Swords of Sarlona (yet another campaign idea)

Our Age of Worms campaign is currently on hold, and I'm supposed to be
working on college projects, so what better time to start thinking about
a new game!

What do you think about a game set in Sarlona, with very little arcane
and divine magic, but lots of psionics and Tome of Battle?

So far, we've used very little psionics and no Tome of Battle at all,
and I'd like to see them in action.

It's really just "let's try D&D, but with some of those funny classes we
never use", but I like Eberron, so why not use Sarlona? Tome of Battle's
sort-of-Oriental-but-not-quite flavour should fit in sort-of-Oriental-
but-not-quite Sarlona, and would also make up for some of the mechanical
options lost if you chuck out magic. And chucking out magic should
encourage people to use Tome of Battle and psionics rather than just
saying "Tome of Battle is allowed...? Sure, whatever, I'll just play a
cleric."

I'm imagining it would bear a certain similarity to Exalted. A vast,
powerful empire ruled by more-than-humans; exotic, fabulous-looking
cities; wuxia swordsmen...



(And response to a question I got on another forum: )

> Are you planning on running the campaign in the present day, or the
> distant past, before most of Sarlona was united/as it was being united
> under the Inspired Lords of Riedra?

The time of unification was probably... interesting, in the Chinese
proverb sense.

Still, my first thought was present day. Despite all the books say about
telepathic screening, ruthless autocrats, and the ubiquitous secret
police, I always imagined Riedra sort of like legendary China: so vast
and powerful that it can't be bothered to deal with petty warlords and
minor rebellions, but leaves it to the regional governors, which is
prefect for D&D's model "the uberpowerful villain sends progressively
stronger minions against us, until we're powerful enough to face him and
kick his ass".

So the PCs could be rebels, bandits, heretics (reverse Rokugan!) without
batallions of Inspired soulknives immediately descending on them.

But I especially like the idea of PCs starting as loyal servants of the
Inspired, but eventually going rogue and trying to bring down the system
once they discover the quori's nefarious schemes.


--
Jasin Zujovic