From: query@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Samuel Green)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.dnd
Subject: IRC DND GAME WORLD DESCRIPTION AND OTHER STUFF
Date: 23 Aug 92 09:09:32 GMT
Distribution: rec.games.frp.dnd
Organization: Northwestern University, Evanston Illinois.


	The world:
	About 1000 years ago (no current living creatures have been around
then, it seems) a war was started in which the orcish and ogre populations
attempted to eradicate all other life on the planet... After overwhelming
the elvish forces, and almost driving the elves into extinction, the orcs
were in a good position to drive the other races to their doom.
	The halflings went under attack next, and were scattered to the far
corners of the world.  Then the gnomes, then, finally, an assault on the
dwarves.  During the battle for the dwarven capitol, the survivors of the
elvish massacre showed up, and managed to take the battle from the orcs.
Then it became a bit of a stalemate for a while...
	During the war, humans were developing weapons and selling them to
the highest bidder.  Usually this was the orcs, but occasionally, the
allied demi humans were able to scrape up enough to offer for the purchase
price.
	After 4 centuries of stalemate, the orcs mnaged to steal the plans
for a human weapon of great power, Tak Nuk's Destroyer (Essentially the
same as the name implies) and bombed the dwarven capitol, and several human
kingdoms.  At this point, the humans joined in against the orcs, and were
the needed push to obliterate the orcish army.  
	For the next 300 years, the push began, in which millions on both
sides died, but with the orcs steadily loosing ground.  At the battle of
the Winds, the orcs werre finally destroyed.  Now the world could try to
heal...

	The campaign takes place 100 years later, in a world trying to
recover.  It looks like the world is past the danger zone, and beginning to
thrive again, but, unfortunately, many people (both scrupulous and not so)
are attempting to gain power in the various governments that are now coming
into being.  A politician had best be ready to be backstabbed (both
literally and figuratively) by his friends...
	The races are viewed as follows (for the most part)
	Elves are seen as eletist snobs (After all, only 3000 or so of them
survived, and they are still rare) who are superbly trained in matters of
war and magic.  The elves consider only the humans their equals.  There is
a grudgiung respect for elvish ability, but still the most common term for
an elf nis a derogative one.

	Halflings are seen as world travellers, and they are not often
viewed as anything other than fonts of knowledge as to what is doing on the
other lands.  They essentially get along with everyone, and aree widely
used as spies and couriers.

	Gnomes are working in conjunction with human researchers to design
and manufacture devices that anyone can use to get the effect of magic.
They are viewed as allies by most humans, and tolerated or accepted by just
about everone else.  ELves like the gnomish peoples, because they usually
are able to give them information about newer weapons and devices.

	Dwarves are basically miners and also basically in the employ of
various human organizations, with a contract for the minerals and ores that
they mine in exchange for high wages and many of the plans for making many
things.  The dwarves that are working on restoring the capitol consider the
worker dwarves inferior, but tolerate them because how else would they get
the supplies necessary to rebuild?

	Humans are universally seen as friends.  They have a society that
is on average, as technologivcally advanced as europe was in the 15 to 16
hundreds, minus gunpowder, but adding in a few other devices.  Humans are
dissuaded by their families forom studying the uncouth use of magic, but
there are still human mages, and, because the human mages usually have
desire and skill enough to get accepted for training, they are usually
quite proficient.  90% of the humans on this world are covered under the
one government, The Unity.  Some humans living in forign lands are under
the various demi-human governments.

	There are several continents that have not been heard from since
the war began, and these are largely shorouded in mists of legend...
Riches beyond belief, and great danger are typical to hear about.  Not many
take them seriously, though.

	MISC STUFF:

	I don'[t use the awareness stat, and comliness is next to useless,
but if you want to throw it in, I dont mind.
	I accpet any class, as long as the person playing it will send me a
list with ethe specefics of what the class can do.  I will look 'em overe,
and send modifications that are deemed necessary for balance.
	I do not have any of the handbooks for second edition, and I use
primarily the 1st ed rules, although as long as a description of a second
ed rule or skill is sewnt, I will consider it, and most likely use it.

	I have had 3 people send in character descriptions, so I am still
waiting for 3 to 5 more players before I begin.
	Along with the character, plese send in the times you would be able
to play on IRC.  I am in Chicago, central time, so hopefully being central
will help a bit on co-ordinating this. 
	So far, from the people who have responded, it looks like it will
be a bl;ast, when we get it running! :)

	Sam

	query@casbah.acns.nwu.edu