Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 idabrius Jul 22, 2008 15:43:23	So, I was mulling over an idea this morning and I'll present it here for perusal. Since I'm involved in several post-apocalyptic games and since Dark Sun was a setting I have a great fondness for (and is itself a sort of fantasy post-apocalypse) I posit another type of post-apocalyptic fantasy game: One in which the BBEG, a necromancer of some kind, wins. He proclaims himself the Eternal King and nearly wipes out all life in the world. The remaining living humans are traded like chattle; his true servitors and the proprietors of his dark kingdom would be free-willed undead of all kinds. He would, for the first four or five or six hundred years, govern himself. But as time stretches on and he finds this boring and unwieldy, dealing with the various machinations of powerful undead noble houses, he instead crafts several governmental organizations to assist him, these being the Chancellery, the Ministry, and the... well, something else (I didn't say this was a fully formed idea) to assist in rulership. Eventually his Majesty the Eternal King becomes so lethargic that the state runs itself. I imagine it as a sort of dystopian setting in which the arm of the state is long and powerful and the undead ministers are creepy and unsettling, even to the rest of the undead population. Meanwhile, the Eternal King has become something like a figurehead -- no one sees him anymore. His face is stamped on the currency and statues of his victory abound, but he does no actual governing. I was, of course, imagining the 4e rules for this. I'm always thinking of ways to make them work. Here's the kicker: all players would play various "types" of undead. This would fit in well with the notion of healing surges and such, as any sort of damage would be no big deal to heal. Because the undead are inherently magical, it also allows them to perform ridiculously magical actions (which seem to be required in 4e) that are clearly superhuman in nature without breaking the immersion of the game. Any thoughts?
#2 idabrius Jul 22, 2008 15:43:55	I'm mulling over some options of where to go with this as I type. I'm thinking that the undead races will be divided into two major classes, being Noble and Vulgar. Clearly, each different "class" would have profound social implications for the character. In addition, the addition of undead as the major factor in society gives a nice chokehold for political power since those in the service of the Eternal King would be the ones who raise one into Undeath, and therefore determine what rank of society one fits into. Considering whether or not the undead would remember their lives as servants and farmers; not certain. Definitely want to put an element of mechanical advancement that isn't present in most D&D settings into this one. Ravenloft levels of tech, I think, with some magical alterations. Perhaps something along the lines of springsteel (a thing I just created that is a magical steel capable of retaining torsion through repeated uses). Also considering firearms: they wouldn't be particularly deadly to an undead fellow, so they might serve as useful weapons to augment the normal D&D stock without destroying game balance. Anyone who wants to add anything here can certainly feel free to. Collaborative worldbuilding++ One final note: maybe fleshing this setting out into a full fledged Crystal Sphere for all dem Spelljammah folk we got around here.
#3 idabrius Jul 22, 2008 15:45:38	Leich, Noble Undead The most favored servants of the Eternal King, the Leich have been given the gift of a truly eternal life, as long as their phylactery (which must be worn on the person) remains intact. Incorruptible, Noble Undead The boldest ranks of the upper nobility, the Incorruptible is a premier dualist and political machinist, intent on keeping his families' place in the favor of the Eternal King. Grace of the Incorruptible; Incorruptible Racial Power
#4 idabrius Jul 29, 2008 8:10:21	Opiri, Noble Undead The mighty knights of the noble houses, the Opiri are stronger than iron and mightier than adamant. Dark Sustenance; Opiri Racial Power Lemur, Noble Undead Dedicated to their Houses and to their own lives about equally as fiercely, the Lemur make up the ranks of most of the noble undead. Form of Mists; Lemur Racial Power
#5 idabrius Jul 29, 2008 8:11:04	Revenir, Vulgar Undead Comprising the greater bulk of the Necropolis population, the Revenir serve in every capacity that they can. While not despised or subjected to degrading manual labor like the unwilled undead or the living men, they do not command the same respect as the Nobles. Strigoi, Vulgar Undead Horrible bloated beings, the Strigoi are the uppermost tier of the Vulgar undead in Necropolitan society. They comprise many of the town councils or alderman positions as well as serving as merchants and the nominal wealthy upper crust of the Vulgar breeds. Horrendous Strength; Strigoi Racial Power Draug, Vulgar Undead Used as levee soldiers and often drafted by the ministries or the high houses, the Draug are undead made for war. Ghast, Vulgar Undead Comprising the ranks of the artisans and lower merchant classes, the ghasts are badly preserved but maintain a good amount of skill with their hands..
#6 nowiwantmydmg Jul 29, 2008 9:57:35	Its a cool idea but many players won't want to play as undead, I sure wouldn't.
#7 idabrius Jul 29, 2008 13:34:13	Well, I'm sure the underclass of repressed human slaves and the like could be represented through a PC.
#8 idabrius Jul 29, 2008 13:40:35	Socializing the Races - Noble Undead