Classes from Zaan: The Warrior

Zaan is a pretty unpleasant setting, and the details of the human warrior class have been sort of worked out. It hasn't been playtested, so it might not be all that wonderful, but at least it has the ring of Zaanite nonsense to it. The Zaanite Mage is located here, so that's two classes in the hole. There is also a Zaanite cleric (only the lawful cleric is finished) which I will conceivably post tomorrow.

Warrior
Starting Age: 15-20 (14+1d6)

Warriors form the bulk of human adventurers. There is no base requirement for becoming a warrior other than a desire for gold, adventure, or murder. They have few special “powers,” save for the fact that those who are constantly exposed to the horrors of Zaan sometimes develop a resistance against them.

Warriors can choose the widest array of weapons to learn and also wear any armor they desire. They range from lithe murderthugs on the streets of the great Zaanite cities to the great and powerful warlords of the open plains.

Alignment: Warriors can be of any alignment. Lawfully aligned warriors see some reason to protect the dwindling civilizations of Zaan while Chaotically aligned warriors would rather exploit the madness nearing the end of the world. Neutral warriors are rare, but those that exist are said to attempt to find a way to balance the cosmic forces which have fallen gravely towards Chaos since the appearance of the Cosmic Devoid.

While warriors don’t need any particular special abilities to prosper, every level they may tally up the number of times they’ve been exposed to unique magical attacks (once for each casting of a new spell) as well as the number of times they’ve encountered new horrific monsters (once for each encounter). Every level they may roll a number of d10s equal to this number (keep a chart!) to determine if they receive any special bonuses. Add your level to any rolls made. Warriors may choose not to roll on the chart and carry over their unique experiences to the next level for a higher potential total. This total is emptied to zero once they make a roll.


Once warriors reach level 11 they have a choice to make. Lawful warriors may choose, at this level, to take up the banner of Gargonath and the Law and become Paladins. Chaotic warriors may champion the end of Zaan and the dark god Fobarg and become Destroyers.

Neutral warriors and those that choose not to become Paladins or Destroyers instead become vested Warlords. At this level they attract a large number of followers as well as become generally recognized as a power throughout the land. They most often found large strongholds and use these as a base of operations.