ARL

Communist Theocratic Colony of a Dead Empire

Alignment: LN
Capital: Arl (44,000)
Notable Settlements: Dalath (8,100), Kuro (19,500),
Mecombria (2,700)
Ruler: Princess Verrish, Thurok of the Free People (LN
female Akitoni human aristocrat 8/ex-barbarian 2)
Government: Totalitarian communal theocracy
Major Races: Akitoni humans, lizardfolk, shobhads, Ysoki
Languages: Akitoni, Azlanti, Low Arl
Religion: Azlanti pantheon
Resources: Foodstuffs, magic items, seabeast ivory,
textiles, water
Rising from its sacred plateau above a long-dead sea, Arl
stands proud and strong, a bastion of Azlant's civilized
culture amid the barbarism of Akiton's vast cold deserts
or so the people of Arl believe. The city-state is certainly
among Akiton's largest, boasting a population of around
44,000 men, women, and children within its walls. Just
under a hundred-thousand souls bow to Arl's banner, if one
includes all the city's vast rural holdings and satellite
communities.
Arl's government is a totalitarian communal theocracy,
overseen by the clerics who interpret the will of the gods,
the thuroks, and Azlant, in that order. Despite the fall of
Azlant some ten-thousand Golarion years ago, the common
people and even most middle-ranking clerics labor under
the impression that the empire yet remains, and their
good works as its most far-flung colony are noticed,
appreciated, and rewarded. The higher one climbs the
social ladder, however, the more of the truth is revealed:
that Arl is alone, long cut off from its alien masters, and
true rule lies in the hands of the clerics at the top of the
pecking order. Most thuroks arise from this hierarchy,
selected by their peers based on their obvious favor with
the gods (or favor with their fellows in a baser political
sense). During the times that a thurok from another world
is in power, their decisions are subtly manipulated by
these high-priests, and a thurok who takes too many
liberties with their reign or attempts to enact widereaching reforms can expect retribution ranging from quiet
assassination and disposal to public execution in Arl's
Crimson Forum.
Upward social mobility outside of the priesthood is
virtually nonexistent, though an occasional artisan or
citizen-soldier might catch the eye of a priest and receive
state sponsorship or induction into the Blessed Scions, the
holy warriors chosen to protect the priests. In all other
cases, each member of Arl's society is born into the role
they will serve until death. Farmers farm, as their parents
did before them, and as their children will. There is no
economy in Arl; the state provides everything, with each
citizen's goods taken and redistributed to the society. Onethird of all product is reserved as a gift to the gods; onethird is taken to support the priest caste, whose
metaphysical labors must be sustained or else Arl will fall;
and one-third is distributed to all of the lower castes, so
that farmers, craftsmen, artisans, and entertainers all
benefit and suffer as the fortunes dictate. Despite this,

Arl's society is a highly productive one, and no dire famine

has occurred in well over a millennium.
Aside from the Blessed Scions, there exists no standing
army in Arl. However, every citizen receives military
training, and the average farmer proves a surprisingly
stout combatant. In times of war, the citizens take up
their arms, fighting and working in shifts so that Arl may
retain her footing in war while still producing the everyday
goods and services vital to society. These shifts are
staggered so that most of the army has served for a time
as new soldiers are rotated in, allowing information from
those on the front lines to be passed to the new soldiers
replacing their comrades. Like all things in Arl, war is
overseen by the priests, who give and receive their orders
through the established hierarchy. That Arl has never been
taken in military conquest is either a testament to the
perfection of their society and favor with the gods, or else
because few city-states on Akiton could muster the forces
necessary to conquer the city, where every man, woman,
and child can hurl a spear or wield a dagger with lethal
accuracy.
Despite the lack of an internal economy, Arl does accept
visitors and merchants who come to its gates to procure
the vital foodstuffs, water, magic, and seabeast ivory the
city produces in great quantity, or to indulge in the savage
entertainments that the city prides itself on. All visitors
are assigned a cleric who appraises the visitors' trade
goods and assesses their wealth. This cleric then guides
them to the state merchants or forms of entertainment
they seek, oversees their transactions, and tallies the total
cost. Once the visitor's business is completed, this tally is
then charged as a fee, payable in commensurate trade
goods or coin. Any visitor unable or unwilling to pay their
fee is detained and their possessions confiscated. The
offender is then put to work as the clerics see fit until the
outstanding debt is repaid. The time of this service is up
to the cleric to decide, based on the difference in value
between the confiscated goods and the total debt, though
some unscrupulous clerics use these rare events to
essentially enslave the outsider for their own personal use.
Arl's current leader, Princess Verrish, has held the throne
for only a little over a year, having inherited the title after
her husband was killed and replaced by a traitorous
Pathfinder agent, only to be driven off by adventurers
from his homeworld. The resultant political upheaval,
unseen in Arl for well over three millennia, caused chaos
throughout the city and its holdings; only in the last few
months has some form of stability been imposed.
But this may only be the beginning. Princess Verrish has
begun instituting some small reforms, threatening the
political stranglehold of the priest caste. The resulting
political strife has threatened the previously indomitable
priests, who see themselves as the foundation of Arl's
society. Secrets kept from Arl's common citizens are
beginning to leak out, and for the first time in centuries,
there's serious talk of rebellion among the disaffected. In
addition, a new threat referred to only as The Circle has
surfaced, their goal seeming to be a reshuffling among
Arl's priestly elite and the return to dominance of gods
harkening back to Arl's more savage, violent, and
expansionist past. Whether the city will hold fast remains
to be seen.

Arl, Capital of the High Plateau Thurokdom

Locations in Arl

1. Pyramid of the Gods: Arl's largest and most prominent

landmark, the 500-foot-tall Pyramid of the Gods is capped
with a portal to the world of Golarion. Unlike most
portals, the portal atop the pyramid connects to multiple
locations on Golarion, including the Maze of the Open
Road in Galt and at least one ruined city on the shattered
continent of Azlant. It is from this portal that Azlanti
DEMOGRAPHICS
Government Thurokdom (Thurok plus city council and
envoys stepped forth some 6,000 Akitoni years ago,
cabinet of religious advisers)
upending Arl's simple civilization and creating the
Population 44,000 (28,000 Akitoni; 5,000 lizardfolk; 5,000 totalitarian theocracy that has survived to this day.
Ysoki; 2,000 shobhads; 2,000 Golarion humanoids; 2,000
Since the fall of Azlant, the flow of visitors from Golarion
other)
has slowed to a trickle, yet each new visitor is heralded as
Notable NPCs
a god sent from their divine patrons, the holy Azlanti. The
Princess Verrish, Thurok of Arl (N female Akitoni human
theocracy, who know those who step forth from Golarion
aristocrat 8/ex-barbarian 2)
to be mere mortals, endorse and support this fallacy, for it
Kol Voss, Brother of the Thurok (CN male Akitoni human
keeps them in power and helps quell revolution, lest an
savage barbarian 10)
angry god step from the top of the ziggurat and lay the
Haluun, Arch-Priest of Abadar (LN male Akitoni human
unfaithful low.
aristocrat 3/cleric of Abadar 9)
This doesn't mean that every god can expect a longNagkhet-Nhoshi, Arch-Priestess of Pharasma (N female
lived reception. Travelers who refuse to toe the official
lizardfolk cleric of Pharasma 10)
line find themselves quickly decried as imposters and
Drouhama, Commander of the Blessed Scions (LG female thrown to wild beasts or savage mobs in the Crimson
aasimar paladin of Abadar 16)
Forum.
MARKETPLACE
2. The Crimson Forum: A center of civic life and a form
Base Value 25,600 gp; Purchase Limit 180,000 gp;
of savage entertainment in a city famed for its reserved
Spellcasting 9th
citizens, the Crimson Forum may also be the biggest draw
Minor Items all; Medium Items 4d4; Major Items 3d4
to outsiders from across Akiton. The coliseum can easily
LN metropolis
Corruption +0, Crime +2, Economy +5, Law +7, Lore +5,
Society +1
Qualities academic, insular, magically attuned, pious,
prosperous, strategic location
Danger +10

seat 10,000 people, and when a gladiatorial match is

scheduled, those seats fill with astounding speed. Matches
can be anything from mostly-bloodless historical
reenactments to battles pitching Blessed Scions against
slaves, criminals, or monsters, and, rarely, public
executions in a variety of creative and excruciating forms.
The Crimson Forum also offers the citizens their only
voice in politics, where weekly meetings on civic needs
are openly discussed and every citizen, whether lowly
farmer or arch-priest and every caste in between, is given
equal say. It is this seemingly democratic meeting that
gives Arl its nickname as the City of the Free People, a
nickname no one but a native Arlian takes seriously.
3. Thurok's Palace: This walled mansion features Azlanti
architecture and traditional Arlian pictogram carvings, a
mish-mash of styles that is surprisingly pleasing to the eye.
Within its walls, beautiful grounds sport gardens of exotic
plants imported long ago from Azlant maintained by magic
to survive Akiton's colder, drier climate, and the grand
mansion is narrow, tall, and airy. Blessed Scions patrol the
grounds and walls at all hours of the day, and its residents
are waited on by a staff of several hundred dutiful
servants.
While the Thurok's Palace is small by the standards of
nobility from other city-states, it makes up for this
supposed shortfall in sheer opulence. Even the most
humble surfaces feature gilt tracings or reliefs and
frescoes from Arl's most talented artisans. Originally built
for the Azlanti, many features of the palace seem strange
to Akitoni, including a majestic pool that servants have
been known to sneak water from to give to their families
and neighbors. These sacred waters, bathed in by
hundreds of previous thuroks, are believed to impart some
of their divine gifts on any who drink it, and secret
meetings where servants gather to ritually consume the
waters have occurred since the palace was built.
4. Pantheon Eternal: Smaller than the Pyramid of the
Gods but no less impressive, this smooth-sided pyramid
capped with an eternally-glowing golden crystal serves as
the grand cathedral for all of Arl's gods. Worshiping the
Azlanti pantheon, the Pantheon Eternal also has a vast
room where the remains of Arl's past thuroks are kept on
display, permanently preserved via magic behind walls of
invisible force.
The Pantheon Eternal is also where the majority of the
schemes of the priest caste are hatched. Being the center
of their political power and where the majority of them
live and work, the halls of the Pantheon Eternal veritably
drip with secrets and plots.
5. Walk of the Holy: The wide avenues surrounding the
Pyramid of the Gods, collectively known as the Walk of the
Holy, serve as a location for celebrations, rituals, and
festivals where the whole of Arl's population are expected
to attend. Six pillars capped with gargantuan statues of
legendary heroes decorate the wide avenue between the
Pyramid of the Gods and the Crimson Forum, and its broad
cobblestones are swept hourly by citizens.
6. Collegia Celestia: The Collegia Celestia is the center
of specialized education in Arl. Those occupations deemed
too important to leave to the traditional mentor-protege
apprenticeship are instead taught within the walls of the
Collegia. It is here that those selected to serve as officers

in the Blessed Scions learn tactics, leadership, and law;

that the priests study the forbidden tenets of Akiton's
heathen faiths, and that Arl's gunsmiths learn their trade.
While the Collegia's collected knowledge could prove an
invaluable commodity, everything taught within its walls is
considered a state secret, no matter how mundane or
well-known. No outsider may attend classes or even step
within the Collegia's walls, and those caught discussing
even the most banal of topics learned in the Collegia are
branded as traitors and executed. Most Collegia graduates
are notoriously tight-lipped as a result.
7. Arch Victorious: A glorious work of art, the Arch
Victorious is a grand structure of carved stone and
precious metal inlays, with a pair of massive, 30-foot-high
seabeast ivory doors set within it which remain open
except in times of war, severe weather, or threat of
monster attack. Ostensibly, Arl's citizens may come and go
through the Arch Victorious at any hour of the day, but in
reality, most traffic comes to a complete halt at sunset
and resumes as normal at sunrisemost citizens fear not
only the monsters that prowl Arl's plateau at night, but
also the belief that such nocturnal passage merely invites
unwanted scrutiny from the Blessed Scions.
8. Foreigner's Gate: All foreigners must enter Arl
through its southernmost gate, thus giving it its name. The
gate leads into Arl's Foreigner District, the only district in
Arl where the business of outsiders is actively courted.
Unless an outsider plans to visit the Crimson Forum, Arl's
priests actively discourage visitors from traveling to the
rest of the city, fearing the spread of dangerous ideas and
heathen beliefs.
Like any foreign quarter worth the name, this district
contains shops, inns, taverns, theaters, brothels, and
entertainment of all types. Visitors are free to explore,
consume, and purchase to their heart'sand coin purse's
content. Transactions are still regulated by the state,
however, and many visitors find a priest over their
shoulder and a squadron of heavily armed Blessed Scions
on every corner an intimidating experience.
This district is also the only one where goods may be
exported to areas outside of Arl or its holdings. Foodstuffs
and bulk textiles are the primary exports, with wealthier
merchants instead purchasing masterfully-carved seabeast
ivory jewelry or exotic magic.
9. Traveler Market: To many travelers, the work
involved in gaining entry into Arl proper can prove far
more of a hassle than seems worthwhile. Small-time
merchants, nomadic bands, and travelers on their way
from one location to another would normally prefer to go
around the city-state than spend hours in line before being
led around by a suspicious priest, when all they need is
basic supplies, a hot meal, and a warm bed. For these
visitors, Arl built Traveler Market, a small village outside
the city-state that functions like almost any other, save
that it is backed by the immense coffers of Arl, whose
walls loom not 300 feet from the village proper.
Traveler Market has an inn and tavern called the
Wanderer's Rest, a stables, and specialized shops that
offer simple but durable goods. The largest building in
Traveler Market is the official government office, where
visitors can file in advance to visit Arl at a later date, thus
speeding up the process of registration when one wishes to

enter the city-state. All prices are set by the priests to be

competitive with goods and services from other
communities, but because the community can be run
without generating profit, these commodities are of
surprising quality; the priests of Arl see this small
expenditure to be worth the goodwill it garners with
merchants and travelers, who spread the word and bring
ever more business to Arl's gates.
10. Sandship Depot: Every city-state requires a place for
their sandshipsand those of visitorsto dock, and this
massive building serves that purpose to Arl. Part dock, part
fortress, this vast structure contains docking stations for
sandships of all sizes, and each dock includes its own
office where priests and Blessed Scions register visitors
and their cargo. A heavily-fortified section includes a small
complement of Arl's own warships, and the roof of the
structure bristles with cannons and positions for guards.
The Sandship Depot also includes docking platforms for
foreign skyships (Arl's own skyships dock at stations atop
the city wall's towers). Both foreign skyships and sandships
require thorough checks before unloading any crew or
cargo, and any vehicle deemed a military vessel (based
off an extensive set of regulations regarding ship size,
design, and armament) is prevented from coming within a
half-mile of Arl itself. Any such vehicle attempting to press
further is fired upon immediately.
11. The Invictus: Arl's mighty flagship, the massive
sandship Invictus is fully detailed beginning on page 8 of
this document.

PLOTS AND PERILS IN ARL

While the rulers of Arl maintain their veneer of control,
the city-state itself hasn't been this close to total political
collapse and violent infighting in millennia, as threats
from within and without gauge the might and stability of
one of Akiton's longest-lived and most powerful
civilizations. The following current events and hidden
agendas could easily entangle visitors and locals alike.

Arch-Priest Haluun
The most politically influential priest in Arl, Arch-Priest
Haluun finds himself facing his most powerful opponent
ever in the form of Princess Verrish. Though they see eye
to eye on many issues, the greatest wedge between them
is one dear to Haluun's heart: his own political power.
For the past two Akitoni decades, Arch-Priest Haluun has
ruled Arl in all but name. With the rise of Princess Verrish,
he has found in her a worthy political opponent, and one
who seems utterly immune to bribes, intimidation,
blackmail, and covert violence. With most of the
implements in his political toolkit proving useless, ArchPriest Haluun find himself considering radical options.
First and foremost is the hope of interlopers from
Golarion. After all, it was their interference that put her
on the throne in the first place, and ignorant outsiders
would prove the perfect way to legally depose the
princess.
Second off is aid from one of Akiton's other city-states.
Arl is one of Akiton's most powerful cities, and having the
de facto leader of Arl owe one a favor would be enticing
indeed, but Haluun is loathe to ask for aid or be beholden

to anyone, foreigner or no.

His final option, and one that disgusts him the most,
would be to find a way to manipulate The Circle into
deposing or slaying Princess Verrish and her brother, Kol
Voss. Indeed, he would need to eliminate both, for if Kol
Voss were to inherit the throne, the simple-minded
barbarian would cause more damage than a hundred
Verrishes ever could.
Under normal circumstances, Haluun would never
consider attempting anything as base as whipping a crowd
of revolutionaries into slaying the thurokwhile he has
certainly arranged more than one thurok's death, he did so
within the convoluted rules of the theocracythe
temptation to goad these gangs of thugs, then take lawful
action to destroy The Circle once they were caught in the
act remains strong. And Haluun's desperation grows with
every day, especially as he works to cover up a series of
disappearances (murders, more likely) that are whittling
his followers down, one by one.
Were a group of competent-looking adventurers to make
their presence known in Arl, foreigners with no knowledge
of Arl's internal politics and no allegiances to speak of,
Haluun would gladly take them under his wing, grooming
them to be Verrish's assassins. That they would have to be
put to death immediately afterward is an unfortunate, if
necessary, tragedy.

The Circle
From the beginning, Arl's priest caste has followed a
convoluted, mutable calendar of ascension and decline of
its divine patrons, wherein the power of the pantheon's
individual gods waxes and wanes according to esoteric
signs, portents, and the motion of the stars themselves. In
the past, collating and processing the data required for
accurate prognostication proved nearly impossible, but
with the advent of the God Machine (see below), the
priests could devote themselves to their true desire:
maintaining their political stranglehold on Arl and its
citizens. With the assistance of the near-omniscient God
Machine, factors in divination could be understood,
disseminated, and, eventually, altered. The faithful of
Abadar and Pharasma in particular were quite adept at
keeping their gods (and by extension, their political might)
in a more-or-less permanent position of ascension, leaving
the other faiths subject to the whims of the metaphysical
tide.
Most of the other faiths accepted their lot, taking power
as fate decreed, or being pushed into irrelevance when
their fortunes turned. But two faiths in particular are no
longer willing to accept the meager power their fellow
faiths dole out to them. The cults of Groetus, god of the
end times, and Nurgal, demon lord of the burning sun,
once received their divine due, but neither faith has been
in ascension since the God Machine was installed a
millennium ago. And they are very, very angry.
Even in the best of times, neither faith proved
particularly popularNurgal's threat of a vengeful sun to a
cold desert world seemed a hollow one, and Groetus'
insane, nihilistic, and frequently self-defeating clerics
frightened off far more converts than they attracted. Even
when the divine cycle put their faithful on top of the
political heap, their leadership proved too chaotic and

destructive to remain in power long. But a millennium of

second-tier status has fed a rage and zealotry that, with
the recent upheaval in the city-state, has finally reached
its boiling point. Individually, they were too weak to act,
but a series of covert meetings convinced the high priests
of both faiths that together they just might be able to
avenge themselves upon their hated oppressorsor destroy
the city trying.
Being chaotic faiths, neither cult is particularly adept at
central leadership, and for now their agents function as
occasionally-successful terrorist groups at best, or angry
mobs at worst. The Circle (so named by its enemies for the
circles they paint with the blood of their victims to
represent Nurgal's sun, Groetus' skull-faced moon, and the
proper cycle they hope to restore, now adopted by the
cultists themselves) is made up of cells of the insane and
dispossessed, each group led by a cultist of one of the two
faiths who hide their true purpose under the guise of
revolution. Orders are passed down from the high priests
(neither faith has had an arch-priest in centuries) to the
cell leaders, who then command the chaotic rabble to
enact their will. Each order is supposed to further the
goals of the organization as a whole, but more often than
not are simple acts of petty vengeance to avenge some
real or imagined slight against one high priest or another.
Under ordinary circumstances, this is as much as either
cult could have reasonably hoped to achieve, if either cult
were capable of reasonable goal-setting. But within The
Circle's mass of squabbling leaders, two powerful figures
have arisen who just might be able to pull off something
of note.
From the Groetan camp, the high-priest Nehu (CE female
cleric of Groetus 12) has begun to focus her underlings'
efforts towards the singular goal of destroying the
priesthood of Abadar with a targeted campaign of
blackmail, arson, and assassination. A sociopath with a
cold and calculating mind, Nehu possesses the charisma
and focus necessary to keep her fellow-cultists devoted
and on-task, and has personally sent a half-dozen of
Abadar's high priests to the grave, leaving behind only an
empty house scrawled with cryptic messages of prophesied
doom that cause more fear than any brutalized body ever
could.
The most powerful cleric of Nurgal in the city, Hegstrom
the Godtouched (CE male tiefling cleric of Nurgal
7/demoniac 5), has hidden his faith for decades, serving as
a Blessed Scion and masking his true devotion with layers
of magic and lies. Now retired, Hegstrom collected a
wealth of secrets and blackmail on many of the powerful
priests in Arl in his time as a Blessed Scion; perhaps the
greatest secret of all is how to get into the hidden
chamber where the God Machine is housed. For the time
being, Hegstrom is consolidating his power, playing the
part of the radical reformer while calling in favors to
assure that when he and his allies are ready to make their
move, the God Machine will be poorly defended and ripe
for decommission.
Even if one or both of these cultists are able to achieve
their goals, they will inevitably sever their already tenuous
alliance in an orgy of violence and betrayal. Neither cult is
willing to back down once they find themselves in power
again, and the only thing that is certain is that Arl's streets

will run red with the blood of believers and innocents alike
in a genocidal purge until there's only one faith left
standingor nothing at all.

The God Machine

A thousand years ago, the theocratic city-state of Arl ran
into a problem: they knew too much.
Having tracked the motion of thousands of celestial
bodies and other cosmological signs to aid the divination
of their pantheon's will and its multi-circular states of
ascendance and decline, it became apparent that the
variables were becoming harder and harder to factor
without significant man-hours and recurring mathematical
error. It was obvious they needed something to process the
mountains of written data: something brilliant, something
infallible. As luck would have it, the cosmos delivered just
that something, literally right to their door.
Verces was just beginning its trade with the residents of
Akiton, and her ships were studying the planet's surface to
select the larger city-states with which to engage in trade
(the Vercites erroneously believing these cities to be
capitals of a world-spanning group of nations, similar to
the ones found upon their planet's thin inhabitable ring).
Arl was a political powerhouse even then, and had made
the list of populations to contact in order to trade
valuable technologies in exchange for equally valuable
access to Akiton's plentiful rare ores. As others prepared
their descent to the planet's surface, one vessel landed
before the great gates of Arl, and its occupants
disembarked, bearing gifts to the leaders of the city.
That is when Arl attacked. Having received warning via
magic of the strangers' imminent arrival, Arl mustered its
forces of holy knights and great high priests under the
guise of a welcoming committee, quickly overwhelmed the
surprised Vercites, and stole onto their ship. They knew
such a wondrous flying machine capable of traversing the
spheres must have impressive technology indeed, and it
was within the ship's deepest decks that they hit the
jackpot: a Vercite navigation system.
The device was unhooked as gently as the priests of Arl
could muster, along with one of the ship's power
generators, and secreted away deep under their massive
ziggurat temple. It took weeks of work to get the device in
working order, and upon its reactivation, the machine's
output screens ran with complex and alien symbols. As it
attempted to communicate, the assorted outer machinery
folded away, revealing a humanoid torso, stripped of its
limbs and unnecessary sensory flesh, suspended in a tank
of fluids and hooked directly to the technology they had
stolen. It lived. It breathed. And more importantly: it
thought.
As the priests jabbered, the man-machine hybrid quickly
deciphered their alien speech, eventually hacking into its
own auditory systems to communicate with the redskinned strangers. It gave its name (a complex equation
Arl's most science-minded citizens regard as a holy formula
and work to this day to decipher), and asked what the
priests required. Overjoyed, the priests spent months
inputting their own data, while the man-machine
processed the information into its own databanks,
frequently correcting errors in the priest's own
calculations and factoring in its own on-board star-charts.

Within half a year, the priests had taught it all they knew,
and made their request to divine the will of the gods.
The machine began its formulation, outputting data onto
its viewscreens, including a centrally-located multiwheeled representation of Arl's divine order. With each
calculation, the wheels moved, representing the rising and
setting of the various key players in Arl's celestial order. It
constantly required more information, from the broad to
the oddly specific. Births and deaths across Arl were
dutifully recorded and provided, as were sacred dreams of
the priesthood, large trade agreements, and, in one
instance, the travel patterns of one stone mason over the
course of thirteen days. All the while, output poured from
the machine's many screens.
The God Machine, as the high priests dubbed it, has to
this day performed admirably. It predicted the ascent of
Thurok Novelian thirty-three years before his birth, and
accurately timed his demise, from accidental allergy, to
the millisecond. Factoring in tectonic motion, it
forewarned of a massive earthquake in time for the
populace to shore up their homes and businesses,
preventing a massive tragedy. However, two factors hinder
its ability to directly aid the high priests in their
endeavors.
The first is simple time and entropy: as parts of the God
Machine fail, the priests must constantly seek out
replacements, often at exorbitant cost from the techpriests of Akiton or the Vercites themselves. Most of the
God Machine's output screens have broken down and been
replaced, often by crude printing devices of Arl's own
design, and the Machine's power source, once considered
eternal, will eventually fail as its core begins to melt
down. Jury-rigged power supplies made from old tech and
Akiton's subterranean gases will only delay the inevitable,
and the priests worry that if they directly trade the
Vercites for a ship's generator, their violent initial
encounter will be discovered and they will be devastated
by fire from an orbiting vessel in retribution.
The second development is the God Machine's own everexpanding aloofness. At first, it seemed eager to receive
and transmit the massive volumes of data that kept Arl
running smoothly. But over the last century, it has become
more and more withdrawn, accepting new input but often
ignoring priests' requests for divination. Oblique
references in its now-rare communications indicate that it
has made contact with the Godmind of Axis, the dreaming
terrors of the Dark Tapestry, or both, and its readings
become more esoteric and oblique with each passing year.
What little information it now presents seems to deal
exclusively with the Origin Formula, a sort of allencompassing mathematical calculation designed to
understand the birthing of the multiverse, and the
Contraction, the eventual end of all things. Both cause
concern in the priests of Arl, who are every day being
shown the futility and unimportance of their universe,
their gods, their planet, their city, and even their very
lives.
As word has slowly leaked out from Arl of the existence
of the God Machine, the tech-priests of Akiton have grown
increasingly curious about its design, and how they might
make their own or, barring that, steal it. They know Arl's
theocratic government would never willingly surrender the

device, and access to it is strictly regimented. However, if

they could claim the God Machine as their own, the payoff
would be astronomical. After all, if this machine can
factor into account the movement of countless heavenly
bodies, the lives and deaths of billions, and the divine will
of the gods, surely it could advance technology at
astounding rates of speed and efficiency. Akiton could
become a technical paradise, outstripping mighty Verces
and even the malevolent genius of Eox and become a
beacon of mechanical advancement across the solar
system and beyond. But Arl retains its death grip on the
amazing machine. Anyone brave and foolhardy enough to
steal the device and find a way to ship it to the techpriests would be in for a payday indeed.

Princess Verrish and Kol Voss

Hailing from Arl's loosely-controlled hinterlands, Princess
Verrish and her brother Kol Voss are leaders among the
barbaric peoples who still hold true to Akiton's ancient
ways of life, paying lip-service to Arl's established
hierarchy while roaming free as nomads, shepherds, and,
when the opportunity presents itself, raiders. Since
Princess Verrish's marriage to the late Golarion native, the
former thurok Prince Odrian, she has set aside her savage
ways and become an adept politician, and the political
upheaval that rocked Arl a year ago has thrust her into the
position of supreme leadership, a job she has handled far
better than any of Arl's priesthood had expected.
Kol Voss, for his part, yearns for all of Arl to depose the
current theocracy, whom he knows as servants to foreign
gods, manipulating the common folk for their own
betterment and robbing the people of their true freedom
and heritage. He has seen this influence firsthand, as his
sister, who once rode the badlands astride her mighty
thook, now sits upon a gilt throne, listening to the
whispers of soft city-folk and dancing to a tune played by
greedy and deluded theocrats. Still, he loves his sister, and
knows he lacks the natural leadership qualities to see the
powers that be overthrown, so he whispers himself, hoping
that Verrish will see the error of her ways, throw down the
corrupt priesthood, and lead her people to a new and
glorious age.
Princess Verrish is sympathetic to her brother's
viewpoint, but is more concerned with the overall wellbeing of her people instead of a complete overthrow of
Arl's extant government. Verrish sees much to love in her
city-state, and works daily to impose mild reforms to
weaken the priest caste and create a society with more
opportunity for upward mobility. To Arl's priests, this idea
is more dangerous than simple revolution, and she finds
herself fighting on multiple fronts, attempting to maintain
her overwhelming popular support and build political
alliances while fending off opposition from the more
entrenched priests. To this end, she seeks allies from
outside Arl's established hierarchyincluding foreignersto
invoke the changes Arl richly deserves.
Verrish also fears that the priestsArch-Priest Haluun in
particularmay stoop to desperate measures, up to and
including assassination, to depose her. A group of powerful
allies able to defend her from such threats would be well
worth the investment, and such heroescould expect great
rewards and places of honor in the new, glorious regime.

Special Note: The Invictus

A combination of advanced tech-priest design and stolen

Vercite technology, the Invictus is far and away the largest
war barge ever built. Not only a weapon of war, it is also a
mobile city, propaganda tool, and fearsome deterrent. The
Invictus has been fielded only three times in its 530-year
history and has only had to fire its battery of cannons
once; since that time, the mere sight of the massive ship
on the horizon sends envoys of a besieged city-state suing
for peace. The ship is crewed by specially-trained Blessed
Scions functioning outside of but subservient to Arl's
theocratic regime whose loyalty is assured by potent
magic; serving on the Invictus is considered one of the
highest honors that can be bestowed on an Arlian citizen.
The ship's lowest deck is 30 ft. high and is reserved for
the engine rooms, hangars, and bay doors (hardness 20,
960 hp, break DC 40) to load and unload tanks, soldiers, or
supplies. The second deck houses the cannons, crew, and
soldiers, and the third deck houses the pulverizer cannons,
officers and armory; each of these decks is 15 ft. tall. The
fourth deck is mostly flat save for the control cabin at the
rear of the ship, allowing soldiers to fire upon targets on
the ground or on walls of a besieged structure. The control
cabin itself is 15 ft. tall, and has a covered observation
deck for additional soldiers to fire on opponents.
Command on the Invictus is similar to that of Arl, though
run by high-ranking Blessed Scions in lieu of priests. Few,
if any, priests wish to be assigned to serve their empire
and their faith so far away from the comforts of their lofty
position. This is the sole exception to Arl's theocratic chain
of command, and some clerics worry that leadership
without the direct guiding hand of the priest caste could
lead to dangerous independence, but none of them worry
enough to take command of the ship, relying instead on
the potency of geas spells to maintain their control.

The Invictus
Colossal land vehicle
Squares 3,000 (150 ft. by 500 ft.); Cost
DEFENSE

AC 2; Hardness 20
hp 120,000 (5,999)
Base Save +4
OFFENSE

Maximum Speed 120 ft.; Acceleration 30 ft.

CMB +8; CMD 18
Ramming Damage 20d8
DESCRIPTION

This entire ship is made of magically reinforced,

adamantine-plated mithral, and its sides are painted
with stunning frescoes displaying the might of Arl and
the Azlanti empire. During wartime, the Invictus carries
6 Vercite hovertanks and 2,000 soldiers. In its standard
peacetime capacity, the Invictus instead carries 250
soldiers and up to 1,000 tons of cargo; its hovertank
complement remains aboard to serve as scouts or to
deliver emergency supplies to Arl's more distant
communities.
Propulsion alchemical (50 squares of alchemical engines
in the bottom deck at the fore and aft rooms of the ship;
hardness 20, hp 1,000)

Driving Check Profession (pilot) or Knowledge (geography)

+10 to the DC
Forward Facing the ship's forward
Driving Device control panel
Driving Space the eight squares in the front of the pilot's
cabin
Crew 250
Decks 4
Weapons 60 masterwork hellion storm cannons are
positioned in two banks on the port and starboard sides
of the ship, and two masterwork pulverizer cannons (see
below) are positioned in one bank on the fore of the
ship. The siege engines may only fire out the sides of the
ship they are positioned on.

New Siege Weapon: Pulverizer Cannon

Pulverizer cannons are Gargantuan direct-fire siege
weapons designed for firing at stationary targets. A vehicle
equipped with pulverizer cannons must remain stationary
for one round before firing, so a stationary vehicle firing a
pulverizer cannon can fire once every other round. A
pulverizer cannon has a range of 1 mile and fires in a
straight line. Pulverizer cannons are direct-fire weapons,
but target a 5-foot square, and if the target moves before
the pulverizer fires, the attack is considered an automatic
miss (though the pulverizer missiles may still strike a
target in a straight line behind the intended target
squares).
On a successful hit, a pulverizer missile ignores the first
10 points of hardness and does 500d6 (average 1,750 hp)
points of damage. If the damage dealt is in excess of the
target squares' hit points, that section is destroyed, and
excess damage is transferred to the next 5-foot square in
the line, doing so until there is either no solid object or
until no excess damage remains. If there is no solid object
comprising the 5-foot square next in the line, the effect is
instead a 15-foot cone of shrapnel that deals 10d6 points
of damage to anything in its area of effect (DC 20 Reflex
save for half).
Pulverizer cannons are not designed to fire at living
creatures, but can still injure or kill a creature in its line
of fire. A creature in the line of fire of a pulverizer missile
may attempt a DC 20 Reflex save; immobilized creatures
automatically fail this save. If a Pulverizer missile hits a
Huge or larger creature, it does 100d6 points of damage
(average 350 hp) and explodes in a 5-foot radius, dealing
5d6 points of damage (DC 20 Reflex save for half). If a
pulverizer missile hits a Large or smaller creature, that
creature takes 20d6 points of damage and is knocked
prone; the missile continues traveling in a straight line
until it hits an object or creature large enough to
detonate it, in which case it functions as described above,
or until it reaches its maximum range and disarms. On a
successful save, a creature of any size dodges the missile
and takes no damage.
Pulverizer cannons should not be available on the open
market, but some PCs and GMs may want costs listed, so
cost suggestions are given here. A pulverizer cannon
should cost at least 50,000 gp and can only be mounted on
a Colossal vehicle or object of at least 100 ft. x 100 ft. in
size. A pulverizer missile costs at least 1,000 gp and
weighs 1,000 pounds.

The Crew of the Invictus

The crew of the Invictus is primarily made up of 5th-level
experts; these crewmembers generally flee if attacked,
but if cornered or if it looks as though the ship will be
taken over, they will fight to the death rather than
surrender. Officers and soldiers aboard the ship, however,
eagerly engage in combat, calling for reinforcements
before attempting to repel, capture, or slay any boarders.
Statistics for some of the senior officers and soldiers are
provided below.

CAPTAIN TULONIC VURRASK

XP 12,800

CR 11

Female middle-aged Akitoni human arcane duelist bard 12

LN Medium humanoid (human)
Init +3; Senses Perception +15
DEFENSE

AC 20, touch 14, flat-footed 18 (+5 armor, +1 deflection,

+3 Dex, +1 natural, +1 shield)
hp 62 (12d8)
Fort +5, Ref +12, Will +9
OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.
Melee +2 longsword +14/+9 (1d8+3/19-20)
Ranged mwk revolver +13/+8 (1d8/x4)
Special Attacks bardic performance 30 rounds/day
(bladethirst +3, dirge of doom, distraction, fascinate,
inspire competence +4, inspire courage +3, inspire
greatness, soothing performance)
Bard Spells Known (CL 12th; concentration +16)
4 (4/day)dimension door, freedom of movement,
greater invisibility, hold monster
3 (5/day)cure serious wounds, displacement, haste,
see invisibility
2 (6/day)blindness/deafness, calm emotions, cure
moderate wounds, hold person, mirror image
1 (6/day)charm person, cure light wounds,
comprehend languages, expeditious retreat, grease,
identify
0 (at will)detect magic, know direction, light, mage
hand, message, read magic
STATISTICS

Str 12, Dex 16, Con 11, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 18
BAB +9; CMB +12 (+14 disarm); CMD 23 (25 vs. disarm)
Feats Agile Blade*, Agile Maneuvers, Arcane Strike,
Combat CastingB, Combat Expertise, DisruptiveB, Dodge,
Improved Disarm, SpellbreakerB, Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobatics +18, Intimidate +19, Knowledge
(engineering) +18, Knowledge (geography) +21,
Linguistics +6, Perception +15, Perform (oratory) +19,
Profession (pilot) +21, Spellcraft +15
Languages Akitoni, Azlanti, Edaian, Low Arl, Shobhad
SQ arcane armor, arcane bond (longsword), bardic
knowledge +6
Combat Gear wand of cure moderate wounds (17
charges); Other Gear +1 mithral shirt, masterwork
buckler, +2 longsword, masterwork revolver with 24
bullets, amulet of natural armor +1, belt of incredible
dexterity +2, cloak of resistance +1, ring of protection
+1, captain's outfit worth 500 gp
*See the New Rules PDF.

Tulonic Vurrask is the 71 st and current captain of the

Invictus, and the second-youngest to hold the position,
after the Invictus' first captain, the near-legendary
Veldreccia Khass. A gifted officer among the Blessed
Scions, Vurrask seemed destined from birth to succeed,
and while she takes great pride in her current position,
she also realizes it for what it is: the death knell of her
career. The Invictus hasnt been fielded in over 150 years,
and hasn't fired her guns in an offensive action for over
four and a half times that long. Being the captain of a ship
that even mindless monsters refuse to attack means that
Vurrask's military genius will never be tested. Because of
this, Vurrask has secretly thrown in her lot with Hegstrom
the Godtouched, hoping that his radical politics will give
her an opportunity to test her martial mettleeven if it's
in a civil war against her own people.

FIRST MATE K'HYMM

XP 9,600

CR 10

Male Akitoni human gunslinger 11

NE Medium humanoid (human)
Init +5; Perception +16
DEFENSE

AC 25, touch 20, flat-footed 16 (+5 armor, +1 deflection,

+5 Dex, +4 dodge)
hp 81 (11d10+11)
Fort +9, Ref +13, Will +6
OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.
Melee mwk longsword +13 (1d8+1/19-20)
Ranged +1 revolver +16/+11 (1d8+6/x4) and +1 revolver
+16 (1d8+6/x4) or
+1 revolver +18 (1d8+6/x4)
Special Attacks deeds (bleeding wound, deadeye, dead
shot, gunslinger's dodge, gunslinger initiative, pistolwhip, quick clear, startling shot, targeting, utility shot),
grit 2/day, gun training (revolver, rifle, shotgun)
STATISTICS

Str 12, Dex 20, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 15, Cha 8
BAB +11; CMB +12; CMD 27
Feats Deadly Aim, Dodge, GunsmithingB, Improved Precise
Shot, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, Snap
Shot, Two Weapon Fighting, Weapon Focus (revolver)
Skills Acrobatics +19, Intimidate +10, Knowledge
(engineering) +14, Knowledge (geography) +9, Knowledge
(local) +11, Perception +16, Profession (pilot) +16
Languages Akitoni, Low Arl
Combat Gear 2 potions of cure serious wounds; Other
Gear +1 mithral shirt, 2 +1 revolvers with 60 bullets,
belt of incredible dexterity +2, cloak of resistance +1,
ring of protection +1, officer's outfit worth 300 gp
First Mate K'hymm is a man ruled by ambition. Born of
common stock, K'hymm proved exceptionally adept at
firearms and sandship piloting, allowing him to climb Arl's
only ladder to political powerthe Blessed Scions. K'hymm
is bound by geas to obey his superior's commands, as are
all the Invictus' crew, but K'hymm is nothing if not crafty
about increasing his own wealth and prestige while still
remaining within the bounds of his magically-enforced
orders. Captain Vurrask is unaware of her first mate's
schemes, much to the frustration of the ship's crew.

VERCITE TANK CREWMEMBER

XP 1,600

CR 5 Vercite Hovertank

Akitoni human gunslinger 6

LN Medium humanoid (human)
Init +5; Perception +12
DEFENSE

AC 22, touch 17, flat-footed 15 (+5 armor, +5 Dex, +2

dodge)
hp 37 (6d10)
Fort +5, Ref +9, Will +5
OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.
Melee mwk longsword +8 (1d8+1/19-20)
Ranged +1 revolver +11/+6 (1d8+4/x4)
Special Attacks deeds (deadeye, gunslinger's dodge,
gunslinger initiative, pistol-whip, quick clear, utility
shot), grit 3/day, gun training (revolver, rifle)
STATISTICS

Str 12, Dex 18, Con 10, Int 13, Wis 16, Cha 8
BAB +6; CMB +7; CMD 21
Feats Expert Driver, GunsmithingB, Point Blank Shot, Siege
Gunner, Siege Weapon Engineer, Skilled Driver (land
vehicles)
Skills Craft (machines) +10, Heal +9, Knowledge
(engineering) +10, Knowledge (geography) +7, Perception
+12, Profession (pilot) +12 (+16 land vehicles), Survival
+9
Languages Akitoni, Low Arl, Vercite
Combat Gear 3 potions of cure light wounds, potion of
cat's grace; Other Gear +1 mithral shirt, +1 revolver
with 24 bullets, gunsmith's kit, healer's kit, masterwork
repair tools, pilot's outfit worth 50 gp
Arl's Vercite tank crews are comprised of elite members of
the Blessed Scions, soldiers with specialized training in the
maintenance and use of exotic and complex Vercite
technology. Blessed Scions who show impressive aptitude
during sandship pilot training are taken out of their basic
classes and put under a special regimen that includes
mechanics, repair, survival skills, and training in the
Vercite language. Graduates are assigned to one of Arl's
dozen or so hovertanks, which they pilot with their
teammates in regular three-months-on, nine-months off
rotations, spending their remaining time serving aboard
standard sandships as mechanics or soldiers.
Due to the extremely limited number of hovertanks
under Arl's direct command, the actual number of
hovertank crewmembers is extremely limited. Each
hovertank has a total of four teams of three crewmembers
assigned to it, with new positions opening up only when a
crewmember is promoted, dies, or retires (mandatory
after fifteen full-year rotations). This means that, at any
given time, there are no new hovertank pilots undergoing
training, leaving skilled sandship trainees to work their
way up the usual chain of command under the Blessed
Scions. Some pilots have clamored for a reform of the
system to allow the cream of the crop to get their training
regardless of available openings, but Arl's staunchly
traditionalist hierarchy has consistently dismissed such
requests.
The statistics above are for an average crewmember;
other, more ace crews certainly exist.

Gargantuan land vehicle

Squares 16 (20 ft. by 20 ft.); Cost 100,000 gp
DEFENSE

AC 6; Hardness 15
hp 640 (319)
Base Save +4
OFFENSE

Maximum Speed 150 ft.; Acceleration 60 ft.

CMB +4; CMD 14
Ramming Damage 4d8
DESCRIPTION

Stolen from the Vercite Holdings, these hovertanks fetch

astronomical prices on the open market. Each is powered
by advanced hover technology, providing it with
impressive speed and maneuverability. A circular hatch
on the roof of the turret provides access to the interior
of the vehicle, where there are positions for a driver,
copilot, and gunner. As long as the hovertank is
functioning, creatures within the hovertank looking
through its viewscreens are considered to have
darkvision 120 ft. and low-light vision, if they did not
already. The interior is sized for Vercites, leaving the
cabin feeling surprisingly roomy to most Medium-sized
creatures. A single creature can pilot the ship, but in
addition to the penalties for piloting a craft with less
than a full crew complement, the tank is considered
staggered.
Propulsion alchemical (4 squares of alchemical engines in
the bottom center of the tank; hardness 20, hp 80)
Driving Check Profession (pilot) or Knowledge (geography)
+10 to the DC; creatures unable to read Vercite take a -5
penalty to these checks
Forward Facing the ship's forward
Driving Device control panel
Driving Space the eight squares in the front of the pilot's
cabin
Crew 2
Decks 1
Weapons 2 Large direct-fire siege engines or 1 Huge siege
engine in one bank (typically 1 hellion storm cannon)
positioned on the turret of the ship. The siege engines
may be swiveled to fire in any direction.
When crewed by 3 Vercite tank crewmembers and
equipped with a hellion storm cannon (the standard crew
and armament for Arl's hovertanks), the Vercite
hovertank's combat statistics are as follows:

VERCITE HOVERTANK
Gargantuan land vehicle
Init +4; Senses darkvision 120 ft., low-light vision;
Perception +12
DEFENSE

AC 22, touch 6 (+16 Profession, -4 size); Hardness 15

hp 640 (319)
Fort +12, Ref +12
OFFENSE

Maximum Speed 150 ft.; Acceleration 60 ft.

Ranged hellion storm cannon +10 (8d6/x4)
CMB +20; CMD 30
Ramming Damage 4d8