The Original Circle of Eight

[Scott]

The Circle of Eight is well known among Greyhawk fans. Many incarnations of the circle have appeared over the years. For those interested in the original version of the circle, as played by the man who created it and its members, here it is. Some of this information was originally presented in The Rogues Gallery and Mordenkainen's Fantastic Adventure.

The Circle of Eight
The characters that make up The Circle of Eight are all PCs of Gary Gygax. Some were made from scratch as PC‘s, some were created to serve as recruited henchmen, and a few were encountered NPCs that ended up as permanent additions to the Circle. The members of the Circle roam the far reaches of the Flanaess and beyond. Several members have magical means of traveling, but others do all their traveling to and from The Obsidian Citadel via normal means.

Mordenkainen
Race: Human; Class: Magic-user; Level: upper 20s; Alignment: Neutral
Mordenkainen appears to be a middle-aged man bedecked in simple gray robes, perhaps resembling a merchant. His face suggests age beyond his normal appearance, as if wisdom were a part of his charisma, thrusting out upon those that stand near him almost as much as do his bushy eyebrows. His hair is black and cropped, his beard black with silver streaks and well waxed. Mordenkainen maintains a large force of mounted archers, and also has two subdued red dragons named Gorki and Porki under his control. Although Mordenkainen is the founder of the circle, it would not be correct to refer to him as the circle's leader. He is more accurately the first among equals.

Bigby
Race: Human; Class: Magic-user; Level: Circa 20; Alignment: Neutral
Bigby first appeared as an evil magic-user dwelling on the second level of Rob Kuntz’s El Raja Key dungeon. Mordenkainen encountered him there, and quickly subdued him with a charm person spell. Mordenkainen treated the ensnared magic-user fairly, and when the charm ended, he decided to stay on his own free will, becoming Mordenkainen’s first apprentice. His new mentor’s influence also resulted in Bigby becoming neutral. Bigby’s appearance is unassuming. His attire is unremarkable, when traveling he usually wears a simple dark gray robe with the hood pulled up (for Bigby is a somewhat retiring and secretive man). When this hood is thrown back, his lean but healthy features will be exposed: studious brown eyes, light brown hair, and a laugh that precedes jokes on almost a forced level. To those who do not know him well, he might be viewed as oddly nervous (or paranoid), but this is nowhere near true. The mark to which Bigby adheres is simple "Caution". When Mordenkainen is away from the Obsidian Citadel, it is Bigby who assumes the role of steward.

Yrag
Race: Human; Class: Fighter; Level: 19; Alignment: Neutral
Yrag was the first character Gary created. He appears as a stout and hardy man, flaxen haired, and normally dressed in gray and green robes. He stands over 6' tall and is very broad-shouldered. Yrag is ever watchful of things about him, and usually prefers no new undertakings unless these are shared with those persons he knows and trusts.

Riggby (the Ready)
Race: Human; Class: Cleric; Level: circa 15; Alignment: Neutral
Riggby is a cleric of Boccob, with a lesser devotion to Zagyg. He is normally dressed in light gray and off-white colored robes. His eyes are chestnut brown, his hair pure black, and his opinions are short and succenct-"Convert, or else!!"

Felnorith
Race: Human; Class: Fighter; Level: Circa 12; Alignment: Neutral
Felnorith was originally one of Yrag’s henchmen. He is known as the Sword Collector, and he has a large collection of magical blades.

Sigby Grigbyson
Race: Human; Class: Fighter; Level: 10; Alignment: Neutral (Good)
Abilities: Strong suits are Dexterity and Constitution. Strength is good. Wisdom is low. Charisma is well above average. Comeliness is above average.
Mordenkainen met Sigby Grigbyson in Dyvers. The former was looking for an addition to his personal entourage and was impressed with the young fighter’s abilities. Sigby hails from The Archbarony of Ratik. The events that led him from that distant place to the central regions of the continent are not recorded, but Sigby is known as an inveterate wanderer and it may have been simple wanderlust. Sigby honors the god Fharlanghn and like the Dweller on the Horizon, he is able to travel great distances afoot without tiring. Whether this is some blessing bestowed upon him by Fharlanghn, or if it is accomplished by some magical device in unknown. Sigby is a quite likable fellow, and with his high Charisma and Comeliness he rarely has a problem getting along. Sigby is well known for his swordplay. He wields a marvelous blade that strikes well and parries likewise. Recently, Sigby was spotted in the City of Greyhawk. It is rumored that he is planning on traveling north to the Obsidian Citadel to call upon Mordenkainen. Possibly to share information and give over some item he may be carrying with him.

Ziggby
Race: Mountain Dwarf; Class: Fighter; Level: Aprox. 11th; Alignment: Neutral
Ziggby, more commonly known as "Zig", is the leader of Mordenkainen's 300 or so dwarven followers. These dwarves were the primary builders of the Obsidian Citadel. During his last adventure, he fought the evil dwarf Obmi and the dwarven throwing hammers were flying. Ziggby had the upper hand, but Obmi managed to escape.

Vin & Vram
Race: Elf; Class: Fighter/Magic-User: Level: Unknown, assumed max. +; Alignment: Neutral (Chaotic Good)
Vin and Vram are twin brothers.

The Obsidian Citadel
The Citadel of the Eight is a massive fortress. The central structure of the complex is a great citadel and hall. Eight tower keeps arranged in an octagonal pattern surround the central citadel. These structures are connected by curtain walls and lesser towers. This complex is surrounded by an outer wall, also built in an octagonal form. Reports that the Obsidian Citadel is located somewhere in the Yatil Mountains appear to be greatly exaggerated. It may or may not be found there. The actual whereabouts of the fortress is unknown, but some believe it is in the rocky hills that are covered by the Vesve Forest...
The standard of the Citadel of Eight resembles an 8-Ball.

[tzelios]

The missing stats (level, etc) of Riggby are in Mordenkainen's Fantastic Adventure.

[Scott]

A higher level version of Riggby was in the Rogues Gallery too. Neither are completely accurate though. I'd like to know what level Riggby made it to.

[Scott]

Another C08 related character would be Nigby. A neutral human magic-user of about 9th level. Nigby was an apprentice of Bigby. He does not suffer fools lightly, and on at least one occasion he has come close to attacking his adventuring companions because of their foolish behavior.

[geneweigel]

At last count wasn't he 11th level? I have a quote from an e-mail from you from Gary:

but as
> Bigby's apprentice he didn't
> get a whole lot >of adventuring time in, and thus he
> is only of moderate
> level--10th nearing 11th, as I >recall--his
> character sheet isn't handy.

Or did he follow up on that?

[Scott]

I was just going from memory, so I guess the e-mail is correct.

[GT]

Heh! Or Gary gave more than one answer! ^__^

[Merkholz]

I wonder who was in the Circle as mentioned in WG6. With Tenser being LG and another's PC I guess the membership would be wide open. Would it be only magic-users? Several circles with one for each class? Regional circles or alignment circles?

M

[geneweigel]

The Co8 in AoE reflect Gary's treasure hunt gameplay:

"The Circle of Eight is known to me, Curley. Those who sit on its uppermost tier are always seeking after treasure . . . for
whatever purposes they might have."

The members seem to "activate":

From AoE:

"I am Deirdre, a knight of Hardby
and minion of True Womanhood. Despite that, I serve the Circle of Eight this day, as does my boon companion, Oscar, a wizard from
the Gynarchy's good lands as well."

and take an oath:

""We have had some small intelligence of this entire scheme," said Parseval, unrolling a vellum map as he spoke. "A week ago,
a distant cousin of mine came seeking information - which I did give to him. Melf, my adventurous kinself, has sworn fealty to the Lord
Mordenkainen."

And all are vassals of Mordenkainen even the "principals":

From WG5:

The Citadel of Eight is a serious force in the events of the WORLD
OF GREYHAWK‘“, and the four characters are amongst the eight principals of the fortress.

Here they appear in AoE with Mordenkainen:

Mordenkainen himself, mounted on a great cloud dragon, went to meet the demon, and with him went the lords Eraj and
Felnorith, whose steeds were griffons.

And referred to as his vassals:

In the end both died, however, while Mordenkainen and
his two vassals, Eraj and Falnorith, as well as the cloud dragon, managed to survive their falls.

Bigby (another principal of WG5) appears with what I assume is an entire tier:

Bands of wild elves and their sylvan kin were thrust along either side of the valley. Wood gnomes accompanied these elves,
and all were hated foes of the humanoids. They would neither give nor ask quarter of Iuz's foul troops. At the head of the valley were
ranked the soldiers of the archmage - trained units of men and demi-humans well armed with bows and arbalests, pole arms, and the full
panoply of war. Scattered throughout these stout companies were many minor spell-casters of both clerical and magical sort, while
Mordenkainen stood with the archmage Bigby and the seven other mages and wizards who, with Bigby, formed the Magical Circle of
Eight.

And is their commander:

Three members of the magical band commanded by Bigby had met irrevocable death.

The outer tier may be mixed up like Melf, Deirdre and Oscar like the pregens in WG6:

It was for only the best and most powerful of Those Who
Serve.

And these may be distinct from "fellows" which is what Tenser is described as in WG5:

It came from a Fellow of the Circle
of Eight, but which of that August Body,
none of you knew until just a moment ago.

Tenser is still considered lower than the key figures in some way in WG5:

one who is privy to the Council of the shadowy figures who are the determiners of the course the world will take.

But he's one of the Eight Magi which includes being a regional overseer who has turned "neutral" to get in:

“As my power grew, so did my determination to aid those seeking to maintain equilibrium. In due course, I sought the circle of Eight, and in time I was accepted in their ranks. Now I sit as one of the Eight Magi and am charged with overseeing the whole of the territory roundabout, as great as the need for my presence on the Isle, greater still is the demand for me to remain here, for great trouble brews even as I speak."

I'm guessing that there are 8 class divisions of neutral align (Eight Lords, Eight Thiefmasters and Eight HPs of Boccob/Zagig to start. Perhaps they're are demihuman branches [elf, dwarf, gnome and halfling] and/or subclasses [druid, NG ranger, illusionist, NE assassin) but it still would be hard to fit the "multis" in this fashion. and that they're broken down within those Eight into different tiers. Known "principals" being Yrag/Eraj, Riggby and Bigby and the other 7 being "fellows".

I don't know exactly. All I know is that this approach is spot on from Gary. On the phone he concurred on this formula exactly but in e-mail he never wanted to cement it in writing.

Thats why I believe that he had an unpublished work on it which may yet see the surface.

[Scott]

some Co8 news.
Mordenkainen's last adventure had him adventuring with a group of demi-humans. He started the adventure disguised, by illusion, as a female elf or half-elf. During the adventure the party was transported to the starship Warden. The illusion was dispelled in transit.
Several members of the party were captured by androids and surgucally modified to fix their imperfections (their demi-human traits). The party explored the ship for a bit and then found the tribe that Gary created in the original play testing, the Vigilists, they are all leaders in that tribe now.

[geneweigel]

That was when he started hanging out with Jim Ward again. I remember that. Late ninties-turn of the century, I think.

That just reminded me. What about Bucknard? Wasn't he just as active as Mordenkainen in DRAGON #71 (MARCH 1983):

Because the personages of Mordenkainen, Bucknard, et al, are actively used or played in my campaign, I cannot give details of their power and possessions. Suffice it to say that their status is something less than that of the quasi-deities.

Thats a mystery character that I've never heard about but the inclusion in that article as a campaign character (but not necessarily a "quasi-deity buddy" like Mordy is described) gave credence to Bucknard's Everful Purse. That and its mysterious "spice" reference (erroneous?) at the end of the DMG entry:

(This item was designed to maintain spice, providing a constant source of funds without attracting undue attention to the bearer or necessitating chests of treasure.)

Eyyy!!! He's a one spicy guy!

[GT]

I think that was s'posed to be "space", but I'm just guessing... ^__^

[geneweigel]

What? You didn't get that cartload of sarcasm I rolled out?

Seriously, someone actually had a classic "back in the day" argument (1984?) with me that the sack generated various organic material components! No kidding!

I think this is probably what Gary meant by "they're not playing AD&D" in the best example. How many times have you put up with old barnacles piled up from "transfer" players? The worst is the "catch me cheating then blame it on my old DM" players. I hate those fuckers...

[GT]

Yeah, in 1979 there was an argument that since "spices" (cinnamon, pepper, etc.) were worth their weight in gold in the Middle Ages, the connotation was correct. It could be argued thus, but I'm with you that "space" was the correct word although I never even thought to ask Gary!