EBONROCK RULEBOOK 1 2 Table of Contents History pg. 4 Credits pg.7 Sponsored By Finnbogi Armory and Mercantile pg. 8 Chapter 1 Core Rules pg.10 Chapter 2 Effects and Carriers pg.14 Chapter 3 Combat and Gameplay Rules pg. 21 Chapter 4 Characters pg. 29 Character Point Progression pg. 30 Cast Swaps pg. 30 Between Game Actions (BGAs) pg. 30 Death pg. 31 Locations pg. 32 Races pg. 53 Backgrounds pg. 73 Qualities pg. 74 General Skills pg. 85 Lore pg. 90 Classes pg. 91 Professions pg. 240 Blueprints/Recipes and Experimentation pg. 241 Glossary pg. 286 Organizations, Guilds, and Religions pg. 286 Laws pg. 294 Shaman Traditions pg. 302 Government Ranks and Privileges pg. 303 Economy pg. 304 Common Magic Items pg. 306 Jousting pg. 307 3 An Excerpt from Dean Einheart’s Lectures to New History Students The University of the Heartlands Year 646 After Unification Welcome students to the History Curriculum at the University of the Heartlands. My name is Dean Einheart and I will oversee your curriculum during your two years here. Your studies will start discussing the origins of Ebonrock, known as, The Time of Darkness to the scholars in our field. As many of you surely know, this time period began before the civilized races: draconian, dwarf, elf, golem forged, human, and kazan, came to populate Ebonrock. From what archeologists can gather, only dragons, devils, monsters, and dark powers beyond definition roamed and occupied the land which was shrouded in darkness. Only when the Eternal Flame came to Ebonrock and brought light, did the world become habitable for the civilized races. Only then, did the Eternal Flame bring the humanoid races into the world: including not only the civilized races, but the unicivilized orcs, hobgoblins, and trolls as well. Its creations established The Church of the Eternal Flame, a primitive yet essential form of government, leadership, and worship at the time. You will study this evolution of our species as well as the notes that have been preserved about the initial contact of the druids with nature and shamans with the spirits that was made during this era. Going into the end of the first semester you will study The Schism. Under the guidance of the newly emerged the Disciples of Truth, the Church devoted to the study, preservation, and protection of knowledge, the violent races, including the orcs, hobgoblins, and trolls were cast out and shunned from society due to their destructive practices. Not only will you study how the Disciples of Truth influenced society and built upon what The Church of the Eternal Flame had set into motion, but you will study the early attempts of the civilized races to form individualized cities and nations. Many of these cities were positioned where our current ones stand today, a lasting testament to our ancestors. Your curriculum will cover the progress made, but also the many failings that independent, and often violent, racial tensions and isolation caused as the civilized people left the rule of the faiths and formed a multitude of governments, usually limited in scope and influence to a single city. In your second semester, your studies will progress into the era of The Great Wars. This, of course, will consume the semester as you study it in depth. The first half, will study the Orc War of Dra Dhahid and the first great mage of the Starlight lineage, Neiryn Starlight who, along with the Golem Forged, managed to quench the slaughter. This period will not only include the study of famous battles, but will examine how the influence of the first guns and bits of rudimentary technology influenced not just the war, but set the groundwork for the technology of our civilization today. The conclusion of your study of the Orc War will examine the discovery of Maryon and the role the giant folk played in the latter half of the war. The second half of the semester will focus, as I’m sure each of you can guess, on the War against the Void. Mere months after the Orc War ended, void portals begin appearing over the world. These gateways to a strange world allowed monstrosities, some humanoid some not, to appear anywhere in the world to strike with the single- minded goal, the destruction of all life. Similarly with the Orc War, the semester will include study not only of the major battles, including the final Battle of the Bloody Gorge where the Void general was defeated by Neiryn Starlight, but the foundation of the Order of Exemplars who were instrumental, in securing that victory. Your studies your first year will then end at the point in time when Neiryn Starlight was named Overlord and Protector of Ebonrock for her heroic efforts in the Wars and The Sovereign Assembly was formed by a unification of all major cities in Ebonrock. As you know, this is also the start of the current calendar, with the start of The Sovereign Assembly being year 0. In your second year, you will have the opportunity to cover the time periods encapsulating the remainder of the reign of Neiryn Starlight through the reign of the current Fifth Overlord of the Starlight lineage, Istir Starlight. 4 During the start of the semester you will select an elective based upon your individual interests in history. You will choose from the founding of the Courts of the Assembly and their servants the Justicars and Lawmasters; the drowning of the Great Leviathans in year 158, or the invention of the first flame gates around the year 165 that opened instantaneous magical travel around Ebonrock. Alternatively, you may study the time around when Fene- exfe, the Flying City arrived in the year 276 or when the City of the Dawn and their miraculous healing cures first were discovered in The Shadowlands in 306. Regardless of your elective, all students will finish their third semester studying The First Great Dragon Attack that began in 326 and ended when Phaidra Starlight casted the Edict of Drakes to cause the cousins of the dragons, drakes, once organized and intelligent to become wild and animalistic. They turned on their handlers and attacked the Dragons and their supporters ending the Dragons’ attack, except for Valkus who refused to come to terms and fled deep into the mountains. Your final semester in the curriculum will encompass a comprehensive study on the Golden Age of Technology from around the middle of the third century to the middle of the fifth. You will study how engineers were able to harness the power of the mineral aether and mechanics to form the technology that is the backbone of the great Sovereignty we live in today. To the light posts in the street, to the great trains, to even, recently, the invention of the first hovercrafts, aether has been rapidly expanding our potential as a society. Each region of Ebonrock has developed and embraced technology differently in their lifestyles and you will study the major milestones. The study of this time period will, of course, include The Second Great Draconic Attack, led by Valkus, after the failed Draconic Peace Talks from the years 415-419, as well as the phenomenon of the Burning Sea about one hundred years ago, which as any from the Eastern Coast will tell you, is still burning today. Finally, the last chunk of your semester will include a detailed analysis of the last 100 years including the beginning of the Reign of the fifth Overlord, Istir Starlight in the year 607 after her father’s, Xhaiden Starlight’s passing. Your studies will conclude with the arrival, a few months ago, of the Myst to the North, bringing with it, inexplicably, what appears to be already inhabited land. As you know the Sovereign Assembly is gathering interested explorers to audition for government sponsored expeditions into the Myst to discover what lies inside. Hopefully, if we are lucky, by the time your studies come to such topics, the chosen explorers will have solved the mystery and added another chapter to our books. Well, at this time I would like to wish you all the best of luck on your endeavors here at the University. May the knowledge you learn by as unceasing as your hard work and ambition. Now, I turn you over to your more than capable professors for introductions… 5 6 CREDITS Game Masters Daniel Macdonald: King of the Monsters Dawn Daigneault: Overlord of Finance and Logistics Kurt Young, Jr.: Master of Rules Staff Denna Steigerwalt Shaun Hentchel Michelle Light Rebecca Steigelfest Ebonrock LLC would like to thank: Michael Oldziej for his significant contributions to the game. Cassy Pacheco for her artistic talents in developing our death deck. Darksteel Games for contribution of their lore concerning Ashen Liege (Bound) and the concept of Urbanism Garrett Leavitt and Finnbogi Armory and Mercantile for their generous work in providing props. Eric Larson, Jordan Brown, Tom Morrissette, Mistgate Alumni for their advice throughout the development process. Kyle Young and Kurt Young for their work on the website. Our entire player base for giving us the opportunity to bring our ideas to life for you. Ebonrock is a Limited Liability Company founded in Connecticut. 7 8 Most Recent Change Log Law section updated Section added to each profession about what you start with when you buy a profession Energy cost of 8e assigned to the assassinate skill Ritualists can now use production points to purchase ritual techniques that they are being taught or they find instructions to. “X to Y” effect added to the call list.