Across the Realms, human deities such as Sil-vanus, Mielikki, Eldath, and Selune, and elven deities such as Rillifane Rallathil and Solonar Thelandira, have supported the Harpers pas-sively, by investing their power in woodland spots used by Harpers as refuges, campsites, or meeting-places. Most are in the North, from the deciduous forests of the Inner Sea and the Amn-ian midlands to the cold alpine forests north of Sundabar. Some may be found as far south as Nimbral and the jungle thickets of Mhair, Land of Monsters. Elminster would give no precise directions to any Harper refuges, but he did reveal the existence of certain refuge sites. One is in Ardeepforest, near Waterdeep. Another is in the woods just southwest of Eveningstar, in Cormyr. Still another is on the west bank of the Unicorn Run, not far inside the southern edge of the High Forest (some days travel north of Secomber). There are refuges in the woods northwest of both Silverymoon (in the Moon-wood) and Everlund (in the Rauvin Wood); and Harpers Hill in Shadowdaleis a refuge.
Researches hint at the existence of refuges in many other places (such as near Highmoon in Deepingdale, near High Horn in Cormyr, some-where in the Westwood north of Waterdeep, east of Neverwinter, and so on), but only local Harpers know for sure where these refuges lie, and if they still exist.
The locations of most refuges are known only to a few local or senior Harpers, and such places are never marked on maps (except certain secret charts kept at Heralds Holdfast and at Twilight Hall) or clearly signed. They can be recognized by the broken, weathered harp hung or placed somewhere up high near the center of the pro-tected area.
All Harper refuges contain a pool or spring
(which functions as sweet water within the refuge boundaries only). They tend to be secluded, wooded areas of 20 feet across or less, floored with deep moss. Harper refuges are akin to those secluded areas known as sacred groves, empowered by deities of nature in many places in Faerun. Like sacred groves, Harper refuges have some special properties that function within their confines at all times, regardless of the intent or powers of any non-divine creatures present. These are usually as follows:
l Only priests of the god(s) who empowered the refuge may successfully call lightning within the refuge. No other beings may cast or cause any magical lightning to operate in the refuge, or to pass into or out of it.
l All charms and mental compulsions of any sort (including psionic attacks) are forever bro-ken, and cant be successfully established, on beings in a refuge.
l Dig spells never work in any part of a refuge.
l Entangle spells never work in any part of a refuge (snare spells work normally).
l All creatures are immune to fear while in a refuge.
l Harpers and beings accompanied by Harpers who rest or sleep in a refuge overnight heal wounds (by natural recuperation) at dou-ble the normal rate. Healing spells operate for full possible effect (unless the being to be healed fails a Wisdom Check), but not at double rate or efficacy.
l Any Harper or priest of a deity who has empowered a refuge can cause winds (and the noises that plants make in breezes, such as rustling leaves) to fall still and silent within the refuge, in three segments. Such silence is caused by act of will and can be held for up to one turn if the being who caused it concentrates on maintaining it. This is not a silence spell; the speech and movements of beings and sounds they cause (such as snapping twigs) are not masked. The Harper or priest must be within the grove to enact this power.
l Any Harper can cause a faerie fire radiance to come into being within a refuge where he or she is located. One round of concentration is required to create the light, which lasts for one turn per level of the character (without con-centration), but cant be called up by the same being twice in the same day (or night). The radi-ance can be bright enough to read by, or fainter;
once set, its intensity cannot be altered.
A priest of a deity who empowered a refuge can create a faerie fire radiance whose intensity can be controlled, from dampened out com-pletely to bright (not blinding), and which can be moved about within the refuge at will. Only the priest can control the faerie fire, which ends abruptly if the priest leaves the refuge or is slain. It otherwise lasts for two turns per level of the priest, or until ended by the priests will. A priest need not use a spell to call up such a radi-ance, but he cant end it and call it up again any-more than a non-priest can. If a priest uses a faerie fire spell in a refuge, its duration is trebled to 12 rounds/level.
l Any Harper or priest of a deity who empow-ered a refuge can cause any stones found in the refuge to speak, as they do for a stone tell spell.
No spell is necessary, but the stones answer questions for only three rounds (the DM should time questions and answers for three actual min-utes, ending abruptly when time is up). This power can be used only once a day, regardless of how many beings try it. The power does not affect stones carried or flung into the refuge dur-ing the previous or present day.
A priest employing a stone tell spell in the usual way in a refuge finds it lasts for double the usual time.
l Any wizard employing a protection from normal missiles spell within a refuge finds that the magic, regardless of the casters intent, expandsas a faintly shimmering, visible nim-busto encircle the entire refuge. All creatures in the refuge are protected, from each other (i.e., from all missiles launched within the refuge) and from all attacks launched from outside the refuge. The protection is as the spell normally
offers, but its duration is doubled.
Any Harper or priest of a deity who empowered a refuge may control temperature within the refuge, altering it by up to 30 degrees.
The entire refuge is affected. This can help lightly clad travelers survive in freezing winter weather, although winds must also be stilled by concentration (see above) to make conditions in a refuge truly comfortable in a howling bliz-zard. If the temperature of the surroundings is very different, mist forms along the boundaries of the refuge, concealing those inside it unless strong winds blow steadily to clear the mist away. Items can be chilled or frozen (by a cool-ing alteration), and dried out, melted, or cooked on rocks (by a warmer change), but the change in heat alone will never cause objects to ignite.
The duration of the change is one turn/level of the character (if more than one being tries to control the temperature, it will revert to normal until control is uncontested). Such control can be successfully attempted only once in every 24-hour period, and is ended instantly by the use of any control temperature spells (which have normal effects and duration).
Lycanthropes who enter or are forced into a refuge revert to their human (or at least, non-ani-mal) forms. In the case of true lycanthropes, this forced change takes two rounds, and lasts for one turn thereafter before they can change back again. In the case of creatures infected by lycan-thropy, the change lasts until they leave the refuge. They are not cured (unless other magic is applied to them to bring about a cure) by being in the refuge, but they are prevented from blood-lust and their killing form, regardless of phases of the moon or other influences.
A tree spell cast in a refuge allows the priest casting it to undergo the normal effects, or (if willed by the caster) vanish beneath the earth, as a wizards imprisonment spell causes victims to vanish. Unlike the wizardly spell, the priest may release him- or herself whenever desired, reappearing at the exact spot at which the spell was cast. The caster is not in suspended anima-tion while entombed, and he can rest, pray, and
perform other activities not requiring much room. Eating, breathing, and other bodily func-tions cease, and there is no time limit on the stay beneath the earth. In addition, the magic enables the priest to hear sounds on the surface just as though he or she were still standing in the glade. (This leaves the entombed priest vul-nerable to some spoken spells.) A great danger of this effect is that priests often forget their worldly cares, and remain in prayer beneath a refuge forever. No creature other than the cast-er, living or dead, can be carried beneath the earth by such a spell.
Undead cannot enter a Harper refuge, with two exceptions: undead able to use spells (such as liches) can pass by the refuge boundary (this does not include undead with spell-like powers, such as vampires), and spectral harpists (a new form of undead, detailed in this sourcebook) can move freely into, out of, and within a Harper refuge. The abilities and attacks of all other undead cannot reach, be launched, or extend into the area of a refuge, but instead end abruptly at the invisible wall of the refuge boundaries.
Any Harper or priest of a deity who empowered a refuge may know the alignment of other creatures within the refuge merely by concentration. The Harper or priest can discern the alignment of only one being (whom he or she has in plain view) per round. This ability doesnt require a spell and is infallible, penetrat-ing even concealpenetrat-ing magic, but it works only if the target creature remains in the refuge for the entire round of concentration (which precludes spellcasting).
A handful of water taken from the spring or pool of a refuge within the last six turns can neutralize poison on any one being touched by it. The being must roll a successful saving throw vs. poison: if the saving throw fails, the water didnt work. (Note that this allows characters who have already failed a saving throw vs. poi-son a second saving throw.)
A handful of refuge water, when splashed on or drunk by a being, may cure disease. The
being must roll a successful saving throw vs.
spell; if successful, the water is effective in the round after contact. If the saving throw fails, the water has no effect, and is wasted.