On Duchess and Candella

LinaPaseddu Haziran 16, 2022

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”

― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Candella and Duchess

Anyone who has followed this blog may already realise that Duchess and Candella are my favourite NPCs. One or two of you may ask, why? They are low level, hardly heroic. They’re thieves, for goodness sakes.

That would be unkind. NPCs are ours to define and develop; they are what we make them.

Shekespeare said it best in Twelfth Night, I believe, even if its inference was less than kind when spoken: “Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.”

That may be the very reason why I love them so. Room to grow, so to speak. And what room, indeed!

Where’d this dynamic duo spring from? The imagination of Jean Wells.

Consider this comment from this Dragonsfoot Forum thread:

Jean Wells illustration of Duchess and Candella?

Candella and Duchess
“Those are indeed Jean [Well]'s favorite duo in both pictures. They come from her and/or Skip's campaign in the late 1970s, iirc, tho she played other characters in my Lake Geneva campaign c1981-85.”

This leads me to believe that Duchess and Candella were 2 of her PCs, her favourite, it would seem, judging by the above quote. She loved them enough that she wished to immortalise them in her one and only adventure module, that only briefly saw print, before office politics decreed that her effort be recalled and destroyed. Why was it destroyed? Not by her doing, rumour has it; it had everything to do with presumably suggestive and immoral artwork, none of which she was happy with. Much has been said about this “lost” classic (which is not lost at all: the PDF is readily available for download; and a number of copies were “rescued” from destruction and those that were demand a pretty penny these day), so I won’t dwell on it. Use a little Google-fu if you’d like to learn more. The art may not have been her fault, but that did not save her from the fallout. Alas, she produced no other products for TSR.

Sadly, we cannot ask her, personally, what happened. She is forever mum on the subject.

(Oeva Jean Wells Koebernick, July 25, 1955 – January 25, 2012, 56 years old)

She will be forever mum on the subject of Duchess and Candela, as well. There might be a few who are privy to the story. The aforementioned Skip [Williams?] might have insights, perhaps a few others from those early hallowed halls of TSR who are still alive and well might, as well. I have not reached out to any of them on the subject, and likely never will, preferring to dream what dreams I may, instead. That way D & C will be forever mine.

All we do know is the little she wrote about them.

As the party searches the room, roll for a wandering monsters. If on the first roll none was indicated roll again. On the last roll if one was indicated the wandering monster will be two female thieves: Candella (20) F (AC 7, T2, hp 8, #AT 1, D 1-6. Save T2, M 7, AL N, S 12, I 15, W 13, D 17, C 15, CH 14) Duchess (18) F (AC 7, T2, hp 6, #AT 1, D 1-6, Save T2, M 7, AL N, S 11, I 12, W 15, D 16, C 18, CH 15). Both women will have an above average appearance (CH 14, 15) and will attempt to use it to their benefit. They will pretend to be young inexperienced fighters in search of adventure, fame and fortune, but mostly fortune. Candella is the spokesman of the two women.

These two thieves will be friendly towards the party, not acting hostile if they win the initiative. They will politely ask to join the party, saying that they are not quite as tough or prepared for adventuring as they had originally thought themselves to be. Dutchess [sic] (hp 6, CH 15) will stress her desire to accompany them, saying she fears that she and her companion have made a grave error in attempting to venture into the palace ruins by themselves, especially after seeing the strange 3 headed monsters they have managed to flee from so far. Both thieves will have the following on them including normal dungeon supplies, weapons and thieves tools:

15 gp.

7 sp.

21 cp.

Wolfsbane (Duchess)

poisoned daggers (poison effective for one attack)

Strand of pearls (Candella) (value 600gp)

These two thieves may be used by the DM as NPCs (nonplayer characters) or as a normal dungeon encounter.

[B3_Original – 10, 11]

What have we learned from this short passage? That they are pretty, and that they use their beauty to their advantage. They misrepresent themselves—perhaps not unexpected, as they are thieves and of dubious moral fortitude (they are packing poison, after all), and one might expect (they certainly do) that thieves would be less welcome in Lawful parties than fighters—although there is no mention that they will not be true to the party. That may be implied, citing the poison, but they are not Chaotic, are they?

We also learn that although it is Duchess who wishes (stresses her desire) to join the party, it is Candella who their spokesperson. That suggests that Candella (I 15, W 13, CH 14), the smarter of the 2, is the leader, but that Duchess (I 12, W 15, CH 15), the wiser and more charismatic of the 2, is not without influence.

That’s not much to go on; but it is also enough to inspire the imagination.

I’m not the only person to be inspired by Duchess and Candella, either. Those who are do pop up from time to time, in art, mainly (most notably Domenico Neziti, as seen below); but I also expect that quite a few DMs have seen fit to include them in adventures they’ve devised. ArtoftheGenrecertainly used their image on the cover of his bonus module A Secret Respite, if only there and not in the adventure, itself.

Candella and Duchess
First, that is a great 'catch', as yes, the entire scene is a homage to the Red Box, as the shop is the one used by the fighter character in the introduction mini-adventure, and the cleric is the one from the book, although it isn't Aleena (who sadly died in the mini-adventure intro), as in the book she's called Clarion if you read the description under the Cleric class. I've used her extensively in my Roslof Keep adventure series because I fell in love with her when I was 12 and haven't stopped yet, obviously. AND the two other female characters are Duchess and Candella from The Palace of the Silver Princess (originally drawn by Roslof). This image is done by artist Domenico Neziti, who has done some great work for Art of the Genre in the past. And sadly no, none of the characters appear in the mini-adventure, unless you are using the playable characters from the Roslof Keep Campaign, in which Clarion has been stat-blocked at high level. I just enjoy putting Duchess and Candella in various situations, because I think they are fun.

Did Elmore's Anielle appear on the cover of this Folio adventure? - The Piazza

More importantly, Tom Moldvay saw fit to salvage D & C and include them in his refit of Jean’s disgraced adventure. One wonders whether he was inspired by these exceptional NPCs, or maybe perhaps he wished to exonerated Jean by ensuring her favourite characters survived the axe that felled her. We will never know how so about this, either, as Tom shall be as forever mum on the subject as Jean is, for the same reason.

B3 Candella and Duchess

(Tom Moldvey, November 5, 1948 – March 9, 2007, 58 years old)

But salvage, and immortalise them, he did.

A statue of a young girl playing with a dove is in the south-eastern corner of this oddly shaped room. A large handcarved bookcase stands next to the northeastern wall. Two wooden benches, one in front of each of the two southwestern windows, have scrolls lying upon them. Two women stand next to one of the benches. Both women wear leather armor and carry swords. One of the women has just unrolled a scroll and is reading it. [B3 – 24]

Tom did not deviate much from Jean’s original intent, although his room we encounter them in differs from the one she introduced them.

This room contains the remains of bunks, bedrolls, round oaken tables, stools, benches and dead soldiers which have been beheaded. Along the north wall is a line of 6 heads. [B3_Original – 10]

Jean’s is far more grim.

Other than that, Tom’s D & C are as equally deceitful in their profession.

The two women appear to be fighters, but are really thieves. [B3 – 24]

Otherwise, they are very much identical to Jean’s “heroines.”

The two women are named Candella (AC 5; T/2; hp 8; MV40'; #AT 1; D 1-8; Save T2; ML7 ;AL N; S 12, I 15 ,W 13,D 17, C 15, Ch 14), and Duchess (AC 5; T/2; hp 11; MV 40'; #AT 1; D1-8; Save T2; ML 7; AL N; S 11, I 12, W 15, D 16, C 18, Ch 15). Because of their wisdom ability scores, both women gain a bonus of +1 on magic-based saving throws. The two thieves are both very attractive and will attempt to use this to their benefit. [B3 – 24]

The thieves will have the following on them: dungeon pack C; 21 cp, 7 sp, 15 gp, wolfsbane (Duchess only), and a string of pearls worth 600 gp (Candella only). [B3 – 24]

Take note of the picture included in the module. I would hazard the guess that Candella is the blonde, since it is she depicted wearing a necklace.

Tom expounded on why they were there, in his castle, though, weaving them into his backstory, which differed from hers.

Candella and Duchess
They were trying to loot the rooms of Mirabilis before the disaster struck. Mirabilis caught them and put them to sleep with a sleep spell. He was going to clean up and then report them to the guards, but disaster struck first. The women thieves were not affected by the disaster. They have only recently awoken and are setting out to loot the palace. The scroll they are looking at is just a sketch of a black cat. [B3 – 24]

But he did not deviate from their choice of deception.

These two thieves will act friendly toward the party. They will pretend to be young inexperienced fighters in search of adventure. They will politely ask to join the party, saying that they are not quite as tough or as prepared for adventuring as they had originally thought. [B3 – 24]

He then elaborated on how they might be played.

If they join the party the two thieves will wait for a good chance to steal whatever they can (either by trying to pick pockets or just grabbing any loot in sight), and then run away. [B3 – 24]

This shows patience on their part, in keeping with their above average wisdom.

If the thieves are not allowed to join the party, but are not attacked, they will try to get close enough to a character to try to pick that person's pockets. If discovered, they will claim that the person made a mistake, that they merely bumped into the person by accident. If successful they will leave with their loot. [B3 – 24]

Demon Bait_Candella and Duchess

Either way, the girls are going to steal from the PCs, at the first opportunity, it would seem. I would suggest that both will not make the attempt, only one will, most likely Candella, while Duchess distracts the PCs. To me, this seems out of character, and that the girls would not place themselves in such quick jeopardy, unless the PCs were so foolish as to display, or brag about, rather valuable, or more importantly, “useful” magical items that would ensure their survival and escape from this obviously dangerous situation they’ve found themselves in. Desperate measures, and all that….

Remember, these are wise and intelligent ladies, and not rash, nor foolish, in their pursuit of their ill-gotten gains.

When playing the roles of NPCs the DM should keep in mind that NPCs are reasonably normal persons. They seldom act suicidal, usually fighting only if there is a chance to win. While they will take risks, they will seldom take unreasonable risks. In this particular encounter, the two thieves want loot. They are likely to try what- ever method offers the best possibilities for gaining the most loot at the least risk. [B3 – 24]

Tom goes on to declare our heroines expendable, in relation to the PCs, in his adventure. Which they would be, I suppose. The PCs are always front and centre, as they should be.

If Duchess and Candella are with the party, the doppleganger [sic] may choose one of them as a victim or one of the party members. Of course, if the doppleganger [sic] succeeds in killing its victim, and hides the corpse, it will pretend to be the new character. […] The doppleganger [sic] will continue to kill characters secretly until caught.[B3 – 24]

I declare their being expendable as short-sighted. Few NPCs are as evocative, in my opinion. Actually, there are a lot of “indispensable” NPCs stowed away in a lot of modules; you just have to keep an eye out for them.

Take this NPC, “found” in G3 The Hall of the Fire Giant King, for instance:

Duchess in Distress
12c. Human female (11th level thief: […] Strength 15, Intelligence 15, Wisdom 8, Dexterity 18, Constitution 16, Charisma 17) chained to the wall. She will gladly admit to being a thief caught trying to find the King's treasure room, and volunteer to aid the party faithfully for a chance to escape. If opportunity presents itself, she will heist as much in gems and magic as she can and then slip away, but until then she will actually help the party. Of course, during this time she will be casing each character to learn what he or she carries… [G3 – 9]

I’m reminded of Duchess and Candella. Duchess, in this case, owing to her dark locks.

Her stats don’t match our heroine…

Duchess: AL N; S 11, I 12, W 15, D 16, C 18 Ch 15

…but that’s of no never mind. Stats are as stats used. What’s important is her capricious thanks, reminiscent of our “point in case.”

If they join the party the two thieves will wait for a good chance to steal whatever they can (either by trying to pick pockets or just grabbing any loot in sight), and then run away. [B3 – 24]

I suggest that we swap out this NPC with our Duchess? Why? Because I wish it; and because D & C are my favourite foils. When I say foils, I’m suggesting how useful our girls can be. They can be love interests. Lovely, lovable, loyal to a fault… Or not… Depending on their whim.

As to their capricious nature, they could be instrumental in absconding with what items you’ve mistakenly lavished upon your PCs. That said, this should not be an overused plot device. This might be a one-shot-deal occurrence.

I would ensure their inexpendability before attempting such a thing: they’re a font of expositionary lore, they’ve rescued the PCs when all seemed lost, delivered them from sure defeat more than once, pawned a thing or two, or delivered some much-needed graft when the PCs could not. Whatever.

Candella and Duchess

Consider the case above. The PCs were engaged to deal with recent giant raids; one thing leads to another, and as the PCs are readying to reconnoiter the Snurre’s fortress, they come across Candella. She tells them that Duchess has gone missing. She’d heard about Snurre’s wealth and took it upon herself to relieve him of some of it. But she bit off more than she could chew. And Candella is intent on a desperate rescue mission, willing to spin any yarn she might imagine to get the PCs to aid her in that regard. She need not have to. They must. They owe the two of them too much to not help. To say nothing about whether Bill’s character Aragorn is in love with her….

“We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are.”

― Anaïs Nin

One must always give credit where credit is due. This post is made possible primarily by the Imaginings of Gary Gygax and his Old Guard, Lenard Lakofka among them, and the new old guards, Carl Sargant, James Ward, Roger E. Moore. And Erik Mona, Gary Holian, Sean Reynolds, Frederick Weining. The list is interminable.

The Art:

Duchess-and-Candella-scene-01 by nezart

Duchess and Candella original art (unpublished)

A Secret respite cover, by Domenico Neziti (nezart), from CRK B3 A Secret Respite, The Folio

Candella and Duchess, by Harry Quinn, from B3 Palace of the Silver Princess, 1981

Second-Candella-and-Duchess-illustration by nezart

Candella-and-Duchess-homage by nezart

Demon Bait, by Domenico Neziti (nezart)

Captured Thief, by David Trampier, from G3 Hall of the Fire Giant King, 1978

Sources:

9025 World of Greyhawk Folio, 1980

1015 World of Greyhawk Boxed Set, 1983