DRAGON 1

Publisher: Mike CookEditor-in-Chief: Kim MohanEditorial staff: Roger Raupp

Patrick Lucien PriceMary KirchoffRoger Moore

Subscriptions: Mellody KnullContributing Editors: Ed Greenwood

Katherine KerrKen Rolston

Advertising Sales Administrator:Mary Parkinson

This issue�s contributing artists:Denis Beauvais Keith ParkinsonRoger Raupp Larry ElmoreBob Maurus Bob LillyDavid Sutherland Kurt ErichsenMarsha Kauth E. G. WaltersDave LaForce Craig SmithJim Holloway Dave Trampier

DRAGON® Magazine (ISSN 0279-6848) ispublished monthly for a subscription price of $24per year by Dragon Publishing, a division ofTSR, Inc. The mailing address of DragonPublishing for all material except subscriptionorders is P.O. Box 110, Lake Geneva WI 53147;the business telephone number is (414)248-8044.

DRAGON Magazine is available at hobbystores and bookstores throughout the UnitedStates and Canada, and through a limitednumber of overseas outlets. Subscription ratesare as follows: $24 for 12 issues sent to an addressin the U.S., $30 in Canada; $50 U.S. for 12issues sent via surface mail or $95 for 12 issuessent via air mail to any other country. Allsubscription payments must be in advance, andshould be sent to Dragon Publishing, P.O. Box72089, Chicago IL 60690.

A limited quantity of certain back issues ofDRAGON Magazine can be purchased from theDungeon Hobby Shop. (See the list of availableissues printed elsewhere in each magazine.) Pay-ment in advance by check or money order mustaccompany all orders. Payments cannot be madethrough a credit card, and orders cannot be takennor merchandise reserved by telephone. Neitheran individual customer nor an institution can bebilled for a subscription order or a back-issuepurchase unless prior arrangements are made.

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All material published in DRAGONMagazine becomes the exclusive property of thepublisher upon publication, unless special ar-rangements to the contrary are made prior topublication. DRAGON Magazine welcomesunsolicited submissions of written material andartwork; however, no responsibility for such sub-missions can be assumed by the publisher in anyevent. Any submission which is accompanied bya self-addressed, stamped envelope of sufficientsize will be returned if it cannot be published.

DRAGON is a registered trademark forDragon Publishing�s monthly adventure playingaid. All rights on the contents of this publicationare reserved, and nothing may be reproducedfrom it in whole or in part without first obtainingpermission in writing from the publisher.Copyright ©1984 TSR, Inc.

Second-class postage paid at Lake Geneva,Wis., and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes toDragon Publishing, P.O. Box 110, Lake GenevaWI 53147, USPS 318-790, ISSN 0279-6848.

Vol. IX, No. 4 September 1984

SPECIAL ATTRACTION

CREATURE CATALOG. . . . . . .followingTwenty-nine new monsters page 46

OTHER FEATURES

Survival is a group effort . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8How populations replenish themselves

Six very special shields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14Protection and much, much more

The many types of magic. . . . . . . . . . . . .26Alteration, invocation, explanation . . .

The Role of Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32Sources for medieval warfare

Halt! Who goes there? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34The sharp-eyed sentinel NPC

Beefing up the bureaus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40Skills for TOP SECRET® agents

Learn magic by the month . . . . . . . . . . .42DRAGONQUEST� game variant

What is a monster worth? . . . . . . . . . . . .48Dissecting the x.p. value system

Dunkle Zee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54A story that sails right along

Monster in the Middle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83A really fantastic cross word puzzle

Index to advertisers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92

REGULAR OFFERINGS

Out on a Limb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Letters and answers

The forum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Opinions and observations

Gods of the Suel pantheon. . . . . . . . . . . .20Part 4: Pyremius, Beltar, and Llerg

The ARES� Section. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6316 pages of SF gaming articles

Gamers� Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80

Convention calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82

Dragon Mirth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84

Wormy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Snarfquest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89

D R A G O N , D U N G E O N S & D R A G O N S , A D V A N C E D D U N G E O N S & D R A G O N S , D & D , A D & D , T O PSECRET, BOOT HILL, and GAMMA WORLD are registered trademarks owned by TSR, Inc.� designates other trademarks owned by TSR, Inc., unless otherwise indicated.

Time troubleOne of the things we don�t do very well

(and therefore don�t do very often) is keepup with happenings in the real world. It�stough to be timely when you try to coversomething in a monthly magazine � first ofall because it only comes out once a month,and second of all because we finish produc-tion of an issue one month before it getsprinted and mailed. In even the best ofcases, that usually translates into at least asix-week time lag between when somethinghappens and our first chance to tell youabout it.

In the worst of cases, the time lag isconsiderably longer than that. As an exam-ple of how bad things can get, here�s thestory of Comstar Enterprises and that com-pany�s play-by-mail game, World of Velgor.

In late 1983, Mike Gray wrote an articleentitled �PBM: Problems by mail.� He saidsome things about World of Velgor thatwere apparently true at the time he wrotethem � but which were outdated and nottrue by the time the article finally appearedin the May 1984 issue of the magazine.

Bruce Abrahams, president of ComstarEnterprises, brought this fact to our atten-tion after he (and, unfortunately, lots ofother people) saw Mike�s article. The start-up of the game was delayed, which was thebasis for Mike�s comment that he lookedforward to playing in the game �if andwhen it is ready.� By the time the articlecame out, the game was up and running,and according to Bruce it had been operat-ing since February. In his letter to me,Bruce pointed out that the outdated newshad confused a lot of people, who had seenadvertisements for the game in other maga-zines and understandably were bewilderedabout what was going on. He asked for a�clarification of the matter,� which I hopethis piece of writing has provided.

The responsibility for delaying the publi-cation of Mike�s article is ours. But wecommitted an even greater mistake byprinting the �if and when� statement with-out checking to find out if it was still accu-rate. I hope Comstar Enterprises hasn�tsuffered any irreparable damage because ofour error, and I hope we�ll never let oldinformation creep into our pages again.

2 SEPTEMBER 1984

ssue #61 was the last timewe published a �Dragon�sBestiary� column, which hadbeen our every-issue vehiclefor dishing out new monsters

contributed by our readers. We abandonedour �must run a monster in every issue�approach after that � and a lot of you havetold us since then that you want the Bestiaryback. Well, we haven�t done that, but we�veput together something that�s a lot betterthan the next best thing. In the center 20pages of this 112-page issue is the CreatureCatalog, a collection of 29 reader-submittedmonsters that should whet the appetites ofthose of you who�ve been asking, �Where�sthe beast?� for the last 2½ years.

We expect the Creature Catalog to bepopular. We expect some of you to write upand send in your new monster creationsafter seeing it. And if those two expectationscome to pass, we�ll plan on putting outother editions of the Catalog in the monthsand years to come.

Speaking of popular, this issue�s cover arthas probably knocked your socks off al-ready. For those of you who�ve been buriedunder a mound of dice for the last sixmonths, �Check� is the third and finalelement in the series of chess-oriented fan-tasy paintings from Denis Beauvais.�Checkmate� and �Stalemate,� whichadorned issues #83 and #86 respectively,were two of the most well-received covers inour history, and we�re pretty sure that�Check� will be regarded right up therewith the other two.

Now that the front-and-center talk isover, I�ve got precious little space left tomention all the other great stuff in the tableof contents. �Something for everyone� is atough label to live up to, but we�ll probablynever come any closer than in this issue.You want magic items? Check out EdGreenwood�s �Six very special shields� onpage 14. You want a new NPC? AndyPierce�s sentinel is standing guard on page34. You want theory? See Stephen Inniss�sessay �Survival is a group effort� on page8. You want theory that�s put into practice?Flip to page 48 for �What is a monsterworth?� by Roger Moore.

The next installment of Len Lakofka�sseries on the deities of the Suel pantheonfeatures Pyremius, Beltar and Llerg. Inresponse to one of our �wish list� topics(#82), Charles Olsen expounds on �Themany types of magic� in the AD&D game.

We managed to squeeze in articles on theTOP SECRET® and DRAGONQUEST�games, plus features on four SF/superherogames in the ARES� Science Fiction Sec-tion, plus our usual excursion into fiction.And for something unusual, grab a pencilwith a big eraser and try to tackle �Monsterin the Middle,� the best crossword puzzlewith a gaming connection that we�ve everbeen offered. Well, of course it�s not an easypuzzle: What do you think we think youare? � KM

We can�t re-coverDear Dragon,

Over the years of reading DRAGON, I�vebeen pleased to see such a high degree of excel-lence in the cover art for the magazine. What Iwould like to see is an opportunity, once a year, topurchase a selection of the most popular coversfor the year. The covers offered would be decidedby a once yearly mini-survey to find out whatcovers are the favorites of the readers. Why don�tyou ask your readers if they would like this? Iknow it would be complicated, but I think itwould be worth it.

David HeysScarborough, Ont., Canada

We�d like to be able to offer copies of our coverart for sale, for two pretty obvious reasons: Theartwork is good stuff, and we could probablymake a decent hunk of money by offering printsor posters of the most popular pieces. But wecan�t do it, for one not-so-obvious reason: Wedon�t have the right to reproduce the paintings inany other form.

We purchase first reproduction rights to thecover paintings we publish � we can use the artonce, but that�s it. The original artwork and allother rights remain the possession of the artist.We could offer to buy the right to make prints orposters, but chances are that many of the artistswe work with wouldn�t be willing to sell thoserights � and those who did agree would (quiterightfully) want a lot more money.

David and all the other people who�ve writtenletters to us on this subject seem to be under themistaken impression that we own the cover art wepublish. I honestly wish we did, but such is notthe case. Unfortunately, we�ll all have to besatisfied with seeing the artwork on the cover andnowhere else, unless the creator of a paintingtakes matters into his or her own hands andmarkets prints or posters independently. If weever get word that one of our covers is beingoffered for sale like this, you can be sure we�ll letyou know. � KM

Merle�s reactionDear Editor,

I want to thank you and your staff for thegreat-looking TOP SECRET® adventure pro-duced in DRAGON #87, Operation: Whiteout.

Whiteout was used as the RPGA� TOPSECRET Tournament adventure at last year�sGEN CON® XVI Convention. Only one of the12 competing six-person teams completed themission in the given time. I appreciate the help ofall the event�s judges. A plaque was given toMike Taglianetti, who was voted the best role-player on the highest-scoring team. Mike�s teammembers were Bryan Robert, Pat Kushel, KevinPrice, Ron Sladon, and Mike Thomas.

The fuel oil barrels on the main complex

surface level map did not reproduce well. I canonly see 12 barrels indicated by the tiny unla-belled specks. There should be a total of 20barrels. One barrel should stand diagonally threesquares from each corner of the main complex.The other four barrels not shown should stand 30feet away from the main complex between Quon-set huts numbers 2 and 3, 6 and 7, 10 and 11,and 14 and 15.

For those agents who can afford their ownequipment, I offer the following prices: inexpen-sive parka, $111; moderately priced parka, $333;expensive parka, $1000; custom-fit parka, $3000;space suit, $9000.

I would like to acknowledge the original White-out playtesters: Mark Elliott, Chris Johansen,Eric Nelson, Scott Nelson, and Mark Ryerson.Initial development and title credit should go toJames �Pong� Thompson.

Merle M. RasmussenHuxley, Iowa

Rakshasa rulingDear Dragon,

I was very pleased with �Never the same thingt w i c e �in issue #84. However, there is one thingthat troubles me.

When describing a rakshasa knight, the authorsaid that rakshasa knights despise paladins andreceive a bonus of +1 to hit and +2 hit points ofdamage per attack. Later in the article, under theeditor�s note, it says that rakshasas are consideredto be creatures of the outer planes just as demonsand devils are. If this is true, how could a rak-shasa knight gain any bonuses to hit or damage apaladin in combat when paladins radiate a con-tinual protection from evil? Wouldn�t this protec-tion prevent any contact in the first place?

Owen SeylerCamp Hill, Pa.

If a rakshasa knight was summoned from theOuter Planes to attack a paladin, then it wouldnot be able to do so. However, some rakshasaknights (like other forms of rakshasas) dwellnaturally upon the Prime Material Plane, andthus could not be considered summoned orconjured. Rakshasas are not truly �outer planes�monsters in the sense that demons are. Also, apaladin lighting a rakshasa on Acheron (the planesuggested by the author as the creatures� homeplane) would not get the benefit of his protectionfrom evil aura, since the innate evilness of theplane itself would negate it. � RM

Adept at arguingDear Dragon,

Craig Barrett�s article �The warrior alterna-tive� in #86 was so ill-thought-out that I questionhis knowledge of the rules.

In the DragonQuest game, a non-Adept char-

D R A G O N 3

acter gets a Magical Resistance benefit of +20 thatan Adept does not get. This is reason enough forme to be a non-Adept. This gives about a one-third chance of resisting a spell by a characterwith an average Willpower.

Also, an Adept cannot wear iron armor or useiron weapons. He must wield either very expen-sive weapons mixed with precious metals, usenaturally non-iron weapons (of which there aren�tthat many), or use cheap wood, bone, or bronzeones. Added to the fact that beginning Adepts arenot very well protected is the fact that most oftheir spells must be cast at a very low percentage.So a beginning Adept is very weak, and makingnon-Adepts 6500 experience points stronger is noanswer. This is giving the equivalent of six toeleven adventures worth of experience!

Mr. Barrett�s remark about getting a languageat Rank 8 for 100 EP is just not the case. Rule8.6 clearly states that the expenditure gains oneskill at Rank 0 and Rule 49.6 refers only tolanguages that are native to the character. I�m allfor making the most out of the rules, but notat the expense of warping the intent of thedesigners.

I think you need a DQ expert on your staff toweed out the articles that have no business beingprinted in a respectable magazine.

Steve KrebsFair Oaks, Calif.

Because we don’t have a DQ expert on ourstaff, we forwarded a copy of Steve’s letter toCraig Barrett; his response is below. And, for therecord, we still consider Craig to be a knowledge-able and imaginative source for material on theDRAGONQUEST™ game. For proof of that,one need look no farther than page 42 of thismagazine. — KM

In reply to Mr. Krebs� criticism of �The war-rior alternative,� and before getting into specifics,let me draw attention to Rule 2.1: Here thedesigners themselves state that they do not con-sider their own rules to be sacrosanct. Rules areguidelines, not shackles. I particularly emphasizethe point that rules are intended to let players andGMs �speak the same language and have somebase from which their ideas may spring.�

Now, to specifics. Mr. Krebs is accurate insaying that Rule 31.4 gives a non-Adept charac-ter a +20 defense against magic, which Adepts donot get. Also, Adepts are, indeed, penalized intheir use of cold iron weapons, armor, and tools,under Rule 29.1. But that rule does not prohibitAdepts from using cold iron, it simply prohibitsthem from using College Talent magic and frompreparing spells or performing rituals while inphysical contact with a significant amount of coldiron. The distinction is important.

It also apparently escapes Mr. Krebs� attentionthat the major concern of the article was not therelative strength of the Adept and the non-Adeptat the moment they set out on their first adven-ture. I clearly stated that the non-Adept whochooses to accept the option offered in the articleis going to receive immediate martial advantages,as compensation for losing intermediate and long-range magical advantages. The GM who thinksthis is unfair can always disallow it in his owncampaign.

What the GM cannot disallow, and which Mr.Krebs would realize if he would look a littlefurther down the road, is that the very 6,500 EPsthat he objects to giving the non-Adept at thegame�s outset have already been given to theAdept (and withheld from the non-Adept) at thegame�s outset. This is an inequity that will haveto be accounted for sooner or later.

Let me illustrate: Suppose that at the end of an4 S e p t e m b e r 1 9 8 4

unspecified number of adventures, we have anAdept and a non-Adept who each have earned6,500 EPs. The Adept will take time out to spendthese EPs on various magical, career, and weaponskills. When he�s finished, he will be much morepowerful than before. The non-Adept, havingdecided he needs to know magic, prefers to entera magical College (as the game allows � seeRules 34.5, 44.0, 46.0), expending his time andEPs in learning basic magic. When he�s finishedwith this, he will be at exactly the same positionthat the Adept was when the campaign firstbegan!

This is an oversimplification, but however youview the situation, the balance between the Adeptand the non-Adept is hardly equitable. EricGoldberg�s article in Chaosium�s Thieves� Worldgives the clear implication that the non-Adeptmust be charged something for entering a magi-cal College, just as it establishes that the costmust be more than 5,000 EPs and less than 7,500EPs. If this is so, then the Adept must have beencharged a similar amount when he went througha magical College before the campaign began.Where did he get these EPs? If he was given themto spend on the magical College of his choice,why wasn�t the non-Adept given the sameamount of EPs to spend as he chose?

If it�s the specific number of EPs that Mr.Krebs objects to, he�s entirely at liberty to tinkerwith the 6,500 number as he chooses, to suit hiscampaign. But I do not think it can be justified togive the non-Adept no EPs at all � not when theAdept has apparently had the use of somethingbetween 5,000 and 7,500 EPs.

My own solution in the article is an attempt tolet the player decide for himself just how his PCwas training for the adventures ahead, during themonths and years prior to the beginning of thecampaign. The player also has an opportunity todefine something of his PC�s personality by howhe chooses to spend the 6,500 EPs that I offer.

I make no claim that �The warrior alterna-tive� is definitive, nor that any suggestionsshould be chiseled in granite for the erudition offuture generations. If Mr. Krebs or anyone elsecan come up with a better solution to this prob-lem, I�m reasonably sure that the editors ofDRAGON would be interested in seeing it �and I know I would be.

As regards my use of Rules 8.6 and 49.6 togive a beginning character the skill to eitherSpeak or Read and Write a language at Rank 8, Ifeel that this is entirely within the boundaries ofdesigner intent. Rule 8.6 specifies that if a PChas 100 EPs to spend, he can use them to acquireany one skill at Rank 0. The Speak and Read andWrite skills are among those that can be chosen.Either can be selected before the campaign begins(again, Rule 8.6), and Rule 49.6 states that if anycharacter �begins with the ability to speak orread and write in a language, his Rank in thatskill is presumed to be 8.� What could be moreobvious than this?

As for �languages that are native to the charac-ter,� such may be alluded to in Rule 49.0, butthese words are certainly not used in Rule 49.6,and nothing in the entire section suggests thatthey should be. Unless, of course, you wish toassume that any languages a character obtains(through gift or purchase) before the campaignbegins are native to the character. . . .

To go beyond such deductions, into the realmof absolute certainty, requires access to specialknowledge. Not being presently well-versed intelepathy, and so unable to read the designers�minds, I do not have such access. Neither, Isuspect, does Mr. Krebs.

Craig BarrettLas Vegas, Nev.

Helmet hintsDear Dragon,

I have a few questions concerning the Dra-gonhelm, one of the new magical items in issue#86. If a paladin is the wearer of the helm, andhe/she starts becoming selfish and begins develop-ing other �evil� traits, will this strip the paladinof his/her benefits as a paladin?

Can an exorcise or wish spell negate the mega-lomania or charm effects given to the wearer ofthe helm?

Finally, if a dragon notices the helm on aperson, will it attempt to charm the person rightaway? If the wearer is not commanded by thedragon to do anything (or charmed), can thewearer then leave, or is the wearer charmed assoon as encountered, even if he/she isn�t com-manded to do anything?

Jeremy GroceDe Smet, S.D.

If a paladin wears the dragonhelm, he willbecome aware that his personality is changing asa result of his use of the helm. At that point, thepaladin can discard the helm to keep from losinghis paladinhood.

A wish or heal spell would remove the insanitythat the helm can cause, but no spell can removethe possibility that the helm will continue to causeinsanity or make the wearer susceptible to charm-ing when he sees a dragon, without destroying allof the helm’s powers.

Even if the dragon encountered doesn't ask thewearer to do anything, the wearer will do abso-lutely anything he can to prevent the dragon frombeing cheated, coming to harm, or even beingspoken to rudely by anyone. The wearer mayleave, but will generally not want to go awaywithout making sure the dragon is doing well,and may even want to talk to it. If the dragonsees the helm, it will do all it can to take advan-tage of the situation in its own best interests(which won't necessarily be anyone else’s bestinterests). — RM

�Missing� factsD e a r D r a g o n ,

In reference articles, and the �ecology of�feature, you sometimes leave us hanging withvery interesting and (to say the least) valuableinformation by stating that alchemists or otherofficials on the specific subject have not con-ducted experiments (or observations) or hadnegative results on the experiments they didconduct.

So, my suggestion to you is to maybe updatethe facts and statistics in the form of new magicaland biological breakthroughs. My fellow AD&Dplayers and I would be very grateful.

Elan ColeHuntington, N.Y.

To address this subject clearly and honestly, wehave to leave the realm of fantasy as it applies togaming and enter the world of reality as it appliesto writing. I’ll use the ecology articles as a gen-eral example, and try to explain why some of the“facts” can't be pinned down.

A writer who tries to fill in details about anobscure or complicated creature sometimesdoesn't have a lot to go on, and logical reasoningcan only carry a theory so far. If a writer charac-terizes a certain piece of information as unknownor undetermined, that usually means he wasn't

(Turn to page 92)

The forumOpinions and observations

David Godwin�s letter in issue #87 points outseveral problems with upper level campaigns �outrageously high levels, attacking deities, andautomatic hits. There are, indeed, alternatives totrashing characters or switching to other gamesystems. These include:

Levels: In addition to avoiding Monty Haultype adventures, a good DM can slow downunduly rapid advancement by not allowing fullXP for overly easy activities. My 12th level monk(a level gained after 6 years of playing) rarely getsXP for kobolds, goblins, centipedes, etc. Sinceit�s too easy, the DM just tosses such things inwhen random rolls insist on it. By allowing fewerXP for easily obtained gold, the characters canalso have slowed advancement. Using reducedXP for easy conquests and rare XP-producingencounters, players can play for years betweenlevels. And a creative DM can make the gameinteresting without raising PC levels each game.

Attacks: As to Mr. Godwin�s comments aboutautomatic hits, I�d like to point out that a roll of 1is always a miss/failure (DMG p. 79).

Deities: I keep hearing about groups attackingdeities, and am constantly amazed by DMs whoallow this activity to happen. The DEITIES &DEMIGODS book lists several ways in whichany mortal party (and even 17th level charactersare mortal) can be stopped. Awe and Horror (p. 7)would stop the party long enough for the deityto use command (with no saving throw), quest(also without a saving throw), or geas to sendthem away; or gate to bring in reinforcements; orteleport to leave. Of course, true seeing wouldallow the deity to see any attackers. All of theseabilities are standard for all deities (p. 8) andseem to be enough to handle any attacks withoutcalling for use of a deity�s specific abilities.

As I stated earlier, I play a 12th level monk in acampaign in which the PCs are all 10th through12th level. An interesting thing has happened.Once a character reaches 10th level, he/shebecomes less fun to play. The fun is getting acharacter through danger safely. Once the charac-ter can take on a dragon single-handed, it�s bestretired. My monk teaches new monks at his ownmonastery and comes out only when an excep-tionally strong foe presents himself. Otherwise Inow play mostly lower level characters (hench-men of Rykor�s) and love every minute.

If you want an invulnerable character, fine.But I don�t feel 17th level deity-killers to bewhere the AD&D game is at.

Bob KindelCuyahoga Falls, Ohio

* * * *

In issue #87, I was stunned (as per the MUspell) by David Godwin�s letter saying thatMonty Haul campaigns are built into the AD&Dgame, and not merely the result of careless DMsor overbearing players. Admittedly, the exampleshe gave (possibly characters in his campaign fromthe sound of it) are formidable, but a good DMcould probably deal with them with a variety ofsolutions.

However, such �solutions� would only betemporary. There does come a point (I believeMr. Godwin has reached it already) when itsimply is time for the players to give up theircharacters and start anew. Of course, the cam-

paign does not need to be scrapped, and whateverthe DM has concocted can and should be kept.Also, there are ways of letting a character downgently (mentioned in the rules, I might add). Themost simple answer is for them to settle down andestablish a stronghold, guild, or whatever andsimply sit back and let the money roll in. Anothersolution, generally reserved for the �creme de lacreme,� is godhood. This not only adds original-ity to the campaign, but also is less of a blow tothe players. Who wouldn�t like to have his char-acter worshiped?

Another misconception I would like to clear upis that of the gods. Deities are not meant to bejust more beasties for bored players. Whenplayers are �going through pantheons,� and�beefing up the deities� is considered a solutionto mega-powerful characters, I�d say that the DMdoes not understand the purpose of the gods.Deities are merely meant to be worshiped andcalled on for help in extreme situations (also,deities often help flesh out a character, particu-larly clerics). It should be kept in mind that eventhe loss of one deity could seriously unbalance thegame.

Edgar W. Francis IVNorth Truro, Mass.

* * * *

There�s been a lot of controversy in the gaminghobby over those FRP games where the playersrun evil PCs and get their thrills by performingheinous deeds and disgusting acts. I don�t meanordinary games where some of the PCs have suchhuman but unendearing traits like vanity, selfish-ness, and a hunger for power; I mean gameswhere most or all PCs are dedicated to downrightEvil with a capital E.

Although there are too many argumentsagainst playing evil campaigns for me to reviewall of them here, I can easily sum up the defenseoffered by those who advocate evil campaigns. Ihave yet to read or hear anyone defending theirinvolvement in evil campaigns who has any validpoint but this one: Everyone is taking our gamestoo seriously; it�s just a game, and we�re onlydoing it for fun.

On the surface, this defense seems reasonable.After all, in ordinary FRP games there�s lots ofviolence, supernatural forces, and peculiar reli-gions, all of which have made many non-gamersattack and condemn our hobby. Even thoughthese critics refuse to see it, we all know that �it�sjust a game,� make-believe and let�s pretend.Why should the rest of us similarly condemn theplayers of evil PCs? So they�ve tortured a paladinor two; the rest of us have all slaughtered dozensof orcs. Surely those players wouldn�t tortureanyone in real life. Aren�t the rest of us just beinghypocrites?

No, we�re not. The �it�s just a game� defensebegs one very important question: Just why dothe players of evil PCs enjoy the sufferings ofthose who in no way deserve pain and death?Role-playing involves what the name implies �acting out roles, giving life to our deepest fanta-sies. Whether they like it or not, evil-style playersare revealing that they enjoy fantasies of inflictingsuffering upon the innocent and that they fanta-size about wanting power so much that they don�tcare how they get it.

Let me make clear right now what I am notsaying. I am not viewing these evil campaignsfrom a moral or religious standpoint. Since I�mfar from a religious person, I have no right to saythat these games are �bad� or �impious� in anabsolute sense. Since the games don�t harm otherpeople, no more can I condemn them on the basisof secular morality. Finally, never would I claimthat the players of these games are in any waymore �evil� than the rest of us. Except for a fewsaints, every human being has thoughts, im-pulses, and fantasies that can be called evil.

What I am talking about is psychology. Al-though everyone has evil impulses at times, fewof us give these impulses a lovingly detailedexpression in our games, nor do we spend longhours dwelling upon and cultivating this side ofour personality as do the players in evil cam-paigns. I maintain that spending all that timepretending to be evil is dangerous to the playersthemselves.

First of all, let�s consider why such evil-styleplayers are fascinated enough with evil to developcampaigns around it. Psychologists have donemany studies about people who read violentbooks and watch violent and amoral movies tothe exclusion of other kinds of entertainment.They�ve found that violence and evil seem glam-orous to people who feel angry, and thus want tohurt someone else the way they�ve been hurt, andwho feel weak and powerless in their own lives.Fantasizing about being powerful, ruthless, andevil is a compensation for something that thefantasizer lacks in reality. Rather than being asign of strength, a preoccupation with evil is asign of weakness. When a gaming group getstogether to develop an evil campaign, they aresharing their weaknesses and reinforcing them.

Even normal FRP games have a certain ele-ment of compensation, of course. Life is neverperfect, and we live today in troubled times.When we feel that we can�t do anything aboutnuclear war or our boring job, it�s very satisfyingto go into the game world and kill those lousyorcs who are threatening the peaceful village.Our mental image of the head orc may even beara marked resemblance to our boss or some politi-cal figure. Since we can�t kill the troublemaker inreal life (and in fact, wouldn�t even want to), thiskind of compensation is healthy. At least in ourfantasies, we can take the side of the good anddeal decisively with problems that we can�t touchin real life.

For the players in evil campaigns, however, therelease of being the good guys simply isn�tenough. They want to wreak havoc, not merelylet off a little steam � a sign that their anger andpain run very deep indeed. In a way, the decisionto play evil PCs is a sign of despair, an indicationthat the players feel that evil is stronger thangood, that the good can�t really score any lastingor satisfactory victories, and that the individualmight as well stop fighting and get what he canfor himself.

Previously I called this style of game danger-ous. One of the dangers is simply that by releas-ing a bit of their feelings of weakness in theirgames, the players will feel no need to deal withtheir real problems. A much greater danger,however, is that these things snowball. Ratherthan releasing and getting rid of evil impulses,dwelling on an evil campaign tends to strengthenthem simply because of the way any role-playinggame develops.

We all remember our first few FRP sessions,where killing a giant rat or a couple of orcs was areal thrill and felt really dangerous. As we gainedexperience and skill, we needed greater chal-lenges to reproduce that same feeling of excite-

(Turn to page 92)

DRAGON 7

Survival is a group effortThe effects of population growth and regrowthby Stephen Inniss

An AD&D® game world is usually one ofaction and tumult. Humanoid armies meethuman and demi-human forces regularly inmortal combat. Countries are invaded andtheir inhabitants are killed or driven off.Magical or natural disasters lay waste tolarge areas at least once every millennium.Monsters hunt travelers in the wilderness,and are in turn hunted by other monsters orby adventurers.

True, there are safe places in the world,but they are usually preserved by force ofarms and magic, or because they are iso-lated and perhaps occupy an undesirableposition (such as in the middle of a swamp).Many of these backwaters are poor lands,where starvation is enemy enough. Immor-tality is only for the gods, and not even forall of them.

This is as it should be for an excitingcampaign. Adventurers are naturally foundwith trouble and change. There is, however,the question of replacement. Where do thehordes of humanoids come from, those thatspring up to kill and be killed time and timeagain? How do the humans and demi-humans make up their inevitable losses?What of the other inhabitants of the world,from brownies and beholders to wyvernsand worgs? Presumably their populationsgrow in the same way that populations do inthe real world, unless they are somehowspontaneously generated by the natural andsupernatural forces that surround them.This has some interesting corollaries.

The Dungeon Masters Guide contains(on p. 13) a table indicating that thehumanlike races in an AD&D game worldgrow and develop more or less in proportionto how long they live: a century-old elf isequivalent to a human teenager, while ahalf-orc is full grown well before twentyyears of age and past the prime of life atthirty. Combining this information with thaton lifespans from the Monster Manual, the�age categories� data in the DMG can beexpanded to include some of the human-oids; see the table below.

Age Categories:Young

Species Adult MatureBugbear 15-20 21-35Gnoll 7-10 11-20Goblin 10-12 13-25Hobgoblin 12-15 16-30Kobold 20-30 31-65Ogre 14-20 21-40Orc 8-10 11-20

The proportion of its life that each hu-manoid spends in the age categories given isbased on the proportions given for a half-orc. This should be about right for most ofthese humanoids, except in the case ofkobolds; for reasons to be explained later,they probably reach the young adult stagemuch sooner than this table indicates. Leav-ing kobolds aside for the moment, look atthe figures for gnolls and orcs. A gnoll isready to reproduce by the age of 7, and anorc at the age of 8. The others are not farbehind, with the exception of the two largercreatures, bugbears and ogres. This earlymaturity has important implications for thebalance of power and numbers in an AD&Dgame world.

The growth potential of a populationdepends primarily on its generation time �the average period between the birth of afemale and the birth of her female offspring.(Males are not considered in this calcula-tion, since they do not represent the rate-limiting factor in population growth.) Thismeans that populations in which femalesreproduce earlier will grow more quickly.The counter-intuitive effect of this is that apopulation of long-lived but slowly matur-ing creatures will grow more slowly than apopulation of short-lived but more quicklymaturing ones.

For instance, if a female high elf were tohave a child every year of her reproductivelife (from about 100 to 550 years of age),she would have hundreds of daughters. Thisis, of course, a ridiculously high number;aside from the physical strain of those cen-turies of pregnancies and births, imaginethe difficulty of caring for dozens of elvenchildren at the same time � none of themeven out of diapers before the age of 10! Itmight be expected that with such a hugeincrease in population per generation, elveswould soon outstrip the other humans anddemi-humans in number. Actually, suchbusy and healthy elves as these would stillnot increase so quickly as a normal humanpopulation can. While the elves steadily

MiddleAged36-5521-2526-3531-4566-10041-6021-30

Old Venerable56-75 76-10026-35 36-4536-50 51-6546-60 61-80

101-135 136-18061-90 91-12031-40 41-55

increase their numbers, year by year andcentury by century, the humans have chil-dren, who will soon have children, who willsoon have even more children . . . andthe multiplication effect wins out. Themathematical expression of this tendency,well known to ecologists, is:

where r is the rate of a population�s increaseover time, F is the number of new femalesper female in a generation, and G is thegeneration time. (The log, function, ornatural logarithm, sometimes written as ln,is found on many calculators these days, orfailing that, in the back of a mathematicstextbook.) The aforementioned production-line elves, according to this equation, wouldincrease in number by about 2% per year,doubling their population every 42 years orso. To achieve this rate, humans needn�tput out nearly so much effort. With earlymarriage, and families of quite modest size(three surviving children), they easily out-strip the elves. Orcs could do this evenmore easily

Of course, a very large change in thenumber of surviving offspring will havesome effect. If the value of F is exactly 1(simple replacement), the population willremain stable and not grow at all � thephenomenon known as zero populationgrowth. If F falls below 1, the populationwill actually decrease, in which case thelonger-lived species are favored by a slowerdecline.

Fertility and mortality will affect a popu-lation�s F value, but one or both mustchange drastically to counteract the effect ofgeneration time. For instance, it is apparentfrom the ratio of adult males to females inmost humanoid tribes that only half asmany females reach maturity as do males.Given the nature of the creatures in ques-tion, this may be due to the practice ofselective infanticide by male humanoidswho are impatient for warrior sons � apractice not unknown in human societies ofthe real world. The killing of half of thefemale infants born, while perhaps favor-able to the individual males involved, cutsthe tribe�s growth rate per generation inhalf, striking directly at the potential child-bearers. Its effect on the overall growth rateof a given humanoid population is to bringit down to near-human levels. Similarly,even though dwarves and gnomes have halfas many adult females as males (presumablya natural trait rather than an imposed one),

dwarven and gnomish communities stillhave a good deal more growth potentialthan elvish ones.

The effects of generation time can be seenevery day in the real world. Organisms withrelatively short generation times, like in-sects, rodents, or dandelions, can survivedetermined attempts at their extermination,since only a few individuals need to surviveto fuel a population explosion when favor-able conditions return. On the other hand,those with long generation times, such aswhales, albatrosses, or giant sequoia trees,may take long years to recover from a majorsetback in their numbers. Such effects can-not be avoided or ignored in a self-consistent fantasy world, either. Alchemymay replace chemistry, the world may beflat instead of round, and the elements maybe mythic ones rather than scientific, butnumbers remain the same. Just as insectscan appear in hordes on incredibly shortnotice, so can orcs, and just as oak treesmight take centuries to rebuild their popula-tion, so do elves.

It must be admitted that a population�sgrowth potential is not the sole predictor ofabundance and success. Oaks may takehundreds of times as long to mature asdandelions do, but they can still dominateforests. There are many other factors toconsider here, particularly those related tothe competitive ability of a species com-pared to others trying for the ecologicalniche. Growth rate is highly significant,however, under unstable conditions inwhich a population must recover fromperiodic disasters. Droughts, forest fires,earthquakes, floods, wars, and other catas-trophes favor a species which has a shortgeneration time, since it will tend to fill thegaps left by less prolific competitors. In thisway, grasses and weeds can dominate anarea that is periodically swept by fire, evenif they would otherwise be shaded out bytaller plants.

All of this has particular relevance for theinhabitants of an AD&D game world inwhich many intelligent species may be incompetition for the same real estate. In theturbulent times in which most adventurerslive, a short generation time can be a greatadvantage. This is especially true of thehumanlike species, who may become in-volved in long-term wars of near genocidalscope, such as those between gnomes andkobolds, between dwarves and hill giants,and between dwarves and orcs.

On the whole, the conclusions that can bedrawn from the above information meshsurprisingly well with the campaign back-ground of most AD&D game worlds, withinformation given or implied in the variousofficial books, and in particular with eventsand conditions in the archetypical AD&Dgame campaign, the WORLD OF GREY-HAWK� Fantasy Game Setting. In fact, anumber of otherwise inexplicable events areaccounted for by these assumptions, andnew gaming possibilities are opened up.

It is not surprising that in uncertain andchaotic times the humans and humanoids

have spread, while demi-humans have atbest merely held their ground. Demi-humans are most commonly found in rela-tive backwaters like forests and hills, whereconditions are politically stable because ofthe difficulty of invading such territory.Naturally, this is most notable in the slowlymaturing elves and gnomes. Dwarves andhalflings are more likely to be found in themainstream of society, though even therethey are most common in peaceful areas.Within their enclaves, demi-humans maybe quite common since they have significantcompetitive advantages over the averagehuman or humanoids.

The conflict between humanoids anddemi-humans is traceable to more than justalignment differences. Perhaps coinciden-tally, it is a conflict between two very differ-ent life strategies. Like insects and rodents,humanoids depend primarily on their shortgeneration times for survival. They arenatural colonists. If lands are emptied bywar or pestilence, they will fill them upquickly and be firmly entrenched by thetime otherwise superior competitors arrive.Demi-humans, on the other hand, aresuperior in almost every field of speciescompetition except reproduction; they aregenerally more intelligent, are more willingto help one another, have more specialskills, and produce more powerful andunique individuals than the humanoid racesdo. Demi-humans thrive under conditionsof peaceful competition. Unfortunately,

such �high-quality material� cannot bereplaced quickly. Over time, humanoids arefavored by conditions of cataclysm andviolent confrontation, which by their verynatures humanoids tend to bring about.

When it comes to war, the demi-humansseem to do well. A few elven wizards withfireball spells can destroy a tribe of orcs; anambush by halfling archers in the woodscan lay low a whole company of hobgoblins;goblin heads may roll by the dozens underdwarven attack. All of this is in vain, be-cause in a decade or two the humanoids willbe back. The contest between demi-humansand humanoids is like that between a fighterand a troll; the troll�s wounds heal in min-utes, while its opponent must wait days orweeks. The only successful course of actionfor the fighter, other than to retreat, is tostrike harder and more often than the troll,and most importantly to ensure that nosmall piece of the troll remains undestroyedto regenerate the monster. Despite thecasualties they inflict, demi-humans cannotmaintain a long war. They must winquickly or not at all, and they must wincompletely. Their warriors will learnthrough bitter personal experience that eachhumanoid survivor signifies dozens more tobe dealt with in the years ahead. The imageof a few brave individuals holding backthousands of the enemy, inflicting greatdamage but still doomed to lose, is a fre-quently appearing one in fantasy literature.It must appear with depressing frequency in

D R A G O N 9

the history of demi-humans as well.Humans, intermediate between human-

oids and demi-humans in both alignmentand in their reproductive abilities, as well asin their talents, are not unnaturally foundon both sides of the conflict between hu-manoids and demi-humans. Overall, theyseem to have the best of both worlds, sincethey reproduce almost as quickly as human-oids and can produce at least as many ex-ceptional individuals as do thedemi-humans. This may explain their suc-cess in both war and peace, while the demi-humans must diminish in number if theycannot achieve both victory and stability.

The short generation time of most hu-manoids explains how they can surviveseemingly crippling mortality rates and stillbe in no danger of extinction. Losses fromdisease, malnutrition, infanticide, or war-fare are unimportant; life is cheap. So longas a few tribes or individuals survive insome dark corner of the world, there will benew hordes every few decades. From thisviewpoint, the larger and more individuallydangerous humanoids such as bugbears andogres are less of a threat than their weakerbrethren, because they have a slower rate ofreproduction and replenishment amongtheir populations.

Humanoid societies that are guided bysuperior leaders are generally more promi-nent than those not possessing the samecharacteristic. This prominence may be dueto more than good military generalship; it

may have more to do with the fact that anintelligent commander can see, with nocalculations, that more warriors will ulti-mately be raised if female children arespared. If he is so foresighted and can en-force penalties against infanticide, the re-productive power of a humanoid tribe isgreatly increased. This is itself a more terri-ble weapon than any strategy or spell thatcould be employed on the battlefield. Withsufficient food, a humanoid army can beraised almost overnight (in relative terms)and unleashed upon opponents before theyare aware of their predicament. It is inter-esting to note that hobgoblins do not havethe characteristic shortage of females foundamong other humanoids. This may be dueto the greater intelligence of their leaders.

An enigma concerning dragons is neatlyexplained by generation time effects:namely, why dragons have not overrun aworld that is, from their point of view, onelarge hunting ground. Hundreds of humansand other short-lived creatures might diebefore the elimination of a single dragon,but each dragon lost is a serious blow to thenext generation of their kind. By the time areplacement is full grown, the dragons'opponents will have long ago recoveredtheir losses. It is not at all surprising thatdragons tend to live in out-of-the-wayplaces and guard their offspring as zeal-ously as they do their gold.

Though the undead do not reproduce inthe normal way, some are able to propagate

10 SEPTEMBER 1984

themselves by attacking living creatures. Inthis they have the equivalent of a very shortgeneration time � potentially as short as afew days or even minutes. This opens upsome interesting possibilities. A vampirewith its minions might be able to take overa whole village before news of the deedspread to the outside world. If the vampirewere a particularly ambitious one, rescuersmight arrive to find the place deserted, itsinhabitants having left to find more �food.�Whole nations of undead might arise in thisway. This ability explains in part how vam-pires, spectres, and the like can survivedespite their vulnerability to such things asclerics, holy water, and sunlight. Fortu-nately, the undead are sharply limited intheir potential for expansion; once thesupply of victims runs out (or runs away), agroup of undead creatures can grow nofurther.

Lycanthropes can reproduce themselvesby infection, the disease taking hold in arelatively short time. Again, they have theequivalent of a very short generation timein this power. If lycanthropy is hereditary aswell, so that the supply of uninfected hu-mans is not limiting, it is difficult to seewhy the werebeasts have not spread furtherthan the Monster Manuals indicate.Though less dangerous individually thanthe undead, lycanthropes are much better atconcealing their presence from humanpopulaces. Their relative scarcity may bedue in part to their tendency to withdrawfrom human society. Some lycanthropessuch as wererats, though, live near normalhuman populations. Perhaps they refrainfrom drawing attention to themselves out offear of human adventurers, or perhaps theyprefer to eat their victims rather than infectthem. Perhaps they have qualms aboutinflicting lycanthropy on unwilling victims� even an evil lycanthrope can see that themore lycanthropes there are, the fewerhumans there are to eat. An interestingalternative hypothesis is that lycanthropy isa fairly recent addition to one�s fantasyworld, and is spreading quickly!

By taking generation time into account, aDM can develop additional backgroundinformation for a campaign. Most large orotherwise dangerous creatures probablyhave long maturation times, and possiblylong lives to match (though low fertility andhigh mortality might play their parts).Similarly, small and weak creatures, with noother significant defenses, probably maturequickly. Thus, giants of all sorts are proba-bly long-lived and slow to mature in propor-tion to their size, while xvarts probablygrow as quickly as goblins. The few crea-tures specifically described as quick to ma-ture but relatively powerful must have verylow fertility or high mortality rates, or both.A good example of these last would bequicklings (see Monster Manual II); with ageneration time like theirs, the increase pergeneration must be very low in order forthem to stay rare. Perhaps this is due tohigh-speed crashes. . . .

In a few cases, the conclusions arrived at

via the generation-time argument seem tocontradict official game information ordeductions that one may make from the rulebooks. Despite the figures given for koboldsin the �age categories� table, it seems thatthey probably reach maturity as quickly asother humanoid species do, instead of fol-lowing the pattern of the demi-human racesas their lifespan of 135 years seems to implythat they do. Certainly, they need theadvantage of a short generation time, sincethey have few other survival advantages.They might reasonably be expected to reachyoung adulthood before the age of 10 (7years or earlier might be even better), andthen go on to long reproductive lifespans aswell. Their ability to lay eggs may enablethem to have more young more often aswell.

Contrary to the birth tables published inDRAGON® Magazine #70, and contrary toindications in the Monster Manual, it isunlikely that demi-humans will have fewerchildren per family or community thanhumans do. There are two reasons for this.The first is that demi-humans will probablytry to make up for their small but signifi-cant losses against humanoids and evilhumans. Though they cannot equal thegrowth rates of shorter-lived races, havingfew children per generation only makesmatters worse. In terms of game balance, itdoes no harm to grant demi-humans greaterfertility, since there is certainly no dangerthat they will overrun their rivals. In fact, it

DRAGON 11

might help to explain how demi-humanshave managed to hold on for so long.

The second reason why demi-humansmight have large families is that they havelonger fertile lifespans in proportion to thetime it takes one of their children to growup. A human female might have a repro-ductive life as long as 30 years, or abouttwice as long as it takes for one of her chil-dren to reach early maturity. A high elvenfemale, on the other hand, might be able tobear children throughout a span of 400years or more, which is at least 4 times aslong as it takes an elven child to reachyoung adulthood. Thus, demi-humans canhave more children than humans do andstill spend a smaller fraction of their livesraising them. Doubtless they will spendsome of this extra effort in providing bettercare for the children they have, but even sothey are likely to have at least as. manychildren as humans do.

It is likely that the behavior of AD&Dgame characters will be influenced by gen-eration time effects. Paladins, for instance,might not be reluctant to destroy the appar-ently harmless females and young in ahumanoid lair. In fact, such action mightwell be regarded as a holy duty, to preventthe further spread of evil in the world.Rangers might also demonstrate strongfeelings (and similarly strong actions) on thesubject; to a lesser extent, so might demi-humans of most alignments. Good charac-ters in general are provided with a more

satisfactory motive than greed or immediatenecessity in their forays against evil mon-sters. The more prolific ones, such as hu-manoids, must be cut back. The less prolificmonsters might be eliminated entirely, or atleast so reduced in number that they willnot trouble the world for centuries to come.

Ambitious characters of evil alignmentwill often associate with or make use ofhumanoids. Since humanoids are easy toreplace and are not particularly bright, theymake ideal �cannon fodder.� (There are nocannons in fantasy, but the principle is thesame � �wizard fodder� might be a betterterm.) It is plain to any evil character thatthe power of humanoids is ascendant, and itis foolish not to use such power. A bold andintelligent individual, slave to no moralityor scruples, can ride the humanoid tide tovictory, guiding and controlling it and reap-ing the rewards of conquest. Personal likeor dislike for humanoids has nothing to dowith the matter, since the important thing isto be on the winning side and in control. Ifrelationships with humanoids include hateand fear, so much the better. Such emotionsadd spice to an otherwise rather bland andbusinesslike arrangement. This point ofview may be shared by evil humans anddemi-humans alike. The drow, who wouldbe willing to expend cheap humanoid livesin place of their own, are a case in point.

Of course, evil characters will be con-temptuous of the bulk of demi-humans,since such races are �obviously� unfit to

survive in a hard world, as is shown bytheir retreat before more �vital� forces. Outof foolish squeamishness, the demi-humanshave tried to stem the humanoid tide ratherthan control it. Evil half-orcs in particularmay be inclined to this point of view. TheyWould be particularly eager to give totteringdemi-human groups the final push intooblivion, thereby deriving much profit andpleasure from the action as well as greatersafety for themselves and their humanoidfollowers.

From a druid's viewpoint, there is noth-ing wrong with humanoids as such exceptthat, like weeds in a garden, they must beperiodically rooted out and cut back, lestthey threaten the Balance of Neutrality withtheir numbers. The more dangerous crea-tures such as evil dragons must be kept rarebecause of their destructive tendencies.Such corrective action is not needed withdemi-humans, since they are less destruc-tive of field and forest and are unlikely tothreaten the Balance with uncontrolledexpansion.

Other neutral characters may share thedruid�s point of view; though they may bemore strongly influenced by considerationsof personal gain. Certainly they will dealwith humanoids if this is expedient, but ingeneral the more foresighted persons willact to preserve their neighbors and associ-ates of good alignment in preference to evilones. This is not altruism; it is simply morepleasant and profitable to deal with well-meaning and uncommon peoples than withnumerous and aggressive ones. In general,halflings, elves, or humans of good align-ment are easier to live with than ogres orgoblins. Unless they think the demi-humansand their allies have no chance, neutralcharacters will probably support them ininterracial conflicts.

The effects of generation time can be asfar-reaching in an imaginary world as theyare in the real one. If a DM chooses to takethem into consideration, they can go a longway toward providing a more detailed andplausible campaign background.

Got a question about an article? Asubject you�d like us to cover � ornot cover? What do you think of themagazine you�re reading? Drop us aline at �Out on a Limb,� P.O. Box110, Lake Geneva WI 53147. We�llread every letter we get, and we�llselect certain letters of general in-terest for publication � maybe evenyours!

12 September 1984

Six very special shieldsMore magic items from the mind of Elminsterby Ed Greenwood

�But ye�ve done swords before! There�remore treasures to be had, ye know � butno, no, all that makes younglings� eyesshine is blades, blades, and more blades,the bloodier the better. Phaugh!� Elminsterspat into an innocent potted violet besidehis chair. Having no safe response, I saidnothing. �Why not ask me about goblets,or gauntlets of strange powers, or shields?�the sage grumbled.

He stopped and glowered when he sawmy pencil moving (I was scribbling hastily).Dropping the pencil, I pushed a decanterand glass toward him. �Shields?� I askedpolitely. �You mean there are special magi-cal shields?�

�Of course, ye dolt! What d�ye thinkstops all those swords of power? Else theRealms�d be ruled by eternally warringbladesmen, an� there�d not be enough menin the lands to take to the field and fall inthe slaughter!�

I stifled an impulse to tell Elminster thatour earlier discussions about the Realmshad given me an impression very close tojust that. Instead I said, �Yes, of course.Are any of these shields famous, then, withnames and traditions?�

�Aye, but not having quite the romanceof the swords, I�ll grant,� Elminster allowedgruflly, nodding his head. Then he was offand running, flicking from topic to topicwith the agility of a grasshopper, late intothe night. From his discourse I gleanednews of six magical shields of the Realms,whose whereabouts are currently unknown.(Dungeon Masters should take note thatthese shields are eminently suitable for useby low-level parties who plan to take onstronger foes.)

Reptar�s WallNamed for the ranger who once bore it,

the Wall is a large, heavy shield constructedof iron plates riveted to an iron frame. Itsorigin, lost in antiquity, is unknown. Twowords are engraved on the frame in thecommon tongue, facing the bearer at eyelevel when the shield is held ready for bat-tle: �Eiruvan� and �Thammis.� The shieldis magical, and has the following powersand abilities:

Despite its construction, the Wall doesnot rust or corrode, or conduct heat or cold,its metal remaining inactive. It is a +1shield, and gives forth no sound whenstruck or dropped. It does not ring or grate,but is absolutely silent; the heaviest blowsfalling upon it cannot be heard.

When the bearer (not another creature,nor anyone not wearing the shield slung onan arm, ready for battle) speaks or whispersthe word �Eiruvan,� the shield and bearer,plus any accoutrements worn and held,become invisible to both normal sight andinfravision for 2-8 rounds. During this timethe shieldbearer moves silently, because ofthe shield�s sound-absorbing qualities, andcan move about or strike at opponents whileso concealed. A successful attack made onan opponent by the bearer will cause thebearer and shield to immediately becomevisible.

Carrying an active source of light will notaffect the invisibility of the carrier, but thelight will be clearly seen and can be used todetermine the location of the invisibleshieldbearer. The casting of light, detectmagic, or dispel magic in the area where theinvisible shieldbearer is suspected to be willnever reveal the presence or precise locationof the shieldbearer. Once exercised, thispower will not work again until 96 turns (16hours) have elapsed from the cessation ofinvisibility.

The shield�s major power, made activewhen the bearer speaks or whispers theword �Thammis� while wearing the shieldslung for use, is the ability to fly (as per themagic-user spell) for 2 turns. Shield andbearer, plus any non-living accoutrementsof up to 4000 gp weight, are empowered tofly at maneuverability class A, with a move-ment rate as per the spell; the magic alsoconfers full stability for wielding weapons inmidair. The flight ability will last until 2turns have elapsed or the bearer wills it toend, whichever occurs first.

Use of the fly power has an unexpectedside effect in that at the onset of flight, thenearest magic item or artifact will be per-manently drained of one charge, whichserves as energy to power the shield. If thenearest item is of a permanent nature andhas no charges (e.g., a magical dagger), allof its powers are negated for 4 turns. Theitem closest to the shield is always affected,regardless of the shieldbearer�s wishes. Theshieldbearer is usually unaware of the�draining.� If no magic item is within 9� ofthe shield when its fly power is activated,the shield�s own other abilities � includingits sound absorption and +1 bonus � arenegated for 6 turns. The Wall is directed inflight by the will of its bearer, who mustremain in full physical contact with it, orthe shield and former bearer will bothplummet to the ground; the shield will notfly alone.

Thurbrand's ProtectorNamed for the fighter who found it in a

dragon�s hoard, this shield was later sold toKing Osbrun of Chessagol, whose treasuryand armory were looted six winters ago,some say by magic. The Protector vanishedin that theft, and its present whereaboutsand owner are unknown. This shield is aplain, battered, kite-shaped construction ofbronze plates bolted to a sturdy woodenframe. It bears no maker�s-mark or inscrip-tions. It is magical, and has the followingpowers and abilities:

Any damage that pierces or parts thebronze plates, or cracks through or breaksthe wooden frame, is magically mendedovernight. Minor dents, scratches, andscars are not so repaired. Manual repairs bya blacksmith or the bearer seem to have noeffect on the shield.

The Protector has all the powers of a +1ring of protection. In addition, wheneverthe bearer raps the wooden frame of theProtector three times rapidly with a fingeror knuckles, the shield will radiate andmaintain, through some unknown magicalmeans, a 10� radius globe of air, cool andbreezeless. This globe will withstand thepressures of deep water, gusts of wind, andthe like without altering its shape or loca-tion, remaining centered upon the Protec-tor. Large, solid, immobile objects likestone walls will cause the �air bubble� toflatten out along the wall or around theobject. Creatures within the globe of aircannot drown, suffer harm from poisonousvapors, etc. As many creatures can beprotected by the globe as can fit into itsarea, usually 40 or so, or, if freedom tomove and fight is required, 8 or 9 man-sized beings. The air supply can never be�overloaded� or used up.

Most creatures are not physically con-strained from entering or leaving thesphere. It seems to keep out only creatureswho cannot breathe or move in air (such asliving fish), and those who are gaseous inform (air elementals, a vampire in gaseousform, etc.). The globe of air persists untilthe bearer again raps the wood framethrice; to be effective, such rapping must beon the inner side of the shield, directly onthe frame, and the bearer must have theshield slung on his arm or strapped to him.

Hawkstone�s BulwarkThe ranger Hawkstone bore this shield in

his war against the giants of the Great Gla-cier and the beast-men (ogres) of Thar.

14 SEPTEMBER 1984

Some time after his death, his grave wasviolated and all his treasures stolen, amongthem the blade Durelva and this shield,known in ballads as Hawkstone�s Bulwark.It is generally believed that Hawkstone wonthis shield from the hoard of the blackdragon Yrindoth. Its origin is as unknownas its present fate.

The shield is a single slab of 2-inch-thick,polished steel of a beautiful blue hue, a finemetal unique in its quality in the Realms. Ithas the usual two straps within, of blackbullhide, and weighs no more than awooden shield. It has the abilities of a +2shield, and upon command the shield growsmagically into a bridge. (The commandword, known through lore but not writtenanywhere on the shield, is �Bulwark.�) Theshield will disappear from the bearer�spossession and reappear at the start of thefollowing round as a 5-inch-thick span ofline steel, 2� wide by 60� long. Its length isnot variable, and the change is not alwaysautomatic; if the command word is spokenwhen the Bulwark doesn�t have enoughroom to expand, the power will simply failto function. The bridge will extend out inthe direction the bearer of the shield isfacing, beginning just in front of the bear-er�s feet. Once placed, the bridge cannot bemoved (although it can be shrunk back to ashield and re-expanded in a different loca-tion). It will support up to 5,000 pounds ofweight at one time; exceeding that limit willcause it to �collapse� back into a normal

shield (see below), leaving the creatures andobjects upon it without any visible means ofsupport.

If its weight capacity is not exceeded, thebridge will remain in that form for 33 days,or until the bearer of the shield holds ontoone of the straps and utters the reverse-command word �Krawlub.� (When it is inbridge form, the shield�s straps are locatedon the top surface of the bridge at eitherend.) The shrinking process works essen-tially the same as the expanding process: thebridge disappears upon utterance of thecommand word, and at the start of thefollowing round the Bulwark reappears atthe bearer�s feet in shield form.

No magic short of a limited wish, alterreality, or wish will cause the bridge toshrink, shift, break, or otherwise move(although the ground on which it rests couldwell be affected by disintegrate, dig, orsimilar magic). The bridge will conductheat, electricity, and other similar forms ofenergy, and in such respects acts as normalmetal does.

Dzance�s GuardianThe ranger Dzance found this shield in a

chest in the depths of Gauntulgrym, theLost City; its origin is unknown, but it isthought to be of dwarven manufacture.Dzance�s Journals tell us of the properties ofthis item. When he retired from adventur-ing to live in the Lady�s Court at Silvery-

moon, Dzance gave the Guardian to Belpir,a young knight of that city. The new ownerforthwith went adventuring and has notbeen seen since. The fates of Belpir and ofthe Guardian are yet a mystery.

The Guardian is a �+0 shield,� magical innature but conferring no armor class bonusto its bearer aside from the one-place bene-fit provided by any shield. However, it hasa special defensive power: when worn, itradiates an insubstantial magical energyfield that envelops its bearer (and only thebearer) like an aura. Any magic missiledirected at the Guardian�s bearer from anydirection � not just at the shield � willstrike this field and be reflected unerringlystraight back at the sender with no damageto the shieldbearer.

This field also absorbs all electrical dis-charges of natural or magical origin, such asshocking grasp, lightning bolt, or chainlightning, without harm to the bearer.These attacks dissipate gradually and harm-lessly if the shield is taken off, but if theshieldbearer can bring the shield into physi-cal contact with a foe within 4 rounds of anysuch discharge(s), the entire stored electricalenergy of the field can be transmitted to thefoe (save vs. paralyzation for half damage).The bearer will be made immediately awareof this storage and discharge power when-ever the field intercepts electrical energy.

When this discharge is activated by thebearer�s will, there is a 30% chance that thebearer and shield (but not any companioncreatures or foes unless direct, physicalcontact is present at the time) will be planeshifted to a random known plane of exis-tence. This power will be unknown to thebearer until it actually occurs; identify andsage-lore will not reveal it.

Shoon�s BucklerThe adventurer Shoon briefly possessed

this magical shield. Its true origin is un-known, but he seized it from the body of aslain male drow during a battle deep be-neath the Hill of Lost Souls. Amongst thedrow, as speak with the dead has revealed,the buckler was known as a �blink shield�;it was unique, and its making a mystery.Shoon later gave the shield to the fighterGorlaung �Blackhelm� in exchange fortraining; Gorlaung fell in battle with orcs inthe Stonelands, and his body was strippedof weapons and valuables by his slayers.The present location of the Buckler is notknown.

The Buckler is a 1� diameter disk ofblack metal with a fist grip, all fashioned ofone piece, and bearing no inscriptions.Despite its small size, the Buckler functionsas a +2 shield. Its other easily discerniblepower is the ability to glow (equal in radi-ance to a light spell) upon the mental com-mand of the bearer; the light dies away tonothing when the bearer wills it to, fallsasleep, dies, or loses sanity or conscious-ness. This power will be discovered when-ever a being holding the Buckler thinksabout the poor light, wishes he could see

DRAGON 17

better, or so forth. Whenever the Buckleroperates thus, three words in the commontongue will appear in small glowing lettersaround its inside edge: �Tethema,� �Se-koe,� and �Brund.�

If �Tethema� is said aloud by any crea-ture holding the shield, that figure becomesthe master of the Buckler until anothercreature holds the shield and repeats theword. Control of the Buckler enables abeing to override the mental commands ofanother figure holding the Buckler regard-ing its radiance, even from afar (up to 16�distant). Control also allows the followingtwo powers to be enacted when the masteris not touching the Buckler, and is up to 16"distant:

If the word �Sekoe� is spoken, the Buck-ler will levitate for up to 6 rounds, movingabout under the mental direction of thebearer (or the master, if these are two differ-ent beings; in that case, the master�s com-mands take precedence). The shield cancarry or support up to 600 pounds of weightresting upon it or suspended from it, andany number of creatures or objects canmake up this cargo. If its load ever exceedsthis limit, the shield will instantly cease tolevitate for at least 6 rounds and will fall.Thus, the bearer can levitate himself up ordown at will, and also move horizontallyabout by pushing off walls, or the Buckler�smaster can from afar move the shield about� plus, perhaps, an unwilling cargo.

If the word �Brund� is spoken by the

master of the Buckler, any other activeshield powers cease; then the shield and anycreature(s) touching it will blink, as per themagic-user spell, about the location of theshield when it was activated, until 7 roundshave elapsed or the master wills it to end(whichever occurs first).

These powers can be used repeatedly inconsecutive rounds and in any order (al-though only levitate and light can be used incombination) if the commands are known.Anyone who discovers the Buckler will notbe informed of any facts about its operationby any revelation or by magical means shortof a wish, but must learn them by trial anderror. Note that the blink power will notfunction for anyone who discovers the shielduntil that figure has established himself asthe master of the Buckler by using the com-mand word �Tethema.�

GrimjawNamed for the small common tongue

inscription found deeply engraved on theinside top rim of the shield, this plain ironshield is dented and blackened, and ofnormal and unassuming appearance. Itbears no rust, and rusting will not affect itregardless of the handling it receives, due toprotective magics cast upon it. Grimjaw wasfirst identified by the sage Ragefast ofBaldur�s Gate, as borne by the adventurerKrystus and having a certain awesomepower described hereafter. Krystus the

If you�re interested in contributing anarticle to DRAGON® Magazine, thefirst thing you need is a copy of ourguidelines for writers. Send a self-addressed, s t a m p e d e n v e l o p e t o�Writer�s guidelines,� c/o DRAGONM a g a z i n e , P . O . B o x 1 1 0 , L a k eG e n e v a W I 5 3 1 4 7 ; a n d w e � l l s e n dyou back a sheet with all the basicinformation you need to make sure

your manuscript has the best possi- ble chance of being accepted.

Proud soon met his death at the hands of adwarven patrol half a world away, in themountains near Tethyamar, in a disputeover passage through the dwarven minesthere. Grimjaw is known to have been inthe hands of the ruling dwarven clan �IronHouse� for many years, but was lost inbattle when orcs and evil mages drove outor slew all the dwarves of Tethyamar. Thepresent head of the �Iron House,� Ghellin,wishes to regain the shield.

Grimjaw confers no magical armor classbonus to its wearer, but it has a powerfulability to affect any magical items that comeinto direct physical contact with it, regard-less of the shieldbearer�s wishes. The effectsof any single such contact are determinedby percentile dice roll, as follows:

0 1 - 2 0

21-65

Item has one charge drained fromit by Grimjaw; if the item has nocharges as such, its powers arenegated for 3-12 turns.Item instantly turns and attackswielder for one round, eitherstriking as if the wielder wereattacked by someone of equalclass, strength, and level (if aweapon), or firing one charge ormagical attack (if a charged staffor similar item).

66-80

81-95

96-00

Item has all magical powers andabilities negated for 2-12 rounds.Item is completely drained of allmagical powers forever, as ifstruck by a rod of cancellation.Artifacts are likely to be unaf-fected, but may, at the DM�soption, teleport away to a randomlocation, with or without wielder.Grimjaw discharges some of itsstored magical energy into thecontacting item; the item gains 1-6additional charges (permanently),or a +1 on �to hit� and damagebonuses for 1-6 turns.

If a magical weapon or item is wieldedagainst the shieldbearer, and the itemmisses the armor class of the shieldbearer by1 point (i.e., scoring what would have beena hit except for the shield�s presence), thenit is considered to have struck the shield.

18 SEPTEMBER 1984

Gods of the Suel pantheonFiery Pyremius, nasty Beltar, and bearlike Llergby Lenard Lakofka ©1984 E. Gary Gygax. All Rights Reserved.

disease, fire, and poison; also see belowMAGIC RESISTANCE: 55% (90% vs.

including many humanoidsSYMBOL: The face of a yagnodaemonPLANE: HadesCLERIC/DRUID: 7th level clericFIGHTER: 10th level fighterM-U/ILLUSIONIST: 12th level magic-userTHIEF/ASSASSIN: 5th level assassinMONK/BARD: 13th level monkPSIONIC ABILITY: VI

Attack/Defense Modes: NilS: 21 (+4, +9) I: 19 W: 19 D: 17C: 18 Ch: 6 (21)

Pyremius appears as a grotesque manwho facially resembles a jermlaine. He hasmany human worshipers as well as wor-shipers among the jermlaine, firenewts, andgrimlocks (see the FIEND FOLIO® Tome).He can mass charm these non-humans atwill, and has an effective charisma of 21 indealings with them.

He wears special bracers of defense madeof brass that give him his superior armorclass. When he is not wearing them, hisarmor class drops by 10 places to 5. Pyre-mius will not remove his bracers voluntarilyexcept to loan them to a neutral evil figurewho is native to an outer plane. Anyone elsewho puts them on will see his hands witherand fall off (along with the bracers, whichcannot then be donned again by the samefigure) at the start of the following round.There is no saving throw against this effect,and regeneration will not restore the lostappendages. Only a figure with strengthgreater than that of Pyremius can force himto remove the bracers, and then usuallyonly if that figure bests him in personalcombat.

Pyremius bears a sword named The Red

2 0 S E P T E M B E R 1 9 8 4

PYREMIUS

God of Fire, Poison, and Murder

Lesser God

ARMOR CLASS: -5MOVE: 15�HIT POINTS: 170NO. OF ATTACKS: 2DAMAGE/ATTACK: 3-30 (sword), 1-8

(whip), plus strength bonusSPECIAL ATTACKS: See belowSPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to

lightning and electricity)SIZE: M (6�6� tall)ALIGNMENT: Neutral evilWORSHIPER'S ALIGNMENT: Evi l ,

object it has touched until it is removed by adispel magic spell successfully cast against

20th-level magic.The other weapon he carries is a whip

called The Viper of Hades. It does 1-8points of damage (not including strengthbonus) on a hit, and it will damage figuresthat can be hit only by magic weapons,even though it has no magical bonus �tohit.� The whip�s principal value to Pyre-mius comes from its poison, which affectsany mortal except those hit only by magicweapons. Anyone susceptible to the poisonwho is struck by the whip must save vs.poison at -3 or die on the spot. The poisonis so virulent that the usual saving-throwbonus allowed to dwarves, gnomes, andhalflings does not apply on poison attacksfrom this weapon.

Pyremius can detect good out to a 60�radius around himself, and he is encased ina permanent protection from good aura(around his person only) that prevents himfrom being struck in melee by any good-aligned beings unless and until he strikesthe first blow. He can identify any poisonby taste and neutralize poison in anotherfigure at will.

Once a day Pyremius can cast a meteorswarm spell at the 20th level of magic use.Once a week he can summon a huge fireelemental (HD 24, AC -2, MV 18�, #Att 2,D/Att 4-3214-32). If an elemental he calls iskilled, he cannot conjure up another one fora month.

His one significant weakness is cold-basedattacks, from which he suffers double dam-age. A resist cold spell or similar magic caston his behalf will not aid him in any way,

Light of Hades that can be borne by no oneelse. It is a +5 weapon to hit and on damageand does 3-30 points of damage per strike,not counting the god�s strength bonus. Apaladin who is struck by the sword mustmake a saving throw of 14 (no adjustmentallowed for any reason) or lose all his abili-ties as a paladin until both a wish and anatonement are cast upon him to bring thosepowers back. The sword casts a red lightout to a radius of 20 feet that will outline aninvisible object just as a faerie fire spellwould. The light does no damage, but itwill remain around a visible or invisible

and thus he will never carry that spell. Heprefers to carry and cast fire spells over anyother type.

Pyremius is on excellent terms with allthe denizens of the gloom of Hades, andparticularly so with daemons (see MonsterManual II). He can summon, with a 55%chance of success (100% in Hades), from 1-4 yagnodaemons to carry out his bidding.He can exercise this power once per turn inHades; when on the Prime Material Plane,he can attempt this summoning once perround until it succeeds, but then must waitan hour before trying again.

Pyremius and Syrul (see DRAGON®Magazine #88) have collaborated on manyendeavors on Oerth, most of them having todo with the Scarlet Brotherhood. Bothdeities, being part monk and part assassin,have been prayed to by the Brotherhood,and have aided the Brotherhood on manyoccasions � with the result that the ScarletBrotherhood has begun to emerge as apower on Oerth. Any opponent engagedagainst that group might find these twodeities intervening, directly or indirectly, onbehalf of their worshipers. However,

they are very careful about when and howto use direct intervention, since that mightinvolve other gods in the struggle � andalmost nothing is worth risking a battlebetween the gods!

Clerics devoted to the service of Pyremiuswear red vestments decorated with flame-shaped swatches of orange and yellow.Viewed from a distance, this garb makesthe cleric seem to be on fire. Members ofthe clergy of Pyremius gain special abilities� not all of them beneficial � as theyadvance in level, but must pay for theseabilities by earning an extra 5% of theexperience-point total normally needed torise from each level to the next. The abili-ties gained at each juncture in a cleric�scareer are cumulative with those gained atlower levels; for instance, a 5th-level clerichas a total saving-throw bonus of +2 againstfire spells. The abilities are as follows:

Levels 1-4 � +1 on saving throws vs. firespells; -1 on saving throws vs. cold spells.

Levels 5-8 � +1 on saving throws vs. fire

spells; -1 on saving throws vs. cold spells.Levels 9- 10 � Ability to use a pyrotech-

nics spell once per day (no material compo-nent needed for bonus spells, and they donot count against normal spell allotment).

Levels 11-15 � -1 on saving throws vs.cold spells (total penalty -3); must take 1extra point of damage per die from coldspells (up to a maximum possible for type ofdie); ability to use the magic of a fire shieldspell (hot-flame variety) once per day, as ifwearing a ring of fire resistance.

Levels 16 and above � -1 on savingthrows vs. cold spells (total penalty -4); onehit point of damage lost from any cold spellis permanent until regained by a restorationspell or wish; ability to use the magic of afireball spell once per day, with damageequal to 1d6 per level of cleric.

Secret temples to Pyremius can be foundin many large cities throughout the Fla-naess. He has some worshipers among thebarbarians, in the Amedio Jungle, and inHepmonaland, but these are very few.

BELTAR

Goddess of Deep Caves, Pits, and Malice

Lesser Goddess

ARMOR CLASS: -1MOVE: 15�HIT POINTS: 180NO. OF ATTACKS: 2DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12/2-12 plus

strength bonus, plus loss of 1 energy levelper touch

SPECIAL ATTACKS: Bit causesvampirism

SPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to attacksfrom undead

MAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%SIZE: M (5'4" tall)ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evil (neutral

tendencies)WORSHIPERS� ALIGNMENT: Non-

lawful evil, including humanoid minersSYMBOL: Great fangs about to bitePLANE: TarterusCLERIC/DRUID: 17th level clericFIGHTER: NilM-U/ILLUSIONIST: 3rd level illusionistTHIEF/ASSASSIN: 10th level assassinMONK/BARD: NilPSIONIC ABILITY: VI

Attack/Defense Modes: NilS: 18/45 (+1, +3) I: 19 W: 19 D: 17C: 17 Ch: 0

Beltar appears as an ugly old hag in filthyclothing in her natural state. She can shape-change to any human or humanoid form atwill. In addition, she can take the form ofan ancient red dragon (11 HD), a beholder(75 hp), and a Type V demon. She canassume any one of these latter three formsin a given day and can maintain that formfor as long as 6 hours. When in the shape ofthe demon or the beholder, she can use all

DRAGON 21

the magical powers available to those crea-tures; in dragon form, she can use illusion-ist spells as appropriate to the creature(limit one 2nd-level and two 1st-levelspells).

She uses no weapon, but can strike withboth of her hands in a single round: anyonehit by her hand suffers 5-15 points of dam-age (including her strength bonus) and theloss of one energy (experience) level. If sheattacks with surprise or has charmed avictim before attacking, she can bite hertarget and inflict vampirism. A victim isallowed a saving throw vs. poison, at -5, toescape the effects of her first bite � but no

LLERG

God of Beasts and Strength

Lesser God

ARMOR CLASS: -2MOVE: 13�HIT POINTS: 160NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12, plus strength

bonusSPECIAL ATTACKS: Attacks as a cave

bear, giant alligator, or giant snakeSPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to animal

venom and attacks from any normal animalMAGIC RESISTANCE: 40%SIZE: M (5'4" tall)ALIGNMENT: Chaotic neutralWORSHIPERS� ALIGNMENT: Barbar-

ians, berserkers, chaotic neutrals, somedruids

SYMBOL: The head of a bear, alligator, orgiant snake

PLANE: LimboCLERIC/DRUID: 9th level druidFIGHTER: 17th level rangerM-U/ILLUSIONIST: 3rd level magic-userTHIEF/ASSASSIN: 5th level thiefMONK/BARD: 9th level bardPSIONIC ABILITY: VI

Attack/Defense Modes: NilS: 19 (+3, +7) I: 17 W: 17C: 18 Ch: 13

Llerg�s natural appearance is as a sturdy,well-built, shaggy-looking man with longhair. He prefers to wear no protection otherthan a girdle of cave bear strength, whichbestows upon the wearer an effectivestrength of 20 and the ability to hug incombat for 2-20 points of damage perround. He may decide to loan the girdle tosomeone, but it will not operate properlyunless he so commands it � an unautho-rized wearer will be hugged to death by thegirdle as soon as it is fastened on. In hishuman form, Llerg fights with a broad-sword that is +2 �to hit� and does 2-12points of damage (3-18 vs. size Lopponents) plus his strengthbonus. Whenever possible,though, Llerg prefers tofight in one of his

2 2 S E P T E M B E R 1 9 8 4

D: 20

save is possible on the second bite.She has a vampire�s charm power, and

can maintain this power in her shape-changed forms. (When in beholder form,she radiates the power from her central eyeonly.) She can command any undead crea-ture in her presence into service, except alich of greater than 20th level receives asaving throw vs. spells, at -3, to avoid this.She can summon one Negative MaterialPlane undead (wight, wraith, spectre, vam-pire or shadow) per round, once per day,until 10 random undead have arrived.

Clerics devoted to the service of Beltar allwear black or dark grey vestments. Cere-

monies of worship to her are carried out indeep caves or in dungeons far below groundlevel. The greatest honor to which a highpriest of Beltar aspires is the right (alwaysgranted) to continue existence as a lichwhen the cleric advances through the 19thlevel of experience; thus, there are no livingclergy of Beltar of 20th level or higher.

Beltar is worshiped by chaotic evil hu-manoids (orcs, gnolls, bugbears, and ogres)in the Corusk Mountains, the Vast Swamp,and the Rakers. Humans worship her in thebarbarian states, the Amedio Jungle, Hep-monaland, the Pomarj, and even in theGreat Kingdom.

thereafter until the victim dies or (some-how) escapes. He can also attempt furtherbite attacks while constricting an opponent,either against the one being held or anotherfoe within reach. The snake�s body is 30 feet

long. In this form, Llerg can use themagic of a sticks to snakes spell at

the 12th level of effectiveness; allthe snakes he creates in this

way will be poisonous snakeswith maximum hit points.

If Llerg shapechangesinto another form

other forms.He can shapechange into any carnivore,

including dinosaurs (although he will notchange into a dinosaur unless his surround-ings contain other dinosaurs). His favoriteforms are those of a cave bear, a giant alli-gator, and a giant snake. In any shape-changed form, he cannot cast spells (exceptas specified below) but has his standardmaximum number of hit points. He iscured of 3-30 points of damage every timehe changes from one form to another, andhe can change as often as desired.

As a cave bear, Llerg attacks as a 9 HDmonster with MV 15�, AC -2, #Att 3, D/At2-12/2-12/3-18 plus hug for 2-20 if bothclaws hit. The bear�s body is 15 feet tall, aquite imposing figure to all other bearlikecreatures; when he is in this form, all otherbears, including werebears, will obey Llergto the death. He can summon bears with100% accuracy once per hour; when thecall goes out, from 2-5 bears (all of the sametype) will arrive in 1-10 rounds thereafter.

As a giant alligator, Llerg attacks as a 9HD monster with MV 9�//20�, AC -2, #Att2, D/Att 4-24/3-30. The alligator�s body is30 feet long. Llerg can command otherreptiles who swim to aid him, and canautomatically summon any creatures in thewater around him to a radius of 1 mile. Allsummoned creatures with any combatability, or those which Llerg desires to usefor other purposes, will head toward him attheir normal movement rates. Llerg can usethis summons power up to twice per day.

As a giant snake, Llerg attacks as a 9 HDmonster with MV 15�//18�, AC -2, #Att 1,D/Att bite for 3-24 plus poison (save ordie). On any natural roll �to hit� of 18 orhigher, Llerg can constrict an opponent for2-20 points of additional damage per round

or moves farther than 100 feet away fromthe snakes, they will turn back into sticks.

Clerics and druids devoted to the serviceof Llerg adorn themselves in bear skins,alligator hides, and snake skins when con-ducting worship ceremonies. Every memberof the clergy of Llerg, upon amassingenough experience points to qualify for 5thlevel, must seek out and defeat a bear incombat to the death (using a weapon of hischoice). The penalty to fulfill this responsi-bility, or for running away from the fight, isthe same for losing the battle � death.

A few druids worship Llerg, but these aredruids who have little or no concern forplants and who will rarely, if ever, pray forspells involving plants or wood. These aredruids who are concerned about the protec-tion of carnivorous animals above all else� not protection from fair combat, butfrom slaughter for sport or for their hides.

No animal, even a conjured or sum-moned one, will attack a cleric or druid inthe service of Llerg. This protection ispersonal, and does not extend to othermembers of the party. If the cleric or druidmoves to initiate combat with such an ani-mal, or purposely hunts the creature, thenthe protection is instantly cancelled withrespect to that creature.

Llerg is a popular object of worship in thebarbarian states, second only to Kord. He isalso worshiped in the Amedio Jungle and inHepmonaland, and in isolated forests wherecavemen reside.

Clerics must pay for skillsSome of the Suel deities described in issues #87 and #88 require experience-

point payments from their clerics in return for the special abilities those clericsreceive. The following information was inadvertently omitted from the pub-lished text:

Clerics of Kord (#87) must earn an additional 5% in experience points to risefrom one level to the next throughout their careers.

Clerics of Phaulkon (#87) must earn an extra 5% in experience points duringthe 5th level, 8th level, and 11th level, and at every level from 16th on up.

Clerics of Wee Jas (#88) must earn an extra 10% in experience points to risefrom one level to the next throughout their careers.

As pointed out in the first article of this series (issue #86), a simple and equi-table way for the DM to collect these �payments� is to deduct the appropriatepercentage of experience points from earned experience before actually award-ing experience at the end of an adventure. For instance, a cleric of Kord whoearns 1,000 experience points for his performance during an adventure wouldactually receive an award of 950 points, after the 5% payment is deducted.

One heal to a demigodA mistake also cropped up in the list of Standard Divine Abilities printed

with the first two installments of this series (issues #86 and #87). Demigods areentitled to only one heal spell per day; that entry in the list should have read�Heal (1)� instead of being used without a number, which implied that the spellwas usable by demigods as often as desired.

24 SEPTEMBER 1984

D R A G O N 2 5

The many types of magicWhys and hows of the spell-categoryby Charles Olsen

system

When a magic-user casts a detect magicspell, there is a 10% chance per level of thespell caster that he will also learn the type ofmagic involved (alteration, abjuration,etc.). In the case of magic spells, this is asimple, if troublesome, matter to deal with.A door that has been wizard locked, forexample, will be seen as being affected byalteration magic, and a person who hasbeen charmed is under the influence of anenchantment/charm type of spell. Thesethings can be determined by looking up theappropriate spell description in the PlayersHandbook.

It isn�t quite as easy as that when detectmagic is cast on a magic item. What re-sponse would be received if the spell wasused on a rod of cancellation? A crystalball? Drums of panic? The descriptions ofthese and other items do not mention thetypes of magic involved. To give players allof the information to which they are enti-tled, it is necessary to understand the ra-tionale behind the system of classification.

Among the magic-user spells listed in theAD&D® Players Handbook, there are ninetypes of magic: abjuration, alteration,conjuration/summoning, divination,enchantment/charm, evocation, illusion/phantasm, necromantic, and possession.Cleric spells include all of these exceptpossession, and add one more: invocation.

A study of the spell explanations estab-lishes a logical pattern within this system ofclassification, but some of the listings arenot consistent with the pattern. Also, somespells are difficult to classify because theirmanner of functioning does not clearly fitany of the defined magic types. This articlewill first define the pattern, then discuss theinconsistencies and ambiguities, and finallywill address the matter of magic items.

According to Webster�s UnabridgedDictionary, �abjuration� is a rejection ordenial. In AD&D game terms, a spell is ofthe abjuration variety if it eliminates orprevents something. Protection from evil,for example, prevents evil creatures fromtouching those who are protected by thespell. Remove curse will eliminate a curse,cure blindness and cure disease will elimi-nate the conditions of blindness and disease,globe of invulnerability prevents spells frompenetrating, and protection from normalmissiles bestows complete protection fromnonmagical missiles.

Note that the various cleric spells thatcure wounds (light, serious, or critical) arenot abjuration, for these spells do not elimi-nate injuries. Instead, they heal a certain

(random) number of hit points. This heal-ing might be enough to restore the creatureto full health, but this is not assured. Andthough the magic-user shield spell functionsin a manner similar to protection fromnormal missiles, the shield spell is not abju-ration because it does not provide completeprotection � it merely gives the recipient abetter armor class against certain forms ofattack.

Divination is any sort of magic that pro-vides information. Detect anything (charm,evil, invisibility, lie, magic, snares & pits),find the path, find traps, identify, knowalignment, legend lore, locate object, andpredict weather are examples of divinationspells. This is a rather straightforwardclassification.

Illusion/phantasm spells are those thatmake things appear other than they trulyare. Audible glamer and phantasmal forceare obvious examples of illusion magic.Invisibility gives something the appearanceof nothing. Hallucinatory forest or terrain,Leomund�s trap, and ventriloquism areother examples of illusion/phantasm spells.

Outside of the AD&D game, necromancyusually refers to divination with the aid ofdead spirits. Within the game, any spellthat deals with dead things is considerednecromantic. Animate dead, raise dead,reincarnation, resurrection, and speak withdead deal directly with dead creatures.

The necromantic aspects of other spellsmight be less obvious. The cleric and druidspells that cure wounds can be considerednecromantic because they repair and restorelife to dead cells and tissue, and regenera-tion functions in a similar fashion.-

Spells of the enchantment/charm varietyare used to dominate the will of other crea-tures. Charm spells will cause the victim totreat the spell caster like a trusted friend,geas will force a creature to carry out someservice, and Otto�s irresistible dance willmake the victim dance involuntarily.

A while back, letters printed in �Out ona Limb� debated the manner in which thehold spells function. The fact that the holdspells are of the enchantment/charm typeprovides an answer, albeit one that might bea little hard to swallow. Since the type ofmagic is that which dominates a creature�swill, perhaps the victim merely believes thatit is impossible to move. The same reason-ing might apply to spells such as sleep andfinger of death. However, it might seemmore reasonable to suppose that these spellsbelong to a different classification.

Evocation and conjuration/summoning

are similar but distinct forms of magic. Bothtypes of sorcery call forth something of adifferent type.

Evocation brings forth energy; a magicmissile is an energy projectile, shield is abarrier of energy, and lightning bolt is aflash of electrical energy.

If we choose to accept the classification ofcertain spells as evocation magic, that defi-nition can give a clue as to how those spellsfunction. Each of the Bigby�s hand spellsevidently brings forth an energy field in theshape of a hand. The cleric�s blade barrierand the magic-user�s Tenser�s floating discwould be constructs of energy, rather thanof matter. The creations of the fireball anddelayed blast fireball apparently are purelymagical fire, since there is no physical sub-stance to burn � evocation does not creatematter.

Strictly speaking, conjuration and sum-moning should be considered two differenttypes of magic. Bothbut each does so in a

types call forth matter,different fashion. The

druid spells fire seeds and wall of thornscreate matter, and thus might be consideredconjurations. Most of the other conjuration/summoning spells simply entice or compelcreatures to come to the spell caster. Caco-demon, conjure elemental, find familiar,invisible stalker, and summon insects areexamples of spells that summon creatures.

Because only one spell is classified asinvocation magic, we don�t have enoughinformation to discern a pattern. This spellis spiritual hammer, and according to thedescription, �the cleric casting a spiritualhammer spell brings into existence a field offorce which is shaped vaguely like a ham-mer.� This sounds very much like a processof evocation, and no clear reason is evidentfor why this is not an evocation.

Perhaps a hint can be found later in thespell description, where it says �The mate-rial component of this spell is a normal warhammer which the cleric must hurl towardsopponents whilst uttering a plea to his orher deity.� Perhaps this spell is not consid-ered an evocation because the energy issupplied directly by a deity. However, bythat reasoning, any evocation spell usableby a cleric would actually be an invocation.There are only two cleric spells defined asevocations: blade barrier and flame strike.Perhaps a reasonable consistency could beachieved by redefining these as invocations.

But the power for any cleric spell comesfrom the cleric�s deity, so if we follow thatline of reasoning to its logical conclusion allcleric spells would be considered invoca-

26 SEPTEMBER 1984

tions. This is not necessarily an unreasona-ble suggestion, since both the PlayersHandbook and Dungeon Masters Guidemake references to �cleric spells� and �ma-gic spells� as two distinct systems of spellcasting. Perhaps cleric spells (includingdruid spells) are a completely separatesystem, and thus do not belong in a classifi-cation framework that features terms suchas abjuration and alteration.

However, the DMG also states that �Allmagic and cleric spells are similar in thatthe word sounds, when combined withwhatever patterns are applicable, arecharged with energy from the Positive orNegative Material Plane. When uttered,these sounds cause the release of this energy,which in turn triggers a set reaction. Thetriggering action draws power from someplane of the multiverse. Whether the spell isabjuration, conjuration, alteration, en-chantment, or whatever, there is a flow ofenergy . . .� In this respect, the two sys-tems of spell casting are identical.

Ultimately, the individual DM will decidewhich system is more appropriate to hiscampaign, but it seems more logical toretain the current system � where clericspells are defined in the various categoriesof magic � while possibly eliminating theinvocation category, and considering thespiritual hammer spell to be an evocation.

The category of alteration magic containsmore spells than any other group, and theclassification appears to be a catch-all; the

pattern seems to be that if a spell does notfall within the definition of any other cate-gory, then it is an alteration. But perhapswe can do better than that.

Start with the name: �alteration� impliesthat something is being altered. That isn�tmuch help, because all spells alter some-thing. To get more specific, it might be saidthat spells which directly alter the properties� the actual properties, rather than theappearance, as is the case with illusions �of some creature or object can be consideredalteration magic. The key word here is�directly.� A fireball spell will certainly alterthe properties of creatures and objects, butit does so by evoking a magical fire. Simi-larly, a lightning bolt spell will alter proper-ties by evoking a bolt of electricity. Butneither of these spells operates directly onthat which is being altered.

In contrast, astral spell simply alters thespell caster�s location within the planes.Continual light alters the properties of anobject to make it glow, feather fall alters theweight of the recipient, the polymorph spellsalter the form of a creature, and teleportalters the location, to give a few examples.In each of these cases, the spell�s effectsoperate directly on that which is to bealtered,

But even this does not fully explain thedistinction of the alteration classification.By the reasoning given here, it can be ar-gued that all enchantment/charm spells arealterations. After all, they directly alter the

victim�s will. One might say that the en-chantments dominate a creature�s will byaffecting its mind, and thus the effects arenot direct � but this sounds like a feebleexercise in semantics. There doesn�t seemto be any single rule for classifying spells asalterations, except that they do not fit intoany of the other categories.

This brings us to the ambiguities andinconsistencies in the spell classifications.Comprehend languages is listed as an alter-ation, when it might seem to be divinationalin nature. Perhaps this spell functions byaltering the spell caster�s intellect, ratherthan merely providing the spell caster withinformation. Some might find this rationaledifficult to accept, and they might want toplace comprehend languages in the categoryof divination.

If we choose to accept the comprehendlanguages spell as an alteration, perhapsother divination spells could also be classi-fied as alterations. Clairvoyance �empowersthe magic-user to see in his or her mindwhatever is within sight range from the spelllocale chosen.� Furthermore, light is afactor in determining what the spell casterwill see. So, clairvoyance does not merelyprovide the caster with information, such aswhat is in the area that he has chosen toscan. The spell alters the magic-user�s per-ception, allowing him to actually see an-other place. Could clairvoyance then beconsidered an alteration spell?

With a bit of thought, it would be possi-

ble to present arguments that could placemany spells into whatever category youchoose. But this sort of semantic exercise isfutile for our purpose, which is simply toprovide a rationale for the spell classifica-tion system. This purpose is best served byaccepting only the simplest explanations forplacing spells in their categories, and avoid-ing convoluted arguments which mightjustify placing spells in whatever categorysuits your fancy. In other words, clairvoy-ance and comprehend languages should beconsidered divinations, since they provideinformation to the spell caster.

The magic-user spell fear is listed as anillusion/phantasm spell, although its de-scription (�causes creatures within its areaof effect to turn away from the spell casterand flee in panic�) seems to indicate magicof the enchantment/charm variety. Perhapsthis effect is accomplished by creating anillusion of something fearful, similar to theillusionist spell phantasmal killer. This doesnot seem likely, though, since the explana-tion of the phantasmal killer spell is explicitin the description of the illusion, while theexplanation of the fear spell does not men-tion any illusion.

Certain spells that are defined as necro-mantic do not seem to belong on that list.Feign death gives the appearance of beingdead, while not actually having anything todo with death or dead things. This could beinterpreted to indicate that the spell is anillusion, except that it does not merelychange an appearance � the recipient isaltered somewhat for the duration of thespell. Slow poison also does not deal withanything that is dead, not even to the pointof preventing death (which still would notmake it a necromantic spell). These spellsare alterations, and the druid spell curedisease is an abjuration.

Possibly because the types of magic aresimilar, there are several conjuration/summoning spells listed as evocations, andvice versa. Cloudkill, ice storm, stinkingcloud, walls of ice, iron, and stone, and weball bring forth matter, and thus should beconsidered not evocations but conjurations.Evocations that are on the conjuration/summoning list include flame arrow, maze,and unseen servant.

The type of magic called �possession� isan inconsistency in itself. There is only onespell in that category, the magic-user�smagic jar. The spell description states that�it enables the magic-user to take over themind of the victim, and thus control thecreature�s body.� This is clearly an enchant-ment. The description also states that �thespell caster transfers his or her life force to aspecial container (a large gem or crystal) . . ."This indicates magic of the alterationtype. It would seem that magic jar shouldbe classified as �alteration, enchantment/charm,� and the class called �possession�should be eliminated.

It is not clear why the spell enchant anitem is defined as conjuration/summoningmagic. No matter is brought forth, either byoutright creation or by summoning any

creature. Limited wish and wish are alsolisted as conjuration/summoning spells, andneither of these brings forth matter, at leastnot directly. Defining these spells asconjuration/summoning creates still anotherpattern within the classification system.They seem to be alteration spells, and per-haps they belong on that list.

But consider this: Perhaps these spells areconjuring a type of power. That sounds likean evocation, but the spells listed as evoca-tions bring forth energy that is both tangibleand observable. The power brought forthby these �strange� conjurations is neithertangible nor observable, but is far morepowerful. Enchant an item does nothing initself, other than preparing an item to re-ceive other spells. It causes no physical orvisible change in anything, yet without thisspell it is impossible to magick an item.

A wish spell is the most powerful magicthat any mortal can cast. Depending on theexact wording of the spell, it might invokeother types of magic � alteration, evoca-tion, necromancy, abjuration, and the like.But the wish spell itself, in its basic form,must first conjure the power to invoke theseother types of magic.

This is, admittedly, a departure from thesuggestion that only the simplest explana-tions for spell classification be used, but thisis not a convoluted line of reasoning andmight in fact be the reason that these spellswere originally classified as conjurations.

All magic items that have been enchantedby magic-users (as opposed to those createdby gods) will radiate more than one type ofmagic. These items will all show conjura-tion/summoning magic when scanned witha detect magic spell, since the conjurationspell enchant an item was cast as part oftheir creation.

The other type(s) of magic radiated willbe determined by the spell that was en-chanted into an item. A ring of invisibility,for example, would radiate the type ofmagic of the invisibility spell � that is,illusion. A ring of feather falling or telekine-sis would radiate alteration magic, and awand of magic missiles would show magicof the evocation type. A rod of resurrectionis clearly necromantic, a staff of curingperforms both necromantic and abjurationmagic, and a wand of polymorphing radi-ates alteration magic.

Some items do not name a spell in thedescription, and the type of magic must bededuced. A rod of cancellation has the effectof a powerful dispel magic spell, and willradiate abjuration magic. Drums of paniccause creatures to flee in panic, clearlymagic of the enchantment/charm variety,and a folding boat will radiate alterationmagic.

Given this information, it should beeasier to deal with the magic-user�s detectmagic spell. This will also be helpful whenplayer characters or NPCs are researching anew spell, since the Dungeon MastersGuide requires that they must have a �copyof the spell in the same format as used inthe Players Handbook.�

28 SEPTEMBER 1984

The Role of Books

Words on the ways of warby Lewis PulsipherThe Art of War in the Middle

Ages, 378-1485by Charles W. C. OmanVarious editions (see below)

This was once regarded as the standardwork about medieval warfare, and though ithas not really been replaced, it is somewhatoutdated. The only edition now available isa paperback volume revised by John Beeler($5.95, Cornell University Press; subtitledA.D. 378-1515). Many libraries have anolder edition, the second, revised by Omanhimself and printed often since 1923. Avoidthe first edition (1898), which Oman him-self admitted bears many inaccuracies, andwhich stops at 1375.

The book is not intended to chroniclemedieval wars and battles, but throughwealth of example, it approaches a chroni-cle. Chapters on armor, siege techniques,and castles should be especially interestingto gamers.

As previously stated, the book was once

regarded as standard if not definitive, butfifty more years of research have modifiedOman�s findings. Beeler embodied this inhis revision, but that edition is twenty-threeyears old. If memory of the paperback Ionce owned serves me, Beeler also consider-ably shortened the book from its massivetwo-volume hardcover version. If the hard-cover version can be found in the locallibrary, and if one doesn�t mind long books,Oman�s own version of Art of War offers awealth of detail not found in the books byBeeler and Koch reviewed below. Thefantasy gamer should remember to takewhat he reads as less than gospel; anyway,he isn�t going to be hurt by getting a fewdetails wrong.

Warfare in Feudal Europe, 730-1200by John BeelerCornell University Press, 1971, 1972Paperback 272 pps.

To many people, the terms feudal andmedieval mean the same thing. What mostof us think of as medieval warfare, withsometimes headstrong noble cavalrymendominating the battlefield, is actually feudalwarfare. Later, when armies were largelycomposed of paid troops rather than feudalvassals serving their obligation to their lord,infantry in the form of archers (and laterpikemen) gradually gained the dominanceenjoyed by the Roman legionnaires.

In limiting his book to the feudal era,John Beeler tried to dispel some misconcep-tions about feudal warfare. He points outthat infantry �sometimes in the person ofdismounted cavalrymen � often played asignificant part in battle and usually pro-vided the majority of combatants. Therewere as many good generals in this era as inany other, in matters of tactics, though fewthought much about higher strategy. But,insofar as the generals often worked withundisciplined, independent troops unaccus-tomed to working together in large units,the generals could affect a battle in fewerways than an ancient or modern generalcould.

Beeler�s approach is very analytical,showing how feudal warriors were em-ployed but forgoing detailed descriptions ofthe campaigns and battles. The discussion isorganized by area, beginning with theorigins of feudalism in Carolingian France,followed by the variations in Norman Italy,Norman England, Crusader Syria, southernFrance and Christian Spain, central andnorthern Italy, and finally Germany. De-spite the page count, the book is not long,

thanks to large print. Moreover, it is ex-tremely clear and well organized. One couldread the last two pages of each chapter andknow what happened, if not always exactlywhy.

Not surprisingly, this is regarded byhistorians as the book to read about thisperiod. Fortunately for gamers, it is writtento be intelligible to someone with just a briefacquaintance with the era.

Medieval Warfareby H. W. KochPrentice Hall, large-format hardcoverRemaindered for $14.95 at Barnes

and NobleThis may be the latest book to compre-

hensively deal with this subject. Unlike theothers, it is profusely illustrated, approach-ing the coffee-table book category. Unfortu-nately, the illustrations are seldomenlightening, and the text is painful to readowing to inexplicable use of punctuationand an astonishingly low standard of writ-ing. Moreover, the author appears at timesto be hasty, disorganized, and insufficientlyfamiliar with his material. I recommendthat the gamer stick with Beeler and Oman.

To supplement the above works, thoseinterested in medieval battle ought to readthe chapter on the Battle of Agincourt inThe Face of Battle by John Keegan; thisgives the reader a more concrete feeling forwhat it was like to be a soldier on a latemedieval battlefield.

A History of Fortification from 3000 B.C.to A.D. 1700

by Sidney ToyWilliam Heinemann Ltd., 1955Hardcover 260 pps.,

Most books about castles are disguisedtravelogues, with lots of photos, a few dia-grams, and no analysis. Although there is atravelogue element in A History of Fortifi-cation, the author�s architectural knowledgeand decades-long thoroughness enable himto go beyond the ordinary castle books.

Although it is out of print, I�ve found thisbook in several college and public librariesover the years. It is a major revision andexpansion of a pre-war book about medievalcastles; consequently, the majority of thebook deals with 12th- to 14th-century castlesin Europe and the Levant.

While the author does describe the devel-opment of fortifications and siegecraft, themeat of the book is in the descriptions ofparticular fortifications. Toy includes clear,

detailed floor plans of most of the places hediscusses, as well as photographs or draw-ings he made when he visited the installa-tions. The drawings span a period of thirtyyears, clearly identifying the book as a laborof love. I suspect that Toy was an architectby profession (though he�s well known forbooks on military subjects), as well as agood artist and photographer. The result isthe most comprehensive and most numer-ous set of descriptions of fortifications ofwhich I am aware.

Any fantasy role-playing referee shouldbe able to adopt or adapt many of thesestructures to his campaign. Any playerwhose character wants to build a strongholdcan take one from the book, or rely on theextensive discussions of gradual improve-ments in fortifications to design his owncastle. The physical development of castle-building comes through clearly, thanks inpart to the thorough descriptions organizedby age, and in part to the chapters discus-sing such subsidiary aspects as how draw-bridges were raised (there were fourcommon methods), where prisons werelocated, and so forth.

This is a long book, but there�s no needto read every page of description. Oneshould scan through the diagrams andphotographs, reading about those whichlook interesting. This should be supple-mented with the first page or two of eachchapter, plus the development chapters.

From a fantasy gamer�s point of view,

this is the best book I know of about fortifi-cations, worth searching out through interli-brary loan if the book can�t be found locally.

The Medieval Castle: Life in a Fortressin Peace and War

by Philip WarnerTaplinger, 1971Hardcover 262 pps.

This book emphasizes the strategic andmilitary development of the castle from asimple wooden palisade atop an artificialmound to the stone masterpieces of the laterMiddle Ages. Warner also talks about life inthe castle, in psychological as well as physi-cal terms, but for the lord and soldiers only,not the peasants.

For a gamer�s purposes, Warner�s book isgood both for its descriptions of castle devel-opment and its discussion of the psychologyof the fighting man. The author showsclearly how each change in strategy or insiege tactics led to changes in castle struc-ture, as castles changed from wood to stone,from artificial to natural locations, fromdefense by attrition to concentric defenseconcentrated on the point of attack. Withrespect to the strategic development ofcastles, Warner fills a gap in Toy�s book.

The first half of the book is probablymore relevant to gamers than the second,but it is all readable and interesting, techni-cal only when necessary. Illustration ismuch more limited than in Toy�s book, butstill worth examining.

DRAGON 33

Halt! Who goes there?Introducing the sentinel: an alert new NPCby Andy Pierce

It was the second hour after midnight,and all was quiet at Castle Osgirand, hometo the paladin of the same name. Themoonlight cast twisted and misshapenshadows across the landscape in front of thecastle�s main gate. Inside, Osgirand and hishenchmen were deep in sleep after a hardday of putting the thieves� guild back in itsplace. Outside the walls, two of the mis-shapen shadows moved. . . .

The man at the gate was an experiencedfighter, one of the most capable warriors inOsgirand�s retinue. He wasn�t used in thebattle against the thieves because the pala-din suspected that the guild would seekrevenge, and Osgirand wanted one of hisbest men on guard that night to thwart thethieves.

The guard stood silently and alertly, hishand resting on the hilt of his sheathedsword and his body barring the waythrough the main entrance. He had beentold to be especially alert tonight, and hetook his orders seriously. He scanned theterrain with his eyes and strained to hearany out-of-the-ordinary noises. But neitherof his senses prepared him for what hap-pened next.

Suddenly, two black-clad assassins leapt

out of the shadows by the wall on either sideof the guard. Almost before he knew whathit him, the guard slumped to the ground,mortally wounded. The intruders disposedof the body in the murky shadows off to oneside of the gate, then picked the lock andcrept into the castle to find the paladin andcarry out their assignment. . . .

Although it may not make much differ-ence to point it out, Osgirand the paladinwas probably more at fault in this episodethan the guard who gave his life in a futileattempt to protect his master. The guarddid the best he could; the problem was thatOsgirand used a fighter for a guard, whenfighters are made for battle. If the assassinshad attacked openly, the guard could proba-bly have disposed of them, or at least stayedalive to sound an alarm. But since the assas-sins used stealth, the guard got the knife �and his boss probably did, too.

The intruders might have been detectedand overcome if Osgirand had hired asentinel � a non-player character whosejob it is to defend against both open andsurprise attacks. Although sentinels fightfairly well, their primary purpose is todetect approaching invaders or assailants,and to then sound an alarm and hold off theenemy until help arrives. To accomplishthis, sentinels have trained themselves to beexceptionally alert.

A sentinel must have the following mini-mum ability scores:13, wisdom 14, and

strength 9, intelligencedexterity 12.

At the start of his career, a sentinel maybe of any non-chaotic alignment. The idealalignment for a sentinel is lawful neutral,but it�s not necessary for a first-level senti-nel to have that alignment. However, as asentinel gains experience in his function, hebecomes more loyal to his master or em-ployer and more objective about those heencounters in the performance of his duties.This is reflected, in game terms, by a grad-ual shift to lawful neutral alignment for anysentinel who did not begin his career withthat alignment.

With every three experience levels asentinel gains after the first level, he shiftsone alignment step closer to lawful neutral.This shift favors the lawful aspect over goodor evil; for example, a sentinel who startsout neutral good would first shift to lawfulgood and then to lawful neutral. Unlikeplayer characters, sentinels do not lose alevel for undergoing this kind of alignmentchange; instead, they must pay a penalty inearned experience points. A sentinel�s first

alignment shift will occur after he finishesrising through 4th level but before he beginsprogressing through 5th level, and he mustforfeit 50% of all the experience points heearns while at 4th level (so that it takestwice as many points as normal to advancethrough 4th level). The same 50% penaltyis assessed during 7th level, if a secondalignment shift is necessary to bring thesentinel to lawful neutral. Every sentinelwho advances to 8th level or higher will be

34 SEPTEMBER 1984

SENTINEL EXPERIENCE LEVELS AND SPECIAL ABILITIESFind

Hit die secretExperience points Level gained Level title doors

Bonus todetect

invisible0 � 1,750

1,751 � 3,5003,501 — 7,0007,001 � 15,000

15,001 � 30,00030,001 — 65,00065,001 — 140,000

140,001 — 295,000295,001 � 455,000455,001 � 635,000635,001 � 865,000865,001 � 1,150,000

1,150,001 � 1,485,0001,485,001 � 1,870,000

1 d102 d103 d104 d105 d86 d87 d88 d89 d610 d611 d612 d613 d414 d4

ObserverWatchmanPost KeeperPatrollerGuardSentryGuard CaptainGuard MasterGate KeeperGate MasterGuard SuperiorElite GuardElite Guard, 13thElite Guard, 14thSentinel

17%18%19%20%22%24%26%28%31%34%37%40%43%46%

1%2%3%4%5%6%7%8%9%10%11%12%13%14%

1,870,011 + 15 d4 50% 15%

Hear Detectnoise lie

5% 25%10% 30%15% 35%20% 40%25% 45%30% 50%35% 55%40% 60%45% 65%50% 70%55% 75%60% 81%65% 87%70% 93%75% 99%

Surprise33%30%27%24%21%18%15%12%9%6%3%3%3%3%3%

FindTraps,

pits, etc.5%7%9%

11%13%15%18%21%24%27%30%33%37%41%45%

lawful neutral, since no more than twoalignment shifts will ever be necessary. Ofcourse, a sentinel who starts out as a lawfulneutral character is not subject to thesepenalties (and thus can rise in levels morerapidly than others of his class).

By their nature, sentinels have manyabilities and attributes typical of a fighter �but the class is not a subclass of fighter, andit is only open to humans and half-elves(who may not be multi-classed as a sentineland anything else). Sentinels do not roll forexceptional strength, nor do they receive thespecial hit-point bonus that a fighter

receives for high constitution. A sentinelwith both intelligence and wisdom of 16 orhigher is allowed to add a 10% bonus toearned experience.

As is evident from the accompanyingtable, a sentinel has a good hit-point aver-age for a character of a given level, andmembers of the sentinel class continue togain hit dice up through 15th level, themaximum level attainable. Just as the hitpoints of a high-level fighter reflect thatcharacter�s ability to avoid serious damageas well as withstand it, so do the sentinel�shit points serve as a mirror of his ever-

improving abilities to notice the unusual orimperceptible and take action against athreat before it actually comes to pass.Thanks to his high intelligence and wisdomand an inner sense sharpened by years ofpractice, a veteran sentinel will notice asharp intake of breath, or the position of aweapon or the stance of a would-be oppo-nent. By picking up on signals such asthese, a sentinel is able to predict how,when, and where a weapon will strike �enabling him to take relatively less damagefrom the attack, assuming it hits.

A sentinel attacks on the combat table for

DRAGON 35

fighters � but it must be kept in mind at alltimes that sentinels are used almost exclu-sively for defensive purposes, and generallywill not strike first unless a threat is imme-diately obvious. A sentinel must be able toattack quickly, to parry blows, and moveswiftly to block opponents from chargingpast them. For these reasons, a sentinelmust only use weapons that have speedfactors of 6 or less, and cannot wear platearmor. A sentinel can use any type ofshield and almost always carries one onduty.

Special abilitiesFind secret doors: This is the chance a

sentinel has of finding a secret door, if oneexists in his vicinity and the sentinel isactively searching for it. Sentinels aretrained to notice subtle differences in wallcolor or texture, slight indentations orcracks or protrusions that might reveal thepresence of a secret door. They can locateconcealed doors much more easily; add+25% to the value given if a door is con-cealed but not a secret door.

Bonus to detect invisible: Because he isby nature more alert than other characters,a sentinel is better at detecting the presenceof invisible creatures or moving objects.(This ability does not apply to astral, ethe-real, or out-of-phase creatures, nor to thedetection of a stationary, non-living invisibleobject.) A sentinel is able to notice a distur-bance in the air flow, a slight noise, or a

slight emanation of heat or cold that signalsthe presence of something unseen. To detecta creature or object which is only hiddenbut not invisible (such as a thief hiding inshadows), the sentinel gets a bonus of +25%to the number given in the table.

The numbers in this column on the tablerepresent a bonus to a character�s normalchance to detect invisibility (see p. 60 of theDMG). As can be seen from the figures inthe DMG, a sentinel�s chance to detectinvisibility goes up sharply at 9th level (orperhaps sooner, for sentinels with exception-ally high intelligence). But even at lowerlevels, a sentinel with very high intelligencegets an additional bonus: +2% for 15 intelli-gence, +4% for 16 intelligence, +7% for 17intelligence, or + 10% for 18 intelligence.This intelligence bonus is added to thechance given in the �Bonus to detect invisi-ble� column in the sentinel table, and alsoto the chance given in the DMG table (ifapplicable). For example, a 7th-level senti-nel with 16 intelligence has an 11% chanceof detecting an invisible object. When thatcharacter reaches 8th level, his chance goesup to 17%. An attempt to detect invisibilityis handled as per the DMG, with one rollallowed in each round during which thesentinel is within sensory range of an invisi-ble object. Note that this ability does nothave to be consciously exercised in order towork.

Hear noise: This is basically the same asthe thief ability of the same name, except

that a sentinel does not have to be activelylistening for sounds in order to detect them.

Detect lie: The numbers in this columnrepresent the chance a sentinel has of in-stinctively knowing when he is being lied to.This detection only applies against a figureor figures who are directly conversing withthe sentinel, not if the sentinel happens tooverhear people talking to each other. Theability is usually only brought into play if acharacter is talking to a sentinel in an at-tempt to gain entry to the place the sentinelis guarding. As with detect invisible andhear noise, this ability does not have to beconsciously performed in order to work.Note that detecting a lie does not enable asentinel to know the truth.

Surprise: The numbers in this columnrepresent the base chance for a sentinel tobe surprised. This number steadily de-creases as the sentinel rises in level, down toa minimum of 3% at 11th level and above.The base chance is modified when consider-ing adversaries who do not have the normal(2 in 6) chance to surprise other figures. Forinstance, a bugbear surprises foes at achance of 3 in 6, or 1673% greater thannormal � so, against a bugbear, a sentinel�schance to be surprised is increased by 17%(round fractions up). Conversely, a sentinelreceives a 17% decrease to his chance to besurprised by a creature that only surpriseson a 1 in 6 chance, meaning that a sentinelof 7th level or above will never be surprisedby such a creature unless some extraordi-nary circumstance prevails.

This surprise percentage is also used todetermine the chance that a sleeping senti-nel will be awakened by some unusualnoise; this is equal to 50% minus the sur-prise chance. Thus, a 1st-level sentinel willbe awakened by a strange noise on a 17%chance, and an 11th-level sentinel on a 97%chance.

Find traps, pits, and snares: This is acombination of the thief's ability to findtraps and the power bestowed by the druidspell detect snares & pits. Unlike most ofthe sentinel�s other abilities, this must beconsciously exercised in order to succeed.Note that a sentinel can only find suchtraps, and cannot remove, deactivate, or setthem.

The address of DRAGON® Magazineis P.O. Box 110, Lake Geneva WI53147, and that�s all you need tomake sure your letter gets here. Butyou can help us serve you morequickly by adding a line at the top ofthe address to tell us what depart-ment should receive your letter orpackage. Call it a �manuscript sub-mission,� �cartoon submission,��query letter,� or any other shortphrase that tells us what�s inside, andit�ll get exactly where it�s supposedto go.

36 SEPTEMBER 1984

ParryingIf a sentinel does not wish to attack, he

can choose to try to parry one attack againsthim per round, plus one for every three fulllevels of experience the sentinel has attained� 1 at 1st level, 2 at 4th level, 3 at 7thlevel, 4 at 10th level, and 5 at 13th level andabove. The person controlling the sentinelmust announce the intent to parry beforeany attacks are made against the characterin a round, and must also specify whichblow (or blows) the sentinel will attempt toblock. Parrying can only be attemptedagainst attacks from melee (hand-held)weapons and only if the sentinel is holding aweapon or a shield.

Parrying is conducted as per the guide-lines on p. 104 of the Players Handbook.The sentinel can make no return attack inthe same round, and for purposes of deter-mining whether an opponent�s strike suc-ceeds, the sentinel is treated as if he had anextra +2 bonus �to hit� for strength, inaddition to the actual +1 bonus �to hit� thata sentinel with 17 or 18 strength wouldalready have.

Other characteristicsA sentinel can only be hired by a non-

chaotic character; he will serve no one else.Once a sentinel attains 8th level and be-comes (if he wasn�t already) lawful neutral,he will serve his master/employer/liege withfanatical devotion. The sentinel will notaccept bribes under any circumstances and

will fight to the death if no other avenue isopen (for instance, if he knows no reinforce-ments are forthcoming and he is the lastobstacle between an enemy and his master).Until the sentinel reaches 8th level, thiscode does not apply, even if the characterwas lawful neutral from the start.

A sentinel is initially proficient with onlyone weapon, but wields that weapon with abonus of +1 �to hit.� The character gainsproficiency in one new weapon every threelevels thereafter (at 4th, 7th, 10th, and 13thlevels), but only attacks made with the first-chosen weapon are eligible for the hit bo-nus. A sentinel�s non-proficiency penalty is-2 � and note again that a sentinel can onlyuse weapons with a speed factor of 6 orlower.

A sentinel makes saving throws as afighter and is able to use all magic itemspermitted to that class, except for platearmor and weapons with a speed factor of 7or higher. No sentinel will use oil in com-bat, since it is time-consuming and gener-ally unreliable. An evil sentinel might nothesitate to use a poisoned blade; however,all decisions on poison use should be madeby the individual DM. A sentinel never hashenchmen, and attracts no followers regard-less of his charisma score.

Apprenticeship of a sentinelTo become a sentinel, an aspiring appren-

tice must first serve under a sentinel of notless than 5th level for a term of 3-5 years.

During this time, the pupil (who is neither ahenchman nor a follower in the literal sense)will perform menial tasks for the mentorand at the same time receive instruction inhow to observe the nature of people, how tosharpen his senses of perception and obser-vation, and how to perform the art of parry-ing. At the end of the apprenticeship, thementor will turn the new sentinel (now a1st-level Observer) over to the mentor�sown employer, who will place the newcomerin a probationary job, either where thementor works or at another allied location.

After one year of probationary service,the new sentinel will be granted a perma-nent placement in the employer�s house-hold, if the master is pleased with thenewcomer�s performance. If the master isdispleased, he will either sell the sentinel�sservice to another employer or simply turnthe newcomer loose to fend for himself.

An aspiring sentinel who successfully getsthrough the training and apprenticeshipperiod will be guaranteed a place of employ-ment in which he will be treated well and inwhich he will be able to perform to the bestof his ability. This good treatment for serv-ices rendered is the main reason why senti-nels are so loyal (and become fanaticalabout it as they rise in levels); in turn, thisdevotion helps keep sentinels in good stand-ing with owners of estates, nobility, andother men of means who have valuable andimportant possessions � including them-selves � to be guarded.

38 SEPTEMBER 1984

Beefing up the bureausSuggestions for giving agents separate skillsby Mike Beeman

Has this ever happened to you? Agent008, Code Name Scorpion, levels his John-son semi-automatic rifle with a 6x scope athis assigned target, standing only thirty feetaway. �Sneak attack?� the Administratorasks. �No,� the player answers, knowingthat Scorpion has a better chance to hit andcan do more damage with normal �to hit�and damage rolls. Scorpion fires and scoresa hit to the head � for 2 points of damage.

�But Scorpion�s an Assassin!� the playeryells. �Why can�t he assassinate anyone?!�The administrator shrugs his shoulders andlets 008 shoot again. Scorpion misses, andthe target�s guards return fire. Agent 008dies, the player flies into a rage, and theAdmin sits behind his screen and winces.

That chain of events is not only possibleunder the current TOP SECRET® gamerules, but events like it seem to occur withfatal frequency. It strikes this Administratoras odd that Assassins kill no better thanConfiscators, who in turn steal no betterthan Investigators, who can investigate nobetter than Assassins. This flaw results fromthe amount of flexibility and freedom builtinto the TOP SECRET rules. With a littlethought, however, players and Administra-tors can have their cake and eat it too.Agents in each bureau can be given special-ized training that allows them to do theirjobs more efficiently.

Listed below are several abilities uniqueto agents in their respective bureaus. All ofthese abilities reflect extensive and ongoingtraining, so the Admin may wish to requirethe agents to take time off to train beforeadvancing in levels. These suggestions areunofficial, and gamers are free to incorpo-rate any one or all of them into their cam-paigns as desired.

Investigation1. Since wringing information out of

unwilling or unsuspecting persons is a vitalpart of an investigation, members of thisbureau receive +5 points per level on boththeir general Knowledge trait and theirspecific AOK values when attempting toFool or Con using the Contact ReactionTable. This means that a fourth-level Exam-iner with a Knowledge score of 86 wouldFool or Con as if he had a score of 106.

2. If a specific AOK is needed to deter-mine or notice something, an Investigatorhas a percentage chance equal to one-half ofhis general Knowledge value to noticeeven if he does not possess that specificAOK. For example, if an AOK of 80 isneeded to recognize a Shakespearean quote

40 SEPTEMBER 1984

left by a contact, an Investigator with ageneral Knowledge score of 90 but whodoes not have that special AOK (or does nothave the required minimum value in thatAOK) would have a 45% chance of recog-nizing it anyway.

3. When attempting to open a lock, anInvestigator receives +2 per level to hisDeactivation value. This means that a fifth-level Interrogator with a DEAC value of 76would open locks as if he had a score of 86.

4. Investigators receive the tertiary traitof Shadowing, which is equal to one-fourththe total of the agent�s Movement Valueand Deception (effective maximum of 100).This skill enables the operative to shadow,on foot or in a vehicle, enemy agents ortargeted civilians. Percentile dice are rolledevery 12 turns (one game minute), with aroll above the agent�s Shadowing valuemeaning that the target has noticed theshadow and will take appropriate action. Aroll of 96-00 always indicates that theshadow has been spotted; conversely, a rollof 01-05 always means that the shadowingagent has lost the trail. The Admin mayattach positive or negative modifiers to thedice roll to take into account physical orenvironmental conditions (flat terrain vs. anarea with lots of cover; inclement weather;large crowds, etc.).

Confiscation1. An agent in this bureau receives +2 per

level on his Deactivation scores when open-ing a lock or desensitizing an alarm (see #3above, under Investigation).

2. When attempting to fence stolen items,a Confiscator subtracts 5% per level whenrolling on the Fencing Merchandise Table.For example, a third-level Swindler whorolls an 82 (ordinarily meaning that theopen market fence reports him to the police)would subtract 15%, resulting in a roll of67 (the fence simply refuses to buy thestolen goods).

3. Similarly, a Confiscator receives +5 perlevel on his Surprise value when a check ismade on the Intruder Discovery Table. Thismeans that a seventh-level Thief with aSurprise value of 120 would evade guards asif his SV were 155.

4. A Confiscator may pick pockets, shop-lift, and commit other minor acts of stealth-ful thievery at a percentage chance equal tothe agent�s Deception value. Thus, a Pil-ferer with a Deception value of 76 has a76% chance to pick someone�s pocket. Butthere is always a 5% chance of failure (diceroll of 96-00). The Admin may wish to use

the level of the victim as a factor, so that theagent�s chance of success is equal to hisDeception value minus 5% per level of thevictim.

Assassination1. An Assassin kills on any successful

Sneak Attack, unless that attack is also asuccessful called shot to a non-vital area,such as the target�s weapon or gun hand.This applies only when the attack is madewith a projectile weapon or hand-heldweapon, or if it is an attack by strangula-tion. At the Administrator�s option, a bare-handed attack by an agent trained in themartial arts may also be included. If theattack misses, then the victim sustains nodamage.

2. An Assassin adds d10 x 4% (ratherthan d10 x 2%, as per the rules) to hisDeception when wearing a personaldisguise.

3. Since there is no specific AOK dealingwith explosives, the Administrator mayelect to have Assassins be especially profi-cient in the use of such devices. Add +10 perlevel of the Assassin who placed the chargewhen rolling on the Explosive Use AgainstStationary Vehicles Chart. Thus, if afourth-level Hood places a charge in a truckand the actual dice roll is 29 (vehicle willnot move), 40 is added for a final result of69 (vehicle explodes).

As another aspect of this special skill,Assassins only need to use three-fourths ofthe normally prescribed amount of explo-sives for any given job.

The strong get strongerIf you are an Administrator and decide to

use these suggestions in your campaign, besure to note that agents with these skills willbe very powerful indeed at high levels. Atenth-level Assassin, for example, will haveat least a 40% chance to kill anyone if hecan get into position for a Sneak Attack. Atenth-level Confiscator will be breezing inand out of the most heavily guarded instal-lations with relative ease, and a tenth-levelInvestigator will be able to make almostanyone tell him what he needs to know.

Editor�s note: It is strongly recommendedthat if the Sneak Attack instant-kill variantis used, the Administrator should also usethe �fortune point� optional rule from theTOP SECRET rule book to offset theeffects of the variant on player characters.Administrators may also consider modifyingthe instant-kill rule to allow an attack to doincreased damage instead of a kill.

DRAGON 41

Learn magic by the monthDRAGONQUEST� rules for studying spellsby Craig Barrett

Most player characters (PCs) begin aDRAGONQUEST� game campaign al-ready adept in a magical college. That�s theway the rules work, and since the rules alsorestrict PCs to membership in a singlecollege at a time, there seems little point inknowing how a PC can enter a college afterthe campaign has begun.

However, things don�t always run assmoothly as they first start out, even in role-playing games. Some players will elect tostart their PCs as non-adepts (see �Thewarrior alternative,� DRAGON® Magazine#86). Others will see their PCs stripped ofmagical power, either voluntarily or invol-untarily, during the course of the campaign(see rules 34.5, 44.0, 46.0, etc.). SomeGMs will draw from Eric Goldberg�s articlein Chaosium�s THIEVES� WORLD�game, which suggests allowing adepts tobelong to more than one college at a time.

In all of these cases, a PC will enter acollege after the campaign is already underway, and that brings up a major problem:In order to learn magic, a PC will have tospend six to twelve months of game timeout of action, studying. This means anextended period of real time during whichyou, the player, have a choice of fascinatingactivities. You can twiddle your thumbs,count raindrops on a pane of glass, or watchyour fellow players happily pursuing theirown PCs� careers � you can do anythingexcept play, which is what you came to do.

The purpose of this article is to provide aviable solution to that problem. Although aPC�s education in magic may have to pro-ceed in uninterrupted monthly increments(rule 34.5), nothing says those incrementshave to be consecutive. If a given study-month can be separated from the study-months before and after it, both you andyour PC can be set free to enjoy yourselves.While your PC�s colleagues are improvingtheir skills or practicing their abilities, yourPC can be studying his magic. Whenthey�re off adventuring, your character canadventure right along with them � and youcan be in on the action, too.

But in order to make this procedurework, you have to have some knowledge ofwhere a PC can go to study magic and howmuch magic he can learn during a givenmonth of study.

Monastic schoolsI favor the suggestions provided in the

DRAGONQUEST rules to determine theplacement of monasteries, though each GMis free to organize the magical societies of

4 2 S E P T E M B E R 1 9 8 4

his world as he sees fit. The best way to dealwith monasteries is to establish them perbranch (rule 34.0) rather than per college.Having only three kinds of monasteriesrather than twelve means that your worldisn�t going to be hamstrung by an over-abundance of religious institutions. Ofcourse, some care will have to be taken indeciding which masters and novices areinhabiting a monastery at any given time �but this has more to do with inter-collegeconflicts than with inter-branch differences.After all, fire mages and water mages maybe incompatible in terms of the magic theypractice, but they ought to be able to studyside by side without too many problems.However, the same may not be true ofpacifistic earth mages and druidic earthmages. (The answer to this is to keep paci-fistic earth mages out of monasteries alto-gether. As individualists, they keep tothemselves.)

Tuition fees are the same for all monas-teries: 200 silver pennies per month actuallyspent in the monastery, plus 100 SPs permonth that your basic magical educationextends, from the first day of the firstmonth to the last day of the last month.Payment is due at the start of each incre-ment of monthly study, and should includearrears if you�ve been away from the mon-astery (in which case part of a month countsas a full month).

This is little enough to pay for the price-less magical education your PC is getting,and the real profit to the monastery comesin less tangible areas: the chance to spreadthe knowledge that the monastery exists topreserve; the services of willing novices, forassistants are always needed as each masterworks to further his own personal studies;the addition of new names to the list ofthose already loyal to the monastery. In theuncertainties of a DRAGONQUEST gameworld, loyal friends are priceless, and evenafter your �graduation,� your master oryour monastery�s abbot may call upon youperiodically for some service.

During the time of his education, yourPC will be required to give strict devotionto his studies. Each monthly incrementshould be uninterrupted, and an inter-rupted month is a lost month, with both SPsand EPs forfeited. (GMs should be reluctantto allow uncontrollable outside factors tointerfere with the studies of a dedicatednovice. Anyone who is honestly trying toabide by the rules should be allowed to doso. Also, short missions for your PC�s mas-ter or abbot are considered part of the

discipline, and shouldn�t count againststudy time.)

The period of time your PC can spendaway from the monastery between incre-ments, whether on a mission or not, islimited to a maximum of 90 days, sincesuccessful study requires a measure of conti-nuity. For each day by which a PC fails tomeet this deadline, one week of additionalstudy or 150 additional experience points(GM�s choice) are added to his next incre-ment�s requirements. Obviously, a severelyor habitually delinquent student will soonreach the point where he might as wellabandon his present studies and start over.

During his time away from the monas-tery, however, your PC will be gatheringfresh experience points. Whether he canbegin his studies with insufficient EPs tocomplete them, as rule 87.1 allows, is up toyour PC�s master. But if your PC uses amagical ability during an adventure, theresulting EPs can be applied toward rankingthat ability. No magical ability of the collegecurrently being studied can be rankedhigher than 3 until all basic study for thatcollege is completed.

CurriculumWhen your PC enters a thaumaturgical,

elemental, or entital monastery, part of thefirst month�s general study involves lettinghis teachers determine which particularcollege he�s best suited for. (You know aheadof time, but he doesn�t.) How much of thecoilege�s magic your PC can learn duringany given one-month increment will dependnot only on which college he�s studying, butalso on whether or not it�s his first college.

(Note: Time and experience-point costsgiven below are taken directly or by extrap-olation from Eric Goldberg�s article inChaosium�s THIEVES� WORLD game.)

If your PC is learning the general knowl-edge of his first magical college, it will costhim nine months and 6,500 experiencepoints � 1,300 EPs for the first month ofstudy, and 650 EPs for each succeedingmonth of study, �payable� at the start ofeach month. The entire course must becompleted within a given three-year period,beginning on the first day of the firstmonth.

In the first month, your PC learns rituals32.1 and 32.2, as well as the fundamentalsof the college. In the second month, helearns the two counterspells of the collegeand further fundamentals. Each succeedingmonth he�ll learn a group of the college�stalents, spells, and rituals, with the specific

abilities learned being determined by theGM as follows:

Divide the college�s talents, spells, andrituals as evenly as possible into seven equalgroups, so that all talents will be acquiredbefore all spells, and all spells before allrituals; and so that talents, spells, and rit-uals are acquired in the order given in therule book. Some flexibility should be al-lowed. For example, an enchanter mayrequest to learn one ritual in each of the lastfour months of study, along with one of thelast four spells, rather than having all fourrituals grouped in the last two months ofstudy. Any groups of abilities smaller thanthe others should be among the earlymonths of study; any groups larger than theothers should be among the later months.In some colleges, perhaps no abilities will belearned in the third or fourth month ofstudy because of the small number of basicabilities in the college. There�s no help forthat.

If your PC is already an adept and islearning the general knowledge of analigned college (see 34.0 and 34.1), it costshim six months and 5,000 EPs � 1,500 EPsfor the first month and 700 EPs for eachsucceeding month of study. The entirecourse must be completed within a giventwo-year period. Your PC already knowsrituals 32.1 and 32.2, so he learns the col-lege�s two counterspells in the first month ofstudy. The curriculum of succeeding months

should be determined as for his first college,

If your PC is learning the general knowl-edge of a non-aligned college (which can

above, using a five-month base.

happen only twice, once for each non-aligned branch), it costs him 12 months and7,500 EPs � 900 EPs for the first monthand 600 EPs for each succeeding month ofstudy. The entire course must be completedwithin a given four-year period. Your PCalready knows rituals 32.1 and 32.2, so helearns the college�s two counterspells in thefirst month of study. The curriculum ofsucceeding months should be determined asfor his first college, above, using an eleven-month base.

If your PC fails to meet the deadline forcompleting the entire course of study for acollege, he is immediately reduced by onerank in any ability of that college that he�ssucceeded in raising above rank 0, and hecan never advance past rank 2 with anymagical ability of that college. For thisreason, the GM should give the dedicatedstudent every possible chance to completehis studies � acting as the abbot of themonastery, he may even give a PC someform of magical dispensation if the deadlinehas passed because of circumstances beyondhis control. But extensions of the deadlineshould always be linked to a quest assignedby the abbot, to be performed immediatelyupon completion of the PC�s studies. Theonly other solution to a missed deadline is

to start studying all over again, sacrificingall time, EPs, and SPs already spent.

There may be many reasons why a PC(and that character�s player) would preferlonger periods of study in place of the one-month increments. With a sufficient stock-pile of SPs and EPs, a character may feelthat the long winter months of a Scandi-navian-like environment would be an excel-lent time to study magic; no one�s doingmuch of anything anyway. . . . Or perhapsyour GM has things arranged so that play-ers lend him a helping hand periodically. Ifyou�re busy doing something besides run-ning your PC but still involved in the game,that�s a wonderful time for your PC to beusefully occupied (if everyone agrees toallow this sort of �double duty�). But ifyour PC is unable to complete his magicaleducation in a single continuous time span,whether for lack of time or EPs or SPs, thesystem of monthly increments is a usefulone to adopt. Just don�t forget the 90-daymaximum break between increments; thispertains to all cases.

One final point: Rules 34.6 and 34.7apply at the beginning of magical study.Your PC may be allowed to accumulate theexperience points he needs during the hiatusbetween increments, but not the magicalaptitude required. However, the ritual ofspell preparation (32.1) should never becounted against the magical aptitude, sinceit cannot be ranked.

DRAGON 43

46 SEPTEMBER 1984

What is a monster worth?Spelling out the system for assigning x.p. valuesby Roger E. Moore

As anyone who has tried can tell you,calculating the experience-point values ofnewly invented monsters for the AD&D®game is hard work. How much is this spe-cial attack or special defense worth? Whyisn�t there a table somewhere that can giveyou an idea of how a certain power shouldbe valued?

When we were preparing the monstersincluded in this issue�s Creature Catalog,some general tendencies began to appear inthe Dungeon Masters Guide system forassigning x.p. values. These have beenrecorded below for use as guidelines.

Assigning x.p. values is not an exactscience. In fact, the figures given in theDMG for creatures included in the MonsterManual are referred to in the pertinent textas �suggested values, and you may alterthem to suit your campaign.� For example,the system in the rule book lists magicresistance as an exceptional ability, butmakes no distinction between a creaturewith 100% magic resistance and one with5%. If the situation in your campaignwarrants it, you may feel free to increasethe x.p. value of a creature with very highmagic resistance, or vice versa. And, be-cause the system as given is not hard andfast, it is possible � indeed, likely � thattwo DMs will assign the same monsterdifferent x.p. values, each one perfectlyjustifiable. But if the basic structure of thesystem is adhered to by both DMs, thevalues they come up with should be fairlyclose to one another.

The system for assigning x.p. valuesappears in the DMG on pp. 85-86; themonster level table is on p. 174. Both arequite straightforward, as far as they go. Thedifficulty is in assigning x.p. values forspecial and exceptional abilities not de-scribed in detail, or not specifically men-tioned. Just what constitutes a special orexceptional power?

Some abilities do not count at all forexperience point determination under thepresent system. Swimming, climbing, bur-rowing, and flying receive no x.p. rating,since they do not directly affect a creature�scombat effectiveness (flying by itself doesnot harm an opponent). The key word in allcases, as the DMG implies, is combat. If apower directly affects fighting or defense,then it adds to the monster�s x.p. value.

Below are some basic definitions of spe-cial and exceptional abilities, with someexamples of each. Remember, there is noprecise way to calculate x.p. values, andsome latitude is allowed for Dungeon Mas-

4 8 S E P T E M B E R 1 9 8 4

ters to develop their values for monsters intheir campaigns, whether those monstersare part of the rules or newly created.

Special abilitiesUnder this classification fall those powers

that directly affect combat situations andenhance a monster�s attack or defense capa-bilities. Special abilities, though they maybe quite powerful, will generally not meansudden death for opponents who face theirpossessor. The class of special abilities in-cludes the powers mentioned in the DMG(some of which are detailed below) and canalso include other �specials,� as follows:

Mild poison. This category includesvenoms that do not kill opponents, but do amaximum of 24 or less points of damage peruse and/or have some generally non-lethaleffect upon the victim. The diseased bite ofthe ghuuna is one good example; its victimswill not die, but will become quite ill. Otherlimited-effect poisons that reduce an oppo-

nent�s chance to hit or to dodge blows orthat impair a combat-related function wouldalso count as special abilities (such as thecorkie�s neurotoxin).

Increased chance to surprise. A millikan,which resembles a tree stump and nearlyalways surprises opponents, would have aspecial ability bonus on its x.p. value, aswould any creature with a chance to sur-prise greater than the norm.

Decreased chance to be surprised. Partic-ularly alert monsters who cannot be caughtunawares very easily, like the fachan, get aspecial ability bonus for this.

High intelligence. Most monsters withintelligence of �very� (a score of 11-12) andall monsters with �high� intelligence andabove (score of 13+) should receive a specialability bonus for this. However, the DMmust attempt to role-play such monsters inthe most realistic and effective ways possi-ble. For example, a giant killer beetle willuse what is obviously the most effective

attack in a given situation, will act withplanning and foresight, and will not simplycharge into melee against superior oppo-nents if it can possibly help it.

Low armor class. Any monster with anarmor class of 0 (zero) or less should get aspecial ability bonus. The utukku, with anAC of -2, certainly counts in this category.

Continuous damage. There are a numberof ways in which monsters can inflict con-tinuous damage on opponents. The killerwhale can chew victims up, and the giant

pitcher plant can use acid to slowly dissolvethose trapped inside it. All attacks of thissort are similar in that repeated damage canbe done to opponents without the need forthe monster to make new "to hit" rolls fromround to round.

Resistance or immunity to certain weap-ons. A special award for this ability goes tomonsters that cannot be harmed by particu-lar types of weapons, or that take less thannormal damage from such attacks. Thispertains only to physical attacks from weap-pons themselves, and not to "weapons" suchas fire or cold, which are covered in thefollowing category concerning magicalattacks. Monsters in the Creature Cataloghaving this ability include the peltast (notharmed by blows from blunt weapons), theutukku (not harmed by any weapon lessthan +2 power), and the ihagnim (takes onlyhalf damage from blunt weapons). In somecases, Dungeon Masters should considerclassifying this ability as an exceptional one

if the circumstances of the campaign justifythe change. For instance, in a campaignthat�s magic-poor, the utukku�s immunitycould make the monster practically invinci-ble if no one in the attacking party has beenable to acquire a +2 or better weapon. If theparty manages to vanquish the monsteranyway, the DM might rightly feel that itdeserves more of a reward.

Resistance or immunity to certain typesof magic. Some monsters are resistant orimmune to certain magical attack forms (thecantobele, for instance, is not bothered bycold spells; the amitok takes half damagefrom the same kind of attack). Note thatattack forms such as heat and cold are con-sidered in this category, regardless ofwhether they are actually magical in nature;see the preceding section on weapon immu-nity. If a monster is immune or resistant toseveral different magical effects; it stillreceives only one bonus award for thiscategory, not one for each and every type ofmagic it resists; thus, a duleep only gets onebonus here. This category does not includeany consideration of magic resistance,which is an exceptional ability (see below).

Resistance or immunity to poison.More so than any other one mentioned, thisspecial ability could be considered optionaland ought to only be counted for an x.p.bonus in a campaign where such is appro-priate. Slaying a poison-resistant monstermight give the victor(s) a special x.p. bonusin a campaign where characters possess orhave easy access to poisons or poison-producing magic. However, the intent ofthe AD&D game rules is clearly that poisonuse in a campaign should be severely lim-ited. If poison is not available to playercharacters, or is very difficult to come by,then a monster�s immunity to poison willhave little (if any) effect on the outcome of abattle against it, and in such a case its im-munity should not count as a special ability.When we computed x.p. values for theCreature Catalog monsters, this ability wasnot counted in the totals for the amitok,peltast, sind, or utukku. Note also that thecorkie�s immunity to its own toxin is notcounted, since that ability is inconsequentialto combat.

Resistance or immunity to psionics. Thisability should be handled in much the sameway as poison resistance (see the precedingsection); in a campaign where the use ofpsionics by player characters is extremelyrare or nonexistent, a monster�s immunityis immaterial and should not be valued as aspecial ability. The giant horseshoe crab andthe ihagnim did not receive bonus points forthis ability in our x.p. calculations.

Four or more physical attacks per round.If a creature can make simultaneous attacksagainst four or more victims, or make fouror more attacks against a single victim, itgets a special ability bonus here. The giantvenus fly-trap and the cantobele are exam-ples of monsters with this special ability.

Psionic ability without potential to seri-ously harm most opponents. This categorycould include monsters with no psionic

disciplines but with psionic attack modesand/or defense modes (like the utukku), orthose able to use disciplines that would notseverely harm someone (like the giant killerbeetle or the psionic variety of the killerwhale). If a monster has psionic disciplinesthat can directly cause damage to oppo-nents, such as the molecular shock power ofthe star leviathan, then this counts as anexceptional ability (see below).

Magical powers that will not seriouslyharm most opponents. Low-level amitokshamans, who command very few harmfulspells, and the bichir with its entanglepower would warrant a special ability bonusin this category. Defensive and offensivespell-like or non-magical powers, such asthose used by the explodestool (deafening),the millikan (blinding), the flailtail (stun-ning), and the glasspane horror (which canblind, dazzle, and become perfectly trans-parent), also gain special ability bonuses forthose creatures under this category. Multi-ple powers, such as those possesed by theglasspane horror, are counted separately,not lumped together as one bonus award.

Ability to attack with missile weapons. Amonster that can use missile weapons (assind may use bows) or hurl missiles of somesort (like the fachan and bohun tree can do)has this as a special ability. Note that it ispossible for such creatures to run out ofammunition after a certain period of time,and that all missile attacks require a roll �tohit� on the part of the attacker. The x.p.award is still given if a monster is killedafter it has run out of ammunition, even ifnone of its missile attacks succeeded inhitting a target. However, the DM shouldfeel free to disregard this ability for pur-poses of the bonus x.p. award if the monsterpossessing the ability is vanquished withouthaving gotten off a shot; in such a case, it isas if the monster did not have the ability inthe first place. The power to use a rangedattack spell that does not require a �to hit�roll to succeed should be counted as anexceptional ability (see below). A monsterwith an effectively infinite supply of missilesthat could attack all day long without stop-ping would also get an exceptional abilityaward.

Rapid regeneration. A troll can regener-ate lost hit points quickly enough for thisability to be a serious threat in combatsituations; the seastar, however, cannotregenerate hit points except over a period ofdays, and so receives no special abilitybonus for this power.

�Special� special abilities. The bag ofdevouring lure used by the ihagnim may beconsidered a special ability that can affectcombat (putting one�s hand into the bagimmediately puts the character into directcombat with the monster). Though findinga bag of devouring will win no x.p.�s for thefinder, the ihagnim�s x.p. value includes abonus for the ability to make it.

Any other powers of a monster that causea reduction in the number of attacks thatcan be made against it, for instance by repelling metals or slowly damaging weap-

D R A G O N 4 9

ons that strike it (without destroying theweapons) would be worthy of special abilitybonuses. DMs who make up their owncreatures should use these ability descrip-tions as a framework for defining what�s�special� about a newly created monster.

E x c e p t i o n a l a b i l i t i e s In this group are powers that have imme-

diate and dramatic effects upon melee com-bat, and can easily lead to the death of anattacking character, or the permanent re-duction of a character�s ability to attack ordefend himself � even after the monster isvanquished. Some exceptional abilitiesfrequently in evidence are listed below.

Magic resistance. Any degree of magicresistance is dangerous, since it reduces theeffectiveness of all spells except those fromhigh-level casters. Note that even the 7%resistance of the peltast equates to a 57%resistance against a 1st-level magic-user�sspells.

Poisons that kill. Obviously, poisons thatslay an opponent upon a single failed savingthrow are very dangerous, and gain excep-tional ability awards for the monsters thathave this power. The bohun tree and darknaga are two examples.

Swallowing whole or entrapment. Theability to prevent a character from escapingfurther attacks, perhaps leading to thevictim�s abrupt demise, is an exceptionalability. The ihagnim can technically �swal-low� victims whole, and the vurgen will doso as well.

Major spell use. This is the ability to usespells or spell-like effects that can causeconsiderable damage to opponents. Thedark naga can use spells in this manner, ascan the cantobele, duleep, glasspane horror,and utukku. Amitok shamans of levels 4and 5 are included in this category.

Major psionics use. As with �major spelluse,� this category includes powers that canproduce considerable damage to opponentsor provide exceptional protection fromattack to the psionic being. The star levia-than�s molecular shock power is a goodexample of this, as is the creature�s use oftelekinesis for combat purposes. Note,however, that only one exceptional award isgiven for any creature type with this ability,

regardless of how many forms the abilitymight take.

Drowning, suffocation, and �fast-eating�attacks. The giant pitcher plant and giantvenus fly-trap (to name a couple of exam-ples) have the ability to contain a victimwho, unless freed, will die within a limitedtime regardless of the number of hit pointsthe victim still has or the amount of hit-point damage he has sustained; this war-rants an exceptional ability x.p. award forsuch monsters. The ihagnim�s one-roundkilling power also falls into this category.

Permanent reduction of a victim�s fight-ing and defensive powers, or incapacitationof a victim leading to death or removal fromthe campaign. The vurgen can paralyze avictim it swallows, and some sind can im-prison opponents. These powers count asexceptional ones, as would the level-draining attacks of vampires and spectres. Ifthe opponent suffers some form of perma-nent loss to his ability to fight or to defendhimself, then the power producing this is anexceptional one. Note that �permanent�doesn�t mean the ability or characteristiccannot be brought back to its previousstatus, only that the effect won�t wear off orsubside by itself. Someone who loses a levelin battle with a vampire can regain thatlevel at a later time � but through no faultof the vampire�s.

Extreme damaging powers. As the DMGnotes, the ability to make �attacks causingmaximum damage greater than 24 singly,30 doubly, 36 trebly, or 42 in all combina-tions possible in 1 round� is an exceptionalability. The killer whale and the utukkuhave this ability.

Other exceptional abilities. Breath weap-ons (similar to the millikan�s flamethrower)would be worth a bonus here, as would thecalygraunt�s power to control magical items,which gives it a major edge in combat.

Rating the Creature Catalog The following list shows how the x.p.

values for all of the monsters in the Crea-ture Catalog were determined, giving all therelevant special abilities (SA) and excep-tional abilities (EA) for the monsters inquestion. The abilities are listed in �shortform� instead of being spelled out as they

were in the text above, leading to someusages that might seem improper; for in-stance, the word �immunity� is used inplace of the phrase �resistance or immu-nity,� even if a certain ability is actually�only� a resistance.

Amitok � SA: less surprised, spell im-munity, spell use (1st- to 3rd-level shamansonly); EA: major spell use (4th- and 5th-level shamans only).

Beetle, Giant Killer � SA: 4 attacks/round, high intelligence, psionics, spellimmunity.

Bichir � SA: entangle power; EA: magicresistance.

Bohun Tree � SA: 4+ attacks/round,missile use, spell immunity; EA: poisonousgas from fruit.

Calygraunt � SA: high intelligence; EA:magic resistance, control of magical items.

Cantobele � SA: 4+ attacks/round, highintelligence, spell immunity; EA: majorspell use.

Corkie � SA: poisonous bite.Duleep � SA: spell immunity, weapon

immunity; EA: major spell use.Explodestool � SA: deafening.Fachan � SA: missile use, less surprised.Flailtail � SA: stunning tail-slap.Ghuuna � SA: diseased bite, weapon

immunity, less surprised.Glasspane Horror � SA: spell immunity,

blinding, dazzling, invisibility; EA: majorspell use.

Horseshoe Crab, Giant � SA: spellimmunity, less surprised; EA: major spelluse.

Ihagnim � SA: 4 attacks/round; lowarmor class, high intelligence, spell immu-nity, weapon immunity, bag of holding; EA:�fast eating,� � swallowing� whole.

Millikan � SA: blinding, gains surpriseeasily; EA: flamethrower.

Naga, Dark � SA: high intelligence; EA:poisonous sting, major spell use.

Peltast � SA: weapon immunity, spellimmunity; EA: magic resistance.

Pitcher Plant, Giant � SA: continualdamage; EA: drowning.

Scallion � SA: spell immunity.Seastar � None.Shrike, Giant � SA: high intelligence.Sind � SA: missile use, high intelli-

gence, spell immunity; EA: imprisonment(used by some sind).

Star Leviathan � SA: high intelligence;EA: high damage, psionics use.

Utukku � SA: low armor class, highintelligence, spell immunity, psionics,weapon immunity; EA: high damage fromclaws, magic resistance, major spell use.

Venus Fly-Trap, Giant � SA: 4+ attacks/round, gains surprise easily; EA: drowning.

Vurgen � SA: continual damage; EA:swallow whole, paralysis.

Whale, Killer � SA: high intelligence,continual damage, gains surprise easily(under ice), psionics (for unique individ-uals); EA: high damage from bite.

Wind Steed � SA: high intelligence,spell immunity, suggestion (by nobles).

50 SEPTEMBER 1984

D R A G O N 5 1

52 SEPTEMBER 1984

DRAGON 53

54 SEPTEMBER 1984

June 19, 1735

Y MIDDAY, THE MAN-OF-WARhas closed to 500 yards, and thesquall continues to erupt into vol-leys of wind-driven sleet. A fogbankcharges across the bow every 30seconds, strewing half-concealedreefs and shoals in its wake. The

Redemption bobs and lurches through the broken sea;her ragged crew and shredded rigging are a sorrymatch for the gale.

Vanderdecken braces against the aft mast and turnshis spyglass to the Lupus. Fifty English sailors standelbow to elbow on her foredeck, their blunderbussesloaded and primed.

�So,� he says aloud, �the wolf has winded her prey.�His only option is surrender, but, with the cargo of

an East Indiaman in the holds, a pirate�s death is sureto follow.

Two sharp claps pierce the whistling wind, and ablack pall drifts from the muzzles of the man-of-war�sforward swivel guns. The shots fall far short of theRedemption, but, in his mind, Vanderdecken hears thethunder of a 12-gun broadside.

�Damn you, Vanderdecken!� yells Rodgers. �Bringher about and let us die like men!�

For several minutes, Vanderdecken studies the grislysailors aboard the man-of-war. Finally, he snaps,�Damn us all, Rodgers! I�d sooner sail the putrid sea ofHell itself than let those curs at my treasure. If it takesuntil Judgment Day, I�ll round this cape, so that notone of the scurvy dogs will set foot on my decks!�

The wind stops.

S EVEN YEARS.Elizabeth stood, propping her arms on thewindowsill. Seven years since she had seen

Vanderdecken, his crew, or any other human face.She stared into the unending night and waited. She

knew every gnarled foot that passed her window, everydamp cobblestone in the street, every distant shantybetween her prison cell and the Dunkle Zee. She hadlearned patience. But now her stomach churned, andshe jumped whenever footsteps echoed in the darklanes.

A day or two more, and the currents would returnVanderdecken. Seven years ago he had marooned herhere, and seven years she had cursed his name, hisship, and his mates. And seven years she had struggledwith the fact that the law of the sea demanded that heabandon her, that he choose the safety of his crew overthe love of one stubborn, foolish woman. So, for sevenyears she had eaten her spite and waited for the cur-rents of time to return Vanderdecken to the shores ofthe Society � of the twisted, menacing Gesellschaft.For each of those seven years, she had hoped that Van-derdecken would return, break the code of his mates,and rescue her. For each day of those seven years, shehad asked herself whether she would thank him, orspurn him, when he came.

Dunkle Zeeby Troy Denning

Illustrations by Jim Holloway

DRAGON 55

56 SEPTEMBER 1984

She lay back onto her stone bed and turned to thehypnocube. Its red, pulsating light calmed her anxiousmind, relaxing the knot of expectation in her stomach;and she slowly ebbed into the world inside.

ELIZABETH SETTLED HER ARMS ONTO THEgunwale and wished for a cool breeze. Instead,she choked on the kerosene fumes that passed

for air in this place.A man�s footsteps pounded along the main deck, and

Elizabeth turned around. Rodgers, Vanderdecken�s firstmate, pulled himself up the ladder and onto the fore-deck. He was a large, untidy man, his grimy cottonshirt ripped open to the waist. He carried three loadedflintlocks in his pistol belt.

�Excuse, ma�am,� he said, �don�t mean to disturbyour thinking, but the Cap�n, he wants you to come tosupper.�

She turned away from the grimy man. �I suppose hewill dine on provisions stolen from my ship?�

�Of course, ma�am,� Rodgers answered sarcastically.Elizabeth responded again in a bitter tone. �You

may inform Vanderdecken I will starve in Hell beforeaccepting his invitation.�

�As you�ll have it, ma�am,� Rodgers answered. Hisheels scraped the deck as he turned to leave.

Elizabeth turned abruptly. �Wait. Bring me a light.��No lights. The Gesellschaft,� Rodgers said.�I�m going mad in this Everdark!� Elizabeth yelled.�Learn to like it,� Rodgers answered, climbing

down the ladder, �ma�am.�She turned around and looked toward her own ship,

in tow behind Vanderdecken�s frigate. Without itsgreen running lights, she could not have seen its sleekform slicing through the wake of the Redemption.

Elizabeth shifted her attention to the Dark Sea itself,watching the frigate�s bow slip through the torpidmass of black mist. She could not yet accept the realityof the Tussenland � of this world between worlds �because her body�s translucent pallor, the feeling ofmotion without movement, and the black, lonely fogdisquieted her senses. Yet, the Tussenland had to bereal, for she was in it.

Heels clicked in the back of her mind. She turnedtoward the distant noise, and the sound echoed fromone side of her skull to the other. She turned again,growing frightened in this strange unplace.

The clicks stopped, and somebody called out hername, �Ghost-lady!�

A S ELIZABETH SLIPPED OUT OF THEtrance, a dark, primeval rage rose in herchest, and the air burst out of her lungs in one

angry cry.�Ghost-lady,� a hooded figure called from the cell

window. It squatted on the sidewalk outside.Elizabeth threw herself at the window, forcing her

arms between the bars. If she could only catch the uglycreature, she would throttle it.

The Member fell on its haunches and rolled out ofher reach. She groaned as her translucent body hit the

windowsill, jarring her back into control of hertemper.

�Please, Ghost-lady,� the Member pleaded, �I bringmessage.�

Elizabeth stepped back and took several deepbreaths, trying to dampen the murderous fire within.All the while, she spitefully eyed the frightenedcreature.

The Member dragged itself to the cell window, thencautiously pushed a paper and pen between the metalbars. �Ghost-captain kill pod-mate if paper notsigned.�

Elizabeth snatched the note from its claw and read.

Be ready. I will see you soon at any cost.Sign this note and return it to the scurvycreature that brought it.

Vanderdecken

P.S. Your ship has been repaired and isseaworthy!

She studied the paper for several minutes. Mostprobably, Vanderdecken had not written the note, forhe was not fool enough to believe such a documentwould reach her. It seemed more likely that the Keeperhad sent it, hoping to add another shred of evidence tothe files.

Yet, Vanderdecken might have sent the message, fora simple note could do no harm whether it reached heror not. Even if the Gesellschaft knew his plans, itcould do little to stop the pirate captain. Its owninviolable law prohibited the murder of any intelligentcreature, and nobody would ever capture Vanderdeckenalive.

The thought should have reassured her. But theGesellschaft could have prepared a new trap, couldhave actually discovered a way to capture Vander-decken! The thought was ridiculous, she told herself.By his own account, the currents of time had broughthim into Hafen thirty-five times in the last twohundred and fifty years. If the Gesellschaft had not yetdetained him for even a few minutes, how could theycapture him this time?

Still, they had captured her. They were ingeniouscreatures, these Members, and, in their own way,extremely dangerous.

Despite her concerns about the Gesellschaft and anytraps it might have devised, Elizabeth scribbled hersignature on the note. She shoved it back into theclaws of the pod-mate and returned to her bed. TheMember scampered away.

Elizabeth stood and paced the cell, shaking the jaildoor each time she stopped in front of it. Though thedoor had not been unlocked in seven years, she still feltcompelled to try to open it.

Elizabeth dropped back onto her stone bed andstared into the hypnocube. Its soft, pulsating lightrelaxed her immediately, and she slipped into thememory world.

E LIZABETHstood at the helm.she watched as

another squall blew foamand water over the deck,obscuring her sloop�sgreen running lights. Shehad not removed herslickers in twenty- twohours, and it appearedthe rain was turning tosleet. Both she and hercrew stumbled abouttheir tasks like zombies,their knees aching withcold and fatigue.

Pickens stuck his headout of the cabin.�Durban radioed up,Miss Chamber. He wantsto know if we�ll put in atCape Town.�

Elizabeth looked aft.Durban�s schooner wasbarely visible half a mileaway, but she could seethat he still hoisted a fairamount of sail.

�Tell him we�re notstopping until London, and then only to claim thetrophy.�

Pickens acknowledged by giving her the thumbs-up,then he ducked back below. Elizabeth ordered moreforesail and tacked port. After a few careful minutes ofmaneuvering, her sloop picked up a knot and slippedfurther ahead of Durban�s schooner.

Presently, the first mate trudged back from the bow,his face turned away from the driving sleet. �Thesewaters are mighty rough to be carrying this much sail,ma�am.� He had to yell to be heard above the wailingwind.

�Yes,� Elizabeth answered, �but I still see Durban�ssails behind us.�

Jon�s eyes flared with anger. �Would you dump thewhole lot of us in broken water to win a tin trophy?�

�To Hell with you and the crew, Jon! I�ll not allowDurban or anyone else to make the Cape before I do. Isthat clear?�

The ship jerked and Elizabeth heard a great boom.Then she could see neither the bow, nor the wheel in

her hands, nor even the angry eyes of the mate stand-ing at her side. The weather was calm, and the Shannastood quiet. The air reeked of burnt oil, and Elizabethchoked when she breathed. Thousands of stars slowlywinked into the sky, casting a faint ambient gleamupon the Shanna.

�Where the devil are we?� Jon asked.Elizabeth turned the wheel over to Jon, then looked

over the gunwale. The Shanna floated on a dark,putrid fog.

�Someplace else,� she answered.

A crewman�s nervous shout drifted back from thebow. �Ship�s lights off the starboard bow!�

�Turn a searchlight on her!� Elizabeth ordered.The forward light snapped on, casting its beam into

the dark momentarily. When it finally found its mark,Elizabeth saw a frigate bearing down on the Shanna.

�My god!� gasped Jon,The ship�s sails hung off the spars as though made

of gossamer, and the rigging shimmered like a spider-web wet with morning dew. Though the oak hullseemed sound enough, it had a glassy, transparentquality. Elizabeth had the uneasy feeling she that sawnot a ship, but the spirit of a ship.

A Jolly Roger flew from the main mast. Several men,their skins pale and translucent, stood crowded on theforedeck. Most held a cutlass or a boarding pike,though several cradled flintlock blunderbusses in theirarms instead.

The frigate opened its gun ports as it drew up broad-side, then released a deafening volley. The impactjarred the Shanna so severely that Elizabeth dropped tothe deck, and the searchlight went out. The ghost-shipstopped alongside, resembling a silent, black shapeagainst a field of blue stars.

W HILE STILL ENTRANCED, ELIZABETHthought she heard a wispy voice beckoningher. �Wake, E-Beth.� As she struggled to

regain her bearings, she seemed . . . unattached.�E-beth, will you sign?�

As she slipped out of the trance, a wave of angercoursed through her body. Elizabeth jumped from thebed and hurled her body against the door. As shestruck the cold metal, she thrust her arms through theutility window, reaching for the Keeper�s throat. Itstepped back quickly and Elizabeth�s fingers closed onair. She jerked her arms back into the cell and threwher full weight against the door again. Pain crackledthrough her ribs in protest to the impact. Driven by adark, bestial spirit, she stepped back and threw herselfagainst the gray metal again and again.

Finally, Elizabeth exhausted her fury and dropped toher knees, panting. The Keeper stepped to the windowand unrolled a scroll, then read in its croaking, wispyvoice: �I, E-beth of the other land, admit I haveengaged in crimes against the Gesellschaft. I haveconsorted with enemies of the Society and aided intheir plunder of the coasts without regard for the livesof Members or the property of the Gesellschaft. Mysignature on this document acknowledges my sinceredesire for corrective re-education, and I will submit tosaid re-education without reservation and of my ownfree will ��

Tired of the intimidation, Elizabeth stood and thrusther arms through the window, hoping to grab andquiet the Keeper. Instead, her fingers closed around thescroll. When the document was inside her cell, sheripped it to shreds.

The Keeper, who had quickly stepped back whenElizabeth had thrown herself against the cell window,remained silent for several seconds as if genuinely

D R A G O N 5 7

58 SEPTEMBER 1984

After several minutes, the agony burning through

disappointed. Finally, it said, �Please approach yourwindow.� Its voice was gentle, perhaps sympathetic,but it carried the hypnotic tone Elizabeth constantlytried to resist.

Elizabeth stepped to the window, seeing what sheexpected in the hallway: a guard wheeling a cart uponwhich were two trays of food. On one tray, there was abowl of the gruel these monstrous things called food;on the other, a plate of roasted fowl and dirt apples,accompanied by a steaming side dish of leafy vegeta-bles. From one tray, the guard took an energy wandand kept it clutched in a leafy hand.

�I won�t sign,� she said. �I am not of the Society,and the only crime I acknowledge is my unjustimprisonment.�

The Keeper let out a wisp of air. �But you were onewith Vanderdecken. I watched you bear his son. Thatis crime enough against the Gesellschaft.� The Keeperpaused. �E-beth, I cannot help you unless you admitguilt. That is our way. Before a criminal walks ourstreets as a free Member, she must ask for re-educationof her own free will.�

She did not answer. She wanted to turn away, but, asalways, found herself unable to move.

The Keeper picked up the pasty gruel and tasted it.�I had not thought it possible to subsist on this cerealfor seven years, E-beth. Yet, you have survived remark-ably. What is your secret?� It stepped forward, movingwithin her reach.

She tried to lunge, but could budge only an inch.The Keeper�s twiggy lips formed what may have been agrin. �Hate? Not even an Unmember thrives on suchpetty emotion.�

�Leave me alone,� she gasped through clenchedt e e t h .

The Keeper tossed the gruel back onto the tray. �No!It has been seven years since Vanderdecken abandonedyou to us, E-beth. Yet, you have not admitted yourguilt and joined our ranks.� It paused, then continuedthoughtfully, �Have I told you? Your son leads hisclasses; he will be a fine Member. I wish you would seehim.�

�He is no longer my son,� Elizabeth said coldly. �Idon�t wish to see him.�

The Keeper shook its head slowly. �Solitude such asyours would destroy a Member within weeks, but yougrow stronger. I wish to know why.�

The Keeper relaxed its concentration, and Elizabethfound herself able to move. She shoved her armsthrough the window, this time surprising the Keeperand grabbing its neck. �For vengeance!� she snarled.

The guard slapped an energy wand across her arms,and she screamed in pain as the charge scorched hernerve endings. Elizabeth released the Keeper and col-lapsed onto the floor, temporarily paralyzed by thepain.

The Keeper stepped back, rubbing its throat with itshand. After a long, thoughtful pause, it said, �No, I donot believe that an emotion that yields so easily to paincould sustain you.�

Elizabeth�s nervous system subsided. She crawled to hercot, holding her trembling arms in her lap. �I�ll killyou for this,� she hissed.

�Perhaps,� the Keeper said, �but that is for destiny.�It picked up the tray with the sliced meat. Elizabeth�s

mouth watered as the aroma of the hot fowl driftedinto her cell. �Perhaps you live on hope,� the Keepersaid. �The hope of eating a good meal again.� Itpushed the tray through the window. Elizabeth madeno move to accept the meal.

�No?� The Keeper withdrew the tray. �Let me see �perhaps you hope to see Vanderdecken again?�

Elizabeth turned away from the door. �He won�tcome. I was nothing to him.�

The Keeper gurgled what may have been a chuckle.�Touching, E-beth,� it hissed, �but not effective. Youdo believe he loves you � you must � for in his lovelies your only hope of escape.� It paused, tasting thegruel, then said, �I don�t know if he will come or not,so I am prepared either way. But you, E-beth, you haveforgotten that our minds believe what they desire tobelieve, and the facts we remember are the facts wechoose to remember.�

�No!� Elizabeth burst, turning back to face theKeeper. �I remember the truth!�

�Do you? Why did Vanderdecken leave so quicklywhen we captured you?�

�He had no choice!� she gasped.�One always has choice, E-beth.� The Keeper

pushed the tray of meat onto the window ledge, thenshuffled down the hall without further comment.

Elizabeth stood and took the tray, puzzled by theKeeper�s sudden generosity. The guard slammed thewindow shut arid locked it as she sat down to her meal.

Though it was her first decent meal in seven years,Elizabeth did not enjoy it. She could not ignore theKeeper�s words. Vanderdecken had left her, and shehad passed the last seven years in a Gesellschaft prison.A few half-remembered words of love could nevercompare to that cold fact.

The hypnocube, too, was beginning to worry Eliza-beth. Over the years, it had done something to her,altering her personality in subtle, yet frightening ways.When she first used the hypnocube, she felt uneasyafter the trance ended. Since then, however, this vaguefeeling had grown into a black fury she could not con-trol. But she could not survive without it, for themenacing solitude of her cell would drive her mad assurely as the hypnocube.

Soon, though, the rages wouldn�t matter. She wouldbe with Vanderdecken, or she would be insane. Eitherway, she would escape the Keeper�s prison; that smallfreedom was the only thing that mattered to her.

Elizabeth turned to the hypnocube and allowed itsred, pulsating light to ease her troubled mind.

ELIZABETH LEANED ON THE FOREDECKgunwale, watching the dim lights of Hafengrow brighter. After a week aboard Vander-

decken�s frigate, her life had been, if not torn, certainlychanged. She had fallen in love with a damned pirate.

After Vanderdecken�s broadside knocked her uncon-scious, she awoke in his cabin. She remembered staringinto a pair of ice-blue eyes and, in her daze, desperatelywanting to kiss the man they belonged to. She had res-trained herself � fortunately � for Vanderdecken wasanything but the type of man who would have res-trained himself.

And now Elizabeth was with him, afloat on what hecalled the Dunkle Zee � the Dark Sea. She had sworn aprofane oath on the souls of her crew, and, like Van-derdecken, was damned to sail this putrid sea foreverbecause of that oath. She had no hope of returning toher time, nobody to talk to except a bunch of earlyeighteenth-century pirates, and nothing to do but ridethe currents of time.

The heavy boots of the pirate captain skipped up theladder behind her.

�So, there you are. I should have known. Did younever stay at the helm of your little ship?�

The captain stood six feet tall. Nearly two hundredpounds, he carried most of that weight in his broadshoulders. Vanderdecken smiled his I-wouldn�t-kick-a-stray-dog smile and rested his translucent arms on thegunwale. Elizabeth noted that they were even morepale and transparent than her own.

�Don�t tell me you�re angry again,� he said.�Okay, I won�t,� she answered sarcastically. �I

wouldn�t hold a grudge against any cutthroat whoattempted to molest me.�

Vanderdecken arched his eyebrows sadly. �You�vecut me to the heart, lady,� he said. �I�ve never cut aman�s throat � unless, of course, he deserved to have itcut.�

Elizabeth forced a scowl onto her face.�Anyway, I thought you enjoyed yourself,� he

continued.She turned away and said, hesitantly, �I did . . . at

the time.� She paused, then added harshly, �But Ithink you�re using me, and that makes me angry. Iwish I were anyplace in the universe but on this shipwith you!�

Vanderdecken stepped around to face her. �Youmust know by now that I love you. But� � he pausedand smiled his I�ll-make-it-up-to-you smile � �if youwant to leave, I�ll arrange that, too.�

�Thanks,� Elizabeth retorted. �From your stories,I�m sure I�d be much safer with the Gesellschaft.�

�But you must admit,� Vanderdecken said, stillsmiling, �not as happy.�

Elizabeth softened. �Perhaps not. At least you�re thesame species I am, even if you don�t act like it.�

�But I did not mean I would leave you with theGesellschaft,� Vanderdecken said intently. �Aacht! Iwould not do that to the Admiralty Court itself! I willreturn you to your city, your San Francisco.�

�Very funny, Captain,� Elizabeth said. �You�ve beenstuck here for how long?�

�But you have been here only one week, Elizabeth.More importantly, though, your ship is not of theTussenland.�

�What do you mean?� Elizabeth asked skeptically.

�It is not like my ship. Perhaps it is that strangewood ��

�Fiberglass,� Elizabeth interjected.�Perhaps the fiberglass, then, protected it through

the journey between times. Unlike my ship, it is not aghost in this place. It seems strong and seaworthy �perhaps strong enough to survive another trip.�

�Then I can go back?��We can try.�In her excitement, she grabbed Vanderdecken and

kissed him hard. When she released him, he grabbedher and kissed her back even harder.

�We will be very happy, you and I, sailing the saltsea in your little ship!� he said.

Elizabeth paused to breathe, then asked, �What doyou mean?�

Vanderdecken smiled and said, �Of course, I willmarry you!�

�Marry me?� she gasped. �Are you crazy?�Vanderdecken paused and studied her. �You don�t

love me?��Of course I do � no, maybe I do. I don�t know! But

it doesn�t matter; you can�t come with me!��But I must! My crew and I cannot return to our

own time.��There is no place for you,� Elizabeth said. �You�re

pirates!��But we are men, also. We have sailed the Dunkle

Zee for two hundred and fifty years, Elizabeth, so weare very lonely men, indeed. You could not leave ushere!�

�I suppose not,� she sighed, �but my world is verydifferent. How will you survive?�

�We will sail!� Vanderdecken said confidently.�Besides, it will not be so terrible if we don�t survive. Iprefer death to the Dunkle Zee.�

�Perhaps,� Elizabeth answered.�Good! My crew and I will sail your little ship into

Hafen tomorrow and repair it.��Hafen? Isn�t that Gesellschaft territory?��Aye,� he answered, �it�s the very home of the

cowards. But if we are to escape the Tussenland, wemust repair your ship; and if we are to repair yourship, we must do it in Hafen.�

�It�s madness!� Elizabeth said.�Here, everything is madness; and to survive, we

must be madmen. Still, there is no choice, so I willtake your ship into Hafen.�

�But ���Do not worry. I will leave Rodgers to protect you.��No,� Elizabeth said, �I�m coming with you.�Vanderdecken smiled patronizingly. �Don�t be silly,

my sweet. Hafen is more dangerous than I make itsound. The harbor is so narrow and treacherous that itrequires an hour to enter or leave. And the Gesellschaftwill test our cunning and strength many times duringour stay.�

�No!� Elizabeth yelled. �I�m coming!��No!� Vanderdecken boomed. �I am captain. You

stay!��The Hell I will!� she fumed. �I won�t trust my

DRAGON 59

60 SEPTEMBER 1984

Shanna to the same cutthroats that murdered hercrew!�

He raised his hand to strike, then gained control ofhimself and brought it to his side. Though a short-tempered pirate, Vanderdecken considered himself agentleman and would not intentionally harm a lady.Still, his eyes were cold. �I apologize for my crew�sunfortunate mistake.� He nodded formally and turnedto go.

�Wait,� Elizabeth said.Vanderdecken turned. �Yes?� His eyes remained icy.She hesitated. �I will accompany you � the Shanna

is my ship.��Of course,� Vanderdecken answered bitterly. �I

forget myself. You may come at your own risk.� Heclimbed down the ladder and left her to her thoughts.

A bell clanged. Elizabeth turned toward the deck. Itwas barren.

The bell clanged again, this time louder. She heardfeet scuffling, but saw no men.

FINALLY, SHE SLIPPED OUT OF THEtrance. A Member, out in the harbor, wasclanging a bell. She turned to her tiny window

and saw the feet of many Members running past, theirwispy voices chattering in panic.

Then the anger overcame her. Shebetween the bars of thesome unlucky creature.tripped and her fingersterrified creature to the

thrust her armscell window, hoping to grabImmediately, a Memberclamped its leg. She pulled thewindow. When it was close

enough, she released the leg and clutched its throat.The Member screamed, but no others stopped. Its

neck cracked in her grip, and its eyes bugged out withfear and incomprehension. She squeezed harder.

Cannons rumbled out in the harbor. Vanderdecken!She released the Member and turned to the door. Shehad to open that door and find the pirate captain.

She pounded on the door with her fists. �Keeper!�she yelled. �Let me out of here! I know something�shappening. I don�t want to be trapped.

She soon heard the Keeper scurrying downway. She prepared to lash out as soon as itwindow slit. However, to her surprise, sheKeeper�s keys jingling in the lock.

�Yes, E-beth, something is happening,� the Keeperhissed as it opened the door. �You know what it is.�

Elizabeth flung the door open with all of herstrength, hoping to use it to pin the Keeper against thewall, and charged into the hallway. The Keeper, how-ever, moved away too quickly; and the door slammedagainst the stones with a hollow clang. Elizabethturned to attack, but, once again, it was prepared forher. The Keeper lashed out with an energy wand,drawing the shimmering blade across her ribs. She fellto the floor immediately, the sting of the wand blazingthrough every nerve ending in her body.

The Keeper stood over Elizabeth�s motionless body,holding the wand between them. �Do not worry,E-beth. Our weapons do not steal the lives of their vic-tims. In this respect, we are more generous than your

the hall-opened theheard the

species.� The Keeper paused, its black eyes growing icycold. �But there are two things we cannot forgive: themurder of our Members and the robbery of ourSociety.� The Keeper�s voice assumed a wisp of fanati-cism. �Vanderdecken is guilty of both. His crimes mustbe punished!�

The Keeper stepped away from Elizabeth, his stringyface now showing the barest hint of sympathy.�E-beth, as we leave this hall, remember that you willhave two choices; both will punish Vanderdecken. Ifyou choose to stay, Vanderdecken will try to rescueyou, but we will imprison him forever. If you flee tothe ghost-captain, he will die by your hand. Bothchoices bring sorrow. The first will preserve Vander-decken�s life and, thus, his love for you. However, youwill both languish in our prison until eternity ends.The second will end his life, but not before the lovehas passed from his heart. In this case, you will gainyour own freedom.� The Keeper paused, then added,�Decide quickly; the time is almost at hand.�

The Keeper waited several minutes for her to recover,then motioned for her to walk down the hall. Theyhad walked less than a hundred steps when a cannonball struck the building, shaking the ancient structureso badly that they were showered with dust and rockchips. Elizabeth heard the Keeper�s shuffle hesitatebehind her. Turning immediately, she swung both ofher fists at him. She hit only air, for the Keeper alreadylay sprawled on the ground. The two eyed each otherfor several long minutes. While Elizabeth anticipatedthe sting of the energy wand, the Keeper watched herexpectantly as if waiting for Elizabeth to act out herpart in its carefully plotted drama.

Finally, Elizabeth stomped on the arm that held thewand, then she grabbed the weapon. The Keeper stilldid not move, though it watched her intently. �Itseems Vanderdecken has changed your plans,� shesnarled, raising the wand to strike.

�No.� Its voice assumed its hypnotic tone. �Do notstrike me. Go to the ghost-captain if you must, but beprepared to pay the cost.� The Keeper�s eyes pulsatedred as it spoke. Elizabeth turned away immediately.

She ran through the hallway as fast as she could. Toher surprise, she remembered every turn and everydoorway, though it had been seven years ago that theguards dragged her through the twisting corridors.Finally, she approached the doors guarding the exitinto the Chamber of Waiting.

She raised her foot and kicked them open, the energywand ready to strike the guards she expected to see onthe other side. As the doors burst open, two surprisedguards turned to face her and drew their wands. Shebrought the shimmering blade across both their stringybodies, and they collapsed in pain.

Members stood crowded in the chamber, apparentlyhiding from Vanderdecken and his crew. They imme-diately moved away from her, pressing together in fearof the ghost-lady. Elizabeth paused and studied theroom carefully, looking for more guards. To her relief,all of the twiggy creatures were either trade- or worker-Members without weapons of any kind.

As Elizabeth walked through the crowded room, shegrew aware of the dark fury raging inside. She foughtto concentrate on escaping and finding Vanderdecken,but could not restrain herself from swinging the wandat any Member not quick enough to scuttle out of herpath.

When she opened the doors leading into the streets,she was greeted by another chorus of cannons in theharbor. Vanderdecken�s frigate, perhaps a half-mileout, sailed slowly toward Hafen, its gossamer sails andpetrified hull nearly hidden under a pall of blacksmoke. On the shores of the harbor, several buildingslay in ruins; wisps of gray smoke rose from dozens ofsmall, bright fires.

Elizabeth jogged down the worn stone steps into thestreet, glancing back at the Hall of Education. The twoguards she had struck with her wand stood in thedoorway and rubbed their midsections. Though theirblack eyes watched her every move, they made no effortto stop her escape.

Elizabeth turned down the main street leading to thedocks. The street was entirely deserted. The little shan-ties and grand halls were boarded up as tightly as if theresidents expected a hurricane.

She ran, fearing that any second the Gesellschaftwould spring its trap. The escape seemed too simple. Itwas as if the Keeper had grown weary of attempting tore-educate her and was sending her back to Vander-decken. But such generosity, Elizabeth knew, couldonly hide a trap. She slowed to a walk, sneaking fromthe shadow of one shanty to another, and preparedherself to strike anything that appeared even remotelyalive.

Finally, Elizabeth reached the last shanty and settleddown in its shadows to wait for Vanderdecken to comeashore. Her heart beat so rapidly and powerfully thatthe pit of her stomach fluttered. Trying to calm herself,she breathed in short, shallow gasps. She closed hereyes, concentrating on the red, pulsating light insideher eyelids. Slowly, her breathing deepened and herpulse slowed. The pulsing red light became gentle,throbbing more and more slowly until Elizabeth nolonger feared anything. Vanderdecken would come, asplanned, and she would know what to do.

The thunder of cannons snapped Elizabeth out ofher reverie, and she opened her eyes. The frigate laymotionless just a few hundred feet from shore. Theblack smoke of its guns rose into the night.

Elizabeth stood, studying the ground between herselfand the shore. It was barren. Her eyes fell on the edgeof the sea, and she spied Vanderdecken�s dinghy slip-ping along the piers. Rodgers sat in the stern, rowingas quietly as possible. Vanderdecken knelt in the bow,his cutlass drawn.

Elizabeth�s instincts took control of her body, andshe charged toward the dinghy in a mad, savage fury.

Vanderdecken saw her and jumped the short distanceto shore, his cutlass poised to attack anything chasingher out of the shadows. Rodgers drew his cutlass andwaded into the water a second later.

�Hurry,� Vanderdecken called, �we haven�t allnight. The Shanna will pass soon. We must be on it,or they will leave us!�

As she approached Vanderdecken, she swung thewand into his ribs with vicious glee. He collapsedimmediately, his mouth agape in surprise.

Elizabeth threw the wand aside and snatched hiscutlass, raising it to strike. As she started to bring theblade down, Rodgers reached over her shoulder andgrabbed her forearm.

�Do you want to kill him?� Rodgers screamed, thenjerked Elizabeth around to face him.

Elizabeth didn�t answer, still too engulfed by herrage to respond.

�Snap out of it, Miss!� Rodgers yelled, his eyesopened wide in incomprehension. He shook hershoulders harshly.

Elizabeth relaxed for a moment, as if she no longerwanted to strike. �I meant nothing to him,� she said.

Rodgers� grip relaxed. �No, Miss,� he said, �theCap�n, he sailed the Dunkle Zee seven years to comeback!�

Elizabeth jerked free and hit him alongside the headwith the hilt of the cutlass. Rodgers stumbled back,blood trickling from his temple. She turned back toVanderdecken, raising the sword.

Seven years! It had been only seven years, but itseemed an eternity. To Vanderdecken, it must haveseemed seven eternities. Yet, he had come back!

A surge of calm overcame Elizabeth, and she startedto throw the cutlass aside. Before she could release it,though, Rodgers smashed his sword hilt into the backof her neck. A blinding pain shot through her head,and she collapsed.

ELIZABETH AWOKE TO THE THUNDER OFcannons. Her arms and legs were bound. Shehad been returned to her cell.

The Keeper held her throbbing head in its lap,examining the wound at the base of her skull. When itsaw she had awakened, it lifted her so she couldobserve Vanderdecken�s frigate leaving the harbor. Shecould barely see the green running lights of theShanna crossing the harbor�s mouth two miles out.

�So, you discovered a third choice, E-beth.� TheKeeper paused, stroking her hair gently. �You chose toaccept Vanderdecken�s punishment for him. He willbelieve you have betrayed him, so you will not have hislove. And once I leave, your cell will be locked forever,so you will not have your freedom.� The Keeper restedher head back onto the slab. �I would not have had thecourage to make such a choice.�

D R A G O N 6 1

CONTENTS

ARES Log . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

THE MIGHTYMEGA-CORPORATIONSKim Eastland . . . . . . . . . . . . 65STAR FRONTIERS® game background.

LUNA, THE EMPIRE ANDTHE STARSNiall C. Shapero . . . . . . . . . . 68The Moon in the OTHER SUNS� game.

OF GRIZZLY BEARS ANDCHIMPANZEESJohn M. Maxstadt . . . . . . . . . 72Mutant animal characters in theGAMMA WORLD® game.

THE MARVEL®-PHILEJeff Grubb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77More details of the Marvel Universe forthe MARVEL SUPER HEROES� game.

ON THE COVERIn the cover picture by Larry Elmore,spacecraft from a rival corporation raid amining colony heavily defended by theGalactic Task Force. �The Mighty Mega-Corporations� (p. 65) puts new meaninginto the phrase �price war.� Cover byLarry Elmore.

64 SEPTEMBER 1984

To begin with, Jerry Tiritilli should be given credit for hiscover illustration of the attack of The Apocalypse in lastmonth�s ARES� Section. Through a combination of editorialoversight and bad luck, his name was not credited in thatissue. Sorry, Jerry.

Awards! If you�ll flip to p. 69, you�ll find the ARES Awardsannouncement, and you are urged to enter. You�ll get thechance to honor the games that you feel are the best of thescience-fiction lot. (We also offer prizes).

In this issue, we have a description of the Corporate Warsin the STAR FRONTIERS® game, a GAMMA WORLD® gamefeature on mutant animals as player characters, and theMARVEL®-Phile, in which two sea-dwelling superbeingsmake their first appearance for the MARVEL SUPERHEROES� game.

Continuing the series of lunar portraits from issue #87, wepresent the OTHER SUNS� game�s view of our closest plane-tary neighbor, by Niall Shapero, the game�s designer. If youthought the GAMMA WORLD game�s Moon was rough. . . .

Because of space limitations, the StarQuestions column willappear next month instead of this month (sorry, Penny). Itwill cover the GAMMA WORLD game�s finer points (whatcan a 1 cm tall character attack with?)

The games that most of our readers want to see are theGAMMA WORLD, STAR FRONTIERS, and MARVEL SUPERHEROES games. We certainly plan to support these games,and your articles certainly help.

We have also received requests for articles on theTRAVELLER®, CHAMPIONS®, VILLAINS & VIGILANTES�,STAR TREK®, AFTERMATH�, CAR WARS�, and STAR FLEETBATTLES� games. Unfortunately, we receive very little onthese very games. If you�d like to try your hand at articlewriting, send a self-addressed stamped envelope to the ARESdepartment and ask for our writers guidelines. You mightalso send word on what article ideas you want to try, so wecan let you know if what you want to do is what we want tosee. Until next month, cheers!

The editors

ARES� Section 89THE SCIENCE-FICTION GAMING SECTION

Editors: Roger Moore & Mary KirchoffDesign: John Meyers, Kristine Bartyzel

Editorial assistance: Patrick Lucien Price, Georgia MooreGraphics and production: Roger Raupp, Marilyn Favaro

All materials published in the ARES Section become the exclusive propertyof the publisher upon publication, unless special arrangements to the con-trary are made prior to publication. Unsolicited manuscripts are welcome,but the publisher assumes no responsibility for them and they will not bereturned unless accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope ofsufficient size and volume.

ARES is a trademark of TSR, Inc.'s science-fiction gaming section inDRAGON® Magazine. All rights on the contents of this section are reserved,and nothing may be reproduced from it without prior permission in writingfrom the publisher. ©1984 TSR, Inc.

GAMMA WORLD, DRAGON, POLYHEDRON, STAR FRONTIERS and TOPSECRET are trademarks of TSR, Inc. Traveller is a trademark of GameDesigners� Workshop. Marvel Super Heroes is a trademark of the MarvelComics Group. Champions is a trademark of Hero Games. Other Suns, Vil-lains & Vigilantes, and Aftermath are trademarks of Fantasy Games Unlim-ited. Star Trek is a trademark of FASA. Car Wars is a trademark of SteveJackson Games. Star Fleet Battles is a trademark of Task Force Games.

STAR FRONTIERS® game backgroundby Kim Eastland

STAR FRONTIERS game char-acters confront a number ofidentifiable organizationsthroughout the course oftheir adventures (Star Law,the Sathar war machine, spynetworks, etc.), but one orga-nization stands out from allthe rest: the Pan-GalacticCorporation.

The STAR FRONTIERSAlpha Dawn basic game ruleslist Pan-Galactic as �the oldestand largest interstellar com-pany." The history sectionexplains how Pan-Galacticwas established: �Soon, set-tled worlds in the Frontierbecame melting pots for thefour races, with dazzlingmixtures of architecture andalien cultures. To supply theneeds of these worlds, thefirst interstellar company, thePan-Galactic Corporation,was formed. It developedinterests everywhere, fromscientific research to farmingto spaceship building. PGCeven created its own lan-guage, Pan-Galactic, whichsoon became the most com-mon language of all races onFrontier worlds; Many largecompanies which startedlater were modeled on PGC,but none approach the sizeor power of the Pan-GalacticCorporation."

In the STAR FRONTIERSKnight Hawks game, Pan-Galactic is mentioned as thelargest of over a half dozenhuge and multi-faceted cor-porations operating in theFrontier. How and when didPan-Galactic�s monopoly onthe Frontier fail? Where didthese other companies comefrom? The status of the mega-corps is the subject of thisarticle.

The establishment of thePGC as the major mega-cor-poration on the Frontier wasdesigned into the basic rulesas a starting point fromwhich game referees couldlaunch their own scheme-of-things for corporate struc-tures. The information givenin the original STARFRONTIERS Alpha Dawngame was applicable for thetime of the First Sathar War.The information given for theKnight Hawks game is specifi-cally placed at the beginningof the Second Sathar War,decades later. This article�smaterial is based on the timeperiod after the SecondSathar War, at the start of theCorporate Wars that fol-lowed. This allows referees topick the time period theircampaigns will occur in aswell as the campaigns� loca-tions.

Corporate History

Before discussing the �cur-rent� mega-corps, we shouldtake a look at the past. Thefirst large interstellar com-pany was the Pan-GalacticCorporation; it is no exagger-ation to say that the PGCruled the Frontier in theearly days. Like the greatrailroad corporations of late19th- and early 20th-centuryEarth, the PGC was the onlyfast, safe way to travelthrough an unknown frontierfor the millions of pioneerswho yearned for land andtheir own fortunes. The PGChad its fingers in every pie,controlling financing, trans-portation, mining, industrialand agricultural organiza-tions, and more on the Fron-tier worlds.

There is a lot to thank theFGC for in this early develop-mental period. It founded acommon unit of currency(the credit), established thegalactic board of trade, cre-ated and spread the Pan-Galactic common language,financed innumerable scien-tific breakthroughs that ledfrontiersman further andfurther into space, and didmuch, much more.

But there were great prob-lems inherent with the one-company system. Corporatecorruption became rife onthe less civilized worlds.Often whole planets andraces were at the mercy ofthe PGC�s concept of �moral-ity,� and too often aestheticvalues were lost to financialones. No competition meantstagnation in many industrialareas and complete control ofthe economic system by asingle entity. Possibly theworst problem, however, wasthe lack of autonomy on aplanetary and interstellarscale because of the over-whelming dependence of theFrontier on one source for allits needs. Because of this lastfactor, it was inevitable thatPGC would lose its monopolyon the Frontier.

During the period betweenthe Sathar Wars, secret finan-cial groups sprang up, invest-ing money in land andvarious industrial operationsand gaining power until theirsize could no longer be hid-den from the PGC�s eyes.Many of these initial invest-ments were made in cities,planetary governments andmilitias, and even in the UPFitself. By the time PGC recog-nized its potential rivals, it

DRAGON 65

was too late; their footholds were estab-lished, and with them came planetaryautonomy. Pan-Galactic�s hold over theFrontier was broken at last. The newcorporations decided to fight PGC on itsown ground, making diverse investmentsand establishing their operations in thesame areas as PGC�s own operations.

This last point is very important,because without it, the Sathar could nothave presented a serious threat to theUPF in the form of a Second Sathar War.Escalating competition between thelarger companies, particularly PGC, theStreel Corporation, Greater VruskMutual Prosperity Institution, and Cassi-dine Development Corporation, led toarmed conflicts that required much ofStar Law�s and Spacefleet�s time andenergy to monitor and quell. Manygalactic historians agree that withoutthis debilitating distraction, the UPFforces would have been far better pre-pared for the Second Sathar War. For anexample of Star Law�s need to keepconstant surveillance over the Frontier,see the STAR FRONTIERS® module SF4,Mission to Alcazzar.

With the coming of SWII, investmentsand corporate focus changed radicallyand swiftly. Many executives and designteams left the established mega-corps tofound their own companies, aimed atfar more specialized areas. Financingbecame available through planetary andgalactic bonds created to increase localindustry and jobs. Because of this shiftof talent, many of the established mega-corps decided not to compete with theseemerging companies, chosing to shutdown those particular operations oftheir own which were now forced intocompetition. The logic behind this wasbased on the larger investment firms�solid belief that specialized companiescould not grow to any significant sizeand, thus, would later be merged backinto existing mega-corps.

This was a disasterous mistake by thefew mega-corps of those pre-war yearsand clearly shows the tunnel vision andlack of foresight which permeated thetop executive levels at that time. Thespecialized firms grew at unprecedentedrates and reinvested their income intheir own specific areas, not in mergersand outside acquisitions. Because of this,within years, the thought of travelingwith anyone but Trans-Travel or buyingweapons from anyone but WarTech Inc.,was all but absurd. They were the bestin their fields, were reliable, and werecompetitive in their pricing lest someupstart company gain an advantage onthem. In short, they represented reliabil-

ity in many areas that the PGC could noteven compete in.

The single greatest factor preventingthose embryonic firms from being swal-lowed by their richer cousins once theywere successful was the UPF Anti-monopoly and Merger Laws, passedduring the Second Sathar War. Wishingto discourage centralized industry, theUPF enacted numerous laws that pre-vented complete monopolies from form-ing and laid down complicatedguidelines for mergers. So effectivewere these laws in curbing continuingcorporate tyranny that they were kept�on the books� following SWII. The ani-mosity some of the older mega-corps felttowards the UPF Governing Council�sdecision to keep these laws is still felttoday.

The Corporate Wars

The term �Corporate Wars� was notcoined until a decade after SWII. Thefirst use of the term was by WarTech,Inc., in a special weapons catalog theyreleased for various industries. Themedia quickly picked up on the termand pumped it to its sensationalistic best(after all, things had been pretty calmsince SWII).

The true beginnings of the CorporateWars are actually decades old. In fact,they started before SWII began. Theconfrontation that started the war isdescribed in the STAR FRONTIERS®Knight Hawks game: �Laco�s World (Dix-on�s Star) is the scene of a decade-longconflict between the Streel Corporationon one side and Pan-Galactic Corpora-tion operating through the Galactic TaskForce on the other. Tens of thousands ofcasualties have been inflicted on theplanet, and more than a dozen space-ships have been destroyed in what hascome to be called �Laco�s War�." This warstarted and was settled before SWII, theresults decided by PGC�s extravagantmilitary expenditures. This set the pat-tern for future corporate conflicts of an�unnegotiable nature."

At first, the UPF could not afford to goto war with every corporation whoraised an army or space fleet. With thesudden reintervention of the Sathar,culminating in SWII, corporationsceased their hostilities to combine theirefforts against the common foe. But theend of the war quickly brought resumedtensions and private military escalationsbegan anew. This time, however, theUPF was mobilized for such occur-rences. New laws gave Star Law morepower over corporate infringement onother corporate operations and prop-

erty. Spacefleet was rearmed and couldeasily intimidate smaller fleets. For awhile it looked like the UPF forces couldprevent any occurrences leading tofurther �Laco�s Wars.�

Unfortunately, the government didn�treckon with the mega-corps greed orresources. A combination of swelledmega-corporate coffers from the SecondSathar War, thousands of unemployedsoldiers no longer on the UPF�s payroll,and the emergence of specialized com-panies who thrived on military conflictresulted in an escalation of corporationwarfare to a previously unknown level.

In addition to covert Sathar, Mech-anon, and pirate activities, the UPF secu-rity forces now had to deal with fullscale invasions, sieges, and battlesfought by over a dozen mega-corps andconglomerates of smaller firms. It isduring this time period that the informa-tion in this article (and the one followingin next month�s ARES� Section �Ed.)applies.

Stages of a Corporate War

To better understand the CorporateWars, one must go to Star Law and theirguideword for rookie Deputy Officers:ICEWARS! This acronym outlines theseven steps of escalation usually seen ina Corporate War:

* Interest conflict � A conflict of inter-est develops between two corporateentities over mineral rights, world devel-opment rights, or whatever.* Corporate espionage � Usually anincrease in corporate spying takes placeafter the initial conflict of interestdevelops. If results indicate the opposingcorporations� goals are not in actualconflict, then the entire matter iscleared up immediately.* Economic sanctions � If espionagedoes indicate a conflict exists, economicsanctions are imposed to pressure theopposing corporation out of the conflict.Sometimes this works, sometimes itdoesn�t.* Withdrawal � When economic sanc-tions do not pressure either side out of aconflict of interest, then a rapid with-drawal of corporate personnel andequipment from the site begins. This�pullout� sometimes confuses opponentsinto believing the economic sanctionsworked. Generally, it is a prelude to war.* Armed Conflict � Once a site isdeemed to be vacated by a corporation ofany potential �hostage� personnel ormaterial, mercenaries are sent in to�hold� the site while �negotiations�proceed.

66 SEPTEMBER 1984

* Reinforcements � The inevitable hostil-ities are exchanged and reinforce-ments are sent in to �protect the corpo-rate interests.� The actual war has nowbegun and �negotiations� continue to beheld while the war continues. The lengthof the war varies. The shortest war onrecord was between two moon-miningcolonies around Outer Reach in the Dra-mune system. A stray maxi-missile withtwo high explosive warheads bit a cacheof TD-19 in a tin hut and the blast ofshrapnel punctured every spacesuitworn in the battle. Actual battle time: 3minutes. Casualties: 135 dead. The long-est war on record is the great PGC-StreelWar over Laco in Dixon�s Star system.Actual battle time: 10 years. Casualties:235,000 dead, 367,000 wounded, 170 tril-credits in equipment destroyed.* Stabilization � When one corporationwishes to withdraw from the conflict,because of the drain on its resources orthe inevitability of its defeat, the �negotia-tions� suddenly become serious and theconflict is usually resolved within a week.Terms of �surrender� range from fullreparations for the victorious corpora-tion�s financial outlay to the withdrawal

of the losing corporation�s forces.It should be remembered that these

wars are no longer fought on developedworlds within the Frontier. Nearly allbattles occur on newly discovered worldsand moons. If a corporate war is seri-ously effecting the health or welfare of aplanet on the Frontier, Spacefleet maystep in and end the conflict in the swift-est, surest fashion it knows, by spacebombardment, blockade, and other pro-cedures. No corporation has ever won abattle with Spacefleet�s forces.

For campaign play�s sake, it is alsoimportant for the referee to rememberthat forces within the mega-corps oftenmake for unpredictable developments.Power struggles between executives arecommonplace. The cadres, akin to mod-ern labor unions, are strong in certainindustries, and a planetary governmentcertainly affects a mega-corps operatingprocedures (not to mention the effects ofthe UPF government and Star Law oncorporate policies).

Look for a detailed list of the major mega-corporations of the Frontier in nextmonth's ARES� Section.

D R A G O N 6 7

Luna, The Empireand the StarsThe Moon in the OTHER SUNS� game

©1984 by Niall C. Shapero

Colony One landed on the northern rim of Copernicus craterin January of the year 51 of the Atomic Era (A.D. 1996). Four-teen on-site colonists touched down in a modified Manta-typeshuttlecraft (successor to the Enterprise-type shuttles of thelate �30s and early �40s).

Operators on Earth, working through waldoes, ran heavymachinery for the colony on a round-the-clock basis. With theassistance of the teleoperators, a lunar mass driver assemblywas made operational by the end of A.E. 54; by the time it wasready for use, lunar mining shiploads by the kiloton werewaiting at the injector head. Though there were only fifty on-site colonists by this date, the teleoperators on Earth num-bered over fifteen thousand.

The Earth-based teleoperators enabled the US lunar installa-tions to virtually explode across Copernicus. By A.E. 60, sev-eral mass drivers were in place and operational, three solarpower satellite stations (SPSS) had been built using lunar mate-rials, and the United States was beginning to see the return onits investment.

Hampered by their lack of sophisticated computers, theSoviet Union�s lunar colony (established near Tycho in A.E. 58)lagged behind its western counterpart. The Soviets, after all,had to transport workers to the moon rather than keepingthem on Earth and exporting their skills to Luna via computer-

assisted waldoes. By A.E. 63 there were ten American SPSSsand only four Soviet SPSSs. Apart from their obvious civilianuses, the SPSS masers (used to broadcast power to groundstations) had military applications as well. That the US hadonly two hundred on-site colonists to the Soviet Union�s eightthousand was considered unimportant. The US, after all, hadnearly twenty-five thousand �colonists� if one counted theEarth-based teleoperators. The �orbital death ray� race was onin earnest, and the US appeared to be winning.

The lunar mines helped build orbital factories as well. Freedfrom gravity-induced manufacturing restrictions, these near-Earth orbit (NEO) factories produced a flood of new productswhich were too expensive or literally impossible to duplicateusing Earth-based facilities. The first NEO factory was �on-line� in A.E. 57, and paid back its total construction cost, withinterest, out of its first year�s profits. Terran high-technologyindustries couldn�t hope to compete with their orbital breth-ren; the stage was set for disaster.

By the late �40s, Japanese firms had come to dominate themicroelectronics industry. The teleoperator systems used byNASA for the lunar colony work were, in fact, wholly builtfrom Japanese-produced components. But NEO facilities brokethe short-lived Japanese hold on the computer industry. Therising on in orbit returned the USA to a position of world

68 SEPTEMBER 1984

dominance in technology.Faced with an ever-worsening trade deficit and with contin-

ued Japan-US trade restrictions born of the �good years�(when the American microelectronics and computer indus-tries nearly ceased to exist), Japan was pushed into a closerrelationship with Communist China. The forced withdrawal ofUS military forces from Japan in September of A.E. 61, theformal alliance between Japan and Communist China in Feb-ruary of A.E. 62, and the growth of the Chinese space navythroughout the fifties and early sixties, were all signs of thestorm to come.

By A.E. 65, the small but growing Sino-Nipponese space navywas a force to be reckoned with in near-Earth orbit. On Sun-day, 26 December, A.E. 65 (A.D. 2010 old calendar), at 0131hours GMT, the financially bankrupt Sino-Nipponese Alliancestruck at US and Soviet orbital facilities. World War III began,and the old world died.

The governments of the United States and the Soviet Uniondid not respond in kind to the �surgical� nuclear strikeslaunched by the Chinese. US and Soviet space forcesdestroyed the Sino-Nipponese space navy in six days, and thewar ended on 1 January A.E. 66 with the destruction (byorbital maser systems) of the remaining military targets inenemy territory.

No accurate records exist of the number of military andcivilian casualties inflicted by the war, but it has been esti-mated that two-thirds of humanity died in those six days. Ofroughly two billion survivors, less than a third survived thenext year.

The lunar installations did not participate directly in thewar; it was over far too quickly. But had there been no lunarcolonies, the cost of World War III would have been farhigher. Though estimates of the aftereffects of atomic warmade by scientists in the mid-�40s were overly pessimistic andinaccurate in detail, they were accurate enough as to the gen-eral consequences of such a conflict. The year after the warbecame known as the �year without summer;� the nuclearwinter following the detonation of 3500 megatons in WWIIIresulted in the death of two-thirds of the terrestrial survivors,and without the aid of the lunar-built NEO stations and thetechnical facilities on Luna itself, humanity might wellhave perished.

The US-Soviet space forces were theonly effective combat powers left in theworld. Planetary armies had been anni-hilated during the war; ground-basedindustries were gone, and the Earth waspoisoned. The cosmonauts and astro-nauts of the two space services, heroesin a time that denied heroism, struggledto save humanity from itself.

In A.E. 66, there were eleven thousandcolonists on Luna: ten thousand Sovietsand one thousand Americans. In addi-tion, three hundred US and two thou-sand Soviet military personnel werepermanently stationed there. Anothereight thousand astronauts and cosmo-nauts manned Earth-orbital facilities,together with twice that number ofcivilian technical personnel. They hadsolar power, abundant constructionmaterials from Luna, and food fromhydroponic gardens in

the orbital facilities and the lunar farms. Their old homes inradioactive ruin, they set about to rebuild the world.

Luna was their industrial base, and Earth-Luna space wastheir home. These men had been taught the harsh lessons ofsurvival by their extraterrestrial environment, and carriedtheir lessons back to the mother world. Thus the Terran Fed-eral Republic was born.

For twenty-five years, the last generation of Terran militarypersonnel struggled to keep Earth and the dream of freedomalive. Luna was the training base, the industrial plant, and thebreadbasket for the new republic. What the workers couldsave, they did � by bringing it into space, where a �normal�life was still possible (if still difficult). Elections, of course,were suspended �for the duration of the emergency.� Bothgravity control and a workable FTL stardrive were developedat the Tycho Akademy Nauk (Academy of Science) on Lunaduring this period.

By A.E. 90, however, the new generation of Space Forcepersonnel, born and raised on Luna and the Orbital Bases (asthey were now called), was ready for a new dream. Earth hadbeen saved, but only 400 million humans lived there and theirnumbers decreased by nearly a million each year; life on thehomeworld had become �nasty, brutish, and short.� The Spac-ers numbered eight million (nearly five million on Luna), andwere growing at a rate of 3% per year.

Unfortunately, three generals of the USSov Combined Aero-space Command decided to �correct� the political troubles ofthe Terran Federal Republic by replacing it with a new mili-tary government (with themselves as leaders, of course). OnMarch 9th, A.E. 90, they acted, and a nuclear �accident� killednearly half of Tycho colony�s 1.3 million people. But the �acci-dent� failed in its primary goal � to kill every other generalrank officer of the Combined Command. General MikhailSergeivitch Malinkov, head of the Tycho Space Defense Com-mand, escaped the cataclysm with four members of his staff.The Triumvirate seized power on Luna.

In the chaos that followed the loss of nearly 10% of its popu-lation and 25% of its industrial capacity, Luna halted export ofall luxury goods and nearly halted the export of food andother essentials to the orbital colonies. Dependent upon Lunafor much of their supplies, the last of the independent orbital

DRAGON 69

colonies came under direct Triumvirate control within sixmonths. By mid-A.E. 91, a reign of terror had begun on Lunaand the colonies. Over two hundred thousand lunar andorbital colonists were executed for �counterrevolutionaryactivities� before rebel forces, lead by General Malinkov, over-threw the Triumvirate in early A.E. 93.

A thankful populace offered General Malinkov a position as�President for Life of Luna and the Orbital Colonies." Over thenext twenty-five years, General Malinkov refused the offerthree times. The fourth time the offer was made, the title hadbeen changed to �Emperor of Earth and Luna." Mikhail I�scoronation was held in Copernicus colony on the 19th of Sep-tember, in the 119th year of the Atomic Era. Humanity, neversatisfied with democracy, returned once more to the securityof hereditary monarchy.

During the last days of the Terran Federal Republic, thestardrive opened the galaxy to mankind. As had happenedbefore in human history, the colonists were often the dregs ofmankind; offered the choice of �death by hanging or transpor-tation for life," many criminals became pioneers. This coloniza-tion procedure continued under the Provisional Governmentthat followed Triumvirate rule, with political prisoners beingadded to the list of those offered the choice of exile. Under therule of Mikhail I, political offenders were not offered a choice� they were all exiled to colonies lit by the light of other sunsthan Sol.

When Mikhail I died of old age in A.E. 126, his son Alexei Iinherited an empire that stretched from Earth-Luna out to thestars. Alexei I, the Architect, designed the capital of the newTerran Empire. His son, Mikhail II, saw the completion of thecapital on the lunar farside in A.E. 148. By the end of MikhailII�s reign in A.E. 198, the human race numbered three billion� seven hundred million on Luna and the Orbital Bases, threehundred million on Earth, one hundred million on colonies inthe asteroid belt, and the rest in extra-solar colonies.

Under royal charter, the Alderson Naval Engineering Corpo-ration was established on Luna in A.E. 147 �to promote andsupport the improvement of Terran Imperial Navy craft." Overthe next century and a half, Alderson Naval Engineering andits successor company, Alderson Shipyards, did just that. Lunabecame the industrial and financial backbone of the Empire,as well as its capital world. When the sons and daughters ofexiled colonists returned to Sol system to make their fortunes,they came not to backwater Earth, home though it might havebeen to mankind, but to the shining lights of the ImperialCapital, Luna.

During the Outworlds� Rebellion against the Empire (A.E.319-331), Luna became a front-line military base as well. Atthe height of the rebellion in A.E. 326, Luna was under contin-uous attack by Rebel naval forces for nearly six months. Thecapital did not fall, and the Empire did not permit the Out-worlds� Alliance to secede. While still mounting guard over theconquered worlds of the Alliance, the Empire met its firstequal in space � the L'Doran Hegemony.

After fifteen years of increasingly serious contact problems,the Terran Empire found itself at war with the L'DoranHegemony in A.E. 396. After its military defeat in one year, theEmpire managed to have the peace negotiations held on Earth.It may have been one of the best decisions the First Empiremade. The Hegemonic envoys were certain that the home-world of humanity (which they had never before seen) had tobe the industrial and military heart of the Empire, and theycarried this misinformation back to their superiors. Luna,they decided, was a military base of little overall strategicimportance.

70 SEPTEMBER 1984

Luna was a strongpoint of the Empire during the Outworlds�Rebellion, and it was strengthened every year thereafter. Theterms imposed after the First Hegemony-Empire Warrestricted lunar military facilites but made no mention ofindustrial capacity. It was the most serious blunder the Hege-monic negotiators made, and they made many.

The military defenses of Earth-Luna were moved to theasteroid belt, and Luna geared up for another war. Luna builtTriangle, Crossfire, and Starkeep deep space stations betweenthe orbits of Uranus and Neptune. As a last line of defense,Infield Station was constructed in the asteroid belt. Whenhumanity burst from its restricted worlds in A.E. 411, it wasmuch better prepared for battle; lunar industries and scien-tific labs saw to that. Of Luna�s eight hundred million people,fully one hundred million were trained space navy personnel.

Unfortunately for the First Empire, the L'Doran Hegemonywas a multi-species confederacy that stretched a third of theway around the galaxy, with over a million member races. Atits height, the First Empire held sway over a region 1200 light-years across, centered about Sol, with a mere two hundredslave races under its control. By A.E. 436, with the SecondHegemony-Empire War drawing to an end, the First Empireonly controlled the space within 10 astronomical units of Sol(roughly nine hundred million miles, or 1.4 billion kilometers).

Crossfire, Triangle, and Starkeep were �neutralized� withindays after Hegemonic naval forces arrived in the Sol System.Infield held out for nearly three months and then dropped outof communications. In late June A.E. 436, the battle movedtoward Earth and Luna. Convinced that Earth was the heartof the First Empire, the attacking Hegemonic fleet concen-trated its bombardment on that world, and Luna was sparedthe full force of the assault. By early August the war was over.

When the last elements of the Hegemonic warfleet left theSol System in late August, Earth was a blackened cinder, itsupper one hundred kilometers of rock blasted away, its atmo-sphere and oceans boiled off. The proud belt colonies weregone; only Infield was left, deep within Ceres (still �hot�enough on its surface to kill an unshielded human in ten min-utes). There were six hundred survivors there out of the origi-nal complement of twelve thousand, among them Nicolai II,last member of the Imperial family. In scattered warrens deepbeneath the lunar surface, there were three million survivors.

The Second Empire started with Luna, the survivinglibraries and laboratories of the capital, and three millionpeople. It was nearly nine hundred years before they man-aged to build their first FTL starship, but they never lost thesecret of gravity control and they never lost hope. The capitalhas since moved to a more hospitable world far from Luna,and Luna with her two billion people is just another memberworld of the Second Empire, harsher than many, friendlierthan some. But after thirteen centuries the people of Luna stillremember their losses, and the glory that was theirs.

Humanity/Luna (A.E. 1782): Classification MHH2, Societal typeS15R7. Single central government organized along militarylines. Religious organizations cultivate veneration of the God-Emperor (absent from Luna since relocation of the capital inthe 14th century A.E.). Population is distributed equally amongone hundred thousand �defense bases� scattered across Luna.The Imperial Military Academy remains the major source ofextra-solar credit. A harsh world with a stubborn people,Luna supplies a disproportionate share of the flag rank offi-cers of the Second Empire�s Space Navy.

by John M. Maxstadt

There are three classes of player charac-ters allowed in the current GAMMAWORLD® game rules: pure strainhuman, mutated humanoid, andmutated animal. The first two are basedon a single species, Homo sapiens,whose attributes and abilities are fairlywell known. Some abilities, such asphysical attacks with weapons andspeed of movement, are defined in therules. Others, including diet, longevity,size and shape, are obvious, or at worstcan be looked up in the Guinness Bookof World Records.

The mutated animal class, on theother hand, incorporates the entireanimal kingdom, meaning everythingfrom the blue whale to the amoeba. Iffour players choose to play a bumble-bee, a white rhinoceros, an ostrich, anda moray eel, the Game Master has aproblem. No rule or guideline tells himhow to assign number of attacks, dam-age per attack, movement, maximumlifespan, and other vital statistics.

My solution to this problem is to selectthe families of animals most likely to beplayed, combine them into a few collec-tive types, and generate statistics foreach of these types. Three consider-ations go into these tasks: logic, zoologi-cal fact, and game balance. Of these,game balance is the most crucial, but allthree can generally be worked into anacceptable compromise.

72 SEPTEMBER 1984

Mutant animal characters inThe GAMMA WORLD Basic Rules

Booklet stipulates that mutated animalplayer characters be �near human-sized," so that rolled scores in physicalstrength, constitution and hit points willmake sense. Otherwise, how many hitpoints would a mosquito have? In mycampaigns, I allow players to use ani-mals whose largest dimensions arebetween three and twelve feet (fromhalf to twice as tall as a human) to allowfor reasonable variety of animal charac-ters. Minimum and maximum physicalstrength and constitution scores areimposed on the largest and smallestcreatures, respectively.

In adventures that take place almostexclusively on land, it is logical thatplayer characters should all be able tobreathe air and walk or fly. Game bal-ance requires that animals with crip-pling defects also be excluded (a gianttortoise is too slow, a tapir lacks effec-tive attacks, etc.). Other creatures wereexcluded from discussion here when itbecame clear that they were distinctlyless effective than one of the includedtypes. An ostrich, for example, can runand kick, but not nearly as well as ahorse; a badger could be a nasty oppo-nent, but not when compared to a bear.

Faced with these restrictions, therewill always be a player who�ll say, �Yes,but with the right mutations . . ." True,the ideal mutations would enable the

player�s killer whale to fly, his gianttortoise to burn up the track, or hisbumblebee to be eight feet long andhave plenty of hit points. But what if theplayer doesn�t roll the ideal mutations? Itis suggested that the players choosetheir animal types after they roll theirability scores but before they roll theirmutations, so that the ability scores areappropriate to the animal type but theanimal type is not necessarily tailor-made for the mutations (otherwise, allcharacters with electrical generationwill be constricting snakes, all thosewith multiple arms will be monkeys orapes, etc.). Under this system, it is notfair to allow one player to keep rollinguntil he gets the mutations needed tomake a particular animal viable, whileeveryone else has to accept the muta-tions they roll the first time.

Game balance was important in deter-mining the statistics of each animal type.Different advantages and disadvantageswere used to compensate for oneanother; one animal type may havesuperior attacks, but another will have abetter armor class or the ability to useweapons or some other highly effectivespecial ability. Outside of the demands ofgame balance, I�ve tried to keep thestatistics as close to zoological fact aspossible.

Some of the statistics require explana-tion. Examples is a list of animals that

the GAMMA WORLD® gamefall into the designated type, arrangedfrom smallest to largest. If �the largest�or �all but the smallest� of an animalfamily is stipulated, individual speciesshould be checked to see whether theyfall into the size range given. Playersshould be allowed to select the speciesthey prefer, but the largest speciesshould be reserved for characters withvery high constitution and/or physicalstrength scores. Research may showthat an allowed species differs markedlyfrom the others in the type on one ormore statistics. The GM may, at hisoption, allow such variations, but gamebalance should be considered at all times� for example, a cheetah is much fasterfor short sprints than other big cats, butit cannot retract its claws to movesilently.

Height is from head to foot, andimplies that the animal is able to standmore-or-less erect. The exception to thisis the herbivore group, in which heightis shoulder height. Length is from muz-zle to rump, except in the case of sauri-ans and snakes, which are measuredfrom snout to tail tip (for this reason,the largest of them exceed the 12�dimension limit).

Weight can be changed by addition orsubtraction of body parts, by mutation,or by a general change in size. Remem-ber that a change in height or length isaccompanied by a cubed change in

weight, so that a character that becomesthree times as tall as normal becomes 27times as heavy.

Lifespan is the maximum number ofyears that a character might live beforedying of old age (human lifespan is con-sidered to be 100 years). Diet includesthe only foods an animal is able to eatand digest (not merely its preferences).

�The mutated animal classincorporates the entire ani-mal kingdom. . . from theblue whale to the amoeba.�

Saurians and birds, for example, areunable to chew and swallow fresh meatfrom large animals. Sight, Hearing, andSmell are rated relative to other animals,with human senses being considered�normal.� A �superior� sense could beconsidered equal to a mutationallyheightened one.

Manipulation refers to the ability of ananimal to grasp objects, push buttons,turn knobs, etc., with its paws or claws.�None� and �full� are self -explanatory;�grasp and carry� means that the crea-ture could pick up and move a reasona-bly large and conveniently shaped object(like a grenade) or turn a wheel, but nottype, pull a trigger, or wield a sword.

Vocalization lists the vocal sounds acreature can make to give an idea of thelimitations of its vocal expression (pri-mates, of course, could be taught signlanguages). If two or more sounds arejoined with �or,� the individual species inthat group can make no more than oneof those sounds each.

Minimums and Maximums refer toability scores. Minimum requirementsfor a type must be met by the originaldice roll, but a player may voluntarilylower his ability scores to get under themaximum for a desired animal type.Mutations may allow a character toexceed his maximums; for example,�taller� (or �larger� for animals) willallow a monkey, rattlesnake, or vultureto regain his original constitution andphysical strength score if they werelowered to qualify for the animal type,and �heightened dexterity� will allow analligator to have a dexterity score over14. Special Abilities, Special Disabilities,and Special Attacks will be explained insome detail in the notes on each animaltype following the statistics tables.

A final note � the statistics areintended to represent the abilities andattributes of an animal before mutationoccurs. Mutations may change an ani-mal�s size, movement, attacks, senses,special abilities, and so on. These statis-tics are intended only as a base to buildmutated animal characters on.

D R A G O N 7 3

Examples:

Vocalization:

CARNIVOROUS MAMMALS

Bears Big CatsAll but the smallest Pumas, cheetahs, snowblack bears; cinnamon leopards, leopards,bear, brown bears, jaguars, lions, tigers.polar bear, grizzlybear, kodiak bear.2-4 meters tall 1.5-3 meters long150-650 kg 60-300 kg35 years 25 yearsInsects, meat, fish Meat, fish, carrionroots, honey, carrionClaw/claw/bite Claw/claw/bitel-8/1-8/2-12 2-5/2-5/3-12/

Water Speed:

Length or Height:Weight:Lifespan:Diet:

Attacks:Damage:A r m o r :

Land Speed:

Sight:

Maximums:

Hearing:Smell:Manipulation:

Special Abilities:

Special Disabilities:Minimums:

8 918/1350/27 18/1350/270/225/9 0/0/6Normal NormalGood SuperiorSuperior GoodGrasp and carry N o n eGrunt, while, bellow Purr, snarl, roarClimb trees Move silently, see in

dark, climb treesN o n e NonePhysical Strength 14, Physical Strength 12Constitution 13 Dexterity 14None None

HERBIVOROUS MAMMALSHorned Hornless

Examples: The larger deer, goats, Onagers, donkeys,and bighorn sheep; mules and hinnies,antelope, hartebeest, zebras, horses, camelsgnu, elk, caribou, oxen, and dromedaries.moose, deer, buffaloes,bison.

Length: 2-4 meters tall 2-3.5 meters long Height: 1-3 meters tall 1.5-2.5 meters tallWeight: 60-1200 kg 200-900 kg Lifespan: 30 years 60 years

Diet: Grass, bark, leaves Grass, grainsAttacks: Butt or kick/kick Kick/kick Damage: 2-12 or 1-6/1-6 1-10/1-10Special Attacks: Charge for 4-24 Trample

(2d6x2), trampleArmor: 9 10

Land Speed: 21/1600/32 30/1800/36

Normal NormalSight:Hearing: Superior Superior

GoodSmell: SuperiorManipulation: None NoneVocalization: Bleat or bellow Bray or whinny or

none (camel)Special Abilities: Carry riders, pull carts Carry riders, pull

carts, jump wallsSpecial Disabilities: Trouble getting Trouble climbing

through doorwaysMinimums: Physical Strength 9, Physical Strength 11,

Constitution 11, Constitution 12,Dexterity 8 Dexterity 8

Maximums: None None

PRIMATES

Arboreal

Examples:

Height:Weight:Lifespan:Diet:

MonkeysThe larger howlermonkeys; woollymonkeys, spidermonkeys.Under 1 meter tall10-15 kg 20 yearsInsects, fruit, vegeta-bles, nuts

TerrestrialMonkeys

The larger guenons;baboons, drills,mandrills.

l-l.5 meters tall15-60 kg

35 yearsGrass, eggs, fruit,meat, small animalsand reptilesB i t e 1-10

Weapon use

Attacks: BiteDamage: 1-2

Special Attacks: Weapon use

Armor: 10

Land Speed: 9/700/14

Brachiating Speed: 9/1000/22Sight: NormalHearing: NormalSmell: NormalManipulation: FullVocalization: Chatter, screech, howlSpecial Abilities: Four hands, prehensile Climb trees

tail, climb treesSpecial Disabilities: None NoneMinimums: Dexterity 15, None

Intelligence 9Maximums: Physical Strength 12, None

Constitution 12

912/1000/22

NilNormalNormalGoodFullChatter, scream, bark

Examples:Height:Weight:Lifespan:Diet:

Attacks:Damage:Special Attacks:Armor:Land Speed:Brachiating Speed:Sight:Hearing:Smell:Manipulation:Vocalization:Special Abilities:

Special Disabilities:Minimums:

Lesser ApesGibbons, chimpanzees.l-l.5 meters tall20-60 kg45 yearsFruit, leaves, bark,insects, eggsPunch/punch or bitel-2/1-2 or 1-3

Weapon use912/900/18

9/1000/22

NormalNormalNormalFullChatter, shriekFour hands, climbt r e e s NoneDexterity 14,Intelligence 9

Great ApesOrangutans, gorillas.1.5-2 meters tall75-250 kg40 yearsFruit, vegetables

Punch/punch1-4/1-4

Weapon use8

12/900/18

0/600/12

NormalNormalNormalFullGrunt, bellowClimb trees

NoneDexterity 12,Intelligence 9, PhysicalStrength 14

NoneMaximums: None

BIRDS

Examples:

Length:Weight:Lifespan:Diet:

Attacks:

Damage:Special Attacks:

Armor:Land Speed:Water Speed:Sight:Hearing:Smell:Manipulation:Vocalization:Special Abilities:

Special Disabilities:

Minimums:Maximums:

SNAKES

PoisonousThe largest pit-vipers,cobras, kraits, and sea-kraits; mambas, kingcobra.2-2.5 meters long5-30 kg25 yearsOther snakes, smallanimalsBite

1-4Poison, intensity 13-18

84/300/66/450/9PoorNoneSuperiorNoneHissCrawl through smallopenings, climb cylin-drical surfaces, movesilently, coil in smallbundleNo ground clearance,cannot climb stairs

NonePhysical Strength 12,Constitution 15

ConstrictingAmethystine python,rock python, Indianpython, reticulatepython, anaconda.7-10 meters long80-200 kg30 yearsMeat (large animals)

Constrict

2-12Continuousconstriction83/200/46/450/9NormalNoneGoodNoneNoneCrawl through smallopenings, climb cylin-drical surfaces, movesilently

No ground clearance,cannot climb stairs, -2to hit unless attackingfrom abovePhysical Strength 13None

Examples:

Length or Height:

Weight:Lifespan:Diet:

Attacks:

Damage:Special Attacks:Armor:Land Speed:Air Speed:Water Speed:Sight:Hearing:Smell:Manipulation:Vocalization:Special Abilities:Special Disabilities:

Minimums:

Maximums:

BirdsThe larger cormorantsand eagles; secretarybird, vultures, condors..7-1.2 meters tall, 1.5-3meter wingspan2-12 kg75 yearsSmaller birds, andanimals, fish, carrionClaw/claw or peck

1-4/1-4 or 1-3None100/50/224/1800/36NilSuperiorNormalGoodGrasp and carrySquawk, ShriekNoneMust be airborne touse claws, attacks onlyone round in threeDexterity 12

Physical Strength 10,Constitution 12

SauriansCaimans, alligators,gavial, crocodiles.

2-7 meters long

70-1000 kg50 yearsFish, small animals,carrionBite or tailslap (both ifsurrounded)

3-18 or 1-8None66/450/9Nil10/900/18NormalPoorGoodNoneGrunt, bellowNonePoor ground clearance,sluggish in cold

Physical Strength 10,Constitution 12Dexterity 14

Special Notes

Bears must hit with one or both clawattacks on a natural roll of 18 or betterto hug, and the opponent must not betoo much larger than the bear (a deathmachine, for example, is too big to hug).Bears can climb trees large enough tosupport their weight.

Big cats rake only if both claw attackshit. They may retract their claws andmove silently so that they will surpriseother creatures on a 1-4 and be sur-prised only on a one. This assumes thatthe character is alone or with othersilent creatures and that the generalsurprise situation is normal � if the catis walking down a hallway which isunder surveillance by security monitor

cameras, moving silently may notaccomplish much. Big cats can see 60meters in shadow or moonlight, 30meters in near-perfect darkness. Theycan climb most trees.

Horned herbivores do double damageif they can charge 20 meters or morestraight forward to butt or gore anopponent. This takes the first half of around, and an intelligent opponent mayopt to get out of the way rather thanattack. Horned herbivores kick at -2 tohit opponents in front or behind. Thelarger ones and those with elaboratehorns may have trouble getting throughnarrow openings at the GM�s option.

Hornless herbivores can ordinarilyjump barriers as high as themselveswith a running start (and no rider).

Other jumping abilities will depend onthe situation. Camels can, of course, gofor days without food or water (it issuggested that a 17 constitution be theminimum for camel characters). Ona-gers, zebras, horses, and camels mayhave trouble climbing stairs or rockysurfaces (like mountain sides) at theGM�s option � they could climb a rampwith no difficulty, however.

All herbivores can pull carts or char-iots and carry riders. The size of thecart, chariot, or rider would depend onthe size of the herbivore � it takes aherbivore 200 kg or heavier to satisfac-torily carry a normal human rider. Allherbivores can trample instead of mak-ing another attack. Trampling does 1d4damage per hoof for every factor of two

D R A G O N 7 5

that the herbivore outweighs its oppo-nent. At twice its opponent�s weight, aherbivore may trample for 1d4; at fourtimes its weight, 2d4, at eight times itsweight for 3d4, etc., to a maximum of10d4. A herbivore may trample onlyopponents that are no more than halftheir height (however, a human lying onthe ground is not very tall). Tramplingattacks are -1 to hit per potential die ofdamage. The GM may allow multipletrampling attacks on an opponent in oneround if the opponent is horizontallylarge enough for more than one hoof tohit.

Primates may use weapons, includingartifacts, just as humans can. It is sug-gested that arboreal monkeys beallowed to use nothing larger than adagger, vibro dagger, or small pistol.Terrestrial monkeys and lesser apes canuse nothing larger than an axe, shortsword, hammer, vibro blade, heavypistol one (like a Mark V blaster). Onlygreat apes should be allowed the fullrange of weapons.

Great apes and terrestrial monkeyshave two hands (unless they gain or losesome through mutation); lesser apeshave four hands and arboreal monkeyshave five (counting the prehensile tail,which can even fire a pistol), but theycan only use them all if they are notstanding on two of them. A lesser apecan hang from a tree or rafter or beamby one hand and have three attacks (ifhe can reach the intended target); anarboreal monkey can hang by his tailand get four attacks with weapons. Aflying lesser ape or arboreal monkeywould get four or five attacksrespectively.

Brachiating speed is the speed withwhich a primate can swing from limb tolimb or rafter to rafter. Arboreal mon-keys and all apes can climb virtuallyanything but a sheer wall; terrestrialmonkeys are less skillful, but they canclimb trees better than most humansand about as well as the big cats.

Birds need at least 64,000 cubic feet ofopen space to fly properly. A 40 x 40 x 40room would be large enough if not clut-tered with large objects. On the ground,birds need their claws for walking orstanding, and can neither grasp andcarry nor attack with them, so agrounded bird is relatively useless forcombat purposes.

In the air, a bird can only attack anopponent every second round in three� the first is spent approaching, and thethird recovering and turning. If the birdhas a long-range attack such as mentalblast or radiation eyes, he can attack on

the approach round as well. The bird is-2 to be hit at all times when in the air.He can only be hit with claws, teeth,sword, etc., while attacking with hisown talons and beak (every secondround in three), but can be attackedevery round with ranged weapons ormutations.

Saurians have poor ground clearance;even such low obstacles as fallen logscan slow or even stop their movementon land. They cannot jump at all, andcan hardly climb even the shalloweststairs (although a slope or ramp wouldbe no problem). Cold makes saurianssluggish � they move and fight at halfspeed at temperatures below 50°F, andare paralyzed one round for every sixpoints of cold damage they take (fromcryokinesis, for instance).

Poisonous snakes can add poison totheir bite, but only five times per 24-hour day. The player should roll hischaracter�s poison intensity beforebeginning play, and that intensity willremain invariable except by mutation.

Constricting snakes attack at -2 to hitunless they can find a way to drop on anopponent from above. Once they hit,however, they may continue to do dam-age to their opponent every round with-out having to roll a new hit. A con-

tricting snake is +2 to be hit by any crea-ture while it is constricting anothercreature. Depending on the mode ofattack, a hit or miss could also injure thecreature the snake is constricting, andan attack on that creature could alsoinjure the snake.

Both kinds of snake can crawl throughsmall openings like broken air ducts andwide pipes (poisonous snakes can getthrough smaller ones), and can climb allbut the thickest trees and other cylindri-cal objects. They can coil up for compar-atively easy carrying, but the bundle aconstricting snake makes could hardlybe called small. All snakes can movesilently as big cats can, surprising oppo-nents on a 1-4 if alone and under ordi-nary surprise conditions. However,snakes are still surprised on a 1-2 whenalone, because they are deaf (a fact thatshould be remembered for communica-tion situations).

Snakes have no ground clearance atall; if they must slither across a surfacethat is burning hot or corrosive, forexample, they will take more damagethan a running man or a gallopinghorse. They are flexible enough to getover logs, but they can only climb stairsby coiling and uncoiling on each step, avery slow process (a ramp will help).

76 SEPTEMBER 1984

The MARVEL®-Phileby Jeff Grubb

Welcome back to the MARVEL-Phile,DRAGON® Magazine�s continuing com-pendium of caped cut-ups and costumedcrusaders! As the phile grows, we�ll tryto cover many of the heroes that are notyet detailed in upcoming modules androsters. If we have a module starring thecurrent team of X-Men�, for example,you shall not see them here. (You might,however, see the original team, or mem-bers that have left or passed on).

We are open for suggestions on whatYOU want to see within these pages.Heroes from the Second World War?Creatures of the street, such as Cloak�and Dagger�? The New Mutants�?X-Men� of the past? Heroes mentionedelsewhere, but with more detail? Sendin your votes now!

In keeping with the spirit of producingthose heroes not detailed elsewhere, wehave this month�s offering. MH-3, Mur-derworld, stars the Fantastic Four�, yetmissing from the proceedings is one ofthe FF�s early foes, who later became astaunch ally. Direct from the briny deep,we present the former lord of Atlantis,Namor the First, the SUB-MARINER�! Sohe won�t be lonely, we�re including anold nemesis of Subby known as TIGERSHARK�!

SUB-MARINER�Namor, Former Monarch of Atlantis

Fighting: INCREDIBLE (40)Agility: REMARKABLE (30)Strength: MONSTROUS (75)Endurance: INCREDIBLE (40)Reason: TYPICAL (6)Intuition: REMARKABLE (30)Psyche: INCREDIBLE (40)

Health: 185Karma: 76Resources: GOOD (MONSTROUS)Popularity: 5 on the surface world

(85 with other Atlanteans)

Powers:

AMPHIBIOUS NATURE � Namor canbreath both air and water, due to hismixed heritage. His body can withstandgreat pressure changes, and his eyes arevery sensitive to the green portion ofthe spectrum, allowing him to see in themurky ocean depths. In addition,

Namor�s physiology gives him EXCEL- sion in water automatically restoresLENT resistance to cold. Health lost through dehydration and

MOVEMENT � Namor can move 3 areas brings the Sub-Mariner�s stats to normal.

per turn on land, but in the water can RULERSHIP � Until recently, Namorswim at TYPICAL speed (6 areas per was ruler of Atlantis, an undersea king-round). In addition, Namor can fly (using dom in the North Atlantic. The paren-the wings attached to his ankles) at thetical numbers with Resources andPOOR speed (4 areas per round). Popularity refer to his abilities as mon-

WEAKNESS ON SURFACE � The abovearch of Atlantis.

statistics concern Namor when he is The Sub-Mariner�s Story: Long agounderwater, or at least partially wet. there existed in the North AtlanticLong existence out of water is harmful Ocean the continent of Atlantis, whichto the Sub-Mariner. For every hour sank beneath the sea in a firey cata-spent out of water, Namor loses one clysm. The Olympian god Poseidon, alsoRank of his Fighting, Strength, and called Neptune, used his arcane powersEndurance, until they drop to TYPICAL to convert a group of his Atlantean fol-levels. His health is unaffected. Should lowers into water-breathers, grantinghe be totally deprived of water, Namor them super-human stamina, gills, eyeswill take 30 points damage per day and that could see in the ocean depths, andbe unable to recover lost Health. Immer- blue skin. This was the creation of

Homo mermanus, a subspecies of themain Homo sapiens line. A wanderingpeople, the Atlanteans claimed largeareas of the Atlantic floor in both north-ern and southern hemispheres.

Namor is the son of Princess Fen ofthe Atlanteans and Leonard MacKenzie,the American captain of the icebreakerOracle. When explosive charges fromthe Oracle damaged an Atlantean city,Fen was sent to investigate. She boardedthe ship, revealed for the first time theexistence of the Atlantean civilization,and soon become enamored of CaptainMacKenzie. The two were wed, butwere soon separated when an Atlanteanrescue party boarded the ship andrecaptured the princess. Namor, whosename means �Avenging Son,� was bornsoon after.

Though of mixed parentage and pos-sessing atypical white skin among theblue-skinned Atlanteans, Namor wasaccepted as a Prince of Atlantis andgrew up with a hostile attitude towardssurface-dwelling air-breathers. He usedhis super-powers to harass and antago-nize the surface dwellers. During theSecond World War, the Sub-Mariner putaside his hostility towards all surface-men to side with the Allies. During thisperiod he became a member of theInvaders�, fighting alongside CaptainAmerica�, Bucky, and the originalHuman Torch.

DRAGON 77

Following the war, Namor returned toAtlantis to serve as champion of hisundersea city. At this time Atlantis wasdestroyed and its people disbanded bythe actions of an evil surface-dwellernamed Destiny. Destiny used an ancientpower object known as the SerpentCrown to destroy Atlantis and strikeNamor down with amnesia. Destinythen left Namor to wander the surfaceworld as a mindless outcast.

It was the second Human Torch�,Johnny Storm of the Fantastic Four, whodiscovered the Sub-Mariner, at this pointlittle more than a derelict in a flop-house. Johnny helped Namor recovermost of his memories by sudden immer-sion in water (he dropped him in NewYork Harbor). Blaming the surface-worldfor the destruction of his home, the re-awakened Namor made several attackson the air-breathers. During this time hefought several super-human champions,primarily the Fantastic Four.

and attacks in this fashion are resolvedon the Hack and Slash table.

SWIMMING � Tiger Shark can swim 6areas in a round. His prowess is aug-

mented by the design of his suit, pos-sessing a large sharklike fin down hisback.

WEAKNESS ON THE SURFACE � LikeNamor, Tiger Shark suffers from beingexposed to air, losing one rank for everyhour he is above the surface until hisStrength, Endurance, and Fighting areall POOR. Total deprivation from waterwould cause Arliss to further weakenand perish. Tiger Shark�s suit, however,bathes him with a thin layer of water;unless the suit is damaged, it will pre-vent any loss of ability regardless of thetime spent on land.

In their first contest, Tiger Sharkbested Namor and declared himselfruler of Atlantis, but Namor recoveredquickly and returned to defeat andimprison Arliss. Since that time TigerShark has remained an enemy of Namorand the people of Atlantis. Mostrecently, Arliss joined Radioactive Man�,Beetle�, and others to form the thirdMasters of Evil. Tiger Shark has leftmost of his humanity behind, andremains a vicious and dangerous foe.

Tiger Shark�s Story: Todd Arliss was arising star, an Olympic athelete who setnew swimming records in the games. Hehad a bright future as well, amassing ahalf-million dollars in advances for thetime when he turned professional. Thisbright future was shattered when Todd,in rescuing a man overboard from apleasure boat, was severly injured. Theinjury did not affect Arliss� normalmovements, but guaranteed he wouldnever compete again.

Arliss spent most of his advancemoney seeking medical help. Toward theend of that time Arliss met the evil Doc-tor Dorcas, a criminal marine biologist,who proposed a radical solution to hisproblems. Working in his secret under-sea lab, Dorcas used Arliss as a testsubject for his �morphotron,� a devicethat could imprint a set of genetic pat-terns on a radically different being.Dorcas first imprinted the genetic struc-ture of a tiger shark on Arliss, thenfollowed with the genetic imprint ofNamor, whom Dorcas had captured. Thecombined imprinting gave Arliss thestrengths of both the shark and Namor,but also affected his mind, turning thewould-be Olympic champion to criminalactivity.

As the years passed, Namor�s attitudetoward air-breathers mellowed. He hasfound the disbanded people of Atlantis,who, desperate for leadership, made TIGER SHARK�him their ruler. Since that time, Namor Todd Arliss, Criminalhas served both as a champion and rulerof the undersea kingdom of Atlantis, and

Fighting: AMAZING (50)

as a champion of the surface world,Agility: EXCELLENT (20)

allying when necessary with DoctorStrength: MONSTROUS (75)

Strange� and the Defenders�. WhenEndurance: REMARKABLE (30)

serving with his air-breathing comrades,Reason: TYPICAL (6)

Namor shirked �official� duties asIntuition: REMARKABLE (30)

Monarch.Psyche: EXCELLENT (20)

In his personal life, Namor has had Health: 175much heartbreak. After a brief, unsuc- Karma: 46cessful romance with Sue Storm, the Resources: TYPICALInvisible Girl�, Namor began a long Popularity: 2courtship with the Lady Dorma, a full-blooded Atlantean noblewoman. Follow-

Powers:

ing the ceremony, however, Dorma was AMPHIBIOUS NATURE � The mutageniccaptured and slain by Llyra, another changes in Arliss� body gave him manyhomo sapiens/homo mermanus hybrid of the attributes of Namor, including thewho possessed shape-shifting abilities. ability to withstand the rigors of theFollowing Dorma�s death, Namor formed ocean. Tiger Shark�s body can withstandno deep attachments for some time. great ocean depths, his eyes are moreMost recently he has courted Marrina� attuned to the green part of the spec-of Alpha Flight, an amphibious alien, but trum, allowing him to peer through thethat relationship has ended as well. murkey ocean depths, and his blood

Namor has always been torn between circulation gives him EXCELLENT resis-his sense of duty to his people and his tance to cold.loyal devotion to those he loves. Impor-tant matters of state would often take a

BODY ARMOR � The process that

back seat to his own adventures, and onchanged Arliss into Tiger Shark also

occasion the Sub-Mariner would returngave him many shark-like abilities,

from a mission to find the capital inincluding a tough hide. Treat this as

ruins from some attack by AtlanteanEXCELLENT Body Armor.

barbarians or an aquatic villain. Finally TEETH � In addition to the dense hide,cast out by his mother�s people, Namor Arliss gained a set of razor-sharp,is a free agent, now unshackled by pointed teeth. He can bite for EXCEL-kingly responsibilities and duties. LENT damage against a held opponent,

78 SEPTEMBER 1984

80 SEPTEMBER 1984

D R A G O N 8 1

SF/gaming convention calendarEARTHCON IV, Sept. 7-9

This convention will be held at theHoliday Inn in Cleveland, Ohio. Events willinclude workshops, panels on game designand scenario writing, tournaments, boardgames, role-playing games, a masquerade,"filksinging, " an art show, a Star Trekfestival, and more. Poul Anderson, SteveJackson, and Tom Moldvay will be amongthe guests of honor. For further information,contact: Earthcon IV, P.O. Box 5641,Cleveland OH 44101.

WARGAMERS� WEEKEND, Sept. 15-16To be staged at the DAV Hall in

Newburyport, Mass., this convention willfeature fantasy role-playing, war, andminiatures games. Advance registration feesare $3 per day, and $5 at the door; mostgames have a $2 gamemaster fee. For moreinformation, send a self-addressed, stampedenvelope to: The Toy Soldier, 1 HalesCourt, Newburyport MA 01950.

TENTH ANNUAL COUNCILOF NATIONS, Oct. 5-8

This special anniversary convention willinclude open fantasy role-playing gaming,mini-battles, a mini-painting contest, gameinstruction, a costume contest, an auction,and numerous tournaments. For details,send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to I.M. Lord, SWA 10th Council, 1639 EasternParkway, Schenectady NY 12309.

WINGAMES V, Oct. 5-7This convention centers around a large

AD&D® tournament, with prizes andtrophies for most events. Admission is free atthe door, though a small charge (50¢ to $3)exists per event entered. Contact: Universityof Manitoba Gaming Club, Box 80, Univer-sity Center, University of Manitoba, Win-nipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3T 2N2.

HISTORICAL WARGAME WEEKEND,Oct. 6-7

This military miniatures convention willbe staged at the War Memorial Art Museumin Milwaukee, Wis. Events will includehistorical wargames, sale of hobby-relatedmaterials, and a painting contest. Admissionfees at the door are $2.50 per day or $4 forboth days. Additional costs include a $1event fee per game and an entry fee for thepainting competition ($1 per category, with a$3 limit). For more information, contact:Joe Gepfert, 3440 S. Monterey Dr., NewBerlin WI 53151, or Bill Protz, Jr., 5690 W.Glenbrook Rd., Brown Deer WI 53223.

LIN-CON VI, Oct. 12-14To be held at the Gateway Auditorium in

Lincoln, Neb., this convention will featureboard games, miniatures events, and role-playing tournaments. Contact: Merl Hayes,c/o Hobby Town, 134 North 13th St., Lin-coln NE 68508, or call (402)476-3829.

8 2 S E P T E M B E R 1 9 8 4

UPCON II, Oct. 12-13This convention will be held at North

Texas State University in Denton, Texas. Inaddition to the usual tournaments, the movieLord of the Rings will be shown in theNTSU Lyceum. Admission is $1. For moreinformation and a preregistration form, senda self-addressed, stamped envelope to: NorthTexas State University, University ProgramCouncil, UPCon II/Preregistration, NTStation P.O. Box 13705, Denton TX 76203.

CONSTELLATION III, Oct. 19-21This convention will be staged at the

Sheraton Inn located in Huntsville, Ala.Master of ceremonies will be Frank KellyFreas, and guests of honor will include Gor-don R. Dickson, Maurine Dorris, and TimBolger. Featured events are readings,panels, autograph sessions, a masquerade,hearts and gaming tournaments, an artshow, and an auction. Registration fees forthe convention are $13 until September 15,and $16 at the door. For additional informa-tion about this event, send a self-addressed,stamped envelope to Con-Stellation III,P.O. Box 4857, Huntsville AL 35815.

CRUSADER CON IV, Oct. 19-21This event will be held at the Metropolitan

State College campus in Denver, Colo.Events will include Diplomacy®,Kingmaker�, AD&D®, Traveller®, Squad Leader�, Car Wars�, and Star Fleet Bat-tles� tournaments. Registration is $8 untilOctober 1, and $10 thereafter. For moredetails, contact: The Auraria Gamer�s Club,P.O. Box 13395, Denver CO 80201-3395.

DRAGONKING 1984, Oct. 19-20This fantasy convention will be held at the

campus of Colby College in Waterville,Maine. Various role-playing games andseminars will be featured. For more details,contact: Dragonking, 153 Main St., Water-ville ME 04901, or call (207)873-1508.

BOUCHERCON XV, Oct. 26-28This convention, which focuses on the

mystery and crime fiction genre, will takeplace at the Americana Congress Hotel inChicago, Ill. Guest of honor will be BillPronzini, one of the field�s most prolific andpopular authors. Events will include featuretalks, panel discussions, slide shows andfilms, and a Sunday banquet. Registrationfees are $25; banquet charge is $15. Formore details, contact: 2nd City Skuldug-gery, P.O. Box 576, Hinsdale IL 60521.

FANTASY FAIRE, Oct. 26-28This annual convention will be held in

Alhambra, Cal., and will feature numerousfantasy role-playing games, "filksinging,�films, a cabaret, and a costume contest. Forfurther details, contact: Fantasy PublishingCo., 1855 West Main St., Alhambra CA91801, or call (818)337-7947.

ICON IX, Oct. 26-28This annual science-fiction convention

will be staged at the Abbey Inn in Iowa City,Iowa. Guests of Honor will be Dean Ing andWilson Tucker. Registration fees are $10until Qctober 1, and $15 thereafter. Artshow and huckster inquiries are welcome.For further information about the conven-tion, contact: Icon IX, P.O. Box 525, IowaCity IA 52244-0525.

NECRONOMICON �84, Nov. 2-4This convention will be held at the Holi-

day Inn in Tampa, Fla. Guests of honor willbe Larry Niven and Andre Norton. Ac-tivities will include panels, autograph ses-sions, an art show, trivia contests, and aspecial tour to the Kennedy Space Center.Registration fees are $10 until October 1,and $15 thereafter. For further information,send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to:Necronomicon �84, P.O. Box 2076, River-view FL 33569.

R-CON 1, Nov. 2-4This gaming convention will be held at the

Genesee Plaza Holiday Inn in Rochester,NY. Guests include David Gerrold and For-rest J. Ackerman. Featured will be role-playing and board games, panels, films, anart show, and a masquerade. Registrationfees are $12. Contact: R-Con 1, P.O. Box1701, Rochester NY 14603.

UTHERCON 4, Nov. 9-11To be held at University of Texas in

Austin, Texas, this convention will feature awide range of role-playiong games. Registra-tion fees are $3 until November 1, and $5thereafter. Contact: David F. Nalle, 3212Red River #109, Austin TX 78705, or call(512)477-1704.

UNICON 1, Nov. 30 - Dec. 2This gaming convention will include

various role-playing competitions, retailbooths, and speakers. Admissions fees are $5for the weekend, $2 per day for Nov. 30 andDec. 2, and $3 for Dec. 1. For more infor-mation, send a self-addressed, stampedenvelope to: John A. Stormes, Box 279,L.A. Pittenger Student Center, 2000University Avenue, Muncie IN 47306.

U-MASS CON, Dec. 1-2This gaming convention will take place at

the University of Massachusetts in Amherst,Mass. For more details, contact: StevenBailey, P.O. Box 117, Amherst MA 01002.

EVECON II, Dec. 28-30This convention will be staged at the

Tysons Westpark Hotel in McLean, Va. At-tendance will be limited to 1,200 people. Ad-mission fees are $10 until November 1, $12until December 1, and $15 at the door. Formore details, contact: EveCon, P.O. Box128, Aberdeen MD 21001.

MONSTER IN THE MIDDLE by Michael D. Selinker

(Answer on page 92.)

ACROSS 80.

1. Swarmcreature

6. Ball and socketjoint

9. Dwarf in 88Down’s G3

13. 1963 Genesishit

17. Marvel Two-__(comic)

18. Jason’s wife20. __ magic21. __ and alack22. Pit fiend stars

in varietyshows

24. Humanoidfound amongDirty Harry’spals

26. Hound of__Omen

27. Some titans28. “__ said to her,

I said . . .”29. Spine-tingling30. Undead at

heart of hack-neyed saying

33. Use infravision35. He banned the

Beach Boys37. Football scores38. Spanish aunt39. Compass pt.

42. Little tyke44. Transact with a

tradesman46. __ dead49. Use a mending

spell51. Swashbuckler

Flynn, et al.55. __ whip58. Fumblers

include cigar-shapedcreature

60. __ woodlandbeings

62. Deep __63. Washing65. Greek letter66. Lawyer: Abbr.68. __ Leppard69. Ivory __70. __ hawk72. Tarzan

portrayer Ron74. Belonging to a

sun god76. __ Frontiers®

game78. Playground

device

83.87.

89.90.

92.

93.

96.

98.100.102.103.

104.106.

109.110.

112.114.116.

118.120.121.

123.

Big birdinhabitingAfrican nationPack animalsRaiders badguy__ ParthaSandy’sstatementCosmetics’LauderHijacked planedestinationNovel or socialendingBuilding wingTavern quaffPart of 99 downRearrange-ment: Abbr.TV horseTwo-headedgiant in middleof locationDrunk“I’d love __you, but . . .”__ dimensionBeowulf’s foeHauled intocourtJulius ErvingDo sumsWord meaning“born”Roz Sumner’steam

126. Raven128. Egyptian luck

god130. Adheres to

having giantinsect in center

133. JapaneseAmericans

135. Draft horse137. Taxi‘s Nardo141. Bread or

whiskey142. Dry out with

many-headedrept i le

144. Succubus athub of outerp lane

147. Continually148. “. . . with __

foot pole”149. Dice adjective

part150. Latissimus __

(side muscle)151. __ Auberjonois152. Lycanthrope

prefix153. Carrie or Louis154. Gown

DOWN 23. Victory symbol25. Reapply pitch31. Top secret org.32. Lynch34. Dawn goddess36. Night of

Shakespearefeatures fairy

39. Overact40. Recon weapon41. Nice summer43. Gangbusters

“gumshoe”45. Humanoid

involved inadvancement

47. Wrath48. Time period50. Mass of bucks52. Lennon’s

widow53. Pasture54. Concorde, e.g.55. Certain tides56. 16 on the wind

force chart57. Shoshonean

tribe59. Short walks

w/ regenerator

1. Urban2. “__ modesty”3 . __ up (err)4. Part of AD&D®

product name5. Author Harper6. Immobilized by

a spell7. Monty Python’s

Eric8. “Knights are

non-hereditary

9. GoId and silver10. “Who Can It

__?” (Men AtWork hit)

11. Property of “TheOrganization”

12. Altar words13. Clerical

weapon14. “Red __!”15. Genie type16. Beasts of

burden18. 1049, to Brutus19. Possession

61. WKRP 101. Terminusnewsman 105. Dead shell

64. Prisoners 107. __ la lacapture deer 108. Chap

67. Middle name of 111. Cleara gameSee 15 Down

113. __ of might71. 115. Hawaiian73. “__, The garland

Hunter From 117. ContributeThe Future” 119. Army vehicles

75. Live FRP org. 122. To write: Fr.77. Sailor’s assent 123. “__ The Storm79. Center of soft Giant’s Castle”

cry is familiar 124. Colander81. Norma __ 125. Pale82. Gave a speech 127. __ weird84. Ultimate 129. At -10 HP

degrees 130. Religious85. __ U school: Abbr.86. Used ham ra- 131. Son of __

dio, half time 132. Some trucks88. A certain co. 134. Jane __91. Gnoll’s relative 136. Simmons of93. __ lord Kiss94. Popular card 138. __ Chernak

game 139. __ fixe95. Scrooge’s word 140. Actor Beatty97. Actor Danson 143. Uncooked99. Achaierai 145. Bizarre

weapon 146. Neither

DRAGON 83

84 SEPTEMBER 1984

DRAGON 85

86 SEPTEMBER 1984

DRAGON 87

88 SEPTEMBER 1984

D R A G O N 8 9

90 SEPTEMBER 1984

DRAGON 91

The forum(From page 6)

ment. The same thing happens in evil campaigns.Let me tell you a true story, which I heard from agamer I�ll call Bob. (I�m sure he wouldn�t wanthis real name used here.)

For several years, Bob played an ordinaryD&D campaign with a group of close friends.Then, when they began playing an all-evil cam-paign, they started out on a very low level of�atrocity.� First they killed an unbearably self-righteous paladin, then graduated to robbing richmerchants. Their best thief character took a leaffrom the comics and risked life and limb to write�the king is a fink� on the king�s own tower wall.Good clean fun? Certainly, but it didn�t stopthere. Soon someone pointed out that theyweren�t really being evil, merely naughty.

The group played for several months, with theante getting higher and higher. Soon they werestealing from the starving poor, burning templesand forcing the priests to stay inside to burn withthem, and torturing prisoners in more and moreinventive ways. Finally, some of the playersinsisted on having their characters gang-rape andmurder a princess. At this point, the two womenin the group rebelled. They forced a discussion ofthe issue by reading a list of every crime thegroup�s characters had committed in the name ofgood fun. �Listening to that list in cold blood,�Bob told me, �was a sickening experience.� Noone in the group could even look at anyone elsein embarrassment.

What really shook Bob, though, was the way inwhich he and his friends grew emotionally andmorally calloused as their characters� crimes grewworse. At the beginning, no one would even havethought of committing a brutal rape and murder� it wouldn�t have seemed fun at all. By the end,the idea seemed perfectly logical. Of course, theNPCs who were the victims of these crimes werejust a few lines of description and a handful ofstatistics, but even so, the group began by havingsome compassion for these imaginary people andended up by having none. Since compassion isone of the things that makes us human, notanimals, I maintain that eroding one�s sense of

compassion is too high a priceevenings of entertainment.

to pay for a few

By now, I�m sure that any evil-style playersreading this are sneering at me and Bob�s groupand assuring themselves that they can keep thingsunder control. I doubt this. What we�re dealingwith when we play FRP games is group psychol-ogy, and groups and their momentum have a realpower over the individual members who makethem up. Anyone weak enough to be in an evilcampaign in the first place is going to find himselfdrawn to more and more �creative� acts of evil.Finding out just how dark and nasty their mindscan be is only going to increase their sense ofbeing powerless, weak, and out of control.

Please notice that the above does not refer tothe player who occasionally runs an evil PC orwho likes neutral but dashing thief characters.I�m talking about the ardent players of evilcampaigns who get angry whenever someonesuggests that there�s something odd about theirfavorite sport. These players are doubtless steam-ing right now, thinking that I�m way off base,because once again someone is making �toomuch� out of a simple game. To them I say thatif you think poison, torture, murder, and rape arefun, then you�ve got a big problem, even if youconfine that problem to fantasies.

Katharine KerrSan Francisco, Calif.

* * * *

It�s nice to see Ken Rolston doing reviews forDRAGON. He has a good style and is generallyin touch with what�s going on in the industry.However, I�d like to point out some inaccuraciesin his capsule review of To Challenge Tomorrowin #85.

I�m sorry the scenarios were �poorly devel-oped,� but we�ve found that the experiencedgamers who buy TCT prefer scenarios whichprovide extensive background information andallow the GM to improvise and adapt within aflexible framework. Oddly enough, I believe thatJerry Epperson�s review in ARES says the exactopposite, describing the scenarios as unusuallycomplete.

The reference to �the History of the World ona Low Budget � is somewhat irksome. TCT was

intended as a basic framework to be used with theseries of expansion/background aids we arereleasing (Triad, London by Night, Challengers,etc.). The general background in TCT is a basicguide, and not intended as anything more.

Finally, Ken�s comment on the lack of �elabo-rate packaging� shows a certain lack of research.As has been the practice with all of our games forsome time, TCT is available in two packagingstyles, both the inexpensive zip-lock bag (which Iassume Ken has) and a more elaborate, attractiveand durable box, more in keeping with �industrystandards,� though at $1 extra. This gives theoption of a lower priced edition for those moreinterested in quality of content than flashy extras(much as was the past practice of SPI). On thesame page Ken criticizes The Palladium RolePlaying Game for similar reasons. It seems to methat most players buying a game from a smallercompany already have dice and most materials,and are looking for new ideas, and I hope thatthey are able to see beyond appearances to findquality. As a reader I find it a bit annoying thatKen thinks I am looking for pretty packages andaccessories rather than innovation and economy.

David F. NalleRagnarok Enterprises

Washington. D.C.

Out on a Limb(From page 4)

able or willing to stretch his reasoning or make aguess to arrive at an answer. We don�t let writersget away with that very often, or else the ecologyarticles would be so bland they wouldn�t be worthprinting. But we�d rather have someone say thata fact is undeterminable rather than have himmake an off-the-wall assumption just because hefelt the issue had to be decided one way or theother.

Will the �blank spots� ever be filled in? Proba-bly not, or at least not unless we get the benefit ofsome insight about the nature of a creature thatdidn�t get included in its official description. Theonly way a breakthrough of knowledge can beachieved is if some additional knowledge can begained upon which to base some more assump-tions and theories. Since the knowledge we al-ready have about AD&D® game monsters is allwe�re liable to get, any ecology article we publishcontains all the breakthroughs you�re likely toread. � KM

Answer to puzzle

Index to advertisersName of firm or product Page(s)Amulet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67Armory, The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52, 53Avalon Hill Game Go., The. . . . . . . . . . . .13Bard Games. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11, 29Companions, The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28Compleat Strategist, The . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43Diamond Dice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11DRAGON® Magazine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46Dragontooth Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24Dunken Co., The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28Entertainment Concepts, Inc. . . . . . . . . . .35Fantasy Games Unlimited. . . . .9, 36, 67, 76Fantasy Unlimited. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33Game Designers� Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . .10Game Systems Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50Gamelords Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18Gamers� Guide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80-81Grenadier Models Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23Hobby Game Distributors, Inc. . . . . . . . . . .19Iron Crown Enterprises, Inc ... 1, back cover

Name of firm or product Page(s)Mayfair Games Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38Nichols Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18Nova Game Designs, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . .33Pacesetter Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51Palladium Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17RAFM Co., Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47Ral Partha Enterprises, Inc . . . . .Inside front

cover, 41RPG, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16Science Fiction Book Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7Shogun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32Sky Realms Publishing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27Sleuth Publications, Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12Time/Life Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30, 31TSR, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25, 39, 62, 71, 79Victory Games, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5West End Games.. . . . . . . .Inside back coverWhite Lion Enterprises. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Windmill Hobbies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44, 45Wizard�s Nook, The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

92 SEPTEMBER 1984