D&D General GM's Closet for the CONAN RPG

-- NOTES --



The town of Seven Stones Ridge, and in fact, the Blue Fox clan, is run by the Duncohr family. What you see below are notes on the older NPCs.



The Duncohrs have been weaponsmiths for generations. Originally, the family were clansmen of the Grath. They led the clanwar that is referred to as The Separation, which broke off their village of Seven Stones Ridge from the Grath. The new clan is called: The Blue Fox.

The Cimmerian blue fox is a crafty animal. During the Separation, the men from Seven Stones Ridge did not fight in the usual face-to-face manner. The Cimmerian Way was thrown aside in favor of a more guerilla style of combat. It was the only way to fight a superior force. During the conflict, that lasted nearly two years, the Grath started referring to their foes as "Foxmen" or "Blue Foxmen". It is a comparison between the Stoner fighting style and the guile and ingenuity of the Cimmerian blue fox.

It also helped that the area of Seven Stones Ridge is pocketed by blue fox warrens.

The native Cimmerian word for the blue fox is "urro", and, thus, the clansmen call themselves Urrough, Foxmen, or Blue Foxmen, interchangeably.



Old Fionn is an ageing mastersmith. He founded Seven Stones Ridge. Maeoral, his wife, died during the Separation, and Old Fionn is embittered about her loss, even after 20 years. They had five sons: Finn, Dael, Eanbotha, and Eregerth. The fifth son, Cael, is Dael's twin, but that one is without honor. The clansmen will not speak about him or even acknowledge his existence.



Finn Elder is the current Chieftain of the Blue Fox clan. This is Caelis' father. Lyme, his wife, died during the childbirth of triplets. Caelis' elder brother is Branoc, and Caelis' twin, Padran, was still born. Padran is buried in the Mound of the Dead within the village.



Dael runs the Duncohr Forge with Finn Elder. His wife would not turn away from her family during the Separation and remained a Grath.

Dael's daughter, Brenna, raised Caelis and his brother Branoc, though she is only a few years older then they. Brenna is an herbalist.

Brenna married an Aesir boy that was sent to live among the Foxmen as an act of good-faith trade. Hrathnar owns the three horses in the clan. He and Brenna have a little girl they named, in the Aesir fashion, Freya. Hrathnar helps run the Duncohr Forge and urges expanded trade with other clans. Hrathnar taught you to speak the Nordheimer language.



Eanbotha is the Skywarrior. That's the War Chief position among the Blue Fox. His wife and children did not survive the harsh winter that occurred during the Separation. Since, he has made company with Nahn the Weaver, though he will not marry her.

Nahn is the mother of both Foilloch and Huogh.



Eregerth was a wayward Duncohr son. He had his fill of bloodshed, brother against brother, during the Separation. He killed too many of his friends. A decade agone, he left the clan to follow his wanderlust. He has since had many adventures and just recently returned to Seven Stones Ridge. He likes a good, hardy drink. And, Caelis is his favorite nephew. He has given Caelis a shirt of Turanian chainmail--a kingly gift, indeed.

FAQ


Here is an old FAQ that Mongoose put out with the release of the Conan The Barbarian RPG. Clicky, clicky.

CIMMERIAN BLUE STEEL



If you are a Howard purist, you probably like your Cimmerians to be poor, low-tech barbarians. I like to keep the fantastic element in this sword & sorcerery universe, and thus, I don't scoff at the idea that Cimmerians are master smiths that know a little something extra about steel. 1982's Conan The Barbarian rested on this premise, though it is not an original Howard idea.

Like this entire thread, pick and and choose what you like. Leave the rest.

There's a quick, off-hand remark about Cimmerian blue iron-ore in the Catacombs of Hyboria supplement. Here, I'm simply taking that idea and marrying it to the Riddle of Steel myth from the 1982 movie, using one of the rules that is already in the game.

The crafting rules on pg. 97 of the Core Rulebook (2E) discuss the creation of Masterwork and High Quality items. A special component is needed. I submit that this rare, blue iron-ore, found only in Cimmeria, is the component needed to make Masterwork Cimmerian weapons.

Cimmerian Blue Steel weapons are masterwork items that have a +1 damage bonus and a minimum hardness of 10.





REAL HISTORY NOTE: There is actually a precedent for this idea among the pages of real history. Pattern welded steel was developed in the Rhineland, but the secret of its manufacture was kept to only a few smiths in that region. Pattern welding is a process of braiding steel of various strengths so as to maintain the flexibility of softer steels while retaining the hardness and edge of denser steels. This is a similar concept to Damascus Steel, and it too tends to create a visual effect.

Charlemagne would eventually draft laws forbidding the trade of pattern welded steel to such tribes as the Vikings and the Avars, but when the Vikings acquired such blades, they also learned the technique. The Vikings would eventually improve upon these weapons to the degree that each blade be able to bend a full inch to either side and then return to its original state without warping.

At some point during the many wars of Europe, the secret of pattern welding was lost, and when the Vikings eventually began to fade as a world influence, so did the secret of pattern welding.

LEATHER HAND WRAPPINGS
Simple Unarmed Attack Weapon



These are long thick leather straps, sometimes made from horse reins, wrapped around the forearm, wrist, and knuckles, enabling the user to land more solid blows with his fist (also providing wrist support). These wrappings increase Unarmed Strikes made with the fist by one die code. This means that the warrior will deliver 1d4 + STR modifier damage with an Unarmed Strike.

Cost: .5 sp (2 bits)

Finesse: Yes
Damage: +1 die code to Unarmed Attacks
Critical: x2
Armor Piercing: --

Range Increment: --

Material: Leather
Hardness: 3
Hit Points: 8

Weight: 2.5 lbs.
Type: Bludgeoning















SPIKED LEATHER HAND WRAPPINGS
Simple Unarmed Attack Weapon



Sometimes, spikes or nails are added to the knuckle glove, resulting in a weapon that does normal lethal damage.

Cost: .75 sp (3 bits)

Finesse: Yes
Damage: 1d4
Critical: x2
Armor Piercing: --

Range Increment: --

Material: Leather/Metal
Hardness: 4
Hit Points: 9

Weight: 3 lbs.
Type: Piercing

COMMON LEATHER ARMORS



Leather clothing is found in all regions of the known world, and it is the most common form of protective clothing during the Hyborian Age. It is used in barbaric cultures, among the people of border regions, and even by those who live inside major Hyborian cities.

Curing is a process by which excess water is removed from hide, typically by use of salt. The leather is heavily salted then pressed into packs for a month. This process preserves the life of the skin, protecting it from spoiling.

Tanning: Since skins could often become coarse, odorous, and stiff with age, people have experimented with various oily substances, rubbing them into the hides to soften them. Eventually, it was discovered that certain kinds of tree bark contained "tannin", which is a substance we know today as tannic acid. This substance, when spread on hides, made the leather both pilable and durable. This process of manufacturing is called "tanning". Clothing fashioned from tanned leather is more comfortable and effective than that made of cured skins or layers of hides and furs. Tanned leather, during the Hyborian Age, is the basis for most types of durable heavy clothing and armor.

If you need basic hide armor in your game--just animal skins that are not cured or tanned--look to page 23 of Barbaric Treasures, where the Hide Jerkin is listed. Most of your leather armor needs, though, will be fulfilled by the Leather Jerkin entry in the Equipment chapter of the core rulebook. That represents typical tanned leather armor--usually a leather tunic and/or breeches. A leather jerkin is usually worn with wool or cotton pants, cloth kilt, or other types of leg covering--all qualifying as this type of armor.

With the Leather Jerkin commonplace, most Hyborian Age cultures turn to mail and layered armors for higher protection. But, a few cultures continue with the advancement of leather as a base material in the production of Heavy Hide. This armor consists of prepared, treated and tanned hides that could layer up to three inches thick. Sometimes lined with fawn, calf, or kid skin inside for comfort, this armor is bulky and stiff. In cold climes, fur is left on these hides allowing the armor to be as protective as winter clothing.



HEAVY HIDE
Medium Armor

Cost: 55 sp

Damage Reduction: 5
Maximum DEX Bonus: +4
Armor Check Penalty: -3

Sorcery Failure: 50%

Speed: 25 ft.
Weight: 25 lbs.

Material: Leather
Hardness: 5
Hit Points: 50



HYPERBOREAN HIDE - The people of northern Hyperborea are known to produce the most protective Hide Armor in the known world. This is a process of layering bear and mountain goat hides before soaking them in pine sap. The resulting stiff rigid leather sheets are then bent and hammered into wearable shapes that are often decorated with fur, teeth, polished wood, ivory, and the like. The game stats for this armor mirror that shown above fairly closely, but the damage reduction rating is increased to DR 6. The cost, too, is nearly three times as much as normal Heavy Hide armor. For more information, see page 47 of The Warrior's Companion.

If you need other versions of leather armor in your game (maybe you want to customize by culture), From Stone To Steel is a fantastic resource. That book will give you stats in standard d20 format. You'll have to convert to "Conanize" that equipment. For the Cost, I suggest that you make an educated guess, comparing whatever type of armor you are creating with the closest like armor in the game.

Sorcery Failure in the Conan RPG is much higher than the standard d20 Spell Failure percentage. I suggest that you compare the Max DEX Bonus and Armor Check Penalty to other armors in the game, then make a guestimation from there. Note that metal armors always have much higher Sorcery Failure stats.

The Speed rating for the armor will either be 30 ft. or 25 ft. All Light Armors are rated at 30 ft., while Medium and Heavy Armors are rated at 25 ft.

You will ignore the Armor Bonus column, of course, since armor in the Conan RPG does not make characters harder to hit. Figuring the Damage Reduction for the armor is easy, though, since all armors in From Stone To Steel are provided with a Hardness figure and item Hit Points. The DR for the armor will be exactly or close the armor's Hardenss. Even here, though, you must compare your armor with like armors in the game because I've noticed that some armors in the book have Hardness numbers that are probably too high for DR ratings.

Max DEX Bonus and Armor Check Penalty remains the same as listed in the book.

This is the process I used to create the Heavy Hide armor that you see above.

Just got tipped off to this Kickstarter.

It looks perfect for continuing support for your Conan games. The Pathfinder edition would translate easily to Mongoose's d20 Conan RPG engine.

Check it out. Primeval Thule