Dungeon Master Appendix
In traditional horror, few creatures are as
prevalent or interesting as the ghost.
Whil vampires and werewolves are
mainstayays of the genre of classic horror,
Dungeon Masters often overlook ghosts
as a basis for adventures.
The reason for this, perhaps, is that
the former creatures are easily defined.
We all know that a vampire is
finally destroyed by driving a
stake through its heart.
Variations on thsi theme exist (for example, the
vampire who is impervious to wood
but can be impaled with an icicle or a
shaft of silver),
but the theme and premises remain the same.
Ghosts, however, resist such
typicall classifications. Their
origins powers, abilities, and
weakness are numerous and varied.
These creatures seem as ever
changing as their mystical forms. This
makes them challenging to use in adventures,
for each ghost seems to
operate under rules different from
every other ghost. Thus, ghosts often
requires far more thought and planning
to create than vampires, werewolves,
or other monsters. By the same token,
this them a richness and
diversity found in no other creature in Ravenloft campaign.
Writing Ghost Adventures
Four basic elements make a ghost
adventure unique: tragedy, romance,
and symbolism. Each is
important and, like the ghost
itself, can be dealt with in many
different ways to make the story
different and exciting. Before a
Dungeon Master begins work on a
scebario involving ghosts, each of
these elements should be considered
and its importance in the story
weighed. With a little extra time and
effort, a talented Dungeon Master will
quickly create a masterpiece of terror.
Tragedy
Perhaps the most important element
of a ghost story is tragedy. Consider the classic works in this genre, and
you almost always find that the ghost
is a sympathetic figure. In recent
years, this tradition has often fallen by
the wayside, with ghosts being
nothing more than spectral ax
murderers. In a classic horror
campaign, however, tragedy is
paramount to the tale.
The tragedy in a ghost story stems
from many sources. Most often, this
depends upon the way in which the
ghost is to be perceived by the players.
If the Dungeon Master desires the
ghost to be perceived as a lamentable
figure, then the circumstances of the
creature's death or the events of its life
can be heartbreakingly sad. If the
Dungeon Master wishes to make the
ghost's victims seem tragic, then the
ghost itself can be perceived as cold
and evil, while its victims are weak,
helpless, and pitiable.
In the case history Dr. Van Richten
presented in the previous chapter, there
were two groups of tragic figures. The
first group was the mongrelmen who
fled from persecution in their native
land, only to find alienation and
destruction in their new home. The
second group consisted of the poor
fellows who followed Abjen into the
woods. It is certainly hard to feel
anything but sympathy for them
because of the way in which their leader
treated them, the pitiful way in which they died, and their inability to escape
from Abjen's rule, even in death.
If the Dungeon Master wanted to
portray the ghost in that story as a
sympathetic figure, the mongrelmen
could easily have been painted as the
true villains. They could have been
depicted as savage animals that
slaughtered a legion of brave and
noble troops.
Of course, it would be difficult to
depict a unit of the Kargat in that light,
so the Dungeon Master would probably
have had to change the background of
the story a bit to make the army into
"good guys".
Romance
Many ghost stories have an element of
romance that is missing in other types
of horror. Consider the classic story of
Wuthering Heights, by Jane Austen. It
would be hard to say whether this was
more of a ghost story or a love story.
It is important to contrast this with
the often passionate and sensual
nature of modern vampire fiction. The
vampire, which is most often depicted
as having retained its physical form,
lends itself well to these more tangible
moods. Thus, the vampire can often
be portrayed as a creature of desires
and appetites more carnal than those
of the ghost, which is generally
perceived as intangible and ethereal.
Because of their phantasmal natures, ghosts can be objects of love and
affection, though not physical desire.
The difference, while often subtle,
important.
In designing an adventure, the
romance can come from many
sources. The ghost itself is a common
one, but the victims whom it haunts
are equally viable. Consider the case
of a widow who, having found her
in a new courtship, seeks to remarry.
If the spirit of her departed husband
haunts her and her fiance, two potential sources
of romance appear.
If the Dungeon Master desires the
ghost to be a sympathetic figure,
perhaps the woman remembers his
kindness and love with great fondness
and is being forced to remarry against
her will. It might even be that her fiance
killed her husband, so that he might
claim the woman for himself.
Conversely, if the ghost is to be evil and
villainous, it might be revealed that the
deceased husband was cruel and
jealous, vowing that no man should ever
have the lovely woman he left behind.
An even more unusual twist, but
certainly an interesting one, would be
to postulate that the villain in the story
is the widow. Perhaps she killed her
husband to gain his wealth and
property and now plans to do the
same to her fiance. The murdered
husband might return to warn the man
who is about to become the next
victim of this diabolical killer. In this
case, what at first appears to be a
deep and true romance between the
fiance and the widow would turn out to
be a cruel lie.
As these examples illustrate,
romance and tragedy often go hand in
hand. In most cases, it is impossible
to incorporate romance into a ghost
story without also adding tragedy.
Further, the nature of the tragedy is
often suggested by the way in which
the romance is structured or resolved.
Be alert for possibilities to incorporate
these elements into any ghost
adventure you write.
History
Another important element in many
ghost stortes is that of history. Because
the secrets of a ghost's life often define
and foreshadow aspects of its death
and damnation, its history is crucial.
Romance and tragedy can be built into
the history of the ghost with great
subtlety, making them more effective
in the adventure.
It is almost impossible to create a
good ghost adventure without having a
solid understanding of the events that
made up the ghost's life and brought
about its death. Similarly, the ways in
which a ghost can be fought and
destroyed or laid to rest are often rooted
in the past.
A solid history behind a ghost story is
important because of the research
heroes must often undertake before
heading out to confront a ghost. If the
Dungeon Master has woven a careful
and logical history together, the players'
attempts through their heroes to uncover
clues are easily resolved. By handing out
bits and pieces of lore in response to
inquires, readings, and mystical scrying,
the Dungeon Master can give players the
satisfaction of piecing together a puzzle
and uncovering the solution to the
adventure. This accomplishment and the
feeling of success associated with it are
generally as rewarding as the gaining of experince points or treasure.
Symbolism
Consider the ghost of Jacob Marley
from Charles Dickens's classic, A
Christmas Carol. In spirit form he was
bound with chains, and he carried a
heavy burden of cash boxes. "I wear
the chain I forged in life", he tells the
stunned Scrooge.
Does this mean Marley spent his
free time creating these ghastly bonds
and that his corpse was buried with
them draped about him? Not at all.
Rather, it points out the importance of
symbolism in the traditional ghost
story. (Another excellent source for
demonstrations of appropriate symbolism is Dante's Inferno, in which
the damned are forced to suffer
torments reflecting the sins they
committed in life.)
Symbolism is a powerful tool in the
weaving of a ghost adventure. The
powers and abilities of a spirit, as well as
its physical appearance, are often drawn
from both its history and the important
symbolism of its life. Further, the
motivations and desires of a spirit, which
are crucial in the resolution of almost
any encounter with a ghost, are often
represented with symbolism.
Consider the example of Marley's
ghost in Ravenloft game terms. If a
group of adventurers was seeking to
drive off this spirit, they could look to
the symbolism shown in its appearance
and history. Clearly, Marley was a
miser. Perhaps it might be possible to
keep his spirit from entering an area by
ringing it with gold coins. Perhaps only
weapons made from precious metals
could harm the creature, with a
platinum sword doing its normal
damage to the spirit and lesser metals
doing reduced damage.
In less combative terms, we can
examine the motivations of the spirit.
Marley was forced to "go forth in
death" because he did not do so in life.
He was clearly repentant and lamented
the joy he had passed up in life by
being a miser. In an effort to ease his
suffering, Marley was compelled to
visit Scrooge and convince him to
change his ways. It might be that
Marley was freed from his curse the
moment Scrooge changed his own life
for the better. Thus, a group of heroes
might return the ghost to its grave
peacefully by assisting the spirit in its
mission to help Scrooge recognize the
errors of his ways and abandon the
path of greed and avarice he had
followed for so much of his life.
Creating New Ghosts
Once the gist of an adventure has
been laid out, there are a number of
important elements to consider when creating the ghost who will be at its
heart. Depending upon the desires of
the Dungeon Master, different
responses to these considerations will
be appropriate.
Using the Monstrous Manual tome
The various ghosts presented in the
Monstrous Manual tome and its follow-on
annuals are valuable starting points
in the design of a ghost. By selecting
one incorporeal spirit detailed in these
volumes and customizing it, the
Dungeon Master can quickly create a
unique villain with which to confront
players.
For example, let's return to the
previous chapter on Abjen and his
Phantom Army. His men might be
given the same characteristics as
shadows or wights, except that they
are slaves to the powerful Abjen,
clearly a more formidable foe. He
might be created with the same basic
statistics and abilities of a wraith,
spectre, or ghost. By giving Abjen a
unique power (perhaps his mournful
wailing causes those who hear it to
make a fear check), a singular
weakness (his vulnerability to hot
metal), and a unique personality trait
(he tortures his enemies to death with
the same hot metat objects that can
destroy him), the basic entry takes on
a whole new character.
If this sort of shortcut is used, it is
important to maintain the illusion that
the ghosts that the heroes encounter
are stilt wholly unique. Dungeon
Masters should cling to the tried and
true Ravenloft campaign ideal of never
calling an ore an ore. If a phantom
legion is described as "an army of
wights led by a wraith", the encounter
loses much of its impact. The players
would be instantly aware of the nature
of the creatures their heroes face and
would take appropriate steps to battle
them. If the Dungeon Master refers
the army as apparitions in one
sentence and ghosts the next, the
players will not know exactly what
their heroes are facing.
From Scratch
An alternative to using the Monstrous
Manual tome series as a source for
ghost "kits" is to create a spirit from
scratch. This takes longer, but the
Dungeon Master has much more
control in creating a spirit that matches
perfectly with his or her vision for thr
adventure.
The guidelines presented in the first
few chapters here regarding powers
and vulnerabilities are intended to
give examples of the sorts of things
that should be considered when
designing a ghost. These are simpy
guidelines and are not intended to be
used as a rigid system of categorically
defining ghosts. Because of the
unique nature of these spirits,
Dungeon Masters should not classify
ghosts as "third magnitude" or
describe them to players in the
analytical terms Dr. Van Richten
employs. Rather, these guidelines
should be used to create entries in the
style of the Monstrous Manual tom
for all ghosts that are being designed.
The Dungeon Master might think
about keeping files on ghosts created
for past adventures, because they can
be used as "kits" from which new
apparitions can be created.
