September 1981 Dragon

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

There is a bit of a new trend in gamingthat I find a bit disturbing, and perhaps itshould be food for thought for all of us. Irefer to the recent interest in so-called“live” games, especially of the “assassin”or “killer” varieties.

These types of games are billed asrole-playing games, and in the strictestdefinition of the word, I guess they are.What disturbs me is that they are beingequated by the non-gaming public (or bythose with limited gaming experience)with heroic fantasy and science fictionrole-playing games — and the types arenot the same.

I’m not picking on Steve Jackson here,although he claims his recently releasedKlLLER game is the first commerciallyavailable set of rules for the genre. Myfirst exposure to “live” games was manyyears ago in college, and I’ve seen themplayed several times since then. “Live”games are also not necessarily of theassassin type either — I’ve known of afew LOTR interpretations, also.

Live games may be role-playing games,but they are not the same as what wehave come to call adventure role-playinggames (D&D® and AD&D™ games, Tra-veller, RuneQuest, etc.). Live games re-quire physical action. In the assassingames, this involves stalking a persondesignated as a target (the stalker maybe a target as well) and performing a“kill” with, for example, a squirt of a wa-ter pistol to represent a gun shot, or anAlka-Seltzer tablet to represent poison.

The attraction of this type of simula-tion escapes me. Steve says in his ads forKlLLER that the game will “test your re-flexes and ingenuity in a way no papergame ever will...” I’m sure it would, butwhy bother? If I want to test my reflexesagainst another person, I can think ofmany ways that do not involve even sim-ulated weapons — or, if weapons are thepoint, we could meet at the local skeetand trap club. Ingenuity? Working onthis magazine tests it about as fully as Icare to have it tested. But, I digress...

What we have here is a type of game inwhich ingenuity and strategy are secon-dary to the performance of physical ac-tions, and the only concessions to role-playing are an alias and performing featsof thespian skill like “dying in a very real-istic or artistic fashion” (worth 5 points inKILLER). While this is role-playing, it islimited to the extent of a person’s physi-cal abilities and acting talent.

“Live” role-playing games are muchmore an exhibition (like a Wild Westshoot-out on a movie lot or an SCA dem-onstration) than actual game playing.I’m for any activity that is fun for theparticipants and harmless to everyoneelse. But the “live” role-playing games,particularly the assassin type, may notbe entirely harmless to everyone else.Physical games — spectator sports, forexample — can cause harm to the partic-ipants. But the spectators of those sportsare willing spectators, and they aren’t onthe playing field while the game is goingon. “Live” games are often played in pub-lic. Sooner or later there will be an injuryto a “spectator” (bystander), and if ithappens to occur in the wrong place atthe wrong time, the headline will readsomething like, “Student Injured in Role-playing Game at Local College.” And allof us sitting at tables with paper-and-pencil role-playing games will be equat-ed with those folks wearing masks-andchasing each other around with waterpistols and bean shooters.

Perhaps a more serious consideration,though, is how the non-gaming public isgoing to view these games even if no onegets hurt. Most of us, at one time oranother, have been called upon to ex-plain our reasons for playing paper-and-pencil adventure role-playing games, par-ticularly the heroic fantasy type. Despiteour best efforts to explain, there are stillmany who view such a pastime as somesort of escape from reality, or worse, justfrom seeing some people sitting arounda table with books and dice! How arethey going to look at people chasingeach other and playing assassin?

I fail to see the attraction for “live” role-playing (and in some cases I think it isjust an excuse for a good water balloonfight), but I’ll grant that the type has itsplace in the overall list of games that maybe played. But, like anything else in thisworld, perceptions (mine included) de-pend upon perspective. While I grantthat there is a place for “live” role-playing, others will not. And it is a verysmall step from condemning “live” role-playing games to condemning all role-playing games.

Vol. VI, No. 3 September 1981

Publisher. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jake JaquetEditor-in-Chief. . . . . . . . . . . Kim MohanEditorial staff . . . . . . . . . . . Bryce Knorr

Marilyn MaysGali Sanchez

Sales. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Debbie ChiusanoCirculation . . . . . . . Corey KoebernickOffice staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cherie Knull.

Roger RauppContributing editors. . . . Roger Moore

Ed Greenwood

This issue’s contributing artists:Clyde Caldwell Bruce WhitefieldRoger Raupp Will McLeanSusan Collins Dexter PrattJames Holloway J. D. WebsterHarry Quinn Phil Foglio

DRAGON magazine is published monthly byDragon Publishing, a division of TSR Hobbies,Inc. The mailing address of Dragon Publishingis P.O. Box 110. Lake Geneva WI 53147: tele-phone (414) 248-8044.

DRAGON magazine is available at hundredsof hobby stores and bookstores throughout theUnited States and Canada, and through a limit-ed number of overseas outlets. The magazinecan be purchased directly from Dragon Publish-ing by subscription. Rates are as follows, with allpayments to be made in advance: $24 for 12issues sent to a U.S. or Canadian address; $50U.S. for 12 issues sent via surface mail or $95 for12 issues sent via air mail to any other country.

A limited quantity of certain back issues ofDRAGON magazine can be purchased directlyfrom the publisher by sending the cover priceplus $1.50 postage and handling for each issueordered. Payment in advance by check or mo-ney order must accompany all orders. Paymentscannot be made through a credit card, andorders cannot be taken nor merchandise “re-served” by telephone. Neither an individual cus-tomer nor an institution can be billed for a sub-scription order or back-issue purchase unlessprior arrangements are made.

The issue of expiration for each subscriptionis printed on the mailing label for each sub-scriber’s copy of the magazine. Changes of ad-dress for the delivery of subscriptions must bereceived at least 30 days prior to the effectivedate of the change in order to insure uninter-rupted delivery.

All material published in DRAGON magazinebecomes the exclusive property of the publisherupon publication, unless special arrangementsto the contrary are made prior to publication.

DRAGON magazine welcomes unsolicited sub-missions of written material and artwork; how-ever, no responsibility for such submissions canbe assumed by the publisher in any event. Anysubmission which is accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope of sufficient sizewill be returned to the contributor if it cannot bepublished.

DRAGON™ is a trademark for Dragon Publish-ing’s monthly adventure playing aid. All rightson the contents of this publication are reserved,and nothing may be reproduced from it in wholeor in part without prior permission in writingfrom the publisher. Copyright 1981 by TSRHobbies, Inc. USPS 318-790. ISSN 0279-6848.

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

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September 1981 Dragon

he awesome task of digging (yes, sometimes liter-ally) our way through scores of hefty manuscriptsis over. The hours upon hours spent poring overpage after page have finally produced results. It iswith a great sigh of relief and a similarly large

fanfare (taaa—daaa!) that we present The Garden of Nefaron,the winning entry of International Dungeon Design Contest II.

If you got the idea from the above paragraph that it was morethan a bit of work going through all the entries, then I guess I gotthe point across. That point is made, not to make you feel sorryfor us (after all, nobody told us to have the contest), but inapology for the fact that it took so long to come up with a winner.

As might have been expected, the overall quality of the entriestook a distinct step up from the previous contest. What was notexpected was the great increase in quantity — nearly 200 entrieswere received for the AD&D™ division of the contest, and everyone of them had to be looked over before we could make eventhe most preliminary selections. Howard DeWied’s entry endedup at the top, but there were dozens of other contestants whoobviously put their heart and soul into what they submitted—and they deserve an equally large share of the credit formaking this contest such a high-quality competition. Our con-gratulations go to all the prizewinners, whose names are listedfor posterity on page 48. When’s the next contest? Well . . . give usa little while to recover from eyestrain and we’ll let you know.

This issue’s classy cover, “Dragon Spell,” is the first evidenceof the talent of Clyde Caldwell which has appeared on thesepages. Clyde is a paperback-book cover artist of no small re-nown (look for his distinctive signature the next time you’rebrowsing the bookstore shelves), and is also represented with apiece in our 1982 DAYS OF THE DRAGON™ calendar.

The cornerstone of our feature article section this monthrepresents somewhat of a departure from policy for DRAGON™magazine. Never before has this publication printed materialwhich, to put it bluntly, suggests that an entire major section ofthe AD&D rules be reconstructed. But when authors Philip Mey-ers and Steven Howard provided us with well thought-out man-uscripts on how the monk character class ought to be refur-bished and redesigned, we decided to give them their due. Once

again, we point out that articles in DRAGON magazine arenothing more than suggested ways to change or enhance yourgame, and there’s nothing “official,” in any sense of the word,connected with our presentation of these (or any other) piecesof writing.

The longest single article inside (except for the module, ofcourse) is the latest in our continuing line of suggested newnon-player characters for an AD&D campaign: Andrew Dewar’svision of the Oracle. For some NPCs of deity-level status, take alook at the Bogatyrs, a collection of legendary old Russianheroes (and the villains they fought) which serves as the firstinstallment of “Larger: Than Life,” a new feature devoted todescriptions of super-high-powered characters on a par withthe personalities in the DEITIES & DEMIGODS™ Cyclopedia.

On a more philosophical note, we offer you “Some universalrules” from contributing editor Roger Moore on how to design apersonalized universe that works the way a universe should.And in the same vein, the second installment of John Prados’series in Simulation Corner on making a working model of yourvery own game design.

Some of the niftiest monsters around are those which havebeen “translated” from fantasy literature into AD&D terms. MarkNuiver went through John Wyndham’s science-fiction classicThe Day of the Triffids with a fine-toothed pencil to come upwith the definitive AD&D Triffid. Plant a few of these in your nextadventure and see what blossoms.

You can’t usually find out what’s on the other side of a door-way unless you go through it. Len Lakofka, in his latest essayfrom Leomund’s Tiny Hut, spells out how getting through a doorcan be a whole lot tougher than simply twisting the latch. Insimilar fashion, Merle Rasmussen, the dean of TOP SECRET™administrators, tries to make things more difficult for agents bylisting what equipment each type of spy can and can’t employ.

The newest additions to the Dragon’s Bestiary area couple oflawful good guys, the Argas and Narra, plus the bizarre one-eyed Oculon. Grouped in the Dragon’s Augury section are a trioof games about three widely diverse subjects — and diversity isalso the key word in The Electric Eye, where computer colum-nist Mark Herro takes time to clean out his tidbit file.

And the list goes on (but not for much longer) with a Travellervariant giving more “oomph” to the Merchant class; some re-commendations from game-design scholar Glenn Rahman onhow to make Junta a more revolutionary activity.

As evidence of our usual flair for finishing with a grin, the lastthree pages of #53 contain a sampling of “Dragon Mirth” car-toons; the current trials and tribulations of Finieous Fingers &Friends; and a new “What’s New?” by Phil Foglio. If your page 80is all wet and wrinkled, blame Phil; he told us to do it. —KM

SPECIAL ATTRACTIONThe Garden of Nefaron — Winner of the AD&D™ division

in International Dungeon Design Contest II. . . . . . .33List of prize winners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48

OTHER FEATURESWhy isn’t this monk smiling? — Examining the AD&D class

He’s got a lot to kick about . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Defining and realigning the monk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Sage Advice — Monkish mysteries unraveled. . . . . . . . .11

The Oracle — New non-player character class . . . . . . . . . . .14Understanding Armory — What those shields mean . . . . . . .18Some universal rules — Designing your own universe . . . . .22Larger Than Life — Bogatyrs begin a new column . . . . . . . .28The ways of the Triffids — The monster from John Wyndham’s

book, adapted for AD&D play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58Merchants deserve more, too — Traveller addition . . . . . . . .60Junta needs more instability — A truly revolting variant. . . .64

REGULAR OFFERINGSOut on a Limb — Letters from readers . . . . . . . 4Up on a Soapbox — Adventuring with shaky hands . . . . . . .27The Rasmussen Files — More TOP SECRET™ ideas . . . . . . .49Dragon’s Bestiary: Argas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Oculon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54Narra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Leomund’s Tiny Hut — Just a door? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56Simulation Corner — Building a game model . . . . . . . . . . . .62The Electric Eye — Random comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66Convention schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67Dragon’s Augury

Stalin’s Tanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74Warlord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76A House Divided.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76

Dragon Mirth — Cartoon page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78Finieous Fingers —A big surprise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79What’s New? — You’ll see. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

More on reprintsDear Editor:

I had been planning to write this letter forseveral months when I saw the “Reprint oldissues” letter in DRAGON #50 and decided torespond. My problem is the same as DavidPerry’s. If I could afford it, I would order everyback issue there is. Personally, I would love toown every issue of DRAGON and I wouldn’tmind if they were reasonably priced reprints.

I think there are two types of magazineback-issue collectors. The first is like me whowants them for what the articles have to offer,but still wants them in their original forms(unlike The Best of The Dragon) to keep themas sort of souvenirs. The other type is theperson who’s willing to pay outrageous pricesfor an original copy because they want notonly the written material, but also want themagazines as collectables. They want the“real thing” like anybody who collects thingslike stamps and coins. I don’t think the collect-ors of the originals would be offended by re-prints, because they collect the originals fortheir authenticity.

As for the business standpoint, I don’t seewhat’s so hard about deciding which (andhow many of each) back issues to reprint. Allyou have to do is include a questionnaire withthe next issue of DRAGON asking which backissues the purchaser of the magazine wouldprobably buy if they were available as reason-ably priced reprints. You could also ask whowould be interested in eventually collectingevery back issue they don’t own. This way youcould decide how many of each back issue toreprint. Furthermore, you could lower pos-tage costs by mailing all back issues secondclass along with the outgoing current issue.

I know that deciding how many of eachissue to print would be a lot more complicatedthan this, but at least a questionnaire couldprovide a good guideline and give you someidea of your customers’ desires. All of thiswould obviously take a lot of work on the partof the people at DRAGON, but you stand togain completely satisfied customers and ahandsome profit. Finally, I would like to saythat if I didn’t like DRAGON as much as I do, Iwouldn’t be interested in collecting back is-sues and wouldn’t have written this letter. Iagree with all your other subscribers: Youpublish the best role-playing magazine thereever was or ever will be.

Chris DoyleWeston, Mass.

This letter from Chris is typical of severalwe have received lately, so perhaps the sub-ject needs to be addressed again. As Kim saidin response to David Perry’s letter in #50, the

considerations of reprinting old issues ofDRAGON magazines are partly ethical andpartly business.

From an ethical standpoint, we will neverreprint an exact duplicate of an out-of-printissue — that is, one that could not be dis-cerned from the original. The collectors Chrismentions have already paid out large sums ofmoney for old issues, and we’d be fleeingfrom a (justified) lynch mob if we tried such athing.

While we’re on the subject of collecting, I’dlike to make it clear that while we at DragonPublishing are very pleased that our readersthink so much of the magazine that it hasbecome a collectable item, we in no way en-dorse the prices of out-of-print magazines,any more than Ford sets the current price of a1932 coupe. It’s a seller’s market, and we don’thave any to sell you.

Now, on to the business considerations.While it is true that we could sell back issues ifwe had them, I’m afraid the price of reprintedcopies would be more than you would want topay for “mere” reprints. Without getting tootechnical, there are a myriad of factors toconsider in publishing a magazine — rights toartwork, for example. We often purchase onlyone-time reproduction rights to artwork, es-pecially cover pieces, and that means we onlyhave the right to do one print run — no more.

Advertising is another factor. Our advertis-ers not only purchase space in the magazine,they purchase the space in a particular issuethat will (generally) only be for sale for a cer-tain length of time. As time goes by, priceschange, availability of products varies, busi-nesses move, and so forth. You can see whatconfusion an advertisement from 1978 ap-pearing in a magazine offered for sale in 1981could cause, and of course, there is no way wecould charge an advertiser for publishingsuch a thing.

Also, there is the matter of quantity andwhat it costs us to make even a small numberof anything. It costs basically the same amountof money to set up a press to run, whetheryou’re going to print 50 copies of somethingor 50,000. If it costs $10,000 to set up a pressand you print 50,000, that means each maga-zine has to bring in at least 20 cents just to payits “share” of that cost. Now consider the$10,000 bill divided by, for instance, 500: If aprint run were that small, each magazinewould have to sell for $20 just to pay the printbill alone.

And that’s by no means the only cost asso-ciated with the production of a magazine. Forone thing, the people who work here have toeat just like anybody else. For another thing,the cost of mailing a special issue to a custo-mer is a lot higher than the “cheap” rate for

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bulk second-class mailings. Also, the regula-tions of the U. S. Postal Service say that wecan’t use our second-class permit more thanonce a month, and all the items in any mailinghave to be the same. People who bought re-prints from us by mail order would have theirchoice of third class mail (not all that cheap,and it sometimes takes slightly less thanforever to be delivered) or first class mail,where the rates are somehow linked to theprice of gold.

I said I wasn’t going to get too technical . . .well, it boils down to this: To reprint an issuewould require just as much work and moneyas printing a new one, but it could not possi-ble generate the revenue that a new magazinedoes, and so it would have to have a muchhigher price than a current issue. I’m justguessing, but the price of a reprinted issuemight have to be as high as $10, assuming wehad the time (which we don’t) to put it togeth-er in the first place.

But, for the sake of argument, let’s assumewe could reprint an issue for the same price asthe original. Although nominally the “same,”it would in reality be different from the origi-nal — both by choice, so as not to water downthe value of the original, and by necessity, toallow for new ads (or maybe no ads) and newartwork, and so forth. And when we sold all weprinted, the price would start going up aspeople began collecting the scarce reprints.And then we’d start to get letters asking us toreprint the reprints.... — JJ

‘High-handed’Dear Editor:

I’ve been a DM for three years, and a faithfulreader of your magazine for two. However, inrecent issues I have noticed something thatdisturbs me. Why do you persist in publishingonly new NPC’s? Why not let your readershave some new player characters instead?

Several of the NPC’s you have published,notably the Anti-Paladin, the Witch, and theSamurai, seem as if they were prevented frombecoming PC’s. All the information needed torun them as PC’s is there: the experience lev-els, the hit dice, the special abilities, etc. Ifthey were never intended to be played asPC’s, why do you publish the experiencepoints necessary to attain levels?

In DRAGON #49 in the Samurai article, itsays, “In accordance with this magazine’s pol-icy the Samurai is presented as a non-playercharacter.” You go on to say that if certainNPC’s were used as PC’s it could unbalancegames, and even whole campaigns; agreed.But why not publish some player characters

September 1981

that attempt to keep campaigns in balance?Your readers could use them as NPC’s if theyso desire.

Who do you think you are? You have noright to dictate how we DM’s run our cam-paigns. Don’t you think we are capable ofkeeping a campaign in balance without beingprevented from using new PC’s? You seem tothink you have a monopoly on good ideas,One gets the feeling that the D&D game sys-tem is so fragile that it instantly becomes un-balanced when someone adds their own ideas,DM’s who unbalance their campaigns by mak-ing foolish additions deserve what they get.

I cannot stop you from publishing whateveryou want. But I know I would be much moreinterested in a new player character for mygroup to use than a NPC that I will probablynever put into action. Stop trying to protectus. Let the customers choose, and stop beingso high-handed!

Adam RosenblattNew York, N.Y.

Perhaps this letter should have been an-swered by Kim, who is in charge of high-handedness around here (see Out on a Limb,#45). Who do we think we are? We are the staffof DRAGON magazine, a monthly adventurerole-playing aid—no more, no less. Certain/ywe have never claimed nor assumed the rightto dictate how individual DM’s run their cam-paigns. Even if we had the right (which, I re-peat, we don’t), we would have no way toenforce our will on our readers. So back off,Jack, and listen up as I quote from the prefaceto the Dungeon Masters Guide:

“As the creator and ultimate authority in

your respective game, this work is written asone Dungeon Master equal to another. Pro-nouncements there may be, but they are notfrom ‘on high’ ” (Recognize that phrase,Adam?) “as respects your game.... it musthave some degree of uniformity, a familiarityof method and procedure from campaign tocampaign within the whole. ADVANCED D&D... is above all a set of boundaries for all of the‘worlds’ devised by referees everywhere...,what is aimed at is a ‘universe’ into whichsimilar campaigns and parallel worlds can beplaced. With certain uniformity of systemsand ‘laws,’ players will be able to move fromone campaign to another and know at leastthe elemental principles which govern thenew milieu, for all milieux will have certain(but not necessarily the same) laws in com-mon.... This uniformity will help not onlyplayers, it will enable DMs to carry on a mean-ingful dialogue and exchange of useful in-formation. It might also eventually lead togrand tournaments wherein persons from anypart of the U.S., or the world for that matter,can compete for accolades.... Variations anddifference are desirable, but should be keptwithin the boundaries of the overall system.”(Is this sinking in, Adam?) “...creative addi-tion can most certainly be included... Keepsuch individuality in perspective by develop-ing a unique and detailed world based on therules of ADVANCED D&D. No two campaignswill ever be the same, but all will have thecommon ground necessary to maintainingthe whole as a viable entity about which youand your players can communicate with themany thousands of others who also findswords and sorcery role-playing gaming asan amusing and enjoyable pastime.”

DragonDRAGON magazine has, over the past five

years, presented hundreds of variants, addi-tions, and suggestions for or about the D&Dand AD&D games. Certainly, we have neverbeen so high-handed as to say that they mustall be used, and then only in the manner pres-ented — indeed, many of the things we’vepublished would contradict each other if theywere used together. What we have done is toprovide a forum for presentation of aspects ofplay that may be incorporated into play if de-sired, and further, presented these aspects ina manner that, we hope, agrees with the phi-losophy outlined in the preface to the DMG.

For example, an anti-paladin could be in-corporated into a game as an NPC with whomthe player characters interact. Those sameplayer characters could move into anotherDM’s world, where the “big nasty” of the mo-ment is a lich or an evil high priest. The play-ers could operate in this world just as easilyeven if the second DM had never heard of ananti-paladin.

If, on the other hand, the players all havecharacters who are anti-paladins, witchesand samurai warriors, and the second DMdoesn’t happen to read the magazine, every-thing grinds to a halt faster than it takes todescribe it. It’s like if you and a friend playchess and, between yourselves, decide to al-low pawns to move backward. That will workfine as long as you only play each other, but ifyou take on a new opponent who doesn’tknow your rules, you’re in for problems.

If you want to allow NPCs that appear inDRAGON magazine to be used as playercharacters, go right ahead. We estimate thatwe have a readership of 200,000 people, but

(Turn to page 77)

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Why isn�t this monksmiling?

6

September 1981 Dragon

He�s got a lot to kick about!by Philip Meyers

Of all the character classes in theAD&D™ game, the class of monks is themost difficult to qualify for. A monk musthave exceptional strength, wisdom, anddexterity, and — if he or she wishes tosurvive for very long — constitution.

The odds of rolling up such a charac-ter, even using the various “cheating me-thods” listed in the Dungeon MastersGuide, are not favorable. Given this, onewould expect a monk to be a powerfulcharacter indeed. At first glance thiswould appear to be true. The Grand Mas-ter of Flowers can reasonably claim to bethe most powerful fighter around, able toinflict 128 points of damage in a singleround. This superiority, however, is moretheoretical than real. In actual practice,the monk is the weakest of the characterclasses, not the strongest.

The sources of a monk’s weakness aremany. First, monks are severely handi-capped in armor class. The Novice startsat AC 10, is denied the use of any armor,and receives no armor class adjustmentfor dexterity. This situation fails to im-prove for a long time — at 5th level thehapless monk is a mighty AC 7.

As for hit points, the average 1st-levelmonk with a 16 constitution has 9 hitpoints. The extra hit die at 1st level is notenough to allow the monk to keep upwith clerics, fighters, or even thieves, forvery long. At 5th level the monk with a 16constitution has an average 25 hit points,where the cleric has 32½, the fighter 37½,and the thief 27½. (No one should play amonk with a constitution of less than 16;the figures will humiliate. the monk.)

The multiple attacks with open handsthat are supposed to be the monk’s forteare still negligible at 5th level, becomingappreciable only at 6th level, where themonk receives 3 attacks every 2 rounds.Fighters are, however, quick to catch up;at 7th level they also acquire this ability.

The spell-like powers of monks arelaughable when compared to the spellabilities of clerics or magic-users. Justas the 6th-level magic-user is acquiring asecond Fireball with which to destroythe enemy, the 6th-level monk is learn-ing to feign death.

The ability to stun or kill an opponentis next to worthless at low and middlelevels because the monk’s chance of do-ing it is so small, and because the monk’sawful armor class and hit points preventthe character from spending too muchtime in melee. Also, monks advancemore slowly in level than any other char-acter class at middle and upper levels.

Practical experience with monk char-acters reinforces the conclusion. In thisauthor’s experience, there seem to betwo ways for a monk character to surviveto reach upper levels. The first is for themonk to acquire a powerful magic itemthat offsets one or more of the monk’sweaknesses, like a Ring of Regenera-tion, Bracers of Defense AC 2, or a Cloakof Displacement. The other way is for themonk to cower at the back of the party,avoiding combat wherever possible. Thismeans the monk is generally uselessand, aside from opening a few lockeddoors now and then, does nothing be-sides siphon off experience points frommore deserving characters. Neither ofthese situations is wholly satisfactory.

Of course, one can always argue that,once the monk finally does make it to theupper levels, the long wait was worth it.An 8th-level monk is just about competi-tive with 8th-level characters in the otherclasses, and is clearly superior to an 8th-level thief, or even a 9th-level thief.

However, it is by no means certain thatthe monk character will ever get to 8thlevel, even should he or she honestlyearn the 200,001 experience points re-quired. This is due to the requirementthat a monk of this level or higher mustfight and defeat the present title holderin order to advance in level. Thus, everytime the player-character monk attemptsto advance in level beyond the 7th, thecharacter must ran a basic 50% chanceof losing and failing to achieve the level.

Worse still, the price of defeat is a full

level’s worth of experience points, just asif the monk had been energy-drained. Awealthy fighter who has been struck by awight can pay a large sum for a Restora-tion spell. The defeated monk has nosuch option. In effect, this limits themonk to 7th level, or at best means thatthe monk will ultimately need 2 or 3 timesas many experience points as listed,since the luck of the die will invariablycause the monk to be defeated a numberof times. Worst of all, the monk may haveto stand off challenges by NPC monks,and who can say how many SuperiorMasters will be out looking for the char-acter who finally makes it to Master ofDragons?

In essence, then, the monk is a uselesscharacter at lower and middle levels, andis extremely difficult to maintain at upperlevels. The player with visions of BruceLee or David Carradine dancing in his orher head is in for a big letdown whensuch a player tries to run a monkcharacter.

The idea of a character class of martialartists is undeniably a good one, andmonks deserve a place in the AD&D sys-tem. But how, then, can monks be madecompetitive and (if possible) more in-teresting?

It is possible to cure the defects in thepresent system without changing the na-ture of monks at all, as the followingsuggested system demonstrates.

First, in place of Tables I and II on page31 of the Players Handbook, use the re-vised tables given herein.

MONKS TABLE I: EXPERIENCE POINTS AND LEVELS

Experience Points0—1,500

1,501—3,0003,001—6,0006,001—12,000

12,001—25,00025,001—40,00040,001—70,00070,001—110,000

110,001—160,000160,001—220,000220,001—400,000400,001—650,000650,001—900,000

900,001—1,150,0001,150,001—1,400,0001,400,001—1,650,0001,650,001—1,900,0001,900,001—2,200,0002,200,001—2,500,0002,500,001—2,800,000

2,800,001+7

6-sided dice for accu-Level mulated hit points Level Title

1 2 Novice2 3 Initiate of the Rudiments3 4 initiate of the Elements4 5 Initiate of the Principles5 6 Brother6 7 Disciple7 8 Disciple of Secrets8 9 Disciple of Mysteries9 10 Immaculate10 11 Master11 12 Superior Master12 13 Master of Dragons13 14 Master of the North Wind14 15 Master of the West Wind15 16 Master of the South Wind16 17 Master of the East Wind17 18 Master of Winter18 19 Master of Autumn19 20 Master of Summer20 21 Master of Spring21 22 Grand Master of Flowers

DragonMONKS TABLE II: MONKS ABILITY TABLE

Level123456789101112131415161718192021

EffectiveArmor Class

65433221100-1-1-2-2-3-3-4-4-5-5

Move15”15”16”16”17”17”18”18”19”20”

21”20”

22”23”24”25”26”27”28”29”30”

Special abilities A: The ability to feign death, as the

present monk ability D:B: The mind-masking ability (resist-

ance to ESP), as present monk ability B.C: The Speak with Animals ability,

present monk ability A.D: The self-healing ability (present

monk ability E); plus immunity to dis-ease (present ability C), also includingimmunity to Haste and Slow spells.

E: Body Equilibrium, as the psionicability, except that it can be used butonce per day, for 1 round per level of themonk. Also, the monk acquires MindOver Body, usable for up to 1 day perlevel of the monk.

Open handattacks/round

111

3/23/23/2

222

5/25/25/2

333344444

1-62-72-72-83-93-9

2-123-123-124-134-164-165-175-204-244-246-245-308-326-36

FGHIJKLMN0PQRSTU

100% chance of success, usable once aweek, maximum duration 1 hour per lev-el of the monk.

P: Object Reading, as the psionic abil-ity, once a day.

Q: Dimension Walk, as the psionicability, 1 hour per 2 levels the monk hasachieved, usable once a day.

R: Astral Projection, once a week, asthe cleric spell, but only the monk mayso travel.

S: A premonition of death or seriousharm occurs to the monk 1-4 turns be-fore the harmful event, 90% of the time.

F: Empathy, as the psionic ability, butusable only once a day.

G: Invisibility, as the psionic power,but usable once a day for 1 turn per levelthe monk has achieved beyond the 6th.

H: Molecular Manipulation, as thepsionic power, usable against inanimateobjects only, once a day. Monks are Ii-mited to the 8th level of mastery in thispower.

T: The monk acquires the ability togenerate a Tower of Iron Will or an Intel-lect Fortress about himself or herself,duration 1 round per level of the monk,usable once a day. The monk must con-centrate to use this power, and cannotdo anything else besides walking slowly.If the monk’s concentration is broken,the defenses disappear.

U: Planeshift, as the cleric spell, twicea day.

Note on quasi-psionic monk abilitiesI: Resistance to charms, hypnosis, etc.

as present monk ability G, plus 18 intelli-The powers in the above list that refer

to the psionics section of the Playersgence for purposes of Telepathic and Handbook should be played as thoughMind Blast attacks, as present ability H. the monk were psionic with regard to

J: Retarded aging, as though themonk were using a Phylactery of Long

computing level of mastery, range, etc.Instead of expending psionic strength

Years, plus immunity to poison (present points to use the abilities, the monkability I), and immunity to Geas and simply abides by the use restrictionsQuest (present ability J). given above. If the monk character is ac-

K: Body Control, as the psionic ability, tually psionic, attack/defense totals andonce a day for a maximum of 1 turn per modes may be used normally, but thelevel of the monk beyond the 10th. psionic monk never receives disciplines

L: The “Quivering Palm,” present abil- other than those inherent in the class’sity K. special abilities.

M: Dimension Door, once a day, as themagic-user spell.

N: Speak with Plants, as a druid, pres-ent ability F.

O: Mind Bar, as the psionic ability,

Other suggested changes1: Open hand damage done is halved,

rounding up, when the monk is attackinga creature 10 feet or more in height, or

8

Open handdamage

1-4

Specialabilities

ABCDE

Vol. VI, No. 3

otherwise very large, and against crea-tures with a natural armor class of 0 orbetter.

2: A monk’s thieving abilities are limit-ed to Moving Silently, Finding (but notremoving) Traps, Hiding in Shadows,Hearing Noises, and Climbing Walls.

3: Single combat as a means of ad-vancement is not required until the monkreaches 12th level, and then only if thetitle is occupied (see below). A monkwho loses a challenge loses 100,000 ex-perience points and cannot challengeagain for 1 year.

4: At 10th level a monk’s hands andfeet become the equivalent of +1 wea-pons for purposes of determining whatcreatures they can do damage to. At 18thlevel they become the equivalent of +2weapons. (Moral: You can’t karate-chopan iron golem.)

Upper-level advancement optionsMonks can be either lawful good, law-

ful neutral, or lawful evil. The PlayersHandbook makes no mention of separ-ate monastic orders for these alignmenttypes; it follows that all monks are part ofone big brotherhood, whether they begood or evil. In many respects, this doesnot make a great deal of sense. For in-stance (and this is a relatively minorpoint), the title names for monks soundlike they were designed for lawful good,or lawful neutral, monks only. An evilGrand Master of Flowers? Hmmmm.

Either we must do away with evilmonks, which would be a loss, or thesystem can be altered to more approp-riately account for them.

One solution to this problem is to al-low the existence of separate, parallelmonastic orders, at least three of themand perhaps more. There could then bemore than one of each of the upper-levelmonks, but only one per title per order.Each order would then decide how tosolve the advancement problem. Lawfulneutral orders might opt for the presentsystem, as modified by “3” above.

Lawful evil orders might insist thatcombat be to the death, thus solving theproblem of rematches constantly plagu-ing upper-level figures.

Lawful good orders might forbid ad-vancement by combat, requiring candi-dates to wait until vacancies occur.When, for instance, the reigning Masterof Winter dies, all lower masters couldadvance upon obtaining sufficient expe-rience points. A panel of masters woulddecide whom to promote from amongthe three Masters of Dragons and thecurrent Superior Masters.

Advancement by default should indeedoccur on a fairly regular basis in any sortof monastic order, if only because thereigning Grand Master of Flowers isprobably close to death (being old), di-vine ascension (being powerful), or both.These odds are suggested for such events:

September 1981

Chance of vacancyLevel Title (per Year)

12 Master of Dragons 3%13 Master of the North Wind 1%14 Master of the West Wind 1%15 Master of the South Wind 1%16 Master of the East Wind 1%17 Master of Winter 2%18 Master of Autumn 2%19 Master of Summer 4%20 Master of Spring 6%21 Grand Master of Flowers 10%

Naturally, figures like these will varyfrom campaign to campaign. Numbersare given here only as an example of howsuch a system should be set up. Note

that the chance given for each masterlevel should be rolled for once per year,10 total rolls to be made. These chancesdo not take into account possible deathsresulting from challenge combats. TheDM will have to establish how often eachmaster will be challenged. The Mastersof Dragons could each be challenged asoften as 2-8 times per year in a lawfulneutral order as described above. There

would be relatively fewer challenges in alawful evil order.

In a lawful good order not advocatingadvancement by combat, a DM mightcontrive to say the Grand Master ofFlowers always rules for 1 year only, andat the end of that time becomes a divinebeing on one of the outer planes — insur-ing a steady stream of vacancies.

A lawful good monk would never loseexperience points under this system.Such a monk would either have his or hertotal “frozen” at some point (say, 1 pointshort of the level occupied by another),or the DM could allow the monk’s total tocontinue to increase but deny the monkthe actual attainment of the new leveluntil a vacancy occurred. The monkcould then save up experience in ad-vance, but would be limited in this en-deavor to a total 1 point short of twolevels beyond the monk’s current level.

No matter how it is managed, theremust be some form of restriction onmonk advancement beyond the 11th lev-el. Unrestricted advancement in a cam-paign where experience points are easy

9

Dragon

to come by would mean the monk char-acter would become extremely powerfultoo quickly and too easily. Also, monkishcombat has become a traditional manyplayers may be loath to give up.

Rationale for rule changesCertain salient points of this alterna-

tive system need more explanation. It issuggested that monks receive six-sideddice for their hit dice instead of four-sided dice. This is to cure the monk’shit-point disadvantage.

Armor class, attacks per round, anddamage per attack have been for low andmiddle-level monks.

The new intermediate experience lev-els allow the monk to rise as high as 11thlevel before advancement by combatbecomes necessary. This is an importantchange, for it allows the monk who hasbeen unsuccessful in challenging his orher superiors to go on an upper-leveladventure. Also, it makes the rank ofMaster a good deal more formidable,and puts it on a par with the “name”ranks of other classes, such as MasterThief, Lord, or Wizard.

The new special abilities and powerspresume that the inner strength of monksflows from the mind —that it is a sort ofpsionic power. After all, no degree ofskill or knowledge will let a human beingfall an unlimited distance when within 8’of a wall and take no damage when hit-ting bottom at terminal velocity.

Also, damage from open hand attacksof upper-level monks is hard to explainon the basis of physical skill alone. Canyou imagine Bruce Lee killing a purpleworm in,? melee round with four mightykarate chops? Present rules let high-level masters do just that. The half-damage rule proposed above is designedto partially cure this situation; even so,some form of magical mind-power is theonly way to account for the things monkscan do. Moreover, the present monkpowers closely resemble the related psi-onic disciplines. The new powers givenabove simply extend this principle, andare designed to make the monk a rea-sonably powerful and versatile charactereven at low and middle levels.

The thieving abilities of RemovingTraps and Opening Locks were deletedbecause it is not clear how or why monksshould have such abilities. For what pur-pose does a monastic aesthetic learn topick locks? Surely not all monks are ad-venturers; why then do these monkslearn skills usable nowhere else but onan adventure?

In game terms, it is no longer neces-sary to make the monk act as a second-rate thief so that the monk will havesomething to do on an adventure. Themonk as redefined in this article is a first-rate warrior and scout (if an Infravisionspell is used), and no longer needs suchadditional abilities.

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Defining and realigning the monkby Steven D. Howard

Probably the most common reactionI’ve heard among AD&D™ players to themonk class is, “Oh, yeah, monks . . . .They’re kind of a cross between clericsand thieves, right?” Ranking second infrequency is, “Play a monk? No, thanks.I’d like to live to see second level. Be-sides, I want to keep my treasure.” Andperhaps the third most common reactionis “Hey, this character could be a monk!That’s great! I’ve always wanted to actout one of those Bruce Lee movies!”

Examining these reactions in order,monks are not cleric/thieves. True, theyfight on the same table as clerics andsave as thieves, and have some thievingabilities, but there’s more to the monkclass than that. Other than the sharing ofan attack matrix, there is little in com-mon between clerics and monks. Theassociation no doubt springs from the“traditional” image of monks as thoseportly, bald-headed men who live at thatbig church up on the hill, where thechimes ring every quarter hour.

In an AD&D campaign, monks are notlike that at all. Although the PlayersHandbook calls monks “monastic aes-thetics,” the book also describes them interms which make them potentially themost efficient fighting machines in theAD&D universe. Their various immuni-ties and their special advantage on sav-ing throws give them very good defen-sive capabilities as well.

Secondly, monks can make it past firstlevel and still do some actual adventur-ing in the meantime, though sometimesaccomplishing this feat requires extra-ordinary circumstances. When my monkcharacter Dmitri was a Novice, he was amember of a party hired by a High Priestto trash a nearby dungeon. (In caseyou’re wondering, this dungeon posed amajor threat to his temple, but he couldn’ttake care of it himself, because his secthad a holiday coming up.) The priestpromised to heal any injuries sufferedand to perform a Raise Dead upon anyfatalities.

To make a long story short, guess whotook six hit points (all he had) of damagefrom an orc’s spear? After being raised,Dmitri was given a 1,000-point bonusaward of experience points (see Dun-geon Masters Guide, pages 85-86). Thisput him over the hump to second level,and the treasure he had left over just paidhis training fees.

True, monks will give away most oftheir treasure, keeping only a few magicitems, and some gold for buying food.But just think what this philanthropicreputation will do to the monk’s social

standing. Instant popularity! This willserve the monk well, should he ever fallon hard times. (“Sure, Dmitri, you canstay at the castle for a few days until youraise enough to get the monastery out ofhock. Heck, I’ll give you a couple thou-sand gold pieces myself.”)

Thirdly, monks are not kung fu mani-acs, rushing about hacking at boardsand bricks, screaming at the top of theirlungs, and creating general havoc. (No-body is, outside of Hollywood.) Hey,people, remember: Monks have to belawful. Lawful means disciplined andself-controlled. Bruce Lee and leapers ofthat ilk are definitely chaotic. The char-acter played by David Carradine in theTV series “Kung Fu” is, at best, neutralwith respect to law and chaos: not a law-breaker, but also not a person whoseactions are always logical, predictableand dependable.

Monks are skilled in the martial arts,but they use their deadly powers (the“quivering palm” or an obvious attemptto kill) only as a last resort. Only whenthey see that there is no other way tosolve a problem will they attack, andthen not wantonly or recklessly, butcarefully and methodically. If a monkever kills a like-aligned creature, heshould stop at nothing in an attempt torectify the situation. Examples of whatmight be done include: persuading acleric to Resurrect an opponent; gettinga spell caster to use the power of a Wishor a magic item to change the outcomeof the combat (but never so that themonk’s party is harmed); or donating allof the monk’s share of treasure to thefamily of the deceased. The dreaded“quivering palm” is truly a last resort,only to be used against those of diamet-rically opposed alignment (or perhapsby a lawful good monk attacked by anupwardly mobile lawful evil monk, orvice versa) or those who present such anawful threat that there is no other availa-ble means of dealing with it.

Now, to tackle a few of the more fre-quently asked questions about monks.(Perhaps I should send these to SageAdvice, and see if they agree with me.)

(Editor’s note: We showed Steven’squestions and answers to the kindly oldsage. All he did was mutter somethingabout “whippersnappers” trying to dohis job, and then he threw his quill acrossthe room...),

Q. Why can’t monks use flaming oil?A. That’s a good question. I wish the

rules had provided a good answer.Maybe setting folks on fire is a chaoticthing to do.

Q. Then how come paladins and otherlawful characters can do it?

10

A. Okay, maybe the founder of monk-dom (“monkhood” would have been anobvious pun) didn’t think to teach “Flam-ing Oil 101” at his monastery. If thissounds feeble to you, that makes two ofus.

Q. How can we get around the prob-lem of using flaming oil in a party thatcontains a monk?

A. Obviously, you can’t. That would belike party members asking a paladin toturn his back while they poison thedragon. (This answer applies if you ac-cept the first explanation of the oil ques-tion. If you accept the second explana-tion, there’s no problem. Just don’t letthe monk do the torching.)

Q. What the heck are bo sticks and josticks?

A. Judging from the illustrations in theDungeon Masters Adventure Log, a bostick is a 5-foot-long wooden stick, ta-pered at each end, and a jo stick is a3-foot-long wooden stick, tapered ateach end, but with one end slightlythicker than the other. According to thePlayers Handbook, a bo stick is 5 feetlong, weighs 15 gp, and does 1-6, 1-3damage; a jo stick is 3 feet long, weighs40 gp, and does 1-6, 1-4 points of dam-age. Evidently, both are used to knockpeople upside the head.

Q. Is there any way to get around theproblem of having only one monk perlevel above the eighth?

A. Is it reasonable to assume that in amilieu such as the ones most of us playin, which postulate the existence of thou-sands of characters, that there are onlynine monks, higher than 8th level? (Don’twrite in, that was a rhetorical question.)

Consider the situation in this manner:There are, say, 100 characters per year ina campaign who begin as first-levelmonks. Assuming a five percent annualattrition rate, and an advancement rateof one level per year, there will be at least675 monks of seventh level or lower in afully developed campaign using thosefigures. There are only 9 “chiefs” (Master-level monks) to keep track of all those“Indians.” Each high-level monk wouldhave a minimum (average) of 75 lower-level monks to watch over (and watchout for). This surveillance and supervi-sion would take up probably all of theMaster’s time, leaving him no time foradventuring. This is a shame, becausehigh-level monks are just coming intotheir own as adventurers when they haveto stop and keep track of a bunch ofgreen kids. And suppose there is a twopercent annual recruiting rate? Butenough of this; you know the problem.I’m supposed to supply an answer. (Notethat I said “an,” not “the.”)

September 1981

What if those 675 low-level monkswere divided by alignment into 3 separ-ate monk organizations, each independ-ent of the others? Using the formula giv-en in the Players Handbook for deter-mining non-player character monk align-ments, this gives the nine lawful goodmonk leaders 338 lower-level monks, or37 each; the lawful neutrals 236, or 26each; and the lawful evils 101, or 11 each.

If these figures still seem too unman-ageable, it is a small step further to pos-tulate the existence of smaller factions.Let’s further assume that due to strife,disagreement of religion, and great dis-tance (my campaign map covers an arearoughly the size of the United States)

these alignment groups have further splitinto smaller factions, called “brother-hoods.” With a little more juggling of thenumbers (perhaps a higher dropout rateor a higher recruitment rate), a structurecan be established where each high-level monk has only around eight lower-level monks to “keep watch over,” allow-ing much more time for adventuring.

One problem that could arise within asingle brotherhood is the “too manychiefs and not enough Indians” syn-drome. Should this occur, a large-scalerecruiting drive would be initiated in thearea. Should the problem grow severe,the brotherhood might have to disband.The few remaining members would have

Dragonthe options of retirement, changing clas-ses, or beginning to study in anotherbrotherhood (this last act could require adrop in level and a re-training period ofseveral months.),

Naturally, it is not possible to allow formore than one Grand Master of Flowersand still entirely uphold the spirit of theAD&D rules. But it is possible, and maybe advisable, to alter the monkish hie-rarchy to suit a particular campaign, aslong as the system and the rationale de-vised to affect such a change is logical,balanced and fair. What is given aboverepresents a solution to the “problem”—but by no means the only one or thebest one.

INTRODUCTIONSAGE ADVICE offers answers to questions about the D&D®

and AD&D™ rules and how those rules can be interpreted. Theanswers provided in this column are not official rulings, andshould not be considered as such by people who make use ofthe answers to solve a problem in their game-playing.

Because of the great amount of questions received for SAGEADVICE, the sage cannot guarantee to send out individualanswers to questioners, even if a return envelope is enclosed.Questions and answers will be published in DRAGON magazineas frequently and as promptly as space permits. Preference isusually given to questions of a general nature instead of ques-tions which pertain to something that happened in a particulargroup’s adventure, unless the latter type of question can beanswered in a generally useful way. Questions should be sent toSage Advice, c/o DRAGON magazine, P.O. Box 110, Lake Ge-neva WI 53147.

* * *

My character is a lawful neutral monk in a party with twoneutral evil characters and two neutral goods. The DM says thatif our party runs into a party of lawful neutral monks and fightingbreaks out, my monk would join the other monks in fighting,against my party. I think the DM is full of it. What do you think?

There is a lawful evil high-level NPC monk in our campaign.What will happen when my lawful good player-character monkgains enough experience to challenge this monk for position?There seem to be many ways in which an evil character couldavoid such a challenger. How can such an opponent be made to“fight fair”?

The key to properly determining a monk’s course of action ineach of these examples has to do with understanding the concept-

of lawfulness. Monks must always be lawful, and for very goodreason, because a monkish hierarchy and advancement withinthat hierarchy would be valueless if so much as a single non-lawful element was allowed to “contaminate” it.

The purpose and goal of lawfulness, from the definition oflawful neutral in the Players Handbook, is “bringing all to pre-dictability and regulation.” Lawful characters must always bepredictable in their actions and motives. The Dungeon MastersGuide adds that it is vital for all lawful neutral characters to have“regimentation and strict definition” in their lives and their out-look on life.

How is this applied to the first situation? Simply this: A monk’slawfulness will cause him to always honor the prior commitmenthe made to the members of the party he’s with. His allegiance isto his comrades first, because that’s the lawful thing to do. Ofcourse, if the party members treat the monk in a less than lawfulfashion themselves, they must be willing to suffer the conse-quences of that action if the monk elects to “desert.” No lawfulcharacter will remain allied to a party which treats him unfairly,regardless of previous commitments — and may get rather fer-vent in his objections to such treatment.

if the concept of lawfulness is correctly interpreted and prop-erly integrated into an adventure or a campaign, no “desertion”of this sort will occur without extenuating circumstances—andin no event should a DM ever feel justified in decreeing that suchan event must take place. It is the character’s (and player’s) rightand responsibility to decide what to do. After that decision ismade and carried out, it is the DM’s right and responsibility toevaluate the “correctness” of the decision in light of the charac-ter’s professed alignment. A lawful player character cannot beforced (by the DM directly) to do something unlawful, butshould always be held accountable if it happens involuntarily asthe result of a game activity, or if the character does it of his ownfree will.

11

DragonThe guidelines in the definitions of lawful neutral similarly

apply to lawful evil characters, who must also respect “the sys-tem.” A lawful evil monk will “fight fair” with, respect to lawful-ness — that is, he will recognize and accept the challenge of anup-and-coming monk. He will respect the challenger’s right toface him in hand-to-hand combat, because that’s the foundationof the system which all monks are bound to uphold.

It is not lawful, for instance, for an evil monk to sequesterhimself in a stronghold while a mob of monsters stand guard tomake sure no other monk can get to him. In such a situation, thelawful thing to do would be to allow the challenger to pass freelypast all wards and obstacles — and then ambush the challengerfrom the shadows as soon as he’s within striking range.

A lawful evil monk should have to “fight fair” in making itpossible for the hand-to-hand combat to take place — but oncethe battle is joined (in most cases, begun by an evil sneakattack), it’s every monk for himself. By contrast, a pair of lawfulgood monks competing for the same position would probablysquare off with great ceremony, like prizefighters or sumowrestlers do, and conduct the whole matter as “fairly” as possi-ble, including the presence of a referee.

And the two kinds of challenging don’t mix easily. Only a verypowerful or very self-confident evil monk would agree to anelaborate ceremonial combat against a good monk —and if hedoes consent to fight in this fashion, he’s going to have some-thing up his sleeve anyway.

* * *

If a monk’s alignment changes from lawful to neutral or cha-otic, does he become a thief?

Not necessarily. A monk whose alignment changes with re-spect to law and chaos “loses all monk abilities and must beginagain as a first-level character,” according to the Players Hand-book. The character’s new class can be anything else. It standsto reason that most “defrocked” monks would choose to be afighter, cleric or thief, because the prime requisites for thoseclasses are the abilities for which a monk must always haveabove-average scores. But it’s not impossible for a monk char-acter to have a high intelligence as well as the other high scores,in which case that character might decide to begin again as amagic-user.

* * *

Can a human fighter split class into a monk if he has therequired abilities?

12

Even though the answer to this question can easily be found inthe AD&D rules, it gives the sage an opportunity to emphasizesome points which a lot of players and DMs seem to havemisinterpreted. Assuming that “split class” means “becomemulti-classed,” the answer is NO. Humans cannot be multi-classed characters, period. And, since only humans can be-come monks, no character can be a multi-classed monk. If “splitclass” instead means “become a character with two classes,”the answer is a qualified yes. Nothing in the rule books specifi-cally prohibits a character from taking up the monk class as asecond class, or temporarily abandoning monkish pursuits togain experience in a new class. However, a monk (or would-bemonk) who travels this path would effectively forsake all chanceof advancement to the higher levels of the monk class — and itshould probably be stipulated that no upper-level monk (8th orhigher) can decide to stop being a monk and take up a new classin any event, because an unlawful act of that sort would serious-ly harm the monkish organizational structure. The PlayersHandbook says that “nearly any combination of, classes” ispossible, but points out that alignment restrictions will makesome switches impossible without being disqualified from theformer class; for instance, a monk (must be lawful) can neverdecide to study as a druid (must be true neutral) without chang-ing alignment and losing his right to be a monk, or vice versa.

Vol. VI, No. 3

* * *

The Players Handbook says that monks fight on the tableused by thieves and assassins, but the DMG puts monks on thesame combat table as clerics and druids. Which is correct?

The Dungeon Masters Guide is the right source. Monks wereplaced on the thief’s attack matrix when the Players Handbookwas being compiled, but by the time the DMG was released, thedecision had been made (in the interest of game balance) tohave monks attack on the more favorable table for clerics anddruids. In most cases where the Players Handbook and Dun-geon Masters Guide disagree on a specific subject, it is safe toassume that the ruling in the DMG is to be given preference,since that book was released after the Players Handbook.

* * *

My monk with a dexterity of 15 was hit in the leg by an arrow.The DM said there would be a temporary loss of 3 dexteritypoints, and later he said that one of those points would be lostpermanently. He took away half of my experience points (thecharacter was first level) and said I’d have to change classesbecause the character no longer met the minimum require-ments for being a monk.. Is this proper? If I change, would I keepany of the abilities of the former class?

It sounds like you’ve willingly accepted the “fact” that youhave permanently lost a point of dexterity from a relatively minorwound — yet that’s really the heart of your problem. It seems asthough your DM was determined to find a way to keep you fromplaying that character as a monk. This sage doesn’t have ESP, ofcourse, and it’s impossible to know the details of this incident,but any DM who decides to have such a tragedy befall a first-level character had better have a very good reason for actingthat way.

There is nothing in the AD&D rules to suggest that a characterhas to abandon his or her chosen class because of a drop in anability score anyway. Ability scores are not infrequently raisedor lowered by various magical means, and by certain types ofpsionic attacks. The life of a character or a long-running cam-paign would be thrown into disorder if characters were forced tochange classes every time an ability score fell below the min-imum number originally needed to qualify for membership inthat class.

If it were mandatory for a character to change class wheneveran important ability score was lowered during the course of anadventure, what would be the fate of, for instance, a characterrendered feebleminded by a psionic blast attack? Such a char-acter, with (by definition) a combined intelligence and wisdomscore of 0-5 for the duration of the feeblemind effect, technicallydoesn’t qualify for any class of adventurer.

There are certain types of magical attacks which cause theloss of a point of strength or some other attribute. Losses of thiskind are sometimes only temporary (the strength drain of ashadow, for instance), and even so-called “permanent” changescan be counteracted by different magical means at a later time.There may be occasions when a character has lost so much ofhis original attribute score that it is not practical or healthy tocontinue in the same class: A human fighter who has hisstrength reduced to, say, 6 points is risking ruin if he sets out onan adventure in that condition, and the character might stand abetter chance of survival in the long run if he decided to take upmagic-using (assuming a sufficiently high intelligence to dothat). But the choice should belong to the character and player,not to the DM.

In the descriptions of the fighter, paladin and thief playercharacter classes in the Players Handbook, the rules state thatcertain minimum ability scores are needed to “become” amember of that class. The same reasoning should be applied tothose classes where the same wording is not used. In otherwords, minimum requirements have to be met when a character

September 1981

begins a career in a class, but not necessarily at all times thereaf-ter while that profession is being pursued.

* * *

When a player character monk attains 8th level or higher, willthere be non-player character monks seeking to defeat him incombat so as to attain his level? Will be always have to combathigher-level NPCs when this is necessary to attain the next level?

In a well structured campaign, there will be a monkish hier-archy even if there is only one monk player character of suffi-ciently high level to challenge for another monk’s position. Inthe extreme, this hierarchy would be delineated all the way up tothe Grand Master of Flowers—a total of 12 positions (from 8thlevel through 17th) which would all be filled by NPCs if no playercharacter has yet advanced beyond 7th level. At the least, theDM should provide opposition for a player character as it be-comes necessary: Be sure there is an 8th-level monk for theupstart player character to battle, when the time comes, andhave other “titleholders” prepared and ready to play if the playercharacter rises even higher.

* * *

The rules about advancement for monks are specific: A monkmust meet a higher-level monk in hand-to-hand combat whenthe lower-level monk obtains enough experience points to qual-ify for ascension to the next level. This presumes the existenceof higher-level monks, which the DM must provide if playercharacters do not already fill those positions. Otherwise, thelower-level PC monk’s efforts to rise in level, obtain experiencepoints and strive for greater prowess and superiority becomemeaningless.

It doesn’t necessarily work the same way when a player char-

Dragon

acter is in a position to be challenged by a lower-level monk. It isnot mandatory for higher-level PC monks to face challengesfrom lower-level aspirants, but such challenges will certainlycome about in a campaign where the DM actively employs NPCmonks, charting their advancement up the experience-pointladder just as for player characters. Challenges to a playercharacter monk do not ever have to occur, but it would beridiculous for a player character to make it all the way to GrandMaster of Flowers without ever facing a bid for his position froma lower-level contender.

Will a monk’s open hand attack affect creatures which can behit only by magical weapons?

The sage says no. It doesn’t specifically say in the rules that amonk can hit in this fashion, so the only possible ruling to makeis that a monk cannot. As soon as we start giving characters andcreatures attributes that aren’t specifically prohibited to them,the ruination of the campaign is not far behind.

There is some justification for this ruling to be found in theway certain other rules are worded. The PH does specifically saythat a monk can’t use his special dodging ability on magicalmissiles, and that the quivering palm — “perhaps the mostterrible power” a monk has (in the words of the Players Hand-book), is not usable against creatures which are only vulnerableto magic weapons. In that light, there is no rationale for allowingan open hand attack, certainly not as “terrible” a power, to beuseful in the same circumstances. The Dungeon Masters Guidesums it up with the statement, “...monks are not supermen orsuperwomen.” Monks have a number of special abilities whichset them apart — but not that far apart.

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

The Oracle When he talks, everybody listens

by Andrew Dewar

Ever since homo sapiens learned howto use his brain, there has always been apart of man’s mind that desires to knowthe events of the future, not only so thathe can prepare for them, but also “simp-ly” so that his curiosity might be satis-fied. To fill this need, there have longbeen people claiming to be able to divinethose events.

But there is also a desire to knowevents of the present as well, and eventsof the unknown past. And, there havealso arisen those people who say theycan divine these things. As long as manis curious about the things he does notknow, there will be other men who will

believe that they are able to satisfy thiscuriosity through mystical means.

These men and women are the ora-cles, a legendary type of person pres-ented here as a new non-player charac-ter class for ADVANCED DUNGEONS &DRAGONS® adventuring.

Ancient Greeks trusted the famous or-acle at Delphi. The traditional procedureby which divinations were obtained in-volved virgins (ceremonially named “Py-thia,” after a serpent slain by Apollo)who were seated on a tripod over a rift,from which rose thick vapors and, so theGreeks believed, the wisdom of Apollo.The ancients had so much faith that theybelieved whatever the oracle of Delphiprophesied would invariably come true.

Eastern religions have long put greatstock in oracular hermits living awayfrom the people, who they believed hadgreat and god-given wisdom. Such anoracle, they felt, could tell them the truthabout their fates, and the fates of theirgods.

In more modern times, gypsy fortunetellers have gained a reputation for mys-tical ability, although society is moreskeptical of such persons than earliercivilizations had been. Still today, thereare mediums and fortune tellers makingmoney from people who want to believethat oracular ability can truly exist, andwho need their curiosity satisfied in oneway or another.

In an AD&D™ campaign (which, of

Oracle Experience Table4-sided 60,001—110,000Dice for 110,001—200,000

Experience Accumulated Level 200,001—366,000Experience Points Level Hit Points Title 360,001—630,000

0—2,250 1 1 Fortune Teller 630,001—1,000,0002,251—4,500 2 2 Forecaster 1,000,001—1,400,0004,501—9,000 3 3 Augurist 1,400,001—1,800,0009,001—17,500 4 4 Anagogue 1,800,001—-2,200,000

17,501—33,500 56

5 Clairvoyant 2,200,001—-2,700,00033,501—60,000 6 Sortiliger 2,700,001+

14

78910111213141516

78910111213141516

SannyasiMediumPunditMahatmaSoothsayerSeerLow ProphetHigh ProphetOracleGreat Oracle

September 1981

course, strays a long way from “reality”),divination plays a large part in the lives ofadventurers. A great number of simplespells, including all the Detect spells, aredivinations. Also, there are a number ofnon-player character classes that canmake predictions for paying clients: thesage, the alchemist, and the astrologer.It seems that adventurers, even more sothan people in this real, mundane worldof ours, need to know of the future, or ofthe nature of things unclear to them-selves. Often, having this knowledgemeans the difference between life anddeath.

The sage, as outlined on pages 31-33of the Dungeon Masters Guide, is some-what inadequate for making divinations.Unless the sage’s major field is the oc-cult and things oracular in the first place,he will cost the party seeking his aid agreat deal and will be little help.

Similarly, the alchemist (as presentedby Roger E. Moore in issue #45 ofDRAGON™ magazine) is somewhat lack-ing in oracular ability, preferring to spendhis time as the sage does, buried inbooks and alchemical experimentation.Thus, he will not be able to help a partygreatly when they come to him for aid.

Most useful is Roger Moore’s astrol-oger class, also presented in DRAGON#45. The main function of the astrologeris to make divinations; however, the as-trologer himself is limited in his abilities.That is, he has only one method of div-ination available to him, which some-what reduces the reliability of his predic-tions. Also, the astrologer cannot usespells, and so cannot perform even thesimplest Detect for adventurers.

The Oracle NPC classThe following text describes the Ora-

cle as a new non-player character class,one which gives its members the abilityto cast spells and use certain innate abili-ties in order to make divinations andpredictions. An Oracle NPC in an adven-turing party would leave the other spell-casters free to carry more attack and de-fense spells, enhancing the characters’chance of survival if the adventure aheadis to be full of conflicts and combat.

The principal attributes of the oracleare intelligence and wisdom, both ofwhich must be 14 or higher. A high con-stitution and charisma are also useful,but these attributes may each be as lowas 6. A high wisdom score allows theoracle to use extra spells, as follows:

Wisdom Extra Spells15 1 first level spell16 1 first level spell17 1 second level spell18 1 third level spell

These bonuses are cumulative, just asfor clerics with high wisdom.

Similarly, a high intelligence scoreoffers special benefits to the oracle above

and beyond the usual extra languageability, as follows:

Bonus to chance ofIntelligence successful divination16 +5%17 +10%18 +15%

Note that this extra chance of successapplies only to certain of the innate abili-ties, but to none of the divination spellsavailable to oracles.

Oracles are most often human. Elvesand half-elves may also be of this class,but may not rise higher than the 11thlevel of experience. Gnomes and dwarvesare of a temperament not well suited tothe disciplines of oracular ability, andhalf-orcs and halflings rarely possessthe mental faculties to qualify. Thus,these last four races should be prohibit-ed from taking up the class.

The experience-level structure amongoracles is similar in some ways to that ofdruids and monks, in that the numbers ofcharacters at certain levels is restricted.While there may be any number of ora-cles between the first and 11th levels,there are only one each of the higher-level oracles.

A character wishing to rise from 11thlevel to 12th (Soothsayer to Seer), afterearning sufficient experience points,must seek out the single Seer and chal-lenge him or her to a game of riddles.Dungeon Masters are referred to PatriciaMcKillip’s Hed trilogy or J.R.R. Tolkien’sThe Hobbit to see how this might bedone. The winner of this game becomes(or continues to be) the Seer, entitled tothe possessions and abilities that go withthe title. After a month of self-training, acharacter newly claiming the title of Seerwill be able to use new spells and certaininnate abilities. As with other combats ofthis type, the loser returns to the min-imum number of experience points al-lowable for the 11th level (630,001 xp),and must begin to climb again. A riddle-game may not be attempted until a Sooth-sayer has sufficient experience points torise a level. It should be noted that theSeer is in a precarious position, sincethere are usually many who come tochallenge him.

At 13th level and higher, there is nocompetition. A position in the higherlevels becomes open only when its oc-cupant dies. Then the character of thelevel immediately below the open posi-tion will move up into it, provided that hehas enough experience points to fulfillthat requirement. Every lower-rankingoracle then moves up accordingly (sub-ject to the experience-point require-ment), and if necessary a new Seer ischosen by a riddle-tournament heldamongst any characters with enoughexperience points to claim the position.For example, if the Low Prophet were todie, the Seer (if he had enough expe-rience) would move up to that position,

15

Dragonand a new Seer would be chosen fromamongst the Soothsayers.

For each position above 11th level,there exists a vast and unique library,containing all of the information neededby an oracle of that level. Thus, a newSeer would find in his newly acquiredlibrary volumes containing the new spellshe may use, along with equipment andinstructions for his new innate abilities.The oracles possessing these librariesdo not own them, but leave them behindfor the next oracle when they rise inlevel.

Characters of 11th level and below,though, must seek training in the sameway that characters of any other classmust. They cannot impose upon oraclesof 12th level or higher to give them this‘training, because oracles of that muchstature are loath to waste time on suchmatters.

Oracles of lower than 12th level maycarry or own whatever they wish (sub-ject, of course, to a few class restric-tions), and may travel about freely andhold any faith. Only the wisest and mostintelligent of oracles ever make it to thehigher levels, and although such ad-vancement is the general goal of everyoracle, most do not pursue it exclusively.

Higher-level oracles will never be keptin the service of a single person or aparticular group of characters, but willlive in some secluded part of the worldwhere they will not often be disturbed.There, they study and expand their ex-perience as much as they can. The lairsof these oracles are more or less per-manent structures or enclosures, andthey come with the position; when anoracle of high level rises, he oftenchanges lairs as well. Thus, people tendto identify more with the positions andlocations of oracles than with their indi-vidual names or identities.

In many ways, oracles are similar tomagic-users. They fight and save on theM-U tables, they are subject to the sameweapon and armor restrictions as magic-users, and they are able to use any de-vice or magic item that a magic-user canemploy. The only major difference be-tween the classes (apart from certain in-nate special abilities) is in the way thatspells are recovered; this will be des-cribed below.

It is possible for an oracle to be of anyalignment, although those of the highestlevels tend to be true neutral. In anycase, that is a reflection on their temper-ament rather than their religious prefer-ence. An oracle, as he progresses inpower and ability, will likely turn awayfrom any extreme alignment and becomemore and more neutral in his outlook.

Similarly, an oracle may technicallyworship any god he wishes, but will tendto abandon his faith as he rises in level.Divinations need not, as the name wouldseem to suggest, come from a god, but

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

rather from the earth and the spheres.Gods must live by the laws of the uni-verse in an AD&D game, just as men andbeasts do, and thus oracles must go“beyond the gods” to achieve their pre-dictions. They read things from the struc-ture of the universe, which exists in spiteof the gods rather than because of them,and there they find their answers. Thus,an oracle with an extremely fervent faithwill not be liable to advance to the high-est levels of. his class, because his inter-pretation of the omens of the universewill be slanted by adherence to his faith.

first level, or correspondingly fewer ofhigher levels (up to 4th). When a Sooth-sayer rises to Seer, however, he mustabandon his followers and they likewisemust abandon him. High-level oracles,as mentioned earlier, lead solitary livesand seek seclusion rather than the ado-ration of followers or students.

Innate powersAt each level of experience, oracles

gain certain innate powers of divination.The accuracy and usefulness of theseincrease with the oracle’s level.

At the 5th level of experience, an ora- The following chart gives the innatecle begins to attract followers. At this oracular abilities, the level at which eachpoint, he will gather one or two students is first gained, and the chance of suc-of zero or first level. Upon attainment of cessful divination using that ability ateach level higher than 5th, the maximum that level and all higher levels of expe-number of students is doubled; at 11th rience. Abilities where the chance forlevel, a Soothsayer may have as many as success may be improved by an intelli-128 students and followers of zero or gence bonus are marked by an asterisk.

Ability Percentage chance for success at experience level1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

Rhabdomancy 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90Arithomancy* 08 11 14 17 20 23 26 29 32 35 38 41 44 47 50 53Cleromancy* 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80Coscinomancy 12 16 20 24 28 32 36 40 44 48 52 56 60 64 68Austromancy* 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80Capnomancy*(combined)*

BelomancyHepatoscopy*Meteoromancy*Ornithomancy*Hydromancy*Hieromancy*Ophiomancy*Pyromancy*Botanomancy*(with spell)*

Astromancy*Horoscopy*Oneirocritica*Lithomancy*DactylomancyHaruspicy*Sciomancy*Catoptromancy*Licanomancy*Gastromancy*Crystallomancy*

15 20 25 3045 60 75 90

15 20 2515 20 25

20 252222

35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 8000 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 0030 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 7530 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 7530 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 7529 36 43 50 57 64 71 78 85 9229 36 43 50 57 64 71 78 85 9226 32 38 44 50 56 62 68 74 8026 32 38 44 50 56 62 68 74 80

30 38 46 52 60 68 76 84 9229 33 37 41 45 49 53 57 6179 83 87 91 95 99 00 00 00

30 39 48 57 66 75 84 9330 39 48 57 66 75 84 9330 35 40 45 50 55 60 65

30 40 50 60 70 80 9030 35 40 45 50 55 60

35 50 65 80 95 9935 50 65 80 95

25 40 55 7040 60 80

70 9599

Explanations of innate abilitiesRhabdomancy: This is the art of dows-

ing for water or oil, or for metals of var-ious types. Any forked wooden stick maybe used, although hazelwood works best(+1% to chance of success per level oforacle).

The stick is held by the prongs with thepalms of the hands facing upward andhorizontal to the ground while the endsof the prongs project outward. The point-ing end of the stick should be slightlyelevated above horizontal. When water,or oil or metal, are directly beneath therod, the end will force itself downward toindicate the presence of the substance.

Oil or water will be located by a simple,

bare wooden rod, but metals can befound by dowsing only if a bit of themetal sought is attached to the pointingend of the stick. Any metal of a non-magical nature can be dowsed for; how-ever, metal which is used for currency oris valuable because of its rarity is locatedat a penalty of 10% to the chance forsuccess. Iron, other common metals andcommon alloys (bronze, brass, etc.) canbe found at no penalty.

Arithomancy: This, in essence, is nu-merology. An oracle will assign numbersto the letters in the name of a person,place or thing and make a divinationabout the nature of the thing so namedand “numbered.” This prediction will re-

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veal, to some extent, whether the person,place or thing is good or evil, and wheth-er it involves good fortune or bad. Thisability incorporates the skills of ono-mancy, which considers the letters in aname themselves rather than the num-bers they may represent.

Cleromancy: This is divination by lots.An oracle practicing this ability wouldcast down a number of small dice or tiny,marked bones, and make a predictionfrom the numbers that turn up. A suc-cessful divination will tell the oraclewhether the characters asking for thedivination (or himself, of course) willhave good or bad fortune in the nextw e e k .

Coscinomancy: This is a method thatan oracle may use to determine the guiltor responsibility of a known character incausing a known event. The oracle willbalance a small brass sieve on two fin-gers, or on the points of a pair of shears(+5% to chance of success for any levelof oracle), and then describe the event (acrime, usually). After that, the names ofcharacters suspected of causing theevent or committing the crime are spo-ken before the balancing sieve. If the div-ination is successful, and the name ofthe guilty character is spoken, the sievewill begin to wobble at that time, indicat-ing guilt.

Austromancy: This means of divina-tion allows the oracle to know whetherthe fortune of a character will be good orbad during the next week by studyingthe winds and the movements of cloudsfor a day.

Capnomancy: This method of divina-tion achieves the same effect as austro-mancy, but the determination is througha day’s study of the movements of smoke(in still air). During this time, a smoky firemust be maintained for the oracle.

If austromancy and captomancy arecombined at the same time and in thesame effort, the effects and length oftime required remain the same, but thechance of successful divination triples.

Belomancy: This, like cleromancy, is aform of divination by lots; however, ituses arrows or notched sticks instead ofdice. Answers to a question posed by acharacter are written on the arrows, andthese, along with a single blank arrow,are placed in a bag. If the divination issuccessful, and the correct answer isamong those written on arrows, the ora-cle will draw out of the bag the arrowwith the correct answer. If the divinationis not successful, though, the blank ar-row will be drawn. Any arrow drawn fromthe bag after the first one will be blank,regardless of the number of blank ar-rows first placed in the bag. No questionmay be asked more than once; arrowsfor repeated questions will always beblank.

Hepatoscopy: This method of divina-(Turn to page 68)

September 1981 Dragon

17

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

by Lewis Pulsipher

The term “heraldry” is widely used todenote the study and use of coats ofarms to identify persons, families, or or-ganizations. The correct term for this is“armory,” while “heraldry” properly ref-ers to all the duties of heralds. Theseduties included record keeping (espe-cially of coats of arms), acting as mes-sengers and negotiators, and organizingevents such as tournaments, corona-tions, and celebrations. This article isconcerned only with armory and its ap-plication to fantasy role-playing.

The origins of the use of coats of armsare obscure. In ancient Israel and RajputIndia, badges were used to identify tribesor people loyal to a prince. The seal cy-linders used in ancient Mesopotamia toidentify persons, American Indian to-tems, and some flags are also distantrelatives of armory.

Only Japan and western Europe deve-loped true feudal systems, and only Ja-pan developed something approachingthe complex European system of armo-ry: the “mon.” This heraldic badge wasnever displayed large enough to be seenat some distance, like a coat of arms wasdisplayed on a shield, but it resembles acoat of arms in many respects: It wasused for decoration as well as identifica-tion, it was displayed by troops and re-tainers as well as by the man entitled tobear it, and after several centuries of usethe privilege to bear the mon was con-fined to those legally registered with thesovereign’s consent.

The purpose of the coat of arms was toidentify at a distance the man carrying orwearing the colors. During the Normanconquest of England and the First Cru-sade (both in the eleventh century) coatsof arms did not exist, though a few indi-viduals might bear an animal figure on ashield. But as helms improved they co-vered more of a man’s face, and armoralso obscured the wearer’s identity as itbecame more complex and covered moreof the wearer’s body. Moreover, the Cru-saders, speaking a dozen different lan-guages and unfamiliar with their newcomrades, needed some simple meansof recognizing one another. It was not

enough to know a man’s nationality;troops were loyal to individuals, not tonations.

Gradually, leaders began to adoptsimple colored patterns to display onshields, surcoats, and flags to extricatethemselves and their followers from theanonymity of full armor. Words or letterswould not have served, of course, in aworld of nearly universal illiteracy. Alarge display was necessary in a military

Left: arms of Michael de la Pole, Earl ofSuffolk; azure, a fess between three leo-pards’ faces or. Right: arms of WilliamMadault, Earl of Warwick; argent, twobars gules. (See text for an explanationof the descriptions.)

system dominated by armored cavalry,for it was vital to know whether a manwas friend or foe before one charged.

Arms also served as patterns on sealsand signet rings. In some cases, such asthe Great Seal of England, any docu-ment not stamped with the proper sealhad no validity or force in law.

At first the patterns adopted were sim-ple, with ease of recognition uppermostin mind. But as more knights adoptedarms, more elaborate patterns wereneeded to avoid duplication. Neverthe-less, duplication could occur, on at leastone occasion requiring the personal in-tervention of the King of England to de-termine who rightfully bore the arms.

It became evident that some record ofwho was entitled to which arms wouldhelp keep the peace. At this same time(fourteenth century), sovereigns beganto grant arms to those deemed worthy,and finally it became illegal to adopt acoat of arms without consent of the sov-ereign. Military leaders usually adopted

18

or obtained coats of arms, and so theholders of arms were usually nobility.

In parts of Europe, only those whocould prove that all 16 of their great-great-grandparents were entitled to beararms (“seize quartiers”) could them-selves bear arms. But in other areas,even certain peasants possessed coatsof arms. Clergy also became associatedwith arms. The abbot of a monastery orbishop of a province carried the arms ofthe body he represented. And thoughclergy were not supposed to fight, manydid so and consequently deserved armsto identify themselves and their retain-ers. Military orders (such as the KnightsTemplars) and guilds also obtained arms.

Before some of the rules and conven-tions of armory are described, it shouldbe pointed out how armory may be in-corporated into role-playing. First, theDM must decide where a country lies inthe progression from assumed arms togranted arms. If the country is lawful orneutral, loyal and obedient to a singlesovereign lord, then the lord may wellhave begun to grant arms while prohibit-ing the assumption of arms without hispermission.

In a less orderly country, or an arearuled by a lord who owes nominal alle-giance to a higher sovereign, powerfulindividuals may assume arms withoutfear of prosecution from the ruler, thoughthey still must beware of a dispute withsomeone who already has similar arms.Such a dispute might be settled by battleor in a High Court.

Coats of arms may be held by anypowerful individual, though fighters are

Left: arms of Gilbert de Clare, Earl ofGloucester and Hertford; or, three chev-rons gules. Right: arms of Roger le Big-od, Earl of Norfolk; or, a cross gules.

September 1981 Dragonmost likely to have arms, and a man withmany retainers, even a merchant or oth-er non-adventurer, is more likely to re-quire arms than is a lone magic-user orthief. Possession of arms is consideredto be a prerogative of a gentleman, so athief or other person living on the fringesof acceptable society is not likely to beararms.

In chaotic areas, duplication of armsmight be common, even deliberate. Manyleaders might not bear arms at all, pref-erring some other method of identifica-tion such as a distinctive style of armoror helmet.

In any area where infantry rather thancavalry dominates the armed forces,coats of arms could be less commonlyused. Of course, flags can incorporatecoats of arms, but they can also repre-sent nations rather than individual lords.Where only the arms are used for identi-fication, it is possible to impersonate anindividual or pretend to be a group ofretainers of some lord. There are manyopportunities to make armory and he-raldry a part of the game if the DM iswilling to do the necessary groundwork.The descriptions and definitions beloware merely an introduction; in order tounderstand armory better, the readershould consult reference works such asthose listed in the bibliography.

The language of armoryAn “achievement of arms” or “armorial

bearings” consists of several elements—the crest, helm, supporters, mantling,and shield. But for the original purpose(identification) only a patterned shieldwas used, and this is the only elementthis article will describe.

Armory uses a special language, des-cended from French and Old English, todescribe the pattern of arms. While thedetails can become complex, the objec-tive was to describe the pattern briefly,elegantly, and uniquely, however strangethe words may sound today. As the ele-ments of the patterns are discussed,some of the words needed to blazon, ordescribe, the arms will be introduced.

Only nine contrasting tinctures areused on a shield, divided into five colors,two metals, and two furs. For practicaluse, the metals can be considered twoadditional colors, while the furs are pat-terns of two other tinctures. The colorsare black (sable), red (gules), blue(azure), green (vert), and purple (pur-pure). In England, orange-brown (tenne)and sanguine (murry) are occasionallyused, but they are regarded as taintedcolors indicating illegitimacy or otherfault or flaw in the bearer’s ancestry.

The metals are gold (or), usually re-presented as yellow, and silver (argent),usually shown as white.

The rarely used furs are ermine andvair. Ermine is an argent background cov-ered by regularly spaced black marks,

which consist of an arrowhead sur-mounted by three small dots, one justabove the point and one to either sideand slightly lower. This “fur” derivesfrom the fur of the arctic stoat (ermine),which, used as the lining of cloaks, be-came a symbol of rank and office. Vair(from an unusual squirrel fur) is repre-sented by rows of bell shapes, the argentupside down and the other tincture (us-ually azure) right side up so that the tworows fit together alternately; four setscover the shield.

The first element of the blazon (de-scription) is the tincture of the shield as awhole, the field. Occasionally the fieldmay be a pattern of small objects, similarin effect to one of the furs. Next comesthe charge, describing the object placedover the field. Sometimes a party field (afield of two tinctures used in roughlyequal amounts) is used without a basiccharge.

The field and charge alone are enoughto construct many distinctive patterns,but most arms include elaborations ofthe charge. These include heraldic an-imals, crosses, towers, abstract shapes,common beasts — virtually anything theoriginator of the arms desires,

Arms may be differenced and mar-shalled as well, to indicate marriage al-liances, sons, bastardy, and the like. Dif-ferencing and marshalling can be a com-plicated subject, and should be pursuedfurther only by those readers who aresufficiently interested.

Anatomy of the fieldThe rule of armory is that no color

should be placed on a color and no metalon a metal. For example, a gold chargemay be placed on a blue background (orvice versa), but a gold charge should not

Armorial bearings of John Comber, Esq.:Arms described as quarterly, 1 and 4, or,a fess dancette’ gules, between three es-toiles sable; 2 and 3, argent, a chevronsable, between three thorntrees proper.

19

be placed on a silver background. Thisrule was adopted to heighten contrastand improve visibility at a distance. It isdone, however, and whether the ruleshould be enforced (and how) must beleft to each DM.

The parts of the field are named in thelanguage of armory as follows. The leftside or flank as one looks at the shield isthe dexter, the right side the sinister.(These latter terms derive from the Latinfor right and left, respectively, but this isfrom the viewpoint of someone behindthe shield, the one holding it.)

The chief is the top third of the field;the fess is the middle third; and the baseis the bottom third. The blazon for a redshield with a white top third, then, is“gules, a chief argent.”

The parts of the shield which comprisethe basic charges are also known as or-dinaries. There are other ordinaries be-sides the chief, fess and base which donot so easily correspond to parts of thefield. A pale is a broad vertical line run-ning from the top to bottom of the shieldthrough the middle. A chevron is an in-verted “V” not quite reaching the top ofthe shield, but entering the chief at itspoint. The bend is a diagonal bar run-ning from upper left to lower right. Asaltire is a narrower bend plus a bendsinister — that is, a bend running fromlower left to upper right; the entire de-sign looks like an “X.”

The lines followed by the ordinariesmay be used to divide the shield per par-ty. For example, per party saltire (or justper saltire) is a shield divided into fourquarters by an “X.” A shield divided by across would be quarterly. There are manyvariations on these basic patterns, suchas bendy (several narrow bends parallelto each other), a chief indented (with asawtooth-like boundary rather than astraight-line boundary), or a cross wavy(with a wavy rather than a straight out-line), or bordure (a narrow border allaround the field).

Thus, a shield “per pale gules andazure a chevron or, a bordure sable” isred on the left, blue on the right, with aninverted yellow V over the colors of thefield and a black border around theshield. A book of heraldry will describemany other combinations.

Charges: decoration and identificationThe primary charges on the field can

be virtually anything. There are conven-tional drawings (and special names) forthe more common charges, as well as alanguage for describing how the chargeis arranged when there can be doubt. Forexample, it is not enough to say where ananimal is on the shield; its facing andattitude must also be stated to avoidambiguity.

When a man assumed arms, he oftenchose charges symbolic of himself or hisfamily. The less solemn might make a

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

play on words, such as the family of Catt,Catton, or Keats using a cat as a charge.William Shakespeare’s arms showed ahand grasping several spears. An animalrelated to the location or nature of hisestates, such as a fish for an island-dwelling knight, might be preferred.

The more serious or idealistic mightchoose symbols to emphasize theircourage or good fortune. Thus the lion,symbol of valor, was a favorite charge,and the dragon likewise. Religious pietycould be expressed in the arms. TheChristian (Latin) cross is the classicmeans, but a special cross of Calvary,angels, or other religious symbols mightbe used.

A list of some types of popular chargesincludes: divine beings, humans, lions,deer (stag, hind, etc.), felines (cat, pan-ther, Bengal tiger, etc.), bears, elephants,camels, birds, fish, insects, monster(dragons, wyverns, unicorns, griffons,etc.), celestial objects (sun, moon, stars[“etoiles”], clouds), trees, plants, flowers(fleur-de-lis, rose, etc.), and certain inan-imate objects (castle, five-pointed star[“mullet”], caltrop, whirlpool, galley,sword). When a charge is presented in itsnatural color, the blazon is said to be“proper.”

Four-legged animals are frequentlyused as charges. The common attitudesare defined below. (Generally, the tail iserect.)

Rampant (as “a lion rampant”): Animalstands on one hind leg with three legs inthe air at different angles.

Passant: Three legs are on the groundwith the dexter foreleg raised to headheight. The tail curves over the back.

Salient: Leaping, but with both hindlegs still on the ground. (The “ground”the animal stands on is never shown, ofcourse.)

Statant: As passant, but with all fourlegs on the ground.

Sejant: Seated on hindquarters with alllegs on the ground. (Sejant erect: Frontpaws are high in the air at differentangles.)

Couchant: Legs and belly are on theground but head and tail are held high,the tail first passing between the legs.

Dormant: As couchant, but with headdown and tail on the ground —sleeping,in effect.

Lion statant (left), lion passant guardant(top right), and lion passant regardant(bottom right).

Armorial bearings of Pirrie of Belfast:Arms described as argent, a saltire gules,between in chief and in base a bugle-horn stringed sable, and in fess two sea-horses respecting one another proper.Crest is described as “on a wreath of thecolours, a falcon’s head erased per sal-tire argent and gules.” The motto reads“Deeds, not words.”

In all positions the animal faces to thedexter. Other terms (below) describe thehead position. Unless one of these isused, the head also faces to the dexter.

Guardant: Head faces the person look-ing at the shield.

Reguardant: Head looks backwardover the animal’s shoulder.

An animal “sinister” (as in “Lion pas-sant guardant sinister”) faces the rightside of the shield as we look at it.

Blazoning is fairly simple once youpick up some of the vocabulary. Afterreading just a few paragraphs, you knowwhat that strange concoction, “a lionrampant guardant or,” means. Boutell’sHeraldry (see bibliography) gives de-scriptions of all the terms you’ll everwant to look up.

The use of arms in gamingThere are a myriad of ways for the DM

to incorporate the use of armory in thecampaign. Three general suggestionsare given below, and should cause otherpossibilities to come to mind.

First, a player who possesses armshears of or meets a non-player characterwith similar arms. Is this an honest mis-take, or is the NPC trying to deceive oth-ers? The player character can hardly ig-nore the situation — he’ll have to investi-gate further.

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Second, some non-player characteraccuses a player character of stealingthe accuser’s armorial bearings. A chal-lenge to combat or an appeal to the highcourt may result. The accusation may beonly a means to some dark end.

Third, in order to accomplish somegoal the player desires — for example,marriage to a noble’s daughter, he mustearn arms from the King. This means hemust visit the King (a wilderness adven-ture in itself) to discover what he can doto earn arms, and then he’ll have to ac-complish that task.

BibliographyDozens of books about heraldry have

been published in the past twenty years.In general, one is better off avoiding theolder books, especially those of the lastcentury.

J. P. Brooke-Little, ed., Boutell’sHeraldry

L. G. Pine, Teach Yourself HeraldryCharles MacKinnion, Observers Book

of Heraldry(Editor’s note: Illustrations for this ar-

ticle, and the descriptions accompany-ing those illustrations, were taken from“The Art of Heraldry” by Arthur CharlesFox-Davies, published in 1976 by ArnoPress, New York. Readers are referred tothat book or a similar reference work fordefinitions of terms mentioned in thecaptions which are not included in theauthor’s text. There are far too manyspecific terms used in armory and he-raldry for an article of this scope to beable to cover them all. The meaning ofmany of the terms can be figured out bymatching the elements of a descriptionwith its accompanying picture.)

Of course, the best place to start is theencyclopedia. Most heraldry books willtell you far more than you’ll ever want toknow; an encyclopedia gives you a moremanageable dose.

(Editor’s note: Examples of the use ofheraldry in fantasy role-playing may befound in THE WORLD OF GREYHAWK™fantasy world setting by Gary Gygax[produced by TSR Hobbies, Inc.].

The front and back covers of this play-ing aid are crowded with full-color armsfor the various nations described within.Some traditional heraldic rules such ascolor combinations are broken, but this is in the name of artistic license to pro-duce a better-looking product.

Many of the arms were designed tocorrespond to the factions they repres-ented: The arms of the Free City ofGreyhawk have a broken chain over awailed city; the Orcs of the Pomarj have agrinning skull; the Hold of Stonefist —you guessed it, a stone fist.

A total of 78 arms are depicted, andthere is a brief discussion on orders ofknighthood and how they may conflictand compete in a fantasy world setting.)

September 1981 Dragon

This reproduction of the armorial bearings of Sir Humphrey Francis de Traffordillustrates how complex an armory design could be. The elements of the arms aredescribed as follows: Quarterly of twenty, 1. argent, a griffin segreant gules; 2. argent,two bears, and in chief two mullets pierced azure; 3. argent, on a bend azure, threegarbs proper; 4. quarterly, gules and or, in the first quarter a lion passant argent; 5.paly of six argent and gules, a chief vaire; 6. argent, on a bend gules, three escarbun-cles sable; 7. vert, a cross engrailed ermine; 8. or, a saltire sable; 9. azure, a chevronargent, between three garbs proper; 10. bendy barry gules and argent; 11. argent, achevron gules, between three chaplets; 12. argent, three bars sable; 13. gules, twolions passant guardant in pale argent; 14. argent, on a chevron quarterly gules andsable, between three birds of the second as many bezants; 15. argent, three garbsproper, banded or; 16. argent, a fess sable, in chief three torteaux; 17. argent on a childproper, wrapped in swaddling clothes gules, and banded or, an eagle sable; 18. argent,a griffin segreant azure; 19. argent, a griffin segreant sable, ducally crowned or; 20.azure, a hind trippant argent, and impaling the arms of Franklin, namely: azure, on abend invected between two martlets or, a dolphin naiant between two lions’ headserased of the field.

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Some universal rulesMaking your own campaign

— and making it workby Roger E. Moore

Something that tends to happen whendifferent people in an ADVANCEDDUNGEONS & DRAGONS® campaigntake turns serving as the Dungeon Mas-ter is that alternate (or parallel) uni-verses start to proliferate. I don’t knowhow it is for the other AD&D™ groups outthere, but in all three of the groups I’vebeen with there seems to have been aminimum of three or four different uni-verses in operation at any given time,with the characters travelling back andforth depending upon who was the DMat the time. In one campaign there wereno less than eight universes, and it was alot like living in Philip Jose Farmer’sWorld of Tiers novels. This makes for awide variety of adventure, certainly, andeach DM gets to run things as he/shewould like to see them run.

I started the process of universe crea-tion myself a few months ago, afterDM’ing an adventure in the City State ofthe Invincible Overlord for the hundredthtime. As worthy and enjoyable as thatgame world is, I and my players needed achange. And I wanted to run my ownuniverse. Fortunately I had some vaca-tion time coming up, so I went some-where quiet and near a MacDonald’s res-taurant and began working up a world.

One of the most valuable assets onecan have in universe creation is a famil-iarity with other people’s universes. I’veread of places such as Urshurak, Won-derland, Zothique, Cimmeria, the Nigh-tland, and dozens of others. I’ve alsoplayed the GAMMA WORLD™ and BOOTHILL™ games as well as AD&D adven-tures. I remember the feel of each ofthese worlds and how it was created bythe author.

The first major problem I had was de-ciding whether I wanted to recreate oneof the fantasy universes I’d read about,or make my world wholly original. Thiswas a difficult decision. I rememberedthe fun on one expedition when wecrossed universes and became confusedabout our whereabouts until someone inthe party noticed that the road we weretraveling on was composed of yellowbrick....

Doubtless, it would be great fun to visitthe Emerald City, or fight with Conan at

your side, or lift a glass of mead at thePrancing Pony in Bree. The problem issetting up such a “borrowed” universe tobegin with. Familiarity with some uni-verses requires a working knowledge ofseveral volumes of literature. How manyOz books were written? How many Elricbooks? Tolkein’s Middle Earth books?The amount of material from which onemust draw can be staggering.

Then the inconsistencies appear be-tween aspects of the AD&D rules andtheir namesakes in fantasy literature.The elves of Middle Earth are immortal,not just long-lived. The dwarves of TheSword of Shannara’s world, Rocannon’sWorld and of Carolingian Europe (ThreeHearts and Three Lions) are not alike atall and only remotely resemble the AD&Dconception of them. Ourboros Mercuryuses completely new dominant racescalled Demons, Witches, and Pixes, withno similarity whatsoever to what thegame rules call a demon, witch, and pix-ie. Ad infinitum.

Universes taken from literature can beexcellent for limited adventuring, butthis way of playing can destroy balancein a campaign unless it is carefully con-trolled. Conversely, reshaping the book’suniverse to fit the AD&D rules may dis-tort or destroy the originality and bal-ance of the former. Can you see makingElrond not immortal? How could youhandle that?

I set aside my designs for a “book uni-verse” — with some reluctance — andturned to working out an original uni-verse. Some broad rules were needed forits nature. I decided at the outset not tomess with the rules in the AD&D manu-als to any great extent, because balanceand playability are the most importantelements of any successful game uni-verse. I remembered playing in realmswhere anyone (or anything) could be apaladin, where gods walked among theparty and gave you artifacts and levelsfor just tying their shoes, and wheremagical weapons were so powerful thatthe gods themselves could be slain withimpunity: gods, not just archdevils.

The game balance went so far out ofwhack that we lost all sense of propor-tion. “Another million gold. Ho hum.”Some people would argue that thegroup’s power is balanced in a “give-

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away” campaign by tougher monsters.Many DM’s (including myself) have fallento the temptation of matching firepowerwith firepower, ignoring the regular mon-ster charts. Beasties like lbathene andPhase Dopplegancer Balor-Trolls startmaking the rounds more frequently.

The arms race escalates, and gamebalance and proportion collapse at thesame time Soon one day, you’ll hear oneof the players say, “Gee, remember theold days when orcs were something tothink about?” If you want to avoid beingstung by such comments (like I was),then you’ll try harder to keep the cam-paign balanced.

What’s your universe going to looklike? It’s generally a good idea to placeyour campaign on a planet, enabling youto define natural events like day andnight, eclipses, seasons, etc. The worlddoesn’t have to be round, of course. Itcan be any other shape you feel is reaso-nable, but it should be large enough for along period of exploration. Examples ofalternatives to the spherical-planet uni-verse may be found in the World of Tiersseries by Philip Jose Farmer and in someof the works by Larry Niven. (Ringworld,A Hole in Space). Be sure you know whatyou’re doing when you do it; it isn’t ne-cessary to draw out the entire planet’ssurface before the adventurers get there,but it may be helpful to have roughsketches in mind of the major land mas-ses, oceans, moons and suns, etc.

I chose a planet. I also wanted to givethe general environment a quality unlikethe usual campaign in the near-tropicsof the City State. I wanted a change inthe type of encounters the party wouldhave. The options I had included makingthe environment hotter, colder, wetter,drier, brighter, darker, more or less mag-ically oriented (as opposed to more orless fighter-oriented), more or fewerelves/dwarves/orcs/trolIs/etc. I happento like winter, so I considered an earth-like planet farther from its sun than ourhome. The consequences would includea shorter and poorer growing season, sothat herding and hunting remain pre-dominant ways of life. Cities might befewer in number, and nomadic peoplesmight become more frequent. Much ofthe fauna would likely be giant-sized tooffset the effects of the cold.

September 1981 DragonAll of this would mean the campaign

might be tougher than usual, and I’dhave to make sure the party wasn’t set upto be creamed in the first encounter. Acheck in the Monster Manual and theDungeon Masters Guide gave someideas of the types of encounters the par-ty would have, and I made pages of noteson what was likely to exist on my world(like sabertooths) and what wasn’t(couatl, for instance). “Titan” was wellon the way to completion. Or so I thought.

The encounter table gave me moretrouble than I’d expected. It becameclear that men and gnolls would be fre-quent adversaries on Titan, consideringtheir natures and the relative abundanceof both races. Dwarves and elves, how-ever, didn’t show up on the arctic or sub-arctic tables in the DMG, so I “created”them in very small numbers and placedthem in generally limited areas. Kobolds,gnomes, and goblins went into near ex-tinction, with only a handful of gnomesliving with the dwarves. Trolls were morecommon than usual, and giant animalsmore abundant than any other type ofcreature. Frost giants became dominantamong their kind.

Certainly I knew I wasn’t going to haveevery creature in the Monster Manual,but I balanced the whole in proportionssimilar to those in the DMG and hadenough monsters to the point I felt varie-

created a few monsters of my own andadded them to the landscape. Whitepuddings (like the black ones, onlywhite), cryohydra (like pyrohydra, onlywith a frosty breath), giant arctic spiders,and so on, found their place in the world.

I assumed that Titan had been popu-lated by greater deities or the like frompolar climates of other worlds, so themythos I used involved some gods fromNorse mythology, as well as any othergods I felt might be appropriate. Sincethe level of culture was rather primitiveand barbaric, war gods might be some-what more frequent. The gnolls wouldworship their demon prince, the dwarveswould go for Thor or Mahal (Aule theSmith from The Silmarillion), and theelves would like Norse and Tolkien gods.The ice toads and trolls would likelyworship anything that looked unusual,like ancient statues, big gems, or eachother. Some ice devils might find the lo-cale to be pleasant, and they would bringthe worship of Geryon to their neigh-bors. An eclectic mythos would develop,and possibly take on added dimensionsfrom the environmental factors and fromthe history of the inhabitants themselves.

As for the planet’s history, I decided itwas several thousands of years old as faras the participation of the inhabitantsthemselves. One or more deities eitherterraformed the world or found it habita-

inhabited), and then proceeded to colo-nize it with creatures found in an AD&Dcampaign. The histories of individualtribes and cities would vary, but would ingeneral be leading toward a more organ-ized, centralized human civilization anda more widespread area of gnolldom.

The conflicts of law and chaos, goodand evil, would still go on. Because ofalignment and material needs, I had menand dwarves be closely allied in general,with elves being somewhat distant butproviding assistance because of theirbasic good nature.

Gnolls, ogres, and trolls banded to-gether and formed a powerful chaoticevil coalition, which caused a generalshift in human alignment toward lawfulgood. The villains’ alignment being whatit is, of course, the evil coalition is unsta-ble and its broad plans of conquest areoften hamstrung by infighting.

I also created a small list of specialpersonalities that might be found in thelocal playing area, such as the local gnollchieftain and the humans and dwarves ofhigh levels (like that 16th level Wizard inthe tower on a mountain peak, and thedwarven armorer for the adventurers’town). The towns, lairs, and wanderersin a 100-mile radius were developed indetail, and the place where the adven-turers were to “pop in” was set near asmall town with a wooden palisade wall

ty wasn’t lacking. After some thought, I ble by certain species (possibly already and large herds of livestock.

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DragonHowever, there is now the question of

how to get people from Universe A toUniverse B. The Dungeon Master canarbitrarily declare the party to be trans-ported to the new universe without anyexplanation, but this chops up the conti-nuity of the campaign and is too ambig-uous. The groups I’ve played with atMannheim, Germany, and Fort Bragg,N.C., came up with a number of methodsfor universe-shifting that we found more“realistic” and comfortable. Group travelbecame more consistent in our cam-paigns, and it’s not as hard to get toMars, Titan, Oz, Gamma World, Shem,Xenex, or Parthon from Middle Earth asit used to be. These universe-shifting de-vices include:

1. Cross-universal caves: These aregreat because they fit right into the localgeography, and adventures can be setup for the party on the way to the cave tokeep the players on their toes. Just go inone entrance and you exit in the newuniverse.

These caves are usually assumed tohave been created either by “natural”forces or by arch-mages or gods. Theyare open all the time, but are nearly al-ways well hidden, to prevent excessivecross-universe “contamination.” It is pos-sible to find the location of a cave, how-ever, by the large number of unusualcreatures in the general area of the cavewhich have found their way through tothe players’ universe.

2. Teleport chains: This developedfrom an idea given in one of the “MontyHaul” stories published in an old issue ofDRAGON™ magazine. The group finds alength of chain, made from an unidenti-fiable material; when the chain is laidupon the ground around the group andthe ends are joined, everyone inside thechain is “popped” into the new universe,with chain. Reconnecting the chain (pos-sibly after a minimum wait of a day orlonger) sends everyone back to the orig-inal universe.

3. Rings or amulets: The ring may re-semble the fabled Ring of Gaxx, exceptthat turning the stone to one of its facesand activating the ring sends the wearerand everything within so many feet of thewearer to another plane or world. Thering may serve as a gate to severalworlds. The amulet may work in a similarfashion, or may have small buttons orgems to be pressed, individually or insequence. Note that an Amulet of thePlanes can shift people from one paralleluniverse to another, but this item andthose like it would be far more valuablethan simpler devices connected to onlyone other universe. Items like these,which are portable and may be usedfrom any location, should have a min-imum time delay between uses of theitem to prevent impulsive “popping,” andgive the DM a chance to show the play-ers his/her stuff, so to speak. I’d recom-

mend a delay of one day at rock bottomand up to several weeks maximum.

4. Rooms and corridors at the bottomof a dungeon: This is a variation on (1).Everyone goes through a doorway ordown a long hall and is sent to the otherworld. Getting to the transfer point canbe as exciting as what goes on after youpass through it, especially if the gatewayarea is heavily guarded.

5. Cursed scroll: This is self-explan-atory; basically a one-way deal, thoughthe players may discover a way home atthe DM’s option. The major drawback tothis device is that when players are sentsomewhere against their will, it could bea potential paradise for them but they’llstill want to leave and may not want tocome back. Players like — and deserve

some measure of control over wherethey go.

6. Angry Wizard with a new spell: Thisis an arbitrary way of achieving the ob-jective. It usually occurs at the start of anadventure when someone in the partyinadvertently bothers some insane oldman in black robes, who then throws aninth-level universe-shifting spell at theparty or tricks them into reading a cursedscroll. How the players get home again isup to the DM, as in (5). As a “DM Spe-cial,” this suffers from the same problemas (5), unless everyone had expressedsome interest in visiting a different planeto begin with.

7. Wish: A few words, properly put, andeverybody shows up in Hyborea. Unlessthe wording is carefully done, however,you could end up hanging from a treelimb, 100 feet off the ground (as we didonce). You’re there, but . . . DM’s love thissort of thing, as one of our paladinsfound out when he popped into the se-cond floor of a women’s boarding houseon another plane. He was in a safe place,just as he had wished for, though he suf-fered considerable mental duress andwas nearly arrested as a peeping Tom.

8. Magical items causing etherealness:Ethereal plate, Oil of Etherealness, andthe like may allow a shift to a parallelworld, since all parallel worlds are said toco-exist on the prime material plane, andany of them can be reached by travelingthrough the ether.

9. Psionic probability travel: Passagespace may be a bit limited, and there’sthe risk of attracting thought eaters, butthis method will work nonetheless. Notmany people are going to have this pow-er, though. Psionic etherealness willwork, too, but for the user only.

10. Magical spells: Clerics can use theAstral Spell or Plane Shift to go universe-hopping, though there are limitationshere, too. Theoretically, a Word of Recallcould send the cleric between universes;check with your Dungeon Master. Mageshave the Astral Spell, too, and may comeup with other spells of high level thatwould serve equally as well.

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Vol. VI, No. 3

11. Mutational “planar travel”: Crea-tures such as GAMMA WORLD™ mu-tants may be capable of this activity. It isalso possible for an AD&D character tocatch a dose of radiation and developthis particular mutation (among others).

12. An artifact’s powers: One of thepretty songs that Queen Ehlissa’s Night-ingale sings may cause a random planeshift to send the party elsewhere, with orwithout bird (artifacts are notoriouslyuntrustworthy). The rings and amuletsmentioned in (3) may come under thisheading if they connect to a very largenumber of universes and planes, or pos-sess other special powers. Unless youcan control the artifact (DM’s laughter inbackground: Hahaha!) or you don’t carewhere you go next, this method is notrecommended.

13. Advanced technological devices:Somewhere in the wilderness may lie theruins of an ancient spaceport, with a tele-porter to other alternate universes orplanets. The device may be a large booth,a door, a platform, a hollow sphere, etc.It may or may not be in good workingorder, possibly sending users to an un-desired universe.

14. Acts of the gods: This is one way toget a (generally) guaranteed round-tripticket to another universe. Everyone isasked to perform a task for a greater be-ing in that other universe, and is sentthere through the being’s own powers.How well the task is completed may de-termine whether or not the group is re-turned. One group I was with made aforay into Jotunheim (the Norse giant-land) to seek out “the roots of stones.”The task was given us by no less a per-sonage than Odin. What we found, aftera long search, was a small pile of stonesin the back of a cave. Each one had apermanent Magic Mouth on it, and wouldrepeat various cheers such as “G-R-A-N-I-T-E. Granite! Granite! ALLLLLLLLLTHE WAY! HEY!”

“Rooting stones, get it?” said the DMbefore we chased him into the kitchenand tried to throw him out a third-storywindow. He escaped.

These are by no means the only possi-ble methods of travel between universes.Anything might work. Dorothy tapped apair of ruby slippers together and wentfrom Oz to Kansas. Remember how shegot to Oz to begin with? In The Lion, TheWitch and The Wardrobe, the childrenentered Narnia through the back of acoat closet.

In any event, how you get charactersthere is not nearly as crucial to the cam-paign as what they find when they arrive.A well designed world will repay theplaying group with many more hours ofenjoyment than it took to create in thefirst place—and creating it is a lot of fun,too!

September 1981 Dragon

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Adventuring with shaky handsWhere there’s a will, there’s a way to play

by Judith Sampson

If you’ve attended large gatherings ofD&D® game enthusiasts, you’ve verylikely met at least one handicapped ordisabled player. Have you ever wonderedhow they conquered their limitationsand became “just one of the players”?

I’m one such player. Here’s what myproblems are, and how I overcame them.

I have choreo-athetoid cerebral palsy,which sounds like the name of a creaturefrom the AD&D™ Monster Manual. Thismeans the motor control centers in mybrain don’t work properly. My body isgripped by writhing, dancing motionsthat interfere with my sense of balance,the use of my hands, and my reflexes. Ican’t drive a car, walking is a dangerouschore, and everyday life is a constantbattle against a balky body. But I’veachieved enough independence to main-tain my own apartment, and I work part-time as an English composition coach atthe University of Arizona, from which Ihave bachelor’s and master’s degrees increative writing.

I wanted to play in a D&D adventure assoon as I heard about the game fromplayers in the Society For CreativeAnachronism, of which I am an activemember. It took a long time to get a toe-hold in a game, though, primarily be-cause I can’t just hop in a car and drive tosomeone’s home when that person says,“We’re playing tonight, wanna come?”

One of my fellow SCA members, Kurt,rolled up my first D&D character at myrequest one afternoon during a long breakbetween classes at the University ofArizona. I carried the statistics card onthis character for over a year before anyopportunity arose to actually play her.

Later I learned that the university had aStrategic Games Club which meets ev-ery Tuesday night. Although I attendedseveral meetings, I never felt welcomethere. Playing the D&D game turned outto be a passing fad for this club, and I

searched again for several more monthsand years without finding a group of ge-nuinely friendly players and DMs.

At last, I met Joubert, an ex-Navyfrogman, a pre-law student, a genial manwith whom I shared a keen interest inscience fiction, fantasy literature, andplaying the D&D game. Week after week,while we ate our lunches or waited forclasses, he regaled me with tales of hisexploits as a D&D player, past and pres-ent. I told him oneday, “If you ever set upyour own campaign, I want a spot in it!”

About six weeks later, Joubert an-nounced his dungeon was ready. Notonly did he invite me, he arranged trans-portation to wherever his games wereheld. During those early games, I deve-loped the methods of play and ways ofbringing equipment I’ve used since.

I always tell a DM and other players myproblem, and ask for the aid of their morenimble, willing fingers to write down thedata and monetary information, hitpoints, or experience point changes onthe score sheets. I also have other play-ers move my character’s miniature figureas needed, and if I must convey a secretmessage to the DM, I don’t try to write itdown; I go to him and whisper in his ear.

Like most other D&D players I’ve met, Ifeel better tossing dice in my bare hands—but when I do, the dice land anywherebut on the game table, which can invali-date a roll. I have found it best to handleone die at a time, tossed from a cup into adeep container used to catch the die as itfalls.

Over the almost three years I haveplayed in Joubert’s campaign, I have ac-cumulated a capacious canvas bag fullof D&D and AD&D books, other gamemanuals, miniatures (some of thesepainted for me by player-friends) in astorage box, five different dice, a dicecup, a dice-catching box, and the recordsheets for my characters.

After my player characters’ statisticsare finalized and recorded, I type up the

26

record sheets myself, photocopy themon legal-size paper, and store them in mycanvas bag.

I have tried playing games by compu-ter, but all the terminals I have played onhave very sensitive keys, and when Istrike them, I have no control over theheaviness or lightness of my touch.Hence, a computer usually beeps orscreams at me instead of showing gamedata. To play successfully I must tell acomrade at the console which keys Iwish to be punched.

Aside from playing in Joubert’s cam-paign “by hand,” I also play in a D&Dgame by mail. For me this is ideal; every10 days or so the DM, Clif, informs me ofwhat’s happening to my character in hisdungeon, and I respond what I hope isthe proper action (usually I am able towrite to him promptly). I need to roll nodice, I have no paraphernalia to carry; it’sjust me, my typewriter, and letter paper.The DM does all the rest!

But there is one problem, and it’s amajor one. Not everyone in the play-by-mail game has my compulsion to answerClif as swiftly as possible, and some-times Clif’s other duties interfere with hispromptness in sending new data. Thismakes for a long, drawn-out playing timefor each adventure, and much attrition ofplayers who lose interest or no longerhave the time to commit.

The D&D and AD&D games are attrac-tive to handicapped or disabled playersfor the same reasons that other peopleenjoy them. But to someone like me,hampered by hands and body that refuseto be reliable, running a fearless fighter,a nimble thief, a graceful elf, or a power-ful paladin offers the opportunity to beresourceful and quick on one’s feet for awhile, which never happens in my all-too-mundane real world. Free, agile, anddaring in spirit I play, but I can neverforget that when the game’s done, I facea much greater adversary than any a DMcan dream up: my balky body.

September 1981 Dragon

27

Dragon

The

Bogatyrsof

old Kiev

Vol. VI, No. 3

by David Nalle

Vladimir I, Prince of Kiev from 980 to1015, brought Christianity and civiliza-tion to the tribes of the Rus. In the yearsfollowing his reign, a group of oral sto-ries called Byliny grew up about thePrince and the heroes he drew to hiscourt during this “Golden Age” of oldRussia.

At the height of his reign Vladimir hadgathered to him a “Druzhina” of 29 su-perhuman Bogatyr warriors. In addition,each of these Bogatyrs had a Druzhinaof 29 heroes as his retinue. These “juniorBogatyrs” were called Druzhiniks, andbrought to 870 the total number of he-roes at the Prince’s command.

During this period the Bogatyrs led thearmies of Kiev against a series of invad-ing steppe-nomad tribes led by the semi-demonic Tugarin Zmeevich. In addition,each Bogatyr fought a variety of mon-sters which lurked in medieval Russia.Bogatyrs led the army in battle together,but in combat with a single monster itwas their practice to engage them one ata time, preserving the glory of victory fora single Bogatyr.

Described below are the Prince Vla-dimir, the eight major Bogatyrs, theirfoes, and associated inhabitants of Rus-sia at the time. Characteristics for a typi-cal Bogatyr and Druzhinik are also given.

PRINCE VLADIMIR I, THE SAINTAC: 4MOVE: 12”HP: 85NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardSIZE: M (5½’)ALIGNMENT: Lawful goodFIGHTER: 13th levelS:17 I:18 W:20 D:15 C:18 Ch:24

Vladimir is the Prince of all KievanRus, from the sea of Azov to Smolensk.He is theoretically the supreme rulerover the principalities of Moscow andNovgorod as well. He is a fair-mindedruler, and of great judgemental ability.His wife is the lovely Princess Apraksiya.All of the Bogatyrs owe their loyalty toVladimir above all others.

He inherits the martial generalship ofhis ancestor Rurik, and augments it withgreat wisdom and Christianlike charity.He is renowned for his fairness as ajudge.

He wears +5 chainmail, and has a+3/+4 broadsword as his chosen wea-pon. He will always be at the forefront ina fight, surrounded by his Bogatyrs andtheir Druzhiniks.

ILYA MUROMETSAC: 4MOVE: 15”HP: 225NO. Of ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardSIZE: M (6½’)ALIGNMENT: Lawful goodFIGHTER: 20th levelS:22 I:15 W:15 D:15 C:18 Ch:18

llya is a Cossack with long blond hair.He rides a great horse named Burushka-Kosmatushka. He was born paralyzed,and remained that way until age 30. He isof peasant stock, from the village of Ka-racharova. He has three weapons (whichhe forged for himself) plus three arrows.His bow is a +4 weapon and can only bedrawn by a character with strength of 20or more. From it he fires his three arrows,each of which weighs 32 pounds. Thesearrows cannot be fired from a lesserbow, and from his bow they will hit for3-36 points of damage each. His spear is+3/+5, and hits for 2-16 damage when

28

used as a thrusting weapon. His macecannot be lifted by a normal (mortal)man, and does 2-20 points damage whenit hits. He leads Bogatyrs in battle.

DOBRYNYA NIKITCHAC: 4MOVE: 18”HP: 150NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardSIZE: M (6’)ALIGNMENT: Lawful goodFIGHTER: 18th levelBARD: 15th levelS:18 I:18 W:17 D:20 C:15 Ch:18

Dobrynya, second in command of theBogatyrs, is Ilya’s good friend. Kind andsoft-spoken until provoked, he playschess better than any man in Kiev, swimswell and is well educated. An excellentplayer of the gusli, a zither-like instru-ment, he can charm with his playing.

He fights as a normal swordsman witha normal sword in melee, but is an excep-tionally skilled archer. He pulls a heavybow with great accuracy; his arrows are+5 to hit. He does 1-12 points of damagerather than 1-6 with an arrow, and fires atdouble normal speed. Dobrynya is theson of a slave Vladimir freed.

ALYOSHA POPOVICHAC: 3Move: 15”HP: 200NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardSIZE: M (6’)ALIGNMENT: Neutral goodFIGHTER: 18th levelS:17 I:17 W:19 D:18 C:16 CH:15

September 1981 DragonAlyosha is the third in command of the

Bogatyrs. He is shrewd and cunning,and renowned for his utter fearlessness.He is the son of a priest from Rostov. Hefights with a +5 bow, or with a +5 whip.He has a tendency to be argumentative.

VOL’GA VSELAVICH

AC: 6MOVE: 18”HP: 250NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: 25%SIZE: M (7’)ALIGNMENT: Lawful goodFIGHTER: 18th levelS:25 I:20 W:15 D:16 C:15 CH:15

Vol’ga destroyed his cradle at birthand marched right out to start killingmonsters. By the age of 5 he could readand write, and he was fully grown at age6. He wields a special club which weighs3,200 pounds. This club cannot be liftedby another being, and does 3-60 (3d20)points of damage in his hands.

He has the magical ability to changeshape at will into a grey wolf, a stag, or afalcon, and can remain in his non-humanform as long as he wishes. His greatstrength is magical in nature, and if he isnot in contact with the earth it is loweredby 5 points.

MIKULA SCLYANINOVICHAC: 6MOVE: 18”HP: 250NO. OF ATTACKS: 2 fistsDAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-16/2-16SPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardSIZE: M (7’)ALIGNMENT: Neutral goodFIGHTER: 15th levelS:24 I:16 W:14 D:15 C:25 Ch:17

Mikula is Vol’ga’s greatest friend. He isa great plowman, of unending staminaand great strength. Both of these abili-ties are of magical nature, and hisstrength and constitution are each low-ered by 3 if he is not in contact with theearth. He has curly blond hair, dresses asa peasant, and attacks with bare fists.

SVYTOGORAC: 6MOVE: 22”HP: 225NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: Touch crumbles

organic material to dustSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: 75%SIZE: L (10’)ALIGNMENT: NeutralFIGHTER: 17th levelS:25 I:14 W:13 D:13 C:18 Ch:14

Svytogor is a black-haired giant fromthe mountains. He is the least reliable ofthe Bogatyrs, but he is a mighty warrior.His strength is of such a nature that it willreduce to dust any inanimate, organicmaterial, even if he is not trying to do so.He has a +5 sword which cannot be liftedby anyone but himself. It is made out ofmountain stone, and does 2-24 points ofdamage when it hits.

SOLOVEI BUDINIROVICH

AC: 6MOVE: 12”HP: 125NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%SIZE: M (6’)ALIGNMENT: Neutral goodFIGHTER: 12th levelILLUSIONIST: 12th levelS:17 I:20 W:l7 D:18 C:16 Ch:17

Solovei masters the naval forces ofKiev. He has a great longboat with thefigurehead of a bison. He is also verylearned, and is the architect and cityplanner of Kiev.

Solovei fights with a cutlass-like sword,having a single cutting edge. This wea-pon is +2 to hit and +4 to damage. Heprefers to avoid combat whenever pos-sible, however.

29

DragonEKIM IVANOVICHAC: 4MOVE: 12”HP: 175NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardSIZE: M (6’)ALIGNMENT: Lawful goodFIGHTER: 15th levelS:24 I:14 W:14 D:24 C:16 Ch:15

Ekim is Alyosha’s loyal half-brotherand fighting companion.

He has no magical or unusual equip-ment except for his main weapon, a hugesteel-studded club which weighs 1,000pounds. This club does 4-24 points ofdamage. His dexterity is so great that hecan always dodge missiles in flight, orcatch them if he chooses to.

BOGATYR STEEDAC: 2MOVE: 36”HIT DICE: 8 (d8)NO. OF ATTACKS: 2 hoovesDAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-10SPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardINTELLIGENCE: HighALIGNMENT: Neutral goodSIZE: L

The mount of a Bogatyr is far morepowerful than a normal warhorse. Theseanimals have exceptional stamina andstrength and are patient and highly intel-ligent. They can run with great speedand are faultless in battle. They are muchlarger than normal horses. They alsohave the ability to make miraculous leapsof up to half a mile when pressed.

TYPICAL BOGATYR

AC: 4MOVE: 12”HP: 150NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardSIZE: M (6’)ALIGNMENT: Lawful goodFIGHTER: 15th levelS:18 I:14 W:14 D:16 C:16 Ch:15

Most Bogatyrs are roughly as expe-rienced as Ekim, though inferior to himin strength and dexterity. They fight withsword and bow, and are very good riders.

Bogatyrs are usually armored in chainmail, with pointed helms. They leavetheir faces uncovered. They use round,spiked shields, and broadswords ofslightly more than normal length,

Vol. VI, No. 3

TYPICAL DRUZHINIKAC: 6MOVE: 12”HP: 100NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard SIZE: M (6’)ALIGNMENT: Lawful goodFIGHTER: 11th levelS:17 I:14 W:13 D:15 C:15 Ch:15

Druzhiniks are similar to typical Bo-gatyrs, but they are of lesser experienceand status. It is possible for a Druzhnik toprove himself by his deeds and become aBogatyr.

LESS FRIENDLYINHABITANTS OF THE REALM

There are a variety of men and mon-sters in the legends of the Kievan period.The most notable are described below.Bogatyrs generally prefer to capture andconvert a foe rather than slay him out-right. Bogatyrs traditionally will bringtheir captives to Vladimir so that theymay pay homage to the prince, at whichpoint (in the legends) the monster usual-ly causes a ruckus all over again and hasto be dispatched anyway. Legend oftenportrays Kievan monsters as nice guys intheir own odd way.

30

September 1981

TUGARIN ZMEEVICHAC: 2MOVE: 18”HP: 200NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: Breathes fireSPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to fireMAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%SIZE: L(10’)ALIGNMENT: Neutral evilFIGHTER: 17th levelMAGIC—USER: 10th levelS:20 I:16 W:l6 D:l7 C:l7 CH:l6

Tugarin is the leader of the Khan’s for-ces against Kiev. He is the son of a hu-man mother and a dragon father. He isimmune to fire and can use a breathweapon of fire for 3-24 points of damageonce every three rounds. He also fightswith a +3/+5 scimitar which does 2-12damage.

Tugarin’s winged horse can fly at arate of 48”, can breathe fire for 1-20points of damage once every 5 rounds,and has the same alignment as its mas-ter. In all other respects, it is identical toa Bogatyr steed.

DRAGON GORYNICHAC: -2MOVE: 18”/48“HP: 300NO. OF ATTACKS: 7 claws, 3 bitesDAMAGE/ATTACK: Claws 2-16,

bites 1-12SPECIAL ATTACKS: Breathe fire from

all heads for 2-16 eachSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%SIZE: L (30’)ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evilFIGHTER: 15th levelMAGIC—USER: 7th level

Gorynich is a fearsome and ancientlizard who lives in the mountains to thewest of Kiev. He has three heads andseven clawed appendages. He has asnake-like body and likes to eat people.Gorynich is very intelligent (capable ofspeech) and highly devious, and hehates Vladimir.

PRINCE VSESLAV OF POLOTSKAC: -4MOVE: 48”HP: 200NO. OF ATTACKS: 3DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: Can only be hit by

magical weaponsMAGIC RESISTANCE: 65%SIZE: M (5½’)ALIGNMENT: Neutral evilFIGHTER: 13th levelMAGIC—USER: 15th levelILLUSIONIST: 15th levelS:17 I:18 W:16 D:26 C:16 Ch:17

Vseslav is the ruler of a small realm tothe north of Kiev, and is also a renowned

Dragon

31

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

sorcerer. He is quite jealous of Vladimir.In addition to the usual magic availableto characters of his level, he can create atwill a large area of blue mist which com-pletely obscures vision, and he has theability to assume the shape of a wolf atwill. He moves at incredible speed (thusthe 3 attacks per round with a singleweapon), and can teleport up to 100miles at will with no chance of error. Hehas a magical golden lance which causesany non-magical armor or other metal ittouches to become as brittle as paper(AC 10) for 3 rounds thereafter.

SOLOVEI RAZBOINIKAC: 5MOVE: 18”HP: 175NO. OF ATTACKS: 3 bites or 1 weaponDAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-6/1-12/2-16

or by weaponSPECIAL ATTACKS: Breathe scalding

steam; spell powersSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: 25%SIZE: M (7’)ALIGNMENT: Neutral evilFIGHTER: 15th levelTHIEF: 12th levelS:19 I:14 W:10 D:14 C:15 Ch:8

Solovei is a thief who dwells in theBrynsk Forest. He hides perched in thetrees and leaps upon his victims.

He appears as a man with three heads— a nightingale (1-6 damage), a lion (1-

12), and a dragon (2-16). Each head hasa different magical power. The song ofthe nightingale acts as a charm spell; theroar of the lion acts as a fear spell, caus-ing those hearing it to flee; and the hissof the dragon paralyzes those who hearit with fright for 2-5 rounds.

Solovei is quite clever and observant.He has three daughters of physicalstrength equal to his who live in theforest with him.

BABA YAGAAC: 7MOVE: 24”HP: 150NO. OF ATTACKS: 2 claws, 1 biteDAMAGE/ATTACK: Claw 2-16, bite 1-10SPECIAL ATTACKS: Poison clawsSPECIAL DEFENSES: Only hit by magic

weaponsMAGIC RESISTANCE: 80%SIZE: M (8’)ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evilFIGHTER: 12th levelMAGIC-USER: 20th levelILLUSIONIST: 15th levelDRUID: 10th levelS:22 I:24 W:17 D:16 C:18 Ch:2

Baba Yaga is the best known peril ofold Russia. She is a dreadful ogre-witchwho dwells in the deepest forest. She is acannibal, and lives in a house surroundedby skulls. She bakes very fine cakes andbreads. She travels about in a giant caul-dron which she pushes with her broom.

It skims along the ground at a rate of 48”.If one of her claw attacks hits, the vic-

tim must save vs. poison or take an addi-tional 1-12 points of damage beyond thenormal 2-16. The sight of Baba Yagacauses fear in other creatures (-3 to sav-ing throw). She can use a charm (-5 tosaving throw) on any who gaze into hereyes.

HISTORICAL NOTE

Many of these heroes are based on orresemble actual members of Vladimir’scourt during the turn of the century be-tween 980 and 1015. This is an excellentperiod for fantasy role-playing, becauseit gave rise to so many legends and folktales.

In 1015 the glory of Kiev was tarnishedby the division of the Principality be-tween Vladimir’s three sons. Yaroslavthe Wise, who finally took the thronefrom his warring brothers, restored unityand strength to the Principality. But bythen Kiev had passed from the realm oflegend to the realm of history, and thedays of the Bogatyrs were over. Thepower of Kiev faded, and dominion overRussia soon passed to Nijni Novgorodand later to Moscow.

Recommended sourcesRussian Folk Tales, Aleksandr NikolaevichAfanaser, Trans. N. DuddingtonByliny, Tales of Old Russia, Alexander Pronin

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September 1981 Dragon

33

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

INTRODUCTIONThe Garden of Nefaron is designed for

use with the rules of the ADVANCEDDUNGEONS & DRAGONS® game. Dun-geon Masters should be thoroughly fa-miliar with the material before introduc-ing players to it.

The module is quite hard in two senses.First, it requires player characters of rel-atively high level; 6 to 8 characters, eachof 7th-10th level, are recommended. Asuitable mixture of player characterswould include one cleric, two magic-users, two or three fighters and one ortwo thieves.

Second, the players themselves shouldbe experienced. Players with little expe-rience who enjoy challenges may findthis module particularly to their liking,but it can also be extremely frustratingfor relative newcomers to the game.

As Dungeon Masters will soon discernwhen reading through this description, ithas been designed so that only evil-aligned characters or evil-tending neu-trals will really be able to proceedthrough the entire dungeon without com-promising their alignments. Any goodcharacters proceeding past Room 7 areliable to be in serious alignment trouble.

History of the GardenAbout 1,000 years ago, the lands north

of the river Fortuna, which were mostlyruled by men, were in a state of greatturmoil. The land was divided into a scoreof warring kingdoms, each seeking torule all others. Of these kingdoms, thoseof Timbor, Crillos, Faxton and Malakonwere the most powerful. But the army ofMalakon, named after its ruler, was fan-atical and pressed the kingdoms of Tim-bor, Crillos and Faxton extremely hard.Indeed, Malek was near to victory. Inorder to save themselves, the kingdomsof Timbor, Crillos and Faxton unitedtheir forces against Malakon. Their com-bined power was enough to beat Mala-kon’s armies back to the very gate oftheir capital. However, when the alliedforces reached the capital, they found itflying a flag of surrender.

The leaders of the alliance acceptedthe surrender gracefully, but were dis-tressed to find that Malakon himself andhis four closest followers had fled thecity. They learned that Malek had fled tothe southernmost part of his kingdom, atthe edge of the Great Forest, where hewas said to have a stronghold.

Now the leaders of the alliance knewMalakon well. That is to say, they knewthat if he was left alone he would raiseanother army and perhaps form alli-

ances against them. So they picked fivewarriors from the ranking families oftheir nations to search out and either killor capture Malakon.

These five champions journeyed tothe Great Forest in search of Malakon.For a long time they could find no traceof him or his cohorts. At last they de-cided to use their psionic powers to lo-cate Malek. They combined their psionicabilities through the use of a psycho-gem, which the rulers of the alliance hadentrusted to them in case the use of psi-onics became necessary. They sought tolocate their quarry by detecting the pow-er of his psionic mind through thepsychogem. But Malakon, highly super-ior to any single one of his foes in the useof psionics, felt the power of their detec-tion and launched an attack against theintruders, amplifying it through the useof his own psychogem. The championswere almost taken by surprise, but theymanaged to muster their defenses anddeflect the attack. Valorio, leader of thealliance of champions, realized that thebattle would end in statemate if it con-tinued in this fashion. Thinking that ifmight could not prevail, perhaps cun-ning would, he called to his compatriotsto ease the attack and to defend only.Then he told them his plan.

In essence, the plan was simple. In-stead of trying to force their energiesagainst Malakon’s psychogem in an at-tempt to weaken its powers of enhance-ment, they would use a different sort ofpsionic power to draw Malakon’s lifeforce into his psychogem, thus trappinghim inside it, even if they were not able todestroy him.

Abruptly they put their plan into action— and the luck of the good was withthem, for it succeeded. But they were faraway from where Malakon and his psy-chogem were located, and they fearedthat unless they got there quickly andfinished the job, Malakon might escapehis imprisonment. So, summoning upthe last vestiges of their psionic power,they teleported to the spot.

When the champions set out on theirjourney, they brought along a specialbox to contain Malakon’s psychogem,should they succeed in obtaining it. Thebox was designed to prevent penetrationby psionic energy, from without or with-in, and could not be opened by a forcefrom the inside — magical, psionic, orotherwise. The allies quickly placed Ma-lakon’s gem in the box, shut it and lockedit.

But now what to do with the box itself?This posed a difficult problem. If the box

34

was ever opened, Malakon’s conscious-ness, which they assumed would haverecovered from the shock of being trans-ferred into the gem, would certainly at-tack them, and who knows what extrapower Malakon’s mind might derive fromactually being inside a psychogem?

Finally, they decided the safest courseof action was to use Malakon’s ownstronghold to contain the box, beingsure to guard it with all the means at theirdisposal. To this end, they constructedvarious guardians and cast powerfulspells and forged traps to prevent accessto the chamber where Malakon was im-prisoned.

When they were finished, they left thatplace and returned to Malakon’s formercapital city in triumph. When the lords ofthe alliance heard what they had donethey approved, but decided further pre-cautions were necessary.

They elected to send one lord and hisfamily to live on the edge of the forest asan additional guard, and chose the ho-nored warrior and scholar Merithus asthe first sentinel.

Then, since they knew that mortalflesh — no matter how honorable —wasweak, they sought the services of amember of the race of ki-rin. The lordsexplained the nature of the great evilwhich Malakon represented, and askedif the ki-rin would help. After much de-liberation, the rulers of that noble raceagreed to perform certain tasks. At mid-night on the last day of each week fromthen on, a ki-rin would visit the place tocheck all the traps and guardians, mak-ing sure that all remained secure. If Ma-lakon was missing, the ki-rin would in-form the lords of the land; if any of theprotective spells had been countered,the ki-rin would repair them as well aspossible.

And so Merithus, Master of Mists, wentto dwell by the forest, and for many yearshe prospered. A great castle was built,but at first few people wished to live soclose to the forest. All was quiet until oneday a wandering seer visited Merithusand claimed he had seen in a vision thatin later times Merithus’ home would bedestroyed and all those living therewould be killed. To keep his family fromfalling victim to this horrible prediction,Merithus constructed a garden in theshape of a pentagon —a universally rec-ognized symbol for danger and evilamong his countrymen — to warn peo-ple that great peril lurked nearby.

For 200 more years the house of Meri-thus lived in relative peace and a town,which was given the name Nefaron by

September 1981

the descendant of Merithus who present-ly served as the sentinel, grew up underthe protection of the fortress’s troops.The story of Malakon was passed fromfather to eldest son for seven genera-tions, and no great evil was visited uponthe house of Merithus or the town of Ne-faron. But finally the seer’s prophesycame to pass; catmen attacked and des-troyed both castle and town. None of thehouse of Merithus remained alive, butsurvivors of the town of Nefaron rebuilttheir homes, and Nefaron is once againprosperous.

Notes for the Dungeon Master: Theabove account should not be read to theplayers in its entirety; it gives away fartoo much information. Most of the histo-ry is for the benefit of the DM only, sothat he can develop a “feel” for the back-ground of the action that is about to takeplace.

Certain portions of the text have beenprinted in italic type. The premise is thatthe adventurers have found an old scroll,much of which has been ruined by waterand time. Only small sections of it (theitalicized parts) — sometimes mere phra-ses — are readable. All passages in italictype may be read to the players, or theDM might choose to reveal only a por-tion of the “legal” information. Let theparty make of it what they will.

A good player will be able to glean afair amount of useful information fromthe remains of the scroll. Not least, it tellshim the name of the town and its generallocation. The name Nefaron might per-haps be recognized as having somethingto do with the word “nefarious,” meaning“flagrantly wicked.” Also, from the ob-vious age of the place, it can be deducedthat there will likely be few “monsters” inwhatever “dungeon” environment mightbe encountered. The Garden of Nefaron,being a rather distinctive feature of thelocal geography, would seem like a goodplace to start searching for the strongh-old. Characters having access to the tal-ents of sages or Legend Lore spells orthe like will be unable to determine any-thing further, other than the facts that atown of the correct name in the generalarea still exists, that it is quite famous forits beautiful garden, and that there is a“feeling” of strong evil about the place.

Wilderness map detailsThe Town of Nefaron is situated on

one of the country’s major caravanroutes. The cities of Templor, Fortunaand Biscandy are on a three-way traderoute. Caravans pass through Nefaronabout once every two weeks, mostlyfrom one or the other of these cities, butsometimes from more distant ones. Thetown is located at a vertex where a smallpatch of terrain is the only passage be-tween a thick forest and impassable (forcaravans) marshes.

Dragon

35

DragonThe Neverending Marshes is a huge

area of waterways, lakes and marshes,sparsely inhabited by humans, but withlarge populations of troglodytes and Ii-zardmen, as well as the usual orcs, gob-lins, hobgoblins, and so forth.

The Great Forest, located to the eastand northeast of Nefaron, is almostcompletely uninhabited by humans, andmen seldom visit it. It is home to all sortsof nasty creatures, especially spiders,snakes and wolves. Large bands of ma-rauding bugbears and ogres occasional-ly appear from the forest, so it is thoughtthat those races may live there, too.

GUARDIANSFREQUENCY: Very rareNO. APPEARING: 1ARMOR CLASS: 3MOVE: 6”HIT DICE: See below% IN LAIR: NilTREASURE TYPE: NilNO. OF ATTACKS: See belowDAMAGE/ATTACK: By weapon typeSPECIAL ATTACKS: NoneSPECIAL DEFENSES: See belowMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardINTELLIGENCE: See belowALIGNMENT: Lawful (good or neutral)SIZE: MPSIONIC ABILITY: Nil (immune to

psionic attack)Attack/Defense Modes: Nil

Guardians may only be created bymagic-users of lawful good or lawfulneutral alignment, and the creatures willalways assume the intelligence and pre-cise alignment of their creator. (TheGuardians found inside the dungeon inthis module are lawful good and highlyintelligent.)

To create one, a full suit of plate mail(cost 2,000 gp) must first be obtained.While the spell caster is robed in vest-ments (minimum cost 5,000 gp) approp-riate to the alignment of the character,the following spells are cast upon thearmor, in this order: Polymorph Any Ob-ject, Geas, Protection from Evil/Good,Strength, and finally a Wish. The Guard-ian thus created will have an armor classof 3, a move of 6”, and strength of 18/00.It will have half as many hit dice as themagic-user who created it, but these willbe 10-sided hit dice. It will have the aver-age number of hit points (5.5 per die),rounded up to the nearest whole number.

A Guardian may use only one weapon,which is specified in the wording of theWish spell. It will wield the weapon as afighter of the same level as its hit dice,having the number of attacks per roundappropriate to that level and type ofcharacter.

Guardians are able to obey commandsand instructions of a quite complicated

Vol. VI, No. 3

nature. (It is possible to construct andsell these creatures for profit.) Initial in-structions may be stipulated up to 200words in length, or any lesser amount ofinstruction can be programmed into thecreature when it is formed. If the 200-word limit has not been reached, addi-tional instructions may be imparted tothe Guardian at any time, by anyone ofthe same alignment as the Guardian, upto the maximum —as long as the phrase“end of instructions” is not included.Once this is spoken to a Guardian, nomore instructions will be accepted bythat creature. A Guardian will obey itsinstructions until it is destroyed.

Guardians are not affected by the fol-lowing spells or spell types: sleep, charm,hold, paralyzation, fear, illusions, deathmagic, suggestion, maze or any spellswhich affect human sensory organs.Guardians are unaffected by any psio-nics or poisons.

They are vulnerable to spells causingphysical damage, such as Fire Ball, Coneof Cold, Magic Missile, etc. One spell isespecially useful versus Guardians: AForget spell causes a Guardian to ignore

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its programmed instructions and standstationary for the number of rounds thatthe spell causes a person to forget. AGuardian makes all saving throws as afighter of the same level (hit dice).

Because of the Protection from Evil/Good spell cast upon them, attacksagainst Guardians are always conduct-ed at -1 to hit, and their saving throws aremade at +1.

When a Guardian reaches zero hitpoints, it is destroyed. The spells bindingit are released, leaving only a suit of platemail and whatever weapon the Guardianwas wielding.

Merithus’ Mist MakerThe origin of this unusual item is un-

known. Perhaps Merithus himself manu-factured it, or perhaps he commissioneda talented wizard to do it for him; in anyevent, there is certainly only one of itskind. Its present whereabouts, in this dayand age, are also unknown.

The item looks like a hand-bellows,finely crafted of wood and leather andinlaid with runes of silver. It can producethree magical mists:

September 1981

Mist of Sleep: This mist cannot beseen; it is transparent. However, somemuffling of sound and “thickness” of airwhere the mist has spread might be no-ticed. For every round a character iswithin the mist he must make a savingthrow vs. spells. If the save fails, he willinstantly fall asleep and will remain inslumber until removed from the mist. If aprevious saving throw was successful, acharacter gains +1 (cumulative) on thenext save attempt one round later, up toa maximum of +4. Bonuses are onlyadded following saving throws that suc-ceed, but no bonus previously gainedcan be lost by failing to make a particularthrow. For example, if a character whohad earned a +2 bonus on his saveagainst the mist is affected by the mist,and then taken away and revived, he canre-enter the mist and still be able to in-clude the bonus in, his later savingthrows. Elves’ and half-elves’ resistanceto sleep applies here.

A character will awaken after beingaway from the mist for 6 turns, or as soonas 1 turn later if he is briskly shaken. Themist is only effective when it is breathed.Characters who hold their breath or havemagical means of breathing do not haveto save against the mist. DMs should rollsaving throws themselves in secret andonly inform players of the results.

Mist of Hypnotism: This mist appearsto be full of flowing colors: reds, blues,greens, yellows, etc. It has effects similarto the illusionist spell Hypnotic Pattern.In each round that a character views themist, he must make a saving throw vs.spells (wisdom bonus applicable) or behypnotized (DMs roll in secret). Attemptsmay be made to shake a character out ofthe trance; these attempts allow furthersaving throws at +2 (for the first attempt)and +4 (for the second). But after twosuch attempts, no further saving throwsare allowed, and a victim will fight vio-lently to remain watching the mist. Thereis a simple way to get a character out ofthe trance: Simply cover his eyes for oneround. A character’s range of visionwhile in the mist is only 20 feet.

Mist of Forgetfulness: This is a thick,green mist with a sweet smell. For everyround a character smells the mist, hemust make a save vs poison. Failure tosave indicates total loss of memory for6-60 turns. The character will act as ifConfused (as per the spell of the samename) and will be unable to use any wea-pon or spell; victims may only defendthemselves with their bare hands. (Theyhave forgotten how to do everythingelse.) Time spent confused in the mistdoes not count as part of the 6-60 turns;the duration of forgetfulness begins af-ter the victim leaves the direct influenceof the mist. Spell-users will have forgot-ten all memorized spells when they comeout of the trance. The normal range ofvision is only 10 feet within the mist.

All three mists have these things incommon: They radiate magic strongly.They are permanent in duration, if gen-erated in a confined space. (They willalways remain in the space.) If formedoutside an enclosed area, they will dis-perse in 6 turns.

The Mist Maker may be operated onceper day, but not more than twice in aweek. It will pump 1,000 cubic feet of gasper round, up to a maximum of 50,000cubic feet per use. If someone attemptsto operate the item more than twice in aweek or more than once in a day, it willsuck into itself everything within a 10-foot radius of itself — including the user

— and these things will be forever gone.To operate the item, the words “Maker

of Mists, in the name of Master Merithuspour forth...” must be spoken, followedby the name of whichever mist is desired,and then the bellows must be pumped toexpel the mist from inside the maker.

PsychogemsA psychogem appears to be a large,

many-faceted gem, usually blue. Psycho-gems are used to amplify psionic pow-ers, essentially acting as though theydonate extra psionic strength points.

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Psychogems occur in power “levels”similar to character class levels. Gems oflevels 1-9 occur naturally. In olden times,gems of levels as high as 15 were manu-factured. For each level of the gem, thepsionic ability of the owner/user may beboosted by 10%. Gems may have soulsor spirits trapped within them. Gemsmay be found in unusual places: at theheart of a glacier, deep in a mountain, orat the source of a river.

In order to use a psychogem, a psionicmust “key” it to himself — in effect, setup a resonance between the stone andhis mind. To key the gem, the charactermust look into it and discern the geomet-rical patterns inside the gem created byits facets.

There is a 5% chance per level of thestone that an individual attempting tokey a psychogem will have his mind par-tially trapped inside the stone. Thischance decreases by 3% for every timethe character has previously keyed a dif-ferent gem. This chance of being trappedmay also be decreased by 5% for eachadditional person, up to a maximumnumber equal to the level of the gem,who adds his psionic strength to the in-dividual keying the gem. In such an ar-

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Dragonrangement, the person to whom thestone is being keyed must have the high-est psionic strength of all the individualsinvolved.

When a gem has been keyed, a smallblue flame may be seen inside it.

Should a person’s consciousness betrapped in the stone, it can be releasedby an outside force whenever anothercharacter physically touches the gem —causing great pain to the being trappedinside. Touching a gem will always (sub-ject to a saving throw described below)bring a character out of its imprisonment(with his consciousness traveling instan-taneously back to his physical body), butit will affect his body like a Symbol ofPain, causing 2-20 points of damage. Tosee if attempts to release him from thestone are successful, the charactershould roll a saving throw on d20. If theresult of the roll is greater than the char-acter’s constitution, he is freed. A newattempt (touch) and a new saving throwmay be made once per round until it suc-ceeds or until the “toucher” gives up. Acharacter who is released from a gemwill be in shock for the same number ofhours that he was trapped in rounds.(However, a system shock roll does notneed to be made.) During this time, thecharacter can take no action of any sort.

It is possible to “unkey” a gem, render-ing it useless to someone who had al-ready keyed it to himself. This action re-quires the person trying to unkey thegem to bring more psionic strength (cur-rent totals applicable, not full-strengthtotals) to bear on the stone than the per-son to whom it is keyed. Take the differ-ence between the two totals and roll d%.A roll of the difference or less indicatesthat the stone has been unkeyed. Thepsionic to whom the gem is keyed will beautomatically aware of the attempt tounkey and will almost certainly resist theattempt. Each round of attempting tounkey a gem requires an expenditure of10 strength points. Defending against itrequires only 5 strength points per round.For a gem to be unkeyed requires that itbe in the possession of the character towhom it is keyed.

Because of the severe pain caused tothe “inhabitant” by someone else touch-ing the keyed stone, a psionic possess-ing one will always wear it on his person.Usually it is carried in a soft leatherpouch hung around the neck, makingaccess to it easy in case the need arisesto use it. When in use by its owner, thegem is held in the hand while the psionicconcentrates his power through it. Noother action may be taken while doingthis.

Psychogems are almost impossible todestroy. Usually, only the environmentat the opposite extreme of the placewhere they were created will be suffi-ciently powerful to spoil a gem. For in-stance, being crushed by the depths of

the ocean if the gem came from the heartof a mountain; or being subjected to ab-solute zero temperature if it was “born”at the heart of a volcano.

The Garden of NefaronThis beautiful place can be reached by

a winding path which runs from the mainroad a quarter of a mile into the sur-rounding forest. The garden is sur-rounded by the forest, but seems veryquiet and peaceful in contrast to theruggedness and threatening mood thatthe forest conveys to those who travelthrough it. Its foliage consists mainly oflow-lying shrubs and flowers with an oc-casional tree.

The garden is in the shape of a pen-tagon with a diameter of roughly 200feet. The points of the pentagon areconnected by lo-foot-wide paths whichform the outline of a pentagram (five-pointed star) within the pentagon formedby the shrubbery.

The ground is covered by low-lyingflowering bushes, except for a lo-foot-radius circle in the very center. Here acircular stone platform protrudes 1 footabove ground level. Its top surface ismarked with the signs of the Zodiac, andit radiates an aura of magic due to a per-manent Levitation spell cast on it.

In the center of the circle is a secretcompartment. It may be discovered bythieves using their “find traps” ability, bydwarves or gnomes on a roll of 1-2 ond10, and by others on a roll of 1 on d10. Acircular piece of stone in the center ofthe larger piece may be lifted out to re-veal a circular hole 6” deep and 6” wide.

At the bottom of this hole is a small,mushroom-Iike projection sticking up.Pushing down on this will cause thestone platforms to begin to descend. Pul-ling up will cause the mushroom-likeprojection to come away in the person’shand, but it may be replaced in its socketand will operate the descent mechanismas usual. The platform descends at therate of about 20 feet per round. It takestwo rounds to descend to its greatestpossible depth, and the platform will re-main 1 foot above the floor when itreaches the end of its descent.

DUNGEON LEVEL 1General

All parts of the dungeon are made ofhewn stone. All floors, unless otherwisenoted, are of flagstone. All ceilings areplain hewn stone, also unless otherwisenoted, and are 20 feet high.

The ki-rin acting as the dungeon “care-taker” is described below. The DM de-cides results of ki-rin encounters withadventurers, but if the party is evil orevil-tending neutral, the ki-rin will prob-ably attempt to destroy it. A ki-rin hassupra-genius intelligence, and thechance of being able to mislead or con-fuse it is virtually nil.

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Ki-rinArmor Class: -5Move: 24”/48”Hit dice: 12Hit points: 77Magic Resistance: 90%Alignment: Lawful goodSize: LSpells:

1st level: Shield, Erase, Burning Hands,Sleep, Magic Missile (x2), Detect Magic,Hold Portal, Protection from Evil.

2nd level: Wizard Lock, Web, StinkingCloud, Ray of Enfeeblement, Mirror lm-age, Magic Mouth (x2).

3rd level: Dispel Magic, ExplosiveRunes, Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Phan-tasmal Force, Slow, Suggestion.

4th level: Dimension Door, Fear, FireTrap, Ice Storm, Minor Globe of Invul-nerability, Remove Curse.

5th level: Bigby’s Interposing Hand,Conjure Elemental, Passwall, Teleport,Transmute Rock to Mud.

6th level: Disintegrate, Geas, InvisibleStalker, Anti-Magic Shell.

7th level: Power Word Stun, Vanish,Monster Summoning V.

8th level: Symbol, Maze.9th level: Prismatic Sphere.

Psionic Ability: 200Minor disciplines: Levitation; Invisibil-

ity; Detection of Good and Evil; Cell Ad-justment, Clairaudience, Clairvoyance.

Major disciplines: Mass Domination,Mind Bar, Energy Control, Telekinesis.

(1) As the elevator platform nears theend of its descent, party members willfind themselves in a dark chamber. Asmall amount of illumination comingthrough the hole to the surface will ena-ble them to make out a large human fig-ure standing motionless a few feet awayfrom the platform. If characters approachclose enough to touch the figure, or if abetter source of light is employed by theparty, they will discover the figure to be astone statue. (A Detect Magic cast be-fore anyone steps off the platform willregister positive, but will not provide anydetails about the magic it detects.)

The elevator will automatically beginto ascend to surface level 3 rounds afterthe first party member steps off the plat-form, possibly carrying some charactersback to the surface, unless the mush-room-like projection is removed from itshousing while the elevator is in the“down” position. It takes 1 round for theplatform to make the ascent, and thoseon the platform may jump off during thefirst half of that round without sufferingdamage. The mushroom-like handle willfunction normally again once the eleva-tor has returned to the surface.

The statue is located 10’ in front of aset of double doors visible along thesouth wall. It is a statue of a man dressedin a long, flowing cloak with the hint ofarmor underneath. He has his arms

DragonSeptember 1981

folded across his chest, and his stern buthandsome face is directed straight at theplatform. As soon as anyone steps offthe platform, the statue will speak thefollowing warning through the MagicMouth spell that has been cast on it:“Beware! Beware! Turn back, lest youunleash the evil that is guarded here.”

The concealed door in the southwestcorner can be detected without specialeffort, on a 1-3 on d6 for elves and half-elves, or a 1-2 on d6 for others. It is aone-way door opening out of this room,normal in appearance with a simple lock.It will close behind the party after allmembers intending to pass through ithave done so, and cannot be openednormally from the other side (see [3]below). A Wand of Secret Door Locationwill find this door automatically.

The secret door in the southeast cornerof the chamber may be detected onlywhen deliberate searching is done. Elvesand half-elves will find it on a roll of 1-2on d10, others on a roll of 1 on d10, and awand will find it on a roll of 1-9. Thesecret door (hinged along the top edge)may be pulled up from the bottom byanyone with a gripping strength of 18 orbetter; there are depressions cut into thefloor below the door for this purpose.

The double doors are plain oak, ironbound, and will open without incident.

In the center of the north wall 5 feetabove the floor is a secret compartmentsimilar to the one in the stone platform.Opening it will reveal a similar space in-side, except that where the mushroom-like projection is in the elevator com-partment, here there is an iron spikedriven flush into the wall. (This used tobe a “call button” for the elevator, but itno longer operates.)

(2) This corridor is filled with Mist ofSleep. A Dispel Magic cast at the mistwill cause it to cease its function for oneround within the area of effect. Should a

character reach the far end of this corri- (5) This room has a conical, down-dor and succeed in pulling open the falsedoors there, the floor will fall awayaround the doorway, revealing a 30-foot-deep pit. All characters within 5 feet ofthe false doors will fall, taking 3d6 dam-age, and there is a 25% chance per indi-vidual that the fall will cause uncons-ciousness. There is nothing at the bot-tom of the pit.

(3) Characters opening the con-cealed door and entering will see no-thing unusual until they turn the secondcorner of the maze and are facing north.Then they will see that the air is rathermisty. This mist is harmless and merelyserves to obstruct vision in the maze. Bythe time point “X” is reached, the rangeof vision is only five feet, and it will re-main at that figure for as long as charac-ters remain in the maze. There is nothingthreatening — in fact, nothing at all — inthe maze; it only serves as a means ofdelaying intruders in hopes that they willremain confused until the ki-rin makesits rounds. The door leading to (1) willnot open normally from this side. It canbe smashed open with blunt weapons oraxes (it will absorb 50 points of damagebefore breaking open) or opened with aKnock spell. Due to the poor visibility, itis impossible to accurately map the maze.lnfravision will function at its normalrange in the mist for purposes of locatingother characters in it.

(4) The secret door along the northwall of this passage cannot be seenwithout careful searching. The chanceof finding the door is the same as in (1):elves 1-2, wand 1-9, others 1 on d10. Thissecret door slides to the east. Anyonewith a gripping strength of 18 or bettermay slide it open; there are depressionsalong the west edge of the doorway forthis purpose. The door leading to (5) is anormal wooden, iron bound enclosure.

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ward-sloping floor, leading to a 20-foot-diameter circular platform at the bottomof the curvature in the center of thechamber. The ceiling is covered withmirrors, making it appear that the ceilingis also conical. As soon as a characterstepson the floor in this room, it will startto carry him around the room as if he is ina whirlpool. The floor makes one revolu-tion per round. Jumping onto the mov-ing floor from outside the doorway ispossible; characters doing so will landwithout harm at a percentage chanceequal to dexterity x 5%; i.e., a characterwith 15 dexterity has a 75% chance oflanding unhurt, and one with a dexterityof 10 has a 50% chance. Failing to makethis roll will result in the character taking2-8 points of damage from the minor fall.It takes 3 rounds of spinning and fallingtoward the center for a character toreach the central area. When the firstcharacter arrives here, the trap door willopen and the character will fall 30 feet,taking 3d6 damage, with a 25% chance ofunconsciousness. If a character happensto look at the mirrored ceiling as he falls(25% chance), the ceiling above the pitwiII act Iike a Mirror of Opposition. Aduplicate of the character will appear inthe bottom of the pit and battle will bejoined.

The same thing will happen to eachcharacter who is on the rotating floor,possibly making the pit quite crowdedwith characters and magical duplicates.Each duplicate will only attack the char-acter it resembles, but may be affectedby attacks from other characters who didnot look at the ceiling on the way downand thus do not have a duplicate of theirown to contend with.

When all of the characters and objectson the spinning floor have been drawninto the pit, the chamber will stop rotat-ing and the trap door will close over thestruggle below. The floor will not move

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again until the battle is over and the sur-vivors (if any) have escaped from the pit.Weights of less than 50 pounds will notopen the trap door from the outside, andit cannot be opened from below exceptby a Knock spell. At the bottom of the pitis the skeleton of a dead fighter in platemail with a x1 battle axe at his side.

(6) There is nothing unusual aboutthis passage.

(7) The iron door leading from (6) tothis room is locked with a device of suchintricacy that a thief’s attempt to pick it ismade at -10% to the normal chance.Standing with its back against the doorin the southeast corner is a 7½-foot-tallman-shaped figure whose body seemsto have been sewn together. This is aflesh golem. (AC 9, MV 8”, HD 9, hp 40,#AT 2, D 2-16/2-16. See the AD&D™Monster Manual for more details.) It isequipped with Bracers of Defense AC 2and has a Magic Mouth spell cast on it.As soon as someone steps through thedoorway from (6), the flesh golem willsay, “You have been warned once. Turnback or I shall be forced to defend thispassage for the cause of good.”

If anyone steps further toward the go-lem, it will assume a fighting stance andwill charge and attack the first characterto come within 10 feet of the south door.

The door on the south wall is alsomade of iron and is intricately locked,the same as the west door.

(8) There is a lo-foot-square pres-sure plate concealed in the floor halfwaydown this corridor. Each character walk-ing past this point has a 50% chance,regardless of his weight, of triggeringthe trap. (Weights of less than 50 poundswill have no effect.) When it is triggered,a stone block will fall from the ceiling,causing 2-24 points of damage (save vs.petrification for half damage) to the char-acter who set it off. Armor and dexteritybonuses to the saving throw are applica-ble. The door at the south end of thecorridor is wooden and iron bound.

(9) This room is filled with Mist ofHypnotism.

(10) The door from (9) is made ofiron and is locked normally. A Symbol ofHopelessness has been inscribed on it.Opening the door triggers the symbol.

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Once it is triggered, a Magic Mouth willspeak the following: “Turn back! Turnback! Leave and never return to thisplace!” Wisdom bonuses count for sav-ing throw purposes. The door leadingwest is wooden and iron bound with anintricate lock like the mechanisms in thedoors of (7).

(11) The concealed door at the westend is detectable normally (1-3 on d6 forelves/half-elves, 1-2 for others). Howev-er, it has been Wizard Locked at 18thlevel of ability.

(12) There is an illusionary wall run-ning north and south through the centerof this 50-foot-long chamber. If some-one touches the door in disbelief, it willbe dispelled. Otherwise, it will appear tobe solid and featureless. If someoneleans against the wall or pushes on it,that character will fall through it, seem-ing to disappear from view to the charac-ters on the other side.

(13) through (16) These rooms areall in identical states of disrepair, withonly a couple of distinctive features inparticular rooms (see below). The roomsare apparently devoid of contents apartfrom a pile of rubble in the center of eachfloor which is recognizable as brokenand burnt pieces of what was once usa-ble furniture..

(14) A careful search of the pile offurnishings in this room will reveal anundamaged Carpet of Flying, largeenough to carry 2 people at 36” flyingspeed. Its command word is “Luck.” Itappears to be a rug of Oriental designwith a pattern of four dragons in blue atthe corners facing a green world in thecenter. The background color is creamwith a green border.

(15) A careful search of the wall in thisroom will reveal (1-2 on d6 for elves/half-elves, 1 on d6 for others) that on thenorth wall in the west corner there is asecret compartment. It is locked and aLeomund’s Trap has been cast on it. In-side is a hollow bone cylinder about 1foot long and 3 inches in diameter. Thiscontains a Scroll of Protection FromPossession, of the variety that lasts 10-60 rounds. There is also a small leathersack containing 7 gems: a 10 gp tur-quoise, a 100 gp pearl, a 10 gp azurite, a1,200 gp emerald, a 500 gp garnet (vi-olet), a 200 gp topaz and a 500 gpamethyst.

(17) The door at the end is made ofiron and locked with a complex lock as in(7). A trap is triggered if the lock ispicked: Iron bars crash down in front ofthe door and 10 feet back down the pas-sageway. The walls then start to movetogether at the rate of 1 foot per round.

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DragonAnything remaining between them untilthe middle of the 5th round thereafterwill be crushed.

(18) In this room is a skeleton of a firegiant. (AC 4 [AC 7, with +3 Ring of Pro-tection,, MV 12”, HD 11 x 5, hp 67, #AT 1,D 5-30.) It is immune to Sleep, Charm,and Hold spells, and is unaffected by anyattacks using cold or fire. Edged wea-pons do half damage. Unholy water willcause 2-8 points of damage per vial-fullthat hits. The giant skeleton will surpriseopponents on 1-4 on d6 and will attackanything coming through the door. Itwields a giant-sized club. For attempts toturn, treat the skeleton as a spectre.Note: Good-aligned clerics cannot af-fect this creature in any manner with anattempt to turn.

The iron door in the southwest cornerof the room has an even more complexlock than the other doors encounteredso far; attempts by a thief to pick it aremade at -15%.

(19) A Continual Darkness spell hasbeen placed here, covering the last 50feet of the north-south passage and the10 feet running east-west up to the dou-ble doors. Inscribed on these woodendoors is a Glyph of Warding which willcause 36 points electrical damage (savefor half damage) if passed. The doorsalso contain a carving of a man with goathooves and horns covered with shaggyfur from the waist down. But this imagehas been severely mutilated, apparentlyby savage hacking with sharp blades.

(20) The main feature of this room isa large black obsidian altar against theeast wall, with a five-foot-high, five-foot-wide platform running around the frontand sides. The top of the altar is 5 feetabove the level of the platform. There aresteps leading up to the platform.

In the center of the room is a lowbench, also made of obsidian. The floor,walls, and ceiling are all painted black.

It seems that there were once manypaintings on the walls and ceiling, donein bright fluorescent colors, mostly ofvarious animals: toads, scorpions, bats,basilisks and others. The image on theceiling appears to be a painting of a hugeblack dragon with a skeleton-like rider.All of the paintings have been mostlyobscured and defaced by the scribing ofmany signs and glyphs in white on top ofthe original paint. In the southwest cor-ner is a pile of burnt wood. In the north-east and southeast corners are small col-lections of rubble which appear to be thebroken and twisted parts of a pair ofcandelabras. On the altar are two smallcrystal vials and a small metallic box.

This room is a shrine, constructed byMalakon as a tribute to his evil god. Thepaintings were defaced by the cham-pions who imprisoned Malakon. The

shrine is now useless as a place of wor-ship. The glyphs and signs which marthe paintings are blessings of good andsigns of warding of evil, designed tokeep prayer here from reaching its de-sired destination.

Although much of its evilness hasbeen neutralized by the signs scribed inwhite, the shrine is not without power. Ifany good or neutral character touchesthe altar, the toucher will receive 3-30 (ifgood) or 3-18 (if neutral) points of dam-age. Cure spells will not heal this dam-age; lost hit points can only be regainedby rest and time. Evil characters will nottake damage from touching the altar, butthere is a 2% chance per level for anycharacter touching the altar to uninten-tionally summon a Type II demon. (AC-2, MV 6”//12”, HD 9, hp 49, #AT 3, D1-3/1-3/4-16; see Monster Manual formore details.)

The pile of burnt wood in the southw-est corner was once a font. The basin,made of electrum and worth 10,000 gp, isstill intact underneath all the ash. Itweighs 250 pounds. The broken cande-labras were made of lead and are worth-less. The two crystal vials are full of un-holy water.

The small metallic box is made ofsteel. It is locked, and has an ordinarystone inside to make it heavy. It is not thebox in which Malakon’s consciousnessis imprisoned. The lock may be pickedby a thief quite easily.

The secret door in the platform cannotbe detected by a Wand of Secret DoorLocation, although it may be seen byTrue Sight or a Gem of Seeing. It may befound by elves and half-elves on a roll of1-3 on d10 or by others on 1-3 on d20. Itopens by pulling up, like the door in (1),and also cannot be moved by a grippingstrength of less than 18.

(21) Beneath the secret door is a 10-foot-deep tunnel leading straight downwith a one-person ladder along the side.A flicker of reddish light may be seen atthe other end of the tunnel when a char-acter reaches the bottom of the ladder.There is a 40-foot horizontal tunnel end-ing at a set of stairs leading 10 feet up. Atthe far end of the staircase is an illusion-ary wall of fire. Behind that is a doormade of lead.

The wall of fire illusion has audible andolfactory components. No character isallowed a saving throw unless he specif-ically states that he does not believe thewall exists, in which case he gets a sav-ing throw vs. spells as normal, with wis-dom bonus applicable. Any characterwho fails to disbelieve the illusion andpasses through it anyway will take 20-30points of damage (2d6 + 18), or halfdamage if a save vs. spells is made.

(22) A large table and five chairs arein the center of the room. On the table is

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a small metallic box. On either side of thetable stand two “men” dressed in fullplate mail, carrying halberds. Their facesare hidden by visors. The door on thesouth wall is also made of lead — in fact,the walls and ceiling of the room as wellare covered by a thick plating of lead.

The two “men” in plate mail are Guard-ians. (AC 1, MV 9”, HD 9, hp 50 each, #AT3/2 with +3 to hit, D by weapon with +6bonus to damage on each hit. See fore-going description for more details.) Theyhave been constructed of +2 plate mailand they wield magical halberds. Due totheir magic armor, saving throws vs.spells causing physical damage are madeat +2.

The guardians have been instructed toguard the metallic box, letting no oneleave the room with it. If someone suc-ceeds in escaping with it, the guardianswill pursue them and attempt to returnthe box to this room.

As noted above, this room is shieldedby lead. No detection devices or spellswill work here, and psionics cannot pene-trate the lead covering. It is impossible toenter or leave this room by going astralor ethereal or out of phase. The secretdoor on the east wall is of the same na-ture as the one at the altar.

Within the metallic box is Malakon’spsychogem and, within the gem, theconsciousness of Malakon himself. Thebox is made of adamantite lined withlead to prevent Malakon from using hispsionic powers to get free. The box itselfis worth 2,000 gp without its contents.

Malakon’s consciousness possessesthe following abilities and characteris-tics: alignment, chaotic evil; age, vener-able; intelligence, 19; wisdom, 18; cha-risma, 16 (see below); strength, constitu-tion, and dexterity not applicable; hitpoints not applicable; psionic strength,142; psionic ability, 284; attack/defensemodes A,B,D,E/F,G,I,J; minor disciplinesof Invisibility, Domination, and ESP.

Malakon’s ESP is much more powerfulthan the norm. He is able to look deepinside a person’s mind, revealing to him-self all of the victim’s strengths and wea-knesses. It takes but one round to dothis, and using the ESP power costs 5strength points per round. One personmay be surveyed at a time.

Malakon’s Domination is also morepowerful than the usual discipline. It ispossible for Malakon to completely trans-fer his mind to another body in a processsomewhat similar to a Magic Jar spell.However, the victim’s soul is destroyedsince there is no vessel to contain it. Us-ing this form of Domination successfullycosts 70 strength points. Intended vic-tims receive a saving throw vs. deathmagic, made at -2 (wisdom bonus appli-cable). If the attempt fails, only 20 psio-nic strength points are deducted.

Malakon’s original physical body wasthat of a half-elf, and operated as a 17th-

September 1981

level magic-user/7th-level fighter. He hasno spells presently in his memory; theywere all disrupted when he was drawninto the gem.

The box is Wizard Locked (18th level)and trapped with a Symbol of Death.Should someone succeed in opening it,Malakon will immediately begin usingthe extra-strong version of ESP on eachcharacter, starting with the fighters inthe party. He will look for the best com-bination of hit points, strength, constitu-tion and dexterity in a certain individual,and as soon as he made his selection hewill use his extra-strong Dominationpower to transfer his soul to that body.The victim’s physical characteristics (ap-pearance, hit points, strength, constitu-tion, dexterity) will stay the same, butMalakon’s abilities as described abovewill take precedence in other cases.

Immediately thereafter he will turn in-visible, grab his gem and head down tothe second level as fast as possible.Once on the lower level, he will attemptto gather his spell books, magical items,and the sack of gems in his study andleave for distant lands.

Malakon is cunning, greedy and tho-roughly evil. If detained or preventedfrom going alone to the second level, hewill use his cunning and persuasivenessto lead the party away from his lair andwill himself return later. He will attemptto give the party the slip at the first pos-sible opportunity after transferring hismind to a character’s body.

Malakon’s psychogem is a 6th-levelstone. It has two special powers whichhave, in fact, already been described.The stone is responsible for the extra-strength ESP and Domination powerswhich Malakon possesses. Other char-acters, should they gain hold of the gem,will not be able to use these special pow-ers unless they already have the disci-plines of ESP and/or Domination. (Any-one else intending to use it will also haveto “unkey” it.) Touching the stone whileMalakon is inside it will have no effect onMalakon. Touching the stone when Ma-lakon is outside it will have the usualeffect.

(23) This is a false representation ofMalakon’s quarters. All that is left of it is apile of burnt wood in the center of theroom. There is nothing of value here.

(24) This is another false representa-tion, this time of a magic-user’s work-room. In the center of the room is a pen-tagram inscribed on the floor. Carefulmeasurement would reveal that it hasnot been scribed correctly. There aremany smashed cabinets, tables andshelves around the room and a greatdeal of broken glass on the floor. Evencareful searching will reveal nothing ofvalue.

Dragon

DUNGEON LEVEL 2(25) This room appears at first to be

entirely empty. Careful searching of thefloor is 25% likely to reveal the existenceof a barely visible crack, in the shape of a20-foot-diameter circle, each turn that a10-foot-square section containing partof the crack is searched.

In addition, there is a secret compart-ment in the center of the circle, similar tothe one in the elevator at the entrance.Also, like the entrance, the circular piecein the floor radiates magic. The secretcompartment may be found just as at theentrance and will come away to reveal asame-sized hole. This time, however,there is nothing but another hole in thebottom surface of this hole.

This mechanism, also an elevator, willnot operate unless the mushroom-likeprojection from the entrance elevator isbrought here and pushed all the waydown into the small hole. When this isdone, the elevator will begin to descendat 20 feet per round, taking 4 rounds toreach the bottom of its trip. It will auto-matically ascend after 3 rounds just likethe first elevator, but this does not pres-ent a great problem here, because thecall button (in the south wall on the lowerlevel of room 25) is operating normally,and can be used to bring the elevatorback down to the lower level if needed.

(26) The illusionary wall directly op-43

posite the door is as in (12) above. Thedoors to (27) are wooden, iron bound.

(27) These rooms are traps. Thedoors opposite the entrances are false.Over each 5-foot-square section of thefloor (shown by dotted lines on map) is aspear set in a tube in the ceiling. Whenone of the 5-by-5-foot squares is pressedupon by any weight of more than 30pounds, the spear will fire down at thesource of the disturbance. Rolls for thespears to hit are made against the char-acter’s armor class as if the spear werebeing wielded by a 5th-level fighter. Ashield will have no effect on a character’seffective armor class unless the charac-ter states that the shield is being heldoverhead. These spears do 2-5 points ofdamage each. They are 4 feet long andwere once poisoned, but the poison haslong since decayed and is harmless.

Should a character reach the falsedoor at the end of either room and openit, a 10-foot-square pit will open beneathhim. The pit is 30 feet deep and will cause3d6 damage to someone who falls in.

(28) There is nothing unusual aboutthis passageway. The door (wooden,iron bound) at the far end is locked with acomplex lock (-15% for thieves) and isalso Wizard Locked (17th level).

(29) In the center of this room is a

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

44

DragonSeptember 1981

grotesque statue. It is an 8-foot-tall hu-manoid shape with four arms and twolegs. The arms end in hands tipped withlong claws. The most horrible aspect ofthis statue-creature is the face. It is ovalwith a single red eye, and from its mouthprotrude long fangs.

This statue is decidely magical. Assoon as anyone besides Malakon stepsthrough the door to this chamber, it willbecome animate and move to attack. Ithas AC 0, MV 6”, HD 10, hp 56, #AT 5, D2-12/2-8(x4). Special attack, heat ray;Special defenses, see below; Magic re-sistance, standard; Alignment, neutral;Size: L (8’ tall). The eye is a ruby throughwhich is focused a heat ray which does4d8 damage (save vs. breath weaponsfor half damage) to anyone the statuelooks at. It will always gaze upon thecharacter closest to it. It can use the heatray once per round in place of its physi-cal attacks, and can gaze upon a differ-ent character every round.

The statue is mindless and cannot beaffected by any mind-related spells orpsionics. It is not affected by Sleep,Charm, Hold or Paralysis spells or at-tacks, and is immune to poison. It ismade of stone, so spells like Stone toFlesh and Rock to Mud are extremelyeffective.

The ruby in its forehead is worth 5,000gp if detached from its socket, but willnot retain the heat-ray properties if it istaken out.

(30) This room apparently was oncesumptuously furnished. There are manywall hangings. In the center of the southwall is a large four-poster bed. Directlysouth of the doorway is a large cup-board. On the north wall is a large chestof drawers with a mirror above it. In thenorthwest corner is a marble washbasinwith an urn below it.

The hangings and the covers on thebed are threadbare and colorless. There

is a lot of moth-eaten and useless clo-thing in the closet and the chest of draw-ers. The only useful item in the room isthe mirror. It measures 4 feet by 3 feetand is a Mirror of Mental Prowess.

(31) This is obviously a magic-user’sworkroom. Cabinets and shelving linethe walls. There is a large workbench inthe center of the floor toward the west-ern half of the room. On top of this benchis a bewildering assortment of glasswarewhich all seems to be connected. Theeastern half of the room is empty exceptfor a pentagram (correctly) inscribed onthe floor. On the east end of the work-bench is a large brazier.

The cabinets and shelving are filledwith more glassware and a huge selec-tion of magic-user spell componentsand parts of various creatures. The glass-ware on the workbench is all useless, asa close inspection will quickly reveal. It isfull of dried and hardened substancesstuck to virtually all surfaces.

However, there are the following use-ful items of glassware and metalware,mostly found in the cabinets: 6 alembics,1 balance and weights, 12 beakers, 1brazier (already noted), 3 crucibles, 1decanter, 4 flasks, 2 funnels, 1 kettle, 1concave lens and 1 convex lens, 2 mortar-and-pestle sets, 12 phials,, 2 retorts, 2dozen mixing rods, 2 spatulas, 1 set ofmeasuring spoons, 1 pair of tongs, 2tripods, and 6 yards of glass tubing infoot-long sections.

Components for virtually all spellsfound in Malakon’s spell books (see [32]below) may be found here in varyingquantities. There will be only 1 or 2spells’ worth of components that are dif-ficult to come by, and no gems will befound here. These components are alllabeled in magic-user’s runes approp-riate to the level of the spell the compo-nent is used for. Thus, a magic-user ableto use 1st through 4th level spells will be

45

able to read the labels of all componentsdealing with spells of up to 4th level.Read Magic would be required for thecharacter to comprehend the labels ofcomponents for spells of 5th level andabove.

The following significant items may befound in specimen jars: 1 pint of troll’sblood (dehydrated, appears as blackpowder); 1 pint of nixie blood (dehydrat-ed, appears as green powder); 2 squarefeet (in 6-inch squares) of mimic skin;and 1 jar containing 20 salamanderscales. These jars are labeled, but can-not be read automatically and will al-ways require Read Magic to compre-hend. To use the dehydrated blood,characters simply have to add 1 pint ofwater to the powder.

There are also many jars which areempty or full of worthless bones and de-composed o rgan i sms .

it is assumed that characters willsearch thoroughly here so that they willfind all the useful labeled jars. A com-plete search will take a maximum of 6turns, decreased by 1 turn for everycharacter beyond the fourth one who istaking part in the search; i.e., 5 charac-ters can search the room in 5 turns, 6characters in 4 turns, etc. If charactersdon’t search carefully, there is only a 1%chance per round (cumulative) of find-ing even one of the four special jars.

The secret door in the northeast cornermay be found by elves and half-elves ona roll of 1-2 on d10, or a roll of 1 on d10 byothers. it slides east, again with a grip-ping strength of 18 or better needed tomove it.

(32) Shelves line the walls of thisroom, and a large desk with a singlechair behind it is in the approximate cen-ter of the room toward the south wall. Onthe desk are various objects. (Note: Allthe magical items listed below will begone if Malakon got here first.)

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Immediately obvious are 2 bottles anda heap of scrolls. Closer inspection willreveal that a 1½-foot-long slender pieceof ivory, tipped with platinum and withmany runes and glyphs inscribed uponit, lies in the center of the desk. There isalso an inkwell and several quills, 4 pie-ces of unused vellum, and a large bookon the desk. The shelves around theroom are filled with scrolls. Here andthere is a book or a tome.

The bottles on the desk are potions:One is of Extra Healing, the other of Poly-morph Self. The heap of scrolls are allnon-magical and will crumble to dust ifanyone touches them. The ivory objectis a Wand of Conjuration. The book lyingon the desk is Malek’s 4-6th level spellbook. It is protected by an ExplosiveRunes spelI.

The desk has 2 sets of drawers, a pairon each side of the desk. The top rightdrawer contains a sack of gems. (This isthe sack referred to earlier as the onewhich Malakon will attempt to grab be-fore making his departure.) The sackholds 50 gems valued at 10 gp apiece, 20gems of 50 gp value, 10 gems of 100 gp, 3gems of 500 gp, and 1 gem valued at1,000 gp.

The lower drawer on the right sidecontains Malakon’s other two spellbooks: one for spells of 1st-3rd level andone for spells of 7th-9th level. The lower-level book, like the one on the desk, isprotected by Explosive Runes. The high-est-level spell book is protected by a FireTrap spell. Note again that all spell bookswill have been taken away, as well as allmagical scrolls, if Malakon got here first.

The top left drawer of the desk con-tains a variety of drawing and measuringinstruments of high precision, worth atotal of about 500 gp.

The lower drawer on the left side con-tains 2 magical scrolls. This drawer isprotected with a Fire Trap. One of thescrolls contains 4 m-u spells: Fly (3rdlevel), Polymorph Other (4th level), IceStorm (4th level), and Hold Monster (5thlevel). The other one has 6 spells: Write(1st level), Shatter (2nd level), Poly-morph Self (4th level), Wall of Force (5thlevel), Legend Lore (6th level), and Con-trol Weather (6th level).

There are 17 six-foot-long sections ofshelving, each with four shelves therein.All except three of these shelf sectionscontain between 10-100 scrolls each.These scrolls, like the ones on the desktop, will crumble into dust if touched. Ofthe other three shelves, two of them con-tain 3 and 9 books respectively. Thesebooks are still readable and usable, ifthey are handled with extreme caution.

Book topics include: 1. Anthropologi-cal report on inferiority of kobolds tognomes (sale value 100 gp); 2. Herbal,lists plants local to one area and theirsupposed properties (500 gp); 3. Bes-tiary, lists animals local to one area (500

gp); 4. History of Cranshaw Castle, writ-ten by a notable scholar (1,000 gp); 5.Religious book containing prayers for anevil god (100 gp); 6. Anthropological re-port on the superiority of men to every-thing (200 gp); 7. History of Castle Dor-vin, extremely notable work (5,000 gp);8. Herbal, listing plant life of a differentarea than the other similar book (500gp); 9. History of East Point Castle, au-thor unknown (100 gp); 10. Alchemist’snotebook, writing unreadable; 11. Ma-lakon’s old diary, might be very interest-ing, but handwriting difficult to decipher(2,000 gp); 12. Another alchemist’s note-book, also unreadable.

The last shelf holds a +2 Long Swordwith no special powers. Malakon willhave taken this item if he arrived hereahead of the party.

The secret door in the west wall is hid-den behind one of the scroll shelves. Theshelving may be moved aside easily. Thesecret door is detectable by elves andhalf-elves on a roll of 1-2 on d6, by otherson a roll of 1. It is Wizard Locked (17thlevel).

Contents of Malakon’s spell booksFirst level spells: Sleep, Shield, Write,

Read Magic, Unseen Servant, MagicMissile, Protection from Good, Light,Comprehend Languages, Feather Fall.

Second level spells: Darkness 15’ ra-dius, Detect Invisibility, Knock, Levitate,Ray of Enfeeblement, Strength, WizardLock.

Third level spells: Explosive Runes,Fireball, Fly, Monster Summoning I,Slow, Water Breathing.

Fourth level spells: Dimension Door,Fear, Fire Trap, Ice Storm, Globe of In-vulnerability, Plant Growth.

Fifth level spells: Bigby’s InterposingHand, Conjure Elemental, Cone of Cold,Monster Summoning Ill, Passwall.

Sixth level spells: Enchant an Item,Legend Lore, Monster Summoning IV,Spiritwrack.

Seventh level spells: Phase Door, Re-verse Gravity.

Eighth level spells: Permanency, Trapthe Soul.

(33) This room contains two largechests, each having a complex lock anda poison-needle trap, but the poison haslong since decayed. Each chest contains5,000 sp and 5,000 gp.

(34) Visibility in this maze is good,but the ceiling height is only 3 feet. Theletters on the map indicate where var-ious traps are placed:

a: 30-foot-deep pit, does 3d6 damage.b: Vent in ceiling drops oil equivalent

to one flask, followed by a burning cind-er which ignites oil; 1-12 points of dam-age, 1-3 if save made vs. breath weapon.

c: Stone block drops from ceiling; 2-24damage, blocks passage.

46

d: Scything blade triggered by pres-sure plate; 4d6 damage.

e: 20-foot-deep pit with 6 spikes (1-6points of damage each) at bottom; todetermine number of spikes which strikecharacter, roll d6, with result of 1,2, or 3indicating that many spikes, and resultof 4, 5, or 6 indicating no damage fromspikes. Fall into pit does 2d6 points ofdamage whether spikes hit or not.

f: Wall comes down out of ceiling, clos-ing off exit and trapping those insidewithin a 20-by-10-foot area. Wall cannotbe moved physically and will not openagain for 20 turns.

g: Walls come down from ceiling infront and behind characters, closing offpassage. The 10-foot-square space willthen start to slowly fill with sand, taking 6turns to fill to capacity. Either wall can bebroken down if it takes 60 points of dam-age. Characters will suffocate within 1round after sand fills chamber to capaci-ty if they are still trapped inside.

h: Same as (d).i: Same as (a).j: Same as (b).k: Same as (c).I: Glyph of Warding, causes 18 points

of fire damage (half damage if savemade).

m: Same as (e).n: Same as (f).In the last 10 feet of the passageway in

front of the first secret door, the ceiling isnormal height (10 feet). Both secret doorsare normal, with a 10-foot ceiling also inthe area between them, but only one ofthe doors may be opened at one time.Thus, the second secret door will resistall attempts to be opened unless and un-til the first door is closed.

(35) Characters looking into this pas-sageway will be quite unnerved, becauseall of the surfaces seem to be made offlesh. This spiral passageway was creat-ed by Malakon from instructions he foundin an ancient tome, which vanished assoon as the construction was complete.

Anyone stepping into this passage orprodding the walls will find themselves,or the instrument they used to prod with,stuck fast to the fleshy substance. Char-acters have the same chance as theirbend bars/lift gates percentage of beingable to break free, and may try to pullfree once per round. In the meantime,the fleshy wall will start to climb up what-ever is stuck to it, gradually coating theobject with a thin layer of the fleshy sub-stance. It will take 5-10 (d6 + 4) roundsfor a victim to be completely coated withthe substance.

Any character or creature entirely co-vered by the flesh will be suffocated with-in two rounds after being covered, andimmediately after that the fleshy sub-stance and its new victim will begin todraw back into the floor or ceiling of thepassage. This process of reabsorption

September 1981

takes a total of five rounds for a human-sized creature, correspondingly more orless time for those of larger or smallersize. Once a creature has been absorbedinto the wall or ceiling, its body cannotbe recovered or resurrected.

Blows upon the fleshy substance withblunt weapons will simply cause theweapon to stick at the spot it made con-tact, doing no damage. Weapons can bepulled free by making a bend bars/liftgates roll as described above, but mustbe extricated in the round after they arestuck, or they will be coated with fleshand forever lost.

Edged weapons will pierce the flesh,but the wound so caused will instantlyheal and the weapon will be stuck fast if itis not pulled back immediately. Fire ap-

plied to a place where the flesh is cover-ing a person or thing will cause it to re-treat, but will cause no damage. A magi-cal cold attack will cause the fleshy sub-stance to go dormant for one turn withinthe attack’s area of effect.

There is nothing that can permanentlydamage the fleshy substance; a Disinte-grate spell will render the substance in-ert in a 10-foot-square area around thespell caster for a duration of 6 turns; atthe end of that time, the fleshy substancewill have receded back into the wall orceiling at that location, perhaps drop-ping a character or object which hadpreviously been entrapped. A Flesh toStone spell will simply be absorbed withno effect.

There is one obviously safe way to get

Dragon

through this passage: by flying. At thecenter of the fleshy spiral is a circularstone room 20 feet in diameter with anormal secret door on the north edge.Inside this room is a pedestal. On top ofthe pedestal is a velvet cushion, and onthe velvet cushion is a small necklacewith a single tiny gem —not a psycho-gem — set in it.

This gem, the existence of which wasunknown to the group who defeated Ma-lakon, is why the champions were un-able to completely dispose of Malakon:The gem carries inside it a small portionof Malakon’s soul —a “spark” which Ma-lakon can use to rekindle his conscious-ness. (Characters must use detectionand divination spells to learn this or oth-er information about the gem.)

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Destroying this gem will not directlyharm Malakon while he is in his presentphysical form, nor will it damage the partof his soul in his newly acquired body.However, Malakon fears the opposite —that if the gem is destroyed, the act willdo him immense harm. Therefore, he willbargain to prevent characters from harm-ing the gem, freely giving up any of hispossessions except his spell books, inexchange for the. gem. (If characters

agree to such a deal, Malakon will departwith the gem — but only temporarily —and will then trail the characters as theymake their way out of the dungeon, wait-ing for a good opportunity to attempt toregain his possessions.

The only way to dispose of Malakonentirely is to first kill the physical bodyhe occupies. When the death of the bodyoccurs, Malakon’s soul is transferred en-tirely into the small gem, and for two

rounds thereafter his soul/ conscious-ness will be powerless to resist or pre-vent the destruction of the gem. If thegem is destroyed during this two-roundspan, all traces of Malakon’s soul will bedestroyed along with it. After the tworounds have passed, though, Malakon’ssoul will regain the ability to transfer intoanother body — and that body will thenhave to be killed in order for the processto be begun again.

48

September 1981 Dragon

by Merle M. Rasmussen

SECURITY CLEARANCE LEVEL: Administration, Level One

BEGIN MESSAGETO: Operatives and participants of the TOP SECRET™ game,

especially Administrators and members of “The Exterminators”and “Squadron III”

BY AUTHORITY OF: Merle M. Rasmussen, Director ofAdministrations

PURPOSE: To present recent agency communiques for up-dating regional agency files; to recommend methods of repri-manding overly violent agents; to amend procedures for deter-mining availability of equipment, and exceptions to same.

MESSAGE: Communications from agents within the U. S. andGreat Britain have been received. Additional messages are be-ing decoded, but the following is available for general dispersal.

NAME: ClassifiedCODE NUMBER: UnknownALIAS: Dale CraigAFFILIATION: The Exterminators (Council Bluffs, Iowa, USA.POSITION: UnknownCLASSIFICATION: AssassinationMEMBERSHIP: Three (3) knownMODUS OPERANDI: Submachine gun slayings, use of ball-

point pen guns, travel around United States in armored van withgun slits in back and sides. The van is disguised as one belong-ing to a pest control company called “The Exterminators.” Sub-ject believed to have owned a hydrofoil destroyed off the coastof Japan. Believed to possess a two-person helicopter withspecial submachine gun mounted underneath disguised as aradar dish. Believed to have exploding darts propelled fromwrist launcher, usable underwater. The “Exterminators” usuallyseek high-risk missions, but lately members are divided on caseinvolvement and the indiscriminate use of violence. Groupmembers believed to have once been employed as securityguards for oceanographic architect-engineer, Dr. Yes.

CURRENT STATUS: Inactive, seeking less violent missions.END INFORMATION

The following information is from a direct communique.NAME: ClassifiedCODE NUMBER: A-A-N-HR-11ALIAS: Head RatAFFILIATION: Squadron III (Richmond, Va., USA)POSITION: Administrative DirectorCLASSIFICATION: UnknownPURPOSE OF COMMUNICATION: To invite Merle M. Ras-

mussen, Director of Administrations, to become AdministrativeAdvisor to the Administrative Staff of Squadron III.

49

REPLY: I accept the position on the condition that all com-munications from the Director of Administration can be sharedwith other agents via The Rasmussen Files in DRAGON™ maga-zine. This includes answering questions the administration (ofSquadron Ill) might have regarding Squadron III activities, aid-ing the staff in its organizational procedures, and advising ofany changes in the rules of the TOP SECRET game. As a benefit,I understand that I would receive any Squadron III informationthat I wish, as long as it is Clearance Level 10 or below.END REPLY

The following came from an agent in hopes someone wouldinvestigate and report to the Director of Administrations.

NAME: Michael P. ClarkeCODE NUMBER: UnknownALIAS: UnknownAFFILIATION: Unknown (Whitewater, Wis., USA)POSITION: UnknownCLASSIFICATION: UnknownPROJECT: NesebarLOCATION: Bahia Blanca, ArgentinaMISSION: To assassinate Dr. Vlad Tomplin, researcher and

developer of the secret Tomplin warhead outlawed by SALT II.CURRENT STATUS: Tomplin is scheduled to travel to Ne-

sebar, Bulgaria, via Burgas, Bulgaria.END SUBMISSION

This final message was received postage due from Worthing,West Sussex, England, postmarked 1:45 PM, April 13, 1981. It isevidence the TOP SECRET game system has enemies as well asavid followers. It may also be in code; note illiterate spellings,punctuation, and lack of dotted i’s and crossed t’s in the original.Agent interpretations are welcome; the poor bloke did not signhis or her name and may need immediate assistance.

BEGIN LETTER: “Dear Mr. Rasmussen (are you a [expletivedeleted]?)

Personally I think that your game? TOP SECRET is the worstrole playing game I have ever tried to play, it stinks more than aneight month old deceased dog. I think Don Turnbull could talkmore about finding hobbits in the PH than you could aboutpistols. it is either you or the Game master + I think it’s yourstupid bloody game its 3 times worse than some of the whiteDwarf dungeons + thats saying something.

Yours, Ungratefullya [expletive deleted] player”

END LETTER

Controlling violent agentsIt has come to my attention that certain agents, especially

assassins, sometimes use excessive violence during the com-pletion of an otherwise smooth operation. Gunning down inno-

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

cent bystanders and defenseless civilians for fun or experienceis inexcusable. I suggest administrators severely reprimandagents employing such tactics. If a mission does not call for anassassin, don’t hire one! This gives investigators, confiscators,and technicians larger defensive roles in possibly dangerousmissions. If indiscriminate violence continues, use the optionalComplications rule found in the rule book. If agents must pay offcrooked cops, appear in court, risk being pursued by privateinvestigators, or lose expensive equipment because of violenttendencies, violence may subside. Imagine having an unknownnumber of “private eyes” on your tail who always show up at theleast convenient moments during a mission. Losses incurred bysuch an agent should not be temporary and simply recoveredduring the agent’s next R&R. Stolen equipment costs add up,and can cause an agent embarrassment and financial ruin.

Equipment availabilityI have heard complaints some agents get any piece of equip-

ment they need if they can afford it. This is not always plausible;nor is it a recommended. Special equipment may be affordable,but lack of time and staff to manufacture a requested article maylimit its availability. Purchases or equipment requests during amission may take days to reach the agent, especially if he’smountain climbing, deep sea diving, or lost in the Mongoliandesert. Why would an investigator carry a cumbersome assaultrifle on a simple bugging mission? Possession and use of exces-sive armament may ruin delicate assignments.

There should be some logical reason to explain equipmentavailability. The following charts will serve as guidelines in allot-ting equipment to agents operating in a group. Refer to theEquipment Lists in the rulebook for specific selection.

The chance of a certain piece of equipment being available isrepresented as a percentage equal to (X minus Y) divided by X,where X is a number value for a general type of equipment and Yis the suggested price of the specific item requested.The following list gives the “X” values for various general typesof equipment:

General Outfitting: 250Tools of the Trade: 1,000Weapons (not including firearms): 150Firearms: 550Ammunition: 200Special Weapons (not including poisons, antidotes and ex-

plosives): 300Poisons: 650Antidotes: 63Explosives: 52Communications: 11,000Automobiles: 20,000Specialty vehicles: 10,000Two-wheeled vehicles: 2,000Larger (than small truck) vehicles: 75,000Waterborne vehicles: 300,000Note: For special devices not covered by this list, consider the

“X” value to be equal to 110% of the price (Y).Example: If I want to purchase one dose of irritant poison, I

look under Poisons to find the X value, which is 650. Irritantpoison costs $510 a dose, so Y = 510. The percentage chance ofavailability is (650 minus 510) divided by 650, which equals .22,or a 22% chance of availability.

Checks for availability may be made no more frequently thanonce every 24 hours, but if an item is not available on the first try,the percentage chance of locating it is doubled on the secondtry, and increased on each subsequent try by the same amountas the original percentage chance. If the percentage chancereaches or exceeds 100, the item will automatically be availableon that day.

In the above example, there was a 22% chance the poisonwould be available on the first day, a 44% chance on the secondtry, 66% on the third day, 88% on the fourth, and 100% (automat-ic) on the fifth.

If the agent is in the field, consider the price of vehicles,personnel, and fuel necessary to deliver the item when calculat-ing its price for purposes of determining availability, even if allthe “hidden costs” are not actually included in the cost to theagent.

If the item is to be obtained from illegal sources — the so-called “black market” —double the chance of availability eachtime the offered price is doubled. In the case of the poison,which costs $510 per dose, if you’re willing to pay $1,020 perdose there is a 44% chance it will arrive on the first day, an 88%chance on the second, and a 100% chance that it will be availa-ble within 72 hours.

You can use the same availability method, when selling orfencing an item, to determine how many hours it takes to find aprospective buyer. Even then, the prospective buyer does notautomatically purchase the item once he or she is contacted.Refer to the rules on Fencing Purloined Goods in the rulebook.

Technicians can use the availability formula for creating itemsin a laboratory or workshop. Halve the chance of availability ifthe technician must work in the field without the necessary toolsor instruments and only has the supplies or ingredients needed.Some special devices which are difficult to manufacture even inthe lab may be impossible to create in the field.

Availability exceptionsEven though particular items may be physically available, a

veteran administrator will not give some equipment to agentsuntil they have proved themselves reliable and capable. This iswhy only Technicians are allowed the use of Special Devicesbefore they reach the fourth level of experience and otheragents are not.

General exceptions to availability are given in the followingchart, which lists equipment by types and subdivides agentsaccording to their bureau classification and experience levels.The number given for each cross-reference is the percentagechance that an agent of a certain type and level will be allowed toreceive a particular item.

For example, an investigator at the third level of experiencehas only a 20% chance of being given a requested pistol. Rollpercentile dice: On a roll of 01 to 20, the investigator would beallowed to request and receive a pistol — if he or she can affordit, and if the subsequent roll for availability is eventually suc-.cessful. On a roll of 21 to 00 the investigator will not be allowedto obtain the pistol through normal channels, and if still desirousof one will have to find another source for it. This provisionallows for the possibility of higher-level agents purchasingequipment which could be loaned or sold to lower-level charac-ters at possibly inflated prices. However, administrators may notlike this sales arrangement and might reprimand higher-levelagents — if they’re caught!

Availability ExceptionsInvestigation Bureau

1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 11+General Outfitting none: always 100%Tools of the Trade 60 70 80 90 100 100Weapons (not firearms) 40 50 60 70 80 90

Pistols 10 20 40 60 80 100Carbines, rifles,

shotguns 0 0 10 20 30 40Submachine guns,

assault rifles 0%: never availableSpearguns, bows,

crossbows, slings 0 0 10 20 30 40Ammunition (S,AP,DD,

G,DP,F,M,T,B) none: always 100%Ammunition (I,API,

HE,HEI 0%: never available

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September 1981 Dragon

Special weapons (notpoisons, antidotes,explosives)

PoisonsAntidotesExplosivesCommunicationsAutomobileSpecialty vehicleTwo-wheeled vehicleLarger vehicleWaterborne vehicleAirborne vehicleSpecial devices:CommunicationSurveillanceAssassinationMotorcycleAutomobileWater vehicleHelicopter/gyrocopterMiscellaneous

50 60

0 10

60 700 100 010 200 00 100 0

0 0 60 70 80 900 0 60 70 80 900 0 40 50 60 700 0 10 20 30 400 0 0 10 20 300 0 0 10 20 300 0 0 0 10 200 0 20 30 40 50

70 80 900%: never available

20 30 400%: never available

80 90 10020 30 4010 20 3030 40 5010 20 3020 30 4010 20 30

100

50

100504060405040

Availability ExceptionsConfiscation Bureau

General OutfittingTools of the TradeWeapons (not firearms)

PistolsCarbines, rifles,

shotgunsSubmachine guns,

assault riflesSpearguns, bows,

crossbows, slingsAmmunition (S,AP,DD,

G,DP,F,M,T,B)Ammunition (I,API,

HE,HEISpecial weapons (not

poisons, antidotes,explosives)

PoisonsAntidotesExplosivesCommunicationsAutomobileSpecialty vehicleTwo-wheeled vehicleLarger vehicleWaterborne vehicleAirborne vehicleSpecial devices:CommunicationSurveillanceAssassinationMotorcycleAutomobileWater vehicleHelicopter/gyrocopterMiscellaneous

1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 11+none: always 100%

20 40 60 80 100 10020 30 40 50 60 7010 20 30 40 50 60

0 0 0 10 20 30

0%: never available

0%: never available

none: always 100%

0%: never available

40 50 60 70 80 900%: never available

0 0 10 20 30 400%: never available

10 20 30 40 50 6060 70 80 90 100 10050 60 70 80 90 10070 80 90 100 100 10050 60 70 80 90 10050 60 70 80 90 10040 50 60 70 80 90

0 0 10 20 30 400 0 20 40 60 800 0 20 30 40 500 0 70 80 90 1000 0 60 70 80 900 0 50 60 70 800 0 40 50 60 700 0 30 40 50 60

Availability Exceptions Assassination Bureau1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 11+

General Outfitting none: always 100%Tools of the Trade 30 50 70 90 100 100Weapons (not firearms) 90 100 100 100 100 100

Pistols 90 100 100 100 100 100Carbines, rifles,

shotguns 45 55 60 65 70 75

Submachine guns,assault rifles 0 10 20 30 40 50

Spearguns, bows,crossbows, slings 90 100 100 100 100 100

Ammunition (S,AP,DD,G,DP,F,M,T,B) none: always 100%

Ammunition (I,API,HE,HEI 0 10 20 30 40 50

Special weapons (notpoisons, antidotes,explosives) 60 70 80 90 100 100

Poisons 0 10 20 30 40 50Antidotes 20 30 40 50 60 70Explosives 0 0 10 20 30 40Communications 0 0 10 20 30 40Automobile 0 0 10 20 30 40Specialty vehicle 0 0 0 10 20 30Two-wheeled vehicle 0 10 20 30 40 50Larger vehicle 0 0 0 10 20 30Waterborne vehicle 0 0 0 10 20 30Airborne vehicle 0 0 0 10 20 30Special devices:

Communication 0 0 0 0 10 20Surveillance 0 0 30 50 70 90Assassination 0 0 90 100 100 100Motorcycle 0 0 0 10 20 30Automobile 0 0 0 0 10 20Water vehicle 0 0 0 0 0 10Helicopter/gyrocopter 0 0 0 0 0 10Miscellaneous 0 0 10 20 30 40

Availability ExceptionsTechnical Bureau

1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 11+General Outfitting none: always 100%Tools of the Trade 70 80 90 100 100 100Weapons (not firearms) 20 30 40 50 60 70

Pistols 10 10 20 20 30 30Carbines, rifles,

shotguns 0 0 0 0 10 10Submachine guns,

assault rifles 0%: never availableSpearguns, bows,

crossbows, slings 10 10 20 20 30 30Ammunition (S,AP,DD,

G,DP,F,M,T,B) none: always 100%Ammunition (I,API,

HE,HEI 0 0 10 20 30 40Special weapons (not

poisons, antidotes,explosives) 50 60 70 80 90 100

Poisons 0 0 10 20 30 40Antidotes 40 50 60 70 80 100Explosives 0 0 0 10 20 30Communications 60 70 80 90 100 100Automobile 10 20 30 40 50 60Specialty vehicle 0 10 20 30 40 50Two-wheeled vehicle 20 30 40 50 60 70Larger vehicle 40 50 60 70 80 90Waterborne vehicle 20 30 40 50 60 70Airborne vehicle 10 20 30 40 50 60Special devices:Communication 60 70 80 90 100 100Surveillance 70 80 90 100 100 100Assassination 20 30 40 50 60 70Motorcycle 20 30 40 50 60 70Automobile 10 20 30 40 50 60Water vehicle 20 30 40 50 60 70Helicopter/gyrocopter 10 20 30 40 50 60Miscellaneous 30 40 50 60 70 80

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

ArgasCreated by James Hopkins II

FREQUENCY: Very rareNO. APPEARING: 1-20ARMOR CLASS: See belowMOVE: 12”//24”HIT DICE: 1-20 (see below)% IN LAIR: 80%TREASURE TYPE: M,N individuals; B,C

in lairNO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weapon typeSPECIAL ATTACKS: See belowSPECIAL DEFENSES: Magic drainingMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardINTELLIGENCE: Exceptional to GeniusALIGNMENT: Lawful goodSIZE: M (6’ tall)PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil

Attack/Defense Modes: Nil

The argas (singular and plural), al-though actually reptilian in nature, ap-pear somewhat humanoid. Their bodies,which range from green to deep blue toviolet in color, are covered with scales.

The Argas devote their lives to the ful-fillment of good. They are on a never-ending quest against evil, and will nothesitate to attack any evil monster whichdoes not seem to have an obvious advan-tage over them. If backing down from aconfrontation seems like a safer course,the argas will attempt to recruit aid andcome back later with a larger force todefeat the evil threat. Argas are generallyreclusive, but can now and again be en-countered searching for some evil foe.

An argas has armor class 9 when it isborn. The creature’s AC can be improvedby the devouring of certain metals. Itsdigestive fluids dissolve these metalsinto liquid, and this liquid is then secret-ed and absorbed into the scales, afterwhich it solidifies. This process takesplace gradually over a period of 1-4 days(depending on the type of metal, as out-lined below). It is accompanied by a sof-tening of the creature’s scales (whiletheir molecular structure is being al-tered) which gives the argas an AC of 9for the duration of the digestive process,even if it had previously ingested anoth-er type of metal. All of the argas’ otherabilities and characteristics are unaffec-ted. At the end of the 1-4 days and fromthen on until the Argas’ death (or until itingests a harder metal) it will retain thenewly acquired AC.

Different metals can be consumed inthis fashion no more frequently thanonce per month, and each metal whichimproves an argas’ AC can only be in-gested once in the creature’s life. Also,each metal must be devoured in quanti-ties of 100gp (10 Ibs.) weight to improvethe argas’ armor class. Lesser quantitieswill have no effect, and an argas will nev-er voluntarily consume less than the re-quired amount. If this occurs, the argascannot consume any more metal for onemonth, but the same metal may be in-gested again at a later time.

Iron, mithril, and adamantite cause theargas to immediately assume a certainAC upon hardening (iron, AC 2; mithril,AC -1; and adamantite, AC -3), whilegold and silver only cause a subtractionfrom AC (gold, -2 to AC; silver, -1 to AC).

52

The digestive process takes 1 day forgold or silver, 2 days for iron, 3 days formithril and 4 days for adamantite.

Example: A newborn Argas which con-sumes 100 gp weight of gold becomesAC 7 (9-2=7). Gold and silver can beused to subtract from an already im-proved AC (gained from devouring iron,mithril, or adamantite). The effects ofgold and silver are cumulative. The bestAC an argas can achieve is -6, gained bydevouring 100 gp weight of adamantitefollowed by 100 gp weight of both goldand silver.

Argas have the ability to drain magicalpower from a weapon or magic item.They gain hit dice and special abilitiesaccording to the amount of magicalpower they absorb in their lifetimes. Anargas can drain power from an item by

September 1981

touching it (or being touched with it).Artifacts, relics and scrolls are not af-fected by this power, and neither arecharacters or creatures which are magi-cal in nature. Weapons and magic itemsof good alignment will not willingly bedrained by an argas, but may still sufferthe loss of power if they are brought incontact with the creature (since the magic-draining power itself is an involuntaryfunction). When it is in the presence of amagical object which is not good inalignment or is not being held or em-ployed by a good character, the argaswill look for an opportunity to come intocontact with the object — perhaps evenallowing itself to be hit with a magicalweapon in order to be able to drain it.

Each time any magic weapon or de-vice hits or touches the argas by way ofan attack from another being, there is a50% chance that the item will be imme-diately drained of its power. An itemused in a magical attack will become anormal item of the same type, unchangedin physical appearance but devoid ofmagical abilities. The item will do nodamage from the attack which caused itto be drained. A magical weapon will be-come a normal weapon of the same type,and damage on the hit which drained itwill be computed as for a normal weapon.

If an argas comes within 50 feet of amagic weapon or device it wishes todrain and that item is not used in an at-tack against the creature, the argas mustfirst attune itself to the particular item.The chance of doing this is 5% for eachhit die of the argas, and a new attemptmay be made every round for as long asthe item is in range. Detect Magic willreveal that magical power is being em-ployed upon the item in question, butwill not reveal the nature or purpose ofthe magic. Once an argas becomes at-tuned to an item, there is a 25% chancefor the creature to drain that item (checkonce per round) from a distance.

For every certain amount of power thatis drained, the Argas gains a hit die andpossibly a new special ability (see tablebelow). The amount of power in an itemis measured by the following system:

Swords: 100 power points (pp) per “+”;20 pp per point of intelligence; 10 pp perpoint of ego; 5 pp for each language itcan speak; 50 pp for each primary power;100 pp for each extraordinary power;and 100 pp if sword has special purpose.

Miscellaneous weapons: 100 pp per“+”; 100 pp for a special ability (Cross-bows of Speed or Distance, Mace of Dis-ruption, etc.), and 200 pp for each ex-traordinary ability (Arrow of Slaying,Dagger of Venom, Hammer of Thunder-bolts, etc.).

Armor: 100 pp per “+”; 100 pp for aspecial ability (Armor of Etherealness,Armor of Vulnerability, Shield of MissileAttraction, etc.).

Potions: 100-500 pp, depending uponpower/potency and type of effect.*

5. Rings: 100-1,000 pp, as #4.*6. Rods, staves and wands: 2 pp per

charge, 100 pp for each ability if it hasoffensive capabilities (fear, fireball, cold,etc.); 50 pp for each defensive ability(healing, absorption, etc.); and 25 pp forany other capability (illusion, detection,etc.). Special cases: A Wand of Wonderis worth 200 pp + 2 pp per charge; a Rodof Lordly Might is worth 400 pp + 1 pp percharge; a Staff of Power is worth 500 pp +

Accumulated ppgained from

devouring magic0-999

1,000-1,9992,000-2,9993,000-3,9994,000-4,9995,000-6,9997,000-8,9999,000-10,999

11,000-12,99913,000-14,999

8-sidedhit dice

12345678910

15,000-17,999 1118,000-20,999 1221,000-23,999 1324,000-26,999 1427,000-30,999 1531,000-34,999 1635,000-38,999 1739,000-42,999 1843,000-49,000 19

50,000+ 20

Dragon2 per charge, and a Staff of the Magi isworth 1,000 + 2 per charge.

7. Miscellaneous magic: 100-2,000 pp,as #4.*

*Note: Precise power-point figures forthese items should be set by the DM,according to an item’s power in compar-ison with other items of the same catego-ry which are employed in the campaign.

The following chart shows the argas’progression in hit dice and special abili-ties, and the magical power points ne-cessary to achieve each new level:

Special abilitiesDetect Good at willDetect Evil at willInvisibility 4/dayTeleportation 2/dayContinual Light 3/day(None gained)Polymorph 2/dayTongues (as spell) 2/day(None gained)Summon monster, up to 6 HD; 1/day; mustalways be of good alignment.Telepathy at will(None gained)Fireball 1/day*Create Illusion 2/dayConjure water elemental of 12 HD; 1/day(None gained)Immunity to coldHallucinatory Terrain l/dayNew Body**Etherealness 2/day

*The argas can throw a 6-die fireball, gaining 1 extra die of damage per 2 hitdice gained thereafter. At 20 hit dice, it can throw a 10-die fireball.

**New Body allows the argas to magically create a body which is a replicaof its own. This body is dormant until the Argas dies, at which time its spirittakes over the new body. The “reborn” argas has 1 hit die again, but it retainsthe AC which the argas’ old body had when the new body was created. Thenew argas will have memories of its past, but will not retain special abilities orthe power to attune itself to magic items which it had when it was a 19- or20-hit-dice creature. Creating a new body may only be done once by anyparticular argas, even if the New Body so created also reaches 19 hit dice.

Argas are amphibious, but they preferwater to land. Their lair is usually an un-derwater fortress (80% of the time), andis sometimes (20%) located in cave com-plexes near a large body of water.

Argas cannot hold magic items or em-ploy any magic items which require phy-sical contact to operate, because themagic-draining power cannot be con-trolled. An argas cannot physicallytransport magical treasures to its lair be-cause of this, but can call upon a sum-moned monster or other type of servantto perform this task, or perform it magic-ally. All magic items found in an argaslair are of good alignment; all otherswould have been drained, not kept.

Argas can fight with several differentweapons, and those of 18 or more hit

53

dice can use 2 weapons at the same timewithout penalty. Their weaponry is:Trident and sword 20%Trident and flail 20%Sword and flail 10%Trident and net 10%*Axe and Sword 10%Axe and flail 10%Sword 10%Flail 10%

* — If an Argas attacks successfullywith a net (by making a “to hit” roll) thevictim must save vs. petrification or beentrapped in the net, unable to attack for1-4 rounds.

The average life expectancy of an ar-gas is 100 years, although some havebeen known to live to more than 200 ye-ars of age.

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

OculonCreated by Roger E. Moore

FREQUENCY: Very rareNUMBER APPEARING: 1ARMOR CLASS: 4MOVE: 15”HIT DICE: 7 (30 hit points)% IN LAIR: NilTREASURE TYPE: NilNUMBER OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weapon typeSPECIAL ATTACKS: See belowSPECIAL DEFENSES: See belowMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardINTELLIGENCE: Average (with considerable cunning)ALIGNMENT: NeutralSIZE: MPSIONIC ABILITY: Nil (immune to psionic attacks)

The oculon is an enchanted monster created by a high-levelmagic-user to act as an assistant or guardian. The process ofcreating one is long and quite involved, but the resulting being isfairly powerful because of the many special skills it has. Anoculon is humanoid in shape, though only vaguely so, and is 4feet tall at the shoulder. Instead of a human head, the oculon hasa flexible neck about 3 feet in length with a single large eye at theend. The neck is 2” in diameter and the eye is 4” across.

There is no rigid internal skeleton; the oculon’s movementsappear somewhat rubbery, and it can flatten into a mobile blobof matter only 9” high, covering 6 square feet. When flattenedoculons move at one-third normal speed and do not attack.

An oculon can only be hit by weapons of a magical nature. Inaddition, the lack of a skeleton allows this creature to take onlyhalf damage from falls and from attacks made by blunt weaponswhen in its semi-humanoid form. When in its flattened form, thecannot be damaged at all by falls or blunt weapons, because thebody will “give” and absorb the impact of the blow.

An oculon will take verbal commands only from the magic-user who helped create it. It can understand and obey a reason-ably complex set of instructions and may operate on its own fora considerable period of time.

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September 1981 Dragon

Small-sized melee weapons may be handled by an oculon incombat, but they cannot use missile weapons. If an oculonsucceeds in attacking from behind it will do double damage tothe victim. Also, the large eye may fire up to seven magic mis-siles per day at a maximum rate of one per round. These missilesdo 1-6 points damage each and strike opponents as if launchedby a 7-hit-dice monster; they have a 180’ range but there are nopenalties “to hit” when firing upon a target at medium or longrange.

Oculons may hide in shadows with 80% success. They canmove about in complete silence, surprising opponents on ascore of 1-4 on a 6-sided die. They cannot be caught in a Web orsnared, netted, or grasped in any way; treat as if they werecoated with Oil of Slipperiness.

NarraCreated by Jeff Goelz

FREQUENCY: RareNO. APPEARING: 1-6ARMOR CLASS: 4MOVE: 18”HIT DICE: 6x6% IN LAIR: 20%TREASURE TYPE: R,XNO. OF ATTACKS: 2DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-7/2-7SPECIAL ATTACKS: See belowSPECIAL DEFENSES: See belowMAGIC RESISTANCE: 20%INTELLIGENCE: ExceptionalALIGNMENT: Lawful goodSIZE: LPSIONIC ABILITY: 80-150

Attack/Defense modes: B, C, D/all

These creatures are extremely andfervently lawful good. They will succorall lawful good creatures and will helpthem to attain any objective which furth-ers the cause of that alignment. They willbe kindly disposed to any character orcreature type of good alignment. Theyoften act as guards or minions for noblesof lawful good alignment, when no othermission demands their attention.

Narras can speak lawful good, shedu,lammasu, ki-rin, and common. They havethe ability to become ethereal at will andcan use some clerical spells with the ef-fectiveness of a 6th-level cleric. Thespells include:

Up to once per day each —Light, Puri-fy Food and Drink, Slow Poison, Contin-ual Light, Create Food and Water, CureBlindness, Cure Disease.

Up to 3 times per day each — Bless(only on lawful good creatures), CureLight Wounds, Dispel Magic, Prayer.

Up to once per round, only one spell inany single round — Detect Evil, DetectMagic, Know Alignment.

Narra (singular and plural) can per-form the following psionic disciplines at10th level of mastery: Body Equilibrium,Empathy, Sensitivity to Psychic Impres-sions, Mind Bar, and Telepathy.

Creation of an oculon requires the services of an alchemistand spells cast from a magic-user of at least 18th level. Manyexotic materials are required by the alchemist, and the total costof his services will be 30,000 gp. The three most importantsubstances necessary are a gland from a purple worm, an eyefrom a beholder, and the brain of a thief. Two to five weeks arerequired for the alchemist to prepare the mixture, after whichthe Wizard must cast these spells upon the fluids, in this order:Unseen Servant, Magic Missile, Protection from Normal Mis-siles, Geas, Mind Blank, and Wish. The oculon then assumes itssemi-humanoid form and is ready to take on assignments.

The body of an oculon is light grey in color, and slightlyglossy. The cornea of the eye is dark grey, and the pupil of theeye is black.

When not in ethereal form, a narra hasthe body of a small bull and the head of aman with small, bull-like horns. Thebody is white, cream, or tan in color.

55

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

An adventure has finally ended, with both great loss and greatgain to the party. Most notably, Charlie the fighter has become aLord (9th level), Ponifax the cleric has become a High Priestess(9th level) and Wizbangzap the magic-user has become a Wi-zard (11th level). Suddenly all three player characters realizethat each is allowed to establish a headquarters building. Theyhave already cleared the area they have set aside for the struc-ture and are ready to begin construction.

This article will deal with three aspects of building a castle,tower or temple:

1. Closures (i.e. doors, portcullises, drawbridges, etc.)2. Magical traps and guards (Glyph of Warding, Magic Mouth,

Wizard Lock, etc.)3. TeleportersFurther, it will deal with the means of encountering these

constructs and magics in the course of an adventure.

DoorsThe door to a farmer’s hut is not the same as the door to the

treasure vault in an old dungeon. However, Strength Table II inthe AD&D™ Players Handbook considers all doors in the sameway. If a figure with strength 16 shoulders a door that is stuck,he/she simply has a 50% chance to open it (1-3 on d6).

I prefer to give the door a Counter Strength. This is a number,that measures the door’s ability to withstand the physicalstrength of the character. If the character is stronger than thedoor, he/she will always open it on the first try. If he/she is not,then successive attempts must be made. If the door is more thanthree points stronger than the character, he/she cannot open itby physical strength unless he/she is willing to break the door(or the bar, lock, etc. holding it shut).

A character’s chance of opening a stuck or abnormally heavydoor depends on the difference between the door strength andthe character’s physical strength. If the difference is 3 or more in

favor of the door, the chance to open the door (without breakingit) per attempt is 0%; a difference of 2 is a 30% chance; a differ-ence of 1 is a 65% chance; if door strength and characterstrength are equal, the chance is 85%, and if the characterstrength is greater than the strength of the stuck or heavy door,the chance is 100%. Thus, if a door were rated as physicalstrength 13 and a character of strength 11 shouldered it, he/shewould have a 30% chance per try to open it. Successive attemptswould be allowed.

What are the strengths of normal “stuck” or heavy doors? Thefollowing is a list of types of door, listed according to what theyenclose and (sometimes) the condition they are in, and theusual strength factor of such a door:

Peasant’s hut — usual strength 4-10 (2d4+2);Ordinary shop, inn, tavern — 3-12 (3d4);Temple main door — 8-13 (d4+4);Castle door to courtyard — 9-15 (d6+8);Dungeon door (good repair) — 8-17 (3d4+5);Dungeon door (warped but firm) — 10-17 (d8+9);Dungeon door (rotten) — 3-10 (d8+2);Treasure room — 12-19 (d8+11).

Teamwork: Multiple figures can pool their strengths. Use the

physical strength of the strongest figure as the base. Add 1 pointto this for a figure that is 3 or more points weaker, 2 points for afigure that is 2 points weaker and 3 points for a figure that is only1 point weaker. Most doors can accommodate only two pushersat one time, but exceptions might occur.

Example: A treasure room door is stuck (not locked) and has astrength of 19. Two characters wish to open it. One has astrength of 17, the other 15. The base strength is 17. Add 2because the helper is two points weaker, for an effective com-bined strength of 19. Thus, the difference in strengths is now 0,and the two adventurers have an 85% chance to open the stuck/heavy door on the first shot.

Naturally, doors might have bars, locks, latches, hooks, etc.,to strengthen them. Further, they might be magically held orwizard locked. It is still possible to overcome these closures byphysical strength without having to bash the door down. Addthe following strength factors to a door that is secured in any ofthe following ways:

Single wooden bar: 1-4 (d4);Double wooden bar: 3-9 (2d4+1);Single iron bar: 3-8 (d6+2);Latch: 1-4 (d4);Padlock: 3-10 (d8+2);Bolt: 2-7 (d6+1);Bolt and lock: 3-9 (2d4+1);Hold Portal spell: 12 (constant);Wizard Lock: 12 (constant).Other types of securing can be devised, of course. If the above

treasure room door were barred and bolted shut, the door wouldhave a strength of from 22 to 30! The two figures we mentionedcould not budge it, since it is three points stronger (at least) thantheir effective total strength for this purpose.

Wooden doors, and some metal doors, can be broken downby bashing, chopping and hammering. A wooden door canwithstand a number of points of damage equal to its physicalstrength. Metal doors, held doors and Wizard Locked doors canabsorb from 5 to 20 more points of damage than their strength,depending upon the thickness of the door. Some metal doorsmight be unbreakable even after continued bashing — thiswould be defined in the design.

Thus, the given treasure room door, if constructed of wood,could take 22 to 30 points of damage. We’ll assign it a strength of28. Characters would now strike at it with bashing, choppingand banging weapons until the door has taken 28 points ofdamage —at which point it will break. A character need not roll“to hit.” He/she simply swings the weapon, clobbers the door,and gains his/her full strength bonus to damage, if any. Doorsare considered as large opponents if they are larger than 30square feet in surface area. Note that exceptional strength(18/01 to 18/00) benefits the breaking of doors, but not the mereshouldering of doors.

Knock, knock: A knock spell, as per its description, will negatetwo forms of securing. Always eliminate the weakest securitydevice first. A knock cannot lift a portcullis, but a levitate spellmight be able to do so. A knock can drop a drawbridge only ifcast directly at the mechanism that opens and closes the draw-

56

September 1981

bridge. Finally, knock is not silence, and incidental noise caneasily arise from numerous causes.

Doors of physical strength 50 or greater (after being lockedand secured) should be the top reasonable limit, though a DMcould well design a door that cannot be broken by usual means.However, such a door should never be found in a player charac-ter’s stronghold.

Magical traps and closuresPlayers will try to wizard lock every door, put a glyph in every

corridor, put magic mouths in each room, etc. Such a load ofmagic would make a thief’s hair turn white if he tried to break in.Further, players would object if a DM designed such a dungeon/castle for them to enter. A means of limiting the use of suchspells is to allow only a specific number of them to be operatingper 1,000 square feet. Excess use of such spells will allow a Gateto open to another plane of existence, with all of the attendantproblems that will involve. Details on this process were des-cribed in Leomund’s Tiny Hut in DRAGON #42.

TeleportersEvery new castle builder would like to include a teleport

mechanism in the design. However, being able to cast the spellteleport is not enough to manufacture such a portal.

The formula is as follows: Secure a large gem of at least 10,000gp value. Throw Enchant an Item on it to make it receptive. Nowcast teleport, magic mouth, and permanency. Such a magic gemcan then be placed in a throne, under a floor (no more than 12real inches of non-metallic covering), or in some other secure,solid place.

Now a second gem must be magicked in the same way! Afterall, a teleporter only functions if it has a place to go. Such ateleporter would be usable at the same chance for error as aplace “studied carefully,” i.e., a 4% chance of teleporting highand a 2% chance of teleporting low.

The gems used to mark the teleport points can be as far apart(in feet) as the gold-piece value of the lesser gem divided by 10.For example, if one gem is worth 20,000 gp and the other 30,000gp, the gems could be as far as 20,000/10 = 2,000 feet apart. ALimited wish must be uttered to “join” two gems so they can beused for teleporting purposes. If either gem is moved more than

Dragonone foot, the teleporter will not function again until a new Limit-ed wish is cast upon the pair. A full Wish can link up to six gems,any two of which can be as far apart as 1/3 the value of the leastexpensive gem (expressed in feet, as above). The magic mouthcast upon the gems during the preparation will specify the wordor phrase that must be used to activate the teleporter. If theteleporter is to work by thought only, then an ESP spell is usedinstead of magic mouth.

Teleporters have a “reset” time and a usability factor (numberof times usable per day or week). The more expensive a gem, themore often it can be used and the faster it will reset:

Will reset to beGem value Usable used again in

Under 20,000 gp Seven times/week One hour20,000 to 49,000 gp Ten times/week Two turns50,000 to 99,000 gp Seven times/week Two turns

100,000+ gp Twelve times/day One turn

The Wish or Limited wish binds two teleport gems together,and moving one or both or destroying one or both can releasegreat power. The results of moving/destroying a gem are:

01-50% — Release of an explosion dealing 1-4 points of dam-age per 10,000 gp value of the gem to each character within 50feet of the gem when it is moved/destroyed. The gem is frag-mented so that the remaining pieces are 1/20 of the gold-piecevalue of the original.

51-80% — Teleportation to the site of the other gem (randomdestination if multiple gems) but the figure will arrive stunnedfor 2-8 rounds with no saving throw allowed.

81-95% — Figure must make a saving throw or go insane.96-00% — Gem destroyed/moved with no ill effects.Dispel magic thrown on a gem used in a teleporter in an

attempt to render it useless will have the same effect as anyother type of attempt to damage or move it. A full Wish used forsuch an attempt allows the figure to add 45% to his/her die roll inthe above procedure.

Teleporters can also be built specifically for use by charactersor creatures of a particular alignment, class or ability. If this isthe case, Know alignment or Locate object must also be castwhen the gems are originally magicked.

How to give disease a fighting chanceby Matt Thomas

One of the most frustrating things for a DM to cope with is thefact that natural disease can so easily be overcome by charac-ters once they run into a fifth-level cleric with his all-powerfulCure Disease spell. What’s the use of spending all that timerolling to see whether someone contracts a disease, only to havethe neighborhood cleric neutralize everything with a single,simple spell casting?

One way of making disease-curing clerics less powerful is toallow only clerics of a certain level to cure certain diseases. Thechart below lists the diseases named on page 19 of the DungeonMasters Guide, divides them into types of severity, and assigns anumber to each type which represents the minimum level acleric must hold before being able to cure it.

“Terminal strain” varieties of many diseases are introducedon the chart. “Terminal A strain” is a normal terminal pathogen,but “Terminal B strain” is much more potent and highly deadly.A “B” strain terminal disease occurs on a 1 in 8 chance after thedisease has been determined as a terminal case.

Cures for all but Terminal “B” strain diseases cost 100 gptimes the number on the chart. Terminal “B” strain cures aretwice as expensive as other cures.

Note: Definitions of headings on the chart are as follows:MA=mild acute case; MC=mild chronic; SA=severe acute;

SC=severe chronic; T(A)=Terminal A; and T(B)=Terminal B.Disease MA MC SA SC T(A) T(B)Blood/blood forming organs 9 10 10 11 12 13Bones 10 11 12 13 14 15Brain/nervous system 9 10 10 11 12 13Cardiovascular-renal 10 10 11 12 13 14Connective tissue 10 11 12 13 14 15Ears 6 6 7 8 8 9Eyes 6 6 7 8 8 9Gastro-intestinal 6 6 7 8 8 9Generative organs 8 8 9 9 10 11Joints 6 6 7 8 - -Mucous membranes 5 5 5 5 - -Muscles 6 6 7 8 8 9Nose-throat 7 7 8 9 9 10Respiratory system 5 5 5 6 - -Skin 6 6 7 8 8 9Urinary system 7 7 8 9 9 10

Parasites:Cardiovascular 6 6 7 8 8 9Intestines 9 10 10 11 12 13Muscles 8 8 9 9 10 11Respiratory system 10 11 12 13 14 15Skin/hair 10 10 11 12 13 14Stomach 5 5 5 5 - -

57

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

by Mark Nuiver

FREQUENCY: RareNO. APPEARING: 1-12 (40-400 can sur-

round an inhabited keep, castle, orwailed village over a span of one week)

ARMOR CLASS: 7MOVE: 3”HIT DICE: 6% IN LAIR: NilTREASURE TYPE: NilNO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-3SPECIAL ATTACKS: Poison stingSPECIAL DEFENSES: Hide in vege-

tationMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardINTELLIGENCE: LowALIGNMENT: Neutral (evil)SIZE: S to LPSIONIC ABILITY: Nil

Triffids are mobile, carnivorous, andintelligent plants. Their origin is un-known, but they are not natural creatures.

Triffids are dangerous for a number ofreasons. They will attack virtually anyliving creature (not undead or animatedcreatures like golems) fearlessly, unlessthreatened by fire, which they avoid.

They can conceal themselves in vege-tation so as to be unseen with a 94%probability (6% chance of detection),thus nearly always gaining surprise. Adruid has an additional 2% chance perlevel of noting concealed triffids, but un-less he has been exposed to them beforehe will not be aware of their dangerousqualities. Adjust probability of detecting,allowing for vegetation as follows: Thingrowth, +10%; moderate growth, no mod-ification; thick growth, -5%.

Adapted from the creature created by John Wyndham and described in his book, THE DAY OFTHE TRIFFIDS. Permission to use copyrighted information was granted by Doubleday & Com-pany, Inc., New York, N.Y.

The third danger triffids present istheir poisonous stinger. This stinger re-mains rolled up atop their stems (seephysical description) when not in use,and can shoot out 10 feet with greatspeed and accuracy. Triffids will alwaysaim the stinger at an unprotected area ofthe body, usually (75%) the eyes whenthis is possible. If the stinger hits, it does1-3 points of damage on impact, and twosaving throws vs. poison are called for.Failing the first save means death. If thefirst save succeeds and the second fails,this indicates that poison did not enterthe blood, but did contact the eyes (75%)or skin (25%), causing blindness in theformer case and crippling injury in thelatter, as well as 2-8 additional points ofdamage. Special damage to eyes or skinis permanent until healed. In addition,the victim so struck must make a suc-cessful system shock roll or become un-conscious from pain for 1 turn. Makingboth saving throws means the stingerfailed to eject any poison, although the1-3 points of damage is still taken fromthe blow.

The fourth dangerous aspect of triffidsis their intelligence. They are possessed

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September 1981

of an extreme cunning, letting them touse their other abilities to the fullest.They will crouch concealed by a foresttrail awaiting unsuspecting prey. Theyhave no eyes, but this lack of visual or-gans causes no difficulty since they areextremely sensitive to sound, as well asto light and heat. In fact, they are attract-ed to loud noises, and a loud, continuousruckus (e.g., melee) will soon attract alltriffids within several miles.

It is known that triffids are capable ofcommunicating with each other (seephysical description). It is speculatedthat they possess a “communal mind”like that of the social insects. A singletriffid is a cunning killer; a group of trif-fids is an intelligent entity that has beenknown to gather around small communi-ties and “lay siege” to them, actuallyknocking down small barricades andfences by sheer mass, then attacking allwithin. Simple traps will work only onceon a group of triffids before the remain-ing triffids grasp their meaning and de-termine how to thwart them. If their or-gans of communication are removed,triffids will gradually deteriorate and die.

Triffids’ poison is much sought afterby assassins, and magic—users and al-chemists as well, because of its corro-sive properties. If the poison merely con-tacts the skin it will cause 2-8 points ofdamage per dose (5 ml) plus cripplinginjury to the area struck, calling for asystem shock check as described above.If the poison is swallowed, injected intothe blood, or splatters into an openwound, a saving throw vs. poison mustsucceed or the victim will die. Maturetriffids are speculated to hold about 100ml of poison (younger triffids hold theappropriate fraction of that), enough for20 injections before running dry, andproduce 25 ml per day when their poisonsacs are not filled to capacity, unlesstheir stingers are removed. Triffids’ poi-son sells for 125 gold pieces per dosewhen available. Note that this poison isan oily liquid which will simply run off aweapon blade, and thus cannot be usedto envenom a weapon.

It is possible to build up an immunityto triffid poison by surviving repeatedstingings. Every time a character or crea-ture survives after either contacting thepoison, ingesting it, or having it injectedinto his blood (without resorting to aNeutralize Poison spell or the like), hegains a +1 (cumulative) on all subse-quent saving throws versus triffids’ poi-son. No bonus to subsequent savingthrows is gained if both saving throwsare made vs. the stinger in one attack,because the poison did not contact thebody.

Triffids age in 8 stages, each stage re-presenting 1 point per hit die. It takesabout 3 months to grow from one stageto the next. For attack purposes, treattriffids of 1 year or younger (4 points per

hit die or less) as 6-hit-dice monsters,and all older triffids as having hit diceequal to their hit points divided by 4.5rounded down (e.g. fully mature, 2-year-old triffids attack as 48/4.5 = 10-dicemonsters). They grow about 1 foot perstage to a maximum height of 8 feet intemperate areas. In tropical locations,they mature about twice as rapidly andreach a maximum height of 10 feet. Trif-fids do not become mobile until the be-ginning of stage 5, and do not producepoison until the middle of stage 4.

Triffids reproduce in August or theequivalent month (near the end of thenormal growing season in a temperateclimate). The reproductive organ swellsup and bursts with a “pop” which is au-dible from 20 yards away. Thousands ofseeds are shot into the air and carried bythe wind. Fortunately, only about 5% ofthese seeds are viable. Because triffidsare very adaptable to climate and soil,the seeds will grow nearly anywhere.

Triffids have two ways of obtainingnourishment. Before they become mo-bile they can survive on sunlight and soillike a normal plant. Even after they canmove about, triffids periodically must re-root themselves.

The cup at the end of a triffid’s stem iscoated with a sticky substance which at-tracts, entraps, and digests insects. Whentriffids kill larger prey, they must remainnear the body until it begins to decom-

Dragonpose, at which point the stinging tendrilis strong enough to rip off shreds of fleshand transfer them to the digestive cup.

Description: Triffids have a woodybole, atop which is a long stem. The boleis shaggy with little rootlet hairs and isnearly spherical except for three bluntlytapered projections extending from thelower part. When supported by theseprojections, the body is lifted about 1foot off the ground. Triffids “walk” onthese legs like a man on crutches: 2 legsslide forward, then the third leg slidesforward almost even with the front two,and so forth. Their stems whip back andforth as the triffids clumsily move around.Their top speed is approximately that ofa brisk walking pace for a human. Forobvious reasons, they have difficultynegotiating stairs or rough terrain.

The stem extends above the bole to aheight of up to 8 feet (or 10 feet in thetropics). At the tip of the stem is a cup- orfunnel-like object which secretes a stickydigestive fluid. The poisonous stingercurls up within this cup when not in use.Below the cup is the reproductive organFrom the bole grow 3 small bare sticks,growing straight beside the stem. Thesesticks can beat against the stem, creat-ing a rattling, rapid tattoo of noisethrough which the triffids communicatewith each other. The body is coveredwith short sprays of leathery greenleaves.

59

Dragon

by Dennis Matheson

TRAVELLER Books 4 and 5, Mercenary and High Guard, gaveplayers a set of expanded tables for creating Army, Marine, andNaval characters. Past issues of DRAGON™ magazine have con-tained new tables for the Scout and “Others” services, All ofthese expanded tables have the effect of putting Merchant char-acters at a severe disadvantage. In order to give all servicesequal time, the following system is presented to allow the Mer-chant service to compete on the same level as everyone else.

Enlistment: Enlistment is handled as in Book 1.

60

Terms: Each term is broken down into four years, with theactions for each year being resolved separately. The first year ofthe first term is used for basic and advanced training. During thistime, each character chooses the Merchant branch he wishes toenter (Trader, Ship’s Complement, or Support). He receives theskill Admin-1, plus one skill rolled at random from the MerchantOccupation Specialty table corresponding to the branch hechose. If the character is from a planet with a TechnologicalLevel of 12 or greater, there is a +1 DM to this roll. Once the yearof basic and advanced training has been completed, the as-signment resolution procedure begins normally.

General Assignment: At the start of each year, the charactermust determine his assignment for that year. He first rolls onedie on the General Assignment Table to determine if he will be ina command or crew position. If he is already a commissionedofficer, he may elect to take a -1 DM on this die roll, while if hehas an Education of 8 or better, he may use a DM of +1 on thisroll. A result of “Command” indicates that the character hasbeen placed in charge of some part of the mission. “Crew”

Vol. VI, No. 3

indicates that he is simply part of the crew, with no commandfunctions, and “Special” indicates that the character is involvedin some activity outside the realm of normal merchant functionsand must roll on the Special Table to determine his assignmentfor this year.

If a character has already been promoted to Captain, treat all“Crew” results as “Command.” When a character rolls “Com-mand” for the first time, he is automatically commissioned as aFourth Officer, and is given the rank of 01. This reflects the factthat Merchant Captains will often make field commissions forpurposes of having a leader for a landing party or trade station,and such commissions are usually honored when the ship re-turns to port.

Specific Assignment: After determining a general assign-ment, the character then rolls two dice and notes the result fromthe Specific Assignment table. He then proceeds to the Assign-ment Resolution Table.

Assignment Resolution: The first line on this table representsthe number the character must equal or exceed on two dice inorder to survive the assignment. The character is allowed to usea +1 DM on this roll if he has any MOS skill of level 2 or higher.

The second row under each column heading is the numberthat must be rolled in order to be promoted to the next rank. Acharacter may only be promoted once per term, and may not bepromoted at all until commissioned.

The last row gives the number which must be rolled in orderfor the character to receive a skill for that year. The charactermay roll for a skill on either his MOS table, or on the MerchantLife table — one of three Skill Tables provided below. If hisgeneral assignment was “Crew,” a character may roll on theCrew Skills table. And, if his general assignment was “Com-mand,” he may roll on the Command Skills table.

Re-enlistment and Mustering Out: Performed as in Book 1.

Merchant Occupation Specialty Table

Die Trader Ship’s Complement Support1 Brawling Gunnery Vehicle2 Gambling Jack-o-T Steward3 Streetwise Vacc Suit Mechanics4 Br ibery Computer Electronics5 Forgery Engineering Gun Cbt6 Admin Navigation Vacc Suit7 Computer Pilot Admin

DM+1 if TL12+

General Assignment Table

Die Result Die Result0 Command 5 Crew1 Command 6 Special2 Command 7 Special3 Crew DM -1 if Officer4 Crew DM +1 if Education 8+

Commissioned at rank 01 when “Command” is rolled for thefirst time.

Specific Assignment TableDice Trader Ship’s Comp. Support2 Smuggling Smuggling Estab Rt3 Sub Run Sub Run Sub Run4 Sub Run Sub Run Ships Dfnce5 Trading Estab Rt Psngr Run6 Trading Trading Trading7 Training Training Training8 Trading Trading Trading9 Estab Rt Trading Maint10 Maint Maint Maint11 T r a d i n g Mail Run Security12 Mail Run Ships Dfnce Mail Run

Trading: buying and selling of cargoes.

September 1981

Estab Rt: establishing a new trade route between two planets.

Sub Run: carrying subsidized cargoes.Mail Run: carrying mail.Psngr Run: carrying passengers.Smuggling: carrying illegal cargoes.Ships Dfnce: defense of ship while under attack.Security: ship’s internal security.

Assignment Resolution Table

SurvivalTraining Maint. Smuggle Sub Run Trading

auto auto 7+ 4+ 4+Promotion 12+ none 10+ 11+ 9+Skills 6+ 9+ 5+ 7+ 7+

Estab Rt Mail Run Defence Security Psngr RunSurvival 5+ 3+ 6+ 5+ 4+Promotion 8+ 12+ 7+ 9+ 10+Skills 6+ 8+ 6+ 7+ 7+

Skill Tables

Die Merchant Life1 Gambling2 Brawling3 Streetwise4 +1 Str5 +1 Str6 +1 Dex7 +1 Int 8 Forgery

DMs+1 if rank 04+2 if rank 05+

Crew SkillsVehicleGunneryStewardMechanicsElectronicsGun CbtMedical

+1 if Ed 8+

Command SkillsShip’s BoatNavigationEngineeringComputerPilotJack-o-T

Dragon

Special Assignment TableDie Result Die Result

1 Cross Training 5 Ship Defense School2 Trade Station 6 Diplomatic Attache3 Economics School 7 Ship Command School4 Ship Systems School DM +1 if IQ 8+Cross Training: The player may roll one skill from any MOS

table other than his own.Trade Station: The character has been posted to a Trade

Station, and receives an automatic Admin skill.Economics School: Roll 4+ for each of the following: Admin,

Streetwise, Bribery, Forgery.Ship Systems School: Roll 4+ for each of the following: Pilot,

Navigation, Engineering, Computer, Medical.Ship Defense School: Roll 4+ for each of the following:

Gunnery, Gun Cbt, Blade Cbt, Zero-G Cbt, Vacc Suit.Diplomatic Attache: Character assigned as diplomatic att-

ache to another service, gets automatic promotion, and maypick next assignment (but may not pick another DiplomaticAttache assignment). Roll 1 die (ignore 5’s); consult Draft co-lumn on Book 1 character generation tables to find serviceassignment. Character gets one skill from each of the four skilltables for that service.

Ship Command School: Roll 5+ for each of the following:Pilot, Navigation, Computer, Engineering, Medical, Streetwise,Admin, Bribery, Forgery, Ship’s Boat.

Table of Ranks

01-04 Fourth Officer05-06 Third Officer07-08 Second Officer09 First Officer10 Captain

Traveller Rank 1Traveller Rank 2Traveller Rank 3Traveller Rank 4Traveller Rank 5

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Vol. VI, No. 3

Practicing Game Design

II: Building a model

“Practicing Game Design” is a five-part series offered by Simulation Corneras a contribution toward defining andmaking available the procedures for howto make a game. This is intended to be adetailed but non-technical discussionand to be applicable as far as possible toall types of games, not only historicalboardgames.

The series draws upon the experienceof professional game designers as re-flected in interviews in the hobby media,the author’s experience, and the com-mentaries of a panel of three designerswho were asked to give their opinions onthese subjects. The experts are StephenNewberg of Simulations Canada; JayNelson, formerly of OSG and SPI andnow a free-lancer; and Jack Greene,formerly a free-lance designer who hasfounded his own company, QuarterdeckGames. These designers have a widerange of experience, including publica-tion of their designs by Avalon Hill andSimulations Publications, as well as al-most half a dozen “third world” gamecompanies.

In the first installment of “PracticingGame Design” the subject was choosinga topic, and we proposed ground rules tohelp the designer zero in on what seemsto him a worthwhile game project. It isnow necessary to talk about how the de-signer turns the idea for a game into afinished prototype playable with friendsor prospective publishers. The intentionis not to discuss physical creation of theprototype; that has been done better atgreater length than is possible here (seeRedmond Simonsen’s contribution tothe S&T Staff Study of 1977). The focushere is on getting the design end of thegame together.

Every game involves a model. A gamedoes not do something, it mimics thatthing. Jim Dunnigan was right when hesaid in an interview long ago that “real-ism” in games is based on an illusion.This of course is what makes it a game,but from the standpoint of design theimportant question is how to get thegame to mimic the reality. This is donethrough the medium of the model, andthis conceptual model expresses the

rules which make the game system dowhat it does.

The model draws upon an analogywith biology: Much as the systems in thebody combine to determine the behaviorwe observe in an organism like the hu-man body, systems in a game combineto determine the effects of game actionsas these are defined by the designer. Amodel is composed of a number of suchsub-systems, each of which is function-ally specific. That is, functions which theplayer is allowed to perform in the gameare isolated and dealt with in rules thatare comprehensive and related only tothat function. Where different game func-tions interact, such as in a board gamewhere a unit makes a move prior to hav-ing combat (two different functions), theinteraction is specifically foreseen, de-fined and resolved by the rules.

To be effective, the model, or “gamesystem,” must cover all the functionsrelevant to the designer’s topic, the gamemechanics comprising each functionmust be clearly related to the reality theymimic, and the functions should be mut-ually exclusive of each other (so thatrules do not overlap).

Let’s make these points with concreteexamples. Assume that the designer hasdone his research and has all the infor-mation needed for creating his model. Ina role-playing game, for instance, wheregame action comes from the interplay ofcharacters, the game system (“model”)must provide for each of the functions(hand-to-hand combat, problem-solving,use of magic, survival ability, etc.) ne-cessary to allow characters to “do” be-lievable things within the confines of areality (the “dungeon” or scenario) thatis set by the gamemaster. Another func-tion of the game system is to guide thegamemaster on what elements can beincluded in the “real” setting for eachadventure. If each of these functions isnot covered in the game system, the de-sign fails and not even the designer’sfriends will want to play the game.

In the historical game, where game ac-tion comes from the interplay of histori-cal forces as defined by the game, thespecific content of “functions” may be

62

different but the design process is thesame. Here functions would include suchthings as movement mechanics, logis-tics effects, command control effects,predominant modes of combat, differentforms of military force (infantry, artillery,naval or air), weapons types, and soforth.

Since the object in historical boardgaming is to simulate an actual situation,the game functions must be structuredin such a way as to mimic the course ofaction or the type of action that actuallyoccurred, as determined by the researchthe designer has conducted. Anotherdifference from the role-playing game,in which character (force) determinationis often allowed to the player, is that inthe military simulation the designer mustbe the judge of the historical forces in-volved and must incorporate this infor-mation as a “given” into the game, alongwith the game system.

The game design, whatever the topic,must be exhaustive in its coverage ofrelevant variables. But “exhaustive” cov-erage does not mean that every relevantvariable should be covered with gamemechanics of considerable detail. Oth-erwise, the designer rapidly ends up withCampaign for North Africa. Exhaustivecoverage means the designer has suc-cessfully identified all the relevant varia-bles and has considered the place ofeach factor in his model. Some aspectsshould be treated explicitly as game sub-systems. Others may have to be “fac-tored in.” For reasons of excessive com-plexity, game size or format, yet otherfactors may have to be deliberately ex-cluded. The important things are: a rati-onale for each decision in design evolu-tion and maintenance of exhaustivecoverage of the real situation by meansof the design elements incorporated intothe system.

Questions of factoring-in are very im-portant in the creation of the model. Tofocus the discussion on historical gamesfor a moment, such factoring often oc-curs when the designer assigns “combatstrength” to forces in the game or whenhe decides on the combat resolution se-quence in the design.

Dragon

September 1981

As Jay Nelson notes, “Depending onthe design intent, combat strength canbe a measure of absolute quantity, as inHWTTR, or of the relative quality ofcombat power, as in Arnhemor Rommelin Tunisia.” In the latter game, designerNelson gave absolute combat strengthsto units but then filtered these throughsuch an intricate logistics and commandsystem (“operations points”) that gameactions were much more dependent onthis relative quality than on the absolutestrengths.

Jack Greene, who is currently design-ing naval games, is (perhaps understan-dably) more adamant about “breakingout” elements rather than factoring themin. As Jack says, “A combat factor in oneof my games is usually the size of a shell,rate of fire, and then a ‘feel’ for what thegame will say the shell hit will do.”

As with anything, there is a relation-ship between the level and amount ofdetail in a game system and the difficultywhich other gamers may have in playingthe game or understanding its intent.“Factoring in” is a device for limiting theoverall level of detail, while still enablingthe designer to provide great detail incertain places where it may be approp-riate for the topic he is covering. Thequestion of when to factor in and whento break out is a crucial one, and theelegance with which this issue is tackledis often the measure of the quality of agame design. Stephen Newberg shedssome light on this question:

“In its simplest (and probably best)form, the combat factor is a quantifica-tion of the striking and defensive strengthof the unit with no consideration of otheroffsets such as training, morale, leader-ship, experience, etc. These factors canthen be accounted for in other sectionsof the game system. For simplicity, how-ever, some or all of these factors mayend up worked into the combat factor soas to come up with a single number. Idon’t think this is the best way to dothings, but if you want to produce a fairlyeasy and quick game, one cannot havethirteen values requiring separate pro-cedures for each unit. The design trick isto decide what has to be considered se-parately for the topic and scale while stillmaintaining that ‘realistic’ feel . . . andthen finding a system to quantify the restinto one or two numbers.”

Given all this, let’s concede for thepurpose of this discussion that some fac-toring has to be done in your game. Howdo you tell when to and when not to?

Sorry, there’s no easy answer. Butthere is a very good ground rule to use:In the previous installment of this seriesit was suggested that the prospectivedesigner compile a list of the elementshe finds interesting about a situation, asa means of narrowing down the topic forhis game design. That same list of ele-ments can now serve for the “ballpark”

on factoring: When in doubt, treat separ-ately any game function directly relatedto the topic elements of interest. By con-trast, factor in specific functions whe-never the element of interest is not ob-vious. It was also suggested that theprospective designer compile a list ofthings he wanted to avoid. Anything on alist of this kind should be factored in,unless the game would not accuratelymimic reality without it. Does that soundeasy? Try it!

Simulation Corner asked the expertpanelists whether they felt game designto be an art or a science. The answershere are interesting. Again, the most de-tailed commentary is that of StephenNewberg —although he restricts his re-marks to the historical side of the hobby.Newberg, a Canadian who studied andtrained to become an engineer, pointsout that:

“. . . in the final analysis, history is thepersonal view of events of the historian,no matter the amount of modern tech-nology and attempted objectivity hebrings to the work. Similarly, historicgame design is art. The designer anddevelopment team can bring to bear allthe same abilities as the historian whenproducing the design, but their resultsremain opinion and personal view. With-out hard data and duplicative resultsfrom independent groups you cannotclassify something as science.

“This should not be considered nega-tive, however. I am a firm believer in pro-gressive science — but where there is noart or opinion resulting from differingviews and communications between in-dividuals, inhumanity lurks in the wings.”

Californian Jack Greene, for his part,thinks that game design is both: a sciencein the determination of functionally spe-cific game-system elements, and “an artin melding the numbers and the facts...”

New York free-lancer Jay Nelson em-phasizes the awesome character of “art”and says rather that design is a craft:“Certainly one can become inspired inthe execution of one’s craft, but, if not,the simple execution of craft should suf-

Dragonfice. On the other hand, that sometimesmakes for dull games.”

There’s certainly a kernel of truth inJay’s mention of the craft aspect of de-sign. It is skill in making design deci-sions that is the mark of craftsmanship,and that skill is the result of practice. It isa measure of such craftsmanship thatsome gamers will readily play any designoffered by some designers, or avoid anyfrom some other ones.

In the final analysis, building the mod-el is only a means to an end —the com-pleted game. Moreover, model-buildingcannot be an unfocused activity if thegame is going to accurately portray somesituation. There is a need to aim thegame system at modeling some set ofspecific elements that the designer hasdetermined are important.

It is through this kind of focused de-sign effort that a game attains that quasi-mystical objective, “realism.” It is towardthis objective that most designers aspire.In the next installment of “PracticingGame Design,” Simulation Corner wiIIturn precisely to this question of design-ing for “realism.” Comments on any as-pect of this series are invited.

For further reading:Strategy & Tactics Magazine Staff, War-

game Design. S&T Staff Study No. 2. Simu-lations Publications, 1977.

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Junta needs more instabilityby G. Arthur Rahman

One of the most intriguing wargamesin this writer’s experience is CreativeWargames Workshop’s JUNTA. Playerstake the role of powerful families in acorrupt Third World republic. Ideally,these factions strive for the presidency,attempt to loot the treasury and, eventu-ally, win the game. Out-of-power playersmaneuver to start a Coup to oust thePresident and seize his office. Streetfighting and firing squads follow.

Unfortunately, very few Coups everseem to occur in Junta. The Presidentcan do very little treasury-looting or ty-rannizing before assassination or thefear of it forces him out of office. With nodefinite target for a Coup, the countryremains relatively stable. Moreover, theplayer who would like to shake things upseldom has enough force available to doit.

The problems of Junta are twofold:First, the President is too vulnerable; hecannot remain in power long enough todrive his opponents into desperate re-volt. The office of the presidency is moreof a curse than a blessing, and one usual-ly votes his worst enemy into it.

Second, there are too many restric-tions on raising revolutionary forces. Aplayer seldom has the rare combinationof cards needed to bring any auxiliaryforces into play. Able to count on no-thing more than his own small army bri-gade, he is dubious about starting acoup.

Clearly, the power of the presidencymust be strengthened; just as important-ly, the capabilities of the rebel factionmust be enhanced to favor the playerwho is bold and rebellious. With theseobjectives in mind, the following variantrules are offered:

Assassination: The President may notbe assassinated by the Minister at thebank. Nor can the President go to thebank in any two consecutive game turns.

This change neutralizes the treacheryof the President’s most dangerous ene-my, the Minister, who controls the dead-ly secret police, Without a good chanceto assassinate the President, the Minis-ter is more likely to cooperate with him,providing he gets decent payoffs. In re-turn, the President will usually give theoffice of Minister to the player with themost votes. Reasonably safe from as-sassination, the President-Minister teamwill merrily loot the treasury in flagrantdefiance of the opposition party.

Event Cards: It is no longer necessaryto have an Event Card-Influence Card

combination to recruit and control armedand unarmed rebel forces (rioters, strik-ers, the Home Defense League, the BankGuards, the Christian Defense Associa-tion, the Peasant Rebellion card and thePretender card). However, should theseforces be brought into play via an EventCard alone, any player who displays theproper Influence Card may, at any time,seize full control of the units. Havingtaken control, the player may not onlymove and attack with the units, but evenremove them from the map.

This rule provides for unexpectedshifts of power in the larger context ofcombating the formidable President-Minister combination. Even the Presi-dent may raise units, which will fight indefense of his beloved paternalisticregime.

The two rules given above make thePresidency a valuable asset and theCoup a possibility to be feared. Twopowerful factions on a collision coursewill make for livelier action.

Chronic Disorder: The subject simu-lated by Junta inspires other rules thatenhance action and realism. Third Worldcountries are often plagued by ongoingdissent, continual street demonstrationsand terroristic acts, short of, but buildingtoward, a full-scale uprising. In recentyears, chronic disorders have broughtdown governments in Iran and Nicara-gua, to name just a couple of examples.

To simulate this noisy discontent, anew rule makes it possible to recruit anddeploy rioters and strikers, as in the var-iant rules above, but without initiating anactual Coup. Simply deploy the riotersor strikers and do not move them. At theend of each subsequent turn in which arioter or striker remains on the map, onemore unit of the same type is deployed inits proper section of the city. This simu-lates spreading discontent in the face ofgovernment weakness or unpopularity.If not dealt with by the presidential fac-tion, the forces of anarchy will grow upto the limit of the countermix (Note: Alleliminated units are returned to thecountermix).

Any played Event Cards are put in thediscard deck, but the recruited units re-main in control of the person who playedit, unless a player displaying an approp-riate Influence Card usurps their direc-tion. All rioters and strikers are removedfrom the map at the end of a Coup.

In this variant, the General Strike EventCard becomes an awesome force for theone who plays it (or usurps control of itby displaying the Labor Union and So-cialist or Radical Influence Cards). Itenables the player to take control of all

64

the rioters and strikers on the map, aswell as to evoke any listed type that is noton the map when the card is played.However, playing the General Strike au-tomatically initiates a Coup.

The President has two ways to dealwith discontent: bribery and/or force.

Immediately following the Assassina-tion Phase of a game turn, the Presidentmay attempt to bribe one or more typesof anarchic forces (Student Rioters,Slum Rioters and Dock Strikers). Eachbribe toward each type is paid and re-solved separately. If the bribe succeeds,the bribed unit type is removed from themap. Whether the bribe succeeds orfails, the money the President paid is lostto a discard pile.

To attempt to bribe, discard your bribemoney and roll a die:

BP’s paid in Remove bribed dis-bribes sidents on a roll of:1 BP 62 BP 5,63 BP 4,5,64 BP 3,4,5,65 BP 2,3,4,5,66 BP Automatically bribed

To end dissidence by force, the Presi-dent may initiate a Dissidence Suppres-sion Sequence (played similarly to aCoup Sequence) of seven phases. Dur-ing Dissidence Suppression, only thePresident’s Guards and/or the Minister’sPolice Units may move. During Dissi-dence Suppression, only rioters andstrikers may be attacked.

Should any unit other than Guards orPolice be moved, the Dissidence Sup-pression Sequence is aborted and aCoup begins (at Coup Phase One). Riot-ers and strikers may, however, fightcombat against Guards and Police intheir area of the city.

If the Minister has been ordered by thePresident to suppress dissidence andthe Guards and/or Police have not elimi-nated all the anarchic units by the end ofthe seventh phase, the President may(but doesn’t have to) send the Minister tothe firing squad.

A President may not initiate a dissi-dent movement against his own gov-ernment.

Logical Political Influence: For thesake of logic, a fourth variant rule is of-fered. The Influence Cards in column Amay not be displayed in the same play-er’s hand as those in column B.

A BThe Church Labor Union

Conservatives RadicalsMonarchists Socialists

Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

by Mark Herro

In the course of doing research for var-ious columns, many little bits of informa-tion often come to the attention of TheElectric Eye. While these items are tooshort to mention individually, they havegrown into a collection altogether largeenough to deserve presentation here.Hence, here follows the first edition of“Random Comments.”

One of the most frequent observationsabout the recent movie Dragonslayer ishow natural the dragon’s movementsappear, especially while walking. Thisfluidity is due to a new animation tech-nique which uses an Apple II computer.The technique, called GO/MO, uses thecomputer to control both the dragon-model’s limbs and the motor of the ca-mera controller.

In traditional animation techniques,each minute movement of a model ispainstakingly performed by hand, then afew frames of film are shot. The process

is extremely time-consuming and oftenlooks “forced” or faked if not done justright. Often, days of work will result injust a few seconds’ worth of usable film.

With GO/MO, the computer easily pro-duces and reproduces the model’s move-ments and the camera actions. This notonly eliminates the tedious hand adjust-ments, but also produces a very believa-ble blurred motion on film.

Sinclair Research, home of the folkswho make the ZX80 computer, will soonbe selling a new flat-screen TV set, aboutthe size of a book. The three-inch, black-and-white screen has its picture tubemounted sideways. It will sell in the $125to $150 range; the U.S. release date issaid to be about this time next year.

Speaking of Sinclair and the ZX80,that computer is being replaced by theZX81. The ZX81 features a flicker-freevideo output (at the expense of slowerspeed —this mode may be bypassed forhigh-speed applications) and an 8K,floating-point BASIC. Thanks to a cus-

tom-made IC, the ZX81 has a grand totalof only four IC’s — including 1K of RAM(expandable to 16K) and a 280 CPU. Thecombination of a ZX81 and the new flat-screen TV could make a very interesting(and powerful) portable computer.

My face is redSeveral “typos” crept into both of the

programs listed in DRAGON™ #49. Twominor corrections to the BASIC time-keeping program are: changing the col-on to a semicolon in line 11; and chang-ing the 13 to an 11 in line 13.

The corrections to the calculator pro-gram are a bit more important:

Under LBL E’, change x=t to x “ex-change” t (two opposite-pointing arrows)and insert a “=” sign between RCL 10 andSTO 0;

Under LBL D’, insert a “=” sign be-tween RCL 10 and STO 1;

Under LBL C’, change x=t to x “ex-change” t, as above, and insert a “=” signbetween RCL 12 and STO 2.

66

September 1981

Convention scheduleDRAGONFLIGHT, Sept. 11-13 — Sponsored by the Brass Drag-on Society, P.O. Box 33872, Seattle WA 98153. The conventionwill feature role-playing tournaments, miniatures battles, a DMseminar, painting competitions, and a dealer area. Other activi-ties will include the annual riddle competition, contests for de-signing tricks, traps, rooms and monsters, and SCA demonstra-tions. The largest gaming convention in the Northwest, upwardsof 1,000 persons are expected to attend. More information isavailable from the Brass Dragon Society at the above address.

fame, and Ken St. Andre, author of Tunnels & Trolls. Other

COPPER CON, Sept. 11-13 — This new convention, to be held at

activities will include an art show, dealer’s room, panels, dem-onstrations, parties, table top F.R.P., video games, miniatures

Howard Johnson’s, Caravan Inn, 3333 E. Van Buren Street,

trading, a war gaming tournaments banquet and more. Ticketsare $10 until July 15, then $12.50. For more information write to

Phoenix, Ariz., will feature science-fiction, fantasy and war gam-

Copper Con, P.O. Box 11743, Phoenix AZ 85061 or call (602)834-2543.

ing. RAW Games, one of Arizona’s larger simulation gameclubs, will manage the war gaming portion of the convention.Special guests will be Marion Aimmer Bradley, of Darkover

Dragon$6 for a one-day membership, and $8 for a supporting member-ship. To register or request more information, write to SteveHarrison, BabelCon ’81, 1355 Cornell SE, Grand Rapids Ml49506.

URCON Ill, Sept. 25-27 — Dr. Isaac Asimov and L. Sprague deCamp will appear at URCON, a simulation gaming and science-fiction convention scheduled for the University of Rochester inRochester, NY. Tickets are $8 until Aug. 1; $10 before Sept. 24;$12 at the door. Single-day tickets are $6. For more information,write to URCON, Box 6647 River Station, Rochester NY 14627.

SUNCOAST SKIRMISHES ’81, Oct. 10-11 — To be held at theUniversity of South Florida in Tampa, sponsored by the Levia-

FALLCON, Oct. 9-11 — To be held at the Dunham Community

than Wargaming Federation. All types of gaming competitionsand seminars are scheduled. Duke Seifried of Heritage USA will

Center, 4400 Guerley Road, Cincinnati, Ohio. Events will in-

be a special guest. More information is available by writing toSuncoast Skirmishes ’81, P.O. Box 40123, St. Petersburg FL

clude miniature re-creation, historical, fantasy and science-

33743, phone (weekends only) (813) 345-3321.

fiction adventure gaming. For more information contact FAL-LCON, P.O. Box 24209, Cincinnati OH 45224.

BABEL CONFERENCE ’81, Sept. 25-57 — The third running ofthis Star Trek/science fiction/fantasy convention will take placeat the Holiday Inn East, 3333 28th Street, SE, Grand Rapids Ml49506. Tentative plans include an art show, a marathon filmfestival, and several seminars and panel discussions. Personswishing to participate in or help organize such events shouldindicate their desire when first corresponding with BabelCon

RHEIN CON, Oct. 10-12 — The Sixth Annual Rhein Conventionwill be held at the Hainerberg Middle School in Wiesbaden, WestGermany. Tournaments will be conducted in various boardgames, miniatures, and role-playing games. A small registrationfee (under $5) is payable at the door. For more information,contact CPT Jody Sherrill at 06332-6255 or SSG Gary Brode at

officials. Registration costs are $15 for a three-day membership, 222L-7697/7694.

6 7

Dragon

The Oracle(From page 76)tion uses the examination of the livers oflower animals to determine the fortuneof characters. The chance of success isadjusted according to the size and phy-siological complexity of the animals used— but in no case may any creature ofhigher than animal intelligence be used.Birds and fish may be used at -25% to thechance of success, small animals andmonsters at -15%, man-sized animalsand monsters (as well as sheep andgoats) with no adjustment, and large

animals and monsters at +15%. Animalsor monsters who are examined must bekilled by the oracle just before attempt-ing the divination; creatures already deadmay be used, but at -70% to the chanceof success.

Meteoromancy: The study of meteorsby an oracle may foretell the favor of agod, the fortune of a character, or theoccurrence of an important event. Thismethod of divination allows the oracle toknow not only which of these omens thesighted meteors represent, but (with asmall degree of accuracy) what the event,fortune, or disposition is. In any case, the

Vol. VI, No. 3

oracle must spend a week studying theskies before he may make the divination.

Ornithomancy: This method of divina-tion allows the oracle to determinewhether a character’s fortune in the com-ing week will be good or bad. The oraclemust spend a day studying the move-ments of birds before attempting aprediction.

Hydromancy: Except that the oraclemust spend a day studying the move-ments and currents in running water orthe tides, this method of divination is thesame as ornithomancy.

Hieromancy: This is a divination of for-tune, or of the favor of a god, through thestudy of holy objects. If the oracle mak-ing the divination is of the faith to whichthe object studied is holy, there is anadditional 10% to the chance of success.

Ophiomancy: This is divination throughthe study of serpents — that is, snakes—of any type (lizards, dragons, and oth-er reptiles are excluded). After a day ofstudy, the oracle may make a predictionabout the fortune of a character for thecoming week.

Pyromancy: This is divination throughfire. An oracle will be able to make aprediction about the fortune of a charac-ter for the next week after studying theflames of a fire for an hour. The chanceof success is adjusted according to thesize and nature of the fire. A small flame,such as a candle, allows the oracle todivine at -10%, while a normal fire is un-adjusted, and a large fire (such as a pyreor a burning building) gives +25%. Ifdung is cast into the flames, there is a-5% to the chance of success, but if in-cense is burned, there is a +10% chance.

Botanomancy: This is a form of divina-tion through the study of plants. After aday of studying living plants, the oraclemay make a prediction about the fortuneof a character during the next week. Ifbotanomancy is combined with a Speakwith Plants spell, the chance of success-ful divination is increased by 50%.

Another method of botanomancy, sim-ilar to belomancy, involves the writing ofanswers to a question on the leaves of aplant. The oracle then cuts these leavesfree and exposes them to the wind. If thedivination is successful, and the correctanswer is among those submitted, thewind will blow away all leaf-answers butthe correct one. If the divination is un-successful, no answers will be left be-hind by the wind, and those blown awaywill be irretrievable. Note that in this se-cond method of botanomancy, the Speakwith Plants spell will not change thechance of success.

Astromancy and Horoscopy: Thesetwo methods of divination are essentiallythe same, the former being a study of thestars and the latter a study of star charts.They allow an oracle to determine thefortune of a character for the next week,and with fair accuracy the type of events

68

September 1981 Dragonthat will befall him. In both cases, a fullnight of study by the oracle is required inorder for the divination to have a chanceof being successful.

Oneirocritica: This is a divination madethrough the interpretation of dreams andvisions. After a night of successfuldreaming, an oracle may predict an eventthat will happen in the next two days,with fair accuracy. The chance for suc-cess roll indicates both that a dream orvision was had by the oracle, and that itwas interpreted correctly. If a characterrelates a dream or vision to an oraclewith oneirocritical ability, there is a basicchance of 10% plus 5% per experiencelevel of the oracle that it will be interpret-ed correctly. Events of the past andpresent may also be divined this way; thechance of an event dreamed being in thefuture is 85%, the chance of it being inthe past is 10%, and in the present, 5%.

Lithomancy: This is a method of de-termining the fortune of a character, orthe nature (good or evil) or fortune of adifferent person or place. The oracle willcast down a number of pebbles and thenstudy the patterns formed by them. Sim-ilar to lithomancy is geomancy, in whichdots are drawn randomly on a scrap ofpaper and the patterns then read by theoracle. Geomancy also allows the oracleto divine things by reading the patternsin cracks in the ground.

Dactylomancy: This method of divina-

tion involves the use of a device similarto a Ouija board. The character requiringknowledge asks the oracle a question,and the answer is spelled out by a finger-ring suspended over a ring of alphabeticletters. The answer will likely be cryptic,but occasionally, as in the case of aname or a simple affirmation, the answerwill be concise and clear. A lack of suc-cess in the divination is indicated by alack of movement by the ring. A questionmay be asked only once; if the divinationfails for that question no answer mayever be determined, even if the questionis reworded.

Haruspicy: This method of divinationis almost the same as hepatoscopy, ex-cept that it is more precise, telling in fairdetail what the major events of the nexttwo days will be (death, for example, or acomplete loss of money), if any majorevents will occur, and may only be per-formed with the entrails of non-intelligentanimals and monsters of 6 or more hitdice. The entrails of the victim are cut outand cast randomly on the ground, andthe twistings and patterns formed bythem are studied by the oracle. Animalsnot killed by the oracle himself may beused, but at a penalty of -50% to thechance of success.

Sciomancy: Similar to the Speak withDead spell, this method of divination al-lows the oracle to determine the truthabout an event in the past or present, by

speaking with the spirit (the body neednot be present) of a deceased character.Only one event may be discussed, al-though as many questions may be askedof the spirit as are necessary to clarifythe answer.

Catoptromancy: This is divination bymeans of reflections and mirrors. Eventsof the past (60% of the time), present(15%) or future (25%) may be divinedprecisely by the oracle after an hour ofmirror-gazing. Random events are re-flected in the mirror for the oracle to see.Silver mirrors allow a +10% bonus to thechance of success when depicting eventsinvolving death.

Licanomancy: This is the ability of div-ination through the study of reflectionsin a vessel of still water. A drop of oil maybe added and the resulting patterns stu-died; this is called scyphomancy. Or, themotions and figures in a pot of moltenlead may be studied also; this is calledmolybdomancy. The oracle, after an hourof study, is able to make an accuratedivination of an event occurring in thepast, present, or future, which he is ableto specify 20% of the time. The use ofeither holy or unholy water will give+10% to the chance of success. Eventsseen in holy water tend to be pleasant,and those seen in unholy water tend tobe dire.

Gastromancy: This ability is divinationthrough the observation of figures in

69

Dragonsealed glass jars. Two sets of these jarsexist; one is in the possession of the sin-gle oracle, and one in the possession ofthe Great Oracle. The five jars of each setare cobalt blue in color and vary inheight from two inches to two feet. Aspecific event of the past, present, or fu-ture may be requested by the oracle, and50% of the time, this will be the one de-picted. Otherwise, the event shown willbe random. If the divination is unsuc-cessful, the jars will remain empty, but ifa successful divination is made, a seriesof cryptic figures and depictions will ap-pear in the jars. The jars themselves arenot magical.

Crystallomancy: By this method, theGreat Oracle is able to divine, with only a5% chance of failure, any event occur-ring in the past, present, or future. Thisevent may be chosen by the oracle 80%of the time; otherwise it will be random.The oracle consults a crystal globe(which is non-magical), and sees in it aseries of figures, or depictions of peopleand events, which he may then interpretto make a divination.

General guidelines on divinationInnate abilities are available to an ora-

cle whenever the proper equipment and/or materials are present.

The die roll made for each divinationindicates only whether or not the oraclewas able to get a clear impression, anddoes not guarantee the absolute accu-racy of that impression. If a divination isfound to be unsuccessful, then the ora-cle was unable to receive any impressionabout the question posed him; however,he will require payment in return for evena failed attempt.

The accuracy of a prediction dependsmore upon the experience level of theoracle involved than on the method usedto make it. Thus, predictions made byhigher-level oracles will tend to be moreprecise than those made by low-level or-acles, even in the case of a simple read-ing of a fortune. Higher-level oracles willbe relatively more specific in their divina-tions when the attempts succeed.

It should be noted, though, that divina-tions made by any oracle to be a littledifficult to understand, or at least shouldbe able to be interpreted in several ways,so that player characters are not able totake advantage of the oracle to knowwith great precision and accuracy whatwill happen in a campaign. An element ofmystery should be maintained, and sooracles ought to respond in verse or ingeneralities rather than in straightfor-ward terms. Players should have to in-terpret the words of the oracle in order tobenefit from them.

12345678

On the other hand, predictions of thefuture that are correct (such as the deathof a character, if such is indicated),should always come true. Even if a char-acter takes precautions against a prediction,

it should still occur. Once an oraclemakes a prediction that the DM and thedice say is true, it happens. Similarly,events of the present and past must havetaken place, if they were described cor-rectly by an oracle.

In cases where the oracle receives vi-sions and impressions of things that hedid not request (especially among thehigher-level abilities), the origin of thoseimpressions will be unknown to the ora-cle. That is, he may request to knowabout the death of a certain character inthe future, but if he receives impressionsof an earthquake instead, he will notknow whether the earthquake occurredin the past, is now occurring, or will oc-cur in the future, or where it will takeplace. Such events should be createdrandomly by the DM, and may in fact beevents that have already occurred to thecharacter requesting knowledge fromthe oracle. In any case, they should notbe events of any great importance to thecampaign, lest they disturb the balanceof the game.

Furthermore, if the revealing of certaininformation would tend to badly unbal-ance the game and lessen the enjoymentof the players, the DM should not let theinformation out, despite what the dicemay tell him.

The price that an oracle will ask for adivination is high, and costs increase asthe level of ability increases. Usually, theprice asked will be 100 gp times the levelof the ability squared, plus or minus alittle according to the wishes of the DM.Thus, a simple dowsing for water wouldcost 100 gold pieces (100 x (12) = 100),while a gastromantic prediction mightcost around 22,500 gold pieces (100 x(152) = 22,500).

Vol. VI, No. 3

Spell casting by oraclesOracles have the ability to cast both

divination magics and some necroman-tic spells. These they acquire throughmeditation, in the same way that clericsand druids recover their spells, althoughall of their spells do exist in a writtenform.

The prices that an oracle will chargefor spell casting will be the same as thosecharged by any other class of spell-caster for the same activity. For example,the DMG outlines on page 103 and 104some suggested prices for clerical spells;oracular spell prices will be in this range.

Spells unique to the oracle class aredescribed after the spell list which fol-lows, and spells taken from the Playersare referenced according to the level andclass which apply.

Spells usable by class and level, oracles:Oracular Spell level

Level 1 2 3 4 5 61 12 23 2 14 3 25 3 3 16 4 3 27 4 4 2 18 5 4 3 29 5 5 3 2 110 6 5 4 3 211 6 6 4 3 212 7 6 5 4 3 113 7 7 5 4 3 214 7 7 6 5 4 315 7 7 6 5 4 416 7 7 7 6 5 5

23456789101112

Oracular spells1st level 2nd levelDetect Evil AuguryDetect Illusion Cure Light WoundsDetect invisibility Detect CharmDetect Lie Detect PoisonDetect Magic ESPDetect Snares and Pits Find TrapsIdentify GuidanceKnow Alignment Know LanguagesLocate Animals Locate ObjectPredict Weather Locate PlantsRead Languages Omen IRead Magic Slow Poison

3rd levelAnimate DeadClairaudienceClairvoyanceDivine TruthFeign DeathMetal and Mineral DetectionSpeak with AnimalsSpeak with DeadSympathetic Magic ITongues

4th level 5th level 6th levelCommune with Nature Commune Contact Other PlaneD i v i n a t i o n Cure Critical Wounds Divine FutureDivine Past Divine Present HealOmen II Legend LoreSpeak with Plants

MemoryHide Omen III

Stone Tell Speak with Monsters Raise DeadVision Sympathetic Magic II ReincarnateWizard Eye True Seeing Seek

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September 1981

Spell descriptionsFirst level

Detect Evil: Same as 1st level clericspell.

Detect Illusion: Same as 1st level illu-sionist spell.

Detect Invisibility: 1st level illusionistspell.

Detect Lie: 4th level cleric spell.Detect Magic: 1st level magic-user

spell.Detect Snares and Pits: 1st level druid

spell.Identify: 1st level magic-user spell.Know Alignment: 2nd level cleric spell.Locate Animals: 1st level druid spell.Predict Weather: 1st level druid spell.Read Languages: This spell is essen-

tially the same as the thief ability. Thecaster is able to read any language forthe duration of the spell (5 rounds/level),excepting magical languages. He is notable to write the language, though, orspeak it.

Read Magic: 1st level magic-user spell.

Second levelAugury: 2nd level clerical spell.Cure Light Wounds: 1st level cleric

spell.Detect Charm: 2nd level cleric spell.Detect Poison: This spell will detect

the presence of a poison or venom on orin any item, if such substance is present.The caster must touch the item on whichthe spell is being cast in order to detectthe venom. Note that the spell providesno immunity to the poison, and a save vs.poison must be made as usual if contactpoison is touched.

ESP: 2nd level magic-user spell.Find Traps: 2nd level cleric spell.Guidance: This spell answers simple

questions concerning the fortune of acharacter or party. One general questionmay be asked, and the caster will intui-tively know the answer. The questionsasked should not be specific, but of the“Will we be alive tomorrow?” or “Will webe rich if we survive this adventure?”type. The spell may be cast once per day.

Know Languages: This spell expandson the Read Languages spell, allowingthe caster to understand spoken lan-guage as well. It still does not allow himto communicate in that language, though,or to understand magical languages.The spell lasts for 3 rounds/level.

Locate Object: 2nd level magic-userspell.

Locate Plants: 2nd level druid spell.Omen I: This spell simply allows the

caster a greater chance of success whenmaking a divination through one of hisinnate abilities. This extra chance is 10%.Theoretically, speaking this spell in-creases the caster’s ability to see andinterpret correctly the various omens inhis divination.

Slow Poison: 2nd level cleric spell.

Third levelAnimate Dead: 3rd level cleric spell.Clairaudience: 3rd level magic-user

spell.Clairvoyance: 3rd level magic-user

spell.Divine Truth: This spell allows the cas-

ter an 80% chance to determine the truthabout something, by placing in his minda series of figures and images that hemay interpret. The spell works only forone question, and then dispels. Anyquestion may be asked, but it is recom-mended that as the questions grow incomplexity the answers become moreallegorical and cryptic.

Feign Death: 3rd level cleric spell.Metal and Mineral Detection: This spell

acts as the Wand of the same name, al-lowing the caster a better chance of lo-cating metals and minerals than his rhab-

Dragon

domantic skill does. Thus, any metal ormineral may be detected without failwithin the duration of the spell (1 roundper level).

Speak with Animals: 2nd level clericspell.

Speak with Dead: 3rd level cleric spell.Sympathetic Magic I: This spell allows

the caster to make a divination about aspecific person or thing, provided thatsome portion of that person or thing isavailable to the caster. This item, whichshould be something like a lock of hair ora set of fingernail parings, is a materialcomponent of the spell, and disappearswhen the spell is cast. The spell allowsthe caster to know the location and con-dition (dead or alive, good or evil, etc.) ofthat person or thing, although these areonly roughly perceived. The spell has aduration of 1 round per level.

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Tongues: 4th level cleric spell.

Fourth levelCommune with Nature: 5th level druid

spell.Divination: 4th level cleric spell.Divine Past: This spell lets the caster

divine with reasonable accuracy an eventthat happened in the past. This eventmay be specified by the caster, but thechance of seeing a random event insteadis 100% minus 5% per level. The spell willfill in the details of a single event, andidentify the characters in it, as well as thesequence of events. If the event is chos-en by the caster, the relative age of itshould be considered; casters of 7th and8th level may see only events happeningwithin the past week; casters of 9th to11th level can see events a month old;and casters of higher level can see anyevent less than a year old. After the ora-cle sees sufficient impressions (in theform of figures and depictions) to let himinterpret the event, the spell dissipates.

Omen II: This spell is similar to OmenI, except that the extra chance of suc-cess is 20%.

Speak with Plants: 4th level cleric spell.Stone Tell: 6th level cleric spell.Vision: 7th level illusionist spell.Wizard Eye: 4th level magic-user spell.

Fifth levelCommune: 5th level cleric spell of theme name.

Cure Critical Wounds: 5th level clericspell.

Divine Present: This spell is essentiallythe same as the Divine Past spell, exceptthat the events divined are occurring asthe spell is cast, or occurred in the past1-4 turns. One event may be divined, inthe same manner as with the Divine Pastspell, and the chance of seeing the de-sired event is the same.

Legend Lore: 6th level magic-user spell.Hide: This spell is essentially the same

in effect as the Amulet of Proof AgainstDetection and Location. For the durationof the spell, which is 2 turns per level, thecaster may not be detected or located byany magical means, including the Seekand Sympathetic Magic spells. As well,he will not appear in divinations madeabout the time during which the spell isin effect, whether made in his past, pres-ent, or future.

Speak with Monsters: 6th level clericspell.

Sympathetic Magic II: Similar to Sym-pathetic Magic I, this spell allows thecaster to make divinations about a per-son or thing with only an item closelyassociated to that person or place, suchas a familiar or a bulb grown there, as amaterial component. This componentdisappears when the spell is cast. Thisspell allows more precise divinationsabout locations and states, as well, andthe duration is increased to 3 rounds perlevel. Also, the spell allows the caster toexercise a certain amount of control overthe object of the spell, in a manner sim-ilar to a Charm spell, although this con-trol will be lost if the caster tries to forcethe subject to endanger itself. Note thatthis spell can only be used in the present,and cannot change the past or shape thefuture.

True Seeing: 5th level cleric spell.

Sixth levelContact Other Plane: 5th level magic-

user spell.Divine Future: This spell is similar to

the other “Divine” spells, except that itallows the caster to divine an event thatwill happen in the near future (1 turn to 1day). The mind of the caster is filled withfigures and depictions, from which hemay interpret the event. He may choosethe event, but the chance of seeing it isthe same as for the other “Divine” spells.Once a divination has been made, thespell dissipates.

Heal: 6th level cleric spell.Memory: This spell allows the caster to

absorb the memory of a person or thing(cf. Legend Lore) by speaking the spelland then touching the thing. If the thingtouched is living, the touch causes itsmemory to be wiped blank; instincts,however, are not absorbed. There is a20% chance that the spell will work inreverse, transferring to the person orthing the memory of the character, thus

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wiping out the caster’s memory. In thiscase the caster must make a systemshock roll or become insane; the person(but not thing, obviously) receiving thememory must also do so. Once the me-mory has been absorbed, the charactermust decide what sorts of things hewishes to remember, since 80% of thememory will vanish after 6 turns,

Omen III: This spell is similar to theother two Omen spells, except that theextra chance of success that it gives is30%.

Raise Dead: 5th level cleric spell.Reincarnate: 7th level druid spell.Seek: This spell is borrowed from the

Witch non-player character class, as pre-sented in issue #43 of DRAGON maga-zine. The spell description reads, “Bycasting this spell, a Witch immediatelygains the ability to determine the loca-tion of any single item, place, or creatureand visualize all major aspects of its im-mediate surroundings (within 5”). Shewill be able to tell generally in what partof a world or area the thing being soughtexists, and the closer she actually is tothe thing being sought, the more definiteher general idea will be. The spell may beused by a Witch for her own benefit, orshe may be induced to cast it on behalf ofanother character or creature, as long asthat individual is of the same specificalignment as the Witch...” An oracleneed not be that particular about align-ment, but will demand to be well paid.Since no duration was given for thisspell, I recommend that it last 5 roundsper level.

September 1981 Dragon

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Dragon Vol. VI, No. 3

Stalin’s Tanks blazes a new pathby Tony Watson

World War II armored combat is a sub-ject that has undergone numerous treat-ments in gaming. That war remains themost popular historical period with gam-ers, and the tank warfare aspect is espe-cially durable. Witness the success ofPanzerblitz and the very many games onsimilar topics that have followed it. SPIand Avalon Hill have both developed tac-tical game systems to treat armoredcombat and have published families oftank games to deal with different fronts.

Thus, STALIN’S TANKS, a Metagam-ing MicroHistory game, might seem tobe traveling a path already heavily trod.One might ask if another game on thistopic is really needed. Happily, Stalin’sTanks instead seems to have carved outa niche for itself in a crowded field.

The game is played at an extreme tac-tical level. Each counter represents onetank or self-propelled gun, a single anti-tank gun or a squad of infantry. Mapscale is fifty meters to the hex. At thislevel, players can really compare thestrengths and weaknesses of the armoredfighting vehicles involved, as well asexperiment with tactics.

game deals with action on the Easternfront. German vehicles include Pz Ils,two types of the Pz III, three variations ofthe ubiquitous Pz IV, the famous Pantherand Tiger tanks, and a variety of self-propelled guns such as Sturmgeshutz,Elefants, Nashorns and the fearsomePanzerjager V and VI.

Soviet tanks include the light BT-7,three versions of the famous T-34 as wellas the same vehicle equipped with an

and the Joseph Stalin II, one of the late-war heavies. Five of the “SU” self-pro-pelled guns series are presented as welltwo SP guns mounted on Stalin chassis.Each side also has two types of anti-tankguns and the aforementioned infantrysquads. All in all, the countermix is nice-ly varied, portraying most of the preval-ent and important AFVs that took part inthe campaign.Armored counters have either tank or

As one might guess from the title, this 85mm gun, three types of the KV series, SP symbols and the small surface of each

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September 1981 Dragoncontains a surprising amount of informa-tion: vehicle type, anti-personnel andanti-tank factors, armor class and move-ment value. Non-armored units are sim-ilarly treated, except that a numerical de-fense value is substituted for the alpha-betic armor class.

The game-turn sequence is fluid andlively. The phasing player moves unitswhich he chooses to move and then fireswith any that did not move. The defenderthen fires his units, followed by the fire ofthe phasing units that moved. The phas-ing player then may move his unitsagain, regardless of prior activity, up tohalf their movement value. As one cansee, there is a lot of firing; unlike manytactical armor games, every unit can firein its turn whether or not it moved, andboth players can fire their units twice aturn —once in their own player-turn andonce in the opposition’s.

Movement is very basic, with unitsmoving up to their allowance and payingcosts for terrain. Facing is important,both for movement and armor consider-ations. Tanks or SP guns receiving firefrom their flanks have their effective ar-mor class reduced.

Armored combat is resolved simply,but in a manner that still retains the cor-rect feel. The range to the target is calcu-lated; this becomes the basic number

that must be thrown (or surpassed) onthe die roll to hit the target. Die-roll mo-difiers are applied for prior movementand the cover of hills and woods. Favor-able modifiers can be obtained by cer-tain German vehicles to reflect their im-proved accuracy. If a hit is obtained, achart is consulted. The anti-tank factor iscross-indexed with the armor code andthe resulting number or lower must bethrown to destroy the target. Targetscannot simply be damaged; they areeither eliminated or left unscathed (oneof the game’s drawbacks), so firefightstend to be quick and bloody.

Anti-personnel combat is conductedin a similar manner, except that an odds-ratio CRT is consulted to determine thenumber needed to kill the target. Infantrycan engage in close assault, if it can getclose enough, but this is really a tankgame, and the infantry tends to runaround doing little until an armored unitwithout a legitimate armored target de-cides to zap it and put it out of its misery.

The game has some optional rules thatshould really be mandatory for armorbuffs. The range attenuation rule ad-dresses the fact that armor-piercing shotloses its punch over distance. For everytwo hexes of range, the AT factor is re-duced by one. This not only makessense, it also allows the vehicles with

superior attack factors to exploit theiradvantage. An overrun rule appears heretoo, adding insult to injury for the hap-less foot soldiers.

Stalin’s Tanks emphasizes game oversimulation, and in that respect is not re-commended for realism buffs. But at thesame time, it manages to cover the sal-ient features of armored warfare: mobili-ty, firepower versus armor strength, flank-ing and accuracy. Simplicity and ease ofplay are never sacrificed, so the gameaspect never suffers.

There are a couple of problems withthe game. While the components arefunctional, they are drab and lifeless.Typos in the scenarios are annoying,needless and surprisingly prevalent. TheGerman counters for the lllj, Illg and IVdtanks have a numerical defense factorrather than the required letter armorclass! Mistakes like these should not ap-pear in a finished product.

Despite its frustrating flaws, Stalin’sTanks is a sound game that does justiceto its subject matter and is easy to play.Not a bad accomplishment.

STALIN’S TANKS was designed byRoger Damon and is available for $3.95at many hobby shops or direct from Meta-gaming, Box 15346, Austin TX 78761.

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Dragon

Warlock

few gray areas. This is not a very com-plex game, on the same level of complex-ity as gin rummy or pinochle, though itresembles neither. The premise is thateach player starts with a number ofmanna-type points which are used tocast spells in combat or to draw newspells from the deck. Energy Points aregained back by defeating other wizardsin combat and so banishing them to“limbo” for the rest of that hand.

The game is fun to play after the firstfew attempts and has some allowancefor strategy. Still, it is basically a “beerand pretzels” game where luck can makeall the difference. Unfortunately, it is alittle too complicated to appeal to non-gamers and may be seen by gamers astoo expensively priced ($25) for what isessentially a well illustrated card game.

by Bill Fawcett

WARLOCK is one of four games beingdistributed in the United States by GamesWorkshop of England. It is basically acard game based on fantasy, in the sameway that chess is a board game based onwar. Included in the box are more than200 cards, rules, six record sheets, asmall gameboard (that is only incidental-ly used), and plastic markers. The tech-nical quality of the board and cards is

The Game ofDueling Wizards

A House Dividedby Bill Fawcett

A HOUSE DIVIDED is a recent releasefrom Game Designers’ Workshop on an

very good and the charts are easy to unusual topic for that company: a stra-read. The artwork on the cards is very tegic-level game encompassing the en-well done and interesting to examine on tire American Civil War.its own merits. There are several uncommon gaming

The rules are clearly written, and some concepts built into the House Dividedspelled-out examples help to clarify the system that add interest to the play. The

Vol. VI, No. 3

most obvious of these is the movementsystem. There are NO HEXES! Move-ment is rather done on a net of rail, road,and river lines. Not all of a player’s units,or any absolute number, may be able tobe moved at one time. A player rolls forthe number of “marches” he has availa-ble on his portion of the turn. Thesemarches may be used to move counters(or stacks of counters), or may be usedto fortify a city, destroy rail lines, or evenforage for supplies. Further provisionsare made to differentiate between move-ment of cavalry and infantry (the onlytwo types of units in the game), and forUnion naval movement that allows thatside to strike unprotected Confederatecoastal cities.

Both sides begin the war with nothingbut militia forces. These are improved to“veteran” status, and then can become“crack” troops. Recruiting can be doneon every turn, with all new units enteringas militia-level troops. There is a maxi-mum army size for both sides, deter-mined by the number of recruiting cen-ters currently in their control.

The combat system is a distant cousinof the Imperium system with units liningup to face each other and a die roll de-termining whether or not they do anydamage. This system moves quickly,and reality is enhanced by the additionof modifiers for such factors as en-trenchments and river crossings.

The Union’s victory conditions aremuch more difficult than the Confeder-acy’s, but the Union has considerablymore resources and several special ad-vantages, such as the naval power men-tioned earlier. In the basic game, theSouth wins if it can capture Washington.This can mean victory to the South whenit is losing on all other fronts, and the ruleencourages a last-minute lunge at theUnion capital. A better victory conditionis given in the optional rules (includedon a separate sheet). Here the loss ofWashington is a severe blow to the Un-ion, but won’t end the game unless theSouth is also doing well on other fronts.

The map is very nicely done and ex-tremely easy to follow. It is printed on athick paper stock and could use strongermounting. The counters — blue andgrey, naturally — are backprinted to al-low for step reduction. The symbols forcavalry and infantry are both crossedweapons (sabres and muskets), whichcan be hard to tell apart in a large stack.

A House Divided is fast moving, espe-cially for a strategic-level simulation. Allthe necessary elements are accountedfor in only four pages of rules, and even agame lasting the 40-turn maximum takesless than a full evening of gaming.Though there is less “color” than in atactical game, A House Divided does anexcellent job of recreating the problemsand decisions that the top commandersof both sides constantly faced.

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September 1981

(Continued from page 5)

we also estimate that about 3,000,000 peopleplay D&D or AD&D games. So, only about 7%of all players have even heard of the DRAGONversion of the anti-paladin or the witch or thesamurai. If you insist on using those classesfor player characters, you’ll be limiting thescope of your playing experience to only afraction of that 7%. And then who’s beinghigh-handed? — JJ

‘A few chuckles’Dear Editor:

I’ll begin this letter by saying that, althoughI don’t particularly care for TSR Hobbies, Inc.,I like the AD&D game system very much; des-pite its flaws, it is amanages to achieve

very playable game thata better balance of rich

detail and ease of play than any other role-

playing game. Also, I enjoy DRAGON maga-zine, which is an invaluable source of ideas;no DM should be without it. Thus, eventhough I don’t like the company, I’ve spent alot of money on its products (why does thegame have to be so addictive?).

Concerning Terrance Mikrut’s letter in #49:I heartily disagree with his opinions. It is mybelief that DRAGON’s ever-growing roster ofNPCs provides even more diversity than isalready present in the system and can spiceup any adventure or campaign. Keep up thegood work; the more, the merrier.

Speaking of interesting changes of pace,DRAGON #48½ gave me a few chuckles.Gaming is, after all, a pastime to provide en-joyment, and most games (and gaming mag-azines) can benefit from the injection of a bitof humor into the proceedings. In this spirit, Ihave placed Bugs Bunny in my campaign, notas a monster to be fought but as comic reliefand a source of information for the characters— assuming they ask the proper questions

Dragonand are well equipped with carrots!

The cover of issue #49 does indeed suggesta dynamic scenario. I can’t wait until the char-acters in my world get around to building cas-tles so I can spring this one on them. Con-gratulations to Tim Hildebrandt for an out-standing piece of artwork, and to DRAGONfor commissioning it (ditto Phil Foglio and thecover of #48).

Michael A. LavoieNashua, N. H.

After saying all those nice things about us,Michael, I wish you would have explained whyyou don’t like TSR. At any rate, your letter wasselected for publication not because you saidnice things about us, but because of the pointyou made about DRAGON #48½ (the AprilFool section inside #48).

Games are amusement, first and foremost,and not only is humor beneficial in adventureand role-playing games, it is necessary. Wemust be careful to never take ourselves tooseriously — such is the ammunition used bythose who view adventure gaming as demonworship, closet violence, or worse, based onmisinterpretations and ignorance. Besides,after a rough day at the office, hacking andslaying monsters and sacking up gold pieces,I always find it relaxing to hear, “Down thecorridor you see a large yellowish object.Upon closer examination, you find it has asmooth surface. It gives slightly when youtouch it, and you hear a high-pitched squeak. . . yep, it’s a giant rubber ducky! — JJ

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