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Whatever Happened to D&D's Underdog?
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<blockquote data-quote="rmcoen" data-source="post: 7735088" data-attributes="member: 6692404"><p>I've been gaming with pretty much the same group of people for the last 19 years (give or take fluctuation in jobs and such). I've been the GM for 18 of those 19 years, through about 4 campaigns. The second one I ran began with 0-level characters (D&D 2e Skills & Powers), and is still considered by the group to be the best one. The characters were d4hp commoners, the teenagers of a backwater village: the tavern wench, the hunter's son, the veterinarian's son, the smith's adopted orphan assistant, and the wheelwright's daughter from the neighboring town. We probably played 6 months (weekly games) before the characters achieved 1st level; I know I was doling out incremental bumps in capability, I think from the Greyhawk rules? The first adventure was finding the village crazy-lady who had wandered into the hills... and discovering that goblins were returning after centuries of absence. "Climactic battles" are still talked about, with the vet's son managing to take down the last two goblins of a patrol before his injured friends bled out. The tavern wench's player planned to create a Rogue, but ended up as a priestess; she frequently was the only character still conscious at the end of fights because of fleeing or hiding, and coming back to patch up her friends. Skills and Powers rules allowed use (Player and GM) to craft a "cleric" class that gave a feel of her shifty/klepto habits, and yet her growing faith in healing and magic. The smith's boy capitlized on his natural strength in battle, but was so amazed by the goblin shaman's magic that he eventually became a mage (the only one in the kingdom, using ancient tomes and stolen artifacts to "self-teach"). And they had a "bumbling kids whoops!" where they investigated an old "haunted ruin" (the haunting was mechanical wind-driven mechanisms and tricks by the goblins)... and discovered - and released, whoops!! - an ancient evil bound in its depths (the reason the castle had been abandoned). They had to grow into heroes to fix the mistake they had made...</p><p></p><p>The players had a much greater connection with the world and the setting because they were *not* the heroes and exalted. One or another of them probably brings up that campaign up every three to six months, after a decade since we finished it.</p><p></p><p>But, could a wellcrafted societal tie-in work just as memorably with 1st level characters? Not sure; in D&D, as the other posters have said, 1st level characters are already standing tall compared to the rest of the world - a 1st level Fighter is more than able to handle a city guard, and a 1st level mage can kill anyone in the town with a single spell (magic missile kills your average d4 human - DEPENDING ON THE RULES EDITION - pretty much every time, unerringly). Harder to feel tied and dependent on your fellow citizens that way.</p><p></p><p>Edit: How things turned out: The vet's son became a Ranger, and at campaign end retired to the reclaimed old ruins to guard the kingdom's frontier against the monsters that were driven out of the kingdom. The hunter's son became a Fighter (archer), but was badly affected by some of the horrors they faced; he "retired" into the wilderness to become a wandering recluse, providing aid to any he came across, but avoiding people in general. The tavern wench rose to become High Priestess of the kingdom, deposing the corrupt officials in the Church, and leading to a renaissance of civilization and enlightenment. The smith's boy eventually became an Archmage, helping the High Priestess for awhile, then disappearing - with his Tower! - to places unknown (actually, exploring another continent on the same world, and eventually the Planes, as an NPC in another campaign). The wheelwright's daughter became a Paladin of Life, lost her paladinhood, gradually regained it through the god of Righteous Defense (War, but LG aspect); in retirement, she married the vet's son, had lots of kids, divorced him and returned to her home to become Mayor.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="rmcoen, post: 7735088, member: 6692404"] I've been gaming with pretty much the same group of people for the last 19 years (give or take fluctuation in jobs and such). I've been the GM for 18 of those 19 years, through about 4 campaigns. The second one I ran began with 0-level characters (D&D 2e Skills & Powers), and is still considered by the group to be the best one. The characters were d4hp commoners, the teenagers of a backwater village: the tavern wench, the hunter's son, the veterinarian's son, the smith's adopted orphan assistant, and the wheelwright's daughter from the neighboring town. We probably played 6 months (weekly games) before the characters achieved 1st level; I know I was doling out incremental bumps in capability, I think from the Greyhawk rules? The first adventure was finding the village crazy-lady who had wandered into the hills... and discovering that goblins were returning after centuries of absence. "Climactic battles" are still talked about, with the vet's son managing to take down the last two goblins of a patrol before his injured friends bled out. The tavern wench's player planned to create a Rogue, but ended up as a priestess; she frequently was the only character still conscious at the end of fights because of fleeing or hiding, and coming back to patch up her friends. Skills and Powers rules allowed use (Player and GM) to craft a "cleric" class that gave a feel of her shifty/klepto habits, and yet her growing faith in healing and magic. The smith's boy capitlized on his natural strength in battle, but was so amazed by the goblin shaman's magic that he eventually became a mage (the only one in the kingdom, using ancient tomes and stolen artifacts to "self-teach"). And they had a "bumbling kids whoops!" where they investigated an old "haunted ruin" (the haunting was mechanical wind-driven mechanisms and tricks by the goblins)... and discovered - and released, whoops!! - an ancient evil bound in its depths (the reason the castle had been abandoned). They had to grow into heroes to fix the mistake they had made... The players had a much greater connection with the world and the setting because they were *not* the heroes and exalted. One or another of them probably brings up that campaign up every three to six months, after a decade since we finished it. But, could a wellcrafted societal tie-in work just as memorably with 1st level characters? Not sure; in D&D, as the other posters have said, 1st level characters are already standing tall compared to the rest of the world - a 1st level Fighter is more than able to handle a city guard, and a 1st level mage can kill anyone in the town with a single spell (magic missile kills your average d4 human - DEPENDING ON THE RULES EDITION - pretty much every time, unerringly). Harder to feel tied and dependent on your fellow citizens that way. Edit: How things turned out: The vet's son became a Ranger, and at campaign end retired to the reclaimed old ruins to guard the kingdom's frontier against the monsters that were driven out of the kingdom. The hunter's son became a Fighter (archer), but was badly affected by some of the horrors they faced; he "retired" into the wilderness to become a wandering recluse, providing aid to any he came across, but avoiding people in general. The tavern wench rose to become High Priestess of the kingdom, deposing the corrupt officials in the Church, and leading to a renaissance of civilization and enlightenment. The smith's boy eventually became an Archmage, helping the High Priestess for awhile, then disappearing - with his Tower! - to places unknown (actually, exploring another continent on the same world, and eventually the Planes, as an NPC in another campaign). The wheelwright's daughter became a Paladin of Life, lost her paladinhood, gradually regained it through the god of Righteous Defense (War, but LG aspect); in retirement, she married the vet's son, had lots of kids, divorced him and returned to her home to become Mayor. [/QUOTE]
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