Amaresia

The Solar

The Sun-Drenched Court

The highest point of the city, both geographically and socially. A district of broad avenues, manicured gardens, and breathtaking estates belonging to the Great Houses. The air is clean, scented with expensive flowers, and thick with paranoia.

Landmarks:

• The Governor's Palace: Official seat of the ruling council, famed for its Hall of Echoes where whispers travel across the room.
• The Valeriano Menagerie: A private garden of exotic and dangerous creatures from the Maze, a living symbol of power.
• The Serrano Proving Grounds: A massive arena for official duels and the training of the elite Sentinels.

El Albaicín

The Quarter on the Hill

A beautiful, bewildering maze of steep, narrow streets that are the vibrant, beating heart of the city's middle class and its famed artisans. A place of fierce pride, communal bonds, and simmering feuds.

Landmarks:

• Plaza de las Guitarras: A bustling square of luthiers' workshops that becomes an impromptu stage for musicians at night.
• The Seven-Bell Workshop: The forge of the legendary sword-maker, Esmeray, who is said to use mythical techniques.
• Mirador de la Sombra: A small overlook offering a stunning view of the city, popular with lovers and spies.

La Dársena

The Basin

The churning, chaotic heart of Amaresia’s commerce. A sprawling harbor of docks, warehouses, and sailor’s taverns where fortunes are made and lost with each tide under the watchful eye of the Navigator's Guild.

Landmarks:

• The Titan's Chains: Colossal, repurposed Precursor chains that can seal the harbor.
• Mercado das Maravilhas: A market of wonders where explorers sell strange artifacts from the wilds.
• The Seaman's Rest: A notorious tavern known for strong rum, deadly fights, and crews that ask no questions.

El Casco Antiguo

The Old Quarter

Known as the "Sunken City," this is the oldest part of Amaresia, built into grand, partially flooded precursor ruins. A network of dark, silent canals serves as its streets, plied by taciturn gondoliers.

Landmarks:

• The Baths of Sileno: A legendary bathhouse built on a hot spring, serving as neutral ground for rivals.
• The Alcaide Archive: The private library of House Alcaide, holding the largest collection of Precursor knowledge.
• The Weeping Palace: An abandoned, half-submerged temple that perpetually drips water, used as a secret meeting place.

Las Huertas

The Orchards

A startlingly green district within the city walls, dedicated to feeding Amaresia. A patchwork of terraced gardens, glass-roofed hothouses, and fragrant citrus groves controlled by House Valeriano.

Landmarks:

• The Sunken Gardens: A massive, collapsed Precursor structure repurposed as a multi-tiered hydroponic farm.
• The Valeriano Seed Vault: A heavily guarded bunker containing seeds for every known plant on the continent.

O Bairro dos Ossos

The Ward of Bones

Situated outside the main walls, this is the city's sprawling, unofficial cemetery and the slum that has grown around it. A grim, impoverished district ruled by scavenger gangs and mystics.

Landmarks:

• The Silent Market: A nightly market where goods of questionable origin are traded.
• The Ossuary-Shrine: A large crypt whose walls are lined with thousands of bones, serving as an unofficial temple.
• Tomb of the First Crew: A looted mausoleum for the first explorers to perish, considered a sacred site.

Highborne: The Solar Elite

You were raised amidst the power and paranoia of the Great Houses in The Solar. Wealth, influence, and reputation are the weapons of your class, and you wield them with practiced ease, whether to secure a political alliance or ruin a rival's name in the Hall of Echoes.

Adjectives: Amiable, candid, conniving, enterprising, ostentatious, unflappable.

Community Feature (Privilege): You have advantage on rolls to consort with nobles, negotiate prices, or leverage your reputation to get what you want.

Loreborne: The Alcaide Scholars

Your life has been one of study and secrets, likely within the quiet, canal-laced confines of El Casco Antiguo under the patronage of House Alcaide. You see knowledge as the truest form of power, whether it's uncovering a Precursor secret in a flooded ruin or leveraging a political rival's history against them.

Adjectives: Direct, eloquent, inquisitive, patient, rhapsodic, witty.

Community Feature (Well-Read): You have advantage on rolls that involve the history, culture, or politics of a prominent person or place.

Orderborne: The Serrano Sentinels

Discipline, duty, and the doctrine of House Serrano have been your guiding principles. Whether you trained in the Proving Grounds of the Solar or enforced the law on the city streets, you are part of a martial tradition that values order and strength above all else. Your code is your shield and your sword.

Adjectives: Ambitious, benevolent, pensive, prudent, sardonic, stoic.

Community Feature (Dedicated): Record three sayings or values your upbringing instilled in you. Once per rest, when you describe how you’re embodying one of these principles through your current action, you can roll a d20 as your Hope Die.

Seaborne: The Dársena Crew

You were born to the rhythm of the tides in La Dársena, the city's chaotic harbor. Your home is the deck of a ship, your family is your crew, and your loyalty is to the Navigator's Guild that controls the flow of all trade. You know the sea's moods and the city's undercurrents better than anyone.

Adjectives: Candid, cooperative, exuberant, fierce, resolute, weathered.

Community Feature (Know the Tide): When you roll with Fear, place a token on your community card. You can hold a number of tokens equal to your level. Before you make an action roll, you can spend any number of these tokens to gain a +1 bonus to the roll for each token spent. At the end of each session, clear all unspent tokens.

Slyborne: The Ward of Bones Scrounger

You survived in the shadows, likely in the lawless slum of O Bairro dos Ossos or the grimy back-alleys of the port. You operate by a code of your own, one forged in desperation and opportunity. You know how to find things, how to hide, and how to spot a lie from a mile away, because your life has often depended on it.

Adjectives: Calculating, clever, formidable, perceptive, shrewd, tenacious.

Community Feature (Scoundrel): You have advantage on rolls to negotiate with criminals, detect lies, or find a safe place to hide.

Underborne: The Sunken City Dweller

While others live under the sun, you were raised in the half-submerged ruins of El Casco Antiguo. The silent canals are your streets, and the secrets of the Precursors are your birthright. You are comfortable in the deep, dark places of the world and can navigate the shadows as easily as a gondolier navigates the waterways.

Adjectives: Composed, elusive, indomitable, innovative, resourceful, unpretentious.

Community Feature (Low-Light Living): When you’re in an area with low light or heavy shadow, you have advantage on rolls to hide, investigate, or perceive details within that area.

Wildborne: The Maze Survivor

You were not raised within Amaresia's walls, but in the untamed beauty of the Veridian Maze. The Whispering Plains or the River of Veils were your home. You understand the natural world, moving through it with a quiet grace that city-dwellers mistake for magic. You are a part of the wilds, not a conqueror of them.

Adjectives: Hardy, loyal, nurturing, reclusive, sagacious, vibrant.

Community Feature (Lightfoot): Your movement is naturally silent. You have advantage on rolls to move without being heard.

Ridgeborne: The Serrated Peaks Native

Your home is the treacherous Serrated Peaks that isolate Amaresia. You are accustomed to thin air, sheer cliffs, and sudden storms. This harsh upbringing has made you hardy and stubborn, with a deep loyalty to your kin and an unshakable will. You know how to survive where others would perish.

Adjectives: Bold, hardy, indomitable, loyal, reserved, stubborn.

Community Feature (Steady): You have advantage on rolls to traverse dangerous cliffs and ledges, navigate harsh environments, and use your survival knowledge.

Wanderborne: The Endless Road Explorer

Home for you was never a place, but a path. You might be part of a merchant caravan that plies the routes to Amaresia, an explorer's retinue funded by House Alcaide, or a traveling troupe of performers from El Albaicín. You value connections and skills over possessions, and your pack always seems to have just what you need.

Adjectives: Inscrutable, magnanimous, mirthful, reliable, savvy, unorthodox.

Community Feature (Nomadic Pack): Add a Nomadic Pack to your inventory. Once per session, you can spend a Hope to reach into this pack and pull out a mundane item that’s useful to your situation. Work with the GM to figure out what item you take out.

Clank

Sentient mechanical beings built from various materials. Many embrace body modifications for style and function, and their lifespan extends as long as they can acquire or craft new parts.

Ancestry Features:

• Purposeful Design: Choose one Experience that aligns with your purpose and gain a permanent +1 bonus to it.
• Efficient: When you take a short rest, you can choose a long rest move instead of a short rest move.

Drakona

Resembling wingless dragons in humanoid form, Drakona possess thick scales and a powerful elemental breath, passed down through generations.

Ancestry Features:

• Scales: When you would take Severe damage, mark a Stress to mark 1 fewer Hit Point.
• Elemental Breath: Use your breath as an Instinct weapon dealing d8 magic damage at Very Close range.

Dwarf

Short humanoids with square frames, dense musculature, and thick hair. Their naturally resilient skin allows for embedding gemstones and elaborate tattoos.

Ancestry Features:

• Thick Skin: When you take Minor damage, you can mark 2 Stress instead of marking a Hit Point.
• Increased Fortitude: Spend 3 Hope to halve incoming physical damage.

Elf

Tall humanoids with pointed ears and acutely attuned senses. They can enter a celestial trance instead of sleeping, and some develop a "mystic form" tied to their dedication to the natural world.

Ancestry Features:

• Quick Reactions: Mark a Stress to gain advantage on a reaction roll.
• Celestial Trance: During a rest, you can drop into a trance to choose an additional downtime move.

Faerie

Winged humanoids with insectile features, such as compound eyes or chitinous exoskeletons. They are closely tied to the natural world and undergo a metamorphosis to gain their final form.

Ancestry Features:

• Luckbender: Once per session, after you or an ally makes an action roll, spend 3 Hope to reroll the Duality Dice.
• Wings: You can fly. While flying, you can mark a Stress after an attack is made against you to gain a +2 bonus to Evasion.

Faun

Resembling humanoid goats, Fauns have curving horns, cloven hooves, and a goatlike lower body. They are known for their long limbs and powerful kicks.

Ancestry Features:

• Caprine Leap: You can leap anywhere within Close range as though using normal movement.
• Kick: On a successful Melee attack, mark a Stress to deal an extra 2d6 damage and knock yourself or the target to Very Close range.

Firbolg

Bovine humanoids with broad noses, long ears, and remarkable strength. Some, known as minotaurs, have heads that entirely resemble cattle and can possess a variety of horns.

Ancestry Features:

• Charge: On a successful Agility roll to move from Far or Very Far range into Melee, mark a Stress to deal 1d12 physical damage to all targets within Melee range.
• Unshakable: When you would mark a Stress, roll a d6. On a result of 6, don't mark it.

Galapa

Anthropomorphic turtles with large, domed shells into which they can retract for protection. Their shells often have unique patterns, and they are known for their slow, deliberate movements.

Ancestry Features:

• Shell: Gain a bonus to your damage thresholds equal to your Proficiency.
• Retract: Mark a Stress to retract into your shell. While retracted, you have resistance to physical damage but have disadvantage on action rolls and can't move.

Giant

Towering humanoids with broad shoulders, long arms, and one to three eyes. They are naturally muscular and possess an impressive reach in combat.

Ancestry Features:

• Endurance: Gain an additional Hit Point slot at character creation.
• Reach: Treat any weapon or ability with a Melee range as though it has a Very Close range instead.

Goblin

Small humanoids recognized by their large eyes and massive membranous ears. Their keen senses allow them to perceive details at great distances and in darkness.

Ancestry Features:

• Surefooted: You ignore disadvantage on Agility Rolls.
• Danger Sense: Once per rest, mark a Stress to force an adversary to reroll an attack against you or an ally within Very Close range.

Halfling

Small humanoids with large hairy feet and prominent rounded ears. They possess an uncanny internal compass and acute senses of hearing and smell.

Ancestry Features:

• Luckbringer: At the start of each session, everyone in your party gains a Hope.
• Internal Compass: When you roll a 1 on your Hope Die, you can reroll it.

Human

Physically adaptable people with dexterous hands and bodies built for endurance. They can adjust to harsh climates with relative ease.

Ancestry Features:

• High Stamina: Gain an additional Stress slot at character creation.
• Adaptability: When you fail a roll that utilized one of your Experiences, you can mark a Stress to reroll.

Infernis

Descendants of demons, Infernis possess sharp teeth, pointed ears, and horns. They can manifest a "dread visage" to intimidate foes, briefly altering their appearance to be more demonic.

Ancestry Features:

• Fearless: When you roll with Fear, you can mark 2 Stress to change it into a roll with Hope instead.
• Dread Visage: You have advantage on rolls to intimidate hostile creatures.

Katari

Feline humanoids with retractable claws, slit pupils, and high, triangular ears. They are known for their heightened senses and natural agility.

Ancestry Features:

• Feline Instincts: When you make an Agility Roll, you can spend 2 Hope to reroll your Hope Die.
• Retracting Claws: Make an Agility Roll to scratch a target within Melee range. On a success, they become temporarily Vulnerable.

Orc

Humanoids with square features and boar-like tusks that protrude from their lower jaw. Their tusks continue to grow throughout their lives and are often decorated.

Ancestry Features:

• Sturdy: When you have 1 Hit Point remaining, attacks against you have disadvantage.
• Tusks: On a successful Melee attack, spend a Hope to gore the target, dealing an extra 1d6 damage.

Ribbet

Anthropomorphic frogs with protruding eyes and webbed hands and feet. They are natural swimmers and can use their long, prehensile tongues as a weapon.

Ancestry Features:

• Amphibious: You can breathe and move naturally underwater.
• Long Tongue: Mark a Stress to use your tongue as a Finesse Close weapon that deals d12 physical damage.

Simiah

Resembling anthropomorphic monkeys and apes, Simiah have long limbs and prehensile feet. They are skilled climbers and possess unique agility.

Ancestry Features:

• Natural Climber: You have advantage on Agility Rolls that involve balancing and climbing.
• Nimble: Gain a permanent +1 bonus to your Evasion at character creation.

Mixed Ancestry

Families in this world are as unique as the people themselves. If your character descends from multiple ancestries, you can reflect that in your heritage.

Ancestry Features:

• Choose the first listed feature from one ancestry and the second listed feature from another to create your unique combination.