Friday, September 6, 2013
30-Day D&D Challenge - Day 6: Favorite Diety
For this one I'll have to go with Lathander Morninglord of the Forgotten Realms. His Domains are: Good, Protection, Sun, Strength, Nobility, and Renewal. He's the current incarnation of the Netherese-ian (Ancient Magic Super-People of Forgotten Realms) sun god Amaunator. He likes fertility rituals, sunlight, and hates undead. All the good stuff you want out of a diety. Also his clerics specialize in hunting undead and are called Dawnbringers, which is a pretty sweet title if you ask me. His symbol is a sun over a lush field. Universal good-guy kind of symbology. (which is probably why politicians like to steal the design).
Another reason Lathander is my preferred D&Diety is because he was one of the few good dieties worshiped by the oppressed peasants of Ravenloft. The aforementioned elf vampire Jander Sunstar resurrected the Morninglord religion in Bavaria after saving a kid who had mistaken Jander for the sun god (and who later became the first priest of the Morninglord in Ravenloft).
As far as mechanical benefits go, when you make a cleric of the Morninglord in AD&D you gain all your spells each day automatically at dawn, rather than only after praying for an hour. That just seems like a major time-saver to me. I prefer my religious spell-blessings to be consistent and convenient for my busy schedule, rather than dependent on whether I've breathed in enough holy smoke that morning.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
30-Day D&D Challenge catch-up - Days 1-3
I realized since I started at Day 4 I should really try and fill the backlog of missed days. So here you go:
Day 1-How you got started
Age 8. Cub scouts. Some kid brought his dad's copy of the Holmes basic rulebook and let me read it. 'nuff said.
Day 2-Favorite Playable Race
Gotta be Dwarves! They're just too stoic and angry enough all the time to not be fun to play. Plus they hate elves, which I can sympathize with (I like half-elves, but only if they're the self-loathing kind).
Day 3-Favorite Playable Class
Wait, didn't I just tell you that it was Dwarves? Oh, wait, we're talking fancy-schmancy Advanced D&D. Okay then, my favorite playable class has to be Ranger. The perfect solo adventurer or party leader. Can sneak, can track, can fight (often with two swords at no penalty), and has perpetual 5-o'clock shadow. The coolest of D&D heroes.
30 Day D&D Challenge - Day 5:Your favorite set of dice/individual die
Favorite die (Day 5)
That's easy, this one:
This sparkly little wonder is the d20 out of the first set of dice I ever bought, at age 9 or so. Part of a set of 'sparkly' dice that at the time I thought looked like cool gems, but in retrospect are some the ugliest pieces of plastic I've ever seen. This die has been rolled so much over the years it has basically rounded into a marble. Still, she's cut the head off a ghoul or two when I've needed her to. I've lost track of all of the dice from that original set except for this fabulous character, who I keep in my day-travel dice bag. That's right, a bag of dice I carry with me everywhere I go. You never know, right?
That's easy, this one:
This sparkly little wonder is the d20 out of the first set of dice I ever bought, at age 9 or so. Part of a set of 'sparkly' dice that at the time I thought looked like cool gems, but in retrospect are some the ugliest pieces of plastic I've ever seen. This die has been rolled so much over the years it has basically rounded into a marble. Still, she's cut the head off a ghoul or two when I've needed her to. I've lost track of all of the dice from that original set except for this fabulous character, who I keep in my day-travel dice bag. That's right, a bag of dice I carry with me everywhere I go. You never know, right?
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
30-Day D&D Challenge - Favorite Gameworld: Ravenloft
So I've just learned about the 30 Day D&D Challenge, but that won't stop me from jumping in and giving my two cents on the most important topic of Dungeons and Dragons-ing!
Favorite Gameworld (Day 4)
Easily my favorite D&D gameworld has to be Ravenloft. Specifically, AD&D Ravenloft from the mid-nineties, not the 3e+ "conversions" they tried to make in the early 2000's. Something was lost in translation when the campaign book contains actual player Feats to gain a mechanical bonus to avoid being affected by Horror and the all-mysterious Ravenloft Powers Checks. Instead of rolling strange percentiles to avoid fainting at the sight of the ghoul ballroom dinner, players get a +3 skill bonus versus horror (will) checks or are frightened (-4 to attacks and AC). Meh.
I love Ravenloft not because its the most exciting for the players (few campaign settings will elicit such eyerolls from players as the Gothic Mists), and not because it has the smoothest mechanics (95% of the iconic Ravenloft-specific dark powers/mists mechanics are "because the DM says so"), but because of the loads of fantastic gothic fluff they crammed into every Domain splatbook and Van Richten's Guide that was printed in the 90's. This is a campaign setting for those DMs who never actually get to play, but just love to read about settings.
And the Van Richten guides! There were like 15 of those things! Guide to Ghosts, Vampires, Constructs, Mummies, Demons, Lycanthropes...you name a gothic monster, they had a whole splatbook dedicated to it. A splatbook that read like a series of journal entries (introducing the suggested plot hooks and ideas) from Van Richten's point of view! They were superior to the Volo's Guides (of Forgotten Realms) because they had the overarching ominous tone of Ravenloft, where you read on to see what horrible thing will happen to Van Richten or his friends. This is versus Volo just talking about drinking in Taverns and stuff, and just read like a rather ho-hum travel guide.
And then there's the novels. Like many D&D novel, some were so badly written to be all but incomprehensible as to what was going on, but others introduced iconic characters and plotlines. Vampire of the Mists, Knight of the Black Rose, and I, Strahd are three of the better novels set in the Ravenloft universe. Vampire of the Mists introduced Jander Sunstar, the good-hearted elf vampire trapped in the mists who you wanted to root for even though he was a vampire. Knight of the Black Rose gave us Lord Soth, a major Dragonlance character being transported to Ravenloft, showing us they were serious about the 'no one is safe from the mists' angle (they were willing to move a major character from another whole campaign setting!). And I, Strahd gave us Azalin, the Lich arch-enemy of Ravenloft's Dracula, Strahd.
Ravenloft is the B-horror gothic movie setting of 2nd ed. AD&D.
Favorite Gameworld (Day 4)
Ravenloft!
Easily my favorite D&D gameworld has to be Ravenloft. Specifically, AD&D Ravenloft from the mid-nineties, not the 3e+ "conversions" they tried to make in the early 2000's. Something was lost in translation when the campaign book contains actual player Feats to gain a mechanical bonus to avoid being affected by Horror and the all-mysterious Ravenloft Powers Checks. Instead of rolling strange percentiles to avoid fainting at the sight of the ghoul ballroom dinner, players get a +3 skill bonus versus horror (will) checks or are frightened (-4 to attacks and AC). Meh.
I love Ravenloft not because its the most exciting for the players (few campaign settings will elicit such eyerolls from players as the Gothic Mists), and not because it has the smoothest mechanics (95% of the iconic Ravenloft-specific dark powers/mists mechanics are "because the DM says so"), but because of the loads of fantastic gothic fluff they crammed into every Domain splatbook and Van Richten's Guide that was printed in the 90's. This is a campaign setting for those DMs who never actually get to play, but just love to read about settings.
And the Van Richten guides! There were like 15 of those things! Guide to Ghosts, Vampires, Constructs, Mummies, Demons, Lycanthropes...you name a gothic monster, they had a whole splatbook dedicated to it. A splatbook that read like a series of journal entries (introducing the suggested plot hooks and ideas) from Van Richten's point of view! They were superior to the Volo's Guides (of Forgotten Realms) because they had the overarching ominous tone of Ravenloft, where you read on to see what horrible thing will happen to Van Richten or his friends. This is versus Volo just talking about drinking in Taverns and stuff, and just read like a rather ho-hum travel guide.
And then there's the novels. Like many D&D novel, some were so badly written to be all but incomprehensible as to what was going on, but others introduced iconic characters and plotlines. Vampire of the Mists, Knight of the Black Rose, and I, Strahd are three of the better novels set in the Ravenloft universe. Vampire of the Mists introduced Jander Sunstar, the good-hearted elf vampire trapped in the mists who you wanted to root for even though he was a vampire. Knight of the Black Rose gave us Lord Soth, a major Dragonlance character being transported to Ravenloft, showing us they were serious about the 'no one is safe from the mists' angle (they were willing to move a major character from another whole campaign setting!). And I, Strahd gave us Azalin, the Lich arch-enemy of Ravenloft's Dracula, Strahd.
Ravenloft is the B-horror gothic movie setting of 2nd ed. AD&D.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
ScanCon2013 Leaderboard
It has begun! The ScanCon Tournament of Champions is officially in progress! The mailer with the hidden clues arrived at each person's home last week, and not 24 hours later did we already have four players in the running for this year's ScanCon challenge gauntlet.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Goblin Infestation!
Our two heroes are a strong human paladin tank, and teeny lightfoot halfling priest who loves blessing fields and overseeing marriages. They live in Silverymoon, which is known for it's very cosmopolitan and open society, as well as it's mage schools, and robust adventuring community.
Sidebar: I love having a game with only two players who are totally into the game. They aren't interested in min/maxing, and are actually care about their characters and also the NPCs they meet. It allows me to focus on the details, to make the mundane seem important.
They usually hang out in the greatest adventuring tavern in the North. The Bright Blade Brandished. Drinking ale out of clay mugs, while planning the details of their greatest adventure. The Paladin's name is Vlad. (and I get the feeling that he's just barely a paladin) The halfing cleirc's name is Trebor.
Sidebar: I also appreciate that this is a cleric of Sheela Peryroyl. Players usually want Helm or Tempus or something related to War. It's great that we have a cleric of a second tier deity, of farming and fertility. It really adds a lot to the game.
So as they're drinking their mugs of ale in the BBB in the mid afternoon, they consult a number of flyers pinned to the wall, prompting heroes to rush to their death. Of course there are the usual calls to gather spell reagents form dangerous and uncomfortable swamps to the west, missing persons, etc. But the job that gathers their attention is the best low level adventure of all time.
A local farm with a goblin infestation.
The little greenskins are killing their chickens and whatnot, so the farmers need some stout arms with sharp blades to rid them of their deadly vermin. The pay is likely poor, but the cause is just.
Our two heroes, who are very important, travel out the the Jameson* Farmstead, a few miles travel in the rolling hills outside of the walled City-State of Silverymoon. Vlad just walks. The halfing has a fully trained riding dog (husky style), complete with riding saddle. He's almost another character. Oh, and the dog's name is Artemis.
This name is 1000% awesome as the player is completely unfamiliar with Forgotten Realms. I was silently thrilled that he picked this name. Artemis Entreri is my favorite character.
Upon arrival, they introduce themselves to the the family, and meet the entire brood of Jameson kids. aka farmhands. Then everyone gets down to negotiations.
(We actually roleplayed the entire terms of the contract) Rid us our our goblin menace, and we'll give you a few gold and some chickens.
Then the heroes find the nearby, filled in, goblin holes right next to the stinky chicken coop. Vlad grabs a trusty shovel and digs his way down and the team descends into a cramped, dark, goblin hole, ready to whoop some ass. It's only gobbos, right? What could go wrong?
They need a torch as the human needs to see. They need daggers, as the hole is goblin sized and we can't swing a sword. Nobody is trained to fight with daggers? Jeepers. Oh, and the human must fight from his knees, and sideways, with a blinding torch in one hand. The dank, soft dirt is pressing in from all around. Seriously, why don't goblins build these tunnels a tad bigger. BUILD IT PROPER SIZE!
There's really no other way to spin it. Our heroes get their asses handed to them by three goblins.
Three teensy weensy goblins. That's all I had in tonight's adventure. Three.
The dagger gets knocked out his hands, the torch gets knocked out his hands (and the gobbos stomp it out), and the goblin beaten-metal short swords just keep slicing pink skin. It was great. Try to put yourself in this moment in time. It actually felt a bit real and scary. You're 15' underground, at a backwater farm, getting sliced to death by dumb goblins, and you can't even see, stand up, or move your arms very well. For sure one of my top 20 games.
They were only able to survive by sending the trained dog down the tunnel. 'Sick em Artemis!" Two or three of our halfing's rounds were spent standing behind the dog yelling "Rip em up!" That dog totally saved the day and is the best fighter of the group. At least in gobbo tunnels. And he was wearing his riding saddle the whole time.
If you must know, our two champions escaped the dirt tunnel by the chicken coop, and retired to the farmhouse to tend their wounds. The farmer, James Jameson, kind of berated them for trying to hit the road. (The players were actually trying to call it quits after three little greenskins) Goblin infestations kind of suck. How do you know if you got them all? You really need to dig em out by the roots, and it's a dirty business. They decided to stay and work up a battle plan, while they drank ale from wooden cups, and dined on sheep ribs with mint sauce.
*Yes, I named an NPC after whisky. At least I didn't name him Dagnabit, or Mooshie.
His kids are named:
1. Jacob Jameson (m15)
2. Jacoby Jameson (m14)
3. Jambone Jameson (m13)
4. Jarvis Jameson (m12)
5. Jubilation Jameson (f11)
Sidebar: I love having a game with only two players who are totally into the game. They aren't interested in min/maxing, and are actually care about their characters and also the NPCs they meet. It allows me to focus on the details, to make the mundane seem important.
They usually hang out in the greatest adventuring tavern in the North. The Bright Blade Brandished. Drinking ale out of clay mugs, while planning the details of their greatest adventure. The Paladin's name is Vlad. (and I get the feeling that he's just barely a paladin) The halfing cleirc's name is Trebor.
Sidebar: I also appreciate that this is a cleric of Sheela Peryroyl. Players usually want Helm or Tempus or something related to War. It's great that we have a cleric of a second tier deity, of farming and fertility. It really adds a lot to the game.
So as they're drinking their mugs of ale in the BBB in the mid afternoon, they consult a number of flyers pinned to the wall, prompting heroes to rush to their death. Of course there are the usual calls to gather spell reagents form dangerous and uncomfortable swamps to the west, missing persons, etc. But the job that gathers their attention is the best low level adventure of all time.
A local farm with a goblin infestation.
The little greenskins are killing their chickens and whatnot, so the farmers need some stout arms with sharp blades to rid them of their deadly vermin. The pay is likely poor, but the cause is just.
Our two heroes, who are very important, travel out the the Jameson* Farmstead, a few miles travel in the rolling hills outside of the walled City-State of Silverymoon. Vlad just walks. The halfing has a fully trained riding dog (husky style), complete with riding saddle. He's almost another character. Oh, and the dog's name is Artemis.
This name is 1000% awesome as the player is completely unfamiliar with Forgotten Realms. I was silently thrilled that he picked this name. Artemis Entreri is my favorite character.
Upon arrival, they introduce themselves to the the family, and meet the entire brood of Jameson kids. aka farmhands. Then everyone gets down to negotiations.
(We actually roleplayed the entire terms of the contract) Rid us our our goblin menace, and we'll give you a few gold and some chickens.
Then the heroes find the nearby, filled in, goblin holes right next to the stinky chicken coop. Vlad grabs a trusty shovel and digs his way down and the team descends into a cramped, dark, goblin hole, ready to whoop some ass. It's only gobbos, right? What could go wrong?
They need a torch as the human needs to see. They need daggers, as the hole is goblin sized and we can't swing a sword. Nobody is trained to fight with daggers? Jeepers. Oh, and the human must fight from his knees, and sideways, with a blinding torch in one hand. The dank, soft dirt is pressing in from all around. Seriously, why don't goblins build these tunnels a tad bigger. BUILD IT PROPER SIZE!
There's really no other way to spin it. Our heroes get their asses handed to them by three goblins.
Three teensy weensy goblins. That's all I had in tonight's adventure. Three.
The dagger gets knocked out his hands, the torch gets knocked out his hands (and the gobbos stomp it out), and the goblin beaten-metal short swords just keep slicing pink skin. It was great. Try to put yourself in this moment in time. It actually felt a bit real and scary. You're 15' underground, at a backwater farm, getting sliced to death by dumb goblins, and you can't even see, stand up, or move your arms very well. For sure one of my top 20 games.
They were only able to survive by sending the trained dog down the tunnel. 'Sick em Artemis!" Two or three of our halfing's rounds were spent standing behind the dog yelling "Rip em up!" That dog totally saved the day and is the best fighter of the group. At least in gobbo tunnels. And he was wearing his riding saddle the whole time.
If you must know, our two champions escaped the dirt tunnel by the chicken coop, and retired to the farmhouse to tend their wounds. The farmer, James Jameson, kind of berated them for trying to hit the road. (The players were actually trying to call it quits after three little greenskins) Goblin infestations kind of suck. How do you know if you got them all? You really need to dig em out by the roots, and it's a dirty business. They decided to stay and work up a battle plan, while they drank ale from wooden cups, and dined on sheep ribs with mint sauce.
*Yes, I named an NPC after whisky. At least I didn't name him Dagnabit, or Mooshie.
His kids are named:
1. Jacob Jameson (m15)
2. Jacoby Jameson (m14)
3. Jambone Jameson (m13)
4. Jarvis Jameson (m12)
5. Jubilation Jameson (f11)
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Silverymoon
How about some 3.5 version D&D, set in the well known Forgotten Realms world? You like? Ok.
Well, I love the feel of some low-level D&D. Where wolfs and orcs are a real menace. When the players are just starting a good multi-year campaign, and you can just feel that they are putting in lots of effort to establish their characters. I feel like a kid again. Is 19 a kid?
So we're starting off in Silverymoon. The Gem of the North. Very diverse, with some magic colleges, music colleges, and smattering of temples and whatnot. A great place to start some 1st level characters. Go out, mix it up, then get back into the city walls, and cash in.
We've had a couple of little adventures with this group, where they go into the Moonwood (the nearby forest) to investigate some troublesome druids. And they have a small battle, (which they lose) and it turns out that the druids are in league with some werewolfs. It's called The Moonwood, duh.
So what happens is that one of the characters (a halfling priest) is bitten by Mr. Werewolf. Some good guys show up and save the day and dispatch all the bad guys. They then take everyone to the keep to administer their werewolf cooties cure.
You with me so far? Good.
So the cure for werewolf cooties (right out of the rulebook) is to eat some fresh belladonna, which is superpoison. First you take a check to see if it cooks out the cooties. Then you take a second check to see if it kills you. As stated my one of my players "It's werewolf chemo."
He chews up the leaves, states that it tastes like cilantro, then starts throwing up and is pretty much a physical wreck. It doesn't cure the lycranthopy, but it doesn't kill him either. Which is kind of nice. It was a pretty cool scene that everyone roleplayed really well. It was a bit tense for a moment, because they really like their characters.
So I read a little bit more in the DM guide, and it says that it can also be fixed by casting "Cure Disease" from a 12th Level priest. Which they happen to have at the Keep.
So the agents bring in the old lady priest who twiddles her fingers and rubs her palms together. Bingo! You're cured! Everyone's happy.
Then the halfling raises his hand and says "I have a question, if you don't mind. Um. Why didn't you try the least invasive method first? You know... the one with a 100% SUCCESS RATE!?"
Well, I love the feel of some low-level D&D. Where wolfs and orcs are a real menace. When the players are just starting a good multi-year campaign, and you can just feel that they are putting in lots of effort to establish their characters. I feel like a kid again. Is 19 a kid?
So we're starting off in Silverymoon. The Gem of the North. Very diverse, with some magic colleges, music colleges, and smattering of temples and whatnot. A great place to start some 1st level characters. Go out, mix it up, then get back into the city walls, and cash in.
We've had a couple of little adventures with this group, where they go into the Moonwood (the nearby forest) to investigate some troublesome druids. And they have a small battle, (which they lose) and it turns out that the druids are in league with some werewolfs. It's called The Moonwood, duh.
So what happens is that one of the characters (a halfling priest) is bitten by Mr. Werewolf. Some good guys show up and save the day and dispatch all the bad guys. They then take everyone to the keep to administer their werewolf cooties cure.
You with me so far? Good.
So the cure for werewolf cooties (right out of the rulebook) is to eat some fresh belladonna, which is superpoison. First you take a check to see if it cooks out the cooties. Then you take a second check to see if it kills you. As stated my one of my players "It's werewolf chemo."
He chews up the leaves, states that it tastes like cilantro, then starts throwing up and is pretty much a physical wreck. It doesn't cure the lycranthopy, but it doesn't kill him either. Which is kind of nice. It was a pretty cool scene that everyone roleplayed really well. It was a bit tense for a moment, because they really like their characters.
So I read a little bit more in the DM guide, and it says that it can also be fixed by casting "Cure Disease" from a 12th Level priest. Which they happen to have at the Keep.
So the agents bring in the old lady priest who twiddles her fingers and rubs her palms together. Bingo! You're cured! Everyone's happy.
Then the halfling raises his hand and says "I have a question, if you don't mind. Um. Why didn't you try the least invasive method first? You know... the one with a 100% SUCCESS RATE!?"
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