View source

From Fax Encyclopedicus

Amorcul Academy is a "worldsetting" designed with [[d20 Rebirth]] and/or [[Anime D20 Renaissance]] in mind - particularly the testing of both. In the setting, characters are involved in a highly fantastic university dedicated to adventuring. The setting is extremely heavy on meta and fourth-wall play, and shifts or subverts several core D&D assumptions (particularly the absolute nature of morality/ethics) - although most mechanics remain the same. Subsections for more specific concerns will come in time. * [[Amorcul:History]] * [[Amorcul:Districts of Amorcul Academy]] * [[Amorcul:Laws and Policies]] * [[Amorcul:Annual Schedule]] * [[Amorcul:Crafting]] * [[Amorcul:Cosmos]] * [[Amorcul:Silliness]] * [[Amorcul:Races]] * [[Amorcul:Classes]] * [[Amorcul:Prestige Classes]] == High Concept == Heroes. Those whose actions bring about great changes - hopefully for the better - in their world... Or, in exceptional cases, many worlds beyond. A hero can be many things - and sometimes, many different things to many different people. However, one thing that is common is their struggles, and learning to conquer them, one way or another - no matter how deadly the foe, no matter how ridiculous the trap, no matter how many drugs the author has smoked, heroes find a way to attain victory. But what of a world where the heroes are taught, rather than merely found? What of a world more familiar than not? '''Amorcul Academy''' is a a world where the heroes are students at a most unusual academy - in a world where the fourth wall is often actively tenuous in nature, they are sometimes the best hope of entire empires or worlds - but just as often are stuck with the wierdest of tasks. The world is explicitly designed for use with [[d20 Rebirth]], and is partially meant to test that system. In addition, [[Anime d20 Renaissance]] is available for this world. Absolutely no standard D&D lore types are assumed to fit here - in particular, because even the blackest pits of Always Chaotic Evil may be among the largely-heroic students, rivals to Always Lawful Good classmates - and both are just likely to be represented at the villainously-oriented rival school. Naturally, the place is quite silly. Prime influences include (but aren't limited to!) <i>Slayers</i>, the <i>Disgaea</i> series, and other japanese RPGS. Power levels are traditionally going to start at 'over the top' and only go up and up, and ignorance of the fourth wall (talking about stats and levels) is very, ''very'' normal. The world is good for all levels, but inherently assumes that PCs - and many others - are playing under the Gestalt rules. == World of Amorcul-Ethion == The Adventure Academy of Amorcul exists in a special dimensional pocket, loosely associated with - but carefully isolated from - the world of Enarlira, only occasionally appearing directly in the form of a floating island - actually the Academy's Docks District - when a particularly large number of heroes need to be dropped off fast. The Academy is famous across Enarlira for its heroes, and renowned for many other fields of scholarship. Armed with all manner of strange resources, a virtually limitless budget, and occasionally-loose definitions of all sorts of phenomona, it's reputation is sufficient to draw heroes even from other planes and (rarely) other worlds. Player-characters in this world take the role of students at the academy - out to make their way through to the 20th Level Exit Exam. This pattern, taking anywhere from ten to twenty years, is failed by 80% of students - though even most failues come out as perfectly respectable, capable heroes of one sort or another. Amorcul maintains a semi-friendly relationship with the Evil Academy of Ethion, a school for training evil mooks, overlords, and their ilk. Their student bodies, however, are fierce rivals... With occasional exceptions. Very few, however, know the two academies' secrets - namely, that both exist to maintain a cosmic balance on Enarlira, and regulate the ebb and flow of good, evil, law, chaos, and all manner of more precise balances. Their dual nature is actually to the point where the two exist on opposite sides of the same, relatively small dimension - each an island surrounded by an ocean that, while apparently endless, rather quickly curves around the 'lip' of thhe world and reveals the other. (This means that when it is day at one academy, it's night at the other, and vice versa.) == Amorcul In The Widest == Amorcul's side of the dimension is essentially a disc, seven hundred miles in radius. Within the central five hundred is a vast scattering of islands of all manner of ecosystems - centered around the largely-temperate Amorcul Island in the center. These areas are common training rounds or sites for special exams, though many serve other purposes as well. Amorcul Island consists of a large castle city - home to around half a million people, centered largely around (naturally) actual Amorcul campus buildings. The city itself has a famous reputation for its transportation networks, with many taller buildings being connected by wires carrying gondolas that can cross the fifty-mile-radius island in just fifteen minutes. The result is that the city reaches out over around six-and-a-half thousand square miles, in a series of isolated districts - some larger than others, and most having a clear theme. Districts are also connected by roads for carrying of goods too large (or too secret) to fit in the gondolas... And are occasionally the location of Level Finals for Ethion's various Bandit classes. (Amorcul students get extra credit for being the opponents in these... Double for successfully making the opponents fail.) Students tend to congregate in a village related to their Major, using that village's housing and facilities primarily - though various things tend to send them all over campus, and plenty of crossover for social reasons occurs. Several districts do not have a class focus, and instead serve some other campus purpose - in particular, certain races have special districts (due to special needs, or as a safe location for races prone to being targets of racism). == Districts == Most Amorcul Districts host a total of around ten thousand people, in various dorms, apartment complexes, tightly clustered houses, and usually at least one or two mansions belonging to distinguished people with a strong association with that district. Districts can be categorized as "Class", "Racial", or "Special" districts. A ''Class District'' hosts courses dedicating to learning a Job Class - the surrounding environment tends to be designed accordingly. (For example, the Druid district is difficult to observe from outside, integrated tightly into the surrounding forests.) A ''Racial District'' is modified to suit the needs of certain races who attend the Academy, or are safe homes for races who might be the target of hatred of one or another sort. (The Drow district - sunk underground (but strictly lit outside of individual homes) - is one of the prime examples of both phenomona.) A ''Special District'' plays host to functions not associated with classes or races - including several different social districts, the massive Administrative District, and the Docks District, which connects Amorcul to the outside world via various forms of transport (not solely marine, in spite of the name.) == Economics == In a word: Screwed. Amorcul's economy has only one strict rule - anything produced in Amorcul ''always returns unless thoroughly destroyed''. This is essentially because the entire economy of ''all of Enarlira'' could be completely and utterly ruined by Amorcul's resources. Those outside of Amorcul hoping to get at Amorculian magic items must hire adventurers to gather supplies from Enarliran (or extra-planar) sources, and an Amorculian craftsman (or crafts team) to build the item. Anyone who wants to try food from an Amorcul restaurant (and there are many famous ones) gets to make a tourist trip to the island. (A special dispensation for souvenirs, memorabilia, and certain other occasions is the only significant exception to this. A special pizza delivery restaurant that acquires ingredients from both outside and inside is the only insignificant exception to this.) Amorcul works on two currencies to keep some semblance of a normal economy: * Student Credits are used for students to acquire adventuring supplies (of any and all sorts). They get a regular stipend for building personal gear stashes. Anything available under student credit is ''strictly'' priced. (One SC is equal to one gold - standard Market Prices are ''invariably'' followed.) Businesses that take Student Credits are able to exchange them for gold through tightly-regulated banks (though direct SC-to-SC exchange is highly common). ** Most exams and trainings specify an SC Supply count - Students are checked before being dispatched to the event for not carrying more than the specified amount in supplies. (Going low is ''usually'' not recommended.) * Amorculian Gold (standardized in the copper, silver, gold, and platinum pieces, along with gold and platinum bank notes - equal in value to a corresponding coin) are the currencies of all other trade on the island. Strict Amorculian law prohibits acceptance of outside currencies, except in the context of exchange services at the Docks District. ** Student gold supplies tend to be a lot more varied - but rarely are of consequence to play of the campaign. (That is, a rich student has the same ability to get items relevant to their courses as a poor one... Though their on-campus lifestyle will certainly be nicer!) A student can generally expect to have several times the on-level Gold counts in Student Credits - most of it tied up in various items (particularly personal signatures), naturally. However, most exams will limit them to an on-level (with variations) counts. Their Amorculian Gold supplies are almost never below 'sufficient', though all manner of social classes can occur. By fourth level, they are allowed to take various jobs in Enarlira - or more rarely, other dimensions - for gold, as well. (There is a special rule that allows rich students who do not have the merit to attend Amorcul on scholarship earn their way in by building, purchasing, or otherwise arranging comfortable housing for themselves and several poorer students as room/housemates. Rich students who earned their way in fair and square are encouraged, but not required, to do the same.) == The Amorculian Student (PC) == Amorculian students usually first arrive on campus at the equivalent of thirteen years old. (Early starts for exceptional students are known to happen; late starts are quite common.) They arrive at one of four Term Start points - matched with Amorcul's equinoxes and solstices. They always start as a Pre-first, having not yet trained for their first pair of class levels - they must pass a series of basic courses on adventuring theory first, including the always-vital "Basics of Adventure Accounting". Upon completing these courses, they take one-week primers in a minimum of thirteen different classes, ultimately deciding on their Major and Minor. (In rules terms, the two classes of the first level of a Gestalt.) At this point, their title becomes Associate, Level One. At that point, the student advances, not on a timetable, but by completing a minimum number of training sessions, written exams and projects, and one finals exam series (usually including a job on Enarlira or other plane). They must progress in a Major and a Minor at the same time - the same exam series covering both. Many training sessions and ''all'' practical exams are done in teams - students are thus ''massively'' encouraged to build a group from around campus, to fill an exam-worthy team. (School administration will regularly force exam teams to accept others, though...) Amorcul also maintains special "Simulation Chambers" - dimensional pockets that allow for the 'simulation' of higher (or lower!) levels, or even different classes. Some trainings or tests will mandate this - and many students also attend these chambers (both ways!) for fun. '''The Amorcul Academy cosmos NEVER has Always in its alignments. Any creatures Usually of an Alignment are considered Often of that alignment instead, and any creatures Always of an alignment are considered Usually of that alignment. A creature with an alignment subtype KEEPS that subtype for vulnerabilities and advantages, but can develop their alignment completely independently of it - resulting in them having every vulnerability and advantage of opposite alignments. A lot of GM handwaving may become necessary.''' === Rankings === ''Pre-firsts'' are students who are in their first year at Amorcul Academy. They technically do not yet have a class level (if one is necessary for any reason, give them one level, but only in ''one'' class, not a Gestalt!) ''Associates'' are students seeking to master the basics of a Major and Minor, ranked from Levels One to Five. Upon reaching level five, they are presented with an Associates degree. (Many students stop here, as all sorts of jobs all over the world love Associates - from royal guards to arcane research institutes to churches to almost anything imaginable). ''Bachelors'' are students further developing their mastery, ranked from Six to Ten. A Bachelor's degree represents that they are capable of defending a town from most typical threats - and larger nations will usually have at ''least'' Bachelors in their elite guard. ''Masters'' are students going beyond, ranked from Eleven to Fifteen. A Masters Degree marks the character as among the best in their fields of study. (Teachers of classes for up to Bachelors usually have a relevant Masters Degree.) ''Doctorates'' are students going "all the way", from Sixteen to Twenty. A Doctorate Degree pretty much marks you as one of the absolute best of the best in the entire Enarliran cosmos. At the GM's option, courses can go beyond to ''Post-Doctorate'' courses as well. Anyone going into this is likely to be a lifelong scholar, or uses Amorcul as a base for adventures all across the Enarliran cosmos (or, most frequently, both!). === Special Minors === Many classes are not sufficiently largely represented to be Majors - or for special reasons, refuse to be. While almost any class that is a Major can be a Minor too, some classes can ''only'' be Minors. These Special Minors often teach skills far outside of adventuring - after all, having a town's hotshot defense attorney also be an Amorcul-trained Bard is a great marketing tool! Unless the GM specifies otherwise, all [[Anime D20 Renaissance]] classes are Minor-only. The "Adventurer" class is not recommended ''per se'' - instead, the player devises the theme their Adventurer character points would center around, and makes up a relevant Minor (and possibly district related to that minor) for it. (Any character points not going directly to the theme get handwaved as elective courses, seminars, or the like.) === Level experience charting === Experience is ''eliminated'' in Amorcul Academy games for PCs. Players instead complete a number of exams, finished up by a Finals Series, to attain each level - upon passing the entire lot (or getting special dispensations), they are granted the rewards of the new level. To reach each level, a student must first declare their Major and Minor for that level, then completes a number of training sessions equal to their Level per class (sessions can vary in length, but are often longer at higher levels - an on-level job counts as a training session for both courses), completes a series of written exams (some classes have more than others, but all have at least one) and/or projects, and finally take their Finals - a series of practical exams (as trainings, often jobs) equal to a third of their class level (rounded up), plus an additional two for Graduate exams. (For convenience's sake, the GM may skip the details of this at his preference. Students who are behind/failing may be offered opportunities for alternative passing routes... Often rather unpleasant ones.) Many students will also take side-quests on top (particularly if they're strapped for gold!). These don't count for experience. See [[Amorcul:Crafting]] for cases of paying XP costs for items.

Return to Amorcul Academy.