Random World Redux: Orcs

This isn't the first time I've tried to rework orcs on this blog, given they are currently one of the most contentious monsters around these days. This is a remake/expansion of my original take on the Orcs for the then-random world, before it got canned and reworked into something less tied to a map.

Orcish Nature and Origins

Where do Orcs come from, anyway, and what are they really? Well, simply put orcs are a form of artificial life, roughly analogous to an homunculus albeit gifted with much greater bodies and minds (even if that mind can often come short compared to a human or elf). Their origins are shrouded in myths and tall tales and many 'crops' of orcs are very much removed from these mythical roots, being the creation of human beings. Through some of the foulest magical and alchemical process known to man, the creation of orcs is a blasphemous act of defiance against creation and any gods out there as filthy mud, blood, grime, bile and more is poured into a flesh pit and given something approximating life and a mind but not quite gifted with anything resembling a true mind and soul.

Orc Biology

Art by John Owe

Orcs are unnatural creatures, a pale and hideous imitation of life and humanity. While their bodies approximate biological process but only barely. Orcs are sexless and ageless beings, born as adult from their flesh pits identical to how they will spend the rest of their life, barring the most limited of mental changes an orc can gain. If one was to cut an orc open and examine its body before it rapidly decays into foul grime and fluids they would find mostly all organs found in a human, yet each is an unnatural counterfeit.

The resulting creature tend to be short and wiry, but a few of them are large and muscular or even fat. Every single orc is completely and utterly hideous, a mockery of men. What form this take vary from orc to orc and batch to batch but hideously ugly facial features, warty skin, unnatural skin tone and missing or malformed features are the norm. While most orcs are born functional enough to not be crippled, they all sport disgusting deformities. Some have thick bony brows while others have no nose except for a pair of slits. Fingers tend to be crooked, ending in yellow or black nails or no nails at all, teeth jagged and rotten. They can be either bald or very hairy. Their skin is often an earthy tone or a pale white, but these are not the natural and human skin tones we know that range from a pale pinkish beige to ebony. No, rather, orcs have the color of mud and shit or the pale discolored slimy colors of some monstrous slug or perhaps piebald or worse Others will have jaundiced skin or grey wrinkled, almost necrotized skin that slowly flake off yet somehow never completely peel off. Fingers and feet tend toward having four, three or six toes and not always the same amount between the feet and hands. Some orcs are a form of symbiote, with colonies of worms, insects or spiders living inside their foul skin, hair or stomach with little detriment to the orc's health. Moss and algae growing on them can sometimes create the association with fungi, but these creatures are not fungi at all.

In spite of their ugly, hunched and hideous bodies these creatures are quite spry and strong. Their smaller size belies a strong grip which, when combined with a high resistance to pain, make the creature much stronger and tougher than its thin or crooked frame would imply. Orcs are created to be minions and warriors and so these creatures are invariably gifted with the strength and endurance required. Orcish grip is a lot like getting manhandled and mauled by a crazy ape that overdosed on drugs. Not to mention simply being around orcs or covered in their foul-smelling, tar-black blood is a surefire way to catch many diseases, some of which may have never been recorded simply because they are new and fermented inside the orc's body almost like a depraved form of internal alchemy.

Orcs don't age, be it physically or mentally. Technically their lifespan is infinite but in practice most will die in combat or become crippled by wounds sustained in combat and, for lack of a better term, recycled by their comrades to be sent back into the vats and flesh-pits. Orcs are sexless and lack any reproductive organs or the associated urges and stories of orc pillage involving assault isn't done out of any sexual urges but purely because orcs can and it offend humans, as well as having a psychological toll. Beautiful women kidnapped by orcs are more likely to end as lunch or part of some communal torture game than abused. As for their biology, orcs don't have any sexual organs therefore trying to hit them in the groin has little effects, as all they have is a rudimentary hole which excrete whatever their bodies didn't process.

Giant Orcs do exist and are believed to be a fluke or a deliberate attempt at orc flesh crafting. These creatures tend to be larger, stronger but also dumber and mechanically similar to Ogres, albeit with all orc traits applied. Many of the smaller orcs will enslave their larger, more deficient brethren to use as slave labor and/or battle mount.

Orc Psychology and Society

Art by Matthew Carter

Since these are not natural creatures, nothing about orc mentality make any sense to a rational human. Since they are a soulless automaton bred only for war and violence, orcs simply have no other desires beyond violence, malice and chaos. While they are capable of organizing (and indeed, many orcs crave a master as some built in programming), any society they form has little culture beyond simply a loose but functional pecking order and distribution of roles to make their army/clan function. The inhuman intellect from beyond the veil of mortality that inhabit each orc's head is devious, but primitive. The resulting creature has simply no desire or ambitions beyond its base function.

The orcs simply are poor learner because every orc is 'born' with mostly everything it need to function and the inhuman mind that inhabit their soulless body has no desires for anything outside of it. Aspirations, art, poetry, personal growth and desire are meaningless to something hat is not truly alive. Because orcs cannot truly create, they copy what they find and mimic any behavior they can learn from humans. These limited nuggets of orcish culture are especially common a generation or two removed from an orc clan having been created as minions for some would-be conqueror who can distill his ideals and military tactics to a group of leaders. The more removed from its roots an orc band is, the less coherent is become. Orcs aren't spellcasters either, but for some reason they are able to recreate the rituals which birthed them, almost as if whatever malign cosmic influence animate their husk is attempting to spread like a disease.

While animals innately dislike orcs (as they are not natural at all), they nonetheless like having war mounts and companion beasts as these make hunting and killing easier. The foulest, most hideous beasts found in the depth of caves or the deepest marshes make suitable allies for them, such as giant bats, giant bugs, giant toads or giant lamprey-worms. The bigger, the uglier and nastier the better. Orcish beastmasters are the closest the race has to beings capable of understanding a non-orcish being and, even then, it is only an understanding of how to exploit or abuse.

Random World Redux: The Other Monsters

Some further thoughts on the monster lore I'm reusing from the Random World.

Aberrations, The Man-Made Monsters

Pathfinder's Otyugh

The successor to the random world is fairly low on Lovecraftian inspiration, as I've long lamented that Lovecraftian concepts and ideas are somewhat overused especially when it come to the Old Ones and all manners of tentacle monsters. That said, what is a good dungeon without a horribly, slimy beast of the chthonian depths? What about hideous crossbreed abominations of nature created by wicked sorcerers for their experiments or amusement? Surely there is room for this, right? Well yes, there is!

Call them 'Aberrations' or 'Monstrosities' but it doesn't matter. These creatures are born of magic gone amok, especially magic which is used to warp flesh and combine species in ways which are just plain ungodly. There are countless evil wizards in history who experiment with some truly disgusting things in an attempt to breed a new type of minion or monster. While Orcs are a particularly stable breed, not all experiments are as successful. Those which start from warping an already-living creature in particular can produce some particularly unstable and monstrous creatures which often retain the ability to breed with their kind. As a result, some horrific experiments have bred true, at least in some limited capacity. Many of these creatures produce stillbirths or, worse, offspring's which are even more warped and foul than them.

Undead, the Cast Off Shells

Wight from D&D 3rd edition.

Undead occupy an odd place in my head. I absolutely adore them for all the obvious horror they induce and there is no denying they are among the most simplistically gruesome monsters that exist. However, in the previous and original incarnation of the Rand World, Undead were established to have a certain level of rarity. This is because the modern conception of the Undead in fantasy has increasingly been tainted by many elements 20th century of pop culture as opposed to more proper folkloric roots. In particular, most Undead in D&D tend to have the ability to turn those they kill into another of their kind. While this does have some basis, the modern concept is heavily rooted in American cinema's modern flesh-eating zombie and in modern Vampires.

An undead is never a complete being. If they were, they wouldn't be undead. While this may bring to mind the lack of a body of a ghostly undead or lack of mind of the baseline zombie, it is a bit more complex than that or a lack of a pulse. What birth the True Undead, as opposed to the Animated Undead create by spells such as basic zombies and skeletons, must be a confluence of events. Undead are born of a particularly troubled minds and, often, either sudden or particularly tragic deaths. These creatures are generally defined by an all consuming need or desire, such as needing blood, flesh or the warmth of the living to use some basic examples. Others are controlled by the need or urge to either complete a task or prevent someone from completing a task which invariably ties into the circumstances of the Undead's death. The disturbing thing about the Undead is that what animate them isn't really, entirely the person's soul even if theological debates still rages on the matter. However, by itself a person doesn't simply have the power to transcend the veil between life and death, as such power is obviously beyond the ability of mortals. Thus while the circumstances of the creation of a True Undead is from human matters, there exist dark, unformed powers within the world and beyond it which provide the spark of unlife. While the creature was once a living human, its corpse or materialized spirit has become the vessel for a greater (well, arguably, a lower) power. Some believe that Undead which remain in the world for a long time eventually fade and become nothing but spirits, hollowed out of their original humanity and join the ranks of creatures such as goblin-spirits and demons.

Some Undead, however, were never human to begin with. Or, rather, their bodies were human but not the mind existing inside their rotting form. If most Undead are the discarded but still animate husk of humans slowly hollowed out of their true selves, some are more unfortunate. With the bodies left somewhere unhallowed or forgotten (but the mind/soul without much to be angry about and meeting its fate), the body become a vessel to darker powers which animate the corpse and warps it into some monstrous goblin-ghost or demonic ghoul with truly disturbing forms and/or powers. These creatures may attempt to fake being the person the corpse belonged to but they not. They are an alien intellect driven by some truly vile thoughts.

Dragons, the Old Serpent Beasts of Chaos

Dragonlord Kolaghan by Jaime Jones

Dragons are a particularly ancient breed of chimeric monsters born of chaos, or at least this is generally an agreed upon understanding of what they are. While there are many pseudo reptilian or serpentine beasts upon the world, the True Dragons are a particularly ancient breed of monsters spawned from primordial chaos. Common traits include great size, wings (or, sometimes, a stranger mean of flight), usually poisonous blood and/or breath and the ability to exhale chaotic energies often in the form of some elemental breath weapon. They are intelligent creatures for the most part, but they tend toward being extremely violent and destructive as well as greedy.

No one has ever seen a young dragon, at least not in the current age. It is speculated that all Dragons either were created from the same or were born into the world in some cycle. Others speculate that dragon reproductive cycle, if it exist, is extremely long and complex. Ultimate it is unknown how or if dragon breed but ancient text do refer to smaller or younger, foolhardy dragons being slain by the mythical founders of nations and similar figures. Other truly ancient text refer to ancient dragons as being young in their time, meaning they do apparently age and grow to some extent. Perhaps it is that the last generation of Dragons has already been born and no future generation can exist or ever will exist, with the youngest of dragons being already several centuries old or more with truly ancient dragons being extremely rare beings who have seen the very birth of the world and now sleep at the bottom of its ocean or in ancient caves or volcanoes. Or perhaps they are all dead safe the youngest and weakest of their kind.

When roused from their slumber, dragons are often little more than flying demons of fire and fury. Few artistic depiction of them truly convey their terrifying neither, too: the many jagged horns or crests upon their heads, their amalgam bodies with traits of a variety of beasts, covered in the scales of a snake, crocodile or shark. Their breath is so foul it can kill a man. Their stomach has enough room to swallow entire herds and, indeed, dragons can even often dislocate their jaws like a serpent to swallow large animals or even other dragons, some say. The eldest of dragons can flap their wings and call upon fire storms, acid rains, thunder and rain which tears away at cities or hailstorms in the middle of a hot summer.

Random World Redux: Once Again, Monsters

From 2018 to 2019 I worked on a setting I dubbed the Random World. It started off as a bit of a random experiment, using a randomly generated fantasy setting map and drawing inspiration from the scattering of meaningless name of locales. Over time it evolved as some more concepts were bolted on and expanded. While the so-called Random World is dead as a project, the key ideas of how monsters were to be handled, designed and presented remained in my head and to this day remain my favorite take on the classic monsters of the Monster Manual (and similar books). While definitely not the most original, it is perhaps the take I am most personally happy in terms of my own presentation of these concepts. This is a re-affirmation, expansion and refresh of these previously outlined ideas as well as some new concepts added since.

The Great Unknown and Dark

Art by Alexander Solomin

Greatly detailed setting mythologies were not what I thought about for the random world and this has not changed for any spiritual successor. This successor to the so-called Random World retain the usual flair of basic assumptions one expect of the original Dungeons & Dragons: that the world is a vast place, full of wilderness, monsters, ruins and that civilization exist as scant oasis of civilization. The presence of ruins and long lost artifacts more or less imply an almost post apocalyptic sense, that the world was once this great place which has fallen and/or decayed. Mankind's grip on the world has slipped, allowing the dark and primordial powers to slowly overtake the land.

These powers have many names and are ascribed to many mythologies and folklore but such definition does not truly matter. They are the things in the darkness, the fallen angels, the gods (false, forgotten, old or otherwise) and inscrutable fae. It is the collective host of all powers which range from indifferent to Man to completely anthetical to its nature and civilization. They are creatures of myth and legend and the monsters from beyond this world just as much as they can be restless spirits of ancestral graves and sacred sites. At best, these powers can be appeased or cajoled but never truly tamed. These are powers which Druids and Warlocks make pacts with and while they aren't inherently evil, they are still something which Man see with fear or awe. It is not the power of kind protector gods or ancestral spirits, for that is a different power, a slice of the immortal things which Man has shaped and been shaped by but it is not the same. Not completely, anyway.

Many monsters of this newly conceptualized successor to the Random World are truly unique. While there are some species of monsters which breed true, a capital-M Monster is often a terrifying, semi unique being, some creature of darkness or the wilderness which lurks at the bottom of the lake or hidden in the mist. These creatures are not truly alive (but functionally and mechanically may as well be, obviously). They are twisted things, born of a mimicry of the natural world. The head of a lion, the legs of a crocodile and the wings of a bat while a human head may exist at the tip of its tale as it wail in terror, trying to lure people to it thinking it is someone in danger. Others are moss monsters or rocky terrors, elemental forces given life. These creatures are not truly alive, not truly thinking. They are akin to an interface which unknowable powers exert their will upon the world. Thus, the needs and methods of feeding of a monster might make no sense in a naturalist way of thinking. They are the chimera of myth or the bogeyman stalking in the dark. Consider them, in a sense, closer to the Japanese yokai than some of the monsters of classic Tabletop Fantasy.

Goblins

Art by Gonzalo Kenny

The 'goblin' family is one of the three major 'families' of humanoid monsters of this unnamed, conceptual world. Goblinkind consist of a myriad of strange and bizarre creatures which appear to be vaguely humanoid and akin to people, but only just barely. They embody a side of that-which-is-not-human by being creatures of deceit, trickery, magic and the dark and foul places of the world. Goblins range from spirit-like creatures incarnated in a physical form to the classical, stunted humanoid we would recognize as a traditional goblinoid. Their ranks are further bolstered by all manner of creatures, monsters, bogeymen, pixies, tricksters, witches and hags and more which may appear human or be able to fake humanity but clearly are not and never were. Their realm are deep, dark primordial forests, abandoned ruins, dark caves, giant fungus-realms and strange locations which exist aside from our world, intersecting with it but not truly of it.

Of the supernatural beings, Goblin-kind are generally the weakest in terms of raw physical power and more often than not lacking in size, even if exceptions do exist. As with other supernatural beings their form is a mimicry of the world, even if the form of humans is one which they nearly always incorporate on some level, as most if not all goblins are humanoid. Among the most mortal of goblin-kind are creatures which are almost human, but not quite: perhaps descended of some disgusting admixture of human and inhuman blood or, perhaps, descendant of ancient people who chose not civilization and humanity but rather stayed in the dark and primordial world. These creatures are what one could recognize as akin to Gnomes and Dwarves, as well as Halflings (even if these categories may not exist, they are used as an example). They are short, stunted creatures which produce offspring, age and die but not in a way truly like us human. These creatures do form communities here and there but, as a general rule, tend to dislike outsiders. These are, naturally, the forest home of strange bearded gnomes who cultivate mushrooms or the hidden under city of Dwarves, who mine ever deeper into the earth with every passing day.

Art by Christophe Young

One thing which is not known to humans except perhaps those who have lived amongst goblins or to sages is that while it initially appear that attractive goblins are better innate spellcaster it is actually the opposite: better spellcasters are simply better at reshaping their own nature to reflect their own decadence and egocentric needs to command attention. As such, many ethereal and beautiful 'fae lords' are little more than disgusting goblins under a veneer of beauty. These creatures often oversee courts of lesser goblin-creatures or even other, less understood beings. Others eschew such veneer of beauty and revel in their goblin nature, becoming grotesquely obese goblin kings or wicked hags. While they may act refine or completely insane or even stupid, these creatures are invariably gifted with great and terrible power, as well as a level of intelligence or persuasion few mortals can ever compare to. Never assume their form to be true. Never assume their words to be true. Never assume you have outsmarted 'that dumb goblin'. In fact, when it come to goblins assume very little.

Trolls

Art by Greg Rutkowski

The opposite side of the goblins are the trolls, which include the rank of all manners of hideous brutes, troll, ogres, giants and more. Where goblins are physically lacking but generally tricksters, the trolls are large and powerful but no less magical. Indeed, the magical nature of trolls manifest in the form of their boundless power, strength, durability and even, yes in some cases, regeneration. Where goblins are the shadows in the woods, the vermin in the earth and moonlit magic the trolls are an ancient, mighty and oak or an unbreakable stone. They are creatures of the raging storm and howling winter winds. Troll-kind too stride across the untamed wilderness but they are not subtle creatures. They are wild, powerful, sometimes (but not always!) dim witted and most important of all they are untamed and free. Troll-kind tend to be more solitary, with each troll claiming a territory where it just wander around breaking stuff, eating cattle or maybe just sleeping until they forget to wake up, becoming boulders until accidentally awakened.

Trolls with particularly strong magical abilities do exist and they are called Troll Wyrd. Creatures of chaos, Troll Wyrd tend to be physically bizarre even by troll standard, exhibiting bold colors or truly outrageous mutations. They can be as dumb as a rock or gifted with a truly stunning intellect but generally are plagued by being completely and utterly insane by mortal standards. The magic of troll wyrd is invariably flashy and destructive, with focus on vivid and iconic spell effects such as creating fire, lighting bolts, polymorphing others or stranger effects such as rains of explosive frogs. A few others have more subtle, but no less destructive magic as they have been known to warp fate in some spectacular ways such as making arrows bounce off their skin by sheer accident and then, somehow, spin backward and fly into the eye of whoever shot the arrow! In spite of the danger they represent, many Magic User seek out particularly infamous or gifted Troll Wyrd, as they can sometime become known as eccentric hermits which are privy to secret or bizarre forms of magic no one has ever heard of.

Art by Markus Neidel

The link between human and troll-kind are creatures one would recognize as Ogres. These creatures are flesh and blood and mortal, but they share the unnatural vitality, size and appetite of their troll ancestors. Ogres tend to be much more 'human' than goblin-kind and perhaps a little too human. Ogres have a fairly nasty tendency to exhibit the worst qualities of humanity given unnatural power and appetite to grow. They tend to be particularly greedy, always hungry, prone to intense acts of violence and generally driven by raw hedonistic desire. This can make ogres decent mercenaries, however, since they can be easily controlled by giving them food, wine or women. Of course, control usually only last as long as one is able to keep the ogre content and the creature will generally either get bored, tired or fly into a rage if one cannot give the goods. The wyrds of ogre-kind are what is known as an Ogre Mage and everything previously outlined on the matter of wyrd applies. Approach with caution and expect the worst.

Orcs

Artist Unknown

While they may outwardly resemble goblins or trolls, in truth orcs are neither. Their creation is some lost myth (or not) and whatever version may survive is likely not the complete truth. It speak of ambitious, power hungry would-be demiurges who sought to create life and conquer all realms. Through some dark pacts with forgotten entities, they acquired the knowledge to create life itself so they may raise great armies to conquer all the known world. These creatures would be soldiers and workers, born and bred only to toil or to pillage for their dark master. Through a fusion of dark magic, blood, filth and more the orcs were born, cast from a mold of mud and bile.

Physically, most orcs are shorter than human (but not as short as goblin-kind) and are invariably hideous parodies of humanity whose small stature and twisted form belies surprising physical strength. The form they take and what deformities plague them vary from orc to orc but they common features include missing body parts or over exaggerated body parts, warty or slimy skin and a mouth full of crooked teeth. Some group of orcs may display common physical traits which physically mark them as member of a specific group but some groups may consist of entirely different orcish types. They have no parent, no children and no true biological sex and are instead born in 'batches' where orcs emerge from the same flesh-pit or slime field, fully grown as adults and ready to serve their dark master. These creatures, being a parody of life and humanity, lack a true soul; while they are intelligent, orcs lack the ability to develop anything beyond a facsimile of a particularly crass, violent and/or cowardly nature. Whatever inhabit the mind of an orc is not a true soul or conscience but some twisted thing perhaps ripped from the ether and infused into a puppet of filth and violence.

Many modern orc infestations were born of the hubris of lords of old who too sought to conquer but were constantly met with the limitations of a standing army. In their desire for power, many wicked individuals turned to magic to find a solution: first perhaps employing court or battle wizard or making pacts with fae. Yet the simplest solution is simply to create soldiers. Orcs are warriors devoid of conscience. Unfortunately for the world, many of them survived the wars they waged and, worse, in some parts of the world managed to go into hiding and slowly find ways to make more of their kind. A rare few orcs manage to acquire a soul by consuming it, fusing the true powers of a soul with their alien orc un-nature. Orcish soul-eaters are monsters who stand above their peer as black knights or would-be dark lords, eager to consume the flesh and soul of particularly strong or special individuals so they are able to fill their gullet with soul-stuff, enhancing their power and intellect.

Art by Anato Finnstark

Finally, even fouler are rumors of Orc-Men. Since orcs are sexless being, it seem somewhat ridiculous to think 'half orcs' could exist. Instead, Orc-Men are vile sorcerers and warlocks who seek to extend their natural lifespan by becoming more like the near-immortal orcs, slowly replacing more and more of their flesh and nature with the stuff of orc slime vats and flesh pits. While it is true the process can greatly extend one's lifespan, the cost of such a process is too much. Damnation is inevitable as humanity is slowly peeled and rots away. While in theory many of these Orc-Men could become great lords among the orcs, many of them eventually lose their identity and nature and degenerate, becoming no different than the baseline orcs.

Random World: What I'm Keeping/Salvaging

Last year I worked on something called the 'Random World': it never got a name or anything, it was an attempt at fleshing out a setting simply off the names and randomly generated geography. With nothing but a landscape and some rough and/or previously abandoned setting material I ended up crafting a setting which was both generic enough to be usable with any version or derivative of D&D (but especially OSR systems and OSR-derivatives) but which still had some interesting and usable ideas (do note that it doesn't mean creative or original ideas, really). In the end the setting was phased out as I set out to work on Tellus and left the nameless Random World to wither off as a thought experiment.

Probably the best part of the Random World was the fleshing out and categorizing of the many low HD 'monstrous humanoids' of D&D (plus other monsters) into a system where there is a general origin and more importantly purpose and role to monsters often deemed interchangeable.

• Goblins are creatures of the dark and/or wild places, like caves, the underworld and deep forests. They are akin to fey creatures and, indeed, many beings we'd label as fey-like are actually part of this category, such as Hags. They are physically weak (barring those with magical powers to enhance this), mischievous, malicious and cunning. Dwarves are also a type of Goblins, as are Gnomes. In combat they will either use mobility, trickery, the terrain or magic which cause non-damage effects. The low HD monster role is taken by goblins, hobgoblins and fey knights.
• Trolls include all manner of Giant-Kin, taking cue from the ancient word Eoten. Like goblins they are somewhat tied to nature but the more primal, feral and powerful side. Even the smallest of these creatures is taller than the average man and should they display magical properties they will either be passive (troll regeneration, camouflage by turning to stone) or destructively potent (earthquake, fireballs and ice breath). Their low HD monster role is taken by Ogres and Ogre-kin, which are fairly small by Troll standard and non-magical by comparison, basically just big dumb brutes. They are, however, shockingly cunning and vicious in battle as they feel the need to compensate for their small size.
• Orcs may appear similar to the other two categories but are completely different in origin, born of black magic used to raise armies of cheap, obedient and biologically immortal soldiers. They are all ugly, lopsided and inhuman creatures born of mud and filth. They lack a soul and most orcs are mostly personality-less beyond being belligerent and nasty. Most are goblin-sized but a few 'Ogre Orcs' could exist. Orcs which consume the flesh of a particularly gifted being and/or a spell caster may steal some properties of their soul, cannibalizing enough to become full individuals who their master must placate and please to keep loyal. They tend to be the least likely to have more than a few HD (barring exceedingly skilled chieftain with a stone soul) but unlike Goblins they are innately organized and proficient in battlefield tactics and the use of weapons. This is to be expected as they are born as soldiers and minions.

Phasing Out the 'Random World' ...but it will live on!

The so-called Random World has been my baby for a while now. Born as a thought experiment in fleshing out a world to use for OD&D/basic OSR stuff using nothing but a randomly generated map it has since grown into its own thing. However as a setting it is as usable as it will get and one downside to its randomly generated map is I'm a bit stuck with what I have. Since the setting isn't going to be used on tabletop in the foreseeable future I'm shelving it. Its done. It has been fun and really helped me stretch my creative muscles but it will only go so far.

So now what?

Well there's material in there which is very usable and I'm quite happy with, namely the monsters. The stuff I've worked on for use, which tries to straddle the line between being unique from the basic D&D stuff while still being completely recognizable and usable with a basic system is something I'm quite proud of: these goblins and trolls are pretty simple but hey, I like what I did with them! As such this material is likely to get a redo and get some polish for a later setting.

Goodbye, Random World. You sparked something in me and for that I am grateful. Its a shame I'll never run you as-is.

Random World Variations: D&D 5e Version

Continuing off the last post for variations of my Random World.

Fantasy Warrior by Alejandro Olmedo.

Races

Generally-speaking, the Random World has been described as very human-centric, at least when it come to the major civilization as the core idea was born of a mixture of the assumptions of OD&D and the 4th Edition Point of Light design (which are very similar). That said they aren't the only playable race, especially when one take into account that human variations and crossbreeds are considered part of 'humans' for the most part.

Men

These are your baseline human (and no, not just a race of reverse amazon with only dudebros...even if that would be hilarious!) and their close relatives. They are the mortal inhabitant of the world and form the majority of the civilizations established around the Random World. In addition to the baseline human, the following sub-races exist:

• Those of High Blood descend from the Fey and Elemental-blessed nobles and knights of the fallen civilization of Karnegras, whose only remaining city is Waywood. While slightly taller and more comely than average, they are otherwise very similar to their human relatives. Indeed, some of the people displaying such features as per their bloodline might very well lack the blessings it come with, as the blood and its blessings are growing thinner and thinner. Mechanically, they use the stats for Half Elves.
• Those of Troll Blood around the Mavre Woods fill a niche vaguely similar to half orcs but with a fortunately much less sordid heritage, as myths and folklore tell their ancestors did not so much mate with trolls as acquire/steal their might and vitality (of course that could just cover up the ugly truth). In general people from the Mavre Woods are taller and brawnier than average but otherwise look human, lacking monstrous features altogether. Mechanically they use  As one would expect, they have the stats of Half Orcs.
• The People of Yarford have their own magical bloodline in the form of animalistic blessing, the result of ancient magical rites and their ritualistic hunt of spirit-beasts. This manifest as them being part of the Shifter race. Unlike the depiction of Shifters from their original setting, these are a civilized and feudal people with a strong warrior culture which help them channel these animal instincts.
• There are humans which have become warped by exposure to elemental forces. These beings would use the stats of Genasi in some shape or form. An example of a location with a Genasi population would be the Furnace Wastes.

Goblins

The races of goblins are two of the not-quite-fey-not-quite-mortal 'branches' of supernatural creatures which include both them and the trolls. As a general rule of thumb, Goblins are physically weak and small creatures, mysterious and often fickle. They represent mystery, darkness, wickedness, trickery, madness and more. They dwell in dark forests and under the earth.

• The Dwarves of the Random World are a Goblin race, even if they would not really admit it up front. They are among the most human-like of the goblins, as well as the most 'mortal'. These dwarves aren't particularly known for their warrior skill (that said, any Dwarven adventurer is expected to know how to handle weapons) or alcoholism and are rather secretive craftsmen, traders and nomads. They are notoriously more mean spirited and aloof than the common fantasy dwarf stereotype. For most people, the stories of the Dwarven homelands, their mountain cities, are just fairy tales. They are Hill Dwarves. Another Option: If Duergar exist they could very well be playable too.
• Hobgoblins are a form of warrior-goblin, elevated to greater power as elite servants either by some powerful being (a Goblin Lord or a human one will do, as does a powerful spellcaster). Stronger, taller, more focused than their scatterbrained lesser kin they very much play the role of 'monster minion' to other forces, At the same time, however, it does mean some patron could assign a hobgoblin to a party and thus justifying their presence.

Classes

There are two way classes could work in the Random World. The first is to use the core classes as presented in D&D 5e, which works (almost) fine while the other is to use the Low Fantasy Classes as presented in that PDF I-can't-seem-to-find-the-sources-for. Whichever option is used would certainly color the setting in a certain way, as the former is much higher on the fantastical scale. In any case, this is all a correction/addition to the thoughts on where each class might belong in that world.

In addition, any type of class variant generally associated with Elves can be generally assumed to work with the people of Waywood, as they clearly draw quite a bit from the typical elven imagery as a whole, down to (possibly) using Elven racial stats.

Monk

The Monk class has often been seen as an oddball in D&D, as it derive itself not from western tradition but rather eastern traditions, especially that of Wuxia with concepts such as martial arts and chi. Thus adding a monk to any setting adds a certain amount of oriental elements which may not fit certain worlds. Fortunately this is not the case.

• The Way of the Open Hand is the default.
• The Way of the Four Elements was invented by martial artists through study of various elemental beings manifesting upon the material plane and how they interacted with the world. These ancient, wandering masters spread far and wide both teaching others as they learned themselves. As such, there are countless schools and small enclave of Monks of this type, especially around places where elementals exist.
• The Way of the Kensei is also quite common, with no particular origin. These days it can be taught in the lands south of the Jungle of Spears just as much one could learn the ways of regular sword fighting. It remain seen as alien around the northern lands, however.

Setting Role: The Monk is, well, exactly what one would expect as he is a martial artist. Their teachings have roots in other lands (currently not fleshed out in my notes!), away from those which have been the focus of the blog posts. That doesn't mean their teachings haven't reached far and wide or become established its just that they remain as 'exotic'.

Sorcerer

The term sorcerer has been used, when writing about the Random World, interchangeably with any kind of arcane caster. In modern D&D, however, the name is that of a specific arcane spellcasting class, one tied to their innate magical gift via bloodlines.

• There is a series of homebrew of Sorcerous Origins called Yorviing's Sorcerous Grimoires. Several of them are well-suited (alongside, possibly, the Genasi race) to represent a human who has been deeply touched by raw, unfiltered elemental forces. Origins tied to elemental forces (like Volcanic One or Oceanborn) as well as those tied to natural concepts (such as Wooden Soul) are all suitable for this type of Sorcerer. Alternatively (or in addition to, since such powers are inherently chaotic and diverse) there would be the Elemental Essence origin from Kobold Press. The Storm Sorcery origin, found in the Sword Coast Adventeres Guide is also well suited to this category.
• There also Sorcerous Origins which ties well into the various other human subraces, with the people of Yarford having an affinity for the Primal Hunter (see Yorviing's Sorcerous Grimoire: Children of the Wild) origin.

Setting Role: It is likely that Sorcerers lack a unified setting role, as they are as distinct from each others as two completely different classes. Some of them might be seen as blessed tribal shaman of some isolated elemental-blooded tribe while others are deeply tied into a people's history and bloodline (such as Yarford) while in other places they are shunned as freaks of nature.

Warlock

The Warlock is a neat addition to D&D that doesn't get enough credit, being based off the idea that a spellcaster makes pact with an otherworldly patron, such as a demons. Its a cool, extremely ancient concept but for some reason (possibly because it is a later addition to D&D post-TSR) the class is a bit unpopular. Suitable Warlock Patron in the Random World include:

• The Archfey is a no-brainer, given that fey and fey-like beings have long been established. Many of them are quite alien and of a very nasty temperament, so they make poor Patron to directly interact with.
• The Fiend is likely to be an option even if, currently, I've not worked out just what exactly demons/fiends are. Still, its a corebook option and it works fine as is.
• The Hexblade is a pretty clear stand-in for the likes of Stormbringer and the Warlock tend to overlap with what D&D has called Hexblades as well as Eldritch Knight or even the Magus of Pathfinder.

Setting Role: The Warlock are obviously those who want to 'cut corners' when it come to wielding magic. Those with an Archfey Patron can be found in the areas around Waywood or even within the city itself, masquerading as some other type of spellcaster: in which case their patron are those ancient beings protecting the city which have increasingly chosen to have their own agenda rather than keep protecting a shadow of the former glory of Karnegras. NPC Warlock could also include intelligent/self aware Orcs who have retained their allegiance to their creators, the Witch-Trees. In exchange for their continued obedience and leading their less self-aware brethren they are taught magic.

Random World Variations: Different systems, different styles

Ah, the Random World: originally a short experiment for fun which ended up as a pseudo-setting I'm quite fond of. The reason it is branded a 'pseudo setting' is that, really, there's never going to be a 'true' or 'canonical' version.

A two-headed troll eating, Art by Albert Urmanov.

The notes, right now, primarily rely on Basic Fantasy (or Labyrinth Lord) and the choice of races and classes are very much influenced by it. By default, the presentation of the Random World is just generic enough that I can decide to use it by running Basic Fantasy or Labyrinth Lord right off the box with little to no homebrew. In its default form the setting may have some odd idiosyncrasies but its generally written to work with all the most basic and simple assumptions of a D&D game. However if I want to, this is a setting which can be modded or altered to work off different games and different D&D editions or OSR games. The setting can vary in presentation and style to be a bit more grim and gritty and morally gray or I could make it much more clear cut high fantasy with good and evil. I could also run it with D&D3e/Pathfinder and add more unusual magic forms such as Psionics or Akashic among others. For what its worth, I consider the modularity and re imagination potential to be a feature, not a bug. After all the entire point of the setting was a deliberate loose canon, core D&D elements and some gonzo whatever-the-hell-goes. It is a setting that is fleshed out enough to be gameable but its not a serious write up in the sense it harken back to those kind of mish mashed settings made from whatever I found cool when running D&D in high school.

Variations Upon A Theme

So what could possibly change depending on the game and/or mixture of supplements for said game or edition? Here is a non exhaustive list:

• Scarlet Heroes or Exemplars & Eidolon: Nothing is changed setting-wise, but the characters are more powerful and noteworthy individuals rather than starting as impoverished yet brave nobodies. Likely the most obvious pick after Basic Fantasy or Labyrinth Lord.
• Dungeon Crawl Classics: The opposite happen and the characters are even more pathetic and vulnerable than by default. The world is presented as more grim, chaotic and brutal.
• +Hubris: One of my favorite DCC settings. The setting remain as the above but even more bleak and horrifying. Classes taken from Hubris add new layer and setting elements, such as Mutants (briefly mentioned as possibly existing here and here) and Half-Demons add a bit more of a dark and/or weird fantasy vibe.
• Pathfinder: There is a crapload more of options and rules, maybe too much! The general power level of classes is vastly increased especially for spellcasters. It might be wiser to use E6 for sanity's sake. Overall, the fantasy level is vastly increased.
• +Psionics: By default I have not written in Psionics into the setting but that doesn't mean they can't exist and fit in. Adding psionics greatly add to the weird fantasy elements. One way to make psionic distinct would be to very much tie it to 'mortals' as the power of their mind rather than the primordial powers of the cosmos that arcane and divine magic both channel. Another option, which could be interesting, is to make it a relatively new and poorly understand phenomena which has slowly crept up over the past centuries, with mages and clerics fearing it might eclipse magic.
• +Akashic: It was called Incarnum in 3e, while the 3rd party Pathfinder remake is called Akashic. Being based off Vedic mythological concepts is great and it would add quite a bit of exotic and mystical elements too. Unlike Psionics this would definitely be an ancient and well-established power (but not necessarily a common one).
• Dungeons & Dragons 5e: Much like Pathfinder, it too is essentially boiled down to 'alot of options' and greatly increase the overall amount of fantastical elements. Unless...
• +Low Fantasy Classes: I've got no clue who wrote this PDF I found (it likely isn't a paid product as it lack any indication of a person or company having published it) but its certainly right up my alley when it come to playing the 'Random World' with D&D 5e as, since it was written with baseline OSR in mind the classes aren't as filled with weirdo powers as they are in 3e, 4e or 5e. In particular, it has an order of Knights (their low fantasy not!Paladins) tied to fey and elves which fits in perfectly with what has been established with Waywood's knights and druids.
• Black Hack: Not much change except the system is different, I guess?

Random World Extras: Quick Character Generation for Waywood and the Middle Lands

More backgrounds for use with the Random World: rolling these tables give a Race/Class combination for Basic Fantasy as well as some loose character background for the how or the why someone from that part of the world would be an adventurer or what their skills and talents could be.

The previous posts are link to on the table for ease of navigation. For context on some of these choices, click here.

D20	Origin
1-3	Caldbrygg, the Mystical City
4-6	Cryham, City of Spells
7-9	Middle Lands
10-12	Glanda
13	Waywood
14	Furnace Wastes
15	Orcfen River
16	Jungle of Spears
17	Yarford
18	Cafeld
19	Mavre Woods
20	Scarwood Forest

WAYWOOD
D8	Race	Class and Background
1-2	'Elf'	Warrior of Tradition (Fighter): You are (or at least try to be) more than some soldier. Your creed is one of ancient traditions of nobility and dedication to higher ideals. In spite of this you lack any kind of spiritual power: has you faith been found wanting?
3		Holy Warrior (Cleric or Paladin): As the above but with actual investment of power of spirits. This only mean you have even more responsibilities, however and they sometimes clash with Waywood’s obtuse and antiquated laws.
4		Spirit-Speaker (Cleric or Magi-User): Your task is to act as some form of link between ancient spirits and the mortal realm. More than a few magicians have grown tired, jaded or even corrupt from it which could explain why you’ve struck on your own.
5		Green Priest (Druid): Your sect is ancient and older than even Karnegras itself. The magic you’ve been taught is old and terrifying. You are no tree-hugger, but rather an initiate in bloody mysteries.Having travelled outside of Waywood many times you might have been roped into some adventures.
6-7	Human	Enforcer (Fighter):You could be a lesser noble or simply a commoner soldier. Either way, you’ve spent a sizeable amount of time working as an enforcer of the ancient laws.
8		Shanty-Town Scum (Thief): Whereas others coat themselves in a cloak of nobility and order, you know how things really are and you find no shame in it. Your existence is one of living in the shadows and in the grey areas of the law.

MIDDLE LANDS
D12	Race	Class and Background
1-2	Human	Knight of the Middle Lands (Fighter): You are a lesser noble of some kingdom in the Middle-Lands. Since you are not the first born son you’ve turned to being a knight-errant, with only your sword and armor to live by.
3-4		Bandit (Fighter or Thief): You are one of the many bandits of the Middle Lands. It's worth noting that many Middle-Land bandits are in fact knights and nobles themselves! You simply have a very ‘hands on’ approach to showing your might to neighbors...by pillaging and raiding them.
5-6		Explorer (Ranger or Scout): You are an explorer and traveller by nature and you know many paths around the Middle Lands, such as abandoned Karnegras roads overgrown with thorns or where the border of bandit territories are.
7		Wannabe Sorcerer (Magic-User): Magic is not the strong suit of the Middle Lands as it lack much of the infrastructure and organized magic users. There used to be relics and ancient sites of power of Karnegras in these lands but now they are lost. Maybe you can reclaim them?
8		Priest (Cleric): You are an ordained (and gifted!) priest of some local faith. However, the truth is whatever order or cult you belong to has seen better days and is on its last leg. You venture into the world hoping to make a difference.
9		Green Priest (Druid): Once, ancient traditions held immense power over the lands which were under the rule of Karnegras. You are the inheritor of some mostly-dead branch of the Green Priest’s religion. Waywood’s own Green Priests see you as a backward ‘bumpkin’.
10	Dwarf	Dwarf Exile (Thief or Fighter): You’ve been exiled from your clan and now wander the Middle Lands, fending for yourself.
11	Hobgoblin	Hobgoblin Servant (Fighter or Thief): As a hobgoblin you’ve been trained and/or empowered from the lesser ranks of goblins to work as a warrior, thug or assassin. You could be masterless and in need of sustaining your powers (and thus needing to complete at least one ‘quest’ or ‘adventure’ worth a level of XP) or you could be ‘loaned’ to a party of adventurers by your master.
12	Half-Ogre	Trollblood (Fighter or Barbarian): You have the blood of lesser trolls (known as Ogres) in your vein and it shows in both your stature and demeanor. You are an easily angered giant with a large appetite. You may or may not have a softer side.