Sacred Earth, Sacred Water - Praxian adventures for RuneQuest

Sacred Earth, Sacred Water is a 172-page-long supplement for RuneQuest Roleplaying in Glorantha including 4 scenarios set in Prax, plus the description of a Praxian clan and Praxian encounters. Therefore, this fan publication from the Jonstown Compendium is ideal if your player characters are adventuring through Prax or if you want to run a campaign in which all PCs belong to the same Praxian bison-riding clan. 

The cover of Sacred Earth, Sacred Water by Kristi Herbert depicts a Praxian worshipping ceremony

The semi-desert land of Prax extends to the east of Dragon Pass and is an awesome location for running adventures and campaigns. It is a land of hardship and brutality, where anything good has to be fought for, including mere survival. Sadly, most of the official publications dealing with Prax have so far focused only on Pavis County and the Zola Fel valley, which are great regions of Prax, but the land has much more to offer! And the main inhabitants of Prax, the animal nomads, have never had their own book yet, except for the old Cults of Prax, and an out-of-print fan-made supplement titled The Book of Drastic Resolutions: Volume Prax. Luckily, Sacred Earth, Sacred Water focuses fully on the Praxians and brings to the fore its culture and way of life, using a particular bison-rider clan as an example.

Click to enlarge the contents page (but beware of spoilers!)

Originally, the Beer With Teeth collective published the four scenarios separately on the Jonstown Compendium, and they are still available so. But in 2024 they decided to sell them together as a short Praxian campaign, with lots of added material. This group of authors including Diana Probst and Kristi Herbert have published many other adventures like Vinga's Ford and Cups of Clearwine, and has even co-authored some official RuneQuest books such as The Pegasus Plateau and Weapons & Equipment. They sent me a copy of the PDF so I could write this review. Still, below you can find my unbiased assessment. Please let me know if you think otherwise!

The four scenarios in Sacred Earth, Sacred Water are also sold separately.

The look

The authors have taken pains to make Sacred Earth, Sacred Water a beautiful book, and it shows. The standard Jonstown Compendium template is enhanced with bronze-looking decorative sidebars as in the official RuneQuest books, and the art by Kristi Herbert is awesome. She has done many NPC portraits and other artists like Juha H. have done depictions of items and weapons that help visualize the Praxian culture, and the landscapes and monsters are also at the level of official publications (I love those hideous broos!). There are full-page pieces of art, maps only for players, handouts, and even tracking sheets to help the GM record some data for a couple scenarios. On top of that, a lot of care has been put in the layout, with small pieces of art filling every possible space so that nothing is left blank. These production values are hard to beat.

The cover by Kristi Herbert depicts the women of the Straw Weaver clan performing a ceremony where their protectress Bison Daughter has materialized and is dancing in the middle of a circle. With a bison head and a young woman's body, she is holding a small fruit tree in her right hand, possibly a fertility symbol, and in the other she has a hunting or shepherd dog on a leash, while the worshipers around her power the ritual by sacrificing their vital force (aka magic points!). It might seem an unusual choice for a cover and perhaps a group of bison riders patrolling their herds would have made for a more classic picture. However, depicting a Praxian goddess during a clan ritual shows both how magical Glorantha is, and how vital fertility magic is for Praxians. For in such an unforgiving land as Prax, no life is possible without it.

A landscape showing some tents and herds of a bison riding clan

The Straw Weavers

The book includes a full description of this clan of the Bison Tribe, with all the detail you need to run adventures with it. It includes its own Eirithian hero cult, some small myths, cult distribution, places they often visit, their wyter or tutelary minor deity, as well as full stats for notable NPCs like the khan and his wives, the best warriors, and the shaman. These NPCs include their main motivations and personality, and are well rounded.

The authors specify this clan has not joined Argrath White Bull's army yet, which means you can play with it independently of the main canon storyline. On the other hand, if your adventurers are already loyal to Argrath, they could be tasked with convincing the Straw Weavers khan to join Argrath's army! And obviously, that would entail volunteering for the missions described in the scenarios.

Gallaf Hairhide is the veteran khan of the Straw Weavers clan

The scenarios

The authors provide the GM with a lot of flexibility on how to use these four adventures. Firstly, they provide advice on how to play the scenarios in a different order. Secondly, since nomads tend to move around, the scenarios are not set in any particular place in Prax (except for The Lifethief, see below) although the authors suggest several possible locations. Thirdly, there is advice on how to scale the scenarios up or down depending on the power level of your player characters.

On top of that, the book assumes player characters will most often not be Praxians, so every scenario has hooks and reasons for them to participate. Of course, it its also perfect for a campaign in which all PCs are Praxians of the Straw Weaver clan. Finally, at the end of every scenario the authors suggest several plot hooks that can be developed for further adventures and complications.

Two pages of the scenario The Gifts of Prax

Stone and Bone

This pretty straightforward, short scenario kickstarts the rest of the campaign. The PCs must escort Erhehta, a shaman, into dangerous territory in order to find an item. Combat will be hard to avoid, there will perhaps be a chase, and there is little interaction with NPCs, except for the shaman. But mostly, this scenario has the PCs think hard how to deal with an obstacle in their path, and face monstrosities. Will they survive? Will they keep the shaman alive and thus save their clan? This is a good scenario to get things started with an uncomplicated plot, so it could be ideal for a one-shot at a convention, for example. I'm actually planning on doing just that.

SPOILERS:

Albeit short, this scenario has some fine elements. First of all, the shaman NPC has a difficult personality, which can make for fun roleplaying moments. Secondly, in the central scene, the PCs need to cross a ravine hopefully without alerting the enemies on the other side. Players will need to plan carefully how to do that and it can be an enjoyable tactical decision. Finally, there is another important decision to make, which is whether to go and exterminate the scorpion men that have settled in the area. This will be fun if there is a Storm Bull follower in the party, but in the end, Erhehta and the widespread attitude against Chaos makes it a given that the adventurers have to at least try to eradicate the menace. On top of that, the final big enemy is quite gross (although the art makes it almost cute!), and it can be a challenge to beat. It will try to escape and become a future problem, but your PCs may be able to kill it. Overall, I like the scenario as an action-packed introduction to Prax and its dangers.

On the negative side, the scenario is fairly linear. The only real decision is after crossing the bridge: either explore the caves to exterminate Chaos or continue north to a potentially dangerous cul-de-sac to fetch the sacred mud that allows the shaman to get all his powers back. Also, as there is not much talking to do, the GM will need to roleplay Erhehta's antics constantly to make up for the lack of social interaction (it can be fun, but also annoying!). What I feel needs a bit more work is the reason why Erhehta has been cursed. In the next scenario you learn it was not out of animosity, but only so that the apprentice of the "enemy" shaman could deliver an important message to him: basically "help me deal with a monster in the Dead Place" (see the 3rd scenario). But this is rather far-fetched. It would have been much less risky to just send a messenger to track Erhehta, no matter how long that could have taken. I can't think of a better reason why a shaman would curse another just to get his help in an important matter, so when I run this campaign, I'm going to separate this scenario and the next one in the book from the one set in the Dead Place. I will just have a different shaman curse Erhehta and later have the original shaman just request Erhehta's help in a more sensible way.

Two pages more from the scenario The Gifts of Prax

The Gifts of Prax

Here the adventurers must travel around Prax to fetch several items the Straw Weavers' shaman needs for an important ritual. The more of them they acquire, the better. Getting these items will require different sets of skills (combat, magic and social), interacting with many different NPCs, and overcoming several tests. At the end, the amount of ingredients has a direct influence on the ritual, which is important for the reputation of the shaman and the whole clan. This scenario can be the perfect excuse to have the players visit several places around Prax and face several encounters, so you can easily make it longer if you want. Finally, it is even more flexible because the PCs can fail to acquire some of the items but still manage to pull off the ritual in the end.

SPOILERS:

On top of the normal, physical ingredients, the adventurers may also obtain 5 magical ingredients called "the Gifts of Prax" related to elemental forces, that will be somehow summoned by the shaman towards the PCs. GMs can insert these complications however they wish and, if overcome, they work towards the success of the ritual. This is cool because it gives the quest a more magical layer, and the PCs are forewarned but they do not know exactly what shape these gifts will take. They might not even realize they are in front of one! Still, one of the ingredients should be more difficult to acquire. If you play it as written, it just falls effortlessly onto the hands of the adventurers, and the challenge is only not to feel uneasy about receiving a severed human hand as a gift!

Although this scenario has the PCs go from point A to point B amd then C and D, it provides a lot of flexibility on how to overcome every obstacle and what to do if the players fail their initial rolls. Finally, the last part of the quest requires a fertility blessing from a temple the PCs must revisit in the fourth scenario (the Temple of Twins), which is a nice way to connect these adventures.

Beautifully rendered hideous monsters

The Lifethief

This is the confrontation against the evil that lurks in the Dead Place, a blasted region in Prax where most magic does not work. It closes the story arc started in "Stone and Bone" and continued in "The Gifts of Prax". Adventurers must prepare themselves and then, guided by a shaman Maserelt, face the Dead Place and the monsters within, so it is basically a combat scenario. The interest lies in the challenging conditions of the place. It can also have some survival horror elements if the GM manages to push the PCs to their limit, as the PCs need to deal with the problem quickly.

SPOILERS:

This is a cool scenario basically because the location makes it very challenging, as it is impossible to use magic (at least initially), and so PCs cannot rely on quick healing. On top of that, the "final boss" is an unexpected thing they need to figure out how to eradicate. However, it is unlikely the PCs will find out what to do to defeat it. They can fight the undead the thing animates, but they won't be sure if and when they have defeated it, which can be frustrating. Possibly, that will lead the adventurers to retreat back to Maserelt, and then she can suggest them what to do to finish the thing off. I would have Maserelt tell the PCs that very clearly, that they need to go, gather information, and return quickly. Then they can discuss ideas to go back and kill the monster for good.

When I run this scenario, Maserelt will already have sent a group of impala warriors to fight the Lifethief, and they never returned. Otherwise it is weird that after the shaman's warning, her own clan has not done anything to fight this infestation of Chaos. Since character deaths are likely (no healing magic!), I'd also include some NPCs to accompany the PCs, so if any of them die, they can at least play one of the NPCs from then on. These NPCs can be some of the surviving impala warriors, so Maserelt can already have an idea or two of what to do to put and end to the Lifethief. Another idea would be to have the PCs search all around Prax for the woman who inadvertently created the monster, maybe even to the Big Rubble in Pavis!

Two pages from the scenario The Temple of Twins

The Temple of Twins

This scenario is a small, unplanned heroquest through Praxian myths in order to re-establish a temple's harmony. This is an original idea, and heroquests are a unique aspect of RuneQuest, as they allow you to bring the myths of Glorantha to life. Moreover, the PCs might be confronted by a dilemma in the end. Still, some of the tests are bound to fail, as it is highly likely the PCs lack the specific skills required. Luckily, they can also fail all the tests and still get to the end, but pretty battered. I want to like this scenario, because I love myths, but I'm not sure it is going to be fun for the players, so I would make some changes before running it. For example, you could run the campaign with an all-Praxian party including at least one initiate of Eiritha (see Cults of RuneQuest: the Earth Goddesses for more info about that cult). That way, this scenario would make that character (and player) shine as she leads the way through the heroquest while the other PCs follow her and help keep her alive.

SPOILERS:

The heroquest through the temple of Eiritha is a great way of teaching players the myths of Glorantha. In particular, this one teaches how the tasks Praxian women usually perform are vital for survival in Prax. However, this is actually a quest for Eiritha initiates, so if the party has none, it can be problematic. Unless PCs have decent skills in Survival, Craft (Leatherwork), Craft (Weaving), and Herd, it can be frustrating to fail one test after the other, to the point that they can wonder why they were chosen for the task. Some PC might even die due to exposure to cold, which will add to the frustration. Therefore, I would leave a clue hinting to the the fact that getting an Eirithan or Ernaldan initiate to accompany the party is a wise thing to do.

The scenario has a cool second half where the group of PCs are faced with an unexpected event: a member of the Straw Weavers clan has stolen a holy item from the temple, and the political consequences can be dire. The PCs will need to think quick and a lot will depend on whether they are outsiders or members of the Straw Weavers clan. At any rate, the stakes are high because, if they choose poorly, their friendship with the clan can be brought to an end or they can even be exiled from the clan. 

There is a chase scene between the thief and a group of impala riders in which the PCs can only participate with magic from afar. I'd prefer the PCs to fully participate in this because chases are excellent action scenes. So when I run this, I will have the PCs meet the thief near the temple, so they can choose to flee together, and thus fully partipate in the chase as they try to leave a group of impala warriors behind. This could also lead to an all-out battle between two Bison clans, which would make for a dramatic event. Summing up, this is an interesting scenario, although perhaps best suited for Praxian characters with an Eirithan initiate among them.

There is a lot you can miss if you are bad at survival skills while traversing the Praxian myths

Praxian encounters

To round up the book, the appendix includes 34 pages full of stats for many kinds of encounters in Prax. These range from herders and raiders from the main Praxian tribes, to fauna and flora such as the waterthief plant, and ghosts and weird spirits such as the hyena spirit pack (my favourite). More than enough to make your life easy when running adventures in Prax, or to spice up the 4 scenarios in the book.

The encounter section is full of stats to make your life easier as a GM

All in all

Sacred Earth, Sacred Water is a wonderful book. It is a crash course on Praxian culture and it immerses the players in a harsh way of life. The writing is good, and the art and layout are top-notch. The scenarios include original ideas throughout, and even if you don't run them as written, there is a lot to use in them. Moreover, a lot of care has been put into making this both a useful and nice-looking book, and the authors' effort to make the scenarios as flexible as possible is specially commendable.

The negative aspects are few. One is a certain tendency for linearity in the scenarios, which is partially countered by the flexibility they allow. Another is I would have liked to see how to solve some scenes that might happen often in a Praxian campaign, like raiding a rival clan for cattle or how to defend your herds from a cattle raid. Some rules for managing Praxian clans as a base for adventurers would have been cool. Finally, it would have been great to include some scenarios dealing with well-known locations in Prax like the Block, the Winter Ruins or the Paps. Maybe in a future Jonstown Compendium publication? So, to sum up:

This book is for you if...

• You are running a campaign in Prax or love Prax as a location for adventures.
• You enjoy good art and layout.
• You love scenarios with a lot of flexibility on how to use them.
• You want to have lots of stats for Praxian NPCs and encounters for your campaign.
• You agree it is about time there was an official book about Prax! :-P

Don't get close to it if...

• Your adventurers are never going to set a foot in Prax and do not like that place.
• You dislike linear scenarios.

Sacred Earth, Sacred Water is available from DrivethruRPG both in PDF (20$) and in hardcover format (36$), with the Premium Color version costing 40$. Buying the hardcover does not include the PDF for free, but buying the pack of "Standard Color" hardcover plus PDF saves you 5$ over buying both separately. Oh, and you can download a map and some handouts for free. Have you read it as well? Tell me if you agree with my assessment! Even better: Have you played or run it? Please tell me how did it go! Either way, I hope you find my review useful.