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Chaosium Digest Volume 12 Number 02
Chaosium Digest Volume 12, Number 2
Date: Monday, November 13, 1995
Number: 1 of 1
Contents:
The Duchy of Normandie, Part Three (Frederic Moll) PENDRAGON
Where the Gods Walk (Shannon Appel) ELRIC!
Editor's Note:
Welcome to the newest Chaosium Digest. Within, you'll find the final
part of Frederic Moll's Normandie article, and also a new Elric!
article of my own, describing a magical place blessed by the Lords of
Law.
Until next week.
Shannon
MAGAZINE SIGHTINGS:
* Call of Cthulhu - "A Slither in the Dark", three pages of
information on the Naga, a lesser independent race for CoC, Dragon
#222 [October, 1995]; "The Right Monster for the Right Adventure",
five pages of suggestions for the keeper, on how to best use the
various Mythos races in a variety of scenerio types, Dragon #223
[November, 1995]
--------------------
From: fm10@calvanet.calvacom.fr (Frederic Moll)
Subject: The Duchy of Normandie, Part Three
System: Pendragon
Here is the last part of the Duchy of Normandie Article.
One quick note:
I've cut the adventure of the Mount St Michael from this text,
although I mentioned it in the second part. This was caused by useful
remarks made by some of my players/testers. I'm rewriting it to take
into account their remarks.
Frederic
ADVENTURES IDEAS
The Adventure of the Berserker
(recommended as a winter solo adventure)
A Northmen berserker settled a few years ago in the village of
Quincampoix, near a great wooded area known as "the Green Forest". He
then became a woodsman and was well accepted by everybody living in
the village. Recently, after a couple of days in the heart of the
forest, he came back and began to frighten shepherders and other
peasants. Initially, it was only with gestures and shouts. Later, he
violently attacked a young herdsman and wounded him and a couple of
cows with his great axe. After that, he was frequently seen near the
egde of the forest, never outside, shouting in a language unknown to
nearly everybody (some say that it is Northman talk).
The inhabitants of Quincampoix were frightened, and asked their lord
to free them of this dangerous man. The PC knight is either their lord
or sent by him to solve this troublesome problem.
Arriving at Quincampoix, the knight should be able to see the wounded
herdsman and speak to elder people of the village. During this initial
investigation, a young boy arrives, shouting that the mad woodscutter
has been spotted near the village and is again shouting and waving...
Travelling on horseback in the forest is a very difficult task, so the
knight should go afoot. When the woodscutter spots the knight, he will
shout something in Northmen language and make gestures to invite the
knight into the forest. If there is no reaction, the woodscutter will
then try speaking the common language, and ask again that the knight
come to him.
Once inside the forest, the woodscutter will speak in Northmen
language or in common language. He'll say that he didn't wish to
brutalize the young herdsman, but that was the only way to attract the
attention of the ruler of this area. In no way does he wish to leave
the forest. Rather, he wishes to show the knight some of the wealths
of this forest. He asks the knight to accompany him into the heart of
the Forest.
If the knight wishes to fight against the woodscutter, treat the
woodscutter as a Saxon berserker at the top of his abilities. This
should be a hard fight.
Note: if the woodscutter is killed, this is the end of the adventure,
but the knight will miss a couple of interesting things inside the
forest. Give him some Glory points for killing the madman but the
economic level of Quincampoix will go down every year, and the forest
will slowly enroach on the fertile lands the peasants are trying to
maintain.
During the trip inside the forest, the woodscutter will lead the
knight to trials to evaluate his ability to handle and administrate
the forest. Here are a couple of suggestions:
* the poachers: a couple of poachers are seen in action. Will the
knight rush to arrest them or leave them flee with their catches?
* the beasts: a pig and a boar are facing each other aggressively.
Will the knight let them fight until the end or try to separate them
before the end of the fight?
* the dream: the knight suddenly finds himself in a clearing with
about thirty people (men, women and children). They rush to him and
ask him how they should install themselves and how the lands will be
shared? (this is a test of Stewardship...)
If the woodcutter thinks the tests are successfully passed, he will
lead the knight to the heart of the forest. Here, he will tell him
the whole story:
In the heart of this forest was a great and old tree. The Green Man, a
powerful forest spirit that roams in different forests of the country,
counted the old tree as his favorite resting place. One day, the
berserker went inside the forest and found this tree. Seeing it was
very good, he began to attack it with his axe. Quickly feeling that
his home tree was endangered, the Green Man rushed to the tree, only
to see it downed.
At first angered, he tried to kill the woodscutter with heavy
branches. When the berserker was heavily wounded, the Green Man
reached into his mind. What he felt inside was very perplexing: his
forest was threatened by the humans who are destroying it to obtain
land. But, the land was also necessary for the humans to survive.
Must he try to protect the life of the forest and let the human beings
die of starvation? To solve this dilemma, he decided to possess the
woodcutter and attract here a representative of the human beings
living near the forest. Inside the forest, he will test him to see if
this representative will ensure that the forest will be handled
correctly in human hands (he wishes to know that the laws will be
respected, that the forest will not be quickly destroyed but
progressively exploited to allow the renewal of the trees and of the
animals living inside, etc).
If successful, the Green Man will allow the exploitation of the forest
by the humans and will leave the Green Forest for another resting
place not reachable by men. Before leaving, he will bless the forest
and the lands surrounding it and free the body and the spirit of the
woodcutter. The benefits of this blessing will be seen during the next
twenty years. There should be no starvation or diseases in the
Quincampoix area and the crops will be numerous. If needed, the forest
will easily furnish animals for meat and wood for fire and building.
No danger will exist in this forest.
The Adventure of the Dwarf Knights
The players come upon a caravan that is being attacked by bandits.
This is a ducal caravan that brings to Rouen (or the Mortemer Abbey)
merchandise coming from the ducal monopoly on sea wrecks. It is
defended by guards and valiant dwarf knights mounted on ponys. If
help is given to the dwarf knights, they will invite their rescuers to
the castle of Chambois which was built specifically for small sized
persons.
The Adventure of the Ghost
The streets of Rouen near the Cathedral are deserted during the night
because the ghost of Duke Hrolfr is again out of his crypt. The
Archbishop of Rouen is seeking valiant people who will free the city
from the threat caused by this ghost. There are at least two
possibilities for adventure:
* the real ghost is out in the streets.
* this is a bandit disguised as a ghost. While he is out, people flee,
allowing other members of his group to steal the contents of
merchant's or rich men's houses.
The Adventure of the Plague Demon
During the year 520, the plague is ravaging all of Normandie. The
Archbishop of Rouen, during a night of prayers, had a vision and
announced it at mass: the demon who is responsible for this disease is
living on the Island of Abomination, which can occasionally be seen at
the mouth of the Seine, emerging from the fog. If the left hand of
this demon is brought to the cathedral and blessed, the epidemic will
quickly stop.
On this mythic island lives a creature that eat all the corpses that
arrive on the shores (corpses from wrecked ships, corpses thrown in
the Seine, etc). Progessively, parts of the eaten bodies are replacing
his original body. It should be a horrible vision for the valiant
knights.
The Ducal Roads
The Ducal Road that runs from Rouen to Carusberg, passing by Elbeuf,
Lisieux, Caen and Bayeux, is the main communication way (built on the
remains of a roman via) of the Duchy.
Other roads are being built progressively:
* from Carusberg to Mount St Michael, passing by Coutances.
* from Coutances to Lisieux, passing by Falaise
etc
Protection or exploration of the lands crossed by these new roads
offers many possibilities for adventures: beasts, magical places, etc.
--------------------
From: appel@erzo.org (Shannon Appel)
Subject: Where the Gods Walk
System: Elric!
This article describes a magical location for the Young Kingdoms. It
may be set in just about any out-of-the-way forest location.
THE GLADE OF THERIL
Today, the Young Kingdoms slowly slip into the unbreakable grasp of
Chaos. But, it was not always that way. Once, balance ruled in the
Young Kingdoms. Those were times when even the Lords of Laws were able
to walk freely in the Kingdoms, and this article describes one of the
places so visited.
It was long ago that Theril came to the Glade now named after her.
When her perfection shone upon the place, it became one with order as
well: flowers turned to crystal and leaves to gold. Now, though aeons
have passed since Theril left the Glade, still it bears her mark.
The Glade of Theril is located within a totally normal wood.
Adventurers will see no hint that the Glade lies nearby until they
turn a corner, and find themselves within it.
Three tall, unnaturally straight trees mark out the glade, forming a
perfect triangle. The bark of the trees is smooth, like leather, while
the leaves seem to be of the finest silk. An even growth of short
grass lies across the entire glade; like the leaves, it is silky, and
unnaturally resilient. A variety of flowers grow within the glade as
well. They seem to be made of colored glass, or crystal, and are
extremely beautiful. Many small woodland animals live about the glade.
They are quite docile, and totally unafraid of men. Some strange
creatures, regular and orderly, are found nowhere else in the Young
Kingdoms but the Glade of Theril.
Though all of the physical details of the glade should be eerily
orderly, they are nothing compared to the music of the glade. At
first, adventurers will not notice it, but after they have been in the
glade for a few moments, it will slowly begin to break through the
edges of their perceptions. It is totally unearthly, but also very
beautiful.
True Dreams
Though it is clear that the glade is intrinsically magic, it can have
even greater effects upon those who sleep within.
Whenever a player sleeps within the glade, he will have a True Dream
if he rolls under POWx1, provided that his Chaos allegiance is not
greater than his Law or Balance allegiance. If several characters all
sleep within the glade, all who make their POWx1 roll will have the
same Dream. These Dreams will always be of the past (many say that the
Lords of Law live forever within the past). They may show ancient
battles, long-destroyed cities or dead people. These dreams will
always be of special significance to the Lords of Law. They may show
items the Lords wish retrieved, families they wish destroyed, or
cities they wish rebuilt. Typically, once someone has seen a True
Dream within the Glade of Theril, he will continue seeing it whenever
he sleeps (in the glade, or elsewhere), until he has done something to
advance the particular goal hinted at by the dream.
Knowledge from the Glade
Art (any musical instrument) and Art (song) can both be learned within
the glade, simply by sitting and listening to the haunting music. For
each full week that someone sits within the glade, concentrating upon
the musc, they gain 5% in their chosen Art (to a maximum of 100%) and
1 point in Law Allegiance (to a maximum of 10 points above the next
highest allegiance).
In addition, the spell Will of Theril (Bronze Grimoire, pg. 40) will
be learned if a character sits within the glade for a week when they
have an appropriate Art of 50% of higher (this is in addition to the
normal benefits gained from meditating within the glade).
Adventure Ideas
* If the players are servants of Law, they may quest for the glade,
hoping to find a place that will bring them closer to their gods.
Servants of the balance may also want to find the glade, hoping to
use its power to slow the growth of Chaos within the Young Kingdoms.
* The forces of chaos would work to destroy the glade if they knew of
it. When the armies of chaos begin to move, the players could find
themselves sudden war leaders, needed to bring together an army of
law to protect the glade. Often, foulness is hidden by fairness, and
the players would thus have to deal with traitors within their army,
determined to bide their time, and sully the glade by acts of chaos
when attention is turned elsewhere.
* Unknowing characters might sleep in the bizarre glade, and suddenly
find themselves plagued with the same dream. Such unfortunates would
have to seek out seers and soothsayers in an attempt to discover the
meaning of their dreams, and then would have to do the work of the
Lords of Law to free themselves from them. Alternatively, they might
throw themselves fully towards Chaos, hoping to find magic to banish
the words of Law.
* A new cult, The True Seers, could spring up around the Glade of
Theril. Each member of the Cult is initiated when he sleeps alone
within the Glade. He is then tasked to find the meaning of his
vision, and accomplish the desires of the Lords of Law. True Seers
could be found throughout the Young Kingdoms, each one a questing
traveller.
* There is always the underlying question of Why Theril once walked
the Young Kingdoms here. Do other things nearby show her mark? Is
something valuable (or inimical) to the Lords of Law nearby? It
would probably be easiest for Theril to return to the Young Kingdoms
in the Glade. Great prophecies could foretell her return. And
finally, perhaps it is easier for other things to come to the Young
Kingdoms, here, in the Glade, as well?
Shannon
--------------------
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