Six Befouled Ponds

1. Filled with blue-green tar. The tar isn't poisonous or anything - but it's extremely easy to be trapped and drown in it. And its fumes are hallucinogenic.
2. The water is rancid and grey. Various toxic molds grow on the pond's edges. There's a huge Pink Leech hiding at the pool's bottom.
3. The water is crystal clear and suitable for drinking. Unfortunately, there are at least seventeen Jade Shamblers growing in the tall, sapphire grass surrounding the pond.
4. The local tribe is using the pond as a sacrificial place for their gods. Once each season they drown some of their cattle in deep, dark waters. Each full moon, the undead oxen and cows crawl out of the pool.
5. Ground around the pool is covered with dozens of statues of various animals. Some of them seem to be in perfect condition, while other are shattered and/or heavily weathered. Any living being that drinks from the pond must save vs Magic or turns into stone within 1d4 minutes.
6. The thick liquid in the pond is of brown-red color. It emits a horrid stench of death and decay. Three monoliths of polished black stone surround the pool. Each sunset, three Iron Demons descend from the blood-red sky to drink from the pond. Even though they seem to be hostile towards any other being, it's said that they can grant power to those whose souls are absolutely corrupted and blackened by sin.
   

Ten Prosthetic Arms

1. Has a small dart gun concealed in the forearm (1 point of damage, easy to poison);
2. Covered with pink fur, fingers tipped with razor-sharp claws (+1 to hit, 1d6 melee damage);
3. Has a metal, spike-tipped buckler attached to the forearm (-1 AC, 1d4 melee damage if used as a weapon);
4. Has a coin storage and dispenser installed inside (coin capacity 137);
5. Covered with nasty spikes and hooks (makes climbing easier, 1d3 melee damage);
6. Hides a spool with 12ft of thin but very durable rope;
7. Has a magical Glow-Crystal installed in the palm of the hand;
8. Has a scroll tube concealed in the forearm (capacity of 3 scrolls or letters);
9. The hand can be easily detached - and  be used as a handle for the jagged blade hidden in the forearm (1d6+1 melee damage);
10. The hand can be shot forward by the spring-loaded mechanism. It remains attached to the rest of the prosthetic by five feet of string. Unfortunately, the mechanism is too weak to be used as a weapon.

Six High Tech Items

 

1. Uncalibrated Hypervision Goggles. Allow to see through walls - but the wall must be at least 3ft thick.
2. Diadem of Digital Brilliance. Its wearer should be treated as their Intelligence score is 27 (!). Can be used to telepathically communicate with AI, computers and even semi-smart machinery and tools.
   
3. Hypercubic Snare. A trap that can immobilize any immaterial beings - ethereal, extra-dimensional, even holographic ones. Doesn't work on any corporeal creatures or objects
4. Laser shield. Thick, metal bracelet, emiting grid of light that resembles a kite shield. Provides AC3 versus all heat and light-based weapons, such as fire, lightning, lasers etc. AC is reduced to 4 if the weapon is magical.
5. Troglo-Comms™. A communicator that allows conversating with primitive creatures - some animals, prehistoric humanoids, and politicians. Unfortunately, the stupidest the creature is, the faster device overheats and needs to cool down. Time to overheat varies between one hour in the case of apes or troglodytes and one minute if one tries to speak with invertebrates.
6. Space Goblin Lockpick. Can be used to open any electronic lock. The process lasts for 1d6 minutes. Unfortunately, after the door/container is closed afterwards, it automatically jams.
   

Night Club! (new magic...item?)

 

I know it's stupid. That's why I made it!

This carved club, made of polished walnut, possesses some peculiar magical abilities:

• Club's all magical powers activate only after sunset and last until dawn. The weapon should be treated as ordinary, although strange-looking wooden club.
• It's a +2 magical weapon.
• It grants 30% resistance versus alcohol and narcotics, atop of normal saving throws.
• It grants +3 Charisma bonus versus all genders that the Club's wielder is interested in.

Artwork by me!

Twelve Things Unearthed By Mistake

 

1. Huge iron bottle with a Demon of Three Plagues trapped inside.
2. Key to the Tomb of the Mummified Emperor.
3. Skull of the Headless Avenger.
4. Monolith of the Deluge.
5. Entrance to the Tunnels of Doom.
6. Previously missing tip of the Sword of Betrayal.
7. Silver casket, created to trap the Eternal Queen.
8. Crown of Madness, still adorning the Lunatic King's skull.
9. Divine Cork, plugging the Well of Thousand Locusts.
10. Hypercube of the Negative Dimensions.
11. Door to the Prison of the Sixty Thief Lords.
12. Bell of the Earthquakes.
    

Magical Snares

 

No, it's not about the type of drums. I'm sorry if I disappointed you.

Roll 1d6:

1. Any caught creature must save vs. magic to avoid falling asleep for as long as it remains ensnared.
2. When triggered, it emits extremely loud sound of a bell. Then, an extremely loud voice speaks the name of the ensnared creature (or its species if it has no name).
   
3. Any caught creature must save vs. magic to avoid being teleported to a cell inside the nearby tower, belonging to the Mavue Wizard.
4. When triggered, an undead (and hostile) skeletal warrior pops out of existence at the beginning of each of 1d6 turns after the trap's activation.
5. Any caught creature must save vs. magic or its level will be drained by 1. If reduced to zero or below, the creature will become a slave to the Ochre Wizard.
6. The snare can be triggered only by females. Any caught creature must save vs. magic to avoid becoming obsessed with the thoughts of Cerulean Wizard, even if they have never seen or heard of them.

The Ochre Wizard regretted creating his Trap of Irresisitible Affection in such haste. Now his tower is besieged by the menagerie of weird animals, all female. Not a single woman had fell into his trap in five years. But the beasts and the monsters keep flocking to his keep.

Ten artifacts that fell from the sky

1. A boat made of transparent material. There are several intricate mechanisms visible inside locked compartments on its bow and stern.
2. An enormous brass cogwheel. Its surface is covered in runes and reliefs depicting equine creatures.
3. A helmet made of shiny metal. It has a system of pipes protruding from its back and sides. Too large for humans to wear.
4. 20-feet long metal rod, as thick as man's arm. Each of its ends is tipped with a sizable spherical object. One of them is really hot to the touch, while the other is very cold.
5. An anchor. Its surface is painted gold and adorned with wreaths and colorful ribbons.
6. Sword made of opalescent metal. Its edges are jagged and its handle is weirdly curved, making it unwieldy for most humanoids. It's extremely light.
7. A human-sized flask made of extremely tough glass. It is capped with a partly-destroyed clockwork contraption that looks like it was ripped from a larger mechanism. The jar is filled with light red, translucent liquid.
8. Huge cubical monolith made of polished black stone. There are at least dozen metal pipes protruding from each of its sides. Smaller pipes or cables are coming out of each pipe.
9. A child-sized metal mirror, framed in gold. Reflections of any living beings are shimmering and weirdly twitching, while inanimate object look perfectly normal. The mirror emits constant, low-pitched hum.
10. Giant humanoid made from matte, gray metal. Its skin has many segments and its arms and legs have too many joints. Its eyes are made of green crystals.

Five Magical Jars [Aldarien's Magic Tome]

Some random glass containers! You'll get five more in the Aldarien's Magic Tome! And now roll 1d10:

1-2: Lantern Jar. Contains a glowing fish inside; fish must be fed insects once per day or it will stop emitting light and will die after 2d4 days.
3-4 Musical Jar. When opened, it will emit very loud sound for 2 turns(1d6: 1 war horns, 2 out of tune violin and pleas for help, 3 delicate lullaby played on a lute, 4 dissonant harpsichord, 5 hypnotic drumming, 6 flutes and oboes).
5-6 Jar of Hungry Transmutation. Transmutes food into gold and gold into food. The process lasts 1d4 hours. Eating partially transmuted objects is probably a bad idea.
7-8 Jar of Whispering Lies. One must shout a question inside the Jar – after 1d3 turns it whispers the answer. The only problem is that the response is a lie – if possible, an exact opposite of the truth.
9-10 Jar of Mending. When shattered, the remains will slowly (24h) crawl to one another to reattach the Jar.

Artpunk? Artbook!

There's a war on artpunk. Or is there? Honestly, I don't really care - people have the right to think what's right and wrong - and to express these feelings. In case of my artpunk-ish setting, the Ashen Void - any publicity is a good publicity. Especially when the written content is of any positive quality. And I believe it is!

(in addition, I've made a no-art edition as well, for all those haters who still want to enjoy over seventy random tables without the need to damage their eyesight with the disgusting, AI-generated deformities!)

BUT - to be honest, I'm quite tired of wars within the hobby. Being it edition wars, wars on artpunk, or even wars on particular people, no matter whether they deserve the hate or not. Fuck it. Negativity is rarely a sign of an improvement.

I'm still quite enamored with the basic idea of artpunk RPGs. But the think I'm working on has quickly evolved beyond the artpunk aesthetics. In fact, it has quickly evolved outside the role-playing games. Or even games in broader sense.

The Black Tome of Nothingness will be an artbook. And while the basic idea was to make a book that could be handed to the players as an in-game artifact, the actual thing quickly became something more. At least for me, from the author's perspective. The statement above is still true - there will be nothing about any kind of game mechanics, rules or "laws". But for me, the maker - the process is much more important. So, you may expect a messy mix of styles and ideas, sprinkled with an unhealthy dose of ugly artwork.

 

The thing will be quite sizable - for now, I have ideas for over 200 entries (very briefly described HERE). And each one of them will be a full-sized mix of artwork and handwritten bullshit. And only like 5 are already done. 

The process of creating them is quite interesting in itself. I have like 3-5 sentences-long descriptions of each entry. And when I start to lay out the basic images that relate to the text, the new text is also born. And it leads to the new doodles. And so on - until I run out of space on one A4-sized workspace (yes, everything is made digitally). Any leftovers are noted, as in most cases they are some cross-references to other entries. 

I love making it. It's fun.

Judging from my pace of creating previous things - expect the Black Tome to be released somewhere in mid-2040s! I will try to keep you up to date - but I think you know me already.

Oh, and the February sale of all my shit on DriveThru is still on! Grab yourself a PDF or two, while they're 30% off!

Black Tome of Nothingness - list of topics 4/4

PART ONE | PART TWO | PART THREE
 

Shimmering Dimension - our plane of existence.
Shroud, the - veil separating the mundane and the divine. Most likely a sophisticated form of a Timeless Machine.
Silver People - the original inhabitants of the Silver Sphere. Some classify them as one of the Feeble Races.
Singing Columns - associated with Crystal Towers - but located Beyond, amongst the Grave of the World.
Sinful One - the Saint who escaped the Exile Ritual.
Sirui - the Diviners. One of the Noble Houses. Many Saints seem to be obsessed with their destruction.
Sisters of Dawn - keepers of the Tower of the Exalted Light in the Church of the Saints.
Soulless Monarchs - Saints who tried to gain control of Radh but turned on each other.
Sources of Magic - flows of energy that once powered the Eternal Machines. Now they are all dead.
Staves of Function - the most common examples of Abstract Technology.
Stone Circles - portals between the Spheres. Some were also built on other celestial bodies (moons?).
Sun Priests - extinct sect of the Enlightened Ones. The ones who built the Transplanar Sundial.
Taroz the Diviner - High Priest of the Wall, obsessed with the idea of summoning the Godkiller.
Temple of the Shroud - a place where the Veiled One resides.
Temporal Liches - participants of the Mage War who were trapped between time and space, life and death.
Thanatomorphosis of Rhanorr - destructive death cult of Vokra. Eaters of the Saints.
Theogonia - work of Reerd the Eyeless, covering the origins of the Lesser Deities, as well as both Deicides.
Thol - desert-like wasteland at the bottom of the Stone Sphere, beyond the Black Plains.
Tlorn - a destroyed kingdom of the Brass Sphere. Claimed by the Fungi of Llai.
Tnaro - one of the Noble Houses. Masters of the Flesh Sorcery.
Tower of Blood - bottom part of the Iron City, located at the Inner Surface, pointing at Fear.
Tower of the Exalted Light - topmost part of the Church of the Saints. Guarded by the Sisterhood.
Tower of the Moon - an opposite pole of the Altar of the Sun. Built on Danaad.
Transplanar Sundial - the most powerful of the Timeless Machines located in the Stone Sphere. Now lost forever.
Tree People - mythical inhabitants of the Inner Spheres. Some claim that they created the Root Maze.
Triangle of Despair - a philosophy which describes the Nothingness as of three nightmarish possibilities.
Ttatonyl - a being who stole the Rite of Sanctification to fight the gods. Highly admirable.
Ttth - the Soul Crystals. Ancients who created the Spheres - or maybe even the entire Shimmering Dimension.
Ullu-Abo - the Black Root. A Plant Deity that pierced into the Silver Sphere from below, looking for the surface.
Umber Tome - accursed book that caused at least one major disaster in the past.
Underworld - the Deeper Spheres. That’s where the secrets of Nothingness are hidden.
Unknown Entity - not much is known about the force meddling with the world’s story throughout its existence…
Un-Tower - the bottom part of the Church of the Saints. Much older than the temple built above.
Valleys of Naalu - place where the Pyramids were destroyed. Most likely buried during the Collapse.
Vardi the Timeless - the Last Chronomancer. Executed and buried in the Colorless Tomb.
Veiled One - mysterious deity of the Church. Even the Lesser Gods don’t know much about him.
Vaults of Kresht - an ancient treasury, Secret Chamber from the time of the Pyramid Wars.
Vokra - the Grave City. Built around the Wells of the Damned. Final resting place of many historical figures.
War of the Spheres - conflict amongst the Ancient Ones that led to their destruction.
Watcher of Ngaros - fourth Eater of Madness. One who was fascinated with the mystical energies of the Spheres.
Water Serpent of Ssest - a Saint occupying the Aqueducts. The Defiler of Pathways.
Weapons - behold the edges that shaped the world!
Weeping Pilgrims - useless herd of lamenters over the fate of the world. But there is a Saint that follows them.
Wise Women of Radh - one of the major factions of the Iron City. The first ones who descended there?
Wounded Crags - the edge of the Stone Sphere, far beyond the Ash Basin.
Xeddia - one of the Noble Houses. The Necromancers. Even the Engineers turned their backs on them.
Xonn - capital of the Silver People. Control Panel of the Outer Spheres.
Xosoko - Ancient Race, masters of All That Was Hidden. Sculptors of the pocket dimensions.
Yngar Bridge - the only known passage between the Silver and the Brass spheres.
Youngest Son, the - mythical figure from the Iron City’s past. Presumably devoured by the Demon Lord of Fear.
Yvesi - the Mathematician. The Second Eater of Madness. The One Who Deciphered The World.
Zaat - the Gray Planet. Home - or the former prison - of the Cyclops. Now barren and devoid of any life.
Zodaar - the Nightmare King. One of the most prominent figures from the Mage Wars.

Black Tome of Nothingness - list of topics 3/4

PART ONE | PART TWO

Lesser Deities - petty gods, still delusional about their power over the world. Fodder for the Blade of Murder.
Library of Uncountable Sapphirine Deaths - Secret Chamber containing the most important books of all.
Liturgy of Reversal - ritual performed by the Chronomancers that led to their destruction.
Llai - Fungal Forest sprawling through the destroyed portions of the Brass Sphere. Home of the Plant Gods.
Lovers - madmen afflicted by their imprisoned muse - a goddess or a saint assimilated by the Spheres themselves.
Mage War - the largest man-made cataclysm since the Pyramid Wars. Looks like we never learn.
Magic - for some, incomprehensible powers of the universe. For others, just the energy powering the Spheres.
Maze of Roots - overgrown tunnels below the Reservoir, inhabited by the last remaining Korri.
Mindless Forces - the Primeval Gods. Representation of the forces of nature which shaped reality.
Miracles - all cases of successful uses of the Abstract Technology during the Age of Men.
Molten Spheres - transitional areas between the layers of Deep Underworld
Moon Kingdom - home of those who escaped the Pyramid Wars to settle on Danaad.
Museum of Time - sacred vault of Radh, containing numerous artifacts of the past.
Mutterings of Phandra - written by the First Eater of Madness, contains information about the Ancient Ones.
Muurn - the one who Hunts Down the Lost. Shadow God, courageous enough to remain active even these days.
Naygrar - once the tallest peak of all the Places Beyond destroyed in a magical explosion that buried Ganth.
Ngaros - the Infernal Observatory. Build deep underground to determine the Sources of Magic.
Nghsh - one of the Ancient Races. Ones that were bound to operating the Eternal Machinery of the Spheres.
Nightmare Thrones - demonic interfaces to the Spheres, made by the degenerate inhabitants of the Iron World.
Noble Houses - last descendants of the Enlightened Ones, entangled in the eternal power struggle.
Nothingness - that’s how we call our reality - a tear in the Shimmering Dimension, in which the world resides.
Null Wraiths - creatures born of the disasters of the Mage War. Echoes of the Sundial’s destruction.
Nybel of the Night - Saint protector of Kothra. Has disappeared into the Un-Tower.
Nynal Vost - one of the few humans to ever reach the Gray Planet of Zaat.
Obfuscated Doorways - work on the topic of the Secret Chambers. Attributed to Yvesi.
One Who Speaks Words No One Wants To Hear - the final, Fifth Eater of Madness. The Harbinger of Apocalypse.
Othuriarth - the Jade Rift. The Primal God whose awakening has started the First Deicide.
Parasitic Worlds - the most known book on the topic of the Spheres. Filled to the brim with false information.
Pantheon, the - the currently active Shadow Gods of Nothingness. The Contained Gods are literally worthless.
Phandra - the Discoverer of Truths. The first Eater of Madness. The one who knew everything about the past.
Plant Gods - the most powerful beings currently alive that aren’t cursed with consciousness.
Portals to Hysteria - a scroll describing all known connections between the Spheres.
Priesthood of the Wall - those who guard the border with the land of the dead.
Pure People - last descendants of the Enlightened Ones. The Noble Houses seem to be obsessed with Pure Blood.
Pyramid Wars - the war that caused the heavens to fall down on earth, causing the Collapse.
Pyramids - the most powerful war machines ever created by humans. Almost led to the destruction of the world.
Purgatory Theorem - my own theory about the world being a transitional space, something not as cruel as the reality described in the Triangle of Despair - but still quite unsettling.
Raktai - one of the Ancient Races. Poisonous amphibians who disappeared even before the War of the Spheres.
Reerd the Eyeless - Third Eater of Madness. The One Who Knew All Names. Croyle?
Red Sands - desert-like cavernous halls, full of ruined Eternal Machines. Located in the Iron Sphere.
Reservoir Temple - a fortress guarding the place where the Aqueducts end.
Rine - the second, smaller moon. Has a very unstable orbit, so It’s rarely seen. It sends visions to the worthy.
Road of the Giants - half-mythical pathway through the Spheres.

Rhud - I think that the author of this tome deserves an entry about himself.

Saints - humans who were blessed with the powers of the Veiled One and received almost godlike powers.
Sapphire Chambers - place where the Lesser Gods walled themselves to avoid the Othuriarth’s hunger.
Sapphire Gate - destroyed magical portal to the Sapphire Chambers, located at Naygrar's peak.
Secret Chambers - concealed parts of the Spheres, extremely difficult to find without a key or a guide.
Scientific Mysticism - religion and/or philosophical movement devoted to the Geometric Gods.
Scars of the Earth - massive wounds of the planet, often piercing through several Spheres.
Scroll of Hidden Realms - oldest known tract on the Spheres, describing their names and properties.
Shadow Gods - those Lesser Deities who weren’t consumed by fear. Still active today.
Shapers - inhabitants of the Spheres of underworld, highest-ranking Engineers.

Black Tome of Nothingness - list of topics 2/4

  

PART ONE

* * *

Eaters of Madness - five greatest sages of all time.
Emerald Crown - artifact of the Ancients, used to operate the Transplanar Sundial. Now lost.
Engineers - the (Ancient) ones who had the power to operate the Eternal Machinery.
Enlightened Ones - people of the past, who understood the Abstraction of the technology of the Spheres.
Erkal Crystals - the rarest secretions of the broken Eternal Machines. Found only in the Inner Spheres.
Eternal Machinery - technology of the Ancient Ones - or the magic propelling the Spheres.
Eternal Monarchs - corpses raised as rulers of Vokra. Still better than relying on gods, if you ask me.
Exile - a ritual stripping a Saint of their power. Can be used to temporarily power the Abstract Technology.
Eyeless Queen - Goddess of Stagnation, residing below the Castle.
Fates - either the goddesses of cruelty - or the Saints who devoured them. The truth is unclear now.
Fear - inner sun of the Iron Sphere. Said to be extinguished during the war between the Ancients.
Feeble Races - us, the humans. And some other, much more elusive ones, trapped in the Nothingness along us.
Figurines - artifacts from the Inner Spheres, left as the clues by the Shapers.
Five Candles, Five Wounds - a blasphemous tome about the true purpose of the Eaters of Madness.
First God of Murder - slayer of the Jade Rift, bearer of the Blade - as well as its second victim.
Flesh Sorcery - Intricate rituals of human sacrifice to gain access to the Abstraction. Domain of House Tnaro.
Followers of the Black Tome - one of the factions of the Mage War. The Seekers of Iaad.
Forbidden Palace - buried below the Un-Tower. Tip of the Iron City.
Forge City - half-mythical place, heart of the Iron Sphere. Left deserted after the War of the Spheres.
Formless Idealists - faction of philosophers who worship chaos as the “Great Mover of the Spheres”.
Ganth - the only known human settlement located Beyond. Now buried under millions of tons of rock.
Gardens of Danaad - forests or other dense foliage located on the larger moon, visible from here.
Geometric Deities - those gods who survived the First Deicide by cheating and bending the laws of reality.
Geometrists of Sorrem - priests of the Geometric Deities. Or the scientists of the Depths. Or both.
Ghoul Lanterns - the only devices that allow the navigation through the Bone Sphere.
God of the Wall - the One who Guards the Dead. The Bone Sphere itself.
Godkiller - the entity responsible for the Second Deicide. Disappeared without a trace afterwards.
Grand Measurement - obsession of the Scientific Mystics, may be a reminiscence of the Pyramid Curse.
Grave of the World - endless sea of shattered stone. Anomalous monument to the Collapse of the Stone Sphere.
Great Symmetry - the “impossible” and “unnoticeable” force of the universe that keeps it in motion.
Heretics - the most radical of the Antitheists, actively seeking the destruction of everything divine.
Hidden Sphere - portion of the Emerald Realm that was ripped out and corrupted, creating the Sapphire Vault.
Hrithia - a long lineage of assassins. Their history is intertwined with the Noble Houses.
Honnaop the Bone Sorcerer - a Saint who descended through the Bone Vaults into the Bone Sphere.
Hyperdimensionalists - faction of the Mage War who wanted to collapse the Spheres to reignite the Fear.
Hyperglyphs - trans-dimensional means of communication, the original way to command the Eternal Machines.

Hallucinations of Rhud - I’ve stumbled upon the booklet when I was halfway done with my research on the Black Book you’re reading now. At first glance I thought it was written to discredit Rhud and his masterpiece. I couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Ice People - constructs of the Engineers, remaining in a constant state of war with the Silver People.
Inner Surface - located at the Iron Sphere’s Centre, once illuminated by the Fear.
Iron City - a colossal spire that pierces through all the Spheres. Partly inhabited by humans. Also known as Radh.
Itt’ib - the Entropy Sludge. The Ancient Ones who emerged from the corpse of Othuriarth.
Kadri Plains - anomalous wasteland, sometimes accessible via the tunnels below the Church of the Saints.
King, the - the last hereditary ruler of mankind. Disappear without a trace, probably into the Underworld.
Kingdom of Light - our home. But there is no light left. Only laughter in the dark.
Korri - one of the Feeble Races. Inhabitants of the Maze of the Roots and the Daughter’s Gardens
Kothra - the Prison City. One of the biggest complexes of Secret Chambers. Ruled by the Priesthood of the Wall.
Kresht - one of the oldest human settlements, located in the gorge between the Church and the Castle.
K’tegh - subhuman troglodytes, either created by the Raktai or devolved from humans.
Lcanter - one of the Noble Houses. The ones who gained access to the Iron City.
Lenses - made of pure silver, allow to peer into the Underworld Spheres. Conduits of insanity. Ngaros!