Mad Mage Adaptation: The Cuttlefish

July 23, 2022

The Dungeon of the Mad Mage features a ship called the Cuttlefish, which is essentially just the Lamprey Ship deckplan, scaled to 10-foot squares and with tentacles on the front and different fins. So I thought, why don’t I write it up as a new 2e ship?

This is intended to be a new ship inspired by the one in Mad Mage, rather than a conversion. I’ve edited the original maps to be used as a deckplan, although ideally I would like to re-do them entirely to give it a better internal layout that is different from the original Lamprey Ship.


*Note: Stats below assume an additional cargo deck below the main deck.

Built By:  Illithids
Used Primarily By:  Humans, illithids, goblinkin
Cost:  40,000 gp
Tonnage:  40
Hull Points:  40
Crew:  10/40
Maneuverability Class:  D
Landing—Land:  No
Landing—Water:  Yes
Armor Rating:  5
Saves As:  Thick Wood
Power Type:  Series helm; lifejammer; major or minor helm
Ship’s Rating:  2–5 or as per helmsman
Standard Armament:  4 medium ballista (1-F, 1-FP, 1-FS, 1-A)
Cargo Capacity:  20 tons
Keel Length:  210′
Beam Length:  50′

Description:  A recent ship design of the illithids, the Cuttlefish uses a scaled up hull of a Lamprey Ship as the base, but with an additional cargo deck below the main deck. This vessel is primarily operated as a bulk cargo hauler, but many are favored by illithid pirates who have struck off on their own. An advantage this vessel has over the original Lamprey is that it is capable of landing in water, giving it a greater flexibility in where it can be used. The removal of the cone ram, and lessened maneuverability due to its increased bulk render it less useful as a warship, however.


Cthonspace: An Underdark Sphere

June 1, 2022

Cthonspace is an unusual sphere in that the interior is solid earth and stone, with a great number of large, planet-sized caverns and tunnels large enough for spelljamming ships to travel through. There sphere exists outside of the Known Spheres, and is inhabited by a variety of underdark races. The tunnels maintain gravity on all the surfaces, as well as atmospheres, although the larger tunnels are often airless voids in the center. Because of the large amount of rock in the sphere, all tunnels are full of loose floating asteroids of various sizes, few larger than a ship, though. Vast mushroom forests cover the walls of the tunnels; many species of which can be dried and used just as well as wood can outside the sphere. Other mushrooms glow slightly, giving the illusion of pale stars from a distance, along with softly glowing gems. Within the sphere exist three goblinoid ports which serve the same purpose as Bral, being somewhat cosmopolitan centers of trade and adventure.

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P’kk the Dominator

November 1, 2021

The last of the neogi deities, P’kk the Dominator is the god of neogi captains, who control their crew and captives through tyrannical fear. It is the only member of the neogi pantheon to live in Baator, the Nine Hells, but it keeps a close eye on its brethren, watching for any weaknesses it can exploit. It is also the only member of the pantheon to have a form other than that of most neogi, as it favors a form that merges the head of a neogi with the body of an umber hulk.

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Lakshu and their Shaktis

June 13, 2021

In Spelljammer, the elite troops of the Reigar are the Lakshu, described as a race of beautiful green-haired amazons. Each one has a unique tool called a “shakti,” an item that forms both armor and weapon, and also serves as their personal identifier. All of these elements were inspired and adapted from a manga and anime that ran between 1988 and 1990, called Legend of Heavenly Sphere Shurato.

However, while there were three sample shaktis listed under the entry for the Reigar, it leaves a lot of work for a DM; in one of the adventures I ran for my Spelljammer livestreamed campaign, I ended up created quite a few so I thought I would share them for other DMs to use, or use as inspiration for their own unique forms.

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Kil’lix the Ambitious

February 1, 2021

Another of the neogi deities from Dragon Magazine #214, Kil’lix represents the cutthroat nature of neogi advancement. He is a god of death, and teaches his followers to gain power through poison and murder.

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Kr’tx the Flaming Master

November 1, 2020

One of the neogi deities detailed in the article “The Ecology of the Neogi,” in Dragon #214, Kr’tx is that race’s deity of war. It is an unsubtle brute of a neogi, and favored by the umber hulks the neogi keep due to its brutality.

If you’ve been enjoying these entries, please consider supporting the project on Patreon or Ko-Fi.

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Half-Radiant Dragons

September 25, 2017

The Council of Wyrms campaign setting offered as a character option the half-dragon, a crossbreed of a demihuman and a dragon with natural shapechanging ability. Limited to half-gold, half-silver, and half-bronze in the campaign setting (as the dragons there were limited to the metallic, gem, and chromatic dragons). In Dragon Magazine #206, the options were expanded to Krynnish half-silvers, half-chiang lung, half-shen lung, half-Greyhawks, half-steels, half-deeps (aka Drow-Dragons), and half-irons. However, there were a handful of dragons left out of the selections, including the half-adamtite and half-radiant. Both were specifically left out of the selection for different reasons, but I was never satisfied with those reasons. Presented here is my take on the Half-Radiant Dragon, rare even compared to other half-dragons. See the Council of Wyrms set or issue #206 of Dragon Magazine for details on how fixed and discretionary abilities operate.

Half-Radiant Dragon
Worlds: SJ
Appearance: Normal half-dragon with pearly-white hair, lustrous white irises, pale skin with shimmering flecks.
Ability-score modifiers: +1 Strength, +1 Dexterity, –1 Wisdom, –1 Charisma.
Ability-score ranges: Str 6/19, Dex 6/19, Con 5/18, Int 3/18, Wis 3/17, Cha 3/17.
Alignment tendency: Any.
Allowable classes: Cleric/priest (14), fighter (10), mage (10), specialist—invoker (14), specialist—force mage (14), thief (11).
Discretionary abilities: Create/destroy air (1/day), Bigby’s interposing hand (1/day), Bigby’s grasping hand (1/day), wall of force (1/day), forcecage (1/day), dragon fear (once per day).
Fixed abilities: Claw attacks (1d6/1d6), breath weapon (pulses of magical force to a 20 foot range, 3d6 damage, usable twice per day; pulses can be divided between up to 3 targets. Successful save vs. breath for no damage.).
Average Height and Weight: Height: 78/74 + 2d8. Weight: 120/100 + 3d8.
Age: Starting age: 14 + 1d4 years. Maximum Age Range: 300 + 3d20. Middle Age: 150 years. Old Age: 200 years. Venerable: 300 years.
Thieving Skill Adjustments: PP —, OL –10%, F/RT –5%, MS +5%, HS +10%, DN +5%, CW —, RL +5%.


Adventures in Arcane Space: Live on Twitch.tv!

March 10, 2017

On the first weekend of March, 2017, I started running a Spelljammer campaign using the 2nd Edition rules with viewers from my YouTube channel. It currently runs Saturdays from 12pm EST/EDT to 4pm EST/EDT on my Twitch.tv channel. Please join in and watch it live!

The first two episodes of the first session can be watched here on my YouTube channel, and all future sessions will be uploaded there as well:

The full playlist is also available.


Rais, The Cogitative One

May 1, 2016

Rais is another minor deity that was mentioned rather briefly in a single 2nd Edition product. In her case, she was created to be a deity for the dragons (particularly silver dragons) of the air world Edill in the Spelljammer supplement SJR6 Greyspace, which detailed the planets in the crystal sphere encompassing the Greyhawk setting. I developed her as a deity of philosophy and logic, with an emphasis on the truths and creative power of thought. While minor, she can prove to be a very interesting deity in a campaign. Read the rest of this entry »


Mystaran Skyships in Spelljammer, Part V: Vimana

September 21, 2014

The fifth of my conversions of the Mystaran Skyships from Champions of Mystara is now online on the Wildspace Blog.