Freedom Landing:Freedom Landing

Explore a New World with vim and vigor. Try not to die.

Capsule

A New World to explore!

The Player Characters, outcasts from the war-torn Old World, will accompany a small colonization fleet to the newly discovered New World. Using either the new colony or a caravel as a base, they will explore, map, plunder, discover...and, if they're lucky, survive.

System

Pathfinder RPG "Fifth Printing"
Official Site
Pathfinder SRD
Core and Base Classes and Races (no 3rd Party)
Start at level 1, as per standard.
Background bonuses TBD.

Concepts

Keep them in mind, as you make characters!

Scum of all Nations

There's a reason you came to the New World...
...the Old World sucks.

Scarcity

food, ammunition, and spells
We'll keep track!
Survival is a legitimate skill!
Wizards, hang on to your spellbooks!

Syncretism

it all comes together

These Genre Three

Survival Horror

This is going to be dangerous, as with all explorations. Not many characters live past level 3.

Picaresque Romance

'Romance' in the sense of adventure. Your character's lovers are up to you to obtain.
Anything goes, it is entirely player-driven. I'm a pro, I'll roll with you.
I've got a map, but you've got exploring of it.
(Like Skyrim, but with worse graphics.)

Low Fantasy

Even in Charn, magic is exciting and rare.

Setting

Old vs. New

The Empire

It was an Empire of humans and dwarves, for all that there were a few dragons. After they revolted, and killed their dragon masters, it was their show. And who better? Humans rule the ground, Dwarves rule the underground. Some Elves objected.

The New World

Just discovered, land rush amidst a land war. What's to find?

The Old World

Old World map, rough

Charn

Magic. Only lightly ruled by the Empire, Charn was the first bastion of rebellion.
Great value is placed on magic, and magic rules. Consequently, Charn's 'foreign policy' is aggressive, capricious. Magical ability trumps everything, and females are seen as more 'magical'. Perhaps they are, but in any case, they're in charge. Despite that, it's a meritocracy of sorts. Wizards take the established positions, but sorcerers are prized and revered, while being kept out of the way of anything flammable.
But it's not all magic. A respectable career for a non-mage is in the Charn Navy, which rules the seas. Although the captain and officers are often mages.
Deadly foe: Mastier. But you knew that.
PCs -female-ascendant
-more mages, sailors
-mildly religious
-madness? lack of planning? Socially acceptable, as long as it's violent.
-more elves/gnomes, few dwarves

+2 Arcana or Spellcraft

Mastier

You're the remnants of the Empire. And you want it back.
-humans and dwarves; humans rule the land, dwarves rule the underground, but firmly allied one to another for mutual POWER and Empire
-male-ascendant -Soldiers, Military (adventurers)
-"Mastierwork"
-Old Empire

Maisterwork equipment

Sync

-New Aa, solid, dependable
-Trade, and War, and Technology, and Exploration
-Sneaky
-Concept: 'halves' and half-nots, gnomes and half-elves and halflings and half-orcs (oh, and humans)
-Allied with Charn

+2 Appraise

Farce

You're not a nation.
You're the survivors.
Your 'country' has been fought over for 200 years. Old Aa, New Aa? It's all the same to you. Nobody bothered to ask your opinion. You're just in the way. A buffer state, between the tattered remnants of the Empire and the upstarts.
Warlords and strong men rise and fall, and mercenary companies settle.

PCs
-You are probably an orphan.
-You are scum in the eyes of everyone. If they even bother to look.
-The only advocate for you is Aa, and his representatives, the Aacolytes.
-There are not enough representatives.
-Very democratic. Any race, class and sex gets equal amounts of filth.

Survival +2

Temple of Aa

-special enclave in Farce
-Aacolytes

The New World

You'll make the map!
note throughout that all the names are DM references. You can make up your own, being explorers and all.

Wheat

-ancient civilization, underground.

Tares

-undead, and their minions.
-handle with care.

The Five

-friendly

The Seven

-not

Wolves

-riders

Children of the Dove

-nomads
-traders

Mothers

-cannibals
-they'll eat you up.

Religion

Old World

Aa, the great and powerful

Old Aa

The Aa of Empire
-Mastier

New Aa

The Aa of Commerce
-Sync
-Charn (ostensibly)

True Aa

TBD

New World

The Dove, peace
The Hawk, war
The Vulture, death
The Eagle, power
The Owl, wisdom
The Sparrow, helplessness
The Phoenix, hope

Syncretism?

Old World clerics may find their effectiveness decreased in the New World, until they do their homework.
...and vice versa.

Special Rules

as these are non-playtested, homebrew rules, the DM reserves the right to make modifications as the game progresses, in a fair and sane manner.

Feats

Touched of Aa
You have been called directly by Aa and trained in the Temple of Aa. You have renounced violence and gained understanding. You don't have to be nice, but you have to be Good.
Bonuses:
+5 to all social skills (Diplomacy, Intimidate, Bluff, Sense Motive)
+2 to all knowledge skills
can speak and understand (but not read and write) all languages
Requirements Cannot Use Violence
Violence is defined in game terms as 'causing damage to a living creature'. If an Aacolyte damages a living creature, he loses all his bonuses until such time as (1) one month has passed and (2) he completes an Aa-given quest of redemption.
In extenuating circumstances (i.e., the absolute defense of others and self), the Aacolyte can elect to inflict non-lethal damage, and lose his bonuses until after an extended rest.
Interpretation: Undead are fair game.
Culture Note: Attacking, harming, hindering, or otherwise inconveniencing an Aacolyte is a serious taboo and offense. Mobs will form, deaths will occur. Don't do it. What that means in the New World, though...who knows?

Rules

Level Cap

Max Level is 12
We're using the 'Slow' advancement.

Death

Resurrection is very difficult (not impossible) ...perhaps with syncretism...
On Death, start over at level X, where X is the lowest number on the 'average PC level' range:
1-3
4-6
7-9
9-12
At start, you're all in 'range 1', so if you die at level 3, you roll a new character at level 1
But if you all managed to survive and break into level 4, thenceforth you'd roll a new character at level 4.
DM reserves the right to change this system if it's too annoying.

Degradation of Items

Items start with 3 boxes
OOO
Mastierwork with 4
OOOO
Magic, no worries.
'active' equipment (i.e. 'a sword') degrades one box per Critical Miss, broken at full.
'passive' equipment (i.e. 'armor') degrades one box per Critical Hit inflicted on it, broken at full.
Replace or repair as per armourer skills.

This is in addition to the regular 'sunder' rules, not a replacement.

Player Characters

DUDES