The Grand Highway is a meta-setting suitable for many fantasy roleplaying games, including the 5th edition of the world’s most popular fantasy RPG.
This winding, ancient roadway ties together a variety of fascinating communities. In some sections, the path is broad and paved with fine cobblestone and brick, gleaming in the sun. In others, it takes the form of a meager and overgrown cart rail through impassable terrain. Villages, outposts, ruins, farms, and cities line the route. Some are inhabited by festive and hardy townsfolk, eager to pass on news or share their limited resources. Others may contain dark secrets or temptations.
For one long stretch of the Highway, the King’s River (though no one knows which King) parallels the promenade. Enterprising travelers may catch a ride up or down the river on barges or small fishing boats.
Bridges are common along the river, but there is debate over the value of leaving the main thoroughfare.
It is common to meet strange people who may claim to be from other realms or worlds. They may not speak a familiar language. Be guarded. Be open.
What lies at the end of this ancient promenande?
The Eternal Shrine, a gleaming marble edifice surrounded by a bustling city of pilgrims and individuals, is the desire of all who journey this path. The Shrine, once reached, is unique to each PC once they step inside to its mystery. Will they find a cosmic answer to their longing? Will they gain power and wisdom? Will they find nothing but empty prayers?
Assumptions
At its core, the Grand Highway allows DMs to tie together adventures from a variety of settings without any explanation. This was something I always desired when I DMed in my initial years, pulling ideas and resources from various magazines, modules, and other sources. There should be no explanation for these sudden shifts. It simply is. Such is a journey through the strange world and way that is the Grand Highway.
Utilize these resources as inspiration.
If a player, through their character inquires about such inconsistencies, they should face the unknowable that is life and existence.
History
No one knows how they get to the Grand Highway, but they know somewhere at its end they will arrive at the Eternal Shrine, a booming city and religious center that greets travelers from across existence. If an adventurer finds themselves traversing the route, they instantly sense this and feel drawn to complete their journey.
Game Translation: Whenever a PC comes across the Grand Highway, they gain an internal compass of sorts that points them toward the Eternal Shrine. That may mean nothing to them, but even if they stray from the path or become disoriented, this compass draws them to the Shrine.
A few truths then to consider:
- Every PC who arrives in the Grand Highway knows they are not home – they have traversed into a foreign place.
- They also instantly sense the pull of the Eternal Shrine however.
- There is a strangeness in this – they are not surprised at weird sights even as they can recognize it is weird.
There are no monsters along the Grand Highway. Every living creature has a role, a personality, a purpose for existence – even if it is to survive another day. Of course, many beings choose desperate measures to gain nourishment or embrace paths of evil for their own reasons. Most living creatures, even if rumored to be violent and villainous in other realms, desire to live a peaceful life. Murder is a violation of life like anywhere else, discouraged and punished by whatever justice systems exist.
Wild creatures, of course, exist. Whether a rabbit or a giant lizard, these creatures have a beautiful and animated existence – seeking to find food for the day, safety for the night, and an ability to procreate. They will defend their lairs or flee from danger.
The greatest need for all communities along the Highway is food. Daily sustenance is scarce. Droughts and disease are common. As such, farmland can be jealously guarded, and wild game and livestock are highly sought after. This need for food brings many creatures into conflict and forces normally pacifist people to desperate measures. PCs should be prepared to spend an exorbitant price for a decent meal.
It is important to take seriously ration management in this world.
OTHERIAL
Two kinds of entities do mar the fabric of this realm – undead and OTHERIAL.
To force one who has died to reexist is considered a profound violation of the principles of the Grand Highway. Undead are seen as a threat to the stability and order of this strange place.
The OTHERIAL are an unknown entity, seeking to claw its way into this world for purposes unknown. While some who have encountered an OTHERIAL or someone touched by the OTHERIAL call it a shadow, there is not an easy description. A few have described the color or eyes of those in the thrall of the OTHERIAL as spaces between stars. Others have seen tentacles, claws, spikes, and gaping maws that defy any sense.
The party will meet fragments of the OTHERIAL throughout their journey and those who have decided to serve it.
Modifications to Game Rules
Here is the basic that you need to know.
When PCs kill another living thing, even in self-defense, they only gain 1/2 of the XP from such an action. Death has a different weight, even against creatures that in other worlds might be considered mortal enemies.
Undead and OTHERIAL creatures do not fall under this penalty however. They aren’t living and are considered affronts to the natural and moral laws of the place.
Resolving a conflict in non-violent means or by incapacitating their opponents is rewarded with full XP.
All creatures, even those who are evil, prefer to parlay before resorting to violence. Some entities may try to trick or take advantage of a wary traveler, but many are just as disoriented and confused as the PCs are. Knowledge about the route, safe places to sleep, where to find sustenance, and valuable resources are more than enough to come to some agreement around safe passage.
We will introduce a new parlay rule to accommodate this. The leader of the party is allowed to roll or designate to someone else. The roller’s Charisma bonus (or equivalent) is added to the D20. If the roller or a party member speaks a language shared by the encountered entities, a +4 bonus is given. If the party offer a gift, a +4 bonus is added to the roll. If the party undertakes a consistent method to an encounter with an unfamiliar creature or group, for example by sending one player slightly ahead, waving a white flag or signaling for a parlay in some culturally appropriate manner, a +1 is added to the roll. (If they keep at this, tick the bonus up.)
Likewise, if the party has killed creatures or entities they have encountered within the past 48 hours, they are hit with a -4 penalty to this roll. (This does not apply if the creatures killed were undead or OTHERIAL.) If the party attempts to ambush, surprise, or make a show of strength or force, a -2 is added to the roll.
| Roll | Outcome |
| 4 or below | Instant enemies. Battle likely ensues. The party is suspected to be OTHERIAL. |
| 5-12 | Hostile. Those encountered will refuse to parlay without a significant action to build bridges. At best, they hold their ground and wait cautiously. At worst, they prepare to protect themselves. |
| 12-19 | Suspicious. There is no trust, and those encountered are reticent to engage without some universal sign of respect. Those capable of fighting are on guard, and there is an expectation that the party will attempt some sort of communication. |
| 20 (Natural) | On a natural 20, the encountered entity will coolly ignore the party, allowing them to pass by unmolested. Of course, that could change if the PCs press the point or try to engage. |
| 21-28 | Curious. The encountered creatures will seek to know more of the party, their travels, and what they can speak of the landscape. There is still a detached air. |
| 29-35 | Hospitable. The encountered creatures may invite the party, according to their customs and traditions, into their camp, to share knowledge and some sort of refreshment. |
| 36+ | Respect. The creatures encountered see the party as potential allies and formidable presences in this unfamiliar place. They will seek to develop terms of mutual support or defense if appropriate and readily trade resources and share what they can. |
Bargetown
Halfway through the brutal journey, the strange sprawling town of Bargetown unfolds before the adventurers. A ramshackle assortment of shacks and sheds hover near the King’s River bank. Here, working class folk, many who ply their trades fishing or ferrying goods or passengers along the river, eke out a meager existence. On the cliffs over looking the river town, the more prominent estates cast a judgment on those below.
Close to the pock-marked stones of the Highway is a tavern, Billey’s Respite. With a common room and a couple of private rooms, Billey, an aging halfling innkeeper, welcomes a decently comfortable spot for travelers but does most of her business with townsfolk who come for the cheap food.
Hunger dominates the town. The lack of river traffic, down year over year, has folks
Billey’s Respite is run by Billey, a halfling cook who runs a tight ship, offering a daily stew that is cheap and nourishing.
