I thought this would be the best place for me to start asking questions about the setting considering i only have 1 book. the Explorers Guide. i also managed to pick up a Monster Manual for Mystara, the Monstrous Compendium. Shows the Black Orb of Destruction on the front. Yea that one.
So I'll start small with a few questions and just keep adding to it for anyone who actually wants to answer some questions. Feel free to include all spoilers as i will never get the novels. i am a mystara player only... for now.
Here I go.
1. Who's the Major Villains of the World. I know about the Immortals Thanatos and Vanya and the others i cant remember but whos the real threat of mystara?
2. Whats the name of the planet? LoL!
3. Are their any actual gods or is it just immortals?
4. Whats the Deal with the Old ones? are they simply the In game Persona's of the Game Designers/DM/GM's?
5. Does Tharizdun and that patheon affect Mystara? is that how magic works in this setting? i remember reading about Tharizdun in the VoP. so i thought i would double check here.
6. Whats the Deal with the crashed Spelljammer and Radiance/Rad the immortal?
I'll stop at 6 questions, im sure they are long explainations. the longer the better! if you would prefer to PM me the information i wouldnt mind at all! LOL. My Mystara has been done in fandom. sense i had no info. but i would like to correct that and get all the canon i can!
Thanks for any and all replies!
Hello! I'm a Mystara Fan who doesnt have access to canon info. i found the Box Set (2e) of Karameikos "Kingdom of Adventure" for 4 bucks about 9 years ago. I have never been able to get more material for it. too many bills. I have been a Fan of the Vault for around 7 years, since i found it searching on the web. Great info about more than just Mystara. The Outer Beings and the Old ones are among my favorite Creatures in DnD.
Welcome to the forum Knight!
Karameikos: Kingdom of Adventure is not a bad introduction to Mystara (in spite of my rant in the Death of TSR thread. The VoP is a great site with lots of amazing ideas collected. The OBs are AFAIK fan-made, but still very cool creatures I agree.
1. Who's the Major Villains of the World. I know about the Immortals Thanatos and Vanya and the others i cant remember but whos the real threat of mystara?
I wouldnt count Vanya as one of the villains even though her followers act villainy some times. There are quite a few other evil Immortals around such as Alphaks, Hel, Atzanteotl and my favorite: Arik.
Some mortals deserve mentiong as well. First of all Bargle the Infamous and his ally Baron Ludwig von Hendriks. Barimoor the Lich and the Shadowlord also qualify.
There are plenty of other NPCs who can work as villains, but most people on Mystara are simply people with their own agendas who can work for either good or evil depending on your perspective.
2. Whats the name of the planet? LoL!
Mystara. Although older sources called it Urt.
3. Are their any actual gods or is it just immortals?
The difference between gods and Immortals are blurry since there are gods who have once been mortal and there are immortals who never have. Basically Immortas is what people call the Deities of Mystara. At least that's how I view it.
4. Whats the Deal with the Old ones? are they simply the In game Persona's of the Game Designers/DM/GM's?
I'd say no. The Old Ones are to the Immortals what Immortals are to Mortals. Ofcourse, noone knows if they really exist.
5. Does Tharizdun and that patheon affect Mystara? is that how magic works in this setting? i remember reading about Tharizdun in the VoP. so i thought i would double check here.
I dont know that one. I think that is fan-made stuff. Magic is linked to the Sphere of Energy.
6. Whats the Deal with the crashed Spelljammer and Radiance/Rad the immortal?
The Spaceship's core reactor was turned into an artifact that channels magic, known as the Radience. Its power offers a quick and easy way to Immortality. Rad aka Etienne de Ambreville is the only one who has ever used the Radience in such a manner.
Okay, that was the quick version. I'm sure others will help fleshing out some of the details.
Feel free to ask more questions if you have em
Havard
i dont have time to word my other questions right tonight so i will save it for tomarrow. i will be a regular on these forums now that iv found them.
thanks for all the help!
Hello! I'm a Mystara Fan who doesnt have access to canon info. i found the Box Set (2e) of Karameikos "Kingdom of Adventure" for 4 bucks about 9 years ago. I have never been able to get more material for it. too many bills. I have been a Fan of the Vault for around 7 years, since i found it searching on the web. Great info about more than just Mystara. The Outer Beings and the Old ones are among my favorite Creatures in DnD.
If you haven't already got them, you should download the free official material, especially the Savage Coast book and the Shadow Elves Gazetteer.
Also, a lot of Mystaran material is available as (fairly cheap) PDF files from Paizo or RpgNow.
1. Who's the Major Villains of the World. I know about the Immortals Thanatos and Vanya and the others i cant remember but whos the real threat of mystara?
Lot of them. Most Entropic Immortals are a threat, and other Immortals may have not-so-nice goals (Vanya herself, even though she's not a villain, strictly speaking).
Among the mortals, you've got the Immortal Candidates, i.e., the Master of Hule, Barimoor (not a lich AFAIK, Havard!), and a few other, plus of course the legendary mad mage, Gargantua, and the Vermillion dragon, Pyre.
These are people who threaten at least a major portion of a continent, if not more.
Famous, but lower-scale, villains include Bargle the Infamous, Ludwig von Hendricks, the Shadowlord Landryn Teriak, Prince Morphail Gorevich-Woszlany, Prince Brannart McGregor, the Inheritor Liches Doomrider and Death Flame, the dragon Argos the Worrier, and the Black Rajah of Jaibul.
Evil organizations include the Unseen Hand (Glantri's Assassin Guild), the Iron Ring (Karameikos-based slavery ring) and the Veiled Society (Traladaran mobsters) and the Storm Soldiers (Hattian racists and followers of Thanatos).
5. Does Tharizdun and that patheon affect Mystara? is that how magic works in this setting? i remember reading about Tharizdun in the VoP. so i thought i would double check here.
Nope, that's a fan's take. Officially, there's no Tharizdun in Mystara (not even AD&D Mystara, AFAIK).
6. Whats the Deal with the crashed Spelljammer and Radiance/Rad the immortal?
Havard already explained most of it. Note though that the FSS Beagle is not a Spelljammer, but a regular spaceship (Star Trek-like), with nuclear engines.
Rad is the only one who willingly reached Immortality using the Radiance, but two others, Rafiel (a Blackmoor scientist) and Rheddrian Benekander (a member of the original Beagle crew) were transformed into Immortals during the incident that destroyed Blackmoor (the ancient land where the Beagle crashlanded).
Note that at least one Glantrian Prince, Brannart McGregor, is fairly near to completing his Radiance studies, so he might be in line to become the second Radiance-powered Immortal.
GP
1 - I like to think of Mystara as a very "grey" setting. Unliek most settings, no one at all thinks of themselves as an evil villain. Each has a decently compelling motivation for doing what they do, and in almost every case they are doing it for *someone's* good. Even the "evil" immortals have a greater goal - the promotion of entropy.
2 - Mystara (or Urt)
3 - Just immortals. They function as gods in Mystara. I believe the terminology was originally chosen to avoid offending religious fundamentalists. This may have been more important for Mystara, as with teh Immortals boxed set, it was possibel for players to achieve such lofty heights of power, which may have rubbed religious types up the wrong way if they were called gods.
1 - I like to think of Mystara as a very "grey" setting. Unliek most settings, no one at all thinks of themselves as an evil villain. Each has a decently compelling motivation for doing what they do, and in almost every case they are doing it for *someone's* good. Even the "evil" immortals have a greater goal - the promotion of entropy.
That's true -- even though there are many evil people, they will generally think of themselves in a different way.
2 - Mystara (or Urt)
Note that Urt is the name of the planet when it is considered as an Immortal-level sentient being, something that does not apply after the introduction of the Hollow World.
So "Mystara" refers more properly to the post-HW planet, and "Urt" to the BECMI version of the world.
3 - Just immortals. They function as gods in Mystara. I believe the terminology was originally chosen to avoid offending religious fundamentalists.
Most likely.
3 - Just immortals. They function as gods in Mystara. I believe the terminology was originally chosen to avoid offending religious fundamentalists. This may have been more important for Mystara, as with teh Immortals boxed set, it was possibel for players to achieve such lofty heights of power, which may have rubbed religious types up the wrong way if they were called gods.
Personally? Sensibilities of the religious fundies aside, there is a pretty broad distinction between 'gods/powers/deities/whathaveyou, generally never of mortal origin' active on most other worlds, and 'Immortals, almost always of mortal origin' present on Mystara. The fact that Mystara has Immortals rather than gods, and the fact that so many exceptional mortals can achieve Immortality, may be the single strongest thing to shape Mystaran canon. (It's dictated history and such for Traladara, Ylaruam with Barimoor, Glantri, Great Hule, the Hollow World... lots of great stuff.) It's arguably the most unique thing about Mystara, IMHO.
Among the mortals, you've got the Immortal Candidates, i.e., the Master of Hule, Barimoor (not a lich AFAIK, Havard!), and a few other, plus of course the legendary mad mage, Gargantua, and the Vermillion dragon, Pyre.
These are people who threaten at least a major portion of a continent, if not more.
Famous, but lower-scale, villains include Bargle the Infamous, Ludwig von Hendricks, the Shadowlord Landryn Teriak, Prince Morphail Gorevich-Woszlany, Prince Brannart McGregor, the Inheritor Liches Doomrider and Death Flame, the dragon Argos the Worrier, and the Black Rajah of Jaibul.
And, of course, Synn ;)
Personally? Sensibilities of the religious fundies aside, there is a pretty broad distinction between 'gods/powers/deities/whathaveyou, generally never of mortal origin' active on most other worlds, and 'Immortals, almost always of mortal origin' present on Mystara. The fact that Mystara has Immortals rather than gods, and the fact that so many exceptional mortals can achieve Immortality, may be the single strongest thing to shape Mystaran canon. (It's dictated history and such for Traladara, Ylaruam with Barimoor, Glantri, Great Hule, the Hollow World... lots of great stuff.) It's arguably the most unique thing about Mystara, IMHO.
Actually, many powers in AD&D worlds were previously mortals -- Vecna, Iuz, Zagyg, Murlynd and possibly Saint Cuthbert and Heward in Greyhawk (apparently, early incarnations of Greyhawk even included the concept of sponsorship); Mystra, Cyric, Iyachtu Xvim, and Kelemvor (and possibly other, I don't know that setting well) in Forgotten Realms; all the major powers (Haelyn, Eric, Sera, Avani, Belinik, Kriesha) in Birthright; some former factols (IIRC, of the Godsmen, Cyphers and Guvners) and one NPC from the Harbinger House adventure in Planescape; and, at least for a while, Raistlin Majere in Dragonlance.
And, definitely, the ascension of these characters marked turning points in the history of those settings -- in Birthright, the ongoing attempts of several major villains (the Gorgon, the Serpent, and the Magian) to obtain godhood has driven the setting history for the whole time between the ascension of the current powers and the campaign present, for example.
Of the major settings, only Dark Sun and Ravenloft (if you exclude Vecna) have no powers of mortal origin, but Dark Sun has no powers at all, and Ravenloft is cut off from the outer planes.
In Mystara, the process is simply more widespread -- Mystara produces powers at a rate that other settings don't match, but also consumes them, since there are not so many Immortals dating back to ancient (pre-Blackmoorian) times.
In Mystara, the process is simply more widespread -- Mystara produces powers at a rate that other settings don't match, but also consumes them, since there are not so many Immortals dating back to ancient (pre-Blackmoorian) times.
True. But I would still agree with eldersphinx that the fact that it is so widespread has an important impact upon the setting. Achieving Immortality will be something many of the movers and shakers of the setting have learned is an actual possibility, whereas in other settings the idea of achieving Godhood is reserved for a few unique individuals (Raistlin comes to mind...)
Havard
But I would still agree with eldersphinx that the fact that it is so widespread has an important impact upon the setting.
Indeed. The impact of Immortals on the setting is great, but they aren't per se different from the gods of other settings. It's just their way to interact with the setting, as well as the rules covering them.
GP
Gods in AD&D need worshipers or they will fall into a catatonic slumber on the astral plane.
Immortals (at least in the Gold Box) have no such need, the Sphere of Power to which they belong is the source of their energy. This allowed immortals to choose to just adventure in the outer planes, and allowed the DM to introduce immortals whenever it was useful without someone saying: no one worships him! Where did he come from? It also allowed PCs to become immortal without other immortals all attempting to slay the new kids on the block (due to limited resources [worshippers]). Worshippers were just ways to interact with the society on Urt. In Wrath of the Immortals, this was retconned to be more like AD&D gods: Initiate Immortals benefited from their sponsors' worshipers until they grew/created a following. This didn't make a lot of sense though, given the sheer amount of immortals. So, they made the silly concept of immortals creating worshipers in their home planes to keep them safe, and then reversed position and had immortals threaten to kill other immortals' followers on Mystara to "kill" them, as if the threatened immortal didn't have a bazillion followers on his home plane.
And...
Gods usually form a strict pantheon in a game world. A is the god of Thunder, B is the god of Deceit, C is the god of Being a Five-Headed Dragon. When a new demi-god appears, it's often because he/she/it killed a god, and is taking the place in the pantheon. Otherwise, it starts a massive war or other world shattering event. Gods actively prevent mortals from becoming [demi-]gods.
Immortals, on the other hand, are more like adults raising children (okay, alligator adults raising baby alligators, since they only "sort of" care about the individuals). They want to increase their numbers, and there are numerous immortals who are interested in the same things. There are several immortals of trickery and deceit, and of varying alignments too. There are also three well known immortals who study radioactivity (two of whom were nuclear engineers in mortal life). Immortals actively seek out candidates for immortality, and there are hundreds if not thousands of immortals, and probably at least fifty or more candidates for immortality at any given moment on Mystara.
So, immortals are kind of like the greek/roman pantheons in that they "create" new demi-gods (although not procreation like Zeus fathering Hercules, more like when Zeus altered Hercules at the end of his life), except they do it on a wider scale. They also tend to do battle with other immortal-level beings like the greek gods too.
I got a few more questions for you Mystaran Experts out there.
(lemme grab my book. lol)
1. Is Glantri as powerful as i picture it? A nation of Wizards? what kinda levels were the strongest of glantri's rulers or elite. a nation of wizards just sounds awesome and i'd love to know more.
2. Was Aengmor Alfheim before the drow won? what was the war like? who were the heroes and how powerful were they? what is Aengmor like under drow control? what was the climax of the war like? how did the drow win?
3. what is Wendar like? how do the elves live there. in cities, in the forest, in the mountains? what are the elves like there after the war? are they warlike or more steriotypical elves or what?
4. Is it true that when Aspects Enter mystaran space, old ones capture them and reprogram them into immortals?? if so which have originated like this?
Thanks for any and all replies. sorry for such possibly complex questions in the same post. I'm trying to space them out.
WoW, Lots of replies and info to consider, thanks abunch!
I got a few more questions for you Mystaran Experts out there.
(lemme grab my book. lol)
1. Is Glantri as powerful as i picture it? A nation of Wizards? what kinda levels were the strongest of glantri's rulers or elite. a nation of wizards just sounds awesome and i'd love to know more.
Glantri may indeed be as powerful as you imagine it. A large number of the population does indeed have spellcasting ability - enough so that the national army includes several hundred (low-level) spellcasters in its ranks, and the capital city features a Great School of Magic dedicated to training its students up to becoming 9th level characters. (Admittedly through the path of Years of Hard Work and Arcane Study, rather than Weeks of Killing Monsters and Taking Their Stuff.) The nation's rulers are generally 20th-35th level - tho this is rated on the OD&D 1-36 scale, so if you're playing 3.Xe this likely drops to 'only' 15th-25th level.
Note, BTW, that Glantri doesn't hold a candle to the Empire of Alphatia. Alphatia is everything that Glantri is, but covering an entire (small) continent and with a history ten times as long. Established canon for the Empire of Alphatia has them ruled by a Council of a thousand 36th-level wizards. (A lot of DMs tone this down somewhat or sidestep the implications of this kind of power concentration, mind you. They're still powerful enough to rule the world, except that they don't really want to.)
2. Was Aengmor Alfheim before the drow won? what was the war like? who were the heroes and how powerful were they? what is Aengmor like under drow control? what was the climax of the war like? how did the drow win?
Aengmor was formerly Alfheim, and ruled by 'normal' elves, yes. The conflict between Alfheim elves and the shadow elves - who are NOT drow - is detailed in the Wrath of the Immortals product. There wasn't really an outright 'war' - more of a covert takeover, in which the shadow elves used surprise and plot-device magics to wither the forests of Alfheim. The Alfheim elves fled to neighboring lands rather than fight a pointless battle, and the shadow elves moved in to the abandoned lands.
Basically, the Alfheim elves got beaten with the metaplot stick. ;)
3. what is Wendar like? how do the elves live there. in cities, in the forest, in the mountains? what are the elves like there after the war? are they warlike or more steriotypical elves or what?
Wendar hasn't gotten that much press in canon. The elves presumably have forested clanholds, but many likely maintain a city-dwelling existence. Wendar's unique in that it's a nation where humans and elves share a land and a culture - with neither really dominant, both races complementing each other.
4. Is it true that when Aspects Enter mystaran space, old ones capture them and reprogram them into immortals?? if so which have originated like this?
The answer to your question is a definite 'Maybe'.
It all depends on how your cosmology works, and what's in your campaign's backstory. No canon Mystaran immortal has a definite origin from 'outside', though. Most established Mystaran immortals were once mortal, and originated from within Mystara. The ones without such an established backstory are all very old, and don't remember their origins - Ixion the sun-lord, Odin the wisdom-seeker, and Valerias the passionate are among this number. They may have come from outside the Mystaran universe, long ago, and been tampered with by the Old Ones. They may also be natives of the Mystaran multiverse that have forgotten their pasts through some other means. It's still an open question.(Note, BTW, that while Odin is an immortal with a mysterious past that may link to another setting's Odin, the other 'Norse' powers are not. Mystara's versions of Thor, Loki, Frey and Freyja are all mortal heroes who achieved Immortality under Odin's guidance. If Odin has hidden roots outside the Mystaran universe, he may have tampered with things to ensure that his proteges took the names of gods from 'outside'. But the individual Immortals themselves are purely native-Mystaran.)
Hope this helps!
Glantri and Alphatia's histories crossed paths long ago: Both countries are created from refugees from another world (also named Alphatia). The two refugee groups were feuding with one another though. Glantrians (the Flaemish) left first, then the Alphatians arrived when the had to flee their home's destruction. The Flaemish settled in an area where they felt a strong magical presence.
Glantri is where the Nucleus of Spheres resides (Benekander's ship's nuclear engine). It's been modified and tinkered with, so much so that the radiation it blankets Glantri with is more magical now than physical. The secretive Brotherhood of the Radiance can use this power to maximize spell effects, and other tricks (like shoot bolts of raw radioactivity). Even though they're smaller than number to Alphatia's wizards, Glantrians can hold their own well on their own soil, which helps explain why neither country (normally) attempts to war with the other.
Glantri's chief Prince is Etienne D'Amberville. He has the distinct honor of ruling over a land of mages where in his own homeworld (a weak-magic medieval earth-analogue) he would have been burned at the stake. He is also secretly
Show
The immortal Rad, one of the Immortals seeking knowledge of the Radiance. In mortal life, he was just Etienne D'Amberville, ruler of Glantri, but he discovered the Nucleus and experimented with it, making himself immortal. Unfortunately, since he's not a nuclear engineer, he's been causing some problems... Since he's not part of the immortal hierarchy (he never had a sponsor), he tends not to follow their rules. For example: He immediately returned to "mortal" life to lead Glantri in person. Not normally something that is done.
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5. Does Tharizdun and that patheon affect Mystara? is that how magic works in this setting? i remember reading about Tharizdun in the VoP. so i thought i would double check here.
I dont know that one. I think that is fan-made stuff. Magic is linked to the Sphere of Energy.
Tharizdun isn't fan-made. He is the uber-evil of the original Greyhawk cosmology, the one famously just listed as "evil" under alignment - no Lawful, Neutral, or Chaotic, just true evil.
He occupies almost the same conceptual niche as Mystara's Thanatos, seeking the destruction of all existence.
In general, the Greyhawk gods/powers (part of the 3e "core") play no role whatsoever in Mystara.
-OldDawg
Tharizdun isn't fan-made.
What is fan made is the adaptation of Tharizdun to Mystara, e.g. here:
http://pandius.com/exp_mult.html
http://pandius.com/nightdm2.html
The OP remembers having read something about Tharizdun in the VoP, probably one of the above articles, and wondered whether that cosmology was "canonically" set in Mystara (which, indeed, it's not).
What is fan made is the adaptation of Tharizdun to Mystara, e.g. here:
http://pandius.com/exp_mult.html
http://pandius.com/nightdm2.html
The OP remembers having read something about Tharizdun in the VoP, probably one of the above articles, and wondered whether that cosmology was "canonically" set in Mystara (which, indeed, it's not).
yUp those are the articles i read about him! such great ideas!
also thanks for all the replies. lots of good stuff!
Here's another Question for the pro's!
What can you tell me about the Broken Lands? what really happened there? did a blackmoore device really blow up the entire nation?
thanks for any and all replies.
The broken lands are currently home to various humanoid tribes and depending on "when" you play it either had a great crater....or not.
1. What can you tell me about the nation of "Sind"?
2. who rules sind? what details can you give about the ruler(s) of sind.
3. is Sind more like barbarians, or desert nomands, maybe egypt styled pharos?
4. what special features does sind offer? something cool to grab the PC's attention!
thanks for all the replies. im gonna keep asking and just save all the info for later use in my games. one day i will need help with stats but thats a long way off. tyvm.
1. What can you tell me about the nation of "Sind"?
Quite a lot, I suppose, but it would take too long. It is basically an M-Indian empire.
It is divided in various kingdoms, you can find descriptions here:
http://pandius.com/sind.html
2. who rules sind? what details can you give about the ruler(s) of sind.
Originally, it is ruled by a Rajahdhirajah, Chandra ul-Nervi, though smaller kingdoms are ruled by various Rajahs and Maharajahs.
3. is Sind more like barbarians, or desert nomands, maybe egypt styled pharos?
Not at all. It is basically M-India, approximately between 800 and 1000 CE.
Other M-Indian nations exist in Mystara as well, though they likely represent different (earlier and later) eras.
BTW, Sind does exist in RW as well:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sind
Like in RW Sind, Mystaran Sind has a mixed population, urdu and sindhi, where the former are desert nomads of Neathar stock, and the latter are an agricultural people of predominantly Oltec stock.
4. what special features does sind offer? something cool to grab the PC's attention!
Lots of Mystics/Monks!
GP
BTW, Sind does exist in RW as well:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sind
A couple of nice pics in there too
Havard
on to another question!
Tell me about Ostland. vikings? what can ya tell me about it, anything on vestland and soderjfords (forgot the spelling) also would be great!
thanks for any and all replies.
[edit] also where can i find the offical downloads for mystara? thanks!
Tell me about Ostland. vikings? what can ya tell me about it, anything on vestland and soderjfords (forgot the spelling) also would be great!
Basically, Vikings. Ostland represents an earlier age kingdom, Vestland is more modern (feudal), and Soderfjord does not have a king at all, rather it is ruled by a number of semi-independent jarls who more or less cooperate on common problems.
also where can i find the offical downloads for mystara? thanks!
In the classics downloads page http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads
or in the Vaults of Pandius.
Specifically, some Dragon Magazine articles can be found here:
http://pandius.com/dragon.html
GP
having trouble finding material on the VoP. i'll look more later. again thx.
tyvm for pointing me to the old edition downloads, i got it all.
having trouble finding material on the VoP. i'll look more later. again thx.
Feel free to check out the downloads section of my site as well. Most of those things can be found elsewhere, but I made an effort to collect links that are scattered around at different sites that will be useful for fans of Mystara and Blackmoor
Havard
Edit: Link might be useful: http://www.geocities.com/havardfaa/
Feel free to check out the downloads section of my site as well. Most of those things can be found elsewhere, but I made an effort to collect links that are scattered around at different sites that will be useful for fans of Mystara and Blackmoor
Havard
Edit: Link might be useful: http://www.geocities.com/havardfaa/
Great stuff thanks a bunch for the links and the replies. i will DL all of it when i get a few extra mins.
i got a new question!
What is the Hollow World inside Mystara? how/who created it. who lives there? what special information should i know about it?
thanks for any and all replies.
new question. How do Immortals grant divine powers to their clerics?
tyvm for any and all replies.
new question. How do Immortals grant divine powers to their clerics?
The actual "mechanics" aren't really gone into in any depth, and I suppose it ultimately depends on how you want it to work: do the PCs get "free rein" to pick whichever clerical spells they wish? Do Immortal patrons only grant certain spells? ("Pick from column A, but not from column B, sorry...") Do the clerics actually pray? Meditate? Wake up with the spells just plopped in there by their Immortal patron?
If you have access to the Wrath of the Immortals, followers of certain Immortals may be able to substitute wizard spells, as thematically fits with the patron in question. The specifics elude me at the moment, but if an Immortal has a "fire" theme going, then the cleric would be able to cast, say, Burning Hands or Fireball at the appropriate level.
In the Blood Bretheren Trilogy (HWA 1-3, speaking of the Hollow World...), clerics wake up to find that 3rd- and higher level spells have not been granted -- only 1st- and 2nd-level spells are available due to the inner faith and beliefs of the clerics. I'll avoid saying anything else for fear of spoiler-age on that great mini campaign series.
Clear as mud?
Best,
Rob
Cheers!
The actual "mechanics" aren't really gone into in any depth, and I suppose it ultimately depends on how you want it to work: do the PCs get "free rein" to pick whichever clerical spells they wish? Do Immortal patrons only grant certain spells? ("Pick from column A, but not from column B, sorry...") Do the clerics actually pray? Meditate? Wake up with the spells just plopped in there by their Immortal patron?
If you have access to the Wrath of the Immortals, followers of certain Immortals may be able to substitute wizard spells, as thematically fits with the patron in question. The specifics elude me at the moment, but if an Immortal has a "fire" theme going, then the cleric would be able to cast, say, Burning Hands or Fireball at the appropriate level.
In the Blood Bretheren Trilogy (HWA 1-3, speaking of the Hollow World...), clerics wake up to find that 3rd- and higher level spells have not been granted -- only 1st- and 2nd-level spells are available due to the inner faith and beliefs of the clerics. I'll avoid saying anything else for fear of spoiler-age on that great mini campaign series.
Clear as mud?
Best,
Rob
thanks for the info, you can't spoil anything for me because i don't have any of the products/novels and probably wont be getting any anytime soon.
Knight, have you ever considered getting one of the Poor Wizards Almanacs? Those books really do a great job of summarizing Mystaran geography, famous persons, Immortals, etc. The first two almanacs use the OD&D rules, while the third one was converted to AD&D. I just did a quick search on Ebay, and you can find 4 lisitings selling for cover price ($10.00). I can't overstate how valuable one of these books would be for a fan of Mystara.
Cheers!
Thanks for the advise, i may purchase Mystaran products later in the future, Maybe but for now i will just stick with asking questions about the setting to slowly get some info for my game. I am currently collecting Dragonlance stuff and soon i will be hunting down the 2e Darksun products i don't have. Mystara is about the 5th setting on my list. so it will be close to 10 years before i even begin getting stuff for mystara.:D So the forums are very helpful! Plus i simply can't afford 10 bucks for a Mystaran product when i need products from other settings that i use more often. Only 1 other person in of all my groups plays mystara, but everyone else enjoys DL and DS. so those are a bit more of a priority. My Mystara is basically fandom but i am slowly including canon info.
thanks again for all the replies.
New Question time!
Who are the leaders of the Five Shires? do they have titles like king or govener? what are their titles? is their a single rule or a council or independantly run villages each with its own laws?
thanks!
Thanks for the advise, i may purchase Mystaran products later in the future, Maybe but for now i will just stick with asking questions about the setting to slowly get some info for my game.
You could read the Mystaran Almanac, which is the fan-powered continuation of the PWAs, starting at year 1014 AC. Personally, I'd recommend starting with MA 1015, which is more complete than 1014 and closer to canon than those of the later years.
Who are the leaders of the Five Shires? do they have titles like king or govener? what are their titles? is their a single rule or a council or independantly run villages each with its own laws?
There is one sheriff per shire, basically.
G.