoration.  Longer hafts are forged of metal, making such weapons more resilient, heavier and expensive.  Arms and armour from the Underdark have history, from exquisite dwarven platemail to jagged orc battleaxe. Incense is made of amber, operculum and exotic reptilian musks, fluorescent and phosphorescent dyes are sold while psychoactive mushrooms and mould provides recreational drug sales.

Surface delicacies - Goods from the surface that cannot be found below are valued.  Foodstuffs, wood, wine and other sundries gain unexpected value. Spices, incense and salt all created trade routes and do so in dungeons.  Honey and sugar in particular are popular choices.  Wood may be treated with resins or pickled in vinegar to increase strength and kill mold.  Weapons and armour are standard quality and plain but odd bits of craft slip down to the dungeon - arrows and crossbow bolts are particularly popular given the scarcity of wood and lack of adequate bone or ivory (shafts have to be footed or they're more likely to break).  Charcoal is popular with traders - light, burns hot, useful for alchemy and rare since most wood is used for doors or structural support.  Inexpensive, durable woven fabrics are at a premium.  Plant-based incenses and resins are popular and command a pretty penny, narcotics are a potent trade item as is simple pipeweed.

Logistics - Walking between the surface world and underworld needs a specific attitude and attributes. A willingness to deal with inhumanity makes the typical peddler world-weary, well-armed and familiar with magic.  The use of wagons is limited to large passages and caves.  Most routes however fit the description of 'twisty set of passages, all alike'.  This means hand carts, bearers and the dungeon mule (or local equivalent).  Climbing between levels, fording underground rivers and finding safe trading points make a dungeon peddler's lot interesting.  Many underdark races are unpleasant, conducting trade negotiations in mutual strength with an eye for treachery.  Negotiations with 'friendly' duergar may involve mutual paranoia, threats of enslavement and drinking sessions with mildly toxic spirits.

Merchants who trade in megadungeons may not command wagon trains or armies of fat bodyguards.  Rather they move between worlds, wielding fantastical wealth and a handful of elites.  Find the right customers and you have a sweet life indeed.  Dealing with some communities has risks -  trading with aboleth is a fast route to indenture as a servitor.  Yet the cautiously bold will take up trading within the megadungeon, forming a hub for communities to gather together.  From these seeds, dungeon ports and sunken cities provide fertile breeding ground for these entrepreneurs.