The Al-Qadim Netbook

3.4 Klingons in Al-Qadim

From: [e-mail] (Samuel P Cattle)
I've never liked orcs, and so when I started my current Al-Qadim campaign, I globally replace all orcs with Klingons. Generally, I have them as Bedouin sheiks and nomadic horse- and camel-riding types. Culturally, it's worked out very nicely. I've always suspected that Roddenberry's Klingons were some sort of weird caricature of a 1960's American stereotype of Middle-Eastern cultures, anyway.

The first place I looked for info was The AD&D Guide to Star Trek, but with T$R's prohibitions, that probably doesn't exist anywhere on the net anymore. At any rate, it gave Klingon stat modifiers as STR:+3 CHA:-1. I thought this was a little exaggerated, so I went with STR:+1 CON:+1 WIS:-1 CHA:-1. The Guide also gives a lot of cultural information (email me, I might still have it somewhere) on Klingons (being the type seen in the movies and since, not ST:TOS). The information is a conglomeration of information from the old Starfleet Officer's Manual and observations from movies and Next Gen. episodes. There was also a lot of info on other races, stats for characters on the first three series, and info of phasers, as well as a strange D&D/ST:TOS/ST:TNG adventure with the Borg.

At any rate, the main Klingon character in my campaign is a PC named Ha'DIbaH (I forget what that translates to in English...look it up in a good Klingon dictionary). He's the son of a nomadic sheik, and uses the Desert Rider kit, his tribe's main form of commerce being trading in fine Arabian horses.

As for weapons, of course, his weapon of choice is the betleh handed down to him from his father's father, but he also fights with a pair of taj, florentine style. I don't know if anyone else has ever done this, but I ruled that since the betleh (Worf's huge sword/scythe blade) is such a complicated and versatile weapon, that I give him a number of options with it in combat. We play with proficiencies, single specialization, and weapon speeds, so I required specialization (two proficiencies) in betleh to avoid any penalties, and that gave him access to only the downswipe hack (used by Worf to slay Duras) with a speed of 9 and a damage of 2d8/4d4. One other benefit from the betleh is that it is a natural parrying weapon, so I rule it counts as a shield in melee combat. A third proficiency spent on betleh gives Ha'DIbaH access to both slashing and jabbing attacks, at speed of 5 with damage of 1d8/1d6 and speed of 3 with damage of 1d4/1d4, respectively. The taj has a speed of 2 with damage of 1d4/1d4.

How this works in combat is that the warrior with his betleh at the ready has until his initiative number to decide how he will attack, whether he needs speed over damage, and allows a little more role-playing flavor. I suppose it would be appropriate to remove the AC bonus when in the process of making a downswipe hack, as the warrior is busy with the windup for the attack until 9 segments later.

Well, that's how I integrated Klingons into my campaign, and it has been rather successful, giving a nice bit of distinction to my campaign, and providing much more fun than standard orcs!

3.5 Shajarran, Greater

From: [e-mail] (Bernard Delhausse / CREPP)

Climate/Terrain: Tropical/Jungle	Movement: 9, Sw 9
Frequency: Very rare	HD: 9+ (3-12)
Organization: Solitary	THAC0: As fighter of the same level
Activity Cycle: Any	No. attacks: 1 or 2
Diet: Herbivore	Damage/Attack: by weapon +8 or 2d8/2d8
Intelligence: Very to high (11-16)	Special Attacks: See below
Treasure: A	Special Defense: See below
Alignment: CN (tends towards CE)	Magic Resistance: 25 %
No. Appearing: 1-2	Size: M (6' tall) or L (12' tall)
AC: 0	Morale: Fearless (20)

Shajarrans are followers of Shajar, the forgotten hippopotamus god. Few followers still exist in the jungle, far above Dihliz, near the Doors of Shajar. They tend to gather in places where deep rivers can be found, so that they can swim in animal form. In some locations, huge stone buildings and walls used to keep large and deep pools of water. These were very special sites, where initiation rites were taking place. Most of the time, the walls have collapsed, but it is said that some sacred places still remain untouched by decay. Shajarrans do not venture outside their sacred grounds, few have been seen or have been reported as, though they are herbivorous, they are fierceful creatures when it comes to protect their site. Uninitiated persons entering the pool and its neighborhood must die. Due to this secluded life, only an old form of Midani is spoken (and even with a 25% chance for every 10 shajarrans) by shajarrans. Speaking with a shajarran, if possible, requires an Ancient Language roll, or magical means.

It is quite unclear how a greater shajarran comes to life. Some say lesser shajarran are granted this honor, others consider that through particular rituals, a man and an animal fusion to make only one being. Other explanations have been stated like the fact that these greater shajarrans were in fact animals changed into humans and not the contrary. The reports available in the Mosque of Zann in Dihliz do not signal any difference between real hippopotamus and greater shajarrans. All those explanations share one element: the pool. The transformation is linked to the water pool. If destroyed, no greater shajarrans can come to life anymore.

Like many other followers of the forgotten gods, shajarrans can Shapechange at will (taking one full round) from human to animal form, or vice versa. It is nevertheless believed that their animal form is the most frequently assumed, to be able to stay in the water.

Combat:

Another reason why they favor water is that they are less vulnerable in the holy pool. They regenerate 1 hp/turn while in it and save all attacks with a +2 bonus. Furthermore, water-based attacks cannot harm them. If out of the water, but still on sacred ground, they do not regenerate anymore and save all attacks, including water-based, at +1. They fight as fighters of the same level (10th to 13th), using a weapon while in human form or their fists in animal form, and cast spells as clerics of the same level. They are limited to the following spheres in which they have major access: Animal, Divination, Elemental (Water), Guardian, Healing, Plant and Weather. All other spheres are forbidden. Note that they cannot cast 7th level spells due to their level. Even if, by very powerful means, they were able to become 14th level priest, they would not be allowed to pray for 7th level spells. Due to their great resistance to pain, they fight for 2 rounds when their hit points are between 0 and -10. They enter in a comatose sleep at this moment, and regeneration brings them back to life. If taken out of the pool, the regeneration stops and they slowly decay. If their hps fall under -10 hps, they die instantly. At this point regeneration has no effect.

Habitat/Society:

Only male can become a priest of Shajar. Centuries ago, they were enjoying a much more comfortable position in the society than followers from other gods, perceived as more cruel. Nevertheless, shajarrans have proved to be merciless too. Some shrines have no entrance except by the pool. These are the most sacred temples devoted to Shajar. Usually they are protected by glyphs and other sorts of protective devices, so that a number of such unvisited temples has been reported since expeditions are launched from Dihliz. Smaller, less important, shrines, involving only two levels and a few rooms, are open to visitors (peasants, pilgrims, etc.) and thus can be accessed by the ground.

Ecology:

Greater shajarrans can mate with hippopotamus when in animal form. This union is not sterile as some have believed. 50% of the time, the result is a normal hippopotamus; 35% of the time, a lesser shajarran comes, and the last 15% indicate a strange creature, usually female, mixing human and animal features with some magical abilities. This is, to some extent, equivalent to the Yuan-ti. As this creature is female, it is abandoned rather than killed. It is highly unlikely that many have survived in the jungle. If the pool is destroyed, a greater shajarran goes berserk for one full turn and then dies, or his brain crushes, losing all memories of Shajar. In the latter case, the greater shajarran becomes a true hippopotamus.