I was just wondering where I could find more information on the dwarf focus, besides the common knowledge that if a dwarf fails to complete it they become wraiths. There has to be more about it than just that, but so far I haven't been able to find any. Then again, my resources are limited right now and access to all my old books is sort of impossible at the moment. So any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Horse
The Dwarven Focus
A dwarf’s focus is the central point of his existence. Nothing is more rewarding to a dwarf than to complete his focus. A focus must take at
least a week to complete; anything less than that is too simple a task to be considered a focus. Dwarves receive a morale bonus working to
complete a focus. The task must be directly related to the completion of the focus, however.
For example, Grelak, protector of his dwarven community, makes the retrieval of a sacred book stolen during a raid his focus. After a
week of gathering clues, he sets out to retrieve the artifact from its current possessor, who hides in a trading post two weeks away. On the
way to the outpost, he encounters a wild lirre; while battling this foe, he receives his morale bonus, because he is trying to reach the book.
Later, Grelak stops in Nibenay for some rest, and gets in a brawl. He doesn’t receive any bonuses, because he isn’t actively pursuing his
focus.
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+1 morale bonus on all checks directly related to their focus. This includes a skill bonus, an attack bonus, a
damage bonus, or a saving throw bonus, or even a bonus to manifestation or spell save DCs.
IMO this is more of a role-playing aspect that should be used to give a dwaven character more flavor. As for other focus related canon material- well I really do not think there is more out there then what was printed in the novels, the two boxed 2e sets of the setting, and the Athas.org material that I quoted above.
As a kind of aside- I think a dwarven project would be a great idea. I have my NPC Guide and tax season is starting up or I would look into organizing something like this.
Many dwarves take on what are essentially lifelong focuses. Some examples include:
Excavating and recovering the artifacts of Kemolok. (A common focus for dwarves from Kled)
Loyally serving a master until death. (A common focus for dwarven slaves and knightly types)
Unerringly following a strict code of conduct.
Building a bridge to connect North and South Ledopolus. (Many of the Dwarves of those towns would have this focus or a similar one)
Some focuses can be worded in such a way as to make it nearly impossible for them to fail, other as to make it nearly impossible for them to succeed. Though I am not certain if it is specificaly spelled out like this anywhere. I am of the mind that a dwarf who fails to complete a focus that many other dwarves are also working on does not become a banshee, unless either his own misaction casued his failure, or no more dwarves continue to attempt to complete the focus.
If a dwarf character does have what could be considered a lifelong focus, I think it is important to have him/her come up with shorter-term goals that relate to the focus, in order to make it easier to determine if a bonus is warranted for a given situation and for RP purposes.
Most obviously, if a dwarf had the focus of faithfully serving their master as a lifelong focus, than any task that the master requested that they preform in his service would be the shorter-term goal in fulfilling the larger focus.
Less Obviously, if a dwarf had the focus of building a bridge to connect north and south ledopolus. He might take on short term goals to do such things as aquire more building materials for the bridge by leading a caravan through the desert. Or plan an assult on the island of Ledo to remove the giants that are preventing the bridges construction.
Even within a the framework of a lifelong focus, there are a lot of possibilties for more easily accomplished tasks. I find it much easier to handle the concept when it is broken down into layers like this and would encourage my players (if any of them ever play dwarves
) to determine an overarching general focus for their character, that they can then base their more immediate foci on.As a word of caution, don't allow your players to oppertunistically justify gaining bonus for things that are only vaugely relate to their focus. Unless the Skill, Spell, whatever directly relate to them achieveing their focus they shouldn't get the bonus. I don't think just staying alive would count in every situation, despite the fact that it would probably help them complete their focus whatever it might be.
Has anyone given any thoughts to how this can work without anything more than say, 1% MAX of all dwarves ending up as banshees? As it is, I'd say that 50% end up as banshees (or even higher if you adopt a strict interpretation)...which is just lame. I realize this is probably not the point of the Dark Sun makers, but I can't find a good way to work around it either. Maybe if you only included dwarves that die a violent death unrelated to their focus?
I'd like to add that I find the idea of the dwarf becoming a banshee if he fails his focus as a rather badly developed concept - as a dwarf is going to be chasing a focus at pretty much any given point in time, apart from the week or so period between focuses. Even if you adopt a more lenient approach like Ruhl advocates (not becoming a banshee if you work on a focus with others), a ridicilious portion of dwarves will still end up as banshees...and that's discounting all the dwarves with life foci.
Has anyone given any thoughts to how this can work without anything more than say, 1% MAX of all dwarves ending up as banshees? As it is, I'd say that 50% end up as banshees (or even higher if you adopt a strict interpretation)...which is just lame. I realize this is probably not the point of the Dark Sun makers, but I can't find a good way to work around it either. Maybe if you only included dwarves that die a violent death unrelated to their focus?
I have similar feelings about this issue, and my opinion is that not those who died with an unfinished focus become banshees, but those who "betrayed" their focus and die do. This just seems to make more sense to me and if I don't mistake than something like this was mentioned by Agis' dwarven slave.
Compared to the other game worlds dwarves in Dark Sun are quite unique. They make up one half of the racial blood work of the setting's "cover race" and their history and culture is greatly tied up with why Athas is the way it is today. Yet (as far as I can tell), nothing official has really been said about them at all.
Perhaps everyone else just finds them incredibly boring, I don't know. But I sure would like to see something more in depth, on these hairless midgets. Then again, I'm not the one who would be doing all the work so I guess I should really just be quiet.
Anyway, there is interest out there if you folks at athas.org ever feel up to it. Thanks again for all the work you've done on the Dark Sun world already. I for one, truly appreciate it.
I think it would be reasonable to change the information on banshee's to reflect the idea that only violation of said focus or extreme cases of failure should result in the banshee status.
If anyone has anything in this vein that they can contribute, maybe we can get this project started without an official designer.
I think it would be nice to have a more detailed dwarven history and some more information on the major dwarven villages of North and South Ledopolus and Kled, including maps and major NPC's. A more detailed discussion of dwarven foci with examples of famous and common ones would be great too. A few blurbs on other dwarven villages and some information on other important dwarven NPCs would round things out pretty nicely.
I think it would be reasonable to change the information on banshee's to reflect the idea that only violation of said focus or extreme cases of failure should result in the banshee status.
If anyone has anything in this vein that they can contribute, maybe we can get this project started without an official designer.
There's the dwarven paragon I created in my DS Racial Paragon's write up. One of the abilities increases the dwarf's focus bonus. Not everyone uses racial paragons though.
I've also been kicking around an idea for a dwarf only PrC that would play off the dwarven focus ability.
There's the dwarven paragon I created in my DS Racial Paragon's write up. One of the abilities increases the dwarf's focus bonus. Not everyone uses racial paragons though.
I've also been kicking around an idea for a dwarf only PrC that would play off the dwarven focus ability.
Sounds like a good idea, but how would that work?
Sounds like a good idea, but how would that work?
I'm still fuzzy on the actual mechanics, but it would heighten the focus bonus and/or maybe allow the character to trade or expend that bonus in order to achieve some supernatural or extrordinay abilities. Like I said, I have a lot of work to do on it.
Compared to the other game worlds dwarves in Dark Sun are quite unique. They make up one half of the racial blood work of the setting's "cover race" and their history and culture is greatly tied up with why Athas is the way it is today. Yet (as far as I can tell), nothing official has really been said about them at all.
Well, before the setting died Kevin Melka mentioned that there was something in the works for them, very similar to Elves of Athas.
Once we get ToA out of the way (this last edit I'm hoping will be the last until the mechanics change again for whatever reason), and then bust out the lifeshaped project, I would like to start writing more flavor pieces, starting with the core races and going from there.
The problem is I have to prove that I can write first, which I don't think I have done yet, and as well make sure this is cool across the Senate and OC (no, not the silly teenage melodrama)., just tired of mechanics and want to escape one of these days from them.
Anyways, regardless, I will probably start doing something for the races once I have time (probably have snipets here and there after the holidays).
I still want to do a project on the Villichi as well, but I feel some of the core races needs fleshed out more like Elves of Athas did for the elves.
I've also been kicking around an idea for a dwarf only PrC that would play off the dwarven focus ability.
I've got an Epic one in mind if you want to swap ideas after the holidays are over.
I've got an Epic one in mind if you want to swap ideas after the holidays are over.
Sure, I wasn't really looking to go for epic, but maybe I could pull something from those to build a non epic version.