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World History The adventure begins in Aram, our home-grown campaign world with gods based on previous player characters. The campaign is in some ways a continuation of Timescape, a recently completed campaign. The PCs from that game are now NPCs in the world.  The game begins in the year 640 C.E. Recent history in Aram has been quite chaotic. From 600-625 was a period known as the Little Wars, when the many small countries and city-states across the continent were constantly battling for territory. There were no ideals, principles, or even clear goals to these wars; they did not end until a small group of heroes, Kiv the Graven, Mil the Necromancer, Gallegos the Littoran, and Ki-Laren the Giant, took in upon themselves to depose the major belligerents and unify the world under their rule. Unfortunately, all was not well after the wars ended. Mil began an ambitious program to rebuild the crumbled cities and towns using undead labor, which horrified the populace as well as his allies. Cracking down in his region with brutal repression of the (in his opinion) ignorant rabble, Mil took over the Western magical province of Xathor, the Fifth Confederacy of barbarians and dwarves to the north, and the Wildlands in the south and west, declaring this entire area the New Kingdom of Xathor, and ruling it with an iron hand. The only holdout to the complete rule of Mil in the west is the city-state of Belde. Kiv and Gallegos, after futile attempts to depose Mil, fled and retired into obscurity. Ki took control of the multiracial Geyser Peninsula to the south, the Giant Coast to the east, and the Central Plains of halfling and kobold farming tribes. Leading an army of giants and halflings, he has held back the tide of Mil's control, and declared this area the Free Kingdoms. At the start of the campaign, the past ten years have been known as the Silent War. Mil's minions have built a magical wall that crosses the center of the continent, permanently dividing the two kingdoms and only allowing passage of trading caravans through one well-guarded gate. Life in the Free Kingdom is relatively peaceful, and the PCs are all residents of the small farming village of Santorium Void near the city of Giant Coast, in the northeast portion of the continent.

Basic Rules The game will be using D&D 3.5E rules (PH, DMG, Spell Compendium) + Arcana Unearthed. Other rules/rulebooks may be approved on a case-by-case basis. Also, no psionics without specific DM approval. Where there is a conflict between the AU and the D&D3.5 rules, the D&D rules take precedence. Rules Variants Critical Hits & Misses The chaos of combat often results in unintentional consequences. If you roll a natural 1 on an attack, you make a second attack roll (just like confirming a critical hit), if you miss again you are required to roll on the DM's critical miss table, which can result in actions such as injuring a companion or breaking your weapon. (Magic items get a save though: reflex DC (10 + attacker's attack bonus + item enhancement) for owner.) Critical hits result in a roll on a similar critical hit table, which may increase the effect or cause unusual events to occur. Instant Kills If a natural 20 is rolled, and then another natural 20 to confirm the critical, an instant-kill is threatened. Repeat the attack roll one more time, and if it hits, the target is instantly slain, no matter his form. No creature, construct, undead or god is immune to this cruel twist of fate. Quirks, Flaws, and Character Death I like quirks and flaws. Usually they cause trouble in RPGs because you get to trade these off for character skills, and everyone games the system. (Has anyone ever played a NON-colorblind char in the D&D 2e Players Option rules???) So here's how I'd like to do it. At first level, everyone has one minor and one major flaw. If you are ever "killed" (according to the game rules), you will eventually recover, since heroes never die. But you will come back with a new flaw. If your body was tended within 1 minute of your death, it will be a minor flaw. Otherwise it will be a major flaw. Feel free to invent quirks and flaws of your own for your character and suggest them to me. Here are some starting ones that you can use if you wish. Minor flaws: Color Blind: An old favorite. Expect lots of color-coded control panels in your way if you choose this one. Minor Enemy: Some annoying creature, such as a mean rat at the tavern or a low-level thug in the thieves' guild, really hates you. Missing finger: This gives an inherent -1 to DEX, and there is some stuff you can't do that will be exactly what you need at some point. Allergies: Some common object makes you sneeze continually, giving a -1 to all die rolls while it is nearby. Even a Potion of Claritin doesn't help. Clumsy: You trip a lot, and your chance of a critical miss in battle is doubled. As is your chance of being beaten senseless by annoyed companions. Minor Phobia: You are scared of something, and when it is around, you get a -1 to all die rolls, and really want to get away from it. Major Flaws: Jinxed: Everyone, whether friend, enemy, or inanimate trap, within twenty feet of you has double the normal chance of a critical miss or a critical failure on skill checks. This includes you. It also stacks, so if multiple members of a party are jinxed you are really screwed. Unlucky: You get -1 to all die rolls, no matter what the cause. Unless, of course, the goal is to roll low, in which case you get a +1. Major Enemy: Some powerful creature, such as a governor, demigod, or red dragon, really hates you. Missing Limb: Obviously this impacts your life in many ways. Major Phobia: You are really scared of something. When it is around, you must make a WILL save, DC 20 + CR, or are only allowed actions are ones that get you far away from it. Complete Mental Block: Some kind of creature or object is totally invisible to you, even if it is in the process of bashing your head in. Homicidal Rage: Whenever you get into battle for any reason (i.e., if initiative rolls ever occur), you must make a WILL save, DC 20 (+1 for each point of damage you have taken before your first action), or you will not stop until you have killed something or destroyed an object worth 100gp times your current level. If your allies try to parley, surrender, warn you the cavern are about to explode and you need to flee, you just don't care. The only cure for your rage is being knocked unconscious, whether by friends or by enemies. Player-Contributed Rules Variants Runeblade class: created by Gigz. Like the AU Mageblade, except that instead of gaining spells, the special abilities are replaced with those of the Runethane, Password is gained at lv7, and Medium armor proficiency is automatic. This class does not gain the Runethane's spell access either.

General Rules In general, we will be using D&D 3.5e + Arcana Unearthed rules. Primarily this means the Players's Handbook, DMG, and Spell Compendium, and the Arcana Unearthed rulebook. Elements of other books/supplements such as spells, items, and prestige classes may be used on a case-by-case basis, with specific approval from the DM. Note that for consistency between PH and AU characters, every non-AU char gets an additional ceremonial (if named) or general/talent (if unnamed) feat when created. Truenames exist in general as in the AU rules. Creating the Characters Character History Before you get bogged down in stats, try to come up with a char history. As mentioned on the main page, at the start you are a resident of the small farming village of Maize. This is a multiracial area, so any PH or AU race is available. The Kobold race is also available for PCs if you want. You should be able to answer the following questions for your character: What do you do for a living, day-to-day? Were you born here, or did you move here for some reason? Why did you acquire an adventuring class, despite being a resident of a small farming town? Who are the major NPCs in your character's history? (Both friends and enemies.) What did you do to/with them? You should specify at least one ally and one enemy by name. What does your char plan to be doing in 10 years? Stats Classes, races, spells, feats, and items from the Players' Handbook, DM Guide, Spell Compendium, and Arcana Unearthed are automatically allowed. Rules from other sources may be used, but must be pre-approved by the DM, and are subject to DM editing. (For example, as we have seen in recent campaigns, Warmages with Mercurial Greatswords can be a bit unbalanced!) Due to their generally weaker spell selection, spellcasters from AU classes (Greenbond, Runethane, Mageblade, Witch, Magister) gain spells and spell slots as if one level higher. At lv1, you have 35 stat buying points. You gain an additional point every level, replacing the 4-level ability increase rule. You also start out with one Hero point. Use it wisely! Max starting gold and hit points for all lv1 chars. You can assume any items that you can afford at 1st level are available for purchase (including magic items.) Flaws do not exist as in the Unearthed Arcana rules-- instead, see the rules in the Game Mechanics section. You must choose a major and a minor starting flaw at 1st level.

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