Centheion Smash by Kenya Ferrand
Difficulty: hard
Magic: low
Keywords: possessed, parasite
Terrain: frozen forest
Treasure: minor
“Go no further!” says the creature on the hill. “The Sleepless Drift will pass by here, move to a safe place!“
The creature speaking looks like it once was a centaur. The torso is twisted in a half turn showing the emaciated side of the centaur’s upper body. The lower body is gray and losing hair in patches from withers to rump. As it approaches, you see that the hair is thin and gray. It’s mouth is frozen in a partially open grimace. When it speaks, you can hear its tongue click in its mouth.
In a blink of an eye, it stands before you. The grim centaur clutches its scythe close to its torso while pointing the business end in your direction. One white eye gazes down at you. The creature says in a labored and hollow voice, “You should leave now.“
Background
The forest where Neirave rules was formerly the home of several families of centaurs called a harras. The forest provided shelter from the elements. It is located next to what was once a vast pampas. The centaurs would spend much of the spring and summer running from one edge of the grassland to the other. Although still distrustful of humans, the centuars would come to the annual spring fair in the human village. At the human village, the centaurs were able to trade and sell various goods, including steel. Centauri star charts still fetch a high price anywhere in the region.
As the winters grew longer, the harras of centaurs spent less and less time in the forest. As food was becoming scarce some centuars moved to warmer lands while others stayed to fight for their home. Those that stayed struggled to find food. As the winter became longer, the berries and small game died or disappeared. The centaurs faced starvation.
About a year ago, one of the centaurs began to turn gray. His skin began to pale and his green eyes became lighter every day. His speech was strangled and his behavior became more and more erratic. He ate the strange white berries the rest of the harras had learned to avoid. As the days wore on, his body began to appear twisted and warped. He cried in pain frequently and his now white eyes showed no sign of the centuar he once was. The others avoided him and gave him the name from an apocalyptic prophecy: Centheion – the killer of elemental fire.
In centaur religion, the end of the world would be heralded by an abomination that went against everything sacred. The most sacred object in centaur religion is elemental fire. The home fire is one of the most binding elements of centauri culture that bring them together as a species. According to prophecy, the centheion will appear and profane the earth with unspeakable acts of depravity and cruelty. When the cenetheion and his army destroy the elemental fire within the belly of the earth, the end of the world will come.
The centheion is a centuar that is infected by an arctic parasite known as the hungerworm. The hungerworm causes its victim to feel a continuous hunger. The only thing that can abate this feeling is eating an arctic plant known as a mehen berry. Mehen berries are high in a powerful narcotic that renders the imbiber in a catatonic state.
In its natural habitat, the powerful narcotic allows the parasite to influence the victim to eat more mehen berries. The parasite cannot digest these on its own, so in infects various mammals (including humans and polar bears). In the forest of Neirave, however, the narcotic allows the Sleepless Drift to easily exert her will over anyone infected with the parasite.
The centheions gain the curious ability to teleport short distances. As the remorhaz attacks based on perceived movement, this prevents the centheions from being attacked by it. However, it is not certain if the parasite or Neirave grants the teleportation ability.
The centheions are not undead. They can be treated with hearthfruit and freed from the curse. Eating this fruit or receiving a magic/herbal treatment with this fruit will kill the parasite and begin to restore the centaurs. Once free of the parasite, they are able to resist the Sleepless Drift’s thrall. Unlike others in the area, centaurs have more of a resistance to the effects of Neirave. They can, and usually do, resist her will. Curing the centheions of the curse removes their ability to teleport.
Under the thrall of Neirave, the centheion seek only to defend her from harm. If the player characters come into close proximity to her, they will appear. Shortly after any battle begins, their companion, a thralled remorhaz will appear to fight with them.
Objective
When first encountered, the centheion attempt to warn the player characters to move away. If they player characters do not move away, they will attack. Being reduced to simple-minded creatures by the effects of the mehen berries and the thrall of Neirave, they are not capable of any being talked out of their goal.
Tactics
In combat, they use their teleportation ability to disorient their foes. The speed at which they approach is the same as their full running speed, but as they teleport in a zigzag pattern, the perceived effect is they are moving much faster. The remorhaz will appear later in the fight and attack the nearest player character to it. A remorhaz recognizes a centheion and cannot be tricked into attacking one by mistake.
Once in close proximity, the centheions attempt to flank an individual opponent by constantly teleporting behind it. If possible, they will use their front hoofs to knock down an opponent and strike their prone target with a scythe or poleaxe.
Environmental Effects
There are several feet of snow and ice on the ground. Without proper foot gear or magic, moving around is very slow and difficult. The terrain does not affect the centheions or the remorhaz.
Development
The centheions do not want to fight, but are compelled to do so by Neirave. If their warnings are not enough to deter the player characters, they will attack. Unless they are somehow treated for their parasitic infection with hearthfruit, the centheions and the remorhaz will fight to the death. Before dying, the centheions will thank the player characters for setting them free.
The player characters are themselves at risk for infection at this point. If untreated, an infected player character will become under the thrall of Neivare in seven days.
If the centheions and the remorhaz are killed in combat, it is very likely that Neirave herself will appear shortly.
Awards, Findings, & Treasure
If the player characters succeed in curing the centheions of the curse, they will gain a powerful ally that is resistant to the thrall of Neirave. They know the terrain of the forest and will easily be able to locate Neirave at any time. They will also gain the trust of the harras of centaurs that live in the area. These centaurs are known for their star charts and navigational maps. They will be happy to give the player characters a copy of any chart they wish.
If the player characters succeed in defeating the centheions, they will recover a magical bow from one of the dead centheions. Otherwise, neither they nor the remorhaz carry any treasure.
There is no benefit for retreating from the centheions other than a vaguely better idea as to Neirave’s location.
Curse of the Centheions y by Nevermet Press is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://www.nevermetpress.com/contact.
