Rudd

Greyhawk Divinity

Rudd
Rudd, the Luckbringer, as depicted in Dragon #265 (1999)
Names and titles
Alias(es):	Blue Eyes, "That girl that wins all the time," Cheater, Card Shark
Title(s):	The Charm, the Duelist, the Great Gambler, Luckbringer, Lady Luck, the Laughing Goddess, Smiley, Queen of Cards
General information
Portfolio:	Chance, Good Luck, and Skill
Home:	Ysgard
Alignment:	Chaotic neutral (chaotic good)
Gender:	Female
Class:	Thief 20/Fighter 15/Mage 10/Cleric 15 (avatar)
Superior:	Olidammara
Rules items
Domains:	Chaos, Competition, Destiny, Luck
Divine rank:	Demigod

Rudd is the Oeridian goddess of Chance, Good Luck, and Skill. As the Great Gambler, she knows every card game invented. Rudd avoids completely cerebral games like Dragonchess, finding them too easy. Rudd's holy symbol is a bull's eye target.

Description

Rudd is depicted as an athletic, trim, Oeridian woman (though with some obvious Suel blood) garbed in form-fitting clothing with a long cloak of blue. She is young and invariably smiling. She has short black hair. She wields a rapier named Keleshe, a stiletto, and shortbow.

Relationships

Rudd is on good terms with her mentor, Olidammara, and Norebo (said by some to be her father), but opposes Iuz, Zagyg, and Ralishaz. She does not get along well with Istus, as Rudd has a big problem with the idea of predestination.

Realm

Though she has an outer planar realm—the House of Cards in Ysgard's first layer—Rudd is often found wandering the Flanaess, searching for games of chance and skill. She also spends time in the realm of Brightwater in Arborea. In Brightwater, Rudd is most attuned to the Quarter of the Great Wheel, where games and tests of chance and skill abound, and the inhabitants are bold and reckless. Ye'Cind is also said to spend much of his time in Brightwater.

Dogma

Rudd's priests advocate "making" their own luck by relying chiefly on their skills, yet they'll never rule out the long shot. Her clerics don't abide cheaters, but teach secretly that cheating is acceptable if you don't get caught, as successfully cheating can also be a skill. In Rudd's theology those who are able to recognize and take advantage of good luck may become heroes, while those who mistake bad luck for the good are merely fools.

Worshipers

Rudd's faith has become very popular since the 570s CY, particularly with adventurers.

Clergy

Rudd's clerics engage in games of chance that allow them to hone their skills, and often working in gambling houses. They can also be found in archery and fencing schools. They adventure for the thrill of it, and enjoy beating the odds. Clergy of Rudd wear bright clothing in the latest fashion. Their favored weapons are the rapier and the shortbow.

Temples

The largest of Rudd's shrines, in the Crossed Blades Gambling Hall, is located in the city of Peacekeep on the southern border of Bissel. The priests run the hall, while her shrine lies in the outermost of the hall's chambers.

Holy days and observances

Rudd's mortal birthday is celebrated on the 10th of Planting. This is not an official holiday of the church, but her clerics in Bissel often recognize it as such.

One legend has it that on her eighteenth birthday, Rudd successfully fended off an entire battalion of bugbears using only a cake and a spoon. A food fight is held in honor of this event every Planting 10 in Bissel.

History

Rudd was born in -400 CY, supposedly in what is now Bissel; she was a mortal woman who was sponsored to godhood by Olidammara. In 505 CY, Rudd was one of the nine demigods of opposing alignments captured in the Godtrap by Zagig Yragerne in his own bid for godhood. Rudd eventually escaped, but not before her mentor was himself briefly captured by the archmage.

Gallery

• 
  Example of Rudd's holy symbol.
• 
  Example of Rudd's holy symbol.

References

Bibliography

• Brown, Anne. Player's Guide. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 1998.
• Conforti, Steven, ed. Living Greyhawk Official Listing of Deities for Use in the Campaign, version 2.0. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2005. Available online:[1]
• Gygax, Gary. World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1983.
• Holian, Gary, Erik Mona, Sean K. Reynolds, and Frederick Weining. Living Greyhawk Gazetteer. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2000.
• Miller, Andy. "The Oeridian Lesser Gods, Part III: Telchur and Rudd." Dragon #265. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 1999.

———. "Campaign Holidays." Dragon Annual #4. Renton, WA: TSR, 1999 (pp. 18-19).

• Perkins, Christopher. Warriors of Heaven. Renton, WA: TSR, 1999. Item code TSR11361.
• Reynolds, Sean K. "Core Beliefs: Olidammara." Dragon #342. Bellevue, WA: Paizo Publishing, 2006.

Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index

The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.

Topic	Type	Description	Product	Page/Card/Image
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Bastion of Faith	87
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Dragon magazine #265	56, 59, 60
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Dragon magazine #AN4	18, 19
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	From the Ashes: References Card	#4
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Living Greyhawk Gazetteer	21, 25, 182, 189
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Living Greyhawk Journal #3	19
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Oerth Journal #10	39
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Oerth Journal #11	24,27
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Oerth Journal #15	4
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Oerth Journal #27	24
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Oerth Journal #29	25
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	Player's Guide to Greyhawk	20
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	T1-4 The Temple of Elemental Evil	120
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	WGR6 City of Skulls	8
Rudd	Deity	Worshipped by: Human (Oeridian),	World of Greyhawk boxed set (1983)	64
Specialty Priest of Rudd (Luckdealers)	People Group	Religious order,	Dragon magazine #265	60