Eldbale's The Dragon's Demand

Game Master Brominate

Welcome to the Dragon's Demand campaign module! Please dot and delete in the gameplay thread, and use this thread to discuss the opening of the game.

Pre-Game

Take a moment to discuss your characters and find their place. For the purposes of this campaign, it's best the PC's are not natives of Belhaim. This adventure assumes you've only recently arrived. If it would make sense for your characters, a man named Silas Gribb offers you a job as caravan guards, and you need the money. So, it's possible some of you might have known each other for awhile, or maybe just met that day. One or two of you might be in Belhaim for other reasons, because your character would not likely be a caravan guard.

Please discuss any pre-existing connections, relationships, or knowledge of each other your characters might have, but I don't expect you all to have big interwoven stories.

Posting rules

Please plan on posting AT LEAST 5 times a week. I would love to keep a fast pace on this game, because PbP is a slower medium by its nature. I will try to post at least once a day. If everyone has made a post since my last GM post I will do something to move the action forward. If we are waiting on a few posts, I will give reactions or answer questions but give time for everyone to have their say.

Once all but one PC has posted, that final PC has 24 hours to post or I will bot them. If we are in combat rounds, the botted action default will be to make an attack with the last weapon used. I will never bot a player to use any per day ability or other limited resources. If we are not in combat, your botted action will essentially be a variation of "Durian the Wanderer smiles and nods".

If you are going to miss posting due to any real life situation, that is perfectly ok. Real life issues happen. I'm sure I will have them come up as well over the course of the game. Please give us as much warning as you can, and I will happily bot you during your absence and will have your PC do anything you ask me to have them do.

Missing posts

If you do not post anything for a week without letting us know that you will be missing, I will consider your character gone. I will write them out in a suitably spectacular manner and we will move on. I apologize if this sounds harsh, but I have to draw a line somewhere. I would love to play this one to the end, which takes awhile, and I want to try to keep things moving.

Game Style

In the end, I want you all to have fun. Please please please give me feedback on how things are going. I want to make this a rewarding and fun campaign, but I know there are many ways to run a game.

If I'm completely honest with you, I'm probably more of a flexible GM than a strict by-the-book-all-the-time GM. When the stated rules don't serve the narrative well, I'll probably rule in favor of narrative and bend/break/create rules as needed. (If it's a situation where I'm not familiar with the mechanics or rules super thoroughly, this may happen). However, I will play creatures and NPC's as by-the-book as possible, and will ALWAYS abide by the dice roll.

I do like to tweak encounters as we go, either up or down in difficulty to match the party. If you feel like things have gotten too easy, let me know and I will try to keep things engaging and challenging.

This module is "kinda linear," in the sense that it's completely possible to skip entire sections of this campaign unintentionally!. So while the occasional NPC might strongly suggest against certain courses of action, I am happy to roll with the punches if you guys try unexpected solutions.

I would like to highly encourage interaction between PCs. Talk in character, learn about each other, let your PC personalities show through. This medium is awesome for RP if you want it to be. Don't feel like you have to just post once a day and wait for a GM post before posting again. Have conversations, come up with plans, try to figure out the back stories, etc.

Hopefully we will all have fun with this! I love this module and am so excited to run it.

Belhaim Locations/Citizens

This is a complete listing of the MANY different places one can visit in Belhaim. I've recreated this list from the one given in the adventure. It doesn't really include details but at least you'll know where you're going. The most important factor is the Disposition column. As you meet people and complete quests, I'll update citizens' dispositions towards the party. People's attitude towards you will affect the prices of goods as well as whether or not they are willing to share rumors with you.

This most likely won't come into play until later in the campaign, because things get hectic really quick.

There may be a later post that goes into greater detail about some of the key NPC's and locations.

Sheridan is here for the job. Spookin' off bandits is what keeps the fires lit. He probably would have found someone to bring, though. Someone with some chemistry, however long he would have known them. "Easy money!" he would have pleaded.

Anyone Keen to pair up? He'll only flirt until he's been shot down. I don't know what we want as far as basic tactics, but Sheri doesn't do alone.

Yantri isn't quite sure what to do with all these people about, but easy money certainly makes her nod her head. She's not much to look at, what with being hideously scarred and all, but she's got an eye for detail, and if you flush the bandits out, she'll pick them off from the shadows until the rest turn tails and run.

If you want to have hired on as a Caravan Guard with Silas Gibb, we could have met on the route here; that's how Yantri got to town, and now she's looking for something better. If she doesn't find it, she'll do another caravan guard stint for Silas. She'll totally follow someone else's lead as this is by far the biggest town she's ever been in, so she's a bit lost.

I'll go ahead and let everyone know that anyone whose characters are hired in cassomir by Silas Gribb will be just entering the small town of Belhaim as the campaign starts.

The young follower for Ragathiel signed the contract Silas Gribb offered him in bold handscript,

Acolyte Stone, Devoted to Ragathiel”

He seemed more interested in getting to the town of Belhaim than he did on quibbling over the pay.

Checking in! Glad to be part of the team!

For kinda obvious reasons, Kane probably won't be signing on as a caravan guard... minor nobles sorta don't need to. Though he's a lot more approachable than most nobles probably are. He's got more of a vivid curiosity about him than that of a pampered rich kid. To be fair, he certainly IS pampered, but not to a point where he's got a superiority complex. Closer to a sheltered kid than a spoiled brat.

I would imagine Kane has already gotten to Belhaim, albeit a tad before the group, and probably has his arrangements for the brief stay settled. Probably checking out his newest acquisition. Might even be looking for some extra hands to make the rest of the trip back to Oppara.

As the town comes into sight, Ngai braces herself against yet ANOTHER bump of the cart. My rear end is going to be permanently imprinted with the wood grain of this bench, she thinks to herself as she grits her teeth. An audible sigh of relief escapes her as the cart rolls to a stop, awaiting entry into town.

Swinging down, she grabs her sword and stows it across her back. Walking up to the town gate she tries her best to adopt a pleasing smile - being 6' 5" with green hair can be off-putting enough, no need to antagonize anyone. Dodging a quick pinch from Sheridan, she gives him a friendly slap on the shoulder. "So what's the process, this is my first time. How long do they generally keep us waiting?"

The ifrit snatches his hand away and kisses it as if nursing a burn. "Somewhere between long enough that we ask a question like that and not so long we get the attention of the authorities," Sheridan chuckles.

The rogue is wearing clothes suited to warmer weather: thin, insulating layers of red and yellow which trail behind him. Underneath he's wearing a chain shirt, and as a result his feintly glowing form is just visible through the ensamble. Curls of molten hair spill out across his narrow shoulders framing statuesque features. He's apparently unarmed, but the confidence in his fluid stride is menacing.

Ngai ponders that for a moment. "Authorities, eh?" she muttered, while eyeing the nearby guards suspiciously. "Should we be expecting trouble? Master Gibb seems so honest, after all.

"Still, never hurts to be on our toes, I guess." A grim look settled over Ngai's face, as she took a small step forward, as if to take the brunt of the attack in the event of trouble.

Slipping softly around the edge of the leading wagon, Yantri gives a lingering, wistful look at the remains of forest around them which have been giving way to farms, fields and scattered out-buildings before steeling herself and looking at the town ahead.

Frowning slightly as she approaches Ngai and Sheridan from behind, she clears her throat. "I suppose we'll need to head in there to get our pay for this job." Turning to Sheridan, she continues, "You seem to know what to expect from all this. Do you know your way around all those building?"

”I think he will pay us. Most carivan masters want to remain in business. It’s not like we were transporting gold bars or anything.”

The young dark haired cleric said flatly, not even bothering to look up from the tome he has been studying the entire journey.

”I am guessing the time honored he gets paid we get paid script will play out, unless he has that much coin on him.”

”After a safe and orderly transfer of the goods has been made we get our pay and we are no longer contracted. It was all in there . . . You read it before you signed it right?”

Final crunching done? I think everyone's posted.

Right! First gameplay thread will be up in a few minutes! From here on out, the discussion thread will be for ooc stuff.

Here. We. Go!

I will be updating the Maps link with pictures of some of the NPCs you meet along the way. In that link is also a handy little stat tracker I 100% stole from another campaign I'm in (and I think that GM borrowed it from yet another campaign). Please make sure that info is correct, update it as you need to.

EXP and Leveling Up

In this campaign, you will gain Exp at certain milestones. I want to foster an environment of creativity and narrative. I don't want players to be so concerned about getting as much exp as possible that you don't make interesting choices. I may tell you when it's time to simply level up, and when you do, make sure to update the tracker slide in the Maps and Info link.

I would ask if all PC's update their header to reflect important stats (minimum: current hp, AC/TAC/FF, saves, Init, Perc). It can be in any order, so long as it makes sense. Please and thank you.

I thought I'd share some sweet forum tech: The code collapses any series of spaces or leading spaces, but it doesn't check any other whitespace characters. I use the quad em [ ] for spacing in my header.

    boop

So it doesn't matter to me too much, but Yantri's a Gunslinger rather than a ranger for the stat tracker (and your party lists.) Though perhaps she thinks she's as much the latter as the former.

Also, that Silas portrait was hopefully from after his run in with the Sheriff, or he needs to start taking better care of himself!

-Zorblag R`Lyeh

So it doesn't matter to me too much, but Yantri's a Gunslinger rather than a ranger for the stat tracker (and your party lists.) Though perhaps she thinks she's as much the latter as the former.

Also, that Silas portrait was hopefully from after his run in with the Sheriff, or he needs to start taking better care of himself!

-Zorblag R`Lyeh

I don't know why I typed ranger! There's both a gunslinger and a hunter in my RL campaign so maybe I was flipping things around in my head. Or maybe I typed it up on a Monday.

in the gameplay thread, I'm gonna wait until everyone has a chance to get better acquainted with Kane and vice versa. And please don't actually burn down the building! Once everyone's ready to go to bed, the night will pass without incident and we'll start the next day.

I was trying to give Kane an 'in' to introduce himself, but I'm sure fate will throw us together :)

I also tried to edit the info sheet as asked, but looks like I only have View access. Ngai's Reflex and Will save mods are a bit off.

I was trying to give Kane an 'in' to introduce himself, but I'm sure fate will throw us together :)

I also tried to edit the info sheet as asked, but looks like I only have View access. Ngai's Reflex and Will save mods are a bit off.

You should have access now.

My character looks like a younger version of this.

https://78.media.tumblr.com/b8b54752106c0691bdd492d3f5eb26fa/tumblr_o3rnmxi xfm1txra8jo3_500.gif

Everyone remind me if/which deity (or philosophy) you follow.

Nearly everyone in Belhaim is going to align with 1 of 3 factions, loosely based on religious precepts of certain deities. And it absolutely will affect how they view you (and what they charge you for goods/services).

Ngai worships Gozreh, but she's not very devout. What happened to her village disillusioned her, so no holy symbols or anything.

Does Stone really want to continue the argument? Lets move on...

Even though his post appeared after some of the "morning" posts, his was still the conversation of last night. I'm sure when he comes downstairs everyone will realize that the absolute best medicine is to pretend like it never happened at all and stay quiet/act a little weird.

And then I'm sure one of you will save the other and you'll all become great friends that like to go to each other's houses and drink sweet tea on the front porch, reminiscing about the good ol' days of dragonslaying.

Or something like that!

;)

Kane venerates Irori, actually! He's not super religious, but he does carry an amulet with his symbol on it at his waist, and tries to follow the tenets close as he can.

I'm also interested in players' opinion regarding the Google slides I'm going with:

When your position matters (any slide with a grid and avatars), would you rather I continually add slides as we go, or replace one with the next when we've moved on to the next "frame"/location?

I will probably continue to add images of people we meet, foes we face, etc., just to add the flavor to the campaign and give you something to go off of for narrative and roleplay. (unless enough people find it excessive, unnecessary, or annoying)

Even though his post appeared after some of the "morning" posts, his was still the conversation of last night. I'm sure when he comes downstairs everyone will realize that the absolute best medicine is to pretend like it never happened at all and stay quiet/act a little weird.

And then I'm sure one of you will save the other and you'll all become great friends that like to go to each other's houses and drink sweet tea on the front porch, reminiscing about the good ol' days of dragonslaying.

Or something like that!

;)

Anything's possible :)

Yeah, I saw it was from last night, but the plot had moved on, so I didn't want to keep interjecting flashbacks in the middle of everything else.

I'm also interested in players' opinion regarding the Google slides I'm going with:

When your position matters (any slide with a grid and avatars), would you rather I continually add slides as we go, or replace one with the next when we've moved on to the next "frame"/location?

I will probably continue to add images of people we meet, foes we face, etc., just to add the flavor to the campaign and give you something to go off of for narrative and roleplay. (unless enough people find it excessive, unnecessary, or annoying)

Personally I loved the images and maps.

And maybe just keep one previous "frame" at a time? Just so we can confirm we gave you the right grid coordinates etc.

Personally I loved the images and maps.

And maybe just keep one previous "frame" at a time? Just so we can confirm we gave you the right grid coordinates etc.

To be clear, you'll all be able to move your characters on a slide so we don't have to do battles/exploration in a slide-by-slide format.

Oh ok, cool!

Something else I forgot to mention, if there's ever a time when you either need me to be the ONLY one who sees your post (like your character is alone), or your characters are discussing something and you DON'T want the GM to read it, put it in a spoiler titled either GM or No GM.

I always forget to mention that.

Okay, I'm gonna give the discussion thread a breather for a moment.

Religion
Sheridan leaves offerings for Sarenrae when he finds himself in need of prayer. He doesn't wear any kind of holy symbol, but a religion buff might recognize some of his dance moves. I couldn't resist making a lawful good rogue.

Google Slides
I have seen some GMs use one locked down slides file for the bulk of maps and references, and another slides file with open edit rights for combat tactics. That way we had an ordered list of maps with locked blinders, and another which is just a flat snapshot of the current tactical map with tokens and turn order and junk.

Does Stone really want to continue the argument? Lets move on...

Yeah that was at night before bed as you saw. We were all posting so fast things had to be edited and split. Hot thread.

If everyone could, choose a tab on the loot sheet as your own, rename it and go ahead and list everything you've spent money on. Anytime loot is found, it'll go on the main page and distributions to the party will count as "purchases" - This is borrowed from another campaign I'm in, feel free to use a different system if it's easier.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VCNQZjBkMKedZ_XsISjnaP_SMZdFm9S4xCD Ky5019dE/edit?usp=sharing

Insofar as Yantri worships any God, it would be Gozreh, but her Uncle didn't raise her to be particularly mindful of the divine; she relies on herself and those near her, and Gods are fairly abstract to her.

-Zorblag R`Lyeh

I've updated all the google drive files I'm using so that anyone with the link can edit, not just view. Sorry about that inconvenience everyone.

I’ll post what happens at the site of the collapse in a few hours. I’m at the Jackson grand opening of Gimme A Five!

That place looks interesting :)

I have a feeling that climb result is foreshadowing...

...Yeah...

^_^

After Stone’s roll (I’m having too much fun with puns!), I’ll update gameplay.

I didn't expect anybody to follow until after I had a chance to lower a rope, bu I got caught up with life so wasn't able to post again right away. Sorry guys!

I didn’t either but it made for a great scene ;). Plus with the current characters it felt right and like a real development moment for them. I’ll post soon. This is a great group.

Finally, someone who can roll a Perception check - nice one, Kane!

Glad to see my eyes are still working! After those climb rolls, I expected to have my eye ball fall out of their sockets.

Lol, maybe that means we will roll high for combat.

@Sherdidan-are you climbing up before the Baroness responds?

Nah, he said a while back he was going up. I missed it too.

Okay I found it too. Looks like he said it before the wizard starting climbing. I missed it at the end.