Player Handout Whispers of the Wastes

Player Handout - Whispers of the Wastes

Welcome to Alkebulan

Setting: A dark fantasy continent recovering from magical apocalypse. Think “Chernobyl meets Lord of the Rings” - a world where magic caused a nuclear-scale disaster 300 years ago, and communities are still rebuilding from the contaminated ruins.

Tone: Dark but playable. Heroes matter, positive change is possible, but every victory has costs and safety requires constant vigilance.

The World You Know

The Cataclysm (300 Years Ago)

Two magical empires destroyed each other in catastrophic warfare using temporal weapons and reality-altering magic. The result: a shattered continent where remnant magical energy still poisons the land, mutates creatures, and makes magic unpredictable and dangerous.

Port Zephyr - Your Starting Location

A desperate trading port clinging to survival as the last major hub in The Cerulean Reach. Ruled by the Council of Merchant Princes - an oligarchy where wealth determines who lives and dies. The city’s 10,000 residents survive through:

  • Arms dealing and trade in contaminated goods
  • Exploiting labor in dangerous remnant zones
  • Political corruption and economic manipulation

Key Locations:

The Whispering Wastes

A contaminated desert east of Port Zephyr where remnant energy creates:

  • Spectral Whisps: Ghostly entities that drift across the dunes
  • Crystal formations: Dangerous but beautiful growths from magical contamination
  • Temporal anomalies: Where time moves strangely
  • Mutation zones: Where life adapts in disturbing ways

Character Creation Guidelines

Races

All standard D&D races are welcome with minor setting adjustments:

  • Humans: Most common survivors, adaptable
  • Elves: Long-lived witnesses to the Cataclysm
  • Dwarves: Underground survivors, skilled crafters
  • Halflings: Hardy communities that endured
  • Standard Tieflings/Dragonborn/etc.: All work with minor lore tweaks

Setting-Specific Race: Sandshapers

Post-Cataclysm desert dwellers

  • ASI: Constitution +2, Wisdom +1
  • Abilities: Desert survival, earth magic (mold earth cantrip, Earth Tremor once per long rest), sand camouflage
  • Culture: Nomadic tribes with deep respect for the desert

Consider Avoiding:

  • Warforged, Changelings, Kalashtar (don’t fit the setting tone)
  • Highly technological or planar-focused races

Classes & Subclasses

All official classes work in the setting.

Backgrounds

Use standard D&D backgrounds with post-Cataclysm context:

  • Guild Artisan: Crafting with scavenged materials
  • Hermit: Surviving alone in contaminated zones
  • Soldier: Fighting raiders and Imperial expansion
  • Scholar: Preserving lost knowledge
  • Folk Hero: Defending your community from threats

Magic in Alkebulan

Key Concepts:

  • Magic is rare and dangerous - Spellcasters face social suspicion
  • Remnant contamination - Magic can poison the user over time
  • Wild magic effects - Spells sometimes have unexpected consequences
  • Ancient artifacts - Pre-Cataclysm items are powerful but unstable

Spell Considerations:

  • Desert survival spells (create water, endure elements)
  • Investigation magic (detect magic, identify)
  • Purification effects (purify food and drink)
  • Communication spells (for dangerous terrain)

Important Factions

Remnant Keepers

Secret organization studying the Cataclysm to prevent another one. They:

  • Preserve dangerous knowledge
  • Monitor magical threats
  • Sometimes make morally questionable choices “for the greater good”

The Amunrai Imperium

Expanding solar empire from the north threatening local independence:

  • Egyptian-themed culture with solar magic
  • Highly organized military and bureaucracy
  • Views southerners as “primitives” needing civilization

Local Authorities

Port Zephyr’s Council of Merchant Princes:

  • Corrupt oligarchy prioritizing profit over people
  • Each council member controls different aspects of city life
  • May hire adventurers for jobs that benefit their interests

Contamination Mechanics

Your characters understand that prolonged exposure to remnant energy causes contamination - treat it like exhaustion levels:

  1. Mild: Hair loss, occasional nausea
  2. Moderate: Visible crystal growths, Constitution save disadvantage
  3. Severe: Speed reduced, vulnerability to necrotic damage
  4. Critical: Hit points halved
  5. Extreme: Disadvantage on all checks and saves
  6. Terminal: Crystallization (incapacitated, dying)

Treatment:

  • Lesser restoration removes 1 level
  • Greater restoration removes 2 levels
  • Natural recovery: 1 level per week in clean environment

What Your Characters Know

Common Knowledge:

  • The Cataclysm was caused by magical warfare 300 years ago
  • Remnant magic is unpredictable and dangerous to use
  • The Amunrai Imperium is expanding southward
  • Ancient artifacts are valuable but potentially lethal
  • Travel between settlements requires careful planning
  • Port Zephyr is relatively safe but politically complex

What You Don’t Know:

  • The true extent of various factions’ activities
  • The specific nature of many magical phenomena
  • The full scope of Imperial plans
  • Hidden caches of pre-Cataclysm artifacts
  • The real identities and motivations of people in power

Adventure Expectations

  • Environmental challenges requiring teamwork and resource management
  • Investigation and exploration as primary activities
  • Moral choices with no perfect solutions
  • Political consequences for your decisions
  • Desert survival mechanics and hazards
  • Combat encounters with contaminated creatures and environmental hazards
  • Faction interactions with multiple agendas at play