2 PTOLUS: DM’S COMPANION TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ■ Introduction Where Do I Start? . .4 Page Numbering . .4 Rules, Tips, and More . .5 Acknowledgments . .5 What is Ptolus? . .5 LIVING IN PTOLUS ■ On Being a Resident ■ Crime and the Law ■ Chaositech Where You Live . .6 The Law . .17 What Is Chaositech? . .32 What You Wear . .7 The Process of Law . .18 Rigors of Chaos . .34 How You Live . .7 Licenses and Permits . .20 Repairing and Modifying Information Panel: Information Panel: Vices . .22 Chaositech . .34 The Cost of Living . .8 Taxes . .24 Chaositech Items . .36 The City in Which You Live . .10 Sample file Item Descriptions . .37 Information Panel: ■ Technology Gender in Ptolus . .11 Firearms . .25 Other Weapons and Armor . .28 ■ On Being a Delver Transport . .28 GUIDE TO THE PTOLUS PDFS Ptolus vs. the Rest Miscellaneous Gear . .29 Throughout this book you will find of the Empire . .13 Constructs and Special references in the text and in the side- How You Live . .14 Machines . .30 panels to other books in the PT series What You Wear . .14 Aelectricity . .30 of Ptolus PDF editions. For your con- Getting Along in the City . .14 Skills and Feats . .31 venience, here’s a listing of all the titles What the Others Think . .15 Maintenance and Fuel . .31 in the series and their corresponding After the Delving’s Done . .16 title codes: A Player’s Guide to Ptolus PT1 The World of Praemal PT2 Organizations PT3 Districts of the City, Vol. 1 PT4 Districts of the City, Vol. 2 PT5 DM’s Companion PT6 Beneath the Streets PT7 Adventures PT8 The Spire PT9 TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 CREDITS WRITING: Monte Cook EDITING AND PRODUCTION: Sue Weinlein Cook COVER ART AND LOGO: Todd Lockwood CARTOGRAPHY: Ed Bourelle FEATURED ARTISTS: Jason Engle, The Forge Studios (Maciej Zagórski and Pawel Dobosz), Michael Komarck, Eric Lofgren, Howard Lyon, and Michael Phillippi. CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS: Toren “MacBin” Atkinson, Kev Crossley, Talon Dunning, Brian RUNNING A PTOLUS CAMPAIGN LeBlanc, Alan Pollack, rk post, Peter Schlough, J.D. Sparks, Arne Swekel, ■ Campaign Advice ■ Prestige Classes Sam Wood, and Kieran Yanner Weaving Together a Forsaken Shigmaa . .80 GRAPHIC DESIGN: Campaign . .40 Inverted Pyramid Initiate . .84 Lisa Chido and Brian Rasmussen Campaign Hooks and Goals . .43 Prestige Classes From the Campaign Villains . .44 Core Rules . .84 TYPESETTING: Inverted Pyramid Adept . .85 Lisa Chido ■ Urban Campaigns Inverted Pyramid Master . .85 The Urban Adventure . .45 KnightSample of the Chord . file. .86 PROOFREADING: Allies, Aid, and Healing . .47 Prestige Classes From the Brian Gute and Miranda Horner Urban Player Characters . .48 Books of Eldritch Might and INDEXING: Plotting Urban Adventures . .49 Hallowed Might . .87 Ptolus Random Encounters . .49 Knight of the Pale . .88 Lori Ann Curley Handling Dangerous Events . .50 MIDTOWN PARTISAN: APPENDIX Erik Mona ■ Monsters Blessed Child . .52 ■ PTOLUS RESIDENTS: D’Stradi Demon . .54 Reference Sheets and More Michele Carter, Andy Collins, Sue Locales Glossary . .90 Ochremeshk . .57 Cook, Bruce R. Cordell, Jesse Decker, Ratman . .59 NPCs Glossary . .92 Erik Mona, Christopher Perkins, Sean Rhodintor . .62 General Index . .98 K Reynolds, and Keith Strohm Shaadom . .63 Open Game License . .101 Skulk . .64 Legal . .101 VISITORS TO THE CITY: Ptolus City Map . .102 Wintersouled . .66 Steven “Stan!” Brown, Jeff Quick, Keri Zaug . .67 Clip-On Screen Reference . .103 Reynolds, Charles Ryan, Ed Stark, and Random Encounter Matrix . .104 ■ Magic Events in the City . .110 James Wyatt Soul Magic . .69 Filling Campaign Needs . .112 HEROES OF ANCIENT PRAEMAL: Wanted Poster . .115 Clerical Domains . .70 Michele Carter, Bruce R. Cordell, Magic Items . .72 Imperial Identification Papers .116 Christopher Perkins, John Rateliff, Spell List . .72 Firearm Permit . .117 Spell Descriptions . .73 Official Papers (blank) . .118 Teresa Reid, and Sean K Reynolds 4 PTOLUS: DM’S COMPANION INTRODUCTION What’s it like to actually live in the city of Ptolus? What’s the typical home like, what do people do for entertainment, and what kinds of tools do they use? This book gives the reader an idea of how it feels to walk the streets of the City by the Spire plus a batch of DM-only rules material and urban campaigning tips. PAGE NUMBERING elcome to DM’s Companion, those are for the DM to reveal as time goes on. designed to equip you, the DM, with DMs should print out a copy for each player. Two sets of page numbers appear the materialSample you need to filerun an Let everyone have a chance to learn about the at the top of the pages that come W urban campaign within the City of Ptolus. The city and get a feel for the setting. after this introduction. The main material in this book corresponds directly to Where you go next depends on how you’re page numbers correspond to this Chapters 26 through 32 and Chapters 34 through going to use Ptolus. If you want it to be your book’s table of contents. The ones 36 in Ptolus: Monte Cook’s City by the Spire. campaign setting, start reading PT2, The World in parenthesis correspond to the This is one in a series of nine Ptolus PDF of Praemal and learn all the basics of the world. page numbers of the Ptolus print releases from Malhavoc Press. When used togeth- If Ptolus is destined to become a city in your book. They are there so you can er, they comprise the entirety of the Ptolus print existing world, jump straight to the Districts of properly check the side-panel cross- book. Each one is also usable on its own for city- the City PDFs (PT4 and PT5) and read about references of important words that based fantasy d20 roleplaying campaigns. the various parts of town. you’ll find boldfaced throughout If you only want to mine the setting for ideas, this book. These cross-references tell WHERE DO I START? flip through the various PDF releases that inter- you where to find more information If you’ve purchased this book as a general est you and look at whatever strikes your fancy. about a given term, character, or sourcebook and you’re not sure what Ptolus is, You’ll find interesting city locales, strange and place. They direct you to either a check out the sidebar on the next page for a fascinating NPCs, dungeon complexes, evil page number in this book, a chapter primer on the product and the city it details. If fortresses, haunted ruins, complex organiza- in another book, or a page number on the other hand you’re starting to plan your tions, a few new races, monsters, prestige class- and title code of another install- own Ptolus Campaign, here are a few guidelines es, spells, and a lot more. ment of the PT series. We reference on how to get started. Ready-made adventures for characters of the page numbers from the print Whether you are a player or a DM, start by level 1 to 4 are available in PT8, Adventures. book so that, whatever edition of reading A Player’s Guide to Ptolus. That For those of you who need adventures beyond Ptolus you have, you can discuss book—free to download as a PDF at those offered there, check out the ninety-six- page references with friends and <www.ptolus.com>—provides a quick overview page Night of Dissolution Ptolus adventure. It not risk any confusion. Look for of everything else in the book. Of course, it provides an exciting Ptolus-based adventure for a rundown of all PT title codes doesn’t go into any of the secrets of the setting— 4th- to 9th-level characters. in this book’s Table of Contents. INTRODUCTION 5 If you want to read every last bit of information Much of the information in this book may available on the city, look for two Ptolus-related interest players, but it should remain a secret at products previously released by Malhavoc Press: first. Consider the majority of the details in these The Banewarrens and Chaositech. pages privileged information—facts the PCs To delve even deeper into Ptolus, check out the might discover as the campaign progresses. official comic book, published by DB Pro, available Throughout the DM’s Companion, all refer- from Diamond Comics. We’re also proud to offer ences to spells, feats, and other rules come either metal miniatures from Paizo Publishing, specialty from this book or from the v. 3.5 revision of the map products from cartographer Ed Bourelle’s three Core Rulebooks: the Player’s Handbook, SkeletonKey Games, and the Ptolus Counter DMG, and MM. This book is protected content Collection from Fiery Dragon Productions. except for items specifically called out as Open Game Content on the Legal page. For full details, RULES, TIPS, AND MORE please turn to the Appendix. Open content is not Besides showing you what life is like for an aver- otherwise marked in the text of this book. age Ptolusite, this book also gives you a feel for Bonus source material and ideas to augment the life of an adventurer in Ptolus. Other chapters the information in the Ptolus PDFs appear on my delve into Imperial law, scientific wonders (includ- website. Find the links to these free web enhance- ing firearms, clocks, printing presses, and more), ments, my campaign journal, and much more ACKNOWLEDGMENTS and chaositech, the evil twin of technology. online at <www.ptolus.com>. This DMs’ resource also discusses how to plan Thanks for trying the Ptolus Campaign! I hope These people and things played and run a campaign in the Ptolus setting. It lays you enjoy it as much as I do. a significant part in the creation out some differences between urban campaigns of Ptolus, even if indirectly, and and other types and offers valuable new monsters, thus they have my thanks: magic, and prestige classes needed for the Ptolus Campaign.