Quirks

In addition to the four aspects—chronological, magical, technological, and environmental—some worlds have additional properties that help make them unique and unpredictable. These properties—quirks—are not easily categorized. Quirks can be part of a world’s essential makeup, completely serendipitous, or temporarily imposed from outside. In the latter two cases, the player characters might be able to change them. The local rules governing priest spells described on page 49 can be considered essential quirks. A few known quirks are listed below:

The world is infused with some overwhelming force or energy that twists everything, including magic and psionic abilities. For example, the Demiplane of Ravenloft is infused with evil. No spell, granted ability, or psionic power can distinguish the alignment of any creature or object on Ravenloft, and many magical effects and psionic powers are corrupted.

Other worlds might be infused with good, light, magic, electricity, or anything else that can be detected or manipulated under the AD&D game rules.

If this quirk exists on a Prime Material world, it’s probably a temporary effect that can be removed if the source is destroyed. Otherwise, it cannot be altered or removed except by destroying the entire world.

A particular type of material is difficult or impossible to magically conjure or duplicate on the world. For example metal is very rare on Athas, the world of the Dark Sun™ setting. Metal cannot be permanently created on Athas, and the normally permanent wall of iron spell quickly falls to pieces.

Spells that have been named after their creators (such as Melf’s minute meteors) are unknown and unavailable unless brought in from outside or researched from scratch.

Leaders of the world’s dominant race are able to detect and immediately retaliate against magical or psionic attacks directed against members of the race. This quirk is possible only on worlds rated M14 or higher. Retaliation can take whatever form the DM feels is appropriate: a simple spell turning effect, one large venomous insect attacks the offender for every point of damage inflicted on the target, a random spell is directed at the offender, etc.

Magical items brought into the world are not affected by the distance to their home planes but are subject to other local effects. Such worlds usually are unrestricted (see page 49) and have a magical rating of 13 or higher.

The world traps visitors. Exit is possible only through pre-existing gates. This quirk is possible only in Demiplanes and Pocket Dimensions.

The world and some or all of its residents are analogs to beings in the base campaign. If the two world’s ratings are generally similar, analogous beings from the two worlds are virtual twins, having appearances, occupations, skills, and alignments similar to their twins’. The more the two world’s aspects diverge, the more dissimilar the analogs are.

Worlds that contain player character analogs present all sorts of difficulties and opportunities for the PCs:

Same Book, Different Cover: Analogs have completely different appearances, but identical mannerisms and similar histories. How long does it take the group to realize that the arrogant lizard man they are dealing with is just another version of a PC wizard?

Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover: Analogs look and act pretty much like their counterparts, but they have different dispositions and skills. Perhaps the player character analogs on this world are notorious villains or perhaps the PCs’ chief rival is a great and revered hero here.

Déjá Vu: The world might contain analogs whose counterparts have died in the base campaign, both foes and allies. Also, the current situation on this world might mirror an adventure the PCs have already completed, but the villains have made different plans this time.

The world parallels the base campaign and is actually a version of the base campaign’s past or future.

Some mundane item from the base campaign is the focus for power on this world. For example, powdered dragon horn explodes like gunpowder, gold jewelry grants a spell-like power, etc.

The world is isolated from other dimensions. Extradimensional spaces, such as those created by portable holes, rope trick spells, and bags of holding, cannot be opened.

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