Colossus of the Drylands

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6 min read

Campaign Intro

The Drylands… A barren patch of land stretching far into the horizon. A place filled with burning days and freezing nights. An inhospitable place, home to outlaws, the downtrodden, and the hopeful.

40 years ago, the largest vein of Essentia was found here. Soon came Wylinn and his city. Then came the others, traveling deeper into the Drylands, closer to Godfell Mountain, building their own outposts and mining their own veins. Life seemed to be looking up. Business was booming. The trains ran day and night taking raw essentia to factories and mountains of gold into the pockets of those with uncalloused hands.

That all changed last year. An earthquake, the strongest in recorded history, struck Wyllin’s Gulch. The city withstood it, as it was made to, but not what followed. A colossal beast, stretching to the heavens, came to life and attacked. Many were lost. Business slowed to a crawl.

Mayor Logan Hartly, daughter of the late Wylinn Hartly, lost many men and women since. She’s looking for people who’d protect her city and slay the beast.

Baron Ryder Destry, his name, not his title (yet), claims the beast is supercharging the magic within the essentia. He’s wanting folk who’d keep it in the mines.

Preacher Rayos, a disciple of the New Gods, has started grandstanding about the Prophecy of the Drylands God, claiming the beast is the foretold colossus and one of the harbingers of Kudamat, the First Doom. He’s warning people off of essentia.

You lot? You answered their call. Maybe for coin, for faith, for power, or for legacy. The why doesn’t matter all that much now. All that matters, is if you can stand up again and again.

Tone & Feel:

Awe-Inspiring, Dusty, Eerie, Gritty, Larger than Life, Terrifying

THEMES

Breaking Cycles, The Burden of Heroism, Faith vs. Doubt, Greed, Ordinary People Accomplishing the Extraordinary

Touchstones

Shadow of the Colossus, Red Dead Redemption, Deadlands, On the Shoulders of Colossus

Emergence of Kudamat

Siphoning Track: 3/10

Fear Count: 10/12

Distinctions:

  • The Children of Godfell: Each of Kudamat’s nine soul shards are protected by a colossus known as a Child of Godfell. These beings are physical manifestations of the god’s will, hellbent on protecting their soul shard as its power is siphoned back to the mountain. Formed by elements of the soul shard’s surroundings, each is unique in personality, form, and capabilities.
  • Essentia: The source of all magic in the Drylands. Without it, the mortals inhabiting these realms may have never been able to harnessed magic. Followers of both the Old and New gods claim that essentia is formed from the spilt lifeblood of the divine.
  • The Prophecy of the Drylands God: In the center of the world there is a mountain, and deep beneath that mountain there is an ancient and terrible god—a Forgotten God—struggling to break free of his confinement. One day Kudamat, the First Doom will escape his earthen tomb with the help of his nine colossi, the Children of Godfell, to sunder the world, his hated prison, and tear down the sky like fabric.

Outposts:

Since the Essentia Rush began about 40 years ago, settlements like Wyllin’s Gulch formed around Godfell Mountain. Some are small encampments, while others are bustling towns cut through by dirt streets. But no matter their size, they’re always referred to as outposts, because everyone knows that once the local essentia veins are cleaned out, people will have their town packed up overnight.

  • The Cinderline: Named for the unique black sand the town is built upon, the Cinderline sprung up around a river that washed bits of essentia into a nice deposit downstream, though no one has successfully panned for essentia in the last few years. Locals are fiercely protective of their water supply, as this outpost is the last stop for fresh water before a long stretch of desert.
  • Havalaugh: The name sounds as cordial as the folks in this encampment. Though there isn’t a permanent building in sight, the tents that form this town stretch for at least a mile. Run by someone known only as Pickens (they/them), Havalaugh is fairly receptive to outsiders. The outpost is considered to host the premier marketplace on the eastern side of the mountain, and its High Summer Festival is famous—enough for Havalaugh to nearly quintuple its size for a week. There’s no sheriff in Havalaugh, but anyone who harms a citizen is never heard from again.
  • The Iron Kettle: One of the more industrialized outposts in the region, the Iron Kettle is built around a massive mine owned by Iron Tusk Corp. Because of the talent needed to construct the mining infrastructure, it’s a rustic place full of skilled smiths and crafters, many of whom sell goods to travelers outside their work for Iron Tusk. This need for steel goods has given the smiths more power than Iron Tusk would prefer. But a powerful trade union formed by the smiths keeps them in check and governs “The Kettle,” taking the onus (and liability) off the company.
  • Pryor: Built into a long-abandoned essentia mine, Pryor is often unnoticed by those who don’t know where to look as they ride by. The folk that live in this insular outpost are not known to welcome guests, but if you have a contact who can get you in their good graces, you’re likely to learn the best tricks of the Drylands from the citizens of Pryor. Most of these families stretch back to the time before the Essentia Rush, when there were only a few folk mining these lands.
  • Defiance: Famous for its position high atop a mesa, Defiance is an outpost rumored to have been established by a band of thieves looking to escape the law—and its position certainly provides a good view of anyone coming their way. These vagrants have a considerable cache of artillery aimed at the ground below, and they aren’t known to fire warning shots.

Player Characters:

Notable NPCs:

  • Mayor Logan Hartly, daughter of the late Wylinn Hartly, lost many men and women since. She’s looking for people who’d protect her city and slay the beast. She is a Galapa/Simian.
  • Baron Ryder Destry, his name, not his title (yet), claims the beast is supercharging the magic within the essentia. He’s wanting folk who’d keep it in the mines. He is a Human/Elf.
  • Preacher Rayos, a disciple of the New Gods, has started grandstanding about the Prophecy of the Drylands God, claiming the beast is the foretold colossus and one of the harbingers of Kudamat, the First Doom. He’s warning people off of essentia. He is an Infernis/Faerie.

Sessions:

Other Info:

  • Click here for a list of equipment unique to this campaign.
  • Click here for a list of slang from the Wild West.

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