Question for Birthright

Dungeons & Dragons MPGN Mailinglist archive 1996-1999
1

hi I wondered something…

Usually the source comes from the land , what if someone
creates a source under water (with the use of a bubble of
air/permanency) to build his source , and lets say that
this source was were mount Deismar was , what whould the
source level be , and is it possible then to construct it ,
and put a ley line to your kingdom from it?

Another question , what happens when you armor 200 knight
with Full plate , barding , lances , weapons and shields
with dwarven made eq , anyone knows the actual stat change
on the WarCards?

next question say you were an elf and had a province level
6 in an ancient elven forest (max lvl of prov 6 see
Birthright notebook ace!) and then you start @summoning@
magical woodland creatures to bring it up to prov lvl 7 ,
would it work? or would it be that the forest was so packed
that elves will be all squeezed in not able to moove?

Thank you very much for the attention…

Giovanni Garzelli
AKA Mr Monk

2

At 10:32 AM 1/26/98 +0000, you wrote:
>hi I wondered something…
>
> Usually the source comes from the land , what if someone
>creates a source under water (with the use of a bubble of
>air/permanency) to build his source , and lets say that
>this source was were mount Deismar was , what whould the
>source level be , and is it possible then to construct it ,
>and put a ley line to your kingdom from it?

It’s theoretically possible, I suppose, but you’re going to have to handle
the rules. Start with the “coastal” source maximum as a guide. That takes
into account some water “source” energy.

Of course, a DM may also be perfectly justified in ruling that, for some
reason, water sources are rare or do not exist–perhaps mebhaighl does not
permeate the oceans like it does the land. And maybe the ocean floor just
doesn’t give you the kick you need.

I’m not taking a position on this; just providing some theories.

> Another question , what happens when you armor 200 knight
>with Full plate , barding , lances , weapons and shields
>with dwarven made eq , anyone knows the actual stat change
>on the WarCards?

Again, this is going to be interpretation. IMHO, you could bump their
defense by 1 (maximum)–if they aren’t already some sort of elite unit with
a high defense. Armor only accounts for so much.

> next question say you were an elf and had a province level
>6 in an ancient elven forest (max lvl of prov 6 see
>Birthright notebook ace!) and then you start @summoning@
>magical woodland creatures to bring it up to prov lvl 7 ,
>would it work? or would it be that the forest was so packed
>that elves will be all squeezed in not able to moove?

No. That’s a rules-lawyer sort of question and, as a DM, I’d make so many
problems for a player that tried it that it just wouldn’t be worth it. I’m
not big on letting players exploit flexibility in the rules.

 --        ->--       ->--           ->--@

Ed Stark
Game Designer, Wizards of the Coast/TSR Division
Asst. Brand Manager, BIRTHRIGHT/GREYHAWK/MARVEL Group
TSR Website: http://www.tsrinc.com
(soon to be http://www.tsr.com)

3

Maurizio Garzelli wrote:

> Another question , what happens when you armor 200 knight
> with Full plate , barding , lances , weapons and shields
> with dwarven made eq , anyone knows the actual stat change
> on the WarCards?

Legends of the Hero Kings suggests that a unit outfitted with dwarven equipment
should get a +1 to both its defense and melee ratings.

> next question say you were an elf and had a province level
> 6 in an ancient elven forest (max lvl of prov 6 see
> Birthright notebook ace!) and then you start @summoning@
> magical woodland creatures to bring it up to prov lvl 7 ,
> would it work? or would it be that the forest was so packed
> that elves will be all squeezed in not able to moove?

I would have to say this wouldn’t work. I take the view that the mebhghail is a
property solely of the land and not related in any to the creatures that
populate it (although overpopulation can reduce a province’s source rating),
even if said creatures are magical in nature. The only excpetion I would
consider to this if was the creature in question was truly connected to the
land, like a treant in forest, for example, or xorn in the mountains (although
i don’t think xorn are a “Birthright” creature, but you get my point). Then,
perhaps, I would consider a sufficient population of such creatures able to
raise the source level by one (at the most).

Dragon

email: dragon@uq.net.au
Website: Dragon’s Lair (http://www.uq.net.au/~zzphodge)
ICQ: 2863795

4

In a message dated 98-01-27 03:18:18 EST, you write:

> As the 6 isn’t a max, I would say it could be possible to summon, but it
will
> be alot of creatures. Don’t forget that elves too build cities, but it’s
> their
> way to live on what the nature gives which makes it possible for them to
> increase the “population” without loosing any source in the area.
>
Actually, and correct me if I’m wrong–I don’t have my rulebook with me–, I
believe 6 could be the max. If I remember correctly, plains are the only
type of provinces that can be raised to a ten. Different province types have
a different maximum they can be developed at. (hah! dangled another
participle)

  • -DKE
5

On Mon, 26 Jan 1998, Ed Stark wrote:
> Of course, a DM may also be perfectly justified in ruling that, for some
> reason, water sources are rare or do not exist–perhaps mebhaighl does not
> permeate the oceans like it does the land. And maybe the ocean floor just
> doesn’t give you the kick you need.

From a Ecological point of view: Most of the life in the ocean is foiund
in coastal areas, where sufficient light hits the sea bed. The oceans
are pretty devoid of life, except for single celled phyto & zooplankton.
The limitig factor is ususally the availability of Nitrates and
Phosphates, and light, which doesn’t penetrate more tha 100m or so at
maximium. Deep ocean life survives purely on corpses raining down from
above, ad is really rare, except aroud volcanic vents.

Mid-ocean ridges usually have thermal vents which provide energy that
powers ecosystems. These areas seem to be pretty diverse. But they’re
very deep & difficult to find.

The most productive areas are coastal upwellings, where water comes up
from the deep oceas (and is loaded with nutrients) into the photic zone
(where light penetrates). These areas are hugely productive. One
example is off the coast of Peru.

Coral reefs are hugely productive, rivalling rainforests for
biodiversity. However they’re mainly a surface phenomenon - they don’t
extend more than about 30m deep because the light runs out. I’ve heard
that deep water coral reefs have been found in the North Sea, but I
don’t know any details.

The other really productive areas are the edges of polar icecaps. When
the ice melts in summer, huge amounts of trapped phytoplankton &
nutriennts are released. This leads to a short lived explosion in
productivity. Swarms of Krill can contain densities of several per cubic
centimetre, while extending for several tens of kilometres. They support
baleen whales, penguins etc.

So, I’d suggest:
Ocean beds: 3
Continental Shelf: 5
Coastal: 7
Mid Ocean Ridges: 5
Polar Oceans: 3 - 9 in summer
Coral Reefs: 9
Coastal Upwellings: 8-9 (there are only about six of these on earth, so
they’d be pretty rare, but pretty large - possibly several maritime
provinces in size). Also subject to periodic fluctuations - the El Nio
effect, in which the source level drops to 6.

Fishing would reduce the source levels of these provices. Assume that
50% of the population of a coastal province support themselves by
fishing and 100% of the population of a small island - eg. provinces in
Mairada.

Obviously, feel free to change stuff to suit your campaign.

neil