spelljammer

An armed skeleton

An armed skeleton

A Skeleton is an undead creature found throughout the Known Spheres.[1][2]

Overview

Skeletons are the animated bones of once-living creatures, with no minds of their own. They can only handle simple orders, though they may remember their orders for years before implementing them.[1]

Description

Skeletons can be created from the bones of humanoids, animals of human-size or smaller, or giant humanoids like bugbears and giants. It is not unusual to find more than one type of skeleton working together. They don't appear to have any ligaments or musculature which would allow for movement; instead, the bones are joined together and moved through the magic of an animate dead spell. Skeletons have no eyes or internal organs.[2]

Behavior

Skeletons have almost no minds whatsoever, and can only obey the simplest one- or two-phrase orders from their creators. Skeletons fight in disorganized masses and tend to botch complex orders disastrously.[2]

Combat

Humanoid skeletons always fight with weapons, usually a rusty sword or spear. Because of their mindless nature, they do not fight as well as living beings. Animal skeletons almost always bite, while giant skeletons use appropriately sized weapons.

Skeletons are immune to all sleep, charm, and hold spells. Because they consist mostly of bone, they are unaffected by cold-based attacks, though fire-based attacks affect them normally. Edged or piercing weapons (like swords, daggers, and spears) inflict relatively little damage, while blunt weapons, with larger heads designed to break and crush bones, remain effective against skeletons. Holy water will inflict damage on a skeleton.

Skeletons are immune to fear and are usually instructed to fight to the "death". When a skeleton is destroyed, it usually falls to pieces with loud clunks and rattles.[2]

Society

During the first Unhuman War, necromancers employed what became a standard defensive tactic of folding up skeletal undead into bony balls and scattering them throughout wildspace. Packs of these creatures were intended to drift into the gravity planes of enemy ships and attack their crews. In many cases, these undead were either forgotten or misplaced by their creators and left to fend for themselves. This has led to the scattering of undead, alone or in small groups, throughout wildspace where they now pose a threat to all spacefarers.[1][3]

Skeletons are mindless and as such have no society of their own. They can be found anywhere there is a wizard or priest powerful enough to create them. Unless a skeleton's remains are destroyed or scattered far apart, the skeleton can be reanimated by casting another animate dead spell.[2]

Rumors

Rumors of high-level animate dead spells which can create skeletons capable of reforming themselves to continue fighting after being destroyed have yet to be reliably confirmed.[2]

There are also unsubstantiated rumors that the planet Radole has been ringed with "minefields" consisting of animated skeletons to deter unexpected visitors.[4]

Signature spelljammers

Skeletons are usually created by powerful wizards and priests to serve as guardians, warriors,[2] or as crew onboard their spelljamming vessels. Unfortunately, skeletons require constant supervision and lack the capacity to react in emergencies. In general, a ship crewed by skeletons will react slower, and with less maneuverability, than a similar ship operated by living crew.[5]

Appendix

See also

Gallery

External Links

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Jeff Grubb, AD&D Adventures in Space, Lorebook of the Void, 1989, (TSR Inc.), Undead section, chapter 3 Spacefarers, pages 62-63
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Tim Beach et al, Monstrous Manual, 1993, (TSR Inc.), Skeleton entry, page 315
  3. ↑ Nigel D. Findley, SJA2 Skull & Crossbows, 1990, (TSR Inc.), Billy Bones section, chapter 4: Monsters of the Void, page 54
  4. ↑ Nigel D. Findley, SJR4 Practical Planetology, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Radole section, chapter 2 Earth Bodies, page 16
  5. ↑ Jeff Grubb, AD&D Adventures in Space, Lorebook of the Void, 1989, (TSR Inc.), Undead section, chapter 3 Spacefarers, pages 62