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Shadow World Master File List. 7-8-26

Please note that some of these files may be here on the Rolemasterblog, but to access these links to the RM Forums will require a Forum account–otherwise you cannot see or access.

Here we go:

  1. SW Healing Chart. This was a quick reference chart for cinematic healing, but taking into account cultural access to healing skills. I use it between adventures to quickly establish healing times & costs without a lot of more complicated calculations. It was included in my Master Atlas, but probably needs to fleshed out.
  2. RM/RMU Class Comparison. Another chart from my Master Atlas, this was a quick guide to mapping RMU professions to classic RM professions with notes specific to SW.
  3. SW Research Chart. Small chart to generate research results.
  4. Invoke Chart. I’ve blogged and written about invocation quite a bit. This chart allows PCs to call/pray for their gods intervention. This is a common mechanism in my SW campaign and brings the gods into gameplay in a less abstract way.
  5. SW Lore Table. Incomplete, but the start of summarizing skill levels/competence level and knowledge of various skills and lores.
  6. SW Metal Chart. Summary of SW metals and alloys with a unifying “breakage” number that use for material RRs and enchantments/imbedding.
  7. Master Herb Chart. Collated list of all herbs, plants, and poisons found in all RM books. May need some updates to include Terry’s more recent books.
  8. SW Crystal Summary. Crystals play a key role in SW, but Terry never really fleshed out a full system for the. This chart assumes that all “Essence Crystals” are basically the same–even if know as Zirix Crystals, or Essaence Crystals or Jewel Slime etc. It needs some work, but I use crystals as PP storage devices that can be drawn upon or recharged with channeling skill.
  9. Cantrips. Really this is part of BASiL, but in the thread.
  10. God Invocation Summary. This chart is used with the Invocation chart. Summarizes modifiers to SW’s gods responses and specific things they may do.
  11. SW Encounter Chart. This is a comprehensive chart for random encounters by region. Includes weather and Essence effects. Inspired by the encounter tables in the AD&D DM’s guide. Needs a little updating but I think a very useful tool!
  12. Void Knight Base List. Spell list for a organization I use in my SW campaign and features in “Priest-King of Shade”. It needs some touch up.
  13. Soulless. Update Pending. This is my effort to consolidate the concept of the Unlife, traditional fantasy Undead, corruption and possession. In my SW campaign, the Unlife possesses or inhabits creatures to various degrees.
  14. Hierax Guard. Organization dedicated to fighting Demon’s. Uses the Void Knight base list.
  15. Xiosians. My interpretation of the Xio Warriors mentioned in a few places and a way to integrate them into the larger SW story.
  16. History of the Earthwardens. I went through every single SW book and collated all the references to the Earthwardens. This is my conclusions.
  17. Notes on Tech & Languages. Quick excerpt from my Master Atlas.
  18. Elves. Again, this is my fleshing out of Elves: how they came to be and their place in the larger story. Plus a Shadow World explanation of the various types of Elves beyond the Tolkien archetypes.
  19. Alchemy Notes. I use alchemy skill a lot in my game. This is my simplified but flexible rules on alchemy. I plan on expanding on it at some point.
  20. SW Trade Goods. Treasure is more than gems, jewelry and gold!
  21. SW Civilization Summary. Chart from my Master Atlas with overview of the various ancient civilizations.
  22. Cult of Hraask. I wanted a “spider/insect” spell list grounded in SW.
  23. SW Cultural Skills. This is part of SWARM rules (Shadow World Alternate Role Master) and my “build a character in 10 minutes. Includes specific SW cultures rather than the broader types in RMU.
  24. SW Professions. List of vocations and skill packages for quick character generation.
  25. SW Background Table. Random background table, SW specific.
  26. SW Material Strength. Unifying method for breakage, VS RR’s and imbedding, enchanting and weapon runes.
  27. Weapon Modifier Chart. Combat modifiers and stats for specific weapons rather than general modifiers used in RM.
  28. SW Racial Chart. Conversion of bonuses to RMU. Probably will need a re-edit after RMU publication.
  29. Orhanian Base Spells Lists. God specific lists for Clerics and Followers. See “Religions & Channeling Handbook” below in #49
  30. Charon Base Lists. See “Religions & Channeling Handbook” below in #49
  31. Religious Organizations. Orhan. See “Religions & Channeling Handbook” below in #49
  32. Religious Organizations. Charon. See “Religions & Channeling Handbook” below in #49
  33. History of SW in narrative form. My Master Atlas version.
  34. SW Languages. My notes, needs some work.
  35. SW Special Armor. Cool armors.
  36. SW Archaeology. Notes on ancient SW civilizations.
  37. SW Antiquities. Price chart for REALLY ancient, “priceless” stuff!
  38. Jaiman Tradegoods. More trade items specific to Jaiman cities and cultures.
  39. Iron Wind Base Lists. Lyak. Yarthraak. Gaath. Athimurl. Dansart. Thargondaak.
  40. SW Notes on Currency. Summary of various coins and currencies.
  41. Shrapnel & Swarm Crit Chart. I use for explosions or insect swarms.
  42. SW Trade Goods: Drugs & Alcohol. Small file that needs more work!
  43. BASIL: Essence Lists.
  44. BASIL: Channeling Lists.
  45. BASIL: Mentalism Lists. Still working on these.
  46. For links to the spell lists above.
  47. Legends of Shadow World. Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5. Alternate all Priest PCs.
  48. Priest-King of Shade. Priest King Charts. Small module that takes place in SW Agyra.
  49. The Book of Pales. Summary and overview of the Pales.
  50. SW Religions and Channeling Handbook.
  51. Book of Herbs. White background version. Illustrated guide to all of the herbs found in the Shadow World books.
  52. SW Channeling Canticles. (Adventure Paths). Kuor. Phaon. Teris. Shaal. Updates Pending.
  53. Shadow World Suggested Patrons. Suggestions for patron Gods (Orhan and Charon) based on Professions.
  54. SW Transport Costs.
  55. Earthwarden Base Lists. Updates in Progress. Creations. Essaence Master, Dimension Mastery, Shapechanging & Life Mastery, Time Mastery, Mana Fires, Earthworks, Sound Mastery, Words of Power, Warding.
  56. Matt (Vroomfogle) Hanson Files. Languages of Kulthea, SW Combat Styles, Vroomfogles Magic Treasures, Compass Rules. Legacy of the Y’Kin.
  57. Misc Files & Maps. Esov Inquirer, Esov Inquirer 2, Meluria Map, Rhakhaan South Map
  58. Martin’s “Lethys” file.
  59. Jengada’s Files. Scorpion Attack, Rip/Tear Critical Strikes.
  60. Ultimate Shadow World Trivia Test.
  61. Empire of the Black Dragon. PENDING. Companion supplement to Priest-King covering the realms of Uyla Shek.
  62. SW: Book of Trade Goods
  63. SW Spell List: Breath of Power. Used in Agyra.
  64. Updated: Book of Channeling 2.0
  65. Shadow World Vocation Packages. Replaces apprenticeship step in chargen.
  66. Shadow World & Rolemaster: Combat Companion
  67. Updated and formatted Shadow World Master Encounter Table
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Appearance as a stat?

During my deconstruction of the Rolemaster ruleset for my Shadow World campaign I kept hitting a wall with stat redesign. Sometimes I tried to reduce the stats from 10, other times I tried to come up with a better framework of qualities that represents a “being” and works with the skill list. I have to say that even after 45 years, the 10 basic stats in Rolemaster work pretty well and it’s hard to come up with something better. It’s a good balance between tangible physical components and intangible or mental attributes. That is not to say that I don’t use stats differently (stats as skills) or apply different stats to skills then RAW, but I can’t come up with any real improvements that are worth further effort. That’s a testament to the original design.

However, there is 1 physical quality that I think should be included and one that I use–but not wholeheartedly. “Appearance”. It’s easily argued that physical appearance is an incredibly relevant attribute, but decisive as well. Recent game design theory has moved away from stressing physical appearance and embracing full-inclusivity, but beyond in-game efficacy, an appearance score is a quick indicator, a short-hand, when describing a PC or NPC. As part of my writing, I’m trying to focus more complete character descriptions and I don’t think every PC or NPC should be heroic in appearance or from “central casting”. Certainly a character could be less traditionally attractive (physical appearance) and yet highly charismatic. And yet, I don’t want to lean into the normal advantages that physical appearance provides: in real life or in gaming.

I’ve always been intrigued by player’s decision to embrace a PC with unusual attributes: obesity, unattractiveness, physical disabilities etc. In a game environment of min/maxing, fantasy and escapism, many players want to be an idealized figure. Does anyone really want a score of “20” in physical appearance? Should this be addresses through the flaw system or incorporated into the stats and related skill resolution (charm, leadership etc)?

Anyone else use Appearance as a 11th stat or a more prominent role in their game?

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SW 4th Era: Establishing a Time Jump

While it’s easy to think of a new era of history (real or fantasy) as a distinct and specific time or year, it’s usually in hindsight that we view the end of one epoch and the start of another as a demising event. In reality, such times are more muddled and gray, with the facts of history written by the victor.

It’s that confusion that drives me to start the 4th Era after a plausible lapse of time; I’m just not sure what that time span should be! From a human perspective, a decade or so could suffice, but Shadow World deals with longer time periods and often measures history in centuries or millennia; a understandable framing in a world of immortal Elves and beings.

I’ve broken down my time-lapse options into 3 basic frames: immediate, short-term or medium-term. I’ve eliminated a longer term option out of pragmatism; I don’t have the time or patience to build another expansive timeline!

Immediate: Under this scenario, the 4th Era begins right after the “final battle”. There are some in game benefits to this option as the flux of events would create a number of adventure opportunities. However, I feel like it wouldn’t create enough of a space to truly reset the setting and make the 4th Era distinct from previous material.

Short-term. 5 years. I’m leaning towards this option as it gives enough time for things to settle down, but not too much. There will still be parties vying for party, locations to explore and loot and enough flux to make Shadow World new, even to experienced players.

Medium-term. 20 years. I like this option for establishing a new setting baseline. Realms and leadership have been sorted, things are settled down into a “new normal” with some rebuilding already accomplished and there is a through line for establishing the new professions that RMU introduced. There are a new slate of big baddies to challenge the players but still enough conflict to drive adventure plotlines.

Per my previous post, I may end up pivoting on this once I have the 3rd Era ending locked in and some of these choices are more determinative. How much time do you think is needed to establish a new era of Shadow World?

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SW 4th Era: Road Map for History

How do you know where you are if you don’t where you’ve been?

For the last 20 years I’ve found my campaign hovering around the last few decades of the 3rd Era. The great story arcs are still in progress and the conflicts arising from those story lines are intersected by the PC’s again and again without them being the main characters. Strangely, I’ve never run a group completely through one of Terry’s campaigns.

Shadow World now feels like a game of the greatest hits, or similar to Star Wars RPG where the players run their adventures during the lead up to the original trilogy. Great moments, world shattering events and completions of story arcs are there but not for the party to enjoy directly. I’ve talked with quite a few Shadow World GM’s over the years and most run games with characters between 1st and 10th lvl and then reset. Some of Terry’s storylines are going to need very high level characters and based on feedback from my “Legends of Shadow World” their also seems to be little appetite for high level adventures as well. Not everyone can be a lowly Hobbit and save the world!

So, to circle around, before I can build the 4th Era I need to finish the last few pages and chapter of the 3rd Era. Each of Terry’s new books slightly advanced the timeline, but I think it was his fiction, “Loremaster Legacy” where he hoped to finish his opus rather than through incremental SW supplements. While there are many story arcs in Shadow World, the higher level narratives need to be resolved to determine and inform what happens next. For all my ideas about the 4th Era, any changes need to have a logical justification and not just the simple hand-waves that annoy me!

So what are these large story arcs?

  1. The Northern Eye. The loss of the Northern Eye plunged the hemisphere into erratic Essaence activity and Terry hinted at more several issues. Clearly, the return and placement of the Eye is a key event in the 3rd Era.
  2. The Shadowstone Chronicles encompasses the “World Crisis” story arc that has driven the setting from it’s earliest form. Several items play here: the Shadowstone, the Soulsword, the Ark of Worlds and the Heart of Agoth are key elements. There is a lot of Middle Earth DNA here and some elements of the Court of Ardor that is leading to a grand confrontation between the good guys and the bad guy(s).
  3. The Nameless One. Something is happening here. A mysterious figure that shows up before a major disaster needs a conclusion.
  4. The Gods. Since the Wars of Dominion, the friction between the Orhan and Charon pantheons has reached a boiling point.
  5. Lorgalis. For many settings, Lorgalis alone might be the main antagonist. While not world spanning, his influence and plans regarding Jaiman are significant.
  6. The Gold Dragon. He hasn’t played much of a role in the 3rd Era, but setting him up for the 4th seems appropriate.
  7. Andraax. Should the story of Andraax be put to rest, finally? Perhaps a deep sleep for now?
  8. Legends of Shadow World. I consider this critical narrative and set’s the stage for several SW elements: the Lense of Strok, the rise of Andaras, the disposition of Nynaku and the Demons of the Pale.

I’m not sure any definitive ending to these stories will satisfy everyone; but these stories need an end. My goal is to write the ending first and then see where it leads us, rather than write the ending that meets my needs and plans for the 4th Era. That’s going to be difficult since I’m not sure what’s working subconsciously in my creative process!

I’m curious if anyone has run to the end, have any ideas on an ending, or feel like there are other major plot points that I didn’t discuss that need commenting!

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SW 4th Era: Catastrophism

As much as I’d like to dramatically some elements of Shadow World, I need to keep in mind any commercial interest in this endeavor. That being the need to utilize this project as a support system for RMU. Shadow World needs to support the mechanics of RMU: Professions, Magic Realms, casting etc. so any changes that occur in the 4th Era have to at least support RMU or not conflict with the new ruleset.

But the concept of catastrophism is in the forefront of my mind: both physical and metaphysical ones. I may blog further about physical disasters that may befall Kulthea, but I wanted to put some thoughts together about the metaphysical side.

In my most recent post, I suggested a change to the “Essaence ionosphere”: a change in the level of Essaence that could impact spellcasting mechanics and power point regen. Keeping the RMU factor in mind, that doesn’t seem like a smart design decision. However, I’m still strongly believe that a SW reset requires some tough love and I’m drafting out and idea I’m calling the Snap. (maybe “surge”)

I’m not sure what to call it, but basically it’s a surge of raw power that was created when the Northern Eye was put back into place, the Lords of Orhan withdrew their support of the Essaence flows, and the energy pulse created by the “final battle”. Imagine a power surge that blows your speakers, or trips a circuit breaker. In this case that speaker or circuit is spell casters. Magic users that were actively recharging their PPs probably took the hardest hit, but all Essaence users were impacted. Those using multipliers even worse! This resulted in a spell failure roll (modified) with a likelihood of burnout, loss of PPs (temporary or permanent condition), stat loss, mental damage.

This is important to reset the narrative. Whether I start the 4th Era 5 years, 10 years or even 100 years after the final events of the 3rd Era, there needs to be a profound impact on SW culture, power & politics. Some of the symptoms of the Snap:

  1. Affected casters are hiding their loss or reduction of Essaence powers. Perhaps they are relying on magic items to replace their lost abilities.
  2. Some of the most powerful casters were killed or rendered useless, changing the balance of power in some societies.
  3. The deaths of powerful casters creates a gap in knowledge, and some spell lists become lost or difficult to learn.
  4. There is a increase in the use and reliance of technology to replace spell use.
  5. Magic and perhaps magic items are more rare.
  6. Dabblers, or professions that use both tech and magic become more common.
  7. Crude gunpowder weapons proliferate and the volatile nature of chemistry seems more muted.

As in my previous post, the goal here is to make Shadow World new again for long time players, align it with the RMU ruleset and create a framework for third party content.

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SW 4th Era: Thoughts on revisions.

For me, it’s very clear that any new version of Shadow World should be distinct and new and just more of the same. Personally, I’d be fine continuing to write Shadow World material under Terry’s established work, but two factors require a differing approach: ICE’s reluctance to open up Shadow World to third parties and the publication of RMU. What is also clear, through various comments on this blog and elsewhere that people already have modified Shadow World to their liking and any new Shadow World books will be judged through these preconceptions and biases.

So the 4th Era should allow for some deviation; but informed by the events at the end of the 3rd Era. I’ll be writing more about what I see as the end events of that Era; I think Terry laid out a pretty clear pathway through the Grand Campaign, Northern Eye and Shadowstone narratives.

Deviations should serve 2 purposes: bridge any gaps between the Shadow World setting and the new RMU ruleset and bring a fresh, new angle to Shadow World for old and new users. With that in mind I would offer the following thoughts for comments. I’m curious how comfortable people are with bold changes to the setting.

  1. The Unlife. The Unlife has served as an existential threat to Kulthea since the Loremaster series. It’s arguable that any of Terry’s major adventure arcs were focused on addressing or solving the “Unlife Problem”, so it’s not clear what the Unlife would look like in the 4th Era. However, the Unlife was introduced into Kulthea through the same dimensional rift that brough the Essaence and the Lords of Orhan so it’s likely that the disposition of the Northern Eye and the greater battles could have impacted that insertion point. I like the idea of reducing the role of the Unlife; it’s an abstract concept and subject to much debate online. There are second and third tier baddies that could become prominent in the new Era and pose a more mundane threat to the PC’s and the world. A few options.
    • The Unlife on Kulthea is severed from the source as the dimensional rift is closed or restricted.
    • The rift opened up temporarily or permanently and a new more powerful manisfestation of the Unlife entered Kulthea.
    • Narratively, the Unlife is an alien force but de-emphasized in the 4th Era.
  2. The Dragonlords. A power unto themselves, the DL’s are both immortal, incredibly powerful but physical and tactile in a way different than the Gods of Orhan or Charon. Most have dabbled in mortal affairs for millenia and are well situated to fill any power vacuums. Some options include
    • Some or all of the Dragonlords take advantage of the era ending Chaos and consolidate power and holdings. They now rule over major parts of several continents and Dragon Kings.
    • The Dragonlords were instrumental in the end of the Era. Some were killed/destroyed, fled into hiding or escaped to the East.
    • Dragonlords ascended and joined the Orhan/Charon pantheon. They are now Gods with cult followers, churches and priests.
  3. The Loremasters. I’ve already alluded to some of my thoughts on the disposition of the Loremasters but an argument could be made for their ascendance into more power and influence. A few options:
    • The Loremaster organization is destroyed and scattered. (Order 66). After decades they are a lost and forgotten order of wizards and meddlers, mostly fiction.
    • The Loremasters take their place as open advisors to key leaders, Kings, cities and cultures. They become benevolent advisors but perhaps prone to corruption.
    • There is a change in leadership and the Loremasters are led by a secretly evil persona. Andraax is gone (again)!!
  4. The Essaence. Here I have to be careful, since we can’t make too many changes that interfere with the RMU ruleset. Personally I would love to see a big change but realistically it can’t happen. Option:
    • The throttling of the dimension rift, also inhibits and throttles the Essaence. Power cost goes up, PP recovery is slower and magic becomes more rare and harder to learn. The mechanics around realm differences become much more meaningful.
    • Volatility. Despite the placement of the Northern Eye, world wide Essaence is disrupted. Foci are impacted, flows redirected and weather patterns permanently change. Spell failure increases, but output can be amplified. Basically volatility in all aspects of spell casting.
  5. Demons. Demons have always been a integral part of the setting. We also saw Demons participate in the final battle at the end of the 1st Era as well as the Wars of Dominion. “Legends of Shadow World” (chapter 4) involves a significant invasion from the Pales into Shadow World. Running with that possibility, adding in the fluctuations of Essaence, volatility in dimensional gates and perhaps the direct involvement of some of the gods of Charon, the 4th Era could signify a more omnipresent Demon population. (think Warded Man). I’ve done some basic work with my “Book of the Pales”, but the hierarchy, culture, society and even races of Demons can be expanded dramatically. I envision a Demon invasion, one where they do establish a beachhead on Kulthea. Where would that be…
  6. Weather & Climate. Assuming some polar ice melt and changes to Essaence flows it’s likely their would be subsequent changes to climate. Shadow World already had some microclimate effects baked into the cake from the Loremaster series. Whether it’s a “sciency” based approach or something more random, changing climates could be interesting! Desserts becoming wetter and foliated or lush plains turning arid and creating population displacement.
  7. Lords of Essaence. It’s possible that the great barrier is breached, if only temporarily, and allows the entrapped Lords of Essaence back into this hemisphere. How would the few remaining Ka’ta’viir handle that? Probably not well?

Overall, my goal is to change the nature and scope of power in Shadow World. Rather than have a small group of Tier 1 foes, I see the 4th Era as a mix of more attainable villains. Ones that could conceivable be challenged by a PC group directly, or represent more attainable goals than “saving the world”. Does Kulthea become subject to the Great Powers approach? Active involvement of Lords of Essaence, Dragonlords and Demon Lords that rule over large parts of the world? None dominant, but all in conflict. Perhaps in this case, the PC’s choose the lesser of “evils” and ally with a Dragonlord or a less offensive Ka’ta’viir?

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SW 4th Era: Initial Books

As many of you already suspect, I’m further along on this project than just concepts. I’ve fleshed out the first 3-5 supplements that could be brought to market as a cohesive RMU 4th Era launch. Arguably having several books ready to go creates more momentum and incentives player buy-in of the setting. Of course, any new users for SW would likely want the older material from Terry as well giving the entire product line a great boost.

I’m not getting into too much detail, but here is my working list.

  1. SW: 4th Era Addendum. I’m not sure it should be called a Master Atlas since it doesn’t need to rise to that level of detail and/or it would include some redundancy. Nonetheless, this is the essential primer for the new setting that would include a “history” (I’m starting this on year 20 after TBotNE) that establishes the current state of affairs, politics and power and high level topics. 150 pages. Plus Map Gazatteer.
  2. A Grand Adventure: “Rise of the Loremasters”. I’m envisioning this as a fusion of the Druid narrative from Sword of Shanara, and Star Wars sequels. The Loremasters, decimated by the final battles, are absent from the affairs of Shadow World. Worse still, Karilon has been quarantined by powerful magic and inaccessible. Starting with the “Search for Randae Terisonen” this multi-part campaign has the group seeking out surviving Loremasters and eventually helping restore the order. 60 pages.
  3. A Dungeon Crawl. RM and SW has never had a tradition of dungeon adventures, but several expansive facilities were abandoned at the end of the 3rd Era. Are they still occupied? What evil resides in these remote places. The players are tasked with gathering intel, recovering or destroying a powerful talisman or artifact. 50 pages.
  4. A Wilderness Adventure. Without the aid of Navigators, the group must traverse a land ravaged by a last battle. Now overrun by XXX, the players are tasked with connecting to a remote enclave in a traditional hex or wilderness crawl. 35 pages.
  5. A City Supplement. With Eidolon destroyed and Norek drowned in a cataclysmic tidal wave, a new city has arisen as the center of commerce in Emer. 120 pages.

I see most of the focus still on Emer and Jaiman but with clear development guidelines, third party authors could start utilizing and/or developing other parts of the hemisphere.

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SW 4th Era: A Publishing Project

As I’ve been getting further along with my work on the 4th Era of Shadow World, I thought it worthwhile to step back for a moment and examine the merits of this work. Certainly as I spend more time and energy on this, I’m more convinced that this is a executable path for I.C.E. that addresses many issues raised by the community and the needs of the company moving forward.

Some issues or challenges:

  1. ICE and RMU has no realistic strategy to create a new setting for the RMU rule set. World building takes work, creative input and resources. I don’t see any realistic model for the company to create a brand new world or game setting.
  2. ICE principals and users are not young. How many more years does the current experienced user base and thought contributors have left? I’m sure the IP will eventually fall to a new generation, but what will that look like?
  3. User demand and product expectations are even higher now. The market demands quality products with appealing layout and artwork and consistent new product output. The handwritten published products of the late 70’s and early 80’s are gone.

The great news is that building a 4th Era for Shadow World accelerates a publishing effort because it is a work of extrapolation. Unlike a new setting, we already have a large collection of canonical work product from Terry including a deep history, geography, maps, groups of politics and power and a thematic style that can be built upon. It’s a fresh start with a deeply established foundation. Terry’s work becomes a starting point and a reference source. This reminds me of the RPG Twilight 2000. While the idea is fun on it’s own, it’s notable that using a near future in our world avoids a tremendous amount of setting work. A simple world Atlas can be a DM’s best asset in that game!

Equally important, by having a significant event horizon between the 3rd & 4th Era we can tweak the setting a bit to move it more towards the RMU ruleset. Thus SW: 4th Era setting mirrors the same mission as RMU: a new product built on the collective past. I’ve written often about the rule gap between RM and SW. The reality is that Terry didn’t let RAW get in the way of his world building or story telling. We were left fiddling with rules to bridge the differences. I realize that the seemingly easier path is just to create conversion guides or convert existing products for RMU. That strategy still leaves us without new Shadow World products or stories.

As I’ve argued before, a 4th Era allows the Shadow World story to continue, preserves and respects Terrys work but creates a framework for new content, new writers and new adventures. Clear editorial and content guidelines can be created. Product editors can maintain setting continuity, help place adventure concepts and supply direction. But the setting is now opened up and not constrained by the active timeline found in the Master Atlas’s and SW books.

I’ve got a pretty hefty list of product ideas already in the queue, but you know what? Many of them won’t take as much work since I’m using established material and SW DNA. Much of the heavy listing is done. Of course the first book needs to be a new “Master Atlas”: Adventuring in the 4th Era plus a map gazetteer. This would tie up the loose ends of the 3rd Era and anchor the new age for other writers. Similar to the original publishing of Shadow World in 1988, a half a dozen products could be published in short order to officially launch the “new/old” setting for RMU.

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SW 4th Era Project: “Shuffling the Deck”

As I continue to fill in the foundation of my 4th Age of Shadow World, I’m debating a balance between retaining core elements of Shadow World or “upsetting the apple cart” and making some broader changes to the setting. As a long term SW user I’m of two minds but ultimately shaking things up seems the proper choice; otherwise, why not just continue to play in the established 3rd Era?

Coastlines & Topography. I’m going to push Matt for some feedback on this, but I’m going to assume a modest 50′ rise in oceans level due to ice melt from the “Battle of the Northern Eye”. Obviously that will impact some major cities, but leave several key locations untouched: Haalkitaine and Ardania specifically come to mind..

Pantheons. My thoughts on this will become more apparent when I upload by Shadow World: Book of Essaence, but I see some disruptions to the established Gods. A few Gods of Charon might rejoin their brethren on Orhan, while a few others may be banished or flee to live on Kulthea; powerful still but greatly reduced. The Masters of Emer may re-assert themselves. Whether Nynaku escaped or was re-imprisoned (Legends of the Shadow World adventure), the energy pulse at the northern pole cracked his prison shells. He flees into hiding, but is a force now on the planet.

Rise of the Earthwardens. There is a great storyline here. Assuming the Loremasters have been culled a bit, the return of a few Earthwardens could be a great hook. Plus the return of Arcane/Primal Essaence magic…

Eidolon. I’m with Hurin and I think the floating city needs to come down! It’s a high profile target and a major disruption to the Essaence Flows could capsize it with a secondary attack of opportunity by the Silver Dragon. The ruined city could have been plundered but lying mostly intact a few miles from Sel-kai.

Rule of the Dragonlords. The 4th Era could start with the dominance of the Dragonlords. Ulya reasserts herself in the West and directly confronts the Alliance. The Silver Dragon takes control of Northern Emer (he has invaded before), the Red Dragon pushes down into Tanara and north Rhakaan.

The Unlife. I’m torn here again. I could see the Lords of Orhan, out of fear and desperation throttling the dimensional rift even further to block the Unlife from entering this reality. That could also weaken the Essaence, the flows, magical recharge rates, weaken magical effects etc. Perhaps the 4th Era is not the story of the Unlife, but an age of less magic to mirror the “Age of Men” in ME?

The Secrets. With the Secret Circle undone, these would be amazing “mega dungeons” for the players. Now vacant, or mostly so, filled with traps, knowledge and artifacts. More akin to the “Haunt of the Necromancer”, perhaps they are still occupied by one of the lesser circle or an Adherant?

Nexus & the Navigators. Imagine the Flows are completely disrupted or rerouted. Mapped jump points, Obelisks and safe routes are now all in question. Nexus itself is no longer a convergence point with major Flows now terminated. Travel is still incredibly risky, but the Navigators are also less effective. That’s also interesting to me.

The Loremasters. The Third Era ended with great sacrifice. Many of the elder Loremasters were killed to stabilize the Northern Eye or in direct confrontation with Shrek, the Shadowstone etc. Karilon was infiltrated and heavily damaged, and it’s protective magics stripped away.

The Ash Lairs. Like the Wars of Dominion, the denizens of the underearth swarmed up and invaded the surface at the darkest moment. Perhaps they were fleeing for safety themselves (major earthquakes and gate volatility). Either way, there were major battles and engagements on most continents.

Spacemaster Angle. The wild card could be the Dia Khovaria. Already position with agents on Kulthea, a weakened Essaence field could allow easier access to Kulthea and better technological reliabillity.

Anyway, just a few thoughts as a I build a concept framework for a 4th Era book. I still think this is a great path forward for ICE and Shadow World. It protects Terry’s work, but it creates a newish setting for RMU using the strong foundation of Shadow World material.

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