Expanded ruby and item descriptions

I understand why Raven’s Quest requires you to find Stanengist and between 1 and 3 other artifacts, but I’ve never been happy with the resulting lack of attention paid to the rubies that start off in Stanengist. As part of an attempt to systematise how all of this works for my own campaign, I’ve written up how I think various ancient elven rubies should behave, (a) when in their preferred artifact or Stanengist, always, (b) as above, but as part of a ritual, and (c) what their preferred artifact should look like.

Rationale and design principles

My rationale is that I wanted to clearly differentiate what you get for free from the ruby by itself and what the associated item gives you; and also differentiate what you always get and what you have to work for (and therefore don’t have to pay the price for if you don’t want to - I appreciate that almost nobody agrees with me that Nekhaka’s drawbacks are too harsh, though).

Obviously if you expand the number of potential items to collect from 4 to 6 that’s going to make your campaign longer. You might be happy with that! Or you might just decide that some of these new artifacts have been lost, but their original rubies are still with Stanengist. Or you might decide that one of the official artifacts is gone but one of my homebrew artifacts has taken its place.

Design notes: my headcanon is that talk of the ancient elves talking with the Gods is folklore, and in fact e.g. when Neyd arrived, there already were rivers and lakes, and she just had to map and name them, and argue with dwarven stonesingers who were just raising brutalist walls of rock everywhere rather than making the land look like proper mountains and rivers etc.

If you could ever get Viridia to submit to Nebulos’s ritual, maybe that would be a potential cure? It probably would take longer than your players have to close the rift, though, at which point you need to find another two elven rubies.

There’s not a lot about Gemelda in the book, but one thing that seems clear to me is that she is prone to making wise, decisive actions. As the leader of the elves from the Heart of the Sky, who I think landed in Ravenland and proceeded to explore and investigate it in detail, I think she’s the sort of person who would be interested in keeping all sorts of details in her head, and examining them from different perspectives, hence her ritual.

From the players’ perspective, given that they need 4-6 rubies in the crown, their only real choice is whether they leave one or two out (e.g. Iridne because she’s really nice, and Viridia so not to annoy Merigall). I think it would add more interest if Kalman Rodenfell could sacrifice himself to keep Gemelda, Neyd or Nebulos (probably in that order), which is why I’ve written him up as well.

Anyway, here goes. Each elf typically has an inherent power, a ritual, and a corresponding artifact. If their ruby is in the artifact you get everything; if their ruby is in Stanengist the artifact may or may not still be usable.

Also, for completeness, the other three rubies. I’ve revamped Algared to be less crippling; the other two are unmodified, apart from a different explanation for why your resources run low if you have Viridia. You should already have Raven’s Purge so this is arguably fair use.

Neyd

Love of the wilderness: Neyd gives the wielder a d10 Artifact Die to SCOUTING, SURVIVAL or ANIMAL HANDLING. If the wielder initiates combat against anybody, they suffer 1 point of damage to STRENGTH.

Ritual of discovery: For at least one turn, the wielder closes their eyes and communes with Neyd, learning about their surroundings. They record their discoveries in a way that would make sense to them, e.g. blind-drawing a map on parchment. Each turn provides enough information to draw an accurate but sketchy map of the surrounding hex. For a Willpower each turn, the ritual can be extended, extending into a neighbouring hex or providing more detail about an area already mapped. During the turn following the end of the ritual, the wielder retains a vivid memory of their explorations and can annotate their records in response to others’ questions. After that time, the memory fades.

The staff of nature: Said to be the first Gift of the Sea at Pelagia, this staff enables its wielder to apply the forces of weathering and natural selection to all surroundings in NEAR range. Rocks are weathered as if eroded by a thousand years’ worth of wind and rain; plants and fungi grow as if one hundred years had passed. Spending Willpower points increases the erosion duration to 2,000 (1WP), 5,000 (2WP), 10,000 (3WP) or 20,000 (4WP) years. Additionally, spending Willpower points increases the flora growth to 100, 200, 500 or 1,000 years.

Nebulos

Soul of the craftsman: Nebulos gives the wielder a d12 Artifact Die to CRAFTING, or any LORE or INSIGHT roll regarding creating or locating artifacts. If the wielder instigates or supports the destruction of houses or tools, they suffer 1 point of damage to WITS.

Ritual of tranquility: the wielder causes a shining, watery mist to surround them and any other participants in the ritual, linking hands. The mist takes a turn to be established, and persists until all of the original participants have left its location, at which point it dissipates. Participants may leave and rejoin, but no others may enter the mist after it has been formed. Anyone inside the mist no longer needs to breathe, drink or eat, and instead experiences a pleasant, calming vista. The progression of poisons and diseases is halted and eventually reversed; injuries heal, including, given time, lost limbs.

The circlet of the elves: forged by the dwarves to Nebulos’s specification, this circlet was originally intended to be a home for Algared, Nebulos and his sisters. It was subsequently destroyed as part of the process of forging Stanengist.

Gemelda

Lead by example: Gemelda gives the wielder a d10 Artifact Die to any roll involving taking decisive action, e.g. a change of battle tactics, a diplomatic overture, a new approach to a stubborn obstacle. Should the wielder persistently choose the path of sloth, inaction or conservatism, though, Gemelda will increasingly chastise them in their dreams and, eventually, during waking hours.

Ritual of alternate perspectives: the wielder focuses on a person, creature, plant or even geographical feature they can see, recently met or know well. During the following turn they gain some understanding of what it is like to be the target; their inherent interests, demands, constraints, the way their mind would tend to think. (This may be particularly hard to understand for alien creatures like monsters, plants etc. and the visions will by necessity be fragmented and confused.) The ritual does not reveal what the target’s actual thoughts or intentions are, merely what their shape might take given the nature of the target. The better the wielder knows the target, the more precise and accurate the information received during the ritual will be.

Spyglass of dispelling obstacles: like a modern-day spyglass, this device allows the wielder to see a distant target magnified by up to 10 times (the exact level of magnification is controlled by extending or retracting the spyglass). Spending a Willpower allows the removal of one obstacle to vision: mist or clouds, darkness or bright light, curtains or other mild barriers. 

Kalman Rodenfell

Leader of the Redrunners: Kalman Rodenfell gives the wielder a d10 Artifact die to MELEE and MARKSMANSHIP. Any attempt by the wielder to act against Merigall or what Kalman Rodenfell perceives as Merigall’s interests suffers a -1 penalty.

Ritual of the scout: The wielder can perform a ritual, lasting a turn, binding any number of scouts to them. Scouts must hold the wielder’s hands, or link hands with other scouts holding the wielder’s hands. Scouts can perform a subsequent ritual, again lasting a turn, once per day, to mentally send a simple message of at most 3 phrases to the wielder. The wielder receives the message telepathically some short time later, knowing the name of the scout who sent it. Sending a message is an act of magic and can be detected by SENSE MAGIC. If a scout does not send a message for a week, the effect of the ritual lapses for them, and they must travel to the wielder to renew it.

Items: Kalman Rodenfell’s ruby could be set either in his longsword or his longbow, both of which have a +3 bonus rather than the usual +2.

Algared

Majesty: The wielder gains a d12 Artifact Die to MANIPULATION and INSIGHT when in contact with the ruby (e.g. holding Nekhaka or wearing Stanengist), but all other rolls suffer a -1 penalty.

The quiet arts of politics: The wielder can choose to call upon Algared to assist them from afar. For the next Quarter Day they gain a d12 Artifact Die in the appropriate skill, and then suffer 1 point of damage to the governing Attribute.

Traditionally this is done by detaching one of the pendants from Nekhaka and carrying it on your person (probably concealed). Each pendant is associated with a particular quiet art of politics: (1) espionage and counter-espionage (INSIGHT / WITS), (2) persuasion and soothing (MANIPULATION / EMPATHY) or (3) information-gathering and planning (LORE / WITS).

Ritual of the capital: The wielder and all other parties involved in the building of new functions in the stronghold, or upkeep of existing functions, can take part in a ritual where each seeks the wisdom of Algared. This ritual lasts a turn, and grants a d12 Artifact Die to all related rolls. The ritual must be repeated for each new function, or once every week. If the wielder leaves the stronghold the blessing ends.

The Nekhaka Sceptre: Once every Quarter Day, the sceptre can release a shock wave when thrust into the ground. This counts like the EARTHQUAKE spell with a Power Level of d6+2. No Willpower points are required for this effect.

Gall-Eye (Viridia)

Eternal vigilance: Gall-Eye detects enemies within NEAR distance, and glows green in proportion to proximity and hostility. Gall-Eye taps into the wielder’s energy to do this, who becomes unusually hungry and thirsty: every time they roll a Resource Die for FOOD or WATER, they must roll twice.

Savage close-quarter fighting: Gall-Eye gives the wielder a d8 Artifact Die to all attacks in close combat (not PARRIES), or d10 if the wielder has two enemies within ARM’S LENGTH distance, or d12 if four or more. But this fervour and bloodlust means they have a -2 to any attempt to parry or dodge, and if they Break an enemy, they must roll for INSIGHT. If the roll fails, they go BERSERK.

Rituals: Gall-Eye is too impatient for any rituals.

The Maligarn Sword: this is a masterly-forged longsword with Weapon Bonus +3 (rather than the usual +2) and Weapon Damage +2.

Iridne

Pacifism: The wielder gains a d12 Artifact Die to SCOUTING, LORE and PERFORMANCE, but suffers 1 point of damage to EMPATHY every time they Break an enemy in battle, whether in close combat, at range or through magic.

Ritual of togetherness: The wielder can lead the defenders of a stronghold in a ritual of togetherness for a turn, after which the Defense Rating of the stronghold increases by +1. This ritual must be repeated once every week. If the wielder leaves the stronghold the blessing ends.

The Blood Star cloak clasp: The wearer can levitate through the air (at the same speed as moving on the ground) if a cloak is attached to the clasp. The wearer must land after one round.