City of Thimhallan
by Ethan DeneaultDMs Section
History:
The City of Thimhallan was re-founded over 1700 years ago by three expatriate Alphatian Wizards, Zodiak Mentrix, his brother, Rendaric Mentrix and their childhood friend, Matoia Pendrax. The three wizards had been inseparable since before they went to the Alphatian School of Magic. A few years after graduating, the three found themselves disillusioned with their zzonga-doped colleagues, and yearned for something more. The wizards commandeered a small airship, hoping to find a small island somewhere where they could study in peace away from the rigours and intrigue of Alphatia.
A few months into their journey, the mages had travelled almost halfway around the planet, finding themselves floating over southern Davania. The dynamo aboard the ship gave out, sending the three plummeting to the ground. Quickly thinking, the group saved themselves, safely landing on the nearest mountaintop, but their ship was a total loss.
A quick inspection of the mountain revealed to the three that something was not normal about this mountaintop. The surface was uncommonly flat for a mountain, and there seemed to be signs of civilisation. Or maybe there was a civilisation. The ruins of a great alien city could be seen through the mist that covered the mountain. It was like nothing that the wizards had ever seen. Huge steel and glass buildings, underground tunnels, walkways that seemed to float in the air. The city was an architectural marvel to them, but it had been curiously abandoned.
Or was it?
Over the next few months, the three wizards took to themselves the task of building their homes, and fixing much of the weather worn city. The mages quickly discovered a few strange devices scattered in the basements of buildings. The most prevalent was a form of heating device. The power needed to run these devices was enormous however, and the mages saw little practical application in using them.
A bigger discovery for the Alphatians, were the previous inhabitants of the city. Huddled in buildings, in the tunnels, and sometimes in places called "Fallout Shelters" (written in the Elvish tongue found all over the city), there were the corpses of nearly one hundred thousand elves who had frozen to death. Performing autopsies, and studying their clothing, the wizards determined that the elves seemed to have been caught off guard, unable to cope with a climate change, as if all the heaters stopped and couldn't be reactivated. Another interesting discovery was the fact that a large portion of the elves had metallic devices implanted into them, from steel limbs, to hearts, to even eyes and skulls!
In the dead centre of the city was a building that was impenetrable to the wizards' magics. For years they tried to open it's secrets, but failed. One day, by using a little ingenuity, and a few spells, Rendaric blasted open the main door to the building, and discovered a treasure trove. He had found, not only 4 living elves, encased in glass and steel boxes, but a huge emerald that was floating in some sort of device. The stone looked to him like the power source to some magical construct, and he immediately made reactivating it his pet project, while the other two tried to revive the elves.
Rendaric's dealings with the stone revealed to him that it was actually an artifact known as Tribunus' Stone. In mental communication with the stone, he learned how to restart the city's power source, using the stone as a conduit. When the final switch was aligned, the Stone suddenly stopped communicating, and the entire city sprang to life. In the buildings, lights flashed on, the heaters stared, and many thousands of devices that lay unknowable and dormant for thousands of years sprang to life as if they had never stopped. In the commotion and ruckus of the power up process, the four chambers, sealed for almost 4000 years popped open, and the elves inside sat wearily looking at the two mages who were shocked by the sudden activation of the devices.
In talking with the Elves' leader, Derak Skye, the wizards learned all they needed to know about the city. Derak told stories about how their city, Thimhallan, was one of the grandest cities of all Evergrun until Ilsundal left, bringing with him the best and brightest of the elves. They talked about a human empire named Blackmoor, which blew itself, and, according to Derak, half the planet up. He called the odd magic in the city Technology, and they were the last keepers of it. When the Stone suddenly stopped working, they tried to get the citizens to evacuate, but the apathetic inhabitants refused to leave. Derak and his assistants then sealed themselves away so that one day, if the Stone had ever turned on again, they would awaken and rebuild Thimhallan.
The elves were surprised to learn that the wizards came from the north, and that the world had not been destroyed. They were also fascinated to learn that the wizards themselves were not from Mystara at all! Derak and his assistants began to work with the wizards to help them understand all of what Thimhallan had to offer.
Thirty years after they landed, on Burymir (Kaldmont) 28, AY 367, all magic on Mystara failed. The wizards were ill prepared for this extremely rare occurrence. Three of the elves were killed when the building they were sleeping in collapsed - the spells that held the walls up failed. Rendaric was working in the power centre when magic failed. Tribunus' Stone pulsated and then went into critical overload, bathing the entire mountain in a green-blue light.
The next day, everyone's lives had been completely changed. The Stone returned to its sleep, quietly powering Thimhallan, but the effects of the overload were felt immediately. Rendaric was nowhere to be found. He had been driven insane by what he saw reflected in the crystal, and gated himself somewhere. The remaining survivors cleaned up the wreckage, buried the bodies, and tried to return to their daily lives.
A few months later, Matoia fell off of a building that she had been repairing. She landed headfirst on the ground in a bloody heap. Zodiak and Derak rushed to her, finding out not only was Matoia alive, but she was walking around complaining of a painful headache. Zodiak and Derak rushed her to a clinic, where they checked her out. She was in perfect health. Not believing in direct Immortal interference, Zodiak wondered if the Stone had something to do with this. He performed some tests on himself, Matoia and Derak, and found that they all had total regenerative powers. It was impossible for them to die, though they would feel all the pain of being hurt.
This revelation revitalised them all. Derak wanted to open a College of Technology, to rebuild Blackmoor. But after his years of failures in rebuilding technology (to his stunned surprise) he had almost given up. His new Immortality prompted him to suggest opening a Technomagical Academy. Though purely technological devices could not be built or repaired without extreme difficulty, Zodiak and Matoia had succeeded in powering many devices using magic and technology. Using those techniques and Derak's knowledge, the secrets of Technology could be spread far and wide.
Zodiak brought his findings to the Imperial court of Alphatia. The Emperor was interested, but would not fund the College in Alphatia. However, he did pledge that the graduating class of the Alphatian Magical College for the next 10 years of his reign would be given the choice to continue their studies at the newly opened Academy. Unfortunately, the Emperor died 5 years later, and the flow of new Alphatian pupils stopped.
Alphatia was not the sole source of students, however. Derak travelled throughout Davania. inviting students to come and witness the wonders of Technomancy. In its first 100 years of existence, the college had a few thousand students, many who stayed to become professors, or left to practice elsewhere.
In AY 440, Derak disappeared, and was never heard from again. Due to his departure, Matoia and Zodiak were left holding the reins of a school that taught something they didn't fully understand. Derak had always been the "answer-man" for their technological misunderstandings, and with him gone, they were at a loss to describe what they were rebuilding. It was also during this time that the city of Thimhallan had started to become less of a college and more of a small society, with the children and grandchildren of the first Technomancers attending the College. Realising that these new pupils were not getting the formal magical training needed to even understand the theory behind technomancy, The headmasters expanded their College to include a formal magical academy - the Thimhallan College of Magic and Technology.
Life continued on this way for almost 500 years, with each class of students composed of mostly children of former students, and a small number of visiting mages, gnomes and others. But even though the racial stock was still mostly of Alphatian blood, the Milenian elements, as well as the other human races' blood started to take their toll on the magical ability of the children. Where once, every child was capable of understanding and practicing technomancy, now, more and more did not possess the necessary magical ability to keep up. Not only this, but non-magical mundanes were being born! This posed a problem for the College. Not only was their student base shrinking, but also the population of the city had grown to huge levels that the dormitories could no longer handle.
Many solutions were tried, but the final solution was to stop calling Thimhallan just a huge college. The major apartment buildings were opened up for families and full-fledged mages. Over the years, many Milenian scholars from the collapsing Milenian Empire came and took up residence in Thimhallan. In AY 950, these scholars founded the Colleges of Civil Engineering and Davanian History. The Library of Thimhallan was founded that same year with a modest collection of books and tomes brought by the Mienians or written by Thimhallans over the years. A few years later, Gnomes from the Lost Valley migrated to Thimhallan and founded the "Second Great College of Gnomish Invention, founded by Waterdown Burrwick on the glorious 23rd day of the spring season according to Matera's motion", or "The College of Gnomish Invention" for short. Serraine visited Thimhallan in AY 1040, its first stop after launching permanently into the sky. The gnomes of Serraine donated a large bronze statue in honour of Glimreen Gemeye, the founder of Serraine, to his Alma Mater, and pledged to remain in close ties with the College.
Zodiak and Matoia became Immortal in AY 1034, Zodiak in the Sphere of Time, and Matoia in the Sphere of Energy. However, their curse prevented them from fully achieving Immortal status. Utterly disheartened by their failure, they closed the College of Magic and Technology down. During this time, it was if both mages had completely disappeared from the Multiverse, not even the Immortals knew where they were, or if they did, they weren't telling.
Suddenly, fifty years later to the day, both mages returned, and without a word, reopened the college. They wouldn't answer any questions as to their whereabouts, and to this day don't mention anything about their experiences. Today, the Colleges are relatively unknown outside of Davania, due in the most part to the sinking of Alphatia. The admission rate is very low, but constant year to year. A large percentage of applicants come through Serraine, which stops by twice a year for trade and for student exchange programs.
The Colleges:
The College of Magic and Technomancy accepts most students, regardless of race, as long as they have some talent in magic and a flair for creativity. There are 6 "grades" of technomancy taught at the College. Apprentice, White Cross, Blue Star, Green Star, Black Star, and Technomancer.
The Apprentice is the first grade at the College. All entrants are given this rank immediately, and many stay in it for years. The Apprentice learns magic, as would any student at the Alphatian School of Magic, with a heavy emphasis on Technology applications. Since this grade is given to even 36th level entrants, the students are grouped according to ability. Beginner Apprentices, usually sons and daughters of students or professors, spend around 12-14 years as an Apprentice, beginning when they are 5, bringing their level to 5-6.
For name level entrants, the Apprentice level is only to show and prove their magical aptitude. Name level entrants (usually visiting mages, or recent graduates from the Alphatian or other Schools of Magic) are called Itinerant Apprentices, and usually spend only one or two months as Itinerants proving themselves worthy of the Technomantic College.
The "Cross" and "Star" ranks are indicated by the colour of the cross or 4-ponted star magically tattooed on the inner wrist. White Cross mages are the younger graduates from the Apprentice program. They serve mostly as student observers, and learn more advanced magical techniques. To graduate from White Cross, the student must create a purely magical item.
To proceed further into the ranks at the Technomantic College, the student must apply for admittance, and show some aptitude toward Technomancy.
Usually the acceptance rate for graduates is less than 20%. For students that are not accepted into the Technomancy program, the College of Magic offers advanced study, much like many other Magical colleges. The grades in the Magical College are denoted by the "cross" ranks: Blue Cross, Green Cross, and Black Cross. There is never any dishonour in not being accepted into the technomancy program, and many students forego that program in favour of pure magic.
Upon acceptance into the Technomantic College, every student is given into the charge of an Academic Adviser, always a full Professor. The adviser watches the progress of the student, his grades, and his skills, and is a key voice in that student's promotions to a higher grade. Blue Star is the technomantic colleges' progression from White Cross, and is also the level given directly to graduated Itinerant Apprentices. Blue Star mages begin to integrate technological devices into their magical items. They serve also as research helpers to higher level mages. Graduation to Green Star comes with the approval of the student's academic adviser.
Green Stars shun magic altogether, and are not allowed learn any new spells during their tenure as a Green Star. In the Green Star years, The Fantasy Physics and other applicable skills are learned and applied. Exchanges to Serraine are optional, but usually well attended. The purpose of this rank is to learn that magic isn't everything to a technomancer. Graduation to Black Star comes with the approval of the student's academic adviser.
Black Stars are the Research and teaching assistants to the Technomancy Professors. Their duties usually keep them cooped up inside the labs watching the undergraduates, or grading papers, or doing their own research. To graduate from Black Star to Technomancer, you have to build a fully functional Technomagical replica, or extension of a Blackmoor device, and then, present your project in front of the College itself at the Thimhallan Stadium.
Technomancers usually stay at the college, to do research, or teach. Their main focuses are replication of technology left behind by Blackmoor, and thus go for great lengths to acquire even broken artifacts. Technomancers no longer have to live in the dormitories, and most get uptown apartments near the college itself. Technomancers have a special star on their inside wrist. The lower point extends the length of the forearm, almost to the inside of the elbow. This tattoo is permanent, and radiates a faint magical glow.
Technomancers take years to produce. Even a 36th level Apprentice will have to go through Blue Star and up. At any given time, the composition of the Technomantic College's 700 member student body is 40% Apprentices, 20% White Star, 20% Blue Star, 10% Green Star, and 5% Black Star. As of AY 2015, there are 80 full Technomancer professors at the college, and 20 Technomancers in Research Professorships.
In addition to the College of Magic and Technomancy, Thimhallan boasts high quality programs in the College of Civil Engineering - many Davanian architects find the sheer size and construction quality of the city itself to be worth learning from. There is also the College of Davanian History, with exchange programs at the Great Library of Serraine. The College of Gnomish Invention is a relatively recent development in Thimhallan. (It was founded in AY 985) The college is the second largest convocation of gnomish inventiveness on Mystara, behind Serraine. The gnomes of Thimhallan are intrigued by the large mechanical constructs left over in the city, and use them as the basis for many a grand design. However, due to the large amounts of destruction left in the wake of gnomish genius, the college is sequestered in a very unused and undeveloped section of the mountaintop.
Dress, and Fashion:
The clothing styles in Thimhallan are based very closely with 18th century Victorian England (a la Jules Verne, or Will Smith's "Wild Wild West"). High collars, top-hats, long dress coats, riding boots, bow-ties, and the colours brown and grey for men, women, on the other hand, usually wear brighter colours, blue, pink, or green, but dark colours are also worn. Women usually wear dresses, but no petticoats, or bloomers, clothing is fashionable but also comfortable.
There are a lot of machines around the city, buzzing and whirring. Be creative about their uses, remembering that people like Doc Brown from "Back to the Future" invented them. The designs are very stylised, artistic, yet functional. The city should give the aura of a Jules Verne futureworld, and _not_ Star Trek.
Technology:
The City of Thimhallan is an amazing place. There is easily enough room to cram the entire population of Thyatis City within its skyscrapers, but most of its buildings lay empty. Technological devices were a mainstay of the Elves who once inhabited Thimhallan, and thousands of examples can be found just about anywhere. Many of these devices have decayed with age, leaving few working models (usually kept at the Museum of Technology) , but some of the devices, primarily used indoors, or on the Elves themselves, are usually in working order.
There is an elaborate device called a computron within each technomancer's apartment. Owning a computron is a right allowed only to full technomancers, and it is not uncommon for a technomancer to spend years tweaking and customising it. Generally, computrons consist of 2 parts. One is a small, black or brownish grey box, about 6" by 12" by 6". A few buttons and switches can be found on the front of the box labelled in Elvish and Alphatian script. The second piece is a flat panel connected to the box by a thin wire. The panel is can be of any shape, and looks like an empty picture frame. The panel is designed to lie flush against a flat surface.
When the computron is activated, a complex illusion is created inside and above the frame. The illusion is commonly a forest scene or slowly moving clouds of colour. A number of floating illusory cubes marked with runes control the computron. When touched, these cubes unfold and the scene disappears, replaced by a set of virtual artist's tools, a blank page that copies what is dictated, or even a strange game that involves cards.
Computrons are never sold; a technomancer is given one on his day of graduation. A technomancer reveres his computron as much as he would his spellbook. In fact, many technomancers have customised their computrons to actually be their spellbook.
Other interesting technological items found throughout Thimhallan are hover-carriers, flame-disks and other technological wonders described in the Hollow World boxed set.
The major mode of transportation around Thimhallan is the network of zoom tubes under the city. Every large building at almost every street corner has a tube station. The actual tubes themselves are long nearly cylindrical tunnels in which large oblong metallic spheres travel. These spheres have 5 or 6 large windows and a door on each side, Seating capacity of about 50 people per 'car'. The tubes run automatically, but a pilot is needed in every car in case of emergency. There are 4 different networks, each denoted by a colour (red, blue, green, and orange) and each servicing certain stops in Thimhallan.
There is a curious lack of native robotic life on the mountain. While the computrons seem to be a local development (searches have never found one in any other elven ruins) The mountaintop is curiously free of the droids which are found, usually in pieces, all over Vulcania. According to Derak, the Thimhallans believed that having robotic servants would strip them of their love of life. So the Thimhallan council banned the building or import of robots into Thimhallan. Currently, the only robots in Thimhallan are found as examples in the Museum.
Thimhallan has an elaborate defence system, consisting of an almost impenetrable energy shield that completely surrounds the city. There are also heavy Blackmoor lasers mounted on the tops of buildings and in secret places on the streets, in case of invasion. These defences have never been used in over 5000 years, and may actually not function as well as expected.
The City:
This map shows the major roads
only.
1) The College of Magic and Technomancy
2) The College of Civil Engineering
3) The College of Gnomish Invention
4) The College of History
5) The Library of Thimhallan
6) The Museum of Technology
7) The Stone's "Temple"
8) Dormitories
9) Demonstration Arena
10) Research Park
The City of Thimhallan is as close to a college town as can be found on Mystara. Every facet of life in the city is based around the colleges and upkeep of the city; there is no other industry. A large segment of the population of Thimhallan is of Alphatian descent, and as such, there is a large percentage of Magic users in the city. However, unlike Alphatia, there is not a distinction between mages and non-mages according to the law. All the basic governmental functions are controlled by the City Council of Thimhallan. This body consists of 30 members from all of the major guilds, as well as the department heads from all of the Colleges. The co-Presidents of the Council are Zodiak and Matoia, who control the tie-breaking vote. The City Council is in charge of the Thimhallan Police-Guard, as well as the major utilities that keep Thimhallan running.
Thimhallan's Judiciary Board handles all disputes and judges all crimes. The board is a 5-member panel who listens to each side of the argument, and each member casts one vote toward the verdict. Much like Alphatian courtrooms, ESP spells and the like are used to validate each witness, defendant, and plaintiff.
The folk who make up the bulk of the citizenry of Thimhallan belong to the many guilds that keep the city running. The largest guild is the Hydroponics Guild, which takes care of running the hydroponics gardens and greenhouses that provide the city with food. Other major guilds include the Zoom Tube Operators' Guild, the Window Washers' Guild and the Librarians' Guild.
Laws of note:
The sale of technomantic materials (parts, tech boards, etc.) is strictly regulated. All sales are arranged and meticulous records are kept. Technomantic devices are not as closely monitored, since even a thorough inspection by anyone but a technomancer would reveal only complex magical bindings, and devices of unknown use and origin. Very special technomantic devices, (computrons, lasers, voidships) are never sold, and are almost unknown out of the college.
Other laws are similar to Alphatian mages' laws.
Other Notes:
Over the past thousand years, madness has crept slowly into Matoia and Zodiak. Possibly because of their curse, and the fact that despite their best efforts, no Immortal could sponsor them to Immortality. Matoia completed the path of the Paragon in AY 1034; but when her patron created an Immortal body, her soul rejected it. By no magics known to any Hierarch, could she be saved from her mortal state. That same year, Zodiak was stifled for the same reasons, his patron could not create an manifestation form for him either. The failure was horrible for them. As compensation, Their respective patrons granted each mage a genius intellect, And a great spellbook of all the spells that they would ever need to know. But that wasn't the same as pure Immortality.
Zodiak threw himself into his work, believing that salvation comes from machines. Even after almost 1000 years, he met with little success in building Blackmoor devices. Matoia became obsessed with the Stone. Hoping that one day she can delve so deeply into the secrets of the Stone that she may be saved. The two still teach, and enjoy their work, but are prone to bouts of depression and violent outbursts. They have leaned on each other for support so much in the past 1000 years that they are now lovers in every sense of the term.
The Stone's curse is an especially nasty one. The affected cannot die, even after their body has been rent to shreds. The soul simply regenerates the body. But the mind is still conscious even after the body would have died. And since the mind is still aware, it feels pain. Possibly the worst fate of the Curse is that the recipient cannot attain Immortality, because when a manifestation form is created, it vaporises the mortal body. But this curse simply regenerates the mortal body, the soul can't enter the manifestation form! There have been attempts to lift the curse, but it seems as if the full power and understanding of the Stone belonged to its creator, Tribunus, who was destroyed in the Draeden war.
The Immortals consider Zodiak and Matoia to be special cases, In a Hierarch council ruling, their names were added to the roster of Immortals, and all Immortals are supposed to treat them as equals. The Hierarch's ruling is not always followed, however. Thanatos hates the two. He can't destroy them, even if he personally confronted them. A side plot of his is to cure their immortality permanently, and rid the multiverse of them. Hel is interested in them. She views their predicament as a form of undeath, and seeks to emulate it. Many of the immortals of Energy are interested in their work, especially Rad and Rafiel, However, Rad, as Etienne makes no effort to talk about Thimhallan except to a few choice graduates of the Glantrian School. Derak Skye completely lost his mind in the last few years leading up to his disappearance. He had visited Vulcania only to stumble on the ruins of the city of Gwineth Mor. Inhabiting the interconnected underground of this metropolis was a race of stark white elves, clinging to the last remaining bits of their technology, believing that nothing was left that was worth living for. Derak tried to convince them otherwise, that the world was still vital, still alive, but they didn't listen. He watched their whole race wither and die out with no escape. It unhinged him. When he returned to the Thimhallan, his one love, his work, didn't excite him like it used to. He wanted to go back in time. Back to when he was still alive, and not in this alien time, with these alien people with alien magics. He ran away. Ran south. Past the ice shield, over the southern polar cap, and into the Hollow World. He discovered the Blacklore Elves, and settled down as an artist/philosopher. He spent years forgetting his past, and in doing so, did not notice that the Spell of Preservation retarded the regeneration aspect of the Immortality curse. Derak was killed during a flame disk duel with a rival, over a fine point on the practice of bonsai clipping.
Rendaric, after gating himself away, found himself bouncing between planes for years. Luckily enough, Rendaric gated himself away before he was affected by the immortality curse, but he was still mad, unable to think clearly, and very random in his actions. After many years of warping around the planes, he found himself in a large plane, called the Imperium. The Immortal Ruler of the Plane, Imperius Rex (Matter, 34), Met with Rendaric and cured him of his madness. Rendaric told the story of how the Stone had made him insane. Imperius remembered the Stone well. Thousands of years ago, his Patron, Tribunus, had created the Stone to hold a part of his power. Tribunus was killed in the great Draeden war that destroyed many of the elder Immortals, and the Stone was lost. Upon hearing that it had turned up on Mystara, Imperius went there in Manifestation form to make sure it was still "alive". Upon appearing on Mystara, the council of intrusion seized him and brought Imperius to Pandius for sentencing. Imperius was acquitted because no direct action was taken against a Mortal, and also, because Imperius hadn't come from the prime himself, and had completely forgotten the rule about interference. He now divides his time between The Imperium and Pandius, where he set up his house next door to his old friend Terra. Imperius' interests revolve mainly around the Stone, but recently he has befriended Vanya, and the two Immortals can often be found talking about Empires and War. As a gift for finding the Stone, Rendaric was transformed into a Titan, to be one of Imperius' seneschals, a job Rendaric accepted with pride.
Famous Folks:
Zodiak Mentrix: Headmaster of the
School of Magic and Technology, Technomancer Supreme. Zodiak was
the son of an Alphatian nobleman, and was noted for his proficiency
with magic at a very young age. He is jovial and sometimes prone to
excitement at a new discovery but he is also prone to bouts of deep
depression at his constant failures to understand the science of
Blackmoor. Zodiak likes talking to students, hearing their views on
life and death, magic and technology. He is extremely close to
Matoia, who is his confidant, supporter and wife.
Born: BC 788 (apparent age 35). Hair: black, medium length. Nicely
trimmed goatee. Eyes: hazel Height: 6'.
Appearance: Pale-skinned (pure Alphatian blood), prefers his dark
grey robes (a modified Godsuit) over white shirt, black pants, and
knee high leather lace up boots.
Combat Notes: AL C; AC 8 (Dexterity bonus); MV 12; ML 9, Human male
M36, hp Special; #AT 1; Dmg 6d6 (laser blaster) or by spell; Str10
Int18 Wis18 Dex13 Con12 Ch14
Magical Items: Blackmoor laser blaster (40 charges before it needs
a new battery), Dagger +5 of Piercing. Modified Godsuit (AC 0, No
Movement Restrictions, Immune to normal weapons) Access to any
technomantic device at the college.
Matoia Pendrax: Headmistress of the
College of Magic and Technology, Technomantrix Supreme. Matoia was
born to a very powerful family of Alphatian tiger shapeshifters.
She was the close childhood friend of both Zodiak and Rendaric
Mentrix. Despite her intelligence, Matoia is very happy-go-lucky
and belies a genius equal to Zodiak's. She loves to sing, and she
can be heard walking the halls of the college humming a tune to
herself. Due to her curse, she was unable to become Immortal, and
because of that she is prone to very violent anger. She has a very
short temper, don't cross her.
Born: BC 788 (apparent age 33). Hair: Red, shoulder length, curly.
Eyes: green Height: 5'10".
Appearance: Pale-skinned (pure Alphatian blood), Matoia loves the
colour black. She can be seen most often in black or dark brown
velvet. In her Tiger-woman form, she has typical tigress looks:
bright orange fur, black stripes, and a white underbelly. She is
slightly larger as a tiger-woman, and dresses much more
extravagantly in oriental-like kimonos.
Combat Notes: AL C; AC 7/3 (Dexterity bonus/Tiger form); MV 12; ML
9; Shapeshifter Female M36/WTi36, hp/HD Special; #AT 1/3; Dmg
1d4+5/+10 (Whip +5/+10 vs. Undead) 1d6 claw/claw 2d6 bite, by spell
or Roar; Str14/16 Int18 Wis18/16 Dex16 Con12 Ch14
Silver and wolvesbane have no effect, normal weapons can damage
her, Roar is a deafening blast, all within 50' save vs. spells or
be paralysed in fear.
Magical Items: Whip +5/+10 vs. constructs, Staff of Wizardry,
Blackmoorian Battle Armour (AC 0, No movement restrictions, Immune
to fire attacks (ceramic composition)/normal weapons) Access to any
technomantic device at the college.
Important Items:
Tribunus' Stone
The Stone was created by the Immortal Tribunus as a funnel for his power, and an icon of worship among the ancient peoples of his home plane. During the Draeden war, Tribunus was killed defending his creation, the Imperium, from the ravages of the Draeden, Kluyyat. In the end, both Immortal and Draeden were destroyed forever. The final battle took place over Tribunus' original home planet. The final attack that destroyed the combatants caused the sun of that system to supernova. That supernova shattered the planet and the Stone was seemingly lost forever. Imperius, Tribunus protégé was left alone, to pick up the pieces of his destroyed home.
In the final release of energy, the Stone acquired the mental imprints of Tribunus and Kluyyat, and thus gained sentience. To guard against it being destroyed, the Stone transported itself to a place where it thought it would be safe, A small, unknown planet called Mystara by the natives. The Stone then went to 'sleep' content in its own safety.
A thousand years later, the Stone was discovered by a group of adventurous elves that were ascending a mountain in what would be now western Davania. They carried the stone back to their home city, where the Elvish scientists inspected it. The scientists found that the Stone was a great source of power, and consequently put it as the centrepiece of the power schematics for a huge city that was being built upon Mount Thimhall.
The city grew and developed despite the freezing cold, because the Stone powered marvellous heaters and devices that made the city perfectly temperate, though surrounded by fog from condensation.
Then the Great Rain of Fire occurred. The axis was shifted, and the Stone awoke. Sensing the internal voices of Tribunus and Kluyyat, it directed its power inward, and effectively shut off. This sudden loss of power rendered the heaters useless, and within 3 days, all of the Thimhallans that were left unprotected on the mountain had frozen to death.
A few thousand years later, the three mages, Zodiak, Matoia, and Rendaric discovered Thimhallan. Rendaric's work on the Stone was intensive. By manually repowering the device, and by the use of a few powerful spells, he awoke the Stone, who immediately began to repower Thimhallan. Rendaric spent much time talking mentally with the artifact, and learned of its powers.
On that fateful day, 30 years later, magic failed, and that caused a catastrophe in the artifact's chamber. The enchantments that kept the devices working shut down, and the mental communication between the Stone and Rendaric, which had previously been very controlled, suddenly opened up like a floodgate. Rendaric was inundated with images of a true Draeden, of the Draeden war, the destruction of an entire solar system, and of the end of the multiverse. Rendaric, so maddened by these thoughts, gated away immediately to an outer plane, just before the Stone went critical, and released the souls of Tribunus and Kluyyat, along with a large amount of its own magical power.
Any sentient living thing that was within a 3-mile sphere around the Stone was changed forever. They were smitten with an immortality curse, a horrible immortal level curse that does not allow the individual to die under any circumstances, even to become Immortal. The Stone then lay dormant, its sentience and much of its power stripped from it.
When magic returned to Mystara, the Stone began to repower Thimhallan again, but this time, no enchantments were needed to keep it running. The Stone still emanates power, on the Day of Dread, it serves as a magical source for Thimhallan to remain running at low (up to 2nd level spells work) power.
The Stone was once a major artifact, but after the accident is now considered only a greater artifact. While connected to the power core, the Stone's powers cannot be used, neither are any penalties or handicaps suffered.
Tribunus' Stone:
Magnitude: Greater Artifact
PP: 500
Power limits: 4/A, 3/B, 3/C, 4/D
Sphere: Matter
Recharge: 120 TP/hr, 20 TP/turn
Powers:
| Powers | TP |
| A1: Disintegrate | 80 |
| A2: Mass Charm | 75 |
| A3: Polymorph any Object | 75 |
| B2: Detect Magic | 15 |
| B3: Plane Travel | 65 |
| B3: Telekinesis | 40 |
| C2: Repair Temporary Magical Object | 40 |
| C2: Repair Permanent Magical Object | 70 |
| C3: Wish | 100 |
| D1: Raise Dead Fully | 85 |
| D1: Regeneration | 95 |
| D1: Automatic Healing | 100 |
| D3: Luck | 100 |
Handicaps:
Magic error: 25% chance of failure
Operating Costs: -10% experience gained to the owner.
Penalties: (TP-10)% chance of
happening
Insanity: the affected is stricken with an immortal level insanity
curse.
Cannot be cured except by an Immortal. DM's option of insanity
type.
Wounded: 1d20 temporary hp loss.