Sunday 24 July 2011

Off on my holidays

I'll be away for the next week, so apologies for no posts - I should be back in August with new stuff for the Walrus Freehold and Godsblood Straits.

NPCs of Firebright Keep

These folks are all found in Firebright Keep, in the Barony of Bauglir in Teiglin, close to the Borderlands.


Talmuddor
6th level cleric, align Lawful, age 67, gender male
Str 10, Int 14, Wis 17, Dex 8, Con 8, Cha 12
AC 8, Move 90' HP 12, THAC0 17, Att 1 staff for 1d6 
Equipment: Staff of Curing, Ring of Displacement
Talmuddor is a retired adventurer who has settled down in Firebright Keep. He helps and supports the garrison and adventurers (as long as they are well-behaved) and he also asks adventurers to help out in the fight against Chaos.
Although Talmuddor is naturally opposed to creatures born of Chaos, he has a particular hatred and contempt for humans and demihumans who willingly turn to Chaos. This could prove awkward for adventuring parties that include chaotic members, as Talmuddor is not bothered about the difference between behaving chaotically and actually fighting for the forces of Chaos.
Description: Talmuddor is scarred from his adventuring days - he has a peg-leg and scars on his lower left cheek. He has a weather-beaten face, iron grey hair and moustach.


Vestival the Fiery
8th level magic user, align unaligned, age 57, gender male
Str 8, Int 16, Wis 10, Dex 10, Con 16, Cha 13
AC 5, Move 120' HP 40, THAC0 17, Att 1 spell or 1 dagger for 1d4
Equipment: Robe of Protection +2, Ring of Protection +2, Dagger +1, Wand of  Lesser Fireballs (3d6 damage otherwise as normal fireball) 15 charges,
Memorized Spells: (3/3/2/2) Magic Missile *2, Sleep, Mirror Image, Invisibility, Continual Light, Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Plant Growth, Wall of Fire 
Vestival is a wrathful destroyer of chaotic monsters who makes regular forays out from Firebright Keep into the borderlands to hunt down and destroy chaotic marauders. He will talk, if pressed, of his early memories of his family fleeing Erkhart during the Summoning but then seeing them killed by bugbears and gnolls as they approached Bauglir. He and his brother survived and were raised by a kindly mage (one of Valderin's students).
Vestival can be quite ruthless in his pursuit of Chaotic foes and can drag other folks along on his hunts when they may not be ready or entirely willing. He despises those who refuse to join him on his crusade, and he may accuse them of cowardice or weakness.
Description: Vestival is tall, dark and imposing in his robes. He has a saturnine face with heavy black brows and hooked nose and chin. He wears black robes that he swirls around in a very dramatic fashion.


Beryllia the Bright
7th level halfling scout, align neutral, age 34, gender female
Str 14, Int 9, Wis 12, Dex 18, Con 13, Cha 10
AC 2, move 90' HP 26, THAC0 12 with sword for 1d6+1, THAC0 10 with bow for 1d6+1
Equipment: Chain Mail, shortsword+1, shortbow+1,  quiver +20 arrows, elven boots, potion of extra healing.
Beryllia is the principal scout in Firebright Keep. She leads a motley band of other halflings, elven rangers and human thieves keeping a hidden eye on the borderlands. She is usually friendly with adventurers - she considers them to be additional eyes and ears if they return from the borderlands and are willing to talk to her. 
Beryllia has a particular vendetta against hobgoblins and will seek them out and kill them in preference to other chaotic humanoids. She will not say why.
Description: Beryllia is 3'2", wiry and agile. She has been compared to a hare armed to the teeth. She has tanned skin from staying outside and dark blonde hair she keeps in a ponytail. She does not worry about personal appearance, and will not worry about going for days dirty and unwashed.


Captain Telemach
6th level fighter, align Lawful, age 33, gender female
Str 14, Int 12, Wis 10, Dex 16, Con 10, Cha 11
AC Move 90' HP 33, THAC0 base 15 14 with sword for 1d8+1 damage, or THAC0 11 with bow for 1d6+2
Equipment: Chain mail +1, sword, Longbow +2, 2 quivers, 40 arrows,
Telemach is the captain of archery at Firebright Keep. She commands a company of 80 archers in the army of Teiglin and is one of the senior officers in the Keep. Telemach is quite defensive in her tactics, and prefers to hold the line, keeping the hordes of Chaos at bay rather than seeking battle in the borderlands.  Telemach speaks elvish, and she knows the village of Iridell well - some say that is where she learned her skill at archery, while others say she has an elf boyfriend there.
Description: Telemach is 5'5", 110lb and with black hair and pale skin. She has several scars and the top half of her left ear is missing.

Thursday 21 July 2011

NPCs of Bauglir

The following folks are all found in or around the town of Bauglir in Teiglin.  

Cadgit
1st level fighter, alignment neutral, male, age 20
Str 14, Int 13, Wis 7, Dex 9, Con 11, Cha 11
AC 4, Move 90', hp 6, THAC0 18, Att 1 sword for 1d8+1
Equipment: Chain mail, shield, sword, 4 javelins, backpack
Cadgit is a bodyguard who works in and around Bauglir. He does not have a great deal of experience, but is brave and reliable so he often finds work with merchants and minor nobles. He is both sexist (he doesn't approve of women getting into fights) and dislikes magic and wizards, so he is not suited to every client. Nonetheless he is interested in getting involved in adventuring and is considering becoming a henchman to a great and noble adventurer.
Appearance: Cadgit is 5'9", 160lb and red-headed, with an unattractive face and bulbous nose. He has a tendency to wear bright red clothing.

Darius Swiftblade
9th level halfling scout, alignment lawful, male, age 70
Str 14, Int 14, Wis 10, Dex 13, Con 11, Cha 14
AC 1, Move 120', hp 33, THAC0 10, Att 1 shortsword for 1d6+3
Equipment: Chain Mail +2, shortsword +2, dagger +1, ring of protection +1, cloak of displacement
Darius Swiftblade is the spokesman and champion of halflings in Bauglir. He is a renowned hero among halflings in Teiglin, having slain a whole gang of halfling-eating giants. Like all halflings he enjoys his food and is now getting overweight. Unlike some halflings who are proud of their paunch, he is not happy and is quite sensitive about the issue.
Darius is 3'4", 90lb and has tanned skin and dark brown hair, including sideburns and mustache. He usually wears smart town-clothes except when expecting trouble (when he dons his armour).

Haskari the Sage
5th level magic user, alignment unaligned, female, age 78
Str 5, Int 17, Wis 11, Dex 8, Con 8, Cha 12
AC 9, Move 60', hp 7, THAC0 20, Att 1 dagger for 1d4-2
Equipment: Dagger, magic-user robes
Spells memorized: Dispel Magic, Phantasmal Force, Invisibility, Read Magic, Detect Magic
Haskari is the pre-eminent sage in Bauglir. She is a shrewd business woman and requires payment before she dispenses any advice. She is fond of food and drink and may accept payment in the form of fine wine or expensive chocolates. She also requires respect and good manners from clients - she is a prim and proper woman. Her area of expertise is history and geography of the four empires.
Appearance: Haskari is a frail old woman, 5'4", 110lb with silver-grey hair and pronounced bone structure (cheeks, nose and chin). She is usually wrapped up warm in gowns and shawls, even when most people find it warm enough for a single layer of clothes.

Sir Alderaan
4th level fighter, align Lawful, male, age 30
Str 15, Int 10, Wis 10, Dex 9, Con 13, Cha 12
AC 2, Move 90', HP 24, THAC0 14, Att 1 sword for 1d8+2
Equipment: Plate Mail, Shield, Sword +1,  Warhorse, Lance
Sir Alderaan is a knight originally from central Toutus who arrived in Teiglin two years ago. He is a knight-in-training of the Knight Protectors of Toutus - he has not yet become a full knight. He hopes to gather support for his order in and around Bauglir but so far has not had much success. In fact he himself is beginning to doubt his loyalty to the order, as he has seen many folks fighting back the hordes of chaos without worrying about the Toutus Empire. His encounters with the Shining Blades has him thinking about joining that order instead.
Appearance: Sir Alderaan is  6'2", 200lb and handsome, with tanned skin, black hair and a shining smile that makes all the girls giggle. He often wears his armour even when about town.

Tuesday 19 July 2011

Walrus City





Walrus City (population 12000) is the largest city in the Walrus Freehold, and the de-facto capital for the region - even giving its name to the area. Walrus City is closest to the walrus populations and mammoths that provide the main income for the region. As such it is the wealthiest city even if it is quite isolated. The city relies almost entirely on its port and sea routes for trade and communication - overland travel is difficult in summer and usually fatal in winter.


Walrus City is a plutarchy, with the wealthy merchants bossing around the spineless town council. The town council has a small group of 130 town guards, but the merchants all have their mercenary guards who total at least 500 troops of mixed loyalties. They will probably defend the town if there was a major attack, but their merchant employers have the final say as to whether, and who, the mercenaries will defend or attack. Walrus City is the base for Uldur’s Scouts, a company of human light cavalry with studded leather and fur armour, lances and maces who go out on patrols on the Icemud Tundra, visiting trading posts and trappers.


Walrus City was formally established in 1432 BY although a trading post had been there for about a hundred years previously. There was a brief period from 1483 to 1501 BY when the Toutus Empire tried to run Walrus City directly as a province, but the first Imperial governor found it difficult to run the city without the constant support from the rest of the Empire. He resigned and returned to the heart of the Empire. The second governor was even worse - he appeared to be noble, but turned out to be a degenerate worshipper of Pelepton who was embezzling much of the hard-earned gold to fund cult activities. It was the merchants who discovered his devious behaviour and ousted him - this was the start of the current political situation as they installed their own "governor" who was effectively in their pockets.


During the wars between the Empires, Walrus City was raided several times, and many areas burned down or damaged. However, the location is so popular with traders that most of the damage has been repaired by those interested in keeping Walrus City open as a centre of trade.


Walrus City is not a very religious community but there are shrines to Sturnornel, Haaken, Vought and Rhondus. There is also a cell of the Red Hand active within the city who have influence over several bands of thugs and also blackmail the crooked harbourmaster. Merchants have been complaining of valuable  goods going missing from warehouses and ships and thieves are suspected. The Red Hand is organising the theft and fencing of these goods while trying to keep a safe distance should anyone be caught. The harbourmaster is involved, but he wants to get out with his life intact and he may ask adventurers for help.

Saturday 16 July 2011

Overview of the Walrus Freehold

The Walrus Freehold has been on the edge of the Toutus Empire, and never fully integrated - more of an outpost than a proper province. The Walrus Freehold has been mostly left to its own devices - as a Freehold it was a collection of semi-independent cities.
The most notable thing about the Walrus Freehold is the climate - subarctic to arctic, with viciously cold winters. There is some farming, but crops don't grow well at this latitude, so a lot of the food has to be from hunting, fishing or trade with other cities with better farmland. The natural resources of this land are valuable, so the hardships are tolerated by those willing to make a profit.
Ivory, from both the walruses on the coast and also the mammoths and mastodons that roam the tundra, is valuable and these beasts are often hunted. The hides from these and other creatures can be used by leatherworkers as they are thick, warm and hard-wearing. Rare timbers are found in the Twilight Forest, a vast stretch of taiga (cold pine forest), while in the ground amber, silver and gold can be found.

While Teiglin is considered suitable for low-level adventurers (levels 1-5) and the Godsblood Strait for mid-level adventurers (levels 5-10), the Walrus Freehold is dangerous once beyond the city walls - if the climate doesn't kill you, the wandering monsters will. In the north, there are ferocious cold-dwelling creatures such as white dragons, frost giants, frost salamanders and worse. Even the "normal" animals seem to be throwbacks to a more savage, wilder age - instead of wolves there are dire wolves, instead of bears there are cave bears and polar bears and instead of tigers there are sabertooth tigers. Only experienced and tough adventurers (levels 10-15) will prosper.

Another thing about the Walrus Freehold is the relative absence of recent catastrophe. The Freehold was attacked by other Empires during the Wars between the Empires, and during the Summoning the Grulven Hills were transformed by the battle of Bhael against Adonor and Rhondus into the Twisted Hills. However, there have been no cities destroyed or ruined, no displacement of refugees and no Chaos Portals in the immediate vicinity. The region has got off lightly.

Thursday 14 July 2011

Deities of Kaelaross part 4

For a complete listing of the Kaelaross Pantheon see Deities of Kaelaross part 1

Caralax, Lawful Goddess of Truth, Honesty and Knowledge
Symbol: White Candle & Golden Flame
Caralax is popular among those who stand for the truth and must battle against deceit and illusion. Detectives and investigators, as well as some merchants and academics, pay homage to her. She is the vigilant foe of Pelepton and hidden cults of chaos. Her followers take care in confessing their sins so that they have no hidden shame - if they hold back and do not speak about something they have done wrong, it becomes a lot more serious. 

Sestarna, Lawful Goddess of Hope, Life, Healing and the Sun
Symbol: Golden Sunburst
Sestarna is the goddess for those who look for improvement and better days ahead, as well as getting through bad days. As her followers would say: “Where there’s life, there’s hope. So long as the sun still shines there is hope. As long as Sestarna watches over us, there is hope.” She is also the goddess of healing, and many hospitals and healers hold Sestarna in high regard. Some of her clerics will set up and run hospitals, orphanages and homeless shelters though this is not obligatory.


Borelia, Neutral Goddess of the Stars, Travelling, the Planes & Navigation
Symbol: Silver Star on black background
Borelia is popular among travellers, both mundane and magical. Merchants, explorers and messengers are all worshippers of Borelia. Clerics of Borelia are capable astronomers, and prefer to use the stars for navigation than magnetic compasses. Planar travellers will often pray to her for guidance and safety and the more powerful and experienced of her clerics have explored some of the planes of existence. Nearly all of her clerics travel from one city to another every couple of years - she has established shrines and temples, but the clergy at each one will turn over every two or three years. 

Derlona, Neutral Goddess of the Air, the Sky & Birds
Symbol: Blue Eagle
Derlona is not often worshipped by humans, though intelligent flying beings hold her in high regard, such as giant eagles. Those who rely on winds or good weather, especially sailors and millers with windmills will also show respect to her. She has a grand palace of solid cloud  on the Elemental Plane of Air, where she is served by numerous neutral (not chaotic) djinn and cloud giants. She is one of the four elemental deities. It is said that although she and her sister Vought are normally on good terms, the mischievous Havok will stir things up, resulting in terrible tempests as air and water clash. 

Skreech, Chaotic Goddess of Berserkers, Insanity & Psychopaths
Symbol: Double-edged axe
Few sane creatures worship Skreech, who is insanely destructive to all creatures and most inanimate objects she meets. A few trolls, ogres and human berserkers from the north utter prayers to her before battle, but even they do not seek her attention except when violence is imminent. Skreech is  also held responsible for other forms of insanity, such as  paranoia, psychosis and split personalities, and those who work in lunatic asylums occasionally try to placate her. This can backfire horribly, and those who attract her attention may be inflicted with an uncontrolled homicidal rage.

Torthola, Chaotic Goddess of Fire, Hatred, Malice & Vengeance
Symbol: Iron brazier filled with flaming coals
Torthola is the last of the elemental deities (the others being Valgar for Earth, Derlona for Air and Vought for Water), and is the only chaotic one. She is unpredictable, angry, destructive and hates anyone who worships her elemental siblings without putting her first. She is the favoured deity of various fire-dwelling monsters, including fire giants and red dragons, as well as human and demihuman pyromaniacs and those consumed by vengeance and hatred.

Tuesday 12 July 2011

The Western Half of Toutus

The areas described so far have been part of continent and former empire of Toutus. The above map is not complete, but gives a good idea of how the current regions connect to each other.

The regions described so far include:
The Kingdom of Teiglin
The Godsblood Straits
The Walrus Freehold
The Varreshiss Islands
Iryanland

The regions I have not started describing are
Hilvernia

As you can see, these are works in progress. None of the regions are truly complete, as there are always new aspects, new locations, new characters to be described. Thus although I might introduce a new region one week, I may still go back and describe another part of an older region the next week.

An overview of Toutus:
Toutus is a continent in the northern hemisphere of Kaelaross that stretches from subarctic through temperate to Mediterranean climates. From 6,000 BBY (before Bursian Year 0) the land has been colonized by humans, clashing with or making peace with the resident demihumans who have been on Toutus seemingly since the beginning of the world.
Human kingdoms arose along the southern coast east of Hilvernia from 300 BY to 500 BY and formed a coalition. When faced with a humanoid horde in the north of unprecedented numbers and savagery (at least 110,000 orcs, 50,000 gnolls and 10,000 ogres according to historical sources) these kingdoms formed the Toutus Empire in 722 BY.
The Orc-Head War was bloody and attritional for both sides, but the Toutus Empire survived. Furthermore, the Emperor had shifted the war effort so that the component kingdoms were in no position to break away without permission - they were too exhausted and the bulk of the surviving troops were loyal to the Emperor himself.
The Toutus Empire was a feudal empire, with the Emperor at the top, the kings ruling the old original kingdoms, the dukes ruling over newer colonies (including the newly formed duchy of Teiglin and duchy of Urdus), and smaller counts, earls and barons ruling under them. Along side this there was the Church of Law, which was almost an empire within the Toutus Empire - a collection of the different lawful religions (notably Chelmor, Rhondus and Adonor) forming hierarchies that spread across Toutus, giving spiritual guidance and moral support to the feudal leaders.
The Toutus Empire was also known for its knights in shining armour with their splendid heraldry and their devastating charges with lances. These knights, and particularly their feudal overlords, built magnificent castles as both prestigious noble homes and as fortresses to dominate the surrounding lands.
This all came crashing down in 1560 BY when after 10 years of the Wars between the Empires, the Summoning occurred and the Toutus Empire, along with the three other Empires, ceased to be a coherent entity and collapsed.

Monday 11 July 2011

A map of the Walrus Freehold

An overview of the Walrus Freehold region can be found here. The Walrus Freehold sits in the north-western corner of the Toutus Empire.


The four main cities of the Walrus Freehold are described here:
Walrus City (inc. Balkint, Pordril and Heragon)
Trislem (inc. Challex, Zegred Keep and Cheligren)
Stalim (inc. Hurin Castle)
Najask (inc. Fjordport, Teryxton and Untheris)


The areas of wilderness are described here:
The Walrus Channel, 
Griffon Island and Errisha Island
The Grulven Mountains (inc. dwarf settlements)
The Twisted Hills 
The Twilight Forest (including elf clans)
The Orgrist Hills and Cortacus Mountains (inc. the Goldseeker Clan) which are part of the island-continent of Cortacus

Thursday 7 July 2011

The Rules I Use


This blog has an element of nostalgia to it. My first D&D rules were the D&D Basic rules edited by Tom Moldvay and with the Erol Otus cover.

The next was the D&D Expert rules edited by Frank Mentzer and with the Larry Elmore cover.


Unlike some folk, I consider the Moldvay and Mentzer printings to be the same edition with very little changes in the rules (though presentation changed greatly, obviously) and when I talk about Classic D&D I use the term for both the Moldvay and Mentzer sets - I don't think anyone with either set will have problems incorporating the new options from this blog (though whether they want to is another question).
I have dabbled in 1E AD&D, 2E AD&D and 3E D&D. Although I am not writing this blog with any of those rules sets in mind, I am quite happy for other folks to adapt and borrow as they see fit - either adapting ideas from AD&D to the Basic D&D rules or converting ideas on this blog to their prefered D&D edition. However, I will assume that folks reading and borrowing from this blog don't have AD&D or 3E, so I'll try not to include stuff that depends on having those books.


I have also got the D&D Companion Rules, the natural extension of the Mentzer Basic & Expert sets. I will be honest - I haven't really used the Companion rules in play as my Classic D&D campaigns didn't last that long. Nonetheless, I still treat most of the Companion set as part of the rules I am using. Some folks feel that B/X D&D should mean just the Moldvay Basic & Expert rules - I am not so strict. Certainly the monster, new spells and continued advancement of existing classes is welcome. However, I don't use druids - not in the same way as the Companion rules uses them - I don't take too seriously the options for companion level characters .


I've also got the Rules Cyclopedia, which gathered together all the Mentzer rulebooks into one hardback volume. It is probably the best single RPG book I have, and if I go on holiday, it is the go-to D&D book I will take. It is more compact than a DMG, PHB and MM (whichever edition) and the rules are simpler.
I will admit I was paying little attention to Classic D&D until the Old School Rennaisance - the OSR. The two most important sets of rules from my point of view, and the two that grabbed my attention in the early days, were OSRIC and Labyrinth Lord. In their early days both were free to download. This greatly improved their uptake, and I don't know if I would have looked at either of them had I been asked to pay for them.


I ended up with Labyrinth Lord, as the rules are generally simpler, and have fewer quirks and oddities carried over from the rules which they clone. These got me back thinking about the glory days of Basic D&D, the B & X series of modules, and the simplicity was a refreshing change from the splat-heavy 3E/3.5E I was getting tired of. I hope that whatever I write in this blog is as compatible with Labyrinth Lord as it is with classic D&D.  I have not tried to incorporate anything from Advanced Edition Companion into this blog as I consider this blog to be primarily for B/X D&D rather than Labyrinth Lord.


OD&D is something from before my time. I have never actually picked up any of the little brown books or white box, and as such I don't feel the need to cater to that particular niche. Of course, I hope that those who do play OD&D or its retroclones will find something of use on this blog.

Although in personal campaigns and writings I have merrily converted dozens of monsters and NPCs from other games to D&D/LL, I have decided not to mess around with things that could be considered breaches of copyright on this blog. Thus I will leave alone my conversion of the monsters from the DOOM computer game, monsters and NPCs from the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks and classes and creatures from Warhammer Fantasy Battle such as skaven and chaos warriors. Besides, I'm sure that lots of other folks out there have done the same, and you can find them somewhere on the Internet.

Tuesday 5 July 2011

The Ruling council of Ironmarket

Ironmarket is ruled by a council of 10 councillors overseen by the Mayor of Ironmarket. Although treated in some ways as the ruler of Ironmarket, the Mayor is more like its figurehead - no more power than most of the other councillors. He does chair the council meetings and gets to vote with the other councillors when a decision is made.
The councillors are as follows:
The Mayor of Ironmarket - Thandris Geddarris (5th level fighter, lawful, male) - seeks to expand Ironmarket's influence and contacts in the remains of the Toutus Empire, such as trade with Teiglin and Sterin Barony.
The Guildhall Representative - Carmina Delacross (6th level thief, unaligned, female) - opportunistic and cynical, always looking to expand her powerbase, perhaps becoming the next mayor.
The Colonel of the Town Guard - Pendrall Dragonslayer (9th level fighter, lawful, male) - excellent on the battlefield but out of his depth in politics. He is loyal to the mayor Thandris, and will nearly always support him.
The Town Treasurer - Serena Firefly (4th level magic user, neutral, female) - takes her role very seriously and thinks that money should be the council's top priority. Not popular but grudgingly respected.
The Town Judge - Drubbal Hestick (8th level cleric, lawful, female) - Always vigilant against more subtle threats against the town. She will ask adventurers to investigate chaos cultists, thieves gangs and foreign agents.
The Farmers' Representative - Yesper Earthfoot (4th level halfling scout, neutral, male) - Informally the representative of halflings. Likes to remind the council that their responsibility goes beyond the city walls.
The Merchants' Representative - Gaellian the Prince (6th level fighter, unaligned, male) - Seeks to use his position on the council to further his own business. Doesn't give a damn about other merchants.
The Clerics' Representative - Vorbber Monkhood (8th level cleric, neutral, male) -Not assertive or loud, but very observant and intelligent. More likely to keep an eye on other councillors than tell them what to do.
The Mages' Representative - Esperanzii (8th level magic user, neutral, female) - Takes the long term view for both mages and the town as a whole. Usually supports the mayor Thandris.
The Town Architect - Bannador Copperring (5th level dwarf warrior, neutral, male) - Always asking for more funds and thinking up new building projects. Resents Serena for being tight-fisted.
The Refugees' Representative - Nellii Cammomile (5th level halfling defender, lawful, female) - At her best she is compassionate and enthusiastic - at her worst she is sentimental and unrealistic.

Sunday 3 July 2011

NPCs of Parnsus

These NPCs are all found in the village of Parnsus, northeast Bauglir next to the Toadspawn Swamp in Teiglin. 

Father Linusk
3rd level cleric, alignment lawful, age 66, gender male
Str 10, Int 10, Wis 16, Dex 11, Con 13, Cha 12
AC 7, Move 120', hp 15, THAC0 19, Att 1 staff for 1d6
Equipment: Staff of Healing, Leather armour, holy symbol, 3 flasks of holy water
Spells: Detect Evil, Purify Food & Drink, Hold Person
Father Linusk is the local priest of Rhondus in the village of Parnsus is Bauglir barony. He is crotchety and dismissive of adventuring, but he will help if asked nicely. Father Linusk knows about Brasstooth, Myrall Keep and Semendia as he fled the area as it was attacked by chaotic monsters 50 years ago.
Description: Father Linusk is an old man, 5'6" and 140lb. He has silver-grey hair including a large drooping moustache, and has intense grey eyes that seem to see through any lies or nonsense. He wears clerical vestments over the top of close-fitting leather armour, even when around the village.

Isandellis
2nd level Elven Ranger, align Lawful, age 111, gender male
Str 14, Int 8, Wis 13, Dex 16, Con 10, Cha 10
AC 5, move 120', 14 hp, THAC0 18 melee or 16 missile, Att 1 sword for 1d8+1 or 1 arrow for 1d6, Sneak in wild 25% Climb in Wild 82% Tracking 52%
Equipment: Leather Armour, longbow, quiver +20 arrows, sword, backpack, tinderbox, lantern, 3 oil flasks, water bottle, bedroll, 40' rope
Isandellis is the local scout around Parnsus and he has made it his job to keep an eye on possible threats. He is familiar with the surrounding countryside including the swamp and the abandoned road to Myrall Keep and Semendia. He has attached himself to the Church of Rhondus and is friendly with Father Linusk. He used to live in Glensor but had to leave after a failed romance that he will not speak of, but will often sigh for no apparent reason or start reciting elven poetry of unrequited love.
Description: Isandellis is a typical elf, 5'0" tall, weighing 100lb and with blond hair, blue eyes, pale skin and pointy ears. On adventures and scouting he prefers his elven leather armour which is dyed different shades of green. When around the village he will wear human rather than elfin garments. 

Kormack Hammerhelg
2nd level Dwarf Warrior, align Lawful, age 100, gender male
 Str 16, Int 8, Wis 10, Dex 10, Con 16, Cha 8
AC 5, move 90', hp 15, THAC0 16, Att 1 hammer for 1d6+3
Equipment: Chain mail, warhammer/blacksmith hammer +1,
Kormack owns and runs the blacksmith shop in Parnsus in Bauglir. Kormack hates lizardmen because a band of them attacked him and his adventuring companions over five years ago and several friends died. He stopped adventuring after that. He wields a magical hammer that functions as both a warhammer and as a blacksmith's hammer - he swears it helps him produce better metalwork than with any other hammer.
Description: Kormack is 4'2", broad and muscular as an ox, and with jet black hair which he keeps cropped short. He has a large bald patch on top that meets up with his forehead and unlike some dwarves he keeps his beard as a goatee (albeit a long goatee that reaches his chest)

Servelos
3rd level elf spellsword, align Neutral, age 129, gender female
Str 14, Int 14, Wis 10, Dex 8, Con 10, Cha 16
AC 3, move 90', hp 10, THAC0
Equipment: Plate mail, Longsword, shield, 3 javelins, ring of water walking, backpack, wineskin, bedroll
Spells: Web, Detect Magic, Sleep
Servelos explores the borderlands beyond Bauglir, including Toadspawn Swamp where her ring proves useful. Servelos is interested in acquiring magic items and new spells in spellbooks, and she may team up with adventurers to do so. She has been on several expeditions with Isandellis but finds him a bit mopey and depressing. Servelos is a very beautiful elf, and she knows it, and she sometimes uses her feminine charms to get what she wants, or to otherwise influence male characters. She has joked about getting a chainmail bikini, but has not worn one yet - she is very practical when it comes to combat and plate mail suits her fine.
Description: Servelos looks like the poster girl for elves. She has long auburn hair, slanted blue eyes and is 5'0", 90lb and beautifully slim. She usually wears the clothes of a noblewoman, rich silken gowns and robes. When going out into the borderlands she will wear her sturdy and unglamorous plate mail.