Faces of the Tarnished Souk: Ur-Shogga, the All-Consuming Thought (PFRPG) by Matt Banach and Justin Sluder is a role playing game supplement published by Rite Publishing for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. As such, it is covered by the Open Game License and some parts are considered to be Open Game Content as a result. This is a single NPC at three different CRs.
The supplement is available as a 29-page PDF from DriveThruRPG for $2.95 but was purchased at a reduced price as part of a special bundle. One page is the front cover, one the front matter, one the Open Game License and one page is an ad.
Ur-Shogga, the All-Consuming Thought starts with background on Ur-Shogga, an intellect devourer who escaped from the Khan of Nightmares and now lives in the Tarnished Souk with a diverse collection of bodies to inhabit, with a desire to inhabit even more. This also covers Dreamburning, where the intellect devourer’s most common host body can be found, lore and using it in-game.
The three different versions follow, arranged in the book from high to low CR. Each has the rakshasa and arcane (sage) bloodlines.
The CR 7 version is a locomotion handicapped intellect devourer sorcerer (crossblooded, wildblooded) 1.
The CR 14 version is a cunning locomotion handicapped intellect devourer sorcerer (crossblooded, wildblooded) 10
The CR 21 version is an advanced cunning locomotion handicapped intellect devourer sorcerer (crossblooded, wildblooded) 16.
Next are archetypes. Crossblooded is a sorcerer archetype which is a bloodline that combines the powers of two distinct heritages. The smuggler is a rogue who, unsurprisingly, specialises in moving contraband from one place to another. Wildblooded is another sorcerer archetype which is a mutated version of a more common bloodline with one arcana and at least one bloodline power that are different. Sage is associated with the arcane bloodline and they use their Intelligence to determine class features. Rakshasa bloodline is self-explanatory.
New feats, traits and spells are followed by some new magic items. Next are templates. Accelerated creature is one that is fast, advanced creature is more powerful, apex predator is a formidable hunter, cunning is sly, locomotion handicapped is one with damaged limbs and young is not as strong.
Next are Ur-Shogga’s host bodies. Each of these are fully statted. There are four CR 13, four CR 9 and three CR 4. The intellect devourer’s favourite host is statted for each level; the others are all different, making an additional nine different creatures, one at three CRs.
Faces of the Tarnished Souk: Ur-Shogga, the All-Consuming Thought (PFRPG) in Review
The PDF is bookmarked with major and minor sections linked. Navigation is decent. The text maintains a two-column format and appeared to be free of error. As well as the custom cover illustration, there are a number of what appear to be stock black and white illustrations. Presentation is decent.
Ur-Shogga is an interesting creature. It’s highly intelligent, and has difficulty dealing with lesser minds, and the CR 21 version has an Intelligence so high that this counts as almost everyone. It also knows that it isn’t combat suited and is intelligent enough that it will avoid such. Instead, it will scheme behind the scenes, and characters may never know they are dealing with it. Especially as it could be hiding in anyone’s head. No corpse is safe from being a host. The sheer amount of supplementary material, which is essentially a bunch of statted secondary NPCs, many of them dangerous in their own right, is staggering. Perhaps the biggest problem for a GM is playing Ur-Shogga as intelligently as it should be. Faces of the Tarnished Souk: Ur-Shogga, the All-Consuming Thought (PFRPG) is a dangerous, intelligent, highly competent NPC and it can be found by clicking here.
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