Totems of the Dead

Totems of the Dead is a Heroic Fantasy RPG setting inspired by the Ancient Americas.


 * Action Girl: Present on the cover art.
 * All Myths Are True: Particularly Native American, aztec and Norse myth. Cryptozoology is also referenced occasionally.
 * Alternate History: Not a historical setting, but draws a lot of inspiration from history.
 * Ancient Astronauts: As seen in the adventure "The Star Being from Yog."
 * Atlantis: In this case it is an evil dystopia and Advanced Ancient Acropolis.
 * Aztec Mythology
 * Badass heroes.
 * Big Bad "Wildcard" villains.
 * Big Badass Bird of Prey: Thunderbirds and a number of other giant deadly avians.
 * Big Badass Wolf
 * Black Magic: Called "sorcery" or "following a black road."
 * Blood Magic: Used mainly by the Maztlani.
 * Chupacabra
 * Cool Pet: As seen on the cover and some of the interior art/Edges.
 * Distressed Damsel: Present on the cover art.
 * Dreaming of Times Gone By in the Obsidian Shadows adventure.
 * Eldritch Abomination with the possibility of Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu? in some adventures.
 * Everything's Better with Dinosaurs with a nod or two to Dinosaurs Are Dragons.
 * Everything's Better with Princesses: And why not?
 * Everything's Sparkly with Jewelry
 * Evil Sorcerer: Can't have swords and sorcery without them!
 * Famed in Story
 * Fan Service: Not as much as in some other sword and sorcery titles, but it is in there, both male and female.
 * Fantasy Counterpart Culture: Most cultures in the Untamed Lands have a real world analogue.
 * Giant Spider
 * God of Evil: There are several, particularly the ones worshiped in Atlantis.
 * Heroic Fantasy: A.k.a. swords and sorcery.
 * Hot Amazon is present, both as literal Amazon warrior women and through other strong female characters.
 * Human Sacrifice
 * Inca Mythology: As seen in the Yaurcoan Empire.
 * Intoxication Ensues: In the "God in the Pit" adventure.
 * Kill It with Fire: Most spirit creatures are susceptible to fire damage.
 * Leg Cling: Present on the cover of the Player's Guide.
 * Mysterious Mist: Masnifest in the "spirit mist."
 * Native American Mythology
 * Necromancer
 * The Need for Mead: Most (sucessful) adventures end in carousing and revelry.
 * Noble Savage is an Averted Trope
 * Norse Mythology
 * Our Demons Are Different: Demons based on Native American legend.
 * Our Vampires Are Different: Scaled vampires.
 * Panthera Awesome: See the panther animal companion on the cover.
 * Physical God: Human god-kings, as well as gods, demons and other spirits taking physical form.
 * Pirates are present in both Type I and II.
 * Random Events Plot
 * Rated "M" for Manly
 * Religion of Evil: Ass seen in the religion of Atlantis.
 * Reptiles Are Abhorrent: Sheti serpent men.
 * Run or Die: One adventure starts like this.
 * Scaled Up: Several varieties of giant animal.
 * Scenery Porn: The art features some dramatic cityscapes.
 * Shapeshifting abounds, particularly Voluntary Shapeshifting.
 * Shrouded in Myth
 * Silver Has Mystic Powers: As does turquoise and jade.
 * Skin Walker: As a player race.
 * Sorcerous Overlord: Several sorcerer kings.
 * Tome of Eldritch Lore: Or birchbark scrolls, petroglyphs, or a runestone in some cases.
 * The Trickster: Manifests in several forms, from Coyote to Mudhead Kachinas.
 * Vision Quest: Game contains rules for embarking on one of these.
 * Wendigo
 * Wild Child: This trope is turned into an entire player race as seen in the Feral Ones.
 * World Half Empty: War, invasions, rampaging monsters, awakening eldrich horrors, environmental and social decline.
 * A World Half Full: Thanks to the heroes, there is still hope.
 * Wretched Hive: Vidar, city of thieves. Also the Pirate Isles.