TEXT: 1
  Purple Duck Storeroom
  Arbakampsi
  Perry Fehr
  
  2
  “In a nondescript dwelling, down a dusty hallway, past rooms of unclear pur-
  pose, there is a door... a door that looks like many others, except for the ancient 
  maroon tint of the aged wood, and, of course, the glowing runes emblazoned on 
  the stones that make up the door-frame.  Should you know its purpose, should 
  you know the correct sequence to touch those runes, you might gain entry to a 
  Storeroom of wonders, shelves and bins and racks beyond counting.  Place your 
  torch in the rusty sconce, and enter...”
  The Purple Storeroom is an ongoing series of tightly-focused supplements 
  that cover topics that do not fit into our larger offerings. They are the pieces 
  that just don’t fit anywhere else or they are the little things we work on to 
  take a break from bigger projects like Purple Mountain, Legendary Trea-
  sures, or Lands of Porphyra. They have been stored here for safe keeping.
  THE GAME OF ARBAKAMPSI
  “Down a surprisingly well-traveled corridor to the right of The Door one can 
  often hear muted talk; oaths, ritualized words, and the click of tiny objects on 
  wood. In an open, domed room, with a glassed-in skylight, are a small groups of 
  tables, often occupied by people that must know the way here, somehow.  They 
  have ignored the rest of the Storeroom to play at a game of some sort; a carved 
  wooden board of brightly colored hexagons, pieces of some kind of colored crystal, 
  a glitteringly inset camel’s knucklebone.  Money changes hands, knees are struck 
  in frustration, and words from a language that predates the Gods is spoken 
  lightly and freely... but The Game is the focus of all.”
  The game of arbakampsi was invented by the zendiqi people of the Patch-
  work Planet of Porphyra, in the lean decades after their total defeat in the 
  NewGods Wars.  It simulates the tribulations of that seesaw conflict, of 
  seizing territory, gambling on a hunch- and taking chances that may or 
  Compatibility with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game requires 
  the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game from Paizo Publishing, LLC. 
  See http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG for more information on 
  the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Paizo Publishing, LLC does 
  not guarantee compatibility, and does not endorse this product.
  
  3
  may not pan out.  That there is a small advantage to one of the players is an 
  accepted part of Porphyran life- nothing ever proceeds on an equal basis; 
  to assume so is ignorant naivety. Perhaps The Game has made it to other 
  worlds, probably at the hands of the immortal Genies, and played with in-
  nocent ignorance of its greater symbolism. The Game, however, draws even 
  the jaded in, as the suggestion of life and death decisions, even in the fall of 
  a tiny purple or green crystal, sparks a memory in the fractious instincts of 
  quarreling humanoids.
  THE RulES FOR ARBAKAMPSI
  Arbakampsi means “Four and Five” in the Old Porphyran tongue, and pits 
  two allegorical sides against one another- the followers of the Four, the 
  Elementalists, and those Deists who came with the Five-fingered Hand of 
  the Gods, which split open the heavens.  The game is part gambling, part 
  strategy, and for the zendiqi people, often the grounds for philosophical 
  discussion over the painted wooden boards, dried beans, and camel’s knuck-
  lebone that serves as the components for a arbakampsi set.
  Components:  
  •	
  1 Arbakampsi board, with 64 spaces in four colors
  •	
  2 sets of thirty tokens, of two different colors (often purple and green)
  •	
  1 “camel’s knucklebone”, a six-sided die
  Object: The object of the game is to gather tokens to place on the board, 
  forming lines of four and claiming “borders”.  
  The Place of Arrival: No one shall place a token on the center space.  This 
  is the space whereupon all wagers shall be placed.  The starting wager shall 
  be one coin, according to one’s standing.  Arba shall have the privilege of 
  increasing the wager, whereupon Kampsi shall match it or forfeit.  He may 
  do this Four times.
  Procedure of Play: One player is Arba, or Four, representing the Elemen-
  talists. Arba shall go first. The die is taken, and Arba names One, Two, 
  Three or Four. If the roll of the die is equal to or lesser than the naming, 
  Arba places tokens equal to his naming, subtracted from six.  Thus if Arba 
  names Four, and Three is rolled, Arba places Two tokens on any space on 
  the board, save the center. If One is named and One is rolled, Five tokens 
  shall be placed.  Then Arba shall name again.  If the die shall roll a number 
  
  4
  higher than one’s naming, Kampsi shall take a token from the board and 
  return it to Arba, and it shall then become the turn of Kampsi, or Five, 
  representing the Deists. Kampsi shall proceed in the same manner, though 
  Kampsi may name Five, as well.  Should anything but a Six be rolled, 
  Kampsi shall gain One token.  
  Retreat: Both Arba and Kampsi may elect to cease their turn, passing the 
  die to the other, to avoid having to lose a token on the board.  They shall 
  signify by uttering, “Tawba” [Retreat] and passing the die.
  Ending the Game: The game shall end when all 64 spaces are covered with 
  tokens.  It is only then that all points shall be tallied.
  Scoring: A direct line of four tokens in a row is called a “Battle” and shall 
  be worth one point.  Having a majority of one’s tokens in a colored ring 
  is called a “Border” and shall be worth two points.  Ties grant no points.  
  Completely covering a colored ring with one’s tokens is called a “Victory” 
  and shall be worth three points.
  ARBAKAMPSI AnD ADvEnTuRERS
  Knowledge of arbakampsi and the strategies thereof can make or break 
  negotiations in certain cultures, and skill at the game is a indicator of a 
  sentient being’s worldliness and capability in seeing “the big picture”.  Being 
  too addicted to the sword, or too focused on matters beyond the physical 
  world are polarities not desired by aficionados of arbakampsi, which include 
  tribal leaders and elders, trade guild chieftains, noble dilettantes, and those 
  who see the value of inspecting an issue before charging forward.  In-game 
  aspects that relate to arbakampsi are as follows:
  Knowledge of the rules of arbakampsi: DC 15 Knowledge (local) – bardic 
  knowledge gains a +1 to the check.  This gives the player a copy of the rules 
  and allows her to ask questions of the GM as to game play.  Characters of 
  the zendiqi (see Fehr’s Ethnology) race can make an unskilled DC 10 Intelli-
  gence ability check to possess knowledge of the rules, if they do not possess 
  Knowledge (local).  Refusal to play, if offered, runs the risk of imposing a 
  -3 penalty to further Diplomacy checks with the offering party, as will at-
  tempting to fake one’s way through it.  
  
  5
  ARBAKAMPSI FEATS
  Feats in the field of arbakampsi can be taken by any class and any race as a 
  general feat.
  Arbakampsi Expert
  The Game educates in life and death, a mirror to the physical world.
  Prerequisite: Arbakampsi Fanatic or Arbakampsi Sage
  Benefit: Once per day you may ‘arba’ [subtract 4 from an enemies’ roll be-
  fore the roll is made] OR ‘kampsi’ [add 5 to one of your own d20 rolls] OR 
  ‘tawba’ [reroll any non-d20 roll that you make]
  Arbakampsi Fanatic
  Winning at arbakampsi is a rush of excitement that lingers for a long time.
  Prerequisite: Knowledge of the rules of arbakampsi
  Benefit: If you defeat an NPC player at arbakampsi, you may, before you 
  sleep again, gain a +8 bonus to one d20 roll you make, and reroll one “1” 
  that you roll in that time period.  You may not have lost a game of ar-
  bakampsi previous to that win, in that time period.
  Arbakampsi Sage
  You have played the “Game of the World” since you were old enough to grasp 
  pieces.
  Prerequisite: Knowledge (local) 1 rank
  Benefit: You gain an arbakampsi board (you can spend 125 gp when you 
  take the feat to receive a masterwork set) and, at the start of a game, can 
  place 3 free tokens on the board, to symbolize your expertise.  Negotia-
  tions with arbakampsi aficionados give you a +2 bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, 
  Intimidate and Sense Motive checks.
   
  
  6
  ARBAKAMPSI EquIPMEnT
  It is possible to make one’s own game set, with a DC 12 Craft (wood-
  working) check, which will also provide a crude camel’s knucklebone and 
  rudimentary white and black gravel game pieces.  Such provincialism will 
  impress few, though, and suggest either a classless rube or a grifting game-
  shark.  
  Arbakampsi Set
  20 gp
  3 lbs.
  This contains a tastefully carved and painted board, with inset containers 
  for a balanced camel’s knucklebone and 60 tokens of two colors, purple and 
  green shards of glass.
  Masterwork Arbakampsi Set 250 gp
  4 lbs.
  This beautiful game set has inlaid enamel hexagons of the various colors, a 
  true cube of ebony-inset ivory, and crystal token of purple and green.  The 
  owner of such a set always gets to choose her role at the start of the game, 
  and merely possessing such a set enables a +1 circumstance bonus to Cha-
  risma when dealing with arbakampsi aficionados.
  MAGICAl ARBAKAMPSI ITEMS
  Being the invention of a magically-inclined people, it is therefore not sur-
  prising that a few magic items are associated with the game, and are likely 
  to be encountered in any venue where The Game is of importance.
  ARBAKAMPSI DjInn-BOARD
  Aura faint conjuration; Cl 1st
  Slot none; Price 2,000 gp; Weight 4 lbs.
  Description
  Appearing as a masterwork arbakampsi board of even higher quality, the 
  djinn-board arranges pieces, gambling stakes, and rolls the cube accord-
  ing to mere finger-gestures of the players. Inviting a potentially summoned 
  genie to play adds a 1d4 circumstance bonus to the Charisma check of the 
  summoning caster, at the time of summoning.
  Construction
  Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, unseen servant; Cost 1,000 gp
  
  7
  nORTHERnER’S KnuCKlEBOnE
  Aura moderate abjuration; Cl 7th
  Slot none; Price 3,000 gp; Weight —
  Description
  This apparently normal knucklebone forces a DC 18 caster level check to 
  detect magic upon it, and can be used to cast nondetection on its possessor 
  once per week.  It can be used to ‘rig’ dice rolls to cheat at games of dice, 
  detectable with a DC 27 Sense Motive check.
  Construction
  Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, nondetection, 5 ranks of Bluff; Cost 
  1,500 gp
  SHIElD OF THE GAME
  Aura moderate abjuration; Cl 6th 
  Slot shield; Price 5,600 gp; Weight 10 lbs.
  Description
  This +1 heavy wooden shield has an arbakampsi board incised on its flat sur-
  face, and has a sliding container for the pieces to be kept, for games outside 
  of battle.  Once per day as an immediate action, the wielder can gamble 
  by calling “Arbakampsi!” whereupon there is a 3-in-6 chance of the shield 
  becoming a +4 heavy wooden shield for the next round, a 2-in-6 chance of 
  becoming a +5 heavy wooden shield for the next round, and a 1-in-6 chance 
  of losing its magical properties for the next round.  
  Construction
  Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, shield; Cost 2,800 gp
  “...and so the torch is taken from the sconce, shadows swallow items on shelves 
  not yet explored, and the rune-bordered door is closed; for who knows when an 
  item, a curiosity, an unnamed oddity might be needed, for purposes wholesome 
  or despicable- from the Storeroom...”
  
  8
  A FOlK ART ARBAKAMPSI BOARD
  
  9
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