Herbalish

The Herbalish, also known as Herbalish Druids, the Herbwardens, or the Herbwardens of Bautar, are a group of druids devoted to the healing arts and power of nature.

Names

The Herbalish are sometimes called the Herbwardens due to their specialties with herbs and herbalism.

History

Pre-Moonstone history

The Bautarian sages were the first humans to harness Magnamund's primal magic, making them the oldest and wisest order of human spellcasters in Magnamund. They were taught by the gods Kai and Ishir, whom they worship. They assisted mankind in harnessing the planet's magical energies without the help of the gods. They founded the Herbalish order during this time, to uphold their duty of guardians of nature and magic, and to take care of the land.

During the Age of the Old Kingdoms, the Patar were a Drodarin race that served the Elder Magi, and in exchange, were taught the secrets of herbcraft and druidic lore. However, the Patar betrayed them, giving the information to the Cener Druids — a group of evil druids — who summoned their master, Demonlord Tagazin, on the Isle of Ghosts. With the knowledge of the Elder Magi, Tagazin summoned a Great Plague that decimated the Elder Magi in 2514 MS, but they were rescued by the Herbalish, who waged the Green Purge against the Cenerese, and were victorious in 1968 MS. This marked the first time that human-born men had worked magic without the power of the Old Races, marking the awakening of humanity.

After the Great Plague, the Patar pledged their loyalty to the Herbalish to redeem themselves, striving to devote their lives to studying the healing arts and defeating disease in all its forms; later generations would call themselves the Redeemers. Today, the Herbalish employ the Redeemers as their agents and emissaries around Magnamund. They were particularly active in Shadaki, helping fight the tyranny of Shasarak the Wytch-king of the Shadakine Empire.

However, the Cenerese were not completely defeated. They continued to ravage Northern Magnamund, and the Herbalish found refuge at Raumas, today part of Sommerlund. The Cenerese and Herbalish continued to fight in these forests, leading to the destruction of Raumas in 994 MS. The conflict ended with the arrival of the Shianti in Northern Magnamund in 990 MS. Unlike their southern bretheren, however, these Shianti were Pariahs who saw humans as only being fit to be slaves. They enslaved all the tribes in the region, and became known as the Ancients of the North. They were finally driven away after the War of the Ancients (MS 2821–MS 2901), where they were mostly destroyed, and most Shianti left Magnamund in MS 3004.

Darklands War

In MS 5065, during Darklord Shebnar's invasion of Slovia, he brought a Lajakeka into battle and outfitted it with weapons powered by the Nengud-kor-Adez, and rose the dead as Kaggazutaagon. The Slovians drove the Lajakeka into the Stornlands Chasm, and the Herbalish stole a piece of it, where they discovered the true source of its power, the Nengud-kor-Adez. Using this knowledge, after the fall of the Darklords in MS 5070, together with the Elder Magi and the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star, the Herbalish undertook a mission to attempt to undo the damage caused by the Darklords, restoring fertility to the lands north of the Maakengorge. Progress, however, was extremely slow — it was estimated that it would take centuries to undo the damage of the Darklords — and it was halted altogether after Luthos Vorgada seized power in Magador, allied himself with the Drakkarim of Ogia, and closed Magador's borders.

Second Age of Eternal Night

In MS 5102, evil began the muster again all over Magnamund. The armies of Ruel, led by Arch Druid Kadrian, crossed the Ghardoz Bridge and assaulted Slovia, bringing with it a host of mutants and Agarashi. A plague also spread over Palmyrion. The Herbalish marched to the aid of both nations. Half a year later, Eldenoran mercenaries hired by Kadrian destroyed the Thalis Altar in Palmyrion, a magical altar that held back the evil powers of the Cenerese for millennia. This allowed the Cenerese to cast an ancient ritual to awaken corrupted spors in the Cursed Plain south of Vanamor. The Herbalish, preoccupied with fighting the plagues, were unable to stop this riutal. Within weeks, the Cursed Plain was filled with poisonous vegetation, adjoining the Forest of Ruel.

Distribution

The Herbalish are concentrated in Bautar, but during the present day, branches of the Herbalish can be found in Varetta and Toran. In MS 5000, about 8,000 of Bautar's 20,000 population were Herbalish.

Known Herbalish

• Zautro, who advises the Royal Family of Chai
• Tenan
• Jakmich

Culture

The Bautarians are peace-loving people, mostly interested in nature and its powers. The Herbalish have a strong sense of duty towards the land, seeing themselves as the guardians and nuturers of nature. They enjoy wandering and patrolling the lands to gain understanding and awareness of its power and variety, often joined by their compatriots the Bautarian Border Rangers in protecting it. They worship the gods Kai and Ishir, who created them, and pledged to protect humanity from evil. They also worship the natural spirits, and above all see the whole of nature as the most divine force of all, even over these gods. The nature of their worship is seen as religious and humble, in contrast to other faiths, which can seen overbearing.

The Herbalish are the oldest and wisest human spellcasting order on Magnamund. Their mastery over nature tends to be used for healing, although the primal power of nature is far deeper than this. In particular, their power is not about controlling the elements, nor using magic to destroy enemies, but rather, the magic of the force of life itself. The source of their power is not through power words, nor ancient tomes, but the eleemental power of Magnamund itself. As a result, the Herbalish possess limited offensive power and martial skills. Despite their devotion to nature and limited offensive abilities, the Herbalish are quick to help the forces of Light when called upon. They are the sworn enemies of the Cenerese, and became allies of various countries and orders in Northern Magnamund, and figured prominently in the formation of the Free Nations League.

Order of the Herbalish

The order of Herbalish is a magical order, with ranks and disciplines. They tend to be weaker in physical strength (Combat Skill) and durability (Endurance), but are extremely potent in magical power (Willpower). The Herbalish never wear any type of conventional armour, nor bear shields.

Ranks

1. Aspirant
2. Novitiate
3. Initiate
4. Ovate
5. Acolyte
6. Adept
7. Prefect
8. Spirana
9. Druid

Disciplines

• Green Purge: Makes the Herbalish more adept at fighting Darkspawn, Cener Druids, and creatures native to Ruel, such as Vazhag, Dholdaarg, Plague Hounds and Ruel War-dogs
• Healing Arts: Allows the Herbalish to heal themselves and others, and brew healing potions
• Healing Hands: Allows the Herbalish to cure disease using herbs, potions and meditative techniques
• Hunter: The Herbalish transforms into a natural predator with the mindset of a bear or wolf, allowing them to stalk and hunt prey
• Lore of the Land: The Herbalish is familiar with most species of flora and fauna
• Natural Ward: Allows the Herbalish to place a Natural Ward on themselves or others, that protects and heals them over time
• One with the Land: The Herbalish will never starve except in the most barren of wastelands, such as the Darklands or Doomlands of Naaros. They can communicate with animals and (in basic form) plants..
• Primal Surge: Allows the Herbalish to channel the power of the planet to recharge their magical energy.
• Terror to Behold: Imparts fear in the hearts of weaker enemies, due to their immense knowledge
• Watcher of the Skies: Allows the Herbalish to predict the weather, and manipulate it to a minor degree.

In the gamebooks

A small number of Herbalish are encountered throughout the gamebooks.

A Durenese herbwarden (with a small "h") called Madin Rendalim is encountered by Lone Wolf in Fire on the Water and Grey Star in Grey Star the Wizard, but this character appears not to be one of the Herbalish, as he says his home is in Hammerdal.

The Dungeons of Torgar

See also: How to Meet Roark and Tagazin in The Dungeons of Torgar

Lone Wolf may encounter a vision of the Herbalish in The Dungeons of Torgar, should he land on the haunted Isle of Ghosts, despite Prince Greygor's warnings. The player must have Divination and be at Mentora or higher. During this route, the player will encounter Roark, who summons Demonlord Tagazin to Magnamund. During the ritual, Divination will show a vision: It was here where the Patar betrayed the Elder Magi, leading to them summoning Demonlord Tagazin, and the Great Plague being created. The Herbalish, however, defeated him and the Cenerese, and the Patar chose to serve the Herbalish in atonement.

This route is by far the most dangerous route in the book (as opposed to the standard Cetza and Pirsi routes; the Isle of Ghosts route is traversed if the player "falls out of" either of these optimal routes). The player first encounters Demonlord Tagazin, who is unaffected by a Bow and Arrow, and unaffected by a normal weapon (which is destroyed on contact). With the Sommerswerd, a weapon that can harm him, Tagazin must be fought in combat, although the combat ends when Tagazin's Endurance drops to 20 or below:

Demonlord Tagazin
Combat Skill 45, Endurance 65
Immune to: Mindblast
↪The Dungeons of Torgar: §286

This fight is notoriously amongst the most difficult in the series. One well-known "cheese" strategy is to leave the Sommerswerd behind in the Kai Monastery to avoid this fight, as well as the Chaos-master in the next book, The Prisoners of Time.

Without the Sommerswerd, the player must either attempt to cut the amulet from Roark's neck, which carries a 30% chance of instant death even in the best-case scenario (and 90% in the worst-case: wielding a Quarterstaff or Dagger without Huntmastery); or fight Roark and defeat him in 3 rounds or less:

Roark
Combat Skill 18, Endurance 20
↪The Dungeons of Torgar: §41

Not defeating him in time also results in death.

The Plague Lords of Ruel

Lone Wolf meets the Herbalish in the prologue of this The Plague Lords of Ruel, where they inform him of the events in Ruel, home of the sworn enemies of the Herbalish, the Cenerese, after the demise of the Darklords. Somewhat-unusually, however, they do not make any further appearances in this book, nor are they mentioned afterwards in the text, despite being the sworn enemies of the Cenerese.

Plague Agent

In Plague Agent, the bonus adventure of the Definitive Edition of The Plague Lords of Ruel, the player plays as Tenan of the Herbalish Order.

The Storms of Chai

Lone Wolf meets the Herbalish Zautro late in the The Storms of Chai, in the Tower of Ishir in Dwala. Zautro and Priestess Song Tao both offer to heal you after your ordeal both give you a Potion of Laumspur, but Zautro heals 8 Endurance points, whilst Song Tao only heals 5. The player can, for whatever reason, decline (there is no benefit in doing so). Zautro is revealed to be somewhat of a panicky character, realising that the Eye of Agarash has given away Lone Wolf's location to the enemy. The Tower of Ishir comes under attack overnight, and Lord Honos and Zautro help Lone Wolf escape.

After Lone Wolf defeats and destroys Zashnor, revealed to have stolen the Claw of Naar, he meets Zautro again, together with Honos and Jian Tzu, before departing for Elzian with Lord Rimoah and Blazer.

Dead in the Deep

In Dead in the Deep, Grand Master may meet the Herbalish in Varetta. The player must enter Helin Way, then enter the Grey Tower where the Herbalish have formed an enclave called the Purifiers of the Reclaimed Wastelands, outside of their native Bautar. Grand Master will speak with an unnamed Herbalish, who provides some lore around the actions of the Herbalish after the fall of the Darklords, to attempt to heal the wastelands of the Darklands, and their halted progress due to the invasion of Magador. He will then give or offer to sell Grand Master the following potions:

• Two vials of Bautarian Antitoxin (counters various common poisons and plagues) — free
• Potion of Alether (+2 Combat Skill for one combat) — 5 Gold Crowns
• Potion of Malavan (+2 Combat Skill bonus for Mindblast, Psi-surge and Kai-surge) — 6 Gold Crowns
• Rendalim's Elixir (+6 Endurance) — 7 Gold Crowns
• Volko Berry Concentrate (catalyses magical reactions between substances) — 7 Gold Crowns
• Potion of Ghilev (induces sleep in humans and animals when ingested) — 4 Gold Crowns
• Powder of Obhanthor (+5 Endurance when eaten with a meal) — 6 Gold Crowns

If Grand Master possesses Herbmastery, they will enquire further about the purification of the Darklands, and the unnamed Herbalish will provide even more lore about this process. He will mention a special process devised by Herbwarden Jakmich, and give Grand Master a vial of Jakmich's Elixir.