Aldo

Moot God of Mirth

Dear Claudius:

The latest section I've been able to translate from the Puddlefoot Manuscripts concerns the Moot God of Mirth, Aldo. No sooner had I finished the translation than the Baronet's eldest child, an incorrigible prankster named Stefan, glued the pages of my only copy of Marion's Theories and Practices of Practical Sciences together with honey. I woke to find that the book was not only completely covered in ants, but had during the night apparently provoked the interest of several scientifically curious mice. Would only the Baronet's children devour knowledge with the same gusto!

Description

Sometimes improperly called Ranaldo due to his similarity to the god Ranald, Aldo is the halfling god of play, mirth, and tricks. He is the son of Rolondo and Esmeralda, who created Aldo from a leftover slice of apple pie. Halflings rarely call Aldo by name since to invoke him is to catch his attention and perhaps wind up on the sticky end of one of his "practicals." Instead, they most often refer to him as simply Trickster. Some halflings, especially those close to human communities, have adopted calling him Ranaldo for this same reason, perhaps leading to the scholarly confusion over this god.

Aldo is the gentle teaser of halfling kind. It is his province to deflate the boorish, humble the proud, and strengthen the weary. His tests are called "practicals" by halflings since they always have some lesson or purpose hidden within them. Unlike Ringil's sometimes viscous practical jokes, Aldo's "practicals" always serve a higher, if halfling-oriented, purpose. Aldo's priests believe laughter, satire, parody, and tricks are the best ways instruct their adherents, highlight and avoid inappropriate behavior, and heal.

Aldo has no set form apart from the color red. He has been known to appear as a halfling child with flaming red hair, a bright red squirrel, or a skunk with a red stripe. Aldo's initiates and priests are called "Redcaps," since they always wear a red felt or fur cap when performing their clerical duties. As the priest increases in rank, he may decorate his cap with feathers and bells. Aldo's favorite fruit is the apple and offerings of apples and apple baked goods are said to please him.

Area of Worship

Aldo is worshipped within the Moot and by halfling entertainers everywhere.

Temples

Aldo has no temples, but shrines to Aldo exist all over Mootland. Aldo's shrines are small treehouses built in the low branches of an apple tree. The shrine will be painted bright-red and often is the favorite play spot for halfling children. It is said that Aldo is attracted by the sound of children laughing and that he will appear among them to teach the children new games, words, and tricks to shock their parents with.

Friends and Enemies

Aldo is good terms with all other Moot Gods except his father, Rolondo, with whom his relations are strained. Rolondo represents the more serious, work-a-day side of halfling nature and his precepts are often in direct contrast to Aldo's joie de vivre ideas. Aldo is friendly with most other gods he has not offended (needless to say, he has offended several Dwarven gods). He has no particular hatred of Chaos, though he thinks the lot of them could lighten up a bit.

Holy Days

The 1st of Sommerzeit is called Fool's Day. Halflings everywhere wear red (lest they become targets for bucket dunks) and play practical jokes on each other, compete in simple, child-like games and eat lots of apples. Halflings who forget Fool's Day and don't wear red will quickly find themselves dunked headfirst into a large bucket full of water or simply thrown into a nearby pond or stream. Halflings, as a rule, don't remind each other that Aldo's Fool's Day is approaching, though most plan their practical jokes well in advance.

An outsider walking into a halfling village on Fool's Day would probably think the entire village had gone raving mad. Beginning at the crack of dawn, halflings dressed in bright red hats, vests, or pants chase down, tackle, and plunge their friends and neighbors into streams, ponds, and buckets teeming with apples. Then the "practicals" start. The visitor might see a halfling matron stumble from her kitchen covered in exploded cherry pies or the sheriff marching around town with the backside of his trousers cutout. Halflings run from place to place, ambushing each other with overripe apples and other mushy foodstuffs. All the while, the village wives attempt to carry food from their kitchens through the mayhem to a great table in the village's apple orchard. By noon, the Fool's Day games have commenced. The traditional games are Bobbing for Apples, the Apple Dunk Toss, the Apple Pie Eating Contest, and the Kissing Apple Races. Once the games are completed and the prizes awarded, the village gathers about the great table for the night's dinner and a satirical performance by the local Redhats. At last, the Redhats select two halfling children (a boy and a girl) and one halfling adult whose practical jokes that day were the most impressive and award these three a red ribbon. When the ribbons are rewarded, Fool's Day is over.

Alignment

Aldo is Neutral.

Symbol

Aldo's symbol is a red apple.

Cult Requirements

The Cult of Aldo is open to anyone who has won a red ribbon on Fool's Day.

Strictures

All Initiates and Clerics of Aldo must abide by the following strictures:

Always perform one genuinely humorous act once a day.
Never frown when you can smile instead.
Always soothe misery.
Never speak ill of another - mercilessly lampoon them instead.
Never act from cruel or malicious intentions.

Spell Use

Clerics of Aldo may use all Petty Magic spells. In addition, they may use the following spells: Battle Magic: all Auras, all Zones, Cure Light Injury, Steal Mind, Wind Blast, Hold Flight, Mystic Mist, Cause Cowardly Flight, Cause Stupidity, Transfer Aura, Change Allegiance, Strength of Mind; Illusion Magic: Bewilder Foe, Camouflage Illusion, Cloak Activity, Confound Foe, Hallucinate, Vanish, Teleport.

Furthermore, Clerics of Aldo are Immune to Normal Fear, receive +20 on tests vs Magical Fear and Terror, and have the ability to protect against and dispel fear and terror with their unflappable demeanors. The priest may spend 1 magic point to allow a compatriot a re-test immediately after failing a Fear or Terror test. The compatriot must be able to hear and understand the priest and the priest must be able to speak. The priest may only spend one magic point per individual per failed Fear or Terror test. If the retest fails again, the compatriot becomes Subject to Fear or Terror. The priest may spend additional magic points to help the compatriot recover from Fear or Terror if the compatriot also fails these future tests. The priest may spend as many magic points as he wants instantly. The priest may not aid himself and may not aid another if he is himself afraid or terrorized.

Example: Fraidso the Redcap is adventuring with Lagomass and Gimme, his elf and dwarf friends. They encounter the Ballsagog, a demon which causes (normal) Fear. Fraidso is Immune to Normal Fear, but both Lagomass and Gimme fail their Cool tests. Fraidso immediately spends 2 magic points, attempting to boost their morale by quipping heroically about the Ballsagog's bad breath. Lagomass and Gimme get to retest against the Fear. Lagomass fails again but Gimme succeeds. On the next round, Lagomass gets to make a Cool test again (see WFRP68, Fear tests). He fails this, too. Fraidso expends another magic point, this time insulting the Ballsagog's hairstyle. Lagomass gets another Cool test and succeeds.

Skills

Clerics of Aldo may follow one of the following careers completely in parallel to their cleric career. In effect, they combine the profiles of the two careers. Clerics deciding to do this must qualify for the parallel career normally and they must fully complete the modified profile to advance to the next cleric career. The parallel careers are: any Entertainer, Minstrel (must complete Entertainer - Troubadour), and Raconteur.

Trials

Trials by Aldo always involve playing an elaborate practical joke, deflating a particularly large ego, bringing joy to a joyless place, or planting apple trees in odd, hard to reach places like the Graf's personal toilet.

Blessings

Skills favored by Aldo are Acting, Blather, Clown, Comedian, Dance, Jest, and Ventriloquism. The god favors Int, Cl, and Fel tests.

Created by Claycle