Planar Bestiary
Ovisans evolved as one of the primary intelligent beings on Kret, the Material Plane world of their origin. But not in isolation: they constantly fought against a shelled enemy that rose in the seas, known to them as grethk. That rivalry only grew as the two species increased their populations and mastery over their world, both relying on a magical "technology" of rune scribing. Eventually, the grethk were defeated, but remnants of that population fled to alternate planes of existence. Ovisan hunters are the brave ovisans who volunteered to track down the grethk and end any future threat they might grow into if not ferreted out and destroyed.
Using their rune magic, ovisans can create temporary portals that lead into adjacent worlds of the Material Plane. Such portals take time to set up and empower, so ovisans usually travel to a new world only if they have evidence that a fleeing grethk nest might have preceded them there. Ovisans are suspicious of planar travel technology that is not their own, and thus eschew it unless they have no other option.
Besides opening portals, ovisan hunters use runes to look for evidence of grethk, enhance their horns to deliver an extra jolt when used as a weapon, and translate languages of newly encountered species. Back on their homeworld, ovisans rely on rune magic for many additional tasks.
Motive: Defense, exterminate grethk
Environment: Various worlds of the Material Plane, in extermination teams of three to nine, or dozens to hundreds per settlement
Health: 6
Damage Inflicted: Moderate wound (4 points)
Armor: 2
Movement: Short; immediate when climbing
Modifications: Jumping and climbing as level 6
Combat: An ovisan hunter begins combat by charging at a target from short range and making a ram attack with their horns, inflicting 8 points of damage and—on a failed Might defense task—knocking the target prone and stunning them, causing the target to lose their next turn.
After that, the hunter attacks with their horns or with their spear. Their horns and spear are rune-scribed to resonate with lightning; each hit inflicts a minor wound (2 points) plus 2 points of damage from electricity. These attacks are eased against creatures wearing a lot of metal, such as metal armor.
Alternatively, at least one hunter in a group of three or more ovisans can emit a thunderous, echoing battle call once every few rounds. Creatures that are not ovisans within immediate range take 6 points of damage from focused sonic energy on a failed Might defense task, or 2 points even with a successful defense task.
An ovisan is vulnerable to acid attacks; when an ovisan takes damage from acid, they take 1 extra point of damage.
Interaction: Ovisans speak their own language but can use runes to understand and speak any common language. They are wary of other creatures, but willing to break off conflict against those who offer no real threat. Their main concern is the grethk.
Use: Stories of "goat men" invading a nearby valley trickle into the village. But when defenders show up to offer aid, they find massive, crab-like creatures (grethk) feasting on the remains of goat men (ovisan hunters). The crab creatures quickly turn their attention to new prey.
Loot: An ovisan hunter carries a few useful magical cyphers, such as a best tool runestone, a burst of speed runestone, a runestone of comprehension, and a rune-scribed medium spear artifact that inflicts 1 additional minor wound (1 point) from electricity with each hit (level 2; depletion: —).
GM Intrusion: The ovisan uses a rune that blinds a character for a few rounds.