Whispering Remains

Whispering Remains

Medium Undead (Incorporeal), CR 2

Hit Dice: 2d12 (13 hp)
Initiative: +4
Speed: Fly 40 ft. (perfect) (8 squares)
Armor Class: 16 (+4 Dex, +2 deflection), touch 16, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +1/—
Attack: — (see Whispering Secrets)
Full Attack: —
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Whispering Secrets
Special Qualities: Incorporeal traits, undead traits, darkvision 60 ft., shadow blending, one with darkness, living shadow
Saves: Fort +0, Ref +4, Will +3
Abilities: Str —, Dex 18, Con —, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 14
Skills: Hide +16, Listen +6, Move Silently +12, Spot +6
Feats: Alertness

Special Attacks

Whispering Secrets (Su)

A creature within 30 feet must succeed on a DC 13 Will save or begin hearing whispers.

• On failure: unsettling murmurs impose growing unease
• After 3 rounds or on failure by 5+: the Remains reveal damaging, true secrets
• Victim becomes shaken for 1d4 rounds
• Suffers –4 penalty on Diplomacy checks and potential social consequences (GM discretion)

A creature that succeeds is immune to that Whispering Remains for 24 hours.

Special Qualities

Incorporeal Traits (Ex)

A Whispering Remains has no physical body.

• Can be harmed only by magic weapons, spells, or supernatural effects
• Has a 50% chance to ignore damage from corporeal sources (except force effects or ghost touch)
• Can pass through solid objects and creatures
• Cannot make physical attacks

Undead Traits (Ex)

A Whispering Remains is immune to:

• Mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, morale effects)
• Poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, and death effects
• Critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability damage to physical scores
• Effects requiring Fortitude saves (unless they affect objects)

It uses its Charisma modifier for Concentration checks.

Shadow Blending (Su)

In shadowy illumination or darker, the creature gains:

• Total concealment (50% miss chance)
• Requires DC 20 Spot check to notice

One With Darkness (Su)

In complete darkness, the Whispering Remains becomes effectively invisible:

• Functions as greater invisibility
• Suppressed by magical light (e.g., daylight)

Living Shadow (Ex)

• May occupy and move through existing shadows
• Gains +4 bonus on Hide checks when doing so
• Often clings to walls, alleys, or even a creature’s shadow

Avatars of Mère Grosse (Ex)

They gather secrets in darkness and deliver them at the most damaging moments, serving the will of Mère Grosse.

Lore

In the winding alleys and crowded wards of Ville des Marai, there are places where conversation seems to thin and the air grows still. These are the places where secrets gather. Not spoken secrets - but buried ones. The kind people carry in silence, hoping the world never notices the weight of what they have done.

The Whispering Remains are drawn to such places.

At first, they are barely noticeable - just the faintest suggestion of a voice at the edge of hearing, like a half-remembered conversation drifting on the wind. Many dismiss them as tricks of the mind, or the sounds of a busy city slipping through narrow streets. But those who linger too long begin to notice something unsettling: the whispers begin to speak truth.

They know what was hidden.
They know what was promised - and what was broken.
They know who betrayed whom.

And they do not keep these truths to themselves.

The Whispering Remains serve Mère Grosse, the Fat Mother Loa of Broken Promises, by collecting and distributing the weight of secrets. In her domain, a promise is not merely broken - it is exposed. A hidden affair becomes public ruin. A stolen coin becomes a family’s disgrace. A whispered betrayal becomes a confrontation that shatters trust beyond repair.

These undead are not merely observers. They are instruments of revelation.

Few in Ville des Marai claim to have truly seen a Whispering Remains. Most only ever notice a shadow that lingers too long, stretches too far, or moves when nothing else does. They are not hunters in the traditional sense - they are listeners, patient and unseen. And by the time their whispers are understood, the damage is already done.

They linger in alleys, doorways, and quiet corners, listening. Waiting. Watching for the moment when their presence will matter most - when a secret spoken aloud will not just wound, but fracture. They do not raise their voices; they do not shout. They whisper - softly, patiently - until the truth they carry slips free at the precise moment it will cause the greatest harm.

Some believe they were once people who carried too many secrets, who broke too many promises, and were claimed by Mère Grosse in death. Others believe they are born directly from her will - manifestations of the weight of unkept oaths, given form through the lingering echoes of guilt and betrayal.

Whatever their origin, one thing is certain:

They do not seek to destroy bodies.

They unravel trust.

And in Ville des Marai, that is often far more dangerous.

Puss Caterpillar

Puss Caterpillar (Megalopyge opercularis)

Fine Tiny vermin, CR 1/2

Environment: Warm forests, shrubs, trees, tall grass
Organization: Solitary
Initiative: +0
Speed: 5 ft., climb 5 ft. (good)
AC: 8 (touch 8, flat-footed 8)
HP: 1
Immune: Mind-affecting effects, critical hits
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +0
Abilities: Str 1, Dex 6, Con 10, Int —, Wis 10, Cha 1

Special Attacks

Venomous Setae (Ex)

The caterpillar’s hair-like spines deliver a severe toxin on contact.

A creature that touches, handles, or strikes the caterpillar must succeed on a DC 13 Fortitude save or suffer:

• 2d4 nonlethal damage
• 1d4 nonlethal damage per round for 1d4 rounds
• –2 penalty on attack rolls, skill checks, and ability checks due to intense pain

If the save is failed by 5 or more, the creature also suffers:

• 1 point of Strength damage
• Shaken condition for 1 minute

Special Qualities

Fragile Body (Ex)

• HP 1; any successful attack destroys the caterpillar
• Easily dispatched with a weapon, object, or spell
• However, destruction may still trigger venom if contact occurs

Clinging Spines (Ex)

• Venomous spines remain embedded after contact
• Removing them requires a DC 12 Heal check (full-round action) or adhesive
• Until removed, the victim continues to suffer ongoing nonlethal damage

Radiating Pain (Ex)

• –2 penalty on Concentration checks
• 20% spell failure chance while affected by the venom

Encounter Note

These creatures are not aggressive. They are accidental hazards rather than enemies.

• A creature brushing against foliage may trigger a DC 12 Reflex save to avoid contact
• Attacking the caterpillar is trivial - but careless attacks may still cause exposure

Lore

In the humid green wilds where growth is unchecked and life thrives in tangled abundance, the puss caterpillar is often mistaken for something benign - perhaps even comforting. It resembles a soft tuft of fur or a clump of moss caught on a branch, an illusion that has caused countless travelers, hunters, and children to reach out without hesitation. Those who do rarely make the mistake twice.

Among rural communities and frontier settlements, these creatures are whispered about in hushed tones. Not as predators, but as accidents waiting to happen. Elders warn that beauty in the wild is not always a sign of safety, and the puss caterpillar serves as a grim reminder of that truth. Its pain is remembered long after the swelling fades - a lingering lesson that even the smallest things can carry consequences far out of proportion to their size.

In some regions, particularly those touched by older and stranger magics, there are stories that the puss caterpillar is not merely an insect, but a symbol. A quiet embodiment of hidden suffering - something that looks soft, harmless, even inviting, but delivers pain the moment it is embraced. Certain folk claim these creatures are more common near places where sorrow has lingered or where the veil between life and death feels thin.

A few more superstitious traditions go so far as to associate them with minor spirits of discomfort - harmless in intent, yet insistent in their presence. They are said to “teach respect” through pain alone, never hunting, never chasing, only waiting to be touched. Whether this is merely coincidence or something more deliberate is a question best left unanswered. Those who have felt the caterpillar’s sting tend to agree on one point: it is not an encounter they forget.