There is a throw away line in the description of the Suss forest in WoG box set:
"The humanoid bands of the Pomarj, particularly kobolds, orcs, and gnolls, seem to love this forest, and many hundreds are known to dwell within its depths alongside the native gibberlings, ettercaps and susserus." (A Guide To The World of Greyhawk Campaign Setting, pg. 58)
Was this ever elucidated upon officially?
The only Greyhawk reference I have found beyond the name is located here on Canonfire.com (see tzelios' article, "594 CY: Enter the Dragon").
Having exhausted my Google search on the name I used dictionary.com to look up the word... An interesting thing popped up, there is similar word, susurrus, which means:
a soft murmuring or rustling sound; whisper.
OR
A soft, whispering or rustling sound; a murmur.
Considering Gygax's predilection for obscure vocabulary to describe locations in Greyhawk (e.g. Celadon = Green, etc.) Suss could have been a shortening of susurrus and susserus an alternative spelling of the word... This ties in nicely with the description of the forest:
The Suss is a dreary place, full of thorn trees, brambles, briars, and thickets. Its massive trees are black with age, and seem to whisper and talk amongst themselves when an interloper dares to pass beneath. (Ibid, pg. 58)
If there is nothing official written up about susseruses, I am going to use the Whisper Gnomes from Races of Stone under that name. I figure what better place to put some neutral aligned sneaky, sneaky gnomes that want to be left alone. They can blend in with their forest gnome brethren on the Western side of the Jewel River if they want company or contact with the outside world...
Thanks,
Bryan Blumklotz
AKA Saracenus
Edit Note: Added dictionary search info and speculation on the origin of the name Suss Forest.
Actually, Susserus are a type of vegetable monster that can be found back in Fiend Folio. I expect that both the name of the forest and the reference to a whispering rustling were inspired by this monster. _________________ Never say blip-blip to a kuo-tua
In the 1e Fiend Folio the Sussurus is described as a quadrupedal, headless, gorilla-like creature that emits a constant droning sound. This sound has a quiescent effect on undead and can be heard for great distances. The creatures have a hatred for fire, and attack all fire-using creatures ruthlessly.
Thank you for the reference. I am surprised that a web search did not produce that. I mean the WoG reference was Susserus and the FF1 was Sussurus. Welp, I will see if its been converted to 3e yet or I have a statblock to build.
Bubba,
I am going to bet the name is a happy coincidence because the susserus reference was absent in the WoG Folio and pops up for the first time in the WoG boxset.
As for my whisper gnomes, I am still going to place them in the Suss, but there is going to be one more bad nasty for the party to watch out for... The Sussurus...
The Susurrus first appeared in an adventure entitled The Lichway, published in White Dwarf magazine, authored by Albie Fiore, in which it was pretty much the central beastie. I'm not too sure which issue it originally appeared in but you can find it in the first Best Of White Dwarf Scenarios. As has been mentioned, it later turned up in the Fiend Folio. Let me tell you, digging up the magazine to check my facts sure brought back a lot of happy, if ancient, gaming memories.
The Susurrus first appeared in an adventure entitled The Lichway, published in White Dwarf magazine, authored by Albie Fiore, in which it was pretty much the central beastie. I'm not too sure which issue it originally appeared in but you can find it in the first Best Of White Dwarf Scenarios. As has been mentioned, it later turned up in the Fiend Folio. Let me tell you, digging up the magazine to check my facts sure brought back a lot of happy, if ancient, gaming memories.
Ragr,
Glad to have evoked such memories. Thank you for the deeper background.
Anyone,
Has anyone seen the 2e version of the Sussurus in the MC14? Somehow the beastie became bamboo...
Unfortunately, the 1e FF entry doesn't provide a very good description of the creature's physical makeup. It seems reasonable to assume that it's a plant creature since it's native to the Suss Forest, but perhaps there's more to it than that.
I think 3e/3.5e provides a solution: "sussurus" should be a template. In places where wind and it's attendant sound are constant, creatures of elemental air eventually arise and form physical bodies from whatever materials are at hand - thorns and branches in the Suss, bamboo in oriental forests, glass in windy cities with tall buildings, etc. Perhaps one of you budding designers out there should design a template for such creatures. Anyone up to the challenge?
I think that is a pretty darn good idea Bubbagump. A template would give rise to a host of plant like creatures which are native to the forest. I like it.
P.S. Your not going to shout at me again are you? _________________ Eileen of Greyhawk, Prophet of Istus, Messenger of the Gods
Bubbagump said:
Eileen, get back to Canonfire! where you belong!
Now Bubbagump says:
Did I shout at you? I don't remember that. If I did, I certainly apologize.
Hmmm....I see, you don't remember now do you? Perhaps a little bestow curse will bring back memories from a couple of days ago. And don't even think about trying to make a saving throw. I may just wait until 4th edition before casting it....You know you don't get saving throws in 4th edition. The curse......hmmmm.....
I curse you to play a 12 hour marathon game of 4th edition, playing a tiefling warlock who's ugly! Plus you have to roll the dice with one hand behind your back, blindfolded, and no pizza or pop the entire time.
By the way, I didn't know you liked Legion! I knew there was something about you that was cool. Didn't know you were a paladin either. Say I know this other paladin..... _________________ Eileen of Greyhawk, Prophet of Istus, Messenger of the Gods
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