Faces of Pretomournon:The Dwarf with the Eye-patch

Ibbo

A strange-looking creature, small and stocky, but broad and strong. Maybe it's a small man, or maybe a large gnome. Maybe it's a member of an unknown race from a distant corner of Seralin, or even from one of the other moons of Anderove. Anyway, the creature calls itself a “dwarf”.

Dwarves are not native to the Weird opera world, but then, Ibbo is not from this world. He comes from a distant planet located in another universe, where immortals rule over an eternal empire. Ibbo double-crossed one of them, and had to run for his life.

Following an ancient map, Ibbo found his way into a strange multi-dimensional castle, in which he quickly became lost. Wandering through the castle’s many rooms and corridors, the strangeness and horrors he encountered almost drove him mad. Chased by a swarm of vargouilles, he sought refuge in what appeared to be a chapel. It was there he was contacted by Arak-Kur-Mortahn, The Death Titan, a demonic destroyer of worlds traveling from world to world in his ship of the lost. Ibbo vowed to serve the Lord of Twist and The Death Titan provided a portal key that would activate one of the many magical portals out of the castle. Ibbo ended up on Seralin, where he resides to this day.

The dwarf has dull gray skin and wears shiny black leather armor. He wears an eye-patch over his left eye, making him look like a pirate, shaves his head bald, and wears his graying beard short. He speaks with a deep voice that could be described as “fatherly”, or as “disturbing”.

Pretomournon’s inhabitants don’t notice, but Ibbo has the surly attitude of a typical dwarf; stoic and stern, dour and humorless. In addition, he’s very foul-tempered and mean. He fully intends to help the Lords of Misrule to destroy this world and many others after that. Even though Ibbo’s the Disciple of the 5^th Lord of Misrule, he’s happy to let another demon bring about the Apocalypse. It’s for this reason he helps the jester Quinzel to summon her master, Padat The Fall. That, and the girl is easy to take advantage of when she’s in one of her depressive moods.

If not working to cause the end of the world, Ibbo indulges in his hobbies: robbery, theft, murder and tax evasion. Not too long ago he stole a chest of magical weapons from smuggler Vithimiris Reizensteijn, with the help of a key provided by key maker Frederika Gvene. He sold the weapons for a large sum of money to the amazon Demostratia. However, Gvene talked under pressure, and now Reizensteijn has offered a substantial award for "the dwarf with the eye-patch".

Ibbo: AL C; MV 12; AC 6 (studded leather, Dex); Male Dwarf 9; hp 59; #AT 1; Dmg 1d6+5 (dwarven thrower war hammer, Str) or 2d6+10 when thrown, or by weapon +2; S 16, D 13, C 16, I 15, W 10, Ch 15; M 6; items: amulet vs. crystal balls and ESP; XP 2,400.

Ibbo has all the special qualities of the dwarf class.

Location: The lighthouse in the harbor, Quinzel’s apartment in the River District, or committing a crime somewhere else in the city.

See also: Demostratia, Frederika Gvene, Quinzel, Vithimiris Reizensteijn.

Note: Arak-Kur-Mortahn, The Death Titan appears in the one-page dungeon Ship of the Lost.

Variant: Hit Dice by Race

This variant is inspired by the way Hit Dice work in OD&D.

The kind of die a character rolls for hit points is determined by his race, not his class. The table below shows the Hit Dice for the most common races:

Race	Hit Die
Dwarf	d8
Elf	d6
Gnome	d6
Half-elf	d8
Halfling	d6
Half-ogre	d10
Half-orc	d8
Human	d8

For the races of the Weird Opera world they are:

Race	Hit Die
Botanoid	d6
Gnome	d6
Morlock	d8
Neanderthal	d10
Nine-Lives Cat	d8
Paragon	d6
Pig	d10
Porcine	d8
Human	d8

One die is rolled at first level, but further dice are not rolled at every level of experience. A character’s class determines at which level he gains another Hit Die. For example, a cleric gains his second Hit Die at 2^nd level, but doesn’t get his third Hit Die until level 4. A magic-user gets a Hit Die every other level.

At levels at which a class doesn’t get a full Hit Die, he gains a flat number of hit points, usually 1 or 2. The following table shows the Hit Die progression for the four main classes:

Level	Cleric	Fighter	Magic-user	Thief
1	1	1	1	1
2	2	2	(+1 hp)	(+2 hp)
3	(+2 hp)	3	2	2
4	3	4	(+2 hp)	3
5	4	5	3	(+4 hp)
6	(+4 hp)	6	(+3 hp)	4
7	5	7	4	5
8	6	8	(+4 hp)	(+6 hp)
9	(+6 hp)	9	5	6
10	7	(+3 hp)	(+5 hp)	7
11	8	(+6 hp)	6	(+8 hp)
12	(+8 hp)	(+9 hp)	(+6 hp)	8
13	9	(+12 hp)	7	9
14	(+10 hp)	(+15 hp)	(+7 hp)	(+10 hp)
15	(+12 hp)	(+18 hp)	8	10
16	(+14 hp)	(+21 hp)	(+8 hp)	(+12 hp)
17	(+16 hp)	(+24 hp)	9	(+14 hp)
18	(+18 hp)	(+27 hp)	(+9 hp)	(+16 hp)
19	(+20 hp)	(+30 hp)	10	(+18 hp)
20	(+22 hp)	(+33 hp)	(+10 hp)	(+20 hp)

Further Notes:

* Fighters gain one Hit Die type greater than normal for his race. For example, a human fighter would uses d10 for Hit Dice. 

* Paladins and rangers use the fighter progression, but don’t get the greater die type.

* Druids and monks use the cleric progression.

* Illusionists and spelldancers use the magic-user progression.

* Assassins use the thief progression.

2013: A Quick Review

In almost six hours it will be 2014 in my little corner of the world. So there’s still time for me to do a review of 2013!

The year didn’t start well for me, with me being ill and having trouble doing things I really enjoyed – like blogging. In July I came back to this blog and started writing Three Sad Wizards. Most of the posts I made in July and August were about this module. I really like how it turned out and, judging from reactions I got, other people do as well.

In September I completed the 30 Day Challenge. Not all questions on the list were interesting, but I tried to make something of every post, and most of the time I succeeded. And after a year of not being able to blog, this did feel as a real victory.

I also started a series inspired by the Planescape book Uncaged Faces of Sigil. I did six entries in the series Faces of Pretomournon. So far I’m pleased with how the series is turning out, but I think the entries may be a bit too long. Faces of Pretomournon will return in the new year.

In October I wrote my most popular post from this year: Orc Babies. It was a commentary on D&D Next’s “story elements”, that threaten to be completely uninspired and boring. To put money where my mouth is, I showed how I do orc babies in my campaign. Apparently, people liked that.

In November I participated in NaNoWriMo. I hoped I could continue blogging, but that proved to be unrealistic. However, I did write 50K words on my novel that is now almost finished.

So what will 2014 bring?

I’m writing a module called Lost Library of the Death Speakers, which is on hold until I figure out a way to make it less boring. I’m also outlining Valkyries vs. Amazons, an module which can be summed up as Female Fighters in Unreasonable Armor – the Module. However, I also have my Nanowrimo novel to finish, so it may take a while before I have time for it.

I’m also writing the DSA game, a clone of the first edition of Germany’s most popular roleplaying game. So far, I have most of character creation, about half of combat, and a lot of spells done. Still a lot to do though, so it will take time.

Happy new year to everyone, and see you next year!

The Wild Hunt

Every winter solstice, the Wild Hunt rides from Castle Woden. A group of riders with black faces, a large pack of huge black hounds, and numerous spirits or fairy beings, in pursuit of a single mortal being. The Hunt rides over ancient paths and roads, now long gone. If they encounter a farm, a village, or another building in their way , it’s burned to the ground.

Master of the Hunt is the Dark Huntsman, demon-like figure with antlers and a leather mask covering the entirety of his face. He rides either a black horse, or a white one, depending if the Hunt hunts a guilty soul, or an innocent.

Some years (40% chance) Frau Hulda, the snow maker, rides in front of the Hunt in her chariot. If she’s with the Hunt, a terrible storm rages over the land, felling trees, destroying blowing down wooden structures like fences and barns, and sometimes making casualties.

People encountering the Hunt should avert their eyes or risk being swept up by it. Characters who see it must save vs. spells or become part of the Hunt. The fate of such a person varies wildly. Some join the Hunt as hunters, following the Master’s orders, even if they go against their alignment. They will be released after the quarry has been caught and the Hunt is over.

Others are not so lucky. Characters with WIS 7 or lower will join the Hunt as one of its black hounds. The unlucky character will start running on all four and turn into a huge dog. A smaller white puppy will stay behind in his place. After the Hunt is over, the black hounds evaporate and the persons are lost in the spirit world for a year. If his family takes good care of the white pup, the character will be released next winter solstice.

Beautiful young girls and boys (CHA 15 or above) will be kidnapped by the riders and taken back to Castle Woden, never to be seen again.

The Wild Hunt often rides through its quarry’s home town, destroying the village in the process. To prevent the village from being burned down, villages often cast out girls into the forest, hoping the Hunt’s designated prey is among them. These girls are often taken into the homes of gnomes or witches in the forest. Some of them are lost for good or are found the next day frozen to death. Most of them return to the village safely, with no memory of what happened to them that night.

The Hunt’s quarry is usually a girl, often guilty but sometimes innocent. She can always hear the hounds coming closer, and is under the influence of a fear spell during the hunt. The Hunt is over when it captures its prey and shreds it to pieces.

However, deep in the woods is an unnamed stone circle, overgrown and hardly recognizable as such. The bones of the Master of the Hunt are buried there. If the prey manages to reach the circle she’s save. The Dark Huntsman cannot enter the circle, and will release the prey. She will never be hunted again by the Wild Hunt in her life.

The Hunt can be fought, but it can never be destroyed. When the Dark Huntsman and his hounds are killed in combat, their bodies will disappear, only to reappear the next night. If their prey is still alive, the Hunt continues.

The Dark Huntsman: AL N; MV 180’ (60’); AC 2; HD 15; hp 80; #AT 2; Dmg 1d6+6 (spear +3 ); Save F15; M 10; XP 1900. The Huntsman usually attacks with his spear +3. He may also steer his horse to trample an opponent, for 4d6 damage.

Frau Hulda: AL C; MV 120’ (40’); AC 3; HD 12; hp 72; #AT 3 (2 claws, 1 bite) ; Dmg 2d6 (claw) or 1d8 (bite); Save M12; Special: Spells; M 10; XP 2000. Frau Hulda specializes in spells concerning the weather. She can ride her chariot over victims, for 3d10 of damage.

Hounds (3d4): AL C; MV 120’ (40’); AC 4; HD 6; hp 25 each; #AT 1 (bite); Dmg 1d6; Save F6; M 9; XP 570. The Hounds of the Hunt can cause fear in any mortal being.

Call Forth the Wild Hunt

 Level: Druid 4

Duration: up to 10 days (see below)

Range:  0

This specialized ritual should be cast in the ten days between the winter solstice and the new year in the stone circle where the Dark Hunter was buried. The spell costs thirty minutes to cast, and requires an item belonging to the intended victim. Once the ritual is complete, the ghost of the Hunter will appear and listen to the caster’s reasons to call the Hunt on someone. No matter if the reasons for doing so are just or not, the spell compels the Hunt to obey and pursue the quarry designated by the spellcaster.

Spells of the Identity Mage

Dr. Stirma Dijke is a research scientist working at the College for Psychology and Philosophy of Pretomournon University. Her specialty is identity,  especially it’s changeability and instability. She conducts horrible experiments in which she regularly wipes subjects’ memories, forces new identities upon them, and generally makes them ripe for the asylum. Here’s two of the spells she uses.

Change Identity

Level: Magic-user 5

Duration: Permanent

Range:  25 ft. +5 ft./2 levels

The change identity spell lets a mage change a single other person’s unique sense of self. It can fully change the mental make-up of a person: his mental abilities, his personality, his class, etc. Although it can change physical attributes like the character’s race and sex, it’s a mental change, For example, a male human who’s changed into a female dwarf sees and feels female and dwarf in all respects, but she still looks exactly the same as before.

For every level the caster has above 6^th, he may change one of the following things. So a 9^th-level mage may change three things, a 10^th-level mage may change four things, etc.

-          The victim’s Intelligence score. Re-roll with 3d6.

-          The victim’s Wisdom score. Re-roll with 3d6.

-          The victim’s Charisma score. Re-roll with 3d6.

-          The victim’s class. The caster picks the new class. The victim stays the same level as before.

-          The victim’s race. The caster picks the new race. This is a mental change only.

-          The victim’s sex. The victim becomes a member of the opposite sex. This is a mental change only.

-          The victim’s sexual identity.

Incognito

Level: Magic-user 6

Duration: Variable

Range: 0

This spell makes all people in the world forget who the caster is. For the duration of the spell, not even his best friends will recognize him. He will be a complete stranger, although some people may think he looks a bit familiar. When the caster tells a person who he really is (“It’s me… Argus.”), that person will suddenly see who he really is.

To determine the precise duration and effect of the incognito spell, the caster makes a Charisma check. Because characters with higher Charisma are more memorable, it’s better to fail this check than it is to succeed with it.

Normally, the magic of the spell keeps working after the spell duration has ended: people who meet the caster while the spell is in effect will keep on remembering the stranger. However, on a very successful Charisma check they will retroactively remember his true identity.

Cha check	Duration	Effect
Fails	1 week	Caster is completely forgotten
Succeeds within 5 points of Cha score	2 days	Caster is forgotten, but some may wonder why he looks familiar
Succeeds with more than 5 points lower than Cha score	1 day	Caster is forgotten, some may wonder why he looks familiar, and he will retroactively be remembered after the duration has passed.

Faces of Pretomournon: The Amazon

Demostratia

The Knights of the Ark are champions of Neutrality, trying to keep the balance between Law and Chaos. It is the largest knighthood on the world of Seralin, and consists entirely of women. As often happens in such large organizations there are different movements within the order, that explain the ideologies of the order differently and want to implement its objectives in different ways.

One of the largest groups within the Knights are the Amazons. Amazons believe that the balance between Law and Chaos can be best accomplished by fighting against the natural course of things (which contains of both order and entropy). One of the ways they do that is bringing the dead back to life (with the raise dead spell). The revived dead become beimana, or cheaters, and are taken out of the wheel of reincarnation. They can never reincarnate again.

In Pretomournon’s Ruined Tower District stands "The Unaligned School for Young Women", led by its headmistress Demostratia, knight of the Ark and Amazon. The pupils at the school are all between twelve and sixteen years. They’re trained to be squires to knights of the Ark, and eventually after an internship will receive a full knighthood. All the girls are beimana, meaning they have been dead and were resurrected by an Ark knight, after which they were transferred to the girl school in Pretomournon.

Demostratia was born on the knights’ ark Utnapishtim. As a young girl she was one of the most promising squires, and she was fully knighted at the young age of fifteen. In the decade that followed Demostratia accomplished many successful missions, and she rose steadily through the ranks of the Guild. However, when she observed the knights’ "end justifies the means" philosophy in action on several of her missions, she grew more and more dissatisfied with the Guild's lessons. Her loss of faith successfully hiding, Demostratia was offered the position of headmistress of The Unaligned School. She took it eagerly, and she left for Pretomournon.

Her superiors do not know that in Pretomournon Demostratia joined La Révolution, the Guild that believes people should be able to choose their own leaders. The entire staff of the school consists of revolutionaries. In addition to classes about the knight’s code and philosophy about Order, Neutrality, and Chaos, students also get lessons in political science, guerrilla tactics, setting traps, assassination, and alchemical bomb making. When the students graduate they are not only knights, but also terrorists. Demostratia's goal is nothing less than to overthrow the leaders of the Knights of the Ark itself.

To arm her pupils, Demostratia purchased a chest of magic weapons the dwarf Ibbo. This chest was stolen by Ibbo from the warehouse of Vithimiris Reizensteijn. Reizensteijn is outraged by the theft and has offered a reward for "the dwarf with the eye-patch", but doesn’t know that the weapons are now in the hands of the revolutionary amazons.

Running the school does not go in its entirety without any problems. The gang of The Basher Brothers  visited the school a few times to suggest “in a friendly but firm way" to the headmistress to move. After some inquiries here and there Demostratia found out The Temple wants to draw a magical rune in streets, and that the school is in the way. Demostratia is not going to move the school, and so far she has managed to resist the pigs. The Bashers, not used to knights who aren’t intimidated, have yet to find a way to clear the school.

Another problem presents itself in the guise of the young scoundrel which is known as "The Romanticist". This romantic rogue visits the school regularly at night to “honor” some of the older girls with a visit. Naturally Demostratia and her staff do not want this, but they suffer the disadvantage of girls taught to turn against authority: time after time the girls help the Romanticist to hide or to get away. So far, Demostratia failed to catch the young man.

However, she did catch the thief Esbern. Demostratia caught the handsome thief when he tried to rob her office. He begged her not to hand him over to the authorities. Demostratia agreed, on condition Esbern did a number of jobs for her. Since then, an unusual relationship developed between the two, in which both are attracted to each other, but neither wants a love affair with the other.

Demostratia: AL N; MV 12; AC -1 (banded mail +1, shield +2, Dex); Human Female Fighter 6/Thief 4; hp 44; #AT 2; Dmg 1d8+5 (long sword +3, Str) or by weapon +2; S 17, D 15, C 14, I 13, W 10, Ch 14; M 8; items: helm of telepathy; XP 2400.

Thief Skills: PL 31, FRT 23, PP 37, MS 37, CW 90, HS 27, HN 1-3.

Location: The Unaligned School for Girls in the Ruined Tower District.

See also: The Basher Brothers, Esbern, Ibbo, The Romanticist, Vithimiris Reizensteijn, Sylgya.