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 Athas. It’s a desert world being perpetually punished for overthrowing the gods centuries ago. Life is short and cheap. All anyone can do is make the best of it, and cling to whatever provides them hope. People can't even turn to their gods for comfort, as none exist on Athas - presumably because they are dead. The party has come together after answering a plea for assistance from a man named Jihae. He claims to be a cleric of the god Inaxav, the God of Water, Peace and Wisdom – which no one on Athas has encountered in what seems like eons. Jihae claims that after centuries of researching in secret, he and his colleagues have possibly stumbled upon a magnificent discovery – the gods may not be dead after all! They may simply have turned their gaze from Athas eons ago, but this gaze may be returned. If this were to work, life could grow verdant and rich as it did in the days before the ancient wars that drove away the gods. This discovery has opened up a world of possibilities, and Jihae and his colleagues need the assistance of a few good people (a truly rare commodity on Athas) to put this discovery to good use. Maybe you can be the ones to breathe some life into this dying desert world! About the Setting Mad Max + DnD  See my next post for a more detailed breakdown! About your DM I am familiar with D&D, however I have never DM'd before. I've never seen anyone play this setting before, but I really wanted to try it out. Hopefully we can all kick back, relax, and have some fun exploring a desert wasteland together! Character Creation See my next post - it's entirely dedicated to this and the setting. House Rules
Gameplay
Hero Points: Each character may have a maximum of 2 Hero Points. You recover 1 Hero Point at each long rest. Each time you gain a level you lose any unspent points and gain (5 + 1/2 character level) points. You can spend your hero point whenever you make an attack roll, ability check or saving throw. You may spend the point after the roll is made but before its results are applied. Spending a hero point allows you to roll 1d6 and add it to the d20, possibly turning a failure into a success. You may only spend 1 hero point per roll. In addition, whenever a character fails a death saving throw, you may spend one hero point to turn the failure into a success. (This is modified from a campaign I follow) Regarding Magic:
I will be capping new submissions on Wednesday, March 16th, and changes to those submissions on Friday, March 18th. In your submission, please answer why your character answered the plea for help.
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Mar 8, 2016 06:03
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I am using Dark Sun Campaign Setting – if players want to access it (buy it, or  ), they are more than welcome, however it will mostly be providing flavor as we are using 5e mechanics. Just as a blanket statement: these descriptions will be a bit vague, but if you need more information please feel free to ask me!What is Dark Sun? Dark Sun is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Set on the desert world of Athas, Dark Sun is about the struggle for survival. Nine city-states cling to life in the Tablelands. Until recently, they were ruled by powerful Sorcerer-Kings, both tyrants and protectors. Now, only five remain; the other cities are cast into chaos and violent strife. Soon, the desert may swallow them, as it has so many times before. The wastes are riddled with the ruins of cities long dead. It is a world where magic drains the very essence of life. Ancient wars have left vast swaths of the planet sterile; even now, druids fight a losing battle to preserve the environment. To practice magic is to tempt death at the hands of the mob, yet the cities themselves are ruled by the most powerful of defilers. (from athas.org) That made no sense. Well yeah, I guess not. Here’s the cliff notes from the campaign setting (p4 in the setting book): 1. The entire world is pretty much the Sahara. It’s pretty loving hot on Athas (100F by midmorning, to be precise). There’s no rain and only a few oases and forests here and there. The world wasn’t always like this, though. On your adventures, you’ll see ruins of the way things used to be – broken, ancent bridges, the remains of grand temples, dried up former waterways, etc. 2. Athas is basically if an entire planet was a Mad Max movie. Life is pretty brutal. One always has to watch out for slavers, raiders, and who knows what else. Naturally, things are worse if you’re a slave. You may die toiling for a brutal master, or in a bloody combat spectacle. 3. None of your weapons will be made of steel. More likely, they will be made of bone or wood – same as your armor. Seeing a metal item of armor or weapon is pretty unlikely in your lifetime. 4. (Here is why I suggested reskinning arcane magic!) The use of arcane magic in Ye Olden Dayes of Athas is the reason why the world is a wasteland. In this world, the power for arcane magic is derived from the living world. If you cast an arcane spell, the plants around you will wither into ashes, the soil around you is completely infertile forever, and the people around you will be wracked with pain. So why do it? Because arcane magic is more powerful and much easier than being careful – though with care, one can use arcane magic without further loving up the planet. Because of this, most folks aren’t big fans of sorcerers, wizards, or other magical folks. Which brings us to my next point… 5. The city-states that DO exist are ruled by sorcerer kings that practice the “loving the earth up” variety of magic. They’ve been in power for centuries, and nobody remembers a time when they weren’t. Some of them think they’re gods, some claim to serve gods. Most are pretty oppressive and vary in how they oppress people. 6. (Here is why there’s a rule about divine characters!)The gods are gone. This is the other reason the world is a wasteland. Long ago, the world was green and lush. But then people hosed it up and drove the gods out. Now it’s…not. As a result, there are no clerics, paladins, or any sense of religion. You can still see crumbling shrines and temples, though nobody alive knows what they’re for. In lieu of actual divine influence, psionics have become very common (to the point that even some of the local fauna can use them too). Shamans and druids rely on more primal forces, such as the elements. 7. Speaking of the local fauna – don’t expect your average bears, wolves, and lions. You need to be far tougher than that to survive on Athas. 8. Forget everything you know about the races of D&D. On Athas, Elves are nomads who are usually herding animals, raiding caravans, peddling their wares (or stealing them). Halflings like to hunt and kill trespassers. And eat them. Also, there is a race of giant talking bugs. Sounds like a lovely place. Who lives here? A great question! Here are some examples to help you write your characters and get a sense of the folks you may meet along the way! (p9 in the setting): -Athasian Minstrel: Desert Bards -Dune Trader: Desert Merchants -Elemental Priest: Kind of like clerics, but more primal. They probably worship something to do with nature, and are pretty important to rural villagers and nomad tribes. Some are healers/shamans, some are assassins, and others are warriors bolstered by primal elements. Sorcerer-kings don’t like them too much. -Gladiator  : Exactly what it says on the tin. Prized gladiators live a pretty great life, relatively speaking. They’re considered slaves, but are granted a pretty significant amount of liberties. Although, some people voluntarily become gladiators for the money and the glory (and the killing)-Noble adept: Rich folks who have had the time and luxury of training in their chosen interests. -Primal guardian: Sort of like the priests, only they draw from what life is left on athas (forests, oases, etc). -Templar: The police of the city-states who are allowed to use defiling magic at will. Like cops, some are good and some are crooked. Some want to overthrow the sorcerer-kings, even. In a few odd cases, they serve as “priests” to said kings, even though there are no gods. -Veiled Alliance: A group of people that protects arcane casters by teaching them how to NOT kill the earth when casting magic. -Wasteland nomad: Desert wanderers. -Wilder: People who are gifted in psionics with no formal training, usually poor people who cannot afford it. Races: (If you have access to the campaign setting, we will not be using all of the races since I am using 5e and the mechanics don’t all translate well) Standard 5e races exist, however they’re a little bit different… Dragonborn – The result of some experimenting by ancient sorcerer-kings, they live in tight-knight clans that have their own citadels or towers, usually functioning as mercenaries, sorcerers, and slave traders. Well known for being calculating, sly and kinda back-stabby. They are very loyal to each other and take vendettas very seriously. Good businessmen. Dwarf – don’t have their own lands and live amongst other races. Dwarves have a rich history and culture, and typically work as miners or artisans. Dwarven cities were marvelous wonders in ancient times, and dwarves have kept their history alive through sagas and tales Gnomes – what gnomes? no gnomes here. Elf – typically nomads who do not stick around one place very long. Each city-state hosts a branch of the Elven Market where elves sell their wares (often cheap poo poo stolen from other people, however they have a pretty great selection of items). Elven tribes can walk approximately 40 miles per day due to their naturally amazing endurance. Others think of elves as lazy and deceitful, which isn’t entirely untrue. Elves often avoid drudgery or hard work, and tend to live in the now. Elves will happily trick or deceive anyone who isn’t a member of their tribe, though they honor their word in business deals until a deal is too good to pass up. However, elves a typically good and loyal friends…if you can make friends with one. (There are no half-orcs, but they’re being reskinned as…) Goliaths (Half-Giants) – offspring created by sorcerer kings seeking to create minions. Most are serving in armies or functioning as hired thugs or mercenaries. Tribal relations are often contentious, and huge feuds can erupt over ancient slights. Shamans and druids are influential in the tribes and serve as peacemakers and advisors. Often a goliath will leave their enemies behind to seek new opportunities, hoping to return to the tribe to show up their enemies with treasure and captives. Tend to be moody and short tempered. Half-Elf – live pretty difficult lives, being discriminated by both elves and humans. Elves will often dispose of mixed offspring out of shame, and humans distrust them. They tend to live as loners, or invent assertive personalities and get along well with unrelated races. Halfling – from a mysterious and legendary jungle in the Ringing Mountains. Halflings are brave and cunning and feared for their savagery. It’s said they’re the oldest race in the world, and retreated to the mountains when dark magic took hold of the world. They are spiritual people and are connected to the natural world – the most connected of any of the races. Halflings are very communal and do not consider themselves individuals – rather they are part of a race, and thus cannot betray each other. Halflings view all creatures (including humanoids) as sources of sustenance. Humans – Most humans live in city-states, but are kept illiterate and uninformed of their pasts by sorcerer-kings. Humans only know the tales told in their communities and the propaganda told to them by the sorcerer kings, painting them as heroes who saved Athas from destruction. Tiefling – descended from humans who bargained with dark powers in order to survive. Tieflings are remorseless raiders who take no prisoners and leave no survivors. They are considered to be death incarnate. Most function as enforcers, gladiators, assassins, and so on. Many believe they carry a blood debt because of their ancestor’s bargains and feel it must be paid within their lifetime, often feeling that each person they kill reduces their own debt. Others assume it cannot ever be paid and live a wild, debauched lifestyle. Still others can ascend in the ranks of Templars, or even become nobility. That can't be all. It's not, but this post is meant to be a bit of a quick start guide to characters and the setting. If you need more detailed information, let me know and I will be happy to answer!
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Mar 8, 2016 06:09
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gently caress, wrong forum. Reposting it!
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Mar 8, 2016 06:16
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