Gorgon attacks

[DKEvermore@aol.co]

I have, in a couple past campaigns, run some scenarios in which the Gorgon
went on his usual rampage. The target: Mhoried. The purpose: merely to
"thin down the herd" a bit, and produce some nice veteran units with which he
can get some real warring done. In another case, the Gorgon simply wanted to
try the abilities of Michael Mhoried when the old Mhor died.

Here's the problem: Mhoried has no real friends on hand to help. The PCs
rallied to Mhoried's aid with help from all the guild holdings, source
holdings and temple holdings there. No go. The Gorgon'll crush them all
every time. He's got the entire war-time industrial and unit-making might of
4 nations. Three of them are quite large, and if run right, rich. And the
Gorgon knows the elven nations are not strong enough to lead an offensive
campaign-even if he's stretched out over half Anuire.

At least one of you will be thinking, "There's that elf-lover again,
protecting the elven kingdoms and using awnshegh to beat up on the poor 'ol
humans." Not really. One must remember that the Gorgon soundly beat
Tuarhievel 200 years ago, and although it cost him an army, that country no
longer has the resources for offense. Neither does the Sielwode. Elves
recover slowly, if at all. Besides, the Gorgon wants Anuire, not some useless
clumps of fairy-trees.

Elinie's tiny army is not enough to help. The elves wouldn't care (in fact
IMC, a PC playing a Tuarhievelan elf noble caused irreparable political damage
and only narrowly avoided causing a war).

Unless Ghoere lead an amazing counter attack with full backing of the church
of Cuiraecen there (still maybe a 50/50 chance), Mhoried is doomed.

What do you all do? Let the Gorgon thrash it (that's what I did)? Just hang
it over the heads of Anuirean nobles but never really run the Gorgon's
campaign? Set up an alliance and with who?

May your characters live long and bleed less often!
- -DKE

[Pieter A de Jong]

At 04:23 PM 7/14/98 -0400, DKEvermore wrote:
>I have, in a couple past campaigns, run some scenarios in which the Gorgon
>went on his usual rampage. The target: Mhoried. The purpose: merely to
>"thin down the herd" a bit, and produce some nice veteran units with which he
>can get some real warring done. In another case, the Gorgon simply wanted to
>try the abilities of Michael Mhoried when the old Mhor died.
>
>Here's the problem: Mhoried has no real friends on hand to help. The PCs
>rallied to Mhoried's aid with help from all the guild holdings, source
>holdings and temple holdings there. No go. The Gorgon'll crush them all
>every time. He's got the entire war-time industrial and unit-making might of
>4 nations. Three of them are quite large, and if run right, rich. And the
>Gorgon knows the elven nations are not strong enough to lead an offensive
>campaign-even if he's stretched out over half Anuire.
>
>At least one of you will be thinking, "There's that elf-lover again,
>protecting the elven kingdoms and using awnshegh to beat up on the poor 'ol
>humans." Not really. One must remember that the Gorgon soundly beat
>Tuarhievel 200 years ago, and although it cost him an army, that country no
>longer has the resources for offense. Neither does the Sielwode. Elves
>recover slowly, if at all. Besides, the Gorgon wants Anuire, not some useless
>clumps of fairy-trees.
>
>Elinie's tiny army is not enough to help. The elves wouldn't care (in fact
>IMC, a PC playing a Tuarhievelan elf noble caused irreparable political damage
>and only narrowly avoided causing a war).
>
>Unless Ghoere lead an amazing counter attack with full backing of the church
>of Cuiraecen there (still maybe a 50/50 chance), Mhoried is doomed.
>
>What do you all do? Let the Gorgon thrash it (that's what I did)? Just hang
>it over the heads of Anuirean nobles but never really run the Gorgon's
>campaign? Set up an alliance and with who?
>
>May your characters live long and bleed less often!
>-DKE
>
If it was my campaign, I would give the Gorgon a few more strategic worries
than simply holding off Anuire. Specifically, the Brecht realms would take
the oppotunity to strike at the Gorgon's possesions in that area, and the
Swordhawk might also take the field. So if he want's to keep those realms,
he simply can't throw everything he has at Mhoried. Also, I might see the
elves taking part.( I realize that some of those on this list find my view
of the # of elven mages controversial, but hey, this my post so tough
noogies). The elves don't particularly want their forests completely
encircled by Awnshegliens domains, they aren't very good neighbours.
Although they might not be able to put an army into the field, they could
provide considerable magical support for the Mhor's troops. A couple of
battle spells in the right place could be pretty useful, and if you go to
Realm spells, a well placed Warding spell could cause mass havoc.

Pieter A de Jong
Graduate Mechanical Engineering Student
University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada

[TheMotive@aol.co]

What would *I* do? This. But keep in mind, this may not seem logical or
feasible, but it's what I have done in *my* campaign (just to spite all those
traitorous elf-lovers out there). This is the entry, word for word, in one of
my RL player's journals:

"...And now it is evening. The sun is setting over the horizon, and the hordes
of human stand at the edges of the forests. Tuarhievel? Sielwode? It is as if
they have never existed."

"Now the lords, kings, princes and princesses grant the promise that pulled
the humans together: the right of every man, woman and child who has lost a
friend or relative to the ghaellie Sidhe to bring forth one torch and burn the
forests of the fae-folk."

"Hours have passed, and the flames still stretch forth into the sky, akin to
fingers flicking out to touch the heavens. The fires are so strong and so
brilliant that they turn night to early evening--I can see my comrades' faces
perfectly. Armies stand at the borders of Tuarhievel and the Sielwode,
preventing the ravenous fires from spreading to our lands."

"And now, it is morning. Finally, morning. The fires still burn, but not so
bright. Word from scouts is that the Aelvinwode lay in ruins, and the elves
that were captured are being marched out in chains. Where will they go? I do
not know. Sold as slaves, possibly, or maybe just to be hung in the streets of
the cities that they ravaged and burned for so many centuries. Ah,
laughter--laughter from the peasantry that throw stones and vegetables at the
elven prisoners, laughter from the nobility to toast to their triumph over
'the first of races'."

"But what's this? Thunder? Clouds? The rains begin to extinguish the fires,
and the thunder spooks all. As everyone begins the long ride back the safety
of their cities and huts and cottages, my friend, Prefect Claudius--a half-
elf--speaks softly to me."

"'The thunder, my friend,' He says, 'is the laughter of the Gorgon. For he is
the only one who has truly won this war.'"

And so ends an epic campaign I have been running some time now. This
conclusion occured, uh, three months ago (approximately). The characters have
all moved onto other things--the memories of the elves long gone. Now the once
proud, haughty elves are but poor merchants, slaves, mercenaries and
scavangers. Killed where found, hunting everywhere.

- - The Motive

[Jim Cooper]

DKEvermore@aol.com wrote:
> Elinie's tiny army is not enough to help. The elves wouldn't care (in fact IMC, a PC playing a Tuarhievelan elf noble caused irreparable political damage and only narrowly avoided causing a war).
> Unless Ghoere lead an amazing counter attack with full backing of the church of Cuiraecen there (still maybe a 50/50 chance), Mhoried is doomed.
> What do you all do? Let the Gorgon thrash it (that's what I did)? Just hang it over the heads of Anuirean nobles but never really run the Gorgon's campaign? Set up an alliance and with who?
> May your characters live long and bleed less often!
> -DKE

Has anyone even thought about the wizards at the College of Sorcery?
Wouldn't they be interested in what the Gorgon does in their cultural
stomping grounds?

IMHO, I should think that a large part of the reason that the Gorgon
hasn't gone farther than he has is the fact that the College of Sorcery
exists, with some very nasty spell casters. Even the Gorgon should be
hestitant when going against a cadre of powerful wizards.

Cheers,
Darren

[The Olesens]

> Incidentally, I notice that the entry for the Gorgon in the Blood Enemies book does not list him as having any wizard powers as his sheet
in the original boxed
> background doesn't really lend itself to wizardry, and there are many other awnsheghlien who have magical abilities for whom it is more
appropriate.



In _Iron Throne_ by Simon Hawke (every Birthright player should read it)
it talks of a blooded mage selling his services to the Gorgon (the mage
was the court mage of Areywn Bourine).

Conclusion: Gorgon cannot cast spells.

but...

It also says the Gorgon used a lock of the wizard's hair as a spell
component to bind the wizard to him.

Conclusion: Gorgon can cast spells but most likely only low-level.

560+ years later: wouldn't he advance in skill? I mean he is pretty
smart.


BTW-"Gorgon Attacks"-sounds like a movie

[Gary V. Foss]

> Has anyone even thought about the wizards at the College of Sorcery?
> Wouldn't they be interested in what the Gorgon does in their cultural
> stomping grounds?
>
> IMHO, I should think that a large part of the reason that the Gorgon
> hasn't gone farther than he has is the fact that the College of Sorcery
> exists, with some very nasty spell casters. Even the Gorgon should be
> hestitant when going against a cadre of powerful wizards.
>
> Cheers,
> Darren

I think this is a really good point, Darren. I've argued several times that there should be more magic in Cerilia than is often supposed. Sure, there should be much less than in other campaign worlds,
but the impression that magic is as rare as Cerilian dragons is, in my view, a mistaken one.

As to how this regards the Gorgon: It effects him drastically. While blooded mages are very rare in Cerilia, they should be just a tick or two away from non-existent in the Gorgon's realm. He has a
nasty tendency to kill blooded scions, leaving only a few comparatively innocuous ones around at best. In addition, he has a rather anti-education and learning kind of guy (at least for his people) so
there would be no structure anything like the CoS.

Incidentally, I notice that the entry for the Gorgon in the Blood Enemies book does not list him as having any wizard powers as his sheet in the original boxed set does. This makes sense to me, as his
background doesn't really lend itself to wizardry, and there are many other awnsheghlien who have magical abilities for whom it is more appropriate. It does, however, show the Gorgon's weakness. His
lack of magic makes him vulnerable. Even if you use the original boxed set version of the Big G, he would have to divide his three domain actions between ruling his realm and casting realm spells,
which means that a small band of regents could be pretty effective if they combined their attacks against him....

If you use the unwizard version of the Gorgon then he would be even more vulnerable to magic than the magely one, as he would have no magical response to realm spells or battle magic.

Lastly, I forgot who is was that mentioned that the Gorgon has the war machine of four nations to back him up, which is true, though the variable sizes of Cerilian domains makes this a rather vague
assessment. Classic military doctrine, however, points out that one needs at least a 3:1 ratio to take on an entrenched opponent, which would lead me to suspect that a typical Cerilian nation would
need to have only one real ally in order to fight him off.

In any case, such an attack would leave the Gorgon vulnerable to any rulers in the Brecht, Rjurik or Anuirean lands that could band together long enough to attack him, which is probably why such an
offensive on the Gorgon's part is unlikely. The Gorgon's central location in Cerilia means he can threaten a lot of realms, but it also means he is vulnerable to attack from all directions. He'd have
to make sure he was not vulnerable before he would launch an offensive. Nobody on Cerilia is a better warrior than the Gorgon, he would be very aware of these problems. That's why he is so cautious.

Anyway, that's my take on it.
Gary

[Simon Graindorge]

>> Has anyone even thought about the wizards at the College of Sorcery?
>> Wouldn't they be interested in what the Gorgon does in their cultural
>> stomping grounds?
>>
>> IMHO, I should think that a large part of the reason that the Gorgon
>> hasn't gone farther than he has is the fact that the College of Sorcery
>> exists, with some very nasty spell casters. Even the Gorgon should be
>> hestitant when going against a cadre of powerful wizards.
>>
>> Cheers,
>Incidentally, I notice that the entry for the Gorgon in the Blood Enemies
>book does not list him as having any wizard powers as his sheet in the
>original boxed set does.



I noticed this too, and have been wondering whether this was simply an
oversight of the editors of BE, or if this is an "updated" stat sheet for
the Gorgon. Which version does everyone else use? Which do you guys think is
more appropriate - the Gorgon with, or without, magical powers?

Simon

--------
Simon Graindorge
Tribology Laboratory
Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
University of Western Australia

email: simong@mech.uwa.edu.au
phone: +(61 8) 9380 3604
fax: +(61 8) 9380 1024
--------

[Jim Cooper]

Simon Graindorge wrote:
> I noticed this too, and have been wondering whether this was simply an
> oversight of the editors of BE, or if this is an "updated" stat sheet for the Gorgon. Which version does everyone else use? Which do you guys think is more appropriate - the Gorgon with, or without, magical powers?<

Well, my initial response would be that the RoE takes precedence, since
he hold sources (and judging by his RP income, he collects from these
too). But, now that I think about this, I wonder if 'ol Rock Butt isn't
just holding the sources, just so he can deny them to any true wizard.
I think I'll have to give this one more thought

Perhaps Ed or Carrie can give us the official version? Is this another
Blood Enemies propaganda piece?

Cheers,
Darren

[Simon Graindorge]

>Simon Graindorge wrote:
>> I noticed this too, and have been wondering whether this was simply an
>> oversight of the editors of BE, or if this is an "updated" stat sheet for
>the Gorgon. Which version does everyone else use? Which do you guys think
>is more appropriate - the Gorgon with, or without, magical powers?<
>
>Well, my initial response would be that the RoE takes precedence, since
>he hold sources (and judging by his RP income, he collects from these
>too). But, now that I think about this, I wonder if 'ol Rock Butt isn't
>just holding the sources, just so he can deny them to any true wizard.

I seem to remember (correct me if I'm wrong, 'coz I don't have the rulebook
on me) that source holdings are special, in that they are the only holding
type that can NOT be held by someone of the appropriate "type" (in this
case, a blooded mage).

Simon

[James Ray]

In MY campaign, the Gorgon is kept in check by several factors...

1) Erik Danig. The Count is the leading NPC in my campaign, keeping an
eye on the Gorgon, the White Witch, and various other villains. He is
(according to HotGB) liked and respected by his neighbors, and could
probably put together a force to attack oldf stony britches in the rear.

2) Every country bordering the Gorgon should be suficiently terrified of
him to do SOMETHING if he invades one of the other guys. (Wierech, in
particular, would like a little pay-back)

3) The guy running Massenmarch (Swordhawk?) would definately find time to
attack Kiergard, if he knew old iron-butt was invading Anuire again

4) Have you run "Warlock of the Stonecrowns" yet? HE (the Warloack) would
certainly like a piece of that action, at least for a while.

5) Alies to fight the Gorgon should be EASY to find. There are two
Dwarven nations right next to him, that wouldnt want to become the next
"Mur-Kilad". He is within fighting distance of three elven kingdoms
(Luabraight, Tuarhievel, Sielwode), one of which OWES him an ass-woopin,
and....well, you get the idea. The Gorgon needs "distractions" (according
to Warlock of the Stonecrowns), so he can get enough lead time to put his
war machine far enough into motion that it intimidates his neighbors OUT of
attacking in support of his OTHER enemies. If he just tries to
nonchalantly "pick a fight", he will find his lil party has been crasghed
by NUMEROUS uninvited guests.

James

- ----------
> From: DKEvermore@aol.com

>
> I have, in a couple past campaigns, run some scenarios in which the
Gorgon went on his usual rampage.

[Tim Nutting]

Despite all the factors that keep the Gorgon in check, there are several
that he could use to his immediate advantage in any campaign setting.

Politcally there is much destabilization present in Anuire. How much
effort would it take to conquer Mhoried if the Holy Order of Haelyn's Aegis
were removed? Would it not be possible to drive a spike of discontent
twixt the Orthodix Imperial Temple and the Holy Order over the course of
decades or centuries?

And what about possible allies? Who would stand to gain from Mhoried's
removal or weakness? How about Ghoere first and Osoerde second. Use some
of his powers and abilities (especially if he's a powerful spellcaster) to
divine the location of Willhem Moergan of Osoerde and hand him over to
Jason Raenech. Give the putz a foot of rope at a time.

Suppose that Ghoere could be persuaded into attacking Elinie at the same
time that the Gorgon strikes Mhoried. Tael uses the Millitant Order to
block Haelyn's Aegis.

As to answer those who would oppose him? Lluabraight has their own worries
from the White Witch and the Giantdowns, and no human will cross the
haunted lands in the Eastern Downs to strike at the Gorgon. Try and get an
army intact across there from Stjordvik. Maybe Tuarheivel could mount an
attack against a weakened Gorgon, but at what cost? They do so and Cariele
or the Five Peaks, or perhaps even Dhoesone, takes a moment to nip at their
flanks.

So the Gorgon looses a province to Eric Danig. Big ouch.... that hurt
sooooo bad. When Raesene finishes off a four or five provinces in the
south he turns around and hits Danigau with the force that crushed
independant Kiergard.

the Swordhawk? possibly annoyance at best. A lost province or two of
Kiergard could be reclaimed with terifying ease, even against another
awnshegh.

Anyway, if it isn't apparent, I love the Gorgon, this is one of the best
enemies ever invented, and I love using him to terrorize my players!

later!
Tim

[DKEvermore@aol.co]

In a message dated 98-07-14 22:01:37 EDT, you write:

> As to how this regards the Gorgon: It effects him drastically. While
> blooded mages are very rare in Cerilia, they should be just a tick or two
> away from non-existent in the Gorgon's realm. He has a
> nasty tendency to kill blooded scions, leaving only a few comparatively
> innocuous ones around at best. In addition, he has a rather anti-education
> and learning kind of guy (at least for his people) so
> there would be no structure anything like the CoS.

I agree with you completely on this one. However, he does still have the
entire Temple of Azrai under his thumb, which would give him a bunch of battle
ready priests. I doubt these would be as powerful as real wizards in battle,
but it would help. Also, I do not use the Blood Enemies description (stuff
was deliberately falsified according to the authors so that DMs can feel free
to change things from what was printed) of the Gorgon. He must have Wizardly
powers or he'd be unlikely to have discovered all those Source holdings he
controlls.

> lack of magic makes him vulnerable. Even if you use the original boxed set
> version of the Big G, he would have to divide his three domain actions
> between ruling his realm and casting realm spells,
> which means that a small band of regents could be pretty effective if they
> combined their attacks against him....

True. And the PCs in the second campaign did manage to sneak into his castle
while he was out a-destroyin'. Stole some pretty important stuff and ticked
off the Gorgon so badly, he came charging back home to take care of the
problem pesonally. This was the only way his rampage was stopped in my game.
(unlikely to work twice, tho...)

>
> Lastly, I forgot who is was that mentioned that the Gorgon has the war
> machine of four nations to back him up, which is true, though the variable

That was me.

> sizes of Cerilian domains makes this a rather vague
> assessment. Classic military doctrine, however, points out that one needs
> at least a 3:1 ratio to take on an entrenched opponent, which would lead me
> to suspect that a typical Cerilian nation would
> need to have only one real ally in order to fight him off.

Yup. But it would have to be a significant ally (one of nearly equal
strength). What would you suggest?

>
> In any case, such an attack would leave the Gorgon vulnerable to any rulers
> in the Brecht, Rjurik or Anuirean lands that could band together long enough
> to attack him, which is probably why such an
> offensive on the Gorgon's part is unlikely. The Gorgon's central location
> in Cerilia means he can threaten a lot of realms, but it also means he is
> vulnerable to attack from all directions. He'd have
> to make sure he was not vulnerable before he would launch an offensive.
> Nobody on Cerilia is a better warrior than the Gorgon, he would be very
aware
> of these problems. That's why he is so cautious.

Organized armies do not come out of the Giant Downs (so far.. ;) and I
wouldn't expect much offensive action from.. uh, the name escapes me, the
dwarven realm. I don't think the Gorgon has much to fear from Rjurik.
Nothing only a couple units couldn't handle. Likewise, a mere dozen units in
Kiergaard would hold off even the Swordhawk. Hmm... 'Course there are the
Muden Marines, too... This would take some thought...

- -DKE

[veryfastperson@juno.com]

>In _Iron Throne_ by Simon Hawke (every Birthright player should read
>it)
>it talks of a blooded mage selling his services to the Gorgon (the
>mage
>was the court mage of Areywn Bourine).
>
>Conclusion: Gorgon cannot cast spells.
>
>but...
>
>It also says the Gorgon used a lock of the wizard's hair as a spell
>component to bind the wizard to him.
>
>Conclusion: Gorgon can cast spells but most likely only low-level.

actually, the wizard who sold his services to the Gorgon said that the
gorgon really had no use for him, that the gorgon was already powerful
enough that his services were irrelevant (or something like that. i've
read the iron throne about 5 times :)


>560+ years later: wouldn't he advance in skill? I mean he is pretty
>smart.

Yes, i would say that the Gorgon is a powerful wizard as well as the best
fighter in the land. kinda makes him even tougher to kill :)



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[Pieter A de Jong]

At 10:08 AM 7/15/98 +0800, Simon G. wrote:
>>> Has anyone even thought about the wizards at the College of Sorcery?
>>> Wouldn't they be interested in what the Gorgon does in their cultural
>>> stomping grounds?
>>>
>>> IMHO, I should think that a large part of the reason that the Gorgon
>>> hasn't gone farther than he has is the fact that the College of Sorcery
>>> exists, with some very nasty spell casters. Even the Gorgon should be
>>> hestitant when going against a cadre of powerful wizards.
>>>
>>> Cheers,
>>Incidentally, I notice that the entry for the Gorgon in the Blood Enemies
>>book does not list him as having any wizard powers as his sheet in the
>>original boxed set does.
>
>
>
>I noticed this too, and have been wondering whether this was simply an
>oversight of the editors of BE, or if this is an "updated" stat sheet for
>the Gorgon. Which version does everyone else use? Which do you guys think is
>more appropriate - the Gorgon with, or without, magical powers?
>
Well, I tend to use the version with magical powers. Either that or I have
to give him a highly loyal blooded wizard as an ally/lieutenant.

Pieter A de Jong
Graduate Mechanical Engineering Student
University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada

[Pieter A de Jong]

At 11:25 AM 7/15/98 +0800, Simon G. wrote:
>>Simon Graindorge wrote:
>>> I noticed this too, and have been wondering whether this was simply an
>>> oversight of the editors of BE, or if this is an "updated" stat sheet for
>>the Gorgon. Which version does everyone else use? Which do you guys think
>>is more appropriate - the Gorgon with, or without, magical powers?<
>>
>>Well, my initial response would be that the RoE takes precedence, since
>>he hold sources (and judging by his RP income, he collects from these
>>too). But, now that I think about this, I wonder if 'ol Rock Butt isn't
>>just holding the sources, just so he can deny them to any true wizard.
>
>I seem to remember (correct me if I'm wrong, 'coz I don't have the rulebook
>on me) that source holdings are special, in that they are the only holding
>type that can NOT be held by someone of the appropriate "type" (in this
>case, a blooded mage).
>
> Simon
No, you can hold them (and perhaps even increase their level), you just
can't make new ones. Another example of this comes from the infamous
Tuarhievel Players Secrets, with Savane (Fhilaeraene's Consort) inheriting
his control of the sources of Tuarhievel when he invested her.

Pieter A de Jong
Graduate Mechanical Engineering Student
University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada

[Solmyr]

>I seem to remember (correct me if I'm wrong, 'coz I don't have the rulebook
>on me) that source holdings are special, in that they are the only holding
>type that can NOT be held by someone of the appropriate "type" (in this
>case, a blooded mage).
>
On a related note, BE mentions that the Spider holds a source in the
Spiderfell, even though Caine managed to snatch some levels from him. And
the Spider is not a wizard...

******************
Aleksei Andrievski
aka Solmyr, Archmage of the Azure Star
Visit the Archmage's Tower at
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Fortress/2198/index.html
Join the Mystaran Birthright PBEM at the above website!

[Daniel McSorley]

> From: DKEvermore@aol.com
> > Lastly, I forgot who is was that mentioned that the Gorgon has the war

> > machine of four nations to back him up, which is true, though the
variable
>
> That was me.
>
> > sizes of Cerilian domains makes this a rather vague
> > assessment. Classic military doctrine, however, points out that one
needs
> > at least a 3:1 ratio to take on an entrenched opponent, which would
lead me
> > to suspect that a typical Cerilian nation would
> > need to have only one real ally in order to fight him off.
>
> Yup. But it would have to be a significant ally (one of nearly equal
> strength). What would you suggest?
>
The other thing to remember is the fortifications. The Gorgon's enemies
don't have to defeat his forces, just hole up in their castles all along
the border and wait for help to arrive, or for the Gorgon to get bored and
pull back. After umpteen centuries of warfare, in my campaigns, I say that
Mhoried at _least_ has all his provinces fortified to level 1 or 2, at the
beginning of the campaign. Haelyn's Aegis (is that the right church?) and
the Cuiracean followers likewise have fortified holdings. It's just common
sense, and while that may be lacking among many political figures, the fact
that those countries still stand indicates that there's more to their
defenses than troops.
The flip side of this is that if anyone does manage to invade the
Gorgon's territory, they'll likely find all kinds of forts, castles, and
layered defenses in their way.

Daniel McSorley- mcsorley.1@osu.edu

[David Sean Brown]

> I noticed this too, and have been wondering whether this was simply an
> oversight of the editors of BE, or if this is an "updated" stat sheet for
> the Gorgon. Which version does everyone else use? Which do you guys think is
> more appropriate - the Gorgon with, or without, magical powers?

I would be much more inclined to use the Gorgon without wizard abilities.
Prince Raesene (sp?) was a warrior to the core..no mention has ever been
made of any spellcasting abilities of his, and it would seem to be more
fitting with the Gorgon's character to leave out wizard powers..JMHO...

Sean

[DKEvermore@aol.co]

In a message dated 98-07-15 15:59:15 EDT, you write:

> The other thing to remember is the fortifications. The Gorgon's enemies
> don't have to defeat his forces, just hole up in their castles all along
> the border and wait for help to arrive, or for the Gorgon to get bored and
> pull back. After umpteen centuries of warfare, in my campaigns, I say that
> Mhoried at _least_ has all his provinces fortified to level 1 or 2, at the
> beginning of the campaign. Haelyn's Aegis (is that the right church?) and
> the Cuiracean followers likewise have fortified holdings. It's just common
> sense, and while that may be lacking among many political figures, the fact
> that those countries still stand indicates that there's more to their
> defenses than troops.

Possibly, but no mention has been made of this in the material. Therefore
(aside from one extra castle I placed in...Winoene? don't have the map with
me..) the only fortification is the castle Bevaldruor, near the city of
Shieldhaven.

You have a reasonable arguement, but an argument could also be made that the
lesser fortifications get razed to the ground every time the Gorgon rampages.
This could suck a lot of resources out of a kingdom over decades and
centuries.

> The flip side of this is that if anyone does manage to invade the
> Gorgon's territory, they'll likely find all kinds of forts, castles, and
> layered defenses in their way.
>

Possibly, but again, I don't think so. The Markazor is a pretty regular
battle zone, too, and it may be more effective to use the broken and
mountainous terrain.

It has been stated in PS Tuarhievel, and in the novel Greatheart that these
elves often raid and attack Markazor (not in the sense of a real battle or
"official" war--that would be beyond the elves' resources, apparently).
According to the PS of T, IIRC, this has churned up northen Markazor badly
enough that it is essentially wasteland. Again, this would be in the PS book,
so take it or leave it. Frankly, the wasteland there did NOT make it easier
for my PCs to journey/sneak through to the Gorgon's Crown. Pockets and
grooves in barren, blasted land can be quite defensible, too...

- -DKE

[James Ray]

Im fond of the Gorgon, too :) I just hope TSR doesnt have some idiot
character in a novel kill him. The Gorgon has to do his attacking with a
QUICKNESS, though, so that he doesnt leave any perception of an opportunity
for his enemies to attack. And what PC WOULDNT be terrified of him? I'll
bet that even if he got BAD combat results, he could march to almost ANY
PCs domain with enough troops to reduce it to a depopulated ruin before it
got destroyed LOL

- ----------
> From: Tim Nutting

> Anyway, if it isn't apparent, I love the Gorgon, this is one of the best
> enemies ever invented, and I love using him to terrorize my players!
>
> later!
> Tim

[James Ray]

The Gorgon's level as a Mage is 16, in the boxed set. What on Aebrynnis IS
there for him to accrue XP for killing, though? Sheesh - he could probably
wipe out dozens of normal men without losing a single HP, so might only
garner a precious few thousand XP a year, or so.

- ----------
> From: Erik M Samhammer
> Yes, i would say that the Gorgon is a powerful wizard as well as the best
fighter in the land. kinda makes him even tougher to kill :)