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Here, There Be Dragons (D&D 4e, Points of Light)
This thread is being set up as a way for my players to talk to me, the DM, or each other between games.
CAMPAIGN SETTING:
The campaign setting we will be using is the "default" 4th edition D&D "Points of Light" setting. I don't think I'll be making many changes to what is presented to us as in the descriptions of various races, monsters, and gods as written in the published books. I'll simply be taking those concepts and putting them together to produce a world everyone can have a fun adventure in. So whatever you read in any published D&D book that isn't specific to some other campaign (like Forgotten Realms or Eberron), you can pretty much take that as gospal.
ALIGNMENTS:
No Evil or Chaotic Evil alignments. Unaligned, Good, or Lawful Good is accepted. I'm imposing this limitation so that nobody gets out of hand and completely derails the adventure. I essentially don't want anybody playing either of these bad character stereotypes: "Stupid Evil" or "Chaotic Stupid". Now just to be clear, this doesn't mean I expect everybody in the party to be saintly or anything like that. Anti-heroes are just fine. Just don't devolve the campaign into a game of "Grand Theft Auto" where the PC's will find any reason whatsoever to behave like homicidal maniacs going out and commit wanton destruction and mass murder on innocents. I essentially would like to see the party composed of heroes doing heroic things; whether they are your classic chivalrous "white knights in shining armor," anti-heroes, or even "dark heroes." Whatever your character's quirks are, they need to have some motivation to help people out (even if it's a selfish, greedy one, such as being a mercenary who does it only for the gold), and generally not piss off their prospective employers (by killing them). A good reputation will go far to keep the party swimming in quests and rewards.
CHARACTER CREATION:
Standard rules for rolling up new characters. Everyone starts out at level 1. I strongly encourage everybody to obtain a copy of the offical Character Creator for D&D 4e, and use that program (it will make things so much easier and faster to keep track of). Nothing offered in in the Character Creator will be forbidden as of right now. Consumable magic items like potions, alchemy stuff, and scrolls can be bought "at-cost" during character creation (there will be a mark-up to buying magic items once the adventure starts, if they're even available for purchase at all). All races, classes, feats, powers, and backgrounds are legal as long as they came from an officially published Wizards of the Coast source (all of which are in the Character Creator). So with that in mind...
CHARACTER OPTIMIZATION:
Do it. Not only am I not worried about powerful characters, but I encourage you to optimize them as much as you can. I've included a great link to a bunch of character optimization guides in a post below. If you build a solid and powerful party, this means I can throw more challenging encounters at you guys, which will result in better rewards for victory. And speaking of rewards...
WISH LISTS:
The Dungeon Master's guide actually recommends that I offer the opportunity for all players to submit "wish lists" of magic items they hope to get as the adventure progresses. I'm going to take their advice. I fully encourage everybody to post their respective "wish lists" in this thread. Write down 3 to 5 magic items you would like to get, that are no more than 4 levels above your character's current level (magic items up to level 5, in this case). HINT: Pick 1 magic item for each level (a level 1 item, a level 2 item, level 3, etc.) to make sure that you have the best chances of eventually walking away with something from your list. NOTE: These wish lists aren't guarantees that you'll get everything or even anything you write down. They merely serve me as a guideline for the items I should include in the adventures I write up.
ENVIRONMENT:
Illir asked me a great question - how often are we going to be outdoors? I'm going to try to strike a balance between all the types of environments your characters will be adventuring in. This means you'll roughly spend an equal amount of time in an urban environment, in the great outdoors, and even underground. This is so that any character who is trained in the Nature, Dungeoneering, and Streetwise skills all have their respective opportunities to put their skills to good use.
ROLEPLAYING:
Simply put, you'll get out of it whatever you put into it. If you want to skip over most conversations, choosing to mainly be the silent type of adventurer who is more into action than words, I have no problem with that and won't beat you up over it. That said, if you have more fun with the game by engaging in epic, dramatic dialogues with NPCs, I will cater to that as well - but you have to make the first move and give me the signal that this is what you want. When it's appropriate, type out what your character is saying or what he is doing, and I will try to respond as appropriate, and really try to set the scene for everybody given how involved I can sense a player is in the roleplaying.
ENCOUNTERS:
I will try to strike a roughly even balance between combat and non-combat encounters (the latter being when a lot of skill checks will become involved, as well as the opportunity to roleplay). There will also be traps and hazards to overcome every so often. I will also reward EXP for accomplishing minor and major quest objectives. Minor quest objectives will usually be in the form of PERSONAL quests - so the more background you are able to write up and give me for your character, the more plot hooks I can insert into the adventure for your character to pursue and possibly be rewarded for. This isn't to say I want 10 pages worth of character biography - a single paragraph should be enough to get the ball rolling.
ONLINE PLAY AND TIMING:
I'll be the first to admit that running games online are usually slow. I'm going to be doing my darnedest to keep things moving as fast as they would be if we were to be sitting down at a table, face-to-face with one another. With that in mind, I realize that there will be a lot of distractions that come up during our gaming sessions. I hate to be a facist when it comes to online play, but it's something I have to do for the sake of making sure everyone else is having a good time. So this is why, if I call on you (to either take your combat turn or else answer some other prompt), and you don't reply within 1 minute, I will consider your action to be delayed until you get back, and simply move on to whoever is next. I hate to be like this, but I can't personally monitor what's going on over at your house - so I don't know if you're being distracted by a spouse or if you're trying to play World of Warcraft in another window. In either event, it slows down the game for everyone else. If you're trying to type out a lengthy paragraph, though, and need more than a minute, just do something that lets me know that you're at the keyboard and I have your attention, and I'll give you more time.
LENGTH OF SESSIONS:
I'd like everyone to plan on gaming for 4 hours at a minimum each time we all gather to play. But I'm not going to set any arbitrary "stopping time" after 4 hours have elapsed - we'll keep going until one of us has to call it quits for the night.
SPEAKING "IN CHARACTER" AND "OUT OF CHARACTER":
I don't mind how often anyone speaks to each other out of character, or in character. Just as long as you differentiate between the two. So for in character dialogue, I suggest you "put quotes" around whatever your character is saying. For out of character talk to anyone else playing, either use (parenthesis), [these things], or begin with whatever you're about to say with "OOC:". I don't mind anyone discussing tactics with each other during combat, either, or otherwise making some other suggestion to a party member on how to tackle an obstacle.
This is all I can think of to mention as we get this thing started. If you have any other questions about the campaign in general, feel free to ask in this thread and I'll answer as best I can.
CAMPAIGN SETTING:
The campaign setting we will be using is the "default" 4th edition D&D "Points of Light" setting. I don't think I'll be making many changes to what is presented to us as in the descriptions of various races, monsters, and gods as written in the published books. I'll simply be taking those concepts and putting them together to produce a world everyone can have a fun adventure in. So whatever you read in any published D&D book that isn't specific to some other campaign (like Forgotten Realms or Eberron), you can pretty much take that as gospal.
ALIGNMENTS:
No Evil or Chaotic Evil alignments. Unaligned, Good, or Lawful Good is accepted. I'm imposing this limitation so that nobody gets out of hand and completely derails the adventure. I essentially don't want anybody playing either of these bad character stereotypes: "Stupid Evil" or "Chaotic Stupid". Now just to be clear, this doesn't mean I expect everybody in the party to be saintly or anything like that. Anti-heroes are just fine. Just don't devolve the campaign into a game of "Grand Theft Auto" where the PC's will find any reason whatsoever to behave like homicidal maniacs going out and commit wanton destruction and mass murder on innocents. I essentially would like to see the party composed of heroes doing heroic things; whether they are your classic chivalrous "white knights in shining armor," anti-heroes, or even "dark heroes." Whatever your character's quirks are, they need to have some motivation to help people out (even if it's a selfish, greedy one, such as being a mercenary who does it only for the gold), and generally not piss off their prospective employers (by killing them). A good reputation will go far to keep the party swimming in quests and rewards.
CHARACTER CREATION:
Standard rules for rolling up new characters. Everyone starts out at level 1. I strongly encourage everybody to obtain a copy of the offical Character Creator for D&D 4e, and use that program (it will make things so much easier and faster to keep track of). Nothing offered in in the Character Creator will be forbidden as of right now. Consumable magic items like potions, alchemy stuff, and scrolls can be bought "at-cost" during character creation (there will be a mark-up to buying magic items once the adventure starts, if they're even available for purchase at all). All races, classes, feats, powers, and backgrounds are legal as long as they came from an officially published Wizards of the Coast source (all of which are in the Character Creator). So with that in mind...
CHARACTER OPTIMIZATION:
Do it. Not only am I not worried about powerful characters, but I encourage you to optimize them as much as you can. I've included a great link to a bunch of character optimization guides in a post below. If you build a solid and powerful party, this means I can throw more challenging encounters at you guys, which will result in better rewards for victory. And speaking of rewards...
WISH LISTS:
The Dungeon Master's guide actually recommends that I offer the opportunity for all players to submit "wish lists" of magic items they hope to get as the adventure progresses. I'm going to take their advice. I fully encourage everybody to post their respective "wish lists" in this thread. Write down 3 to 5 magic items you would like to get, that are no more than 4 levels above your character's current level (magic items up to level 5, in this case). HINT: Pick 1 magic item for each level (a level 1 item, a level 2 item, level 3, etc.) to make sure that you have the best chances of eventually walking away with something from your list. NOTE: These wish lists aren't guarantees that you'll get everything or even anything you write down. They merely serve me as a guideline for the items I should include in the adventures I write up.
ENVIRONMENT:
Illir asked me a great question - how often are we going to be outdoors? I'm going to try to strike a balance between all the types of environments your characters will be adventuring in. This means you'll roughly spend an equal amount of time in an urban environment, in the great outdoors, and even underground. This is so that any character who is trained in the Nature, Dungeoneering, and Streetwise skills all have their respective opportunities to put their skills to good use.
ROLEPLAYING:
Simply put, you'll get out of it whatever you put into it. If you want to skip over most conversations, choosing to mainly be the silent type of adventurer who is more into action than words, I have no problem with that and won't beat you up over it. That said, if you have more fun with the game by engaging in epic, dramatic dialogues with NPCs, I will cater to that as well - but you have to make the first move and give me the signal that this is what you want. When it's appropriate, type out what your character is saying or what he is doing, and I will try to respond as appropriate, and really try to set the scene for everybody given how involved I can sense a player is in the roleplaying.
ENCOUNTERS:
I will try to strike a roughly even balance between combat and non-combat encounters (the latter being when a lot of skill checks will become involved, as well as the opportunity to roleplay). There will also be traps and hazards to overcome every so often. I will also reward EXP for accomplishing minor and major quest objectives. Minor quest objectives will usually be in the form of PERSONAL quests - so the more background you are able to write up and give me for your character, the more plot hooks I can insert into the adventure for your character to pursue and possibly be rewarded for. This isn't to say I want 10 pages worth of character biography - a single paragraph should be enough to get the ball rolling.
ONLINE PLAY AND TIMING:
I'll be the first to admit that running games online are usually slow. I'm going to be doing my darnedest to keep things moving as fast as they would be if we were to be sitting down at a table, face-to-face with one another. With that in mind, I realize that there will be a lot of distractions that come up during our gaming sessions. I hate to be a facist when it comes to online play, but it's something I have to do for the sake of making sure everyone else is having a good time. So this is why, if I call on you (to either take your combat turn or else answer some other prompt), and you don't reply within 1 minute, I will consider your action to be delayed until you get back, and simply move on to whoever is next. I hate to be like this, but I can't personally monitor what's going on over at your house - so I don't know if you're being distracted by a spouse or if you're trying to play World of Warcraft in another window. In either event, it slows down the game for everyone else. If you're trying to type out a lengthy paragraph, though, and need more than a minute, just do something that lets me know that you're at the keyboard and I have your attention, and I'll give you more time.
LENGTH OF SESSIONS:
I'd like everyone to plan on gaming for 4 hours at a minimum each time we all gather to play. But I'm not going to set any arbitrary "stopping time" after 4 hours have elapsed - we'll keep going until one of us has to call it quits for the night.
SPEAKING "IN CHARACTER" AND "OUT OF CHARACTER":
I don't mind how often anyone speaks to each other out of character, or in character. Just as long as you differentiate between the two. So for in character dialogue, I suggest you "put quotes" around whatever your character is saying. For out of character talk to anyone else playing, either use (parenthesis), [these things], or begin with whatever you're about to say with "OOC:". I don't mind anyone discussing tactics with each other during combat, either, or otherwise making some other suggestion to a party member on how to tackle an obstacle.
This is all I can think of to mention as we get this thing started. If you have any other questions about the campaign in general, feel free to ask in this thread and I'll answer as best I can.
Comments
That said, it sounds like the weekend would work best for everybody. How does starting the game on Saturday, 7pm Eastern sound to everyone?
Also, since we're all gathered up now, it'd probably be best for everyone to also mention what character classes/roles you all want to play so you all can introduce yourselves to each other and have a discussion on party composition.
Have fun and looking forward to gaming with all you guys!
As for characters I'd like to play... hrm. Not really sure what to play as I'm something of a rookie. I'll be conversing with lida to make a decision. Probably something simple from the first book, but I'm keeping my options open.
With all that said, I need some input from all of you guys: Should I rent a Ventrilo/Team Speak server for the occasion? It will only cost me 3 bucks for such a small group as ours. I wouldn't require everybody to have mikes and talk over it (although that would certainly help). This would be done solely for my own benefit, as it means if everyone is listening to me speak, I can manage encounters much faster than if I were to type every single detail out - all you have to do is listen. I'll be the first to admit that trying to run a game online isn't the fastest way to do it, but I'm doing my darndest to speed up the process so we all can make good progress through the overall adventure during each session instead of spending 4 hours on the same encounter - that's boring to me and I'm sure it would be boring to you too. So how about it?
Also, here is a great page that contains a whole bunch of links to class optimization guides:
http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19649074/The_Complete_Collection_of_Character_Build_Links?pg=1
I suggest you all take a peek in case any of you were having trouble rolling up a character. Unfortunately, the guy who wrote the latest guides for Wizards and Artificers either had his account hacked, or else suffered some kind of mental breakdown, and his guides got completely deleted, which means if you're going to play an Artificer or Wizard, you'll have to make do with one of the older guides.
And, finally, while we currently have 4 players right now, I'd like to try to get a 5th, since that's the number that D&D4e seems to be optimized around. If any of you know anyone else who would like to play and can reliably make Saturday nights, by all means, recruit them! However, 6 is the maximum amount of players I will allow, since too many players really starts to bog down the game - and I hate slow games.
Skype does do conference calls, but I think I'd like to try to get Vent set up first.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/663476/Valenae/ ... %201.dnd4e
Wish List:
Amulet of Protection +1
Feyleaf Sandles
Veteran's Armor +1
Battleforged Shield +1
Fey Strike Weapon +1
Vent server (when it's up):
urit.no-ip.info port 3784
No password
A few other reminders as to how I run non-combat enounter skill challenges:
Rhythm Blade dagger+1
Flowform Armor+1
Boots of Adept Charging+1
~~Level 2 magic item wishlist:
Magic Orb +2
Longsword Luckblade +1
Blessed Book
Ioun's Parchment x1-3
Cannith Goggles
~~Random goodies wishlist:
Potion of Healing x1-3
Herbal Poultice x1-3
Ritual Books
Updated wish list:
Bold items are new.
Dwarven armor +1
Maul - Avalanche Hammer +1
Greataxe - Foe Maker +1
Iron Arm Bands of Power +1
Amulet of Life +1
Iron Armbands of Power +1 (Iron bracelets with a slight copperish green tint, and small hieroglyphs of fighting men in armor inscribed in a twisting spiral along it's length. Look rather heavy, but actually do not weigh terribly much at all, maybe over looked by warriors who do not wish to wear 'sissy boy jewelry'.)
Frost Dagger +1 (This simple pommel less dagger is unnaturally cool to the touch, a favorite of bar keepers every where. As leaving this sort of weapon under the counter, next to the expensive wines and liquors always keeps them ice cold. Some where a frost wizard is sobbing in their drinks, their greatest accomplishment reduced to a beer cooler, there, there, have a cold one.)
Flowform Leather Armor +1 (This armor of pure black cured leather seems to shift and have a slippery nature. The armor is obviously designed for a woman, and is actually rather... embarrassing. This hand-me-down armor was obviously intended as a gag gift, or simply was designed by a wizard with a low charisma score, and didn't get out of the house much. Still, it does manage to provide adequate protection due to it's magical nature.)
Updated wish list:
Bold items are new.
Iron Armbands of Power +1 (Iron bracelets with a slight copperish green tint, and small hieroglyphs of fighting men in armor inscribed in a twisting spiral along it's length. Look rather heavy, but actually do not weigh terribly much at all, maybe over looked by warriors who do not wish to wear 'sissy boy jewelry'.)
Boots of the Fencing Master +1 (These sleek black boots are soft and supple, and extremely comfortable, naturally fitting the feet of the wearer as long they are roughly the right size for the boots. When worn, the user finds foot work easier! Extremely useful to young nobles whom dance partner has cold feet. Nothing ruins a romantic dance then smashed toes! Especially useful for suitors who's partners are extremely larger then they are.)
Flowform Leather Armor +1 (This armor of pure black cured leather seems to shift and have a slippery nature. The armor is obviously designed for a woman, and is actually rather... embarrassing. This hand-me-down armor was obviously intended as a gag gift, or simply was designed by a wizard with a low charisma score, and didn't get out of the house much. Still, it does manage to provide adequate protection due to it's magical nature.)
(Implement) Orb of Fickle Fate +1
(Implement) Mnemonic Staff +2
(arm) Bracers of Mental Might
(longsword) Luckblade +1
(cloth) Shimmering Armor +1
Dwarven armor +1
Maul - Avalanche Hammer +1
Greataxe - Foe Maker +1
Amulet of Life
Cincture of the Dragon Spirit
I was curious how amenable to this notion the DM might be.
3 - Rod of Corruption (+1)
4 - Rod of the Pactbinder (+1)
3 - Pact Blade (+1)
6 - Summoned Armor
7 - Boots of the Fencing Master
Updated wish list:
Bold items are new.
Level 4 wish list ((Top to bottom: Really Want to kinda want))
[*](Arms) Bracers of Mental Might: These bracers appear far too small for any practical benefit, in fact they seem entirely ornamental. Each are made of twin plates of silver, lain upon dark leather with simple buckles. The silver plates are traced with an intricate and delicate relief of the goddess Ioun, as well as other symbols of knowledge and learning. These bracers could only make the wearer feel as powerful as they think they are.
[*](Waist) Potion Bandolier: This heavy, brown leather bandolier looks like a tool belt lacking tools, though the six slides are far too close together to accommodate any tool with a working end. They are, however, highly elastic, and look about the right size for a small bottle.
[*](Implement) Crystal Orb of Inevitable Continuance +2: This icosahedronic gem stone is perfectly clear, and radiates magical energy. Images seen through the crystal orb seem to linger, as though lost in the threads of time for a moment.
[*](Neck) Ornament of Alertness +2: This silver chain collar has placed within its setting a single sphere of amethyst, carved with the symbol of the goddess Ioun. Wearing this trinket will likely bestow her insight upon you.
[*](Longsword) Luckblade +2: This elegant blade was found alongside a pouch of six-sided dice that can only roll ones, no matter how hard you try. The flat pommel seems to resemble a gold piece, the iron tang decorated in gold leaf. The blade is unremarkable, but fortunately, very sharp.
Iron Armbands of Power+1 (Iron bracelets with a slight copperish green tint, and small hieroglyphs of fighting men in armor inscribed in a twisting spiral along it's length. Look rather heavy, but actually do not weigh terribly much at all, maybe over looked by warriors who do not wish to wear 'sissy boy jewelry'.)
Horned Helmet (Heroic Tier) (This dark iron helmet of mottled metal affixes a heavy metal visor over the wearer's face. The visor covers the wearers entire face and has several slots worked in to allow the wearer to see out of the metal face cover. Just over the forehead a metal skull of a horned horse sets itself just above and between the user's eyes, the horns of this effigy curve up and point out. This magical item enhances the user's power when charging.)
Marauder's Armor+2 (This light armor is designed for those who favor reckless charging maneuvers into enemies battle formations, the straps affix themselves in such a way that they are light, and easy to wear despite their complicated appearance. Despite appearing not to cover the vital areas of the wearer's body, this armor provides superior protection as long as the user charges, among other properties that rewards the wearer for rushing into battle weapons first.)
Rod of the Pactbinder
Diamond Cincture
Rod of Corruption
[*](Implement) Crystal Orb of Fickle Fate +2: This icosahedral gem stone is laced with swirls of black and silver that seem to shift and move in unison when charged with arcane power. The orb itself is held within a bronze setting, perfect for latching chains or hooks too.
[*](Hands) Illusionist's Gloves: These silk gloves are colored a pure snow white, perfect for aspiring magicians. They seem to twist the space around them, convincing others they saw what they didn't see.
[*](Neck) Cloak of Distortion +2: This satin cape is dyed an otherworldly and shimmering ebony black, seeming to reflect light at impossible angles, resembling the midnight sky. It also feels incredibly light, catching the lightest breeze with ease, while remaining tough and resilient to weather and weapon alike.
[*](Cloth) Shimmering Armor +2: This 'armor' is really little more than a thickened, heavy doublet with matching trousers. The doublet is gossamer green with red, brown, and yellow leaf embroidery work along the chest. The sleeves are slitted, or 'slashed', showing the wearer's shirt beneath. The trousers are a polished, dark brown in hue. Even in dim light, the outfit's colors seem to shimmer and glisten.
Iron Armbands of Power (Heroic tier) (Iron bracelets with a slight copperish green tint, and small hieroglyphs of fighting men in armor inscribed in a twisting spiral along it's length. Look rather heavy, but actually do not weigh terribly much at all, maybe over looked by warriors who do not wish to wear 'sissy boy jewelry'.)
Marauder's Armor+2 (This light armor is designed for those who favor reckless charging maneuvers into enemies battle formations, the straps affix themselves in such a way that they are light, and easy to wear despite their complicated appearance. Despite appearing not to cover the vital areas of the wearer's body, this armor provides superior protection as long as the user charges, among other properties that rewards the wearer for rushing into battle weapons first.)
Vanguard Greatspear +2 (Ellen's rusted spear drinks in the blood and vitality of all of the powerful foes that she's laid to rest, the ancient artifact sheds rust and tarnish like a snake sheds skin. The flakes of black and brownish red falling off in a soft rain of dust revealing gleaming metal beneath. The black iron spear seems to carry a presence within it, while not visually impressive one will feel like they're being watched if left alone with the spear. Ellen doesn't notice this ghostly presence.)