d20 Dark Quest Death Guardian of the Gate.pdf

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G L S : V 
Requires the use of the Dungeons & Dragons®
Player’s Handbook, ird Edition,
published by Wizards of the Coast®
Games
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Contents
contents:
C 1:
T L P 
C 4:
T P
DEATh:
guardian
of the
gate
4
22
How Pale came to be
5
On Classes

e Lady Pale
8
On Sects and Orders

On the Harrowed
22
C 2:
T P
On the Accounters
24
10
On Masters (or Mistresses)
of the Eternal Flame
Lady Pale (greater goddess)
10
25
On Age

On the Melancholy
27
On Dress Colors

On the more Martial Orders
29
On Physical Looks

On the Guardians
29
On Family and Family
lifewithin Pale’s Church
On the Mysteries
31

On the Seals
33
On Sustenance within the Church

On the Shields
34
On the Preparation of Food
within the Church
On the Sisterhood
36

On the subject of Gender

C 5:
O
On the subject of Government
within the Churches of Pale
38

On Jewels and Jewellery
38
On the Breath of Pale

Communication Pendants

On the Shadows of Pale

e Bond of Soul

On the Sorrows

e Raven’s Eye

On the Ravens

Heartstone Necklace

On the Hands of Pale

Heron’s Veil

On the Eyes of Pale

Raven Eigies

On Homes and Housing

Staf of the Raven

On Names and Naming

Raven Staf

On Physical Markings

On our Holy Symbol
40
On Caste and Marriage

On Jewellery and Rank
41
On the efects of our
Lady’s Will against the Foe
Items used in Rituals


e Bell of Melancholy

On Holy Powers and who has them

e Dagger of Corvus

e Lady’s Chosen
15
Lost Relics
42
Shade Warden
17
Ravensword

Glass Axe of the Feather

C 3:
M A
Flute of Last Rest

19
Mace of Night

On Drugs
19
Amulet of Echoes

On Art
19
On Healing Herbs and Medicinal
ways to easethe pain of Death
On Language
19
44
On Music
19
On Entertainment
20
C 6:
R, M,  L
On Communication
20
45
On Education
20
On Time and Calendar
45
Shadow’s Forest

On Festivals and Feasts
45
e Ivory Tower

On Sacred Animalsand Sacriice
45
2
Sorrow’s Reach

On Birth
45
Birth Protection

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Credits
credits:
On Plants
46
On Time and Prayer
46
On Weddings and the Bond of Marriage
47
Written by
Darren Pearce
Additional Authors
Michael Hammes • Patrick Lawinger
Neal Levin • David Woodrum
Editors
Deanna Link • Duncan Fielden
Art Director, Cover and Interior Artist
Gillian Pearce
Graphic Design and Typesetting
Duncan Fielden
Company Information
Dark Quest, LLC • 23 Alec Drive
Howell, New Jersey 07731
DEATh:
guardian
of the
gate
Marriage Bond of Mutual Life

On the Ritual for Death
48
Funeral Call To e Lady

On Ritual Clothing
49
On Myths and Legends
49
Gathering the Dust:
e Myth of Darius the Swordsman
50
e Breath of Pale
53
Heroes to the Religion
53
C 7:
P  M
53
On the Subject of that which is
Magical in the Church
55
On the Book of Days
55
On Spells and Magic
55
F : I was handed this project one day by
Tensen and I was pretty much at a loss of what to do
or write, I mean how does one handle such a subject
in a fantasy game without resorting to the old clichés –
Cowls, Skulls, Hourglasses and Timers of some kind,
one can’t. It’s part of our being; forever ingrained in our
society … indelible like the passage of time itself or an
ink stain on an old oak table. e answer is that one
delves deep into the myths and fantasies surrounding
this inevitable force and comes up with tangents from
which to draw new directions. It’s my hope that in
doing so I’ve actually brought to life one of my concepts
from my own roleplaying world and given it to you for
your worlds. What follows is the deepest look inside
the ictional priesthood and religion of the Goddess of
Death – known as the Pale Lady. I’d like to think that
come my time to pass on, she would be there waiting for
me … instead of a cold embrace of the clod. D. P.
Cutting the Cord

Greater Venerability

Greater Vision of the Grave

Headache of the Foe

Healing Breath

Know Lineage

e Lady’s Gift (Extended Purpose)

Raven’s Arrow

Raven’s Solace

Requiem

Sundering Fury

Venerability

Vision of the Grave

On how the various Blessing
and Spiritual Spells might appear
60
On Armor, Spiritual Vestments
and the Like
60
On the Manifestations of Damage-inlicting
Spells or Spiritually-created Weapons
Development by Dark Quest Games. Published by
Natural  Press. All text within this product is Open
Gaming Content.
60
Other Spells and manifestations
60
On the Blessing of Holy Water
60
C 8: S
61
C 9: H
62
Games
C 10: G L
64
Solomon Ishay of the Wayfarers
64
e Book of Days
65
C 11: A F R
67
3
Natural 20 Press is an imprint of EN World. Please
visit http://www.enworld.org for more information.
A T
70
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Chapter 1: The Lady Pale herself
Travels and Nightmares
I’m dead? I mu be dead … it’s so peaceful here and
I fel as though my body eighs nothing, my orld
sems such a cold and har place, full of bright lights
and clamouring sounds … I mu be dead …?
“Rise my iend and come with me.” This was no
order, this was no command it was a simple atement
of  oken with the gentle tones of melancholic
regret. I was forcd by er curiosi to look upon
the eaker with a ank and searching gaze.
What met my eyes then was a vision of beau so
tnscendent that if I had not already ben dead, I
think my hea ould hae oppd there and then
and only beat if e had smild at me. For I saw no
smile or no emotion sae that of a painful look of
sorrow. How can such a pale skinnd, en-haird
beau look so … sad? I rose om the ground
determind to ind out why and ind out the anser
to this queion.
“Who are you?” I askd, fearing already I knew the
anser dep in my soul.
“I am the Lady Pale,” e replid, my hea
luerd or so it felt as if it did, my eyes ere
downca and I trid now not to look upon her,
until a whier of black elet brought me back to
my d senses. In a hea’s slow tremor beat e
lid my ce to hers and smild sadly. “You are
here bcause you did not survie the war in your
homeland.”
“Death?” I chod fearing for my ery sani and
soul. “I hae neer met death in person.” Now I mu
hae soundd like a Jeer or Fool.
“One tends to only met death at the end, Sir,” e
said with a vibnt dark cryalline laugh. “But is
it truly the end for the or ju another doorway to
journey through?” Another queion drippd om
her lips and I felt as though I was once more ted,
once more perhaps een found wanting … yet oddly
enough at ease.
I took the time once more to look at this oman
with a ank and curious gaze; e returnd the
same leel of intere in me, with dark blue eyes. She
appeard before me as I ould hae not pd
death to do so, pale skinnd, beautiful and dark
haird, as I said before – her eyes ere like blue
sapphires, full of pain, angui, hope and sorrow.
Her dress was of the darke hue and clung to her
form, as no other oman I had met, e capturd my
hea and my soul in that moment … if only e ere
moal. But puing aside such fooli thoughts I
managd to eak again.
“You said e mu make a journey?”
“Yes, e are going to my gnd libry, where
e all sit and lk … I am going to tell you about
myself, my priehood and then you will be sent back
to the moal orld to lie again, my price for this is
that you all carry with you in your hea, mind and
soul my priehood … and this you will teach others.”
Stunnd? You could hae slain me again and I
ould hae ben unable to defend myself. “I am to rise
again?” Fear crept into that oice of mine and I could
not help but ake.
“You will learn and you will underand.” Ofering
me her hand this Lady Pale simply took my ingers in
hers, I was too numb to resi. “Come.”
The orld – what was le of it that is, an out of
vision and quickly in. Had I of ben in a moal body
I ould hae periencd a feling of poerful nausea
so great it ould hae causd me to retch there and
then – inead I beheld this new place with eyes full of
onder. My ho ld me to the depe corner of her
sanuary, amid the eles of books and candles.
“Sit,” e said, and I obdiently placd myself
upon the chair that was under me in a moment. “Sir
Lucien,” began that oice again, so, yearning with
undeones of that sorrow I felt before. “Such a
Knight as the, who has serd thy country for a long
time, who’s blade has brought many a soul to my
door … thou a elcome here.”
“I … I …,” I ammerd, and managd to ill my
trembling hand with another. “Am honord, and yet
confusd m’lady.” I hopd that I did not sound like a
young squire queioning his commander, but I was
like a i out of water and with such a maiden before
me – Goddess of Death or no, my ords did not so
easily come.
“All you hae to do is lien, Sir Lucien, and all will
come as clear as cryal,” replid the pale oman with
the hint of her ir true smile.
“I am aentie and ready to learn,” was all I could
anser.
4
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Chapter 1:
“I am the goddess of Death, the Pale Lady, the Lady
of Shades and the Sorrow Raven, but I am not the irst
or will I be the last.” e Lady Pale
child, tend the sick and weary for days upon days
making her sick and feeble. Yet she carried on with
this calling without complaint or misery, only her sad
smile was any kind of indication how she wished that
those who did not survive their sickness, found peace
in another life.
Often this child known as Gilyaine would travel
for miles to fetch the needed herbs and lowers from
the local Forests. Braving many of the dangers that
lurked in the surrounding lands, bandits, brigands
and harsh weather – she was only ten at the time
she made these much needed pilgrimages and often
caught infections and colds, but it seems that the
gods or higher powers always brought her back from
the edge of death’s cold grip.
e current incarnation of death was impressed
with this young girl, so much that he watched her life
from afar in his white tower and looked at his many
books, each one held the life of a single person on the
Sphere, hers was no exception, how it began and how
it would end … and then nothing … his world was
one of oblivion and endless void. His own belief as
a child and man had colored the perceptions of the
plane around him so that all souls who came there
ceased to be, they simply died. His was an empty
realm of no hope and spiritual despair. It was no
wonder that he sought an end to his guardianship
over the realms of death; he needed to ind a suc-
cessor, so that he might inally ind respite. But for
now he watched the child become a girl, who in turn
blossomed into a lower of womanhood and eventu-
ally took a man to be her mate. But life is often cruel
and fate deals the cards from the bottom of the pack
with a callous disregard for any who he might hurt in
the process. Gilyaine’s life was to be no diferent, she
was made barren by the illnesses she fought and the
many she sufered. e poor woman was robbed of
her husband when a drunken sot crippled him in a
Tavern brawl and he turned to drink and later suicide.
So now she was a pale and broken doll who would
still tend her sick patients at the healer’s halls and
then go and spend hours in a cloistered garden.
Her life ended when she was brutally beaten and
left to die in an alley after the money she was going
to use to heal the sick was taken from her, by a local
gang of thieves. is was the inal nail in the coin for
her sad existence, the watch found her and threw her
in a communal gravesite, while the locals picked apart
The
Lady
Pale
Herself
e goddess of Death, the Lady Pale is an enigma to
most in the higher places of the world, for she is most
unlike any goddess who has been before her or any of
the established pantheons. She is quite unique and
has a deep, almost philosophical view on the nature
of the world as a whole. As her quote demonstrates
she is not the irst goddess of Death yet she is the
most personable of all the previous incarnations.
is guide to herself and her religion is meant to
provide you with the kinds of information you might
wish to have as histories and myths in your world
but also to give you a deeper insight into this unusual
Death goddess. It is presented in part in text such as
this with personal information and thoughts from
some of the key people in her religion throughout.
Even the goddess has had a hand in this supplement,
putting her own words and history forwards for the
irst time. DarkQuest games and myself sincerely
hope you enjoy it as much as we’ve had fun making it.
A lot of the book will be explanations by the various
characters and almost like a narrative style, with Pale
telling a lot of her own story. So I thought we’d start
it of with how the current Death Goddess became
who she was.
How Pale came to be
ere are many stories in any city or village across a
dozen worlds or a hundred Spheres that might have
the interest of the listener but this is a story that has
never before seen the light of day, part of the Lucien
Texts which were lain down by the Knight of Pale
himself before his eventual death of old age some
time ago. It tells of a time in the world’s past where
life was simpler and there was no organised Lordly
inluence, of when the people lived as farmers in
close-knit communities. Death was a very frequent
thing and diseases were almost impossible to ight
without the use of magic, most healing was done
naturally and with the ancient ways. e story tells
of one woman and her desire to see the healer’s ways
followed unto the end, and it was this tireless quest to
cure all ills that gained the attention of the previous
Incarnation of Death – a male force who was tired
of his weary task. She would often, even as a young
5
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