White Dwarf Wednesday #44

White Dwarf #44 was one of my favorite issues.  I am not sure why that is exactly.  Maybe something to do with the cover.  Needless to say I love her totally 80's hair. And I am not sure that her armor is actually doing much.   This cover is like a combination of Tolkien and Heavy Metal Magazine.  Tolkien that is if this some alternate 80's reality version of Middle Earth.
I would though like a better copy of this art for my game room.  I have to admit I am a bit confused.  I am unsure if this cover was done by Alan Craddock (as I assumed) or Jim Burns (who is listed as the cover artist).  Like a lot of art from this time it seems to pop up in other places.

Cheesecake aside there are a lot of things in this magazine I used; so page for page this was the most useful issue for me.  This was  the height of White Dwarf's golden age for me.

This is also the issue that almost got me back into Traveller with it's nice big full color ad.
Let's jump in and see what August 1983 has in store for us.

In the editorial Ian Livingstone talks about the changes that will conclude come issue #45.  Among other things we are getting the first comic of Thrud the Barbarian.

Marcus Rowland has a new idea for moving the plot along in Traveller with ICE, the Interstellar Charter Enterprises.  Nice idea for some independent operators in Traveller that beats the stand by "You all met in an inn a spaceport when...."

Open Box gives us some classics.  First up is the The Shadows of Yog Sothoth. Which gets a rare, but in my mind deserved, score of 10/10 from Ian Bailey.   Steve Jackson continues the mini-game line with a company defining game. Not GURPS, but Illuminati.  Phil Masters only gives the first two sets a 6/10 each, disliking some of the rules and complexity.  Marcus Rowland steps away from Traveller to review two Endless Quest books and is not impressed. Reviewed are Revolt of the Dwarves and Revenge of the Rainbow Dragons, each only getting a 5/10. Finally Jim Bambra reviews what is destined to be some of the last of the "Golden Age" of the TSR modules.  He gives high marks to S4 (9/10) and WG4 (9/10) which I agree with.  He also likes N1 and U2 (8/10 each).

Critical Mass has a bunch of new books to review, or at least mention.  This was the great age of 80s Sci-Fi and the OtherWorlds club.  I remember then not begin able to read enough.  Oddly enough the article bemoans the lack of good Sci-Fi and fantasy, or at least the lack of attention on new good books.  I know that at age 14 I did not have a very advanced or sophisticated palette but I don't recall it like this.

Lew Pulsipher is up next with an article I have read and reread hundreds of times.  True Sight is all about realism in your games.  In the time following this I was all about realism.  I wanted to know where the arrows hit, what the GDP of a country was in GP  and how did adventurers factor into that.  All that.  I have since given all that up and now just enjoy the moment of the play.  But this is still a great article. Not on realism, but what realism means to you and your game.

Charles Vasey is next with the bi-monthly Board Games column, Counterpoint.  This one cover the Sanctuary Board game based on the then uber-popular Thieves World books.  I loved Thieves World and gladly grabbed anything I could. But this gem never made to my stores (which were still just book stores).  Vasey also covers the Consulting Detective game.  Interestingly enough at the time that had no interest for me.  Today it is the other way around.

Dave Morris has Dealing With Demons in RuneQuest.  I cannibalized this article for all sorts of ideas for D&D.  There have been better articles on the subject since, but none grabbed my attention quite like this one.  Yeah at 14 in the middle of the Satanic Panic in the Midwest I was devouring articles about summoning demons in D&D.   The article is long and only the first part, but I used every bit of it.

Microview has more software for us.  A Zx81 BASIC program for AD&D or T&T combat.  At only a couple score lines it doesn't really do much.  Still though I loved it.

Irilian is back with part 3.  Only 3 more to go for the complete town.

RuneRites has some new monsters for RuneQuest, a first really.  Only two, a Kirin and a Golem. But since they had analogs with monsters in D&D it gave me my first taste at converting some monsters from one system into D&D.  Since I didn't have any other monsters these both became a demon type for me to use with the Dealing with Demons article.

Fiend Factory is back with Tribal monsters.  We have an odd dragon/centaur like race call Wodennians.  Never used them because I thought they looked silly.  We have a race of "Evil Halflings of the Underworld" called, of all things, Blacklings.  I liked the idea but HATED the name.  Even then it struck me as stupid.  I used them, but I made them pale like what you would expect a race that lived underground to be like.  Some of those ideas later were worked into my ideas for Drow.  Intitally I hated the next creature, the Wohk, because they seemed dumb and I didn't like their spontaneous regeneration.  But over the years I have come to like them as something so odd it could only work in D&D.  Yelgs are like Green Orcs and some of my first orcs of my world were green.

It may surprise some but my first character was a cleric and I enjoyed the hell out of playing him.  So when I got a copy of Graeme Davis' Seeing the Light article I went about trying to convert everyone to my cleric's religion and gaining XP for it.  I did it so much in fact that if you read my witch books now you will notice that one of the things about witches is they DON'T try to convert you.

More ads and classifieds.  Another Gobbledigook strip.

Again, it is not understating it that I milked this issue for everything it had back then.

I mentioned above that this particular bit of cover art had been reused.  Here are a couple of examples that appeared after this cover came out.

Here is one for an Irish 80s Metal Band Blackwych..  Which of course begs the question "Why have I not heard of these guys before??"

And the cover for "Fires of Azeroth" by C. J. Cherryh. No. It has nothing to do with WoW.

I have no problem admitting that I created a character solely based on this cover. Ok I gave her better armor.  Also she was a character that most everyone else hated in my games, but changed the course of not only my 80s D&D game, but also my 2000s Buffy/Willow & Tara games.  Yeah, that image was the source of my inspiration for Morgan Ebonflame, the Hunter of the Dead and the Daughter of Death.  She was a PC in games I played and an NPC in games I ran in my group's shared world.  
I find it interesting that the C.J. Cherryh's book was part of the "Morgaine" series and my character was named "Morgan".  That is one of those weird happenstances, but I don't rule out that I had seen this cover sometime in the mid-80s.  I would have rolled up Morgan around 1985 or so.

Xothia: The Dwarven Witch

Dwarven Witches

The dwarves of yore made mighty spells, 

While hammers fell like ringing bells 

 In places deep, where dark things sleep, 

 In hollow halls beneath the fells.

I saw the Hobbit and it renewed the feeling I get every so often when playing D&D.  Dwarves and bad-asses and you should not mess with them.  This notion inspired me to post this. Enjoy!

The Xothia appear in my latest book, The Witch, but can be used in any Retro clone that has dwarves.

OGL declaration. All text below is designated as Open under OGL. All art is retained by the copyright holder and is not open under the OGL.

The Xothia of the Rock

   “Where are we headed Jornek?” asked Tuir, a young hill dwarf of only 80 summers.  They were walking in the rain up a mountain path, and Tuir hated the rain.
   “We are going to get answers.” repeated the older dwarf for what seemed like the thousandth time this morning.  Jornek did not care for the rain either, but it was not as annoying as his young nephew’s constant complaining.  Were he not his sisters son…
   “I thought we were going to go to the human city and seek out one of their sages?” replied Tuir.
   “That is what I wanted the clan to think.” came Jornek’s short reply. “We are going to see Royrn, the Xothia of the Rock.”
   Tuir stopped dead in his tracks.  “A Xothia!” he cried out. “what could *she* possibly do?  Except maybe to bewitch us and make us her slaves!”
   Jornek grabbed his young charge and pulled him back on to the path. “Put your lips together you fool.  You have the tongue of a gnome but none of their sense!  This is why I did not tell you or anyone.  The Xothia of the Rock has been known to our clan for centuries.  Our problem is magical, no human sage could understand!”
   Tuir was so quiet the rest the trip that Jornek almost regretted not telling him sooner.  But soon enough they approached a small cave opening.  Outside was small, but ornate gold gong.  Jornek took the striker and hit the gong three times. Tuir looked at the gong quizzingly and then to Jornek.  The older dwarf guessing his question only replied, “who would *dare* steal it?”  Jornek then walked into the cave with a nervous Tuir close behind.
   The sight that met Tuir’s eyes was almost overwhelming.  He had expected the cave to be dark, damp and gloomy, like a goblin’s hole, but instead it seemed, well more “elf” like.  There were brightly colored lamps hanging from outcroppings in the walls that sent an array of colors everywhere.  The floor was amazingly flat and clean.  To the back of this chamber were several doors.  But Tuir was not prepared for what, or rather who, he saw next.
   She was young, maybe no older than himself. She wore brightly colored clothes that were still dwarven style, but some how seemed more elfish.  Her most striking feature to Tuir was her face.  While she was obviously beautiful, she had no beard.  Among his clan a woman without a beard had no prospects of finding a husband.  This woman seemed not to care.
   “Merry Greetings, Jornek, Gornek’s son.” she said with a voice that sounded musical to Tuir’s ears.    “Please do us the honor of your presence.” And with that she bowed slightly.
   “Greetings to you and may I return some of the hospitality that you show today.” Jornek said as he bowed even lower.
   “You’re the…the Xothia of the Rock?” Tuir stammered out.  This got him a angry glare from Jornek, but a small musical laugh from the woman.
   “Not yet young Tuir, that honor belongs to my mistress and teacher.  Come, she is waiting.”
   The followed the woman to another, even larger chamber filled with lights.  Tuir was surprised to see a few other women, even a gnome woman. Most were writing in long scrolls, some were to busy starring at the new guests.  Then an unbelievably old woman entered the room.  The rest of the women snapped to attention, she made a motion with her hand and they all left.  Like the first and the current old woman, none of the women had beards.
   She repeated the greeting to Jornek as the younger woman had, only she added his grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great grandfather as well.  Jornek had bowed even lower than he had before, his great beard sweeping the floor.  She then addressed Tuir. Jornek, as custom dictated, answered for his young charge. Tuir was too dazed to say anything or even move.  It was not till he got a withering glance from the elder dwarf that he too bowed low.
   Finally the Xothia looked at Tuir, starring at him, or through him, as if to divine his need.  She seemed to be unbelievably ancient to the young dwarf, and yet he still saw something in her eyes that spoke of youth. She addressed him in voice that reminded him of the echo of a subterranean pool.
   “Got yourself into a bit of trouble have we Tuir? Magic trouble no less.”  She asked, but not waiting for an answer. “My, my quite a bit of trouble for one so young.”
   “He is a fool Xothia, were he not my sister’s son.” Jornek started but was cut short by the woman. To Tuir’s surprise, and he admitted delight, Jornek seemed quite taken aback at this.
   “It is the privilege of youth to be foolish, but the responsibility of the aged to be wise.  If we wish not our young ones to be fools then we must teach them.” She said without even looking at Jornek.  In their clan no one would have silenced Jornek as if he were child. But no one in their clan was the Xothia either.
   “Now young Tuir” she continued “will you allow a old woman the chance to help and maybe even teach you a thing or two about this world?”

The Xothia

Xothia of the Rock by Daniel Brannan

The dwarven witch feels isolation from her normal community due the distrust of arcane magic among dwarves.  This distrust seems to date back in time to the first recorded appearance of dwarven witches, a coincidence that seems too strong to ignore.

In dwarven society, men and women are regarded as equals.  The dwarven witch is seen as contrary to this established reality.  Most dwarven witches feel deep fear when they first hear the Call and either leave their communities or try to suppress what they now know and feel. Dwarven witches become Solitaries, learning their art and faith directly from the Mother of Dwarves herself.

The social stigma of being a magic-using dwarf is tough to bear; and due their nature, dwarven witches tend to be far more chaotic than the normal dwarf population. While some find content with this life, others are constantly reminded that they will never truly belong, either as a dwarf or as a witch.  Dwarven witches are the rarest form of witch one will encounter.

The Xothia (“Zoe-thee-Ah”) witch of dwarven communities has taken her nearly insurmountable odds and turned them into unique advantages.  Feared for her power, isolated because of her ideals, and respected for her knowledge, the Xothia has become a living repository of dwarven lore, knowledge and magic.  All Xothia are female -- no male has ever joined their ranks -- and all are beardless.  Whether the Xothia are born that way or have their beard removed is one of but hundreds of their closely guarded secrets.  The leader of a coven of Xothia is often known as the Xothia, and is usually centuries old.  She is regarded as an advisor and sage to dwarven leaders; many will travel days or weeks to seek her out.

The Xothia lives apart from the main community of dwarves, where she and her coven can use magic to scry and record all that needs to be known.  Often such answers cannot be gathered by magic and the Xothia witch must travel the world in search of them.  A full coven of Xothia is nine witches, eight members and the Xothia.  Their manner and style of clothing have often been described as “elf-like,” not in insult, but as a means for the common dwarf to label what she does not know.  The ritual tools of the Xothia are the “Labrys” or small double bladed axe, and the “Malleus” or hammer. The labrys may be wielded with one hand.  It has two semi-circular blades on either side.  The labrys has a small knob on top of the shaft located between the two blades.

The Xothia Tradition is most similar to the Craft of the Wise, Classical or Family Traditions of Witchcraft and they may take the same Occult powers of those traditions.

The highest level witch regardless of level or title is known as The Xothia.

XOTHIA (Dwarf) WITCH EXPERIENCE TABLE
Level	Title	XP	HD	1	2	3	4	5
1	Dwarf Initiate	0	1d6	1
2	DwarfNeophyte	3,000	2d6	2
3	Dwarf Apprentice	6,000	3d6	2	1
4	Dwarf Sybil	12,000	4d6	2	2
5	Dwarf Adept	25,000	5d6	3	2	1
6	Dwarf Mystic	50,000	6d6	3	2	2
7	Dwarf Enchantress	110,000	7d6	3	3	2	1
8	Dwarf Sorceress	220,000	8d6	4	3	2	2
9	Xothia	400,000	9d6	4	3	3	2	1
10	Xothia	600,000	9d6+1	4	4	3	2	2
11	Xothia	800,000	9d6+2	4	4	4	3	2
12	Xothia	1,000,000	9d6+3	4	4	4	4	3
13	Xothia ("The Xothia")	1,200,000	9d6+4	4	4	4	4	4

XOTHIA (Dwarf) SAVING THROWS
Level	1-3		4-6		7-9	10-12	13
Death Ray or Poison	12		10		8	6	4
Magic Wands*	12		10		8	6	3
Paralysis or Turn to Stone	13		11		9	7	5
Dragon Breath	15		12		10	8	6
Rods, Staffs and Spells* *Includes the bonuses Dwarven Witches also gain.	14		11		9	7	4

CHARACTER HIT ROLLS (on 1d20)
Level	Target's Armor Class
Dwarf	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1	0	-1	-2	-3	-4	-5	-6	-7	-8	-9
1-3	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	20	20	20	20	21	22	23	24
4-6	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	20	20	20	20	21	22
7-9	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	20	20	20	20
10-12	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	20	20
13	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20

Section 15.
The Witch Copyright 2012 Timothy S. Brannan
"Dwarf Xothia" Copyright 2012 Timothy S. Brannan

The Hobbit

For many gamers my age The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings were our gateway drug to D&D.  Of all the tales, the Hobbit is the most "D&D" of them.  Instead of a lengthy review I will say I loved it, I want to see it again.  Here are some other reviews from other game bloggers.

• http://overpricedpopcorn.blogspot.com/2012/12/review-peter-jacksons-hobbit-unexpected.html
• http://tankardsandbroadswords.blogspot.com/2012/12/movie-review-hobbit-unexpected-journey.html
• http://trolldens.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-hobbit.html
• http://originaleditionfantasy.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-hobbit-review.html
• http://www.risusmonkey.com/2012/12/an-unexpected-journey-for-parent.html 
• http://lordgwydion.blogspot.com/2012/12/movie-review-hobbit-unexpected-journey.html
• http://greyhawkgrognard.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-hobbit-unexpected-journey.html
• http://towerofthearchmage.blogspot.com/2012/12/review-hobit-unexpected-journey.html

Here are the things that I liked or otherwise stood out for me.  In the Rankin-Bass cartoon all the dwarves looked alike.  It was difficult to tell who was who and unless you had read the book a dozen or few times like I had names were also forgotten.  The dwarves in this movie are all individuals. The odd looking styles that everyone seemed to be complaining about worked well on the film.  It helped you tell the difference between Kili and Fili, Oin and Gloin and all the rest.  No hoods of various colors for these dwarfs, it was, according to my kids, the crazy one with the hammer, the crazy one with the bow or the slingshot.  

Thorin's Oakenshield.  I never thought much about "Oakensheild" to be honest.  Back in the day when I first read the Hobbit I assumed it was a family name.  Well the "Oakensheild" in the movie was pretty damn cool.  

Goblins vs. Orcs.  I like how there is explicit difference between these two races. We get both in this movie.

"That's What Bilbo Baggins Hates!" I would have been disappointed if this had not made it into the movie.

Radagast The Brown.  Ok, so Sylvester McCoy does come off a little bit like the Doctor in this.  But my wife and kids who are Doctor Who fans but have not seen any of McCoy's episodes didn't see that.  I do admit that despite all of that I enjoyed seeing on the big screen and enjoyed all the scenes he was in.

Riddles in the Dark.  Again a great scene. Held all the comedy and menace that the book did.

In general I liked the editions since I felt they were true to the spirit of the book.  If I want something that 100% true to the book I will read the book.  The movie though is it own thing.

I am looking forward to owning this on BluRay when it comes out.