The Campaign Builder's Guild

I'm not playing the campaign online, I included the character generation information because it affects the storyline.


Dwarf Forges:  I've seen portable blacksmith shops which people use for things like Rensaince Festivals, so I assumed you could do the same thing for smelting.  They do have clerical magic, so perhas a divine version of the spell you mentioned would work.  I'll think on it more.

Orcs:  I knew I was going to have to have a reason for the orcs hating demons, but I was thinking I'd let it ride until one popped up.  Any ideas?

Thanks for your comments Seraphine.

This is my first post here.  Hopefully some of you will think my campaign world is interesting and help me out a bit. This is my first home brew world, but I've been playing for about 15 years.

Legacy of Souls is a dark horror-fantasy campaign about the struggle to stay alive in the face of overwhelming evil.  The world of Gulgoth has been in a constant strife against demonic influence for thousands of years.  Arcane magic is vile and corrupt as are those who use it and only the magic of the Gods has kept the mortals alive thus far.  



 [spoiler=Character Intro Story]You make your way through the dark night mud caking to your boots. Raindrops hit the thick leather cowl of your rain jacket. A mask protects your face from the acidic rain that falls from demon cursed clouds. Stiff gloves protect your hands. You pull the cowl closer to your face as you approach a similarly covered pedestrian. They start to cross the street before you get too close to each other. You cannot see their eyes from across the street as you pass each other. He looks back at you, as you look back at him. Is he a fiend? Is he possessed?

A city-watch patrol stops to question you for a moment, four humans, one holding the leash of an ogre.  The huge beast looks at you, much like a dog, its thick hair protecting its skin from the acidic downpour.

You look up at the acid washed street signs, looking for a marker that youâ,¬,,¢ve arrived at your destination. You pass a slave market, those things are always open.  The smell of unwashed slaves thick in the air despite the rain.  There, a dwarven rune in the corner of a pottery-makers sign. You donâ,¬,,¢t know what it says, but it the same rune that the grizzled half-orc Craeg showed you.

You stop at the door, looking up and down the street. No one is out on this god forsaken night.  You rap on the door, two soft, two hard, just like you were told. You hear movement inside. A slide at eye level pulls back, yellow tinged eyes set deep in a bony brow look back at you. You give your name, the slide closes, you hear the lock click and the door opens. Light spills into the dark night. Looking around again, you enter the pottery shop.

Inside, the door closes quickly behind you. Youâ,¬,,¢re immediately surrounded by two armed dwarves clad in black leather armor and a yellow eyed tattooed monstrous orc. A tall elf stands in the back of the room with a cold-iron tipped arrow knocked and pointed at you. â,¬Å"Remove your cowl, mask, and gloves.â,¬Â, commands the gruff voiced orc, emphasized by something stiff and sharp against your back. You do as your told, slowly, knowing your life depends on it. You feel their eyes on you, inspecting your hair, your skin, your eyes.

Apparently satisfied, one dwarf stretches out his hand toward you. You clasp it. Your knees buckle at the mental barrage that assaults you, memories of your life swim through your head out of control. The last image you see is that of Craeg the half-orc. You inhale sharply, out of breath, not realizing that you were holding your breath. Youâ,¬,,¢re on your hands and knees, not knowing how you got there. Strong hands lift you to your feet, your vision blurs for a moment.

When youâ,¬,,¢re yourself again you look at those in the room with you, they look more relaxed, well, at least thereâ,¬,,¢s no sword in your back or arrow aimed at your head, but theyâ,¬,,¢re still staring intently at you. â,¬Å"Sorry â,¬Ëbout datâ,¬Â, apologizes one of the dwarves, â,¬Å"had ta be sure youâ,¬,,¢re not one oâ,¬,,¢ Them. Come witâ,¬,,¢ me.â,¬Â

You follow the dwarf, who grabs a lantern down a flight of stairs into the basement of the shop. In the basement there are several others of various races humans, elves, dwarves, warforged, all seated on improvised chairs, crates, sacks, or leaning against something, all quiet. You spot Craeg sitting in a real chair, leaned back against a wall. â,¬Å"Find a spotâ,¬Â, the dwarf tells you.

You find a comfortable spot along the wall, begin to speak. Craeg raises his hand silencing you, â,¬Å"All will be explained when the others arrive.â,¬Â Within several minutes others do arrive, trailing the dwarf that brought you downstairs.

Craeg looks over the group, obviously counting heads. Apparently satisfied that all are in attendance the half-orc looks to the dwarf, â,¬Å"Get the othersâ,¬Â, he commands. Moments later both dwarves, the elf, and tattooed orc come down, each squatting or sitting, on the stair due to the lack of room.

â,¬Å"Iâ,¬,,¢ve meet each of you over the past few weeks, you are all skilled in your various arts, you all desire to accomplish more than you can as a soldier in an army, we can help you do that.â,¬Â, he explains as he motions to his compatriots, each of whom seems to continue to look at you suspiciously. â,¬Å"We do not work for the King of Tralen, Jarl of Milhein, Emperor of the Golden State, Prefect Kissinth, or the leader of any other nation. Our work is beyond the survival of any individual state. We fight the demonic wherever they may be. Be they the frontlines of the Malcari elven lands, within the courts of the Crimson King, or in the tainted ruins of Molgresh. Our meeting was not a chance encounter; we have been watching you for some time now. Some of you know us as the Disciples of Ahm, the Seekers of the Scrolls, Reader of the Black, or many less complimentary names. We are all of these. We remain a secretive, insular group, the better to know and trust our members and decrease the chances of demonic influence. If you decide to become an Initiate of the Scrolls you will have resources in many towns and cities across the lands. These resources will be available to you as long as you provide the Seekers and Readers with more information on the demonic. The Seekers are those who have proven themselves in their search for knowledge. The Readers are members of the society who have attained a position of honor and guide us in the battle versus the evil hordes that seek dominance on Gulgoth.

Do not be fooled, you will probably recieve little thanks for your actions outside of the Disciples, but we will know.  Those of you who die will die on a noble cause and be remembered by those who survive. Your soul may be...."

"Do not listen to Craeg, he is so grim and macabre." A human interjects from his place atop of crate, sneering at Craeg with a wry smile.  "I am Kerris, a Reader of the Scrolls", the human explains, his face mostly hidden in the shadows of the basement.  

"I believe the Gods have spoken to each of you," the robed human says, looking at you each in turn.  Something unnerves you about his pallid countenance and the strength in his eyes.  "When the Gods speak to us, it is not in words as you or I speak, but in dreams, visioins, or natural phenomenon.  So, you may be unaware of their wishes...or...you may have seen their favor.  Think back to the past few weeks and you may well hear the words of the Gods.", Kerris hands a leather bound book to Craeg, who in turn places it on a crate and opens it.  

"This is why I think the Gods have spoken to you," Kerris motions to the book," Gather 'round and see for yourselves.", he commands.  As you each rise and wander toward the book Craeg turns the yellowed pages of the ancient codex carefully.  Each page has drawing of a person, a human, an elf, a half-orc, an orc, every mortal race.  Each drawing looks to be a powerful member of the race, some swinging mighty weapons infused with energy, others avoiding devastating attacks by fiendish enemies, still others wielding magics, the likes of which you've never seen. One shows a human, hands clenched, eyes closed, brilliant energy leaping from his fore-head to his enemies.  Another shows an elf dressed in the dark leathers of his kind, hands pointed at the feet of his enemies, where plants spring from the ground to entangle them.  A third shows an elemental warforged shooting gouts of blood red flame from his hands.  Yet another shows a human wielding what can only be a magical weapon made solely of a bluish mist like energy.  A dwarf swings a warhammer with blazing red runes on it, crushing the head of a foe.  An orc concentrates, his huge muscles tight with the strain as several of his tattoos glow brightly with life.  Powerful waves of force seem to emanate from the mouth of a shouting human, knocking his foes to their knees.  

As you study theses amazingly detailed pictures a realization hits each of you, you glance around to be sure, then look again.  Yes you're certain.  The faces of those in the pictures are the same as those around you.  Not every picture is represented by a person here, but many are.  Then you see it, the picture with your face on it....what are you doing? What magic are you wielding?

[/spoiler]

 [spoiler=General Character Creation]Legacy of Souls is a dark horror-fantasy campaign about the struggle to stay alive in the face of overwhelming evil.  The world of Gulgoth has been in a constant strife against demonic influence for thousands of years.  Arcane magic is vile and corrupt and only the magic of the Gods has kept the mortals alive thus far.  

Character creation:  25 point buy, 1 free background feat, regional or otherwise appropriate for your character.  All magical gear you get will be divine in nature since there is no arcane magic.

Background:  Character background is not optional.  Write me at least a one page background.  If you are not a good writer then we can meet or chat on the phone and you can tell me your story and I'll write it.  The background doesn't have to be about where you grew up, it can be purely about your characters personality and attitudes.  The more information and hooks you include the better.  Especially good backgrounds may get character bonuses.    Please don't send your background to the group, send it to me, then I'll send what is appropriate to the group.

Description:  Write a descritpion of your character, what they look like now.  And what the picture they saw in the book.  Again, the more detailed, the better.

Character Races:  Non-human races are rare...I'd like a max of one each in the party.
[/spoiler]

 [spoiler=Races]Elves

The elves of the Wildwood Labyrinth are harsh and insular, at least to their human neighbors. The thick tangled nature of the Labyrinth makes it impossible to have large concentrations of inhabitants. As such the elves have lived in tribes generally numbering less than a thousand. Elven life is filled with the daily struggle for survival against foul denizens of the Wildwood and the Labyrinth itself. Ancient elven stories tell of times when the Labyrinth was not so deadly, but many believe these are only stories to give elven children hope.

The elves call themselves the Malcari.  Malcari tribal life praises stealth and cunning, elven wives are abducted from one tribe and ceremonially inducted through marriage into another tribe after a period of indentured servitude to learn the tribes customs. Slavery is common in the Labyrinth, of which there are several types, including the aforementioned marriage servitude, elven slaves, and then non-elven slaves.. Elven slaves are never taken by force, they are circumstantial only. If an elven group saves a another group from environmental hazards or from an enemy the saved elves become slaves until the debt is repaid. Although slaves, these are not treated harshly; however, they are not allowed to own possessions After the debt is repaid the elf may return to their tribe or they may be ritually inducted into the new tribe.

Non-elven slaves are mainly comprised of those foolish enough to enter the Wildwood Labyrinth and invoke the ire of the elven inhabitants or other Labyrinth residents who do the same. These slaves are not treated as well as elven livestock or pets and are often sacrificed or bartered away to the highest bidder.

Natural herbal compounds strengthen leather armor and wooden weapons to be as hard as steel. Elven herbalists are among the most learned alchemists and poison masters on all of Gulgoth.

Sanguis Elves: A small forest separated from the main woods of the Wildwood Labyrinth is home to an exiled tribe of elves. Most humans and dwarves do not know the reason for the tribes exile and elven rumors whisper of dark magic and pacts with demons.

Malcari elves are not as long lived as their off world cousins, they live to perhaps 100 years.

Dwarves

The dwarves of Gulgoth are a dour and grim bunch. Their constant battle with fiendish minions and horrors from the depths of the Blackstone Warrens beneath the Windreaver Crags has made them a tough and hardy race. Dwarven solidarity alone is responsible for the existence of these deep dwellers where lesser races have succumbed to the Taint. Dwarves rarely use the words I, me, or mine and are more likely to think in terms of the group. It is said that the word of a dwarf is worth a thousand pounds of dwarven steel. Other than the usual bar room brawls a dwarf will not raise a weapon against another dwarf in anger except in the direst of circumstances. Differences between dwarven factions are settled through contests of champions, which may include individual combat (rarely), feats of strength or endurance or some other suitable competition.

Many dwarven enemies move through stone and steel as easily as a dwarf swings his pick or hammer. Foes like this have caused dwarven society to become nomadic in nature. The nomadic lifestyle has lent itself well with the dwarven clanâ,¬,,¢s specializations. If a vein of mithril is found the Stone Rippers clan is sent to dig out the metal, then the Iron Callers clan to smelt the ore, then various forging clans to create tools, weapons, and armor such as the Hammer Heavers or Shield Shapers. Crafting clans are not the only kinds of dwarven clans, there are lore clans (Stone Speakers), war clans (Blood Spitters), trading clans (Golden Bears), brewing clans (Mead Marchers), etc., a clan to match every aspect of dwarven life.

Although there is no central dwarven government, the Bearded Speakers clan keeps in constant contact with many clans and thus has a large amount of influence in dwarven society.

Dwarves live to a maximum of 150 years.


Gnomes

The gnomes of the Tribus Imperium have fallen far from their lofty positions of high-magisters and empire builders. The Tribus Imperium was a beacon of light and hope for those who stood against the corruption and evil of the fiends. Their magics were responsible for binding and banishing many fiends, their weapons caused more than a little pain to the forces of the Abyss and the Hells. Warforged were the brainchilde of the diminutive archmages, with them the tides seem to turn in favor of the mortals, but with the corruption of magic the Tribus Impreium began to fall victim to its own success. As the warforged, constructs, weapons, and other items of magic began to become tainted. Many Warforged and constructs rebelled against their gnomish makers throwing the Tribus Imperium into an odd sort of civil war. Most of the gnomes died in those long years of fighting against their own creations and their own corruption, for magic was all they knew. Some gnomes fled, mostly to human lands which once paid fealty to the Tribus Imperium but had since succeeded to survive, although a few went into the tunnels with the dwarves and there are even rumors of those that now live in the Wildwood Labyrinth. No matter where they live, they are a dying race with little hope of returning to their former glory.

Gnomes live to a maxiumum of 125 years.

Halflings
These small peaceful peoples were mostly long ago conquered by the fiendish armies. Most living halflings serve as slaves to fiendish overlords. A few small Burrows live in human lands, but they are often reclusive and withdrawn.

Halflings live to a maximum of 80 years.


Half-Orcs
Half-Orcs generally experience extreme racism, most live amongst orcs rather than humans.

Half orcs live to a maximum of 60 years.


Orcs
Orcs are ferocious humanoids that live in primitve tribal bands in mountain areas of Gulgoth.  Their language is harsh and grating and it often brings images of dark places and darker things.  Orcs hate demons even more so than the other races.  Orc tribes are regularly "hired" by humans to fight demons, even though payment is often non-existant.  Orc slaves will gladly fight for their masters if it means fighting demons.  

The orcs of the Windreaver Crags are a brutal and feral lot, traits that have helped them survive the onslaught of the fiends and their minions. Their knowledge of the mountains and the winds that blow within has saved many orc clans from death at the hands of the fiends. Orcs tattoo themselves heavily with the symbols of strength from the natural world around them.  These tattoos grant them the fortitude to go on when others would falter.  

The orc tribes of the Dragon Maw coast.

Orcs live to a maximum of 50 years.


Humans

There are several human nations and empires still standing against the hordes of the abyss and the hells.    

The Empire of the Golden State  
Made up of the City-State of Auric,The Empire of the Golden State is ruled by the King-Priest of Auric, a holy warrior of great wisdom.  

Kingdom of Tralen
Somewhat sheltered from the demonic forces, Tralen is a prosperous country.  Many knightly orders are founded here.

Milhein
 Ruled by merchant lords, Milhein supplies many nations with the necesary tools of war.


The Monarchy of the Crimson King  
This ancient Monarchy of the kingdom of Sak-Torth, is ruled despotically by the Crimson King.  

Navassu
A small nation that lives by the fruits of the sea.

Sindra
The badlands of Sindra an alien place ruled by a triad of Thanes.

Murshtag
Ruled by a high-cleric Murshtag is a place of holy warriors.

The Plains of Alruon
Horsemen of the finest caliber

Urlnor  
A frigid land of ice and snow, Urlnor is the gateway to the north.  Mostly nomadic ice giants roam the northern lands, some clans trading with the Urlnor's, others raiding.    

Irskâ,¬,,¢Doluun
The Prefect Kisâ,¬,,¢inth rules tyrannically over this authoritarian xenophobic state.  Fear governs of Irsk'Doluun, fear of elves, fear of demons, fear of the unknown, permeates the citizens and government alike.  

Vashtia  
Ruled by an elected council of priests, Vashtia thrives under the rule of the gods.

Vashtia was once under the banner of the Gnomish Tribus Imperium.  When magic became corrupted and the Imperium's power began to wane Vashtia suceeded with the help of religious militants.  Gnomes survive in Vashtia, but as second class citizens.  Vashtia has the highest concentration of living gnomes on the continent.  

To the south of Vashtia is Gods Step and what remains of the Tribus Imperium.  The gnomes used to use magic to transport goods and people up the half-mile high sheer cliff that is Gods Step.  With the fall of the Imperium the magical lifts have been destroyed and the gnomish cities in the cliff face have been long abandoned by all but the undead and horrible living spells.  

Warforged
 Most do not know of the Arcane Warforged of gnomish invention that turned on their allies hundreds of years ago.  Those that do look on the Elemental Warforged with suspicion.  Elemental Warforged are created from the essence of the elements by powerful clerics to aid in the fight.  The oldest is less than 20 years.  

Aasimar/Tiefling
Very rare, these outsiders are mostly unknown

[/spoiler]

 [spoiler=Classes]Classes

This is where it gets tricky. Starting character is 2nd level, to be able to pick +1LARaces or have multi-classing.  I'd like you each to pick a class/classes from the "Beginning Classes" list below.  

Next pick a type of "magic" and associated class from the "Magic Classes" further down.  You can continue on with the "nonmagic" classes if you'd like, but it'll go with the story more if you pick a magic.  This will have an effect on the future of the game and the direction of your character.  Next describe the picture to me that your character saw in the book (the picture is your character in the future).

Only create a 2nd level character from the Beginning Classes.

Notes:
    Psionics: Psionic characters are per the Psychics Handbook, I have this book, if you want to be psychic I can loan you the book for character creation.  The powers here are more general than the XPH but are not as powerful.

    Incarnum:  I'm using this in name and background only, I do not like the Incarnum magic system.  The system will be replaced  by the XPH psionics system with no access to Clairsentience, Telepathy, or Psychoportation (higher powers)



Beginning Classes:

Psychic, these characters have kept their powers secret for fear of being thought fiendish sorcerers.

Barbarian

Cleric

Fighter

Monk

Paladin

Ranger: Spellless Variant

Rogue

Scout

Other classes with the DMs approval, must be non-magical or divine in nature.





NonMagic Classes:

Barbarian

Fighter

Monk

Ranger: Spell Less

Rogue

Scout





Magic Classes:

Blade Magic: Ancient fighting styles infused with power. Used mostly by humans, but dwarves and elves each have a style. Orcs have several as well.

            Crusader (Tome of Battle)

            Swordsage (Tome of Battle)

            Warblade (Tome of Battle)



Clerical Magic: Few can harness the power of the gods any longer.


Druidic Magic: Their fey blood allows Elves to manipulate the natural world as Druids and Rangers. All elven magic requires singing as a component.

Druid: Elf only

Ranger: Elf Only



Elemental Magic: ElementalForged can cast Divine Elemental Magic.

Elemental Caller: Shugenja (Complete Divine) Warforged Only



            Favored Soul Magic: Interbreeding with shape changed celestials provides the last rare vestiges of divine magic. Their powers became apparent as the ambient soul energy began building. Healing Variant from PHII

           

            Incarnum: Soul energy, blush mist. Classes from the Incarnum book are not used, use XPH as incarnum with background from the Incarnum book.

            Incarnate: Psion from the XPH no access to Clairsentience, Telepathy, or Psychoportation (higher powers) (Incarnum User)

            Soulborn: Psychic Warrior from the XPH no access to Clairsentience, Telepathy, or Psychoportation (higher powers)(Incarnum User)

            Soulknife:no access to Clairsentience, Telepathy, or Psychoportation (higher powers)(Incarnum User)

            Akashic (Arcana Evolved)



           Pact Magic: Looked down upon for its strange manifestations, but the power of vestiges cannot be taken lightly. All sources of power must be considered in the battle against the fiends. The carefully drawn protective circles remove the element of taint associated with Wizardry.

            Binder (Pact Magic Tome of Magic)



Paladin Magic: The divine rights of paladins proves, at least to the paladins, that the Gods still watch over them.

Paladin: To retain their powers Paladins follow celestials who followed their god of choice.



Psionics: A gift from the gods or more evidence of fiendish posession?

Psyhic: Psychics Handbook



Rune Magic: Dwarves are the only users of the Runes, they guard this secret closely.

            RuneSage (Arcana Evolved Runethane): Dwarf only

            RuneAdept (Arcana Evolved, modified Ref): Dwarf Only

            RuneThane (Arcana Evolved, modified Fort): Dwarf Only



Sorcery: Displays of fiend-born powers is a death sentence in non-fiend controlled lands.



Tattoo Magic: the Tattoos of the orcs aid them in destroying demons.

Marked, need to create a tattoo artist class for tattoos in Relics & Rituals, Half-Orc Only



True Name Magic: Humans unlock the power of names.

Truenamer (Tome of Magic), Human Only



Warlocks: Making permanent pacts with fiends is outlawed in non-fiend controlled lands.



Wizardry: Thought to be responsible for the rise of the fiends, Arcane magic has been outlawed in all civilized lands not under fiendish control. The use of arcane magic results in a slow fiendish taint of the practitioner.



[/spoiler]


 [spoiler=Timeline]

The game will start in year 0 and progress toward year 300 with a plot device taking the characters through time to discover the magic that their characters will use and introduce into the world.

Timeline

Time Immemorial
In secret, a cabal of fiends made up of some of the most cunning demon and devil lords in existence plotted the downfall of the gods together. To that end they overtook a world in the prime material plane, lessening the power of the gods. The gods were horrified at how quickly the fiends overtook their forces and how well the Demons and Devils worked together. For these fiends it seemed the Blood War had ended. The gods could not let the cabal spread their influence to other fiends or the Gods would fall to the might of the lower planes.




Determined that this would not happen, the Gods laid a trap for the cabal by creating a world that seemed to be easy to take over. As the demons began their take over the gods brought in powerful fiend binder and slayers from other realms of existence. Eventually the fiends were trapped by the godsâ,¬,,¢ followers in the world itself.


The gods sealed the fiendsâ,¬,,¢ prison with the energy of souls, locking them away forever. The gods made a pact with each other, that no summoning magic from the outer planes would be used by their followers on the planet. If other fiends found out what had happened they may try to free their brethren. Celestials scoured the land, finding all references to the fiends and wiping them out.


Each of the gods chose a clan or nation of a specific race to guard one of the seals. Over eons some of the guardians became lax and began to forget their duties.



-9,400

Some elves learn how to harness the use of soul magic. Not knowing that the gods had used the Incarnum to lock the seals they used the magic freely. The seals were no long able to collect enough ambient Incarnum due to the elves use of and many seals began to leak.


Discovering that the elves had used Incarnum, but not that the seals were leaking; the gods forbid the use of Incarnum, explaining only that souls are in their realm of control.


-2,400

Over thousands of years the slow leak of a devil lords taint and corruption leak from his seal into the population of elves, turning them into dark and twisted things, fiendish drow. The corrupt elves believe that the fiend was captured by accident and work to free him. The drow magic is not enough to fully free the fiend. He was only partially free, in that he could influence mortals, but the still could not leave his prison and return to his outer planar home. In order to free himself fully from his prison he determined that he must destroy the prison. To this end the fiendish lord began to corrupt mortals to do their bidding. His mortal pawns use arcane magic to summon the first fiends to the planet from the outer planes, raise armies and harvest souls to power the great magics that will destroy the planet.

-2,200

A demon prince is similarly released by twisted guardians of its seal.


-2,100

Believing that the already free devil prince was plotting to kill him while still weak, the demon lord freed another of his kind to fight the Prince of Hell. The Blood War began anew for theses fiends.



-2,050

Realizing he cannot survive alone the devil lord finds the seal of one of his brethren and frees him.

The gods thwart the fiends with their own mortal followers as best they can, considering the same aspect of the world that prevents the demon lords from being completely free and manifesting on the planet or leaving prevents the godâ,¬,,¢s avatars from manifesting as well.


In the coming years more of the land is tainted, more Arch-Fiends and released. Many fiends are summoned to try to free their masters.


-700

WarForged are created to fight the fiendish armies.


-600

One of the demon lords is able to taint the arcane energy of the world. (By linking arcane energy to the plane of chaos/insanity.), allowing even more fiends to come into the world. The earth itself slowly begins to become tainted and corrupted. Many mortals do not realize the corrupting power of arcane energy immediately.


-580

WarForged become corrupt and evil due to their connection to the Arcane. Many countries that depended on the WarForged for defense erupt into civil wars. Similarly, arcane magical items begin to show signs of corruption.


-560

Mortals cease to use corruptible arcane magic. Wizardry and Sorcerery become illegal.


-219 Mortals begin manifesting psionic powers, but in a very small part of the population. When they do they are usually viewed as sorcerers and killed or otherwise suppressed.

-79

A Human psionic master/cleric picks up the Forged where arcane casters left off and learn to give sentience to elemental energy to create ElementalPsiForged. Most do not know they are psionic in nature.



0

The gods disappear. Theyâ,¬,,¢re there one day..the next day they werenâ,¬,,¢t. Some mortals believe the gods abandoned them, others believe they were driven off by the friends. When the gods leave they cut off most access to the outer planes, no more demons can be summoned, but their granted magic to followers are cut off as well. The gods left, hoping that their followers could defeat the fiends, and if they did not, then no one from the outer planes could reach the world and the fiendish lords of the cabal could not leave the world.


The gods knew this day would come, they planned for it by leaving Divine Tokens for their mortal followers to learn new manners of magic to help them in their fight with the overwhelming fiendish forces.


Some Celestials, not fully understanding the situation do not wish to abandon the mortals and manifest on the prime material plane before the paths to the Upper Planes are closed.


All manner of undead begin appearing, as souls cannot escape to the outer planes.

The same day mortals begin manifesting psionic powers spontaneously. Some say they are a parting gift form the gods to fight the fiends, other say they are manifestations of fiendish corruption. Those who believed the manifestations were fiendish in nature often slew those who manifested. Many died at the hands of friends and loved ones.

The ever spreading taint and corruption of the land slows as gates to the lower planes cease functioning.


1 AG (After Gods)

Fiends learn that with mortal worship they can manipulate ambient Incarnum to grant spells to their dedicated followers.


The first Favored Soul begins manifesting diving magic.


2 AG

Fiendish wizards create while trying to create new fiends through arcane means create Kythons (Fiend Folio), the first aberrations. In the oncoming years many other types of aberration are created.


3 AG

      After finding a Divine Token a great martial warrior is lead to a sacred site, where the secrets of a Blade Magic discipline is revealed to him.


4 AG

Celestials learn that with mortal worship they can manipulate ambient Incarnum to grant spells to their dedicated followers.


7 AG
      By finding a Divine Token the ElementalForged discover Fire Magic


13 AG
      By finding a Divine Token the ElementalForged discover Earth Magic


15 AG
      ElementalForged discover Water Magic


16 AG

      ElementalForged discover Air Magic


50 AG

      Elves rediscover and resume their ancient practice of Incarnum manipulation, seeking to utilize the souls of their dead rather than let the fiends harvest them to produce more fiends and aberrations. They teach the other mortals to do the same. (The Seals are no longer weakened with the use of Incarnum, since there is an abundance of soul energy in the world because they cannot escape to the outer planes.)

300 AG Current

The world is embroiled in wars, the fiends are strong. Sometimes subtle, sometimes brutal, the friends guide mortal armies against mortal armies, they influence kings to backstab each other. The mortals must be vigilant to the manipulations of the fiends on those around them. At the same time the mortals must trust those around them to fight the fiends and their minions physically.



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 [spoiler= Other Background]
Magical Items:

Arcane Items: by the current age all arcane items have become tainted. Merely carrying a tainted item causes the carrier to slowly become tainted. Certain holy wraps can be made to shield a carrier from becoming tainted. Special Touchstone locations can be used to cleanse a magic item for a certain amount of time before the taint seeps back in.

Divine Items: When the gods left the items their priests created in their names slowly began to fade away depending on the power of the item. A divine token was eventually found that allowed a mortal to invest bind his life energy to a previously Divine item, thus returning its magical power for him.

Even the magical items created by the followers of Celestials are of a decaying nature, the celestials just do not have the capacity to grant permanent items.

Celestials: The Celestial beings that chose to remain on the prime after the gods left have found themselves in a quandary. Many of the Celestials thought they would be heralded as saviors and that the mortals would flock to their banner of protection. Instead, in their grief and anger, many mortals lashed out at their â,¬Å"saviorsâ,¬Â and rebuked them. As the mortals saw it, the gods left, so what was keeping the Celestials from leaving as well?

Not all mortals rejected the celestials, many priests and paladins have allied with celestials who worshiped the same god they did and fight the fiends with all their might.

As much as the mortals needs the celestials to grant what limited diving magic there is, the celestials need the mortals as well, for if a celestial dies while the Upper Planes are disconnected, they die. Many fiends would like to harvest the energy of a dead celestial.

A few celestials have risen to great power and command vast armies of mortals, some of these countries are rules as benevolent dictatorships, while others are harsh totalitarian states.

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