Sample file In Ptolus, there’s always something going on beneath the surface. Sample file ™ CITY BY THE SPIRE BySample Monte fileCook ® 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 <www.montecook.com>. The Nature of the Undercity . .423 Eternity Cave . .448 For the last sixteen years, SUE WEINLEIN Undercity Market . .423 Serpent Caves . .451 COOK has worked as an editor of role- Chamber of Longing . .427 Locathah Cavern . .452 playing games, magazines, short fiction, Dark Market . .427 Vaults of the Rhodintor . .453 web content, newspaper articles, books, Longfingers Guild Headquarters 429 Caverns of the Galchutt . .453 and more. Highlights of her career Mirror Maze . .436 Dark Elf Caverns . .454 include stints as managing editor of Amazing Stories magazine and manag- The Prison . .436 ing producer of the Wizards of the Coast ■ Chapter 23: website, as well as editing such award- Dwarvenhearth winning game products as Dragonlance: History of Dwarvenhearth . .460 Fifth Age, The Book of Eldritch Might, and Dwarvenhearth at its Height . .462 Monte Cook’s Arcana Evolved.Today she and Monte run Malhavoc Press. Adventuring in Dwarvenhearth .464 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 . ..