D&D 3E/3.5 [Kulan] The Lands of Harqual (Updated: Feb 3/2022)

[Knightfall]

Fear not, your ego is safe!

Whew! Heh.

I am in awe at the level of detail. I've spent all afternoon reading your posts and following some of the links to other places...

Make sure you click on the link for my World of Kulan story hour (in my sig). The first post of that thread has a detailed list of links regarding the World of Kulan on EN World.

I am curious to know how long this whole world of your has taken - from inception until now...

Hmm, that's a tough question to answer, exactly. The campaign came into being in the early to mid '90s. I had shelved my old campaign, The Islands of Malecade, and needed a new campaign for me and my friends. I guess that makes it over fifteen-years-old.

I began by drawing a one-page map that would eventally become the region known as the Eastern Shores. From there the continent expanded rather quickly. I still have those orignal maps, but I've completely switched to using Campaign Cartographer for all my maps. I do have a scanner, but I don't think it works anymore.

The world hasn't been gamed in enough as far as I'm concerned but that hasn't stopped me from expanding the world way beyond the Lands of Harqual. (The Fallenlands and Janardûn were created next, and I moved the continent of Triadora from my old Malecade campaign to World of Kulan. Kanpur [and everything else] was created after that.)

I've considered running a PbP campaign, but it has never happened. Right now, I'm attending night classes, so I don't have the time to dedicate to a new campaign, PbP or otherwise. What time I do have for the campaign world is devoted to fleshing out the details even more. (This is why there is a Fallenlands thread now.) I've created a few new maps and I'm itching to get back into creating creatures for the world.

 

[Knightfall]

Don't worry, I've an eye on this for plundering.

Plunder away and feel free to ask questions. Questions good.

 

[Knightfall]

Here are some interesting facts about nomenclature in the game world...

• Many of the names I've used for specific cities, countries, and continents come from real-life sources. One of the most specific is the tabaxi city known as Tattenger. Tattenger was name of one of my cats while I was growing up in Forestburg, Alberta.
• Another name I borrowed from real-life Alberta is the one for the city-state known as Onaway. Onaway is the name of a small town near Edmonton.
• The city-state called Tschaja is the last name of a family that I knew in Forestburg. I still don't know how to pronounce it.
• The city known as Aralan was named after a girl I knew growing up. It was originally named Carlana or something like that, but I felt that was too weird. (And yes, I was in love with her.)
• The city known as Avion was originally called Avon. No, I'm not kidding.
• The name of the city-state called Massalia was inspired by the real-world city of Marseille. Massalia is the old Greek name for that city when it was founded.
• Another name that is in homage to something is the name I use for the continent known as Janardûn. I basically bastardized the the stage name of award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter Jann Arden. (The first time my SCAP players heard me speak the name aloud they couldn't stop laughing.)
• I now pronounce it with the "J" silent and "dûn" as dune.
• Plus, the character named Sir Mojo Rising was named after a certain song lyric that I'm sure many of you will know.
• The capitial city of the Kingdom of Navirosov, named Magdalene, was inspired by the song of the same name by the band Boston on their 1994 album "Walk On".

 

[Knightfall]

The Sword Gods

PANTHEON OF SWORDS
The Pantheon of Swords is made of deities that are some of the most evil immortal beings known throughout the Lands of Harqual and beyond. The pantheon is led by the dark god known as Mussin, and the other members of the pantheon try very hard to avoid his wrath.

Angrboda is the only member of this pantheon that feigns fealty to Mussin, while working towards freeing Hiisi from Carceri. Why Mussin lets her get away with this is unknown, for it is no great secret.

Mussin knows that if Hiisi gains his freedom several members of the pantheon would betray him if it gained them power. The Lord of Darkness would likely turn Druaga, Nether and Xuar without much difficulty. The result would be a god (civil) war amongst the members of the pantheon.

That would be bad for everyone throughout the Lands of Harqual!

Mussin †
God of Decay, The Putrid Lord of the Sword

Greater Deity
Symbol: Rotting skeletal hand
Home Plane: Gehenna
Godly Realm: The Rotting Graveyard
Alignment: Neutral evil
Portfolio: Death, decay, disease, corruption, insects, plagues
Worshipers: Assassins, corruptors, evil druids & rangers, the Lords of Pestilence, the neogi
Cleric Alignments: NE, CE, LE
Domains: Affliction, Corruption, Death, Evil, Insect, Pestilence
Favored Weapon: Scythe

Angrboda
Mother of Monsters, She of Ironwood

Lesser Deity
Symbol: Deepspawn
Home Plane: Gehenna
Godly Realm: Spawnholm
Alignment: Neutral evil
Portfolio: Aberrations, fertility, magical beasts, oozes
Worshipers: Evil druids, fire giants, frost & ice giants, rogue dragons, wizards
Cleric Alignments: NE, CE, LE
Domains: Bestial, Creation, Destruction, Evil, Ooze
Favored Weapon: Claw (scimitar)

Battus †
God of Violent Death, The Bloody Sword

Demigod
Symbol: A blackened longsword dripping blood
Home Plane: The Abyss
Godly Realm: Gaoterlog
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Portfolio: Violent death, warlords, weaponry
Worshipers: Anarchs, anti-paladins, murderers, warlords
Cleric Alignments: CE, NE, CN
Domains: Death, Evil, Sword, War
Favored Weapon: Longsword

Belinik
Prince of Terror, Lord of Strife

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: Crossed axes
Home Plane: Pandemonium
Godly Realm: The Striving
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Portfolio: Battle, fear, strife, war
Worshipers: Anarchs, anti-paladins, evil barbarians & fighters, warlords
Cleric Alignments: CE, NE, CN
Domains: Chaos, Destruction, Fear, Strength, War
Favored Weapon: Battleaxe

Druaga
God of Vile Summoning, Ruler of the Fiendish World, The Dark Conjurer

Lesser Deity
Symbol: Ruby mace
Home Plane: Gray Waste
Godly Realm: Retreat of the Fallen
Alignment: Neutral evil
Portfolio: Fiend summoning
Worshipers: Daemons, demons, devils, sorcerers, warlocks, wizards
Cleric Alignments: NE, LE, CE
Domains: Demonic, Diabolic, Evil, Summoner
Favored Weapon: Heavy mace

Hiisi
Lord of Darkness, The Banished Darkness, The Dark One

Greater Deity (Trapped)
Symbol: Lightning in the night sky
Home Plane: Originally the Material Plane but now banished to Carceri
Godly Realm: The Nether Lands
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Portfolio: Evil, murder
Worshipers: Assassins, half-orcs, murders, ogres, orcs
Cleric Alignments: CE, NE, CN
Domains: Chaos, Darkness, Death, Destruction, Evil, Shadow
Favored Weapon: Greatsword (cleric/assassins may choose dagger instead)

Math Mathonwy
The Miser of Magic

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: An arcane staff
Home Plane: Gehenna
Godly Realm: Corriegrave
Alignment: Neutral evil
Portfolio: Magic, secrecy
Worshipers: Sorcerers, wizards, psions & wilders, those who keep secrets
Cleric Alignments: NE, LE, CE
Domains: Apathy, Magic, Evil, Seals, Secrecy
Favored Weapon: Dagger

Nether †
God of Hate and Tyranny, The Black Tyrant

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: Screaming skull
Home Plane: Gray Waste
Godly Realm: Bleak Hellion
Alignment: Neutral evil
Portfolio: Hate, lies, malice, pain, tyranny
Worshipers: Assassins, blackguards (any), despots, rogues, rulers
Cleric Alignments: NE, LE, CE
Domains: Destruction, Evil, Hatred, Pain, Tyranny
Favored Weapon: Longsword

Xuar †
The Jealous Arcane, The Necromancer, The Betrayer

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: Bloody hand with black magic aura
Home Plane: Gray Waste
Godly Realm: Dark Rite
Alignment: Neutral evil
Portfolio: Jealousy, necromancy, undead
Worshipers: Necromancers, necrotheologists, sorcerers, the undead
Cleric Alignments: NE, CE, LE
Domains: Deathbound, Evil, Hatred, Necromancy, Undeath
Favored Weapon: Spear

_________________________________________________​

† A new god created by me.

 

[Steel General]

Interesting stuff, I can see that you've put in an "insane" amount of work on this. I'm impressed with all the detail. I'll be keeping my eye on this from time to time.

I just recently began working on another homebrew campaign of my own (see link in sig.) I had the grand scheme of trying to get others to send in ideas and I'd tried to make the best use of them as I could. So far haven't had many responses (of course its not like I'm really advertising the thing either).

But anyway, good luck and keep up the great work.

 

[Knightfall]

Interesting stuff, I can see that you've put in an "insane" amount of work on this. I'm impressed with all the detail. I'll be keeping my eye on this from time to time.

Thanks for taking a look at the thread. And yes, I put a lot of detail into this campaign world. I'm always thinking of new ideas and creating new maps for the world. I've posted several new maps in the Art, Cartography and Miniatures forum related to another continent called The Fallenlands.

I haven't had as much time for campaign world development recently. I'm taking two night classes, which are taking up most of my time.

I just recently began working on another homebrew campaign of my own (see link in sig.) I had the grand scheme of trying to get others to send in ideas and I'd tried to make the best use of them as I could. So far haven't had many responses (of course its not like I'm really advertising the thing either).

I'll take a look at your campaign once I find some extra time.

But anyway, good luck and keep up the great work.

Thanks. Make sure you check out my maps thread in the Art, Cartography, and Miniatures forum as well as my World of Kulan story hour (see sig). Also, check out my monster compilation thread for the campaign.

Cheers!

KF72

 

[the Jester]

Good stuff, as always, KF!

A question for you- I seem to recall, early in the 3e era, a comment by a designer that demigods should give access to two domains, lesser gods to three, intermediate to four and greater to five. Now, I don't think any books really follow this- and I don't recall where I saw this (maybe Deities & Demigods?). Does this rule/guideline ring a bell? (Obviously, you're not following it- I'm just trying to figure out if I am hallucinating this, or if it's actually something I did hear or read somewhere...)

 

[Knightfall]

Good stuff, as always, KF!

A question for you- I seem to recall, early in the 3e era, a comment by a designer that demigods should give access to two domains, lesser gods to three, intermediate to four and greater to five. Now, I don't think any books really follow this- and I don't recall where I saw this (maybe Deities & Demigods?). Does this rule/guideline ring a bell? (Obviously, you're not following it- I'm just trying to figure out if I am hallucinating this, or if it's actually something I did hear or read somewhere...)

I seem to remember a rule like that from somewhere, but you're right, I don't follow that rule. For Kulan, most lesser and demigods have around four domains, and then it goes up from there (Intermediate: 5; Greater: 6+). However, there isn't a set number of domains for Kulan deities.

 

[Knightfall]

Case in point...

THE TABAXI DEITIES

Sa
The Tolerant

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: Lion headdress
Home Plane: Mechanus
Godly Realm: Hall of the People
Alignment: Lawful neutral
Portfolio: Tabaxi, community, knowledge, protection
Worshipers: Griff, tabaxi
Cleric Alignments: LN, LE, LG
Domains: Community, Knowledge, Law, Protection
Favored Weapon: Longsword

Tu
Lord of the Tabaxi, The King of Cats

Greater Deity
Symbol: Cat's eyes in darkness
Home Plane: Material Plane
Godly Realm: Tattenger (Black Pyramid)
Alignment: Neutral evil
Portfolio: Tabaxi, cats, creation, retribution, strength, war
Worshipers: Tabaxi
Cleric Alignments: NE, LE, CE
Domains: Evil, Feline, Retribution, Strength, War
Favored Weapon: Spear

 

[Knightfall]

PANTHEON OF AHAMUDIA
This pantheon of deities is also a group of Transformation Gods; that is they didn't exist on Harqual before the event known as The Transformation. These deities are worshiped almost exculsively in the Kingdom of Ahamudia, but their churches are spreading to other lands, slowly.

Aladius
Trident of the Sea

Lesser Deity
Symbol: A trident rising up through the waves
Home Plane: Ysgard
Godly Realm: Trident’s Hall
Alignment: Chaotic neutral
Portfolio: Ocean
Worshipers: Javeldians, merfolk
Cleric Alignments: CN, CG, CE
Domains: Chaos, Ocean, Storm, Water
Favored Weapon: Trident

An old Maran god, Aladius takes command of the ocean and is known as the “Trident of the Sea”. His symbol is the trident.

Aphulæn
The Wise

Demigod
Symbol: Silhouette of an oak tree
Home Plane: Celestia
Godly Realm: Erudite Oak
Alignment: Lawful good
Portfolio: Aphranæn elves, the forest
Worshipers: Aphranæn elves, silver elves, paladins
Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, NG
Domains: Elf, Magic, Plant, Protection, Sun
Favored Weapon: Longsword

The patron of the elves of Ahamudia, Aphulæn's name is recognized among the Javeldian people and the silver elves of the Great Forest.

Known by many as “The Wise”, Aphulæn is the creator of the first tree of life. Kindly, wise, peaceful and philosophical he can be stern and iron-willed when he needs to be.

He appears as an old, wise-eyed aphranæn elf. His holy symbol is the silhouette of an oak tree.

Helek
The Ascendant King

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A sword on an anvil
Home Plane: Celestia
Godly Realm: Helek’s Anvil
Alignment: Lawful good
Portfolio: Warfare, strategy
Worshipers: Javeldians, Aphranæn elves, Bitran dwarves, Bitran gnomes, paladins
Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, NG
Domains: Craft, Good, Nobility, Planning, Protection, Thought, War
Favored Weapon: Spear and short sword

A god of warfare, Helek is one of three major deities venerated by the Javeldian people. He, Satiria and Zyrcek have priests dedicated to their name in both of Ahamudia's major churches.

A thinking man's warrior, Helek was a tough fighter, a master strategist, an inspired leader and a shrewd judge of character. As a deity he is a patron of human warriors and an enemy of the warlike humanoid races (especially gnolls). He is also a patron of weapon making.

Helek appears as a tall, redheaded warrior wearing ancient bronze armor and a plain golden crown while carrying an ancient bronze short sword. His holy symbol is of a sword on an anvil.

Maldar
Patron of Bitran

Lesser Deity
Symbol: A craftsman’s work apron
Home Plane: Spirelands
Godly Realm: Crafthall
Alignment: True neutral
Portfolio: Craft, the races of Bitran
Worshipers: Bitran dwarves, Bitran gnomes
Cleric Alignments: N, LN, NG, CN, NE
Domains: Cavern, Craft, Dwarf, Earth, Fortitude, Metal
Favored Weapon: Battlehammer

The Patron of the dwarves and gnomes of Bitran and believed to be their creator, Maldar is the arch-typical craftsman venerated by the Bitran.

Satiria
The Warrior

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A warrior’s shield with a golden star in the center
Home Plane: Celestia
Godly Realm: The Shield of Satiria
Alignment: Lawful good
Portfolio: Nobility, warriors
Worshipers: Javeldians, good humans from the Sword Protectorate, paladins
Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, NG
Domains: Good, Law, Nobility, Protection, Strength, War
Favored Weapon: Warhammer

Vaflar
Lord of the Hutaakans, God of Crafts

Demigod
Symbol: A jackal’s head
Home Plane: Mechanus
Godly Realm: None (wanders)
Alignment: Lawful neutral
Portfolio: Hutaakans, crafting, magic
Worshipers: Hutaakans
Cleric Alignments: LN, LG, LE
Domains: Craft, Knowledge, Law, Magic, Protection
Favored Weapon: Light mace

Vaflar is a mysterious jackal-headed Maran god who created the Hutaakans.

Volrai
The Passionate One

Lesser Deity
Symbol: A thorned rose
Home Plane: Ysgard
Godly Realm: Rose of Passion
Alignment: Chaotic neutral
Portfolio: Passion, romance
Worshipers: Javeldians, Onans, silver elves
Cleric Alignments: CN, CG, CE
Domains: Fate, Luck, Mentalism, Protection
Favored Weapon: Short sword

The Maran goddess of romance and passion, Volrai's name is evoked by Javeldians and others in the name of love. Her symbol is the thorned rose, symbolizing beauty and its threat.

Zyrcek
Lord of the Woods

Lesser Deity
Symbol: A copse of trees
Home Plane: Upper Outlands
Godly Realm: Copse Crux
Alignment: True neutral
Portfolio: Fate, woodlands
Worshipers: Javeldians, Aphranæn elves, Bitran gnomes
Cleric Alignments: N, NG, CN, LN
Domains: Fate, Luck, Plant, Protection
Favored Weapon: Light mace