Chaosium Digest Volume 19, Number 9 Date: Sunday, May 25, 1997 Number: 2 of 2 Contents: Sir Padraig's Castle (Warren Hately) PENDRAGON CF: Bokrug (Shannon Appel) MYTHOS A Bokrug Deck (Shannon Appel) MYTHOS -------------------- From: "Warren Hately" Subject: Sir Padraig's Castle and the Knight of the Orchid System: Pendragon SIR PADRAIG'S CASTLE AND THE KNIGHT OF THE ORCHID. This short scenario is an excellent and interesting way for younger player knights to gain their own manor, possibly far removed from their native kingdom and lord, thereby providing gamemasters new political motivations for their games. The story is simply this: the knight's lord, when a younger man, had many battle companions, one of whom was Sir Padraig, most recently of Dal Riada, known by the title The Knight of the Bristling Shield. If knights are from a kingdom ruled by a Queen -- of which there are many -- then Sir Padraig can be the deceased husband's former battle companion. In recent years, Sir Padraig, who was once a common visitor to the lord's castle, has not been heard from or seen. Players are sent to investigate the cause of Sir Padraig's absence and rectify the situation by extending to Sir Padraig an invitation to the next "major event" in the players' homeland. Sir Padraig's small and modest keep is located some forty miles south-south-east of the Isle of Eigg, at the border of the expanding Dal Riada territory. Sir Padraig's castle is set in thick forest in a hilly, sometimes mountainous area. Apart from charcoal burners in the woods, there are no villages nearby. As a result, Sir Padraig has in the past relied upon his own prestige and martial prowess to earn the income necessary to live as a standard knight. He has acted as a cailleach-like figure, accepting gifts brought by young knights in exchange for passing on his numerous battle feats and his knowledge of the strategies of war. Furthermore, because Sir Padraig's castle seasonally attracts many virtuous and challenge-seeking knights, the castle is also visited by numerous squires of noble rank, each hoping to find a knight that might him them under tutelage. At any time (including winter) the castle is home to 3d6 knights and 1d20 squires. When the players arrive, on top of these figures there are two specific persons present. PANICK: Sir Padraig's steward, who maintains the castle's daily operations and acts as a go-between for young knights offering tribute in exchange for education. SIR TAMQUIST: The chief knight currently staying at Sir Padraig's castle. Sir Tamquist maintains himself as a Rich Knight, though his character and behaviour show that he is not the most adventurous nor valourous knight the players have ever beheld. Panick and Sir Tamquist will readily inform the players that Sir Padraig has not been absent from court of his own free will. Indeed, as they understand things to be, the previous year Sir Padraig was captured whilst on a hunt by a mysterious person called the Knight of the Orchid. This knight has set a ridiculous (though glorious) ransom for Sir Padraig's release: 50 white milking cows, 10 white bulls, 50 shields embossed with gold, 50 spears with golden tips, 50 swords with sheaths inset with gems worth no less than 5 Librum each, 50 suits of reinforced chainmail and 50 slaves to wear and wield them. Furthermore, the knight demands rich clothing to the equivalent of 50 Librum, and silver, gold and gems worth 50 Librum each. Alternatively, the Knight of the Orchid has also offered to duel any knights who declare that they are skilled enough to release Sir Padraig. The duel is to the death. Obviously, with the Knight of the Orchid's death, Sir Padraig would be free to go. Although it is an issue of contention, Sir Tamquist has not as yet gone to meet the challenge, and Panick the steward is in no way able to meet the ransom demands. Panick attended the Dal Riada court the previous year, not long after the ransom was set, and was unable to gain any financial support to release Sir Padraig, though seven knights came back to duel the Knight of the Orchid. Each one was slain in turn. THE REAL STORY The Knight of the Orchid resides in a castle much the same as Sir Padraig's, less than a day's ride north through the forest. Panick and the others have no idea from whence this castle sprang, as the last time those areas was scouted, the only fortifications were about the occasional Pictish settlement. Now, even the Picts have cleared out. The reason for this is that the Picts are very clever. The Knight of the Orchid is not, in fact, a knight at all, but a sorceror of considerable though waning power, desperate to appease Arawn with a sacrifice (coincidentally the same amount as the ransom for Sir Padraig) in order to extend his life. The Knight of the Orchid which has duelled with 12 knights so far (seven of these from Dal Riada) is actually Sir Padraig, under glamour, with his famous Bristling Shield covered by a bear-hide painted with an orchid. The sorceror dwells in the castle's only tower, controlling events as they occur with his magic. APPROACHING THE ENEMY CASTLE Knights may wish to try and demand hospitality from the Knight of the Orchid, but this will prove foolish, as the sorceror has no sense of hospitality. After allowing one of his two real human servants (two 14-year old boys acting as Sir Padraig's squires in duelling) to get the knights and their retinue inside, the servant will flee. In the courtyard of the modest motte and bailey, the sorceror will set his Ghost Knights upon the players. The sorceror has six of these. They will not attack immediately, but without speaking they will try and make it apparent that the knights do not wish to stay the night. The ghosts will attack if the player knights try and pass them and enter the actual castle in order to demand explanations. If the players live, they will find that the massive door into the castle is locked, requiring a strength of 40 to open it (with room for only two people on the handle). If the players then leave the castle (though they are free to sleep the night in the courtyard so long as they take no actions), one of the squires will appear at the gate and call to them that the first duel will be met an hour after dawn the following morning. DUELLING The duel itself is fairly normal, with the glamoured Sir Padraig allowing fumbling opponents to recover their weapon, etc., with much grace, though he does not speak. Otherwise, he fights with all his abilities to slay his opponent. I If his shield is struck more than three times, the bearskin will begin to rip loose. The fourth blow [Awareness -10], the fifth [Awareness -5] and sixth [Awareness] may reveal Sir Padraig's Bristling Shield. Other characters not duelling may make [Awareness rolls at -5] no matter what state the covering bearskin is in to notice the prominent tusks of the shield. For Sir Padraig to be defeated, he must be slain, or the tower must be penetrated and the sorceror found and killed. Killing the sorceror breaks the spell. If Sir Padraig is able to linger on before finally succumbing to death, he will pass his shield to the knight who felled him, and bid the player return it to his lord. GLORY Killing Ghost Knights: 50 each Opening Castle Door: 25 Spotting the Bristling Shield: 10 Knight speaking for the entire party: 20 First to Challenge Knight of the Orchid: 20 Saving Sir Padraig from death with healing or other means: 100 Killing the Sorceror: 100 Killing the Sorceror and releasing Sir Padraig alive: 200 Defeating Sir Padraig: 200 (-1 Honour) Failing to Allow the most senior knight the right to duel first: -50 Senior Knight failing to Challenge first: -50 FINALLY... When the players eventually return to their homeland, they are called before their lord to report. If Sir Padraig was killed then the player with the shield must present it to his lord. The lord will inform the knight that the shield and Sir Padraig's land are his; this is the significance of giving the shield over at the moment of death. The lord feared such might have happened, as there is a geas upon the shield that it may only be borne by those who are chosen as successors by the shield's (previous) owner. The lord's praise is worth another 25 glory to players, and the assignment of the new manor is another 100 Glory to the single knight. However, Sir Padraig's castle has no revenue other than what it gained by Sir Padraig's teaching. Unless the player is skilled enough at knightly combat, he will lose the interest of all clients within the space of a year. The gamemaster may decide what constitutes possessing the necessary skills, but an annual heroic deed and all combat skills above 15 should be the minimum. SOME STATISTICS Sir Padraig Cymric/Pagan STR 17 SIZ 15 CON 16 DEX 12 APP 11 Hits 31 Damage 5d6 Armour 12 (reinforced chain) + 8* (bristling shield) Attacks: Sword 23, Lance 19, Spear 20, Dagger 10, Morningstar 16. Personality Traits: Chaste 10, Energetic 19, Forgiving 08, Generous 16, Honest 19, Just 18, Merciful 12, Modest 09, Pious 05, Prudent 11, Temperate 16, Trusting 10, Valourous 22 Passions: Honour 18, Loyalty Vassals 12, Loyalty (Player's Lord) 15, Hospitality 20, Fear Spirits 12 * The Bristling Boar Shield: resembles no other shield at all. It is circular and made of pure iron. The shield is as much a bas-relief as it is a thing of defense. The shield provides 8 points protection in addition to its magical power. The shield depicts the front perspective of a wild boar charging, tusks fully extended, cast in iron. The tusks and snout of the boar protrude from near the boss of the shield. Once per month, renewed at the waning moon, the wielder of the shield can call forth a magical boar from the shield that is intelligent enough to follow almost any command given. Most powerfully, the boar can be sent to track down and slay a foe, with a maximum range of 30 days running without stop. The statistics for the boar are the same as in the Pendragon rules, with the exception that it has double armour, and appears metallic grey. The Sorceror Cymric/Pagan STR 12 SIZ 16 CON 10 DEX 17 APP 10 Hits 26 Damage 5d6 Armour 4* (black aura) Magic Limit: 65 Life Force 3d20 Attacks: Staff 12, Dagger 12. Personality Traits: Chaste 03, Energetic 10, Forgiving 08, Generous 13, Honest 19, Just 04, Merciful 0, Modest 12, Pious 03, Prudent 19, Temperate 04, Trusting 03, Valourous 13 Passions: Hate Saxons 08, Hospitality 03, Honour 06 Talents: Glamour 22, Shapeshift** (Weasel) 18, Healing 15, Travel 12, Curse 9, Bless 6, Sacred Space 16, Protect 10. Talismans: for Glamour (3), Healing (1), Curse (1). *The sorceror wears a talisman about his neck that provides a black aura which radiates 4 points of armour. ** Shapeshift is the sorceror's natural talent. Ghosts of Doomed Knights faerie STR 20 SIZ 14 CON 20 DEX 10 APP 3 Hits 34 Damage 6d6 Armour 4* (phantasmal armor) + 6 (shield) Attacks: Sword 15, Lance 12, Dagger 10, Mace or Flail 10. * The Ghosts appear as solid, helmeted men clad in partial plate armour, though the metal is only phantasmal. They carry real shields. Warren Hately : oghma@argo.net.au -------------------- From: appel@erzo.org (Shannon Appel) Subject: CF: Bokrug System: Mythos ** THE CARDS FILES: BOKRUG ** THE CARD -------- Name: Bokrug Set: Dreamlands Type: Monster Subtype: Great Old One Requirements: Ruins Location, Storm Special Effect Box: All Locations feature the Water attribute. Do not Bury Storm Events. No investigators may gain Sanity unless they are in Mnar. THE SOURCE ---------- "It is also written that [the Beings of Ib] descended one night from the moon in a mist; they and the vast still lake and grey stone city Ib. However this may be, it is certain that they worshipped a sea-green stone idol chiselled in the likeness of Bokrug, the great water-lizard; before which they danced horribly when the moon was gibbous." -"The Doom that Came to Sarnath", Howard Lovecraft Bokrug is most prominently featured in "The Doom that Came to Sarnath". There, we learn that Bokrug was once the god of the strange beings of Ib. After the beings of Ib were slain by the fierce inhabitants of Sarnath, Bokrug patiently waited 1000 years, and then he became the DOOM that came to Sarnath, and the city was destroyed in an evening. Now, the water-lizard Bokrug is worshiped throughout Mnar. CLARIFICATIONS -------------- As with all GOOs, *YOU* must have the requirements in play to bring out Bokrug. That is, your Current Location must be Ruins, and you must have a Storm card out. There is only one Waking World Ruins, The Old Brick Powderhouse in Kingsport. There are Dreamlands Ruins in The North (1) and Mnar (3). As of the Dreamlands, there are eight different storms, from Blizzard to Twister. As with all GOOs, Bokrug becomes a part of your Threat when he is played. He counts as one Monster in the Threat. He can be affected by cards that affect the Threat (such as Sign of Eibon). GOOs can never become part of Directed Threats. As is stated on Bokrug, "Do not Bury Storm Events". Days, Nights, Droughts, and other cards that Bury Storms may be played normally, but all Storms remain out. QUESTIONS --------- Q: If I play a Day Event, and then Bokrug is Buried, do any Storms go away due to the Day Event? A: No. Days (and Nights and Droughts) only Bury Storms the instant they're played. STRATEGIES ---------- As with all GOOs, variants of a few standard strategies will help you make better use of Bokrug. * Standard GOO Strategies - Use the Shining Trapezohedron to help get your GOO out. The Stars are Right can also help, since Storms are pretty common cards. Gain Sanity while your GOO is out by using the Mao Ceremony. Protect your GOO from the Sign of Eibon by always adding Monsters to your Threat very early in the Round (Voonith are also very good for shielding GOOs). Use the Servitor of the Outer Gods in your deck. * Keep Bokrug Out - This isn't a totally standard strategy. Often, you're happy to say adieu to a GOO after a few turns because you're running low on Sanity. This may not be the case with Bokrug, because you can gain Sanity while in Mnar. Stock up heavy on Thirty-Five Abominable Adulations of the Bloated One and the Idol of Bokrug, so you can keep your big buddy about. It also happens that a number of cards work well in conjunction with Bokrug. * Storms - Clearly you'll have Storms in your deck, to get Bokrug out. You can make an even better deck by choosing one each from a variety of the better Storms. Blizzard prevents Travel by Land. Hurricane prevents Travel by Air and Travel by Sea. Downpour forces walking in Cities. Set up your deck so it doesn't require any of these Travels. If you use Downpour, it shouldn't particularly depend on Cities either. If you need forms of transport, Travel Underwater, Travel by Cats, and the Fly Spell should all work fine. With Bokrug, you can keep all these Storms out. This will put your opponents at a disadvantage: they'll draw worthless cards; they'll waste time walking; and they might not be able to play Adventures if they need to traverse Regions or play certain Travel cards. Meanwhile, your deck will be optimized for this environment. * Deep Ones - The MSGS Deep Ones are +2 in Storms, which works great with a GOO who keeps Storms permanently out. If you add in the Jewelery of the Deep Ones, you'll be dropping down 4 point Monsters for 0 Sanity. * Hydrophobia - When it rains, it pours. Bokrug makes all Locations Water. Hydrophobia will ruin someone's day. * Cthulhu Rising - Cthulhu Rising Discards Water Locations, and when Bokrug is out, all Locations are Water. Ouch. As is the case with all GOOs, Bokrug will work best if you construct an entire deck around him. In doing so, make sure to take advantage of all the individual cards and strategies already noted. * The Mnar Deck - Since you can gain Sanity while in Mnar, the best Bokrug Deck is clearly one centered there. The deck should start out with Doomed if You Do, which rewards you for playing Bokrug. Seeking Everlasting Life I is playable in Mnar (using the Hunter, the Wandering Peddlar, Howard Lovecraft, and Randolph Carter for your Steadfast Allies), as is Knee-Deep in Doom. Unfortunately, getting all the way up to 20 points is a little trickier, so you'll end up having to either add some Surprise Meetings or Trains (to pull an Ally from elsewhere, to complete an Adventure), or to make a short detour to another Dimension or Subregion, to find a missing Ally or Location for a specific Adventure. A nice thematic combination is The Mystery at Martin's Beach. Add in two Martin's Beach cards and two Silver Keys, and everything else can be played in Mnar. Doomed + Seeking + Mystery makes a very appealing deck, although you need to stack up on several different types of Tomes. Doomed + Kneep-Deep + Mystery is perhaps simpler. Remember to add in a few of the Sanity-gaining spells (Call Power of Nyambe and Steal Life are suggested) since there's only the one Sanitarium in Mnar. The Zoog Chieftain would be another nice addition, since he speeds Country travel, but you'll need to devise a way to hijack him from the Enchanted Woods. One possible Bokrug deck is included in the following article. COUNTER STRATEGIES ------------------ The standard GOO Counter Strategies will work against Bokrug: * Standard GOO Counter Strategies - Bury the GOO with the Sign of Eibon, the Elder Sign, or Wakalea. Use the Mao Ceremony to avoid the GOO's effects. Pass to cause the GOO to quickly leave play. Use the Servitor of the Outer Gods in your deck. The following strategies also works against Bokrug: * The Face of Fear - Giving your opponent Hydropohobia will give him a real good reason not to play Bokrug, or to get Bokrug out of play if he's already been played. Since Mnar is all-water this will tend to work well even if Bokrug isn't out. * Cthulhu Rising - Prevent your opponent from playing Bokrug. The Mnar Ruins Locations are Water, and thus very vulnerable to the Big Green Guy. * Destroy Storms - Storms are pretty easy to get rid of, since Day or Night buries them. If your opponent is heading for ruins, bring the Storms to an end. -------------------- From: appel@erzo.org (Shannon Appel) Subject: A Bokrug Deck System: Mythos ** A BOKRUG DECK (62) ** INVESTIGATOR Brilliant Egyptian Archaeologist ADVENTURES (3) Doomed if You Do x1 Mystery at Martin's Beach x1 Seeking Everlasting Life x1 ALLIES (7) Any Country: The Hunter x1 Randolph Carter x1 Wandering Peddler x1 Any Dreamland: Howard Lovecraft (Dreamlands) x1 Mnar: Ghost-Being of Ib x1 Taran-Ish x1 Oukranos Wilds: Zoog Chieftain x1 ARTIFACTS (5) Dr. Hammonds Nerve & Brain Tonic x2 Shining Trapozohedron x1 Silver Key x2 EVENTS (9) Misc: Cthulhu Rising x1 Discover Secret Cache x2 Surprise Meeting x1 Phobias: Hydrophobia x2 Storms: Blizzard x1 Downpour x1 Hurricane x1 LOCATIONS (14) Danvers: Massachusetts State Hospital x1 Miskatonic Valley: Martin's Beach x2 Mnar: Ilarnek x2 The Nameless Lake x2 The Ruins of Ib x2 The Ruins of Sarnath x3 The Temple of Bokrug x1 Oukranos Wilds: The Temple of Loveliness at Kiran x1 MONSTERS (9) Beings of Ib x4 Bokrug x2 Deep One (MSGS) x2 The Martin's Beach Monster x1 SPELLS (10) Death: Resurrection x2 Dream: Command Lamp-Eft x1 Deflection x1 Embody Charnal Odor of Xura x1 Vortex of Far Journeying x1 Yellow Sign: Steal Life x2 Thirty-Five Abominable Adulations of the Bloated One x2 TOMES (5) Book of Black Stones x1 Kitab Al-Azif x1 Letter From a Friend x1 Necronomicon (Greek) x1 Papyrus of Ilarknek x1 Strategy Notes: Doomed if You Do should be played first. It will prove easier to get the GOO out when your opponents aren't worried about you winning, and Doomed if You Do benefits less from setup than other Adventures. Seeking Everlasting Life I can be totally laid out while playing early Adventures. Make sure to keep your Resurrection Tome and the requisite Allies out. Mystery at Martin's Beach is a bit tricky because it includes two unique cards: The Martin's Beach Monster and Cthulhu Rising. Use the Kitab Al-Azif to play the Monster as an Ally, so you can keep him in play. Since the Adventure refers to the Martin's Beach Monster by name rather than type, you can score the Adventure even when it is in play as an Ally. Make sure to hold on to that Cthulhu Rising in your hand when you're setting up for Mystery at Martin's Beach. The Tomes are a bit of a weakness in this deck, due to the scant Mnar Tome Locations. Tomes can be played via the following seven cards: Massachusetts State Hospital x1, Temple of Loveliness at Kiran x1, Discover Secret Cache x2, and The Ruins of Sarnath x3. Don't throw these cards out, assuming you'll have plenty more opportunities to play Tomes. Conversely, it should be very easy to play the Artifacts in the deck. There is such a variety of Tomes because three different icons are needed, as follows. Seeking Everlasting Life I requires a Tome with a Skull Icon. The Kitab Al-Azif and Letter From a Friend fulfill this requirement. Doomed if You Do requires a Tome with a Dream Icon. The Book of Black Stones and the Papyrus of Ilarnek fulfill this requirement. You'll be able to keep Bokrug out, and perhaps get a little added Sanity, if you have a Tome with the Yellow Sign Icon. The Kitab Al-Azif (again) and the Necronomicon fulfill this requirement. Kitab Al-Azif and the Greek Necronomicon will also give you more options in game play. Most of the spells have pretty obvious effects, but remember the following strategies. Resurrection can pull an Ally from your Story Deck just before you play an Adventure. This may help set up your next Adventure, and reduces the number of cards you'll be shuffling. Command Lamp-Eft can be cast just before you play a Storm to Summon Bokrug. It halves the number of cards that can disrupt your Storm. Embody Charnal Odor of Xura can Summon your Beings of Ib, so you can quickly add one to your Story Deck. It can Summon your Deep Ones too, for what that's worth. Steal Life should be cast whenever an opponent has a three of four-point Ally out. It's a free Sanity boost. The Zoog Chieftain has been haphazardly thrown into the deck because he can make life easier in Mnar. You can only play him if you're at the Temple of Loveliness at Kiran, or have Surprise Meeting. Don't shed a tear if you have to toss the Zoog into the Discard pile. This deck does best if you can get Bokrug out with certain associated cards. Namely: Thirty-Five Abominable Adulations of the Bloated One (in a book), Steal Life (in a book), and the three Storms. No one but you will gain Sanity (unless someone happens to be in Mnar). Everyone will be walking every place, without the benefits of Air, Sea, or Land Travel. Some people will not be able to play Adventures due to the restrictions against Travel cards. You'll be able to keep Bokrug out. As long as at least one player has a three-point Ally, you'll be able to stay even on Sanity thanks to Steal Life. If you wish to tighten up the deck, you could drop half of the Dream Spells, one each of the Yellow Sign Spells, the Zoog Chieftain, the Surprise Meeting, and two of the Beings of Ib. That would bring the deck down to a slightly more manageable 54 cards. At that point, you might as well switch the Kitab Al-Azif for a second copy of Letter from a Friend. However, the deck as recorded above is at about the level I like for Maximum Game Fun. -------------------- The Chaosium Digest is an unofficial electronic 'zine about Chaosium's Games. In no way should it be considered representative of the views or beliefs of Chaosium Inc. To submit an article, subscribe or unsubscribe, mail to: appel@erzo.org. The old digests are archived on ftp.csua.berkeley.edu in the directory /pub/chaosium, and may be retrieved via FTP.