Player Character Info

(restated from Chris's Artificer/Medicant thread)

The world is called Aerth and it's structure and history is similar to our own planet, except that magic exists there, but it has been suppressed throughout most of human history. Creatures and wielders of magic have long learned to keep their activities secretive...

The American Civil War went 10 years longer. It is finished by the time of the campaign. It is during the Civil War that a great many extra-dimensional rifts appeared, all over the planet. These rifts allowed access of many new and magical beings. However, the activities of these events are still considered to be rare, and governments of the world have been trying to keep them from public scrutiny.

Player characters can choose to be from Aerth or another plane, if they are nonhuman. Some non-humans have lived on Aerth for a long time. They are the Asimar, Atlans, Goliaths, Halflings and Pygmys. Often intermingling or living in communities apart, they have existed on Aerth as long as Humans, or longer.

Other races of a rarer quality will most likely be from another plane, having traveled to Aerth during the Civil War or since that time... Or possibly they arose from a result of "goblinization," either by association with Rift Radiation or some other magic...

Things to be aware of:

~Begin at 3rd level.

~Multiclassing allowed. If you multiclass, be sure to add years/expense training.

~All Races allowed, not all are plentiful:
Common
Human
Uncommon
Asimar, Atlan, Goliath, Halfling, Pygmy
Rare
Dwarf, Elf, Gnome, Goblin, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Hobgoblin, Kobold, Lizardfolk
Unique
Drack, Dromite, Drow, Grippli, Rakasha, Slith, Tengu, Tiefling, Warmech

~All non-evil Classes allowed.

~Use starting wealth Table 8-2 (p.152). Wealth is in dollars. Gold coin dollars are common.

~We are using the Encumbrance rules.

~We are not using Electrotech, The Technics skill, or the Commando theme.

~No Masterwork items.

~Everyone can have a total of +3 in magic weapons. Examples: PC with a +3 sword, or PC with a +2 gun, and +1 dagger, or a PC with three +1 arrows. It's a +3 bonus for both attack and damage.

~Everyone gets 500gp value in additional magic items (basic tier scrolls only).

~Deities are being played as individual energy streams that are associated with particular alignments... It is not mandatory to pick a deity/energy stream. Faithful classes receive their level in Faith points, rather than 1/2 level. These classes are: Cleric, Druid, Invoker, Shaman, Witch, and Paladin.

Who won the Civil War?

Where any of the extradimensional races/factions/classes/beings allied with any particular side?

given the rifts.... did the conflict spill into other regions\countries?

MAS wrote:Who won the Civil War?

Where any of the extradimensional races/factions/classes/beings allied with any particular side?

The North won. Both sides suffered horribly. The South now has an "occupied territory" vibe with Union troops patrolling the streets (still, 10 years later). Both neighborhoods and whole regions are walled off in stone and barbed wire.

Yes, there were some behind-the-scenes factions involved in the war, as well as the creation of rifts... I'm not sure how much info your PC's will be privy to... Since they are beginning at 3rd level, they'll have heard some stuff... It would help if I knew what your background concept is.

Chris wrote:given the rifts.... did the conflict spill into other regions\countries?

Yes, the war spilled thru into other regions of the planet. A few soldiers even made their way to the outer planes... But what more concerned the other countries of Aerth, more than American Civil War, was the crazyness coming out of the rifts.

~It hasn't come up, but if anyone wishes to use the +3 magic item spread for armor, that is fine. The modifier is for Damage Reduction, and the armor's HP are x5 normal, since it's magical.

Robyo wrote:
Yes, there were some behind-the-scenes factions involved in the war, as well as the creation of rifts... I'm not sure how much info your PC's will be privy to... Since they are beginning at 3rd level, they'll have heard some stuff... It would help if I knew what your background concept is.

Robyo wrote:

Yes, the war spilled thru into other regions of the planet. A few soldiers even made their way to the outer planes... But what more concerned the other countries of Aerth, more than American Civil War, was the crazyness coming out of the rifts.

actually.... I don't want to know too much more. I like the mystery and suspense so far! Kind of like low-tech TORG\RIFT without knowing all the meta-knowledge backstory.

Thanks, I want it to be kind of suspenseful...

Definitely enjoyed some Torg and Rifts. Agree that the metaplot kind of ruined the former, and the antiquated, bloated rule system hurt the other.

Rifts in space and time... They are of varying size and intensity, and have a powerful impact on the surrounding area. Riftstorms are not uncommon. Nor is exposure to rift radiation... Rifts can impact spell-casting and interrupt physical laws.



~As bolt-ons to the rules, I'm thinking of adding the following:

~A "Taint" mechanic. Instead of going insane, a fully tainted character could find himself transformed into a new form of some kind. And they become an NPC...

~Within proximity of a rift, spells become more random. I found some great charts to use...

~Critical Hit tables for actual critical hits and when someone takes wound damage.

~I'd like to give more lee-way with Faith Points. They can also be used for:
1pt - Reroll a die, take the second score.
1pt - Health surge of 1d6 + level.
1pt - Add 1d6 to a roll.
2pts - As Augury spell.


We can discuss, if anyone wishes.

I think all those suggestions sound cool.

just as a matter of fairness, maybe Rift Radiation should affect more than just magic - like maybe it can affect technology too, guns misfire or just cease firing or something?

Chris wrote:I think all those suggestions sound cool.

just as a matter of fairness, maybe Rift Radiation should affect more than just magic - like maybe it can affect technology too, guns misfire or just cease firing or something?

Yes, good idea. I'm still working on the mechanic for rift radiation effects on combat,skills,attribute checks...

I'm permitting the propety/estate rules, so characters can have property equal to their starting wealth. There are also a few themes that allow PC's to have an additional $1000 instead of a minor/ability...

I couldn't find it right away, but I think there a rules for a noble title too...


Chris, you might want to consider using some of these rules, if you want to have your drack be a lawman in a town that doesn't fear him...

Because the planet isn't typical fantasy high-magic, I'm electing to institute the Radiance rules for magic abilities (RPG p190). Only for Advanced and Paragon levels however. Thus, at paragon tier, it takes 4 pinches (1/2 teaspoon) of radiance dust (costs 1 gold piece) in addition to usual vitality costs.

Radiance is found in mineral form, but is generally processed into a fine powder for use with magic abilities. Radiance can be found in any location, but is considered quite rare. In areas affected by the rifts however, radiance is much more easily obtained.