I'm pleased to announce that d20 Despot is now on Patreon. Mostly I'm pleased because that means you can give me money if you want. 'What is Patreon?' you may find yourself asking. Patreon is a service that seeks to return to the days where artists were given patronage by great men and women who had a lot of money and enjoyed the finer things in life, only this time the artists are internet content creators and the patrons are their viewers (and you don't need to have a lot of money to do it). It's sort of like an incremental, ongoing kickstarter.
"How does it work?"
If you aren't already on Patreon supporting all your favourite artists, go over and sign up! Once you're signed up, head over to patreon.com/d20despot, determine how much you would be willing to donate to my cause, and click "Become a Patron"!
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| Sadly, I don't think their scripts can handle die rolls. |
"What do I, the patron, get in return?"
Ahh, I knew you'd be asking this, and fortunately so did the savvy folks over at Patreon. They've set up a system whereby creators can determine various tiered levels of patronage and give out rewards accordingly. Most creators on Patreon have set up several rewards tiers. Some rewards are things like 'remove the ads from my page', but I can't do that because d20 Despot is already 100% ad free (there goes one source of revenue...). So what will I, d20 despot, be offering you as a reward? That's where you come in.
I have a number of ideas of possible rewards I could offer, but I want to know which ones you, my loyal readers, think would be awesome. Here are some options:
- Early access to blog posts - You would get access to my blogposts on Friday instead of Monday like all those other plebs. This might give you time to work any content I may be releasing in that post into your weekend gaming session.
- Access to my playtest document - Aside from all the Open Game content I've published on this site already, I have mountains more that is just sitting on my computer, waiting to be completed or further refined into a form I feel comfortable releasing to you. If this is the sort of reward you want, patrons who pledge above a certain amount (a few bucks) would gain access to a bunch of my in-progress or unpublished monsters, classes, races, weapons, and more. You would, of course, be sworn to not reproduce or distribute these secrets since I have not yet released them under the OGL, but I would heartily encourage you to try them out in your game and/or make suggestions to me via email.
- Occasional gifts of random content - Maybe I would just release some extra content on my Patreon site visible only to backers. This could include the occasional new monster, pre-statted NPCs, or even complete dungeons or adventures. There's no guarantee I wouldn't release it later to the general public, but you would get to see it first, at least a month in advance!
If you like any of those ideas or have an idea of your own for a possible backer reward, please leave a comment on this post. In fact, if you would even consider becoming a backer on Patreon, leave a comment on this post. I'd like to hear from you.
"What happens if I don't back you?"
Stop making me sad. But seriously, even if no one at all backs me on Patreon, business will continue as usual here at d20 Despot. I'll keep posting weekly here. I'll keep providing you with new monsters and weapons and races and other cool stuff. But Patreon backing would open up a whole new world of opportunities for me, opportunities that you would see the fruits of. So if you like what I do here and are looking for a way of saying 'thanks', please consider patronizing me. You can be as patronizing as you like.
15 cents, $1, $2 - it all adds up, and it can make a big difference to me and my ability to do this thing I enjoy so much.
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Hey, thanks for reading. I know asking for money can be sort of off-putting, so I want to thank you for making it this far. Here's a template that turns skeletons into sandstorms:
The following text in gold is available as Open Game Content under the OGL. Open Game Content is (C)2014 Jonah Bomgaars.
Sandstorm Skeleton
A sandstorm skeleton is surrounded by a whirling cloud of wind and sand which heals it and batters its enemies. In addition to the changes for the skeleton template, make the following adjustments to the base creature.
Challenge Rating: As normal skeleton +1
Fast Healing: A sandstorm skeleton has fast healing equal to 1 per 2 Hit Dice it possesses (minimum 1). This fast healing only functions while the skeleton is within a sandstorm.
Abilities: A sandstorm skeleton’s Charisma is 12.
Special Qualities: A sandstorm skeleton gains sandstorm aura.
Sandstorm Aura (Su): A sandstorm skeleton is surrounded by a swirling cloud of wind and sand. The sandstorm aura extends for 10 ft. per 5 HD the skeleton possesses. Those within the sandstorm aura take 1d6 points of nonlethal damage each round per 5 HD the skeleton possesses. Within the radius of the sandstorm aura, the wind is severe, automatically extinguishing unprotected flames and having a 50% chance of causing protected flames to sputter and go out. Visibility within the sandstorm aura is reduced to 20 ft. Perception checks and ranged weapon attacks (those originating within, entering, or passing through the sandstorm) suffer a -4 penalty. A gust of wind or similar spell with a successful Caster Level check (DC 10 + ½ skeleton’s HD +skeleton’s Charisma modifier) disperses the sandstorm aura for 1d4 rounds.
The sandstorm aura counts as a sandstorm for the purposes of the sandstorm skeleton's fast healing.
Giant Sandstorm Skeleton CR
7
XP 3,200
NE Large undead
Init +3; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +0
Aura sandstorm aura (20 ft., 2d6)
DEFENSE
AC 19, touch 12, flat-footed 16 (+5
armor, +3 Dex, +2 natural, -1 size)
hp 84 (13d8+26); fast healing 6 (works
only in sandstorm)
Fort +5, Ref +7, Will +8
DR 5/Bludgeoning; Immune cold, undead traits
OFFENSE
Speed 50 ft.
Melee scimitars+13/+13/+4/+4 (1d6+9/18-20)
or 2 claws +17 (1d6+9)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks scimitar training
STATISTICS
Str 28, Dex 17, Con --, Int --, Wis 10, Cha 12
Base Atk +9; CMB +19; CMD 32 (36 vs.
disarm and sunder)
Feats ToughnessB
SQ special qualities
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Sandstorm Aura (Ex)
A sandstorm
skeleton is surrounded by a swirling cloud of wind and sand. The sandstorm aura extends for 20 ft. around
it. Those within the sandstorm aura take
2d6 points of nonlethal damage each round.
Within the radius of the sandstorm aura, the wind is severe,
automatically extinguishing unprotected flames and having a 50% chance of
causing protected flames to sputter and go out.
Visibility within the sandstorm aura is reduced to 20 ft. Perception checks and ranged weapon attacks
(those originating within, entering, or passing through the sandstorm) suffer a
-4 penalty. A gust of wind or similar spell with a successful Caster Level check (DC 17)
disperses the sandstorm aura for 1d4 rounds.
The sandstorm aura counts as a sandstorm for the purposes of the
sandstorm skeleton's fast healing.
Scimitar Training (Ex)
This
monstrous skeleton was once a desert giant, and as such can wield scimitars as
if they were light weapons. It adds its
full Strength bonus to attacks made with a scimitar wielded in its off hand,
and gains a +4 bonus to CMD versus disarm and sunder attempts when fighting
with a scimitar in each hand.
ECOLOGY
Environment warm desert
Organization solitary
Treasure standard (2 scimitars, scale
armor, other treasure)
This is a
Desert Giant with the Stout Skeleton and Sandstorm Skeleton templates applied
to it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-your patronizing d20 despot
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