Revenants

By Hal Case

These rare and little-known undead are somewhat akin to both skeletons and wights, being at times corporeal and at others not. Also known as Tomb Guardians, they are almost invariably found guarding a place or object of some sort, although some few have been known to take up some task that they must accomplish in a sort of cryptic post-mortem quest instead. Such is their attunement to their lair, charge or mission that they are in no way affected by dimensional instability so long as they continue their vigil of guardianship. The mind of a Revenant is aware and conscious, and they are capable of speaking with intruders to their abode, usually choosing to inform their soon-to-be-victims that they have the choice either to leave or be slain. However, they seldom say much more because of their single-minded devotion to the task they have set to themselves. Should an intruder depart he may do so unmolested, but should he remain the undead thing will do all in its power to destroy him. Should the object they guard be stolen, they will pursue the thief as long as is needed to regain it, even over many generations of the thief's descendants if necessary.

Just what factors would cause a living creature to rise from the dead as a Revenant are uncertain, but would quite likely include binding oaths or an unwillingness to give up on some place, thing or ideal. Certainly, however, all men who do become Revenants were men of intense willpower, fortitude and purpose in life, and this is carried over beyond the grave.

Revenants' personality can usually be best described as obsessive, single-minded and almost infinitely stubborn. Few necromancers have succeeded in forcing one of these creatures into his service [Ed: Revenants receive a +40 WP bonus to resist Necromancy], and even if they do they find themselves having a literal-minded minion that will stubbornly stick with whatever task has first been set upon it by him, having great difficulty in getting the things to change their course of action. Hence they are by no means the ideal servants unless one simply desires powerful sentinels to hold some particular place. For example, one necromancer summoned a Revenant and set it to guard a powerful artifact in his possession from all disturbances. When the time came that he needed to retrieve the artifact, he found the Revenant barring his way and refusing him access to it himself. Eventually he managed to convince it to let him through but he lost much valuable time in the process.

Physique: Revenants appear as ancient, dried-out skeletons with shreds of tissue and hair still clinging to them, towering between six and eight feet in height. Why they are universally so tall and imposing is unknown; surely none of them were 8 feet tall prior to death. Possibly this has something to do with their amplified personality characteristics but there is really no way to find out. They are nearly always clad in tattered clothing and armor and never has a revenant been seen without some sort of spectral melee weapon clenched in its skeletal fist. Their eyes glow balefully with malignant energy. Semi-corporeal, they seem to wax and wane insubstantial, at times seeming totally solid and at others to be nothing more than a wisp of mist. the rare times when they do speak, their voice is hollow echoes as if coming from a great distance.

Alignment: Neutral or Evil

Psychology: When not near their guarded item/in their tomb/actively pursuing their quest revenants are subject to the usual rules for instability. They are immune to all psychology rules regardless of the source and cannot be forced to leave combat. They cause fear in living things.

Special Rules: Being partially of this world and partially ethereal, Revenants sustain only half damage from non-magickal weapons and may themselves wound enemies that are immune to non-magickal attack. They cause wounds as would any physical creature, but any victim of a Revenant attack (wounded or not) must take a WP test or be drained of 1 strength point as per a wight. In addition, foes struck may only count half value from any nonmagickal armor worn, and so 1 armor point is treated as leather armor, 2 points as 1 and so on.

Revenants receive a +40 WP bonus vs. the effects of necromantic spells [Ed].

Revenants Cause Fear in living creatures [Ed].

Revenants may discorporate and move through solid objects at half their normal movement rate, moving as if through thick molasses and taking their equipment with them. They completely ignore movement penalties for difficult terrain. This can be very disturbing to watch, as the creature that has just picked its victim up and flung him across some obstacle to then walk straight through that same obstacle in pursuit.

Other powers have been manifested by individual revenants that are not possesed by others. One in particular stands out as exceptional, having a hypnotic gaze like that used by Liches and being able to animate an undead (and similarly semi-corporeal) destrier steed for itself to enable pursuit of its personal quest.

Champions and heroes are possible, with standard modifications to the standard profile.

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Dex	Ld	Int	Cl	WP	Fel
4	41	33	4	4	12	30	2	18	43	18	18	43	-

I first came up with the idea for these creatures when I foundand bught a pair of Undead Lord models by Heartbreaker that were really too big to use for a regualr human undead, too small for ogres and too heavily armed/armored to be liches. They were too cool not to use for something, so I wrote these rules and had a Revenant figure importantly in a scenario shortly thereafter. It is perhaps easiest to use them as something to kill or outwit before pc's can explore the ruins/get the goodies or whatever, but I really find their most interesting aspect to be that of the "damned eternal questor", a sort of phantom knight seeking to avenge some ancient wrong (not necessarily an evil purpose) or accomplish some obscure quest. Think of the possibilities of having one of these things on the same mission as a party of adventurers or perhaps seeking revenge on some important personage (political or economic, villainous or otherwise) in a gothic horror-flavored scenario. They are obsessed with their purpose, and hence their int score is fairly low due to an unwillingness to think about anything else, but they are more than capable of using cunning to accomplish their aims. They could even be a sympathetic figure in a way.

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