Ancestry Moth
Celestial · Crown of Tradition
T1d4Minor
Large moths with parchment-like wings inscribed with genealogies in fading ink, each carrying a different family's history. They land on shoulders like a gentle hand and glow with warm amber light that makes the present feel part of a long, continuous story.
Tier 1 · Role Minor · Pool Vigor 1 (+1 overflow) · AC 9 · ATK +3 · Save DC 11 · Dmg 1 (flat)
| Stat | Score | Mod | Die |
|---|---|---|---|
| Body | 6 | - | - |
| Mind | 16 | - | - |
| Sense | 16 | - | - |
| Heart | 18 | - | - |
| Cunning | 14 | - | - |
| Fate | 16 | - | - |
A Minor has no attribute mechanics: the scores describe the creature, they do not roll.
Passives
Ancestral Whisper
When the moth lands on a creature, that creature hears a brief message from a deceased ancestor: always true, always relevant. Once per creature per encounter.
Memory Preservation
Where these moths gather, memories keep: documents do not fade, inscriptions do not erode, and stories told in their presence are recalled perfectly. They cluster on genuine heirlooms and ancestral places.
Maneuvers
Wing Dust
Shakes glittering dust over a creature within 10 ft: Heart save (DC 11) or it takes 1 Vigor damage and is dazed 1 round by visions of its ancestors.
Memory Storm
Every moth in the swarm sheds its dust at once. Each enemy within 20 ft makes a Heart save (DC 11) or is stunned 1 round, staggered by the weight of heritage it has denied.
Tactics
GM tactics
Ancestry Moths are not combatants. They deliver ancestral messages, preserve memories, and authenticate heirlooms. They use Wing Dust defensively and Memory Storm when grouped. They appear where traditions are being lost-near dying languages, ending family lines, abandoned customs-and they reconnect people to who they are.
Running it
Rules
- Vigor equal to Tier, with an overflow of the same size behind it: 1, then 1 more. Neither half regenerates.
- A hit deals a flat 1, no roll. A crit (natural 20 only) rolls d4 and never lands below 1.
- Crits on a natural 20 only.
- Minor: no stat modifiers or dice in play; its scores describe the creature, they do not roll.
- At 0 Vigor it breaks and flees, out of the fight but alive; Fanatics fight on into the overflow instead.
- Total damage reaching 2 kills it outright, and a single blow of 2 or more kills it on the spot.
- Vigor damage is simply damage against a Minor: its whole pool is Vigor.
- Group morale: when its group loses half its number, fled or dead, the rest check morale.
- NPCs never take wounds.