Campaign: The Band of the Brave

[erwtenpeller]

Introduction.

This thread is used as a dump where I can share my ideas for an upcoming D&D campaign I'm working on. The players are all good friends of mine that I've played with before. The campaign will have a rotating GM seat, and the campaign setting will designed to facilitate that. We'd like to rotate the DM seat because we all feel that we have interesting stories to tell. This tabletop experience will be all about that; Designing fun and cool stories to share with your friends, and to feed off and amplify each-other's ideas and creativity.

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Part 1: The Setup

The basic background story for the setting of the world and the start of the campaign. The real story comes from us; The players / SLASH / dungeon masters. The idea is that, with every session, whoever runs the game contributes something that will allow the characters and the story to grow.

Ancient History: Apocalypse!

At the center of the world lies the Shattered Peak, a volcano thought to be dormant. Centuries ago, the peak erupted in fire and brimstone, and an army of demons spilled out, under command of the great demon lord: Terrorus. The great nations of Elf, Man, Dwarf and Dragonkin tried to fight back, but even united they could not stand against the endless waves of terror and destruction. Armies scattered, nations dissolved, great cities fell.

It was in this chaos that a few brave men and women did what what whole armies could not. They snuck, fought and bamboozled their way into the heart of the peak. There they defeated the great evil and with his demize, closed the rift through which the demonic hordes had come. With their mind-lord gone, the demons left behind lost their purpose. The day was saved!

The World Today: The Age of Adventure

The wake of demonic destruction did away with the prosperous nations of old. Now the world is littered with small, independant city-states that look out for themselves, often surrounded by no-man’s-lands and farmlands without rulers. The land beyond the protective walls of cities is known to be hazardous, filled with bandits, hungry giants, haunted castles and roaming tribes.

Adventurers are in high demand in this world. They are sent out to reclaim riches of old, to protect trade-caravans crossing the unruled wilds, and-- Basically everything that can be solved with a spell or a sword. And some things that could be solved without them!

Some adventurer’s groups gather great fame for their deeds. They are loved by “the people”, hailed as icons of fortitude. Wealthy families or merchant guilds are known to sponsor their own adventurer’s parties, and the more successful and famous the group gets, the higher their sponsors climb onto the social ladder. Great tournaments are held where adventurer’s parties compete in battle or more creative tasks, and the winners go home with great wealth and fame.

Think of this setting as Mad Max as written by the ghosts of Tolkien and Terry Pratchett.

Lion’s Gate: The “Starting Town”

One of these city-states is Lionsgate. As far as city states go, it’s pretty small, but has all the attractions one might expect. About half the population consists of humans, the rest is made up of a mish-mash of the other races found in the Player’s Handbook. It has it’s own merchants and artificers guilds, several stables, a multitude of taverns, bakeries, butchers, temples, churches, rat-catchers, wells and sewers. Looming over the city is Pride Rock; An enormous castle, a relic that even the demonic horde couldn’t bring down. In recent times the grounds around the castle have been bought up by nobles, and is now littered with their estates and mansions. To live in the shadow of Pride Rock is to live in luxury!

For a long time, Lionsgate was ruled by a council of nobles, usually coming from different houses. One of these nobles, Sir Richard Redmane, wasn’t too keen on sharing power. House Redmane orchestrated an elaborate ploy and after years of plotting, took control of Lion’s Gate in a bloody coup, taking out their biggest competitors. The smaller houses, fearing their own doom, quickly fell in line. And so began the reign of King Redmane.

With a new establishment arose the need for a new Adventurer’s Party. Who would take a king seriously that doesn’t have their own adventurer’s party to boast about? No-one! As such, the new king has put up a Royal Decree - All able-bodied men and women looking for a life of adventure need apply. The characters that you, the players, contribute will be the ones that “make the cut”. Apply now, adventure awaits!

 

[erwtenpeller]

Part 2: The Practical Stuff

In this bit we go over the practical stuff that players need to know to roll their characters.

Your character’s goals, hopes and dreams

When you roll your character, really think about what they want to accomplish in life. What is their reason for applying to the adventurer’s party? What do they get out of it? Do they want to be famous? Do they want to help people? Do they want revenge on those that did them wrong? Do they want to reclaim an artifact of legend from the doom-wastes? This goal will help the campaign move forward - In the end, the game is more about the characters’ stories then it is about completing a pre-written story-line.

Character Background

The background story you come up with for your character will be integrated into the world. If they are not from Lionsgate, a location of your creation will be added, and you’ll be the one placing it on the map. Same goes for any elements of your intended background story that need a place in the world. Come up with your own gods, traditions, cultures - Whatever you think will help you play a more interesting character.

Getting along

In contrast to DINOLOST, D&D is much more about co-operative play. Splitting the party is not advised, and can in a lot of situations lead to bad things happening. Therefore, make sure your character has some way of getting along with the party. They don’t have to like every other character, but then give them some motivation to stick with the group, and stick with the mission. Perhaps they can’t miss out on their paycheck, perhaps honor drives them, perhaps they want to preserve their image.

Leadership

The party will be lead by one of King Redmane’s cronies, Sir Rodrick Kneelman. His knee injury will prevent this ex-adventurer from joining the group on their quest(s), but he will be the manager behind the scenes. He will be the one that pays the group's salary, he will often be the one that provides the heroes with their quest, and he will be the one that disciplines party members if they do wrong.



Notes on the Races

Dwarf

As described in the Player’s Handbook. Dwarves are known to share their communities with Rock Gnomes.

High Elf & Half-Elf

High Elves have historically been the masters of magic. They were the first to study magic in an organized, scholarly way. In time, they started teaching this tradition to the other races. As droves of humans in particular sought out their arcane knowledge, Elves and Humans started to mingle freely. These days High Elves of “pure blood” are hard to find in big cities, with centuries of Elf and Human relations resulting in a population that is neither-- And both.

High Elves of “pure blood” do exist, but usually in more secluded, protected locations. These High Elves do not think highly of the Half-Elves of the big cities, and are extremely protective of their “ancient knowledge”.

Wood Elf

Wood Elves are much more secluded in their nature to begin with. They prefer to live in harmony with nature, either in spectacular tree-houses or as nomadic hunter-gatherers. While they may not shun the arcane magic of their kin, they just much prefer a simple life amongst animals and plants. Wood Elves often share a habitat with Forest Gnomes.

Halfling

Halflings don’t usually do a lot of fighting, or study magic. They prefer a simple, practical lifestyle. They make great farmers, traders and artisans. Especially their cooking and brewing is renowned - Even the dwarves have to admit, there’s nothing quite like a halfling brew. After the calamity, most Halfling communities have sought the protection of a City-State.

Human

As described in the Player’s Handbook. Humans are everywhere and do everything. They are the default setting.

Dragonborn

As described in the Player’s Handbook. In addition, they are known to be the oldest race. Kind of like bipedal dinosaurs that never went away.

Gome

As described in the Player’s Handbook. In addition, Gnomes make keen students of magic. Small communities of Gnomes can be found in every magic institution - Except for the secluded High Elf ones.

Forest Gnomes are known to share communities with Wood Elves.
Rock Gnomes are known to share communities with Dwarves.

Half-Orc

As described in the Player’s Handbook.

Tiefling

As described in the Player’s Handbook. Note: In this setting, Tieflings are the descendants of the demons left behind after Terrorus’ defeat. Tieflings have to continuously prove their non-evil nature to a prejudiced world.



Notes on Classes.

You are welcome to bring your own flavor to any class. While I’d like to keep the mechanics and rules of them intact, you are free to change the described appearance of weapons, traditions and spells. For example, a Wizard’s Magic Missile are described as “glowing darts of magical force”. If you want your wizard’s missiles to be fireballs, or magic swords, or fluffy pink hearts - That is totally up to you.

Barbarian

Nothing to add.

Bard

Bards are a very important aspect of this setting. Bards are the connection between the adventurers and the people; They record the stories in songs, poems and plays, and so let audiences across the world know of their great deeds. It is common for famous adventurer’s groups to be backed up by several bardic groups that exclusively perform their stories.

When you roll a Bard, consider how your character intends to chronicle the adventures of the group.

If none of the players roll a bard, a (non-combat) bard Non-Player-Character will be provided.

Cleric, Paladin & Monk

If you want to make up your own god, also consider how and where this god is worshipped, what it’s followers’ traditions are, what it’s commandments are, and so forth. A god grows in power the more it is worshipped - Sometimes a Cleric functions like a personal relations manager for their deity, making an effort to convert others to the faith.

A Paladin and Monk will follow their god’s commandments very closely - A cleric may be a bit more loose with them.

Druid

A very important aspect of a Druid is the circle they come from. As such, you’ll be able to get those benefits from level 1 in this game. Really consider what your Druid Circle stands for, what it’s called and which lands they care for.

Fighter, Ranger & Rogue

HIT IT REALLY HARD. Also Rangers can have an animal companion of they want to.

Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard.

Due to the influence of High Elves and their arcane culture, the Wizard tradition is usually seen as the only “true” way to practice arcane magic - Through hard work, study and dedication. Warlocks and Sorcerers are often seen as “cheats”, having been granted their power by priviledge of birth, a bargain or just plain luck (or misfortune!).

 

[erwtenpeller]

Part 3: Notes For Dungeon Masters

This campaign will have a rotating Dungeon Master. Our group has too much story-telling potential to stick to the same Dungeon Master for the entire game! The setting has been designed with that in mind. There is a lot of “empty space” in there, that anyone who wants to tell a story can jump in and make their own. Dungeon Masters have a few narrative tools at their disposal to get the party to the story they want to tell.

Mobile group

Totally spoiler alert: After the first session, the group will have a few wagons and mounts at their disposal they can use to travel around with. This will help the party get from place to place (off- or on-screen) so we can get them into the thick of things without boring travel interludes.

NPC: Sir Rodrick Kneelman

An NPC of utter convenience, whoever has the dungeon master’s seat, controls this fellow. He is a tool to be used to direct the party where they need to be and drive the story in the right direction.

The Dungeon Master is always right.

Everything detailed in this document is just a setup - Once someone takes the dungeon master seat, it is they who are calling the shots over the world and it’s non-player characters. This way we can build on every session, and keep expanding the world organically. You are, however, highly encouraged to work from what’s come before you. Take what others have created and roll with it!