Earthdawn: Part 25 - Flora of Barsaive

This is the twenty-fourth part in an ongoing series about Earthdawn. Introduction and Index.

As a part the most recent arc (at the time of writing this) of my Earthdawn game the characters were exploring an ancient, creepy forest populated by some very curious and rare things. When I asked them what kind of trouble they wanted to get into during their stay, one of the characters intended on looking for interesting plants. It is worth mentioning that the forest is located in the Cara Fahd/Landis region of South-East Barsaive.

The entire exploring the forest became a mini-game unto itself that was a remarkable amount of fun. Nonetheless, here is a list of the 30 interesting flora that I created which could be found in this forest. As always, feel free to adapt any of this for your own game. Most of these effects don't have mechanics attached to them so that they can be introduced however would best suit your world.

Drash
These oily leaves are a pungent and powerful insect repellent. They can be turned into an ointment that is water resistant as well, though soluble in alcohol.

Tonga
A crunchy red tuber that is slightly sweet. When dried and allowed to age, it gains a euphoric quality that causes severe disorientation and some memory loss. Consumers are also susceptible to suggestion during this time.

Orchan Nuts
Not truly a nut, these brilliantly red legumes are considered a long-lost secret of Cara Fahd. Amazingly potent, they were used in a special dish for warriors prior to battle to "light a fire in their belly." For other Namegivers, these are almost unbearably spicy - though rumored to be popular with dwarfs and elves that may still haves stores. In other Namegivers, they heighten perception and creativity, though lower inhibitions and cause aggression.

Lustre Fruit
A purple fruit in a brown membrane casing. While incredibly juicy, this fruit is considered to be too tart to be edible for most Namegivers, though obsidimen and some lowland trolls have developed a taste. It is commonly used as an alchemical ingredient. Each fruit is worth 20 silver pieces in alchemical reagents.

Nyin Berry
These yellow berries are bitter and sour, with a tough skin and jelly-like center. Popular with dwarf, ork and troll warriors, these berries provide additional stability. Obsidimen find their effects disorienting, and they interfere with a windling's ability to fly.

Lum Melon
This green melon as a crisp and sweet flesh. When preserved with smoke and salt, it gains the properties adventurers most prize: it naturally wards off disease (+5 to tests to resist disease for a day).

Yantos Fruit
The blue and aqua fruit from this low-growing plant are crisp and refreshing. They are particularly prized by Therans for how long they remain fresh, and popular for use in beverages in hot climates across the world. Consuming the crunchy and lush fruit will protect against the ill effects of heat for a day.

Jimicia Fruit
This yellow fruit grows in bunches off of vines. Considered to be very rare, it only grows in very specific places (with seemingly no correlation). When consumed, the fruit puts the subject into a euphoric state where some claim to see visions; none of the visions have a reputation of being pleasant, but some seek this experience.

Kuo
The bright red stalks of this plant are bitter, sour and spicy. Popular in some ork and human foods, they also gain dangerous properties when properly treated, then dried and powdered (a process know to few alchemists). The powder is extremely pyrophoric and will ignite on contact with water.

Fren Berry
An orange and green berry that is tasty and pleasant. When used to brew alcohol, it gains curious properties that engender a sense of friendship between the imbiber and those around them. Not many brewers posses the knowledge to craft this beverage (vanishingly few).

Merlan Berry
An orange fruit with red spots from a low shrub. Slightly sweet when ripe (entirely red), it is sour when unripened. In the unripened state, they can be dried into a powerful stimulant. It is illegal to possess merlan berries in this form in Throal. (+3 to initiative for one hour.)

Vileyo
These red seeds are exceptionally spicy and popular in some warrior cultures. They cause aggressive behavior and a significant loss of control. Because of that, they are almost never included as a part of a recipe. For 10 rounds, they consumer must adopt the Aggressive Attack stance, but does not take any Strain for doing so.

Braben Beans
These beans are brown and flavorless, if nutritious, when fully grown. In their immature, green state an oil can be press
ed from them that is a dangerous poison. It takes some specialized equipment and knowledge, along with quite a few beans, but it is popular with assassins. Also very, very illegal.

Guvos Melon
This small, low growing "melon" is actually a seed. The green casing is hard and bitter, but the yellow seed is savory and custard-like. It is rare, but very popular with human, dwarf and elf desserts. When dried and powdered, it is known for its restorative properties. (+3 to the result of Recovery Tests for the remainder of the day.)

Arienti
While the silver flowers of this plant are renown for being lovely, it is the bulb that interests most alchemists. When consumed raw, they place the consumer in a trance-like state for an hour or two that is incredibly restful and has significant healing properties. Unfortunately, they do not stay fresh indefinitely. When dried, they are commonly used as a part of healing aids (worth 50 silver pieces each).

Cerac Seeds
These blue seeds are popular with windlings, particularly warriors. They greatly extend the period of time a windling may remain aloft without rest, though there are downsides. The following day, most windlings find it difficult to fly at all. Repeated use may even impair their ability to fly permanently.

Licotta Melon
A green melon with a hairy, yellow fringe in sections. The flesh is stringy and unpleasant. For those willing to brave it (a difficult task indeed), this melon is amazingly nourishing (+2 to Recovery Tests for a day, a Willpower Test of 8 is required to eat it). It cannot be overstated how difficult it is to stomach a meal of licotta melon. The dwarfs of Throal occasionally investigate ways to make it more palatable.

Zentos Root
A red, bulbous tuber with a stringy texture and spicy flavor; the are popular in ork stews. Often warm to the touch, it can keep someone that eats it warm on a cool night, though exceptional specimen may cause burns when consumed (these are prized with Scorchers). Certain areas have been known to grow zentos that have True Fire in the roots, generally very close to Death's Sea.

Sen-Sen Seeds
The seeds are uninteresting, but the pink pods from this vine produce an entirely pleasant state of euphoria. This effect eliminates all pain and is extremely addictive. Curiously, it also aids in the healing process, but has been known to be lethal in t'skrang and windlings.

Quarsh Berry
A purple berry cluster that is remarkably sweet. Despite the delightful flavor, there are no culinary uses - it has been impossible to remove the soporific effects, which are significant.

Iosh Root
A white tuber with pink spots that is a common ingredient in alchemical recipes. Each root is worth 10 silver pieces in alchemical reagents.

Edden Leaves
The new leaves of the edden shrub can be turned into a poultice originally made popular by a healer Named Kelix. Used in the treatment of various poisons.

Cirtas Berry
Yellow berries from a large shrub. Capable of providing a tasty snack, they are mostly popular for their glow when crushed. Naturally a yellow color, other varieties have been cultivated. Every society prizes these berries for celebrations.

Obop Seeds
The green seeds from obop pods are rare due to how quickly they ripen. In this state, they are dangerously toxic, though have been spread across Barsaive from their origins in Poison Wood. The only way to prevent their ripening is by storing them in alcohol. Don't drink the alcohol.

Fildan
When juiced and rendered, this purple squash with an amazingly hard rind, affects a significant change in the imbiber. It turns their skin purple and hard, granting 3 Physical Armor for a day in this excruciating process (inflicting 1 Wound and costing 1 Recovery Test).

Uva Fruit
A red and orange, spikey fruit that grows at the base of trees in the area that was once Landis. Considered the royal fruit of that kingdom, it is said to grant incredible clarity of thought, or protection from Horrors (even both!) depending on the story. Regardless, it has an interesting, if acquired texture and a spiced flavor to the flesh.

Ninoku Leaves
Blue and brown leaves from this rare ground cover plant are a mild stimulant when chewed and are a common ingredient in alchemical creations. Each bunch is worth 25 silver pieces.

Topo Berry
This black and pink berry is bitter and causes severe nausea for a day in anyone that consumes one. Prolonged exposure can result in death.

Krilion Berry
These blue, purple and green berries have a luxurious texture and a lightly sweet and sour flavor particularly prized by elves, windlings and some t'skrang as a part of their spiced fish. These berries act as an amazing preservative when juiced, or a delicious and filling meal when eaten.

Riash Root
A round, orange tuber popular in salads when it can be found fresh. However, when dried and suspended in alcohol, it increases the imbiber's sensitivity to magic and astral energies. There is considerable wariness regarding the use in this way.

Earthdawn: Part 19 - Creature Trophies 2 (Rules)

This is the nineteenth part in an ongoing series about Earthdawn. Introduction and Index.

One of the more popular elements I've written about seems to be the creature trophies, also one of the more confusing. It wasn't well explained in the House Rules and some aspects of the rules were in flux at the time. This is going to be an attempt at bringing some mechanical clarity to what is going on with the trophies and what other things I may do to expand that.

Specifically, this is regarding loot that can be gathered from creatures after slaying them (the Legend Point value is equal to the silver piece value). Since I went to all the trouble of making the loot, my players wanted to hang onto them - perhaps because it is also fun to look in to your box back on all of the creatures you have murdered. Every adventurer needs a trophy room! As they weren't going to be getting the money from the loot, I implemented a system in which they could expend more money for additional Legend Points.

From a meta perspective, Legend Points are one of the primary goals that drive players, while money is an ancillary concern at best. The premise of this system gives them more of what they want for what they don't care about as much. That being said, that exchange tends to make them more resource poor overall and drives a need to continually make more money to support their Legend Point habit. More than that, it is fun. Decorating (or "setting") loot personalizes it and gives a little piece of history. There are some more mechanics I am considering for this; more on that later.

The costs associated with setting loot are straight forward: for the value of the loot, the Legend Point award increases by 10%, up to a maximum of the original award. So a piece of loot worth 100 silver pieces and Legend Points would cost 100 silver pieces per 10 additional Legend Points. No more than 1000 silver pieces can be spent for 100 additional Legend Points (200 Legend Points total from the trophy: 100 LP from the loot + 100 LP from the decorations). For anything that will end up as a fraction, I round appropriately (which means 0.5 goes to 1). I like an upper limit on things to keep them from just getting silly, and clearly communicates an end. Any particular kind of look can only be turned into a trophy once. If you have a shadowmant stinger that has been set in the blade of an ornamental dagger, you cannot set another shadowmant stinger, even if the setting would be more impressive. This also keeps things from getting out of hand; there is no revisiting trophies to improve them, no trying to constantly eke a little more out of the system. This keeps the focus on present and future; just so we're clear, that's the kind of behavior I am afraid I would engage in, to address it before it can become a problem. Also, once a trophy has been created, you cannot sell it. It can be lost, or perhaps even traded in a significant fashion, just not used for common gain. That defeats the point of the whole purpose, which is to build your actual Legend, and not much is more disheartening than to discover that your hero has literally sold out. On the whole, I find that trophies can make excellent fodder for Pattern Items, so the concept of selling/trading them is one that should be engaged in with great trepidation. "Why do they want this?" should be an important question.

Now all of that is assuming that you are paying someone to do this for you. As an adept, you have an artisan skill, maybe some crafting skills, or even Half-Magic that could be useful (you lucky Weaponsmith, you). DIY has always been a great way to keep costs down, so why should this be any different? Well, the mechanics all of the sudden need another, much larger, dimension: Difficulty Numbers. The costs are simple: half of whatever it would cost to pay someone to the setting for you. So the above example would cost 500 silver pieces to add +100 Legend Points to the award. Whatever artisan skill is used should be appropriate to the loot itself - death moth wings may not be well suited to a Weaponsmith's Half-Magic, but an earth q'wril beak certainly is.

Difficulty Numbers - I am still working out exactly what they should be, but here is my current list:

Difficulty Number	Value
4	1-25
5	26-50
6	51-75
7	76-100
8	101-150
9	151-200
10	201-300
11	301-400
12	401-500
13	501-750
14	751-1000
15	1001-2000
16	2001-3000
17	3001-5000
+1	+5000

Each of those is the Difficulty Number for a +10% increase. Each additional +10% increases the Difficulty by 1. The above example (loot worth 100 silver pieces and Legend Points) would have an initial difficulty of 7, but increasing it to the maximum would cost only 500 silver pieces, but have a difficulty of 16. The biggest question surrounds the Difficulty Numbers themselves and they are a work in progress still. My goal is for making a trophy possible for a skilled character at the lower end (say, +10 - 30%), while the upper end (+70-100%) is a risky proposition. So far that seems reasonable and opens up some area in the beginning for First Circle characters to get in on the fun, while still demanding that high Circle adepts continue to advance their artisan skills to take advantage of trophy decoration. That is part of what I like about this: it encourages characters to continue investing in their artisan skills, which is always fun.

The additional mechanics that I mentioned up-post would be a small once per session bonus related to the trophy, reflecting something demanded or learned in the course of defeating it. Perhaps +1 to Initiative for one round from espagra scales, or ignore 1 point of damage from an attack from a trophy of a fight you died. This concept is still germinating, but I'm putting it out there to see what the thoughts are on it. The bonus doesn't necessarily have to be the same for every character, but it should be related to the trophy and the memory of the event.

Trophy and Game Aid Examples:

• Creature Trophies 1
• Play Aids 1

Earthdawn: Adventure Log 07 - Mystery of Ardanyan

This is the seventh Adventure Log in an ongoing series about Earthdawn.Introduction and Index.

Passions are the Earthdawn equivalent to gods in other fantasy worlds. They fill similar functions: Passions have portfolios (Garlen's ideals are hearth and healing), Namegivers honor them for their blessings, powers are granted for their most ardent followers (known as questors), and the Passions work to advance their agendas in the world. They are different in key ways, however. The Passions are born from the Pattern of their land and have sway only there. This means the Passions of Barsaive are different than those of Cathay, though the same as those of Thera because it was Thera that Named Barsaive.

Anyone can follow a Passion and most Namegivers have one they favor above others. It is through the small acts of continual devotion and following those ideals which lead most Namegivers onto the path of a questor. While any Namegiver can be a questor, it is more uncommon for adepts to follow that calling. Following a Discipline requires dedication and focus that few can muster, even if they have the ability to do so, and even less can serve two different "masters" to the necessary degree. Also, the powers are not free and adepts have other things to spend points on.

When the Passions manifest, typically in dream, the viewer will see them in the form they most expect. Generally this will mean in their own race and of the gender they associate with that Passion. Each Passion has particular elements associated with them that will always be present, though not all. For example, Garlen may appear as a motherly woman with arms open in acceptance, or as a kindly man ready to offer comfort and safety. She could appear in a home with evidence of children present, perhaps even address the character as in the manner of their mother, while he could appear within a kaer, or gathering water for his family.


Thera and Barsaive have twelve Passions and prior to the Scourge all were largely benevolent to the Namegivers of the lands. During the Scourge, however, they were assaulted just as the people whom they spring from were. Three of the Passions went mad from the actions of the Horrors and their natures were changed. Known now as the Mad Passions, they became dark reflections of themselves and began pursuing their own insane agendas across the land. Their disruption of the previous balance between the Passions has caused strife among these entities. Now, instead of existing in harmony, they compete and pursue their ideals to the exclusion of others. Whether these attitudes are filtering down to Namegivers, or even stem from the collective consciousness of Namegivers, is unknown.

Adventure Log - 07 Mystery of Ardanyan

Recorded By: Honeysuckle Sunspray of Glenwood Deep

Date: 09 Riag – 12 Riag, 1506 TH
Group Name: Mismatched Steel

Group Members

Honeysuckle Sunspray the Windmaster (1)
Jak’Tak the Weaponsmith(2)
Ontheros the Horror Stalker

Awoke to Jak’Tak screaming and dealing with a thief trying to steal the debt paperwork. We left for Throal early the next morning looking for answers.

At the first crossroads we met up with a traveling group. Ontheros, the obsidiman whose brothers were corrupted and destroyed a village(3). Where we were joined by a group of psychic chakta birds. After moving along for a while we encountered an injured dwarf that had been attacked by a group of elf raiders over a map of a mine near Ardanyan. As we were about to leave we were attacked by a group of elf raiders on horseback who kill Tungar. He was carrying a letter from Grankar describing the map and how much wealth can be made.

We head to the cave and encounter a super scary bear/goat monster lives. Though I was not afraid and managed to get the beast to retreat.

Farther in the cave we find a cave trap and were once again ambushed by elves.

We successfully defeated the elves. They thought they had us trapped, but I valiantly went after their leader while Jak and Ontheros took out the others. Once we defeated them we ventured into the cave to search for treasure.

This cave was filled with many intersections and the first room of any note was filled with dark, writhing black worms. It was scary and gross. We quickly left. The next room led us down a ladder and faced with more intersections. After some exploration we discovered we needed to cross these giant pits filled with some kind of mist that sucks out the air. While I was fine, being able to fly and all, Jak and Ontheros braved the pit and were able to escape unscathed. The first major room we encountered had a wondrous purple crystal(4) in the middle of the room. It was so beautiful and made you forget everything else. Ontheros claims it is meant to trap Horrors. I guess he’s right, being that he’s spent quite a bit of time tracking Horrors. The next room had lots of vegetation and a stream running through it. The next large room was dark and kinda creepy. While looking around we were ambushed by two large flying creatures that were kind of flat with long stinging tails. It was if they were swimming through the air.(5)

These menacing creatures were quickly dispatched. And we claimed their stingers as tokens. The next path showed that the stream have become a river with a heavy current. Getting Jak and Ontheros across the river proved to be a quandary once more.

Being the brave Windmaster that I am, I decided to explore a small crevice where the river enters the rock. This cavern was very dark and dangerous. With a low ceiling and a fast moving river(6) I wasn’t sure about this but I persevered. Towards the end of the cavern I saw some gold veins running through the rock. I decided to return and report my findings. Not finding any obvious treasures we decided to return to the surface and then to Ardanyan in order to gather our friends to return in order to further explore the river section.(7)

(1) An uncommon Discipline, particularly in this part of Barsaive, the Windmaster is a community guardian, similar to a Warrior, for windlings of Glenwood Deep.
(2) Known associate of Maester Bleys and Omasu.
(3) Refer to entry cataloged under: Adventuring Groups: Miscellaneous: Mismatched Steel – 02.
(4) I have read of these before, but never a purple one.
(5) Likely shadowmants.
(6) This is exceptionally brave and foolhardy behavior for a windling due to their size and inability to fly with wet wings.
(7) Received and edited by Zamirica One-Knee

*     *     *

Technically the much larger female krillra.

This particular installment was mostly meeting some fauna of Barsaive and minor dungeon-crawling. I enjoy throwing in a some color to the proceedings (when I remember) as it can make the setting seem more vivid and remind everyone present just how other everything is in the world. Chakta birds are a personal favorite for this: they are largely benign, but many players cannot seem to trust them. Ironically, the windling was most offended by their existence - threatened by competition? A brithan, krillworms and shadowmants also made appearances and are all interesting because of the different responses they evoke. Particularly krillworms, which are largely harmless, but just icky. No one likes to fight krillworms.

The plot of the adventure proceeded largely as expected, though some clues were missed or overlooked. There happened to be enough pointing to what was going on (even if things were addressed in a curious order at times) that events kept moving - this is a good thing. The Group figured out where the main entrance to the kaer was roughly, but couldn't find the actual door. Discovering the door and gaining access is amazingly difficult, which makes sense since the kaer is supposed to protect against Horrors with hundreds of years to patiently grind away.

One thing the events reminded me of is how some of the basic assumptions of Earthdawn are different than most fantasy games. The best and most basic examples of this are obsidimen and windlings. Both of these Namegivers change the fundamental nature in how characters move around in various situations. Windlings can fly, though not carry much, which is a special thing generally reserved for bird familiars at low levels. Obsidimen, on the other hand, can severely limit travel. There is no common rope that can support their mass; even doing a single push-up is a feat for these Namegivers. What this comes down to is the following: don't forget the unique abilities and limitations that your particular Group may have and face. Handwaving can be effective, but it isn't very satisfying and once you have gone down that road, it is a difficult up-hill battle to bring back those elements that were ignored for convenience.

The loot I introduced in this session were the shadowmant stingers. There isn't much to say about them - I ordered small glass icicle ornaments. I got two different sizes to make certain they would fit in the boxes. This plan had foresight since I had to use the smaller size even though I liked the design less.

Another play aid that I have not talked about yet, despite introducing them much earlier, are binders. I created binders for each character that have a combat summary, a chart with the action dice, steps, and result levels, combat option sheets, expanded character sheets, full descriptions of all Talents and skills (including any relevant tables) and pouches to keep note cards. Everything is in sheet protectors and all of the players have dry erase markers. All of this is to try and move things along quickly, particularly combat, by putting all of the relevant information at each player's hand without anyone getting lost in the Player's Guide. The ability to write on the sheets and then easily clean it up means that everything stays legible longer and combat notes are easy. For games that have a lot going on, this is a very helpful system for me. In other games I have included information from between games in the binders as an easy way to disseminate information without exactly letting each player know fully what was going on.