The Campaign Builder's Guild

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This is a brainstorming thread for tossing around some less than complete setting element ideas of mine. Don't expect anything definite or final in here.
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Sorceresses
Sorceresses are magical beings clad in an aura of mystique. Supposed to be descendants of gods or monsters, they are feared for their inscrutable powers and inhuman cunning. They stand outside the order of civilization, often making their homes on remote islands or in hidden places deep in untrod wilderness. In the legends of old, heroes would often encounter sorceresses during their journeys, and were as likely to receive aid from them as they were to be struck by their wrath.

Magical Powers of a Sorceress

Each sorceress is possessed of her own unique set of strange and arbitrary abilities. The following list presents many such powers that any one sorceress might command.

• A sorceress may sense her name being spoken, becoming aware of the speaker's identity
• A sorceress may cast an item on the waves of the sea or on high winds, and it will be carried whence she wishes
• A sorceress may whisper and be heard clearly across a very long distance
• A sorceress may see in the dark of night, and see things hidden or concealed
• A sorceress may cast sortes (lots) in a situla (ceremonial bowl) to divine answers to questions
• A sorceress may observe visions on the surface of water filling a situla
• A sorceress may walk unharmed among wild beasts and snakes and the vermin of the earth, and command them to do her bidding
• A sorceress may instill metamorphoses upon people and animals and plants, and upon ojects inanimate
• A sorceress may place a curse upon a person, or a thing, or a place
• A sorceress may live youthful eternal, untouched by the ravages of time, retaining her vigor and beauty
• A sorceress may instill slumber by touch upon an unsuspecting person
• A sorceress may dance on a mountaintop to calm or raise the winds
• A sorceress may ritually bathe in a body of water to raise a cloud of mist from it
• A sorceress may sing and dance on the fields under moonlight to blight the crops
• A sorceress may restore or bolster the fertility of a person by laying with them
• A sorceress may place a ward upon an area or object, to prevent entry or theft
• A sorceress may be invulnerable to poison, fire, strangling, or some other specific form of harm
• A sorceress may steal a person's tongue by a kiss, and thereafter speak with their tongue
• A sorceress may create wickedly poisoned arrows

Some sorceresses make use of special wands to work their magic, such as curses and wards. Some might offer food or drink, or other gifts, to their victims in order to affect them. Some rely on uttering poetic incantations.

In general, the powers of a sorceress are irresistable, failing only if the intended object is magically protected, such as by means of a talisman or a herbal drug. Any such measure of protection might work only against a specific power wielded by a specific sorceress, and thus would require foreknowledge acquired from eg. an oracle.

That sounds really awesome.  Can sorceresses do some other traditional things, like sending their souls out to spy on other locations at night or stealing milk from cattle, goats, sheep, or mothers?  What about creating familiars or commanding spirits?

I also like this. In a hypothetical Savage Age game, it definitely seems like the sort of class (or archetype, or whatever) that I would strongly consider playing. The "grab bag" of interesting and varied but not overtly combat-oriented powers and the general mysterious nature of the character are the draw, I think.

From what I know of Savage Age, it seems like esoteric and subtle powers like these are more suited to the setting than blasters, anyway.

This is super cool. I may have to steal some of it :)

Glad to hear you liked the Sorceress. :)

Now, some ideas for monsters:

[ic=The Acherian Wolf ]
The legendary beast that ravaged the cattle herds of Acheria. Said to stand as tall as the roof of a shepherd's hut, it's fur black as night and streaked with silver. The sound of it's howl is so terrible that all men who hear it are driven mad. There is but one way the Acherian wolf can be slain: two mortal blows must be struck upon it simultaneously. An old tale tells of the fabled wolf-hunt by a band of great heroes that almost managed to fell the beast -- they caught it in a ravine and, by an accident decreed by the gods, three deadly strokes were dealt, thereby allowing the wolf to survive and escape.[/ic]

[ic=Winged Cats ]
Cats with feathered wings, capable of flight and possessed of the gift of speech. They turn invisible when staying still and become visible again when they move. They act as messengers to gods and other powerful beings.[/ic]

[ic=Cacopteroi]
A flock of monstrous birds from the Underworld with razor-sharp, obsidian edged wing feathers. They attack by shedding their feathers and flinging them at their target in a murderous shower. Cacopteroi eggs are believed to have potent medicinal and alchemical qualities, but stealing them from the nests would be a suicidal task.[/ic]

Mediums

Mediums straddle the twilight between the spiritual realms and the world of mortals. Their ability to contact the otherworlds enables them to divine and influence the fortunes of people, and to deal with various kinds of spirits. They are a diverse lot, ranging from illiterate vagabond fortune tellers and wild-eyed extacy cultists to respected court diviners and clerical seers.

Magical Powers of a Medium

• A Medium senses the presense of the spiritual - whether the divine aura of a miracle, the proximity of a minor nature-god, the manifestation of a restless ghost, or the numinous space of a genius loci.
• A Medium may fall into a trance to experience prophetic visions, or to embark on a dream-quest.
• A Medium may conduct a ritual to attract the attention of nearby spirits and ask for their guidance.
• A Medium may perform necromanteia on the place where a person died, by the urn containing their ashes, or by an entrance to the Underworld, so as to contact the ghost of that person.
• A Medium may perform ritual exorcism to drive malevolent spirits from a haunted place or person.

More monster ideas:

[ic=Zemon]
A huge and misshapen toad-thing, with a thicket of porcupine quills growing on it's back. A cloud of noxous miasma flows about it always, and it brings blight upon crops wherever it treads. To behold the grotesque visage of the Zemon is to be cursed with twelve years of bad luck.
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[ic=Stygians]
A race of antediluvian giants, cast into the lowest pits of the Underworld. Their legs elongate into scaled bodies of coiling serpents, testifying to their chthonic nature. They bear multiple heads upon slender necks that branch like trees; their faces alike to masks of purest gold, eerily androgynous and flawlessly beautiful. Their breath is so venomous that a single exhalation will instantly kill any man.
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[ic=The Wanderer of Granike]
A local legend tells of a fell apparition that haunts the roads near Granike. In the hours of twilight it reveals itself to travelers, asking for directions to some place or another. The destination it seeks is never one it has sought before. Should truthful directions be given, the stranger will bid farewells and take to the road, and some kind of misfortune will soon befall that place. If false directions are instead provided, the wanderer will likewise be on it's way, but now a grim and terrible fate will be upon the liars. Travelers that refuse to give directions will provoke the creature's wrath, and it assails them with relentless fury. The monster may be recognized thusly: it has a right foot in place of it's left foot, and a left foot where it's right foot ought to be.
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