D&D 4E [PS4e] KM's Planescape 4e Development Thread

So, in gearing up for a potential Planescape 4e game, I went and looked at faction powers. I noticed that, at least in the original 2e, a lot of the basic abilities were very niche and specific -- not really useful for broad adventuring per se, but not exactly nothing.

So I went and statted them up as backgrounds. They're patterned on the Legacy of Acererak backgrounds.

This would be the "everyone gets one" thing for playing a Planescape campaign. People who wanted to go deeper into their factions could perform power-swaps, take feats, and gain special magic items, paragon paths, and epic destinies, but that's not expected of every character.

I thought others might find this useful, so heeeeeeeeeeeeeere they are.
[sblock=Rule of Three, Taken Five Times]
Factions
Factions work as “backgrounds.” All bonuses are racial bonuses.
Factions also teach faction-specific feats, powers, and paragon paths available only to members.

The Athar (“The Lost”) Believe the gods are lies and that true power comes from factual knowledge. Powers revolve around denying others actions through inspiring doubt.
Associated Skills: Religion, Stealth, History
Benefit: You can ignore prerequisites and requirements that specify what you worship.

The Believers of the Source (“Godseekers”): Believe that they can become true deities via reincarnation and continual self-perfection.
Associated Skills: Insight, Diplomacy, History
Benefit: Whenever you are restored to life, you do not take any negative effects from the ability that resurrected you (no penalties to die rolls or lost healing surges, for instance).

The Bleak Cabal (“Bleakers”): Believe that existence is pointless, meaningless, and that there is nothing you can accomplish -- except in yourself.
Associated Skills: Endurance, Heal, Insight
Benefit: +1 bonus to saving throws vs. fear effects.

The Doomguard (“Sinkers”): Believe that the universe is meant to fall apart, and try to help it along by destroying what they can.
Associated Skills: Athletics, Endurance, Intimidate
Benefit: +1 bonus to damage against enemies that have recovered HP.

The Dust (“The Dead”): Believe in purging all emotion, to approach a dispassionate intellect as if dead inside.
Associated Skills: Arcana, History, Religion
Benefit: +2 bonus to Diplomacy and Intimidate checks against Undead.

The Fated (“The Heartless”): Believe that all must be self-sufficient to survive. Don’t believe in helping those who can’t help themselves.
Associated Skills: Any skill not on your class list.
Benefit: +1 to all untrained skill checks.

The Unity of Order (“Guvners”): Believe that the universe has an underlying order, and that finding it and understanding it will give one power over the universe.
Associated Skills: Arcana, History, Insight
Benefit: Learn one additional language.

The Free League (“Indeps”): Believe in independence, in not swearing oaths, in remaining self-determined.
Associated Skills: Bluff, Insight, Streetwise
Benefit: +1 bonus to saving throws vs. charm effects

The Harmonium(“Hardheads”): Believe in teamwork and group-betterment, in working together and in going for the greater good.
Associated Skills: Athletics, Diplomacy, Intimidate
Benefit: +1 to damage rolls against a creature just damaged by an ally.

The Mercykillers (“the Red Death”): Believe in correct and metered punishment (“True Justice”) as a betterment process, and as social perscription.
Associated Skills: Insight, Intimidate, Perception
Benefit: +1 to damage rolls against a creature that just damaged you.

The Revolutionary League (“Anarchists”): Believe that only true freedom from all organization will allow one to be true to oneself.
Associated Skills: Bluff, Stealth, Thievery
Benefit: +1 to damage rolls against Leader-type enemies.

The Sign of One (“Signers”): Believe that they imagine the universe into existence themselves (or at least one of them does).
Associated Skills: Bluff, Insight, Perception
Benefit: +1 bonus to saving throws against Illusion effects.

The Society of Sensation (“Sensates”): Believe that experience creates reality, and that only through direct exposure is something made actual.
Associated Skills: Endurance, Heal, Perception
Benefit: +1 to the first saving throw they make in after an extended rest

The Transcendant Order (“Ciphers”): Believe that thought is pointless and that instinctive action will result in correct action.
Associated Skills: Acrobatics, Athletics, Endurance
Benefit: +2 to initiative checks.

The Xaositects (“Babblers”): Believe that chaos is the natural state of things, and so seek to get as close to random as possible.
Associated Skills: Roll randomly to determine the associated skill.
Benefit: You learn Babblespeak. This language is incomprehensible to everyone, but you can allow up to 5 creatures to understand it, and they do with a successful saving throw, regardless of the languages each speaks.
[/sblock]

Ahem.

"Yoink!"

I don't know when I'll run a Planescape game again, but when I do, I will be using these. Molto grazie!

Glad folks are diggin' 'em!

The reason I didn't go with themes or anything more complex was a little twofold. First, I'm lazy. Second, as the factions are originally presented (as 2e kits), their bonuses were pretty narrow and niche, and worked mostly with the 2e version of skills (proficiencies). So backgrounds more naturally fit that scope. There's also, thirdly, the choice of character definition. Factions, generally, aren't there to replace your race or your class, but to add to it, and I figured something like Themes would be too definitive, especially if I tried to do one for each faction.

But now, with each one as a background, I can slap on feats and PP's and ED's without too much concern for symmetry.

I've also found it works well, since you can choose more than one background, to sync up with a planar background representing your "home plane:

[sblock=the planes]
PLANES
You can choose a planar origin instead of/in addition to a Faction background. You can still only gain the benefit of one background, but planar origins are also prerequisites for feats, PPs, EDs, etc.
The City of Doors
Sigil is the Crossroads of the Multiverse, where all realities converge.
Sigil Background: You’ve grown up in the alleys and politics of the City of Doors, so you know your way around a few different realities.
Associated Skills: Bluff, History, Streetwise
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in Sigil.


The Mortal World
The mortal world was created by the gods, who also created the races therein. Largely considered a backwater bumpkin-ville from Sigil’s perspective.
Mortal Background: You know the layout and history and environment of the mortal world
Associated Skills: Dungeoneering, History, Nature
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are on the Mortal World.


The Hinterlands
A place of seeming mortal-world normality where things quickly get weird; a sort of all-in-everything of the planes. From here, Sigil can be seen floating above the Spire, and approaching the Spire has the effect of nullifying great powers.
The Outlands: A place within the Hinterlands that strips power from the powerful, rendering even the gods little more than mortals, and nullifying the most powerful of magick.
Hinterlands Background: You’re handy in obscure and bizarre natural environments.
Associated Skills: Arcana, Endurance, Nature
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Hinterlands.


The Astral Sea
The “place between the Planes,” a silver void above the Mortal World. The realms of the gods often float about in this place.
Astral Sea Background: You know your way around an astral skiff.
Associated Skills: History, Insight, Religion
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Astral Sea.


The Elemental Chaos (“Limbo”)
The “place before the Planes,” a roiling soup of elemental matter where creation and destruction are entwined.
Ysgard: The place of the Creation of the World, where rivers of fire support oceans of earth, and death is only temporary.
Dischordia: A place in constant flux, a map that re-arranges itself at will, that seems to enjoy frustrating people.
Limbo Background: A random assortment of elements is your home field
Associated Skills: Athletics, Endurance, History
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Elemental Chaos.


The Feywild (“Arborea”)
A plane of rampant nature and arcane magic, where everything is charged with the energies of the fey spirits that dwell within, and the primal wildness of the place.
The Beastlands: A place of primal might where all creatures become savage animals, living free and natural and independent.
Pangea: A place of elemental primitives, where intelligence and technology are destroyed, and raw martial nature reigns supreme.
Arborea Background: You know your Oak from your Yew.
Associated Skills: Arcana, Nature, Acrobatics
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Feywild.


The Shadowfell (“The Gray Waste”)
A plane of death and shadow magic, where souls go to receive their final judgement. A dark mirror of other worlds, distorted and abstract.
Carceri: A place where the truly hateful beings are locked away, under the auspices of immortal spirits that keep them caged.
Nether: An endless, frozen, muddy graveyard of undead that spontaneously animate.
Shadowfell Background: You’ve been around the dead. You’re not that impressed.
Associated Skills: Heal, History, Stealth
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Shadowfell.


The Abyss
A cancer at the heart of the Elemental Chaos, constantly sucking at the world above. Infinite and evil, it spawns horrors whose only interest is destruction.
Pandemonium: A place of madness and panic, where mental illness is born.
Perdition: A place of selfish apathy, where instant gratification is the norm.
Abyssal Background: Screaming demons and alien suffering is your daily commute.
Associated Skills: Athletics, Dungeoneering, Endurance
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Abyss.


The Nine Hells
A deep tear in the Astral Sea, a place for endless diabolical machinations, and a resting place of the god Asmodeus as he schemes for multiversal dominance.
Gehenna: Floating “moons” of the Nine Hells, four volcanic slopes that produce a suffering grind.
Sheol: A place sloping “downhill,” a gravitational well around the Nine Hells, where the natives are in a constant state of cold-war.
Baatorian Background: You see schemes and plots and machinations daily.
Associated Skills: Bluff, Insight, Intimidate
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Nine Hells.


Mechanus
A world at the far end of the Astral Sea, where a seal protects against the Far Realm. A great calculating engine, home of various deities of law and order that seek to understand and puzzle out the nature of the multiverse.
Acheron: An astreroid-belt-like plane filled with geometric shapes, whose armies constantly battle in a never-ending exercise of order and obedience.
Purgatory: An infinite spiral staircase, said to reach all the way to the mortal world below, of folks who dedicate themselves to their work over everything.
Mechanus Background: The whirling gears of the multiverse are yours to traverse.
Associated Skills: Arcana, Diplomacy, History
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in the Mechanus.


Celestia
A great mountain in the Astral Sea that stretches higher than infinity, challenging the truly pure and good to climb it. A place of justice and crusading goodness.
Arcadia: Fields before the mountain, where folks pursue a life of virtuous order, hoping to be seen as good and useful citizens.
K’un Lun: A mountain range where peaceful people seek inner perfection.
Celestia Background: Shining virtue is rather old hat to you.
Associated Skills: Diplomacy, Insight, Intimidate
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in Celestia.


Elysium
A vast field in the Astral Sea full of light and color, where the innocent and virtuous go for their afterlife reward.
Bytopia: A peaceful, rural place of rugged wilderness and fraternal cooperation.
Avalon: Misty islands in the sea that reward the virtuous with rest, and conceal powerful good magic.
Elysium Background: Idyllic beauty and peace are your home life.
Associated Skills: Diplomacy, Heal, Insight
Benefit: +1 to all skill checks when you are in Elysium.
[/sblock]

My favorite setting and my favorite edition, sweet!

My only critique as of now is the Godmens' trait: most players will never use it, but at the same time I feel like a munchkin could really abuse it. Not sure how, but the devs never thought anyone would be switching races, so I suspect there's a loophole or two in there somewhere.

Also, can backgrounds be retrained? Not that it'd come up very often, but if a PC were to turn stag on his faction for another...

Is Planescape lore pretty much baked in to vanilla PoL 4e?

If I were to use some Planescape setting info within my stock campaign, how much lore wise would have to be changed? Dieties, Places, Customs, etc...

I was reading up on Modrons, and noticed the mention of Primus. Don't see him listed as a core deity for 4e. Just one example of why I"m a little hesitant to try and mesh the lores.

Would love to hear some thoughts from someone familiar with both Planescape and 4e PoL settings.

zoggynog said:

Is Planescape lore pretty much baked in to vanilla PoL 4e?

Click to expand...

Not so much; it's been two editions since PS came out, and it hasn't changed with the rest of D&D. 4e's planes are radically different than 2e's planes, though there are a few obvious analogues.

Does that answer your question?

I really like all of these, will probably use some
Just a few observations

Athar benefit: I like it, just want to point out that it can be very powerful. Maybe 'you cannot be detected by divination rituals unless the caster's level is greater than your own'

Believers benefit: Believers don't like being raised, only reincarnated. Although in 4e I can see how this benefit might be easier to implement.

Bleakers/FreeLeague/Signers/Sensates: I would suggest putting these bonuses up to +2 to put them on par with everyone else (the sensate only gets it once a day and the other saving throws are not common at all). Compared to the damage bonus ones, these would still be modest. In fact, would it be too much to give the sensate their bonus to the first save after each short rest?

The Fated: With this benefit, certain bards would be better at untrained skill checks than trianed skill checks. Reducing it to +1 would prevent this while still leaving it as a very good benefit (+1 to 7 or so skills).

Nice work.

I've never heard the Xaositect being called the 'Babblers' before, is this original to your campaign?

lightgun_suicide said:

Nice work.

I've never heard the Xaositect being called the 'Babblers' before, is this original to your campaign?

Click to expand...

I haven't seen that other, but it fits. I'm running some 4e planescape right now. I'm using the 2e splat-books (and the old 2e cosmology because it's awesome).

eriktheguy said:

I haven't seen that other, but it fits. I'm running some 4e planescape right now. I'm using the 2e splat-books (and the old 2e cosmology because it's awesome).

Click to expand...

Check out the 3.5e and 4e Planescape material on Planewalker. I hear Planewalker is officially endorsed by WotC.