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View Full Version : DM Help Help Make Hoard of Malevolent Squirrel



TheOldCrow
2014-10-17, 11:18 AM
I have a malevolent undead squirrel that's trapped in a fantasy town that is overrun by undead. I figure that the squirrel has a squirrel brain, and has been collecting anything in the town that reminds it of nuts and stuffing them it into a dead hollow tree, which is now stuffed to bursting. It also has the McGuffin the party is searching for, a necromancer's amulet (nut-shaped enough for the Squirrel's liking). What I need is a ton of other stuff the Squirrel has pillaged from the town to fill out the hoard. There are no actual nuts in town, because all the trees are dead, so the Squirrel has a loose interpretation about what is nut-shaped.

All I've come up with so far is doorknobs. This will lead to all the doors in town being extensively gnawed and missing their doorknobs.

Does anyone have any other ideas I could incorporate?

Slipperychicken
2014-10-17, 11:28 AM
Any large jewels or glass trinkets. Like the little glass pieces of a chandelier or necklace might have been looted because they're vaguely nut-shaped.

Corks are kind of nut-like.

It may have stolen (if possible) the blunt ends of some silverware or weapons, for their superficial resemblance to nuts.

Maybe it could have stolen a lot of teeth too. Some of them are nut-sized, and they're hard like nuts.

It could have chewed some peoples' toes off and shoved them into the tree. They're kind of nut-shaped when you remove them from the foot.

A lot of earrings and other jewelry might look a bit nut-shaped if you look at them right.

Also, I would imagine that some of these trinkets might be buried around the tree, in addition to being stuffed inside it.

TheOldCrow
2014-10-17, 11:54 AM
Any large jewels or glass trinkets. Like the little glass pieces of a chandelier or necklace might have been looted because they're vaguely nut-shaped.

The chandelier is a great suggestion. I'll put a stripped down chandelier in the mayor's house, and the crystals in the tree.


Corks are kind of nut-like.

BWAHAHAHA! I love this best. Now there will be a wine cellar with not only the doorknob chewed off, but all the bottles have had their corks chewed off too, ruining what would have been now well-aged wine. If that doesn't incense the party, nothing will.


It may have stolen (if possible) the blunt ends of some silverware or weapons, for their superficial resemblance to nuts.

Hmm. Maybe spoons and napkin rings.


Maybe it could have stolen a lot of teeth too. Some of them are nut-sized, and they're hard like nuts.

It could have chewed some peoples' toes off and shoved them into the tree. They're kind of nut-shaped when you remove them from the foot.

Yeah, I should throw in some creepy stuff like that just to emphasize that it is a malevolent undead squirrel. Skulls of little mammals, too.


A lot of earrings and other jewelry might look a bit nut-shaped if you look at them right.

Also, I would imagine that some of these trinkets might be buried around the tree, in addition to being stuffed inside it.

A handful of actually valuable trinkets would be a nice reward for them, so I'll add a bit of nut-shaped jewelry.

Great stuff, thanks!

Tarlek Flamehai
2014-10-17, 12:08 PM
Nuts & Bolts minus the bolts. Fireworks, marbles, glass eyes, cuff-links, pebbles, sling bullets, Acorn of Far Travel, Acorn of Wo Mai, thunderstones, beads of force/fire/etc, dead beetles, dead crickets, knots from knotholes, rope knots, dried rabbit feces, and finally (because someone has to say it) testicles.

TheOldCrow
2014-10-17, 01:02 PM
Nuts & Bolts minus the bolts. Fireworks, marbles, glass eyes, cuff-links, pebbles, sling bullets, Acorn of Far Travel, Acorn of Wo Mai, thunderstones, beads of force/fire/etc, dead beetles, dead crickets, knots from knotholes, rope knots, dried rabbit feces, and finally (because someone has to say it) testicles.

Nuts without bolts is too funny to pass up. Marbles yes (I'll have to think up some more oldtimey kid's toys), glass eye yes, cufflinks can be part of jewelry interspersed, sling bullets that's a good one maybe I'll make a few magical, magic acorns and beads of force are great suggestions, as are knotholes (evidence can be seen about town of holey chewed up boards) and rope knots. I think I'll skip the rabbit droppings (live rabbits wouldn't last long around here) and testicles (because). Fireworks I have to skip due to the last campaign involving lots of them and gnomes and half of a town exploding and it might give one of the players traumatic flashbacks. Thank you!

CyberThread
2014-10-17, 01:13 PM
Am seeing something bigger...an option for an undead treant

TheOldCrow
2014-10-17, 01:21 PM
Am seeing something bigger...an option for an undead treant

The party will probably only be 2nd level--maybe 3rd-- when they track down the Squirrel's lair. Of course, it would make some sense for the tree to have formed some sort of malevolent undeadiness after years of having the necromancer's pendant stuffed inside of it. Maybe I can design an undead tree of some sort. More like a trap rather than a creature.

Calen
2014-10-19, 10:54 AM
The decorative tops of ironwork fencing. A finail I think it is called?
Sword/dagger pommels, parts of carved mantle faces (Nuts and leaves are popular depictions)

TheOldCrow
2014-10-19, 05:59 PM
The decorative tops of ironwork fencing. A finail I think it is called?
Sword/dagger pommels, parts of carved mantle faces (Nuts and leaves are popular depictions)

Finials are another great idea. I will add an iron fence around the old town graveyard, with many of its finials missing from there and packed in the tree. If the party has not encounter the Squirrel by the time they decide to check out the graveyard, or if they did encounter it but it got away, I'm going to have it on the iron fence intrepidly trying to pry off a finial.

I will also add in damaged carved mantles. Carved nuts or grapes would be ripe for gnawing. Thanks!

Tarlek Flamehai
2014-10-20, 12:48 PM
The party will probably only be 2nd level--maybe 3rd-- when they track down the Squirrel's lair. Of course, it would make some sense for the tree to have formed some sort of malevolent undeadiness after years of having the necromancer's pendant stuffed inside of it. Maybe I can design an undead tree of some sort. More like a trap rather than a creature.

This makes me think of those evil trees you see in cartoons. The ones that just reach out and tangle the heroine's hair while leering evilly.

daremetoidareyo
2014-10-21, 11:17 AM
If you wanted to get sappy with it: The skeleton of another squirrel, carefully laid on an old fur hat, with a small pile of decaying (real) walnuts/acorns. Like it was once a mate that the squirrel still hopes may not be dead.

Slipperychicken
2014-10-21, 11:36 AM
If you wanted to get sappy with it: The skeleton of another squirrel, carefully laid on an old fur hat, with a small pile of decaying (real) walnuts/acorns. Like it was once a mate that the squirrel still hopes may not be dead.

For extra feels, make the skeleton much smaller than that of the still-animate squirrel.