living greyhawk journal 00
TRANSCRIPT
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Greyhawk'sCircleof Eight.................... 4
By
Gary Holian and
Erik
Mona
Mordenkainen
and his
powerful companions have
plansfor
Greyhawk s
world
in the era of the
Living Greyhawk campaign. Discover their
history
an d
personalities within.
Campaign News 2
Th e
campaign,
the
magazine, character creation,
a nd more.
D i s p a t c h e s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2
News
from around the Flanaess.
The
egonaTriads
13
Contactinformation
for
your HomeRegion.
Volume
I.
Number
0
Spring,591CY
August,
2000
Editor
Erik
Mona
Art
Director
Robert
Raper
GraphicDesigner
Leanne K errigan
Production
DonnaWoodcock
WorldwideRPGA
Manager
David Wise
Publisher
Wizards
of theCoast,
Inc.
On the Cover
ArtistMark Zug depicts theenigmatic
Circleo fEighta s
they attempt
to
summon an extra-planarally.
Ma p Illustrations
Bob Lazzaretti
The
World
of
Greyhawk created
by E.
Gary Gygax
Living Greyhawk Journal (tic official m agazineof theRoleplaying Game
Association"
Network's Living Greyhawk campaign),is published bi-monthlybyWizardsof the
Coast,
Inc.(WotC)PO Box707. Renton,WA
98057-0707. Phone:
800/324-6496. Fax:425/687-8287.Email:[email protected]. Web: www.rpga.com. Living Greyhawk Journalismailed freeto all
Guild-level"RPGA"
Netwo rk me mbers. Yearly membership ratesareUS$20,Canadaand Mexico
US$25. International
US$40
(air mail). Pricessubject
to
change
wi thoutnot ice. Change
of
addressm u s t
be
received
at
f e a s t
30
days prior
to
effective date
change
to
ensure uninterrupted delivery. Unless special arrangements
to the
contrary
are
madepriorto publication, materials submitted for publicationin Living Greyhawk Journala reaccepted solelyon thecondition that the materialmay beedited and publishedin Living Greyhawk Journal.WotCand theRPGA Network
shall make
no
other
use of
materia lsunless
WotCand the
au thor
o r
ar t ist enterin to
a
wri t ten agreement regarding use.
WotCgrants
authors
a
non-exclusiver ight
to use
copyr ighted mater ials
ofWotC in
submissions
o WotC.An
author,
however, shall
havenorightto
publish
orpermit
someone
other
than
WotCto
publish
a
submission
that
includes
anycopyrighted
materials
ofWotC
without first obtaining written
permissionto do so.Letters addressedto theRPGA
Network
or
WotC.
Inc. will be considered submissions an d may be
printed
in
whole
or in part at the discretion of the editor unless the sender specifically requests otherwise in writing . Unless o therwise stated, the opinions expressed in Liv ing
Greyhawk
Journal
are those of the
ind iv idual
authors , not neces sarily the opinions of WotC, Inc.. the
RPGA
Network, or i ts staff. StandardD isclosure Forms. Writers Guidel ines. Scenar io RequestG uidel ines. Scenar ioRequest Forms,
Membership Forms,
and
Club Forms
arcavailable fromthe
RPGA Network
atwww.rpga.com. and designate trademarks ownedby Wizardsof the
Coast.
Inc.All Rights Reserved.
Otherproduct
namesaretrademarks ownedby the
companies publishing those products. Use of a products namew ithout mention of t rademarks should not be construed as a chal lenge to such status.
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Living
Greyhawk
Taking
an
WorldIn New
Welcome
to the sneak preview issueo f
the
Living
Greyhawk
Journal
the
newest publicat ion from Wizards of the
Coastand the
R P G A Network. Living
G r e y h a w k
is an
in te rna t iona l shared -
world Dungeons6 Dragons campaign,
in
w hich players shape the
fu tu re
o f
Greyhawk's world through part ic ipat ion
in gaining events at conventions large
an d small, on the Interact, and in home
gaming groups. Thousands of players
wil l work
together to
create
a
massive
story,t ak ing
th e World of
Greyhawk in
exciting new
directions.
The
Living
Greyhawk
Journal pro-
vided as a
free
benefit
to
Guild- level"
me mb e r s
o f
the
RPGA,will
be
your bi-monthly
gu ide
to the
happenings
in the
Living
Greyhawk campaign.
The
magazine
will
feature all aspects of the background of
Greyhawk's
intr iguing
world,
providinga
greater understandingof where th e
world
of
Greyhawk
ha s
been,
a nd
where
it'sgoing.
Dragonscalesat
Moraingtide
By
Sean
K Reynolds
Strange black currentsan d
droves of beachedf i s t ar e
being linked
to a strange
new cult in the cityo f
Greyhawk. Are the cultist;
responsible,
o r
just part
o f
a
larger danger?
The
Living Greyhawk
The
Reckoning
By John Richardson
and
Sean Flaherty
A localmerchant asksyou
make asimple trip to retrieve
a n heirloomfrom his
family
f a r m
just
north thecityof
Greyhawk,
in the CairnHills.
What
awaits
is
more
than
you
had
bargainedfor.
campaign is inter-
national
in
scope,
with
heroes traveling
all cornersof
Oerthin
search
of adventure.
However,
a
pri-
mary focus
o f
the
campaign
lies
at the
regional
level.
The RPGANe twork hassplitthe United
States,Canada, Europe, and Asia-Pacific
into numerous regions, with
th e
rest
o f
the
world
soon to
follow. Each real-world
region
is
matched
with a region in the
Greyhawk campaign.
Each region
is
moderated
by
three
local administrators (known collectively
as
a
Regional Triad),
who
allow local
playersto takeo npositions of importance
and
affect eventsin their assigned parto f
the game world .Thisdecen tralized chain
of command allowsthecampaignadmin-
istrators (a
group
o f
RPGA members
knownas theCircleof Six) to oversee
the entire inte rnatio nal campa ign and
tackle major issues and problems.
Each player's real-world address deter-
mines
t he home
region
of his or her
char-
acter in the Living Greyhawk setting, and
each
home
regionh as particular adven-
tures assigned to it. If a player travels to a
convention in a state or country control-
ling
a
d ifferent
gam e region, that player's
character takes a trip to that part of the
Flanaess, too. Reg ional scenariosare not
available for ordering outside the real-
world areas to which they are assigned,
In
addition,
many Living Greyhawk
adventures are set in neutral (unassigned)
lands,
wild regions,
or
evi l
kingdoms.
Players fro m al l regions may part ic ipate
in these adve ntures , creat ing grand s tories
in the overal l campaignan d fo rminga
comm on ground for adventures al l p lay-
ers can
enjoy.
The charactergeneration
rules
on the
fol lowing pagewillhelp
you
locate your
home region.
The RP GANetwork
The
RPGA
Network is an
international
organizat ion of gam ing enthusiasts that
has provided top-quality game experi-
encesto
members
forover twenty years.
Members receive asubscription to
Polyhedron Magazine
a
bimonthly
publication filled with gamingarticles,
interviews, an dinsidetips;a free annual
professionally designed
limited-edition
adventure ;the chanceto play-testupcom-
in g Wizardsof theCoast roleplaying
products;andmuchmore.
Membersalso enjoy special benefits in
the Living Greyhawk campaign, including
the chanceto play special members-only
adventures and addi t ional character-
advancement
opportunities.
RPGA
BetheFirstto
Play
Living
Greyhawk at the GenCon
Game
Fair
Th e
Living
Greyhawkcampaign
gets it s
start
at
this
year's
Ge n
Co n
Game Fair.
Three
epic
adventureswelcom e players
to
th e RPGA'snewest campaign,
exploring th e streets of the
notorious
City of Greyhawk
and th e dangerous
Cairn
Hills
nearby
Create
a character,come
to the convention,and get
ready
to experience the best in organ-
ized playcampaigning
Netw ork mem bers a lso receive the
all-newLining
Greyhawk
Journal in
exclusive bimonthly magazine that
details the evolvinghistoryof the
campaign
an d
gives
n ew
insightsinto
the Greyhawk set t ing i tself.
To jo in th e
RPGA
Network, send
$20.00(U.S.)
to:
RPGA Ne twork
Memberships, P.O.
Box
707, Renton
WA
98058-0707.You can also join theRPGA
Netw ork online at : www .rpga.com.
ThisNovember,
th e
World
of
Greyhawk
comesalive
in the
Living Greyhawk
Gazetteer, a192-page com prehensive
sourcebook detai l ing more tha n
60
nations, dozens
of
gods,
an d
hundreds
of
adventurehooks.The product includes
ag iant poster map of the Flanaess, the
pr imary continent of the World or
Greyhawk,
an d
hints
at new
never-before-
revealed Greyhaw k locations.
A ll
adventureshave
a
set t ing,
and all
adventurers
have backgrounds. T he
Living Greyhawk Gazet teer provides
both,updating theoldestD&Dfantasy
setting to the new era of 591 CY. It'sa n
invaluable jumping-on
point
for home
gaming
and for
players
of the
Liv ing
Greyhawk campaign.
By Erik Mom
Th e
Millstream
runsred with
the bloodof the abductedchil-
dren
ofGreyhawk's lower
class, triggering
memories
of a
crisis thought
averted
long
ago.
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CharacterCreation
These guidelines (version 1.0) give
you the
basic information you needto createa
starting
Living Greyhawk character. All
Living Greyhawk characters must comply
with the most curre nt version of the D& D
Player sHandbook
and these guidelines,
Some
aspects
of
character creation
might require information from your
RegionalTriad. Tofind your Triad's
contact information, consult the Living
Greyhawk homepage
in the
Campaigns
section at www.rpga.com.
To create your Living Greyhawk
character, follow these steps:
Step
I:
Ability
Scores
To put all players on an even footing, the
Living Greyhawk cam-
paign
uses the
Nonstandard Point
Bu y method of ability
scoregeneration,
found
in
Chapter 2 of the
D & D Dungeon
Master s Guide, Th e
Living
Greyhawk set-
ting
is
considered
a
"Tougher Campaign;"
hence,
each character
uses 28points distrib-
uted among all
six
statistics.
Fo r
example,
using the full 28
points,
a
characters attributes might be purchased
as
follows:
Str 15: 8 points Int 10: 2 points
Dex
13: 5
points
Wis 11: 3 points
Co n
14: 6 points
Cha 12: 4
points
Apply racial modifiers to ability points
after the
base scores
ar e
d etermined.
Thus,ability pointsrange from 8-18 for
humans,an d
6-20
fo r
nonhumans.
Ability points
gained
as your character
advances in level do not use this chart;
they
ar e full
points
and may be
added
as
explained
in theP layer s
Handbook.
Step
2 :
Race
a nd
Class
You
ma y choose an y raceand class
option described in the
Player s
Handbook, Th e Living Greyhawk
campaign also uses the following special
rules for character creation.
These
over-
ride
or
limit
th e
character options
in the
Player s
Handbook.
Yo u
mustchoosea nonevil alignment
that also meets al lrequirementsfor your
characters class.
A cleric must serve a specific nonevil
deity from th e
P layers Handbook
or the
Living Greyhawk Gazetteer. A paladin
neednot {but may) serve a patron deity.
A character may begin play at any age
from
Adulthood to Old Age, as defined
in the Age
section
of
Chapter
6:
Description,in theP layer s Handbook.
A ge mod ifiers to ability scores are not
used in the Living Greyhawk campaign.
The character may be of any height and
weight allowed
by the
height
an d
weight
tables
for the
charac ters race.
A
starting chara cter receives
th e
maxi-
mum amount
of
gold pieces
for its
class.
Step
3 :Hit Points
Assign your starting character
t he
maxi-
mum
hi t points possible for its class.
Fo r each additional character level,
assign
hi t points according to its classb y
taking half
th e
maximum value
for the
class, then ad ding 1 point. For example, a
character adds
3 hit
points upon gaining
a new level in the Sorcerer class.
Step
4:
Skills
andFeats
Alchemy Skill,Craf tSkill,
a nd
Item
Creation
Feats:
PCs willnot be
allowed to craft items until cam-
paign rules for
this
are determined
an dmade available
by the
R PG A
Network.
Knowledge
Skill:PCs may not
begin with extra-planar knowledge.
Profession Skill:Choose from
th e
examples listed
for the
Profession skill in the
Player s
Handbook.
If you prefer a
profes-
sion that is not
listed,
contact your
Regional Triad for approval.
Step 5:Equipment
Equipment may be purchased
from theP layer s Handbook withthe
exception of the following equipment:
No special, superior, masterwork, or
magical
items areavailableto charac-
ters except throug h campaign play.
Carrying Capacity isused in the
Living Greyhawk campaign, so keep
track of what your character is car-
rying and how much it weighs.
Step
6:
HomeRcgion
A ll Living Greyhawk charactersa re
based in one of the nations of the
Flanaess, asdetailed in the Living
Greyhawk Gazetteer.(There is no
such thing as a "regionless" charac-
ter.) The defaul t
tome
region where
your starting character
operatesis
determined by where yo u actually live.
You may choose a different
home
region
for
your starting character, but your
character
then suffers u t
o
r gio
penalties when
you use it in the
game
region assigned to where yo u live. If you
change
your address in real life, your
character's default home region moves
with you. If you move bu t
choose
not to
change
your character's home region,
your character
again suffers
penalties fo r
out-of-region play.
A player may not chose as a charac-
ters home region
th e
FreeCity
of
Greyhawk or any campaign nation not
moderated by a Regional Triad.
Consult the
table below
to
determine
your Living Greyhawk character's default
home region.American states and
Canadian
provinces
ar e
given
in
abbreviat-
ed form. Additional regions willbe
assigned asth e campaign grows.Visit
www.livinggreyhawk.com for the latest
regions
list,
and for
information
on how
to
contact your
Regional Triad.
Living Greyhawk
Ahlissa
(Innspa/Adri):
Austria, Germany
Ahlissa
(Naerie):
Sweden
Bandit
Kingdoms:
OK, TX
Bissel:CT, MA , ME, NH, RI, VT
Bone March (Knurl ) :Greece
Dyvers:
IA, KS, MO, NE
Efebir: France
Furyoody: M I
Geoff: DC, DE, MD, VA, WV
Gran March: NC, SC
Highfolk:W I
Keoland:
NJ, NY, PA
Ket:
M B, NB, NS, ON, PEI
Nyrond:AZ, SouthernCA,UT
Onnwal: United Kingdom
Pale:
Northern
CA, NV
Perrenland: Australia, New Zealand
Ratik:
H I
Sea
Barons: Italy
Shield Lands: MN, ND, SD
Sunndi: Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg
Tusmit: PQ
Ulek,
Duchy
of: GA
Ulek,Principality
of: FL
Urnst.County
of: CO, MT, NM, WY
Urnst,Duchy of: AK , AB, BC, SK, ID, OR, WA
Veluna:OH
Verbobonc:
IL, IN
Yeomanry:AL, AR, KY, LA, MS, TN
AbilityCosts
Cost ScoreModifier
6 -2
x
7 -2
0
8 - 1
1 9 -1
2 10 +0
3 11 +0
4 1 2 1
5 13 +1
6 1 4 + 2
8 15 +2
10
16 +3
1 3 17 +3
1 6
18 +4
x 1 9
4
x 20 +5
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P
erhaps noorganizat ionof
wizards
is asrecognized
by
DUNGEONS
6
D R A G O N S
players
as
GREYHAWK'SCircle
of
Eight.Some Circlemem-
berswere activein Gary Gygaxand RobKuntz's original
Greyhawk Campaign,and are as old as the game itself.
Many
of the
spells
an d
i tems
in thePlayer s
Handbook
and Dungeon
Master s Guide bear
their historic names.
Th e
contributions
of the
Circle
o f
Eight
are
woveninto
th e
fabr ic
of D&D campaigns everywhere.
M u c h
has changed since the orga nization was firs t
detailed,
in
T he City of Greyhawk boxed set.
The
Flanaess has suffered years of continental war, and the
face
of
this
pivotal group has changed forever .
In th e current era of theRPGA Network ' s LIVING
GREYHAWK
campaign,
th e
Circle
of
Eight
is
needed
more
than ever to counter th e forces that threaten to
upsetOerth'sdel icate balanceo f power.
A Balance isStruck
The Circle of
Eight 's
reputat ion spanst he breadtho f
th e Flanaess. It sname (if not its exact demeanor) is
comm on c urrenc y amon g noblemen an d villagers alike.
Despite this,t he
Circle's
ful l membership has never
been known
to those
outside
th e
organization.
The group has not always been so reclusive. Its precursor, the
Citadelof Eight, was a known opponent of darkness in its
manyguises. Its members
stood,
and fell, protecting the
balance
and defendingOerthfrom the influenceo f malign beings and,
rarely,
benevolent interlopers, as well.
The itadel
Th e series of alliances that
would
evolve into theCircle
of
Eightbegan simply, over
a
meal
of
venison
an d
Celenese
nectarwine in a posh inn
near
the
shores
of the
Wild
Coast.
At
that
table,
nearly
thirty
years ago,
Mordenkainen debated with
hi s
young apprentice, Bigby,
the merits of taking an active hand in maintaining the
celestial balanceof power. Thereafter, the two struck
upon
a
plan
to
gather
a
group
o f
like-minded individuals
that wouldact to hinder advancesby thosew ho would
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dominate
the Flanaess. That their expected exploits w ould
impart upon
the mages no small amoun t of
lost
magicallore
only served tohastenthealliance.
Within months, Mordenkainen
h ad
brought
the
renowned warrior Robilar
to his
cause,
as well as the
cleric
Riggby,and his z ealous assistant, Yrag.From the shores of
th e
N yr
Dyv, Mo rdenka inen recruited the righteous Tenser,
who inturnintrod uced the dim-witted thou gh well-meaning
Serten
to the
assembly. Finally,
th e
young woodsman,
Otis,
rounded out the group.
They
calledthemselves theCitadelof
Eight,
taking the
name from M ordenkainens renowned
Obsidian
Citadel,
in the
Yatil
M ountains. In the
years
that followed, theiradventures
focused on
Greyhawk
and the
Selintan valley,
and the
crags
of
the Cairn
Hillsand
depths
of the
Suss
Forest
w ere opened
to
their prying vision.
In
th e yearso f
their
companionship, bothRobilar and
Yrag were ennobled by Greyhawk, and Riggby was
promot-
ed
speedily within the church of
Boccob
in Verbobonc.
Tenser,
Bigby,
an d
Mord enkainen likewise
advanced
in
their
ow n
wizardly ways,
gaining arcane
knowledge
and
power.
For a
g roup tha t
so
decisively defeated
it s
enemies,
there remained
several problems.
Robilar never quite
bought into
M o r d e n k a i n e n s
philosophy, and he
an d
Tenser often
bickered over mat-
terso f
morali ty .
Serten,though
seen
as
useful , wa snever
t ruly respected and
Otis, t i redo f
underground
excur-
sions and forays
intourban
territo-
ries,
left th e
group,
decrying his f r iends
ascave-delvers an d
treasureseekers
blind
to the
real
problems
of
th eworld.
Over th e
years,
th e Citadel played
home
to
such lumi-
naries
as Prince
Melf
Brightflame,
of theOlvenfolk,
th e
half-ore
Quij,
Fe lnor i th ,Robi lar 's
brother Terik,
and even, at one
point,
th e
Quasi -
Deity
Murlynd ,
in disguise.
Nearly
a
decade
after th e
Citadel 's formation,
Otis'
crit-
ical wordstookon the air ofprophecy.In 569 CY, when
th e
first arrow flew
atEmridy Meadows,th eCitadelwas
noticeablyabsent.
Whether
investigating magical
secrets
far to the
west
or
unearthing
lost
passages
in
Urnst's
Maure Castle, these self-absorbed celebrities were to o
preoccupied
to
influence
one of the
century's
most
critical
battles. A ll were absentsave Serten, who fought valiantly
at
the side of Prince Th r o m m e l againstthe hordes of
ElementalEvil.
When
Serten
fell, none
of his
friends
stood
at his
side.
Though
mostattended
his ostentatious
funeral
service
in
Verbobonc,
a
crucial rift
had
been torn
in t he
organization.
T he Citadelw as
crumbling.
Tenser blamed Mordenkainen for the death of his
friend, an d
ret i red
inward
to his
castle. Terik
an d
Yrag
vanished, some said to theanonymi ty of the Bandi t
Kingdoms.
Even
th eloyalBigby
left
th e
side
of his
one-time
master an d returned toOldridge,where he
adventured for a
t ime with
a band of boyhood
friends.
Mordenkainen ,
the man who had
b rought
th e Citadel
together, simply shrugged and returned, with cold eyes,
to his
studies.
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Formationof
the
Circle
The chaos surroundingt he r e tu rnt o power of the demi -
god,
luz,
in CY 570 prompted M ordenkainen to consid-
era newparadigm.
Though
the Old One worked to
check
th e
growing power
of the
H orned Society,
an d
kept Furyondy's eyes
on its
northern borders ,
Mordenkainen knew well that the s i tuat ion would not
last.
T he
dissolution
of the
C i t ade l
left Mordenkainen
without a
tool
to shape events as he would and though
he hardly admit ted it to himself, he longed returnt o a
life of adventure.
The
Citadel 's
p r imary
fa ilure ,
he surmised, had been
it s inclusive
philosophy.
As its founding concept had
been
arcane, he had been foolish to assume that men l ike
Robilar
or
Riggby would rally
to his
cause without sub-
tl y
working against
it for
reasons personal, spiritual
o r
political.Men of intellect an dsorcerous skill , whose
primary interests were more than mater ia l , would
replace
them. Thus
w as
born
th e
Circle
of
E igh t .
Over
the nextyear, Mordenkainen invited
some
of
th e most
prominent magi
in the
Flanaess
to
jo in him.
By th e firstmonthof 571 CY, he had gathered
eight
mages to his
cause, among them Bigby,
Otto,
Rary,
Nystu l ,
Drawmij , and the
affable
Bucknard.
The
Circle
in thoseear ly days worked to check th e
power of influential beings in EasternOerik. When
they
could no t directly interven e, they sponsored
groups
of
adven tu re r s ,
as in the
sacking
o f
Iggwilv's
former haunt
at the
Tsojcanth
Caverns in the
mid-570's.
Whethe r or notthose agents always knew who set them
upontheir questsi s amat ter ofsome debate.
Privately, members of theCircle explored fantastic
corners ofOerth, including th e s t rangean d foreboding
City of the
Gods,
nearBlackmoor , fu r the r depths of
Cast le
Greyhaw k, and even the m anifold layers of the
infernal
Abyss.More important ly, through their ow n
adventurers
and the exploits of those related to them,
th eCircle
began
to formulate
what soon would become
one of the most impressive networks of informers and
agents th eFlanaesshas ever known.
TheCircleCompleted
The
membersh ip
of the
Circle changedlittle
in the
yearsbetween
it s
inception
an d
574
C Y,
when Tenser,
still
bitter over th e dissolution of the C i tadel , sought
membership. Af ter one of the found ing mages of the
group abandonedOerth to explore other planesof exis-
tence,
th e
petition
w as
granted,
an d
Tenser brou ght
hi s
unique, if less-than-subtle, ambitionto the ideology of
th e group.
Tw o years later, with th e addi t ion of the ma g e
Otiluke, th eCircle sol idified i ts reputat ion as apolit-
ical power
in the C en t r a l
Flanaess .
A s
president
of the
Society
of Magi,Otiluke
b rough t
with him a
seat
on
Greyhawk's Direct ing O l ig a rch y ,
and the
group ini t i -
ated its long-anticipated dr ive to influence the
policies
of
t empora l l eade r s th roug hou t
th e
Mark lands .
Ja l l a rz iS a l l ava rian w as inv i t ed to
join
in 581 CY,
replacing the much esteemed Buc knard , who had mys-
ter iously vanished two years ear l ier . The f ina l week of
he r
s ix-month trial membership
was to be a
baptism
by
f ire .
Th e Returnof
Vecna
Aler ted
to a
rising evil
in the
Flanaess,
th e
Circlehast i -
ly
gathered
for a
nearly unprecedented fie ld operat ion
in 581 CY. A new power sought to join
Oerths
vast
pantheon,
and its
efforts threatened
to corrupt the
magi-
ca l order of the known
world .
The
Circle
traveled to thehillssouth of Verbobonc,
where they invest igated th e
t o m b
of along-dead
Oeridian tyrant
who was
though t
to
have possessed
th e
awesome artifacts known as theHand and Eye of
Vecna.F ind ing th e tyrant a l ive,af ter afashion,and
completely
controlledby the Whispered One, the
ill-preparedCircleof Eight panicked, and was defeated.
Vecna destroyed
th e
ent ireCircle,
save
Mordenkainen, who had elected to remain in Greyhawk
as asafeguard
against just such
an
occurrence. When
news reached th e archmage, he
mobilized
th e
Circle's
allies,
and a
small cadre
o f
apprentice wizards, former
companions,
an d
long-time confidantes embarked
on a
nearly hopeless bid to thwart Vecna's apotheosis (see
TSR9309
"VecnaLives ").
S o m eh o w
(it is whispered that they employed the aid
of
luz, who stood to losemu ch under the deificat ion of
the LichLord),the intrepid adventurers managedto
banish the Maim ed G od at the strange stone circles
known
as the
Tovag Baragu,
an dOerth
r e tu rned
to
relat ive normalcy,save for the absence of theCircle
of Eight.
ShatteredCircle
Mordenkainen addressed
th i s
absence by recovering
wha t
was
lef t
of his
fallen comrades
an d
cloning them.
Thisendeavor consumed
time
that
otherwise
might have
seen
him addressing the reports of theCircle's allies in
th eNorth,who warnedof a larming developments in
Stonefist and the
Barbarian
L ands. When
those
events
spiraled into the f irs t conflicts of the Greyhawk Wars,
th eCircle's
clones remained undeveloped
an d
half-aware.
By the time the clones reached ful l ma tu ra t ion , the
Circle
o fEighth ad
been forced
to
take
a
reactive stance
to the
tumultuous events unfolding before them.
Though
th e
Circle
never acted concertedly d uring
the Greyhawk Wars, certain"hotspots" received agood
deal of their a t tent ion. Mordenkainen Bigby andOtto
fought againstthe Old
One's
armyat the infamous
Battle of
Cr i twal l
Bridge, and Draw mij w as instrume n-
tal in
organizing
th e
flood
of
refugees f rom
th e
Lost
Lands to fastnesses in theGood
Hills.Nystu l
worked
primari ly a lone
in
besieged Tenh, whileOtto
an d
Bigby
left Mordenka inen in the Vesve
Forest
to do what they
could
for the
Iron League.Citing pressing personal
needs, Rary retreated to histower inLopollaan d
refused
to come to the aid of his companions.
When th epolitical rumblings that signaled the end to
th e
conflict reached
t he
Free
City
of
Greyhawk,
th e
entireCircle was on hand to ensure afavorable outcome
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to the
peace process.
Thei r
ne twork
of
agents researched
th e
backgrounds
of key
diplomats
an d
participants
in
the proceedings, and magical divinations were conducted
to
unmask
an y
would-be saboteurs. Never
did the
view
of those
scrying crystals tur n inward, however, toward
th e plansof the single individualw ho could do the
most
h a r m to the delegates' cause.
Rary'streachery that d ay killed Tenser and Otiluke,and
gainedthe Archmage ofKetev erlasting infamy. Spurned
from hi s
family
by his brother and banned from Greyhawk
itself
by
Mordenkainen, Raryfled
to the
Bright
Desert,
to
uncover itssecrets andinauguratea nempire.
ComingFull Circle
Since
the
war,
the
Circle
h as
admitted three
new
members,
rounding
ou t
their number.From
the far
reaches
of the
ancient
lands of the
Baklunish,
they courted
Alhamazad
the
Wise.TheodainEriason, the Circle's first true demihuman
member, came from the Yeomanry. The firstpost-war
addition, however,
was the
most obvious. Warnes Starcoat,
Counselor
to theCourtso fUrnst ,had alread y dignified
himself by
helping
th e
Circlerecover
t he
powerful Crook
of
Rao from
the
clutches
of the
Mother
of All
Witches,
Iggwilv.
Canon Hazen's heroic use of thatartifact in 586
CY
vali date d Starcoat's inclusion,
as did thearchmage's
crucial role in the horrific circumstances surrounding
Tenser's
retur n from the realm of the dead (seeTSR9576
"The Return
of the
Eight").
In the years since the close of the Greyhawk Wars, much
has been done
to
restabalize
the
Flanaess' balance
of
power.
Much work remains, however, and Mordenkainen and the
Circle have resolved
to
ensure that
it is
completed.
Personalities
The following are
profiles
of the
individual
mages
comprising
the
Circle
of
Eight
as of
late
Spring, Common
Year
591.
Th e Circleis infact a much larger organization than
implied by its nine mages, and an enterprising DM should
develop retainers, apprentices, allies and agents as possible
aides andfoils for her players.
Fullstatistics and equipmentlistshave not been provid-
ed .Memb ers of the
Circle
can act asmentorsor foils, bu t
should not be set up as actual opponents of the PCs at any
time. The Circlecontrols a wide netwo rk of agents.
Should
an
adventurer
come into conflict with the organi-
zation,
s he
must deal with mid-level intermediaries
far
before enc ounterin g one of the puppetmasters. M embers
of the Circle of Eight haveaccess to a wide variety of
magical items, including several that modify attributes
(especially
Dexteritya nd Intelligence).
Such
itemsare
no t ref lectedin the baseline statistics provided below.
Alhamazad the
Wise,Wizl9:
HP
51AL
LN. Str 7. Dex
13,Con 10,I nt20, Wis 17, ChaR
Though he now calls th e grea tcityof Zeif hi s home,
Alhamazad
th e
Wise
was
born
in the
Ekbi r i
por t
o f
Kofeh nearly a century ago. When he came of age, his
family sent
hi m
away
to
Ekbi r
fo r
t ra in ing
in the
civil
service,
and Alham azad came to serve at the court of the
caliph,
where his apti tud e for the m ystical arts was rec-
ognized imm ediately. Alhamazad's magical training was
conducted at the magicalschoolkno wn as the Zashassar
of
Ekbir , under
t he
unforgiving Masters
of the
Elements. A hot-headed lad,h e rebelled againstt he
strictures of the place and emerged on his own as a free
magebe fore his education was complete.
A s a
young wizard,
Alhamazad
t rave led throughout
h is
homeland, gaining knowledge
an d
experience with
th e
mult ipl ici ty
of Baklunish
cultures
an d
peoples, from
th e Tiger Nomads in the north to the southern valleys
of
Ull.H e explored th e Yatils to pierce th e secretso f
th e
M o u n d s
of
Dawn with freebooting compatriots
an d
sailed th e warm watersof the D r a m i d j to lands only
spoken of in myths. Years of att end an t service in the
cour ts of man y local emirs an d pashas
alike wore heavily
on the
mage,
an d Alhamazad foun d himself increas-
ingly drawn
to the
tenets
of the
L a d y
of Fate. After a foray to the Pinnac les
of Azor 'alq
that resulted
in a fal l
that broke
his leg in 553
C Y ,
he
retired
to the
city
of
Zeif , where
h e
became an
unofficial
advisor to the
court of the sultan. He hasremained
there ever since, gaining a reputation
as awizened old sageo f Baklunish
history.
Whi le
hestilltravels broad-
ly, he
does
so
pr imar i ly
in
secret.
Alhamazad's ap pearance is elderly: he is
thin, frai l , and walks with a pronounced l imp. The mage
sports a decorated beard and typically wears the plain
robes of aBaklunish mendicant, donning a simple tur-
ban atop hi s shaved pate.He supports himself with a
staff and avoids melee at all
costs.
Alhamazad speaks the
common
tongue with a thick accent, but is f luent in a
dozen languages. He is shy and re t i r ing in the company
of
others,
part icula rly foreigners such as easterners,
whom he f inds clamorous. Alhamazad is a known expert
in th e f ieldsof summoning an delemental m agicks. He
is
k n o w n
to
associate with noble elementals
and is an
expert
on
geniekind.
Mordenkainen met Alhamazad almost 20 years ago,
when
a
crisis
in
Zeif drew
th e
Archmage
of
Greyhawk
to the assistance of the old mage. Th e
a f f a i r
ended with
the departure of Alhamazad's trai torous apprentice,
Kermin Mind-Bender. Mord enkainen an d Alham azad
havebeen
fast
al lies ever since. Alhamazad's primary
interest is in maintaining Baklucishculture, influence
an d
power. As such protection often requires defeat ing
th e plotsof
evil mages, cults,
an d
extra-planar menaces,
he has
found
common cause with th e Ci rcle of Eight.
Alhamazad th e Wise is new to theCircleand its poli-
tics and assuch ha skept hi s distance from th e other
mages.
He is
wary
o f
Drawmij , though
the two
share
many
common interests. Alham azad has displayed
antipathy
fo r
Warnes Starcoat , though there appears
to
be no obvious explanation for the cause of his feelings.
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Bigby,
Wizl9:
HP 89, AL N. Str 9, Dex 17, Con 15.
Int 21,Wis15. Cha 12.
Th e
name Bigby
isfamous
within sorcerous circles across
the
Flanaessironic,
considering the shy, ascetic nature of
the mage who bears it, whose penchantformanipulat ing
the world around him from a distance is legend. Before
th e
wars, Bigby
ha d
been
th e
most reclusive member
of
th e Circle of Eight, atte ndin g group meetings, but rarely
accompanying
th eCircleo n adventuresor
missions.
The
treachery of Rary,against which he w as the only survivor,
has changed all of that.
Once
timid and cautious, Bigby
now acts as an ambassador for theCircle,traveling the
Flanaess in search of new contacts or inform ation.
Bigby hai ls from the Great Kingdom, where he was
born in the town ofOldridgenearly 58 years ago.
His featuresar e
Oendian,
with l ight brown haira nd
dark brown eyes.
His
skin
is
pale,
and his
exceeding-
ly picky diet has resulted in an almost
unhealthy gauntness.
Early in life, Bigbystravels found him in the
WildCoast,whe re he eventually gained the
notice
of
Mordenkainen. Bigbyis knownto be amem-
ber of Aerdy'sHouseCranden, and rumors
have
long placed Mordenkainen as a d istant scion of the
same
bloodline.
Fo r thatreason, and becauseof
their shared experiences
and
ad ventures, Bigby
a nd
Mordenkainen shareafriendship unique among the members
of the
Circle.
When intrigue with Ivid'sCourtW izard, Xaene,
forced
Bigby from hi s tower in
Oldr idge
in 573 CY, i t
wa s
t o
Onnwal's port
of
Scant
that he
turned
hi s
atten-
t ion.There,
he
posed
as a
merchant specializing
in
r a re
commodi t ies ,
a l l the while bui lding important a l l iances
within th e
Iron
League.Theseconnections ar e especially
strong in Irongate , where he has the fr iends hip ofCobb
Darg and the counsel of the city's art if icers , th e c r af ty
Elayne
M yst ica
chief among them.
Still the ever-thoughtful mage of years past, Bigby
has seen that extreme amounts of caution often lead to
inaction, which does
l i t t le
good fo r anyone.H is recent
travels
have brought him into increased contact with the
forces of the Scarlet Brotherho od and, thoug h he now
resides
in
Mi t r ik ,
h is
love fo r
th e
Brotherhood-occupied
town of Scant has never
fal tered.
Drawmij, WizlS:
HP 81, AL N. Str 7, Dex 16, Con 15,
Int 22, Wis 17. Cha 9.
Drawmi jis 63 years old, though he appearsin his late
twenties
or
early thirties.
H is
hair
is
sandy blond,
hi s
eyes
blue, nearing purple.Thereis an unsettling quality to his
features, and more thana few acquaintances have
noticed that something about
hi m
seems d ifferent
eachtime theyare in his presencethe shade of his
eyes,h is height, or even the thickness and curl of hi s
hair.
Still,
the mageis
affable,
andgivenhisprofession,
littleattention ispaid to what Rary
once
termed
"trou-
bling inconsistencies."
Drawmij spends asl i t t le time in Greyhawk as pos-
sible,
finding
th e
place stifling
an d
distasteful.
He
prefers the cu l tured ant iqui ty of southern Keoland,an d
his pr ivateundersea demesnet o that.H is only regular
terrestr ia l haunt
is the
Keoish city
of
Gradsul,
at the
mouth
of the
Sheldomar River .
Drawmi jhas a
close
connection to Duke Luschan of
Gradsul, a distant cousin to the King of Keoland. The two
may be kin, evenclosefamily.Reportedly, Dr aw mij also con-
sorts
with the Hierophant Sverdras
Meno,
a
powerful
being
who
oversees
the
vast Az ure Sea. Meno
i s
thought
to be a
member
of the
mysterious Cabal,
a
congregation
of the Old
Faith
even
more enigmatic than theCircleof Eight. Few
know that it is the one-time fastness of the hierophant that
Draw mij has made into his private residence.
The mage speaks of contacts within the realm of
Celene,a nd offersth e weaveo f hi sfine robes an dvarious
artifacts displayed abouthi s home as proof of hisolven
connections. Whether for reasons of
politics
or something
more sinister, however, few in Enstad admit to any sort of
relationship with theman.
Somehow,
thoughDrawmijha s
fe w
know n agents, he manages to report ably to the circle
on m atters involving Keoland and its client states.
In
th e lasttenyears, Draw mij hasfocused his magical
study upont he scienceof travel and, more specifically, upon
theories of the manipulation of time. Though he has not
admitted to ultimate
success,
there can be nodenying that
Drawmij,
once merely enigmatic, has grown quite eccentric
of late, perhapsas areaction to anexperiment gone
awry.
Jallarzi
put as
much forward
to the assembledCirclein
their
mostrecent meeting, but she received only acoolsmile
from
the mageand aharsh reprimand from M ordenkainen.
Drawmij
met the
news
of the
treachery
of
Rary with
classic
dispassion. Indeed,
the
nascent
archmage
appears
to
havebeen
the
Circlemember least
affected
by theeventsof theGreyhawk
Warsan dReconstruction. He only grudgingly agreedto the
additionofWarnesandAlhamazed,and
argued
steadfastly
againstexpanding the purview of theCircleto include non-
humanmembers. Finding Nystul his only ally in the matter,
however,
he has
sincetreated
the
olve Theodain Eriason with
blandacceptance.
JallarziSallavarian,WizlS: HP 47, AL NG. Str
10, Dex 18. Con 10. Int 19, Wis 17. Cha 17.
Jallarzi,
at 4 2, is theCirclesyoungest mem- .
;:v
,
her,
and its only
female.
Born into minor
nobility
in the
Duchy
of
Urnst,
she studied magica s a teen under
th e mysterious Seer of Urnsta nd
th e redoubtable WarnesStarcoat.
Later travels brought
her to
Greyhawk.
There,
undert he tutelage
of Tenser, she became the youngest
mage ever inducted into th e Society
ofMagi.
Often considered soft-spoken, her d emeanor has hard-
ened
noticeably since she was the first to discover the
devastation
on the Day of
Great Signing
s ix
years ago.
She has sworn vengea nce against
Rary,
though she has not
takenany public action against her one-time com rade. The
treachery of one so even-mannered as the former
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Archm age of Ket has triggered paranoia throughout the
Circle,a nd
these feelings have affected evenJallarzi.
Since Tenser was probably her
closest
ally in the
Circle,she now spends less
t ime
with he r companions
than before
th e
wars,preferring instead
to
conduct
he r
research a ndCirclebusiness alone. She hasretained he r
villa
in Greyhaw k, and rumors suggest that it is perhaps
th e
most heavily magicked building
in the city,
outside
of
the guildhall itself. She
stil l
spends a great deal of t ime
with
he r
f r iends Derider
Fanshen and
Matriarch Sarana,
and
the dark t imes
have
bolstered her
fa ith
inPelor.
Jallarzi
is an
extremely busy woman;
t he
last year
h as
seen he r
travel
th e
Flanaess
f rom
Loftwick
to RelMord.
S he
avoids
t he
lands
of the old
Great Kingdom,
bu t
urges
her political
f r iends
to support both Nyrond and the
Urnst Statesagainst
the
tyranny
to the east.
Regardless
of her increased responsibilities, however,
Jallarzi still takes time to encourage younger mages.S he
often issoughtout for training purposes. She prefers th e
coin of Greyha wk in excha nge for tra ining , but she also
fancies
magical wands,
and any
addition
to her
consider-
ablecollection would be greatly rewarded.
Jallarzi
is a tall
5
ft. 7 in.) woman of striking features.
She is nearly purebred
Suel,
and her pale skin and curly,
honey-blonde ha ir have turned the head of more than one
novice in the
corridors
of the guildhall. Sheprefers to
dress com fortabl y in silks and satins imported from the
Fa rWest, and though the material would seem to belie an
opulent lifestyle, sheprefers function over
style
in
cloth-
ing, often eschewing
the flowing skirts so
popular
in the
Garden Quarter for simple breeches.
Jallarzira rely travels alone,fo r
th e
pseudodragon,
Edwina,
constantly flutters at her side, occasionally
acting as amessenger int imesof need.T he creature
is
fiercely loyal,
and the few
attempts that havebeen
made
t o
abduct
i t
have
met with
dismal failure and, given
Jallarzi's
extensive contacts
in theCity
Watch, unusually
harsh sentences.
Jallarzi remains dedicated to her duty as aliaison
between
th eCirclean d
other powerful mages
i nNyrond ,
and
the new
leadership
of
King Lynwerd
ha s
given
h er
reason to hope fo r that embattled nation. Th e Flanaess
remains
factionalized, however,
and few aremore
aware
o f
this than Jallarzi.He r greatest
fear
is that by choosing a
single enemy,th eCircleopens itself to severalmore. The
Greyhawk Wars
an dtheir
aftermath have frozen every-
thing in a kind of
l imbo.
It is her belief that the best
course of action is to wait, and see what starts to thaw.
Mordenkainen,Wiz20+:
HP
106,
AL N. Str 10,
Dex 17,
Con 17.Int23,Wis15. Cha 18.
Mordenkainen
is one of the
mostfeared
and
respected living
mages in the Flanaess.Oncea resident of the
Wild
Coast,
Greyhaw k, and Highfolk, respectively, he has traveled to the
reaches
of theexoticFar W est and ventured extensively across
the
Flanaess,
from thelandsof the
Northmen
to the
shores
of
the Amedio Jungle. There is scarcely a mage who has not heard
ofhis exploits or recognized his skill and knowledge of mat-
ters
both magical
and
political.
Perhaps
no
individual
in all
Oeriksees himself
as
embodying the spirit of Balance as does Morde nkainen the
Archmage.Hi s philosophies are
almost
entirely one-sided
on the
matter,
an d
many
a
worthy cause
ha s
gone
unan-
swered by the
mage's private army,
th e
O bsidian Citadel
(sharing the name of his hidden fortresshome)because of
hi s
neutral-minded convictions.
Mordenkainen's view of balance is no tit-for-tat equal-
ity, but a highly detailed and extremely th eoretical phi-
losophy derived from decades
of
arcane research.
He has
fought
ardently
fo r
th e
forces
of
good
(most
recently
dur ing th e
Greyhawk Wars),
but just as
often
he has
been known to work as a shadow player fo r malevolence.
In
al l
things, Mordenkainen prefers
to
maneuver behind
th e scenes, subtly manipulating events to ensure that no
side gains the upper hand . As a result, the
a rchmage
is
t rusted l i t t le, even among
th e
l ikewise-neutral
Hierophants of the Cabal,w ho
f ind
hi s vision of
Balance
who l ly self-centered
an d
somewhat arbitrary.
This philosophy has gained the archmage a virtual
army of enemies,not a
fe w
of whom once considered
him agood fr iend.A m o n g these last can be counted
Evard
th e
Black,
Terik
and,
of
course, Rary.
l uz and his
underl ings,
particularly
Kermin
Mind-Bender, have hated
Mordenkainen
f rom
their
f i rst
meeting.
In
recent years, Mordenkainen has turned his full
at tent ion to hisposition as leader of the
Circle
of
Eight.
The events of the Greyhawk Wars an dtheir afterm ath
strike
him as
prophetic
of the
da rk
t imes
revealed
in the
Tome of the
Black
Heart
discovered so very long ag o
beneath
M au reCastle.
F or decades,he hasbeeiicollect-
in g
his thoughts in a work known as the Codex of
Mordenkainen. Archmages across th e Flanaess would
give anything to peruse it s pages.
ance-
Mordenkainen s tands 5 ft. 11 in. tall, an d appearshalf-
again younger than his tru e 82 years of age. He wea rs a
dark beard trimmed to a
point,
a nd usually favors black
satin
coats, lined in red, over traditional robes. Two years
ago, Mordenkainen shaved his head, and he has remained
bald
bychoice
ever
since.H is
mostimpressive physical
features are his penetrating eyes. It is said that they
hold
hints
of
genius tinged with madness,
a
volatile combina-
tion that usually gets Mordenkainen what
he
wants
f rom
the easily persuaded . He revels in the art of debate,
thoug h his emotion s can overcome him if he fears defeat.
Luckily for him, this is a rare occurrence (though alleged-
ly the
spike that tore
a
r if t
inhi s
once-
strong friendship with Rary).
Little is known about
Mordenkainensorigins,particularly;
th e
place
of his birth.
Rumors place
him asOer id ian ,perhaps
Aerdi .
Someeven say he is of the line of
Ganz
Yragerne, making him distant-
ly relatedto such notablesasZagig j
Yragerne
and Heward. He has fe w
friends,
and no one in whom he
completely
confides.
H is
greatest
passions are for his Art.
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Nystul.
Wiz l7: HP 76. AL N. Str 7, Dex
10,
Con 15.
In t
22 ,Wis1 7.Cha 15.Note:
Nys tu l
isprotected by a
per-
manentprotection from
evilspell.
The
mage
Nystuli s a
rare
sort.A man of
allegedly comical
appearance,
he
uses obfuscating magicks
to
alter
his
appearance
to something suitable for anygiven situation. Beneath the
illusion,hi s features are
atypically
Flan,
with
anolivecom-
plexion more common
mOendians
and a tall, spindling form
that towers over six and a half feet high. His intellect is keen
and
his insight piercing. Subterfuge and intrigue are his
fortes. Mordenkainen often notes that
Nystul
seems some-
times to
lack
a
well-grounded, rational temperament.
Nystul
is not aswell-known asMordenkainen, Bigby, or the others,
even in hisnative Tenh, where prior to the Great Wars he was
seenas analoof and eccentric mage from
Redspan,
o fpassing
interest
to
Ehyeh
or his
court.
Nystul was born in Tenh 53 years ago to a
family
of
well-connected nobles
in
Nevond Nevnend
w ho
unfor-
tunately
were ambitious
an dfaced
with better-connected
enemies. Despite a good rep utation among man y fellow
nobles, they could not prevent their
downfall
when an
intrigue with
the
court
of
Duke
Pet'yeusaw the
proud
clan
brought low on charges of sedition and insurgency.
The
nobles
of
Nystul'sHousewere
tried
for treason,
a n d
the
House
was disbanded. Nystul was taken
a w a y
from his parents by servants and raised in a small monastery
bordering the
Pale. There
he was taken in by a small sect of
pacifist Pholtan
monks living
n e a r thePhostwood.
The
monks raised
Nystul
well,
and
encouraged
the
oft-mis-
chievous student's talent formagic, particularly that of illu-
sions. He was given rudime ntary instruction by a wily old
cleric named Friar
Nemonicus,
himself obsessed with the
powers inherent to light anddarkness.Nystul'spermanent
protectionfrom evilspell was in
f a c t
a gift fromNem onicus.
Eventually,
th e monks
raised
sufficient
monies
to
send
Nystul south
to a
proper magic
school at
RadigastCity's
well-regarded
Sorcerous Union,
There he befriended a
young
Otto,
resting
from one of his
occasional sojourns
to
the Nyr
Dyv.Despite
th e
arduous experiences
of his
youth,
Nystu l
managedt o
come
away from them witha
deep concern fo r
his homeland, and it was to
Tenhthat
h e
eventually returned when he consumed hi swanderlust .H e
constructed a home in
Redspan
and
took
on young
appren-
tices.
It w as not
long before
h is
exploits brought
the
attention
of
Mordenkainen and an
offer
of membership in the
Circle
of Eight in 571 CY.
When theWars came to Tenh,
Nystul
did his best to
evac-
uateRedspanersto
Urnst
aswellas to arm his kinsfolk
against the surprising onslaught from thenorth andeast. Hi s
visibility rose considerably duringthis time,even
as
Ehyeh
and
the court made a hasty retreat to RadigastCity and the
protection
of
CountessBelissica. Nystul already
ha d
allied
himself with a little-known organization calling themselves
the
Keepers
of the
Flan, comprising mages, druids,
and the
archaic
loremasters
of the
clans,
mostof
whom escaped luz
and th e barbarians to the
Rakers
or the
Phostwood.
Nystul
has
been working
to
recover
his
homeland ever since.
Alone
among the other members of the Circleo f Eight,
Nystul
holds
thebelief tha t Rary's so-called traito rshipi s
nothing but a ruse perpetrated either by the Archmage of
Ke t himself or some greater enemy of the
Circle,
with the
archmage as a dupe. To this end, he has contacted Rary's old
companion, Torik Redaxesson of Highfolk, who has been
pushing
for an
investigation into
the
cause
of the
archmage's
alleged corruption.
Nystulperceives
the Old One and his diabolical
retinue
a s
the
Circle's
true enemy,and he iseagerto increasethe
Circle's
number,
beyond eight
if
need
be, to
combat this menace.
The
tide
of
evil
and
tyrann y must
be
turned,
and he
believes
it
should begin where it first
began
last time, in Tenh.
Otto, Clr3 Boccob)/Wizl5:HP 78. AL N. Str16.Dex
10.Con 15.Int 17. Wis 15.Cha 17.
Otto hasbeen involved in the a f f a i r s of the Circleof Eight
since before
the
group's existence.
In
570, with Robilar's part
in
the
release
o f
luz revealed, Mordenkainen sought
to
keep
tabson the
noble's activities. Since Lord
Robilar was
said
to
have
t he
ability
to
discover magical scryes placed upon
him,
it was
necessary
to
plant
a spy
within
his
sizable
host.
Having
found
Robilar's servant,
th e
euroz
Quij ,
wholly
incorruptible (insofar as loyalty to his master was
concerned), the Archmage of Greyhawk set upon a more
mundaneplan. Working through contacts
in the
Prelacy
of
Almor,h e
drafted
an aspiring magic-wielding priest of
Boccob as hismole.So it was
that
Otto
worked
his way
into
Robilar's organization,
an dontothe
path
of
ev ents that
would see him as a founding member of the
Circle
of
Eight.
Otto
is arotund 53year-oldOeridian with long hair,
dyed light orange andworn in
curls.
A t first glance, he
appears
foppish, as suggested by the intricately designed
silk
and
satin robes that round
out his
voluminous wardrobe.
Further study, however, reveals that he is possessed of the
sharpest of minds, tinged only slightly byeccentricity. At
times, he acts like the very image of Zagyg, and some have
suggested that the attention ofthat
demipower aided
greatly
in his rapid adv ance men t in the field of
a r c a n e
study.
1 he magesfirst callingw as to the
clergy
of the
Uncaring
One,anditwas
a s
a Loremaster, in the
vaunted
temple
of
Boccob
inChathold,
that
he
spent
most
of his
life prior
to
being drafted
by Mordenkainen. For this reason,h e
is agood friend of both
Ravel
Dasinder of G reyhawk and Riggby,
who has long since retired
from
hi s
position
of eminence in Verbobonc.
Ottoloves
traveling. Before the
wars, he
boasted
of
having visited every civilized nation
in
the Flanaess (and some considerably less
civilized,
for good
measure).
He
claims that
hi s
adventures
are due to his
love
of seeingnew and exciting things.Those wh o know him
well explain that, more than
t he
sights,
Otto
travels
to
exotic lands for the tastesthat might be discovered there.In
fact, the mage has a specially enchanted cornucopia that will
reproduce any one meal once per year, with the exception
that itmust be ameal that
Otto
hasingested in the last 36 0
days.
Otto
cherishes
this item,a nd often willbrave
hazards
both
magical and mundane to expe rience some new culinary
delight.
Such
travels
have
brought
hi m
further west than
an y
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other me mbe r of theCirclesaveMor denka inen , andda rk
secrets
learned there have caused him attimes to wonde r at
the truedr iveof the
Circle's
founder .
Ultimately,Otto's studies have remainedclose to the
rootshe fol lowed before th e Greyhaw k W ars. He is
obsessed with
th e
s t ruc ture
of
magic
onOerth,
but , unl ike
Morde nka i ne n , het akes th e
unor thodox
opinion that th e
form of magic and the form of
music
have
some tel l ing
sim-
ilarities.H is first experiments inthis arena involved mixing
musical
effects
with
mundane
magical
spells,
but he
has,
of
late, taken
to
composing
chi l l ing
arias, such
as hisAestrella
which produce s tunning magica l e ffec ts when sung to perfec-
t ion. His latest endeavor is a piece for a chamber orchestra
that ,when played correctly,will open a visual-only gate
depicting
th e
wild forests
of
Arborea .
It isslow
w ork ,
bu t
the commiss ion paidby the Greyhawk Opera Househa s
allowed him to continue in lieu of ac tua l adventuringor any
other
f o rm
of income.
Tkodain Eriason,Wizl7: HP 79. AL CN. Str 15. Dex 17.
Con 13.In t22 . Wis 15. Ch a 16.
Theodain Eriason
is the
f i r s tde mi huma n
ever
to
join
th e
Circle
of
Eight,
though
close
associations
have
been
,jp.
maintainedby theorganization with II
Prince
Br ightf lame
and the Knights
of Luna, as well as the leadership of
the Fairdells.
Eriason is atall,gaunt high el f with
long black hair streaked with silver.
His
complexion is typically pale and his
dress conspicuous,comprisedof asuit of
blackand silvercloth embroidered with magical
runes.H is manner is cold and his mood is often d escribed as
disagreeable,even
baneful .This
appearance
masks
a
keen intel-
lect
and a
passionate desire
to
protect
hi s
homeland
and the
rest
of
th e
Sheldomar
Valley. His recollection of people and events
over the last two cen turies is considere d encyclopedic.
Theodain was born in the western verges of the Dreadwood
almost three centuries ago. When
th e
Yeomanry League wi th-
drew
from
Keoland
during their wars
o f
aggression
a nd
declared
i ts indep endence, his family crossed the Javanand set-
tled near
Loftwick.
Theodain began life as a warrior and spent
much of his youth patroll ing the Jotens and
Little
Hillsf or
incessant incursions. His father became a
Grosspokeman
of the
league,
and i t was not unti l the elder Eriason's death in
470
CY
that Theodain
took
up magecraf t .He learnedat the feet of the
elven
wizard s of the Dreadwo od and spent
some
time at the
magical
school
inGradsul before embarking on an
adventuring
career
that would span decades.
While
based for
some
time in
th e
independent town
ofMelkot in the
Tors, Theodain
explored
th e
Hellfurnces, defeated
th e
plots
o f
assassin's guilds
an d
elemental cults
in theHool
Marshes,
an d
even
w as
among
the
firstto
explore
the
LostPassage
of the
Suloisewhen
it was
discovered in 576 CY.
Theodain has taken to the affairs of theCircle with avid
enthusiasm. He f inds Drawmi j , Nystul,Otto,a nd Jallarzi par-
t icularly
to his
l iking,
and he has
enjoyed
h is
infrequent visi ts
to the
Free
City. He has
treated coolly withA lh amazad
th e
Wise and Warnes Starcoat, w hom he views with suspicion
(they, in turn, consider him a
firebrand
who all-too-often
resorts tomorally questionablemethods). In his shorttime
with theCircle of Eight, Theodain has shown a tendency to
openly question M ordenk ainen's leadership, suggesting alterna-
tives and sarcastically pointing out perceived weaknesses, much
to the
irri tat ion
of the
elder mage. Theodain pushes
for the
Circle of Eight and their all ies to take a more active
role
i n
managing
conflicts in the Flanaess, particularly in the
Sheldomar
where he
supports
action in
Geoff
an d
Sterich,
as
well as interven tion in the Scarlet Brotherhood-created chaos
enveloping the
region
of the
HoolMarshes.
Bigby has
of ten
joked that in taking in Theodain they have replaced one Tenser
with
another.
WarnesStarcoat.Wiz20:HP 86. AL N. StrH.Dex 18, Con
16. Int 24. W is17. Cha
17.
The man who
would become Warnes
Starcoatwa s
born
57
years
ag o
in the city of L eukish to m erch ant parents of
moderate wealth and influence.When he came of age, being the
third son of four and showing some inclination toward scholarly
pursuits rather than matters mercantile, Warnes
was sent south
to the old
city
of
Seltaren.
There
h is
education
began in
earnest
at the
Wizardholme
ofUrnst ,a
small magical
sor'etya nd school
founded
by
wanderingSuel
mages
many cen-
turies ago. Warnes progressed quickly, becoming a well-regarded
generalist
w izard before his
thirtieth winter.
This
recognition soon brought him anappointmenta s ajunior
assistant
to the
Chief Magical Councilor
of the
Duke,
an
enig-
matic figureknow n only as the
Seer
ofUrnst. The two quickly
camea todds (it issaid tha tt he latter practiced dark, forbidden
rites)
and Warnes left Urns t fo r the Flanaess and adven ture,
coming to livein the Free
City
o f Greyhawk fo rsome time.
Warnes
came to real prominenc e in CY 575,
after defeating
the
plots
of a certain mysterious magus, known
only
as the
Weird of
Gnatmarsh.This
sorceress and her cult had grow n
wicked and
powerful
over the previous
f ew
years, espousing the
worship of various depraved, croaking powers of the
swamp.
H er grotesque retinue plaguedthe surrounding
. . . ,
, ; . ,
territory, killing
and
maiming men, dwarves,
and
elves,
H
even
delving into the
Celadon.
When her finaloutrage,
absolutecontrolof themouthofNesser,proceeded
unchallenged
after
he r
destruction
of a
royal squadron,
Warnesand acompanyo f allies
went
after her.I nwhat
ha sbecome alegendary m agical duel,he defeatedt he
Weird i npersonal combat, sinking he rperverse towerinto
th e
swamp
in a
display
o f
crackling energy that drew W arnes into
the Astral Plane.
There,
in an adventure he has yet to speak of, he
gained
h ismostprized possession and his namesake,th eStarcoat.
In 576, Warneswa sappointed Chief Sorcerous Councilor to
Duke Karll,fillinga vacuum left opena few years earlier by the
mysterious
disappearanceof theSeerofUrnst .S ix
months later,
he was
welcomed
inCountessBelissicas courta swell.
Warnes
appearsas agentlemano f great
refinement.
His typi- .
callySuelcomplexion is tanned from many years spent outdoors.
He wearsa short, well-trimmed beard and afine blackh at with
adark blue stripe. His m agical coat is black as midnig ht, and
glimmers like
the sky on a
cloudless n ight. -J^-
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Inz
Wizards
in the
Furyondian province
of
Crystaireach
are ab uzz at th e
appearance of a magical helix over the
ruined
cityofMolag,across the
Veng
River. Formerly th e
capital
of the
Horned
Society, Molag
ha s
been occupied
by
the
forces
of luz
since
the
earlymonths
of the
Greyhawk Wars. Thehelix, a huge ghostly shape f l o a t - -
ing just below
th e
clouds,
is
said
b y
sages
to
ma r k
th e
location of a powerful magic event, such as the summon-
ing of a
greater demon
or a
sacrifice
of
nearly unimagin-
able numbers
o f
innocents.
Th e
exact cause
of
this helix
remains
unknown.
Nyroad
The
Court
of His
August Supremacy,
Altmeister
of All the
Aerdi , King
Lynwerd I of
Nyrond,
has announced
Grand Celebration of the f if th yearo f
His
August
Supremacy's coronation.The
celebration will be held in the Roya l
Capital
of
R elMord,
du r ing
Growfest.
Invi ta t ions
ar e
being pre-
paredandwillwesentout by the newly expanded Royal
MailService. All
Nyrondese nobil i ty
an d
that
of
allied
states
will
be
invited
to
par t ic ipate
in
this regal event.
nelsh e
constructed.
Brotherhood
agents slew
th e
incum-
bent
count and
occupied
the
manor
in 583 CY.
Since
5 86
CY, rebelliousOnnwallers had tried to recapturet he
manor unsuccessfully, until
a
stormraging
in off the
Gearnat veiled their assault.Inside, they discovered a
sceneof unrivalled butcheryamongstthe
Brotherhood's
troops.Several
of the Onnwallers
remained inside
overnight
to
investigate an dwere found dead
th e
fol low-
ing morn.Both sidesn ow avoid thearea, unsure of what
lurks below
th e
house.
Perrenland
A group of adventurers recently
reported capturing
a
basilisk with
th e
stripes, paws
and face of a
tiger
The
fabulous beast is said to havebe en cap-
tured
in the western Yatil Mo untains , just
last
month .
If true, the beast mig ht have considerable
resalevalueif
sold
to the
TigerNomads.
The leaderof
th e
capture party,
th e
gnomish adventurer
S ir
Ignat ius
Nobnose,claims
th e
beast
wa s
docile when found.
"Darned
if I
know wha t
the
thing is,"
he is
reported
as
saying, "but the Tiger lads will likely pay a pre tty
penny
or two for
it."
S ir
Nobnose
is
currently seeking adven-
turers
to
escort
th e
monster
to its
prospective
ne w
home.
Sea Princes
A magical comm unicationto the Scarlet
Brotherhood, intercepted b y aprivateer
in
service to the Iron League,
warns
of a
new
power
in the
chaoticHold
of the
Sea Princes. A former Touv slaveknown
asUtavoth e
W ise holds
the
southern Duchy
of Berghof as asanctuaryfor hundredsof
freed
slaves and
so-called
savages,
imported by the
Brotherhoodduring
the
Greyhawk Wars.Utavo
and his men
slew
th e
Brotherhood
agents
in
th e
lakeside town
of Kusnir, andhave
sent peace
envoys to the
marodin,
theinhuman lake-people who
inhab-
it the
depths
o f
Lake
Spendlowe.
Verbobonc
Political
unrest between
th e
Viscounty
and
t he
gnomishFreeAssembly
of
the KronHillsh as
reached
n ew
levels.
With th e Free Assembly's recent with-
drawof support, it is unlikely Langard
willbe capable of mendingthisr if t quickly.
Trade continues
to
thrive between
the
Kron
Hillsand the
Viscounty. Guildm aster Eslabone N ervan our announ ced
the winner of the woodcraft com petition. Jacob
Hangerstand's work, amarvelous chest witha carvedrelief
of
the olven
father,
Corellon
Larethian,
has been declared
the finest work produced in a decade.
Silverthorn
of
Obad-Haih as
blessed
this
gift
of
beauty
for Her Fey
Majesty
of
Celene."#-
Oaawal
The
demesne
of
CountCadwale,
the
"TunnelingCount,"h as again risen to
prominence
i n
Onnwal.
T he
long
dead
noble (thought to beh orrif ically ugly
diseased
but in
fact handsome
an d
fanati-
ju t his privacy) w as renown for
th e
tun-
or
:al
ab c
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