Ravenloft Archive Part 4: Arca

[brothersale]

Arca

By M. Morris

Website: Alanik Ray's Library

"It was like riding a cork through a waterfall sir... And WIND is not the name for what blows in yer face... It's somethin made of iron -- Swings at 'cha from the west -- Never changin... Day in, day out. With seas as high as the mainmast... There were lifelines rigged everywhere sir and there were still sixteen men washed overboard."

"The Cold?"

"Three men froze in the yards.... Frozen stiff... Couldn't get them down without cutting their fingers loose from the shrouds. I was lucky.."

- From Mutiny on the Bounty



The Land:
In the world of Carthasana there is a frozen wasteland far, far to the north of the civilized domains. One of those lands was long ago pulled into the mysts of Ravenloft to become, without doubt, the most bone chilling part of the Domain of Dread.

Arca was once part of The White Land, a domain under the providence of the Goddess Sere, Lady of the North Wind and the Cold. The natives of Arca still pay homage to the frozen goddess. If there is an end to Ravenloft, Arca is certainly one of them. It is said this land can be reached from either of the Core's two seas -- simply sail north and don't stop. Eventually the mysts will part and land you in Arca.

Arca is changed to obey the 365 day year of Ravenloft, rather than the 400 day long year of its native world. It is so far north though that here the sun itself will not shine for 65 days of the year. If night alone is terrifying, a seemingly unendless night is doubly so. But this is also the land of the Midnight Sun -- and those coming to this land to engage in sealing or wailing would be advised to try to arrive during this season and not stay for the night.

Arca is a frozen waste where what little existing life there is lives on the sea. There is a scattered amount of Tundra, and penguins, seals, and whales provide a food source for the three Inuit-like tribes which roam the region. Finally, there is one permanently established port for whalers to meet during the summer months. During the winter the place is all but abandoned.

Unlike many areas, where monsters are the greatest threat, the cold itself is the most dreaded advesary in Arca. In the summer temperatures can reach a balmy 20 degrees Farenheit (about -5 C) at most. In the great winter night though temperatures can plumment to -50 degrees (-45 centigrade) with wind chills off the sea plummeting to -100. In this enviroment exposed skin can frostbite in as little as 30 seconds, and the cold can kill outright in minutes. The simple act of picking up a metal dagger can be dangerous, as the metal can flash freeze to the skin and have to be cut off to be removed at all. DM's wishing to deal with Arca are strongly advised to read the chapter on Wilderness Survival in Dusk: Dungeon Master's Campaign Sourcebook at:

http://www.users.kih.net/~dusk/dcsb.htm
(unfortunately this is not available any more but i imagine Frostburn would work just as well)

There can be found rules for dealing with the brutal and savage conditions of the land.

Life, what little there is, revolves around sealife. In the summer the natives and whalers gather as much of a bounty as they can from the sea. The former store this beneath the permafrost where it will not spoil and the latter make for home before the winter sets in.

Those who have been transported to Arca and survived tell of a land of haunting beauty despite the deadly touch of Sere, Goddess of the North.

It is said that once one has been in the frozen wastes of the interior of Arca, even Cavitius looks inviting.

Not surprisingly, Icebergs present a deadly foe for ships trying to escape the white land. Some of these behemoths are larger than whole cities by themselves, and have more than enough to crush a ship to splinters


Cultural Level:
Stone Age for the natives. Visiting Whalers from other domains are usually Rennaissance in technology level.


The Folk:
Arca has one native tribe known as the Elsani. These people have existed in this region since before they can remember. They are nomadic, travelling along the coastlines of Arca in family groups of no more than 20. During the height of the summer though they gather in large feasts of up to several hundred, then disperse to continue the hunt. During the winter they return to semipermanent dwellings that are relatively well sheltered from the worst of the winter's wrath, or at least the winds.


Native Player Characters:
Player characters wishing to play an native of Arca should consult books on the Eskimo peoples of our own north.

Such character receive a +1 to their initial consititution score and an initial proficiency in Artic Survival. They cannot start with any metal working proficiency, reading / writing or proficiency in weapons not found in their culture, such as the sword. All classes allowed in Ravenloft are allowed, also, North Druids (specialty priests of Sere) are to be found in this region (see Dusk: Divinity)


Encounters:
Artic creatures abound, among the deadliest of which would be the polar bears. But easily the most dangerous encounter isn't a creature, it's the land itself. Without the proper knowledge death is assured in the frozen wastes of Arca. The land, more so than any other, is completely and totally unforgiving.


Magic of the White Land:
Magic is slightly different in Arca, just as in the White Land from which it came. All Elemental Fire Spells are suppressed -- they are considered one level higher than they actually are by the natives. Non natives may memorize them at their actual level, but will find that these spells occupy 2 whole slots (Hence a 5th level invoker memorizing fireball would find both his 3rd level slots occupied for the day). If spell point rules are used then the cost of all fireball spells to memorize is doubled for non-natives memorizing such spells. In either event, the effective level of the caster is halved, as is the spell's area of effect (if any).

Hence, a 7th level native wizard to Arca casting fireball would find the spell is considered 4th level, and it would deal 4d6 damage on a 10' radius, as opposed to the normal 20' radius.

Ice based spells have their areas of effect tripled, and native casters learn them as if they were one level LOWER than they actually are.

Further, all damage caps and areas of effect on these spells are doubled (cone of cold normally has a 10d4 damage cap, in Arca this is doubled to 20d4).

Other spells which rely neither on fire or ice are unchanged.



Saloi Asani

(Darklord of Arca)


Frost Vampire, Chaotic Evil

Armor Class: 1 STR 18/76 (20)
Movement: 12 DEX 18 (15)
Level/Hit Dice: 8+3 CON 16
Hit Points: 67 INT 15
THAC0: 11 WIS 16
No. of Att. 1 CHR 17
Damage / Att. 1d6
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defense: +3 weapon to hit
Magic Resistance: 10%

*Numbers in paranthesis refer to Saloi's Polar Bear form.


Appearance:
Saloi is a pale, snow white skinned woman appearing to be in her late twenties, standing about 5 feet tall. Her hair is jet black and kept tied back at all times.


Background:
An Elsani by birth, Saloi lived a rather complacent and typical life among her people until they met up with some whalers from the southern lands when she was a young woman. The crew of that ship agreed to work with the natives in order to further each's catch, although the Elsani didn't realize how many whales the whalers where out to slaughter. When they did catch on, they became affronted and left, except for Saloi. She had fell in love with the captain of that vessel, one Andrew Harker. She continued to guide the crew until they prepared to leave. Saloi accidently overheard Andrew dictating a log entry to the botswain of the ship, in which he mentioned that he had a wife and children. Feeling betrayed, she confronted him, and he angrily threw her off the ship into the icy waters. She bitterly cursed him and prayed for the power to gain vengance. Sere heard her cry, and granted her a new "life."

The following spring Andrew Harker's ship returned. Mercilessly, she captured and killed crewmembers one by one, starting with the cabin boy -- freezing each of them to death. When she finally got to Andrew she tied him to an ice floe and watched as he slowly froze to death. Although an evil goddess by nature, even Sere was affronted by this level of depravity, and she consended to allow the dark powers to take Saloi and the section of Sere's domain she had tainted into the mysts of Ravenloft for all time.


Current Sketch:
Saloi is a Frost Vampire, a unique specimen unlike any other to be found in the mysts. She desperately wishes to be reunited with the people she forsook, and for whom she claimed to destory Harker and his crew. But as she is now a creature of the night, they shun her more than ever before. As a result, she has turned to preying upon them in order to sate her hunger for warmth.


Closing the Borders:
Saloi can command the massive icebergs of Arca to block passageway out by ship. Trying to cross the interior reaches of Arca is an excersize in suicide regardless of whether or not Saloi wishes to prevent it.


Combat:
Saloi is a frost vampire, a unique type of undead that must consume bodily warmth -- not blood, in order to survive. Unless otherwise noted, these undead have all the normal immunities and vulnerabilities of normal vampires.

One vulnerability Saloi does not have is sunlight. Since the sun can shine 65 days out of the year in Arca, she must be able to move about in the daytime as well as the night. Sunlight causes her no visible discomfort. Heat and fire are a different matter. Any firebased spell deals double damage to frost vampires (little consolation in Arca since the number of damage dice the spell has is halved by the land itself).

Presenting a flame to a frost vampire works the same as a holy symbol. Whale's oil or blubber seem to have all the effects of garlic and similar items to frost vampires, whereas garlic, or any other material not native to the frozen north doesn't affect them.

Frost vampires must feed on body heat. They need to hug, or embrace their victim to do this, but they need not make any wounds. Each feeding drains strength points, 1 a round. If the victim is completely drained of strength it rises up as a frost vampire in two days. Frost vampires are always icy cold to the touch, to infravision they are still visible except in the coldest of conditions since their body temperatures are far lower than normal.

Saloi is also able to turn into a polar bear, and while in this form she has all of it's natural attacks and abilities. She cannot control normal polar bears or, seemingly, any other natural animal. Whether or not other frost vampires share this weakness is unknown.

Frost vampires do suffer in heated environs. If the temperature of a room is over 40 degrees farenheit (roughly 5 centigrade) the vampire will suffer damage in much the same manner as others suffer in sunlight. Saloi can survive 2 hours in 50 temperatures, 1 hour in 60 degree temperatures, 3 turns in 70 degree temperatures or only 1 turn in rooms where the temperature is 80 or above. Note that this must be the natural temperature of the room -- magically conjured temperatures have no effect other than to cause visible discomfort.

Saloi has no gaseous form. She can meld with and move through the snow at will though. She lairs in the hollowed out heart of a huge glacier several miles north of her favorite hunting grounds.