Canonfire!

Tue Dec 07, 2010 1:33 am monster-spawning regions

What do you guys think of designating certain regions of the Oerth as 'monster spawning regions, from whence come many (though by no means all) of the strange abberations of nature that populate the D&D/WoG bestiaries?

I'm thinking that if I run GH again, I'll treat the Land of Black Ice, the DeepOerth, and the Sea of Dust like this. Could it be fallout from the Rain of Colorless Fire, dimensional rifts, a remnant of the aforementioned primal ooze, the warping influence of imprisoned entities?

Tue Dec 07, 2010 10:43 am

If you do the work I will probably use it.

Tue Dec 07, 2010 12:05 pm

In essence, that is the function of the certain areas already.

Even moreso after the wars: entire regions revel in depravity such as the lands of Iuz or the Great Kingdom as does the monster breeders of the SB. The various humanoid nations like the Pomarj or local secluded mountains/forests also provide ample "spawn" areas for potential adversaries.

Tue Dec 07, 2010 5:01 pm

My concept is not just that monsters will breed naturally in certain regions, but that freakish creatures will be produced by the warped environments of certain regions. This might be mutation by magical forces, Oerthblood, etc. It might even be actual spontaneous generation of beasties from the physical environment. Many of the monsters thus created may be sterile or have low fertility. Perhaps they are better able to breed in their native homes.

I'm somewhat inspired by CAS's Ubbo Sathla, and also by Harn's Ilvir and his Invashu creations. I don't know that I'd use a god, per se, although a foul avatar of Beltar breeding monsters in the DeepOerth is attractive...

This approach helps to square 'Gygaxian naturalism' with an Earthlike world overrun by bizarre monsters.

The 'unusual zones produce unusual critters' approach helps to explain:

Tue Dec 07, 2010 8:30 pm

Good topic, CM! Does the Barrier Peaks region of the crashed ship count? If one used the adventure Gates of Firestorm Peak that would be a good source of mutant monsters too. Natural Flanaess-wise, Thillonria and the Corusk-Griff chain is a very wild area for monsters to breed. Also I think the Burning Cliffs/Wastes has potential.

Wed Dec 08, 2010 12:04 pm

Wed Dec 08, 2010 2:24 pm

Yes, this is an interesting topic.

I've thought about this some as well.

It had occurred to me for a while that places of evil (unholy sites, places of great tragedy or whatnot) would attract evil creatures like orcs, etc., and/or warp natural creatures into other forms (i.e., like giant spiders or centipedes). (I think I got that idea from Tolkien, but i'm not sure...)

It also occurred to me that some monsters can be explained through a process of being warped by a foul place while others, like bulettes or beholders are completely alien to other lifeforms. So I thought, 'hey, could there be a fantasy antecedent to a nuclear bomb?' Instead of radiation altering DNA, magical emanations could cause this alteration in natural creatures? Areas where monsters naturally 'spawn' could be areas where long lost (and forgotten) civilizations had a magical nuclear exchange. Not too dissimilar from the Wyld effect from Exalted.

those are my thoughts

Wed Dec 08, 2010 6:41 pm

I was thinking that the Rain of Colorless Fire may have left magical radiation in its wake.

Sun Dec 12, 2010 7:18 pm

Mon Dec 13, 2010 5:27 pm

Wed Dec 15, 2010 7:24 pm