Skeletons
What better way to wrap up a week all about our great new PC race, the returned, than with a countdown of 10 skeletons sure to pique your interest. Whether looking for an interesting diversion or the prelude to a dire encounter, the following skeletons are just too exciting to keep in the closet.
1. Blackened skeleton hanging from a tree. Found in the depths of a secluded wood on an unusually cold summer’s day, the disappearing and reappearing skeleton of a small humanoid with fire blackened bones has long been a unsolved mystery. The skeleton appears to be that of a Small humanoid, either a gnome or halfling, or perhaps a child from a larger humanoid species, with jet black bones that gleam eerily in the sunlight. The skeleton hangs suspended by a noose from a nondescript tree and seems to vanish and appear in different locations for no reason at all. The skeleton’s sighting is usually heralded as an ill omen.
2. Prehistoric sea dragon. Encased in a 500-foot-diameter glass cylinder filled with deep blue water is the clear form of a sea dragon’s segmented skeleton. Over 70 feet long and featuring an unusual skull with lamprey-like teeth, this primitive skeleton is thought to have been one of the earliest examples of a sea dragon. Once per year, in late spring, a group of necromancers who curate the skeletal display animate the bones and cause it to swim about in the tank.
3. A tengu pirate. This surprisingly well-preserved skeleton lays in the cabin of a sunken ship, the other crew long since devoured by sea creatures. Like a giant crow with humanoid characteristics, the tengu skeleton wears a black and red hat bearing a grinning skull, marking him as a pirate. When approached, the skeleton stirs form its rest, grasping a rough iron scimitar and waving it about in an effort to defend the ship’s long plundered treasure.
4. An unknown creature. This very unusual, large skeleton has 13 legs, 13 arms, and 13 heads. Each head bears six horns and holes for three eyes. The body features a single massive sphere of translucent bone, encasing more complex skeletal structures. While the creature is unknown, it is thought to be the remains of some kind of ancient demon or other monstrous fiend.
5. The cursed golden bones of Lynd Fyr. Lynd Fyr was an obscure demi-god whose bones were made of solid gold of purity unmatched in nature. Following his death, his skeleton was seized by an evil king who put it on display as a symbol of his great power and wealth. Eventually, however, the king’s descendants, finding themselves in debt to a group of adventurers, separated the skeleton and divided it among the adventurers. Each of the bones now carries a potent curse of evil luck on any who carries it, and it is said the curse can only be broken when the skeleton is reunited and joined.
6. Frozen bones. Encased in ice at the very pole of the world are the bones of a pair of humanoids. Separated by about 90 feet, the skeletal faces stare at each other, eternally locked in a grim staring contest. While the bones themselves seem unremarkable, long observation by interested scholars has revealed that the bones appear to move over the course of centuries, with the hands and arms forming unusual and arcane gestures. How the bones move, or for what purpose, remains a mystery.
7. The voice of the desert. These bones are reportedly encountered by desert travelers at the limits of their thirst. The skeleton appears in the sand, unmoving except for the skull, which speaks clearly in the listener’s native tongue. Reports on what the skeleton says vary, with some claiming that it offers riddles, while others say it attempts to strike a bargain with the listener. In all versions, however, those who comply with the skeleton’s demands are rewarded not only with water, but also with fantastic supernatural power.
8. The bone carousel. Originally created as the gift of a mighty necromancers’ guild to a king who chose to shelter them, this massive structure of pearl features the animated bones of 14 horses and other quadrupeds, which march slowly in an eternal circle about the pavilion. With the necromancers’ guild long disbanded and the king long dead, the horses are now a longstanding attraction for visitors, and the public can ride for 1 hour for the cost of a copper piece.
9. The rattler. A strange creation of an eccentric and mischievous necromancer, the rattler is a human skeleton once belonging to the necromancer’s worst enemy. Now the walking bones have been commanded to wear a costume of pink and purple ruffles and travel the world, stopping whenever it encounters 4 or more people and dancing a jig.
10. The pointing king. Locked deep in a forgotten dungeon which lies several miles underground are the bones of the pointing king. Within the dungeon is a great vault with a ceiling many hundreds of feet high, containing a single throne upon a dais raised 100 feet into the air. Upon the dais sits an ancient stone throne, holding the primitive form of an early human skeleton which points with an extended hand towards the surface world. Those who touch the skeleton are slain instantly by foul magics, leaving one to wonder who the skeleton is, how it reached its current location, for what purpose it has been left here, and what exactly it is pointing at.