Who better than Greg Schneider to populate a college campus with ghosts, warlocks, and the frat boys who hunt them? Greg's the author of Building Better Characters, another monthly column right here at RPG.net. He's cooked up quite the cast for this month's installment of Sanctum.

Unsuspecting, they pack their bags and wave goodbye to their parents. They sit on the bus with dreams of what is to come dancing in their heads. Their future is shadow starting to take form, their past behind them. They are college freshman and, in the eyes of warlocks, there is no juicer prey.

Yes, with freedom from their parents finally found, these young souls are shipped off into an environment of sin and vice, of earthly pleasures and new experiences. The next four (or six. . .or eight) years of their life will be shaped by those they meet, and, in a few lucky cases, by their own indomitable spirit. Little do they know that there is more than their prospective careers at stake - but their very soul could be lost to those who wait with kegs of beer and very short skirts.

Welcome to Sycamore College.

Sycamore sits in a smaller New England town, looking almost quaint with its quiet atmosphere. It is not known for its engineering program, or for any other program. In fact, those with great academic pursuits don't usually attend Sycamore College. No, Sycamore is a party school. Thought the older townies often discuss the irresponsibility of todays' youth while sipping tea and playing bridge, they seem to leave the college alone and ignore its dark under belly. That's all the warlocks require.

Behind the image of a preppy institution, Sycamore has been slowly enacting rules and regulations to promote the agendas of the demoniacs that secretly run its operations. Such institutions as campus security (separate from town security), co-ed bathrooms in the dorms, and acceptance of all new forms of extremely liberal arts have laid the groundwork for the seduction of college freshmen.

Nothing is more effective, however, then the old-time standards: the Greek fraternities and sororities. Here, incoming freshmen can have the "privilege" of belonging to a group of individuals that support hedonism on a grand scale, a place where excess is the norm and you are always surrounded by brothers (or sisters) who approve of your behavior. The plan is almost infallible.

But there is hope in the darkness that envelopes Sycamore college. There is. . .

Alpha Omega Kappa

The wandering and aged mystic Ma'yarc Toshan discovered the evil of Sycamore College years ago. Distressed at this bastion of formidable evil hiding in middle upper class suburbia, he asked the spirits for guidance and they brought him to an old house near campus. Inside, the elder spirits of the town dwelt in uneasy sleep. He offered his help and, together, they concocted a plan to save the college from the darkness that overwhelms its students.

Under the name of Mark Thomas, Ma'yarc applied to the college as a Theology professor and was given a position. (The college felt that having someone teach non-Christian theology would help undermine the moral indoctrination many students had prior to their arrival at Sycamore. They even made it a part of the core curriculum!) Ma'yarc was patient, watching the macabre dance of the warlocks until the time had come (i.e. he had tenure) to make his first act against their tyranny. He founded the fraternity Alpha Omega Kappa, using the haunted house of the town's elder spirits as the Frat House. Then, he began recruiting the freshmen who would become his warriors in the fight against Evil.

You are some of those warriors, and your task is not an easy one. Not only do you have to defeat the mechanations of an established warlock cult, but you have to pass calculus the next morning. This is not a task for the timid. Welcome to 11 Rodney Street.

Rodney Street was once Main Street, until the new developments came in with their Wal-Mart, Starbucks, and McDonalds. Fifteen years ago, they renamed the streets so as not to confuse the rare tourist or visitor that might wander into "old" downtown. 11 Rodney Street used to be the mayor's house and it dates back to the 1600's. It has been remodeled dozens of times by multiple architects. Originally, the house expanded from the initial design, but later some parts where torn down as they became unsafe and others were just declared uninhabitable. Ma'yarc had to spend much of his early years doing manual labor to ensure that the house was up to code. This left much time for creating secret passages, hidden doors, and peepholes within the confines of the old building. Of course, the house already had many secrets of its own and Ma'yarc may not have found all of them yet.

This Sanctum is run by the spirits of the town elders, who fought warlocks back in the Colonial era. Eight generations of warriors roam the halls of Alpha Omega Kappa, and it is a rare fraternity member who knows them all. There always seems to be another one hiding somewhere, waiting for a moment to lecture the brothers on the proper techniques for fighting the darkness, but only the wiliest students have learned to sucker them into doing their Art History homework.

The power of these spirits on their own hollowed ground renders warlocks all but helpless within its walls, providing a safe haven for the AOK Hunters. It has not taken the bureaucracy of the College long to understand there is something wrong with the fraternity, but their rules allow frats to do almost anything without penalty, and Mark Thomas has tenure, so they cannot fire him. Thus, they are constantly spying on the house and trying to infiltrate the fraternity in hopes of understanding the secret power behind it. It is this secret that must be protected most by the ever vigilant Ma'yarc and his Hunters.

Mark Thomas (Ma'yarc Toshan)
Professor of Theology, Ancient Xian Mystic, Fraternity Sponsor, Martial Arts Master.

None of the members of Alpha Omega Kappa know how old their founder really is, just that he looks old and says old things all the time. He talks about how things should be and spouts philosophical mumbo jumbo. They would totally blow him off if he couldn't do strange things like levitate and walk through walls. That would be cool stuff to learn, and Mark wants to teach, but he only has four years. Thus, the students end up with crash courses in meta-physics and martial arts.

Mark himself believes that there is much more than just the subverting of souls going on at Sycamore college. The density of warlocks leads him to believe that something important is happening here. . .he just needs to find out what.

Quote: (Sigh) If one really wants to drink a whole keg in one draught, one must first master the art of Shin-Kwon.

• Martial Arts Master - Combat, seeing without eyes, minor levitation, walking through walls, etc.
• Mystic - Seeing auras, talking with the dead, and binding spirits.
• Theology Professor - Hinduism, Christianity, Taoism, and the Occult.

The Late Reverend Jeremiah Covenant
Undead Head of Household

The very first Mayor of Sycamore, Reverend Jeremiah Covenant founded his city on virtues, hard work, and making sure everyone feared burning in the everlasting pits of Hell. Every Sunday, he stood at the pulpit and told the populace, in gory detail, of what would come about if they lived a life of sin and/or consorted with the devil. Sadly, his rather blunt and aggressive methods did not seem very effective, and he found himself fighting sin and the minions of the devil on every corner. It is a fight he has never given up, even after death, and many a member of the fraternity has been embarrassed by a sudden and impassioned sermon concerning their wrong-doings.

Currently, Jeremiah is considered the elder ghost at AOK and he often spends long nights discussing plans of attack with Mark. Despite being a rabid zealot, he is actually quite intelligent and very perceptive of the people around him. He only wants the best for his town and knows that his ghostly form can no longer strike at evil directly, so he uses all he can find. None of them ever quite live up to his vision of perfection, however, and he believes that telling people what they are doing wrong will motivate them to do better. He's intelligent, he just doesn't have people skills.

Quote: Bill, unless you learn the seven prayers of our Lord the True Master, some demoniac will tear the skin from your limbs and tan it in the fires of Hell! Oh, and I saw how you looked at the freshman girls during the party. Don't think for one minute that alcohol will work as an excuse when you stand before the pearly gates and ask for admittance! And I saw you shirking your homework. . .

• Puritan Preacher - specializes in Seething Sermons to Make Your Skin Wither.
• Occult Lore - Now the he's dead, Jeremiah knows how the afterlife really works.
• Ghost - Float around, turn invisible, all the usual ghost crap.

Eleanor Chamberlain
Motherly spirit

Eleanor Chamberlain is the mother of the household. In life, she worked as a nurse in the town hospital, never marrying but always working to help all that she could. In death, she bemoans her lack of children and so uses her helpful and motherly soul to aid all of the fraternity members. She is like their mother away from home, helpfully reminding people that they are late for class or that they are out of clean underwear.

She is a bit of a meddler and seems to pop up at unexpected times to play havoc in frat member's lives. She tries to set them up with "nice young women," calls their parents to report their misdeeds, whatever she feels the need to do. The older brothers have realized that they can go to her for medical advice. Eleanor is also the only one very good at calming the Reverend down if he gets into a true tirade, and the two almost, almost, like each other, though neither seems willing to admit it.

Quote: I think she is a wonderful girl and the two of you should get along splendidly. You have one clean pair of underwear in the top drawer and I would wear your red shirt, not the one with the blood stain.

• Nursing
• Ghost
• Motherly Meddling

Joe Haggen
The Jock

Joe is the backup quarterback for the Sycamore football team. He has stunningly good looks and is ruggedly athletic. Joe is one of Mark's best students and has quickly mastered multiple weapon and hand-to-hand combat forms and can usually outrun anybody on campus. He would be a star pupil, except that Joe really is only in this frat thing for one thing: picking up chicks.

He joined because belonging to some ultra-secretive force designed to fight evil seemed James Bondish enough to use on women. It wasn't until later that he learned about the who "sworn to secrecy" thing. Still, he feels the fraternity adds a rustic mystery to him that girls find appealing. . .and kicking butt with a katana is pretty cool. An additional bonus is that the frat house has all these nooks and crannies, making it the ideal place to slip off with a sorority girl and find some serious privacy.

Quote: You know, I can see your aura, and what it tells me is that you're Hot.

• Martial Arts
• Football
• Beer Chugging
• Good Looks

Reginald Hansborough
The Nerd

Reginald was an outcast in high school due to his scrawny physique, bad fashion sense, and voluminous knowledge of obscure and useless facts that make terrible conversation-starters. He swore that, when he came to college, things would change. He would join a fraternity and become "a party animal all the chicks would dig."

It didn't quite work out that way. There was only one fraternity that would take him, and he realized after joining that he had more important things to do then become popular. He had to fight evil, and so he has done everything he can to become the best Hunter he can be... everything but those physical martial arts thingies. They just seem to make his limbs bend into angles not intended by their creator. Rather, he has thrown himself into books and occult research, becoming the brains of the fraternity. This task was, well, easy.

Quote: If your going to walk into a den of demons, you really should have brought items 13A through 17C on the 'List of Things to Have When Fighting Evil' document I emailed everyone. Really, you weren't thinking.

• Occult Knowledge
• Computer Programming
• Bad Fashion Sense

Steven Alman
The President

All fraternities have a president. Most are voted into power by beer drinking masses in a ceremony that almost, but not quite, passes as something other than a popularity contest. Alpha Omega Kappa doesn't have that luxury. Their president is hand picked by Mark to lead the fight against the darkness. Always at least a Junior or Senior, this person usually exemplifies all of the traits needed to survive the eternal war of good versus evil.

Steve is that person. He is not the best at anything, but competent at everything. He has a subtle charm that can turn into fierce leadership when needed. But more than any of that, Steve is the rock that the fraternity hangs upon. He does not panic, he gets his homework done. He has a steady girlfriend and is planning his engagement. He never drinks to much and even the Reverend has trouble finding a reason he will Burn In Hell. Steven is the stable point amid a whirlwind of chaos, and Mark fears that the fraternity will be lost without him when he graduates at the end of the coming semester.

Quote: The first rule of Alpha Omega is that you never talk about Alpha Omega. The second rule of Alpha Omega is that you never talk about Alpha Omega. The third rule of Alpha Omega. . .

• Leadership
• Resistance to Supernatural Influences
• Everyman - Competent in almost everything.

The Dean's List (of Evil)

College campuses are cosmopolitan places, so you could take just about any warlock from previous Sanctum articles and slip them in with just a little modernizing. In particular, you should take a look at Sactum: Celestials; any the Yaomo would make excellent Ancient Rivals(tm) for Ma'yarc.

Kako
Dean of the College & Liberal Arts Professor

The darkness in charge of Sycamore College calls itself Kako. Alpha Omega has been able to determine almost nothing of the powers and purposes of this entity, but they are always striving against his machinations.

In reality, Kako is a warlock that is old beyond imagining. It chose Sycamore partly because of its party school reputation, but mostly because it believes that an artifact is hidden somewhere on the campus grounds. This artifact, written about in only a few ancient texts, will only reveal its true nature and power when enough evil has been gathered around it. Kako believes Sycamore College is coming close to that threshold, but does not know how much evil is truly needed, nor what form the artifact will take when it manifests. It believes that the power harnessed in the artifact should end the everlasting war and bring darkness and vice to the world for all time.

Kako is a shape-changer and a charmer. It takes multiple forms on campus, including the Dean and the very liberal Liberal Arts professor, Veronica Swank. Other forms are less common, but used when needed. Kako can assume non-human forms of the same size, but cannot change mass. All forms have the mark of the Egyptian Ankh somewhere on their body. The location of this on Veronica Swank is common gossip among Liberal Arts majors.

Quote: It is the goal, nay the ultimate purpose, of the artist to push the boundaries of social morals and norms. Take what society believes and thrash it, reveal the passion lying beneath it. Only then will your art find the truth.

• Shapechanger
• Influence/Charm - requires voice or eye contact.
• Ageless - Been there, done that.

Janis Marie Covington
Sorority Queen from Hell

It only took a week for the warlocks to convert Janis to their cause. She is the leader of the largest sorority on campus and is known for her huge parties and huge, umm. . . tracts of land. Despite a personality that can be described only in words that start it with a B, almost every male on campus follows her around lost puppies. She promotes infighting and gossiping among the sorority girls and enjoys nothing more then stealing a committed boyfriend.

She has been given the primary task of destroying Alpha Omega, and she has her eye on Steven Alman. No one would dare bring up the fact that Steven is the only man who has been able to resist her. That would be bad for their. . . shall we say, "life." It is rumored that people have disappeared from campus for less. Janis' demons have given her an appetite for human flesh, and woe to that man that sees her eyes start to glow red and her teeth transform into daggers.

Quote: That was your boyfriend? I eat guys like that for dinner.

• Monstrous Form - Enhanced strength, night vision, sharp teeth and claws.
• Allure - Usually only works on men, but strange things happen in those sororities. . .
• Limited ESP - Used to pick up gossip; only catches basic thoughts.

Other warlocks possibly haunting campus:

• Janitor who stalks the dark halls at night, cleaning up after the warlocks.
• Football coach whose recruiting practices are not approved by the NCAA or the Congressional Wives.
• Guidance counselor whose advice always leads to sin.
• Director of Student Services who helps plan campus "activities."
• Professor of (Un)ethical Business Practices.
• Anyone in the liberal arts department.
• Campus cop who doesn't have any real legal authority, but does have the authority of the Dean.

Next Stop: The unfathomable interior of Schroedinger's Box! I've got a new column in the works, so Sanctum's going on hiatus for a while. It ain't dead, it's in a quantum state.