Okay I have a lot of time on my hands, so I might as well create an all new, all different fantasy type world. I was influenced by watching reruns of 70's and 80's movies like Star Wars (the original 3 plus the Force Awakens), Krull, Flash Gordon, Legend, and Labyrinth. Also I really liked the cartoon He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. I want to create a world that is a mixture of fantasy and sci-fi.
I am seeing an almost apocalyptic world, meaning there are vast areas of ruins and desolate regions, but there are also established governments. Most people don't have access to technology, so they have to use standard Medieval style weapons, armor and other items as needed. However, advanced technology like laser guns, rocket ships and holographic computers with artificial intelligence do exist.
I want to use the standard races and classes, but rename and reclassify them. The rules will stay the same, but I may alter them. There won't be the stereotypical gods for clerics and spells for wizards. I will rename the classes and races to suit this world. I will look at each Race and Class and make adjustments. As I said I have some extra time right now, but not for long.
All right lets begin...
~The 9 Alignments~
I am using the Pathfinder SRD for my information, and for starters I see the classic 9 alignments. For this world of science and sorcery, alignments are more like guidelines. People have their own motivations, and everyday the concepts of good, evil, law, chaos and neutrality are all mixed together into gray areas. So it really isn't a big deal to me.
It means that characters can be of any alignment or no alignment. Being Unaligned is fine by me. Now, alignments may come into play if I see a need for them later on in this process. For example, Paladins will not be the stereotypical class in the PHB. They will be renamed into something different, and what I "see" is that they can be of any alignment depending on their "god" or creed. This will also apply to other classes where alignment is a big deal.
Okay let's move on...
~Dwarves~
My initial thoughts are a race that was once part of the Human race, but due to dwarfism they were shunned. They were then enslaved by their giant master and forced to work in the mines for precious minerals. After many generations of being slaves, they rebelled against these giants and took over the mines for themselves. Today they are an independent race that has an special hatred for giants.
I put the world "dwarf" into the thesaurus and I looked at a lot of words that mean the same thing, but I am liking the word "runt". I see their giant masters calling them Runts in a derogatory way, but over the generations they ownership of that word and made it their own.
For languages Runts speak Common (I will make a common tongue that most folks understand, but it won't just be called Common) and Runtish. Smarter Runts may also speak the giant language, because over the generations of enslavement they learned it.
Replace the "hatred of against humanoid creatures of the orc and goblinoid subtypes" with Fey Thoughts, Giant Hunter or Lasting Grudge.
As far as their appearance, they look like people on Earth who have dwarfism, but they don't all have beards. Most Runts are beardless and very muscular due to being forced to work for their masters. They get +2 Constitution, +2 Strength, and -2 Charisma. Runts are known for not caring about their personal hygiene, and some of them rarely if ever bathe. So the smell can be bad to non Runts.
The male and female names presented in the Pathfinder SRD are just fine. Runtish is a short and harsh language, but many Runts will add a title like "Giant-Killer" or "Hard-Head".
This leads me to find out who these giants were, because they won't be the same as in the Bestiary. They will be a giant race, but I want them to have a different name and motivation.
~Elves~
On this world Elves are called Alphar. The Alphar tend to live apart from other Races due to their appearance, which would be described as “perfect”. Their features look perfectly proportioned, but their skin is very pale no matter where they live. They do not have pointy ears, but their eyes are very wide and their eyes are all one color. They have no whites in their eyes. Looking into the eyes of an Alphar can be very uncomfortable the first time. Both male and female Alphar tend to wear their hair long, but a few rare ones shave their hair in an act of defiance. Cutting the hair of an Alphar is considered a great act of shaming.
Most Alphar tend to live about twice as long as Humans. There are some Alphar who live much longer.
All Alphar know how to cast spells. In Alpharian communities most of them are either Weavers or multi-classed Weavers with another class. For this reason most Alphar shun wearing any type of armor, unless it is special magical armor that feels like clothing. In the rare case that an Alphar is raised outside of an Alpharian community, they will be able to cast spells at zero level, because their affinity for magic is something they are born with.
Their Ability Score Racial Traits are +1 Intelligence and +1 Dexterity.
They do not have Elven Immunities, Elven Magic and Weapon Familiarity. Instead most Alphar have Perfect and Overwhelming Magic. They keep Keen Senses and Low-Light Vision.
The male and female names in the PHB tend to be the same. Alphar have beautiful sounding, long names and in their communities they enjoy telling and hearing long stories.
~Gnomes~
In this world they are renamed to Gaemin. Unlike the Runts who were enslaved, the Gaemin journeyed deep within the earth to live apart from Men. After many generations some Gaemin returned to the surface to live new lives. There is a division now between Gaemin who live underground and those who live on the surface.
For Gaemin they can feel the Weave all around them and almost all of them are Shapers (Sorcerers) or multi-classed with another class. There are also many Gaemin bards, because they love to sing and play instruments. Their communities on the surface are usually in hilly or mountainous regions, because they like to be close to the earth.
They do not have the following traits of Hatred and defensive training vs giants. Instead most Gaemin have Eternal Hope, instead of hatred and defensive training. Those who chose to live underground have Darkvision instead of Low Light Vision.
Most Gaemin tend to be dark skinned, gray or brown in color. Both males and females like to keep their hair short or bald. There are only slight differences between male and female Gaemin and it’s difficult to tell them apart.
Gaemin names tend to be short, but beautiful. There don’t have what we consider to be male and female names.
Note: if you are reading this, and you are, feel free to offer suggestions, advice or brutal criticisms. Its part of the reason why I am posting it on here. The other part is due to sheer boredom...
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In reading your opening statement, I thought it might be interesting to play in a "pre-pocalyptic" world, by which I mean that the world has not yet fallen to ruin and is just in the early phases of it. Some things are gone or destroyed, some are still at full strength, some have adapted, some are in the process of crumbling, etc. In this way, the adventuring party is not just surviving in a post apocalypse world, not trying to stop the apocalypse, nor knowing of a catastrophe that happen hundreds of years ago: they are actually living in and witnessing it.
Some people have very strong opinion against the alignment system, and don't want it to exist at all. I suspect this might be why you want to allow an "unaligned" character. I like the alignment system but have a pretty flexible interpretation of it. I see it as a role playing aid rather than restriction. Adventurers have non-neutral alignments because they are not normal people and stand for things that most do not understand. What you describe as unaligned I would just call neutral.
These three races seem to be re-imagined and re-built in significant enough ways that you can stop calling them by the races they were derived from. Say that you have custom races and build them from scratch.
It might make sense for your "dwarves" to simply speak giant. Also, you could decide on what the giants' word for "runt" and use that as the race name.
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While I think you're ideas are fascinating please try to follow the race creation guidelines because you're race stats are odd to say the least. Like your elves. Stay away from +1's to ability scores there is a reason nothing provides a +1 to them. Other than that though your lore is really interesting
~Halflings~
On this world Halfling are called "Tykes", and they are small humanoids who split off from humans ages ago. Due to their small stature they had to rely on their speed, intelligence and luck in order to survive. They are born with the desire to wander the world, and in Tykish communities the Wandering is considered a right of passage.
While out on the road many Tykes will form gangs in order to survive and find work. They make excellent Thieves, but they also make great scouts. Some Tykes even find normal work, but due to their Wanderlust they cannot stay in one area for too long.
All Tykes claim they look forward to retirement, which means a return to the community they left when they started Wandering, but in truth Tykes only retire when they are physically unable to wander across the Lands. Once they stop wandering and are forced to stay in one place they will die within 1-3 years.
A Tyke’s height averages at 3 feet, and they look like miniature humans.
These are the changes below from the standard Halfling:
Wanderlust: Tykes love travel and maps. Halflings with this racial trait receive a +2 bonus on Knowledge (geography) and Survival checks. When casting spells or using abilities that provide or enhance movement, Tykes treat their caster level as +1 higher than normal. This racial trait replaces fearless and halfling luck.
Fleet of Foot: Tykes are quicker than their kin but less cautious. They move at normal speed and have a base speed of 30 feet. This racial trait replaces slow speed and sure-footed.
In reading your opening statement, I thought it might be interesting to play in a "pre-pocalyptic" world, by which I mean that the world has not yet fallen to ruin and is just in the early phases of it. Some things are gone or destroyed, some are still at full strength, some have adapted, some are in the process of crumbling, etc. In this way, the adventuring party is not just surviving in a post apocalypse world, not trying to stop the apocalypse, nor knowing of a catastrophe that happen hundreds of years ago: they are actually living in and witnessing it.
Some people have very strong opinion against the alignment system, and don't want it to exist at all. I suspect this might be why you want to allow an "unaligned" character. I like the alignment system but have a pretty flexible interpretation of it. I see it as a role playing aid rather than restriction. Adventurers have non-neutral alignments because they are not normal people and stand for things that most do not understand. What you describe as unaligned I would just call neutral.
These three races seem to be re-imagined and re-built in significant enough ways that you can stop calling them by the races they were derived from. Say that you have custom races and build them from scratch.
It might make sense for your "dwarves" to simply speak giant. Also, you could decide on what the giants' word for "runt" and use that as the race name.
I am using the rules from the Pathfinder SRD to re-image the Races, so yes it makes them almost completely different. The Runts would know Giant too, in addition to Runtish and the Common Tongue; by the way the Common language will not called that in this world. It will have an actual name and be this world's equivalent to English. Thanks for the comment.
While I think you're ideas are fascinating please try to follow the race creation guidelines because you're race stats are odd to say the least. Like your elves. Stay away from +1's to ability scores there is a reason nothing provides a +1 to them. Other than that though your lore is really interesting
I would have to disagree here a bit. I am just using the Pathfinder SRD. I want them to be this world's version of Elves, but they are significantly different. Normal Elves have a +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence and -2 Constitution. The total would be +2, so I just split it to +1 Dexterity and +1 Intelligence.
By the way, I am going through the Pathfinder SRD in order, so next we have...
~Humans~
Humans are virtually the same as found in the Pathfinder SRD. In my version of them, they are not native to this world. I see them being brought to this world in the distant past. The other Races above branched off from them, which is why they are called “humanoid” races. I like the idea that they originated on Earth, and some unknown force took a large number of them to be resettled here. I don’t yet know what that force was, but that’s good because I want some mysteries for this world.
I wouldn’t change anything, but I will say that Humans begin play knowing their native tongue and then the Common Tongue. It would be similar to a person from France knowing French and then some English. Also, Humans have the ability to adapt to their climate. Being able to adapt and change to their surroundings is one of the reasons they became the dominant species on Earth. For now anyway. They are the Race with the most people on this world, due to their tenancy to procreate quicker and more often than other Races.
~Other Races~
I don’t want to make this all about Races, but in the Pathfinder SRD the other acceptable Races would have an RP of 10 or less. However, I want to make them the same as above, they will be re-imaged for this world. However, I want to re-image the Catfolk right now.
On this world the Catfolk are called Maulkin, and they originate from the distant city of Ocelot hidden in a vast, uncharted jungle. They are very rare, but a few Maulkin do wander the world and have adventures. They are the same as presented in the Pathfinder SRD, no real changes. If you look at the picture in there, it shows a Maulkin holding some sort of futuristic looking gun and that is something this world possesses. More later…
Now we get to the classes. Again I am going in order and I can see how this world is developing as a write...
~Barbarians~
For starters they are not called Barbarians here. They would go by the name of their tribe. There are large regions on this world which once were mighty, technically advanced domains. However, those domains fell and their people also fell into Barbarism. Some of their shamans will tell stories about this distant past and how those days will come again.
The main difference is that the Barbarian character is able to call into him or her a war spirit. This is what gives them the rage ability. That makes the character unique among his/her tribe or group. Player characters are unique in this world, and have powers others do not. An NPC Barbarian who is not a Player would not have the Rage Powers presented in the Pathfinder SRD. Note: this world has many spirits that can be called on.
Also, some Barbarians may have access and know how to use futuristic weaponry. These weapons were passed down from the glorious past, and their use could have been passed down verbally from Chieftain to Chieftain. These weapons would take on an almost holy or godly quality to them. They may also have futuristic devices that they have kept, but have no idea how to use. An example would be something resembling a computer or television.
Barbarians would primarily be Human, but it would not prevent other Races from joining the tribe. It would be especially humorous to see a Runt or Tyke fly into a Rage. Alphar would absolute not become a Barbarian, but perhaps some exist somewhere in the world.
~Bards~
Here on this world they would be called a Minstrel, Troubadour, Vagabond, or other names that describe what they do. The main difference between them and other NPC Bards is their ability to manipulate the Weave to cast spells and use their special powers. An NPC Bard would not be able to kill someone just by playing or singing a song, for example. Also, some Bards may have access to a futuristic musical instrument. An example would be something like a solar powered electric guitar.
There is an order of Bards who are part of the Endless Story. One of them must tell this story at all times, or they believe the world will end. Whether or not this is true remains to be seen. A good order of Bards seeks the Song of Creation, which they claim created the world. Another evil order of Bards also seeks that song, because they believe that if it is sung backwards it becomes the Song of Destruction and the world will end.
Here I must note a special type of Bard who call themselves Clowns. They like to paint their faces and pretend to entertain folks, when in fact they mission is to scare them. Most of them are pure evil, but others are just totally insane and may accidentally be funny or help someone. If you are using alignments they would be either Chaotic Evil or Chaotic Neutral.
I think Dox was mostly saying it would be easier for you to follow pathfinder race creation guidelines. But well, you can do whatever you want of course.
Yes, it probably would, but easier is not always better. The fun of this for me, and this is fun, is following the Pathfinder SRD. Making this world is a unique experience and it will be different. Now onto the Clerics...
~Clerics~
First of all, they would be called something else like Priest, Rabbi, Shaman, Vicar or whatever corresponds to their faith. Second, I would change the Channel Energy power to include Neutral Energy. This is for Neutral, or indifferent, Priests whose faith is neither positive nor negative. They can use their Channeling ability for another purpose like protection. Their energy could protection them, and others, from damage equal to their level power. For example if someone hit a 19th Level Neutral Priest of Whatever with a 10d6 lightning bolt, they could then roll 10d6 to see how much damage they dissipated.
Third, Player characters are unique in that they have the channeling power and their spells work right away. NPC Clerics do not have the ability to channel and they must pray for their spells each time they attempt to cast them. It could take them minutes, hours or even days to cast a healing spell for example. Many Priests have no ability to cast spells at all.
Fourth, this world is not going to have the stereotypical gods that exist in other world like the God of Love, God of War, or the God of This and That. No it has to be something different. What I want to have are religions, which is what we have here on Earth. Now, we have religions like Hinduism that believe in thousands of gods and we have so called Pagan religions like Wicca. Here I want to include three types of religions.
The Conclave of Lights, or Lightians, would be similar to Earth’s Catholic religion. They have a Patriarch who is the head of the conclave, and under him (or her) would be Cardinals, Bishops, Monsignors, Fathers, Mothers, Brothers and Sisters. They have their worship services in churches. Their Priests would channel positive energy and would use good aligned clerical spells. However, that does not mean all Priests in the Lightian Church are good; some of them are evil and use their position to hurt other people and take donations for themselves. In this world where alignments are not mandatory, it’s not possible to cast a spell to see what alignment someone is. Just like on Earth, some people are good on the outside, but inside they are pure evil.
They don’t worship a named god; they pray to the Lights for help with healing or to banish evil undead. They would be considered monotheistic, but they believe there are an infinite amount of Lights in the Cosmos and when they die their souls will join the Lights or the Darkness. They believe in Angels who bring messages from the Lights, but they are not worshiped. One such angel was Farael the Fallen. He committed a sin and he fell to the world. He is now doomed to wander the world for all time.
The Temple of Latruen is a neutral religion, and those clerics who worship there can channel neutral energy. Latruen was a human male who was the first to write down his belief in Neutrality, because another way between Good and Evil. He soon gained followers and after he died his beliefs spread.
Latruenites worship in temples, and they don’t try to draw attention to their faith. They do not have a head of their religion. They have a Council of Pastors who meet once a year in different cities. Under the Pastors are Reverends, then Vicars, Deacons, and new clerics are called Docents. They wear gray robes for their ceremonies, and they are associated with the Gray Guild. I will get to them when I start writing about organizations in the Lands.
The Coven of Darkness is a religion devoted to committing evil acts and gaining power. There are Lightian Priests who are secretly part of the Coven. In most domains they cannot worship in public, but there are places where they can. They believe that there is a greater Darkness out there that is more powerful than the Lights. They believe in Demons who bring commands from the Darkness to them.
The head of the Covens is called the Magus. Under him or her are the Grand Priests, then the Great Priests, the High Priests, and then the Priests. Those just beginning in the Coven are called Acolytes.
They are very active in many communities, but unlike the Lightians the Covenors must keep their titles and ceremonies secret. A living sacrifice of an animal or person is generally made during their services, which are always held at night.
Finally, when I get to the section on gods, I will begin by saying there are no stereotypical gods in this world. However, there are very powerful beings that Clerics and others can pray to. I am more interested in making religions, but there will also be Cults out there devoted to a single god or goddess. I may also have visiting gods from other worlds too. Who knows there may be visiting gods too.
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The total would be +2, so I just split it to +1 Dexterity and +1 Intelligence.
Keep in mind that one +2 does not have the same value as two +1's in PF and 3.5/OGL systems. It costs 2,000 gp to produce a +1 stat increase, but 8,000 to produce a +2 stat increase. So if you go the +1 approach, you should apply it universally.
~Druids~
As I look at Druids I don’t want to change too much about them. I like the word and it fits. Unlike Priests, they draw their power from the world itself, which is a faceless entity. However, because of the past abuse of the world by people, the world itself became corrupted. Some Druids, when drawing power from the world, become corrupted.
That corruption can cause them to go mad (Chaotic Neutrals), become stubborn and rigid (Lawful Neutral), not affect them at all (Neutral), want to help others (Neutral Good), or it corrupts their very souls and they want to hurt others (Neutral Evil). In many ways the world is broken and it’s trying to repair itself, so the Druids themselves feel broken inside. It absolutely affects them mentally and everything they try to do.
Like other classes, the Players have powers other NPC Druids do not. While other Druids have to wait for the world to answer them, Players get their powers like shapechange right away. Their bond with the world is far greater than others, but so is their chance to be corrupted. Corruption is something that can be imposed on Players, and then they will have to be Cleansed or they will descend into madness or evil. Unfortunately, only the Grand Druid has access to that power and he has not been seen for a long time.
I like the original AD&D game, so I want to use that hierarchy for the Druids. First they start as Seekers. Then they become Aspirants, then Ovates, and then they become Initiates. After completing the 9 circles, they finally get the official title of Druid, then Archdruid. Finally, there a Great Druid who oversees a very large area. There is a myth of 1 Grand Druid who is the protector of the world, but he or she has not been seen in centuries.
The total would be +2, so I just split it to +1 Dexterity and +1 Intelligence.Keep in mind that one +2 does not have the same value as two +1's in PF and 3.5/OGL systems. It costs 2,000 gp to produce a +1 stat increase, but 8,000 to produce a +2 stat increase. So if you go the +1 approach, you should apply it universally.
Based on this I am going to change the Alphar's ability scores racial traits to +2 Intelligence, +2 Dexterity, and -2 Charisma. They are smart and quick, but their strange appearance and distant attitude makes them less likable.
~Fighters~
On this world Fighters have many different names. They could be warriors, mercenaries, sellswords, archers, whatever. Fighters may also have access to futuristic weapons and armor. These are very rare, and left over from the previous age, but they do exist. Players who find such items, any class, would need some training on how to use them. Imagine never seeing a loaded gun before and trying to figure out how to use them. Luckily, Fighters on this world are a least aware of what guns are and how they work, regardless if those guns shoot bullets or energy blasts. Finding someone to train you is an adventure in itself.
Another important factor for Fighters is their fighting style. Just based on how he or she fights, a good Fighter can tell how they were trained and in some cases who trained them. When creating a Fighter a Player, or DM, must come up with who trained them and how. If he or she was trained in the military, or by a sword master, it matters. I should note that Player Fighters are far better than most other NPC Fighters. NPC’s do not get the same bonus feats or weapon mastery. As a Fighter gains in levels he or she will also start to get a reputation, or other Fighters may seek them out for a challenge.
Let me add here that not all NPC Characters have less abilities than Players. The Players represent the elites of this world, and there will be NPC who are also elites.
~Monks~
On this world the Monk class isn’t called a Monk, because that word has been taken by the Conclave. They have different names based on the school and style of martial arts they were trained in. There are Anchorites, Cenobites, Ascetics, and many others. The word “Ascetic” is often used, and there are Ascetic schools all across the Lands.
Any sort of Earth’s Asian influence is taken out of the Artist here. Instead of the word Ki, the word Soul is used. Ascetics can harness the power of their souls to do amazing things. Most other Ascetics cannot do this, so the Player characters are one of the elites in this world. Because of that they are sought out by other Ascetics for a challenge. This fights rarely end in death, because both Artists want to learn from the other. There are special occasions when two Ascetics will fight to the death.
At typical Ascetic school, the ranking are as follows: Novice, Initiate, Docent, Disciple, Immaculate, Master, High Master, and Supreme Master.
When a new Ascetic reaches the rank of Initiate (1st Level) they can decide to stay at the school or go wandering the Lands challenging other wandering Ascetics and teaching themselves.
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Barbarians probably don't call themselves barbarians. Fighters probably don't call themselves "fighters". Even the n the real world a person would seldom use such a title for themself. It goes without saying that in game a character would not neccessarily use their class name to describe themselves. A class name is mostly for the benefit of the real life people playing the game.
Barbarians probably don't call themselves barbarians. Fighters probably don't call themselves "fighters". Even the n the real world a person would seldom use such a title for themself. It goes without saying that in game a character would not neccessarily use their class name to describe themselves. A class name is mostly for the benefit of the real life people playing the game.
You are absolutely correct.