Celtic Culture Site

The Othermorld Islands of ff[onders

¿TV^V^vT he Otherworld lay parallel to the real world, like a shadow where H M everything was much the same as in this world, except that it was Jr bigger, brighter, and more magical. In some places, such as Eriu, the Otherworld drew nearer to this world, and the border between them grew thin from constant crossings. In other places the Otherworld withdrew, and in consequence this world was more mundane.

Sidhe Patrons and cnemies

An interesting use of the Sidhe in a campaign is as Patrons. Such a Patron would normally be a 15-point advantage, but due to the capricious nature of the Sidhe, it is only a 10-point advantage (modified by frequency of appearance). People with a Sidhe Patron should never be sure whether he will help them at any given time, and should always be a little nervous about asking. A Sidhe Patron can offer healing and other magics, advice, information, help in battle, etc., but he may choose not to, just on a whim. Having a Sidhe Patron let the heroes down from time to time is a good way of ensuring a proper respect for the Sidhe.

Worse than a Sidhe Patron is a Sidhe Enemy. A Sidhe Enemy should be a -15-point disadvantage (modified by frequency of appearance). A Sidhe Enemy is likely to turn up at any time. He may appear in the middle of the night, when the PCs are in bed, or help their enemies in a battle. Or, being capricious, he may turn up at the heroes' dun asking for hospitality; he is powerful and arrogant enough not to fear them, and it may entertain him for a while to act as though they aren't enemies. The humans will probably be too nervous to be anything other than polite and honorable. He may even turn up disguised as a traveler, and only reveal who he is on leaving, giving them a nasty shock.

Buildings and the Sidhe

Fogous

A typical Damnanian building was the fogou, or concealed passage. This was an underground room, the walls slabbed with stone; its hidden, curving entrance had a step to trip unwary intruders. These rooms were unique to Damnar (Cornwall), and Damnanians didn't like to explain them to strangers. If asked, they would say that they were "for defense," although it was clear that the rooms would be useless for that purpose. If pressed people might say that the druids built them, with the implication that nobody knew why.

The fogou was sometimes used as a cold storage area for milk, cheese, and meat, but its primary purpose was indeed as a defense - against the Sidhe. These rooms were built by druids, who maintained them with occasional rituals. Mortals could negotiate them but Sidhe attempting the feat became confused and lost.

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Buildings änd the Sidhe (Continue d)

Qlass Castles

In southern and eastern Alba (Scotland) are found "vitrified forts," or glass castles. These are duns built with dry stone walls, which were then covered with a timber framework and set afire. The burning fused the stone into a smooth, unclimbable glassy mass. Glass castles were highly defensible, their only weak point being their gates. Because of the difficulties of firing, most glass castles were fairly low, with walls not much more than 15 or 20 feet high. The only other place his type of fortification was found was in Gaul.

Many Alban Sidhe lived in glass castles. Being without the constraints on building which limited mortals, they sometimes built glass towers, rising for many stories above the hilltops where they were built. These towers were at least partly within the Otherworld, and could appear and disappear as observers approached.

Brochs

Brochs were found exclusively in northern and western Alba and the islands. They were thick-walled, and sometimes double-walled, stone structures, sometimes with stone towers 40 or 50 feet high. They tended to be small in overall size, reflecting the tiny size of kingdoms in the area; most brochs were little more than fortified stone farmhouses, as their kings were little more than farmers. Like the fogous of Damnar some brochs were built on a maze pattern to confuse Sidhe attempting to enter.

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In our world the vast majority of the inhabitants were human. In the Otherworld the majority were Sidhe: immensely more powerful and magicail than mere mortals, but living in much the same way, with kings' halls, feasting, druids, and all the normal trappings of the Celtic life. The Otherworld stretched out, kingdom after kingdom, in exactly the same way as the real world.

Entering the Otherworld

"And now the sun shone fiercely down, and the riders passed into a golden haze in which Oisin lost all knowledge of where he was or if sea or dry land were beneath his horse's hoofs. But strange sights sometimes appeared to them in the mist, for towers and palace gateways loomed up and disappeared, and once a hornless doe bounded by them chased by a white hound with one red ear; and again they saw a young maid ride by on a brown steed, bearing a golden apple in her hand, and close behind her followed a young horseman cm a white steed, a purple cloak floating at his back and a gold-hilted sword in his hand, And Oisin would have asked the princess who and what these apparitions were, but Neave (Niamdh) bade him ask nothing nor seem to notice any phantom until they were come to the Land of Youth."

Certain places in this world provided entrance to the Otherworld, or existed in both worlds and therefore could be used as crossing points. Anything could mark such a place: Sidhe mounds, standing stones, trees, etc. It was possible to either find or make a gate to the Otherworld. These gates sometimes had quirks which meant that they opened only at certain times or to certain people, and it was necessary to discover what these quirks were before using a gate. The journey to the Otherworld could take place instantly, as simply a step from one world to another or it could take a long time. Anyone looking back during such a journey sa» strange warning portents in swirling mists. If he tried to turn back he became lost and emerged somewhere far from where he started or where he intended to go (and not necessarily anywhere on a line between the two). In addition, mysterious Otherworldly islands could often be found by sailing west from Eriu.

Another certain way of crossing into the Otherworld was to die. Everyone expected that when they died they would pass into the Otherworld and lead a life of feasting, hunting, singing, and honor. They could, of course, be killed in such a life; but this was only considered a gate to more and further Otherworlds. each stranger and farther from the world of men than the last Otherworldly wisdom was acquired in such a journey, and some believed that, after passing through many Otherworlds, people were at last transformed into an animal in the real world. When that animal was eaten by a human, the dead person would be conceived as a new child by that person. The more powerful and famous anyone was the longer this process took, due to the extended adventures he was likely to have in each of the Otherworlds. This "passing on" could account for the petty nature of some Sidhe still living near the lands of men; they had grown away from their human natures but had not grown beyond that to unearthly wisdom.

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Hgrogs in thg Othgrworld

Many great heroes in the legends visited the Otherworld, and some lived there for some time, frf some times and places there was much coming and going between worlds; Finn said, "There was hardly one of the Fianna without a wife or a sweetheart among the Tuatha." At other times and places the Otherworld was remote; Cuchulain visited it only 10 recuperate in his father's house.

There were many instances in which denizen> of the Otherworld asked heroes for help. Finn was asked to bring his army to help the Tuatha de Danaan fight off another Otherworldly force When he declined, the Sidhe began capturing his champions one by one until Finn changed his mind. Although the Sidhe were powerful magical!}, there were some things which, by their very nature, could be done only b\ mortal men - and the Sidhe usually had more than enough power to see that mortal men helped them. This happened even in places where the Otherworld was normally far away and was especially likely at the times of the great feasts.

The JWang Othermorlds ifferent Otherworlds, or different parts of the one Otherworld, had different names as used by local inhabitants. "Otherworld" was a term used by people coming from this world; Sidhe would refer to this world as "the other world." Some Otherworld!} regional names are: Tir Tairnigiri (the Land of Promise), Tir Na t'Samhraidh (Land of Summer), Magh Mell (Plain of Happiness), Tir Na m'Beo (Land of the Living), Magh Da Cheo (Plain of the Two Mists), Tir Ildathach (The Many-Colored Land), Tir Imchiuin (The Very Peaceful Land), and Dun Scaith (Fortress of Shadows).

Tir Bo Thunn - The Land Beyond thg Wave

The Otherworld was often reached by boat, and was often found as a series of strange islands on which wonders could be seen. It was perilous to get closer to these islands than the ninth wave away from the shore. To do so was to enter the Otherworld and risk possible time distortions. Sometimes it

Mgn into Gods/ Gods into Men

Mortals who stayed in the Otherworld for long became strange and mystical and drew away from their human natures. In most cases this led toward more and further Otherworlds, and at last to a rebirth in this world. In some cases of particularly strong and archetypal heroes, it resulted in them becoming more than mortal. When Lugh demanded admittance to Tara (see p. 48) he was no more than an exceptional warrior. As time went by in the Otherworld, he acquired powers and responsibilities, and eventually became one of the greatest of the gods, in charge of the sun itself.

As beings became more godlike, their concerns drifted farther from the normal world, and they became less approachable. What remained of the original person were his strongest traits, good and bad. Thus in the later stories, the Morrigan, although extremely powerful, became nothing more than the raven scouring the battlefield in search of war. Her love of fighting was all that remained of her original personality.

This process was sometimes reversed. Gods slide back toward humanity, pulled back by their concern for someone or something in this world. These declining gods did not die of old age, but could degenerate into mere spirits and child-frightening bogeys. They could, of course, be killed, and the sons of Tureen are considered by some to have been old gods "fallen on hard times." In later stories, the Dagda, "the god who is good at everything" and "the lord of great knowledge," becomes a caricature of his old self, depicted as a glutton strongly attached to food, drink, and sex (evidence of his prior associations with fertility and abundance).

Thg Fgast of Aee

Every so often, the Sidhe were required to attend the Feast of Age (Fleadh Aise), held at each Sidhe mound in Eriu in rotation. If they didn't, they ceased to be immortal, and slowly died. (They began to age, although more slowly than humans; they only require an Aging roll every 20 years.) Missing one or two feasts did not matter, since they aged so slowly, but any Sidhe who wished to remain in the prime of youth had to be sure to attend regularly.

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The Feast of Age (Continued)

There is no record of how often the Feast of Age was held. It is suggested that every 100 years would be a reasonable period. As time is so unusual in the Otherworld an invitation to the Feast of Age could comc unexpectedly lo any Sidhe meddling in our world. What happened to a human who attended the Feast of Age was unknown, and could vary al the GM's discretion. Possibilities vary from no effect to extending a person's life span, or even to making him a Sidhe with all the attendant advantages and disadvantages.

The Feast of Age was one of the three boons Manannan (see sidebar, p. 70)gave the Sidhe when they withdrew into the Otherworld. The other two were the magical pigs which could be killed and eaten repeatedly, and the Feth Fiada, or ability to become invisible to mortals or to Sidhe. None of these boons were in existence when the Tuatha ruled Eriu openly.

Bigger snd Better

In the Otherworld, everything was larger and more brilliant. Otherworldly animals were generally white with red eyes and ears, and at least half again the size of ordinary animals. The Otherworld also abounded in flowers, often unusual in size, shape, or color (occasionally found in the real world as wonders). Trees were abundant, the same types as normally found but larger, with lusher foliage.

was possible to go on shore and return without problems, depending on the strength of purpose of the traveler. Magical boats, either ordinary or transparent crystal, glass, or amber coracles, were sometimes provided by denizens of the Otherworld to encourage mortal visitors.

There were many different islands: the island of merriment where everyone became overcome with laughter, an island covered with treasure guarded by a burning cat, an island with four fences made of precious metal that enclosed cheese tasting like whatever the eater most w anted to eat, and so on.

These islands were always reached b> sailing west from Eriu and were quite distinct from the real islands between Alba and Eriu inhabited by Fomorians and mortals. However, mists arose on the sea e\ en more readily than on land; it was possible to become very lost and find a boai heading west instead of east. The only exception to this general westward rule wa>. Inish Manannan (the isle of Man) between Eriu and Prydain, which was the kingdom and throne of Manannan (see sidebar, p. 70). This was. like a Sidhe mound, in both worlds at once but far closer to the Otherworld than the mundane world.

Tir Na n'Og - The Land of Youth

Tir Na n'Og was the name for one pan of the Otherworld west of Eriu. It was visited by many heroes by way of a sea voyage or magical horses which could gallop above the waves.

One of the most famous visits to Tir Na n'Og was that made by Oisin, son of Finn Mac Cool. His mother was Saba, a Sidhe woman who'd been turned into a deer. Oisin's name meant "little faun": hi*, earliest memories were of being cared for by her in deer form. He was walking one day with Finn on the shores of Loch Lena when he saw an exceedingh beautiful woman coming toward him, riding a white horse. She greeted them both, and said that she was Neave of the Golden Hair, daughter of a king of the Land of Youth.

She explained that she had come to seek the los e of Oisin. Overcome with her beauty, Oisin agreed to accompany her 10 her father's land. He got up behind her on the horse, which ran onto the water as if it were land and

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galloped until it reached Tir Na n'Og. Oisin spent his time in pleasures, enjoying the delights of Tir Na n'Og. He had many adventures, and during this time, Neave conceived a daughter, Plu Na m'Ban ("Flower of Women").

At the end of three weeks Oisin became homesick and wanted to see Finn and the Fianna again. Neave lent him her magic horse to return to Eriu but put a gesa on him not to dismount until he was back at her side. Oisin was horrified to find his father's home overgrown with weeds and trees, and the men of Ireland no longer heroic. He dismounted to help some men move a boulder, and immediately became an old man - he had spent 300 years in the Otherworld!

ftnnwn

Annwn was a part of the Otherworld close to Dyfed and Ystrad Tywi in Prydain (see The First Branch, p. 39). and was typical of the Otherworld: a prosperous land, home to many kings and chieftains.

Arawn was the greatest king of Annw n. and his court was the one nearest to the lands of men. It had "sleeping rooms and halls and chambers and the greatest show of buildings anyone had ever seen/' The king and queen wore golden robes, and there were golden vessels to drink from. Arawn was a powerful Sidhe and plentifully supplied with magic, especially spells of transformation: he was a good friend but a bad person to cross. He was courteous and gently spoken but quick to take offense in matters of honor. His queen was "the fairest woman you ever did see," and "the most unaffected of women, and the most gracious of disposition and discourse." The company of Arawn's court was "the most comely troop and the best equipped anyone has ever seen." Everything was of excellent quality, larger and more brightly colored than in this world, but in other ways Arawn's court much resembled any king's hall.

The Hollow Hills

Sidhe mounds existed in both worlds at once. In our world they looked like green manmade hills, "hollow hills" which sometimes opened to provide passage between worlds. (Historically, they were usually Neolithic and Bronze Age burial mounds.) In the Otherworld they were the duns and palaces of the Sidhe. Sometimes to a bard or to someone who looked with his eyes open in just the right way, they appeared as both together, the green hill overlapping the splendid dun. There were Sidhe mounds everywhere in the Celtic world, but they clustered most thickly in Eriu, especially in Mumu, and in western and northern Prydain. Any smoothly-rounded green hill could be a Sidhe mound; it was best to tread warily in such a place on any day.

Bigger änd Better (Continued)

Hills and mountains were taller and more impressive than their equivalents in the real world. Cliffs were higher, meadows more rolling, rivers deeper and faster; occasional thunderstorms were more impressive. Sunlight and moonlight were more intense, the sky bluer by day and blacker by night. There were many mists, especially around the boundaries between one world and the other.

Time moved strangely, and people's perception of time moved more strangely still. The Otherworld had seasons, but it seemed to be early summer more often than it should have been, sometimes for centuries at a lime. Sometimes a night's feasting with the Sidhe lasted for many years in the other world. Usually, short periods of time spent in the Otherworld represented long periods of time in this world, but there were exceptions, such as the story of Bee Fola who set out one morning for the Otherworld, spent a day and a night there, and returned to find it was the same moming and her husband was not yet awake.

Above all, the Otherworld was a magical place. Magic and mystery were part of everyday reality there. It cast a glamour on everyone who came there, making them strange - nobody passed through the Otherworld without being changed to some degree.

Sidhe PCs

Full Sidhe player characters should only be allowed in a campaign where all the PCs are Sidhe; since a Sidhe can be as much as a 1,000-point character, fitting one into a campaign where everyone else is built on 150 points would be rather difficult.

GMs and players should be very careful if running a full Sidhe campaign. With such powerful and impulsive people, it could easily tum into "power gaming" where the "heroes" spend their time picking on lesser mortals and being nasty to them. Players should remember that being Capricious does not mean being spiteful all the time -unexpected acts of selfless charity are just as likely as unprovoked attacks.

Most NPCs in a Sidhe campaign should be Sidhe as well, and the GM should make sure that poor weak mortals are not just helpless cannon fodder. There are times when the Sidhe cannot achieve their ends themselves, due to gesas or promises made, and must rely on mortals to do things for them.

A Sidhe campaign could revolve around adventures in the Otherworld, or rivalry with other Sidhe, but it could equally involve the PCs trying to save their favorite humans from the depredations of enemy Sidhe.

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Manannan Mac Llyr

Just as Inish Manannan stood between Prydain and Eriu, Manannan Mac Llyr stood between those two islands and the old gods and the Celts. He had ties on both sides of the sea and spent much time in both kingdoms. He wasn't one of the Tuatha de Danaan, being much older and more powerful, and bom on Inish Manannan. His father was Llyr, king of the sea, and his mother was Penardun, the daughter of Don and her husband Beli, high king of Prydain.

Manannan gave his aid to the Tuatha against the Fomor, and his boat and horse enabled the sons of Tureen to bring back the magic items Lugh needed for the battle. He would not fight with them against the Milesians, as he knew that the outcome was inevitable. After the battle he gave the Tuathans two gifts, the Feth Fiada (see p. 76) and the Feast of Age (sec p. 67), and helped the Dagda divide the underground world among them.

He spent time with his brother Bran and accompanied him on his expedition against Matholwch, king of Mumu. Afterwards he accompanied Pryderi to Dyfed and married Rhiannon, helping Pryderi defeat the long-term Sidhe enemies of the family. He conceived a son in Ulaid, Mongan, who was one of the best kings the country ever had. Manannan was one of the Three Ungrasping Chieftains of the Island of Prydain and he never desired to be a ruler.

Manannan was one of the few selfless Sidhe, and intervened between humans and Sidhe on the human side if he thought the Sidhe were being unfair. He didn't do it openly but by disguising himself and by trickery. Manannan was a kindly Sidhe with a ready smile. He was very wise, although he was not a druid, and he could see a little into the future. He did things because he felt that they had to be done, and wouldn't help people wishing to go against the tide of destiny.

Willful Weapons

In the Celtic world there were many examples of weapons which had great magical powers and minds of their own. Cuchulain, for instance, had the spear Gae Bolga which never missed, and did nine times the normal damage of a spear when taken from its victim. But it could only be used when standing in shallow water, and always killed one of Cuchulain's friends or relatives when used.

There was a large Sidhe mound at Royal Tara, where Kian's cow (see sidebar, p. 34) was buried and where there was a gate between worlds. The central dun at Rath Cruachan was built over a deep cave which was an entrance into the Otherworld. There were also many Sidhe mounds, stone circles, and standing stones in Damnar - inexplicable mists and strange disappearances were common.

Sometimes the lord of a particular Sidhe dun caused it to protrude into the real world for a time, for some purpose of his own or to meet travelers. (See p. 32.) Wanderers would come across an unexpected dun in the wilderness. Only someone with Area Knowledge could be sure that the dun was magical.

Sidhe lords and their companies often rode out of the mounds on the great feasts of the year, either to hunt in mortal lands or to dance at mortal festivals.

he Sidhe were the "elves" of Celtic lore, although they bore little resemblance to the common elves of fantasy roleplaying. They could pass themselves off as human, but they tended to be taller, stronger, more beautiful, and much more competent at everything they did than even the best human.

Their eyes were often blue, and their hair could be any color, but was usually blond or red like that of the Celts. They were generally taller than humans (determine height normally and add 3"). Sidhe clothing was always of the finest quality, since Sidhe craftsmen were the best in the world.

Sidhe have IQ +2 (20 points), DX +2 (20 points), ST +2 (20 points), and HT +2 (20 points), and the racial advantages Handsome (or Beautiful) Appearance (15 points), Charisma +1 (5 points), Feth Fiada (35 points), Magical Aptitude +2 (25 points), Sidhe Blood +5 (50 points), Unaging (15 points), and Wild Mana Generator (50 points). They have the racial disadvantage Capricious (-15 points). Each can have up to ten Sidhe advantages in addition to the four named here. It costs 260 points to play a Sidhe.

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Psychology

The first thing to remember about the Sidhe is that they were powerful Their inborn magical abilities were so great that they were eventually seen as gods. They were supremely competent and confident in everything they did. At home, in the Otherworld, they spent their days feasting, hunting, and fighting. When they visited this world, they spent their time meddling in the affairs of humans, sometimes for good, sometimes for ill.

Because they were humanity writ large, their failings were as spectacular as their successes. They were capricious, and when thwarted in their desires, could be dangerous indeed. If thwarted in love with a human, a Sidhe did not hesitate to bring all his power to bear to get revenge.

Sidhe delighted in passing themselves off as human, in order to mix in human society for a while. They took great delight in the doings of their weaker mortal cousins and in showing off their own prowess. Posing as a traveler, a Sidhe would join a group of humans and travel with them for a while. Then, at an unexpected moment, he would reveal his full powers, astound his traveling companions, and disappear from sight with a chuckle.

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In the Otherworld, the Sidhe lived in a fashion not unlike to that of their Celtic human brethren on Earth. But since their craftsmen were the most competent, their bards the most talented, and their warriors the most skilful, life in the Otherworld was much more colorful than life on Earth. Their days were spent in high halls with walls of beaten gold, drinking from golden horns and eating from golden platters. Their chief food was pork from magic pigs given to them by Manannan, which could be cooked every night and which returned to life every morning.

At other times they roamed over the plains of the Otherworld in golden chariots pulled by the finest horses, or hunted the white stags of Otherworldly forests. In the lands of the Sidhe it was usually summer, and Sidhe boys played hurley on the green fields outside the duns of their foster fathers. No evil or blight ever came to the land of the Sidhe, unless it was the sorrow of lost love, or grief for the passing of the brief lives of mortals.

Willful Wgspons (Continued)

Some of these Willful Weapons came into being naturally over time, as a result of the ambient magic of the Celtic world. (See "Willful Weapons" in Pyramid #14, July/August 1995, for more details about these weapons.) In a Celtic Myth campaign, many of these Weapons don't occur naturally, but are deliberately crafted by the Sidhe, especially by Govan, the smith of the Tuatha de Danaan. (See below.)

Making s Willful Weapon

To make a Willful Weapon in this way, the smith must be in a Wild Mana area (all Sidhe smiths are wild-mana Generators) and must have Armoury (weapon type)/TL2. The basic weapon can be any Celtic weapon or shield from the Weapon Tables on pp. B206-207 (with the exception of missile launchers), but it must be very fine quality, with a cost 50 times the normal dollar cost of that type of weapon. This means that smiths probably need to be Very Wealthy or better (or have a Patron) to create a Willful Weapon.

For every power the smith wants to give to the Weapon, he must make an Armoury roll. On a success, the Weapon gains that power. On a critical success, the Weapon gains that power plus another of equal point cost, at the GM's discretion. On a failure, the Weapon gains a Lesser Gesa, of equal negative point cost to the power which was intended. This can be chosen by the player or the GM, or randomly, On a critical failure, the materials are ruined and the smith takes 2d of burn damage. The smith can add as many powers as he likes in this way, and can also intentionally add Lesser Gesas (p. M68). If he tries to add a Lesser Gesa, a failure gives a different gesa, not a power!

The smith can also give the Weapon skills, but only those he knows himself; the Weapon has the skill at the same level as the smith. A failure on an Armoury roll to add a skill means that the skill is not added.

It takes two hours for each Lesser Gesa, skill, or level of a power to be added, in addition to the normal time needed to craft the weapon, and all work must be completed in a single session. Each two-hour period of working on the Weapon costs ld-2 Fatigue due to the hard physical labor involved; if the smith collapses from exhaustion before the work is finished, the entire job must be started over.

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Making a Willful Wcapon (Continued)

When the smith has finished making the Weapon, he must breathe life into it, most easily done by using the Bellows Breath advantage (see p. 75). He breathes a mighty breath on the finished Weapon, at which point all the powers, Gesas, and skills become active. If he fails to do this, the Willful Weapon remains nothing but a very fine normal weapon. Only the smith who made it can perform this breathing of life, and only at the end of the process of making it.

If the smith doesn't have Bellows Breath, he may still attempt to make such a Weapon, but at great cost to himself, since he has to put some of his own life force into it. To breathe life into the Weapon, he must make a Will roll. On a success, he has successfully breathed life into the Weapon, and has permanently lost one point of HT. If the smith fails his Will roll, he lacks the will to sacrifice life force, does not lose the HT, and the weapon does not become Willful. This may only be attempted once.

When a smith breathes life into the Weapon, he must decide what level of Will it will have, He must then make a Contest of Wills with the Weapon, in order to give it a Great Gesa (p. M68). If he wins, the Weapon gains the Great Gesa that the smith intended; if he fails, the Weapon gains a Great Gesa of its own. If the smith has given it Lesser Gesas, one may become a Great Gesa instead. Otherwise the Great Gesa is a twisted version of the intended Great Gesa.

If the smith is a PC, make the roll to give the weapon a Great Gesa in secret, so that he won't know for sure whether the Weapon has the desired Great Gesa,

Willful Non-Wcapons

Although less common, other magical objects in Celtic mythology exhibited some of the traits of Willful Weapons. As an example, the harp of the Dagda could fly through the air to his hand, striking and killing his enemies as it flew by. Magical objects of this sort should be created in the same manner as Willful Weapons, possibly with fewer combat powers but a greater complement of skills (including spells) as compensation.

The Sidhe gained access to this world through Sidhe mounds. When the Tuatha de Danaan of Eriu were beaten in battle by the Milesians, they retreated to these mounds. The Dagda gave each of the Tuatha a mound of his own to live in; it is assumed that a similar process took place in Prydain, but no record remains of this event.

Sidhe mounds looked like simple grassy hills to humans, and they were usually considered to be the burial mounds of ancient high kings. On certain nights (such as Samain) they appeared as they actually were - the great golden halls of Sidhe kings and warriors. To the Sidhe. they existed in both this world and the Otherworld at the same time, so an inhabitant could pass though the doors into either realm. A mortal invited into a Sidhe mound to feast could find himself in the Otherworld when he left; he could take years to find his way back to his home. This was not a spiteful act on the part of the Sidhe, but when it happened, they usually found it amusing.

cultur6 and politics

The culture of the Sidhe was very much the same as the culture of the Celts, but for the supreme skill with which the Sidhe did everything. They had more leisure time, and fewer worries, since old age was unknown, the weather was always pleasant, and food was easily available.

Sidhe craftsmen were supremely skilled. They took delight in their craftsmanship, and were very proud of what they made, although they often gave things away in a display of generosity. Their works were often magical as well as superbly well made. A mortal approaching a Sidhe craftsman with the intention of acquiring some of his work would do best not to ask for it directly.

Politics revolved around the rivalries of various Sidhe lords, much as it did in the real world. But the Sidhe also showed great interest in the doings of

The Sidhe

mortals in this w orld, and often meddled in events, usually just for their own amusement. The> often took an interest in specific individuals and helped them out of difficult situations, in return for this, they expected to be treated respectfully, and if the\ were not, they were likely to take revenge.

One of the favorite pastimes of the Sidhe was the seduction of humans. Many a man or w oman w as beguiled by a Sidhe coming to him or her in human form. This was the reason for the many people with Sidhe blood in their veins. A child of the Sidhe w as often marked out for special attention by the Sidhe: the Sidhe parent took special care to see that no great harm came to him, while other Sidhe who were rivals of the parent tried to make things go wrong for the child. Cuchulain > father Lugh, always watched over his son. When Cuchulain was badly wounded by the numerous single combats he fought during the war with Connachta. Lugh took him to the Otherworld and healed him.

A Sidhe in the Otherworld took an unpredictable amount of time to bear a child. The Dadga's dalliance with Boann seemed to last a single day, yet nine months had passed and a child was born - Angus Og, "the young son" or "the son of a night." On other occasions Sidhe women took longer than nine months to re-emerge from the Otherworld bearing newborn children. Aine was raped by the first Earl of Desmond on Samain of 1536 A.D. Not three seasons but three years passed before she emerged to give her newborn baby (the future third earl) up to human fostering with his half-brother, the second earl.

jgMhe Abilities

he Sidhe Blood advantage (see p. 79) is the prerequisite for a Q whole series of advantages not available to normal human PCs. Characters in 100-point campaigns can only have one or two of these Sidhe advantages. In campaigns with more powerful characters, several new advantages are available. For each level of Sidhe Blood purchased, a person can have a maximum of two Sidhe advantages (not including the Sidhe Blood advantage itself).

The Spear Feat

Dobhar the Fearless has heard of Cuchulain's famous Spear Feat, which involved throwing three spears at three targets, leaping on the first spear in mid-air, jumping from that to the second spear, then to the third, then to the ground to slay his opponent even as the three spears hit their targets. He decides to try to duplicate it.

Dobhar has the Full Coordination/1, Lightfoot, and Perfect Balance Sidhe advantages. He also has Fast-Draw-14 and Spear Throwing-17. The GM decides for pi ay ability that the spears take two rounds to reach the target 20 yards away.

In the first round Dobhar succeeds at Fast-Draw rolls and Spear Throwing rolls for each hand, sending two spears toward the targets. In the second round he succeeds at his Fast-Draw and Spear Throwing rolls and sends the third spear toward its target. As soon as it is on its way, he makes a DX roll to leap onto the spear, using Lightfoot and Perfect Balance to stay on it. He succeeds in two more DX rolls to jump to the second and first spears, then another DX roll to land in front of his enemies. He has no defense, but his enemies, who have failed a Fright Check on seeing this Feat, are stunned for five rounds. The spears thud into their intended targets. In the next round he draws his sword and kills his foe.

Other Feats

Many Feats are mentioned in Celtic mythology, although not all are explained. Cuchulain learned the following Feats while training with Skya:

The Feat Of Ropes: Fighting on a tightrope. Requires the Perfect Balance advantage. An Acrobatics roll must be made each round to stay on the rope; all other physical rolls are at -2.

The Apple Feat: Juggling nine apples with never more than one in each hand at a time. A DX-10 roll is required.

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Other Feats (Continued)

The Thunder Feat: No one knows quite what this Feat involved, but when Cuchulain did it he killed 309 men,

The Javelin Feat. Throwing a javelin and then running and catching it before it hits the ground. This requires the Heroic Running (or the Spurt of Speed) advantage and a DX-6 roll to catch the javelin.

The Feat of the Stunning Shot: The ability to down 2d birds with one sling-stone. If the birds are flying in close formation, a good shot (Sling-8) makes them crash into one another, plummeting to the ground stunned.

The Breath Feat: Juggling apples just by blowing beneath them. Requires the Bellows Breath advantage and a DX-4 roll.

The Stroke of Precision: The ability to hit a particular body part in combat. Anyone can try to choose a specific hit location in combat (see p. B109), but if a warrior boasts about knowing this Feat he is honor-bound to always go for a difficult stroke.

The Ten-at-a-Blow Feat: Throwing a spear through multiple enemies. Requires Enhanced Strength, some lucky damage rolls (see Massive Damage: "Blow-Through," p. B109, with excess damage carrying through to the next victim in line), and enemies lined up like dominoes.

There are also a number of Feats named but not described in the Tain, including: the Leap Over A Poisoned Stroke Feat, the Noble Chariot-Fighter's Crouch Feat, the Feat Of The Chariot Wheel Thrown On High, the Feat Of The Shield Rim, the Snapping Mouth And The Hero's Scream Feat, the Leaping A Chariot Over An Oak Tree Feat, and the Trussing A Warrior On The Points Of Spears Feat. GMs and players are free to make up rules to cover these Feats.

Character Points and Sidhe Blood Levels

It is suggested that 100-point characters have no more than SB 1, but this is not a hard-and-fast rule; it depends upon the type of campaign. The table below shows recommended starting point costs for those with different levels of Sidhe Blood:

Level of Sidhe Blood

SB 5 Will

Suggested Character Points 100 150 200 250 500 or more

In 100-point campaigns, most full Sidhe should be NPCs much more powerful than the PCs. Wise people steer clear of the Sidhe whenever possible, although the Sidhe are unlikely to leave them alone for long. In a 500-point campaign, all the protagonists can be Sidhe, who can meddle with ordinary humans at will.

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