Mechanics

Mechanics

Races

The allowed races are all the ones describes by the PHB plus the races/subraces described below.
The Frostlings are believed to be an offshoot of the human race. They are predominantly tall and muscular, with grayish hair, gray or azure eyes, ample features, and smooth skin the color of ivory or old ice. The Frostlings predominantly inhabit and feel comfortable in cold climates, either in the snows of the far north or the snows of the mountainous regions of Gaia. The Frostlings tend to be reticent, dour, and cunning. They have mostly tribal structure. They are predominantly neutral with some chaotic tendencies. Due to their adaptation to cold, the Frostlings enjoy a bonus of +2 to endure and save against cold, but this makes them more sensitive to heat, so they suffer -2 penalty to endure and save against it. Their muscular build gives them +2 to Strength, but they tend to be sullen, rude, and easily provoked, which interferes with their "people" skills and gives them -2 to Charisma. The Frostlings speak their own language, which is similar to common. Their automatic language is Frostling and their bonus language is common. The preferred Frostling class is the warrior.
The Azrac are a humanoid race similar to the elves. The Azrac tend to be of medium height, slender to medium build, bronze-skinned, sharp-featured, dextrous, and quick-footed. Their hair color ranges from black to orange and their eye color ranges from dark brown to golden. The shape of their ears is similar to the elven one, but has more aquatic outlook and two sloping ridges rather than one. The Azrac prefer hot dry climates similar to the deserts of their native Vij-Azi peninsula. They are mostly neutral with some chaotic tendencies. Their culture favors principalities and free cities in terms of political structure. The Azrac tend to have nimble bodies with light muscles, so they have +2 to Dex but -2 to Str. They are accustomed to heat, so they gain +2 to endure or save against heat and -2 to endure or save against cold. The Azrac are well-known for their exceptionally sharp eyesight; it gives them +4 to Spot. The Azrac are proficient in their traditional weapons: scimitar, falchion, trident, and bow. The Azrac speak their own language, which has some very distant similarities with elven. Their automatic language is Azrac and their bonus languages are common and elven. Just like the elves, the Azrac are deeply interested in magic, but their approach to it is more practical and less scholarly, so they are strongly drawn to sorcery. Hence the Azrac favored class is the sorcerer.
The frostlings and azrac intermarry predominantly with humans, so there are half-frostlings and half-azrac. In game terms, such characters must decide to which part of their lineage they cling more strongly, and hence work out the mechanics accordingly. For such characters, the physical outlook is a mixture of the two sources, which the players arrange as they see fit.
Half-orc is available as character race, but the word of caution is that orcs in this world are well-known rather-mean damned bastards (woo-hoo!), so a half-orc character will feel social rejection more strongly than usual.
Finally, I really dislike the PHB idea that some races just get automatic languages other than their own, so I am making the small change that common is a bonus language for all non-humans rather than an automatic one. I simply see no reason why even a drooling idiot would master two languages, so long as he is a dwarf or an elf, when an average human would speak only one.

Classes

The allowed classes are as per PHB. In the world, I plan to have the DMG prestige classes too, but blackguard requires a lot of readjustment. Multiclassing and dual classing are governed by the same. Your rolled stats will determine what you can play. I will raise the appropriate stats up to the requirements only in the specific exception of somebody wanting to play a single-class character, for which he otherwise would not qualify.

Alignments

For purposes of this campaign, I have decided to have a non-evil party to foster heroics and internal cooperation. That naturally excludes the blackguard and assassin as playable character classes, though such NPCs exist in the world. Also, it is my belief that Chaotic Neutral characters would not be tolerated in any sensible cooperative party. I am not going to disallow them, but I strongly recommend that players steer clear of that alignment. If correctly played, it tends to cause a lot of internal friction and bad feelings, unless of course the party is a lunatics convention.

Stats

Stats are rolled 6x(4d6), i.e. one set of six rolls of four dice, dropping the lowest die. Then you assign values to characteristics. This is meant to provide average to good stats. I can boost some stats a bit to let a player have a character class for which he otherwise would be unable to qualify. I used to be more generous in terms of stat rolling rules in the past, but experience taught me that this tends to make players overreliant on their exceptional stats. I feel that that is a damaging practice in a number of ways, and thus I try to discourage it.

Equipment

Right now the world is in ok shape, so there are no major shortages. However, the availability of each item is dictated by trade routes and supply and demand, so there are price fluctuations from region to region and some things are just very hard to buy in a particular locale.

Psionics

Psionics is not present in the campaign. I feel it is not a necessary thing to have and I have some conceptual objections to it in principle, although I must admit I have not read the psionics book. Anyway, it just ain't 'ere, kids, so choose something else -- there is more than enough candy in the shop.

Combat

Most of the house rules from our Arcadia, Vraalgard, and Krynn campaigns have been nicely incorporated or emulated in 3E, so all that is taken care of naturally. I plan to introduce new feats eventually and perhaps allow 3E supplements rules, but this is not going to happen until I feel sufficiently familiar with the 3E theory and practice.

Religion

There are no mechanics changes that I am going to implement for clerics at this point, other than postulate that all clerics must have a deity. This is done to promote roleplaying and to restrict the significantly boosted cleric class in terms of behavioral patterns.
In previous campaigns, far too often have I observed lukewarm devotion of PCs to their deities. I feel that this makes no sense for a number of reasons, which are just too numerous for me to type down. Thus I expect to see true devotion in all cleric PCs, one that is characterized by strong faith, unswerving loyalty, and putting the deity's interests above everything and everyone else. This does not mean complete indisciminacy of methods, but it does mean clarity, constancy of purpose, and a healthy dose of fervor.
Anyone (even non-cleric), who devoutly worships a god, and shows that single-minded dedication through prayer and actions, can hope to get noticed and win favor with the particular deity. The benefits of being in divine favor hardly need advertising. The opposite side of the coin is that deities tend to be fickle and move in mysterious ways, as well as they have the unpleasant habit of holding a grudge and leaning on particularly rancid traitors and confirmed offenders. Of course, most deities do not pay attention to trifles, so it really takes a lot of effort to please or piss off a god.

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