''Ghostwalk'' is a book that introduced a campaign setting for the 3rd edition of the ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical Studies Rules ...

'' game, similar to

Forgotten Realms ''Forgotten Realms'' is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a ...

Dragonlance ''Dragonlance'' is a shared universe created by Laura and Tracy Hickman, and expanded by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis under the direction of TSR, Inc. into a series of fantasy novels. The Hickmans conceived ''Dragonlance'' while driving in t ...

. Unlike most other ''D&D'' settings, ''Ghostwalk'' was designed to be released as a single book which would contain all the material for the world.

The central locale for the ''Ghostwalk'' setting is a city called Manifest, a mausoleum city built atop a geological feature known as the Veil of Souls which leads the spirits of the departed to the True Afterlife. In the immediate surroundings of the city of Manifest, the ghosts of the dead may cross the barrier into the land of the living and interact with their loved ones as translucent beings forged of ectoplasm. The bodies of these ghosts are marked by whatever injuries killed them and often driven by some craving for some aspect of the living world, such as food or music. A manifested ghost may fairly easily be returned to his body by resurrection magic and so in the City of Manifest one may die a great many times and be returned to his body with no harmful side effects. The one danger in exploring the other side of death as a ghost is the Calling, an unshakable urge that overcomes ghosts at some point in their unlife that drives them to forsake the world and pass into the True Afterlife. Such a transition is permanent and marks the end of a character While all sentient races have spirits, only the human and demihuman races (

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

half-elf A half-elf is a mythological or fictional being, the offspring of an immortal elf and a mortal human. They are often depicted as very beautiful and endowed with magical powers; they may be presented as torn between the two worlds that they inhab ...

, half-orc,

elf An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes "ligh ...

gnome A gnome is a mythological creature and diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, first introduced by Paracelsus in the 16th century and later adopted by more recent authors including those of modern fantasy literature. Its characte ...

dwarf Dwarf or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a being from Germanic mythology and folklore * Dwarf, a person or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a humanoid ...

, and

halfling Halflings are a fictional race found in some fantasy novels and games. They are often depicted as similar to humans except about half as tall, and are not quite as stocky as the similarly-sized dwarves. Similar to the depiction of hobbits in the w ...

) can travel to Manifest and live again as ghosts. A great many nonhuman races are jealous of this gift, and have sought to destroy Manifest throughout its history. Several times they have succeeded, razing the city to the ground, forcing it to be rebuilt atop its own ruins. This has resulted in an underworld of forgotten catacombs, all that is left of the many cities left behind. Below these are vast natural caverns and tunnels that increase in size and complexity surrounding the Veil of Souls. All of these are filled with all manner of monsters and villains, but also treasures lost. Hence Manifest is home to adventurers as well as mourners and the dead Of the enemies of the City of Manifest, perhaps the most persistent are the Yuan-ti, snake people who long for power and immortality and thus hate everything the city stands for.

Chapter summary

Introduction: Includes information on the campaign options and the general concept of Ghostwalk and the city of Manifest itself. # All About Ghosts.: Contains information on the nature of Ghosts presented in the book as well as their characteristics and powers. The two ghost classes are introduced: The Eidolon and Eidoloncer as well as several prestige classes involving ghosts. New Skills and Feats are also introduced as well as new equipment, spells and magical items. #The City of Manifest Has information on the City itself as well as its history and new gods unique to the setting. Information on adventures and the city's lay out and workings is also provided. # The ''Ghostwalk'' Campaign: Provides information on how to run adventures in the setting as well as themes and enemies often encountered. # Countries: Documents countries that exist around the city of Manifest and their relationship to the city. # Monsters : Contains several new monsters for use in the campaign: #*Artaaglith (Demon) #*Bonesinger (Template) #*Dread Ram #*Ectoplasmic Vermin #*Fire Spectre #*Ghost (Template) #*Ghosteater #*Monstrous Vampire (Template) #*Mumia (Template) #*Necroplasm #*Spectral Seed #*Spirit Tree #*Undead Martyr #*Yuan-Ti (Template) # Adventures : Contains seven adventures to get started in the city of Manifest that range from level one to twelve.

Publication history

''Ghostwalk'' was published in June 2003, and was written by

Monte Cook Monte Cook is an American professional tabletop role-playing game designer and writer, best known for his work on ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Role-playing industry career Early years Cook has been a professional game designer since 1988, worki ...

and Sean K. Reynolds. Cover art was by Brom, with interior art by

Thomas Baxa Thomas M. Baxa is an artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Biography Tom Baxa grew up in the suburbs of Chicago. He enrolled at Northern Illinois University, where he studied under comic and fantasy artist Mark Nelson. Works To ...

Dennis Cramer Justine Mara Andersen (born Dennis Cramer) is an American artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games and comic books. Works Justine Mara Andersen, has produced interior illustrations for many ''Dungeons & Dragons'' books and ''Dragon (ma ...

Michael Dutton Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...

Emily Fiegenschuh Emily Fiegenschuh is an artist and children's book illustrator whose work has also appeared in role-playing games. Early life and education Emily Fiegenschuh attended art school at the Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota, Florida, and ...

Jeremy Jarvis Jeremy Jarvis is an artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Early life and education Jeremy Jarvis grew up in a small town in Alabama, and moved to New York City right after high school just before his eighteenth birthday. There, he ...

David Martin David or Dave Martin may refer to: Entertainment *David Martin (artist) (1737–1797), Scottish painter and engraver *David Stone Martin (1913–1992), American artist *David Martin (poet) (1915–1997), Hungarian-Australian poet and novelist *Dav ...

, Puddnhead,

Vinod Rams Vinod Rams is an American artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Early life and education Vinod Rams attended the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan. He did product design at the Franklin Mint in Philadelphia, Penns ...

Wayne Reynolds Wayne Reynolds is a British artist whose work has appeared in comics and role-playing games. Early life and education Wayne Reynolds was born in Leeds, UK. He attended art college in Dewsbury and Middlesbrough. Games Wayne Reynolds has continue ...

Scott Roller Scott Roller is an artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Career His '' Dungeons & Dragons'' work includes interior art for '' Monster Manual II'' (2002), ''Savage Species'' (2003), '' Arms and Equipment Guide'' (2003), '' Ghostwal ...

Richard Sardinha Richard Sardinha is an American artist based in Providence, Rhode Island, whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Works Richard Sardinha has been illustrating books since the 1980s. He provided the art work for ''At Lovecraft's Grave'' (re ...

, and

Ron Spencer Ron Spencer is an American illustrator whose most famous work has been for the collectible card game '' Magic: The Gathering''.Felt, Kevin (December 17, 2007). "Painter of 'Magic' cards inspiring random acts of kindness", ''San Gabriel Valley Tri ...

. Sean Reynolds explained where the idea came from, to make it possible to play a dead

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

as a

ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to rea ...

: "I think it was just a matter of Monte and me understanding that one of the least fun parts of the game is when a character dies. Not only is there a feeling of loss regarding the character, but also the player doesn't have anything to do until a new character can be brought in. We thought a campaign where a character's death wouldn't be the end of play for that character or player would be a neat twist on standard ''D&D''."

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*''

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References

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