[OOC] D&D 5e - The Lost Lands

[The Harbinger of Ferocity]

The Lost Lands

Prologue

There exists a story that has been long relegated to the works of fiction by time.

Once the world was said to be made up of two opposed forces, that of the light and that of the dark. Since the beginning these ideals clashed with one another, each so persistent to be rid of the other. Yet, as they were two halves of the same, neither could truly vanquish the other, but this did not stop their attempts. The Kingdom of Light and the Kingdom of Darkness together saw to it in their conflict that creation would arise. Soon, when the time came that was, man cast in his hand and many obeyed the call they felt within their heart; to fight on behalf the light. Those few who opposed, the ones fallen to the darkness, struggled just as relentlessly in turn, still nursing scorned spirits. However, the balance of these two delicate forces of existence, the fundamentals of all creation and all worlds, had already fallen out of alignment.

The light beat back the Kingdom of Darkness, chasing it into the corners in which it then hid. Not content with this, never again wishing to fight such a terrible battle, man used the gifts they had received to seal away the defeated darkness. This gift today we know as magic in many forms, just as it was then too, but of far greater power than anything of imagination. So when they closed that doorway which bridged the Realms of Light and Dark, so too did their light fade.

But man was complacent.

For a time they no longer had served the Kingdom of Light and its unknowable good, instead having turned to that which they could understand. In so doing they created gods, shrines, temples, stories, myths and legends, all good and bad. Cut off from the light and darkness, they began to lose understanding of which was which; they ignored their hearts and believed what only they saw with their eyes. So just as they pushed the light away as they had the dark before, they unknowingly allowed the ever seeping shadow to follow the void, growing stronger wherever it found weakness. Foolish students of foolish masters, they attributed their misfortunes to mortal plights rather than the enemy they had forgotten, the same now that stared so clearly back at them; the Kingdom of Darkness, still weakened from the battle so, so long ago, preyed now upon that absence of light and the belief it did not exist.

As man turned against man the great world they had created for themselves fell apart, a disaster of their own creation. This world you know personally, as it was your home. Yet, that was not what collapsed it into the Kingdom of Darkness where it now resides potentially lost forever. No, that was your own doing.

By some means or another, beyond explanation or understanding, you and a few kindred spirits were granted the spark of good within you. You, by your nature, are good at your core. Perhaps not always was this the case, almost certainly not for all of you, but it was what allowed you to survive. It is this same mysterious power that drew you all together, united as one against an enemy you could not explain or even truly defeat. Foe after foe you felled, only to watch them to disperse into inky mists and fade away. You battled to the seat of your realm's power and discovered again what had laid hidden in plain sight.

The Door to the Realm of Light and Dark, the very thing that held your world in balance, could not be seen by those who were blind to both good and evil. It was what tethered your world together, everything you knew and loved, and from its edges seeped terrible darkness. There was nowhere to go but forward as your enemy manifest relentlessly here before it. Only was it when you flung open those long sealed doors, ready to do battle, did the powers of existence return truly.

You, in no fault of your own, unleashed upon all worlds both those powers of the Kingdom of Light and the Kingdom of Darkness once more...

Drown out by the darkness, you too would have been consumed like your world was, but that hope within you shielded you more powerfully ever than before. It is your duty and that of your allies to be the lights in the darkness, to be the first and foremost of the Kingdom of Light and return the realms to order, all of them, including your own in the process. You know those hearts, those souls, are not lost forever. That there can be redemption and rescue for all things of existence.

... but it will take a battle to do so.

Overview

The rules and stakes are made simple, in that your character must not lose the light - the ambiguous, almost indescribable tenants of good - or face fighting the darkness internally or externally. Thus, all characters must be Good aligned on at least one axis; if they are former foes redeemed by being called to light or if they were born with the best ideals of good in them, they are heroes through and through. Their party is their friends, the only people they have come to know to rely upon. This is not to say they think others are bad, on the contrary, but they know it is difficult to convince others to surrender even the smallest evils in their hearts.

It is important to note that one cannot kindle hope, kindness, joy, passion and other noble ideals in others without living it themselves. Thus the characters should be of lighter spirits, motivated that they are by chance the heroes of a benevolent force that wishes to bring balance once again and through them and their actions, chase back the evil forces at work. From this, it should be noted that certain things are always considered evil, just by their nature - something the characters in time will need to learn to confront. Worse yet, while the characters should attempt to avoid unneeded conflict, especially with those of neutral or other good hearts, not everyone is so kind or well meaning; evil can be as deceitful as it delights in being prideful and bombastic.

Magic and swords will often come into play, especially with the shadowy figures - emanations of darkness itself personified - that assault the heroes and others as they travel across the realms. Threats vary from Planar beings and creatures, to evil itself. Fortunately, whereas darkness represents nothingness, the characters are embodiments of something given form. Defeat, short of the loss of the entire party, is penalized minimally. So as one can reasonably expect, battle will be frequent, fast, dynamic and lively; a spirit of high fantasy with ample rewards for those who seek out their calling. Owing to this, it is encouraged characters have both martial and magical talents.

While the story proper begins not long after their opening of the doorway and finding themselves cast into the Planes, the campaign will start with a flashback to moments prior. From there, they will see themselves on an expansive story crossing a great amount of terrain. It should be noted that while they will start off more mundane, the arms, armor, equipment, environment and setting will quickly progress toward high fantasy sword and sorcery.

Rules

• The characters will all begin at 2nd character level, able to be crafted from any published Wizards of the Coast material or Unearthed Arcana, using the most current version of any.
• The characters may be "reflavored" background and class-wise as seen fit, but should match the overall tone and theme of the setting.
• The characters must be Good aligned and are strongly suggested to be aasimar, elves, half elves or humans. They are in character aware that they need act as a force of good and know the party they have been traveling with enough to trust them.
• The characters will use the average hit points for their level with maximum at 1st as normal.
• The characters will have their ability scores sent to them by private message request of the Dungeon Master who in return will also pose them with a few personal, secret questions and a reward.
• The characters begin with all starting equipment and gold from their background and class combined. In addition, they may have any non-magical items they so wish that cost less than 50gp, unless the item is relatively equivalent to that (such as a hand crossbow).
• The characters, when completed, will be put on a Myth Weavers sheet for ease of access and forwarded to the Dungeon Master.
• The players are free to inquire in private or in public anything they wish of the Dungeon Master. Judgments and rules will follow the most current rulings possible. Where no rulings exist, a new ruling will be created, favoring the players.
• The players have no time limit between posts out of initiative order but are expected to be active roughly every three days. If need be the Dungeon Master will contact a delinquent player and notify them they need post, even if their character is not actively being engaged. Inactivity and loss of interaction is extremely damaging to morale and plot.
• The players will have two days in initiative order to post and failing this will have their turn and character assumed by the Dungeon Master. While under the Dungeon Master's control, the character will behave according to their person and make the best decision they can for themselves and their party.
• The players should be mindful of the maturity level; assume this game, more lighthearted and noble as it is, intentionally strays away from the more serious topics. If you are unsure what would be questionable, contact the Dungeon Master in private first.

Information

There does not appear to be anything here...

Players

The following users indicated interest:
@JBRam2002, @Decker126, @Gordian Nought, @Cu Chulainn, @Chaotic Chao, @Zverda

• No Character - No User
• No Character - No User
• No Character - No User
• No Character - No User
• No Character - No User

[Gordian Nought]

Here's my current proposed character. I'm new to Myth-Weavers. Unsure how to display in a feng-shui manner.

Glix Glimmerskin

Please inform me if I need to improve or elaborate upon any areas. Essentially he's a gnome tattoo artist. :)

[The Harbinger of Ferocity]

Here is a current example of the general format to make things less complicated and more universal for all players, @Gordian Nought. Lorenthar I will use as my Myth Weavers sample, as he's from another, albeit current game and more or less ironed out.

Other than that, my advice is to more or less elaborate on Glix Glimmerskin's background with your own twist and how you imagine him finding his way into the party, how and why he casts magic as he does and how he uses it and how he feels about the situation at hand. Given you have quite a bit of freedom, between you and the other players of course, my advice is to drum up that too. Short of the formatting edits and conversing with your allies, do send me a private message so we can sort out your ability scores and a few questions that will be quite relevant as time goes on.

[JBRam2002]

myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=1196625 - Katia Lei, Tabaxi Monk. She's nowhere near complete yet, but there's a start.

[Gordian Nought]

Updated! Let me know if his backstory does not mesh with the lore of the campaign.

[The Harbinger of Ferocity]

@Gordian Nought, @JBRam2002, @Cu Chulainn, I will read through these tonight when I have the opportunity and provide feedback on them there. If you have not already messaged me for your ability scores, please do so as after that I will pose a few questions. Given we already have two unusual submissions - a Tabaxi and a gnome - and they were the first, I would like to have the remainder of the party if possible be the more common options listed.

Two reasons, foremost being that they were indeed the first submissions and the most complete, the second being that they are effectively the party's "odd" members in that regard, something which makes them distinct based on just appearance alone in the setting. Each distinct and recognizable in that aspect.

[Gordian Nought]

Based on my ability score rolls and a brief discussion with @The Harbinger of Ferocity, I have decided to play with Wick, an Aasimar Cleric/Warlock instead of Glix. Though, I believe Mr. Glimmerskin would have been very enjoyable to engender, he doesn't seem to fit the motif of the Lost Lands.

Hence, by decree of the DM, all those interested of this limited opportunity to select a different race, may pursue, in a first-come, first-serve fashion, but with caution, noting of the hinted potential social disadvantages and the aforementioned census cap of 2.

[The Harbinger of Ferocity]

@Gordian Nought, of you I ask that you input the numbers into the "Save" section for all your ability scores, your attack and damage for each weapon, and then under "Features and Traits", describe all elements of your race such as resistances, subrace, background and class in addition to any other benefits or penalties - such as the half plate. Other than this, please feel to elaborate on Wick's person, characterization, history and just how much she knows of her life before, if at all, and that the aasimar of the realm are essentially the last "embodiments" of the Kingdom of Light in the world. Not all believe this, not even some aasimar themselves, but the characters of the party know this true as well because they themselves are examples of the light. Spiritual and physical rebirth, such as hers, is actually plausible and would mesh well with the plot, so feel free to retain that.

For @JBRam2002, you are missing but one save, but other than that her character is accepted once you add more to her background. Tabaxi are odd folk, usually aloof to the sense of greater cosmic forces at work; it isn't that they have no idea, the contrary really, but that the majority of these rare creatures view it with the perspective of, "It is beyond my individual means to change." and go with life's changes as they come. However, for Katia she is aware that she and her cohorts can, and now have, forever altered fate. If anything I think the notion will reinforce her character ideal more; she and her group can what is to come. Beyond those suggestions to add a bit more information, she is complete.

For the both of you, once finalized, do contact me in messages so I can pose your questions and review the characters one last time.

[JBRam2002]

For @JBRam2002, you are missing but one save, but other than that her character is accepted once you add more to her background.

@The Harbinger of Ferocity

Perhaps I'm missing something. Which save is not added in? If you mean the Str Save, My Strength mod is -1 and I have a +2 PB, meaning my save mod is +1 (which is what I have). If it's something else, please bonk me over the head :P

EDIT: Bonked myself. Charisma was empty. FIXED.

Also, if you ask me the questions you have, that will probably help me reinforce her backstory and info a bit better. I do have some ideas kicking around in my head, but more info is also very helpful.

[Cu Chulainn]

I have finally decided that I will be playing the defensive frontliner (or 'tank') of our party, seeing as we currently lack one. My character will be an Ancestral Guardian Barbarian on hermitage to quell his anger and violent tendencies, who had discovered something of great emergence that had resulted in him leaving hermitage and aligning himself with the party. He hopes to put this bloodthirst he has against the forces of Darkness, for whatever he discovered in his travels, it urges him to combat such forces.

I will post his character sheet soon, seeing as I'm currently limited to my
mobile device at the moment, and it is very late at night as of the time I posted this message.

[The Harbinger of Ferocity]

@Cu Chulainn, @JBRam2002, @Gordian Nought, in order to answer some of the questions, you might wish to reasonably communicate with one another if you have not already. As it is, I am including only one non-player character with the party and we are still awaiting to hear from at least one more player.

[Gordian Nought]

Groovy!

Hiya, @Cu Chulainn & @JBRam2002! Hope this finds each of you well. Love y'all's character concepts! If needed, my fingers can quickly alter Wick's backstory so as to mingle and incorporate hers with each of yours, to generate a woven tapestry of relationships. I am not sure if it is required for us to manifest a historicity to our kinships at the onset.

[Cu Chulainn]

@Gordian Nought@The Harbinger of Ferocity@JBRam2002
I'm still working on my character's biography and equipment at the moment. I'll post his sheet up here once his biography his finished for everyone to read while I work on his equipment.

To give a clearer idea of him as well as his possible interactions with the others, his name is Sveinn Ulfsbane, and he had recently come out of hermitage for something grim he hasn't spoken too much about at this time. He is a stoic man who prefers not to talk much, and is sometimes a bit aloof when it comes to social interactions and etiquittes. When he does speak, it shows that he shows deep respect for his ancestors, believing that they have guided him to where he is today. He tries to distance himself from the rest of the party for reasons unknown to them, but he still helps out wherever he's needed.

In combat, his rage appears like a primal trance of martial might, his anger focused towards whoever his opponent may be. At the same time, there is as well a hint at a deeper feeling of bloodthirst in his raging, although it isn't something of too much concern, at least for the most part.

The full details of his past will be revealed once I post his character sheet. As I said earlier, I'm limited to a mobile device, and it is a bit harder shifting between apps and tabs to fix things up because of this. I apologize for the delay.

[JBRam2002]

As a foreigner (in relation to your characters), Katia probably would only recently have met anyone in the group. She has a natural curiosity to an extreme (Kuriosity killed the Kat). She is outgoing and talkative, although she doesn't always say the right thing at the right time. She also might be a bit of a prankster, given the opportunity.

As for how everyone met, anything is possible. One option could be that Katia made it to one of y'all's cities, and with no belongings or real direction, was caught with nowhere to live. Someone may have taken pity on her and given her a place to stay for an evening, which likely turned into her permanent residence with or without real permission.

Another option could be that Katia pulled a harmless prank on one of y'all for, as it is stated colloquially, the lulz. Depending on your characters' point of view, they could have retaliated in a way that got her attention, either by siccing the authorities on her or pulling a prank of their own. With the former, she would be penitent and seek to right any perceived wrongs. Withthe latter, she would be appreciative of the prank and probably be your char's best friend (whether or not it is reciprocated).

@Cu Chulainn@Gordian Nought

Also Gordian, I noticed you didn't add PB to your saves with proficiency. Not trying to be nitpicky, just don't want you to get charmed unnecessarily or get banished while we're fighting a dracolisk and need that restoration.

Aso, you still add your ability score to non-proficient weapon damage. You only do not do so if you are dual-wielding without the fighting style and it's your off-weapon.

In addition, I'm not sure if Harb's world is different from the standard D&D, but Aasimar are basically celestial tieflings, meaning they age at about the same rate as humans and live only slightly longer. Also, they are built like well-proportiined humans, and I've usually seen Aasimar as slightly taller than average. Having a 4' 7" Aasimar would be interesting, but I'm not sure if Harb will allow a 970 year old one to be considered "young." Of course, if this has all been ok'd ignore me, just some things I noticed prior to digging into backstory.

[Gordian Nought]

Very cool!

@Cu Chulainn, Wick would totally understand Sveinn's righteous anger and respect for the days of Old. Yet, uncontrolled rage may be a turn-off at first, as Wick adores control and understanding moreso than reckless abandon.

@JBRam2002, speaking of 'pranks', you may find Wick willing to reciprocate, mainly to hone her illusions and charms on someone who is adept at trickery, like Katia. However, Wick may view it more work than play, in addition to not completely understanding the jovial humor linked to these shenanigans.

Thank you, @JBRam2002, for also catching those oversights as I indeed missed them. These are now corrected.

I have also altered her height to 4' 11''. Keeping her under 5 feet is strategic with Minor Illusion and Disguise Self, to shift her height to that of a child or adult. With regards to Wick's age, you have to unfortunately scroll to see all the numbers and meanings. Her first number, of 979, is in regards to her longevity as an elf, before her rebirth. The latter 19 is in keeping with her reincarnation as a Celestial and their lifespans.

[The Harbinger of Ferocity]

I appreciate you reviewing the characters again @JBRam2002, as I am not approving any until the entire party is ready and sorted itself out.

On another note, @Gordian Nought, @Cu Chulainn, @JBRam2002, @Zverda, @Big Dread, yes one can be resurrected as aasimar after their normal, initial death. A slight twist on the Reincarnation spell of old, but mostly something that is only relevant to those with a spark of light in them. Not all people have it, thus few are ever returned to life again for a second time. No less, not every aasimar is such an individual and the majority are just those who have a Celestial touch of heritage from long, long ago.

Not to say if you die you get a free resurrection as an aasimar, there's a few stipulations about that as @Gordian Nought knows for his character, but it is an option if you find someone with tremendous power over the aspects of the Kingdom of Light.

[Gordian Nought]

Tantalizing!

So we have Katia, a Sun Soul Monk, Sveinn, an Ancestral Guardian Barbarian, and Wick, a Knowledge Cleric/Archey Warlock.

I'm jumping with bated glee on who @Zverda and @Big Dread will bring to the battlefield.

[Cu Chulainn]

Here is what I have for Sveinn so far. My apologies for being slow in my process of making him. If anyone would like yo help me complete his sheet, that would be most appreciated. Being limited to a mobile device is not nice at all.

While he is generally more disciplined than most barbariams, for the interest of adding more variation to the party, I could also change him to be a much more dogmatic character in the form of an Eldritch Knight. He will still be of the Hermit background, with the main variation being that he sought hermitage in order to seek both physical and mental perfection, rather than peace of mind. Lawful and Good to the core, his sense of order and structure is as much of a flaw as it is a main trait of his.

Of course, I still plan on playing an archetypical "tank" of sorts, either way. This is mostly just what everyone else in the party would prefer I be.

[JBRam2002]

@JBRam2002, speaking of 'pranks', you may find Wick willing to reciprocate, mainly to hone her illusions and charms on someone who is adept at trickery, like Katia. However, Wick may view it more work than play, in addition to not completely understanding the jovial humor linked to these shenanigans.

Thank you, @JBRam2002, for also catching those oversights as I indeed missed them. These are now corrected.

I have also altered her height to 4' 11''. Keeping her under 5 feet is strategic with Minor Illusion and Disguise Self, to shift her height to that of a child or adult. With regards to Wick's age, you have to unfortunately scroll to see all the numbers and meanings. Her first number, of 979, is in regards to her longevity as an elf, before her rebirth. The latter 19 is in keeping with her reincarnation as a Celestial and their lifespans.

@Gordian Nought

Heh, that would be an interesting dynamic between Wick and Katia. Perhaps Wick tried to move her more in line with Wick's philosophies with the illusion? It of course wouldn't work, and now Katia probably thinks Wick is a fellow prankster.

And yeah, the age box is too small to see much beyond "979 (as a ", and on my phone, it was difficult to scroll through, so apologies for not catching that. Interesting idea~

[Big Dread]

How's it going FAM! Yeah, i'll try not to say that anymore, but, I make no promises. So, here are my thoughts so far: I am most likely going to be rolling with a high elf wizard of the abjuration school. I'll be thinking on the rest of the character and all that good stuff today while I have some tie at work. I'll throw up a working prototype sheet after work today and we can start tweaking it and figuring out our balance.