Palace of the Vampire Queen (Inactive)

Game Master Terquem

Hello and welcome to the interest check/'campaign prenup’ thread for the Play by Post adventure “Palace of the Vampire Queen”

This will be my first attempt at managing a Play by Post adventure here in these forums.

I would like to use this thread, with apologies, not so much as a recruitment thread, just yet, but more of an interest check and discussion thread to set down what my expectations (and limitations) are, and to establish what I would like to think of as a “Campaign Prenup” – a sort of contract that spells out how the game will work, and what players, who have an interest, will be looking for to ‘get out of’ the experience.

This will be a Pathfinder/Homebrew Play by Post experience based upon a very old Module

The setting is the Dwarven Empire of Atharosse, an archipelago in the eastern hemisphere of the world of Riom (a world of my creation), and specifically the island Kingdom of Karrita Morianna. The adventure is to accept the responsibility of putting an end to the mysterious goings on in the southwestern counties of the island. The Player’s will create characters (a point buy system will be used, and the exact degree of “heroism” involved will be established, here) who are members of the retinue of one of three dwarven “Knights of the Realm”. Initially the Player Characters will have few resources, and the challenge may be too great for them, but interested players will find a very rich campaign setting, and many possible side quests are possible. Initially there may be limitations on class and race availability, also a matter to be discussed here.

I don’t really know how this works, no really, I don’t. I have tried to read many other recruitment, discussion, and PbP threads to get an idea of what players expect, but my research has uncovered a very wide diversity of styles and management approaches.

But, let me just say this – I love to describe, explain, and clarify things. The one thing I can promise you, the player, is a rich campaign setting, and plenty of answers to your questions. I don’t know just how fast I can move the game along, but I will try to learn the player’s preferences as quickly as I can. There will be much to explore, and many dangers.

For an example of my story telling abilities, I would humbly ask that interested players see this thread

Go to A Story

It was an experiment I undertook a few months ago.

Please feel free to ask any questions about the scenario, setting, races, classes, or whatever comes to mind, and if all goes well we should be able to establish a direction for this adventure. Should there be insufficient interest, well, let’s hope we don’t have to think about that.

There should be four to six players, and there will be a real potential for player’s to manage more than one character.
Thank you, and good gaming to you all

dotting

Checking in. Never played by post but am definatly interested. Would get more on depth but I'm at work. Doh!! Gota run. What classes and races will be allowed?

Checking in. Never played by post but am definatly interested. Would get more on depth but I'm at work. Doh!! Gota run. What classes and races will be allowed?

lol, sane here

I'm thinking about summoner or cavalier

Consider me interested. I've played by post a couple of times before but never on this site and from what I've read I would enjoy your game.

I have never played a dwarf but I'd be interested in doing so. As for classes, again I'd like to try something I've never played before. So, how about a ranger?

Dotting for interest, Terquem!

I've never played by post but this campaign sounds interesting. Terquem you tell a lively story.

A Dwarf rogue/locksmith would be fun to play.

Oops...The dwarf locksmith mentioned above under Baldwin the Merciful alias will be Rownig Fleetfoot.

PS. I have never played by post. With a little more background information, I'm happy to craft a detailed backgroung for the campaign.

Hello,

This looks like a wonderfully imaginative game.

I've got my hat in two other rings, so I'll wait to hear back before making a submission.

I have a couple copper pieces of suggestions. If they're useful, great. If not, please ignore.

@Terquem:
As GM go ahead and set the guidelines that work for you. I love the idea of a campaign pre-nup. Funny, but potential very useful.
Say: "All alignments allowed" or "Anything but evil"
Say: "Bring on your 30 point exotic builds" or "15 point thoroughly playtested core rules only"
Say: "You must post at least every 24/48 hours," or "once a week"

Say what YOU want, and then let the players who like that style come to you.

Oh a couple of other choices: PbP is fantastic for storytelling, role playing and in depth character development. There are so many amazing writers on these boards.

But... for combat it is soooooo.... slooooowwwwww.

You have to wait for everyone who is going in a combat round to have a turn, so one round of combat can be a week. If you go sequentially to initiative it's even slower. Some GM's have rules like-- "if you don't post I'll play you," or "if you don't post you lose your turn."
Some gamemasters speed things up with a program like maptools. Where everyone commits to getting online together at a certain time, looking at the maps you generate, and then whipping out the combat.

@Name Violation: I like your declaration of sanity. It's a typo, I know. But it's funny, especially with your avatar.

@Baldwin/Rowning
I think you want to make new "character profiles" not "aliases".
Go into "My Account". Skip on past "Messageboard Aliases"-- that was too easy. Go to the next box that says "Pathfinder Society"-- Click under "you have # characters"- click here to make changes.
The next page has "Register a new character". You can enter his stats there, give him a new avatar, and anything else you wanna describe.

Note: Save changes every 10 minutes or it will boot you. Or cut and paste before you save, in case of booting.

Another note: Next time you post, remember to go underneath to where it says "post as" and use your shiny new avatar.

I hope that was helpful and not too busybodyish. I just made lots of goofy mistakes before, but everyone was very patient and helped me, so...
Anyhow, looks wonderful, and I may be back depending on how my other submissions go. Have fun!

Dotting for interest. Im thinking of witch or magus maybe

A quick note to say I am reading all of this, and I have some feedback, I will post it tomorrow early. I have a couple of ideas, and some rules to throw out for discussion, but the interest is good.

This is what I’ve been thinking about so far –

Character creation will be by “purchase” with a minor modification. Points will be set at 18. No character may begin the game with a Charisma score below 8 (not allowed to be lowered below 10 during creation, for dwarven characters). All characters will be Dwarves, initially. Dwarves will be as per the Core Rulebook but will not have a +1 modifier to attacks against “orcs” as no such creatures exist within the Empire.

There will be opportunities for new characters, either controlled by existing players or by new players, of alternative races, to be discussed at a later time. There are two significant changes to Pathfinder Races that will be addressed here.

1) Dwarves do not live as long as stated in the Core Rules. It is commonly held that, among humans, dwarves live to well over two hundred years, but this is not true. Dwarves can live to nearly one hundred fifty years, and commonly live to well beyond one hundred years, and this is enough to create the misconception among humans, who rarely live beyond the age of eighty. (Incidentally, the same is true of Elves, in this campaign setting).

2) On the world of Riom the “Gnome” is not an independent race, but are actually “half-breeds” similar to Half-orcs and Half-elves. Gnomes, in this campaign setting, are half Goblin and Half Dwarf, and are often social pariahs. In the distant past of the Dwarven Empire bitter feuds existed between Dwarves and Goblins. Currently Goblins, who are native to the islands, are not immediately seen as enemies of the dwarven people and there is some peaceful interaction between dwarves and goblin tribes. Also, there are no Hobgoblins, Pathfinder Bestiary Hobgoblins. Among most people of the islands the word Hobgoblin is used to refer to a good natured, more agreeable goblin, and although there is a general consensus that hobgoblins are larger and stronger than goblins, this is not always true. Goblins can be as uncivilized and dangerous as they are described in the core rules, but they can also be diverse.

A significant change to a fundamental rule regarding Small races is also implemented in my campaigns. Small creatures do not suffer a minus one penalty (-1) to their Combat Maneuver Defense.

Class restrictions will be limited to the Monk, Inquisitor, and Oracle (and as there are no firearms in this campaign setting, the restriction to those classes that depend upon gunpowder are implied). There is no precedent for the three classes above in this campaign setting, at the start of the adventure, but there may be a possibility that the classes will be available as the campaign progresses.
Characters will begin the game will a limited amount of resources (to understand why, read about the Empire in the Game thread resources – coming soon).

The original module, Palace of the Vampire Queen, is a classic Dungeon Crawl. I have run this adventure in every version of the rules (except 4th edition). This will be the first time I have tried to run it in this medium, as such there will be a greater emphasis on solving the mystery of the Palace, and not necessarily “clearing” the dungeon of monsters and treasures (although those aspects will still be available).

Originally Pete and Judy Kerestan gave a very short background for the adventure. I have expanded their original work to include a deep mystery surrounding the nature of the palace itself, and I hope the players will enjoy discovering the truth behind the mystery.

In order to move the game along I hope to keep the dialog between Player Characters and Non-Player Characters lively and dynamic. I, as a Dungeon Master, prefer, encourage, questions. Ask a lot of questions. IF an encounter occurs that requires combat I will expect the following: No single round of combat will take more than one day, of real time, to complete, and should a player be unable to participate in the round that day, then I will choose a “safe” option for that character for that round. I would like to avoid having to require that players post their actions in an initiative order, and I will most likely manage combat in a simplified, “players vs. monsters” sort of descriptive round resolution method.

I hope to be creating the game thread today, and populating it with a few informational resources. If you would like to begin creating a character now, here are some basic facts.

There are three counties in the southwestern region of the island of Karrita Morianna. Each county is under the protection of a dwarven “Knight” (a dwarven noble). The three Knights are:

Sir Anrollo Guisse – He is a very old dwarf, and feels that he should be a baron. His lands are mainly the western sea shore of the island.

Lady Renarie Inarossa – She is a middle aged Dwarf. Her lands are mainly to the east and south of Sir Guisse’s lands, and include some abandoned mines.

Sir Henri Vessocho – He is a middle aged Dwarf. His lands are to the south of the other two Knights, and include a section of the southern shore of the island.

A brief introduction to the game –

The village of Three Willows has been attacked and many people were killed, some have disappeared. In the village of Anerrae ten children have vanished. In the village of Corner Mill the local priestess has fallen into a deep magical sleep and it is feared she will die when the moon is full.

From other villages in the southwestern corner of Isla Karrita Moriana come stories of dead rising from the grave, and missing children. On the north central shore of the island, King Werdenand Fredrosse worries for the safety of the people under his charge and has summoned three of his knights, Sir Anrollo Guisse, Lady Renarie Inarossa, and Sir Henri Vessocho. These three knights are responsible for the territories that have been under the assault of these new attacks.

During a celebration diner, where many local noble families have been invited, but who have no real stake in the matter, the King makes it clear that when the supper is finished he expects to hear a report from these Knights of the Realm and what their plans for dealing with this threat may be.

Before the Knights can deliver their reports, a guardsman burst into the hall and announces that the King’s youngest daughter, Farina Rosaria Fredrosse, has been captured by a horde of undead while she was riding out of the Church of Denari in the village of Saint Lorelei, where she had gone only a few days earlier to perform an annual spring ceremony, the “Blessing of the Seeds” on her father’s behalf.

Immediately upon hearing this news, the King falls into a fit. He is overcome, and his wife, Rosalinda Gloriann, rushes her husband to his bed demanding that no one disturb him until the healers have seen him and have diagnosed his condition.

Player Character’s are assumed to be members of one of the Knight’s retinue (and can, with permission, be related to the knight).

Clarify something for me. We can only be monks/inquisitors/oracles or we cannot be those classes

Ow, sorry that was a flub, you cannot be those three classes, yet.

This is what I’ve been thinking about so far –

Character creation will be by “purchase” with a minor modification. Points will be set at 18. No character may begin the game with a Charisma score below 8 (not allowed to be lowered below 10 during creation, for dwarven characters). All characters will be Dwarves, initially. Dwarves will be as per the Core Rulebook but will not have a +1 modifier to attacks against “orcs” as no such creatures exist within the Empire.

Sounds like a great adventure. Consider me interested as a young Dwarven Wizard, Bresh Foglicho by name, specializing in the Banishment school of Abjuration, a newly minted Mage Warden in the retinue of the Lady, eager to practice his vow to spellguard the kingdom. I'll stat him up later and await the yea or nay. Is this to be a first level situation?

Yes first level, max hit points, and don't worry about equipment, just yet. Oh and since you chose Wizard, and i am thinking you should be in, unless you change your mind or get frustrated with me, here is a bit, just a bit, about Wizard's Guilds on the island

Magic on Karrita Morianna

There are four guilds on Karrita Morianna that openly train those wanting to become wizards. Any small village will typically have two or three wizards of between second and fifth level. These village wizards make their livings crafting potions, or working simple spells of interest to the local population (dwarves on the western part of the island are more fearful and superstitious than those of the eastern part of the island). Each of these guilds claims to be the oldest, and each is dedicated to a different set of magical priorities

The guilds are:

The Hands of the Four Winds (these are wizards who practice magic that is useful to sailors, soldiers , and craftsmen)

The Order of the Elementalists (these are wizards who practice magic as hired mercenaries, and include many Abjurationists)

Practitioners of the Visionary Path (these are wizards who practice magic for hire, but are against becoming involved in conflicts)

Guardians of Mysteries of Oskios (these are wizards of the most secretive kind, and little is known about their practices and intentions)

There is some "history" concerning the Guilds and the existence of the Palace of the Vampire Queen.

Thanks for the clarification. Ill be playing a cleric most likely. Do you have any recommedations for a diety? Perferably one able to channel pos. energy

I made a few changes in the Rownig's stats that reflect the 18pt buy. I designed him as rogue type character. If that type of character does not fit into the theme, let me know. I can redesign. I will work on the background information next.

Yes, and there will be a "Gods of the Dwarven Empire" post, later tonight.

I made a few changes in the Rownig's stats that reflect the 18pt buy. I designed him as rogue type character. If that type of character does not fit into the theme, let me know. I can redesign. I will work on the background information next.

Of course the knights of the realm will have

Here is my concept. It still needs work, like a diety, spells etc

Im thinking of making a toon that takes himself to seriously and acts super serious but can be clueless. Think batman with some inspecter clouseou moments. Back story off the top of my head. He suffered severe head trauma and from that moment on he thinks he is the greatest detective in the world. Im thinking maybe a ranger or rougue type. Will play anything really though lol

I'm at work so will have to create him and stats at a later date. (Darn 2nd shift!!!)

Religion on Karrita Morianna

The regular Dwarven gods of the Empire are worshipped on this island. They include:

Trembor and Yillise (Homedweller) (The Great Father and Mother of all Dwarves)

Trembor is lord of all domains, and his wife Yillise is the goddess of creation (Yillise should not be confused with Ismaea, there are significant differences between the aspects of these two Dwarven Goddesses, and their followers)

Jaskor and Muyella (the ‘First Son’ and the ‘Noble Wife’)

Jaskor is the god of strength, law, and obedience, his wife is the goddess of the home and hearth

Pineya (The First Daughter)

Pineya is goddess of arts, and medicine

There are also “older” Dwarven gods worshipped in conjunction with the “official” gods of the Empire. Dennari (Empire/Modern Pantheon) is a unique exception in that the worship of Ismaea (‘Old” Pantheon) is slowly being transformed into the worship of Dennari (Ismaea is, possibly, the oldest Deity of legend among the Dwarven people, and her personification as “Dennari” by the Empire is not experiencing any opposition, unlike some of the other older gods/goddesses who have been removed from adaption into the religious rituals of the Empire)

Dennari ‘Ismaea’ (The Woman of the Maul, She who pounds the earth, The Patient Goddess)

She is a goddess of agriculture, and is worshiped as a protector of cultivated lands, hunters, and farmers. Ismaea means “Good Rain” in the oldest Dwarven language and is often spoke of as the “Mother” of the Dwarven race, the two personifications of this deity differ in their iconography by age, with Dennari represented as a very attractive young and powerful Dwarven woman, and Ismaea as an old crone

Praggul Strongfist and Freeda Songwind

He is seen as a god of war and she as a warrior woman who sings soldiers into the highest halls of heaven. These two deities are representative of the “older” pantheon and are symbolic of the more war-like past of the Dwarven race

Lorenze and Bescort, (Brighthair) (the Shaper, and the Fire Maker)

These two are lovers, keepers of the forge and flame, Lorenze is seen as an old dwarf of powerful body and keen mind, and his lover Bescort is seen as a wild (possibly deep) Dwarven girl with an explosive nature. It is possible that Bescort is carried over from an even older Dwarven pantheon, the same group that originally included Ismaea, and some say that Bescort is a childless sister of Ismaea. In some places, Bescort is worshiped as a volcano goddess

These are the Dwarven deities most often venerated in churches and holy shrines across the islands. There are other Dwarven deities, some are very dark.

Evil, or ‘dark gods’, are rarely mentioned by name, but are sometimes mentioned by their realms of influence. These deities will not have any sort of regular followers, or places of worship that are known to Player Characters.

Golnstring Ergrize (The Gold Hider)

He is the god of greed

Sirrindi Panomae (The Betrayer)

She is the goddess of lust, and deceit

Mafolin Romorra (The Helmsman of Death)

He is seen as a god who shuttles dwarves to the afterlife (he is usually talked about as an omen of ill will and a sign of doom and is held in contrast to Freeda Songwind who is seen as the goddess of the “heavenly afterlife” of Dwarves who have passed from this world with good hearts)

Death is not personified as a Dwarven deity, but is spoken of as a greater all encompassing force that has power over all living things. In this regard death is spoken of as Karuk, and the belief in Karuk is common among many races. Karuk is an impartial deity, and has many assistants, some evil and some good.

Most of the religious festivals, holy days, and ceremonies carried out in the village churches revolve around the goddess Dennari, who is seen as a protector of the Dwarven race and the Dwarven Empire

I have added a description to the campaign page, good stuff to know there, and created a discussion thread (I hope everyone knows how to find them).
So far I am seeing two very serious entries

Rownig Fleetfoot
and
Azram Diamond-Hammer

If you would like to further the development of these characters, please visit the discussion thread. If you haven't created an "alias" to submit for consideration and are interested, you still have plenty of time.

I think the Game Thread will go live on Saturday, 5th

Still would love to answer your questions and explore how this game is going to work, for you, and for me.

I will work on the background and change out my deity to reflect the campaign.

So far I am seeing two very serious entries

Rownig Fleetfoot
and
Azram Diamond-Hammer

Azram Diamond-Hammer every adventure should begin with a Priest and a Locksmith.

Agreed. Ill be a cleric of dennari. Can you tell me domains and alignment please? Thanks

I was actually going to prep this character as an inquistive mechinically inclined dwarf. Skill focused (skill focus feat) and not so much of a combat dwarf. BUT if there are limited players perhaps I need to rethink my initial design and go with weapon finesse.

Im going to be very casting oriented, so you might want to work towards melee rownig

Im going to be very casting oriented, so you might want to work towards melee rownig

Thanks for the heads up...the dwarf has a good dex so he will be stabbity with his weapon finesse. I decided to take that as his first feat. Thought we would (and we still could) get many more players, that would have let me develop the skill focus for change for pace. I don't mind being a bit more melee though.

For the Cleric minded, this is an adventure with an Undead focus, are you sure you want to min/max the Dwarf Charisma?

Are you going to use the Pathfinder rules on undead or the old 3.5 rules? Undead are not the same under the pathfinder rules. I'll play any version you say but personally, I prefer 3.5 undead rules.

Do you have a first printing of: "The original module, Palace of the Vampire Queen, is a classic Dungeon Crawl." If you do, I tip my hat to you, that thing should be under glass. Of course the reprints should too!

Terquem wrote:

Sounds like a great adventure. Consider me interested as a young Dwarven Wizard, Bresh Foglicho by name, specializing in the Banishment school of Abjuration, a newly minted Mage Warden in the retinue of the Lady, eager to practice his vow to spellguard the kingdom. I'll stat him up later and await the yea or nay. Is this to be a first level situation?

Phrip are you going to join in this grand campaign?

Tossing my chip into the hat.

I really appreciate details and immersive settings, so this is right up my ally. I also have lots of PBP experience and would be happy to help smooth the edges for the people who are new at it.

I also wouldn't mind managing more than one character, or playing a "zookeeper" (someone with a lot of minions).

My ideas, off the bat, are:

A Van Helsing style monster hunter fighter. (Dwarf or Human)

A Good aligned Dwarven Necromancer who raises the spirits of his ancestors to aid him in battle.

As far as play style goes, I prefer mid to high power with an open array of character options. I don't mind restrictions to character generation that are based on aspects of the campaign ("Elves are extinct in this world" or "No Gunslingers" for example), but more arbitrary limits bother me.

Doomed Hero - The first concept would wourk in this setting, the second one, not so much.

Yes I own an original 4th printing of Palace of the Vampire Queen. I ran it for the first time with my friends in 1976 using the Blue Book edition of the rules.

I will stick to Pathfinder rules to run any undead that are encountered, only to keep things as concise as possible.

Well if its undead based, better keep the CPE DC high right?

I'm quite interested. I want to play Helgen Inarossa, a synthesist summoner. He inherited his father's Earth Breaker hammer, but was always too weak and sickly to wield it properly. His deep shame at his lack of combat ability drove him to be a recluse who used his family's middle class resources (nephew of Lady Renarie Inarossa perhaps?) to gobble up all the esoteric lore he could find. His single minded studying and force of personality eventually allowed him to fuse with an eidolon in the form of a Dwarven ancestor warrior. Now easily able to wield his father's hammer, Helgen was proud to stand by his 'aunt's' side during her trip to King Fredrosse's court.

Basically a bipedal eidolon synthesist who wields an earth breaker hammer. I can put the crunch and a better written backstory up in an Alias if this is an acceptable character. I just don't want to spend the time without getting some feedback first.

Edit: As for me personally, I have a lot of time to post and often find myself wishing other people would post more in the games I'm in. I like games where the GM keeps things moving, especially during combat. I love your writing, no noticeable errors and you are clearly well educated. The attention to detail is really great.

Jelani - Let me apologize for my ignorance first in that I do not know what an "Earth Breaker" hammer is (I hope that doesn't paint me as too ignorant to be an effective DM). It is unlikely that any Player Characters will be allowed to begin the game with any gear other than what has already been stated in the discussion thread and campaign discription. Second, the character concept is acceptable, basically, but needs a bit of a change. Lady Inarossa will have no brothers or sisters living in the county she is responsible for (there is going to be a post explaining Dwarven culture in the discussion thread very soon). So it is more likely that Helgen is her nephew, but is already living in the capital city of Nasmerae. Let's say his father is Dalurhelgen Inarossa, oldest of the Inarossa family (he is eighty-eight, and in his youth he did hold a position of authority under the King of Karrita Moriana and defended a town on the eastern part of the island against a series of pirate raids that lasted over the period of a few years, but keep in mind that the island hasn't had a significant problem with war or raids in a long time) and that he is an upper middle class merchant who owns four ships and that these ships sail to Rocky Bay and pick up the refined iron mined in the mountains of Renarie's holdings.

I will add more details about the city of Nasmerae as soon as I can, but to get a feel for the culture you could imagine it as a thriving coastal harbor city on a greek island durring the late 16th century (but with a significantly smaller population. The population of Nasmerae is only 16,000)

Runcor Shistfist Dwarven Invulnerable rager. Always a bit free with his temper, Runcor Family had him trained to fight and defend the holds, learning to channel his rage into that of a berserker, he loves a good drink, a good fight, a good tale, a good time, and a good companion.

I have clarified and highlighted some information regarding the campaign setting, in, naturally, the campaign tab.

Still looking for at least a couple more interested players.

Ok, going with Hallister Silverspike, dwarven fighter, a young champion of a clan dedicated to the eradication of the undead.

My plan is to be a dex fighter (which is a little odd for a dwarf, but I'm basing his fighting style off of he idea that being hit by the undead at all is usually very bad). Doing so has some mechanical issues (i.e. dex fighters suck). Here's some GM questions-

Would you allow a feat that adds Dex to damage (a'la Dervish Dance?)

Would you allow a Dwarf version of the Duelist that uses axes (slashing instead of piercing weapons)

oh, and to answer your earlier question about the Earth Breaker, look here under two handed martial weapons. Basically it's the Hammer version of the Greatsword.

Jelani - Let me apologize for my ignorance first in that I do not know what an "Earth Breaker" hammer is (I hope that doesn't paint me as too ignorant to be an effective DM). It is unlikely that any Player Characters will be allowed to begin the game with any gear other than what has already been stated in the discussion thread and campaign discription. Second, the character concept is acceptable, basically, but needs a bit of a change. Lady Inarossa will have no brothers or sisters living in the county she is responsible for (there is going to be a post explaining Dwarven culture in the discussion thread very soon). So it is more likely that Helgen is her nephew, but is already living in the capital city of Nasmerae. Let's say his father is Dalurhelgen Inarossa, oldest of the Inarossa family (he is eighty-eight, and in his youth he did hold a position of authority under the King of Karrita Moriana and defended a town on the eastern part of the island against a series of pirate raids that lasted over the period of a few years, but keep in mind that the island hasn't had a significant problem with war or raids in a long time) and that he is an upper middle class merchant who owns four ships and that these ships sail to Rocky Bay and pick up the refined iron mined in the mountains of Renarie's holdings.

I will add more details about the city of Nasmerae as soon as I can, but to get a feel for the culture you could imagine it as a thriving coastal harbor city on a greek island during the late 16th century (but with a significantly smaller population. The population of Nasmerae is only 16,000)

As Doomed Hero says, Earth Breaker is the hammer version of greatsword. Are you going to allow traits? I planned on taking Heirloom Weapon to get the hammer. Both for proficiency and flavor reasons. Wasting a feat on martial weapon proficiency isn't really something I want to do as a caster, but the character will suck without a two handed martial weapon.

I guess this is one of the campaign pre-nup things. Why are we so restricted in equipment? Are the enemies going to be weakened to account for lack of normal gear? You mentioned mostly barter system, are prices going to account for that fact we're starting with 2.5 gold instead of the normal 150+? What about when you run combat, is it going to be tactical? Ie. "I 5' step to G8, and attack the goblin" or is just gonna be "I run up and attack the goblin" without taking into effect AOOs, tactics etc?

Helgen is optimized for combat the way I have him now. If this is going to be a very low combat, or rules-light combat type situation then I would rather play something else. We already have a Cleric, Rogue and Fighter. I will stick in the arcane caster vein, but perhaps playing a giant hammer wielding combat beast isn't the right choice for a campaign that's going to be 90% roleplaying.

You can make a hammer wielding combat beast plenty interesting to roleplay. They aren't mutually exclusive. Just pick a non-combat skill to max out, and pick a fun personality trait to emphasize.

You'll get out of it what you put in, I'm sure.

I want to try to make the combat as interactive as we can, without breaking down into nuances of exactly what square everyone is standing in, and I think I can do that (I have a little experience with this kind of game).

I'm beginning to come around to the idea of this character starting with an heirloom, and I think three traits will be better for the kind of game I have in mind.

Yes 2.5 gold is not a lot of money, RAW, but on this island 2.5 gold would buy a horse, if you could find one for sale, which you can't, but the idea I have is that you will end up with about the right amount of gear, before it gets too dangerous. And I do want to mix combat and role playing in the right proportions, but that is going to take all of us, isn't it?

As a Cleric of Denarri, a first level one who is attached to a noble's house, you would not start with the kind of Holy Symbol you are going to want to have if you are thinking about heading into something called the Palace of the Vampire Queen. You might have a small wooden hammer on a leather strap to carry or wear around the neck, and it will do for now.

You know the idea of an axe wielding dex trained duelist, with special disarming moves, and other unique ideas is intriguing, let's see if we can make it work. Please put down your ideas about what needs to be changed to make it happen in the discussion thread, if you have the time.

It is looking like we are still hammering (hehe) out the details of the campaign, so we might go Sunday or Monday for a start.

I would like to see player's post once or twice a day at a minimum, but at the same time I don't want to let someone who can post five times a day or more (like I can) intimidate the others. What are your thoughts?

Okay. I've had a think, and instead of making the build contingent on having and wielding a specific type of weapon I will alter it to use the eidolon's natural attacks instead. That way the materials available in the game won't have such a potentially crippling affect on him.

Backstory (changeable details in blue):
Helgen was born thirty years ago as the final child of Dalurhelgen Inarossa. As Dalurhelgen's only son, there were great hopes piled upon him at his birth. Unfortunately it quickly became apparent that Helgen was a malformed infant, small and with a club foot. As he grew into a youth, he remained the smallest of the boys he knew. He was handsome and driven, but his small size and deformity made him unfit for combat training. So he was left to spend most of his time with his sisters, learning to tend the books of his father's shipping concern. Always ashamed at his lack of combat ability, he spent his nights pouring over arcane tomes searching for a way to make up for his disability. A few years ago he finally managed to bind an Eidolon to himself for the first time. He chose to form the symbiont in the shape of a dwarven warrior of old. Clad in the translucent spirit Helgen strode onto the practice yard of his father's home and was able to defeat all the other young men in duels. Since that day Helgen is never seen unfused from his Eidolon. When they received word that his aunt would be coming to Nasmerae, Dalurhelgen insisted that he attend her to represent their branch of the family, a duty which he gladly accepted.

I'm beginning to come around to the idea of this character starting with an heirloom, and I think three traits will be better for the kind of game I have in mind.

It is looking like we are still hammering (hehe) out the details of the campaign, so we might go Sunday or Monday for a start.

I would like to see player's post once or twice a day at a minimum, but at the same time I don't want to let someone who can post five times a day or more (like I can) intimidate the others. What are your thoughts?

My character is nearly complete now. Have you decided that we have 3 traits? If so, then I will go ahead and pick those up today.

Posting several times daily should not be problem here. I've never played by post but I should pick it up quickly.

Hey, I've been reading this campaign info and it looks really interesting. Got room for one more? I was thinking about trying a lore warden archetype fighter with polearms but am open to running with anything that the party would need.

We have, in development, an Arcane Caster (Summoner), a Fighter (Free Hand), a Cleric, and a Rogue. And there is still room for a couple more.

There may be some confusion about starting equipment, and traits.

Starting equipment is explained above. Player characters will begin with 250 copper pieces, which I mistakenly acknowledged was 2.5 gold pieces, but it is not. In this campaign there are 1,000 CP in a GP (but the buying power of the coins will be different and I hope that something as simple as adjusting to an unusual economic system won't discourage players. You could buy a horse with 250 copper coins, if you could find one for sale. A meal will cost 2 copper pieces, in the capital. Most goods trade for other goods (outside of the capital) and Players should not rely on Core Rule Book price lists. I hope to role play the acquisition of adventuring gear. See the economics entry and Coins of the Realm in the campaign description.

Player Characters will begin with three traits.