Rath’s letters from the Grand Campaign

Read the rest of this entry »

The Grand Campaign is being played with the new Pathfinder rules, along with 3.5 add-ons as desired.

Our gaming group isn’t nearly as optimized as most, so we’re likely not hitting the best possibly mathematical combination of skills, feats, and spells, but then again, we don’t care nearly as much about that as telling a good story.

Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve started this journal for the very likely event that something goes horribly wrong. I’ve discovered something that I shouldn’t have. Before I catalog that, however, I should probably tell you, reader, who I am. I am currently known as Mauril Everleaf, scribe of Mishya. I moved to Firforge nearly ten years ago and have considered it my home since my youth.

Read the rest of this entry »

Before I begin to do any real posting, I feel that I should introduce myself.  I am new to the gaming group that Wolfgod and Avaril are active members in.  They asked me to join here to give something of an outsiders’ perspective on things.  Partially this is because I haven’t been with the group long enough to have been too changed by them, but I suspect it’s mostly because I am slightly insane and my thoughts just come from a different place than most people’s.

I am going to start running a campaign journal here, an in-character account of the Grand Campaign that Wolfgod discussed below. (Yes, it did actually get off the ground and is going swimmingly.)  I will also, from time to time, be commenting on the gaming system (Paizo’s Pathfinder) or the world that the game is taking place in.

I hope to be some combination of entertaining, informative and interesting.  I may also fail miserably at all three.  Cheers!

So we’re six adventures into the Grand Campaign.  We’re playing with  <http://paizo.com/pathfinder> – and thus far, we like it a great deal.

I’ve noticed, however, a certain discomfort for the late 3.5 material.  Core books, Unearthed Arcana, and the ‘Complete’ books I’m fairly comfortable with – as for the rest … not so much.

Read the rest of this entry »

So we had this crazy idea.

My RPG group – a bunch of players who’ve been operating together for more well over a decade – share a really beautiful custom-built world, with each major segment built by one or more players.  We’ve been having fantasy campaigns in this world for years now, each adventure building the history of the world, or filling out an unexplored area.  Heck, it’s even got it’s own Wiki so we can attempt to keep track of it all.

A few weeks ago, we decided to kick the timeline forward twelve years, and run a Grand Campaign.  This campaign will run for a year, and will have as many different GM’s as needed – but the same characters.  So, for example, I’ll kick the campaign off, and run for 4-6 sessions, then hand off to another GM and pick up playing my character.  Nobody will have to run longer than they feel like, and there should always be somebody else ready to run their segment.  Adventures don’t have to be linked, but over time I’m sure they will be.

Because some of the guys have more time as GM than others, I’ve imposed some pretty draconian limits on the characters.  Fixed stats – 17, 15, 15, 13, 13, 11.  (You can move one point from one stat to one other stat).  Fixed gold – you can’t have more than the 3.5 DMG says you can have *as personal gear*.  (You can spend excess on a castle or a personal traveling circus, just not on a talking magic sword).  So far, everybody seems to be adapting to the restrictions fine – everybody is looking forward to playing a single character for such a long time period.

Strangely, our group has never played characters over level 16.  This campaign is designed to change that, by allowing you to play your hero from level 1 to level 20 (or maybe beyond).  I’m looking forward to that.

Further updates as we get into the Campaign.  This should be interesting.

With all the screeing pre-teens swooning over the release of Twilight, I just wanted to throw my two eyeteeth in.  I haven’t read the book, nor do I plan to see the movie, but I have some major problems with what I do know of the storyline.  In short, it’s the fact that the main male protagonist is a vampire.  VAM-PIRE.  Nosferatu.  Nightstalker.  Blood ghoul.  Child of the Night.  Chupacabra.

Maybe not that last one.

Anyway, from my many hours spent role-playing D&D and Cthulhu, and my current reading of The Dresden Files, I know that vampires aren’t cured by love of some weepy tart alone.  They need to be staked.  Possibly subsequently beheaded and burned.

So, here’s how I think the movie should go:

Weepy teenage girl: “You’re a vampire!”

Vampire dude with bad hair: “Yes, but I’m a wounded vampire.  I’m a strong male character with a flaw.  Your love can heal me.”

{days pass}

Girl: “AAAAH!  You bit me!!!”

Vampire: “Yah, you’ll be my thrall by dawn.”

Girl: “I thought you were a good vampire, though!  I can’t believe this!  I should’ve listened to my mother, and stayed away from the undead!”

Vampire: “Woman, I’ve done this for the past 400 years.  I don’t need weepy teenage hangers-on.  I need servants that can move my furniture and make me coffee.”

THE END

In celebration of Halloween, I present you with a Neil Gaiman classic, I, Cthulhu.  Enjoy, oneheads.

So the band of heroes isn’t acting very heroic?  They’ve told the old King to go rescue his own daughter?  They’re starting bar fights because they won’t accept the quest and they’re getting bored?

It’s time to bring in the Mentor.

Read the rest of this entry »