A bit like the previous two posts on the Companion boxed set (first was the Player's Companion, the second was the front half of the Dungeon Masters Companion), I'm going to skim through the next major part of the Companion Boxed set, the Monster section in the Dungeon Masters Companion. Their relevance and usefulness to Kaelaross will be noted.
Beholder: A staple of D&D and its variants at high levels of play. In Kaelaross beholders are associated with Bhael and have come through Chaos Portals from planes of Chaos influenced by Bhael.
Blast Spore: I'm not sure if the AD&D gas spores were a good idea, and I have my doubts about this translation into BECMI D&D. I would say they are not native to Kaelaross but could be summoned if the DM chooses.
Dolphin: Although not strongly lawful, dolphins sometimes find themselves at odds with chaotic sea creatures and are famous for helping humans who have fallen into the water. They are found in seas and oceans all around Kaelaross, including the Walrus Channel and around the coast of Teiglin and the Godsblood Straits.
Dragons, Large and Huge versions of the six main colours. Definitely found dotted around Kaelaross, though not common. As described in an earlier post about dragons..
Dragon Turtle: Already established
Drolem: A very powerful construct. The students of Gerontium would love to get their hands on the formula for creating one of these. The Cynideans reputedly found and recorded this formla but it was lost when their civilisation was buried under the sands of the desert.
Gargantua: These variants of regular monsters are a matter of Chaos and mutation rather than human wizardry. Gargantuan trolls, ogres, minotaurs and hellhounds have been seen around some chaos portals, especially the ones in Aerisport and Maquosmouth
Gremlin: Surprisingly low level for the Companion set. However, these chaotic imp-like critters have originated from the Planes of Chaos, through Chaos Portals and have now spread out over Kaelaross, including civilised places such as Ironmarket, the Sterin Barony and Thaldion in Teiglin.
Golem, Mud: Added to the range of constructs controlled by the Students of Gerontium. Mud Golems are often used for patrolling the Maquos riverbed and estuary.
Golem, Obsidian: Possible, but unremarkable. Most mages creating constructs find other types more interesting or effective.
Grab Grass: As it does no damage, Grab Grass by itself is just an annoyance. Hoever, combining it with other creatures (particularly airborne, missile-using or otherwise avoiding the grass) it can be a nasty part of an ambush or set encounter.
Haunt: All three types are powerful undead intended to challenge high-level characters. Also given their natures, it seems better to say they are found occasionally, but do not have any specific ranges or habitats, although areas where other undead are found is more likely.
Malfera: These semi-demons come from one of the lower planes of Chaos and only rarely emerge from the Chaos Portals.
Manscorpion: Believed to have originally been a splinter-faction of the Cynideans who followed a chaotic god, possibly Slargor. When they were chased into the desert by other Cynideans angered by their bloody worship, Slargor turned them into manscorpions so that they could survive in the desert even when their former culture collapsed.
Manta Ray: These warm-water fishes are not normally found around temperate Toutus, but are more common around Bellenos including Tekhumis.
Mujina: These masters of deception are the creations of Pelepton. Though they have originated on the Planes of Chaos and emerged from Chaos Portals, they have spread out and infiltrated human society. They have been encountered in many different places, including the Walrus Freehold and Tekhumis.
Phantom: These three types of undead (Apparition, Shade and Vision) are all powerful and dangerous enough to rival vampires.
Rock or Cave Toad: This would have been better in either the Basic or Expert set as it is fairly low level, though it's hypnotic gaze sets it apart from more conventional giant toads. Colonies are found in pools, streams and rivers across Toutus (particularly the Twisted Hills) but not Bellenos - it prefers Temperate and Subarctic climates.
Shark: This is an entry that was in the Cook Expert set but not the Mentzer Expert set, so it was included in the Companion set. All three can be found in the seas of Kaelaross. The Great White and Bull Shark prefer warmer waters, while the Mako can be found along the coast of southern Toutus including off the shores of Teiglin and the Godsblood Straits. The Walrus Channel has its own type of shark, the Arctic Shark, that has the same stats as a Great White, but only moves at half the speed (90').
Snow Ape: These chaotic primates are found on high mountains, particularly those with glaciers and snowy caps. There are populations in the Grulven Mountains, the Cortacus Mountains and even some reported in the Valhorrian heights in Klantorr Island.
Spectral Hound: Since the "Dimensional Vortex" is not part of Kaelaross' cosmology, I'm not sure if the spectral hound fits into Kaelaross. If you swap the "Dimensional Vortex" with the Ethereal plane, then Spectral Hounds become more usable.
Spirit: The three types of spirit (Druj, Odic and Revenant) are intended to be even more powerful and challenging than the other types of undead (the Phantom and Haunt). While I would not exclude them, I am not sure exactly where or how they would fit into Kaelaross.
Weasel, Giant: These vicious predators are found in temperate woodlands across Toutus, including the Shorgan and Talloak forests.
Whale: Like the entry for sharks, this was in the Cook Expert set but not in the Mentzer Expert set. All three (Killer Whale, Narwhal, Sperm Whale) are found around Toutus, with the Narwhal preferring the cooler waters of the Walrus Freehold and Varreshiss Islands. Sperm Whales range widely across the deep oceans, and sometimes swim around the islands that used to be the Bellenos Empire.
Planar Creatures
Aerial Servant (Elemental Plane of Air)
Djinni, Greater (Elemental Plane of Air)
Efreeti, Greater (Elemental Plane of Fire)
Elemental (HD 1-32, Any Elemental Plane)
Helion (Elemental Plane of Fire)
Horde (Elemental Plane of Earth)
Hydrax (Elemental Plane of Water)
Kryst (Elemental Plane of Earth)
Plasm (Any Elemental Plane)
Undine (Elemental Plane of Water)
All these creatures are from the elemental planes rather than the planes of Law or Chaos. Since a lot of my posts have focused on the Chaos Portals and the creatures that travel from the Planes of Chaos into Kaelaross, these creatures offer a break from that. If any DM wants to take their game into the elemental planes, these creatures could well be useful.
Sunday, 26 August 2012
Friday, 24 August 2012
Dungeon of the Month August 2012
The Subterranean River Lair
This is a short dungeon that could be added onto the side of a larger dungeon level or on its own. It uses the D&D Basic/Expert rules or Labyrinth Lord and is suited for characters of levels 2-4
The lizardmen around this dungeon are neutral with chaotic tendancies. They are under the command of a chaotic lizardman priest who is trying to convert the tribe to the worship of Slargor. Killing him would mean the surviving lizardmen becoming disenchanted with worshiping Chaos and drifting back to neutrality.
1) The Entrance: 5 lizardmen (hp 8, 9, 6, 17,13) guarding the stone bridge over the river, plus 2 giant piranha (hp 21, 16) in the river. The lizardmen will try to knock anyone in metal armour into the river.
2) Guard post: 2 lizardmen (hp 13, 15) plus food supplies (salted meat from various animals, smoked fish and parts of giant insects).
3) Empty apart from a pair of human corpses in the middle of the room and a scythe trap over the doorway. Anyone entering the room triggers the trap that sends a scythe swinging down at anyone in the doorway. THAC0 10, Dam 1d8+2. It only attacks once, after which the lizardmen have to reset it.
4) 2 lizardmen (hp 6, 11), 2 giant toads (hp 12, 10) guarding the bridge plus 2 giant piranhas (hp 16, 11) in the river. There is a stone bridge across the river.
In the river under the bridge there is a corpse of a lizardman leader who still wears a silver and coral necklace worth 640gp. However, it will take some careful searching underwater (2 in 6 per person per turn) to find the corpse.
5) 1 Lizardman Priest (AC 5, HD 4+2*, hp 21, Move 60', swim 120', THAC0 14, Att 1 mace, Dam 1d6+2, Spec Att spells, Save C4, Ml 11, Align Chaotic, XP value 290) who wields a Mace+1 and whose spells include Darkness, Cure Light Wounds and Bane (reverse of Bless) , plus 2 lizardmen (hp 10, 10)
On an island in the pool is a crude clay statue of Slargor with lizardman-like features including a snout and long scaly tail, wielding his signature two crossed axes.
6) Breeding Chamber: 4 lizardmen (hp 11, 7, 15, 15) plus 5 young (non-combatants) plus 7 eggs
7) 4 giant geckos (hp 20, 11, 18, 18) guarding a treasure chest. This chest contains 3500gp, 10,000sp, a potion of invisibility,10 gold ingots worth 100gp each, 20 silver ingots worth 100sp (10gp) each, an amphora of fine wine worth 200gp (maybe more to a wine connoisseur) and a bolt of fine silk worth 600gp.
8) Upstream mouth - this could lead to other dungeon areas, or it could be blocked off by an impassable iron grill.
9) 3 giant piranhas (hp 17, 21, 13) patrol this area of the river and will attack any intruders or prey (i.e. anything other than a piranha).
10) Downstream tunnel - similar to the upstream end, this could lead to other dungeon areas, or it could be blocked by an impassable iron grill.
11) 1 gelatinous cube (hp 17) is sweeping this room. As the room is dark and the gelatinous cube has nothing suspended in it, it has a good chance to surprise any opponents.
12) Empty, having recently been swept clean by the 'cube.
13) 2 ghouls (hp 8, 6) have been trapped here by the cube and are ravenous. When any humanoid enters, the ghouls leap to the attack at +1 to hit but also +1 penalty to AC (from 6 to 7). In among the debris in the ghoul's room there is a silver tiara studded with 6 peridots worth 1400gp.
14) Empty
15) The Trog Den: 3 troglodytes (hp 14, 7, 10) live here. They are allies of convenience with the lizardmen, though they don't necessarily like each other (the lizardmen think the troglodytes smell horrible, and the troglodytes consider the lizardmen easily cowed). If the lizardmen are losing against PC attacks, then they may regroup here with the troglodytes. The troglodytes have one interesting advantage - the piranhas leave them alone because their offensive odour is detectable underwater, making them unappetizing to giant piranhas.
In the northeast corner of the troglodyte den there is a pile of chewed-up fish bones. Underneath this is a leather sack with the troglodytes' treasure: 1,100gp, 2000sp and 10 gems (3 small magma stones worth 200gp each, 4 jades worth 100gp each and 3 large ambers worth 150gp each, totalling 1450gp worth)
Monster XP distribution #1 235+130 = 365xp, #2 94xp, #4, 94+142+130=366xp, #5 290+94=384xp, #6 188xp, #7 400xp, #9 195xp, #11 245xp, #13 94xp, #15 114xp
total = 2445xp for all monsters in dungeon
Saturday, 31 March 2012
NPCs of Walrus City part 2
Shemeera of Sestarna
9th level halfling defender, align lawful, female
Str 13, Int 13, Wis 15, Dex 10, Con 10, Cha 12
Equipment: Chain mail +1, Mace +1, Shield +1, holy symbol, 2 vials of holy water
Spells: Cure Light Wounds, Light, Bless, Hold Person, Cure Serious Wounds, Cure Disease
Shemeera follows Sestarna, goddess of hope and healing, and hopes to establish a shrine to her deity in Walrus City. In the meantime she has set up a home that also functions as an orphanage, hospital and welfare centre looking after the poor and needy. Word of her good work has spread around Walrus City, generating a range of reactions. Some of the more charitable merchants and middle classes have donated food, blankets, clothes and money to her home, but some malevolent folk seek to undermine and sabotage her work.
Appearance: Shemeera is a middle aged halfling, with blonde-turning-silvery hair in a bob and a friendly, relaxed face. She stands 3'2" and is still fairly fit and slim. She usually wears her holy robes, but may wear her chain mail underneath.
Gunderan Longdagger
10th level thief, align Chaotic, male
Str 14, Int 10, Wis 10, Dex 16, Con 9, Cha 12
Equipment: Leather Armour, Sword +1, Dagger +1, thieves tools, backpack
Gunderan is the leader of a gang of thieves that work the harbour market area of Walrus City. Gunderan has met members of the Red Hand but has not fully joined them. Nevertheless, for the right payment he is quite willing to work with them. He does not see himself as evil and considers himself a tough guy trying to survive in a tough world. Quite often his actions are not so much deliberately evil so much as callously pragmatic. He has previously worked with Darreth Stonefire and Melduvia Zalnin, both of whom have become innkeepers.
Appearance: Gunderan is 5'11", slim, athletic (120lb) and with iron grey hair and grey moustache and sideburns. He has a thin, hawk-like face apart from a disjointed nose that has been broken several times. He usually dresses in dark clothes that are smart but also good for hiding in shadows, and always carries his sword and dagger.
Telleshan the Sorceress
14th level magic user, align neutral, female
Str 8, Int 17, Wis 12, Dex 10, Con 13, Cha 13
Equipment: Staff of Wizardry (14 charges), Ring of Regeneration, Amulet of ESP
Notable memorised Spells:
7th level: Lore, Reverse Gravity
6th level: Anti-Magic Shell, Stone to Flesh, Invisible Stalker
5th level: Conjure Elemental, Feeblemind, Teleport
4th level: Wizard Eye, Polymorph Self, Wall of Ice, Dimension Door
Telleshan is the most renowned mage in Walrus City, famous for single-handedly slaying a rampaging frost salamander that attacked the city walls. Although she is not a merchant she is often consulted by them on magical matters. She is also the unofficial ambassador to Najask, as she know some of the Magocracy personally. She tries to stay out of business rivalries and intrigues of the merchants, and also deliberately avoids getting dragged into other peoples schemes. She will sometimes help adventurers with problems involving magic, especially if they are willing to pay her in kind (finding a particular item, investigating a mysterious place for her and the like).
Appearance: Telleshan is 5'3" tall, 160lb and rounded and quite plump. She looks more like a matronly aunt than a powerful spellcaster, with her brownish hair tied up into a bun. She dresses smartly, in town clothes that do not indicate her wizardry, though anyone will notice she constantly walks around with an unusual staff.
Siswasa Harrani
6th level Elf Ranger, unaligned
Str 13, Int 11, Wis 10, Dex 16, Con 10, Cha 11
Equipment: Leather Armour, Shortbow, 20 arrows, Sword +1, Boots of Elvenkind
Siswasa is a renegade from the Orchunter Clan who has fallen in with the crime gangs of Walrus City. Although her ranger training is of some use in the city, she is uncomfortable and wants to move on, but she is not sure where as she doesn't want to go back to the Twilight Forest. She has never said what has made her flee from the Twilight Forest, but she has dropped hints that she killed another elf either in anger or self-defence. Siswasa is very cautious around other elves and becomes quite paranoid if they are from the Twilight Forest. She has been involved in crimes with Gunderan Longdagger, but unlike him she has never been caught or punished.
Appearance: Siswasa is like most elf maidens - slim, petite and quite pretty. She stands 4'11" and has golden blonde hair, but she keeps her head covered with a large hooded cloak as she does not like attention. She dresses in rough-and-ready street clothes, with her leather armour underneath.
Dannagor Goldtooth
6th level dwarf warrior, unaligned
Str 10, Int 14, Wis 10, Dex 8, Con 16, Cha 12
Equipment: Chain Mail +1, "Bugswatter" (Hammer +1 +2 vs invertebrates), dagger,
Dannagor is a fence, a shady merchant who does whatever he can to make a profit. He knows not to cheat those he regularly deals with unless he is certain he won't be caught. Dannagor can be very annoying and full of himself, varying between the ingratiating toadying around important customers and town officials to dismissive contempt to anyone he considers lower than himself. When he talks about himself he will exaggerate anything good and conveniently ignore anything bad, even when the people he's talking to know the truth.
Dannagor's redeeming feature is that he is fond of children of any race, and as such he has donated some (ill-gotten) money to Shemeera of Sestarna to help with her orphanage-hospital.
Appearance: Dannagor is 4'1", 150lb, with iron-grey hair, balding on top. He does not have the traditional full beard of most dwarves but has thick sideburns linking up with a full moustache without any hair on the chin. Dannagor considers himself a respectable merchant and dresses as such, in dwarf-style smart town clothes. He only wears chainmail underneath if he is expecting trouble.
Monday, 19 March 2012
NPCs of Walrus City 3 - the Innkeepers
The inns and taverns mentioned here are marked on the map of Walrus City.
Darreth Stonefire
10th level dwarf warrior, align Unaligned, male
Str 16, Int 10, Wis 12, Dex 9, Con 16, Cha 12
AC 3, Move 60', HP 56, THAC0 9 melee or 12 thrown, Dam 1d8+3 or 1d6+2
Equipment: Chain mail +2, Battleaxe +1 +3 vs giants, trolls & ogres, 3 throwing axes
Darreth is a retired adventurer and mercenary who has bought an inn called The Trollhunter Arms, and settled down in Walrus City. He is not very trustworthy and he knows some shady characters. Get on his wrong side and you might be pick-pocketed, burgled or drugged. The city watch know that Darreth is not exactly a law-abiding citizen, but they have yet to catch him acting in a criminal manner - whenever something bad happens to those who have been in his inn, he claims it is merely unfortunate coincidence.
Darreth still has the dwarven weakness for gold, and although he does not like to get his hands dirty, he will tip off allied thieves about wealthy customers in exchange for a cut.
Appearance: Darreth is 4'4" (tall for a dwarf), weighs 140lb and has iron-grey beard and hair, both of which are kept quite short. He has a notable scar across the left forehead and temple. He usually wears a normal innkeeper's apron over town clothes unless he is expecting trouble, but he always has his battleaxe stashed behind the bar if customers get out of hand.
Melduvia Zalnin
4th level thief, align Neutral, female
Str 11, Int 11, Wis 9, Dex 16, Con 13, Cha 13
AC 3, Move 120', HP 16, THAC0 18 melee, 15 missile, Dam 1d6 (mace) or 1d6+1 (crossbow)
Equipment: Leather Armour, Ring of Protection +2, Light Crossbow +1, 20 bolts, mace, thieves tools, potion of healing
Melduvia is a former criminal trying to go straight She owns and runs the Old Owl inn which she wants to keep as a respectable establishment, but old associates still involved in crime keep turning up. Melduvia still knows quite a bit about the seedy underbelly of Walrus City, but she is reluctant to talk about it to anyone as she does not want to get involved again. Melduvia is thinking of moving to either Najask or Trislem for a fresh start.
Appearance: Melduvia is 45, 5'6", 110lb and still quite attractive. She wears smart town clothes wherever she goes and could be mistaken for a nobleman's wife. She has light brown hair which she keeps in a bun, fair skin and green eyes. She enjoys wearing jewellery, usually cheap (turquoise and lapis lazuli) but not obviously so.
Tarnist Wildwanderer
6th level fighter, align Neutral, male
Str 16, Int 11, Wis 13, Dex 9, Con 16, Cha 9
AC 3, Move 90', HP 35, THAC0 12 melee, Dam 1d8+3
Equipment: Chain Mail +2, Sword +1, Dagger +1, Ring of Cold Resistance
Tarnist is a retired trapper who has spent 15 years on Icemud Tundra and in the Twilight Forest. He has made quite a lot of money from the fur trade and has retired to become the innkeeper of the Crossed Swords tavern, a favourite among old soldiers, mercenaries and adventurers. Tarnist now has a wife and a baby son, and he is trying to adapt to this new way of life, but he keeps listening to other peoples' stories and remembering his previous career. He could prove useful to adventurers as he gets asked by both those with problems adventurers might solve, and by those looking for adventure. However, he does his best to keep things legitimate, and has been known to kick out those who use his inn for planning crimes.
Appearance: Tarnist is a tall (6'4"), red-headed northerner, he claims to be half-barbarian and he certainly looks the part. He has pale skin, blue eyes and reddish hair including a drooping handlebar moustache. His hooked nose, deep brows and large chin make him look particularly fierce. He has lost two of the fingers on his left hand (he says he lost them in a fight but he was actually mishandling a spring-loaded trap) and has scars from some claws on his right forearm (genuine, from a fight with a grizzly bear). He wears rugged clothes, usually leather or fur, plus his chain mail tunic even when behind his bar.
Tellimi
NM, unaligned, female
Str 10, Int 9, Wis 7, Dex 10, Con 10, Cha 9
AC 9, Move 120', HP 3, THAC0 20, Dam 1d8
Equipment: Sword
Tellimi was born into the tavern-keeping tradition as was her father and grandfather, but she is not particularly proud of that. She acts all dark and mysterious because she is rather envious that other tavern and inn owners have adventurous or shady pasts whereas hers is boring. She has dropped hints that she is actually a magic user keeping a low profile, and this has been picked up by one or two shady characters who don't realise she is bluffing.
Appearance: Tellimi is 5'2", 100lb and rather plain and dull looking. She has black hair she keeps short, and has pale skin. She often wears dark dresses or gowns to add to her air of mystery and looks a bit like a goth.
Natchor Highfiddle
2nd level Halfling Scout, align Lawful, male
Str 10, Int 11, Wis 10, Dex 13, Con 10, Cha 12
AC 6, Move 60', hp 6, THAC0 18 for 1d6+1 (shortsword) or 1d4 (throwing daggers)
Equipment: Leather Armour, Shortsword +1, 4 throwing daggers
Natchor has settled down in Walrus City having fled the Summoning further south fifty years ago as a youngster with his parents. He briefly flirted with being an adventurer, but saw several of his friends get killed, and decided to quit adventuring while he was alive. He now makes no bones about preferring quiet safety over adventure and riches. These days Natchor runs the Worried Warlock tavern, and is very house-proud. Some would say he takes neatness and tidiness too far, but he just likes things to be in good condition and in their right place.
Appearance: Natchor is a typical halfling, standing 3'2" and with light brown hair kept short and large sideburns. He wears halfling-style town clothes most of the time and keeps his leather armour
Darreth Stonefire
10th level dwarf warrior, align Unaligned, male
Str 16, Int 10, Wis 12, Dex 9, Con 16, Cha 12
AC 3, Move 60', HP 56, THAC0 9 melee or 12 thrown, Dam 1d8+3 or 1d6+2
Equipment: Chain mail +2, Battleaxe +1 +3 vs giants, trolls & ogres, 3 throwing axes
Darreth is a retired adventurer and mercenary who has bought an inn called The Trollhunter Arms, and settled down in Walrus City. He is not very trustworthy and he knows some shady characters. Get on his wrong side and you might be pick-pocketed, burgled or drugged. The city watch know that Darreth is not exactly a law-abiding citizen, but they have yet to catch him acting in a criminal manner - whenever something bad happens to those who have been in his inn, he claims it is merely unfortunate coincidence.
Darreth still has the dwarven weakness for gold, and although he does not like to get his hands dirty, he will tip off allied thieves about wealthy customers in exchange for a cut.
Appearance: Darreth is 4'4" (tall for a dwarf), weighs 140lb and has iron-grey beard and hair, both of which are kept quite short. He has a notable scar across the left forehead and temple. He usually wears a normal innkeeper's apron over town clothes unless he is expecting trouble, but he always has his battleaxe stashed behind the bar if customers get out of hand.
Melduvia Zalnin
4th level thief, align Neutral, female
Str 11, Int 11, Wis 9, Dex 16, Con 13, Cha 13
AC 3, Move 120', HP 16, THAC0 18 melee, 15 missile, Dam 1d6 (mace) or 1d6+1 (crossbow)
Equipment: Leather Armour, Ring of Protection +2, Light Crossbow +1, 20 bolts, mace, thieves tools, potion of healing
Melduvia is a former criminal trying to go straight She owns and runs the Old Owl inn which she wants to keep as a respectable establishment, but old associates still involved in crime keep turning up. Melduvia still knows quite a bit about the seedy underbelly of Walrus City, but she is reluctant to talk about it to anyone as she does not want to get involved again. Melduvia is thinking of moving to either Najask or Trislem for a fresh start.
Appearance: Melduvia is 45, 5'6", 110lb and still quite attractive. She wears smart town clothes wherever she goes and could be mistaken for a nobleman's wife. She has light brown hair which she keeps in a bun, fair skin and green eyes. She enjoys wearing jewellery, usually cheap (turquoise and lapis lazuli) but not obviously so.
Tarnist Wildwanderer
6th level fighter, align Neutral, male
Str 16, Int 11, Wis 13, Dex 9, Con 16, Cha 9
AC 3, Move 90', HP 35, THAC0 12 melee, Dam 1d8+3
Equipment: Chain Mail +2, Sword +1, Dagger +1, Ring of Cold Resistance
Tarnist is a retired trapper who has spent 15 years on Icemud Tundra and in the Twilight Forest. He has made quite a lot of money from the fur trade and has retired to become the innkeeper of the Crossed Swords tavern, a favourite among old soldiers, mercenaries and adventurers. Tarnist now has a wife and a baby son, and he is trying to adapt to this new way of life, but he keeps listening to other peoples' stories and remembering his previous career. He could prove useful to adventurers as he gets asked by both those with problems adventurers might solve, and by those looking for adventure. However, he does his best to keep things legitimate, and has been known to kick out those who use his inn for planning crimes.
Appearance: Tarnist is a tall (6'4"), red-headed northerner, he claims to be half-barbarian and he certainly looks the part. He has pale skin, blue eyes and reddish hair including a drooping handlebar moustache. His hooked nose, deep brows and large chin make him look particularly fierce. He has lost two of the fingers on his left hand (he says he lost them in a fight but he was actually mishandling a spring-loaded trap) and has scars from some claws on his right forearm (genuine, from a fight with a grizzly bear). He wears rugged clothes, usually leather or fur, plus his chain mail tunic even when behind his bar.
Tellimi
NM, unaligned, female
Str 10, Int 9, Wis 7, Dex 10, Con 10, Cha 9
AC 9, Move 120', HP 3, THAC0 20, Dam 1d8
Equipment: Sword
Tellimi was born into the tavern-keeping tradition as was her father and grandfather, but she is not particularly proud of that. She acts all dark and mysterious because she is rather envious that other tavern and inn owners have adventurous or shady pasts whereas hers is boring. She has dropped hints that she is actually a magic user keeping a low profile, and this has been picked up by one or two shady characters who don't realise she is bluffing.
Appearance: Tellimi is 5'2", 100lb and rather plain and dull looking. She has black hair she keeps short, and has pale skin. She often wears dark dresses or gowns to add to her air of mystery and looks a bit like a goth.
Natchor Highfiddle
2nd level Halfling Scout, align Lawful, male
Str 10, Int 11, Wis 10, Dex 13, Con 10, Cha 12
AC 6, Move 60', hp 6, THAC0 18 for 1d6+1 (shortsword) or 1d4 (throwing daggers)
Equipment: Leather Armour, Shortsword +1, 4 throwing daggers
Natchor has settled down in Walrus City having fled the Summoning further south fifty years ago as a youngster with his parents. He briefly flirted with being an adventurer, but saw several of his friends get killed, and decided to quit adventuring while he was alive. He now makes no bones about preferring quiet safety over adventure and riches. These days Natchor runs the Worried Warlock tavern, and is very house-proud. Some would say he takes neatness and tidiness too far, but he just likes things to be in good condition and in their right place.
Appearance: Natchor is a typical halfling, standing 3'2" and with light brown hair kept short and large sideburns. He wears halfling-style town clothes most of the time and keeps his leather armour
Monday, 12 March 2012
Ideas from the Companion Boxed Set: Dungeon Master's Companion: Book 2 part 1
As a continuation of my previous post about the Player's book from the Companion set, I'm now taking a look at the Dungeon Master's Companion. As it is a considerably larger volume (64 pages as opposed to the 32 page players companion), I'll split it into 2 posts.
The book has 5 sections:
The Campaign
Part 1 General Guidelines is interesting not so much in terms of ideas for my Kaelaross campaign, so much as the viewpoint of the writers in Adventure Planning. I'm not sure how I feel about this part. On one level it makes sense but on the other hand it implies adventures worked out to a mathematical formula. But by taking this planning of adventures per level you can calculate what the PCs ought to earn more carefully. I say ought to earn, because this is dependent on whether the PCs follow your carefully laid plans. As if....
The 6 to 8 adventures per level for frequent play does seem quite stingy. I am assuming (and I think the author is assuming as well) that this is one adventure per session. At that rate, I'm not sure if many people actually got to use the Masters boxed set with honestly levelled-up characters.
I suppose there is the question of where the XP comes from. Traditionally this is mainly treasure with some Monster XP. It is interesting that the book actually recommends that 1/5th of the XP should come from monsters, and the DM can award some goal/achievement XP, with the balance being made up with treasure.
Part 2 The Fantasy World covers aspects such as Obtaining a dominion, dominion administration, tournaments, dominion confidence levels and checks, changing rulers/officials, dominion events and titles. This system has been thought out and written in considerable detail, so that when any name-level PC obtains his own stronghold and surrounding area (his Dominion), his DM knows how to make the necessary calculations.
My inclination is to use the rules as guidelines. I think they are interesting, but the DM is allowed to overrule anything in the Dominion rules he deems unsuitable for his campaign.
One interesting thing I've just realised is that the rules say the PC gets 1 XP per 1 GP of resource and tax income. This means that for a newly established borderland dominion with 500 families and a single vegetable resource (a lot of cabbage farms perhaps?) the PC gets 500xp per month from tax income and 500xp per month from resource income. That's 1000xp for just sitting around watching cabbages grow! For larger dominions with better resources (and most do - the 1gp per family for one vegetable resource is the minimum) this means a serious contribution to a character's advancement. I wonder whether the writers were bearing this in mind when writing the previous part about planning adventures per level?
Mass Combat - the War Machine: This is something I remember from when the Companion rules first came out. It can be used, but it seems overly complicated when most factors are in the hands of the DM anyway. If I were able to, I'd want to fight it out on a map with miniatures.
As I said when talking about the range of possible adventures in Kaelaross, war and battles can be part of adventures, and will probably be part of maintaining a dominion.
Actually, I can see that while I would want to wargame the big, significant battles, this system could be useful for when there are lots of battles and skirmishes to be dealt with.
Part 3 The Multiverse: This part, along with the AD&D view of the Multiverse, helped shape my map of the Cosmology of Kaelaross. My cosmology is not exactly the same, but there are enough similarities for a lot of ideas in this part to work in Kaelaross.
The implication in here is that travelling to and from the ethereal and elemental planes is part of Companion level play, but beyond that the "Distant Planes" are master-level. This is not strictly true in Kaelaross - the planes of Law and Chaos closer to the Material Plane should be feasible for mid-level (6-12 level) adventures, particularly Hestoris and Carceros. Further beyond these planes, yes, it gets more dangerous and difficult for characters, and higher level characters are better suited to the more inhospitable planes such as Noreesis Vale and Urdunor.
Wormholes and Vortices have been mostly replaced in Kaelaross by portals, but some of the spontaneous ones (there are thought to be connections between the deepest oceans and the elemental plane of water, as well as between the Elemental plane of Earth and deepest parts of the Underworld) could be wormholes rather than portals.
Procedures - Although not exactly an inspiring piece, this part has a go at tidying up some of the odds and ends of D&D, such as:
None of theses parts are particularly interesting, but are there in case any DM is interested.
The book has 5 sections:
- The Campaign
- Procedures
- Monsters
- Treasures
- Adventures
The Campaign
Part 1 General Guidelines is interesting not so much in terms of ideas for my Kaelaross campaign, so much as the viewpoint of the writers in Adventure Planning. I'm not sure how I feel about this part. On one level it makes sense but on the other hand it implies adventures worked out to a mathematical formula. But by taking this planning of adventures per level you can calculate what the PCs ought to earn more carefully. I say ought to earn, because this is dependent on whether the PCs follow your carefully laid plans. As if....
The 6 to 8 adventures per level for frequent play does seem quite stingy. I am assuming (and I think the author is assuming as well) that this is one adventure per session. At that rate, I'm not sure if many people actually got to use the Masters boxed set with honestly levelled-up characters.
I suppose there is the question of where the XP comes from. Traditionally this is mainly treasure with some Monster XP. It is interesting that the book actually recommends that 1/5th of the XP should come from monsters, and the DM can award some goal/achievement XP, with the balance being made up with treasure.
Part 2 The Fantasy World covers aspects such as Obtaining a dominion, dominion administration, tournaments, dominion confidence levels and checks, changing rulers/officials, dominion events and titles. This system has been thought out and written in considerable detail, so that when any name-level PC obtains his own stronghold and surrounding area (his Dominion), his DM knows how to make the necessary calculations.
My inclination is to use the rules as guidelines. I think they are interesting, but the DM is allowed to overrule anything in the Dominion rules he deems unsuitable for his campaign.
One interesting thing I've just realised is that the rules say the PC gets 1 XP per 1 GP of resource and tax income. This means that for a newly established borderland dominion with 500 families and a single vegetable resource (a lot of cabbage farms perhaps?) the PC gets 500xp per month from tax income and 500xp per month from resource income. That's 1000xp for just sitting around watching cabbages grow! For larger dominions with better resources (and most do - the 1gp per family for one vegetable resource is the minimum) this means a serious contribution to a character's advancement. I wonder whether the writers were bearing this in mind when writing the previous part about planning adventures per level?
Mass Combat - the War Machine: This is something I remember from when the Companion rules first came out. It can be used, but it seems overly complicated when most factors are in the hands of the DM anyway. If I were able to, I'd want to fight it out on a map with miniatures.
As I said when talking about the range of possible adventures in Kaelaross, war and battles can be part of adventures, and will probably be part of maintaining a dominion.
Actually, I can see that while I would want to wargame the big, significant battles, this system could be useful for when there are lots of battles and skirmishes to be dealt with.
Part 3 The Multiverse: This part, along with the AD&D view of the Multiverse, helped shape my map of the Cosmology of Kaelaross. My cosmology is not exactly the same, but there are enough similarities for a lot of ideas in this part to work in Kaelaross.
The implication in here is that travelling to and from the ethereal and elemental planes is part of Companion level play, but beyond that the "Distant Planes" are master-level. This is not strictly true in Kaelaross - the planes of Law and Chaos closer to the Material Plane should be feasible for mid-level (6-12 level) adventures, particularly Hestoris and Carceros. Further beyond these planes, yes, it gets more dangerous and difficult for characters, and higher level characters are better suited to the more inhospitable planes such as Noreesis Vale and Urdunor.
Wormholes and Vortices have been mostly replaced in Kaelaross by portals, but some of the spontaneous ones (there are thought to be connections between the deepest oceans and the elemental plane of water, as well as between the Elemental plane of Earth and deepest parts of the Underworld) could be wormholes rather than portals.
Procedures - Although not exactly an inspiring piece, this part has a go at tidying up some of the odds and ends of D&D, such as:
- Aging,
- Constructs (not as much information as I would like),
- Damage to magic items,
- Demihuman crafts - interesting but rather limited in that each race only has one path it can follow, namely Clan Relic > Special Oil > Magic Transport.
- Maximum hit points is basic maths, but a useful check to make sure a player isn't fiddling the numbers on his character sheet.
- Poison,
- Expanded To Hit rolls and Saving Throws
- Haste spells
- Treasure - which, as with Adventure Planning in Part 1, confirms that treasure is the main source of XP for adventurers, forming about 4/5ths of XP earned.
None of theses parts are particularly interesting, but are there in case any DM is interested.
Thursday, 8 March 2012
Labyrinth Lord Dungeon Creatures: levels 5 to 12+
As a continuation of my previous post, here are the dungeon-dwelling higher-level monsters from the Labyrinth Lord rules.
Level 5
Level 6
Level 7
Level 8
Level 9
Level 10
Level 11
Level 12+
Level 5
- Carcass Scavenger (a.k.a. Carrion Crawler)
- Gargoyle
- Gelatinous Cube
- Hellhound, 5 HD
- Lizard, Giant Chameleon
- Hydra, 5 heads
- Lycanthrope, weretiger
- Medusa
- Minotaur
- Ochre Jelly
- Owlbear
- Rust Monster
- Scorpion, Giant
- Snake, Giant Python
- Statue, Animated Stone
- Weasel, Giant
- Wraith
- Ogre Leader *
- Statue, Animated Terracotta *
Level 6
- Cockatrice
- Gray Worm
- Hydra, 6 heads
- Hellhound, 6 HD
- Leech, Giant
- Lizard, Tuatara
- Manticore
- Phase Tiger (a.k.a. Displacer Beast)
- Spider, Tarantella
- Troll
- Nagpa, Lesser *
Level 7
- Basilisk
- Cave Bear
- Dragon, White
- Griffon
- Hellhound, 7 HD
- Hydra, 7 Heads
- Spectre
- Wyvern
Level 8
- Cat, Sabretooth Tiger
- Djinni
- Dragon, Black
- Elemental, 8 HD
- Giant Catfish
- Giant, Hill
- Hydra, 8 heads
- Invisible Stalker
- Octopus, Giant
- Ogre Chief *
- Minotaur Boss *
Level 9
- Chimera
- Dragon, Green
- Giant, Stone
- Golem, Bone
- Gorgon
- Hydra, 9 Heads
- Salamander, Flame
- Vampire
Level 10
- Black Pudding
- Lycanthrope, Demon Boar
- Dragon, Blue
- Ettin
- Giant, Frost
- Golem, Amber
- Hydra, 10 Heads
- Nagpa (normal) *
- Death Knight *
Level 11
- Dragon, Red
- Efreeti
- Elemental, 12 HD
- Giant, Fire
- Hydra, 11-12 HD
- Minotaur King *
Level 12+
- Cyclops
- Dragon, Gold
- Dragon Turtle
- Elemental, 16 HD
- Giant, Cloud
- Giant, Storm
- Golem, Bronze
- Purple Worm
- Salamander, Frost
- Nagpa, Greater *
- Nagpa Lord *
Beyond level 12, we are getting into the realms of Companion level play, and I intend to look at the monsters of the Companion boxed set soon.
Wednesday, 7 March 2012
Labyrinth Lord Dungeon Creatures: levels 1 to 4
This list was compiled primarily for my own use, but I wonder if others would find it helpful as well.
This focuses primarily on dungeon-dwelling creatures rather than planar or wilderness creatures, and I went through the Labyrinth Lord rulebook when compiling this rather than Basic/Expert D&D, so there might be a few differences. Also it does rely on my own guestimate as to how tough each monster is.
For the sake of completion, I've included dungeon-dwelling monsters I've created elsewhere on this blog at the end of each level, indicated with an asterisk *.
As for using these lists - I've found them useful for selecting monsters for either writing an adventure or in the middle of a session where I want a monster of particular strength that will challenge the PCs without overwhelming them. These levels are guidelines, and assume there is just one of the monsters - it does not take into account the number appearing recommended in the monster stats.
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
This focuses primarily on dungeon-dwelling creatures rather than planar or wilderness creatures, and I went through the Labyrinth Lord rulebook when compiling this rather than Basic/Expert D&D, so there might be a few differences. Also it does rely on my own guestimate as to how tough each monster is.
For the sake of completion, I've included dungeon-dwelling monsters I've created elsewhere on this blog at the end of each level, indicated with an asterisk *.
As for using these lists - I've found them useful for selecting monsters for either writing an adventure or in the middle of a session where I want a monster of particular strength that will challenge the PCs without overwhelming them. These levels are guidelines, and assume there is just one of the monsters - it does not take into account the number appearing recommended in the monster stats.
Level 1
- Bat, Normal
- Beetle, Fire, Giant
- Centipede, Giant
- Ferret, Giant
- Gnome
- Goblin
- Hobgoblin
- Kobold
- Men, Brigand
- Men, Berserker
- Morlock
- Orc
- Rat, Normal
- Rat, Giant
- Shrew, Giant
- Shrieker
- Skeleton
- Zombie
- Scarlet Crab *
Level 2
- Baboon, Higher
- Bat, Giant
- Bee, Killer
- Fly, Giant Carnivorous
- Gnoll
- Lizardfolk
- Locust, Subterranean
- Mule
- Neanderthal
- Rot Grub
- Shark, Bull
- Snake, Spitting Cobra
- Snake, Pit Viper
- Stirge
- Toad, Giant
- Troglodyte
- Juvenile Ogre *
Level 3
- Ape, Albino
- Bat, Giant Vampire
- Beetle, Spitting
- Beetle, Carnivorous
- Bugbear
- Cat, Mountain Lion
- Crab, Giant
- Fish, Giant Piranha
- Ghoul
- Golem, Wood
- Green Slime
- Hawk, Giant
- Lizard, Giant Gecko
- Ogre
- Shadow
- Shark, Mako
- Spider, Crab
- Statue, Animated Crystal
- Wolf, Dire
- Yellow Mold
- Statue, Animated Wax *
- Axebeak *
Level 4
- Ant, Giant
- Doppleganger
- Gray Ooze
- Harpy
- Hellhound, 3-4 HD
- Lizard, Draco
- Lycanthrope Wereboar
- Lycanthrope, Wererat
- Lycanthrope, Werewolf
- Rhagodessa
- Snake, Giant Rattler
- Spider, Black Widow
- Statue, Animated Iron
- Throghrin
- Wight
Wednesday, 29 February 2012
Ideas from the Companion Boxed Set - Players Companion: Book One
Due to a rearranging of my furniture and books, I have rediscovered my D&D Companion rules, and I've decided to look through it and see what (if anything) I could use with Kaelaross and the B/X D&D I generally use. There are 2 books in the boxed set, one for players, the other for DMs.
In book 1 the following have caught my eye:
The Changing Game - This page looks at long term campaigns, long term goals and ambitions, and the changing nature of high-level adventures and campaigns - it could be much more than just going deeper into the dungeon to kill bigger monsters:
Bastard Sword - I would allow dwarves to use it two-handed but not one handed, but probably not let halflings use it at all.
Blowgun - This weapon is reliant on poison, which brings up questions of ethics and game balance. I would expect those who use blowguns to start making checks to handle the poison correctly
Heavy Crossbow - I would say too big for halflings, but dwarves could cope with it
Net, whip and Bola - The Entangle/Slow/Delay effects offer interesting tactical options, though I am not sure about the effects being so dependent on target's level
Unarmed Combat - Better than in the 1st Ed AD&D DMG, but I'm sure a lot of DMs will want to at least tweak these rules, particularly in non-standard situations
Strongholds - I liked this section as a good introduction to players owning and maintaining their own places. One thing that crossed my mind was there was no mention of surviving, loyal henchmen from dungeon expeditions being offered good positions in a stronghold "Bob, you've served me well in our times together in the Caverns of Chaos. Want a cushy position as the captain of the guard at my castle?"
It's interesting that the expected wages of some of the castle staff are quite expensive, thus prompting either further adventuring for loot, or else careful government of the PC's lands to generate tax revenue.
In Kaelaross I can well imagine powerful PCs setting up their own strongholds, or perhaps being asked by a ruler to look after a borderland village or keep that is proving troublesome or vulnerable to attack. Imagine if the town council of Ironmarket asked the PCs to capture Charsis - in return they get to govern it.
Character Class Descriptions: This half of the book gives some straight-forward extensions for human character classes for levels 15-25, including experience needed, spells per day, improved thief skills and the like. There are also spells for levels 6-7 for clerics and 7-9 for magic users. All of this is a no-brainer for inclusion - of course it's accepted as part of gaming in Kaelaross. Heck, it's the basic reason for the Companion Set's existence - everything else is optional add-ons.
Interestingly it offers all human characters a choice - settle down and set up a stronghold (see above) or wander around the campaign world. Wandering around offers further options for each class.
The Druid is introduced as a proto-prestige class - once a neutral cleric reaches 9th level he may choose to undergo the training necessary to become a druid. I like the idea that druids can't use metal - only leather, wood, stone and bone. This could lead to some interesting magic weapons created by druids for druids.
I am not sure about actually having druids as part of Kaelaross - it could be more of a step away from the B/X feel than I am prepared for yet. I won't say never, but I will say not yet. Haaken is a deity I created as a possible patron of druids, so if I did introduce druids, he would be the one to instruct them.
As for the druid spells, I might consider Haaken granting them to his conventional clerics in exceptional circumstances.
Wandering Fighters have the options of becoming knights, paladins or avengers. Like the druid, these are proto-prestige classes, with quite a few abilities (casting clerical spells) and roleplaying restrictions (loyalty to a liege).
I'm not sure I would actually have these as part of gaming in Kaelaross, at least not as written. I've already written about orders of knights in Toutus, and I view knighthood as something to be roleplayed rather than additional abilities to be min-maxed. Offering intrinsic benefits to a fighter who is roleplayed as a knight as opposed to one roleplayed as a gladiator, a professional soldier, a bodyguard or a barbarian does not sit well with me.
Magic Users - I'm amused by the bit about PC magic users settling down and building their own dungeon and inviting monsters to move in! However, I do not take this very seriously, and if any of my PCs tried this, I don't think I'd let them get away easily with "farming" the dungeon for looted treasure. The note about Magists being the wizard-in-residence at a powerful NPC's stronghold is an interesting alternative to the mage maintaining his own domain. Perhaps this could be applied to other classes (a PC cleric becomes a resident Chaplain, a PC fighter becomes a resident Marshal of the Guard, a PC thief becomes a resident Spymaster?)
Thieves similarly have the opportunity to either become guildmasters in a town (their equivalent of settling down into a stronghold) or else wander around as a rogue (interesting use of an over-used name).
Demihumans in the Companion Set have reached their maximum levels. And here things aren't so adaptable or suited for adventuring. The book talks about clan relics, but I can't really see these being very useful as they can't be carried around in your backpack into the dungeon or wilderness. They also seem quite specific - not exactly world-specific, but each race has just one possible clan relic, and there isn't much leeway offered to DMs or players wanting to do something different with top-level demihumans.
Because I have added new classes for demihumans in Kaelaross (namely the Dwarven Cleric, the Halfling Defender and the Elven Ranger), and also added extra levels to "standard" halflings (known in Kaelaross as Halfling Scouts) I am aware I have already sort of interfered with the Companion set's ideas of what demihumans should do at this level. The spellcasters (particularly dwarven cleric and halfling defender) make clan relics sort of redundant, or at least can cast spells that are similar to the relic's effects.
The additional attack ranks and special defences are worth bearing in mind, and if any demihuman PC reached top level and continued to keep track of XP, I would allow them these extra bonuses as some compensation for their level limits.
In book 1 the following have caught my eye:
The Changing Game - This page looks at long term campaigns, long term goals and ambitions, and the changing nature of high-level adventures and campaigns - it could be much more than just going deeper into the dungeon to kill bigger monsters:
- Settling down and establishing strongholds
- Wide-ranging exploration
- Becoming a political player, or at least a force that rulers will be aware of
- The Planes of Existence
- Paths to Immortality
Bastard Sword - I would allow dwarves to use it two-handed but not one handed, but probably not let halflings use it at all.
Blowgun - This weapon is reliant on poison, which brings up questions of ethics and game balance. I would expect those who use blowguns to start making checks to handle the poison correctly
Heavy Crossbow - I would say too big for halflings, but dwarves could cope with it
Net, whip and Bola - The Entangle/Slow/Delay effects offer interesting tactical options, though I am not sure about the effects being so dependent on target's level
Unarmed Combat - Better than in the 1st Ed AD&D DMG, but I'm sure a lot of DMs will want to at least tweak these rules, particularly in non-standard situations
Strongholds - I liked this section as a good introduction to players owning and maintaining their own places. One thing that crossed my mind was there was no mention of surviving, loyal henchmen from dungeon expeditions being offered good positions in a stronghold "Bob, you've served me well in our times together in the Caverns of Chaos. Want a cushy position as the captain of the guard at my castle?"
It's interesting that the expected wages of some of the castle staff are quite expensive, thus prompting either further adventuring for loot, or else careful government of the PC's lands to generate tax revenue.
In Kaelaross I can well imagine powerful PCs setting up their own strongholds, or perhaps being asked by a ruler to look after a borderland village or keep that is proving troublesome or vulnerable to attack. Imagine if the town council of Ironmarket asked the PCs to capture Charsis - in return they get to govern it.
Character Class Descriptions: This half of the book gives some straight-forward extensions for human character classes for levels 15-25, including experience needed, spells per day, improved thief skills and the like. There are also spells for levels 6-7 for clerics and 7-9 for magic users. All of this is a no-brainer for inclusion - of course it's accepted as part of gaming in Kaelaross. Heck, it's the basic reason for the Companion Set's existence - everything else is optional add-ons.
Interestingly it offers all human characters a choice - settle down and set up a stronghold (see above) or wander around the campaign world. Wandering around offers further options for each class.
The Druid is introduced as a proto-prestige class - once a neutral cleric reaches 9th level he may choose to undergo the training necessary to become a druid. I like the idea that druids can't use metal - only leather, wood, stone and bone. This could lead to some interesting magic weapons created by druids for druids.
I am not sure about actually having druids as part of Kaelaross - it could be more of a step away from the B/X feel than I am prepared for yet. I won't say never, but I will say not yet. Haaken is a deity I created as a possible patron of druids, so if I did introduce druids, he would be the one to instruct them.
As for the druid spells, I might consider Haaken granting them to his conventional clerics in exceptional circumstances.
Wandering Fighters have the options of becoming knights, paladins or avengers. Like the druid, these are proto-prestige classes, with quite a few abilities (casting clerical spells) and roleplaying restrictions (loyalty to a liege).
I'm not sure I would actually have these as part of gaming in Kaelaross, at least not as written. I've already written about orders of knights in Toutus, and I view knighthood as something to be roleplayed rather than additional abilities to be min-maxed. Offering intrinsic benefits to a fighter who is roleplayed as a knight as opposed to one roleplayed as a gladiator, a professional soldier, a bodyguard or a barbarian does not sit well with me.
Magic Users - I'm amused by the bit about PC magic users settling down and building their own dungeon and inviting monsters to move in! However, I do not take this very seriously, and if any of my PCs tried this, I don't think I'd let them get away easily with "farming" the dungeon for looted treasure. The note about Magists being the wizard-in-residence at a powerful NPC's stronghold is an interesting alternative to the mage maintaining his own domain. Perhaps this could be applied to other classes (a PC cleric becomes a resident Chaplain, a PC fighter becomes a resident Marshal of the Guard, a PC thief becomes a resident Spymaster?)
Thieves similarly have the opportunity to either become guildmasters in a town (their equivalent of settling down into a stronghold) or else wander around as a rogue (interesting use of an over-used name).
Demihumans in the Companion Set have reached their maximum levels. And here things aren't so adaptable or suited for adventuring. The book talks about clan relics, but I can't really see these being very useful as they can't be carried around in your backpack into the dungeon or wilderness. They also seem quite specific - not exactly world-specific, but each race has just one possible clan relic, and there isn't much leeway offered to DMs or players wanting to do something different with top-level demihumans.
Because I have added new classes for demihumans in Kaelaross (namely the Dwarven Cleric, the Halfling Defender and the Elven Ranger), and also added extra levels to "standard" halflings (known in Kaelaross as Halfling Scouts) I am aware I have already sort of interfered with the Companion set's ideas of what demihumans should do at this level. The spellcasters (particularly dwarven cleric and halfling defender) make clan relics sort of redundant, or at least can cast spells that are similar to the relic's effects.
The additional attack ranks and special defences are worth bearing in mind, and if any demihuman PC reached top level and continued to keep track of XP, I would allow them these extra bonuses as some compensation for their level limits.
Monday, 27 February 2012
The Bellenos Empire
While the classic medieval stories of knights in armour, splendid castles and feudal chivalry of Britain, France and Germany have inspired a lot of Toutus, Bellenos, one of its main rivals before the empires collapsed, is from further south - namely the Renaissance Mediterranean, especially Venice, Florence and Genoa. While feudal loyalties were what bound the various duchies and counties of Toutus together, it was trade that kept Bellenos together. The Bellenosians certainly had powerful armies, but they were more a means to an end when trade and diplomacy failed rather than the reason for the state.
If this makes it sound like the Bellenosians were more benevolent than the Toutatians, think again. At their best they were charismatic, sophisticated, cooperative diplomats. At their worst they were cynical, greedy lying bastards who would buy large tracts of land from ignorant natives for just a handful of glass beads, and then viciously repel the angry natives with steel when they realised the deal they had struck was unfair. In other cases the Bellenosian explorers simply conquered hapless natives in foreign lands, claiming the land for the Bellenos Empire (with the expectation of being governors of these new territories).
Bellenos arose as a coalition of city-states on the home island of Bellenia, which then spread around the Vendalian Archipelago. The empire had grown powerful through their merchant-explorers, travelling around the archipelago and beyond - even reaching the shores of Toutus, though never establishing anything more than trading enclaves in Toutatian towns and cities.
They also explored east and south. To the east they came across the huge continent of Keshiss, with its northern and southern halves both projecting west towards Bellenos. To the south the Bellenosians found the Cynidean islands, with the dying Cynidean culture that collapsed just as the Bellenosians made contact. The Bellenosian towns and trading posts only cover some of the islands - a lot of it is still wilderness and abandoned Cynidean ruins. One of the most notable of these Bellenosian towns, which has survived the Summoning and subsequent collapse of the Empire is Tekhumis the Desert Port.
The Bellenos way of war was less feudal and more regimented than in Toutus, and with less reliance on armour and more on manoeuvrability - lightly armoured crossbowers protected by ranks of pikemen and halberdiers were common among the regiments of the city-states. Since Bellenos was based on an archipelago with many overseas outposts and colonies, there was a much greater emphasis on its navy - not just slow, crude cogs, but sleek, fast schooners and mighty galleons, while closer inshore there were galleys manned by hundreds of rowers each. The sailors who manned these ships were reluctant to wear armour that could drown them if they ended up in the water, so in Bellenos the Swashbuckling style of fighting was developed.
If this makes it sound like the Bellenosians were more benevolent than the Toutatians, think again. At their best they were charismatic, sophisticated, cooperative diplomats. At their worst they were cynical, greedy lying bastards who would buy large tracts of land from ignorant natives for just a handful of glass beads, and then viciously repel the angry natives with steel when they realised the deal they had struck was unfair. In other cases the Bellenosian explorers simply conquered hapless natives in foreign lands, claiming the land for the Bellenos Empire (with the expectation of being governors of these new territories).
They also explored east and south. To the east they came across the huge continent of Keshiss, with its northern and southern halves both projecting west towards Bellenos. To the south the Bellenosians found the Cynidean islands, with the dying Cynidean culture that collapsed just as the Bellenosians made contact. The Bellenosian towns and trading posts only cover some of the islands - a lot of it is still wilderness and abandoned Cynidean ruins. One of the most notable of these Bellenosian towns, which has survived the Summoning and subsequent collapse of the Empire is Tekhumis the Desert Port.
The Bellenos way of war was less feudal and more regimented than in Toutus, and with less reliance on armour and more on manoeuvrability - lightly armoured crossbowers protected by ranks of pikemen and halberdiers were common among the regiments of the city-states. Since Bellenos was based on an archipelago with many overseas outposts and colonies, there was a much greater emphasis on its navy - not just slow, crude cogs, but sleek, fast schooners and mighty galleons, while closer inshore there were galleys manned by hundreds of rowers each. The sailors who manned these ships were reluctant to wear armour that could drown them if they ended up in the water, so in Bellenos the Swashbuckling style of fighting was developed.
Wednesday, 22 February 2012
The Grulven Mountains
The Grulven Mountains are a range of subarctic peaks just to the south east of the Walrus Freehold. The Grulven Mountains were previously the heart of a dwarven kingdom of Urrugorn. However, it collapsed before the rise of the Toutus Empire, about 430BY. The surviving dwarves retreated from the centre of the range to the edges, where there are some outposts and settlements of dwarves, slowly trying to reclaim their heritage.
There are quite a few giants, including hill, stone, frost and fire, plus some ettins and cyclopses. These giants contributed to the fall of Urrugorn. Some of these giants have gathered into significant tribes, particularly the hill and frost giants. Any DM looking to place the modules G1-2-3: Against the Giants in Kaelaross could do worse than have them here, threatening the cities and farmlands of the Walrus Freehold.
But more damaging was the war of attrition between the dwarves and tribes of goblins and orcs of the Underworld. The goblins seemed to be in charge, with the orcs as auxiliaries and mercenaries. There are some goblin tribes that actively seek out and try to kill as many dwarves as possible - for some the war of attrition is not over. Although they would like to take back what is theirs, for many dwarves the emphasis is on defence and safety. The goblin tribes under the Grulven Mountains are known for their military organisation as well as their particularly dangerous warrior-chiefs and shamans who often rival heroes in prowess.
The Grulven mountains are dotted with ruins of dwarven strongholds and towns. Some of these still have the descendants of the orc and goblin invaders while others are devoid of living humanoids (though not necessarily free from danger).
As well as lots of silver, gold and gems, some notable artefacts of the dwarves were lost in Urrugorn, inlcuding the legendary Axe of the Dwarven Lords, and the Forge of Fate, a whole blacksmith's workshop that can enhance the potency of any weapon or armour made or mended there.
Blackbeard Clan (population 1,500): Although generally decent and upright dwarves, there is an ongoing problem with a cult of chaotic dwarves. Any dwarves proven to be part of the chaos cult (not just chaotic in alignment) are liable to banishment, or execution if further crimes are linked to the offender. This is not as effective as it might sound as banished or fugitive chaotic dwarves are directed to Ironheart Keep, a formerly abandoned stronghold now taken over by chaotic dwarf cultists. The Blackbeard Clan is also quite isolated - there are some trade caravans that travel to and from Hurin Castle, but this is quite a trek through monster-haunted wilderness. Interestingly the Blackbeard Clan has had some friendly contact with the Orchunter Clan of elves, mostly with trade but occasionally some military cooperation, though the traditional tension between dwarves and elves has not completely disappeared.
Trollslayer Clan (population 1,700): This clan provides mercenary dwarf warriors for Stalim. With its closeness to Stalim it is the most open-minded and also prosperous of the three main clans. The warriors of the Trollslayer clan can be quite ferocious against giants, though rumours of them being utterly fearless, bare-chested, adorned with tattoos and sporting orange mohican hairdos are probably an exaggeration.
Hearthkeeper Clan (population 2000): Although the most populous of the three clans, the Hearthkeeper clan is also the most under attack, both from giants and also orcs and goblins. The leaders of the clan are certain that there is some sort of malign intelligence sending these attacks, but no-one can be certain who is the evil mastermind. As it is even more isolated than the Blackbeard Clan, the Hearthkeeper Clan is in quite a vulnerable situation.
Bloodberyl Mine is a famous mine that had been in the hands of dwarves until quite recently. Around the same time as the Summoning the mine was overrun with orcs, goblins and other chaotic humanoids, and the dwarves simply don't have the numbers to reclaim it.
Random Encounters:
Roll 1d12+1d8 Results
2 Cloud Giant
3 Fire Giant
4 Frost Giant
5 Troll
6 Hill Giant
7 Giant Hawk
8 Ogre
9 Wild Yak (4 HD herd animal)
10 Mountain Goat (2 HD herd animal)
11 Mountain Lion
12 Black Bear
13 Wolf
14 Goblin
15 Orc
16 Wyvern
17 Giant Eagle
18 Ettin or Cyclops
19 White Dragon
20 Red Dragon
There are quite a few giants, including hill, stone, frost and fire, plus some ettins and cyclopses. These giants contributed to the fall of Urrugorn. Some of these giants have gathered into significant tribes, particularly the hill and frost giants. Any DM looking to place the modules G1-2-3: Against the Giants in Kaelaross could do worse than have them here, threatening the cities and farmlands of the Walrus Freehold.
But more damaging was the war of attrition between the dwarves and tribes of goblins and orcs of the Underworld. The goblins seemed to be in charge, with the orcs as auxiliaries and mercenaries. There are some goblin tribes that actively seek out and try to kill as many dwarves as possible - for some the war of attrition is not over. Although they would like to take back what is theirs, for many dwarves the emphasis is on defence and safety. The goblin tribes under the Grulven Mountains are known for their military organisation as well as their particularly dangerous warrior-chiefs and shamans who often rival heroes in prowess.
As well as lots of silver, gold and gems, some notable artefacts of the dwarves were lost in Urrugorn, inlcuding the legendary Axe of the Dwarven Lords, and the Forge of Fate, a whole blacksmith's workshop that can enhance the potency of any weapon or armour made or mended there.
Blackbeard Clan (population 1,500): Although generally decent and upright dwarves, there is an ongoing problem with a cult of chaotic dwarves. Any dwarves proven to be part of the chaos cult (not just chaotic in alignment) are liable to banishment, or execution if further crimes are linked to the offender. This is not as effective as it might sound as banished or fugitive chaotic dwarves are directed to Ironheart Keep, a formerly abandoned stronghold now taken over by chaotic dwarf cultists. The Blackbeard Clan is also quite isolated - there are some trade caravans that travel to and from Hurin Castle, but this is quite a trek through monster-haunted wilderness. Interestingly the Blackbeard Clan has had some friendly contact with the Orchunter Clan of elves, mostly with trade but occasionally some military cooperation, though the traditional tension between dwarves and elves has not completely disappeared.
Trollslayer Clan (population 1,700): This clan provides mercenary dwarf warriors for Stalim. With its closeness to Stalim it is the most open-minded and also prosperous of the three main clans. The warriors of the Trollslayer clan can be quite ferocious against giants, though rumours of them being utterly fearless, bare-chested, adorned with tattoos and sporting orange mohican hairdos are probably an exaggeration.
Hearthkeeper Clan (population 2000): Although the most populous of the three clans, the Hearthkeeper clan is also the most under attack, both from giants and also orcs and goblins. The leaders of the clan are certain that there is some sort of malign intelligence sending these attacks, but no-one can be certain who is the evil mastermind. As it is even more isolated than the Blackbeard Clan, the Hearthkeeper Clan is in quite a vulnerable situation.
Bloodberyl Mine is a famous mine that had been in the hands of dwarves until quite recently. Around the same time as the Summoning the mine was overrun with orcs, goblins and other chaotic humanoids, and the dwarves simply don't have the numbers to reclaim it.
Random Encounters:
Roll 1d12+1d8 Results
2 Cloud Giant
3 Fire Giant
4 Frost Giant
5 Troll
6 Hill Giant
7 Giant Hawk
8 Ogre
9 Wild Yak (4 HD herd animal)
10 Mountain Goat (2 HD herd animal)
11 Mountain Lion
12 Black Bear
13 Wolf
14 Goblin
15 Orc
16 Wyvern
17 Giant Eagle
18 Ettin or Cyclops
19 White Dragon
20 Red Dragon
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)