I'm planning a war campaign in which the PCs are free and encouraged to be evil (or members of typically evil races and classes) as they square off against a lawful good empire. Here are the elements I have so far. Rather than beginning with a cosmology, I'm beginning by planning individual encounters and working outward.
[spoiler=Expanded Premise]The PCs have lost their homes, and their families are either refugees, prisoners, or corpses. They are victims of the Holy Kingdom of Chiaros, which is expanding into the West and driving out or exterminating â,¬Å"undesirableâ,¬Â races and cultures. The unspoken pact between the Seven Priest-Kings of Chiaros and the Western towns and tribes of â,¬Å"demihumansâ,¬Â has been broken, and the kingdom is at war with the various orc and goblinoid tribes, illegal cults, and other power groups over the fate of the Western Borderlands. However, the various power groups that oppose the kingdomâ,¬,,¢s advance are not yet united, and the tensions between the diverse enemies of the kingdom may spell doom for all who do not swear allegiance to the Priest-Kings.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Races and Classes]Every PC must provide a personal motivation for opposing the kingdom's invasion. Members of the recommended races and classes are persecuted enough by Chiaros that they shouldn't have much trouble finding one.
Good Racial Choices
Goblinoids (goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears)
Half-Fiends
Half-Orcs
Kobolds
Ogres
Orcs
Tieflings
Good Class Choices
Barbarian
Cleric of anything other than the Celestial Hebdomad
Druid
Sorcerer
Warlock
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Affiliations]
Here are some of the factions opposed to Chiaros and its nasty paladins.
I'm debating wether to use the affiliation system from PHB2. I'd appreciate if people who've used it would comment over whether it's worth it to use the system and completely flesh out each affiliation.
Wiegraf Dwarfbreaker and the Orc Tribes (tribe, racial, scale 9)
Nomadic barbarian tribes of orcs still roam the hills and plains of the Western borderlands as they have for millennia. Their numbers, as well as their fighting skill, are greater than Chiaros had expected, and at the orcs presently represent the majority of troops that oppose the invasion. Wiegraf is an enormous, brutish yet charismatic orc warlord who famously tore a dwarven general in two over his head during one of the first battles against Chiaros. He serves as the de facto ruler of the largest number of tribes, and he has his eye on recruiting the goblinoids, kobolds, and other races in the area to create a massive, unified Horde of the West under his name.
The Three Nations of Gob (government, racial, scale 8 )
The civilized goblinoid towns in the Western Borderlands â,¬' governed by a tricameral legislature of goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears â,¬' enjoyed peaceful relations and even trade with Chiaros before the invasion. Now many Gob towns have been ransacked and destroyed, and its noncombatants â,¬Å"mercifullyâ,¬Â sent to forced labor camps. Citizens flee to the remaining Gob towns, and the mayors and the gobliniod coucil are still debating over how to respond.
The Three Treasures Temple (temple, scale 4)
The Three Treasures Temple is gone. Once a large monastery located on a hill outside a minor Chiaran city, the templeâ,¬,,¢s monks not only sought to perfect their bodies and marial arts techniques, but offered martial training to commoners in the surrounding communities and any others who asked. This proactive, anti-isolationist discipline led the Priest-Kings to consider the temple a threat, and a vast army laid siege to the temple. After five days, the monastery fell and its namesake three treasures were confiscated. Most of the monks fought to the death, but a few, including those who were dispatched to other towns when the siege began, have found their way to the West to join the fight against Chiaros.
The Fraternity of Fireblood (college, scale 8 )
The Firebloods are a broad circle of creatures, mostly kobolds, that seek to protect and advance sorcerous magic in the world. Spread among nearly every kobold settlement in the West yet surprisingly sophisticated. They do not worship true dragons per se, but they hold the belief that the original, disembodied spark of dragonfire created the first life from an empty world of clay, and that creatures with the gift of magic in their blood are more fundamentally alive than more mundane creatures. They offer counsel, training, and a magic item exchange for their members.
The Golden Peach (spy ring, scale 4)
The Golden Peach is a loose collective of bards and anarchists whose existence is not taken seriously by Chiaros. They have historically been all talk and little action, but the strongest, bravest and craziest Peachers see the kingdomâ,¬,,¢s present military engagement as an opportunity for violent revolution.
[/spoiler]
I'd like suggestions on the setup, factions, and ways to preserve party unity without forcing them to be good or to adopt the played-to-death "misunderstood hero fighting racism" archetype. Although I hope that the campaign will be more about fun than moral/ethical introspection, feel free to post comments about D&D's good/evil axis and the prospect of good-aligned enemies (either genuinely good characters or Obnoxious Paladin stereotypes).
Quote from: redlawful good empire[/color]... They are victims of the Holy Kingdom of Chiaros, which is expanding into the West and driving out or exterminating â,¬Å"undesirableâ,¬Â races and cultures.
The paladins-as-foes concept sounds interesting, though I'd question the set-up as currently written. How does a culture that actively commits genocide qualify as lawful good?
I second Meepo. Also, make sure you're players are up for this sort of thing. It would appeal to some people, but not others. I would generally have serious second-thoughts about a campaign where the GM encourages evil characters.
This sounds like the kind of thing where you are better off dropping alignment (or at least the pretext of alignment being related), and create a situation of moral ambiguity.
I agree with both above, but I think they arent necessarily genocidal but in common fantasy, you are always killing orcs and ogres without much question. This is from their point of view.
@Volk: Welcome to the CBG! I like your factions ideas. Make sure for the PC's you have entry requirements, like level or skill ranks or feats etc, so not everyone can join. Maybe even by race (would make sense for your Three Nations of Gob etc). Maybe they have to pay a monthly fee of around...50gp or so to stay joined. Also, make ranks in the guild or faction that PC's can rise in to add realism, maybe getting followers as per the Leadership feat once they get high enough.
Heh, So-Keher, Volk has been around a while.
If you buy the alignment system as presented in D&D (I stopped using it, though not for this reason), a society killing off orcs because they are orcs is still comitting an evil act. If they are killing orcs because the orcs are raiding, murdering, and so forth, then it's a different story. But just attacking a sentient race is generally not an LG thing to do.
You mean to suggestion requirements for the affiliations? While race might make sense, an organization that requires skill ranks is somewhat dubious from inside the game world. At best, it should be a test, which is something along the lines of steal this pouch. And that's going to be stuff like ranks, ability scores, and plain luck, not just skill ranks, which they could never measure.
A side note: Demihuman is a dumb name. I know you didn't make it up, but "demi" would imply "sub" or "partly." It's always bugged me. Humanoids is a much better choice.
Maybe you're right, and I should give the lawful-good guys a little more credit. Here's why my idea is the way it is:
When my particular group of players tries to play it straight, they have the unfortunate habit of trying to rationalize anything they want to get away with. I want to do two things: eliminate the need to do that, and provide an example of enemies who do that, as a kind of criticism by parody. (I think the designer of Eberron was going for this a little bit in the nation of Thrane.) I also see it as a chance for the players to vent their emotions toward moralizing characters, and to try their hand against all the good-aligned monsters in the MM, for a change.
As it is, the kingdom's paladins have various ways of rationalizing the invasion. They want to protect the kingdom's innocent pioneers and settlers from the savage humanoids, they want to spread the benefits of civilization an lawful-good religion, and (although this is one didn't work at Nuremburg) they want to obey their superiors. Sure, they probably draw the line at killing noncombatants, but they can still displace them or imprison them (usually indefinitely) until they reform. They see this behavior as "hacking at the root of evil rather than the branches." After all, a baby orc is like a pet baby crocodile: they're cute at frist, but it's irresponsible to forget that they grow up.
What does everyone else think? Is this too distracting? Should I make the enemies in this campaign more unambiguously good?
Oh, and in response to Kishar, I'm using the in-game term "demihuman" for half-orcs and all races not in the PHB precisely because it sounds derogatory. In-game, the invaders think of these races as sub-human simply because they don't know any other word for them. It's easier to smash a paladin's face after he calls you a demihuman, even if he didn't think he was causing any harm by it.
I don't see a problem with the alignments as long as it works with your group. I mean, in a host of stock adventures i've seen (say, the official campaign in neverwinter nights), the good group walks into the home of the evil guys and starts slaughtering them. I see where you're going with this.
I'm not entirely clear whether you want alignment to be based on individual actions or group membership. (Paladins are good because they're paladins.) That may be something you want to sort out with players beforehand, due to alignment prerequisites and such.
Quote from: Phoenix KnightHeh, So-Keher, Volk has been around a while.
[/blockquote]
QuoteYou mean to suggestion requirements for the affiliations? While race might make sense, an organization that requires skill ranks is somewhat dubious from inside the game world. At best, it should be a test, which is something along the lines of steal this pouch. And that's going to be stuff like ranks, ability scores, and plain luck, not just skill ranks, which they could never measure.
It would never be anything serious, just stuff to make sure the character has something to do with the guild. For example, if any of them deal with a lot of history, make a requirement of 1 rank in Knowledge (history). Nothing like 8 ranks or anything. That's a prestige class.
I looove playing "evil," where evil is simply not having to rationalize my actions with the greater good in mind. Mind you, I still rationalize. I just rationalize on the basis of fun things... like paranoia.
Quote from: Bill VolkOh, and in response to Kishar, I'm using the in-game term "demihuman" for half-orcs and all races not in the PHB precisely because it sounds derogatory. In-game, the invaders think of these races as sub-human simply because they don't know any other word for them. It's easier to smash a paladin's face after he calls you a demihuman, even if he didn't think he was causing any harm by it.
That actually kind of makes sense. I can see your point.
Did you refer to me by my
setting name? I suppose it is good to be associated with your work...
Quote from: beejazzI looove playing "evil," where evil is simply not having to rationalize my actions with the greater good in mind...
Isn't that just neutral? (Or chaotic, if your actions are very strange?)
Oops, I guess I did refer to you by your setting name. Sorry, Phoenix Knight. Not quite sure how that happened...
Anyway, I've thought up requirements for membership that make sense in-game. I Agree with Phoenix Knight that the requisites for promotion suggested in PHB2 might strain the players' suspension of disbelief, so I'll handle things more freeform and according to each affiliation's structure.
[spoiler=Wiegraf's tribes]Wiegraf Dwarfbreaker and the Orc Tribes (tribe, racial, scale 9)
Nomadic barbarian tribes of orcs still roam the hills and plains of the Western borderlands as they have for millennia. Their numbers, as well as their fighting skill, are greater than Chiaros had expected, and at the orcs presently represent the majority of troops that oppose the invasion. Wiegraf is an enormous, brutish yet charismatic orc warlord who famously tore a dwarven general in two over his head during one of the first battles against Chiaros. He serves as the de facto ruler of the largest number of tribes, and he has his eye on recruiting the goblinoids, kobolds, and other races in the area to create a massive, unified Horde of the West under his name.
Requisite: If not born into a tribe, must defeat a tribeâ,¬,,¢s champion in single combat (not to the death, until one fighter surrenders or is unable to continue)
Positive Factors
Being a barbarian, druid or ranger
Successfully completing missions for Wiegraf and his lesser chieftains
Participating in raids on human settlements
Providing information that leads to a successful raid
Getting another orc tribe to join Wiegraf's alliance
Taking a Holy Avenger as a trophy after killing its owner
Negative Factors
Not being an orc
Being a cleric, wizard or paladin
Failing a mission
Refusing a challenge from another orc
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Three Nations of Gob]The Three Nations of Gob (government, racial, scale 8 )
The civilized goblinoid towns in the Western Borderlands â,¬' governed by a tricameral legislature of goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears â,¬' enjoyed peaceful relations and even trade with Chiaros before the invasion. Now many Gob towns have been ransacked and destroyed, and its noncombatants â,¬Å"mercifullyâ,¬Â sent to forced labor camps. Citizens flee to the remaining Gob towns, and the mayors and the goblinoid council are still debating how to respond.
Requisite: If not a goblinoid, must pay a tribute of 500 gold.
Positive Factors
Being a goblin, hobgoblin, or bugbear
Being a rogue
Owning a profitable business
Following orders from the Gob council and the mayors of Gob towns
Saving a Gob town from destruction
Offering bribes in exchange for promotion
Negative Factors
Being human
Being known to worship the Celestial Hebdomad
Failing a mission
Attacking a Gob citizen
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Three Treasures Temple]The Three Treasures Temple (temple, scale 4)
The Three Treasures Temple is gone. Once a large monastery located on a hill outside a minor Chiaran city, the templeâ,¬,,¢s monks not only sought to perfect their bodies and marial arts techniques, but offered martial training to commoners in the surrounding communities and any others who asked. This proactive, anti-isolationist discipline led the Priest-Kings to consider the temple a threat, and a vast army laid siege to the temple. After five days, the monastery fell and its namesake three treasures were confiscated. Most of the monks fought to the death, but a few, including those who were dispatched to other towns when the siege began, have found their way to the West to join the fight against Chiaros.
Requisite: To be fit for initial training, must have a Constitution of at least 15 (or at least 7, if the character has the Endurance feat)
Positive Factors
Being a monk
Completing a mission for the original Temple Survivors
Training any group of noncombatants in self-defense (effectively making them first-level Warriors)
Providing food and shelter to at least five monks in the Western Borderlands
Recovering one of the Three Treasures
Negative Factors
Being a wizard, sorceror, bard, or arcivist
Having a history of service in Chiaros' army
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Firebloods]The Fraternity of Fireblood (college, scale 8 )
The Firebloods are a broad circle of creatures, mostly kobolds, that seek to protect and advance sorcerous magic in the world. Spread among nearly every kobold settlement in the West yet surprisingly sophisticated. They do not worship true dragons per se, but they hold the belief that the original, disembodied spark of dragonfire created the first life from an empty world of clay, and that creatures with the gift of magic in their blood are more fundamentally alive than more mundane creatures.
Requisite: If not a sorcerer or a creature with spell-like abilities, must donated a desired magic item to the fraternityâ,¬,,¢s vault.
Positive Factors
Being a kobold or half-dragon
Being a sorceror or warlock
Completing a mission or serving as a researcher or vault guard
Regularly donating magic items
Saving the life of a young sorceror or another creature with magical potential
Negative Factors
Being a divine spellcaster
Being rude to a kobold
Stealing from the organization
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Golden Peach]The Golden Peach (spy ring, scale 4)
The Golden Peach is a loose collective of bards and anarchists whose existence is not taken seriously by Chiaros. They have historically been all talk and little action, but the strongest, bravest and craziest Peachers see the kingdomâ,¬,,¢s present military engagement as an opportunity for violent revolution.
Requisite: Must succeed at a DC 16 Perform check before an audience of Peachers. Also, Peachers conduct a background check on every prospective applicant with a Gather Information check at +15. Applicants with known ties to the Chiaran government or major merchant guilds are rejected.
Positive Factors
Being a bard or swashbuckler
Being famous
Escaping from a Chiaros prison
Donating at least 10,000 gold to the ever-strapped-for-cash organization
Negative Factors
Being a divine spellcaster
Displaying a lawful alignment
Revealing any of the Peach's secrets, no matter how trivial
Expressing displeasure at any senior Peacher's performance
[/spoiler]
By positive and negative factors, do mean towards the likelihood of being accepted by the guild?
I make another entry for each that specifies benefits of membership.
I'm sorry, I would never join a guild called the Golden Peach. A man has to have some dignity. I love the name "Wiegraf and the Dwarfbreakers," though.
The factors are the factors that influence promotion. Characters just have to satisfy the first requirement to get in. I'm still working out the benefits of membership at various levels, and I'll put them up soon.
And now that I think of it, "Wiegraf and the Dwarfbreakers" would also make a good band name.
Here is the expanded faction list, which outlines the structure and benefits of each affiliation. Any comments are appreciated, as are suggestions for more factions that would be good for the same campaign!
Note: I know that some of these factions are weaker than others. It's intentional, but do you think it's too annoying?
[spoiler=Wiegraf's tribes]Wiegraf Dwarfbreaker and the Orc Tribes (tribe, racial, scale 9)
Nomadic barbarian tribes of orcs still roam the hills and plains of the Western borderlands as they have for millennia. Their numbers, as well as their fighting skill, are greater than Chiaros had expected, and at the orcs presently represent the majority of troops that oppose the invasion. Wiegraf is an enormous, brutish yet charismatic orc warlord who famously tore a dwarven general in two over his head during one of the first battles against Chiaros. He serves as the de facto ruler of the largest number of tribes, and he has his eye on recruiting the goblinoids, kobolds, and other races in the area to create a massive, unified Horde of the West under his name.
Requisite: If not born into a tribe, must defeat a tribeâ,¬,,¢s champion in single combat (not to the death, until one fighter surrenders or is unable to continue)
Traveler â,¬' Common members of Wiegrafâ,¬,,¢s tribes are called travelers, and they have the right to a share of the food and other basic supplies that the orcs hunt and pillage. They generally keep whatever gold they take when they participate in raids, but their chieftain has the right to claim anything else they find.
Warrior â,¬' Tribe members who have proven themselves as warriors are provided with the best fighting equipment that the tribe can spare, typically masterwork items. Because it is ignoble to scrounge for gold when a raid is going on, warriors automatically receive a cut of the tribeâ,¬,,¢s gold after each raid
Totemswinger â,¬' Each tribe has between one and four totems, which are always magic weapons, cloaks, or other pieces of combat equipment. Each totem is associated with a different animal or monster, and it typically bears that creatureâ,¬,,¢s likeness or has features of that creature. Each totem belongs to a different honored warrior, who chooses a successor to bear the totem after his death An orc does not have to be a totemswinger to become a champion or chieftain â,¬' some warriors are promoted to these positions directly.
Champion â,¬' Champions are always veterans of many raids, and champions bear the responsibility of challenging newcomers to see if they are worthy to join the tribe. If a champion is deemed by his chieftain to be too old or otherwise unfit to fight, he is executed and replaced.
Chieftain â,¬' Each tribe has one chieftain, who commands all other members of the tribe and has the final say in all major decisions made within the tribe. A chieftain gets the first choice of the tribeâ,¬,,¢s weapons and other spoils (though he may not take a totem from its totemswinger.) There are no formal rules of succession for chieftains: sometime a chieftainâ,¬,,¢s son will quietly take his place, and sometimes a tribe-wide test of strength will break out when a chieftain dies.
High Dwarfbreaker â,¬' Wiegraf Dwarfbreaker is the chieftain of the Dwarfbreaker tribe and the commander of all other chieftains in the horde he has gathered. The chieftains of all the other tribes respect him and follow his war-related orders, but he requires no vow of obedience from them. Wiegraf will remain until someone deposes him.
Positive Factors
Being a barbarian, druid or ranger
Successfully completing missions for Wiegraf and his lesser chieftains
Participating in raids on human settlements
Providing information that leads to a successful raid
Getting another orc tribe to join Wiegraf's alliance
Taking a Holy Avenger as a trophy after killing its owner
Negative Factors
Not being an orc
Being a cleric, wizard or paladin
Failing a mission
Refusing a challenge from another orc
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Three Nations of Gob]The Three Nations of Gob (government, racial, scale 8 )
The civilized goblinoid towns in the Western Borderlands â,¬' governed by a tricameral legislature of goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears â,¬' enjoyed peaceful relations and even trade with Chiaros before the invasion. Now many Gob towns have been ransacked and destroyed, and its noncombatants â,¬Å"mercifullyâ,¬Â sent to forced labor camps. Citizens flee to the remaining Gob towns, and the mayors and the goblinoid council are still debating how to respond.
Requisite: If not a goblinoid, must pay a tribute of 500 gold.
Citizen â,¬' Citizens of the Three Nations of Gob have the right to permanently live in Gob towns. In times of war they will be defended and even armed with mundane weapons by the town militia. They can make use of their townâ,¬,,¢s courts and justice system. In exchange, they pay monthly taxes (which vary from town to town, but are sometimes as high as 100GP. Tax evasion is a cherished and time-honored art among goblinoids.)
Militia Captain â,¬' Each town has several militia captains, who are charged with defending their town during times of crisis. Only a few militia captains are on duty at any given time, keeping watch to raise the alarm for the others. They receive a salary of 1000 GP per month as long as they remain in town. Captains can leave their town, and may be forced to do so if the Gob Council presses them into military service, but if they leave on their own business without permission, they are demoted to â,¬Å"honorary captain.â,¬Â
Town Alderman â,¬' Each Gob town has one alderman for each 1,000 citizens. They advise their mayor and vote on matters with which the mayor canâ,¬,,¢t be bothered. In addition to a salary of 1,500 GP per month, most aldermen regularly receive several bribes.
Mayor â,¬' Each Gob town has a mayor, who by law can only be a goblin, hobgoblin or bugbear. The Mayor is elected by his townâ,¬,,¢s citizens (though rigged elections are the rule rather than the exception,) and he appoints his aldermen. A mayor gets a scepter (a +3 merciful goblinoid bane sap) as a symbol of his station. Mayors have no duties that they canâ,¬,,¢t get out of, and they often go out on adventures and military campaigns. Mayors receive a salary of as much as they dare to collect from their citizens in taxes (typically 5,000 GP a month,) and they receive even bigger bribes than aldermen do.
Councilor of Gob â,¬' There are three councilors of Gob, one for each of the goblinoid races. The Council commands the armies of the Three Nations of Gob and has exclusive access to the Gobbish Regalia, three sets of powerful magic weapons and armor (one set correctly fitted for each race) that have been passed down for centuries. When a councilor dies, a new one of the appropriate race is elected by all the mayors who care to vote on the matter. The Council can override the authority of any mayor, and they get the biggest bribes of all, such that they havenâ,¬,,¢t ever bothered with giving themselves salaries.
Positive Factors
Being a goblin, hobgoblin, or bugbear
Being a rogue
Owning a profitable business
Following orders from the Gob council and the mayors of Gob towns
Saving a Gob town from destruction
Offering bribes in exchange for promotion
Negative Factors
Being human
Being known to worship the Celestial Hebdomad
Failing a mission
Attacking a Gob citizen
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Three Treasures Temple]The Three Treasures Temple (temple, scale 4)
The Three Treasures Temple is gone. Once a large monastery located on a hill outside a minor Chiaran city, the templeâ,¬,,¢s monks not only sought to perfect their bodies and marial arts techniques, but offered martial training to commoners in the surrounding communities and any others who asked. This proactive, anti-isolationist discipline led the Priest-Kings to consider the temple a threat, and a vast army laid siege to the temple. After five days, the monastery fell and its namesake three treasures were confiscated. Most of the monks fought to the death, but a few, including those who were dispatched to other towns when the siege began, have found their way to the West to join the fight against Chiaros.
Requisite: To be fit for initial training, must have a Constitution of at least 15 (or at least 7, if the character has the Endurance feat)
Initiate â,¬' as long as they follow their brothersâ,¬,,¢ daily routines of prayers and chores, initiates receive thorough training in the martial arts and as much room and board as their brothers can offer. If they arenâ,¬,,¢t monks, initiates gain proficiency with the special monk weapons (the kama, nunchaku, sai, siangham, and shuriken) after a week of training. Initiates are often sent on quests into the outside world as part of their training.
Brother â,¬' After completing the templeâ,¬,,¢s grueling trials and training sequences, initiates are accepted fully as brothers. From enduring their training as initiates, brothers gain a +2 inherent bonus to their Constitution.
Master â,¬' Masters teach new initiates, lead the monksâ,¬,,¢ defense in times of conflict, and seek to perfect their fighting styles. A master can research new feats in the same way that a wizard can research new spells.
Abbot â,¬' In theory, the Abbot determines the best path of martial and spiritual training for all the monks under him. The abbot is also supposed to protect the secret of the Three Treasures (whose nature was unknown to all except the abbot and a few masters until they were stolen.) The one abbot of the Three Treasures Temple was killed in the raid, and the position remains empty.
Positive Factors
Being a monk
Completing a mission for the original Temple Survivors
Training any group of noncombatants in self-defense (effectively making them first-level Warriors)
Providing food and shelter to at least five monks in the Western Borderlands
Recovering one of the Three Treasures
Negative Factors
Being a wizard, sorceror, bard, or arcivist
Having a history of service in Chiaros' army
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Firebloods]The Fraternity of Fireblood (college, scale 8 )
The Firebloods are a broad circle of creatures, mostly kobolds, that seek to protect and advance sorcerous magic in the world. Spread among nearly every kobold settlement in the West yet surprisingly sophisticated. They do not worship true dragons per se, but they hold the belief that the original, disembodied spark of dragonfire created the first life from an empty world of clay, and that creatures with the gift of magic in their blood are more fundamentally alive than more mundane creatures.
Requisite: If not a sorcerer or a creature with spell-like abilities, must donated a desired magic item to the fraternityâ,¬,,¢s vault.
Fireblood â,¬' Recognized members of the Firebloods have access to the fraternityâ,¬,,¢s network of magic item shops, and they are taught the locations and secret signs to get into local Fireblood safe-houses. Warlocks and arcane spellcasters might receive advice and training from a higher-level kobold mentor.
Vault-keeper â,¬' The Firebloodsâ,¬,,¢ magic item vaults are located deep beneath larger kobold towns and guarded by experienced Firebloods who have proven themselves trustworthy. In exchange for serving shifts, they receive a 20% discount when purchasing magic items from the Firebloods.
Magus â,¬' After proving their worth and significantly advancing the Firebloodsâ,¬,,¢ agenda, some firebloods are chosen by the Great Magi to learn the secrets of the magus. Upon attaining the rank of magus, a character may exchange up to three class levels to acquire a template or to change her race to a planetouched race, as long as her effective character level remains the same. For example, a 10th-level kobold sorcerer may become an 8th-level fiendish kobold sorcerer or a 9th-level tiefling sorcerer (since, in both cases, her ECL remains 10.) This is a one-time change and cannot be reversed or repeated (unless the character attains the rank of Great Magus.) A magus may not become an undead or construct in this way.
Great Magus â,¬' The Great Magi are the closest thing to rulers in the Fraternity of Fireblood. There is no formal chain of command among great magi, so each one offers advice and counsel to the Firebloods who happen to be nearby. They are usually recognizable by their outlandish appearances and their unmatched control over their bodiesâ,¬,,¢ own magical potential. A great magus may freely add and remove templates and change between her original race and any planetouched race, as long as her ECL remains the same. For example, a 16th level fiendish human sorcerer may become a 14th level half-fiend human sorcerer, a 14th level half-dragon tiefling sorcerer, or an 18th-level human sorcerer. Each set of changes requires a ritual that requires three consecutive days of doing nothing but eating, sleeping, and focusing on the ritual. A great magus may not become an undead or construct in this way, and the character cannot add levels in a class that she does not already have levels in.
Positive Factors
Being a kobold or half-dragon
Being a sorceror or warlock
Completing a mission or serving as a researcher or vault guard
Regularly donating magic items
Saving the life of a young sorceror or another creature with magical potential
Negative Factors
Being a divine spellcaster
Being rude to a kobold
Stealing from the organization
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Golden Peach]The Golden Peach (spy ring, scale 4)
The Golden Peach is a loose collective of bards and anarchists whose existence is not taken seriously by Chiaros. They have historically been all talk and little action, but the strongest, bravest and craziest Peachers see the kingdomâ,¬,,¢s present military engagement as an opportunity for violent revolution.
Requisite: Must succeed at a DC 16 Perform check before an audience of Peachers. Also, Peachers conduct a background check on every prospective applicant with a Gather Information check at +15. Applicants with known ties to the Chiaran government or major merchant guilds are rejected.
The Golden Peach claims to be a perfect anarchist collective, with no executive power or chain of command. In practice, this means that the most daring and powerful social presences get to make the decisions, on the rare occasions when decisions are actually made. DMs can adjudicate this by giving every Peacher a reputation score that begins at 0 and increases with every successful mission or performance (from 1 for a minor success to 5 for a feat that significantly harms the kingdom or advances the cause of chaos.) Whenever two Peachers disagree over a course of action, let them make opposed Intimidate checks modified by their reputation scores. The winner gets his way and the loser backs down.
Influential Peachers can direct performances and draft other Peachers to perform in them, determine how to spend the factionâ,¬,,¢s meager budget, send other Peachers on spy missions, and wear the factionâ,¬,,¢s special Golden Peach Amulets, which provide a constant Magic Circle Against Law effect.
Positive Factors
Being a bard or swashbuckler
Being famous
Escaping from a Chiaros prison
Donating at least 10,000 gold to the ever-strapped-for-cash organization
Negative Factors
Being a divine spellcaster
Displaying a lawful alignment
Revealing any of the Peach's secrets, no matter how trivial
Expressing displeasure at any senior Peacher's performance
[/spoiler]
I've begun to make some magic items important to the setting. Let me know what you think! First up is the Gobbish Regalia:
[spoiler=The goblin gear]
Gobmongerâ,¬,,¢s Garb of Glory
Gobmongerâ,¬,,¢s Toolbox â,¬' This is a small box of magical thievesâ,¬,,¢ tools that provide a +2 circumstance bonus and a +4 enhancement bonus (for a total of +6) on Open Lock and Disable Device checks. The owner of the toolbox can always take 10 on Open Lock and Disable Device checks. Two of the lockpicks in the toolbox are long and sharp enough to be used as weapons. For the owner of the toolbox only, they are Small +4 keen wounding daggers.
Gobmongerâ,¬,,¢s Mask â,¬' This piece of headgear grants the wearer a +4 dodge bonus to AC against attacks of opportunity from larger creatures, but only when worn by a goblin. This bonus stacks with the bonus from the Mobility feat and with all other dodge bonuses as normal. It also grants a goblin a +5 enhancement bonus to Hide checks.
Gobmongerâ,¬,,¢s Mantle of Glory â,¬' This Cloak of Charisma +4 becomes a Cloak of Charisma +6 when worn by a goblin. Goblinoids suffer a -4 morale penalty to hit the wearer with melee attacks.
Gobmongerâ,¬,,¢s Bracers â,¬' These bracers can only fit a Small creature. The wearerâ,¬,,¢s weapons deal damage as though they were one size larger, and the wearer gains a +4 enhancement bonus to all grapple checks.
Set bonus: A character who equips the entire set (including at least one of the daggers from Gobmongerâ,¬,,¢s Toolbox) is immune to critical hits from larger creatures and cannot be attacked by a worg (not even a worg under a magical effect like Confusion or Dominate Monster.)
[/spoiler]
[spoiler= The hobgoblin gear]
Gerrick Hobgobâ,¬,,¢s Battlegear
Gerrickâ,¬,,¢s Bastard Sword â,¬' Damage from this +4 adamantine bastard sword is treated as the same alignment as the wielder (good, evil, lawful, and/or chaotic) for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction. For example, in the hand of a lawful evil wielder, it would be treated as both lawful and evil. Hobgoblins who wield it gain the benefit of Weapon Proficiency and Weapon Focus with it (though this does not help them meet the prerequisites for other feats)
Gerrickâ,¬,,¢s Full Plate â,¬' This +3 full plate grants the wearer immunity to Strength damage and Strength drain. Hobgoblins may sleep in it without becoming fatigued.
Gerrickâ,¬,,¢s Shield â,¬' This +3 bashing spiked heavy steel shield provides a +3 enhancement bonus to shield bash attack and damage rolls. The base damage of shield bashes made with it is 1d10 (not including the enhancement bonus to damage.) Hobgoblins who wield it gain the benefit of the Two-Weapon Fighting and Improved Shield Bash feats.
Gerrickâ,¬,,¢s War-Mask â,¬' When worn by a hobgoblin, the teeth of this jointed metal helmet can perform a bite attack as a secondary natural weapon (-5 to hit, or -2 if the wearer has the Multiattack feat, and add only half the wearerâ,¬,,¢s Strength bonus to damage.) Damage from the bite is the same as from a +4 vicious cold iron dagger.
Set bonus: A character who equips the entire set gains a permanent Freedom of Movement effect, as the spell, and they ignore all armor check penalties to Move Silently checks.
[/spoiler]
[spoiler= The bugbear gear]
Grargâ,¬,,¢s Stuff
Grargâ,¬,,¢s Morningstar â,¬' This +4 cold iron shock morningstar can ignore the uncanny dodge and improved uncanny doge abilities of enemies. Enemies lose their Dex bonus to AC against the wielder when flat-footed or blinded as though they did not have uncanny dodge. The wielder may sneak attack enemies as though they did not have uncanny dodge or improved uncanny dodge, and enemies that the wielder threatens may be flanked (by anyone) as though they did not have improved uncanny dodge.
Grargâ,¬,,¢s Shirt â,¬' This +2 chain shirt of improved silent moves also grants the wearer DR 5/piercing. Bugbears do not apply its armor check penalty to Hide and Move Silently checks, and bugbears can don or remove it as a standard action.
Grargâ,¬,,¢s Mask â,¬' When worn by a bugbear, this piece of headgear increases the range of the wearerâ,¬,,¢s scent ability by ten times and gives the wearer a +10 racial bonus to Wisdom checks to track creatures by scent. The wearer can determine the direction of a scent as a swift action instead of a move action.
Grargâ,¬,,¢s Gauntlets â,¬' These Gloves of Dexterity +6 also provide a +2 enhancement bonus to Strength when worn by a bugbear.
Set bonus: A character who equips the entire set gains a +2 profane bonus to Charisma and a +8 racial bonus on Intimidate checks. If he already has a sneak attack ability, his sneak attack damage is increased by 2d6.
[/spoiler]
Interesting goblin items. A few comments.
Gobmonger's Toolbox: A pair +4 keen wounding daggers? That is wickedly nasty. Why the specification on owner? How do they know? Isn't whoever has captured them most recently the owner?
While I see you trying to relate the +4 enhancement on the weapon to the skill bonus, nothing normally gives an enhancement bonus to skill check that I know of. And circumstance bonuses from different circumstances usually stack. So differentiating between the two seems kind of needlessly complicated.
The others in the set seem well balance.
Set bonus:
This is an uneven bonus. Skirmish advances more slowly than sneak attack. Moreover, it is ambiguous as to whether a character with neither ability gains any bonus. Also, what about a scout/rogue with both abilities? Do they get both bonuses? Do they get to choose? How about sudden strike, since you're including CAdv?
Quote from: Bill VolkSet bonus: A character who equips the entire set (including at least one of the daggers from Gobmongerâ,¬,,¢s Toolbox)
bag of holding[/i]? Dragged behind a character on a piece of rope? What if you're touching an item but neither wearing nor carrying it? What if your familiar is touching it? What if you polymorph into a purple worm and swallow it? What if you polymorph into a purple worm and it merges with your body?
The specification on ownership only means that the daggers lose their properties as weapons if they're separated from the box. The "owner" is simply whoever's carrying the box, so you can't use one dagger and give the other to your buddy.
And I'm thinking of changing the set bonus for Gobmonger's Regalia of Glory, anyway. Once I think of a better substitute for it, I'll also change the set bonus for Grarg's Stuff so that the wearer's racial hit dice stack with his rogue and/or assassin levels for the purpose of determining sneak attack damage, if he already has a sneak attack ability. After all, it's not easy being a bugbear with three racial hit dice :(
Edit to come soon!
That does help bugbears, but not regular goblins. Should it provide a bigger bonus to bugbears than goblins?
See the edit. It's for the bugbear gear now, not the goblin gear. I replaced the goblin set bonus with something a little less powerful. The goblin does get those swell daggers, after all.
Also, I simplified it to +2d6 sneak attack damage if the wearer can already sneak attack. That way a bugbear rogue's sneak attack will be the same as a human rogue of the same ECL.
Epic Meepo raises some good questions. I'd rule that if it's taking up one of your equipment slots, its equipped (with the exception of the toolbox, in which case you just have to be wielding one of the daggers, and you can carry the box itself anywhere, even in a bag of holding.) A sheathed weapon counts until the character draws a different weapon.
Coming soon: some orc totems! These should cause fewer rules headaches.
I really like what I'm seeing so far. I think you have some good stuff going here, and a lot of really good potential for in-depth gaming.
However, I'm a big believer that, more than anything else, what defines a setting is it's villians, so I'd love to hear more about the paladin orders, the various members of the Seven Priest-Kings, etc.
The rules stuff I'm going to gloss over for now, mainly because I've been out of it so long, I'm rusty on the rules. A quick glance says they look ok. Have you thought about treworking any of the goblinoid races to have no LA? Or pumping up some of the ones that do exist with more racial abilities to make them more interesting? (Compare what any of the standard PHB races get to what your average goblin gets - the PC races have tons of random abilities that enhance racial flavor, which is especially important in a world like yours, where race is such a big part of everything.)
Keep it coming.
That's a good idea. Here's some material on villains! Also, some background information on how good and evil will work in the campaign.
[spoiler=How alignment works]
PCs in this campaign need only choose the ethical component of their alignment (lawful, chaotic, or neutral,) not the moral component (good, evil, or neutral.) This means that druids must choose to be neutral with respect to law and chaos. Good and evil, as they work in regards to effects like detect evil and holy smite, relate only to the presence of positive and negative energy. The following creatures always register as evil:
Ousiders with the evil subtype, undead, and any creatures animated or powered by negative energy.
Creatures that can rebuke undead
Warlocks
Clerics with the Death and/or Destruction domains
Tieflings, half-fiends, fiendish creatures, hellborn, and any creatures with a similar heritage.
Intelligent unholy weapons
The following creatures always register as good. However, if a creature would register as both good and evil, it only registers as evil (and a particularly blasphemous brand of evil, at that.)
Outsiders with the good subtype, deathless, and any creatures animated or powered by an unusually strong concentration of positive energy (more than is present in a normal living creature.)
Creatures that can turn undead
Paladins (those not of a high enough level to turn undead, or who for whatever other reason donâ,¬,,¢t have the turn undead ability, still register as good)
The seven Priest-Kings
Aasimar, half-celestials, creatures with the celestial template, and any creatures with a similar heritage.
Intelligent holy weapons
All other creatures, even human saints and/or serial killers, register as neutral with respect to good and evil. In matters relating to normal living creatures, paladins must use their intuition rather than their magic to determine what is evil; they canâ,¬,,¢t rely on detect evil, or smite evil to see who gets smitten.
Yes, this also means that paladins never have to worry about losing their paladin abilities for doing evil acts (though they may still lose their paladin abilities if they become nonlawful.) Itâ,¬,,¢s a fair trade considering that their smite evil ability now works much less often.
Law and chaos work as normal.
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Seven Priest-Kings of Chiaros]
The Kingdom of Chiaros is actually an oligarchy; the seven positions of executive power are passed down within Chiarosâ,¬,,¢ seven high noble families. Each family contains humans and aasimar (with the exception of House Bosch, which contains dwarves and celestial dwarves.) Each priest-king has the divine privilege to channel an aspect of a different archangel in the Celestial Hebdomad. Decrees made by Priest-Kings while they are channeling are considered infallible by Chiaran law, and any attempt to refute or disobey them is punishable by death.
(Right now, Iâ,¬,,¢m using the Celestial Hebdomad as itâ,¬,,¢s described in the Book of Exalted Deeds. I canâ,¬,,¢t assume that everyone here has access to it, but Iâ,¬,,¢m using it in an ass-backwards fashion for villainous material. Each Priest-King has the spell-like ability to gain the benefits of channeling his respective celestial paragon, as listed on page 122 of the Book of Exalted Deeds. However, unlike the Channel Celestial Paragon spell, none of the priest-kingâ,¬,,¢s allies are affected, there is no GP or XP cost, and the ability only lasts 3 rounds. The ability is usable every once per span of time that would be required to develop the spell, as listed on page 123 of the Book of Exalted Deeds. Using this ability is a full-round action that always provokes attacks of opportunity. It counts as a 9th level spell effect with a caster level of 20.)
King Ignatius Hohengard â,¬' This human is the channeler of Zaphkiel and is rumored to be the most powerful of the priest-kings. He currently remains in the Chiaran capitol and makes large-scale decisions while the other priest-kings command their own armies. For reasons unknown, he usually grants audience only to those of noble or celestial blood, never letting commoners so much as look at him. When he needs to appear in public, he wears a thick, flowing white robe and a featureless white mask that covers his entire head. It is unknown what class levels he has; he might be a paladin, a favored soul, a sorcerer/celestial mystic, or possibly only an aristocrat.
King Holorak Bosch â,¬' king Holorak is a celestial dwarf cleric and the channeler of Sealtiel. His domains are Protection and War. He leads his armies in the invasion eagerly and personally. In particular, he has sworn to scour the Western borderlandsâ,¬,,¢ underground cave networks of all impurity.
King Hagen Hammerschlag â,¬' This vicious aasimar paladin is the channeler of Raziel. It is rumored that the invasion of the Western borderlands was his idea, and this would certainly fit his character. A hot-headed warrior with unnaturally pale skin and hair like a crown of fire, his goal is nothing less than the extinction of all nongood religions and the complete subjugation of all orcs, goblinoids, and other â,¬Å"demihumans.â,¬Â He might or might not harbor dreams of genocide, but he strongly believes that the â,¬Å"depravedâ,¬Â Western humanoids have forfeited their right to live in freedom, and he has no qualms about cutting down anyone who fights back against his campaign of expansion.
Queen Drusilla Sophia â,¬' This aasimar monk/Initiate of Pistis Sophia claims to be a direct descendant of Pistis Sophia, whom she channels. It was her decision to destroy the Three Treasures Temple, and the Three Treasures are now in the hands of her favored generals, for â,¬Å"safekeeping.â,¬Â As her army presses westward, she is determined to seek out and kill the remaining survivors of the Three Treasures Temple.
King Rirech Riefenstahl â,¬' This venerable human diviner channels Erathaol. He has reigned as Priest-King for a long time, second only to King Ignatius. He is perhaps the most bizarre in appearance among the Priest-Kings: his head is turned backward on his neck, reportedly due to a botched wish spell. Despite his age and his anatomical abnormality, he remains a quick-witted and fierce mage in battle. He commands an army with a high concentration of spellcasters that is charged with the elimination of undead and nongood cults in the Southern marshes.
King Iago Curran â,¬' This human rogue/slayer of Domiel channels the power of Domiel. He had an impressive adventuring career in the Western Borderlands before he inherited the throne, and of the seven Priest-Kings he is the one who behaves the least â,¬Å"kingly.â,¬Â Even now, he relishes taking the fight to the enemy personally, taking the front lines by day and acting as a commando by night. For reasons he refuses to reveal, he despises orcs above all else, and his favorite pastime is sneaking into an orcish encampment and gruesomely killing the chieftain.
Queen Jessa Ambereyes â,¬' This young assimar paladin, who channels Barachiel, ascended to the throne only weeks before the war began. It is rumored that Jonas Ambereyes, her father and predecessor, hesitated to approve of the invasion and was killed by King Iago, King Hagen, or one of their agents. In any case, Jessa leads a small army of scouts and shock troops to gather intelligence and sometimes to soften targets for later assault at the hands of her fellow Priest-Kings. She is both fearless and inexperienced, and cynics suspect that she will soon join her father in Celestia.
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Lower-level villains]
Captain Eustace the White â,¬' This human paladin commands one of the outermost divisions of Chiaran soldiers that are currently pressing westward, laying waste to smaller orc settlements and Gob towns as they go. He is a proud member of the order of the Burning Lambs, an order of paladins devoted to Raziel, and Eustace serves in the army of King Hagen Hammerschlag, though he is several steps below Hagen himself in the chain if command. Though he has all the affectations of a charismatic leader, he does his best to keep himself out of personal danger, putting as many brave and hapless warriors as possible between himself and the enemy.
Mies of Ferndorf â,¬' Although only a private by rank, this Human Fighter 4/Paladin 2 is one of the favorite secret weapons of the 12th Overland Infantry. A mountain of a man who stands at over seven-and-a-half feet tall, Mies is severely mentally disabled, having an Intelligence of 3. His massive frame allows him to carry his Large +1 thundering greatclub into battle (though he is for all other purposes a Medium creature.) His family, glad to be rid of him, forced him into military service, where he was gladly placed at the front of many a flying wedge. Since the powers of good apparently care not how bright their followers are, Mies has heard the paladinâ,¬,,¢s call since his service began, though he has only a limited understanding of what this means.
Harlan Goldenclaw â,¬' Harlan is a lammasu who is honor-bound to serve Gregor Bosch, a dwarven general and cousin of King Holorak. In exchange for having saved the lammasuâ,¬,,¢s life, Gregor has ordered Harlan to guard his supply lines while the bulk of his division moves further West to search for mines and underground demihuman settlements. Harlan dutifully escorts the divisionâ,¬,,¢s supply caravans and patrols for passing orcs, goblinoids, or suspicious-looking characters. Since his duties give him little time to hunt, he enjoys eating the flesh of the creatures he kills, often right in front of any prisoners he has taken.
Tallarand â,¬' Tallarand is a couatl that has wandered the earth for over a century, honing his psionic power by challenging and humiliating evil creatures. He sometimes kills an orc or kobold leader, then replaces him with his Change Shape ability and tries to bring about changes in the victimâ,¬,,¢s community at large for the cause of law and good. He has no official connections to Chiaros or the Priest-Kings, but he has traveled to the Western Borderlands because he sees the war as an opportunity to cause righteous mischief.
[/spoiler]
More items:
[spoiler=Orc totems]
The Dwarfbreker Boar Totem
This is a thundering warhammer with two boar tusks in back of the head, like a claw hammer. Its enhancement bonus is equal to one fourth of the wielderâ,¬,,¢s Hit Dice, rounded up. The wielder can strike with either the blunt head or the tusks, dealing either bludgeoning or piercing damage with each attack (chosen before the attack roll is made.) The claw can also be used to trap weapons, giving the wielder a +2 circumstance bonus on attack rolls made to disarm an opponent.
The Elfsmasher Tiger Totem
This is a magic cloak made from the pelt of a tire tiger. It provides a +2 enhancement bonus to Constitution if the wearer has 6 or fewer Hit Dice, a +4 bonus if the wearer has 7 to 12 Hit Dice, and a +6 bonus if the wearer has 13 Hit Dice or more. If the wearer can attack more than once with a full attack action, the cloak lets the wearer make a total of two attacks during a charge.
The Kingeater Manticore Totem
The â,¬Å"bladeâ,¬Â of this keen greatsword is lined along both edges with tightly-packed manticore spines, like sawteeth. It deals piercing damage instead of slashing damage, and its enhancement bonus is equal to one fourth of the wielderâ,¬,,¢s Hit Dice, rounded up. Against a foe with no armor bonus or natural armor bonus to AC, it adds double its enhancement bonus to damage (instead of just its enhancement bonus.)
[/spoiler]
I noticed you said Law and Chaos work as normal? What do you mean by normal?
Better yet, please state which interpretation of Law and Chaos you are using, based apon the definitions from here (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=9285340&postcount=2)
I mean by "normal" that players choose whether their characters are lawful, neutral, or chaotic at character creation, a character's ethical alignment can graually change if the character's behavior radically changes, and spells like order's wrath work as printed.
I disagree with this argument (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=9285340&postcount=2) that law and chaos aren't clear-cut enough in the core D&D rules. To the contrary, they're much more clear-cut than good and evil. A character can judge his own ethical alignment much more easily than his moral one. Further, you don't get the ridiculous case of mindless lawful or chaotic creatures as often as you get mindless-yet-somehow-evil zombies. (I'm confronting the aforementioned ridiculousness head-on in my campaign world, where simply being undead makes you smitably evil, but evil acts don't.) And there emphatically is a conflict between being honorable and being flexible.
I guess that definition 4 comes closest to my interpretation of law and chaos, but I don't see any problem with the way it's defined on page 104 of the PHB. Honoring a promise or tradition for its own sake, not because it benefits anyone, is an amoral act of law, and defying a promise or tradition for its own sake, not because it was oppressing anyone, is an amoral act of chaos. Where's the problem?
No real problem. Just making sure people are thinking. (Aberrations like smart brains.) Although I have to tell you that monks are put into the mindlessly-labeled-lawful box. FREE THE MONK!
I have little of anything that isn't praise for the work that you've put into to this. It's well thought out and engaging. Very nice.
I have a similar idea of a group of 'not nice paladins' mucking about in one of my own adventure ideas, so I can feel your players adrenalin already.
Scenario: PC wants to play a necromancer. Not a death cultist, but a grave looter and corpse army animator. Which faction likes him most?
The Golden Peach would think that the necromancer was pretty keen, and the Firebloods would be happy to supply him with wands of animate dead and such as long as he plays nice with them.
Do you think the setting would benefit from the addition of some kind of necromancers' circle or an affiliation of intelligent undead? I'm working out the map for the Western Borderlands, and I've got some negative-energy-heavy patches (affected by a permanent desecrate) that would be perfect for such a guild's base of operations.
Vampire. Looks like Hugh Jackman, or whatever. The point is it's an excuse to use puns like "He's drop dead gorgeous." "I'm dead sexy!" Sprinkle the initial (non-combat) encounters with humour, then have the vamp rip out paladin jugulars.
If you have a female player, find her celebrity crush and photo-shop his picture into vampirism. Or at least use the guy's description.
AACK! I don't think that's the direction I want to take the campaign. Perhaps this part of the campaign world only has the non-sexy variety of undead, like wights and mohrgs. After all, the "army of zombies" scenario is the wet dream of every fantasy-gaming military buff. The "army of emo vampires?" Not so much...
Thanks for the laugh, though :)
Always happy to bring happiness.
But serioulsy? Revised Necromancer Handbook (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=599129)
Specifically, look at the undead creation notes and the 'Uttercold Assault' tactic. That thread speaks only about official WotC rulings.
Good gravy. I have never seen such a display of pure, unbridled munchkinry.
Anyway... What are people interested in seeing next?
I request a sample of general battlefield tactics. Specifically the goblin's and the paladin's.
OK.
[spoiler=The Priest-Kings]
The Priest-Kings have the advantage of disciplined troops and the wealth to arm them well. Units of regular infantry typically have masterwork halberds, masterwork light crossbows, and chain shirts.
The Priest-Kings have clerics and paladins in abundance â,¬' almost every unit has at least one cleric, and whole divisions of dozens of mounted paladins are not uncommon . The Priest-Kingsâ,¬,,¢ most intimidating tactic against supernatural enemies is a synchronized Turn Undead or Smite Evil along the entire front rank of a unit.
The armies of the Priest-Kings prefer to fight in open fields, though the nature of the invasion takes them through some hilly and forested terrain. The Priest-Kings have access to units of elite elven warriors and ranger/paladins, which they send to invade areas in which masses of conventional soldiers would be out of their element.
When a Priest-King is present to personally lead an army, he can turn the tide of battle by channeling his celestial paragon. Depending on the particular paragonâ,¬,,¢s abilities, the channeling Priest-King might take the front line and break up enemy formations, or he might stay back and devastate the entire battlefield with his spell-like abilities.
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=The Three Nations of Gob]
Smaller Gob towns rely on small units of militia supported by goblins on worgs. When defending Gob towns, the mayor will often move out to intercept the enemy as far from the town as possible, especially if the town has no walls.
The Coucil of Gob has put together a larger army to defend important Gob cities and strategic points. This army has units of hobgoblin fighters and warriors supported by goblins on worgs and strike teams of bugbear rogues. Arcane spellcasters, usually wizards or warlocks, rain down on the enemy from siege towers. The Three Nations of Gob suffer from a shortage of magical healing, so any clerics or adepts are frequently reassigned to units of tactical importance.
Goblins and bugbears take any opportunity to fight dirty. They may rig likely battlefields with traps before the enemy arrives, and they take advantage of forests and other difficult terrain whenever possible. Any prisoners of war they take are often killed immediately but still used as bargaining chips against enemy commanders who think theyâ,¬,,¢re still alive. Hobgoblins donâ,¬,,¢t use such tricks as often, but their sense of honor still isnâ,¬,,¢t quite as strong as their thirst for victory.
On rare occasions, a Gob mayor may attempt a desperate ploy in which the invading forces are welcomed into the city walls as liberators and offered supplies. The town council acts as obsequious as possible to the invadersâ,¬,,¢ command corps and lets them sleep in the mayorâ,¬,,¢s house, which is burned to the ground that night as the militia takes advantage of the confusion with a brutal series of guerilla tactics. This will only work a few times in the war at large, and only in those towns that the Priest-Kings are interested in capturing to quarter their troops rather than sacking.
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Wiegraf and the Dwarfbreakers]
Wiegrafâ,¬,,¢s orcs rarely devise strategies more complicated than â,¬Å"charge the enemy with overwhelming numbers of warriors until they stop living.â,¬Â Wiegrafâ,¬,,¢s tribes have almost no noncombatants; even women and children old enough to run join the teeming horde.
There are several orc adepts and a few orc sorcerers, with perhaps an occasional favored soul, but no wizards or clerics. Spellcasters often begin at the front lines, then fall back once they have fired a spell or two at the enemy. Healing usually has to wait until after the battle is over. Orc spellcasters are often multiclass adept/warriors or sorcerer/barbarians.
[/spoiler]
The Priest-Kings have superior tactics. Fine, they're paladins guided by gods. It's expected.
The orcs are stereotypically retarded. WAAAAGH! Fine, they're orcs. We like them stupid.
But the goblins are not fighting dirty enough. I mean, it sounds dirty enough. "Put traps on the battle field." is fine. But from what I'm reading they're not using they're wizards and sorcerers effectively. Make those spell casters cast dirty.
You caught me. I was having trouble thinking of sufficiently dirty tricks on the fly. Of course the presence of arcane spellcasters opens up new reams of dirtiness, from impersonating a commander to hiding the whole town with Hallucinatory Terrain to firing catapult stones with Symbol spells on them or extending peace treaties full of Sepia Snake Sigils. Some of the simpler rank-and-file soldiers of Chiaros might even mistake a Sending or Dream spell for a revelation from on high. If my PCs get involved in this aspect of the war, I'm sure they'll have fun tinking of more things for themselves...
For more unbridled munchkinry, and magician optimization I present Spells that Kill People (http://bb.bbboy.net/thegamingden-viewthread?forum=1&thread=815)
Hand out the ones with area effects to the goblinoids and you have one anti-army force.
Come on, man. Area spells against armies are fun, but they aren't "dirty tricks." In a mid-magic or high-magic campaign, they're business as usual. An army that doesn't plan for contact with a fireball or color spray is just asking for it.
Maybe this is just my perverse sense of humor talking, but the most beautiful death-by-spell would come from a "crap utility spell" that was expurgated from that preceding list. What could be a more satisfying (or more unexpected) display of goblinoid cunning than a prestidigitation that wins the day?
As for that list, I haven't seen a more definitive roundup of the least fun spells in the game. I like the illusion spells (except phantasmal killer, of course,) but the rest of them turn a whole encounter into a mindless test of luck. This is the same reason I hate to use traps - one guy rolls one die (possibly two,) and then the encounter's over. No thought or imagination required.
Many of those spells don't even kill people. A better name would be "Spells that end the fight."
Anyway, my mind is turning now to the specific adventure I'm going to run with this setting. This means I'll need a hook (and corresponding guidelines or chargen) and some much more specific details for the part of the world where the campaign will begin. I'll update when I come up with anything.
Ow. My ego... I really though I found gold with that thread.
Creative use of utility spells, have the goblins sling some rocks then have their assigned mage speak the command word to end his many Shrink Item spells in mid air. Battle field control and damage, all in one.
Don't worry about it; it's really a matter of taste. And those are some pretty good ideas, too. Even so, I wonder what the author of that list has against spells that, you know, deal damage.
Ratio of effectiveness.
It takes 4 fireballs to take down a troll, if it doesn't make any of it's saves and the flames deal average damage. Plus the troll has about a 60% chance of making it's save. But deep slumber has about a 60% success rate to take the troll out. It's simply safer, and more economical, to use a single spell that will likely take the monster out right now, than to use four spells, three of which are guaranteed not to take the thing down.
At the request of a non-forum friend of mine, I'm going into more depth about some of the settings cultures and their values and such.
Chiaros
Chiaros is a relatively new nation, being only about 100 years old. Chiaros came to be during a â,¬Å"dark ageâ,¬Â when plague and constant war between the human nations nearly spelled the end of humanity. A company of seven adventurers began manifesting brief displays of godlike power and claiming to represent seven Archangels that had come to bring world peace. Quickly and violently, they carved out an area of land for themselves and became the first seven Priest-Kings. Desperate human communities fled to their territory and gained asylum and land rights by converting to their new faith. Always eager to expand, Chiaros took land from the war-torn human nations to the East as its military might grew. Within 20 years, Chiaros became a great nation unto itself, bred to survive in times of crisis and evidently watched over by divine powers. At the time that the campaign begins, Chiaros has become the most powerful of the human nations, it finds itself at peace with the rest of humanity, and now it turns its attention to the territory to its west, which is unsettled by humans and seemingly ripe for the taking.
Chiaran values and moral law can be summed up in the Seven Promulgations, each one of which represents the primary concern of a different Archangel. The Promulgations were spoken by the original seven Priest-Kings while they were all channeling their respective Archangels, and they serve as the foundation of much of Chiaran law. Here they are, in ascending order along the hierarchy of Archangels:
Barachiel â,¬' The Faith is for all mortals. Convert whom you can.
Erathaol â,¬' The Archangels separate good knowledge from dangerous knowledge, and They reveal knowledge as it is needed. Trust in Their ability to provide it.
Domiel â,¬' Mortals that refuse or debase the Faith may be dealt with by any means necessary.
Raziel â,¬' The undead, fiends, and all other outlets of unholy power are to be destroyed without question and without compromise.
Pistis Sophia â,¬' The Archangels smile upon chastity and forbearance. Deprive yourself of what you do not need to show your love for Them.
Sealtiel â,¬' Among believers, the strong must protect the weak. Watch over those below you, and do not object to being watched over by those above.
Zaphkiel â,¬' The purity of the Archangels is ineffable, Their nature is unknowable, and Their will is unquestionable. Humble and mortify yourselves before Them.
Gob
The Three Nations of Gob came into being a millenium ago when the three goblinoid races opened the borders of their respective city-states to each other and a â,¬Å"spirit of brotherhoodâ,¬Â among goblinoids came into fashion. Historical records of the time are spotty, but it is believed that the agreement began when several hobgoblin city-states came under heavy attack from overwhelming numbers of orcs, and a goblin named Gobmonger and a bugbear named Grarg offered their tribesâ,¬,,¢ aid to the hobgoblin warlord Gerrick Hobgob.
Members of the three goblinoid races donâ,¬,,¢t always get along, of course, but their perceived â,¬Å"brotherhoodâ,¬Â is a strong and deep-seated value that outsiders sometimes have trouble recognizing. Goblinoids fight and compete amongst each other, often viciously, but the overt hostility is something akin to sibling rivalry. Feuds between goblinoids donâ,¬,,¢t often become deadly, and one goblinoid will often stop feuding with another (even of a different race) and jump to his aid the moment an outside threat presents itself.
The Three Nations of Gob are also the only republic in the world. Their electoral process is ludicrously corrupt, and mayors and Gob Coucilors usually act like tyrants in all but name, but Gob citizens nonetheless take great pride that they â,¬Å"inventedâ,¬Â representative government. Voter turnout is high among all Gob cities, and thatâ,¬,,¢s not even counting all the dead citizens whose names mysteriously keep turning up on the ballots.
Goblin adepts and scholars often study The Musings of Councilor Gobmonger, the journal of the first representative of the goblin race in the Three Nations of Gob. Gobmonger was a highly prolific writer whose daily musings sometimes contradicted each other, but he generally named personal happiness as the greatest good and wrote extensive lists and descriptions of things that made him happy, including material wealth, respect from other goblinoids, defeating others at any kind of competition, and sex.
Though Gobmonger was not exactly a pious or spiritual thinker, his Musings include several â,¬Å"business lettersâ,¬Â to deities of various humanoid pantheons, and some divine spellcasters claim to draw their inspiration from Gobmongerish philosophy.
Orc tribes
Orcs, including all of Wiegrafâ,¬,,¢s tribes, value simplicity, sincerity, and the ability to make babies. The life of an orcish nomad is often tough, so those who cannot both give and receive pain are seen as inferior.
To an orc, the correct way to solve a problem is by hitting it over the head as the rest of the tribe looks on. Chieftains technically have the power to settle disputes among the orcs in their tribes, but they usually let them be settled through judicial combat.
Orc traditions are material rather than verbal or ideological. Totems, weapons, and other heirlooms are passed down (or taken by force) from the older generation to the younger. Because of their nomadic lifestyle, their only concept of wealth is portable, usually useful material objects. Totems are also the basis of orcish religion â,¬' an orcish divine spellcaster will often literally worship his or her holy symbol.
Well, having Lawful Good NPC's as "Bad Guys" all depends on their own personality. When the Franj and Muslims fought I don't think either side was good or bad. View it like this, perhaps the LG religious texts say goblinoids were an abomination created by fiends and demonic entities when the wars of light and darkness raged across the planet in the time of ledgends. Therefore all Goblinoids are considered evil spirits, and or the ancestors of demonic beings and are therefore inherintly evil and unholy and nothing good will come from their survival. The extinction of man will happen and the enslavement of good forever if the goblins are allowed to breed. This in and of itself will have any paladin give the ok nod to kill any captive or surrendered enemy. The fate of mankind and the gods demand we kill them. Nuff So in a goblins perspective KILL THE HUMANS ! said. :axe: :explode:
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That's not a bad idea, but I try to avoid fate or prophecy as a source of plot hooks or villain motivations. It's a little contrived. I'm afraid it might lead to the aforementioned "misunderstood heroes fighting racism" stereotype.
Also, goblins in my setting really aren't descended from fiends, and I like to give my villains a little more credit than to be motivated entirely by a complete misconception.
As it is, here are the motivations I have:
The PCs' territory is contains real fiends, undead, tieflings. and other unholy creatures.
The PCs' territory and the paladins' kingdom weren't at peace before the invasion. Smaller attacks and raids had been taking place on both sides for years, and thus the invasion can be seen as a preventative/retributive act rather than an unprovoked act of war.
The paladins' kingdom is relatively young and eager to expand.
The paladins want to spread their faith to the humanoids once they securely occupy the territory.
Pioneers are determined to move West into the PCs' territory, whether the paladins like it or not. If an army isn't there to clear the way for them, it will cost innocent human lives.