TEXT: Gregorius´ Notes:
  On the Weird OSR Fantasy
  Year 2019
  by Kai Pütz © 2020
  Version 1.0
  
  Legal & other stuff:
  Created by:
  Kai Pütz; (c) 2020
  My blog:
  www.gregorius21778.wordpress.com
  Artwork:
  Cover and further artwork by "Publisher´s Choice Quality Stock Art (c) Rick 
  Hershey / Fat Goblin Games;  used with permission.
  Page background artwork copyright LPJ Design, used with permission.
  Page background b/w-version (c) by the Knotty-Works;  used with permission. 
  Purse on p.9 © Azukail Games, used With Permission"
  Troll on p.12 by Bradley K McDevitt/Post-Mortem Studios; used with permission.
  Skull on p.16 by Henriette Boldt; used with permission.
  Some artwork  (p.15; 17) (c) 2015 Dean Spencer, used with permission. All rights 
  reserved. 
  Arm on p.18  © 2008 Jeff Freels/Fabled Worlds, used with permission.
  Ghoul on p. 20 (c) by Denis McCarthy/Aegis Studios; used with permission.
  Fly Herald on p.21 (c) Carlos Castilho; used with permission.
  This product is an independent production by Gregorius21778 and is not affiliated with Lamentations of the Flame
  Princess. Lamentations of the Flame Princess is a registered trademark owned by James Edward Raggi IV.
  Gregorius´Notes: On the Weird OSR Fantasy #Year 2019 is a collection of selected articles I wrote for
  my blog in said year. Inside you will find a  fictional heathen religion with a matching new character class,
  an adaption of Lovecraft´s Merchants of the Black Galleys, magic items, two monsters, a mysterious NPC
  that is allied to one of them, a description for another world overlapping with ours, a little side-quest and
  other articles. 
   All written for and compatible with Lamentations of the Flame Princess(tm). 
  17 pages of content (the other are cover, front matter, etc.).
  Enjoy!
  
  Table of Contents:
  The Faith of the Loving Mother
  p.  4
  Clerics of the Loving Mother
  p.  5
  The Merchants of the Black Galleys
  p.  6
  Items of the Black Galleys
  p.  7
  Nine Magic Items
  p.  8
  The Three Bridge Tunnels
  p. 11
  Trolls 
  p. 12
  The Lady of Lock and Key
  p. 15
  Ghouls 
  p. 16
  Realm of the Ghouls
  p. 18
  The Shepherd
  p. 19
  Thoughts on Raggi´s Eldritch Cock
  p. 20
  Advertisements
  p. 21
  
  The Faith of The Loving Mother
  The very first goddess was the Mother, and mankind had
  worshiped her for ages, before the dawn of civilization. All
  of mankind were her children. She loved them and taught
  them the value of family life and kinship, of love between
  women and men, the bound between family and friends,
  the simple crafts and arts, to sing and dance, to gather and
  how to weather what life had in store.
  Then, with the dawn of civilization, the men made their
  own gods, for they were jealous of the love, position and
  prestige only a mother could gain, for only she was the
  true source of life. Their faiths were build on dogma,
  dominion and many, many laws. They turned their eyes
  away from the Loving Mother and pushed her into the
  darkness, in an attempt to subjugate and replace here. It
  broke the heart of the Mother. She tried to keep those that
  remained with her, but one by one the new faith drove
  them off: with insults,  punishment and ostracism. So, she
  withdraw her counsel, as it was not sought anymore, and
  left mankind to the errors of its ways. But as a mother, she
  never completely gave up her love for her children.
  Those who want to come back to her, to make peace with
  her and join the family again, may do so, after they have
  show that they mean it. For even a mother cannot lightly
  forget the grief and vilification that She has suffered: no
  woman would. To those that find their way back to her,
  She offers counsel again, as well as aid and the joys of
  freedom of the senses. For creation is there to be enjoyed.
  To make sure that nobody that found her again may ever
  bear the seed of that kind of jealous betrayal to her ways
  again, she denies their most beloved what the followers of
  the now dominant gods crave: wealth and power. They are
  to be the motherly and fatherly leaders of the family.
  The Faith of the Loving Mother is a heathen cult.
  Those that try to spread the word are often mistaken
  for traveling folk or carny people. They make use of
  this, as “having a good time” is one of the good
  things their faith has to offer, and those that bring
  song,  dance  and  merry-making  are  the  kind  of
  strangers usually welcome in almost all communities,
  even  if  only  for  a  while.  Aside  from  that,  the
  believers of the Mother keep their true ways secret,
  and those in a village who adhere to it are secretive
  about it as well. The word of the Loving Mother
  spreads only slowly. Her family does not preach, it
  waits  for  somebody  to  come  and  ask,  or  for
  somebody to show keen interest and an open heart.
  What the Faith of the Loving Mother is like:
  #it values family, community, communal ties, charity
  and  life itself. The life of mankind shall not be a
  burden, but something that the people share and
  enjoy with another.
  #it does -not- center on an afterlife, but about living a
  good and fulfilling life.
  #it is neither dogmatic about monogamy nor fully
  rejecting it. As soon as a child is coming, the father
  and the mother are responsible for the child till it has
  founded  its  own  family  or  decided  to  leave  the
  parents´ household. 
  #personal wealth is shunned in favor of communal
  wealth. As families share what they have, the families
  of a community are meant to share what they have,
  and help another. 
  #those that serve the community the most are those
  whose  voice  shall  be  the  most  valued  in  the
  community.
  #a mother´s service is being the source of life by
  giving birth to the child, after being seeded by a man.
  Thereby,  the  voice  of  a  mother  shall  count
  accordingly more in the community. 
  #the Beloved of the Mother (the men and women
  serving to spread her word and act as counselors in
  all matters) shall know a craft, shall know an art (in
  both  cases:  no  matter  how  humble),  shall  walk
  barefoot in all but winter, shall not own riches and
  shall never benefit themselves directly from the gifts
  that  the  Mother  taught  them  to  bestow  on  Her
  behalf. As long as it does not endanger them, they
  shall  wear  colorful  clothes  to  represent  the
  joyfulness of life. 
  #those that sinned against family or community or
  the  Mother´s  Ways,  the  Beloved  shall  send  on  a
  fitting quest,  so  that  they  may  have a chance to
  redeem themselves. 
  
  New Class: Cleric of the Loving Mother
  Level and Experience: the Level/XP ladder of the
  Magic-User class applies (to make up for the special
  benefits that come with the combination of a Cleric
  and a Specialist).
  HP: as Cleric
  Saving Throws: as Specialist
  Spells: half of what a Cleric would have access to,
  round  down.  Furthermore,  Clerics  of  the  Loving
  Mother may never learn spells of level 6 and above.
  Skill points: Half of what a Specialist would gain.
  Furthermore,  Clerics  of  the  Loving  Mother  may
  never  invest  Skill  points  into  Sleight  of  Hand and
  Sneak Attack.
  Special Ability: Remove Curse
  The Clerics of the Loving Mother may  remove curse
  without any need to have the spell prepared (and
  may never learn it). The may cast it for free if the
  target  has  sought  the  counsel  of  the  cleric  and
  fulfilled the assigned quest (see below for examples).
  If the target tried to fool the cleric, the curse will not
  be  removed  but  another  will  be  placed  by  the
  enraged celestial force. Each and every cleric of the
  Loving Mother will recognize with a single glance
  that this character has tried to betray the Mother
  instead of fulfilling the quest.
  20 Sample Quests of the Loving Mother
  #01: Return a lost child to its family.
  #02: Rescue a believer from imprisonment and 
  punishment by the dominant religion.
  #03: Bring just punishment to one that oppresses 
  mothers and/or families.
  #04: Suffer an infection with a certain disease, and 
  return to be cured.
  #05: Find another Beloved of the Mother, explain 
  what has brought this quest upon you, and return 
  with his or her blessing.
  #06: Spend five days in five different families, in five 
  different communities.
  #07:  Protect  three  different  families  from  three
  different dangers.
  #08: Be at the celebration of the birth of a child, the
  marriage of a couple and the mourning of a recently
  deceased.  Return  and  tell  the  Beloved  about  the
  child, the couple and the one that passed away.
  #09: Help a couple in being happy with another.
  #10: Do the daily work of somebody else for three
  days,  for  four  different  people  in  four  different
  places. Do not receive anything for it but food and
  shelter.
  #11: Ask three different men what they wish you to
  do for them, and do it. All of them must be the father
  of at least three children.
  #12: Gather three young orphans and persuade them
  to become the Beloved Ones charges on their own
  free will.
  #13: Find somebody severally ill and help him or her
  in getting well again.
  #14: Serve somebody that is blind for seven days and
  seven nights.
  #15: Find a woman that is only weeks away from
  giving birth. Have her accept your help in the days to
  come.
  #16: Search and return lost livestock of somebody at
  least two days of travel away.
  #17: Travel northward seven days without washing,
  and return without washing. Then, travel with the
  Beloved One till you find somebody that is willing to
  allow you to wash and clean yourself in his or her
  own home, just because you asked or pleaded.
  #18:  Receive  an  animal  from  the  Beloved  One  (a
  piglet, swine, goat, sheep or young dog) and leave the
  local community for at least 14 days. Return with the
  entrusted animal alive and well.
  #19:  Live  a  beggar´s  life  till  the  next  full  moon
  (means:  spend  only  money  you  have  received  as
  alms).
  #20: Bring to the Beloved one a non-believer that is
  willing to hear of the Loving Mother with an open
  heart.
  
  The Merchants of the Black Galleys
  “(...) but (...) its reputation is bad because of the black
  three-banked galleys that sail to it with rubies from no
  clearly named shore. (…)
  (…). The mouths of the men who came from it to trade
  were too wide, and the way their turbans were humped up
  in two points above their foreheads was in especially bad
  taste. And their shoes were the shortest and queerest ever
  seen. (…)
  (...) And the odors from those galleys which the south wind
  blew in from the wharves are not to be described. (…)".
  [From  The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath; by H.P.
  Lovecraft]
  In the 16th and 17th century, there were not that
  many vessels of the orient that frequented the ports
  of England, Germany, The United Provinces, France,
  Spain or Portugal. Those that did arrive in the ports
  of these nations often were Turkish, and the strange
  ways of the bewildering merchants and sailors from
  this country were looked upon with suspicion. After
  all, they were not good Christians! These are the
  basic assumptions of mine that I used to create my
  version  of  the  Merchants  of  the  Black  Galleys
  (blatantly ripped from H.P. Lovecraft´s  The Dream-
  Quest of Unknown Kadath), so that they might come
  ashore in the lands of the Lamentations of the Flame
  Princess, too.
  Nerd  Rage  Warning: I  took  great  liberties  in
  fleshing out what H.P. Lovercraft has written about
  the Merchants of the Black Galleys, and ultimately
  estranged  them  from  their  source.  If  this  is  a
  sacrilege to you, better do not read further...
  The three-banked galleys are not really black, but of
  a very dark wood. Its the black sails (which they
  feature in addition to the rows of oars) that gave
  them their moniker, as well as the swarthy faces of
  the  merchants  that  they  bring  ashore.  Those
  merchants have long chin beards, unpleasant thin
  voices  and  thin  teeth.  They  trade  in  rubies,  and
  rubies alone. None of them ever buys any wares, and
  they only accept payment in gold. On a rare occasion,
  one  of  them  may  personally  sell  an  item  of  his
  homeland. This will never happen at the market, but
  in the taverns near the harbor, where one or more
  might be found while a Black Galley is at anchor. 
  Those that approach and try to mingle with them
  might be offered one of these often unique items. In
  fact, they seem to haggle about those with glee once
  the ice has been broken.
  Nobody has ever been invited onto their ships, and
  the few officials that actually inspected a Black Galley
  in  port  (instead  of  accepting  a  bribe  in  rubies)
  returned from them with a dulled gaze, only saying
  that all would be in order, without going into details.
  What the majority of the people in Europe are
  unaware of is that these merchants are known to
  the Turks and the rest of the Orient as well, but
  they are  strangers to them, too. They only come
  to ports with a slave market. There, they buy the
  biggest  slaves  that  are  offered,  the  strongest
  laborers and the fattest eunuchs, and always pay
  in gold. Nobody knows where their home port is.
  Would anybody ever follow their ship, they would
  see them move onto the high sea, and after a night
  has passed they would not be seen anymore. Just
  like the ocean would have swallowed them. They
  do not hail from the Orient nor from any other
  place on earth. The slaves, they bring to their
  masters, who worship the Outer Gods.
  Merchants  of  the  Black  Galleys are  equal  to
  Specialists  of  level  0  to  3.  Their  skill  points  are
  usually  assigned  to Languages,  and  sometimes  to
  Sleight of Hand and  Stealth as well. There is a 5 in 6
  chance that they have learned one random 1st level
  Magic-User spell for 2 skill points (instead of having
  allocated the points to skills instead).
  Their caftan, turban and pointed shoes hide devilish
  features: from their heads sprout a pair of little horns
  akin to that of goats, they have no feet but hooves, a
  short tail grows out of their lower back and their legs
  are like that of a goat as well. All in all, they look very
  close to the ancient Greek pictures of satyrs, but yet
  different. 
  They are immune to  Charm and all form of mind
  control, and receive a +3 bonus on all saving throws
  to resist the effects of drugs (as those they are used
  to make everything on earth pale in comparison).
  
  Items that may be offered by a Merchant from a
  Black Galley:
  Scarlet Wine: an unlabeled bottle made of red glass
  that holds a rich, scarlet red wine. Those that drink
  from it must Save vs. Devices or will drink from it till
  they lose consciousness (if they own the bottle or are
  offered  to  drink  more:  when  consumed  in  quick
  succession, a glass of Scarlet Wine is as potent as the
  same  amount  of  hard  liquor).  Those  that  lose
  consciousness do not become unresponsive but end
  up in a highly suggestible state, while all memories of
  their acts blur into a feverish nightmare. This state
  of  mind  lasts  for  1d4  hours.  The  merchant  will
  demand no less than a piece of gold for a bottle.
  Ruby Bracelet: four small red rubies, attached to a
  thin  golden  chain  (which  in  truth  is  gold-plated
  brass). One of the four rubies hangs from a short
  chain while the other three are lined on a second
  one. Worn by a character with Chaotic alignment, the
  bracelet puts an effect akin to  Protection from Evil
  onto the wearer, with a level equal to that of the
  character  wearing  it.  This  protection  only  works
  against creatures of the Outer Gods whose level/HD
  is below 4. 
  Any servant or creature of the Outer Gods which
  level/HD is 4 or greater may once per day put the
  wearer under the effects of a Hold Person spell (with a
  level equal to the level/HD of the servant/creature)
  by saying HALT in a language taught by the Outer
  Gods.  The  merchants  often  wear  these  bracelets
  themselves  and  will  only  part  with  them  on  a
  Reaction Roll result of 9+ (and then demand 2d6+2
  gold in exchange).
  Rappee: the merchants favor an exotic rappee that is
  brown-red in color and crumbles easily. They carry it
  in ornamented snuff boxes, and sometimes offer it to
  those that try to socialize with them. Sniffing the
  rappee calls for a Save vs. Poison, and on a failure the
  character will become light headed while a burning
  sensation  blooms  up  between  the  eyes  (-1  to  all
  saving throws and attack rolls). If the saving throw is
  passed, the character will benefit from a +2 bonus on
  all Saves vs. Magic and Devices instead, but the burning
  sensation remains the same. In both cases the effect
  lasts for 1d4+2 turns, and a Save vs. Devices must be
  rolled when it wears off. If the test is failed, the
  character immediately consumes another does of the
  rappee  if  possible.  A  snuff  box  with  2d6+15
  applications is usually sold by a merchant for 2 gp.
  The Red Eyes that See are a set of two large and
  peculiar cut rubies. When a character that is drunk
  from Scarlet Wine lies down and puts those upon her
  clothed eyes, she will after a turn see strange things
  with the inner eye: the cosmos hazed by eerie vapors
  and a nebula never seen before. When the character
  then focuses the own thoughts on a certain area or
  building, her sight will race through the cosmos and
  the nebular to that place, which is then perceived in
  a rapid succession of feverish impressions before this
  state of vision ends abruptly. The effect is akin to the
  cleric spell Divination, but was bestowed upon by the
  Outer Gods. Thereby, the character is unable to hide
  his presence (by mundane as well as magical means)
  from any servant of the Outer Gods with a level/HD
  of 4+ for a number of days equal to the own level.
  Merchants will only part from a set of the Red Eyes for
  20gp (if they possess such at all).
  The Wishful Heart is a large ruby which surface
  reflects the light in a soft, glittering way when held
  just right. It is a talisman that is meant to give good
  luck to any undertaking that is disclosed to it. A
  character that handles the Wishful Heart for a while
  (at least 5 rounds) and thinks or speaks about an
  upcoming endeavor will become calm and confident
  about the matters at hand (+2 on all saving throws).
  The same time, the Moral and  Loyalty of each and
  every retainer towards this character is reduced by
  one, even if they do not know about the Wishful Heart:
  they  feel  that  there  is  some  eerie  change  to  the
  character in question. A  Wishful Heart will only be
  sold for at least 50gp. If it is stolen, the one who did it
  becomes  cursed: the thief will be unwilling to give
  away the Wishful Heart, no matter what, and when the
  character´s henchmen and hirelings lose their trust,
  a separate Moral check tells if those will steal from
  the character before parting ways.
  A  Most  Singular  Skull: a  merchant  offers  a
  character the content of a small leather pouch that
  he wears on a string around the neck: a tiny, singular
  animal skull. It looks like that of a rat, yet again like
  that of a snake but then again not like any of the two.
  The merchant will explain to the character that this
  talisman  protects  against  “vile  spirits  from  the
  beyond”. When this skull is worn on person, it does
  protect the wearer like a 2nd level Protection from Evil
  against all  summoned creatures and those who are
  spawns of the Outer Gods if they have 3 or less HD. In
  turn, the character suffers from a (-1) penalty to all
  Saves vs. Magic  or Devices as long as she wears the
  skull on person.
  
  Nine Magic Items
  The Bow of St. Parcival the Upright.
  Parcival the Upright is an unlikely saint, for he was a
  bounty hunter that brought wanted men before the
  bailiff. He avoided to kill those whenever he could,
  for he steadfastly believed that “I am not to judge, and
  it is better to risk the own life than to bring death to an
  innocent.” Daily, he prayed for guidance to the Lord,
  and gave the bounty to the convict´s family in the
  few cases that he grew a hunch that somebody he
  turned in had been sentenced in vain. One day, he
  turned so unsure about somebody that he had turned
  in that he prayed and flagellated himself for days in
  search of an answer for his guilty conscience. On the
  third  day,  an  angel  appeared  to  Parcival  and
  explained to him that the man that he turned in was
  indeed guilty. To spare him further grueling days and
  nights of doubt, God had decided to gift him with a
  bow touched by the spirits of all martyrs in heaven.
  Whenever this bow would be used to aim an arrow on
  somebody accused in vain or wronged by the charge
  he was hunted for, the archer (but only him) would
  hear all the martyrs bewail the choice so that the
  archer  could  halt  himself  from  firing  the  arrow.
  Those who would fire an arrow with the bow to harm
  somebody wronged or  innocent would have their
  eyes become black as coal.
  The bow itself is a reflex bow made of the finest
  wood, light in weight and with tips of bronze plated
  with gold. The grip is wrapped with braided, white
  hair that feels like silk to the touch.
  Also akin to a short bow in size, the weapon has the
  range of a long bow and does 1d6+2 damage. It takes
  a Strength of 15+ to use the bow´s full potential: to
  those with Strength 10-14 it is just a short bow with
  according stats. Those with a lower Strength cannot
  fire the bow at all.
  Also not a truly a “cursed” item, the Bow  of  St.
  Parcival counts as one in regard to the desire to use
  and keep it. The current “owner” of the bow stays its
  owner till she dies, turns blind or decides to gift the
  bow  to  somebody  with  a  non-chaotic  alignment.
  Afterwards, the next non-chaotic person that fires an
  arrow with it becomes the new owner. The “Eyes like
  Coal” effect is treated as a curse.
  The Phylactery of Unholy Sanctuary
  The phylactery is a featureless bronze locket with a
  thin metal lid. When it is opened, a ghostly white
  light shines from within. The light is as bright as that
  of a torch at the start, but quickly dims down to the
  shine  of  a  candle.  Inside  of  it,  on  a  rolled  up
  parchment only two inch wide, is a contract with a
  demon. Whoever signs it forfeits his or her soul in
  exchange  for  protection  by  the  forces  of  hell.
  Numerous people have already signed this contract,
  and there is enough room on the paper for more.
  By touching the amulet with the left hand and loudly
  proclaiming servitude to and protection by the forces
  of hell, a character that has signed the contract may
  evoke an effect akin to a 5th level Protection from Evil,
  that protects against any being -but- those that are
  Chaotic in nature. Magic-Users and their spells are
  affected by it, Elves and their spells are not.
  The contract states that the signee only may call
  upon  this  protection  up  to  three  times,  unless  a
  human sacrifice is made by the signee in the name of
  the demon that wrote the contract. In this case, the
  protection  of  the  phylactery  may  be  called  upon
  another three times, or a number of times equals to
  the level of the character that has been sacrificed
  (whichever is higher).
  A Ring of Loving Wishes for Protection
  The ring was a gift of an oriental princess to her
  beau. Out of pure love, she wished for him to always
  be safe, and that wish was so strong that it sought to
  hinder the gods from doing him harm. If a character
  of Neutral alignment wears it, all harmful clerical
  spells that target him or her are reduced by two
  levels in potency (and those reduce to zero or less are
  negated). If the spell´s potency is not scaled by level
  but allows for a saving throw, it gains a +2 bonus. The
  effect will end for the character (and never work
  again for her, but for potential future owners) when
  she confesses love for another (fake or true) while
  wearing the ring. It will also fade when the wearer
  comes under the effect of a Charm spell.
  
  The Lion Staff
  An ivory quarterstaff with a sculptured grip piece
  that depicts a lion´s head with open mouth. It is a
  traveler´s staff from the middle east, and was carved
  and  enchanted  by  a  mystic  in  order  to  have
  something to fend of predators when wandering. The
  staff later came to Europe as part of a crusader´s loot.
  When an encounter with a mundane beast calls for a
  Reaction roll, the wearer of the Lion Staff may treat
  any Unfriendly reaction as Indifferent instead (as long
  as  the  character  gives  no  direct  reason  for  an
  unfriendly or hostile reaction) .When the staff is used
  to attack mundane beasts, all present hostile animals
  must check for Moral after every attack with  it,
  successful or not. 
  If  “mere  mundane  beasts”  that  mutated  or  were
  made to grow to gigantic proportions are effected by
  the staff is up to the Referee. 
  The Purse of Judas
  A simple, worn leather purse, fastened with a string.
  While it is to be doubted that this is the actual purse
  of  Judas  Iscariot,  the  link  between  the  figure  of
  Christian mythology and the power of this magic
  item is obvious. 
  When it is filled with exactly 30 pieces of silver  while
  being given to and accepted by a mortal target, the
  one who offered the purse may ask the target for a
  favor or service. The target then counts as being
  under the effect of a Charm spell for said request. The
  request must be put forth in one sentence. If the
  sentence is overly convoluted, the effect will not take
  hold and the petitioner will instead come under the
  effect of the curse  "Tongues of Babel" (nobody will
  understand what he or she says).
  Cyclone Captured in a Jar
  A glass jar that contains what looks like a miniature
  cyclone, moving and twirling restlessly. In fact, it is a
  storm elemental that has been imprisoned in this
  container by a mighty conjurer. 
  When released (either by opening or destroying the
  jar),  the  elemental  inside  will  grow  into  a  small
  cyclone, that affects an area of 50´ in diameter, after
  1d4 rounds. If released inside a smaller room, it may
  blow down the walls or blow off the roof (if a storm
  could reasonably do so). The cyclone will last for a
  turn before it disperses on its own, and is strong
  enough to throw grown-up men to the ground. It is
  good to get rid of flying beasts, and a bad thing to
  release inside of a library.
  A Magic-User that knows the Summon spell may cast
  it before releasing the elemental in order to gain
  control over it. The storm elemental is treated as a
  HD: 4 creature,  and all steps but the domination roll
  are omitted. There are no (additional) ill-effects of
  losing  the  domination  roll,  but  if  successful  the
  duration of the service of the storm elemental is
  measured in hours (instead of rounds). Never the
  less, it still manifests as a cyclone after its release.
  Szereka´s Left
  Khoras, a Lich that styled himself “the Seeker of the
  Gorged Majesty”, once clashed with Szereka, a rival
  lich.  After  he  vanquished  the  former  countess,
  Khoras destroyed all of her body but her left arm, the
  shoulder,  the  skull  and  the  piece  of  spine  that
  connects them to another. After subjugating the will
  of Szereka with his mental powers, Khoras made her
  stretch into the form of a grotesque spear, with a tip
  formed by her tightly held, pointed fingers. The arm
  became its shaft and the shoulder and skull formed
  the other end of it. 
  The reason why Khoras had turned her in such an
  awkward weapon instead of destroying her outright
  was her knowledge of her family line. The former
  countess knew all the holdings, hidden or not, all the
  crypts and all the traps in them. She had long used
  those  herself  as  lairs  or  as  a  source  for  further
  undead soldiers to bolster her guard. This knowledge
  Khoras wanted to use against all of her blood and
  against the graves of all her ancestors, and the now
  enslaved mind of Szereka would answer each and any
  question in that regard. But the weapon that once
  was Szereka had even more power to offer. The touch
  
  of its tip would rob a victim permanently of one
  point of Constitution unless a Save vs. Magic would be
  passed, and the wearer could use the weapon for an
  effect akin to a Knock spell up to four times a day. But
  after each use (be it a question, a successful attack or
  the  Knock),  there  is  a  chance  that  Szereka´s  will
  might break free again: 2d6 are rolled, and if the
  result is either a “2” or lower than the actual number
  of uses that day (resets at dawn), Khora´s subjugation
  is  overcome  by  the  will  of  Szereka,  and  the
  maddened remains of the lich will then strike out
  against its wearer.
  HD: 0 / 3 Hit Points
  1d4 damage
  Unable to move faster than a crawl and easy 
  to destroy outside of a grapple.
  +2 bonus to wrestling/grapple
  Deathtouch (permanent Constitution 
  damage, see above).
  Copper Gauntlets of the Monastery of the Sun
  In a time long forgotten, when Atlantis was at its
  height and its end yet to come, the Monastery of the
  All-Revealing Light had been founded, high in the
  mountains  that  surrounded  G´Tsang.  The  monks
  venerated the sun for the light it gave, the light for
  the wisdom it helped to reveal and wisdom for the
  transcendence  it  could  bring.  The  ascetic  monks
  were philosophers, sages and recluses that decided to
  withdraw from the distractions of the common life as
  much as possible. Every dawn, every noon and every
  dusk they spend in meditation in the monastery´s
  yard. 
  After  millennia, a celestial constellation opened a
  gate for demons of fire and light to spill out onto this
  world  for  a  hour.  Those  demons,  beings  of  fury,
  destruction  and  abandon,  where  drawn  to  the
  monastery by its reverence  to  the sun. They left
  nothing untouched, burned every monk and every
  scroll till there was nothing but blackened stone,
  molten copper and ashes. They howled in glee before
  they went back to where they came from, delighted
  by the centuries of learning and studying they just
  had consumed by fire that day. But the constellation
  of suns that allowed those demons to pour forth also
  allowed the most venerated of all of the monks to
  transcend, and to achieve a state beyond body and
  beyond soul. 
  Before he departed from the monastery and all of his
  former live, he formed the cooling copper into two
  gauntlets, and did so with a mastery that surpassed
  any smith of his time. Those gauntlets were meant to
  give the wise a weapon, so that the enlightened mind
  should triumph over the destructive element of fire.
  The Copper Gauntlets of the Monastery will cause an
  immediate  gust  of  wind  whenever  a  wearer  with
  Wisdom  14+  claps  his  or  her  hands,  even  in  an
  enclosed room. This gust will supernaturally quench
  flames, and its strength depends on the distance of
  the hands before clapping. The lightest clap will snuff
  candles  flames,  while  a  clap  performed  with
  outstretched arms will blow out a bonfire. Against all
  Chaotic beings of fire (e.g. elementals and ifrits), such
  a clap counts as a Turn Undead (with the level of the
  wearer)  would  count  against  Undead.  Those  with
  Wisdom 14+ will know all of this after putting on the
  gauntlets, and to those they glow with a soft orange
  hue. Snuffing any kind of fire with them gives the
  user a feeling of spiritual calmness.
  The ol´ Druid´s  Sickle
  The ol´Druid´s Sickle is a tool that has been handed
  down from one druid to another in the local area: a
  common sickle with a blade made of bronze and a
  bone handle that has become brown with age. The
  mystic powers  of  it  are  linked  to the  rituals and
  traditions it has been used in over the decades, and
  only a practicing druid (either a Cleric or a Specialist
  character) may benefit from its magic. Once per day,
  one of its following powers may be used:
  Blood Letting: the druid may cut the victim of a poison
  and cause a forced bleeding (that will have the victim
  lose 1 hit point). This blood letting evokes the effect
  of a Delay Poison, with a level equal to the level of the
  druid. 
  Harvest:  the  druid  may  use  it  to  cut  and  gather
  medical herbs, which powers are greatly amplified as
  they are  reaped (see Healing). They  still  must  be
  dried if they are to be preserved.
  Healing: when the druid chews medical herbs that
  were harvested with the sickle before (see above) and
  applies them to an open wound, he or she may evoke
  the effect of a 1st level Cure Light Wounds or increase
  the effect of a subsequent Cure Light Wounds by one
  level.
  
  The Grace of Venus
  With monotheistic religions (be it Christianity, Islam
  or Judaism) came the virtue of chastity. For some,
  this virtue, that -had- to be adhered to, became a
  burden.  But  how  to  escape  this  burden  when
  everyone  around you expects  (or  even insists)  to
  adhere to it? Secrecy is the answer, and that which is
  hidden is often what is forbidden, and the two things
  become mingled up by this common fact till they are
  soon as one.
  In a harbor town, there is a woman named Harva
  that runs a secret brothel. A secret one, for it is
  located right inside of the city walls (instead outside
  of it, as the local laws call for) and right in the house
  that her late husband, a wealthy merchant, had left
  her. She used her standing in and knowledge of the
  more “sophisticated” circles of the city to build up
  her enterprise. To give it a guise of something more
  than a mere brothel, she invented her own “Cult of
  the Venus”, based on a few tidbits she had learned as
  well as on her knowledge about the carnal desires of
  men. One  by  one she  replaced her servants with
  “maids” that would serve her trade, and her only
  manservant  is  one  who  will  not  speak,  for  his
  manners are to be found wanting and his way of
  speaking would reveal that  he might  be more at
  home on a ship than in a house. 
  The attendance to the ceremonies are of course free
  for the celebrants, but in order to maintain the cult,
  donations of the members are necessary. Donations
  she asks them for in private, days after the act, and
  with the inclusion that she not only asks for those
  “to provide for the room, the incenses, the spiced
  wine and the other pleasures” (the women, some of
  whom are street walkers she washes and perfumes in
  her house the day before) but also for bribes “to
  make sure that the church and the inquisition will
  never-ever  learn  of  this”.  The  latter  is  usually
  enough to scare any freeloader into line. Of course,
  her expanses are not half as high as she claims. Some
  may guess that, but nobody will ever know for sure.
  And the ceremonies of the Cult of Venus -are- a true
  delight.
  At one point, a secretive wizard going by the name of
  Deserius joint one of the ceremonies, mostly to learn
  about this “cult” and what it would be all be about.
  As Harva approached him for “the talk” after the
  ceremony, Deserius offered her -true- magic instead
  of coin. What he wanted in return was a woman to be
  send to him, and that NOBODY should ask for her
  when she would not return. What he offered was the 
  ability to read the mind of every man and woman at
  her ceremonies. He proofed to her that he was not a
  fraud, and threatened her with “all of the plagues hell
  has to offer” if she would dare to reject the deal.
  “Priestess  Harva”  was  scared  of  Deserius,  and
  arranged for what he wanted, and did so twice in
  fact.  The  first  time  before  Deserius  gave  her  the
  agreed upon price, the second time as he demanded
  it once more  “to save your soul from what now pays
  attention to you”. 
  Deserius gifted Harva a magical artifact he owned: a
  bronze hip chain with a diamond at its center (which
  would rest very low on the groin when worn). When
  a person wears this jewelry, and nothing but this
  jewelry,  she  becomes  able  to  read  the  minds  of
  everybody in the vicinity. The diamond gains a red
  glint when this power is put to use (which Harva has
  passed for “the grace of Venus” ever since). At first,
  the item grants the wearer only access to surface
  thoughts  of  the  targets,  or  knowledge  regarding
  affairs  that  are  either  urgent  matters  or  daily
  business. After concentrating on a target for a turn,
  the wearer may gain access to all memories.
  A target that is aware of the powers of the jewelry (or
  at  least  suspects  that  something is  going  on)  may
  resist with a successful Save vs. Devices. This calls for a
  modicum of concentration and cannot be done by a
  character that currently casts a spell, is engaged in
  combat or has sex. 
  
  = The Three Bridge Tunnels = 
  Master Leicester has a blog where he collects his
  rambles. One of them is a splendid idea indeed: the
  30 Minute Dungeon. In short, it is about writing a
  hook for a dungeon with three empty rooms, two
  traps, two combat encounters, one NPC to interact
  with, one weird thing to fool around with, one magic
  item and some other loot as reward. I tried it at once
  after reading it, but my very first attempt (a thing
  about a hamlet, where each of the cottages would be
  a room/encounter) was a failure: it took myself much
  longer than 30 minutes to put it all down. I will
  perhaps finish it later. I started again instead, and
  then made it: a little “dungeon” in 30 minutes. Well,
  sort of. It is a bit of a railroad. I added a map and a
  “how to” for turning it all into a little scenario. 
  #Hook
  The characters have to follow an old underground
  path to the domain of a Dwarvish city state: the Three
  Bridge Tunnels. It has been invaded by trolls lately.
  The dwarfs have given it up and only venture there
  to re-set their traps. Still, it is the only route the
  characters  know  about  that  will  allow  them  to
  quickly travel to the reclusive dwarfs (for whatever
  reason; perhaps to acquire some special gear).
  #Background
  The dwarfs made themselves a passage across three
  underground rivers, with  three  stone  bridges.  All
  side entries to it had been blocked up. Now, trolls
  have broken through the blocked-up parts and are a
  constant threat to all that travel it. The dwarfs only
  patrol it to set-up their traps again. All of the walls
  are bricked, all of the floors are covered with stone
  tiles.  Where  the  bricked  walls  have  covered  side
  entrances to natural tunnels and vaults, they have
  been broken through by the other side (by the trolls).
  #Combat Encounter 1
  A troll attacks the characters from one of the side
  paths, and more will join after 2d6 rounds of combat.
  After they bested two or four, the PC better run or
  will face another group of similar size if they don´t.
  #Combat Encounter 2
  In  a  long  corridor  whose  ceiling  is  secluded  by
  darkness,  a  monstrous  spider  made  its  lair  high
  above. It will attack the characters from up there by
  spitting sticky strands at the last in their marching
  order before descending.
  #Empty “Room” 1
  A long corridor which ceiling is secluded by darkness.
  The ground is covered in stone tiles.
  #Empty “Room” 2
  A stone bridge over an underground river. One may
  expect an ambush, but there is none.
  #Empty “Room” 3
  A stair hewed into the bare stone. It leads down for a
  turn, after which it opens up into another corridor
  that will lead to the next bridge.
  #Trap 1
  In  a  long  corridor,  which  ceiling  is  secluded  by
  darkness,  stepping onto one of the central tiles that
  cover the ground releases a pendulum ax mounted
  high above. The “swwooosh” sound may warn the
  characters. Dwarfs, Halflings and other small folk will
  not be harmed, everyone else must move out of the
  way or will be hit in the head, throat or upper chest.
  #Trap 2
  One of the three bridges has a section in the middle
  that will drop down into the stream below if a certain
  weight rests on it. Dwarfish runes tell everyone to
  only path it “one by one”, but even a sole troll or
  human fighter in heavy armor will still trigger it.
  Balancing the balustrade will by-pass the trap. Those
  that fall into the icy cold stream below have two
  chances to reach the rocky walls (with a successful
  Force Doors test) to then drag themselves back to the
  bridge. Those who fail, the current will sweep away
  into a completely water-filled, natural tunnel (means:
  death by drowning).
  #1 NPC
  The Ghost of a Dwarf guards one of the three bridges.
  It will warn the characters that only “Dwarfs of our
  clan and those they call friends” will be allowed to
  path. It is immune to mundane weapons and non-
  clerical magic, and HARD to banish due to its sense of
  duty. The characters will have to somehow proof to
  the ghost that they are friends of the Dwarfs of the
  city state they travel to. Having a Dwarf along will
  not help, as “your clan is not allied with ours. Why shall I
  let you lead strangers into our domain?”. What a good
  proof is, is up to the Referee. The ghost automatically
  knows if somebody speaks the truth.
  
  #Weird Thing To Experiment With
  Under the surface of one of the rivers, something
  shines with a white light. It is an egg, about one foot
  high and with a strange, rubbery shell that feels cool
  to the touch. Outside of water, it will begin to shrivel
  after  a  turn,  and  after  three  turns  it  melts  into
  stinking goo. If it is stored in water or watered with
  at  least  a  quarter  every  second  turn,  it  will  not
  perish. The egg shines twice as bright as a torch, but
  without blinding. If it is punctured with a dagger, a
  milky liquid seeps out. If this liquid is licked, 1 hit
  point is restored (up to 20 hit points before the egg
  melts into goo). If kept watered and whole for 2d6+2
  more days, a small water drake will hatch out of it. It
  cannot live outside of water for more than an hour,
  will be hungry and VICIOUS.
  #Some Treasure
  A skeleton of a Dwarf warrior will be found along the
  path. The chain mail is ripped beyond use, the shield
  broken and no weapon is found. The purse and the
  helmet  are  still  with  the  skeleton.  The  latter  is
  masterly crafted and worth a fine sum if sold (and a
  reward  if  handed  to  the  clan/family  the  warrior
  belonged to). The former contains 7 gp and 27 sp. 
  #A Magic Item
  One of the trolls the characters encounter wears an
  enchanted dagger as a hairpin. When it stabs or cuts
  flesh, it burns it as well (good for preparing meals, or
  for fighting things that would regenerate).
  So  much  for  the  summary  in  the  30-Minute-
  Dungeon-Style! Now, how to turn it into a regular
  scenario for a LotFP session!
  The following page contains a hand-drawn map that
  includes an underground route with three bridges
  that  cross  underground  rives,  several  stairs,
  junctions and broken walls. The Referee simply needs
  to place the encounters mentioned above somewhere
  en route, in any order that seems to fit. “Rooms”
  should not be taken literally here, as a section of a
  corridor is just as good. The scale of the map (and
  thereby, the time needed to reach the end of the
  route) is up to the Referee as well. Likewise, the exact
  width of the corridors (instead of treating them as
  “up  to  scale”  in  reference  to  the  map´s  chosen
  dimension). The unmapped junctions and the break-
  in´s may be used as hooks for new adventure regions.
  The Trolls
  Trolls  are  creatures  
  born from Chaos. They
  have a form close to  
  that of man, but with 
  elongated limbs, fur-  
  like  body  hair,
   
  monstrous  teeth,
   
  pointy ears and sharp 
  claws.  Their  deep  
  sitting eyes need no  
  light,  but  see  in  
  thermal vision. As a  
  further  gift  of  the  
  entropic powers that  
  once  have  formed  
  them,  trolls  have  a  
  ruinous touch: up to a
  number of times per day equal to their HD, they may
  attempt to destroy any item they can put their hands
  on (1-in-6 chance per attempt; armor “attacked” this
  way loses one point of AC). Very old trolls that have
  spend decades underground may use a 5th level Stone
  Shape instead of a Ruinous Touch.
  When  a  troll  is  killed,  and  the  heart  is  not  cut,
  pierced or eaten within 2d6 rounds... strange things
  may happen (d6 examples). 
  1-2: The skin of the troll rips apart, and a smaller
  troll, identical to the first, peels out of it (1 less HD;
  HD 0 means the troll is so frail that it dies the next
  round, without any upon-death-effect).
  3-4: The troll´s eyes gleam red for a second, and then
  the creature rises again while all its wounds that
  were  not  dealt  by  magical  weapons  or  fire  heal
  instantly. 
  5: The troll will give one last, shrieking SCREAM.
  Everyone hearing it must Save vs. Magic or will turn
  into a troll upon death (see 1-2). 
  6: Everybody within 120´ of the troll corpse comes
  under the effect of 5th level Chaos spell as the chaotic
  energies break forth from the body. Beings of Chaotic
  alignment are not effected. 
  Move:
  120´
  Hit Dice:
  3 – 5
  AC:
  12
  Attacks:
  2 (Claws; 1d4)
  Special:
  Ruinous Touch; Upon Death...
  Save:
  as Dwarf
  Moral:
  8
  
  The Ghost of the Dwarf  should be nothing the
  character  can  deal  with  by  mere  violence.  The
  Referee may treat him as a HD:3 ghost that is able to
  evoke an  effect  similar to a  3rd level “Protection
  from...; 10´Radius” at will. In this case, this Protection
  is “against those who try to cross the bridge”. The
  Ghost itself is insubstantial, but its strikes feel like an
  icy touch (1d6 damage to Constitution). It must stay
  within 10´ of the bridge. 
  An obvious way of getting an allowance to cross is
  the intend to bring the helmet of the fallen Dwarf
  (see Treasure) back to the clan. Otherwise, a vow of
  one kind or another could persuade the ghost. In the
  later  case,  the  Referee  should  give  the  ghost  the
  power to put a Geas onto a character. 
  
  Lady of Locks and Keys
  The Lady of Locks and Keys appears as a tall woman.
  Her hair is a color between straw and hazel, and
  bound into a tight bun. Her skin is like parchment
  and covered in age spots. She wears a simple dress of
  discolored linen, not unlike those that women in
  prisons, work houses or asylums wear. Her limbs and
  body are shackled in iron chains that wrap around
  her shoulders, chest and waist, crisscross another
  and are locked with numerous iron padlocks. Further
  padlocks cover her eyes as well, with their shackles
  going straight through her brows, like they would be
  a natural part of her unnatural body. All her fingers
  end in old fashioned key bits made of iron. She may
  be called forth with  Summon the Lady of Locks and
  Keys.  This is a special version of the  Summon spell
  (see  LotFP  Player  Core  Book  p.134),  with  the
  following changes...
  Step One: the Lady of Locks and Keys is a unique
  HD:4  entity  with  12  hit  points.  It  may  only  be
  summoned as such (see below for powers and stats).
  Step Two: if the saving throw is failed, something
  else appears instead (Referee´s choice).
  Step  Three  &  Four: the  being´s  appearance  and
  powers are as stated above and below.
  Step Five: when the Domination roll is failed, even
  by a slight Margin,... see The Lady Unchained below.
  Sacrifices have no effect on the Dominance roll.
  Thamaturgic Circles work as usual, and if a lock
  that dropped during a previous summoning of the
  Lady is made part of them, another +1 bonus per lock
  is gained. Using the locks in this way has all their
  remaining magical energy expire (“non-reusable”).
  After she has been summoned and dominated by a
  character for the first time, one of the padlocks that
  secure  her  chains  will  unlock  and  drop  to  the
  ground, 3d6+2 will remain.
  The Lady of Locks and Keys once was a Magic-User,
  before a failed summoning had an entity she sought
  to master remove her from the material world and
  turn her into the servant-creature she now is. She
  can never be summoned by accident, and there is
  only one. The first time she is summoned in the
  game,  the  Referee  should  note  the  number  of
  remaining padlocks. The next time she is summoned,
  0-3 further padlocks will be missing (determined with
  a d6: 1-3 is equal to the number of padlocks now
  missing, 4-6 means that the number has not changed
  in the meanwhile). She has the following stats and
  special  powers,  and  will  speak  about  them  in  a
  pressed, whispering voice if asked by a dominating
  Magic-User:
  Move:
  90´(30´)
  Hit Dice / Points:
  4 / 13
  AC:
  11
  Attacks:
  1 (Touch)
  Special:
  see below
  Save:
  as Magic-User
  Moral:
  10
  Arresting Touch: in combat the Lady deals no damage,
  but  uses  a  touch  attack.  It  is  equal  to  a  Hold
  Person/Monster spell of 4th level.
  The Turning of a Key: the Lady of Locks and Keys may
  cast a Knock or Wizard´s Locks spell of 4th level on each
  and every lock she touches with her key-tipped fingers,
  and may do so an unlimited number of times.
  A locked Tongue: by touching the mouth of a mortal
  with one of her key-fingers, the Lady may either keep
  the character from speaking (about a specific topic or
  altogether), or force the character to speak about a
  specific  topic  unless  the  target  Saves  vs.  Magic.  The
  former effect may be negated by either Remove Curse or
  Dispel Magic.
  A  locked  Memory: by  touching  the  forehead  of  a
  character, the Lady may either “lock” a certain memory
  (no more than four turns long) so that the character
  may  not  access  it  anymore,  or  unlock  a  blocked
  memory. The former effect may be negated by either
  Remove Curse or Dispel Magic.
  A Lady  under Lock  and Key: once dominated, the
  Magic-User does not need to concentrate on controlling
  the Lady. She will obey the given orders, and otherwise
  follow  the  Magic-User  around.  If  the  dominating
  character opens and removes one of the padlocks that
  shackle her (which said character may do without a key,
  ), the duration of her service is increased by 2 turns,
  unless the Lady comes free. The memory of the latter
  possibility the Lady has locked away from herself, so 
  
  that she may not reveal it to her summoners anymore.
  Whenever a padlock is removed in this fashion, it rusts
  in seconds and falls apart. The Referee then rolls a 1d8.
  If  the  new  result  is  bigger  than  the  number  of
  remaining padlocks, all of them will snap open, one by
  one, and the Lady of Locks and Keys is finally released
  from the chains that bind her.
  The Lady Unchained
  The Lady of Locks and Keys may not be summoned
  anymore more from this point on, as her torment
  and slavery has finally ended. Her last act will be one
  of  blind  vengeance  against  the  fool  that  released
  her... (1d12):
  01#  The  Magic-User  becomes  cursed,  and  will  no
  longer be able to lock anything. The lock in question
  (or the key inside the lock) will get stuck or become
  jammed.
  02# The character will feel a dull pain in the middle
  of the tongue, accompanied by a taste of metal and
  the feeling of having a foreign object resting on the
  it. A small lock has manifested there, right through
  the tongue, and keeps it locked. Until the lock is
  removed by either  Dispel Magic or  Remove Curse, the
  character will be unable to speak.
  03# The character will briefly feel a dull pain in the
  genitalia, and then a foreign object there as well as
  the  pull  of  a  small  weight.  A  small  lock  has
  manifested there... See above, but the character is
  “merely” unable to have sex (and urinating will be...
  awkward).
  04#  A  small  padlock  manifests  over  one  of  the
  character´s eyes, its shackle goes right through the
  brow. Until the lock is removed by either Dispel Magic
  or  Remove Curse, the character´s vision is impaired,
  which leads to a (-1) penalty to melee and a (-3)
  penalty to all ranged attacks.
  05# The character will briefly feel a dull pain at the
  heart as a tiny padlock manifests there. Until it is
  removed by either  Dispel Magic  or  Remove Curse, the
  Magic-User will be unable to have any emotions aside
  from fear. Charisma will be halved, and an additional
  (-2) penalty is imposed on all  Saves vs. Death. As a
  positive side effect, the character is now immune
  against all forms of Charm.
  06# The character will feel a sudden, dull pain at the
  back of the head as a small padlock appears there.
  The character´s ability to learn is now locked: no
  experience  is  gained  and  no  new  spells  may  be
  learned until the padlock is removed by either Dispel
  Magic or Remove Curse.
  07# The character becomes cursed, and will suffer a
  cumulative (-1) penalty to all rolls for every key she
  carries on person (max. penalty: -4)
  08# The Lady hands a cursed key to the character, as
  her “passing gift”. The key is made of brass, looks like
  a skeleton key and has a 2 in 6 chance of opening any
  given, non-magical lock. The wielder´s presence will
  come to the attention of any potentially ill-meaning
  being in the wider area*, and all attempts to sneak
  upon somebody by the character with the key will fail
  automatically. 
  *The Referee does not have to check for wandering monsters
  anymore... they WILL appear)
  09-12#  The  Magic-User  must  Save  vs.  Magic.  On  a
  failure, the chains that came off the Lady will now
  wrap around the Magic-User, and 1d20+12 new locks
  appear to secure them. The character then changes
  into the new Lord/Lady of Locks and Keys, and will
  from  now  on  be  summoned  by  the  spell.  The
  character stops being a PC from that moment on. If
  the saving throw is passed, nothing happens.
  
  Ghouls
  "These figures were seldom completely human, but often
  approached  humanity  in  varying  degree.  Most  of  the
  bodies, while roughly bipedal, had a forward slumping,
  and a vaguely canine cast. The texture of the majority was
  a kind of unpleasant rubberiness. (…)
  a (...)blasphemy with glaring red eyes, (...)bony claws (...),
  gnawing at [a] head (...). Its position was a kind of crouch,
  (...). (...)dog face with its pointed ears, bloodshot eyes, flat
  nose, and drooling lips. (...)the scaly claws, (...) the mould-
  caked body (...)."
  [Quoted from "Pickman´s Model"; by H.P. Lovecraft]
  I wanted ghouls for a certain scenario, and therefor
  brewed up the following stats and special rules. The
  “paralyze touch” commonly attributed to them in
  many  OSR  games  is  not  to  my  liking,  but  I  still
  wanted to add some rules that would make them
  more than just the next HD:2 monster.
  Alignment: 
  Chaotic
  Move: 
  120´ (40´)
  Hit Dice: 
  2
  AC: 
  13 
  Attacks: 
  Claws & Teeth (1d4 damage)
  Save: 
  as Specialist
  Moral: 
  7 or equal to current number; 
  whichever is better
  Suggested XP: 
  35 xp
  Scrawny: Hit  Points  are  determined  with  2d6
  (instead of 2d8).
  Dastardly: Stealth 4; Climb 3; Sneak Attack 2.
  Maniacal: when a Moral check shows doubles, the
  ghoul (or ghouls) fall into a mad frenzy that changes
  their Moral to 12 for the rest of the scene.
  Eater of the Dead: when corpses or heavily wounded
  beings are present, ghouls must pass a Moral check in
  order to give chase to fleeing combatants. When the
  check is failed, the ghouls will turn upon the dead
  and/or wounded instead (even their own). Maniacal
  ghouls will always choose to feast. 
  They can smell you: due to their keen sense of smell,
  a ghoul cannot be ambushed  unless measures were
  taken  to  disguise  the  own  smell  (i.e.  attacking
  downwind). Likewise, ghouls are able to pick up the
  scent of blood, sweat or a decaying cadaver from up
  to 100 feet away with a 4 in 6 chance when they spent
  a minute sniffing.
  Dreadful: Ghouls are malice incarnate, and radiate
  an almost tangible sense of dread. When five or more
  attack  at  once  and  their  opposition  does  not
  outnumber them at least 2:1, all characters that have
  never fought ghouls before must  Save vs. Devices or
  will  have  their  Initiative  halved  at  the  start  of
  combat. The Initiative stays halved till the first ghoul
  is taken out of the fight.
  If a character that is not a Fighter, Cleric or Dwarf is
  alone,  confronted  by  ghouls  and  outnumbered  at
  least 3:1, he or she has to Save vs. Devices or will come
  under the effect of a 3rd level Cause Fear spell.
  Filthy: Wounds caused by a ghoul´s claws or teeth
  will inflame and fester. The character needs to see a
  physician  to  have  the  wounds  dressed,  must  be
  treated  with  special  remedies  or  needs  magical
  healing. Otherwise, the wound will not heal and the
  character will lose a point of Constitution per day,
  due to inflammation, fever and suppuration. When
  half of the Constitution is lost before the wound has
  been treated as mentioned above, amputation is the
  only way to save the character from death by blood
  poisoning within 1d4+TB days.
  
  Realm of the Ghouls
  The ghouls dwell in a realm of twilight, darkness and
  ruin that is connected to the world of men, and some
  say to other worlds as well. It is linked with it through
  regions  where  ruins,  burrows,  chasms  and  tunnels
  overlap with near identical counter parts in the other
  world. Those mergences are never in places that are
  well kept or bustling with life, but always in isolated
  locations  that  have  been  given  to  decay  and
  deterioration, and are often of an unwholesome aspect.
  While some of those links to the Realm of Ghouls are
  ancient and permanent, the majority are younger than
  a century and disappear again at one point or another.
  The realm that the ghouls now claim is not the place of
  their origin, if there is a such a thing. They made it
  their own ages ago, and there are few other dwellers or
  interlopers that rival their claim. The native features of
  this plane, which has no other name known to men as
  the one that links it to the ghouls, is a barren land in
  brown  and  gray,  where  plains  of  bare  earth,  corny
  sands  or blasted  rock are enclosed  by  sloped  stone
  ridges, looming mesas and maze-like canyons. Ravines,
  chasms and gullies cut through the ground, the latter
  either end in gaping holes or in sinks of dark morass.
  Those harbor a gnarled and thorny vegetation that is
  choked by mold and beset by insects, and the ground
  often evaporates a foul miasma.
  The light is never bright and the darkness is deep, for
  no star or sun shines there. Only an echo or vestige of it
  lends an unreal gleam to a sky, whose colors change
  between that of lead, milk or russet. In the wider areas
  of mergences with the world of men, ruins dot the
  landscape. Some will escape the grasp of even the most
  well-versed historian, but many are like those one may
  have found in the wider area of the site the mergence
  links it to, in ages and centuries past. Sometimes, one
  may even uncover items lost or destroyed in the real
  world,  and  there  are  rumors,  among  the  few  who
  ventured often into this place that sometimes, an item
  may be found there that is yet to be lost or destroyed in
  the realm of men.
  The most unsettling of sites in the Realm of the Ghouls,
  aside  from  the  depth  of  ghoul  burrows,  are  the
  graveyards  that  may  be  found  there.  These  are
  nightmarish  doublets  of  cemeteries  that  the  ghouls
  found ways into. The opened graves outnumber those
  who are not, and every tree, crypt, tombstone and bush
  is a sinister or twisted mirror image of there counter-
  part on the cemetery it is linked to. There are always
  ghouls in such places. When one cannot find a trace of
  any,  it  means  that  they  hide  out  of  sight,  perhaps
  watching what intruded their larder and contemplating
  what to do.
  As forbidding and unwholesome as this appalling place
  is, it is yet traveled by men. Some come for the chance
  of uncovering relics that are lost to the world, others
  seek unspeakable bargains with the ghouls. But most
  make use of the bizarre mergings with their own world:
  distances are a obscure thing in the ghoul kingdom, and
  a  journey  between  two  links  to  the  world  of  men
  undertaken there is often the equivalent of five or ten
  times the distance that would otherwise have had to be
  traveled.
  Spells for the Realm of the Ghouls
  Find the Mergence
  Magic-User Level 3
  Duration: 5 Turns/Level
  Range: Touch
  The subject of this spell can find the shortest, most
  direct  route  to  the  nearest  mergence  between  the
  Realms of Ghouls and the “real world” (whatever this
  term may mean for the Magic-User in question). The
  spell lets the target sense the correct direction that will
  eventually  lead  to  the  nearest  mergence.  Known
  mergences may be excluded, and the spell ends when
  the mergence is reached or when the duration expires
  (whichever happens first).
  Call Ghouls
  Magic-User Level 2
  Duration: Instantaneous
  Range: 1 mile/ level
  This is one of the few spells that needs no gesturing and
  is  not  limited  by  encumbrance.  The  Magic-User
  concentrates, mumbles a mantra and then throws the
  own head back to give a ghastly scream, at the top of
  the lunges. This scream is audible to everything and
  everyone as usual, but the magic of the spell will carry
  it much further than the voice alone could (see range)
  to any ghoul found in reach. The spell also carries the
  current  relative  location  into  the  ghouls
  subconsciousness, as well as a hint of the Magic-User´s
  personality. The ghoul will -not- mistakes this for the
  call of another ghoul, but will recognize the likeliness. If
  the ghoul (or ghouls) in question does not know the
  Magic-User yet, a Reaction roll determines if they will
  approach, and with which intend. If the ghoul knows
  the Magic-User, the past experiences will determine the
  reaction.
  It is not possible to limit the call to a certain group of
  ghouls, it will always be received by all ghouls in range,
  but  the  Magic-User  may  limit  the  strength  (and
  thereby, range) of the call at will.
  
  Detect Ghouls
  Magic-User Level 1
  Duration: 5 rounds / level
  Range: 30´+ 10´/ level
  The Magic-User becomes aware of the presence (or:
  absence)  of  ghouls  within  range,  but  not  the  exact
  location, how close they are or their exact number. The
  character will only learn if there are none, one, a few
  (up to 4), several (5-8) or many (9+).
  The Shepherd
  The Shepherd is a figure that appears to the ghouls
  in their realm, and calls them forth. It is not a ghoul,
  but expresses kinship with them and speaks their
  tongue. The Shepherd is tall, has a horse skull for a
  head, long limbs and an oily, gray-green skin.
  He carries two mighty weapons with crooked blades,
  one of them a polearm, and wields magic powers as
  well.  To  those  that  accept  his  superiority  and
  leadership,  the  Shepherd  provides  feasts,  and
  organizes raids into the Realm of Men. A few ghouls,
  those that are most loyal to him and him alone, dwell
  in a ruin the Shepherd returns to whenever he shows
  himself in the Realm of the Ghouls once more. He is
  no god or spiritual figure to the ghouls, for they have
  no god and nothing about them is spiritual. He is a
  force that they reckon, and some bow to.
  The truth about the Shepherd is that he (or she?) is a
  Magic-User. A human. Over the course of the own
  endeavors and years of study, she discovered a magic
  helmet, two magic weapons and some of the secrets
  of both the ghouls and their realm. With those, and
  the own magic-powers, the Magic-User took up a
  guise and began to establish the figure now known as
  the Shepherd among the ghouls. With their help,
  “the Shepherd” uncovers lost trinkets and relics in
  their realm, travels through it between points in the
  real world and unleashes death and terror onto his
  rivals and enemies. And all of this for the price of a
  few  corpses  stolen  from  cemeteries  and  a  little
  support in a few “voyages” of his minions.
  Who the warlock behind “the Shepherd” really is, is up
  to the Referee. Sample stats are given below, together
  with the three magic items that help the NPC to become
  “the Shepherd”. 
  The Shepherd: 4th Level Magic-User
  Hit Points: 
  13
  AC: 
  12
  Weapons:
  see below
  Known  1st Level  Spells: Bookspeak; Comprehend
  Languages;  Detect  Magic;  Shield;  Detect  Ghouls;
  Identify;
  Known  2nd  Level  Spells:  Force  of  Forbidment;
  Locate  Entrance  to  the  Realm  of  the  Ghouls;
  Invisibility; Call Ghouls;
  Known  3rd  Level  Spells: Army  of  One;  Find  the
  Mergence;
  
  The Nightmare Head is a helmet that seems to
  have been fashioned from a horse skull. In truth, the
  skull only looks like that of a horse but was one of a
  true  “Night  Mare”.  This  helmet  will  Polymorph
  anyone that puts it on into the shape the ghouls
  know as “the Shepherd”: a foot taller than before due
  to elongated limbs and the skull helmet now a head
  merged with the skin of the neck, which becomes
  massive  in  proportion.  The  wearer  may  end  this
  transformation by putting off the helmet, but till
  then the character counts as a  Chaotic being for all
  purposes. The wearer is also gifted with the ability to
  Speak with Monsters (as per the same spell) and gains a
  +2 Reaction Bonus towards all Monsters of 3 HD or
  lower. A Lawful character will never willingly put on
  that helmet.
  The Gutspiller is a magical light weapon in the
  form of a crooked blade. If a corpse (or a sacrifice) of
  at least the size of a sheep is gutted with it and the
  wearer rummages in the entrails for a round, she will
  benefit from the effects of an Augury spell with a 75%
  success rate. The magic ability may only be used once
  per corpse, and only once every seven hours.
  The Cutting Crook is a polearm with  a  heavy,
  crooked blade. It may be used for a magical touch
  attack that will place a  Hold Monster spell on the
  victim for a number of rounds equal to 6 minus (HD
  of the target). Monsters that pass a Save vs. Devices,
  that are undead or have 5+ HD are unaffected. The
  Hold Monster effect may only be evoked once every six
  hours. The Cutting Crook furthermore counts as a +2
  Magic Weapon against living monsters (as opposed to
  undead, constructs, ghostly beings, etc.)
  Thoughts on Raggi´s Eldritch Cock
  The freebee James Raggi´s Eldritch Cock has been out
  for a long time by now, and with it the new "alpha"
  version of possible next-edition-rules for LotFP. So, I
  am a little late to the party with my thoughts about
  them. But this will not stop me from offering them,
  the devil may care (or not!).
  First things first, I like the new rules. They have
  really good concepts behind them, and I LOVE IT a lot
  that the designer has in mind to keep everything
  compatible with earlier releases.
  But right there, I see a problem with the new Hit
  Point  progression  during  "Level-Up".  By  the  old
  rules, a character would slowly increase in hit points.
  It was safe to assume that at level 1 to 2, a character
  could die throughout the very first fight, but it was
  also safe to assume that a 4th or 5th level characters
  could take the first two hits in a fight and survive
  (unless  fighting a high-damage opponent).
  With the new rules, even a 5th level character with
  high Constitution might be stuck on "8 hit points",
  which  means  death  is  likely  after  the  second  hit
  (especially with the new changes to damage, where
  every weapon deals d8 of it). I think that this will
  limit "backward compatibility", as older high-level
  adventures may turn out very lethal for "the new
  breed of adventurers". I do not see an easy solution
  for this. Perhaps a "no increase" result (per the new
  mechanics for hit point increase) should at least give
  a character +1 increase in hit points for this level up
  (+0 for those with CON of 3-4 and +2 for those of CON
  13-18).  This  would  guarantee  that  there  is  some
  progression, and that seasoned veterans have more
  than 8 hit points.
  The new Saving Throws feel a bit odd. The old rules
  had  Saves  against  Paralyze  (basically,  everything
  agility  based)  and  Poison/Death.  How  is  WISDOM
  supposed to help with this? I would rather suggest to
  apply the dice-pool mechanic for generating saving
  throw  pools  to  Dexterity  and  Constitution
  respectively for the Saves mentioned above. After all,
  a  character tough  like  a  bull  but just as "smart"
  should  have  better  chances  to  survive  potential
  deadly physical harm than a frail bookworm.
  Last but not least,  I will miss Elves and Clerics. I
  won´t miss Halflings, and I for sure can go without
  dwarfs (and at least ONE player of my group will
  disagree here.. and simply make small, sturdy, ax-
  wielding characters from that point on). I liked 
  
  having a distinction between "Clerics", as the vassals
  of  some  "Order",  and  wizards  as  those  who
  deliberately toy with "Chaos". 
  The Elves I will miss the most. There are some very
  good examples of how to portray Elves in LotFP-
  releases (Weird New World and two entries in Scenic
  Dunnsmouth)  without  hugging  the  tree-hugger
  cliché  of  old  in  regard  to  them.  The  non-LotFP
  release Gardens of Ynn has wonderful "Thorn Elves"
  as well, and the Aelf-Adal of the Veins of the Earth
  are simply "Nightmare Elves" to me. And I love them
  all for that. There are so many ways to re-invent
  them as spirits of the wild, as Thuata Dé Danann or
  any  other  less-then-cozy,  non-Tolkien  form  of
  ancient beings... and with the right mindset, I still
  feel that they will make good player characters.
  My two cents.
  Further works of mine
  20 Encounters on a Haunted Road in the Carpathians 
  of Old
  25 Encounters in the Eerie, Barbaric North
  20 Sacred Sites
  50 Magical Bows & Arrows
  Boarswood
  Fantastic Cornucopia [BUNDLE]
  Strange and Cruel Personal Titles
  Works and Misfortunes of Ye Alchemist
  The Dark Arts [BUNDLE]
  Other OSR titles that I recommend
  The Veins of the Earth (excellent-weird-nightmarish 
  underground setting with solid rules for light, climbing, etc.)
  The Gardens of Ynn (a other-world adventure location and 
  a fairtale-gone-grotesque-freak-garden tookit).
  Dark Albion: the Rose War (a setting that twists the 
  historical old England with a few changes in an OSR setting 
  with monsters and magic. Quiet the play-world!)
  England Upturn´d (setting kit for the English Civil War, 
  adventure and alternate rules for Alignment).
  Rampaging Monsters (not really omni-compatible, but still 
  a GOOD toolkit to create monster-hunt sessions)
  Lusus Naturae (more bizarre monsters than you can shake a 
  stick at)
  Obscene Serpent Religion (a toolkit to create your own cult
  of serpent celebrants. Please take the “obscene” literally, the 
  pictures are an explicit torture-fest)
  OSR adventures that I recommend
  Scenic Dunnsmouth
  The Pale Lady
  The Idea from Space
  The Trail of Stone and Sorrow
  
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  15 COPYRIGHT NOTICE
  Open Game License v 1.0 Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Lamentations of the Flame Princess/LotFP Supplemental/Gregorius' Notes On the Weird OSR Fantasy (LotFP)/Gregorius' Notes On the Weird OSR Fantasy Year 2019 [v1.1 bw] (LotFP).pdf