Blueholme: Journeymanne Rules — A Review

Blueholme: Journeymanne Rules
Author: Michael Thomas
Dreamscape Design
Approx. 120 pages
Available on Lulu ($24.99 hardcover; $14.99 softcover)

Blueholme: Journeymanne Rules essentially is a restatement and expansion of Holmes’s basic edition of Dungeons & Dragons, which in turn was a restatement of the original edition of the game and some of its supplements further edited in anticipation of the publication of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. Whereas Holmes’s basic edition only covered the first three levels of play, Blueholme aims to be a complete roleplaying game, supporting play through level twenty.

The rulebook is divided into several sections, including but not limited to:

• 11 pages on character creation that cover four classes—clerics, fighters, magic-users, and thieves—as well as armor, equipment, and weapons;
• 31 pages of spells: 8 spells per level, spell levels one through seven, for clerics; and 20 spells per level, spell levels one through nine, for magic-users;
• 9 pages of combat-related rules, which includes some Holmesian elements like parrying, attacks provoked by retreat, and the effect of cover;
• a 26-page bestiary detailing 123 monsters (more when different subtypes are accounted for; e.g., different types of giants and dragons); and
• 19 pages on treasure, including a table of treasure types, which are referenced in monster entries, and a wealth of magic items.

In comparison, Holmes’s basic edition was just 48 pages. But Blueholme’s increased page count is not unreasonable given its expanded scope. And Blueholme generally does a nice job of revising and condensing Holmes’s prose while retaining its clarity.

Blueholme likely will not appeal to those who prefer AD&D to other editions. But for those who want a less complicated, more streamlined version of the game, Blueholme is a very good alternative. Class, spell, and monster descriptions are far more concise than those in AD&D. In general, Blueholme is better organized than its inspiration, not that Holmes’s basic edition was poorly organized.

Blueholme’s artwork is strong. Its cover depicts an adventuring party in a cavern gathered before a treasure chest and hoard; a dragon reminiscent of the one on the cover of Holmes’s basic edition lurks behind them in the shadows on the periphery of the party’s light source. Stylistically, the cover art melds old and new in a manner well suited to a restatement and expansion of an older edition of the game; its color scheme, which features gold and aquamarine hues, is appealing to the eye.

[Blueholme’s Cover Art]

The interior of the rulebook includes a lot of old-school style black-and-white artwork, including a really nice callback to the cover art by a different artist that depicts the adventurers in combat with the dragon amidst the treasure hoard. Some of the interior art might be considered too racy for younger readers:

• a sorceress with ample cleavage;
• some bare-breasted water nymphs;
• an amazon archer with exposed breasts;
• a trio of saggy-titted harpies; and
• a half-serpent woman who’s mislaid her blouse.

This is not inconsistent with Holmes’s basic edition, which included a buxom, bare-breasted harpy. Nor do I personally find this artwork objectionable (even for younger readers). But some might not care for such nudity or so much of it.

I’m not especially knowledgeable about Holmes’s basic edition (or other editions of the game for that matter); however, to my non-expert eyes, Blueholme appears to emulate its namesake well. A few interesting features traceable to Holmes’s basic edition that differ from at least some other editions of the game include:

• a five-point alignment system: lawful good, chaotic good, neutral, chaotic evil, and lawful evil;
• an initiative system that largely turns on the relative dexterity scores of the individual combatants, subject to the following attack sequence: spell-casting, missile weapons, and melee combat;
• a combat round that is 10-seconds in duration (as opposed to OD&D’s and AD&D’s one-minute combat round);
• simple rules for magic-users to create level-appropriate new spells and scrolls without first attaining several experience levels; and
• good and evil clerics are limited to casting opposite versions of certain spells (e.g., cure light wounds for good clerics and deal light wounds for evil clerics).

Like the scroll-making mechanic for magic-users, Blueholme adds similarly simple rules allowing clerics to create holy water and healing potions.

At least one significant deviation from Holmes’s basic edition stands out. Holmes’s basic edition has specific rules as to the abilities of dwarves, elves, and halflings; it also limited the classes available to demi-humans. Blueholme leaves these racial abilities and class availability to the discretion of individual DMs. It does refer the reader to monster entries for demi-humans, which specify various racial abilities that could be applied to characters as well. But this is not the only place the racial abilities of demi-humans are discussed. Racial modifiers for several types of demi-humans regarding thieves’ abilities are included at the very beginning of the chapter on monsters, and some additional rules about elves and secret doors and dwarves and traps are included in an altogether different section of the rulebook. This leaves a bit to be desired in terms of organization.

Like Holmes’s basic edition, Blueholme emphasizes that players can play just about any creature detailed in the section on monsters, subject to the DM’s approval. In particular, it suggests dreenoi—humanoid insect-men—as a racial option in addition to dwarves, elves, and halflings, because Holmes played such a character. But the monster description for dreenoi does not necessarily provide any meaningful abilities for them apart from the possibility of telepathy, which they are said to use only in communicating with one another. For an experienced DM, the lack of default rules concerning the abilities of demi-humans and the classes available to them won’t pose too much difficulty. But less experienced DMs could find the lack of default rules a little more challenging; making demi-humans distinct and interesting while not rendering humans a second-class species can be tricky.

Nor is that the only instance in which Blueholme might be less user-friendly for inexperienced DMs. To take a relatively minor example, the monster entry for "gnoll" provides no clue as to what one is apart from “bestial, vicious, and stupid”; whereas, Holmes’s basic edition succinctly identifies gnolls as “beings like hyena-men.” The same is true of the entry for "spectre." Blueholme says spectres are “incorporeal” but not much else, while Holmes’s basic edition references Tolkien’s Nazgul. If one does not already have a sense of what these monsters are, Blueholme does not clarify matters. For monsters that are well known outside of roleplaying games, like vampires or zombies, descriptions might not be necessary. But for lesser known monsters, like gnolls and spectres, some rudimentary description might be helpful.

Blueholme deviates from Holmes’s basic edition in some minor ways as well. One notable instance—it adjusts the experience points required per level by one so that each class begins first level with one experience point rather than zero. Why? The rulebook does not explain, and this revision is sufficiently atypical that an explanation would be useful. I surmise that this change might have been made to distinguish adventurers from “normal humans,” who are 0-level and belong to no class, based on a couple of references within the section on monsters, specifically the entries for “normal human” and “vampire.” But this is a guess, and its in-game significance is unstated. My hunch is that 0-level retainers who return from an adventure and are awarded experience then take on a class and become first level.

Like any revision or expansion of a prior edition, Blueholme has some material that is new (or at least it’s new to me and appears to have no precedent in Holmes’s basic edition). One of the more intriguing bits is its optional rule regarding light and heavy weapons. Under this rule, one can attack with a light weapon (e.g., dagger) twice per round but rolls two damage dice per hit and takes the lower result; one can attack with a heavy weapon (e.g., great sword; light crossbow) once every two rounds but rolls two damage dice per hit and takes the higher result. Standard weapons (e.g., long sword) allow one attack per round and one damage die. The damage die for all weapons is a d6. I’m not sure how this shakes out mathematically (i.e., whether it confers a relative advantage on the use of light or heavy weapons).

Blueholme’s monster entry for “demon” is another addition. Whether due to space limitations or some other consideration, Holmes’s basic edition consciously excludes demons. Rather than including numerous entries for the various subtypes of demons made famous by OD&D’s supplements and AD&D, Blueholme includes a single entry with a table for generating random demonic abilities along with the guidance that demons “come in all shapes and sizes, and may have wings, extra limbs, horns, scales, tails, or any number of usually grotesque physical features.” A creative DM could expand on this entry with additional tables for physical attributes as well as additional abilities to create a wide array of unique demons (or types of demons). This is a nice way of making something familiar new again while conserving space.

Arguably, the weakest section of Blueholme is the final one on campaigns, which discusses dungeons and the wilderness. This material generally is new. Its shortcomings relate not so much to what is there as what is not; this section spans just five pages and omits key material that Holmes’s basic edition includes, specifically a cross-sectional dungeon map and sample dungeon. Blueholme states that these materials are omitted due to space considerations, however, and that an introductory adventure—The Shrine of Sobek—is available in .pdf for free that discusses dungeons and the wilderness in further detail. This adventure has not been released yet, but it likely will make up for this material’s absence from the rulebook.

Blueholme is very well done overall. Its strengths far exceed any ostensible weaknesses. Many of my criticisms may be attributable to hard choices posed by considerations of space and price point. Personally, I’d rather pay a little more for some additional content, but that’s a judgment call. That said, this rulebook makes me want to run a Blueholme game, and that’s probably the highest praise one can give a product of this nature. Kudos to Michael Thomas for his excellent work.

[cross-posted at Knights & Knaves Alehouse]

Vornheim: An Anti-Eulogy For A Product that Should Have Been Buried Long Ago

PRODUCT REVIEW

Vornheim: The Complete City Kit (2011)

Author: Zak S.

64 pages

Retail Price: $19.99

Prefatory Note

Zak S. is a polarizing figure; people tend to love him or hate him. This is a review of a book that he wrote, not a review of him, his detractors’ opinions of him, or any of the controversies between them.

Introduction

Since its release, Vornheim has been much-lauded by the OSR community. Most of its reviews are very positive. Many of these reviews offer nary a word of criticism. It’s not that there are not positive reviews that note some shortcomings, or even the occasional negative review, but they are far rarer. I penned this review because I think that Vornheim is a product sure to disappoint most old-school gamers. Vornheim’s many flaws exceed its very modest virtues. It is poorly organized, too fragmentary to serve its stated purpose of providing a complete city toolkit, and its content is too eccentric to be of use to most referees. Vornheim deserves a fair-minded review that identifies these failings in detail. This is that review.

Overview

Vornheim states that its intended purpose is to provide a referee with the tools necessary to run a city adventure “with a minimum of hassle, so you and your players can get to the good stuff.” It is meant to be a “kit” to facilitate the creation of a city “even in the middle of the game.” But it does so within the context of a particular city, Vornheim.

The book gives some general notes on Vornheim and neighboring locales; details three specific locations in the city—a medusa’s lair, wondrous zoo, and library; provides rules or guidelines about navigating in a city, generating building floorplans, the law, non-player character contacts, chases, items costs, and libraries; and includes several random tables regarding aristocrats, books, non-player characters, random encounters, fortune-telling, searching corpses, magical effects, types of buildings, and other subjects. In addition to these contents, the interior of the dustjacket contains a map of a significant portion of the city. The front and back covers of the book contain charts for generating certain random results, such as the hit location of an attack, by dropping a four-sided die on the covers.

The dustjacket art is in color and depicts an androgynous figure battling a peryton with a flail. The dustjacket’s interior city map also is in color. The remainder of the book's art and diagrams are in black and white.

Some Specifics

Almost a third of the book—21 of its 64 pages—is devoted to three very specific locations within the city: the House of the Medusa, Immortal Zoo of Ping Feng, and the Library of Zorlac. These are effectively three adventure locations or miniature adventure modules, for lack of a better description.

Vornheim has a sensibility reminiscent of dark, weird fairy tales. For example:

• a nearby goblin city’s inhabitants are said to “speak backwards and walk on the ceiling”;
• a horned goddess’s priesthood once built their temples in “colossal goat-like creatures”; and
• there are scholars who can read the skins of snakes like books, some are cookbooks.

There is a section on superstitions, which are intended to flesh out the city’s culture. For example:

• “Cows are considered indolent and undesirable. Anyone bringing a live cow into Vornheim will lose a shoe within a week.”
• “Pigs must be present at all trials.”
• “No dog will be faithful to someone who gives leftovers to a crow.”

There are two pages of “player commentaries,” which are observations about the campaign made by Zak’s players. These provide brief glimpses of their experiences in and perceptions of Vornheim.

The city map and building diagrams in the book are somewhat impressionistic in appearance. Readers accustomed to clean, precise maps and floorplans will find little that is familiar. The book does, however, include a shortcut method of generating rudimentary floorplans for ordinary buildings.

The book provides mechanics for “urban-crawling.” These are intended for situations in which adventurers are traveling through the city but their movement is hindered in some manner (e.g., chases, evasions, searches, hostile locals, civil disorder). These mechanics includes guidelines for creating neighborhood boundaries and determining street layouts and destination locations within the city on the fly.

Analysis

The overview should make plain that which is obvious from a quick perusal of the book—Vornheim is very incomplete. Most of the city is left undescribed and undetailed. Apart from the very few locations that are detailed, the referee is left to his own devices other than some thematic notes that often have no immediate game application and some random tables. Zak pitches the spare amount of detail as a virtue, avoiding the exhaustive treatment of the typical city supplement. But he merely replaces too much detail with not enough. The result is a setting too fragmentary to run as written.

As an example of its fragmentary and disorganized nature, consider the Church of Vorn. One gathers that it is a significant force within the city, but the book gives little detail about it. We know only that:

• its cathedral is a significant feature of the inner city, and there is an impressionistic diagram of it;
• Vorn is a grim god of iron, rust, and rain;
• the color brown “is reserved by Vorn, to use on rust” and thus wearing it is taboo;
• the tenets of their faith require priests of Vorn to use edged weapons rather than blunt ones, as they regard attacking with the latter hypocritical, and they lose a memorized spell if they transgress this tenet;
• the church may or may not be corrupt, prone to fanaticism, or in the grip of occult influences; and
• the church administers trial by combat, in which the combatants fight in pools of waist-height rusty water.

These sketchy details are interesting. But they are more of a beginning, not the finished product that should appear in published work. A good referee would need to flesh these ideas out for use.

Moreover, this organized summary of the church also belies the haphazard presentation of this material. These details appear in various sections of the book across pages 2, 5, 6, 9, 10, 32, and 59. Instead of getting an organized paragraph or two of material or a bullet-point summary, the reader has to search this information out and organize it for himself. A more useful approach would have been to place this information on the page opposite the diagram of the cathedral, so that it could be quickly read and later accessed for reference as necessary.

This haphazard presentation is a consistent feature of the book. Recall the inexplicable superstition that pigs must be present at trial? That appears on page 10 without context; on page 59 we learn that the people of Vornheim believe that pigs are the only honest animal. They sometimes conduct trials by a ritual known as trial by swine:

7 pigs are tied to the defendant by 10’ ropes and the defendant must go about his or her business in this way for 12 days. If the defendant cuts the ropes, leaves the city, or goes mad, s/he is guilty.

Set aside the silliness of this procedure, why are these details separated by 58 pages? Zak does not need this material to appear in one place; it’s his setting. But this disorganization is a nightmare for another referee who wants to run Vornheim. A referee who wants to make this material his own is going to have to devote a lot of time to this book.

This is not a minor fault. The haphazard presentation is exacerbated by other shortcomings—small font sizes, less than ideal formatting and layout, a hard-to-read table of contents, and lack of an index. The end result is that the book is a chore to navigate and its contents are hard to digest. All of this undermines the book’s stated purpose of assisting the referee to run city adventurers with “a minimum of hassle.”

Setting aside the manner of presentation, the contents are an odd hodgepodge for a supplement that bills itself as a “complete city kit.” As noted, roughly a third of the book is devoted to three specific locations that effectively serve as miniature adventure modules. In a larger supplement, this sort of material would be welcome. But if one only has 64 pages to provide the tools necessary to run urban adventure on the fly, the inclusion of this material is a mistake. The space is needed for other, more essential matters.

The particular locations included are creative. But Zak’s vision is an eccentric one. The inclusion of a medusa with a manor is consistent with the dark, weird fairy-tale sensibility of the book. Opinions will vary on whether this sensibility is an asset or a liability. It has limited appeal for me. More to the point, Zak’s creative vision is well enough outside of the mainstream of fantasy gaming—even broadly defined—that most referees will not share his sensibility. He references Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass as inspiration for Vornheim’s legal system. That should suffice to give one a feel for how bizarre the setting can be and how out of step it is with most old-school campaigns.

Some of the material in the book is difficult to describe as anything more than filler. Inclusion of the player commentaries section is baffling given the space limitations. Consider these two comments:

• On Vornheim’s taverns: “When I went out in Vornheim I had too much to drink. I had a good time, but I had so much to drink that I probably would’ve had a good time anywhere.”
• On Vornheim’s NPCs: “Those random guys are fun. . . . I always end up having sex with them to get information and then there isn’t any information. Like I’ll have sex with the vet to have drugs and there’s no drugs.”

I suppose this is the kind of thing that is bound to happen in Zak’s game; his players are porn stars. But of what conceivable use is this information to other referees? The question answers itself.

Other material, if not filler, is still of no use to time-pressed referees and will not be of interest to players. Most of the superstitions fall into this category. By way of illustration: “All cakes must be tasted by the oldest person in the room first, or else they will taste like fish. Except fishcakes, which will taste like rye.”

The last half of the book is devoted to mechanics and tables that are supposed to assist a referee to run urban adventures off the cuff. The tables likely are the most readily usable by other referees. But they once again reflect Zak’s unconventional tastes. Two pages are devoted to generating random aristocrats, and supply details like: “has a peculiar fondness for injured women,” “compulsively shaves women bald,” “only finds joy in the sound of innocent women crying,” and “bathes in the liquefied bone of young maidens.” Not all of the results are this weird, but enough are that it reduces the usefulness of the table. The table devoted to the random generation of non-player characters is equally oddball, including results like: “is a random PC’s mother in disguise,” “is secretly a creative genius on the level of William Shakespeare,” “vomits often” for no reason, and “has an unusually well-maintained collection of doll houses.”

Doubtless this material suits Zak’s style. It is unsuited in most others’ though. The net result is that the tables—which span 17 pages—are of limited use to others. The best that could be said for these tables as a whole is that they might serve as examples to referees for the creation of their own tables. Regardless of differences in taste, however, a true “complete city kit” would have to include more tables on a wider variety of subjects.

Of the mechanics presented in the book, the “urban-crawling” rules have received the most praise. I think they could be used, but very little space is devoted to them—just two pages. This material would have benefited from a more expanded treatment, given how important it is to a city kit that does not feature a complete map of the city. These rules would be less useful, arguably not useful at all, for referees who have fully mapped their own city setting.

Zak’s decision to try to make the entire book useful, including its covers and dustjacket, is innovative. But not all innovation is good. One of the cover charts does no more than simulate a d20 attack roll and its corresponding damage (as well as hit location if desired) through the mechanic of dropping a d4 on the cover. How is this an improvement over just rolling standard attack and damage dice simultaneously? It is not, of course.

I have left the artwork for last, because an assessment of it is much more subjective. As a purely descriptive matter, it is not old-school. Zak's style has nothing in common with artists commonly associated with old-school gaming (e.g., Peter Mullen, Erol Otus). I find it crude and unappealing. But judge for yourself:

[Map of the House of the Medusa]

Whatever one thinks of its artistic merit, this is less utilitarian than a traditional map. Perhaps the best than can be said for this map is that you get what you pay for and the price point is relatively low.

Conclusion

Vornheim is creative, more creative than many other OSR products. But this is a two-edged sword. Its creative direction sharply diverges from what most old-school gamers will find to their tastes.

It is mislabeled. It is not a “complete city kit” by any definition. It utterly fails to realize its stated purpose.

If Vornheim is any indication, Zak has an artistic bent. Vornheim would have benefited from a critical, right-brained editor or collaborator. The absence of such input is apparent from the poor focus, disorganization, and inclusion of much material that is of little or no practical value game-wise.

Vornheim is not entirely bereft of merit. It could be mined for ideas. But mining is hard labor, and the gold in these hills is sparse indeed. A good supplement should save the referee time and work. Vornheim does not.

This book is a missed opportunity. A well-done book that is half city setting and half toolkit for running urban adventures there (and elsewhere) would be very useful. Vornheim is not that book.

April 16 Postscript

A version of Zak's "urban-crawling" rules are posted at his blog. Had I realized this, I would have included a link. Though the online version is not identical to the book's content, it will help readers understand the mechanics.

Iron Maiden + Fiend Folio

This kickstarter also appeals to me:

I'd love to see other mash-ups like this.

Blueholme Journeymanne Rules

This kickstarter for a Holmes-inspired retroclone spanning levels 1 though 20 seems very worthwhile.

I'm looking forward to seeing it in print.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Revised Retainer Tables

RETAINERS

Hiring Retainers

Retainers are 0-level hirelings that may be hired for their base salary, food and lodging, plus a percentage of their employer’s share of monetary treasure. They typically are available for hire in most civilized locales, such as cities, towns, and fortresses.

The number of retainers that can be hired by a single employer is limited by the would-be employer’s charisma score; consult the Table 5 on page 8 of the rulebook for these limitations.

If potential retainers are available, the DM should determine the number present based on the locale and circumstances and then determine their type on an individual basis by rolling 2d6 for each individual and consulting the following chart:

Roll 2d6	Result
2-7	Combatant
8-9	Non-Combatant
10-12	Specialist

Once the general type of retainer—combatant, non-combatant, or specialist—is determined, consult the appropriate table below to randomly determine the potential retainer’s specific profession, qualifications, or skills.

If an adventurer then wishes to hire this particular individual, he should roll 2d6 and consult the following chart for the potential retainer’s response to his offer:

Roll 2d6	Result
2-6	declines offer
7-8	asks for greater compensation
9-12	accepts offer

If a potential retainer asks for greater compensation, his potential employer must increase the offer in some fashion, such as the ways listed below for attaining bonuses to the hiring roll.

The preceding chart assumes that the adventurer offers the standard terms of employment. He may increase his odds in the following ways:

• buying the potential retainer strong drink—beer, mead, liquor—at the outset of negotiations results in a +1 bonus to the hiring roll
• offering to increase the potential retainer’s daily salary—by at least double the usual amount—likewise results in a +1 bonus to the hiring roll
• offering to upgrade the potential retainer’s equipment in a significant manner, such as the purchase of better armor, results in a +1 bonus to the hiring roll
• offering to increase the potential retainer’s percentage of their employer’s treasure by 5% results in a +2 bonus to the hiring roll
• the preceding bonuses are not exclusive; they are offered by way of example and are cumulative of one another—i.e., more than one may apply to a single roll

Combatants

For each potential retainer who is a combatant, roll on the following table to determine his particular profession, qualifications, or skills:

#	Type	Hit Points	Equipment	Cost/Day
1.	Weapon Bearer	d3	short sword, leather armor	1 Silver Piece
2.	Shield Bearer	d3	short sword, leather armor, large shield	1 Silver Piece
3.	Archer	d3	short bow, 20 arrows, dagger, leather armor	2 Silver Pieces
4.	Spearman	d3	spear, leather armor	2 Silver Pieces
5.	Mercenary	d3+1	long sword, ring mail, shield	5 Silver Pieces
6.	Man-at-Arms	d3+1	long sword, lance, chain mail, shield, horse	1 Gold Piece

• combatants—those who will be directly involved combat—are entitled to a 10 percent share of their employer’s monetary treasure
• a weapon bearer may immediately hand his employer a weapon whenever necessary—e.g., if the employer is disarmed or his weapon is broken or disabled
• a shield bearer protects his employer, increasing his AC by one; however, the shield bearer does not gain the benefit of the shield to his own armor class when doing so

Non-Combatants

For each potential retainer who is a non-combatant, roll on the following table to determine his particular profession, qualifications, or skills:

#	Type	Hit Points	Equipment	Cost/Day
1.	Porter	d2	backpack, 2 large sacks, litter	1 Silver Piece
2.	Cook	d2	pots, utensils, foodstuffs, spices, tinder box	1 Silver Piece
3.	Guide	d2	knife, walking stick	2 Silver Pieces
4.	Torch Bearer	d2	tinder box, torches or lantern, leather armor	2 Silver Pieces

• non-combatants—those who generally will not be involved in combat—are entitled to a five percent share of their employer’s monetary treasure
• porters provide muscle for carrying equipment and treasure; each may carry up to 300 pounds subject to ordinary rules regarding encumbrance and movement
• cooks permit those who eat their meals to recover 1d2 hit points per night of rest even in the wilderness; their hot meals also increase the morale of other retainers
• guides are locals familiar with the terrain; parties traveling with a guide move five extra miles per day and only have a 1-in-6 chance of becoming lost regardless of terrain
• torchbearers may kindle a flame, light a torch or lantern, and keep them lit under difficult conditions; they are allowed a saving throw of 10 to do so in most cases

Specialists

For each potential retainer who is a specialist, roll on the following table to determine his particular profession, qualifications, or skills:

#	Type	Hit Points	Equipment	Cost/Day
1.	Bard	d2	dagger, musical instrument, leather armor	1 Gold Piece
2.	Surgeon	d2	surgeon’s tools, medical supplies, smock	2 Gold Pieces
3.	Holy Man	d2+1	sacrificial dagger, holy symbol, robes	3 Gold Pieces
4.	Hedge Wizard	d2+1	staff, spell components, robes	3 Gold Pieces

• a bard is a musician and poet; adventurers who travel with a bard receive a five percent experience bonus for all activities the bard witnesses, if the he survives to tell the tale
• a surgeon may treat the physically injured once after each combat; the injured person saves and if successful regains d2+1 hit points; a surgeon may treat someone who otherwise would be dead
• a holy man is an itinerant priest or prophet unaffiliated with an organized church or cult; see the table below for sample holy men and their abilities
• a hedge wizard is a self-taught or poorly educated freelance magic-user; see the table below for further details on hedge wizards and their abilities

Holy Men

The following are eight examples of holy men; others exist. Holy men will not accept long-term employment. Most often they either do not care about the money at all—accepting employment because their god instructed them to do so—or have a charitable purpose in mind.

Each of the example holy men below have three abilities: (1) an innate characteristic; (2) an ability that they may use once per day; and (3) an ability that they may use more than once per day based on a d6 mechanic. However, they generally may try to use this last ability only once in a given situation or combat.

#	Type	Description and Abilities
1.	Dervish	A dervish communes with his god via ecstatic religious rites. – he has a bonus of 2 to his AC due to his agility – once a day, he can make another ecstatic (+1 bonus/1d6 rounds) – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can cause a target to dance for 1d4 rounds
2.	Elementalist	An elementalist invokes the jinn, ifrit, or other desert spirits. – any fire he kindles is smokeless and burns ten times longer than usual – once a day, he can assume gaseous form for 1d6 rounds – on a 1–2 on a d6, he may summon a minor spirit for a round
3.	Exorcist	An exorcist protects against and banishes demons and other extraplanar beings. – he has a +4 bonus to all saves against these beings – once a day, he can cast a protective circle against them in a 20-foot radius – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can banish a demon to its place of origin
4.	Hermit	A hermit is a recluse who wears a coarse hair shirt and has taken a vow of silence. – he may walk over any solid substance without incurring injury or damage – once a day, he can silence a 10-foot radius for 1d6 rounds – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can seal a target’s mouth for 1d4 rounds
5.	Sadhu	A sadhu renounces worldly things and travels nearly naked but for his holy spear. – he has a +3 bonus to attacks/damage with it – once a day, he can allow an additional save against disease – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can negate an effect suffered by another
6.	Snake Handler	A snake handler interacts with venomous snakes to prove his divine favor. – his pet snake may attack any foe that engages him in melee (1d2 damage) – once a day, he can grant an additional save against venom – on 1–2 on a d6, he can charm 1d4 snakes or 1 giant snake
7.	Wonder-Worker	A wonder-worker performs miracles to demonstrate the power of his god. – he has a +2 bonus to all saving throws and non-combat rolls – once a day, he can heal another for 2d4+2 hit points by touch – on a roll of 1–2 on a d6, he may multiply or purify food/drink
8.	Yogi	A yogi pursues the divine through contemplation, meditation, and reflection. – he is immune to mind-affecting spells and effects – once a day, he can levitate for 1d4 turns (see spell description) – on a 1–2 on a d6, he may grant 8 hours’ rest for 1 of meditation

Hedge Wizards

All hedge wizards have a staff. Whenever attacked in melee, they may imbue their staff with magical energy and try to parry by rolling 1–2 on a d6. The staff is non-magical though and no one else wielding it will have the ability to parry with it.

Hedge wizards have a spellbook, which is unreadable gibberish to others, including those who can read magic. The book contains two spells—randomly determined by rolling on the chart below. Hedge wizards may cast both spells once per day.

All of the spells below permit a saving throw when cast on an unwilling recipient, unless the spell description indicates otherwise. If the description does not state a specific range, treat it as effective within visual range so long as it’s reasonable.

Hedge wizards may read any magical text by rolling a 1 on a d6; if they fail, then they cannot read that text and cannot try again. If they use a magical scroll, there is a 1 in 6 chance that the spell is miscast in some manner or fails to operate.

#	Spell	Spell Description
1.	Acid Rain	He can summon a rainstorm for 1d4 rounds in a 200-foot radius; range of 200 feet; does 1 point of damage to all within it each round.
2.	Blood Bond	He can create a link between himself and another creature such that damage to one does an identical amount to the other for 1d6 rounds
3.	Bug	He can infest a single target with bugs for 1d6 rounds; he must save each round until he successfully saves or be preoccupied by the bugs
4.	Combust	He can cause an object or creature to spontaneously combust; range 100 feet; 1d4 damage first round and 1 damage for the next two.
5.	Docility	He can render 1d4 animals quiet and docile but not charmed; domesticated animals do not get a saving throw, but wild animals do.
6.	Enervate	He can reduce a humanoid’s strength by 3d6 for 1d6 rounds; if reduced to 0 or below, the humanoid is immobilized and helpless.
7.	Identify Object	He can identify an enchanted object’s magical properties by handling it for 1d4 rounds; he is permitted a saving throw against ill effects.
8.	Ironskin	He can make a target’s skin damage-resistant for 1d6 rounds; the target suffers two less damage per die while this spell is in effect.
9.	Magic Manacles	He can conjure a pair of manacles that bind the hands or feet of a target for 1d4 turns; these bonds cannot be broken except by magic.
10.	Photon Bullets	He fires 1d4 orbs of light the size of sling bullets from his fingers; multiple creatures may be targeted; each orb does 1 point of damage.
11.	Play Possum	He can allow a target to pass for dead for 2d6 rounds; the target appears to be a corpse and the fact that he is alive is undetectable.
12.	Portal Password	He can assign a password to a doorway or other portal that lasts 1d4 days; to pass, one must say the password or save with a -2 penalty.
13.	Reverse Gravity	He can reverse gravity in a 30-foot radius for 1d4 rounds; range of 50 feet; rate of ascent within the radius is 10 feet per round.
14.	Servitude	He can force a single target to serve him for 1d4 days; the target is aware of his servitude but cannot resist; the wizard can only have one servant at a time.
15.	Shadowstep	He can step into and move among the shadows for 2d6 rounds; he is incorporeal and imperceptible as anything other than a shadow.
16.	Shrink	He can shrink an object or person for 2d6 rounds; range 150 feet; roll 1d10 to determine the percentage reduction in size (1 = 10% etc.).
17.	Spellbind	He can target a spell-caster; next time the target casts a spell, he must save to finish casting or else keeps casting each round till he saves.
18.	Spore Cloud	He creates a thick cloud of spores in a 200-foot radius for 2d6 rounds; range 200 feet; all in it must save to attack or pursue another.
19.	Translocate Object	He can teleport an inanimate object from one location to another 2d10 x 10 feet in distance; the object may weigh up to 35 pounds.
20.	Transport Circle	He draws two circles within 2,000 feet of one another; people can teleport between them; each time, roll 1d10; the circle ceases to work on a 1.

Terms of Employment

Most retainers hire on for a single adventuring session and then go their own way. An employer may try to re-hire a previous retainer using the ordinary rules outlined above.

If a retainer is killed in service, his employer is obligated to pay his salary, if not already paid, and his share of treasure to the retainer’s next of kin. If reasonably possible, a deceased retainer’s personal possessions also should be returned.

Advancement

Combatants usually become first-level fighters after completing an adventure; they should reroll their hit points (but cannot have less than their current total). As first-level fighters, their daily salary increases to 2 GP/day and they now receive 20 percent of their employer’s monetary treasure.

Non-combatants and specialists generally do not advance in level. However, a DM may at his discretion assign a returning non-combatant increased or additional abilities or hit points.

Great, Genderqueer Elves

Sex
You can play a male or female character without gaining any special benefits or hindrances. Think about how your character does or does not conform to the broader culture’s expectations of sex, gender, and sexual behavior. . . .

You don’t need to be confined to binary notions of sex and gender. The elf god Corellon Larethian is often seen as androgynous or hermaphroditic, for example, and some elves in the multiverse are made in Corellon's image. You could also play a female character who presents herself as a man, a man who feels trapped in a female body, or a bearded female dwarf who hates being a mistaken for a male. Likewise, your character’s sexual orientation is for you to decide.

Fifth Edition D&D Player’s Handbook, page 121.

This is one of the sillier passages ever written in a role-playing game. In fairness, the bit about Corellon arguably has a basis in the history of the game; AD&D's Deities & Demigods stated that Corellon "is alternately male or female, both or neither." Otherwise, only the first sentence of the material on sex concerns mechanics; the rest is just politics or virtue-signaling.

Does anyone really need this guidance? In the almost 35 years I have been playing D&D, these issues have never arisen at the table. And if players or the referee were inclined to raise these issues, they would not need this guidance, which only states the obvious. My character’s sexual orientation is up to me? Thanks for clarifying that Wizards of the Coast.

Swords & Wizardry: Standard Adventurer's Pack

I usually hand out a character creation cheatsheet: a single sheet of paper that walks players through character creation step by step with references to the relevant pages of the rulebook. Its purpose is to speed up character creation for new players. For whatever reason, buying equipment seems to take a fair amount of time. So as part of the cheatsheet, I created a standard adventuring pack that players may opt purchase for 20 gold pieces in lieu of buying their gear item by item.

Standard Adventurer's Pack
backpack	bedroll
waterskin	iron rations, 7 days
2 bottles of wine	large sack
crowbar	5 torches
tinderbox	pint of oil
hammer	10 iron spikes
hemp rope, 50 feet	grappling hook

This may seem like a fairly limited amount of equipment, but it actually is 75.7 pounds (or 757 coins) for purposes of encumbrance. That's a manageable pack for a strong, physically fit male. But it is a substantial burden nonetheless. It highlights the need to either hire porters or other retainers to help carry equipment or carry far less equipment, perhaps dividing up essential equipment between members of an expedition.

New Swords & Wizardry Character Class: The Witch

For my Shattered Kingdoms campaign, my plan is to detail the area around the Hyrcanian Sea as a desolate land of witches and make the witch (or warlock) available as a new character class. Below is my tentative draft of that new class.

The Witch

Witches are lawful or chaotic spellcasters who receive their powers by daily petition in the same fashion as clerics and druids. But whereas clerics pray to the gods and druids venerate nature itself, witches supplicate primeval elemental beings or lesser nature spirits, such as:

• Notos, the South Wind—a spirit of the air who is a harbinger of storms and father of the fallen leaves;
• The Faerie Queen—a fey demigoddess who presides over a court of nymphs, sprites, and other woodland beings;
• Ningal, the Lady of the Reeds—a water spirit who safeguards marshlands with a retinue of naiads and fishes;
• The Horned God—a demigod associated with the wilderness and wild places who is served by an army of fauns;
• Old Worm—a chthonic entity associated with decay, decomposition, and the despoilment of nature; and
• Odqan, the Prince of Cinders—a fiery spirit who lights the way for his chosen and incinerates all unbelievers.

Witches use the Druid Advancement Table for level progression and that class’s saving throw, spell progression chart, spell list, and hit dice, but they do not gain access to fourth, fifth, sixth, or seventh level spells due to the limited power of the beings that they serve. To offset this significant limitation, witches gain the following abilities:

Expanded Spell List. At each level, including first, a witch may select one spell from the magic-user spell list and add it to those she may cast. The spell must be of a level that the witch can currently cast. She receives these additional magic-user spells in the same manner as any other—by supplication of the elemental being or nature spirit she worships. This expands her magical repertoire, but she remains subject to the memorization limits imposed by the Druid Advancement Table.

Cantrips. Twice a day, on a roll of 1–4 on a d6 the witch may cast a cantrip—a minor spell that may not do damage or have combat effects. Witches may use these to do things like clean, dry, fasten or tie, freshen, palm, polish or shine, spill, sprout, stitch or sew, or warm objects or persons. If used to affect others—such as making them nod or sneeze—no save is allowed.

Bless or Curse. At second level, a lawful witch gains the power to bless and a chaotic witch gains the power to curse, which may be invoked once per day. To bless, the witch rolls a saving throw; if she succeeds, her target is blessed for 1d4 +1/level rounds. While blessed, the target makes two rolls whenever a die roll is required and always takes the most favorable result. Conversely, when a witch curses another, the target must make a saving throw; if the target fails, he is cursed for 1d4 +1/level rounds. While cursed, the target makes two rolls whenever a die roll is required and always takes the least favorable result.

Familiar. At third level, a witch gains a randomly chosen familiar—a spirit in animal guise that aids her. These come in many forms, four of which are detailed below, and confer various abilities on their mistresses as they advance in level. If her familiar is slain, a witch takes 1d2 damage and must save or faint for 2d4 rounds. A slain familiar reappears in a week’s time.

1. Owl. HD 1d4 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 2; Atk talons (1d2+1/witch’s level); Move Fly 15; Save and THAC0 are the same as the witch. The owl confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	darkvision 60 feet—the witch may always see in non-magical darkness
4	acute hearing—the witch may hear sounds as a thief of the same level
5	camouflage—the witch is invisible while motionless in natural cover on 1–4 on a d6
6	fly—once per day, the witch may fly like the owl for one round per level

2. Wolf. HD 3d4 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 4; Atk bite (1d4+1/witch’s level); Move 18; Save and THAC0 are the same as the witch. The wolf confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	lupine movement—the witch has movement rate of 18 and may leap 16 feet
4	acute senses—the witch may make a saving throw to avoid being surprised
5	wolfsight—once per day, the witch may see through the wolf’s eyes for 1 round/level
6	howl—in the wilderness, the witch may summon 1d4 wolves once per day

3. Rook. HD 1d3 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 0; Atk beak (1+1/witch’s level); Move Fly 18; Save and THAC0 are same as the witch. The rook confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	secret wisdom—the witch gains an extra first- or second-level magic-user spell
4	messenger—the rook may carry messages of 50 words or less to and from others
5	location—once per day, the witch may locate an object per the clerical spell
6	truesight—once per day, the witch may see through illusions and see invisible things

4. Serpent. HD 2d4 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 3; Atk bite (1d3+1/witch’s level); Move 10; Save and THAC0 are same as the witch. The serpent confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	snakeskin—the witch has a base armor class of 7 [12] and her skin is waterproof
4	serpentine metabolism—the witch need only eat every 1d4 days and may feign death
5	shed skin—once per day, the witch may significantly alter or disguise her appearance
6	venom—a target hit by the witch additionally loses 1d4 hit points/round until it saves

Wand. At seventh level, a witch acquires a wooden wand which permits her to focus her concentration and will when invoking the power of the being she supplicates. For every 1d4 hit points expended, she may increase by 50 percent the area of effect, duration, or range of a spell cast. Alternatively, the witch may impose a -1 penalty to a target’s saving throw for every 1d4 hit points expended. The witch must choose how many d4s she will roll before seeing their results.

Magic Items. Like druids, witches are able to use any magical item usable by clerics with the exception clerical scrolls.

Coven. At eleventh level, a witch may found her own coven by building a place of worship and consecrating an altar there. This may consist of a circle of standing stones, a sacred grove, a chapel, a cavern complex, or some other edifice appropriate to the power the witch serves. A witch who does so will attract lesser witches and other followers.

Shattered Kingdoms: Jub, The Wicked

In the original Shattered Kingdoms Gazatteer, I included the following entry for the city-state of Jub:

Jub. Jub is a wealthy, independent city-state associated with trade, without regard to legality and morality. In particular, it is known for its vast slave market, lotus trade, and brothels, which are typically staffed by temple prostitutes in houses of worship. Jub’s principal deity is Mammon, a god of gluttony, greed, and lust.

But the entry provided no further details on slavery or the lotus trade and the Shattered Kingdoms Pantheon omitted any mention of Mammon. The following expanded material provides those details.

MAMMON is a chaotic god of gluttony, greed, and lust whose worship originated in Jub. His symbol is several gold bars stacked into a pyramid surmounted by an all-seeing eye. His priests have these abilities:

• bribery: once per day, his clerics may offer a bribe of 3d6 gold pieces; the bribe acts like a charm spell, but only for a single object or purpose and a more limited duration (save allowed)
• recruitment: retainers are always available for hire by Mammon's clerics and accept an offer of employment on a roll of 1–5 on a d6, so long as they are paid twice the going rate in gold; they have 1d3 hit points more than usual

The bribery ability reflects the way in which Mammon's priests corrupt others with money. The specified amount of money, 3d6, assumes ordinary circumstances. The referee may require the priest to offer a larger bribe if, for example, the priest is requesting a significant betrayal or if the party being bribed is especially loyal or virtuous. In other cases, the referee may allow the priest to increase the amount offered in order to impose a penalty on the target's saving throw.

The recruitment ability reflects the fact that some men's loyalty can be bought with coin and the priests of Mammon have a reputation for paying well. As a result, retainers are always available for hire by these priests, regardless of locale or circumstances, and seldom turn down their offers of employment. Retainers hired by priests of Mammon have 1d3 more hit points than usual because the higher rate of pay draws the very best mercenaries.

Slavery. Slavery is common throughout the region, but the conditions of servitude and the treatment of slaves varies from place to place. People are reduced to slavery in many ways, including conquest, criminal conviction, and debt. The region also is home to many former slaves—be they runaways, manumitted slaves, or those who bought their freedom. Characters may opt to begin play as a slave or former slave. Those who do so receive a +1 bonus to strength or constitution, but suffer a -2 penalty to their charisma due to their low social status, which is evident from tattoos or brands associated with slavery.

Lotus Trade. The lotus may be bought in the markets of Jub. Its purchase and use may be illicit elsewhere. Ordinary lotus blossoms are pink in hue. These addictive blossoms are consumed for their narcotic properties. Extraordinary varieties also may be available for purchase, but are especially dangerous. These varieties cost 250 gold pieces (or more).

White Lotus. Consuming the white lotus increases a single attribute by 1d4 points for a number of turns equal to the die roll. An ability score may temporarily exceed 18 as a result; if this occurs, the referee will assign appropriate bonuses.

Crimson Lotus. Consuming the crimson lotus imparts 3d4 temporary hit points for a number of turns equal to the die roll. The imbiber loses these before suffering any loss to his normal hit points. This does not alter the user's level or hit dice.

Blue Lotus. Consuming the blue lotus permits a spellcaster to rememorize 1d2 spells immediately and cast spells as one level higher for 2d4 turns. If used by a non-spellcaster, it will impart a +2 bonus to saving throws against magic for 2d4 turns.

Purple Lotus. Consuming the purple lotus confers immunity to mind-altering spells or magical effects, such as charm, sleep, and hold person, as well as psionic attacks for 3d4 turns. It also shields the mind from extra-sensory perception or detection.

Yellow Lotus. Consuming the yellow lotus allows the imbiber to see the true nature of things for 4d4 turns. For example, the imbiber sees through illusions, secret doors are as obvious as ordinary ones, and invisible creatures are visible.

These extraordinary lotus blossoms are no less narcotic and addictive and their consumption entails serious risks:

• when a lotus blossom is imbibed, the user must make a saving throw or fall unconscious for 2d4 rounds and be strung out for twice as many turns upon awakening, suffering a -1 penalty to all rolls during this period
• a user who fails the preceding saving throw, must make a second saving throw once he is no longer strung out; if the user fails this second saving throw, he is now addicted to the lotus
• lotus addicts do not gain any of the benefits of consuming the lotus when used, but must spend 10% of the treasure they obtain on ordinary lotus blossoms; this percentage increases 5% with each level gained thereafter
• a lotus addict who does not spend the required amount of treasure purchasing ordinary blossoms suffers a -2 penalty to all rolls; he also may suffer this penalty if his immediate supply is somehow lost or destroyed
• a lotus addict can be cured of the addiction by a neutralize poison spell; once cast, the addict must pass a system shock roll (see page 8 of the rulebook) or be incapacitated for 2d6 days

N.B. The guidelines regarding lotus blossoms were inspired by K&K Alehouse commenter Welleran's house rules.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Jumping

Adventurers often try to jump across a pit, from one ledge to another, or over an obstacle or hazard. Swords & Wizardry has no rules for jumping. As these situations are common and consistency is desirable, I have created the following rules:

Jumping

Strength Score	Standing Long Jump	Running Long Jump
3–4	1d4+2 feet	2d4+5 feet
5–6	1d4+3 feet	2d4+6 feet
7–15	1d4+4 feet	2d4+7 feet
16	1d4+5 feet	2d4+8 feet
17	1d4+6 feet	2d4+9 feet
18	1d4+7 feet	2d4+10 feet

• this table assumes that the jumper is bipedal and the size of an ordinary human or similar humanoids; halflings and dwarves respectively have a -1 and a -2 penalty
• similar penalties should be imposed on other creatures of smaller stature or stride; larger creatures, such as giants, should have significant bonuses and possibly larger dice
• characters with a dexterity score of 13 or better receive +1 bonus and those with a dexterity score of 8 or lower receive a -1 penalty; similar modifiers may be applied to especially nimble and clumsy creatures
• chain mail and ring mail impose a -2 penalty and plate mail imposes a -3 penalty; no penalty or bonus is applied for jumps made by those wearing leather armor or clothing
• encumbrance of 76–100, 101–50, and 151–300 pounds respectively impose penalties of -1, -2, and -4; these penalties are in addition to the penalties for armor
• if a jumper barely misses his target—e.g., someone jumping a chasm comes up a foot short—he may make a saving throw to try to grab hold of a ledge or the like

Design Note. I looked to the AD&D Dungeoneer's Survival Guide and Wilderness Survival Guide for guidance but disliked their approach. Both guides base a character's jumping ability on his level and provide for very slow advancement in ability; one's initial jumping ability does not improve until seventh level under their rules. A level-based approach perhaps makes sense for a character class that has a specialized jumping skill, like an acrobat. But an individual's general ability to jump strikes me as more of an innate characteristic unlikely to improve too much over time. In this regard, adventurers are dissimilar to professional athletes who specialize in long jumping; the former may jump with some frequency, but the latter are training for that particular event. However, if you wish to incorporate improvement over time into the house rule offered above, one possible approach would be to add a +1 bonus for every two or three levels of advancement. One might provide different rates of advancement to different classes as well (e.g., thieves might advance faster than fighters, fighters might advance faster than clerics and magic-users). I based the outer limits of jumping ability on the world records for the standing and running long jumps, and then reduced the distances for characters with lower strengths.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Climbing

In Swords & Wizardry Complete, a thief’s ability to climb walls is extraordinary: a thief’s percentage chance to climb walls applies to surfaces that others cannot climb; if others have a percentage chance to climb a surface, a thief likely can do so automatically (page 23). The following guidelines, which are derived in part from the AD&D Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide and Wilderness Survival Guide, are intended to fill in the gaps in the rules:

Climbing

Climbable Surfaces

• walls and cliffs that are sheer, smooth, only slightly cracked, or rough but without handholds can only be climbed by thieves absent the use of pitons or other gear
• if a wall or cliff is more than sheer—i.e., its angle is less than 90 degrees (e.g., an overhang)—even a thief will have a negative modifier to his climbing roll

Climbing Checks

• for walls climbable by non-thieves, they have a base 40% chance to do so; use of a grappling hook and rope, pitons, or other gear adds a +40% modifier
• for non-thieves, a strength score of 13 to 16 confers a +5% modifier to climbing rolls; a strength score of 17 to 18 confers a 10% modifier to climbing rolls
• chain and ring mail impose a -15% modifier and plate mail imposes a -40% modifier to climbing rolls; climbing rolls made in leather armor or clothing are unmodified
• encumbrance of 76–100, 101–50, and 151–300 pounds respectively impose modifiers of -5%, -10%, and -15%; these modifies are in addition to the modifiers for armor
• negative modifiers also may be applied to climbing rolls for various conditions—moss, moisture, crumbling surfaces—or circumstances such as being attacked while climbing

Falling

• if a climbing roll is failed, randomly determine how high the climber made it before falling; e.g., if climbing 60 feet, roll a d6—a result of 2 would mean a fall from 20 feet
• precautions, such as securing the rope with pitons or roping together with other climbers, may arrest a fall; make a saving throw to see if each piton et cetera holds
• a climber who falls takes 1d6 damage for every 10 feet fallen; he may make a saving throw to avoid 1d6 of this damage, which represents slowing or partial arrest of the fall

Rates of Ascent and Descent

• if necessary to determine a rate of ascent or descent or the amount of time spent climbing, non-thieves climb 5d6 feet per round and thieves climb 6d6 feet per round
• bonuses to the rate of ascent or descent may added for favorable slope or plentiful handholds; these bonuses may consist of additional dice or a modifier to each die

Grappling Hooks

• grappling hooks can be thrown upward a number of feet equal to 1/3 of the character’s strength x 10 and twice this distance horizontally with sufficient throwing space
• to try to secure a grappling hook to a fixed point, roll a d6; on a 4–6 it securely grabs; for those with a strength or dexterity bonus, the hook securely grabs on a 3–6
• if the surface the grappling hook grabs is unstable or is potentially incapable of bearing the load, it is possible that the hook will come loose during the climb

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Firing into a Melee and Missile Recovery

Firing into a Melee. Swords & Wizardry Complete states that shooting or throwing missile weapons into melee combat is unpredictable and that targets will be randomly determined by the DM, but provides no specific mechanics (see page 40). So I borrow the mechanic from the Planet Eris house rules. If an adventurer fires a missile weapon into melee combat, he makes an ordinary attack roll; if successful, he hits the enemy target. If he misses the enemy target, then he rolls a d6; on a roll of 1 or 2, the errant missile strikes a randomly selected ally instead.

Missile Recovery. After combat, an adventurer who fired a bow or crossbow must roll a d2 for each arrow or bolt fired: 1—the missile is broken or lost; 2—the missile is intact and reusable. Alternatively, an adventurer may simply assume that 50% of the missiles fired are broken or lost. The rate of breakage or loss may be higher if the missiles were fired under circumstances ensuring their loss (e.g., if fired over water or if dipped in pitch and set alight before being fired).

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Encumbrance

Swords & Wizardry Complete addresses encumbrance in a fairly incomplete fashion (see pages 32-33 of the rulebook). It does not provide any weight values for armor, equipment, or weapons. So calculating encumbrance is not really possible on a by-the-book basis. Thus, I have supplemented the rules with additional information from Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.

Encumbrance

Swords & Wizardry's encumbrance rules are very generous. They assume that standard adventuring equipment is a mere 10 pounds, excluding armor and weapons (see page 32). I generally stick with this assumption for ease of computation. This is Dungeons & Dragons, not Audits & Accountants; detailed spreadsheets tracking encumbrance are not my idea of fun. So I usually guesstimate. But reasonable people sometimes disagree and it may be necessary to calculate encumbrance with greater precision if, for example, an adventurer is carrying a lot of equipment, or it is necessary to determine how much treasure may be carried away from a large hoard. Here are guidelines for doing so:

• 300 pounds ordinarily is the maximum encumbrance for normal adventurers (see page 32); strength scores of 12 and above permit adventurers to carry more weight (see page 7)
• for purposes of encumbrance, every 10 coins or gemstones is one pound unless exceptional in some regard (see page 32); for armor, equipment, and weapons consult the encumbrance tables below

Armor and Clothing

Type	Weight in Coins	Weight in Pounds
Plate Mail	700	70
Chain Mail	500	50
Ring Mail	400	40
Leather Armor	250	25
Clothes	30	3
Robe or Cloak	25	2.5
Large Shield	100	10
Small Shield	50	5
Helm	45	4.5
Boots, Hard	60	6
Boots, Soft	30	3

Equipment

Item	Weight in Coins	Weight in Pounds
Backpack	20	2
Bedroll	30	3
Bottle or Flagon	60	6
Candle	5	0.5
Flask, Empty	5	0.5
Flask, Full	20	2
Grappling Hook	100	10
Hand Tool	10	1
Lantern	60	6
Mirror	5	0.5
Potion	25	2.5
Rations, Iron	75	7.5
Rations, Standard	200	20
Rod	60	6
Rope, 50 feet	75	7.5
Sack, Large	20	2
Sack, Small	5	0.5
Scroll Case	10	1
Spike or Piton	10	1
Tinderbox (Flint & Steel)	2	0.2
Torch	25	2.5
Waterskin, Empty	5	0.5
Waterskin, Full	50	5

Weapons

Weapon	Weight in Coins	Weight in Pounds
Arrow or Quarrel	2	0.2
Axe, Battle	75	7.5
Axe, Hand	50	5
Bow, Long	100	10
Bow, Short	50	5
Club	30	3
Crossbow, Heavy	80	8
Crossbow, Light	50	5
Dagger	10	1
Javelin	20	2
Mace	75	7.5
Sling Stone	2	0.2
Spear	40	4
Staff	50	5
Sword, Bastard	100	10
Sword, Short	30	3
Sword, Long	60	6
Sword, Two-Handed	250	25
Warhammer	60	6

• the tables are not intended to be comprehensive; for any gear not specified in the preceding tables, formulate a weight in coins and pounds based on the values provided above as necessary
• for reference: plate mail, large shield, longsword, dagger, and standard equipment is 97 pounds with a movement rate of 9; substituting chain mail for plate would result in 77 pounds but the same movement rate

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Poison

In Swords & Wizardry Complete, the rules seem to assume that poison generally is deadly (see page 10 of the rulebook). I gather that the by-the-book mechanic is save or die instantly (see the entries for giant spiders on page 113). However, there are non-lethal poisons as well (see the entries for giant centipedes on page 95). Unless a monster entry specifies otherwise, I generally apply the following guidelines:

Poison

Weak Poison. Weak poisons may allow the target a bonus on his saving throw (anywhere from +2 to +6), result in a condition other than death, such as paralysis or unconsciousness, or simply inflict extra damage.

Moderate Poison. Moderate poisons are deadly, but death is not instantaneous. A target who fails his saving throw usually dies in 1d4+1 rounds unless he imbibes an antidote or is the recipient of a neutralize poison spell.

Strong Poison. Strong poisons either result in death immediately or in 1d2 rounds. Some may impose a penalty on a target's saving throws, but any racial, class, or magical bonuses remain effective and offset any such penalty.

First Aid. An ally may attempt to bleed a poison victim’s wound and suck out the poison, provided that the victim is not already dead. Doing so allows the victim to make an additional saving throw with a penalty (usually between -2 and -4). The victim suffers 1d4 damage when this is attempted and it also requires the ally to save against poison.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Fumbles

Swords & Wizardry Complete references the possibility of fumbles (see page 40 of the rulebook). I'm not sure that fumbles are worthwhile, and mechanically they disadvantage characters or monsters that make multiple attacks per round. But I have used fumbles in some of my games in the past. Below is one potential fumble rule.

Fumbles

Whenever a character or monster rolls a natural 1 on an attack roll, the attack misses even if it otherwise would hit based on his or its THAC0 score and any relevant bonuses or modifiers. The attacker also must roll a d6 and consult the chart below.

1. attacker drops weapon or is disarmed; unless he is handed a weapon by another or has another at hand, he must spend the next round retrieving this weapon or another
2. attacker strains muscle or sustains some other minor injury; for the duration of the combat, he suffers a -1 penalty to all attack and damage rolls (but not to any other rolls)
3. attacker’s helm is damaged or displaced or attacker gets blood in his eyes; he suffers a -2 penalty to attack rolls until he spends a round to clear his obstructed vision
4. attacker loses his footing and falls down; he must spend the next round scrambling to avoid attacks while regaining his footing (or else act from the ground with penalties)
5. attacker is knocked off balance or outmaneuvered; his opponent has a +1 bonus to his next attack roll against the attacker (attack must be made no later than next round)
6. attacker recklessly blunders and strikes a nearby ally for half damage; if there is no ally nearby, then the attacker instead manages to inflict half damage on himself

At the DM's discretion, fumble results for characters or monsters that make multiple attacks per round may be modified. For example, a fumble may simply result in the loss of one of these multiple attacks in the following round.

This fumble chart is a modified version of the fumble rule contained in Jimm Johnson's Planet Eris house rules.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Critical Hits

Swords & Wizardry Complete discusses the possibility of critical hits (see page 40). Traditionally, I have allowed double damage when characters and monsters roll a natural 20. But the rulebook disfavors that rule as "too powerful," and an across-the-board double-damage rule may well be a detriment to the players, depending on how many monsters are encountered and how many attacks they have. Below are two potential variants.

Variant A. The rulebook suggests that fighters may be underpowered compared to paladins and rangers (see page 25). This variant addresses that concern. Fighters, and only fighters, always hit their target on a roll of a natural 20, even if they would otherwise miss based on their THAC0 score, and do double damage (twice the number of dice and double any bonuses).

Variant B. All characters and monsters score a critical hit on a roll of a natural 20. They hit their target, even of they otherwise would miss based on their THAC0 score, and do the maximum amount of damage possible based on the attack made (e.g., 8 damage if using a long sword, which does 1d8 damage, plus any applicable strength or other bonuses).

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Monster Morale

Monsters should not always fight to the death. The DM could simply decide when monsters turn tail and run, but I prefer to use a rule a house rule that provides somewhat random results. This one is derived from the AD&D DMG.

Monster Morale

• intelligent monsters check morale if a leader is slain or deserts; when 25, 50, and 75 percent of their band is defeated or slain; or under other exceptional circumstances; consult the following table:

Roll 2d6	Result
2-3	surrender
4	flee in panic
5	disengage and retreat
6	fighting retreat
7-12	continue fighting

• a -1 penalty should be imposed for each significant monster leader slain, for each quarter of the monster band slain, or any other exceptional circumstance
• a +1 bonus should be applied if the monsters outnumber their foes, have inflicted significant casualties, and/or have some significant tactical advantage
• some monsters have elite morale and either need not check morale or do so with significant bonuses; berserkers, fanatics, and zealots, for example, need not make morale checks
• unintelligent monsters, which include undead like skeletons and zombies, and constructs, do not check morale; animals and insects do check morale

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Hopeless Characters

Sometimes a character's attribute scores are so disappointing the character does not seem long for this world. The following house rule, which is a modified version of ODD74 commenter ritt's the-wretched-of-the-earth house rule, is designed to give these hopeless characters a chance at survival.

Hopeless Characters

If all of your attribute scores are less than nine, you may roll a 1d8 and consult the table below. The table provides several possible explanations for your character’s low attribute scores and advantages to make the character less hopeless.

1. Street Urchin. You were abandoned, an orphan, or otherwise came of age on the streets of a large city. On a roll of 1–3 on a d6, you can avoid a fall or engage in another acrobatic maneuver, slip from another’s grasp, escape from manacles or other bonds, or disappear in a crowd. In a village, town, or city, you may gain 1d6, 2d6, or 3d6 respectively in gold pieces once per day, the results of pilfering or purloining.
2. Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. It’s better to be lucky than good. No one knows this better than you. Born under a lucky star or blessed with the luck of halflings, you make all saving throws by rolling 2d20 and taking the better of the two results. If a spell or other adverse effect normally permits no saving throw, you nonetheless get to make one. Your AC also is two lower than normal, reflecting your lucky avoidance of blows.
3. Child. You are 10 + 1d4 years old. Your low attribute scores reflect youth and inexperience. Each time you gain a new level, roll 1d6 for each attribute. On a roll of 6, the attribute in question increases by one. If you roll a 1, the attribute in question will never increase; when you gain new levels in the future, do not roll to see if that attribute increases. Once you are 18, you may no longer make these rolls.
4. Mule. As a result of genetic mutation, magical experimentation, alien crossbreeding, or some other circumstance, you are a freakish anomaly. Your appearance is not quite human (or demi-human); you are malformed, deformed, or otherwise bizarre in appearance. You are immune to sleep, charm, hold person, and polymorph other. You likewise are immune to other similar spells or magical effects.
5. Chinless Wonder. You are a foppish noble. You’ve led a pampered, decadent life or are enervated by generations of inbreeding. You start play with a noble title, horse and tack, five times the usual gold (3d6 x 50), and a faithful servant (roll randomly on the retainer table, but give him three times the usual hit points). You may obtain hospitality (temporary lodging and small favors) from other nobles on a roll of 1–4 on a d6.
6. Damaged Goods. You could have been a contender. But your mind, body, or spirit was shattered by war, disease, imprisonment, or a confrontation with a fell power. Or perhaps you were raised from the dead by a necromancer who did not quite get the necessary incantation right. “Klaatu, Barada, . . . .” You begin play with 1d4+1 x 1,000 experience points; you may begin play at second level or higher if your roll provides enough experience points.
7. Lotus Addict. A slave to the lotus, your life is one of debauchery, degradation, and dissipation. But once per day you may consume the lotus and increase any one attribute by 2d6+2 points for a brief period of time or gain temporary hit points in this amount. An attribute may exceed 18 as a result; if so, the DM will assign appropriate bonuses. You must spend 10% of any treasure gained on lotus to continue receiving this benefit.
8. Glorious Patrimony. Your father was renowned. You are but a pale reflection of him; however, as his lone heir you inherit his prize possession: a random magic item. Clerics, fighters, paladins, and rangers roll on Table 89. Druids roll on Table 101. Magic-users roll on Table 99. Assassins, monks, and thieves roll on Table 104. If a cursed item is rolled, ignore that result and reroll. You also gain +2 on reaction rolls due to your father's reputation.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Retainers

Hiring retainers is an essential survival tool. Their principal virtue is mathematical: the more bodies there are on your side, the less likely you are to be hit personally. Why take that arrow to the knee when a henchman can?

Retainers

A variety of retainers may be available for hire in taverns and other locales. They are zero-level hirelings. If retainers are available for hire, roll 1d8 for each available retainer to determine his type:

#	Type	Hit Points	Equipment	Cost/Day
1.	Archer	d3	short bow, 20 arrows, leather armor	2 silver pieces
2.	Man-at-Arms	d3	spear, leather armor	2 silver pieces
3.	Porter	d2	backpack, large sack	1 silver piece
4.	Shield Bearer	d3	short sword, leather armor, large shield	1 silver piece
5.	Surgeon	d2	surgeon’s tools, medical supplies	1 gold piece
6.	Swordsman	d4	long sword, leather armor, shield	2 silver pieces
7.	Torch Bearer	d2	tinder box, flint and steel, torches	1 silver piece
8.	Weapon Bearer	d2	short sword, leather armor	1 silver piece

• these retainers are 0-level mercenaries that may be hired for their base salary, food and lodging, plus a percentage of their employer’s share of monetary treasure
• combatants—archers, man-at-arms, swordsmen—are entitled to a 10 percent share of their employer’s monetary treasure; all others are entitled to five percent
• a shield bearer protects his employer, increasing his armor class by one; a weapon bearer may immediately hand his employer a weapon, if he drops his weapon or is disarmed, or other item
• porters provide muscle for carrying equipment and treasure—200 pounds per porter; porters also reduce the risk of becoming lost during overland travel
• a surgeon may treat a wounded creature, permitting it a saving throw; if successful, the patient regains d2+1 hit points; a surgeon may treat a patient who otherwise would be dead, if done shortly after death
• all retainers other than surgeons become first-level fighters with d8 hit points and 0 XP if they survive a foray into the wilderness or dungeon; their cost per day is then 1 gold piece/day
• an adventurer's charisma score limits the number of retainers he may employ at once (see page 8 of the rulebook for charisma-based retainer limits); an adventurer may not employ a retainer whose level exceeds their own

Just because a retainer is available does not mean he will accept employment. Adventures should roll 2d6. On a result of 2-6, the would-be retainer declines employment. On a result of 7-9, he is uncertain; he'll decline employment unless the adventurer sweetens the deal (e.g., increased salary, furnishing equipment in addition to the retainer's starting equipment, or increased treasure share). On a result of 10-12, he accepts employment. An adventurer wishing to increase his chances of hiring a given retainer may offer to sweeten the deal before the initial roll; if he does so, add an appropriate modifier, such a +1 or +2 bonus, to the adventurer's roll. An adventure also may gain a +1 bonus by purchasing a potential retainer food or drink in a tavern or inn. Adventurers with a Charisma score of 13 or higher also gain a +1 bonus to their roll.

These house rules are a modified version of the retainer rules in Jimm Johnson's Planet Eris house rules.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Swimming and Drowning

Bodies of water and water hazards are common in Dungeons & Dragons, but the original rules and most retroclones, including Swords & Wizardry, have no rules for how to handle swimming and the risk of drowning. I'm not a fan of adding to the rules overmuch, but water hazards are so common that some mechanics seem desirable. Here is my house rule, which is derived in part from the AD&D Dungeoneer's Survival Guide and Wilderness Survival Guide.

Swimming and Drowning

• a swimmer’s movement rate is subject to multiple variables; these include any current, the swimmer’s direction relative to the current, and encumbrance
• an unencumbered or almost unencumbered swimmer—someone not in armor and with 5 pounds of equipment or less—has a movement rate of 50 feet/round
• swimming is possible at half that movement rate—25 feet/round—in leather armor so long as the swimmer carries no more than 20 pounds of equipment
• no swimming is possible in metal armor and an adventurer wearing it sinks to the bottom; with a saving throw, armor may be removed in one round and otherwise takes two rounds
• one can swim downward or upward—dive or surface—30 feet/round; if encumbered, he can dive triple or quadruple this rate and will surface half or a quarter this rate depending on how encumbered he is
• all underwater attacks are made with a -2 penalty to hit; ordinarily only thrusting weapons, like daggers or spears, do full damage in underwater combat
• an adventurer may hold his breath for a number of rounds equal to his constitution score divided by four; after that many rounds, an adventurer dies without air
• if a drowned adventurer is pulled from the water and an attempt to resuscitate him is made within a round or two, he may make a saving throw to avoid death by drowning

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Hit Points, Healing, and Death

Because there are only four players in my current campaign, I am using a variety of house rules that make their characters a little less fragile and extend the period in which they can adventure before needing to rest.

1. Starting Hit Points. In character creation, you start out with the maximum possible number of hit points at first level. So, for example, a first-level fighter who did not have a constitution-related hit point modifier, would have 8 hit points at first level, because fighters roll 1d8 for hit points each level. Hit points are rolled normally for each subsequent level.*
2. Liquid Courage. Once per day, any adventurer may drink a bottle of wine, flagon of beer, horn of mead, or flask of hard liquor to regain 1d6 hit points. Hit points are abstract; they reflect not only physical health, but morale, sanity, and stamina. Basically, you take a belt to steady your nerves, deaden the pain, and soldier on under trying circumstances.
3. Unconsciousness. For most, zero hit points is unconsciousness and below that is death. Not for you. For each level, adventurers may go one hit point below zero and still remain unconscious. For example, at first level, zero to negative one hit points merely results in unconsciousness; if a first-level adventurer goes below that, he is dead and can only be raised by powerful magic (e.g. a raise dead or wish spell).
4. Bedrest. Provided that you sleep a full eight hours per night out of your armor, you ordinarily regain one hit point per day. But if you are in a civilized or fortified location—such as a city, town, village, castle, or keep—you regain one to three hit points from a night's bedrest instead.

* Rangers are an exception, because they have two hit dice at first level (2d8). They receive the maximum value of one of these two hit dice at first level; the second hit die must be rolled normally.

N.B. I've borrowed most of these house rules from someone else, though I sometimes modify them to suit my own taste. The Liquid Courage rule is derived from an ODD74 commenter rabindranath72's a-flagon-of-wine house rule. The Unconsciousness and Bedrest rules are taken in whole are part from Jimm Johnson's excellent Planet Eris house rules.

Shattered Kingdoms: Pantheon

For my new Swords & Wizardry campaign, I created the following pantheon:

CULTS AND PRIESTHOODS

The Shattered Kingdoms have known many gods. Below is a summary of some of the major deities presently in fashion; others exist, including hundreds of gods associated with the ancient world who are forgotten or worshipped only by local cults. On page 25 of the rulebook, it suggests that clerics are perceived by some as a weaker class. To address that perception and provide each cult with its own individual character, each priesthood has its own unique abilities.

Lawful Gods

ANUBIS is a lawful god of the afterlife and protector of the dead whose worship originated in Khmet. His symbol is a black jackal. His priests have these abilities:

• mummification: his clerics can extend the period during which a corpse may be raised from the dead by 1d6 days per level by preserving and mummifying the corpse
• anointing: once per day, his clerics may anoint the dead (or slain undead) such that they will never rise from the grave (again); they may anoint one corpse per level attained

ATTIS is a lawful god of vegetation, rebirth, and resurrection whose worship originated in the northwestern city-state of Ib. His symbol is a tree, half of which is barren in winter and half of which is blooming in spring. His priests have these abilities:

• rise again: his clerics roll a d6 at character creation; this roll is added to the number of hit points that the cleric may be in the negative and remain unconscious rather than dying
• perfect resurrection: regardless of their constitution score, these clerics never need to make a raise dead survival roll; nor must any person who is raised from the dead by these clerics

MITRA is a lawful god of truth, justice, and righteous judgment whose worship originated in the Empire. His symbol is a white bull. His priests have these abilities:

• discern truth: once per day, his clerics may discern whether a speaker is telling the truth or lying in whole or part, including half-truths and lies by omission
• compel truth: once per day, his clerics may compel a target to tell the truth about some matter or series of related matters (no save is permitted absent some magical defense)

Templars. The Temple of Mitra also maintains a military order of crusaders. These Templars are fighters, but relinquish the fighter abilities stated on page 14 of the rulebook and receive these abilities:

• lay on hands: twice per day, they may heal another of Lawful alignment, or a person who has performed some notable service for the church or the templar, for 1d3+1 hit points
• divine might: they do not require a magical weapon to hit creatures only struck by them; they also have a +1 bonus to hit/damage against unclean or unholy foes, like undead or demons

NEBO is a lawful god of mathematics, wisdom, and writing whose worship originated in the northeastern city-state of Byblos. His symbol is pi. His priests have these abilities:

• read languages: his clerics have a 1–3 chance on a d6 to decipher or read any language; modifiers—bonuses or penalties—may be applied based on the nature of the language
• wise man: clerics of Nebo receive a +1 bonus to their wisdom score; if this raises his score to 19, he receives two first-level spells at first and second levels and a 15% XP bonus

RA is a lawful god of the sun and illumination whose worship originated in Khmet. His symbol is a red solar disc flanked by hawks. His priests have these abilities:

• rays of the sun: light and continual light shine as bright as day within an expanded radius—60’ and 360’ respectively; all normal lights held by the priest are twice as bright as normal
• dispel darkness: once per day, his clerics may dispel any non-natural or magical darkness or other magical condition that suppresses light or obscures vision

THOTH is a lawful god of the moon, magic, and intellect whose worship originated in Khmet. His symbol is an ibis and crescent moon. His priests have these abilities:

• magic resistance: his clerics receive a +2 bonus when making a saving throw against spells or magical effects, whether those associated with magic-users, clerics, or others
• magic detection and identification: twice per day, clerics of Thoth may detect magic per the spell description; they also may use this ability to identify the properties of magic items

Chaotic Gods

COMUS is a chaotic god of wine, drunkenness, and revelry whose worship originated in the northwestern city-state of Mnar. His symbol is an overflowing chalice surrounded by clusters of grapes. His priests have these abilities:

• ecstatic inebriation: his clerics receive 2d6 hit points of healing, rather than 1d6 hit points, whenever they make use of the Liquid Courage house rule
• intoxicate others: once per day, clerics of Cybele may intoxicate a number of others per the mechanics of the sleep spell; the targets suffer a -4 penalty to all rolls while intoxicated

DAGON is a chaotic god of the seas and oceans whose worship originated in the northeastern city-state of Put. His symbol is a vicious-looking fish. His priests have these abilities:

• water-breathing: once per day, his clerics may breath water as a fish would for 1d6 + 1 round/level; during this period they also may swim at the movement rate of a fish
• undrowned: regardless of how much time has passed since a cleric of Dagon has drowned, so long as his body is reasonably intact, he may make a saving throw to avoid death when his body surfaces

KEK is a chaotic god of primordial darkness and secrecy whose worship originated in Khmet. His symbol is a humanoid with a serpentine head. His priests have these abilities:

• darkvision: his clerics have the ability to see in the dark up to a range of 60 feet; if the darkness is magical, they may still see but the range of their darkvision is reduced to 30 feet
• shadowstep: clerics of Kek have the ability to hide and move in shadows without detection per the thief’s class ability as if they were a thief of the same level

MOLECH is a chaotic god of fire, torture, and execution whose worship originated in Gog, a land of men tainted with goblinoid blood. His symbol is a column of fire. His priests have these abilities:

• fire resistance: his clerics are immune to normal fires, receive a +2 bonus to saving throws against magical fire or heat, and suffer 2d6 less damage from fiery effects and conditions
• immolate: once per day, they may shoot a jet of flame from their hands (range: 20 feet; arc: 45 degrees); it does 1d6 +1 hit point/caster level of damage (save for half damage)

NERGAL is a chaotic god of war, plague, and pestilence whose worship originated among the hobgoblins in Magog. His symbol is a lion. His priests have these abilities:

• disease resistance: his clerics have a +4 bonus to all saving throws to resist disease or sickness; at tenth level, his clerics become immune to all disease and sickness
• plague bearer: when the spell cause disease is cast by Nergal’s clerics, it affects 1d4 targets (save applicable); if failed, the infected suffer 1d6 damage per day and cannot heal till cured of the disease

YIG is a chaotic god of serpents and other poisonous creatures whose worship originated in Khmet. His symbol is a serpent encircling a fiery sun. His priests have these abilities:

• antidote: once per day, his clerics may administer an antidote permitting a poisoned person or creature to make a second saving throw, which may resuscitate a dead poison victim
• serpent-shift: once per day, his clerics can transform into a giant serpent—20 feet long (AC 5 [14]; Atk 1 bite (1d6); Move 12; special: lethal poison bite once per day (save allowed))

Nonhuman Gods

ARDUINNA is a lawful elven goddess of nature and woodlands. Her symbol is a white-barked tree. There are no elven clerics. But a lawful elven fighter with a wisdom of 15 or higher may opt to become a Warden of the Woods. He relinquishes the fighter abilities specified on page 14 of the rulebook; in their place, a warden gains these abilities:

• animal and faerie friendship: wardens may speak with woodland creatures and beings; once per day, they may charm a woodland creature or being (save allowed with a -1 penalty)
• forestwalk: wardens may pass without trace, notice, or noise through woodlands at twice the normal movement rate on a roll of 1–4 on a d6 (or on a roll of 1–5 at a normal movement rate)

KOTHAR-WA-KASIS is a lawful dwarven god of craftsmen, engineers, and smiths. His symbol is an anvil. There are no dwarven clerics. But a lawful dwarven fighter with a wisdom of 15 or higher may opt to become a Dwarven Holy Warrior. He relinquishes the fighter abilities on page 14 of the rulebook; in their place, a holy warrior gains:

• dwarven armor: a holy warrior has a suit of adamantine plate mail, which is half the weight of normal plate mail, virtually indestructible, and has an armor class of 2 [17] (without shield)
• spiritual gifts: at second level, a holy warrior gains one first-level clerical spell; at fourth level, one second-level clerical spell; at sixth level, one third level clerical spell

EDESIA is a neutral halfling goddess of feasts, leisure, and rest. Her symbol is an overflowing cornucopia or a wheel of cheese. There are no halfling clerics. But a neutral halfling thief with a wisdom score of 15 or higher may opt to become a Founder of the Feast. He relinquishes any three of the thief abilities listed in Table 17 on page 24 of the rulebook; in their place a founder gains:

• requisition: once per day, on a roll of 1–4 on a d6 a founder may locate or purloin a cache or supply of food and drink sufficient to sustain 1d6 +1/level creatures regardless of location
• gastronome: provided that he has sufficient food, a founder may prepare a meal that permits those who partake to recover 1d6 +1/level hit points with a full night of sleep

Weird Gods

TYR, the so-called “maimed god,” is a lawful demigod of heroism, battle, and martyrdom whose worship originated among the northmen beyond the Empire. His symbol is a mailed fist. His priests are limited to first, second, and third-level spells and have these abilities:

• warrior-priests: his clerics regard battle as a form of worship; they use the THAC0 advancement table for fighters rather than clerics
• martyrdom: if slain, a cleric of Tyr may opt to martyr himself; he gains 2d6 +1/level hit points and may continue fighting; once combat is over, he permanently dies (i.e., may not be raised from the dead)
• barbers: they may heal 1d6 HP by performing surgery on themselves or others; but this results in permanent loss of the same number of points of a randomly determined attribute

AMUN-GORLOTH, the so-called “sleeping god,” is a chaotic god of creation and creative destruction whose worship originated in Khmet. After triggering the creation of the universe, he fell into a deep slumber; it is said that our reality will crumble when he awakens, ushering in the end of the world. A lawful priesthood devotes itself to assuring Amun-Gorloth’s sleep is undisturbed. These priests are limited to first, second, and third-level spells and have these abilities:

• sleepless: his priests do not require sleep; so long as they peacefully meditate for an hour each day, they gain the benefits of a full night’s sleep (including recovery of hit points)
• silent: clerics of Amun-Gorloth may move silently as a thief of the same level (see page 24 of the rulebook); they may do so regardless of the type of armor worn
• somnolence: once per day, clerics of Amun-Gorloth may cast an enhanced version of the sleep spell; see page 69 of the rulebook, but use the table below in place of the one in the book:
  
  

  Victims' Hit Dice	Number Affected
  ˂ 1 to 1	2d8 +1/level
  1+ to 2+	2d6 +1/level
  3 to 3+	1d6 +1/level
  4 to 4+	1d2