According to Tao Jiucheng in his Chuogenglu, in the lands of the Arabs there are men 70 or 80 years old who are willing to give their bodies to save others. Such a one takes no more food or drink, only bathing and eating a little honey, till after a month his excreta are nothing but honey; then death ensues. His compatriots place the body to macerate in a stone coffin full of honey, with an inscription giving the year and month of burial. After a hundred years the seals are removed and the confection so formed used for the treatment of wounds and fractures of the body and limbs—only a small amount taken internally is needed for cure. Although it is scarce in those parts the common people call it “mellified man” or, in their foreign speech, “mu-nai-i”. Thus Mr. [Tao], but I myself do not know whether the tale is true or not. In any case I append it for the consideration of the learned.
Tao Jiucheng, 1366
A Mellified Lich is created when an aging sorcerer who is nearing death undergoes the procedure to become a mellified man. It is a slow process, where a person slowly starves themselves to death on a diet of nothing but honey. After their death their corpse is placed in a sealed stone coffin which is then filled with honey. After 100 years the coffin is opened, revealing a honey what has been infused with the decaying partially preserved human remains. This honey is then used for medicinal purposes. While this originated it Asia, it spread to Europe during the middle ages. However, in the case of a Mellified Lich, the honey is infused with their dark powers and malevolent will, and is used to resurrect the dead sorcerer into a new body, or vessel.
Resurrecting a Mellfied Lich – Resurrecting a Mellified Lich requires a human body that’s weakened to nearly the point of death. Illness works better than trauma, and the closer to death the victim is the more effective the process. The chances of success range from 50% to 85% (decided by the keeper) with failures resulting in the death of the vessel. If successful the physical body makes a full, often miraculous recovery. However, they are now a vessel for the Mellfied Lich, and their consciousness is completely absorbed by that of the resurrected sorcerer. Only a single vessel can be inhabited at a time. Attempts to create additional vessels while the Mellified Lich actively inhabits one automatically fail.
Choosing a Vessel – Human agents of the Mellified Lich choose a body carefully, one which will be physically fit once it recovers. If possible a person of wealth or status is chosen, as well as those with great knowledgeable, skills, or experiences. Sometimes an agent of the Mellified Lich sacrifices themselves to become a new vessel for their master or mistress. Other times it is an unwitting victim promised a miracle cure. Once a vessel is chosen they’re fed a spoonful of the Mellified Honey harvested from the stone coffin of the sorcerer.
New Vessels – Once a Mellified Lich takes possession of a new body, they have full control over it. They possess all their previous memories, skills, spells, and abilities from before their initial death and mellification. They also gain all the memories, skills, and abilities of the vessel they’ve taken over. New vessels enjoy a totally healthy natural life span, which ends rather suddenly once the body begins to age past the point of usefulness. Mellified Liches usually have about six months warning as this process begins.
The Weaknesses of a Mellfied Lich – This processed has allowed Mellified Liches to live dozens of lifetimes. However, there are several drawbacks. First, when taking on a new vessel the Mellified Lich has only the memories and skills it had at its initial death. All knowledge and experiences of its previous lives in other vessels is lost. This means that Mellified Liches typically keep very detailed journals, so their new incarnations can learn what their previous once have accomplished. This allows them to work on multi-generational plots and rituals, requiring hundreds of years to accomplish.
Their next drawback is their supply of mellified honey. With each new vessel taken or attempted to take a spoonful of the honey must be consumed. With each attempt the supply dwindles until it eventually runs out. When no further honey remains the Mellified lich is unable to take a new vessel. As the supply of mullified honey is very vital to the Lich’s survival it is often kept in a very secure location. Sometime the mullified honey is parceled into several containers, with some hidden away, as insurance against disaster.
Destroying a Mellified Lich – To defeat a mollified lich their current physical vessel must be killed. This is seldom easy. Mellfied Liches are always powerful sorcerers who’ve lived multiple lifetimes. Each knows anywhere between 6 and 15 spells (3D4+3), and typically are in control of a network of agents.
To secure a lasting victory, and prevent a mellified lich from resurrecting all remaining mellified honey must then be destroyed. Once located and secured this can be is easily accomplished by diluting it with gasoline, alcohol, or bleach. Adding salt also destroys mellified honey, as does
boiling it.
Mellified Liches, Body snatching undying sorcerers
Char. Averages rolls
STR 65 (2D6+6 x 5)
CON 80 (3D6+6 x 5)
SIZ 50 (3D6+6 x 5)
DEX 90 (3D6+4 x 5)
INT 110 (3D6+12 x 5)
POW 120 (7D6 x 5)
HP 13
Av. Damage Bonus: none
Average Build: +1
Average Magic Points: 24
Move 9
ATTACKS
Attacks per round: 1
Fighting attacks: Any weapons and combat skills so desired by the keeper, a combination of existing skills from the lich and the vessel. Below are typical values.
Fighting 45% (22/9), damage 1D3+DB Dodge: 45% (92/9)
Armor: None
Skills: Charm 50%, Cthulhu Mythos 35%, Fast Talk 50%, History 85%, Intimidate 60%, Library Use 85%, Medicine 80%, Occult 95%, Other Languages (2D3) between 40% – 90%, Persuade 65%, Psychology 65%, Science: Chemistry 75%, any other desired by keeper.
Spells: 3d4+3 spells, or any desired by the keeper.
Sanity Loss: No sanity loss for seeing a Mellified Lich as they appear human.
0/1D4 points for realizing the true nature of a Mellfied Lich
