Druids in the Wild

In the Arizona Adventures campaign, druids are part of an ever-present network that can be found, and that CAN FIND YOU, pretty much anywhere you go in the wilderness. I think of the druid network as a group of self-appointed "park rangers", and they view the whole state as their park.

[Suddenly and surprisingly, from behind a tree a man steps out, mostly naked, with wild dreadlocked hair and dark sun-baked skin. He raises his hand in greeting, and says, "Hi, I'm Druid Bob, welcome to the Coconino National Forest Preserve. We invite you to enjoy your visit to our forest, and would like to kindly remind you to be a respectful visitor by picking up all garbage as you travel. The fire danger level is code red this week, so please, no campfires in the forest; remember, only you can prevent forest fires..."]

They are absolute masters of the terrain, and pretty much know everything there is to know about the monsters and humans in any area. They are likely to be keeping tabs on any intruders, probably in an unobtrusive animal form.

Depending on the actions and attitudes of the PCs, the local druids can either be guardian angels or avenging angels:

--A druid might help the PCs out of a tight spot, or provide them with some saving resource.
--A druid might reveal to the party a crucial piece of information about the area, like monster lair locations, or dungeon entrances.
--A druid might also attempt to recruit the PCs into an adventuring hook, like asking the PCs to take care of an intruding magic user who has been upsetting the balance of nature lately with his monster summoning and wacky experiments.
--If the PCs are the cause of the disturbance, or decide to disregard the "park rules", a druid may become the party's hostile stalker...

In Arizona Adventures, the druids maintain a headquarters of sorts in the area of Fountain Hills (south of the Tonto Forest, at the NE edge of the Phoenix valley), tending the sacred fountain there. They are the only group to be trusted by and have a positive relationship with the Elves of the Tonto Forest.

They also maintain a permanent liaison in Tempe to consult with and advise the Arya leaders there. The druids are privy to an widereaching network of knowledge, extending even outside the Arizona region, and so their counsel is well-regarded and highly sought-after. Their yearly blessing upon the domesticated animals and crops is also highly valued.

In return for the druids' services, the Arya leaders have agreed to recognized Celt sovereignty over the wilderness regions, and to seek the druid's permits for any major activities there. The Arya leaders also agree to send their clerics and fighters to combat any undead which make their way into the druid's wild lands.

Making the Mythic Mundane

I really like chatdemon's analysis of the overuse of mythic creatures, over at Stocking the Dungeon (http://stockingthedungeon.blogspot.com/2010/06/setting-campaign-mood-mundane.html).

His point: keep the magic alive by NOT using too many mythical creatures. His example was a throw-away minotaur encounter in Keep on the Borderlands. Mine would be sub-level of the Giant's keep, where 20-odd trolls populate a cave room, right next to a cave room with a ancient red dragon, next to a cave room with 10 fire giants, etc.... I found the The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan to give off a similar feel, too overstocked, if you know what I mean.

I like the idea of an exploration, a discovery, wrapped in a puzzle and a mystery, surrounded by meaningful role-play, with a feeling of building suspense and mounting danger. If you want an exercise in victory via dice tossing, you would play Risk, right?

I am keeping the thrill in mythic monsters, by, number one, making the PCs human-centric. In Arizona Adventures, the different races are totally foreign. There are no random dwarves or elves cruising through town, and a visit to a elven forest or dwarven cave will be weird, and pregnant with danger. Heck, in my campaign, the different human races are mistrustful and competitive, and there is no such thing as a Common language.

The standard monsters in mythic Arizona are giants and dragons. Giant insects, birds, and mammals are also a regular feature of the dangerous wilderness, but they are large versions of regular animals, not mythic at all. The standard crew of humanoid tribes can add to the sense of drama and intrigue, as SENTIENT monsters create many adventuring hooks. But, come on, how deep in the monster manual do you need to dig to create a good adventure?

You should probably be able to number your list of standard/mundane monsters on two hands (e.g. dragon, giant, troll, goblin, orc, gnoll, centaur, werewolf, griffon, etc.). We consider them "mundane" monsters, because they are so common in our cultural myths, your players know of them and expect them to be there.

In other words, mythic creatures should be rarely used, and only used when set up with a meaningful context. In other words, chimeras/hydras/sphinx/medusa are not just part of the regular ecosystem. They a break in the regular fabric of the world, perhaps the creation of some insane mage, perhaps brought to our world from some foreign plane of existence, or working on behalf of some unknown god. Keep them special by keeping them rare, and using them only in the service of a larger story arc.

Of course, in the "mythic megadungeon" all bets are off, anything goes, and the appearance of the wonderous mythic is to be expected. (H.T. http://www.philotomy.com/#dungeon). Let's put it this way: there are dungeons built by human hands for human purposes, and there are dungeons built by dwarves and goblins, but then there are dungeons which seem to have a life and purpose of their own... With no known bottom, with seemingly random and shifting connections to various planes of existence... Every campaign should have at least one mythic megadungeon.

Best Table Ever

Random consequences for your drunken whoring? Yeah, we do that.

http://oldguyrpg.blogspot.com/2010/07/ladies-or-dudes-of-night.html

1. You're in love! You're going to have to go visit her EVERY TIME you're in town. 1d100% of your wealth goes to her during those visits as well. Save vs. your wisdom to break this cycle.

2. You're in love, but it ain't because you wanna be! She tosses a charm person on your ass. Use your version's rules to adjudicate. 1d100% of your wealth goes to her every time you see her.

3. Mamma got a squeeze-box... you didn't regain any health or rest enough to gain spells. You are one tired puppy. In fact, you're basically at risk for constitution rolls until you get a full day's rest. You stud!

4. You're married! Congrats! 1d20% of your wealth went to the drunken wedding party after. Now you have to support 1d10 family members (parents, grandparents, siblings, children) too. 

5. The pimp wasn't in no mood to see his bitch with you. 1d4 hp loss from the fight. 25% chance the local law got involved. 50/50 they believe you or him.

6. Man, you run your mouth. If you are in possession of knowledge of some great treasure, very likely the local thugs are going to go after it first. Roll vs. intelligence to be aware that you ran your suck.

7. Man, she ran her mouth! Good thing you were listening and now you're in possession of an oral treasure map. I hope you got those directions right.

8. Go see the cleric for that Cure Disease spell. You need it, badly.9. Go see the cleric for that Cure Poison spell. Don't even ask.

10. You shouldn't have called her THAT while she was ... well, you know. Not only did you take 1d4hp damage, but there's a 10% chance you ... well... suffered a scarring injury. Since I'm equal-gender offensive, this could count for both sexes.

11. She wasn't who you thought she was! Now the local ruling class is UPSET that you've besmirched her honor. Better bribe or run.

12. She wasn't what you thought she was! Polymorphed ugly bad monster. Roll for initiative...

13. The law breaks down the door and you're in chains for murdering the working ladies. Except... you didn't. But she is messed up. What are you going to do? 

14. You wake up cocooned in spider webbing in the middle of the wilderness. WTF?!?!

15. You wake up in a graveyard in a coffin. WTF?!?!?

16. You wake up in your own bed and there are strange marks all over your body. They don't wash off. Everyone now avoids you and makes the sign of warding evil. And why do you keep hearing evil laughter in the silence?

17. You have the Gamblers Debt Mark! Just how much did you drink and why don't you remember gambling away your future? Who owns the mark? And when will they collect?

18. You sly dog! Now she wants to work for you. And she says she has some information that could make you King of the Underworld. Do you trust her?

19. ROBBED! 1d100% of your wealth and 1d6 items of yours are gone! 

20. You wake up tied to an altar with a bunch of Amazonian women chanting to a very nasty looking demon idol. Wait... what are you doing with that knife THERE??!?!

Everyday Psionics - the Animal Whisperer

Wild psionics exist throughout society, and in a given campaign, can add great flavor to the role playing. Today: the Animal Whisperer.

The Animal Whisperer is a high-charisma individual who exhibits unconscious skills in the psionic type of Communication and Control***. In game terms, he is adept at Charm and Mass Charm. As a skill level 1 or 2 psionic, simple-minded creatures, like insects, reptiles, and fish, he can manipulate easily, while most mammals and birds respond to him readily enough with small efforts, especially when combined with mundane training techniques.

The Animal Whisperer typically advertizes his services as an animal trainer, and training hunting dogs and guard dogs is his stock and trade. He has also produced many prize-winning hunting falcons and messenger birds.

The Amimal Whisperer can also turn a nice profit as a caravan driver. The most stubborn mules move quickly and quietly when he is driving them. Veteran teams of docile draft horses seem to cover twice the ground per day under his guidance. Animals never spook or run away under his care, even when surrounded by fierce carnivorous threats that normally send pack animals bolting in panic.

The Animal Whisperer is also prized by ranchers at round-up time, and to bring back valuable animals which have escaped the herd. He can also be hired to break in wild stallions.

An Animal Whisperer of questionable ethics is also higly prized in the criminal underworld, being hired by thieves and assassins to neutralize guard animals.

The Animal Whisperer is always well-liked, with many would-be friends, including a large stock of female admirers. He attributes his luck with the ladies to his "charm and wit", but he secretly realizes that when he concentrates, he can subtely bend people to his will almost wordlessly. This power scares him, and he does not speak of it to anyone. [In game terms, the ability to Charm people is a skill-level 3 ability, so it is slightly beyond his power to control or exploit with confidence].

The Animal Whisperer is also secretly plagued with hearing voices inside his head, especially in crowds when he is tired or lets his mind wander. For this reason, despite his popularity, he tends to prefer solitude, and usually lives in untrafficked areas, alone with his menagerie of pets and animal companions.



*** Communication and Control type disciplines:
Charm, Confuse, Dispell Exhaustion, Emotion, Empathy, ESP, Hypnosis, Invisibility, Detect Lie, Dominate, Mass Charm, Mass Confuse, Mind Bar, Hold Creature, Sleep, Suggestion, Telepathy, Forget, Fumble, Hallucination, Possess, Summon, Feeblemind, Mass Dominate, Mass Hallucination, Commune with Dead, Contact Other Plane, Exorcise, Mass Possession, Commune with Divine, Commune with Nature, Geas, Hallucinatory Terrain.