Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part IV: Akashic Nodes)

This is the final post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved. The interview starts HERE

37. What advice would you give to fans of AE?
I think we should start a campaign for Monte to revamp the AE setting for 4th Edition. Let’s all send him a d4. Maybe if we get a thousand to him, he’ll think about. Or, you know, he could just let me do it.

38. What do you think the future is for AE?
Hey, I consider Monte a friend—but not that good a friend. It’s times like this I was I was a mind flayer. I could just burrow into Monte’s brain and answer all my questions. My gut tells me that Monte doesn’t have any interest in revisiting AE. In that case, I suspect there will be a small but deeply dedicated group of fans that will continue to play that version of the game for many years to come.

39. Is there anything else the world should know about you?
I’m not actually a devil. You’d be surprised how many people make that mistake—not the least of which because I am a lawyer. I guess the big news is that I landed the license to do an rpg based on the bestselling John Rain novels by Barry Eisler (www.johnraingame.com). I’m pretty excited about that. And I’m a great cook—like gourmet great. My Oscar parties are legendary.

40. Is there anything else the world should know about AE?
It’s a great setting! Seriously, you can buy it just for the setting, port it over to your favorite system, and get your money’s worth.

41. How did you feel when you saw the final layout for the finished product? What were you impressions of Sergio Isaza, and his work that appeared in The Fall Of All Things? (I really enjoyed the peace conference piece).
Well, I did the layout myself. I’m self-taught in layout, and I think it shows. I’ve improved a lot since Poisoncraft, but I still have a lot to learn. Sergio was a great find. I’d love to work with him again. He’s got a neat style that’s just perfect for certain kinds of pieces. (My favorite was the portrait of Kraalis.)

42. I was a little disappointed the hypnolox, the antithesis of the akashic, did not make an appearance, was that just personal preference. (Though I was happy to see the akashic seekers).
I wish I could give you a cute little story—Bill Collins has an abnormal fear of hypnoloxes!—but it was probably just an oversight. In retrospect, you’re right of course.

43. The introduction of the akashic nodes, who wrote the majority of that, and was there any one section other than yours that really stood out?
Michael Trice wrote the bulk of it. I did some spotting on the mechanics side. The Serpent’s Heart Guildhall by Phillippe Daigneault is trippy. I still don’t know how Ed did a map of that thing.

44. What are your recommendations for making akashic nodes more relevant in an AE campaign?
That’s what I tried to do with the adventure: show people ways that an akashic node could become a fresh way to serve a traditional role in a D&D adventure.

45. How do akashic nodes affect the culture of a quasi-medieval fantasy setting like the diamond throne?
I’ve always seen it as a more benign version of undeath. Books can turn to dust; people die; but memory lives forever.

46. Could you talk about your favorite new monster from Akashic Nodes?
I think the node leeches are ripe with possibilities. I just wish WotC had come out with the swarm rules when we did that. They should definitely be a swarm.

47. What is your favorite akashic node adventure seed?
I like the adventure seed for the Hostility node (on p. 8): “A beloved trader’s caravan inadvertently traveled through the epicenter of a hostile node. They were beset by bandits, and he succumbed to a blinding bloodlust. The bandits were defeated, but the trader slew his apprentice as well. He now stands trial for the crime.” Maybe it’s just because I’m a lawyer.

Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part III: Akashic Nodes)

This is the third post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved. The interview starts HERE

25. What has been your best moment playing with an AE product?
My favorite moments have been the AE games at Gen Con with all of the guys I only get to see once a year.

26. What has been your most memorable fan response to Akashic Nodes?
I did have one customer say that he thought it was as good as Monte’s stuff. That’s pretty high praise indeed.

27. What role do you think Akashic Nodes plays in the AE gaming community?
Heck, I don’t know. I’m hopeful it has launched more than a few memorable adventures, and I’m sure anyone who was playing an akashic was thrilled.

28. To Your knowledge has the Fading of All things ever been played with using Fantasy Grounds?
I don’t know one way or the other.

29. Could you tell us a little about the difference between professional game design and designing for play?
Great question. There are two big differences: clarity and balance. When you’re writing a rule for your home game, you only need to make sure that two people understand it, and if there are any questions, you can talk it out face to face. When you’re writing a rule for publication it has to be perfectly clear in its operation. Similarly, if you design for your home game and something turns out to be unbalanced, you can modify it. You don’t get that second chance with published design.

30. Why do you think the "Obvious Books" (racial and class books) for AE have never been done?
Monte never showed much interest in it. There weren’t a lot of third-party publishers for AE, and I’m guessing they, like me, took their lead from Monte. You should ask him that question.

31. What is your feeling about Lands of the Jade Oath?
It’s an incredibly neat setting. I don’t know if you are aware, but I was briefly in line to publish the setting, but things didn’t work out. I’m a big fan. I’ll be interested to see what the timing of the release means for its reception. Not only has Monte stopped publishing AE support, but 4th Edition is out now too. It will be a good metric for seeing who is still playing AE.

32. What is (was) your home AE game like? (describe it in a paragraph)
I’ll do it in one word: N/A. That’s right, I never had an AE game. We’ve run D&D and used some material from AE, but I’ve never run or played in any kind of extended AE campaign (much to my chagrin). Most of my AE gaming has been one-shots.

33. What is the AE product you want to buy?
I’m planning on signing up as a patron for Lands of the Jade Oath. I’m interested in the patronage angle too and, more specifically, to see if someone outside of Wolfgang can make it work.

34. Can you name for us a totem type, champion type and a witch type that would be cool but you have never seen from the fans?
Are there any left? Okay, I’ll play. Here’s what I want to see: elephant totem, champion of the poor, and salt witch. Has anyone done those?

35. What kind of player experience did you hope to create with your game? Did your goals change during the design process? Do you feel that you met them?
You’re talking about Akashic Nodes again? We wanted to give people something fresh and different in the same spirit that Mote approached AE in the first place. I think we met our goals pretty well.

36. What does AE need more of?
High-level adventures. But that’s my answer for anything—not just AE.

The interview concludes HERE.

Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part II: Akashic Nodes)

This is the second post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved. You can find the first part HERE

13. What do you feel was the most ingenious part of The Fading of All Things that you devised?
From a plot standpoint, I did like the idea that this arduous quest was for a long-forgotten piece of paper. And it wasn’t a world-ending spell or a massive treasure map, but a treaty between two small fishing villages. From a mechanic standpoint, I was proud of the idea to present three levels of difficulty for each encounter, which allows the DM to tweak on the fly based on how the party is doing.

14. What specific design choice are you most happy with, and why?
I really liked how we paired up each writer and each author. It gave the anthological feel that worked for me.

15. Which design element was the hardest to figure out, and why?
Well it wasn’t hard for me, but Bill Collins’s development of nodes for non-akashics was just brilliant. I know he put a lot of hard work into that chapter, and it shows.

16. What did you learn about design and especially setting specific supplements?
It made for a better finished product, but working with five different authors was little big like herding cats. Ironically, it did make the setting stuff easier to sort out. I know I had to make sure my adventure didn’t go against AE canon. Fortunately, there were several other sets of eyes to look out for that sort of thing.

17. What did you learn about The Fading of All Things during play-testing? (prototype, beta, or both) What did you change as a result?
Hah! I didn’t playtest Fading at all. A few of the other writers did some playtesting, and it went pretty well. The only thing I remember changing was giving Kraalis a few more resources to avoid hindering the party during combat and giving the DM a little more advice about how to play that. He’s incredibly easy to kill!

18. Did you make any other mistakes or miscalculations in the design process? How did you fix them?
I don’t recall any specifics. I know we went over the monster statblocks, like, twenty times to make sure we didn’t have any errors. Overall, that book is incredibly error free. In fact, I’m not aware of any errata for it.

19. We have a long history of dusty libraries and books in fantasy role-playing; do you have any recommendations to encourage DM's to use Akashic Nodes: A Home of Memory instead of these tropes?
You answered your own question. Akashic nodes can definitely slot into any fantasy setting. And they offer a new take on the typical fantasy tropes for information gathering. Notably, akashic nodes have personality, in the most literal sense of that word, that a traditional library lacks.

20. Are you happy with where Akashic Nodes is today?
Well, I’d love to have sold about a 1,000 more copies, but it’s about where I expected.

21. What makes a good AE product?
It has to be an AE product. Monte made that setting chock full of fresh ideas; run with them. Generic monsters and feats does it a disservice.

22. What is your favorite AE product (besides yours and the core book)?
Legacy of the Dragons is one of the best monster products out there for any setting. The monsters themselves are dripping with coolness. The addition of lair information—with maps!—was brilliant. Plus, one of my NPCs made it into the book!

23. What is your favorite Non-Monte AE (besides yours) product and why?
I’m partial to Plague of Dreams because it was the first third-party product for AE and it’s the bee’s knees.

24. What is your favorite Blue Devil games AE product and why?
Akashic Nodes for sure. But a close second is Dark Houses: The Guild Hive because it was an ambitious hybrid product, where we teamed up with Ed Bourelle of Skeleton Key to put out a unique little product.

Continues HERE.

Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part I: Akashic Nodes)

This is the first post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved.


1. Please provide a brief bio about yourself, you gaming habits, and your professional work.
I’m 37, married with two young daugthers. I live in South Florida (born and raised). I am an attorney by day, specializing in debt collection. I work in a small firm my father started over 30 years ago. I love to play games every day, but between my home life and my work life, I only get to play around once a month. Mostly we’re playing D&D 4e, but I like playing all sorts of games, from indie-style rpgs to board games.

2. Ok I have to ask why Akashic Nodes? What made you choose to do that instead of say a class or racial splat book?
We wanted to do something different. I took the lead from Monte’s own work. His supplements always have a twist, from the event books, to BoEM3, which is keyed of specific locations. Akashic Nodes really is a splat book. It’s got tons of feats, spells, magic items, monsters, etc. It’s just presented through the lens of a specific focus.

3. Did you ever think about each section as individual PDFs instead of one large PDF, especially your adventure The Fading Of All things?
No. The material was too interconnected to release separately. There are references in Fading to concepts and mechanics presented elsewhere in the book. More generally, I’ve never really cottoned to the micro-pdf craze. Not for me creatively.

4. Could you please sum up "Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory" in a sentence or three?
Akashic Nodes starts with a fundamental question of what memory really is and uses that as a launching pad for a host of unusual mechanics and ideas to add to any fantasy setting.

5. How did you first become interested in creating a book about Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved rather than standard d20 product like poisioncraft?
I’ve had a good relationship with Monte since I first started with Poisoncraft. He seemed very accessible, and that proved to be the case. When I had questions about the publishing process, he was very helpful. (He is truly one of the nicest people in this industry, which is incidentally filled with extremely nice people.) This created something of a, hmmm, what’s the opposite of a vicious cycle? A symbiotic cycle? I bought all of Monte’s stuff. I did some playtesting for Monte. When I was deciding what to do next, Arcana Unearthed had a lot of real estate in my head.

6. How do you feel, when you discover someone still using a product like akashic nodes today?
I’m totally geeked, of course! My design goals have always been, in this order: (1) Don’t lose money; (2) give people stuff they can have a lot of fun with; (3) try to make some money. Number 2 only works when people actually use what I’ve put out there.

7. Could you list some of your major influences in the creation of Akashic Nodes?
Arcana Evolved (nee Arcana Unearthed) seems obvious, so I won’t mention it. When the Sky Falls, in particular was a big influence. As I mentioned, it really gave me the idea of using a more narrow theme as the skeleton for the material.

8. What are the strengths of Akashic Nodes over other source books?
It literally has material that you cannot find anywhere else. I think there is something for everyone in there.

9. Can you tell me about the adventure The Fading Of All Things that appears in Akashic Nodes and why you chose a political action adventure?
That’s an interesting lesson in design. I put off working on the adventure until the other material started coming in. I got to see how all the other writers were riffing off the concept. And really out of nowhere, I recalled the quote that those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. That was the spark for the idea for the adventure. The Iraq War was a separate influence. The rest just fell into place.

10. Can you tell me how you felt when you first saw the cover art by The Carmona Brothers, Jesus y Javier Carmona?
That’s one of the real perks of publishing: working with amazing artists, telling them what you are looking for, and seeing how they run with it. That cover is perfect for that book.

11. How much input did you have on sections that were not written by you?
Theoretically, I had a lot of input. I could have dumped some of it or rewritten it all myself. It was my baby after all. As a practical matter, that was a great collection of writers I managed to pull together. So I didn’t really end up doing a lot. I did have the initial idea for the mechanical aspects of nodes and fleshed out some of that part.

12. Describe your best moment working on Akashic Nodes?
We set up a private message board for all the contributors. Some of the conversations on that board are just amazing. I should dump them into a pdf and sell it for a hundred bucks! They were great to work with.

Part II Continues HERE.

Ritual of Links: Jade Arcana

This will be the last post in my week celebrating Lands of the Jade Oath, I may ask Frank to do a guest post over the weekend.

The Mahasarpa Campaign contains a small-scale campaign with a Southeast Asia feel.


While it is Legend of the 5 rings, you can easily replacing TN with DC in Tournement of the Emperor’s Favord.

Want to write your own wicked adventure? Well good writers take inspiration from other stories, Great dungeon masters steal from the outright and you could not do better then the A Chinesse Ghost Story series.


Here is a nice article on the ninja and d20 game mechanics from James Wyatt

Hey I personally really liked Kung-Fu Panda if you did too check out its Tropes.

Adventure seeds for Oriental Arcana:

Your part of the royal court, there is politics, and betrayals floating all around the Jade throne, this is punctuated by battles featuring big hulky brocade wearing brutes mowing down peasant soldiers by the thousands with their flashy attacks.

A girl has decided to run away from her arranged marriage, the Big Damn Heroes can help her or hunt her down and bring her back to her family, You can make the man she loves the Big Bad or the man she is to marry either way it’s bad for the Big Damn Heroes.

The eunuch advisor is deceiving the little boy prince, having him banish good officials, leading to widespread corruption, this is causing a the rise of the rebellion do the Big Damn Heroes support it or help suppress it, What happens when the princes elite guards over react, and then the little prince disappears and the a jade mandarin wants answers.

A warlord has risen up in a rebellious province, folks attempt to recruit the Big Damn Heroes to assassinate him or raise an army to defeat him on the field of battle. Politics, loyalty, and betrayals abound as they recruit an army or seek entrance to the Warlords council.

The Imperial Seal Loss of this magical symbol of authority always causes a curse of civil war to descend upon the land. They are asking the Big Damn Heroes to get it back or maybe someone hires them to steal it.

The spirit of a wrongfully accused and executed man is haunting the local castle, a mystery arises around who could have framed the man and arranged his execution. The heroes must beware for a magnificent bastard lurks within this court and could be the local lord himself.

A great battle has been lost and a great horde now approaches destroying and pillaging everything in its path, there is safety at the local city but it can only house so many. The Governor has barred the gates. The Big Damn heroes must open the gates or keep them closed.

A very talented and young general has suppressed rebellions, defeated warlords, and saved the country, ye t The Jade Mandarin fears he could become a warlord he has decided to investigate him and if a threat is found, he will be assassinated. The big damn heroes are the assassins or the bodyguards, and no one knows how loyal he really is.

The Big Damn Heroes are brought in or uncover a plot to lure the Jade Mandarin out of the palace to see a potential new bride said to be the most beautiful women in the land, she will say she wants the wedding right there, problem is she really falls in love with the Jade Mandarin at first sight, so that he can be killed away from the seat of his power, the PCs must help or prevent the conspirators.

That Badass whom all the other rivals for the kingdoms fear, has died. If word of his death reaches the rivals civil war will result, the Big Damn Heroes must come up with an answer, as no one else can be trusted to know about the death.

Monsters of the Jade Oath (Zhyan; the Giant's Beast)

I got my first patron yeasteray for the Heroes of the Jade Oath, and it was even a senior patron. I am pretty damn happy I did not even go 24 hours :).

I will be doing a Lands of the Jade Oath theme posts this week.

Zhyan; the Giant’s Beast
Suzerain Elder Dire Dog,
Medium Magical Beast (augmented animal)
Hit Dice: 3d10+12 (28hp/-5/-19)
Initiative: +3
Speed: 60ft.
Armor Class: 20 (+3 Dex, +3 natural +4 morale bonus), touch 17, flat-footed 17 (24/21;+4 dodge bonus vs. ranged attacks.)
Base Attack/Grapple: +3/+8
Attack: Bite +12 melee (1d6+9)
Full Attack: Bite +12 melee (1d6+9)
Face/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Born to lead, Dominate kin,
Special Qualities: darkvision, dauntless courage 30’ radius, enchanting presence, low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +11, Ref +10, Will +8
Abilities: Str 21, Dex 17, Con 19, Int 12, Wis 17, Cha 14
Skills: Jump +18, Listen +11, Spot +11, Survival +16
Feats: Defensive Move, Power attack, Power Charge, track (b)

Environment: any urban
Organization: Pack (“Zhyan ” and 11 dogs)
Challenge Rating: 4
Treasure: 50% coins, standard goods, standard items.
Advancement: (5-6) medium (7-9) large or by character class

DESCRIPTION

“You see a powerfully built canine that exudes strength, with a massive fawn colored body nearly 8 feet in length, a deep set of wrinkles covers its broad muzzle, triangular ears, and deep brown eyes. It must weigh over 300 lbs. Yet looking at it you feel a sense of enchantment rather than fear”

“You two-foots have breed, my kith and my kin for generations to be companions and servants, However unlike them I have a choice, I will be no two-foots servant, and my companions are my kith and kin. Too many of my brethren have been left to fend for themselves after your kind discarded them having breed most of our survival instincts out of us. I face the greatest conflict of my life, return them to the wild or carve a place of our own out of your civilization. “ –Zhyan, as quoted in Monsters of the Jade Oath, recorded by Stave Beast-speaker, Ollamh Lorekeeper of the Harrowdeep Court.

I was breed from what you would call Shar Pei stock, and I stand 2 and ½ o2f your feet at my shoulder, in size I am closest to the four-footers you call mules. My hair is short and I keep it well groomed compared to my brethren of the streets I live with, those which you would call mongrel dogs.

I seek only to help my brethren have the life they choose to live, I will not force them to freedom, if they are happy in their servitude or companionship so be it. Yet I will not allow them to interfere in the freedom of another to make their own choice. I will fight them but I will not kill my brethren if they oppose me.

I give each of my kith and kin a choice they did not have in birth, to leave the city for the wilds or to find a claim our own territory within them. I organize them into packs and forge alliances with those of my kith who have masters and mistresses. I have made an pact with several two-footers who assist and serve me, as they take my offspring to other cities so that more of my kind may be served, in return my kin and I relay information we have learned to them. I have also made the occasional arrangement to help track those who have or could cause harm to my brethren

COMBAT

Zhyan engages in combat over territory, food and in the defense of other dogs. He is virtually never without a pack of eleven other dogs that are fanatically loyal to him.
He never attacks with surprise always warning off intruders with the packs barks and growls, as it is the rare creature that understands the language of dogs; he often uses his Stirring Speech ability on the two dogs closest to him. The pack gains the benefits of his Inspiring Example if within range.

1st round-Dominate Kin any dog in the service of his opponents or power charge (see below) the pack attacks by targeting a single foe and flanking the foe if possible.
2nd round-Attack using power attack (power charge),
3rd round-Attack, if flanking power attack Bite +9 melee (1d6+12)
4th round- If flanking power attack Bite +9 melee (1d6+12), or Stirring Speech dogs if a pack member is down.
5th round-Flee with pack at maximum possible speed, if any of the pack has been taken down.

Born to Lead (Ex): So long as another free-willed dog is within sight and capable of witnessing its actions, the suzerain has a +4 morale bonus to AC, attacks, damage rolls, checks, and saves. Mounts, familiars, animal companions, and trained animals do not count as free-willed creatures for the purpose of this bonus. These bonuses are included in the stat block above

Wild Empathy (Ex): Zhyan can improve the attitude of an animal. This ability functions just like a Diplomacy check to improve the attitude of a person. Zhyan rolls 1d20+5 (with an additional +4 when dealing with dogs) to determine the wild empathy check result. The typical domestic animal has a starting attitude
of indifferent, while wild animals are usually unfriendly.
To use wild empathy, Zhyan and the animal must be able to study each other, which means that they must be within 30 feet of one another under normal visibility conditions. Generally, influencing an animal in this way takes 1 minute, but, as with influencing people, it might take more or less time.
Zhyan can also use this ability to influence a magical beast with an Intelligence score of 1 or 2, but he takes a -4 penalty on the check.

Dauntless Courage (Ex): Zhyan is immune to fear. In addition, any allies within 30 feet that view Zhyan as their leader are immune to fear effects.

Dominate Kin (Su): Zhyan can dominate dogs. This ability works like the dominate animal spell, allowing the creature to control a number of other dogs (max 6 HD). This ability affects creatures normally immune to mind-influencing effects, unbound and does not require a truename.

Enchanting Presence (Su): The first time a creature other than a PC comes within 30 feet of Zhyan, its attitude toward Zhyan shifts one category toward the positive, if it was not initially hostile. Thus, unfriendly creatures become indifferent, indifferent creatures become friendly, and friendly creatures become helpful. This shift can be further modified by Zhyan’s actions, or it might change over time naturally. The creature must be able to see, hear, or otherwise notice Zhyan to be affected. Enchanting presence is a mind-affecting enchantment effect. PCs are aware of this enchanting presence but are unaffected by this ability.

Inspiring Example (Ex): Each ally within 60 feet of Zhyan that can see or hear him gains a +2 morale bonus on all attack and damage rolls, checks, and saves so long as Zhyan is alive.

Speech (Ex): Zhyan can speak like a human (though his voice is unique, and can be difficult to understand). It can learn to speak any language, but usually only speaks Common. Zhyan retains the ability to speak with dogs.

Stirring Speech (Su): 2/day as a standard action, Zhyan can inspire greatness in its allies, granting them extra fighting capability. Zhyan can target 2 allies. To inspire greatness, Zhyan must say a few inspiring words (or sounds, if it is incapable of speech), and the targeted allies must hear them. The effect lasts for 5 rounds.
A creature inspired with greatness gains 2 bonus Hit Dice (d10s), the commensurate number of temporary hit points (apply the target’s Constitution modifier, if any, to these bonus Hit Dice), a +2 competence bonus on attack rolls, and a +1 competence bonus on Fortitude saves. The bonus Hit Dice count as regular Hit Dice for determining the effects of spells such as sleep. Inspire greatness is a mind-affecting ability...

Skills: Zhyan has a +4 racial bonus on Jump checks. Zhyan has a +4 racial bonus on Survival checks when tracking by scent. These are included in the stat block above.

LORE
Delve the Collective Memory, Gather Information, or Knowledge (dangerous beasts); characters can learn more about Zhyan. When a character makes a successful check, the following lore is revealed, including the information from lower DCs.

Common (DC 10): The Alpha Male of this pack is called Zhyan or The Giant’s Beast; he is a magical beast “dire” version of his species, he has gained an “elder” status granted by the power of the land and is considered a magical beast rather than an animal, he has also
become a “mandarin” over all the dogs of this area.

Uncommon (DC 14): Read aloud Zhyan’s quotation from “Monsters of the Jade Oath” in the description section

Rare (DC 19): Zhyan gains as does those following him a significant near spiritual benefit when leading a pack of dogs or even a single dog. Although most dogs will follow him without question, holding him in the highest regard, he can control any dog regardless of circumstance. He is a valiant leader, and lends his dauntless courage to his close companions. Those witnesses to his presence always seem to favor him. Like all canines, Zhyan can track by scent though his ability tends to exceed all other dogs.

Obscure (DC 29): If you can prevent Zhyan from leading dogs against you, he is not as formidable of a foe. Separating him from his allies and pack with a wall or other barrier is your safest option. Though killing them all works as well. He is also an intelligent creature whom you can negotiate with.

Epic (DC 39): Zhyan is actually an agent of the Dragons in their covert actions against the Jade Throne, supplying them with information that other dogs, and his offspring, who share his gifts, share with him, though he will never pass along information that may place a dog in jeopardy.

A More Compelling Encounter (EL 6):
Recently a PC injured or killed a dog; Zhyan is looking for revenge and future security for other dogs. They are lured at night to a covered, unlit, unpaved back alley where the packs heighted senses grant them advantage, the ground is nothing but slick mud, but the packs four-footed nature makes them immune.

Conditions: Blind (without light source or darkvision) Balance check (DC 10 or fall prone)