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Documentation Area

Document Path: /doc/monsters/haunt

Name:
	Haunt  (Undead Creature)

Stats:
	No. Appearing  : 1
	Climate/Terrain: Any
	Frequency      : Very rare
	Organization   : Individual
	Activity Cycle : Any
	Diet           : Nil

Description:
	A hount is the restless spirit of a person who died leaving some vital
	task unfinished. Its sole purpose is to take over a living body and use
	it to complete the task, thus gaining a final release from this world.

	Haunts may assume either of two forms, at will: a hovering luminescent
	ball of light (identical in appearance to a will-o-wisp) or a nebulous,
	translucent image of the haunt's former body. In the later state,
	haunts look like groaning spirits, spectres, or ghosts, and are often
	mistaken for them. Transformation from one state to the other takes one
	round.

Combat:
	A haunt must remain within 60 yards of where it died, unless, it takes
	control of a victim's body. This 60-yard radius is called the haunt's
	domain. A haunt attacks mindlessly, and always targets the first human
	or demihuman that enters its domain. It will continue to attack until
	possession is achieved or the intended victim leaves the haunt's
	domain.

	The touch of a haunt drains 2 points of dexterity per hit. As the char-
	acter's dexterity is drained, he suffers not only the penalties of lo-
	wered dexterity, but increasing numbness creeps over his body. If dex-
	terity reaches 0, the haunt slips into the body and possesses it. Once
	the body is possessed, dexterity returns to normal.

	The haunt uses the host's body to complete its unfulfilled task. The
	task need not be dangerous, although it often is. Once the task is com-
	pleted, the haunt passes on to its final rest and the victim regains
	control of his body. When the haunt leaves a victim, the character has
	a dexterity of 3. Lost dexterity points are regenerated at the rate of
	1 point for each turn of complete rest. If a haunt's possessed body is
	slain, it will haunt the place where that body was killed.

	If the victim has an alignment opposite to that of the haunt (good vs.
	evil), the haunt will try to strangle the victim using the victim's
	own hands. Unless the victim's arms are being restrained, the strangu-
	lation begins the round after the haunt takes control of the body. On
	the first round, the victim suffers 1 point of damage, on the second 2,
	on the third 4, and so on, doubling each round until the victim is dead
	or the haunt is driven off.

	Attacks on a possessed character will cause full damage to the char-
	acter's body. If attacked, the haunt will use whatever weapons and ar-
	mour the victim carries, but it cannot use any items that would require
	special knowledge (spells, scrolls, rings). The only safe way to free
	the victim is by casting hold person or dispel evil (good). If hold
	person is cast, the haunt must make a successful saving throw vs. para-
	lyzation or be ejected from the body; dispel evil (good) destroys the
	haunt forever.

	Haunts are linked to the sites where they died and therefore cannot be
	turned by priests. When in the natural state (i.e., not possessing a
	body), haunts may be struck only by silver or magical weapons, or by
	fire. Weapons cause only 1 point of damage, plus the magical bonus (if
	any). Normal fire causes 1 point of damage per round, but magical fire
	inflicts full damage. If a haunt is reduced to 10 hit points, it loses
	control of its form and fades away. The haunt reforms in one week to
	haunt the same location again until its task is completed.

Habitat/Society:
	The exact task to be accomplished varies, but the motives are always
	powerful - revenge, greed, love, hate. Often great distances need to
	be travelled before a task can be completed, and haunts will drive
	their hosts mercilessly toward the goal, ignoring the need for food or
	sleep.

	A few haunts (10%) retain some knowledge of their former lives and can
	be communicated with. Often these haunts feel remorse at having to prey
	upon the living, but the force of the uncompleted task is too powerful
	for the haunt to resist.

Ecology:
	Haunts cling to this world by force of will alone. They have no trea-
	sure of their own unless it is connected to their quest. They prey only
	on humans and demihumans.