Aye, the sun has lost some of it's fire with the loss of Arthur Pendragon. Aye, our enemies bark at the gates of our fair realm. Merlin is seen no more and the Knights of the Round Table are scattered. And yet, the dream of Camelot remains, and there are those among us who still follow Arthur's code of chivalry. Our knights are the finest in the world, and our mages carry on the traditions of the master wizard, Merlin. But our enemies swarm around us, and Morgana's evil sorcery raises the dead. These are dark times, indeed, yet not hopeless. We but need new blood - dauntless men and women to defend our lands and to rid the countryside of the plague of bandits and monsters belligerent to humankind. See here the many wonders of Albion and choose your path to glory.
From the rolling hills of Camelot to the mountainous peaks of Snowdonia, Albion is through and through the land of Arthur. Forged from his iron will, paid for by the blood of Knights and commoner alike, Albion encompasses the ideals, the laws, and the heritage of its most famous King. The people of Albion are a mostly homogenous lot - sturdy Britons, hulking Highlanders, graceful swift Saracens, the tall intelligent Avalonians, and the small mysterious Inconnu make up the different races in the Realm.
Geography of Albion
The center of culture and government in Albion is the city of Camelot, the former seat of the throne of Arthur. From there stretch the forests and plains of the Realm: to the west of Camelot lie huge plains, deep dark forests, trackless swamps, and haunted hills. To the north loom the mountains of Snowdonia, and frontier lands, dangerous and unpredictable. The geography of Albion is varied and rolling, and is home to many dangerous creatures. Especially of note are the disturbing stories of the legions of undead Roman soldiers, long in their graves, now risen to walk the land once more. More mundane creatures lie in wait for the unwary traveler of the Realm, grown ever more bold in the years since Arthur's demise.
Races of Albion
Because Albion is the remnant of King Arthur's kingdom, the races available are, for the most part, based on the Arthurian Legends.
Briton - The standard human of Albion, good at many things, able to be many classes - the quintessential jack of all trades.
Avalonian - A taller, thinner, more austere and intelligent human, hailing from the magical city of Avalon. More adept at magic then the other Briton races.
Saracen - Hailing from the desert sands far to the south, the Saracen is the descent of Sir Palomides, one of Arthur's most devoted knights. Saracens excel in anything that involves dexterity and quickness.
Highlander - Large kilt-wearing men and women from the northern Highlands of Albion. Highlanders are big, strong, and exceedingly loyal subjects. They are especially good at armed combat.
Inconnu - Small pale non-humans, with white or blueish white skin and extremely large dark eyes. They live underground, and serve Arawn, the "old world" Lord of the Underworld. They can be a number of classes, but excel at those that take advantage of their naturally high Intelligence and Dexterity.
Half Ogre - Monstrous half-breeds with Avalonian and Ogre parentage, the Half-Ogre inherits the brute strength of it's Ogre ancestors and the intelligence and curiosity of the Avalonians. They excel at the physical professions, but are also capable of becoming accomplished spell casters.
Starting Classes
Characters in the Realm of Albion start out their career as one of four basic classes. At 5th level, they choose a Guild to join that further specializes their character.
Fighter - A specialist in arms and armor, the Fighter is trained to enter armed combat against his foes. He relies on strength, constitution and dexterity. Fighters can become Paladins, Armsmen, Mercenaries and Reavers.
Mage - The Mage weaves magical spells to cast them at his or her enemies, and specializes in the destruction of matter. His intelligence is his more imporant statistic. Mages can become Sorcerers or Cabalists.
Elementalist - The Elementalist is a mage who specializes in harnessing the power of the four elements of fire, ice, earth and air. An Elementalist can become a Wizard or Theurgist.
Acolyte - Dedicated to the Church of Albion, Acolytes are men of faith who specialize in spells that make their friends stronger and keep them healthy. Acolytes rely on piety and constitution. They can become Friars and Clerics.
Rogue - Rogues rely on their dexterity and quickness to engage in fighting, subterfuge, hiding and misdirection. They can become Scouts, Minstrels and Infiltrators.
Disciple - Disciples are worshippers of Arawn, Lord of the Underworld. They use their link with Arawn to beome Necromancers, who take on the form of a Shade while interacting with the world through an undead servant.
Guilds of Albion
At 5th level you will receive instructions to find a new trainer in the guild that you prefer. Depending on your initial class, you may select to join a variety of guilds. Your class trainer will give you the necessary information to find the guild trainers.
The Church of Albion - The Church of Albion is the most public most recofnized religion in the Realm. It's Holy Grail symbol can be found in all villages and towns in the Realm, for the Church is an important part of everyday life.
The Guild of Shadows - Made up of the underworld of Camelot, the Guild of Shadows teaches different classes pragmatic methods to dispatch their enemies. They are tolerated in Albion for the simple reason that they are very effective at what they do, so long as they practice their arts on enemy realms and monsters. Members of this guild are proud of the fact that they owe allegiance to no organization save their own and the Realm of Albion.
The Academy - The Academy is the school founded by the famous wizard Merlin, sage and advisor to King Arthur. Wizards, Sorcerers and Minstrels can all train at the Academy.
The Temple of Arawn - The Temple of Arawn will accept Disciples, for the sole purpose of advancing their studies of death and undeath, as well as Reavers, who are hybride Necromancers/Fighters.
The Defenders of Albion - The Defenders are the organization that makes up the Army of Albion - professional soldiers who specialize in finding the enemy and fighting him. Directly under the stewardship of Duke Bors, the leader of the Albion military, the Defenders are prepared night and day to take to the battlefield to route the enemy.
Fighter Career Paths
Armsman - Briton, Saracen and Highlander Fighters who join the Defenders of Albion may become Armsmen, good solid fighting men who also gain the ability to use crossbows. Armsmen can learn a great variety of cambat skills to enhance their fighting prowess. They can use all arms except bow (crossbows excluded) and the Reaver-specific Chain weapons. They are the only class that is allowed to use Polearms, as befitting their military guild. They can still specialize in two-handed weapons and regular crushing and slashing weapons.
Mercenary - Fighters who join the Guild of Shadows may become Mercenaries, roguish fighters who can specialize in dual-wielding weapons. Mercenaries can wear up to chain armor, and receive the Evade skill to avoid enemy attacks. They can use regular bows (but not longbows) for ranged attacks.
Paladin - Avalonian and Briton fighters who devote their lives to the Church of Albion may become Paladins, defenders of the faith. Paladins get clerical chants to enhance their combat ability and that of their group. They can wear all armor, and most arms, though they cannot use ranged weapons.
Reaver - Briton, Saracen and Inconnu Fighters who join the Temple of Arawn will become Reavers, the fighting class that protects Arawn, Lord of the Underworld. They specialize both in melee skills and offensive dark magics.
Mage Career Paths
Cabalist - The Cabalist are Mages that have embraced the spiritual side of magic, and engage in the studies of spirit destruction and creations. Their specialty is in creating Golems out of inanimate matter that can be commanded to do their bidding. Mages become Cabalists by joining the Guild of Shadows.
Sorcerer - Saracen, Briton, Avalonian and Inconnu Mages may beceome Sorcerers, renegade spell casters who focus on pragmatic magic that disrupts, disables and damages their enemies. They can also charm and confuse enemies, and can command charmed creatures to do their bidding.
Elementalist Career Paths
Wizard - Wizards are highly learned spell casters who specialize in molding the elements of Earth, Ice and Fire to create spells of great power.
Theurgist - Theurgists are specialists Elementalists who join the Defenders of Albion. They use their mastery of the elements of Earth, Ice and Air to summon magical elementals for a short period of time.
Rogue Career Paths
Infiltrator - Briton, Inconnu and Saracen Rogues who join the Guild of Shadows become Infiltrators, masters of stealth and ambushing. Their ability to spy on the enemy without their knowledge is an invaluable asset to Albion. They can only use leather armor, but they have a great deal of skill in evading, and eventually learn the ability to dual-wield weapons.
Scout - The Defenders of Albion emply Rogues as Scouts, who specialize in stealthy movement as well as the use of the feared Briton Longbow, the best range weapon in the Realm. In order to move quickly from one place to another while not being detected, they can only wear up to studded armor, but they can augment their defenses with small shields, which they can also specialize in.
Minstrel - In addition to the traditional magery, natural and elemental magic, there is also the magic of sound and song. This is the specialty of the Minstrel. Minstrels use their songs in support of groups, especially for quick travel across the land and by reducing downtime between battles. Minstrels also have songs that can mesmerize or even charm and enemy. Minstrels are a combination of melee, magical and stealthy abilities, and can use various weapons as well as their special shout attacks during battle. They can eventually wear chain armor.
Minstrels must carry a variety of instruments - lutes, drums, horns and flutes - to play the different songs in their arsenal, and they gain new songs, or more powerful versions of existing songs, as they level up.
Acolyte Career Paths
Cleric - Briton, Highlander and Avalonian acolytes may become clerics, the healers and helpers of their realm mates. They can wear up to chain armor, and can use blunt weapons, but cannot specialize in them. Clerics have access to the best resurrection spells, which will bring back their realm mates from the dead.
Friars - Friars are Briton acolytes who join the Defenders of the Realm. Their job is to wander about the realm, making sure that all is well. Because they undertake such dangerous journeys so often, they have learned to become proficient with the Quarterstaff, to the point that they are quite deadly. Their solemn vows of poverty make them eschew traditional arms and armor, though they can wear leather, and train themselves in evasion and dexterity, making them almost as hard to hit as another character in armor. While a friar gives up the more potent enhancements and the more powerful heals, they excel in staff combat and combat defense.
Heretics - Heretics are Avalonian, Briton and Inconnu acolytes that have renounced the Church and become adherents of Arawn, the lord of the underworld. As evil clerics, they fit into the hybrid category, with both the use of combat styles and high damage focus spells. Although Heretics may only utilize cloth armor and small shields, they enjoy a wider range of specializations than their Church following counterparts. Depending upon their particular schooling, Heretics can heal comrades, egg them on into battle, or charge into the thick of things with their own blunt weapons and shields.
Disciple Career Paths
Disciples have a single choice available to them, that of the Necromancer. The Necromancer is a unique class, in that it functions almost exclusively by channeling the otherworldly powers Arawn grants them through their undead servants. The Necromancer is adept at drawing the life enemy from their opponents, and either converting it to healing for their undead servant, or using it to replenish their power supplies.