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Wayside - A Temporal Pocket

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1 Wayside (3.5e setting) (by Solomon777)
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Wayside

(3.5e setting) (by Solomon777)

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Wayside (3.5e setting)

(donated by Solomon777) Wayside is best explained as a temporal pocket dimension that can be reached from anywhere in the Prime, Outer, and Inner Planes. However, there is a simple gatekey that is required to enter, and for most living beings the gatekey is quite improbable. This omni-planar stopping point can be reached by passing through areas of extreme elemental influence. Thus the elements that compose the magical gate have to reach a climactic level. In reality Wayside is a para-elemental pocket of the Plane of Time situated somewhere between the Plane of Concordant Opposition and the Prime Material Plane. The wisest of sages find its exact location beyond deception. The sages who pursue Wayside are written off as having a few pawns missing from their chess sets, as they end up casting themselves into some catastrophe or another in search of entry. Wayside has no layers as does an Outer Plane. However, travel through Wayside is magically adjusted as per the same Rule of Three’s that affect the Plane of Concordant Opposition. Travel may take anywhere from three days, to three weeks, to three months, even three years or more. This effect has been caused by rampant experiment on the behalf of the first known ruler of Wayside, Pineas L’Ostrume self-proclaimed Arch-Chronomancer. Table of Contents

1. Overview 2. History of Wayside 3. Character Information 4. Glacierdome 5. The Great City 6. Fireback Mountain Range 7. Timespan River 8. Bleak Desert 9. Vaundermoor 10. Chronomancer’s Sargasso 11. Archipelago of Lastholme 12. Oracle Isles 13. Mechanics of Wayside 14. Wayside Denizens and Personalities 15. Wayside Catalog of Creatures

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Overview

Dimensional Traits

Physical Traits • Gravity: Comparable to the Prime Material Plane • Time: Fluctuates on a cycle of threes. Every distance/time measurement

is done in threes (i.e. three seconds, three minutes, three hours, three days, three weeks, three months, three years, etc.) This is a random characteristic caused by the first ruler of Wayside.

• Size: A rough map of Wayside has been created by an anonymous cartographer from a Prime Plane called Krynn, it is the best depiction of Wayside’s physical appearance. However, with the peculiar way time and distance are handled in Wayside it is difficult to say how accurate this map truly is.

Magical Traits

• Magical Ley: All time affecting magic operates at one level higher. • Alignment Dominance: No alignment is dominant; however the nature of

Wayside would suggest a Chaotic lean. • Elemental Influence: Wayside is related to the Temporal Elemental Plane.

Dimensional Links Wayside is reached by passing through an area where an element is at its most concentrated. This also how passage is gained to an Inner Plane from the Prime, but Wayside is the result if this amazing concentration is reached via the Outer Planes. Thus, a gate to Wayside resides at the bottom of every volcano of the outer planes, the deepest reaches of both rivers Oceanis and Styx, a gate to Wayside even resides in the highest reaches of Wildspace. Wayside can be accessed by all manner of gate, portal, vortex, etc created by anything above tenth level in power. Denizens of Wayside Wayside can only account for one race as its true native inhabitant, and that is probably a wrong assumption. The Dabus, the race who claims Sigil as another one of its native grounds, is the longest known inhabitant. The Dabus have and always do take the stance as the researchers of Wayside. They an aloof bunch and tend to only converse with one another. However, if one know the proper way to communicate with them they will converse with others openly. Dabus’ mode of communication is very strange from any other in the sense that it takes the shape of symbols above the Dabus head; it is not sounded out in tones, as the creatures have no vocal cords. The second longest running inhabitants are primeval humans called Neanderthals. Whom were the first travelers to this hidden realm.

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The Neanderthal people tend to stay away from everyone and everything, however, this savage warrior race has been known to launch attacks on travelers. The golbinoids are the third race to claim longevity here. A band of the warlike creatures fled here from Acheron. From them an empire soon arose, which allowed for the building of the Castle at the Great City. This empire has long since been overthrown by the numerous adventurers and power-hungry would-be conquerors. Aside from these three races, others found throughout Wayside are, for the lack of a better term, just passing through; regardless of whether they call Wayside their homeland. Features of Wayside Wayside itself is an expanse of land stretching through several climates. As the land of Wayside sits, the northwest harbors an arctic climate. The south of the land mass is a tropical and humid area. The coastal and in-land regions of Wayside span climes from temperate to tropical; however an expanse of arid desert region occupies the center.

• The Great City – Must have been founded by the dabus as no one really knows when the Great City came about. Due to the familiarity with Sigil it has been sectioned into wards; the Army Ward, Castle Ward, Temple Ward, Dock Ward, Trade Ward, and the Residence Ward. The largest difference is that it does not retain The City of Doors’ numerous gates to the outer planes. It has also never been ruled by the factions of the outlands, though they are present. Of all the Wards, the Castle Ward is the newest. There never used to be a castle overlooking the Great City, but several ages ago, when the ogres ruled the Great City, they built a castle to defend against the constant uprisings from the regular population. The Castle Ward was called the Chronomancer’s Ward prior to the ogre conquest. No single power seems to stay in power for any length of time. Currently the ruler of the Great City is an errant warlord from an unknown Prime Material Plane in the Multiverse. His name is Temuctin, a stout human ranger; and he rules with an iron fist.

• The Fireback Mountain Range – Home to the Orog, a more intelligent

strand of the ogre race. The orog have given birth to many great ogre leaders, but the warrior Crass of the Redcap, is by far the most dangerous as he also has many psionic powers. The Fireback’s most notable features are the multitude of volcanoes. It is rumored that every hill in the Fireback is a volcano.

• Archipelago of the Lastholme – The archipelago is the final refuge of the

ogre following their races conquest of Wayside. The peaceful ondonti live and farm the fertile lands along side other races.

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• Vaundermoor – The domicile of the spiderkind is usually referred to as the

Demonweb or Arachne’s realm. However, this swampy terrain is also a dwelling for all kinds of the eight-legged carnivores, and their entire ilk. Spiderkind are also, from what many failed expeditions can report, immune to the mind dominating effects of the humid region.

• Bleak Desert – Wayside’s desert is the home of the ogre and orog’s vast

orc armies. However, don’t go looking for orc communities, you might not find them. Through the ages the orc’s of the Bleak are almost extinct. You just may get lost in the ever-shifting-sands.

• Timespan River and Wrinkle (Branch of the Timespan – The long

Timespan River has three areas of flow that remain constant though it’s length. Near the source at Battlehorn Lake the river flow at a slow rate (and thus time is slowed by threes), in the middle of the Timespan river the waters flow at a normal rate and time if affected in a similar manner. At the branch of the Wrinkle, the river begins a quick flow and time thus speeds up by threes. The Wrinkle flows at a normal rate.

• Glacierdome – A frozen land home to consistent blizzards, Glacierdome is

a warzone for the arctic dwarves and frost giants whom dwell there. The Tri-Sis Mountains are in the southeast, and are the ancient home of the arctic dwarf. During the ogre conquest of Wayside, the frost giants had total control of Glacierdome except for the Tri-Sis, they currently retain control and lay an ever-constant siege on the dwarven fortress.

• Oracle Isles – The so called Oracle Isles are a collection of islands, big and

small, that surround the Chronomancer’s Sargasso. These islands house huge ornate gates to key locations through out the multiverse. There are ten known islands. These are (from east to west) the Tempest, the Sorrow, the Rampant, the Valor, the Apex, the Omega, the Myste, the Wrath, the Famine, and the Virtue.

• Chronomancer’s Sargasso – Back during the times of the Chronomancer’s

reign this tremendous sludge never existed. When the ogre’s rose up disposing of the powerful sorcerer the small Inner Sea was his refuge, as the ogre horde did not have a strong naval power. Once here the Chronomancer proceeded to stop all time, or at least slow it down. Thus, it is said that all who enter the Sargasso become lost to time.

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History of Wayside Among the dabus, Wayside merely appeared in the multiverse. It was never discovered by them. They journeyed to the location where they had sensed its arrival and built upon it a settlement which would one day become the Great City. This was at a time when most of the powers didn’t exist, and the multiverse was not much more than a small collection of existences. Many thousands of years afterwards primitive humans arrived. Both the Neanderthal and the Cro-Magnon found their way to Wayside; the dabus opted to watch the two war-bent races from a distance. They idly watched while over the next tens of years the Cro-Magnon was hunted to extinction by the Neanderthal using primitive clubs. However, a new race had arrived on Wayside, one that would establish its rule with weapons of iron. Crass of the Redcap, a higher intelligent ogre known as an orog brought his armies of ogre and orc into the fertile lands. At around the same moment a band of adventurers led by an already accomplished mage named Pineas L’Ostrume, entered Wayside via the Vaundermoor swamps. The adventurers in question were fleeing a hive of spiderkind from the underdark when they were engulfed by hidden, bottomless chasm. Pineas led the adventurers out of Vaundermoor by stopping time and the progress of the spiderkin. They escaped

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leaving the pursuing spiderkin to become lost. In later years the spiderkin adapted and grew to inhabit the endless and depressing region. Crass of the Redcap was finding his conquest of Wayside as easy as going to the garden to get carrots. The Neanderthal humans couldn’t fight against the ogre hordes weapons and advanced combat tactics. Crass conquered all of northern Wayside only to come upon an already established settlement. The spot of civilization tat would one day be called the Great City. Promptly the dabus encountered Crass and his horde. The mysterious dabus calmed the vicious horde and gave Crass and his horde the colony as a reward for his conquest. Crass agreed and pronounced it against his rule for anyone to harm the dabus, as the horde had been convinced the dabus help keep the colony running. Pineas and his fellow encountered the ogre horde years later at a large inland lake that had been named Battlehorn Lake by the now known Crass the King. Pineas and his troupe was attacked on sight by the ogre horde and the mage immediately froze them where they stood. A slaughter ensued where the adventurers with Pineas walked through the defenseless goblinoid ranks and cut down each one. Hundreds were slain in this until the arrival of the defeated Neanderthal humans. After a cautious meeting and agreement all of the three thousand goblinoids of the ogre horde were slaughtered. Pineas learned of the badus and the mysterious colony in the north from the primitive humans. He marched on the dabus colony the next morning only to find the travel to take him three years. During this time the horde had brought the colony into untold riches. Crass’s expeditions discovered several ornate doorways into other planes and marked each of them. He had the colony enlarged and watchtowers built all around the fledgling city. Crass never learned what happened to his three thousand soldiers, they had simply disappeared. What ever was out there in Wayside, he wasn’t going to let it take his city away. When Pineas and his army reached the walls of the now named Great City, he found an extremely well armed and fortified ‘colony’. None of his adventurers had survived the travels over the last three years. All Pineas had was his army of Neanderthals. He had collected comrades through this time, among them even offspring of the spiderkind that had chased him to Wayside in the beginning. Pineas’s army attacked the towers of the Great City attempting to bring them down and stop the defense, however, the orc archers were too deadly. Pineas attacked again with the last of his army and took a few of his best allies into the Great City through a sewer system. Among those heroes were Olionist the Drider, Graume the Mighty, and a dabus, who only Pineas knew. The dabus pointed the way through the Great City’s defenses and Oloinist, Gruame and

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Pineas strode into the newly built Castle of the Great City. The dabus had no such structures as they had not known war aside from witnessing it. Pineas and his fellow attacked Crass under the cover of night, following the last vain attempt of his own feeble army to attack the ogre horde. The actual details are for another time and under much speculation as Pineas alone claimed victory. Oloinist and Gruame had been killed in the battle with Crass, and from all appearances, Crass had been beheaded by Pineas. Thus the gates in the sewers were thrown wide for the traces of Pineas’ army to enter and conquer the Great City. Since then the ogre horde has been severely hunted by all manner of adventurer that finds their way to Wayside. Pineas established himself as the first true King of all Wayside, realizing that the spiderkind in the south recognize his rulership, where they didn’t even know who Crass was. Pineas ruled for a long period and disappeared while on a hunt in the Fireback Mountains. He returned to the Great City to find another ruler in his place, a Olek, King of Scandora and Wayside. This new king was a half-orc and had the backing of Wayside’s ogre community. Pineas confronted Olek over the throne and was stoned out of the Great City. Pineas fled, only to be chased ruthlessly by King Olek. The chase occurred throughout the whole of Wayside coming to an end in the middle of the Inner Sea. Olek had ships of soldiers ready to bring the Chronomancer’s head back to there King when a great slime and sludge mixture of rotted and tangled seaweeds bubbled up from below, sticking the vessels fast. Pineas then cast a magical spell that cost him his life, and created a ‘still time’ zone in the Sargasso. Realizing his ships and men lost, King Olek returned to the Great City to rule until his death at the age of 120 years old. Since the time of King Olek the Castle of the Great City and the throne has past many hands, sometimes only for a few moments and at other times for decades. Character Information

Races • All races are allowed in Wayside. The plane’s nature and magical

properties allow anyone from anywhere to find their way onto Wayside. The time factors of Wayside do produce some difficulty for certain races. Time lapses along the Timespan River, for instance, and normal travel may produce moments where the character could progress to another age

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category or past its life expectancy. There is also a danger of ‘retroactive time lapses’ to occur.

• More on retroactive time lapses in following chapters.

Classes • As with all races, it is possible for all classes to find themselves here.

Some classes may be affected differently. A class who deals with issues of time or a spell caster whom casts a time affecting incantation will find them augmented.

• All time affect magic or abilities operate at one caster level higher. • All travel affect magic or abilities that also affect time operates at one

caster level higher. • This rule also applies to racial ability.

Skills and Feats

• All Skills and Feats are allowed. • Below are additional Skills as per this Netbook.

- Sense Time (Wisdom) Check – A successful check allows you to correctly estimate the time of the day or night anywhere you happen to be on the Prime Material Plane. This educated guess places you within half an hour of the correct time. A natural 20 roll depicts a sense of the exact time. Action – Attempting to Sense Time takes 1 standard action. Try Again – You may try after half-an-hour has past. Special – Classes from the Netbook of Time gains a +2 bonus for all checks. Any character with an WIS higher than 12 gains a +1 on Sense Time checks. Synergy – If you have 5 or more ranks in any survival you have a +2 bonus on Sense Time checks. - Chronotagging (Intelligence) Check – Chronotagging is meant as a means for a sage to estimate through educated deduction the prospective age of an event of item. A successful check allows the investigator the ability to be able to surmise the correct decade of an event or item. A roll against a DC20 allows the correct year. A roll against a DC30 allows for the correct season of a given year. Action – Chronotagging takes no less than 10 standard actions to research and surmise a theory.

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Try Again – This can only be attempted after twenty-four hours have past. Special – Classes from the Netbook of Time gains a +2 bonus for all checks. Synergy – None - Gathering (Intelligence) Check – Gathering is the action and tactics of foraging for food in the wilds. A successful check allows the gatherer to collect enough food to sustain a single meal for themselves. A roll against DC20 allows for the gatherer to sustain a single individual for a day. (3 meals) A roll against DC30 allows for the gatherer to sustain a single individual for a week. Action – Gathering takes a single standard action. Try Again – This can be attempted on the next round. Special – none Synergy – Those with ranks in Survival gain a +2 to Gathering checks.

Glacierdome Technology: Primitive, Bronze Age, Iron Age (similar) Religions: The dwarven and giant pantheons are both practiced here, and the followers of both truly hate each other. Governments: A kingdom of ice and snow that is under constant strife between the arctic dwarf and the frost giant whom calls this wasteland home. Icegate, the only dwarven fortress, is constantly under risk of raiding and is thus harshly protected by the arctic dwarf. Icegate is at the peak of the center of the Tri-Sis Mountains, and the seat of the King Magistrate. Organizations & Cults: The strongest religion in Glacierdome is that of Moradinn and the Dwarven Pantheon. It has been the Dwarven Mythos for as long as anyone can remember. The dwarves are united under a sole King Magistrate, and this rulership is hereditary.

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The frost giants who roam the wastes of Glacierdome are nomadic and answer to any one of several tribal lords. It is rumored that a single Giant King exists and that this giant has the head of a bear. The dwarven fortress of Icegate is protected by a band known as the White Wall. They are stoic defenders of the secrets in the Tri-Sis Mountains, and are the main reason the fortress has never been taken by an attacker. The White Wall is made of entirely of berserker arctic dwarves. Magic Items: It is said that the extreme weather of Glacierdome is the sole by-product of an ancient dimensional gate that had been opened. This gate was said to be transportable and could, in effect, be closed and simply taken away, thus destroying Glacierdome forever.

Another notable item is the Double-Take Ring. The arctic dwarves can make these rings as one-time use magical item and usually sells them for a hefty price of five thousand gold. These rings allow the wearer to reverse time for a single roll on the Length of Time Table, found in the Mechanics of Wayside. Currency:

Currency is much the same in Glacierdome as it is in the rest of the world. Bartering becomes more valuable in the wilds of Glacierdome and trade for furs and metals dominate the market.

Glacierdome has a lucrative slave market among the frost giants. Slavers are held in high regard among them, and an even more valuable prize than gold is a dwarven slave. Portals & Gateways: The Green Grove is a garden oasis in the middle of Glacierdome. The area spans only twenty human paces, however travel to and from the Green Grove requires one to pass through an area of extreme heat. Nations: Icegate (dwarven fortress) Tri-Sis (dwarf lands) Snowbound Tribal Lands (frost giant lands) Hollowind Tribal Lands (frost giant lands) Icedark Plains (frost giant lands) Monsters: The largest of all creatures on Glacierdome is the mythical Wind’s Howler, a huge beast that is reported to travel on the harsh winds of the north oceanic storms. Among the surface the island is dominated by the dire polar bear and the dire leopard seal, which battle for food in this harsh environment, among

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other natural creatures. Underdark dangers include the remoraz, snow serpent, and an arctic species of the cockatrice. In the secluded region known as Green Grove the feared blood rose, grows among the small rows of pretty flowers. The Great City Technology:

Age of Reason Religions:

Any and all religions are accepted here, however, this does not stop small rebellions from time to time. Governments:

The politics of The Great City are forever changing as the City’s rulers change. Where one ruler may be very pious and call total genocide on a said religion, the next ruler may be pacifist and pass a law that all weaponry be confiscated, to be returned whenever deemed appropriate.

The current ruler of the Great City is Temuctin the Warlord. Temuctin is a human of bronze skin and wide, narrow eyes. He is a brilliant strategist and archer. However, Temuctin is a paranoid man and surrounds himself with a personal guard of no less than one thousand well trained archers whom pledge their loyalties to him. Temuctin called them the Horde and by giving his personal guard the name of the first conquerors instilled respect from the chaotic bent population. Organizations & Cults:

The Horde are Temuctin’s loyal guard, however within the Horde is a religious sect that is devout to Temuctin revering him as a Power. These fanatics are named the Swift. They will lay down their lives at the whim of Temuctin.

The Great City boasts several thieves’ guilds; however there are three big ones who control all six Wards of the City. The Runabouts are a powerful street gang whom own the much of the peasant level affairs, and just cause general havoc trying to stay on top of the other smaller gangs. The Mech’niks are a social elite level of the thieves, they tend to own several trade companies and racketeering operations versus get their hands dirty. Lastly there are The Guilded Mask, an assassination and thief’s guild who also handles the bulk of the Great City’s private investigations, who tries to play themselves off as good fellows when in fact they tend to walk on the slightly illegal side of things.

The Great City is home to several religions but none can climb to any prestige as the opposite ideology is usually constantly watching each other.

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Magic Items: The Great City has seen more than its share of magical items, from the style that provide nothing shy of a light show to the ultra-powerful shatter the sky brand. However only a few stand out that can not readily be explained away.

• Glimmerwit is a tome that is reputed to contain the answer to everything. However, in reality this is not true. It does have the power to change an average mortal into a chronomancer for limited moments. It does possess reality bending spells. If one is to spend four hours of a twenty-four hour period reading the tome the reader may not glean much actual information, however they will be awarded the chance to reroll an unfavorable die result once, thus changing their luck. If the reader was to read Glimmerwit for eight hours of the twenty-four hour period they will be awarded the ability to bend luck as previously specified and grant haste (or slow) as per the spell at 20th level. If the reader was to read for twelve hours the previous two abilities are gained as well as the ability to cease the time progress for the scenario thus the reader would be the only one immune to this effect outside of other magical routes. This time stop remains in affect for 1d8 rounds. If the reader was to read for sixteen hours the previous abilities are still in effect as well as the ability to provide the reader with a travel power, thus granting a once a day use of teleport at 20th level. Furthermore, after twenty hours of reading the power to reverse the process of time up to twenty-four hours. There by reversing any effects of the previous twenty-four hours. Finally, after twenty-four hours of reading, and a successful WILL, you gain one Wish. If the reader should fail the WILL save his mental self becomes trapped in the tome, making Glimmerwit their prison. Gaining these abilities can only occur if the reader is reading continuously. In order to read for long amounts of time one can simply make Endurance or CON checks every four hours. (DM note – If you are able to manipulate time reading lengths can be affectively shortened).

Currency: The current currency in the Great City bears the likeness of Temuctin, as it has bore the likeness of each of the rulers of the Great City who has sat upon the throne for any length of time long enough to mint coin. The main point among all merchants is that the coin of choice has not changed from gold, as per the rest of the world. Portals & Gateways: The Great City has one significant and ornate gate which often times can not be found even though the Great City has been built around it. The Primer Gate spends its time fluctuating between Wayside and the Outlands. However,

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not everyone who has traveled through the Gate has been found again. Therefore, sages are led to believe that the Gate is unstable. This is true, but according to time and not location. Those who travel through the Primer Gate must carry a gold pocket watch to be delivered safely in the correct expenditure of time. If one travels through with no such safeguard, you stand a 50% chance of traveling ahead or back in the Temporal Plane before being delivered to the Gate’s destination point. Nations: Several nations tend to have sway in The Great City, depending on who the ruling entity is at the moment. Monsters: This is a gray area. Often times the travelers that find themselves lost to time are the very monsters of another home plane. Thus, there are situations that can get out of hand quickly. Luckily, the thieves guilds tend to keep everything orderly, despite their true purposes. Fireback Mountain Range Technology:

Iron Age Religions:

The Fireback Mountains are the refuge of the Neanderthal humans following their almost extinction at the hands of the Ogre Horde. The Neanderthals revere Gaia, in a sense. However, shamans do exist among their cultures; a cleric of Gaia is sacred even among rival tribes, where shamans are not. Governments:

The Fireback Mountains are wild and sparsely populated terrain. The majority of the folk here in Wayside find the Fireback very dangerous ground with wild animals both small and huge roaming the ridges.

The Neanderthal tribes dot the mountain sides, each with its own judge and council. Each governed differently. Organizations & Cults:

The Neanderthals are primitive, yes. However, they do have a caste system within each tribe that is very similar across the entire Mountain range.

A single elder male rules the tribe, who presides over a council of younger, yet still experienced males, of each aspect of tribal life. One council member is head of war; the other is head of domestic issues. This tribunal

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system has been a functioning government since before the Neanderthal came to Wayside. Magic Items:

The Neanderthal does not have magic among their kind. They can not use it nor understand it. Therefore, they fear it. There fear manifests itself in numerous ways; most of the time they flee from the source, however it has been rumored they will attack with near fanatical fashion. Currency:

Treasure and riches are still valuable here in the Fireback, however the barter system reigns supreme. The Neanderthal value anything to help them survive, however luxuries have another value among the primitive peoples of the Mountains. Portals & Gateways: The Fireback have been named for a reason. Every mountaintop has been found to be an active volcano. Popular theory olds that each one has a Gate to a different plane at its most intense point; however there are no legitimate survivors able to provide any value to these claims. Nations: No nations can claim ownership of the Fireback. Numerous Neanderthal tribes are scattered across the mountain ranges and none of them have a claim to the land, instead they nomadically travel across them in search of food and fair weather. Monsters: The Fireback Mountains are home to numerous creatures. They will not all be listed here in this reference. Though, among them are the sure-footed mountain mammoth and a breed of basilisk, known among the Orog as bashieek, roam these wild lands. Timespan River Technology:

The technical level of the Timespan varies depending on the residency. Religions:

The Timespan sees numerous different religions, nor it any span of the river controlled by any one religion. This being said, the areas of the river after the Wrinkle is more populated by the Order of the Hourglass. The Order is a peaceful group who spends their time cataloging the passing of time and its nuances of manipulation on all things.

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Governments:

No one has control of the Timespan, this is seen to by the Order of the Hourglass. Organizations & Cults:

As stated before the Order of the Hourglass can be said to call the shores of the Timespan their homeland. It is rumored that the high priest and priestess can manipulate time and redesign history. However, any further exploration into this story had lead to dead ends and fairytales.

It should be understood that the Order of the Hourglass has no god, as gods are known. Time is what they are more concerned with, thus in a manner of speaking, they call themselves such titles as assistant, for the inexperienced, and doctor, for the more experienced. It should also be understood that the title of assistant and doctor are interchangeable depending on the true abilities of the individual Order members and their company. Magic Items:

Among the Order of the Hourglass the each wears holy symbols in the sign of an hourglass. When employed the hourglass performs by allowing the wearer to reroll an unwanted action. This can be performed for any action and the Symbol of the Order can be used as many times during the day that the wearer has in levels. (i.e. a 5th level Order of the Hourglass can recheck any action up to five times a day.) Currency:

Currency is not of much use on the Timespan, however when goods are bought and sold the barter system prevails. Portals & Gateways:

Through constant study by the Order of the Hourglass, it has been reuted tat no portals or Gates exist along the Timespan.

DM Note: It has not been researched for the numerous routes out of Vaundermoor. Nations:

The only established structure save a few hovels along the river’s banks is the huge clock tower erected by the Order of the Hourglass at the source of the river on the banks of Battlehorn Lake. Monsters: The Timespan has crocodiles, a very deadly sort in the sense that their attacks tend to be lightning quick.

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Bleak Desert Technology:

Stone Age Religions:

None Governments:

None Organizations & Cults:

A small settlement of ogre’s live at an oasis in the vastness of the Bleak. It is known, however it is not marked on any map. This is all that remains of Mighty Crass’s regular foot soldiers. They worship Grummsh and have remained solitary since Crass’s fall from power. They are extremely secretive and will kill on sight any one not of the goblinoid races. Magic Items:

None Currency:

None, however the barter system, if you can get close enough to any Bleak travelers to use, prevails in all situations. Portals & Gateways:

The Gate Under the Eye lay at the bottom of the pool in the oasis-settlement of Aguasht. The Gate leads to various Prime Material Planes during the summer months, however it leads to the Outer Plane of Acheron in the winter months. For those travelers lucky or crafty enough to get into Aguasht, should know this before attempting to travel through the Gate Under the Eye. Nations: Citizens of the settlement of Aguasht support only their own kind. This is if you don’t get killed on sight. They are the remains of the goblinoid foot soldiers used by Crass those many years ago when he established his total reign over Wayside. Aguasht provides basic needs to those goblinoid characters. If you should be alive within the canopy of bright, green trees of Aguasht don’t be expecting any assistance or voice among the citizens. Here, unless you are of the goblin races, you are the ‘walking dead’ and are afforded no merit. Monsters:

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Aside from the rare if intentional ogre visit, none of note, but all desert denizens can be found in the sands of the Bleak. Vaundermoor Technology: Advanced Religions:

Lolth and Arachne are worshipped here, among others of the drow and spiderkin pantheons. Governments:

Spiderkin government in Vaundermoor is driven by the ruling religions of the area. Both Lolth and Arachne have firm beliefs in the small swamp, and are in constant war until one wins over the other. Organizations & Cults:

As the governments are driven by the Lolth and Arachne mythos they also possess their vices. As well as the before mentioned, the intolerance of other religions outside the Spiderkin mythos are viewed as a harsh blasphemy and it’s practitioners are usually hunted down and exterminated. Thus, the research performed by the Order of the Hourglass all but stops at the borders of Vaundermoor.

For more information on the mythos of Lolth and Arachne please find the reference at www.dndwiki.com under the downloads for 4th Edition homebrew sourcebooks. Magic Items:

• Throne of Hollowbones – The mythical Throne of Hollowbones resides in the huge, submerged city of Dweomeroinn, the first drow settlement of Wayside and reigning seat of House My’yeririan.

- The Throne’s powers were and still are simple. It was used by the first ruling drow family to imprison the souls of their enemies. Each of the bones that make the Throne is hollow, as the name implies. Yet, each bone is a soul trap and the Throne works on the ‘command phrase’ of the accepted ruler at the moment.

- When within fifteen feet of the Throne, and upon the command ‘beseech thee no more’ the soul of anyone up to twentieth level becomes trapped within one of the Throne’s numerous hollow bones. Those characters above twentieth level need make a WILL save to retain their souls. This spell-like action can affect multiple targets that are within fifteen feet of the artifact.

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- The soul trapping effects can be reversed, setting the soul free, with the ‘command phrase’ ‘thou est free’. The soul is reborn as a ghostly, ethereal figure unless it has it’s own body to inhabit. If the mortal shell is gone, the soul will remain body-less and within no way to physically interact with the real world lest it possess another.

Currency:

Gold and silver coins are the preferred method of trade, however the barter system is still used in the more isolated spots of Vaundermoor. Portals & Gateways:

Vaundermoor is home to too many portals and Gates to count. The drow sages have still not explored all of them. A few of the permanent ones are listed here.

In Dweomeroinn sits the Webring Gate. The Gate is a direct and constant trip to the Demonweb Pits. On occasions this Gate is used as punishment for grave wrong doers and the occasional non-spiderkin explorer. This gate does have a very identifiable side-effect. Once one travels through it, a finger is decorated with the tattoo of a spider web ring. This magical marking occurs every time someone passes through the Gate.

In Lyoftaufinn, the webbed fortress of the Arachne worshipping drow, the Crawling Gate calls the thickly webbed inner sanctum home. The Crawling Web is in fact a magically constructed web golem. In it’s globular abdomen rests a Gate to the Spirit Web.

At least one of the many routes the Timespan takes through Vaundermoor ends in an unmarked Gate to the Plane of Concordant Opposition. Nations: Dweomeroinn, as stated before, houses the ruling family of drow faithful to the Lolth, the Spider Queen. This city has also made extreme leaps in technology to a point where every home has a servant, and the wealthy among them have their own house golems to protect them. As they are known to be ferocious warrior, their mages are among the greatest at creating magical limbs out of nearly any material to replace lost or otherwise absent limbs. Lyoftaufinn, is the seat of the fabled Web Witch. She is a high priestess of Arachne and for most of summer and fall seasons she is very kind. However in the winter season she becomes unlivable and is locked away by the regular spikerkind population. In the spring she becomes very friendly…very, very friendly as she searches for a mate. When she finds one and sedates her desires she kills her consort in a ‘peaceful’ and humane manner. The Web Witch does not do this act of hatred, yet out of ecstasy. The population of Lyoftaufinn often reflects the mood of their high priestess. Thus, it is best for visitors to the city to

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enter and trade in the summer and fall seasons, and ensure they are on their way come winter.

The spawn from their union is allowed to roam away and spread the word of Arachne. Details on the Spawn of the Web Witch template can be found in the chapter titled Wayside’s Catalogue of Creatures. Monsters: All manner of spiderkind are prevalent in Vaundermoor. It is rumored that enough time spent in the swamps of Vaundermoor will turn anyone into a spiderkind. However, this is only a rumor. Chronomancer’s Sargasso Technology: None Religions:

None Governments:

None Organizations & Cults:

None Magic Items:

• Hellship – Many years ago when the Chronomancer was chased to the edges of Wayside by King Olek the Half-orc, he boarded a vessel he had the original members of his table assemble. The same members who had acted as his advisors while he was the first true king. The vessel was constructed and the ritual performed upon it was according to a long-lost tome from the Lower Planes. The Hellship was truly a construct born of blood. The important aspect of the Hellship wasn’t its construction, but what it could do. It had the power to pass without trace and freely move about any area. The ship also had the ability to pass through planar rifts that it would create at random, as the ritual to create the Hellship was a chaotic spell in origin. These planar rifts can generate to any plane every 1d100 days. The crew onboard the Hellship shares all the powers that Hellship exhibits. It is rumored that the Hellship could pass through solid rock, and not be stopped.

Currency:

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None Portals & Gateways:

None Nations: None Monsters: None Archipelago of Lastholme Technology:

Iron Age Religions:

Several pantheons are revered here, and to the outsider it may seem that definite religious enemies worship beside their adversaries. The only thing amiss in Lastholme is that religious freedom is observed among the entire group of islands. Everywhere on the archipelago is usually within easy reach of a center of worship for any given deity or pantheon. Governments:

Lastholme operates with an Elder League. It is a collection of votes from the Chief Governor of each farming community. Organizations & Cults:

No religion has any particular power over another, and many of the islands have their own groups of tradesman and merchants. Each community does retain an militia, but this is composed of farmers and tradesman alike.

Each member of the Elder League has an accompanying Master Merchant, whom conducts all business and handles affairs with surrounding civilizations. Magic Items:

None, though the realization of magic is viewed with superstition and caution. Currency:

The barter system and gold speaks all languages among the folk of Lastholme. A particular vice that is shared among the whole of the population is gambling. This vice is shared on many different levels from children’s games to occasional violent bouts.

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Portals & Gateways:

None Nations: Each farming community within Lastholme is its own, stand alone village. But matters of crime and punishment, and cases deemed too grave for the Chief Governor are placed for trial among the Elder League. Thus, among outsiders Lastholme can be viewed as a single democratic nation. Monsters: Among the population of Lastholme, there are no monsters as long as you prove to be able to perform farming techniques.

The only creature in Lastholme not of the normal humanoid races is the ondonti. These peaceful farmers are the orc descendents of the horde used by Crass the Orog those many ages ago during his domination of Wayside. Details on the ondonti can be found among the Catalogue of Creatures. Oracle Islands Technology:

None Religions:

None Governments:

None Organizations & Cults:

Each of the Gates may have travelers come through them from their finite locations on their other end. This usually leads to small settlement that try to establish themselves and soon fail, or an eventual explorer who happened upon Wayside from the Gates opposite end.

In speaking, what cults and organizations surround a given Gate do not last long, and are soon swallowed by the applicable plane once their ideology becomes one sided. Magic Items:

• Chaos Hammer – Began life as nothing more than a jeweler’s hammer that found the extra spark of magic added by a powerful, and self-proclaimed, imp-king.

Currency:

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Various Portals & Gateways:

Tempest Gate – Travelers found at the Tempest Gate are usually trying to escape. The Tempest gate leads to the moment when the winds are the highest and most terrible in the Plane of Pandemonium.

Sorrow Gate – Sorrow Gate leads to the moment when the total collective feelings of depression and sadness overtake mass quantities of mortals. The physical location of this event can be anywhere, on any plane.

Rampant Gate – At times this Gate works fine delivering folks to the famed City of Doors, at other times the Gate will drop you off anywhere. A cartographer said he once took the Gate and noted that it appeared he was adrift within a tornado.

Valor Gate – If an order of knighthood takes, and believes, in the virtues and code that it supports this Gate will provide a link to its halls. When the honor of the knighthood is forsaken, the Gate will disappear.

Apex Gate – This Gate leads to the highest mountain of all mountains. To enter the Gate offering direct passage to the top of Mount Celestia, you must have proven your true heartedness and served your life with honor and goodness. Only those of twentieth level or higher and of lawful good alignment may enter and leave this Gate.

Omega Gate – No one has ever returned from this Gate. It is rumored the Gate goes to the seat of Death itself.

Myste Gate – Rumored to be a perfect path to mystery, this Gate travels to moment of greatest challenge, be it physical or mental. It seems to travel through this Gate a spellkey is needed to initiate the travel. The spellkey also varies depending on the mystery to be had. Clues to the spellkey are scrawled on the walls of the Gate.

Wrath Gate – This Gate is legendary as it can often be heard screaming along the waves prior to reaching this island. The moment of the largest battle in all of the multiverse is the destination of this Gate. Be ready to fight, for whatever reason you find to travel through this Gate.

Famine Gate – This Gate is cursed, as those who use it to travel are guaranteed to be delivered to their home plane of existence; however the traveler need make a successful FORT save to fend off the Gate’s disease. If the save fails the traveler will suffer a loss of one CON point per day for 1d20 days. If this should kill the traveler the disease will ‘migrate’ to another until it is defeated by a successful FORT check.

Virtue Gate – Passage through this Gate can only be won by traveling through and accomplishing seven virtuous acts. If the traveler should fail to accomplish all seven acts the traveler will be delivered back to the Island of Virtue. If all seven virtuous acts are accomplished they can travel to any moment within the traveler’s experiences. It should be noted that travel back to

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a location in the traveler’s past would place the traveler in the given location in their current time.

Nations: The islands that make up those of the Oracle are not really known to be nations in there own right. The Tempest, the Sorrow, the Rampant, the Valor, the Apex, the Omega, the Myste, the Wrath, the Famine, and the Virtue are only known by their first names and only visited by those in search of guidance in the given direction of the Gate or island they visit. Monsters: None

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The Mechanics of Wayside Lengths of Time – Listed above it is said that time in Wayside fluctuates in three’s; three minutes, three hours, three days, three weeks, three months, three years, and so on. Yet this is always a rather chaotic route. The table below has been provided for the Moderator should they need to calculate the passing of time during any given moment. All aging penalties apply for this expenditure of time; however this does not reflect accumulated experience that may have been gained. Roll d20 Length of Time

1 3 min 2 6 min 3 12 min 4 24 min 5 48 min 6 3 hours 7 6 hours 8 12 hours 9 24 hours 10 3 days 11 6 days 12 3 weeks 13 3 months 14 6 months 15 12 months 16 3 years 17 6 years 18 12 years 19 30 years 20 60 years

Travel – Travel through out Wayside can be a very complicated endeavor. With the length of time in mind a check for time spent should be rolled once for every moment of travel. The trip may or may not seem instantaneous (that’s up to the Moderator); however the actual time that had elapsed will be according to the table above. (i.e. a trip over a short span of ground may actually take sixty years of time, thus a character can show up to the battle as a eighty year old 4th level fighter.)

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Wayside Catalog of Creatures Arctic Dwarf = Hill Dwarves constructed with the Arctic racial variant from Unearthed Arcana. Frost Giant = Found in the Monstrous Manual Orc = Found in the Monstrous Manual Ogre = Found in the Monstrous Manual Orog = Originally found in the ADnD Birthright manuals now at The Creature Catalogue online at http://www.enworld.org/cc/converted/humanoid/orog.htm. Ondonti = Originally found in the ADnD Mystara Monstrous Compendium, now at The Creature Catalogue online at http://www.enworld.org/cc/converted/view_c.php?CreatureID=923. Drow = Found in the Monstrous Manual Spiderkin = Found on the DnD Wiki sight under 4th Edition DnD Homebrew sourcebooks Arachnomicon. http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/Arachonomicon;_the_Book_of_Spiderkind_(4e_Sourcebook). Bashieek = Basilisk as per the Monstrous Manual that feeds on sand. Dabus = Originally found in the ADnD Planescape manuals. The revised stats are provided below. Size/Type: Medium Humanoid Hit Dice: 3d10+6 (22 hp) Initiative: +6Speed: 30 ft Armor Class: 13 (+2 Dex, +1 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 11 Base Attack/Grapple: +2/+2 Attack: Melee (1d6) Full Attack: Melee (1d6) Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft. Special Attacks: None Special Qualities: Mute, darkvision 60 ft., low-light visionSaves: Fort +5, Ref +5, Will +4Abilities: Str 11, Dex 15, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 14

Skills:

Knowledge (Outer Planes) +14, Craft (architecture) +8, Endurance +5, Craft (masonry) +13, Listen +6, Gather Information +6

Feats: Improved Initiative, Iron WillB

Environment: Urban Organization: Pair or colony (2-6)

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Challenge Rating: 1 Treasure: Standard items Alignment: Usually neutral Advancement: By character class Level Adjustment: +0 Dabus are known widely by planewalkers for their involvement with the Lady of Pain and the legendary City of Doors. However, the dabus of Wayside were the first intelligent race into the Temporal Pocket. Much of the ancient buildings and the sea port of the Great City can be attributed to them. Combat The dabus tend to avoid all combat, they do however observe. Observation (Ex) What the dabus visually witnesses it can record the sightings for the views of other dabus and for the Lady of Pain, however, in order to show others what it has seen it must be within ten feet and before the viewer. Mountain Mammoth = A sure-footed variety of the giant found originally in the ADnD Monstrous Manual. The revised stats are provided below. Size/Type: Huge AnimalHit Dice: 11d8+55 (104 hp) Initiative: +0Speed: 40 ft. (8 squares) Armor Class: 15 (-2 size, +7 natural), touch 8, flat-footed 15 Base Attack/Grapple: +8/+26Attack: Gore +16 melee (2d8+15)

Full Attack: Slam +16 melee (2d6+10) and 2 stamps +11 melee (2d6+5);or gore +16 melee (2d8+15)

Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. Special Attacks: Trample 2d8+15Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent, sure-footed Saves: Fort +12, Ref +7, Will +6Abilities: Str 30, Dex 10, Con 21, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 7 Skills: Listen +12, Spot +10Feats: Alertness, Endurance, Iron Will, Skill Focus (Listen) Environment: Warm plains Organization: Solitary or herd (6-30) Challenge Rating: 7 Advancement: 12-22 HD (Huge) Level Adjustment: —

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Massive herbivores of tropical lands, elephants are unpredictable creatures but nevertheless are sometimes used as mounts or beasts of burden. This entry describes an African elephant. Indian elephants are slightly smaller and weaker (Strength 28), but more readily trained (Wisdom 15). These statistics can also represent prehistoric creatures such as mammoths and mastodons. Combat Elephants tend to charge at threatening creatures. Trample (Ex) Reflex half DC 25. The save DC is Strength-based. Sure-footed (Ex) The mountain mammoth can walk among the ridges of the mountains down to five feet wide as if walking on open ground. It can also maneuver 45% grades with ease and does not require a check. At more than 45% grade it is allowed a DEX check to remain well footed.

Neanderthal Human = Size/Type: Medium HumanoidHit Dice: 2d8+2 (11 hp) Initiative: +0Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares) Armor Class: 15 (+1 natural, +2 leather armor, +2 heavy steel shield),

touch 10, flat-footed 15 Base Attack/Grapple: +1/+3Attack: Club +3 melee (1d6+2/×3) or Spear +3 melee (1d8+2) Full Attack: Club +3 melee (1d6+2/×3) or Spear +3 melee (1d8+2) Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft. Special Attacks: — Special Qualities: Low-light Vision Saves: Fort +3, Ref +1, Will +0Abilities: Str 15, Dex 10, Con 13, Int 8, Wis 11, Cha 8 Skills: Listen +2, Move Silently +3, Gathering +5 Feats: Power AttackEnvironment: Mountains and Tundra Organization: Solitary, pair, hunting party (2-5), band (10-15), or tribe

(20-100) Challenge Rating: 1 Treasure: Standard Alignment: Usually chaotic neutral Advancement: By character class (if applicable) Level Adjustment: +1 Neanderthals found in Wayside are humanoids that wander in loose tribes. All Neanderthals are primitive humans with rough-looking exteriors and shaggy, but

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light hair growth over their bodies. Neanderthals practice hunting and gathering for their foods, as they are practiced hunters. They stand about 6 feet tall but can weight as much as 250 pounds on the average for muscle mass. Neanderthals do have a language of their own comprised of grunts and body movements, however to outsiders it appears they spend a lot of time grumbling to each other. Combat Neanderthals are hunters and like to attack when they have the advantage of numbers, using horde tactics and their physical strength to overwhelm and knock down their opponents. They show little discipline when fighting unless they have a strong leader; at such times, they approach battle as they would any prey. While they do not usually prepare traps, they do use ambushes and try to attack/hunt from a flanking position. Neanderthals As Characters Neanderthal characters possess the following racial traits.

• Strength +4, Constitution +2, Intelligence -2, Charisma -2. • Size Medium. • A gnoll’s base land speed is 30 feet. • Low-light vision. • Racial Hit Dice: A neanderthal begins with two levels of humanoid, which

provide 2d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +1, and base saving throw bonuses of Fort +2, Ref +1, and Will +0.

• Racial Skills: A neanderthal’s humanoid levels give it skill points equal to 5 × (2 + Int modifier). Its class skills are Listen and Move Silently and Gathering.

• Racial Feats: A gnoll’s humanoid levels give it one feat. • +1 natural armor bonus. • Automatic Languages: Neanderthal. Bonus Languages: Common, Goblin,

Orc, Ogre. • Favored Class: Ranger. • Level adjustment +1.

Cro-Magnon Human = Size/Type: Medium HumanoidHit Dice: 2d8+3 (11 hp) Initiative: +0Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares) Armor Class: 15 (+1 natural, +2 leather armor, +2 heavy steel shield),

touch 10, flat-footed 15 Base Attack/Grapple: +1/+3Attack: Club +3 melee (1d8+2/×3) Full Attack: Club +3 melee (1d8+2/×3) Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft. Special Attacks: —

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Special Qualities: Low-light vision Saves: Fort +4, Ref +0, Will +0Abilities: Str 16, Dex 10, Con 15, Int 6, Wis 10, Cha 8 Skills: Listen +2, Endurance +3Feats: Power AttackEnvironment: Mountainous and Tundra and Arctic Organization: Solitary, pair, hunting party (2-5), band (10-100) Challenge Rating: 1 Treasure: Standard Alignment: Usually chaotic neutral Advancement: By character class Level Adjustment: +1 Cro-magnon is gorilla-like humanoids wander in loose groups. Nearly all cro-magnon are covered with coarse black fur, save the bottoms of their hands and feet and face. A cro-magnon is a carnivore and thus is on a constant hunt for food. A cro-magnon stands hunched over at six feet tall, but gains another foot when he stands up-right, and weighs 300 pounds. Cro-magnon speaks in grunts and shouts and roars, however it conveys the message to other cro-magnon. Since the Neanderthal and Cro-magnon warred over the same land the cro-magnon been seen very little, if ever. Combat The cro-magnon like to attack when they have the advantage of numbers, using horde tactics and their physical strength to overwhelm and knock down their opponents. These monsters show very little organization and can not form functioning tactics to hunt aside from shear strength in numbers. Cro-magnon As Characters Cro-magnon characters possess the following racial traits.

• Strength +5, Constitution +3, Intelligence -3, Charisma -2. • Size Medium. • A gnoll’s base land speed is 30 feet. • Low-light vision. • Racial Hit Dice: A cro-magnon begins with two levels of humanoid, which

provide 2d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +1, and base saving throw bonuses of Fort +3, Ref +0, and Will +0.

• Racial Skills: A cro-magnon humanoid levels give it skill points equal to 5 × (2 + Int modifier). Its class skills are Listen and Endurance.

• Racial Feats: A gnoll’s humanoid levels give it one feat. • +1 natural armor bonus. • Automatic Languages: Cro-magnon. Bonus Languages: none. • Favored Class: Ranger. • Level adjustment +1.

Spawn of the Web Witch =

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“Spawn of the Web Witch” is a template aquired at birth that is exclusively given to the offspring of the Web Witch of Lyoftaufinn. The template can be added to any humanoid or giant of any size from Diminutive to Large (referred to hereafter as the base creature). This template can only be gained at birth and the mother has to be the Web Witch. The father of the ‘Spawn’ can be of any race the Web Witch deems desirable. The ‘Spawn’ uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here. Challenge Rating: The base creature’s CR increases by 2 if the base creature’s size increases to Large or larger (see below). Otherwise, it increases by 1. Sex: The base creature can be of either gender. One can only come into existence by being born of the Web Witch. The offspring of the ‘Spawn’ are considered to be as if of the base creature. Alignment: The base creature’s alignment remains unchanged. Size: The base creature’s size increases by one category. Adjust statistics according to the size increase. Additional adjustments are noted below. Type: The base creature’s type changes to aberration with the appropriate augmented subtype. Do not recalculate base attack bonus, base saves, or skill points. Senses: The ‘Spawn’ retains all the senses of the base creature and gains darkvision 60 feet. If the base creature already has darkvision, the range is increased by 60 feet. AC: Adjust the creature’s natural armor bonus and size modifier according to its size increase, then increase the creature’s natural armor by +4. Speed: The creature gains a climb speed of 15 feet. If the base creature already has a climb speed, use whichever value is higher. Melee: If the base creature has any natural attacks, the damage increases according to its new size. The ‘Spawn’ has a bite attack that deals damage according to its new size. If the base creature already has a bite attack use whichever value is higher. The bite attack is always a secondary attack unless the base creature’s bite attack (if it has one) is its primary attack. Size Bite Damage Tiny 1 Small 1d2 Medium 1d3 Large 1d4 Huge 1d6 Gargantuan 1d8 Colossal 2d6 Poison (Ex): The ‘Spawn’ gains poison that is delivered through its bite attack: Injury, Fortitude DC 10 + 1/2 × total HD + Constitution modifier, initial and secondary damage 1d6 Str. Space: The ‘Spawn’ occupies the space according to a creature its size.

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Reach: The ‘Spawn’ has a reach according to a creature its size. Abilities: Adjust the base creature’s abilities according to its size increase, then apply the following adjustments: Str −2, Dex +6, Con +2. Special Qualities: Since the ‘Spawn’ has eight legs, it is treated as a quadruped as far as carrying capacity, tripping, and any other effect on which the number of legs depend. Skills: The ‘Spawn’ has a +4 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. It has a +8 racial bonus on Climb checks. A drider must make a Climb check to climb any wall or slope with a DC of more than 0, but it always can choose to take 10 even if rushed or threatened while climbing. If it chooses an accelerated climb it moves at double the given climb speed (or its base land speed, whichever is lower) and makes a single Climb check at a –5 penalty. A drider cannot run while climbing. A drider retains its Dexterity bonus to Armor Class (if any) while climbing, and opponents get no special bonus on their attacks against a climbing drider. Level Adjustment: +2. Ecology Environment: The ‘Spawn’ often finds a home in the same climate, if not the same plane as its base creature. It’s not uncommon for their living spaces to be infested with normal and monstrous spiders. Typical Physical Characteristics: The ‘Spawn’ resembles a spidery centaur in that it has the torso and head of its base creature with the body of a giant spider from the waist down. Alignment: The ‘Spawn’ can be of any of the good and neutral alignments they are never evil, because the ritual used to create them is utter passion and the need for collective survival. It is said the ‘Spawn’ has these beliefs even before it is born. Society The ‘Spawn’ do politically charged figures where they are accepted, as they are typically shunned from (if not outright hunted by) society at-large of which they were originally a member. Consequently the ‘Spawn’ is not solitary, and often are the center of an arachnid culture or army. Typical Treasure The ‘Spawn’ typically has treasure according to the base creature’s treasure and the new Challenge Rating, or double standard for the Challenge Rating whichever is higher. Taking Class Levels The ‘Spawn’ can be of any class save that which requires the alignment to be of an evil lean. The ‘Spawn’ also has ready access to arachnia, a magical essence often refered to in the Arachnomicon. Lore of the ‘Spawn of the Web Witch’ Characters who have ranks in Knowledge (dungeoneering and religion) can learn more about the ‘Spawn’. When a character makes a successful check, the following lore is revealed, including the information from lower DCs.

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Knowledge (Dungeoneering) DC Result 20 This creature is a Spawn of the Web Witch. 22 A Spawn’s bite is venomous. 25 This Spawn is the offspring of the Web Witch, a high priestess of Arachne.

It is at heart a good and noble creature. Characters who have ranks in Knowledge (local) can identify the base creature of the ‘Spawn’ if it was originally a humanoid, and characters who have ranks in Knowledge (nature) can identify the base creature of the ‘Spawn’ if it was originally a giant. In either case the DC is 10 + the Spawn’s CR.


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