1d20 Random Encounters With Shades of the Damned & Phantoms of Hell For Your Old School Campaigns

 I have, indeed, no abhorrence of danger, except in its absolute effect - in terror.
Edgar Allan Poe



As the veil thins there's a marked changed in the barriers between the material & Hell itself. Souls of the damned drift forth to terroize the living. Adventurers are no different they can come across Hell mouths in the wilderness or the marked world of dungeons. The world of Chaos & the damned is unleashed on the living. 

Areas where the damned have truck with the living are rife with mutation, degeneration, & demonic influence. These places are often the sites of paladins, witchfinders, & other fanatics of the cause of good. But they are also the sites of cults that further the agenda of Hell itself. Here demons have easier means of crossing into the reality of the PC's and are not subject to the normal rules of banishment. 


Demonic Durer spearsman available through 
Antediluvan miniatures 

Hellmouths often accompany these violent passages of Hell into the world of the living. These things must be closed and will leave a violent residue of evil that will cause mutation & harm to the living for generations to come unless cleansed. 

1d20 Random Encounters With Shades of the Damned
& Phantoms of Hell

1. 1d8 Ghosts of the lake of fire, these are normal ghosts but with several minor abilities such as affect normal fires, fear, & they can cast a fire ball that does 1d4 points of damage within a 20 foot radius. Found in swarms of eight or less they are prone to violence to the living. 
2. 1d6 Moaning Drentches these horrors have come from a nearby crack in reality spilling into the local reality. These things have the abilities of a banshee & want to cause as much misery as possible. 
3. A flock of 1d6 Vrocks who are searching for any innocent souls they can. They rhyme & wager among themselves for their next kill. 
4. 1d7 Barbed devils sporting forks among themselves to kill off any humans they come across to drag their souls back to the underworld. 
5. A rather bored looking arch demon royals who will attack anyone he comes across violently. His bored friendly look will invite conversation but this is actually a charm ability that he's using. 
6. Two violent demon politicians who are arguing among themselves all of the will tugging a political party banner. They will use the banner on anyone they get close to tie up the party or NPC's. The banner is demonically strong & magically infinite. Their banter masks their evil intent. 
7. A group of minor demon hunters armed with spears & nets intent on hunting the living for the stew pot. There are 1d8 of these hunter's skin appears to be mutating & changing to meet their prey. 
8. A strange demonic or devil musician playing a weird bag pipe construction that is actually the head of a damned soul. The demon is actually a demonic bard & anyone hearing the music must save vs charm or follow this demon's turn. 
9. 1d10 Infernal striges these things are the size of a human baby & are looking for the innocent to plague. They will focus on adventurers knowing instinctively the threat they pose. 
10. 1d10 sexy witch succubus who are cavorting through the scenes looking for souls to suck dry. These things change from male to female & back again. They are looking for anyone they can drag off to their little corner for rendering down into potions & charms. 
11. An infernal jailer moving quietly as the keys around him clink. Use the stats for a chain devil but he will hurl a chain around anyone he can supernaturally within a twenty foot range. 
12. A horde of 1d6 bearded devil rhymers who are spouting poetry & using a thier own blood with +2 quills of sharpness to cut to the quick the living. They will start 'fighting' over a human head of the damned filled with ink that they will hurl at a party. The ink is actually acid & they will attack with their supernaturally sharp quills.
13. A gaggle of 1d10 hags with a selection of the damned for sale to anyone. These bitties of horror want to unload these wretches as soon as possible but party members may join their ranks ASAP. 
14. 1d20 vampire royals on their way to gain revenge on the local king for destroying their nest. They are guarded by two very powerful vampire knights of the 5th level. These royals may reward any living with a minor trinket if they engage in good conversation or slaughter them. 
15. A pile of 'gold' that is actually made up of the spirits of the miserly & the greedy in the form demonic gold bugs with the faces of the dead on them instead of kings & queens. They will not attack but will after an hour or two easy pickings for PC's. There are three vrocks among the coins polymorphed.. 
16. Wailing moaners and ghosts of the lowest pits who take the form of demonic ghosts. They have all of the abilities of a Monster Manual ghost but double the hit points. They are weak to holy symbols. 
17. A demonic banker who is looking for the books to be balanced! They must be and the souls of the party will do! They will do nicely indeed! Use the stats for a chain devil. 
18. A devil book binder is among the bushes looking for a damned soul & its most troublesome that he's not around. He must be turned into a book of forbidden knowledge you see. The book binder will give you twelve gold pieces if you help him find the soul of this wizard or he may make you & your party into autobiogrpahies of themselves! He has the abilities of an ice devil & serves a 'named' patron. 
19. An Erinyes royal & her 1d6 demonic  followers are taking in the sights they will pay for reputable guides only to betray the party later on or will they?! They may pay in coin of Hell. Her rival will show up within 1d8 rounds and may attack or engage the party. 
20. An arch devil is in a protracted war with his demonic rival and the PC's could be caught in the middle! They have just found themselves between the two armies. 

Giant Demon Antediluvan miniatures