Raggamoffyn

Raggamoffyns are aware bundles of cloth, leather and metal whose source is a mystery. One theory says they form from worn-out magical cloaks, boots and weapons once thrown away. Another blames a shadowy figure called the Ragwright working from a cursed manual of golems; some think the Ragwright is an illusionist dabbling in transmutation, giving cloth only the semblance of life. A third holds they are the unliving cousins of steel shadows, metal-animating creatures of the deep, and serve them. They speak no language but understand Common well.

Every raggamoffyn fights by taking over a host. It must hit the target's AC counting only Dexterity and magical bonuses, ignoring armor and shields. On a hit, its whirl of scraps flows over the victim and binds it in a tight covering from head to toe, eyes and ears included, usually adding a hood so the host just looks heavily bundled.

The victim saves vs. spell to resist. A successful save generally sends the creature off in search of another host, though not every type gives up so easily. On a failure the host obeys, but may save again at the start of each turn, minus one round from that interval for every point of Intelligence over 15. Saves are normal against common raggamoffyns and tatterdemanimals, at -2 against gutterspites and -4 against shrapnyl.

Free of a host, they fly clumsily like windblown litter and slip under doors or through portcullises by separating into their pieces. They seldom harm hosts directly, instead making them steal, kill or cause havoc such as smashing magic items, then abandoning them to take the blame. Except for gutterspites, they never take gnomes or duergar as hosts, whether from some immunity or their maker's whim.

Tatterdemanimal: the weakest kind, a wad of filthy scraps that wraps Tiny or Small creatures of no more than 3 Hit Dice and Intelligence 4, typically rats, cats, dogs, birds or pigs. Groups ride whole packs of dogs or flocks of pigeons. Strangely, they can fly a host without managing to make a bird's wings flap convincingly. Blunt weapons cannot hurt them, but fire deals double damage.

Gutterspite: a rare, shambling knot of string, rope, leather straps and fraying cloth wrapped around a core of glitter, glass and gems. It can control Small hosts up to dwarf size, but not elves or humans, with Intelligence 10 or less and up to 4 levels or Hit Dice, preferring halflings, gnomes and dwarves, and it alone can take gnomes and duergar. Most stay with the host they bonded to at birth and actually cooperate with it, though they can dominate one that resists; some claim the Ragwright leads them. Once a day its glitter flares in a 20-foot radius, blinding foes who fail a save vs. paralyzation for 1-4 rounds; blinded foes lose Dexterity bonuses to AC and the gutterspite gets +2 to hit them. Light, continual light, darkness, color spray and rainbow have no effect on it.

Common raggamoffyn: scraps of leather gloves, cloaks and armor, the most numerous and most dangerous kind in cities, haunting alleys, trash heaps and mortuaries where they pick up shreds of burial shrouds. It controls Small or Medium hosts of up to 6 levels or Hit Dice and Intelligence 15. On some nights packs of them ride thieves, watchmen, clerks and other late wanderers. Rarely, it strangles a host who has escaped and might betray it, its only true attack on a host. One hit to the head does it (AC 10 without a full-face helm, AC 2 with a great helm, with Dexterity bonuses and magic rings and bracers counting); it seals mouth and nose and squeezes, and the victim makes a Constitution check every round, the first unmodified and each later one at a further -2, dying on a failure, until one of them is dead. Spells hit both but can help knock the rags loose.

Shrapnyl: a mass of dozens or hundreds of metal pieces, iron, copper, tin and brass, often whole objects like knives, pans, horseshoes, lanterns, shields and swords. It controls hosts up to Large size with up to 9 Hit Dice or levels and Intelligence 18, favoring ogres, wizards and best of all ogre magi, and disguises itself as splint mail. It shields its host, absorbing damage meant for it, though spells affect both; against acid the affected pieces flip aside so host and shrapnyl split the damage evenly. Once per day it can burst into a storm of metal dealing 4d10 to everything within 10 feet, half on a save vs. breath weapon. Its host is spared, but the shrapnyl loses control and must withdraw and rest before seeking a new one, so it saves this for emergencies. Unhosted, it attacks five times per round. Older ones weave in gold, silver or platinum as bait, lying still for hours in a chest or coin pile before rising to engulf a victim. Shatter deals 3d6, crystalbrittle works with no save, and heat metal does full damage.

Raggamoffyns lurk in dungeons and are said to be spreading into cities, posing as capes, cloaks and rag piles; shrapnyl have been seen only far underground. They seem compelled to multiply but need hosts to do it, making them destroy enchanted garments and perform a brief silent rite that yields a new raggamoffyn. Whether they serve their creator is unknown, but their purposeful behavior convinces some sages they do, and that their breeding prepares a quiet conquest of civilized lands.

In dim light a host can pass for human. Under bright light they are sometimes mistaken for mummies or adherers and destroyed, unlucky hosts and all.