CHASING THE DRAGON

PART TWO
Striders and Blighted Ogrun
By Matt Goetz and Orrin grey • Art by karl richardson, andrea uderzo, and kieran yanner

Centuries of experimentation have given Everblight vast insight into the process of employing
his blight to manipulate the forms and minds of lesser races. To some among the Nyss,
his work has brought additional transformations that have granted them a measure of
the predatory grace of the dragon. These striders act as scouts and trackers, patrolling
the edges of Legion territory and hunting down foes wherever they may hide. The
deadliest among their number are the deathstalkers, creatures so far removed from
their Nyss origins that they more closely resemble birds of prey. Deathstalkers
are not only peerless predators, they also lead other striders and blighted Nyss
against the foes of the Legion.

Not all the results of the dragon’s blighted manipulations are as sublime as
the striders. The ogrun of the northern tribes have been devastated by the
dragon’s presence, transformed into singular engines of destruction in his
service. While Everblight oversees the transformations of the Nyss like a
surgeon or a sculptor, with the ogrun his results have been somewhat
crude, if no less effective. While the blight has made them ideally
suited to slaughter, it has also played havoc with their minds,
and the once proud and honorable
ogrun have been transformed into
blood-mad killers whose thirst for
carnage can barely be restrained. The
mightiest and most terrifying of these
are the warmongers, martial champions
without peer who act as shock troops of the
Legion of Everblight. Few can hope to stand
against a warmonger and survive. Their
bloodlust and acts of carnage are enough to
chill the marrow of even their comrades in arms.

Strider deathstalkers and blighted ogrun

warmongers are finely honed weapons in Everblight’s
vast arsenal. They are attuned to specific roles and
functions within the Legion, deployed in Everblight’s
quest to grow strong enough to challenge his siblings and,
ultimately, even the Dragonfather himself.

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 their prey for long stretches before finally granting them
the mercy of death. Among the villages of northern Khador,
tales are told of bands of striders descending upon villages
Strider to slay every last man, woman, and child.
STARTING HERO VET EPIC Though they are much changed from their Nyss origins,
VALUE LIMIT LIMIT LIMIT many striders still cling to at least one vestige of their former
life. As hunters, they would dip a single raven’s feather in
PHY 5 7 7 8 the blood of every kill. Though the meaning of the ritual
seems lost, many striders still perform it dutifully, creating
SPD 7 8 8 8 ever-growing cloaks of the grim trophies. These black cloaks
only enhance the birdlike appearance of the striders, and
a pack of striders running toward its prey can shake the
STR 4 6 7 8 courage of even the bravest warrior.

Archetypes: Mighty, Skilled

AGL 4 5 6 7
Languages: A strider starts the game with two languages:
PRW 4 5 6 7 Aeric and one he has picked up in his travels.

Height: 66–79 inches male, 61–76 inches female.

POI 4 5 6 7 Weight: 150–195 pounds male, 95–140 pounds female.

Additional Characteristics:
INT 3 4 5 6
• Blight Gifts – Striders are blighted characters and can
receive blight gifts.
ARC — — — —
• A Strider character begins with the Specialization (Nyss
PER 3 5 6 6 bow) and Specialization (Nyss claymore) abilities.

• Pathfinder – Strider characters start the game with the

Pathfinder ability. This ability is in addition to any
others the character gains from his starting career.

• Striders gain +3 ARM against cold damage.

The touch of Everblight did not affect all Nyss equally,
• Striders suffer –3 ARM against fire damage.
and to a select few among their number the blight brought
special gifts. Those who came to be known as striders were
originally scouts and rangers who patrolled the fringes
of Nyss society. Already the most proficient trackers and
hunters among a race known for its skill in the wilderness,
the blight reshaped them into superlative predators. The
bones in their legs stretched and changed, their calves
snapping in half to form new leg joints. Their feet became
talons, gripping the earth as they ran.

The transformative power of dragonblight has made the

striders distinct from their Nyss progenitors. The touch of
Everblight has also stripped most striders of any sorcerous
potential, leaving only a rare few chosen by the dragon to
manifest the power of blighted magic. In spite of this, they
are fleet hunters who move like birds of prey, able to run
at full speed across solid ice, over logs, and across even the
most treacherous terrain. Their speed and grace make them
a force to be reckoned with, and the blight has dulled their
emotions, sharpening in them only a lust for slaughter in
the name of the dragon. Cruel creatures, striders enjoy the
hunt as much as the kill and have been known to toy with

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 While the blight has reshaped and augmented their bodies,
it has also broken down the psyches of the ogrun, giving
them an unquenchable bloodlust that only the most sturdy-
Blighted Ogrun minded among their number can keep in check, and then
only for so long. Even to the blighted Nyss of the Legion,
STARTING HERO VET EPIC blighted ogrun often appear to be abominations, reeking
VALUE LIMIT LIMIT LIMIT of slaughter and unmindful of their carnage, willing to
slay friend or foe alike in their compulsion to sow death.
PHY 6 7 8 9 Certainly there are some among their number for whom
that is not an inaccurate description, creatures who stare
SPD 5 6 6 6 mad-eyed at twisted visions only they can see and who
murder without thought. Others have overcome the blight-
brought madness, however even the most disciplined
STR 7 8 9 10 among the blighted ogrun were built for destruction. The
call to slaughter will overcome them sooner or later.
AGL 3 5 6 7
Archetypes: Mighty, Skilled

PRW 4 5 6 7 Languages: A blighted ogrun starts the game with three

languages: Molgur-Og, Aeric, and one he has picked up
in his travels.
POI 3 4 5 6
Height: 90–105 inches male, 82–97 inches female.

INT 2 5 5 6 Weight: 450–500 pounds male, 330–380 pounds female.

Additional Characteristics:
ARC — — — —
• Blight Gifts – Blighted ogrun are blighted characters
and can receive blight gifts.
PER 2 4 5 6
• Blood Mad – Blighted ogrun are compelled to
slaughter. If a blighted ogrun goes 24 hours without
inflicting damage, he suffers –1 to non-attack rolls
until he does so.

• Huge Stature – An ogrun can wield a weapon in one

Once Everblight had bound the majority of the Nyss shards hand that usually requires two hands to wield, but he
to his will he turned his attention to the other races of the suffers –2 on attack rolls with that weapon.
north, and the scattered ogrun tribes soon fell under his
influence. As Vayl Hallyr had betrayed the Nyss to the
dragon, so Thagrosh gave up the northern ogrun and they
too fell beneath the power of Everblight. Far from blaming
him for his treachery, blighted ogrun see Thagrosh as a great
leader and a symbol of what, with the dragon’s blessing,
they might one day become. Already a race known for its
size and strength, the blighted gifts of the dragon have made
the ogrun into creatures of almost unparalleled might and
destructive potential and transformed their once-proud
honor into a desire to spread the shadow of Everblight
across all of the Iron Kingdoms. Though their minds have
been radically altered by the blight, the desire to serve a
great leader, or korune, remains within in the blood-dimmed
thoughts of the blighted ogrun. The dragon has become the
ultimate korune, a god of limitless ferocity.

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Deathstalker Prerequisites: Strider

Starting Abilities, Abilities: Ambush, Prowl, Signal Language

connections, Military Skills: Archery 1 and Great Weapon 1
skills, and spells Occupational Skills: Sneak 1, Survival 1, Tracking 1
Starting Assets Nyss bow, Nyss claymore, quiver and 20 arrows, 25 gc

Ambush, Battle Plan: Coordinated Strike, Camouflage, Dodger, Fleet Foot, Hunter,
Deathstalker Abilities Night Fighter, Prowl, Signal Language, Snap Fire, Swift Hunter, Tactical Coordination
(p. 101), Targeteer, Tracker (p. 101)

deathstalker connections Connections (Legion of Everblight)

Deathstalker Military
Archery 4, Hand Weapon 3, Great Weapon 3
Skills
Deathstalker
General Skills 4, Command 3, Cryptography 1, Sneak 4, Survival 4, Tracking 4
occupational skills

While all striders emphasize speed, stealth, and cunning, While Deathstalkers are capable killers in any situation,
deathstalkers have been particularly blessed. Even more so they work best when stalking their prey and striking
than their peers, they resemble hunting birds more than the unexpectedly. The Deathstalker pairs well with careers that
Nyss they once were. It’s evident in the way they move, the emphasize certain aspects of her skill set, such as Warrior
tilt of their head, and the coldness of their unblinking stare. to increase melee prowess or Chieftain to gain access to a
Among striders, deathstalkers are seen as the pinnacle of more robust selection of leadership skills and abilities. As
blighted evolution. she advances, the Deathstalker can focus on abilities like
Hunter and Night Fighter that make her better able to strike
Deathstalkers enjoy an exalted position among the rank-and-
without warning, or she can emphasize abilities like Tactical
file of the Legion, looked upon with fear and reverence by
Coordination to become a more capable leader. A Veteran-
other Nyss and striders alike. They are seen as especially
level Deathstalker can maximize her capacity to deal damage
favored by the dragon and are often given great latitude
from a distance by picking up the Snap Fire ability, allowing
by Legion warlocks, whether they are commanding troops
her to rain death on her prey.
or executing lengthy and complex solo missions far from
the main body of Everblight’s forces. Deathstalkers are
unparalleled killers, equally at home leading a pack of
other striders or stalking the wilderness alone in search of
prey. Though they are as swift as any of their blighted race,
what is perhaps most unnerving about the deathstalkers is
the seemingly infinite patience with which they stalk their
quarry. A deathstalker may remain silent and unmoving for
hours before striking with sudden and deadly intent.

Playing a Deathstalker: If playing as a swift and tireless

killer shaped into a precision instrument of death appeals
to you, consider the Deathstalker career. Deathstalkers
are patient hunters who are skilled at dealing death
with bow or a blade. Even at character creation, their
skills and abilities make them formidable trackers,
able to move silent and unseen and to strike without
warning. As she advances, a Deathstalker gains abilities
that make her deadlier in combat and even better able to
avoid it when necessary. A Deathstalker works well on
her own as an assassin and tracker, but she is also capable
of becoming an adept leader, shaping other blighted Nyss
and striders into a deadly hunting pack.

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 Warmonger Prerequisites: Blighted Ogrun

Starting Abilities, Abilities: Berserk, Fearless, Onslaught

connections, Military Skills: Unarmed Combat 1 and either Great Weapon 1 or Thrown Weapon 1
skills, and spells Occupational Skills: Detection 1, Intimidation 1, Survival 1
Starting Assets Infantry armor and an ogrun war cleaver or 5 war spears and a war spear quiver

Abomination (p. 101), Berserk (p. 101), Blood Drinker (p. 101), Body Slam (p. 101),
Warmonger Abilities Dual Shot (war spear), Fearless, Fearsome Howl (p. 101), Knife Thrower, Onslaught,
Quick Work, Relentless Charge, Set Defense, Specialization (ogrun war cleaver)

warmonger connections Connections (Legion of Everblight)

warmonger Military
Thrown Weapon 4, Great Weapon 4, Unarmed Combat 4
Skills
Warmonger occupational
General Skills 4, Detection 4, Survival 4, Tracking 2
skills

Warmongers are among the fiercest, hardiest, and most
bloodthirsty of the monstrous blighted ogrun. Reveling in
slaughter, warmongers act as shock troops in the armies of
Everblight and can stand against even enraged warbeasts.
A warmonger is afraid of nothing, and is capable of acts of
carnage that can stagger even fellow servants of the dragon.
Warmongers have an unquenchable desire for bloodshed.
Only in battle do they find any pleasure, and some twisted
version of their former honor drives them to hurl themselves
at the most fearsome opponents they can find. While they will
kill anything that hinders the Legion, they prefer a challenge
and often seek out the largest warbeasts or most powerful
warjacks. While they struggle to channel their bloodlust to
the purposes of the Legion, they are barely controlled killing
machines. Even the most disciplined among them may turn
on an ally in the heat of battle. Though they are valuable
soldiers in the armies of Everblight, the monstrous changes
the blight has wrought on their bodies and minds, and
the terrible acts of which they are capable, can make them
terrifying even to other members of the Legion.
flexibility, though it can be paired with another martial career
to bring an even greater range of deadly abilities to bear.
There are few things that can stand against a Warmonger
in melee combat, and Berserk allows the Warmonger to
carve through a shocking number of foes even as it becomes
a potential threat to its own allies. As the Warmonger
advances, he opens up new options that allow him to focus
on devastating melee or thrown weapon attacks, and can
also gain the Abomination and Fearsome Howl abilities to
strike fear into even the most stalwart foes. At Veteran-level
the warmonger becomes virtually
unstoppable, as Blood Drinker
allows him to heal wounds
with every drop of
blood that he sheds.

Playing a Warmonger: If playing a bloodthirsty engine of

destruction, driven half-mad by the blight of a monstrous
dragon, sounds appealing, Warmonger might be the career
for you. A Warmonger is deadly in melee combat, and
the warmonger’s skill with thrown war spears
combined with the Onslaught ability can quickly
turn the tables in even the toughest fight.
Warmongers are not subtle or nuanced, but
they are uniquely engineered for one
task: killing everything that stands
in the way of Everblight’s plans.
The Warmonger career pairs well
with careers that grant greater

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New Abilities
Abomination
Prerequisite: None
The character is a terrifying entity and gains Terror [this
character’s Willpower +4] in battle. This terror affects friendly
characters as well as enemies. Additionally, the character can
reroll failed Intimidation skill rolls. Each failed roll can be
rerolled only once as a result of Abomination.
Berserk
Prerequisite: None
When this character incapacitates or destroys one or more
characters with a melee attack during his turn, immediately
after the attack is resolved he must make one additional
melee attack against another character in his melee range.
Blood Drinker
Prerequisite: PRW 6
When this character destroys a living enemy character with a
melee attack, he immediately regains d3 vitality points.
Body Slam
Prerequisite: STR 7
When this character charges, instead of making a charge
attack he can spend a feat point to make unarmed melee
attack to slam. A character who slams another character with
a larger base suffers –2 to this attack roll. The POW of the
slam damage roll and any collateral damage resulting from it
is equal to the STR of the attacking character.
Fearsome Howl
Prerequisite: Abomination
Once during each of his turns, the character can spend a
quick action to unleash a terrifying howl. That turn he gains
Terror [this character’s Willpower +6].
Tactical Coordination
Prerequisite: Command 2
When this character destroys an enemy character with a
ranged attack, friendly characters within this character’s
command range can move up to six feet (1˝) and perform a
quick action after the attack has been resolved.
Tracker
Prerequisite: Tracking 1
The character gains boosted tracking rolls.
New Gear
Ogrun Warcleaver
Cost: 30
Skill: Great Weapon
Attack Modifier: –1
POW: 6
Description: Created to take full advantage of an ogrun’s
massive strength and size, the warcleaver is a sturdy
polearm so large and heavy that even most ogrun must
wield it with both hands. A three-foot-long, foot-wide
blade is affixed to a stout twelve-foot pole, and the back
of the cleaver blade is studded with spikes, allowing the
warcleaver to perform devastating chopping or piercing
blows
Special Rules: The warcleaver is a Reach weapon.
A character must have at least STR 6 to use this weapon.
This weapon must be used two-handed.
A character with the Huge Stature characteristic gains +2 to
his charge attack rolls with this weapon.
War Spear
Cost: 7 gc
Ammo: 1
Effective Range: 48 (8˝)
Extreme Range: —
Skill: Thrown Weapon
Attack Modifier: 0
POW: 4
AOE: —
Description: War spears are heavy spears suited to ogrun
proportions and balanced for throwing.
Special Rules: A character must have at least STR 6 to use
this weapon. This weapon can be used as either a melee
weapon or a ranged weapon. When used as a melee weapon
this weapon has Reach and uses the Great Weapon skill.
Add the thrower’s STR to the POW of the damage roll.
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 InCubus
Though I have seen many strange and terrible things in my travels, nothing could have
Physique PHY 8 prepared me for the moment when Barlowe’s bayonet struck down one of the blighted Nyss,
Speed SPD 6 only to unleash a howling abomination from its broken body. The thing killed Barlowe, and
Strength STR 8 many more trenchers that day before it was finally put down a second time, and when next we
fought the Nyss, I saw men hesitate to fire lest they give rise to a similar fiend.
Agility AGL 3
Prowess PRW 5 —Viktor Pendrake, Monsternomicon
Poise POI 1
description
Intellect INT 2
Arcane aRC — Of the innumerable horrors spawned transformation for only an hour or so before
Perception PER 3 by the blighted blood of the dragon dissolving into a caustic mass of blighted
Everblight, few exemplify the tissue. As such, no extensive studies of incubus
Claw gruesome power and sinister physiology have ever been conducted. It seems,
MAT POW P+S
cunning of their progenitor more however, that while the incubi wait dormant
7 2 11
than the dreaded incubi. While inside their hosts, invisible to the naked eye,
Combo Strike: Instead of making an all dragonspawn are unnatural they infest and repurposing their host’s flesh,
attack with each weapon separately, this which is transformed in a grisly display at the
creatures, the incubi are among the
creature can attack with both its weapons
simultaneously. Make one attack roll for both most unsettling. Only an unlucky moment of death.
weapons. If the attack hits, the POW of the few in the Iron Kingdoms have
damage roll is equal to this creature’s STR Though the incubi are formidable in battle and
encountered an incubus, and those
plus twice the POW of this weapon. more than capable of racking up an intimidating
that have will never forget it.
Initiative Init * body count in their short lifespans, perhaps the
(See “Host” ability) In his attempts to create the perfect greatest danger they pose is to the morale of the
Defense DEF 12 soldiers for his ever-growing army Legion’s enemies. Seeing a blighted Nyss struck
Armor ARM 15 of dragonspawn, Everblight mixed down only to give birth to a monstrosity of
(Natural Armor +7) the genitive powers of his blight claws and teeth can sap the will of even the most
Willpower Wil 10 with the natural pregnancies of the stalwart soldier, and instill a hesitation to deliver
Vitality: 13 Nyss who served him, and the result the killing blow in future encounters for fear of
Command Range: 2 was the monstrous nephilim. The unleashing another such monster on the world.
Base Size: Small incubus arose as a by-product of
Encounter Points: 5 these experiments. Though they had Combat
not been the intended end, incubi
Until its host is killed, the incubus remains
have proven to be another potent
dormant and virtually undetectable. Once
weapon in Everblight’s arsenal.
activated by its host’s death, however, an
Though fearsome in combat, the true terror of the incubus comes from its incubus knows it is not long for this world and
insidiousness. It hides as a parasitic disease that gestates within the bodies fights with a ferocity and single-mindedness
of certain blighted Nyss, only activated by its host’s death. When a blighted born of that knowledge. While other beasts
Nyss who is infested by an incubus is slain, the incubus repurposes the may kill to eat or defend territory, or even
host’s flesh in a burst of blighted transformation that rends skin, muscle, for sport or at the bidding of their masters,
and bone to create a monster as hideous as it is deadly. The sight of bones the incubus exists only to slay the enemies of
and muscle giving way to transform the body of a Nyss into a misshapen Everblight and will destroy any non-blighted
incubus can be nearly as terrifying as the havoc the creature wreaks once creature it can reach in a fury of teeth and
it has been loosed. talons. Though the body the incubus hastily
assembles from the tissues of its host appears
As difficult as it is for those outside the dragon’s influence to imagine it,
malformed and ungainly, the incubus itself
the hosts of the incubi actually volunteer for the “honor.” By carrying a
is a quick and sure killer blessed with the
concentration of Everblight’s essence in order to give rise to the incubus,
predatory gifts of the dragon.
the blighted Nyss know that even in death they will still be able to strike
at the enemies of their draconic master.

When the energies of death activate the latent incubus, it burns through
much of the genitive power of Everblight’s blood in the moments that it
takes to transform the flesh of its host into its ultimate form. The resulting
abomination is thankfully not long for this world, as it survives the

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 Lore
A character can make an INT + Lore
(extraordinary zoology or dragon) skill roll
to determine what he knows about this
creature. He learns all the information up to
the result of the roll. The higher the roll, the
more he learns.

13: Incubi lurk inside some blighted Nyss as

a kind of sentient disease, repurposing the
flesh of their hosts to create new bodies when
they are activated by the energies of death.
Like dragonspawn, these creatures are born
of the blood of Everblight, and when they
burst forth from their slain hosts they exist
only to kill.

15: It is impossible to detect which blighted

Nyss are hosts to incubi, but when the
creatures do manifest they don’t survive
for long. Within about an hour, an activated
incubus will burn up all of the blighted
energy it has and collapse into a caustic mass
of blighted tissue.

17: Like dragonspawn, the incubi have no souls.

Essentially a conscious manifestation of the
dragon’s blood, they were created as a byproduct
of Everblight’s experiments in generating superior
dragonspawn when Everblight mixed his essence with
natural Nyss pregnancies to create the creatures known
as nephilim.

Abilities:
Fearless – This creature never suffers the effects of fear.
Host – This creature does not begin the game in play, but within a host. When
this creature’s host is destroyed, mark that character’s center point and remove
the host from play. The creature activates in its host’s place in the initiative order.
The creature must spend a full action consuming its host to reach full size. Until
the creature consumes its host, its DEF is reduced to 5, it is automatically hit by
melee attacks, and has an ARM equal to its current PHY. Anatomical Wisdom
Limited Shelf Life – One hour after spawning, this creature dissolves into a
caustic mist. Center a 3˝ AOE on the creature and remove it from play. The AOE
Goes a Long Way...
remains in play for d3 rounds. A character entering or ending its activation in the A character can also make an INT  +  Medicine skill
AOE suffers d3 corrosion damage and the Corrosion continuous effect. roll against a target of 14 to learn the following:
Soulless – This creature does not generate a soul token when destroyed.
The physical structure of an incubus is unstable.
Creature Templates: The creature’s tissues break down at an advanced,
None. visible, rate, oozing caustic blighted fluid as the flesh
dissolves.
Skills:
Name Stat + Rank Total
Detection PER 2 5

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