ChudoJogurt
2023-10-22, 10:43 AM
One of my players is a warlock, and they asked me to expand the rules on interacting with the demons, to give his character a way to interact with their patron, causes and ultimately means of escaping this contract.
I did not find Fiend Folio material good enough, nor does it work with our somewhat non-standard setting, so I homebrewed my own mesa-system to deal with this, which I offer here.
Sorry for the poor style -- I wrote this in Russian before translating it to English. I edited it as best as I could, but I might have missed a thing or two or left some inconsistencies in place.
Demons:
In our setting Demons aren't elemental evil. They are instead a race of once-humanoids, who have been destroyed in the ancient war, and bound in the Abyss. Unlike the current Kingdoms of mortals, who follow the Paths of individual Perfection, attaining levels in classes and mastering forces of magic and sword, and ultimately - themselves, the demons instead work as a sort of communist collective, taking the power from every member and distributing it by committee and decree as is needed by the centralised governing powers. Faustian pacts are to them, not a way to seduce human immortal soul for eternal damnation and torture, but rather a transaction akin to external trade in an embargoed communist regime.
That being said, I think the system I have here is generic enough, just don't be surprised with some minor tongue-in-cheek references.
Faustian Pacts:
Those too weak to follow long and difficult Paths of Perfection are looking for a shorter path to respect, power and wealth. And the path of demons, where power is distributed by the decision of demonic committees, without regard to personal merit and moral component, is an excellent way to cut corners.
The Faustian Pact can be of two types: A contract with one demon or a contract with Pandemonium as a whole.
Private Contract:
A private contract is a contract made with an individual demon. Just as for a mortal a demonic pact is a way to gain additional powers, for a demon a mortal servant is a way to gain powers for himself (if he can make the Pact work in his favour and give less than he receives) or servants and agents of influence in the world outside the Abyss, to raise his status or gain small but pleasant bonuses.
Such a contract is limited - both in terms of possibilities and in terms of danger for the signatory - by the power of the demon. Theoretical,ly this provides an opportunity for the character to surpass his patron and win back his contract, or exchange it for more favourable conditions (and let them hope that the conditions will not change further).
Only demons with HD 10+ can make such a contract, and summoning such a demon is a difficult task and all effects of a private contract with a demon cannot create, give or enhance effects whose level is greater than the patron's HD/2.
Contract with Pandemonium:
The contract with the Pandemonium as a whole, with the seal of the Central Pan-Demon Committee of Means and Ends on the other hand, is practically unlimited - the Central Committee theoretically has all the collective magical and resource power of Pandemonium, which is comparable to the forces of individual kingdoms and is stored in the central archives of Pandemonium.
A contract with Pandemonium can be signed through any demon - even the most insignificant imp can convey a message to the Central Committee and confirm the contract.
Basic Contract:
The character sells his soul to the demon, receiving in exchange access to all the powers of Pandemonium. At least that’s what they say in fairy tales for the crowd.
Reality is somewhat more prosaic.
There is no such thing as an immortal soul. The character instead, surrenders three things:
Firstly, the character gives up part of his personal energy for Pandemonium -- the same energy that’s used for magic. Those internal energies of the character that allow the character to approach Perfection through the Art of the Word [magic/sorcery/etc] or the Art of the Sword [whatever it is that makes fighters able to survive a casual swim in lava and punch out an elephant], now that the character does not use them, are spent on maintaining the power of Pandemonium and are distributed by the Central Committee.
From everyone according to their ability.
Secondly, the character sells his part of Victor's Right -- the power over demons that every mortal descendant of the Age of Heroes has inherited, loosening the seals that hold Pandemonium in the Abyss.
Mechanically, this means that the character can no longer subjugate demons beholden to their patron [or all demons, in case of Contract with Pandemonium] using Planar Binding and similar spells - magical traps created by the character, regardless of the method, are not capable of holding those with whom he has entered into a contractSimilarlyly Summoning, spells on demonic creatures that are not the result of a demonic contract, although they work, summon the target in the usual way, but do not control it -- for the duration of the spell it cannot be dismissed and acts as it pleases.
Third, the character must give a Lien of the contract. The Lien is something that belongs to the character and is extremely important to him -- more important than anything else in the world. Whether it's a family heirloom, a memory of a lost love, a bank account, or a firstborn child, the transfer of that collateral is the source of magic and the seal of the contract. The Lien becomes the property of the patron or Pandemonium. Most often they will go to the Dark Iron Citadel in the Abyss, but in some cases, demons may choose to store (or use) the collateral on the Material Plane.
The Lien exists for two reasons. First of all, that's a simple McGuffin that the character can recover to terminate their contract, but also, this serves as an explanation why every Tom, Richard and Harry aren't in a hurry to sell their paltry useless 'souls' for a measure of power.
In exchange, the character gains access to the structured energies of the Pandemonium in the form of a least demonic invocation of their choice. Going forward, as the character becomes more reliant on demonic energies, and accustomed to their use, their internal systems are restructured to allow more forces to flow in both directions. This provides additional capabilities, and an overall strengthening of body and spirit, which is reflected in the Warlock's levels. All without much effort on their part -- no meditation, book learning, ancient blood or exercise needed.
Such power is not unlimited, exactly. How many levels the character can gain without any effort whatsoever depends on how much he uses demonic energies and on his inner talent and ability. Typically, on its own, his Warlock level will not exceed his Charisma ModifierToto raise a level higher, a character needs to have some suitable demonic heritage, use his demonic energies as often and as varied as possible, perform Rituals of Pain and Submission (see below), take specific potions and drugs, or carry out Orders of Pandemonium and curry extra favour from their patron.
Additional powers:
Those who are desperate or arrogant enough can always ask the Collective or their demonic Patron for more power - but io each is granted according to their needs, from each is then taken according to their dues.
Most contracts allow the mortal signatory to request additional personal assistance (sometimes limited by the forces of his Patron) on credit, to be repaid at a later date, but not all powers are available to all characters - pandemonium does not give credits that will never be returned. Therefore, a character must have a minimum HD of 1 to use Minor Favors, 6 for Medium Favors, 11 for Major Favors, and 16 for Great Favors.
Favours are balanced by payment, but the house has the advantage. Three Minor outstanding favours must be paid with a medium ritual, three medium ones with a large one, and so on. Once that threshold is crossed one cannot change it back. However many Minor rituals the character conducts, they will never repay a Medium Favor.
The use of such powers is either part of the corresponding action, or, if it is an independent action, then a spell-like full-round action.
The following Favours and Rituals of Pain and Submission are samples. More could be added as needed.
Minor Favors
New Formula:
Over the next hour, the Character can use an Incantation that is not usually known to him. This may be the least invocation or an invocation no more than a level lower than the highest level invocation known to him.
Strength to Strength:
The character can enhance the spell's effects as if he had applied any of the feats (Enlarge, Empower, Extend) to the invocation or spell that the character knows, including eldritch blast. The Minor version of this Favor can only be applied to spells or effects up to 3rd level. A Medium version of this Favor can be used to amplify spells up to 6th level and allows an application of Maximize and Twin Feats.
Dark Advice:
The character can call upon the knowledge of his patron or the general knowledge of Pandemonium for advice about the situation. This is equivalent to using the Augury spell.
Spare Life:
A character with a negative number of health points is instantly stabilized. He remains unconscious.
This Favor is an Immediate action and must be used on the samgroundnd that the character receives damage that would make him staggered odieng.
Medium Favors.
Dark Hounds:
The character summons two Hellhounds as if he had used Lesser Planar Binding, and successfully persuaded them to serve.
Purifying Black Flame:
The character gives the Void access to his body, and not just the energies of his soul, and the black fire of demonic energies burns all diseases and poisons from his body, as if he had used the Neutralize Poison, Remove Disease and Lesser Restoration spells.
The Arsenal of the Abyss:
The character can use a Special Quality, Spell-Like Ability or Special Attack of his patron. He uses his level as the caster level, which must be sufficient to create the appropriate effect.
Break the Shackles:
A character can force another demon to break a contract with its summoner. He rolls his caster level against the summoner's level. If he succeeds, then the Right of the Winner temporarily ceases to operate and the summoned demon is free to act as he pleases for 1 round/character level.
[B]Repaying the Favors:[/BToto pay off Pandemonium and his patron, the character must perform the Rituals of Pain and Submission until the next night.
Usually, the character can choose how exactly he will pay for the devil's services, however, either the character or his patron (and, accordingly, Pandemonium) can try to bargain.
In the case of a bargain, both parties roll their social skills (Bluff or Diplomacy). The Warlock cannot use Beguiling Influence. During the trade, the character must somehow indicate his situation, so it is assumed that the patron understands the circumstances of the character's request at least in general terms, which can give bonuses and maluses to the roll.
If a character initiates trade on his part, then he needs Incantation. It does not require any expensive ingredients, but the character must have something capable of creating a reflection (puddle, mirror, blade...) through which his patron speaks to him, and he must be in a situation where no one and nothing distracts him from the ritual, which lasts about 10 minutes.
If trading is initiated by a demon, then it is a purely mental action. It still lasts about ten minutes, but the character can end it by instantly agreeing to all of the demon's terms and taking a -10 penalty on the roll.
[I]Outcomes:
Roll Difference/Result
More than 10 in favour of the demon: The fee becomes a higher category and the demon chooses what kind of fee will be for this service. Alternatively, the demon may refuse the character the service altogether.
Less than 10 in favour of the demon: The demon chooses a payment method
Less than 10 in favour of the warlock: The character chooses a payment method
More than 10 in favour of the warlock: The character selects a payment method and it is one category lower.
This is a somewhat cumbersome and tacked-on mechanic, but I wanted to add some level of chance to use the favours so that even the careful characters would have a higher chance of ending up seriously indebted to their patron. Otherwise, it becomes too predictable and too easy to balance the Minor Favours by sacrificing stray cats now and then.
Lesser Rituals:
Blood and Flesh.
To squeeze more power out of your body than it can give, there are special rituals - Rituals of Pain and Submission. Bloodletting, ritual autoflagellation, and spellcasting on the Abyssal increase the flow of power into Pandemonium, paying for the patron's service.
The Ritual of Pain and Submission is Incantation. It requires about 100gp of ingredients, takes about an hour, and deals 2 points of Wisdom and 1 point of Constitution damage to the character.
Characters immune to this damage cannot use the Ritual of Blood and Flesh.
Another brick in the wall:
A character can seduce another innocent into a contract, and thereby pay off his debt. The candidate must have at least positive charisma, be of sound mind and memory, and understand the essence of the contract proposed. The use of intimidation and bribes, however, is permitted.
Soul for Soul.
The character can make a sacrifice to his Abyssal patrons.
Instead of harming himself, the character can use someone else for the Lesser Ritual. The rest of the Ritual is similar, but the victim must have an Intelligence of at least 2 and at least 3HD, and the victim must, in some magical sense, “belong” to the character, by right of victory, feudal dominion, purchase, bet, personal loyalty and so on.
Medium Rituals
Orders of Pandemonium
The character must carry out some order from his patron. The order may take a long time to complete and may involve a danger component, but may not pose an immediate and imminent threat of death or serious loss of social standing to the character.
Timeshares of the Body
The character owes his patron 2d10 minutes of his time. The DM makes a secret roll to determine how much time the character must, and the time can be cumulative across many Rituals. Once the time is used, the demon takes complete control of the character, as per the Possession on rules, for however long it wishes to take. The demon is bound to not harm the character’s body directly, and must return the body to the character in a livable condition, and will strive to do its utmost to do so, but it is perfectly permissible to return the character in mid-fall from 20th floor, being chased by an angry mob or at 1 hit point. And sometimes things just happen.
Surrender of Potential
The character gives another part of his metaphysical soul to Pandemonium. He immediately loses a level in any class other than Warlock and gains a Warlock level in return. This change cannot be reversed by any spells.
Soul for soul
Same as in the Lesser Ritual, but the victim must have an Intelligence of at least 6 and a minimum of 5HD.
I did not find Fiend Folio material good enough, nor does it work with our somewhat non-standard setting, so I homebrewed my own mesa-system to deal with this, which I offer here.
Sorry for the poor style -- I wrote this in Russian before translating it to English. I edited it as best as I could, but I might have missed a thing or two or left some inconsistencies in place.
Demons:
In our setting Demons aren't elemental evil. They are instead a race of once-humanoids, who have been destroyed in the ancient war, and bound in the Abyss. Unlike the current Kingdoms of mortals, who follow the Paths of individual Perfection, attaining levels in classes and mastering forces of magic and sword, and ultimately - themselves, the demons instead work as a sort of communist collective, taking the power from every member and distributing it by committee and decree as is needed by the centralised governing powers. Faustian pacts are to them, not a way to seduce human immortal soul for eternal damnation and torture, but rather a transaction akin to external trade in an embargoed communist regime.
That being said, I think the system I have here is generic enough, just don't be surprised with some minor tongue-in-cheek references.
Faustian Pacts:
Those too weak to follow long and difficult Paths of Perfection are looking for a shorter path to respect, power and wealth. And the path of demons, where power is distributed by the decision of demonic committees, without regard to personal merit and moral component, is an excellent way to cut corners.
The Faustian Pact can be of two types: A contract with one demon or a contract with Pandemonium as a whole.
Private Contract:
A private contract is a contract made with an individual demon. Just as for a mortal a demonic pact is a way to gain additional powers, for a demon a mortal servant is a way to gain powers for himself (if he can make the Pact work in his favour and give less than he receives) or servants and agents of influence in the world outside the Abyss, to raise his status or gain small but pleasant bonuses.
Such a contract is limited - both in terms of possibilities and in terms of danger for the signatory - by the power of the demon. Theoretical,ly this provides an opportunity for the character to surpass his patron and win back his contract, or exchange it for more favourable conditions (and let them hope that the conditions will not change further).
Only demons with HD 10+ can make such a contract, and summoning such a demon is a difficult task and all effects of a private contract with a demon cannot create, give or enhance effects whose level is greater than the patron's HD/2.
Contract with Pandemonium:
The contract with the Pandemonium as a whole, with the seal of the Central Pan-Demon Committee of Means and Ends on the other hand, is practically unlimited - the Central Committee theoretically has all the collective magical and resource power of Pandemonium, which is comparable to the forces of individual kingdoms and is stored in the central archives of Pandemonium.
A contract with Pandemonium can be signed through any demon - even the most insignificant imp can convey a message to the Central Committee and confirm the contract.
Basic Contract:
The character sells his soul to the demon, receiving in exchange access to all the powers of Pandemonium. At least that’s what they say in fairy tales for the crowd.
Reality is somewhat more prosaic.
There is no such thing as an immortal soul. The character instead, surrenders three things:
Firstly, the character gives up part of his personal energy for Pandemonium -- the same energy that’s used for magic. Those internal energies of the character that allow the character to approach Perfection through the Art of the Word [magic/sorcery/etc] or the Art of the Sword [whatever it is that makes fighters able to survive a casual swim in lava and punch out an elephant], now that the character does not use them, are spent on maintaining the power of Pandemonium and are distributed by the Central Committee.
From everyone according to their ability.
Secondly, the character sells his part of Victor's Right -- the power over demons that every mortal descendant of the Age of Heroes has inherited, loosening the seals that hold Pandemonium in the Abyss.
Mechanically, this means that the character can no longer subjugate demons beholden to their patron [or all demons, in case of Contract with Pandemonium] using Planar Binding and similar spells - magical traps created by the character, regardless of the method, are not capable of holding those with whom he has entered into a contractSimilarlyly Summoning, spells on demonic creatures that are not the result of a demonic contract, although they work, summon the target in the usual way, but do not control it -- for the duration of the spell it cannot be dismissed and acts as it pleases.
Third, the character must give a Lien of the contract. The Lien is something that belongs to the character and is extremely important to him -- more important than anything else in the world. Whether it's a family heirloom, a memory of a lost love, a bank account, or a firstborn child, the transfer of that collateral is the source of magic and the seal of the contract. The Lien becomes the property of the patron or Pandemonium. Most often they will go to the Dark Iron Citadel in the Abyss, but in some cases, demons may choose to store (or use) the collateral on the Material Plane.
The Lien exists for two reasons. First of all, that's a simple McGuffin that the character can recover to terminate their contract, but also, this serves as an explanation why every Tom, Richard and Harry aren't in a hurry to sell their paltry useless 'souls' for a measure of power.
In exchange, the character gains access to the structured energies of the Pandemonium in the form of a least demonic invocation of their choice. Going forward, as the character becomes more reliant on demonic energies, and accustomed to their use, their internal systems are restructured to allow more forces to flow in both directions. This provides additional capabilities, and an overall strengthening of body and spirit, which is reflected in the Warlock's levels. All without much effort on their part -- no meditation, book learning, ancient blood or exercise needed.
Such power is not unlimited, exactly. How many levels the character can gain without any effort whatsoever depends on how much he uses demonic energies and on his inner talent and ability. Typically, on its own, his Warlock level will not exceed his Charisma ModifierToto raise a level higher, a character needs to have some suitable demonic heritage, use his demonic energies as often and as varied as possible, perform Rituals of Pain and Submission (see below), take specific potions and drugs, or carry out Orders of Pandemonium and curry extra favour from their patron.
Additional powers:
Those who are desperate or arrogant enough can always ask the Collective or their demonic Patron for more power - but io each is granted according to their needs, from each is then taken according to their dues.
Most contracts allow the mortal signatory to request additional personal assistance (sometimes limited by the forces of his Patron) on credit, to be repaid at a later date, but not all powers are available to all characters - pandemonium does not give credits that will never be returned. Therefore, a character must have a minimum HD of 1 to use Minor Favors, 6 for Medium Favors, 11 for Major Favors, and 16 for Great Favors.
Favours are balanced by payment, but the house has the advantage. Three Minor outstanding favours must be paid with a medium ritual, three medium ones with a large one, and so on. Once that threshold is crossed one cannot change it back. However many Minor rituals the character conducts, they will never repay a Medium Favor.
The use of such powers is either part of the corresponding action, or, if it is an independent action, then a spell-like full-round action.
The following Favours and Rituals of Pain and Submission are samples. More could be added as needed.
Minor Favors
New Formula:
Over the next hour, the Character can use an Incantation that is not usually known to him. This may be the least invocation or an invocation no more than a level lower than the highest level invocation known to him.
Strength to Strength:
The character can enhance the spell's effects as if he had applied any of the feats (Enlarge, Empower, Extend) to the invocation or spell that the character knows, including eldritch blast. The Minor version of this Favor can only be applied to spells or effects up to 3rd level. A Medium version of this Favor can be used to amplify spells up to 6th level and allows an application of Maximize and Twin Feats.
Dark Advice:
The character can call upon the knowledge of his patron or the general knowledge of Pandemonium for advice about the situation. This is equivalent to using the Augury spell.
Spare Life:
A character with a negative number of health points is instantly stabilized. He remains unconscious.
This Favor is an Immediate action and must be used on the samgroundnd that the character receives damage that would make him staggered odieng.
Medium Favors.
Dark Hounds:
The character summons two Hellhounds as if he had used Lesser Planar Binding, and successfully persuaded them to serve.
Purifying Black Flame:
The character gives the Void access to his body, and not just the energies of his soul, and the black fire of demonic energies burns all diseases and poisons from his body, as if he had used the Neutralize Poison, Remove Disease and Lesser Restoration spells.
The Arsenal of the Abyss:
The character can use a Special Quality, Spell-Like Ability or Special Attack of his patron. He uses his level as the caster level, which must be sufficient to create the appropriate effect.
Break the Shackles:
A character can force another demon to break a contract with its summoner. He rolls his caster level against the summoner's level. If he succeeds, then the Right of the Winner temporarily ceases to operate and the summoned demon is free to act as he pleases for 1 round/character level.
[B]Repaying the Favors:[/BToto pay off Pandemonium and his patron, the character must perform the Rituals of Pain and Submission until the next night.
Usually, the character can choose how exactly he will pay for the devil's services, however, either the character or his patron (and, accordingly, Pandemonium) can try to bargain.
In the case of a bargain, both parties roll their social skills (Bluff or Diplomacy). The Warlock cannot use Beguiling Influence. During the trade, the character must somehow indicate his situation, so it is assumed that the patron understands the circumstances of the character's request at least in general terms, which can give bonuses and maluses to the roll.
If a character initiates trade on his part, then he needs Incantation. It does not require any expensive ingredients, but the character must have something capable of creating a reflection (puddle, mirror, blade...) through which his patron speaks to him, and he must be in a situation where no one and nothing distracts him from the ritual, which lasts about 10 minutes.
If trading is initiated by a demon, then it is a purely mental action. It still lasts about ten minutes, but the character can end it by instantly agreeing to all of the demon's terms and taking a -10 penalty on the roll.
[I]Outcomes:
Roll Difference/Result
More than 10 in favour of the demon: The fee becomes a higher category and the demon chooses what kind of fee will be for this service. Alternatively, the demon may refuse the character the service altogether.
Less than 10 in favour of the demon: The demon chooses a payment method
Less than 10 in favour of the warlock: The character chooses a payment method
More than 10 in favour of the warlock: The character selects a payment method and it is one category lower.
This is a somewhat cumbersome and tacked-on mechanic, but I wanted to add some level of chance to use the favours so that even the careful characters would have a higher chance of ending up seriously indebted to their patron. Otherwise, it becomes too predictable and too easy to balance the Minor Favours by sacrificing stray cats now and then.
Lesser Rituals:
Blood and Flesh.
To squeeze more power out of your body than it can give, there are special rituals - Rituals of Pain and Submission. Bloodletting, ritual autoflagellation, and spellcasting on the Abyssal increase the flow of power into Pandemonium, paying for the patron's service.
The Ritual of Pain and Submission is Incantation. It requires about 100gp of ingredients, takes about an hour, and deals 2 points of Wisdom and 1 point of Constitution damage to the character.
Characters immune to this damage cannot use the Ritual of Blood and Flesh.
Another brick in the wall:
A character can seduce another innocent into a contract, and thereby pay off his debt. The candidate must have at least positive charisma, be of sound mind and memory, and understand the essence of the contract proposed. The use of intimidation and bribes, however, is permitted.
Soul for Soul.
The character can make a sacrifice to his Abyssal patrons.
Instead of harming himself, the character can use someone else for the Lesser Ritual. The rest of the Ritual is similar, but the victim must have an Intelligence of at least 2 and at least 3HD, and the victim must, in some magical sense, “belong” to the character, by right of victory, feudal dominion, purchase, bet, personal loyalty and so on.
Medium Rituals
Orders of Pandemonium
The character must carry out some order from his patron. The order may take a long time to complete and may involve a danger component, but may not pose an immediate and imminent threat of death or serious loss of social standing to the character.
Timeshares of the Body
The character owes his patron 2d10 minutes of his time. The DM makes a secret roll to determine how much time the character must, and the time can be cumulative across many Rituals. Once the time is used, the demon takes complete control of the character, as per the Possession on rules, for however long it wishes to take. The demon is bound to not harm the character’s body directly, and must return the body to the character in a livable condition, and will strive to do its utmost to do so, but it is perfectly permissible to return the character in mid-fall from 20th floor, being chased by an angry mob or at 1 hit point. And sometimes things just happen.
Surrender of Potential
The character gives another part of his metaphysical soul to Pandemonium. He immediately loses a level in any class other than Warlock and gains a Warlock level in return. This change cannot be reversed by any spells.
Soul for soul
Same as in the Lesser Ritual, but the victim must have an Intelligence of at least 6 and a minimum of 5HD.