Introduction

The Uqheshi script has been cracked! Sword Queen Moruga is paying good gold to those brave enough to explore the buried ruins of Qhamune!

Uqhesh is a desert city in the Xeric Peninsula. Originally a Rauman prison colony, Uqhesh is a melting pot of outcasts from across Azra. The Governance keeps a tight grip on the city in the name of Sword Queen Renata Moruga, the Gladiarch of Raum.

Uqhesh is built on and within the Carapace, a titanic exoskeleton half buried in the sand. This huge structure of translucent black chitin provides shade to a portion of the city.

About six months ago, anthropologist Caskia Maevira accomplished what no mortal mind has done in 7,000 years. She successfully translated the Uqhesh Codices, walls of text carved into every surface of the carapace. The information contained therein alludes to an ancient civilization of powerful magic called Qhamune.

This discovery has had ripples across the entire subcontinent. Queen Moruga has announced that the Rauman Governance will pay gold for Qhamuni relics, and assistance clearing out the buried ruins. People are flocking to Uqhesh hoping to make a fortune for themselves, or to take advantage of those would-be adventurers.

What are you? Are you a foreign opportunist hoping to strike it rich? A Rauman bravo bringing honor to your name? An academic hoping to uncover this ancient culture? A local street urchin with a taste for adventure?

All of these characters and more can be yours to play in... ***THE XERIC PENINSULA***

## Campaign Details

The Xeric Campaign will be a new D&D campaign in a similar structure to the Stormgate Campaign. Each session will be proposed and organized by the players, and will have a shifting cast of characters based on availability. XP will be tracked individually.

This campaign will be set up in Roll20, but will use Discord for voice chat. It's just more reliable, so lets establish that from the beginning.

Your characters will all be members of a single expeditionary company. Starting off, you will be based in the city of Uqhesh. However, you aren't bound to that city. Your adventures will take you all over the Xeric Peninsula. For the sake of logistics, it will be assumed that the entire expeditionary company will travel as a convoy. That way characters can join in and out no matter where you are. You are welcome to hire NPCs to join your convoy!

The primary theme of this campaign is EXPLORATION. You will be delving into forgotten ruins, making contact with isolated cultures, and seeking forbidden knowledge. Make a character with that in mind.

## Links

D&D Beyond campaign

Roll20 Campaign

## Character Creation

* You will start at level 5
* Start with 50 additional gold, or equivalent equipment
* New language options
	+ Xeric
		- This is the common tongue of the Xeric Peninsula. If your character can start with Common, they can start with Xeric instead.
	+ Qhamuni
		- The ancient script of Qhamune. After it was recently deciphered, many people have learned to read and write Qhamuni. This is only a written language, the spoken form is lost to history.
* Backstory elements: Your character should have the following.
	+ A place of origin. Anywhere from the Xeric Peninsula or the Northeast Wing is fine. There's some setting info already here in the wiki under the *PLACES* tab, feel free to ping me with questions.
	+ A general idea of your origins. You can figure this out after playing your character for a while.
	+ A secret.
	+ A backstory connection to at least 1 other member of the group. Whether it's the reason you joined the company, or something farther back.
	+ At least one non-player character from their backstory who is still alive today. This can be an ally or an enemy, known or unfamiliar.
	+ A goal.

## Character Rules - Specific

* Characters should be made using Standard Array ability scores.
* Multiclassing is okay, feats are okay. I generally require an in-character reason for multiclassing, such as learning from an NPC.
* Additional Player options
	+ You can use any of the Xeric Peninsula custom subraces
	+ You can use the Sawbones rogue archetype
	+ You can use the Archaologist and Anthropologist backgrounds from the module Tomb of Annihilation.
	+ You can use the Blood Hunter class, as well as any of the player options outlined in the Tal'dorei Campaign guide
* You can use Unearthed Arcana, as long as there hasn't been an updated version of that same content.
	+ The Class Feature Variants are not allowed by default, but if you want something from them talk to me and I might allow it.
	+ The Revised Ranger is not allowed
* BANLIST / house rules
	+ The "Lucky" feat is banned
	+ For "Find Familiar", you need uninterrupted line of sight to where you summon your familiar.
* If you have other things you want to use, talk to me. I might let you if I look over it, but only if it's balanced and a good fit for the campaign.
* Feel free to tinker around with your own homebrew stuff! We can work together to make sure it's balanced and functional.