Climate/Terrain: Any
Frequency: Common
Organization: Solitary
Activity Cycle: Any
Diet: Special
Intelligence: Exceptional (15-16)
Treasure: Special
Alignment: Chaotic Good


No. Appearing: 1
Armor Class: 10
Movement: 2, Wb 30
Hit Dice: 1
THAC0: 20
No. Of Attacks: 1
Damage/Attacks: 1-2
Special Attacks: DoS
Special Defenses: Firewall, Cryptography
Magic Resistance: 0%
Size: M (6' tall)
Morale: Average (8-10)
XP Value: 300


A rather common form of human. Computer Nerds tend to avoid melee whenever possible, yet if they need to defend their servers, they will not be moved. Despite the common belief that Computer Nerds never leave their lair, which they dub "server room", they are quite often found on the streets. Some Computer Nerds can travel incognito, making passers-by believe that they are regular humans.

Combat: A Computer Nerd will not engage in melee unless there is no other option. They tend to fall easily due to their limited stamina. A Computer Nerd will generally fight dirty, by throwing pieces of hardware to the attacker, or by going for their weak spot. If they're not in melee, they attack their enemy indirectly. Either by doing a DoS attack (5-100) or by running an exploit (40% chance of success, 0-100 damage). If the Computer Nerd makes a successful exploit attack, the chances of him being discovered are 10%. If the Computer Nerd is discovered, there is a 15% chance they can track him to his lair, depending on his defense mechanisms. Computer Nerds defend themselves by building Firewalls (lv. 4 spell) and using Cryptography (lv. 6 spell). If a Computer Nerd has set up a firewall, the attacker must roll a saving throw vs. magic to be able to try to get through it. If the saving throw succeeds, the attacker only has a 5% chance of breaking through the firewall. This chance is increased to 10% if the attacker is also a Computer Nerd. For cryptography the attacker needs to have an intelligence of at least 15. He can then try to identify the type of cryptography used, if he has the "Identify Cryptography" proficiency. When it is identified, the attacker will need to cast a Beowulf spell (lv. 12) and wait.

Habitat/Society: Computer Nerds are not very social creatures. They tend to stay alone, in their lair. When they do come out they socialize with other Computer Nerds, at their so-called "LAN-Parties" and "IRC Meetings". Whenever one of these are taking place, one can find large numbers of drunk Computer Nerds in woods, bars, and even nightclubs. But, however drunk a Computer Nerd may be, he will not give out his root password to anyone.

Ecology: Computer Nerds tend to neglect their surroundings, which causes them to have several dead plants in their lair, and a jungle in their back yard. This works as a defense mechanism against regular humans who dare not enter the lair of a Computer Nerd. The Computer Nerd feeds on caffeinated beverages and soy. If the Computer Nerd is of sufficient level, he will have access to the level 4 spell Microwave, which can turn cold edible materials into warm ones.

Treasure: A Computer Nerd's treasure consists mainly of hardware. They may have some CDs labelled "UNIX" in their lair, but this is not very common (30% chance) when the Computer Nerd has access to a T1 Magic Portal. The software on a Computer Nerd's hardware can not be used, unless another Computer Nerd runs a successful exploit. Sometimes, Computer Nerds have their lair "decorated" with penguins and daemons.


Taken from: AD&D, 2nd Edition, Monstrous Manual (not really)

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