Shaman Resources

[sdavies2720]

For the first time, I now have a player with a shaman in my campaign. While I'm pretty up to speed on the mechanics of RQ3 Shamans, I'm looking for background information: Descriptions of the spirit world, more interesting spirit summoning tables and ideas, spirit combat tactics, etc. Basically anything of interest spirit- and shaman- wise. Having no need, I haven't focused much on this part of the world.

Does anyone have anything to share?

Thanks!

[Thalaba]

I can share some spirit combat 'tactics' with you that I've used before - and by tactics, I'm assuming you mean GM tactics for running spirit combat, since going back and forth on the resistance table doesn't call for much in the way of mechanical tactics.

For spirit combats, I usually describe them with a lot of flavour and have done all of the following and more:

1. (When fighting a ghost in a ruin) I described the ghostly figure as a transluscent old woman swooshing theough the sky and ddiving every round toward the PC's head, while the PC tried to fend off the ghost (very much like the spirits trying to take Conan's dead body in the movie). With each successful roll by the ghost or the PC, I described how the ghost was getting closer or further away. This, I think is probably the most basic form of spirit combat which everyone has done at one time or another.

2. (When a herder was trying to get a spirit magic spell) I described a scree-covered mountain slope on a heavily overcast day. There was a large, shaggy animal there, like a big-horn sheep. This animal stood about 100 yards away lower down on the slope and was looking at the PC. I asked the PC what he would do, then described the ram moving away down the slope. The PC started to chase it. Each successful roll the PC made in spirit combat, I described him getting closer to the ram. Each successful roll the spirit made, I described the PC loosing his footing on the scree, sliding down a few feet and having to regain balance, losing his ground. Ultimately, he caught the Ram and gained the spell.

3. (When a raider PC was trying to earn a spirit magic spell) I described a burning farmhouse that the PC had been searching and now needed to get out in a hurry, but a farmer was blocking the way armed with a pitchfork. With each roll of the dice, I described how the combat with the farmer was proceeding. When the player rolls his dice, I have him tell me what his tactics are and then I describe the outcome based on the dive roll.

4. (When a self-styled Casanova PC was trying to leanr a spirit spell) I described an attractive woman in a dark room behaving coyly. I had the PC describe how he would proceed to seduce the woman and, with each die roll, described the outcome. This was done more suggestively than graphically and was very amusing.

So, I would say that I treat spirit combat and to a lesser extent the spirit plane very much like a dream world. Each visit could be completely different, each spirit combat completely different. It's almost all made up off the top of the head, so you have to be able to be comfortable with that sort of thing. I taylor any particular encounter with spirits as unique. Sometimes the setting or spirit encountered is reflective of the PC, sometime it is reflective of the goal the PCs are trying to attain.

I think you could use almost anything for fodder in describing the spirit world in this fashion. So, say the shaman wants to visit the spirit world - the first time he does so...

He's a hunter in the jungle. He sneaks through and catches glimpses of several animals. Which one will he hunt? The tiger will be one kind of spirit, the monkey another, and so on. Maybe one, the Python, will take him by surprise...

and so on. Any film, book, or comic you've seen then becomes fodder for travelling in the spirit world. Try describing (in their frame of reference) how the PC is in modern New York. Don't ever tell him it's New York - just describe the city of towers, buildings of stone and glass, flashing lights everywhere, yellow chariots, people with many colours of skin and outlandish clothing, etc. Could be a lot of fun!

Thalaba

[SDLeary]

For the first time, I now have a player with a shaman in my campaign. While I'm pretty up to speed on the mechanics of RQ3 Shamans, I'm looking for background information: Descriptions of the spirit world, more interesting spirit summoning tables and ideas, spirit combat tactics, etc. Basically anything of interest spirit- and shaman- wise. Having no need, I haven't focused much on this part of the world.

Does anyone have anything to share?

Thanks!

The info you request would really depend on where you are running. The Gloranthan Spirit Plane is much different that a "real world" description would be. Following is for the "real world".

Ars Magicas Shamans supplement (written for 3ed), and the Faeries (revised) supplement. Both available as PDFs.

Shamans has good descriptions of the Otherworld and a proposed structure, with both Near Lands and Far Lands and the types of beings to be encountered and where. Also, a much better description of what a shaman is. The fact that they aren't really spell casters and that almost all they do is spirit based. This is good to give to players, because I have often noticed that Shaman in RQ are often played like Wizards from DnD... a mobile artillery piece. It also gives good ideas for spirit interactions and spirit quests. A word of warning though... This IS a WW product, and the oWoD influence is readily apparent in description of various "Traditions".

Faeries takes the tac of following various Magi in their encounters with the Fae. These can easily be interpreted as Spirit Quests of one form or another depending on how you are forming your Otherworld.

Another interesting resource is Chaosium's/Green Knight's "Beyond the Wall" for Pendragon. Specifically the sections on Heathenism and Spirits.

As for non-game related materials the Mabinogi and the Tain are really really good sources of the Otherworld and Spirit Quests.

If playing in Glorantha, I have to punt. I've never really been satisfied by their separate interpretations of Spirit, Divine, and Wizardly planes.

SDLeary

[sdavies2720]

Thanks for the ideas. My world is Glorantha-inspired but definitely not Glorantha (different geography, different mythology, but a lot of borrowed concepts). I'll look for Shamans and Faery.

The descriptive scenarios are nice, and helpful. I am looking for something more interesting than, "I rolled a 10, success, his POW drops by 2..." until someone wins. I'd like to evaluate something more involved (parries, tactics, etc) for these encounters.

But, these posts were very helpful.

So, I sense we need a Shamans supplement for BRP.

Steve

[Agentorange]

You've probably already got it, but if not have a look at Sandy Peterson's revised RQ shaman rules, available here:

Philip Hibbs' Link Page

Has some interesting shamanic powers and ideas, being designed for RQ3 it's pretty portable for BRP. After that simply google Runequest + shaman or RQ + shaman there used to be a lot of sites that had various bits and bobs for shamanry ( how many of them still exist I have no idea )

On the D20 front both Green Ronin and Mongoose had Shaman supplements out, obviously the ideas etc would need a bit of conversion work but there's useful material in both

[sdavies2720]

You've probably already got it, but if not have a look at Sandy Peterson's revised RQ shaman rules, available here:

Philip Hibbs' Link Page

Has some interesting shamanic powers and ideas, being designed for RQ3 it's pretty portable for BRP. After that simply google Runequest + shaman or RQ + shaman there used to be a lot of sites that had various bits and bobs for shamanry ( how many of them still exist I have no idea )

On the D20 front both Green Ronin and Mongoose had Shaman supplements out, obviously the ideas etc would need a bit of conversion work but there's useful material in both

I'd forgotten about Sandy Peterson's book. I have it somewhere, but hadn't looked at it. Double thanks for reminding me of it. I hadn't done the google thing yet, because I'd rather something that you all recommend. But I'll crank up the Google-fu and go for it.