A fantasy hodge-podge world that "exists on the other side of Dream", with wink-wink nudge-nudge elements that poke subtle fun at PnP conventions. Harry Potter meets Peter Pan...
A post-apocalyptic setting where the world is Coruscant-like planet of steel and concrete, except bombed out and in ruins. Imagine Sharn from Eberron, but covering the entire planet's surface. The people live in the middle levels, with the sky almost completely blocked by the ruined layers of steel and cement above them, and horrors from the apocalyptic fallout sneaking in from the multitudes of floors below them, all the way down into the planet's core.
A pirate style adventure on the high seas, except there are no seas, and the ships are airships that fly to and from floating islands. Rumor has it there's a whole lost world below the clouds on the planet's surface, with lost treasures from an earlier age, before the world dropped out from below their feet...
A Ivalice-inspired world (Final Fantasy Tactics, FF12) similar to what PoL might've been like before Nerath fell. Various empires struggle for dominance and control of the land and its resources. High magic and airships abound.
A kitchen sink high fantasy setting where the World as We Know It rests in the palms of the Creator, who dipped his cupped hands into the Waters of Creation and drew what would become the World from it, leaving swirling eddys of Chaos behind. The Gods are His Children of Thought, created by his ideas and imagination for the destiny of the World, and the Primordials are His Forgotten Children, His Children of Deed, created as the after effects of his actions in the Waters of Creation. The Primordials created the mortal races as instruments of War against the Creator, but lost control of them to the Children of Thought, who captured the ideas and imaginations of the mortal races, and thus turned them to the cultivation of the World and themselves. But that doesn't stop the Forgotten Children from trying to corrupt the mortals do rise up again and tear down the Creator and his legacy.
A high-magic sci-fi blend inspired by Phantasy Star and Star Trek: ELVES IN SPAAAAACE!!!! (still working on this one). Eladrin space station cities that warp in and out of hyperspace, and a burgeoning Human exploration into outer space.
Okay, so that's six settings.
What are yours?
Classical themed. Age of Rome, Dark Ages Britian, etc...
But the seal is broken. The monsters are flowing out of caves and the dark gods are spreading their influence in the abandoned caverns underground that used to be their domain. The ancient artifacts that sealed them away are somewhere deep underground.
They must be found. If the Dark Gods get them, there will be more than a cracked seal. They'll blow the gates wide open.
It's totally a game setting campaign designed to justify whatever kind of play I'm going for. Tons of dungeon crawls? Hunt for the McGuffin stones. Overland military game? Fight the monsters coming out of the caves. Political intrigue and urban fighting? People have begun to seek out the dark gods for power and cults are forming in the cities. Empire building? The players can carve out an underground empire with caverns being lit with sun crystals so food can be grown. Even the underdark can be tamed and civilized to spread their rule.
It also has really clear "good" and "bad" sides. The monsters are truly monstrous. The Dark Gods want to take over the whole world and the goodly races would find themselves in endless oppression and torture as the Dark Gods take out their frustration on the chosen children on the Gods of Light.
A couple of our settings have been inspired by TV series (there's no secret about the inspiration). For 4e, we've been playing in a fantasy version of SG-1. The setting is very 'points of light', made up of countless realms, all relatively small, mostly self-contained, each connected by a network of magical gateways, or runegates.
Runegate (as we call it) uses the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 4e core rules (Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, Monster Manual) and this Setting Guide. Follow-up books (such as Player's Handbook 2, Dungeon Master's Guide 2, Monster Manual 2 and so on) form an 'expanded core'; if unavailable or unwanted for any reason, they are considered optional.
Races and Classes: In addition to humans, there are realms populated by dragonborn, dwarves, elves, and anything else 4e has to offer. Cultural Levels: The countless realms of Runegate have widely varying levels of technological advancement. We use the guidelines for Cultural Levels (CL) described in the d20 Ravenloft core rulebook.
Formula: Our PCs are a band of explorers working for Runegate Operations (Rops). Theme: Exploration (o' course). Tone: Think Farscape (Fargate? Starscape? ;))
We play the games as if they were a TV series. Our PCs make up the 'cast'. Each session is a 'episode', 12 or so episodes per 'season' (about 6 months play time). We even have a 'standing set', an extra-dimensional base known as the Zone.
We'd like to eventually 'spin off' into a City of Ancients series (a fantasy version of the Atlantis TV show). Before that though, I think we're gonna play a few more Eberron games (those are the ones I DM).
During 3.5, we played a fantasy version of The Shield (we even stole the name). We were corrupt city guards, doing anything to cover our butts, lying, stealing, bribing. Bottom line was don't get caught, even if it means murder . . . especially if it means murder.
We've snatched our 'TV Structure' from an article in Dragon Magazine (#293) by Robin Laws. After our Shield campaign we talked about what TV series we'd like to try next; SG-1 got the votes. I'd like to some day emulate a fantasy version of Warehouse 13. TV-inspired settings may not be homebrew strictly speaking, but they is cool I think.
INTRODUCTION
Who knows where humanity came from? Ask an Edonian, he’ll tell you Eden. Maybe they are telling the truth, but not a single non-Edonian scientist has ever been allowed to travel to Eden to verify that claim with proof. Not to mention that between the Edonian creationist theory, and the rumors that started ever since the Great Asylum, it sounds a bit more like theological propaganda. Gaians will tell you that wherever we came from, all life from Gaia originally evolved from the same root planet. They admit that planet is not Gaia, mind you, but they say that the common gene matter in all their flora and fauna points to an original home planet of evolution. From what I hear, you ask a Terran and he’ll just shrug and say that all that matters is that they managed to survive the destruction of their world. I’ve never heard of anyone asking a Lilithian, but then again, I’ve never heard of a Lilithian designed to answer questions. So here I am, in the satellite worlds, asking the question that nobody seems to have the answer to: where did humanity come from, and why did it leave?
-Jacobin Trill, Archeologist and Anthropologist
The Land of Nod is a science fiction campaign setting with elements of space opera, military science fiction, cyberpunk, biopunk, and post apocalyptic genres. Its setting is largely gothic-punk in aesthetic, and pulp-noir in adventure. It features four main worlds that act as the seats of power for four empires. These empires have historically existed in a state of war with each other. The setting takes place shortly after the four empires have forged a CONCORD to act, if not as a peace agreement, then at least as a set of laws governing war and trade. Each of these empires controls virtually countless satellite solar systems, giving a game-master plenty of room for creative expansion.
The four ruling planets of the four empires are Eden, Gaia, Terra, and (it is rumored) Lilith. The four empires are known as the Edonian Empire, the United Corporations of Gaia, the Terran Confederation of Governments, and the Lilithian Horde. Each of these empires is characterized by a different flavor. The Edonian Empire is a highly religious institution ruled by a god emperor. Their priests believe in a eugenic birth program designed to breed humans “free of sin,” and capable of incredible psychic feats. They are a technophobic society that views artificial intelligence, and cybernetic augmentation, as a heretical tool of the devil. Ironically, Edonians have the most advanced energy age technology of any of the four empires. All Edonian technology is powered by psychic energy, which they feel “purifies” technology of its naturally evil taint. The Edonian Empire is known for its psychic capabilities, incredible energy age equipment, and religious fervor.
The United Corporations of Gaia is the anti-thesis of Edonian dogma. Their culture is a highly technological and corporate entity. They are ruled by a corporate republic democracy. The individual Gaian is afforded few rights, but the Gaian corporation is afforded the ultimate freedom. Each corporation chooses how it wishes to rule its own employees and land. Each individual may (theoretically) choose which corporation he or she chooses to work for. The corporations elect a corporation to preside as president over the other corporations for a term of office. Gaians are known for their robotic and cybernetic advancements and information technology. Gaians are the creators of the ARnet (augmented reality network) and HIARnet (hyper immersive augmented reality network).
The Terran Confederation of Governments was born in the flames of war. Their home planet is little more than a post-apocalyptic wasteland, which is officially devoid of any life; rumors claim that the planet is sparsely populated by the decedents of the survivors of the ancient war that all but obliterated the planet’s surface. War continues to be the primary industry of the Terran Confederation of Governments. The Terran Confederation of Governments is ruled by a military oligarchy; a few key military bodies act as the joint rulers of the entire confederation. Its population is broken up into two classes: the citizens who have served their time as soldiers of the confederation, and the civilians who produce the empire's everyday needs. The Terran Confederation of Governments is known for its soldiers, ballistic technology, advanced military vehicles, and electronic warfare. Terrans are known as the discoverers of the EM-broadband network.
Lilithians are a people shrouded in mystery. (They are not designed as a player character empire.) Virtually nothing is known about their system of government. During the war, their motives remained anonymous. Likewise, their sudden sue for peace was also powered by reasons totally alien to the other empires. Indeed, the Lilithians themselves may not even be human at all. The Lilithans are masters of genetic manipulation. Their technology is entirely biological; their vehicles and their weapons are alive. Their society is genetically engineered, each member designed to perform a specific task for the greater good of the empire. While the diplomats of the Lilithian Horde appear to be human, the shock troops are monstrous creatures evolved specifically for the purpose of war; these creatures are plasma spitting beasts with massive metal tearing talons and fangs. Ever since the creation of the CONCORD, the Lilithian Horde is known for trading gene-templates, retroviruses, and advanced wetware to the other empires.
But even as the CONCORD has brought the four empires together in relative peace and trade, tension continues to threaten the CONCORD's existence, and in the distant depths of unexplored space there may still lay a new threat to the survival of all humanity…
The first is one that takes traditional fantasy conventions and turns them sideways. Elves have been around forever, and their unchanged culture is thousands of years old. Unfortunately that culture involves stone-age technology, alchemy, and general savagery, as it hasn't changed in thousands of years. Dwarves are tremendously practical, hardy people who are known for their engineering. They don't believe in gods as such, and they are several hundred years ahead of everyone else when it comes to engineering- everyone else is using curtain walls and towers, they've got a massive system of underground highways and star forts (a la 1700s Europe). And so on. Fairly conventional in terms of fantasy, yet at the same time, not very conventional at all.
The second is more focused on 4th edition and the various power sources. Arcane and Primal are split, and form the two major factions- you have Arcane power being used to shape the world to the desires of its wielders, creating a very structured, orderly, and uniform world. And then you have the Primal spirits and their mortal allies who are more focused on survival via adapting to the world around them, working with the land and working with the spirits therein. Martial types divide between the two (because anyone can wield a sword), and Divine largely keep to themselves, with each god choosing Primal or Arcane, or both, and acting according to their own goals. Psionic is much more fractured and separate, largely avoiding the whole thing, and Shadow is mercenary and largely seen as untrustworthy (unless you can pay enough gold). Not much in the way of civilized monsters, but plenty of conflict and drama.
Finally the third is under development, but is more conventional. The pantheon of gods is my own, and the races are a bit different, but by and large it does work along the idea of 'points of light,' with various settlements of differing sizes to be found scattered among the wilderness, and the various civilized races being guarded yet largely neutral to one another in general racial terms (not necessarily politically neutral) while other creatures and threats loom large from the shadows. Heroes have the potential to drastically shape the world and have a major impact on it forever after, but of yet there's been few if any true heroes or legendary figures. It's a stage waiting for the actors to step forward and begin the play.
Oddly, this works well in 4e with the evil and good worlds becoming the Shadowfell and Feywild respectively.
My current campaign world, and the one I'm using in my home game, is the Border Lands, which is 50% post-apocalyptic D&D, 50% points of light. It's a world tipped on its axis so half the world is constantly exposed to the sun and half is in perpetual night and the adventurers live in a small equatorial region (the Goldilocks zone) where there is day-and-night. The nations are built around the ruins of great fallen empires and monuments to forgotten kings and heroes.
Alchemical Golem
The body of an alchemical golem is composed of a single tough, transparent membrane in the shape of a humanoid, with the face usually mimicking the appearance of its creator. Inside the membrane is a swirling collection of toxic, oily chemicals, which merge and separate at random, and give the creature life. An alchemical golem wears no clothing and has no possessions. Despite the membrane that keeps the ingredients inside, the golem gives off a faint, acrid smell. An alchemical golem is 9 feet tall and weighs 4,000 pounds.
Alchemical Golem Level 13 Elite Controller
Large natural animate XP 1,600
Initiative +7 Senses Perception +7
HP 268; Bloodied 134
AC 29; Fortitude 31; Reflex 26; Will 22
Immune poison; disease
Resist 10 acid, 10 cold, 10 fire, 10 lightning, 10 poison
Saving Throws +2
Speed 6
Action Points 1
TRAITS
Toxic Lightning Aura aura 3
Foes that start their turn within the aura take 10 lightning and poison damage, if they are bloodied they are also weakened until the start of their next turn.
STANDARD ACTIONS
m Burning Acid Slam (standard; at-will) • Fire, Acid
Attack: Melee 1 (1 target); +17 vs Fortitude
Hit: 2d8 + 6 Acid and fire damage and the target is weakend until the end of the golem's next turn.
c Freezing Poison Breath (standard; encounter, recharges when first bloodied) • Cold, Poison
Attack: Close blast 3 (all targets); +15 vs Fortitude;
Hit: 3d10 + 6 Cold and poison damage and the target is slowed and takes a -3 penalty to attacks (save ends both).
Alignment Unaligned Languages —
Str 19 (+10) Dex 13 (+7) Wis 13 (+7)
Con 22 (+12) Int 3 (+2) Cha 16 (+9)
Tactics The alchemical golem stays in the center of the battle making full use of it's Toxic Lightning Aura, if a foe gets to close it pounds them into a pulp with Burning Acid Slam. If it can get 3 foes at a time (2 if the alchemical golem is bloodied) it uses Freezing Poison Breath.
Encounter Groups:
Drow, devils, and mad wizards like to make Alchemical Golems.
Drow Lair (lv 13, xp 4000)
- Drow Arachnomancer (lv 13 artillery, xp 800)
- Alchemical Golem (Level 13 Elite Controller, xp 1,600)
- 2 Armored Wrackspawn (lv 13 solder, xp 800)
Fungus Beast
The Fungus Beast is the result of a powerful, evil wizard that lived in a dungeon cave and got bored so he started to pump the local fungus full of random magic.
Fungus Beast Level 7 Brute
Large natural beast XP 300
Initiative +9 Senses Perception +11
HP 99; Bloodied 49
AC 19; Fortitude 23; Reflex 19; Will 16
Speed 6
TRAITS
A Spores (no action; at-will)
Aura 3
The Fungus Beast can make the following attack on creatures that start their turn within the aura.
Attack: +8 vs Fortitude
Hit: 5 Poison damage.
STANDARD ACTIONS
m Bite (standard; at-will)
Attack: Melee 1 (1 target); +10 vs AC
Hit: 3d6 + 5 Damage and ongoing 5 poison damage (save ends).
C Spore Blast (standard; recharge 5 6)
Attack: Blast 3 (all targets); +6 vs Fortitude
Hit: 3d10 + 5 Poison damage and ongoing 5 poison damage (save ends).
Alignment Unaligned Languages —
Skills Endurance +12, Stealth +11
Str 19 (+7) Dex 16 (+6) Wis 16 (+6)
Con 19 (+7) Int 4 (+0) Cha 13 (+4)
Tactics
The Fungus Beast uses simple tactics, bite foes until the stop moving and blast them with spores if they are tightly packed.
(My entry for 4E Monster Competition II - EEEEEKKK!!!)
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones Converted from Celtic mythology (Wiki Page)
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones was once a mortal Oni before he ventured into the Shadowfell. He lived there for centuries feeding on dark energy and growing more malevolent and powerful. After 1000 years he found his way back to the mortal world where he now stalks city slums, bleak forests, and abandoned roads searching for living prey. He feeds on his victim's fear and soul and values tormenting and killing his prey above the actual nourishment it provides.
His arms and claws are so long, he can reach into the furthest hiding places. His fingers can reach up drainpipes and down heating vents. But the funniest thing about him, even though he's a great big bugger, he can fit himself into the smallest of places.
"He's a sloppy eater, Tommy. Think he likes his meals to struggle and scream. No one's ever escaped ol' Rawhead and Bloody Bones. Not once he's made up his mind to have them."
--Butterworm, from Courtney Crumrin comics.
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones Level 18 Solo Lurker
Large shadow humanoid XP 10,000
Initiative +23 Senses Perception +12
HP 696; Bloodied 348
AC 35; Fortitude 30; Reflex 31; Will 30
Resist 10 necrotic
Vulnerable 5 radiant
Saving Throws +5
Speed 8
Action Points 2
TRAITS
Resist Magic (no action; at-will)
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones has a +3 bonus to all defences against arcane attacks.
Combat Advantage (no action; at-will) • Necrotic
Tommy Rawhead's attacks deal an extra 2d6 necrotic damage to any creature he has combat advantage against.
Aura of Creeping Fear • Aura 3; Fear
When a foe starts their turn within the aura they grant combat advantage until the start of their next turn.
Under Your Bed
When squeezing Tommy does not grant combat advantage and takes no penalty to attack rolls and speed.
Cower at the Sun
If Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones takes radiant damage then his Aura of Creeping Fear dosen't function until the end of the attacker's next turn.
STANDARD ACTIONS
m Claw (standard; at-will)
Attack: Melee 2 (1 target); +23 vs AC
Hit: 2d8 + 7 Damage and the target's healing surge value is halved (save ends; this effect does not stack).
M Ripping Claws (standard; at-will)
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones makes 2 Claw attacks.
C Soul Drinker (standard; encounter; recharges when first bloodied) • Healing, necrotic
Attack: Close burst 3 (all targets); +19 vs Fortitude
Hit: 4d10 + 7 Necrotic damage and Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones heals 25 hp.
Creep Like a Ghost (standard; at-will)
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones gains insubstantail and phazing antil the start of his next turn.
MOVE ACTIONS
Shadow Melt (move; recharge 6) • Teleportation
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones teleports 10 squares and becomes insubstantial until the start of his next turn.
Alignment Chaotic Evil Languages Common, Goblin, Elven, Deep Speech
Skills Insight +17, Intimidate +20, Stealth +24
Str 22 (+15) Dex 31 (+19) Wis 16 (+12)
Con 22 (+15) Int 22 (+15) Cha 22 (+15)
Tactics
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones amuses himself by ambushing the PCs and toying with them, not letting them get away and enjoying their fear. If badly injured (but not yet bloodied) than he will use Soul Drinker to heal himself.
Encounters
Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones usually doesn't hang out with other creatures but sometimes gains followers among creatures of the night through promises of power.
Lore
Arcana 15 Tommy Rawhead & Boody Bones is a said to be made up to frighten children.
Arcana 20 The stories say that Tommy is a hulking yet stealthy vaguely-humanoid nightmare. His fingers are so long and flexible they can fit through pipes and drains and kill you in your sleep and that magic has no effect on him because he has already been "cursed a hundred fold".
Arcana 25 The legends also say that tommy hates the sunlight and that it strips him of some of his magical powers.
I will post more soon!
Many adventurers tell dark tales of the Tren. Reptilian underdark-dwelling creatures of madness and fury, driven insane at the hands of the Yuan-Ti.
The Tren were originally a cross between Lizardfolk and Troglodytes but they were warped and perverted by torturous experiments.
Tren Encounters
Tren travel the underdark in packs, searching for fresh meat. Yuan-Ti also keep Tren at hand and sick them on their enemies before engaging them themselves. Creatures such as Aboleths and beholders capture Tren and keep them as slaves.
Tren Lore
Dungeoneering 20- The Tren are deadly, bloodthirsty creatures spawned in the laboratories of the Yuan-Ti. They are twisted and insane but lack in intellect.
Dungeoneering 25- The tren have a stench which sickens and dizzies most decent creatures. The Tren don't give up, no matter how much damage they have taken.
Tren Thrasher
The adventurers were navigating a twisting labyrinth in the underdark when blood-chilling screams echoed through the tunnel. They drew their weapons but the Tren were already upon them, and there was nobody to hear THEM scream.
Tren Thrashers in Combat
Tren Thrashers immediately leap on the most vulnerable-looking target and begin to tear them apart. They prefer to attack in numbers and flank whenever possible. They will never flee or give up.
Tren Thrasher Level 11 Skirmisher
Medium natural humanoid (lizardfolk) XP 600
HP 131; Bloodied 66
AC 23; Fortitude 22; Reflex 22; Will 21
Speed 8, climb 5, swim 5
Initiative +12
Perception +6
Darkvision
Traits
O Tren Stench • Aura 1
Foes in the aura take a -3 penalty to healing surge value.
Smell of Blood
The Tren Thrasher gains a +3 bonus to attack rolls against bloodied targets.
Standard Actions
m Lashing Claws • At-Will
Attack: Melee 1 (1 target); +16 vs. AC
Hit: 2d10 + 6 Damage and ongoing 5 damage (save ends).
M Leaping Bite • Recharge 4 5 6
Attack: Melee 1 (1 target); +16 vs. AC
Hit: 2d8 + 5 Damage and the target is knoked prone.
Effect: The Tren Thrasher flys 5 squares before making the attack.
Triggered Actions
m Reactive Slash • At-Will useable only while bloodied.
Trigger: When hit by a melee attack.
Attack (Immediate Reaction): Melee 1 (The triggering target); +16 vs. AC
Hit: 2d10 + 4 Damage.
Effect: The Tren Thrasher can shift 1 square before or after the attack.
Str 21 (+10) Dex 21 (+10) Wis 12 (+6)
Con 18 (+9) Int 5 (+2) Cha 12 (+6)
Alignment chaotic evil*****Languages Understands deep speech.
Tren Berserker
The dwarves has fought their way through the army of snaketongue cultists and were about to attack the Yuan-Ti with their remaining ranks. Little did they know of their Tren bodyguards who fell upon them, shattering armor and bone without remorse.
Tren Berserkers in Combat
The Berserkers will immediately charge the nearest target and hack them to pieces. They will not stop attacking that target until they go down.
Tren Berserker Level 13 Brute
Medium natural humanoid (lizardfolk) XP 800
HP 165; Bloodied 83
AC 25; Fortitude 26; Reflex 25; Will 24
Speed 8, climb 5, swim 5
Initiative +9
Perception +7
Darkvision
Traits
O Tren Stench • Aura 1
Foes in the aura take a -3 penalty to healing surge value.
Smell of Blood
The Tren Berserker gains a +3 bonus to attack rolls against bloodied targets.
Standard Actions
m Stone Greatsword • At-Will
Attack: Melee 1 (1 target); +16 vs. AC
Hit: 2d8 + 9 Damage, and if the target is bloodied they are also knoked prone.
M Crippleing Strike • Recharge 5 6
Attack: Melee 1 (1 target); +16 vs. AC
Hit: 5d8 + 6 Damage, and the target is slowed (save ends).
Skills Athletics +17, Endurance +18, Intimidate +12
Str 22 (+12) Dex 16 (+9) Wis 13 (+7)
Con 25 (+13) Int 7 (+4) Cha 13 (+7)
Alignment chaotic evil*****Languages Deep Speech
Shards have a natural tendency to drift away from "normal" folk. They begin to see them as... not so much inferior, but less important. A mortal or two dying in the crossfire of a battle isn't such a big deal to most Shards, since mortals always die so easy anyway. And different nations have reacted differently to the growing number of Shards in the world, as well. Such as Duram, which has decided that once all Shards have been sacrificed to their chosen Infinite Vessel, the ancient god will be reborn, his power gathered together and restored within the vessel.
So far, the guys are having fun wiping out hordes of minions. At least, until they got to my ogre marauders; Resist 10 All with an at-will Immediate Interrupt to gain Resist 15 All against a single attack. Took them awhile to realize they'd have to work together to take one down, even if it did only have 1 HP. It's been a lot of fun coming up with ways to show the players how even minions can be dangerous. I can't wait until they meet my priests, with Immediate Interrupts to prevent damage to a minion in range, or bring a downed minion back up if it hasn't been finished off.
I'm really interested to see where this game goes. I have a lot of cool background stuff planned, and almost as much political and social content as combat stuff. Definitely looking forward to the next session this week.
I'm currently running my Shards of Divinity campaign. It's based around the concept that the minion/non-minion distinction is one that's known in-game, albeit with a more story-based explanation. Essentially, long ago, an ancient god of creation gave his life to empower certain of his chosen in battling against his nemesis. Centuries later, the descendants of these chosen, known mostly as Shards, try to find a place in the world. They are stronger, tougher, smarter and faster than normal folk, and can recover from even the deadliest of wounds. Essentially, Shards (PC and NPC alike) are the only things that aren't minions. They serve as super-powered bodyguards, assassins and highly sought-after mercenaries. Thing is, the whole world knows what Shards can do; withstand devastating injuries, wipe out armies with a snap of their fingers, and wield power greater than any mortal could ever dream of (since minions never really get anything but weak at-will pwoers). This means mixed reactions when the commoners realize that guy walking down the street is essentially a god, compared to them.
Shards have a natural tendency to drift away from "normal" folk. They begin to see them as... not so much inferior, but less important. A mortal or two dying in the crossfire of a battle isn't such a big deal to most Shards, since mortals always die so easy anyway. And different nations have reacted differently to the growing number of Shards in the world, as well. Such as Duram, which has decided that once all Shards have been sacrificed to their chosen Infinite Vessel, the ancient god will be reborn, his power gathered together and restored within the vessel.
So far, the guys are having fun wiping out hordes of minions. At least, until they got to my ogre marauders; Resist 10 All with an at-will Immediate Interrupt to gain Resist 15 All against a single attack. Took them awhile to realize they'd have to work together to take one down, even if it did only have 1 HP. It's been a lot of fun coming up with ways to show the players how even minions can be dangerous. I can't wait until they meet my priests, with Immediate Interrupts to prevent damage to a minion in range, or bring a downed minion back up if it hasn't been finished off.
I'm really interested to see where this game goes. I have a lot of cool background stuff planned, and almost as much political and social content as combat stuff. Definitely looking forward to the next session this week.
1) That sounds very cool.
2) That sounds a lot like Exalted...
:P
Out of all the creatures in the universe the spider is nearly the perfect predator.
Hiding in not only the ruins of long-gone civilizations but in the attics of houses and barns the spider waits, quietly spinning.
Giant Spider
The most generic of monstrous spiders the giant spider reminds people that spiders is more than just a house-pest.
Giant Spiders in Combat
Giant Spiders prefer to sneak up an their targets and attack with combat advantage. They use Web Blast if they can get 3 targets in the blast at a time.
Giant Spider Encounters
Many intelligent creatures such as goblins and kobolds are willing to share their lairs with giant spiders. Some crteaures even go so far as to train them as guard beasts.
Giant Spider Lore
Nature 10- This is what happens when a common house spider puts on about 130 pounds.
Giant Spider Level 1 Skirmisher
Medium natural beast (spider) XP 100
HP 29; Bloodied 15
AC 15; Fortitude 13; Reflex 14; Will 13
Speed 6, spider climb, web walk
Resist 5 poison
Initiative +6
Perception +6
Tremorsense 5
Traits
Combat Advantage
Giant Spiders deal an extra 1d6 damage with attacks to targets they have combat advantage against.
Standard Actions
m Bite (poison) • At-Will
Attack: Melle 1 (1 target); +6 vs. AC
Hit: 1d6 + 2 Damage, ongoing 5 poison damage and the target is slowed (save ends both).
C Web Blast • Encounter
Attack: Close blast 3; +4 vs. Reflex
Hit: The target is restrained (save ends).
Miss: The target is slowed (save ends).
Triggered Actions
Driven By Pain • At-Will
Trigger: The Giant Spider takes damage.
Effect (Immediate Reaction): The Giant Spider can shift 1 square.
Skills Stealth +9
Str 10 (+0) Dex 19 (+4) Wis 13 (+1)
Con 13 (+1) Int 2 (–4) Cha 8 (–1)
Alignment unaligned; Languages —
Ruin Spider
Ruin Spiders are deadly horrors native to the elemental chaos, surviving and waiting for centuries in crumbling ruins and abandoned temples.
The bite of a ruin spider not only attacks the body and nerves but the soul itself and their web is said to be spun from the very essence of oblivion.
Ruin Spiders in Combat
Ruin Spiders wait in the shadows until the right moment at whic point the blast a large group of foes with Oblivion Web and finish them off with Bite of Ruin dealing extra combat advantage damage. When their foes start to recover they teleport away and strike again when the time is right.
Ruin Spider Lore
Nature 20- Ruin Spiders are ruin-dwelling predators possessing powers including teleprtation and poison that attacks the soul.
Arcana 20- Ruin spiders have the ability to warp reality so they can teleport around. Their web can drain your life energy.
Ruin Spider Level 11 Lurker
Large elemental beast (spider) XP 600
HP 84; Bloodied 42
AC 25; Fortitude 23; Reflex 24; Will 23
Speed 8 web walk, spider climb, teleport 6
Resist 10 poison, 5 necrotic
Initiative +16
Perception +14
Tremorsense 5
Traits
Combat Advantage
Giant Spiders deal an extra 2d10 damage with attacks to targets they have combat advantage against.
Standard Actions
m Bite of Ruin (poison) • At-Will
Attack: Melle 1 (1 target); +16 vs. AC
Hit: 1d10 + 7 Damage, and ongoing 10 poison and necrotic damage (save ends).
C Oblivion Web • Encounter
Attack: Close blast 3; +14 vs. Reflex
Hit: 3d10 + 4 Necrotic damage and the target is dazed, slowed, and grants combat advantage (save ends all).
Miss: Half damage and the target is slowed (save ends).
Skills Stealth +17
Str 18 (+9) Dex 24 (+12) Wis 18 (+9)
Con 12 (+6) Int 7 (+3) Cha 13 (+6)
Alignment unaligned; Languages —
1) That sounds very cool.
2) That sounds a lot like Exalted...
:P
One of my players keeps telling me this, too. I've never actually read/played Exalted. Is it any good?
Intrigue and piracy abound as 3 large City-States compete over natural resources. Agents of the Cabal hunt for the magical items to sell on the black market. And disputes are often settled in the Arena.
This was a 3e low magic game I ran that had a lot of Firefly, Swashbuckler elements to it. Looks like I get to reboot it for 4e.
1) That sounds very cool.
2) That sounds a lot like Exalted...
:P
One of my players keeps telling me this, too. I've never actually read/played Exalted. Is it any good?
I wouldn't know. I have never played it either. I only know OF the game.
1) That sounds very cool.
2) That sounds a lot like Exalted...
:P
One of my players keeps telling me this, too. I've never actually read/played Exalted. Is it any good?
Exalted is very good. One can make comparisons to D&D (high fantasy, big damn heroes, open world) but it feels really different. The setting is brilliant, fleshed out enough to provide framework, inspiration, and most importantly theme and mood, but open enough to allow any fantasy trope or idea to fit in seamlessly. Ancient ruins, politics, minions of hell, freaky fae folk, mystery, crazy magic, kid from the backwoods, hero's journey, barbarian hordes...I could go on and on. Exalted has got it all.
The notable "hook" of Exalted is that you, the PC, are "Exalted" or chosen of the Gods or other similarly powerful entity. You are a veritable walking incarnation of a God, imbued with its power. Common folk are like ants. Regular people would fall to you like wheat to a scythe, should you wish it. But you're not the only one...
Awesome game.
World 1:
A world that is pretty much "Dragonstar 4e" (which should REALLY be made officially). The players are on a newly created world that doesn't know about the universe at large. Their reason to adventure is strange lights and streaks in the sky, which the population thinks is a sign of divine judgement/end of the world. The first adventure takes the heroes to the landing site of something that streaked out of the sky. Everyone thinks it's a comet but it is actually a crashed spaceship. The ship's Simulacrum (Cortana powered by magic basically) is barely functional and explains that something horrible will happen if the ship doesn't fly again. The heroes need to get parts to make it functional (hard to do in a world that doesn't know about space travel) so they can fly off with it.
Once they take off they learn that the "evil space empire that summon demons" is attacking their planet to get at it's supplies of aether (basically "magical phlebotinum", similar to residum but with powerful mutagenic properties). All the lights were actually the good empire holding the invasion fleet off in some kind of epic space-fight.
World 2:
Another campaign was centered on a newly created seaside "boom town" created when explorers found the remains of an ancient underwater temple. Little do they know that this temple actually sealed an ancient evil underwater god. Guess what the heroes do on accident on their first dungeon crawl...
This tone is very Lovecraft, unspeakable evils from the deep. The characters will go underwater at higher levels to venture down to the god's temple at the bottom of the deepest undersea trench and bind him again.
World 3:
Another world, not really made for RP, I was going to make a comic series about it before I remembered I can't draw. Its working title is "apocalypse princess". It starts as the fairytale classic of a princess put under a curse to sleep until her true love kisses her yadda yadda yadda...the catch is that the prince never comes. In fact the magical equivalent of nuclear apocalypse happens (of course this has to involve war golems, rule of cool).
Magic as standard D&D knows it is dead, it's effects far too twisted and capricious for any but the greatest masters to harness. Instead you get artificers and runepriests, resulting in some crazy jacked-up combination of Steampunk, Eberron, Mad Max, and this awesome Flash animation (yeah, the vision I have in my head doesn't really translate well). Add the art style of a comic book called "Battle Chasers" to taste.
The catch comes in that the princess gets woken up as a motley team of rough but good hearted bandits try to drain the magic powering the sleep spell to refuel their gear (if you must; insert humorous scene of the dashing bandit leader leaning over the princess to see what's up, then slipping and accidentally kissing her, causing her to awaken). She reflexively raises her hamd and a bolt of energy forms around it. It turns out that she is a "wellspring" or source of magic power. She's the most dangerous person on the world, to others or herself if she can't get a handle on her power. All kinds of fun adventures in apocalyptic wasteland ensue.
World 4 (Work in Progress):
My reasoning behind this one was pretty much to screw with the Tolkenian "racial stereotypes" as much as possible. The setting is up north, probably hanging around just below the polar region.
Humans are scratching out a living, just like they always do, although probably at a much lower level of technology than most D&D campaigns. Elves are savage wasteland wanderers/bandits that live even further north where other life is incapable of surviving. They have a good streak of the classic "Fair Folk" temperament put back in. Dwarfs are accomplished sailors that tie the world together. They get a massive dose of Asian influence. Orcs are actually a race of astute philosophers who set up a society reminiscent of ancient Greece. To outsiders their barbaric appearance makes them shunned, but they are the epitome of "Big doesn't equal stupid", although they can be superb warriors of the situation demands. Halflings give me a general "Jamaican islands/Voodoo" feel. Mostly dark skinned and very dangerous to cross.
We're pretty fond of Terres, of course, and you're welcome to come check it out!
On Ghyr, intelligent races are just beinging to explore and interact. Theres no divine classes, no worship of gods, not even of the godling because no one knows of him. Everything is primal, nature magic, etc. Monsters were all plants, magical beasts, dinosaur-like creatures, dire animals, etc.
The main theme of the setting was that the world was so new that there was no afterlife for souls to go to. So as the intelligent races proliferated, the souls of the dead were growing in number too - and beinging to clutter up the world and torment the living.
The adventure began simple, the party simply trying to guide their tribe to new safe hunting grounds. Things advanced as the party begin encountering undead in increasing numbers. They learn some information that leads them to find the answer to the souls and eventually (in epic levels) helping create a shadowland and a spiritland for Ghyll.
It was my plan that then the characters' names would become the pantheon of gods for Ghyll, and the next campaign would advance into divine magics.
Pcs will travel guided by the "Vacation" ipad, west from one ruined metropolis to the next. Being guided by the "vacation" ipad, the may explore oddities like the larges ball of yarn, the largest junk yard, dinasaur world. The will explore amusment parks and attractions across the country. Pcs can visit the greatest museums and cities of the US Chicago, St. Luis, New York, Atlanta, Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angels. Of course the information they get from the ipad is pre apocalyptic, everything will be different with the Gamma World twist, when the Pcs visit.
By the time the Pcs have explored the west coast they must travel to Hawaii across the Pacific Ocean. On this Journey across the Gamma World Pacific Ocean, Pcs will face other perils. Bizarre weather phenomena, colossal mutant sea serpents, pirates in powered assault armor and hunter killer robots guarding the US coast. Oh there will be a mutant Sargasso Sea, with mutant sea weed zombies and a mother brain in the center. When the party reaches Hawaii, it may not be the paradise they were looking for, of course nothing would as the "vacation" ipad shows it. The party most deal with one more epic dilemma to secure they're new home paradise.
As this will be long running campaign I can explore different post apocalyptic story ideas. I have ideas for the classic Gamma World, ancient ruins delve. Encounters with nihilistic motorcycle nomad raiders, road warriors, Napoleonic intelligent mutant animal armies, giant mutant flying squids, civil and military android and hunter killer robots out to exterminate all life, are all on the bill. I even plan to visit the zombie apocalypse theme, with an adventure using reflavored zombies and a lich from the various MMs.I also want to do a number of "X-file" like adventures. I for see a number of mysterious encounters with aliens. I can also see encounter with ghosts, a few ghost stories after a terrible apocalypse feels apropriate. I even think I will do an adventure with a demon cult with an actual demon.
Any other Gamma World home brew campaigns in the works out there. The release for the 4e "D&D" Gamma World is only months awayl. Any further ideas. I can't wait for Gamma World.
I had a similar post-apocalyptic campaign idea (although not nearly as wildly creative) that evolved into my current post-apoc setting I mentioned earlier.
Yours is way more interesting.
- The Second Millenium: The world has been dominated for the last thousand years by non-human empires. Primarily a Dwarven Empire to the North and an Elven Empire to the south. Between them, in a mountainous region, are the humans. The empires have crumbled and are trying to rebuild - and coming into conflict, with the humans caught in the middle. This campaign is loosely based on an historical period - roughly the time of Charlemagne - with the various D&D races standing in for historical peoples. The Dwarves are the Franks of the 'Holy Roman Empire,' the Elves are the Moors. The Humans are the obscure Basque people of the Pyrrines (those mountains between Spain & France). A low-magic setting with only Martial classes available initially, but Paragon Multiclassing to Arcane or Divine being a possiblity.
- The Seven Cities: Concieved as a 3e setting, but even more apropriate to the 'points of light' style. There are seven cities, once part of a vast civilization that has fallen to an ever-encroaching wilderness. The Wilds are not just ordinary wilderness, there are potent primeaval forces behind them. The theme is 'man vs nature' - not something you get a lot of these days. In this world, Druids, who commune with nature, are sinister, powerful figures, like Necromancers in more conventional settings. 'The Wilds' are lousy with 'Dire Animals,' carnivorous plants, and whatnot to the point that a journey between cities is a Paragon-level undertaking.
- Age of Sail: A campaign set on the High Seas in a world something like our own in the 18th century, but with magic, of course. The adventuring 'day' would be adjusted to represent sea voyages. You get extended rests only when you can put in at a friendly port or verdant island where you can take on water and fresh supplies. Requires some variants to handle ship combat. The idea is a skill challenge (finding the enemy and 'bringing him to action,' followed by a naval battle, culminating in a boarding action closer to a normal encounter.
- Against the Orcs: An Heroic campaign inspired by the way 4e models weak vs tough monsters - minions vs solos. The idea is a fairly typical fantasy kingdom, vaguely (at first) menaced by an orc horde at some great distance. At first, the PCs hear rumors of these terrible 'orcs,' then they encounter one, perhaps leading some bandits - and it's a low-level Solo. Later, they must face a few - mid-Heroic elites. As the invasion draws near, they begin encountering whole bands of orcs (standard monsters), finally standing up to the full force of the Horde (high-heroic minions). While the party advances from 1s through 10th, the orcs don't 'advance,' rather, their role shifts. The single orc they all battled as a solo at 1st is exactly the same sort of orc as the 10th level minions they hew their way through at the culmination of the campaign.
I've run Gamma World at conventions for years now. I've long had a campaign idea for GW, but I've never gotten an interested group together. The campaign is called 'Universe City,' which is a special place where the world of the 20th century was preserved, and, it turned out, protected from the Apocalypse by a 'duraloy sky.' Imagine an SCA event or Renfair, but for future anachronists re-creating the 20th century. Then imagine being trapped there for generations...
How important is player setting mastery to their success in your game? Do you expect players to become very knowledgeable about your setting or do you prefer to just have them stick to the genre/tone and fill in details by calling for skill checks?
That's f-ing awesome.
I had a similar post-apocalyptic campaign idea (although not nearly as wildly creative) that evolved into my current post-apoc setting I mentioned earlier.
Yours is way more interesting.
Thank You!
A question for those with well developed home brew settings:
How important is player setting mastery to their success in your game? Do you expect players to become very knowledgeable about your setting or do you prefer to just have them stick to the genre/tone and fill in details by calling for skill checks?
It honestly depends.
If I'm running a setting that has clear tropes that any player can reasonably latch on to, I don't expect them to study and cram for the pop quiz on Friday. Take my "high seas adventures in the clouds" setting. While it differs from traditional high seas/pirate settings in that there are no literal seas, the feel I'm trying to evoke is identical. Freedom, swashbuckling, buried treasure, running from "the law". Other than a basic understanding of how airships work, and the geography of a world made almost entirely of floating islands, there is not much a player would need to learn.
If the setting subverts established tropes, or if the interesting part of the setting is significantly different from business as usual, I might expect the players to do a little research into the materials I provide, so as to help ground them to the realities of the setting and so we all are on the same page.
For example, my post-apocalyptic setting has no magic in the traditional sense. There is no arcane "source", or ambient energy that arcane users access to use their spells (sorcerers draw from within, or wizards scultp spells from the Weave etc etc). "Magic" is the manipulation of nano-technology that was so pervasive in the pre-apocalypse age that it permeates the world even now. On a macro-level, it's not different than "the Weave". But it is different enough in tone that it is worth mentioning and explaining to the players.
A question for those with well developed home brew settings:
How important is player setting mastery to their success in your game? Do you expect players to become very knowledgeable about your setting or do you prefer to just have them stick to the genre/tone and fill in details by calling for skill checks?
It is not very important at all. Whether I'm using a Homebrew or a published setting (Dark Sun), I only expect my players to know things about the campaign setting that have come up in game. As a Dm I feel it is my responsability to bring the setting alive for the players at the game. table. All details of the campaign are fleshed out on the game table. I feel relying on players to read and study a 15 page Dm written player guide, an exercise in frustration. I do not rely on skill checks to fill in details about the setting. I try give all the info players need to imerse themselves and thier Pcs into the setting. I do use skill challenges, with various quality of details depending on the skill check to pace story telling.
I'v yet to start working on my next setting.
A question for those with well developed home brew settings:
How important is player setting mastery to their success in your game? Do you expect players to become very knowledgeable about your setting or do you prefer to just have them stick to the genre/tone and fill in details by calling for skill checks?
Depends on the setting at the time, and group. Most of the time I like that they discover things about the world and have work knowledges of their home regions, plus whatever their knowledge and background prescirbes. But I have had a group that wanted to know everything prior to creating their characters (which led to way to much metagaming and boredom on my part).
Kay is a cyborg (human) Seeker who dual-wields Desert Eagles. She was unwililngly transformed into a cyborg by a big bad evil company named LORETech in their SuperSoldier program. This was unknowingly part of the agreement her mother and father had signed when she had been badly injured during a performance (her family owned a circus), and the only ones with the medical technology and advanced magic to cure her was the LORETech foundation.
My friend Ivan plays a cindersoul genasi swordmage, the black sheep and youngest son of the noble Siegemaker family from the kingdom of Alonda. He's considered a black sheep partly because of the infernal taint on him, and partly because rather than getting involved in politics he pursued a PhD. in Arcane Bioengineering. His character is named Dr. Jharven Siegemaker, and during his college years he and a few friends together invented swordmagic.
Blues is a battle android created by Ligthhouse Industries, founded by Dr. Thomas Light (the whole character is based off a mix of MegaMan and MegaMan Zero, and it's awesome). He was one of a line of seven androids created by the doctor to thwart the efforts of the evil LORETech in every way possible after his death, the culmination of his life effort to foil their nefarious activities. (On paper he's a genasi avenger).
On paper, my friend Daniel's character is a half-elf Ardent wielding a Glaive. In-game he's a human jedi who wields a dual-phase lightsaber. He lived during the time of the old republic and was sent by the Jedi Council to follow the ancient trail of Darth Revan and the Jedi Exile into the Uknonwn Regions, and report back with what he had learned. While exploring his ship was attacked by a strange starfighter made of a coral-like substance, spewing globs of superheated rock instead of turbolasers and sprouting singularities that gobbled up everything he fired at it. Desperately he lured the attacker to a system that contained a black hole, and the next thing he remembers he was waking up in the middle of a dense jungle, where a squad of soldiers led by a lizard-man that breathed fire was protecting his ship from wild beasts. His character finds himself in a world where The Force is not the power that holds the universe together, but is one of many powers. And little does he know that he is still well on the trail of those whom he follows.
My players handed me these backstories.
This is what I gave them for the story of the game.
They wake up in a decrepit cryogenic facility and have to battle their way out through hoards of nefarious vermin, emerging into the wastes of a city that looks as if it has been dead for centuries. Encountering a primal spirit, they find out that the world they knew passed away over five-hundred years ago during something called the War of Power, where the adherents of the various power sources turned on one another in a vicious struggle for worldwide supremacy- reducing them all to a fraction of their old power and bringing civilization as they knew it to an end. During this struggle a mysterious being named the Unmaker stepped in and used his dark power to seal away the gods themselves, using their absence to pluck a few key threads from reality and cause it to begin to fray. The foundations of the world are falling apart, and its up to these noble adventurers from the world that was to free the gods from their imprisonment, saving the world from dying with a whimper rather than a bang.
A question for those with well developed home brew settings:
How important is player setting mastery to their success in your game? Do you expect players to become very knowledgeable about your setting or do you prefer to just have them stick to the genre/tone and fill in details by calling for skill checks?
Heh. I learned some painful lessons about that back in the day. Yes, when you're really into your homebrew setting, a player who really gets it can manipulate your enthusiasm and get away with murder. I think it's a mistake to expect all you players to get into your world. Some players are there for the story or even just the combats, not for the overarching world in which it's set. You can lead them along, as you say, by feeding them info as they need it with skill checks.
It's nice to get a player who really gets into understanding and exploring the world you've created, but you have to be careful with that, too, and not fall into the trap of letting him get in the driver's seat. You have to keep the other players involved, too, with whatever it is that interests them, even if that's not your lovingly-crafted setting.
The world of Euos has changed, is changing and will undoubtedly keep changing long into the years to come. Where once civilized nations drew boarders that gave order to the land, now are just the war-torn reaches that still bear their names. The very order of the cosmos with its myriad primal forces once held a place for each and each relished its own given place. Now, those cosmos have been unmade, leaving only crumbled firmaments and memories of better times. The world itself fights all efforts to return to that way of life. Wylderness claims any land not continually watched, and even the most defined paths are not a place to tread unarmed. The heroes of yesterday are fading into legend. Even those still able to fight find these new threats too different, too strange. The world and all her peoples look to the brave few who risk life and limb to venture forth into the Wyld, to seek out relics of the past and fight the new breed of evil. Spurred to action by the hardscrabble lives of those around them, or by the promise of power and fame, their reasons matter little as the need for them is dire. The heroes of today stand ready to face all comers, the cost may be their lives but the prize is nothing short of immortality.
A question for those with well developed home brew settings:
How important is player setting mastery to their success in your game? Do you expect players to become very knowledgeable about your setting or do you prefer to just have them stick to the genre/tone and fill in details by calling for skill checks?
the second option. My setting is based on an existing universe (that of Magic the Gathering), and this option makes sure I dont get 1-upped by players
I have a nice homebrew world I tinker with every once in a while. It revolves around 2 main countries, which are generally at odds with one another.
The first is the Kingdom of Galcia. It can be a bit vanilla, on purpose. Not that it isn't fleshed out, but I have it follow a number of tropes. it's the kind of place where orcs and goblins are Bad, dwarves and Elves are Good. Druids and other intuitive spellcasters(sorcerers, shamans, etc) are viewed with suspicion at best, after all, they are Practicing Magic Without a License, a punishable offense.
the second is the Empire of Myrantha. Myrantha is a more kitchen sink sort of place. The ruling family has traditionally been human, but tribes of orcs, goblinoids, minotaurs, and any other humanoid race around are treated as full citizens. An idea I wanted to embrace when making Myrantha is that it should be really bloody difficult to cross the whole place without finding something interesting. Primal-heavy Human/Shifter/Werewolf tribe? Got it. Tech heavy Artificer's playground? It's got two, take your pick. Ancient Elven Forest-City that serves as the country's focus for learning and magic? Well, it HAD one, until it got destroyed in the war...
The main conflict in the world is the aftermath of a recent war, after which Myrantha spent twenty years being occupied by Galcian forces, and then won their freedom in a bloody rebellion that left both countries spent. This has lead to a bit of a points of light build, as neither country has the resources needed to keep everywhere within their borders safe. I like to say it's more of a Webs of Light build, as major cities still have safe(ish) roads between them. It's got some nice stuff going on with the other planes and cosmology, too, but my wall of text is big enough for now.