[v.3.5] Fallenlands: Continent of Margoth-Nal

[Knightfall]

The Fallenlands​

INTRODUCTION
The Fallenlands came about as result of needing an exotic locale for my players to explore for an ancient artifact. I didn’t want them to simply traverse the Lands of Harqual, find the artifact, and bring it back. I wanted it to be a quest and a half. The end result was an adventure I entitled “Journey to the Fallenlands.”

Little did I know at the time how much the Fallenlands would be like two of my favorite D&D campaign settings rolled into one (slightly altered) concept. You see, for the most part, the Fallenlands is a desert continent. From the Mountains of NarsKasis to the edge of the Ong Jungle, it is basically a huge homage to DARK SUN and AL-QADIM.

The Fallenlands is a hot, humid land where the genies known as the Jann rule huge, impenetrable, stone cities. It is a land where tribes of Tengu, Throkr, and other strange humanoids, such as the Sahne, vie for dominance of the desert wastes. It is home to the City of Cyrad where isolated pale-skinned humans struggle to survive against the environment and each other. It is the homeland of a race of noble, vulture-headed humanoids, called the <Nagpa>, older than any race on Kulan with life spans that even outstretch the Shoyir Elves of Janardûn.

This is the Fallenlands!

NOTE: Now, some of you that have played Mystara probably perked an eyebrow up when you read "race of noble, vulture-headed humanoids, called the <Nagpa>" above. The reason for this is that the <Nagpas> of Kulan are not the cursed humans of Mystara. They are an race that evolved independently on Kulan for thousands of years and once ruled all of the Fallenlands. They would still be its rulers if one of their leaders, in ages past, hadn't struck a deal with the devil so to speak.

---

 

[Knightfall]

THE HISTORY OF THE FALLENLANDS
Very little is known about the history of the Fallenlands beyond the knowledge gathered and hidden by the nagpas. For while they are a good and noble race they do have one secret, which they protect from the other races of the continent. Partly out of pride, but mostly out of shame. Linked is the story of "The Five Treasures of the Geniekind," which tells of the Fallenlands distant past.

The continent once known as Margoth-Nal, by the telling of this story has a history spanning back thousands of years. Most who have heard it beyond the Great Library of Knowledge in the City of Craloona believe the story to be an exaggeration of the Fallenlands history. The trouble is so few non-nagpas have heard the story beyond the jann, and neither of those two races are willing to go into more detail about the Fallenlands past.

Most believe the Age of the Nagpa began only over 2,000 years ago not 3,000 to 4,000 years ago, as the nagpas would have others believe. However, nagpas are an extremely long-lived race and it isn’t inconceivable that the story tells the truth.

It is for certain that the Age of the Nagpa lasted nearly 1,000 years before the first of the invading armies arrived on the eastern shores of Margoth-Nal. These armies came from the continent of Kanpur, which lies closest to the Fallenlands, across the Far Sea. They landed southeastern coast and quickly spread into the Ong Jungle and the lands surrounding the Shield. [A 500-foot high cliff face, which separates Decamwa (called the Endless Sands by the jann) from the Verdant Lands of the southeast].

 

[Knightfall]

Age of Fire
Most mark the Age of Fire from the beginning of the war with the invading humanoids not after the geniekind became involved. It is believed the story of the Ma-Haukuai traveling to the Elemental Planes is a huge exaggeration of the true events surrounding the involvement of the efreet in the Ages War, as it was called. The humanoids from Kanpur were not so much invading the Fallenlands, as they were fleeing the conflicts raging across southern Kanpur at the time. These conflicts stretched across many southern lands of Kanpur including Khemit and Zakhara, as well as the region later known as the Dark Continent. It was also these conflicts which led to the downfall of the region now known as the Ruined Kingdoms.

But enough about Kanpur, that’s for another thread.

The Age of Fire is believed to have lasted nearly 200 years, as the Ages War raged across the Fallenlands consuming the great nagpa civilization. The efreet came to exact vengeance on the humanoids and they allied with the nagpa to do so. Allies of opportunity, it is said. The nagpas would have been better off fighting the humanoids on their own. The efreet betrayed the nagpas and their allies after defeating the bulk of the humanoids.

They also betrayed themselves to the dark forces of the Outer Planes. They compacted with powerful demons, using them to subjugate the races of the Fallenlands. This was the beginning of the end of their lives, as members of the races of the geniekind. They became the Ragahd and looked to spread their dark power across all of Kulan. This transformation did not go unnoticed by the Sultan of the Efreet and he swore vengeance on those who had betrayed him. It is not certain how the other races of the geniekind became involved but most point to the story and the pleadings of Ma-Haukuai.

The Age of Fire ended with the destruction of the once great land of Margoth-Nal, that name now not used by any except the nagpas. The Ragahd fought for every acre of the continent before fleeing to the Lower Planes. Now, they exist as a race of elemental demons, mainly in the Abyss although they can be found living amongst the denizens of Limbo and Pandemonium as well.

 

[Knightfall]

Age of Isolation
It was just before the beginning of the Age of Isolation that a group of humans arrived on the Fallenlands to explore the land for the glory of Khemit. These people soon found themselves trapped on a harsh, wind swept continent, cutoff from their homeland, and surrounded by hostile humanoids. These humans found and retreated into a deep crevasse in the earth, which is now known as Shapneka. Here they found an abandoned city underground built by an unknown race claiming it as their own. They renamed it the City of Cyrad, in honor of the man who had led them to relative safety in Shapneka.

Their society quickly degenerated as old stories of Khemit were lost and the cyradi people began worshipping the gods of the lost race who had built the city. An ancient evil was uncovered and the cyradi soon fell into madness. Now, they exist mainly in a dreamlike state, while the followers of the Fiend Worm work them to death.

The Age of Isolation began nearly 1,000 years ago around the time human barbarians first began appearing in the Northlands of Harqual, give or take a few centuries. Exact dates from this time period are not known, as the Fallenlands became next to impossible to reach by sea or by air. A huge, never ending storm appeared around the Fallenlands from its northern shores to beyond the tip of the Ong Peninsula. The most powerful of these storms thundered in the western ocean beyond the Fallenlands, which would become known as the Black Storm Sea to those living on Harqual. (Called the Endless Water by the nagpas.)

The Age of Isolation brought the rise of the jann as a major power across the Fallenlands. Their great stone cities rose out of the ashes of the remains of the once proud nagpa civilization and the mark of destruction left by the Ragahd. The jann were left to guard the Fallenlands and the locations of the Five Treasures of the Geniekind, but they have become more concerned with the former than the later. The jann are every watchful over the other races of the Fallenlands but not to protect them but to protect the world from them. The jann begrudgingly respect the nagpas and the nomadic sahne. However, they have little tolerance for the other races.

Surprisingly, while the jann are the dominant power of the Fallenlands they are not its masters. The harsh land is the master and it takes a heavy toil on those who do not respect its power. No more so is this evident then the region of the Fallenlands known as the Volcanic Lands. This highly unstable region has, until recently, in ages past been a scorched, black magma-filled region near the center of the Fallenlands. It was here where the conquering efreet built the great city known as Lafar, City of Fire.

The city still stands to this day and was the hiding places of the artifact known as the Bow of Wind. Now, that artifact has disappeared along with its guardian. It is said that a group of adventurers, from another land, entered Lafar to claim the artifact but came out with nothing for their efforts. The adventurers soon disappeared from the lands of the Fallenlands. Stranger still the powerful storms protecting the Fallenlands have faded and the lands around Lafar have become more inert. It is believed that the adventurers somehow broke the magical ward placed to keep the Ragahd from returning to Kulan. Whether or not they also took the Bow of Wind and lied about finding it remains to be seen.

 

[Knightfall]

A New Age Begins
The Age of Isolation has ceased for the continent known as the Fallenlands. The seas are now open to the rest of the world and many have taken notice. In the east, explorers from Khemit and Zakhara have begun to slowly traverse across the Far Sea to the southern lands of the Ong Peninsula. While, to the north of Khemit, the great cities of Bluffside and Parma have sent their own expeditions to the New Land of the West, as they call it. Conflicts amongst these new invaders and the locales of the Fallenlands are bound to happen sooner or later.

Far to the south past the Wakuna Sea lies Merria home to numerous seafaring kingdoms and even more pirates. Long prevented from expanding their reach by the storms protecting the Fallenlands, now the southern shores of the lost continent are open to them. No longer are Humans, Rakasta, and other notable races unknown in the ports of call of the Fallenlands, although they are still quite rare.

And in their stone cities, the jann watch and wait for the eventual return of the Ragahd to the Fallenlands and they wonder if anything can be done to stop the elemental demons.

 

[Knightfall]

THE FIVE TREASURES OF THE GENIEKIND
Long ago during the Age of the Nagpa, the Fallenlands was known by a more regal name, Margoth-Nal. It was during this age that nagpas lived everywhere on this continent, from what is now known as the Sipwi Peninsula to the Ong Jungle beyond the Shield. We, the blessed of Chagnal, ruled the continent with the same grace and dignity that we now rule the Valley of NarsKasis today. During this time the land was covered with lush forests and rolling hills.

During the Age of the Nagpa, the geniekind were unknown to our people considered myths of legend. What is now called the Black Storm Sea was once known as The Endless Water. There were four great nagpa cities under the rule of a single leader known as the Ma-Haukuai with a governor of state for each city. These cities included NarsKasis in the northwest, NarsKwon in the northeast, NarsKwani in the southwest, and the capital city of Chowa in the far south. The Ma-Haukuai ruled over Margoth-Nal from his palace for over a thousand years in relative peace.

But like the scorching sands of the Fallenlands today, time eroded the Age away. A new evil appeared out of the Far Sea in the east. Huge long ships filled with hordes of evil humanoids landed on the eastern shores of Margoth-Nal. Among them were such foul creatures as the thasin, bakemono, oni and the ogre mages. They entrenched themselves in our land raiding up and down the coasts of the east and beyond. Out people fought back bravely with the help of our allies, the sahne and the hengeyokai, but the evil hordes were unstoppable.

The Ma-Haukuai pleaded to Chagnal and the other Great Ones for protection but they couldn't come to our aid. The evil gods of the humanoid hordes kept the Great Ones embroiled in a battle in the heavens. All hope seemed lost. The Ma-Haukuai became desperate in his search for an answer to save his people. He knew of the legends of the geniekind. He divined the location of the Elemental Planes in order to locate the geniekind. With only his wits and the hope of his people, the Ma-Haukuai journeyed to the palaces of the four greater races of the genies - the dao, the djinn, the marid, and the efreet.

First he asked the Kahn of the Dao in the Great Dismal Delve. “Help my people, all-powerful Kahn, and I will build you the greatest monument ever constructed out of the finest marble and gems.”

But the Khan simply laughed at him.

Then he went to the Elemental Plane of Air pleading with the Caliphs of the Djinn. “Help my people, all-powerful Lords, and I will build you the greatest airship ever known to the planes.”

But since the djinn could already fly faster than any airship the Caliphs simply ignored him.

Then he went to the Elemental Plane of Water pleading with the Padisha of the Marids. “Help my people, all-powerful Padisha, and I will give you my kingdom's greatest asset. Our Puredrop water crop for the next one thousand years.”

The Padisha hummed and hawed for several days asking all of her advisors. Then she smiled agreeing to help. The Ma-Haukuai was overjoyed. Then the chaotic Padisha simply laughed at him telling him to go away.

Heartbroken, the Ma-Haukuai went to the Elemental Plane of Fire. He had hoped that one of the other geniekind races would have agreed to help him. He had no idea what he could offer the Efreeti Sultan. As he stood trembling before the Sultan within the City of Brass all his hope seemed to slip away. “Oh great and all-powerful Sultan, I have come to you to beg for your help in defending my people from the evil that threatens us.”

“Hmm,” the Sultan glared down at the Ma-Haukuai. “And what can I expect to gain for this help little creature?”

The Ma-Haukuai fell to his knees in desperation. “I give my life over to you to do with as you want.”

“Well,” the Sultan smiled with an evil grin. “This is most unexpected.”

“I beg your pardon, great Sultan? I do not understand.” The Ma-Haukuai was baffled.

“I have been watching you travel from one of my enemies to the next offering little baubles to them. I had expected a similar offer. You surprise me.”

The Efreeti Sultan rose from his fiery throne approaching the Ma-Haukuai. He stood there for what seemed like an eternity to the Ma-Haukuai. Then he laughed with joy. “You don't realize what it means to a genie to be offered the life of a mortal to do with as one pleases. But your life only is not enough. I wish for your servitude to me and the servitude of your ancestors after you for all of eternity!”

“I will grant you what you wish. For I haven't another choice. All I ask is to be allowed to see my people freed of tyranny before I leave them.”

“Done! What a glorious day!” The Sultan laughed for all in the City of Brass to hear.

Now the Sultan was always true to his word sending a huge army of efreet and fire elementals to Margoth-Nal to rain down fire upon the enemies of the Ma-Haukuai. However, the Sultan was also a crafty genie and the armies he sent were careless about the destruction they created during the war. In the end, nothing was left of Margoth-Nal's ancient glory. The Ma-Haukuai knew he had made a horrible mistake.

With the greatest Age in our history over there wasn't anything to stop the Sultan from claiming the continent. Thus, the Age of Fire was born. For thousands of years the efreet ruled the land but didn't preserve it. The forests burned and the lakes and rivers dried up. The efreet built a great city that they called Lafar or City of Fire. The Volcanic Lands formed around the city and the whole continent trembled at the might of the efreet.

Soon, discontent crept into the minds of the five generals that the sultan had sent to conquer Margoth-Nal. Each of them wished to become Kahn over the lands but the Sultan refused. The generals infused rebellion into the efreet of the Fallenlands. They began warring amongst themselves as well as the Sultan's loyal forces. The Sultan could do nothing to stop the warring factions simply cutting them off from the Elemental Plane of Fire in disgust.

The efreet of the Fallenlands chose a new name, the Ragahd, and started to plan to conquer the entire world. One of the generals was chosen for not Kahn but Emperor. The Sultan of the efreet looked upon his fallen people with both rage and shame.

“It was not suppose to be this way!”

The remaining races of the geniekind also looked upon the Fallenlands and were ashamed by the behavior of the fallen efreet.

“We are partly to blame,” sighed the Padisha of the Marids.

“Yes, something must be done,” barked the Kahn of the Dao.

“We must unite to stop the ragahd or they might become powerful enough to destroy us all.” The Caliphs of the Djinn shivered in fear.

Thus it was that the geniekind of the Elemental Planes united into one massive planar army – the djinn, the dao, the marid, the efreet and even the lesser jann. Each race of the geniekind sent a single champion with a treasured artifact of their people to be used in the war against the ragahd.

The djinn sent Watim with the artifact known as the Bow of Wind. The dao sent Harok with the artifact known as the Sword of the Earth. The marid sent Aqual with the artifact known as the Eye of the Storm. The efreet sent Cahn with the artifact known as the Ring of Eternal Fire. And the jann sent Pavot with the artifact known as the Circle of Truth. These five artifacts would become known as The Five Treasures of the Geniekind.

Even against these artifacts, however, the ragahd refused to surrender. They recruited the aid of the scattered remnants of the evil humanoids against the planar army of genies. The battles were fought and horribly bloody on both sides. In the end, the ragahd retreated to Abyss on the Outer Planes. The genies had won but the Fallenlands would pay the price. To keep the ragahd from reclaiming the Fallenlands, the five treasures were hidden all over Kulan to provide a powerful magical ward that would prohibit the ragahd from ever returning.

The great army of geniekind left the world vowing never again to interfere directly in the world's history ever again. Only the small number of jann left, after the war, remained behind to safeguard the continent. They helped the nagpas rebuild what they could, watching over them and the other races like protective parents. Thus began the Age of Isolation, which has continued unto today.

— As told by Nethander the Master, nagpa sage​

 

[Knightfall]

THE MARGOTH-NAL PANTHEON
As described under the story of the "Five Treasures of the Geniekind," the Nagpa Gods were unable to come to the aid of their people due to the war being fought in the heavens with the evil gods of the invading humanoids. This is the simple explanation.

The complex explanation is that the Margoth-Nal Pantheon, in ages past, was a very small group of gods known mainly for their creative and knowledge-based portfolios: Chagnal, Kaawal, Qual-Rin, and Tesporaii. Kaawal, The Feathered Mother, is the Goddess of Home and Hearth. She venerated by families and friends amongst the nagpa, which includes all but the most isolated souls. Qual-Rin, The Writing Claw, is the God of Scholars. Writers, scholars, librarians, and bookmakers mainly venerate Qual-Rin. Tesporaii, the least scholarly of these deities, is Mistress of the Land and the closest thing the nagpa had to a martial god, as she is also the Goddess of Mining and Conservation. Her followers did the best they could against the invading humanoids but were not true soldiers.

Even the greater deity Chagnal was little more than the God of Knowledge and Creation during this time period. Eventually he would be revered as the Lord of Magic by the nagpa as well but not until much later. The truth was that there wasn’t a war in the heavens because the Nagpa Gods knew they’d be defeated.

This knowledge didn’t stop them from caring about their people and they moved to ensure that some would survive. They chose the nagpas of NarsKasis to be the bastion of hope for their people, ordering their most powerful clerics to gather all the knowledge they could and bring it to the Great Library of Knowledge in Craloona. Here the nagpa isolated their people from the worst of the war ravaging the Fallenlands.

They provided aid to the genies when they came but regretted the decision soon afterwards. After that the nagpa people did not move or breathe without the consent of their gods. So much had been lost and The Great Father Bird was unwilling to risk his peoples very existence by opposing the ragahd. He waited for the Invader’s War to be over, teaching his people the power of magic and knowledge combined. He gave them the secret of Jecrite, a powerful magic-induced stone, which could be fashioned into weapons and defenses.

However, not all nagpas were willing to just stand by and wait for salvation. One, named Vasos, took the fight to the humanoids and the ragahd. He and his followers threw themselves at the invading armies. They met with little success but did hold the line against the darkness engulfing the continent. They sacrificed themselves time and time again to allow thousands of retreating nagpas to escape into NarsKasis. Vasos, himself, stood at the Grand Gate of NarsKasis near the end of the Invader’s War, dying, single-handedly defending those retreating into the gate.

So great was Vasos’ sacrifice that Chagnal took him into the heavens and elevated him to the status of God of Courage and Strength. Many young nagpas flocked to the banner of Vasos, to help protect NarsKasis during the dark times to come. The most devoted of these would be Sanian. Sanian, The True, devote his life to The Courageous One and the defense of his people from the evil humanoids now preying upon the lands after the end of the Invader’s War. Sanian died a Saint to his people and was raised up into the heavens by Chagnal to join his Lord, Vasos, as the God of Truth and Honor.

The Age of Isolation came and the war was soon put behind the beleaguered nagpas of NarsKasis. However, suffering still too many and all felt the nagpa people, as a society was lost. This pain and suffering did not go unnoticed, however. Chagnal beseeched the Sultan of the Efreet to return Ma-Haukuai to his people to show them that suffering and sacrifice are not in vain. Surprisingly, the Sultan agreed to the god’s request, possibly feeling some responsibility for the decline of the nagpa as a race. With this agreement Ma-Haukuai is returned to the nagpa as the God of Loss and Sacrifice. His body is still burnt and broken, thus, he is also revered as the Lord of Death and the Flames.

These are the gods of the nagpa as the new age begins…

 

[Knightfall]

RACIAL ORIGINS [Detailed List]
The racial makeup of the Fallenlands is decisively non-human. The one true human race are the Cyradi and those humans are isolationists. They are are also a bit odd. The Cyradi are my versions of the humans from the old school module "B4 The Lost City." The dominate people of the continent are the jann. Other common races include <bakemonos>, the dragonborn, geckofolk, <hengeyokai>, <nagpas>, tengu, and the throkr. Besides the humans of Cyrad, the only other traditional racial origin are the Sahne — a race of nomadic, desert-dwelling halflings.

PRIMARY ORIGINS
Common
● Bakemono, Fallenlanden †
● Dragonborn †
● Fremlin † (need a homebrewed or OGL replacement)
● Geckofolk †
● Halfling, Sahne †
● Hengeyokai, Fallenlanden †
● Tengu, Fallenlanden †
● Throkr (kreen) †

Uncommon
● Baklath †
● Buckawn †
● Chromithian [Complete Minions]
● Jann (v.3.5 SRD)
● Mongrelman (Tome of Horrors: Revised Edition)
● Quissian (Mythic Races)
● Sendasti (Mythic Races)

Rare
● Azer (v.3.5 SRD)
● Coivald (Mythic Races)
● Dragontouched †
● Human, Cyradi †
● Minotaur, Fallenlanden †
● Nagpa †

Very Rare
● Cheitan Janni (Tome of Horrors II)
● Dragon-Kin, Fallenlanden †
● Elf, Draconesti [Dragon Elf] †
● Half-Dragon [Template] (v.3.5 SRD) (Restricted)
● Half-Fiend [Template] (v.3.5 SRD)
● Manticora (Creature Collection: Revised)
● Rellastan †


SECONDARY ORIGINS
Common
● Banderlog (Tome of Horrors: Revised Edition)
● Kech (Tome of Horrors: Revised Edition)
● Rhoode (Mythic Races)

Uncommon
● Half Troll [Trollborn] [Template] (Complete Minions)
● Knük (Complete Minions)
● Sealfolk †

Rare
● Aarakocra (need a homebrewed or OGL replacement)
● Lava Child (Tome of Horrors: Revised Edition)
● Tsathar (The Tome of Horrors: Revised Edition)

Very Rare
● Arach (Tome of Horrors III)
● Stonegrunt (Mythic Races)

Special (requires DM approval)
● Dracovaran † | [Epic Race]
● Zetetic-touched †

† Homebrewed racial traits.

 

[Knightfall]

THE NAGPA GODS
Chagnal
God of Knowledge and Creation, Lord of Magic, The Great Father Bird

Greater Deity
Symbol: A feathered staff made from Jecrite
Home Plane: Arcadia
Godly Realm: The Feathered Past
Alignment: Lawful neutral
Portfolio: Creation, history, legends, magic
Worshipers: Nagpas; bards, historians, sages, sorcerers, wizards
Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, LE
Domains: Good, History, Knowledge, Law, Magic, Sun
Favored Weapon: Quarterstaff

Kaawal
Goddess of Home and Hearth, The Feathered Mother

Lesser Deity
Symbol: A clay hut
Home Plane: Elysium
Godly Realm: The Home of Rest
Alignment: Neutral good
Portfolio: Family, friends, home, hearth
Worshipers: Nagpas; druids, all those who believe in family and having friends
Cleric Alignments: LG, NG, CG
Domains: Community, Family, Good, Protection
Favored Weapon: Sap

Ma-Haukuai
God of Loss and Sacrifice, Lord of Death and the Flames

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A nagpa crying fiery tears
Home Plane: Material Plane
Godly Realm: The Fiery Underearth
Alignment: Lawful neutral
Portfolio: Sacrifice, loss, death, fire
Worshipers: Nagpas; elementalists (fire), monks, the dying, anyone who has lost or sacrificed something meaningful
Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, LE
Domains: Death, Fire, Healing, Law, War
Favored Weapon: Dagger

Qual-Rin
God of Scholars, The Writing Claw

Demigod
Symbol: The stacks in a library
Home Plane: Celestia
Godly Realm: The Claw’s Library
Alignment: Lawful good
Portfolio: Writers, bookbinding, scholars
Worshipers: Nagpas; bards, bookbinders, scholars, wizards, writers
Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, NG
Domains: Good, Knowledge, Law, Thought
Favored Weapon: Quarterstaff

Sanian
God of Truth and Honor, The Pure Heart, The True

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A white, five-pointed star shining above the desert
Home Plane: Elysium
Godly Realm: Honor’s Oasis
Alignment: Neutral good
Portfolio: Honor, purity, truth
Worshipers: Nagpas; monks, paladins, other sacred warriors
Cleric Alignments: LG, NG, CG
Domains: Good, Healing, Knowledge, Protection, Purity
Favored Weapon: Short sword

Tesporaii
Goddess of Mining and Conservation, Mistress of the Land

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A miner’s pick crossed with a druid’s staff
Home Plane: Elemental Earth
Godly Realm: The Miners’ Cavern
Alignment: True neutral
Portfolio: Mining, conservation, the land
Worshipers: Nagpas; druids, elementalists (earth), miners, rangers
Cleric Alignments: LN, NG, N, NE, CN
Domains: Earth, Knowledge, Mining, Plant, Water
Favored Weapon: Light pick or quarterstaff

Vasos
God of Courage and Strength, The Courageous One, The Traveler

Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A road through the mountains
Home Plane: Material Plane
Godly Realm: Wanders
Alignment: Neutral good
Portfolio: Courage, guards, strength, wanderers
Worshipers: Nagpas; fighters, guards, monks, paladins, rangers, travelers
Cleric Alignments: LG, NG, CG
Domains: Courage, Good, Protection, Strength, Travel
Favored Weapon: Katana

 

[Knightfall]

CREATURES OF THE FALLENLANDS​

BAKEMONO, FALLENLANDEN
Medium Monstrous Humanoid (Goblinoid)
Hit Dice: 3d8+6 (19 hp)
Initiative: +1 (Dex)
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
AC: 12 (+1 Dex, +1 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 11
Base Attack/Grapple: +3/+5
Attack: Claw +5 melee (1d6+5) or dagger +5 melee (1d4+4) or small rock +4 ranged (1d3+4)
Full Attack: 2 claws +5 melee (1d6+5) or dagger +5 melee (1d4+4) or small rock +4 ranged (1d3+4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft. / 5 ft.
Special Attacks: Tusk 2d4+2, +2 enhancement bonus to Strength-related attack and damage rolls
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., scent
Saves: Fort +3, Ref +5, Will +3
Abilities: Str 14 (+2), Dex 13 (+1), Con 15 (+2), Int 8 (-1), Wis 11 (+0), Cha 8 (-1)
Skills: Gather Information -1*, Hide +4, Jump +4, Listen +3, Move Silently +6, Spot +3, Urban Lore +5
Feats: Alertness, Port Savvy

Continent/Region: The Fallenlands
Environment: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary or gang (4–9)
Challenge Rating: 1
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Usually neutral evil
Advancement: By character class
Level Adjustment: +1

These Bakemono have more in common with the goblins of Harqual than the eastern goblins that share their name. Fallenlanden bakemono stand around 5 ½ to 6 feet in height and weigh as much as a human. Their skin is dark green in color and their eyes are either red or yellow. Fallenlanden bakemono have no hair of any kind, long, sharp claws and two noticeable tusks protruding from their bottom lip.

Fallenlanden bakemono are the scavengers and miscreants of the many urban sprawls that dot the Fallenlands. From the jann cities of the plains and steppes to the mud and rock underground cities of the Ong Jungle these bakemono can be found just about anywhere. Most other races consider them pests and the one place you won’t find these bakemono is in the mountain hideaways of the nagpa, who consider them one step below the kenku.

Regardless of how they are treated, these bakemono go out of their way to behave favorably towards other races, not out of hoping to change their detractors minds, but because they are always looking for their next mark.

Fallenlanden bakemono speak their own racial language.

Combat
Fallenlanden bakemono shy away from combat in order to seem harmless to those few which don’t know of the races reputation. Often they will hire themselves out as guides through the urban sprawls of jann cities leading adventurers and unwary nobles into dead alleys where the rest of their gang awaits.

Fallenlanden bakemono will attack with whatever is at hand – weapons, rocks, or even the most unlikely things. They have been known to throw rotting produce mixed in blood at their opponents.

Scent (Ex): A Fallenlanden bakemono can detect approaching enemies, sniff out hidden foes, and track by sense of smell. Range is 30 ft. If upwind, the range increases to 60 ft.; if downwind, it drops to 15 ft.

Tusk (Ex): A Fallenlanden bakemono can deliver a tusk attack that does 2d4 damage plus its adjusted Strength modifier. This is a standard action.

Skills: Fallenlanden bakemono gain a +4 racial bonus to Move Silently and Urban Lore checks. They also gain a +1 bonus to Jump attacks and +2 bonus to Hide checks. Urban Lore gives +2 synergy bonus to Gather Information checks once per use of the Gather Information skill. *+4 bonus on all Gather Information checks when used in a seaside port city.

Fallenlanden Bakemono as Characters
Fallenlanden bakemono favor the rogue class. Unaligned Fallenlanden bakemono can choose any two of the following domains: Earth, Evil, Fire, Travel, Trickery.