So I have this idea for an NPC who traffics with demons. I was looking around in the books to find something close but all I could find was a brief mention of "shadows spirits" in Magic In the Shadows.
My question is this then, are demons a known factor in the shadowrun world, or is this a prime chance for me to make something fun up?
Full Version: Magic of the Underworld
Nothing has been officially classified as a "demon." Daemons are common, but aren't as useful for mages.
Make him a corrupt hermetic who can conjure nomads.
Make him a corrupt hermetic who can conjure nomads.
Shadowrun is demon free zone.
Well then, it's time to go nuts with an idea i've been cooking up for some hardcore metaplanes / free spirit fun.
Blood spirits can exhibit some very demonic behavior.
Use free spirits. They can give a magician who calls on them enough power to be useful. At worst, let the summoning call some imps for him to cajole.
I thought that demons were just a manifestation of a spirit of man. So are angels, according to my belief. A spirit takes on the form the magician expects or subconsciously wants, so if you have a Shaman following the Adversary, bam, it's a demon. If you follow the Creator, it's an angel. Or whatever else fits into your mythology, or how you work your magic.
Our campaign ran something about demons and angels. Basically heaven and hell were treated as simply to more of the myriad of metaplanes out there. Which... might have a bigger impact on our plane than many of the rest, and the two planes are still warring over our plane.
Before we realised we had corrupted angels, fallen angels, demons, zombies and ancient secret societies coming out our asses. Best campaign of my SR playing carreer.
Anyway, I think there's a big scope for demons and so-on in SR, just play them as extremely intelligent though. They HAVE been around for a long time.
Before we realised we had corrupted angels, fallen angels, demons, zombies and ancient secret societies coming out our asses. Best campaign of my SR playing carreer.
Anyway, I think there's a big scope for demons and so-on in SR, just play them as extremely intelligent though. They HAVE been around for a long time.
Horrors and corrupt free spirits would probably be called "demons" by a Christian who didn't know what other name to give them.
The Abstruse One
The Abstruse One
the fun thing about SR is that you can change the entire game by simply giving your PCs a different POV than the 'default'--and you don't even have to fiddle with the mechanics. if you're talking about the Catholic-style demons, simply raise the number of free spirits that have the Possession power. suddenly, all free spirits are demons. looking for more of a D&D flavor? get a cabal of corrupted mages together, and give their elementals a customized appearance, and maybe a few twisted path adepts. the 'standard' outlook in SR already supports the native american paradigm of trickster manitou spirits.
| QUOTE (LaughingTiger) |
| I thought that demons were just a manifestation of a spirit of man. So are angels, according to my belief. A spirit takes on the form the magician expects or subconsciously wants, so if you have a Shaman following the Adversary, bam, it's a demon. If you follow the Creator, it's an angel. Or whatever else fits into your mythology, or how you work your magic. |
That's deep, dude. Seriously.
As for the Demon problem: I suggest Horrors. If you can't get any info (ie. stats) go with free spirits or make up your own monsters. You could use spirits as a guide but then make it so they can't go astral at will. You could give some armor on the physical plane so the team sam has something to do instead of get Gatoraid™ for the team shaman....
Good luck.
Thanks, I think 
For Horrors, you don't really need stats and there weren't stats given for many of them. Just take the most horrific and terrifying thing you can think of, the most twisted horrible creatures from the imagination of Lovecraft. Then make up stats. Or don't bother and just let them win until you want them to lose. These things feed by causing (meta)human pain and suffering. Their very being is defined by torturing and destroying people. Take that idea, run with it, and make sure your PCs say their prayers.
The Abstruse One
The Abstruse One
When the Templars summon elementals, many of them believe them to be angels. The same is likely true of hermetics in the school of Black Magic believing that their elementals are demons. Like all spirits, elementals are a reflection of their summoner's belief system, and if a hermetic mage believes his elementals to be demons or angels, they'll likely have similar personalities to what the mage expects them to have.
The fact that they have to use a summoning circle already suggests a demonic undertone in any case, as does the fact that summoning is as much a bartering session as it is a magical bond (hence the use of Charisma and the acquisition of services).
The fact that they have to use a summoning circle already suggests a demonic undertone in any case, as does the fact that summoning is as much a bartering session as it is a magical bond (hence the use of Charisma and the acquisition of services).
These Summoner Rules is what i finally came up with.
It's a little rules heavy, but it will let me introduce a single demon summoning into the game, and I'll figure out some kind of "ritual summoning" for the big demons.
What do you think? I wanted to really work in some inherent dangers to summoning demons, but have a decent pay off if it is done carefully. Plus I feel that corrupting a Hermetic Mage into a new kind of caster would be a lot of fun.
It's a little rules heavy, but it will let me introduce a single demon summoning into the game, and I'll figure out some kind of "ritual summoning" for the big demons.
What do you think? I wanted to really work in some inherent dangers to summoning demons, but have a decent pay off if it is done carefully. Plus I feel that corrupting a Hermetic Mage into a new kind of caster would be a lot of fun.
In MITS, collaborating with a free sprit through a spirit pact feels demonic enough I think.
(free or bound) elementals with customized look-and-feel are quite good, too.
So I think that mechanic-wise, SR3 has everything you need to introduce demons. The background/roleplay part is up to you, then.
(free or bound) elementals with customized look-and-feel are quite good, too.
So I think that mechanic-wise, SR3 has everything you need to introduce demons. The background/roleplay part is up to you, then.
We've had demons in our game for quite a while, we treated them as being something different than the usually encountered spirits and than horrors.
My group encountered one and they retreated from it, finally banishing it instead of destroying it, it was originally named Lilith and summoned by a group of British Toxic Druids.
Rules we used centred around a blood sacrifice being required as part of the summoning ritual, and a ward being established to contain the demon upon its arrival.
Then the summoner had to strike a deal or pact.
Max
My group encountered one and they retreated from it, finally banishing it instead of destroying it, it was originally named Lilith and summoned by a group of British Toxic Druids.
Rules we used centred around a blood sacrifice being required as part of the summoning ritual, and a ward being established to contain the demon upon its arrival.
Then the summoner had to strike a deal or pact.
Max
Some insane awakened have the ability to summon unique spirits. The spirit's form and abilities are up to your imagination.
"Ray! Ray! What did you do Ray"
"It can't be! It can't be!"
"Oh dear god!"
"It's the Staypuft marshmallow man."
"Ray! Ray! What did you do Ray"
"It can't be! It can't be!"
"Oh dear god!"
"It's the Staypuft marshmallow man."
| QUOTE (Raife) |
| These Summoner Rules is what i finally came up with. It's a little rules heavy, but it will let me introduce a single demon summoning into the game, and I'll figure out some kind of "ritual summoning" for the big demons. What do you think? I wanted to really work in some inherent dangers to summoning demons, but have a decent pay off if it is done carefully. Plus I feel that corrupting a Hermetic Mage into a new kind of caster would be a lot of fun. |
I have to state, that in your game, you can do whatever the hell you feel like and I'm fine with that.
As to why I consider this ridiculous is that, as has been stated, demons are just spirits perceived as such. They use the same rules. SR3 does state that powers can vary, and there is a vague precedent that how you perceive magic affects how it's gonna work for you, so I would find it OK if "demon" spirits had slightly differant powers more in tune to what you'd expect from a demon.
As to dangers inherant in summoning, you should re-read the rules on what happens if elemental become uncontrolled. I'm not sure if it's 3rd ed, but I do remember that if your circle is not perfect, the elemental will slip in and kill you since your ward does not protect you. Sounds pretty much like what a demon would do. The danger coming mainly from mages trying to summon elementals that are far too powerful for them and ending up having the elemental kill his ass.
The ritual involved in summoning is just psychological crap the summoner feels compelled to do. Demons would fall under Christian hermetic mages (or anti-christian, satanists cults, etc) as opposed to the hermetic "Golden Dawn" flavour that is the default. So the ritual is just something the mage would be compelled to do, but it wouldn't really need any game rules. The elemental would behave as a demon because they lack personality, but pick it up from their master. An "evil" mage that sees his elementals as demons will lead to the elementals acting like that.
Dude, mess with your PC's head and make 'em up! I had great success in a game that was basically Nightspawn/Nightbane where I had demons in human form take over key government and military stuff. I suggest you make them reasonable powerfull (a few of the big boys majorly powerful, perhaps with regeneration), but with a common racial weakness that can be exploited. In mine I gave them all an allergy to iron and vulnerability to iron. Oh, the amount of iron they used to make homemade fragment bombs when they found that out...
| QUOTE (last_of_the_great_mikeys) |
| In mine I gave them all an allergy to iron and vulnerability to iron. Oh, the amount of iron they used to make homemade fragment bombs when they found that out... |
Thats along the lines of what we did, think she did have Regeneration or some form of upgraded Immunity to Normal Weapons.
And a Vulnerability to Iron, the other effect that springs to memory, which distinguished Demons from other spirits was a form of Bad Jibe Background Count, the kind that curdles milk, freaks out animals. etc.
Max
| QUOTE |
| "Ray! Ray! What did you do Ray" "It can't be! It can't be!" "Oh dear god!" "It's the Staypuft marshmallow man." |
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