Here's the alluded to gathering point and discussion thread. As the title implies, I have a germ of an idea for where we're starting and going, but things are mostly tentative for the moment. For now, I'll just answer any questions you guys have and do my best to explain the lay of the land and the Play-by-Post arena.
Checking in.
As far as what I may play...probably a religious warrior of some sort, likely to Eostre Animalmother.
Like a religious ranger, eventually have an animal tag-along.
This is Thron's character creation for this shindig. Haven't developed a backstory for him yet, as I'm waiting on some details as to where we will be first.
Neal here.
Current character idea: a Saxa runt who's out to prove himself as a warrior.
Whooooo!!
So far I'm leaning toward playing a dwarven wizard who has the crazy idea that if he gets good enough at controlling fire magic, he can undermine the Hellfrost and turn it into a new dwarven kingdom. Or at the very least, he can mine it for riches.
..he'll also become defacto king of the dwarves, because no one would be able to stop him, but.. one step at a time.
Make sure you check on what arcane backgrounds are available to frost dwarves. I believe runecasting is pretty prevalent among their kind (bearing in mind I have no book in front of me right now). I know they can be hrimwisards as well; uncertain on elementalists.
I'll be kicking things off in or around Nordmark to begin with. Quick overview of the situation there is: civil war—nobles being overthrown, heirs trying to reclaim their lands, etc. Things seem to have quietened down a bit recently, but it's likely that all parties involved are simply licking wounds and planning future violence.
Note: this means that your foes aren't going to necessarily be Hellfrost spawned horrors at every turn. Nordmark is still in the Hearthlands, where the Hellfrost's effects on climate is not as prevalent. There will certainly be minions of Thrym aplenty to lay waste to over the course of the game, but the scope of what I'm considering isn't going to have you all marching into the Hellfrost Core to do battle with Thrym himself or anything that over-the-top.
Oh, we're not using Pathfinder. We will be doing Savage Worlds. I'm just using the paizo boards because they are designed to accommodate PbPs (even of other systems).
Now, there may be a few snags with Savage Worlds, but I don't think they'll be too problematic. Since there isn't a "game session" to handle bennies and XP as usual, I'll have to do them on a plot-point basis. The forums can't shuffle and deal cards either, obviously, so I can either just do them at my desk (what I'm leaning towards) or express them with the dice roller as 1d54 and subtract 1 from the total for every "card dealt" (so it would then become 1d53, 1d52, 1d51...) Maximum values are Jokers. Two Maximum results on the die would reset the count. I still think just dealing cards at my desk is the better option. Initiatives might not matter as much, but there are a few situations where the actual value and suit of the card are important—random encounters, chases, and so on.
Once we've settled who all will be participating, I'll start going over preferred post format and character building guidelines.
I'm toying with the idea of drawing a random Rune for each player involved and having that influence their destiny in some manner, probably tying it into a Norn divination of some sort. Think Inheritance Tables from L5R. Some might end up having a drawback, but altogether I don't intend for it to be too punishing (And if it is punishing, the benefit will be more substantial for it).
You mean something like this?
Either Wiggy is omniscient, or he secreted a hidden tap directly into my brain-thinky-mind-space.
I will further expound on it by randomly selecting a Rune as well, then. Probably won't be a concrete system so much as me going "Oh hey, that would be neat" and running with where the aforementioned brain-thinky-mind-space takes it. I think I'll try to avoid just piling negatives on a character with no redeeming quality.
Example: Someone draws the rune associated with Dargar and a 10 of Clubs (gain Bloodthirsty Hindrance). Sure, they're stuck with that Hindrance, but now they're far more intimidating than most people; +1 to Intimidation checks when threatening violence... something along those lines.
You mean something like this*?
*copied to archive
Let me just save us some time in the future:
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Guess I can go ahead and cover some of the established formatting guidelines. One of the coolest things about PbP is that you get to actually explore a character's viewpoint and thought process at any given moment. When we're playing around a table, each person generally has a grasp on what their character is feeling at any given moment, sure, but the rest of the players (and even the GM) probably do not. As I mentioned on the facebook group, Play-by-Posts tend to read more like a story.
: When your character speaks something aloud, it should be bold and between quotation marks:
Brimleydower clears his throat and says, "Do what I say or sup well on the pickles of injustice."
: When your character is thinking something, it should be italicized:
Brimleydower nods as if satisfied with his words. The imbeciles are actually listening to what I have to say. How delightful!
: Mechanical expressions of actions should be isolated at the bottom of the player's post with qualifiers/breakdowns of their action economy. These should be offered in OOC text (since that's exactly what it is; an OOC explanation of everything that was typed prior). Given that we're doing Savage Worlds and not Pathfinder, this part shouldn't be as labor intensive. I'll do a full mock up post below to illustrate what I mean:
Brimleydower steps into the room with a taco in one hand and his firstborn cousin's manhood in the left. "Are there any here among you who would treat with a walrus?" His mustache flails defiantly in the wind, daring any to approach. They likely wonder why I carry a penis in my hand. Soon enough, a peal of thunder resounds throughout the room. It would seem Steve Buscemi had arrived, after all.
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Now, in order to get an accurate estimation of how you did in the round, you're going to have to hit the Preview button and look at your dice results before you officially submit your post (most of the time, anyways, especially in combat). If a dice Aces/Explodes, just continue rolling until it stops yielding a maximum value, like below:
The initial roll Aced, which is why I included the 4+1d4 in the 2nd roll. If the second had rolled another 4, I would have included a third set and expressed it as 8+1d4.
Any questions, feel free to ask them. I know that's a little bit to take in, but things will flow a lot more smoothly once things kick off. All of the html options are included in the "How to format your text Show/Hide" section below the textbox.
I am looking forward to this with the enthusiasm of Judge mind controlling Darknaut and "accidentally" mind wiping him.
Question: I made my character assuming we were playing with the latest SW rules, where Guts is eliminated and we just do Spirit rolls. Is this the case with this campaign? If not, I gotta go rejigger some points...
Correct; no Guts skill. Guts checks are now keyed off of Spirit directly.
Okay, you rubes! Now it's time to get weird in here!
*raises shirt, reveals nipples to Chip*
I've been keeping a tupperware of fermented dolphin dorsels for just such an occasion.
I'm pretty much set to kick this off. Just need people to get characters created and audited by yours truly. Once everyone gets the nod I'll divulge a little more about Nordmark and specifically where we're beginning.
I will not be fretting too much over character backgrounds. Given that our collective knowledge pool in regards to the setting (Rassilon) is decidedly limited, I have no intention of demanding to know which hamlet or city and in what country you hail from, etc. Just a general/vague explanation will suffice just fine.
*Also, once more, if anyone has any questions about PbPs in general, just ask me directly and I'll try to answer.
I'm ready to roll. (dice pun)
Same. As you guys can, you should put your character sheets in the profile of your alias like I have. Makes it easy to reference stats for both the player and the GM.
Done and done, profile and character sheet updated and posted on this characters page
Still waiting on Chip and Jon to chime in (and possibly Mick).
And here's my character, complete with stats in the profile. I think that makes me ready to rock.
Hmm.. This Skoldir seems skilled and driven. I'll have to bend his purpose, which may be difficult. But I have no doubt he'll be an asset when I do.
All this is mumbled under Vort'l's breath as he thinks it, though only a word or two even comes close to being intelligible.
I've went ahead and opened up the Gameplay thread. I did this because it makes tracking campaign updates far easier. After you have made a post (with your character's profile) in the Gameplay section, you can access the Campaigns Tab from your main profile, which will then list this campaign and any new posts that have been made. I would like for those who have finished their characters to go ahead and make a post therein—just a simple sentence in-character or out-of-character letting me know that you are ready to begin:
Brimleydower says, "When the fark is dinner? Me mustache is hungry."
Once characters are made, I'll offer a few more guidelines to make tracking things easier on myself. For now we'll just focus on getting characters squared away.
Given it a few days. I'm going to go ahead and set the stage a little more and open up the Gameplay fully (after I get home from work, of course). Those yet to create a character can still do so, I will simply be introducing you to the party later than the initial few. Our beginning will be cliché enough that it won't be an issue to add others as they come. In fact, it might even help reinforce verisimilitude. (There, I used the big v-word; it's officially a campaign now)
For ease of reference/tracking, I'd like everyone to add something in their character's profile. In the Classes/Levels section, I'd like everyone to add the following line, replacing "X" with the appropriate value:
Wounds: X | Pace: X | Parry: X | Toughness: X | Concentration: X | Bennies: X
Those of you that are not spellcasters (have no Arcane Background) can leave off the Concentration section. That part is intended to keep track of maintained spells and the penalties incurred as a result to your spellcasting die.
Are we paying attention to Encumbrance penalties? Or a modified version of it?
I only ask because sometimes it makes sense (Bo'Asha, with her d4A and d4St, won't be carrying a broadsword or platemail) but also sometimes seems to get in the way (Should a walking staff, whose weight is mostly on the ground, really count for 8 of her 20 available unencumbered pounds?)
I'm game for whatever, just wanna know.
I'll probably not worry about weight values too much so long as it is kept within reason. Oh, that reminds me. Forgot to include something when I updated the gameplay.
Since I'm not a spellcaster, I left out the Concentration section and replaced it with Charisma (since I actually have a positive Charisma modifier).
I will amend my previous example of "Dice Exploding" guidelines. If you see a dice has maxed out, simply specify more dice to roll. So if you have 1d6 and a 6 turns up, you can then roll 2d6, since it represents what dice were rolled very plainly.
Thumbs up on the Charisma. Will come in handy for resolving Glory totals after a fierce tale-tellin'.
As for what Mark means about altering your dice roll, he means as follows:
First, you type in your post, with the following code for dice rolling, minus the * mark:
[*dice=Test]1d6[/dice]
It would look as follows:
You would then hit "Preview" to see the result. Let's pretend that was a dice that exploded. Instead of typing a new roll, I would alter the original to read:
[*dice=Test]2d6[/dice]
The forum saves your roll, so on the 2d6 roll, the first would always be the roll it originally made on a d6, but would roll a second one. So, should you make a roll and a dice "explode," you can just add another, and another, as necessary until it stops exploding, and the forum will do the math for you at the end.
Dunno if that will help anyone, or if I just confused matters. Just trying to help.
I have also neglected to make any mention of Languages. Languages can be found on Page 7 of the Hellfrost Player's Guide. You begin with a number of languages equal to half of your Smarts trait die type. So, a d4 Smarts = 2 languages, a d6 = 3 languages, a d8 = 4 languages, and so forth.
Your first language must be that of your race's native tongue. For Stormreaver that is Taiga Elf; for Skoldir that is Saxa; for Bo'asha that is Finnari (assuming she is Finnar).
Trader is the closest thing to a "Common tongue".
Ah yes. Languages added. Taiga Elf and Trader.
Looks good, Jon. Are you still running with the same idea for your Enemy?
Also, check out the Recruitment tab for more specific info about what I'm about to type, but your Fate Draw resulted in your gaining:
Boon: On the day of your birth, Sigel's Hearth flared more brightly than it had in a generation. Ever since then, you have proven remarkably resilient to the efforts of things both fell and frigid (Gain the Arcane Resistance Edge against Cold, Darkness, and Necromancy effects).
Beyond that, unless there's anything you need to ask me before hand, feel free to catch up on the Gameplay Thread and dive in whenever. As you will see, it's a pretty standard tavern scene on a ferociously stormy night—simply have your character enter whenever you're ready (be it entering from outside, having a room upstairs, or maybe even just having been present in the common room beforehand).
Alright, it's been three weeks. Whoever else plans on getting onboard, make haste. I want to include as many people as possible, but PbPs hinge on participation from those involved. Without that crucial ingredient, things tend to slow down and rapidly evaporate (combat especially so). Only need an update every couple of days or so to keep things chugging along, really.
And as always, if there are any questions or hangups just ask me or let me know what's up.
I've been enjoying reading what's been posted thus far and have been itching to jump in, but I have had no time to read the core book. I know they've made some pretty huge changes to magic, so I need to refamiliarize myself with it before I build my character. If I still haven't posted mine by Sunday, I may just have you help me build him.
The key difference is mainly that Power Points don't exist in Hellfrost. Instead, you trigger a "Siphoning" roll every time your Spellcasting die rolls a 1.
Some other tidbits:
So looking through the game manual:
Wow, Young is a horrid disadvantage. Losing two attribute bumps is like a novice playing w veterans. And the 5less skill points is huge too. Maybe if it was just one attribute less, I could get it. But one extra Benny does not make up for this loss.
Was thinking it'd be fun to play an arya stark esque character who is young and lost. But starting that hindered seems awful. At least with an elderly character you can be a spellcaster.
You could always represent the character's youth other ways. Clueless and/or Overconfident, for example, to represent a young person's brash foolishness, Small for the kid's stature, etc.
Right. I meant more from a "here's my opinion as a gamer: I would never want to RP a young person by taking this hindrance. It's too brutal. Ergo, I think it's poorly designed."
Maybe if it said you begin with one less attribute point AND none of your starting attributes could be over d6. But - 2 attributes, then you pretty much HAVE to be a glass-cannon caster and dump your 3 bumps into Sm or Sp.
If any one else has any intention of joining this game, best make an appearance soon. It's been a month. As I've stated, I want to include as many as possible, but it's been a month. If that's indicative of participation level, it's going to take us two years of real life time to resolve the first combat.
Bring 'em on! :P
Seriously though, Neal and Chip, get your asses in here. Where's Jess?
Neal is Skoldir
Oh, haha, right. Derp.