Zerzura

Obtained from here

Last New Year's Day, Thoul's Paradise enjoyed its first guest post.  Your humble host thought he might start a tradition of guest posts at the start of each year.  For today's post, I asked James Hutchings to supply commentary on a topic of his choosing. He asked if it needed to be exclusive and I replied that it did not.

Zerzura, or the City of Little Birds, is a city supposed to exist in the Sahara. It may have been first mentioned in Herodotus, who describes it as dedicated to Dionysus. Despite this association with the god of wine and revelry, the inhabitants of the city are supposed to be ascetic and stoic in character. Some sources say that the city was founded by Roman legionaries. Other sources claim that the founders were knights returning from the Crusades. The Kitab al Kanuz, or Book of Hidden Treasures, states that the city is guarded by black giants, who prevent anyone from entering or leaving.

In 1481, a camel driver named Hamid Keila reported to the emir of Benghazi (now in Libya), that he had gotten lost in the desert, after the rest of his party was killed in a sandstorm. Keila stated that he was found by a group of fair men, who wore straight swords rather than scimitars. They took him to a city of white marble, filled with palms, springs, and pools. The main entrance to the city was crowned by a carving of a strange bird. The inhabitants of Zerzura, who called themselves 'El Suri', spoke a form of Arabic.

The emir asked Keila how he had come to Benghazi. The latter became uncomfortable with the questioning, and said that he had escaped one night. The emir asked why it was necessary for him to escape from a city where he had been treated kindly. Receiving no satisfactory answer, the emir had Keila searched by his guards, who found that he carried a large ruby set in a gold ring. Keila could not explain how he came by the ruby. Deciding that he must have stolen the ruby from Zerzura, the emir had Keila taken to the desert and his hands cut off.

The emir later mounted an expedition to search for Zerzura, but was unable to find it.

The repeated failure of expeditions over many centuries to find the city suggests to me that it does not lie in our world at all. It seems to me that Zerzura is most likely a distorted account of the City of the Amazons. The martial nature of the Amazons could explain the association with Romans or crusaders. The 'black giants' may refer to the Amazons' god, Daba, who guards the city in a metaphorical sense. Herodotus seems more likely to be referring to another isolated settlement, that of the Mountain of the Father of Wine.

The Nature of Magic in Tékumel

Before engaging upon today's topic, I would like to point out that, today, several blogs are participating in the Obsolete Simulations Roundup, a worthy idea presented by Tim Snider.  Why am I not participating?

1. Apparently, I wasn't paying attention.  I blame the holidays.
2. This is pretty much the raison d'être of my blog anyway but what I normally stretch out over a couple of months, I would need to encapsulate in one post.

Still, I would be remiss if I did not mention it for the edification of the dozens of people who might view this page.  Enjoy!

Emblem of the Temple of Wurú The Unnameable, He Who Appears Where

Evil Dwells, the Many-Legged Serpent of Gloom, and Cohort of Hrű'ű

As mentioned previously, the Tékumel solar system left 'our' universe.  It then became a 'Plane' unto itself.  The “multi-dimensional space-time continuum” is “formless energy” that encompasses the various Planes (including Tékumel's).  On page 14 of The World of the Petal Throne, Book 2, M.A.R. Barker writes...

The “skin of reality” which separates one Plane from another is rather thin over much of the planet and it is much easier on Tékumel to “reach through” and tap this inchoate, primal power than elsewhere in the cosmos.

This “inchoate, primal power” (or “formless energy”) acts as the fuel for magic.  If the multi-dimensional space-time continuum is analogous to an ocean, then Tékumel's Plane is analogous to a bubble.  Just as there are many bubbles in the ocean, so do numerous Planes abound in the continuum.  “Nexus Points” are connections between Planes which may be used for inter-Planar travel.  Page 16 informs us that...

A skilled mage can sometimes open...a Nexus Point...A few of these Nexus Points are relatively stable and always give access to the same other-dimensional world...Most Nexus Points are impermanent and perilous to use.

Denizens of these other Planes are called Sharétlkoi (i.e., “Demons”).  There are many Demon races representing a range of power from “semi-intelligent beings, animals, or even lower forms of life” all the way to “beings of such inconceivable power that they approach the 'Gods'...”

On Tékumel, there are two forms of magic:  ritual and psychic.  “Ritual magic...is mostly powered by the forces of the Planes Beyond.”  Correct performance of ritual magic produces a consistent effect.  “Psychic magic relies mainly upon the talents of the user himself.”  Since entering their current Plane, the humans of Tékumel have had thousands of years to increase their once vestigial psychic powers.  Such aptitude is represented in a character's Psychic Ability talent.  The two forms of magic are not mutually exclusive.  “In order to work...a psychic spell still requires a little power from the Planes Beyond as a sort of 'catalytic booster.'”  Likewise, “a ritual spell...requires a spark of psychic energy as a catalyst.”

A caster of either form of magic must be able to contain significant amounts of magical power.  This reservoir is called Pedhétl and is one of the five “selves” which compose every living entity.  Each self “has a separate identity and a certain degree of independence from the rest.”  The selves are:

• Bákte – “the physical body”
• Chusétl – “the Shadow-Self”  This is the self that exists in dreams and as an astral projection.  When the Bákte dies, so does the Chusétl.
• Hlákme – “the conscious mind”  After the Bákte dies, “the Hlákme remains in the tomb, hovering near its bodily shell forever in a dreamless sleep unless returned to the corpse by necromancy.”
• Báletl – “the Spirit-Soul”  In the afterlife, the Báletl “sheds its burden of identity and memory in order to be born anew upon ever more distant planes of consciousness.”
• Penhétl – “the Enemy...the source of all emotion and passion and the motivating energy behind all action and ambition.”  After death, Pedhétl returns to the extra-Planar “sea” of energy.

Baker writes of “idiot savant[s]” with vast Penhétl but with limited intelligence and psychic ability.  These people are used by temples as “batteries.”  Barker also tells of “anti-psychic individuals” who automatically prevent spellcasting within a 1.5 meter radius.  Also, devices that use other-Planar energy do not work well (if at all) in proximity to such persons.

Humanity is not the only race to produce these “psychic dampeners.”  One-in-fifty Swamp Folk specimens are dampeners and the rest of that race “are genetically incapable of using sorcery of any kind.”  Also, “the Ahoggyá are generally poor magicians and one in every ten is a 'psychic dampener.'”  On the other hand, “Pé Chói and the Tinalíya are exceptionally good at sorcery.”

The energies of the Planes Beyond is more accessible at some locations and not others.  Regions where “spells work easily” are considered magically “fertile.”  Many cities – ruined or current – occupy such fertile areas.  In magically “barren” regions, “No spell operates...and even ancient technological devices work only once” and will not work again until removed from the area.  Aside from this more-or-less stable 'magic geography,' there are mobile “Nexus Points” that travel randomly over the world.

Inspiration: Arklyrell

City States of Arklyrell (halfling not included)

In 1983, Task Force Games published City States of Arklyrell, a fantasy wargame.  Like many such games of that era, players move cardboard counters (representing military units) around a hex map.  Like many such games, conflict is resolved by comparing 'combat strength', rolling a die (possibly modified due to terrain), and consulting a table.  Not so typical is that each player starts the game with a single unit – one of four unique 'Leaders' (Eorl, Cor, Arete, or Arion).  Leaders are unique because each has a different combination of 'Combat Factor' and 'Morale Factor'.  Combat Factor (as might be expected) measures effectiveness in combat; Morale Factor “indicates how persuasive the Leader is.”

In order to gain additional units, a player must recruit them by moving his or her Leader adjacent to a unit (not controlled by another player) and rolling equal to or greater than said unit's Morale Factor.  Strangely, a Leader's Morale Factor is not considered when recruiting units.  The only time a Leader's Morale Factor comes into play is when a unit accompanying the Leader suffers a 'disruption' result in combat; with a greater Morale Factor, a Leader has a better chance of maintaining control.  (Maybe a Leader's Morale Factor was meant to improve recruitment chances but that part was left out of the rules?)  Since all units other than Leaders begin the game as unaligned, they are not color-coded.  It is difficult, therefore, to track who owns a given unit – or if it is owned at all.

Anyway, “The game revolves around the conquest of the eight great Citadels, the seats of both political and economic power on the world of Arklyrell.”  I assume that 'Citadels' equates to the 'City States' of the title.  The object of the game is to simultaneously control a certain number of Citadels – the exact number depending upon the number of players.

There are various types of men available for recruitment – Berserkers, Barbarians, Nomads, and City Men; there are no humanoids/demi-humans, contrary to what the halfling on the cover might suggest.  Otherwise, there are Ships, Rocs, and Ice Worms.  Ships and Rocs can be used to transport troops.  Troop mobility is important in that – as the map below shows – the 'world' of Arklyrell consists of various islands and two coasts.

According to page 5 of the rules,

The mapsheet represents an entire world.  Players may move units off the east or west edges of the mapsheet.  The unit will then enter the opposite edge of the mapsheet, on the hex which corresponds with the hex it exited.

I have “cleaned up” the map slightly and in my efforts I made certain that no island was divided by the map edges.  As can be seen, the north boundary is ice.  The southern boundary is desert, perhaps geographically tropical.  This suggests not “an entire world,” but the northern hemisphere of a planet.  If we accept this hypothesis, then it follows that the map is a Mercator projection and distances of northern latitudes are exaggerated compared to the southern latitudes.  Alas, the distances are uniform.  Of course, since this is fantasy, we are not constrained by conventional logic.  Perhaps Arklyrell is cylindrical.  Another possibility is that Arklyrell is a sphere, but with one side constantly facing its sun.  In such a case, the map would represent the 'twilight ring' between the searing day side and the frozen night.  This would explain why units cannot exit the map along those edges.  Instead of the left/right edges of the map representing west/east (as the rules state), they would represent north/south.

There are seven locations where magical items may be located.  Magical item counters are randomly distributed, face-down at the locations.  Any Leader visiting such a location may reveal the counter in order to take the item.  However, there are only five magical items; the other two counters represent “poison wells” which cause the revealing player to lose a turn.  The five magical items are: 

• Orb of Battlelust – Automatically recruit Berserker units
• Diamond Ankh – Automatically recruit Ice Worm units
• Sword of the Elements – Combat bonus
• Mace of Kra – Combat bonus (usable in conjunction with Sword of the Elements)
• Haser's Dust – Can be used once to negate an unfavorable combat result or to retry an attempt at recruitment

In an effort – I suppose – to keep the rules manageable, some situations may arise that do not appear to make sense.  For instance, Ships cannot be attacked unless they are in port.  Ships in port cannot attack and Ships at sea cannot attack one another; however, a Ship not at port can attack a Ship at port.  Perhaps every fleet on Arklyrell represents a distinct 'pirate tribe', but each tribe is free to align with whomever they want.  They do not attack one another on the open sea, but Ships at port are a valid target.  Even so, Ships attacked by ground units cannot retreat to open sea; they can only retreat to coastal hexes.  However, a Ship attacked by another Ship can apparently retreat to open sea.

Movement happens before combat, except a retreating unit could conceivably continue movement in a favorable direction.  Since Rocs must end their movement on land, they cannot attack Ships at sea.

There is no stacking other than a Leader with a ground unit or a Leader and/or ground unit on a Ship.  Therefore, after a Roc unit transports another unit it must have enough movement to continue to an unpopulated hex.  Also, a ground unit cannot embark upon and disembark from a Ship in a single turn.

Leaders cannot be killed; however, they can be trapped if the hex they occupy is surrounded by enemy units.  Rocs cannot rescue trapped leaders because, in order to be transported by a Roc, a ground unit must enter into the Roc's hex.

Lastly, there are two cities/citadels in the 'Arctic' region.  Although not a 'rule' question, why would they be in such an inhospitable place?  How do they sustain themselves?

Intelligent Races of Tékumel

Long ago,“Man and his nonhuman interstellar colleagues” attempted to terraform the world of Tékumel.  “The blood-purplish jungles were poisoned with chemicals and replaced with the familiar plants of the hundred worlds of Humanspace.”  Intelligent species indigenous to Tékumel “were allowed to survive only upon remote 'reservations.'”  Thus, Tékumel was colonized.  Then something happened.

It is clear now that through some freak of space, some fault in the fabric of time itself, the solar system of Tékumel was cast into some great other-dimensional “hole in the sky.”

In the ages that have passed since that event (tens of thousands of years), technology has declined to medieval levels, magic has manifested, and the indigenous races are no longer confined.  There are various intelligent species on Tékumel, most of whom – including humanity – came from elsewhere.  In Empire of the Petal Throne, Barker describes twelve intelligent nonhuman races, some friendly to man, some hostile, and others neutral.  “There are still other species,” Barker writes, “but players are not likely to encounter them in the areas of Tékumel in which they will operate.”

Barker does not populate Tékumel with elf-analogs and dwarf-analogs, nor does he have 'aliens' that are essentially humans with pointed ears or blue skin.  Barker has crafted beings that are decidedly unhuman, both in form and in sentiment.  For practical reasons, there is only so much information the rule books can convey about each of the races.  This is just as well since – with few exceptions – the nonhuman races tend to stay apart from mankind.  Without further ado, here are the intelligent (nonhuman) species of Tékumel.

Pé Chói (by Karen J. Englesen)

Pé Chói (“the Listeners”) – Among the various races, the Pé Chói are perhaps the friendliest to Man.  The have six limbs and adults are approximately seven feet tall.  Their hightened senses of sight and hearing allow them to easily perceive secret doors and invisible/inaudible entities.  “On a roll of 6 on a 6-sided die they can ESP a neighbouring room or chamber” in a manner, I assume, similar to the Priest spell.  When one of their number is slain, the Pé Chói will exact revenge on the perpetrator unless (a.) the slain Pé Chói attacked first or (b.) the death occurred during a battle in which Pé Chói are serving on both sides.  They are able to do this because the Pé Chói have “racial telepathy.”  This would seem to be quite useful.  The most obvious use would be to establish a long distance communications network; however, Barker makes no mention of any use other than revenge.

Swamp Folk (by Dave Sutherland)

Nininyal (“the Pygmy Folk”) –   These rodent-like beings stand about one meter in height.  They have exceptional hearing and can “see easily in pitch blackness.”   They are known for travelling and trading.  “Although they are capricious, they must be counted friends of man.”  They are ferocious in battle as well as bargaining.  (There is a Tsolyáni proverb:  'To bargain with a Pygmy is to throw away one's purse.')

Heglethyál (“the Swamp Folk”) – The Swamp Folk are four to six feet tall and have six limbs.  “They are squat, rotund, rubbery white creatures...with long slanted foreheads, [and] a bony central crest rising from the forehead and slanting backwards to a point...”  Although they do not employ magic, they are capable sailors and can “detect sloping passages, traps, and dimensional nexus points.”

Tinalíya (by Katherine J. Grantham)

Tinalíya (“the Gnome-like Ones”) – Although referred to by the rules as “humanoid,” these two-foot tall beings have two arms, four legs, and are “covered with horny integument.”  Although scholarly, they are viscous fighters when attacked and need not check for morale.  Each of “their lairs will contain at least one book of magical nature,” at least one scroll, and a few of those ancient technological devices known as “Eyes.”

Ahoggyá (by Sutherland)

Ahoggyá (“the Knobbed Ones”) –

They are knobbly, brownish, bristly creatures 4-5 feet in height, though tremendously broad and strong.  Their upper “chest” is surmounted by four powerful arms, and their eyes and eating apparatus lie beneath these under a horny protective ring.

Hláka (by Sutherland)

Hláka (“the Furred Flyers”) – As their wings and name suggest, the Hláka are capable of flying.  They have three eyes and greyish fur.  “Two arms and two legs are supplemented by a powerful tail fitted with a poisoned rapier-like blade.”  Barker does not inform us of the effects of the poison, but he notes that “Hláka make poor slaves and are always clamouring to return to their homeland.”
Also on Tékumel are the Shánu'u, “larger and heavier cousins” to the Hláka.  Presumably, they come from the same world.  Parties of Hláka are often found accompanied by one or more Shánu'u.  I suspect the relation of Shánu'u and Hláka is analogous to greater primates and humans.

Páchi Léi (by Englesen)

 Páchi Léi (“the Forest Dwellers”) –

They are doughy in appearance and have eight articulated limbs, using the first four to eat, fight, etc. and the remainder to move and balance in the trees of their jungle homes...They have a good chance at detecting secret doors and passages as they pass by them...Their huge, platter-shaped eyes give them nocturnal vision.

Although listed among the neutral species, Páchi Léi have a modifier towards friendliness on the Nonplayer Character Reaction Table and “have often become citizens of the human nations, and one or two examples of generals over human troops are recorded in history.”

Shén (by James Garrison)

Shén (“the Demon Warriors”) –

Their gleaming black scales and dragon-like appearance make them appear to be tall, demonic human warriors in fantastic plate armour.  They have long beak-like snouts and a glittering crest of slender spines, which they can extend or keep flat along their skulls...They walk on two legs and have two arms, as men do, but they also have a muscular tail with a mace-like horny appendage at the end.

Hlutrgú (by Sutherland)

Hlutrgú (“the Swamp Frogs”) – The illustration to the right shows the Hlutrgú as having four limbs; however, Barker states that they are four-legged creatures and that they “carry darts for spearing or throwing, using their four long arms.”  To me this suggests eight limbs, but perhaps there are only four limbs that can be used either as arms or legs.  (The illustrated Hlutrgú is shown grasping a spear with his 'foot'.)  Regardless, they “hate humans and nonhumans indiscriminately” and “have a particularly ugly reputation for torture and atrocities upon humans who fall into their clutches.”
I have not been able to discern if the Hlutrgú are native to Tékumel or if, in ancient times, they were interstellar partners of mankind.

Hlýss (by Englesen)

Hlýss (“the Spawn of the Old Ones”) – The Hlýss are an insectoid race who pre-date humanity's appearance on Tékumel.  They are described as “aquatic cousins” of the Ssú (see below).  They live on the Isle of the Hlýss with the great Hlýss mother and sometimes travel the seas “upon their hive-like ships, made from a stony bodily secretion.”  They possess “six legs and light chitinous armour, with a row of razor-sharp mandibles beneath their probosces” in addition to a tail with a sting capable of paralyzing opponents.  When encountered, Hlýss are likely to have magical weapons and ancient items of technology.  “The Hlýss collect all sorts of weapons, gems, and jewellery and have the latter set into their body-armour permanently.”



Vleshgayal (“the Shunned Ones”) – The Shunned Ones also pre-date the presence of humanity on Tékumel (and may even pre-date the Ssú).  They tend to remain ensconced in their sealed cities but “emerge from their isolation to seek magical items in the labyrinths beneath ruined cities.”

They are tall, ragged-looking spectral beings, with two extremely long arms and legs...They have a terrible and repellent stench that drives off humans and nonhumans alike.

Ssú (by Jeff Dee)

Ssú (“the Enemies of Man”) –

They are tall, slender, six-limbed beings wrapped in what looks like greyish shrouds (actually a loose integument which keeps shredding and pulling off).  They smell like musty cinnamon and make a high, sweet chiming sound.

Aside from their competency with magic, each Ssú of at least level IV can hypnotize 1-3 persons once per day.  If a saving throw is failed, the victim will be under the control of the Ssú “and he can be freed only by the death of the Ssú commanding him.”