Lady Callarii

Lady Callarii
by Havard
from the Mystara Message Board posted 14 October 2005.

New Immortal: Lady Callarii
Status/Sphere: Initiate of Thought
AL: LN (N)
Portfolio: Horses, Nature, Elves
Domains: Nature, Animal, Good
Symbol: Sad elven maiden sitting on a white horse
Favoured Weapon: Shortbow

Allies: Mealiden, Ilsundal, Ordana
Enemies: Orcus, Demogorgon, Leptar

Background
The elves of Ilsundal lived for many years in peace in the Sylvan Realm, that their Immortal Champion had provided for them. But King Mealiden grew restless. He sought some other destination for his people. Mealiden discovered the Path of the Rainbow and lead those who would follow him to a new part of the world, just as Ilsundal once had lead the elves from Grunland.
Thousands of elves decided to follow their King.

Accompanying King Mealiden, was also his lover, Lady Callarii. She was both fair and wise, and some say, as much a leader as Mealiden was. The elves travelled by the Rainbow into what is now Thyatis, then ruled by the Nithians. The Nithians attacked the elves, driving them off to the west. The elves were aided by other elves, known as The Vyalia, but it was clear that they could not stay there for long. Mealiden decided to continue his Great Migration north towards the Plains of Canolbarth where he would found his new realm. But many elves were wounded, or too old or too young to travel. Others decided to stay to protect these elves who were unable to travel. They asked Lady Callarii for help. She was the only one who could lead them, they said. Lady Callarii was forced to chose between her true love and the people who depended upon her. In the end she chose the people. Though the sadness of her lost love would remain with her in the decades that followed. The lands these elves settled in were known as Traladara and humans already lived here, talking about old days of Glory under the rulership of King Halav and his Companions. The elves were allowed to stay in their forests and they formed a clan, and named themselves simply the Elves of Callarii. But the elves guarded a great secret. For Mealiden had not been oblivious to the choice of his love. As a parting gift he gave her one of the branches of the Tree of Ilsundal, the holiest of all elven relics, so that the Callarii could plant a Tree of Life of their own. It is said that this Tree of Life, known as the Tree of Callarii has unique powers, different from the other Trees of Life.

Lady Callarii eventually achieved Immortality as an Epic Hero, and became the patron of her clan and of horsemanship. She is remembered for her solemn yet wise rulership. She is often depicted next to a horse since the Callarii are famous horsebreeders and consider the horse a holy animal.

OD&D Elven Clerics: Elf Clerics of Lady Callarii use the elf class, but gain Clerical spells rather than elf/magic user spells.

Source: B10 Dark Night's Terror



-Havard

Dragon Lore

Dragon Lore
by Havard
from the Mystara Mailing List posted 30 June 2004.


Dragon Lore: Ancient Draconic History

Creation of Dragons

At the beginning of Time, the Immortals were young, exploring the Multiverse that the Old Ones had left for them, like children exploring a garden maze. They created the Dragons to be their servants and friends, to aid them in this exploration. In the First Great War between the Immortals, when the Immortals were divided into Immortals of Creation and Entropy, the Dragons were also forced to chose sides.

[Source: PC1]

Dragon Draeden War

Draedens were Dragons who had found their way into the Dimension of the Nightmare Lands. There they had been twisted into terrible and powerful beings. Now they had made their way back and had brought their Nightmarish Power with them. A Great War arose between Dragons and Draedens. Many worlds were destroyed in that war. Although they had stayed out of the war between the Immortals, Oberon's Faerie gave their support to the Dragons. The same did the Rulers of the Elemental Worlds. Eventually, though at a terrible cost, the Draeden were driven back and banished forever to Nightmare.

[Sources: D&D Immortals Rules - Gold Box]

The Creation of the Drakes

The Dragons had not been able to win the Dragon Draeden War without the aid of the Elementals Lords and King Oberon's Fairies. The Dragons recognised this. In return for their generous aid, the rulers of Fire, Earth, Water, Air and Dream (as Faerie is often known) were given 10 dragon eggs each. From each hatched 1000 young creatures of a new Dragon race.

These became known as Drakes, and are forever since respected by dragons and remembered as the lost dragon children. The Elemental and Faerie Drakes developed differently, slowly becoming the Drake races we know today. They often live among lesser races, but always keep contact with Dragon Society.

[Sources: D&D Rules Cyclopedia and PC1]

Dragon Lore: Modern Draconic History

The Arrival on Mystara

Dragon history on Mystara begins when the Chromatic Dragons were called to Mystara by their master Hel.

Hel needed the Dragons to fight the humans of Thonia and Blackmoor. In response, the Champion of the humans, Odin, Hels sworn enemy called upon Metallic Dragons to help fight the servants of Hel. The Chromatic Dragons settled on Brun, driving away the dwarves who were living in the foot hills of the Known World and Norwold. The Metallic Dragons settled in the Brasol Mountains on Davania, allying themselves with the Enduks.

[Source: James Mishlers Epic Blackmoor Timeline]

The Great Rain of Fire

The Great Rain of Fire made an end of the conflict between Metallic and Chromatic Dragons. Although there had been no open war between the two races for centuries, the hatred between them still lingered. But with the human caused cataclysm, the Dragons themselves faced destruction. They were saved by the appearance of a Dragon who called himself the Great Dragon Ruler. He appeared from out of nowhere. The division between Metallic and Chromatic Dragons had existed since the end of the Draeden-Dragon wars in Mythic Times, but before that time there had been Dragon Rulers, including a Great Dragon Ruler, who had been leader of all Dragons. He had disappeared after the War and was presumed slain. The New Great Dragon reorganised the Dragons and taught them to stay together in order to survive. He gave them rules for how the two dragon kingdoms, Wyrmsteeth and Brasol should be governed, making both homes for Chromatic AND Metallic Dragons. Rulership should be controlled by one side at a time. The other side should respect the laws said down by the side in control, but the rulers should respect the side that had no influence.

Dragon Clerics of Hel, Odin and other Immortals was still allowed, but the Great Dragon and his Dragon Rulers were to be recognised as the Supreme Immortal Rulers of Dragonkind.

The Rogue Dragon Kingdoms

With the reorganisation of the Dragon Kingdoms, The Dragons were to have total power within the Dragon Kingdoms, but were to stay out of the lands beyond those borders, allowing the lesser races control of those lands. Although most obeyed these laws, a few did not and set up Rogue Kingdoms in the Known World and elsewhere. Over the centuries, there have been some wars between Wyrmsteeth and the Rogue Kingdoms, but mostly the Rogues have been left alone.

DRAGON HISTORY: MODERN TIMES

The Return of the Dragon Rulers

The last war between dragons happened around 500 years ago with the return of the Dragon Rulers. That war was between the Metallic and Chromatic Dragons on one side and the Gemstone Dragons on the other. They were lead by a powerful Draeden Lord, the last remaining Draeden in this part of the multiverse since the Dragon-Draeden wars in Mythic Times. The Gemstone Dragons had fallen under the control of the Draeden Lord, having been abducted from the Dragon Homeworld that the Metallic and Chromatic Dragons had left in the Age of Blackmoor. There had never been Gemstone Dragons on Mystara before. The Mystaran Dragons were saved when the Dragon Rulers returned under the leadership of Thelvyn the Diamond Dragon. Thelvyn defeated the Draeden Lord, thus freeing the Gemstone Dragons of his domination magic. Peace was again restored among Dragons. It now became clear that the Dragon Rulers again would be present in Dragon Society. The Gemstone Dragons were granted a separate Kingdom in the Tangor Mountains on Skothar, but were welcomed in the other two kingdoms also. Gemstone Dragons remain the least numerous race of Dragons as they suffered heavy losses in the War.

[Source: Based, partially on the Dragonlord Trilogy]

The Creation of the Night Dragons

Some Dragons defied the rulership of the Great One, and sought to renew their alliance with Entropy. Thus the Night Dragons were created. There had been Night Dragons in ancient times also. Back then, Night Dragon status could only be achieved by the highest ranking of Chromatic Dragons; those who had performed great services for the Entropic Lords could become transformed into Night Dragons as a reward. But the last Night Dragons were destroyed in the wars with Blackmoor. Now, any who would seek alignment with Entropy were granted this gift, and Night Dragons again appeared on Mystara.

[Source: VotPA]

The Age of Dracologists

Since the return of the Dragon Rulers, the Wizards of Glantri had begun studying Dragons, seeking to make use of their power. The most powerful of those wizards interested in Dragons gathered in the Secret Brotherhood of Dracology. The rising power of the Dracologists and their more and more frequent assuming of Dragon form worried the Dragons. Since Thelvyn had once lived in Glantri himself, it was decided that the Diamond Dragon should contact the Dracologists in order to persuade them to abandon this field of magic.

The Peal Dragon wanted to see the humans crushed, but was eventually persuaded by the other Rulers to give Diamond a chance to try diplomacy first. Thelvyn contacted the Grand Master of Dracology, Prince Jaggar von Drachenfels, a wizard who claimed to trace his lineage back to Blackmoor itself. After some discussion it was decided that the dispute would be settled through a duel between Prince Jaggar and Diamond. The other Dragon Rulers agreed on this. The battle would be one-on-one with Diamond not bringing his cohorts. Few believed this to be necessary. The Dragons were shocked when Jaggar at the beginning of the duel changed shape, assuming the form of a Diamond Dragon! In the duel, the wizard displayed such power that Thelvyn was forced to yield. By right, Prince Jaggar now could become the new Dragon Ruler. However, the Glantrian Prince had no intention to disrupt the Draconic Order and allowed Thelvyn to keep his position, assuming that the Brotherhood of Dracology would be left free to conduct its research. The duel weakened Thelvyn's position, and much of the prestige he had won in defeating the Draeden Lord was lost.

Still no one has dared to challenge his right to the position though. The Dragons have honoured the agreement with Jaggar, but are terrified of the power he displayed. They will probably not be so lenient with a new Grand Master, should Jaggar be replaced.

[Sources: Gaz 3, Dragonlord Trilogy, VotPA]

-Havard

Goron, The Lizard-King (Demogorgon)

Goron, The Lizard-King (Demogorgon)
by Havard
The Lizard-King from the Mystara Message Board posted 08 May 2004.


Name: Goron, the Lizard King. Demogorgon.
Lesser Deity (Empyreal of Entropy)
Portfolio/Interests: Lizards, Lizardmen, Evil Dragons, Fiends.
Symbol: Two-headed lizard.
Home Plane: Pyts
Alignment: Chaotic Evil.
Worshippers: Lizardmen, Monsters, Evil Dragons, Fiends, Evil Karameikans.
Cleric Alignment: Any Evil.
Domains: Chaos, Evil, Trickery
Favoured Weapon: Spear.


Background:
Goron was a Dragon who survived the Great Rain of Fire. At that time, He was a cleric of a deity known only as the Frog. The Frog faded shortly after the Great Rain of Fire, but Goron quested for Immortality with Hel as her sponsor. Upon reaching Immortality, Goron has seen it as his task to bring many of the Frog's lizard races back. He has succeeded in bringing back the Gator Men on the Savage Coast and is now considered a patron of these. Among the Immortals, Goron is seen as one of the Demon Rulers and frequently uses Fiends as servants. Goron has little contact with his sponsor Hel, but they are on relatively good terms. He is also an ally of Orcus and Arik as those three have founded the Unholy Trinity in Karameikos, opposing the Traladaran Three in that country.

Appearance:
Goron appears as a humanoid lizard with two ape-like heads.

Dogma
Goron promotes lizard-like monsters anywhere. Beyond that he is only interested in death and destruction and end to so-called civilisations.

Church and Temples
Goron's temples are found underground or in swamps. Rituals often involve sacrificing humans or demihumans to monsters living in these areas.

Note: Goron, as Demogorgon is detailed in the D&D 3e product the Book of Vile Darkness.

Note 2: Demogorgon is sometimes referred to as female. This may be because one of the heads is male and the other female, although whether that is in fact the case or not is open to speculation.

Yaga, the Hag Countess

Yaga, the Hag Countess
by Havard
from the Mystara Message Board posted 30 April 2004.

Name: Yaga, The Hag Countess. Baba Yaga
Lesser Deity (Empyreal of Entropy)
Portfolio/Interests: Evil Fairies, Hags.
Symbol: A Black Cauldron
Home Plane: Fairie/Spirit World
Alignment: Chaotic Evil.
Worshippers: Evil Fairies, Hags, Goblins, Hobgoblins
Cleric Alignment: CE, NE.
Domains: Chaos, Trickery, Evil, Luck
Favoured Weapon: Quarterstaff

Illustration: An illustration of Yaga appears here.

Yaga is an ancient Crone. When the world was still young, some fairies decided they did not like Oberon's rules. These were still fairies at heart, but their trickeries almost always had fatal results, leading to death and misery for their mortal victims. Oberon decided he wanted no more of this and banished these fairies. The Banished Fairies formed their own Fairy Court, known as the Unseelie Court. Its leader was known as Yaga. Eventually, Yaga became an immortal under the sponsorship of Nyx. Nyx remains Yaga's ally today. Yaga sees Oberon (Faunus) as a rival, yet the two are treat each other with civil resentment rather than open war. The two simply have different attitudes to what fairies should be like. Yaga avoids contact with other Immortals as much as possible and rarely gets into Immortal politics.
The Dymrak forest contains many gates to Yaga's part of the Spirit World and the Witches of Dymrak are her servants. After WotI, Yaga may spread her influence into the dead forest that once was Alfheim. On the other hand, Alfheim Elf presence in Dymrak may drive the Hags from that region entirely.

Appearance:
Yaga appears as an ancient twisted human female. She lives in a hut standing on large chicken legs, which allows the hut to move around at Yaga's command. She sometimes appears riding a flying broom.

Dogma
Yaga teaching is that of solitude. However, should anyone venture into your place of power, they are at your mercy, and cruelty is only appropriate.

Church and Temples
There are no Temples to Yaga. Her clerics are Hags and their huts are the closest to a temple of Yaga there is.

Note:
The Hag Countess appears in the Book of Vile Darkness, and shares many of characteristics with Yaga, although the two are not entirely identical.

Further Ideas:
Yaga's Unseelie Court may be developed further. There are as many evil fairy races as there are good ones. Wood Imps often follow Yaga, as do Hags (who are also considered Dark Fairies).

-Havard

Leptar, The Slave Lord

Leptar, The Slave Lord
by Havard
from the Mystara Message Board posted 13 April 2004.

Intermediate Deity (Celestial of Entropy)
Portfolio/Interests: Slavers, Cruelty.
Symbol: A pair of black manacles.
Home Plane: Pyts
Alignment: Chaotic Evil.
Worshippers: Slavers, Iron Ring Members, Evil Karameikans.
Cleric Alignment: Any Evil.
Domains: Chaos, Strength, Evil
Favoured Weapon: Whip.

Background:
Leptar was a Warlord in Traladara several hundred years ago. At that time, Thyatian merchants were settling in Marilenev (Today's Specularum). He made a huge profit from selling kidnapped Traladarans as slaves to his Hattian allies. Eventually, his schemes were toppled by the healer Chardastes. He went on with his quest for Immortality, with Orcus as his sponsor. Leptar and Chardastes remain enemies to this day. Leptar also opposes the Traladaran Three, who are allies of Chardastes. Leptar is allied with the Unholy Trinity (Arik, Orcus and Demogorgon), who seek to return Traladaran lands to Beastman rule. The Unholy Trinity views Leptar mostly as a servant, but Leptar hopes eventually to become accepted as an equal.

Appearance:
Leptar appears as a powerful humanoid figure with glowing yellow eyes and most of his body covered in short dark fur.

Dogma
Leptar promotes slavery and cruel treatment of slaves. The strong have a right to control the weak according to this twisted immortal's philosophy.

Church and Temples
Leptar has a following in Karameikos, Thyatis and other Known World countries, but is considered illegal in all of them. His temples are often secret underground lairs where slavers gather to worship their dark patron in secret. Cultists often tattoo Leptar's symbol onto their chests or arms. Clerics wear black ceremonial robes with eye-holed hoods. However, these are just worn for ceremonies. Since the cult is illegal, Clerics usually hide their allegiance and dress like commoners for non-religious occasions.

Further Ideas:
The concept of slavery as a problem for Karameikan relations with neighbouring nations might be developed further. The fact that slavery was explicitly illegal in Karameikos originally seemed to me as a naïve way to portray Karameikans as the good guys. However, perhaps due to the large operations of the Iron Ring, Slavery is and has been a large problem in the country, with large numbers of people being kidnapped and sold off into slavery to Thyatis or as Indentured Servants to Darokin. The Iron ring has been supported by the Black Eagle, and will receive continued support from the Baron's allies in Hattias even after Halag is liberated. Darokin Diplomats are aware of kidnapped Karameikans being sold into Indentured Servitude and are trying to solve this problem in order to ensure good relations with Karameikos, but legal issues and powerful lobbies has so far made this difficult. Halflings from the Five Shires have also been kidnapped in raids from the Black Eagle Barony and sold through the Iron Ring as slaves. This has increased problems between Karameikos and the Five Shires.

Source: B1-9 p 49 and WotI.


-Havard

Chardastes, the Healer

When I wrote this I was mistakenly under the impression that Chardastes was a woman, when in fact he is a man. Still, it seemed worth preserving the article on this blog

Chardastes, the Healer
by Havard
from the Mystara Message Board posted 13 April 2004.

Intermediate Deity (Celestial, Time)
Portfolio/Interests: Healing, Mercy, End of Tyranny.
Symbol: A Bell
Home Plane: Elysia
Alignment: Neutral Good.
Worshippers: Healers, Traladarans, Slaves.
Cleric Alignment: Any Good.
Domains: Healing, Good, Luck.
Favoured Weapon: Quarterstaff.



Background:
Chardastes was a healer and Cleric of Petranida (Petra) in Traladara. She allowed herself to be taken captive by slavers. Curing the horrible wounds the slaves had suffered, she was able to start a slave rebellion, freeing hundreds of slaves from misery. The slave owner was in fact Leptar who also later became an Immortal, and the two remain enemies until this day. Chardastes was a Cleric of Petranida and she and the other Traladaran Three remain allies of Chardastes, who is often seen as "the Fourth of the Three". Chardastes hates slavery and cruelty and opposes these whenever they occur.

Appearance:
Chardastes appears as a young Traladaran woman holding a bell, or as an old gentle Darine Lady.

Dogma
Chardastes promotes the ideas of freedom and mercy, and teaches that one should oppose cruelty and tyranny.

Church and Temples
Chardastes shares temples with the Traladaran Three (Halav, Zirchev and Petranida).

Note: Chardastes was originally described as part of the Church of Karameikos. However, this was changed to the Church of Traladara in WotI: Book I.

Note2: It has also been unclear whether Chardastes is male or female, but she is in fact female.

Source: B1-9 p 30 and WotI.

The Cult of Balthac

The Cult of Balthac
by Havard
from the Mystara Mailing List posted 01 November 2002.

Balthac was a legendary warrior and dragon slayer from Darokin. He became a legend when he was killed in a fierce battle with Calor the Red, an evil dragon. Both opponents were vanquished in the battle. However, in the chaotic period known to some as the Wrath of the Immortals, or the Time of Wrath, the legend of Balthac was revived by the evil Immortal Hel, to further her own dark cause and to lure idealistic warriors onto the path of evil. She provided spells for clerics who while believing they were serving the benevolent immortal Balthac, were actually in the servitude of Hel herself. The main champion of this faith was a young man named Kelter Zerben. When Zerben learned of this fraud, he sank into depression for a long time, before eventually regaining his strength and returned to fight the Cult. The Cult was now under the leadership of Lillian Korrigan, a Vampire and priestess of Hel. To protect her servant, Hel revived the undead remnants of the Dragon, Calor, but Zerben and his allies fought back. In the battle Zerben himself was killed, but at that darkest hour, Balthac himself entered the battle. The Immortal Donar (Thor), had been investigating the matter himself and had raised Balthac into a Titan, an Immortal Servant and together with Zerben's allies, the real Balthac killed Calor and Lillian. Now the cult sprang into bloom again as it was proved that Balthac was real even though Hel had manipulated the priesthood. New leaders took place of the old ones and the Cult of Balthac became a religion of Warriors all over Darokin. Donar provides spells for Balthac's Priests, and the Cult of Balthac is in many ways a Subcult of Donar. The main teaching of the Cult is that of fighting evil. The Cult, due to its recent experiences, is very sceptical towards new religions and faiths where Immortals may be manipulating their followers. They are as such investigating the new phenomenon of the Faith of Gareth, recently establishing in Darokin.

Important Figures:

Krakel, high priest of Balthac.

Krakel, is none other than Crackle, the Lightning Zombie from Korrigan Keep. Thor took a liking to this young adventurer when he opposed his mother Lillian and the Fake Balthac Cult together with Kelter Zerben.

Thor restored Krakel's humanity, but allowed him to keep his lightning abilities as Thor found them amusing. Now, now longer a child, Krakel takes his responsibilities as High Priest of Balthac very seriously, and uses the wisdom learned through his centuries as a Lightning Zombie in teaching new champions of the cult how to fight the many faces of evil.

New spells:

Priests of Balthac can summon Balthac and Kelter Zerben, who are both now Titans of the Faith.

-Havard