The Mountain of Gold — New Setting & Subclass! Cleric update v1.05!

The Mountain of Gold is situated at the center of the Dragon’s Bane Mountains, and is so-called for the vivid reddish-orange color it glistens as the sun sets. Those who inhabit the mountain range tell stories of how this light comes from the frozen blood of long-dead dragons: a belief that echoes the troubled history of the range itself.

The Mountain of Gold was founded in a time beyond mortal memory, when dragons and giantkin—not mere mortals—dominated the world. It began first as the fortress of Vorgar, the Scourge of Dragons: a giantkin king who waged a tireless and bloody war against the tyrants in the sky. Vorgar’s vast treasure hoard attracted enemies from both without and within. If not for his eventual betrayal of his kin, Vorgar might have survived that bloody age, but alas, his fortress would survive to be conquered by his greatest rival: Avaraxia, an ancient blue dragon of terrifying cunning and strength.

Avaraxia, determined to protect his newfound wealth at all costs, decided to seal the fortress—and himself—behind powerful runes of illusion and enchantment magics. For two thousand years, Avaraxia slept; he dreamt of a future age where he could emerge unfettered by the petty strife of giants and dragons. Eventually, Avaraxia and his mountain fortress passed out of all knowledge. All that remained was the blood-orange echo of his kin’s demise.

When Avaraxia at last awoke, he expected to find the world weak, depleted, and ripe for the taking. Instead, to his dismay, he found it overrun with unfamiliar and alien creatures: humanoids, fey, goblins, and all manner of small-minded and petty creatures who spent their meager and brief lives scrabbling for trinkets and baubles. To make matters worse, his own ilk had become fractured and diminished. Though these mortals were petty, they were many, and Avaraxia was alone. He was forced to realize that he could not conquer this new age through raw strength.

The Mountain of Gold is a renowned bank praised for its impenetrable vaults and esteemed clientele. Little is known about its inner machinations, but there are those that wait for an eternity in its line for a chance to protect their life savings. Amid the gilded halls are shantytowns inhabited by patient line-waiters—but who among them has greater plans for the bank's vaults? Discover how this bank is run, and how to steal from it, with three optional heist questlines featuring several beloved Saddlebag NPCs from previous flavor texts!

This setting includes a new cleric subclass: the Wealth domain! You know firsthand that money paves the way to glory, and you're backed by a divine investor. Turn your enemies to gold, negotiate your way to profit, buy and sell from anywhere, and use unique Wealth points to buy your way to success! This is a really fun utility cleric that will get to shine (like gold!) in long-form adventures.

Speaking of the subclass, here's a reminder that we also have official subclass playtest sessions on the Discord! So please feel welcome to sign up for them and get early looks and hands-on time with them! As always, further revisions will be made here with published updates as they're released!

What's Included:

• 19 pages of magical bank details, heist options, and characters!
• Encounter beloved Saddlebag NPCs, run security forces, and more!
• Bonus maps donated by Cze & Peku!
• 5 new creature statblocks!
• New cleric domain: Wealth! Use your magic to amass your fortune, and buy enhanced powers from your deity with special Wealth points!

Credits

I was responsible for direction, design, and additional editing for this setting. However, this couldn't be possible without extra help. If you like this setting, consider supporting these other incredible creators:

John Webb — Writing

TheArenaGuy — Monster design, editing

Cze & Peku — Maps

Damien Mammoliti — Monster Art & Subclass illustration

Riccardo Piovan — Cover art

Jelke Ludolphij — Additional layout

This release is also made especially possible by the extra generosity of $13+ Legendary Heroes! Thank you all so much for you support, and be proud of your place in the end credits! You've earned it!

Updates

Cleric: Wealth Domain v1.05

• Golden Cauldron now lasts for 1 hour. It also can't be used to buy livestock! I closed another loophole that would let you sell corpses (now listing things you sell as "objects"). Its other limits are unchanged.
• Divine Coffers now upgrades your Cauldron so it can remain until dispelled or defeated. It can also fly when it moves, and you can cast spells through it as though you were in its space as part of the action to move it (instead of using your Hand of Midas).