Niccodaemus
First Post
I've been working diligently on creating player info for my campaign setting Shatterworld, and am preparing to launch a weekly online campaign after the first of the year, weekday evenings, Eastern Standard Time. I'd like to find some reasonably close people to Richmond (DC to Hampton Roads), as I'd love to have monthly or so face to face sessions.
My inclination is to use Skype and Maptools, although I'm open to other suggestions.
I will only be allowing spells, classes, etc.. from the Pathfinder Core Rule Book. It will also be an E6 style campaign, so planning characters based on what they would be able to achieve above 6th level is pointless. PCs will be human.
I will be even more restrictive with some spells than the rules dictate, to keep with the "Victorian" aesthetic I am going for with Shatterworld. (Not that it is set in the Victorian period, but ideas about fantasy are more in tune with "turn of the century" conceits, rather than contemporary fantasy)
A few more needed clarifications up front:
1) I am a plot/story minded GM
If you have strong reservations about "railroading", this is not the campaign for you. I'm not saying I'm going to steamroll players, but I have a certain style that many in the online community would consider "railroady" or worse. Rather than defend my style as not being "railroading", I simply make no apologies and issue fair warning.
For my thoughts on plot in RPGs, please see the post on my blog Shatterworld: Behind the Scenes, Plot in RPGs
2) I like to be heavily involved in player backstory. I don't want to give away too much information about the campaign world, as I believe it is something that should be discovered and revealed through play. My approach tends to be to allow you to make up your character according to agreed upon source material. I'll review it to make sure it fits the campaign aesthetic, and if there are any glaring problems, will suggest the closest alternative to what you are looking for that does not conflict with the campaign. I get final say.
Further, I will then take all of the information you have accumulated (race, class, skills, feats, etc...), and figure out where such a character would originate from in the campaign world. You might have some broad ideas "Son of a wealthy merchant", but I will decide just who that merchant is, and what his place is in the world. I will certainly listen to any ideas you have about the character, and do my best to integrate them into the world (possibly even altering some of my world elements, if it sounds really good), but won't allow anything that simply breaks the design, or causes me too much work to try to integrate.
3) I use a modified combat system of my own design. It inverts probabilities to hit armor classes (no armor being the hardest to his, plate being the easiest), but also diminishes damage greatly as amor increases. The system is intended to make it advantageous to wear light armor, as I put a premium on sneaking about and avoiding combat as much as possible, unless out in full field of battle. Stealth and alternatives to combat are highly prized skills to have. (Going caving in plate mail just doesn't work well)
4) I will almost never set up an adventure where the goal is to "clear a lair". A lair is likely to have hundreds, if not thousands of residents. Adventures will be goal based, where going into a lair means having a specific task, and being detected tends to mean fleeing or death. A basic rule of thumb is, if it looks to tough to fight, it probably is.
5) Opposition may at any time be unbeatable. That is, don't expect first level monsters just because you are first level. That being said, the goal of creatures is seldom to kill on site. Diplomacy will need to be a valued skill.
The only sure way to get attacked is to attack first.
6) Death isn't cheap. When making rulings, I will try to err in favor of character survivability. I will always listen to reasonable arguments why a ruling should be rethought.
7) The feel for the game is sort of pulpy. That is, it harkens back to a naivety of Indiana Jones, the old Batman TV series, and other action adventure. There may be traps and puzzles that don't make real world sense, villains that like to leave you to die in improbable (and poorly designed) deathtraps, and other such silliness. If that type of genre offends your sensibilities, this isn't the game for you.
8) I'll bend over backwards to make the game fun for you, and to work with you to create a special place for your character in the game world and to design adventures to take advantage of your characters strengths and goals.
9) I expect cooperative play between players, and between players and myself. If you don't like the way something is going, don't try to derail the game. Let's have a discussion, and see if we can work it out. If we can't, it is best to just part ways.
If any of this sounds like your kind of game. let me know. I'm looking for 2 to 6 players.
My inclination is to use Skype and Maptools, although I'm open to other suggestions.
I will only be allowing spells, classes, etc.. from the Pathfinder Core Rule Book. It will also be an E6 style campaign, so planning characters based on what they would be able to achieve above 6th level is pointless. PCs will be human.
I will be even more restrictive with some spells than the rules dictate, to keep with the "Victorian" aesthetic I am going for with Shatterworld. (Not that it is set in the Victorian period, but ideas about fantasy are more in tune with "turn of the century" conceits, rather than contemporary fantasy)
A few more needed clarifications up front:
1) I am a plot/story minded GM
If you have strong reservations about "railroading", this is not the campaign for you. I'm not saying I'm going to steamroll players, but I have a certain style that many in the online community would consider "railroady" or worse. Rather than defend my style as not being "railroading", I simply make no apologies and issue fair warning.
For my thoughts on plot in RPGs, please see the post on my blog Shatterworld: Behind the Scenes, Plot in RPGs
2) I like to be heavily involved in player backstory. I don't want to give away too much information about the campaign world, as I believe it is something that should be discovered and revealed through play. My approach tends to be to allow you to make up your character according to agreed upon source material. I'll review it to make sure it fits the campaign aesthetic, and if there are any glaring problems, will suggest the closest alternative to what you are looking for that does not conflict with the campaign. I get final say.
Further, I will then take all of the information you have accumulated (race, class, skills, feats, etc...), and figure out where such a character would originate from in the campaign world. You might have some broad ideas "Son of a wealthy merchant", but I will decide just who that merchant is, and what his place is in the world. I will certainly listen to any ideas you have about the character, and do my best to integrate them into the world (possibly even altering some of my world elements, if it sounds really good), but won't allow anything that simply breaks the design, or causes me too much work to try to integrate.
3) I use a modified combat system of my own design. It inverts probabilities to hit armor classes (no armor being the hardest to his, plate being the easiest), but also diminishes damage greatly as amor increases. The system is intended to make it advantageous to wear light armor, as I put a premium on sneaking about and avoiding combat as much as possible, unless out in full field of battle. Stealth and alternatives to combat are highly prized skills to have. (Going caving in plate mail just doesn't work well)
4) I will almost never set up an adventure where the goal is to "clear a lair". A lair is likely to have hundreds, if not thousands of residents. Adventures will be goal based, where going into a lair means having a specific task, and being detected tends to mean fleeing or death. A basic rule of thumb is, if it looks to tough to fight, it probably is.
5) Opposition may at any time be unbeatable. That is, don't expect first level monsters just because you are first level. That being said, the goal of creatures is seldom to kill on site. Diplomacy will need to be a valued skill.
The only sure way to get attacked is to attack first.
6) Death isn't cheap. When making rulings, I will try to err in favor of character survivability. I will always listen to reasonable arguments why a ruling should be rethought.
7) The feel for the game is sort of pulpy. That is, it harkens back to a naivety of Indiana Jones, the old Batman TV series, and other action adventure. There may be traps and puzzles that don't make real world sense, villains that like to leave you to die in improbable (and poorly designed) deathtraps, and other such silliness. If that type of genre offends your sensibilities, this isn't the game for you.
8) I'll bend over backwards to make the game fun for you, and to work with you to create a special place for your character in the game world and to design adventures to take advantage of your characters strengths and goals.
9) I expect cooperative play between players, and between players and myself. If you don't like the way something is going, don't try to derail the game. Let's have a discussion, and see if we can work it out. If we can't, it is best to just part ways.
If any of this sounds like your kind of game. let me know. I'm looking for 2 to 6 players.
