Captain Hedges' Cosmic Chronicles: Encountering the Void-Leech

Captain Hedges' Cosmic Chronicles: Encountering the Void-Leech

Wednesday, June 25, 2025 Stardate: 25176.3

Good morning, fellow adventurers and spacefarers! With our new log (and fantastic new logo!) charting courses far beyond the Red River, today we're turning our gaze from the bayou's murky depths to the chilling vacuum of deep space. We've talked about the terrors lurking in the swamps, but what about the silent predators of the cosmos?

Today, let's introduce a creature that embodies the slow, insidious dread of the unknown: The Void-Leech (or 'Stellar Siphon'). Forget the gators and oozes of Louisiana; this is a whole new kind of cosmic horror that might just be clinging to your starship right now.

The Void-Leech: An Insidious Cosmic Parasite

Imagine being deep in the void, charting new, unexplored sectors, when your ship's systems begin to falter. It's not a sudden explosion or a glaring red alert, but a gradual, insidious drain. Shields flicker, power conduits dim, and a strange, creeping lethargy seems to settle over the crew. That, my friends, is the signature of the Void-Leech.

This amorphous, highly adaptable organism thrives in the vast emptiness between stars. It's drawn to any concentration of energy – stellar radiation, a ship's humming warp core, or even the faint bio-electric signatures of sentient life passing by. It's a true cosmic parasite, designed by nature (or perhaps something far older) to siphon sustenance from the very fabric of existence.

In the vacuum, it often appears as a shifting, semi-translucent mass, vaguely tentacled or crystalline, blending almost perfectly with nebulae or the dark of deep space. Once it latches onto a ship, it can expand to cover large sections of the hull, its surface rippling with absorbed energy, sometimes glowing with an eerie, internal light. It forms subtle suckers or root-like tendrils that can probe and subtly penetrate the ship's plating.

A Connection to Our Lore:

The Void-Leech embodies a chilling link to the larger narratives we explore. It could be a hardened survivor from a past Cosmic Apocalypse, an organism that evolved to feed on the residual chaotic energies of imploded universes, and now seeks fresh power in our own. Alternatively, it might be a creature that slipped through a faintly opened multiverse portal, attracted by the raw energy of the transit. Could it be a distant, predatory cousin to the Ether Dragons, or a creature that preys on dimensions where power flows unchecked, making it a terrifying new challenge for those seeking refuge in Zimarala?

The Void-Leech (Mature Form - Character Scale: OpenD6 Stats)

This stat block represents a Void-Leech large enough to pose a significant threat to a small to medium-sized starship.

Attributes:

Dexterity: 2D (Slow, deliberate movements in open space, or surprisingly quick "snaps" to attach)

Knowledge: 0D (Mindless, instinct-driven)

Mechanical: 0D

Perception: 4D (Excellent energy and life-sign sensing)

Strength: 4D (For clinging, grappling, and exerting pressure)

Technical: 0D

Physique: 4D (Determines Body Points and resilience)

Skills:

Brawling: Strength +1D (e.g., 5D - for attaching, grappling)

Dodge: Dexterity +1D (e.g., 3D - hard to target in void)

Stealth: Dexterity +2D (e.g., 4D - blends with cosmic background, minimal energy signature until feeding)

Stamina: Physique +2D (e.g., 6D - resilience to environmental effects)

Special Abilities:

Amorphous (Void-Adapted): In the vacuum of space, it can subtly shift its form to avoid direct impacts. It can squeeze through any opening that is not airtight (e.g., minute hull breaches, conduit access panels). Immune to critical hits from physical attacks.

Blindsight (Energy/Life Signature): Can "see" and pinpoint energy sources (power conduits, reactors, life forms) up to 100 meters. This ignores darkness, smoke, and most physical obstructions.

Void Dweller: Does not require oxygen, food (other than energy), or water. Immune to vacuum, extreme cold, and radiation.

Energy Siphon (Passive): When within 50 meters of a power source (ship reactor, large battery, high-energy plasma conduit), it passively drains 1D of the ship's energy (GM determines what this affects, e.g., shields, auxiliary power) per round. This can be detected with a Moderate Technical (Sensors) roll (DC 15).

Psychic Static (Passive): While draining, it emits a low-level psychic "dread." Crew within 20 meters of the point of attachment must make a Moderate Willpower roll (DC 14) each hour or suffer a -1D penalty to all social and Knowledge rolls due to increasing unease and mental fatigue. This effect is cumulative but fades 1D per hour after the leech is removed.

Damage Resistance: 3D (vs. all physical damage from non-energy weapons like slugthrowers, kinetic impacts). 1D (vs. Energy damage unless specific weakness).

Vulnerability (Specific Frequency - Variable): The Void-Leech has a specific energy frequency it is vulnerable to (e.g., a high-frequency sonic pulse, a precisely calibrated electromagnetic burst, or a specific wavelength of laser). Attacks using this specific frequency ignore its Damage Resistance entirely. GM chooses this frequency for the encounter.

Maneuvers:

Attach (Attack): Strength + Brawling. The Void-Leech attempts to latch onto a ship's hull or a large object. On a successful hit, it is Attached. Once attached, it cannot be easily removed without extreme force or specific countermeasures (see Weaknesses). While Attached, its Energy Siphon effect increases to 2D per round on the section it's draining.

Life Siphon (Special Attack): Once attached, if it can make a direct physical connection (e.g., through a breached hull, to exposed wiring or a being), it can use its Strength + Brawling to initiate a Grapple on a target. While grappled, the target takes Strength+1D Stun Damage (representing life/energy drain) per round. If a target is reduced to 0 Stun, they become unconscious. This also contributes to the ship's overall energy drain.

Move: 2 (slow drift in open space), 0 (when attached)

Body Points: 40 (for a mature, character-scale Void-Leech).

Scale: Character (can impact smaller vehicles, but primarily a threat to larger ships by attrition)

Weaknesses and How to Defeat It:

Defeating a Void-Leech often requires ingenuity more than brute force, turning a combat encounter into a tense puzzle.

Energy Overload: While it feeds on energy, a massive, focused, and sudden energy surge (e.g., overloading the local power conduit it's draining, a direct supercharged energy weapon blast) can cause it to recoil, suffer massive damage, or even explode. This requires precise targeting and a very high Technical (Electronics) or Mechanical (Starship Weapons) roll (DC 25+).

Frequency Disruption: This is its primary vulnerability. If the crew can identify and broadcast a specific sonic frequency, electromagnetic pulse, or laser wavelength (requiring successful Knowledge [Xenology/Physics] or Technical [Sensors/Comms] rolls), the leech will become disoriented, release its hold, and take significant damage. This often requires research and experimentation.

Extreme Cold (Cryo-Burst): While immune to normal space cold, an artificially generated, intense burst of super-cold energy (e.g., from a modified cryo-unit or cold-fusion exhaust vent) can cause its amorphous form to crystallize and shatter. This could potentially damage the hull, but it would destroy the creature.

Internal Breach (and Explosive Decompression): If the leech manages to create a small, internal environment by breaching the hull, a rapid depressurization (controlled explosive decompression) within that compartment could rip it apart. This is high-risk but potentially very effective.

Localized Over-Heat/Plasma Vent: Routing a ship's plasma exhaust or venting superheated coolant directly onto the attached section could effectively cook it off, but again, risks damaging the ship's hull integrity.

Psychic Overwhelm: If the creature relies heavily on psychic drain, a powerful, focused psychic attack (e.g., a Psi skill roll vs. its Willpower or a high DC) could destabilize its mental cohesion, forcing it to detach or even causing it to violently unravel.

Encounter Scenarios & Plot Hooks:

These creatures provide excellent opportunities for ship-based mysteries and survival challenges.

"The Ghost in the Machine":

Setup: The PCs' starship, or a space station they're docked at, experiences baffling, intermittent power fluctuations. Sensors show nothing conclusive, but auxiliary systems keep failing, and the crew reports increasing fatigue and irritability.

Encounter: Eventually, a sharp-eyed crew member spots a shimmering anomaly on an external camera feed, or a direct physical hull inspection reveals the Void-Leech subtly draining a vital conduit. The challenge becomes identifying it, understanding its unique nature, and finding its specific frequency vulnerability before critical systems fail or the crew succumbs to its Psychic Static.

Hook: What if the leech is feeding on something specific and unusual in the ship, like an experimental fuel source, or the psychic resonance of a particular passenger?

"Derelict Harvest":

Setup: The PCs discover a seemingly abandoned ship adrift and dark in deep space. Its power signatures are critically low, and no life signs are detected. Upon boarding, they find the crew either comatose or suffering from severe, inexplicable mental fatigue.

Encounter: The Void-Leech (or a cluster of them) is still actively attached and feeding, using the derelict as a kind of mobile "nest." The PCs must figure out what's happening, revive the crew if possible, and detach the leech without becoming its next victims.

Hook: The derelict ship's logs might contain chilling clues to the leech's origin, perhaps linking it to a lost expedition into forbidden cosmic regions or a dangerous celestial phenomenon.

"The Aether-Drifter Swarm":

Setup: The PCs are transiting near a peculiar, energetic nebula or a region of highly unstable space (perhaps near a faintly discernible multiverse portal signature). Suddenly, their ship is hit by multiple small energy drains, rapidly accumulating.

Encounter: They quickly realize they are caught in a swarm of numerous juvenile Void-Leeches, far too many to destroy individually with targeted fire. The primary challenge is to find a way to repel them all at once (e.g., a widespread frequency burst, a synchronized power surge across the hull, or a tactical short-range jump through a less dense area of the swarm).

Hook: Is the nebula or the unstable portal actively creating these creatures, or are they migrating towards something immense and powerful at its core? Is there a larger "Queen Leech" or hive mind at the center of the swarm influencing them?

"The Accidental Passenger":

Setup: After passing through an active multiverse portal (perhaps on a mission related to scouting a path to Zimarala), the ship seems fine, but a subtle, persistent energy drain is detected from within its own internal systems, not external.

Encounter: A small, larval Void-Leech was inadvertently brought aboard during transit, hiding within a power conduit, a less-used cargo bay, or a maintenance shaft. It begins to grow rapidly on the ship's internal energy, becoming more dangerous as it expands and moves through the ship's veins. The PCs must hunt it down within the confines of their own vessel, risking power fluctuations and localized hull breaches.

Hook: Did the Ether Dragons know about this specific threat, or is it a new, evolving danger of portal travel? Is this a common problem for ships crossing dimensions, requiring new protocols for interdimensional hygiene?

Lifecycle and Variants:

The Void-Leech's lifecycle and potential variants can add layers of complexity and escalating threats to your campaigns.

Larval/Spore Form: Microscopic, energy-hungry spores that drift passively through space, sometimes in vast clouds. They attach to any significant energy-emitting surface (ships, asteroids with high radiation, even distant stars) and begin to subtly absorb energy. Highly vulnerable to even minor energy bursts or environmental shifts.

Juvenile Void-Leech: Grows from a successful spore attachment. Still relatively small (human-sized or larger), but can move more purposefully and drain energy more effectively. Often found in swarms or clinging to larger space debris. Might have a weaker, localized Psychic Static effect.

Mature Void-Leech (Base Stat Block above): The most common ship-disabling threat, actively hunting for larger energy sources.

Elder Void-Leech / Hive Mind: Massive, potentially kilometers in size, capable of being mistaken for small asteroids or derelict stations. This could be a stationary "colony" that filters energy from nebulae, or a slow-moving, living celestial body. It no longer drains individual ships but feeds on entire star systems or massive stellar phenomena (e.g., absorbing light from a dimming star). It might develop rudimentary intelligence, limited communication, and even the ability to mentally "herd" smaller Void-Leeches. Its psychic drain could become an active telepathic assault, causing mass panic, hallucinations, or madness.

Specialized Variants:

Plasma-Leech: Specialized in feeding on high-energy plasma (e.g., from starship engines, plasma torpedoes). Immune to plasma damage but vulnerable to kinetic impacts or gravitic forces.

Psychic-Leech: Primarily feeds on psychic energy, morale, and sanity. Its drain causes less physical impact on the ship but devastating mental and emotional effects on the crew, potentially inducing hallucinations, paranoia, or acute despair. It would have a significantly higher Willpower attribute and perhaps a unique psychic attack maneuver.

Dark Matter Leech: Camouflaged by dark matter, it is almost impossible to detect by conventional means, feeding on exotic energies or subtle gravitational fluctuations within dark matter currents. Its attacks might cause temporary mass alteration or localized gravity shifts within the ship, throwing crew off balance or making objects heavier/lighter.

This comprehensive breakdown should give you all the tools you need to introduce the terrifying Void-Leech into your cosmic adventures, Captain Hedges! May your shields hold and your sensors stay sharp!

Open Game License (OGL) for The Void-Leech

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Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

System Reference Document 5.1 Copyright 2016, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, Rodney Thompson, Peter Lee, James Wyatt, Robert J. Schwalb, Bruce R. Cordell, Chris Sims, and Steve Townshend, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.

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PRODUCT IDENTITY: The following are designated as Product Identity, as defined in Section 1(e) of the Open Game License Version 1.0a, and are not Open Game Content: "Captain Hedges Across Time and Space," "Captain Hedges," "Captain Hedges' Midweek Musings," "Captain Hedges' Cosmic Chronicles," "Adventures of Captain Hedges Weblog," "Bayou Earl," "Nocturnis Wrestling League (NWL)," "Saturday Showdown," "Wednesday Night Mayhem," "W=One," "Sunday Night Forge," "Zimarala," "Humans Himans," "Nocturnis," "The City's Unseen Itch," "Psychic Static" (as specifically tied to The City's Unseen Itch), "Shadow Phasing," "Nightmare Engine," "Whispers of Doubt," "Aura of Decay," "Dream Plague," "Psychic Scream," "Apex Nymph," "Hive Core," "Siphon City Heat," "Control Over City Rats/Pigeons," "Nocturnis Neo-Noir," "Nocturnis Noir," "Slodge," "Sludge Junk Monster," "Void-Leech," "Stellar Siphon," "Log cabin" (as descriptive of Captain Hedges' residence), "Cypress Swamp" (as descriptive of Captain Hedges' setting), "Red River" (as descriptive of Captain Hedges' setting), "Shreveport, Louisiana" (as descriptive of Captain Hedges' setting), "Uncle Bill," "Uncle Jerry," "Uncle Elmer," "Uncle Greg," "Lovewell," "Tiger Force Shadow Saga," "Cosmic Apocalypse" (as a thematic element/concept within Captain Hedges' specific lore), "Ether Dragons," and any specific narrative details, proper nouns, storylines, unique character names, artwork, and trade dress associated with these elements and the works of Captain Hedges.

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