Sword 2 of the 7 Swords

The Frievald Sword

Sir Frievald, a well known vampire hunting Paladin from just over a hundred years ago, saved the life of an Elf Lord from an unusual collaboration of a powerful Necromancer and a very old and powerful vampire.  In gratitude for Sir Frievald's intervention, the Elf Lord commissioned a special sword made to aid the powerful paladin in his life's mission to fight the undead in any form but especially vampires. While no one in his family after his death can properly wield the sword as it is meant for the hands of Good aligned Paladins only, they have kept it in a treasured, special room in his honor.  The sword had been stolen by an evil Necromancer about thirty years ago.  It has never been recovered.

It communicates with the wielder using high empathy and can only be wielded by Good aligned Paladins.

• It is a +2 sword against most foes but against the Evil aligned it is +4. 
• It can automatically cast "Detect Evil" while worn and will inform the wielder empathically by causing the wielder to feel a heightened sense of caution. 
• It casts Dispel Evil when the wielder holds the pommel in hand but does not need to draw it. The wielder must speak the “Command of Banishment” as appropriate to their Order. 
• It is made of Mithril and imbued with silver and Holy Water was used in it’s forging. 
• It’s most special ability is that it has the potential to Turn undead.  The sword “Turns” as a level 14 Cleric.

The sword can turn merely by being drawn in the presence of undead but must actually make contact with the enemy in order to have the Destruction effect.

Downfall, part 5

Abbe Micheal turned on the buckboard of the wagon to look at the troops seated in the back of the wagon as the group of holy warriors traveled closer to Aldisburgh and the depravity of the cannibalistic zombie attack that were being sent to dispatch.

The trip from New Edinburgh had been quiet for the most part.  Only the sounds of a rolling, creaking wagon, trodding horses and the shuffling of equipment was heard.  The warriors in the wagon were grim in visage and determined in countenance.  They all knew they were heading toward a new kind of threat in the form of something that had previously been relatively, in their line of work, all too common.  Now they faced a new variation that put their previous experience in question.

"Have any of you seen this image in relation to your previous dealing with zombies?" he asked them as he handed a piece of parchment back with a sketch he had hurriedly made from his brief studies of the questions his friend Jolly had originally brought to his attention when they were first introduced.

They took the picture and looked it over in turns, each reflecting a bit to try to recall if the image had any familiarity.  None of them had claimed any recognition as the image was passed back to Abbe Micheal.  "Show that to me please," Abbe Merrin Lankester said from beside him, holding the reigns of the horses as they pulled the wagon closer to their immediate destiny.

Micheal held the image up and Abbe Merrin glanced over it for a bit then shook his his slowly and took a deep breath, resulting in an even deeper sigh.  "I have seen that image before Micheal"  Abbe Micheal sat up straighter and looked perplexedly at the older abbe next to him.  "You have?" he exclaimed.  "I can find little to nothing about it in the records in the Church library."  "Where then, did you find that image if not in the Church library?"  the senior Abbe asked in return.  Micheal held up the image again, explaining, "This was a drawing made by my friend who sent me the message from Aldisburgh.  He has found this image in various places at the cemetery there and was trying to learn more about them.  When he found nothing in the library, he introduced himself to me hoping that as a member of the Order, I might shed some light on it."

Merrin hung his head low, the memories flooding back to him faster than he would have imagined.  He should have asked for the records when he volunteered to the Monsignor.  He had suspected as much on a deep inner level but at the surface hadn't been able to let it come through.  Now it was in front of him.  All of it.

"Abbe Lankester," the young abbot prodded softly.  "Do you know something of this image?'   A part of him almost hoped that the long time Exorcist and Cleric known commonly among the Order as "Yahweh's Bulldog" didn't have the information he was afraid of hearing.  "Is this something you have seen before Abbe?" he asked anyway.

"Micheal, I have seen and done a great many things in my long lifetime than most clerics have seen in two or even three lifetimes."  Merrin began.  "I began my true career in the Order as an exorcist almost by accident.  In actually, it turned out that I happened to be in the wrong place at the right time."  This conversation had caught the interest of the warriors sitting behind the two abbes.  They at quietly, paying attention to hear every word from the older cleric over the low racket of the horse hooves and wagon wheels.

"To give you the whole story, you need to understand that I am not what I seem to you.  How old do you think I am? " He asked looked up into the younger man's eyes.  "If I had to guess, I would say perhaps about fifty sir." Micheal replied.  The older man smiled, slight wrinkles around his mouth making his face lose and gain ten years simultaneously.  "I can tell you that I came to the calling late in my life Micheal.  I did not become a Cleric in the Church until I was fifty three years old."  Abbe Merrin stated.  "I am now just over one hundred and twelve years old and I expect that Yahweh intends to keep me around much longer in punishment of my good deeds.

The group sitting behind in the wagon looked back and forth between the two abbes and then from one of their own faces to another in quiet disbelief.   "How can that be Abbe?  Not that I disbelieve you but how could it be possible for a human to live so long and look so youthful as you do?"  Micheal had turned fully in the buckboard to face the abbe next to him.

When I was a younger man than I am now but twice as old as you, I was a wandering historian.  I visited the sites of ancient temples and cities long buried beneath the grasses and the sands.  I made a modest living in the trade of artifacts of lesser importance but for the most part, I was passionate for the knowing of history.  I had also become something of a travelling sage to be so bold if I may.  Many people sought me out for the information of long forgotten and archaic ruins of times long gone by.  They paid rather better than trading petty trinkets to be honest."  Merrin paused for a breath, licking his dry lips before carrying on.

"I was always an ardent follower of Yahweh, had been since childhood.  My faith had been nearly unshakable but I hadn't ever seriously considered becoming a Priest or Cleric.  Then I discovered the ruins of a long lost cathedral near a place also long gone to history called Sumeria.  The cathedral had been an incredible find.  It had been awe inspiring.  It was upon seeing it for the first time that I was so moved to even actually consider the Church as a life pursuit."

"However, when we broke through the dust and sand encrusted doors, we learned too late that we had awoken something truly wicked.  Perhaps the greatest Evil to walk this world in physical form.  As punishment for releasing this great Evil, Yahweh saw fit to curse me with long life with which to pursue the great Evil until I can banish it to it's confinement in the Abyss again.  I cannot leave this life until I rid the world of the Evil that I released."

Micheal leaned back again into the backboard, stunned.  He had heard rumors.  Outlandish fairy tales that he had assumed were the legends that naturally came from performing great deeds of heroism in the name of Yahweh.  To hear the story come so plainly, so earnestly spoken from the man himself was like being a small gong struck by a sledgehammer.  It blew him away entirely.

Abbe Merrin Lankester grabbed the flask next on the seat next to him and took a long draught.  Letting the warm liquid trickle down his dry throat before setting the flask down again to resume his tale.

"The image you carry is that of one of Yahweh's greatest foes.  A lord of demons known as the Beast of the Apocalypse.  His number is 440 and is also called the Great Dragon.  He is the lord of fever and plague.  He is known to me as Imdugud  and I shall not rest until I see him gone from this world again."

Everyone in the wagon had sat stunned by the revelation.  The wagon had come to a complete stop and realization dawned on everyone present that they were no longer dealing with something s simple as a secret necromancer amassing a horrible variant of zombies.  They were facing something much older, something much darker and more sinister.  Abbe Merrin Lankester looked around, into the of each face.  When he was sure he had all of their attention once more, he spoke again.

"We are nearly there.  The beast is there and it is waiting for us.  It will bide it's time in hiding no longer.  It has come forward to make a bold play for the very lives of our people.  If they should not be stopped here, now, then the world as we know it will end.  We are enjoined, all of us now, to stop this lord of demons and his undead minions.  It is now upon us to put an end to his evil or give our lives in the effort."  Micheal stared in awe at this now vibrant and emboldened man sitting next to him.  No longer quiet and subdued but sitting straight and with fervor, with passion as he finished his statement.

"When we enter Dem Tode Nahe, we will enter not as investigators or meek priests but as the just and and powerful right hand of Yahweh.  We will destroy the demon if we can and if not destroy the beast, we will put an end to his undead minions and send them back to the peace of their graves!?

Abbe Lankester finished this last nearly as a roar from deep in his chest.  The conviction of his will covering him like a shimmering aura.  He looked at the assembled warriors again, then back at Micheal, his new apprentice, though the young Abbe didn't know it yet. He looked forward again, lifted the reigns high and snapped them, startling the horses into a canter.  He looked directly in front of them the remainder of the ride until they stopped in front of the boarding house of Jolly the Magic User.  He had plans for this spellcaster as well.

Making the game more than the sum of it's parts

I approach AD&D 1E/OSRIC gaming from a storyboard perspective.  It's not just a game, it's a series of stories.  They are stories about villains, heroes and the wild ways of the world that ebbs and flows in between.

I like to say that there are the books and the rules that are the "straight math" of the game and I know a lot of people that play it that way.  That's fine if that's how they prefer to play it.  For me though, I find that approach terribly boring.  I like to think of myself as a fairly creative person and much appreciate the natural randomness built into the game and the many suggestions by the author throughout the books that the rules are secondary, it's the spirit of the game that is most important and the rules not only can be changed or sacrificed for the sake of the spirit of the game, it is encouraged.

I believe that by homebrewing and creating our own campaign worlds and anything else we come up with takes the game somewhere entirely new.  It allows us to make it more uniquely our own and yet be able to share it with others at the same time.

It's a great fantasy adventure of our own making.  People start playing, in my games anyway, with characters they have dreamed of and can live vicariously through.    Like I said, it's a story and these characters are something that players can become attached to.  I will bring in some Ex Deau Machina to preserve the story if need be.  I will fudge the dice to get a better, more exciting and more interesting story if the opportunity exists.

I love this game for the great escape that it is.  It's a high like no other that I have experienced (and honestly, I have experienced some dubious variety of highs over my ifetime).

It's not just guidebooks and dice and paper.  It's imagination and fantasies and dreams made real.  It's taking a game and making it more than the sum of it's parts.

The Freedom of the Game

One of the things I love about AD&D and OSRIC in general is that it is such an open platform.  Much like the Pirates Code in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" they are more like guidelines rather than rules.

In the spirit of homebrewing and the social nature of the game, I can share how I interpret the game and customize it to work best for my own creative inklings and to put it together in a way that is a fun and rewarding experience for the players.

The next DM will see, interpret and handle things differently as to what works best for them and their game.  At the same time, there is enough common ground that it is still essentially the same game to each of us.

When I post my homebrewings here, it is only because I am excited and enthusiastic about my game and I'd like to share what I think works great and what I've done to address things I see as not working so well.  I'm not here to tell everyone else that they are "doing it wrong" or that there must be some strict uniformity that everyone must abide by.

That would totally defy the spirit of the game.

I don't argue about the game with others because on one hand, I don't really care how other people run their games.  It's their game, they can run it how they want.  I will play at their table or I won't.  Consequently I am not here to convince anyone of anything in terms of changing or adopting something different from how they already see or do things.

I'm just sharing how I see it, why I see it that way and what I do to address it.  If you like it and want to use it, cool, awesome, great.  Knock yourself out and have fun with it.

Because no matter if the DM at the next table and I agree or see eye to eye on game mechanics or issues or not, the game will go on.  The game is bigger than any one DM or group of DM's.

That my friend's is just awesome.  It's an awesome sundae covered in awesome sauce topped with an awesome cherry.  It's that awesome.

So come and read, share my enthusiasm, borrow what you will freely.  But don't come here to argue with me because I am not here to argue.  I will explain why I see it the way I do but that's more for the sake of discussion.  I don't care if you take it up, agree, ignore it or disagree.

It's a game for everyone and there's room for everyone to make it their own game.  To me, that's what makes it the best game in the world.

Spell-casting: Is it Live or is it Memorex?

I spend a lot of time thinking about spell-casting.  I'm not really the biggest fan of the Vancian magic system that is used in AD&D.  Not to say that I don't understand it's purpose, to limit spell-casters, but it seems rather unwieldy overall.  Or maybe it's not so much unwieldy as the explanation of it is dull and unimaginative.

I allow spell-casters in my games to free-cast and to use memorized spells.  Free-casting takes longer because the whole spell has to be carried out with all of it's requisite components.  Not something done in haste.  Yet by allowing free-casting, it offers the spell caster greater variety and specificity in the spells they do cast when they need or want to cast them.  That makes the game more fun.  I refer to free-casting as the "Live" part.

I also allow for preparing spells ahead of time.  This fits into the Vancian system because it can be described as memorizing spells, especially in the case of Magic Users and Illusionists.  It can also be described, at least I describe it so, as "spell-queuing".  This fits well with Clerics and Druids who don't obtain or cast spells the same way.

Spell-queuing is having the spell-caster go to their place of preparation.  This might be a portable altar, meditation area or something along those lines.  In the case of M-U's They proceed to memorize the spells they anticipate needing to use in the coming day.  For Clerics, They will perform the meditations and prayers to have their pre-selected spells Ready To Use.  I like to describe it as performing the entire prayer or incantation but leaving out the very last word or action to execute the spell out.  Then, when on the spot use is called for, they say that last word or perform that last action, etc... and the spell is executed nearly instantaneously.

If the spell-caster is about to knowingly go into a battle or enter into a building or dungeon, etc... where they think they might need to have certain spells at the ready and no time to go through the whole casting process, then the "Memorex" approach can be very very useful.  Though I will usually judge that spells which are "Memorexed" lose a bit in accuracy and other specificity.  In other words, they sacrifice fine controls for expediency.

During the battle or the exploration they can still go "Live" and carry out the desired spells with full accuracy and fine controls but it costs time in the execution.    Either way, "Live" or "Memorex", the spells count against their daily allotment.

So for Players considering this approach, I suggest you think of the situation the PC is looking forward toward.  If it's going into battle, what kinds of spells would be highly effective but usually not able to be gotten off because they take too much time to execute?  Those are the spells that you "Memorex".

Basically, casting time is a general deciding factor in which spells to "Memorex"  because if it takes more than a few segments to cast, then you aren't likely to get it off in the midst of battle or in an emergency situation.

"Cure Light Wounds" isn't worth "Memorexing", it's low level and relatively quick and easy to cast and it's usefulness in an emergency situation isn't high.  Cure Serious Wounds, Cure Disease, and the like, those are worth "Memorexing because sometimes poisons and rapidly accelerating diseases don't allow for a lot of time, maybe just a round or so, to go through the full process of casting.  Being able to whip out "Slow Poison", "Remove Curse", "Cure Critical Wounds" or spells like those is much more worthwhile.  When you have just a few segments in a matter of life or death, you don't want to have to wait longer if you don't need to.

I do pretty much waive the casting time for "Memorexed" spells because the casting was already done at the preparation.  The execution is instantaneous from the uttering of that last word or action.  Time to take effect is still subject to the spell descriptions.  For "Live" spell-casting though, I enforce casting time limits entirely.

There you have it, another peek into my weird world, deranged and out-of-whack as it may be, it sure is a lot of fun.

To Level Drain or Not to Level Drain

Just going to come right out and say it.  I think that perhaps the single stupidest mechanic in the entirety of AD&D is Level Drain.  The very premise is absurd as the attack and the consequence are completely and entirely un-related.

A vampire attack leaves you drained of life force within you and you lose experience levels?  I'm sorry, I don't think that one was really thought out all the way and just got chumped to get the book published on time or something.

To lose experience levels, I could see it if the attack or damage was cognitive in effect.  Something stole your memories or you got amnesia or dementia or something along those lines.  Then yes, drain those experience levels and rightly so.

To lose life force though?  Here's how I homebrew it anymore.  Instead of losing an experience level, I remove Hit Points and 1 point of CON instead.  I do use Hit Dice though.  so if say a 6th level fighter were to take a life force draining attack, I will subtract on full HD of HP.  Fighters roll a d10 for HP thus I remove 10 HP for each life force level drained.  Add to that losing 1 point off of their Constitution.  Life is going to be different for that PC forever after.

Sucks to be the victim in that attack but it makes WAY more sense than to lose XL  The PC retains the XP level they have though.  So, 6th level Fighter now has 10 less HP but is still 6th level because the attack didn't suck part of his brain out with the knowledge, learned skills and experience that makes him what he is.  Losing a point of CON starts to reduce their ability to be resurrected or have Raise Dead done for them.  It also kicks them in the HP bonus adjustment as well.

I want the life force drain to be scary.  I want Players to think twice, maybe three times before tangling with something that could very well end it all for them.  So if the 6th level fighter had a max potential of 60 HP but with some lousy dice rolls only had 48 HP to start with, losing one life force level automatically knocks them down to 38 HP.   Bang!  Just like that.  Get another life force level drained?  Lose another 10 HP.

It's an easy mechanic to keep track of, it's relevant to the attack and it makes those creatures causing it something to be carefully considered.  Which is the whole point of having level/life force draining creatures to begin with.

Having said that, I always leave the door open to having HP re-gained by magical or other means as well as finding ways to get CON points back too.  It won't be easy but it is possible.  Those things are already built into the game for exactly those reasons it would seem.

Plus, the endeavoring to regain those HP and CON points can make some really nifty solo and side adventuring for those PC's as well.

DM's, Help Newbies and Help Yourself

As an incorrigible homebrewer, I have a lot on my plate as a DM.  You know, the whole, "Roleplaying NPC's, Adjudcating gameplay, Game Manager" dillema.

One thing I have learned over the years is that one of the best ways to get new Players "into" playing the game is not to toss them headfirst into everything all at once.  Let them get their feet wet with the most fun part of the game first so as to really engage them and catch their interest to keep them coming back to the table.

Consequently, I ask new people to take over the roleplaying of the already created major NPC's in the game for me.  When I create my NPC's I like to go the whole route and roll on the NPC character creation tables found on page 237 of the AD&D 1E DMG.  I will roll out their whole personality to give the newbie all the information they need to take that character on to it's fullest potential.

The newbie doesn't have to sit through the tediousness of character creation immediately, they get to play characters and really get into the spirit of things.  It helps to catch and keep their interest.  It also helps that I am a VERY roleplay oriented DM.

So hopefully, the new person or people get to have fun from the word "Go" and I get to focus on game management and adjuducation for the most part.  Lighten my load a little bit.  Of course, if it's an NPC I happen to take a particular shine to, I'll roleplay that one myself, turning over other NPC's instead to the newbies.  I LOVE to RP the especially mean and nasties.

It's just a suggestion, something that has worked in my games more often than not to get and keep Players and give myself a lighter load to bear in the process.  Of course, I had to do extra footwork up front in the NPC creation process but that's alright too because if nothing else, it gives me a mostly fleshed out character to draw on for the stories I like to write.

Clerical "Turning" of Evil

Coming to you live once again from my homebrew campaign world, I thought I'd share something of how Clerics, especially Clerics of my current favorite Order, handle "Turning" undead and Evil.

I've said several times that I model much of these Clerics activities in regard to godly abilities and working of miracles both minor and major based on the Jesuit Order.  I combine that with the active warrior activity of the Knights Templar and largly, those are my Clerics.

On the battlefield, there isn't much miracle working going on, at least from the combatants.  There's a time for getting down and dirty and there's a time for getting your magic on.  Not very often do the two actively happen at the same time from the same Cleric.

My Clerics, battlefield mindset aside, naturally are inclined to be in a support role while going through ruins and castles and woods, oh my.  When I say "support", I'm not just talking about being a walking band-aid.  Healing is a matter of necessity and direction and approval by the deity.  Just because a party companion wants to be healed doesn't mean it is a given that it will happen.

The Cleric has, in their mind, more important things to consider and use their limited resources on.  Like keeping the supernatural and Evil at bay.

One of the first things that always comes to my mind in the topic of turning is the image of Father Damien or Father Merrin squaring off against the entity and commanding them in booming, confident terms, "The power of God compels you, The power of Jesus compels you, the power of the Hosts compels you to BEGONE!"

That there is a serious and straightforward act of Turning.  Exorcism is a ritual, it takes preparation and it includes the action of Turning as a component.  However, Turning in and of itself is not a ritual, it is a specific action.  I always refer back to my assertion that a Clerics greatest weapon, that which allows them to increase levels, to gain strength and power in the working of their miracles is the combination of their Faith, Devotion and Piety (FDP).

One of my characters used in a storyline recently is of a church and order loosley based on the judeo-christian religion, with some loose license taken to make it more fantasy than realistic.  I can see him in my minds eye, entering a building in which he is confronted by four zombies and a necromancer.  The zombies approach him as his adventuring companions spread out to either side of him and assume fighting positions.

He very dramatically and emphatically makes the sign of his Holy Symbol in the air directly between himself and the zombies and declares loudly, "The might of Yahweh and the assembled Hosts commands you to Be Gone!".

The room is lit as if lightening has struck inside the area and the four zombies will not come anywhere near the Cleric or those immediately near him.  In fact, they are doing everything they can to leave the area entirely much to the dismay and consternation of tha Necromancer who seems to, at least temporarily, lost control of his monsters.

There wasn't even a chance that it would fail (he is a 4th level Cleric after all.)  Now, had they been Ghouls, there would have been a slight chance that the turning would not have worked but depending on the Cleric-in-question's FDP score, they might have not had a chance either as I give a bonus of up to the Cleric's level.  So a level 4 Cleric could have as much as a +4 bonus of effectiveness if he/she was extemely Faithful, Devout and Pious.  Only the lowest FDP score would result in no bonus at all and essentially having the lowest FDP score would practically ensure that if there were a chance of failure, it would pretty much be a given as having the lowest FDP score is like always rolling a "1" on a To Hit d20.

Hey Clerics, want to be effective at working your magic/miracles?  Then get your act together and prove yourself each and every day.  The deities don't typically much cotton to slackers.

Had the above Cleric been 6th level, then the zombies would have just decomposed and been destroyed at the action without him even breaking a sweat.  NEXT!  That Necromancer is probably having some serious second thoughts right about that time.

I have talked with a lot of people who don't really get "into" Clerics as PC's.  On paper, they seem to be rather dull and unimpressive.  I say it is because to really be effective and exciting, it is a character that needs a full-on role playing game being run and not a Hack & Slash by the numbers kind of game.It also requires a DM with some imagination and not a slave to the provided, prepared material, tables and dice.

Personally, Clerics and Druids are my absolute favorite PC's to play because of their roles of being the direct intercessors between the Material World and the world of the Evil and Supernatural.

Downfall, Part 4

Please keep in mind that the stories I post here are considered "rough drafts"  and will be different from the "finised product" but I like to post them here to share what I am working on and to show how I "interpet the AD&D 1E/OSRIC gamme world.

New Edinburgh

Abbe Micheal waited in a small room just a few meters away from the Special Forces Hall where Abbe Warren, the Abbot in charge of bringing in, training and hand selecting non-clergy adventurers for missions with Abbots headed out on missions from the Order of Hosts.  He didn't have to wait long as the team members began to arrive one by one.

Micheal looked up as the first one came in and help a scroll out to him.  Micheal accepted the scroll and invited the slender but tall man to sit across from him.  The man's name was Heinrich.  He was identified in the scroll as a being a talented soldier.  Heinrich had served in a foreign army for fifteen years before being recruited by the Order.  He had distinguished himself and earned commendations in the army for having been notable in the defeat of a Lich and a werewolf.  Not only had he kept his head together in the face of supernatural Evil, he had fought against that Evil successfully and with zeal.

He had achieved the first certification of "Veteran" then "Warrior" status while in the army and had since achieved the next level up,  "Swordman" status, since joining the Order.   It looked as though he may reach "Hero" status in relatively short time if his career continued at the pace it was going.

Michael handed the scroll back to the soldier and welcomed him to the team.  After a few more minutes, the next recruit entered and crossed to the table.  The very small man presented his scroll to Abbe Micheal and without invitation, sat down.  Rather, he hopped up onto the bench to be seated.    Micheal opened the scroll to learn about his newest team member.

Georg was "officially" noted to be a "Procurist" by the Order.  The reality was, he had been a thief when he had turned himself in to the Church the year before as a way of doing penance for a brief but active life of crime.  He hadn't wanted to become a criminal but had fallen in with the wrong crowd who had pressured him to use his natural talents for the wrong purposes.  Georg was a Halfling.  Halfings were naturally inclined in many the the skills that humans had to spend years working at to be considered good thiefs.  Originally from the Greenfeet clan, Georg realized he was in too deep with the Thieves Guild and needed help to get himself out of the pot of hot water he had found himself in.

In exchange for helping him get on a righteous path, he had pledged his services by the way of using his talents to recover stolen property and help locate and procure enchanted items and arcane objects.  He had since then also taken up the pursuit of becoming a Druid though he would likely never get far in advancement, it was something he felt called to do.

Abbe Micheal looked over the diminutive person with sandy, coarse hair on his head, his fingers as well as his feet.  He wasn't sure how this one fit into the team mission but he was confident that Abbe Warren knew what he was doing.

It was a little bit of a wait until the next person came in to the room.  When they did, he couldn't help but notice that it was another diminutive person albeit much stockier and somewhat taller than the Halfling.  The Dwarf came in carrying a burden of packs and weaponry that might have buried an average person with a buried smile on his heavily bearded face.  The battle-axe strapped to his back was nearly as big as he was.

The dwarf gave Micheal a wink as he tossed his scroll onto the table in front of him and moved around to the other side of the table but simply stood there rather that taking a seat.  He was watching Micheal with a bemused look but hadn't said a word.  As a matter of fact, none of them had so much as uttered a single syllable since presenting themselves.  He began to wonder if the Hall members had taken oaths of silence.

Erik Greystone was a notable warrior in his clan.  Not only was he distinguished as a fighter, he was a top rank blacksmith as well who made his own armor and weapons.  Being of the mountain Dwarves also gave him an aura of mystery as the mountain clans were observed to be usually quite reserved and not likely to wander into inhabited areas.    He was of a mature age, estimated at about one hundred and ten.  In terms of qualification and experience, he was noted to be a "three stone" warrior and had established quite a reputation in proficiency with axes of all types and the battle-axe in particular.

Erik had been recruited after making contact with one of the Churche's mountain top monasteries.  He had vowed to exact vengeance for the wholesale slaughter of nearly his entire clan by vampires.  The vampires had done it while he had been off hunting for a week.  The handful of survivors or others returning from being away had begged him to take on the quest while they began the task of rebuilding the clan and their inner mountain cavern home.  Erik had come to the conclusion that the best way to track down and wreak his vengeance on the evil creatures was to join with the people who actively hunted them down.  So by agreeing to abide by the rules of the Order for a period of fifty years, they agreed to help him accomplish his objective during his time with them.  Micheal nodded approvingly at Erik after putting the scroll down.  He could personally identify with wanting to see Evil hunted down after having his family attacked by it in all it's horrid-ness.

He looked up to the doorway at the sound of new footsteps.  Abbe Warren was coming in.  He stopped at the table next to Micheal and quietly began to speak.  "Abbe, the fourth member that has been selected for your team will meet you at the stables.  You will count yourself blessed with the addition of this member to the team for this project but I will leave introductions to them.  Please gather your packs and other belongings and take your team to the stables.  They will have a wagon and a team of fresh horses ready for you within the hour.  Yahweh provide you strength and wisdom in his service."  Abbe Micheal replied, "Thank you Abbe, Your swift assistance in this is greatly appreciated and we will be at the stables on time."  Abbe Warren nodded and smiled tightly then turned and made his way out of the room as directly and expediently as he had come in.

Micheal addressed his assembled team for the first time.  "I thank you all for accepting this mission and helping to rid the town of Aldisburgh of the Evil that has taken root.  Does anyone have any question as to the mission or did Abbe Warren explain it thoroughly to you?"  Erik spoke up in a deep and rumbling voice that sounded like boulders being ground together.  He had the deep brogue of the Highlands in his speech.  "The Abbe mentioned that were are to be facing zombies that were unlike the zombies that most of us might have experience with lad."  His face became curious, "What kind of zombies could be so dangerous as to worry the Hall Abbe so?"  'A fair question', Micheal thought before replying.  "The zombies indicated are described as being autonomous and predatory towards living people." Their faces reflected the surprise at hearing of predatory zombies.  "They are also described as being slow and shambling to move but have a concentrated focus when they spot prey  and they also seem to work together, attacking in larger and larger numbers as they become attracted to the growing group movement."

Erik grunted and Georg gave a low whistle.  Heinrich raised his hand, seemingly in half salute, half schoolboy manner.  "Sir, permission to speak Sir."  Micheal raised his eyebrows.  this fellow was a standards follower to the letter.  "Permission granted." He replied as he nodded in Heinrich's direction.  "Sir, Is there currently a direct plan of attack and are we going in with a plan of extraction or is it a 'Do or Die' mission Sir"  Micheal thought the best response was th emost direct.  "Heinrich, I'm not certain exactly how long you have been with the Order or how many missions you have been on but for the most part, our missions are usually carried out with the intent that we are to fight and succeed or in the effort to achieve success until our last breath."  Heinrich nodded as if in full agreement.  "Sir, yes sir.  I have been on missions which were scouting and rescue in nature for the Order Sir."  I just wanted to make sure I was properly prepared sir."  Micheal understood better now what Heinrich was looking for.  "Our mission is to investigate and collect as much information as we can, documenting nature of these unique zombies and sending the information back to the Order.  As we do that, our next priority is to rid the town of the zombies and protect the townspeople until the situation is clear or until reinforcements arrive should they be deemed necessary."  Heinrich nodded sharply.  "Sir, Thank you Sir."

Micheal looked them over and started walking toward the door, beckoning the group to follow him.  "Follow me please to the stables and we shall begin our mission without further delay."  They started grabbing their packs and gear and lining up behind him as he led the way.

Abbe Micheal and his troops sat on a bench outside the rear of the stables.  He preferred to stay in the relative quiet and out of view of the public so that he could concentrate on the task at hand while they waited for the wagon and horses to be ready.  The StableMaster, a giant of a man, being well over seven feet tall and at least three hundreds pounds if not more, had ensured the young Abbot that his wagon would indeed be ready within the hour.  They were waiting for the rest of the gear from the armory to be loaded before they hitched the horses.

They had been sitting on the bench for nearly half an hour, each tending to various minor tasks and minor preparations when an older man dressed in Order issued "Day Uniform" approached him quietly.  "Abbe Micheal, I presume?" the man stated more than asked as he made the sign of the circle with both hands cupped and facing each other, slightly overlapping, then extended his hand out in peaceful gesture to Abbe Micheal.  Micheal stood up and shook the man's proffered hand and gave a subtle deferential bow to the senior Cleric that stood before him.  The older Cleric let go his hand and continued, " My name is Abbe Merrin Lankester and I have asked to assist you on this mission to Aldisburgh."

"I am so very glad the Monsignor asked you to join us Abbe."  Micheal said, relieved to have someone who must be extremely qualified to take over as the mission lead.  "The Monsignor did not ask me nor did he order me to join you Micheal."  Abbe Lankester continued.  "I volunteered my service when I was told about the location and nature of your mission.  I believe there is something there that falls within my specialty.  However, I am not taking the mission over.  This is still your mission Abbe."  The older man smiled, almost sadly but with a bit of a twinkle in his eye.

"I am honored by and welcome your presence regardless Abbe." Micheal replied.  He was slightly awed that the Cleric in front of him was not only present but had volunteered to go along.  At the same time, given Abbe Lankester's history and reputation within the order, the situation had noticeably increased in it's danger.

Abbe Merrin Lankester had been with the Order for quite a long time.  He was most notably one of the foremost experts in demonology and exorcism.  Abbe Lankester was officially a "Curate" but was nearly a "Prefect" within the order.  He was considerably gifted and no one was regarded as being more faithful or devout.  Consequently, his strength in Clerical spellcasting was even more powerful than many Clerics who surpassed him in status.

We will have time to talk more as we are on our way to Aldisurgh." Abbe Lankester stated, setting down his black satchel and stooping to sit down on the bench next to Micheal.  "For now, I'll leave you to your planning for entering the town and locating your inside man."  They sat in silence for another twenty minutes until the StableMaster came out to inform them that they were ready to go.

All in all, it had only been eight hours since he received the message from Jolly in Aldisburgh.  It would still be at least three hours before they arrived to help.  At this rate, Abbe Micheal prayed that they would arrive in time to save Aldisburgh.  Otherwise the mission would change to avenge Aldisburgh instead.

As the team finally were in place and the soldier Heinrich had offerred to drive the wagon they were headed on the road toward Aldisburgh.  The group was qient.  Abbe Lankester seemed introspective or in meditation.  Abbe Micheal found his thoughts wandering to the Clerical Ritual of the Host that he had undergone just a few, short months ago when he had become Drei, his third such ritual as a member of the Order of Hosts in the Church of Yahweh.

Clerics within the Order of Hosts of the Church of Yahweh practice a different kind of "magic" than the magic used by Magic Users and Illusionists.  Theirs was more similar to Druidic magic in that they were able to use the gifts of their god Yahweh and those of their patron saints trough prayer and meditation.  Unlike Druids who went through a secretive procedure only known as the Druidic Ritual of Ascension to know their capabilities and directives.

For Clerics and Druids alike, they had enough capacity within them to perform "magic" (though Clerics preferred to refer to it as performing "miracles" of either Minor or Major types.)  In general, a human Cleric had the spiritual capacity to perform a given number of Miracles each day and even those were affected directly in their strength and capability  to the degree of Faith, devoutness and piety of the Cleric in question.  Essentially, the Cleric was merely the vessel or conduit through which Yahweh worked miracles in the world.Many of the Minor miracles were of low enough demand of the Clerics resources that they could perform them mostly through meditation in their own right.  The more Major the Miracle, the more it required prayer and divine bestowal.  Those Miracles that tended to range between "upper Minor" and lower Major", were often come through prayer to one's patron Saint.  Anything greater than those required prayer to Yahweh directly and there was a saying among the Order that with Yahweh's Miracles "You don't always get what you want, but you always get what you need."

There was a ritual for Clerics upon rising to higher status to gain knowledge of the types of Miracles they would be able to affect or attempt to affect at that new status.  They would still be limited by their personal strengths, skills and talents within that status as well as their faith, devoutness and piety.  The "Ritual of the Host" gave him greater insight into his role within the Order and the Church.  It also strengthened the bond between himelf, Yahweh and his patron Saint, the Arch-Angel Micheal.   The more times he underwent the ritual, the greater the bond and the greater his resolve to be faithful, devout and pious.

Between himself and Abbe Lankester, he hoped they would be enough to concquer the Evil in Aldisburgh.

Alsidburgh

Jolly was in his room at the boarding house when the pigeon arriving bearing the message that his friend Abbe Micheal in New Edinburgh was coming as quickly as possible to help him in dealing with the zombie attack.  Ever since he had sent the message to Abbe Micheal he had been combing through all of his spellbooks and scrolls and eveery book he could find related or having to do, however remotely, with zombies.

In the meantime, the attack continued unabated.  As more people were attacked, the zombie population increased.  At this rate, it would only be a matter of a few days before the entire town was dead but wandering.  When that happened, where would they go?  Would they head East toward New Edinburgh or would they head in any other direction toward living prey?  Jolly was afraid that they would't be restricted to the roads but make better time by cutting through fields and woods stright at other populated areas.  The destruction would be catastrophic.  The loss of life unfathomable.

Mr. - had gone out briefly when Jolly had returned from gathering supplies at the marketplace but had seen all he had needed to see to convince him to lock himself in his own rooms and refused to open the door to anyone.  Jolly had tried to get him to come out and talk to him so that he could find out more about the boarding house and what other access points it had.  He didn't want to be surprised by a horde of ravenous undead in the hallways of the old building.  Mr. - was having none of it though.  He tossed a keyring out through a small aperature in the door and yelled through the door that Jolly was welcome to look around for himself.  Jolly had turned back to his room, shaking his head but stooped to pick up the keyring as he left.

The front doors to the house were stout and blocked with a thick cross-beam from the inside that looked as though it would stop an elephant.  The back door was not quite as stout but was smaller and had an equally thick cross beam to block it.  All of the windows to the building were able to be shuttered and were high enough as to prevent the shambling monstrosities from just falling through them.  They might walk well enough but none had shown any ability to climb or use any other kind of stealth.

The lower level of the boarding house was one great open chamber spotted throughout by support beams holding up the upper stories of the building.  There was a double wide doorway that looked like barn doors in the back of the building.  It looked as though the building might hive been a storehouse at some point in it's history.  The double doors were also very thick and heavy.  They closed against a bisected door frame with a removable center beam that was as big as a tree.

The building could be used to shelter people from the zombies well enough.  Opening and closing the heavy doors would be the biggest problem if things were too close for comfort.  He could hear more and more people running through town screaming coming from the West end from the direction of Dem Tode Nahe.

In the hours since, he had been studying his books and scrolls and making plans to help people escape.  He had moved the supplies from the market to the lower level and painted a sing that read, "Sanctuary - In Back" on the front of the building.  In between studying he had been letting in a steady trickle of survivors and escapees that had showed up, banging and shouting at the massive back doors.  The refugees, as he thought of them, were huddled together at tables that he had moved around from a storage room he had found them in.  He currently sat at one by himself with all of his reading materials spread out so that he could cross-refernece information and keep information at hand.

Only a half hour before he went to his room to get the message pigeon, he had looked out and could now see an errant zombie shambling and stumbling between buildings only a quarter mile away.  Things were rapidly getting out of hand.  It would still be a few hours until Abbe Micheal and the rest of his team arrived.  Jolly hoped that there would still be an Aldisburgh to save by the time they arrived.

Clerical Magic

I discussed my approach to Druid spell casting in a previous post.  This time I would like to discuss how I work with Clerics using magic.  I took this from a story I wrote recently so please, don't mind the specifics relating to the deity, church affiliation, etc... as much as the points and process of spellcasting.

On "The Working Of Miracles both Minor and Major"  

(Taken from the story, "Downfall" by Tony Sandoval)

Clerics within the Order of Hosts of the Church of Yahweh practice a different kind of "magic" than the magic used by Magic Users and Illusionists.  Theirs was more similar to Druidic magic in that they were able to use the gifts of their god Yahweh and those of their patron saints through prayer and meditation.  Unlike Druids who went through a secretive procedure only known as the Druidic Ritual of Ascension to know their capabilities and directives.
For Clerics and Druids alike, they had enough capacity within them to perform "magic" (though Clerics preferred to refer to it as performing "Miracles" of either Minor or Major types.)  In general, a Cleric had the spiritual capacity to perform a given number of Miracles each day and even those were affected directly in their strength and capability and to the degree of faith, devoutness and piety of the Cleric in question.  Essentially, the Cleric was merely the vessel or conduit through which Yahweh worked miracles in the world.  Many of the Minor miracles were of low enough demand of the Clerics resources that they could perform them mostly through meditation in their own right.
The more Major the Miracle, the more it required prayer and divine bestowal.  Those Miracles that tended to range between "upper Minor" and "lower Major", were often come through prayer to one's patron Saint.  Anything greater than those required prayer to Yahweh directly and there was a saying among the Order that with Yahweh's Miracles "You don't always get what you want, but you always get what you need."
There was a ritual for Clerics upon rising to higher status to gain knowledge of the types of Miracles they would be able to affect or attempt to affect at that new status.  They would still be limited by their personal strengths, skills and talents within that status as well as their faith, devoutness and piety.

In game Application

As a DM, I ask background stories for every PC that players enter into the fray.  It helps a lot, especially when the DM is trying to determine things like how to gauge whether a Cleric has been Faithful, Devout and Pious (FDP) and the degrees of those to properly determine the outcomes of their spellcasting.

Devoutness is pretty easy to determine.  How well do they stick to the rules of their sect, order, deity, etc...The better they do at following the rules, the higher their devoutness "score".  Piety is a little more guesswork.  It is really reflected in the roleplaying and representation of the PC.  Remember, we are not talking about the modern definition of piety which looks at it as being ostentatious or "holier-than-thou".  No, we are referring to the integrity and "true-ness" to the deity(ies) and organization, if there is one, of the PC.  

Faith is perhaps the most difficult to gauge.  You can have a very devout cleric who follows all the rules but has struggles with their faith inside.  You can have someone who is pious and holds themselves true to the intent but still has little true faith.  Kind of like someone who gets into relationships because they are in love with the idea of being in love but they themselves have yet to actually experience being in love.

Basically, I use the Henchman Loyalty rules to handle a PC's Faith to their Deity.  I will roll for Faith/Loyalty to the Deity at the beginnng of the game, using the modifier's listed in the DMG (treating the Deity as a PC if they are a very involved deity or an NPC if they are not very benificent or actively involved.  I will then check that Faith/loyalty at specific times during the games based on the roleplaying of FDP and the situations the Cleric faces that may create extenuating circumstances.

Once again for devoutness and piety, I like to gauge these factors from 1 to 4.  1 being best, most or greatest and 4 being least, worst or not even trying.

Cleric PC's that are played as all ones across the board in regard to faith, devoutness and piety will have the greatest success, least negative consequences and best odds.  Those played as four's across the board will consequently will have the lowest chance of success, worst odds and worst possible results.

Also, the higher the FDP scores, the less likely they are to be punished or restricted by their deity and the more likely to be rewarded and given to rising in the ranks.  This can come in handy when it comes time to level up.  Just because they have the XP doesn't mean they have earned the right to gain the next level unless you are running basic "hack and slash" games where roleplaying isn't as important.  I have a "ritual" that must be completed sucessfully in order to gain the next level.

The first step of the ritual is to prove their worthiness.  An offerring is required in the form of something obtained during the capture or slaying of an evil enemy.  Then a test of preparedness.  This requires a display of knowledge of the types of evil monsters and sreatures of that same relative level of ability the Cleric is striving for.  What they are and what the most common or established methods of combatting them are.  The last is a Test of Faith.  The Cleric will be put into a situation in which Their PAtron saint and Yahweh will provide the solution to the problem without the prior knowledge of the intended.  It will be purely a matter of faith that the Cleric will allow the scenario to play through to it's end.  If their faith holds out, they will make it out at the next level.  If their faith does waver, they will have failed the whole ritual and even having successfully completed the other two components, will not level up.  They may also find themselves injured or negatively afflicted due to their lack of faith during the scenario.

I approach the game as collectively creating a story.  Roleplaying is one of the most important things in the games I run.  Of course, not everyone runs games the same way and roleplaying s taken into  consideration depending on the way the game is oriented.

Pray That The Woods Forgive, Part 3

Please keep in mind that the stories I post here are considered "rough drafts"  and will be different from the "finised product" but I like to post them here to share what I am working on and to show how I "interpet the AD&D 1E/OSRIC gamme world.

Viktor walked at the rear of the group as they headed up the road back towards Kerren's Landing where they had been robbed, cheated and forced to leave just the day before.  The unusually large half-Orc was often subject to fits of reason and philosophical reflection, from an Orcish point of view.  His size was a matter of contention no matter where he went. Both Orc and Human society tended to shy away from him for a variety of reasons.  One of his relatives on the Orc side frequently boasted that he had to have some Uruk-kai in him to be so large and so capable at battle.  Viktor wasn't so sure about the Uruk-kai, and even if there was some of that line in his veins, he didn't think it was necessarily something to be proud of.  Uruk-kai didn't care who or what they killed and that included Orcs.

His disdain for Uruk-kai was also in their fighting style.  They were essentially beserkers.  They observed little to nothing in the way of strategy and tactics.  He was proud of his Orc lineage that allowed him to be such a capable warrior.  He was equally proud of the human lineage that allowed him to out think most enemies he came across.  His Human family was steeped in military traditon with several of them having been high ranking soldiers in various well known and successful armies.

This odd pairing of Orc physiology and Human mental discipline had come together to make an ideal killing machine.  What most people didn't know, and that included his current companions, was that he was a voracious reader.  Being literate was not common anywhere and being half-Orc and literate only brought more scorn and suspicion if people ever found out.  Because he liked to know things, being especially fond of military history, he had perhaps a little more information on Druids than his companions.  His learning told him that the Druid they had agreed to help defend these Kindred Woods from the town of Kerren's Landing wasn't as simple as he seemed to be.

He had been carefully watching the small Druid since they left his "meadery".  In the roughly two hours they had been walking up the road, at a seemingly casual pace set by the Druid due to his small stature or perhaps intentionally, There had been an almost alarming amount of activity with all sorts of small to medium sized animals, birds and even insects coming and leaving from the Druid's presence.  Occasionally  the Druid would wander off the road and head into the trees, telling the group to keep going and that he would catch up.  Sure enough anywhere from ten to twenty minutes later they would see the Druid walking back from the woods to the road where they were walking from a point ahead of the group.  Never from behind where you would expect someone to be "catching up".

From his readings on past battles where armies had met up with Druids, things generally never ended well for the armies.  In some accounts, Merely having a Druid show up in between two warring armies was enough to prevent the battle entirely,  Usually in some notable ecologically important place like a forest or woods, even a swamp in one story.  Other stories were told by a handful of survivors who defied a Druid and crossed said Druid's line in the sand.  Every story was one of terror and tragedy.  This seemingly amiable little fellow that they were following indicated no real threat.  He liked to make a show of having a 'dark side' but they had really seen was a temper tantrum or two in his opinion.

At the same time, there was something he couldn't quite put his finger on about the little Druid.   A few times he was sure he had glimpsed large, menacing looking creatures at the inner periphery of the woods and the Druid would walk over to their spot and seemed to be talking with them in a language of what sounded like grunts, growls, hoots and piping, depending on the creature.  Each time the monstrous sized beasts would leave at his bidding.  None ever accosted the group on it's way.  On another occasion he swore that the miniature Druid walked straight into a large Maple tree.  He walked directly at the tree and then seemed to just...disappear... into the tree.  He came out ahead of the group a short time later looking very pleased about something.

It was on those occasions that Viktor suspected that the Druid's jovial and friendly demeanor was just an act for their benefit.  He could smell that their Druid wasn't just human.  There was another scent to him that he couldn't quite make out.  All said and done, he was reminded of an old saying in Orc tradition,  "With friends like these, who needs enemies?"

His current adventuring companions seemed to have taken well to him.  He was treated fairly by them, even the Elf, half- Elf, Elsa.    They all seemed curious about the Druids activities but also a bit awestruck by him at the same time.  Once, the soldier Mikal fell back alongside him and talked with him about how things were going.  "Viktor," Mikal said questioningly. "I notice you prefer to always take up the rear in a group.  Have you observed anything notable so far?"  "Only that the Druid is very well connected to his woods." Victor replied in a low and deep, rumbling voice.  "There are things in these woods that none of us ever noticed on the way down here yesterday."  He continued.   Mikal looked around thoughtfully.  "Well, we were in a hurry and in the middle of a thunderstorm.  I'm sure there were many things we did not notice along the way."  He added.

Viktor looked Mikal directly in the eyes.  He wanted to see if his eyes were glossy or clouded as if under a spell or enchantment.  "You are aware that Druids are supposed to be able to influence the weather, if not control it outright."  He stated a bit more quietly.  "Are you suggesting that Behr deliberately caused the storm to send us to his waiting arms?"  Mikal asked him quizzically, eyebrows raised as he realized what Viktor was implying.  "I don't know." Viktor grunted.  "I can't say at this point that I would be surprised though."  Mikal frowned slightly at that, then his face lightened up again.  "Thank you for taking the rear on this trip.  I am going to move up and take point I think.  Maybe I will see some of these larger creatures you have observed."  he reached up and clapped his hand on Viktor's much larger shoulder then winked and he started to move up into the main group again.  He stopped and chatted briefly then moved up ahead of everyone, leading them by about thirty paces.

Suddenly, Viktor heard a loud crashing in the woods, just to his right.  He stopped and looked around, his hands instinctively going to his sword strapped at his back.  The crash happened again and this time the rest of the group stopped walking and began looking around as well.  Viktor was about to head toward the sound when seeming to appear out of nowhere, Behr the Druid was right next to him.  He reached out and placed his small hand on Viktor's armored side.  "Ssshhh, don't make any sudden moves or you'll frighten him." Behr said in a hushed voice.  'Me frighten him?' Viktor thought.  Something huge is out there in those woods.  Something gigantic and the Druid was worried that Viktor would frighten it?  He was torn in the moment.  Part of him insisted that he had to go see what it was.  Another part of him, deep inside of him, absolutely insisted that he didn't want to know what it was.

The group stopped and waited as the little man went ut into the thick tree line and disappeared from view.  A few more crashes were heard and felt as they shook the very ground they stood on.  No one moved the entire time.  It seemed as if no one even dared to breathe.  Then, straining to hear, the voice of the Druid came to the road.  It sounded as if he were singing or maybe chanting aloud.  The singing, it definitely sounded more like singing than chanting, continued unabated for nearly thirty minutes and no one moved the entire time.  They were nearly as motion-less as statues as the song seemed to ensnare their minds.  But to what purpose?  Viktor couldn't help but to think this wasn't targeted to them, this was only a side effect of something meant for whatever huge creature it was that was just out of their sight.

The singing tapered off slowly and soon nothing could be heard again.  After a few more minutes, the crashing steps started again, heading away from them abut moving ahead of them.  Behr came back to the road casually, as if he had only stopped for a chat with an old acquaintance and heard pleasant news.  "Everything's fine everyone."  Behr said loudly to everyone.  "Things are shaping up splendidly."  The look on the Druid's face was both devious and satisfied at the same time.

These types of activities continued for the next three hours as they walked on toward Kerren's Landing.  They had to be only abut twenty minutes away from the edge of town, even at their painfully slow pace, at least, that's how Viktor felt about it,   Behr called for a halt and everyone came to a pause in a circle around him, waiting to hear what he obviously he had to say to them.

"I appreciate everyone's patience and tolerance of all the things I'm sure you thought were a bit strange."  he began.  "We are going to move off the road at this point and make a camp just a bit to the West and inside the woods.  Please have no fear.  Anything you have seen, or think you might have seen is your friend here."  The Druid paused at that and then he corrected himself. "Well, they are MY friends here but they mean you no harm as you are with me.  After we make camp which will be sort of a base of operations for this effort, we will discuss my plans and I will ask for your input and inform you of what I would like for you to do as a part of this.  Any questions?"  Behr paused, listening and peering at each member of the group meaningfully as he looked around the group.

"Do you plan to attack the town then?"  Brother Thelonius, who had been silent and watchful for the entire trip asked.  "Good Brother," Behr started in reply.  "The entire reason you young people are here is to prevent the need for any attacks on anyone.  If you are successful, this will end well for everyone involved.  However, if you are not able to accomplish your tasks in this endeavor, well then, let us just say the I am prepared to end it quickly and decisively."  Everyone except for Viktor was a bit wide-eyed at that statement.  Viktor had expected that, or something like it for some time now.  He wasn't surprised in the least.

"Good then."  Behr pronounced.  "Let's get camp set up and we can enjoy a good meal and lay out our plans to make this a win-win for everyone."  At that, he turned abruptly to the right and headed into the tree-line.  He paused only for a moment to look back once at the group and motioned for them to follow him.  As the group began to set off into the woods, Viktor wondered if the 'Kindred Woods' were really the peaceful place the name suggested.

Druidic Obligations

In the last post I made about the Druidic Rites of Ascension, I talked about how important it was that druids are roleplayed true to character and especially in regard to meeting druidic obligations.

Someone emailed me to ask, "What exactly are 'druidic obligations' ".  Great question!

For the purposes of AD&D/OSRIC, we base our expectations mostly on the spells available and a little bit on the mythical and historical background of Druids.

Historically, Druids were seen as important and respected leaders.  They were known as philosophers and counselors.  People looked to them for advice and even kings took their words as representative of divine law.

Mythically, Druids were priests of the will of a Creator or God.  That will was represented by nature and it's observed laws and indications.  Druids were suspected of being able to prophesize and make predictions as well.  Many people believe that the prophesies made by Druids were actually founded on observations of animals, insects and plants and their behaviors in response to natural occurrences.

They were also seen as the protectors and defenders of the natural world, seeing it as harming Nature was harming God.

These historical and mythical references bring us to the observations we can draw from looking over the druid spells tables in the AD&D and OSRIC resources.

The spells are heavily focused on natural forces and influences.  They refer to collaborating with animals and trees for mostly defensive but some offensive actions.  They infer much about having the privilege of resisting the awesome forces of nature such as protection from lightening.

Talking with plants and animals, summoning and befriending animals and insects, conjuration of Elementals,   They also have spells directly related to helping people such as curing wounds. charm, cure disease, and purify water.

What can we take away from all of this contextual information to give us a "checklist" of druidic responsibilities or obligations?

1. First and foremost, defend the Natural world and the ways of nature against un-natural means and attacks to the natural world and the natural order of things. Bear in mind, this doesn't necessarily mean anti-technology or new and different ways of doing things necessarily. It refers more to directly protecting the lives of naturally occurring creatures as opposed to magically or non-naturally created living creatures, (ie.... magically or artificially created).  Defending vast areas of natural ecologies from "urban creep"  such as forests, swamps, lakes, etc... Fighting de-forestation, pollution.  They look favorably on pursuing activities and sustainment based on natural processes such as natural selection, ecological and biologically organic adaptation.
2. Help People in need of aid and providing direction (spiritual, philosophical, even geographical)
3. Naturally are looked upon and assume the role of judges because of their general neutrality and adherence to the laws of Nature and the Will of Deity.  (This could generally be taken to mean that while druids don't go out looking to exert influence and control over people, people often come to them for aid and see them as arbiters and representatives of God's Will (or whatever Deity you use for Druids in your game)

That pretty much sums up the Druids obligations.  If Druids are not doing these things and are not responsive to requests by people for aid and whatnot then they are not fulfilling their avowed purpose.  The more they pay attention to the details of those things during gameplay, the more the DM can say they are fulfilling or meeting their druidic obligations.  The less they describe their intent to do these things and the less they respond to in game situations requiring or in need of such response then they can be seen by the DM as not fulfilling their druidic obligations.

Downfall, Part 3 Holy Avengers Assemble

Please keep in mind that the stories I post here are considered "rough drafts"  and will be different from the "finised product" but I like to post them here to share what I am working on and to show how I "interpet the AD&D 1E/OSRIC gamme world.

Abbe Micheal stood at his window taking the homing pigeon that had landed just moments ago into his hands to remove the message attached to it's foot.  He gently placed the pigeon inside the cage with her mate to rest and unrolled the slip of paper.  He paced absently to his desk in his modest room to decipher the abbreviated code.

He knew this code, it was one he used with contacts outside of the church.  Ah, he looked at the end of the message and saw the signature initials as that of the First House Magic User he had made acquaintance of about six months prior.  That would be his new friend Jolly, who was decidedly not so jolly.

It took him just a couple of minutes to decipher the message and a dire message it was indeed.  Jolly was calling for immediate help in the town of Aldisburgh.  He claimed there was a zombie breakout at the cemetery that was spreading rapidly and the zombies were...eating people?  That couldn't be right.  Micheal got up immediately and turned to gather a pack that was already prepared.  He picked up a second pack that had some gear for a few days of travel and left directly from his room and headed toward the Monsignor's suite.

"Your grace, I do believe this message is sincere and not likely to be a hoax or in error."  Abbe Micheal replied to Monsignor Denali who wanted to know if he felt the message from his young Abbe's association, the Magic User Jolly, might be in error.  "If this report is accurate Micheal, then there is a grave situation indeed, please pardon my unfortunate pun." The Monsignor stated.  He was worried by the very idea that undead were not only reproducing so rapidly.  He was terrified at the notion that they were cannibalistic and apparently autonomous,

"I agree your Grace."  Micheal spoke quietly.  "I would like to go to investigate and assist in quelling the evil by your leave."  "I suspected you would Micheal."  The Monsignor sighed.  "You are still young and while more experienced in facing undead than many others in the same station, It would seem more appropriate to send someone of a higher standing in the Church to get this outbreak under control."  The Monsignor sighed deeply.  "Unfortunately, the priests I would prefer to send are already out on important assignments.  Much as I worry, it seems you are the next most experienced that we have to send."  He turned his back to the young Abbot and reached into a dark glossily polished dark wooden closet.  He pulled out two sacks and turned back to face Micheal.  "I want you to take these with you, I have a feeling they will be needed more than we would like them to be."

Micheal accepted the sacks and looked into them.  The first held a large number of small silver holy symbols, in the form of a circle with two crossed bars in the center.  All blessed in special rites by the Monsignor himself.  The other sack contained a number of small vials of Holy Water, also blessed by the Monsignor in the same rituals.   Micheal had noticed there were several such small sacks taking up two of the large shelves in the closet.  The Monsignor must hold multiple blessing rituals each month to amass so many at a time.

"Micheal, when you get there, should you find that the situation is in any way too much for you and your friend to deal with, and sadly, I expect it will be, I want you to send a messenger pigeon to me immediately.  You may take one from the church tower before you leave."  Micheal was very grateful for the Monsignor's care and advice.  "Thank you Sir.  I will send notice immediately if it seems dire."

"And Micheal,"  the Monsignor looked up, into the young Abbot's deep green eyes.  "You will take a support team from the 'Special Forces' area of the Honor Guard Hall when you leave.  Take no fewer than four of the best they have on hand but do not delay waiting for others to return. I fear our neighbors in Aldisburgh don't have much time ahead of them."  Micheal took note of the concern in the older man's face, bowed and turned to leave.

Young Abbe Micheal, young to already be a Drei Priest and already permanently assigned to the Supernatural Forces arm of the Church of Yahweh.  Young Abbe Micheal stood in the doorway of the Special Teams hall, looking around the large room lined with benches along it's walls.  It had a small number of Special Forces members in it engaged in a variety of activities.  Some were sparring.  Others were cleaning, oiling and maintaining weapons and equipment.  Still others were engaged in conversation in small clusters with church abbots, undoubtedly being educated on various supernatural enemies and how to best counter them.  These were the best that the church could hire and train to support the priests in their efforts to defeat Evil in all it's forms.

Micheal entered the hall and made straight to a table where an officious young abbot was sitting with a number of books and papers spread out in front of him.  "Hello Abbe", Micheal spoke softly so as not to frighten the distracted abbot.  The abbot looked up at him and smiled widely. "Hello yourself Abbe, how can I be of service to you today?" and he put his quill and papers down to give Micheal his full attention.  "I am being sent on a special mission immediately and the Monsignor told me that I need to come here and get a team of four Special Forces guards to accompany me.

The middle aged looking abbot seated at the table listened attentively and nodded his head as he took mental note of Micheal's needs.  "May I ask the nature of the enemy you face Abbe or is it known?"  He asked Micheal.  Micheal replied to him, "The enemy appears to be a new kind of undead.  Specifically autonomous zombies."  He spoke the last in a whisper as if merely saying the words were too frightening to be heard aloud.

"Ah, how terrible, and dangerous indeed."  the Special Forces Abbot commented.  "I believe I have some guards here who should be very effective in a situation like this for you.  Let me get them assembled."

Pray That The Woods Forgive, Part 2

Please keep in mind that the stories I post here are considered "rough drafts"  and will be different from the "finised product" but I like to post them here to share what I am working on and to show how I "interpet the AD&D 1E/OSRIC gamme world.

Behr had been the Druid of the Kindred Woods for nearly eight years and except for not being more aggressive at keeping the incursions into the woods by the townspeople of Kerren's Landing down, he was proud of his work.  The woods had been in bad shape when he had arrived and had been dwindling pitifully with no Druid to care for it properly for over a century.

Becoming a sixth star Druid recently was one of his most pleasant life moments.  As a testament to his great affectations and attention to the woods, it had flourished and grown under his care.  As a result, his sixth Druidic Ritual of Ascension had only taken two out of a possible six days.  Behr understood that there was a Creator of all things, but like all Druids, he also realized and poured his energy into the Will and force of that Creator, that being Nature.  By serving Nature as a Druid rightly should fulfill their obligations, The Will of that Creator, Nature, had seen fit to reward him with a rapid understanding of his role as a six star Druid and the abilities that go with it.

Now the people of Kerren's Landing were essentially declaring war against his woods by not only cutting down the trees but now by proactively trying to kill the wild life that resided among the trees.  That could not be allowed to go on.  He would not allow it to continue.  The town had plenty of open land to the North and East of it to grow and expand for centuries to come.  There was no need or call to cause the kind of devastation to the woods that they were engaging in.

Behr had sat up talking things over with Jack for hours after the group of young adventurers had gone to rest in the rooms he offered them after hearing their story and they agreed to help him defend the woods and get their stolen money back.  He had no currency to reward them for their assistance, but he offered them the next best thing in kegs of mead and honey that they could sell or consume themselves.

On his own, Behr could make the trip to the edge of the woods in mere moments by moving through the trees, literally.  However, this task was going to require more hands than he had and he would need the adventurers assistance.  Consequently, he would have to take the "slow" way and travel with them back to the township.

He could summon a couple of large elk or moose to pull his wagon along, but a few hours travel time shouldn't leave enough time for much to get worse, especially with the storm just abating by the morning.  No, they would walk.  It would give him an opportunity to think out what he planned to do by the time he arrived.  It would also allow him to gather some information by sending some of the woods smaller animals and birds and get a sense of the activity before he got there.

Now as sunrise made it's rosy appearance, he made his regular morning offering to the day in the hopes of gaining favor in his endeavors.  He came back into the meadery in time to see the young people coming out from rooms behind the bar and make their way to one of the tables.  Jack, his longtime animal friend, sidled up to walk alongside him as he went to make them some oatmeal and honey at the fireplace.

He heard Jack telling him about his morning adventure only half paying attention.  He never stopped appreciating the ring of animal communication that had been given to him by an Arch-Druid three years before that had happened to be traveling and come through his woods.  the Arch-Druid had been so appreciative of his efforts with the Kindred Woods that he had offered Behr the simple, enchanted rosewood ring so that Behr wouldn't have to continually cast the spell in order to talk with Jack regularly.  The ring also allowed him to talk with pretty much any animal at any time but no monsters.  Not that he would want to talk with any monsters.

He set the tray with the pot of oatmeal, a jar of honey and several wooden bowls and spoons on the table for the adventurers to start their breakfast.  Pleasantries were exchanged but there were mostly just morning noises as they got right to enjoying a hot meal after a night in comfortable straw beds (clean beds, thank you very much, You'll be hard pressed to find any bedbugs, lice or other unhealthy insects within his home.)

While Behr looked to be like an unusually small human, the truth of the matter was that he was actually one fourth Gnome.  His father had been half Gnome.  Being only one fourth Gnomish meant that he really did not enjoy the special racial abilities of even half gnomes.  However, he was very small for a human and the one benefit that was left to him was the racial longevity.  He was much older than most people thought he was.  He appeared to be in his early twenties but was actually almost eighty years old.  If his grandfather was correct, and his Gnome grandfather was still alive and usually right about things Gnomish, he could expect to live to at least four hundred years of age.  Maybe a little more, maybe a little less.  When he referred to the adventurers as "kids" and "young people", he meant it.

He sat down at the table with the group and served himself from the large pot.  Lot's of honey, thank you very much.  Too much honey would make his teeth feel "coated" but he kept his pointed teeth very clean normally.  Clean and sharp.  'The better to eat you with, my dear' he thought, chuckling to himself.  His grandfather had told him that his tastes were hereditary.  Their's was a lineage from an old clan of Gnomes that had preyed on humans and every other two- leggeds as well as animals, birds, fish, etc...  they could get their little hands on.

Not that he ate people regularly.  As a matter of fact, people were more of a snack to him.  Being mostly human, he was conscious that cannibalism was frowned upon.  He just couldn't help himself sometimes.  So, he really tried to confine his munchies to people who had been freshly killed in battle or in a natural catastrophe, things like that.  Mmm.  What he would do for a couple of meaty fingers right about now....

Not much of serious consequence was discussed over breakfast.  He didn't want to upset their digestion before the big trip North.  Now that the dishes were being cleared and cleaned, they could get ready to go.  "I would like to tell you a bit more of my plans to protect the woods before we go.  Partly to keep you in the loop and partly to prepare you for things you may see along the way." Behr explained.

"To begin with," he began. "I will be sending lookouts and spies ahead to see what those scoundrels in the town are up to.  What you will see is a flurry of small animals, birds and insects coming and going around me.  They are my scouts so I don't want you to do anything rash like trying to kill mice or squash insects.  That would make me most unhappy."  Viktor, the half-Orc, spoke up, a bit diffidently.  "I am used to eating small animals like rodents and such as a means of sustainment while travelling."  He continued, "Is that going to put me in a bad light with you and your scouts?"

Behr thought about that for a moment.  On the one hand, he didn't want any unnecessary stress on his scouts.  They tended to not be so cooperative if they thought they would only be rewarded by becoming something else's lunch.  On the other hand, he well understood that it was simply the nature of a being like an orc, or a half-Orc as the case may be, to sustain itself on the flesh of other creatures.  "I'll tell you what, my young cohort", Behr replied convivially, "If you can make an effort to wander off a bit to find your meals and not feast on those that are obviously trying to aid me, I can overlook it as simply meeting your natural tendencies.  Don't be lazy about it though.  If it isn't immediately nearby but seems to be coming toward me or departing me, let it be on it's way.  Agreed?"  Viktor shrugged and with an appraising look replied, "Agreed Sir."  "Excellent!" Said Behr.

"What else will we do besides sending scouts, Mr. Behr Sir?" asked Elsa, the fair half-elfin Illusionist.  "Please, just call me Behr.  The 'Sir' and other needless deference is unnecessary.  "  Behr stated flatly.  "Also, 'We' won't be doing much on the way there.  I however, aside from scouting, will be having a few traps laid for anyone unwise enough to wander into the woods for the purpose of killing animals for clearing or for terrorizing trees for clearing."  Mikal raised his hand, as though if in class.  "Traps of what sort Si.. uh, I mean Behr?"  Behr chuckled.  "The kind that don't leave people very capable of terrorizing woodlands ever again.  If they're lucky."  he deadpanned afterward.  "Don't worry though, Mikal, I shall be sure to not let you be caught in any of the traps I set.  Unless, of course, you switch sides on me."  He glowered menacingly at that but then winked at the young fighter and grinned at him.

"We can discuss things more as we are on our way."  The small Druid exclaimed loudly as he stepped away from the bar where he had been leaning during the conversation.  "Let's be on our way now."  At that, everyone moved to gather their items and packs and began to head outside too start on the road back to Kerren's Landing and defending the Kindred Woods.

Druidic Rites of Ascencion

Clerics, and subsequently Druids being a sub-class of Clerics, don't obtain the spells they use the same way that Magic Users do.  As opposed to using spell books and spell scrolls as well as any required materials for spell components such as a lump of iron, a feather, etc... for the casting.

Clerics and Druids however, cast their spells essentially through prayer and meditation.  In addition, they use "offerings or sacrifices the same way that Magic Users use spell components.  These offerings range from leaves or a holy symbol, etc...

So, we know how Clerics and Druids cast spells.  We also know that they are limited in the number of spells they can cast in a given period of time due to experience level limitations.  Another thing we need to know is how exactly do they get the spells they need to know.  The above answer of using prayer or meditation only answers it so far.

Do they just pray for something in general or perhaps specifically that they want to have happen and the powers that be interpret what they want into the identified spell and make it happen?  How do they know which spell they can use what they can do, at any particular level?  Are they given spells by other, senior, Clerics or Druids during training?

I have answered these questions for Druids in my gameworld by using Druidic Rites of Ascension.  Due to their typically solitary nature, it is unlikely that Druids go to Druid temples or training camps to get to the next level and learn the spells they need to know appropriate for their level or capability.

I have it so that when a Druid PC has reached enough XP to level up, they must go through the Druidic Rites of Ascension.  Essentially a complex ritual that lasts for days during which they are given by the powers that be the information they need to know to carry out their duties for their new level.

The Druidic Rites of Ascension procedure is as follows;

• The ritual takes place in a sacred place outdoors.
• The Druid fasts for the number of days of their new level during the ritual.
• The Druid makes an offering or sacrifice of the size, or number of their new level at an outdoor alter.  (I allow for anything that was living but died of natural causes to be collected and worked into a special form or design such as carvings made from deadwood of fallen trees, figures made from cornhusks and other crop plants, etc... The point is they were living, they died naturally or as a matter of natural events and the Druid must use craftwork or some special preparation or presentation of the material prior to being considered a worthy offering or sacrifice.)
• After the offering or sacrifice, the Druid sits in one place and prays/meditates on his/her duties and obligations as a druid, waiting for "Divine Inspiration" to be achieved proving them with what they need to know.  The knowledge will consist of:
• The specific spells in the Players Manual for the level of Druid to be attained
• The knowledge of how the spells work and what they do.
• The knowledge of which, how much, etc... offerings (mistletoe, holly or oak leaves, etc...) that correspond to each spell.

The DM can do a lot of story-building with this ritual and it's purpose.  I like to run it as a solo mini-adventure for druid PC's because I also give a substantial number of XP just for going through the process.

I also like to punish/reward the Druid for how well they have taken their Druidic obligations through previous activity.  Have they been behaving/roleplayed ideally?  The more true to character they are roleplayed, the swifter they can be rewarded.  For example, if the character has been portrayed in a way that ideally reflects a Druid and honoring their druidic obligations, the wisdom they seek can be achieved after the first day of the ritual, minimizing time spent performing the ritual.  Depending on the number of days planned for the ritual Good roleplaying can be rewarded by ending it sooner.  Poor roleplay can be "punished" by making them go until the very last day.  Make them earn it, I say.  They work for Nature, the originator of "Natural Selection" which is the brutal and uncaring process of successful evolution and adaptation for progess and survival.  Nature won't let a Druid off easily unless they have demonstrated the necessary skills.  The DM should keep that in mind as they roleplay Nature's Will during the ritual.

There is the possibility that the ritual will not be successful.  Mostly depending on how well they have been roleplayed.  This can be addressed by the DM making a determination ahead of time of "Grading" the way the PC has been portrayed as a Druid. (remember DM's, you don't have t like their PC's personality, methods and means of carrying out their druidic obligations.  The single important factor is determining how well they have been portrayed as a Druid and meeting their druidic obligations.)  I use a simple 1 to 4 method.  1=meets all obligations (90-100% of the time), 2-meets most obligations, (70 to 90% of the time) 3- meets some obligations (50 to 70% of the time) and 4= meets few obligations (anything less than 50% of the time).

Based on that score, the potential success of the ritual is 1= guaranteed to be successful,,, within first two days.  2= High probability of success 80% on second day or later (roll percentile dice for probability 20 to 100 on percentile dice).  3= average probability on third day or later (20 to 70 on percentile dice). 4=low probability on 4th day or later.  (20 to 40 on percentile dice.

If they are not guaranteed to be successful on the first day, then the percentile dice are rolled starting the day the probability begins.  If they are low level and their ritual is only say 3 days for 3rd level and they have a 4 score, they are guaranteed not to have a successful ritual this time.  Have them focus on living up to their druidic obligations and try again some time later.

The result afterward is having competent Druids who know what they need to know, when they need to know it.  At least in terms of abilities and spell-casting.  They might have an idea of what to expect by adventuring with and observing other, higher level Druids but those Druids would never overstep their bounds and interfere with Nature's methods in advancing other Druids.

I mentioned that I give XP for the ritual.  I base the XP out of a total of one fourth of the points needed to advance to the next level.  Then from that number, I give them up to a fourth of those points for how well they prepare for the ritual and for how fast they complete the ritual.  The shorter the time due to good roleplaying, the higher the XP.

In regards to preparation, since we have gone to the trouble of roleplaying the ritual out, then it behooves us to see the whole thing through.  If when they make their Druid at the beginning they are informed properly by the DM of the whole druidic ritual of ascension process, they should know what they need to do to prepare for it and describe each step of the process as they engage in it to the DM.  If they don't know or don't remember, the DM can coach them through it or have a "guide" appear to show them the way.

One other touch I add is that the force of Nature itself marks each successful ritual by leaving what appears to be a brand in the shape of a star or a crescent moon on the Druid's body.  I let the dice tell me where Nature puts the first mark (face, chest, arm, leg) and then the rest that are accumulated automatically are placed with it going forward.

That is the long way for the purpose of a solo adventure for the ritual.  The short way is that the DM just makes the determination of druid obligation roleplaying and scores it appropriately.  based on the score, roll for probability of success, if necessary and inform the Player of the results.  No XP should be given for going the fast way.  The Player should still be the one to initiate the process of the ritual, roleplayed or fast method.