ISSUE 391 | SEptEmbEr 2010 A Dungeons & Dragons® Roleplaying Game Supplement ® Contents Features 5 Dark Sun: Hunters in tHe WastelanD 41 Class Acts: Essentials PyromanCer By Chris Sims By Mike Mearls Ferocious beasts roam the wild places of Athas, making them deadly regions The school of pyromantic magic attracts a certain type of mage: the for travelers. But the wastelands are also fertile ground for hunters. aggressive, the impatient, the angry, and sometimes the doomed. 12 ShaDar-kai in tHe Realms 45 Class Acts: Essentials Staff FigHter By Robert J. Schwalb By Rodney Thompson The shadar-kai are new to Faerûn, and they have much to learn as they The staff is an ancient and simple weapon. Its unpretentious appearance can explore their new home. mask an efficient lethality. 18 Playtest: Essentials Assassin 49 Winning RaCes: DWarves of tHe All-FatHer By Rodney Thompson By Matt Sernett The Player’s Essentials assassin makes its entrance in playtest form. We want Dwarves honor Moradin through prayer and tradition. We honor dwarves your feedback! with a selection of new feats. 38 Class Acts: BattleminDs 52 Winning RaCes: Genasi By Scott Fitzgerald Gray By Peter Schaefer The Ghosts of Nerath are among the last remnants of that fallen empire. Too many genasi lead lives of forced servitude in the Elemental Chaos. The Their quest is to restore the ancient glory that was lost. Amethyst Sea exists to free them. 55 Winning RaCes: Muls By Robert J. Schwalb Muls are iconic to the harsh world of Athas, but you can still import them to other campaigns. COLUMNS 59 Bazaar of tHe Bizarre: 4 Editorial griFnar’s WeaPon ShoP By Steve Winter By Mike Mearls Introducing Unearthed Arcana, an expedition into Grifnar’s Weapon Shop is tiny and uninviting, and Grifnar himself is grumpy the unknown and the unexpected. and unpleasant, but his weapons are top-notch. 75 amPersanD 62 FiCtion: The Watchers at tHe Living Gate By Bill Slavicsek Bill returns to his usual schedule, but that doesn’t By Paul Park mean he has less to say. A shaman finds himself lured to the Feywild. There he will serve as a tool in an eladrin’s dangerous attempt to seal a living gate. 79 Design & DeveloPment: skill CHeCks By Stephen Schubert Shoe discusses the adjusted DCs for skill checks, where they came from, and why they’re important. 82 ConFessions of a Full-time WizarD By Shelly Mazzanoble D&D’s “Player-in-Chief” shares her experiences at PAX. on tHe Cover Illustration by Eva Widermann 85 D&D Alumni By Bart Carroll Bart rides the Wayback Machine to revisit the knight class. 90 D&D Play RePort By Chris Tulach Chris offers exciting details on the summer shows gone by and visions of Gamma World events to come. Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten realms, Eberron, Dungeon, Dragon, d20, d20 System, Wizards of the Coast, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, Inc., in the U.S.A. and other countries. this material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. this product is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, places, or events is purely coincidental. printed in the U.S.A. ©2010 Wizards of the Coast LLC. No portion of this work may be reproduced in any form without written permission. For more Dungeons & Dragons articles, adventures, and information, visit www.wizards. com/dnd edit o r ia l 391 Dr ag on September 2010 Editor-in-Chief Steve Winter Unearthing Senior Art Director Jon Schindehette Web Production bart Carroll Unearthed Arcana Contributing Authors Scott Fitzgerald Gray, Shelly mazzanoble, mike mearls, paul park, peter Schaefer, our ever-inventive research and Development Team Arcana, a venue where we can present fascinating, Stephen Schubert, and writers churn out a lot of material, not all of which off-beat, envelope-stretching Dungeons & Dragons robert J. Schwalb, matt Sernett, makes it into a published product. Some gets cut material that might not be seen any other way. Chris Sims, rodney thompson because a manuscript is too long and something’s gotta It kicks off this month; tomorrow, in fact. The first go; some is rejected for thematic, story, or marketing installment, by Peter Schaefer, uses a modified disease Developers Jeremy Crawford, reasons; some represents speculative forays into terri- format to offer up a menu of curses (as in, when the Stephen Schubert, Greg bilsland tory that looks promising, but no one knows for certain knob-nosed witch lays a curse on you that gold will Editor miranda Horner how it will pan out until actual prospecting is done; and bring you nothing but misery). In the future, you might some is written in spare corners of time for home cam- see rules for more detailed critical hits, twisted paragon Cover Artist Eva Widermann paigns or just for fun. paths or epic destinies, gunpowder weapons, wizards’ We don’t think “it wouldn’t fit” is a good enough duels, bizarre campaign outlines ... we won’t put limits Contributing Artists Alexey Aparin, Eric belisle, excuse to deprive our readers of some dynamite ideas. on the possibilities. mathias Kollros, Slawomir maniak, With that in mind, we’re reintroducing Unearthed All of this comes with one big caveat: none of what William O’Connor, you’ll read in Unearthed Arcana has been through Craig J. Spearing, Kent Williams our normal development cycle. It’s all experimental, optional, and unofficial. You won’t find it in the D&D Publishing Production Angelika Lokotz, Erin Dorries, Compendium or Character Builder. Customer Service Specialists Christopher tardiff won’t provide official answers to questions about unof- Web Development mark A. Jindra ficial rules. Read it, play with it, stress it, twist it to your heart’s Executive Producer, content. If something here goes over especially well, it D&D Insider Christopher perkins could even wind up back on the table of contents for a future product. Director of RPG R&D bill Slavicsek Most of all, let us know what you think at [email protected]. Special Thanks richard baker, Josh Dillard, Chris Sims, Chris tulach, Chris Youngs Behold these mighty judagas. They have tamed the forest demons and claimed the head of the beast that troubled us. Let them divide the bones as trophies, bind the monster’s spirit in its skull, and prosper well with their spoils. They make our land safer. Honor them well. —Lalali-Puy, Oba of Gulg Monster Hunters of Athas By Chris Sims F Illustrations by Alexey Aparin tm & © 2010 Wizards of the Coast LLC. All rights reserved. September 2010 | Dragon 391 5 Monster Hunters of Athas In the bleakness of Athas, opportunity exists only easier passage. Sometimes, monster hunters bring Hunter Traditions where the bold seek it and take it. Those who wish to prey back alive for taming or arena spectacles. Culture varies among the seven cities. So do the tradi- remain free avoid political struggles and the risks of Success in the hunt brings myriad rewards. In the tions that support and define monster hunters in the crime. They instead sell sword and spell for wealth wilderness, a defeated creature’s corpse can provide city-states. and glory, and perhaps, the good of those weaker supplies and raw materials for clothing, weapons, than they are. Countless such mercenaries people the and goods that are less mundane. Captured creatures city-states. can be sold as exotic pets or fodder for gladiatorial Balic A few among these free warriors find their bouts. Hunters, having willingly faced innumerable A sense of civil duty and a desire to be remembered fortunes by facing the horrors of the wastes. Such situations and dangers, become tougher and wilier in civic mythology—immortalized in play and poem hunters keep streets safe by flushing unwelcome over time. They hone their skills for the job, and or the Temple of Heroes—motivates Balican hunters. monsters from hidden dens within settlements. They on occasion, their wounds heal with unpredictable Although the democracy of Balic is a sham, the patri- ply their craft along trade routes to allow softer souls effects from the supernaturally twisted ecology. Scars cians’ and templars’ power and desire for reelection become assets, carrying power within them. makes them ideal patrons for hunters. lesser scions of noble houses have garnered honor for their fami- monster Hunting: a Hunting for fame lies by taking on the service role of monster hunter. Given the community spirit of Balican hunters, Player-driven CamPaign and Profit they are humbler than their Tyrian counterparts, at When you take on the role of a monster hunter least in appearance. Balic has a tradition of gladi- in Athas, you take some control of the course life is cheap on Athas; resources are precious. atorial combat as rich as Tyr’s, and Balic also offers of your campaign. At the very least, you’re tell- Becoming a monster hunter means living a life of easy access to the Silt Sea and the Southern Wastes. ing your Dm that you want to face the worst meaning by providing safety and resources for your Slaying or capturing giants is considered among the Athas has to offer. You’re also suggesting that patrons and others. Hunters live boldly, seeking out you might want to take on the difficult task highest of heroics in Balic. danger and traveling far from the oppression of city of subduing and capturing monsters for vari- ous reasons, from supplying the local arena to authorities.