THE WORLD OF ARKUTH

UPDATES TO SITE: May 14th, 2020 Added new high rez burnt scroll map to site (4K). Nov 2017 Updated to new world map style (W.I.P) Added magical weapons section Finalized the Arkuthic Knight

World Maps

 

Foreward:

Arkuth, (ar cuth) "The Sundered Lands" is the third fantasy AD&D world designed, populated and richly described by Cole E Austin (Owner of Planet AD&D and long time Dungeon Master). This website will slowly grow as my personal campaign expands and my players explore the realm's furthest reaches. My intentions for this realm are as always; high adventure, fantastic tales, detailed maps, memorable NPC's and a plethora of information, charts and diagrams. I never set my sights low, as I believe in superior quality and constantly strive to bring the real world and other Dungeon Masters a place of wonder and intrigue.

I've decided to display my work on this realm online so that other DM's can choose to use this campaign world for their own if they so choose. It's provided as-is and gives DM's an alternative to the standard AD&D settings. I here-by provide this world for all to use free of charge. Please cut up, add-to or distribute as desired providing it's done for non-profit reasons. All intellectual rights are exclusively mine however and all content is copyright by me (said author). With that said, please join us in this epic undertaking as we explore and create my newest realm.

The Realm Itself:

Arkuth, The Sundered Lands; as it shall be referred to from this point on, is a realm divided of old. Great empires, kingdoms and countries have come and gone and a vast amount of land has yet to be discovered, fought over or explored. The globe itself is nearly the size of earth and hosts only a fraction of Earths civilized population, however many other creatures and beings inhabit these lands in great number and should not be idly forgotten.

The landscape itself is vast and might appear impossible to completely explore to the average AD&D player. This is something to be expected, yet should be showcased by your Dungeon Master. Players want to feel that a world of high fantasy is endless and that they are realistically a small part of a much grander whole. Yet, those same players want to make a difference and be remembered for making memorable contributions. This is why I've designed the realm as such and will be using my current twenty-six years of DM experience as the basis for Arkuth's overall platform. I've run allot of games in my time and I want to share what I've learned with other DM's. So shall we begin...

This realm contains all standard terrain types and topography common to Earth and even a few areas that simply do not fit within the known normality of our planet. From the tallest of mountains to the lowest of flatlands, Arkuth has unparalleled physical land masses and bodies of water. The realm hosts what seems to be endless forests, immense deserts, unforgiving wastelands, gigantic mountain ranges, amazing steppe lands, frozen arctic tundra's and sprawling rivers. Even large swamplands, grassy plains, rolling hills and salt marshes can all be stumbled upon.

 

Climate/Terrain:

Temperatures range from °69 Celsius (156 fahrenheit) within the hottest of deserts to less than -°65 Celsius (-85 fahrenheit) atop the tallest peaks. Average temperatures sit around °25 Celsius (77 fahrenheit) within the central most regions, while the outer territories average more around °17 Celsius (63 fahrenheit). The weather is generally temperate, with average amounts of rainfall and/or snow. The seasons are all quite apparent no matter where you are, with the exception of the regions that lie closest to the equator which rarely see snow or subzero temperatures. Weather varies across the land from one place to the next, but almost every region can fall victim to droughts, freak snowstorms, or torrential downpour. Overall the weather becomes more unstable as one moves towards the poles.

Type of Terrain	Percentage
Forest/Wilderlands	11%
Jungle/Extremely Dense Regions	5%
Flatlands/Plains/Cultivated	7%
Mountain/Highlands	10%
Wetlands/Lakes/Rivers etc.	8%
Swamplands	2%
Arctic/Snow Covered	5%
Desert/Wastelands/Steppes	6%
Bodies of Water (Oceans/Seas)	46%

Flora& Fauna: The world of Arkuth hosts over thirty-two million species of plants and animals within it's biosphere. This website details some of the more interesting and unique creatures and plant life of the realm. Although not shown on this website, Arkuth boasts hundreds of animals, insects, mammals and various plant life that are all common to Earth, some of these include ( cows, horses, oxen, birds, fish, snakes, spiders, elephants, camels and many other mundane creatures). However, archiving all of these well known creatures is counter productive to my goal and will be considered common knowledge to all.

Common Monsters/Creatures:

Most common AD&D monsters inhabit the realm, with a somewhat large amount of unique creatures also making appearances from time to time. All of which are detailed on this website's monster section . It goes without saying that almost all creatures encountered can come from anywhere as most of the realm contains all types of terrain. Some of the more common creatures/beings include: giants, wolves, ettin, sharks, orcs, trolls, bugbear, thri'kreen, gnolls, goblins, kobolds, ogre, eagles, pigs, horses, sheep, wild boar and many more.

Established Races/Inhabitants:

Arkuth is home to all of the standard D&D races. Humans make up nearly 43% of the entire realm's civilized inhabitants. As one might perceive, humans on Arkuth vary in color, size, creed and religious beliefs just like that of earth and tend to thrive in most parts of the realm when given the chance. Arkuth has a vast multitude of human societies and other cultured demi-human races, thus giving the realm unlimited flavor and incredible possibilities. Some of the other major races that inhabit the world include; Elves, Dwarves, Gnomes, Halfling's, Orcs and Goblins. While players will also encounter Halfling's, Half-Elves, Minotaur, Bugbear and Gnolls almost as regularly in certain regions of the world.

Magic: Arkuth is a mid level magic world. Magical weapons, armor, items and mechanisms can all be found throughout the world of Arkuth and are highly concentrated in various regions of the realm, but are generally considered rare. Dark arcane magic and their workings being ultimately the rarest. Those who dabble within the arcane arts in general are typically viewed with suspicion. On the contrary, divine casters are plentiful and can be found within most civilized communities. Clerics, monks and other various religious figureheads all have a great part to play within the world of Arkuth and their importance to the Gods are second to none.

• Divine Viewpoint: The gods watch over their followers closely and hold fast in the ideal that magical ability is something given, rather then taught. Those who become powerful arcane casters are often part of a God's twisted ploy or are used to advance their own doings, while those using divine abilities are considered the chosen ones.

Pantheon: The realm of Arkuth is based upon a loose multi polytheistic style pantheon, which is described at length in the Player Hand Book. Several standard religions from within the 1st edition Deities & Demigods handbook will be used as a reference point. Mythos with include; the Asgardian (Norse), Central American (Aztec), Celtic, Egyptian, Finish, Japanese, Nehwon, Babylonian, Sumerian and most demi-human deities. All of the gods in this campaign have limited divine power capabilities. Yet are dependant upon their worshipers to gain them favor amongst mortals. simply put, the more worshipers a deity has, the more divine ranks they can gain and thus allowing the endless shift of divine power. As a starting point, each deity has been appointed a specific number of divine ranks points as described in our Gods & Deities section.

• Divinity: Divinity is gained through the use of imparted divine succession. To become a divine being, ones patron god must grant them a divine rank and ascend them into their plane of existence. This honor is the ultimate achievement for most player characters and should not be taken lightly. Gods will only give a divine rank for a lifetime of servitude, devotion, obedience and loyalty to them and only them. However it should be noted that most players will never achieve such perfection and a god that gives a rank, also loses a rank and thus may naturally forfeit their current status amongst the other gods. DM's should treat this goal as nearly impossible and if a player is perceived as truly a chosen one, it would be recommended that the PC in question is now retired from gameplay.

Preferred Hero Occupations:

All common medieval occupations and D&D character classes can be encountered throughout the realm, along with many new classes which can be found in Arkuth's "Specialty Class" section. Of course some are more rare than others and thus they should be. The more common professions include; fighters, clerics, druids, thieves, rangers and magic-users. Others are more rarely encountered, yet still are easily found. The rarest occupations are generally the ones reserved to the rich, secretive or the privileged. IE. Cavaliers, Ninja, Samurai, Paladins, Oriental Monks and more...