The Campaign Builder's Guild

For the record, I have been following this thread. I just don't have too much to contribute.

EDIT:  The gods are going to be defined in this post.  I stole ElDo's format for presenting deities and I find it quite useful, so give him credit for that.  I've posted the template for your, and my own, convenience as well.

Deity Template[spoiler]
Name (Faction, Rank)
Titles
Alignment:
Portfolio:
Domains:
Worshippers:
Symbol:
Cleric Alignments:
Favored Weapon:
History/Relationships:
Appearance:
[/spoiler]

Tisis[spoiler]
Tisis (Ancient, Intermediate Deity)
The Great Dragon
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Portfolio: Dragons, destruction, hate, and greed
Domains: Destruction, Evil, ?
Worshipers: Chromatic dragons, kobolds, blackguards
Symbol: A black claw on a red field
Cleric Alignments:NE, LE, CE, TN
Favored Weapon: Claw (longsword)
History/Relationships: Tisis was the first Ancient to seize upon the power of the First Ones when he came into the world.  Hurriedly stealing as much power as he could find, he used his divine might to create the first dragons in his image.  These great beasts terrorized the early inhabitants of the multiverse, making him quite unpopular amongst the other Ancients.  Once the war agains the Ascendants started, he quickly gained respect for his sheer strength in battle.
Appearance: Tisis either appears as a massive black dragon with smoke spewing forth from it's nostrils and flames flickering in it's jaws or as a knight clad in black blood-drenched armor with a shield bearing his holy symbol.[/spoiler]

Arithera[spoiler]
Arithera (Ancient, Intermediate Deity)
The Barbarian Queen, Mistress of the Forge, The Iron Maiden
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Portfolio: Ogres, smithing, steel, and mountains
Domains: Earth, ?
Worshippers: Ogres, blacksmiths, barbarians
Symbol: A hammer in front of a fire
Cleric Alignments: CN, CE, CG, TN
Favored Weapon: Warhammer
History/Relationships: Arithera was the crafter of lands, forging the world itself.  She then used her great forge to produce a race of tough warriors, capable of surviving the mountains where they would live.  Upon entering the war with the Ascendants, Arithera has dedicated herselves to forging weapons worthy for the gods themselves to wield.
Appearance: Arithera appears as a female ogre, wearing an apron with scorchmarks and holding a massive warhammer in one gloved hand.[/spoiler]

Tabes[spoiler]
Tabes (Ancient, Lesser Deity)
The Emperor Beyond
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Portfolio: Goblinoids, law, and honor
Domains: Law, ?
Worshippers: Goblinoids,
Symbol: a guantleted hand holding a katana with a red hilt
Cleric Alignments: LN, LG, LN
Favored Weapon: Katana
History/Relationships:
Appearance: Tabes appears as a hobgoblin outfitted in golden armor, wielding a flaming katana.  He has also been known to appear as a serene old hobgoblin in white silk robes.[/spoiler]

Hutor[spoiler]
Hutor (Ancient, Intermediate Deity)
The Enlightened, The Benevolent, The Protector
Alignment: Lawful Good
Portfolio: Giants, the mind, and safety
Domains: Good, healing, protection, and Sun
Worshippers: Healers, giants, metallic dragons, and paladins
Symbol: A hand holding the sun
Cleric Alignments: LG, NG, CG, TN
Favored Weapon: Fist (unarmed)
History/Relationships:
Appearance: Hutor appears as a perfectly shaped giant wearing simple white robes and radiating a soft white light.[/spoiler]
Sunetos[spoiler]
Sunetos (Ancient, Intermediate Deity)
The windmaker
Alignment: Neutral Good
Portfolio:  Birds, Desert, horizons, purity
Domains: Air, Force, Travel
Worshippers: Rocs, raptorans, travelers
Symbol: a hawk's outline against a setting sun
Cleric Alignments: NG, TN, CG, LG
Favored Weapon: Longbow
History/Relationships:
Appearance: Sunetos appears as an absolutely massive pure white Roc, with eyes that are so deep you can lose yourself in them.  In humanoid form, She appears as what appears to be a celestial, but is actually just a perfectly formed lithe humanoid with great white wings behind her, garbed in robes of pure white.[/spoiler]

Keia[spoiler]
Keia (Ancient, Intermediate Deity)
The Hexmaster, The Gambler
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Portfolio: Luck, curses, and the ocean
Domains: chaos, trickery, water
Worshippers: Thieves, outlaws, adventurers, and doppelgangers
Symbol: a die with alternating black and white faces
Cleric Alignments: CN, CE
Favored Weapon: Sling
History/Relationships:
Appearance: Keia never appears in the same form twice, although he almost always appears in a humanoid form.[/spoiler]

Duprax[spoiler]
Duprax (Ancient, Intermediate Deity)
Queen of the Wilds
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Portfolio: Nature, freedom, lycanthropes
Domains: plant, animal
Worshippers: druids, rangers, and lycanthropes
Symbol: a tree being struck by lightning
Cleric Alignments: CE, CN, TN
Favored Weapon: Quarterstaff
History/Relationships:
Appearance: Duprax appears as either a massive Wolf, bear, or other animal of the were-variety.  when manifesting in humanoid form, she will often take the shape of a hybrid-form were-wolf garbed in ragged green clothes.[/spoiler]

Onacium[spoiler]
Onacium (Ancient, Lesser Deity)
The Dark Serpent, The Plotter
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Portfolio: Snakes, lies, espionage, shadows
Domains:
Worshippers: Yuan-Ti, assassins, murderers, spies
Symbol: a snake wrapped around a pair of red eyes on a black field
Cleric Alignments: LE, NE, LN
Favored Weapon: Fang (Dagger)
History/Relationships:
Appearance: Onacium appears in any of two forms. Either a massive black snake with emeralds for eyes, or a green-scaled humanoid wearing a tattered grey cloak.[/spoiler]

Gnent[spoiler]
Gnent (Ancient, Lesser Deity)
The Loremaster, Librarian of Time
Alignment: True Neutral
Portfolio: Magic, knowledge, history, secrets
Domains: Knowledge, Magic
Worshippers: Trolls, sages, and wizards
Symbol: a closed book in a clawed hand
Cleric Alignments: TN, LN, LG, LE
Favored Weapon: Claws (Longsword)
History/Relationships:
Appearance: Gnent almost always appears a bespectacled troll bearing a satchel bulging with scroll-cases and musty tomes.[/spoiler]

God/race connections[spoiler]
Tisis - Dragons - Kobolds
Arithera - Ogres - Dwarves, make more barbaric
Tabes - Goblinoids - goblins
Hutor - Giants - Half-giants, make gentler
Plavar - Treants - woodsy homebrew
Keia - (aquatic)Dopplegangers - (aquatic)Changelings
Duprax - Lycanthropes - Shifters
Onacium - Yuan-Ti - Assassin homebrew, edit: change poison to 1d2 con
Gnent - Trolls - Thrin, lessen fire weakness...[/spoiler]

The divine races, along with tidbits on their cultures.  I would like feedback on how to further define the doppelgangers and the Dragons.

Dragons - In the beginning, dragons were fire-breathing behemoths capable of great destruction.  After a great schism, they were divided into the many dragon species which are present on Egridar today.  Most today fly throughout the lands, either helping or harming the denizens of Egridar.

Ogres - In godswalk, ogres are masters of the forge.  They live high in the mountains with a social structure based on varying clans.  Many use their great strength and take up the path of the mercenary, as they find their violent tendencies hard to contain.  Thus, many leave their mountainous homes and venture out into the world to seek their own fortune.

Goblinoids -  The many goblinoid races were created in an effort to defile the world and spread mayhem far and wide.  The savage nature of this people led them to spread decadence wherever they went, calling upon their dark god to give them the plague as a weapon and sabotaging civiliation wherever it might take root.  However, after attacking the ogres and breaking down their budding empire, they found themselves trapped in a feud with this powerful enemy, so now they must struggle merely to survive.

Giants - Giants are the protectors of the weak in Godswalk.  They use their great strength and size to help those less forunate or less capable than themselves.  Though they may seem naiive in helping anyone who asks, they are actually quite wise.  They merely trust to the rule that the one who manipulates a giant, raely lives to manipulate another.  Many giants are peaceful, harboring a great respect for life, however many young giants venture forth into the world in an effort to even the field for good in the moral conflict.

Doppelgangers - Many doppelgangers are insidious and manipulative, using their natural talents to obtain wealth and power.  However, there are a few who use their abilities to become that which they desire most and acquire an identity.  Many successful guilds of assassins and spies were founded by doppelgangers, and so their influence is widespread throughout much of the realm.

Lycanthropes - The embodiment of nature's most feral aspects, natural lycanthropes reside in the unamed wilds of egridar, living as the beasts they are.  Many form tribes for protection, as much of the "civilized" world persecutes them for being wild, and living as they believe their god intended.  Many fo the more devoted lycanthropes take up the mantle of protector, using their great skills to halt the advances of civilization into the frontiers which they call home.

Mercanes - The masters of commerce, the mercanes rule trade on Egridar.  Using their abilities to persuade potential customers and using cruel business tactics to get what they want, the mercanes have a near-monopoly on the economy of Egridar.  Only restricted by their small umbers, they subtly manipulate others to gather ever greater amounts of wealth for themselves.

Yuan-ti - The yuan-ti inhabit the dense tropical forests of Egridar, and from there they influence and nfltrate other cultures, attempting to gather enough power that they can eventually rule the filth they spy upon.  Their belief of natural superiority is often their downfall however, as they refuse to cover weaknesses in their plans due to sheer arrogance.  They have little respect for life other than themselves, and as such ruthlessly perform experiments in attempts to "improve" the humanoids they so despise.

Trolls - Trolls in Egridar aren't just simple-minded brutes, they are the great historians of the world.  Using their great physical strength to stand in the middle of wars and obseerve first-hand, they have no problem gathering witnesses to history.  Sometimes, they will even use their considerbale power to intervene for the sake of an interesting development.  Many venture forth to observehistory as it happens, then retreat to their mountain strongholds and record their observations in great vaults where the knowledge of every generation is kept.

Ooh goody, inspiration's finally come...  There will be 9 ancients, 9 ascendants.  One for each alignment.  The four elements are the source of all arcane magic, as well as the building blocks of the world.  I'll rebuild them soon, but first I'm gonna do some god clipping...

EDIT: The gods that make the cut are...

Tisis, Arithera, Tabes, Hutor, Keia, Duprax, Plavar, Onacium, and Gnent.

I'll work on finishing up the races and Gods now, sorry about the current disorganized state of this project.

Alright, I ask for everyone's help here.  The way things are set up now, goblins are very standard, and gnomes are just going to be a slightly altered version of their prior selves.  I was wondering what everyone thought of making goblins into greedy and grubby little merchants, and replacing gnomes with a winged homebrew?  ust curious of what eveyone thinks about that...

EDIT:  I just started feudal japan in global today, and I'm thinking of making the goblinoids into a pseudo-japanese culture where the actual species defines their caste.  By placing an archipelago by the mountain range of the dwarves, I can still have their conflict.  Make them a group of sea-faring merchants, maybe with some other races adopting their customs to take some of the oriental classes.

Feudal Japan is a great place to draw upon for goblinoid culture. Both are particularly lawful, and the cast system based upon race played a big role when I was writing up Hazra'Ghalduur for Sulos.

Have you considered some sort of military dictatorship like the Shogunate? Maybe a puppet emperor? What kind of role will faith play in their culture?

I've always been fascinated by the early Christian movements in Japan, which frequently came into conflict with the establishment.

Just tossing out some questions for you to think about.

-Nasty-

I was definitely thinking of a military dictatorship.  I was going to use the hobgoblins as samurai, with similar status as they were aforded in feudal japan.  Right now, I am unsure of where to place the bugbears in the goblinoid social structure.  It seems that they lack the mental capacity for maintaining any sort of rule, but they also don't seem like they'd take too kindly to being treated as lower-class citizens.

I debated using a limited form of animism which is present only in the goblinoid homeland.  Thus allowing a pseudo-Shinto as a major religion.  

Right now I am encountering problems with introducing the japan based base classes into other races.  aybe I could advance the cultural diffusion a few years...

Update:  I have decided to make hobgoblins samurai, bugbears serve as peasants, and goblins are merchants.  I have also decided that the relevant oriental base classes of samurai, ninja, wu jen, and shugenja will only be available to the goblinoid races barring specific exceptions based upon extenuating circumstances.  A more barbaric culture formed from outcasts and outlaws will have formed in the mountainous kingdoms of the dwarven homeland, where the two races have fallen into conflict.  

As of now, I need help building a race to fit the wizard niche, and I really need a better way to define the doppelgangers, as they seem to heavily overlap the yuan-ti in theme.

Quoteand I really need a better way to define the doppelgangers

maybe emphasize their formlessness/adjustability over trickery?

i think it'd be neat to have humans as the sub-race of doppels, as the stats kind of jive from a 'formless' perspective. i dont know how well that'd work in your world, though :)

Since that last post, I have come to the conclusion that they will be thrill-sekers.  They use their powers of anonymity to enjoy themselves utterly, as they cannot be caught due to their ability to change shape.  Check out the post on gods a few posts up, Ive been busy there editing, and it's coming along nicely.

Does anyone have any formats for presenting deities?  I feel like the one I'm using could use some modifications...

Still catching up, so I don't know if you've came to a decision on your Trolls yet or not, but I think I came up with a valid compromise for fast healing (since trolls should have some variation of it). Simply boost the amount of healing they gain while resting. Normal races heal 1 hp/level/day of rest, double if they do nothing but rest, and more if they're tended to.

Let Trolls heal at a rate of 1 hp/level/hour of rest. Not hour of travel, they have to be truely resting. But this allows a troll army to move quickly; they sack a town, hunker down in town and rest for a few hours, then move on.

Perhaps let them regenerate lost limbs (something PCs don't typically deal with) within several weeks.

To make these logical, require a troll to consume tripple the required food and water when they're regenerating in such a way. The extra tissue has to come from somewhere.

The Thrin, as they have come to be called, have the fast healing issue settled.  Right now I am trying to adjust their tribal spellcasting ability to provide bonuses to other spellcasters instead of only being useful with 13 Thrin around.  I thought of the Thrin being able to add a metamagic feat to another caster's spell by sacrificing spell slots equal to the difference between the original apell's level and the new level + metamagic

I like the updated gods listed above. When can we expect to see history/relations and appearances for the rest of them?

-Nasty-

In my setting, as it stands now, Dwarves have been reduced to a Bbn like stereo-type.  furs, mountain forges, etc.  I am currently trying to establish a desert culture in my world.  so far, 2 options have been made to appear.

1.  I make dwarves into a LG culture that uses the desert as a place to purify their spirits to beter prepare themselves for when they embark to fight evil.  In this model I use Raptorans descended from Rocs as barbarian tribes in the craggy cliffs of the worlds mountains.  Problem with this model is explaining Dwarves forging metals in a n already uncomfortably hot environment, and whether i can successfully move the metal-working theme over to the raptorans.  in this model, dwarves favored class becomes Paladin and their racial ability modifiers are +2 Con, -2 Int.

2.  Use Raptorans as the desert culture, dwarves stay as they are now.  Problem with this is that paladins are built to use heavy armor, and Raptorans cannot fly with heavy armor.  However, the desert feel I think complements the raptoran's as a desert race.

So, opinions, comments?  please help...