[D&D]Pre-campaign details

[The Duchess of Zeon]

Pagan was the plan. I had actually considered devoting him to the old Roman God Apollo, or perhaps Minerva.

They might still have worshippers in some form in Basque, in combination with the more obscure or arcane pre-Christian practices. I need to think about that; I have a few ideas but it isn't as fleshed out as some of the other. I'll be on that tonight. (I had actually thought of them as possibly matrilineal in this universe; Minerva worship might be a real possibility, left over from the Roman days.)

[SirNitram]

Pagan was the plan. I had actually considered devoting him to the old Roman God Apollo, or perhaps Minerva.

They might still have worshippers in some form in Basque, in combination with the more obscure or arcane pre-Christian practices. I need to think about that; I have a few ideas but it isn't as fleshed out as some of the other. I'll be on that tonight. (I had actually thought of them as possibly matrilineal in this universe; Minerva worship might be a real possibility, left over from the Roman days.)

I knew I could depend on you to be extremely creative with only a droplet of idea. *Leech off ideas, leech off ideas*

[Typhonis 1]

Hmm whats the Churches vuiew on magic?? Clerical speels could be viewed as God granted powers but what about Wizard magic((specially Catholic Wizards)) or Druid magic?

[Typhonis 1]

Got the data its just they add a coin called a bronze piuece thats worth two copper pieces also it uses pennyweight for coins where 320 pw= 1 lb and most coins are 4 pw in weight Silver not gold is the base currency with Gold ,Electrum and OPlatinum being worth lots more

[The Duchess of Zeon]

Hmm whats the Churches vuiew on magic?? Clerical speels could be viewed as God granted powers but what about Wizard magic((specially Catholic Wizards)) or Druid magic?

The official Church view on magic:

Church magic-users are called Thaumaturges, which is Latin for "Wonder-Worker". The name also usually refers to nobles who have the magical art. Church users are, in general, cloistered in monasteries or abbeys for their studies, and only called out when required for specific duties. One unique aspect of the magical art, is that the church does allow female Thaumaturges to serve in combat in the Orders Militant, as a legacy of the crusades (where Eleanor of Aquitane, in this history, fought to some distinction), and out of the simple need to field as many thaumaturgical combatants as possible.

The nobility has their own thaumaturges, but only as long as they are from the ranks of the nobility. All of those with magical powers, who are not nobles, must in theory join one of the Orders Militant, or take the vows of another, cloistered order. This compromise came about after a series of conflicts between the Holy Roman Emperors and the Popes surrounding the investiture controversy, when in 1075 Pope Gregory VII issued a Dictatus Papae against Emperor Henry IV. This, in addition to declaring that Bishops could only be appointed by the Pope--and Bishops are huge landowners throughout Europe, the equivlant of major feudal lords in many cases--declared that magic was sacred, and the sole realm of the Church. Of course, magic is a dominant power, and if the Church wholly controls it, then it controls the nobility; so that was effectively a declaration of War.

The compromise to both issues that was settled on in the Concordat of Worms in 1122 (Worms is a town in Germany) was that Bishops should have their spiritual powers given to them by the Pope, and their secular powers given to them by the Emperor--effectively, both have to agree on the appointment of a Bishop for the Bishop to have any real power--and, likewise, nobles who have magical abilities can remain outside the Church, but those who are not of noble rank, must take the vows if they have magical abilities. That is how magic stands in Christian Europe in 1250.

Now, what do they think magic is? Well, early Christians struggled with that issue a lot. Some thought it was a power granted to the wicked by Satan, and that a real Christian would not have magical abilities. This was the line taken by the early Church Father Tertullian, and others. However, Saint Augustine, in his seminal and fundamental work The City of God, turned to the philosophical writings of Plato for considerations on the place of magic in the Christian world.

Plato had postulated that magic was the ability of certain people, who refined this ability--latent in all thinking beings--through introspection, to manipulate the World of Phantasm by direct interaction between the Reality of their mind's intellect, and the Reality of the Ideal Form which provides the substance behind the dilluted phantasm of this world. Essentially, as both one's Intellect, and the Ideal Form of an object are Real, one can, in a limited fashion, manipulate the phantasmal representations of that object in this world.

Imagine for the moment a chair. Somewhere there is a perfect chair, in the "Ideal Universe," and all chairs on this world are imperfect representations of that chair, created from the Idea of that perfect chair. Magic is the process of your Intellect--the Ideal and uniqueness of each human, rendered imperfect by the phantasm of our bodies--interacting with its Likeness in the Ideal chair, essentially telling it to make a particular of those imperfect phantasms into a different sort of imperfection.

Augustine, who was big on integrating Platonic thought into Christian doctrine, seized upon this concept of magic, and used it to explain why magic could be used as equally well by pagans as by Christians, and why it was legitimate for Christians to use magic--because it was a natural process of the world, not a gift from God, or curse of Satan. This, then, and indeed, Augustine Theology, remains totally dominant in the Catholic Church.

(Regardless, mind, of the actual truth of the theory. This is the Catholic Doctrine.)

[Typhonis 1]

OK sounds good but what of Cleric powers and spels that are prayed for they are whjat considered gifts of faith?

[The Duchess of Zeon]

OK sounds good but what of Cleric powers and spels that are prayed for they are whjat considered gifts of faith?

Hrmm, well, for some I'd think of reading accounts of the miracles of saints and martyrs and imagining them as actually happening. Some of that should be online. Gifts of the faith, well--we obviously have a lot of source material to go on for that. OTOH, the sheer bulk can be unhelpful, so I'll try to provide an overview. Again, that will take a bit of time. Anyone in a hurry (or who wants to help me!) can google a search for accounts of saints and martyrs, or miracles in battle, or somesuch, along with the virtues of saints and martyrs and Christian leaders. The Catholic Encyclopedia might be useful for the later. Obviously God, or whomever they're praying too, has some real power, considering Charlemagne was able to kill the quote "Demon-God of the Saxons" unquote, though the equal of Charlemagne or his epic companion and faithful vassal the Count Roland haven't been seen for a while.

[Alyrium Denryle]

Or perhaps the gods do not exist, and clerics are sipply accessing the same ley lines of power that mages do, but in a different way(and in a way that I will be able to block by level 15)

[SirNitram]

Or perhaps the gods do not exist, and clerics are sipply accessing the same ley lines of power that mages do, but in a different way(and in a way that I will be able to block by level 15)

Don't make me hit you with the sword.

[Alyrium Denryle]

we have already been through this...

[Iceberg]

Or perhaps the gods do not exist, and clerics are sipply accessing the same ley lines of power that mages do, but in a different way(and in a way that I will be able to block by level 15)

Um, since when can Arcane spellcasters block Divine spellcasters? I don't seem to recall any such ability.

[Alyrium Denryle]

Prestige class in Quintessential Wizard... I will be taking it at either level 6 or ten

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Well, DoZ has got most everything covered, but if you want my take on things:

Wizards remain much the same as any D&D campaign. Usually secluded, not bothered by the locals, and so on. The Church grudgingly stays out of the way for various survival reasons.

Sorcerers, with their innate magical ability, are viewedas spawn of Satan or demons, and are heretics which should be burned at the stake.

Clerics are priests of God or Allah, or of a specific god in a pantheon for polytheists. Their spells are granted to them as normal. (There's got to be some point to all that silly prayer)

Druids are pagans and thus heretics, whether they are the baby-sacrificing kind or the balance of nature variety.

Bards are generally not bothered, and the Church usually doesn't have much contact with them anyways.

Adepts are generally pagans. (NPC class)

Rangers receive their spells from nature. Generally not bothered, like bards.

Paladins are much the same as clerics.

EDIT: There would of course be exceptions to these generalizations, particularly in the case of the thaumaturges DoZ described.

[The Duchess of Zeon]

EDIT: There would of course be exceptions to these generalizations, particularly in the case of the thaumaturges DoZ described.

The word "Thaumaturge" probably covers a variety of different kinds of "Wonder-Workers" -- as the Church doesn't see any difference between them.

However, wizards in Christian Europe would, I think, be relatively rare. Now, forgive my ignorance (AD&D is NOT a strong point, I confess, I'm doing merely for the pleasure of fleshing out the world, and, well, I'll learn by watching you) -- but I assume that the powers of a wizard have to manifest at some point?

Well, obviously, the local agents of the church, at this point of manifestation, would see that the local youth--raised in the Mother Church anyway--is sent to the appropriate monastery, and trained right alongside the monks and clerics. Nobility who have such are, on the other hand, raised in a culture of supine piety and feudal loyalty, listening to the great chanson de gestes and being trained to believe they must use their powers in the context of their rights and duties of vassalage.

Quite simply, the Church bureaucracy tries to prevent the existence of independent wizards within its territory.

Inside of Islam, there are a variety of Sufi brotherhoods (famed for the endless repetition of "Allahuackbar" as a prayer, and for the practice of spinning faster and faster in circles while chanting, until they collapse in holy ecstasy), along with, of course the Hashishans, the religious order of militant killers who probably make the drow flinch with their ascetic fanaticism and suicidal willingness to reach the Garden of Paradise as Martyrs, while most wizards and the like are wandering individuals of power who, if properly raised in Islam, may aide the various causes of the princes; or whom otherwise, might of course be seduceable. Besides them, sometimes the young are taking in, as in christianity, by the Sufi Orders, or other orders, which often control rather extensive regions (At least one Sufi order in Azerbaijan began the foundation of the Safavid Dynasty, which ruled Iran in the 16th century). The heads of Islamic orders are called Sheikhs--Mosque Sheikhs having different duties than Tribal Sheikhs by custom.

At least, all of this is what I had imagined, at any rate. One must remember that Islam and Catholicism are very intrusive, contextually. You may find a riot of different religions, gods, and temples, in the same area in a different realm. But crossing Europe? Even though you pass through different nations with different customs and different languages, they shall all pray to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, with the Holy Mother Mary as the Blessed Intercessor; and the priests shall as speak Latin, as shall the bureaucracy of the realms, which despite their constant warring, are connected as a fraternity of nations in this context.

Going further south, or east, you shall see Islam, which is wholly united in the Arabic tongue, and bows five times a day to "The Lord of the Empty Places" -- the God who can never be represented in any form, the God of innumerable names, Allah, the almighty, the one God, creator of the universe, the merciful and beneficient God. They pray in great Mosques with towers that might call the faithful to prayer, and within them, the walls are painted a stark white plaster, the domes reaching towards the sky and towards God, where hundreds gather under them in Submission to God and to hear the Friday Prayers. That is the reality of religion in the mid-13th century.

[The Duchess of Zeon]

This is a placeholder for outlining the Pagan beliefs.

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Looks like we're going for Europe, so just so everyone knows, I plan on starting the campaign in the British Isles late next week.

[The Duchess of Zeon]

Looks like we're going for Europe, so just so everyone knows, I plan on starting the campaign in the British Isles late next week.

Want me to begin the detailed outline for the situation there, then? I've made rather extensive changes to the British Isles.. Four starters, as may have been noticed by some of the perceptive, there's Four instead of three. One is Ynys Attaligh, of course, an unrelated creation, and the other is Tarrantry--which, of some, may be familar from some fiction I wrote. I have this area very detailed, as I've RPed in it before, so I can lay this out pretty well right now.

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Looks like we're going for Europe, so just so everyone knows, I plan on starting the campaign in the British Isles late next week.

Want me to begin the detailed outline for the situation there, then? I've made rather extensive changes to the British Isles.. Four starters, as may have been noticed by some of the perceptive, there's Four instead of three. One is Ynys Attaligh, of course, an unrelated creation, and the other is Tarrantry--which, of some, may be familar from some fiction I wrote. I have this area very detailed, as I've RPed in it before, so I can lay this out pretty well right now.

Go for it. Try to keep it broad and high-level, though, the DM needs some room to work with for his sanity

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Also, Duchess, would it work with your general plan to have Arthurian and Celtic legends to be true?

[Iceberg]

It's very important to note that if you were in the civilized lands in Europe during the 13th century, you at least paid lip service (and a tithe) to the Catholic Church. This is NOT optional.

As a rule, if I recall my late medieval history correctly, bishops had roughly the same authority as dukes, Cardinals as kings, and the Pope had greater authority than the Holy Roman Emperor. All of these can send people after you who are MUCH higher level than you are, and probably ever will be.

In short, DON'T go around pissing off the Church OR the nobility unless you want your life to be very, VERY short.

[Typhonis 1]

Also, Duchess, would it work with your general plan to have Arthurian and Celtic legends to be true?

Let us not go to Camelot it is a silly place

[The Duchess of Zeon]

In 1066, Harold II Godwinson formed up a shield-wall of armoured, axe-armed hoursecarls and fyre, christrianized Vikings, on top of Caldbec Hill. He had with him, perhaps eight thousand men. Seven thousand five-hundred men formed up in the army of William the Bastard, Duke of Normandy, below him, equipped with a flowering of the Norman cavalry, well supported by archers. Harold Godwinson had just triumphed over the invasion of the Norweigans under Harald Hardrada, and his troops were exhausted by the rapid pace of a forced strategic march from the north, but the thaumaturges of the English Army were some of the best in the world, retaining well a lost Roman legacy, and the gleaned secrets of the northern Ynys. King Harold knew he had but to hold firm. William, below, had to conquer.

He failed. The shield wall held firm against the repeated charges of the Norman Cavalry. Late in the day, William ordered his archers to shoot high, and the arrows fell in the rear of the Saxon ranks; but the thaumaturges were dilligent, and the flights were dispersed. The best of the Norman effort was lost, and the next day the Saxons advanced: William was killed on the retreat to the ships, and Normans were put in disarray for the next decade. The Medieval Kingdom of Saxon England stood unconquerable, the triumph of Alfred the Great's ancestors and his institutional reforms.

There was, however, much work to be done. All around danger lurked for the English nation. The remnants of the Viking invasions had struck hard on the British isles:

Where once Christianity had nearly shined its light upon all of Ireland, and where the Monks had preserved the civilization of Rome in the Dark Ages, there was still the stubborn resistance of Paganism in the northern reaches of the Emerald Isle, stoked by the agents of the Kingdoms of Ynys Attaligh. So, too, did the inhabitants of the Highlands of Scotland cling to their ancient rituals--as equally as those of the Lowlands, who might at least be Christian, clung to their independence from the English Kings. And Wales was the last proper bastion of the old Paganisms, that faintest remnant of Roman culture in the British isles, sustained by archery, elven or human, and the unpleasant terrain.

The next century was occupied with integrating the Vikings into the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom, subduing oft-rebellious Cornwall, and fighting with Scotland over Yorkshire. Border fortresses gradually appeared along the frontier with Wales to defend against the Pagan incursions, and the fleet was built up to protect against their further incursions and conduct expenditions against Ynys Attalight. The Normans, however, were quick to build up and counter. By the beginning of the 12th century, they had recovered from their defeat at Hastings, and by 1120, the fervour of the First Crusade and a brief period of cooperation there gone, a Norman fleet had landed troops on Tarrantry--troops that would seize the Duchy. Now Norman Dukes would rule two Duchies for the King of France, from whom they would become increasingly independent: Philip Augutus' brief success in bringing them to heel not withstanding.

However, as the 12th century drew to a close, the interrelations of the noble families of Europe brought together a marriage alliance--one that would lead to the Anglo-Saxon Kings claiming title to the County of Brittany, then under the reign of the prosperous and extensive holdings of the Norman Dukes. What has followed is an extensive and drawn-out conflict between the Normans and Anglo-Saxons, continuing to this day, nominally over Britanny, but in truth over the possession of a whole host of territory. The French Kings have used this to play off the two sides and keep nominal possession of their Kingdom--there was a real threat of a Norman King of France for a while--even as in recent decades the south has been ripped apart by the Albigensian (Cathar) Crusade, while the Welsh and Scots have done the same on the behalf of their independence from England.

In the north, one should always remember that the situation has in part been excerbated, and in part helped, by the Viking invasions. The Vikings overran Ireland, and under their tolerant and indifferent rule, the remnants of Paganism in the north flourished again; as it did in Scotland. Conversely, the Vikings vigorously attacked Ynys Attaligh, and nearly succeeded in conquering it. There are many Viking settlements in both the Kingdoms on the islands now, rebellious and independent no matter their rulers. Even today, the Vikings still rule Dublin, and some of the surrounding territory, which was the capital of Viking Ireland, along with the Isle of Man, and the northern reaches of Scotland, along with the Orkneys and Shetlands.

Connaught and Ulster are Pagan Kingdoms in Irelands, Connaught, however, having a large and restless Christian population, Ulster less so--both are vassals of the southern, and Elven, State of Ynys Attaligh. Meath is ruled by Vikings, still, and Leinster and Munster in the south are Christian, and owe nominal fealty to the King of England. The Vikings have managed to retain their position in Meath by the urbanization of Dublin--it is the only real city and trade centre on Ireland--and by playing the two sides off each other. Some have christianized, but most of the conquerers remain pagan, and the Vikings are tolerant of the local pagan worship, but, as usual, the converse is that Dublin is the principle centre of the slave trade in western Europe, with many victims of successful raids and piracy, regardless of religion, being sold south to the Caliphate of Cordoba.

Ynys Attaligh is perhaps the most mysterious location known to Man. Recorded first in Greek times, but only as a vague reference of a few Hellenistic travellers, it was again referred to as "a centre of the Druids" by Caesar, that great conquerer of Gaul, and destroyer of the first Elven civilization (many of those with vague traces of elven blood, might trace their descent to the mass enslavings when Caesar's disciplined armies marched into Gaul, and tirelessly subdued all opposition with the indefetigable ruthlessness of a Roman General--though obviously in the prior Gallic and Spanish Wars, devastation of the Elven population, which had previously lived peacefully among the Celts, was already well underway. Regardless of one's cultural sophistication, the Greeks and the Romans considered all who did not follow their customs to be Barbarians, and treated them accordingly, besides the Roman legions being completely and stubbornly relentless in the face of failure. Thus was Europe colonized for civilization), who, after all, could claim a million killed and a million enslaved among humans alone when he had subdued his province.

It was ironically precisely that Roman conquest that prepared Ynys Attaligh for a new civilization. The Island had once had one; it is strangely and highly built-up, in particular with a large city around the mouth of the only major river. All, however, are ruins. The whole island, somewhat larger than Ireland, and several dozens of miles off the most distant of the Outer Hebrides, is exceptionally strong in magic--and thus these ruined cities and towns and monuments and temples have long attracted the magical, and frightened off those who are not of the magical arts.

The elves of Europe, pushed aside by the victorious line of march of the Roman Armies, fled first to Britannia, but Britannia did not hold against the hunger of the Empire. So the Elves were pushed aside again. Ireland, Scotland, and Ynys Attaligh. In the remnants of that mysterious and once-great civilization, civilization flourished again. Then Christianity rose, steadily civilization was reduced to that single island. It could have lasted as that, and resisted Christianity, as it was doing, successfully, among the human populations, reorganizing their religions with the advice of their Gods to the temptation of the word of the One God.

But then came the Drow. From the northlands, where for centuries they had lived in dark caves in the warrens of Scandinavia, competing with the Troll Kings of the North, and terrorizing the human populations of the region. The humans, though, were not without resource, and developed their own civilization, in allegiance with grim and fated gods, who knew that they, like their followers, must die as warriors. The Drow were pushed out, and the reign of the Trolls reduced. Remnants of the Drow still are in Scandinavia, but have little power: Where they fled, however, is to Ynys Attaligh, and they very nearly conquered the elves there. Finally, a compromise was reached, for christianity in this time had nearly overrun the British isles.

The island was divided between the two lands, and at the great city of Massavi Atna on the mouth of the Erta, all disputes would be settled, in the grand and old game-courts of the people who had lived there, and were now gone: either by magic, or by martial skill, between the best of their respective races, in ritual combat. Thus peace would be uneasily kept between the two nations, that they could defend themselves from the religious certitude of the Christian advance. This formal tradition of dispute settling via ritual duel, has lasted between Drow and Elf since, but it is quite uneasy. No love is lost, and none is given. The border is strictly delineated, and only there, on the sacred capital of a dead and unknown race, do they meet--and when they do, rarely do both return.

There are other elves, of course, just as there are other Saxons. Once a great forest stretched across all of northern Europe, and the elves of this forest shared it with the tribes that roiled across it in the great "moving of peoples" that happened during the final plunge of the Roman Empire. Then, though, came Charlemagne, the founder of the Holy Roman Empire, the great Knight of Christianity, the Slayer of the God of the Saxon God of the Forest, accompanied by his indomitable vassals, Roland (Who was said able to kill any fighting man or beast with a single blow from his great sword, "Durendal") and Olivier, the fighting Archbishop Turpin, and a whole host of gallant chevaliers, every one of them fighting for God, for Charlemagne, and for Glory.

In eight campaigns, Charlemagne fought the Saxons, who with the help of their gods, and their elven allies, resisted the full might of Christendom. During the duration of these campaigns, Charlemagne lost Roland, Olivier, and Turpin in the Battle of Roncesvals, fighting a rearguard action with a few chevaliers against a whole host of Muslims and Navarrese, but he was completely indefatigable: In the Eighth Campaign, Charlemagne slew the Forest-God of the Saxons, and in shock at the deed, at the demonstrated power of Christ, they mass-converted to Christianity. The Forest Elves have been on the defensive ever since.

Now they inhabit the Black Forest, a great expanse in southern Germany, but hardly like the Europe-carpeting forest of old. They hinder the entrance of any who presume to intrude, and or damage the forest, protect their autonomy. Further to the east, in Lithuania, they are valued subjects of the Grand Duke, who defends his religion vigorously at their behest, and goes to fight for the Prussians, who in this day and age, suffer from the depredations of the Teutonic Knights, who press relentlessly against the Prussians and every sort of creature who might inhabit their land, slaughtering their way to victory and colonizing in the wake in a fashion Caesar would have admired.

But elven populations, never great, are so much less than they were before the great sweeps of human colonization--and so the elves are a species which struggles in the face of an eagerly breeding christianity, stuffing Europe to the brim with humans. Even so, a few elven arches can be of great effect even against the tens of thousands of troops a human Kingdom might easily field, and the frontal attacks of the Knights who prefer to charge direct into the enemy--and thus the bitter accusations of "cowardice" in battle from those who see the arrow as taking down a man who should be able to close and fight with the enemy, hand-to-hand.

(More on the British isles shortly.)

[The Duchess of Zeon]

It's very important to note that if you were in the civilized lands in Europe during the 13th century, you at least paid lip service (and a tithe) to the Catholic Church. This is NOT optional.

As a rule, if I recall my late medieval history correctly, bishops had roughly the same authority as dukes, Cardinals as kings, and the Pope had greater authority than the Holy Roman Emperor. All of these can send people after you who are MUCH higher level than you are, and probably ever will be.

In short, DON'T go around pissing off the Church OR the nobility unless you want your life to be very, VERY short.

Bishops easily had the same authority as Dukes--for example, the modern day Rhineland used to be the Archbishophric of Trier. That is to say, the Archbishop of Trier ruled the Rhineland. He was also an Elector of the Holy Roman Empire, and would have more authority than a Duke who wasn't--fully equal to the Electors of Saxony or Bavaria. Cardinals, however, were just special Bishops who could elect Popes.

The authority of the Pope in comparison to the Holy Roman Emperor is complex. It really depends on the Emperor at the time. At this time, in early 1250, the current Emperor is Frederick II, of the Hosenfrau Dynasty, who has been fighting a battle with the Popes for control of the Two Sicilies--and losing, though in part due to a rebellion of the German Dukes. The Popes were allied with many Italian cities for this effort, however, but others supported Frederick. Look up "Guelphs and Ghibellines" for more on this.

Just for some idea of the power of the Church: At the high point of Church land-ownership in France in this period, one third of all the land in France was owned by the Church. It's somewhat lower, currently, I believe, but in that general range.

[The Duchess of Zeon]

Also, Duchess, would it work with your general plan to have Arthurian and Celtic legends to be true?

Well, the Táin Bó Cúalnge happened! (Cattle-Raid of Cooley.) However, as for Arthur.. Hrmm. He was a Roman Legion Commander, succeeded in fighting off the Anglo-Saxons in part of England.

...Maybe there's a connection for his final fate with Ynys Attaligh, though? The place is very magical, rather distant from Britain, particularly in those times, and nobody really knows what it is about. Wales, the last refuge of the people Arthur saved, really, is still Pagan, for that matter, and the Arthurian legend probably has two bents--that version, and the cleaned up Christian one.

Naturally, the Song of Roland and other stories from the time of Charlemagne are the big hits for bards in Christian Europe. Though lots of Roland's deeds are still exagerrated--he didn't fight off a hundred thousand pagans at Roncesvals--he certainly was even by AD&D standards an epic hero, and Charlemagne reputedly received visions from the Archangel Michael.

[Tasoth]

Anyway you can work a Japanese Kobold in? Don't hurt me

I was figuring you could go off the fact that the Lungs were often considered divine IIRC, and Kobolds show some form of draconic Lineage.