Chapter 3: The Price Previous      Index      Next

Sometime after midnight, Jal' shook me awake with a start. A sharp, wide moon hung in the night sky near the desert horizon. I cursed softly. My turn at watch wasn't due for a few more hours, when the shining sphere was at its zenith.
"He's dreaming again," Jal' told me, worriedly. "Come help me tie him down."
Our brother Talib slept beneath the palms, away from the rest of the caravan so his nocturnal ramblings would not disturb their rest. He was speaking in Kadari again, the ancient language of the dead. Luckily for Jal', she couldn't understand a word, but I knew some of the phrases, with my small rogue's talent for tongues. I ignored the obscene whispers and started binding Talib's legs together to keep him from wandering away into the desert. Meanwhile, Jal' worked on his hands, to stop him from casting his withering spells and slaying us all in his sleep.
Jal' started praying after she finished, her soft, holy whispers mingling with our brother's ravings. Jal' prayed for a cure to his shattered sanity, but I only hushed her into silence, straining to understand his curiously accented Kadari. Talib's eyes were open, as usual, staring up into the stars as he dreamed. From his speech, I knew my brother was not mad, at least not in the usual sense, for his sleeping gaze was focused not on the stars, but on another time, long past, when Kadari was still spoken by the living.

- From Leyla's Lost Journal

Whether they realize it or not at the outset of their careers, wizards that specialize in necromancy make painful, personal sacrifices for their profession. Even if they shun the Black Arts entirely, a necromancer is still subject to the social prejudices, physical dangers, psychic pressures, and curses that plague those who channel the forces of the spirit.
As with any discipline, mastery of the Art comes at a price. All necromancers suffer from a nearly universal social stigma associated with their profession. In addition, many of these wizards - especially those who embrace the Black Arts - must overcome a number of personal handicaps which increase in number and severity along with the necromancer's power.

The Social Stigma

In every society, there is some form of scapegoat, a small group of people who are blamed or held accountable for the countless unexplainable tragedies in human existence. As late as the so-called Enlightenment, Western society blamed the witch for kidnappings, unexplained fires, tainted welly, rampant plagues, and mysterious deaths. Countless women bearing the signs of a "stereotypical" witch were rounded up, tortured until they confessed to crimes they did not commit, and finally burned at the stake to purify the community.
In the campaign, a necromancer may experience similar, severe public discrimination whenever his or her profession becomes known in a social context. At one extreme, based on the witch-hunting atmosphere of Europe during the 16th-17th centuries, the practice of black magic, or indeed any form of necromancy, may be punishable by death or (if the wizard is exceedingly powerful) shameful exile. At the very least, no society which is ruled by a good or neutral ruler will tolerate the open practice of the Black Arts. Even in a dark and gritty campaign where the forces of evil run rampant in society, a known necromancer will be viewed with open fear, suspicion, and hatred.
Discrimination can take a wide variety of forms. A perceived necromancer may be barred from a particular tavern, shop, or home (or even from an entire village) once his or her profession is recognized. Vigilantes, bounty hunters, rival mages, or even adventuring parties may try to eliminate a visiting necromancer, hoping to bolster their position in the community, gain a few new magical items, and possibly collect a reward from the local authorities.
Necromancers that need or choose to live in civilization must disguise their profession to escape unwanted attention, especially at low levels. Not surprisingly, most practitioners of the Art tend to shun human society, preferring the lawless expanse of the wilderness where their deeds and experiments can go unnoticed and unpunished.

Punishments and Handicaps

As discussed in Chapter Two, wizards who practice black necromancy are subject to the attention of evil, extraplanar powers that sometimes reward mortals with supernatural powers (after a successful powers check). However, when a sinister deity bestows the Dark Gift upon a mortal, the god usually exacts a personal price which manifests as one of the many handicaps outlined in this section. On the other hand, two new role-playing devices (the disease check and the madness check) can be used by the DM to introduce handicaps into the campaign without divine or supernatural intervention. Regardless of their origin, disabilities help define a distinctive and memorable villain for the campaign.
The DM may also care to bestow these handicaps on PCs who willingly employ black necromancy. Handicaps are a good, role-playing alternative to the imposition of "alignment shock" described in the DMG. A handicap system also helps explain why the Art is viewed with universal fear and loathing in the campaign.
Of course, certain players may relish playing a slightly twisted wizard character. Even then, the handicaps will serve to enhance role-playing in the campaign. As a rule of thumb, however, the DM should never assign a handicap that would completely cripple a wizard character and prevent him or her from casting spells.
For every Dark Gift bestowed on a necromancer (see Chapter Two), the DM should choose an appropriate handicap for the character. Alternatively, the DM may roll a d4 and consult the appropriate subsection as listed on the table directly below.

1. Physical Deformity
2. Bodily Affliction
3. Insanity or Madness
4. Unholy Compulsion

Physical Deformity

In literature, horrific and vile villains arc often physically marked with some sort of extremely noticeable and distinguishing disability (in addition to their stereotypical tendency to always dress in black, representative of the darkness that lurks within their twisted souls). The hunchbacked Richard III, for instance, was universally hated and reviled because of his deformity. To Shakespeare, this alteration of the King's form became synonymous with malignant villainy. Symbolically, a physical deformity was viewed as mirror of an individual's inner self or interpreted as a form of divine punishment for a dreadful sin. In this way, warts became forever associated with witches.
Modern writers about necromancy have continued with this allegorical convention. The necromancers of dark Ashton Smith, for instance, are so powerfully evil that their baneful nature is painfully apparent to all around them, as if the corrupt wizards radiated a palpable aura of malevolence. Normal acts of kindness, such as a smile or laughter, become perverted into frightening glimpses of their twisted nature.

Bodily Afflictions

Just as physical deformity has been associated with villainy, physical sickness and disease have been historically interpreted as a form of divine retribution. Of course, mass outbreaks of plague and pestilence - which decimated both the good and evil - can be cited to refute such superstitions, but still such beliefs remained, even in the face of rational observation.
In addition to its supernatural origins, disease could just as easily result from a necromancer's plundering of the dead or contact with rotting corruption and filth. A necromancer might also gain a sickness after exposure to certain undead (like a mummy), cursed magical items (such as a staff of withering), and spells (like cause disease and plague curse). The risk of disease also threatens wizards who tamper with black necromancy. Wizard spells that by their very nature inflict disease on others (such as contagion or mummy touch) might have some form of unforeseen side effect on the caster.
In game terms, whenever you feel a necromancer has placed his or her health at risk by investigating an especially filthy, moldering crypt (or perhaps casting a disease-producing spell), have the character make a disease check - simply a constitution check subject to the modifiers on Table 8. Disease checks should also be required for PCs, though only for special circumstances, such as exploring major tombs or searching a large number of rotting bodies.
Normally, if a character fails a disease check, symptoms of an ailment (such as dizziness, nausea, fever, or coughs) emerge within 13-24 hours. Characters with the healing nonweapon proficiency can allow an afflicted individual to make second disease check, this time with a +2 bonus. Unless cure disease is available from a priest or paladin, the full force of the affliction descends upon the unfortunate victim in 1-4 days.
However, in the special case of a failed powers check, a necromancer is not entitled to a disease check and succumbs to the ravages of an illness within 1-6 turns of attracting the baneful attention of the patron god. Usually, the corresponding Dark Gift is only bestowed after the character suffers through the disease. This severe, divinely imposed affliction may not be treated by a character with the healing nonweapon proficiency, and cure disease will only be effective if cast by a priest of a greater level of experience than the necromancer suffering from the ailment.
The full course of the disease may last from 5-20 days, during which time, the character may become incapacitated. Each day the illness progresses, the character (temporarily) loses 1 point from one (or more) ability score. Either choose or roll ld6: 1) Str, 2) Int, 3) Wis, 4) Dex, 5) Con, 6) Cha. When one of the scores drops below 3, the character has been effectively incapacitated. After the disease has run its course, lost points are regained at a rate of 1 point for every 2-5 days.
Unless you are in a punishing mood, don't inflict fatal diseases on your players. It is far more interesting (and character building) for them to suffer strange permanent handicaps as a result of their affliction (as listed on Table 7), or to incur a permanent one-point loss in an ability score.

Insanity or Madness

As we have seen in the kit descriptions of Chapter One, the mental demands placed on certain necromancers, as a result of their trafficking with the dead and lower-planar entities, will eventually wither the sanity of the most stable individuals. Because of their high wisdom, necromancers rarely go stark-raving mad. They are almost never incapacitated by their own insanity. Rather, the necromancer's own twisted mind becomes a most insidious handicap. The wizard docs not even realize that the mental disability exists, and even if he or she acknowledges its existence, the necromancer does not care to remove it!
At the DM's option, when members of certain kits advance a new experience level, they must make an insanity check. Similar to the fear and horror checks employed in the RAVENLOFT rules system, an insanity check (also called a madness check) is a save vs. paralyzation. (Wisdom bonuses normally applied to saves vs. mental effects are also included.) The mental decay can be treated with cure insanity, heal, or restoration spells.
The necromancer's "professional" madness does not usually result from a single, traumatic experience, but rather from a slow destabilization of the mind, a gradual erosion of the sanity that occurs while learning the terrible secrets of the Dark Art. A necromancer might also be driven mad by a successful powers check. For this special case, no insanity check is allowed, since it is considered a mandatory price by the evil god (which bestows a helpful Dark Gift in exchange). Madness can also result from a wide variety of causes outlined in the new 4th-level clerical spell cause insanity.
The forms of madness described in this section do not reflect modern medical definitions. They are intended to provide role-playing opportunities for experienced DMs and players alike.

1. Phobia
2. Melancholy
3. Delusion
4. Paranoia
5. Hallucinations
6. Amnesia

Phobia. The character develops an irrational fear of some creature or situation and will flee or cower whenever confronted with it (treat as if affected by a fear spell). The victim may also mention or want to discuss the object of fear in any conversation. Some possibilities are monophobia (fear of being alone), homophobia (fear of blood), psychrophobia (fear of cold things), claustrophobia (fear of containment), necrophobia (fear of corpses), nyctophobia (fear of the dark), onomatophobia (fear of a certain name), hypnophobia (fear of sleeping), pnigerophobia (fear of smothering).
Melancholy. The character loses the will to act or participate in a suggested activity. He or she wants to be left alone and may become violent if disturbed. In any given situation, the subject is 50% likely to do nothing, regardless of the danger, even at the risk of personal safety. If berated, pressured, insulted, or otherwise made to feel inferior, the subject has a 50% chance of becoming violent. Violent fits last only ld6 rounds, then the character lapses back into brooding silence and inaction.
Delusion. The character believes him- or herself to be something or someone that she or he is not. The wizard takes a new identity and tenaciously holds on to it. Usually, the character adopts the guise of someone or something unusually important. An apprentice necromancer may believe himself to be the legendary archmage Tzunk, who sundered the gates of the fabled City of Brass and scattered the legions of efreet with his terrible pronouncements from the Codex of Infinite Planes. By the same token, she may also think that she's a flower or a cat or a brooch on someone's jacket. In any case, the character does his or her absolute best to impersonate the person or thing that's been identified with. If a player character is afflicted with this form of madness, the particular choice of a delusion for the character may be discussed between the DM and the player.
Paranoia. The character experiences delusions of grandeur, accompanied by the absolute conviction that everyone is thoroughly jealous and out to get him or her. For instance, a necromancer might believe that she or he has angered some extraplanar power by delving into the hidden secrets of the cosmos, and this evil deity (and its mortal minions) are now planning to eliminate him or her. The character docs not trust anyone and may fixate upon a particular person or creature as the leader of the conspiracy. The necromancer sees evidence of the great cosmic conspiracy in everything and everyone.
Hallucinations. The character constantly sees things that simply aren't there. He or she may see hallucinatory enemies in any combat situation or whenever a saving throw or ability check is required. Hallucinations can be most entertaining to role-play in combination with a phobia or paranoia. The character may be affected as if by fear, hypnotic pattern, or even suggestion.
Amnesia. This madness robs the character of minor or temporary memories and factual knowledge, effectively turning him or her into an "absent-minded" individual. The character cannot remember facts or events that didn't take place within the last few hours. This form of amnesia blocks the ability to recall factual knowledge, similar to the new 4th-level wizard spell brainkill. It in no way affects professional performance, the ability to cast spells, and saving throws.

Unholy Compulsion

Curses are a fourth handicap which may be imposed on a necromancer by a patron god as a compensating punishment for some Dark Gift. The curse usually manifests as some form of uncontrollable compulsion (such as howling at a full moon). Others affect the necromancer's behavior (such as never being able to speak the truth). A final class of curses makes the wizard susceptible to a special attack form (like holy water). The handicaps listed in Table 9 may also result from willingly dabbling in black necromancy or using necromantic (and cursed) magical items.
The recipient is usually well aware of the nature of his or her compulsion, but as with a geas or quest, the subject is unable to take any measures that would remove it. Instead, the wizard may try to compensate for the weakness with appropriate precautions. For instance, a wizard who was susceptible to weapons hewn from freshly cut holly might destroy all trees near his or her lair.
Only a remove curse (employed by a higher-level caster than the victim) or a wish can eliminate an unholy compulsion.

Table 7: Assorted Physical Deformities.

 Table 9: Unholy Compulsions and Curses.
1 All hair permanently turns white or falls out
2 Fur or scales cover body and frame face
3 Club foot/lameness in a leg (1/2 movement)
4 Eyes similar to animal's (like a cat or wolf)
5 Face resembles that of a particular animal
6 Hands or feet are misshapen claws or talons
7 Hands turn coal black or blood red
8 Hunchback (combat ability unaffected)
9 Malignant stench of decay or aura of malevolence in a 10' radius
10 Physical aging, 1-20 years
11 Second mouth appears at the base of the skull
12 Six-fingered hands (or six-toed feet)
13 Skin gains the cold blue pallor of a corpse
14 Small horns appear on head
15 Smile or laughter appears cruel and evil
16 Teeth (or ears) are long and pointed
17 Three-foot long tail sprouts from lower back
18 Tongue is forked or serpentine
19 Vestigial, leathery wings on back
20   Voice sounds evil, low, whispery, or inhuman

Table 8: Disease Check Modifiers.

+1 Opened a sealed coffin or sarcophagus
+2 Searched a decomposed corpse
+2 Hazard is located in a moist environment
+2 Retained clothes after emerging from hazard
-4 Waited for fresh air to circulate in hazard
-2 Wrapped cloth around mouth and nose
-2 Hands and feet covered with gloves and boots  
-4 Bathed after emergence from disease hazard
1 Blinded by bright light
2 Drinks fresh blood, 1/day
3 Eats corpse flesh, 1 /day
4 Eats earth and stones, 1/day
5 Eats fresh (uncooked) meat, 1/day
6 Harms or kills a sentient individual, 1/week
7 Hates all contact with the living (only tolerates undead or extraplanar allies)
8 Howls under night sky or at moon, 1/day
9 Memorizes spells in an underground chamber
10 Murders friends and allies
11 Never speaks the truth
12 Seeks revenge/murders for the slightest perceived insult or disagreement
13 Sheds own blood (1-4 hp damage), 1/day
14 Sleeps in a tomb or open grave
15 Withers all vegetation when casting spells (1' radius per spell level)
16 Wounded by contact with cold iron or steel (1-4 hp + normal weapon damage)
17 Wounded by contact with freshly-cut wood (1-4 hp + normal weapon damage)
18 Wounded by contact with silver or gold (1-4 hp + normal weapon damage)
19 Wounded by fresh or holy water (2-7 hp damage)
20   Writes/reads backwards (left to right)

Paid in Full

The practice of black necromancy takes a terrible toll on the body, the mind, and the spirit. Some of the handicaps can be quite severe. Keep in mind that they are intended to counter-balance the potentially powerful Dark Gifts described in Chapter Two. They can also be used to punish player characters for dabbling in the Black Arts. Not all of the proposed handicaps are equally nasty; the DM may decide to impose two lesser hindrances on a necromancer in exchange for a particularly powerful Dark Gift.
Even if a necromancer (wisely) avoids the Black Arts, the wizard must still pay a social price. The necromancer faces fear and ignorance in the uninitiated, who cannot comprehend the subtle beauty of the Art. While some necromancers resign themselves to solitude, others are pained by the lack of public understanding or appreciation for their calling. Even after all the other sacrifices have been paid in full, loneliness is the ultimate price of the necromancer.

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