red steel

Date: Sat, 07 Mar 1998 10:17:21 -0500

Date: Sat, 07 Mar 1998 10:17:21 -0500

From: RDK

Subject: [RAVENLOFT] - RAVENLOFT Red Steel pt.1

good point about posting the stuff anyways, but i do want constructive criticism on each post please.....

BACKGROUND

There once was a vast empire, that spanned a full continent, which boasted the best and most powerful spellcasters. People came from everywhere to consult with these wizards, who seemed capable of doing anything. This disturbed the priesthood, who saw the mages as getting in the way of the gods by using powers that only gods should wield.

Then, thousands of years ago, a large __________[fill in approp. to your campaign world: plague, horrors, etc] swept across a continent. The fearful populace, led by the priesthood, turned against the mages of the realm, blaming them for the ______________. Fearing for their lives, most of the mages fled the realm in a mass exodus, crossing the ocean and settling on the peninsula that is now known as the Savage Coast, where they set up a colony.

Over time, the mages grew in power and strength, until their powers were strong enough to rival that of even the Immortals. Their hubris grew until they believed that they were the equal of the gods. They mocked the priests that had made the journey with them, and began on their most ambitious attempt yet: to use their powerful spells and artifacts to become gods themselves. Angry at this affront, the gods waited until their spell was nearly complete, and then modified the spell. To their horror, instead of becoming gods, they began to writhe in pain as their bodies slowly bent and twisted, their bones pushing their way to the surface of the skin and spreading out like a carapace....when the populace awoke, they found that they were now manscorpions. Above their colony a vision appeared of the leader of the gods. "Falsely you proclaimed to be as powerful as the gods. Now you have your power. You lashed out at us, proclaiming yourselves to be our equals. Now you become like the insects you are. No longer are you able to cast spells or use the magic items that you created. You shall not have immortality that you craved, but your lives shall be long, many times the lifespan of most mortals, but you shall not enjoy it. You will be shunned and feared by the rest of humanity."

Though too late, it was then that the colony realized they were wrong. Determined not to ever let anyone fall into the trap they did, they gathered up their magical artifacts and spellbooks and hid them, determined to protect their knowledge from others who might foolishly challenge the gods.

Over the millenia, the old empire broke apart and became several kingdoms. Mages were no longer the feared and hated figures they once were. The leader of one, Sir Keirglan, a minor mage with an overblown sense of his own power7, came across old records telling of the exodus. Greedy for the power he led his army across the ocean in search of the colony. Instead he found the abandoned spell towers and stone buildings the mages had pulled from the earth. Then the leaders of the manscorpions, who had hid from the army in shame and fear for their lives, stepped out of the brush, realizing what the army was there for. They managed to speak with Keirglan before the troops could attack them, and warned him of the folly of his quest, indicating themselves as a visual reminder of such power. All he heard, however, was that his goal was being kept from him by them. He ordered them to tell him where the magical treasure was kept. When they refused, he sent his troops out with orders to slaughter all manscorpions until they revealed where the treasure was, and took the leaders hostage. At first they refused to talk, but when they saw Kierglan's troops brutally slaughtering any manscorpion they found, man woman or child, they broke down and told him where to find the treasure. Forcing them to lead him to the treasure, when he confirmed they were telling the truth he pulled out his sword and decapitated them.

"Slaughter any you find. None must live to show others this treasure!" Kierglan ordered his troops, who eagerly rushed to do his bidding, all wanting to be part of the most powerful man alive. Digging through the treasure, his eyes grew wide as he realized what he could do with all the power before him.

NEXUS

Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 11:01:40 -0500

From: RDK

Subject: [RAVENLOFT] - RAVENLOFT Red Steel pt. 2

wow! talk about a complete lack of interest! its been 4 days and not one criticism, comment, other!....well for the two people out there who are interested, here goes part 2:

Digging through the treasure, the lord used his magical skills to locate a Ring of Wishes. Slipping it on his finger, he spent hours dwelling on the right wish to make, while his troops continued to stop in with reports on how many they had killed and how many manscorpions were still at large. Finally he had his wish.

"I wish to have absolute authority over all!" He exclaimed, making the required gestures.

The gods, quiescent until this time, had had enough. He had slaughtered the manscorpions and now was daring to challenge their power? Using their powers they laid a powerful curse upon him, that he would be denied authority over the manscorpions and their descendants, and that for his greed he shall be ever denied wealth.

Just then a thick white mist began to coil about the cavern entrance. As it grew thicker the guards began to dissappear, before they were able to even cry out in surprise. The mist poured into the cavern, filling it until the lord was unable to see as well. Stumbling about, he found himself out of the cavern and wandering the mists. He did so for several hours? weeks? until he found himself in a vast plain. Mountains filled the horizon all around him.

[i think my story is a little more together than the original RS....next is the outline of the Darklord and the curse that binds him to RL!]

NEXUS

Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 22:29:07 -0500

From: RDK


The DARKLORD

- ------------

CLASS: 20th Level Warrior

ALIGN: Neutral Evil

STR: 18(00)

INT: 9

DEX: 18

WIS: 8

CHA: 18

CON: 18

COM: 9

Weapon of Choice: Battleaxe or Claymore

Armor: Ebon Armor [-4 AC, +2 bonus to saves vs. spells]

Shield: No special, but has his standard in blood red on its center [and the red glistens as if wet]

Appearance

- ----------

Height: 6'4"

Weight: 310 lbs. of solid muscle

Hair Color: Black, and short

Eye Color: Black

Face: Craggy, weather beaten, stubble, scars everywhere

Abilities

- ---------

1)Has complete knowledge of anything he desires to know within the boundaries of his own domain

2)Has all the powers of a god, and can bestow clerical powers to those who worship him

3)Can control a native of the domain for 1d4 hours 1xday and can use any of his powers through the native. Using his most powerful godlike abilities will age the native as if haste is cast, however

Limits

- ------

1)Cannot see anything in regards to what the manscorpions can do, including a radius of 10' around them. He also has trouble pinpointing these blank spots, making it very hard for him to find them

2)Can only seal the border of his realm in order to keep people from leaving. See Sealing The Border

3)Cannot control foreigners, and his powers/clerical spells that he bestows to clerics are not as effective [treat as 1 level lower]

Sealing the Borders

- -------------------

1)mind control forces people to return back to the realm. Natives have no choice-to be taken out they must be unconcious and forcibly removed, something that the Darklord senses instantly. A PC must Save vs. Paralysis as if 4 levels lower or find himself walking back the way he cam. This can only be attempted 1x per 24 hours.

2)Cannot keep people from coming into his realm, though a person feels a sense of unease and briefly feels as if someone is digging through his minds

Roleplaying Tips

- ----------------

He is extremely frustrated. His only desire is to control the entire domain, and then (He doesnt know this) he would be released from RL.

Unfortunately, he does not have absolute control over foreigners, and his only concept of gaining control over people without his powers is to beat them into submission.

He never reveals his actual self, instead preferring to possess someone and use them. This gives credence to the belief that he IS a true god, and those who are under his control [as is evident by key things like an ethereal glow or whatever you as DM prefers] are given free reign to do whatever he/she wants.

and for something to look forward to:

NEXT ADDENDUM:

the revision of the Cinnabryl and Red Steel, as well as the legacies and curses, etc.........

NEXUS

PS: if any of you members of the Kargat are interested, i will type all this up as a file of your choice and upload it to you for possible inclusion into a gazeteer [oh to be published!] and when this is final, PLEASE, i would like input from everyone. I understand that most of you skim and only respond on occasion, but when i post up the last add-on i would appreciate input. Whenever i create something for RPG's i like to get input from as many gamers as possible, because what fun is a campaign setting if only the DM likes it?

Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 21:32:09 -0500

From: RDK


Curse/Red Steel in the Domain

- -----------------------------

Anyone who amasses more wealth than he/she needs to live comfortably suffers the Red Curse. Unfortunately, since the realm was populated largely by the large army he had accommodated, however, the inhabitants, and any who are in the realm suffer from a curse as well. After the third day inhabiting the realm, anytime a person finds money or anything of value [that IS not owned by anyone else] they must make a Wisdom check or develop an irrational and irresistible urge to possess it [suitable examples include treasure left by a monster or someones property that is left in the open].

In order to hold off the curse, one needs Cinnabryl, which can only be found in the mountain range that surrounds Kierglans fortress. Those who venture too close to his fortress, however, are captured by his troops and dragged to his castle to be the subject of horrific mind control experiments in order to try and find ways to control people that may walk on foreigners.

Cinnabryl becomes Red Steel when depleted, which is the only metal that can harm Kierglan when forged into a weapon. The only exception is any weapon that is +4 or higher [and since that is so rare more likely than not the only option is red steel]

Since he is aware that Red Steel is the only thing that can harm him, as soon as he finds out that there is a large quantity of it around he sends his loyal troops to acquire the steel and kill anyone who knows of it [since they obviously must know that it can harm him]. If they are locals, he possesses one and uses his/her body to kill off the rest, then orders the survivor to suicide.

Curses remain even if you leave the realm, but Cinnabryl only works within Kierglan's borders. Once its taken out it crumbles to dust and a breeze blows the dust back into the realm, which becomes Vermeil. Vermeil collects in specific locations around the edges of the domain, becoming small [roughly 30 to 50 feet in size] sand dunes that seem to shift an flow as if made of water.

Red Steel that is removed from the realm becomes regular steel. That change is permanent, and any enchantments placed within the Red Steel [even if the enchantment would work in regular steel], instantly fades away. Nothing, even a Wish spell, could restore the enchantments or the steel to Red Steel.

NEXUS

Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 23:00:47 -0500

From: RDK

Subject: Re: [RAVENLOFT] - RAVENLOFT Red Steel Supplement

Rather than respond to individual commentaries i will post this supplement email to fill in the cracks and flaws that those of you who have commented have revealed to me:

1)In regards to Keirglan, his motivation has always been to be the ruler of all he surveys, and to have absolute authority by using his magic to ensure direct control regardless of distance. Unlike Azalin, however, he does not desire power because he feels that only he is right for the job: he desires power because he is satisfied with nothing less.

2)The reason why i say he has the power of a god within his realm and has absolute knowledge is because for him it is torture. He has powers beyond that of any mortal mage, yet cannot control new people in his realm or know anything/control anyone within 10' of even one manscorpion! His dream has been "granted" beyond his wildest hopes, and its just within his reach, but it is not complete and that is what curses him. It also works because he desires ultimate control, and with the powers of a god it constantly mocks him that whilst the population may do as he says, in their hearts and minds they dont.

3)In regards to changing around Red Steels origin: I liked the basic concept behind the boxed set, but it is my humble opinion that it was rather cheesily done: It is dependant on a wild series of coincidences and some rather half-baked occurences [for ex: WHY is Thanatos so enamored with wiping out a civilization, and why do the other Immortals want to wipe out all knowledge of the civilization? Plus, why is the Savage Coast not affected?]....Therefore, i took it upon myself to take the concept and ideas of Savage Coast and transfer it into a more cohesive and logical setting. Thus there are gods as well as Immortals.

4)i was unclear in the story: the gods didnt send him to RL, the mists claimed him before the gods could get to him. For whatever reason the DPs kept the curse they placed on him intact [perhaps he was elated when he realized he was on another world away from the gods that tried to stop him?]. The gods, though, are resumably rather ticked off about the fact that he has avoided them so well and would do anything to get him

5)I decided to have all Red Steel/Cinnabryl/Vermeil cease to function permanently outside of the domain for several reasons:

One, it is a control, otherwise players would pop in and out of the realm to get a superpower to help them fight evil and/or accomplish their goals.

Two, the Red Steel Curse is the punishment of Kierglan and all those who willingly served him. Thus, like Azalins spells functioning perfectly only within his borders, so too does the curse not function properly outside of the domain. And thirdly, it makes sense that it can only function within his domain, just as other special effects of domains only function within their borders

6)I have purposely left several elements of the setting vague so that you can insert this realm into your own settings. For example, there is no definite reason why the mages were chased off, because what works in my personal campaign setting wouldnt work in yours. Also, there are no direct references to the actual Savage Coast because the realm doesnt come from Mystara but from any setting you choose.

7)lastly, he does not suffer from the normal penalty of losing a Stat point for every Legacy he contracts. He is, after all, a darklord. It does make him more and more horrific looking, which makes it all the harder for him to convince people to do as he says, and adds to his frustrations. It also adds to adventures, because the first time they encounter him they may escape with little difficulty, but after some time and other defeats, he may have additional powers/look real bad!

Thanks for the input, and i hope these seven comments help explain the Red Steel Domain a little bit better. Part five will be posted soon, and it will contain the lay of the land and list of cities.

NEXUS

From: RDK

To: "[email protected]"

Cc:

Subject: [RAVENLOFT] - Red Steel Part 5

Date: Tue, 17 Mar 1998 03:36:17 -0000

DOMAIN

------

the domain is very large, larger than any other realm in size. It is rimmed by vast mountain ranges, broken here and there by canyons, rivers, or flat plains, all of which collect the Vermeil that is created from the metals that leave the realm. The actual border of the realm fluctuates slightly, creating an oscillating wave-effect that can cause the border to expand/shrink by as much as 500 yards! this has the effect of causing any Cinnabryl that is in the mountain ranges to crumble to vermeil, maintaining the vermeil dunes that build up. These mountains are consistently coated with fog, and the temperature there is always 20 degrees or more colder than the rest of the domain.

In the centre of the domain is a ring of mountains and broken lands, unable to support life. The only thing growing outside of the ring are weak, fragile weeds and scrawny trees. The sky is always overcast, and either a fog, mist, or light rain is always present. At the centre of the ring is a green, overly fertile paradise, at the centre of which is a lavish, rich mansion. This is where the darklord of the domain resides. As part of his curse, he is denied the joys of the wealth and power he sought. So even though he has so much wealth and opulence to live in, there is no way for anyone to see it.

The outer rim of mountains combine with the inner circle of the domain to give an endless effect, making the realm seem to be an infinitely long, but rather finite in width. A journey around the outer rim of the domain could take well over four months before the travellers come back upon their starting point. Again, this adds to the fact that the Darklord desired to control the whole world.

The main portion of the domain contains a wide variety of climates. Virtually every climate imaginable has some sort of representation here, with the exception of artic climates. There are deserts, forests, swamps, grasslands, etc....

RACES

-----

The following races are extremely common in this realm:

Human

Elf

Dwarf

Kender [or Halflings if you prefer]

Manscorpions

HalfElves are an impossibility in this domain. For whatever reason, the product of a human/elven liason cannot, even with a Wish spell, produce offspring. Any Half-Elves entering the realm are considered to be the same as mongrelmen [some strange abomination created by magic], or are considered to be humans [or elves] trying to pass themself off as the other race.

Gnomes DO exist, but are extremely rare, as they are considered by all those who suffer the Red Curse to be hoarders of Cinnabryl and are considered by most of the population to be the reason for the curse in the first place [something the Darklord encourages!]

MONSTERS

--------

The most common monsters to be found are:

Goblin

Troll

Orc

Kobold

any Giant creature [spider, bee, ant, etc....]

Stone Giants

Cloud Giants

Jungle Giants

Undead are, uniquely enough, extremely rare in this domain. Raising undead in this realm is EXTREMELY difficult, and any attempts to do so are treated as if the caster is 1d4 levels lower than he/she is.

Vampires and other selfwilled undead find their powers halved in range, and take an additional 1d10 HP of damage from any attack that can harm them. The reasons for this are different depending on where the domain comes from originally. In my realm, it is because Undead are contrary to Nature and are considered an abomination by all the pantheon of my campaign setting for reasons that would take several pages to explain...but if you dont like that idea remove it by all means

Conversely, werecreatures are extremely common. Every type of werecreature has a sizable population in the realm, and one can be found of every alignment short of true neutral. As with undead, this is more a flavor of my campaign setting, but one that adds a spark of originality to RL i feel

Clerics find that, like in Spelljammer when they leave their Crystal Sphere, that they cannot use any prayer above second level whilst in this realm. If the domain is from the original Mystara, then its because there are no gods, and no immortals are present here. If it is from my campaign setting, then it is another facet of my realm. And if you prefer the origin I gave the Darklord, its because in his realm he has the powers of a god and is the only one that can bestow powers, and to use any prayer above 2nd level then it is call for a minor power check [5% chance per use, cumulative if more than 1 per day is used]

Part 6 will wrap up the realms description, and Part 7 will have NPC's for the realm....ENJOY

NEXUS

Date: Wed, 18 Mar 1998 22:15:25 -0500

From: RDK

Subject: [RAVENLOFT] - RAVENLOFT-Red Steel Part 6

SPECIAL INFORMATION

- -------------------

Like every other domain, this one has its own elements that make it unique. They are:

1)The Darklord CAN be permanently slain. When he is, however, the person who dealt the killing blow will instantly be given the mantle of new Darklord of the realm [which is why the name isnt that important!]...the original Darklord will always remain as a ghost that can never be destroyed, a final twist of the knife, for now he can see others suffering his fate, and he knows that he will NEVER achieve his goal. Meanwhile his murderer will find himself being far more susceptible to power checks [add +50% to every check!], and if he fails more than 4 power checks then the process is irreversible.

WHY WOULD THE MURDERER SUFFER AS WELL?

in keeping with the gothic RL feel, there are no truly altruistic motives...anyone killing the DarkLord is doing it for a reason. Even a paladin is doing it because he wishes to advance his cause, his beliefs, in effect garnering more control/power for his side. This interpretation may not appeal to most, so as an alternative the Darklord's ghost slowly melds his way into the soul of his slayer, eventually possessing the body.

HOW CAN IT BE REVERSED? WHY?

it takes a Wish spell to reverse the curse, or a special Quest spell cast by a high level priest of the Darklord. In addition, some form of personal quest must be undertaken by the new Darklord, in the form of righting a great wrong or correcting a grievous injustice the previous Darklord did. If all this is accomplished, the body of the Darklord will slowly regenerate, and when it is compeletely healed of injury the essense of the Darklord will return into it. For a week thereafter he is without any of his abilities and is a mere mortal; the borders will remain open; and those suffering the Red Curse will be 'cured' for that week.

2)The population of the domain have been there for at least 10 generations, and are the descendants of the troops that were under the Darklords command. He had been wandering the mists for nearly three hundred years before finding his domain! The only exception is his personal guard, which is comprised of his most loyal troops. They are immortal, but can be slain like any other mortal being. This added to the legend of the Darklord and helped to fuel the belief that he MUST be a god [again, this is false in the true definition of a god]

3)The monster races of the domain are free of the Darklords control, but whenever they attempt something that he for any reason opposes, they feel great unease, and their morale is effectively halved. With effective leaders, however, they can overcome this feeling. Of course, intelligent monsters can suffer from the Red Curse should they acquire too much wealth than they need as well...

Well this is it! I hope you all enjoyed my RedSteel Domain, and i hope

it brings you and your parties great enjoyment

NEXUS

red steel

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