OSR Commentary On The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dieties & Demigods By Robert Kuntz & James Ward - Stains Upon The Green, Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing, & The Dwarven Gate

 The Dwarven gods that appear within Dieties and Demigods might actually predate the Elven gods of our Greyhawk campaign that we've been talking about last time on the blog. 

So let's pick it up with the Fall, September is around the corner and already the chill of Autumn is in the air of August. If you've been following our posts we dive back into both classic Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition Dieties & Demigods & Castles and Crusades with Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing. Last time we spoke about a multiplicity of Greyhawks. And let's assume for a moment using the Great Wheel cosmology that someplace among the Prime material plans that there's a Greyhawk that follows the Celtic mythology put forth within Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing. The rebellions & battles of the Celtic gods might actually line up with the Elven gods of Chaos that appeared in Adventurer,Conqueror, King's King's  By This Axe. Giving the Dwarves a rather dim view of the Elves while enhancing the human's postion within this world. 

This is a world of Celtic tribes and peoples, the Fey have full reign here, and the word of Druids might be law. The Dwarves are actually older then the Fey, the Elves, and most certainly the humans. The abandoned Dwarven city dimensional gates of Stains upon the Green lead into  Dark Wizard's #4 Vault of the Dwarven King. 

And the Fey would not be happy at all with the release of a Chaos elemental Earth elemental in the hands of the Dark Fairy, Elves, and others forces of Chaos.This world of Greyhawk may be far more raw, primative, and highly dangerous. Perhaps this version of Greyhawk might even be pre Iron Age.  The PC's gate into a very different Dwarven city from Stains on the Green. The Dwarven halls are full, the city is fully staffed, and even the Dwarven gods walk the fields of battle. 

This version of Greyhawk is within the grip of the time of legends Clangeddin Silverbeard walks upon the field of battle himself. The Dwarven race here is in thier prime. Even here Chaos rears it's head and the races of humanoids are on the uptick. If the party is captured and questioned by the Dwarves they are going to have to do some fancy foot work and talking to escape. 

Clangeddin Silverbeard, the Father of Battle, as depicted in Dragon #58 (1982).

This is a Greyhawk that reeks of legends & lore in the full of itself. Castle Greyhawk may still stand or have fallen to the forces of Chaos long ago. Something is amiss and off even as the PC's are beguiled by the forces of the Fey. But why?! 
Tales of the Outer Planes may contain the answers as the PC's try to deal with thier position within the Dwarven fortress city. Jeff Grub's Manual of the Outer Planes might be of some use when moving into another alternative Prime Material plane. And then there's the facts that the Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing may contain alternative forces of Evil that the players will not be expecting. My advice for the forces of Chaos is to use the Random Esoteric Creature Generator for Classic Fantasy Role-Playing Games and Their Modern Simulacra. The monsters will be the stuff of nightmares quite literally.