Angeltown and Demontown

[Michael Thayne]

Looking at the Angel write-up in Dungeon Fantasy Monsters 2, the angel's smite ability looks suspiciously like the kind of ability some guards have in certain MMORPGs. It occurred to me that it might be amusing to have a where the town watch is angels. This would involve a large number of angels whose Task is "maintain a this city as a refuge both from monsters and 'civilized' scum." On the one hand, this means that crimes normally punishable by a beating for 1d HP instead are punishable by smiting for 6d-1 HP. On the upside, bards who roll a critical failure while busking only suffer the consequences of an ordinary failure, because no one wants to be smited for assaulting a bard, even an incompetent one.

For the sake of cosmic balance, a setting with an Angeltown might also have a Demontown. Demontown would essentially be a huge, city-shaped dungeon where the monsters are unusually willing to negotiate. For intelligent, free-willed monsters like the peshkali, this means the "unwilling to negotiate" note in its stat block is ignored unless the PCs seem like easy prey (e.g. a party consisting solely of a faerie bard, half-elven thief, and halfling knight, or a party of capable delvers nevertheless stupid enough to leave their weapons at the inn). For others, such as golems and undead servitors, it means they're under the control of someone who is willing to negotiate. The exception is any monster that functions as the local equivalent of a feral animal, which includes nasty stuff like slimes.

[Not]

Originally Posted by Michael Thayne

Looking at the Angel write-up in Dungeon Fantasy Monsters 2, the angel's smite ability looks suspiciously like the kind of ability some guards have in certain MMORPGs. It occurred to me that it might be amusing to have a where the town watch is angels. This would involve a large number of angels whose Task is "maintain a this city as a refuge both from monsters and 'civilized' scum." On the one hand, this means that crimes normally punishable by a beating for 1d HP instead are punishable by smiting for 6d-1 HP. On the upside, bards who roll a critical failure while busking only suffer the consequences of an ordinary failure, because no one wants to be smited for assaulting a bard, even an incompetent one.

For the sake of cosmic balance, a setting with an Angeltown might also have a Demontown. Demontown would essentially be a huge, city-shaped dungeon where the monsters are unusually willing to negotiate. For intelligent, free-willed monsters like the peshkali, this means the "unwilling to negotiate" note in its stat block is ignored unless the PCs seem like easy prey (e.g. a party consisting solely of a faerie bard, half-elven thief, and halfling knight, or a party of capable delvers nevertheless stupid enough to leave their weapons at the inn). For others, such as golems and undead servitors, it means they're under the control of someone who is willing to negotiate. The exception is any monster that functions as the local equivalent of a feral animal, which includes nasty stuff like slimes.

I like this post. I don't follow the logic of Demontown's denizens' unusual willingness to negotiate, unless it's the logic of Hobbes' Leviathan. It's aesthetically pleasing symmetry, though.

[Michael Thayne]

Originally Posted by Not

I like this post. I don't follow the logic of Demontown's denizens' unusual willingness to negotiate, unless it's the logic of Hobbes' Leviathan. It's aesthetically pleasing symmetry, though.

The logic is basically that if you fight everyone in your path when you're in a dense settlement where every single resident has some fighting ability, even if you "win" every fight initially you will gradually accumulate injuries until you are easy prey for the city's monsters. This is especially true since the forces of Evil tend to have less access to healing magic. This is why willingness to negotiate doesn't apply to anyone who doesn't look like they can defend themselves—such travelers who foolishly enter Demontown can expect to be robbed, enslaved, and/or killed for sport almost immediately.

[Black Leviathan]

I imagine Evil Clerics would be very motivated to win converts from ordinary towns for the chances or establishing a underground cult. If they are convinced of your devotion to the faith and think you have some charisma they may try to ply a PC into learning their theology and funding them richly to convert others.

Clerics from Evil temples probably also have to recover a lot of funds and sacred items sent out to such cults when they get scammed or if heroes break up a cult and they probably have the gold to hire adventurers to do it for them.

[Dalin]

Originally Posted by Michael Thayne

For the sake of cosmic balance, a setting with an Angeltown might also have a Demontown.

Mmm. Both of these sound fun. Hellsgate would be a great resource for Demontown.

[Michael Thayne]

Originally Posted by Dalin

Mmm. Both of these sound fun. Hellsgate would be a great resource for Demontown.

Good point. I totally forgot about that book, even though I own it.

[Anaraxes]

Originally Posted by Not

I don't follow the logic of Demontown's denizens' unusual willingness to negotiate

The devil is always willing to make you a deal.