Adventurers of Athas
Heroes of Athas are fired from a different kiln and
have little in common with adventurers from other
Dungeons & Dragons worlds. Every day is a fight for
survival and opportunity in an unforgiving land. In
addition, Athasian history has severed access to a swath
of religious and magical paths.
Martial adventurers, such as fighters, rangers, rogues,
and warlords, are common in settlements and outlands.
Anyone who can wield a weapon and has a bit of ambition
can find work as a guard, hunter, gladiator, or agent.
In the wastes and wilderness, primal magic is powerful,
revered, and on occasion feared. City-state dwellers,
however, rarely understand primal power and are suspicious
of people who wield it. Meanwhile, most travelers
are nonplussed when they encounter a barbarian, druid,
shaman, seeker, or warden, especially when venturing
far from settled areas.
Arcane magic is dangerous. Its misuse is what
despoiled the world and continues to defile the land
when the user doesn’t wield the power with care (an art
called “preserving”). The sorcerer-kings are the mightiest
arcanists and punish any unsanctioned use of arcane
magic. Bards, sorcerers, wizards, and warlocks are hated
and persecuted for wielding arcane power, even when
they walk the path of a preserver.
Psionic talent is common, and many people practice
the Way. Nobles, merchants, and warlords employ
psionic adventurers to engage in tasks both overt and
covert. Ardents, battleminds, monks, and psions are
found across the Tyr Region.
Whereas psionic power is widespread on Athas,
divine magic is essentially extinct. The gods have been
silent for centuries, and their faiths have crumbled
along with their temples of old. Instead of true deities,
Athasians worship sorcerer-kings, cults of demons or
primordials, or primal spirits.