From: RuneQuest-Request@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RQ Digest Maintainer) To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (Daily automated RQ-Digest) Reply-To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RuneQuest Daily) Subject: RuneQuest Daily, Tue, 21 Jun 1994, part 2 Sender: Henk.Langeveld@Holland.Sun.COM Content-Return: Prohibited Precedence: junk --------------------- From: DevinC@aol.com Subject: Spirits of Prax Message-ID: <9406202153.tn160587@aol.com> Date: 21 Jun 94 01:53:25 GMT X-RQ-ID: 4706 Devin Cutler here: After my long term campaign winds down in a year or two, I had my players choose what close-knit homogenous group they wanted to play for my next, low-powered, microcosmic campaign. They chose the Bison Nation in Prax. Thus, I dusted off my Nomad Gods game and have begun to accumulate stuff. Here are some Spirits of Prax. SPIRITS OF PRAX Dew Maid: This kind and gentle woman once spurned the hand of a dead god and has, since then, regretted her decision. She wanders sadly about, weeping softly to herself. This makes a watery mist which is capable of miraculous powers. It is common practice to stuff the ears of beasts and men while she is present and to avert eyes from her countenance. Thus, none ever see or hear her presence, yet know of her passing. Any who do hear or see her must immediately cover their ears and close their eyes. After 1 MR, those who still hear/see her must make a POW check and consult the following chart: Pow x1% = no effect, although a melancholy feeling overcomes the hearer/viewer for several days Pow x2% = the hearer/viewer is demoralized through a severe feeling of grief and will experience fits of sadness and weeping. This effect lasts D8 days. Pow x3% = the hearer/viewer is demoralized as above, but the effect is so profound that he is affected for D8 weeks. Pow x4% = the hearer/viewer is overcome with grief and is incapacitated for a day. In addition, he is demoralized for D8 Seasons and will feel a melancholy for many years. Pow x5% = the hearer/viewer is completely overcome with grief and is incapacitated by it for D8 days. In addition, the person will be demoralized for D8 years and will experience a profound melancholy for the rest of his life. Pow x6% = the hearer/viewer has succumbed entirely to grief and pity and will be completely incapacitated for D8 weeks. After this time, he must roll under Con x5% or be overcome with a desire to find the nearest body of fresh water and drown himself within it. Any attempts to stop the suicide will cause the victim to go berserk. In addition, if continually frustrated in this attempt, then ANY form of suicide will be attempted. If the Con x5% roll is made, then the victim will become demoralized for D10 years and will thereafter be demoralized for 25% of the time (check each day at dawn). The water of the Dew Maid forms in small puddles and beads upon the ground. It evaporates usually in D3 hours, and so must be gathered quickly. A single sip of the water is extremely refreshing, and it will slake thirst at a rate 10 times that of normal water. This potency will slowly wear off, losing 1 multiple per day. Thus, a litre of Dew Water that has been sitting around for 7 days will slake thirst as if it were 3 litres of normal water. In addition, ingesting a small vial full of the water within 24 hours after it fell will cause D8 points of damage (including general hit point damage) to be healed. Finally, ingesting a small vial full of the dew will add 25% to the chance of resisting a disease if such a resistance roll is made within 24 hours of ingestion. The spirit of the Dew Maid can be contacted by shamans on the spirit plane or by those who meet her travelling through Prax. Shamans who wish to contact her must have at least 1 pint of her dew water as a focus. She may only be contacted in the early morning hours, and never in Fire Season. The shaman has a POW x 1% cxhance of doing so while discorporate in any single day. Once contacted, the shaman/supplicant is subject to a grief roll as indicated above.He may not use his fetch to reists this effect. Thereafter, if he sacrifices 1 POW to her, a link is established. The shaman may then gain the following spells: Spirit Magic: Detect Water This spell will be granted to any shaman upon contacting and linking with the Dew Maid. Divine Magic: Summon Dew ritual ceremony, stackable, reusable 1 point This ritual must be cast during dawn of any day. It brings magical dew to the ground in a 100m radius around the ritual site. This is enough dew to fill 10 small vials with the Dew Maid's liquid. Each point of this spell stacked into the ritual adds another 10 small vials worth of dew into the same radius. After 10 points are stacked together, the radius expands to accommodate additional points. If cast on Waterday, the number of vials is increased by 10%. If cast in Fire Season, the number of vials is reduced by 50%, except on Waterday, when all castings are completely normal. This ceremony is only effective within the Plains of Prax. It will not work outside of that area, including the Wastes, where the Dew Maid does not roam. Evening Star: Evening Star was once a lover to the Sun God, and when that deity was slain, she tried to follow to the Underworld but was refused entrance. Instead, she waited at the edge of the world, fighting off the horrors of night which spewed out at her. In her battle, she gained great power and she guided the Seven to the Gates of Hell, then left her place to help men. Now she is gifted with a house in the sky where her old vigil was held. This helpful Sky spirit will respond to any Shaman who contacts her just after dusk. The Shaman must be able to view the Evening Star and must focus upon its image. The Shaman must also set himself within a sanctified area formed from gold dust, and his entire body must be painted in gold (real gold, the entire ritual costs about 20W). Only shamans may contact Evening Star. Having done this, the discorporate Shaman must approach the Evening Star at her home in the Sky and request her aid. This requires an Oratory Roll, with a bonus to the chance equal to the caster's Speak Firespeech skill. If failure results, the Shaman is rebuffed, sent back into his body, and must wait a Season before making another attempt. Any Initiate of a Darkness cult will be rejected automatically and will likely be burnt mystically, losing D3 POW. If accepted, the Shaman must sacrifice 1 POW to link his soul to her. Evening Star requires that, every Fireday, 1 MP be sacrificed to her during Dusk in a short prayer. She will provide the Shaman with the following: Divine Magic: Summon Fire Elemental Command Fire Elemental Bind Fire Elemental Skywatch ranged, temporal, stackable, reusable 1 point This spell allows the caster to create a third eye, which is invisible, has no dimesnions (i.e. is a point source) and is separate from the body of the caster. This mystic eye will instead rise straight up from 1 to 100m in the air above the caster. The eye can see with the same angle of view as the caster's eyes, and may rotate in any direction desired. The eye is not affected by any means, except for dispels, or sight affecting spells like Sunbright, Blindness, Catseye, etc. The Skywatch spell lasts for 4 hours normally. For each point of this spell stacked after the first point, the duration of the spell is doubled. Thus, 3 points of Skywatch lasts for 16 hours. The Skywatch eye can see in the darkness better than the caster's regular sight. It removes up to 25% of penalties to Scan rolls because of darkness. The eye cannot pass through solid objects. It must always be directly above the caster and moves with the caster at all times. Even if the caster has his regular eyes closed or is asleep, the Skywatch eye will function normally. This has the unique effect of allowing the caster to see things while sleeping. Thus, the spell makes a good means of keeping watch at night, especially when travelling alone. Weapon of Light touch, temporal, stackable, reusable 1 point This spell causes a single weapon touched by the caster to glow with a bright, starlike light. The weapon becomes warm to the touch, but will burn any Initiate of a Darkness Cult that it touches. Any Darkness creature of Initiate struck by such a weapon in combat will suffer its effects in a starlting flash of light. The weapon will do an extra D3 of Disruption damage and will act as a Dispel Magic 3 against any spells upon the victim struck by the weapon. For either of these effects to occur, the victim must be hit and at least 1 point of damage must be done. If the Weapon of Light hits and a Darkness creature parries with a shield or weapon, then the Dispel Magic effect will activate upon any spells on the shield or weapon. For each additional point of this spell stacked with the first, and additional 1 pt of damage is done and an additional 1 point of Dispel Magic effect occurs. Morning Star: Younger sister to Evening Star, Morning Star was the triumphant bringer of the news of victory from Hell, where the Seven Seekers had fought against the Underworld and gained the freedom of the Sun God. This brought about the Dawning and the start of our age. Morning Star must be contacted by a Shaman during dawn. The Shaman must encircle himself in a circle of gold dust and must paint his body in gold, except for the genital region, which must be covered in ashes. The cost of this ritual approximates 19W. Only Shamans may contact Morning Star. The Shaman must then travel in discorporate form to the gates of Dawn and offer 1 POW to the spirit. No creature of Darkness will be heard, and such creatures will be sent back into their bodies. Morning Star requires 1 MP sacrificed to her each Fireday at Dawn in a short prayer. Morning Star teaches the following: Divine Magic: Skywords caster, temporal, non-stackable, reusable 3 points This spell allows the caster to communicate with another person anywhere in Glorantha. However, the spell is very limited. First, the spell may only be cast in daylight under a clear sky (i.e. the sun must be completely visible. Furthermore, the recipient must also be under the same conditions. Second, the caster must be able to form a mental picture of what the recipient looks like. As long as this mental picture does not deviate too much from the recipi ent's appearance, then the Morning Star will be able to find the recipient and deliver the message. Third, the message must be in Firespeech and must be no longer than seven words. The message, to the recipient, will appear to come from the sun as a young woman's voice. Although he can hear the voice, no others will be able to hear anything. The caster has no way of knowing if the message was received. Lightning Boy: Lightning Boy was captured by the Air Demons during the War of the Gods, married into the captor's hierarchy, and then initiated fully to be among the Air Gods, although originally a Fire Son. He oftem appears among men again in the form of a human, but with superhuman powers. Shamans may contact Lightning Boy by discorporating during a lightning storm. He can then be approached and if 1 POW is sacrificed to him, then a link is established, and the Shaman may obtain Lightning Boy divine magic. Non-Shamans may worship Lightning Boy by finding a holy place to Lightning Boy (i.e. something struck by lightning within the last 24 hours) and making a POW x1% roll. If successful, Lightning Boy has been contacted and the bond may be consummated by sacrificing 1 POW to the spirit. Lightning Boy requires 1 MP to be sacrificed during any electrical storm which occurs in sight of the worshipper. Lightning Boy provides the spell of Lightning, per standard RQ3 rules. More to follow, as well as a writeup of Waha and Eiritha that combines the RQ2 CoP and the RQ3 GoG information. Someone here plays Valhgrim-Bull-Answers-Twice (or something like that). Can that person perhaps send me some info on how their Bison Clan is run? Regards, Devin Cutler devinc@aol.com --------------------- From: DevinC@aol.com Subject: Spirits of Prax Message-ID: <9406202154.tn160663@aol.com> Date: 21 Jun 94 01:54:52 GMT X-RQ-ID: 4707 Devin Cutler here: After my long term campaign winds down in a year or two, I had my players choose what close-knit homogenous group they wanted to play for my next, low-powered, microcosmic campaign. They chose the Bison Nation in Prax. Thus, I dusted off my Nomad Gods game and have begun to accumulate stuff. Here are some Spirits of Prax. SPIRITS OF PRAX Dew Maid: This kind and gentle woman once spurned the hand of a dead god and has, since then, regretted her decision. She wanders sadly about, weeping softly to herself. This makes a watery mist which is capable of miraculous powers. It is common practice to stuff the ears of beasts and men while she is present and to avert eyes from her countenance. Thus, none ever see or hear her presence, yet know of her passing. Any who do hear or see her must immediately cover their ears and close their eyes. After 1 MR, those who still hear/see her must make a POW check and consult the following chart: Pow x1% = no effect, although a melancholy feeling overcomes the hearer/viewer for several days Pow x2% = the hearer/viewer is demoralized through a severe feeling of grief and will experience fits of sadness and weeping. This effect lasts D8 days. Pow x3% = the hearer/viewer is demoralized as above, but the effect is so profound that he is affected for D8 weeks. Pow x4% = the hearer/viewer is overcome with grief and is incapacitated for a day. In addition, he is demoralized for D8 Seasons and will feel a melancholy for many years. Pow x5% = the hearer/viewer is completely overcome with grief and is incapacitated by it for D8 days. In addition, the person will be demoralized for D8 years and will experience a profound melancholy for the rest of his life. Pow x6% = the hearer/viewer has succumbed entirely to grief and pity and will be completely incapacitated for D8 weeks. After this time, he must roll under Con x5% or be overcome with a desire to find the nearest body of fresh water and drown himself within it. Any attempts to stop the suicide will cause the victim to go berserk. In addition, if continually frustrated in this attempt, then ANY form of suicide will be attempted. If the Con x5% roll is made, then the victim will become demoralized for D10 years and will thereafter be demoralized for 25% of the time (check each day at dawn). The water of the Dew Maid forms in small puddles and beads upon the ground. It evaporates usually in D3 hours, and so must be gathered quickly. A single sip of the water is extremely refreshing, and it will slake thirst at a rate 10 times that of normal water. This potency will slowly wear off, losing 1 multiple per day. Thus, a litre of Dew Water that has been sitting around for 7 days will slake thirst as if it were 3 litres of normal water. In addition, ingesting a small vial full of the water within 24 hours after it fell will cause D8 points of damage (including general hit point damage) to be healed. Finally, ingesting a small vial full of the dew will add 25% to the chance of resisting a disease if such a resistance roll is made within 24 hours of ingestion. The spirit of the Dew Maid can be contacted by shamans on the spirit plane or by those who meet her travelling through Prax. Shamans who wish to contact her must have at least 1 pint of her dew water as a focus. She may only be contacted in the early morning hours, and never in Fire Season. The shaman has a POW x 1% cxhance of doing so while discorporate in any single day. Once contacted, the shaman/supplicant is subject to a grief roll as indicated above.He may not use his fetch to reists this effect. Thereafter, if he sacrifices 1 POW to her, a link is established. The shaman may then gain the following spells: Spirit Magic: Detect Water This spell will be granted to any shaman upon contacting and linking with the Dew Maid. Divine Magic: Summon Dew ritual ceremony, stackable, reusable 1 point This ritual must be cast during dawn of any day. It brings magical dew to the ground in a 100m radius around the ritual site. This is enough dew to fill 10 small vials with the Dew Maid's liquid. Each point of this spell stacked into the ritual adds another 10 small vials worth of dew into the same radius. After 10 points are stacked together, the radius expands to accommodate additional points. If cast on Waterday, the number of vials is increased by 10%. If cast in Fire Season, the number of vials is reduced by 50%, except on Waterday, when all castings are completely normal. This ceremony is only effective within the Plains of Prax. It will not work outside of that area, including the Wastes, where the Dew Maid does not roam. Evening Star: Evening Star was once a lover to the Sun God, and when that deity was slain, she tried to follow to the Underworld but was refused entrance. Instead, she waited at the edge of the world, fighting off the horrors of night which spewed out at her. In her battle, she gained great power and she guided the Seven to the Gates of Hell, then left her place to help men. Now she is gifted with a house in the sky where her old vigil was held. This helpful Sky spirit will respond to any Shaman who contacts her just after dusk. The Shaman must be able to view the Evening Star and must focus upon its image. The Shaman must also set himself within a sanctified area formed from gold dust, and his entire body must be painted in gold (real gold, the entire ritual costs about 20W). Only shamans may contact Evening Star. Having done this, the discorporate Shaman must approach the Evening Star at her home in the Sky and request her aid. This requires an Oratory Roll, with a bonus to the chance equal to the caster's Speak Firespeech skill. If failure results, the Shaman is rebuffed, sent back into his body, and must wait a Season before making another attempt. Any Initiate of a Darkness cult will be rejected automatically and will likely be burnt mystically, losing D3 POW. If accepted, the Shaman must sacrifice 1 POW to link his soul to her. Evening Star requires that, every Fireday, 1 MP be sacrificed to her during Dusk in a short prayer. She will provide the Shaman with the following: Divine Magic: Summon Fire Elemental Command Fire Elemental Bind Fire Elemental Skywatch ranged, temporal, stackable, reusable 1 point This spell allows the caster to create a third eye, which is invisible, has no dimesnions (i.e. is a point source) and is separate from the body of the caster. This mystic eye will instead rise straight up from 1 to 100m in the air above the caster. The eye can see with the same angle of view as the caster's eyes, and may rotate in any direction desired. The eye is not affected by any means, except for dispels, or sight affecting spells like Sunbright, Blindness, Catseye, etc. The Skywatch spell lasts for 4 hours normally. For each point of this spell stacked after the first point, the duration of the spell is doubled. Thus, 3 points of Skywatch lasts for 16 hours. The Skywatch eye can see in the darkness better than the caster's regular sight. It removes up to 25% of penalties to Scan rolls because of darkness. The eye cannot pass through solid objects. It must always be directly above the caster and moves with the caster at all times. Even if the caster has his regular eyes closed or is asleep, the Skywatch eye will function normally. This has the unique effect of allowing the caster to see things while sleeping. Thus, the spell makes a good means of keeping watch at night, especially when travelling alone. Weapon of Light touch, temporal, stackable, reusable 1 point This spell causes a single weapon touched by the caster to glow with a bright, starlike light. The weapon becomes warm to the touch, but will burn any Initiate of a Darkness Cult that it touches. Any Darkness creature of Initiate struck by such a weapon in combat will suffer its effects in a starlting flash of light. The weapon will do an extra D3 of Disruption damage and will act as a Dispel Magic 3 against any spells upon the victim struck by the weapon. For either of these effects to occur, the victim must be hit and at least 1 point of damage must be done. If the Weapon of Light hits and a Darkness creature parries with a shield or weapon, then the Dispel Magic effect will activate upon any spells on the shield or weapon. For each additional point of this spell stacked with the first, and additional 1 pt of damage is done and an additional 1 point of Dispel Magic effect occurs. Morning Star: Younger sister to Evening Star, Morning Star was the triumphant bringer of the news of victory from Hell, where the Seven Seekers had fought against the Underworld and gained the freedom of the Sun God. This brought about the Dawning and the start of our age. Morning Star must be contacted by a Shaman during dawn. The Shaman must encircle himself in a circle of gold dust and must paint his body in gold, except for the genital region, which must be covered in ashes. The cost of this ritual approximates 19W. Only Shamans may contact Morning Star. The Shaman must then travel in discorporate form to the gates of Dawn and offer 1 POW to the spirit. No creature of Darkness will be heard, and such creatures will be sent back into their bodies. Morning Star requires 1 MP sacrificed to her each Fireday at Dawn in a short prayer. Morning Star teaches the following: Divine Magic: Skywords caster, temporal, non-stackable, reusable 3 points This spell allows the caster to communicate with another person anywhere in Glorantha. However, the spell is very limited. First, the spell may only be cast in daylight under a clear sky (i.e. the sun must be completely visible. Furthermore, the recipient must also be under the same conditions. Second, the caster must be able to form a mental picture of what the recipient looks like. As long as this mental picture does not deviate too much from the recipi ent's appearance, then the Morning Star will be able to find the recipient and deliver the message. Third, the message must be in Firespeech and must be no longer than seven words. The message, to the recipient, will appear to come from the sun as a young woman's voice. Although he can hear the voice, no others will be able to hear anything. The caster has no way of knowing if the message was received. Lightning Boy: Lightning Boy was captured by the Air Demons during the War of the Gods, married into the captor's hierarchy, and then initiated fully to be among the Air Gods, although originally a Fire Son. He oftem appears among men again in the form of a human, but with superhuman powers. Shamans may contact Lightning Boy by discorporating during a lightning storm. He can then be approached and if 1 POW is sacrificed to him, then a link is established, and the Shaman may obtain Lightning Boy divine magic. Non-Shamans may worship Lightning Boy by finding a holy place to Lightning Boy (i.e. something struck by lightning within the last 24 hours) and making a POW x1% roll. If successful, Lightning Boy has been contacted and the bond may be consummated by sacrificing 1 POW to the spirit. Lightning Boy requires 1 MP to be sacrificed during any electrical storm which occurs in sight of the worshipper. Lightning Boy provides the spell of Lightning, per standard RQ3 rules. More to follow, as well as a writeup of Waha and Eiritha that combines the RQ2 CoP and the RQ3 GoG information. Someone here plays Valhgrim-Bull-Answers-Twice (or something like that). Can that person perhaps send me some info on how their Bison Clan is run? Regards, Devin Cutler devinc@aol.com