Defenders of the Forest - Liber Fanatica

The pure of heart are allowed to wander freely amongst the
trees, and may even reach their destinations quicker than expected.
Kind souls who perform favours for spirits may become
Spirit-Friends (see below). Typical favours might entail defending
the forest against marauders, helping an animal in distress,
or magically restoring a despoiled grove. Travellers who do not
take care to placate the forest spirits find themselves misdirected,
intimidated or attacked by vengeful woodland creatures.
Forest Spirits include: Dryads, Naiads, Shadow Beasts, Spites,
Treekin and Treemen
Fo r e s t Spirit Disposition
Forest Spirits are fickle and quick to judge when encountered. A
Forest Disposition rating is applied to all Fellowship-based tests
for interaction with local fey. Consult the gazetteer capsule if
applicable, and note the region’s Forest Disposition rating. If no
gazetteer is being used, a woodland’s default Disposition rating
is Cold (-10). Then consult the Creature Disposition rating
indicated on Table 10.3: The Marvellous Magical Ecosystem.
Situational modifiers can be applied cumulatively with Gazetteer
Disposition and Creature Disposition ratings:
Ta b l e 10.1: Spirit Disposition Modifiers
Condition
Modifier
Travellers harm the forest -20
Travellers carry axes or fire -10
Travellers are Elves +10
Travellers are native to the forest +10
Spirit-Fr i e n d s
Travellers who succeed at a Charm Test and provide a favour to
a Forest Spirit may become Spirit-Friends. Spirit-Friend status
can also be applied to characters passing their Charm Test by 3
or more Degrees of Success, in lieu of a favour. In addition to
being accepted by the forest, Spirit-Friends also receive a boon.
Typical boons include aid in battle, timely assistance with a
difficult task, or guidance to a sacred grove. Many Spirit-Friends
are unable to communicate with their fey allies; the befriended
spirits simply trust their hearts are pure.
Spirit-Friends are not normally “Bonded” to the fey in the same
manner as Elven riders to their animal companions. Spirits
cannot survive outside the forest for more than a few days,
and must return to their natural environment before long. The
exceptions are Spites (pg. 102) who will occasionally bond with
mortals for unknown reasons. Other Forest Spirits will only
form lasting relationships with Elven Treefriends.
Chapter X: Friends of
the Forest
Fo r e s t Spirit Co r r u p t i o n
Forest Spirits that become tainted by Wild Chaos (see pg. 115)
roll on the following table instead of the normal Mutation table.
Forest Spirit corruption tends to manifest psychologically rather
than physically, just like Elven corruption. However, the bark
(or fur) of Forest Spirits and Spirit Animals sometimes blackens
or whitens as a side-effect of Chaos taint.
Spirit Animals and Magical Animals roll on Table 11.1: Fauna
Corruption (pg. 114) instead.
Ta b l e 10.2: Fo r e s t Spirit Co r r u p t i o n
1d10
Mutation
1 Agitated: The spirit becomes twitchy and agitated,
incurring an additional -10% modifier to Creature
Disposition.
2 Oracle: The spirit can foretell the future, gaining a
Fortune Point (see WFRP pg. 135). PCs who interact
with the Oracle may gain a single-use Fortune
Point if they pass a Fellowship Test.
3 Malign: The spirit is ill-disposed towards all mortals,
including the Asrai, and attempts to lead them to
their deaths through trickery and deception. Creature
Disposition is secretly Enemy (-30), although
higher Dispositions can be feigned.
4 Ethereal: The spirit warps between one reality and
the next, gaining the Ethereal Talent (see OWA pg.
77).
5 Obsessive: The spirit slavishly follows a favoured
animal or Wood Elf (or even another spirit), mimicking
its every movement and sound.
6 Indifferent: The spirit lacks the will to show interest
in anything or anyone. It does not interact with
characters, and only fights in self-defence.
7 Erratic: The spirit has an unpredictable personality
causing it to vacillate randomly between friendly and
hostile. Every time the spirit is spoken to, the GM
must roll 1d10: 1-5 indicates a friendly response and
6-10 indicates a hostile reaction. Ignore the listed
Creature Disposition.
8 Sleepy: The spirit is overcome with malaise, and
must pass a Will Power Test every day or spend the
whole day in a half slumber (-20% to all stats).
9 Thorny: The spirit is covered with spikes and barbs.
All successful Grapple attacks and subsequent
Strength Tests inflict damage at SB-1, in addition to
the normal grappling rules.
10 Woodwalker: The spirit can travel through the
Shadow Walk using elemental entry and exit fulcrums
made of Wood (see pg. 33).
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