Sample file
In Ptolus, there’s always something going on beneath the surface. Sample file ª
CITY BY THE SPIRE
BySample Monte fileCook
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WWW.PTOLUS.COM 4 PTOLUS: MONTE COOK’S CITY BY THE SPIRE TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword And Acknowledgments ...... 10 INTRODUCTION
■ From My Campaign to Yours Understanding a Setting ...... 11 The Perfect Guidebook ...... 12 Fantasy d20 in Microcosm ...... 12 Understanding the Stat Blocks . . . .12 Where Do I Start? ...... 13
PART I: PTOLUS PLAYER’S HANDBOOK
■ Chapter 1: The Conciliators ...... 24 The Sorn ...... 26 A Player's Guide to Ptolus Delver’s Guild ...... 24 Sisterhood of Silence ...... 26 Introduction to the City ...... 16 Dreaming Apothecary ...... 24 The Vai ...... 26 Campaign Feel ...... 17 The Fallen ...... 24 Viridian Lords ...... 26 The City of Ptolus ...... 17 Fate Weavers ...... 24 Religion ...... 26 Rulers ...... 18 The Forsaken ...... 25 The Church of Lothian . . . . .26 The Authorities and the Law .18 HealersSample of the Sacred file Heat . .25 Important Individuals in Ptolus .27 The Forces of Light ...... 18 Inverted Pyramid ...... 25 People From History ...... 28 The Dark Side ...... 18 Keepers of the Veil ...... 25 The World (and Beyond) ...... 28 The People of Ptolus ...... 18 Killraven Crime League . . . .25 Outside the City Walls . . . . .28 Districts of the City ...... 19 Knights of the Golden Cross .25 Customs ...... 28 The Undercity Market ...... 22 Knights of the Pale ...... 25 History ...... 29 The Look of Ptolus ...... 23 Longfingers Guild ...... 25 Two Emperors ...... 29 Noble Houses ...... 23 The Malkuth ...... 25 Life Under the Empire . . . . .29 Organizations ...... 24 Order of the Fist ...... 26 The Empire Today ...... 30 Balacazar Crime Family . . . . .24 Pale Dogs ...... 26 Timeline ...... 30 Brotherhood of Redemption .24 The Shuul ...... 26 Creating a Character ...... 32 Common Races ...... 32 Minor Races ...... 33 Other NPC Races ...... 34 Names ...... 34 Character Background ...... 34 Character Classes ...... 35 Level ...... 36 Magic ...... 36 Spells ...... 36 Blessed Children ...... 36 The Wintersouled ...... 36 Equipment ...... 36 Firearms and Technology . . .37 TABLE OF CONTENTS 5
PART II: BACKGROUND CREDITS WRITING: ■ Chapter 2: The World Keepers of the Veil ...... 119 Monte Cook The Moon and Stars ...... 40 Killraven Crime League . . .121 EDITING AND PRODUCTION: The Empire ...... 40 Knights of the Chord . . . . .123 Sue Weinlein Cook Gazetteer ...... 41 Knights of the Golden Cross 124 Languages ...... 44 Knights of the Pale ...... 125 COVER ART AND LOGO: Special Materials ...... 45 Knights of Shadow ...... 127 Todd Lockwood Longfingers Guild ...... 128 ■ Chapter 3: Races The Malkuth ...... 129 CARTOGRAPHY: Major Races ...... 48 Naltegro Suun ...... 130 Ed Bourelle Minor Races ...... 50 Order of Iron Might ...... 130 FEATURED ARTISTS: Information Panel: Racial and Pactlords of the Quaan . . . .130 Cultural Relations ...... 53 Pale Dogs ...... 131 Jason Engle, The Forge Studios (Maciej NPC Races ...... 57 The Shuul ...... 131 Zagórski and Pawel Dobosz), Michael Sisterhood of Silence ...... 134 Komarck, Eric Lofgren, Howard Lyon, ■ Chapter 4: Cosmology The Sorn ...... 137 and Michael Phillippi. and Religion Soul Riders ...... 137 Elder Gods ...... 59 Urthon Aedar ...... 138 CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS: The Galchutt ...... 60 The Vai ...... 139 Toren “MacBin” Atkinson, Kev Praemal as a Prison Plane . . .61 Viridian Lords ...... 140 Crossley, Talon Dunning, Brian Hell Without its Masters . . . .62 Using Organizations ...... 141 LeBlanc, Alan Pollack, rk post, Peter The Malkuth ...... 63 Schlough, J.D. Sparks, Arne Swekel, The Ethereal Sea and Sam Wood, and Kieran Yanner Ethereal Islands ...... 63 Religion in Ptolus ...... 64 GRAPHIC DESIGN: The Church of Lothian . . . . .64 Lisa Chido and Brian Rasmussen New Gods ...... 68 Cults of Chaos ...... 71 TYPESETTING: Lisa Chido ■ Chapter 5: History Sample file PROOFREADING: Timeline ...... 74 Prehistory ...... 75 Brian Gute and Miranda Horner Eslathagos Malkith ...... 75 INDEXING: The Age of the Elder Titans .77 Lori Ann Curley Information Panel: The Imperial Line ...... 78 MIDTOWN PARTISAN: The Utterdark of Ghul . . . . .81 Erik Mona Rise of Empire ...... 83 The Decline ...... 83 PTOLUS RESIDENTS: Michele Carter, Andy Collins, Sue ■ Chapter 6: Organizations Cook, Bruce R. Cordell, Jesse Decker, Noble Houses ...... 87 Erik Mona, Christopher Perkins, Sean Balacazar Crime Family . . .100 K Reynolds, and Keith Strohm Brides of Magic ...... 106 Brotherhood of Redemption .107 VISITORS TO THE CITY: Circle of Green ...... 108 Steven “Stan!” Brown, Jeff Quick, Keri Dark Leaf ...... 108 Reynolds, Charles Ryan, Ed Stark, and Delver’s Guild ...... 108 James Wyatt The Fallen ...... 110 Fate Weavers ...... 112 HEROES OF ANCIENT PRAEMAL: The Forsaken ...... 112 Michele Carter, Bruce R. Cordell, The Guilds ...... 114 Christopher Perkins, John Rateliff, Inverted Pyramid ...... 115 Teresa Reid, and Sean K Reynolds 6 PTOLUS: MONTE COOK’S CITY BY THE SPIRE PART III: CITY GUIDE
■ Chapter 7: ■ Chapter 11: Necropolis ■ Chapter 17: Temple District The City by the Spire The Flavor of the Necropolis . .228 The Flavor of the Temple The Flavor of the City ...... 144 Running the Necropolis ...... 228 District ...... 368 Demographics ...... 145 People of the Necropolis ...... 230 Running the Temple District . . .369 Information Panel: Necropolis Rumors ...... 231 People of the Temple District . .370 The Districts of Ptolus ...... 146 Necropolis Locations ...... 232 Temple District Rumors ...... 371 Government ...... 147 The Dark Reliquary ...... 238 Temple District Locations . . . . .372 The Economy ...... 154 Information Panel: The Godsday City Layout ...... 156 ■ Chapter 12: Nobles' Quarter Festival and Tournament . . . . .392 Information Panel: Flavor of the Nobles’ Quarter .279 Miscellaneous Temple Ptolusites: A Character Study .157 Running the Nobles’ Quarter . .280 District NPCs ...... 397 Natural Features ...... 159 People of the Nobles’ Quarter .282 On the Streets ...... 160 Nobles’ Quarter Rumors . . . . .283 ■ Chapter 18: Warrens Climate ...... 162 Nobles’ Quarter Locations . . . .284 The Flavor of the Warrens . . . .400 Getting Around Town ...... 162 Running the Warrens ...... 401 Information Panel: ■ Chapter 13: North Market People of the Warrens ...... 402 Outside of Ptolus ...... 163 Flavor of the North Market . .302 Warrens Rumors ...... 403 The Flow of Information . . . .164 Running the North Market . . .302 Warrens Locations ...... 403 Using the District Chapters . . .167 People of the North Market . . .303 North Market Rumors ...... 305 ■ Chapter 8: Docks North Market Locations . . . . .305 The Flavor of the Docks ...... 170 Information Panel: Running the Docks ...... 171 Eating in Ptolus ...... 306 People of the Docks ...... 171 Docks Rumors ...... 172 ■ Chapter 14: Oldtown Docks Locations ...... 172 The Flavor of Oldtown ...... 312 Miscellaneous Docks NPCs . . .176 Running Oldtown ...... 313 People of Oldtown ...... 313 ■ Chapter 9: OldtownSample Rumors . . . . file...... 314 Guildsman District Oldtown Locations ...... 314 The Flavor of the Guildsman Information Panel: District ...... 179 Dweomer Street ...... 333 Running the Guildsman Miscellaneous Oldtown NPCs .338 District ...... 180 People of the Guildsman ■ Chapter 15: District ...... 181 Rivergate District Guildsman District Rumors . . .183 The Flavor of Rivergate ...... 342 Guildsman District Locations . .184 Running Rivergate ...... 342 Miscellaneous Guildsman People of Rivergate ...... 345 District NPCs ...... 193 Rivergate Rumors ...... 344 Rivergate Locations ...... 344 ■ Chapter 10: Midtown The Flavor of Midtown . . . . .196 ■ Chapter 16: South Market Running Midtown ...... 197 Flavor of the South Market . . .350 People of Midtown ...... 197 Running the South Market . . . .352 Midtown Rumors ...... 198 People of the South Market . . .352 Midtown Neighborhoods . . . .198 South Market Rumors ...... 352 Midtown Locations ...... 200 South Market Locations ...... 353 Information Panel: A Dozen Information Panel: Rules of Tavern Etiquette . . . .217 Gambling Games ...... 359 Miscellaneous Midtown Miscellaneous South Market NPCs ...... 222 NPCs ...... 366 TABLE OF CONTENTS 7
PART IV: BELOW THE CITY PTOLUS CREATIVE TEAM MONTE COOK has worked professionally in the game industry since 1988 for ■ Chapter 19: ■ Chapter 21: companies including Iron Crown What’s Down There? The Sewers Enterprises, TSR Inc., and Wizards of the The Draw of the Realm Below .414 The Nature of the Sewers . . . . .439 Coast. He is a codesigner of Dungeons & Dragons® 3rd edition and author of Undercity vs. Dungeon ...... 415 Layout of the Sewers ...... 440 the Dungeon Master’s Guide. He also Using the Underlevels Using the Sewers ...... 440 designed the HeroClix system of super- in the Campaign ...... 416 System Monitors ...... 442 hero combat for WizKids Games and Pits of Insanity ...... 416 A Ratman Nest ...... 442 has published two novels, in addition Ghul’s Labyrinth ...... 418 to his work with his own company, Malhavoc Press. In his spare time he Information Panel: ■ Chapter 22: runs games, builds vast dioramas out The Banewarrens ...... 419 The Caverns of LEGO building bricks, paints minia- Running the Caverns ...... 447 tures, and reads a lot of comics. Visit his ■ Chapter 20: The Undercity The Giant’s Staircase and website at
General Locations ...... 472 ED BOURELLE played his first character Specific Locations ...... 476 (Eddie the dwarf) at the age of eight. Dwarvenhearth Scenarios . . . . .483 Primarily self-taught as an artist, Ed has worked as a graphic designer, art direc- tor, and illustrator since 1993, doing Sample file transit design, commercial storyboards, advertisements, and interactive maps. PART V: ABOVE THE CITY In 2001 he started SkeletonKey Games and found a foothold in the game industry as a cartographer. A year later, Ed left his day job to pursue cartogra- phy full time. “Full time” has been an ■ Chapter 24: Goth Gulgamel understatement ever since. Ed lives in Inhabitants ...... 486 Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with his wife The Nature of Goth Gulgamel .487 and two cats. Visit his website at Fortress Layout ...... 488
HOWARD LYON studied Illustration at Brigham Young University. For the last 11 years he has been working as an art director in the video game industry and as a freelance illustrator. Howard's work has been published internation- ally and has been shown in galleries around the Southwest. At the moment, he is chained to his desk, deep in his art cave. Visit
MICHAEL PHILLIPPI has worked as a graphic designer and illustrator for almost ten years. After receiving his MFA in illustration, he taught at the Savannah College of Art & Design before becoming a concept artist for Mythic Entertainment’s Warhammer Online game. In between freelance art jobs he flies kites and explores. Visit
Using the Poster Map ...... 656 Using the Handouts ...... 656 Using the Bookmarks ...... 657 Using the CD-Rom ...... 657 Locales Glossary ...... 658 NPCs Glossary ...... 660 Information Panel: Friends and Foes ...... 665 General Index ...... 666 Open Game License ...... 669
In the Envelope City of Ptolus/The Spire Poster Map Color Handouts (16) Black-and-White Handouts (8) CD-Rom Bonus Material The Player’s Guide to Ptolus PART VII: The Night of Dissolution RUNNING A PTOLUS CAMPAIGN The Banewarrens Adventure Chaositech Sourcebook Arcana Evolved Conversion ■ Chapter 31: Campaign Advice ■ Chapter 34: Monsters Document Weaving Together a Campaign .576 Blessed Child ...... 618 Handouts (printer-friendly) Campaign Hooks and Goals . .579 D’Stradi Demon ...... 620 Campaign Journals Campaign Villains ...... 580 Ochremeshk ...... 623 “Saga of the Blade” The Ptolus Book ...... 580 Ratman ...... 625 Ptolus Comic Book Issue 1 Rhodintor ...... 628 Ptolus Miniatures Gallery ■ Chapter 32: ShaadomSample ...... file...... 629 Ptolus Adventure Map: Urban Campaigns Skulk ...... 630 Korben Trollone’s Office The Urban Adventure ...... 581 Wintersouled ...... 632 This Week in Ptolus Allies, Aid, and Healing ...... 583 Zaug ...... 633 Expanded Table of Contents Urban Player Characters . . . . .584 Searchable Index Plotting Urban Adventures . . . .585 ■ Chapter 35: Magic Full Ptolus Map Key Ptolus Random Encounters . . .585 Soul Magic ...... 635 Handling Dangerous Events . . .586 Clerical Domains ...... 636 Magic Items ...... 638 ■ Chapter 33: Adventures Spell List ...... 638 The Flow of the Adventures . . .588 Spell Descriptions ...... 639 Getting Started ...... 589 Foreshadowing ...... 589 ■ Chapter 36: Prestige Classes Adventure 1: Forsaken Shigmaa ...... 646 The Murderer’s Trail ...... 590 Inverted Pyramid Initiate . . . . .650 Interlude 1: Prestige Classes From the The Trouble With Goblins . . . .595 Core Rules ...... 650 Adventure 2: Inverted Pyramid Adept ...... 651 Smuggler’s Daughter ...... 597 Inverted Pyramid Master . . . . .651 Adventure 3: End of the Trail .609 Knight of the Chord ...... 652 Interlude 2: Prestige Classes From the The Missing Wafers ...... 611 Books of Eldritch Might and Adventure 4: Shilukar’s Lair . . .612 Hallowed Might ...... 653 Further Adventures ...... 617 Knight of the Pale ...... 654 10 PTOLUS: MONTE COOK’S CITY BY THE SPIRE
FOREWORD
In many ways, what you hold in your hands is a piece of game history. Ptolus (pronounced “TAW-luss”) was the first Third Edition campaign played by anyone, anywhere. The campaign actually started in 1996, shifting from Second to Third Edition when the new rules were ready for playtest. That makes it the first-ever Third Edition playtest campaign, and thus the oldest and longest-running Third Edition game in the world. And it’s still going strong.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS his book details a place where the game’s designers, editors, creative directors, and business managers all played characters. Prowling the city’s streets you would find characters run by These people and things played T the Editors-in-Chief ofDragon ® and Dungeon® Magazine, the Wizards of the Coast Brand a significant part in the Manager in charge of Roleplaying Games, Wizards’ RPG Design Manager and his counterpart in the creation of this massive tome, Development department, and longtime game designers and editors such as Bruce Cordell, Sean even if indirectly, and thus they Reynolds, Michele Carter, Andy Collins, and Sue Cook. In other words, for years, Ptolus has been where the game’s professionals come to play. Some of the have my thanks: events in this setting have passed into gaming legend, like the total party kill suffered by the Company Kelley Barnes-Herrmann, of the Black Lantern or Serai Lorenci’s betrayal of his entire party—or how his brother Sercian was Phil Boulle, Ed Bourelle, Dean kidnapped and replaced by a dark elf for months of game time. Now it’s time for you to create your own legendary stories here. Burnham, Michele Carter, Mike I love Ptolus. I understand Ptolus. More than any other place I’ve ever set a campaign, these city Chaney, Andy Collins, Sue Cook, streets seem real to me. In compiling this book, I’ve had plenty of detailed computer files and player Bruce Cordell, Jesse Decker, handouts from my home game to refer to, but I also found many cryptic notes scribbled on various Denmark (and new friends pieces of paper or alongside a map. These tidbits came to me as the city percolated in my head—the there), fans of The Banewarrens, place lived and breathed even when I had no players around my game table. I could just as easily Red Garland, Gateway envision a meeting of the Council of Coin and hear their debates as I could see what the player char- acters were up to inSample their adventures. file Computers, Gen Con, Get Fuzzy, Far more than any notes, though, Ptolus existed in my head. I could give you a district-by-district Brian Glass, Godspeed You Black tour of the city, pointing out landmarks, shops, and even people on the street (by name) without ever Emperor, Gary Gygax, Conrad referring to a map or notes. In a way, Ptolus is as real to me as any city in which I’ve actually lived. Hubbard, everyone working Though it can be a hard place, it’s a city I know—like a friend you like to spend time with even on Lost, H.P. Lovecraft, Marley, though he has his faults. I love Ptolus. I hope that you and all the people around your game table will grow to love it too. China Mieville, Matt Milberger, Moreover, I hope that my own personal affection for the city comes through as you read this book. Erik Mona, Monster Energy The material in these chapters is tested and true, played by real gamers with a love of the game. As I Drink (lo-carb), Grant Morrison, ran my campaigns set in Ptolus (as of this writing, there have been three, plus the predecessor Praemal Chris Perkins, Porcupine Tree, Campaign), I encountered the same issues that all DMs come upon. Hopefully my experiences with posters on our message boards, them will make game play easier for you. Jeff Quick, John Rateliff, Reduced What is Ptolus? Imagine a cosmopolitan fantasy city where humans, elves, and dwarves rub elbows with orcs, ratmen, and stranger creatures. A city built upon the ruins of two previous settle- Fat Wheat Thins, Sean Reynolds, ments, creating a mazelike undercity full of dangerous (but lucrative) chambers just waiting to be Rufus, Charles Ryan, Seattle’s discovered. A frontier port ruled by a power-mad theocracy amid the decay of a collapsing Empire. weather, Morgan Spurlock, A place where crime families war openly and noble houses battle discreetly—with equally deadly Sony Electronics, Source Comics results. A city where magic is familiar, adventurers are welcome, and thousands of residents dwell and Games, Spock's Beard, beneath the shadow of a Spire crowned with a citadel of evil so strong that the very earth thrust it away from itself untold ages ago. Stan!, Tortoise, two different Welcome to Ptolus. ergonomic keyboards and three (optical, not blind) mice, Aaron Voss, Steve Wieck, Stewart Wieck, Fred Yelk, and Yes. INTRODUCTION: FROM MY CAMPAIGN TO YOURS 11
Introduction: FROM MY CAMPAIGN TO YOURS
Ptolus is designed to serve as either an entire campaign or a well-detailed city that you can drop into your own setting. That dual purpose makes for a huge design challenge. To be its own setting, Ptolus needs to be something special. On the other hand, to be a city anyone can use, it can’t be too weird. So Ptolus is meant to fall somewhere in between. The focus, basically, is to take all the aspects inherent to d20 System fantasy games and bring them to life in a single city.
ampaign setting products are an inter- UNDERSTANDING A SETTING esting breed. In the past, there seem to In writing this book, I tried to examine what a C have been two types. The first is the DMSample needs to run a game file in a specific setting, and kind that gives just a brief overview of the what the players need to create and play charac- setting in a gazetteer fashion. The other type is ters in it. What I realized was that, more than something that presents every minor detail of a anything, the DM and players have to understand The success of a campaign setting, usually involving dozens of support a setting to use it best. For example, you likely depends much on the DM’s products. don’t know everything and everyone in every investment in the setting and These products appeal to two different kinds building in the town where you live, but you on the enthusiasm that comes of gamer. First, the people who just want the probably understand that town. You know where through naturally as a result facts as quickly and efficiently as possible, with things are, you know how to get around, you of that investment. maybe a few hints and hooks thrown in to build know the kind of people that live there, and you upon, go for the gazetteer-style books. Members know a lot about certain places (your home, your The first time I ran a campaign of the second group want total immersion. They school, your office, the grocery store, etc.). set in Ptolus, I set up a meta- want to learn everything they can about the fic- It’s my goal to help you to really understand game house rule that simply told tional campaign setting, as if it were a real Ptolus. I’ve tried to run games set in published the players they weren’t to leave place. Ptolus is aimed more at the second group settings before, and it was rare that the designer the city: Their characters could than the first—but I think you’ll see that it gave me enough of the right kind of information leave Ptolus to run an errand or approaches the idea of “total immersion” in a to help me extrapolate what was over the next visit a relative, but it wouldn’t be new way. hill, as it were. I got what I was given, but it a part of the action of the game. Now that you hold this weighty tome, the didn’t impart the big idea of the place. I didn’t The second time, I made no such largest gaming book ever produced by a single understand that fictional place the way I under- rule—it wasn’t necessary. The author, you’re probably thinking that every last stood a city I’ve really been in. players didn’t want to leave. location and NPC in the city must be listed in I think it’s all about the right kind of details. here. Well, that’s not the case. I’m sorry if that’s I’ve run a campaign set in Ptolus for many years, disappointing. Such completeness was never my yet I haven’t needed to know the contents of every intention, though. It’d be a novelty to create shelf of every shop in town. However, I have had such a product, but does a DM really need that to get a good grip on such things as the kinds of level of information? groups that live in the city. I needed to know, at a 12 PTOLUS: MONTE COOK’S CITY BY THE SPIRE
UNDERSTANDING moment’s notice, the best place for adventurers to the more general information, but through example. THE STAT BLOCKS buy more arrows. I needed to know where the The precise details spark adventures, and the criminals lived, and what the local residents did expansive information forms them into a campaign. Throughout this book, you’ll find with that information. What does a resident look But there’s a middle ground, as well. That’s the many, many stat blocks for NPCs like, and what does an outsider look like? But more adventure material. Part VII of this book provides (nonplayer characters). The than that, I had to be able to describe the various you with a way to start a campaign here and specif- standard method of displaying parts of Ptolus so that the players not only under- ic adventures to get players involved in various stats looks like this: stood it, but believed in it. Not just what the locations and aspects of Ptolus life. But other mate- Ironworkers’ Guild headquarters looks like, but rial, such as the Temple of the Rat God in the Larel Notan (male human why it looks that way. Thewhy is important—if the Temple District, Kadmiel the Shade Tower in expert4/wizard2). PCs explore that area, do the nearby buildings look Oldtown, the Dark Reliquary in the Necropolis, or similar? What does the description of the headquar- the entirety of the Goth Gulgamel and Jabel A longer, more detailed stat ters tell me about the neighborhood around it? It’s Shammar chapters, present ready-to-run adventure block appears for characters that one thing for a game designer to describe well locations. There’s enough adventure material in this PCs are likely to get involved in a enough for the DM to relate that information to book to fill your campaign all by itself. combat situation, either as allies the players, but it’s quite another thing to get the Sprinkled throughout the book, I occasionally or enemies, or when the charac- DM to understand the setting so well that the include side notes regarding why something is the ter is of major importance to the designer no longer needs to provide that descrip- way it is in Ptolus, from a game designer’s point of campaign. These full stat blocks tion. You’ve heard the saying, “Give a man a fish view rather than a Ptolus resident’s point of view. look a little different than the and he eats for a day; teach him to fish and he eatsMost major aspects of the setting are what they are standard d20 System format. for a lifetime”? Well, give a DM a location and he for a reason, from Jabel Shammar—the fortress The goal in modifying the runs an encounter; give him an understanding of atop the Spire, which literally looms over every- format was to improve its the setting and he runs a campaign. thing the players do and serves as the towering usability without making the potential finale of the campaign—to Delver’s stat block any longer. Here are THE PERFECT GUIDEBOOK Square—a centralized “mini-town” catering to a few notes on the differences So then I had to ask myself, how do people come virtually all an adventurer’s needs, for players you’ll see in the full stat bock: to understand a place they’ve never been? who want to focus on dungeon exploration rather Fortunately, there’s an answer to that question: than city politics. Crucial Skills are those likely to Typically, they buy a guidebook. So, as I worked on be used in an active encounter this book, I didn’t examine a lot of different setting FANTASY D20 IN MICROCOSM with the PCs. These do not books for inspiration. I looked at travel books, par- As I mentioned above, Ptolus is meant to be the usually include Craft, Knowledge, ticularly those geared toward cities: London, d20 System in microcosm. It embodies all that is or Profession skills, for example, Chicago, Rome, and Hong Kong. I looked at how fundamental to the game, but it does so in the but do include Listen, Spot, they presented information, the kind of details they space of a single city. That means there are dun- and the like. gave, and the kind theySample ignored. These books file influ- geons to explore as well as townsfolk with whom enced not just what I wrote, but the art and maps to interact. There are strange magical mysteries to Likewise, Crucial Feats also we used and how we presented the material. discover, demons to fight, and even dragons. are those that come into play Travel guidebooks cover topics both broadly and Ptolus is truly a city of adventure—PCs don’t have during an active encounter. The deeply. But the depth is selective. A guidebook dis- to leave it to embark on amazing adventures. bonuses from such feats as cusses the cuisine of the area covered and describes Ptolus is the union of some aspects of real-world Improved Initiative or Weapon a handful of restaurants in detail, including food medieval Europe (as real as is fun) with the rules Focus are already added into the quality, price, service, atmosphere, and maybe even and flavor of the d20 System. When I wrote in the character’s statistics, so they are the staff. But it doesn’t tell you about every restau- Third Edition DMG that merchants might hire not considered crucial. Neither rant, and it certainly doesn’t provide that level of wizards to use detect thoughts and see invisibility are the various Craft Item feats, detail for every single restaurant in town. to deter crime, and that bars might post signs for- Brew Potion, etc. That means Ptolus is a unique mixture of both bidding detection spells so the patrons can relax, general ideas and specific details. Reading this book I was thinking of Ptolus. (cont’d on the next page) will teach you about human customs versus elven The Ptolus Campaign is the d20 rules with the ones, and the events leading to the creation of the volume turned all the way up. I created the world Empire of Tarsis. But you’ll also read about the with the game rules in mind. The conceits of the scandal that erupted over the relationship between game became the conceits of the setting. The feel the leader of the Fire Brigade and the Commissar’s of the rules was the feel of the city. If the rules daughter. You’ll learn which tavern dwarves are suggested that something might happen a lot, then most likely to frequent, and you’ll find out the in Ptolus, it happened a lot. The effects of 1st-level dreaded, still-undiscovered secret of Jabel Shammar. spells come as a surprise to no one here. Tangle- The goal of this approach is to familiarize DMs foot bags, rings of protection,and the druid’s with enough broad information about Ptolus that animal companions are taken for granted. it starts to feel liketheir city. The details serve as I loved it when a player of mine said, “I poly- nuggets that illustrate specific aspects of the city’s morph myself into a troll and run out into the flavor—these details accomplish the same thing as street after the thief.” INTRODUCTION: FROM MY CAMPAIGN TO YOURS 13
of the setting—those are for the DM to reveal as (cont’d from page 12) time goes on. If you want to hand out just that section to your The Special Abilities and players, you can find A Player’s Guide to Ptolus as a Special Qualities sections of the free downloadable PDF file at
layer characters, having spent their lives in Ptolus—or at least in the same world as this city—certainly know a fair bit about the place. P The following section should be required reading for a player creat- ing a character for the Ptolus Campaign. Moreover, DMs should also read the material, as it summarizes much of the general information about the setting. The rest of the book provides more specific detail, but it all builds from the information found in this player’s guide. DMs should feel free to make this information available to all players in whatever way is easiest. Permission is granted to photocopy the player’s guide (pages 16 to 37), or download the information as a free PDF file at
Introduction to the City ...... 16 Campaign Feel ...... 17 The City of Ptolus ...... 17 Organizations ...... 24 Religion ...... 26 Important Individuals in Ptolus ...... 27 The World (and Beyond) ...... 28 History ...... 29 Creating a Character for the Ptolus Campaign . .32 Names ...... 34 Character Background ...... 34 Magic ...... 36 Equipment ...... 36 16 PTOLUS: MONTE COOK’S CITY BY THE SPIRE
Chapter 1: A PLAYER’S GUIDE TO PTOLUS
A city of mysteries, secrets, and dark histories, Ptolus lies forever in the shadow of a towering stone spire reaching impossibly high into the sky, an enigma and reminder of evil long past. In Ptolus, the supernatural is expected and treachery lies around every corner—or is it that the supernatural lies around every corner and treachery is expected? Either way, the city of Ptolus abounds with danger, magic, intrigue, and above all, adventure.
FROM MY CAMPAIGN his chapter is designed to introduce you or not it has toppled. Three different emperors TO YOURS as a player to the fundamentals of Ptolus, claim the throne, and portions of the once great T so that youSample can create and run afile charac- realm cleave off like icy shards from a melting In my original Ptolus Campaign, ter with plenty of knowledge about the world. glacier. This decaying society looks upon previous the characters started out not as The city is rich enough in detail that it’s difficult centuries and sees grander, more civilized, and Ptolus natives, but as a group of to absorb it all at once, so keep this information certainly better days. Progress seems on the unconnected individuals waiting handy as a reference while you play in the Ptolus decline—skills and lore that people possessed just in line to enter through the Campaign—and be prepared to discover that the a few hundred years ago are lost now. city gates. information you learn in these pages is only the But this is not a time to lose hope altogether. very briefest overview. This civilization, older than our own real-world cultures, is more sophisticated than our own in INTRODUCTION TO THE CITY some ways, but less so in others. A myriad of You are a native of a port city called Ptolus, or races and peoples have come and gone, creating you have recently arrived there. Native or not, an intricate (and sometimes confusing) amalgam. you know a few things about this city—it is not Good struggles against evil, and law against without a reputation, to say the least. To call chaos. But the shadows only threaten the light— Ptolus a dynamic place with a strange and they do not yet consume it. varied identity is to understate the situation Not so long ago, the first men and women greatly. Only now are explorers truly discover- who would one day be called “delvers” returned ing how ancient the city really is and unearthing from exploring the catacombs below the city of details of its varied history. Ptolus is where that Ptolus laden with gold and magical treasures. strange breed that calls itself “adventurers” Today, hundreds of new would-be delvers pour congregates. It’s a place where people are as into the city each month, hoping to strike it rich concerned with what lies below the ground as like others before them. Most never crawl up they are with what’s above. This is like no place from the realms below, but adventurers keep else in the world. arriving with dreams of gold and fame. Those Ptolus lies in the world of Praemal within the who do emerge back into the light bring with bounds of a very old Empire unsure of whether them tales of surprisingly vast reaches of natural CHAPTER 1: A PLAYER’S GUIDE TO PTOLUS 17
caverns and ancient hewn passages, perhaps dat- around in plate armor. Humans strolling down the ing back to the dark days when this area lay in street rub shoulders with elves, dwarves, halflings, the thrall of the terrible Skull-King, Ghul, and the gnomes, half-orcs, and even stranger beings. region was pocked with winding warrens and In a way, this campaign is “the d20 System rules subterranean chambers created by his dark with the volume turned all the way up.” Creating armies. They also tell of the horrors that dwell this city did not involve building a fantasy world outside the life-giving reaches of the sun: first, then adapting the rules to make it work. Just unknown monsters and devious demon-minded the opposite, really. As a setting, Ptolus has been things with a cunning unknown to human-, elf-, under the influence of the Core Rules for a long, or dwarfkind. In the city, entire industries have long time. The things that make d20 fantasy evolved quickly to service the needs of these unique—the prevalence of magic (including the adventurers. In the shadow of an unnaturally tall, specific spells we all know), the ever-increasing ancient spire with a very dark past, a whole new power of individuals, and the creatures of the form of economics, politics, and social structure MM—have shaped the reality of Ptolus. And struggles to be born. because the designer of Ptolus used this setting as Creatures and individuals (good, evil, and other- a playtest backdrop as he worked on the design of wise) that normally remain in the shadows are the Third Edition Core Rules, Ptolus influenced drawn to this large gathering of adventurers and the d20 System rules as well. This is a setting magic. The needs of the delvers prompt renewed steeped in game history and significance. “Some place needs to be the devotion to magic, science, and religion. As the That doesn’t mean Ptolus contains nothing worst place in the world. Empire of Tarsis dies, Ptolus—for years a back- new, however. As the city developed, new material Why not here?” water town on the edge of civilization—is quickly grew out of the process. The firearms, creatures, —Brusselt Airmol, well-known becoming the center of something much larger spells, races, and foreboding atmosphere all came rogue adventurer than itself. Omens and prophecies of children very naturally. born with strange birthmarks surface in the city The Ptolus Campaign is a fantasy that some with increasing frequency. No one yet knows would label “dark,” although it’s as much about exactly what, but something is happening in rising up out of the darkness as living within it. Ptolus was created to be, first Ptolus. Something new stirs in this city . . . and It is clearly an urban fantasy, for the campaign and foremost, a place where that something is very, very old. takes place entirely within or beneath the city of characters could have interesting Ptolus—a place with a vast history of dark secrets and exciting adventures. It’s CAMPAIGN FEEL waiting to be discovered. designed to accommodate both Ptolus is an urban campaign setting. However, it urban- and dungeon-style is also one that deals with dungeon delving and THE CITY OF PTOLUS adventures. The city’s back- subterranean exploration. In your own Ptolus Ptolus is a major city of seventy-five thousand ground provides a foundation Campaign, you can probably expect about a fifty- people.Sample It is located in thefile land of Palastan near a for political intrigues, monster- fifty split between dungeon adventures and urban large bay on the southern end of the Whitewind bashing adventures, treasure- adventures. The latter involve a surprising array of Sea. The place was established to serve as the port hunts, and even adventures organizations and of individuals that live in this for an important fortress built at the time of the involving demons, angels, and less-than-typical fantasy city. Empire’s foundation, a citadel called Dalenguard. other outsiders. As a setting, Ptolus should prove a somewhat More significantly, however, it lies in the shadow realistic interpretation of a place in which dun- of an impossibly tall (almost three thousand feet) geon explorers really do plumb the depths of a and thin pinnacle of rock known simply as the gigantic underground labyrinth filled with treas- Spire. The Spire and its surroundings seethe with ure, monsters, and traps. As much as possible, mysterious legends and rumors. These tales tell of many standard tropes of fantasy adventures, ancient battles waged and cities erected on the including “dungeons,” are presented in a fashion site, of demons and dark lords, of forgotten kings that makes logical sense. and mighty wizards. Many such stories might be While late medieval culture provides one build- at least somewhat true, for recent developments ing block of the setting, it’s not the focus that you have revealed vast complexes beneath the city. might think it to be. The Core Rules are that focus. Of late, Ptolus has become a city of adventurers. So, while Ptolus is based strongly in historical reali- Treasure-seekers flock there to explore and plunder ty, many notions from real-world history that oftenthe labyrinthine structures beneath the streets, hold true in other campaigns (most adults don’t which they call the “Dungeon.” If the stories are believe in monsters, everyone’s bewildered by correct, these catacombs include the following: magic, you never see lizard men walking down the 1.The sewers of the city. street) are not present here. Instead, Ptolus is a 2.Vast stretches of subterranean passages and campaign where the Core Rules and all that they chambers created by Ghul and his minions imply hold sway. That means “monsters” are com- (see “Timeline,” page 30). mon. Wizards are everywhere. Lots of people walk 3.The remains of an even older city. 18 PTOLUS: MONTE COOK’S CITY BY THE SPIRE
4.An abandoned underground dwarven settle- However, neither the city guard nor the ment called Dwarvenhearth. Sisterhood of Silence is willing to go down into For more on House Vladaam, 5.And levels that plunge incredibly deep below the Dungeon and fight monsters. Nor are they Sadar, Khatru, and the other the present urban area. likely to help against such well-known and influ- noble houses of Ptolus, ential noble families as House Vladaam or House see page 23. Ptolus lies in a cool, rainy coastal region with Sadar, or such powerful groups as the Church of harsh winters. It serves as an important port on Lothian or the technophilic Shuul. Of course, the Bay of Ptolus off the Whitewind Sea and those groups would never break any laws, so belongs to the Empire of Tarsis, although a grow- there’s surely nothing to worry about. . . . ing faction in the city feels that Ptolus should declare itself independent. THE FORCES OF LIGHT Aside from the law-enforcing authorities, both RULERS official and self-appointed, Ptolus benefits from The Commissar of Ptolus, Igor The city is ostensibly ruled by a council, at whose the presence of various forces of munificence. Urnst, is a war veteran and a head sits the Commissar, a representative of the Orders of knighthood such as the Keepers of the military man. Even though Empire of Tarsis. The other main council members Veil, Order of the Dawn, and Knights of the Pale Ptolus has not been threatened are Kirian Ylestos (the Prince of the Church) and uphold such concepts as benevolence and nobility. with attack in centuries, he has a the Mother Superior of the Sisterhood of Silence There are even angelic beings in Ptolus—more very defensive-minded approach (see below). Other City Council members (with than any place else in the world—from aasimars to running the city. However, at less influence) include guildmasters, the heads of to half-celestials to true angels. Many of these the same time, he is wise enough the noble houses, and a few wealthy merchants. beings congregate in a place called the Pale Tower to know that the residents of People of the town often refer to this body as the and call themselves the Malkuth. Paladins and Ptolus are not soldiers, and “Council of Coin,” because money is a powerful clerics of good deities such as Lothian, Gaen, and sometimes you need to give and influential force among its members. Navashtrom help Ptolus stand against the dark- them what they want to make Guildmaster Delver Sorum Dandubal, also a ness as well. them happy. This understanding council member, is quickly becoming another And in Ptolus, the dark is deep. makes him both efficient and force to reckon with—almost a fourth main fair, and he is extremely well member—but the three forces controlling the THE DARK SIDE liked. council dislike and oppose him. Like every city, Ptolus has a dark side. Here, crim- Truth be told, the real ruler of the city is the inal lords command veritable armies of rogues Commissar, Igor Urnst. The City Watch operates and assassins, and war amongst each other as under his direct command from Dalenguard, a well as against the law. These criminals deal in historic fortress that still stands in Oldtown. extortion, smuggling, gambling, usury, and prosti- Urnst’s group of advisors in charge of the city’s tution. Chief among these criminals are Menon defense and protectionSample is called the Twelve file Balacazar, leader of the oldest criminal syndicate Commanders. These include Lord Dorant Khatru in the city, and the newcomer Kevris Killraven. of House Khatru, Aoska of the Malkuth (a half- They are bitter enemies. Depraved assassins called celestial), and other local luminaries. the Vai hunt victims for money and to fulfill their own bloodlust. THE AUTHORITIES AND THE LAW But worse things lurk in Ptolus than simply To police the streets, the Commissar of the city criminals. Dwelling among the crypts of the city’s commands a force of more than eight hundred graveyard are the death-loving Forsaken, so called troops and City Watch guards, including a few because the rest of society finds them so abhor- dozen elite individuals (captains, mages, clerics, rent. Worse still, chaos cultists—in league with etc.). While the constables in many of the Empire’s terrible inhuman things—plot the destruction of cities are considered glorified street-sweepers with the city and, in fact, the entire world to sate their The City Watch approaches little competence or desire to actually enforce the lust for destruction. Lastly, and strangest of all, any given situation with an law, this is not true of the experienced and well- Ptolus is home to actual demons from the lower appropriate response. For equipped guards of Ptolus, particularly those realms: Some are merely demon-blooded tieflings, instance, to handle a bunch of known as the Commissar’s Men. but others are full-blooded fiends that call them- rowdy drunks, the Watch captain Nevertheless, this well-trained and well-paid selves the Fallen. These beings dwell alongside the sends some low-ranking guards. force has its hands full maintaining order in the Forsaken in a place called the Dark Reliquary. However, to deal with a rampag- city. Helping to enforce the law is a special order ing monster or a group of unruly of monks called the Sisterhood of Silence. These THE PEOPLE OF PTOLUS adventurers, the captain sends nonspeaking female monks patrol the streets and Ptolus is primarily a trade city, serving not only well-equipped fighters supported apprehend criminals, even though they are not— as a major port but also as a link between the by multiple spellcasters. strictly speaking—sanctioned to do so officially. A northwest and central portions of the Empire of male eunuch always accompanies a small unit of Tarsis. About two-thirds of the population is the Sisters of Silence to speak on their behalf. human, with the remaining third being (from CHAPTER 1: A PLAYER’S GUIDE TO PTOLUS 19
most populous to least): Shoal elves, Stonelost at a steep angle, leading into the area of the city dwarves, halflings, litorians, Grailwarden known as Oldtown. Another bridge stretches dwarves, gnomes, half-elves, centaurs (aram), across the chasm to join Oldtown with the Crimes in Ptolus orcs and half-orcs, and others—lizardfolk Rivergate District. Although Oldtown is higher, (assarai), ogres, and far stranger things. (Some of the difference in elevation between these two dis- While obvious things such as those races might sound unfamiliar. Read on.) tricts is not steep, so the slope of this bridge murder and theft are illegal in seems far less noticeable than that of the other. Ptolus, so are compulsion spells DISTRICTS OF THE CITY cast upon citizens (locals frown Ptolus lies between the Spire and the sea. The The Docks on charming shopkeepers to get highest portion of the city, the Nobles’ Quarter, is Far below street level, the Docks rest on a nar- a better price) and spells of mass built on the base of the Spire. From there, the row strip of land at the bottom of the city’s east- destruction cast within the city level of the city drops down a sharp cliff to ern cliffs. The wooden buildings here sit slightly proper (no fireballs or disinte- Oldtown, and then down again into Midtown. askew from one another, because the entire small grate). Any spell with the evil The final cliffs at the edge of Ptolus drop into the district is built upon slowly sinking sand. Even descriptor is also illegal; in bay, with the only area of dry land at the bottom the streets are sand. A dozen or more ships moor particular the authorities hate of those cliffs occupied by the city’s docks. Well- in the deep waters here at any given time. This is animate dead and other spells worn paths connect the various elevations and a particularly rough area of the city, thanks to that bring more undead to the help make Ptolus very defensible (although the the influx of sailors and its isolation from other city. They also prosecute people city has never been attacked). districts. A single winding road provides access severely for doing anything that The King’s River flows through the city, up a steep incline to the city proper. spreads disease—including casting spilling into an eroded chasm in the northwest The Docks area is full of warehouses, ship- contagion. These and other corner and flowing down to the Bay of Ptolus yards, hostels, and taverns, all catering to sailors crimes can be reported at the near the docks. The bottom of the chasm, called and merchants. Isolated from the rest of the city district’s Watchhouse. the King’s River Gorge, is eighty feet below the by the cliffs, sometimes it seems as though the level of the ground on its north side, but more Docks area has had to become its own little com- than two hundred feet below on its south side. munity. Many Ptolus residents live their whole The south side still holds the old city walls and lives without going there—but, of course, they See the Ptolus poster map for a fortifications. A bridge built upon two massive probably haven’t been to the Nobles’ Quarter, good look at the city’s layout. pillars, themselves erected atop natural rock either. columns, stretches across the King’s River Gorge
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