Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-11-07, 01:45 AM	Travel northwest by boat. Sail just south of the Century Isles, torn apart by war and religion. Be wary of the Aenstrum, the storm that has ravaged the North Sea for over 10,000 years. Soon ye shall come to rest in among the Sea Cliffs of Shirrigaul, only then..will you have reached Tigrathira. Tigrathira is the begging continent for my campaign setting, even though one of the PC's is not from there. It has roughly the size and shape of Britain/Great Britain/England/United Kingdom whatever they call it. I've been pondering it for about a year now. Basic Outlook *Tigrathira has abandoned the "old gods", no one worships them, but they do not burn people who do at the stake. This does not affect divine spellcasting. Races still worship their gods but thats usually privately. *There are 4 main areas in Tigrathira: The Northern Alliance, Nor, Dunland, and a small neutural zone. *There are not many guilds on this continent. There's a mage academy in the main city of the Northern Alliance that acts as a mages guild of sorts. Races and Classes RACES Humans The wisest scholar in the world wouldn't be able to tell you how the humans got to Tigrathira. Almost all records were destroyed in The Long Years' War. They know live either in harmony with the Elves and Dwarves in the northern alliance, or with the Halflings in Dunland. Dwarves Dwarves live in an extensive mountain ridge on the west coast. Most of them live in the great stronghold of Denzobar, but there are rumors that their may be a long lost stronghold deep in the world.;) The elves and dwarves sometimes quarel, due to the fact that the elves cant stand stuffy life underground, but this is usually no more than bar fights or gruff words. Elves They live in the magical woods of Telarun. Where strange weather patterns keep it summer and fall always. The elves are mascinated by magic, but there are not many powerful elf wizards. Most magic loving elves attend the Academy of the Magi in the human city of Aernyn(northern alliance). Dwarves qwarrel with the elves because they understand little about why they would want to live with all those trees. Gnomes The gnomish community is rather small, their only established town is the town of Babblebrook, on the edge of the Olde Wood in the neutural zone. Although they are few, many a gnome holds a position of standing in the Alliance. The gnomes stay out of trouble with other races, but often individuals find themselves in trouble due to thier chaotic nature. Halflings Halflings live in the kingdom of Dunland. They are stereotyped as thieves, but many ahve taken honest jobs as trapsmiths and merchants. Half Elves are common. They usually live in the human cities, because they orient themselves with humans due to their relatively short lifetimes. Half Orcs Half orcs are extremely rare south of Nor. The humans live far away from where the orcs hide. Halflings and Gnomes just think half orcs are VERY big. Elves look down at them with a sort of pity that such an ungraceful creature corrupted the human child. Humans try to include them into society but they usually end up getting the brute work of bouncer, deckhand, or the like. Dwarves think half orcs are untrustworthy, and usually try to start fights with them. The Dwarves are in a constant battle against the Orcs. CLASSES Barbarians There are few civilized barbarians in the world. All the warriors of a region are, well, warriors, or fighters. Most barbarians live in Nor or in small cults in the Illigard the Dunland must continuously put down. There have been a few known barbarians known to travel in the mountains near the dwarves, or in the rolling hills of the neutural zone. Bards Tigrathira likes its bards. Many taverns actually pay bards to show up every night for a week. Clerics Are very uncommon in the northern part of the continent and slightly less so in Dunland. The Northern Alliance doesn't outlaw clerics, but will detain them if they start preaching to people about joining so-and-so's cause. In Dunland some halflings and a handful of humans are clerics to Yollanda the semi official religion of the kigndom. But they usually just perform minor tricks like creating food. I gotta go to bed, but I'll try to post more tomorrow after school. Most of what I just said was made up on the spot, I guess I need to start thinking about the minor details. BoN
queenfange 05-11-07, 07:20 AM	So, what specifically do you want help with / feedback on at this point?
Ishmayl 05-11-07, 11:08 AM	So, are you saying that only bards, barbarians, and clerics are available? Or is that just what your party has chosen thus far? With the inherent hostility between elves and humans (due to deforestation?), how does that effect elven studies Academy of Magi? The racial conflicts and relationships sound pretty standard (dwarves and elves disliking, but otherwise not hating each other, humans causing problems when they land on a new land, gnomes being trouble-makers). What are you going to do with races (and cultures, in particular) to make your campaign stand out? Do you have a map? I'm having trouble picturing where everything is. Good start, I'd like to see more :)
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-11-07, 04:12 PM	So, what specifically do you want help with / feedback on at this point? Yeah, feedback would be nice, just general things you notice So, are you saying that only bards, barbarians, and clerics are available? Or is that just what your party has chosen thus far? In my last paragraph i said I had to go to bed, so i couldn't finish all the classes, i AM only 16 after all. Its my lunch break right now. This is my first real world so i want to keep it simple and only have PHB classes for the first campaign, i dont feel that that is even very restricting. With the inherent hostility between elves and humans (due to deforestation?), how does that effect elven studies Academy of Magi? Aernyn is a city of about 20000 people and its a long ways away from where the elves live. The Northern Alliance isn't really just broken down into humans dwarves and elves. Each city state is part of the alliance, so there are in fact 4 mainly human cities that operate independantly of each other. The elves are concerned abotu a farming community on the edge of their forest, they harbor no ill will against the city of Aernyn. Besides, the Academy of the Magi makes sure that all of its students feels welcome. The racial conflicts and relationships sound pretty standard (dwarves and elves disliking, but otherwise not hating each other, humans causing problems when they land on a new land, gnomes being trouble-makers). What are you going to do with races (and cultures, in particular) to make your campaign stand out? Thanks for the advice! Ill have to think about that one. Do you have a map? I'm having trouble picturing where everything is. http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/4647/tigrathirawm4.png (http://imageshack.us) There's lots of stuff undone, but my players are only gonna be in the northern alliance for a long time, so that will give me time to catch up. But this gives you a good idea of where stuff is. Keep the advice(sp?) coming please! EDIT: Most of the stuff on races was made up on the spot, so i might alter some of the things about humans, but the rest will probably stay the same. BoN
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-11-07, 07:36 PM	CLASSES CONTINUED Druid Druids are considered mages who love the wild. They most often come from forrested areas, but some young people may feel that they have been to long from nature in their city life and choose to become a druid once they are marvelled by the woods. Many Elves are druids, and every now and then someone comes from Dunland as a woodland loving spellcaseter(this is the case for one of my players). Fighter As in most worlds, fighters are one of the most common classes. They are warriors, personal guards, brutes, basically anyone that does fighting.(duh) Monk (the statement about monk will be in my own opinion) Honestly, I hate the monk class. I just can't stand the fact that it is massively stereotyped as chinese guys. I mean even the abilities have chinese sounding names for christ's sake. If any of my players want to be monks I will let them, and I may throw in a monk or 2 as special NPC's, but im not putting any monastaries or whatnot. They're basically people that have realised they dont need weapons to rock. Paladin Paladins are seldom if ever found on Tigrathira. Anyone that worships a god does so semi privately and don't feel the need to go slay evil-doers in the name of said person. Most paladins on Tigrathira(which can be counted on both hands) simply feel they need to rid the world of evil, and do so not in the name of any one diety. Rangers Are travellers of the wilderness. Due to Tigrathira's fairly large amount of distance between major cities many men or women choose to explore the vast forests or deep valleys of the ancient world. They act as scouts into Nor for the Norther Alliance, guides through the wild, explorers, some of them even choose to take the side of evil and use their knowledge of the surrounding area to create a smuggling operation. Rogues Are common in the world. Especially in the capital city of Crowbine in Dunland. There you almost always have to keep a hand on your coin purse. The Alliance has a slightly tighter grip on these vagabonds. Nevertheless many resort to stealing to earn a living. Sorcerers Are usually drop outs of the Academy of the magi, they feel that the academy is too broad and can't teach them quickly enough. (the majority of the academy teachers are wizards) Wizards Wizards are very important to the Northern Alliance, they make up parts of their army, hold the most of the positions of office, are the sages and scholars, and they have a large say in what happens. (spellcaster tyrants soon to come?;) ) But most people don't see this as a threat, they just think wizards are the most knowledgable and have a wide area of knowledge. That sums up the classes. BoN
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-11-07, 11:43 PM	CALANDER & SHORT TIMELINE Calander Tigrathira has 5 day weeks. There are 8 weeks to a month and 8 months to a year. Totals out to 320 days. The months are as follows, starting in spring and going to winter: Hammersdell Greypeak- 14th, Festival of Champions Leafborn Fairtide Harvestmoon Frostfall Winterbane Icevale History A.F. means after formation of The Northern Alliance which is a well documented event. -3681A.F. The Long Years' War finally ends. All races have suffered heavy losses. Those who surrendered are banished to the frozen wasteland of Nor. -1057A.F. After sporadic fighting, construction of Swordholm is finally completed. All civilizations except Dunland agree to have soldiers stationed at the fortress. -834A.F. Orcs and barbaric humans surge over the Rolgair Mountains that separate the Nor from the rest of the world. Thousands of innocent villagers are slaughtered in the ensuing massacre. -833A.P. The Barbarian horde is finally stopped once the Dwarves of Denzobar join the humans in the Battle of the Barrils. -832A.P. Human troops start patrolling up and down the Rolgair Mountains and Darkvale Forrest. -72A.P. War breaks out between the dwarves and the elves. The Stonetree War ensues. -3A.P. The Humans finally resolve the conflict. There were 300 casualties. 0A.P. The Northern Alliance is formed. All races and towns share a fairly sturdy Ene Tente. (I can't spell FrEnsh stOoF) 18-21A.P. A group of forrest barbarians starts attacking Dunnish towns. The High Lord says nothing of it, so Nobles band together and resist the attacks. Many sacrifice themselves for the safety of their peasants. Upon hearing this, the new High Lord desides to form the Illigard Knights, men who are dedicated to the protection of the forrest and its people. Only men of noble blood may serve. 994 A.P. - Relative peace has lasted throughout the empire. On a side note: If you see any names that you think are stupid, just let me know, I'll come up with something else. BoN
queenfange 05-12-07, 06:34 AM	Actually, I think your names are pretty decent (and you did spell "advice" right :) ). One thing to consider: the five-day week could slightly mess up game balance regarding week-based effects (a few spells, for example). Just keep that in mind; it shouldn't effect most too much, but keep an eye out for it. So, you don't like monks? Well, if you hate the names of their abilities, change them. Ki strike could become Weave harnessing (if you use Forgotten Realms magic), magic strike, magic harnessing, or empowered blow. Tongue of the sun and moon could be anytongue, tongues, or speak with the world. OK, so I suck at coming up with names, but I've made my point. Are you using any variations or subraces of the standard races? Just curious.
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-12-07, 04:56 PM	Are you using any variations or subraces of the standard races? Just curious. I will probably put Wild Elves in the Olde Wood, and Drow will be encountered on an underground expedition. Now that you have brought it up I might actually make a Human variant for the Barbarians of Nor. maybe some resist cold stuff and the ability modifiers of dwarves. We'll have to see how it goes. Thanks for pointing out the 5 day thing. Its not like there are weekends for medieval peasants. So the weeks wont come into play as much as the months will. BoN
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-13-07, 03:18 AM	No more thoughts?.. Norrish(Human subtype) *Con +2 Cha -2 The Norrish people are extremely tough, but they usually settle disputes by a good game of pound the face. *+2 on Climb, Jump, and Survival checks. Norrish are well suited to harsh life in Nor. *+1 on intimidate checks. They're multiple battle scars and tattoos make people more..open.. when being asked gruff questions. *+1 to Fortitude checks vs. Weather Effects and Endurace Checks(ex: Forced March or holding breath). The Norrish are trained from youth to endure the elements and push themselves to the limit. *+1 to attack vs. Orcs and goblinoids. Norrish have fought these creatures for years on the cold plains of their homeland. *Favored class: Barbarian Background- The Norrish were the people banished from the southern parts of the world at the end of the Long Years' War. Alignment- Most Norrics find themselves chaotic, because they have few laws to bind them. Norrish in the world- Norrish live in Nor, the frozen wasteland above the Rolgair mountain range. Any that come south to civilization tend to hide their ancestry(sp?). Norrish as adventurers- The Norrish are naturally resistant to weather and many that don't become barbarians find themselves acting as the parties scout or ranger. Norrish religion- The Norrish believe in Hralfgar, the Ice King. He is the lord of battle and weather. He is Chaotic Neutural and his favored weapon in the Battleaxe. any advice on these guys? I'm gonna make them a playable race, but I don't think any of my players will jump on it. (If you didn't notice already, my name is one of these guys. The first character I really roleplayed, although he was just human.) BoN
queenfange 05-13-07, 11:05 AM	I like the Norrish, though they might be too good as barbarians (I don't mind it, but someone gave me similar feedback on a race of mine that had lots of good stuff for clerics). Also, why not just make them a seperate race; they're very different from humans? That said, they sound like a lot of fun. In Norrish society, are druids, clerics, or adepts more common? Or perhaps even rangers (with their limited divine magic)? They sound somewhat primitive, so I'd imagine adepts would be most prominent. You could consider slightly changing the adept spell list for Norrish though, to include more cold, weather resistance, and nature-based spells. You mention "Illigard Nights" (is the spelling on purpose?). What's up with them? They have to be of noble blood, but protect the forest and its people? So, I'm thinking they're LG or LN? I think you should consider a prestige class for them, with access to some nature magic and protective abilities. Are most rangers, fighters, paladins, or some other class?
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-13-07, 05:49 PM	I like the Norrish, though they might be too good as barbarians (I don't mind it, but someone gave me similar feedback on a race of mine that had lots of good stuff for clerics). Also, why not just make them a seperate race; they're very different from humans? That said, they sound like a lot of fun. Well, take a look at halflings, they are pretty much roguexcore. Im not really sure what the term subtype means, but the Norrish people ARE humans, they have just adapted to be tougher and more rugged. In Norrish society, are druids, clerics, or adepts more common? Or perhaps even rangers (with their limited divine magic)? They sound somewhat primitive, so I'd imagine adepts would be most prominent. This is a good question, because there aren't many...or any forests in Nor. And most Druids and rangers use tree related spells. But there are Clerics to the Ice King. Since they are rather primitive not many of them are arcane spell casters. They don't identify magic in the way that most wizards do, as a tool at their disposal. The clerics usually thank the Ice King that he provides them with his power and wisdom. You could consider slightly changing the adept spell list for Norrish though, to include more cold, weather resistance, and nature-based spells. I have a dungeon magazine that has a large list of cold related spells. You mention "Illigard Nights" (is the spelling on purpose?). What's up with them? They have to be of noble blood, but protect the forest and its people? So, I'm thinking they're LG or LN? I think you should consider a prestige class for them, with access to some nature magic and protective abilities. Are most rangers, fighters, paladins, or some other class? For them, basically think Knights of the Round table in a forrest. I didn't notice I spelled it wrong, I'll have to fix that. It's the Illigard Knights. Maybe some years ago they had a prestige class, but know they have fallen into disarray and have turned into the Lord's bodyguard and champions of the army. I'll work on a prestige class though. Most of them are high level fighters or rangers. But who knows, maybe the characters will bring back the original Knights.:eek: Then I'll definitely have to make a prestige class. Dunland is a monarchy, so the politics and social problems are slightly more complicated then The Alliance. The players may even think that it is an evil country, due to the large number of crows and black fortresses(rare stone found in the mountains), but its not. It just needs to be correctly guided back to the way it was. BoN
Baernwulf_of_Nor 05-13-07, 06:16 PM	Cities of the Northern Alliance Aernyn The glorious city of Aernyn rests on a large island in the middle of Azure Lake. The walls and towers are made of white marble, while banner's depicting a tan sparrow flying before a blue and white shield on grey cloth flutter on the high towers. In the center of the city, towering high above everything else, the six looming towers of the Academy of the Magi dominate the sky. There are large colorful orbs atop five towers, there colors are Green, Blue, Red, Yellow, and Purple, while the sixth tower has at its peak an Ice Blue crystal surrounded by a rotating ring of shimmering diamond. There is a wide brindge going to the main gates of the city. On both sides of the gate, a large statue, 30ft tall, of a fully armored warrior stands with his sword in front of him. Pop: 20,000 Make-up: 63 Human, 18 elf, 11 dwarf, 8 other Resources: Fish, salt, mineral mines to the north. Politics: The Archmage is the head of the academy of the magi, and is chosen by the previous Archamge, and The Lion is an elected city official, who is also the general of the army. They meet to discuss important matters. Smaller matters are taken up with sector governors or the Lion himself. Places of interest: Waystone Inn, Academy of Drunkards(tavern), Mort's Magical Mysteries, Oswalds Ordinary Oddities, Academy of the Magi, Market Row, Fish Docks. Note: Aernyn holds the Festival of Champions every year, on the 14th of Greypeak, where there are wizard duels and Warrior battles. I have to do homework but I'll add more of the towns when I get back on tonight I hope. BoN