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DC;Task Description;Examples
10;Simple repetitive chore;Mortar shells, devices that chop down individual trees, wash dishes, or irrigate plants.
15;Complex repetitive chore;Bombs, devices that feed and water livestock, chop down dozens of trees, or add a particular sequence of numbers.
20;Simple responsive systems;Firearms and cannons, alarms and traps, devices that deliver messages, slow ground vehicles.
30;Complex responsive systems;Mechanical guardians with programmed tactics, devices that record and analyze information, air and water vehicles.
50;Simple creative systems;Devices that forge simple weapons, make tools, build walls, or copy books.
75;Complex creative systems;Devices that forge gunpowder weapons, build siege engines, brew alchemical concoctions, erect buildings, or make predictions based on a set of data.
100;Amazing feat of technology;Self-replication, artificial intelligence, devices that hunt down and destroy a particular individual.
200+;World-changing development;Devices that move mountains, destroy species, control weather, or even blow up the world.

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Upgrades and Adding Functions
Once you have described how an item operates and what its market value is, you can design new tasks for the item to perform. Adding new tasks is less expensive than creating a new item from scratch. It can be done as part of the item's initial construction or as an improvement to a finished item.

The first task defined for the item is known as the primary function. New tasks added during a device's construction are known as secondary functions, while new tasks added after the device is complete are known as upgrades. Secondary functions and upgrades are designed using the five steps described above, but they are subject to special limitations and conditions.

The Task DC of a secondary function cannot exceed that of the primary function. The effects of a secondary function also cannot exceed the limits of the item's Technology Score. Once you have calculated a secondary function's market value, divide that value of the item. The result is the item's new market value. No matter how many secondary functions a device has, you only make one series of Craft (technological device) checks to build it.

An upgrades may have any Task DC and can increase the item's TS by up to 3. (Increasing the TS also increases the item creation DC.) Once you have calculated the upgrade's market value, divide that value by 2. This is the upgrade's market value, which is then built using a series of Craft (technological device) checks as if it were a new item. When the accumulated progress equals the price of the upgrade x 10, the upgrade is completed and is now a functioning part of the device.

An upgrade can replace an item's primary function - useful if you, say, want to make the barrel of your flintlock pistol bigger so it can fire a projectile the size of your head. The GM must also decide if installing the upgrade alters the device's hardness, hit points, weigh, or size.

Example: Building a Flying Machine
Jode is a brilliant Ironforge dwarf tinker with big plans for the future. He wants to explore the mountains looking for arcanite deposits, and he needs a flying machine to leapfrog ahead of his claim-jumping competition.

Jode is a 5th-level tinker with a +10 Craft (technological device) skill modifier and the Build Vehicles feat. His technological limit to build vehicle is 7 (his level gives him 5, and the Build Vehicles feat adds 2). Build Vehicles also gives him a +2 bonus to his Craft (technological device) checks to construct the vehicle, which will speed up construction.

The young dwarf wants to head for the mountains in a few weeks. Not feeling the need to rush things, Jode decides that he doesn't need the fastest flying machine possible. (He can always upgrade the copter later.) He figures 60 miles an hour is fast enough, which is Technology Level 3.

Jode comes up with the following design for the GM's approval: the flying machine has the primary task "fly around in comfort and style." It can travel up to 60 miles an hour, has AC 13, and can carry up to 600 pounds including its pilot. Jode also wants a mounted cannon that inflicts 3d6 points of damage, but the GM rules that this is a secondary task ("shoot vicious predators and claim-jumpers").

The GM gives the primary task a Task DC of 30 (the flying machine is an air vehicle), and the secondary task a Task DC of 20 (the gun is a firearm).

After considering the time involved in turning on magnetos and spining up the rotor, the GM decides that starting the flying machine requires the "minutes" time increment. Jode doesn't want his poor henchman Chava to be waiting too long, so he decides that 1 minutes is quite long enough. The flying machine's primary task is thus Time Factor 1. As for the cannon, the player and GM agree that it should operate every other round, for a Time Factor of 2.

Wanting the flying machine to be absolutely reliable, Jode gives it MR 0. The GM notes that the cannon will fall under the exploding gunpowder rule (see above), but Jode figures that there is no reason not to give the cannon a Malfunction Rating as well. He even decides to push his luck a little, reducing the cost of the cannon by giving it MR 2.

The GM also determines that piloting the flying machine requires a DC 15 Use Technological Device check and is subject to the Vehicle Proficiency (air vehicles) feat. The cannon uses a standard ranged attack roll and is subject to the Exotic Weapon Proficiency (firearms) feat.

The GM now has everything she needs to determine the flying machine's market value. She multiplies the Technology Score (3) by the Task DC value (30 x 25 = 750), then divides the total of 2,250 by the Time Factor (1) plus the Malfunction Rating (0). This gives the flying machine a hefty 2,250 gp price tag.

Assuming construction requires a DC 20 Craft (technological device) check each week and Jode gets exactly 20 each time (20 x 20 = 400), he will need 56 weeks to finish construction! Plus, it's a lot of math to deal with, when all he wants is to get in the air.

Jode decides he can live with a 'copter that's slower (40 miles per hour) and takes longer to start (5 minutes). These changes drop the Technology Score by 1 (and also lower related variables such as AC, hardness, and hit points) and raise the Time Factor by 4, resulting in a 600 gp market value.

Also, the cannon drops to 2d6 points of damage since a secondary task cannot exceed the primary task's Technology Score. Its cost is figured with the same formula as the primary task (2 x 500 / 4 = 250), the divided by 3 since it is a secondary task. This calculation adds 83 to the market value, which the GM rounds down to 80 gp.

These alterations give the flying plus mounted cannon a total 680 gp market value. Jode should need between 15 and 20 weeks to reach the 6,800 total (680 gp x 10) he needs from his weekly Craft (technological device) checks.

The final game statistics for Jode's flying machine are listed on Table 3-8: Example Flying Machine. It's a fragile vehicle that requires plenty of coaxing to start, but it's just what Jode needs to zip himself, his henchman Chava, and his equipment around the mountains.

[Protheus]

Top Speed:;40 miles per hour
Maneuverability:;Good
Cargo Capacity:;400 lb.
Operation:;DC 14 Use Technological Device, Vehicle Proficiency (air vehicles)
MR:;0
Startup Time:;5 minutes
AC:;12
Hardness:;2
Hit Points:;10
Size:;Huge (15 ft. long x 8 ft. wide)
Weight:;500 lb.
Weapon:;Cannon
Fires:;Every other round
Operation:;Ranged attack roll, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (firearms)
MR:;2
Damage:;2d6 bludgeoning
Range Increment:;100 feet
Market Value:;680 gp
Item Creation DC:;17

[Protheus]

Magic Items
Technology may be powerful, but magic still does things that technology cannot. Technology enhances, multiplies, and destroys, but magic changes. The magic of Warcraft alters those who use it, permitting them to draw upon the arcane and natural forces around them. You get many of the same results from using either technology or magic, but magic affects the self in a way that technology cannot.

Most creatures feel the mystical connection that a magic item creates between them and the forces of the universe, but high elves are particularly sensitive to it. A high elf must make a Will save (DC 15) to part voluntarily with a magic item. If the save is failed, the high elf may not give up possession of the item that day. The save DC increases by 1 for every 5,000 gp the item is worth, up to DC 30. Priceless items such as minor artifacts an artifacts are DC 35.

Many of the magic items found in Warcraft - crystal ball, belt of giant strength boots of speed, potion of invisibility, ring of protection, ring of regeneration, and so on - are identical to those listed in Chapter 7: Magic Items of the MDMG. In addition, some items are unique to the world of Warcraft. A few are profiled below, and many others will appear in upcoming books.

[Protheus]

Weapons
Goblin Land Mines
Description: The goblin land mine combines a gunpowder bomb with the fiendish surprise of invisibility. Once placed and activated, the mine sits quietly until an enemy approaches and triggers a ward placed upon the bomb. The ward ignites the gunpowder, producing a devastating explosion.

Powers: The mine is a bomb scaled up to 30 pounds with a glyph of warding cast upon it. Once activated, it is invisible until triggered; the glyph then ignites the gunpowder, triggering a secondary explosion. The two explosions together deal a total of 8d6 points of fire damage to all targets in a 15-foot radius; a successful Reflex save (DC15) halves the damage.

Invisibility and glyph of warding are incorporated when crafting of the item, with a single command word activating both when the mine is placed. The user can set the glyph according to creature type, creature subtype, species, physical characteristics, alignment, and faith.

Because the goblin land mine also functions as a mechanical, trap-like device, it can be found on a DC 20 Search check, defused on a DC 20 Disable Device check, and is considered a CR 5 encounter.

Faint abjuration; CL 5th; Craft Wondrous Item, glyph of warding, invisibility, Craft (technological device); Price: 850 gp; Weight 2 lb.

Storm Hammer
Description: The signature weapon of elite gryphon teams, storm hammers must be rededicated to their owners each year. The ceremony is held every solstice in the great halls of the gryphon aviaries. The details of the ceremony are secret, but they are said to involve chanting, solemn oaths, and terrible hangovers the next day.

Powers: On a successful hit, this +1 shock warhammer deals an additional 1d6 points of electricity damage. The electricity does not harm the hammer's owner, but it does inflict a nasty shock on any other person who attempts to wield it, dealing 1d6 points of electricity damage each round. The subject can avoid this damage by making a DC 20 Reflex save and dropping the hammer.

Moderate evocation; CL 8th; Craft Magic Arms and Armor, lightning bolt, shocking grasp; Price: 8,500 gp; Weight 8 lb.

Vampiric Runeblade
Description: Death knights are few and far between now, but their legacy lives on. The runeblade is one example of their terrible power. It channels life force, which bestows a kind of life upon the blade itself. Though not very intelligence, the runeblade has a strong survival instinct.

When a death knight who owns a runeblade is destroyed, the sword dampens its powers, taking on the appearance of a nondescript magical weapon. It uses its empathic powers to manipulate its next owner - encouraging feelings of possession and anger, discouraging kindness and altruism. Once it gains enough control over its owner, it encourages him to seek out the secret places where death knights still dwell. Only then can the runeblade accomplish its goal of gaining a new master.

Powers: A vampiric runeblade is a +1 longsword that deals an additional 2d6 points of negative energy damage when it hits a living target. The blade's wielder gains temporary hit points equal to the bonus damage inflicted. These extra hit points cannot exceed the wielder's current hit points + 10. The temporary hit points disappear 1 hour later.

The runeblade is empathic with Int 10, Wis 12, and Cha 16. It has Ego 9 and is chaotic evil. It can cast charm person once per day on a person holding it; the target may resist by making a DC 16 Will save.

Moderate necromancy; CL 7th; Craft Magic Arms and Armor, charm person, vampiric touch; Price: 200,000 gp; Weight 4 lb.

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Potions
Potion of Invulnerability
Description: Strong drink may make warriors feel invulnerable, but this hero's mead makes the feeling real. The potion draws from the life force of the character drinking it, using that energy to strengthen and harden the body.

Powers: The character gains damage reduction 20/adamantine, but suffers 1d4 points of damage per round (this damage cannot be prevented or reduced). The potion's effects last for 10 rounds.

Faint abjuration; CL 5th; Brew Potion, stoneskin, creator must be at least a 10th level spellcaster; Price: 2,000 gp.

Potion of Mana
Description: Some spells are too useful to cast just once. This potion helps a spellcaster hold on to the fading memory of a spell, reclaiming it so that it may be cast again.

Powers: A spellcaster who drinks this potion recovers the last spell that she cast. The spell must be between 1st and 3rd level, and the potion must be consumed within 2 rounds after the spell is cast.

Faint transmutation; CL 4th; Brew Potion, Rarey's mnemonic enhancer, creator must be at least an 8th level spellcaster; Price: 900 gp.

Potion of Greater Mana
Description: The greater potency of this brew enables the hero who drinks it to recover more powerful spells, but it delivers an equally powerful migraine.

Powers: As potion of mana, except that the potion can help the hero who drinks it recover a spell of any level; however, he also suffers damage equal to the spell's level.

Moderate transmutation; CL 7th; Brew Potion, Morden's lucubration, creator must be at least an 11th level spellcaster; Price: 9,000 gp.

[Protheus]

Wondrous Items
Cloak of Flames
Description: Known in some circles as a holocaust cloak, this heavy garment ignites the rage of its wearer into punishing flames.

Powers: WHen activated, the cloak of flames deals 2d6 points of fire damage per round to any creature within 5 feet of the wearer. On a successful DC 20 Will save, the wearer may also extend the radius of the flames to a maximum of 10 feet. The flames do not harm the wearer or any allies. Opponents, however, can make a DC 17 Reflex save for half damage.

The item activates and deactivates as a free action at the wearer's command, and may be used up to a total of 10 rounds per day.

Faint evocation; CL 5th; Craft Wondrous Item, fireshield; Price: 90,000 gp; Weight 4 lb.

Gloves of Celerity
Description: These fingerless gloves draw out the natural quickness of the hero who wears them.

Powers: Gloves of celerity provide a +2 luck bonus to initiative and Reflex saves.

Faint transmutation; CL 5th; Craft Wondrous Item, cat's grace; Price: 2,000 gp.

[Protheus]

One of the greatest qualities of the World of Warcraft is its rich and vibrant history, shaped not just by epic-scale battles but by individual soldiers in those battles. Though the Warcraft computer games focus primarily on the larger battles in Azeroth's history, the Warcraft RPG gives you a chance to tell stories that focus on smaller groupes - yet groups that are no less important to the course of history. While war is always a possibility, heroism can occur far from the battlefield. You take on the roles of heroes whose actions will shape the future for the Alliance, the Horde, and the entire world.

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Running a Warcraft Campaign
While all but torn apart by decades of brutal warfare, not everything on Azeroth revolves around combat. Still, "peace" is a word unfamiliar to many. The various nations of the world are constantly embroiled with political intrigue, betrayals, and treachery. A Warcraft RPG campaign should have plenty of combat as well as complex machinations. It should convey a sense of turbulence and high drama excitement and impending doom. After all, wars can, and have, begun from the slightest of slights in a king's throne room!

The time following the war with the Burning Legion represents a significant turning point in history. The world lies in ruins. The Alliance of Lordaeron was fragmented, and the undead have overtaken Lordaeron itself. The Horde is free of its ancient bond to the demons of the Burning Legion, but it has lost all it once fought to conquer. The night elves sacrificed their immortality and work to heal their ravaged homeland.

Though so much is lost, the future opens wide with possibilities.

Later sections in this chapter will address themes that you may want to touch on in specific campaigns. When planning a Warcraft RPG campaign, however, considering your campaign goals as a whole is a good first step.

Every adventure in your campaign is the next chapter of a grand tale in the epic Warcraft tradition. You do not need to know every chapter before you begin telling the story - usually, the story feels less interesting if you do, and you cannot respond as well to unforeseen actions taken by the heroes in your campaign. Nor must every adventure be a crucial moment in the large plot. Sometimes an adventure that can be completed in a single gaming session can give heroes a sense of accomplishment that allows them to refocus on larger goals.

Yet initially deciding upon an overarching plot your campaign can give it a structure that make it consistent and memorable. This overarching plot may also help inspire ideas for individual adventures while making certain that the larger course of the campaign stays on track. Most importantly, it helps you to place your heroes at the center of the action.

Following are some general campaign types that you can tailor to create your campaign:

Campaign Types

• Diplomacy: A tenuous peace lies between the races and factions on Kalimdor. The Alliance, the Horde, and the night elves banded together to defeat the Burning Legion and have since spread to different parts of Kalimdor. The scars from generations of warfare do not heal quickly, though, and whether the orcs and humans can avoid a new war remains to be seen. Night elves have even older conflicts with high elves over the nature of magic - philosophical differences that almost destroyed the world in the era that led to the War of the Ancients. Even the unaligned races such as furbolgs and murlocs live defined by the conflicts between them.
  
  What Kalimdor needs are peacemakers.
  
  Diplomacy campaigns can take heroes across the land on missions to negotiate new treaties or enforce standing ones. With opportunities for heroes to succeed with a quick mind and a clever tongue as readily as fast reflexes and a sharp sword, diplomacy campaigns give heroes of all sorts chances to shine. High intrigue, encounters with some of the most powerful people in the land, and a constant battle with the threat of war are the hallmarks of a diplomacy campaign.
  
  Some ideas for a diplomacy campaign might include arranging for night elves to accept high elf wizards who want to study the ways of "uncorrupted magic"; keeping the peace between nighboring human and orc villages; and heroes of any faction trying to get an unaffiliated group (such as centaur or quilboar) to join them.
  
  In contrast, a campaign of a darker bent could focus on a group of heroes dedicated to sparking a war rather than preventing one.
  
• Dungeoneering: Caves and ancients ruins dot Kalimdor's landscape, from the Barrow Deeps beneath Mount Hyjal to the titan excavations at Bael Modan. The collapse of the Well of Eternity shattered the ancient cities of the Kaldorei, and the locations of their remains are lost to history - their secrets awaiting discovery by intrepid explorers and adventurers.
  
  The discovery and exploration of ruins and dungeons is a classic staple of fantasy campaigns. Campaigns that string together a number of dungeoneering adventures might be part of a quest, or heroes may be seeking out ancient treasures to gather wealth for themselves or their faction. When designing adventures for a dungeoneering campaign set in Warcraft, however, remember the world's rich history. Plundering a tomb will almost certainly have consequences, and the sealing away of an underground complex was almost certainly done for a reason.
  
  OIn a dungeoneering campaign, the Alliance might send a group of heroes to accompany a dwarven explorer entering titan ruins. The night elves will need heroes willing to return to the Barrow Dens and make certain that demons from the Burning Legion are not hiding in the caves. A dungeoneering campaign might even take heroes to a number of ancient burial grounds on a quest for the tomb of a Kaldorei hero.
  
• Espionage: The Alliance and the Horde may have a truce, but that does not require them to trust one another. Both train and employ spies to ensure a constant stream of information about the opposition. The night elves remain concerned about the "demon-corrupted" magic their high elf cousins employ and pay for information on their brethren as well as all the other newcomers to Kalimdor.
  
  An espionage campaign can throw heroes far behind enemy lines with little support and with secrets - their true identities, their true masters, and their true missions - that they must protect at all costs. At the same time, they often work covertly to discover highly protected information. GMs who want to keep the level of tension high in their adventures and heroes who relish the thrill of working undercover will enjoy espionage campaigns.
  
  A hotbed of espionage on Kalimdor is the newly founded goblin city of Ratchet, one of the few places where members of all races and factions interact freely. Yet espionage campaigns could involve a group of orcs sent by the Horde to spy on Theramore, Alliance scouts sent to report on the tauren homelands in Mulgore, or heroes sent by a group of high elves to watch over the activities of the druids.
  
• Exploration: The Alliance and the Horde have established colonies on a new continent about which they know little. The orcs have allied themselves with the nomadic tauren, and their journeys with the tauren could take them far from their new homes in Durotar. The Alliance has established the central fortress of Theramore, which serves as a base for Ironforge dwarf expeditions looking for the secrets of their heritage. After the destruction wrought by the Burning Legion, the night elves must explore their own homelands to find what dangers might yet remain.
  
  An exploration campaign forever points heroes toward the frontier, taking them on a neve-ending tour of the unknown. The heroes may have a specific goal in mind, or they may journey into lands never before traveled. For GMs, exploration campaigns offer the opportunity to fill the blanks on the map of Kalimdor with excitement and adventure.
  
  Possible frameworks for an exploration campaigns include a search for titan ruins and artifacts, mapping a new trade route between distant cities, or the journey home for a group of escaped prisoners.
  
• Horror: Kalimdor holds the promise of a bright future for the Alliance and the Horde, but that future is thrown in sharp relief by the darkness that lurks throughout the land. Undead, satyrs, and corrupted ancients wander the Felwood's blasted forests. Demons and their mortal minions hide in shadows, plotting revenge against the world that humbled them. Deep inside the earth, creatures that have hidden from sunlight for thousands of years wait for adventurers foolish enough to come to them.
  
  A horror campaign takes heroes to the darkest corners of Kalimdor and pits them against the most fearsome of monsters. Survival is a possibility in a horror campaign, but never a certainty. Heroes can be stalwart champions of good sent to combat the darkness or those of more dubious morality who run the risk of being consumed by the very evil they hope to destroy. Horror campaigns require GMs who can balance their game in the narrow gray shadows between hope and despair and heroes who are as eager to confront their own mortality as they are monsters and demons.
  
  Though Felwood is the obvious setting for a horror campaign, other horror campaigns might involve monster hunting in th murky depths of Dustwallow Marsh, rooting out any members of the Cult of the Damned that might be hiding among the Alliance or the Horde, or heroes captured by demons plotting once again to strike out at Kalimdor.
  
• Mercenaries: Though most of Kalimdor has sworn allegiance to one faction or another, some look out only for themselves. Some were once part of the Horde, while others belonged to the Alliance. At times, they are gathered together into armies; other times, they are small groups hired for unique and particularly dangerous tasks. They work for anyone with the gold to meet their price. They are mercenaries.
  
  A mercenary campaign means that heroes leave behind all the benefits of being part of a faction in exchange for a chance to seek their own destiny. Of course, their choice of destiny is sometimes determined by their search for someone to pay them for their skills. Those who choose the life of a mercenary, however, do so for the constant excitement of battle and journeys to strange new places. As their employers are the orc who hire others to do difficult jobs - and in turn, their companions are the type whose loyalty can be purchased - trust (or the lack thereof) is often a theme in mercenary campaigns. If your heroes enjoy being buffeted by the winds of fate and are willing to trade what they believe in for a sack of gold, a mercenary campaign allows GMs to use potential employers to pull heroes into adventure.
  
  A mercenary campaign might have heroes hired by an Alliance soldier who needs help to rescue his kidnapped family, or it may have mercenaries paid to journey into Felwood to recover night elf artifacts. Though the call for mercenaries to join armies has fallen silent in the current peace on Kalimdor, mercenaries who gather in Ratchet have no trouble finding work ranging from protecting wealthy nobles to joining bandit gangs.
  
• The Quest: Warcraft is full of quests, from the journey Malfurion Stormrage took to find the demigod Cenarius during the War of the Ancients, to Prince Arthas' ill-fated search for Frostmourne. Kalimdor is a new land full of ancient mysteries and magic. The Ironforge dwarves search for titan ruins and artifacts, and the night elves seek anything that will help to cleanse their land of the Burning Legion's taint. Kalimdor offers a land with legends and artifacts that can be investigated by heroes of any affiliation for any purpose.
  
  On a quest, the heroes are dedicated to a difficult and fa-off goal. Their goal can be a person, a place, or an object, but reaching it cannot be easy. The obstacles that lie on their path should seem insurmountable and quite possibly fatal. Yet the reward should be worthy of the risk: a good quest will empower the heroes at its conclusion, and a great quest may allow them to save the world. Quest campaigns are good for GMs who enjoy challenging their heroes and for heroes who are determined to overcome those challenges.
  
  Possible goals for quests on Kalimdor might be a legendary titan city not yet fallen into ruins, an artifact that could heal those infected with the Scourge, and a long-lost druid of the wild wandering far from the lands of the night elves.
  
• Settlement: Outside of a few very limited places on Kalimdor, nearly everything lies in the wilderness or in ruins. The night elves work to rebuild a homeland pillaged by the Alliance, the Horde, and the Burning Legion. While the Horde travels with the tauren, the orcs will likely begin building villages along the paths of their wanderings as they spread out from Durotar. The Alliance has claimed Theramore, but soon the island will not be large enough for the Alliance's growing population.
  
  Kalimdor remains a wild and dangerous land, and a settlement campaign can be built around heroes carving out areas of safety and civilization. Elements of exploration might be included while they locate the proper area, along with elements of diplomacy if there are already local inhabitants. Finally, even after a settlement is complete, the battle remains to maintain it against everything from bandits and raiders to natural disasters. Settlement campaigns are perfect for heroes who like to play the role of jack-of-all-trades and find a sense of accomplishment in everything from battle to working with their hands.
  
  Any number of areas on Kalimdor would be perfect for a settlement campaign. Among them are the Alliance's and the Horde's attempts to settle Dustwallow Marsh and the incredibly difficult task the night elves face in reclaiming Felwood Forest. Goblin trade princes might hire a group of heroes to build new trading posts in the wilderness - a job that could take them anywhere on Kalimdor.
  
• Survival: When the Well of Eternity collapsed, so did elven civilization. The night elves and high elves alike needed centuries to rebuild their homes and culture on two continents... just in time for the Burning Legion to return and destroy everything anew. In the aftermath of war and cataclysm - or even when simply stranded in a foreign shore, as the Alliance and the Horde were upon their arrival in Kalimdor - survival takes precedence over everything else.
  
  A survival campaign has much in common with an exploration campaign, as heroes find themselves in faraway and possibly hostile territory. In a survival situation, though, heroes are cut off from any support and find themselves forced to be entirely self-reliant. GMs define the situation in a survival campaign, and the heroes must decide how they proceed. Will they attempt to build their own village and await rescue? Will they venture to travel home? How will they get the weapons, food, and shelter they need to survive? Heroes in a survival campaign must be willing to roleplay their answers to these questions, though GMs should be certain that continued survival provides the appropriate sense of accomplishment.
  
  A shipwreck might launch a survival campaign with a group of Alliance heroes stranded in Darkshore, far from Theramore. Orcs of the Horde might hire the services of a goblin zeppelin to scout southern Kalimdor, only to have it crash in the Tanaris Desert. Members of either faction might be exploring in the Stonetalon Mountains and find themselves trapped in the passes by a furious windstorm or sudden avalanche.
  
• Trade: As culture spreads across Kalimdor, merchants and caravans lead the way. Bringing food, cloth, wine, and other trade goods to markets from the smallest village to the grand bazaar of Ratchet, merchants can only connect distant places by traveling the leagues between them. On Kalimdor, the goblin trade princes maintain a network of trading posts that gives them dominance over trade - even if some of their merchants are driven crazy from the isolation while they wait for customers. Yet as the Alliance and the Horde become better established on Kalimdor, their merchants and traders will travel the routes pioneered by the goblins.
  
  In a trade campaign, heroes can play the part of merchants leading a caravan or of guards hired to protect a caravan while it travels across Kalimdor. In some ways, a trade campaign is much like an exploration campaign with higher stakes - a merchant caravan carries goods that make it an almost irresistible target to bandits and thieves.
  
  A trade campaign could be built around the efforts of the Alliance to establish trade with their allies among the night elves in Moonglade. As trade is a new concept to a race more accustomed to pillaging whatever is needed, a Horde campaign in which the orcs attempt to establish trade with anyone at all could be quite an adventure. Of course, as even goblin trade princes always need heroes who would defend their cargos.
  
• War: The battles among the Kaldorei that brought the world to the edge of ruin, the wars between the Alliance and the Horde, the invasion of the Burning Legion - wars mark the largest milestones in Warcraft history. The Warcraft computer games tell the story of many of these battles. Though the times of the Warcraft RPG is an era in which a semblance of peace has emerged for the first time in generations, war may once again wash over the land in a bloody tide.
  
  A war campaign can place heroes anywhere from the commander's tent to the front lines of a massive battlefield. While it can provide for more combat than any other sort of campaign, GMs should think carefully before launching a war campaign in the Warcraft world. As shown in the computer games, wars tend to reshape the world. Without considering the political and even geographical repercussions of a war, a war campaign can simply become a series of meaningless battles rather than an epic cast in the Warcraft form.
  
  On Kalimdor, the grudges from two generations of warfare kindle the possibility that war might once again ignite between the Alliance and the Horde. The night elves' mistrust of high elf magic could become a campaign that would pit one race against the other. Smaller, more regional war campaigns might explore the battles between tauren and centaur or the struggles of the goblins to claim the oilfields of the Thousand Needles.
  

Combining Campaign Types
Once you have established the shape of your campaign, you likewise establish the heroes' expectations - potentially leading to a campaign lacking in surprise and wonder. Incorporating elements of another campaigns type can help to reinvigorate a flagging campaign or at the very least provide a refreshing change of pace.

A diplomacy campaign might involve some espionage adventures, or the heroes of a trade campaign might suddenly be stranded far from home and find themselves in a survival adventure. In the midst of a war, a group of soldiers might be sent on a quest to recover a crucial magical artifact or explorers might stumble into a land of horror adventure.

Sometimes, these changes involve only a few adventures, after which your campaign can return to its planned course. If you find that you and your heroes are enjoying the new flavor of the campaign, however, you may choose to change the shape of your campaign permanently. The Warcraft RPG is a game first and foremost, and your should take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that everyone continues to have fun.

[Protheus]

Affiliation
Every player in a Warcraft RPG campaign must make a choice as to her character's affiliation (see Chapter Three, "Affiliation"). All characters in the same party must belong to the same affiliation and undertake adventures and missions that further their allegiance. An Alliance campaign will necessarily be different than a Horde campaign in feel and focus. The Alliance, excepting the night elves, lives in virtual exile on Kalimdor while still looking east to the past. The Horde looks to the past in a very different fashion, drawing upon shamanistic traditions to strengthen its newly established homelands on Kalimdor. Taking these differences into account for a Warcraft RPG campaign is important. The players should feel as if their characters are part of a larger organization and world, even if they do not consistently undertake adventures that further their affiliation's goals.

Before you begin a Warcraft RPG campaign, the GM and players must decide whether it will be focused on the Alliance or the Horde. This should be a group choice. The GM may have a great adventure idea for a Horde campaign, but don't force the players into it if they want to be part of the Alliance. (At this early stage, adapting an idea to fit either affiliation should not be difficult.)

Remember, while each race has its "default" affiliation, heroes can belong to any faction. Tauren and orcs can be in the Alliancce; humans, dwarves, elves, and half-elves can be in the Horde. These individuals are exceptions, but heroes are exceptions by default. This option may open doors to create a unique, dynamic history for such a character. After all, the player must decide why the character left his own side. Some suggestions are listed below:

• Reared from infancy by members of the new affiliation to which he now belongs.
• His values mesh more completely with the new affiliation.
• Saved from certain death or a terrible calamity by members of the new affiliation.
• Befriended by members of the new affiliation.
• Witnessed members of his old affiliation perform a horrible atrocity.
• Disgusted with the leadership of his old affiliation.
• Magically altered or controlled.
• Is really a double agent, pretending to belong to the new affiliation, while still reporting to his old faction.*
  

* A double agent must be handled with care. The situation can make for interesting roleplaying, but it can cause friction among players if it is not dealt with well - for instance, if the other players do not know of the agent's true affiliation and have their heroes betrayed or even killed as a result of that character's actions.

Outside the realm of Alliance or Horde, factions exist that threaten both. Such factions include the remnants of the Burning Legion and the Scourge, as well as the native inhabitants of Kalimdor such as quilboar, harpies, centaur, and trolls. These creatures (and their cultures) provide adventure hooks for campaigns of several varieties. Additionally, the opposing affiliation can provide numerous sources of conflict, as Alliance and Horde members clash over old wrongs.

Remember also that while the heroes in a Warcraft RPG campaign are members of a strong affiliation in a grim and vibrant world, they are still people. The same goals that have motivated adventurers since the dawn of time - greed, excitement, discovery, the drive to better themselves - will motivate the characters in your campaign.

Table 6-1 General Adventure Hooks offers possible story hooks for a Warcraft RPG campaign.

Mixed Parties: Game Killer of Fun Challenge?
Seasoned GMs know that players will inevitably want to have a party with Alliance and Horde heroes. Having all characters be part of the same affiliation is always best. Still, if you have a veteran group of players, you can look upon a mixed-affiliation group as an enjoyable challenge.

The Alliance and the Horde fought on the same side at the end of the last war. The PCs could be soldiers who met on the battlefield in that fateful time. Each still believes in his affiliation, but none can deny the bond that was formed between them in that epic battle. Or perhaps the heroes are eager young adventurers who share a desire for wealth that overshadows any political affiliations.

An even more challenging scenario would have the characters be staunch followers of their affiliations but finding themselves forced to unite against a common threat. Undead still roam the land, and both humans and orcs hate the Burning Legion. Given the choice of killing an undead or a human, an orc will usually choose the undead, and a human would most likely do the same if the tables were turned. At the least, the orc and human may agree to destroy the undead before laying into one another. THat common cause could be all that's needed to develop a new relationship. Having the heroes develop from rivals to respected traveling companions makes for just as rewarding a game as those games in which the characters start out as good friends.

[Protheus]

• The local graveyard has been ransacked. The common folk fear an invasion of undead.
• Goblins have developed a new technological weapon of great power, called The Reaper. They offer to sell this device to the highest bidder.
• A powerful satyr has taken control of a pack of dire wolves, and they ravage the countryside.
• A human archmage claims to have inherited Medivh's power and become the next Guardian of Tirisfal. Unknown to others (and even to the archmage), he is actually under demonic influence.
• A black dragon, along with its brood of black drakes, takes up residence near a local settlement, declares itself ruler of the town, and demands tribute. The townfolk need someone to slay these vile beasts! Plus, tales claim that powerful magic items can be crafted from the dragon's remains.
• A mighty demon has stolen Archimonde's sword. It plans to use the weapon's power to control an army of Infernals, Doomguard, and fel stalkers.
  

[Protheus]

The Alliance
An Alliance campaign has a distinct feel. It includes elements of dangerous volatility, despair, and suspicion combined with a feeling of new beginnings, exploration, and hope. An Alliance campaign involves a great deal of exploration, discovery, rebuilding, and, if the players wish, internal peace keeping and shadow games due to strained race relations.

Aside from the night elves, the Allaince races are living in virtual exile in Kalimdor and have yet to establish a true home for themselves on this rugged continent. The high elves grow alienated from their allies and draw distrust from the night elves. The night elves must, in turn, adjust to their new, diminished stature. Ironforge dwarves range across the land, searching eagerly for titan ruins. The humans struggle to establish their new realm and keep Theramore from exploding dur to interracial tensions. As if internal strife was not enough, tensions with the Horde make everyone uneasy, and demonspawn and undead still lurk in the wilderness.

Many opportunities for heroic acts await in an Alliance campaign. One way to generate adventure ideas for Alliance heroes is to consider the interests and motivations of each of the different races that make it up.

Humans have their hands full with promoting strained peace with the other races and with the Horde. The loss of the Kirin Tor has reduced the humans' access to magical learning, and they may need to send out heroes in search of potent artifacts (of course, just this sort of quest got Arthas into so much trouble).

Ironforge dwarves feed a racial obsession with their supposed titanic ancestry. They happily work with or offer handsome rewards to heroes who discover titan ruins, particularly ruins with lots of juicy, incomprehensible writings scrawled onto their walls. Adventurers explore Kalimdor for just such a purpose. Also, the dwarves are the inventors and technicians of the Alliance and constantly create and modify technological wonders. In an Alliance campaign, adventures may focus around inventing (and field testing) new dwarven gadgets.

High elves grow alienated from their allies, thanks to the harrowing of their homeland Quel'Thalas and the destruction of the source of their arcane power, the Sunwell. A great deal of friction exists with the night elves, although this tension has not yet boiled over into serious violence. Heroes may find themselves caught up in attempts to ease relations between these factions or may be forced to choose sides. The high elves' addiction to arcane magic makes them highly suspect to night elves. Certain high elves may attempt to overcome or cure this taint, the addiction may grow worse for some, or demons may tempt others to terrible acts.

Night elves have changed the most since the days before the Third War. They retain their racial homeland, but they have lost something far more profound. The night elves' immortality is gone, sacrificed to defeat the Burning Legion. Alliance adventures may focus on the night elves' adjustment to their weakened state. Naive night elves could make foolish mistakes or attempt acts that are no longer possible. Perhaps some rogue night elves seek dark methods to rekindle their lost immortality... though this path leads to the same magic addiction that high elves suffer - or, worse, to being transformed into a satyr. The night elves' homeland has been ravaged; satyrs, warlocks, corrupted ancients, and demons must be purged from the land. The sentinel ranks were decimated during the war, but the night elf high command has some thoughts on to how to initiate new members. They may even be open to the idea of sentinels from other races.

Demons and their lackeys remain at large, and they pose a constant (though much decreased) threat to civilization. They may target high elves as new pawns to replace the orcs, or they may strike at night elves for revenge. Without a doubt, the power demons offer draws many into their fold, and no one stands truly above suspicion.

Alliance Campaign Emphasis
Tension is high, especially between the elven races. Thus, and Alliance campaign may focus on political machinations and intrigue, as the races vie with one another for power and influence. Heroes may take an active roll in this game of smiles, either at the behest of a patron or of their own accord.

An Alliance campaign may focus on exploration and discovery, as heroes range out of Theramore to find suitable sites for new cities or even a new kingdom of their own. Some factions within Theramore may believe that it is not yet time to give up hope on the shattered nations across the sea and may send experienced heroes back to Lordaeron. As well, the Ironforge dwarves are interested in discovering any titan ruins and would pay much to any explorer who located such a find.

An Alliance campaign may focus on rooting out the lingering pockets of demonic and undead influence. The night elves may request aid to help cleanse the Felwood of demonic taint, requiring battle with corrupted ancients, rogue warlocks, and the demented satyrs lurking in the dark tangles.

Table 6-2: Alliance Campaign Hooks offers possible story hooks for an Alliance-oriented campaign.

[Protheus]

• Jaina Proudmoore survives an assassination attempt, but the forces behind it must be rooted out and destroyed.
• A lifeboat washes up on Theramore with a high elf who was part of one of the rare ventures to sail back to Lordaeron. He claims that the ship was sucked into the dread Maelstrom and babbles of the terrible, eldritch horrors that dwelled within... and of a force rising from the depths.
• Dwarves hear reports of a great titan ruin deep within the Tanaris Desert. The party must escort a group of excavators to the site and protect them while they complete the survey process.
• No word has come for some time from the remote night elf village of Moonheart. An exploratory party discovers the inhabitants still alive... but twisted into corrupt and bloodthirsty satyrs.
• A group of night elves believes that the high elves' arcane addiction can be overcome by feeding their tainted brethren a potion created from a certain mushroom, said to grow only in the Caves of Deep Night. The night elves hire the heroes to help gather the fungus and ultimately release the brewed potion into Theramore's water supply.
• A night elf priestess claims to have a vision showing her that the night elves must defeat the Horde and drive the orcs from Kalimdor.
• Extremist night elves seek to sabotage an attempt by humans and/or high elves to establish a new center of magical study.
• A group of powerful and desperate members of the Alliance hires the heroes to sail back to Lordaeron, in hopes of reclaiming their lost land and riches.
• An ancient rooted close to Felwood Forest is driven mas by the evil energies that seethe beneath the ground. The ancient goes on a rampage, crashing through the forest and devouring every tree in its path.
  

[Protheus]

The Horde
A Horde campaign focuses on re-establishment and reawakening. The orcs have left their barbaric, demon-worshipping ways, but they cannot return to their home world of Draenor. For years they lived a violent life on Azeroth. Now that they have come to Kalimdore and rekindled their shamanistic mysticism, they have found both a new land to call their own and new ideals in which to believe. Further, though hatred of humans, high elves, and dwarves lingers, it is blunted by the allied efforts against a foe many times greater than any of them.

Some orcs have forsaken Thrall's shamanism and still worship the demons. These dark spellcasters, primarily remnants of the Black Rock and Dragonmaw clans, remain on Lordaeron and parts of Khaz Modan. These remnants could certainly reorganize and follow the Horde to Kalimdor. Members of the Horde may seek out and destroy these warlocks, and likewise the warlocks may wish to crush or conquer the Horde.

Orc society has changed much under Thrall's leadership, but it remains militaristic and focuses heavily on honor. Including these elements in a Horde campaign is important. Orc heroes may feel compelled to undertake and adventure based on the honor of completing it or the shame in failing to attempt it. Player characters in a Horde campaign may be drawn into the military structure and become an elite, mobile unit within the Horde armies. In such a case, they may even rise to positions of command.

In a kind of spiritual synergy, the tauren gave up much of their old nomadic ways at the same time the orcs appeared on Kalimdor. The gentle tauren have established their own homeland in Mulgore, but they still face the legacy of long conflict with the savage centaur.

The new centaur homeland and the orc nation of Durotar are each barely a year old. Ancestral enemies of the tauren - including centaur, harpies, quilboar, and others lurking within mountain caves and hidden places in the fields and plains - must be eliminated if true peace will ever be realized. These beasts provide numerous story ideas in a Horde campaign: something as simple as evading a quilboar cavern and laying waste to everything in sight or as complex as planning an elaborate assault against a centaur stronghold while fighting off harpies or bands of Alliance malcontents.

The Burning Legion suffered defeat in the Third War, but it was not destroyed. Groups of demons seek to regain their control over the orcs. Many members of the Horde still feel a terrible rage toward the demons for holding them in thrall for those many years. Militant orcs may be driven to hunt down the demons and crush them in acts of bloodthirsty vengeance.

Stressing the tension with the Alliance is also important. Individuals on both sides still desire to ride out and smash each other, and sometimes they even make a move to do so. A chance encounter with a band of Alliance heroes may end with a glance and a cold shoulder or result in drawn blades and spilled blood.

Horde Campaign Emphasis
The focus and feel of a Horde campaign is necessarily different from an Alliance campaign. A Horde campaign will likely focus heavily on the orcs' return to their lost shamanistic culture and may include adventures wherein heroes help the orcs in rekinding their ancestral shamanism. Many members of the Horde feel an explosive rage toward the Burning Legion for playing the orcs as fools for all those many years. These orcs may strike out into the wilds to hunt down and destroy the remaining demons in acts of bloody vengeance.

Homeless and adrift for too long, the Horde races will do their best to hold onto their new life - from rooting out dangerous creatures to striking at the centaur khans.

Table 6-3: Horde Campaign Hooks offers possible story hooks for a Horde-oriented campaign.

[Protheus]

• A pit lord has entered into a pact with a sect of disgruntled orcs. Using his blood as a catalyst, the demon has transformed these warriors into fel orcs, who now rampage across Durotar.
• Bands of Alliance warriors have attacked towns along the Durotar border. The Alliance high command does not condone these attacks - but claims it does not have the troops to stop them. A band of loyal Horde heroes must defeat these raiders.
• Centaur warbands appear with increasing frequency, attacking settlements in Mulgore and Durotar and leaving destruction in their wake. The towns must be defended and the khans defeated.
• A group of warlocks sends a message to the Horde demanding that the Horde give up their newfound shamanism and re-embrace demon worship, or it will unleash the Burning Legion onto Azeroth yet again.
• The spirits are concerned about something, but none can determine exactly what. Eventually, it is discovered that a powerful archmage has found a way to manipulate the spirits directly - perhaps even to destroy them.
• An orc warlock steals a clutch of wyvern eggs. He seeks to use his demonic magic on the unborn wyverns to make them mightier and tougher and loyal to him alone.
• A kodo beast sallows something and becomes extremely sick. It seems stronger and heartier after it recovers, perhaps even more intelligent, and bears an aura of magic. The true shock comes when the beast speaks, requesting choice fodder.
• The ghosts of Grom Hellscream and Mannoroth appear and wag ceaseless battle throughout Ashenvale Forest.
  

[Protheus]

Independent
In many traditional fantasy settings, the heroes have no or a very loose allegiance structure, and this same paradigm could be used in a Warcraft RPG campaign. Running a campaign in which the heroes are far removed from both the Alliance and the Horde and have nothing to do with either affiliation is possible. This option has advantages and drawbacks. One benefit is that neutral heroes often act as mercenaries, free agents, and impartial parties. They can thus undertake adventures for both the Horde and the Alliance, and they have more freedom to follow their own whims and desires. An unbiased faction is also required at times, such as in a border dispute between the Alliance and the Horde.

Think carefully before you allow players to choose an independent campaign. Much of the roleplaying fun comes from dealing with those within a given faction. A game lacking that element may lose much of its flavor. Plus, the heroes encounter fewer opportunities within the game to gain notoriety, wealth, and influence. Also remember that whether the heroes belong to an affiliation or not, the Horde and the Alliance still exist and will still affect both the campaign world and (probably) the heroes' lives.

Independent Campaign Emphasis
Independent heroes have more freedom when deciding where they want to go and what they want to do. With no lord ordering you about, life is a lot more open. Independent heroes can often enter lands controlled by either Alliance or Horde and can hire out their services to either faction.

Still, neutrality is dangerous. An unaffiliated hero's list of allies is thin, and few places offer solace.

[Protheus]

Other affiliations
The Alliance and the Horde are not the only affiliations on Kalimdor. Many others exist, though often composed of rather unsavory individuals. These affiliations include the Scourge, the Burning Legion, centaur, quilboar, murlocs, and trolls, among others.

The GM may allow heroes to belong to one of these affiliations. The PCs need not necessarily be evil - many of the native humanoids are neutral in their approach and just want to be left alone. Still, others are clearly antagonistic toward Alliance and Horde alike. Affiliating with such groups can force a hero to make a difficult decision - does he attack innocents and risk the wrath of the Alliance and Horde, or does he abandon his affiliation? Regardless of such a quandary, belonging to one of these alternate affiliations will almost certainly make the hero an enemy of both the Alliance and the Horde.

See "The Enemy," below, for more on these other groups.

[Protheus]

Affiliations and Setting
The world of Warcraft may be a setting unlike any you have ever played. The great wars are already fought. Now, the Game Master and players take over the war-torn world, a world that has suffered three generations of friction and conflict between races. The races are looking at a hard-won, yet still-shaky peacetime. They hope to take advantage of the peace in order to re-establish homelands and heal the wounded land. Many simply want to repair and get on with their lives. The races may never again have what they lost in the war with the undead, but they can at least strive for a brighter future.

This is not to say that the continent of Kalimdor is a world free of strife. The war is over and longtime rivals have agreed upon peace, but grudges - and malevolent forces - remain. On partnership cannot erase the enmities three generations of warfare created between Alliance and Horde. Night elves and high elves carry grievances going back thousands of years that make any conflict between Alliance and Horde seem like petty bickering.

The issue of magic and its use is a contentious topic for all. Humans and high elves have long histories of using arcane magic, which has led to doom more times than not. Still, its power cannot be denied, and the two races are confident - some say foolhardy - that they can harness it for good. Night elves and tauren look askance at arcane magic, preferring the divine magic of nature and earth. Orcs have recently shed their demon ties and likewise pursue divine magic over arcane. While a tainted thing, many cannot ignore arcane magic's powerful allure. Divine magic is much safer, but not as appreciated by those who hunger for power.

Alliance and Horde Conflicts
The leaders of the Alliance and Horde have finally established peace after years of war. Yet more than words spoken by a leader to reverse a racial hatred encouraged over generations will be needed. The leaders claim there is peace among their citizens, but forcing the armies to unite for one (however pivotal) battle cannot heal the damage done by previous wars. The Alliance fought the Horde for two generations. Even before they understood who the real enemy was in the last war, Alliance and Horde clashed on the battlefield. The leader of the humans, Jaina Proudmoore, and the leader of the orcs, Warchief Thrall, work to bolster their tentative peace agreement borne out of respect for each other, but their soldiers and citizens plot, sabotage, and fight.

Both the humans and the orcs have built new homes on Kalimdor. While the orcs are settling comfortably in Durotar, most of the human population is crammed on the rocky island of Theramore. The orcs are at home with their allies the tauren and live in an area much like their old home world of Draenor. The humans, however, long to spread their influence beyond the cramped confines of their island and the dangerous Dustwallow on the nearby mainland. They also maintain an uneasy alliance with the brooding high elves who share their city. As the humans mourn the loss of Lordaeron, they resent the orcs their happiness with their new lives.

Although separated by water and the Barrens, humans and orcs still meet frequently. The goblin trading port of Ratchet is popular with both groups, but it lies far from a safe place for anyone. Humans have established scattered settlements on the mainland of Kalimdor, and explorers and settlers push ever further inland. Few travel near Durotar unless accompanied by a comfortable number of allies. Orcs at some watch posts think the best policy is "strike first, loot the corpse later" whenever they see a traveling human. The orc leaders know that this prejudice still lives within the ranks. Thrall desires to stamp out such behavior, but not all of his people share the same tolerant attitude. With the Burning Legion defeated, many orcs long to restart the war and obliterate the humans for the last time.

These brewing conflicts can give a GM many paths on which to set his campaign. Even though the Alliance and the Horde both recognize the truce, members often choose to let emotions rule when it comes to the old racial hatred. These issues will almost always crop up in a campaign. Your players should decide where their heroes' loyalties lie, whether they have grudges from the war and if they're likely to ignore peace in favor of revenge for an old slight.

High Elves vs. Night Elves
While the Horde and Alliance struggle with their claims of peace, the Alliance faces another problem within its own peoples. The antipathy between night elves and high elves outdates the formation of the Alliance itself. Thousands of years ago, the elves were a single people, but the high elves' addiction to arcane magic caused a split - and started the first war with the Burning Legion, which led to the creation of the Maelstrom and the destruction of the ancient Kaldorei cities and much of Kalimdor. These grudges do not go away quickly, especially among those long-lived such as the elves. The anger is not solely on the side of the night elves, as the high elves resent being banished from their homeland by their sanctimonious brethren 10,000 years ago.

Jaina Proudmoore did not expect the intense animosity and occasional skirmishes between the elven peoples when she allied with them. She now struggles to rule the city of Theramore, which houses the remaining population of the high elves and hosts many night elf merchants and ambassadors. Dealings between the elves remain within the bounds of civility, but often just barely. Meetings between night elf ambassadors and the Assembly of Theramore have ended in sharp words and halted treaties more often than not because of this lingering conflict. Arguments and even scuffles occur in the streets with surprising frequency. If the Alliance ever broke, night elves would feel no remorse for ridding the world of their magic-hungry brethren, and high elves might see an opportunity to reclaim their heritage.

Campaigns based around the hostility between the races of elves can be epic, magic-filled battles. High elves have something to prove: mainly, that they can master the magic everyone else claims is dangerous. Night elves simply want to stop cleaning up the mess left by arcane magic, as they are still healing their forests and protecting them against further damage.

Healing Old Wounds
The night elves' and the high elves' animosity for each other weakens the Alliance considerably. This situation offers the opportunity for a quest to try and repair this rift and make the Alliance stronger.

While many night elves are old enough to remember the shattering of the first Well of Eternity, most elves of both races were born after the high elves' banishment. These younger elves do not live with the overwhelming prejudice that the older elves do. While some high elves do harbor hatred of those that exiled them, a faction does wish for reconciliation.

The GM could have the heroes be recruited by this faction, hired as guards to help a high elf envoy journey to Nighthaven. The mission will require more than muscle power; it may also demand that the heroes apply their skills as mediators. Reconciliation between the elves will be exceedingly difficult, but the rewards for the Alliance as a whole (and the heroes individually) may be tremendous.

More Rivalries
The rivalries in Warcraft do not stop with the Alliance versus Horde and night elf versus high elf enmities. The other races do not necessarily live in peace with the other inhabitants of the continent either.

Half-elves resent pretty much every other race. Pariahs from birth, these self-exiled people taste their first rejection from their parents and their parents' peoples. After that, they assume all other races will feel the same, which often leaves them to lead bitter and suspicious lives.

Night elves are not alone in their mistrust of the high elves' obsession with arcane magic. Ironforge dwarves also treat the power-mad elves warily and keep their distance.

The goblins feel a bit of rivalry with the Ironforge dwarves, as they are jealous of the dwarves' skill with gunpowder. A few more ambitious goblins plan a reconnaissance mission to discover some of the dwarves' secrets. Such an affront, if discovered, could turn mere rivals into enemies.

Loyalty and Betrayal
The history of Warcraft includes many tales of heroes who betray their race. The powerful human paladin warrior Arthas betrayed his Holy Light teachings and his people by slaughtering the town of Stratholme and losing his soul to the blade Frostmourne. Illidan betrayed the wishes of his race and created another magical Well of Eternity after the destruction of the first one - and recently took the skull of Gul'dan and became one of the demonkind himself. The orc shaman Ner'zhul betrayed his race to seek power with the Burning Legion, eventually becoming the Lich King.

Betrayal for the promise of great power constitutes a common theme in Warcraft. The histories do not tell whether tauren, goblins, or dwarves have betrayed their people, but that does not mean it has not happened (or could yet).

For instance, discovery of their titan creators fills the Ironforge dwarves with a lust for exploration into their past. This is a great opportunity for heroes, as they could gain notoriety and wealth by helping in the effort. If all goes well, those they aid could become legends within their race, responsible for uncovering the dwarves' lost history.

Yet what if the dwarves who the PCs help are overcome with the fever of discovery? Such individuals may steal knowledge or relics from their fellow dwarves or pursue dark studies in the misguided hope that the ends justify the means. Is the possible salvation of one's race or the defeat of a powerful enemy worth the risk? Arthas thought so when he took Frostmourne to kill Mal'ganis and defeat the Scourge... only to fall from the paladin warrior's path and become a death knight. Illidan took the Skull of Gul'dan to defeat the demon Tichondrius... only to be transformed into a demonic entity himself.

In Warcraft, noble goals executed through betrayal go horribly wrong more often than not. Still, that's not to say that this time, it just might work.

[Protheus]

The Role of Magic in Warcraft
Magic is the source of many of the problems facing the races of Kalimdor today. Dabbling in arcane magic inevitably leads to tragedy. Several of the races have wisely turned instead to the practice of divine magic to meet their needs.

Still, there's no arguing that victory against the Burning Legion relied upon the use of magic. When the various affiliations' spellcasters united, wielding both arcane and divine magic, the power was sufficient to drive back the forces of the Scourge and the Burning Legion.

No one disputes the claim that arcane magic is powerful. Many worry that is too powerful. The use of arcane magic has brought the Burning Legion to the world more than once, and arcane magic corrupted the formerly peaceful orc shamans. Its allure was the force behind the split of the elven races. Arcane magic is tainted, destructive power that some believe guarantees doom to its wielder. A more dangerous tool cannot be found on Kalimdor, and yet many races still attempt to control it.

Divine magic, by contrast, is a purer force. The magic of the shamans and druids comes from nature, the elements, or faith. These practitioners become healers or druids of the wild, praising the natural force that runs through them and manifests in miracles.

Night elves are devotees of the natural arts, having shunned the arcane taint long ago. Their druids are powerful, spiritual leaders, admired by their society. Orcs are returning to their older ways, having purged the arcane taint from their spirits. Their shamans are now leaders in the society and try to focus the orc warriors away from their violent pasts to a more devout existence.

High elves are the least likely to devote considerable time to divine magic. They see it as a weaker path than the clear power offered by the arcane. Of course, the divine path does not addict one as does the arcane... an addiction that can color opinions of other schools of magic.

[Protheus]

The Enemy
The Third War is over, but many of the enmities of both Alliance and Horde are very much alive and well, if hiding in the shadows. Many bide their time in silence and darkness, waiting for the right opportunity to unleash their vicious plans.

Hidden throughout the broken, war torn land are sinister death and demon cults, vengeful demons, and implacable undead. Then there are the more prosaic, though no less dangerous threats in the form of centaur, harpies, and quilboar.

[Protheus]

Demon Cults
During the reign of the Burning Legion, mortals from great lords to lowly peasants who followed demonic ways received power unlike any they has known before. Although this power was ripped away, they are determined to get it back. Many of these power hungry mortals gather secretly to practice the forbidden arts of demonology and to summon demons from the Twisting Nether. They seek to usher in a new era of power at the hands of the Burning Legion.

While cultists follow a unified agenda to regain their power, a great deal of distrust lingers between the races. As such, demon cults seldom include members from more than one race.

Demon cultists obsess over gaining magic or political power of any kind. They infiltrate communities and political structures to deceive key individuals in an attempt to gain wealth for their fellow cult members, to position themselves in places of authority, or even to eliminate a threat that comes too close to learning the presence of a cult. Cult members in public are polite, well dressed, and very difficult to find, sometimes being high members of tribal councils or governing bodies. Primarily businessmen, traders, merchants, smugglers, and clerks comprise a cult's ranks; soldiers are uncommon but not unknown in their ranks. Cult members carry on normal lives separate from one another in the towns and cities in which they live. They hold their meetings in the wilderness just beyond civilization, in dark glades and deep caves where the screams of their victims - offerings to the demon lords, test subjects for new warlock magic, or unfortunates who tumbled upon their secret - cannot be heard.

Each cultist bears an identifying mark hidden on his body that indicates his status and the cult to which he belongs. For instance, the Marapor cultists who reside along the coast region of Desolace have a brand in the shape of a six-sided star hidden under the hair on their scalp. Underblade cultists in the far reaches of the Ashenvale Forest have a small tatoo of a dripping dagger inked onto the heel of the right foot. Other cultists have various marks and signs on their bodies.

One of the greater challenges when dealing with demon cults involves not how to destroy them, but how to find them. Not only do they take great pains to blend in with the populace, but cult members practice a ruthless and deadly system for keeping fellow cultists' tongues silent about their dark activities. Once a person joins a cult, she cannot leave except on pain of death (or worse). This creates a system based on respect steeped heavily in fear.

A powerful warlock stands at the head of each cult. This figure, skilled in summoning magic and able to communicate with the demons trapped in the Nether, is rarely found without the protection of cult members, a fel stalker, or some other kind of fodder he can dispose of to kill those who oppose him... or to buy him enough time to escape. Even without such servants, a warlock poses a dangerous threat. Yet the rest of the cult must never be forgotten, for even if the warlock is slain, the cult simply hides until a new warlock emerges to lead it.

Demon cultists are rarely trained warriors. Stealth and terror are their primary weapons. They do not exist to fight, but to act as the means by which the great demon hosts will someday return to Azeroth. That does not mean they don't indulge in violence, however - just in the controlled (and depraved) application of it: torture, poison, assassination, and other silent deaths.

The Shadow Council
Tales have spread that the Shadow Council - established before the Second War by the orc warlock Gul'dan - is finding its legs once again. Unlike the other cults that dabble in demonology, the Shadow Council consists of dark soldiers who train solely for the ultimate battle. They hold no meetings or petty sacrifices. Instead, they open their bodies to the demons of the Twisting Nether.

These possessed worshippers triple in strength, and their bodies become warped and deformed with glowing red eyes. No race is immune to the group's temptation. Orc and human, troll and high elf have all fallen to the desire... and the Council's ranks are growing.

[Protheus]

The Burning Legion
The decaying bones from the fiery host of the Burning Legion litter Kalimdor. Jaina Proudmoore, Malfurion Stormrage, Thrall, and many other legendary heroes risked their lives to hold back the demons and save the world.

Some demons survived the last battle of the Well of Eternity, and now the menace continues to lurk in the forgotten caves of the Stonetalon Mountains or in the dark woods of the Ashenvale. These demons are planning, building, and biding their time until the conquest can begin again.

In addition to those demons brought from the Twisting Nether during the war, mortal demon cults are in the process of contacting - and bringing over - dreadlords. These mighty demons send their call out when they appear, summoning any demonic minions, from banshees to gargoyles and more, who await them. Heroes should learn quickly that renewed demonic activity means a dreadlord is nearby.

With the Burning Legion only a shadow of its former strength, a definite sense of ruthless revenge infuses the demons' attacks. Theirs is a slow, methodical conquest of towns, hamlets, and sometimes even large cities. Already, small areas have fallen to the demons - helped in large part by demon cults. If this process continues unchecked, the Burning Legion will ravage the world of Azeroth for the fourth - and possibly final - time.

Although dispersed across Kalimdor, the Legion functions as a cohesive entity, able to launch small-scale assaults simultaneously in different parts of the continent. Many sages and shamans suspect a leader has risen from the ranks to organize the demons, but to date they have not discovered this source. Some wonder if Sargeras himself has been reborn somewhere in the Twisting Nether.

The Burning Legion works toward a shared goal, but it operates in small groups. Each group is isolated from the others for protection, though they communicate via the Twisting Nether. Some of the groups include warlocks who spend all their waking moments researching ways to generate a permanent gateway to the Nether - vital if the Legion will regain the strength it needs to destroy Azeroth. Others are made up of fel stalkers, Infernals, and Doomguard, used as shock troops and terror weapons.

[Protheus]

The Undead Scourge
In the wake of the Battle of Mount Hyjal, the Scourge left pockets of undead roaming the land looking for flesh to devour. The undead also consist of maddened revenants desiring to strengthen their elemental bond at any destructive cost. Ghosts also roam the countryside in sorrowful wails, seeking physical contact - but a ghostly embrace only proves deadly to the living.

These scattered undead display little organization and usually attack caravans, frontier homes, and isolated outposts. Their motivation is sustenance and self-preservation, and they have very little fear of a second death to get it.

Undead often rally around a necromancer for safety and guidance. A necromancer gives the undead a higher degree of tactical sophistication. Upon the necromancer's death, any surviving ghouls and abominations run amok, killing anything in their path, or flee to another necromancer to plead for acceptance. There are instance of one undead group attacking another as rival necromancers wage over scraps of territory.

As in the days of the Legion, fresh soldiers are always needed to maintain undead numbers, so necromancers carve out a central location near cemeteries, forcing towns across Kalimdor to guard their burial grounds - or worse yet, place them within city walls for protection. This development has enraged the townsfolk, for not only do the cemeteries take up valuable farmland, they also carry the potential of disease. Disposing of the undead is an occupation that pays well in many parts of Kalimdor.

Rogue Liches
The Scourge no longer answers to the Burning Legion in the wake of the Battle of Mount Hyjal. They walk Kalimdor with no intention of raising an army as before, however. Even a single undead draws attention; putting together a large group will surely get the local populace upset. Instead, these liches harbor a single, driving goal: revenge. They seek out those who helped bring about their downfall, first destroying all that they hold dear and then bringing ultimate retribution upon the target.

The Carcass of Durross Malfactin
A hideous abomination called the Carcass of Durross Malfactin is the result of a necromancer's experiment gone horribly wrong. The necromancer tried to instill a small amount of sentience in the corpse of a human knight named Durross Malfactin so that it could lead larger groups of the mutated corpses. Tiny as it was, the abomination's intelligence proved enough to surprise the necromancer: the Carcass killed the old mage as he slept. It is said to roam the Barrens in search of bodies to sew onto its already gargantuan corpse.

[Protheus]

Other Races and Mundane Creatures
Beyond the races of Alliance and Horde, beyond the corrupt Burning Legion and insidious Scourge, other beings roam the land of Kailmdor. Some, such as the furbolgs, quilboar, and vultures, work simply for self-preservation. Others, such as centaur and satyrs, carry the mantle of ancient feuds. Though they may not threaten global destruction, these sorts offer dangers of their own.

Some races encountered may bear aggressions toward the heroes, whether due to a grudge at being forced from their native lands or to simple hatred of anything different from themselves. The most common of these races are the centaur, satyrs, and harpies. The centaur tribes are longtime enemies of the tauren and happily carry that enmity over to orcs. Satyrs are corrupt night elves who despise their uncorrupted cousins. Harpies just plain hate everyone.

Though these beings are certainly hostile, only a foolish hero thinks such hostility means they are stupid. Centaur, satyrs, and harpies can act in a surprisingly well-organized fashion - centaur and satyrs are even known to work together. Satyrs especially love woodland ambushes, and harpies build amazingly defended nests high on the mountain slopes.

Other races - notably furbolgs and quilboar - are less aggressive, though no less dangerous. Furbolgs and quilboar are more appropriately highly intelligent animals than they are fully sentient humanoids. They care about their fledgling newborn and build encampments for protection, but neither race demonstrates a solid organization or political motivation. They typically choose to flee rather than confront threats, but they will not hesitate to protect their own or to lash out if driven to anger.

Then there are the dragons. Kalimdor is host to five different breeds: black, blue, bronze, green, and red. Each breed has a different personality and alignment. Dragons do not concern themselves often with the day-to-day happenings on Kalimdor and so are rarely seen. Only in times of severe stress do they emerge to help keep a balance, as in the case of the Third War. Since then, the dragons have retreated to heal their wounded and to monitor the ebb and flow of magic, alert for the time that the Burning Legion appears again. Dragons are highly intelligent and should always be treated with caution and respect.

Warcraft and d20
Manual of Monsters includes Warcraft-specific versions of monsters common to Warcraft, but you can also use the MM. Just bear in mind a few adjustment:

• Gnolls are known for their habits as raiding marauders or hired soldiers. Though they have average intelligence, they are easily duped by promises of food or treasure.
• Golems can be found in stone, flesh, or iron types and typically guard mystical dwellings. Recent reports tell of golems roaming the countryside as if independent of any masters. Some sages suspect a hybrid form of arcane magic is causing this phenomenon.
• Wildkin (owlbears in the [/I]MM[/I]) are forthright and not unusually aggressive. These bird-faced humanoids with coarse, shaggy hair are considered an abomination by most, but actually find favor with night elves. Wildkin possess a high intelligence and often understand good reasoning.
• Kobolds are little humanoids afraid to venture into the light for fear of their own shadows. Still, they fight ferociously to the death once backed into a corner.
  

[Protheus]

Demonic Subtype
The evil outsiders in Warcraft that comprise the forces of the Burning Legion are generally called "demons." This breed of demon in the Warcraft RPG is distinct from the one noted in the MM and uses the "demonic" subtype. As suc, references made throughout this book to "demons" refers to those particular to the Warcraft universe.

Demons were mortal one, but have been transformed by their conversion into demonic beings. This change includes a powerful command of arcane energy. They define and control this arcane power with the force of their will, much as sorcerers or wizards do.

In the Warcraft RPG, demons can be of any evil alignment. The Burning Legion favors lawful evil, but this is not a hard and fast rule.

Demonic Traits
The demonic subtype conveys the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature's entry).

- Immunity to death effects, fire, necromantic effects, and poison.

- Resistance to acid 10, cold 10, and electricity 10.

- Frightful Presence (Ex): Demons unsettle their foes with their mere presence. This ability takes effect automatically whenever the demon attacks, charges, or spends a move action on something deliberately intimidating. Creatures within 30 feet are subject to the effect if they have fewer HD than the demon.

A potentially affected creature that succeeds at a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 demon's HD + the demon's Charisma modifier) remains immune to that demon's frightful presence for 1 day. On a failure, creatures with 4 or fewer HD become panicked for 3d6 rounds, and those with 5 or more HD become shaken for 2d6 rounds. Demons ignore the frightful presence of other demons.

- Innate Magic (Ex): Demons with levels in a spellcasting class add their outsider HD to their caster level. This does not give them additional known spells or spells per day. If a demon has more than one spellcasting class, it must choose one class to which this bonus applies.

- Name Vulnerability (Ex): A demon takes double damage from a weapon inscribed during its forging with that demon's name.

- Blindsight (Su): Demons have an arcane awareness of the physical world that allows them to perceive objects and creatures within 60 feet.

- Mortal Tongues (Su): Intelligent demons can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using tongues as cast by a 14th-level sorcerer. This ability is always active.

- See in Darkness (Su): Demons can see perfectly in darkness of any kind, even that created by a deeper darkness spell.

- Spell-Like Abilities (Sp): Unless otherwise stated, demonic spell-like abilities are as cast by a sorcerer of a level equal to the demon's Hit Dice. Demons with the spell-like ability to plane shift or gate can use it only for travel to and from the Twisting Nether. They cannot enter other planes, summon monsters through a gate, or use plane shift to transport others against their will.

Common Burning Legion Abilities
All demonic creatures have the following abilities unless noted otherwise in their descriptions. See below for details on fel energy and fel damage.

Regeneration (Ex): Demons with regeneration take holy and fel damage normally. A demon also takes normal (doubled) damage from a weapon inscribed during its forging with that demon's name.

Fel Strike (Su): Some demons treat any weapon or natural weapon they wield as a fel weapon. All of their attacks do +1d6 points of fel damage. Fel weapons deal an additional +1d6 points of fel damage against all creatures of good alignment. Fel weapons penetrate the damage reduction of all outsiders.

Summon Infernal (Su): Once per day, certain demons can attempt to summon an infernal. Their chance to success equals their hit dice times 5%, to a maximum of 90% at 18HD. An infernal summoned in this fashion remains for 10 rounds.