helsmuth

The majority of what happens in a fantasy metropolis should be "beneath the surface": whether literally (sewers, catacombs and ruins below the city streets); or metaphorically (secret plots and political machinations). I've mentioned the city of Marchion (in Splintered Peace by David Chart ) before. The megadungeon beneath Mage Hill is mostly implied - it is up to the individual DM to populate that location with specific dungeon levels and denizens. The site of Marchion was settled in the distant past, but no one knows by whom. Sometimes strange artifacts are unearthed by people digging foundations for houses, and many think that Mage Hill isn't a natural feature. However, these inhabitants, whoever they were, were long gone before the first recorded attempts to settle the site. Local folk tales tell of the buried complexes they left behind, but no one knows whether these stories have any substance. Aboveground, most of the mages' towers still stand, ...

The "default setting" of D&D is the context that is implied by the Rules As Written. This doesn't refer to any specific fantasy world, like Greyhawk or Mystara. Rather, it takes the "core rules" as a whole and explores the implications and assumptions inherent in such a system. This article in the D&D wiki is a great example: "D&D represents a period in history that is most closely identifiable with the Iron Age: the landscape is dotted with tribes and aspiring empires, the wilderness is largely unexplored, and powerful individuals and small groups can take over an area without having a big geopolitical hubbub about it." In my opinion, it also closely resembles the Wild West (or rather, its fictional depiction) but with swords and sorcery instead of six-shooters. When adventurers reach "name level" they will tend to migrate to the frontier of civilization to establish their stronghold in unclaimed territory. The discovery o...

Cap'n Carver and his crew were smugglers and river pirates who regularly made the journey from Knossos, all the way up the river Brallen from Laveril to Helsmuth. They never went as far as Qualinost, even before the elves closed the border, because elven customs inspectors were known to use divination magic to scan cargo. They wouldn't be as easily fooled by the illusions that the wizard-navigator, Mixail Elets Zaitsev Beloi, cast on the ship and her crew to escape detection. These are the voyages of the pirate sloop Ocean Spray : Captain's log, the 5th of Metageitnion waxing Last summer, while we were docked in Helsmuth, a fresh-faced band of young adventurers hailed the ship, seeking passage downriver. They didn't look like they had much worth stealing, but they might fetch a good price in the slave markets of Knossos. We told them to meet us at the Saucy Wench, a tavern by the docks, at midnight. The bosun, Max the Ax, took a group of swabbies with him to set u...

set your campaign world on fire... A 12-part adventure path for both D&D 4E and D&D 3.5.   Including veteran authors such as Ari Marmell ( Heroes of Horror, Tome of Magic ) , Wolfgang Baur (Editor DUNGEON® Magazine 1992-1995), Wil Upchurch ( Midnight®, Champions of Ruin ) and Darrin Drader ( Book of Exalted Deeds, Serpent Kingdoms ). The trailer above is relatively spoiler-free, unlike the website or the forum on EN World.

Monster Slayer In a society where vampires, werewolves and other creatures of the night subsist parasitically on the blood of innocents, hunting such creatures can be a lucrative career. When citizens are faced with a threat far beyond the capability of their local militia to handle, they would willingly pay a hefty ransom to have it taken care of. That is where the professional slayer steps in: an individual familiar with a wide variety of monsters and trained in the effective means of killing them. Hit Die:  D8 Requirements: Alignment:   Any non-evil Base Attack Bonus:   +4 Skill:  8 ranks in Profession (slayer) Psionics:   Must have a power point reserve of at least 1 power point. Special:   Must have the Collector of Stories skill trick Class Skills: Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Int), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (dungeoneering) (Int), Knowledge (local) (Int),...

Awaken An awakened animal gets 3d6 Intelligence, +1d3 Charisma, and +2 HD. Its type becomes magical beast (augmented animal). An awakened animal can’t serve as an animal companion, familiar, or special mount. A bummer about that last sentence, but anyway this remains a fun spell that nevertheless creates headaches for the DM. The augmented subtype states: A creature with the augmented subtype usually has the traits of its current type, but the features of its original type. An animal has the following features: —d8 Hit Dice. —Base attack bonus equal to 3/4 total Hit Dice (as cleric). —Good Fortitude and Reflex saves (certain animals have different good saves). —Skill points equal to (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) per Hit Die, with quadruple skill points for the first Hit Die. A magical beast possesses the following traits: —Darkvision out to 60 feet and low-light vision. —Proficient with its natural weapons only. —Proficient with no armor. —Magical beasts eat, sleep, and bre...

You look around the dismal hut and jump as you see three ugly faces gawping at you! The room is untidy and contains little more than a straw mattress and a low table. The three creatures, a group of BLACK ELVES, are staring vacantly at you. A heavy, sweet smell hits your nostrils and explains their lethargy. They are puffing at a hookah containing Smoking Weed. One of them gathers himself together enough to talk to you and asks you to join them. What will you do?