#dungeons-dragons — Public Fediverse posts

The upcoming D&D interpretation of World of Warcraft sounds great, but don't expect it to work like the MMO does

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.eurogamer.net/dungeons-and-dragons-dnd-world-of-warcraft-wow-book

We NEED Indie TableTop RolePlaying Games!

Dear Luke from DM’s Lair…

This was not the article I had planned for Wednesday or Friday. I had Worldbuilding Wednesday on lock. Fantasy Friday was right around the corner. Then I found this video from The DM’s Lair. Some of us don’t enjoy crapping all over Dungeons & Dragons 5E. Although that having been said? I’m going to take this opportunity to vent my opinion of D&D 5/5.5E again because holy crap I’m annoyed now.

Luke was apparently upset because us old guys on X (Twitter) said we preferred (smaller-game-than-D&D-name-here) over his beloved D&D5E. Oh, and did he mention his latest 5E project on Kickstarter? Yeah, homes, we heard you. After his comments about us “old guys” and our “obscure systems,” I wouldn’t give old Luke a dime for that thing on Kickstarter or anything he ever does again after this. Oh, and he’s got some “new” game that he’s working on that will totally not look like 5E at all, I’m sure.

Look if the only reason you’re going to make a DungeonTube video is to shill Wizards of the Coast and pimp out your own projects? Save yourself the time and effort, okay. I seem to recall a time when DM’s Lair was doing the cute comedy skits and giving out at minimum/mediocre Dungeon Master advice. What happened to that stuff? Don’t just go on the air just to dog people like me and games that aren’t your precious D&D5E.

But wait, there’s more.

I swear someone at Wizards of the Coast or one of the marketing/talent agencies must have been going around with some kind of bribe and a script that day. I saw Luke’s thing, one from good old Bob Worldbuilder, and one from DM With a Day Job that were all basically the same video.

The narrative of, “Drop whatever you’re playing and just run D&D5E,” ain’t gonna fly with some of us. And I don’t care what the fans sent into Wizards of the Coast because we all know they only cherry pick the responses they want to hear. I completely disagree with the idea that D&D 5E is the greatest game on Earth. Maybe it’s the loudest mainstream gaming brand (barf) in the TTRPG industry.

I think a misbegotten fallacious narrative has sprouted up that D&D5/5.5E can be bolted onto any genre, campaign setting, or story and everything will work out fine. Well, there might have been a GURPS sourcebook for everything, but it doesn’t mean everything worked in GURPS. D&D is a fantasy first game, which means the mechanics start to break down around the time you introduce firearms, tanks, jets, 40-foot-tall robots, starships, etc. Fantasy game designers tend to struggle with firearms because guns are icky, scary, and dangerous in the real world, so they never bother to look into them.

Just because we can do something with a game system, it doesn’t mean we should do the thing. Some games try to do everything but inevitably fall off somewhere. Other games pick up that slack but manage to fall off somewhere else. D&D5/5.5E can’t do it all any more than FATE/FUDGE, W.O.I.N, GURPS, D6, Cypher, Cortex, Savage Worlds, or anything else.

So, “Just play 5E,” just ain’t gonna cut it with me.

Remember back during the Great Wizards of the Coast Dungeons & Dragons Open Game License Debacle of 2023 when everyone was commenting on YouTube, “Just play Pathfinder 2E?” Look how well that sh*t turned out. Sure, Paizo sold out entire warehouses full of product and then promptly turned around and made Pathfinder 2E Remastered. Then upped the price on everything, and more recently they upped it again by about $10 per book. As a side note, do they really expect me to buy into that line about Diamond Distributors causing all of their financial woes? Seriously? What happened to all your big OGL alternative money, Paizo?

If D&D5.5E or Pathfinder 2E Remastered were so good, affordable, easy-to-teach, easy-to-understand, etc.; then why in the flippity flop would I ever want to buy another fantasy game, like Dragonbane? Could it be that D&D5.5E is bloated, over produced, full of fluff, and the people who are normally associated with said game come off as a lot flakey these days? Could it be that the lead Pathfinder designer literally told us not to buy his game a few years ago? (I haven’t forgotten, and I’m not even a conservative.) Seriously—WotC, Paizo, if your act was so together and everything is so perfect, how come your sales are in the toilet?

Yes this is exactly what Luke was crying about in his video.

I’ve seen it. I think Timothy Imholt commented on it a few years ago. Basically someone goes on X (Twitter) and says how WotC is too woke and we should drop D&D5E in favor of (insert-name-of-game.) We get the same thing on YouTube quite a bit. I’m guilty of it as much as anyone.

Does it mean that D&D truly is superior and we should all abandon our “obscure games” in favor of it? I wouldn’t be here if I agreed with that. If I were just another DungeonTuber shill, I probably wouldn’t be in the state of affairs I find myself in these days. (My next therapist is going to need therapy.) But seriously,

I’m not going back to D&D of any flavor any time soon. I might use Mists of Akuma and Iron Kingdoms as references. I might still beg, borrow, and steal from various 5E or Pathfinder 2E monster books. I’m not abandoning the hobby or anything. But I’ll be damned if I hand WotC, Hasbro, Paizo, Kobold Press, Renegade Game Studios, Luke from DM’s Lair, Ginny, Bob, or any other DungeonTuber shill a single dime for their stuff again, possibly ever.

I’m done spending money on people who evidently hate me.

This was not the article I had planned for today. It’s not the article I had planned for Wednesday, either. I’m less than thrilled this piece seems to have a negative angle to it.

But let’s put this in perspective from my point of view. D&D5/5.5E has a lot of inherent flaws. That’s before you get to Critical Role and all these knuckleheads who try to brag it up. That’s before we get to the company who makes D&D and all of their fake social media shenanigans just to gain them notoriety. That’s before you start to realize that D&D Beyond has become the walled garden that was predicted in 2023.

Dragonbane, as much as I love it, has a few issues of its own, too. As a GM who has been immersed in many different game systems and even more settings, I’ll be the first one to tell you no game is perfect. Twilight Sword already has a few gaps that are popping up. My educated guess is that Ruttigers Almanac will, too. It’s just the nature of the beast. My favorite game (Dragonbane) might be better than D&D.

You won’t know until you try it.

It just happens that D&D5E has more flaws, obvious defects, and mismanaged mishaps than probably any other TTRPG on the market today. Loud, popular, and well-known amongst the “mundanes” (non-gamers) does not make a better game. It just makes for a more obvious one. Being mainstream often seems to make a product worse than when it started. I would cringe if something I really enjoyed, like TTRPGs, became a mainstream thing worse than D&D already is.

Let me ask this: Is it more important to be popular or have a quality TTRPG? Logically, a good game should become popular, and a bad one should sink. Yet here we are with D&D5.5E. I dislike 5.5E because I’ve looked through the books. Compared to older editions, it stinks.

This hobby has been one of acceptance, understanding, and forgiveness.

I’ve had plenty of people from all different walks of life and backgrounds at my gaming table over the years. I’d like to think this massive divide we’re seeing in the TTRPG fan base right now has more to do with social media and DungeonTube influencers than it does with anyone’s actual opinions. The common game shop or online customer doesn’t see all the bickering and politicking that goes on in social media unless they too are plugged in. .

The TTRPG niche is a fractured and divided mess. It has been this way since social media became popular. We don’t just pick one another’s games apart. We don’t just have people saying things like, “You’re playing it wrong.”

No. No. We have to have a go at one another on social media and YouTube, too. We have to go after someone’s game, obscure or otherwise. You like chocolate. What’s wrong with vanilla? You have something against strawberry pancakes, too? And on and on it goes. The TTRPG niche seems to have more of it for some reason.

I miss when games felt like coming home after a long day. Games felt like every day was Christmas vacation on the weekends. I miss running marathon Star Wars RPG game sessions. I miss running convention games. I so dearly wish we could get back to that feeling anywhere.

So what if someone thinks D&D5.5E sucks. Run it anyway as long as that’s what your group prefers. I just think people should be willing to give other TTRPG systems and settings a try. Having some DungeonTuber influencer shill pushing the mainstream corporate narrative that D&D5E is the only game you should run doesn’t matter as long as your group is having fun at the table.

I’m leaving my usual closing statements off of this particular article. Try to be kind to one another, regardless of what you might think of D&D5E, the Fifth Edition of the “World’s Most Popular” (because Hasbro says so) Roleplaying Game.

New Head Of D&D Saying All The Right Things About Mending Burnt Bridges

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://www.techdirt.com/2026/09/30/new-head-of-dd-saying-all-the-right-things-about-mending-burnt-bridges/

Breaking News!!!

The following is a copy of today’s Sliberberg Sentinel morning edition.

Select articles from the Paper

For the benefit of those using screen readers and those who could not get the download to load.

WYRD EXPLOSIONS ROCK HIGHLANDS

Incidents at Grand Undertaking sites contaminate the local area, and magic levels are through the roof throughout the western Cantons.

BATTLE FOR GOVERNOR OF UPPER TAY TURNING UGLY

The battle for the seat of Royal Governor of the Canton of Upper Tay turned dark yesterday Morning when a horde of zombies descended on the valley floor beneath Dun Rowan. As our reader must certainly know, Dun Rowan and the Mac Colla family have a dark reputation for villainy of all flavors, including, if rumors are to be believed, a former uncle of the current Castellan Ben Colla who was a necromancer. Lord Colla has denied that he or his family is responsible for the shambling dead, blaming the outbreak on the nearby wyrd contamination.

Political insiders, however, point to Arthur Paxton SR as a potential culprit for the zombie outbreak. Ezuqirax the Dark, a necromancer of little ability, was seen exiting the Paxton residents by nosy neighbors of Paxton’s Crossing. Said necromancer was last seen headed north out of town days before the outbreak. If true, this will be the last salvo in the feud between Lord Ben and Mr. Paxton that has left the Upper Tay Canton one of only two cantons in the kingdom without a Royal Governor.

EDITORIAL: Are the Fools Leading the Blind?

By Powell Tupeeple, owner and chief editor

This summer has been a whirlwind of changes for our fair city and the nation, but one has to wonder to what end all these changes brought us. Sure, I cheered when the railroad came to Sliberberg. The SSG has led to a 3 fold drop in flour prices and 6 fold drop in the price of Reve’s fish and wine, and I, for the first time, visited the Royaume des Rêves and drowned my bones in wine during a two-day stay at a vineyard. However, the construction of the elevated railroad line and Queen’s Heart Station resulted in the demolition of more than 240 homes and businesses. Then there is the near-constant rumbling as the locomotive dragons and their trains pass the Sentinel Offices.

Likewise, I poured praise into my editorial when the Fairy Godmother announced her grand undertaking with promises of saving the world. But with the recent disaster out in the western cantons, one has to wonder: what are they doing out in the countryside? Whom are they saving the world from? Is this a classic example of the fool leading the blind man over the cliff? It has been 4 months since work started on the undertaking’s massive machines in the countryside. Have there been any explanations as to what these “devices” do in this time? No, nada, forgetaboutit. Now, with wyrd spewing out from the earth and turning the soil pink, twisting the livestock in knots, and making the trees walk away, I think it is time to demand answers.

I have it on good authority that the royal family is heading to the Royaume des Rêves to stay with the Fairy Godmother this very week. I say we petition our king and queen to demand answers from the so-called Fairy Godmother, and if they find those answers lacking, send in the army to tear up the machines

An announcement from The Magistratium

Due to high wyrd levels in the Western Cantons, citizens are advised to inspect any food or drink from the region for wyrd contamination before consuming it.

Signs of Wyrd contamination include, but are not limited to:

• Talking/screaming
• Glowing
• Sprouting flowers
• Being of an unusual color
• Floating in the air
• Having sprouted eyes
• Having developed facial features
• Having grown fingers
• Running away
• Discharging electricity
• Being hot to the touch
• Being ice cold to the touch
• Being hard as a rock

Please bring contaminated food and beverages to a Magistratium-registered wizard for proper disposal.

Remember: If it’s Wyrd, do not go Near!

Artist who hand-paints some of gaming's best fantasy world maps brings them together in oversized and extremely lavish art book

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.eurogamer.net/francesca-baerald-game-map-art-book

Dragonborn Sentinel

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #dragonborn #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #sentinel #fighter #shield #fantasy

#DungeonsDragons: Ravenloft #1 Review http://dlvr.it/TVW1Xp

A Timeline of The World Story

Last post before the big new story beat, I swear it. 

It’s been a while since I started the world story; it’s been a couple of months since the last adventure or true chapter in said story. Despite my own convictions to avoid retconning anything I write, things have changed, and a few events have been… shuffled around a bit to better fit with some new directions I took with the lore

Highsun 20th 499NMR: Murtagh Ó Ceallaigh is contacted by Ailénach, Queen of Hexes, with an offer to empower him in such a way that he could claim the throne of New Mountainheart. Murtagh shortly afterward joins the anti-royalist faction of New Mountainheart and manipulates the others into making him the leader

Fall 499NMR: Murtagh starts putting plans for the Beltane Coup into motion. He recruits Arthur Paxton Sr. as a supplier of gunpowder and small arms, promising him a title. He also recruits a force of Orc landsknechts and freelancers by promising that he will grant the orcs territory beyond the northwestern border of the realm and recognize Orkkholm

Greenleaf 1st 500NMR: Murtagh Affair: The Antiroyalist faction led by Murtagh Ó Ceallaigh, Countess Muirín Uisceanna, Count Thorsten von Blühdorn, and Marquess Fuklke Von Sablemere- along with half the barons of the kingdom- launches a coup in the middle of the Beltane Ball at Castle Sliberberg. Meanwhile, a false flag operation by antiroyalist mercenaries stages a fake attack by fey from the hexmires. Between them, the Antiroyalist factions succeed in taking over New Mountainheart. Fredrick is shot with a cold iron bullet, falls into a coma, and is dragged to Tansy Fleetfoot by his squire, Lorcan Ó Ceallaigh.

Suncrest 1st 500NMR: The Liberation of Sliberberg campaign starts: Fredrick wakes from his coma and meets the player characters by chance. They form the Sliberberg Resistance.

Suncrest 13th: The Battle of Fasgadhmara: Antiroyalists led by Murtagh attempt to storm Uisceanna Palace in an attempt to capture Fredrick based on reports that Muirín had captured him and had decided to keep him. Fredrick slips away in the fighting. Muirín disappears, presumed dead.

Highsun 1st: The Alteburg Raid. The resistance led by Fredrick mounts a raid on the Alteburg via underground passageways. The raid frees the prisoners in the jail and makes off with a large number of Guildenmarks from the mint and weapons from the arsenal.

Highsun 17th: The Battle of Fort Carrey: The resistance tries to take Fort Carrey. They are repulsed with huge casualties as Anitroyalists reveal a new weapon: matchlock muskets and mass cannon fire.

(Meanwhile, Fredrick, with the hag fey pagan druid Magglerinda and her flock’s assistance, splits Aoibheann’s soul between two bodies: her true body, in the valley of New Mountainheart, and a specially prepared body created by Fredrick. Aoibheann awakes screaming.)

Highsun 27th: The Grand Army Campaign: Deeming the resistance effectively dismantled after their rout at Fort Carrey, Murtagh and his grand army march out of Sliberberg to conquer the Silver Highlands.

Harvestmoon 1st(Midsommer): The Sliberberg Uprising: Fredrick and  Aoibheann lead a general uprising against anti-royalist forces. By 5 pm, all anti-royalist resistance has ceased.

Harvestmoon 21st. The Battle of Eberwald. Princess Kaida von Mountainheart and a small force of loyalists to King Fredrick engage Murtagh’s Grand Army. The royalists are routed, and Kaida is captured.

Goldleaf 1st: The Siege of Sliberberg. The Grand Army returns to Sliberberg, with hostages, and lays siege. Murtagh demands that they surrender the city or he will kill Kaida. Fredrick has three days to respond.

Goldleaf 3rd: The Sliberbergian Gambit: In a desperate gambit, Fredrick invokes his right as a Faerie Knight to settle the matter through trial by combat. Murtagh, being a fellow Faerie Knight, is compelled to acquiesce to his demand. Fredrick emerges victorious from the duel. Murtagh kills himself after revealing that he forced everybody in the highlands to swear an unbreakable faerie blood oath to whoever rules New Mountainheart. The Ó Ceallaigh have finally achieved their generational project.

Goldleaf 5th: The Fall of Castle Blühdorn: The newly established royal army storms Castle Blühdorn. The defenders fight until they are completely wiped out, including Countess von Blühdorn. Only about 3 dozen survivors emerge from the castle, including the last two members of the von Blühdorn family, 2-year-old Tristan and 6-month-old Hilda.

The Restoration

Goldleaf 5th: Birth of the Silver Kingdom: Fredrick and Aoibheann declare that New Mountainheart no longer exists and that from hence the realm will be known as the Silver Kingdom. They begin reorganizing the government and laws of their newly expanded realm. Vast infrastructure projects are planned.

Emberfall 28th (Samheim) Adventure: Mama’s Little Villages: At the tail end of a month-long royal tour of the kingdom, the royal couple arrives in Paxton’s Crossing to hold court at the Samheim fair held for the citizens of the New Tay Valley. Unfortunately, Aoibheann’s adopted daughters, Marigold Meadows, Whimsy Glade, and Lillabella Hollow, arrive looking for her, causing pandemonium. Aoibheann is forced to use her powers to turn the three of them into little girls.

Yulemoon 20th: The Royal Wedding: After several months of persuasion from friends and family, Fredrick and Aoibheann hold an official royal wedding.

501NMR The Grand Undertaking

Blossombud 28th. Start of the Great Undertaking: Fionnuala the Fair arrives in Sliberberg; she pitches the Grand Undertaking to Fredrick and Aoibheann, revealing her nature as a divinity, Domhannau’s role as a prison for her insane father, Faolan, and her plan to stop it. She also starts ingratiating herself with the royal children. 

A newly rejuvenated Muirín also returns to the city and imprisons her daughter, Aeliana, in her palace.

Greenleaf 1st Beltane: The Beltane Affair: Disguised as Aeliana, Muirín tries to seduce Fredrick using magic during the Beltane Ball and ends up in a catfight with Aoibheann. At Fionnuala’s urging, Aoibheann changes reality (Quote: “I wish you would just get your own version of Fredrick”); Muirín is now married to Fredrick’s (previously nonexistent) younger selkie brother, Lord Admiral Klaus, and is now a slavishly devoted teenage fangirl of Aoibheann and has been since she was a little girl. Fionnuala reveals to Aoibheann that she is a godling and daughter of Morpheus, the divinity of dreams. Fionnuala dubs Aoibheann’s newly developed power Retconn.

Greenleaf 2nd: Fionnuala gathers a group of her godchildren(player characters) and recruits them to the Undertaking.

Greenleaf 5th: Adventure: Into the Scraplands. Fionnuala dispatched the player characters to investigate problems with the development of her mysterious “Device.” The party arrives in Ginkdimblid via Ginkdimblidi airship and discovers that the trouble is that the “lead” artificer Thistlewick has vanished on a salvaging run. No one has found any sign of his knarr. They discover that a tribe of kobolds has shanghaied Thistlewick to repair their god: the legendary locomotive dragon Cinderthrax.

Greenleaf 17th: Birth of the SSG Railway:  Fionnuala the Fair arrives at Ginkdimblidi for a test of the prototype. Convinces the Ginkdimblidi, HMLS Endeavor, and Cinderthrax to build a railroad down to Slanach

Suncrest 13th: Adventure: The Liberation of Charlotte Evermore: Fionnuala the Fair tasks the player characters with their second mission. They are to convince Mainspring, by any means possible, to enter the Undertaking as a manufacturing hub. The players depart on the Magic schooner Fairwind.

Highsun 10th: Charlotte Evermore returns to Slanach and persuades Fionnuala to transform both herself and the Clockfolk into fully living beings. In return, Mainspring pledges its immense industrial capacity to the Grand Undertaking.

​

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Ravenloft joins a growing list of yet unrealized tabletop screen adaptations

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.rascal.news/ravenloft-joins-a-growing-list-of-yet-unrealized-tabletop-screen-adaptations/

Dark Horse Preview: #DungeonsDragons: Ravenloft #1 http://dlvr.it/TVSyXp

An Introduction to the Great Houses of New Mountainheart

Bear with me; we’ll get to the new story beat soon, but first there are a few foundational essays and a few small retcons before the story gets moving again. Today we’re doing a quick overview of the 6 great houses of New Mountainheart.

All dates are in New Mountainheart Reckoning (NMR).

All ages are given in the appropriate timeframe: mortal years for mortals, or faerie years (three mortal years) for fey.

von Mountainheart

The Royal Family

Current Head: Frederick Von Mountainheart and Aoibheann Von Mountainheart

Origin: Pre-Drowning royal family of Old Mountainheart

Members:

• King Frederick von Mountainheart, wolf pooka, apparent age 19, true age 519 years
• Queen Aoibheann von Mountainheart, Sidhe-wolf pooka hybrid, apparent age 19.5 years, true age 519 years.
• Princess Kaida von Mountainheart: Dragon, age 49 (about 8 in dragon years)
• Princess Lillabella von Mountainheart, Sidhe-wolf pooka hybrid, 2 faerie years
• Princess Marigold Von Mountainheart, Sidhe-wolf pooka hybrid, 8 faerie months
• Princess Whimsy Von Mountainheart, Sidhe-wolf pooka hybrid, 8 faerie Months

Uisceanna

Maritime power and an unhealthy fixation on Frederick

Current Head: Princess Muirín Uisceanna von Mountainheart 

Origin: Maeryn Uisceanna, a Cantre’r Gwaelodian shieldmaiden who was defeated by Frederick when she tried to force the young kingdom to host her and her warband for a debauch at spearpoint. She fell head over heels for him on the spot.

Domain: The March of the Isles and Coasts

Nature of the house: Since Maeryn, the women have been cursed to have daughters, and the countesses have relentlessly tried to get Frederick to fall in love with them. Under the current countess, Muirín, Aoibheann eventually had to personally change reality so that she had her own version of Frederick in the form of his “younger” brother, Prince Klaus.

Current Members:

• Princess Muirín Uisceanna von Mountainheart, mermaid, age 18
• Prince Klaus Von Mountainheart, Selkie, age 19
• Princess Aeliana von Mountainheart, selkie, 11 months

Von Sablemere

Decadence and military pretensions

Current Head: Adrian Von Sablemere

Origin: Valerius von Sablemere, a Lyonesse knight who accompanied Frederick on a bout of errantry in the 200NMR. Elevated to marquess.

Domain: March of Gloamhollow

Nature of the house: The house has been going downhill since Valerius’ day. The Sablemere men are notorious rakes and party animals, and the women are even worse. They openly chafe under the rule of the Von Mountainhearts. Following the Civil War, Adrian inherited the marquessate while his parents were placed under house arrest for their role in the rebellion. 

Despite all evidence to the contrary, they still fancy themselves military men, and many cousins and uncles of the current marquess still serve in the army.

Current Members:

• Adrian Von Sablemere: human, 18 years old
• Fuklke Von Sablemere, human, 54 years old, under house arrest
• Alice Von Sablemere, human, 51 years old, under house arrest
• Lizzy von Sablemere, human, 15 years old
• Edward von Sablemere, human, 12 years old

Ó Ceallaigh

Silver Highlands nationalism

Current Head: Lorcan Ó Ceallaigh

Origin: The family emigrated to the valley and swore fealty en masse in the late 200NMR

Domain: March of Craggy Peak

Nature of the house: The house has long been close to Frederick, since he was the key to their generational project. Since the Second Age, the Faerie Knights of house Ó Ceallaigh have been under oath to unite the Silver Highlands under one king. For three generations, they have tried and failed to get Frederick to do so. 

Having finally had enough of Frederick’s self-pity and ennui, the previous count, Murtagh, overthrew his liege and conquered the highlands before being defeated by his former king in a duel at the tail end of the New Mountainheartian civil war

Recently Deceased Members

• Murtagh Ó Ceallaigh, hobgoblin, 50 faerie years old, father of Lorcan, Eamon and Caitríona. 

Surviving Members:

• Lorcan Ó Ceallaigh, hobgoblin, 18 faerie years old
• Eamon Ó Ceallaigh, hobgoblin, 22 faerie years old, in self-imposed exile
• Caitríona Ó Ceallaigh, hobgoblin, 19 and a half faerie years old, aka Cassidy Rose of the SBHU
• Brighde Ó Ceallaigh, hobgoblin, 90 faerie years old, mother of Murtagh
• Siùbhan Ó Ceallaigh, hobgoblin, 50 faerie years old, wife of Murtagh and mother of Lorcan, Eamon and Caitríona
• Coinneach Ó Ceallaigh, hobgoblin, 90 faerie years old, father of Murtagh, rather quiet, senile

von Blühdorn

Reactionary traditionalism

Current Head: None; the entire surviving family are wards of the royal family

Origin: Pre-Drowning of Old Mountainheart. The von Blühdorn are the only members of the Old Mountainheartian peerage to survive the Drowning.

Domain: County Thistlewood

Nature of the house: Extreme conservatives and reactionaries. They have opposed every change in governmental style since the founding and have advocated returning to a strict feudal system. As such, they have traditionally led the anti-royalist faction.

They are also obsessed with maintaining the purity of their fox pooka bloodline. 

As of the end of the New Mountainheartian Civil War, Tristan and Hilda are the only members of the family left alive.

Recently Deceased Members:

• Thorsten von  Blühdorn, fox pooka, age 48 faerie years
• Linda von Blühdorn, fox pooka, age 47 faerie years
• Franz von Blühdorn, fox pooka, age 16 faerie years
• Luise von Blühdorn, fox pooka, age 12 faerie years

Surviving Members:

• Tristan von Blühdorn: fox pooka, age 2 faerie years, Ward of the Von Mountainhearts
• Hilda von  Blühdorn: fox pooka, age 5 months, Ward of the Von Mountainhearts

Kupferthal

Dragons who would rather do science

Current Head: Jaspera Kupferthal

Origin: In the mid-300s, NMR Jaspera Kupferthal flew up to Castle SLiberberg and bent the knee to Frederick as a bid to gain unlimited access for her sociological research

Domain: The March Underneath

Nature of the house: Absence. Jaspera and her eldest brood have almost no interest in running their fief, being more interested in scholarly pursuits that require extensive fieldwork. Day-to-day rulership has largely fallen to the third brood, the first to be raised entirely in SLiberberg and Malachite of the second brood.

Members:

• Jaspera Kupferthal: Dragon, exact age unknown but likely over 700
• First brood-nearly adult
  • Cinnibara female archaeologist
  • Ignifer, male sociologist
  • Pyrina, female cartographer
• Second brood- early teens.
  • Malachite: male wizard, student at the Coláiste na hArd-Draíocht
  • Berylla: female Oceanography student
  • Lazuli: female wyrdology student
  • Obsidian: male zoology student
• Third Brood- wyrmlings
  • Argento: male
  • Electra: female
  • Pyrite: male
  • Smaragda: female
• Fourth brood-late hatchlings.
  • Jacinth: male
  • Peridot: female
  • Topaz: male
• Fifth Brood- newborn hatchlings
  • Aurelia female
  • Magnolia female
  • Garnette female
  • Roselle female
  • Opala female

Deep Sea Angler Beholder

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #beholder #angler #DnD #DeepSea #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy

Social Digest 2026.08.29-2026.09.04

https://apollolemmon.com/2026/09/05/social-digest-2026-08-29-2026-09-04/

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Live-Action Series ‘Ravenloft’ Set at Netflix After ‘Forgotten Realms’ Project Scrapped
#Variety #News #DungeonsDragons #Ravenloft

https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/ravenloft-d-and-d-series-netflix-forgotten-realms-canceled-1236850699/

Dungeons & Dragons Live-Action Series ‘Ravenloft’ In Works At Netflix From John August, Alfonso Cuarón & Hasbro, Succeeds ‘The Forgotten Realms’
#News #AlfonsoCuarón #DungeonsDragons #HasbroEntertainment #JohnAugust #Netflix #Ravenloft #TheForgottenRealms

https://deadline.com/2026/09/dungeons-dragons-series-ravenloft-netflix-forgotten-realms-1237063967/

Heavy metal bard with party members.

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #bard #lute #orc #elf #mage #archer #rogue #wizard #fireball #HeavyMetal #music #HalfElf #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy

Dark Horse Preview: #DungeonsDragons: Total Party Killers #2 http://dlvr.it/TVG46D

Movie TV Tech Geeks #GamingNews #DungeonsDragons #Fantasy #VideoGame New 'Dungeons & Dragons' Release Officially Reveals 8 Minutes of Footage http://dlvr.it/TVCpt9

Lost Falls Hideout

The Silver Highlands are carved by countless mountain gorges and fast-flowing streams. Many of these dramatic gorges have small caverns etched by their streams.

About a day’s ride from Glen Alder is Lost Falls Gorge, so named for the cave at the head of the gorge with its pair of hidden waterfalls. A group of footpads has been camping out in the cave when not preying on travelers on the road to Paxton’s Crossing.

​The Hook

The players come across the site of a recent ambush. A carriage with a heraldic device on the door sits in the middle of the road, doors open and luggage ransacked. All bear sword cuts and arrow wounds. The bodies are still warm.

An obvious trail of broken branches, dropped loot, and scraps of silk leads up the mountain.

Lost Falls Hideout Key

Map A

Map B

1. River Gorge: The 10-foot-wide stream rushes down the steep gorge floor with tremendous force. Walking along or crossing it requires a medium-difficulty agility check.
   1. The gorge is 30 feet deep. The south wall can be climbed unassisted with a medium-difficulty agility check. The check has advantage if proper climbing equipment is used.
2. Lookout’s nook: A young ogre named Burka guards the path to the hideout. He is sleeping off a night of heavy drinking; only loud noises or physical harm will wake him up. Burka is gullible. An easy Charisma check convinces him the players are recruits; a medium check or bribe recruits him instead.
3. Waterfall chamber: The waterfall produces a deafening roar. Conversations require shouting or close proximity.
   1. An unfinished statue of a dancing elven maiden is embedded in the wall. It is animate and sentient.
      • The bandits bribe her with beer to serve as another lookout. She hates the taste. She is desperate for wine or engaging conversation.
      • Wine, whiskey, or engaging conversation (medium Charisma) earns safe passage. Otherwise, she starts screaming for the bandits out of spite.
      • Alternatively, if the players swear a faerie oath to move her to somewhere with more people, she will let the players pass. She is worth 100 gm to a noble in Sliberberg as is, or 130 gm if finished.
        1. Breaking the oath petrifies the oathbreaker’s feet
   2. The pool at the foot of the waterfall is waist-deep and freezing cold.
   3. The bandits keep their loot in a small waterproof coffer beneath the fall. The coffer has 20 gm in coins.
   4. The cave wall here is just barely climbable. A player who succeeds at a hard agility check can clamber up to location 6. Using climbing equipment such as grappling hooks or pitons will alert the bandits at location 6.
4. Storage alcove: The bandits keep their supplies in this small chamber: barrels of beer, boxes of rations, bundles of arrows, whetstones, and other assorted supplies. Connie’s luggage is stashed among the boxes.
5. The Bridge: A crude scrap-wood bridge crosses above the falls. It can support only three characters at a time; any more and it will break.
6. The Bandit Camp: Five bandits occupy a gallery overlooking the pool, arguing over stew. They are arguing about what to do with their prisoner. Three have longbows, and two have broadswords and bucklers. If they hear noise not associated with their camp or the waterfall, three of them go to 6.1, and two rush the passage down to the Waterfall chamber. The bandits have 5gms worth of coinage and small loot items on them.
   1. The bandits have a good vantage point to shoot down at players in the Waterfall chamber.
7. Gloomy Cell. Lady Connie is imprisoned here, wearing a ruined noble dress. She promises that either her father or her future husband will pay well if the players can deliver her safely to Dun Rowan.
8. Squeeze Shaft: A narrow chimney connects the surface to the Storage Alcove. The chimney is a tight squeeze requiring a hard agility check to make it through. Anyone wearing medium or heavy armor or carrying a backpack cannot squeeze through.
9. Shaft: A large shaft in the ground leads down from the surface into the Gloomy Cell. Anyone can climb down without difficulty.
10. Upper entrance. The upper falls drop from the surface to the stream above the bridge through a broad hole in the ground. The walls of the shaft are impossibly slick, requiring a very hard dexterity check to climb without the use of rope.

Ending the Delve

If the players deliver Lady Connie to Dun Rowan, her future husband rewards the players with 20gm each and invites them to the wedding feast. He may or may not ask them to deal with a troubling inheritance from his ancestors in the dungeons, but that is a delve for another day.

Dolly, the sheepfolk cleric/bard

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #dolly #ewe #sheepfolk #sheep #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #anthropomorph #fantasy #cleric #bard #DollyParton #fantasy

‘Warlock’ Stars Tricia Helfer, Maggie Robertson Break Down New ‘D&D’ Video Game Characters as First Gameplay Footage Is Revealed
#Variety #News #DungeonsDragons #Warlock

https://variety.com/2026/digital/news/warlock-gameplay-trailer-dungeons-dragons-tasha-kaatri-1236841877/

[Download] Baden-Württemberg im Dreißigjährigen Krieg – eine Karte mit QGIS

Hinweis: Dies ist ein sehr detaillierter Bericht über die Entstehung der Karte. Die Download-Dateien befinden sich ganz am Ende vor dem Ausblick und den Danksagungen. Weiterhin möchte ich darauf hinweisen, dass dies der zweite Artikel heute ist. Schaut euch auf jeden Fall auch Rackhirs Vorschau zu Erde & Wasser Part 2 an.

Zeoko

Da dachte ich erst: Der erste Artikel kam gut an, machen wir uns mal ran, mehr ins Detail zu gehen oder den Vorschlag von Seba aufzunehmen und mehr die Karte und die Inhalte von Beyond the Wall zu erklären, die ich verbaut habe. Aber wie meistens kommt alles anders und hier war das auch gut so.

Diesmal war es jemand anderes, der meinte:

Eins vorab. Um das klar zu machen, bin ich kein QGiS Profi. Es gibt viele Geodatenprogramme, QGIS ist nur eins davon, aber ein tolles, freies und mit einer lebendigen Community dahinter. Auf der Arbeit muss ich leider mit ganz anderen arbeiten. Deshalb sind diese Hobby-Projekte gut zum Lernen. Und ich habe noch viel zu lernen, daher kam die Frage von grannus zum richtigen Zeitpunkt und mit Topflappen zusammen stürzten wir uns also kopfüber rein.

Und ja – das ist kein erfundener Kontinent mehr, sondern echtes Land. Mittendrin im Krieg.

Ein Hinweis noch der mir persönlich sehr wichtig ist: Wo Krieg im Rollenspiel zum epischen Abenteuer wird, verschwinden seine realen Schrecken oft hinter der Kulisse – das Trauma des Überlebens, die moralischen Abgründe. Dabei gibt es im realen Krieg keine Helden, nur Verlierer auf allen Seiten. Deshalb ist es uns wichtig, dass unser Material Krieg an keiner Stelle glorifiziert.

Das Konzept

Warum eine echte, historische Karte statt schöner Fantasy? Weil eine reale Grundlage etwas mitbringt, das man sich sonst mühsam ausdenken muss: Sie stimmt einfach. Flüsse laufen dorthin, wo sie wirklich laufen, Klöster stehen da, wo sie standen oder stehen, und wer will, kann nach der Runde nachlesen, dass es diesen Ort wirklich gab. Ein weiterer Vorteil ist, dass man echte Geodaten nutzen kann um die Karte mit Leben zu füllen.

Definition von Geodaten: Sie unterteilen sich in Geofachdaten und Geobasisdaten – diese beschreiben die Erscheinungsform der Erde (Topographie). Sie sind in einem einheitlichen Raumbezug definiert und haben für die vielfältigen Bedürfnisse von Politik, Verwaltung und Wirtschaft eine herausragende Bedeutung.

Quelle der Definition: https://www.laiv-mv.de/Geoinformation/Geobasisdaten/

Hier findet man freie Geodaten: https://gdz.bkg.bund.de/

Für eine Sandbox, in der die Spieler:innen selbst entscheiden, wohin sie ziehen, ist das Gold wert. Eine geschichtsechte Spielwiese. Das Ausdenken von Zielen und Anspielstationen wird dadurch sogar noch befeuert, da in vielen Orten geschichtsträchtiges passierte und Personen der Zeit mit Namen und einmaligem Hintergrund wirkten. Damit das auch noch etwas Fahrt aufnimmt, mischen wir unter die echten Orte ein paar erfundene, an denen später Abenteuer hängen sollen. Diese Orte haben wir einfach mit einem anderen Symbol versehen und in der Legende vermerkt. Was in die Karte überhaupt reinkommt, ist Grannus’ Baustelle. Danach haben Topflappen und ich immer wieder geschaut, was es für freie, kostenlose Geobasisdaten gibt, die man für Hobbyzwecke nutzen darf und kann.

Grannus

Vor kurzem sagte greywiz mal über meine Person:

“…Manchmal zwingt er auch Leute einfach noch tollere Sachen zu machen, was an sich schon super ist”

Und was soll ich sagen? Ich habe es wieder getan. Nachdem JFS eine tolle Hexkarte der Region zwischen Reutlingen und Mainz zeigte, war ich total verliebt und wünschte mir sowas direkt für das Heilige Römische Reich. Und ganz zufällig hat Zeoko seinen Artikel zu QGIS kurz vorher veröffentlicht. Der Rest ist ja bekannt. 

Wo fängt man also am besten an? Vielleicht mit einem kleinen Teil, z.B. der Region Baden-Württemberg. Meine Heimat sollte einen guten Trainingsplatz abgeben.

Ein Amateur wie ich schaut also erstmal nach bereits vorhandenen Karten und ob man auf deren Basis was machen kann. Von dieser technischen Zauberei verstehe ich nicht wirklich was, sodass ich da recht blauäugig begann. 

Quelle:https://www.leo-bw.de/web/guest/detail-gis/-/Detail/details/DOKUMENT/kgl_atlas/HABW_06_11b/Drei%C3%9Figj%C3%A4hriger+Krieg+1620-1634

Zack, Karte gefunden als Basis, nun also überlegen, womit die Karte gefüllt werden soll. Dabei hatte ich mehrere Design-Ziele, was den Inhalt der Karte anging:

1. Die Karte sollte an erster Stelle kein atmosphärisches Gimmick sein, sondern ein Werkzeug bzw. Werkzeugkasten für die Spielleitung und deren Gruppe sein.
2. Die Lesbarkeit der Karte. Damit ist nicht die Schriftgröße oder so gemeint, sondern wie die Karte ihre Informationen preisgibt. 

So, Zeoko hatte beim Anlegen dieses Artikels bereits eine kleine Auflistung vorbereitet. Nutzen wir diese doch und ich erzähle kurz was zu den einzelnen Punkten. 

Städte, Klöster und Wehranlagen 

Meiner Meinung nach sind dies die Herzstücke einer Karte aus dem Dreißigjährigen Krieg. Unabdingbar für Abenteuer, Downtime, Kontakte und allgemein die Atmosphäre dieses gigantischen Konfliktes. Alle existierenden Orte zu übernehmen, hätte den Rahmen der Karte gesprengt. Wie also auswählen? Das geschah recht organisch in einem Wechselspiel zwischen Zeoko und mir. 

Am Ende war es eine Mischung aus Städten, die: 

• zu den größten in Baden-Württemberg gehörten
• wichtig für den Konflikt waren
• interessante geschichtliche Begebenheiten aufwiesen
• mir persönlich wichtig sind, da ich in deren Umgebung aufgewachsen bin und lebe

Bei den Wehranlagen und Klöstern haben wir nicht selektiert, da bedienten wir uns munter.

Konfessions-Unschärfe 1620–1634

Zeoko fragte mich bei den Klöstern, welche Konfessionen diese aufweisen würden, um dies ggf. in die Kartenlegende einfließen zu lassen. Doch ganz so einfach war es dann doch nicht. Erst katholisch, dann protestantisch und schließlich ein Wechselspiel an Plünderungen, Einquartierungen etc. Über die Dauer des Konfliktes geschah einiges,  daher verzichteten wir auf eine Unterscheidung bezüglich der Konfessionen. Abgesehen davon handelt es sich hier immerhin um eine Spielkarte und eine Spielleitung sollte noch etwas freie Hand haben, wenn es um solche Entscheidungen geht.

Die Römer und Thurn & Taxis

Wenn ich an Hex-Karten oder an Sandboxen denke, dann möchte ich Werkzeuge zur Hand haben. Bewegungsgeschwindigkeiten, Routen und etablierte Straßen sind da ein zentrales Element. Die Spielfiguren möchten sich von A nach B bewegen – welche Möglichkeiten haben sie? Kommen sie gut zu Fuß voran? Oder ist das Gelände zu schwierig? Benötigen sie Pferde oder können sie sich gar eine bequeme Reise per Kutsche leisten? Flussstraßen waren auch sehr beliebt, besonders bei den Armeen und deren Artillerie. Bei den Straßen bedienten wir uns bei den Römern, das kann man doch immer guten Gewissens machen. Inspiriert (oder vielleicht geschädigt?) durch Warhammer Fantasy mag ich auch die Vorstellung von Spielfiguren in Kutschen, Poststationen und wehrhaften Gasthäusern außerhalb der Städte. Dazu kam noch der starke Artikel vom Oger zum Thema “Briefe und Depeschen (zuerst auf seinem Blog und dann schließlich im Gazer #3). Das alles versprach einiges an Spielmöglichkeiten. Also rein damit.

Neckar, Rhein, Bodensee

Ganz zu Beginn stellte sich auch die Frage, welche Regionen besonders wichtig waren. Daran konnten wir uns etwas entlanghangeln. Auf der endgültigen Karte sind diese Regionen aufgrund der Lesbarkeit sehr dezent umrandet worden.

Insgesamt war mein Anteil bei diesem Projekt recht gering. Meiner Meinung nach. Zeoko hat ordentlich Blut geleckt bei der Recherche. Ich denke (und hoffe), ihn hat das Spiel im Dreißigjährigen Krieg nun ebenfalls gepackt. Basierend auf der endgültigen Karte geht es dann los, denn die Karte soll bespielt werden. Tabellen wollen erstellt werden und Abenteuerorte platziert werden. Ich gebe nun ab an Topflappen. Vielen Dank fürs Zuhören.

Topflappen

Ein Glück gibt es recht viele frei verfügbare Geobasisdaten aus verschiedensten Quellen, auf die wir zurückgreifen konnten. Erst einmal eine Karte, die alles Heutige zeigt, also Städte, Flussverläufe, Straßen, Verwaltungsgrenzen etc. In dem Fall haben wir uns wieder an OpenStreetMap bedient, weil das einfach eine sehr gute Open Source Grundlage ist. Und auf dieser Basis konnten wir alles andere erstellen, sodass es auch wirklich am richtigen Ort liegt.

So wussten wir dann auch, wo genau das Hexgitter liegen sollte, nämlich auf Baden-Württemberg. Zur besseren Orientierung und damit man später einfacher kommunizieren kann, wo was auf der Karte ist, bekam das Hexgitter auch noch eine Beschriftung mit den Spalten als Buchstaben und den Zeilen als Zahlenformat. Damit hat jedes Hexfeld eine einzigartige Kennung. 

Ein ganz wichtiger Punkt ist außerdem das sogenannte Georeferenzieren. Das ist ein Vorgang, mit dem wir verschiedenste Karten, die selbst über keine Lagedaten verfügen, ins GIS ziehen können. Und zwar dorthin, wo sie in der Realität liegen. Dafür setzen wir sowohl auf der OpenStreetMap-Karte, als auch auf der neuen Karte per Hand mehrere Referenzpunkte dort, wo die Karten identisch sein sollten. Bei Karten mit kleinem Maßstab wie dieser (für ein ganzes Bundesland) können das beispielsweise Städte sein, ein bestimmter Punkt an einem Seeufer oder eine Flussmündung. Alles Sachen, die sich nicht unbedingt weiterbewegt haben dürften. Das ermöglicht es uns, Kartenmaterial auch aus analogen (oder digitalen) Büchern einzubinden, um es als Vorlage zu verwenden. So hat Zeoko das beispielsweise mit einer Karte gemacht, auf der die damaligen Postwege eingezeichnet waren. 

Im ersten Schritt werden die Karten georeferenziert und dann können wir das, was uns von den Daten interessiert – in dem Fall eben die Postwege – als Vektorlinien “abzeichnen” und separat abspeichern. Dann hat die alte Karte ihren Dienst getan und wir haben neue Daten, die wir in unserer eigenen Karte darstellen können. Die Hauptarbeit hat dabei Zeoko gemacht, ich stand dann eher mit Tipps und Vorschlägen zur Seite. 

Außerdem ist die “Landschaft” der Geodaten in Deutschland etwas unübersichtlich – wie könnte es auch anders sein. Jedes Bundesland hat seinen eigenen Satz an verschiedensten Geodaten und mindestens einen eigenen Onlineviewer dafür. In der Regel können wir diese Layer als Web Map Service oder Web Feature Service zwar direkt im QGIS-Projekt anzeigen, aber trotzdem muss man die erstmal zusammensammeln. 

Für Baden-Württemberg gibt es beispielsweise den Kartenviewer “UDO” für Daten, die mit Umwelt und Natur zu tun haben (Gewässernetz, Schutzgebiete, Umgebungslärmkarten oder Freiflächen-Photovoltaik,…). Daneben gibt es den bereits oben genannten Leo-BW, das Landeskundliche Informationssystem Baden-Württemberg, das sich eher mit kulturellen und historischen Daten befasst. Zusätzlich stellt auch das Landesamt für Geologie (LGRB) Geodaten zur Verfügung, diese befassen sich aber eher mit den Themen Bodenkunde, Geologie, Erdbeben etc.
Was das zeigen soll: es gibt jede Menge Daten, aber wir müssen wissen, wie wir daran kommen und wie wir sie finden. In anderen Bundesländern sieht es übrigens ähnlich aus: es gibt nicht den einen Datendienst oder die eine Website. Mit so einer Aufgabe ist also immer auch etwas Recherche verbunden.

Danke euch beiden.

Zeoko

Danke Topflappen und Grannus, weiter geht mit den Grundlagen der Karte und der letztendlichen Ausgestaltung. Eine Warnung vorab, auf diesem Weg gibt es einige Rabbit Holes.

Schummerung

Die Schummerung oder Hillshade bildet die Grundlage für unser Höhenprofil innerhalb der Karte. Früher langwierig, aber wunderschön per Hand gezeichnet, übernimmt das heute QGIS mit Daten des europäischen Copernicus Programms und die haben es in sich.  Satelliten tasten die Erdoberfläche mit Infrarot Lasern ab, aus den Rohdaten wird dann ein Höhenbild erstellt. Wer mehr über diese Satelliten wissen möchte:

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quasar und https://www.das-wissen.de/natur-umwelt/wissenschaftliche-entdeckungen-natur-umwelt/quasare-und-ihre-bedeutung-fuer-die-astrophysik Mein Technik-Nerd Herz schlägt schneller, wenn ich mir vorstelle, dass die Satelliten sich an Quasaren  im Weltraum orientieren. Hier eine kleine schematische Skizze wie die Satelliten diese Daten erhoben haben.

Zurück zum Projekt: aus dem Höhenbild kann QGIS dann ableiten, wo es hoch und wo es tief ist, quasi macht es das am Farbwert. Dann spielt man etwas mit den vielen verschiedenen Einstellungen. Zum Beispiel kann man einstellen aus welcher Richtung die Beleuchtung stattfinden soll und dann hat man eine Geländeoberfläche als Grundlage, durch die man mit Grautönen plastisch darstellen kann, wo Flachland ist, wo Mittelgebirge und wo Hochgebirge. Das ist später noch wichtig für die naturräumliche Gliederung.

Leider sind diese Daten von heute und nicht von 1620, aber da wir die Schummerung nur als grobes Gelände nutzen wollten, war das für uns vollkommen okay. Es unterstützt das Gefühl der Umgebung innerhalb der Hexfelder, bildet Bergketten oder Flusstäler perfekt nach, ohne dass wir zeichnen müssen und ein Berg von 1620 ist heute meistens auch noch ein Berg. Und da die Daten europäischer Herkunft sind, haben wir keine Ländergrenzen die die Daten beschneiden.

Vulkane und Städte

Bei der Recherche war aber auch spannend zu erfahren, was alles als Steinbruch herhalten musste und deshalb heute kaum noch als Vulkanschlot erkennbar ist. Die Idee für Vulkane kam aus dem Barcosa Discord aus einem Gespräch mit @Ampersandy, danke dafür. Wir haben ein paar der Vulkane zufällig ausgewählt und sie in OpenStreetMap gesucht. Dort, wo die Vulkane liegen, haben wir dann Punkte in einem neuen Layer gesetzt und diese zuletzt noch in Form von hübscheren SVG-Symbolen dargestellt.

Faszinierend dabei war für mich auch der Fakt, dass manche Burgen direkt unter sich einen inaktiven alten Vulkanschlot haben. Perfekt für das Finale einer Session oder sogar Kampagne. Das Tor zur Hölle öffnet sich oder alles explodiert, weil der Vulkan doch nicht so ruhig war. Wir haben nur ein paar zusammen getragen. Es gibt noch viel mehr aber auch hier musste die Anzahl der Lesbarkeit der Karte, reduziert werden. Das Übereinanderliegen von Symbolen war für dieses Projekt eine Herausforderung.

Was die Geodaten der Orte angeht, hätten wir beinahe einen anderen groben Fehler begangen. Karlsruhe wurde von Durlach aus erst 1715 als Planstadt gegründet. Deshalb war die Karte von Leo-BW so wichtig, da die Postroutenkarte direkt nur Orte genannt hatte, die es zu der Zeit schon gab. Uns wurde dadurch viel Recherche abgenommen. Gleiches gilt für Friedrichshafen, das zu dieser Zeit noch Buchhorn hieß. Solche kleinen Details erfreuen mich beim Karten erstellen am meisten. Weil man dabei noch etwas lernt. 

Gewässer

Beim Verlauf der Flüsse und der Lage der Seen konnten wir nur schwer etwas mit den Geodaten machen. Die Flüsse haben den Verlauf von heute. Einige Quellen konnten wir betreffend der Donau vor der Begradigung ausfindig machen, aber die Einarbeitung dieser Grundlagen schien uns zu zeitraubend. Wichtig ist letztlich nur, dass ein großer Fluss in diesem oder jenem Hexfeld ist. Das nennt man dann bei der Bearbeitung von Geodaten “Generalisierung” und wurde hier großzügig genutzt. Im unten stehenden Bild sieht man die QGIS Oberfläche als Daten wurden ausgewählt die Gewässer, hier der Fluss Neckar, die LEO BW Karte der Postrouten und Openstreetmap. Eine Dreifach Präsentation des gleichen Flusses. Und die Abweichungen sind verkraftbar.

Look and Feel

Beim aussehn der Karte schwebte uns ein Stil vor der etwas gedämpft und erdig wirkt. So wie man sich Karten des 17. Jahrhunderts vorstellt. Nicht druckfrisch, sondern alt und wiedergefunden. Am besten wäre, dass dann noch alle Kartenelemente selbst gezeichnet wären oder sogar noch handgemalt auf Pergament. Wenn es da doch nur was gäbe.

Ohne viel Werbung machen zu wollen, es gibt da was und das auch noch Kostenlos:

https://kmalexander.com/free-stuff/fantasy-map-brushes/

Ich arbeite im Hintergrund auch für mein QGIS Kartenprojekt daran, wie man das am besten für die Hexmaps nutzbar macht. Die Bibliothek, die K.M.Alexander zur Verfügung stellt, ist riesig. Er hat einfach alte Karten hergenommen und deren Symbole und Zeichnungen zu PNGs und Brushes verarbeitet. 

Fertige Karte

Und hier ist sie, die erste Version ist vom 15.06 und heute am 23.08 veröffentlichen wir stolz die fertige Version

Itch von Zeoko – Baden-Württemberg im 30jährigen Krieg

Ausblick

Für eine einzelne Karte ist der Stoff damit beisammen – mehr würde sie überladen. Und die Datensammlung dahinter wächst sowieso munter weiter; wenn man einmal schaut, was es weltweit an Datensätzen gibt, wird einem ganz schön schwindelig vor Möglichkeiten. Was mich am meisten freut: Das Projekt macht uns allen sichtlich Spaß. Wir wollen jedenfalls weiter machen und haben schon weitere Gebiete im Blick.

Danksagung

Mein Dank geht vor allem an:

• Grannus, für die Idee und die historische Sorgfalt.

• Topflappen, dafür, dass du meine verrückten Karten-Ideen wieder technisch möglich machst und dein Fachwissen so frei teilst.

• LEO-BW und den Historischen Atlas von Baden-Württemberg für die Datenschätze. https://www.leo-bw.de/ und https://www.lgl-bw.de/
• Landesanstalt für Umwelt Baden-Württemberg https://rips-metadaten.lubw.de/

• An das Copernicus Programm https://www.copernicus.eu/de

• Und natürlich das QGIS-Projekt https://www.qgis.org/

Wenn ihr Leser:innen wollt, berichten wir gerne weiter über das, was noch kommt.

Hinweis

Wir haben stellenweise mit sehr großen und sehr verschiedenen Datenbergen gearbeitet (Geodaten aller Städte, Gemeinden und Gewässer von Deutschland, Wege der Römer durch halb Europa und viele andere) Trotz äußerster Sorgfalt können sich in einer Karte Fehler einschleichen. Wenn ihr welche findet, schreibt sie mir gern per PM. Und die Karte ist eher fürs Online spielen konzipiert. Es wurden nur wenige Testdrucke erstellt. Vielleicht gehen wir das noch einmal an.

Quellen

Hier unsere Quellen:

• © LGL Baden-Württemberg 2026, dl-de/by-2-0

• © LUBW Landesanstalt für Umwelt Baden-Württemberg 2026, dl-de/by-2-0
• © GeoBasis-DE / BKG 2024 (Daten verändert), dl-de/by-2-0
• © Itiner-e (Brughmans et al. 2024), Römerstraßen: CC BY 4.0, itiner-e.org
• © 2024 by Brughmans, Pažout, de Soto and Bjerregaard Vahlstrup is licensed under CC BY 4.0
• © LUBW Baden-Württemberg, nach Meynen & Schmithüsen, Naturräume
• © Historische Einordnung der Bewaldung nach: Volk (2017–2020),
• © Historischer Atlas von Baden-Württemberg (LGL/LEO-BW)
• © Bundesamt für Naturschutz (BfN)
• © European Space Agency (2024). Copernicus Global Digital Elevation Model. Distributed by OpenTopography. https://doi.org/10.5069/G9028PQB. Accessed 2026-07-12
• © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved.
• © https://kmalexander.com/free-stuff/fantasy-map-brushes/#support
• Zur Methodik: Fließgewässer, Seen und Städte zeigen den heutigen Stand. Römische Straßen und die historische Bewaldung sind Rekonstruktionen (~150 n. Chr. bzw. ~1620) auf Basis archäologischer https://itiner-e.org/ und naturräumlicher Quellen (Bewaldung naturräumlich abgeleitet nach Meynen & Schmithüsen) und sehr grob gehalten. Diese Karte dient einem Tischrollenspiel als Hexfeldkarte und ist rein fiktional und für Hobbyzwecke.

Tik'tik & Merriam the dryad

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #TikTik #Merriam #dryad #ThriKreen #DnD #ranger #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy

Oddities on Parade: Stupid Fey Pun-Based Jokes, English Edition

1. Fork in the road: Bury a fork under a road or path; use it as a landmark when giving directions. Watch as mortals spend hours getting lost.
2. Left at the Wright: Every respectable Fey town employs a wheelwright, cartwright, shipwright, playwright, or some other “-wright.” Directions such as “turn left at the wright” are therefore perfectly useless to outsiders.
3. The X room: A ballroom is normally used for dancing; a faerie ballroom may or may not be filled with thousands of balls and be used for dancing. The same can be true for staff rooms, smoking rooms, and music rooms.
4. Cringeworthy street names: This and That way, Some Place and other such names are common in fey towns for the sole purpose of confusing mortal travelers.
5. Join the clubbed: The Fey will often make a big show of needing to join a club when ordering a club sandwich or club soda or anything with the word club in the name. When the mortal inevitably submits and “joins the club,”  they end up hit over the head with a branch or mallet
6. Cup of Tee: Ask for a cup of tea, and you may receive a mug full of golf tees. Experienced travelers now carefully pronounce each letter: “I’d like a cup of T-E-A.”
7. Ambushes: The Fey cultivate a carnivorous shrub known as the ambush. Travelers who hear warnings about “possible ambushes ahead” often assume they’re being told to watch for bandits.
8. Night Vision Goggles: Most goblin flimflammers sell night vision goggles. They do not do anything in the dark but make it appear like night if you look through them during the day.
9. Go for a Beir:  In Faerie, when you ask where the nearest place to get a beer is, there is a 50/50 chance you will be sent to a funeral parlor to get a bier. Since the fey do not die under normal circumstances, funeral parlors exist in Faerie solely to enable this pun.
10. Fire Sales: When business is slow, goblin flimflammers hold fire sales. Discounted torches, lanterns, candles, and other burning merchandise are available until the fire goes out.
11. Spell Books: Fey booksellers have a long tradition of shelving grimoires beside spelling primers under the sign Spell Books. Most mortals cannot tell which is which until it’s too late, and Fey booksellers do not accept refunds.
12. Stock exchange: Every major Fey city has a stock exchange. It’s the best place to buy soup stock in bulk.

Myconid

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #myconid #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #fungus #mushroom #fantasy

Tortuga Cleric

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #tortuga #undead #cleric #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy

Animated Objects

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #AnimatedObjects #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #Platemail #Armor #sword #broom #tapestry

Animal Lords

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #fantasy #anthropomorphic #mongoose #capybara #BasiliskLizard #RainForest #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #AnimalLords

Oddities on Parade: The Goblin Flimflammer’s Stall

1. Night in a box: A mortal day of Faerie’s night, sealed in a handy container. Opening the box blankets a single 6-mile hex in Faerie’s night for 24 hours. May contain other things from Faerie as well.
2. Somebody else’s name: A name that belonged to somebody you never heard of. It comes with a full identity and includes all associated titles, debts, enemies, and death threats.
3. Stolen Glory: A ring containing pilfered fame or infamy and stolen valor. Wearing the ring bestows the reputation contained within, for good or ill
4. Vials of Liquefied Genius: Each bottle contains a single moment of impossible insight. Tends to be addictive and may leave the drinker desperate for another taste.
5. Wings: Bird-like wings that slip on over the arms. Allow one to fly like a bird. Do not confer actual skill in flying like a bird or prevent crashes due to arm exhaustion.
6. Obligations: Paper contracts saying that you are owed obligations from various fey and other immortals. They may be more trouble than they are worth; buyers should inquire who owes them their newly purchased favor.
7. Somebody’s affection. A necklace containing all the love of a single person. Wearing the necklace causes that person to become obsessively, possessively, stalkerishly in love with you, which is never as harmless as it sounds.
8. Faerie Soil: Potting soil from Faerie. Any seed planted in the soil grows four times its normal size in 2 days. May cause sentience or mutations.
9. Faces: Beautiful handcrafted faces of wood and paper, worn like masks. They become your face for as long as they remain attached. Whether they can be removed afterward is between you and the mask.
10. A bag of endless fake gold: An endless supply of fake gold nuggets. The nuggets disappear at midnight. Use at your own risk.
11. Titles: Titles to various realms in Faerie. Come with insufferable subjects, ridiculous obligations, impossible dues, improbable income, and the occasional inconvenient quest.
12. Bottled Secrets: There is nothing more dangerous than a secret that is not your own. Buy at your own risk.

#DungeonsDragons: The Dungeon Master’s Workbook of Worldbuilding Review http://dlvr.it/TTyw5b

D&D’s Gen Con keynote promises a great return from parts undefined

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.rascal.news/d-ds-gen-con-keynote-promises-a-great-return-from-parts-undefined/

Dragonborn Knight with Greatsword

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #dragonborn #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy #dragon #sword #greatsword #knight

Wizards of the Coast svela il futuro di Dungeons & Dragons per il 2026-2027: in arrivo crossover ufficiali con World of Warcraft e Star Wars. Debutta la classe Psion e nuove espansioni per consolidare l'espansione del brand. #DungeonsDragons #Notizievideogiochi #gamingnews #Gdr

Movie TV Tech Geeks #TV #Animation #DungeonsDragons 6 Animated Series Perfect for Dungeons & Dragons Fans http://dlvr.it/TTq3yh

Dungeons & Dragons presenta una nueva era para sus fans con World of Warcraft, Dark Sun y Star Wars

https://powerups.es/dungeons-dragons-presenta-una-nueva-era-para-sus-fans-con-world-of-warcraft-dark-sun-y-star-wars/

#JuegosDeMesa #Noticias #DarkSun #DungeonsDragons #StarWars #TTRPG #WizardsOfTheCoast #WorldOfWarcraft

Air Elemental

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #AirElemental #elemental #air #wizard #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy #summoning

Sirius Dice presenta las miniaturas de D&D Red Box Basic Set, una colección inspirada en la icónica portada de 1983

https://powerups.es/sirius-dice-presenta-las-miniaturas-de-dd-red-box-basic-set-una-coleccion-inspirada-en-la-iconica-portada-de-1983/

#JuegosDeMesa #Noticias #DDRedBoxBasicSet #DnD #DungeonsDragons #SiriusDice

Aboleth

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #aboleth #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy

Aarakocra Skirmisher & Aeromancer

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #aarakocra #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #fantasy #bird #aeromancer #skirmisher #kingfisher #macaw

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Writer-Director Reveals Sequel Has Been Written, Hasn’t Been Made For “Financial Reasons”
#News #DungeonsDragons #DungeonsDragonsHonorAmongThieves #JonathanGoldstein #Sequel

https://deadline.com/2026/07/dungeons-dragons-sequel-written-not-made-financial-reasons-1237004151/

Social Digest 2026.07.19-2026.07.25

https://apollolemmon.com/2026/07/26/social-digest-2026-07-19-2026-07-25/

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Sequel Was Written but May Never Be Filmed Due to ‘Financial Reasons’
#Variety #News #DungeonsDragons #DungeonsDragonsHonorAmongThieves #JonathanGoldstein

https://variety.com/2026/film/news/dungeons-and-dragons-sequel-written-never-filmed-financial-1236821132/

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Sequel Was Written but May Never Be Filmed Due to ‘Financial Reasons’

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://variety.com/2026/film/news/dungeons-and-dragons-sequel-written-never-filmed-financial-1236821132/

فيلم The Guild يحقق هدفه التمويلي على Kickstarter في أقل من خمس ساعات جمع1.65مليون دولاربمساهمة أكثر من 9,000 داعم. #games #ألعاب # #DungeonsDragons #Kickstarter #Warcraft #Worldofwarcraft https://www.saudigamer.com/the-guild-movie-hits-kickstarter-goal-in-less-than-5-hours/

On groove après la canicule sur GrosPixels, avec un nouveau Grosmix ! Il s'agit cette fois d'une reprise de "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Pool Of Radiance (NES version) - Diogene Cave, Game Over and Ending themes", sur une musique originale de Seiji Toda (1992). Bon été, et bonnes vacances si vous le pouvez !

#musique #remix #jeuvidéo #dungeonsDragons

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAq57UkIvgw

I wrote a thing about a cartoon:

https://bzangygroink.co.uk/archives/2026/07/12/vox-machina-s4/

#VoxMachina #dungeonsdragons

Social Digest 2026.07.05-2026.07.11

https://apollolemmon.com/2026/07/12/social-digest-2026-07-05-2026-07-11/

#DungeonsDragons: The Player’s Workbook of Epic Adventures Review http://dlvr.it/TTPD59

‘Dungeon Masters’: D&D Maker Sets ‘Arcana Unleashed’ as Season 2 Campaign for Actual-Play TV Series (EXCLUSIVE)
#Variety #News #DungeonMasters #DungeonsDragons #WizardsoftheCoast

https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/dungeon-masters-season-2-arcana-unleashed-release-date-1236788824/

Lolthin soturi (Drowin tie #3) - R. A. Salvatore
Julkaistu 22.6.2026

#Fantasia #DungeonsDragons #ForgottenRealms
https://www.risingshadow.fi/book/10366-lolthin-soturi

Dragonborn Artificer with his Mecha-dragon

#sketch-a-day #art #graphite #dragonborn #artificer #DnD #Dungeons&Dragons #mech #dragon #fantasy

Oddities On Parade: Strange Laws of New Mountainheart

New Mountainheart is a legal headache masquerading as a country. When humans, dwarves, fey, awakened animals, awakened plants, and the occasional giant are all citizens under the same crown, the law can get… unusual. Here is a sampling of bizarre laws that seem absurd at first glance but make perfect sense once you remember just how strange New Mountainheart really is.

1. Article 71 Supplemental Accessibility Clarification: Public buildings whose intended clientele is all under 1 foot tall are exempt from Article 71, Section 7 of the building code, not required to provide entrances accessible to beings exceeding 8 feet in height or 6 feet in shoulder width
2. The Metaphorical Weaponization Prevention Statute: Due to numerous complaints from various mortals of severe head trauma, fey jokes that use the word club (as in a group of people defined by membership) as a pun with the weapon of the same name are hereby classified as aggravated linguistic assault
3. The Equine Occupational Temperance Statute: It is illegal to sell or otherwise provide alcoholic beverages to horses, mules, or donkeys during working hours, no matter how much they beg for a drink.
4. The Arborial Bodily Integrity Act: Tapping, drilling, or otherwise piercing the bark of a tree without permission is considered felony assault.
5. The Universal Personhood and Predatory Conduct Act: Attacking any creature with the intent to eat it is considered attempted murder. Natural predatory instinct shall not constitute a legal defense
6. The Fair Speech and Consent in Introductions Ordinance: The phrases ” May I have your name” and “May I take your name” are hereby banned from all contexts
7. The Unauthorized Murder Prevention Ordinance: Any assembly of three or more non-guild crows shall be treated as an unsanctioned murder under the charter of the corvid’s guild and hereby subject to guild punishments.
8. The Anti-Glamour Fraud Statute: The sale of illusory or invisible goods is hereby prohibited.
9. The Public Molluscan Transit Safety and Civic Infrastructure Protection Ordinance: The spreading, spilling, or unauthorized disposal of salt upon any public roadway shall be considered vandalism of civic property, reckless endangerment of municipal gastropod assets, and the creation of a public traffic hazard
10. The Residential Climatic Alteration and Stormwater Management Code: Weather-altering magic is permissible so long as the effect is restricted to a space no larger than 20×20 feet on one’s own property. Alterations to weather any larger than that require the written consent of property owners and or relevant local, regional, or national government officials as necessary.
11. The Ethical Transfiguration Standards Act: Polymorphing a sentient entity requires written permission from the transformee and cannot be permanent.
    • The above restriction shall not apply to Tansy Fleetfoot
12. The Domestic Thaumic Coercion Prohibition Statute: The use of any citizen’s true name to bind, charm, or otherwise manipulate with magic is illegal. The use of a true name to bind, charm, or otherwise manipulate with magic any noncitizen is allowable so long as the ensorcelled is not forced to commit crimes within the boundaries of the kingdom.

From the Notebooks of Jaspera von Kaupferthal, Part 4

Previous entries in this series

• From the Notebooks of Jaspera von Kupferthal, Part 1
• Field Notes from an Expedition to Brugh na Ciorcal, Part 2
• Field Notes from an Expedition to Brugh na Ciorcal, Part 3

Blossombud 28th

Cinni was not fooled.

It was the first thing she told me when we woke up today.

If I promised to join her companions and play the little sister for a few months. She promised not to reveal me. She even promised to finish my research notes.

Not that I can make them any more.

With all the mind modification magic I used on myself, I am in no position to refuse or return home on my own.

I agreed.

This is my last entry.

I considered turning this into a diary, but decided against it.

I can barely interpret my own drawings anymore.

Blossombud 28th

(Subsequent entries attributed to Cinnibara von Kupferthal)

My mom has, somehow, turned herself into an incredibly adorable wyrmling.

And I’m thinking about getting some little ones of my own.

Strange how fate sets up these little opportunities

I gently convinced her to take a vacation from her endless research expeditions and tag along with me and my cohorts for a few months.

I think she would benefit from having the childhood she never had and a mother figure who would not eat her.

I may even convince her to call me “mommy.”

(I am only half joking.)

I promised to continue her notes, and I think I understand the crayon scribbles she was using as notes.

I am, admittedly, an archaeologist, so this sort of sociological observation is not my specialty—but I believe I can manage.

Garnette, the Eochaid daughters, and I spent the day helping to the best of our abilities with the preparations for tomorrow’s Beltane celebrations.

The girls and Garnette spent the day weaving the traditional floral crowns.

I used my prestigious stature to help hang strings of lanterns and flower chains between the brughs. Everything smells like fresh blossoms and cut greenery.

A Beltane pole was erected in the center of the green, and long tables were erected around it.

I could smell the preparations for the feast; it would be the traditional vegan fare most Fey communities serve at this time of year.

No meatfruit or meat, however. That made me sad. I can eat vegetables, but I would rather have meat.

All in all, it is a fairly typical Beltane celebration for the highlands—though somewhat more industrious in preparation than most.

—Cinnibara von Kupferthal

Beltane

That was… an eventful day and night.

The folk of Brugh na Ciorcal really know how to host a celebration.

Garnette had an absolute blast playing games with the other children.

My companions—Gunaakt the warrior, Akhealis the witch, Grunk the thief, and Primrose the druid—seemed to enjoy themselves.

However, as I was also recording the events for prosperity on behalf of my mother, I cannot help but notice certain disparities between the fey Beltane celebrations I have attended elsewhere in the region and those held here.

Some of those differences are worryingly off script.

It started off typical enough.

The druids led the entire village in a procession to the altar site, with its effigies of the Young Lord and Lady and the sacred bonfires.

The invocation of names from the days of the old fey empires was spoken aloud, and protocols announced.

Then the first deviation from the script. The druids sacrificed a lamb to the Lord and Lady. There was no shock, no horror—only solemn reverence as the beast’s neck was slit. Only Garnette, my companions, and I showed any adverse reaction to the scene. Garnette practically started crying for the little lamb, and my companions did their best to hide their disgust and horror.

It was the sort of thing I would expect to be depicted on the walls in human temples or tombs that my crew typically delves into.

Not in the middle of a fey enclave.

(I may need to revisit my mother’s conclusions. She may have underestimated how far this enclave has drifted.)

After the sacrifice, the townsfolk made the traditional cleansing passage between the bonfires, and the fun and games started.

Musical instruments were broken out, ale started to flow, and the children and Garnette wandered into the fields to play.

The second deviation was that the headman, Sir Labhruinn, held a tournament of sword, bow, and lance.

How very Arthurian of him.

It was a miserable affair; nobody had any real skill. If Gunaakt were not restricted to a bench by his injuries, he would have taken home the “knighthood” that was the prize.

The feast was okay, no meat, just bread, roasted vegetables, and soup. It was a relief to see the Fey had not become carnivores after witnessing the sacrifice, but I would have liked a meat dish.

Giorsail approached me privately and asked whether I would take her and Luthais with me when I return to the city, saying Garnette had told them I could introduce them to our mother.

Mother’s notes are a little hard to read in the last few entries, but I do remember seeing something about the two having trist.

Given what I know of the headman, it would be for the best if they get out of town before he learns about the two of them.

Once Gunaakt can walk again, we will leave—and they will be coming with us.

Greenleaf 4th

Well, that came apart faster than anticipated.

Why could it wait one more day?

Sir Labhruinn finally bent to his wife and mother’s demands and confronted Luthais about his relationship with Giorsail.

It escalated into a shoving match, then a fistfight.

Luthais lost control and let loose one of the verses of power.

The bolt of fire missed just barely, but the damage was done.

There was no deliberation.

Luthais and Giorsail were banished from the village.

It is ironic that Sir Labhruinn, a man so wrapped up in the myth of chivalry, would banish his own son for choosing Merlin’s path over Lancelot’s path.

We also decided to leave since we might be overstaying our welcome.

We strapped Gunaakt to my back so he would not slow us down, and said our farewells to the townsfolk.

I had to carry Garnette out of the village by the scruff of the neck, flailing and wailing all the while. She did not want to leave.

I am not sure she understood why she had to.

But I’m glad to leave the fey village that was too mortal for my tastes.

Much later that year, I found myself reflecting on Brugh na Ciorcal.

As much as I hate to say it, Brugh na Ciorcal is not an isolated case. I began noticing similar deviations in other fey enclaves, nothing as extreme as in Brugh na Ciorcal, but noticeable nonetheless.

It is worrying, but I am not sure what to make of it.

That will be a task left to my mother.

—Cinnibara von Kupferthal

NMR 499

Looking back on my time as Garnette, I can say it was some of the happiest days of my life.

I did not have a childhood. My mother was an unthinking, feral dragon with a notorious reputation. I might have followed the same path had I not been taken in during my eighth year—perhaps too late, in truth. Being so old, my infancy dragged on for a little bit longer than most, as Ozimaev the sorceress worked the feralness out of me. By the time I was able to talk, she already considered me an apprentice or a familiar rather than a daughter.

It was study, study, study after that.

The two years I spent with Cinni as her little sister, Garnette, healed some old wounds I was unaware I had. I was able to wander about, wide-eyed and curious, as if I’d never done so before. With the construct in my mind gently guiding me away from my adult knowledge, I experienced the world anew. For the first time, I was able to play the silly games of young children alongside them, not as an adult but as an actual participant, and it was wonderful.

I think it also healed my relationship with Cinni. She settled down for a spell in a kobold possibilium mine not too far away from Sliberberg to raise my first batch of grandchildren.

I visit regularly to play with them.

Maybe Garnette should pay them a visit, too.

Field Notes from an Expedition to Brugh na Ciorcal, Part 3

Previous parts

• From the Notebooks of Jaspera von Kupferthal, Part 1
• Field Notes from an Expedition to Brugh na Ciorcal, Part 2

Blossombud 26th

I need to find the time to fix the mental construct. I am enjoying being a wyrmling again too much.

But with Giorsail’s around, I cannot do it here, and my hostesses are loath to let the ‘princess from the big city’ out of their sights.

Anyway, observations.

For the first time, I was able to observe the druid perform a ritual up close.

Saraid’s water broke.

I was lucky enough to be within smelling range.

I immediately bolted for the master bedroom, assuming (correctly) that the birth would occur in there. I hid behind a large trunk (thank goodness for this stupid collar.)

The druids were called for, and they arrived promptly.

I witnessed the birthing ritual in full.

The druids started to murmur in an antiquated dialect of fey similar to the runic tongue of Faerie used in spellcasting, but not quite.

Fortunately, I am fluent in most forms of fey, including this particular dialect of the Runic Tounge of Faerie

The structure was formal—almost bureaucratic. Titles were announced, permissions invoked, and roles acknowledged.

There were invocations of various spirits with names like “Viscount of the Third Root” and “Steward of the Western Wind”—titles that sounded precise but whose referents I could not identify. These include invocations of the elements, references to what sounded like royal court proceedings, and the presentation of a visiting noble to another noble’s court.

I would once have laughed at its absurdity. I am no longer certain that would be appropriate. Again, I hate how the spell is making me act.

I have a theory that the rituals the druids perform are leftover bits of protocol from the Faerie kingdoms of yore.

My friends at the Natural Philosophers Society in Silberberg have coined the term “Cargo Cult” to describe how newly contacted stone-weapon-wielding tribes on the continent of Yohualtlan react to explorers wielding modern technology. They perceive the explorers as gods and start to worship them, especially when the explorers trade spare axes and other tools for rations.

I suspect a similar process may be at work here—rituals preserved long after their original meaning has been forgotten, retained for form rather than function.

However, I am not sure how typical what I saw is compared to other enclaves. It may be worth some follow-up expeditions.

Back to the observations.

The new member of the Eochaid clan was a boy. Once the druids filled out, the family filled in to witness the new arrival. I took this opportunity to slink out of my hiding spot back into the brugh.

I unfortunately ran into Giorsail and Luthais sharing an… intimate moment in the central hall. She’s… a lot younger than I first assumed, maybe a few years older than Luthais, which makes her all the more terrifying that she can pull off seeming like she’s in her mid-20s all the time. From the sound of it, they were serious about the relationship.

Fey have been known to have flings outside their species, but inter-species love affairs are beyond rare.

It’s the sort of thing that they write epic poems about whenever it happens, the sort that either ends with love conquering all through magic, the lovers eloping, or mutual suicide.

Of course, they noticed me.

Luthais lifted me off the ground by the scruff of my neck as though I weighed nothing. He threatened me, saying that if I said anything, he would prove himself a dragonslayer to his father. I found myself genuinely afraid.

Giorsail, by contrast, was calm—watching me in a way that suggested she saw far more than I would have liked. She said that my “mother” was an important person back in Sliberberg. There was some discussion. It sounded like they were planning to run away to the big city.

I took my chance and said that my big sister, Cinni, was out adventuring in the area, and she would surely help them if I asked nicely. It seemed to placate them, and they let me go on my way.

The only other thing of note was a large feast in honor of Gòrdan’s birth. Thankfully, there was no meat at the feast, just normal veggies. All I could say about it is that it was a bigger version of the usual dinner served in the Eochaid clan’s brugh. 

However, I caught Sir Labhruinn and Samthann talking about me, saying that he loathes to let me leave the village until my mother or my older siblings come to collect me. Samthann was delighted to have the princess from the city stay a little longer.

This complicates matters.

I was planning to stay until a few days after Beltane and then head back home once I started to wear out my welcome. But apparently, the Eochaid clan loves me and is looking for an excuse to have me stay a little longer, or more likely, meet my “mother.”

As I said, my daughter, Cinnibara, is somewhere in these hills with her mortal friends. I could possibly contact her to be my chaperone. But on the other hand, I would rather not.

She does not approve of my methods.

Ironic since her cohort are ruffians more interested in coin than research.

Her finding a wyrmling version of me would be an awkward conversation.

I could sneak out of the village. Maybe spend some time exploring. I really enjoy being little again, and it’s tempting to go exploring in this form and experience the wide-eyed wonder I had when I was young.

More tempting than it should be.

Ugh, the construct is affecting my judgment now.

I will sneak away in the morning and fix this mess—before I lose the inclination to do so.

Blossombud 27th

NO, NO, NO. This has gone very wrong.

I was reworking my spell beneath a tree outside the village when I smelled another dragon.

It was Cinni.

She had her adventurer friends with her, and they were coming straight to the village.

Everybody knew that she was coming, and the first thing she did was introduce herself using her full title.

She would see straight through me if my disguise were not perfect.

I panicked and miscast the spell.

The construct is now even stronger than before. I can get to my adult knowledge if I really concentrate, but I cannot hold on to it for long.

Worse, the suggestions that the concentrate are really intrusive now. My attention span is gone. I am even more impulsive. 

I can still read my crayon drawing notes, but just barely.

I feel… smaller. Simpler. Thoughts slip away if I do not hold onto them.

I may have made this more difficult to undo than intended.

I am not sure I want to.

I am, it seems, going to be the wyrmling Garnette von Kupferthal for the foreseeable future.

At least I do not smell like myself. That is good. It means the disguise may hold.

I snuck back in town and found my new friends. They brought me to meet my “big sister.”

My reinforced childhood was enough to fool her—at least, I think it was; her delight in meeting her youngest sister was genuine. I am sure of that.

She immediately doted on me as though I truly were her little sister. She even removed the shrinking collar I had been saddled with over the past few weeks.

It is so strange to have our relationship inverted, with her acting like the mother and me the daughter.

I do not think she would approve of this version of me.

She, I, and my new friends spent the rest of the day together, playing and making floral crowns for Beltane. She even shrank herself down to horse size so we could play together without frightening the others.

We are now sharing a room in my friend’s house. She is fast asleep, curled around me as I once did when she was little.

I like it when she holds me like this.

We are going to be staying here for a while

Her last delve went poorly. She is uninjured, but her companions are not.

Gunaakt, the orc landsknecht, will be bedridden for several days.

Once he recovers, they intend to return to Sliberberg—and take me with them.

I will go.

I may have to accept that this is no longer a research expedition.

It may become a… vacation.

Perhaps one that is long overdue.

That thought is… concerning.

[grannus] Blogparade: Drei Dinge, die mir jede Rollenspielrunde versauen

Dieses Jahr lädt Bartimeaus zur Blog-Parade ein und da ich noch nie einen Rant geschrieben habe, bin ich direkt dabei! Los geht’s, Abfahrt!

Der Trend zu One-Shots

One-Shots degradieren das inhärente Risiko im oldschooligen Spiel zu einem billigen Slapstick-Gag. Oh, Erfahrungspunkte für Schätze? Großartig! Was kaufe ich mir davon? Ach ja, nichts, denn das Spiel endet um 22:00 Uhr.
Ich plädiere verdammt noch mal für die Kampagne. Egal ob eine Sandbox, die Zeit zum Atmen braucht oder eine längere Abfolge von zusammenhängenden Abenteuern. Ich will nicht nur den einen miesen Dungeon sehen, den der Spielleiter gestern Abend hastig aus einem schlechten Blog (hust hust) kopiert hat. Ich will die lebendige, schmutzige Welt da draußen spüren. Ich will, dass meine Entscheidungen Narben hinterlassen – in der Spielwelt und auf meinem Charakterbogen.

In einer Kampagne hat das Gold, das wir unter Einsatz unseres Lebens aus den Gewölben schleppen, plötzlich einen Sinn. Es baut Burgen. Es besticht korrupte Wachen. Es finanziert Söldner, die sich im nächsten Dungeon vor uns in den Tod stürzen dürfen. Das Domänenspiel – eigentlich ein Herzstück von D&D und doch reden viele drumherum und haben es noch nie erlebt. Eine Kampagne verwandelt eine Gruppe von zufälligen, austauschbaren Abenteurern in eine legendäre (oder bemitleidenswerte) Truppe mit echter Geschichte. Da schmerzt der Tod des Stufe 4 Diebes, den man monatelang durch den Dreck gezogen hat, noch wie ein echter Verlust – und ist nicht bloß ein statistischer Schulterzucker wie beim One-Shot.

Hört auf, Rollenspiel wie ein Tinder-Date zu behandeln, bei dem man nach dem ersten Treffen direkt die Nummer blockiert. Habt mal wieder den Mut zu einer festen Beziehung. Lasst uns eine Kampagne spielen, verdammt noch mal.

Alle Runden, alle Spiele mit dem gleichen Mindset

Oh, Überraschung. Da sitzen wir nun, bereit für eine düstere, moralisch graue Cyberpunk-Dystopie, in der jede Entscheidung das eigene Leben kosten kann. Und wer stolpert als Erstes durch die Tür? Genau. Der Typ, der seit exakt fünfzehn Jahren ein und denselben Charakter spielt. Er heißt diesmal vielleicht X-Phile_99 statt Gamli, aber das Mindset? Einwandfrei aus dem High-Fantasy-Baukasten von 2000 importiert. Es ist zum Steinerweichen. Diese Spezies von Spielern leidet an einer chronischen, unheilbaren Genre-Blindheit. Sie besitzen die faszinierende Fähigkeit, jegliche Atmosphäre, jedes mühsam aufgebaute Setting komplett zu ignorieren, um stur ihr einziges, abgespeichertes Verhaltensmuster abzuspielen. Da wechselt man extra das System. Weg von der epischen Fantasy, hin zu kosmischem Horror. Die Welt ist kalt, der Verstand bröckelt, die Monster sind unbeschreiblich. Was macht unser Mindset-Monolith? Er versucht, dem Cthulhu-Kultisten das Knie zu zertrümmern, um eine „Initiative-Modifikation“ zu erzwingen. Bei Lovecraft! Herzlichen Glückwunsch, du hast das Spiel verstanden. Nicht.

Oder die umgekehrte Fraktion: Die ewigen Taktiker. Egal, ob man ein erzählorientiertes Indie-Spiel über emotionale Bindungen oder ein lockeres Bier & Brezel spielt – sie sitzen mit dem Taschenrechner da. Sie optimieren. Sie suchen den “Build”. Sie wollen das System “brechen”. Wenn man ihnen sagt, dass ihr Charakter gerade eine tiefgreifende existenzielle Krise durchlebt, fragen sie, ob dieser Zustand ihnen einen Nachteil auf irgendeinen gibt. Man möchte sie einfach nur sanft an den Schultern packen und schütteln, bis die Würfel aus den Taschen fallen. Alternativ würde ich auch zu denen nach Hause gehen, um deren Fernseher aus dem Fenster zu werfen.

Diese Leute spielen kein Rollenspiel. Sie spielen ein persönliches, psychologisches Sicherheitsnetz. Bloß keine neue Denkweise zulassen. Bloß nicht auf die Prämisse der Welt einlassen. Lieber das System wie eine schlecht sitzende Jeans so lange dehnen, bis es sich wieder anfühlt wie die heimische Komfortzone.

Aber hey, das gab es früher bei mir. Mit meiner jetzigen Runde erleben ich sowas nicht. Die sind herrlich gut drauf und bereiten mir große Freude. Küsse und Grüße! Auch der nächste Punkt entstammt meiner Rollenspiel-Vergangenheit und hat nichts mit der Gegenwart am Hut.

So wenig Spielzeit,  so viel zu tun

Es gibt Leute, die verwechseln den Spieltisch permanent mit einer betreuten Kaffeefahrt für einsame Herzen. Sie wollen gar kein Rollenspiel spielen. Sie wollen eine soziale Selbsthilfegruppe, bei der zufällig ein paar Regelbücher auf dem Tisch herumliegen. Wenn ich eine Talkshow will, schalte ich das Fernsehen ein. Wenn ich eine Pizza-Party will, gehe ich in die Pizzeria. Wenn ich mich aber für eine Rollenspielrunde verabrede, dann erwarte ich, dass wir verdammt noch mal dieses Spiel spielen! Wir schaffen in einer Vier-Stunden-Sitzung gefühlte zwei Räume, weil jede Aktion von einer dreißigminütigen Meta-Diskussion und dem Austausch von Memes auf dem Smartphone unterbrochen wird. Am Ende des Abends packen alle hochzufrieden ihre Sachen und säuseln: „Hach, das war wieder so nett heute.“ Nein, war es nicht! Wir haben nicht gespielt, wir haben nur kollektiv Zeit totgeschlagen. Sucht euch für eure Plauderstündchen bitte ein anderes Hobby und lasst diejenigen an den Tisch, die tatsächlich die Würfel rollen lassen wollen.

So, Rant zu Ende.

-grannus-

Socitas Fructifera – Die Fruchtbringende Gesellschaft im Dreißigjährigen Krieg

Eine übergeordnete Organisation, fernab von Nationalität, Konfession, Stand und Status könnte doch ein wunderbares Vehikel darstellen um einer Spielgruppe nicht nur als Auftraggeber zu dienen, sondern vielleicht sogar als Zuhause.

Bevor ich ans Eingemachte gehe, hier der praktische Link zur Wikipedia. Ich selbst bin kein Freund davon, erneut eine Zusammenfassung zu schreiben. Daher: lest es euch kurz an oder durch, damit wir alle auf dem gleichen Wissenstand sind.

Seit der Janus-Gesellschaft von Cthulhu (hier ein Link zur Ringboten-Rezension) bin ich ein großer Freund von der Idee, eine übergeordnete Organisation im Spiel zu verwenden. BeiCthulhu haben einige Gruppen es als Problem angesehen, dass Abenteuer oft den Einstieg z.B. über dubiose Briefe eines (bis dato unbekannten) Onkels wählten.

Nachzulesen ist die Diskussion in der Rubrik „osr-praxis-und-theorie“ vom 11.05.26, beginnt mit meinem Beitrag um 11:34 Uhr

Es lassen sich eigentlich nur Söldnerhaufen spielen oder gezielte Kampagnen ala „Agenten der Union operieren im Gebiet der Liga“

Natürlich ist die Bandbreite an möglichen Kampagnen und Gruppenkonzepten wesentlich breiter. Aufträge für Kardinal Richeleiu oder andere Machthaber sind denkbar, ebenso wie Heists oder Action ala Inglorious Basterds. Doch der Gedanke „Wie kann eine Gruppe freischaffender Abenteurer die Möglichkeit haben, verschiedenste Abenteuer zu erleben?“ ist legitim.

Die Gesellschaft am Spieltisch

Und da kommt eine Gesellschaft mit potentiell hunderten von NSC (auf allen Seiten des Konfliktes) gerade richtig. Wie oben und im Artikel beschrieben, unterscheidet die Gesellschaft nicht in Nationalität, Konfession oder Stand und kann dadurch zu den verschiedensten Abenteuern führen. Ebenso kann die Gesellschaft sowohl Anker als auch Leim sein, der die Spielfiguren erdet und zusammenhält.

Dabei fallen mir derzeit drei Einsatzmöglichkeiten für den Spieltisch ein

• Die Gesellschaft als ständiger Wegbegleiter. Die Spielfiguren sind Mitglieder, die Kampagne dreht sich um zentrale Angelegenheiten der Gesellschaft. Das Netzwerk an NSC ist weitläufig, die Beziehungen untereinander sind wichtig. Diese Variante dürfte auch sehr praktisch sein, wenn eine Gruppe aus Gelehrten und Adeligen bestehen soll, also fernab des Soldatentums und der Dungeons.
• Die Gesellschaft als wiederkehrendes Element. Hierbei denke ich an eine klassische Kampagne, also eine gute Mischung aus Stadt-, Wildnis- und Gewölbeabenteuer, wobei die Spielfiguren immer wieder mit Mitgliedern der Gesellschaft in Kontakt geraten. Entweder als Auftraggeber, Gegenspieler oder als interessante Informationsgeber und Wegbereiter (Stichwort Schutzbriefe).
• Die Gesellschaft als Antagonist. Ob zurecht oder nicht, so eine große Gesellschaft mit hochrangigen Mitgliedern aus allen Schichten und Bereichen lädt förmlich dazu ein, sie auch als Antagonisten einzusetzen. Die Gründe könnten vielfältig sein. Vielleicht haben die Spielfiguren einen Konflikt mit einem einzelnen Mitglied oder die Gesellschaft betrachtet die Spielgruppe als störendes Individuum (was ja bei einer Gruppe Herumtreiber nicht völlig von der Hand zu weisen wäre). Vielleicht verfolgt ein Teil der Gesellschaft auch finstere Pläne und benutzt das Gros der Mitglieder für die Umsetzung. Total kreativ, ich weiß – aber was soll ich tun? Euch würde mit Sicherheit etwas spannedes einfallen.

Einstieg in die Gesellschaft

„...ausschließlich durch Kooptation, also durch die Berufung und das Vorschlagen bestehender Mitglieder sowie die endgültige Bestätigung durch das Oberhaupt der Gesellschaft, aufgenommen.„

Um in die Gesellschaft aufgenommen zu werden, benötigt es also zumindest einen einzelen Kontakt zu einem Mitglied. Das schreit ja förmlich nach „Quest for it!„. Doch wie und vor allem… warum? Sprachakademie, wie sie im Artikel genannt wurde, ist jetzt kein verheißungsvoller Titel für eine Gesellschaft. Warum sollte eine klassische Abenteurergruppe im Dreißigjährigen Krieg sich Zugang verschaffen wollen? Meine Überlegung führt mich dahin, dass eine Gruppe zumindest einmalig den Nutzen einer Mitgliedschaft live erleben muss. Entweder auf dem Schlachtfeld (insbesondere nach einer Niederlage und bevorstehen Gefangenschaft) oder vielleicht werden sie Zeuge wie eine Plünderung Mithilfe eines Schutzbriefes verhindert wird. Oder sie müssen ein wichtiges Manuskript in das gegnerische Lager bringen, erhalten dafür Quartier.

Natürlich wäre es auch denkbar, dass ein Mitglied auf sie aufmerksam wird und sie ein besonderes Privileg erhalten.

Im Anschluss reisen sie mit dem Mitglied nach Weimar reisen um vorgestellt und aufgenommen zu werden. Bereits diese Reise könnte dazu dienen, Abenteuer zu erleben und weitere Mitglieder der Gesellschaft kennenzulernen.

Aufträge und Verpflichtungen

Das Netzwerk an verschiedensten Perspnen lädt förmlich dazu ein, ein kleines Netzwerk an NSC rund um die Spielgruppe zu etablieren. Denn die Gesellschaft bietet nicht nur Vorteile, sondern fordert auch Gefälligkeiten ein. So wären die Spielerfiguren verpflichtet, anderen Mitgliedern in Not zu helfen, sollten sie dazu berufen oder aufgefordert werden.

Ganz hervorragend finde ich diesen Punkt im Zusammenhang mit dem Domänenspiel (gerne auch auf niedrigen Stufen), denn mit so einem Netzwerk an Persönlichkeiten aus Adel, Militär und Wissenschaft schreiben sich die Herausforderungen fast von selbst. Ein Briefwechsel, eine nahe Schlacht oder Truppenbewegung oder ein Treffen zum Austausch von Informationen – alles Möglichkeiten die zu Abenteuern führen können.

Dabei müssen die Spielfiguren nicht selbst hochrangige Persönlichkeiten sein. Sie könnten auch im Dienste einer jenen Persönlichkeit stehen und sich die Karriereleiter hocharbeiten.

Ressourcen der Gesellschaft

Geld und Macht sollten in der Gesellschaft massig vorhanden sein, was spräche also dagegen, diese Ressourcen nicht auch zu nutzen? Ob man jetzt Subsysteme mit Ansehen und einer Währung (jeglicher Art) nutzen möchte oder eine (modifizierte) Reaktionstabelle – alles nette Möglichkeiten.

Dennoch, es gibt Grenzen und nur weil die Gesellschaft ein Dach bietet, bedeutet dies nicht, dass Ressourcen einfach so genutzt werden können. Ein Auskommen von einem paar hundert Silbermünzen ist das eine, wichtige Informationen oder der Austausch von Gütern (oder gar Artefakten aus der mythischen Unterwelt) wiederum eine ganz andere Hausnummer. So etwas sollte immer dem Kampagnenmilieu und der vorangegangenen Handlung angemessen sein.

Das Netzwerk nutzen

Anfangs erwähnte ich potentiell mehrere hundert Mitglieder, und hier ist die Liste jener Mitglieder über die gesamte Lebenszeit der Gesellschaft. Was ich ziemlich klasse für die Nutzung im Rollenspiel finde: jedes Mitglied hat einen sprechenden Gesellschaftsnamen.  Ein cooles, sprechendes Alias verwenden zu können ist immer toll. Und so würde ich auch vorgehen und dem NSC dem sprechenden Namen nach erscheinen und handeln lassen.

Man nehme Otto Heinrich von Callenberg, der Erweichende. Unter Zeitzeugen oft nur Der Aventurier genannt. Wieso dieser Beiname? Waren seine diplomatischen Fähigkeiten so beeindruckend? Oder lag es eher an seinem Charisma und seinen Führungsqualitäten? Beides wäre für das Spiel denkbar und auch mechanisch gut umsetzbar. Oder Georg Heinrich von Ende, der Entleibende? Zum aktuellen Zeitpunkt habe ich keine näheren Informationen, aber wie kam es zu diesem Beinamen? Hört sich ziemlich heftig an. Wäre bei mir ein Kommandant, der nicht zimperlich ist im töten seiner Feinde.

Diese Liste ist Inspiration pur. Ein Schelm, der bei den Beinamen nach Gegensätzen sucht und diese Personen als direkte Rivalen einsetzen würde.

Die Kehrseite: „ALLES zu nutzen!“

Ein flüchtiger Schreibfehler und schon kann aus Frucht schnell mal Furcht werden! Eine Kampagne würde fulminant anders verlaufen, wenn die Gesellschaft sinistere Pläne verfolgen würde. Ketzerei, Dämonenbeschwörung, Häresie und solcherlei Teufelswerk. Bei all den Versuchen die teutsche Sprache zu zementieren ging es vielleicht vielmehr darum, fremdsprachige Manuskripte und Grimoire zu übersetzen und flächendeckender verwenden zu können. Literatur, Alchemie und andere Wissenschaften – all dies kann für finstere Zwecke eingesetzt werden. Langjährige Kriege können viele Frevel verdecken, doch das Netzwerk muss fortbestehen. Was, wenn unter der Oberfläche ein weitaus größerer Krieg tobt und die Gesellschaft auf einen finalen Schlag vorbereitet?

Hoffnung inmitten der Barbarei

Eher ein Meta-Thema, doch bei all den Punkten oben darf nicht vergessen werden: die Gesellschaft könnte in einer Kampagne als Leuchtfeuer der Humanität dienen. Ein Bollwerk gegen die Barbarei des Krieges und der Verrohung der Menschheit. Den Mitgliedern der Gesellschaft steht es frei, Güte und Menschlichkeit dort walten zu lassen, wo es ansonsten keine Hoffnung mehr gibt. Ein einzelnes Menschenleben kann ebenso verschont werden wie zehntausende einer Stadt. Die Fruchtbringende Gesellschaft kann den Kontrast bieten. Und ähnlich wie lustige oder fröhliche Momente kann die Gesellschaft im Dreißigjährigen Krieg die Fallhöhe zu den wahrlich schlimmen Elementen noch erhöhen.

Was haltet ihr von der Fruchtbringenden Gesellschaft und deren Nutzung innerhalb einer Kampagne?

-grannus-

From the Notebooks of Jaspera von Kupferthal, Part 1

Highsun 8th 501 NMR

Some friends in the Natural Philosophy Society asked for my research from an expedition I did a few decades back. They are creating a book on the Faerie folk.

My little Cinni is one of the cowriters.

Naturally, I was delighted to share my research on modern agrarian fey culture.

Field Notes from an Expedition to Brugh na Ciorcal

Blossombud 10th 470 NMR

I have finished settling into my research blind outside Brugh Na Ciorcal. I found a suitably large hole in an oak tree to serve as my camp, although I am questioning my decision to disguise myself as a robin as I use my beak to write these words. It might be worth relocating to somewhere where a creature that could hold a pen could conveniently dwell. Ugh, I am getting distracted again.

An aerial inspection revealed that the village of Brugh Na Ciorcal is an almost unremarkable average specimen of Fey Enclave except for its location. It is located in the crook of a bend of Gilline Run river (although the locals most certainly do not use that name. Inquire about that at a later date). The village is roughly 1000 feet in diameter as the robin flies, which is rather large for a fey settlement, and is surrounded on 3 sides by the river (did the inhabitants change the river’s course?). The village is perfectly circular, elevated roughly 20 feet above the surrounding terrain and surrounded by an earthen berm about 7 feet high and a ditch 4 feet deep on the landward side. The entrance is flanked by a pair of unusual-looking standing stones, perfectly square columns, definitely fey-related from the spiraling markings, but they look older than the village.

The village itself consists of 120 faerie burrow houses, or brughs, of various sizes, arranged in the typical concentric-ring layout connected by spiraling paths. At the center is a large circular green with expected Fey paganism standing stones and an altar. Surrounding the green is a larger brugh which is almost certainly the headman’s dwelling, what looks like an alehouse, a general store (A rarity in a Faerie enclave, possibly a sign of outside trade), and several larger brughs which likely belong to the headman’s favorite lackeys or druids.

Outside the village for another mile or so on both sides of the river is another spiral, this one made up of paths through enclosures, orchards, and gardens enclosed by wild but trimmed hedges. The majority of these were gardens of semi-wild vegetables and fruit trees. However, I was surprised to see a plowed field at the very outskirts of the clearing and what, to my bird tongue, tasted like common wheat. They obviously were planting the stuff because a youth with a stick chased me away. The presence of domesticated crops certainly raises my eyebrows, and this might suggest a larger societal drift towards baseline mortality in the same region.

Tomorrow I will attempt a full census. This will require either a change in form or a more creative approach; robins, as it turns out, are not inconspicuous when taking notes.

Blossombud 11th

I am so tired.

I have completed my census of the Brugh Na Ciorcal, having changed my shape no less than fourteen times to get into every nook and cranny. This was, in retrospect, excessive.

I assume that none of the residents noticed me, except for the pets.

Note to self: scout villages for cats and dogs before transforming into a mouse, shrew, or bird.

Secondary note: Dogs are enthusiastic; cats are methodical

For the most part, this village’s population is utterly average except for a few deviations.

The village population stands at approximately 650 individuals—give or take a handful, as counting while being chased out of a burrow is imprecise work.

The largest group consists of satyrs and satyrkin (195), followed by a substantial goblinoid population (130) and a notable number of centaurs (95). This distribution is not unusual in isolation, but the balance between them feels… deliberate. I cannot yet say why.

The remaining population comprises smaller fey species (25), various others (30), and individuals of mixed or unclear lineage (65).

Of particular interest is the presence of 15 Fomorians. Their integration level remains unclear. I did not observe them in communal clusters, nor entirely apart. They occupy an uncomfortable middle, which may be more telling than either extreme.

There are 180 children, 115 adolescents, 250 adults, 90 elders, and 15 who are… significantly older than the rest. I am uncertain whether to classify the latter as elders or as something else entirely.

Most of the population (roughly 70%) are farmers and herdsmen working the fields, which aligns with my earlier observations regarding their agricultural tendencies.

Of the remainder, 95 are craftsmen and artisans, suggesting a healthy internal economy. Seven serve as resident druids, with fifteen apprentices—an unusually robust druidic presence for a settlement of this size, though perhaps necessary given the mixed population.

Twenty (mostly the doddering ancients) appear to be unemployed, though I suspect this is a matter of perspective rather than reality.

25 make up the household of Sir Eochaid, the middle-aged centaur who serves as the village’s chief.

The reminder consists of the goblins of  the Fòlais’ family, who run the trading post, and Giorsail, a young hobgoblin hedge witch and diviner who seems to serve as an advisor to Sir Eochaid (This is… highly irregular. A non-druid serving as advisor to a village chief suggests either a breakdown in traditional authority or an adaptation I do not yet understand. I will investigate further.)

The village has 2000 sheep, 30 geese, 20 donkeys, innumerable cats, and a few dogs.

The whole village is unified in its dress, which consists of woolen kilts and tunics for the men and boys, and woolen dresses for the women and girls, all in a frankly unfortunate tartan pattern that I suspect is meant to signify unity. The only real visible indicators of status among the villagers are the green robes the druids wear over their clothes at all times, and the jewelry clasps, pins, and broaches the chief’s family, household, and top underlings wear, bronze for the servants, silver for the henchmen, and gold for the chief and his family.

Tomorrow I will start observing Sir Eochaid and his household. Hopefully, I will uncover useful data on the villagers’ social structure and customs and maybe get to the bottom of Giorsail’s presence in the village.

Blossombud 15th

It has been difficult to keep from laughing at Eochaid’s household over these last few days—though I am beginning to suspect that doing so would be unkind.

I spent half a week observing the headman and his household as a mouse and had to stifle myself a few times in order to prevent them from noticing the novelty of a laughing rodent.

The family consists of the Patriarch Sir Labhruinn Eochaid the 10th, his wife, Saraid, his sons, Búadach, Luthais, and Torna, his daughters, Samthann, Teafa, Ealga, and Cathach, and the ancient grandmother, Sìonag. Along with these numbers, Saraid was heavy with child and barely able to move from the master bedroom without help.

 Sir Labhruinn fancies himself a valiant warlord in the tradition of the knights of the Round Table—or even King Fredrick himself—and strives to live according to what appears to be a deeply sincere, if somewhat misunderstood, ideal of chivalry.

He refers to his Brugh as his castle, even though it is only marginally larger than the second biggest dwelling in the village and consists of only 18 rooms.

The focus of the brugh is a large circular room at its center, which houses the central hearth. Such chambers are universal to all burghs, but Sir Labhruinn uses them as his throne room and the great hall. He spends all days sitting upon a pallet, adjudicating secular matters, listening to counsel from the druids and Giorsail, and receiving reports from the villagers he calls his “men-at-arms,” a term which appears to confer more dignity than responsibility. 

This chamber also holds the family’s greatest treasures: a set of bronze centaur armor, a lance, and a sword, all of Faerie design, all heavily enchanted, and several tapestries that supposedly show his ancestors, who, according to him, were famous Faerie knights in one of the fallen Faerie kingdoms.

The other chambers consist of a kitchen, the bedchamber he and Saraid share, the bedrooms for the children, two guest chambers, a bedchamber/workspace for Giorsail, a room for Sìonag, a library, and a nursery. All the rooms were well furnished compared to the rooms in the other brughs in the village, with well-worn, heavy wooden furniture featuring lots of spiral engraving and various personalization. The sleeping chambers featured straw pallets that centaurs seem to prefer.

When not sitting in court, Labhruinn insists on teaching his sons the “art” of knightly warfare. Every day, just after lunch, they go out to the meadow beyond the fields and practice swordcraft, archery, and jousting. I am no swordswoman, but their efforts resembled rehearsal more than practice.

I also discovered the reason for Giorsail’s presence in the household. Apparently, Sir Labhruinn is doing things quite literally by the book. Le Morte d’Arthur, The Errantry of Frederick von Mountainheart, and several other storybooks in the library. They are heavily bookmarked and have multiple underlined sections per page. Giorsail was recruited to be  Sir Labhruinn’s own personal “Merlin,” though I am not certain Giorsail agrees with this designation.

I also have to correct my assessment of her ability; despite not being far out of girlhood, she is more than a mere hedgecrafter. Her spellbook suggests at least a modicum of tuition under a proper wizard. She also has the ability to see magic auras around people and things without using spells, a very inconvenient power for my purposes.

However, Giorsail’s presence seems to have disturbed the household’s harmony. Sìonag and Saraid have gotten into multiple nasty arguments with Giorsail over the last few days, including a few at the nightly feasts. I initially misinterpreted Luthais’s interest in Giorsail as romantic. This was incorrect. He appears instead to be drawn to her craft—specifically, to the possibility of becoming something other than what his father intends.

This is the limit of what I can glean through observation alone. To understand this household—and perhaps this village more broadly—I will need to participate. Giorsail’s abilities present a significant complication. I must consider my approach carefully.