The Create-a-Setting Thread: Dinopirates of Ninja Island!

[Dark Jezter]

In the thread discussing the April 2003 issue of Dragon Magazine, fellow ENWorlder JPL made the following post:

Ninjas, pirates, and dinosaurs.

Dammit. That shoulda been my setting search submission.

A fantasy Asia, filled with warring island nations. Samurai mounted on domesticated raptors. Bigger dinosaurs hunted by quasi-Polynesian tribesmen. Dueling factions of shadow warriors. Privateers and bucaneers battling the servants of the Imperial Navy. Fallen kingdoms deep in forgotten jungles.

And I call it...

DINOPIRATES OF NINJA ISLAND!

This led to several responses by people who found it amusing or incredibly cool (including me, I liked it enough to add it to my signature line). Now, even though it was probably meant to be a joke, I decided that this thread could be fun. Lately, there have been a few "Create-a-Dungeon" threads, so why not take it a bit further and make an entire setting?

Feel free to contribute whatever you want to this setting, humorous or serious, whether it be an NPC, the description of a city, deity info, variant rules, feats, monster statistics, magic items, prestige classes, map of the setting, etc.

I'll start...

*clears throat*

First, Dinopirates of Ninja Island (DoNI) uses the Class Defense Bonus rules that can be found in Unearthed Arcana on page 109. Due to the fact that ninjas and pirates rarely use armor, such a mechanic would make them better at suviving the harsh, grim and gritty world of DoNI.

Paladins, Bards, and Rangers are removed as base classes. The ninja base class (from the April 2003 issue of Dragon) and the Samurai base class (from Oriental Adventures) are available. The ninja base class has the same Class Defense Bonus as a rogue, while the samurai base class has the same Class Defense Bonus as a fighter.

Now, I want to see what other ideas people can come up with for this setting. And thanks again to JPL for his wonderful idea.

 

[dreaded_beast]

New Race

Mutant Turtles

Once ordinary pet turtles, this race was exposed to magical ooze transforming them into their current state: a warrior race of manlike turtles specializing in the arts of the ninja.

Favored Class: Ninja

Mutant Turtle Names: Michaelangelo, Donatello, Leonardo, Raphael

 

[Numion]

Paladins, Bards, and Rangers are removed as base classes.

But if there's no bards, who would then wail the guitar, hard, like hard rain? Or maybe ninjas have that as a class skill .. while pirates have the baby-banjo

 

[d4]

some needs to make a Pirate base class, obviously.

 

[Dark Jezter]

some needs to make a Pirate base class, obviously.

Perhaps something like the Swashbuckler base class from Complete Warrior?

 

[Inconsequenti-AL]

Everyone gets Swim and Profession: Sailor as class skills. (It isn't historically accurate but it's fun)

The mightiest dinosaur in existance is said to inhabit a secret, mist shrouded island. A tribe of evil savages worship this giant lizard, with human sacrifices. They have Sinister Powers (tm).

The dreaded Pirate-Shogun has trained Kuo-Toans (sic?) as ninja - these are used to scare his captins into line! They are also known to perform 'contract' work.

A cabal of Sea Druids have mastered the art of dinosaur shapeshifting and plesiosaur training (? - I mean the loch ness type of dinosaurs). They charge 'protection fees' around Crystal Shard Island.

 

[rounser]

We have to include everything D&D in it as well, because that's obviously better. And magitech, because that's way cool, and it'll help D&D finally make sense.

So...I'm thinking drow ninjas with dual scimitars on robot dinosaurs, drow pirates on magical hoverboards, and cities of drow half-celestial half-dragon half-orc street samurai with bazookas (everything is made so much more original with templates). Oh, and lots of psionics. Make everyone psionic, even worms and trees. I think it would be cool if like a building was psionic, and your drow half-celestial half-dragon half-orc street samurai was like just walking down the street and the building started talking in his head, and he totally flipped out and wailed the building to rubble right there.

I'm so looking forward to running this.

 

[dreaded_beast]

New Weather Hazard/Monster

Dark Water

From the depths of the oceans comes a mysterious black sludge that threatens ocean going vessels. The sludge is said to be the remnants of an ancient civilization's experiments gone awry. The sludge is said to be semi-sentient and attacks vessels with it's acid-like body.

 

[dreaded_beast]

New Locale

SiniStar Island

Rumors say that a mad lich rules this island with dreams of escaping to the stars above. They say he commands an army of slaves and criminals who are constructing a magical vessel to take him to the heavens. The slaves and criminals who show skill in combat and sailing are made to be pirates and to capture more slaves to add to the ranks of the mad lich.

 

[dreaded_beast]

New Locale/Monster

On a remote island is a large statue of an ape-like creature known as King Ceasar. Legend says that when the island is in danger, King Ceasar will awaken. In order for King Ceasar to awaken, the Twin Keepers, almost always identical twin women, must sing a magical song before the statue of King Ceasar.