Clerics have matters even worse; while within Passarspace their connection with their diety is weak at best, and they are unable to receive spells greater than 3rd level. The exceptions to this are the clerics of Celestian and Ptah, along with `local' demipowers, the `Chainbreaker' and the `Voidwalker'. Clerics of these powers can can recieve spells as great as 5th level here (no known diety can grant spells greater than level 5 in this sphere).
Priests who draw their spellcasting ability from one or another of the philosophies fare somewhat better than their counterparts, being able to recieve spells of up to 5th level.
Recently (for political reasons), the Invaders legalized the Cult of Ptah. Celestians cult, however, is suppressed because of its disturbing (to the Invaders) notions of individual liberty. The Voidwalkers small following is treated with a blind eye; while the followers of the Chainbreaker are regarded as frauds and criminals and actively hunted down. None of the philosphies has much in the way of membership or organization; their few priests are usually (but not always) suppressed.
CHAINBREAKER (demipower)
Officially, the Invader leaders insist the Chainbreaker is nothing more than a myth conjured up by deluded slaves. Unofficially, they admit that there probably is a powerfull being of some sort behind the tales (the Chainbreaker figures in literally thousands of reports of theft, fraud, and escaped slaves down through the years), but are split between whether the Chainbreaker is simply a title given to the head of the local underground or if the Chainbreaker is a single entity powerfull enough to be termed a demipower. At a best guess, the Chainbreaker may have originally been a doppleganger (possibly a greater doppleganger) picked up in an Invader raid on another sphere and shipped to this sphere about a hundred and eighty years ago (at least thats when the rumors of a shapechanging `super thief' first began circulating). As time went on, this `super thief' began organizing the various underground groups in the slave camps, arranging escapes, commiting murders of particularly detested guards, and recruiting partners for more and more audacious acts of theft. After about fifty years, the Chainbreaker came to be regarded as both the ulitmate rogue and as the head of the slave underground in the sphere. About ten years after that, some of the Chainbreakers chosen lieutenants began to develop minor spellcasting ability, apparent confirmation that the Chainbreaker was now an actual diety.
The Chainbreaker
The Chainbreaker is a natural shapeshifter, always appearing as `somebody else'. Various people - including high ranking Invaders - have associated with some of these persona for years, even decades, with no inkling as to the true nature of the person with whom they were dealing.
A uncertain number of dopplegangers are associated with the Chainbreaker (leading to speculation that the Chainbreaker `himself' was originally the leader of a doppleganger family, or perhaps a greater doppleganger). In any event, dopplegangers are known to be involved in the senior ranks of the Chainbreakers.
Mage 9/Priest 8/Thief 20
S:18 I:20 W:16 D:20 C:16 Ch:var; HP:88; Thaco:11; AL:N;
Special Abilities: The Chainbreaker can shapechange at will
to any humaniod form of the same approximate size
and weight (plus or minus 50%). `He' is also immune
to all forms of mind reading, and at the same time
has a 90% chance to read the surface thoughts of
others. The Chainbreaker seems able to `teleport
without error' to any point within this sphere, yet
seems curiousely unable or unwilling to leave it.
The Chainbreaker regenerates at the rate of 3 hit
points per round, and will always retreat once its
hit points are reduced below 50%. Finally, the
Chainbreaker seems utterly immune to poison.
Duties of the Priesthood:
The Chainbreakers priests are thieves with the ability to cast a few minor spells. They gain EP as clerics, but are otherwise treated as thieves, with the same number of usable spells per day as bards (no bonus spells for high wisdom).
The clerics run various segements of the underground network of theft, fraud, and bartar used by slaves and invaders alike; occasionally they will organize an escape - if it suits their interests at the time.
Requirements: AB Int 10, Wis 10, Dex 10; AL any neutral; AR as thief; WP as thief; PW 1) Thief Skills, spells as bard (see above), 5) Alter Self; 7) Polymorph Self; Spheres: All, Chaos*, Charm, Divination*, Guardian, Healing*
VOIDWALKER (demipower)
Who or what the Voidwalker is, or where it comes from, are unknowns. Those who have spoken with the Voidwalker and asked such questions report near incomprehension on the Voidwalkers part; its replies, as near as can be determined are to the effect that the Voidwalker has always been here, though whether this means it had something to do with the formation of the sphere is most unclear. So far as can be determined, it is a unique being, and recollects nothing that can be considered a childhood or parent, though it seems to sometimes refer to the Maw as a `brother'. Oddly, though, it does seem to know of the `Creator' and `Destroyer' of Golotspace, and seems to have been in contact with some of the more powerfull entities of Kofuspace, most notably the `Stone Talker' and `Tunnel Stalker'.
The Voidwalker is mentioned - occasionally, in passing - in the records of the temple of Ptah on Epsilon-Two, but these cryptic references only add to the mystery surrounding this entity. The Invaders became aware of the Voidwalker shortly after their arrival in this sphere; after a few unpleasant `incidents' (including a disasterous attempt at binding it on their part), they decided to leave it be, even tolorating the way it would occasionally claim one of `their' slaves, or casually kill one or another of their troops.
The Voidwalker:
The Voidwalker appears as a roughly human shaped figure of darkness, lit from within by twisting bands of light that alternate from yellow to red to blue to green in color. Those who claim to `know' the Voidwalker claim that these colors have to do with its attitude at a given time: red for anger, blue for calm, yellow for curiosity. Note that it is possible for one appendage of the Voidwalker to be `calm' while another part is seething with anger. The voidwalker has no apparent facial features; indeed, no apparent face at all. Its mentality is utterly alien.
The voidwalker has only recently taken to studying magic (the records at the temple of Ptah indicate it knew nothing of conventional magic when the temple was first established).
In recent decades, the Voidwalker has sometimes manifested as a tall human (of either sex) in a form fitting black suit. In this form the voidwalkers skin is slightly translucent, with faint colors visible beneath the surface. Its eyes are dead black, without pupil or iris.
Mage 12/Monk 17/Psionist 15 S:22 I:18 W:19 D:20 C:18 Ch:14; HP:99; Thaco:10; AL:N(C)
Special Abilities: The Voidwalker is utterly immune to fire (including magical fire), cold, and poison, though it does take half damage from electrical attacks. +3 or better weapons are required to hit the Voidwalker.
However, it seems the Voidwalker cannot be slain; when reduced to below zero hit points it simply dissipates and reforms somewhere else in the sphere at the rate of 1 hit point per local day (something the Invaders have learned from bitter experience). This has led some Invader scholars to conclude it is a conjured being from another plane (these scholars also think the Maw is a dimensional vortex).
The Voidwalker can Teleport Without Error to any point within this sphere as often as desired, but cannot leave it.
Duties of the Clergy:
In the two centuries since the arrival of the Invaders, the Voidwalker has gathered something of a following. The Invaders view this clergy with a decidedly split mentality: on the one hand they do not consider the Voidwalker to be a `true' god (which means its clergy is illegitimate), on the other hand the priests edicts are usually followed anyhow in a unofficial, under-the-table manner (for example, they can't hold services, but a large room and block of free time for the cults followers will somehow just become available).
Many of the clerics are recruited by the Invaders to serve as navigators and pilots within the sphere; these individuals always seem to know where each and every object within a cluster is located in relation to their own position. Clerics of 5th level and above are scarce in the extreme; probably there are no more than five or six such at any given time. Higher ranking clerics have a tendency to be `snatched' by the Voidwalker with little or no advance notice; very few of those so `snatched' ever reappear, and those that do are extremely close mouthed.
Requirements: AB Int 12, Wis 12; AL any neutral; AR any; WP any; PW 1) Know spatial relation of self to all asteriods within current cluster; 5) Dimension Door; 7) Teleport; Spheres: All, Elemental*, Numbers, Time
