Animated Scarecrow

If you are one of the players in my campaign this section contains spoilers. Please stop reading here.

 

In the post Requiem for Duval Delsarte, I mentioned that Delsarte's killer was an animated Scarecrow. In this weekend's session, the party once again confronted the Witch and her animated Scarecrows. This time they were better prepared both in terms of having better lighting and in terms of prepared torches and knowing what did and didn't work against the creatures. The party destroyed all four of the Witch's remaining Scarecrows. This time the Witch was accompanied by a group of hired swords led by a noble or even a grand. (He was called, "Monseigneur," a title referring o a Prince of the Blood, by one of his men.) Who this prince or noble is and what his interest is in all this is unknown.

The animated Scarecrows are a construct of sorcery or witchcraft. They are very strong able to smash down doors, break bones, and destroy furniture. They move with a lurching, shambling gait and their motion sounds like boughs creaking and sighing in the breeze. They obey the will of their creator and can be summoned to their creator from a distance.

Might 3         Daring 2        Savvy -1       Terror 2 (glowing eyes)    flammable; untiring, fearless

Lifeblood 15  

Flammable, untiring, fearless, and can see in the dark.                    

   Protection: 1d6; half damage from bullets and piercing weapons, a Mighty Success hits the creatures heart which does full damage. (Protection still applies.)

  Haymayker+4:                              1d6+2 Damage
  Fist+2 (2) Attacks                         1d6+1 Damage;

 

Creation of an animated Scarecrow is a spell of the First Magnitude. It has several strict requirements and success requires a roll of (Savvy+Sorcery-2) to succeed in the creation. Creating an Animated Scarecrow costs 2 Arcane Power.

Casting Requirements: (i) Casting Time: (1d6x30 min); (ii) Pentagram drawn in blood; (iii) Intimate Material: a victim’s heart; (iv) can only be cast at night. The spell binds the soul of a sacrificed or murdered victim into the Scarecrow's heart.

Typically a caster is limited in the number of Scarecrows she can control, usually no more than the number of Arcane Power she has.

EDIT: Tom over at A Brace of Pistols did a version of Scarecrows for Witch Hunter the Invisible World. He even added some additional critters and uses. Check it out!