Coming Soon... In Alley & Shadow (Dragon Horde Zine, Volume II, Issue 2)

 

This has been in the works for a while, and we're in the final round of edits and tweaks. 

Here's a look at the goodness inside...

CHARACTER INFORMATION 

• New Character Class: Spy
• New Character Class: Varlet 
• d30 Alias Characteristics 
• New Magic-user Spells: Spells of Stealth & Subterfuge
• New Cleric Spells: Spells of Truth & Revelation
• House Rule: Thieves’ Ability to Find/Disarm Traps
• House Rule: Setting & Resetting Traps

EQUIPMENT

• Spy Equipment
• Chains, Keys, Locks, and Manacles

THE ADVENTURE

• A Detailed Look at Locks
• Clandestine Communication: A Guide to Ciphers, Symbols, Codes, and Cants

DM INFORMATION

• A Basic Guide to Thieves’ Guilds
• d30 Thieves’ Guild Names
• d30 Thieves’ Guild Events
• Assassins’ Fees
• Spy Missions 
• Crime & Punishment
• Building Better Bandit Encounters 48
• d30 Bandit Lair Locations

NEW ADVENTURE

• The Tomb of 13 Thieves: An adventure for 5–7 characters of 3rd–5th level

MAGIC ITEMS

• Designed for Deception

NEW PETTY GODS

• Patrons of Trickery & Treachery

Scroll Week Day 4: Preparing Quills

Yesterday, I addressed the acquisition of "raw" feathers, as well as the associate costs, etc. Today, I'll address preparing those feathers for use a quill

Cleaning, Curing, and Cutting

Once a feather has been obtained, it must be cured, cut, and trimmed in order to be used for writing.

First, the feather must be soaked (to make it more pliable) in preparation for curing. For the feathers of ordinary and extraordinary creatures, this can be accomplished by soaking the feather for approximately 24 hours in water that has been purified (by a cleric of any level). For the feathers of magical creatures, the water must also be blessed by a cleric of at least 7th level, and the feather must be soaked in that water for a number of days equal to the difference between an AC of 10 and the AC of the creature from which the feather was procured (e.g., a feather from a magical creature of an AC of 7 would need to soak for 3 days in purified and blessed water.)

Once a feather has soaked, it is tempered to give the tube resilience and toughness (making it less brittle). For the feathers of ordinary and extraordinary creatures, this is accomplished by first heating purified sand (through the use of the cleric spell purify food and drink), then removing the sand from the heat source, and third plunging the tip of the feather into the hot sand, allowing it to remain there until the sand cools. For magical creatures immune to the effects of heat, this tempering process is normally impossible to achieve, and will affect the success of trimming and cutting the feather (as outlined below).

Once the feather has been tempered, it is ready to be cleaned, trimmed, and cut. First, the barbs nearest the tip are removed, giving the hand a clean area to grip the quill. Next, the tip is trimmed to create a small opening at the end of the barrel, allowing access to remove membranes from the inside of the barrel. Finally, the tip is shaped (adding both a point, as well as a “slit” to aid ink flow). For the feathers of ordinary and extraordinary creatures, the chance of success for this process is 10% per level of the spellcaster plus 10% for each point of dexterity above 15 (e.g., a 7th level magic-user with a dexterity of 16 would have a 80% chance to successfully clean and cut an ordinary/extraordinary feather for curing.) For the feathers of magical creatures, the chance of success is the same as above minus the difference between an AC of 10 and the AC of the creature from which the feature was procured times 5% (e.g., the same magic user attempting to clean the feather of a magical creature with an AC of 5 would have a 55% chance of success.) Furthermore, if a magical creature is immune to the effects of normal weapons, the tools being used by the scribe preparing the feather must be of a sufficient level to affect the creature (e.g., if a +2 or better weapon is required “to hit” the creature normally, the tools of the scribe must likewise be sufficiently magically endowed.) For the feathers of creatures immune to the effects of heat (and therefore immune to the effects of the heated sand), the chance of success is similar to that of magical creatures (as above) with the AC modifier multiplied by 10% instead of 5% (e.g., the same magic user attempting to prepare the quill of a magical creature immune to the effects of heat would have only a 30% chance of succeeding.)

Scroll Week Day 3: Feather Availability and Pricing

Today's scroll week entry will take a look at "raw" feather pricing and availability, while tomorrow's entry will address the process for preparing a raw feather for use as a quill.

Suitability of Feathers
The most suitable feathers for writing come from the outer rear edge of the wing of a bird and are denominated by the order in which they are fixed to the wing, with the first of these feathers (the “pinion”) being the most desirable for scribes. The second and third feathers are also generally acceptable, even for the more discerning scribe.

Feather Pricing
Though "raw" feathers (those feathers not yet prepared for use as a quill) of extraordinary and magical creatures are not widely available for sale, some varieties may be found in more esoterically-stocked magic shops. To determine the “fair market” price in g.p. for a raw (unprepared) pinion feather, multiply the experience point value of the creature (including XPs for the creature's average hit points) by the "frequency factor" of the creature as below:

Frequency	Freq. Factor
Common	.5 (one-half)
Uncommon	2
Rare	5
Very Rare	10

Feather pricing example - griffon (per 1e DMG):
Experience point value = 375 + 10/hp (w/ 28 average hp = +280) = 655 XP
Griffon = uncommon = frequency factor of 2
655 x 2 = 1,310 gp fair market price for a griffon pinion feather

Normally, “second” and “third” position feathers are priced respectively at 95% and 90% the value of pinion/prime feathers.

Prepared Quills
Prepared quills of an extraordinary or magical nature are nearly impossible to come by, but spellcasters/merchants who specialize in the trade (of preparing quills) are not unheard of, often demanding ten times or more the cost of a “raw” feather for a prepared quill of the same type.

ABOUT THE GRIFFIN IMAGE AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE...
The griffin image on this page came from Wikimedia and was donated by educational publisher Pearson Scott Foresman. I will posting soon about their donation from 2007 and the help Wikimedia still needs to finalize those images so they are ALL available the public.

Scroll Week Day 2: Attribute Modifiers

I'm not sure why attribute modifiers aren't taken into account in the DMG regarding scroll inscription. Honestly, I can't even take a cap off a fountain pen without getting ink all over my index finger. I can't imagine having to spend days (or weeks if you use the BX time requirements) trying "not to mess up" a scroll. The real question is how much or how little modifier there should be?

On the chart at left, my thinking is this... after a certain point toward the "high end" of the attributes (in this case, around 15), the chance of failure "flattens out" if you're "following directions" to create the scroll. But below that point, I think it would get proportionately easier to screw up. No offense to those magic-users out there with the absolute minimum attributes required for the class, but a magic-user with INT and DEX of 9 each should face a much higher failure rate for successful scroll creation than a magic-user with INT and DEX of 18 each, regardless of the level of the spellcaster or the spell. BTW, modifiers are cumulative, so yes... a spellcaster with a DEX and INT of 9 each would modify their chance of success by -150%!)

Scroll Week Day 1: Number of Spells per Scroll

Ever since I wrote the post Scrutinizing the Scroll: Papyrus, Parchment and Vellum back in February of this year, it has continually been the most-viewed page in the history of this blog. With Comprehending the Quill and Investigating Ink, it's formed a trilogy that I hope someday finds life as a stand-alone supplement with a comprehensive approach to scroll creation for OSR editions (generically). After all, no matter which old-school edition you prefer, the rules regarding scroll creation are skimpy at best. So with that in mind, I put forth this week's post to cover some of the bases that I feel are uncovered by the rulebooks, but easily addressed. Today, I'll address the need for rules regarding the number of spells that may be inscribed on a single scroll...

Scroll Space Requirements

More than one spell may be inscribed on a single piece of papyrus, parchment, or vellum. However, the total space required for inscription is dependent upon the level and type of spells being inscribed, as well as the level of the spellcaster inscribing the scroll.

The maximum number of spells that a spellcaster may inscribe on a standard-sized sheet is a sum of spell levels no greater than the level of the spell caster (e.g., a 9th level magic-user may inscribe one 4th level spell and one 5th level spell on the same page, but may not inscribe two 5th level spells on the same page).

The maximum number of spells allowed on a standard-sized sheet (while not accounting for the scribe's spellcasting level) is a sum of spell levels no greater than 20 (e.g., two 9th level spells and one 2nd level spell would fit on the same scroll, but two 9th level spells and one 3rd level spell would not.)

Scrolls requiring more space must utilize a larger sheet, rather than a series of “attached” sheets. Any attempt to glue or bind multiple sheets together will cause impurities and “blemishes” to the scroll’s surface, hindering or possibly even nullifying the intended effects of the scroll.

Of Scroll and Scribe (Revisited)

Back in February of this year, I put a post together talking about parchment and papyrus, in the context of scroll creation for D&D. I had no idea it would go on to become my most-viewed blog entry of all time.

For my newer followers, here are the links to what became a trilogy of articles related to the subject (and founding the basis for a project that, for now, is on the back burner... but staying warm).

Scrutinizing the Scroll Part I: Papyrus, Parchment and Vellum
Scrutinizing the Scroll Part II: Comprehending the Quill
Scrutinizing the Scroll Part III: Investigating Ink

Should Druids be Allowed to Cast the Spell Hallucinatory Forest?

Simply put, Hallucinatory Terrain is the only clerical or druidic spell in the 1e Player's Handbook that falls under the "illusion/phantasm" classification. I can understand the rare divination spell like locate plants and even necromantic spells like cure disease. After all, those types of spells seem to fall into areas where a cleric or druid would have some spiritual "domain". But there just seems to be something out of place about a single illusion/phantasm spell from out of approximately 150 cleric AND druid spells (counting individual spells available to both, like cure light wounds, as 2 spells) that is an illusion/phantasm spell.

Discuss.

Scrutinizing the Scroll: Papyrus, Parchment and Vellum

In the original DMG, this is about as far as EGG goes into the differences between paper, papyrus, parchment and vellum... "A scroll of spells may be inscribed only upon pure and unblemished papyrus, parchment, or vellum - the latter being the most desirable."

As an educator on the history of graphic communication, I'm familiar with the origins of and differences between the various writing substrates (as well as the writing utensils and "inks" that correspond to each), but it struck me that many of you may not be. So what follows is a top-line overview of the various writing surfaces (particularly those used for spell scrolls) and considerations for incorporating those into game play.

Cave Walls and Ceilings
30,000+ B.C.
Obviously, the point of a scroll is to make the magic portable, convenient, and disposable. And, obviously, you can't do that with a cave wall or ceiling, but it was the first writing substrate. Every type of writing medium requires both a pigment and a medium and, in these cases, the pigments included red and yellow ochre, hematite, manganese oxide and charcoal, held in a medium of animal fat to bind the pigment.

Wet Clay
In common use from 3500-1750 B.C.
As nomads became farmers in the fertile lands between the Tigres and the Euphrates, village culture necessitated the need for records of properties, laws, ets. So the Sumerians when straight to the most available materials... reed styluses and wet clay. Pictographic writing gave way to symbolic writing in the form of cuneiforms (quick marks made with a triangular tipped version of the stylus.)

So... get out your copy of Deities and Demigods, go to the Sumerian Mythos section, and consider that in the earliest of the time period reflected here, clerics of these gods would (most likely) not see papyrus for at least 1,000 years (if they saw it at all.) And parchment? Forget about it. By the time the Sumerian language was fading away as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and/or scientific language in Mesopotamia, parchment was just being invented. Now, go the Babylonian section of the book. Those clerics... maybe.

As far as incorporating clay tablets into game play, it's obviously not conducive to carrying even one spell tablet with you into a dungeon, unless you happen to possess a Bag of Holding. However, in more primitive cultures, spell tablets are an option. I could see clerics or magic-users going into battle accompanied by horse-drawn carts filled with spell tablets prepared with summoning and protection spells (the tablets would disintegrate upon use, similarly to their papyrus and parchment counterparts.)

Papyrus
Invented c. 1,000 B.C.
This is an Egyptian invention that dates to around 1,000 B.C. However, it was adopted soon after by the Greeks (being supplanted later in Greece by parchment, a Roman invention), and was used widely through Europe and the Roman and Byzantine empires until it was replaced by the less expensive paper (invented in China, but introduced to the West by way of Arabia.)

Papyrus as a substrate is made from the pith (the inner portion) of the Cyperus papyrus plant. It essentially consists of two layers (or sides) with the fibers in each side aligned with the same side, and perpendicular to the other side. The fibers in the top (recto) side run horizontally, and the fibers in the bottom (verso) side run vertically. For longer scrolls, multiple pages of papyrus were glued together. In regards to writing utensils, the Egyptians used brushes made from rush stems, whereas Greek scribes used hard reeds, cut with a nib and split at the tip to aid ink flow.

As for game play, consider this... sure, papyrus is cheaper, but it also has a +5% chance of failure (per DMG.) Why? Firstly, in dry climates (like Egypt) papyrus is fairly stable, but in more humid climates it is highly susceptible to mold. No reason to not up that % chance of failure in more humid climates, especially the longer that papyrus has been sitting around in a less-than-airtight scroll tube. Second, those striations in the recto and verso sides do not exactly make for the smoothest of writing experiences, especially with "loopier" writing forms. It serves the Eqyptian Demotic ("priestly") script well, given its strong vertical and horizontal strokes. But Elvish is a little on the loopier side. Consider upping that % chance of failure based on the quality of the papyrus, as well as the form of the writing being used by the scribe.

Parchment
Invented c. 500-200 B.C.
According to the Roman Varro, Pliny's Natural History notes parchment was invented under the patronage of Eumenes of Pergamon, as a substitute for papyrus, which was temporarily not being exported from Alexandria, its only source. ("Parchment" is actually an English word derived from the name of the city where it was reportedly invented.) Though a Roman invention, it was quickly adopted by the Greeks, and was used popularly throughout Europe, even concurrently with the use of paper up through the invention of the printing press (mid 1400s A.D.) In fact, though most copies of the Gutenberg Bible were printed on paper, a few parchment copies exist. Papermaking was mechanized around this time, which made paper inexpensive enough to allow it to become pervasive.

As a substrate, parchment is made from calfskin, sheepskin or goatskin, often split. Think of parchment as a "half-ass" version of leather in that it's limed (the part of the leather-making process that removes the flesh, fat and hair from the skin) but it's not tanned (which helps protect leather from weather/humidity.) The skins are then soaked, stretched and scraped to finalize the process. However, additional treatments could make the parchment smoother or more writing-friendly (like rubbing pumice powder over the flesh side while it was still wet.) But let's go back to that not-being-tanned thing for a minute. Uh-oh... guess what that means...

Parchment, like papyrus, is extremely affected by its environment and changes in humidity, which can cause buckling. Books with parchment pages were bound with strong wooden boards and clamped tightly shut by metal (often brass) clasps or leather straps; this acted to keep the pages pressed flat despite humidity changes. Even after the use of paper made such fittings unnecessary, they continued to be used as decorative element on bound books of paper. But let's face it, buckling is not molding. I guess that explains the "± 0% chance of failure" in the DMG.

Vellum
Popularized c. 500-1500 A.D.
Simply put, the difference between vellum and parchment is the difference between veal and beef, respectively. Vellum is really just a finer version of parchment made from the skins of calves and/or kids, depending on whether you believe the English or the French; it is either the split skin of any of several species (English) or the split skin specifically of the calf (French.) Now, when it comes to anything animal-related (particularly food-related, or quasi-food related) I tend to defer to the French over the English (but don't let them know I said that.) If this helps settle the argument, the term "vellum" comes from the French word "veau," which means "calf" or "veal." Most of the finer sort of medieval manuscripts, whether illuminated or not, were written on vellum. The Gutenberg Bibles mentioned above are (more specifically) on vellum.

In game, the thing to remember about vellum is that, for scribes, vellum's finer, smoother surface is the cream of the crop when it comes to writing anything. (Okay, that explains that -5% chance of failure from the DMG.) BUT!!! There is that climate thing to consider again. When store in areas with less than 11% relative humidity, it tends to get brittle. And in areas with 40%+ relative humidity, it has a propensity for mold and fungus growth. (Yummy!)

Paper
Invented c. 105 A.D.
Though the actual invention of paper is "shrouded in mystery," its invention was reported to the Chinese Emperor by Ts'ai Lun, an official of the Imperial Court. Even though paper was most likely invented 200 years earlier, WAY before Ts'ai Lun was born, Ts'ai Lun is nonetheless deified in China as the "god of the papermakers." By 600 A.D., paper was all over the far east. After the defeat of the Chinese in the Battle of Talas in 751 (present day Kyrgyzstan), the invention spread to the Middle East. By the 9th century, Arabs were using paper regularly (reserving the use of parchment/vellum for more important documents/manuscripts.) The oldest European paper documents date to around 1100 A.D. (most likely introduced to the West via The Crusades.)

In its more primitive forms (though still made essentially the same way today, albeit mechanized) plant fibers are soaked and pulped, set in a frame on a screen, shaken to cross the fibers and grains, the excess water pressed out, then the frame set aside for the paper to dry. The dried sheet of paper is removed from the mold, allowing the mold to be reused.

While the 1e DMG makes no mention of paper at all, by 3e you start to see mention of "high-quality" papers for use in scrolls. The more important thing to remember about paper, though, is the immense varieties of type based on the fibers and binders/additives used during the papermaking process. Vulnerability to weather and other conditions are completely dependent upon this.

LARGER-SCALE GAME CONSIDERATIONS
Again, I refer back to the 1e DMG. This time I refer to the entire "Manufacture of Scrolls" section beginning on page 117. Note how much attention is given to the ink formulas and to the quill types being used, going as far as including the formula for the ink required to scribe a protection from petrification spell. And note how little attention is given to the writing surface. Even the BX Expert rule book (as limited as it is) goes further than the DMG on the subject matter when it suggests a "scroll might require a special parchment." Given the information in the post above, I don't see why you couldn't require the same thing of the writing surface that you might of a quill or ink. Scroll types could necessitate that parchments or vellums be made from specific animals, perhaps prepared particularly by alchemical or magical means (beyond the standard liming process.) I don't see why you couldn't require paper for certain scrolls be made from the pulp of specific plants or trees. Or papryus prepared from cyperus papyrus plants that grow in particular waters. What would happen if the PCs were to get ahold of a particular type of parchment or paper but, having been lied to by the merchant, procure the wrong type? It might accidentally turn that summon dryad scroll into a summon dragon one.

Schools of Magic and Game Integration

Yoshitsuya Ichieisai, The Battle of Magic, c. 1860. Triptych, 29" by 14".

Last month, the Unfrozen Caveman Dice-chucker posted about his recent revelations on spell categories—specifically based on the 1978 ed. AD&D Player's Handbook. And as Timrod (a.k.a. the "Dice-chucker") noted in his blog post, "no explanation of the significance of these terms was given in the text of the PHB that I've found and, clearly, none is needed to play the game." Yep. That pretty much sums it up.

I came to a similar place as Timrod myself (in regard to 1st edition) myself way back when (c. 1985), as I set out to design my universal RPG system, The System. The idea of categories/schools of magic seemed ripe for the plucking. Since the goal of the magic system in The System was to create templates for spell creation (as there are no classes of magic user, or list of pre-created spells), the idea of categories/schools of magic was a perfect fit for the concept of spell development as a "formula" (A+B+C=Spell.) As part of that structure, each class of magic has a corresponding "value" that effects the overall complexity (in points) of spells that use those classes; classes like divination and property alteration have much lower values than the likes of transmutation and conjuring/summoning. If the GM deems that the effects of a spell deal with more than one school, both values are added into the overall complexity of the spell (which effects the "draw" on magical energies, as well as increasing the chances of failure during casting.)

The idea of schools as a D&D game mechanic wouldn't really come into it's own until the 2e Complete's Wizards Handbook. It was an offering for wizards to specialize, providing them with the typical "let's make it more complicated so you have to constantly look things up and buy more books" approach to the game. What's underneath all those restrictions, requirements and bonuses, however, is little more than more classes, disguised (or "divided" if you prefer) into schools.

In the original edition of The System, I called them "classes" of magic, but in developing the The System: Expanded (currently in development,) I've abandoned that name for two reasons; first, the term "classes" now refers to the types of spellcaster's within a game setting, developed as part of a Magic Profile Template for the world by the GM (FYI, it's a lot less restricting than than the old-school interpretation of the word implies); and second, the categories of magic are now "schools." Part of the reason I prefer the term "school" to "class," or even "category," is that the term implies that a spellcaster must be educated in using that type of spell.

In The System: Expanded, the schools of magic (prev. classes) will no longer have a static value (per the original edition); instead, the value of each school will be determined by the GM's Magic Profile for the world; this allows for types of magic that may be common within a particular setting to have a much lower value than the rarer types of magic within the setting. Additionally, characters who wish to specialize are not restricted by minimum pre-requisites or racial restrictions like the 2e application of schools. Instead, each school has a guiding set of the character's basic attributes that that are factored into a set of parameters that include, among others, the overall value of the school (i.e. "rarity" per the setting) and a character's aptitude (or inaptitude) based on race/genetics. What this produces is a complexity rating that comes into play regarding every aspect of learning and using those types of spells, from training/education time to chance of success/failure when casting to the spell to the strength/weakness of the spell when cast.

My original list of magic classes in The System was very much a direct interpretation of 1st edition AD&D (per the PHB,) but the new version for The System: Expanded uses a regrouped/compacted system with a couple of new category additions. It also continues to support the mixing/crossing of schools, but these mixed schools may be treated as new or unique schools (with an inherent unique value vs. a cumulative one.) The GM may also create altogether different schools in support of the campaign world. For example, a Far Eastern fantasy setting might use schools broken out by the elements (earth, air, fire, water, wood,) that incorporate many of the types of magic normally considered part of the standard schools (protection, alteration/transmutation, divination, et al.)

Want a sneak preview of the schools of magic from The System: Expanded? Check it out here.