The Horror of the Moorland - Documented by a Survivor
/The worlds of Dungeons and Dragons are populated by beings of myths of our world, and figures created brand new for the game itself. I'd consider myself a veteran game master, and someone deeply in love with this system and tabletop role playing games as a whole. Dreaming up scenarios, situations to pit my intrepid band of adventurers against every single week is tough.
By playing this game with people that have gone on to become life long friends, I've also been able to find myself surrounded by some of the most inventive, interesting, and creative people in the world. It should come as no surprise then, that these creative people inspire me to feed back new and strange things for campaigns they'll eventually run through. Inspiration like this goes in a circle. It's the circle of ideas. Proceed to fling a lion cub from the top of a bunch of rocks.
I've decided to convey the monster stats in the form of prose fiction, from a scared ranger scouting through the wilderness. It matches the art from the dear, inspiring friend.
I sketched it as best I could remember from that fateful night - art by Faye Sutherland
The Horror of the Moorland
From the Journal of Suther Fayeland
The range should have been simple. I've walked these moors since I could walk. There is nothing terrifying out here. Until now.
The horrendous shrieking started in the night. A few weeks ago. The shrill screech rattled my bones. The call of a bird, but nothing like I had ever known. We ranged multiple times in the following nights, but we found tracks only. Hoof prints in the mud. Feathers tangled in the treetops. The cuts of great bladed weapons left in the barks of trees. A great battle took place here.
Things only got worse as the livestock started disappearing. The farms down the hill were raided by a beast far bigger than any fox or bandit. Hoof prints, feathers, and great cuts. What beasts are taking the farmer's cows and goats, but sparing their horses and chickens?
It should have been clear to me, but how could I have imagined a beast so unlikely and profane. We found it on a range on the eighth night. The screeching left a path in the air for us to follow. It's nearly impossible to ignore such a sound. The further we ventured to the wilderness, the more my company felt its presence. One by one, each man fell catatonic to the sound of the beast, until I stood alone.
Facing it in the clearing has profoundly changed me. It stood on the body of a horse, with the body of an immense chicken. Two things had been shunted together by a crux of magic. It's clucks filled me with fear while the beating hooves charged towards me. The beast left its scars on my face, but worse on my memory. I will never forget the beast, but pray never to see it again.
The Thing Most Foul
A stapled together monstrosity is a classic of both myself and Dungeons and Dragons. It will always be an easy way to make a monster, and I owe it to a dear friend for dreaming up this abomination.
The Horror of the Moorland Stats - Generated with Homebrewery
Now we want to hear from you. Did you enjoy being told about this strange monster through a character's account? What other strange beasts lurk on the fringes of your games. Let us know in the comments below or on our Discord server.
Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com, he writes about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out himself. On Youtube, he can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes, or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere. Follow his Twitter @IzzetTinkerer.
