Torgen
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Author: Stephen Kenson
Homepage: http://members.aol.com/talonmail
System: d20 Dungeons and Dragons
Type: NPC
Category: Fantasy
Requirements:

Graphic: Picture

Background:

Torgen is brilliant by ogre standards, making him something of a loner among his own kind. He’s capable of speaking and understanding Common, which has led him to take up a career as a wandering bandit and occasional henchman for anyone wealthy enough to pay him and powerful enough to keep him from simply smashing his employer in the head with his greatclub and making off with said wealth.

Torgen’s been known to offer small groups of foes the opportunity to surrender their valuables to him (along with one or two of their number), allowing the rest to go free, since he knows they will spread stories of how powerful and terrifying he is. Torgen hasn’t really reckoned with the possibility that the people hearing those stories might set out to kill him; he figures he can deal with whatever comes his way. He’s not much for long-term planning. He prefers to figure out where his next meal is coming from and not worry about anything else beyond that.

One of the few things in the world that Torgen hates is being wet. He hates being outside in bad weather, so he usually seeks shelter when it rains or snows. That fre-quently means holing up in some cave or ruin somewhere that can keep him dry, but Torgen has been known to break into barns, homes, or even taverns looking for a dry place to weather a storm, either killing the inhabitants or holding them prisoner until he’s ready to leave. Deliberately getting Torgen wet is a sure way to trigger his barbar-ian rage and bring down the full force of his anger down on the offender (not that the ogre needs much encouragement to fight under other circumstances).

Stats:

Torgen, male ogre Bbn1: CR 5; Large Giant (9 ft. tall); HD 4d8+8 (ogre) plus 1d12+2 (barbarian); hp 44; Init +0; Spd 40 ft.; AC 17 (-1 size, +3 hide armor, +5 natural); Atk +9melee (2d6+7, huge greatclub), +3 ranged (2d6+5, huge longspear); Face/Reach 5 ft. x 5 ft./10 ft.; SA rage 1/day; SQ 60-ft. darkvision; AL CE; SV Fort +8, Ref +0, Will +1; Str 21, Dex 9, Con 15, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 7.

Skills:Climb +4, Intuit Direction +2, Jump +4, Listen +1, Spot +2, Wilderness Lore +1

Feats:Power Attack, Weapon Focus (great-club)

Special Attacks: Rage: Once per day, Torgen can fly into a rage, gaining +4 Str, +4 Con (and +10 hp), a +2 morale bonus on Will saves, and -2 AC (lowering his AC to 15). He receives a +2 bonus to hit in melee combat and inflicts +2 damage while raging (2d6+9 with his club and 2d6+7 with his spear). The rage lasts for 7 rounds, after which Torgen suffers a -2 penalty to Strength for the dura-tion of the encounter. Torgen commonly uses Power Attack while raging to increase the damage of his attacks.

Possessions:hide armor (check penalty -3), huge greatclub, three huge longspears, large satchel containing a collection of sev-ered humanoid heads and skulls, one of which still wears a hat of disguise, along with 120 gp.

Adventure Seeds:

Characters can encounter Torgen in a number of ways. The ogre might simply be passing through the same area as the party, in which case he’ll try to waylay any travelers in order to take their food and money. Or a party may be asked to seek out and slay an ogre causing trouble for local travelers. Torgen often likes to attack from ambush, striking a flat-footed target with his Power Attack and doing a lot of damage in order to intimidate his prey. He doesn’t use his rage ability unless he’s sure there’s going to be a fight, since he can only do it once per day.

Characters seeking shelter from a storm might stumble across the same refuge Torgak is using, such as a cave or abandoned struc-ture, or the characters might find him holding hostages inside an inhabited building. The orge’s smart enough to threaten the lives of his hostages to convince the characters to cooperate, forcing them to deal with him through another means, such as getting him drunk (although that takes copious amounts of wine or beer — at least a barrelful).

Finally, a group may encounter Torgen serving as the henchman of a more powerful master, or possibly the leader of a band of weaker creatures he likes to bully (like orcs, gnolls, or even bugbears). In this case, Torgen may be expanding his raiding activities, making him more of a concern to the local inhabitants (and therefore more likely an enemy of adventurers).