← LomnickPro · Joel LomnickAn original fantasy world · The Book of Ekrius

The reader’s field guide · No rulebook required

People first.
Numbers second.

Understand the book’s character records: heritage, training, abilities, and growth. No rulebook or calculations required.

Five different questions.

Race / species / ancestry
What is their fantasy heritage? The book’s older D&D-style term “race” refers to peoples such as humans, elves, and tieflings, not real-world racial categories. This site also uses species and ancestry for that idea.
Background
What shaped their life before adventuring? Work, family, community, and education can matter before a formal class exists.
Class
What adventuring discipline do they practice? A class provides a toolkit, not a personality, social rank, or guarantee of heroism.
Subclass
What specialty develops inside that discipline? Fighter is the class. Battle Master is a fighter specialty.
Ability scores
Which broad aptitudes are stronger or weaker? These numbers are separate from heritage, training choices, and personal worth.

Races compared · Abilities, limits, and reputations

What actually makes them different?

Classic 2014 fifth-edition ancestry packages combine inherited traits and traditional training. These summaries explain the options; they do not add abilities to the cast.

Abilities are not stereotypes. A resistance is a rules benefit. A craft tradition is cultural. A reputation is what someone might assume, fairly or unfairly. None decides a person’s morality, personality, or class.

Jarik, Kel, and Rian

Human

Distinctive abilities
Versatility is the classic human advantage, rather than an innate magical defense. Standard 2014 humans receive broad ability-score increases; an optional variant exchanges that package for more focused training and a feat.
Limits and trade-offs
No natural darkvision or ancestry-based damage resistance in the basic human package. A human can still learn magic through a class.
Common praise and stereotypes
Often admired as adaptable and ambitious; sometimes dismissed as impatient, power-hungry, or short-sighted by longer-lived peoples.
On the roads of Ekrius
Jarik’s performance, Kel’s invention, and Rian’s pact come from different disciplines, not three different human bloodlines.

Part of the wider world and Sera’s family heritage

Elf

Distinctive abilities
Darkvision, trained perception, resistance to being charmed, immunity to magical sleep, and a meditative trance instead of ordinary sleep. Elves are long-lived. Further gifts depend on lineage.
Limits and trade-offs
Charm resistance is not immunity. Trance is not freedom from rest. Darkvision does not reveal everything in darkness.
Common praise and stereotypes
Often admired for artistry, grace, and long perspective; sometimes stereotyped as aloof, arrogant, or slow to act.
On the roads of Ekrius
Not every elf is an archer or wizard. High-elf and wood-elf traditions have different rules options, not identical powers.

Sera

Half-elf

Distinctive abilities
The classic 2014 package combines darkvision, protection against charm and magical sleep, and extra skill proficiencies.
Limits and trade-offs
It does not automatically include elven trance or every gift of both parents. Mixed heritage is its own rules package, not a stack of all human and elf abilities.
Common praise and stereotypes
Often praised as adaptable go-betweens; unfairly treated by some as outsiders or pressured to prove where they belong.
On the roads of Ekrius
Sera’s investigation and precision come from skills and rogue training. Her family history is separate from her subclass.

Ekrius

Tiefling

Distinctive abilities
The classic infernal-heritage package includes darkvision, fire resistance, a small magical effect called thaumaturgy, and additional inherited spells that unlock with advancement.
Limits and trade-offs
Fire resistance reduces fire damage; it is not fire immunity. It does not protect against every threat. Ancestry magic is separate from ranger or rogue training.
Common praise and stereotypes
May be admired as striking or resilient; horns and infernal associations can provoke unfair suspicions of deceit, danger, or devil worship.
On the roads of Ekrius
Ekrius inherits his heritage through Dovan. Being a tiefling neither requires a pact nor proves bad character.

Mera and her family

Mountain dwarf

Distinctive abilities
Dwarven darkvision, poison resilience, and traditional weapon and craft training. The classic mountain-dwarf option adds strength and armor training to the dwarven package.
Limits and trade-offs
Resisting poison is not immunity. Dwarves have a slower basic walking pace than humans in these rules. Armor training does not make every dwarf a fighter.
Common praise and stereotypes
Often admired for loyalty, endurance, and craftsmanship; sometimes stereotyped as stubborn, grudge-holding, or obsessed with wealth.
On the roads of Ekrius
Mountain dwarf is an ancestry branch. Battle Master is Mera’s fighter specialty. Family craft traditions are not compulsory careers.

People of the roads, including Nessa

Halfling

Distinctive abilities
Small stature, steadiness against fear, movement through larger creatures’ spaces, and Lucky: a reroll when a qualifying twenty-sided roll lands on 1.
Limits and trade-offs
Lucky is not a reroll for every bad outcome. The basic package has no darkvision and a slower walking pace than a human’s. Small does not mean childlike.
Common praise and stereotypes
Often associated with hospitality, resourcefulness, and close communities; wrongly underestimated as timid, unserious, or incapable of grand ambitions.
On the roads of Ekrius
A halfling can be a formidable adventurer. Lightfoot and stout lineages add different benefits.

Another people found along the roads

Gnome

Distinctive abilities
Small stature, darkvision, and Gnome Cunning: an edge on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws against magic. Forest and rock lineages add different gifts.
Limits and trade-offs
Cunning is not immunity to magic or a bonus to every mental task. Gnomes also have a slower basic walking pace than humans in the 2014 rules.
Common praise and stereotypes
Often admired as curious, playful, and inventive; sometimes dismissed as frivolous, meddlesome, or too absorbed in an experiment.
On the roads of Ekrius
Some gnomes tinker, but invention is not their exclusive property. Kel is a human artificer, not a gnome.

A few useful translations.

Darkvision helps with dim light and darkness within a limited range. It is not perfect sight, does not reveal colors in total darkness, and does not normally pierce magical darkness. Resistance usually halves damage of the named type. Advantage means rolling twice and keeping the higher result, not guaranteed success. A feat is an extra talent or training option.

Not every ancestry has a matching “weakness” to cancel its gifts. Absence of darkvision is a practical limitation, not a flaw in someone’s character. Longer life does not automatically mean wiser decisions.

How belonging and prejudice work on these roads →

The six ability scores

Six ways to meet a problem.

Six broad aptitudes, shown by their abbreviations in chapter records. The examples illustrate how they differ.

STR

Strength

Physical force: lifting, hauling, climbing, or holding a door against pressure.

A strong person can still lack balance or patience.

DEX

Dexterity

Coordination: moving quietly, keeping balance, aiming, and working with nimble hands.

Agility is not the same as toughness.

CON

Constitution

Physical resilience: enduring strain, resisting bodily harm, and sustaining effort.

It does not measure courage or moral strength.

INT

Intelligence

Learning and analysis: recalling knowledge, comparing evidence, and reasoning through a mechanism.

Knowledge does not guarantee good judgment.

WIS

Wisdom

Awareness and intuition: noticing movement, reading a mood, or recognizing a trail.

Insight is not mind-reading or infallibility.

CHA

Charisma

Presence and influence: persuading, performing, intimidating, or holding attention.

It is not a beauty score, kindness rating, or guarantee that everyone likes you.

Intelligence and Wisdom are not the same thing.

Beside a damaged bridge, Intelligence might help explain the construction fault. Wisdom might help someone notice that its usual creaking has changed. Dexterity could help with a precarious crossing, Strength with moving a beam, Constitution with sustained exertion, and Charisma with persuading a worried crowd to wait. Different approaches can matter together.

How the numbers work Scores, modifiers, skills, and a sample roll

A score of 10 or 11 is the usual human baseline in the 2014 rules. Higher scores generally mean a stronger aptitude. Adventurers normally have a score ceiling of 20, though exceptions exist. Scores are not percentages.

The modifier is the smaller bonus or penalty used on many rolls: score 8–9 gives −1, 10–11 gives +0, 12–13 gives +1, 14–15 gives +2, 16–17 gives +3, 18–19 gives +4, and 20 gives +5.

A skill narrows an ability to a particular task, such as Investigation, Perception, Stealth, or Persuasion. Proficiency adds a training bonus when applicable. Expertise can double that proficiency contribution. A saving throw is a roll to resist a threat, rather than attempt a task.

Made-up tabletop example: roll 11 on a twenty-sided die, add +2 for the relevant ability and +2 for applicable proficiency, and the total is 15. That meets a difficulty target (DC) of 15. You add the modifier, not the entire ability score. You do not need to calculate rolls to enjoy the novel.

The company’s adventuring vocabulary

A toolkit. Then a specialty.

The novel uses a 2014 fifth-edition framework with additional class options. These are the disciplines and specialties named on the profiles. Features develop through the story; subclass timing varies by class.

Ranger / Rogue

Ekrius

A ranger reads terrain and brings wilderness and combat training. A rogue uses precision and practiced skills.

Explain the specialty

Gloom Stalker emphasizes dangerous darkness and ambush. Scout emphasizes reconnaissance and mobility. The slash means multiclassing: learning two disciplines, not a single combined subclass.

Meet Ekrius →

Bard

Jarik

A bard channels performance, words, and magic.

Explain the specialty

College of Eloquence specializes in persuasive speech and communication. “College” names a bardic tradition, not necessarily a campus.

Meet Jarik →

Rogue

Sera

A rogue brings specialized skills, subtlety, and precision. The title does not automatically mean thief or villain.

Explain the specialty

Inquisitive emphasizes observation, investigation, and reading an opponent.

Meet Sera →

Artificer

Kel

An artificer works magic through tools, craft, and invention.

Explain the specialty

Artillerist specializes in magical artillery and protective or destructive devices. It does not require modern firearms.

Meet Kel →

Fighter

Mera

A fighter develops practiced combat technique and weapon mastery.

Explain the specialty

Battle Master adds tactical maneuvers: technique and judgment rather than strength alone.

Meet Mera →

Warlock

Rian

A warlock gains supernatural power through a patron relationship. A patron is a powerful being, not necessarily a god.

Explain the specialty

The Fiend identifies the patron category. It describes a source of power, not Rian’s species or a verdict on his morality.

Meet Rian →

Reading change without spoiling the journey

The record is a snapshot.

Chapter-opening records describe the character at that chapter’s beginning. “Not yet classed” means no formal adventuring discipline is recorded. It does not mean helpless or unskilled. An unassigned score is unknown, not zero.

Levels mark growing capability. A new subclass is a developing specialty, not a change of species. In this story, training, consequential choices, and significant events drive growth at different times for different friends. Not every milestone changes a number. Regaining trust, accepting help, and admitting a mistake can matter just as much.

HP · Hit points
A game measure of capacity to stay in the fight, including endurance and other reserves. Lower current HP means less reserve. HP is not a complete medical or emotional diagnosis.
AC · Armor Class
How difficult a character is to hit with an attack. Armor, agility, shields, and other defenses can contribute. It is not a damage-reduction percentage or protection from every kind of danger.
Conditions and resources
Injury, exhaustion, fear, equipment, and available magic can change what someone can manage. Spell slots track uses of certain spells, not a person’s total intelligence or worth.
Personality, bonds, ideals, and flaws
Temperament, important relationships, values, and vulnerabilities. Alignment, when used, is broad moral shorthand, not a command that removes choice. A persuasive person can be frightened. A brilliant person can be stubborn. A protective person can overstep.

The novel follows a story, not a turn-by-turn game transcript. At a gaming table, use your group’s chosen edition.

Open the complete book →Explore the six companions →D&D history and how to play →
Optional rules references

Optional official references for readers who want the full rules.

2014 ability rules ↗2014 character basics ↗2014 ancestry terminology ↗
Read the books →Reader’s guide →Send Joel a reading response →

A world by Joel Lomnick. Book One begins the planned six-book journey.

An independent fantasy passion project inspired by tabletop roleplaying. Character and cover artwork created with AI assistance under the author’s direction.