Tribal Defenders PCs should be created using the following guidelines:
- Build Points: 30 BPs (Heroic). You have to be tough to be able to survive in the Deadlands.
- Available Genotypes: Near-human or mutant human. Experienced players may select the stock human, munchkin, or furry genotypes as well.
- Available Backgrounds: Tribal. Experienced players may also pick frontier or feral characters with GM permission.
- Starting Level: Newbies begin at 2nd level, experienced players begin at 3rd.
- Optional Rules: Experienced players may use the Complete Mutant rules, Quirks, and Nanotech.
- Additional Notes: This campaign takes place in the Deadlands region. All characters speak a Tribal Dialect as their primary language. Unislang and Gutterspeak are also available; Ancient can only be selected if Unislang is selected first. The Operate Vehicle and Streetwise skills are unavailable at character creation. Only primitive-tech equipment is available for starting characters.
While each character's life story is unique, you can figure that the typical PC...
- ...grew up in the village of Lau as a part of the Nightwind Tribe.
- ...has heard stories of the Ancient Age before the Crash and knows that he lives in an age of suffering and destruction.
- ...has heard stories of armies of robots out to kill all living things, of peaceful lands where people of all kinds live together in harmony and prosperity, and of hidden relics that will give whomever finds them godlike power.
- ...knows what a gun is and generally how it works but has never fired one.
- ...can't read or write but understands that the Ancients captured their speech in mysterious marks that some peope today can still decipher.
- ...knows vaguely what's north, south, east, and west of wherever the campaign starts.
- ...thinks the world is flat and that the stars are little lights way up in the sky.
- ...has occassionaly met strange and wonderful travelers from distant lands.
The technology level of the Nightwind Tribe is very low ('Primitive-Tech' in game terms). Composite bows are the most advanced tools that the village can construct from scratch - even crossbows (called 'bahs' in the tribal tongue) must be obtained through trade. Lau does not have metal smelting capability. Even so, metal artifacts (such as weapons and armour) can be constructed by village craftsmen using scavenged materials.
Given Lau's limited technology, the prevalence of depleted uranium (DU) items in the village is notable. The plains surrounding Lau are strewn with Ancient DU shells; leftovers from some unknown conflict, perhaps. It is a common activity for children to gather these shells for Lau metalworkers to fashion into DU-tipped arrows or daggers. DU weapons are presented in a formal ceremony to those who complete the rite of passage to become tribal defenders.
Lau, your home village, is located in a desert area known as the Deadlands. There are no real towns or cities in the Deadlands, only tribal villages and the scattered ruins of the Ancients. Other than hunting excursions with elder tribe members, you have rarely (if ever) left the safety of your village, and know little of the outside world except from tribal legends and the stories of infrequent traders.
Your character has heard stories about the following locations and groups in the Deadlands:
- Nearby Villages: Within a 1-week hike of Lau are four other desert communities. The village of Ent is affiliated with the Nightwind clan, and is similar to Lau in most ways. Zetter is a primitive village inhabited by half-animal mutants and freakish dwarves. The town of Hemisphere is made up of isolationist pure-strain humans who live in dome-shaped huts (hence the name of the town). Finally, the mysterious village of Delio is home to a strange cult of nature-worshippers.
- The Testing Grounds: The Testing Grounds are the ruins of a nameless Ancient settlement. The site acts as neutral territory and a meeting place for the various desert tribes, and is also a stopping-point for the trading caravans that occasionally traverse the Deadlands. In addition, young tribe members sometimes venture there as an introduction to the outside world. Recently, members of the Nightwind tribe destroyed a group of raiders posing as Children of the Metal Gods (see below) in the Testing Grounds (see the Temple of Draxion).
- The Cave of Life: Your tribe has long held one hallowed site sacred above all others. It is the location of a certain mystical 'cave', to which young warriors of the tribe were sent to prove themselves as men in the eyes of their peers. Sent not only face the legendary dangers and thus prove themselves brave, they were required to retrieve a substantial supply of the fresh water hidden there to keep the village sated. The defender of the Cave was recently defeated, and the site has become a Nightwind outpost - as detailed in the see the Cave of Life adventure. Finally Lau has a reliable source of clean, fresh water.
- The Skeleton Base: In the distant reaches of the Deadlands, a legend among the tribes speaks of a mythical place, the 'Skeleton Base', somewhere among the sands. Once a storage place of magical weapons for the armies of the Ancients, it is said that in their final years they conjured a great metal-skinned demon to guard the base for all eternity. Persistent tales over the generations have spoken of the base, surrounded by the bones of those who have fallen to the entity that watches over the sacred place. The Guardian of Skeleton Base has now been vanquished, and like the Cave of Life has become a Nightwind outpost. See the Skeleton Base adventure for details.
- Willy World: Prior to the Crash, the Willy World thrill park was a leading vacation destination. Beloved for its animated characters, it entranced children and drew families from all over. Willy World still stands, attracting a new breed of 'customer'. But are the artificial denizens of Willy World still so benign? Find out when our heroes venture to Willy World.
- Tucamari: The merchant town of Tucamari is the closest outpost of 'civilization' known to the Nightwind Tribe. Approximately two weeks distant (on foot), it is a popular destination for tribemembers who want to trade goods or services for advanced relics of the Ancients.
- Trading Caravans: Nomadic traders often cross the Deadlands to reach more lucrative markets past the desert. Several groups occasionally barter with the primitive tribes, including the Far Traders, CrystalTime Clan, and Clear Water Traders. They can often be found camping at the Testing Grounds.
- Raider Gangs: The scourge of the wastes, raider gangs appear from nowhere, pillage unprotected settlements and travelers, then vanish into the desert sands. They view a tribal village as an excellent source for slaves. While different groups come and go over time, two gangs that have been active lately in the Deadlands are the Wastelords and the Psykers.
- Children of the Metal Gods: Recently discovered to be operating in the Deadlands, the Children of the Metal Gods (CotMG) are a bizarre cult that worship the legendary 'thinking machines' built before the Crash. The 'Children' become slaves or chattel to inhuman masters of steel and plastic, with aspirations of forging a new era of machine-kind. See the Temple of Draxion and Skeleton Base pages for more info on the CotMG.
- Distant Lands: The Deadlands extend as far north and south as anyone from your tribe has ever ventured. Along the western edge of the Deadlands stand the Barrier Peaks, blocking access to all but the most persistent explorers. To the east, the desert eventually becomes more temperate and the Grass Plains stretch past the horizon. Your knowledge of these distant lands is scant at best.