Deaths Final Embrace campaign – Celardore

D&D 3.5 Setting:

Deaths Final Embrace campaign – Celardore

The Celardore campaign is set in a world that is on the verge of death. It's a survivalist thriller type campaign. The goal is to keep the players on their toes as often as possible while allowing them the gratifying feeling of real results to their efforts. Creative use of abilities, skills and spells will be highly rewarded in game.

Setting and House Rules–

Advanced Timeline – The world in this campaign is very old, the torments of war, the mark of the world’s races and an ongoing conflict between the material and energy planes have made a major impact on the world. Barely habitable most inhabitants reside inside conclave cities (Cities run by the church, see below for information on the Church). Few people reside outside of the conclave cities, because all that exists outside of the cities is a barren wasteland called “The Great Death”, the only thing out there are brigands, ruins, errant machinery, and deformed creatures.

The Church – Also formally known as “Opidius Dei”, or “The Way”. The Church controls all inhabitable areas on the world. Over time The Church has managed to snuff out all other religions and has officially banned their practice as heretical dark arts. Though some people still revere the old ways, none make that knowledge known as it would mean being burned at the stake for witchcraft. Coincidentally while The Church is the world religion it’s priests and parishioners do not have any clerical abilities and it’s clerics and paladins are only so in name. The Church utterly lacks any divine abilities whatsoever.

The Church is Lawful Neutral. 

Religion, deities, and the energy planes – As stated previously most religions have been snuffed out by Opus Dai. But there are fringe groups that still believe in the old gods (God’s found in the PHB). However these god’s no longer exist. There was a great war between the good and evil gods that resulted in the ultimate demise of all of these gods (though it has been rumored that a few lesser deities escaped and live among the mortals of the physical planes.) Because of the enormous amounts of positive and negative energy released during this war and the subsequent death of the gods the positive and negative energy planes (which were previously managed by these gods) are in a constant state of flux (this alters the in game mechanics of divine casting). Additionally divine casters get their divine spells purely from themselves and their will, The gods themselves no longer grant divine abilities or spells (although a divine cleric can obtain these spells and abilities through their own force of will and belief).

Deific Relics – Rarely a mortal will stumble across a relic of the great war of the gods. These could be in the form of a heavenly golden sword, or even a bloody severed finger. These relics are rare and powerful. People who find themselves owners of these relics also find themselves targets of assassin or worse yet, captured by Opidius Dei.

Magic/Technology - Celardore is a medium magic medium technology world. Magic items are very uncommon yet tend to be quite powerful, very fortunate few have access to magical items (and most of those few are hunted as being heretics). Technology is renaissance level, guns are rare, and of the faulty flintlock variety, though Cannon’s are fairly commonly used. Air Ballooning is the preferred method of travel across The Great Death, and by boat to travel across bodies of water.

Political - There are many nations across the face of Celardore, though all bow to the will of The Church, every nation includes at least one high ranking member of the church as a part of their ruling system, while clerics of The Church are found in every city, in every government building, on every governmental vessel, and on most privately owned vessels; as it is against the law of the church to operate any large vessel without a representative of The Church present.

Death and dying in Celardore - due to the ongoing conflict with the energy planes, the world of Celardore experiences a curious phenomenon. Anything that parishes in the world of Celardore instantly reanimates as an undead of the appropriate size as per the spell "Animate Dead." If a creature that has already been reanimated in this fashion is destroyed yet again then it stays dead. In rare occasions, in places where the negative energy plane is in direct contact with the material plane, beings that die may come back as more powerful types of undead such as incorporeal undead, shades, wights, mummies, vampires, etc... (This excludes Litch's, Litch's are created through the specific meaningful application of necromantic arcane spells and preparation, not through random chance.).

Heart Smith - Due to the strange mechanics of death in this setting the people of Celardore have created a new profession: The Heart Smith. A Heart Smith creates a semi magical enclosure that is inserted into the chest of the subject, the enclosures very with the artistic and experience capabilities of the smith, but most resemble a tube with a port hole on the front. The port hole has a latch that opens up and allows the Smith to insert the users now magically preserved heart. NOTE: the user can exist without their heart for a period of time, granted at a diminished capacity. Additionally A user can remove their heart and replace it with a different heart (One they purchased, stole, or otherwise procured. Only a heart that has been treated by a Heart Smith can be used.) The replacement heart will function as the user’s new heart, sometimes granting them different abilities or attributes. As a warning, sometimes there are side effects to using another person or creatures heart.

Smithed or Unsmithed – A person who chooses to undergo the process of the Heart Smith is referred to as Smithed. This guards the user from the effects of death by old age and protects their heart from the errant effects of the conflicting energy planes (They won’t reanimate when killed). Alternatively someone who is Unsmithed is not guarded and will be reanimated when they die. The Unsmithed are generally frowned upon as they are considered a liability and dangerous. (I.E- School require children to be Smithed to attend, Businesses only employee the Unsmithed for menial unskilled work away from the public.)

Negative/Positive Energy in Celardore – Negative and Positive Energy are greatly affecting the world of Celardore as the Negative Energy Plane moves to engulf the Material Plane the Positive Energy Plane moves to counter. Like two poles on a magnet they oppose each other but are attracted to each other. In the world of Celardore partaking in actions that increase the flow of either energy through your body can and will affect you over a long period of time. Due to this conflict Devine casting can be affected by situational factors. Sometimes a healing spell can be greatly increased by what’s going on around the caster, or could even be transformed into a damaging spell if the caster is in a foul mood.

Dead Spots - Certain areas are physically closer to the negative energy plane then others, these areas are differentiated by their noticeable lack of life, grey dingy colored dirt and rocks, and a light presence of grayish fog. In these places a living beings life force will ebb away until eventually they die and are reanimated. Necromantic and negative energy spells and abilities operate at varying degrees of intensity, though much more effectively than anywhere else. These "dead spots" can be static or roaming.

Blooms – Alternatively sometimes when a Dead Spot spontaneously generates the positive energy plane counters with a direct infusion of positive energy that may or may not be close to the dead spot. Blooms are distinguished by huge amounts of very large vegetation and animals. Though blooms last briefly, they provide enormous amounts of positive energy. There are many folk tales regarding blooms. Tales of weary travelers stopping at blooms and finding themselves rejuvenated, and tales of star-crossed lovers bringing their fallen mate to these places to find them miraculously returned to life.

Gestalt Races – As a way to signify the blending of the core races over time this campaign contains what are referred to as “gestalt races.” Players are able to select either two races, taking all of the racial abilities of both (Ex – Human/Halfling would have the extra skill ranks and bonus feats of the human race as well as the ability modifiers and bonus skills of the Halfling race) , or double the racial abilities of one particular race by choosing to be Pure Bred (Ex – Pure Bred Human would have 8 extra skill points at 1st level, 2 bonus feats at 1st level, and an extra 2 skill points every level thereafter). NOTE: this does not apply to races with a level adjustment, races with an ECL can be chosen if they are +1, though the only change will be the elimination of the +1 level adjustment. (Ex – A Tiefling character could start at level 1 at 0 exp) Character descriptions can include any features of the races included height and weight can be anywhere from the smaller race’s lowest to the larger race’s highest, size category relies on the height/weight chosen (I.E. a player with a Gestalt Human/Halfling could choose to be medium or small sized, depending on height and weight.)

Changelings - Changelings are subtle shapeshifters capable of disguising their appearance. They evolved through the union of doppelgangers and other humanoid races, eventually becoming a separate race distinct from either ancestral tree. Changelings do not possess the full shapechanging ability of doppelgangers, but they can create effective disguises at will. This ability makes them consummate spies and criminals, and many changelings live up to that potential. (Note: Due to their naure Changelings cannot be pure bred, if you choose a Changeling you must choose another base race for the racial gestalt.)

Shifter - also known as the weretouched, have both humanoid races and lycanthropes among their distant ancestors, shifters possess just a small portion of their forefathers' shape-shifting abilities. They cannot transform wholly into an animal but can instead shift parts of their body to become animal-like for short periods of time. (Note: Due to their nature Shifters cannot be pure bred, if you choose a Shifter you must choose another base race for the racial gestalt.)

Half Elves – In this setting the half elves are known as Telmarines after the name Telmar, which is the country that the Half Elves created for themselves. The Half Elves have over time developed into its own race, one that is no longer considered part of either the human or elven races.

Half Orcs – in this setting the half orcs are known as Mongoloids, a derogatory name imposed on them by the other races of Celardore. Like the Telmarines they have been breeding true and become a pure breed race over the eons. Mongoloids are the most likely race to be pure bred, due to the fact that most other races consider them very ugly.

Tiefling - Tieflings are human-based planetouched, native outsiders that are infused with the touch of the fiendish planes, most often through descent from fiends — demons, devils, evil deities, and others who have bred with humans. Tieflings are known for their cunning and personal allure, which makes them excellent deceivers as well as inspiring leaders when prejudices are laid aside. Although their evil ancestors may be many generations removed, the taint lingers. Unlike half-fiends, tieflings are not predisposed to evil alignments and vary in alignment nearly as widely as full humans, though tieflings are certainly devious. The celestial counterparts of tieflings are called aasimar. (Note: If chosen Teiflings are not gelstalted, their +1 racial level adjustment is simply removed.)

Aasimar - Graceful, regal, and noble, aasimars are the distant descendants of a coupling between a human and a good-aligned outsider. While nowhere near as powerful as their celestial forebears, aasimars still retain a touch of the divine in their blood and wear it with pride. Devoted champions of good, aasimars spend their days fighting evil in whatever form it takes. In a world of violence, injustice, and evil, aasimars are on the front lines, lending their abilities where needed. Some try to stave off evil by teaching and leading by example in the fight against ignorance, prejudice, and greed. Others present an aloof and lofty demeanor, an intimidating aura that, while noble, keeps people from trying to get too close. Among good people, aasimars are held in high opinion as a standard by which all should live, while those of an evil nature view aasimars as self-righteous and dangerously moralistic. (Note: If chosen Aasimar are not gelstalted, their +1 racial level adjustment is simply removed.)

The Awakened - Long, long time ago there was a great war between the gods. Their war, and the subsequent turmoil of the energy planes forever changed the land. From that time on anyone who dies without being Heart-smithed will rise again the next day as a walking corpse, and on rare occasions fully self aware. In communities where the majority of people are not Heart-smithed they avoid this by ensuring all members undergo a proper burial. The proper burial of course involves burning of the body so that there is nothing left that could be awakened the next day. Most of these people choose to be cremated after death, because walking around in a rotting body is not particularly appealing to the living. Unfortunately, not everyone can be given a burial in time and every once in a while people wake up dead. This is especially common occurrence after battles or in places hit by a deadly plague where there is simply no time or resources to burn all the bodies in the timely manner.

Warforged - The warforged are a new race being created during the great war for the purposes of war. The Warforged are sentient constructs and have free will, this lead to the warforged being granted the same rights as human citizens in each of their homelands under the Treaty of Thronehold. (To maintain balance Warforged characters received an additional Warforged racial feat and an Embedded Componant.)

Name	Type	Effect	Source
Finger Picks	Embedded component: Hands	+4 Disable Device/Open Lock	Forge of War
Armblade	Attached Component:Hand	+1 Bastard Sword	ECS
Battlefist	Attached Component:Hand	+1 Gauntlet	ECS
Vanguard Treads	Embedded Component:Feet	Unaffected by difficult terrain, +8 vs. Bull Rushes and Overruns	ExH
Traction Claws	Attached component	+5 climb and +5 balance on slippery surfaces	RoE
Essence of the Guard	Embedded component	+5 Spot/Listen	RoE
Command Circlet	Attached component: Head	Can speak telepathically with warforged up to 100 feet away, 1/day castRemove Fear within 30ft.	RoE
Somatic Cables	Embedded component: Torso	Reduce Arcane Spell failure, allow somatic component even when hands are bound or in use.	Forge of War
Lesser Monocle of the Ebon Hunter	Embedded Component: Face	Gives Darkvision ability and +1 to ranged attacks	ExH
Tracker Mask	Attached component: Face	Gives Scent ability	RoE
Essence of the Guard, Improved	Embedded component	+10 Spot/Listen	RoE
Projection Orb	Embedded component: Face	Allow anyone holding orb to see what you see.	Forge of War
Greater Monocle of the Ebon Hunter	Embedded Component: Face	Gives Darkvision ability and +2 to ranged attacks	ExH
Armbow	20,000gp	Attached Component: Hand	ECS
Essence of the Guard, Greater	Embedded component	+15 Spot/Listen	RoE

See http://dndtools.eu/races/eberron-campaign-setting--12/warforged--45/ for more information about Warforged Character.

Restrictions - There are no race restrictions except monster races with a level adjustment higher then +1 may not be used. There are no class restrictions, class choices bare consequences inherent to the campaign setting. Persecuted classes include all spell casting classes, though divine spell casters are especially abhorred.

Character building.

1. Gestalt races

2. 85 ability points

3. Starting at level 2

4. Your group will be funded by an organization of your choosing so consider anything you can purchase (with the money your character is allotted according to your level) magical or otherwise available.

5. Boating and sky-boating (hot air balloons, zeppelins, blimps) are very common knowledge in their use may come in handy.

6. Flintlock guns are available, Renaissance Weapons on page 145 in the DMG.