The landscape of Urth is barren. It is a sun-bleached desert, blessed only by occasional patches of green near the few, precious, sources of fresh water. During the light cycles, the sun beats down mercilessly upon the planet's surface, but the living go about their toil patiently. The Riders of the Pale sweep across the Endless Waste, trying, as always, to salvage what they can of the Old Cities -- and beat back the Things that occasionally emerge from their depths. The Knight Protectors pace the battlements of their fortresses, waiting for the darkness that always comes. The Djinn Lords send their captive efreet in search of more water... and greater power.

The New Cities are quiet when it is light, the inhabitants preferring to stay within their shelters and their underground caverns. Only a few skeletons remain outdoors, ceaselessly performing the labor needed to operate the Great Machines that pull water from the scorched earth, and magical energy from sources better left unknown. But when it is dark, the New Cities teem with life and unlife. Regardless, the Lich Lords stay in their mighty towers, pausing their studies only to occasionally deal with a few hapless minions who forgot to feed the ghouls... and plan their war against the sun.

A few souls move freely between the worlds of light and darkness. They are the Water-Bearers, the life-bringers, the adventurers who brave the unknown to bring back a substance ultimately more precious than gold.

This campaign is their quest.