Ancient Lands - Sword & Sorcery Campaign Setting, Take 3

[Yora]

Creating a Clan
Playing around a bit with the numbers for the populations of the races of the Ancient Lands, I came up with a final total of clans of about 2,000. That's of course way too high to make a complete writeup of all of them, which also isn't either neccessary nor desirable. The campaign setting will include a maybe a number of 40 or 50 clans with varying grades of detail, which can be used directly or as examples and inspirations for other clans. GMs are very much encouraged to create their own clans to be best suited for specific adventures and campaigns.
Here are the guidelines I am using for my clans:

Clan Size
The size of clans can vary widely, but most commonly they number about 4,000 to 6,000 people in total, including slaves and freemen servants.
For quick reference, there are four categories of clans: Greater clans, major clans, minor clans, and lesser clans.
Greater Clans: Greater clans usually range in size from 18,000 to 50,000 people. There's less than two dozens of clans this large, most of them being lizardfolk and high elves. Clans of this size can rival many smaller kingdoms all by themselves.
Major Clans: Much more common that the greater clans, major clans range in population from 6,000 to 18,000 people. They are usually the most important clans in any given area.
Minor Clans: The vast majority of clans has population numbers ranging from 2,000 to 6,000 individuals. In many of these, members of the clansmen group are at least somewhat familiar with all the other clansmen families.
Lesser Clans: Lesser clans have a size of fewer than 2,000 people, often just a few hundred. Clans of such size are rare and most of them are former bands of outcasts that have settled down or the remnants of clans that were defeated by their enemies. In many cases, members of such clans are treated as either outcasts or slaves, regardless of what claims to a higher station they are making. Cults of the Old Ones are mostly found in such lesser clans, where all members of the clan are following them.

Social Ranks
The specific composition of each clan depends largely on its culture and can vary between individual clans.
{table]Clansmen | 30-40%
Freemen | 30-60%
Slaves | 10-30%[/table]

Clan Warriors
In most clans roughly 5% of the full population are warriors (which includes rangers and rogues, but excludes NPCs of the warrior class), who are almost always members of clansman rank. In times of war, another 10% can be called to battle as a kind of militia, primarily consisting of NPCs of the warrior and expert classes of either clansman or freeman rank.

Clan Leaders
Chief: The leader of every clan is the chief. The role of the chief is primarily as the military leader of the clan and the first of its warriors, so most chiefs are fighters or barbarians. Rangers or adepts are not unusual and occasionally the role is even held by a shaman, ranger, or expert. The administration of the villages is mostly handled by the local elders.
Marshall: The marshall is the leader of the chiefs personally warriors and responsible for the security and defence of his personal keep and the nearby village, as the chief often has additional duties to attent to. As the chiefs second in command, marshalls can become very powerful, especially when their chiefs are not warriors themselves. When the position of chief goes from one family to another, the marshall or one of his son is usually strongest candidate.
Sub-Chief: Particularly in larger clans, neither the chief nor his marshall can lead all the clans warriors by themselves. Usually there's a number of sub-chiefs, who are tasked with keeping villages and farms on the outer edges of the clans territory safe. In general, a clan has one sub-chief for every 1,000 to 2,000 people. Unlike the positions of chief and marshall, the positions of sub-chiefs are much less heredatary and a chief can usually replace any of his sub-chief without great opposition from the clans most influential families.
High Shaman: Most clans revere an ancestor or protector spirit who watches over the entire clan as a whole. In these clans, a high shaman is responsible for maintaining the relationship between this spirit and the clan. Often the shrine for the protector spirit lies next to the keep of the chief or even within it, in which case the high shaman usually has very high political influence. In other cases, the shrine can lie in a very remote location, which significantly reduces the high shamans influence in clan politics.
Shamans: In addition to the high shaman, most villages of sufficient size have their own shrine attended by a shaman. Usually, a clan has one shaman for every 500 to 1,000 people. Most shamans have two or three novices who assist them and will eventually succeed them in their position.

To quickly generate the leaders of a clan, use the following tables.

{table=head]Clan size | Size modifier
Greater | +2
Major | +1
Minor | +0
Lesser | -1[/table]

{table=head]Leadership role | Class | Level
Chief | Ftr | 5 + size modifier
Marshall | Ftr | 6 + size modifier
Sub-chief | Ftr | 4 + size modifier
High shaman | Shm | 5 + size modifier
Shaman | Shm | 4 + size modifier
Novice shaman | Shm | 2 + size modifier[/table]

[Yora]

Ran into this little thing completely by accident:

Found a great word the other day: Scurrier.

It’s an old term referring to “one sent out to reconnoiter or scout”. It originally seems to have applied specifically to military scouts (who would be sent out to “scour” the countryside), but in the 16th century it seems to have migrated into more domestic concerns as a sort of “special agent” before abruptly disappearing from the language.

I think that might really be the answer to defining the common role of PCs in an Ancient Lands campaign. Chiefs would send out a dozen 6th level fighters if they already know what the source of the current troubles is and where to find it. But quite often, things start with vague rumor of something going on outside the borders of the clans territory before they get really bad, and a chief can't send his best soldiers on a wild goose chase every time that happens. Those warriors are needed to guard the clan against attacks from raiders and monsters. When they leave it has to be for something really important.
Instead, a first response would be to send out some people to keep their eyes and ears open and roam the lands of neighboring clans and the countryside to see if they find anything that might become a problem later. And for that task it makes perfect sense to not only send 1st and 2nd level characters, but also to send rogues and adepts rather than a pure force of fighters and barbarians supported by one shaman.

At low levels, that may sometimes mean to return to the chief and report of the danger the PCs discovered, so a larger band of elite warriors can be gathered to crush it. Having NPCs get all the glory is usually a bad thing in a campaign, but getting the neccessary information to war the chief, and even more so getting that information back to him, can often be a rather serious challenge and epic adventure all by itself. The first part of the Lord of the Rings, where the hobbits have to get the ring to Elrond could be regarded as one such example. They are very low level and while they are trying to reach a group of epic level NPCs who can just sweep away all the challenges they encounter on their trip, nobody knows where they are or even that they are trying to make that journey in the first place. Still it's not like that adventure was made irrelevant by the fact that all they did was to make a delivery of something important so that more powerful NPCs could deal with it properly.
And many things can be solved by low-level PCs all by themselves without really having to call in the cavalry. And even if they get back and get reinforcements, they will also have to guide this stronger force to the place where the danger is coming from. And given that the setting is kind of E6-ish, they can actually join the final offense in the second rank or the flanks.

So yeah, scurrying around in the wilderness looking for trouble is an idea for low-level adventures that I want to wholeheartedly embrace.

[Yora]

Thought I give a little update on what I've been working on these last weeks. Which has been mostly monsters.

Names in italic are new creations. Those marked with an asterisk have been slighly altered, mostly to conform to the new spell system or changed to a different creature type. (Like all fey being outsiders with the spirit subtype.)

Spoiler

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{table=head]Name | CR |
Centipede, Tiny* | CR 1/8
Name | CR
Centipede, Small* | CR 1/4
Spider, Tiny* | CR 1/4
Name | CR
Dark Elf* | CR 1/3
Derro* | CR 1/3
Dog | CR 1/3
Goblin* | CR 1/3
Merfolk | CR 1/3
Rat, Dire | CR 1/3
Shrieker | CR 1/3 | A small, tail-less monkey-like creature with grey-purple fur and bluish-black manes and flat faces with tiny eyes and noses. Hunts mostly in swarms in forests and caves.
Skeleton | CR 1/3
Wisp | CR 1/3 | A tiny, gaseous forest spirit that often serves as sentries for more powerful spirits.
Wood Elf* | CR 1/3
Name | CR
Badger | CR 1/2
Centipede, Medium | CR 1/2
Dolphin | CR 1/2
Eagle | CR 1/2
Horse, Pony | CR 1/2
Monkey, Baboon | CR 1/2
Mosquito, Giant | CR 1/2 | A hand-sized insect covered in sharp armor plates with a powerful stinger.
Reptile, Compsognathus | CR 1/2
Snake, Small Viper* | CR 1/2
Snake, Tiny Viper | CR 1/2
Spider, Small* | CR 1/2
Zombie | CR 1/2
Name | CR
Centipede, Large* | CR 1
Dog, Guard | CR 1 | (riding dog)
Ghoul | CR 1
Goblin, Greater* | CR 1 | Goblin with the giant creature template
Grimlock | CR 1 | Powerful, eyeless humanoid that lives in the Underworld.
Harpy* | CR 1
Horse | CR 1
Hyena | CR 1
Lizardfolk | CR 1
Petitioner* | CR 1 | Souls of humanoids who made a bargain with demons to be taken to the Void as servants.
Rakurai | CR 1 | Stocky humanoids with both legs and fish tails and piranha-like heads who live at the bottom of the sea and in some coastal caves.
Sea Scorpion | CR 1
Serpent Warrior | CR 1 | Elf-sized humanoids with reptilian skin and eyes, created as elite servants for the naga.
Snake, Medium Viper | CR 1
Spider, Medium | CR 1
Wolf | CR 1
Name | CR
Ape, Gorilla | CR 2
Badger, Dire | CR 2
Bat, Dire | CR 2
Boar | CR 2
Cat, Leopard | CR 2
Centipede, Huge* | CR 2
Crocodile | CR 2
Darkling | 2 | Roughly human sized creature of wolverine-like stature and great strength, that prowls the Underworld in small packs and can climb on cave walls and ceilings.
Hippogriff | CR 2
Imp* | CR 2
Monkey, Dire | CR 2 | A larger and more ferocious version of the baboon.
Rakurai, Greater | CR 2 | Rare breed of rakurai with the giant sized template.
Reaver | CR 2 | Violent humanoids from the spiritworld who resemble somewhat undersized shaggy trolls with large horns.
Reptile, Pack Lizard | CR 2 | Herd reptile with the size of a camel.
Reptile, Monitor | CR 2
Reptile, Velociraptor | CR 2
Shark | CR 2
Skum | CR 2
Snake, Medium Constrictor | CR 2
Snake, Large Viper* | CR 2
Wolverine | CR 2
Worg | CR 2
Name | CR
Ant Lion | CR 3 | Large burrowing insect that hunts by ambushing its prey from holes in the ground.
Ape, Dire | CR 3
Assassin Vine | CR 3
Doppelganger | CR 3
Dragonhawk | CR 3 | A large feathred flying reptile with the head of a bird of prey.
Drider* | CR 3
Ettercap | CR 3
Giant Mantis | CR 3
Giant Weasel | CR 3
Hell Hound | CR 3
Hyena, Dire | CR 3
Reptile, Deinonychus | CR 3
Shadow | CR 3
Snake, Large Constrictor* | CR 2
Spider, Large* | CR 3
Swamp Strangler | CR 3 | Roughly humanoid plant creature made from coiled vines.
Troll | CR 3 | Large and strong humanoids with grey, stone-like skin.
Wolf, Dire | CR 3
Yeth Hound | CR 3
Name | CR
Bear, Grizzly | CR 4
Boar, Dire | CR 4
Cat, Tiger | CR 4
Crocodile, Giant* | CR 4
Gray Ooze | CR 4
Myceloid | CR 4
Owlbear | CR 4
Pixie | CR 4
Reptile, Giant Monitor* | CR 4
Reptile, Megaraptor | CR 4
Reptile, Bull Lizard | CR 4 | Herd reptile with the size of a bison.
Shark, Giant* | CR 4
Shie | CR 4 | Tall humanoid spirits with some resemblance to elves, who build most of the ancient ruins in the Ancient Lands.
Snake, Huge Viper* | CR 4
Wolverine, Dire | CR 4
Name | CR
Basilisk | CR 5
Bog Beast | CR 5 | A roughly humanoid shaped plant-creature the size of a troll and covered in moss.
Dolphin, Orca | CR 5
Giant Sloth | CR 5
Green Hag | CR 5
Hill Giant | CR 5 | A large humanoid with seemingly thin arms and legs and earth-colored skin and hair.
Insect Man | CR 5 | Human-sized, winged creatures from the Underworld with strange telepathic powers.
Naga | CR 5 | Large humanoids with the skin and lower bodies of snakes.
Ochre Jelly | CR 5
Oni* | CR 5
Snake, Huge Constrictor* | CR 5
Spider, Huge* | CR 5
Name | CR
Cave Giant | CR 6
Fey Giant | CR 6 | Large humanoid spirits with pale green skin and powers over plants and animals.
Intelligent Spider | CR 6 | A spider-like creature from the Underworld that enslaves other creatures to work for it.
Spriggan | CR 6 | A tall, humanoid plant spirit that can control the plants around its home.
Swamp Squid | CR 6 | A big squid-like creature with ten arms that lives in the Underworld and some swamps on the surface world.
Wyvern | CR 6
Name | CR
Aboleth | CR 7
Bear, Dire | CR 7
Black Pudding | CR 7
Dragon, Young | CR 7 | A large flying reptile with fire breath and slightly below human intelligence.
Mountain Giant | CR 7 | A large humanoid appearing mostly as a 12-foot tall human.
Reptile, Elasmosaurus | CR 7
Name | CR
Deep Worm | CR 8 | Large burrowing worm of the Underworld.
Golem, Bone | CR 8
Nymph* | CR 8
Treant* | CR 8
Reptile, Tylosaurus | CR 8
Name | CR
Dragon, Adult | CR 10 | A huge flying reptile with fire breath and human intelligence.
Golem, Clay | CR 10
Underworld Worm | CR 10 | A huge creature resembling a giant earthworm with centipede legs and a big maw and a tail stringer. Highly intelligent and known for its terrifying howl.
Whale | CR 10
Name | CR
Golem, Stone | CR 11
Name | CR
Titan | CR 12 | Huge earth spirit resembling a giant humanoid made from stone.
Name | CR
Dragon, Old | CR 13 | A gargantuan flying reptile with fire breath and slightly above human intelligence.[/table]

I still have about 50 more on my list, that I still have to make stats for. Right now it's about 100 on 60 pages, so it should be a total of about 150 creatures on under 100 pages. Which is still less than half of a single Monster Manual or Bestiary

[Yora]

I am currently finalizing the spirit forms for demons (corporeal forms tomorrow perhaps) and while I have the basic framework done, there's still the special abilities left to be considered. Here's what I got so far:

Wrath Demon: CR 6, medium. Some ability to deal massive carnage.
Hunger Demon: CR 7, medium. Powerful bite attack, scent, rangers bonus to tracking.
Greed Demon: CR 8, medium. Stealth and sneak attack.
Desire Demon: CR 9, medium. Change shape, fly, high charisma.
Sloth Demon: CR 11, large. High Constitution, high natural armor, high mproved spell resistance, very high deception skills, Knowledge (arcana) and Spellcraft skills.
Tyranny Demon: CR 13, large. High intelligence.
Pride Demon: CR 15, huge. Very high strength, constitution, intelligence, and charisma.

At the lower end, things are quite clear: Wrath demons are heavy shock troops, hunger demons are hunters, greed demons are assassins, and desire demons are spies.
With the bigger ones, it's more complicated. Sloth demons are liards, deceivers, and corruptors, but I have no specific special abilities for that concept. Tyranny demons are commanders, but here I am even more at a loss how to represent that with special abilities. And pride demons believe they are the greatest BAMFs there are, and they are even mostly right at that. Making them shrug off any attempts to harm them could be one way to approach them, but I don't think that would make for a very interesting boss monster and villain.

Any ideas for special abilities? If it's abilities taken from existing pathfinder outsiders, that would make the work even easier.

[Yora]

Demons (Void Forms)
These creatures are demons in their natural forms, at least as much as a purely nonphysical being can have one. When mortals project their spirits into the Void, these demons will be the ones they are most likely to encounter, unless they are visiting a demiplane created by a demon lord. Spells of the summoning subschool also create a temporary physical form for summoned demons that use the same statistics.

Spoiler

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Wrath Demon

Wrath Demon - CR 6
XP 2,400
Medium outsider (demon)
Init +5; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +7
DEFENSE
AC 18, touch 12, flat-footed 17 (+1 deflection, +1 Dex, +6 natural)
hp 68 (8d10+24)
Fort +5, Ref +7, Will +6
DR 5/silver or magic; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 16
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +12 (1d6+3) and bite +11 (1d8+3)
Special Attacks double damage against objects
STATISTICS
Str 16, Dex 13, Con 17, Int 8, Wis 11, Cha 12
Base Atk +8; CMB +11; CMD 22
Feats Cleave, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Weapon Focus (claws)
Skills Climb +14, Intimidate +12, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +10, Perception +11, Stealth +11
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or pack (3–12)
Treasure standard
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Double Damage Against Objects (Ex) A wrath demon that makes a full attack against an object or structure deals double damage.

Skill Ranks: Climb* 8 ranks, Intimidate* 8 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 8 ranks, Perception* 8 ranks, Stealth* 8 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Even though they are among the last powerful beings of the void, wrath demons are still formidable foes and highly dangerous creatures. Wrath demons come in many different shapes, usually resembling a mix of both man and ape running on two or four legs, but often having additional demonic features like black horns and spikes, bony plates and ridges, brightly red or orange colored fur, large tusks and whipping tails. They are easily recognized by their brightly glowing red eyes and those who fought them up close tend to describe them as emanating an unnatural heat as if they were made from glowing coals.
Wrath demons are fairly simple minded and their usual reaction to comming into the physical world is to revel in mayhem and wanton destruction. Wrath demons rarely show any concern for their relative fragile physical bodies when in the material world and simply engage in as much carnage as possible before their immaterial spirits have to return to the Void. As a result the possession of living humanoids by wrath demons is almost unheard of, since it is not worth the great amount of preparation and magical resources required for the ritual.

Hunger Demon

Hunger Demon - CR 7
XP 3,600
Medium outsider (demon)
Init +2; Senses scent, see in darkness.; Perception +7
DEFENSE
AC 22, touch 14, flat-footed 21 (+2 deflection, +2 Dex, +8 natural)
hp 85 (9d10+36)
Fort +9, Ref +8, Will +7
DR 5/silver or magic; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 17
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft.
Melee bite +14 (2d6+4/19–20) and 2 claws +13 (1d6+4)
Special Attacks rend (2 claws, 1d6+6)
STATISTICS
Str 18, Dex 15, Con 19, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 14
Base Atk +9; CMB +13; CMD 25
Feats Cleave, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (bite), Power Attack, Weapon Focus (bite)
Skills Climb +16, Intimidate +14, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +12, Perception +13, Stealth +14, Survival +13
Languages Infernal
SQ track +4
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or pack (3–8)
Treasure standard
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Track This ability works like the ranger class feature of the same name.

Skill Ranks: Climb* 9 ranks, Intimidate* 9 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 9 ranks, Perception* 9 ranks, Stealth* 9 ranks, Survival* 9 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Hunger Demons are stronger, more powerful, and more intelligent than wrath demons, but the one aspect that makes them especially more dangerous is their desire not just to destroy, but to consume. Hunger demons can be as violent and destructive as wrath demons, but their craving is usually more focused and they have a stronger drive to seek out specific targets. Like most demons, hunger demons that come into the material world through possession develop a quite specific target which they desire. For some it is such simple things as roasted boar or ale, which they will consume in as large amount as they can get, but it is not uncommon for them to have a craving for much more appaling things like the hearts of gnomes or the eyes of elves. Even if the object of their hunger is something more mundane, they will go to any length to get it, which makes them no less dangerous.
The most common form for hunger demons is one that resembles a large boar or badger with the legs of a bear and the head of a large wild cat with huge fangs and covered in shaggy dark brown, green, and black fur. Hunger demons will do almost everything to consume the object of their craving and they will gladly use their skills of hunting and tracking down prey for any master who can provide their favorite meals. Hunger demons possessing living humanoid bodies are rare, but it happens occasionally when a powerful spellcaster is in need of their tracking skills.

Greed Demon

Greed Demon - CR 8
XP 4,800
Medium outsider (demon)
Init +9; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +7
DEFENSE
AC 25, touch 19, flat-footed 19 (+3 deflection, +5 Dex, +1 dodge, +6 natural)
hp 105 (10d10+50)
Fort +8, Ref +12, Will +10
DR 5/silver; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 18
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft., climb 15 ft.
Melee 2 claws +13 (1d6+3)
Special Attacks sneak attack +5d6
Spell-like Abilities (CL 8th, concentration +11)
At will—cloak of shadows (self only), darkness, invisibility (self only)
STATISTICS
Str 16, Dex 21, Con 21, Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 16
Base Atk +10; CMB +13; CMD 28
Feats Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Stealthy
Skills Acrobatics +15, Bluff +16, Climb +24, Escape Artist +15, Intimidate +16, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +15, Perception +14, Sense Motive +9, Stealth +20
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or gang (3–4)
Treasure standard

Skill Ranks: Acrobatics 10 ranks, Bluff* 10 ranks, Climb* 10 ranks, Escape Artist* 5 ranks, Intimidate* 10 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 10 ranks, Perception* 10 ranks, Sense Motive* 5 ranks, Stealth* 10 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Where hunger demons simply crave to consume things, greed demons are driven by the desire to possess and hoard things that have some sort of value to them. Since demons in the void have no use for wealth or any material possessions and their presence in the physical world is always only a temporary one, no matter how many years or decades it may last, it is very hard to predict what types of things their craving will focus on. Some greed demons desire to hoard gold and jewels, but will only spend them if they regard it as an investment to even greater riches. But more commonly their greed focuses on more abstract or even apparently illogical things, like paintings, sculptures, fine clothing, exotic beasts, and valuable slaves, or even just rare seashells or collections of expensive wines.
The most common form for greed demons has some vague resamblance to both humanoids and big dogs and cats, being able to stand up on their lower legs, but also to crawl and climb using their arms as well. Their bodies are often covered in bluish black scales and shimmmering fur. They can be almost perfectly silent and have many abilities that help them to avoid being seen. Usually they use their abilities in the material world to steal objects they are craving or to ambush and kill people who carry them, but their natural greed also makes them very willing to sell their skills to anyone who can reward them. Greed demons ocasionally manage to take possession of a mortal body, which is most common when spellcasters do not dare to call a more powerful demon. Sometimes those demons take off on their own devices, when their master is slain or proves too weak to keep the greed demon under control. But most greed demons are too short sighted and not smart enough to gather large groups of minions and rarely have more than a handful of weak underlings.

Desire Demon

Desire Demon - CR 9
XP 7,200
Medium outsider (demon)
Init +10; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +7
DEFENSE
AC 28, touch 22, flat-footed 19 (+6 deflection, +6 Dex, +6 natural)
hp 114 (12d10+48)
Fort +10, Ref +14, Will +12
DR 10/silver; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 19
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft., fly 50 ft. (good)
Melee 2 claws +16 (1d6+4)
Spell-like Abilities (CL 9th, concentration +15)
At will—charm (DC 21), daze (DC 21), invisibility, read thoughts (DC 21), suggestion (DC 21)
3/day—dominate (DC 21), hallucination (DC 21), hold (DC 21)
STATISTICS
Str 18, Dex 23, Con 19, Int 16, Wis 15, Cha 22
Base Atk +12; CMB +16; CMD 32
Feats Combat Reflexes, Deceitful, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Weapon Finesse
Skills Bluff +23, Diplomacy +21, Disguise +23, Escape Artist +21, Fly +25, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +18, Perception +17, Sense Motive +17, Stealth +21
Languages Infernal
SQ change shape (alter self, Small or Medium humanoid)
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or gang (3–6)
Treasure standard

Skill Ranks: Bluff* 12 ranks, Diplomacy* 12 ranks, Disguise* 12 ranks, Escape Artist* 12 ranks, Fly* 12 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 12 ranks, Perception* 12 ranks, Sense Motive* 12 ranks, Stealth* 12 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Desire demons usually have the most humanoid appearance, though in their natural forms they are covered in black, purple, and silvery scales, bony plates, and spikey horns, with a large pair of bat-like wings. They have the ability to change their appearance to any humanoid form, which they retain even when possessing a living humanoid mortal.
Desire demons are similar to greed demons in many ways, but unlike those lesser demons, they desire not simply to possess things that are rare and valuable, but to enjoy all the pleasures and luxury they have to offer. This makes them even more dangerous in many respects as they are also more intelligent and have greater self control.

Sloth Demon

Sloth Demon - CR 11
XP 12,800
Large outsider (demon)
Init +4; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +7
DEFENSE
AC 28, touch 18, flat-footed 24 (+5 deflection, +4 Dex, +10 natural, -1 size)
hp 175 (14d10+98)
Fort +15, Ref +13, Will +14
DR 10/silver; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 15, cold 15, fire 15; SR 26
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft.
Melee bite +22 (2d6+8/19–20) and 2 claws +22 (1d8+8 plus poison)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 11th; concentration +16)
At will—charm (DC 20), detect magic, dispel magic, sleep (DC 16), suggestion (DC 20)
3/day—hold (DC 20), weakness (DC 20)
STATISTICS
Str 26, Dex 19, Con 25, Int 18, Wis 17, Cha 20
Base Atk +14; CMB +23; CMD 37
Feats Cleave, Deceitful, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (bite), Iron Will, Persuasive, Power Attack
Skills Bluff +24, Diplomacy +22, Disguise +11, Climb +21, Intimidate +22, Knowledge (arcana) +18, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +21, Perception +20, Sense Motive +20, Spellcraft +18, Stealth +17
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary
Treasure standard
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Poison (Ex) Claw—injury; save Fort DC 24; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d4 Con damage; cure 2 consecutive saves. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Skill Ranks: Bluff* 14 ranks, Climb* 10 ranks, Diplomacy* 14 ranks, Disguise 4 ranks, Intimidate* 14 ranks, Knowledge (arcana) 14 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 14 ranks, Perception* 14 ranks, Sense Motive* 14 ranks, Spellcraft 14 ranks, Stealth* 14 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Sloth demons are often underestimated and considered much of a threat, but they are in fact among the greater types of demons and even more devious scheemers than desire demons or even tyranny demons. While desire demons indulge in luxury and other pleasures, the cravings of sloth demons are considerably more complex, and in a sense more refined. While many sloth demons in the physical world chose indeed to lead a life of opulence and decadence, their real desires are not material luxury, but to spread corruption and decay and to twist their victims into mockeries of their former selves. To sloth demons, wealth and power are means to an end. Their plans usually span over many years or even decades, during which they gladly spend all their resources to undermine society and bring down people of power and influence. The plans of sloth demons often seem paradox and are difficult to detect, as they will often resolve to methods that seemingly harm their own base of power and take a heavy toll on their minions. But creating large, hidden organizations of power and then abandoning their unsuspecting partners and co-conspirators in their moment of triumph is one of their greatest delights.
The most common form of a sloth demon resembles a large bear or badger, but sometimes also a starving lion or demonic buffalo. More often than not they are covered in shaggy and dirty fur of dark colors, but their sickly appearance belies their great strength and toughness. Sloth demons are highly resistant to almost all mundane attacks and almost immune to magical ones and their claws are vovered in poison, which makes them extremely dangerous to fight in open battle. But in practice, it's their extensive magical powers of controling other creatures minds and perception that makes them one of the most dangerous types of demons.

Tyranny Demon

Tyranny Demon - CR 13
XP 25,600
Large outsider (demon)
Init +10; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +7
Aura fear (10 ft., DC 19)
DEFENSE
AC 28, touch 20, flat-footed 22 (+5 deflection, +6 Dex, +8 natural, -1 size)
hp 175 (18d10+98)
Fort +14, Ref +19, Will +17
DR 10/silver and magic; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 15, cold 15, fire 15; SR 23
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft.
Melee 2 claws +26 (1d8+8)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Spell-like Abilities (CL 13th, concentration +18)
At will—charm (DC 22), fear (DC 22), read thoughts (DC 22), suggestion (DC 22)
3/day—dispel magic, dominate (DC 22), hold (DC 22), stunning blast (DC 22), summon demon
STATISTICS
Str 26, Dex 23, Con 27, Int 22, Wis 19, Cha 20
Base Atk +18; CMB +27; CMD 43
Feats Alertness, Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Persuasive, Power Attack
Skills Acrobatics +27, Bluff +26, Climb +29, Diplomacy +23, Escape Artist +24, Intimidate +26, Knowledge (arcana) +24, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +27, Perception +27, Sense Motive +27, Spellcraft +24, Stealth +25
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary or pair
Treasure double

Skill Ranks: Acrobatics* 18 ranks, Bluff* 18 ranks, Climb* 18 ranks, Diplomacy 18 ranks, Escape Artist 18 ranks, Intimidate* 18 ranks, Knowledge (arcana) 18 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 18 ranks, Perception* 18 ranks, Sense Motive* 18 ranks, Spellcraft 18 ranks, Stealth* 18 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Tyranny demons are among the most powerful of all demons, second only to the mighty pride demons. They resemble sloth demons in many ways, but they have a lot less pations of scheemes and manipulation and tend to be quick to take action themselves. Tyranny demons, above all other things, crave to controll and dominate other beings in any way they can. To most tyranny demons, there are only a few beings which they consider temporary allies. Everything else is either a minion or an enemy to be enslaved. Unlike pride demons, tyranny demons simply demand unquestioning obedience. If it is because their underlings fear or admire them does not make much of a difference to them, as long as nobody ever steps out of line and follows their order without delay. Tyranny demons will ocasionally cooperate with other powerful demons or mortal spellcasters, but such alliances are always difficult as the tyrannny demons will complete their part of the deal only in the way they seem fit and can be quite unpredictable if their allies fail to perform their parts exactly as planned.
Tyranny demons often take the form of tall androgynous humanoids with serpentine features, which are both highly strong and agile and known for their fast speed. But they are also known to be amongst the most intelligent of all demons and almost infinitely smarter than any mortals.

Pride Demon

Pride Demon - CR 15
XP 51,200
Huge outsider (demon)
Init +9; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +7
Aura fear (10 ft., DC 22)
DEFENSE
AC 30, touch 20, flat-footed 15 (+7 deflection, +5 Dex, +10 natural, -2 size)
hp 290 (20d10+180)
Fort +17, Ref +17, Will +19
DR 15/silver and magic; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 20, cold 20, fire 20; SR 25
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft.
Melee 2 claws +31(2d6+11/19–20)
Space 15 ft.; Reach 15 ft.
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 16th; concentration +23)
At will—charm (DC 25), cone of flames (DC 25), darkness, dispel magic, fireball (DC 25), fly, lightning arcs (DC 25), read thoughts (DC 25), suggestion (DC 25), summon demon
3/day—bestow curse (DC 21), dominate (DC 25), hold (DC 25), stunning blast (DC 25), weakness (DC 25)
STATISTICS
Str 32, Dex 21, Con 29, Int 22, Wis 21, Cha 24
Base Atk +20; CMB +34; CMD 49
Feats Awesome Blow, Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Deceitful, Great Fortitude, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Critical (claws), Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Power Attack
Skills Acrobatics +25, Bluff +30, Climb +31, Diplomacy +30, Intimidate +30, Knowledge (arcana) +26, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +29, Perception +28, Sense Motive +28, Spellcraft +26, Stealth +18, Use Magic Device +30
Languages Infernal
SQ change shape
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary
Treasure double
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Change Shape (Su) A pride demon can assume any animal or humanoid form at will as if using polymorph.

Skill Ranks: Acrobatics 20 ranks, Bluff* 20 ranks, Climb 20 ranks, Diplomacy* 20 ranks, Intimidate* 20 ranks, Knowledge (arcana) 20 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 20 ranks, Perception* 20 ranks, Sense Motive* 20 ranks, Spellcraft 20 ranks, Stealth* 20 ranks, Use Magic Device* 20 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Pride demons are the rarest and most powerful of all demons and each of them is a demon lord in its own right. Like all demons they are driven by a deep craving and for them this craving is nothing less than to be recognized as the ultimate and perfect beings in all of existance. Everyone has to bow before them and they will never serve any other being. Many of them are not above making pacts with lesser creatures and mortal spellcasters, though, but as they see it anyone who request their help does so by begging for their asistance in recognition of the pride demons superior power.
All pride demons are unique, but most commonly they take the forms of huge and powerful two-legged giants, often covered in metallic spines and bony plates of various colors.

This is a pretty advanced version of the demons and I don't think there will be any drastic changes to these in the future. However, there is still room for tweaking, so if anyone of you has idea how to improve them and to give a stronger focus to their particular niche, comments would be very highly appreciated.

I'll probably do the possession forms of demons tomorrow, or maybe tonight.

[Yora]

Demons (Possession Forms)

As they lack any kind of physical form, demons can not exist in the material world. To remain in the material world for a longer time than the duration of a summoning spell, they have to possess physical bodies to serve as vessels for their spirits. One of the most common vessels possesed by demons are the bodies of dead humanoids or animals, but in theory a demon can take possession of any physical substance that has been exposed to high degrees of corruption. Usually it requires the work of a sorcerer or warlock to prepare a vessel that a demon can possess, but in places of very high corruption demons are occasionally able to take over a body through their own power given enough time.

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Dread Warriors and Dread Beasts

Dread warriors and dread beasts are the corpses of dead humanoids and animals that are possessed by the spirits of wrath and hunger demons, but more rarely even greed demons. More powerful demons usually shun such lowly forms.

Iron Demon

Iron Demon - CR 5
XP 1,600
Medium outsider (demon)
Init +1; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +8
DEFENSE
AC 19, touch 11, flat-footed 18 (+1 Dex, +8 natural)
hp 63 (6d10+30)
Fort +10, Ref +3, Will +5
DR 5/magic and bludgeoning; Immune bleed, disease, polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 15
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee greataxe +11 (1d12+7) or
Melee 2 claws +11 (1d4+5)
STATISTICS
Str 20, Dex 13, Con 21, Int 8, Wis 11, Cha 12
Base Atk +6; CMB +11; CMD 22
Feats Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Power Attack
Skills Climb +14, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +5, Perception +9, Sense Motive +6, Stealth +6; Racial Modifiers -4 Stealth
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or pack (3–12)
Treasure standard

Skill Ranks: Climb* 6 ranks, Intimidate* 6 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 3 ranks, Perception* 6 ranks, Sense Motive* 3 ranks, Stealth* 6 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Iron demons are old suits of armor, which are often the only remains of soldiers who died in ancient battles, that have been left in areas of high corruption for long enough to become suitable vessels for demonic possession. They are commonly hunger and greed demons, but also occasionally wrath demons as well.

Ice Demon

Ice Demon - CR 6
XP 2,400
Medium outsider (cold, demon)
Init +3; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +14
DEFENSE
AC 19, touch 13, flat-footed 16 (+3 Dex, +6 natural)
hp 76 (8d10+32)
Fort +8, Ref +9, Will +7
DR 5/magic and bludgeoning; Immune bleed, cold, disease, polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, fire 10; SR 16
Weaknesses fire
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee 2 slams +12 (1d6+4 plus 1d6 cold)
Special Attacks breath weapon (every 1d4 rounds, 15-ft. cone, 8d6 cold damage, Reflex half DC 16)
STATISTICS
Str 18, Dex 17, Con 19, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 14
Base Atk +8; CMB +12; CMD 25
Feats Alertness, Cleave, Great Fortitude, Power Attack
Skills Bluff +9, Climb +15, Intimidate +13, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +7, Perception +14, Sense Motive +10, Stealth +14 (+22 in snow), Survival +8; Racial modifiers +8 Stealth in snow
Languages Infernal
SQ icewalking, snow vision
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or pack (3–12)
Treasure standard
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Icewalking (Ex) This ability works like the spider climb spell, but the surfaces the ice demon climbs must be icy. The ice demon can move across icy surfaces without penalty and does not need to make Acrobatics checks to run or charge on ice.
Snow Vision (Ex) An ice demon cam see perfectly well in snowy conditions. An ice demon does not suffer any penalties to Perception checks while in snow.

Skill Ranks: Bluff* 4 ranks, Climb* 8 ranks, Intimidate* 8 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 4 ranks, Perception* 8 ranks, Sense Motive* 4 ranks, Stealth* 8 ranks, Survival* 4 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Ice demons are roughly humanoid or primate shape hunks of ice and small frozen rocks that are possessed by hunger or greed demons.

Shadow Demon

Shadow Demon - CR 7
XP 3,200
Medium outsider (demon, incorporeal)
Init +9; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +14
DEFENSE
AC 18, touch 11, flat-footed 18 (+5 Dex, +3 deflection)
hp 68 (8d10+24)
Fort +5, Ref +13, Will +7
Defensive Abilities incorporeal; DR 5/silver and magic; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 17
Weaknesses sunlight powerlessness
OFFENSE
Speed fly 40 ft. (good)
Melee 2 incorporeal touches +13 (1d6 plus 1d6 cold)
Special Attacks shadow blend
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 7th; concentration +10)
3/day—charm (DC 17), cloak of shadows, suggestion (DC 17)
STATISTICS
Str –, Dex 20, Con 17, Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 16
Base Atk +8; CMB +13; CMD 23
Feats Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes
Skills Bluff +14, Diplomacy +10, Escape Artist +13, Fly +20, Intimidate, +14, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +13, Perception +14, Sense Motive +14, Stealth +16
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or swarm (3–8)
Treasure standard
SPECIAL ATTACKS
Shadow Blend (Su) During any conditions other than bright light, a shadow demon can disappear into the shadows as a move-equivalent action, effectively becoming invisible. Artificial illumination or light spells of 2nd level or lower do not negate this ability.
Sunlight Powerlessness (Ex) A shadow demon is utterly powerless in bright light or natural sunlight and flees from it. A shadow demon caught in such light cannot attack and can take only a single move or standard action.

Skill Ranks: Bluff* 8 ranks, Diplomacy* 4 ranks, Escape Artist* 4 ranks, Fly* 8 ranks, Intimidate* 8 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 8 ranks, Perception* 8 ranks, Sense Motive* 8 ranks, Stealth* 8 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Shadow demons are composed of nothing but shadows, but somehow areas of extreme corruption can make even these suitable vessels for demoninc possession. Greed, desire, and sloth demons are the most common demons to be found in this form.

Fire Demon

Fire Demon - CR 8
XP 4,800
Large outsider (demon, fire)
Init +8; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +15
Aura flaming body
DEFENSE
AC 21, touch 13, flat-footed 17 (+4 Dex, +8 natural, -1 size)
hp 115 (10d10+60)
Fort +9, Ref +11, Will +11
DR 10/silver; Immune fire, polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10; SR 18
Weaknesses cold
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft.
Melee 2 slams +15 (1d6+6 plus 1d8 fire)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks burn (2d6, DC 21)
Spell-like Abilities (CL 8th, concentration +14)
6/day—cone of flames (DC 20)
3/day—fireball (DC 20)
STATISTICS
Str 23, Dex 19, Con 22, Int 16, Wis 15, Cha 22
Base Atk +10; CMB +17; CMD 31
Feats Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Power Attack
Skills Acrobatics +17, Bluff +19, Climb +19, Diplomacy +11, Escape Artist +12, Intimidate +19, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +16, Perception +15, Sense Motive +15, Stealth +5; Racial Modifiers -8 Stealth
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or pack (3–12)
Treasure standard
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Flaming Body (Su) A fire demon's body is covered in dancing flames. Anyone striking a fire demon with a natural weapon or unarmed strike takes 1d6 points of fire damage. A creature that grapples a fire demon or is grappled by one takes 4d6 points of fire damage each round the grapple persists.

Skill Ranks: Acrobatics* 10 ranks, Bluff* 10 ranks, Climb* 10 ranks, Diplomacy 5 ranks, Escape Artist* 5 ranks, Intimidate* 10 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 10 ranks, Perception* 10 ranks, Sense Motive* 10 ranks, Stealth* 10 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Fire demons are large humanoids composed entirely of flames and lava, having a strong resemblance to fire elementals. But very often, the flames have unnatural shades of green, pale yellow, and even blue, which can indicate their demonic nature. Fire demons are usually either tyranny or pride demons.

Rock Demon

Rock Demon - CR 10
XP 7,200
Large outsider (demon, earth)
Init +2; Senses see in darkness.; Perception +20
DEFENSE
AC 23, touch 11, flat-footed 21 (+2 Dex, +12 natural, -1 size)
hp 150 (12d10+84)
Fort +15, Ref +6, Will +13
DR 10/silver and bludgeoning; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 19
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft., climb 20 ft.
Melee 2 slams +19 (2d6+8)
Ranged rock +13 (1d8+12)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks adamantine slams, rock throwing (120 ft.)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th; concentration +15)
At will—stone shape
3/day—hold (DC 20), stunning blast (DC 20)
STATISTICS
Str 27, Dex 15, Con 24, Int 18, Wis 17, Cha 20
Base Atk +12; CMB +21; CMD 35
Feats Alertness, Awesome Blow, Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Iron Will, Power Attack
Skills Bluff +20, Climb +31, Diplomacy +20, Intimidate +20, Knowledge (arcana) +19, Knowledge (forbidden lore) +19, Perception +20, Sense Motive +20, Spellcraft +10, Stealth +13 (+17 in caves and mountains), Use Magic Device +14; Racial Modifiers +4 Stealth in caves and mountains
Languages Infernal
ECOLOGY
Environment any (the Void)
Organization solitary, pair, or pack (3–12)
Treasure standard
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Adamantine Slams (Ex) A rock demons slam attacks count as adamantine weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction and hardness.

Skill Ranks: Bluff* 12 ranks, Climb* 12 ranks, Diplomacy* 12 ranks, Intimidate* 12 ranks, Knowledge (arcana)* 12 ranks, Knowledge (forbidden lore)* 12 ranks, Perception* 12 ranks, Sense Motive* 12 ranks, Spellcraft 6 ranks, Stealth* 12 ranks, Use Magic Device* 6 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Rock demons are one of the most powerful forms of demons possessing inanimate bodies. These large hunks of rock and dirt are easily distinguished from earth elemental by the colorful demonic energies that flicker where the rocks are joined. Rock demons are often sloth or pride demons, but tyranny demons are not unusual either.

This still leaves demons possessing living vessels, but I still need to spend more thoughts on that. Also, I am not entirely sure what to make of hell hounds and imps, which I think I would like to have as creatures, but I don't know how to make them fit with the nature of demons I've created so far yet.

[Yora]

Dread Warriors and Dread Beasts

Dread warriors and dread beasts are the corpses of humanoids and animals that have been exposed to corruption to a high enough degree for demons to possess them. Most such demons are mere wrath or hunger demons. They can come into existance spontaneously from corpses left in areas of high corruption, or be created on purpose by warlocks to serve them.

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Creating a Dread Creature
“Dread creature” is a template that can be added to any creature of the humanoid (dread warrior), animal, or vermin type (dread beast), referred to hereafter as the base creature.
The dread creature template combines the modifications of the advanced creature, fiendish creature, and zombie templates, but the base creature does not lose its Intelligence score and instead has an Intelligence score of 7 and does not gain the staggered quality.

Challenge Rating: Depends on Hit Dice, as follows:
{table=head]HD | CR | XP
1/2 | 1/4 | 100
1 | 1/2 | 200
2 | 1 | 400
3–4 | 2 | 600
5–6 | 4 | 1,200
7–8 | 5 | 1,600
9–10 | 6 | 2,400
11–12 | 7 | 3,200
13–16 | 8 | 4,800
17–20 | 9 | 6,400
21–24 | 10 | 9,600
25–28 | 11 | 12,800[/table]
Type: The creature's type changes to undead. It retains any subtype except for subtypes that indicate kind, and gains the demon subtype. It does not gain the augmented subtype. It uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
Armor Class: Natural armor is based on the dread creature's size:
{table=head]Dread creature Size | Natural Armor Bonus
Tiny or smaller | +2
Small | +3
Medium | +4
Large | +5
Huge | +6
Gargantuan | +9
Colossal | +13[/table]
Hit Dice: Drop HD gained from class levels (minimum of 1) and change racial HD to d8s. Dread Creatures gain a number of additional HD as noted on the following table.
{table=head]Dread creature Size | Bonus Hit Dice
Tiny or smaller | —
Small or Medium | +1 HD
Large | +2 HD
Huge | +4 HD
Gargantuan | +6 HD
Colossal | +10 HD[/table]
Dread creatures use their Charisma modifiers to determine bonus hit points (instead of Constitution).
Saves: Base save bonuses are Fort +1/3 HD, Ref +1/3 HD, and Will +1/2 HD + 2.
Defensive Abilities: Dread Creatures lose their defensive abilities and gain all of the qualities and immunities granted by the undead type. Dread creatures gain SR equal to new CR +5, and DR and energy resistance as noted on the table.
{table=head]Hit Dice | Resist acid, cold, and fire | DR
1-4 | 5 | 5/slashing
5-10 | 10 | 5/slashing and silver
11+ | 15 | 10/slashing and magic[/table]
Speed: Winged dread creatures can still fly, but maneuverability drops to poor. If the base creature flew magically, so can the dread creature. Retain all other movement types.
Attacks: A dread creature retains all the natural weapons, manufactured weapon attacks, and weapon proficiencies of the base creature. It also gains a slam attack that deals damage based on the dread creature's size, but as if it were one size category larger than its actual size (see Natural Attacks).
Special Attacks: A dread creature retains none of the base creature's special attacks. It gains corrupted smite 1/day as a swift action, which adds Cha as a bonus to attack rolls and a damage bonus equal to its HD against a non-demonic foe. Smite persists until the target or the dread creature is dead.
Abilities: Str +6, Dex +2. A dread creature has no Con score, and its Int score becomes 7, and its Wis and Cha become 12.
BAB: A dread creature's base attack is equal to 3/4 its Hit Dice.
Special Qualities: A dread creature loses most special qualities of the base creature. It retains any extraordinary special qualities that improve its melee or ranged attacks.

Dread Warrior - CR 1
XP 400
Medium undead (demon)
Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +6
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 11, flat-footed 14 (+1 Dex, +4 natural)
hp 11 (2d8+2)
Fort +3, Ref +1, Will +4
DR 5/slashing; Immune undead traits; Resist acid 5, cold 5, fire 5; SR 6
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee slam +6 (1d6+7)
Special Attacks corrupted smite 1/day (+1 attack, +2 damage)
STATISTICS
Str 21, Dex 12, Con —, Int 7, Wis 12, Cha 12
Base Atk +1; CMB +6; CMD 17
Feats Great Fortitude
Skills Perception +6, Stealth +6
ECOLOGY
Environment any
Organization any
Treasure none

Skill Ranks: Perception* 2 rank, Stealth* 2 ranks.
*Class Skills.

Dread Wolf - CR 2
XP 600
Medium undead (demon)
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +10
DEFENSE
AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14 (+3 Dex, +4 natural)
hp 16 (3d8+3)
Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +3
DR 5/slashing; Immune undead traits; Resist acid 5, cold 5, fire 5; SR 7
OFFENSE
Speed 50 ft.
Melee bite +6 (1d8+6 plus trip)
Special Attacks corrupted smite 1/day (+1 attack, +3 damage)
STATISTICS
Str 19, Dex 17, Con –, Int 7, Wis 12, Cha 12
Base Atk +2; CMB +6; CMD 19 (23 vs. trip)
Feats Great Fortitude, Skill Focus (Perception)
Skills Perception +10, Stealth +9, Survival +1 (+5 scent tracking); Racial Modifiers +4 Survival when tracking by scent
ECOLOGY
Environment any
Organization solitary, pair, or pack (3–12)
Treasure none
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Trip (Ex) A dread wolf can attempt to trip its opponent as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity if it hits with its bite attack. If the attempt fails, the wolf is not tripped in return.

Skill Ranks: Perception* 3 ranks, Stealth* 3 ranks.
*Class Skills.

[Yora]

Abominations (Demonic Possession)

The rarest form of demonic possession of a physical body is the possession of a living humanoid. The humanoid creatures spirit and all its memories are permanently and irreversibly absorbed into the demons spirit resulting in a new creature known as an abomination.

When a humanoid creature is turned into an abomination, it gains the half-fiend and the advanced templates. (Thinking of it, advanced might be a bit much.) The abominations Int, Wis, and Cha score are at least as high as those of the original demon. The abomination also gains all the demons spell-like abilities, special attacks, and special qualities.
In addition, an abomination gains the change shape ability but can only assume the appearance of the original humanoid creature or return to its normal half-demonic shape. (Desire demons also retain their normal change shape ability, which allows them to change into any humanoid form.)

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Hunger Demon possesed Berserker - CR 5
XP 1,600
Barbarian 4
Medium outsider (demon)
Init +3; Senses see in darkness; Perception +9
DEFENSE
AC 18, touch 13, flat-footed 15 (+4 armor, +3 Dex, +1 natural); 16 when raging
hp 42 (4d12+16); 50 when raging
Fort +8, Ref +4, Will +3; +2 to Will when raging
Defensive Abilities trap sense +1, uncanny dodge; DR 5/magic; Immune polymorph, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 15
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee greataxe +10 (1d12+7/x3)
Melee bite +9 (1d8+5) and 2 claws +9 (1d4+5)
Ranged throwing axe +5 (1d6+5/x3)
Special Attacks rage (14 round per day), rage powers (powerful blow, strength surge)
STATISTICS
Str 20, Dex 17, Con 18, Int 12 Wis 14, Cha 14
Base Atk +4, CMB +9, CMD 22
Feats Power Attack, Weapon Focus (greataxe)
Skills Climb +8 (+10 when raging), Intimidate +9, Perception +9, Survival +9, Swim +8
SQ change shape (alter self, own forms only), fast movement, track +4
Gear greataxe, hide armor, 3 throwing axes
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Powerful Blow (Ex) The barbarian gains a +2 bonus on a single damage roll. This power is used as a swift action before the roll to hit is made. This power can only be used once per rage.
Strength Surge (Ex) The barbarian adds his barbarian level on one Strength check or combat maneuver check, or to his Combat Maneuver Defense when an opponent attempts a maneuver against him. This power is used as an immediate action. This power can only be used once per rage.

[old school man]

Yora I think I have seen you over at dragonsfoot a time or two unless I am wrong and if I am I am sorry to bother you oh and by the way this is some good stuff you have posted here.




John

[Yora]

Yes, that's me.

Sorry about the lack of updates, but I've finally finished moving into my new place and hopefully will have internet access again early next week. Then I'll be posting all the work I've done in the meantime soon.

[Yora]

Okay, finally back into business.

And once again, my crativity is stagnating. Working on monsters goes well, but I am not making as much progress with the world itself as I would like. There is a pretty solid framework of geography, cosmology, races, magical creatures, and so on, but it's still more of a collection of good ingredients that have not yet come to life. What I think is missing is to give everything some real texture, which creates a specific feel that is unique to the setting. It's missing some "spice".

Since I've written a huge amount of mostly disconnected stuff so far, here once more a condensed list of the basic traits that define the setting:

• A Bronze/Iron Age world, in which humans have not yet become the dominant race and most of the land is still wild and unsettled.
• There are three primary geographic regions. A northern part based on the landscape of Scandinavia and Canada; a central part roughly based on the Mediterranean, Black Sea, and China; and a southern part inspired by Vietnam and the Amazon.
• A moderate level of magic, with spellcasters being reasonably common in the form of shamans in almost every village, but with relatively subdued magic spells and items and characters only up to 10th level.
• The otherness and danger of the spiritworld and its inhabitants should recieve significant attention, with superstitions and reverance of spirits being a common element relevant to the stories.
• Culturally, it's a blend of Northern Europe and East Asia, without trying to imitate either.
• Player Characters are generally expected to be important members of their local society who defend their clan and ultimately serve their chief or king in some way.
• Combat is treated as non-trivial, and even though it is not meant to be a highly lethal world, armed fighting should not be treated as filler and entered lightly.
• Conflicts focus much more on survival than ideology, and PCs should frequently get into situations where it would be a good idea to make compromises with terrible people and withdraw from battles that are not your own.

That's the basics of the kind of world I am having in mind. What I am currently searching for are design elements that help supporting these traits and avoiding falling into a generic rennesaince setting with 21st century western values.
That could be customs, laws, and traditions, but also more basic things like forms of food production, animal ecology, style of dress, warfare, and so on.
Some places where I am currently looking for inspirations are the Finns and Sami from Scandinavia, the Mongols, and the Cambodians.
Any ideas to share with me?

[Yora]

I started a new website to post stuff related to my work on the Ancient Lands but also some more general talk on setting creation, game design, and running campaigns in general.

Spriggan's Den

Detailed presentations on my new creations for the Ancient Lands setting will continue to be posted here.

[Yora]

I'm currently in the middle of planning a new campaign, which we will starting tomorrow, so there hasn't rally been much to update here.

Special Features

However, one thing that occured to me while preparing for a specific actual campaign, was that in many way the Ancient Lands still look and feel a lot like a basic european medieval fantasy world, and I think it could be a lot more. Take for example Dark Sun, Morrowind, or Final Fantasy games, which not only add nonexiting creatures and landscapes to remote dungeons and other dimensions, but liberally cover everything in a good coating of purely fantastical elements.

Some things I want to give a more prominent role, to make the Ancient Lands distinguish themselves more from generic fantasy worlds.
- Giant Fungus Trees: These are the one big thing that really makes Morrowind look very different from any other well known fantasy setting, even those of the other Elder Scrolls games set in the same world. Of course, it's not an original idea now, but I think by including them, it's adding a certain look to the setting that is still rare.
- Magic Ponds and Wells: I like the idea of water being a substance with inherently supernatural traits. As the Japanese say, water is the only substance that can clean itself. It evaporates at the ground and when it returns as rain, its perfectly clean and unsoiled by anything, which is the reason it's so important in cleansing rituals. In Warcraft III, the night elves can build Moonwells that replenish the health and mana of nearby units, and there are also natural magical fountains found throughout the world. The spring in Treebeards house in the Lord of the Rings would be another example. Given that the spiritworld plays a prominent role in the Ancient Lands, magic springs seem right in place as locations of strong magical power, which I prefer a lot over ley lines and the like.
- Giant Insects: Giant Spiders are one of the most generic fantasy creatures and giant beetles, centipedes, and scorpions are also quite common. Much more rare is the use of domesticated insects. Dark Sun has them, as the world isn't very hospitable for most mammals, and again, Morrowind has giant long-legged beetles as transports in swamps and other difficult terrain. Not quite sure how to implement such things in the Ancient Lands, but it's something I want to come back to and give some more thought.
- Giant Lizards: Dinosaurs in fantasy are always a difficult subject. They don't feel a lot out of place in cavemen worlds, but usually people tend to feel that they just don't belong into a world of knights and wizards. However, the Ancient Lands is not such a world, but one of barbarians and witches. Outright using dinosaurs still doesn't feel right to me, but there's a middle ground here. Instead, I am going with large reptiles that are very similar to dinosaurs in all respects, but not actually based on real species. Crocodiles and comodo dragons are still existing species, and many extinct dinosaurs had an anatomy not much unlike rhinos or cattle. I created two new creatures some months ago, which really were just a bison and a camel with a different appearance. A feathered deinonychus might look a bit strange to people who grew up with dinosaur books from the 90s, but I think it makes a cool fantasy creature. I think they make good replacements for bulls and horses in the southern jungle regions of the Ancient Lands.
- Limestone Karsts and Sinkholes: While not exactly rare in Europe and North America, large areas of limestone erroded by water has formed amazing landscapes in many parts of Southeast Asia, that actually look quite unreal and fantastic if you're not commonly used to it. Particularly in coastal areas you get this massive monoliths rising out of the water at vertical angles, sometimes riddled with caves and forests growing on top. A bit inland, you get huge mazes sretching out of sight into all directions. It's a natural and not that uncommon landscape feature, but one much more exotic than meadows and marshes.

[Yora]

Good artists borrow, great artists steal.

Since I started my new campaign (and I've been reading some Fate Core), I've actually made quite some real advances with adressing the issue of turning all those elements I have created into an actual world. And to do that, I'm using a lot of ideas from other works, break them up into their parts, and put them back together by replacing some bits with some of my own.

Something that I very much noticed when playing the Jedi Knight games and Knights of the Old Republic, but which is something Star Trek had always been doing, is to visit "planets", but really just show a fraction of a single settlement, that would be completely unrepresentative of the whole world. But now, I think it's actually a quite good idea when coming up with a setting for an RPG, be it pen and paper or video game.
You don't have to create a full world, but only those parts the PCs are going to interact with. Dark Sun always was just a few tiny specks of life in a barren and virtually endless desert, and there simply is no way to write up the whole world of Planescape.

So this is what I am going to do. Instead of creating all the hundreds of tiny clan-territories, guilds, cults, towns, and so on, I will only detail a couple of "featured regions" that get the full on treatment. The majority of the map will remain blank and anyone who wants to can add in anything they want to. I would assume that all the really important cities and factions are located in the detailed region, but nobody has ever stop anyone from adding whatever they want.

As of now, I have started making notes for the following regions:

• Cold North: The cold north is the region at the very northern edge of the Ancient Lands bordering the arctic ocean. It's open tundra and evergreen taiga, mostly inhabited by a human tribe with pale skin and brown hair, who live primarily from hunting, fishing, and reindeer herding. Some wood elves, gnomes, and kaas also have a few settlements there. There is only one major port where almost all trade in and out of the region passes through. A few of the clans are led by warlock-shamans who use their demon powers for ice magic.
  The region is inspired a lot by northern Finland, but also Icewind Dale from Forgotten Realms and the port by Luskan, while the local people take much of their style from the land of Forochel as it is shown in Lord of the Rings Online.
• Northwest: The northwest lies in the northern- and westernmost part of the map and is the homeland of the kaas. It's mostly subarctic forest and open moors. I don't have too many ideas for it right now, but Skyrim inhabited by orcs seems to be a good starting point. The landscape and climate of Norway should also fit quite well.
  There is however also one big castle of wood elves, a bit like Rivendell in Lord of the Rings, but heavier fortified and more suited to the rough and cold environment.
• Witchfens: The witchfens are a large and cold wetland that sits right between the Cold North, the Northwest, the Lake District, and the Great Forest. They are inhabited by a small population of relatively primitive and poor humans, who have both great fear and great respect for spellcasters, and are often controlled by warlock-witches. Hags and wyverns are also common in the region*. They take much inspiration from the planet Dathomir from the Star Wars novels, but also from the few glimpses of the Kokari Wilds and their Chasind people seen in Dragon Age.
• Lake District: A good distance from the Cold North and on the eastern coast of the Ancient Lands, the water from the boggy Witchfens drains into numerous rivers and lots of lakes. The geography is of course heavily inspired by southern Finland and Karelia, as well as Scottland and Denmark (where I spend a lot of vactions both as a child and later). Lot's of light forests and sandy plains, typical glacial landscape. It's overall a very baltic inspired region (though not so much vikings) and primarily inhabited by wood elves, but also some humans who have come from the south, and a few gnome minning camps. I'd like to make this region my personal version of the Moonlands/Silver Marches from Forgotten Realms, and a few days ago I happened to find an old forum post somewhere, where someone was ranting that Silverymoon was way too good to be true and it must by a city run by hyppocrites who try to ignore the struggles of the little people. I actually like that idea and use that as my starting point for the major port city in the region. (Thanks Mister Silver Marches Hater.) My current campaign takes place in the Lake District near the beginning of the Witchfens.
• Great Forest: The great forest as a whole is just massive. It's like the High Forest from Forgotten Realms dialed up to eleven. It covers almost half the dry land on the map of the Ancient Lands and is mostly unexplored and sparsely inhabited. Of course, trying to cover all of it in a campaign setting would be silly, so I will probably focus on the parts bordering the Northwest, the Lake District, and the Elven Coast, which are the places where most of the exploration of the forest will start. Visually, I am thinking of course of Canada, Washington, and Oregon, but also the forest of California that look great as Endor in Star Wars. It's Endor for thousands of miles in every direction. (But without ewoks.) The aforementioned High Forest but also Mirkwood from Lord of the Rings are also sources of inspiration.
• Elf Coast: I use the term now only because the area is the location of the two largest elven cities. One is a large city of druids in the more populated parts of the great forest, while the other one is a major port city build on and partly into a cliff, and is ruled by aristocratic elven sorcerers. About one third of the region is forest (the southeast part of the great forest), one third mountains that seperate it from the Lake District in the north, and the rest small islands along the coast. The sorcerer city is inspired by a part in the backstory of warcraft, in which the queen of the night elves became a warlock and surrounded herself with other aristicratic mages, which eventually ended with a big war against the druids. The warlock-druid conflict also takes elements from the Defilers-Preservers of Dark Sun, and of course the old Jedi and Sith from the Knights of the Old Republic era. Since it's a good distance south from the Lake District, I am thinking of a warmer and maybe mediterranean climate. I think I'll be looking into the Black Sea region for ideas for the landscape, that might work. (Forests of California could also help here.)
• Cliff Coast: The cliff coast is the connection between the northern Ancient Lands described above, and the southern Ancient Lands, that are more tropical. The coast is mostly cliffs while the land itself is dominated by rocky hills and a few large wetlands. I think I am envisioning something like Italy. The area around Naples should really fit very well. (Again, I was there on vacation three times.) This is the region where the human migrants have primarily settled and their largest cities lies inside a number of huge connected sinkholes that have access to caves that are open to the sea. Alongside the human residents there are visitors and merchants from all the other major races, but the real power in the city are a group of demons bound into huge crystal formations deep below the ground. These demons are fascinated by life in the material world and its inhabitants, but don't want to cause destruction by their presence, so they had themselves bound to the crystals to contain their corrupting auras. They are still demons though and no angles by any degree, but they leave administration of the city mostly to a human council. One of the demons is the leader of an order of witchhunters, who are trained in demon magic to hunt and destroy warlocks who let demons lose on the world and use their powers without concern for the corruption they cause to the world around them. They are fighting fire with fire though, which doesn't make them hugely popular. The idea is mostly from some early info I read about Cocoon and the L'Cie from Final Fantasy XIII (though what happened in the actual game is quite different from what I went to develop with that basic hook), but I also like the structure of the orc city Ogrimmar in World of Warcraft, which is build into the walls of a canyon maze.
• The Islands: The islands lie a considerable distance of the shores of the Elf Coast, the Cliff Coast, and the South Coast. I'd like to pick up the idea of aristicratic voodoo elves from Eberron, but I don't have anything really specific yet. Also a big nasty pirate haven much like Omega from Mass Effect 2. (With a dark elf thief/mage as ruler.)
• The South Coast: The South coast is a subtropical region that is home to lizardfolk and dark elves. With that region, I want to pick up and develop the idea if Illythiir, the native homeland of the dark elves in the Forgotten Realms. More inspirations are taken from Dambrath (kind of a successor realm ruled by half-drow who live aboveground) and also Stygia from the world of Conan. Xen'drik from Eberron also plays into it.
• The Far South: The far south are the endless jungles that lie beyond the South Coast. There it's all lizardfolk and naga. The largest center of lizardfolk power is a huge temple city inspired by Angkor in Thailand who overthrew the naga overlords many generations ago, but many naga lords still rule over their citadels in the jungles, many of which are very powerful sorcerers. I think there's much room to nip some things from Dark Sun. There's also a large population of dark elves, which take many inspirations from Eberron.

*Awesome spontaneous idea: Witches riding wyverns!

I have a couple of ideas for major famous dungeons, but that's pretty much the basic layout right now. As usual, I am calling for any ideas what other sources I might look into to get more inspirations.

[Zap Dynamic]

Good artists borrow, great artists steal.

...visit "planets", but really just show a fraction of a single settlement, that would be completely unrepresentative of the whole world. But now, I think it's actually a quite good idea when coming up with a setting for an RPG, be it pen and paper or video game.
You don't have to create a full world, but only those parts the PCs are going to interact with. Dark Sun always was just a few tiny specks of life in a barren and virtually endless desert, and there simply is no way to write up the whole world of Planescape.

So this is what I am going to do. Instead of creating all the hundreds of tiny clan-territories, guilds, cults, towns, and so on, I will only detail a couple of "featured regions" that get the full on treatment. The majority of the map will remain blank and anyone who wants to can add in anything they want to. I would assume that all the really important cities and factions are located in the detailed region, but nobody has ever stop anyone from adding whatever they want...

I have a couple of ideas for major famous dungeons, but that's pretty much the basic layout right now. As usual, I am calling for any ideas what other sources I might look into to get more inspirations.

Great idea! Using a small part of the world as a toolkit for GM/player construction is one of the foundations of my own setting, The Blackwood. The tone of our settings are pretty different, but it looks like the underlying philosophy is becoming more and more the same.

If you'd like, I'd be happy to send you copies of the .pdfs I'm creating for my setting, which should be ready in the next month or so. Not only do I using a few settlements in a single province to paint a clear picture of the entire setting, but I also have notes throughout the GMs Guide to help GMs and players add their own elements. Most of this is stuff I borrowed from gaming blogs, so of course you're welcome to use anything you find useful.

[Yora]

Finding inspirational reading isn't the problem. Actually reading it is the much greater obstacle.
I'll probably still browse trough it once it's done.

Cities and Dungeons of the North

• Ice Cost Harbor: One of the northernmost settlements in the world, this town is the center of trade in the Cold North. Since the land route to the rest of the Ancient Lands leads straight through the Witchfens, almost all trade is done by sea and passes through this port, where the local traders come for buying and selling in spring and late summer. The chief of the town is usually considered to be the richest man in the Cold North and has a sizable number of warriors under his command. Much of the town is build on large flat rocks that rise only up to a meter above the water and it is surrounded by a strong wooden pallisade with a walkway and several watchtowers on the three sides facing the land.
• Frostwind Tower: At the feet of the large mountain range that separates the Cold North from the Witchfens lies a tall tower made from black stone with a square and broad shape. Most of it rests agains the side of the mountain, that is full of tunnels and halls that make the fortress much larger than just the tower itself. The tower is the home of a powerful warlock and her dozen or so apprentices, who have mastered a form of demonic ice magic. It is guarded by a large number of warriors of which many wear minor charms crafted by the warlocks. They usually stick to themselves and don't bother the settlements on the plains and at the cost much, but most locals are still very wary of them.
• Gnome Mine Town: Halfway along the valley that forms the primary pass that conencts the Witchfens and the Cold North lies a gnomish settlement that is build almost entirely inside the mountains on the west side. While not directly along the main path that leads through the pass, most travelers who come trough take a rest for a few days in the inns found in the towns entrance area. Visitors are highly welcome there, but generally not permited inside the proper settlement unless they have direct business with the locals.
• Elven Mountain Keep: In the foothills of the mountains, at the very western end of the Witchfens, lies a large elven fortress made from white stone. Inside it's outer walls lies a settlement of considerable size for the region. While the elves are not too fond of visitors, small groups of travelers or wandering merchants are not usually turned away, especially during winter, but larger bands of kaas from the west or barbarians from the witchfens are usually not welcome and denied entry by the gate guards.
• Kaas City: The only major city of the kaas is also by far the largest settlement anywhere in the Northwest. It lies near the center of a roughly circular valley sourrounded by low hills and about halfway between the Elven Mountain Keep and the frozen bay that leads to the northern ocean. The ruler of the city is a powerful king who is also known to generously support the shamans and sages of the city, making it a center of knowledge most people wouldn't expect to find in the homeland of the kaas. At the heart of the city lies a large castle, which sits on a rocky hill. While sourrounded by wooden houses and huts on all sides now and with a pallisade encircling all of the city, it doesn't have much use as a fortification anymore, but is still an imposing sight that can be seen from almost anywhere in the city. The hill itself is full of tunnels that lead to storerooms, vaults, dungeons, and catacombs, but if there are any secret passages that lead to the streets of the city they are kept extremely secret.
• City at the Lakes: Near the coast in the Lake District, an elven city serves as the primary port for the region, which is frequently used to resupply and reppair by merchantships traveling to or from the Cold North. North of the city there are only some small fishing town and no major port for almost a thousand miles, so it is usually a very welcome sight for sailors traveling those cold seas. Located on the banks of a lake that is connected to the sea through a broad river, the port is very well protected from the winter storms, but it is not uncommon that ships get stuck for the winter when the lake freezes over. While the majority of the cities population are elves, almost a third of its people are humans, with also considerable numbers of gnomes and half-elves among them, as well as a small population of kaas. The city is run and governed by merchants with no dominant clan being in control. While the streets are mostly clean and the guards are hard on thieves and ruffians, there is a lot of both figurative and literal backstabbing among the cities higher class and outsiders are adviced not to get involved. Humans work mostly as laborers and servants, but there are a few human merchants who gained quite high stations within the cities council. Among the merchants, money and contacts are much more important than who a person is or might one have been. The city is also known for its craftsmen, but these are mostly elves who have passed their trade down through the generations long before humans came to settle in the region.
• Palace of the Dark Fey: In the far north of the Lake District, just two days travel from the Witchfens, lies the castle of a poweful sorceress. While the castles guards and servants are almost all wood elves (with a few dark elves among them), the lady of the castle is not only a powerful sorceress but a shie as well. Being far older than any elf yet still appearing ageless, she has long been a well known legend both in the Lake District and among the barbarians of the Witchfens. The castle and the land surrounding it are highly corrupted and even people who are not witches or shamans can feel that the area appears cold and sickly. The Lady is supposed to be very powerful, but rarely reveals herself outside her castle and hasn't been seen outside the surrounded area since anyone can remember.
• Old Ones Rest: In the hills where the Witchfens, the Lake District, and the Great Forest meet, a large singular mountain rises above the surrounding landscape. It is actually a long extinct volcano, that is full of caves and tunnels that have been extended into tombs and catacombs by ancient elves thousands of years ago. The elves have always avoided the area and even the more recently arrived humans rarely attempt to approach it. Most of the tombs hold very little of any value, but among the dead that have long ago crumbled to dust, there are still many ancient and powerful wights that make short business of any intruders who distrub their rest.

[Yora]

Cities and Dungeons of the Inner Sea

• Sorcerer City: The largest elven city in the Ancient Lands is a major port that lies at the base of a cliff, but also includes a large noble quarter on a wide terrace about halfway up the cliffside. In addition to being a major center of trade on the Inne Sea and beyond, the city is one of the few places in the Ancient Lands where sorcerers are not only openly tollerated, but make up a large portion of the cities ruling aristocracy. The summoning of demons is strictly prohinited, but any other magical research in the Void and its magical powers is considred perfectly acceptable. While most of the sorcerers have only two or three apprentices at the most, many of them command also extensive numbers of guards, spies, and other agents throughout the city and the region.
• Cavern City:Half a days ride north of the large swamp where the great river from the western lands flows into the sea, a series of very large caves and sinkholes in the sandstone cliffs is home to the largest port on the Inner Sea and in fact anywhere in the Ancient Lands. The city consists of five major chambers that are open to the sky, of which two also open to the sea and make up the cities harbor. While the caves that tunnel the cliff are very old and show sings of having been inhabited or used by a number of different people, the current settlement was established only 400 years ago, when human mercenary companies chose the site as a main base to transport troops over the sea to the Islands and the Lake District, while avoiding the regions controled by hostile elven clans and kingdoms. Today, humans make up the largest group of inhabitants in the city, but there are also large groups of wood elves, dark elves, gnomes, and lizardfolk, which make it a far more mixed settlement than most found in the Ancient Lands. While the city is coverned by a council, the ultimate power behind it is a group of demons that have bound themselves into large crystals located in one of the deepest and most remote caves of the system. Unlike most demons who are interested in the world and lifes of mortals, these demons have no desire to cause chaos and corruption and are content to watch and learn about the world from inside the crystals that contain their corrupting auras. One of the demons is the leader of a group of warriors who have sworn to hunt down any warlocks and demons who spread demonic corruption through the world of mortals. They consider the use of demonic magic a neccessary evil, since it allows them to split up into smaller groups and go after several demons at once instead of having to pull all their forces together to fight one demon at a time with regular magic.

[Yora]

Redesigning the Aboleth
Over the last weeks, I have been struggling a bit with one of the major aspects of the Ancient Lands setting. In addition to the Nature Spirits and Demons, which are very well defined and work perfectly for me, there's also the Ancients, which are my interpretation on the aberrations from D&D, but systematically stand somewhere between demons and spirits.
Demons and Spirits are both manifestations of supernatural energies that are sentient and take corporeal forms. However, the aberrations from D&D are more like aliens and bizaare mutants. (Though the concept of the Far Realm also attempt to tie them to an even stranger dimension.)
I always love the idea of slightly mad cults in remote areas that worship the "old gods" and have weird and ancient practices. Like Deadra worship in the Elder Scrolls, the Twilight Hammer from Warcraft, the Cult of Andraste in Dragon Age, and of course the Pagans, both from Thief and The Wicker Man. Cult worship of lovecraftian beings does exist, but that really seems to be mostly confined to the Innsmouth people worshipping Dagon. But generally, it's not so much about worshipping tentacly people-eating monsters and regarding them as devine beings, but more like continuing pockets of ancient and primitive cults. So I want to go more with something like the Deadra than the classic D&D aberrations.

With the Ancient Lands, I want to make a world that is inspired by some ideas from D&D, but not actually a D&D setting. There's owlbears and driders, that clearly originated in D&D, but have since taken on a life on their own within fantasy fiction. Pretty much all the other creatures of the Ancient Lands are either generic monsters that predate D&D, or custom creations (often based on ideas from other settings).
The one exception being the aboleth, which clearly is a D&D creature and one that I love a lot. A giant, evil, telepathic, genius, virtually immortal fish! It can't hit you with its tentacles if you stay 5 meters away from the water, but that's actually the least threatening thing about it. However, with my ideas for the Ancients going away from bizare tentacle aliens and more towards being primordial spirits, I think the aboleth doesn't really fit in too well. Just saying that in this world aboleths are spirits doesn't seem to work too well for me. They are well established as physical creatures with an unusual but natural life cycle and all the needs and wants of a physical and mortal existance.
So I think it's time to drop aboleths and replace them with something else. Something similar, but something that is not confined to the established standards and the identity of aboleths. Trying to retool a classic creature into something else is something I really don't like (and doesn't make 4th Edition any more popular with me).

I've been looking around for some interesting takes on aboleths, and I got quite intrigues by this one.

Spoiler

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It's not even instantly recognizable as an aboleth anymore. It's more like an eel or moray with the face of an anglerfish instead of a massive catfish and instead of three eyes in a row, it got three eyes on each side of its head. This might be a bit of a starting point for my own deasigns.

I guess the first step should be to define what role the creature is to fill, because I am creating it specifically to fill a gap that has opened up. The most important aspects to me are that it's a big fish that is very intelligent and telepathic. It's ability to change the lung and skin of creatures it touches so they can only survive in water isn't something I really need, and neither do I require its suite of psionic powers. Even though their powers are primarily illusions, I never really was thinking of aboleths as nonhuman illusionists. Their power of mind control is much more important though.
Having a large intelligent fish that can control minds is still a good description of an aboleth, but it's open enough that it doesn't have to be a poor mans knockoff of an aboleth. There's still much room to come up with more.
But as usually, as of know, there isn't a lot more I've decited on yet. If anyone has any ideas for inspiration, that would be really helpful.

[gparali]

Check out the Grindylow from Bas-Lag books. They look something like that and they can swim through air. I think they resemble something like what you are trying to achieve with the aboleth

[Yora]

There seems to be very few, if any, information of them around. At least, I barely could find anything.

Spoiler

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This design also looks quite good. A lot more bulkier and bigger. Though I'm not a fan of the pincers, tentacles are cooler.

[Yora]

Phew... It basically has been a whole year since I last really had a good amount of free time on my hand. Now with 8 weeks until the next semester starts, I really want to get back into working on the Ancient Lands. I hope to get a couple of updates every week for the next months (and hopefully even beyond that).

Update: The Ancients
The Ancients have always been somewhere on a middle ground between the nature spirits and the demons, but I was never quite sure how that would relate to corruption. But I recently remembered some of the ideas I had very early on, and originally they were inspired neither by Lovecraftian Horrors or the Underdark aberrations from D&D, but by the Daedra from The Elder Scrolls. Which in many respects are similar to the Asura from India and take some hints from the more meaner spirits from northern and western Europe.
So what I've decited on is, that the Ancients are fully part of the natural world, but they represent a more wilder and savage aspect than the nature spirits. Some settings have Primordials, or there are the Titans from ancient Greece. These are what I want to get at with the Ancients.
One difficult thing was to decide how the Ancients are related to corruption. Normally, corruption is caused by demon that come in contact with the natural world, because they are not part of nature and cause reality to become warped and break apart. Now the Ancients represent a more primordial version of the natural world, when it was still more similar to the chaos of the Void, so corruption doesn't exactly have to be "evil". It's just harmful to current natural life and especially humanoids, but that's something that goes for nature spirits as well to some degree.

Corruption
A result of this is, that nature spirits are not exactly harmed by corruption. Instead they revert to a more primitive and wild state and become essentially "chaos spirits". Not exactly evil, but as most spirits and humanoids see it, it's a threat to their continuing existance. When corruption spreads, everything becomes more violent and more dangerous and large corrupted areas become no longer able to support humanoid settlements. And spirits mostly see corruption as a kind of disease or insanity.

I think I've also come up with a decent way to measure the amount of corruption in a creature.
When a creature comes into contact with a source of Corruption, it has to make a saving throw (I think Fortitude/Constitution works best). The target number that needs to be reached is the standard average number plus the effects corruption strength. (DC 10 + Strength; CC 12/18 + Strength). If the save fails, the creature gains 1 point of Corruption. If the strength of the corruption source is twice the creatures corruption score, it gains 2 points.
Anything that can cause corruption, be it a place, a spell, item, or whatsoever, has a Corruption Strength. The corruption score of a creature can only be increased by effects with a corruption strength that exceeds it. A creature with a corruption score of 3 can only be affected by corruption effects with a strength of 4 or higher. That means that creatures with already high corruption scores are no longer affected by weak corruption effects.
The same is also true in reverse. All clensing effects also have a strength and only are effective on targets that have a Corruption Score lower than the strength. A magic spring with a clensing score of 5 could only clense creature with a corruption score of 4 or lower. A creature with corruption 5 or higher would be unaffected. (As a simple calculation, take the corruption score minus the corruption strength or clensing strength. If the result is 0 or a negative number, nothing happens.)

If a humanoid creature has a corruption score that is equal to its Constitution score, then the creature dies and raises as a wight. If a humanoid creature has a corruption score that is equal to its Wisdom score, it dies and becomes a wraith.
If the corruption score of a creature or place reaches a high enough number, it creates a strong enough connection to the Void to allow a demon to come through and spontaneously possess it. The creature or place practically becomes a conduit to the void itself and there is no requirement at all for a ritual that creates an opening for a demon to come through.

To summarize:

• If a corpse becomes sufficiently corrupted, or a creature dies with a high corruption score has not yet turned into a wight or wraith, a lesser demon possesses it and it becomes a Dread Warrior or Dread Beast (demon possed zombie).
• If a humanoids corruption score becomes equal to its Constitution or Wisdom score, he becomes a wight or wraith.
• If a living creature gains a high enough corruption score but is not yet killed by it, it can spontaneously be possessed by a greater demon.
• If a location has a high enough corruption score, some of the stuff nearby can spontaneously become possessed by a demon (like ice demon, ash demon, shadow demon, rock demon, and so on).

Question is how to set the score that allows spontaneous possession. It mostly happens to places and corpses and not commonly to living people. Since the person would have to have a high Constitution and Wisdom score to live long enough to become sufficiently corrupted, it would be a quite exceptional person to begin with, so that seems okay.

[Yora]

Behold, there is something new under the sun!

I've recently been thinking about the original version of alignment that only has Order and Chaos, with Good and Evil being independent on it. I've never been a fan of alignment, but this simpler version is actually quite intriguing to me. I like some interpretations of the Light Side and the Dark Side from Star Wars as not being as black and white as Obi-Wan and Yoda see it, and I greatly enjoy the Paragon/Renegade system from Mass Effect, as my character often goes 80/20 instead of 100% pure goody-two-shoes.

Now as I might have mentioned before, I had been thinking about making the Ancients more like the Daedra from The Elder Scrolls, or the Asura from India. They are often refered to as demons, but that doesn't really describe them accurately. D&D 4th Edition has the primordials, and I thought it was rather disappointing that they are just evil while they could have been much more. Or take the Gods and the Titans from God of War.

I've been thinking about what this could mean for the Ancient Lands, and here we have Demonic Corruption. As I mentioned in earlier posts, demons are not all evil, but even the good ones poison the world around them by their very presence. I've also been toying with the idea of corrupted fey, who also might not neccessarily be evil but simply revel in chaos much more than other fey. Demons come from the Void, which is raw energy and chaos, while the material world represents a zone that works by laws of nature.
So it's a rather obvious step to equate the Void and demons with Chaos, and the Ancients, being still more primordial in their shapes and nature, would be to. Worshipping the Ancients might be regarded as crazy and dangerous, but not neccessarily evil.

However, I am not a fan of Order as the force of laws, civilization, and progress, and the Ancient Lands are meant to be wild and barbaric. But there is a natural opposite of the Voids demonic chaos, which would be the druids who seek to minimize its corrupting effect on the material world. They are not about social structure, ethics or morality. They can live as savages in a cave, performing bloody human sacrifices and using blood magic to rend their opponents apart, but still belive that all demons and their corruption must be eradicated. Yet to most people, the difference would be irrelevant and part of some weird metaphysical philosophy. As long as the crops don't die and the dead rise from the ground, they don't really have any reason to care about it.

I really like this one. Not sure how to make it have a mechanical impact, but it seems a good start.

[Yora]

Shaman Mask

These masks are made from wood or bone, but sometimes more exotic materials as well. Most cover only the upper half of the wearers face or leave an open space for the mouth. They are usually painted in stark colors or decrated with feathers or leaves. These masks are used by shamans to help them communicate with spirits, as it makes them appear not quite human and separates them from the mortal world, and allows them to peer into the spiritworld and see things normally hidden from human eyes. Each mask is different in both appearance and specific abilities and the more powerful ones have often been handed down from masters to apprentices for many generations. Common abilities are:

• Infravision (as the spell).
• Detect Magic (a limited number of uses per day or permanent).
• Surprised by spirits only on a 1 in 6 chance.
• +2 or +4 Willpower bonus on saving throws (replaces and does not add to the modifier from Wisdom).
• Immunity against fear.
• Immunity against mind reading and mind control.
• +2 or +4 bonus on reaction rolls against spirits.
• Observers are unable to identify the wearer of the mask and can only remember his clothing (including the appearance of the mask).
• Wraithshape one or three times per day.
• Permanent charm person.
• Suggestion three times per day.

[Yora]

I made a new map for the Lake Country for my current campaign.

Spoiler

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Going from the gnome city in the hills to the elven port city at the end of the river would take about 9 days by horse. It doesn't quite look like it now, but it's actually a quite large area. About twice the size of Denmark, or larger than Ireland, if my calculations are correct.

[Yora]

Regional Conflict

In addition to a regional ecology and culture, a well written setting region also seems to need a theme. A place is not just buildings and people, and maybe some dungeons. To be a setting, there also needs to be a general outline of what's going on currently. A basic hook to provide a reason why individual adventures in this region matter and have specific motivations beyond basic survival of the common folk and maintained stability among the nobles. Such adventures could be set anywhere, so why bother with setting them herr specifically?
I think, as with so many things about setting design, that conflict is one of the main sources for reasons. It's a context that provides both motivation and meaning, and gives a region it's own specific character, which other settings with a similar cultural and ecological background don't have.

The Northlands
The Northlands consist of the barren steppes of the Kaas, the cold tundra of the Surri, and include much of the Witchfens that are home to the Amakari, and the White Hills where the northern elves have their city. It's a region scarce of resources, but also sparsely inhabited and the four local cultures all have quite different niches which they have claimed for themselves. Other than the struggle for food andshelter being particularly rough in these lands, I don't have any ideas for larger conflicts yet.

Lake Country
This region started out only as a type of environment I find visually pleasing, but with no idea how to fill it with people. It somehow ended up the setting for my current campaign, and I've gotten quite a lot of ideas to make it into an interesting setting in it's own right.
The two primary cultures are wood elves and some Vandren who have settled there 200 years ago.There is also a confederation of four gnome clans, who run the largest iron mines and steel foundries in all of the Ancient Lands (I had them planned from a very early point but no idea where to place them, and they ended up near the Lakes because I had nowhere else for them to go). The main economical activity in the Lake Country is based around gnome steel being transported down the river network through the territory secured by human clans, until it reaches the big elven port at the coast, from where it is shipped south, with a hefty profit for the elven merchant houses. Keeping the steel trade flowing is the defining conflict for the region. The gnome mines are located several days travel into the great forest and are the very last outpost before more than 1000 miles of endless unexplored wilderness. Even though the gnome strongholds have become impressive fortresses over the years, the gnomes are still weary of all the terrible things that may come from the forest. Or below the hills. The upper river valey is close to the Witchfens where the Amakari barbarians live under the reign of their witches and raids are a constant threat on the river barges carrying steel. The lower river valley is home to old elven clans who have become very rich from the steel trade, and their chiefs impressively powerful. Obviously they don't like seeing any possible threat to their power while always hoping to snatch away some from their neighbors. For merchants and their guards, the lower river valey can be even more dangerous. Amakari raiders at least make it clear from what direction an attack will come. To make things more complicated, the Warrior Order has started sending scouting missions into the regions and is establishing a few small outpost. While mercenary work as armed guards for merchants isn't particularly glorious, it's an effective way to gain a foothold in a region before establishing larger permanent enclaves. Particularly the Vandren clans are not happy about new competition for security assignments and particularly loath the idea of the Order taking over their lands and possibly cutting them off from vital river access. And their activities in the south hav shown that they never miss an opportunity to expand their territory with their military strength. Right now, they are just another band of mercenaries, but in 10 or 20 years they might very well be out for conquest.

Great Forest
The Great Forest is uninhabited and almost unexplored. The only conflict here is between treasure hunters fighting for valuable finds, and local spirits feeling offended by intruders.

Elf Coast
The Elf Coast is home both to a county of elven druids and the realm of elven sorcerers, which make it one of the most hotly contested regions just by themselves. The druid lords are decentralized and lack the ability to invade the lands of the sorcerers, while the later ones have no interest in actively antagonizing their still divided opponents without need. Which doesn't mean that individual druids and sorcerer are not waging their own private little wars. As the druid lord and their followers see it, the sorcerers and their arcane explorations of the Void are the greatest threat to the world anywhere in the Ancient Lands. But being based in the third largest city and one of the major trade powers for several centuries, there is few hope to putting a permanent end to their foolish doings. Still, the druids are trying their very best to keep their influence from spreading and occasionally target specific sorcerers directly, if they consider them particularly dangerous. Many of the sorcerers are not particularly concerned about this whe it's hitting one of their rivals, which has lead to many very strange alliances and conspiracies. In addition, the city of the sorcerers is also a main hub for sea trade on the inner sea, which make it home to all the usual plots between the merchant houses, but with a good dose of black magic.

The Rocky Coast
This region has been virtually empty barren grasland and hills until the Vandren settled it 400 years ago. The main two powers are the underground port city in the massive cliffs on the inner sea, and the Warrior Order, which has risen from obscurity to one of the largest military powers of the Ancient Lands in only a century. The city and it's port would be the greatest prize for the Lord General, but even for his impressive forces this is completely out of the question, as it it protected and ultimately ruled by seven very powerful demons residing in huge magical crystals. They have voluntarily trapped themselves to contain their corrupting essence and made it their goal to help the mortal people against incursions from their less considerate kin from the Void. Their demon hunters go after warlocks without mercy, but their chosen method of fighting evil sorcerers with their own sorcery makes them no friend of the druids.
The Warrior Order is clearly the main source of upset in this region, but I'm not quite sure how to make them a longterm threat in other ways that massive invasions of smaller clans.

The Islands
The Islands are home to clans of wood elves, humans, and lizardfolk, which are mostly culturally isolated from their kin on the mainland. Piracy would be an issue, as most oversea trade is passing through this regions and sailors need to stop and resupply. Not much else, yet.

Dark Coast
The home of the dark elves. There is a large temple city in the jungles and a major port at the coast. The port is a center for slave trade and competing with the Cliff City and the Sorcerer City for trade. The dark elves are mostly on bad terms with the lizardfolk, but that's all I got for now.

Southern Jungles
The primary race of this region are lizardfolk, which fall into three groups. The largest one forms a big empire lead by a theocracy of a divine king chosen by the sun god and an extremely powerful church of sun priests. Their mortal enemies are the naga, who originally build the empires last city and still reigns over about a quarter of all the lizardfolk, which they have enslaved. The third group are savages living on the coast and in the highlands. They refuse to submit to either the empire or the naga and some are regarded as two-legged monsters for their savagery by both groups.
The naga are also sorcerers, of which many are engaged in secret wars against each other and elven sorcerers on the other side of the inner sea.

As you see, it's a solid base, but still far from finished. Any ideas you might have will be highly welcome. I only had a rough idea when starting to write this, but even just by putting it into words did the Lake Country and Elf Coast become at least three times more exciting.
The Lakes started as a bland stretch of coast that needed to be filled somehow, but by creating explainations for the things that are there and coming up with a purpose, it became so much more.

[Yora]

Honor
I feel like reviving the idea of honor codes for the ancient lands, as I quite like how it works in the Conan RPG. I also think that most players in my current campaign would like to take one, though make very different picks.
Characters can pick a code of honor. If they don't, they are dishonorable. They don't have to be bad people, but they just don't have the personal integrity and respect that honorablr characters possess. A character who has a honor code automatically starts the game as honorable, but might become dishonorable if he violates the rules of his code and loses all it's benefits. A dishonorable character may regain his honor, or even submit to a new honor code by performing an extraordinary deed that is in line with the code.
A honorable character gains a +2 bonus on Willpower saves and saves to resist corruption, as his integrity steels both his mind and soul against any attempts to subvert them. Perhaps more importantly, other people tend to quickly notice a characters honorable nature, and he gains a +2 bonus on initial reaction rolls.

Code of the City
This code represents the notion of honor among the high classes of the major cities and towns of the Ancient Lands, and of those freemen of the middle class who are measure themselves by the same standards. It is common among wood elves and gnomes, as well as the major port cities of the dark elves. It's the dominant model of honor among the people of the lizardfolk empire and is reaching even simple and remote villages. In the lands of the kaas, it is almost unknown, though they respect visitors who act in accordance with it.

• Submit to the laws and authorities of the city, unless you deny their legitimacy and are willing to take action to restore a legitimate leadership.
• Never end an alliance or break an allegiance unless the original agreement has ended or the other side has violated the spirit of the agreement.
• Honor any offers of free passage and pardons.
• Do not allow the execution of honorable prisoners, unless they have been found guilty of crimes punishable by death.
• Do not abandon those under your protection to save yourself.

Code of the Wilds
The Code of the Wilds is the predominant system of honor in the Ancient Lands, the model by which chiefs, warriors, and even wealthy farmers measure the value of other people from the jungles in the far south to the frozen wastes of the north.

• Offer shelter to allies and even strangers, unless they show hostile intent.
• Protect all guests with your life, unless they are guilty of grave offenses against an ally or abuse your trust.
• Do not abuse hospitality offered to you, even if the host is dishonorable or an enemy.
• Do not kill either people or beasts without need and do not waste any food or resources if it can be avoided.
• Spare honorable enemies who ask for mercy, but they may be held for ransom or be made slaves.
• Avenge any offense against the clan or the family, in a way appropriate to its severity.

Code of the Roads
The Code of the Roads represents the customs and manners that have developed among the traveling merchants and wandering mercenaries who have transformed the Ancient Lands into the world they are today. Even many of the richest and most powerful merchant lords who rival the great chiefs and city nobles in status and influence retain the values that lead the way to their current greatness.

• Complete every contract, unless the risks and costs of doing so go significantly beyond the original agreement.
• Never make false claims of allegiance to a company or house you don't belong to.
• Do not reveal any secrets learned in the service of a former employer.
• Do not accept any contract that harms a honorable former employer until at least a year has passed.
• Do not attack or steal from competitors on the road, unless it is part of a contract.

Code of the Gods
Priests and shamans are measured by their own special set of standards that both sets them apart and elevates them above the common population. They have many privileges and prerogatives, which they are given in return to living according to the rules that are expected of them.

• Show respect to all spirits.
• Never take any offerings that are meant to be sacrificed to the spirits.
• Provide healing to all honorable people, though enemies may be held for ransom or be made slaves.
• Never do harm to those who have been granted a request for healing.
• Never reveal what others have shared in confidence.
• Do not exploit the trust of followers for personal gain.

I would like to expand the lists to about 10 items each, but even minor differences in wording can have quite far reaching effects of the whole setting.
My idea is that honorable people do not necessarily have to be good or nice people, but that they are reliable and act in a way that is necessary to maintain the stability of society. Even if the society isn't exactly great and many of its aspects are harsh and unfair. Monsters and natural disasters are threatening from the wilds and corruption and decadence are undermining society from the inside. There are lots of rules that have evolved and need to be upheld to prevent society from collapsing into chaos. Those people who are dependable in doing their part to see that these rules are maintained are considered honorable. Some people might have good intentions of changing things for the better, but at a certain point they are getting into a gamble that could destroy everything. Even though they might be doing the right thing, they are still dishonorable. Harsh and agressive leaders can still be honorable, but if they descend too far into greed and cruelty, they are again causing discontent and unrest, so there are also limits to how forceful a honorable character can get. In D&D alignment, honor would probably be similar to LG, LN, and NG. LE will stir up hostility and CG questions existing structures on which society has been depending in the past.

Some examples of honorable characters: Boromir, Indiana Jones, Conan, Worf, Arbiter (Halo 2), Batman, Ulfric Stormcloak (Skyrim), Eboshi (Princess Mononoke), Aramaki (Ghost in the Shell), Count Douku, G'Kar (Babylon 5), Auron (Final Fantasy X).
Some examples of dishonorable characters: Han Solo, Geralt of Rivia, Qui-gon Jin, Merry & Pippin.

Do you have any ideas how to improve this some more?

[Yora]

Spoiler

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Lake Country
This region started out only as a type of environment I find visually pleasing, but with no idea how to fill it with people. It somehow ended up the setting for my current campaign, and I've gotten quite a lot of ideas to make it into an interesting setting in it's own right.
The two primary cultures are wood elves and some Vandren who have settled there 200 years ago.There is also a confederation of four gnome clans, who run the largest iron mines and steel foundries in all of the Ancient Lands (I had them planned from a very early point but no idea where to place them, and they ended up near the Lakes because I had nowhere else for them to go). The main economical activity in the Lake Country is based around gnome steel being transported down the river network through the territory secured by human clans, until it reaches the big elven port at the coast, from where it is shipped south, with a hefty profit for the elven merchant houses. Keeping the steel trade flowing is the defining conflict for the region. The gnome mines are located several days travel into the great forest and are the very last outpost before more than 1000 miles of endless unexplored wilderness. Even though the gnome strongholds have become impressive fortresses over the years, the gnomes are still weary of all the terrible things that may come from the forest. Or below the hills. The upper river valey is close to the Witchfens where the Amakari barbarians live under the reign of their witches and raids are a constant threat on the river barges carrying steel. The lower river valley is home to old elven clans who have become very rich from the steel trade, and their chiefs impressively powerful. Obviously they don't like seeing any possible threat to their power while always hoping to snatch away some from their neighbors. For merchants and their guards, the lower river valey can be even more dangerous. Amakari raiders at least make it clear from what direction an attack will come. To make things more complicated, the Warrior Order has started sending scouting missions into the regions and is establishing a few small outpost. While mercenary work as armed guards for merchants isn't particularly glorious, it's an effective way to gain a foothold in a region before establishing larger permanent enclaves. Particularly the Vandren clans are not happy about new competition for security assignments and particularly loath the idea of the Order taking over their lands and possibly cutting them off from vital river access. And their activities in the south hav shown that they never miss an opportunity to expand their territory with their military strength. Right now, they are just another band of mercenaries, but in 10 or 20 years they might very well be out for conquest.

Despite my earlier claims, I am still completely lost at what to do with the Northeast region of the Ancient Lands. Right now I have two almost separate worlds north and south of the giant forest and there need to be something that connects the two. But I just don't have an idea for the style of that area and what people would be living there. I don't want vikings, and I know that I want there to be a majority of wood elves, a strong presence of gnomes, and a smaller but substential population of Vandren humans. Something with cool climate, mountains, and pine forests, and also a border region without a major city state.
But it's all just screaming Vikings, which really have no place in this setting.

[Yora]

I got another world map. This one is really big.

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Things are getting quite tiny and the compression isn't that great, but each field is 30 miles in diameter. Why I ike the general layout of the major geographical feature, I still think the map looks awful. If anyone knows a bit or two and has any advice on how to make the map look more interesting, please share it with me.

[Yora]

The current element I am working on is the settings history. Generally, history doesn't matter for a campaign, and therefore is irrelevant to the PCs, which makes it hard on the players to care and remember. So a setting history should focus on just the events that will still matter for the players and affect how they make descisions. The most important role of history is to explain the relationship between currently existing groups and factions. This is something that the players will often need to understand, and having a narrative of how things came to be as they are helps significantly for that. That's simply how the human brain is wired.

Age of the Ancients
unknown: Shie, naga, and other fey races build numerous castles and palaces in the Mortal World, capturing primitive humanoids to enslave as workers and servants.
ca. -4,000: Most fey castles are abandoned as their masters return to the Spiritworld, leaving behind ruins, artifacts, and large numbers of former slaves.

Dawn Age
-4,000 to -3,000: Slaves of the fey lords return to the wilds and over time mix with their savage kin, sharing the basics of farming, metalworking, and writing, they observed from their former masters.

Age of Clans
-812: The First Rampage: An abomination from the underworld emerges in the southern jungles, destroying several of the remaining naga strongholds and greatly weakening their hold on the region.
-761: Rebellion of the Sun Priests: Lizardfolk shamans who have been worshiping the sun in secret for generations start a revolt among the lizardfolk slaves of the greatest remaining naga city in the Mortal World. Greatly successful, they declare the greatest warrior of the rebellion to be the first mortal king of the Ancient Lands.
-192: Battle of Red Sorcery: An invasion of the high elf lands by a large army of wood elf clans is blocked by the powerful fel magic of a small groups of sorcerers, whose victory is so complete it ends the frequent border raids for several generations. Their heroic achivement for the protection of the high elven lands brings a huge boost to their reputation, allowing them to work in the open and rise to positions of great influence.
-130: With the fighting for control over the borderlands between the high elves and the wood elves having come to a standstill, wood elf clans search for new sources of riches, establishing trade with the human nomads far to the southwest.
-38 to -31: Second Rampage: For the second time in recorded history, a gargantuan abomination emerges from the mountains north of the high elven lands, devastating the coast and nearby islands for several years. The crater where it first emerged from the underworld remained a corrupted wasteland, becoming a sacred site for numerous Underworld cults.
-35: The abomination destroys the major city of the sea elves, almost causing sea trade to collapse. However, many of the elven merchant ships that were on sea find new patrons in the minor ports of high and wood elves, resulting in a much larger and more complex trade network in the Inner Sea over the next few generations.

Age of Kings
34: The Horde from the West: A large horde of kaas moves from the western plains into the Ancient Lands, following the caravan routes of the human nomads that trade with the wood elves. After the fall of the major sea power, this completely collapses the previously existing balance of power and a now struggle for control breaks out over the following years.
40-121: Caravan Wars: The clans that live along the coast of the Inner Sea begin a long period of numerous small wars, fighting not for territory or resources, but for trade monopolies and control of important caravan camp sites.
53: Some elven clans begin to hire human mercenaries, no longer only to protect the caravans with goods from the West, but also to fight along their own troops in raids against caravans and trade posts of their enemies, and to support the defenders of their castle towns. With the great wealth that comes from trade with the West and the hightened need for strong defenses, the first city states appear on the Inner Sea.
ca. 100: Human mercenaries start to settle down in the Ancient Lands, sometimes as entire clans who leave the plains behind for good.
241: A half-elven mystic gathers a large followership around his teachings of self-perfection, commitment to purpose, and community of equals, which not only appeals to many poor and small clans, but also to a large number of mercenary companies, whose importance had been steadily declining since the Caravan Wars were coming to an end. Though the majority of followers are farmers and craftsmen, with many learned sages among them, it's the warriors who become the best known outer face of the movement in the Ancient Lands.
291: Wood elf druids, who have been strong opponents against sorcerers and outspoken enemies of the high elven nobility for generations raise a large army of allied clans for a large scale invasion of the high elven lands. Though the high elven clans are completely unprepared and suffer numerous large defeats in the beginning, the campaign stalls after four months without really establishing anything but leaving the borderlands devastated. In the long term it only strengthened the position of the sorcerers in high elf society as they once more proved invaluable leaders against the wood elf hordes. The reputation of the druids as keepers of the peace and fighters against magical corruption is permanently blemished.
347: Over the course of only two months, a group of four zealous assassins of a minor death cult manage to kill three kings and two major chiefs, alongside several other highly influential minor nobles. The chaos sparks a number of small wars between hostile major clans blaming each other, but also leads to a breakout of violent power struggles within other clans as many sense a unique opportunity to remove the established dynasties from power. Many of the losers of these conflicts end up being outright banished or condemned to obscurity.
362: One of the major merchant houses with a sinister reputation and strong involvement in slave trade joins forces with a largy army of Warrior Monks for a raid on the Coral City of the Water Genasi of the Inner Sea. A large part of the city is destroyed and thousands of people killed during the surprise attack. While the invaders calculated correctly that few of the city states and major clans would speak out for the water genasi, the raiders also looted and destroyed many of the ships from other lands that were in port with survivors later spreading reports of the slaughter throughout the Inner Sea. Though the mystics of the order were very outspoken against the participation of their warriors in piracy, the commanders gained a lot of recognition and established themselves as warlords that could threaten even larger clans in the following years.
417: Present day.