THE FOUNDATIONISTS
v
1.2
CHAPTER 1: FOUNDATION HISTORY 3
CHAPTER 2: FOUNDATION CHARACTERS 20
The Foundation Today 20
Foundation Classes 24
Foundation Demolitionist 24
Foundation Guardian 25
Foundation Road Jock 26
Foundation Scout 28
Foundation Air Jock 29
Foundation Paladin 30
Dark Paladin 31
Revenant Paladins 31
New Feats 32
Ironclad Hierarchy 34
Medals And Meritorious Awards 40
Regimental Histories 42
Foundation Organization 45
CHAPTER 3: THE CORE 46
Power Generation Technologies 46
Food Technology 48
Medical Technology 49
Space Technologies 51
Eugenics 53
Bionics / Cybernetics 57
Advanced Weapon Technologies 61
The Armory 63
CHAPTER 4: FORTRESSES AND OUTPOSTS 75
Fortress Avernus
DOMINIC COVEY
AND
CHRIS DAVIS
DARWIN
’
S WORLD
CREATED BY
DOMINIC COVEY
COVER ARTIST:
SCOTT CLARK
INTERIOR ARTISTS:
JOHN LONGENBAUGH
DOMINIC COVEY
JEREMY SIMMONS
PROOFREADERS:
ERIC ROUNTREE
CHARLES BAIZE
DAVID JARVIS
DON KIESLING
LAYOUT:
CHRIS DAVIS
DESIGN CONTRIBUTIONS FROM:
CHARLES RICE
CHRIS COVEY
75
Fortress Caina
77
PLAYTESTING SUPPORT:
CHARLES BAIZE
CHRIS DERNER
THOMAS HAINLIN
CHRIS HOOVER
DAVID JARVIS
RYAN KELLEY
Fortress Dis
79
Fortress Minauros
81
CHARLES RICE
ETHAN RIPPLINGER
JOHN SHAW
AARON WIGGINS
CHRIS COVEY
Fortress Nessus
82
Fortress Phlegethos
84
Fortress Stygia
85
Outposts
87
Outpost Hotel
87
Outpost India
89
Outpost Juliett
89
WWW.DARWINRPG.COM
Outpost Kilo
90
Outpost Lima
91
Outpost Mike
92
Outpost November
92
The ‘d20 System’ and the ‘d20 System’ logo are Trademarks owned by Wizards of the Coast and are used according
to the terms of the d20 System License version 1.0a. A copy of this License can be found at www.wizards.com.
Portions of this work are derived from the d20 System Reference Document.
Unrecovered Bases
93
CHAPTER 5: FACTIONS
96
The Foundation
96
The Foundation Symbol
97
d20 Modern(tm) is a trademark of Wizards of the Coast, Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., and is used with
permission. Dungeons & Dragons(R) and Wizards of the Coast(R) are registered trademarks of Wizards of the Coast,
Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., and are used with permission.
The Todoshi Faction - “Dark Paladins”
108
The Revenants
116
Relations
124
DESIGNERS:
THE FOUNDATION
– a name, enough in itself to strike
a mixture of awe, dread, and hatred in the minds
and hearts of the varied peoples, tribes, and warring
factions of the Twisted Earth. Some people know
them only for their unfaltering intent to locate, collect,
horde, and protect the lost artifacts of the Ancients,
to preserve them for a future they call “Eden” – a
time when conditions will be right to lead the way
in the movement to reconstruct the lost civilization
of the Ancients. To some people, the Foundationists
are caretakers of bizarre “holy” objects, inheritors of
a proud religious tradition dangerously on the verge
of being forgotten forever. Their painstaking efforts,
despite the ravages of time and various uncivilized
predators, are the last hope for saving the Twisted
Earth from perpetual anarchy.
To others, however, the Foundation is nothing
more than an abomination of racism, intolerance, and
arrogant superiority. Their legions, terrifying in their
humming powered armor and unreachable as they
ride fantastic flying craft far above the desert sands,
are seen as symbolic of a secret agenda: to covet the
few remaining treasures of technology left on the
Twisted Earth, keeping them to benefit the Foundation
alone. Takers of what few precious resources are left
among the deserts of the wasteland, the Foundationists
have earned for themselves a bitterly resented role as
masters and predators, demanding respect and fear
from the primitive survivors of this dying world.
“We are a brotherhood of men, the sons and grandsons of the Ancients, inheritors of the magnificent
civilization and glory that was theirs before the Great Fall. We will take up their arms, those mighty tools
of war that still bear their fingerprints, and we shall don their coats of armor, gleaming and magical in
their invincible strength, and we will march forth to conquer all. We are given this right – nay, this duty
– by the words of the Ancients themselves in their last days, which proclaim in letters so bold that even
today, centuries after their passing, they cannot be erased or forgotten…’Reclaim from the ashes what was
Ours, rebuild, and bring civilization once more to the world.’”
- From the swearing in ceremony of the Foundation Paladin
with instances of greatness, victory, conquest, and
trials of all kinds. Similarly there is a dark side to
the Foundation, evidence of past atrocities, cruelty
to those who failed to understand (and accept) its
message, and elitism that is only now coming to light.
Combined with strange semi-religious “eccentricities”
and a degenerating understanding of their own roots
and purpose, spawned from centuries of isolation from
the past that they so revere, the Foundation is truly a
unique and fascination entity.
Though often portrayed as a group righteously
dedicated to reviving the honor and glory of the
Ancients, this sourcebook provides a deeper; more
detailed look at the various ideals and principles of
this foremost of
Guardian/Resurrector
communities.
GMs can use this book as a means of introducing
the powerful Foundationist faction into their
campaigns, as enemies, rivals, or even potential allies,
and employers for the characters in your gaming
group. This book also contains enough background
information for characters to join the Foundation and
learn its many secrets, if being part of the drive to
rebuild the past is their ultimate goal.
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
This book,
The Foundationists,
takes a long look at
the organization known as the Foundation, one of the
strongest and most dedicated pseudo-societies on the
Twisted Earth. Like any group or struggling nation,
the Foundation has a mixed and intricate history, rich
2
CHAPTER 1: FOUNDATION HISTORY
up all over the country, and to meet the ever-growing
energy needs of the U.S.), was set to take ten years,
and due to security concerns, in addition to civilian
contractors, the Quartermaster corps would lend a
hand in its oversight and finishing (this wasn’t the
first time that the men of the 689
th
first made contact
with a host of civilian engineers, as the unit had been
assigned similar tasks of oversight and support during
the construction of the nuclear-powered Sacramento
and Redding vaults, as well as the Pyramid Lake algae
mass-cultivation project in neighboring Nevada).
This was during the heyday of American
technological leaps and bounds when, more often
than not, research, development, and construction
teams were headed by superior thinker androids, the
majority of their ranks composed of laborer surrogate
models and automatons. Humans were relegated, to
a large extent, to the maintenance and repair of these
android engineers and staff, making up less than
20% of fielded individuals on a given project. The
689
th
was no different, though in practice many of the
soldier androids had been reassigned to construction
tasks during its tour in California, with humans – far
less efficient in manual roles - being moved to support
positions (as assistants and message-runners to the
engineering teams).
Supervised by the Department of Civil Defense, construction will entail digging an unprecedented half-
mile beneath the familiar landscape above to create the ultimate shelter of the future. Plans for the
Redding vault include three levels of living areas to accommodate up to 500 people, a class A medical
facility complete with surgical theater and volume pharmacy storage, and recreation areas stocked with
games, holographic tapes, and virtually years of pre-recorded television and radio broadcasts to educate
and entertain the shelter’s occupants. Central to the facility is the habitat control center, where all
aspects of the underground shelter can be monitored and tweaked; power, humidity levels, temperature,
and most importantly, regulating the quality of air coming from these six gigantic air reprocessing units,
made by the technology giants at General Electronics. If you think these machines are big, watch as we
go deeper underground, to the technician’s level of this amazing subterranean vault. Here we will find
a 20-acre hydroponic farm, a marvel of botanical science in which ultraviolet light and super-chemicals
work together to accelerate the growth of nutritious and delicious plants and algae, hundreds of feet
underground where there is no sun. Beneath this is the water recycling plant, where waste water from
throughout the vault is brought to be chemically treated and recycled; water from the humidifiers and even
the surrounding bedrock helps to keep the population thirst-free indefinitely! As we continue our tour, we
find even more marvels…
- Your Shelter And You, a film documentary of the Redding vault
The history of the Foundation begins not now, not
a generation ago, but at least two centuries past in
the form of the 689
th
Quartermaster Company of
the United States Army. The true history of this
archaic movement begins during the Fall, during the
cataclysmic Final War, when the order of the Ancients
had been turned on its head by the great Nuclear Wars.
The 689
th
, which had for various reasons resisted
total transformation into an all-android unit, had
been stationed in northern California just prior to the
outbreak of total war, along with two full android
transportation and construction companies. These
units had been assigned to the development and
construction of the massive OTEC energy “pipeline”
that was to connect the continental United States
to a series of offshore OTEC power generation
stations being built in the waters off the California
coast along a geothermal fault line almost 100 miles
out. The 689
th
was part of the force assigned to
oversee the massive construction project on land,
providing necessary support services to the often
remote mountain locations through which this
“pipeline” would travel; first to the coast of Northern
California, then through the Sierras, to the various
substations throughout the Sacramento Valley. This
phenomenal project, which was designed to produce
a virtually limitless form of energy (to complement
the production of fission and fusion reactors springing
THE END IS ONLY THE BEGINNING
The 689
th
was largely embroiled in supporting the
OTEC engineering project when war broke out in
2011. Among of the first targets of conventional
attack were the power production facilities along
both coasts of the continental United States, and the
OTEC facilities and onshore infrastructure were no
exception. Long-range strategic bomber formations,
by virtue of sheer numbers, penetrated past automated
air defenses in droves during the first phase of the
attack, destroying a complex energy grid that provided
for many of the major cities in a number of states.
3
During the initial air raids, 60-80% casualty rates
were inflicted on the units and important military
bases positioned all over the west coast of the United
States (not to mention the east coast, which suffered
similarly catastrophic damage at the outset).
Though the naval bases at Miramar, Alameda,
and San Diego had been some of the most important
first targets in these bomber raids, the U.S. Navy did
manage to muster a sizeable fleet to meet the invaders
at sea and along the coast, in a concerted effort to do
as much damage as possible to the transport ships of
the invasion fleet. But despite the heroic efforts of
the fragmented navy, the invaders were finally able to
win naval and air superiority and land their armies all
along the west coast: at San Diego, Los Angeles, San
Francisco, and Portland.
Considering the sudden and very real threat of the
invaders making progress inland (again, due to the
unexpectedly high casualty rates from a conventional
bombing campaign), units all over California and the
United States were naturally moved toward the two
major fronts – East and West. The 689
th
, already in
California, was immediately pulled from the OTEC
project (indefinitely suspended) and reassigned to
the Sierra Army Depot, 55 miles northwest of Reno,
Nevada. The Depot, located high in the mountains,
was of vital importance to the continued defense of
the West Coast, since it was here that the Army stored
operational stocks and tactical support systems to
sustain its units in the field.
The 689
th
continued to serve in the supply role for
the first four weeks of the war, keeping vital supply
lines open to the robotic units fighting the invaders
on the beaches. Their daily mission of transporting
supplies took them through fiery, bombed-out cities
where the urban populace, shocked awake by the
sudden prospect of war on their own soil, met them
with a combination of violent protest and rage.
Firefights to secure quartermaster supplies, and
ensure the safety of these transport columns, were
not unheard of in the quickly degenerating cities of
California.
In time the armies of the “Pacific Coalition”
managed to take San Diego and move up along
the Pacific coast to Los Angeles, where a string of
heated battles were fought among the bombed-out
urban ruins. Similar gains were being made near San
Francisco, and up north in Portland, the enemy armies
were already driving hard towards Seattle to neutralize
the homeport of the Pacific naval reserves, the boomer
bases, and the nuclear silos of Washington state.
With the fall of the Sierra Army Depot to one
week’s devastating bomber raids, and the subsequent
scattering of supply reserves across a number of
Rocky Mountain states, the 689
th
was pulled from
northern California and reassigned to the 11
th
Signal &
Intel Brigade (Robotic) at Fort Huachaca in Arizona.
The transition was a welcome one for the men of
the 689
th
, who were themselves disillusioned at the
realities of war – though they performed admirably
against air attack and civil disturbance, as well as
battling (in one instance) a Soviet paratroop regiment
dropped behind enemy lines to disrupt supply to the
defending front, the idea of fighting one’s own people,
for any reason, had caused morale among the human
soldiers of the 689
th
to dip low. Though a nationwide
draft had been called to bring human beings into the
defense of their nation, and the size of frontline units
were doubling, support units like the quartermasters
were largely unaffected by either reinforcement or the
ensuing revitalization of morale.
The reassignment to the 11
th
Signal & Intel Brigade
(Robotic) served three main purposes. First it was
an effort to remove the 689
th
from the shrinking
battle lines in California, part of a strategic-level
repositioning of supply depots and restructuring of
supply lines to accommodate the reality of the U.S.
Army’s slow pullback.
Secondly, the High Command (who were
themselves cyborgs operating from the seemingly
invincible shelter of Cheyenne Mountain) recognized
that the vast majority of human elements in all non-
combat formations (and soon the combat formations
as well) were suffering from morale problems, no
doubt brought upon by the growing sense of inevitable
defeat. Units like the 689
th
had been chosen for
a special experiment – the slow replacement of
the upper echelon of human officers with human-
mimicking androids. This, it was believed, would
remove the leadership responsible for failing to
maintain morale in the human ranks, and secretly
replace it with morale-immune surrogates of artificial
design. Put simply, the High Command had lost
faith in the human officers, and replaced them with
androids who would lead by example. Since they
looked like humans, the rank-and-file simply assumed
they were replacements, or reassignments. In some
cases, in fact, a particular human commander would
be quietly “reassigned” and replaced the same night
with an android that looked, spoke, and acted just like
him – albeit with a renewed vigor and sense of “duty”.
To the men, they wouldn’t know their real commander
was gone, and would only notice a sudden rise in their
commander’s morale; this, in turn, would likely cause
them to suspect he knew of a coming counterattack, or
of reinforcements, and the overall morale of the unit
would rise.
Fort Huachaca was the site where the experiment
was conducted, under the scrutiny of the 11
th
Signal
& Intel Brigade (which had a number of “special
elements” attached to it for just this purpose). All
units that passed through Fort Huachaca in the coming
months underwent this clandestine “alteration” before
being put back into the frontlines to revitalize the war
effort.
The third reason, of course, was the impending,
top secret decision of the High Command to begin
4
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