Dreamscarred Press's Stalker class is allowed, yes.
Archpaladin Zousha: I wouldn't worry about it too much, because of the caveats I made sure to add.
MordredofFairy: That is permissible.
Regarding background, not really looking for anything in particular, just something that fits the character within the bounds of Greyhawk and within the limits of your level. If you are a famous dragonslayer or something at level one, you probably will not get selected. Other than that, I have little in the way of rules regarding character creation.
Dave Herman: What did you have in mind? We might be able to work something out.
Brandon Dellman: Where is that variant located? Is it from Pathfinder Unchained? Or is it just so obscure that I have missed it?
Recruitment will be open for a week from the first post.
Seranov: I know of them. I happen to rather like the Path of War stuff and most changes in their playtest material is minimal. I will allow it. What style are you focusing on? I made a Sleeping Goddess Zealot and those dudes are so freaking awesome! Like, especially if you're like me and made them part of some secretive, semi-benevolent cult that was basically like the Assassins on Assassin's Creed, "The Sleeping Goddess demands your death, heretic. May your evil be washed from Fate's weave and your name forever unremembered, as if you never were. The world will better off without you."
Regarding terrains, dungeon and urban are fairly good picks. There are a few cave and forest/jungle areas, to a much lesser extent. There is a wide range of terrains, but tundra and desert are pretty much non-existent. There is practically no ocean adventuring.
Cuchulainn: First of all, nice name reference! It's quite obscure, but I like it. I have no issues with it. Do you need a reference on Hextor's Domains and such? I am fine with subtle evil characters, I just figured that everyone would want to play a Hextorian to the hilt, being all 'obey me slave' and all that. I will allow it with the caveat of subtlety. This is mostly for your protection against other PCs, as I will not expect a Paladin or good-aligned Cleric to stand by and allow slave-taking or wanton murder. The way you state that the character is like 'The Operative', I see far fewer issues. They would basically have the problems with you that the average party has with the archetypal Rogue, which is not really as big of a deal.
Also, my Hextorian friend...:
Good choice on Hextor, since you have ran the campaign before. That would flow pretty well with the story.
Bonus skill points are at first level and every level thereafter. I mistakenly assumed that because I did not specify at 1st level, people would assume that it was every level. I was also running on six hours sleep the day that I posted the character creation rules. :/
The Pale King: That was intentional, because M.A.D. classes tend to get, pardon the profanity, the s*** end of the stick. Monks and Paladins are so awesome, but no one wants to play them because they suck if there is not enough ability score points to keep them functioning. At higher levels, M.A.D. characters are basically penalized because, to take even partial advantage of their class, they have to basically make almost every score 12 or 13. It's not exactly cool for a fantasy hero to be just a single step above a commoner at higher levels anyway.
Benbow Wriggleberry: The whole AP has already been rewritten. And the ability scores are not too buff in THIS campaign. The major NPCs were written with this and the monsters have been buffed quite a bit, to be Pathfinder-level. As I noted above, 15 point buy basically means every PC is barely stronger than a commoner, which does not quite instill the 'I'm an adventurer' vibe. And the theoretical 51 INT witch is not doable, both because there are not enough points at level 1 and because of the 18+-mod cap that is pretty much assumed in every campaign.
Summoners are obviously allowed, as they were figured into the original character creation guidelines.
I assumed that it was a given, but each PC gets two Traits, with the obvious option to get a third if a Drawback is taken.
Recruitment will be open for a week from the first post.
If you can show me an excerpt of the rules you will be using from Pathfinder Unchained, I will consider it. Just type up an abridged version of it. I don't have the book, which is why I add this caveat. If it's on d20pfsrd, it is allowed.
Non-good characters are fine, but I do not want the sort of evil character in the campaign that practically has an 'I am evil' bumper sticker attached to their forehead. Use some nuancing and make them more than evil, make them morally complex. Get what I mean?
Eastern classes are allowed, but you will need to find a place that makes sense for them to come from. There are a FEW places, as is evidenced by a major NPC from the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth being a Samurai.
Dreamscarred Press psionics are allowed.
Occult Adventures material is allowed. If there is any changes in the final book though, you must change to fit. Sound reasonable?
I have no problems accepting players who utilize the above options.
I will read over characters later, as I have to go get a few things to get done before this evening. I will try to reply as more questions arise from all of you.
A question: is it better to respond to each person individually, or just make blanket replies like I am doing? I have had better experience with the latter on other forums, given that the information might be applicable to more than one person, but am unsure.
Oh and I forgot to mention, I am deliberately leaving the number of player slots open. I believe that 5 is a good number, but I might go for 4 or 6, depending on the vagueries of my particular sensibilities.
“The joys of the rich man are nothing, as they who hang around with sinners, scoffing at the simple paths of righteousness. Their delights are a pittance compared to eternity, and their rewards shall be devoured by the wriggling powers of darkness. They seem as trees along a riverbank bearing luscious fruits, but I tell you: they are plagued from within by blind, consuming things that eat without mercy and leave nothing behind. Not a one of them will be safe on the day of final judgment, when the slithering darkness feasts upon them. We tread toward a red day, full of writing doom and a dread feast of bloated, ravenous hunger. Dark times are coming. Slithering times, when the clouds snuff the sky and the austerity of flesh is the path of salvation. Be ready, and prepare your body for the coming Age . . . an Age of Worms . . .” - Jierian Weirus, Priest of St. Cuthbert
Ok, so I finally got around to making the recruitment thread! Due to my desire to get the recruitment up, I am only going to post the major deities of the Greyhawk setting below and list what changes are made for divine casters and such. If you want a specific deity from Greyhawk not listed, be sure to let me know and I will do a write-up for you on domains and favored weapon for said deity.
Without further ado, here is character creation rules:
Starting level is 1.
You have max HP per HD.
You may play any officially produced Paizo class, apart from the Gunslinger or other firearm or technology-centric class or archetype, because guns are not a thing in Greyhawk. I normally love Gunslingers, but not in this campaign. If you want to know about whether I will accept you applying with a third party class, just ask me. I am fine with most material, apart from the tech stuff due to the nature of the campaign.
As far as races, I am not too much of a stickler. I would prefer at least half of the party be more 'typical' races though, as having everyone being planetouched or Dhampirs breaks the suspension of belief, given how rare said individuals are in Greyhawk.
You have 24 points to build your character with, using the ever-popular one for one ability score purchase method. For those of you not lucky enough to have encountered this godsend for MAD characters, just start each base character at 10 points in a score, then add points on a one for one basis. If you want a few extra points, you can minus up to 3 in a given score to gain a corresponding amount of points, almost identical to the regular method.
You gain a bonus feat at first level and on every level divisible by 4 thereafter (4, 8, 12,, 16, and 20), because being feat-starved is no bueno for some really cool builds and, let's just face it, people hate level-dipping in Fighter because their other martial class is without bonus feats. Am I right?
You gain TWO bonus skill points, one of which must be spent on a Craft, Knowledge, or Profession skill.
Regarding item creation, I will allow it when you reach the appropriate level. I don't know if this question is even a thing on these messageboards, but I know that players elsewhere ask their GMs about it a lot.
You all start with 800 GP, divided between equipment and pure cash any way that you see fit.
Here are a list of the major deities in Greyhawk that work best with PCs. For obvious reasons, no servants of Erythnul, Tharizdun, or similar deities of wanton destruction or overwhelming malice are allowed.
And I am aware that some deities are lopsided and have more domains than others, but that is because they fit the deity in questions portfolio. I will not cut domains from deities with large portfolios, nor give deities extra domains that do not make sense, just to balance things.
If you are aware of some really great third party Domain that fits your deity, you can send me a private message here on Paizo detailing it and I might add it to the deity's list of Domains.
Yondalla: Short Sword; Charm, Community, Good, Healing, Law, Luck, Protection
Basic premise of how the campaign begins:
You begin the campaign in the town of Diamond Lake, a mining village in the hills east of the Free City of Greyhawk. You are either a native of Diamond Lake or have been in the area long enough to have a good idea of the community, which is to say, at least a year or two.
Idle chatter around the village says that a band of richly dressed adventurers now frequents the taproom of the Feral Dog, Diamond Lake’s most notorious tavern. The confident heroes of the Free City spoke of hard-won battles on their journey to Diamond
Lake, and of their intention to explore the long-abandoned Stirgenest Cairn on the lake’s distant southeastern shore. You, being a native of Diamond Lake or otherwise knowing the community well, know that cairn is often explored by the community’s youth, who always find it completely empty of marvels and perfectly harmless.
Something in their drive for adventure inspires you though, makes you question the life that you have led thus far.
Three days after they arrive, life continues as normal for you. Little do you know of the opportunity that awaits you in the evening though, an opportunity for fame, fortune, and glory. It is on this day that your story truly begins.
Flavor text on Diamond Lake by a grizzly old man, totally stolen from the messageboards!:
The ramblings of Knuckston Grizzlebeard, common miner and regular patron of the Feral Dog Tavern, a week before his death by a falling girder in the Tilgast Mines:
"So, you wanna know what life is like in Diamond Lake? Hells man, why would you want ta give a s&*@ about this place? It’s a piss hole. My old bones sweat their last in those mines, and I’ve got nothing to show for it except a case of gout and the hacking lungrot.
You ain’t going away are, ya?
Well then, sit down. . . I’ll talk to ye about the sights around here, but it’ll cost ya a few rounds . . . the Good Dwarven stuff too, you cheapskate.
Okay, where was I? Diamond Lake, a s++!hole like no other. . .
Politics
Governor-mayor Lanod Neff is the head cheese around here. He’s been appointed by Cinnmore itself because his father was a head cheese and got him started with a position at the Garrison that he didn’t deserve. Now, he sits in his massive manor house on the hill overlooking the town. It’s constantly under construction, mostly so Neff can try to outclass the other bigwigs in this berg.
The man himself? Hells! He’s a lying, cheating philanderer who spends more time chasing tail than doing any real work. He lines the pockets of his cronies to stay in power, and pays off that sheriff to keep him and his boys in line.
If it weren’t for his brother, Allustan Neff, Lanod’s body would have been dumped into a dry mine years ago by the other power brokers in town. Allustan’s a pretty powerful Wizard, probably the smartest man in town. I heard that back in Cinnmore, he had designs on being the head of a wizard’s academy, but fell out of favor and was forced into retirement. Since he was born and raised here, he ended up back where he started. I like to think he may have ran away from the big city with his tail between his legs, but, um . . . don’t tell anyone I told you that.
Anyway, the law around here, if you wanna call it that, is a big old bastard named Sheriff Cubbin. It’s no secret he’s in the pocket of the Mayor, and spends his time drinking and carousing in the various cathouses. When he got elected Sheriff, we laughed in our cups and threw darts at his head, until he arrested us all with his private battalion of cronies. Son of a b$@!@. . .
The only other law in town is the Garrison, ran by Captain Tolliver Trask. He runs about 60 men in the old keep, but the snots never bother to step foot inside the town proper. Mostly, they patrol the miles of wilderness outside of town, and pray to their self-righteous god of honor. Truth is, Trask doesn’t care a lick for Diamond Lake, and he keeps his men out of our affairs. He’s just here to make sure his precious metropolis Cinnmore don’t get attacked from our direction. If anything really bad happens here, the gates of the keep will shut so fast that any honest wage earner standing in the way’ll get dashed against the walls.
Business
The mines are everything here, and I’ve been breaking my back inside of ‘em for 30 years. The mine managers come and go, and deeds exchange hands over blackmail, gambling, and even downright murder and theft. At least that’s the rumor. It a tough business and I can say that through it all, I’m still here, digging away to line the pockets for every backstabbing son-of-a-b*+*@ that ever owned a mine.
Right now, there are six mine managers, who are considered to be the ones that matter in town. They have the chink to ignore the law, and hire their own thugs to keep order in their respective areas of business. They fight with the mayor sometimes, but for the most part they don’t do much but bicker amongst themselves for every scrap of ore they can squeeze out of the hills.
You want a rundown of who they are? What’s the point of that? It won’t last. . .
Ah . . . the hells with it . . . keep the ale coming. . .
Right now, the comer is Balabar Smenk. He is a fat, lecherous bastard who got his start from his old contacts in Cinnmore. He spends his time gambling, drinking, and scheming up new ways to take over this entire town. The mayor hates him, mostly because he’s scared. Smenk owns 4 mines right now, and is poised to get more. Balabar may have just enough of the town in his pocket to stage a coup of his own, but he’s usually too powdered up with perfume and sweaty finery to think about lifting a sword.
Of course, this has really pissed off Gelch Tilgast. Right now I work for the old fart, but it may not last. Before Smenk come into the picture, Gelch reigned over this berg for years like a petty lord, and now he’s getting a taste of what it’s like to be on the outs. I’ve even heard rumors that he’s trying to get support from other mine managers to fight off Balabar Smenk, but that’s probably hogwash. Tilgast doesn’t know which way is up these days, and they sure as hell wouldn’t deal with him after the way he’s backhanded them over the years.
He’s still better off that Luzanne Parrin. She inherited her mines from her mother, who died in the Red Death when she was still a pup. Now, twenty years later, she’s almost bankrupt, and it’s no secret that she’s sleeping with Chaum Gansworth to try and protect her own skin. She’ll be broke soon.
Chaum Gansworth has been in town for a while, and keeps a pretty low profile. Other than the fact that he’s sleeping with Luzanne, there ain’t much to tell. He does own the Rusty Bucket, and has dinner there quite often. I guess his mines are doing okay, but then again . . . how the hell am I supposed to know?
The same can be said for the other two mine managers. One’s an elf, some prancing panty waste named Ellival Moonmeadow. He only owns one silver mine, and doesn’t have anything to do with regular townsfolk like us. He just hangs out with his fellow elves, doing . . . well, whatever it is elves do when they’re together. Haw ha!
The other one is a dwarf, named Ragnolin Dourstone, who’s been here ever since I can remember. Like most Dwarves, he does well for himself in the mining profession, and has handpicked a number of spots to start new mines, all of them pretty damn successful. So far, neither Tilgast nor Smenk has managed to dent his business one bit . . . though they’ve both tried their best over the years.
In addition to the mines, all six mine managers share a single smelting house, located near the old piers. It’s pretty much monopolized by the city council in Cinnmore, and run like a tight ship. The chief smelter, Vulgan Durtch, is a recluse, and the entire operation resembles a fortress with no windows, and no unguarded entrances. They had to step things up a bit security wise, after one of the mine managers sabotaged a rival’s shipment.
History
Well, I can’t really go back all that far. My memory gets a little fuzzy when I think back to the old days. . . I do know that the area near the lake was run by some uppity feudal lord a long time ago. He built a keep, which currently houses the Garrison’s men. There are also a couple of old fences in the cairn hills where he tried to get his farming subjects to grow carrots and potatoes. I wonder how many of the idiot’s subjects starved to death!
Well, his sons started exploring the cairns and old gravesites that litter this whole area. I guess they found quite a bit of loot from the olden days . . . and I don’t mean 50 years ago. I mean really old days. Hundreds of years ago.
Anyway, all this loot attracted the attention of Cinnmore, and pretty soon they bought off the noble kids and annexed this whole area for themselves. They hired a group of adventurers to explore it all, and sucked every last treasure dry from those old tombs.
That would have been the end of Diamond Lake, except prospectors and surveyors came in and took measure of the land. It’s still s#+~ for growing anything but weeds, but wouldn’t you know they discovered a massive cache of silver lodes and massive veins of iron under the hills, including the one we’re sitting on right now?
Now, years and years later, it’s said that that we’re the cornerstone of Cinnmore’s ore supply. Not like they’d pass any of that wealth onto common laborers like us, you understand. When I was a kid, getting a meal was as easily as casting a line in the Lake. Now, the smelting house and associated runoff has polluted the water so much, the merchants have to send off to Cinnmore just to get a week-old, salted flounder.
As far as recent history goes, there ain’t much to tell . . . honest folk are still getting screwed and the wealthy are still getting richer off of our sweat. Let’s see. . .
There’s an old ring of stones out in the boonies, called the Menhirs. It’s visited by Rangers, Druids, and other freeloaders. No one knows who built it, but they say the worn stone have been there for centuries.
The Old Observatory used to be a haven to some scholarly Monks, who used to prance about and read off astrology. They packed up shop when I was just a kid, and since then it’s pretty much sat abandoned.
Then, of course, about 19 years ago, a pretty bad plague called the Red Death swept through and killed a good many of us. I lost my sister to the Boneyard, and me son’s still got vapors and can’t make a living. I even had it myself, but it’s weren’t too bad on me. I did get a pretty lumpy scar from it on the back o’ my head though. You wanna see it?
No?
Ah well. . .
Entertainment
There’s nothing like spending a day’s wage in Diamond Lake. We may not get much in the way o’ housing, sanitation, or any of that frilly city crap that doesn’t do any good anyway . . . but we do have entertainment in spades.
If you have the money, the Emporium is the place to be. It’s run by a lady of the night, Zalamadra, and she’s got a whole cadre of the sweetest ladies you ever saw at her disposal. They sit in perfumed glory in the upstairs area she calls the Veiled Corridor. There aren’t any veils there that I’ve seen, but then again, I’ve never asked for one. There’s also a Den on the top floor where you can obtain the use of other substances that twist your mind around and make you talk funny, if you’re into that. There are plenty of games of chance, and a very interesting freak show downstairs full of dangerous and exotic creatures. Just last week, I heard a rumor that a crazed demon child escaped it cage and went on a fiery rampage. They haven’t caught it yet, and I’m keeping a sharp lookout. They say its hide has magic designs on it, and I’ll bet its worth a few pennies to its owners. I have a boot dagger handy in case I run into the thing.
If you like boredom, you can always visit Lazare’s House. It’s a fancy, high class place with a steep price I remember when Lazare managed a mine in town, until his wife got sick and he was bankrupted, selling everything to that bastard Smenk. Inside his place, there’s no music, no dancing girls, and no fun. I heard everyone sits at tables and plays Dragonchess, a game with over 40 pieces and a multilevel board. Lazare used to be a champion, and has somehow pushed his habit on some of the upper crust. It’s a snore, but at least you can gamble on it.
If you find yourself a little light of chink, there are a few other places you can visit for fun. The Midnight Salute is a pretty cheap place to get some female action, but they cater heavily to the Garrison’s crowd. If you’re looking to get drunk or do some low-end betting, there’s the Feral Dog, where you can see some pit dogs tear each other to pieces, and get into a bar brawl or two. It can get rough, even for a guy like me, but it’s worth it because they don’t charge you to get in. Your other choice among the chaff is the Spinning Giant, but the other patrons are usually garrison soldiers, so you have to be tolerant of drunken chants and men who like to slap each other on the butt. They don’t tolerate stealing or bad manners, and there isn’t a card game to be found anywhere in the vicinity.
If you’re just hungry for some food, you can go to the Hungry Gar. The chef there is a pretty decent cook, but there’s only so much you can do with snared rabbits and deer meat. One alternative is the Rusty Bucket, which has a pretty decent common room as well.
Finally, if information of the outside world is your cup of tea, many out-of-towners stay at the Able Carter Coaching Inn. The main thrust of the business is running coaches and supplies back and forth to Cinnmore, Blackwall Keep, Elmshire, and other parts west. Boarders from all over stay there, mostly for short term business, so a good conversation about Cinnmore and other part o’ the world are in good order there. Plus, if you’re willing to pay, they’ll take horses too.
Nine Hells, you can always do what I do. You can always spend thirty years of your life slaving away to Gelch Tilgast, only to see your life get poured down the drain when he sells the mine to Balabar Smenk in a few years. Smenk pays two coppers cheaper, and you work a longer shift. Bastards.
Shops
There are plenty o’ places to get business done in Diamond Lake. You got something to buy or sell, you can most likely procure your needs right here.
Let’s see. . . we got Tidwoad’s Jewelry, run by a uppity gnome of the same name. He cheated my mother out of her jewels for half their worth, so I can’t vouch for his honesty, but you should see his collections in the window – whew! . . . He swears that his shop is burglar proof, and so far, no one’s taken him up on the challenge. I’d like a few of those baubles for myself, that’s the honest truth.
The General Store is where you can pick up just about any mundane equipment you’d ever need. Taggin runs it pretty reasonable, and has all the supplies you need to travel overland for a month, or survive a mountain climb. He stays outta people’s business, and sticks to his own outfit.
The Lakeside Stables are run by a half-elf named Lanch Faraday. I ain’t ever owned a horse myself, so I don’t know him well. I only met him once, during a card game, but I took my leave when he upset a table and pulled a knife. He’s a mean, sour drunk, but he takes care of most of the community’s horses, so he can’t be all bad.
If you’re looking for weapons, Tyorl Ebberly has a good shop. He claims to be a watch captain in Cinnmore, but be must’ve done something wrong to end up here. He has a few artifacts from the Cairn hills that he’s found. If your interested his place is called The Captain’s Blade.
Venelle’s contains some of the finest bows in the land. Venelle herself is happy to sell anything she has, if she can locate it through all the clutter o’ her shop. I took up bow hunting myself once, and stood all day in a tree stand, on her advice. The only thing I caught was a damned cold.
Manlin Osgood. . . now there’s a man I can hang a reputation on. He’s a right fellow and an able drinking companion, if his head’s right. He doesn’t bluff at cards, he’s always ready with a backslap and a handshake, and he makes the finest masterwork armor in the region. A few from Cinnmore come to Osgood’s Smithy special, just to access his team of apprentice blacksmiths.
That’s about it. There are other places in town to get things, but I wouldn’t recommend it. When your life depends on a wooden girder underground, you better make sure the right hands set it up, if you catch my meaning.
In Diamond Lake, it’s better to be gouged by an honest exploiter than outright cheated by a thief, so stick to those places I mentioned . . . you should be fine.
Churches
There are a few churches in town that have gained a following, but I wouldn’t recommend any of ‘em. The best church for me are the Halls of the Veiled Corridor, where you can tithe your money for a cause that’s worthy of your coin, and get a little bit of sweetness besides.
However, if you insist, you can go to the Church of Ct. Cuthbert, right on the center of town. The sermons there are full of piss and vinegar, led by Jierian Wierus, whose favorite activity is to flog his own backside with a cat-o-nine-tails, and go to the seedy parts of town to covert others to do the same. His following is 150 strong and growing.
If they’d make you feel welcome, you can go to the garrison and sit at the Chapel of Heironeous. It’s mostly full of soldiers, who like to puff themselves up with honor before riding around the countryside in their fancy armor. Valkus Dunn is the righteous bastard in charge, preaching about public do-goodery, but doing nothing about it. He opens the service up to the public, but no one goes except men who swing swords for a living.
If you like nature, you can traipse out in to the boonies to visit the Bronzewood Lodge. Its run by Nogweir, a cleric of Obad-Hai who likes to scare people about bogeymen in the hills, but I can’t imagine why they’d sit out in the middle of nowhere with nothing to entertain them. Trying to fill the coffers so he can get back to real civilization is my guess.
There’s also a Temple of Wee-Jas around here somewhere, called the Cult of the Green Lady, but you won’t see them much unless you go the Boneyard and visit the graves they tend to. When my Suzie died from the Red Death, they took her thin, deformed bones and washed her up real pretty. Then they stood around and gave a little speech about mortality and life, but I didn’t have a penny to give ‘em. They went ahead and did it for free.
Anyway, that’s pretty much a good rundown of Diamond Lake for ya. You wasted enough of my time, so get out of my face and stop asking questions. I got a few coppers left in my pocket, and I want to get to the Emporium to see that damned two-headed mule again . . ."
Knuckston Grizzlebeard was buried in the Bonyard of Diamond Lake. His burial was overseen by the Cult of the Green Lady, and he is survived by his adult son Renald Grizzlebeard, in the direct custody of the mine manager Gelch Tilgast.
Diamond Lake Primer:
Overview: Diamond Lake
Diamond Lake nestles in the rocky crags of the Cairn Hills, three days east of the Free City of Greyhawk to which it is subject. Iron and silver from Diamond Lake’s mines fuel the capital’s markets and support its soldiers and nobles with the raw materials necessary for weapons and finery. This trade draws hundreds of skilled and unskilled laborers and artisans, all hoping to strike it rich. In ages past, Diamond Lake boasted an export even more valuable than metal in the form of treasure liberated from the numerous tombs and burial cairns crowding the hills around the town. These remnants of a half-dozen long-dead cultures commanded scandalous prices from the Free City, whose insatiable covetousness triggered a boom in the local economy. Those days are long gone, though. The last cairn in the region coughed up its treasures decades ago, and few locals pay much mind to stories of yet-undiscovered tombs and unplundered burial cairns. These days, only a handful of treasure seekers visit the town, and few return to the Free City with anything more valuable than a wall rubbing or an ancient tool fragment.
In the hills surrounding the town, hundreds of laborers spend weeks at a time underground, breathing recycled air pumped in via systems worth ten times their combined annual salary. The miners are the chattel of Diamond Lake, its seething, tainted blood. But they are also Diamond Lake’s foundation, their weekly pay cycling back into the community via a gaggle of gambling dens, bordellos, ale halls, and temples. Because work in the mines is so demanding and dangerous, most folk come to Diamond Lake because they have nowhere else to turn, seeking an honest trade of hard labor for subsistence-level pay simply because the system has allowed them no other option. Many are foreigners displaced from native lands by war or famine. Work in a Diamond Lake mine is the last honest step before utter destitution or crimes of desperation. For some, it is the first step in the opposite direction: a careful work assignment to ease the burden on debtor-filled prisons, one last chance to make it in civil society.
Despite its squalor, Diamond Lake is crucial to the Free City’s economy. The city’s directors thus take a keen interest in local affairs, noting the rise and fall of the managers who run Diamond Lake’s mines in trust for the government. The city’s chief man in the region is Governor-Mayor Lanod Neff, a lecherous philanderer eager to solidify his power and keep the mine managers in line. Neff exerts his capricious will via the agency of the grandiloquent Sheriff Cubbin, a man so renowned for corruption that many citizens assumed the announcement of his commission was a joke until he started arresting people.
The alliance between the governor-mayor and his pocket police might not be enough to cow Diamond Lake’s powerful mine managers, but Lanod Neff holds a subtle advantage thanks to the presence of his distinguished brother, the scrupulous Allustan, a wizard from the Free City who retired to Diamond Lake five years ago. None dare move against Neff so long as Allustan is around.
Instead of scheming against the government, Diamond Lake’s six mine managers plot endlessly against one another, desperate to claim a weakened enemy’s assets while at the same time protecting their own. While they are not nobles, the mine managers exist in a stratum above normal society. They consider themselves far above their employees, many of whom are indentured or effectively enslaved as part of a criminal sentence. The miners’ loyalty tends to map directly to the working conditions, pay, and respect offered to the miners by their wealthy masters.
How to Get There
Most people arrive at Diamond Lake by carriage or by accident. The Able Carter Coaching Company possesses a fleet of horse-drawn coaches, and inns positioned at various points in its paths. It has direct connections between Diamond Lake and the Free City (3 days east), the town of Blackstone (1 day east), the town of Elmshire (2 days north), and Blackwall Keep (2 days southeast).
Another sure-fire way to get into town is to commit a crime in the Free City, especially one involving debts. A lot of criminals are offered extended stays in one of Diamond Lake’s mines in return for a deferred sentence, so many people arrive in town with shackles and an armed escort.
How to Get Out
Depending on your situation, you might have a hard time leaving the town. Hiring a coach from Able Carter costs 5 sp per day of travel involved (so traveling by coach to Elmshire would cost 1 gp). Horses are available for sale at the Lakeside Stables, but the ostler Lanch Faraday is known for rather vicious mood-swings; be sure to check any mounts you buy for odd bruises.
Passage is available across Diamond Lake, but with the lake’s excessive pollution (the result of mining run-off and extensive smelting), there are no longer any other towns on the lake’s shores. The retired marine Durskin will gladly take passengers across the lake, assuming they can deal with the smell of urine and the constant flea-bites. The Cult of the Green Lady has a sailboat and will gladly ferry passengers, as long as they’ll listen to a sermon along the way.
Where to Stay
Most people who lack the resources to own a residence in Diamond Lake (those that could be bothered to, that is) stay in Jalek’s Flophouse, a ramshackle warehouse within smelling distance of the lake. Anyone willing to stay within it must pay 5 cp per night, paid to a massive, helmeted mute named Golot. No one has an address at Jalek’s; the room you keep is the room you get.
It’s also possible to stay at the Midnight Salute, though most of their clientele don’t actually sleep there for long. Anyone willing to pay above-average lodging fees will find plenty of pampering for their money – and, the more money they show, the more pampering they can get.
Most travelers and passersby stay at the Able Carter Coaching Inn, but only long enough to book passage out again. Rooms cost 1 gp per night, and stabling is available for 5 sp per day. (The Lakeside Stables are cheaper for horse-storage, but Faraday’s reputation and temper bring many to consider the extra expense well-spent.)
Where to Visit
Every day, when weather is permitting, merchants line the central square with hand-carts full of merchandise, baskets laden with fruit or pastries, and scams to separate the foolish from their coin.
People seeking a little culture in their spending go to Lazare’s, a cozy gaming parlor facing the central courtyard. The town’s elite gather there nightly to challenge each other at dragonchess, or outwit each other at dragonfire (an ante-based card game). Visitors are expected to bring their own dragonchess pieces (each booth has its own board set into the table), but rental sets are available for the unprepared.
Those looking for more culture, but less class, go to the Emporium to see the two-headed calf, the contortionist, the fortune-teller, and several other oddities. They also go there to throw their money away at various games of chance, including dragonfire, norebonne (a dice game), and a contest known simply as the Rat Game, in which rats race through an open-topped maze. The winner then gets to fight several jermlaine while in a drug-induced frenzy.
The town is laced with run-down ale-halls with poor reputations, watered-down ale, and no entry-fee. (Both Lazare’s and the Emporium charge you just for showing up.) The busiest of these is the Feral Dog, a rather sleazy tavern known best for its dog-fighting pit and its frequent brawls. Its gaining popularity for a house-sponsored knife-throwing contest, but its ale will never win any awards.
Many people stop by the Hungry Gar to eat throughout the day, though it certainly can’t be because of the quality of the food. If you’re looking for a decent meal, go elsewhere – but stop here if you’re looking for quantity; the portions, like the proprietor, are very large.
The Midnight Salute is a by-the-numbers bordello, which means you can get just enough liquor to lower your inhibitions before engaging in more, well, engaging activity. Don’t expect much in the way of food or drink – if you’re there, you’re there for other reasons.
People looking for a more straightforward tavern – the kind where you can actually enjoy yourself without risking a knifing – go to the Spinning Giant, named for the faded fresco on the front wall of a dancing imbecilic hill giant in a yellow dress. Mostly patronized by the garrison soldiers, this place has higher-than-average quality beverages, food that actually takes some effort to prepare, and a clientele that frowns on pickpockets and rowdies. Try their garlic butter rolls, and be prepared to pay handsomely if you ask for wine.
The largest shop dedicated to food is the Rusty Bucket, a restaurant that had to change their menu after the lake’s fishing went bad (as did the lake itself). Since the owner, mine manager Chaum Gansworth, stays out of the political maneuvering common to the other managers, most of the town considers the Bucket to be neutral territory. Try the brisket, but be sure to ask for light gravy or they’ll smother your tray.
Where to Shop
Most shoppers in town end up in Taggin’s General Store one way or another. The interior matches the exterior: chaotic, disorderly, and verging on collapse. Somehow, Taggin manages to keep mental track of the location and quantity of everything in the store; the shelves seem to be randomly filled with whatever will fit, but the owner can rapidly find anything requested. If you’re in mind to buy a canary from his over-full cage, be warned: any canaries that get out while you’re getting one must be paid for.
Those with the money for a good-natured mugging go to Tidwoad’s, the local jeweler. The gnome running this shop brags that his display cases are theft-proof, and he will be straightforward about just how badly he’s cheating you. He will gladly buy most valuables, but starts haggling at about one-third an item’s value – except for gemstones, for which he only charges one gold in twenty. He also rents out storage vaults, with safety ensured by the presence of a pet shield guardian named Festus.
Looking for weaponry? Try the Captain’s Blade, an efficient shop that sells weaponry of all sorts. Tyrol Ebberly, an inveterate gossip with a fanatical devotion to armaments, loves to show off his best wares, and keeps a surprisingly large selection available.
If your combat style favors distance, you’d prefer Venelle’s, a distinctly-carved building near Allustan’s house. The proprietor favors bows and arrows, but she also keeps some crossbows and slings on hand. She keeps a small selection of armor and other weaponry available, having traded her own work at the Free City. To get on her good side, bring along some knowledge of Elven culture.
Anything metallic can be had at the Osgood Smithy, as long as you can deal with the smell of soot, loud noise, and a blackened handshake and slap on the back from Osgood himself. His memory is nearly flawless, and his metalwork is just as good. His specialty is masterwork armor, though he leaves the leatherworking to Venelle.
Diamond Lake’s smelting facility doesn’t initially seem like a place to visit, but anyone willing to endure the stench of fumes, scalding heat, and noxious runoff can buy alchemical mixtures (and even magical brews) from the chemist Benazel. Be prepared, as he’ll talk your ear off while he wraps your purchase.
Hmmm... Age of Worms it is! The campaign will be set in Greyhawk, with all the nostalgic retro-ness that implies.
Do you have a link to that player's guide, Slyness? I know that there isn't an official one apart from a loose collection of articles that were in Dragon Magazine back in the day.
I will be posting a list of the updated Greyhawk deities that takes into account new domains and weapons that would be better fits for them than the old ones. And for the love of Pelor, do NOT think that you will play a cultist of Tharizdun. That's like being a cultist of Rovagug in Golarion, it just doesn't work unless everyone else happen to be completely evil/insane/. I would prefer that people gravitate more towards the 'classic deities', such as Pelor, Wee Jas, St.Cuthbert, or even Vecna (Assuming the PC is subtle and hides his faith as a follower of the deity of secrets should) rather than the hero gods of the Flan.
A note to those who might be applying that have some knowledge of the AP: I am rearranging a few encounters, updating creatures, and making a few fights much more thematic and intense, so if you have some inside knowledge, don't complain when things are NOT what you know! It's bad form to metagame anyway.
I will look back over this thread in about 12 hours to see if any more are interested, then I will decide which campaign to run.
To answer some obviously popular questions:
1. I would prefer the campaigns be set in Greyhawk, which is where they were based with the 'serial numbers filed off'. I would be willing to make a short primer for PCs to read if familiarity is an issue for players.
2. Pathfinder will be the established ruleset, as per the title of this thread.
3. The starting level is the same as every AP: 1.
If anyone wishes to pitch their preferred AP, feel free to do so. My say is final obviously, but I like all 3 of the APs almost equally, so I might be swayed towards a particular AP through popular opinion.
