What attribute level would a Balrog be?

[Angelalex242]

My upgraded version:

The Balrog of Moria
Durin’s Bane

Attribute Level: 12
Endurance: 150
Hate: 50
Parry: 12
<u>Armour: 8d</u>

Skills:
<u>Personality 6</u>, Survival 4, <u>Movement 6</u>, Custom 2, <u>Perception 6</u>, Vocation 5

Weapon Skills:
<u>Fiery Blade 6</u>, Whip of Flame 5

Fiery Blade:Damage 15, Edge 8, Injury 22
Called Shot:Double Pierce (opponent makes two injury tests, with the usual results. One is sword based, the other is fire based, on those rare occasions it matters.)

Fiery Whip:Damage 12, Edge 8, Injury 22
Called Shot:Entangle and Double Pierce (Entangle as normal, double pierce as written above)

Special Abilities:
Denizen of the Dark, Dreadful Spells (Fiery Aura)*, Fell Speed, Great Size, Hideous Toughness, Horrible Strength, No Quarter, Savage Assault, Strike Fear (TN20), Thick Hide, Thing of Terror (TN20)

*Fiery Aura: Reduce the Balrog’s Hate by one to inflict 10 points of Endurance damage to every Companion currently engaged in close combat with it.

(Changes:Attribute 10->12 Hate 20->50 (This things took on hundreds of dwarves of Moria. It had to have enough Hate to have the endurance to do that.) Movement 4->6 to represent this is the flying version, Perception 5->6 to represent 'nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.' Great Leap->Fell Speed to represent a flying version, No Quarter added so PCs can't EVEN run away...it's faster then you, tougher then you, and with no quarter, it will not suffer you to live if it can help it. My version will allow no results but a TPK unless the LM for some reason rolls really bad. I want it to KILL YOU DEAD! With perception 6 and movement 6, there's literally nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.)

[Glorelendil]

Did somebody say 12 is the max Attribute Level? (I looked in LMG and couldn't find it.) Whatever the max is, it seems that's what a Balrog should be. Otherwise what's the point of having a max value?

[Rocmistro]

My upgraded version:

The Balrog of Moria
Durin’s Bane

Attribute Level: 12
Endurance: 150
Hate: 50
Parry: 12
<u>Armour: 8d</u>

Skills:
<u>Personality 6</u>, Survival 4, <u>Movement 6</u>, Custom 2, <u>Perception 6</u>, Vocation 5

Weapon Skills:
<u>Fiery Blade 6</u>, Whip of Flame 5

Fiery Blade:Damage 15, Edge 8, Injury 22
Called Shot:Double Pierce (opponent makes two injury tests, with the usual results. One is sword based, the other is fire based, on those rare occasions it matters.)

Fiery Whip:Damage 12, Edge 8, Injury 22
Called Shot:Entangle and Double Pierce (Entangle as normal, double pierce as written above)

Special Abilities:
Denizen of the Dark, Dreadful Spells (Fiery Aura)*, Fell Speed, Great Size, Hideous Toughness, Horrible Strength, No Quarter, Savage Assault, Strike Fear (TN20), Thick Hide, Thing of Terror (TN20)

*Fiery Aura: Reduce the Balrog’s Hate by one to inflict 10 points of Endurance damage to every Companion currently engaged in close combat with it.

(Changes:Attribute 10->12 Hate 20->50 (This things took on hundreds of dwarves of Moria. It had to have enough Hate to have the endurance to do that.) Movement 4->6 to represent this is the flying version, Perception 5->6 to represent 'nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.' Great Leap->Fell Speed to represent a flying version, No Quarter added so PCs can't EVEN run away...it's faster then you, tougher then you, and with no quarter, it will not suffer you to live if it can help it. My version will allow no results but a TPK unless the LM for some reason rolls really bad. I want it to KILL YOU DEAD! With perception 6 and movement 6, there's literally nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.)

Another way you could do this to make it more interesting, I think, is give him a more 'normal' hate rating (say like in the 20-25 range).

Then also give him an ability called "servant of hatred" or something like that. For every hero or npc with attribute rating of 5 or higher that he kills, he earns 1 hate. That way he feeds off his own carnage.

[Angelalex242]

That's a good idea. I should steal it.

Except I'd call it the more thematic 'Flame of Udun' so lesser monsters can't horn in on the ultimate carnage.

[Ferretz]

Ah, I see now that the max Attribute Rating is 12, which is "Dragons, creatures from another age". I remembered, incorrectly, that it was 10. Anyway, the Balrog should have it set at 12 then.

-Eirik

[Mim]

Another great thread. I agree with writing stats for Balrogs, even if you don't ever intend for your heroes to face one & be slaughtered, er, fight one. Yes, an Attribute Level of 12 seems correct.

That said, however, I want to raise two quick points:

1. We've brushed over the key theme that only those who have beheld the light of the Undying Lands can theoretically even face one of these nightmares, let alone beat it. Gandalf sacrificed himself for the Fellowship of the Ring, which contained some of the greatest heroes of the Third Age, & yet the Balrog would probably have cut them all down without the wizard's sacrifice.

2. "Gothmog, Lord of Balrogs, high-captain of Angband, was come..." Everyone keeps talking about the one in Moria. Granted, C7 can't use any of the others (drats), but just imagine the fun you can have writing up another one that fled the First Age. They may have different abilities & weapons. Gothmog, for example, did not survive the First Age, but he wielded a black axe when he slew Fingon, & another one cast a thong of fire about the High King of the Noldor.

[Glorelendil]

1. We've brushed over the key theme that only those who have beheld the light of the Undying Lands can theoretically even face one of these nightmares, let alone beat it. Gandalf sacrificed himself for the Fellowship of the Ring, which contained some of the greatest heroes of the Third Age, & yet the Balrog would probably have cut them all down without the wizard's sacrifice.

In game terms, maybe "beholding the light of the undying lands" increases your Hope by a bunch of points.

[Mim]

Increasing Hope does seem to be about the only way to handle it. Gandalf (+ Narya) rekindles hearts, etc.

[Angelalex242]

Well, yeah. Gandalf's an Istari, wearing one of the 3 elven rings of power, wielding Glamdring, the sword of the king of Gondolin...and the Balrog still took him with him into death. Not bad, Balrog. It's not the Balrog's fault Eru said 'screw it' and brought Gandalf back as the White.

[Glorelendil]

Well, yeah. Gandalf's an Istari, wearing one of the 3 elven rings of power, wielding Glamdring, the sword of the king of Gondolin...and the Balrog still took him with him into death. Not bad, Balrog. It's not the Balrog's fault Eru said 'screw it' and brought Gandalf back as the White.

Balrog spent the next two weeks qq'ing on the forums. "Nerf Istari there OP!"