Devlin's Luck by Patricia Bray

Devlin's Luck
The Sword of Change: Book 1
Written by Patricia Bray
Published by Spectra
434 pages
$7.99 Kindle
$7.99 Paperback

A great thing about having a Half-Price Books close by is their random and changing selection of $1 books. It's a lot easier to take a chance on an author you've never heard of when you're only out $1. Same is true of the old Kindle books when they hit the various sweet spots on sale.

Devlin's Luck is a solid fantasy book for someone just starting the genre. It uses a small cast, small kingdom, and easy missions to get the reader involved. If you're looking for 'popcorn' reading, Devlin's Luck has you covered.

At the end, the book looks to expand in size and complexity allowing the setting and scope to grow with the series.

Devlin's Luck is a perfect 4th edition Dungeons and Dragons book in many ways. The 4th edition D&D default setting was a points of light setting. A generic kingdom where things used to be better and the world was more dangerous than it should be. Devlin's Luck takes place in 'The once mighty kingdom of Jorsk is in decline, its borders beset by enemies, both worldly and otherworldly. The king has retreated to the capital, abandoning the far-flung provinces."

That's not only a 'points of light' setting, it's a fairly standard low-level setting in most instances. There are things that need to be taken care of and the heroes are the ones to do it!

The hero of the story, Devlin Stonehand, is a former farmer and metalsmith from a rugged frontier part of Jorsk, recently conquered by the superior militia of Jorsk. He's come to the capital city to become 'the Chosen One', an old institution where a champion fights for the people of the country. It's been so dangerous lately that the kingdom pays the new Chosen One and binds them with magic to only work for the safety of the kingdom.

In the 2nd edition Dungeons and Dragons, the idea of the Chosen One would have worked as a 'kit'. The profession initially doesn't seem to have a lot of character enhancing powers but does have a lot of social responsibility to it and does have a lot of social perks that go with it. The kits in 2nd edition were notorious for trying to use social issues in place of game balance.

For a small setting, the book throws the deities names out immediately. Part of being the Chosen is picking a patron deity. 4th edition Dungeons and Dragons introduced new deities in part by stealing them from other settings and by adding new ones like the Raven Queen.

Here we get:

Haakron, the Lord of Death.

Lady Geyra: Healers

Lady Sonja: The War Goddess.

Lady Tea: Mother Goddess. Patroness of those who worked the land.

Kanjti: The God of luck. A God with no temples or priests. Some called him the bastard god, the only one of the seven whose origin was a subject for hot debate. A god with no family. (pg 21-22)

Heavenly Pair: Father Teo and Mother Tea.

Another thing that Patricia Bray does, is not shy away from languages. Even though the setting is small, there are a variety of languages spoken by the people including older languages like High Jorsk. Even today in countries like China that are 'one country', there are multiple languages spoken. Never underestimate the value of languages in creating the setting that you're running.

Adventure Seeds:

One of the things I enjoyed about Devlin's Luck is it doesn't pretend that it's trying to rewrite and rework the fantasy genre or some of the simple things that can be done with it.

"There are reports of a band of marauders living in Astavard forest, who prey on travelers along the King's old highway." (pg 77)

"There was no invading army, no great battle in their future. Instead the Kingdom was dying for a thousand tiny pinpricks." (pg. 90).

Another example of how a potentially long campaign can be designed. It allows the players to pick and chose what incidents and events they will investigate and so move the campaign in a direction of their choosing.

How much more classic than bandit attack can you get?

Character Actions

If you want the players to be engaged with the setting, both in the dungeon and out, make sure that others are paying attention to what they do for both good and ill.

"His self-discipline was contagious, and she noticed that her own guards trained all the harder for his example." (pg. 249)

"As he tried to read t he mage's expression he realized that for the first time in their acquaintance Master Dreng's eyes w ere clear, and the hand that clasped his was steady. A remarkable change in one who was reputed to spend his entire life deep in his cups." (pg. 256)

Humans are social animals. We try to be like others, we try to make organizations and achievements with others. Seeing someone strive to be better may encourage us to be better. Seeing someone who needs us at our best may encourage us to be at our best.

If you show that the actions the players take off the battlefield have consequences in the setting, the players may decide to go with that. If you want to encourage that type of behavior and the player's don't normally do such, have the background be influenced by others. You can either act or be acted upon. When the players see people taking after X, Y, or Z instead of them, perhaps they'll be more motivated to be part of the setting as opposed to rogue loners. 

Culture:

"I trade with many, but always with Brigia deMor, daughter of Nesta of the Mountains. She has given me the blessing of her name," the woman said proudly.

A blessing was a powerful thing indeed. In the literal sense, it meant that Brigia deMore regarded this woman as a member of her family. It was rare for any outlander to receive such an honor." (pg. 35)

When designing an adventure, a setting, a character, or a quest, what role does the background of the people play in it? What are they known for? What are their codes of conduct? What makes one valued among them?

Culture doesn't have to be a whole society. It can be a part of the society.

'A copper armband lay on the workbench. Favored by soldiers as a luck token." (pg. 59) The history of an organization, of a society, or a group of individuals, can be telling in many ways. It can be tattoos, it can be slogans, it can be art. 

Points of Light

"Devlin's foot skidded across a slippery stone, and he flailed wildly before regaining his balance. At the start of his journey, this road had been paved with interlocking stones, with a raised crown that allowed water to run off into the ditches on the side. The farther he traveled from Kingsholm, the worse the road became. The stones showed signs of wear, than cracking, and then weeds had begun to appear. By now, nearly two weeks' journey from the capital, there were many places where the stones had vanished altogether. And the drainage ditches were choked with weeds and debris so that instead of draining the water, the roads were covered with mud washed won from the fields on either side. (pg. 95) 

That's a great example of how a point of light campaign can be described. What was one mighty has tumbled. What once was great, is not even standard. It shares themes with Bernard Cornwell's Saxon Tales where the Viking raiders are in awe of the Roman structures left behind in England. 

Taverns and Inns:

"The Singing Fish is in the old city, near the river. It's not fancy, but they have good food and a very fine cellar." (pg. 30).

Devlin is new to the city. He's new to this part of the country. Where better to hear how the common folk act that in a tavern in the old part of the city? Where the common folk mingle? It's an old trope to be sure but it's continued use showcases that it's still a viable way to gather information and to have a gathering place.

Weather:

'But then the rains had come. For the past three, days he had slogged on, ankle deep in muck.' (pg. 94)

Never forget that the sun may rise in the east but the players don't necessarily have to see it. Clouds, fog, mist, rain, humidity, the dew point! All of these things can make the setting seem more alive than just using standard sunny days when the characters are traveling from point A to point B.

Devlin's Luck by Patricia Bray is a solid fantasy story that contains many little nods to realism from numerous languages and social structures, to the evolution of Devlin Stonehand as the Chosen One. I look forward to eventually reading the next books in the series.

G is For Gilgamesh

I know I've been hitting some of the old bits in this month's A to Z Challenge but I think it's important to have a good grounding.

The more you are a reader, gamers, consumer of media, are able to relate information back to its roots, the more you can know how things relate to each other, how they build on each other, and that Warhammer Fantasy was around long before World of Warcraft!

In this case, Gilgamesh doesn't seem to have the love that some other classics like Robin Hood, Kind Arthur, or even Beowulf have. This doesn't mean that there have not been popular adaptations or modern takes.


But that doesn't stop it from being important.

The writer and artist Jim Starlin, creator of Dreadstar and Breed, did Gilgamesh II, a series in the far future about a leader who was an outcast among his people and only found kinship with an alien. The depths that this Gilgamesh went to in order to raise his friend mirror some of the original tale.

Gilgamesh is a demigod. A ruler of an ancient land in Mesopotamia. His gods are ancient and include some like Tiamat. Again, a name that should be familiar to many who enjoy Dungeons and Dragons. Again, a reason to know some of the mythology and historical context that games are built on.

Gilgamesh also had a comrade, a prototype of the wildman, Enkidu. This 'eternal companion' was a loyal ally to Gilgamesh onto the point of his death.

This demigod finds himself fighting fantastic creatures, fighting against the gods themselves. In doing so, his comrade dies and so shaken is Gilgamesh by this, that the demigod seeks out immortality only to have that slip from his hands.

The tales of Gilgamesh are ancient, short, and can provide sound solid foundations to Mesopotamia deities like Ishtar, Shamash,  Enlil an others. There are enough myths and monsters that the old Necromancer Games (now Frog God) did a Mesopotamia book for the d20 system.





I generally recommend the Penguin version unless another version has popped out ahead of the pack. If anyone knows of a more trusted version, leave a comment.

Easter Versus Istar

Neat little picture.

This article says nonsense.

Religion is a funny thing. It has to adopt to the times to survive.

I remember when I was in a particular religious study, they were discussing that Jesus was not accepted by the Jewish at the time because they were waiting for two kings; one a religious figure, which Jesus fit, and the other, a warrior king to throw the imperial rule of the Romans off them. It wasn't something I had heard before then, but they had a wide body of literature and theories to back their belief.

Since then I've seen a lot of studies that discuss how saints and angels are actually the incorporated gods and goddesses of the various countries that the Christian Church has occupied.

Time has a way of changing things in order to be more appealing to the people that practice it. Slavery for example, isn't something we have as a legal entity. Sure, we could argue the semantics of it back and forth in terms of having to have a job, and having to have enough money to survive and not work 80 hours a week, but hopefully no one has to worry about being whipped or beaten to death at work. Although boxers and people who work in the S&M may have something else to say about that.

Anyway, in terms of slavery, unless I"m really misremembering my bible, it's in there. There's even a whole section in there about how to treat your slaves.

Not something that comes up in every day conversation about the bible I'm sure.

It is one of the reasons why those who don't necessarily follow the bible, often want more than just "the bible says so" in terms of convincing arguments. The bible says a LOT of things. It's a very old book. It tried to cover a lot of ground for its time and still has a lot of relevance to many millions of people.

But as you can see above, in the whole Ishtar and Easter bit, we've still got a lot of theories on how things all work out.

In role playing games, it can be more difficult to do this. Many games have modern sensibilities despite their technological backward settings.  Any race or religion or culture that endorses slavery? Probably not going to be on the good guys side. Drow, orcs, and hobgoblins aren't traditionally the good guys and this is reflected in the evil things they do like have slaves.

But in terms of having symbolism and deities have all of these different culture elements incorporated into them, it can be more difficult in a setting like the Forgotten Realms or Greyhawk say, where the deities are actual entities. Would you put up with the dilution of your church in terms of someone changing your portfolios, symbols, and other elements? It's pretty much an bypass in terms of games that do this. It's not dungeon crawl enough.

When setting up your own campaigns, think about the impact that the deities and the social norms have on the setting not only in terms of adventure, but how they interact with the rules. Dungeons and Dragons, despite being the backbone of the industry (or Pathfinder), has its simplicity knobs in alignment and when acts are evil, like slavery, despite their widespread use in the ancient world, and parts of the world today, the two do not mix unless you have a lot of buy in from the players.

Someone playing a paladin for example in a culture where slavery is normal? Is that really a lawful good person? It's best to discuss what the appropriate roles and opinions of such elements are and how they can impact the players enjoyment of the setting and how they interact with it.

For those who celebrate the holiday, enjoy it! For those who don't, enjoy, what is turning out in Chicago at least, to be a beautiful day.

Ichor Greenblood the Vampire King: 2nd Edition Deity

As I've grown older, I've come to hate the names that are descriptive like Stoneheart, Anvil Fist, or other things that look like they belong in a super hero setting. However, when I was a young teen, I thought this was awesome!

I can't remember the full details but the deity was based on part on a character I played that used the Compleate Spellcaster by Bard Games and was... yes, a Necromancer! The summoning spells back in those days eh? Of course most of them weren't useful immediately but they could be given the proper time, funds, and methods.

Anyway, another one from the continuous sheet feed paper.

Ichor Greenblood the Vampire King
Lord of the Undead
Lesser God

Ichor Greenblood has only recently become a god. His base of power is the location where the negative energy flowing from the Dark Domains and the World of Atroy are strongest, Draxcon's Ruins. As for Ichor himself, many say that he actually thrives on the power of his worshippers which include all the undead, and mortals thirsting for the power of the undead.

Ichor, unlike many gods, actively involves himself in the affairs of the mortals seeing hyow powerful they have gornw of late. He insures that none can ever effect him in his place of power and has been known to actively attack mortal wizard's whose power and pride have grown too great.

If there is one known thing that Ichor fears, it is having Karak released. If that ever happened, Ichor would loss much of his power, perhaps even his godhood. The location of Karak is so well kept that many simply think the former lord of the Dark Domain is dead.

Alignment: Ichor Greenblood himself is Chaotic Evil. His priests are usually chaotic evil with the lawful evil leading while the rest are neutral evil.

Requirements: Wis 9
Symbol: A black hand clutching the moon.
Colors: Dark green and black.
Special Abilities: 1) May command undead at two levels higher 2)+1 to save vs death magic for every five levels of the priest 5)May chose spells from the magic users school of necromancy as full strength spheres.

Spheres: Major spheres, Combat, Healing (Reversible only unless the priest uses it to heal himself), Necromantic and Summoning. Minor spheres Elemental and Protection.

Weapon Proficiencies: Must take greatmace. Afterward may spend proficiencies as the priest sees fit.

Non Weapon Proficiencies: Religion and Blind Fighting.

Recommended: Armorer, Weaponsmothing, Engineering, and Herbalism.

Armor: May wear any but upon becoming an official high priest must find and slay a black dragon and skin it, proving the power of death over life in even its mightiest forms. Many priests also do not use shields since they could not use their tow handed weapons, but those that take small weapons may use them. Special Note: Due to the undead nature of their god, the priests take on some of his weakness. In the daylight, any dexterity bonus they may have is cancelled. In addition, also in daylight, they have a -2 to hit and initiative.

The priests of Ichor Greenblood worship their god with intense devotion. Many believe this is because their god actually walks the world and attacks his foes openly and with no reluctance. Others think that since Ichor was once a mortal, that they too may become godlike.

Ichor's priests usually garb themselves in dark metallic plate mail and wield great maces after their own lord. In combat, they can be deadly as they known that their souls do not go to join any god save theirs and shall then become powerful undead minions to join in future battle against all that lives.

In addition the priests often seek to men the wound between the god Death and Ichor by forging alliances with the priests of Death and gathering to attack small villages and manors that have no protection. Toward all other religions, they laugh.

Gromass the Earth Lady: 2nd Ed Deity

Going through the continuous sheet feed paper. Inspired directly by Grome from the old Elric series. That series probably had the biggest effect on my 80's gaming. The below is done without any changes to the original text outside of correcting some spelling errors. Looking through it, I can see many bits where I threw some lore into the setting. Strangely enough, I didn't really go into the god's apperance, powers, etc... I was rarely one of those who wanted to stat out a deity for the party to whomp on.

Gromass the Earth Lady
Goddess of Earth and Strength
Lesser God

Like a few of the other gods, Gromass took no initial interest in the world of Scarlore. Eventualy however, as the other gods grew more amused in their games and even managed to defeat the avatars of the God-Slayer using mortal pawns, Gromass grew more and more interested in the affairs of the world.

Seeking a domain to make her own, she found only the cold and powerful earth lain unclaimed to. Using the earth elementals and the other beings who relied upon the earth for strength and protection, Gromass soon created an empire which she has used to join in the gods games.

Gromass is unlike many of the gods in that she does not actively seek to engage her priests with those of the other gods, but allows the other gods to attack and test her strength. Then she allows her own might to be demonstrated by declaring total war on the faction that has dared to attack the very earth itself.

In today's world, Gromass still seeks to win the game of the gods by having the next mortal worshipper to slay the godlsyaer. Thus far she is doing poorly in her efforts to produce a champion and this has merely lead to earthquakes which rage across the entire planet. Her domain gives even Death and Atroy cause to fear for while Death is eternal and Atroy is patience itself, if her anger remains unchecked, Gromass could destroy Scarlore itself without meaning to.

Alignment: Gromass is true neutral and merely concerns herself with the building and crushing of her enemies. Her worshippers must also be true neutral and must do her goals by whatever means possible.

Requirements: Con 9, Wis 9
Symbol: Mountain
Colors: All hues of brown.
Special Abilities: 1)Due to dense and hard earth like skin, +1 to ac but -1 to CHA due to the skin's denser and more condensed appearance. 5)Avoid the effects of earthquake spells by making a saving throw vs. death magic. 7)Track any creature that has crossed the ground by making a successful intelligence check with no penalties as the earth itself tells the caster. 15)Gain stone giant strength for 1 turn once per day. 20)Cast earthquake spell once a day with no loss of spellpower.

Spheres: Major Access to Astral, Combat, Divination, Elemental and Summoning. Minor Access to Charm, Creation, Guardian and Weather.

Weapons: All blunt weapons. Non-Weapon Proficiencies: Survival, mountains. Recommended: Riding land based, animal handling, animal training, religion and herbalism. Armor Allowed: May wear any but prefer the most heaviest and strongest armor available to represent their strength. May also use shields.

Priest of Gromass tend to be violent and dangerous when spoken to. They have the tendency to see everything as a deadly challenge and attack it with a strength and unknown strength which seems to develop from the very ground they stand upon. Priests of Gromass wear earth tone colors and paint their armor to resemble their surroundings. Priests of Gromass work well in groups as long as all within it know who the leader is and that the leader is the strongest member of the church.

To these priests, strength is everything and they use their abilities to further the will of their god by seeking out a new champion to crusade their cause. Many belief that only one chosen by the god Wrath can truly slay the avatar of the God-Slayer and so they await with eager anticipation the next champion of Wrath's to step forth.

Filarsis the Forger: 2nd edition AD&D Deity

Way back in the day I designed my own campaign world. I mean like in the late 80's or so. It was based on the 2nd edition rule set of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, heavily modified with Arduin and Role Aids and house rules. Stuff was printed out on sheets of continuous feed paper! That cracked me up. I haven't seen that sort of paper in many years.

While cleaning I recently came across some of the gods of the setting. I figured some people may get a kick out of it. I haven't cleaned it up or revisited it so it's done as a straight out retyping from some 20+ year old creation. It's done up, I believe in the full 2nd edition methodology with Spheres and weapon and non-weapon proficiencies.

Filarsis the Forger
God of Armor and Weapons
Greater God

When the gods began their wars, they found that their weapons were weak. They approached Filarsis, the master forger, the one god who used his skills in the chaos of the world to create and forge. It was Filarsis who showed men the secret of making metal arms and armor. It was Filarsis who the Dwarves turned to in times of need.

Filarsis is the Forger of all things. Not only weapons and armor, but buildings and worlds themselves. Filarsis has the keen insight of a skilled architect which sees everything he does as a failure which must be surpassed by something even greater.

It is his duty to make the magical items that are found in the world. His most powerful one thus far some would say is the Black Blade. As the ages continued, Filarsis saw that some used his gifts to the point of abuse. It was these gods whose priests are limited to using certain armor and shields. It has nothing to do with the mortals, but the gods themselves.

Filarsis allows certain gods to advance their worshippers and increase their weapon skills or armor, but not often. It is Filarsis that the mortals curse when something breaks but it is also Filarsis that the mortals cheer when something is discovered.

Alignment: Filarsis is Lawful Neutral and his priests must be of any neutral alignment.
Requirements: Str 9, Wis 10
Symbol: Two hammers crossing behind an anvil.
Colors: Steel and grey.
Special Abilities: 1)Gain the Weaponsmithing, Armoring, Blacksmithing and Leatherworking proficiencies at +2 to all checks.
4)Discover basic purpose of any weapon and its basic powers.
6)Make quality weapons or armor that will not break unless struck by a magic artifice or other harsh treatment.
10)Make magical items +1 for every four levels of the priest up to a maximum of +5.
15)Forge Armor from unusual materials such as adamant, dragonskin or others.
Spheres: Major Access to All, Creation, Divination, Guardian, Numbers, Protection and Summoning.
Minor Access to Combat, Law and Wards.
Weapons: May use all weapons and make new ones.
Non Weapon: Bonus Armoring, Blacksmithing, Weapon Smithing and Leatherworking. Recommended: Bowyer/Fletcher, Local History, Religion, Smelting, Stone Masonry.
Armor Allowed: May use all armors.

The priests of Filarsis are inventors and warriors. They spend their days fighting and their nights designing. Their weapons that they create are theirs and theirs only. If any dare touch them, they will be cursed.

These priests are often sought out by other sects as they are potentially one of the mightiest of all. They are found in every climate from sandy desert to arctic snows. They are adept at either city of wilderness survival as they can build their own small civilization if the need arises.

All Filarsis priests are aloof and independent. They enjoy the sense of power that their lord has given them, although they acknowledge that there are greater gods than their own. They admire the strengths of the other gods, but find that there are too often too many flaws with them as well.

Warhammer Religions Versus Brunner by C. L. Werner

In the Warhammer setting, there are many deities that are followed. The general ones or the popular ones, would probably be Sigmar, the patron of the Empire, the White Wolf 'cult' in the north, and the Ruinous Powers of Chaos.

While Brunner himself is not given over to active worship, or at least, does not appear to acknowledge it, he does have several incidents or encounters with religion and those who are religious, or at least pay lip service to it that span a bit differently than the standard gods of the Warhammer setting.

Shallya: While Brunner does wind up crossing blades with a worshipper of Uncle Nurgle, the interesting thing was the prespective it puts on that worship. Tear down hospitals not because the help the injured, but because they cure the sick. This in and of itself could easily become a mini-campaign with one faction trying to wipe the other one's forces out. Brunner appreciates the healing but doesn't feel he owes anyone here anything because he earns his keep.

Solkan: I remember when I first bought my Warhammer FRPG book. It wasn't the hardcover first edition, but it was a great edition by Hogshead. Nonetheless, one of the interesting things I remember reading about in those early days, was deities of law. Not as known or as active in the world as those of Chaos, nonetheless, they were there. One of my friends ran a campaign where we were trying to free one of the trapped gods, the Lady of Law or something like that.

In one of the stories, Brunner is visiting a city state where Solkan is ascendant and his worshippers, while not the only faction, do have a lot of leeway in how they deal with sinners. The unfortunate thing is that they essentially come off like flagellants or other heavy handed worshippers of Sigmar so with a little name change, I wasn't seeing a lot of difference.

Ranald: The patron god of thieves and someone one of Brunner's bounties gives lip service to often.

When using a setting that has a lot of deities, try to focus on some that may not be receiving a lot of attention. It may force the players to pay a little more attention. If in a game where there are special toys different deities provide their worshippers, or different methods of worship are known, use them. Make the game a little different in aspects so that you can get away from the whole Ruinous Powers and Sigmar association that tie up so much of the Warhammer setting.

Keep it fresh and keep the players guessing.