Written by Carrie A. Bebris Seeming Section by Ed Stark

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Written by Carrie A. Bebris Seeming Section by Ed Stark Copyedited by Sue Weinlein Cook Creative Direction by Harold Johnson Conceptual Art by Tony Szczudlo Original Art Direction by Dawn Murin Web Production by Mark Jindra and Sue Weinlein Cook

Acknowledgements: The Shade first appeared in the AD&D 1st Edition Monster Manual II; Shadow warriors are based on characters and events in the novel Greatheart, by Dixie Lee McKeone. Special thanks to Ed Stark, Cindi Rice, William W. Connors, Kij Johnson, and those who attended the Shadow World seminars at the 1997 GEN CON® game fair.

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AD&D, ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, DUNGEON MASTER, BIRTHRIGHT,MONSTER MANUAL, MONSTROUS COMPENDIUM, MONSTROUS MANUAL, GEN CON, and the TSR logo are registered trademarks owned by TSR, Inc. All TSR characters, character names, and the distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks owned by TSR, Inc. TSR, Inc. is a subsidiary of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. ©2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc. All rights reserved. Made in the U.S.A. This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast. ◆ Introduction ...... 3 What You Need to Play ...... 3 Shadows and Seeming ...... 4 How to Use this Book ...... 8

Part I: Creature Descriptions ...... 13 Blood Hound ...... 13 Changeling ...... 16 Cwn Annwn ...... 19 The Dispossessed ...... 21 Faerie, Seelie ...... 23 Faerie, Unseelie ...... 29 Halfling, Shadow World ...... 32 Minion of the Lost ...... 36 Seemer ...... 39 Seeming Walker ...... 41 Shade ...... 43 Shadow Steed ...... 47 Shadow Warrior ...... 49 The Sluagh ...... 52 Spectral Awnshegh ...... 54 Waff ...... 56 The Wild Hunt ...... 59 Will o’Shadow ...... 61

Pa r t II: Adventures in the World of Shadow .64 Be Our Guest ...... 65 Courting Danger ...... 71

Appendix: Additional Monsters ...... 80 ◆

2 The Shadow World has figured strongly in ◆ our family’s history, but lately presses in more Do not set this book aside, my child. I left it fr equently and more broa d l y . The darkness here for you to find. You hold in your hands now threatens all Cerilia. And so I pass these several lifetimes’ work, begun centuries ago notes to you, my child, in hopes that your in this very house. generation might rid Cerilia of the Shadow My grea t - g re a t - g re a t - g r a n d m o t h ,e r Ka- fo re v e rm o e.r May the gods go with you! iana, was but a young woman of one-and- —Reganna, 1524 HC twenty when the Shadow fell across her life’s ◆ path. A new mother, she entered the nursery one night to discover her infant son gone and a changeling faerie child in his place. Ka- ia n a ’ s search for her lost baby led her to the lood Spawn: Creatures of Light and ends of this earth and beyond—to the myste- Shadow is a collection of monsters and ® rious realm known as the Shadow oWr l d . adventures for the BIRTHRIGHT campaign setting. Far more than just a MONSTROUS There, she encountered all manner of COMPENDIUM® volume, Blood Spawnis two accessories in one: ◆ The cr ea t u r e listings offer more than a dozen new monsters designed specifically for the BIRTHRIGHT world. Some creatures, some helpful, some horrifying, and of these denizens haunt the Shadow some whose torment matched her own. But World, others populate the waking to her eternal grief she never found her son. world of Cerilia—and a few have infil- She returned home to her husband in de- trated both realms. spair, her days spent consumed in sorrow ◆ The adventures provide a means of in- and her nights haunted by the echo of a cry- troducing these new creatures into your ing infant. campaign. Each scenario features mon- After several years’ time, the Lady of sters from this book. By completing Mourning took pity on Kaiana and gifted these scenarios, player characters have her with another child. Determined to pro- the opportunity to gain experience in tect her new daughter, Faylene, from the fate the Shadow World and learn to pene- of her firstborn, Kaiana scarcely ever left the trate its illusions nursery. During the many hours of her vigil, she carefully chronicled all the creatures she had met during her journey in the Shadow World. Should one ever appear in Cerilia to steal her daughter, she wanted to be prepared. Faylene grew to adulthood uneventfully. The information presented here can When she married and had a daughter of be adapted to any ADVANCED DUN- her own, Kaiana passed on her chronicle so GEONS & DRAGONS® campaign, for that Faylene could better protect her own which you need the Player’s babe. Though Faylene’s child was never kid- Handbook(PHB) and DUN- napped, other events brought Faylene into GEON MASTER® Guide (DMG). contact with denizens of the Shadow World. However, as the creatures As her mother had before her, Faylene faith- contained in this volume fully recorded these encounters for her de- were designed specifi- scendants. cally for the world And so this chronicle has passed from par- of Cerilia, Dun- ent to child, each generation adding new in- geon Mas- fo r mation to Kaiana’s original journa l . ters Though some entries detail ecra t u r es native to Cerilia, most describe monsters of the twilight. 3 should have the BIRTHRIGHT Campaign Shadow World and Aebrynis were sepa- Setting to get the most out of this vol- rated as they are now. Then, cre a t u res of ume. Occasional references are also made these two lands lived together, until a rift to information found in the MONSTROUS between the two drove them apart. The MANUAL® accessory. whys and hows of that ancient time are not clear (one legend is recounted on the next page), but it is said the elves still retain a racial fear of the Shadow Wo r l d and its cre a t u res—a fear they cannot ex- plain. Only a few elves are known to have m a s t e red their fear enough to walk in the The greatest terrors of the Shadow Shadow World and re t u rn alive. None World lie not only in its cre a t u re s — have related their experiences to others. things both seen and unseen—but in the But the Seeming, the “true illusion” of u n p e rceived. A trickster spirit rules the the Shadow World, has little to do with Shadow World and confounds all mort a l the elves, for they are cre a t u res of Cer- senses. Even the most knowledgeable ilia—of the real world. Everything about guides and learned loremasters do not the Shadow World is unreal. There, illu- fully understand the workings of this sions live and shadows walk of their own mysterious re a l m . volition. Powered by the magic of the On Aebrynis, where the laws of na- Seeming, things unreal come to life. t u re and magic both apply norm a l l y, one Whether the Cold Rider or some other expects a rock to fall when it is dro p p e d , driving force guides its illusions is un- f i re to burn until it has nothing left to known, but the Shadow Wo r l d ’s very land consume, and the mystical energy of a can warp itself in ways that trick and test spell to discharge according to the ru l e s those who would venture into that dark- of magic. In the Shadow World, these some re a l m . laws are suborned by an even gre a t e r P e rhaps this force is why Azrai found f o rce: the Seeming. An unpre d i c t a b l e the Shadow World such an attractive f o rce, the Seeming cannot be truly ex- s o u rce of power. The Seeming stre n g t h- plained, as every rule set to quantify it ens the power of shadow and illusion, appears full of exceptions and contradic- and Azrai desperately needed such power tions. Still, Dungeon Masters who wish to conquer his fellow gods. He taught his to run adventures in the Shadow Wo r l d — followers magic backed by the power of or in areas of Cerilia where the Shadow the Seeming and made the most puissant World has begun to encroach—may use of them—the Lost—one with the power the following guidelines to adjudicate the of the Shadow Wo r l d . u n e x p l a i n a b l e . Which, in the end, proved to be their d o w n f a l l . It can at last be revealed: The Lost gained their name through their ties to the Shadow World and the Seeming. Using its power to create shadows and illusions more real than those of their The Shadow World is steeped in priestly foes, the Lost gained great power the Seeming, a word which q u i c k l y. But when Azrai was destro y e d , comes from an ancient elven the Lost’s hold on Cerilia disappeare d , t e rm meaning both m a s t e r- and they were drawn through the curt a i n s p i r i t and t rue illusion. and imprisoned in the Shadow Wo r l d . A c c o rding to elven Only two of them, the Raven and the legends, the word Magian, are known to have found their first saw use way out. The Raven has escaped more b e f o re the than once, but always through the actions of others—Cerilians driven mad by their hunger for power. No one knows 4 how the Magian made his way back to Cerilia, but the scars of the dreadful passage have marked his immortal form for- Nothing in the Shadow World is as it e v e r. seems. At least, that is the accepted doc- Still, others—seeking knowledge or trine. It is untrue. Everythingin the power—have opened their own doorw a y s Shadow World, which is governed by the to the Shadow World, and a few have law of Seeming, is exactly as it seems. even emerged the better for their experi- However, what a thing seems to be may ences. Heroes have quested in the change without notice. That is the true Shadow World, overcome the Seeming, law of Seeming. and re t u rned. The High Mage Aelies’s ex- Heroes who brave the dangers of the perience with the shadowstone is the Shadow World, or who encounter this most prominent case of a Cerilian able to realm encroaching on Cerilia, almost cer- master the illusion of the Seeming and tainly will become embroiled in the law of re t u rn to the real world alive. Of course, Seeming. They will encounter illusions, many others have ventured there and tests, and other phenomena they cannot never re t u rn e d. possibly overcome by tried-and-true

The sages say that long ago, perhaps before humanity existed on Aebrynis, the world of Daylight and the world of Shadow were as one. The landscape of Aebrynis had not completely formed then, and the world could change according to its own rules, without rhyme or reason. A lake might form where a mountain had been, white glaciers moved over deserts, and rivers flowed through the sky. This was a time before the gods, but it ultimately resulted in their creation. The gods, it is believed, were formed out of the land, and their natures bound them to it. Not wishing their natures to change without warning, as did the land, they began to enforce their will upon the world. Mountains, rivers, shores, and seas all took shape and stayed constant, bent to the will of the young gods. But one god delighted in the ever-changing world and refused to bind his will and his being to the land. That god became Lord of Shadow, the god of Chaos and Change. He became Azrai. Little is known of the gods’ earliest years in this time before humans and, perhaps, before elves. Giants walked the earth along with near-immortal beasts and other beings lost to the passage of time. It is said, however, that in the beginning Azrai alone of the gods willed change and evolution into being. If this is true, the race of humanity— as well as many of the other races now inhabiting Aebrynis—owe their existence to him. The elements of permanence and transience—light and shadow—warred in those early days, and their battles grew so great that a rift formed between the land of Shadow and the land of Daylight. Passage between the two was still possible, even common, in those days, but soon (as gods measure time) the Shadow World and the world of Aebrynis solidified their borders. Aebrynis remained constant, only transforming in response to the actions of its inhabitants over long periods, while the Shadow World remained mutable and ever-changing. Then came Deismaar, the destruction of the gods, and the cleaving of the world. The Shadow World became a place of fear and strange tales for those remaining on Ae- brynis and now, more than fifteen hundred years later, only a scant number of people know more than a few tales of the Shadow World and its inhabitants. The Shadow World remains in flux. Halflings alone of Cerilia’s races may still pass freely between the two worlds and, since halflings fled the Shadow World in response to a terror they will not reveal, most are loathe to do so. And even a halfling would find it difficult to navigate the ever-changing land of Shadow.

5 means. The Seeming is so powerful that perception scoresthey can use to look simply disbelieving its illusions cannot de- through the phantasms long enough to feat it; only learning to see through the survive encounters in the Shadow World. Seeming’s effects can save a would-be Th r ough experience, cleverness, deter- champion from harm. mination, and (occasionally) magic, heroe s It is a long, frustrating, and dangerous may gain perception, which they can mea- road. su r e against the Seeming score of any Shadow World character, crea t u r e, or phenomenon, in the hopes of lessening that Whenever heroes encounter a creature or fo e ’ s power over them. Illusions melt away phenomenon of the Shadow World, they in the face of high perception scores, leav- must deal with its Seeming score. A Seeming ing a hero free to do battle with the true sc o r e is like a bloodline strength score— i t th r eats of the Shadow Wor l d . can be measured both numerically and by Perception scores are measured in ex- level, as seen in the table below: actly the same way as Seeming scores, using the same ratings and scales. This Rating Level Numeric Scale parallel makes comparison easy. A crea- Slight (1 to 5) ture with a lesser (7) Seeming score Lesser (6 to 10) should not be able to use its illusions to Middling (11 to 20) trick a hero with a perception score of Greater (21 to 40) middling (12); however, that hero will Extraordinary (41+) have difficulty seeing through a Shadow World phenomenon of greater (24) effect. As with bloodline strength scores and lev- The opposition of Seeming and per- els, different levels of the Seeming impart ception scores is discussed more later in different powers and effects to the char- this section. acters, creatures, and phenomena that possess these characteristics. A creature with a middling (17) Seeming score can access more powers and abilities than a character with only a slight (4) Seeming score. This does not mean the creature is The Seeming appears to govern all things more powerful than the character; it sim- in the Shadow World. This fact makes its ply means the creature is more in tune power very significant, and those who be- than the character with the workings of come steeped in the Seeming will be the law of Seeming. greatly affected by it. Heroes who must battle the Seeming in any of its forms will find that its power Few Cerilians ever gain access to Seem- wears two primary faces: creature/charac- ing scores and, if they do, it is probably ter abilitiesand unnatural phenomena. because they have been tricked or suborned by the Shadow World or one of its most powerful entities—a Cre a t u r es and characters native to the fate no hero should welcome. Shadow World—or those who have taken However, Cerilians and some up residence there and come to grasp the rare Shadow World creatures law—have certain abilities “gifted” to them can battle the illusions and by the Seeming. In many cases, these manifestations of the “gifts” are involuntary or instinctive abili- Seeming with their in- ties, similar to the special abilities of some telligence and their cre a t u r es found in Cerilia. A trol l ’ s ability experience. He- to regenerate or a griffo n ’ s sharp claws re- roes can semble abilities granted to crea t u r es of the gain Shadow World by the Seeming. But, because these abilities are illu-

6 sory in nature, characters with high sleep, charm, gaze reflection, scare), enough perception scores can neutralize other than those that cause damage. them by “seeing through” them. To com- ◆ Minor environmental changes (cause pensate, most creatures steeped in the the surrounding area to seem shadowy Seeming have abilities more powerful or a little brighter, cooler, or hotter). than those of monsters in the “real world” ◆ Near-automatic use of some proficien- of Aebrynis. This fact makes them dan- cies or characterlike abilities (tracking, gerous foes that only the bravest of he- climb walls). roes should dare to cross. Because of the Seeming’s perverse na- Lesser Seeming scores produce major ture, however, not all creatures or charac- physical changes (a tail that throws ters gifted with Seeming abilities consider spikes, giant bat-wings, extra limbs) with their powers assets. A knight gifted with major results (a new ability such as flight, immortality but forced to fight everyone more attacks, or a missile attack). Other he meets—suffering wounds that heal examples: ◆ only over time and killing those who Significant illusory or spell-like abilities might have been his friends—hardly (any 1st- through 3rd-level spell, as well thinks of his long life as a boon. Most as nondamaging 4th- or 5th-level spells). ◆ Significant environmental changes characters and creatures drawn from Cer- (from complete darkness to blinding ilia and trapped in the Shadow World light, or freezing temperature to ex- eventually gain abilities of this nature— treme heat). puissant magical powers, but no control ◆ Some control over topographical fea- over how they use them. tures (raising or lowering a hill, creat- The list of possible effects and powers ing a stream, building a small house). seems limitless. Any spell effect, any spe- ◆ Near-automatic use of even unusual cial ability, and anything the DM can imag- proficiencies or skills (spellcraft, hide ine might become a power of the Seeming. in shadows). The only limit on these powers should be the Seeming score of the crea t u r e or char- Middling Seeming scores can lead to ac t e r . It should be noted, however, that true shapechanging or production of un- high Seeming scores do not guarantee mul- usual gear or weapons (a flying carpet, a tiple powers or special abilities. A charac- flaming sword). Other examples: ter well steeped in the Seeming, perhaps at ◆ Impressive command of spell-like abili- a great or extraordi n a r y level, may have ties (virtually any 1st- thru 5th-level only powers that correspond to the slight spells, including higher-level nondam- or lesser level. These small abilities are al- aging spells). most impossible for other characters to see ◆ Emulation of minor (1st- or 2nd-level) th r ough, however, since they are backed by priestly spell-like abilities (cure light a very powerful Seeming. wounds, turning, or control of minor The section below illustrates examples undead). of Seeming abilities for characters and ◆ Command of local environment creatures of the Shadow World. The pow- (temperature change from well ers correspond to various score levels; below freezing to near-boiling, complete change of seasons). DMs can use these examples to guide ◆ them in creating new abilities for crea- Command of local topography (creation or destruction of tures or characters of the Shadow World. mountains, lakes, houses). ◆ Greater Seeming Slight Seeming scores produce claws, scores allow crea- fangs, a sword, or other melee attacks ca- tures or characters pable of doing exceptional (up to 2d8) to emulate damage. Other examples: major (1st- ◆ Minor illusory or spell-like (wizard spell) powers (audible glamer, blur, dancing lights, mirror image, darkness, 7 through 4th-level) priestly spell-like abili- looms before them. What can they do? ties. Other examples: The most obvious choice would be to ◆ Ability to create or control “wild” topo- avoid the river-ring somehow. They might graphical or environmental effects (re- be able to use spells—fly, jump, teleport— versing gravity in an area, creating to remove themselves from the ring. Or, lakes of liquid metal or mountains they could deal with the water directly, by made of feathers). swimming through it or using other spells to breathe it. The river-ring might even be Extraordinary Seeming scores allow guided by a presence they can negotiate near-godlike power, determined by the with. In any case, the first choice is to ac- DM on a case-by-case basis. cept the effect and deal with it as if it were ◆ real. The less obvious (and almost always more difficult) choice is to try to penetrate the Seeming of the area. The DM The Seeming alters the landscape and fea- knows the Seeming strength of the effect; tures of the Shadow World in much the if the heroes’ perceptions are higher than same way that Aebrynis once changed the river’s Seeming score, then they will (see sidebar on page 5)—in response to see it for what it really is: a giant reaching rules known only to itself, or because of a out to crush them, a normal river flowing stimulus provided by its inhabitants. As a in front of them, or nothing at all. It all result, natural laws of Aebrynis do not depends on the Seeming. apply to the Shadow World. Heroes who venture into the Shadow World will confront, before anything else, the strangeness of the world. An individual may encounter never-changing dark plains lying beneath a cloudy sky, or high mountains with no apparent passage be- Each monster description in the section tween them. One might see a river flow- that follows begins with a journal entry ing upward or a lake in the sky—only a from Kaiana or one of her descendants. perceptive adventurer can tell what is real Like the entry at the start of this intro- and what is not. duction, they recount her experiences The unnatural phenomena of the with the creatures of the Shadow World. Shadow World always have a Seeming This subjective narrative indicates what a strength determined by the Dungeon Cerilian scholar or seasoned adventurer Master. In order for adventurers to make might know about the monster. The infor- it through areas of the Shadow World, mation isn’t necessarily 100% accurate, they must either overcome the Seeming but it’s what an educated character would strength of the area, or they must deal believeto be true based on legend, with the strangeness of the land as if it hearsay, or limited personal experience. were real. Note that most characters won’t know For example, a band of heroes much about any of these creatures before might come upon a river flowing encountering them. Dungeon Masters above the ground. Before they re- might find the narrative section helpful in alize it, the river has flowed describing the monster when the player around them, cutting them characters first meet it. off from all exit. Then, to Following the narrative come hard make matters worse, the facts about the creature. This is objective river starts to wrap ga m e - r elated information for the DM’s use about the heroes, in running encounters and deciding how and a watery best to use the monster in adventures. death

8 with the monster. Among other things, it details special combat abilities, arms or The “Overview” section offers roleplaying armor, and unusual tactics employed by notes and background information about the creature. the creature: Peaceful Encounters offers ways in Physical Description explains what the which characters might interact with the creature looks like, including both its creature in a nonhostile manner, and pro- outer appearance and other features per- vides the DM with guidance on how to haps not visible to characters. incorporate and handle such scenes in an adventure. Role in the Campaign offers guidance on how to use the creature most effec- Pe r ception and/or Seeming notes the tively in adventures: under what circum- level of a crea t u re ’ s perception or Seeming, stances characters might encounter it, dif- and offers guidance on how the crea t u r e ferent functions it can serve in a plot, might specifically use its Seeming abilities. whether the being is always a foe or could become an ally, and so on.

Habitat/Society outlines the monster’s Statistics appear alongside the entry in general behavior, nature, social structure, their own box. guardian minions, and goals. Whereas the previous section provided information CLI M AT E /T ER R A I N defines where the needed for resolving skirmishes involving c re a t u re is most often found: whether in the creature, this entry provides informa- Cerilia or the Shadow World (or both), tion useful for roleplaying encounters. and in what region or climate. Ty p i c a l l y, climates include terms such as arc t i c , Ecology describes how the monster fits s u b a rctic, temperate, and tropical. Te r- into the campaign world (including com- rain types include plain/scrub, fore s t , mon enemies or prey), gives useful prod- rough/hill, mountain, swamp, and desert . ucts or by-products of the creature, and presents other miscellaneous information. FRE Q U E N C Y is the likelihood of encounter- This information can help the Dungeon ing a crea t u r e in any given area. Ver y rare Master decide exactly when and where to indicates a 4% chance, rare is 11%, uncom- introduce the monster into a campaign. mon is 20%, and common is a 65% chance. Chances can be adjusted for special area s . Variations of a monster are given in a This entry can be used as a guideline for special section after the main monster ad v e n t u r e design. entry. For example, the “Spectral Awn- ORG A N I Z AT I O N is a description of the shegh” entry also includes a brief discus- general social struc t u r e the monster sion of spectral ehrsheghlien. adopts. Common types are solitary, clan, pack, herd, and flock. In many Adventures indicates whether the crea- cases, solitary includes small family ture appears in the adventures in this gr oups or mated pairs. book. ACTIVITY CYCLE is the time of day when the monster is normally awake and This section explains details DMs need to most alert in its nat- execute battles and other types of interac- ural setting. Those tion with the creature. who tend to be busiest at Combat provides all of the information night in that a DM will need to resolve a battle

9 Cerilia may be active at any time in the Major treasures, normally found in the Shadow World, or in subterranean or sim- monster’s lair, are designated in parenthe- ilar settings. The activity cycle entry is a ses. As a rule, these should not be deter- general guide, and exceptions are fairly mined randomly, but ought to be de- common. signed and placed by the Dungeon Mas- ter. If he or she decides to assign such DIET indicates what the creature gener- treasure randomly, it’s best to roll for each ally eats, of course. Carnivores eat meat, type possible; if all rolls fail, no treasure herbivores eat plants, omnivores eat ei- of any type is found. ther, and scavengers dine mainly on car- Unusually large or small treasures are rion. Unusual entries, like life energyor noted by a parenthetical multiplier (x10, emotions,may appear from time to time, x1/2, etc.). These should not be confused and they are fully explained in the text. with treasure type X.

INTELLIGENCE is the equivalent of the at- ALIGNMENT indicates the general behav- tribute score of the same name. Certain ior of an average monster of that type. unintelligent monsters are instinctively Exceptions, though uncommon, may cer- cunning hunters, and these are noted in tainly be encountered. the monster descriptions. Ratings correspond roughly to the following Intelli- NO. APPEARING indicates an average gence ability scores: number of creatures that a party may encounter in the wild. The DM should alter 0 Non-intelligent or not ratable this to fit particular circumstances as the 1 Animal intelligence need arises. In many cases, additional in- 2–4 Semi-intelligent formation on this topic is presented in the 5–7 Low intelligence Habitat/Society or Ecology section. 8–10 Average (human) intelligence 11–12 Very intelligent ARMOR CLASS is a rating of the monster’s 13–14 Highly intelligent resistance to damage in combat. In many 15–16 Exceptionally intelligent cases this is based upon the creature’s 17–18 Genius natural defenses, but it also can indicate 19–20 Supra-genius armor worn by humanoids or other crea- 21+ Godlike intelligence tures. In some cases, high speed, natural agility, or magical protection may play a TRE A S U R E refers to the trea s u r e tables that part in determining a creature’s Armor ar e found in the DUN G E O N MAS T E R Gu i d e . Class rating. Humans and humanoids of The entry indicates the type of trea s u r e roughly human size that wear armor will likely to be found on or with an individual have an unarmored rating in parentheses. monster. Treasure should be adjusted Listed ACs do not include any special do w n w a r d if only a few monsters are en- bonuses noted in the monster’s description. co u n t e r ed. This figure may be further in- cr eased or decreased at the Dungeon MOV E M E N T shows the relative speed of the Master’s discretion. These tables cre a t u r e compared to an unencumbered should not be used to place dungeon human, who has a rating of 12. Higher tre a s u r e, as numbers encountered speeds may be possible for short periods. underground will be much Human, demihuman, and humanoid move- smaller. Intelligent monsters ment rates are often modified by armo r will usually use magical items type (unarmo r ed rates are given in paren - that are present, and will theses). Movements through common tr y to carry off their media are abbreviated as follows: most valuable trea - su r es if hard- Fl Flying pre s s e d . Sw Swimming Br Burrowing Wb Moving in a web 10 Flying crea t u r es also have a maneuverability the target of the attack. If the monster uses class of A to E, which is indicated in paren - weapons, the damage listed is for its favored theses. Complete information on maneuver- weapon. Damage bonuses due to high ability classes and their use can be found in strength, special abilities, and the like are the aerial combat rules in the DMG. listed in the Combat section of the entry.

HIT DICE indicates the number of dice SPECIAL ATTACKS details any unusual at- rolled to generate the creature’s hit tack modes of the creature’s, such as a points. Unless otherwise stated, Hit Dice breath weapon, spell use, poison, and the are 8-sided. The Hit Dice are rolled and like. These are fully explained in the mon- the numbers shown are added to deter- ster description. mine the monster’s hit points. Some monsters have additional points SPECIAL DEFENSES provides information added to the total rolled on the Hit Dice. detailing any unusual resistances to harm Thus, a creature with a rating of 4+4 has that the monster might have. These com- between 8 and 36 hit points. Monsters monly include an immunity to certain with a bonus of +3 or more added to their forms of attack or an invulnerability to rolled hit points are considered to have an nonmagical weapons, among other possi- extra Hit Die for the purposes of attack bilities. These are fully detailed in the rolls and saving throws. Thus, a creature monster description. with 4+4 HD attacks and saves as if it had 5 Hit Dice. MAGIC RESISTANCE is the percentage In rare cases, a monster might have a chance that magic cast upon the creature hit point spread without a Hit Dice rat- will fail to affect it, even if other creatures ing. In order to determine the number of nearby are affected. If the spell penetrates Hit Dice that such creatures have for at- this resistance, the creature is still enti- tacks and saving throws, divide the listed tled to all normal saving throws. hit points by 4. Round the Hit Die rating up with remainders of 0.5 or greater, and SIZ E is an indication of the crea t u re ’ s over- drop all other fractions. all dimensions. In the case of humanoids, it indicates the height of the monster. For THAC0 is the base roll that the monster other crea t u r es (snakes and dragons, for needs to hit an enemy with an Armor example), it refers to the monster’s length. Class of 0. This is a function of Hit Dice, Other measurements are possible and will as described in the Combat section of the be explained in the text. DMG. Modifiers to the creature’s attack roll will appear in the Combat section of T = tiny under 2 feet tall the entry, but the listed THAC0 does not S = small 2 to 4 feet tall include any special bonuses. M = man-sized 4 to 7 feet tall L = large 7 to 12 feet tall NO. OF ATTACKS indicates the number of H = huge 12 to 25 feet tall times the monster can attack in a single G = gargantuan 25+ feet tall round. Multiple attacks can indicate several attacking arms, raking paws, multiple MOR A L E is a rating of how likely heads, etc. In some cases this does not in- the monster is to persevere in clude special attacks listed in the Combat the face of adversity or arme d section; the text will make this clear. This opposition. This guideline number may be modified by hits that may be adjusted for indi- sever members, by hasteand slowspells, vidual circu m s t a n c e s . and so forth. Morale ratings correspond to the DAM A G E /A TTA C K shows the severity of a fo l l o w i n g given attack and is expressed as a number ra n g e : and type of dice, which are rolled to determine the total number of hit points lost by 11 2–4 Unreliable PERCEPTION /SEEMING indicates the ex- 5–7 Unsteady tent to which a creature can penetrate 8–10 Average and/or manipulate the Seeming. The per- 11–12 Steady ception score indicates how well the crea- 13–14 Elite ture can see through the Seeming, while 15–16 Champion the Seeming score measures the crea- 17–18 Fanatic ture’s own illusion-generating powers. 19–20 Fearless Readers should refer back to the Shad- ows and Seeming section for a complete BLOODLINE is the derivation, strength, discussion of the Seeming and perception; and score range of a creature who carries creatures’ ratings conform to the scale of- a divine bloodline (by rightful inheritance fered on page 6. or by bloodtheft). A complete discussion of Cerilian bloodlines appears in the XP VALUE is the number of experience BIRTHRIGHT campaign setting. points awarded for defeating (not necessarily killing) the monster. This value is a BLOOD ABILITIES are special powers guideline that the DM may modify for the granted to a crea t u r e by its divine bloodline. degree of challenge, encounter situation, Most of these powers are described in the and overall campaign balance. BIRT H R I G H T campaign setting; a few appear in Blood Enemiesand The Book of Regency.

12 A c c o rding to popular belief, one can d e t e rmine a hound’s bloodline derivation by the shape of the red fur patch. (Some ◆ believe it resembles the totem animal of I received my blood hound, Tanta, as a wed- the god whose bloodline the animal car- ding gift from my husband. He told me that ries.) Allegedly, the location, shade, size, so long as Tanta lived, she would serve me or texture of the red fur is also re v e l a t o ry faithfully, and his words have proven true. and can be read like tea leaves by a Tanta was a boon companion in my long skilled breeder or one trained in the art s search for my son. Though she was unable to of divination. Most breeders, however, track down my missing babe, even now she a s s e rt that these latter signs are far less stands guard over my sleeping daughter. re l i a b l e . —Kaiana, 1377 HC Legends speak of some exceptional blood hounds that possess an additional ◆ ability from the gods. A 5% chance exists that a blood hound has inherited an unusually s t rong bloodline and with it, one additional minor blood ability. If so, Dun- geon Masters may choose the ability from the following list (keeping in mind the animal’s bloodline derivation): Courage, Detect Illusion, Detect Life, Direction Sense, Iron Will, Long Blood hounds are blooded war dogs bred Life, Poison Sense, Resistance. and trained specifically to hunt scions. When the gods sacrificed themselves at Mount Deismaar, their essences rained Blood hounds are never found in the wild. upon all who stood on the battlefield—in- They are raised by skilled animal handlers cluding animals involved in the conflict. who specialize in breeding these dogs. Like their masters, some war dogs pre- Only three such kennels exists in all Cer- sent inherited divine bloodlines. Most ilia, though wealthy regents might sup- have been diluted to nothing over the port their own. centuries, but some purebreds still exist. In the kennels, puppies are kept with These animals, known as blood hounds, older hounds, who actually assist in the are prized not only for their ability to younger dogs’ training. Most blood track blooded individuals, but for their hounds require four to five years of exceptional hardiness and loyalty. Though training before they are ready to be faithful to any fair master, blood hounds sold. exhibit selfless devotion to a master who Although blood hounds are shares the same bloodline derivation. generally amiable toward dogs of different breeds, other dogs regard them warily. Many trainers believe this unease Blood hounds are generally large comes from the dogs’ wolfhounds or mastiffs. They look much ability to sense the like ordinary war dogs, with one notable blood hounds’ di- exception: a bloodmark. This sign of their vine essence. blooded status usually takes the form of a Though the patch of red fur somewhere on the dog’s blood- body.

13 line itself doesn’t pose a threat, dogs who child) to devious (finding victims for don’t carry one perceive it as unnatural. bloodtheft). Blood hounds typically are used to track blooded persons, not to attack them once found. The animals are, Bloodhounds typically live 16 to 18 years. however, worthy opponents in combat. Some dogs, however, inherit long life in Individuals might wish to own a blood addition to their bloodmark as a gift from hound as a watch dog, to find unknown the gods. scions in their realms who might make a Blood hounds usually arrive as single play for the throne, or to bring along on births, not as part of litters, which adds to dangerous journeys. Don’t forget that their rarity. awnsheghlien are scions, too, and that blood hounds are just as good at locating them as they are at finding humans and demihumans. A blood hound can bring its People typically encounter blood hounds master into contact with all sorts of inter- in two ways. First, a scion might know esting personages. someone who owns a blood hound, or seek to purchase one himself. Only blooded individuals can become masters of blood hounds; the animals cannot form Adventurers speak of a wild variation of a bond of loyalty with a commoner and the blood hound, which they call “Vos thus will not serve one. hounds.” These sharp-fanged carnivorous The bond of loyalty between a blood animals call no mortal master and roam in hound and its master transcends that of packs, hunting the blooded for late-night most pets or hunting dogs. When a scion feasting. Some believe them capable of purchases a blood hound, the breeder bloodtheft. conducts a special imprinting ritual. As long as the master takes good care of the animal, the blood hound will consider him or her its master for life, even if kid- napped or purchased by another would-be Though blood hounds are trained for bat- owner. Only mistreatment of the animal, tle, most encounters involve their tracking the master’s death, or an imprinting trans- ability. fer ritual between an old and new master can undo this bond once formed. Blood hounds are rare and expen- sive—typically costing 2 Gold Bars or A blood hound will generally try to pin more—so people generally don’t own down its quarry, attacking only if attacked more than one. Still, a few very wealthy first, if commanded by its master, or if it regents keep small kennels of the ani- perceives a threat to its master. Note that mals. Because the hounds are so pricey, in some situations, this semi-intelligent some scions own blood hounds as sta- animal could perceivea threat where none tus symbols regardless of whether actually exists. If provoked, the hound at- they ever have need of the animal’s tacks with its bite for 2d4+1 points of unique tracking abilities. damage. The second manner in If a blood hound shares its master’s which a scion might encounter bloodline derivation, it is fearless (morale a blood hound is to be of 20) in combat and will fight to the hunted by one. An owner’s death if it believes its master is in danger. intent in pursuing a Only a command from its master can call scion can range off such an attack. from noble (finding a lost Blood hounds have a gift for sniffing out blooded characters. At their master’s

14 command, they can locate the nearest CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Cerilia, generally blooded individual or pursue a specific Anuire scion. FREQUENCY: Very rare A blood hound can automatically ORGANIZATION: Solitary (Pack, catch the scent of any blooded individual Vos hounds) within a one-mile radius or who has ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any passed through the area within the past DIET: Omnivorous five days (provided it has not rained). INTELLIGENCE: Semi- (2–4) The animal has a 50% chance of locat- TREASURE: Nil ing the trail of a scion within a five-mile ALIGNMENT: Neutral (Neutral radius or who has passed within five miles evil, Vos hounds) in the past two days. This chance increases by 15% if the scion has the same NO. APPEARING: 1d4 bloodline derivation as the hound, and/or (3d6 Vos hounds) by 15% if the hound is pursuing a specific ARMOR CLASS: 6 scion and has been given an item of cloth- MOVEMENT: 12 ing or other personal effect to catch the HIT DICE: 3+2 scent. The hound gains an additional 10% THAC0: 19 bonus if the hunted scion has a great NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 bloodline. DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2d4 If commanded to find simply any (2d6 Vos hounds) scion in the area, a blood hound will lead SPECIAL ATTACKS: Nil its master to the nearest scion not in the SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil hunting party. However, if the nearest in- MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil dividual does not share the hound’s SIZE: M (4–6' long) bloodline derivation and another scion in MORALE: Steady (11–12) the area does, the hound will lead the or fearless (20) party to the scion who shares its bloodline. BLOODLINE: Varies, tainted, Because blood hounds are specifically 1d3 trained to track scions, they suffer a BLOOD ABILITIES: Bloodmark penalty when commanded to hunt un- PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Slight/None blooded individuals. They have a only a XP VALUE: 120 50% chance of finding a specific commoner within a one-mile radius.

The blood hound’s hunting instinct enables it to perceive that something is not quite right about a creature cloaked in the Seeming. It cannot, however, determine more than that.

15 over, as if the mantra can exorcise the doubt filling your mind. As if it can somehow affect the next few moments. ◆ But he will not nurse. As he turns his head It was a morning like any other. away, horror floods the deepest part of your You would think that the day your baby maternal soul. In that moment, you know. is stolen, you should know something is The tiny being in your arms is not your wrong the moment you wake up—indeed, child. It is not, in fact, a child at all. that a good mother would have jolted awake It is not even human. in the middle of the night with the knowl- —Kaiana, 1377 HC edge that her child desperately needed her. ◆ But that isn’t how it happens. The reality is that you walk into the nursery oblivious to the horror that has just entered your life. You feel well-rested. The Changelings come in two types: human sun streams through the windows and a light and faerie. Human changelings are Ceril- breeze flutters the curtains. Smiling, you ian infants stolen by Shadow World look at your infant asleep in his cradle and faeries and raised in the Seelie Court. think, “What a funny expression he wears— Faerie changelings are ancient faeries left his face so screwed up in concentration that in the stolen child’s place. he almost looks like an old man. Whatever could he be dreaming about?” You stroke his face, the top of his head. Human changelings look exactly like what His skin feels less silky. His fine dusting of they are: ordinary humans. They may be hair feels coarser, already losing its newborn scions or commoners of any human race. downiness. You wonder when the soft spot in When encountered, they may still be chil- his scalp hardened—you had never noticed dren or they may have grown to adult- the tiny sign of maturation before today. hood in the years since their kidnapping. He’s growing so fast, you think. You can Faerie changelings are very old seelie scarcely smell the milk-and-powder baby faeries (see separate entry) who look scent that usually clings to him. enough like humans to pass as one. Then your son awakens and you lift his Though as small as human children, they tiny form into your arms as you’ve done a bear an ancient aura, and their eyes fre- thousand times. But today he feels diffe re n t — quently betray the millennia of wisdom a little less solid, a little less real. Nonsense, hidden behind them. When first substi- you think. ‘Tis only your imagination. tuted for a human child, they typically ap- You sit in the rocking chair, cooing your pear from mere days to two years old. If ba b y ’ s name as you unbutton your night- the changeling’s nature is not discovered, dr ess. He does not respond to the sound of it uses its limited Seeming powers to alter your voice or his name on your lips the way its appearance as it “grows up.” he usually does. He must still be sleepy, you think. But you look into his eyes and see them quite alert—and seeming to hold ancient wisdom in their depths. Changelings—or those suspected of being Your smile is forced now. You changelings—can be worked into an ad- try to shake off the dread sweep- venture plot or continuing campaign in a ing through your heart, but number of ways. The discovery of a faerie find it is your hands that changeling substituted for a Cerilian child shake as you bring the could be a catalyst for adventure, particu- child to your breast. larly if the stolen child is of noble birth or You murmur his heir to a domain. An unusual child (per- name softly, haps one that has grown to adulthood, or over and even a player character) might be suspected of being a changeling. Or a party adventuring in the Shadow

16 World could encounter humans stolen fr om Cerilia by the faeries. The characters might try to ret u r n the kidnapping victims Like other members of the Seelie Court, to Cerilia. In the case of adult changelings, faerie changelings eat nearly any food, but the victims might have no wish to leave the have an aversion to milk. Their refusal to only home they have ever known, but drink milk—a staple of most human chil- could serve as valuable sources of informa - dre n ’ s diets—leads to their discovery more tion about the Shadow Wor l d . often than any other clue. Sometimes, a pe r fectly ordi n a r y human child is suspected of being a changeling simply because she or he doesn’t happen to like milk. The seelie faeries prize beauty in all its forms. This admiration extends, unfortunately, to human children. To the faeries, these children are like dolls: a passing In the very rarest of cases, the faeries may amusement. The human lifespan—let steal an elven child. Such kidnappings are alone childhood—is so short compared to highly unusual, as elves are more similar to the seelie existence, that the faeries don’t faeries than humans are, and the diffe re n c e s think of humans as equal beings, but as ar e what holds attraction for the seelie folk. novelties. They see nothing wrong with plucking a child from its parents’ care for their own pleasure. To them, it is like tak- A changeling is involved in the scenario ing a puppy home from the kennel. “Courting Danger.” The faeries take relatively good care of their “pets.” The human changelings live among the Seelie Court until they reach that gawky adolescent stage when they aren’t so cute anymore. When they reach age 12 or 13, the faeries outfit them with The statistics have been divided into three arms and equipment and send them out columns to accommodate the diffe re n t into the world. Because of all they have changeling races and ages. Human learned among the faeries, most make it changelings aged 15 years and older are to adulthood, either somehow finding co n s i d e r ed adults. Some combat statistics their way back to Cerilia or living in the ar e given for human children ages 8 to 14, Shadow World. Their time among the on the assumption that given their unusual faeries generally teaches them enough upbringing they could attempt to defend about stealth and craftiness—or leaves themselves if circumstances force them to. them with enough tales to tell—to function as 2nd-level rogues. Meanwhile, back in Cerilia, an ancient Faerie changelingsretain the spellcast- faerie switches places with the stolen child. ing abilities they had in the Shadow Sometimes the changeling is discovered World (refer to “Faerie, Seelie” entry im m e d i a t e l y , in which case the faerie for complete details), and prefer to leaves (if it can) and ret u r ns to the Shadow use these in combat instead of World. If the parents don’t notice the their daggers. They also retain switch, or observe oddities in their “child” their know alignmentability and but do not know how to account for them, remain immune to illu- the changeling remains as long as possible. sions/phantasms and Innately curious, the faerie takes the op- charms, though upon po r tunity to learn as much as possible entering Cerilia they about humans during the masquerade. lose the ability to After (at most) six or seven years, turn invisible. however, the faerie changeling grows As in the bored. One night it simply disappears, never to be seen by its “parents” again, and returns to the Seelie Court. 17 Faerie Human (Adult) Human (Child) CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Cerilian homes Shadow World Seelie Court FREQUENCY: Very rare Very rare Very rare

ORGANIZATION: Solitary Solitary Cluster ACTIVITY CYCLE: Diurnal Diurnal Nocturnal DIET: Any food but milk Omnivore Omnivore INTELLIGENCE: High (13–14) Average (8–10) Average (8–10) TREASURE: J, K (W) W J ALIGNMENT: Neutral Any nonevil Any nonevil

NO. APPEARING: 1 1 1–8 ARMOR CLASS: 4 8 (10) 10 MOVEMENT: 12 12 12 HIT DICE: 4+2 2 1/2 THAC0: 17 20 Nil (7 or younger) or 20 (8 or older) NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 1 Nil or 1 DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d4 or by spell By weapon Nil or 1d4 SPECIAL ATTACKS: Spells Nil Nil SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil Nil Nil MAGIC RESISTANCE: 10% Nil Nil SIZE: S (2–4' tall) M (5–6' tall) S (2–4' tall) MORALE: Steady (11–12) Average (8–10) Unsteady (5–7)

BLOODLINE: None Varies or none Varies or none BLOOD ABILITIES: None Varies or none Varies or none PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Ex t r a o rd i n a ry / L e s s e r Middling/Slight Slight/None XP VALUE: 1,400 65 7

Shadow World, they are especially vulner- Seelie Court. Even there, the children will able to iron weapons (+3 damage bonus). be well cloaked in the Seeming. Adult human changelingsfight as 2nd- Adult human changelings retain their level rogues. They generally are equipped memories of time among the faeries, but with a short sword and/or dagger, a parti n g cannot find their way back to the Seelie gift from the faeries. There is a 75% chance Co u r t. (Upon leaving, the faeries cast se e l i e that it is a magical (+1 ) weapon. There is spell of forge t t i n g on them; see the “Faerie, an additional 45% chance that they also Seelie” entry.) Their surreal upbringing for- ca r ry another magical item (DM’s choice; ever alters them—even if ret u r ned to their as it’s a gift from the faeries, the more own kind, they will never seem “quite right.” outrageous, the better). Faerie changelings do their best to mas- Child human changelings,valued querade as Cerilian children for as long as and protected by the seelie faeries, possible. Once discovered, however, they rarely have occasion to enter com- flee the premises as soon as possible, often bat. When they do, it is only in self- using the infamous, confusing faerietalk defense. to create an opportunity for escape.

Travelers are unlikely to en- Faerie changelings retain the extraordi- counter child human nary perception they enjoy in the Shadow changelings unless World, but the only Seeming they can ma- they actually find nipulate is that which they carry out of their way to the Shadow World, surrounding them like th e an aura. Human changelings learn how to manipulate and penetrate the Seeming from their faerie guardians. 18 unfortunate elves before being brought down. Though no sightings of cwn annwn have been reported elsewhere in Cerilia, ◆ it is possible that the hounds have man- The baying of a cwn annwn is a sound that aged to enter other areas of the continent. stops the heart and freezes the blood. It is Cwn annwn, when not hunting on little wonder that the howls are considered their own, can be encountered as part of an omen of death—so terrifying are they, I the Wild Hunt (see separate entry). believe the echo alone could send one to the grave. —Faylene, Kaiana’s daughter, 1403 HC Cwn annwn maintain a very limited diet: ◆ elf. Nearly forgotten elven folklore says that at the dawn of time, when Cerilia and the Shadow World were one, the cwn annwn were domesticated beasts that the Cwn annwn (coon-a-NOON), sometimes elves kept as hunting dogs. The same called the hounds of Azrai, are enormous force that opened up a rift between the supernatural attack dogs that hunt elves. two lands also empowered and encour- aged the great hounds to turn against their masters, transforming them into su- Cwn annwn are strong, vicious, and fast. pernatural beasts of the night—or so the They stand about 5 feet high at the shoul- legends say. Now, inspired by a deep- der and are about 7 feet long. They have rooted hatred which some believe Azrai blue-black coats, razor-sharp teeth and himself instilled in them, the hunting dogs fangs, flaming eyes, and wicked claws. hunt new prey. The sound of a cwn annwn baying is considered an omen of death. Scholars believe cwn annwn are related to hell hounds (described in the MONSTROUS Elves harbor an innate, ancestral fear of MANUAL). But while hell hounds can be the Shadow World, and cwn annwn are domesticated, cwn annwn are always wild. part of the reason why. These hounds roam the Shadow World in packs, hunting elves. Once they catch an elven scent, they pursue their quarry mercilessly. Even if an elf is not among the party, PCs who have had close dealings with an An encounter with cwn annwn is almost elf in the past week may find themselves always hostile in nature. pursued by cwn annwn. The ominous baying of cwn annwn can be heard up to two miles away. Thus an encounter with the hounds is rarely a Cwn annwn are such superior surprise—though always harrowing. hunters that they cannot be surprised. The sound of a cwn annwn’s baying is in itself so terrifying that all who Cwn annwn are native to the Shadow hear it up close (within World. In recent years, however, they 100 yards of the have been spotted in Cerilia, particularly hound) must suc- in and around Tuar Annwn. The elves ceed at a sav- there maintain constant vigilance against ing throw the hounds penetrating the shadow bar- vs. rier, but every year a half dozen or so manage to pass through and devour a few 19 CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World, Nonelves eventually fall under attack Vosgaard as well, for they carry the scent of their FREQUENCY: Uncommon elven companions. (However, the crea- (Shadow World), tures devour only their elven prey.) Very Rare The hounds surround their prey, first (Vosgaard) breathing fire from up to 10 yards away. ORGANIZATION: Pack Each fire attack inflicts 1d4+6 points of ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any (Shadow damage; a successful saving throw vs. World); Nocturnal breath weapon reduces the damage by (Cerilia) half. Cwn annwn then attack with their DIET: Elves claws and bite. On a natural attack roll of INTELLIGENCE: Low (5–7) 20, a hound manages to trap its prey and TREASURE: C breathe fire on it, inflicting both bite and ALIGNMENT: Lawful evil fire damage. Cwn annwn are immune to fire-based NO. APPEARING: 3–12 attacks. As supernatural creatures, they ARMOR CLASS: 4 can be hit only with magical or silver MOVEMENT: 15 weapons. As beasts of the shadows, how- HIT DICE: 7+2 ever, they have difficulty seeing in direct THAC0: sunlight or magical light. If opponents NO. OF ATTACKS: 3 making use of such light sources can also DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d8/1d8/2d8 confuse or obscure the hounds’ sense of (claw/claw/bite) smell, the ferocious canines suffer a –2 SPECIAL ATTACKS: Fire breath penalty to all attack rolls SPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to fire and surprise, magic or silver Peaceful encounters with cwn annwn are weapons to hit extremely rare. If an elf is among the MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil party, they will attack to the death. If not, SIZE: L (7' long) they are capable of such stealth that PCs MORALE: Fanatic won’t even know their exact location.

BLOODLINE: None BLOOD ABILITIES: None Though cwn annwn have no conscious PERCEPTION/SEEMING: None/Slight control over the Seeming, a slight amount XP VALUE: 2,000 of it clings to them, often making them appear even larger and more bloodthirsty paralyzation or become frozen with ter- than they really are. ror and unable to act for 1d4 rounds. If a party comprises both elves and nonelves, cwn annwn attack the elves first, focusing all their attention on the member(s) of that race.

20 become sources of information or even allies (provided they don’t spend too much time among the player characters—pro- ◆ longed exposure to the dispossessed After wandering the Shadow World for days, could render an entire party incapable of I at last came to an inn. Weary from travel, I action). entered. The innkeeper bade me welcome and motioned me to a table in the crowded room. Bewildered by the shock of having their Nearly as soon as I sat down, the fear bodies stolen and finding themselves in a and grief I’d harbored for my son weighed new land of eternal twilight, the dispos- upon me so heavily that I could scarcely sessed tend to find others like themselves breathe. My search seemed doomed, my ef- and wander in small bands in search of forts futile. I wanted nothing more than to their old bodies. crawl into bed and pull the covers over my Sometimes, a band will occupy an head, giving my son up for lost. abandoned house, inn, or even a small vil- My blood hound, Tanta, began to growl. I lage. There, they go through the motions looked down and saw here rg a r ding everyo n e of life, each action an echo of a task they in the room warily. That’s when I realized once performed as whole beings. that the people . . . weren’t really people. —Kaiana, 1377 HC ◆ A dispossessed spirit can be put to rest only if restored to its original body or when its original body dies. Though some spirits try to inhabit the bodies of others, The dispossessed are spirits of possession they find that doing so does not bring victims in the waking world. When their them the peace they expected and soon bodies are taken over by evil forces, their shuffle off the mortal coil. souls become trapped in the Shadow World. There they wander restlessly, seeking a way to regain their bodies—or someone else’s. The dispossessed appear in “Be Our Guest.”

The dispossessed look like noncorporeal versions of their former selves, with one notable exception: They carry about them an aura of perpetual, haunting sadness. Upon sighting a dispossessed spirit (of Their pathos is so pronounced, in fact, any alignment), observers must succeed that it can render the observer unable to at a saving throw vs. paralyzation or act. feel severe depression settle upon The dispossessed can use psychic en- themselves. The will to act immedi- ergy to hold small- to medium-sized ob- ately drains from victims. They jects. They move and walk as they did in feel lethargic and apathetic to- life, though at a slower pace. ward both their companions and the encounter about to take place; in fact, they’d The dispossessed form part of the Shadow like nothing better than World’s native population. Visitors to that to curl up in a fetal dark land are likely to encounter them position and go more than once. to sleep. Their Though dispossessed spirits of evil move- alignment always attack when given the ment opportunity, good and neutral spirits can

21 rates are halved and all attacks and Dex- CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World terity-based maneuvers (such as thieves’ FREQUENCY: Uncommon skills) suffer a –3 or –25% penalty while ORGANIZATION: Band any dispossessed spirit is within 100 ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any yards of the victims. DIET: None Once the victim is no longer in prox- INTELLIGENCE: Average (8–10) imity to the dispossessed, the penalty TREASURE: None drops to –1 or –10% until the character ALIGNMENT: Varies can shake off the depression (4d6 hours plus 1 hour for every four hours of expo- NO. APPEARING: 1d20 sure). ARMOR CLASS: 0 MOVEMENT: 9 HIT DICE: 4 The dispossessed retain whatever align- THAC0: 17 ment they had in life. Evil spirits attack NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 the living, hoping to take over their vic- DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d4+despair tims’ bodies as their own were once SPECIAL ATTACKS: Depression, stolen. Those convinced that their old touch of despair body is among those in the party also at- SPECIAL DEFENSES: +1 or better tack. Their weapon is a touch of despair weapon to hit that, in addition to inflicting 1d4 points of MAGIC RESISTANCE: None damage, drains away the victim’s will to SIZE: M (6' tall) live. When the total number of hits equals MORALE: Champion the victim’s Constitution score, the char- (1 5 – 1 6 ) acter’s life force leaves his or her body. The dispossessed spirit instantaneously BLOODLINE: None moves in; the victim’s spirit now becomes BLOOD ABILITIES: None a new member of the dispossessed. PERCEPTION/SEEMING: None/Slight Should an intended victim survive the XP VALUE: 975 possession attempt, the character’s despair lingers for one day per hit (lifting gradually). Remove fearcan shorten this period by one day per casting. The dispossessed are so desperate to re- As the dispossessed are not undead, turn to their own bodies that they have a but rather the spirits of still-living bodies, 60% chance of mistaking characters for they are immune to holy water, turning, their former selves. Should this happen, and other forms of attack used only the dispossessed spirit focuses all its at- against undead. tention on the unfortunate character in an effort to get its body back. Characters with low perception scores might see the dispossessed as ordinary, Dispossessed spirits retain the ability perfectly corporeal people. to speak and communicate. Charac- ters may engage one in conversation, ask questions of it, and so on, though they must roll a new saving throw each turn to avoid succumbing to debili- tating depression.

22 The physical appearance of seelie faeries ◆ cannot be generalized. Each is unique. I had the most peculiar dream one night They are tall, short, fat, thin, old, young, during my sojourn in the land of shadow. I gargantuan, and diminutive. Some have had camped at the border of a large, lush wings, some have horns, some have tails forest, the first sign of life I’d seen in days of or fins. Some look like small humanoids; wandering through desolate terrain. others are bizarre composites of various Though I do not recall bedding down for life forms, bearing perhaps a pumpkin the night, I must have fallen asleep. I imag- head, ivy hair, or goat hooves. ined that I entered the forest and slowly No one knows for certain whether picked my way through the brambles and members of the Seelie Court bear these branches. I heard birds above and the characteristics for real, or whether the rustling of small animals nearby, but I saw broad range of shapes, sizes, and features no other creatures. After what seemed like is the work of the Seeming. No other hours of hiking, I reached the center of the denizens of the Shadow World can manip- forest. ulate the Seeming as they can. A few There, in a clearing, were assembled a scholars posit that, were the Seeming most extraordinary company. Enchanted stripped entirely from the Seelie Court, creatures of every shape and description all these fanciful creatures would look ex- filled the glen. In a faint, glowing light that actly the same as each other—and very seemed to emanate from the figures them- boring indeed. selves, they danced and feasted. Presiding over this strange convocation was a woman of exquisite beauty, who made merry right Seelie faeries will help or hinder charac- along with her subjects. ters as the whim strikes them. Their ap- Were these the faeries that had stolen my pearance can provide a catalyst for an ad- son? I searched the whole company for his venture. They can offer cryptic hints to- darling face, a glimpse of his bright eyes or ward the successful completion of a tiny hands. But to my dismay, I saw no sign quest. Or they can slow down or belea- of him. guer a party. So strong was this dream that all seemed Though faeries may, at times, befriend quite real. But when I awoke, I found myself player characters, the fair folk are too back in my makeshift camp at the edge of capricious and unpredictable to serve as the woods, with nary a trace of my fanciful reliable allies. Too-trusting PCs may, how- companions. ever, learn this truth the hard way. —Kaiana, 1377 HC How seelie faeries treat PCs depends in no small part on how PCs treat them ◆ during an initial encounter. Kindness is repaid with kindness—sometimes ten- fold. But woe betide the traveler Seelie faeries are among the Shadow who mistreats or insults a faerie, World’s oldest and most numerous resi- for that treatment, too, is more dents. The ancient fair folk are to this twi- than repaid in kind. light land what the elves are to Cerilia, and are as in tune with the Seeming as the elves are with nature. Depending on which way the wind is blowing, seelie Most seelie faeries faeries might amuse, confuse, bemuse, or live among the abuse adventurers. In fact, characters can Seelie Court, a count on only one certainty in a seelie en- grand con- counter: It will prove interesting. grega-

23 tion of faerie folk. The Seelie Court re- seems not quite real. The character can- sides deep in the Shadow World’s most not recollect names, locations, directions, enchanted forest. As no one who inten- or any other specifics unless the caster so tionally goes looking for the court ever desires. For example, a faerie might cast finds it, many believe it to be a traveling this spell on a lost traveler to make him or court that brings its own enchantment her forget the faerie’s name and the loca- into the various forests it enters. tion of the Seelie Court, but may allow Occasionally, a traveler stumbles upon the character to remember directions to the Seelie Court accidentally. When this the nearest safe haven. occurs, the faeries torment, test, or aid If the recipient again encounters a the traveler as their fancy strikes them. faerie or place “forgotten” as a result of When the faeries are through, they lead this spell, he or she experiences a sense of the traveler out of the forest and cast a deja vu, but does not recall specifics. seelie spell of forgettingon the character. The spell does not negate charm, sug- The traveler falls into a deep sleep; when gestion, geas, quest,or similar effects the the character awakens, she at best re- recipient may have entered into during members the faerie encounter only as a time spent among the faeries. The charac- dream and cannot find the way back to ter does, however, forget the circum- the court. stances and the spellcaster that bound ◆ him or her with such magic. Only a limited wishor wishcan enable SEELIE SPELL OF FORGETTING someone to recall experiences erased by (Enchantment/Charm) this spell. The material component of this spell Spell Level: 3 is one pinch of faerie dust per recipient. Sphere: Charm ◆ Range: 50 yards Components: V, S, M Duration: Permanent Though the Seelie Court comprises Casting Time: 3 hundreds of faeries, travelers generally Area of Effect: 50 ft. cube encounter them individually, far away Saving Throw: Special from the court. Cerilian encounters are almost always single, particularly in the This spell, which can be cast only by case of changelings (see separate entry). members of the Seelie Court, enables the The fair folk don’t like to be seen; they caster to erase the recipient’s memory of can become invisible at will and often time spent among the faeries. move about thus hidden from view. Detect Saving throw adjustments are based invisibility, detect magic,or similar magic on the victim’s perception score: a +3 reveals them, as does a perception score penalty for no perception, a +2 penalty within 10 points of the faerie’s Seeming for slight, a +1 penalty for lesser, no score. A faerie might freely choose to re- adjustment for middling, a –1 bonus veal itself for some purpose, but never to for greater, and a –2 bonus for extra- an evil creature. Seelie faeries have the in- ordinary. Should the recipient suc- nate ability to discern the nature of those ceed at a saving throw vs. spell, they encounter (per the know alignment he or she recalls the faerie en- spell). counter as a dream. Failure Seelie faeries prize beauty, in both in- means the recipient re- dividuals and in objects. They often covet members nothing. beautiful things, be they trinkets, trea- Should the victim re- sure, or human children (see separate call anything, the “Changeling” entry). They may offer aid memory is in exchange for a traveler’s possession, or hazy and attempt to trick the individual out of it. The Seeming permeates the speech of seelie faeries as much as it does their ap- 24 pearances. The creatures love to talk in Faerie Queen: AC 2; MV 15, Fl 15 (B); rhyme, riddles, and conundrums, making HD 20; hp 162; THAC0 5; #AT 1; great use of double entendres and hidden Dmg by spell; SA Seeming, spells; SD im- meanings. There is always a grain of truth mune to illusions and charm spells, invisi- in anything a seelie faerie says—but often, ble at will, know alignment; SW iron, salt; one must search very hard to uncover it. MR 50%; SZ M (5' tall); ML 16 (cham- In any seelie encounter, travelers must pion); AL LN; XP 21,000. watch their own words as carefully as Notes: The queen has a Seeming score of 100 and those of the faeries. Seelie law and codes no need of a perception score—she can see through the of conduct are predicated on the literal Seeming at will. SW—Iron weapons inflict an additional 2 interpretation of language—particularly points of damage with each hit; salt thrown on the queen oaths and promises. The faeries are fa- neutralizes her invisibility ability for 1 turn. mous for exacting promises from unwary S 10, D 18, C 16, I 18, W 17, Ch 19. travelers who don’t realize until too late Personality: Capricious, fair, devoted what they’re getting themselves into. to and defensive of her subjects. For example, an adventurer who Spells under her command makes the promise, “I will share my sup- (6/6/6/6/6/5/4/4/3 per day): All per with you if you tell me how to reach illusion/phantasm and 1st- and 2nd-level the haunted castle” may well find the enchantment/charm spells (priestly or faerie showing up for dinner every night wizardly), plus affect normal fires, color for the rest of the character’s life (or at spray, create water, dancing lights, detect least, until the faerie gets bored) in ex- magic, entangle, faerie fire, feather fall, change for directions so encoded in dou- light, protection from evil, purify food and bletalk that the PC couldn’t even follow drink, shillelagh; barkskin, detect invisibil- them. ity, goodberry, produce flame, speak with Seelie faeries are bound, however, by animals, warp wood; blink, continual light, the same literalness they use to torment create food and water, gust of wind, hold others. Thus, a person who manages to person, protection from evil 10-foot radius, find a loophole or technicality in an oath pyrotechnics, seelie spell of forgetting, sug- can manage to become extricated from it. gestion, tree, water walk; confusion, reflect- Faeries are also thrown off-balance by ering pool, tongues; false vision, Leomund’s ratic or unexpected behavior. Their guid- lamentable belaborment; enchant an item, ing principle is, “If p, then q.” Add r to true seeing. the equation, and they don’t know what hit them. In other words, the poor trav- The Faerie Queen is a creature of such eler with the constant supper companion ethereal beauty that any nonfaerie who could get rid of the unwanted guest sim- beholds her must immediately succeed at ply by calling this evening meal “break- a saving throw vs. spell or be charmed. fast.” The bewildered creature won’t know In all the Shadow World, the Faerie what to think—but will be forced to admit Queen has the greatest power over the defeat. Seeming—after all, she was alive be- When a faerie demands an “either-or” fore it existed, and has had an eter- decision with two unappealing choices, a nity to hone her command of it. As wise person always tries to come up with the last surviving Sie (see “Ecol- a third, unanticipated option. ogy,” below), she also com- mands both wizardly and THE FAERIE QUEEN priestly magic. The Faerie Queen reigns over the Seelie The queen considers Court. Known in various legends as Tita- herself the ultimate nia, Maeve, or Mab, she is a fey creature protector of the of unearthly beauty. Of lawful neutral faeries, and de- alignment, she is devoted to her “chil- fends them dren” but is fair to travelers she encoun- from ters—so long as they have not mistreated the faerie folk. 25 outsiders as a mother does her children. result of a kindness shown them by the Should one of the faeries commit a mis- recipient or other travelers who came be- deed, however, she also punishes it as a fore. (For example, a faerie might help a mother would her wayward child. Faeries Khinasi adventurer because a century ago encountered outside the Seelie Court are another Khinasi did it a good turn.) The often the subjects of such discipline, en- helper may reveal itself to the recipient, during temporary or permanent banish- or offer aid secretly (for example, magi- ment from the court as the penalty for cally replenishing a party’s diminishing ra- some transgression. The fair folk love tions while they sleep). The attempt at aid their queen so dearly that such exile is the is not always successful—faeries have strongest form of punishment imaginable been known to inadvertently make a situ- to them. Just as the queen devotes herself ation worse instead of better—but the in- to their protection, they in turn will de- tentions are good. The assistance is gen- fend her to the death. erally limited to a single instance.

TYPES OF FAERIES The Protector Though the very nature of seelie faeries Oc c a s i o n a l l y , a faerie chooses to serve as a defies summary and stereotype, some of pr otector to an individual or party . Per- them fall into a few broad, general cate- haps the faerie believes itself to be in the gories. in d i v i d u a l ’ s debt (if, for example, the traveler saved the crea t u re ’ s life or outsmarte d The Deceiver it somehow). Or perhaps the faerie seeks Some faeries intentionally try to deceive to aid the person’s mission. Regardless of those they encounter. The creatures ha- motive, the faerie watches over its charge bitually give poor directions, misleading fr om a distance, rendering aid or fending information, and bad advice. Though they of f harm as the need arises. As in the case do so not out of real malice—to them, it is of helper faeries, recipients of a faerie’s all a grand game—their deceptions some- pr otection may not even be aware of the times have dire consequences for travel- attention or its source. But unlike helpers, ers in a land where a single wrong turn pr otectors stick with their self-appointed could prove fatal. ch a r ges until their protection is no longer needed (for example, the recipient leaves The Innocent the Shadow World) or the obligation is ful- Though all seelie faeries exhibit a certain filled (for example, the faerie saves a life amount of childlike innocence (as evi- in exchange for its own being saved). denced in their literal interpretation of speech), some carry it to an extreme. The Trickster They tag along, asking “why” eighteen While all faeries delight in puzzles and times in a row, poking and prodding at games (particularly verbal contests of wit) unfamiliar objects and people, letting some turn every encounter into an oppor- curiosity guide them until the belea- tunity for amusement—at the travelers’ guered traveler is driven to distrac- expense. Such a creature tries to trap the tion. Innocents tend to be very unwary into commitments they would young faeries (only a couple cen- rather not keep or actions they would be turies old). wise not to take. Some of the ploys in a trickster’s arsenal are downright menac- The Helper ing, while others are meant merely to Some faeries make a gen- amuse the faerie. Rumplestiltskin’s bar- uine effort to aid travel- gain is an example of a trickster’s plot. ers they encounter. Because one never knows whether a Usually, this phil- faerie might be a trickster, the wise indi- anthropy vidual exercises caution while speaking comes as with any faerie. It is easier to avoid enter- the ing a trickster’s power than to extricate oneself from it. 26 The seelie faeries were the first children In addition to their link to Cerilian elves, of the Shadow World. Long ago, when the seelie faeries have an evil counterpart: the waking world and the Shadow World were unseelie faeries (see separate entry). one, a race known as the Sie (“see”) popu- Brownies, leprechauns, and sprites (see lated the land. These creatures were be- the MONSTROUS MANUAL volume) are all ings of great magic, innate wielders of types of seelie faeries. both sorcery that worked with nature (priestly spells) and sorcery that broke the rules of nature (wizardly spells). They Faeries of the Seelie Court appear in cast their spells not by the prayer of “Courting Danger.” priests or the rote memorization of human wizards, but rather the gathering of magical energies (the process yet employed by today’s elves). The force that spilt the world into two halves was so strong that it also split the Seelie faeries rarely engage in direct com- land’s inhabitants, ripping the Sie in bat, preferring to mire their opponents in twain. Each creature became two sepa- confusion and deleterious promises. rate entities—a faerie (seelie) in the Should they need to physically defend Shadow World and an elf (Sidhe) in Cer- themselves, however, the fair folk are well ilia. The seelie retained control of natural able to do so. magic and gained power over a new force in the Shadow World: the Seeming. The Sidhe retained control of wizardly magic Their ability to turn invisible often en- and became bound to the land itself. ables seelie faeries to gain surprise. Though the ancient link between the The fair folk, being often small of two peoples has long since been forgotten stature and lacking in great strength, by all but the Faerie Queen (the only sur- avoid melee combat at all costs. Should viving Sie), to this day, when an elf is they have to defend themselves so di- born in Cerilia, a new faerie appears in rectly, some carry a small knife or dagger the Seelie Court. While it is possible that capable of inflicting 1d4 points of dam- a traveling elf or faerie could meet its age. counterpart, no one knows what would Faeries prefer, however, to use their happen in such an extraordinary event. spellcasting abilities and the Seeming to Unless slain, seelie faeries are immorta l attack and defend themselves. They can in the Shadow World but mortal in Cerilia. cast any priestly enchantment/charm Co n v e r s e l y , elves are immortal in Cerilia spell of 1st or 2nd level, plus create but mortal in the Shadow World. The water, entangle, faerie fire, light, protec- faeries are as attuned to the nature of the tion from evil, purify food and drink, Shadow World as elves are to Cerilia. This shillelagh; barkskin, goodberry, pro- link enables them to exist in such a hostile duce flame, speak with animals, en v i r onment with virtually no natural warp wood; continual light, create pr edators. The evil of the Shadow Wor l d , food and water, pyrotechnics, ho w e v e r , holds plenty of unnatural ones. seelie spell of forgetting, tree, Seelie faeries are generally vegetari- water walk. They can cast ans, subsisting primarily on fruits, nuts, five spells per day, and roots, and seeds. They do, however, eat the seelie spell of for- meat when it is offered to them. The fair gettingan unlim- folk have an aversion to milk—a means by ited number of which savvy individuals have been known times. to expose a faerie so masked in the Seem- In ing that its identity was otherwise indeter- minable.

27 CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World, The fair folk are especially vulnerable Cerilian forests to iron weapons; such instruments inflict FREQUENCY: Uncommon an additional 3 points of damage per hit. ORGANIZATION: Court Salt thrown on a faerie renders it unable ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any (Shadow to turn invisible for 1d4 turns. World); nocturnal (Cerilia) DIET: Omnivore When a faerie approaches a traveler, it is INTELLIGENCE: Very to high usually with some purpose in mind—beg- (11–14) ging aid, issuing warnings, or perhaps TREASURE: W (G) seeking mischief. They may appear to ALIGNMENT: Any nonevil travelers in need, perhaps having secretly followed them for miles or days. Or they NO. APPEARING: 1–4 might make themselves known when an ARMOR CLASS: 5 adventurer inadvertently trespasses into a MOVEMENT: 15, some Fl 15 faerie’s territory. Faeries who do not wish (B) to be discovered seldom are. HIT DICE: 4+2 Often, encounters with faeries are less THAC0: 17 direct. The fair folk may work their magic NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 on unwary travelers without ever being DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d4 or by spell seen. SPECIAL ATTACKS: Spells SPECIAL DEFENSES: Seeming MAGIC RESISTANCE: 25% The seelie faeries are true creatures of the SIZE: Tiny to large Seeming, manipulating it as few denizens (6" to 12' tall) of the Shadow World can. In combat, they MORALE: Average (8–10) use it to alter their appearance into intim- idating, menacing figures—perhaps tow- BLOODLINE: None ering over opponents, swiping with razor- BLOOD ABILITIES: None like claws, or breathing jets of flame. In PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Extraordinary/ other encounters, they may speak in Extraordinary booming voices, create sweet or unpleas- XP VALUE: 2,000 ant odors, or alter terrain to block a traveler’s path. While others’ control of the addition to their spellcasting abilities, Seeming may be limited to effects on one seelie faeries make liberal use of the or two senses, seelie faeries can affect all Seeming to defend themselves with a five. host of illusions (described at right).

28 The Unseelie Court wages an age-old war against the Faerie Queen and the Seelie Court. Characters may find them- ◆ selves caught in the crossfire, enlisted Lussina, they called her. The Dark Queen. (willingly or not) to aid one side, or trying She held my spirit in terror and my son to redirect the war efforts toward subdu- in thrall. Yet the more I think about her in ing a larger menace: the Cold Rider (as- the years since my near-death at her hands, suming that shadowy presence doesn’t the more she reminds me of a rebellious ado- win over the Dark Queen first). lescent in an eternal temperamental snit. Albeit a dangerous, deadly adolescent. —Faylene, 1421 HC The Unseelie Court is a hideous mockery ◆ of the Seelie Court—in a sense, the Faerie Queen’s entourage as seen through a fun-house mirror. The Dark Queen (see below) and her followers reside in the Unseelie faeries are a macabre host of evil Shadow World’s most haunted, twisted and undead beings, the hideous counter- forest. There, they plot against the seelie part of the Seelie Court. The Unseelie faeries and others they consider their ene- Court has its own dark queen and other mies. Because evil seeks its own reflection “nobles” who manipulate the Seeming to- and treachery breeds mistrust, the un- ward their own sinister ends. seelie faeries see an enemy in nearly everyone they encounter.

The Unseelie Court comprises two types THE DARK QUEEN of faeries: evil living faeries, and evil un- The Dark Queen, Lussina, reigns over the dead faeries. Like the seelie faeries, each Unseelie Court. The daughter of the is unique in size, shape, and form. seelie Faerie Queen, she once possessed The evil that the living faeries carry beauty beyond imagining. But Lussina within has corrupted their physical ap- also possessed envy, ambition, and ruth- pearances. Their skin bears ashen tones, lessness. She plotted to overthrow her their eyes are sunken or blaze with the mother and take her place as queen of the fever of malevolence, their bodies are Seelie Court. She failed. The Faerie withered or bloated. If an evil faerie has Queen, unable to bring herself to punish horns, they are twisted, if it has wings, her daughter with a traitor’s death, cast they are leathery, if it has a tail, the ap- Lussina out of the Seelie Court forever. pendage is barbed. Unseelie faeries are In a rage, Lussina gathered her followers far more likely than seelie faeries to sport together and formed her own court— cloven feet or taloned hands. with herself as queen. Undead faeries are incorporeal phantasms of their former selves. Their eyes Lussina, the Dark Queen: AC 3; have no pupils—only blank, white-hot MV 15, Fl 15 (B); HD 14; hp 81; glowing orbs that seethe hatred. THAC0 7; #AT 1; Dmg by spell; SA Seeming, spells; SD immune to illusions and charm spells, invisible at will, know align- Unseelie faeries are even more likely than ment; SW iron, salt; MR their seelie counterparts to torment trav- 50%; SZ M (4' 4" tall); elers just for kicks. Their tricks range ML 16 (champion); from merely mean-spirited to seriously AL NE; harmful or even deadly—particularly if XP 15,000. the unseelie faeries believe their victims Notes: The to be allies of the Seelie Court or other- queen has wise agents of good. PCs may not even a realize the source of the attacks.

29 Seeming score of 78 and a perception score of 90. SW— Iron weapons inflict an additional 2 points of damage with each hit; salt thrown on the queen neutralizes her Undead members of the Unseelie Court invisibility ability for 1 turn; holy water burns her flesh come into being when a faerie (of any for 1d6+1 points of damage. alignment) dies in a battle between the S 11, D 17, C 17, I 16, W 13, Ch 19. two courts. The horror of kin slaying kin Personality: Cruel, calculating, seduc- creates a ripple through the Seeming it- tive, megalomanical. self, preventing the deceased faerie from Spells under her command dissipating into it. The creature’s spirit (6/6/6/5/3/2/1 per day): All priestly spells becomes trapped, sentenced to eternally of the charm and necromantic spheres, walk the Shadow World but stripped of plus destroy (create) water, detect good the magical abilities it once had. It be- (evil), detect magic, entangle, faerie fire, comes an unthinking being, lashing out in protection from good (evil), putrify (purify) anger and resentment at the living, held food and drink, shillelagh; badberry (good- in check only by the Dark Queen. berry), barkskin, obscurement, produce flame, speak with animals, undetectable (detect) charm, warp wood; bestow (remove) Gremlins and imps (see the MONSTROUS curse, create food and water, pyrotechnics, MANUAL accessory) have been spotted seelie spell of forgetting, spike growth, tree; among the Unseelie Court. hallucinatory forest, protection from good (evil) 10-foot radius, reflecting pool, sticks to snakes, tongues; false (true) seeing. Unseelie faeries appear in the scenario The Dark Queen has lost her comeliness “Courting Danger.” but retains the allure of a black widow. Any male character who beholds her must immediately succeed at a saving throw vs. spell or fall prey to her seduction (per a charm spell). Lussina seeks not to seduce her vic- Unlike their counterparts in the Seelie tims sexually, however, but psychologically, Court, unseelie faeries harbor no reserva- tr ying to enlist them in her side of the eter- tions about engaging in hand-to-hand nal war she wages on the Seelie Court. combat. Peaceful encounters are rare. Lussina demands (and receives) ab- solute loyalty from her followers. She grants no clemency for the smallest of in- fractions; even harmless negligence is Unseelie faeries always try to use their punishable by death. Her own life, she ability to turn invisible to gain the advan- believes, demonstrates the folly of tage of surprise. Once discovered by an mercy—she considers her mother a fool opponent, their strategies vary. for having spared it. The Dark Queen will not risk another traitor rising up Living evil faeries use their spells until to depose her. they reach melee range. They can cast five The Unseelie Court continually re- of the following spells per day: any 1st- or ceives new members. The Faerie 2nd-level spell from the charm sphere, de - Queen has no tolerance for st r oy (create) water, entangle, faerie fire, pro- faeries with evil tendencies— tection from good (evil), putrify (purify) food more often than not, the and drink, shillelagh; badberry (goodberry) , malevolent faeries she barkskin, obscurement, produce flame, speak banishes from her with animals, warp wood; bestow e(rm o v e ) court find their curse, pyrotechnics, spike ogrw t h . In addi- way to her tion, they can cast seelie spell of forge t t i n g daugh- an unlimited number of times. ter’s. In melee, they fight with magical (+1) short swords individually scaled to each

30 Living Evil Faerie Undead Faerie CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World Shadow World FREQUENCY: Uncommon Uncommon ORGANIZATION: Court Court ACTIVITY CYCLE: Nocturnal Nocturnal DIET: Any food but milk Nil INTELLIGENCE: Very to high (11–14) Average (8–10) TREASURE: U (G) Nil ALIGNMENT: Any evil Chaotic evil

NO. APPEARING: 1–8 (100–400) 4–16 (100–600) ARMOR CLASS: 5 0 MOVEMENT: 12, some Fl 15 (B) 15, Fl 24 (B) HIT DICE: 4+2 7+2 THAC0: 17 13 NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 1 DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d6+1 or by spell 1d8

Special Attacks: Spells, Seeming Perception drain, Seeming SPECIAL DEFENSES: Invisibility, Seeming, Iron or +1 or better weapons immune to charms/illusions to hit MAGIC RESISTANCE: 25% 25% SIZE: Tiny to large (6" to 12' tall Tiny to large (6" to 12' tall) MORALE: Steady (11–12) Elite (13–14)

BLOODLINE: None None BLOOD ABILITIES: None None PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Extraordinary/ Extraordinary/ Extraordinary Extraordinary XP VALUE: 2,000 3,000 faerie’s size and carrying an enchantment that works only when borne by a faerie. If fighting nonfaeries, they also use their Evil doesn’t fight fair. Even in what seems Seeming abilities, both offensively and de- to have been a “peaceful” encounter with fensively (see the “Faerie, Seelie” descrip- an unseelie faerie, travelers often walk tion). away victims of a curse. Living unseelie faeries are immune to charmsand illusions, but have several weaknesses. Iron weapons inflict an addi- Unseelie faeries are matched only by tional 3 points of damage per hit. Salt their seelie counterparts in command renders them unable to turn invisible for of the Seeming and ability to see 1d4 turns. t h rough it. Against nonfaerie opponents, they use it constantly Undead faeries close to melee range as to bewilder and intimidate quickly as possible. The touch of such a their foes. Against the Seelie creature chills the blood and clouds the C o u rt, however, they know mind. For each successful hit, victims suf- such illusions are use- fer 1d8 points of damage and lose 5 l e s s . points from their perception score. Undead faeries can be hit only with iron or +1 or better weapons. They are vulnerable to holy water, which inflicts 1d6+1 damage points per vial. They can be turned as spectres. 31 very plain, purely functional clothes of rough homespun and drab colors. Freedom fighters (see below), though challenged by the difficulties of life on the run, manage to keep themselves in better ◆ physical condition than either of the other I had heard that the diminutive people we two classes. They hunt for their food and call “halflings” in Cerilia once dwelled in train for battle, nourishing their bodies the land of shadows. If so, they were wise to and toning their muscles. Most impor- flee. tantly, their eyes still sparkle with life, Their counterparts back in the Shadow fight, and hope. World are not a pleasant people. The evil that permeates the land has wrought ill effects on a race that once enjoyed life. Now, Halflings account for the largest number most of the natives have either given them- of living, mortal Shadow World residents. selves over to the evil, or given up altogether. Some, corrupted by evil, rule domains of Their state is a sad one indeed to witness: their own. The vast majority have become that of a once proud people corrupted and a downtrodden, enslaved population consumed by darkness. forced into servitude for the Shadow —Kaiana, 1377 HC World’s many powerful denizens. But a ◆ few small bands exist who have not had their will beaten out of them. These individuals have become freedom fighters, and work for a day when good shall again Similar in many respects to the Cerilian triumph over evil and chase the shadows halflings who escaped the escalating dark- from their beloved homeland. ness, those halflings who stayed behind have been forever changed by their ever- worsening environment. Once, halflings lived in pleasant, egalitar- ian, pastoral communities where they enjoyed the blessings of good food, warm The appearance of a halfling varies with hearths, and happy families. Now, how- his or her social status (see “Habitat/Soci- ever, the evil forces pervading the Shadow ety,” below). Domain lords have access to World have dramatically altered their ex- the best food and live easier lives than istences. The life of a Shadow World other halflings; they therefore stand taller halfling varies greatly according to what (about 4 feet) and weigh more (typically class he or she has fallen into (or chosen). exhibiting a paunch) than the others. And none know true peace. They dress themselves in fine, brightly colored robes and show off their wealth DOMAIN LORDS in the form of rings, jewels, crowns, As happens with any population that ex- and other adornments. periences wrenching changes in its envi- Slaves barely sustain themselves ronment, some halflings took advantage on what they are given to eat. of the rise of evil in the Shadow World to Further, their state of constant grab authority for themselves. Corrupted fear takes its toll on their by Azrai and his minions, these halflings health. Halfling slaves rarely climbed to power on the bodies of their grow taller than 3 feet. brethren—in many cases, literally. They have emaciated Domain lords rule Shadow World builds and haunted realms of their own, in much the same looks in their way Cerilian regents do. Some have eyes. They landed domains, while others command wear trade. But unlike most Cerilian regents (at least, those respected by their sub-

32 jects), the halfling lords of the Shadow nity arises to join forces with other cham- World rule their domains as harsh dicta- pions, they may agree to lend their torships, using terror, intimidation, and strength to the cause of greater good. violence to control their underlings. These Their primary focus, however, is improv- tactics, once used out of fear of being ing the lots of their own kind. overrun by the Shadow World’s more powerful denizens, are now ingrained into the very nature of the halfling domain Domain lords gain their power by giving lords. themselves over to the Cold Rider, wor- shipping him as a god. In exchange for SLAVES their loyalty, he invests these followers Sadly, the majority of halflings left in the with a seed of evil: a sliver of his own Shadow World are slaves. Some of them essence that takes the form of a tainted live under the corrupt regimes of the bloodline. halfling domain lords, while some have Domain lords believe the world be- been captured by other evil rulers and longs to them. They drain the land’s al- forced into servitude. ready-challenged resources for their own Halfling slaves live a silent, dreary ex- ends, without a care for the future. istence. Their love of life has been beaten In the few areas of the Shadow World out of them, and the greatest goal they suitable for raising crops and livestock, can imagine for themselves is simply to slaves farm the land. Most of their har- make it through another day without get- vest, however, goes to their masters. ting into trouble. They live in perpetual Slaves also perform for their lords other fear that somehow, without even knowing tasks that affect the environment, such as the means, they will incur the wrath—and hunting, fishing, and clearing terrain. the vengeance—of their cruel masters. Freedom fighters live off the land, using only what they need. The wasteful FREEDOM FIGHTERS extravagance of the domain lords sickens Freedom fighters live in small bands scat- them—part of the reason they believe the tered throughout the Shadow World. They selfish dictators should be overthrown. work to liberate their brethren from the bonds of servitude and overthrow the evil domain lords who betrayed their people. Freedom fighters often infiltrate slave Shadow World halflings are, of course, re- communities. There, over a period of lated to Cerilian halflings. The two groups months, they work to incite rebellion. share little in common, however, except Few uprisings are successful—most rebel- their ancestry. Those who left the Shadow lious slaves end up dead—but those who World experience very different lives do survive and escape typically join the from those who stayed behind. ranks of the freedom fighters. A few freedom fighters have become caretakers of havens. Newly freed slaves are brought to these places of safety. There, some train as warriors to join the Combat training and abilities resistance movement; others work to sup- vary with each halfling’s station port the fighters in their own way (fash- in life. ioning weapons, sewing clothes, cooking, and so on). Though they know that evil pervades the world and extends far past the Their dexterity and tyranny under which the slaves directly short statures toil, freedom fighters realize that a hand- grant all ful of renegades acting alone can’t effect halflings much change in a world where the shad- an ows grow longer every day. If an opportu- 33 advantage when trying to gain surprise, (1d4+1) at missile range, and the short provided they are not in metal armor. sword in melee (1d6). They are, however, Nonhalfling foes suffer a –4 penalty to very resourceful, and in a tight spot can surprise rolls (–2 if a door or other screen make use of just about any weapon or ob- must be opened). ject at hand—from clubs and slings to Shadow World halflings have sturdy stools and frying pans. Constitutions that grant them a +3 bonus Freedom fighters live dangerous lives, to saving throws vs. poison, wands, and have developed several roguish skills staves, rods, and spells. (The downtrod- in order to survive. These daring halflings den slaves receive a bonus of only +2.) can backstab (as 5th-level thieves) for three times normal damage and also pos- Domain lords seldom do their own fight- sess the following abilities: ing, relying instead on 2d6 trained guards (AC 6, HD 2, THAC0 18) armed with Open locks 35% crossbows and short swords. Should di- Find/remove traps 35% rect combat become inevitable, domain Move silently 70% lords defend themselves with short Hide in shadows 90% swords (1d6 points damage), held or Detect noise 50% thrown daggers (1d4+1 points damage), Climb walls 50% spells, and the Seeming. As worshippers of the Cold Rider, domain lords are granted priest spells. They Once per day, domain lords and freedom can cast eight spells per day (3/3/2), fighters can dimension dooror shadow choosing from the following: curse (bless), walk (at the 10th level of ability), moving command, cause (cure) light wounds, protec- along the edges of the land’s shadows to tion from good (evil), cause (remove) fear; cover great distances quickly. Freedom charm person or mammal, enthrall, obscure- fighters, who use this ability often, know ment; animate dead, cause (cure) blindness the terrain of the Shadow World better or deafness, cause (cure) disease, speak with than any other native creatures (except, dead. perhaps, the seelie faeries). Living in the eternal twilight of the Slaves fight for their masters if forced, Shadow World has caused all native vari- but suffer a –1 penalty to attack and dam- eties of halflings to develop infravision age rolls because their hearts aren’t really (out to 60 feet). in the effort. If defending themselves or their families, they fight without penalty. Masters generally do not allow slaves to own arms; they fight, therefore, with The most powerful halflings are those whatever makeshift weapons are at who have learned to use the Seeming to hand. These often include slings (1d4+1 their benefit. Domain lords wield it to points damage), knives (1d3, +1 if great effect and often use it to keep their thrown), hand axes (1d6, +1 if subjects in line. They are not quite as thrown), and sickles (1d4+1). good, however, at penetrating the illusions of others—their perceptions are Freedom fighters wear leather skewed by years of seeing the world the armor to provide relative ease way they want to see it and forcing it to and silence of movement. conform to their wills. Their preferred weapons Freedom fighters, by contrast, have are the short bow (1d6 had to learn to look past the Seeming in points of damage), order to survive. They have not fully mas- sling (1d4+1) and tered manipulation of it (except those thrown dag- who once were slaves), but work to im- gers prove their understanding so they can use the Seeming toward more noble ends than do the domain lords.

34 Domain lord Slave Freedom Fighter CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Woodlands, hills, Slave communities Slave communities, forests FREQUENCY: Rare Common Uncommon ORGANIZATION: Solitary Community Band ACTIVITY CYCLE: Day Day Nocturnal DIET: Omnivore Omnivore Omnivore INTELLIGENCE: Very (11–12) Average (8–10) High (13–14) TREASURE: W (G) J (0x3, Q) K, M (Px3, W) ALIGNMENT: Lawful evil Lawful neutral Chaotic good

NO. APPEARING: 1 1–10 (20–200) 1–12 ARMOR CLASS: 7 (10) 10 7 (10) MOVEMENT: 6 6 6 HIT DICE: 6 (d6) 1 (d6) 4 (d6) THAC0: 18 20 17 NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 1 1 DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weapon or spell 1d4 By weapon SPECIAL ATTACKS: Seeming None Backstab, Seeming SPECIAL DEFENSES: Seeming None Seeming MAGIC RESISTANCE: None None None SIZE: S (4' tall) S (3' tall) S (3'6" tall) MORALE: Elite (13–14) Unsteady (5–7) Champion (15–16)

BLOODLINE: Azrai, tainted None None BLOOD ABILITIES: (1) Long life, None None Persuasion, or Resistance PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Lesser/Greater Slight/Slight Greater/Lesser XP VALUE: 2,000 65 650 Slaves, having grown up in a world eye to the harmless illusions generated by permeated by the Seeming, possess a slaves, such as the appearance of a feast passing familiarity with it. They use their to mask a meager meal. Others forbid use slight abilities as a means of escapism, a of any Seeming abilities, considering way to make their existences not quite so them a means of empowerment that must gloomy. Some domain lords turn a blind be denied on any level.

35 monstrously mutated the race. Several members of the Lost have created their own unique breeds of halfling spawn. Those of Macchius sport monkey tails, unusually long and sinuous arms, and clawed paws ◆ that allow the halfling spawn to swing from tr ees and move quickly through the dense, Riders emerged out of the twilight. As they gnarled forests of the Shadow World. came closer, I thought I recognized them as orogs mounted on their hideous lizards. But MASETIAN SPAWN as they neared, I realized they weren’t like The Mount Deismaar cataclysm obliter- any orogs I had ever seen in Cerilia. ated most Masetians from the face of Cer- —Kaiana, 1377 HC ilia, but some found themselves in the ◆ Shadow World. One member of the Lost found this race ideal as servants—with a few adjustments. Masetian spawn retain their human bodies and swarthy coloring Mo r e than two millennia ago, even before but bear the heads, agility, and senses of the first Adurian tribes fled to Cerilia’s Siamese cats. (Ironically, these minions sh o r es, Azrai hand-picked twelve vile hu- came into being accidently when their cre- mans and instructed them in the arts of ator's familiar strayed into a magical exper- dark sorce r y. These most exalted of the iment the spellcaster was conducting on a Evil One’s servants fought on his side in Masetian. The resulting feline humanoid the battle at Mount Deismaar. The force exhibited such superior senses and stealth of that cataclysm blasted the sorce re r s that the wizard bred dozens of litters to into the Shadow World. In Cerilia, where se r ve as spies.) Masetian spawn can sneak no one knew what had happened to them, through the Shadow World’s murky twi- these wizards became known as the Lost. light better than many native races. The minions of the Lost are former humans, humanoids, and demihumans OROG SPAWN transformed into new races. These races When a raiding party of Cerilian oro g s exist solely to serve their evil creators. c h a rged right through a portal and into the Shadow World, several members of the Lost found the vicious, battle-minded While each race of minions has its own race worth studying. In the years since, unique appearance, all minions retain char- several varieties of orog minions have acteristics of their former races (human, evolved, including one that crosses the elven, goblin, giant, etc.). Some of these o rogs with their signature mounts. These attributes are physical, such as build or centaurlike spawn have the upper torsos acute senses. Some are mental, such as of orogs and the bodies of giant lizard s . intelligence. All minions speak the language of their race of origin. The minion races are too numer- The Lost are among the strongest and most ous to list here in full, but they in- important denizens of the Shadow World. clude the following: They have had 2,000 years to amass power, knowledge, and followers. The first, they HALFLING SPAWN seized; the second, they researched. The Many evil denizens of the third, they created for themselves. Shadow World have en- The minions of the Lost are those slaved the native c re a t u res who—willingly or unwillingly— halflings, but only s e rve the twelve evil wizards. A part y the Lost might encounter them on their own as ha v e they complete a task for their master, or characters might have to battle their way t h rough the minions to get to the master. 36 Minions live in small communities, usually within their masters’ compounds (as some of the Lost have found their way back into Encounters with minions of the Lost vary Cerilia, they have brought their minions depending on the type of minion involved. with them). They are monitored by an over- seer or warden; sometimes this individual is a member of the minions’ own race who Halfling spawn wear leather armor to pro- has gained the trust of the wizard. vide enough freedom of movement to An individual member of the Lost may swing from tree branches. This choice of have multiple races of minions as ser- ar mor also enables them to gain the advan- vants. Occasionally, fights break out tage of surprise in many encounters: Oppo- among the different races—but punish- nents suffer a –4 penalty to surprise rol l s . ment is swift and memorable enough that These minions attack with slings and such incidents are rare. thrown missiles from a distance, and with their claws at close range. Like ordinary halflings, the spawn gain a +1 bonus to at- The first minions were the result of magi- tacks with missiles. In melee, these min- cal experimentation. Each member of the ions swipe with their claws for 1d4 points Lost sought to create his or her own fol- of damage each. lowers, and tried different approaches on During hand-to-hand combat, halfling different creatures until each developed spawn attempt to strangle their oppo- the “perfect” minion to suit individual nents with their long, muscular tails. A taste. successful “hit” means the minion has Once a significant number of minions wrapped its tail around a victim’s throat. of each race were created, they began to Each round that the choke hold remains breed. Each race’s population now sup- in effect, the victim suffers 1d8 points of ports itself, under the watchful eye of its damage and must succeed at a saving creator. Like any slavemaster, the wizard throw vs. paralyzation or lose conscious- encourages enough reproduction to pro- ness for 1d4 turns. vide a steady supply of servants, but Halfling spawn enjoy a +2 bonus to keeps the population small enough to pre- saving throws vs. poison, wands, staves, vent uprisings. The harsh life of enslave- rods, and spells. ment to an evil master serves as its own population check, as it results in a low life Masetian spawn have acute senses expectancy: about one-fifth that of the that allow them to be surprised on only a minion’s race of origin. 1 or 2. In addition, opponents suffer a –3 Most minions are omnivores. Those penalty to surprise rolls. These minions generated from races that have more lim- can use any missile or melee weapon ited diets (such as vegetarian elves or car- ordinary Cerilian humans do. They can nivorous goblins) retain those dietary re- also bite for 1d6 points of damage. strictions. The natural agility of Masetian spawn enables them to move silently (50%), hide in shadows (45%), detect noise (45%), and Shades (see separate entry) are another climb walls (90%) per the type of Lost minion. Unlike the “spawn” thief abilities. minions, shades may be used by any member of the Lost, and cannot rep ro d u c e . Orog spawn The Lost also summon monsters from this have thick, hairy plane and beyond to do their bidding. hide instead of Other types of creatures, such as the ordinary awnsheghlien, also create and/or enslave skin minions.

37 Halfling Spawn Masetian Spawn Orog Spawn CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Cerilian or Shadow Shadow World Shadow World World forests FREQUENCY: Uncommon Rare Rare ORGANIZATION: Community Community Community ACTIVITY CYCLE: Day Day Any DIET: Omnivore Omnivore Carnivore INTELLIGENCE: Average (8–10) Very (11–12) Low (5–7) TREASURE: J (O, P) K (M, P) J (O) ALIGNMENT: Neutral evil Lawful evil Chaotic evil

NO. APPEARING: 3–24 (10–100) 3–24 (10–100) 3–24 (10–100) ARMOR CLASS: 6 8 (10) 3 (armored torso), 5 (lower body and unarmored torso) MOVEMENT: 6, 12 in trees 12 12 HIT DICE: 2 3 4+4 THAC0: 19 18 17 NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 (missile) or 1 1 3 (melee) DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weapon or By weapon or 1d6 By weapon +2 1d4/1d4/1d8 SPECIAL ATTACKS: Strangle Bite Nil SPECIAL DEFENSES: Resists poison See text Nil MAGIC RESISTANCE: See text Nil Nil SIZE: S (3' 6" tall) M (6' tall) H (7' tall, 20' long) MORALE: Average (8–10) Steady (11–12) Elite (13–14)

BLOODLINE: None None None BLOOD ABILITIES: None None None PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Middling/Lesser Lesser/None Slight/None XP VALUE: 270 175 270

on their torsos, which grants them an on the type of acts their creator wishes Armor Class of 5 on their upper bodies them to perform. Such attributes can in- that matches the AC 5 of their lizard clude character-class-specific abilities lower bodies. Most orog spawn wear such as spellcasting, thief skills, or armor, however, to bring their upper weapon specialization. They can also in- body Armor Class to 3. clude special attack and defense modes These minions favor axes, cross- (poison, paralyzation, regeneration, etc.). bows, heavy long swords, maces, and polearms. Their strength grants them a +2 damage bonus to attacks made Because minions of the Lost tend to be with these weapons. Bright sun- intelligent creatures, it is possible to con- light blinds and nauseates orog verse with them. Minions, however, know spawn, inflicting a –3 penalty to little of their masters’ plans beyond the attack and saving throws. immediate task assigned to them. Other types of minions can enjoy a range of special abilities Minions of the Lost generally develop at and defenses, least some ability to penetrate the Seem- depending. Only minions based on native ing Shadow World races, however, have any ability to manipulate it.

38 ones); a pyrophobic, a fire elemental; a hemophobic, a tidal wave of blood. ◆ Of all the sinister, hideous creatures I en- At the dawn of the Shadow World, countered while in the Shadow World, by far seemers were very rare creatures of neu- the worst was a horror called the seemer. It tral alignment. The shapes they took were appeared to me as my own darling boy— based on observers’ psyches, but not nec- only strangled and mutilated, and walking essarily their fears. As the Seeming grew with the heavy, dull steps of the undead. more powerful, seemers became more —Kaiana, 1377 HC plentiful. Unfortunately, during this evo- ◆ lution Azrai’s influence increasingly permeated the Shadow World, corrupting parts of the Seeming and most of its manifestations. Though neutral seemers still Seemers are creatures who play upon the exist, the majority of the seemers alive fears of those they encounter, making today are evil in nature. Born of the themselves appear to be whatever their Shadow World itself, they seek to eradi- observers most dread. cate intruders.

A seemer is a manifestation of the Seem- A seemer springs into existence when the ing itself, a coalescence of the illusory en- Seeming in a certain area becomes so ergies in a given area. A seemer can take concentrated that its energies sponta- on the appearance and properties of any neously generate into life. The new crea- living entity, from a flea to a dragon to ture takes on the image of whatever living specific individuals. Seemers can even entity it first sees, then quickly looks take on the forms of plants; multiple about for nourishment. seemers, for example, together could Seemers feed off the psychic energy of form an entire “forest.” their observers, using this sustenance to Seemers appear as their observers’ shape themselves accordingly. Because worst fears. In an encounter with several deep-rooted fears occupy a proportionally viewers, a single seemer may focus on the high amount of a character’s subcon- anxieties of only one character—appear- scious, seemers seize upon those images ing the same to all foes—or appear differ- and adopt them. ent to each individual, so that each must face his or her own worst enemy.

Seemers enable the Dungeon Master to A seemer can detect a character’s really mess with the player characters’ psychic energy from a range of 500 minds. They are one’s biggest nightmares yards, enabling it to transform become to life, and nearly any cause of anxi- fore it is seen by a PC. ety is fair game. PCs can suddenly find themselves face to face with their worst enemies (dead or alive): individuals they met in combat, neighboring regents who Seemers automatically at- make their lives difficult, awnsheghlien tack any intelligent who strike fear in the hearts of all Ceril- being they encounter ians. who is not native Or the seemer can take the form of to the Shadow other fears. For example, an arachnopho- World. bic character can be apparently faced with a giant spider (or a swarm of small

39 CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World A “spellcaster” seemer uses the Seem- FREQUENCY: Rare ing to create spell-like effects; these ex- ORGANIZATION: Solitary or small clude abjuration and divination spells. group “Fighters” use weapons fashioned from ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any the Seeming. However, because the DIET: Psychic energy Seeming is not as hard as steel, as hot as INTELLIGENCE: High (13–14) flame, and so on, each attack inflicts a TREASURE: None maximum of 2d6 points of damage—less ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evil if the real form of attack inflicts less. Thus a seemer in the form of a huge spider NO. APPEARING: 1–10 could inflict only 1d6 points of damage; ARMOR CLASS: 4 one in the form of an orog with a long MOVEMENT: Varies sword inflicts 1d8+2 points of damage. HIT DICE: 9 Poisons, aging, level drains, and other THAC0: 11 “indirect” attacks have a placebo effect— NO. OF ATTACKS: Varies the victims and their companions think DAMAGE/ATTACK: Maximum of 2d6 they suffer the effect, but it wears off in SPECIAL ATTACKS: Seeming 2d4 hours. SPECIAL DEFENSES: Seeming Seemers are corporeal and suffer nor- MAGIC RESISTANCE: None mal damage. They are sensitive to sun- SIZE: Any light, suffering a –2 penalty to all attack MORALE: Elite (13–14) and damage rolls in such conditions.

BLOODLINE: None BLOOD ABILITIES: None Noncombative encounters between a PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Slight/Extra- seemer and a visitor to the Shadow ordinary World are extremely rare. Native cre a- XP VALUE: 2,000 t u res with at least a greater Seeming s c o re can converse with seemers. Those Because the seemer embodies something with an extraord i n a ry Seeming score personally fearful to the character, it auto- stand a chance (5% per 10 Seeming matically gains surprise unless the viewer points) of winning a seemer’s coopera- succeeds at a saving throw vs. paralyzation for a brief period. tion. The seemer fights with the weapons and abilities normally associated with the As children of the Seeming itself, seemers entity it appears to be. Thus, a seemer in have extraordinary control over it. They the form of a fire elemental attacks with have trouble seeing past it, however, and flaming limbs; one in the shape of a therefore have limited perception. giant python has a constriction attack.

40 Solitary creatures by nature, Seeming ◆ walkers wander in search of a “comfort- As I stared into the dark, tangled forest, de- able” illusion in which to dwell for a time. spairing of ever finding my way through it, a They prefer environmental manifestations slight movement caught the corner of my eye. of the Seeming—passive, semipermanent A ripple seemed to pass through the forest, illusions that cloak the landscape—as op- as if a breeze fluttered a sheer curtain hang- posed to the more active manipulations ing between me and the gnarled trees. wrought by Shadow World denizens who I blinked, then peered more closely. But the can control the Seeming. Seeming walkers phenomenon—whatever it was—had passed. generally remain in a passive illusion for —Kaiana, 1377 HC several weeks unless disturbed (the illusion shifts, or a character penetrates it). ◆ Seeming walkers travel from place to place through the Seeming, often using active manipulations as “bridges” between passive illusions. Thus, observant charac- Seeming walkers are chameleonlike crea - ters facing a large dragon might notice a tu r es that “wade” through the Seeming, ripple pass along its belly—evidence that camouflaged by the illusions then in effe c t . the formidable beast is just an illusion.

Nobody is entirely sure what a Seeming Though Seeming walkers create ripples walker rea l l y looks like. It’s often perce i v e d while traveling through the Seeming, they as a ripple in another image as the Seem- have little other effect on the environment ing walker moves through it, like a stage- and leave behind no evidence of their pass- hand brushing up on a scenery curta i n . ing. They dine on broken illusions—pieces Sages believe that, stripped of the of images shattered by a perceptive charac- Seeming’s shroud, Seeming walkers are te r ’s ability to penetrate the Seeming. When ugly little creatures. Full-grown walkers they die, the Seeming absorbs their bodies. are believed to stand 4 feet tall, have wrinkled green skin covered with thin yel- lowish fur, and bear only a few tufts of hair on turnip-shaped heads. They are said to have thin arms and legs, with an Though many Seeming walkers exist in the opposable thumb and two large fingers on Shadow World, encounters with them are each hand, and three toes per foot. This ra r e, and combat rarer still. Because a description, however, is mere speculation Seeming walker needs active uses of the and has never been reliably confirmed. Seeming in order to travel, it uncon- sciously exerts an effect on encounters between other parties in order to sus- Seeming walkers tend to mind their own tain the tension between them. business, moving through Shadow World Should the active Seeming face a te r rain in pursuit of their own simple goals th r eat of exposure, the pres e n c e and not taking an interest in the larger, of a Seeming walker temporar- mo r e worldly affairs of other inhabitants. ily boosts the Seeming scores Ho w e v e r , because they move throu g h of all involved crea t u r es by the illusions woven by the Shadow Wor l d ’ s 10 points (provided the po w e r ful denizens, Seeming walkers inad- cre a t u r es have at ve r tently bear witness to major events and least slight Seem- conversations. Akin to the proverbial “fly ing to begin on the wall,” a Seeming walker could rel a t e wi t h ) . fascinating stories—provided the would-be listener managed to track one down.

41 CLIMATE/TERRAIN: The Seeming If a Seeming walker is attacked or the FREQUENCY: Rare Seeming is penetrated by some other ORGANIZATION: Solitary means, the illusions around the creature ACTIVITY CYCLE: Active Seeming shatter. The Seeming walker is extremely DIET: Broken illusions vulnerable in this state; its movement rate INTELLIGENCE: Very (11–12) drops to 3 and its armor class shifts to 10. TREASURE: None In addition, the creature loses 1d8 hit ALIGNMENT: Neutral points per day that it remains exposed to view. It will beg for its freedom and NO. APPEARING: 1 promise nearly anything in exchange. ARMOR CLASS: 5 (10) (See “Peaceful Encounters,” below.) Movement: 3, 12 in Seeming Should combat prove inevitable, the HIT DICE: 3 creature uses the shards of shattered illu- THAC0: 17 sions as missile weapons, hurling them to- NO. OF ATTACKS: 2 ward opponents. The Seeming shards cre- DAMAGE/ATTACK: See text ate random illusions when they hit a tar- SPECIAL ATTACKS: Seeming shards get or the ground. Damage is based on SPECIAL DEFENSES: Seeming camou- the nature of the illusion created (see re- flage; immune to strictions for the seemer). DMs may se- illusions, charms lect the illusions themselves, or allow the MAGIC RESISTANCE: None shards to function like a deck of illusions. SIZE: S (4' tall) Seeming walkers use the chaos created by MORALE: Unreliable (2–4) the illusions to attempt escape.

BLOODLINE: None BLOOD ABILITIES: None Seeming walkers avoid encounters with PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Extraordinary/ others if at all possible. Painfully self-con- Greater scious, they cannot bear to be looked at or XP VALUE: 420 be near someone who knows they exist. If captured, a Seeming walker negoti- A Seeming walker can create this boost ates for its freedom—all the while ducking up to three times per encounter. So, each its head and trying to shrink from view. It time an active use of the Seeming starts to of fers nearly anything in its possession, falter or the encounter to resolve itself, the fr om information to spare Seeming active Seeming increases. The effect can sh a r ds. Failing that, the crea t u r e watches occur even within cooperating parties; char- for opportunities to use shards to crea t e acters start believing their companions are distractions that enable it to slip away. behaving suspiciously, when in fact they ar e merely going about their business. Seeming walkers don’t wish to harm anyone with this unintentional escala- Seeming walkers have extraordinary per- tion—they merely need to keep the ception, which grants them the ability to Seeming active as long as possible. navigate through the Seeming. While Seeming walkers have a greater Seeming score, it represents only how high a character’s perception must be to Seeming walkers usually pass spot a Seeming walker’s rippling move- right by others undetected. ments. A viewer’s perception score must If spotted (as a ripple), exceed a Seeming walker’s Seeming score they hold still, attempt- by at least 20 points before its true ap- ing to camouflage pearance is revealed. themselves within Though Seeming walkers possess a the Seeming. unique ability to use the Seeming as a medium for travel, they cannot otherwise manipulate it.

42 as mortals. Such shades find many humans’ urgent concerns trivial. They may even have difficulty concentrating on the ◆ conversations of mortals addressing them, Th e re s’ a crea t u r e said to walk among us— having grown used to ignoring people and ”shades,” they call them. The beings look like things that do not interest them. humans, talk like humans, walk like humans. Shades spend a great deal of time re- But inside, there’ s nothing human about them. turning to Cerilia, much more so than —Halden, Faylene’s grandson, 1467 HC many other creatures of the Shadow World. They do so under the direction of ◆ their evil masters—many of whom cannot or prefer not to make the crossing themselves. These lords send them on missions Shades are former humans transformed to gather information, retrieve powerful into crea t u r es of shadow. They move free l y items, kidnap or kill important (or seem- th r ough both the Shadow World and Cer- ingly unimportant) beings, protect a cerilia, doing the bidding of their evil masters. tain location, or perform some other task.

Shades bear such a strong resemblance to Human beings become shades when wiz- humans that the crea t u r es are often mis- ar ds use powerful magic (see spell descrip- taken for them. Most shades appear as tion, below) to replace their spirits with humans of their former physical height the stuff of shadows. Most undergo this and appearance, but with grayish or nearly tr a n s f o r mation involuntarily, though a few black dusky skin and veiled eyes. They people sworn to the cause of evil have favor somber clothing and wear armor if been known to submit freely. The process they so desire, provided it does not inter- confers upon subjects virtual immortality fe r e with any spellcasting abilities they (shades die only if slain and prevented may possess. Shades can speak as many fr om regenerating), but leaves them sterile. languages as their intelligence allows, but ◆ have no special language of their own. All shades speak their native human tongue. Create Shade Alteration

Level: 9 Created by evil wizards, shades exist to Range: Special serve their masters as slaves. Though any Components: V, S, M evil mage with enough experience and re- Casting Time: 1 day sources can transform someone into a Duration: Instantaneous shade, few meet these qualifications. Area of Effect: 1 being Most of those who do dwell in the Saving Throw: None Shadow World. Shades are favorite minions among the land’s powerful denizens. This powerful spell infuses one Should player characters encounter a being with shadowstuff from the high-level evil wizard, they could wind up Shadow World and transforms in danger of becoming shades themselves. that individual into a shade. The subject must be a single-classed human or Shades tend toward taciturn dispositions demihuman of at and prefer solitude. They live primarily in least 10th level. the Shadow World. Though some shades Only a still maintain strong connections with free-willed their former abodes in Cerilia, most un- wizard derwent their transformations so long ago that they have almost forgotten their lives 43 can cast this spell successfully. some nourishment from shadow itself; no The casting of this spell is a long, deli- accounts exist of any of captive shades cate, and highly complex procedure. The (for what little time they were captured) caster and the subject must not be dis- starving or becoming malnourished for turbed at all, or else the spell will fail. Ad- lack of food and water. Shades do not cre- ditionally, the wizard must cast summon ate an uneasy reaction in animals, as do shadow, shadow walk, gate,and perma- many unnatural creatures; quite to the nencyupon the subject for the transfor- contrary, they seem to be ignored by crea- mation to succeed. Upon completion of tures of lesser intelligence, perceived sim- all the castings, the subject must survive a ply as shadows rather than as living be- system shock roll. ings. A 25% bonus can be added to this rol l Demihumans who become shades if this spell is cast in the Shadow World it- function as described here, though their self. A percentile roll less than or equal to appearance suggests their former race. A the survival chance indicates that the sub- dwarven shade, for example, might ap- ject has been transformed successfully into pear very stout. There are very few demi- a shade. Failure means that the subject human shades compared to the number dissolves away into Shadow, lost forev e r . of apparently human shades. Not even a wi s h can recover the subject. It is possible for the subject to undergo an alignment change by this spell (see A shade appears in “Courting Danger.” table, below). A wi s h spell can prevent any change in alignment. After the spell is cast, the wizard loses 1d6 Constitution points and loses consciousness for 1d8 days. He or she also ages five years if using a wi s h spell to prevent an alignment change. Shades, by their nature, have an affinity for shadow, and behave differently depending 1d10 Alignment Result on the degree of shadow they occupy. 1 Stays the same 2–4 Moves a step toward true neutral 5–7 Moves a step toward evil Shades become fairly weak when exposed 8–9 Becomes true neutral to unrelieved light or complete darkness, 10 Becomes neutral evil. but prove formidable when in shadows. Their varying capabilities are described The material components for this spell below, and also listed in the Shade Ability are 5 GB worth of powdered onyx, 5 GB Summary Table for ease of reference. worth of powdered diamond, and a chip of Azrai’s sielshegh(see The Book of No Shadows (Cerilia): The shade is sur- Magecraft). The powdered onyx and di- rounded by multiple light sources: within amond are consumed during the cast- a magical light or darkness spell, in a ing, while the chip of bloodstone room cut off from all light sources (com- draws forth the necessary amounts plete darkness), or in the open on a of shadowstuff and awnmebhaighl bright, clear day. The shade suffers these from the Shadow World. penalties: ◆ ◆ All the shade’s senses function at half the human norm. ◆ Base movement rate reduced to 12. Shades eat much the ◆ -2 hit points per hit die (minimum 1 same diet as they did point per die). while mortal, but ◆ -4 saving throw penalty. apparently receive Weak Shadows (Cerilia): These lighting conditions include outdoors at dawn or twilight, in the woods on a bright day, in 44 average indoor light, or outdoors on a CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World, moonless or overcast night. The shade Cerilia functions normally in most respects, en- FREQUENCY: Very rare joying acute eyesight and hearing. The ORGANIZATION: Solitary shade inflicts a -1 penalty on an oppo- ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any (SW); Twi- nent’s surprise rolls. light/night (Cer- ilia) Strong Shadows (Cerilia): The shade en- DIET: Omnivore joys the following advantages outdoors at INTELLIGENCE: Low to Genius night or in dim indoor light: (5–18) ◆ Highly acute eyesight and hearing TREASURE: K, M, N, or W equal to twice the human norm. ALIGNMENT: Any nongood ◆ +1 hit point per Hit Die. ◆ +2 to surprise rolls, -2 to opponent’s NO. APPEARING: 1–2 surprise rolls. ◆ ARMOR CLASS: 10 (or by armor Base movement rate of 15. type) ◆ +1 to all saving throws, attack rolls, and Movement: 15 damage rolls; all such rolls made against the shade suffer a -1 penalty HIT DICE:10 (minimum 1 point of damage per die). THAC0: 11 ◆ Magic resistance equal to 2% per Hit NO. OF ATTACKS:1 Die or level of experience (but never DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weapon (usu- more than 40%). ally 1d8) ◆ Invisibility once per turn, maximum du- SPECIAL ATTACKS: Seeming, sur- ration 1 hour per use. prise ◆ Slight ability to manipulate the Seem- SPECIAL DEFENSES: Seeming, blink, ing while in Cerilia. regeneration ◆ The ability to regenerate 1 hit point a MAGIC RESISTANCE: Variable turn. The shade can regenerate severed SIZE: M (avg. 6’ tall) limbs if the lost limb is pressed against MORALE: Elite (13–14) the stump, but cannot regenerate its head if decapitated. BLOODLINE: None (lost during transforma- Shadow World: As the Shadow World is tion) a shade’s home terrain, its abilities are BLOOD ABILITIES: None strongest there. While in the Shadow PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Lesser /Varies World, a shade enjoys: with location ◆ Highly acute eyesight and hearing XP VALUE: 6,000 equal to twice the human norm. The shade sees through shadows as well as a human sees in broad daylight. Any against the shade suffer a -3 penalty hide in shadows attempts (except by (minimum 1 point of damage per die). other shades) automatically fail with re- ◆ spect to the shade. Magic resistance equal to 3% per ◆ +3 hit points per Hit Die. Hit Die or level of experience ◆ (but never more than 70%). +3 to surprise rolls, -3 to opponent’s ◆ surprise rolls. Middling ability to manipu- ◆ late the Seeming. Base movement rate of 18 and the abil- ◆ ity to make a controlled blink once The ability to create every two rounds. This ability allows quasi-real images once the shade to appear in any very shad- an hour. This ability owy area within 100 yards and attack, is similar to a use an ability, or cast a spell after it ap- demishadow pears. The shade never appears inside a monsters solid object. spell ◆ +3 to all saving throws, attack rolls, and damage rolls; all such rolls made 45 shade ability summary table The table below presents the varying abilitiesof shades based on the amount of ambient shadow present.

Lighting Senses MR Attack/ Saving Conditions (re: Human) MV hp (Max.) Surprise Damage Throw Magic/Seeming No shadows 1/2 12 –2/die Nil — — –4 — Weak shadows 1 15 Normal Nil –12 —0— Strong shadows 2 15 +1/die 2%/level (40%) +23 +13 +1 slight Seeming, regenerate 1/turn, invisibility 1 hour Shadow World 21 18 +3/die 3%/level (70%) +33 +33 +3 middling Seeming, quasi-images, blink 1/2 rounds, regenerate 3/round, teleport 1/day

1 See in shadows as human in full daylight. Non-shade thieves in shadows are seen clearly. 2 Opponents have a –1 penalty to their surprise rolls. 3 Opponents have an opposite bonus or penalty of the same magnitude. For example, in strong shadows, a shade has a +1 attack bonus, while its opponents have an attack penalty of –1. Hit dice are not reduced below 1 hit point/die; damage rolls are not reduced below 1.

cast at the shade’s level (or 2nd level, to disclose any details about themselves. whichever is better), except that 1d4 ost shades PCs meet have tasks to fulfill duplicates of the shade appear. The for their masters; they have little time to shade has mental control over the du- tarry and even less inclination to divulge plicates. the details of their nature or activities. ◆ The ability to regenerate 3 hit points a round, with the limitations noted above under the regeneration ability for perception and/or seeming strong shadows. The longer they have been shades, the ◆ The ability to teleport without error to more these creatures know about the anywhere in the Shadow World once Shadow World and the more they can per day. penetrate its Seeming. Shades average a lesser perception score, though very new shades have lower scores and old shades peaceful encounters have higher scores. Noncombative encounters with shades Shades’ Seeming abilities vary with lo- are possible. Characters should find them cation and lighting conditions (see “Com- reluctant to converse (unless a shade is it- bat”). self digging for information) and unwilling

46 Each shadow steed is individually coa- ◆ lesced and shaped from shadowstuff by Our new acquaintance said he would ride its master, a process which allows the along with us as far as Aberannwn. I rider to tailor the horse to his or her spe- glanced around for his mount, but saw none. cific needs and preferences. As mount He whistled. I listened expectantly for and rider become more used to each the soft thump of hooves hitting the ground other, the stallion learns to make adjust- as his horse trotted out from wherever he had ments of its own. Their relationship be- left it. comes symbiotic, with the two seeming to Instead, a shape began to form out of function as a single entity. the shadows. The twilight itself seemed to coalesce, taking on the figure of a large stallion. When not in use, the steed diffuses back I blinked. Surely my eyes were deceiving into the twilight until called again by its me. master. The stallion need not reappear —Halden, 1467 HC where its rider last “left” it: a shadow steed can rematerialize in any shadowy or ◆ twilight area of the Shadow World (which means nearly anywhere, except a region artificially illuminated by light or some Shadow steeds are stallions made of shad- other means). owstuff—the shadows, twilight, and mists that permeate the Shadow World and help create its sinister atmosphere. While repeated interaction with its master makes each shadow steed unique, it is said that the Cold Rider’s mount makes The color of shadow steeds varies from all others look like trick ponies. Popular light gray to black. The mounts are incor- belief credits his stallion with abilities far poreal but opaque, like a heavy fog. Due surpassing those of ordinary shadow to the eternal twilight that enshrouds the steeds. In fact, some hypothesize that the Shadow World, these stallions often blend Cold Rider and his mount don’t merely right into the landscape. work as one: They are one. From a distance, their riders fre- quently look as if they’re floating through the air. But up close, observers can see the glow of their pupilless eyes, the thick tendrils that form their manes, their whiplike tails, and the sharp, semi-corporeal As shadow steeds are essentially war hooves that hammer on the ground. And horses, characters are far more likely anyone unfortunate enough to receive a to encounter them in combat than kick from one of those hooves feels force in other situations. equal to that of a flesh-and-blood stallion behind it. Shadow steeds are mounts wo r thy of the powerful rid- Shadow steeds serve as mounts for many ers they bear. In battle, denizens of the Shadow World, including they can fight better riders of the Wild Hunt, the queens of the than the best- Seelie and Unseelie Courts, and the Cold trained Cerilian Rider himself. war horses.

47 CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World; of damage per hoof. It also uses one addi- Cerilia within tional form of attack. If the stallion’s op- 100’ of a portal ponent is behind it, it uses its whiplike FREQUENCY: Rare tail to strike for 1d4 points of damage; if ORGANIZATION: Solitary the foe is in front of it, the destrier bites ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any for 1d8 points of damage. DIET: Nil If given an opportunity to charge, a INTELLIGENCE: Low (5–7) shadow steed can attempt to trample an TREASURE: Nil opponent for 2d6 points of damage. ALIGNMENT: Neutral Magical and silver weapons inflict full damage on shadow steeds. All other NO. APPEARING: 1 weapons inflict half damage. ARMOR CLASS: 0 As creatures of shadow and twilight, MOVEMENT: 24 shadow steeds are vulnerable to bright light. HIT DICE: 7 Li g h t and continual lightinflict 1d8 points of THAC0: 13 damage and blind the mount. Su n r a y in j u re s NO. OF ATTACKS: 3 the stallion as if it were undead. DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d 1 0 / 1 d 1 0 / 1 d 4 / 1 d 8 (k i c k / k i c k / t a i l / b i t e ) SPECIAL ATTACKS: Trample Shadow steeds are never encountered SPECIAL DEFENSES: Half damage from without their masters. If a rider is en- all but magical or gaged in a peaceful encounter with char- silver weapons acters, his or her mount waits patiently, MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil snorting or nickering if it senses the pres- SIZE: L (6–7’ at shoul- ence of someone (or something) its mas- der) ter would consider a foe. MORALE: Champion (15–16)

BLOODLINE: None The ability to see through the Seeming BLOOD ABILITIES: None enables a shadow steed to aid its rider. PER C E P T I O N /S EE M I N G :Middling/None Riders with lower perception scores than XP VALUE: 1,400 their horses have been known to charge headlong into apparent danger, placing A shadow steed fights by kicking with their trust entirely in their mounts. its front or rear hooves, for 1d10 points

48 might also appear in Cerilia at portal openings, perhaps to offer warni n g s . Though shadow warriors will speak to ◆ go o d -aligned characters, they do not con- The cwn annwn had me in its jaws—burning verse long and are highly unlikely to enter me with its fire, raking me with its claws, into any kind of formal alliance or cooper- and shaking me until I dropped my bow. ative agreement. The spirits should be Alderic could not help me—another beast used as momentary sources of informa t i o n had him pinned to the ground. Our elven or aid, not as auxiliary party members. companion was already slain. I knew in that moment, with sickening certainty, my son and I were going to die. Prince Eyrmin, a former member of the Su d d e n l y , the hound released me with a Sielwode’s royal family, leads the shadow howl of pain. It turned and growled. Behind warriors. The elven prince died several it stood a ghostly warri o r . Dressed in arch a i c centuries ago driving a lich-lord out of the arm o r , the knight attacked the cwn annwn Sielwode and back into the Shadow with a sword bathed in mystical light. World. When the portal closed, trapping With the aid of this surprise ally, we him and 50 other spirit warriors on the managed to slay the hounds. Before we wrong side, the elves vowed to fight for could thank our rescuer, however, he disap- the cause of light in their new, dark home. peared into the night. Since then, more spirits (demihuman and —Faylene, 1420 HC human) have joined their ranks. ◆ The prince has 15 Hit Dice and carries a powerful magical sword, Deathirst (details on page 51). The warriors canvas the Shadow Wor l d Shadow warriors are spirits of noble Ceril- in small bands, offering aid where they can ians who fight on behalf of good in the and collecting information to rep o r t to the Shadow World. Killed trying to defend their prince. Any band of 10 or more warri o r s land from shadow incursions, they now includes a 12 HD lieutenant; the prince continue their battle from the other side. also has three 13 HD captains among the ranks. Occasionally, the bands come together for large -scale assaults on one Shadow warriors look as they did in life. Be- Shadow World denizen or another. But cause many of these spirits died long ago, Ey r min realizes that their numbers are too often they wear antiquated armor and cloth- small to take on all the Shadow Wor l d ’ s ing. In the Shadow World, shadow warri o r s many evils, so rather than engaging in fu- ar e transparent until they engage in combat; tile suicide missions, the spirit warri o r s then they become semicorporea l . focus their effo r ts on smaller skirmi s h e s At portal openings in Cerilia, shadow in which they can make a diffe re n c e . wa r riors are invisible; only characters with The shadow warriors maintain a middling or better perception can see or se c r et headquarters deep within one hear them. To such a perceptive character, of the Shadow Wor l d ’ s many the warriors appear transparen t . fo r ests. Each band of warriors re- Shadow warriors keep all abilities, skills, tu r ns there once every two to languages, and knowledge they had in life. four months to rep o r t news and activities and, when ne c e s s a r y, receive new in s t r uctions. A 25% Only rarely do player characters find them- chance exists of selves opposing shadow warriors in com- finding the bat. Usually, these spirits interact with PCs prince there as transient allies, appearing unexpectedly at any during Shadow World battles where the fo r ces of good are in danger of losing. They

49 given time; more often than not, he is pa- ar ound, attempting to glean informa t i o n tr oling along with his troops. During the fr om those they have helped, or they may pr i n c e ’ s absences, one of his captains simply disappear into the eternal twilight. oversees the command post. Shadow warriors will not aid parties Should the scattered bands need to with even one evil-aligned character among communicate quickly over distances, they them, no matter what the circu m s t a n c e s . use a system of high-pitched whistles undetectable to mortal ears. Shadow warriors’ transparency and ability to move silently enable them to gain sur- The original 50 shadow warriors began as prise 90% of the time. As these warriors spirits trapped on Aebrynis after their have considerable experience fighting crea - deaths. When Eyrmin (with the help of tu r es of the Shadow World, they often can his son) freed their essences during a bat- penetrate an opponent’s Seeming or alrea d y tle at a portal, they chose to follow him know a monster’s weakness and adjust their into the Shadow World and make his tactics accordi n g l y . If aiding an adventuring cause their own. pa rt y , they may call out instruc t i o n s . New shadow warriors come into being The fighters carry whatever weapons when a champion of strong moral character they died bearing. Because shadow war- dies trying to defend his or her homeland riors generally are of noble birth and died fr om a shadow incursion. Not every fighter prepared to battle forces of the Shadow who dies in such a manner becomes a World, a majority of them hold magical shadow warrior: The choice is a conscious weapons. The DM may assign arms or use one. Only those whose dedication to Cer- the following table to determine each ilia surpasses even death itself join these shadow warrior’s weapon. noble ranks. For that reason, most shadow wa r riors were once scions or elves. Though 1d10 Weapon they lost any bloodlines at death, their mys- 1 short sword of quickness tical connection to the land and drive to de- 2 long sword +2 fend it continues beyond the grave. 3–4 long sword +1 When a shadow warrior is “killed,” its 5–6 long bow +1 spirit fades from the Shadow World and 7–8 nonmagical long bow at last enjoys the peaceful afterlife dic- 9–10 nonmagical sword tated by its culture of origin. The three captains carry a two-handed sword +3;a sword, +4 defender;and a long The BIRTHRIGHT novel Greathearttells the sword +2, +3 vs. magic-using and enchanted story of Prince Eyrmin, Deathirst,and creaturesrespectively. Lieutenants bear ei- the original shadow warriors. ther a sword of sharpness(66% chance) or a crossbow of accuracy, +3(34% chance). Shadow warriors can be hit only by silver or magical weapons. They are immune to poison, paralyzation, sleep, charm, an d all but the most powerful illusion spells Player characters should hope (sixth level or higher). Their long res i - their encounters with shadow dence in a land of eternal twilight and wa r riors are peaceful ones, for countless battles against Shadow Wor l d the ghostly knights prov e evils, however, have taken their toll: The themselves formi d a b l e fighters have become especially vulnerable opponents in battle. to priest spells of the sun sphere and wiz- After a skirmi s h , ar d spells from the school of necrom a n c y . they may Li g h t and continual light(cast by priests or st i c k wi z a r ds) and su n r a y automatically blind the warriors (no saving throw); su n r a y al s o inflicts undead damage. Necrom a n c y 50 spells inflict double damage and impose a CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World; +2 saving throw penalty (in addition to near portals in any other penalties the spell may cause). Cerilia FREQUENCY: Rare DEATHIRST ORGANIZATION: Solitary or squad Prince Eyrmin carries the magical sword ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any Deathirst,a powerful blade forged by the DIET: Nil gods themselves in the days before the INTELLIGENCE: Ver y high (15–16) Mount Deismaar cataclysm. Once an evil TREASURE: U weapon used against him, in the prince’s ALIGNMENT: Any nonevil hands it has become a neutral instrument. De a t h i r s t is a vorpal sword +6,a blade NO. APPEARING: 2–12 so sharp that it can literally cut throu g h ARMOR CLASS: 0 the Seeming. When holding the sword, one MOVEMENT: 12 sees opponents, events, and terrain as they HIT DICE: 11 really are, stripped of the Seeming’s mask- THAC0: 9 ing influence. In addition, the weapon can NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 cut through the barrier between the DAMAGE/ATTACK: By weapon Shadow World and Cerilia, creating porta l s SPECIAL ATTACKS: Nil at the bearer ’s will. A single word spoken SPECIAL DEFENSES: Surprise; silver or by the owner closes the porta l . magical weapons The blade is a bastard sword inscribed to hit; immune to with dark, wicked runes. These runes seek poison, paralyza- to corrupt anyone who wields De a t h i r s t , in- tion, most illusion fusing the bearer with evil. Only Eyrmi n spells, sleep, charm has been able to withstand this corrup t i o n . MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil In evil hands, the weapon gains addi- SIZE: M (6–7' tall) tional abilities, becoming a sw o r d of MORALE: Fearless (19–20) li f e -stealing and wounding. It also increa s e s its wielder’s Seeming score by 20 during BLOODLINE: None combat; if the owner is blooded, the bearer BLOOD ABILITIES: None receives an additional major blood ability. PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Greater/None Deathirstwas forged simultaneously XP VALUE: 6,000 with Starfire,a blade created for the cause Lieutenant 7,000 of good. Though centuries ago Starfire Captain 8,000 was carried by Cald, Eyrmin’s adopted Prince 10,000 human son, no one knows what has become of it since. In addition, many encountered shadow cre a t u r es and the Seeming while still alive. This familiarity with the Seeming Initial encounters with shadow warri o r s grants shadow warriors greater perce p - tend to occur in combat situations. How- tion; a rare few (including the prince) ev e r , occasionally circumstances prom p t have extraordi n a r y perce p t i o n . the ghostly fighters to approach characters Though they are long-term for other reasons. If sure of adventurer s ’ residents of the Shadow World, nonevil alignment (through observation or shadow warriors are diamet- instinct), shadow warriors may offer warn- rically opposed to the ings about something that lies ahead or Seeming and therefore seek information to broaden their own have no ability to ma- knowledge of Shadow World happenings. nipulate it themselves.

Most shadow warriors have resided in the Shadow World for years (often centuries).

51 morse, they would not be sentenced to such a lousy way to spend eternity. The gods, after all, were once themselves mor- ◆ tal—they understand mortal weakness, The doors of the inn shivered at the violence and they understand forgiveness. But of the thunderstorm raging outside. As an when death is the only reason an evil per- icy draft licked the hearth flames, I gathered son stopped committing heinous acts, the my cape more closely about me, thankful for gods feel quite justified in withholding the the comfort of the fire. compassion the deceased never showed. A gentleman across from me rose. “I’m The unforgiven dead are sentenced to going to check on my horse,” he said. “She walk the earth until they have made up gets skittish in storms this loud.” for their crimes. Unfortunately, those who The innkeeper shook his head. “I would make up the Host just never get it. They not go outside, sir, were I you.” find fault with the gods for rejecting them The gentleman frowned. “Whyever not?” instead of looking inward with a critical “’Tis near midnight, sir,” the innkeeper eye. They use their extended time on Cer- said. “And the Host sounds angry tonight.” ilia as an opportunity to continue the “Bah!” The noble waved his hand in dis- plots and vendettas they began while dain as he headed out the door. “I fear no alive. And they enslave the living into peasant superstitions.” abetting their causes. We never saw him again. —Reganna, Halden’s daughter, 1499 HC ◆ The Sluagh live in the great gray clouds that drift across Cerilia’s night skies. F rom there, they launch their attacks on the living. The newly dead tend to focus The Sluagh (SLOO-ah), or the Host of their ire on enemies they had as mor- the Unforgiven Dead, are the spirits of t a l s — p a rticularly if their deaths occurre d Cerilians who have died with unspeakable at the hands of such enemies. As time crimes on their consciences. Rejected in passes, however, this focused hatred ex- the afterlife by their gods for their trans- pands to encompass all the living, fro m gressions, the Sluagh become trapped on p o w e rful kings to simple farmers to Aebrynis. dumb animals. Those caught outdoors at midnight, be they men or beasts, risk d ropping dead—the victim of an invisible The Sluagh appear as vaporous appari- d a rt. When someone dies unexpectedly, tions. Their heads and upper bodies, f rom no apparent cause, the victim is though composed of gray mist, retain a said to have caught the eye of the Host. human shape—indeed, their facial features might be faintly recognizable to those who knew them well. Their ex- The Sluagh not only interf e re in the af- pressions still hold the malice and fairs of the living, but also fight among cruelty they did in life. themselves. Folk wisdom says that par- Below the waist, the figures ticularly violent storms indicate mighty taper off into foggy tendrils. clashes going on between factions of the Sluagh. Occasionally, the morning after such an event, their blood stains ro c k s and stones. The phenomenon is called shegh nan sluagh,or “blood of the Host.” Were the spirits that comprise the Slu- agh capable of re-

52 CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Cerilia, near populated areas FREQUENCY: Rare Though the Host of the Unforgiven Dead ORGANIZATION: Host can be deadly in missile combat, they ACTIVITY CYCLE: Nocturnal, near prove even more sinister in personal en- midnight counters. DIET: Nil INTELLIGENCE: Very (11–12) TREASURE: Nil Typically, the only sign of an impending ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evil Sluagh attack are gathering cumulonim- bus clouds with high vertical develop- NO. APPEARING: 1–20 ment. The Host can easily hide them- ARMOR CLASS: 0 selves in these clouds to gain surprise. MOVEMENT: Fl 24 (B) The Sluagh attack from the sky, hurl- HIT DICE: 8 ing their invisible darts at those below. THAC0: 13 Each dart inflicts 1d6 points of damage. NO. OF ATTACKS: 2 Two to three minutes after being hit, vic- DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d6/1d6 tims feel a burning poison (class B) enter SPECIAL ATTACKS: Domination, their veins and must attempt a saving poison throw vs. poison for each hit. Failure SPECIAL DEFENSES: Range means they suffer an additional 20 points MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil of damage from the poison; success re- SIZE: L (10' tall duces the damage to 1d3 points. MORALE: Elite (13–14) Because the Sluagh attack from such a distance (clouds tend to be at least half a BLOODLINE: None mile—880 yards—in elevation), they are BLOOD ABILITIES: None out of range for nonmagical weapons and PERCEPTION/SEEMING: None/None many offensive spells. Dungeon Masters XP VALUE: 4,000 may allow characters to use battle spells (as described in The Book of Magecraft and The Book of Priestcraft) during com- The Host of the Unforgiven Dead is a bat with the Host. threat native to Cerilia, and therefore has no Seeming score. Even if members of the Sluagh adventured in the Shadow World By far the most insidious encounters with while alive, upon death they lose any per- the Sluagh come when they attempt to ception score they attained. dominate (per the dominationspell) a character’s will. Driven by vengeance, a member of the Host sometimes descends from the clouds to speak to its victim. The malevolent being addresses the character in hypnotic, soothing tones to lower the victim’s guard, then subjugates his or her will. The master then uses the character to carry out acts of vengeance against its old enemies. Should the victim avoid being killed by those enemies for his or her actions, and live long enough for the effects of the dominationto wear off, the character must succeed at a system shock roll or die.

53 This creature provides the DM an opportunity to bring back favorite major and minor awnsheghlien the characters thought Cerilia was rid of for good—and now the monsters are bigger, badder, and ◆ meaner than before, thanks to the Cold In Cerilia, legends tell of the Diabolyk’s fall Rider’s dark gifts. at the hands of the Gorgon. Some doubt that such a mighty awnshegh can truly be dead. They believe that he lies low some- Spectral awnsheghlien can be found in all where, biding his time until the day he will parts of the Shadow World. Though none reappear. have ever been spotted in Cerilia, it’s pos- I doubt no longer. sible that one could grow powerful I have seen the Diabolyk—or what I be- enough (DM’s discretion) to make the lieve was once him. And if he was fearsome crossing and terrorize the waking world in life, he is even more horrific in undeath. once again. —Halden, 1467 HC As they were in life, spectral ◆ awnsheghlien are solitary creatures. Un- less called together by their evil master, they do not interact with each other. Though they serve the Cold Rider, Summoned by the Cold Rider to serve his spectral awnsheghlien create strongholds dark bidding in undeath, spectral of their own in the Shadow World. These awnsheghlien are the spirits of slain lairs are not as large or elaborate as the Abominations from the waking world. At ones they had in life, though sometimes a their moments of death, the Cold Rider spectral awnshegh will manipulate the trapped their essences in the Shadow Seeming to make a Shadow World home World—it would be a shame, after all, to resemble its Cerilian counterpart. let such pure, unmitigated evil merely Often, spectral awnsheghlien have scatter to the winds. their own goals and agendas, which the Cold Rider permits them to pursue. When he beckons, however, they must drop everything to answer his summons and Spectral awnsheghlien generally appear as carry out his plans. they did in life, only in semitransparent A number of spectral awnsheghlien form. In combat, however, they can be- command minions. Some of these unfor- come corporeal at will. tunate servants are undead versions of the minions the awnshegh had in life. For example, if the Spider died in Cerilia and Spectral awnsheghlien exist at the will reappeared as the Spectral Spider in the (and the whim) of the Cold Rider. Shadow World, he would likely have a le- Among the most powerful of his min- gion of undead spiders under his control. ions, they act as he dictates; they use Spectral awnsheghlien also take ad- their powers to forwa r d his goals. vantage of the native population of the Characters, however, prob a b l y Shadow World, impressing all manner of wo n ’ t realize that a spectral awn- creatures into their service. Depending on shegh they encounter serve s the awnshegh’s level of power, it may en- such a powerful master, un- slave halflings, changelings, members of less the DM chooses to the Seelie or Unseelie Court, various reveal this fact in the types of undead, or other monsters. course of multiple en c o u n t e r s . When a Cerilian awnshegh dies, the bloodline of Azrai that it carried in its

54 veins dissipates and travels to the Shadow CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World World. This holds true even for awnshegh FREQUENCY: Unique victims of bloodtheft. (Recall that even ORGANIZATION: Solitary with a tighmaevrilweapon, the attacker ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any receives only 5 bloodline strength points; DIET: None the rest dissipate.) Only an awnshegh INTELLIGENCE: Same as in life who invests its bloodline before death is TREASURE: W, V (H, Vx5) immune to the possibility of becoming a ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evil specter. The Cold Rider manages to keep the NO. APPEARING: 1 spectral awnsheghlien in line by magically ARMOR CLASS: 0 trapping and absorbing part of this MOVEMENT: Same as in life essence. Scions of Azrai in life because HIT DICE: Same as in life they carried in their blood a part of the THAC0: Same as in life evil god, they become servants of the NO. OF ATTACKS: Same as in life Cold Rider in death because he carries DAMAGE/ATTACK: As in life +4 part of them within himself. SPECIAL ATTACKS: Shadow touch This connection can be broken by the SPECIAL DEFENSES: Regeneration, Cold Rider if he so chooses. He never Seeming has. MAGIC RESISTANCE: As in life +25% SIZE: Same as in life MORALE: Fearless (19–20) It is said that perhaps spectral ehrsheghlien also exist in the Shadow World. If so, BLOODLINE: Azrai, strength such a creature would be connected to varies one of Cerilia’s new gods, doing the work BLOOD ABILITIES: Vary of that deity in an attempt to improve the PERCEPTION/SEEMING: Greater/Varies lots of those who dwell in lands eclipsed XP VALUE: Varies by shadow.

One can converse, negotiate, and bargain with a spectral awnshegh to about the same extent as when the individual crea- In combat, spectral awnsheghlien are ture was alive. An awnshegh will not, even more fearsome now than they were however, listen to a character who was re- in life. sponsible for its death—it will only seek to repay the deed in kind.

Spectral awnsheghlien retain the same combat abilities they possessed in life. In The Cold Rider has bestowed greater addition, their spectral nature also grants Seeming on his minions, a power them a shadow touch attack. Each time a they often make use of in combat. spectral awnshegh touches an opponent, Perception varies with how long it transforms some of the victim’s life an awnshegh has resided in the essence to shadow and drains 1 Constitu- Shadow World: 1 point per tion point. Should a character’s Constitu- decade. tion drop to 0, the victim turns into a spectre (see the MONSTROUS MANUAL tome). All spectral awnsheghlien have the ability to regenerate per the major regeneration blood ability (described in the BIRTHRIGHT Blood Enemiesaccessory).

55 Because a character’s death may be very ◆ near or hover far in the future, the waff ’Twas a sight I shall never forget—indeed, may appear exactly like the character with each passing hour, it haunts me more. does now or as an older image. The Seem- After fighting my way though a thick, ing, however, can influence a waff’s ap- eerie forest and battling countless terrors, I pearance: Just because a 20-year-old saw with relief that a village lay ahead. I character sights a 60-year-old waff, the vi- approached it eagerly, fairly running down sion does not ensure that the person’s the crooked road in my haste. death is indeed 40 years away. It does not As I rounded a bend, I encountered a even guarantee that the person will die by young man stumbling toward me. He stag- the means depicted—although the shock gered, then fell to the ground. A great axe of a sighting usually leads characters to protruded from his back, embedded there by believe they will. some unknown foe. The method of death might be obvi- I approached the man to see if I could ous, such as a dagger in the back, a noose render any aid or comfort his last moments. around the neck, or a great sucking As he lifted his head to meet my gaze, a wound in the chest. Or it may be more chill passed through my heart. mysterious: The waff might simply wear a I was staring into my own eyes. horrified expression. Whatever the cause, The man looked exactly like me—he even the image is always disturbing. wo r e the same attire and bore an identical Though they appear corporeal, waffs cut to the one I’d just received from a skeletal are creatures of illusion. They cannot be foe. As soon as I gasped in recognition, the harmed, healed, or held. They are made fi g u r e dissipated into the twilight air. of shadow stuff and return to it once they The sighting was a portent of my own have sufficiently shocked their viewers. demise. Of this I am sure. But whose axe Although waffs look like ordinary indi- awaits me—and when? viduals and can be mistaken for the real I now live in perpetual trepidation. I people they duplicate, waffs cannot cannot look forward, but always over my speak. They make no attempt to commu- shoulder for the murderer’s blade. I have not nicate, even if directly addressed. They slept since the moment I saw my double. I have no knowledge of future events and can do naught but hold my breath, waiting therefore could not warn a viewer of im- for the axe to fall. minent danger even if they wanted to do —Aledric, Faylene’s son, 1435 HC, so. (the night before he died of an axe wound)

◆ It is said that spotting one’s own waff is a po r tent of death. It is up to the DM to decide whether this bit of Shadow Wor l d A waff is a body double whose image fo l k l o r e is true. But even if a DM allows a depicts a character at the moment character to avoid perishing as “pred i c t e d ” of his or her death. The waff may by a waff, the sighting of a double should be spotted by the character him- pr oduce shock, paranoia, and eerieness self or by an acquaintance. among the PCs—and their players. Waff s Waffs are products of the can be used as the catalyst for an adven- Seeming, illusions gener- tu r e, or to add a spooky element to the at- ated by the Shadow mo s p h e r e of a Shadow World excursion. World itself to terrorize tres- passers. Waffs are encountered almost exclusively in the Shadow World. The sighting of one in Cerilia would serve as an omen of not

56 just one individual’s demise—but the CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Shadow World spilling over of shadowstuff into the wak- FREQUENCY: Rare ing world. ORGANIZATION: Solitary Because waffs cannot speak and do ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any not attempt to communicate, they will Diet: None seem aloof to anyone who tries to address INTELLIGENCE: 0 them. For example, if Shalana encounters TREASURE: None a double of her former adventuring com- ALIGNMENT: Neutral panion Daken and tries to speak to it (thinking it is, in fact, Daken), the waff NO. APPEARING: 1 will ignore her and continue on its way— ARMOR CLASS: 10 leaving Shalana believing that her old MOVEMENT: 12 friend has just treated her very rudely. HIT DICE: Nil THAC0: Nil NO. OF ATTACKS: Nil Waffs coalesce out of the Seeming itself DAMAGE/ATTACK: Nil and exist long enough to fulfill their pur- SPECIAL ATTACKS: Shock pose—horrifying someone they encounter. SPECIAL DEFENSES: Invulnerable They usually generate spontaneously, MAGIC RESISTANCE: 100% though a native Shadow World creature SIZE: M (6' tall) with a greater-level Seeming score can MORALE: Fearless (19–20) shape them from the Seeming (perhaps to provide a distraction while working to- BLOODLINE: None ward some other end). BLOOD ABILITIES: None Once sighted, waffs dissipate back PERCEPTION/SEEMING: None/ into the shadows. This may occur before Extraordinary the viewer’s eyes, or while the character’s XP VALUE: 0 gaze is averted. (“I glanced away for a moment, and when I turned around, tance), the character suffers a +3 penalty Daken was gone!”) to this roll. Shocked characters lose the ability to act for 1d6 rounds. For the remainder of the turn, the victim has trou- Waffs who seem perfectly healthy (in ble thinking coherently, suffering a –2 or other words, not depicting a character’s –10% penalty to all actions and a –4 or death) have been known to appear on oc- –20% penalty to Intelligence- or Wisdom- casion. They look like they’re just going based activities. The DM may choose to about their business. They generally exist reduce these amounts if the waff does not to confuse party members: Which of the take on a character’s own form. (For ac- six Dakens is the friend they have come tions not involving die rolls, the DM to rescue? should impose other appropriate penalties.) Once recognized for the individual they duplicate, waffs dissipate back into the Seeming. Should a character manage to land a Most encounters with waffs are shocking blow before this occurs, how- but peaceful, as the double disappears ever, the blow passes right once seen. through the waff—and will appear to have caused the dissipa- Upon spotting a waff, characters must tion. succeed in a saving throw vs. petrification or go into shock. If the waff is one’s own double (as opposed to that of an acquain-

57 a –3 penalty against any axe-wielding opponent. PCs might suffer nightmares or The true terror of an encounter with a waff become obsessed with the vision. should occur after the double disappears. If well roleplayed, an encounter with a Was this truly an omen of the PC’s death? waff should leave PCs looking over their What can be done to avoid this fate? shoulders for the rest of an adventure, the In cases where a character sees his or rest of a Shadow World campaign, or the her own waff, DMs should encourage the rest of their lives. ch a r a c t e r ’s—and player’s—paranoia. DMs can also use their discretion in imposing penalties during encounters related to the Waffs are creatures of the Seeming, but death vision. For example, Aledric’s drea d , have no ability to manipulate it them- and distraction, might cause him to suffer selves.

58 The deep-rooted fear elves harbor toward ◆ the Shadow World derives in no small A more fearsome spectacle I never witnessed! part from ancestral memories of the Wild Bells sounding, hounds baying, hooves thun- Hunt. The how and why of its origin have dering, the Wild Hunt roared past me, its been lost to time. Some believe it stems spectral riders in hot pursuit of the unfortu- from the war between the Seelie and Un- nate elf. seelie Courts (refer to the “Faerie, Un- Aledric, 1434 HC seelie” entry), while others think it goes back further, to the time when the seelie ◆ and Sidhe people were one (see the “Faerie, Seelie” entry). Regardless, it has been pursuing and persecuting elves as long as anyone can remember. The Wild Hunt is a fearsome party of un- Comprising supernatural creatures seelie faeries, undead, shadow steeds, and who can go on living—or unliving—for- cwn annwn that stampedes through ever if not defeated in combat, the Wild forests in a never-ending hunt for elves. Hunt is a tireless, ongoing pursuit. As Most often encountered in the Shadow members fall, others join the quest. The World, the hunters have been known to Hunt never stops. Sometimes it doesn’t enter Cerilia in their quest for prey. even pause to slay its quarry, but simply tramples the elf to death in its endless drive. The Wild Hunt is truly a spectacle to be- The entourage is led by the Master of hold. Hunters of all shapes and sizes, the Hunt, an evil faerie from the Unseelie sporting gruesome visages, charge forth Court. The Huntmaster is a tall, gaunt on shadow steeds in fierce pursuit of flee- figure with large black eyes and a sinister, ing elves. Baying cwn annwn add their toothy grin. His harsh voice, often shout- howls to the clamor of shouting riders ing out in pursuit, echoes loudly enough and thundering hooves as the din echoes to be heard above the thundering hooves for miles. The Hunt cuts a merciless of the Hunt’s shadow steeds. swath through the forest, sparing not The Master of the Hunt is considered trees, nor plants, nor stray creatures in its a favored noble of the Unseelie Court, path. though he never breaks from the Hunt to And after this violent fury has passed visit it. Should he ever fall in battle, the through the Shadow World terrain—not a Dark Queen would appoint another of trace of the Hunt remains. her courtiers to take his place.

An appearance of the Wild Hunt is always Like a speeding train, the Wild Hunt an event, even in its home terrain of the ch a r ges ahead reg a r dless of what lies Shadow World. in its path—including portals. Occa- Appearances in Cerilia occur rarely— si o n a l l y , the Wild Hunt, in hot perhaps once every five centuries—and pursuit of its prey , lunges right are considered bad omens. In its after- th r ough an open portal and math, humans and dwarves probably st o r ms into Cerilia. When won’t know what happened (their memo- this occurs, the Hunt ries don’t extend far enough). But the leaves behind evidence elves will become very uneasy, particularly of its passing (un- if the frequency of occurrences increases. like in the Not only does the Wild Hunt present a Sh a d o w danger to the safety of the Sidhe, but it Wor l d ) . signifies an intrusion of the Shadow World’s power into Cerilia.

59 Huge swaths of trees are felled, crops and CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Fo r ests, primarily fields are trampled. The region is left look- in Shadow World ing like a tornado has blown through it. FREQUENCY: Very rare ORGANIZATION: Unique ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any The Wild Hunt is believed to have in- DIET: Nil spired the ghaellie Sidhe.Searching for a INTELLIGENCE: Low (6—mob way to drive humans from their land, the mentality) elves created their own Hunt. TREASURE: Nil ALIGNMENT: Chaotic neutral

The Wild Hunt appears (optionally) in NO. APPEARING: 1 (200 members) “Courting Danger.” ARMOR CLASS: 2 MOVEMENT: 24 HIT DICE: 50 THAC0: 5 NO. OF ATTACKS: 20 DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1d6 This section discusses the Wild Hunt as a SPECIAL ATTACKS: Trample single entity. For information about the SPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to illu- creatures that compose it, see their indi- sions, slow, walls vidual entries in this book and in the MAGIC RESISTANCE: 10% MONSTROUS MANUAL tome. SIZE: Gargantuan (150' long) MORALE: Fearless (19–20) The Wild Hunt creates such a cacophony BLOODLINE: None as it charges through the forest that it BLOOD ABILITIES: None cannot gain surprise against potential PERCEPTION/SEEMING: None/Greater prey. Even the deaf can sense it coming XP VALUE: 46,000 through reverberations in the ground. The hunters use bows to attack from a Though the sum of 200 hunters’ Hit distance. Though about 200 individual Dice would exceed 50, that number has creatures make up the Hunt, only about been listed as a guideline for “defeating” 20 (10%) of them can get off a clear shot the Wild Hunt. Should characters manage in a single round. Each arrow inflicts 1d6 to bring the Hunt down to 0 hit points, points of damage. the Hunt disbands and regroups in 6d8 Once the hunt closes in on its prey, ei- hours. ther the cwn annwn rush in to attack (see separate entry) of the riders use their momentum to trample their quarry beneath the shadow steeds’ Though the Hunt ignores any creatures hooves. Trample victims suffer 4d10 but elves, it does not divert its path to points of damage and must pass a avoid them. Therefore, even non-elf system shock roll or die. player characters had better dive out of The Wild Hunt is immune to its way to avoid being trampled. illusions and phantasms, sl o w and other movement-affe c t - ing spells, and walls. Only a The Master of the Hunt, as an unseelie globe of invulnerability, faerie, has the ability to cloak the Wild limited wish,or wi s h Hunt in the Seeming. He generally does can divert the not bother to do so, however, for it makes Hunt off its a fearsome enough spectacle all by itself. pa t h . The Hunt itself has no perception score, though individual members might.

60 The appearance of a will o’shadow in Cer- ◆ ilia presages the opening of a portal. Por- It was the blackest midnight I had ever seen. tals can (and do), however, open without And cold, so cold I thought I would freeze to will o’shadows present. death ere reaching camp. I cursed myself a The evidence a will o’shadow leaves fool for arrogantly believing that I could sur- behind can provide clues to where a por- vive the Highlands winter that had claimed tal once opened and for how long (see so many before me. “Ecology”). Now I was lost. I had ventured away from camp in search of firewood and had become disoriented in the darkness. I shouted Will o’shadows, a variation of the will for the others to light a torch to guide me. At o’wisp, are often mistaken for their more last, a light appeared, a faint glow that malevolent cousins. bobbed and danced. Its movement puzzled me. Had my companions found it necessary to break camp One to three will o’shadows generally ap- and flee? I dropped the firewood and raced pear in a single sighting. They make their to catch up with them, following the flicker- home in the Shadow World in places that ing light. border Cerilia; however, they are seldom After about an hour, the light suddenly seen there. The eternal twilight of that vanished. I looked around, attempting to land usually renders them invisible to the discern my surroundings in the darkness. If I naked eye. thought I was lost before, I knew it now. When a portal is about to open, the I wasn’t in Rjurik anymore. boundary between the Shadow World and —Faylene, 1402 HC Cerilia becomes so thin that will o’shad- ◆ ows are able to pass through it before anything else can. This “head start” might last anywhere from one minute to three hours. The will o’shadow is a mesmerizing being Once the portal opens, a strong force that lures unsuspecting folk into entering pulls the will o’shadow back into the the Shadow World. It appears in places Shadow World. The creature resists, lead- where the curtain between Cerilia and the ing to its bouncing, dancing movements Shadow World is thin, and feeds on Ceril- in the air. It attempts to stay in Cerilia as ian life energy. long as possible, feeding off Cerilian life energy. Common folk believe that the com- Will o’shadows appear as glowing spheres pelling force which summons the will of light that float and bounce through the o’shadows back home is the crea- night air. Their size, which ranges from 1 tures’ master, a sapient being such to 4 feet in diameter, varies depending on as the Cold Rider or a member of how soon a portal into the Shadow World the Lost. The most learned Cer- is about to open: The larger the light, the ilian sages, however, believe it sooner the event. Their size, however, can merely to be the “pull” of the be deceiving, as they are typically viewed Shadow World itself. from a distance. A will o’shadow can communicate with others of its kind by varying its pat- Will o’shadows tern of movement. The complexity of this feed off the code renders it unfathomable to any but life en- another will o’shadow. ergy

61 of Cerilia. That is why they are so reluc- CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Cerilia and tant to return to the Shadow World. Shadow World Once on the Cerilian side of a portal, FREQUENCY: Rare they try to gather as much strength as ORGANIZATION: Solitary possible, leaving the life around them ACTIVITY CYCLE: Night/Any weaker. Generally, the plant life near a re- DIET: Cerilian life cently closed portal (at which will o’shad- energy ows were present) looks wilted and brown INTELLIGENCE: High (13–14) for 1d4 days per round that the portal TREASURE: Q was open. ALIGNMENT: Chaotic neutral If animal life (including humanoids and player character races) is in the vicin- NO. APPEARING: 1d3 ity, will o’shadows might feed off of it in- ARMOR CLASS: –8 stead of plant life. They don’t do so mali- MOVEMENT: Fl 18 (A) ciously; they merely seek the strongest HIT DICE: 9 source of energy. See “Combat and Other Encounters.” THAC0: 11 Folk wisdom states that will o’shad- NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 ows are Cerilian stars that became DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2d8 trapped in the Shadow World as a result SPECIAL ATTACKS: Life drain of the cataclysm at Mount Deismaar. SPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to most This, so the stories say, explains why they magical attacks can be seen only on the Cerilian side of MAGIC RESISTANCE: See below the border, and why they so desperately SIZE: Tiny to small want to stay in our world. (1–4') MORALE: Champion (15–16)

BLOODLINE: None BLOOD ABILITIES: None Any time Cerilian characters are within a PERCEPTION/SEEMING: None/Lesser quarter-mile of a will o’shadow (know- XP VALUE: 6,000 ingly or not), there is a 50% chance that the creature attempts to feed off of sent). Will o’shadows are invisible on this human/demihuman life energy instead of side of the portal; the characters, how- other plants and animals in the environ- ever, stand out as the only source of Cer- ment. In such an instance, the PCs must ilian life energy. In such circumstances succeed at a saving throw vs. poison or the characters must roll saving throws vs. suffer 2d6 points of damage. The vic- poison at a +1 penalty, suffering 2d6 tims feel strangely weaker (perhaps points of damage for failure. dizzy or fatigued) and—if they spotted the will o’shadow previous to failing the saving throw—might notice that the will o’shadow has grown Will o’shadows generally avoid direct con- brighter. frontation unless provoked. If attacked, If Cerilian characters are ho w e v e r , they enter a feeding frenzy in an on the Shadow World side of a attempt to replace lost energy . Using their portal that’s about to open, exceptional speed and maneuverability, will they are especially vulner- o’ shadows dart and swoop at their attackers, able to the creature’s tr ying to brush against them. The touch of a feeding (provided a will o’shadow steals 2d8 hit points of life en- will o’shadow er gy from its Cerilian victim. (Though these is pre- points feed the crea t u r e, they are not added to its own hit point total.) Will o’shadows are generally insatiable.

62 Non-Cerilian victims suffer a burn that inflicts 1d8 points of damage, but provides no sustenance to the will If characters succeed at their saving throw s o’shadow. and do not attack the will o’sh a d o w , they Physical weapons inflict normal dam- may well have a perfectly peaceful en- age on will o’shadows; however, the crea- co u n t e r . That is not to say, however, that tures are immune to most magical at- an even worse crea t u r e won’t greet them tacks. Only detect invisibilityand shadow on the other side of the porta l . magic are known to work against them. Magical light sources render will o’shadows invisible until the source is extin- Will o’shadows have lesser Seeming. In guished. combat, they may camouflage themselves A will o’shadow reduced to 5 or fewer with blur, color spray, dancing lights,or a hit points attempts to flee. hypnotic pattern.

63 The adventures are deliberately non- specific about their exact starting loca- he barrier between the Shadow tion, so that you can easily use them no World and the material world is breaking matter where your campaign is set and down on many fronts. Laws of nature and what race your player characters belong physics can no longer be counted upon. to. Feel free to add details that give de- What better time to start a Shadow World scriptions of nonplayer characters campaign?

The following adventures are de- (NPCs) and sites a more local flavor. signed to help you, the Dungeon Master, Though these two adventures each i n t roduce some of the cre a t u res fro m f e a t u re diff e rent cre a t u res, they share a this book into a Shadow Wo r l d - b a s e d common characteristic: an emphasis on c a m p a i g n. If your player characters h a v e roleplaying over straight combat. PCs not yet begun exploring the Shadow who attempt to hack-and-slash their way World, these adventures can enhance t h rough the Shadow World are doomed their education, giving them extre m e l y to failure, and these scenarios offer an valuable experience with the local early lesson in that fact. Yes, player char- denizens and illusions. acters will have plenty of opportunity for Feel free to intersperse these two sce- combat, but the Shadow Wo r l d ’s gre a t e s t narios that follow within adventures of t h reats are more subtle in nature . your own or adjust them to account for The start of each adventure pro v i d e s whatever amount of Shadow World ad- a list of the cre a t u res that it features. Fa- venturing has already taken place in your miliarize yourself with these monsters campaign. ahead of time, especially noting (where The scenarios can be played in any a p p ropriate) their mannerisms, pattern s o rd e r. Both allow parties to begin in of speech, and other traits that can’t be Cerilia and be drawn into the Shadow summarized in the statistics boxes. World, or to begin already in the twi- These are the attributes that will help light realm. PCs might even just wake you breathe life into the cre a t u res and up one day and find themselves on give them color that makes them stand the wrong side of the barrier: Wi t h out in this land of eternal twilight. divisions between the two worlds Each adventure also provides a sum- b reaking down, not all port a l s m a ry at the outset. Should you decide a re gaping maws in the fabric suddenly to take your campaign on an of the world. Some can be unexpected detour into the Shadow b reached without travelers World, you can familiarize yourself with even realizing it. the plot quickly and insert it into an ongoing game. However, whenever possible it is best to read through the entire scenario before beginning play, to acquaint yourself with new items and locales.

64 . . . in Cerilia, where the player characters Creatures Involved: The Sluagh (page set out on a journey. Their purpose and 52)and the dispossessed (page 21). destination does not matter. This can be a tour of the domain’s outlying holdings, a Adventure Summary: The characters, visit to relatives, a diplomatic mission, a while traveling in Cerilia, find themselves trip into town on market day, part of a caught out in the open during a surprise trek begun in a previous adventure—any- attack by the Sluagh. Seeking shelter, thing the DM cares to devise, so long as it they enter a roadside inn—and, unbe- takes the PCs at least a few miles away knownst to them, the Shadow World. The from home. With the recent incursions of inn is populated entirely by the dispos- the Shadow World, the players may well sessed. The spirits are not immediately initiate the journey themselves. True ad- hostile, nor do they look incorporeal, so venturers, be they kings or commoners, the player characters have an opportunity don’t tend to stay housebound for long. to gather intelligence about the growing As the party departs, the sky is over- unrest between Cerilia and the Shadow cast, but it looks like any rain (or snow, World from what appear to be normal depending on geography and time of people. year) will hold off. However, the dispossessed’s aura of The journey can be as eventful (or depression threatens to subtly render the not) as you like. The PCs may encounter PCs unable to act. And, though at first other travelers, brigands, native creatures, willing to converse with the player charac- or no one at all as they head toward their ters, the spirits become convinced that destination. the PCs inhabit their stolen bodies. A Once the player characters travel too battle ensues. The PCs, if they manage to far to turn back easily, they see a small hold on to their own bodies, soon dis- inn in the distance. The inn should not cover that they have lost their way—for stand out in any way as being unusual; they are stranded in the Shadow World. mention it in the context of other terrain And even if they have visited the twilight features and sites of interest the party land before, it never looked like this. passes en route. Its architecture should be appropriate to the region (e.g., a two- story structure in Anuire, a longhouse in Rjurik, etc.), and it should look like a pleasant enough place to spend the night. As mentioned earlier in this book, the If the player characters are very familiar barrier between Cerilia and the Shadow with the road on which they travel, the World has been growing thinner and thin- inn appears new. ner of late. In places where the curtain Though the PCs might decide on has grown particularly fragile, people their own to enter the inn, before might see a disruption in the usual Ceril- they can do so they receive some ian day/night cycle. Darkness can fall at unexpected persuasion. Read any time, with little warning, and last for aloud or paraphrase the following 15 hours or more before the sun struggles text, which describes the start to ascend once again. Nocturnal creatures of an attack by the Sluagh, may appear at nearly any hour. And there the Host of the Unforgiven are reports that even when the sun is in Dead. the sky, it doesn’t have as strong an effect on undead creatures as it once did. Those beginning Shadow World campaigns can introduce these ominous changes into campaigns as a prelude to “Be Our Guest.”

65 The wind whips up, threatening an inn to avoid the Sluagh’s darts. oncoming storm. Light rain [or snow] The public house the party enters is starts to fall. An eerie howling sound the Wanderers Inn. surrounds you, soft at first but soon re- verberating through the very ground. Within moments, the storm arrives in full force. Gusts of wind turn into When the party enters the inn, read aloud gales that threaten to knock down even or paraphrase the following text. the sturdiest among you. Hail mixed with sleet drives upon you, quickly drenching you and your belongings. The clean, well-kept inn seems an ideal As a bolt of lightning rips the sky, place to escape the outdoor assault. As you see an unnatural glow staining the you open the door, tantalizing aro m a s clouds. The eerie light seems to grant fill your nostrils with the promise of a the clouds humanoid forms, creating good meal. The room within is snug and giant faces in the sky. d ry. The sign above the door outside identified this place as the Wa n d e re r s Sluagh (8 ): AC 0; MV Fl 24 (B); HD 8; Inn, and as you take in the clientele, the hp 40 each; THAC0 13; #AT 2; Dmg name seems apt. About a dozen travel- 1d6/1d6 (darts); SA poison; SD range ers of all descriptions and walks of life (880 yards minimum); SZ L (10' tall); loiter in the common ro o m — A n u i re a n s , ML 14 (elite); Int very (12); AL CE; Khinasi, Rjurik. You think you even XP 4,000. spot a Vos warrior warming herself by Notes: Darts contain class B poison; successful the fire . save vs. poison inflicts 1d3 damage points (in addition The patrons note your arrival, but to dart’s 1d6), failure inflicts 20 points. otherwise pay you no heed. They also seem to pay no attention to the tempest Allow the characters an opportunity to re- outside. The host, however, calls out to spond to the initial deluge, then continue: you from across the room, where he is serving ale to a richly-dressed Brecht merchant. As winds buffet you and ice pelts your “Welcome to the Wanderers Inn,” he face, you realize that some of the rain- says, traces of a smile flickering over his drops [snowflakes]have a reddish cast to pale features. He is a slender man in his them. With each passing second, more mid-thirties, wearing plain but well- and more red drops fall from the sky, made attire. He gestures to an empty staining both you and the earth, until it table near the center of the room. “Sit appears that the heavens are raining down, sit down. I’ll be right with you.” blood. Though the PCs don’t know it, the party The Host fight among themselves a is no longer in Cerilia. The door to the round or two longer, then turn their Wanderers Inn is actually a one-way por- attention on the player characters. tal to the Shadow World. The moment the The Sluagh throw poisoned darts player characters entered, they left their at the PCs, themselves staying homeland far behind. well out of range of normal The host and other patrons are mem- missiles. Though the party bers of the dispossessed, spirits of posses- may attempt to fight sion victims in search of new bodies. The back, eventually the Seeming makes them look perfectly cor- player characters poreal to the player characters. The PCs, must seek therefore, shouldn’t realize their peril at shelter at this point. To them, the Wanderers Inn the appears simply an ordinary travelers’ rest. Roll a saving throw vs. paralyzation 66 for each character. Those who fail suffer a heinous murders of his guests. Since that halved movement rate; they find them- day, his dispossessed spirit has remained selves feeling tired and run-down. Though trapped in the inn, where he goes through this is the start of the dispossessed’s de- the motions of operating his business. pression effect, hint that the weariness Numerous dispossessed who wander probably just derives from fighting and/or the Shadow World know of the inn and fleeing the Sluagh’s assault. use it as a way station in their endless The PCs likely follow the innkeeper’s roaming. If the player characters choose invitation to take a seat. Read aloud or to observe the other patrons, read aloud paraphrase the following text. or paraphrase the following text.

Though the host said he’d be right with To your right sit four warriors. They you, he seems to be taking his time. He wear the colors of Avanil and their moves with slow, deliberate steps, shuf- armor bears the prince’s insignia. Each fling like a man thrice his age. The hunches over a tankard of mead. One of weight of a thousand cares seems to them eyes your party warily, fingering stoop his shoulders. the sword at his side. Two merchants occupy the table to Should the characters take advantage of your left. Though the host has just this lull to study their surroundings, read served steaming bowls of chowder, nei- aloud or paraphrase the following: ther takes interest in the meal. They push the soup away and lean forward, The Wanderers Inn looks larger on the propping their chins on their hands. inside than it did when you saw it from A family is seated at another table: a the road. Eight plain wooden tables fill mother, father, and two children. The the common room, their surfaces worn son appears to be about twelve, the smooth by years of use. Benches sur- daughter perhaps a year older. From round them. A few stools, most of them their manner of dress and blond, occupied by other patrons, form a half- braided hair, they look Rjurik. circle near the fire. A woman stands near the fire. Her At either end of the room stands a dark skin, covered head, and flowing do o r . The host disappears through one of robes reveal her as Khinasi. She slowly them, which probably leads to the kitchen. nods her head in acknowledgement The other likely leads to sleeping quarte r s . when she catches you watching her. The common room has few windows, Another woman also enjoys the and they are small. You can see that out- warmth of the fire, this one appearing as side the sky is quite dark, though you barbaric as her companion seems digni- can’t hear the storm through the build- fied. Clothed in coarse fur robes, she ing’s thick walls. The fire casts dancing sits on a stool, slowly running a whet- shadows along the wooden walls. stone along the blade of her sabre. The firelight plays across her hard face, re- Twilight envelops the inn because it lies vealing the wicked-looking tattoos and entirely in the Shadow World. A former ritual scarring that cover it. Cerilian inn that centuries ago witnessed Aside from a few murmurs here and a brutal mass-murder within its walls, the there, no one speaks. Each patron ap- building materialized in the Shadow pears preoccupied with his or her own World when neighbors burned it to the reflections—or with observing you. ground in the waking world. Recent events, however, have caused its image to appear in Cerilia, and unfortunate travelers who try to enter find themselves someplace they never intended to go. The host, once a local man, was the innkeeper of the cursed hostel. An evil spirit possessed his body and committed the 67 ◆ It is said that the barrier between the Shadow World and Cerilia thins and tears more every day. ◆ It is also said that a powerful wizard Roll another saving throw vs. paralyzation who dwells in the Shadow World has for each character, now and with each found a way to eradicate the barrier passing turn. Failures are cumulative; completely, and only waits for the right consult the chart below to determine the moment to do so. effects of failure on PCs. ◆ Of late, the Cold Rider has appeared with increasing frequency in the Shad- ◆ ow World. Some claim to have seen him No. of Failed Resulting actually speaking with others, though Saving Throws Effect* the identity of his cohorts is unknown. 1 Sadness; movement rate halved The dispossessed dodge questions 2 Depression; –3 or –15% about themselves and their business, or penalty to attacks and how they might know so much about the Dex actions Shadow World, instead trying to glean in- 3–5 Apathy (if an NPC, formation about the party members. If morale halved); the player characters don’t attempt con- additional –1 or –5% versation with the patrons, the spirits penalty per fail take the initiative themselves. As the PCs 6 Movement rate halved interact with the dispossessed, even those again who succeed at their saving throws feel an aura of sadness, grief, and hopelessness *Effects are cumulative begin to weigh upon them. Read aloud or ◆ paraphrase the following text. Should the PCs attempt to talk with any As you speak with the other patrons, of the patrons or the host, conversation your mind wanders from the conversa- proves challenging. Inquiries about the tion. A wave of melancholy crashes over “surrounding area” meet with answers you. What a bleak day this has turned that make little sense to the player char- out to be! With the onslaught outside acters—the dispossessed respond with in- and the shadows growing longer each formation about the Shadow World, while minute, your destination seems further the PCs probably believe they are still in away than ever. You might as well just Cerilia. resign yourself to spending the night Persistence can, however, pay off for here. characters who ask the right questions. If the PCs have not encountered the As conversations continue, draw on each Sluagh before today, one of the spirits PC’s individual fears, insecurities, and reveals (from memories of his life in frustrations—especially as failed saving Cerilia) the nature of the Host (un- throws accumulate. Play up jealousies and forgiven dead who war endlessly rivalries in personal relationships. (“Real- against each other and humanity). ization dawns that you will never be half PCs who think to inquire the leader your brother is.”) Make the whether the patrons or goal of the party’s present journey sud- innkeeper know anything denly seem pointless or futile. Push the about the Shadow World PCs toward apathy and depression. may gather some or all You might wish to draw individual of the following in- players aside or pass notes so that other telligence from players don’t know how deeply affe c t e d the spirits: their companions may be. Of course, de- pr essed characters might reveal their inner state through verbal cues during conversa-

68 tion. They might also become withdrawn, time during the battle. Should the party be feel sleepy, or drink more than usual. small or otherwise outmatched, some of the indirectly involved spirits can be of good alignments and refrain from attacking.) Those who believe specific PCs inhabit their bodies focus their attacks on those individuals. The rest attack whoever After a while (perhaps when at least half is nearest. At least some of the PCs will the PCs have failed one or more saving likely be slowed and hampered by the ef- throws), each player character finds her- fects of depression. self the subject of a particular patron’s cu- Details of the dispossessed’s combat riosity. The spirit asks questions about techniques, including the special “touch where the PC is from, how old she is, of despair” attack, appear in the creature who her parents are, and so on, pressing description in Part I. Should the host fail in closer during the conversation to get a a morale check, he begs for mercy or good look at the individual. The other dis- hides in the kitchen. Any patron who fails possessed hover around the edges of the a morale check flees, unless it is a directly room, positioning themselves to block the involved spirit. In the latter case, the spirit exits (without looking too much like remains so convinced that its former body they’re doing so). is present that the crea t u r e cannot leave it. The questioning dispossessed (here- If the PCs attempt to escape, the di- after called the “directly involved” spirits rectly involved dispossessed pursue them for ease of reference) believe one or more into the twilight. of the party members is inhabiting their stolen bodies. This conviction is a con- struct of the Seeming and may well cross gender, racial, and class lines. For exam- In the event that one or more members of ple, the spirit of a female Vos warrior the dispossessed succeed in stealing a might think a male Khinasi wizard has PC’s body, proceed to “Continuing the possessed her body. Adventure,” on the next page. Now that the spirits have moved in so Should the player characters defeat close, PCs with lesser perception scores the dispossessed, they can question any who have not failed a saving throw may unslain spirits about their nature to learn notice that something doesn’t seem quite more about the creatures. The patrons an- right about the other patrons—perhaps swer a few inquiries patiently, then ask their noncorporeal nature begins to show for leave to continue searching for their through, or their dress appears archaic. bodies. The innkeeper (if he survives the Even player characters with no previous battle) remains at his post. Shadow World experience may grow sus- The dispossessed carry no tre a s u re , picious at the odd nature of the spirits’ but other travelers have stayed in—and questions. But any character who has died in—the hostel. Careful explo- failed at least one saving throw is too dis- ration of the kitchen will reveal a tracted by internal angst to notice. loose brick in the fireplace. Be- hind it is hidden a pouch containing 200 gp, four pre c i o u s gems, and bracers of perc e p- If a perceptive PC confronts the dispos- t i o n (a magical item that sessed, the spirits respond by attacking adds 5 points to a char- immediately. If not, one of the patrons a c t e r’s perc e p t i o n eventually points an accusing finger at a s c o re when worn ) . PC and cries out, “Thief! Body thief!” The innkeeper, All 13 of the dispossessed close in. (If if not slain, the PC party is large or very experienced, w i l l- feel free to bring in more spirits from the kitchen and/or sleeping quarters at any

69 ingly gives the PCs these items in exchange for his life. Once the player characters have fin- ished exploring the inn—or if they lose No matter how the adventure ends, it will the battle and have to flee—they step out- take a while for the effects of the PCs’ de- side once again. Read aloud or para- pression to wear off—a fact that will influ- phrase the following text. ence future encounters. Refer to “The Dispossessed” creature description for You step outside into crisp, cold air. Twi- timing details. light cloaks the land, draping it in shad- If one or more of the player characters ows so thick you cannot see the road. fell victim to a possession attempt, a Then you realize that you can’t see quest to retrieve the stolen bodies ensues. the road because it isn’t there. Nor is At the DM’s whim, this endeavor can any of the familiar terrain from earlier prove as simple as catching the body- today. A vast gray wasteland stretches snatcher after a brief pursuit, or become out before you, in every direction, as far an adventure in itself that requires days as your eyes can see. (even weeks) of constant searching. De- tails of how a character goes about repos- sessing a stolen body appear in “The Dis- possessed” creature description. Finally, “Be Our Guest” serves to In addition to any treasure found at the transport the player characters from Cer- Wanderers Inn and experience points for ilia to the Shadow World. From here, the any slain spirits, player characters who DM can let the characters explore a bit, survive their encounter with the dispos- or segue straight into an adventure set en- sessed gain perception points. PCs add 1 tirely within the Shadow World. “Court- point to their permanent perception ing Danger” makes a good followup, or scores, and benefit from an additional +2 another adventure of the DM’s own cre- perception bonus when encountering dis- ation. possessed spirits in the future.

70 Read aloud or paraphrase the following text.

Creature(s) Involved: Seelie faeries A gray, chalky desert surrounds you on (page 23), unseelie faeries (page 29) and all sides, punctuated by grotesquely shades (page 43). Changelings (page 16) chiseled buttes. As icy winds buffet you, are indirectly involved. roaring in your ears and plastering your Optional: The Wild Hunt (page 59), hair to the sides of your face, it is not plus DM’s choice of standard AD&D hard to imagine how the hills came by monsters listed in the appendix. their eerie shapes. For millennia, each passing year has carved its initials into Ad v e n t u r e Summar y: The player charac- the landscape, whittling away at the bar- ters find themselves lost in the Badlands of ren, hard-packed soil. the Shadow World, a stark, seemingly end- Yet the sinister aura of this terrain less terri t o r y. They come upon Gilken, a bespeaks an unnatural hand as well. The seelie faerie who tricks them into challeng- harsh angles of the earthen sculptures ing a nearby monster in order to reveal the cast ominous shadows—shadows that path out of the Badlands. The monster is a seem to pulse with a life of their own. It shade who, during his human years, lived feels as if evil itself has sculpted this among the Seelie Court as a changeling. land in its own image. Since his conversion into a shade, the crea - tu r e has been in thrall to Lussina, the Dark The Badlands are actually a rather small Queen of the Unseelie Court. ar ea, but the Seeming hangs so heavy upon Though Gilken himself can help the them that the region appears vast. Because party find its way out of the Badlands, he the Badlands have an environmental Seem- wants the PCs to fight the shade so that ing score of 20, characters need a perce p - he can retrieve the Amulet of Seeming,a tion score of at least greater level to suc- powerful magical item the shade has cessfully navigate the terrain (and even stolen from the Seelie Court at Lussina’s then, unless they are Shadow World na- behest. A disruption in the Shadow World tives, they have difficulty). Those with has caused Lussina’s control over the lower scores become confused by the shift- Seeming to weaken, and she needs the ing shadows and hills. They wind up cover- amulet to reassert her command. ing the same ground over and over again. Depending upon the outcome of their In fact, travelers have been known to starve battle with the shade, the PCs could end to death mere yards away from game-filled up visiting (willingly or not) one of the woodlands that they could not see. faerie courts and becoming involved in the age-old war between them. Both factions may look to the party for informa- The player characters should be unable tion—or blame—regarding the changes to find their way out of the Badlands. shaking their homeland. The player char- Let them wander until they get good acters conclude the adventure having and frustrated. Though they pass gained either a tentative ally or yet an- the same hills and landmarks other Shadow World enemy. dozens of times, the Seeming and shadows perpetually alter the terrain’s appearance. Feel free to insert ran- . . . in the Shadow World Badlands. Par- dom encounters with a ties who have just completed “Be Our few crea t u r es to keep Guest” found themselves in the Badlands things interes t i n g . at the end of that adventure. Otherwise, A surprise ap- DMs can take advantage of the Shadow pe a r a n c e World’s shifting geography to suddenly by deposit PCs in the middle of a bleak, eternal wasteland. 71 the Wild Hunt (see page 59) could fit in “Six eights are forty-eight, well here, as could some skirmishes with Eighty halved is forty. skeletons or other nonconversant undead. Seven eights are fifty-six, See the appendix of this book for ideas of Sixty halved is thirty. ap p r opriate monsters to include. Eight eights are sixty-four, Ev e n t u a l l y , the PCs should grow doubt- Forty halved is twenty. . . .” ful of their ability to find their way out of the Badlands by themselves. Let that fear If the PCs call out to him or do something develop for a little while. Feed it. Ask how else to attract his attention, he glances up many rations they have left. Ask how much im m e d i a t e l y . If not, he continues for a water they’re carrying. Then read aloud or minute as if he doesn’t realize they’re pre- paraphrase the following text. sent, then looks directly at them.

As you approach an outcrop that looks “My name is Gilken. Nine eights are eerily like an enormous winged gar- seventy-two. Who might you be? goyle, you hear a warbling voice. It sounds humanoid, and, though you can’t make out the words it seems to be singing.

The voice comes not from the outcrop, Gilken is a seelie faerie, the former trea- but from behind it. Assuming that the surer of the Faerie Queen’s court. player characters investigate, continue with the following text. Gilken (faerie, seelie): AC 5; MV 15; HD 4+2; hp 22; A remarkable sight greets your eyes. In THAC0 17; #AT 1; Dmg 1d4 the middle of this desolate, endless (dagger) or by spell; SA Seeming, wasteland rests an enormous dinner spells; SD immune to illusions and table so laden with food that it nearly charm spells, invisible at will, know bows under the weight. A cornucopia of alignment; SW iron, salt; MR 25%; fruit spills onto the tablecloth. Gold SZ S (2’ tall); ML 10 (average); serving dishes cradle roasted meats, as- Int High (14); AL LN; XP 2,000. sorted cheeses, breads, pastries, and Notes: Perception/Seeming scores of any other dish your heart could desire. 65/62. SW—Iron weapons inflict an additional 3 Place settings of fine bone china, crys- points of damage with each hit; salt thrown on tal, and silver stand at attention. Gilken neutralizes his invisibility ability for 1d4 Though large, the table sits very low to turns. the ground, almost like an extremely long Spells (5/day): Any priestly en- co f fee table. Small chairs line its sides. chantment/charm spell of 1st or At the head of this elaborate feast sits 2nd level, plus create water, entan- a lone diner. He is a curious little figure, gle, faerie fire, light, protection from pe r haps two feet tall, clad in a suit that evil, purify food and drink, shille- appears to be woven from ivy vines. His lagh; barkskin, goodberry, produce blond hair bears a greenish cast, like the flame, speak with animals, warp inside of a still-quick twig. Compared to wood; continual light, create food a human, his head seems disprop o rt i o n - and water, pyrotechnics, seelie spell ately large, and his legs disprop o rt i o n - of forgetting, tree, water walk.Can ately short. The latter, he swings back cast the seelie spell of forgettingan and forth while sitting at the table. unlimited number of times per day. The little man’s facial features are screwed up in concentration as he cuts Gi l k e n ’ s linguistic gymnastics (refer to the food on his plate. All the while, he the section about faerie speech in the talks to himself in a sing-song voice: “Faerie, Seelie” entry of this book) manifest as mathematical calculations laced throu g h - out his statements. The computations he

72 interjects usually have absolutely nothing to the Amulet of Seeming.) Should the char- do with the topic of conversation. acters inquire about the nature of the Gilken has been temporarily banished Shadow World or the Seeming, Gilken re- from the Seelie Court because he lost sponds with similar vague half-truths. On possession of the Amulet of Seeming, a only one issue is the faerie outright de- treasury item for which he was responsi- ceiving: how to leave the Badlands. ble. Lussina, the Dark Queen of the Un- Fr om watching the party cover the seelie Court, sent a shade to steal the same ground rep e a t e d l y , Gilken knows the powerful magical item from the seelie gr oup is lost in the confusion of the Seem- faeries. Gilken cannot return to the Seelie ing. His plan is to trick the PCs into be- Court until he gets the amulet back for lieving they must defeat the shade who the Faerie Queen. holds the amulet in order to escape the Gilken, however, hasn’t the courage to Badlands. At first, he waits for the party co n f r ont the shade direc t l y , so he hopes to members to initiate any discussion of their trick some traveler into doing it for him. plight and ask for directions. If necessary, He could hardly believe his good fortune at ho w e v e r , he brings up the subject himself the sight of the player characters perpetu- after establishing a comfortable rapport ally wandering around in a 100-yard circl e . with the PCs. He does so in his character- Gilken immediately invites the party istic roundabout way, however, asking to partake of his feast. Read aloud the fol- wh e r e the characters are headed, how long lowing text. they have been traveling, and so on. Once the party asks for directions or “Have you traveled far? Three from ten help in finding its way out of the Bad- is seven. You must be hungry. Please— lands, read aloud the following text. join me. Five and one is six. There’s plenty of food for all, and I was growing Gilken scratches his head. “Leave the quite lonely. Dining by oneself is so dull. Badlands? A tricky matter, that. Once Thrice four is twelve.” two is two.” The odd little character leans for- Though the player characters may hesi- ward. “A fearsome monster dwells not tate to accept Gilken’s invitation, the far from here,” he says in a conspirator- meal he offers is perfectly safe for con- ial whisper. “Twice two is four. He’s the sumption. It is plain fare, generated via reason you have not been able to find create food and waterand enhanced by the your way out. Half four is two. Defeat Seeming to look, smell, and taste like an the creature, and the path shall be re- elaborate banquet. Gilken proves an at- vealed. tentive host, doing his best to make the “Half two is one.” PCs comfortable in their small chairs at the short table. He does not, however, re- In Gilken’s moral view, he has just told veal the source of the meal if asked, call- the truth: The shade is at fault for the ing it simply “Just something I conjured PCs’ predicament, because Gilken up. Six fives are thirty.” would have helped them sooner if he Should the PCs decline his hospitality, didn’t have the creature to worry Gilken does not pres s u r e them. He does, about. And the path out of the ho w e v e r , continue eating his own meal as Badlands will be revealed upon he talks with them, in hopes of changing the shade’s defeat—by their minds. He really does want to do Gilken. He can’t help it if something nice for the player characters the player characters be f o r e he sends them off on an errand that construe a stronger he fears spells swift and certain doom. cause–effect rela- If the party asks why Gilken is dining tionship be- in the middle of a wasteland, he responds, tween those “I live here. Eight and eight are sixteen.” events (The statement is true enough—he must dwell in the Badlands until he recovers 73 than he intended, can he? In seelie plan to interf e re or reveal his pre s e n c e . speech, passive voice is a wonderful thing. The shade’s camp is about 30 min- Should the party inquire about the na- utes’ walk from Gilken’s banquet. ture of the monster, Gilken replies: G i l k e n ’s tacit presence enables the PCs to negotiate the terrain successfully this “Oh! It’s a huge thing! And ugly—really time instead of wandering in circles as revoltingly, hideously ugly. Four seven- they did before. The player characters teens are sixty-eight.” t h e re f o re should have little trouble re a c h- ing the spire, although you are welcome Again, Gilken speaks the truth (his version to interject a random encounter or two of it): For someone 2 feet tall, a 6-foot along the way. cre a t u r e is pr etty large. As for being ugly— When the party nears the shade’s well, such matters have always been subjec- camp, read aloud or paraphrase the fol- tive. The faerie avoids naming the crea t u r e lowing text. or describing it in more concrete detail, though if pressed he will offer a few more The outcrop rises from the unyielding synonyms for “ugly.” Recall that shades can earth like a great twisted horn or talon, pass for humans—you want the PCs to be its edges blurring into indistinction with expecting something more monstrous. the twilight. The elements seem to have If the player characters are hesitant to carved a small depression or cavern into confront the creature, Gilken employs all the formation, but the murky lighting the powers at his disposal to persuade them. renders you incapable of determining He first uses just “plain” seelie speech, sug- how deep it might be. Without, large gesting that the monster—while ugly— rocks and sections of long-petrified might not be too tough. Should that fail, he trees lie scattered like a child’s aban- attempts to ch a r m person or mammal. As a doned toys. last res o r t, he waits until the PCs leave his The dusky light plays tricks on your presence and invisibly accompanies them eyes, draping a shadowy veil across the with the intention of subtly guiding them land that obscures objects and makes into an unintentional encounter. you feel as if your vision is out of Assuming the player characters decide focus. As you try to distinguish shapes, to confront the monster (they are adven- something seems to move in the gray turers, after all), they need to know where l i g h t . to find it. Read aloud the following text. The “something” is, of course, the mon- Gilken directs your attention to a tall, ster Gilken has sent the PCs to find. pointed outcrop in the distance. “See the spire yonder? That’s where its lair Abbed (shade): AC 3 (+2 chain lies. Once naught is naught.” mail); MV 18; HD 10; hp 75; THAC0 8; #AT 1; Dmg 2d4+3 When they turn around to face Gilken (broadsword); SA blink, quasi- again, he is gone. images, Seeming, surprise; SD see in shadows, +3 bonus to saving throws, regenerate, teleport; Gilken hasn’t left the part y — h e MR 30%; SZ M (6' tall); ML 14 m e rely turned invisible. He ac- (elite); Int high (14); AL NE; companies the PCs so he XP 6,000. can collect the Amulet of Notes: Perception/Seeming scores of 6/19. S e e m i n gwhen (and if) Special items: Amulet of Seeming, they defeat the faerie mail (+2 chain mail). shade, but he o t h e rw i s e Once a human changeling child raised by does not the seelie faeries, Abbed embraced darkness when he left Ti t a n i a ’s court. His evil actions earned him the attention of 74 Lussina, who captured him and turn e d The amulet draws on the power of him into a shade. Knowing his history, the Seeming to create illusory effects. If she believed he could prove useful in her the amulet is directed toward an inani- ongoing war against her mother. mate object and one charge is used, the Just over a week ago, Lussina put her object appears to come to life. It func- plot into action. She instructed the shade tions according to the will of the Abbed to infiltrate the Seelie Court, using a m u l e t ’s owner, operating as an a d v a n c e d his former affiliation to gain entrance on i l l u s i o n cast at 10th level. The owner the pretense of soliciting aid. Once inside, must have a purpose in mind for the illu- he stole the Amulet of Seemingfrom the sion when activating the charge (attack- Faerie Queen’s coffers. ing a foe, creating a distraction, etc.); Abbed has been instructed by Lussina o t h e rwise the animated object simply ob- to wait here with his prize until an emis- s e rves whatever transpires around it. The sary arrives to escort him back to the Un- object remains animated for 10 ro u n d s , seelie Court. Meanwhile, he has created a unless the owner chooses to end the ani- temporary camp in which to pass the mation sooner. hours more comfortably. If directed at the ground and two The shade blends into the shadows so charges are used, the amulet creates well that he spies the approaching party shadow monsters(per the wizard spell, as if long before the PCs discern his outline in cast at the 10th level of ability). These the twilight. The advance warning enables creatures are constructs of the Seeming, him to formulate a plan: He will try, as and thus cannot be disbelieved in the best he can, to pass himself off as his for- same manner as ordinary illusions. mer human self in the hope that the party Both the animated objects and the will leave him alone and move on. Out- shadow monstersexist as if fashioned by numbered, he dare not chance losing the someone with a Seeming score of 50, re- amulet. gardless of the owner’s actual Seeming Though ordered not to experiment score. with the amulet or use it toward his own The amulet can also increase an indi- ends, the shade will employ it in self-de- v i d u a l ’s command over the Seeming, pro- fense if the PCs engage him in battle and vided that individual already possesses a defeat appears imminent. Seeming score of slight or higher. If aimed at oneself, another person, or a AMULET OF SEEMING c re a t u re, the amulet temporarily raises When Lussina was a child in the Seelie the re c i p i e n t ’s Seeming score by 7 Court, her mother, the Faerie Queen, points. Multiple charges may be used to fashioned the Amulet of Seemingas a gift cumulative effect, to a maximum infor her beloved daughter. The oval charm c rease of 49 points. The boost lasts 1d6 is made of a unique silver-green metal and t u rns, re g a rdless of how many charg e s inscribed with the Sie word gwesyn w e re used. (guardian). Titania intended for the P re s e n t l y, the Amulet of Seeming amulet to help Lussina learn to master has 47 charges. It can hold a maxi- the Seeming, and thus be a better mum of 80 charges, and can be guardian of the seelie people. re c h a rged only by the Faerie But Lussina’s ambition exceeded her Q u e e n . d u t y. After her thwarted coup attempt, Titania took the powerful item away. Lussina, however, believes the amulet is rightfully hers and wants it back. Fur- t h e r, recent events in the Shadow Wo r l d have caused her to fear she may lose her grip on the Seeming, so she wants the amulet to help her maintain contro l . Lussina won’t rest until it is re t u rned to h e r. 75 have is distorted and filtered through the faeries and other creatures and travelers he has encountered. Sharp PCs may al- When the party draws near enough, read ready have noticed that Abbed lacks the aloud or paraphrase the following text. traditional Khinasi head covering. Disso- nant answers to questions about his homeland or travels may provoke further Out of the misty twilight, a human fig- suspicion. ure emerges. The object of your scrutiny The shade watches the PCs carefully, appears to be a Khinasi man in his mid- gauging their reactions to him. But having thirties, though he is not dressed in na- lived isolated from other humans his tive garb. He wears old-fashioned whole life, Abbed lacks the ability to fi- Anuirean-looking clothing with his nesse a personal encounter. If the PCs armor, and his long, thick hair is tied at give any indication of doubting his hu- the nape. His mail is of unusual con- manity or harboring hostile intentions, he struction, its rings varying in hue to cre- seizes the initiative and strikes first to ate a swirling, dizzying pattern. gain the advantage of surprise. He holds a broadsword in his left Gilken helps the party as much as hand, but does not brandish it threaten- possible while remaining invisible (for ex- ingly. Instead, he lowers it as he takes a ample, by casting spells), but doesn’t ex- step toward you. pose himself to injury. “May I help you?” he asks.

After Gilken’s build-up, the party may be surprised that the dreadful monster they’ve been sent to defeat appears to be Depending upon the PCs’ fighting skills an ordinary human. Abbed tries to sustain and the extent to which the Dungeon this impression as long as possible. If ap- Master wants to influence the direction of proached peacefully, he introduces him- the adventure, the battle can resolve itself self as a fellow Cerilian traveler and does in a number of ways. his best to get the party moving along without sounding rude. Abbed cannot direct the PCs out of the Badlands himself; his own perception Abbed seeks only to get away from the score is low enough that he needs the party so he can complete his mission. If help of the unseelie escort he awaits. the player characters flee, he does not fol- However, he is not above pointing in a low them. Should the player characters random direction and telling the party to insist on fighting to the death, however, head that way, just to get the group to he obliges. leave. A PC defeat can take two forms: Though Abbed works hard to maintain his disguise, the player characters THE SHADE WINS may discover through perfectly in- Player characters are killed or subdued, nocent questions that the Khinasi or perhaps surrender. Any surviving PCs warrior is not what he appears. are bound over for delivery to Lussina. Because Abbed was stolen as See “Lussina’s Dark Domain,” page 78, an infant, he knows next to for guidance on handling a visit to the nothing about his native Unseelie Court. culture, or any other Cerilian culture. SHADE LOSES, HIS ESCORT ARRIVES What little infor- If the party defeats (or nearly defeats) mation he Abbed, but the DM wants the PCs to en- does counter Lussina, the shade’s unseelie escort arrives. The escort comprises 2 to 12 living evil faeries; the exact number de- 76 pends upon how many are needed to ally. Once Gilken returns the amulet to overpower the party. The escort captures the Faerie Queen, he may again shadow the PCs, scoops up the amulet, and con- the party, providing help when they least ducts everyone back to Lussina. Gilken expect it. accompanies them (as a captive if he has already revealed his presence, unseen if ATTEMPTING TO THWART GILKEN he hasn’t). Should the party physically or verbally See “Lussina’s Dark Domain” on the challenge Gilken’s right to the amulet, the next page for guidance on handling a visit faerie employs every means possible to to the Unseelie Court. escape with the magical item. He first starts with seelie speech, attempting to trick the player characters into releasing Should the player characters defeat him and the amulet. If unsuccessful, he Abbed, Gilken immediately reveals him- next uses any remaining spells against the self to claim the Amulet of Seeming. Read PCs and unleashes the full range of his aloud the following text. Seeming abilities. Gilken refuses, under pain of death, to reveal the nature of the amulet, its ori- From the pulsing twilight around you, gin, or how it works. Gilken emerges. If the party succeeds in withholding “You did it!” he exclaims. “You de- the amulet from Gilken, they have gained feated the monster! Ten tens is one hun- a powerful magical item—at a high price. dred!” If Gilken is left alive, he becomes a sworn The little fellow hurries to the fallen enemy. He will do his best to hinder the creature and wraps his thin fingers PCs at every turn, and encourage other around an amulet hanging from Abbed’s seelie faeries to do the same. And the he- neck. With a strength that belies his roes won’t exactly have endeared them- diminutive size, Gilken snaps the chain. selves to the Faerie Queen, either. “That hideous beast stole this from my queen,” he says, grasping the shim- A VISIT TO THE SEELIE COURT mering charm tightly. “Twice naught is Should a particularly clever player charac- naught. But now I can return it to her, ter sufficiently master the twisting logic of and you can leave the Badlands.” seelie speech, he or she may manage to convince Gilken that the faerie has no The remainder of the adventure will choice but to escort the party to the be determined by how the player charac- queen, where they can return the amulet ters respond to Gilken: themselves. Use your own discretion in determining whether a player character ALLOWING GILKEN TO TAKE THE AMULET is creative enough to beat Gilken at his If the player characters accept the fact own linguistic games. One potential that the amulet doesn’t belong to them method might be spouting incorrect and permit Gilken to have it unchal- mathematical calculations between lenged, the faerie uses the Seeming to all one’s statements. The blas- fashion a path out of the Badlands. This phemy will torture poor Gilken path leads to wherever you, the DM, into promising nearly anything wish. to make it stop. If he did not exhaust his spellcasting See “The Court of the abilities in the shade battle, Gilken now Faerie Queen” on the casts whatever beneficial spells he can on next page for guidance the party’s behalf (such as protection from on handling a visit evil, create food and water,etc.). He does to the Seelie so without the PCs’ knowledge. Court. Finally, though the player characters do not realize it, their honorable treatment of Gilken has earned them a loyal

77 word of warning before sending them on their way. The gift is a small tin containing a salve of seeing.By dabbing a small amount The party’s visit to the Seelie Court pro- of the salve into one eye, a character can vides you, the DM, with a chance to point see any disguised or invisible seelie your Shadow World campaign in any di- faeries in his or her visual range. Should rection you wish. The PCs can learn in- the PCs learn any information that would formation, gain allies (or enemies), or en- be valuable to the Faerie Queen, they are counter the catalyst for their next adven- to use the ointment to locate one of her ture here. It’s up to you where you want emissaries and send word to her. The tin to take things from this point. holds three applications; each lasts for The faerie folk may take little notice one day. of the player characters’ arrival, regard Once the player characters’ visit is at the party with curiosity, or sweep in with an end, they are escorted out of Titania’s a barrage of questions and proddings. The domain and charmed with the seelie spell Faerie Queen does not greet them ini- of forgettingso that they cannot find their tially; if they wish to speak with her, they way back. must request an audience through Gilken or one of her other courtiers. Should the party be so fortunate as to win an audience with Titania, the encounter is brief. The Faerie Queen seldom shows herself to mortals, but she The player characters arrive in the Un- takes advantage of this opportunity to seelie Court as prisoners, and endure the question the party about the recent tu- jeers and jabs of its unsavory population. mult in her homeland. After thanking the Before long, they are brought before the PCs for their role in retrieving the Amulet Dark Queen herself. When they see her, of Seeming, she asks them about their she is, of course, wearing the Amulet of travels in the Shadow World. Seeming. The Faerie Queen has sensed a shift Upon hearing that the heroes attacked in the fabric of the Seeming, and suspects her servant Abbed, Lussina becomes con- her daughter may be involved. She doubts vinced that the party is in league with the that Lussina alone is powerful enough to Faerie Queen. She interrogates them for cause such a ripple, but knows that if the hours about their involvement, Titania’s Dark Queen colludes with the Shadow plans, and the shift in the Seeming that World’s other major forces, the combina- she is convinced her mother has somehow tion could prove deadly indeed. Titania effected. knows that the Cold Rider is gathering Pleas of ignorance only increase strength and is rumored to be on the Lussina’s suspicions. She offers the PCs a march. She has heard that the Rider choice: Either they voluntarily swear alle- has enlisted the aid of his old ser- giance to her, or she will command it after vants, the Lost. And she has felt the their deaths. If they swear allegiance, she dark energy, awnmebhaighl, pooling releases them, but considers them ser- and eddying into new sources. vants who can be called upon at any time. Titania quizzes the player Like a visit to the Faerie Queen’s characters, in as roundabout a realm, an encounter with the Unseelie way as possible, to confirm Co u r t offers you, the DM, the perfect cat- these impressions and ru- alyst for continuing the story in any man- mors. When she fin- ner you like. A whole adventure could re- ishes, she presents volve around escaping Lussina’s clutches, them with a avoiding a plan to turn all the PCs into gift and a shades, or engaging in an espionage attempt to uncover Lussina’s involvement with other Shadow World force s .

78 In addition to any experience points gained for defeating the shade, at the DM’s discretion player characters may If the player characters avoided a trip to also earn the following: one of the faerie courts but kept the ◆ 1,000 XP and 1 permanent percep- Amulet of Seemingfor themselves, they tion point each for the experience of have obtained a powerful magical item. dealing with Gilken. Double this However, the amulet comes with a dan- amount if PCs realized before Gilken’s gerous string attached—and Lussina is reappearance that defeating the shade holding the other end. The Dark Queen had nothing to do with finding their will stop at nothing to get her amulet way out of the Badlands. back. Until she has it in her possession ◆ A +2 perception bonus in future en- once more, she will make the PCs’ lives— counters with seelie faeries. Triple this and deaths—miserable. The Faerie Queen amount if the party visited the Seelie wants the charm back as well, so the Court. If characters visited the Unseel- party may find itself caught in the middle ie Court, they receive a +4 perception of the Seelie War. bonus in future unseelie encounters If the player characters visited one of (more, if you prolong the PCs’ time the faerie courts during this adventure, there with an adventure of your own). one of the queens could charge them with ◆ A +5 perception bonus during future performing some task or service—either excursions into the Badlands. ◆ during the initial interview, or at some un- An additional +5 perception bonus in expected time in the future. seelie encounters for any character who mastering seelie logic well enough to wrangle a visit to the Seelie Court.

79 moned directly to the Shadow World by evil inhabitants such as the Lost. Baatezu he creatures described in this vol- may serve a master, or may have escaped ume were created specifically for the enslavement and roam free. BIRTHRIGHT setting. However, a number Banshee: Often found near portals in of standard AD&D monsters are also ap- elven domains, trying to lure their living propriate for Shadow World adventures. brethren into the Shadow World. Dungeon Masters may use their own dis- Bat: The Night Hunter and Sinister vari- cretion in determining whether to intro- eties are common in the Shadow World. duce the following monsters into their Bonebat 3: Appears with rare frequency campaigns. throughout the Shadow World.

◆ Brownie: Dwells among the Seelie Court. Brownie, Quickling 2: A member of the Key to Monsters Unseelie Court. Unless otherwise noted, all the creatures listed in this appendix are detailed in the Cat: The Giant Lynx (great cat) and Wild MONSTROUS MANUAL accessory. Excep- Cat (small cat) are the most common va- tions are as follows: rieties found in the Shadow World. 1 C re a t u re appears in the MO N S T R O U S Cath Shee 2: These faerie cats live among COMPENDIUM Annual, Volume One. the Seelie Court, often as pets. They have 2 C re a t u re appears in the MO N S T R O U S a slight command of the Seeming. COMPENDIUM Annual, Volume Two. Cloaker: Appears with uncommon fre- 3 C re a t u re appears in the MO N S T R O U S quency in the Shadow World. COMPENDIUM Annual, Volume Three. Cockatrice: Both the cockatrice and the pyrolisk can be found in the Shadow ◆ World, each with uncommon frequency. Aranea 3: Often looks like a human or Crawling Claw: Employed as guardians halfling in humanoid form; commonly by powerful spellcasters; can also be found in Shadow World forests. found among the Unseelie Court. Arch-Shadow 2: Appears with rare Crypt Thing: Appears with rare fre- frequency in the Shadow World. quency in the Shadow World. Curst 2: Can be found throughout the Baatezu: Any extraplanar crea- Shadow World. ture summoned or gated to Cerilia must pass through the Death Knight: Appears in Cerilia with Shadow World; occasion- rare frequency. ally they get stuck there Dog: Wild Dogs are common; Death Dogs and never make it to appear with rare frequency in the Shadow Aebrynis. Other World. Blink Dogs on Cerilia briefly enter fiends are the Shadow World when they "blink." sum- Dog, Moon: Appears with very rare frequency in the Shadow World; has been known to lead travelers to havens. 80 Doppleganger: Appears with rare fre- Ghoul: Ghouls, Lacedons, and Ghasts all quency in the Shadow World; thought to inhabit the Shadow World. be spawned from the Seeming itself. Giant: Many varieties appear with very Doppleganger, Greater 2: These crea- rare frequency in the Shadow World. tures usually serve powerful denizens of More commonly, smaller creatures use the Shadow World. the Seeming (consciously or not) to ap- Dracolich: A unique creature in the pear as giants. Shadow World. Only one, transformed Gibberling: Appear with rare frequency centuries ago from a Cerilian Dragon, is in the Shadow World. known to exist. Gloomwing: Both the Moth and the Dragonet: Faerie Dragons can be found Tenebrous Worm appear with common among the Seelie Court. frequency in the Shadow World. Dream Spawn 3: In the Shadow World, a Golem: Flesh, Clay, Bone, and dream spawn is an independent being, Necrophidius golems appear with very not a servant of the Nightmare Court. It rare frequency in the Shadow World. appears with very rare frequency. Gremlin: Member of the Unseelie Court. Dream Weaver 3: Appears in the Shadow Grimlock: Appears with rare frequency World with rare frequency to influence in the Shadow World. travelers’ dreams. Hag: The Seeming often causes ordinary Elemental: Kin varieties appear very women in the Shadow World to look like rarely; others appear with the frequency hags. noted. Haunt: Appears with uncommon fre- Ettercap: Appears with common frequency in the Shadow World. quency in the Shadow World. Hell Hound: Appears with uncommon Eyewing: Appears with uncommon fre- frequency in the Shadow World. quency in the Shadow World, usually Heucuva: Appears with rare frequency in swooping in on parties traveling across the Shadow World. large plains or other open terrain. Hound of Ill-Omen 3: May appear in both the Shadow World and Cerilia. Faerie Fiddler 3: Member of the Seelie Court. An evil faerie fiddler dwells among Imp: Member of the Unseelie Court. the unseelie faeries. Very rarely, Mephits can be found among Faerie, Petty 1: Squeakers and Stingers the Unseelie Court or conducting their dwell among the Seelie Court with rare business elsewhere in the Shadow World. frequency. Invisible Stalker: Summoned by power- Faerie, Petty 3: Brambles dwell among ful Shadow World denizens with very rare the Unseelie Court; gorse, among the frequency. Seelie Court. Fish: Many nasty varieties inhabit the Jackalwere: Appears with very rare Shadow World’s murky lakes, rivers, and frequency in the Shadow World. seas. Flameskull 1: Appears with very rare fre- Leprechaun: Member of the Seelie quency in the Shadow World. Court. Fungus: All varieties appear with com- Lich: Not a generic monster. mon frequency in the Shadow World’s Each lich in the Shadow many dark, dense forests. World is a unique character (in the same way that Galeb Duhr: Appears with uncommon the awnsheghlien and frequency in rocky Shadow World terrain; the Lost are). DMs of neutral evil alignment. a re free to cre- Gargoyle: Appears with rare frequency in ate their the Shadow World. o w n . Ghost: Appears with uncommon frequency in the Shadow World. 81 Lycanthrope: Many varieties populate Shadeling 1: Appears with rare frequency the Shadow World. Often, they are for- in the Shadow World. mer Cerilians who strayed through a por- Shadow: Appears with uncommon fre- tal and found themselves cursed with ly- quency in the Shadow World. canthropy. Skeleton: Ordinary skeletons appear commonly in the Shadow World. Giant Magebane 1: Appears with very rare fre- and Warrior skeletons appear with rare quency in the Shadow World. frequency. Mastiff, Shadow 3: Native to the Shadow Snake: Many varieties inhabit the World. Shadow World, appearing with very rare Mist: Both Crimson Death and Vampiric frequency. Mist inhabit the Shadow World with rare Spectral Wizard 1: Generally found in frequency. more populated areas of the Shadow Mummy: Appears with rare frequency in World. arid regions of the Shadow World. Spectre: Appears with uncommon frequency in the Shadow World. Naga: All varieties are very rare in the Sp i d e r : Ha i r y, Large, Huge, and Giant Shadow World. spiders appear commonly. The uncommon Nightmare: Shadow Steeds (see entry in Phase Spider enters the Shadow Wor l d this book) become Nightmares upon when it "phases" out of Cerilia. Garga n - crossing into Cerilia. tuan Spiders appear with rare freq u e n c y . Noran 1: Appears with rare frequency in Sprite and Sprite, Seelie Faerie 2: Mem- gnarled Shadow World forests. bers of the Seelie Court. Sprite, Unseelie Faerie 2: Member of the Ogre: The Seeming causes many ordinary Unseelie Court. humans in the Shadow World to appear as ogres. Tanar’ri: Any extraplanar creature summoned or gated to Cerilia must pass Phantom: Appears with uncommon fre- through the Shadow World; occasionally quency in the Shadow World. Also known they get stuck there and never make it to to appear in Cerilia depicting a death that Aebrynis. Other creatures are summoned occurred in the Shadow World. directly to the Shadow World by evil in- Plant, Dangerous: Many varieties populate habitants such as the Lost. the Shadow World, including the Blood- Treant: Most Shadow World treants are th o r n2, Twilight Bloom2, and Boring Grass2. of chaotic neutral alignment. Plant, Intelligent: The Hangman Tree, Tree, Singing 1: Can grow in any Shadow Obliviax, Quickwood, and Strangleweed World forest. all appear with uncommon frequency in the Shadow World. Undead Lake Monster 1: Appears with Plant, Vampire Moss 1: Grows in uncommon frequency in Shadow World Shadow World forests, marshes, and lakes. swamps. Urchin: Found in and near many Shadow Poltergeist: Appears with uncom- World bodies of water. mon frequency in the Shadow World. Vampire: Appears with very rare frequency in the Shadow World. Rakshasa: Appears with very rare frequency in the Wight: Sometimes roams the Shadow Shadow World. World in small bands. Revenant: Appears Will o’Wisp: Related to the Will only rarely in the o’Shadow (see entry in this book). Shadow Wolf: Ordinary wolves appear commonly World. in the Shadow World; Worgs and Dire Wolves appear with uncommon frequency; Winter Wolves are rare. 82 Wolf, Vampiric 1 or Zombie 1: Appears Yugoloth, Guardian: Appears with very with rare frequency in the Shadow World. rare frequency in the Shadow World. Wolfwere: Appears with very rare frequency in the Shadow World. Zombie: All varieties of zombies appear Wraith: Unlike standard wraiths, in the with rare frequency in the Shadow World, Shadow World they can be found any- except for the Sea Zombie. where, not necessarily near tombs or places of their deaths.