Dicefreaks D20 Community is proud to present the first PDF release of Songs of the Sidhe, our collection of material relating to Faerie, the realm of the fey courts, giant kingdoms, and other mysterious beings. This chapter features setting, ecology, culture, power groups, and gamemastering advice for using this otherworldly place.
The first step is taken:
Songs of the Sidhe: Into the Otherworld (file is PDF) (http://www-personal.umich.edu/~dnross/SongsOfTheSidhe1.pdf)
Please feel free to share your thoughts and questions here or at Dicefreaks (http://dicefreaks.superforums.org/). :)
Songs of the Sidhe is compatible (perhaps with slight tweaks) with most Dungeons & Dragons settings and with 3e/3.5e D&D and PFRPG rules.
Yes yes yes!
Dicefreaks' much-earlier release concerning the Nine Hells remains my go-to resource for infernal inspiration in D&D. To this day I still marvel that I could access such a treasure trove, absolutely free.
At a glance, Songs of the Sidhe seems to hold to the same ethos. This can only be a good thing. :D
This is fantastic. I love it. Haven't been able to go through it all yet, but it looks like there will be more than a few ideas I might have to steal for Cad Goleor.
Thanks for the positive reactions! I do hope you'll share your thoughts when you've read through the document as well. :D
Quote from: Sir Digby Chicken CaesarDicefreaks' much-earlier release concerning the Nine Hells remains my go-to resource for infernal inspiration in D&D. To this day I still marvel that I could access such a treasure trove, absolutely free.
It was just that sort of thing which motivated me to join the community. But don't forget their other projects! Other contributors have been putting out material on The Abyss (http://dicefreaks.superforums.org/viewforum.php?f=12) and the Godspell Campaign Setting (http://dicefreaks.superforums.org/viewforum.php?f=7), among other things, in the meantime. ;)
I like the amount of detail that this goes into.
The Seelie and Unseelie Courts as presented, I simultaneously really like and yet don't like. I really like that they both latch onto themes of natural cycles. I am weirdly conflicted about the good/evil dichotomy of the two. It's almost necessary, and the "blessed" vs. "Unblessed" origins of the terms does kinda imply that much, but even Seelie Fairies are tricksters, and sometimes cause problems for mortals. In this way, I rather like that "Common Fey" tend not to take their Court ideals too seriously. The various factions within the courts gets a bit confusing, though, which, while more realistic than monolithic organizations, in this case seems, to me, to contradict the feel of the two opposing courts.
I'm not entirely sure why there are two separate layers of Faerie, other than to satisfy the roots-trunk-leaves triad of the Tree of Life motif. If that is the reason, the Tree of Life itself is given surprisingly little attention.
I REALLY like Elphame. Still not sure what a huldra is though, as I hadn't heard of them before. I was familiar with the concept of Faerie fruit and its emptiness, but this place takes that idea to a whole other level, that is just awesomely dark. The illusionist queen who plays vapid to throw people off is particularly cool, and the image of Unseelie Courtesans eating the people who wasted away there is crazy-cool.
Quote from: Seraphine_HarmoniumThe Seelie and Unseelie Courts as presented, I simultaneously really like and yet don't like. I really like that they both latch onto themes of natural cycles. I am weirdly conflicted about the good/evil dichotomy of the two. It's almost necessary, and the "blessed" vs. "Unblessed" origins of the terms does kinda imply that much, but even Seelie Fairies are tricksters, and sometimes cause problems for mortals. In this way, I rather like that "Common Fey" tend not to take their Court ideals too seriously. The various factions within the courts gets a bit confusing, though, which, while more realistic than monolithic organizations, in this case seems, to me, to contradict the feel of the two opposing courts.
Different factions are both because they are more realistic and to make sure that each court can be useful in a wide variety of stories. I'm not sure what about that would seem to contradict the feel of the courts, so I would be curious to have you elaborate on that point.
Quote from: Seraphine_HarmoniumI'm not entirely sure why there are two separate layers of Faerie, other than to satisfy the roots-trunk-leaves triad of the Tree of Life motif.
Not at all. In fact, the Tree of Life motif was added only after the layer structure was decided upon. The point is twofold: First, to reflect different ideas of the Otherworld, some more dramatically different from the mortal world than others, and second, to provide a clear area for GMs to innovate in terms of geography and power players without having to re-imagine our material. Dicefreaks material assumes a lightly modified version of the Great Wheel cosmology, in which many very different mortal worlds coexist, so we took a bit of effort to respect the diversity of worlds out there. A few might have very powerful and present Faerie Courts behind the scenes, while others have little connection to Faerie, and the buffer of Annwn makes that easier to work from a logistical perspective.
Quote from: Seraphine_HarmoniumI REALLY like Elphame. Still not sure what a huldra is though, as I hadn't heard of them before.
Thanks! :D We plan to eventually release a chapter of new monsters including ones like that. In the meantime, you can learn more about our new fey races at the forum for
Songs of the Sidhe over here: http://dicefreaks.superforums.org/viewforum.php?f=13
For the huldra in particular, there is this thread: http://dicefreaks.superforums.org/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=1968
Queen Vae will also be getting more detail in a later chapter, and you can see some of what's coming in her profile along with many other fey leaders here: http://dicefreaks.superforums.org/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=2192
And you can always ask if you can't find material you are looking for. :)
Well, I suppose that explanation of the two levels makes sense. I personally would pick one "idea of the Otherworld" and run with it, but I understand designing different otherworlds if you are trying to accommodate different types of play.
As for the feel, I suppose I think of the fae not operating quite the same way humans do. I want my denizens of the otherworld to be . . . well, otherworldly. Of course, there are plenty of examples of the otherworld being similar to the mortal world, so I would really say it's a criticism, just a matter of taste, and detail that I can't really explain.
Quote from: Seraphine_HarmoniumAs for the feel, I suppose I think of the fae not operating quite the same way humans do. I want my denizens of the otherworld to be . . . well, otherworldly. Of course, there are plenty of examples of the otherworld being similar to the mortal world, so I would really say it's a criticism, just a matter of taste, and detail that I can't really explain.
Ah. Fair enough. I may have made it subtler than I intended, but these beings don't quite have the degree of free will mortals claim--each one is defined by its bond in a way that will always restrict the choices they might make. I just didn't decide to tie those bonds into a monolithic court leadership. Instead, since each creature is guided by only a piece of the whole picture, they reach different conclusions than their fellows and so argue or act at cross-purposes.
If it feels any better to you, I should note that many fey, especially among the Seelie, are loyal to a fault when it comes to their queens and kings (the exception being the Unseelie), since a lord's bond generally encompasses all that the servant is and much more. They usually only scheme and clash against rivals below their liege's level.
And by the way, I would appreciate it if you could link folks to this work if you do decide to use any elements from it in your own setting! ;)