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You hold in your hands several pounds of paper detailing some
of the best fantasy ever created and opening the door to some of
the best fantasy yet to be created by you. Welcome to the
EverQuest Role-Playing Game!

If you're reading this you probably either play the EverQuest
online game or play a pen and paper fantasy roleplaying game. or
perhaps both. Here are some words of introduction for you:

'''If you play pen and paper fantasy roleplaying but have never played EverQuest online —'''
Don't worry, you're still in the right place. You've got hundreds
of pages of source material on newraces. character classes. a new
mana-based magic system. over a
thousand spells, new feats. new skills. a new hard magic system and
much more. all of which make this one heck of a sourcebookfor
your game. Since this book is published under the Open Game
License it legitimately and legally uses the exact same rules system
as the most popular fantasy role—playing pen and paper game
system out there. The license lets us print all the rules like “roll a
d20 to attack and compare it to your opponent's Armoor Class.” but
the license just doesn't allow us to say the name of that game
you're already playing — but a rose by any other name and all
that. Looking through this book, you will immediately see that
it is 100% compatible with that game you're already playing.
Please enjoy this book. use whatever new races. classes or systems
you like: start a new campaign in the world of Norrath or integrate
the parts you like into your own campaign world. If you are
interested in playing EverQuest online, head over to
[https://www.everquest.com https://www.everquest.com] and see what
all the talk is about.

'''If you play EverQuest online but are new to traditional pen and paper role-playing games —'''
Then read the rest of this
Introduction. It will familiarize you with many of the commonalities
of pen and paper gaming and give you an overview on how to
get started quickly (you don't have to read this whole book before
you start playing). You'll need at least one friend. but preferably
at least a couple. willing to try this out with you, so be ready to rope
some people into playing EverQuest a whole new way. Even the
most experienced 60th-level-character-playing EverQuest online
fan will learn something new about the game and about Norath
— and have a lot of fun creating adventures with this pen and
paper version of EverQuest.

'''If you play pen and paper fantasy roleplaying and play EverQuest online —'''
Then you're already home free! Have at it.
Bring it to your pen and paper gaming group and let them see more
of this EverQuest thing you keep raving about! Stan a new pen and
paper campaign in Nortath or integrate your EverQuest character
into your existing game. It's your world now. so do what you want
with it.

'''www.EQrp9.com:'''

You'd think a hook this size would have everything you could
possibly want, but EverQuest is so huge that not even this volume
can contain it all. Please surf over to the official EQrpg website at
www.EQrpg.com to find tons of free resources. information and
advice. Downloadable and printable character sheets. pre-generated
characters and adventures. statistics for all those conjured
"pets" creatures. designer forums and previews of coming attractions
will hopefully make your visit time well spent.

'''Getting Started:'''

Although it may look daunting at first. creating a character for
the ''EverQuest Role-Playing Game'' is actually a fairly simple. straight—
forward process. Before you begin. you'll need a pencil. a character
sheet (photocopy the one from the hack of this hook or visit us at
www.eqrpg.com to download a printable version). and sortie dice
(most likely just one die to determine hit points for the moment.
but you'll need lots of dice later so you might as well get them now
— see our site above or visit your local hobby/game store to find
the specialty dice you'll need).

'''Talk to your Gaming Group:'''

The first thing you'll want to do is talk to your gaming group.
and particularly the person in your group who has decided to be
your Game Master (GM). Your GM can tell you what kind of
game she plans to run, approve your character once you‘re done.
and likely help you form an idea for a character. Your GM may also
have new rules or options she wants to use for her game, which
you'll want to know about before you put a lot of work into
character creation. Since the GM runs the game. she is the final
authority regarding how rules work. what is acceptable in a
character. and what other sources of information you can draw
from.

Talking to other people who are making characters is a good
idea as well. A well-balanced group of questing characters is far
more likely to be successful. and that means making sure not
everyone is playing a magician. Especially for beginning players.
it's probably a good idea to have at least one dedicated divine
spellcaster (cleric. druid or shaman). one dedicated arcane
spellcaster (enchanter. magician, necromancer or wizard) and
one strong fighting character (monk, paladin, ranger. rogue.
shadow knight or warrior). A good mix of races is also a good idea
if you can arrange it.

You may also want to look through the various race and class
descriptions first. to familiarize yourself with the options presented.
Don't worry about making the “best” character possible
just come up with a basic idea you like.

The summary that follows applies mainly to creating new
characters. but even if you are converting an online EverQuest
character to the EverQuest Role-Playing Game instead of creating
a new character from scratch. you'll still want to follow many of
the steps listed below. Later you’ll get more information specifically
about convening characters (“Converting Characters from
EverQuest Online" in Chapter 1: Abilities).

'''Assign Ability Scores:'''

The next step, once you have some idea what you want to play.
is to assign ability scores. There's really no wrong way to do this,
but most people like to place the most ability points in things
particularly useful for their class. Each class has some advice on
how to assign your ability scores, and it's a good idea to follow this
when you're first making a character.

'''Pick a Race:'''

After assigning ability scores you'll need to pick a race. Races
are fully described in Chapter 2: Races. along with all their game
information. You should make any necessary changes to your
ability scores and record racial special abilities and bonus feats and
skills on your character sheet.

'''Pick a Class:'''

After recording all the information about your race, you need
to pick a class. Character classes are fully described in Chapter 3:
Classes. along with all their game information. Be sure you pick
a class available to your race (if it's not, then either your race or
your class must change). You should record your base attack
modifier. saving throws, class skills, skill points, beginning
proficiencies, and any special abilities your class grants you. You
should also record your experience point total (new 1st-level
characters start with 0 experience points).

If your class begins with spell-casting ability, you'll need to
choose your starting spells as well (or songs for a hard). Try to
select a good mix of offensive, defensive and utility spells (
especially healing and conjuration, if they are available to your class).
You'll also want to write down your starting mana pool and the
Difficulty Class (DC) of saving throws made against your spells
(information on how to do this is given with the class descriptions.
For more information on spells, see Chapter 8: Using Magic).

'''Assign Skills, Feats, and Training Points:'''

Your character has a number of skill points based on intelligence,
class, and race. Calculate how many skill points you have
to spend. then spend them all on skill ranks (for more information
on how to buy skills see Chapter 4: Skills). Most likely you‘ll want
to concentrate on skills your character receives as class skills, but
it's all right to buy a few ranks of other skills if they match your
character concept. In general. however I it's better to be good at
just a few skills rather than have one or two ranks of many skills.

You also need to select a starting feat (or two, if you are playing
a human). Be sure to select a feat for which you meet the
prerequisites. You may also want to see what feats you want your
character to have at higher level. in case they have a prerequisite
feat you can select now. For more information on feats see
Chapter 5: Feats.

Characters also receive 5 training points per level. You can
spend these points on a variety of things, as explained in the
beginning of Chapter 3.

'''Select Beginning Equipment:'''

Each class lists at least one beginning equipment package you
can use. If you decide to use this suggested equipment package.
simply record the weapons. armor. and other items listed there in
the appropriate sections of your character sheet. If you'd rather
select you own equipment. you may do so using the rules presented
in Chapter 7: Equipment.

'''Alignment and Description:'''

You should also choose an alignment for your character and
think about what kind of person she is. Suggestions for character
descriptions and rules for alignment are presented in Chapter 6:
Description. You don‘t need much more than an alignment,
name. and gender to start. but eventually you may what to decide
what your character looks like. what her motivations for questing
are, how she feels about the world at large. and even what her
mother's name is. There's no need to put any more thought into
these details than you want. but some people enjoy developing
complex backgrounds for their characters. Be sure to check such
details with your GM. who may have specific ideas for what
character backgrounds should be like in your collective game.

If you don't want to spend a great deal of time thinking about
what your character looks like, there's nothing wrong with selecting
a piece of art of perhaps an actor or actress you like and saying
that's what your character looks like. This certainly isn’t required
for your character. but it can be a good quick and easy way to
describe your character to others.

'''Do the Math:'''

There are a few numbers you'll need to figure out before you can
play. You need to figure your total attack bonuses with the
weapons you carry. your total skill bonuses, your speed of movement,
and your saving throw bonuses. Generally, your character
sheet shows you how to calculate these. If you‘re not sure how a
particular calculation works. ask your GM. After you have these
figures worked out and recorded on your character sheet. you're
ready to play.

'''Dice:'''

A few words on those funky dice used for pen and paper role
playing. You'll find everything from pyramid shaped four—sided
dice to spheroid twenty’sided dice used to play the EverQuest
Role—Playing Game. These various types of dice get abbreviated
throughout this book as:

d4 = four‘sided die. the pyramid; read the number on the
bottom edge (some use the number around the point. however) to
determine what number was rolled.

d6 = six—sided die

d8 = eight—sided die

le = ten—sided die

dll = twelve‘sided die

dZO = twenty-sided die

d% = percentile dice; roll two les of different colors.
Announce before the roll which die is the “tens" digit and which is
the “ones." Rolls of 9 and 2 would be read as 92 if the 9 came up
on the tens die. but as 29 if the 2 came up on the tens die. A roll
of O and 0 means 100. while a roll of O on the tens die and any other
number on the ones die means a number from i to 9 as the result
(for example. 0 and 8 would be a result of 8).

Often the rules will ask you to roll several dice and add a
modifier. These rolls are expressed in the format:

[#} die type [+/- modifiers]

For example. 3d6+2 means "Roll 3 six—sided dice. Add the
result of the three dice together. and then add 2.”

Some spells even make you remember the parenthesis rule from
algebra class when determining how much damage they deal:

For example, (5d10+2)x2 means "Roll 5 ten—sided dice. Add
the results of the five dice together. add 2. and then multiply the
sum by Z."

'''Fractions and Multiplying:'''

In general. if you wind up with a fraction. you should round the
result down, even if the fraction is larger than one’half. For
example. taking half damage from a spell that normally deals 13
points of damage would result in taking 6 points of damage
(13 +6,5. rounded down to 6). The exception is that certain rolls.
such as damage and hit points. always have a minimum of l.
Sometimes a special rule, such as a "critical hit" in combat,
makes you multiply a number or a dice roll. As long As you're
applying a single numeric multiplier. multiply normally. When
two or more multipliers apply. however, combine them into a
single multiple, with each extra multiple adding l less than its
numeric value to the first multiple. Thus a double (x2) and a
double (x2) applied to the same number results in triple (x3,
because 2 + l = 3). Examples as you read the book will make
multiplying more clear.

'''The Basic Rule:'''

Almost every aspect of the game system in the ''EverQuest Role-Playing Game''
is handled by rolling a d20, adding or subtracting modifiers, and then
comparing the final results to a target number to be successful.
You might roll a d20; add your modifiers, and then
compare it to your opponent's Armor Class to see if you hit in
combat, or you might roll a d20, add other modifiers to it, and
compare it to a number assigned by Your Game Master (a "Difficulty Class")
to see if your begging attempt was successful or not.

We hope you enjoy your game.

P99 offline: Introduction - Revision history

imported>Kingfisher SA at 15:32, 21 September 2018