Back in June when I joined the mailing list, I found a "Ramble on Tralada ran Gypsies," by RLaRue. He talked about a possible "Gypsy"-like class o f Traladarans, to be called the Darine. I took that idea and ran with it , and combined RLaRue's thoughts with the entry in the Monstrous Compendi um Annual Volume Two on the Vistani, and came up with something I really like. I'd like to know what everyone else thinks, and so if you have any ideas or comments, I'm at valerya@hotmail.com. Oh, by the way, I've pos ted some questions at the end of this. This entry is pretty long, so enj oy! THE DARINE The Darine (singular, "Daro" or "Dara") are the "gypsies" of Traladara. They are descended from the Traldar that migrated west into Sind during the invasion of the Red Orcs in 1000 BC. Never quite fitting into the l ocal culture, the Traldar tribe that formed from these refugees moved out of the region in 600 BC and hasn't ever really settled down since; thou h the region of Traladara has become a "homeland" for many of the clans, the Darine range as far north as Darokin and Rockhome; west to the Five S hires, Sind and the Burning Waste; east to Vyalia and western Thyatis; an d south to Ierendi. The Darine resemble most Traladarans in appearance: dark hair, light to olive skin, dusky eyes. They dress in even more vibrant clothing than th eir Traladaran cousins, preferring bright kerchiefs, scarves, and sashes, along with embroidered trousers and vests worn with billowing shirts. B oth men and women typically wear a great deal of jangling jewellry, and m en pierce their ears as often as women. They earn their living in various ways, mostly through services, trade, fortune telling, and entertaining, although they have a reputation for th ievery. They occasionally hire out as guides. They have a knack for gui ding parties safely to wherever they wish to go. They are clever, and al ways find ways to honour their agreements, even if these have been made w ith conflicting sides. The Darine diet consists of roasted meat, goat's and mare's milk, berrie s and other fruit, and strong coffees. Many Darine are skilled as warriors and thieves. Spellcasters are rarer and usually women. Darine typically arm themselves with swords, daggers , cudgels, light axes, and similar weapons. Missile weapons are uncommon ; longer distance weapons tend to be light crossbows or slings, while thr owing daggers are popular for short-ranged work. Religiously, the Darine feel a strong connection to the land, and honour Zirchev above all other Immortals. (They also honour Halav and Petra, b ut not as universally.) This Darine connection to the land is strange: t hey love the land and its creatures, but seem unable to settle down. Thi s is because of curse called down upon the Darine long, long ago. During their travels in Sind over a thousand years ago, the tribes that would b ecome the Darine encountered a treacherous priest of Thanatos who was sys tematically exterminating a small pocket of scrub forest along with the c reatures that lived there, a clear and precious (especially so near the e dge of the desert) stream, and a tiny sub-clan of elves. They confronted the priest over a series of both chance meetings and organized raids; fi nally, a daring group of Darine warriors captured the evil priest and rai sed their swords to strike him down. In that instant, the priest pronoun ced a terrible curse: for their meddling, the Darine and their families f or all time would wander, homeless and unable to settle in even the lands they loved most. Being without roots, they would resort to trickery and deceit for a living. Men would hate and fear them, and would persecute them wherever they would attempt to settle. And, according to the priest 's words, none but Thanatos himself could break the curse. Ever since that fateful day, the Darine have wandered. The few individu als who try to settle down are usually restless, secretly longing for the ir old life. The Darine blood of these few infects them with a similar d esire to wander, causing them to seek lives as adventurers. A Darine clan consists of a caravan of 5 to 50 members, and is usually a n extended family. The Darine travel in wooden wagons called "vardos" (s mall wagons with a high arching roof and a door at the back with the driv er sitting in front). Vardos are painted in vivid colours and might even have tiny windows of tinted glass, if the owner is prosperous. The vard o travels with a small menagerie of dogs, goats, and crated chickens. Ea ch caravan is led by the elders (oldest male and female). These elders h ave the final say on all matters that affect the whole clan. They arrang e marriages between clans to form alliances and diffuse feuds. A clan mi ght consist of one set of grandparents, one or two of their sons, their s ons' families and maybe their grandsons' families. Typically, only unmar ried daughters live with their blood relatives, going to live with their husbands' families upon marriage. Non-Darine are derisively called "giorgios." While these individuals ma y be befriended of Darine, they can never be considered part of the Darin e fellowship. There are no "honorary" Darine. Darine trade with giorgio s for everything, preferring goods, services, and even trinkets over Roya ls or Daros, or the like. They often accept promises for later services in place of immediate payment. They interpret promises literally, so car e must be taken on the exact wording. Darine follow their own law, such that it is. They ignore laws they don 't like, completely unfettered by guilt. To the Darine, justice is more important than the law. They also view property differently (much like t he Nuari or older Makai), and so do not feel remorse over petty thefts. They view murder and rape much more harshly than even the King's courts, though, and punish both appropriately. They also dislike broken promises and lies, but think nothing of twisting the truth in their favour. Dari ne punishments for crimes are always fitting: for example, rape is punish able by castration, a broken promise for services by the kidnapping of a member of the offender's family (to carry out that promised service), and assault by a curse (see below) or--at the very least--a thorough pummell ing. The Darine consist of two large tribes subdivided into several clans. E ach tribe has its own manner of dress, appearance and traditions, though members of one tribe acknowledge members of the other as Darine. All cla ns have at least some fortune tellers and entertainers, and characters of nearly any rogue class. Pure warriors are rare. While the Darine do no t have clerics or priests of any organized religion (including that of Zi rchev), this role is fulfilled by individuals who functions as healers, m ystics, or oracles. Most of these are women, especially the elder women. The two distinct Darine tribes (including the subdivision in the Kaldres h tribe) and some related clans include: Kaldresh The Kaldresh tribe consists of two separate subgroups, the Kaldresh and the Manusa. The Kaldresh are "camp followers": tinkers, smiths, animal t rainers, and healers. They pride themselves in their ability to supply a rmies, trade caravans, adventurers, and others with the proper tools need ed to defeat enemies, as well an needed healing after a battle. The Kald resh have been known to supply both sides in a conflict, not really carin g about the disputes of non-Darine, but more interested in making a livin g. Clans of Kaldresh include the Kamii, Equarr, and Vatraska. The Manusa are the rarest of Darine and are seldom encountered in number s larger than a single family. They are the most mysterious and reclusiv e of the Darine and the ones closest to the oldest legends of the race. They are tinkerers in the arcane: amulets, charms, potions, and lore. Ru mour says they have the power to bend time and space to their will, and t hat they know much of ancient evils and how best to ward off or escape th em. It is believed they guard the other Darine from further assaults by Thanatos. Clans of Manusa include the Naiat and the Zarovan. Vistani The Vistani are consummate entertainers. Their camps are rife with bard s, dancers, musicians, and con men. They seem to have the ability to tur n even the most hostile audience into an adoring crowd, and frequently a charming Vistana can convince an entire village to gamble away months of savings on a rigged game with a smile and a few well-placed words. It is the Vistani who occasionally agree to perform as guides, having seen mor e of Brun than most Kaldresh clans. In these cases, the Vistana performs exactly according to the contract, not going beyond the letter of the ag reement, but not falling short of it, either--although they are not adver se to negotiating a new contract if the other party wishes, for just a fe w more coins . . . The Vistani have a darker side; they also hire out as smugglers, kidnappers, and (in a very few instances) assassins, using th eir innate charm to circumvent obstacles that stymie others. Like the Ka ldresh, the Vistani might accept such assignments from all sides in a con flict, performing what they view as necessary, preordained tasks. Tribes include the Canjar and the Corvara. DARINE KITS There are two primary Darine kits which combine abilities from other, ge neral kits as well as new abilities: the Darine Mystic and the Darine Sha rpster. Darine Mystic The Darine Mystic is especially found in the Kaldresh tribe. This chara cter is usually a woman. The Mystic is a master of will over spirit and matter. A such, she is a consummate fortune-teller, charmer, and faith h ealer, with other abilities similar to a Wokani. The Mystic has a gaze attack called the "evil eye." This focuses powerf ul negative emotions--hate, anger, jealousy--against a creature meeting t heir gaze. The attack is usable thrice per day, and can manifest in one of five ways. The most common are a "hold" (person or monster) or a "cur se" (though "fear," "charm," and "suggestion" effects are not unknown). To avoid the effect, the target creature must save vs. paralyzation. Fai lure against any except the "curse" afflicts the creature for 2-5 rounds; failing against the "hold" by 4 or more inflicts disabling convulsions u pon the victim for three rounds. The "curse" effect is similar to the re verse of the 4th-level wizard spell "remove curse." It can affect either a creature or an item, but the curse itself must be spoken. Mystics advance as clerics, with the Hit Dice of a wizard, though with a n additional 2 hp per level. They can automatically cast the first-level priest spell "cure light wounds" three times a day, as well as the first -level wizard spell "charm person" once a day. The Mystic can also make "brews and philtres," including potions and poisons of various effects an d durations (these must always be liquid, and act as the potions of the m agical item list in the DMG). The Mystic can make one such potion per we ek. Mystics for the purposes of spellcasting progress as priests, though wit h a difference: the spells the Mystic receives at first level are first-l evel priest spells. Additional spells received at second level are first level wizard spells. Spells received at third level are second level pr iest spells, and so one, to the fifth level of spellcasting. In other wo rds, Mystic Spells Received Level 1 One L1 priest (P) spell 2 One L1 priest (P) spell, one L1 wizard (W) spell 3 One L1 P, one L1 W, one L2 P 4 Two L1 P, one L1 W, one L2 P, one L2 W 5 Two L1 P, one L1 W, two L2 P, one L2 W, one L3 P 6 Two L1 P, one L1 W, two L2 P, one L2 W, one L3 P, one L3 W 7 Two L1 P, one L1 W, two L2 P, one L2 W, one L3 P, one L3 W, one L 4 P 8 Two L1 P, one L1 W, two L2 P, one L2 W, two L3 P, one L3 W, one L 4 P, one L4 W 9 Two L1 P, two L1 W, two L2 P, two L2 W, two L3 P, one L3 W, one L 4 P, one L4 W, one L5 P 10 Two L1 P, two L1 W, two L2 P, two L2 W, two L3 P, one L3 W, two L4 P, one L4 W, one L5 P, one L5 W 11+ --No additional spells are granted past this level-- Mystics may not carry or use any weapon other than a small sickle-shaped dagger with which to cut herbs for potions. Darine Sharpster This character is usually found among the Vistani. The Sharpster can be a man or a woman, but is typically a man. The Sharpster is a talented c harmer, confidence man, pilferer, and entertainer (usually of the hand-is -quicker-than-the-eye variety). Sharpsters are, first and foremost, con-men. They specialize in all sor ts of tricks and games designed to liven spirits and to earn a living (wh at giorgio morality says of this way to earn a living is of no consequenc e to a Daro, anyway). To this end, Sharpsters can automatically cast the first-level wizard spells "charm person" and "alter self" an unlimited n umber of times per day, and the third-level spell "suggestion" three time s a week. They gain +5% to the thief ability Pick Pockets, and know Thie ves' Cant wherever they travel regularly. They can also influence crowd reactions as a bard, whereupon when a Sharpster is addressing a crowd the audience must save vs. paralyzation, with a -3 penalty for every three experience levels of the Sharpster. Should the saving throw fail, the gr oup's reaction is automatically shifted to friendly; those who save feel animosity toward the Sharpster, suspecting the nature of his scheme. Sha rpsters advance as thieves, and may use the weapons of that class. Some Sharpsters have been known to be multiclass fighter/thieves, but never ma ge/thieves or fighter/mage/thieves. By: valerya@hotmail.com. =