Third Dawn Campaign Setting
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THIRD DAWN CAMPAIGN SE tt ING THIRD DAWN CAMPAIGN SE tt ING Authors: Andreas Rönnqvist, Jeremy Smith, Editing: Andreas Rönnqvist, Jeremy Smith Interior Design / Layout: Jeremy Smith Interior Illustrations: Aaron Henson, Alex Leonard, Brandon Glore, Claudio Pozas, Rick Hershey, Shaman Stockart, V. Shane Cover Design / Layout: Erik Nowak Cover Illustration: Rick Hershey Special Thanks: Anthony Miller and the playtesting team True20 Adventure Roleplaying and its associated logo are Trademarks of Green Ronin Publishing and are used under the provisions of the True20 Adventure Roleplaying Trademark License (see www.true20.com for details) This edition of Third Dawn Campaign Setting is produced under version 1.0a and/or draft versions of the Open Game License, and the System Reference Document by permission of Wizards of the Coast. Subsequent versions of this product will incorporate later versions of the license, guide, and document. 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Some portions of this book which are Open Game Content originate from the System Reference Document and are ©1999, 2000, and 2001 Wizards of the Coast, Inc. The remainder of the Open Game Content portions of this book are hereby added to Open Game Content and if so used, should bear the COPYRIGHT NOTICE “Third Dawn Campaign Setting” ©2010 Dreamscarred Press. This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction, re-transmission, or unauthorized use of the artwork or non-Open Game Content herein is prohibited without express written permission from this book’s authors, except for purposes of review or use of Open Game Content consistent with the Open Game License. The original purchaser may print or photocopy copies for his or her own personal use only. This document is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, places, or events is purely coincidental. Some images contained within are copyright LPJ Design, Inc or V. Shane and are used with permission. All rights reserved. Some images copyright 2006 by Reality Deviant Publications. Some artwork by Claudio Pozas, copyright Expeditious Retreat Press, used with permission. Hyperconscious: Explorations in Psionics copyright 2004 Bruce R. Cordell. Used with permission. i DREAM sc ARRED PRE ss TAB L E OF CON T EN ts IN T RODU ct ION 1EL T HA 34 THE WORLD OF KSAREN 1FAEDRE T H 35 THE RESIDEN T S OF KSAREN 1HOUR T H 35 A WORLD OF PSIONICS 1JAVAN 36 THE THIRD DA W N CAM P AIGN 2KRAEGAN 37 WHA T YOU NEED TO KNO W 3MAQUORA 37 NERE T H 38 CHARA ct ER OP T ION S 4PHANOS 38 NE W SK ILLS 4SAURO K 39 FEA T S 5VERAN 39 CUL T URAL FEA T S 5ZEAN 40 GENERAL FEA T S 6CONFLIC T ING GODMINDS 40 ADE pt FEA T S 7 EX P ER T FEA T S 8GEOGRAPHY 41 WARRIOR FEA T S 8CON T INEN T OF FEMON 42 PO W ERS 9AL Y RIA 42 NE W EQUI P MEN T 9BARON Y OF SOLEIL 46 NE W DISEASE 11 FERIA 50 LI B URIA 52 RA C E S 12 LUMIEN 55 ADONAI 12 LUXOR 58 CHIMAIRAN 12 ORLAM 62 DROMI T E 12 PLAINS OF VEN T RAD 66 DW ARF 13 SP ECIAL LOCA T IONS IN FEMON 69 DUERGAR 13 CON T INEN T OF TION 71 ELAN 13 DROMA 71 HUMAN 14 NIMO T EI 75 JE tt UR Sample14 O PfileHID PRO T EC T ORA T E 79 MAENAD 15 SOMMARAN 82 OP HIDUAN 15 VIN T AREN 85 ORCAN 16 SP ECIAL LOCA T IONS IN TION 88 XE P H 16 MAQUORAN SEA 89 MAQUORAN FLEE T 89 LIFE IN KS AREN 17 SP ECIAL LOCA T IONS IN T HE CALENDAR 17 MAQUORAN SEA 92 ECONOM Y 17 PSIONICS IN SOCIE ty 18 ORGANIZA T ION S 93 HIS T OR Y OF KSAREN 19 AL Y RIAN MAGIS T RA T ES 93 THE ANCIEN T WORLD 20 BLOODRIDERS 94 THE IM P AC T 20 CRIMSON CLOA K S 95 HIS T ORICAL TIMELINE 25 CUL T OF T HE BRO K EN ST AFF 96 HIS T ORICAL FIGURES 28 ELAN INFIL T RA T ORS 98 TRADI T IONAL MONS T ERS 28 ENLIGH T ENMEN T 09 GUILDSMEN COUNCIL 100 CO S MO L OGY 30 HA wk ’S CLA W 101 RELIGION AND THIRD DA W N 30 HOUSE OF MANDRE T H 102 GODMINDS 31 KREH ’LEN ’SHIN 103 PAN T HEON OF GODMINDS 32 MIND W A T CH 105 AENI 33 ORDER OF ST ILL WA T ER 105 AUR ’ES K IN 33 CY NFIRE 34 OPEN GAME LI C EN S E 107 ii THIRD DAWN CAMPAIGN SE tt ING IN T RODU ct ION Welcome to the Third Dawn Campaign Setting, a world In the continent of Tion, technological advancement has of psionic power, swashbuckling action, and political been primarily limited to agriculture, with very little in the intrigue. Unlike more standard fantasy settings, the Third way of warfare or industry. Better, more efficient ways to Dawn Campaign Settings has no gods or godesses, no grow crops, bring them to market, and to travel. wizards or magic. All things in Third Dawn stem from the In stark contrast, on the continent of Femon, where fertile apocalyptic destruction of the world, the ensuing death of valleys have given rise to an overabundance of food, most the gods and disintegration of all forms of magic - all things technological advancements have been in the development mystical in the Third Dawn Campaign Setting arises from of industry and warfare: fortified buildings, siege weapons, within, from the Flow of one’s mind and from one’s ability more efficient armors, large-scale shipment and transport, to master that psionic talent. Here there are no clerical and the like. With a ready food supply, the civilized areas orders, divine warriors, archmages or wizards towers. of Femon have become large metropolises, centers of Why would we do this? Why change some of the most government, learning, and trade, with the smaller towns iconic aspects of a fantasty setting? Well, that traditional and villages using the larger cities as trade hubs. campaign world has already been done, and done a lot, and Meanwhile, the islands of the Impact Sea have been in some instances, done exceptionally well. We wanted inhabited for a significantly shorter period of time, since to differentiate the ThirdDawn Campaign Setting from all the creation of the maenad race some four hundred years of the other options out there, and as the definitive source prior. Geographically disconnected from all other races, for psionic content, who better to make an all psionic the maenads have had only themselves to rely upon, campaign setting than Dreamscarred Press? And so, the creating a society that views anyone not of the Maquoran world of Ksaren was born, a world without magic, but Fleet, the name of their society, with distrust. Technology heavy with psionic power. has centered around the ocean: better, more efficient ships, In Ksaren, you will still find all the major elements of new ways to harvest from the ocean, and navigational an immersive campaign: battles for survival, political implements such as the sextant. intrigue, nefarious organizations, cruel tyrants, bastions of hope, and dangerous monsters. But, unlike traditional worlds, you will not find deities involving themselves in THE RE S IDEN ts OF KS AREN the daily lives of the residents, priests invoking the power Ksaren is called home by a multitude of creatures, from of their gods, mages casting arcane spells or divineSample warriors thefile intelligent to the simple, who seek but to survive the channeling self-righteous fury to slay the heathens. Here, shattered world left by the Sorcerer-Kings of the ancient ascended minds, called godminds, are the closest thing world. Due to the unique nature of Ksaren, the races of one can come to divinity, entities who do not meddle in Ksaren have altered to fit the world around them. Some the affairs of mortals, but operate on a more subtle level, races have been adjusted and altered to suit the campaign acting as gateways through which their adherents can tap setting, while others no longer exist in any form. As a into a greater consciousness and unlock their own abilities. result, new races, or new spins on old races, exist within In the world of Ksaren, you will find heroes, not unlike the Third DawnCampaign Setting, representing the those of other fantasy settings, but here they all wield the adjustments that have been necessary to survive in a world intense power of the mind in their own unique ways.