Races of the Lands of Fate:
The vast majority of the Lands’ inhabitants are Human. Still, other races also flourish within the desert.
Dwarves from the Hakfindal Hold (Thrice Stormed, Never Broken) in the Ash Mountains bordering the northern edge of the desert travel freely within the Lands, plying their crafts and mining the rare ores and jewels of the desert.
Gnomes and Halflings may be found in the larger cities, especially those with well established trade routes.
Tieflings weary of the prejudice against their demon infused blood have made their way to the Lands, seeking a life judged more for their deeds than their birth.
A tribe of Half-Orcs (the Krawmal) wanders the desert, adhering to its own special code of honor and justice. The tribe has little need for more than the desert will provide but on rare occasions, an orc will venture out from the sands for purposes known only to himself.
During the Dawn of Man, when most Elves withdrew to the Shrouded Isles, one sect remained in the world, carving a new home for themselves within the harsh climes of the desert sands. The Al’zentier (The Silver Ones) as they are called, live as nomads in the desert, moving as the Sand Winds take them. Quite often, a Silver Elf will be found in a city or established camp, bartering for news of the outside world.
A player in the Lands of Fate campaign can choose any of the above mentioned races.
Language:
The principal language is Modavi. There are five different Modavian dialects: Renala, Felloz, Nuf, Al’Farn, and Denal. While two persons speaking different dialects can understand each other, comprehension is done with great difficulty.
Of course, Dwarves still speak dwarven and elves speak elvish.
All players get to choose one dialect as a free language. A player can also choose other dialects to replace the usual D&D languages available to their character. If the dialect is not studied, any conversation between two dialects has a 30% chance of going awry.
As the campaign is starting on the Renali coast, the main dialect players will be dealing with is Renala.
Desert nomads have their own language which is a bastardized version of Modavi. Think of it like speaking english with a mouth full of chewing tobacco while you’re on speed. No player without a nomad background (and it has to be a good one...nomads normally don’t associate outside the tribe) can speak the nomad dialect.
Thieves Cant remains Thieves Cant.
Station:
Station is a measure of an individual’s place in life. How people react to each other is controlled in some part by their respective station. Station runs from level 0 to 20. Players start out with 1d4+3 station. Station is raised by performing famous deeds (or lowered by infamous ones) or by gaining the patronage of members in high society. Of course, conversely, mix in with the wrong crowd and station can be lowered.
The Environment:
The desert itself will play a large part in the game. The hot (but it’s a dry heat) climate forces players to travel light. Any armor heavier than studded leather will cause penalties to attack rolls and physical ability checks. Splint, Banded and the like -1, Plate and heavier -2. Armor with magic bonuses will lower the penalty by 1. For example, plate armor +4 will only suffer a -1 penalty. Some exceptionally well made magical armor acts like leather, thereby imposing no penalty.
Weight carried also pays a large part in surviving the desert. Players will be subject to the encumbrance rules in the playtest.
Deities:
I haven’t given much thought to the deities in the game. Standard D&D deities rules apply.
