Masters & Commanders Pt. I

In the first of the articles intended to convert Star Phoenix crew members to D&D BECMI, I had detailed Captain Isledemer d’Alberran. Here’s the shyship’s first mate, Enna Daggart. She was first described in CAL1 “In Stranger Skies,” page 110, for Pathfinder. If you haven’t read the first article, click here for details, and familiarize yourself with Calidar’s peculiarities. Reminder: weapon damage listed here reflects the Weapons Mastery Table (Rules Cyclopedia, pg. 78-79).

"Black Lily" (Credit Unknown)

First Mate Enna Daggart: AC 4 (unarmored), Lvl 9 swashbuckler, hp 50, MV 120’ (40’), AT 1 cutlass +1 (right hand, master skill), Dmg 3d6+3 cutlass, Size M—Str 14, Dex 15 (Agt 15/Dex 12), Con 15, Int 15, Wis 14, Cha 14, ML 10, Saves as fighter, NP 3*, AL Neutral (or “Lawful Neutral” in other game versions). Faith: none established. Credentials: none. Apparent Age: 30s. Ancestry: human; unknown origins. (*) NP: see note on Notoriety Points below.

Abilities: 

         General Skills—Set #1 Airship Commander (no penalty) incl. Aerial Navigation (Int), Leadership (Cha), Piloting (Dex), Deck Weapons (Int), Skyship Tactics (Wis), and Weather Sense (Wis); Set #2 Swashbuckler (–2 penalty) incl. Acrobatics (Agt), Alertness (Agt), Bravery (Wis), and Quick Draw; Individual Skills incl. Bargaining (Cha), and Horse Riding (Agt).

         Weapon Proficiencies—basic proficiency with daggers, light crossbows, and ballistae; master proficiency with cutlass. Commander’s Rating—(16) Expert (see Skyship Saving Throws).

Equipment: Cutlass +1/+3 vs. sea & sky pirates, bracers of armor +3, earring of airmanship (+2 bonus to basic sailor skill checks), two-way scroll of communication (connected with Capt. d’Alberran’s), potion of healing.

Galadriel by Magali Villeneuve

© Fantasy Flight Games

Ship Master Arabesque Starward: AC 2 (armored), Lvl 9 cleric, hp 35, MV 120’ (40’), AT 1 barbed spear +2 (right hand, “skilled” mastery), Dmg 1d6+3* spear (20/40/60), Size M—Str 12, Dex 16 (Agt 13/Dex 16), Con 11, Int 14, Wis 17, Cha 16, ML 10, NP 3*, Saves as cleric, AL Lawful (or “Lawful Good” in other game versions). Faith: Istra (Meryath). Credentials: none. Apparent Age: 30s. Ancestry: elven; unknown origins. (*) NP: see note on Notoriety Points below. (**) The spear’s barbs do an extra point of damage.

Abilities: 

         Clerical Spellcasting—L1 x3, L2 x3, L3 x3, L4 x2.

         General Skills—Healer Set (no penalty) incl. Alchemy (Int), Herbalist (Int), Healing (Int), Knowledge of Poisons (Int); Navigator Set (no penalty) incl. Aerial Navigation (Int), Leadership (Cha), Mapping/Cartography (Int), Weather Sense (Wis); Chaplain Set (–2 penalty) incl. Ceremony (Wis—Istra), Persuasion (Cha), Singing (Cha), Storytelling (Cha). 

         Weapon Proficiencies—basic proficiency with sword, longbow, dagger; “skilled” proficiency with barbed spear. Commander’s Rating—(15) Good (see Skyship Saving Throws).

Clerical Details: 

         Cult Symbol—red hibiscus on a hand-size silver disc, usually worn as a medallion. 

         Hated Foes—Draconic knights, Queen Sayble of Draconia

         Cult Benefits: +1 bonus to attack rolls and damage against hated foes; Sacred Animal—Kiwi or giant kiwi.

Equipment: Barbed spear +2, chain mail +2, bezoar stone (+2 bonus to Alchemy skill checks when making poison antidote), potion of healing.

Faiths in Calidar: Particular attention was paid to the costs and benefits of divine faith. CC1 “Beyond the Skies” brings to life scores of gods, organized pantheons, their historical timelines, and ancient legends. It details how this affects cult followers and their clerics. A key feature is the Divine Favor, a single-use magical feat granted to the faithful proving worthy of their deities’ trust. Displeasing a godly patron may also result in a Divine Wound. CC1 spells out much about the interactions among deities and between rival pantheons, defining motivations and politics among clerics, temples, and orders of knights—and therefore, how to role play characters, from unrepentant heathens to fanatical zealots. Arabesque’s Hated Foes are just an example. Though Calidar features gods, they are in many ways similar to the D&D Game’s immortals.

NP—Notoriety Points: They are a feature of the World of Calidar (CAL1 “In Stranger Skies,” page 86). The concept of Eternal Glory revolves around the general idea that one isn’t truly dead until forgotten by all, meaning that heroes never die while tales of their deeds are told in homes, taverns, theaters, or books. In other words, one might be thought to be immortal when achieving legendary status. The magic of Calidar springs from its World Soul. If an idea is strong enough, this World Soul can bring into existence such things as gods or the most horrid of creatures—all it takes is the beliefs of many. Legends can be most powerful on Calidar. One manifestation of this concerns heroes who, after reaching a certain Notoriety, become epic heroes or fabled scoundrels, and cease to age. If they progress even further, they may indeed attain demigodhood (or become demons). This philosophy is strongest in Meryath, an extravagant kingdom where the cult of heroes permeates much of its local culture, economy, laws, and politics. Indeed in the eyes of many an adventurer in Meryath, joining the Star Phoenix’s crew offers the prospect of quick Notoriety despite a life fraught with perils and probable death.

Click here for the next two Star Phoenix officers.

As regards Calidar's present Kickstarter, the announcement was made official about the next project to produce kits translating the series system-agnostic stats into the D&D Game's Fifth Edition (subject to copyright and OGL limitations.) Along the same line, additional kits may follow to accommodate earlier versions of the game, by way of existing OSR systems. These will be free PDF releases and/or low-cost POD booklets.