Creature Weaknesses
Although a creature’s type and species determine many of its traits and abilities, GMs are encouraged to alter a creature’s physiology, behavior, abilities, tactics, and defenses when it serves the story or to confound players who think they know everything about their opponents.
The rules provided allow GMs to build custom monsters and ascribe special qualities to them. When designing a creature, the GM should also think of ways the creature can be defeated. From the heroes’ point of view, a creature’s weaknesses are more important than its abilities. Assigning weaknesses to creatures gives under-powered or poorly equipped heroes a fighting chance.
Table: Sources of Weakness lists many sources to which a creature may be vulnerable. A source can be a specific object, location, substance, sound, sensation, or activity. How the creature interacts with a source of weakness is left up to the GM, although most sources must be in close proximity to the creature (if not touching the creature) to affect it. GMs may roll randomly on the table, choose a source that suits the creature, or devise their own.
Table: Sources of Weakness | |||
---|---|---|---|
d% | Source | d% | Source |
01 | Alcohol or moonshine | 49 | Lilac-scented candles |
02 | Amber | 50 | Mathematical equations |
03 | Animated cartoons | 51 | Morphine |
04 | Archways | 52–53 | Nerve gas |
05–06 | Bells or chimes | 54 | Nitrous oxide (laughing gas) |
07 | Books written by William Blake | 55 | Novocaine |
08 | Bunnies | 56–57 | Number “8” |
09–10 | Cancerous organs | 58 | Pearls |
11 | Carbonated soft drinks | 59 | Penicillin |
12–13 | Cats | 60 | Photo flashes |
14 | Chrome | 61–62 | Plastic or vinyl |
15–16 | Classical music | 63–64 | Played violin or electric guitar |
17 | Clocks | 65 | Playgrounds |
18 | Clowns | 66–67 | Plutonium |
19 | Cocaine | 68 | Poppies |
20–21 | Country music | 69 | Pulsing strobe lights |
22–23 | Crosses or crucifixes | 70–71 | Radiation |
24 | Crows | 72 | Radio waves |
25 | Dogs | 73 | Rubber |
26 | Elvis Presley memorabilia | 74 | Running water |
27 | Fast cars | 75–76 | Silver |
28 | Fast foods | 77 | Sodium benzoate (food preservative) |
29–30 | Fluorescent lights | 78–79 | Sodium chloride (salt) |
31 | Games of chance | 80–81 | Specific phrase or word |
32 | Gold or iron pyrite (fool’s gold) | 82 | Specific song |
33 | Grave dirt | 83 | Spoken Latin |
34–35 | Heavy metal music | 84 | Stuffed animals |
36–37 | Holy symbols | 85 | Sumerian or Egyptian hieroglyphs |
38–39 | Holy water | 86–87 | Sunlight |
40 | Hospitals | 88–89 | The Bible |
41 | Ice cream | 90 | Tinfoil |
42 | Insecticide (DDT) | 91–92 | Toxic waste |
43 | Jack o’-lanterns | 93–94 | Triangles |
44 | Keys | 95 | Television infomercials |
45–46 | Laughter of children | 96 | Television static |
47 | Laundry detergent | 97–98 | White rice |
48 | Lavender | 99–100 | X-rays |