The Ages of Allu is a dynamic new RPG campaign setting, blending myth, elemental magic, and technology to tell sweeping, cinematic tales of epic destinies, at least according to the Ages of Allu homepage. I spoke with creative director/writer/developer Scott Sharplin and writer/developer/cartographer Larry Wilhelm about the campaign setting, the Kickstarter, and the hobby as he sees it.

Your Kickstarter video covers it very well, but to those who haven’t done themselves the pleasure of watching it, why do Pathfinder Enthusiasts need another campaign setting?

Scott: When first conceiving Allu, I consciously strove to avoid the traditional inspirations of Dungeons & Dragons (and, by extension, Pathfinder) — Tolkien, Vance, Zelazny — while still evoking some recognizable fantasy tropes. Primarily, I looked to my childhood love of Greek mythology and Roman culture, as well as to a more recent fascination with Hindu myth. As a result, some of Allu’s ingredients certainly remain familiar, and even overlap with other PFRPG settings, but I think the overall flavor is unique.

 

Larry: Having options is a good thing. I believe that by focusing on eastern and mediterranean themes it provides a fresh look at traditionally western influenced role-playing. I hope our backers are excited about this and that it draws people to us.

 

You’ve emphasized that Ages of Allu is fast-paced, dynamic, and epic, all good words for a campaign setting. The question is, how?

Scott: We’ve spent a lot of time devising what we call Quickplay Rules Templates. These are one- or two-page rule sets that you can apply on top of your familiar Pathfinder rules. They’re designed to encourage swift combat and strategy, while also adding some unpredictable elements. We also plan to include a section for GMs about how to run a game session more like a high-octane film than a detail-sodden novel. As for “epic,” there will definitely be some synergy with Mythic Adventures rules.

 

Larry: The fact that your adventures do not need to end with your character’s death can really help to amplify the derring-do at the table!

What about being set on a flat world adds to the Ages of Allu experience?

Scott, Larry: It’s mostly a reminder that this world is engineered and maintained by gods (as well as titans, devas, and asuras). Messing with the fabric of Allu can have profound, global consequences. On the other hand, as soon as you’ve got a flat planet, you’ve got intriguing questions and potential quests: What’s underneath? What happens if you sail off the edge? And so on.

Your video mentions emergent technology, then says “steampunk?” with an operative question mark. How steampunk is the setting, and in what other ways is emergent technology present?

Scott: As our name implies, there are different Ages, or historical epochs, that GMs can use as primary settings, or even as stopping-points (via time travel). So the Age of Gears will be quite steampunk, and you’ll also see some of that stuff (it’s called sourceforged technology) creeping into other ages through various means.

 

You have done your share of Pathfinder freelancing. How might backers be familiar with you and the other people attached to the project?

Larry: I think I am best known for my work on several Pathfinder Society scenarios. I have had at least 1 scenario in seasons 0-4,and I am working on one for season 5 soon that I am very excited to talk about, but my purple golem overlords have gagged me for now. I have also worked on the Pathfinder Campaign and Player’s Companion lines. Coming up I’m thrilled to announce that some of my work will be seen in the back matter of the Mummy’s Mask and the Iron Gods Adventure Paths! What people may not know is that I alternate with Neil Spicer in doing the Wayfinder adventures, I have done some freelance for Louis Porter Design Studios, and I have worked with Scott in the past freelancing for Headless Hydra Games.

 

New races, go!

Scott: Our three completely original races are the sagu, a telepathic plantfolk race with an affinity for electrical energy; the sudur, who are descended from elves and demons, and dig time travel; and the septi, who are these wicked quasi-undead gunslingers. They obviously don’t scream “Greek myths” or anything, but you’ll find they fit quite nicely into the world. We’ve also retooled some mythological humanoids — minotaurs, merfolk, vanara — to make them more fun to play.

 

What is the significance of “The Ages of Allu” name?

Scott: As with a lot of pet projects, there’s an inside joke, involving a first edition D&D campaign featuring an Alu-Demon. But I chose “Allu” mostly because the name makes a great ambigram — that’s a logo that reads the same way upside-down — because the setting is all about cycles, and I wanted to reflect that right from the word go.

 

Your design blog mentions several different philosophies and cultures, and your video has a South Asian influenced soundtrack. How does Ages of Allu use the world as we know it to create a fantasy setting?

 

Scott: The world has a Mediterranean feel, but I’ve imported a lot of East Indian ideas, too. For example, in Allu, everybody reincarnates. Automatically. Always. So, when your number is up, the trick becomes manipulating your own transmigratory path so you can get reborn even stronger, and get right back into the fight.

 

Larry: I am so excited about reincarnation for Ages of Allu. I take real pride in co-developing a rule set for such an iconic spiritual theme to a point far deeper than just a set of spells. I’m also excited in our time travel within Allu’s four ages that makes adventuring across epoch’s possible, and something more than just a GM’s plot device.

Your video is a lot of fun and should be commended. What went into its production?

 

Scott: Thanks! I worked with a visual artist named Whitney Fawn MacEachearn (www.whitneyfawn.com), who does these wonderfully intricate illustrations she calls Soul Prints. She doodled constantly while I wrote Allu stuff on a battlemat, and played around with figs and dice. Then Elizabeth Gusnoski edited it, using a combination of stop-motion and time-lapse techniques. It’s designed to evoke the feeling of a wild, creative brainstorming session, which to me is what great role-playing is all about.

Let’s say you fund, where do you go from there?

Scott: We chose a modest sum so we could start with a PDF campaign guide. We wanted to tell the story of Allu all at once, to give a sense of its scope. But the guide will have lots of segments for GMs and players, explaining how Allu is designed to work. Since it has four Ages, we’re essentially offering four whole different approaches to role-playing: mythic world-building, savage beast-slaying, rebellious underdogs, and cyberpunk inventors. Something for everyone!

 

Now imagine you overfund. What could Ages of Allu be like with double your ask?

Scott: A print book, definitely. And more resources for players. I’m already plotting out the first Allu adventure path, so there’s no stopping that.

 

What would you like to say to your potential backers still on the fence?

 

Scott: “I understand your hesitation. We’re Canadian upstarts, and it’s an ambitious project. But, with any worthwhile creative project, the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts. If you back us, you get to be one of those parts — contributing feedback, ideas, and playtesting. And, really, how often do you get the chance to help weave an entire world?”

 

Kickstarter is a fun and interactive way for creative people and independent publishers to pitch, advertise, and hopefully fund their projects. Because Pathfinder enthusiasts are some of the most creative hobbyists, and because the Open Gaming License allows so much freedom in the projects that can be based on Pathfinder, you know there will be a lot of exciting projects to feast your eyes on. Such as: