Character Races and Classes of the Moonshaes

Written by Hellfell

Character Races of the Moonshaes

Many of the common character races of the AD&D game are native to the Moonshae Isles. These are listed here, with a brief introduction to their Moonshae characteristics. Players who wish to use characters of other races may of course do so, subject to DM approval, but those characters will hail from other parts of the Forgotten Realms.

Humans

Two major human societies populate the isles of the Moonshaes. The original human inhabitants of the islands are the Ffolk. The later arrivals are the more war-like northmen.
The Ffolk are organized into a number of small kingdoms, loosely collected under the leadership of a High King. The High King is more of a figurehead than a true ruler, however. The Ffolk are primarily an agricultural society, though they can fight savagely when called on to defend their homes.
The northmen scorn agriculture in favor of raiding and making war. They have wrested much of the northern Moonshaes from the hands of the Ffolk. The remaining kingdoms of the Ffolk are the favored raiding targets of the northmen, but their adventures also carry them to the Sword Coast, and occasionally as far south as Calimshan.

Elves

The race of elves living on the Moonshaes is the Llewyrr. Once the dominant race on the isles, the Llewyrr now claim only small and remote portions of Gwynneth and Alaron as theirs. The Llewyrr are very similar to High Elves.

Dwarves

Like that of the Llewyrr, the dwarven culture on the Moonshaes goes back a long way. These stocky and war-like demihumans have also been driven into small holdings on the isles. More numerous than the Llewyrr, the dwarves love their privacy and vigorously defend their lands against any further human encroachment.

Halflings

Of all the demihumans, the halflings have adapted most easily to human domination of the Moonshaes. Halfling communities are located beside most major communities of the Ffolk; some halfling towns can be found near the strongholds of the northmen. The halflings thrive on the trade with their human neighbors and welcome the security provided by nearby castles.

Character Classes of the Moonshaes

Among the Ffolk, bards and druids are highly respected and are subject to some unique rules. Fighters, thieves, magic-users, and clerics can be members of any of the societies on the islands, subject to the usual race restrictions.
And of course, visitors to the isles are common enough that any other kind of character race or class could quite reasonably be found here.

Druids

Druids are common on each of the isles inhabited by the Ffolk. There is a Great Druid on each of Gwynneth, Alaron, and Moray.
Druids generally show an aptitude for their calling very early in life. As druids are highly regarded in the culture of the Ffolk, parents encourage children to develop their inherent talent. The ranks of the druids are thus assured a steady supply of fresh initiates.
Each druid is assigned a certain portion of one of the isles as his territory. At the center of the druid's territory is his druidic grove. The grove might be a cluster of pine or aspen trees, but most often contains aged oaks, weatherbeaten and gnarled forest giants that have withstood a hundred or more savage winters.
In some high locations, or upon the barren isles on the northern fringes of the Moonshaes, the druidic grove is no more than a scraggly circle of stumpy pine trees. These trees might be two hundred years and yet be barely as tall as a man. Regardless of the type of trees, every druid has his own grove. Druids of 12th level and above receive a particularly enchanted grove to guard -- one with a Moonwell at its heart. These groves are the most sacred locations in the world to the Ffolk. The druids take their custodianship very seriously indeed. Any druid would sacrifice his life to preserve the sanctity of a Moonwell.
Each of the largest isles, Gwynneth, Alaron, Moray, and Norland, has a central Moonwell of special import to the druids. Stone monoliths with crosspieces form rings of arches around these Moonwells.
These special Moonwells lie at the hearts of the groves of the Great Druids. Those upon Gwynneth, Alaron, and Moray remain bright and hallowed places, for those islands are under the control of the Ffolk. Upon Norland, however, the arches have fallen into wreckage and the waters of the Moonwell lie stagnant and green. Here the northmen have driven the Ffolk and the druids from the land, so there are none to tend the well. Thus the goddess's sight grows dim, and she loses her vision of the world.

Clerics

Clerics of the Forgotten Realms have traveled to the Moonshaes to spread the word of their various religions. This is not an easy task among the Ffolk, who regard the goddess, as she is presented by the druids, to be the supreme deity. Even the clerics of Silvanus, patron god of the druids, find themselves constantly striving against the centuries-old tradition of distrust toward clerics.
The northmen have clerics of Tempus, toward whom they turn for spiritual leadership. Occasionally, a cleric of Malar will gain a following among the more radical factions of the northmen. Religious conflicts among the northmen are rare, however, since they generally work out their aggressive urges on the Ffolk.
Clerics of Azuth, Deneir, and Lathander are commonly encountered among both the Ffolk and the northmen; generally these clerics have gathered a small congregation of converts. These clerics commonly hail from Waterdeep, Amn, and other, even more distant reaches of the Realms.
The goddess herself is an aspect of the goddess Chauntea but, at least on the Moonshaes, she spurns the worship of clerics, preferring the exclusive attention of her druids. The mortal enemy of the goddess, the beast Kazgoroth, is an aspect of the god Malar.

Bards

Bards are the favored sons of the Ffolk. They are given the same regard as most kings of the Ffolk. The bards of the Ffolk serve many functions: historians, entertainers, poets, heroes, and spies.
A bard is either a Greater Bard or a Lesser Bard. A Lesser Bard is any bard who has not acquired one of the instruments of the bards. A Greater Bard must have acquired one of these instruments, of which three are known on the Moonshaes, and must be of 11th level or higher.
The Lesser Bards serve generally as traveling entertainers, singing at fairs and feasts in exchange for a warm place to sleep and a meal. They move about continuously, visiting all the lands of the Ffolk, the nations of the northmen, and even countries beyond the Moonshaes. These bards write ballads and ditties about their adventures, incorporating the people they have met and the sights they have seen.
The Greater Bards, of which there are no more than three at any given time, are the poets laureate of the Ffolk. The ballads of the Greater Bards are sung and recorded by all the bards of the land. These lyrics weave the history of the Ffolk.
The Greater Bards are much sought after by the kings and lords of the Ffolk. A ruler who has a Greater Bard play at one of his festivals or feasts is accorded great honor. Greater Bards do not travel as much as the Lesser Bards, preferring to enjoy the comforts of Caer Callidyrr during the long winters. A Greater Bard will occasionally serve as a messenger for the High King on a errand of considerable importance. Often the Greater Bard recommends a Lesser Bard to travel in his place should he elect to decline the assignment.

Magic-Users

Magic-users are held in suspicion by most of the people of the Moonshaes. This accounts for the scarcity of magicusers here. A careless mage who gets identified in a rural community of either the Ffolk or the northmen may find this to be the last mistake he ever makes.
In two places on the Moonshae Isles, however, practitioners of magic are more likely to be encountered. Sitting upon the council of mages, ostensibly serving the High King of the Ffolk, are 13 magic-users of medium to high level. These sorcerers are practically autonomous in actuality, and each controls a small part of Callidyrr. Each also has several students and apprentices of 6th level or lower, so the actual number of magic-users in this area is at least 50.
And upon the isle of Flamsterd, to the south of Gwynneth, is a land where no mage need fear persecution. For this is the domain of the great wizard Flamsterd, who left Waterdeep in search of lonelier pastures. The island of Flamsterd is essentially a mageocracy, though the wizard himself would scoff at the notion that he rules here. Still, there is no other government body, and the island never seems to suffer the landfall of a northman raiding party.
Flamsterd has opened his island as a refuge and place of study for all young mages. Flamsterd has perhaps the highest concentration of magic-users of any area in the Forgotten Realms.

Thieves

Thieves will find it hard going among the people of the Moonshaes. The Ffolk tend to severely punish those caught stealing, with death a common punishment. The northmen regard stealing from others as a way of life, but one who is caught stealing from them is certainly killed.
There are thus no thieves guilds in any of the cities of the Moonshaes, except perhaps as briefly established by some venturesome individual. Invariably, the guild only lasts as long as the leader goes unpunished—never more than a few years.
Some thieves have been known to band together in isolated sections of wilderness, functioning essentially as bandits, although with skillful use of spies and decoys planted among their target communities.
Since many of the thieves that have practiced their trade upon the Moonshaes have come from foreign lands, there is a certain mistrust of foreigners inherent in both the Ffolk and northman cultures. Thus thieves who differ physically from the local populace will have a very difficult time avoiding notice.

Fighters

This most common of classes finds plenty of representatives among the Moonshae peoples. Nearly all adult male northmen are fighters; a few are rangers. Among the Ffolk, a much smaller percentage of adults, both men and women, are practiced in the combat arts. A high proportion of these, however, are rangers, paladins, and cavaliers.
Fighters of the northmen prefer the battle axe or hand axe for melee combat, though swords, short bows, spears, and hammers are not uncommon Fighters of the Ffolk almost always wield the sword in melee; many are skilled in the use of the powerful long bow.
Some fighters of the northmen (20% chance per individual) have the ability to drive themselves into a berserker frenzy in battle. Warriors who demonstrate this aptitude are often gathered by their king into a royal bodyguard or a unit of elite soldiers. The fighters can bring on the berserker rage simply by contemplating imminent combat, or in response to a surprise attack.
Berserker northmen receive a +2 bonus to hit and need never check morale. For BATTLESYSTEM(TM) rules purposes, they have a discipline of 0. If a player wishes to avoid having his northmen warriors consumed by the berserker rage, he can make a morale check before the fighters go berserk. This check suffers a -2 penalty, but if it succeeds the northmen do not become berserk during that fight.
Warriors of both the Ffolk and the northmen occasionally fight on horseback, but most prefer foot combat. The Ffolk of Alaron also employ a small battle chariot, well suited to the smooth and grassy terrain of that isle.

Character Levels

The Moonshaes can serve as a setting for campaigns at all levels. Low-level adventuring is possible throughout the isles; this can involve explorations of ancient ruins and dungeons, interaction with other societies on the islands, town and village adventuring, wilderness and maritime adventures, or raids on monster holdings.
Mid-level adventures can of course include all of the above. The firbolgs that populate many of the isles are challenging adversaries for mid-level characters. Mid-level characters can also get involved in trading, perhaps as caravan or convoy guards, as well as small-scale military activities. The characters and story in the novel, Darkwalker on Moonshae, provide some ideas for midlevel adventuring on the Moonshae islands.
High-level characters will find themselves right at home with the isle’s rulers. The Moonshaes have many kings, and a large number of petty lords, all of whom could interact in a high-level game. Military adventures, perhaps including an occasional BATTLESYSTEM (TM) scenario, could easily be worked into the overall campaign situation. The next Moonshae novel (to be released in April of 1988), Black Wizards, presents some examples of highlevel campaign possibilities in the Moonshae islands.
As in any game, the key is not so much to establish PCs of the levels you want to fit into the world, but in creating tough, but not too tough, challenges for whatever levels and abilities your players have.