Harper

Overview

^{D&D Basic Rules: The Five Factions}

This clandestine network of spellcasters and spies seeks to tip the scales in favor of the innocent, the weak, and the poor within the Realms. Harper agents pride themselves on being incorruptible defenders of good, and they never hesitate to aid the oppressed. Because they prefer to work behind the scenes, they are rarely noticed as they thwart tyrants, depose rulers, and head off any growing force that is rumored to have evil intent. The Harpers has its finger on the pulse of power in the Realms and works tirelessly to even the odds for the downtrodden.

Individual Harper agents operate alone, relying on their wits and extensive information networks to gain an advantage over their enemies. They know that knowledge is power, so gathering intelligence beforehand is paramount to their success. They are well-informed and always have access to aid, magical and otherwise. Veteran members have access to secret caches of knowledge stashed all over Faerûn, along with trusted sources stationed in every major town and city.

The organization is always on the lookout for powerful items, expressly to keep them out of the hands of evildoers. To this end its agents use various guises and identities to gain access to carefully guarded secrets such as ancestral maps, buried cities, and mages’ keeps.

The bond between Harpers is strong, and their friendships are nigh unbreakable. Rarely do they operate in the open, but on rare occasions they must, because there is no other choice. When that happens, you can be sure that a fellow Harper is watching closely, ready to emerge from the shadows and help a comrade at a moment’s notice.

“A Harper is first and foremost self-reliant, for once you are autonomous then no one can tempt you into using power as a crutch. You are sovereign unto yourself.”

“Therefore, a Harper’s soul must be incorruptible. Many believe themselves to be so, but power comes in many guises, and it will surely find your weakness. Of this you may be certain. Only a true Harper can pass this test and transform weakness into strength. That is why we are the hand that stops the tyrant, feeds the oppressed, and asks for nothing in return.”

“We are the song for those who have no voice.”

—Remallia “Remi” Haventree

Background

^{Dungeon Master’s Guide, p. 21}

The Harpers are a scattered network of spellcasters and spies who advocate equality and covertly oppose the abuse of power, magical or otherwise.

The organization has risen, been shattered, and risen again several times. Its longevity and resilience are largely due to its decentralized, grassroots, secretive nature, and the autonomy of its various members. The Harpers have small cells and lone operatives throughout the Forgotten Realms, although they interact and share information with one another from time to time as needs warrant. The Harpers’ ideology is noble, and its members pride themselves on their ingenuity and incorruptibility. Harpers don’t seek power or glory, only fair and equal treatment for all.

Renown	Rank
1	Watcher
3	Harpshadow
10	Brightcandle
25	Wise Owl
50	High Harper

Motto

"Down with tyranny. Fairness and equality for all."

Beliefs

The Harpers’ beliefs can be summarized as follows:

• One can never have too much information or arcane knowledge.
• Too much power leads to corruption, and the abuse of magic in particular must be closely monitored.
• No one should be powerless.

Goals

Gather information throughout FaerCln, discern the political dynamics within each region, and promote fairness and equality by covert means. Act openly as a last resort. Thwart tyrants and any leader, government, or group that grows too powerful. Aid the weak, the poor, and the oppressed.

Typical Quests

Typical Harper quests include securing an artifact that would upset the balance of power in a region, gathering information on a powerful individual or organization, and determining the true intentions of an ambitious political figure or evil spellcaster.

The Harpers

Princes of the Apocalypse ^(POA-15)

A scattered network of spellcasters and spies, the Harpers advocate equality and covertly oppose the abuse of power, magical or otherwise. Agents operate in secret and emphasize stealth and subtlety, or at the very least discretion. Bards and wizards are their most prominent members.

Harpers operate in small cells throughout the North. One is based in Triboar: Darathra Shendrel, the Lord Protector, belongs to the faction, and Harper agents can find welcome at the Home of the Boars.

Another cell in the prosperous trade center of Yartar monitors traffic in the Dessarin Valley and the actions and policies of the city’s Waterbaron. The Harpers work to maintain the balance of power between the various groups competing to influence the city.

In the Sumber Hills, the Harpers warn travelers and adventurers to stay clear of Rundreth Manor and the Dark Lady who dwells there. Harpers also watch the ruined Halls of the Hunting Axe.

Relationships

Silverymoon

^{Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, p.54}

Silverymoon has nonetheless long been known as a safe haven for Harpers in the North, because the city doesn’t see the aims of the Alliance as conflicting with Those Who Harp. Where other cities’ rulers might see the presence of the Harpers as a threat to their authority, Silverymoon desires an end to tyranny as fervently as the Harpers do, and thus the greater good is served. At the same time, some Silvaeren believe that the city’s tolerance of certain other members of the Alliance (some mention Mirabar, others Baldur’s Gate) is somewhat naive.

Bards

^{Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, p.123}

Bards in the North and the Dalelands benefit from the existence of the Harpers, that legendary society recruiting bards and other independent agents to struggle against the forces of evil. Even though most bards in the region aren’t Harpers (and many who are don’t advertise that fact), common folk in the North often behave as if all bards are legendary wandering heroes, and are as likely to ask a bard for the solution to a problem troubling their community as they are a wandering fighter or wizard. This reputation cuts both ways, however, as some enemies of the Harpers suspiciously assume any humble minstrel might secretly be a Harper agent.

The Circle of Eight

Greyhawk ^(POA-247)

The closest equivalent to the Harpers is the Circle of Eight. Although membership in the circle itself is restricted to the most powerful wizards, the group employs many agents and spies to look after its interests. The Circle of Eight is much less benevolent than the Harpers: its wizards are not particularly concerned about tyranny and are more interested in preserving a balance of power throughout the Flanaess. However, major magical threats (such as the rise of Elemental Evil) are very much within the circle’s purview.

College of Fochlucan

^{Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, p.123}

The original College of Fochlucan once stood on the northeastern edge of Silverymoon. Many years after it closed its doors, the site was reopened as Ultrumm’s Music Conservatory. The conservatory later moved to Southbank, and the House of the Harp occupied the college’s original location under the guidance of Master Bard Fore!! "Flamebeard" Luekuan, who sought to revive the ancient traditions and teachings of Fochlucan. Years of cultivation and support from Silverymoon, as well as the Harpers, yielded a faculty able to revive the college, and the House of the Harp adopted the Fochlucan name once again. Most of its bards study and practice the methods of the College of Lore, as described in the Bard College class feature in the Player’s Handbook.

The College of Fochlucan is naturally allied with the Harpers, although its master bards are careful to stress that its mission is separate from that of the Harpers.

College of the Herald

^{Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, p.124}

Based at the great lore-house of Herald’s Holdfast, northwest of Silverymoon, the College of the Herald is dedicated to the preservation of ancient history and legends. The Heralds are charged with collecting and organizing bodies of lore, which they make available to all of good and peaceful intent. Established by the Harper Aliost Oskrunnar in 922 DR, the Heralds are allies of the Harpers but remain neutral in most conflicts, dedicated to preserving knowledge above all else.

The College of the Herald is less concerned with musical performance (although it contains a considerable library of songs) and more with history, heraldry, and folklore, making it a key center of learning for bards of the College of Lore, as described in the Bard College class feature in the Player’s Handbook.

The Moonstars

^{Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, p.124}

Over a century ago, the Harpers endured a schism. Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun was denounced by other Harper leaders for empowering Fzoul Chembryl, then the evil leader of the Zhentarim, with a powerful artifact. That Khelben did so in order that Fzoul destroy a dangerous lich mattered little. Khelben and Laeral Silverhand, his wife, left the Harpers then, taking with them certain agents and folding them into to a different organization, which Khelben had been secretly working to create for some time due to an old prophecy of the elves of Cormanthor. This group was the Moonstars, called Tel’Teukiira in Elvish. Although the Moonstars worked in concert at times with the Harpers, they also worked at cross purposes, and the Moonstars membership included many whom the Harpers considered too evil, such as a vampire. The Moonstars performed many good deeds, but their methods were often more brutal and pragmatic than the Harpers’ lofty ideals allowed. When Khelben died, the Moonstars seemed to collapse, and for many years the organization was assumed defunct. Yet during the Sundering, Moonstar sleeper agents reactivated the organization on a surprisingly massive scale, with members active in Candlekeep, Waterdeep, and Myth Drannor. The organization has since gone underground again. Their relationship to the present-day Harpers, Laeral Silverhand, and the current Blackstaff ofWaterdeep, Vajra, remains unclear.

Druids

^{Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, p.127}

Druid circles in the North are often allied with the Harpers, as they have common purpose, with bards and rangers serving as go-betweens. Individual Harpers can usually expect a circle to at least grant them food and shelter, and an opportunity to attend a gathering and speak, if they wish.

Still, the Harpers aren’t a druidic organization and, despite what some common folk might believe, not every druid or druid circle is allied with, or even friendly toward, the Harpers and their cause. Indeed, some druids consider the Harpers busybodies who threaten the natural balance almost as much as the evils that they fight against.

Faction Agent

^{Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, p.147–48}

Harper pin

AD&D 2dn Edition

^{Code of the Harpers p. 104}

Value: 5,000 xp, 40,000 gp

A Harper pin gives its wearer a +5 bonus to saving throws vs. all enchantment/charm spells (and equivalent psionic powers). It also confers absolute immunity to all detection, mind- and alignment-reading magic and psionics; the wearer simply “isn’t there”. (It does not prevent magical detection linked to specific objects carried by a Harper, however, except itself; a locate object spell used to find “a Harper pin” would fail, but one used to find a specific item that a Harper is known to be carrying—a particular crown, for instance—would find that item, but still not reveal the Harper carrying it.)

A Harper pin also absorbs all magic missile and lightning/electricity attacks into itself, protecting a bearer from all damage.

Harper pins are made by certain skilled (and) secretive) smiths in Evermeet, Mintarn, Waterdeep, Neverwinter, Everlund, Silverymoon, Evereska, High Horn, Shadowdale, Deepingdale, Lyrabar, and Starmantle. The smiths make and give pins only to specific senior Harpers known to them—not just to anyone who shows up on their doorstep asking for one.

Harper pins are never attuned to a specific being or wearer. They are of silver treated to be everbright (never tarnish) and as hard as adamantine. They are AC −2, have 9 hit points, and suffer no damage from magical attacks. They gain a +5 bonus to all item saving throws.

Some Harper pins turn black in one round when worn by an evil-aligned being, and thereafter utter discordant jangling sounds, as if a metal-stringed harp was being savagely struck.