Contents

Dumonian Empire

Cold rain whipped the inquisitors' cloak. He had been on the prowl for days, following a sinful stench. In front of him was a terrified man, lying in the mud with a bloody leg. The inquisitor smiled, his long fangs stained red from feeding on wild beasts. Justice would come at dawn.

The Dumonian Empire is an old, revanchist state that has endured decades of decline. It is located on the northeastern continent of Noricum, where its austere lands are dotted with tiny villages, ruins of ancient civilizations, and pockets of uncharted wilderness. The empire is engaged in a cold war with the Union of Arrador, an alliance of states that recently broke away from the Dumonian Empire. This rivalry allows increasingly extreme factions, such as the zealous Order of Amaunator, to vie for political dominance, should they give the empire an edge in the conflict.

Union of Arrador

A peasant looks wearily towards the sky. A floating palace looms in the clouds above lake Bossard, blotting out the sun over his humble farm. A symbol of the new aristocracy, of those who rule not by noble blood but by gold. They charmed his sons with promises of work in the city, and now there is nobody left to sow the next harvest.

The states that now make up the Union of Arrador achieved independence from the Dumonian Empire during the Nightfall, a period of magical calamities following the destruction of The Kingdom of Khus. Officially, a monarch rules over the union, but their power pales next to the Astral Consortium, a cabal of wealthy industry titans. Rapid technological progress has shifted culture within Arrador away from old Dumonian traditions and religion in favor of industry and innovation. The eastern coast of the continent of Zalaron that the Union of Arrador occupies is one of the most cosmopolitan and technologically advanced areas of the known world, where marvels like rail travel, street lighting, and impressive machinery are commonplace.

Necrarchy of Ravik

The merchant bent his knees to hand a pouch of silver coins to the gnome. A skeletal servant stared at him unmovingly while the gnome counted his payment. Its empty eye sockets sent a chill down the merchant's back. Content with his count, the gnome tied the pouch and whistled sharply. The skeleton animated suddenly and began lifting crates onto the merchant's wagon, who was relieved to be on his way.

In the far western reaches of Zalaron lies the Necrarchy of Ravik, a state of gnomes ruled over by a lich. Ravik spends considerable resources maintaining a strong military, and Ravikian culture values martial prowess and strategic thinking. The most shocking thing to most foreigners is the widespread reliance on necromancy, a school of magic widely frowned upon in the rest of the world. The gnomes use all manners of skeletons, ghouls, and other soulless undead to make up for their small statures, allowing them to plow fields, fight wars and carry trade goods.

The most skilled necro-engineers have discovered a way to bind souls to artificial bodies as a new way create intelligent servants. Intelligent servants who wish to be free may enlist as soldiers for a minimum of two years to earn citizenship, after which they are dubbed 'warforged'.

What's in this book?

Chapter 1 of this book introduces the big ideas you'll need to know before creating a campaign in Exether: its history and its mythology.

Chapter 2 presents the major political players that shape daily life in Exether: its factions and societies.

Depending on the choices made by your party of adventurers, these organizations might become their allies or their enemies. Some characters might begin play with a history of involvement with one of these factions, and several backgrounds are included later on to represent this allegiance.

Chapter 3 contains the Exether gazetteer, which details the cities and points of interest in each of the continent's regions. The gazetteer includes NPCs, background information, and even plot hooks that you can use as the seeds of your own adventures.

Chapter 4 is for players first and foremost; combined with the Player's Handbook, it contains everything you need to create a character for a Exether campaign. The final chapters of this book, chapters 5 through 7, give DMs new magic items and monsters to include in adventures of their own design.

Magic is a novelty

Magic and gods are new and world-changing concepts to the people of Exether. In some places, it has given rise to new religions or a return to ancient traditions, but in others, it has become the focus of intense scientific study. Everyone in the world, including adventurers, must contend with a new and rapidly changing world.

Standard Languages of Exether

During an exceptionally harsh winter, with no nearby settlements to plunder, the people begged their gods to spare them from starvation. But by Ysgardian tradition, the tribe should fight for survival and not rely on gifts, so the gods turned a deaf ear to the prayers. Refusing to suffer through the winter, the people of Tóftir surprised their patrons by building a shrine to Chauntea, the goddess of agriculture, and asking her for aid instead.

Before Chauntea could provide any help, the gods of Ysgard responded with unprecedented brutality to this perceived betrayal. A gate between the planes opened above Tóftir, and forth spewed a legion of Valkyries, tasked with claiming every soul on the island. The valkyries went from town to town, slaughtering every man, woman, and child before burning their villages to the ground. The untold deaths stained the land with the dark influence of the shadowfell, cursing it forever.

Fall of Tiamat

It is unclear if, by infiltration, treason, or arrogant boasting, the news of Oghma's plan to banish the gods eventually reached the outer planes. The details of the ritual appalled devils and celestials alike, as it became clear that the spell would not only banish the gods but entirely seal off the material plane from the magical weave, a fact that Oghma hid even from Bahamut and Tiamat.

Followers of angry gods amassed in all the corners of the world to besiege Illvasaar, while a handful of deities like Ilmater and Vecna sided with the dragons to buy them enough time for the ritual. Fearing a siege would be too slow, the archdevil Gargauth hatched a scheme to foil the banishment from the inside. He sent a single imp to Illvasaar in the shape of a rat, armed with a weapon very unusual for a fiend: the truth.

The imp sneaked past panicked citizens and soldiers preparing for a defense of the city until it weaseled its way into Tiamat's sanctum. Upon revealing itself to the dragon goddess, it hastily explained what Gargauth had uncovered, that magic was about to disappear, and that creatures of the weave, such as dragons, would not survive on the material plane.

Tiamat flew into a blind rage and devoured the imp before rampaging through the city towards the hidden magical chamber where the wizards were still preparing their spell. Vecna stopped the furious dragon from unleashing her wrath on the mortals and engaged her in battle. The two gods clashed, sending destructive waves of dragonfire and necromantic energies through the city. The skirmish was brief, as one of Tiamat's heads dismembered Vecna forcing a confused Bahamut to intervene and strike down his sister, allowing Vecna to banish her to the nine hells. In her final moments, Tiamat cursed Bahamut and swore vengeance on the world of Exether.

End of Magic

With the exile of Tiamat, Ilmater took her place during the final night, and together with Oghma and a remorseful Bahamut, they guided the conclave of wizards through the complicated spellcasting. The ringing of clashing swords echoed outside, and shockwaves shook the city under siege. There was no stopping the events set in motion by Oghma anymore. The wizards' chants grew louder until reaching a crescendo when a wave of energy erupted from the casting chamber, passing through the wizards and erasing every god present in an instant. The energy shimmered with every color as it expanded outwards throughout the city and beyond.

Wherever the swirl of colors went, silence followed as arcane war machines crumbled and fantastical creatures such as angels and dragons fell to the ground choking as if unable to breathe. Once energy reached the sky, it caused a vast aurora to carpet the night sky for hours that extinguished even the stars themselves. The wizards felt their powers wane in their fingertips, and they knew that their deed had changed the world of Exether forever.

Age of man

Following the creation, and subsequent razing, of Exether, a post-magic world was now left to rise from the ashes and begin a new era. While every region had its own rebirth following the terrible destruction of the Calamity, the continent that now bears the name of this setting shall remain the focus.

Draconic Anarchy

During the age of gods, the dragons had created a servitor race of draconic humanoids dubbed the dragonborn. The dragonborn could integrate much better into mortal societies thanks to their size and shape, where they carried out their masters' bidding as emissaries and artisans. They served loyally and with pride, right up until the extinction of dragonkind.

Without their overlords, the dragonborn found themselves without purpose, and their society collapsed into anarchy. While humans were carving up the known world, the dragonborn spiraled into madness and idolatry. The most deranged of the dragonborn began devolving into diminutive caricatures of themselves due to an affliction called the dragonblight, becoming known as kobolds. Dragonborn clans usually exiled Kobolds, who often settled in old dragon lairs or wherever they found draconic remains, which they worshipped as gods.

Most of the clans that survived the initial period of anarchy retreated to their ancestral homeland in the dragon isles, where they found a new purpose in protecting ancient artifacts and contraptions from falling into unworthy hands.

Sparkpowder Dynasties

In the far west on the isle of Dornod, a miraculous invention of the hobgoblin Yulug Dynasty changed goblinkind forever. Sparkpowder, also known as Yulug salts, could bring bountiful harvests back to a barren field in a single season or be turned into a weapon against energies thanks to its explosive properties.

This invention allowed the Yulug Dynasty to subjugate other goblinoids on Dornod and reorganize goblin society into a strict caste system. In this new society, hobgoblins held the ranks of leaders, bureaucrats, and artisans; the bugbears became professional soldiers, peacekeepers, and drudges; and on the bottom of the ladder, small goblins found themselves reduced to expendable conscripts and peasantry.

Goblin civilization prospered quietly at first, away from the gaze of the human kingdoms, but in the years leading up to the Nightfall, their presence became increasingly tangible. Goblin raiding parties became more organized and frequent, ships flying Yulug banners began appearing on the western seas, and humankind could no longer dismiss them as disorganized primitives.

Lost Frontiers

Humans possess an innate drive to explore the unknown and tame the wilderness. Human settlements existed far beyond Dumonian borders, in places not even the most renowned cartographers had inked into maps. Conquerors would arrive to claim remote islands only to find others living there already.

Yet only the brave and foolish dared to sail southeast to the continent of Locari. There were many reports of mysteriously failed expeditions, vanishing colonies, and the supposed monstrous natives of the continent. Those who lived to tell the tale of their travels often became madmen spouting nonsense in the streets about the likes of snake men, land-dwelling mollusks, glittering dragons, and even mind-altering sorcery.

Locari became shrouded in superstition, and anything or anyone related to it became regarded as a bad omen. While some human presence might have survived there, no captain would agree to sail near it until modern times.

The Nightfall

Since Urik Romhaar's descendants created a multi-continental empire, the Dumonian capital of Halstal has been the de-facto center of the world. The empire was quick to squash growing threats outside its borders to maintain this reputation, usually through pre-emptive wars to subjugate and, in rare cases, raze rival kingdoms to the ground.

It was rather unexpected then that the forces that would finally upset the balance of power would come not just from inside the empire but from the poor and arid province of Khus. Khus was a dry valley surrounded by mountains that blocked most rainfall and wind. It was sparsely populated apart from groups of nomadic peoples that led goats to graze on the occasional shrubs and small elven communities on the mountainsides. Not much happened there since Dumonian soldiers planted a flag in the desert and claimed it as part of their domain during the year 346 of the mortal era.

He taught his new classes about a force of nature that had been dormant for ages, locked away by powers unknown. He told them of scrolls that he transcribed from the libraries of Akhethor that contained descriptions of spells thought to be ancient superstition. And finally, he told them how the land of Khus was extraordinary, for it was the only place where any of those ancient incantations worked and even then, only by performing the simplest rituals. He said it would take years of practice to revitalize a desert as he did, but those eager to learn and practice would create miracles of their own.

Age of Stars

Following the destruction of Khus, the sun remained obscured for five days and five nights, during which time various magical phenomena ravaged the world and stars lit up the sky for the first time in a millenium. Creatures known only in myths and legends began appearing in the woods, spirits rose from their graves, and children were born with glowing marks on their skin. The wizards of Khus succeeded with their ritual to empower magic at great cost and broke the limits of the old world forever.

The southwestern province of Thiral was effectively cut off from the rest of the empire for days as its lush forests overgrew every road leading in or out. Every region in between faced some unique calamity, which only exasperated the plight of the people and their feeling of abandonment by the empire.

Cloudsilver

Veins of a new silvery metal began appearing near the old dwarven vaults after the resurgence of the petrified clans. This metal is strange because it slowly floats upwards in its pure form. The dwarves believe that it is a manifestation of the spirits of the dwarves that died before waking up, their souls yearning for the open skies.

Dubbed cloudsilver, dwarves treasure this metal and use it to develop airships and other flying wonders. Smithing using cloudsilver is of great cultural significance to the dwarves, who adorn anything crafted using it with elaborate runes detailing stories of their ancestors to honor their spirits. While venturing underground has become taboo in dwarven society, special exemptions are made for those that brave the dark tunnels to recover cloudsilver.

Gnomish Retribution

Even after the Nightfall, the gnomes of western Zalaron found themselves helpless against the people of Blumshafen. Humans had better weapons, and their size gave them a natural advantage in battle. Every year humans would encroach further upon gnome territory, expanding their farms by cutting down trees and building houses where gnomes once lived.

Elven Societies

The elves of Exether have been divided since the age of gods. Most elves left the continent of Zalaron to journey southwards, never to return. Those that stayed have either integrated into human societies, or maintained their way of life in remote towns and villages.

As the human population dwindled, elves inherited Teferet and finally had a land of their own for the first time since the age of gods. In these valleys, they created a society focused on magical study and harmony with the natural world, away from the growing industry of humanity.

Faiths of Exether

The divine banishment of ages past created a powerful barrier around the Material Plane that sealed the deities within their respective domains in hopes of salvaging the new age and preventing further destruction. The Nightfall severely damaged this barrier, allowing some influence to seep in from the outer planes but not enough for the gods for gods to manifest on Exether. Thus, the gods patiently watch their creations from beyond the veil, lending what small power they can send through the stars that mark the gaps in the barrier to aid the goals of their faithful

The people of Exether had close contact with the gods in ancient times, and many modern religions still pay homage to the old pantheons that created and guided their respective races. The absence of gods since the divine banishment has led to religious beliefs have becoming more fluid. Some pantheons abandoned in favor of new deities or entirely different beliefs about the nature of the world. The spread of people across Zalaron and Noricum allowed religions to intermingle, and individual gods could be absorbed into more popular pantheons or worshipped through multiple different faiths.

The Church of Man was the dominant faith of the Dumonian Empire and holds sway over most of Zalaron and Noricum-except for Ravik, which favors the Creed of Hasal. Other religions connect specific cultures or communities; the Vandori observe the Astral Path, and the Seldarine sects guide the elves of Exether.

Religion is especially important for a paladin, cleric, or druid, yet any character can have faith in a higher power. Following a religion is a way to give your character a deeper connection to the world and a bond to other members of the community. The Foundation of Faith table can provide ideas for the source of your beliefs.

Conversely, a lack of faith can also be a meaningful part of your story. If you don't believe in any divine power, what caused such doubt? The Rejection of Faith table offers ideas that can help shape your story.

Seldarine Sects

• Create, inspire, and find beauty in all that you do.
• Follow the echoes of lost magics, forgotten sites, and ancient art, for within these lie the Protector's first works.
• Combat the followers of darkness wherever they might be.

All elves used to follow the gods of the Seldarine, but the fracturing of elven society has created multiple branches of the faith that disagree about the interpretations of their gods. The elves that remained on Zalaron have worked hard to preserve their beliefs in the face of human domination, and their faith is the most traditional one. The High elves and some half-elves of Zalaron follow what is known as the Orthodox Seldarine, which puts particular importance on magic and arts in order to emulate the chief deity Corellon.

The wood elves spent centuries isolated from civilization and their kin, and the nature-focused gods of the seldarine, such as Rillifane, have supplanted the likes of Corellon and Angharradh in importance. The wild seldarine emphasizes harmony with nature and living off the land, eschewing arcane magic. This sect has spread beyond elvenkind, attracting followers among forest gnomes and druids.

The drow elves come from a matriarchal society, and reflect this in their religious views. The Southern Seldarine brings the female gods to prominence, especially Corellon's first wife, Araushnee, who serves as the head of the pantheon. This revision has proven very controversial with the elves of Zalaron, who believe that Araushnee betrayed Corellon. The drow also believe in several gods previously unknown to Zalaron, including Araushnee's and Corellon's supposed daughter Eilistraee that has dominion over moonlight. Eilistraee is especially important among the Southern Seldarine owing to the drow's nocturnal lifestyle and the apparent disappearance of Araushnee.

Mordinsamman

• We are the spiritual anchors of the greatest champions of our people. Through our faith, we keep their spirits from being lost to oblivion.
• You have been chosen by a hero. Live your life as they lived theirs, letting their instincts guide you.
• Treasure our past and the stories of our people. You are the vessel through which new legends will arise.

Dwarven religion is based on the veneration
of ancestors. Dwarves deem any ancestor of their
clan to be worthy of worship, but especially heroic
figures can earn the admiration all dwarves
irregardles of clan ties. The commonly known gods
of the Mordinsamman (a dwarven term meaning
"shield brothers on high") are the most powerful and
widely worshipped ancestors in dwarven
history, whose deeds have elevated them to divinity.

The dwarven faith has changed the least of any
religion since the Age of Gods. The dwarves that
spent almost a millenium inside their vaults kept
praciticing all of their old rites upon waking up. The
only significant addition has been the appearance of cloudsilver, which dwarves believe contain a
manifestation of ancestor spirits. Tools, vehicles and
jewelry containing cloudsilver have become sacred, and dwarves believe them to be sentient.

For reasons unknown, some of the dwarves woke up in their vaults ahead of time, with the failed petrification
spell leaving their skin permanently greyed. Believing themselves to have been forsaken by their ancestors, these dwarves retreated into the ancient dwarven mines and tunnels, where they adopted the resentful exiled god Laduguer as their new chief deity.

While the vast of majority of followers of the Astral Path are vandori, the path also teaches to be welcoming to strangers and hospitable, and it is possible for anyone that travels with a vandori band to adopt their beliefs.

Gem Dragonborn of Locari

According to dragonborn legend, the dragon gods Bahamut and Tiamat sent their first-born son Sardior, the first of the gem dragons, southeast to contain the influence of the far realm. These dragonborn have spent the past millennium battling the armies of mind flayers.

Unlike the dragonborn of Zalaron, the dragonborn of Locari have been able to nourish their dragon overlords using psionic magic during the age of man, albeit by forcing them into deep hibernation. These dragons are now being nursed back to strength, eager to continue their crusade against the plane of madness.

The growing dumonian colonies on the coast of Locari have created an opportunity for these dragonborn to interact with the larger world of Exether, but it may require something drastic for a gem dragonborn to abandon their home and duty.

Dwarves

Claustrophobia is the fear of closed spaces. For example: I am going to the tavern and I'm scared that it's closed.

Forest gnomes

Forest gnomes believe that the gnomes of Ravik have lost their way and reject their cousins' martial culture, use of necromancy, and industrialization. They uphold the traditional gnomish way of life that avoids disrupting nature and values beasts as equal members of society.

Forest gnomes get along well with wood elves, druidic circles, and other guardians of nature, but are otherwise suspicious of newcomers. Reluctantly, they accept protection from Ravik which has vowed to guard the ancient forest homes of the gnomes from outside forces.

Goblinoids

Maybe the hobgoblins will figure out a way to declare war on poverty and illiteracy to save the sorry state of their nation.

Humans

Humans invented clocks and now despair upon hearing time tick away.

Mousefolk Traits

Your Mousefolk character has a number of traits in common with all other Mousefolk.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2.

Age. A Mousefolk reaches adulthood at the age of 5 and lives to be about 40 years old.

Alignment. Most Mousefolk are neutral, and tend towards good. They try to keep the conflicts of the other races at arm's length, but display remarkable ferocity when their friends, families, or communities are threatened. A reverence for nature and life is close to the heart of Mousefolk, and they are loath to take a life if it can be avoided. They prefer to live quiet and unassuming lives, giving honest work for honest pay.

Size. Mousefolk grow between 2 and 2 1/2 feet tall and weigh about 25 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Keen Senses. You have proficiency in the Stealth skill.

Mousefolk Weapon Training. You have proficiency with the rapier, shortsword, shortbow, and handaxe.

Nimble Dodge. When a creature you can see makes an Opportunity Attack against you, you may use your reaction to impose disadvantage on that attack.

Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Squeak Speak. Mousefolk place great value on the written accounts of their legends and histories, and encourage everyone to keep journals and records of their deeds. Almost all Mousefolk speak Common to converse with the people on whose lands they dwell or through which they are traveling.

Subrace. The two main kinds of Mousefolk, Softpaw and Meadowgard, are more like closely related families than true subraces. Choose one of these subraces.

Softpaw

As a Softpaw Mousefolk, you avoid the dangers of the untamed wilds for the security of civilization. Your bookish nature gives you an edge in the arcane studies and a knack for trade skills and craft. The mark of the Softpaw is a seal of the utmost quality. A Softpaw's natural dexterity and keen intellect make them desirable contract thieves and infiltrators.

Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by 1.

Artistry. You gain proficiency with one type of artisan's tools or one musical instrument

Squirm. You can move through tiny sized spaces as if you were tiny size.

Meadowguard

As a Meadowgard Mousefolk, you make your living in the wilds. You have keen senses, deep intuition, and a connection with nature that few other races can boast. The Meadowgard stand staunchly at the edge of civilization, knowing that their eyes are the first alarm and their body and blade are the last bulwark of countless others.

They have an unwavering sense of duty and a lifetime of experience which keeps them sharp against the dangers of the world.

With an Eider's blessing some Meadowgard leave the service of their clans to travel the world and record their journeys.

Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 1.

Brave. You have advantage on saving throws against being frightened.

Speak With Small Beasts. Through sounds and gestures, you can communicate simple ideas with Small or smaller beasts.

Mutant Hybrids

Tentacles, claws, maybe next time they'll add a conscience?

Half-Orcs of Exether

With the rise of the Astral Consortium, especially the Jolly Company, orcs and half-orcs have increasingly been recruited as experienced exterminators, sellswords, and adventurers. The Penurious Band also operates in the Dark Morass and maintains good relations with the orcs.

In general, the people of Zalaron know little about half-orcs. When people imagine a half-orc, they usually think of a monster slayer or hired muscle, and a few ignorant sorts might still hold the stereotype of a "simpleton from the swamps."

But some prominent orcs and half-orcs break the mold, such as the half-orc Krothu, who teaches supernatural anatomy at Corliostor university; or the scores of orcs that have risen through the ranks of the Jolly Company to administrative positions and spend their days stamping orders from cozy offices.

Tieflings

Sufficiently organized crime is indistinguishable from government.

Warforged Names

for use in military service. Many of them adopted nicknames, often given to them by their comrades. As independent individuals, some have chosen new names as a way to express their path in life. A few take on human names, often the name of a fallen friend or mentor.

Warforged Names: Anchor, Banner, Bastion, Blade, Blue, Bow, Cart, Church, Crunch, Crystal, Dagger, Dent, Five, Glaive, Hammer, Iron, Lucky, Mace, Oak, Onyx, Pants, Pierce, Red, Rod, Rusty, Scout, Seven, Shield, Slash, Smith, Spike, Temple, Vault, Wall

Warforged Traits

Your warforged character has the following traits. A few of the traits give you a choice; consider how your choice reflects the purpose for which your character was built.

Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 2, and one other ability score of your choice increases by 1.

Age. A typical warforged is between two and thirty years old. The maximum warforged lifespan remains a mystery;
so far, warforged have shown no signs of deterioration due
to age. You are immune to magical aging effects.

Alignment. Most warforged take comfort in order and discipline, tending toward law and neutrality. But some have absorbed the morality, or lack thereof, of the beings with which they served.

Size. Your size is Medium. To set your height and
weight randomly, start with rolling a size modifier:

Size modifier = 2d6
Height = 5 feet + 10 i nches + your size modifier in inches
Weight in pounds = 270 + (4 x your size modifier)

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet

Constructed Resilience. You were created to have remarkable fortitude, represented by the following benefits:

• You have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned, and you have resistance to poison damage.

• You don't need to eat, drink, or breathe.

• You are immune to disease.

• You don't need to sleep, and magic can't put you to sleep.

Sentry's Rest. When you take a long rest, you must spend at least six hours in an inactive, motionless state, rather than sleeping. In this state, you appear inert, but it doesn't render you unconscious, and you can see and hear as normal.

Integrated Protection. Your body has built-in defensive layers, which can be enhanced with armor:

• You gain a +l bonus to Armor Class.

• You can don only armor with which you have proficiency. To don armor, you must incorporate it into your body over the course of 1 hour, during which you remain in contact with the armor. To doff armor, you must spend 1 hour removing it. You can rest while donning or doffing armor in this way.

• While you live, your armor can't be removed from your body against your will.

Specialized Design. You gain one skill proficiency and one tool proficiency of your choice.

Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Gnomish.

The Phoenix

Since birth, your heart has burned with a supernatural passion. You can command flames like a well trained dog and your affinity makes you a stranger to chills.

Cantrip. You know the control flames cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for this spell.

Arid Champion You're naturally adept to hot climates, as described in Chapter 5 of the Dungeon Master's Guide. Additionally, you only need to drink half as much as a regular member of your race to remain hydrated.

Sentient Host

Occultist

An Occultist is an artificer with a fascination for the undead and the afterlife. They may hold long stakeouts in graveyards and haunted sightings, or explore the ruins of an ancient tomb or burial site in order to learn more about the spirits of the afterlife. An adept Occultist is able to capture these spirits for use in their own inventions, and even commune with them.

Super Soldiers

War drives innovation, and over the course of a century of conflict the nations of Exether explored many paths in search of the perfect weapon. The warforged were built for battle, and many class features can be interpreted as specialized design features. As a warforged barbarian, your “rage” is a battle surge boosting your musculature to increase your damage, reinforce your armor, and reduce injuries. The Path of the Berserker is a simple choice for this, but the Path of the Totem Warrior or the Path of the Storm Herald can easily represent specialized design. A “bear totem” reflects your superior bulwark of armor instead of spiritual devotion.

While everyone in Zalaron has heard of the warforged, a warforged barbarian is a rare design from one of the many secret research programs that aren’t so well known. Notably, Ceraun is known for the practice of using magic to breed beasts with enhanced abilities and mystical capabilities, called magebreeding. Perhaps a branch of chirurgeons attempted to extend this research to humanoids and had a breakthrough, and your “barbarian” is the product of that program. Your Rage reflects a massive surge of adrenaline. Your Unarmored Defense might be sheer toughness and will, or you could literally have natural armor. A magebred barbarian could follow any path, though the Extreme Explorer presented here is an obvious choice for a character who relies on powerful bursts of adrenaline.

In making such a character, work with your DM to work out the details of your past. Were you part of a unit of super soldiers, or a lone success? Are you a free agent? Do you have ties to a nation or house? Or are you a renegade, hunted by those who created you?

Thiralian Champions

The people of Thiral aren’t savages. Its farmlands were once part of the Dumonian Empire and while many of its farmers have adopted the druidic faiths, their grandparents were Dumonian. The Fleurian Knights and the other druidic sects serve as a bridge between these two cultures, tempering the wildness of the woods and helping the farmers find a balance with the natural world.

The elite forces of Fleurian Knights are often rangers, paladins and druids, but there are a few champions who draw primal strength from the natural world. The Path of the Totem Warrior is an easy way to represent this. However, the Path of the Storm Herald could reflect a touch of druidic magic and primal power. The Path of the Berserker can be a good match for an Ashbound champion; the Ashbound see themselves as the avengers of the natural world and vessels of Exether’s fury.

As an Thiralian champion, you’re not barbaric. You may have grown up in the Brécheliant Woods, but you understand the ways of the civilized world… even if you may think it corrupt and foul. When creating your character, consider what has drawn you from your beloved woods? Are you tied to one of the druidic sects and serving its goals? Or are you driven by curiosity, or instincts you can’t explain?

Divine Domains

At 1st level, a cleric gains the Divine Domain feature, which offers you the choice of a subclass. The following options are available to you when making that choice: Fate Domain, Pantheon Domain.

Wordly Focus

1st-level Fate Domain feature

You have spent countless hours studying the portfolios of deities across your pantheons, and learned to acknowledge their influence all around you in both peace and war. You gain proficiency in martial weapons and can use any weapon you are proficient with as a spellcasting focus for your cleric spells.

Channel Divinity: Omnitheist

2nd-level Fate Domain feature

Your belief in the omnipresence of the gods allows you to call upon the goodwill of any divine presence in the pantheon. As an action, you can use your Channel Divinity to choose one spell from any domain spell list. For the next 10 minutes, you can cast this spell as if it were a domain spell for you. The spell must be from the same level of spells you would gain access to at your level.

Encouraging Whispers

6th-level Fate Domain feature

Starting at 6th level, while you are concentrating on a cleric spell, you add your Wisdom modifier (minimum of 1) to concentration checks made to maintain your spell.

Divine Balance

8th-level Fate Domain feature

Starting at 8th level, you gain the ability to infuse your attacks with divine energy. Once on each of your turns when you hit a creature with a weapon attack or deal damage with one of your cleric cantrips, you add your Wisdom modifier to the damage you deal.

Jack of all Prayers

17th-level Fate Domain feature

At 17th level, choose five spells from any domain spell list (the five needn’t be from the same list), one from each of the following levels of the table: 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 9th. Like your other domain spells, they are always prepared and count as cleric spells for you.

Druidic Circles

At 2nd level, a druid gains the Druid Circle feature, which offers you the choice of a subclass. The following options are available to you when making that choice: Circle of the Hybrid, and Circle of Living Stone.

Druidic Golem

Medium construct

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• Armor Class 15 (natural armor)
• Hit Points 6 + 6 times your druid level
• Speed 30 ft.

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
16 (+3)	10 (+0)	16 (+3)	3 (-3)	12 (+1)	3 (-3)

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• Damage Immunities poison
• Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned
• Senses passive Perception 10
• Languagess understands the languages you speak

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Actions

Bash. Melee Weapon Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, reach 5 ft., one target you can see. Hit 1d8 + PB bludgeoning damage.

Create Henge (Recharge 4-6). The golem magically creates a stone or wooden pillar at a point you can see within 30 feet of it. A pillar is a cylinder with a 5 foot radius and a height of up to 15 feet. A creature within the cylinder’s area when it is created must make a Dexterity saving throw using your spell save DC, taking 2d6 bludgeoning damage on a failure. Any creatures within the cylinder’s area are shunted to the nearest unoccupied space outside of it. Any pillars created this way disappear when the golem disappears

Reactions

Runic Sentinel. When a creature enters a space within 5 feet of the golem, the golem makes a Bash attack against that creature. If the attack hits, the target’s speed is reduced to 0 until the start of the golem’s next turn. dawn.

Earth Carver

Starting at 6th level, you can cast Mold Earth as a bonus action. When you do so, you can target up to three 5 foot cubes of earth. In addition, you may produce up to three non-instantaneous effects with this cantrip. When you cast the spell in this way, you may still use your action to cast a spell of 1st level of higher.

Warded Markers

At 10th level, your magic creates mystical invisible barriers between your golem’s pillars. These barriers fill a 10 foot wide line between any two pillars, and effect creatures up to the same height as the shortest connected pillar.

The barriers act as difficult terrain for creatures of your choice, and ranged attacks of your choice that pass through a barrier are made with disadvantage.

Golem Monolith

At 14th level, your knowledge of living stone allows your golem to grow to great sizes. When you summon your druidic golem, you can choose to make it grow up to Huge size, filling a 15 by 15 foot space. If there is not enough room for the golem to reach Huge size, it attains the maximum possible size in the space available. While this benefit is active, the golem has advantage on Strength checks and saving throws, it can use Create Henge without having to recharge, and it gains temporary hit points equal to twice your level when first summoned.

Once you use this feature, you cannot use it again until you finish a long rest.

Ivory Legionnaire

3rd-level Bone Knight feature

At 3rd level, you gain the aid of an undead warhorse skeleton to ride into battle. You also gain a skeleton protector that accompanies you on your conquest. It acts on your initiative and obeys your commands in battle. Add your proficiency bonus to its attack rolls and damage rolls, as well as any saving throws it is proficient in, and it gains hit points equal to your fighter level. If your mount or protector dies, you can spend 1 hour to reanimate each corpse, which you can do over the course of a short rest. At 10th level, your skeleton protector becomes a dread warrior.

Bonecraft

7th-level Bone Knight feature

Your spiritual connection with the composition of the undead legion bestows your body with the gift to grow weapons and armor from within you to enhance your martial prowess on the battlefield. The first time you create your armor or your weapon, you can expend a spell slot of 1st-level or higher to increase the effectiveness of either one of your armaments. When you do, until the end of your next long rest or until you die, the armor or weapons you create with this feature become magic items, granting a +1 bonus to AC if it’s armor or a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls if it’s a weapon. The bonus the item gains is equal to the level of the spell slot you spent when you created it for the first time.

Bonecraft Armor. You can use your action to encase yourself in a suit of segmented, bonecraft armor. When you do, your Armor Class becomes 10 + your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus. While your bonecraft armor envelops you, you can’t benefit from wearing armor, but if you are using a shield, you can apply the shield’s bonus as normal. You remain protected in this way until you absorb the armor (no action required), or you die.

Bonecraft Weapon. You can use your bonus action to produce a weapon of hardened bone from your body in your empty hand. You can choose the form the weapon takes each time you grow it. Your bonecraft weapon becomes brittle and breaks if it is more than 5 feet away from you for 1 minute or more. It also crumbles to dust if you use this feature again, if you absorb the weapon (no action required), or if you die.

Masteer of the Ivory Banner

10th-level Bone Knight feature

When you use your Second Wind feature, you add your proficiency bonus to the hit points you regain, and your undead allies within 60 feet of you gain temporary hit points equal to the total number you regain.

Death Strike

15th-level Bone Knight feature

When you hit a creature with a melee or ranged attack using your bonecraft weapon, you can expend one spell slot to cause the weapon to deal 1d10 extra damage to the target. This damage increases by 1d10 for each spell level higher than 1st, to a maximum of 4d10. The damage increases by 1d10 if the target is undead.

Grim Conscription

18th-level Bone Knight feature

At 18th level, you prowess on the battlefield is respected by legions of undead. As an action, you can assume command of a number of undead creatures from a willing summoner or you can force any undead you can see within 30 feet of you to make a Charisma saving throw against your spell save DC or fall under your command. If a creature succeeds on this saving throw, you can’t use this feature on it again. If it fails, it falls under your command and obeys your orders for the next 24 hours.

Intelligent undead are harder to control in this way. If the target has an Intelligence of 8 or higher, it has advantage on the saving throw. If it fails the saving throw and has an Intelligence of 12 or higher, it can repeat the saving throw at the end of every hour until it succeeds and breaks free.

Your undead legion can’t have a cumulative challenge rating greater than your Fighter level. Once you use this feature, you can’t do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

Intensive Care

7th-level Field Medic feature

Your studies progress, allowing for more sophisticated treatments. You double your proficiency bonus for the Medicine skill and gain the following features:

Convalescence. At the end of a short or long rest, you can treat up to six resting creatures, and can make a healing kit by harvesting flora and fauna available nearby. Healing kits made in this way are obviously crude and generally unsellable. Each target adds half your Medicine skill modifier to hit points regained from spending Hit Dice at the end of their rest and to any Constitution saving throws it makes then.
Field Surgery. When a creature regains hit points with your First Aid effect, you can double the hit points it regains and use your Paramedicine feature on it. If you do, you can't use this feature again until you complete a short or long rest.

Anatomical Studies

10th-level Field Medic feature

You can assess a foe's anatomy with great insight and precision, identifying key points of weakness.

As an action, you can make a Wisdom(Medicine) check targeting a creature you can see with a DC equal to 10 plus its distance from you in feet. If you succeed on this check, you know whether the target has at least half of its maximum hit points, if it's affected by any diseases or poisons, and any damage vulnerabilities, immunities and resistances it has.

Furthermore, until the end of your next turn, your weapon attacks against the target deal extra damage equal to your Medicine skill modifier.

Swift Resuscitation

15th-level Field Medic feature

With a physician's skill, you learn how to forcibly wrench the recently dead back into their mortal coil.

As an action, you can spend one use of a held healer's kit to make a DC 25 Wisdom(Medicine) check targeting a dead creature you can see and touch. On a success, the target returns to life with 1 hit point if it's not an undead or construct, died within the past minute, and didn't die
from old age. The target can't be revived in this
way again until it completes a short or long rest.

Doctorate of Battle

18th-level Field Medic feature

Your talents at life saving triage and medicine become legendary. You gain the following benefits:

War Physician. You can now use your Swift Resuscitation feature as a bonus action. You can now use your Field Surgery feature twice between rests.
Ounce of Prevention. Your Convalescence feature grants up to two of its targets advantage on Constitution saving throws or resistance to poison and necrotic damage for 1 hour (you choose for each target).
Pound of Cure. A creature revived by your Swift Resuscitation feature regains hit points equal to that feature's Wisdom(Medicine) check result plus your Fighter level.

Monastic Traditions

At 3rd level, a monk gains the Monastic Tradition feature, which offers you the choice of a subclass. The following options are available to you when making that choice: Way of the Hourglass or Way of the Opened Eye.

Psionic Style

3rd-level Way of the Opened Eye feature

The honing of your mind has been undertaken with the same rigor as the honing of your body, allowing you to extend the strength of your will in tandem with your physical movements. You gain the following benefits:

• Your unarmed strikes have a range of 30 feet, and you do not need to physically move to attack with them. As part of the Attack action, you can spend 1 ki point to extend the range of your unarmed strikes to 60 feet until the start of your next turn.

• Once per turn, you can replace one of your unarmed strikes with a telekinetic push applied to a creature or object within range. An unwilling target makes a Strength saving throw against your Ki save DC. If the save fails, you can knock the target prone or move it up to 10 feet in any direction horizontally.

• You can use your Deflect Missiles feature to defend any target within range of your unarmed strikes.

Ascendant Serenity

6th-level Way of the Opened Eye feature

Standing still as a pillar, you can nonetheless move as freely as flowing thought. Whenever you use your Step of the Wind or Patient Defense, you gain a hover speed equal to your

movement speed that lasts until the end of your next turn.

Perfected Psionic Style

11th-level Way of the Opened Eye feature

You have merged your martial and mental abilities into a seamless flow that can strike at both mind and body. You gain the following benefits:

• When a creature fails its save against your telekinetic push, you can use your mind to grapple it. You can grapple a number of creatures up to your Wisdom modifier in this way. When you move, grappled creatures move with you as normal, remaining at the same distance from you as when they were grappled. A creature attempting to free itself from the grapple rolls against your Ki save DC.

• When you use your Flurry of Blows, you can replace one of the unarmed strikes with the mind sliver** cantrip.

Eye Unblinking

17th-level Way of the Opened Eye feature

You have reached the final pinnacle of enlightenment, marked by the permanent opening of a third eye upon your forehead. You gain advantage on saving throws against being blinded, and you can no longer be surprised.

In addition, you gain truesight out to a distance of 60 feet. You can spend 5 ki points to extend the range of your truesight out to a distance of 300 feet for 1 minute

Aura of Solidarity

7th-level Oath of the Common Man feature

Whenever you or a friendly creature within 10 feet of you takes damage, you may choose to instead divide that damage evenly between all willing friendly targets within this aura, rounding up fractions to the nearest whole hit point.

At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.

Revolutionary Spirit

15th-level Oath of the Common Man feature

You may take the Help action as a bonus action on each of your turns. In addition, you inherently have advantage on all Charisma checks involving interaction with laborers and the common man.

Strength of the People

20th-level Oath of the Common Man feature

You can transform yourself into a larger-than-life icon of the working class and their revolutionary struggle. Using your action, you can gain the following benefits for 1 minute, as long as you can see or hear a conscious friendly creature:

• You grow to large size and your equipm,ent grows with you, doubling your reach and movement speed.
• At the Start of each of their turns, any friendly creature that can see or hear you (including yourself) gains a number of temporary hit points equal to your Charisma modifier.
• As a bonus action on your turn, you may apply the benefits of the Help action to a number of friendly creatures equal to half your Charisma modifier, rounded up (minimum 1), within 30 feet of you and that can see or hear you.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Oath of Prosperity

Not all paladins pursue lives of virtue or nobility. Some more worldly paladins swear an Oath of Prosperity and dedicate their lives to amassing great material wealth. Often hailing from the merchant class, or acting in the service of a great dragon, Prosperity paladins value gold over all else. To them, each action, decision, and even each life, has a value in gold.

While all those who follow the Oath of Prosperity do look out for themselves, not all operate for entirely selfish reasons. Some see material wealth, and the power that comes with it, as the most direct path to enacting change in the world.

Tenets of Prosperity

Paladins who swear this Oath adhere to a code that allows them to generate wealth. While some strictly follow the code, others have a more loose view of what constitutes wealth.

Opportunity. Before you act, you must analyze any possible benefits you could gain, whether material wealth or favors.

Investment. View everything you do as an investment. Your actions should have a pay off for you at some point in the future. Debt is a powerful force to wield over another.

Profit. Never enter into a bad deal. Each agreement that you take part in must eventually increase your ability to grow your power, influence, wealth, or overall standing in society.

Vault of Prosperity. When you cast a spell that requires a material component with a gold cost, you can invoke this Channel Divinity to reduce the required cost of the material component by an amount of gold equal to 50 times your level.

Wildlife Whisperer

3rd-level Naturalist feature

You have the ability to communicate with creatures of the natural world. As an action, you can choose a beast or plant creature you can see within 30 feet of you. The target must make a Wisdom saving throw, and does so with advantage if you or your companions are fighting it. If it fails the saving throw, it is charmed by you for up to 1 hour or until you or your companions do anything harmful to it. You can dismiss the effect early as a bonus action.

While the creature is charmed in this way, it regards you as a friendly companion and you gain the ability to comprehend and telepathically communicate with each other. When this effect ends, the creature knows it was charmed by you.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Wildlife Whisperer

7th-level Naturalist feature

You can restore magical energy by communing with nature. During a short rest in a natural environment, you choose yours or an ally’s expended spell slots to recover. The spell slots can have a combined level that is equal to or less than one third your ranger level, and none of the slots can be 4th level or higher. You can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest.

Wildlife Whisperer

11th-level Naturalist feature

You can call upon the animals of nature to aid you: you know summon beast. It doesn't count against the number of ranger spells you know, and you can cast it without a material component. You can also cast it once without a spell slot, and you regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest.

Whenever you start casting the spell, you can modify it so that it doesn't require concentration. If you do so, the spell's duration becomes 1 minute for that casting.

Wildlife Whisperer

15th-level Naturalist feature

The herbal potions you create have increased efficacy. When you create a potion of healing with your Herbal Brewer feature, you can choose from the following damage types: acid, cold, fire, lightning, thunder. A creature that ingests the potion gains resistance to the chosen damage type for 1 hour.

Scavenger

The Scavenger travels the world gathering exotic ingredients from the creatures that inhabit it. They waste nothing and find surprising uses for monster parts that others wouldn't even dare to touch. Rangers of this conclave can feed an adventuring party even in the most inhospitable of terrains.

Trick Cook

7th-level Scavenger feature

By combining your quick spice rack, handiness and your chef's instinct you can utilize your cooking knowledge to create combat-ready dishes which are detailed under “Combat Dishes” below..

When you make an attack roll you can choose to expend an ingredient die to create a combat dish. Each use of a combat dish must be declared before the attack roll is made. You can use only one combat dish per attack.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to half your ranger level rounded down.

Nerves of Steel

9th-level Ruffian feature

Fear is a weapon to be used against cowards and the weak willed, and you are not so easily intimidated. You gain immunity to the frightened condition.

Dodge and Counter

13th-level Ruffian feature

You can redirect the force of your enemies' blows against them. As a reaction when a creature that is one size larger or smaller then you misses you with a melee attack, you can force the creature to make a Dexterity saving throw. (Save DC is equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Strength modifier). On a failed save, it is knocked prone and has its speed reduced to zero until the end of your next turn, or it is grappled by you (your choice).

You must have at least one free hand at the time of this reaction in order to grapple a creature with this feature.

Ruthless Strike

17th-level Ruffian feature
You can combine a creature's fear with your deadly attacks to strike with ruthless efficiency. When you hit a creature that is frightened of you with a weapon attack or unarmed strike that includes your Sneak Attack damage, your attack becomes an automatic critical hit.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Strength modifier (minimum of once), and you regain all expended uses when you finish a short or long rest.

Extra Attack

6th-level Heroic Ancestry feature

You can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Ancestral Champion

6th-level Heroic Ancestry feature

Your connection with your ancestor has improved, allowing you call upon their strength more often. Even if you have no uses of Ancestral Avatar remaining, you can activate the feature by spending 2 sorcery points.

Inspiring Presence

14th-level Heroic Ancestry feature

You become an inspiring beacon like your ancestor before you. You are immune to the frightened condition, and friendly creatures within 30 feet of you have advantage on saving throws against being frightened.

Additionally, whenever a friendly creature other than you within 30 feet of you misses an attack, you can use your reaction to roll a d4 and add the result to its attack roll, potentially causing the attack to hit. If the attack still misses, you can spend 2 sorcery points to add an additional d4.

Hero of Legend

18th-level Heroic Ancestry feature

you have reached your full potential, and can become just as much of a heroic figure as your ancestor. When you activate your Ancestral Avatar feature, you can spend additional sorcery points to further improve the feature. For every 2 sorcery points you spend, you can gain one of the following benefits for the duration of the feature:

• You can attack three times, instead of twice, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
• You gain resistance resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical weapons.
• You gain a flying speed equal to your current walking speed.

Treasure Bound

One of your ancestors left behind a vast fortune, stowed away in some hidden corner of the world, and protected it from would-be thieves and treasure hunters through layer upon layer of wars and curses. The magics of your ancestor's treasure has seeped into your bloodline, manifesting itself within you as arcane power that shimmers like gold, both a blessing and a curse.

Whether they were a canny noble, a daring pirate, or a hoarding dragon, the magic that your ancestor imbued within their hidden treasure is irrevocably bound to you, allowing you to reach into their hoard and temporarily pluck from it objects of incredible variety and value.

Ethereal Vault

6th-level Treasure Bound feature

You can add valuable items you come across to your bound hoard, transporting and storing them into a pocket dimension. You can bond with an object you are touching by performing a ritual over the course of 1 hour, which can be done during a short rest. The object must either be a magic item or a nonmagical one worth at least 50 gold pieces. At the end of the ritual, you magically bond to the object and store it in a pocket dimension, which can hold up to 500 pounds, not exceeding a volume of 64 cubic feet. The ritual fails if you attempt to bond with an object that would overload the pocket dimension. While you are bound to an object, you can summon or dismiss it as a bonus action on your turn. It otherwise behaves as if summoned by your Manifest Treasure feature.

When you summon an object, you can choose to sever your bond to it. If you die, all of your bonds are severed, and the contents of the pocket dimension appear at your feet.

Additionally, you can spend 1 sorcery point when you use your Manifest Treasure feature to summon two objects at once. This number increases to three objects at 14th level and to four objects at 18th level.

Price of Greed

14th-level Treasure Bound feature

You learn the bestow curse spell, which counts as a sorcerer spell for you but doen't count against your number of sorcerer spells you know.

As an action, you can touch an object and cast bestow curse on it. When you cast the spell in this way, it has no effect, and the spell is instead stored in the object until it is triggered or the spell ends. You must maintain concentration of the spell as normal if it requires concentration. You can designate any creatures you choose when you cast the spell, and the spell ignores them. When a creature not designated by you comes into contact with the object, it becomes targeted by the bestow curse spell stored in the object. If the object is a weapon, a creature becomes targeted by the spell if it is hit by an attack made with it. If the object is a shield or suit of armor that is being worn, a creature becomes targeted by the spell if it grapples its wearer or hits it wearer with a melee attack while within 5 feet of it.

You can only store a bestow curse spell in one object at a time. If you use this feature to store the spell in a second object, the spell stored in the first object ends.

Boundless Hoard

18th-level Treasure Bound feature

You can manifest vast treasure from those bound to you, raining them down upon your feet. As a bonus action on your turn, you can spend up to 5 sorcery points to conjure objects from your bound hoard, choosing from the objects available to you from your Manifest Treasure feature, and send them flying towards targets within 6 feet of you. You can conjure one object per sorcery point spent, and can direct direct the objects at one target or several. Make a ranged spell attack from each object. On a hit, the target takes 2d8 force damage, and the object disappears.

Delegate Responsibility

10th-level Arcane Cabal feature

True Thought

1st-level Sphinx feature

You can open your mind to glean information on another creature. As an action, choose a creature you can see within 60 feet. You learn its creature type and race, if it is under the affect of any magic, and its name if it has one. True names, such as those of fiends, can't be learned this way. You have advantage on Wisdom (Insight) checks made against the creature for one minute.

Once you use this feature, you can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

Ancient History

1st-level Sphinx feature

Whenever you make an Intelligence (History) or Intelligence (Religion) check relating to an object you are touching, you gain a bonus to the roll equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1).

Flow of Time

6th-level Sphinx feature

Your patron grants you some of its time altering power. When a creature you can see makes an attack against a creature within 60 feet of you, you can use your reaction to alter time for the creature being attacked. The target of the attack can move up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks, potentially moving out of range and causing the attack to miss.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Way Warp

10th-level Sphinx feature

Once on each of your turns, you can teleport a number of feet up to half your walking speed to an unoccupied space you can see. Each foot of this teleportation costs 1 foot of your movement.

When you teleport this way, you can also teleport another willing creature within 30 feet of you up to 10 feet to an unoccupied space you can see. Once you teleport another creature this way, you can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

Echoing Roar

14th-level Sphinx feature

Your patron bestows upon you the ability to let out an echoing roar as an action. Each creature of your choice within 60 feet of you that can hear you takes 4d10 thunder damage and must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. A creature that fails its save becomes frightened of you for one minute. A creature frightened this way can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the condition on a success.

Once you use this feature, you can't do so again until you finish a long rest.

Pact Boon Option

When you choose your Pact Boon feature, the following option is available to you.

Subclassess

At 2nd level, a wizard gains the Arcane Tradition feature, which offers you the choice of a subclass. The following options are available to you when making that choice: School of Astrology and Hedge Magic.

Swift Cantrip

10th-level Hedge Magic feature

Casting basic magic becomes second nature to you, no more trying than a terse word or wave of a hand. When you cast a cantrip that has a casting time of 1 action, you can cast it with 1 bonus action instead. If you do, you can still cast non-cantrip spells with your action during the current turn.

Any spell cast in this way, or attack made while casting that spell or as part of that spell's effects, deals half damage and can't grant you resistance to damage.

Master of Fundaments

14th-level Hedge Magic feature

Your perfected mastery over the fundamentals of wizardry extends even to 'proper' magic. You can cast any 1st level wizard spell you have prepared at its lowest level without expending spell slots. If you do, that spell counts as a cantrip for the purpose of this subclass's features. Each such spell can only be cast in this way once between rests. Further, when casting a cantrip, you can now choose up to two of Practice Made Perfect's effects to apply to it instead of one.

Backgrounds

A background is more than a set of proficiencies and a seldom called upon feature, but rather a way to establish a deeper connection between the character and world. Through the avenue of a character’s background, a DM and player can explore the character’s history, flaws, and vices that shaped their overall story thus far. This adds depth and flavor, but it’s also a tool that a DM can use in developing adventures. If one of the characters is a soldier, the DM has room to use an old comrade-in-arms as a story hook to propel the next adventure through a plea for aid. In that same vein, perhaps the character remembers the location of an abandoned military cache that provides characters cover or supplies in a time of dire need. If a character is a noble, the character could be called upon to defend their family’s honor, or to represent the family at an important political engagement. This section presents new backgrounds tied to the setting and examines how they fit into Exether.

Suggested Characteristics

You’ve spent your life asking questions and uncovering secrets. You may be driven by insatiable curiosity, or you could have a deep belief that the people deserve to know all that can be known.

Commoner

In a world of wonderous adventurers with a myriad of interesting histories and tales, you are just a commoner. You may have what it takes to start adventuring but as far as your past is concerned you're no one of note; though that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Skill Proficiencies. Athletics and one skill of your choice.

Tool Proficiencies. One type of artisan's tools, musical instrument or gaming set.

Equipment. A set of common clothes, a set of dice or playing cards, a trinket that reminds you of home, an inexpensive item that represent your calling (such as a dagger for a rogue or holy symbol for a cleric) and a belt pouch containing 5gp.

Survival. In a pinch, the components of an astronomer's toolkit can substitute for navigator's tools, allowing you to be guided by the stars to avoid being lost at sea or in unfamiliar territory.

Stargaze. By spending at least one hour, which can be taken as part of a short or long rest, observing the heavens through your instruments, you can create a star map to study. You can make an Intelligence check while stargazing, or when studying the map later, to determine any discoveries you make about planets and stars you observe. You can also track orbiting objects, or study the cultural significance of constellations and other heavenly phenomena you map.

Planarscope

A planarscope is an esoteric piece of equipment that allows a character proficient in its use to observe and analyze the energy of other planes in the multiverse. The study of the planes and their various theoretical models is something hotly debated by specialist scholars. More pressingly, the machinations of outsiders to the Material Plane are often behind calamities befalling it that adventurers are dispatched to fix. Being forewarned with extraplanar knowledge goes a long way to being forearmed against such beings.

Components. A planarscope's design is unique to its creator, but it typically comprises a series of discs made of refined gemstones that correspond with different planes. Most designs incorporate a shallow central scrying lens which the discs can be rotated into, and a brass dial for calibrating the scope. Only the most advanced planarscopes boast a full set of discs: most hold between three and eight.

Arcana. This tool proficiency grants you specialist insight when making Intelligence (Arcana) checks related to planar portals or the magic employed by extraplanar beings.

Nature. When analysing a creature native to a plane you can observe with this tool, your proficiency aids you in identifying its unique natural features and dangers.

Perception. Your proficiency with a planarscope helps you to spot all the tell-tale signs of a planar anomaly.

Persuasion. This tool proficiency grants you additional information about a creature's native plane you can use for leverage in conversation, if you have previously observed it.

 Survival. When on a plane you are not native to, your proficiency with a planarscope can help you to navigate an otherwise alien landscape.

Observe Plane. You can focus your planarscope to learn current information about locations on other planes. As an action, you can make an Intelligence or Dexterity check to use the scope to see into the Border Ethereal, or a point that you choose in another plane that you know of, using a disc corresponding to that plane. The DCs of the check are provided below. You can see in detail up to a mile in any direction from your vantage point, as if zooming in with a lens. The information you receive is purely visual. Any planar disturbances or portals within your sight are clearly highlighted to you in intense coloration. Whilst using the planarscope in this way, you have disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks regarding your surroundings.

The people of Achon are now constantly on edge, never sure who they can trust. The government has enacted strict measures to root out changelings and mimics, including regular magical scans and invasive interrogations. As a result, the population is deeply divided, with many living in fear of being accused of being a shapeshifter.

Despite the chaos, there are still those who practice magic in Achon. The nation was once home to some of the most powerful wizards in the world, and their legacy lives on. The few remaining wizards are highly sought after, their services in great demand among those who can afford them. But even they are not immune to the paranoia that grips the nation, and many have become reclusive, hiding away in their towers and laboratories.

The future of Achon is uncertain. The people of the nation are caught in a constant state of fear and suspicion, never sure who to trust. But there are whispers of hope, rumors of a way to reverse the cataclysm and restore the land to its former glory. For now, the people of Achon continue to struggle on, living in a world forever changed by magic.

The Clansraad

Type: Monarchy
Symbol:
Leadership: Empress X Romhaar
Preferred zodiac brands:

The Clansraad is a complex and cutthroat organization that serves as a counterbalance to the power of the emperor in Dumonia. Comprised of powerful clans from all corners of the empire, the Clansraad is a parliament-like body that wields significant influence over Dumonian politics.

The clans that make up the Clansraad are fiercely competitive, each seeking to advance their own interests at the expense of their rivals. This competition can be intense, with members engaging in backroom deals, betrayals, and power plays to gain an advantage.

Despite the often contentious relationships between the clans, the Clansraad operates as a cohesive body with a shared goal of protecting the interests of Dumonia and its people. The organization has the power to pass laws, make policy decisions, and even remove the emperor from power if necessary.

Vozmead Peaks

Type: Skyhold
Symbol:
Leadership:
Preferred zodiac brands: Storm-giant

The skyhold of house Vozmead is the largest and most prosperous of the dwarven skyholds in Zalaron. The dwarves have settled on the peaks of the Wyrmspire mountain range and have built intricate structures into the cliffs and rock faces. They have harnessed the power of Cloudsilver to create magnificent airships, which are essential for trade and transportation across the continent, earning them significant clout in international dealings.

The dwarves of Vozmead Peaks have long been known for their ingenious engineering and resourcefulness. With limited land to farm on the mountainside, they have developed a system of irrigated terraces that use glacier water to grow crops and provide a reliable source of water that is otherwise scarce in the Nogi Sands below the mountains.

These terraces are carefully built into the mountainside to capture the maximum amount of sunlight and are irrigated by a complex network of aqueducts and channels that bring water down from the melting glaciers.

The crops grown on these terraces are diverse and well-suited to the harsh mountain climate. The dwarves cultivate grains, fruits, and vegetables, as well as raise livestock like goats and sheep. These mountain farms have become an essential source of food for both the dwarves themselves and the surrounding drow settlements.

Vyndurvoht

Type: Skyhold
Symbol:
Leadership:
Preferred zodiac brands: Storm-giant

The Library Fortress of Vyndurvoht is a marvel of dwarven architecture and engineering situated in the Stormguard mountains between Khus and Achon. The fortress is built into the rocky mountainside, with intricate tunnels and winding passageways leading to vast chambers filled with ancient tomes, rare scrolls, and priceless artifacts. The dwarves of Vyndurvoht are known throughout the land for their mastery of languages, history, and lore, and the fortress is one of the largest repositories of knowledge in the world.

For many dwarves, the service here is almost unbearable, with the cramped and stifling environment triggering constant anxiety and fear. Yet, those who endure it and protect the vault's secrets are hailed as heroes, admired for their incredible fortitude and courage in the face of such overwhelming anguish.

Vyndurvoht is nigh unassailable, being only accessible by Airship, or by climbing up the treacherous mountainside. This strategic advantage has helped it stand the test of time and has protected a trove of ancient knowledge comparable only to that of Akhethor.

Orbea

Type: Skyhold
Symbol:
Leadership:
Preferred zodiac brands: Storm-giant

Orbea, the city of mazes, is a magnificent dwarven skyhold situated in western Zalaron where the Rockclaw Badlands meet the sea. Its streets are narrow and winding, and it is easy for outsiders to get lost in its labyrinthine alleys. The city's architecture is a blend of sandstone and terracotta, with intricate carvings and sculptures adorning every building. Guard towers and airships keep watch over the surrounding desert and sea, warning of orcish raiding parties.

The dwarves of Orbea are master artisans and traders, renowned for their metalworking and jewelry making skills. The city's markets are filled with exotic goods from far-off lands, and traders from across the world come to Orbea to buy and sell. The city's port is bustling with activity, with fishing boats and trading ships coming and going at all hours.

Despite its beauty and prosperity, Orbea is a dangerous place for outsiders. The dwarves here are fiercely protective of their home and their secrets, and strangers who venture too far from the main streets may find themselves lost forever in the city's endless maze of tunnels and caverns.

Druidic shit

City states

Wasteland explorers

Fremen

Sorcerors, wizard society

Cool sailor gang

Something unexpected

Ghostbusters

Soulforges

(Dragon?) Ruin delvers

Wardens

Caravaneers

The Crows

Assassins, spies. But for whoms'tv'e? Elves?

Historical preservation society

The Penurious Band

Type: Kingdom
Symbol:
Leadership:
Preferred zodiac brands: Djinn, Unicorn

Hate the Consortium

Kailando Not-Principalities

Type: Republic
Symbol: Skull
Leadership:
Preferred zodiac brands: Valkyrie

Universities

Corliostor University

Some yearn for a simpler time before this whole arcane mess, but the truth is that the world has always been a complicated place. We have merely forgotten about past struggles while trying to make sense of our short lives.
I believe that if we refuse to learn from the past, we might bring about something worse than the nightfall. And if it comes to that, I can only pity the poor souls who will need to chronicle their own end.

I. Crimes against Aristocracy:

• Assaulting or impersonating a Lord: death

• Assaulting or impersonating an official or noble: flogging, imprisonment up to a week, and fine up to 500 gp

• Blackmailing an official: flogging and exile up to 10 years

• Bribery or attempted bribery of an official: exile up to 20 years and fine up to double the bribe amount

• Murder of a Lord, official, or noble: death

• Using magic to influence a Lord without consent: imprisonment up to a year, and fine or damages up to 1,000gp

• Using magic to influence an official without consent: fine or damages up to 1,000 gp and edict

II. Crimes against the City:

• Arson: death or hard labor up to 1 year, with fines and/or damages covering the cost of repairs plus 2,000 gp

• Brandishing weapons without due cause: imprisonment up to a week and/or fine up to 10 gp

• Espionage: death or permanent exile

• Fencing stolen goods: fine equal to the value of the stolen goods and edict

• Forgery of an official document: flogging and exile for 10 summers

• Hampering justice: fine up to 200 gp and hard labor up to a week

• Littering: fine up to 2 gp and edict

• Poisoning a city well: death

• Theft: flogging followed by imprisonment up to a week, hard labor up to 1 year, or fine equal to the value of the stolen goods

• Treason: death

• Vandalism: imprisonment up to a week plus fine and/or damages covering the cost of repairs plus up to 100 gp

• Using magic to influence an official without consent: fine or damages up to 1,000 gp and edict

III. Crimes against the Gods:

• Assaulting a priest or lay worshiper: imprisonment up to a week and damages up to 500 gp

• Disorderly conduct within a temple: fine up to 5 gp and edict.

• Public blasphemy against a god or church: edict

• Theft of temple goods or offerings: imprisonment up to a week and damages up to double the cost of the stolen items

• Tomb-robbing: imprisonment up to a week and damages covering the cost of repairs plus 500 gp

IV. Crimes against Citizens:

• Assaulting a citizen: imprisonment up to a week, flogging, and damages up to 1,000 gp

• Blackmailing or intimidating a citizen: fine or damages up to 500 gp and edict

• Burglary: imprisonment up to 3 months and damages equal to the value of the stolen goods plus 500 gp

• Damaging property or livestock: damages covering the cost of repairs or replacement plus up to 500 gp

• Disturbing the peace: fine up to 25 gp and edict

• Murdering a citizen without justification: death or hard labor up to 10 years, and damages up to 1,000 gp paid to the victim's kin

• Murdering a citizen with justification: exile up to 5 years or hard labor up to 3 years or damages up to 1,000 gp paid to the victim's kin

• Robbery: hard labor up to 1 month and damages equal to the value of the stolen goods plus 500 gp

• Slavery: flogging and hard labor up to 10 years

• Using magic to influence a citizen without consent: fine or damages up to 1,000 gp and edict

Wishstones

Dragon amber?

Cloudsilver?

Magical items

Hit Points

• Hit Dice: 1d10 per class_name level
• Hit Points at 1st Level: something
• Hit Points at Higher Levels: something_higher

Proficiencies

• Armor: armor
• Weapons: weapons
• Tools: tools

• Saving Throws: saving_throws
• Skills: Choose two from skills

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) a item1 or (b) item2

Spell Name

Spell Type

• Casting Time: Casting Time
• Range: Range
• Components: V, S
• Duration: Duration

A description bursts from the caster's fingers and spreads at the speed of the reader's comprehension.