Conan D20 2e - Return To the Road of Kings {MPG7802}.pdf - Edycja 2 - michal-signum

Return to the Road of Kings

Contents

Credits

AMazon

Aquilonia

Argos

Atlaia

Black Coast

Border Kingdom

Brythunia

Cimmeria

Corinthia

Darfar

Ghulistan

Hyperborea

Hyrkania

Iranistan

Keshan

Khauran

Khitai

Khoraja

Koth

100

105

109

123

127

132

135

140

142

Kush

Nemedia

Nordheim

Ophir

Pictish WIlderness

Punt

Shem

Southern Desert

Southern Islands

Stygia

Tombalku

Turan

Vendhya

Zamora

Zembabwei

Zingara

Others

Adventuring

Bibliography

Index

Open Gaming Licence

147

151

156

160

163

170

172

184

191

196

205

214

226

234

242

248

258

262

267

270

272

BARBARIAN® and related logos, characters, names and distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks of

Ltd Authorised User. Return to the Road of Kings is released under version 1.0 of the Open Game License.

Reproduction of non-Open Game Content of this work by any means without the written permission of

the publisher is expressly forbidden. See page 272 for the text of this license. With the exception of

the character creation rules detailing the mechanics of assigning dice roll results to abilities and the

advancement of character levels, all game mechanics and statistics (including the game mechanics

of all feats, skills, classes, creatures spells and the combat chapter) are declared open content. First

printing 2007. Printed in the UK.

Credits

Author

Vincent N. Darlage

AUthor`s Special Thanks

James Auton, Ian Barstow, Chris Bradley, Amanda Darlage,

Charles Darlage, Ken and Bonnie Darlage and all of my

family, Richard Darlage, Christopher W. Dolunt, Robert

E. Howard, Russell Morrissey, Allen Myers, Eric Noah,

Craig Pekar, Bob Probst, Dale Rippke, Pete Roncoli, Jake

Saunders, Donald Sutcliffe, Mark Van Dyk

Editor

Chris Longhurst

Cover Art

Chris Quilliams

Creator of Conan an

Conan an d Hyboria

d Hyboria

Robert E. Howard

Publications Manager

Ian Belcher

Print Manager

Ed Russell

Interior Artists

Alejandro Villen, Andrew Dobell, Chad Sergesketter, Jason

Wa l t o n , Ro n a l d Sm i t h , Pa s c a l Qu i d a u l t , Na t h a n Fu r m a n ,

Ryan Horvath, Tony Parker

Proofreading

Scribendi

Author

AUthor`s Special Thanks

Editor

Cover Art

Creator of

Publications Manager

Print Manager

Interior Artists

Proofreading

Amazon

The Kingdom of Women

Amazon is a vast area of the Black Kingdoms and lies

south of Stygia and Darfar. It is bordered to the west by

the Southern Desert and deﬁned in the east by the River

Styx. To the south, Amazon extends into the equatorial

rainforest. At the end of the Hyborian age, thousands of

Amazon slaves will be brought out of the Black Kingdoms

by the Hyrkanians.

around a livata is communal and is used to grow crops

and pasture the livestock. The harvest is divided equally

among the people of the livata by the administrators of

the farms, although the mkulunta receives an honorary cut

before the general division among the population begins.

In addition to the premium accorded to the mkulunta of

the livata , a certain amount is also set aside for the mbanza ,

or provincial capitals.

The Amazons are a tall black race, more robust than

graceful. Their skin is dark and they have black, kinky hair.

The Amazon culture is organised as a nation constantly at

war. The female warriors train by hunting and ﬁghting.

Husbands and lovers are captured, not wooed.

Beyond the mavata are the mawena (singular liwena ),

which are basically provinces. A liwena is a collection of

mavata . The liwena is administrated by an mwena (plural

awena ) who lives in an mbanza , or provincial capital. An

mbanza is the equivalent of an Amazon town, home to

between one and ﬁve thousand people. An mbanza does

not move like a livata does. It is supported by taxes and

tribute from the mavata in the liwena .

Matriarchal Culture

Amazon is host to a matriarchal and aggressive culture

where the women are the valorous warriors and the smallish

men are suppressed in near-slavery, quite the reverse of the

rest of the Black Kingdoms. The culture originated with an

ancient queen who assembled an army of female infantry

and cavalry and attacked the villages she came across,

subduing the men and recruiting the strongest of the

women until she had consolidated a suitably sized region.

The Amazons continue to be ruled by a queen instead of

a king. The queen does not marry nor does she maintain a

lengthy relationship with any one man lest a king arise and

rule the Amazon people. The queen does have sons and

daughters and her eldest daughter is the heir to the Ivory

Throne of the Amazons. The queen enters into temporary

sexual alliances for political gain at times, usually killing

her lovers after a few intimate encounters.

The mawena are administered by the queen at Gamburu,

the closest thing to a city in Amazon, as well as its capital.

Amazonian Clothing

Amazonian clothing is made out of cloth, fur or leather,

like most of the clothing found in the Black Kingdoms.

Amazonian clothing is known for its distinctive red

leather, which is made using a scarce red dye sacred to

the Amazons. Leather garments are typically fringed

and often have patterns stamped into them.

Common patterns include animal pictures,

meanders and spirals. Cloth is typically

embroidered and dyed black, red, yellow

or indigo most of the time – although other

colours are used when available. Leopard skins

are commonly worn by the Amazons.

A Provincial Life

The village is the centre of life in Amazon. An Amazonian

village is called a livata (plural mavata ). A livata is home

to one to two hundred people and moves every decade

or so to ensure healthy soil for the crops. Any placement

of villages or cities on the accompanying map are

approximations only because of these movements. On the

savannahs, the movements of the mavata are even more

frequent as the plains Amazons have a nomadic lifestyle.

The governor of a livata is called a mkulunta .

The plural of mkulunta is akulunta . The land

When not at war or raiding, the Amazons

who live on the savannas and veldts wear

cloth tunics and knee-high boots. The

boots are made of either cloth or

leather and have tough leather or

wooden soles. The Amazons of

the rainforests, when not ﬁghting,

go nude, wearing naught but an

embroidered panel over

Matriarchal Culture

Amazonian Clothing

A Provincial Life

Amazon

their groin or a type of short kilt wrapped around their

hips, depending on their wealth and status. Wealthier

or higher ranking Amazons wear kilts or panels made of

animal fur. During ceremonies, Amazons throughout the

region wear outer skirts of beaded strings. These may be

worn over a cloth skirt, if desired. They may also wear

boots similar to those found on the savannas of Amazon,

Men dress similarly to women.

craftsmen, supervising the work of men. Others become

priestesses or oracles, or become powerful administrators

whose duties preclude them from being part of an army.

These roles are handed down from mother to daughter.

The community as a whole supports these individuals with

portions of their hunt or war-loot.

Male Amazons remain at the home. They do not ﬁght

and must obey their wives in all things. They are not

considered free citizens and may not take a role in deciding

anything about the community but they are allowed to

wear clothing, unlike slaves. Fathers are expected to care

for any children but all children belong to their mothers.

Mothers teach the girls how to hunt and how to ﬁght and

the fathers teach the boys how to tend the home.

In addition to clothing, the Amazons also sport tattoos,

cosmetics and jewellery. Henna is applied on ﬁngers and

toes and Stygian kohl is used on the eyelids. Red, yellow or

white paint may be used to create patterns on the cheeks

and forehead. As far as jewellery goes, earrings, bracelets,

anklets and necklaces are most common. Headdresses of

fur, feathers and gemstones are also worn.

Slaves are not permitted to wear clothing of any kind.

Clothing is only accorded to those who are free.

Love and Marriage

Marriage is not allowed until an Amazon woman has killed

a man in a face-to-face ﬁght. Husbands and lovers are

acquired in war and in raids. Amazons have little concept

of love in a marriage. Marriage is for status and for child-

bearing so it rarely occurs before a girl is 10 years old. If an

Amazon can afford more than one husband, she may marry

as many as she likes. A divorce is simple – the woman takes

her bed (or even the entire home) to her mother’s house.

Any children remain the possessions of the mother but the

father still bears the burden of primary care. Divorces are

usually accompanied by joyous parties for the woman held

by her family and friends.

The Amazons keep their hair in a variety of styles. Most of

the Amazon warrior-women of the savannas wear their hair

in dreadlocks. Those of the jungles wear their kinky hair

in a bush or shave it short. As they age, both types tend

to wear their hair in frightful masses of disarray. The gedra

never cut their hair, considering it to be the source of their

shamanic powers. As a result, the hair of the gedra tends to

be long and matted.

Sex Roles in Amazon

Women are the hunters, warriors and r ulers of Amazon,

a reversal of the sex roles typically found in the Black

Kingdoms. To avoid pregnancies while learning the arts

of war, young Amazons are expected to maintain their

virginity until they kill their ﬁrst male in battle. Those who

fail in this are enslaved and possibly sold to the Ghanatas,

Kushites or Stygians. Once a woman has killed a man, the

woman has sexual freedom in all ways, including having

male visitors when her husband is absent. Once a woman

has killed a man, she may visit the akualek for herbal

contraceptives. She must bring proof of the kill on the

ﬁrst visit, either in the form of physical proof or a

witness. Amazon women are permitted female

lovers at any time.

Arms and Armour

Most Amazons maintain a bronze short sword, a double-

headed bronze battle axe (called a labrys), a bronze-headed

throwing spear and a hunting bow. Trading or stealing iron

or steel weapons is a sign of strength among the Amazons

who lack the industry to make such weapons themselves.

Also, unlike much of the southern Black Kingdoms,

the bow is an honoured weapon among the Amazons.

For armour, most Amazons use leather breastplates with

bronze squares tied to them and bronze studded leather

straps worn in the manner of a kilt. Amazons use crescent-

shaped shields.

Other women have more

specialised roles. Some are in

charge of trading caravans

and others work as master

Amazonian Houses

Homes and furnishings belong to the women. Simple,

grass-roofed houses are common. Amazon houses are

extremely primitive except in Gamburu.

Sex Roles in Amazon

Arms and Armour

Amazonian Houses

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