“Now learn that henceforth ill-luck shall constantly attend thee; that thy strength shall never exceed what it now is, and that by night these eyes of mine shall stare at thee through the darkness till thy dying day, so that for very horror thou shalt not endure to be alone.”
– draugr Glámr, The Saga of Grettir the Strong
Draugr are a diseased and maligned form of ghoul. In life, people who were so depraved and insane that they were incarcerated in fetid prison-like hospitals, (the likes of which include Broadmoor Hospital, Rikers Island, or Alcatraz), their deaths and funeral rights were often as discarded as their lives. These dregs of humanity were the true embodiment of evil, and as such, they were often buried in unmarked graves in potter’s field behind the prison where they died. Extreme insanities poisoned the brains and flesh of the dead. Ghouls that sustain themselves on a steady diet of the incurably insane dead eventually morph into a draugr.
In many ways, draugr resemble ghouls, but their flesh is firm and unyielding, and their eyes shine with a crystalline blue-white glow. Their diseased minds drive the draugr to hunt for food, no longer content to be scavengers of carrion. They prey on the weak, infirmed, or young. Unable to digest fresh meat, the draugr capture their prey and imprison them for seven to ten days, starving them, so their bodies can breakdown the fat they’ve stored. And when their victims have finally passed out from starvation, they move into feast. That’s when their victims wake up screaming as they meet their end.
The draugr are a maligned form of ghoul, but it is within the arcane tomes written by men that there were named “draugr,” after their resemblance to the creatures of Nordic folklore.
SPECIAL POWERS
Curse: assuming the draugr is slain by an assailant, they can summon the last embers of their fading lifeforce to curse their attacker. The curse is one based on ill-luck. The cursed victim always rolls one penalty die on all Luck rolls. The draugr curse can only be expunged through the use of a Cleansing Ritual, (see The Grand Grimoire of Cthulhu Mythos Magic, pg. 66).
Spells: draugr have a 15% chance of knowing 1D10 spells.
DRAUGR, Maligned carrion predators
char. averages rolls
STR 100 (4D6+6 x5)
CON 110 (3D6+12 x5)
SIZ 65 (2D6+6 x5)
INT 35 (2D6 x5)
POW 65 (2D6+6 x5)
DEX 65 (2D6+6 x5)
HP: 17
Average Damage Bonus: +1D6
Average Build: 2
Average Magic Points: 13
Move: 8
ATTACKS
Attacks per round: 2
Fighting attacks: As ghouls metamorphose into draugr, the lose most of their teeth, and thus they never attempt a bite attack. Their bony claws are filthy and caked with mold. Wounds from a draugr claw may become infected if not treated.
Grapple (mnvr): Grabs and holds a victim with its mouth near the victim’s face. Successfully grappled victims can be attacked with the draugr’s Poisoned Gas (mnvr) attack.
Poisoned Gas (mnvr): The draugr regurgitates a gas cloud in the immediate area. With a successful opposed CON roll, the victim has been rendered unconscious for 2D6+5 minutes.
Fighting 45% (22/9), damage 1D6 + damage bonus
Grapple (mnvr) damage 1D4 per round
Poisoned Gas (mnvr) no damage inflicted by the gas
Dodge 40% (20/8)
Armor: Firearms and projectiles do half of rolled damage, (round down). Draugr are vulnerable to sunlight; direct sunlight inflicts 1D10 damage per round.
Skills: Burrow 80%, Climb 85%, Stealth 75%, Jump 65%, Listen 55%, Spot Hidden 60%. Sanity Loss: 0/1D8 Sanity points to see a draugr.
