A DM Looks at 50

Underdark Fashion Magazines Part 1

Back in August / September, 2015, I was reading the excellent Dungeonomics columns by Multiplexer (Emily...) about the fall of the great Elven Empire to the Dwarves. It looks something like the fall of Rome to the Germanic tribes, or the fall of urban China to the Mongols. That was the August column. That’s an interesting campaign setting, but something that we have probably seen / imagined before. But what was really interesting was the follow-up column in September, where she talked about the distant Elven outpost / province on an island (with obvious parallels between Rome and England) that is left on its own. The Elven governor decides to import mercenaries from the next island over (again, the parallel is England & Ireland). Those mercenaries decide to move up the food chain, depose the Elves, and start their takeover. The switch-up? The (Irish) barbarian mercenaries are HALFLINGS... so the British isles become the Islands of the Small Peoples in this fantasy campaign setting.

Multiplexer’s second column details the rise of the Halflings, from the most ambitious clan chief (Wuffa of the Wolf people) to his distant descendant Udda who builds a wall to keep out those pesky, barbarian Elves. This is a type of setting that we haven’t seen much in quite a while, although it matches Gary Gygax’s original idea for a D&D setting - one with scattered points of villages and urban peoples, raiding into the wilds for treasures from long ago, while also fighting off incursions from the surrounding tribes.

So, somewhere between Wuffa I and Udda I, we have Wuffa II - the chief of Clan Firesword and crowned ruler of the Firesword Kingdom. His people live in a valley, with a sheer cliff (magically raised) to the northeast, and another one to the west/northwest that drops down to a large lake. Hills lie north, separating the valley from the nearest Halfling clan. King Wuffa II claims to be descended from the goddess Eire and an angel, through the great Warrior Kings of the old country. He will become a King of Kings, he is certain, but for now, he needs help with pacifying the valley and keeping out the other kings and their tribes to the north, south, southeast, and southwest. Wuffa II is a CG Knight 1 / Fighter 7. His clan’s valley holds potential allies, enemies, and a number of useful and historical sites. Wuffa wants it all. He wants to be an Emperor. But he needs STUFF - the symbols and trappings of empire - which is where the PCs come in. He will reward brave souls who bring him relics and treasures of the past.

Wuffa II wields a +1 Flaming Sword (clan & kingdom’s namesake) and wears Banded mail +2 (because his smiths can’t make anything better - no half-plate or full-plate or specialized armor or armor materials like mithril or adamantine are known, yet.) Wuffa is not a bad leader, but he is rash, and his men are still more barbarians than fighters, and they often race into battle naked and screaming. He sits in a fortified manor house in Kellen’s Bridge, where the Votar River feeds into the Fivain River. This small town is the capital, and home to Wuffa’s line within the Clan (the Lenori). Other lines include the Dumoin, the Gnarga, the Beorna, and the Ardalay. The kingdom also includes a Gnome village - a sapper unit attached to the mercenaries when they first landed 150 years ago. As Multiplexer noted in her September column, this is not a setting where PCs can drop by the local magic shop to buy whatever they want. Nor can they simply choose any particular prestige class that they want to pick up. Studied magic (wizardry, high-level cleric spells, warmagery, and high-level bardic spells) is fairly rare. Natural magic - whether arcane or divine - is much more common. Warlocks (Complete Arcane), sorcerors, spirit shamans (Complete Divine), wilders (Expanded Psionics Handbook), favored souls (Complete Divine), and adepts (DMG NPC class) who instinctively use magic are much more common than the studied-magic users.

Since the fall of the Elven Empire, the gods of the past and the protective spirits of the Halfling tribes have coalesced into the Northern Pantheon (origin story here). While the traditional Elven gods still exist, they hold no power anywhere on the isles, and are merely culture heroes, unable to grant spells - this matters little to the Halflings and their allies, because the Elves (who have retreated to the forests of the farthest eastern shore of the Island,) will almost always kill anyone they meet who is not an Elf, with the exception of some Fey and Sylvan creatures.

The Elves are a nightmare people in this land, bathed in violence and terror. They file their teeth, coat their hair with the blood of their victims, and wield magic with their dread eyes that glow a demonic red in the darkness. Dwarves are practically unknown here as well - they are an underground people who rarely deign to trade with the “barbaric” tribes of the surface world. Instead, they live in a steampunk series of cities at the edge of the Upper Underdark and Middle Underdark far below. The religious changes have wrought changes in the bigger humanoids and monstrous humanoids (size medium and larger) on the surface, too - their birth rates have dropped drastically while pregnancy durations have increased, and the small-sized and smaller creatures have had their birth rates increased (with shorter pregnancies, too). To top this off, many of the medium-sized and bigger are born with a new flaw (as in Unearthed Arcana) - Soulless.

The Soulless flaw carries the following penalties:

CANNOT be Raised, Resurrected, or Reincarnated, including the instantaneous spells that can be applied to a creature within the same round that they drop to -10 or lower. Only Limited Wish, Wish, Miracle or Alter Reality (or stronger) can bring the creature back.

-2 on all social interactions with outerplanar beings (Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Info, Intimidate, Sense Motive)

This particular flaw has kept the bigger races from having any wizards or clerics strong enough to bring others or themselves back, so attrition has also helped to keep their numbers low.

On the island, Gnomes have taken on several of the typical characteristics of traditional Dwarves - they are smiths, miners, and talented producers of medieval tech - more Lawful than is the norm for traditional Gnomes. Dromites (a small-sized, insect-like, humanoid race from the Expanded Psionics Handbook) fill this role along with the Gnomes - living in Upper Underdark villages. Half-Elves are rare, and they are usually the children of iconoclastic humans and elves who live alone in the wilderness, unless they are the children of violence, much like Half-Orcs are. A swamp at the north end of the valley holds a Lizard-people village, and a few of them have traded with and live among the Halflings, as do a few Humans from the upper cliff, Maenads (Expanded Psionics Handbook) from the southwest, and Catfolk (Races of the Wild). Competitor races include Bugbears, Hobgoblins, Orcs, Jerren (evil Halflings gone ferally violent from Book of Vile Darkness), and a hidden colony of Dark Ones (Fiend Folio & Dragon #322). Potential allies or enemies include an Abeil tribe (Monster Manual II) on the upper valley’s magically-produced desert area, wandering Catfolk tribes, several Fey villages, and a hidden Aranea colony, as well as solitary intelligent creatures of the wild.

The map is here.

Towns of the kingdom (with populations)

1 - Kellen’s Bridge - 1167

2 - Amalru - 902

3 - Renserid - 642

4 - Golden Glade - 225

5 - Newfort - 121

6 - Thornbridge - 375

7* - Naslyth - 373 (allied Gnome hill village - sapper unit attached to the Halfling infantry, slingers, and riders)

Each city and town has a similar # of inhabitants working and living in outlying farms / ranches / outposts / hunting camps / logging camps / mines, etc.

Other race settlements (with populations)

A - Green Heart of the Ash Grove - Fey - 552

B - Edgewater - Human - 305

C - Claw-the-Sky - Bugbear - 273

D - Cottonwood Pool - Fey - 499

E - Three Rivers - Lizardfolk - 582

F - Blood Hill - Orc - 413

G - Tirka’s Revenge - Jerren - 548

H - Desert Spires - Abeil - 576

I - Trurrggal - Hobgoblin - 317

J - Mt. Nesgall - Bugbear - 467

K - Blackrock Pass - Orc - 695

L - Twinpeaks - Bugbear - 568

M - Riverside - Human - 477

N - Heartwood - Maenad - 207

O - Vergan’s Overlook - Maenad - 414

P - Moss in the Shadows - Fey - 347

Ruins - (battlefields are sources of all types of undead creatures, but few can wander far from the battlefield without collapsing into dust. Ruins can also generate undead, tied to the sorts of knowledge each has.)

a - Cycaln - Elven military ruin (barbarian- and ranger-related prestige-class traditions, nature, and local studies)

c - Broken Rock field - Elven battlefield

e - Pavelan Gorge - Elven battlefield

f - Radbesinon - Elven military ruin (specialized in archery and distance weapons, throwing- & archery-related prestige-class traditions)

g - Jarkieval Ridge - Elven battlefield

i - Whurnor - Fire Giant ruin (fire- and elemental-related prestige-class traditions, crafting feats)

j - Uthisti - Elven magic-study ruin (specialized in scrolls and spellbooks, various book-based prestige-class traditions, arcana, and planar studies)

k - Vaeri'rachathear - Draconic ruin (all military / warrior Draconic-related prestige class traditions)

l - Alberum - Elven battlefield

m - fel’Arimwyn - Elven magic-study ruin (bardic college - various bardic prestige-class traditions, musical magic-item creation details)

o - Dethalaith - Elven religious ruin (cleric- and paladin-related prestige-class traditions, religious, and planar studies)

p - Shaaer Eirlan - Elven magic-study ruin (specialized in necromancy, summoning, divination, sneaker-y-related magical prestige-class traditions like Unseen Seer or Magical Trickster or Arcane Trickster - from Complete Mage, Complete Scoundrel, and the DMG)

q - Mylasran - Elven urban ruin (regional capital - nobility/royalty, history, geography, local studies - lost languages like Draconic, Giant, Dwarven, Celestial, Infernal, elemental languages)

r - Basdukr - Fire Giant ruin (Ignan language, engineering, architecture, smithing, artificer template-making, artificer prestige classes)

s - Nal Mysivar - Elven barrow (necromantic magic-related prestige-class traditions, Abyssal language)

v - Fishallar - Elven barrow (necromantic hunter-related prestige-class traditions, Logical language)

x - Thamusvara - Elven military ruin (specialized in small-sized warriors, so gnome / halfling / dromite specific feats, armor, weapons, prestige classes)

y - Siali Kerspar - Elven magic-study ruin (specialized in magic & psionics mixed with martial arts - monks, monk/magic prestige-class traditions, Blood Magus prestige class)

z - Azaruil Maiaia - Elven battlefield (where the last Viceroy and her Consort fell)

aa - hel'Raernisther - Elven military ruin (armory, specialized forges, Abjurant Champion prestige-class tradition, tankish prestige-class traditions)

ab - Nimimmil - Elven military ruin (Law-based and Kensai-like prestige-class traditions, Logical language)

ac - Aelim - Elven battlefield (the last Elven Knight fell here - end of the Empire)

Locations

b - Ansurdar Falls - landmark

d - Cave of Korkynai - magical location (Black Ruby Gate - planar-related magical prestige classes, elemental earth, portal, teleportation related)

h - Spider Claw Rapids - landmark

n - Vonang Chasm - landmark

t - Malsvirternesj'ukrismalsvirmaekrix - magical location (Book of Vile Darkness prestige classes, evil, necromancy, lower-planar contact related, Abyssal, Infernal, Chaos languages)

u - Corselah Gap - landmark

w - Bensvelkachuaksthyr - magical location (good, nature, druid, ranger related spells, equipment, prestige classes, Celestial language)

Danger locations

DL1 - Crownsplitter - Undead (vampiric) Treant - (Dangerous Denizens 146)

DL2 - Soarwhale Pod (Arms & Equipment Guide)

DL3 - Roc (female) - nesting in a Stone Giant ruin

DL4 - Aranea colony - built on Elven magical study ruin (specialized in nature, psionic, alchemy studies, nature-based, alchemy-based, psionic caster-type prestige classes, psi-forged Warforged - from Monster Manual III and Eberron Campaign Setting)

DL5 - Solitary Harpy - she lives south of the extensive urban ruins of Mylasran (q) in a smaller urban ruin - Mus’Besiatma (elemental planes, arcana, architecture & engineering studies, elemental grafting, Bind Elemental feat)

DL6 - Green Warden Shambling Mound

DL7 - Dark Ones colony (Fiend Folio, Dragon #322) - built on Elven religious ruin sunken into the ground (far below, evilly warded, trapped, poisoned and disguised lies an ancient library - which is powerfully warded against the evil around it - Book of Exalted Deeds prestige classes, positive-energy plane magic).

DL8 - Sanguineous Drinker (Monster Manual 5) & a Dwarf Vampire Barbarian 1 guard an old Dwarven complex (architecture & engineering, dungeoneering, dwarven specialty weapons and armor, Warforged construction, Dwarf-specific prestige classes, underdark combat prestige classes)

DL9 - Malfera (Dragon #343) - roams an Elven magic-study ruin (specialized in dream magic, illusion, arcana studies)

DL10 - Glaistig (Monster Manual 3)

Well done in Irving TX

To: [email protected] Cc:[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] Dear Principal Daniel Cummings,

congratulations to you, sir, and to MacArthur High School and the Irving (Texas) ISD. You lead a school with failing English and Science scores, which Texas cleverly calls "Closing Performance Gaps". Yesterday (Sept. 15, 2015), you managed to write an inflammatory letter to parents after taking a bigoted stance against a brown-skinned Muslim child who wanted to impress his teachers. You called his homemade digital clock a "suspicious device". Then, you let an English teacher decide what a homemade science-project might actually be - a "bomb" versus a clock. The previously-engaged student (Ahmed Mohamed) has vowed to never bring or show his inventions to school again. Surely your school's STEM scores will be improving immediately in the face of such fine decisions by yourself, the 9th-grade English teacher, and the apparently bigoted cops in your school who demanded "a broader explanation" of why an inventive kid might make a clock. Well done.

A question, though, do you have any actual classroom experience for say at least an entire school year as a teacher? I ask because neither news reports nor the district website list any for you - just a business degree, some football coaching, then work as an administrator. Perhaps I am mistaken, but a full year in the classroom seems like it might really help you to improve as an educator - if you are actually interested in being a better educator vs. an administrator.

Your job is a difficult one, which I recognize, but your response in this case - at each step so far - has been abysmally poor. Perhaps you are not a bigot, but your actions have certainly given that impression, and apparently, you are bigotry-tolerant and unwise - you didn't bother to check with any science or technology teachers, but instead went with an English teacher's "professional" opinion of what might constitute a "bomb". You threatened to expel the student unless he wrote out some sort of "confession", and then you suspended him for three days. Now the student is still being considered for a felony charge of building a "hoax bomb", but that term came ONLY from the English teacher, you, and the police, who made bigoted comments about the boy upon seeing him. You have endangered an entire future for a minority kid who wanted to impress his teachers, and you don't seem to care.

I want to reiterate just how bad your bigoted behavior is, especially with regards to science, where the US is lagging (not having enough STEM graduates so that we have to import more from abroad). This issue is so important that the National Science Foundation has several different grant and scholarship programs to attract minority students from secondary through post-graduate levels, and there is even an NSF publication: "Underrepresented Minorities: A Rich Pool of STEM Talent - Who Will Do Science, Technology, Engineering and Math in the Future?" - available at http://www.cmse.umd.edu/sites/default/files/documents/eastern-region-book.pdf .

The reason that I say all of this is that I am forwarding a copy of this message to the Office of Civil Rights at the US Department of Education, because I believe that the Irving (Texas) ISD and MacArthur High School are recipients of Federal education funds, and you, Principal Cummings, the as-yet-unnamed 9th-grade English teacher, and the police officers located within the school have all committed an egregious violation of the civil rights of a minor child. This occurred on Sept. 14, 2015. The boy involved was not only badgered, arrested, and perp-walked out of school in front of his classmates, he was held for hours and fingerprinted for NOTHING except being non-White while building an electronic clock. Please note similar clock constructions in the following web locations by WHITE people who were NOT arrested and perp-walked: https://twitter.com/LongHairNasaGuy , https://twitter.com/RationalBassist/status/644006606104064000/photo/1 , and the following GUN built on the Texas Capitol steps and then held by white children who were also not arrested: http://3dprint.com/37168/ghost-gunner-texas-open-carry/ . Other recipients are your boss at Irving ISD, the Dallas FBI office for investigation of hate crimes by yourself and the local police, the minority affairs folks at NSF, and the Educational Opportunities Section of the US Department of Justice who investigate Civil Rights violations.

I am incredibly saddened by your actions, and I wonder how many other non-White children under your control have faced (or will face) other bigoted decisions on your part in your 11+ years as an administrator at Irving ISD (and in the future, which I hope you won't have). Perhaps one day you will truly see how your behavior has harmed not just this single young man, but so many others in your school district, in Texas, and across the nation, as non-White kids hear about this and think, "Oh, can't do science, either - don't want to get arrested, charged with a felony, perp-walked out of my school in front of all my peers, or maybe even shot."

My very lowest regards,

Walks-Far: We are a band of murderous adventurers, so we don’t care about the Lich’s phylactery.

Gaylen (the rogue): I’m Neutral Good!

These particular tomes are known to have been in use the last 3 years. Perhaps your party has heard something. Or maybe found something.

The Demonic Incunabulum of Vide Gene: This set of engraved agate slates is contained in an elderwood puzzle box - DC 32 Int check or DC 26 Knowledge (Planes) AND either a DC 26 Decipher Script or Open Lock to unscramble. Grants +6 to all possessor's interactions with Demons, including summoning, pacts, control, skill checks, etc. but NOT attack and damage. Price 3,500 gp, Weight: 15 lb. (Virulent, overpowering aura of Evil.)

The Elysian Compendium of Caini: This ancient book is bound in steel plates and locked (DC 40). It is written in Dwarven. Allows a Good or Lawful Dwarf +2 on all interactions with Good Outerplanar beings, and +6 to LG Dwarves. Allows a Good or Lawful Dwarf possessor to Summon a Dwarf Ancestor (MM4 p.52) 1/week for 1 hour. The spirit will help to the best of its ability, and within the strictures of its LG alignment. Price: 4,500 gp, Weight: 8 lb. (Overwhelming aura of Good.)

The Enchiridion of Duri (Price: 1,100 gp, Weight: 9 lb., mild aura of Evil): This heavy book is bound in leather, and its few pages are steel. Said to have been written by a vile Sorceror / Warlock named Trump. Contains 3 generally unknown spells:

Cause Bad Hair (0-level - Conjuration) - Range - Medium, Instantaneous, Reflex negates. A sudden wind seems to hit a single creature and leave their hair / head gear / head garments a snarled and tangled mess, but the person does not feel the wind unless they make a Reflex save, which negates the spell

Heavenly Jet of Dandruff (1st-level Conjuration) - works the same as Glitterdust, but doesn't cause blinding - instead, anyone in the area must make a Will save or take a -1 Vile penalty to all skill checks and attack rolls due to itchiness. Caster is automatically affected while the spell is in effect.

Spray of Bile (3rd-level Conjuration) - Range - Medium, Instantaneous, Fort negates / Reflex for 1/2 damage. Caster seems to burp horribly, then wave a hand in front of her mouth. A fetid odor and spray of acid bursts forth in a 10' radius where the caster desires - Fort save or be nauseated for 1d4 rounds, and Reflex save for 1/2 vs 1d4 acid damage per caster level (max 10d4 damage).

Dinan's Leaves: This set of scrolls contained in a leather case trimmed with fox fur is CURSED. Whenever it is opened, the local weather changes unfavorably (rain, snow, etc). When used in a performance, this tome provides a +1 competence bonus to Perform (oratory) checks. Price: 200 gp, Weight: 5 lb.

The Empyrean Compendium of Throri: This book is written in blood upon silk pages and bound in carved wood plates. When used in vocation, this tome provides a +2 competence bonus to Profession (guide) checks. Price: 800 gp, Weight: 5 lb.

The Vile Folio of Asylas (Price 45,000 gp, Weight: 9 lb. Virulent, blinding aura of Evil): This thick tome may well be an Artifact - scholars are unsure. They do know that it is written upon linen pages and bound in elderwood plates inlaid with steel. It is locked by powerful Outer Planar and Fey magic, and can only be opened by a maiden's kiss. It was created by a dangerous Druid/Sorceress named Genillia Darkwild, with help from Demonic, Diabolic, and Tarterian tutors, as well as several Verdant Princes. The maiden who opens the book permanently loses 4 hp, but as long as the book is in her possession, she gains a +1 bonus to her Charisma, and also gets a +1 bonus on all skills in relation to Magical Beasts, including attack and damage rolls and saves vs. their special attacks. The book contains specific instructions for tracking unicorns and tricking them into giving up their horns, or entering into a trapped grove (cost to construct 500 gp or a DC 22 Survival or Profession (Hunter) check, 100 gp, and 2 days of work) where they can be tortured and sacrificed, as well as directions on how to best use the beasts' hide, horn, organs, blood, and essence to make a number of evil magical items (granting a +4 unholy bonus to skills used and Caster Level when making any of the following):

Violated Horn (BoVD p.41) - ritual - Knowledge (Arcana) DC 20 - only 1 chance to make it, can’t take 10 or 20. Price: 3,000 gp.

Weeping Stones made from each tooth - max 20. (BoVD p.41) @ 25% off crafting price for time calculations - Alchemy DC 25. Price: 100 gp each.

21 doses of Agony (Liquid Pain) - (200 gp, BoVD p.46)

Fresh Unicorn Eye - has a 35% chance of Extending the duration of the spell it is used with. Price: 2 gp.

Fresh Unicorn Hoof - has a 25% chance of giving a ray spell the Split Ray metamagic. Price: 1 gp.

Fresh Unicorn Heart - has a 25% chance of Empowering any spell cast with the heart as an additional material component. Price: 3 gp.

Petrified Unicorn Heart (receptacle to hold its soul, which gives a +4 unholy bonus to Soul Bind or Trap the Soul check). Price 2,000 gp, Cost to create: 1,000 gp and 16XP.

Unicorn Soul (worth 10 ordinary humanoids, so 100 XP when used in crafting). Price 2,000 gp

Unicorn Hide can be used as a component of Beasthide quality in armor (dropping the bonus price from +2 to +1, MIC), or as a part of a Shirt of the Fey, a Psychoactive Skin of the Defender, or a Psychoactive Skin of the Hero (all MIC), thereby lowering the crafting cost by 25% for any of them. Recovering the hide in good shape requires a DC 22 Survival check OR a DC 18 Profession (Hunter) or Profession (Butcher) check, as well as a DC 18 Knowledge (Arcana) check. Price: 5,000 gp.

Desecrated Unicorn Bones can be used for adding the Poison Spikes quality (BoVD) to armor in place of the spell Poison (5 pieces of armor to 1 whole Desecrated Unicorn Skeleton)

Desecrated Unicorn Blood can lower by 25% the cost of adding the Bloodfeeding or Vile qualities (BoVD) to a weapon, or in making a Blackguard's Blade (BoVD p.111-12), OR using all the Unicorn’s Blood can produce a single dose each of 3 psychic poisons (Darin-tasith, Karadrach, Stradda - BoVD). Price: 4,400 gp.

Desecrated Unicorn Skull can be used when crafting a Skull of Fear (BoVD), thereby lowering the creation cost by 25%. Price: 6,000 gp.

The Eldritch Tablets of Zigil: This libram is written upon silk pages and bound in gold(-ish) plates and locked (DC 30). It is written in Infernal. When used in arcane research, this tome provides a +1 competence bonus to Spellcraft checks. Price: 280 gp, Weight: 7 lb.

The Heavenly Enchiridion of Amin: This set of scrolls is wrapped in linen cloth. When first opened, one minor mundane item possessed by the reader crumbles into dust. When used in a vocation, this tome provides a +1 competence bonus to Profession (merchant) checks. Price: 200 gp, Weight: 3 lb.

The Enchiridion of Psycrystals: This set of engraved amber slates is contained in a simple wooden box. It is written in Gnome. Given a week of study, any creature with at least 1 Psionic Power Point can exchange any feat for the Psycrystal Affinity feat. Price: 300 gp, Weight: 5 lb.

So, I was looking for some interesting unique magic items to add to our Eberron campaign, and I ran with a brief idea I read about over at Giant in the Playground’s Forum to get this very specific magic dagger:

WHITE SLICE

Price (Item Level):  10,800 gp (14th) Body Slot: --- (held) Caster Level: (15th) Aura: Strong (DC 25) Necromancy Activation: --- Weight: 1 lb.

The hilt of this dagger is set with a moonstone inset into an onyx bead the size of a ping-pong ball. The bead is inscribed with this word in Draconic: “svent'aussirierikc” (White Claw [of the] Kill) encircling the inset moonstone, while “grovisv'kurikwaere” (Slaughter [the] Cave Wood) is around the base of the onyx where it is set into the hilt, which is wrapped in silver wire. Both words are inlaid with silver filigree.

This intelligent magical dagger (CN: Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 16; Ego 17) was crafted by a rather "odd" Half-Fey Deep Imaskari Blighter / Wizard (Draven Tarbellensis) in the Fourth Year of the Yeth Lords. “White Slice” was how Draven came to overthrow the peaceful Bitter Lime-water Caverns community and its three Myconid Circles (DC 25 History or Arcana).

White Slice has a very specific special purpose - to Destroy Fungi, and its associated Special Power is Poison as a touch attack 1/day vs plants only, which are normally immune to the effects of this spell: (Fort DC 14, DC 16 vs fungi, 1d10 Con / 1d10 Con vs a plant creature, or it kills 200 cubic feet of fungus, or 100 cubic feet of any other plant material). This attack makes the fungus poisonous to any creature that ingests it - either eating or via a Natural (bite) Attack.

White Slice is so specific in its goals that it refuses to cut anything but plants unless the wielder wins an Ego check for EVERY slice or cut not aimed at vegetable matter (even if being used for cooking in the kitchen or dining.) It speaks Common, Undercommon, Sylvan, and Terran, and can also read them. It has Darkvision 60′ and hearing - Perception +0 or Spot / Listen +0. It is otherwise a +2 dagger, with 3 Lesser powers:

Wood Rot - 3d6+7 damage - 1/day vs a plant creature OR it destroys (disintegrates) 110 cubic feet of fungus for 7 rounds (1/2 that area for other plant matter);

Knowledge (Nature / Dungeoneering - fungus only) +10;

Beget Undead Bogun - Once every 5 days, White Slice can form an Undead Construct from dead (and maybe poisoned) plant matter. (Only 1 Undead Bogun allowed to be active at a time). An Undead Bogun lasts until destroyed. Since they are undead, they are harmed by positive energy and healed by negative energy.

Undead Bogun - CN Tiny Undead Construct, Init +2, 13 hp (2HD), AC 14, DR 5/Slashing, 13 hp, Speed 10′ / Fly 25′, Melee +2 (Slam 1d4+Poison -- Allergenic Nettles & Dead Plant matter irritants - DC 11, 1d6 Dex / 1d6 Dex). Darkvision 60', Low-light vision.

Saves:  Fort +0 but often immune due to undead or construct traits, Ref +2 Will +2

SQ: Undead traits, Construct traits. As both Undead and Construct, the UB takes damage from spells that target either type of creature

SQ: Poisonous - If made of material killed by White Slice's Poison power, the Undead Bogun is potentially toxic to any creature that tries to consume it or that hits it with a Bite attack - DC 15, 1d10 Con / 1d10 Con

SQ: Like zombies, this Undead Bogun is considered to always be Staggered, with only 1 standard action per round.

Feat: Stealthy. Skills: Perception +1, Stealth +8 or Spot / Listen +1, Hide / Move Silent +8

Stats: S10 D14 C-- I8 W13 Ch11

The Undead Bogun has a Telepathic link to White Slice - 500' radius, and the U.B. will not willingly leave that range.

Prerequisites: Craft Magic Arms & Armor, Magic Weapon, Beget Bogun (may be cast from a scroll, only needed for 1 day), Control Plants (may be cast from a scroll, only needed for 1 day), Wood Shape (may be cast from a scroll, only needed for 1 day), Animate Dead (may be cast from a scroll, only needed for 1 day), Poison, Wood Rot, [Junglerazer OR Deforestation class ability (Blighter, Complete Divine, p24)], 

The Northern Pantheon began in darkness and ice. Thanatos, the dark Elder god of cold death and destruction surrounded Gaia, the living Elder earth mother and her molten heart. Between them, they bound chaos and energy, time and synchronicity, mating and merging until three sons were born in the dark of the Void. The first was Caligula, who found himself alone, and surrounded by only the Ether of the Void. He watched his parents, absorbing knowledge of the flow of essence and energy, and found himself drawn to both parents - growth and decay, pride and nihilism, consumption and lust. So focused on their interplay, and the patterns that he was creating in the Ether (the first stirring of the flow of mana and magic), he didn’t even notice the arrival of his brother, Justinian, who paid only enough attention to his parents to see how he had been formed, then he reached out into the Void and began to make things himself.

Justinian created the world - firmaments and seas, land, lakes, rivers, lava, ore, and all the filled and empty spaces that separated into the strata of the earth, set off from the Void by his will and the body of his mother. He was so busy building the universe and creating its first people, the dwarves, that he did not notice the arrival of a third brother, Delphi, who was angry at being made last, at being ignored by his blind parents, his self-absorbed brothers and their focus on their own creations. Delphi began trying to rip apart his brothers’ work simply to get their attention, but he found that he enjoyed the destruction as he threw pieces of the world back into Thanatos’ essence. It also angered Delphi that both older siblings did not even seem to notice his efforts. He created the second people of the world - the dark elves, who lived in the underworld of Justinian’s Creation, and perhaps it was then that Justinian began to notice and hate his younger sibling.

Meanwhile, Delphi could not even understand what his brother Caligula was doing with his Weave in the Void. So Delphi found a way to pull his brother out of the Void and his creation of Magic - he drugged the eldest of the three gods, then laughed as the Weave fell to the world, unfinished. The falling Weave burned holes in the Ether, creating stars and suns, setting the very air on fire, until it fell on the World, binding itself to the bones of Justinian’s project. Then, Delphi continued his rampage across the World and the places beyond it. He found a spider demon thrown off by a corrupt eddy from his father’s form, and he got it with child to produce his first descendant, the Demon Queen Lolth. While Delphi and Justinian were occupied, something stirred within drugged Caligula’s chest, and as his mind lay open and unable to sustain his own unity, The Norn ripped herself free. By the time Caligula came aware again, The Norn had fled, finding Justinian in his Creation and beginning her fascination with him. She drew his attention, and the two mated, producing Eire and Furor - eternal opposites - female / male, compassion / fury, freedom / regimentation, love / anger, inner / outer power, and substance / appearance.

While this growth of the gods happened over the centuries, a priestess arose among the dark elves, who thought to take her people into the newfound light, but Delphi’s demon child, Lolth, would not allow them to go free. Joan fought for her followers, and was killed by Lolth’s fanatic priestesses, but Gaia herself returned Joan’s body from her burial chamber, and St. Joan led her followers out of the darkness and into the light. The first exposure of their dark skin to the suns and stars drew in the light, dimming the brilliant display of the Weave to a prize that few could see, as the elves (no longer dark) absorbed the power and magic into their very bodies. Joan led her people to the forests, the high valleys, the dark jungles, the deep oceans, and wherever they might be safe from the dark elves. Eventually, her people prospered, and Gaia took Joan back into the earth, but Joan’s power was too strong, and she burned Gaia’s earthflesh, so the Elder pushed Joan back into the universe for a third birth - this time as a new goddess.

In time, Justinian and The Norn grew apart, and Delphi seduced his sister-in-law, creating his second child - Tiamat, the goddess of evil dragons. Oh how he crowed of his “triumph” over his brother, but The Norn saw her betrayal and in her rage, she thought to thwart Delphi by creating ALL of the dragons, including metallic and gemstone ones using Justinian’s materials, to match Delphi’s essence in all of the prismatic dragons, and they, too, carried much of the Weave into their forms, since she took her materials from the World around her. As Justinian finished his Creation, he became aware of St. Joan, and the two fell in love, married, then had two children - Arthur and Circe. Each of the other gods began to make people to fill the spaces of the World - Caligula making the Yakfolk, the Satyrs, and the Goatfolk. Arthur made men, Eire the halflings, Furor the hobgoblins in order to show up his half-brother, Arthur, and Circe made the orcs. When Circe’s plan to supplant her brother and father failed, her child Lillith was revealed. Lillith soon made the gnomes and the catfolk, and later, after mating with the demon Yeenoghu, she gave birth to the first gnolls as well. Circe abandoned her first creatures when Justinian exiled her, so she created a new set of peoples - the fey - in order to practice her intrigue and prepare her next attempt to overthrow her father, as she must.

Elsewhere, other gods might arise, but in the lands where the cold, ice, and snow come, Delphi and his destructive nature have struck them down - only his own family has survived his wrath - not because of his desire, but because of his own unruly nature - always distracted by the arrival of new gods or beliefs to destroy, and he never quite got around to those already in the North until it was too late, and he could not undo them, or at least, not yet.

-----------------------------

Caligula is the Mage of the Gods. He is also the do-nothing brother of Justinian and Delphi. Caligula usually appears as a large satyr or Ibixian (goatfolk), but also at times as a yakfolk or frost giant. He spends most of his time drunk, drugged, debauched and committing some form of casual sexual depravity while surrounded by food and drink that are going / have gone bad. He relies on his enormous power to protect himself rather than building a stronghold like his siblings. He often lives in natural settings, especially Frostfell-like regions. He created Satyrs, Goatfolk and Yakfolk to entertain, produce food and drink and administer in his lands, because he cannot be bothered with such petty concerns. He is enormously fat, but also very handsome, as well as a skilled musician, actor and raconteur. The Satyrian faction of his worshippers is mostly made up of academics, musicians, mages and scholars. While they enjoy good food and are often too proud of their magical prowess, they are also proud of their families and use their magic to improve the lives of those close to them, only doing harm when necessary to protect their people (family, friends, church or other organization, or even their nation). Caligula can serve as a conduit between Circe and Delphi or Justinian and Delphi when he is sober, but that is not a common situation for him. His darker aspect is also known as The Corruptor. He might view Arthur as an enemy if he could be bothered - it seems too much effort for little reward, so ordinarily Caligula will just "have another one of whatever all of them are having."

Justinian is the Judge of the Gods, who first created Dwarves so that they could forge the World. Moradin is merely the name that the Dwarves give to Justinian. He normally appears as an enormous dwarf of large size. He is brother to Caligula and Delphi, the latter of whom he hates, and the two (and their followers) are always at odds. He and his first wife (The Norn) are parents to Eire and Furor. He and his second wife, St. Joan, are parents to Arthur and Circe. He is grandfather to Lillith.

Delphi is the Scourge of the Gods. He is also the third brother descended from the Elder Overdeities, Gaia and Thanatos. He appears as an enormous dark elf with crimson-colored spiral (ram's) horns. He wears blood-stained, corrupted, black adamantine armor. His smile is full of too many teeth, and his tongue is a 30' reach weapon equal to a whip (and capable of delivering touch attacks, also). He is the font of the drow and duergar - both of which he corrupted from their original forms made by Justinian and Corellon Larethian. He is also responsible for the lack of almost all elves in the Northlands. In the Drow/Surface war, he prevailed over Corellon and cut him and the rest of the Elven pantheon off from this part of the Prime Material Plane. Although Delphi could not kill those deities outright, within the reach of the Northern lands, they are all only culture heroes incapable of granting spells - the elves have to ask the other gods for help. Also, all Drow (even the few good ones) must have Delphi's approval of their spell selections, even if they worship another deity, so none of them can ever cast a spell with the "good" or "law" descriptor. Lolth is Delphi's child, sired on a Spider Demon Queen that Delphi killed and then ate while she gave birth to Lolth. He also shared some of her mother's flesh with the infant Lolth. He revels in slaughter, vicious sex, sadism, torture and creating undead. He often rewards his strongest Drow followers with Vampirism, but also destroys any that show signs of being strong enough to cause him or Lolth even tiny problems. He uses Lolth as a minor partner, sex toy, torture victim, and/or playmate, often all at the same time. Tiamat is his other child, but he ignores her, rather than face her and her mother, The Norn, at the same time. Delphi hates Justinian more than any other god, but he has horrific plans for all of them should they ever be in his power.

The Norn is the Dark Old Mother of the Gods. She broke free from Caligula's chest when he was drugged by Delphi. Her normal aspect is balanced - acknowledging all of her relatives, no matter their alignment, although she is not a welcoming figure. She often appears as a Greatwyrm Blue Dragon. She created Dragons to remove anything that should not be in the world. But she also has a darker faction - the Morganites - who see her as the Goddess of Destruction that wants to have the entire world converted into an enormous wasteland (ideally a desert). Her children are Furor and Eire (with Justinian,) but her darker aspect and destruction in the world turned Justin sour on their relationship. He later took a human-turned-demigod as his new wife, and The Norn gained the portfolio of abandoned, scorned and mistreated women, ceded to her by her granddaughter Lillith. She also has a child with Delphi - Tiamat, Goddess of Evil Dragons. The Norn’s priests are always women in any organized church. Her Morganite followers seek to destroy both civilization and the natural world, and will use any means at their disposal to achieve that end. This attitude makes them need to keep their activities secret nearly everywhere, but wherever an older woman is abandoned, hurt or ridiculed, especially older mothers, the Morganites often find a new convert.

Eire is the Messenger / Negotiator of the Gods, especially between those of the pantheon who cannot get along with each other. Most often, her appearance is that of a halfling of Large size. She is sister to Furor, who she finds unspeakably dark and unpleasant, but he is her little brother, so she still invites him to dinner, then keeps him from bullying everyone else. Eire created the Halflings so that humans and dwarves could loosen up and have fun, not worrying and planning so much, but enjoying family and friends and a comfortable kitchen.

Furor is the Shock Trooper of the Gods. Normally, he appears as a Large-sized hobgoblin. He is the younger, less powerful sibling of Eire. He is also subordinate to his niece Circe, which he hates. He sides with her against Arthur and Justinian, but if she is ever weak enough, he will tear her down and rip her power free for himself, as should be, since he is older. He also favors his mother, The Norn, over his stepmother, St. Joan. He created the Hobgoblins as an improvement over humans, and is happy to demonstrate their superiority over his half-brother Arthur's creations. He is frequently angry in secret, and he always has complex plans within plans with multiple back-ups and cutouts available. He has an alliance / relationship with Malcanthet, the Queen of the Succubi, as well as the devil Pazuzu. Still, he will remain allied only as long as they are powerful enough to be helpful against his enemies. He resents Eire for being more powerful than he is but doing nothing to exploit her power to improve her place in the pantheon or the multiverse. He secretly plans to rape, torture, murder, and then eat her if ever he has the chance.

Joan is the Young Mother and Field Commander of the Gods. In life, she was a drow high priestess to Delphi’s and Lolth’s followers. She sacrificed her own life to protect her faction against the evil and illegal enslavement of her people, and returned to life as a Saint. She led the faction out of the area of the Northlands where the main faction lived to a series of mountain ranges and sacred valleys. Once her people had prospered and could live on their own, she grew in power and eventually achieved godhood. After this, Justinian took an interest in the attractive new goddess, then eventually married her. They have two children - Arthur and Circe. They are both grandparents to Lillith. Joan appears as an attractive young elf mother - broad of hip and breast, but strong and loving, stern and protective as needed. Her hair is dark brown ringlets, her skin is olive, and her eyes are dark brown. Her neutral followers always Turn undead, and she has relatively few evil followers, although some professional mercenaries and other military types who do unpleasant (if still legal) things do revere her.

Arthur is the Bringer of Light and Progress, as well as Strategos of the Gods. He appears most often as a handsome human man with sandy hair and beard, and bright blue eyes. He created the humans to live in the world that the Dwarves had crafted. He was tricked by his sister Circe into her bed, and together they are the parents of Lillith. Arthur has an uncomfortable relationship with his daughter. He would like to make her happier, but he didn't even know about her until Circe tried her powerplay in front of their father. Arthur hates nearly everything his sister does, but he still finds her unbridled sexuality enticing, and he fears falling into her bed again, which his father will judge harshly - 'fool me once, shame on you, etc.' He does like St. Joan, but still favors his mother, The Norn (in her non-evil aspect). He finds his uncle Caligula to be an enormous loss - the most powerful who squanders his abilities. His uncle Delphi is a rival nearly on equal with Circe as far as Arthur is concerned, but Delphi is less organized, and the dark elves are limited by their need to remain out of the light, so he worries less about his uncle, despite his greater power.

Circe is the Siren of the Gods, who draws in all those around her - getting them to do what she wishes, even when they know it is foolish or dangerous or evil. She is the second child of Justinian and St. Joan, and she has always resented being born after Arthur and having nowhere near the power that he does. She nearly managed to steal her brother's power, though, perhaps even allowing her to depose her father Justinian as head of the pantheon, but her first bid failed. Her plan was simple - get her brother Arthur drunk, seduce him, then bear his child in secret. Their daughter, Lillith, grew in her mother's household, told that her father had abandoned her after he was unable to kill her before even being born. Poisoned by her mother over the years, Circe told the chld goddess that together they would have her appear before Justinian and demand justice and retribution for what Arthur had done. What Circe did not tell Lillith was that she planned to sacrifice her child to Thanatos, taking her power, and via a mystical link to the child's father, at least part of Arthur's power as well. That would have let her challenge Justinian himself, but Caligula sat in the throne room when Circe and Lillith appeared, and he simply hugged his great-grandniece and froze Circe in place, her poisoned whip already uncurling to tear apart her own child. When Justinian and Arthur walked into the tableau moments later, all of Circe's plans were cast down. Justinian banished Circe from his presence, took part of her power to give to Lillith, who in turn ceded some to The Norn after a very long conversation that took place when they met several days later. Circe still schemes, knowing that her brother is weak at his core - that the red howling beast of passion, anger, and destruction within her is the true nature of the peoples of the North. She is responsible for the creation first of the orcs, then of the fey and their courts - ruled by ancient laws and strictures, but constantly fighting for power over each other, using lust, sex, violence, and death as weapons in their war. While her original plan failed, she has others in motion. Her alliances include the Devil Lord of the Ninth, Asmodeus, as well as various legions of Yugoloths in Gehenna, and the favor of her great-grandfather, Thanatos.

This affiliation organization is a clandestine service group under the control of several seemingly unimportant but hereditary positions in the Dwarfpeaks court. Goals: Primary: preserve regional power of the county, target national officials & their subordinates for information gathering, retrieval, blackmail, bribery. Secondary: counterespionage, both internal and external.

Scale: 10 (Regional / march) - Resources 50,000 gp, Annual budget 20,000 gp

Affiliation Score Criteria

Member of the lower nobility +1

Count / Earl / Duke +2

Royalty +3

Wealth +1 / 20,000 gp

Completes a mission +2

Fails a mission -2

Has both Noble-favored and Sneak-y classes +1 / 2 CL

At least 1 level of Aristocrat, Knight, Marshal, Paladin, or Samurai

At least 1 level of Beguiler, Factotum, Ninja, Rogue, or Scout

5 or more ranks in Knowledge (Nobility) +1

10 or more ranks in Knowledge (Nobility) +2

5 or more ranks in Diplomacy +1

10 or more ranks in Diplomacy +2

No ranks in Knowledge (Nobility) -2

No ranks in Diplomacy -2

Not human -2

Orc or Goblinoid heritage - additional -2

Member of the Chameleon prestige class (Races of Destiny) +2

Benefits

Affiliation Score of 11 or higher

+2 circumstance bonus on Knowledge (Nobility) while in the County

Use of Affiliation safe-houses in Riverbend, Gray March, Ebler’s Pass, Pontiac, and the national Capital - Terrafina

Score of 21 or higher

Communications network allows members to Gather Info across a Barony within Dwarfpeaks without leaving a town in a day, or across the whole County within 2 days.

Able to claim audience (in secret, if necessary)

with the Doge within 1d2 days every week OR

with higher-level noble within 1d4 days once per month OR

with King or High Priest within 1d6 days once per 3 months

Duties - Affiliation Score of 11 or higher

Must pass through The Gantlet - initiation ritual - before the bonuses kick in - Controlled dungeon run with 3 CR 4 encounters, 2 CR 4 traps.

Executive Powers (granted to members with Affiliation score of 30 or more)

Assassinate (level 5 Ninja, Rogue, Swashbuckler, Factotum, etc. goes after target - espionage check vs. target’s Perception or Spot check. Fort save vs DC 14 or die.)

Gift (gain one-time +4 Diplomacy bonus with gift recipient OR +2 on next violence, espionage or negotiation check with / against another organization)

Research (gain +2 insight bonus on next violence, espionage, or negotiation check with another organization)

Leadership

Assistant Sub-Undersecretary of Heraldic Registration - His Lordship Sir Henrique Plossi, (N) Aristocrat 2 / Rogue 3 / Swashbuckler 2 / Chameleon 5 (CL 12) - Affiliation score 35 (Wealth 200,000+)

Sir Henrique is a man in late middle age, but he continues to move smoothly and his mind is very sharp. His concern is less for any particular Doge in the Dwarfpeaks County, but rather for the county as a whole and the various families within it. He has active agents monitoring the Doge in Pontiac, the Regenti in Ebler’s Pass, as well as nationally: all 5 dukes, the Minister of Roads, the 4 closest Counts (Napier, Pyrrathan Valley, Forest Grove, Capaline Valley), as well as the various baronial courts in Dwarfpeaks and those counties.

Associate Underherald of Ancient Protocols - Lady Diana von Furstenburg, (LN) Aristocrat 2 / Beguiler 4 / Chameleon 3 (CL 9) - Affiliation score 28 (Wealth 100,000+)

Lady Diana is a quiet observer - often called in to discuss and resolve cases of disputed inheritances, muddy heraldry, and historical accuracy, she travels from court to court, not only in the county, but in much of the northern half of the nation. She has half a dozen scribes with her, all of whom are Expert / Rogues capable of forgery and sneakery, and she also has many contacts and informants - many of whom don’t know who they are passing information to (or even that they are sharing information in a couple of cases.) Lady Diana is in her early middle age, and she is married to an Aristocrat 1 / Fighter 6 (Colonel Gianni von Furstenburg), who spends much of his time in the Dwarfpeaks court polishing his Regiment’s credentials and chasing young women new to the court.

Underkeeper of Historical Heraldic Art - Baronet Teobaldo Rutti, (NE) Aristocrat 2 / Rogue 3 / Chameleon 2 (CL 7) - Affiliation score 25 (Wealth 75,000)

The Baronet is the field troubleshooter sent in when a contract team, agent, and handler have all run into trouble. His fondest moment is when he caught an Orcish agent from Elfsblood, then “convinced” that agent to give up several hidden caches of supplies and cash. The baronet also came across a map in one of those caches, that shows something “interesting” in the nearer edges of the Deadwood. He is looking for a small team that might be able to go in to investigate and retrieve whatever can be found.

None of the three leaders answer directly to any other members of the court - each is an “assistant” to a non-existent minor position in the Dwarfpeaks court, leaving them free to concentrate on intrigue.

Typical Handler: Rogue 3 / Swashbuckler 2 - Affiliation score 16