(Interested? Email me at jknevitt@gmail.com. Repeated at the end, just to be sure.)
==========
Centuries ago, the Empire was the pinnacle of civilization. Championed by Heroes both powerful and just, the Empire was humanity's crowning glory. Liberty, equality and justice were the order of the day. Mankind lived in peace and harmony, with not even the slightest worry.
Then They came.
Nobody knows who They were, but what is known is that They spread rot and corruption at the heart of humanity, fed by greed and a thirst for gold. The Empire's greatest Heroes were hunted and killed, one by one, until none were left. Their mortal remains were interred in monolithic tombs, the only structures powerful enough to conmtain their near godlike essences. Without the Empire's Heroes to defend it, the rot spread to the furthest corners of the Empire, until it collapsed under its own gargantuan weight.
Humanity shattered into a thousand redoubts, holdfasts and isolated settlements as wilderness reclaimed the once cosmopolitan Empire. Time and time again, a charismatic warlord would rise, only to be struck down by others ambitious of their power.
The only entities powerful enough to solidify a realm for themselves were those that had come from across the Western Sea -- the dragons. Each carved out a domain, ruling land a days ride in each direction. Those that obeyed the will of the dragons lived, and became their followers. Those that did not, died.
The draconic insurgence sent shockwaves through the human lands. Dozens of self-styled warlords and pretender kings failed in their attempts to oust the wyrms, their warbands scattered and terrified. There seemed no hope for humanity, until an unlikely counterpoint arose in the northeast -- the Dark Kings.
The Dark Kings, for that is how they styled themselves, were patrons of death. Their domains, the Dark Kingdoms, were a surprising mix of the living and the dead. Undeath was no stigma in the northeast -- and indeed, many dark faiths from before the days of the Empire still found their home there -- and as the Dark Kings became more powerful, their most loyal followers also grew in power until they earned the title of Dark King themselves, and had earned the right to claim a domain of their own. So was their way.
The dragons took note of this force in the northeast, and paused their slow creep across the land.
Decades and centuries passed, with the dragons in the west and the Dark Kings in the northeast consolidating their power. Infighting became common as both forces squabbled with themselves. Humanity, for the most part, had been spared. The two behemoths on their shoulders had paused, and the land began to recover, but many were waiting for the other shoe to drop. Then came the events that seemed to indicate just that.
Almost overnight, people began showing an interest in the tombs of the Empire's Heroes. A travelling merchant here, an itinerant sorcerer there. The tombs had long been considered forbidden by everyone -- even the dragons and the Dark Kings. Gold began to flow as freebooting parties were hired to investigate those monolithic mausoleums. Nobody could quite work out where this money was coming from, or who was behind it. It was almost like what had happened back in the days of the Empire. Some dared to suggest the almost unthinkable.
They have returned.
==========
This is a very simple D&D 3.5 PBeM setup.
Level: 1st level characters. Heavy emphasis on Draconomicon, Libris Mortis and the upcoming Lords of Madness. I would prefer to discuss character ideas before getting right into it.
Races: Heavy human emphasis. No elves (I have plans for them ). The other standards I'm okay with, but be aware they have a very marginal role in general. Please be aware that if I don't allow or mention possible PC races, that doesn't mean they don't exist. It just means they're better suited to NPCs in the setting.
Non-standard options: I'm happy to entertain non-standard options from Draconomicon, Libris Mortis and Lords of Madness. Please feel free to pitch any idea to me, however. You never know what I'll green-light.
Who I'm looking for: I'm looking for people who are more interested in story-building -- if you're into number crunching, you'd probably be more at home elsewhere. I'm not looking for any set number of PCs. If I get a lot of interest, I'll just split up people into two (or more!) groups.
Feel: A very pulpish feel. Dark theme to it (if you hadn't guessed already) but also very much a "railing against the darkness" feel to it.
Turnaround: It will have a weekly turnaround time. Given there are enough to kick off the game, I will create a group on Yahoo! Groups for game threads/posts/emails.
Interested? Email me at jknevitt@gmail.com.
__________________
James
==========
Centuries ago, the Empire was the pinnacle of civilization. Championed by Heroes both powerful and just, the Empire was humanity's crowning glory. Liberty, equality and justice were the order of the day. Mankind lived in peace and harmony, with not even the slightest worry.
Then They came.
Nobody knows who They were, but what is known is that They spread rot and corruption at the heart of humanity, fed by greed and a thirst for gold. The Empire's greatest Heroes were hunted and killed, one by one, until none were left. Their mortal remains were interred in monolithic tombs, the only structures powerful enough to conmtain their near godlike essences. Without the Empire's Heroes to defend it, the rot spread to the furthest corners of the Empire, until it collapsed under its own gargantuan weight.
Humanity shattered into a thousand redoubts, holdfasts and isolated settlements as wilderness reclaimed the once cosmopolitan Empire. Time and time again, a charismatic warlord would rise, only to be struck down by others ambitious of their power.
The only entities powerful enough to solidify a realm for themselves were those that had come from across the Western Sea -- the dragons. Each carved out a domain, ruling land a days ride in each direction. Those that obeyed the will of the dragons lived, and became their followers. Those that did not, died.
The draconic insurgence sent shockwaves through the human lands. Dozens of self-styled warlords and pretender kings failed in their attempts to oust the wyrms, their warbands scattered and terrified. There seemed no hope for humanity, until an unlikely counterpoint arose in the northeast -- the Dark Kings.
The Dark Kings, for that is how they styled themselves, were patrons of death. Their domains, the Dark Kingdoms, were a surprising mix of the living and the dead. Undeath was no stigma in the northeast -- and indeed, many dark faiths from before the days of the Empire still found their home there -- and as the Dark Kings became more powerful, their most loyal followers also grew in power until they earned the title of Dark King themselves, and had earned the right to claim a domain of their own. So was their way.
The dragons took note of this force in the northeast, and paused their slow creep across the land.
Decades and centuries passed, with the dragons in the west and the Dark Kings in the northeast consolidating their power. Infighting became common as both forces squabbled with themselves. Humanity, for the most part, had been spared. The two behemoths on their shoulders had paused, and the land began to recover, but many were waiting for the other shoe to drop. Then came the events that seemed to indicate just that.
Almost overnight, people began showing an interest in the tombs of the Empire's Heroes. A travelling merchant here, an itinerant sorcerer there. The tombs had long been considered forbidden by everyone -- even the dragons and the Dark Kings. Gold began to flow as freebooting parties were hired to investigate those monolithic mausoleums. Nobody could quite work out where this money was coming from, or who was behind it. It was almost like what had happened back in the days of the Empire. Some dared to suggest the almost unthinkable.
They have returned.
==========
This is a very simple D&D 3.5 PBeM setup.
Level: 1st level characters. Heavy emphasis on Draconomicon, Libris Mortis and the upcoming Lords of Madness. I would prefer to discuss character ideas before getting right into it.
Races: Heavy human emphasis. No elves (I have plans for them ). The other standards I'm okay with, but be aware they have a very marginal role in general. Please be aware that if I don't allow or mention possible PC races, that doesn't mean they don't exist. It just means they're better suited to NPCs in the setting.
Non-standard options: I'm happy to entertain non-standard options from Draconomicon, Libris Mortis and Lords of Madness. Please feel free to pitch any idea to me, however. You never know what I'll green-light.
Who I'm looking for: I'm looking for people who are more interested in story-building -- if you're into number crunching, you'd probably be more at home elsewhere. I'm not looking for any set number of PCs. If I get a lot of interest, I'll just split up people into two (or more!) groups.
Feel: A very pulpish feel. Dark theme to it (if you hadn't guessed already) but also very much a "railing against the darkness" feel to it.
Turnaround: It will have a weekly turnaround time. Given there are enough to kick off the game, I will create a group on Yahoo! Groups for game threads/posts/emails.
Interested? Email me at jknevitt@gmail.com.
__________________
James
