Gods of Aruneus

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The Gods of Aruneus

By Benjamin Gerber

Artwork by Seth Kumpf & Tim Reardon. Some artwork copyright William McAusland, used with

permission.

The gods sleep while we mortals suffer. The dead roam the world while the gods remain mute.

The powers have left us to this nightmare and we are faced with living death. The white cloth

speaks of patience and of turning the tide. We speak of embracing our death, of controlling it.

You in your entropy are eternally in motion, never at rest. We call on you Dal, in this time of

sleeping powers. You who are still around us all, with us always and unending, we call on you to

empower us. You in your entropy are eternally in motion, never at rest.--Cult of Dal chant, Warehave, 100AA

Contents

........................................................................................................................................................ 2

............................................................................................................................................... 3

Tamir ........................................................................................................................................................... 3

Vaalu ............................................................................................................................................................ 4

Raena ........................................................................................................................................................... 5

Nantos .......................................................................................................................................................... 6

......................................................................................................................................... 7

Mertos .......................................................................................................................................................... 7

Dal ................................................................................................................................................................ 8

................................................................................................................................................. 9

...................................................................................................................................................... 9

Pathfinder and associated marks and logos are trademarks of PaizoPublishing, LLC, and are used under license. Seepaizo.com/pathfinderRPG

for more information on the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game

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What is Aruneus?

Aruneus is a source book for the Pathfinder

Role Playing Game detailing the world, politics,

and lives of those living in a high fantasy world

one hundred years after a cataclysmic zombie

apocalypse.

It is said that in the time before the arrival of

the Elves, Aruneus was a godless world,

existing in a state where powers and magic

were free to use for all and no beings of

immense might had come to claim these rawpowers for themselves.

Scholars do not know how the Elves arrived on

Aruneus, or where they came from. If even the

Elves remember they have not exposed this

secret. However they arrived, when they came

to Aruneus they brought with them or allowed

to arrive six deities who claimed this world for

their own. Though they occasionally took an

active role in world events they have generally

focused on their own realm outside of thepurely physical. They are often referred to by

the religious orders that follow them as the

Gentle Gods for their sparse interaction with

the world and its populous.

They are generally divided between the Gods of

Light whose concerns are said to be those of

creation and the Gods of the Dark whose

concerns are with entropy. Neither the Gods of

Light or of the Dark can said to be good or evil,

and have in the past granted powers to priestswho have both helped and harmed many. As

such many churches will elevate one of the six

gods above the other, but venerate the entire

pantheon.

The vast majority of sentient individuals on

Aruneus do not dedicated themselves to one of

the six; rather they are worshiped as a whole

with various gods being called upon for specific

prayers as needed. There are a few notable

exceptions, the Order of the White Cloth being

one of them.

As the Aruneus gods are generally worshipped

as a pantheon, with certain gods elevated above

others depending on the cult of worship, all

standard Domains are available to Clerics and

Oracles in the World of Aruneus.

Each of the six Aruneus Gods has a Domain

specific to the World of Aruneus that may be

used as one of a clerics two domains.

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TamirTamir, or the All God was the first to make

itself known to the Elves. Tamir has appeared

in many forms, as both sexes but is always said

to have worn a crown of white ivory when

manifesting in the physical realm. Tamir is said

to be the most powerful of the deities ruling

over Aruneus and is most often associated with

healing and reconciliation. The Elves hold thatTamir has some influence over the other

deities. Through the ages a number of religious

orders have dedicated themselves to Tamir and

Tamir's Will (although the latter is almost

never communicated clearly). The Order of the

White Cloth is the latest religious order to be

dedicated exclusively to Tamir.

Domain: Reconciliation. You are skilled in the

arts of negotiation and reconciling differences.

Calming Touch (Sp): You can cause a living

creature to become calmer for 1 round as a

melee touch attack as the spell Calm Emotions.

Creatures with more Hit Dice than your cleric

level are unaffected. You can use this ability a

number of times a day equal to 2+ your

Wisdom modifier.

Speaker for All (Sp): At 8th level, you can cast

the spell Tongues as a swift action. The total

number of times you may cast this per day isequal to your cleric level. Using this ability does

not count against the number of spells you may

cast per day. You may dismiss this spell effect

at any time as a swift action.

Domain Spells: 1st Command, 2nd Augury,

3rd Speak with Dead, 4th Aura of Doom, 5th

Ancestral Memory, 6th Mass Owls Wisdom,

7th Circle of Clarity, 8th Euphoric

Tranquility, 9th Overwhelming Presence.

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VaaluVaalu is a god most often perceived as male

and has been said to have manifested himself

mostly as a powerful, red bearded Dwarf. Vaalu

is most concerned with knowledge and

learning, whether it is in the realm of magic,

scholarship or recently the new sciences

responsible for lighter than air craft. Of the six,

Vaalu is said to have manifested itself most

often in the early times of the Great War,

offering new knowledge to all of the races. He is

sometimes seen as a trickster as well as a giver

of knowledge. His symbol is a red hammer.

Domain: Discovery. You have a talent for

finding that which was lost, or never knownbefore.

Tidbit of Knowledge (Sp): Once per day, you

can activate this ability to either open a book to

a random page, or talk with a random stranger.

On activating this ability you will learn one

small bit of knowledge which will be relevant to

your current task, quest or mission. You must

be able to read the language written in the book

or speak the language spoken by the stranger.

Imbued with Success (Sp): Starting at 8th level,

you may activate this ability once per day.

Everyone within a 30 radius, including you,

gains a bonus to any Intelligence based skill

rolls equal to your Wisdom modifier. This

ability remains active for 10 minutes/cleric

level.

Domain Spells: 1st Know the Enemy, 2nd

Find Traps, 3rd Blood Biography, 4th

Sending, 5th Commune, 6th Joyful Rapture,7th Lesser Create Demiplane, 8th Discern

Location, 9th Gate.

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RaenaRaena is always portrayed as a female, taking

the form of any of the sentient races. She is

always seen clothed in greens and browns

and is associated with growing things, forests

and fertility. Popular with farmers and those

who live close to nature, Raena has in the

past proven to be fickle when it comes to

intervention, apparently choosing sides on a

whim. Her symbol is a seed with a plant

sprout emerging from it.

Domain: Growth. Helping living things to

grow and flourish is your life goal.

Will to Live (Sp): Up to three times a day,touch a dying creature or player to make it

stable, as a touch attack. The affected

creature will then regain 1 HP a round until

they reach 0 HP.

Radiant Life (Su): At 6th level, you begin to

radiate energy of growth and health. This

aura is invisible and extends around your

character in a circle with a 5 radius. For each

even numbered level above 6th this circles

radius increased by 5. Any living creaturethat spends more than 1 hour of time within

this aura will gain the following benefits:

Increased Healing when you would

next naturally regain hit points from

rest, regain 2 additional hit points.

Increased Fortitude Gain +1 on all

Fort saving throw rolls for 24 hours.

Renewed Energy Exhausted

characters become Fatigued. Fatigued

characters lose their Fatigued

condition.

Domain Spells: 1st Remove Sickness, 2nd

Bears Endurance, 3rd Nap Stack, 4th

Restoration, 5th Burst of Glory, 6th Heroes

Feast, 7th Regenerate, 8th Holy Aura, 9th

True Resurrection.

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NantosNantos is associated with birth, longevity and

intense luck. Nantos has manifested as both

male and female, Dwarf, Human, Elf and Orc.

Nantos is credited as the most active god within

the mortal sphere. Documented manifestations

date back to the League of the Ring. There have

been several religious orders dedicated to

Nantos specifically. The last, the Order of

Nantos was popular amongst Elves and

Humans until the mid-400's BA, when it fell in

to decline. Nantos symbol is a sliver moon.

Domain: Fate. When all else fails, you trust in

your faith in Nantos and your luck.

Lucky Soul (Su): You may influence your own

luck, or the luck of someone near you to

directly profit yourself. The range of this ability

extends in a 100' radius. You may use this

ability up to three times a day, and these uses

may be stacked, where each use changes a

result by +1 or -1.

Beneficent Soul (Sp): Starting at 10th level you

may instill Aid (as the spell) on up to 10

individuals within your line of sight. You may

do this as a quick action. This effect lasts until

you decide to end it, or when an individual has

been out of your site for more than 12 hours,

whichever happens first.

Domain Spells: 1st Bless, 2nd Status, 3rd

Channel Vigor, 4th Blessing of Fervor, 5th Mass Heroic Fortune, 6th Animate Objects, 7th

Bestows Grace of the Champion, 8th

Antimagic Field, 9th Miracle.

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MertosMertos is associated with war, hostility and

trade. Mertos most often manifests as a tall,

dark haired Human. He was lasted sighted

when the Necromancers forces were

destroyed and her threat was eliminated.

Mertos reportedly manifested on the

battlefield directly over the slain body of the

Necromancer. His symbol is a dagger,

pointing upwards.

Domain: Opposition. Seemingly random

acts of fate against those who would stop you

from attaining your goals ensures chaos and

disorder among your enemies.

Gaze of Opposition (Su): You cause one

creature within your line of site to lose 1d4

from their next die roll, regardless of what

that roll is for. Die roll results cannot fall

below 1. Creatures with more Hit Dice thanyour cleric level are unaffected. You can use

this ability a number of times per day equal

to your Wisdom modifier.

Oppositional Goals (Su): Once per day,

starting at 8th level, you may take decrease

any one stat by 2 points and increase any

other stat by 2 points. This effect lasts for

your cleric level + 2 rounds. You may not

reduce any stat below 1. At 12th level you

may change your stats by 3. At 16th level youmay change your stats by 4.

Domain Spells: 1st Bane, 2nd Surmount

Condition, 3rd Archons Aura, 4th

Debilitating Portent, 5th Reprobation, 6th

Harm, 7th Jolting Portent, 8th Frightful

Aspect, 9th Cursed Earth.

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DalDal is associated with death, dying and the

afterlife. There have been no confirmed

manifestations of Dal within recordedhistory. Popular thought holds that seeing

Dal manifested leaves you little time to talk

about it or do anything else in this world.

Most religious orders either shun Dal or

incorporated it into their existing rituals.

Until very recently there have not been any

orders dedicated to Dal. Now there are a

number of cults dedicated to Dal, which the

Order of the White Cloth works actively to

stamp out. Dals symbol is a grey, unbroken

circle.

Domain: Otherworld. Clerics of Dal have a

spiritual understanding of death, dying and

what comes after.

Death Understanding (Su): Gain a +2 bonus

for weapon attacks and damage against any

Undead type creature. For every 5 cleric

levels, this bonus increases by +1.

Explore the Beyond (Su): Once per day

starting at 8th level you may elect to die a

true death. Your body will die and your

spirit will flee to another realm. This true

death lasts for your cleric level +10 minutes.

During this time your body is preserved as

the Gentle Repose spell. When the duration

has ended, you will return to life with your

full hit points and cured of any diseases you

may have contracted. If you are resurrected

during this time, you lose the benefits ofExplore the Beyond.

Domain Spells: 1st Deathwatch, 2nd

Gentle Repose, 3rd Animate Dead, 4th

Ancestral Gift, 5th Raise Dead, 6th Antilife

Shell, 7th Resurrection, 8th Orb of the Void,

9th True Resurrection.

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The last confirmed manifestation of any deity

on Aruneus was days after the initial undead

surge, when Nantos appeared before Lord

Neveron of the Old Kingdom, while the Lord

was holding court. Forty courtiers report

Nantos appearing as a human male, clad in

cloth of gold. Nantos reportedly whispered

something to Lord Neveron, looked back

over his shoulder and then vanished. Lord

Neveron immediately called a closed

council meeting with his personal advisers.

During this meeting he was assassinated by

one of his advisers who also succeeded inkilling the other 9 men and women in the

room, and then themselves. No one is sure

which adviser was responsible.

While the power of the gods is manifest

through priests and can be seen to work on

a daily basis, the gods themselves have

chosen (or have been forced) to remain mute

since the dead began to walk Aruneus. There

is vast speculation as to what has happened to

them, why they no longer intervene in mortalaffairs and why they have chosen not to speak.

Just several years past a small group of rebels

aligned with the League of the Earth and led by

several supplicants stumbled on the ruins of a

large temple dedicated to Dal and Mertos.

They decided to explore further and in at some

point in the days after uncovering the entrance,

which had been sealed from the outside, they

released a new threat to the world of Aruneus.

Only one member of their party escaped

unharmed to tell of a new undead threat that

had been locked in to this temple an

aberration of a zombie that was not similar to

any of the undead the world had seen since the

apocalypse was unleashed nearly a century

prior.

The survivor called this zombie a Darkweaver

because of the fog-like tendrils of darkness that

seemed to flow from it.

Since unearthing a single type of this

zombie,

there have been several current

reports of these types of undead abroad in the

world. They do not seem to be anywhere near

as numerous as the Decrepit Undead Human

Zombie but they are far more powerful.

More chilling is it would seem that while they

are just as deadly in terms of bite to humans,

they also can turn other races into undead

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horrors. Rumors of Darkweaver Orcs and Elves

have recently been circulating.

Darkweaver Zombies are more intelligent than

other Contagion Infected Zombies. They are

able to manipulate simple objects such asdoors, negotiate ladders and other simple tasks.

Darkweaver ZombieXP 1,600 CR 5

Medium Undead

Init +0, Darkvision 60, Perception + 16

Darkweave (20 Fatigued for 1d10 rounds, Will

DC 18 negates).

Defense

AC 20, touch 10, flat-footed 15 (+5 natural)HP 60 (8d8+24)

Fort +4, Ref +2, Will +8

DR 3/-; immune undead traits

Offense

Speed 20 ft.

Melee Grapple, bite +14 (1d8), Slam +14

(1d8+10)

Statistics

Str 24, Dex 10, Con -, Int 3, Wis 15, Cha 15Base Attack: +6, CMB +13; CMD 23

Feats: Power attack, Toughness, Weapon

Focus, Skill Focus (Perception)

Special Qualities

The Contagion, Darkweave, Damage Reduction

3/, Moan, Freeze, Destruction, Regeneration,

Undead traits

Darkweave (Su)

Like threads of tattered fog, dark strands of

mist emanate from the Darkweaver Zombie,

acting as intangible tentacles that surround it in

a 20 radius. Anyone approaching within 20 of

a Darkweaver Zombie must make a DC 18 Will

save or become Fatigued for 1d10 rounds.

Whether or not the save is successful,

characters cannot be affected again by the same

Darkweaver zombies ability for one hour.

The Contagion (Ex)

A single bite from a Contagion InfectedZombie will infect any Human bitten. There is

no saving throw. Non-human races bitten by

the Darkweave Zombie must make a Fort Save

(DC 16).

Successfully saving against the Contagion for

non-human races reduces the characters Con

by 1 for 24 hours. This effect is cumulative. If

their Con reaches 0, they are dead.

A failed saving throw means the character willdie within 1d20+4 hours. They cannot be

healed by any normal, divine or magical means

excepting the Vial of Life or a Wish (not a

Limited Wish).

Once a Contagion infected character has died,

they cannot be resurrected. They will reanimate

as a Darkweaver Zombie in 1d4 days after they

have died.

Damage Reduction (Ex)Darkweaver Zombies are essential masses of

flesh for which wounds are not an issue.

Moan(Ex)

Darkweaver Zombies, on determining that

potential prey is nearby, emit a long, low moan

which carries quite a distance. Any other

Contagion Infected Zombies within a half mile

radius have a 60% chance of being attracted by

this moan and will also begin moaning

themselves. Often, this results in a Contagion

Infected Zombie Horde. Zombies will moan if

they see prey or hear loud noises which may

indicate prey.

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Freeze(Ex)

When Darkweaver Zombies are in an

environment where the temperature falls below

32F for over 12 hours they will freeze solid.

They will be unable to move until they have

been exposed to temperatures over 32F for 12or more hours. Frozen zombies are considered

immobile and helpless.

Destruction(Ex)

If Contagion Infected Zombies take their

maximum hit dice (i.e. 1 hit die 1d12 = 12

pts.) in damage in a single round they are

considered destroyed (dead). The exception is a

Cleric who uses the Channel Energy ability to

channel positive energy. If positive channeled

energy is used to reduce a Contagion InfectedZombie to 0 hit points or less, it is destroyed.

Regeneration(Su)

When a Darkweaver Zombie takes more than

its hit points in damage, but less than its total

hit dice, it falls prone for one full combat

round. After that combat round, they become

prone with their full hit points.

A note on spells: Domain spells listed in this

document are drawn from a number ofPathfinder supplements. If you do not own

these supplements, you can always find the

relevant information at thed20 Pathfinder

SRD.

Special thanks to Jenn Gerber, Izzie & Luca and all the folks

at Troll in the Corner.

Aruneus and Troll in the Corner are trademarks owned by

Benjamin Gerber. All rights reserved. The mention of or

reference to any company or product in these pages is not a

challenge to the trademark or copyright concerned.

Visit us athttp://www.trollitc.com

For a great RPG community online, pleasevisithttp://www.reddit.com/r/rpg

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Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. Copyright 2009, PaizoPublishing, LLC; Author: Jason Bulmahn, based on materialby Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams.The Book of Experimental Might. Copyright 2008, Monte J.Cook. All rights reserved.Tome of Horrors. Copyright 2002, Necromancer Games,Inc.; Authors: Scott Greene, with Clark Peterson, EricaBalsley, Kevin Baase, Casey Christofferson, LanceHawvermale, Travis Hawvermale, Patrick Lawinger, and BillWebb; Based on original content from TSR.The World of Aruneus Copyright 2010, Benjamin Gerber.Troll in the Corner Copyright 2010, Benjamin Gerber

Pathfinder and associated marks and logos are trademarksof Paizo Publishing, LLC, and are used under license. Seepaizo.com/pathfinderRPGfor more information on thePathfinder Roleplaying Game.

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