Wayward Wanderer's page

he boards. Just as I was getting ready to launch, I received an unexpected transfer at work which led to me moving very suddenly, spending two months traveling back home every 'weekend' to see my wife and kids, eventually moving the family 700 miles, and running a new facility with a management team down 33% in personnel during our busiest stretch of the year.

So, now that is all settled, I would still like to run a game. Back over the summer I had one idea I wanted to pursue, but now I have several, and thought I would get some feedback before moving forward with over the other.

I would love to hear what people are interested in playing. And before the question is asked, I am only looking to run one game at this time (though who knows what the future may hold). Thank you all.

I've been toying around with a game concept for a while now, and feel it deserves a chance to go from being an idea to an actual story. It's little out of the norm for these boards, so I'm posting this as an interest check.

I'm looking to run a Pulp Adventure set in the 1930s with a substantial sci-fi/fantasy influence. Think historical sci-fi fiction, somewhere between the feel of The Mummy (with Brendan Fraser) and Hellboy (with Ron Pearlman). Players would be humans in "our world", but with knowledge of at least one of these several truths: magic does exist, there are things that go bump in the night, myths and legends can be real, and there are horrors far beyond the cruelty of Man. Though the game will have some cosmic/gothic horror elements, it will lean more heavily into the pulp adventure feel.

As for game system, that is up for debate. I have been really enjoying exploring Pathfinder 2e (love the action economy), and originally planned to use it with a few of the alternate rules. But it does seem like these boards favor Pathfinder 1e, which I have considerably more experience with, so I would be happy to run that too.

I will allow players to include casting (though magic will have a more subtle feel RP wise), but each will need a backstory that explains their magic.

So, to the point:
1 - are people interested in a pulp adventure game set in a fantasy version of the early 1930's?
2 - if you are, would you prefer Pathfinder 1e or 2e?

So all players can dot in and this will be linked to their campaign page...

Greetings one and all, to this most auspicious of gatherings! I am most excited to venture forth on this cooperative storytelling endeavor with each of you. Over the next few days we will handle any and all final adjustments to characters. To start, please roll your hit points here in thread. You get max for first level, roll the rest. If below half (3 on d6, 4 on d8, 5 on d10), you take half instead. In addition, you get to reroll 1 level's hit die.

I have a few other boons in store, but I will wait for everyone to dot in and introduce themselves before I address those.

It is with sincere interest and most humble respect that I write you this letter. I have been following your exploits for some time, and am particularly impressed with the recent affair in which you distinguished yourself so nobly. We live in a time of danger and uncertainty, a time when people who are willing to stand up against the darkness are most needed. Men and women who want to uphold justice in the realms - brave individuals seeking to ease the burden of the weak and oppressed. I am an intermediary of sorts, who brings together such talented people. I believe you to be one.

Aden Grimdawn

If you have read this far, thank you for your interest into this foray into the Forgotten Realms. This campaign will begin in 1373, the Year of Rogue Dragons (firmly amidst the material published during the 3rd / 3.5 edition of D&D). I am seeking a company of six brave souls to venture forth and face the darkest threats that Faerun has to offer. This game will have many faces throughout, from dungeon crawl to urban intrigue, and I encourage applying with heroic characters that are adaptable (and not singularly focused). Some level of stealth, deception, or subterfuge will benefit most characters.

I will tentatively say that recruitment will last until 11:59 pm EST on Sunday, January 31st, though may extend it to gather more prospective characters if the current problems with the Paizo site slow the application process.

Now that I have "covered everything", I am sure I will get a question regarding something I missed. So, onward adventurers, go carve your heroes from the stone and bring them forth!

Following a hiatus away from both these boards and gaming in general for quite some time (work and parenthood took on an all-encompassing nature), the evolving world created by Covid has given me time for a great deal of spring cleaning. Spring cleaning which lead me to rediscovering three old, dusty crates filled with gaming books buried in a guest room closet. In flipping through my old books and campaign notes, I found a lot of my 2nd and 3rd edition Forgotten Realms material (I was mostly a player during 2nd, and a DM during 3rd), and it has me feeling nostalgic. So I pose the question, are there board members who would be interested in a Forgotten Realms game, set in decade of 1367-1376 DR, after the Time of Troubles and before the Spellplague?

It has been quite a few years since I ventured into the Realms, having focused in the past decade mostly in Golarion and a couple homebrew settings. During that time I played almost exclusively with the Pathfinder (1e) system, and so would use that, but the Forgotten Realms would obviously be the setting. If you are interested, also feel free to include if there are any regions or aspects of the Realms that you are especially peak your interest.

the beginning of something... different.

And so, it begins.

After a most enjoyable Carrion Crown game ended far too prematurely, I have decided to take up the GMing mantle and give this AP a spin. Having played a great deal of Ravenloft back in the 2nd and 3rd edition days, and having read more than a bit of Gothic literature, this game will not run strictly from the printed AP and will take influences from many sources. If you are interested in a darker and more puzzling take on Carrion Crown, I encourage you to apply.

CHARACTER CREATION
Ability Scores: 2d6+6
Race: Any of 14 or less RP.
Class: Any Core, Base, or Hybrid Pathfinder class. Summoners and rogues must be unchained; barbarian and monk are at your discretion.
Traits: 2, one of which should be a campaign trait and you can take a drawback for an additional trait.
Unchained Content: Background Skills, Fractional Base Bonuses
Wealth: max for 1st.
Favored Class Bonus: select from any for your chosen class, regardless of race.
Alignment: I approach alignment as a guide for character design, defined more deeply by the character's background, personality, motivations and actions. That said, not looking for evil characters.
Fluff: Obviously, tie your Campaign Trait and Professor Lorrimor into your background. Beyond that, Carrion Crown is an homage to many of the core concepts and stories of Gothic literature. As such, I encourage you all to submit characters that fit a dark fantasy / gothic setting - heroic, but flawed in some way. This does not mean I am looking for evil sociopaths, but rather that your character has a weakness, a secret, a problem of some kind.

I have two applicants already accepted, who were in the previous game with me (a magus and an oracle). I am looking for 4 more characters to round out the party.

Recruitment will end Sunday, November 13th, unless a suitable party has been assembled prior to that date.

For us to discuss details for our campaign.

for dotting purposes.

dot.

and so it begins.... all invited players please dot in, then we will discuss getting things underway! Congratulations to all selected!

An Untamed Land
The land of Neralus was a lush, untamed continent where humans formed scattered city-states and the other races maintained remote, isolated kingdoms. Beyond the borders of their fractured nations were the wilds – inhabited by barbaric hordes, ruled over by beasts of myth and legend, and haunted by the horrors that lie in the shadows. The people of the land were at times drawn into conflict – with each other, against the monsters of the wilds – but always they remained independent. Legends told of an ancient empire that once existed in the time before history – the time when the Gods were men and the primal forces wreaked havoc on the lands. But that was millennia ago…

Today
In the two decades since, the Empire’s wealth of knowledge – technological, architectural, arcane – has reshaped the face of Neralus. Where once there existed only small, scattered cities with limited communication and trade, now the realm crossed by well defined trade routes by land and sea, connecting mighty cities ruled over by the arcanus ruling class, overseen by the royal line of the Kesalos family. Though a few of those native to Neralus have reached the middle class as skilled merchants and artisans, a majority of the Neralians exist only a step above slavery, as a subjugated people.

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Concept
I am looking for four to six players interested in engaging in a fun, friendly game that will blend role play, puzzles, combat, and mystery into a grand storyline. The game will be a heroic adventure with a dash of politics and a fistful of intrigue. I am looking for players whose goal is to create a dynamic and engaging character that will play well in an evolving storyline, not simply the most min/maxed set of statistics for monster killing. Additionally, I request that you be able to post at least once a day during the week (obviously life gets in the way at times, please just let me know). As for my part, I will work to give each and every player a chance to shine and enjoy their character. I consider gaming a cooperative experience where the GM and the players work together to tell an epic tale.

If you are still interested, read on…

The game is set in a realm of my own creation. For a setting overview, imagine if 7th century Europe were invaded by the Roman Empire at its height, equipped with the technology of the Renaissance and a mastery of arcane magic. The game will begin in the small lake town of Whispering Falls, a loose community of fishermen and loggers that supports the city of Durmstadt.

MAGIC & RELIGION
Magic can be found in three forms: the Gift, the Way, and the Art.
Religion - The Gift: is divine magic, granted as a boon by the gods to their faithful. There are a multitude of deities, each with their own goals, passions, and desires - and their emotions can as fickle as any mortal's. Each deity claims one, or more, aspects of life as their dominion.
Nature - The Way: is the dormant energy coursing through both the world and all living things. Those who learn to shape and direct the Way can accomplish great things, though none would be foolish enough to claim to "control" it. All 'nature' classes (druids, hunters, rangers) are practitioners of the Way, and will adopt philosophies or Pacts with regards to how they connect with the Way. Please note that witches, shamans, and bards also draw on the Way in similar fashion.
Arcane - The Art: is arcane magic, an amazing power that is either learned through careful, extensive study, or is born naturally into the blood of a rare few unique beings. The Art was unknown in Neralus until the Kesadrian Empire brought it with them during their invasion. It is their source of power and they guard it jealously.

Religions & Pacts: I have extensive notes on the gods, but they are not digital yet. If proposing a divine character, simply include a concept for a deity your character would worship and I will send you the appropriate deity.

Age: demihumans reach maturity far earlier in Neralus than in Golarion. No character should be over 35 (regardless of race). Half-elves hit physical maturity only a year or two behind humans, halflings in their early twenties, both dwarves and gnomes in their mid twenties, and elves in their late twenties to thirty.

the best laid plans...

...stare into the abyss long enough, it just might stare back at you...

A Call to Arms: The Grim Dark Reality

***********
It is the 41st Millennium. For more than a hundred centuries the Emperor of Mankind has sat immobile on the Golden Throne of Earth. He is the master of mankind by the will of the gods and master of a million worlds by the might of his inexhaustible armies. He is a rotting carcass writhing invisibly with power from the Dark Age of Technology. He is the Carrion Lord of the vast Imperium of Man for whom a thousand souls are sacrificed every day so that he may never truly die.Yet even in his deathless state, the Emperor continues his eternal vigilance. Mighty battlefleets cross the daemon-infested miasma of the Warp, the only route between distant stars, their way lit by the Astronomican, the psychic manifestation of the Emperor's will. Vast armies give battle in His name on uncounted worlds. Greatest amongst his soldiers are the Adeptus Astartes, the Space Marines, bio-engineered super-warriors. Their comrades in arms are legion: the Imperial Guard and countless planetary defence forces, the ever-vigilant Inquisition and the tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus to name only a few. But for all their multitudes, they are barely enough to hold off the ever-present threat to humanity from aliens, heretics, mutants -- and far, far worse. To be a man in such times is to be one amongst untold billions. It is to live in the cruelest and most bloody regime imaginable. These are the tales of those times. Forget the power of technology and science, for so much has been forgotten, never to be relearned. Forget the promise of progress and understanding, for in the grim dark future there is only war. There is no peace amongst the stars, only an eternity of carnage and slaughter, and the laughter of thirsting gods.

This is a call to arms, fellow soldiers, time to go to war! The filth of the Abyss seeks the dark corners of the world; forgotten ruins, drug-riddled ghettos, weak souls, the greedy, the scared. In the grim darkness of the future, humanity stands on the edge of oblivion, you are called to protect it! The PCs will be the Acolytes of Inquisitor Taalik Amun of the Ordos Hereticus. The Ordo Hereticus has the most difficult task of the three holy ordos, for they must seek corruption in the midst of humanity. Thus many agents from many paths are needed. That is where you come in.

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I got into Warhammer 40K (and now have a host of different armies) not too long after getting into D&D (almost 20 years) ago. Since then, I have run more than a few future based RPGs looking to capture the grimdark feel of Warhammer 40k. With the excellent systems now developed, I am excited to offer an intriguing game of Dark

Heresy. I am hoping to launch this game between Friday, July 18 and Monday, July 21, so submit your applications!

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CHARACTER CREATION
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Sourcebooks: Dark Heresy Core Rulebook, Inquisitor's Handbook, Radical's Handbook, the Lathe Worlds, the Lost Dataslate, Blood of Martyrs, Book of Judgement, Daemon Hunter (no Grey Knights), and the Errata.
****I will entertain requests to use material from other 40k sourcebooks if something fits your storyline****

Homeworld: You may choose or roll (use chart on pg 8, Inquisitor's Handbook).

Statistics: Inquisitors are schrewd judges of character and will only take a cut above average. Roll 9 stats per normal (20+2d10). Then reroll 4d10 of out the entire set (could be 2 full scores, 4 individual die from different scores, or a full score and a single die from two others), keeping the higher roll (new or old).

Assign stats to the 9 characteristics as you see fit.

Details: Gain starting gear, wealth, and experience (400 xp) per the Core Rulebook.

Background: Roleplaying will play a major part in this game, and you will need to have been recruited by the Inquisitor for a reason, so put something definitive that will stand out. You can either create your own homeworld, or select one from the existing material. There are several great wiki sites that can be used for reference. Character creation rewards will be given for exceptional backgrounds.

Direction: Give a few notes about how you see the character growing as they advance. This does not need to be hard and fast or set in stone, I just want to get an idea of your perspective of the character.

Recruitment: I am looking for 6-8 characters, that will make up a diverse party capable of a balanced game consisting of roleplaying, investigation and combat.

If your character can only do one thing, it will probably not be selected.

Rules Updates: I recently got Black Crusade, which has many updates to the FFG 40k ruleset. I am interested in integrating a good deal of these, but will discuss them more specifically with the players selected. Please note that those updates being considered are listed below.

yup, for all our discussions.

For those who hail from the Town of George, this is where we will do battle!~

a private summons to those who once wore the blue and white of the royal lancer guard, traveled the Brook known as Penn, and perhaps dared to swim in the swamp referred to as... Pentucket! I call thee to arms!

The stories of the Inheritors' War have pervaded your youth, yet it has been twenty-three years since the war ground to a halt. Slowly over time each fragment of the shattered empire has formed into a formal nation, yet towns like your own, like Morgan's Ford, were abandoned to the chaos of the abandoned lands. Despite that, Morgan's Ford has continued to eek out an existence.

Yet with each passing year, fewer caravans pass through the once busy trade center. Though the winter ended more than a month ago, not a single traveling merchant, shipment, adventuring band, or supply caravan had entered Morgan's Ford, neither via the gates nor upon the ferry. Life in town is slow, eerily slow, and most young souls find their way to Grumpkin's Two Brews, the charming tavern at the heart of this quiet town.

Like many spring mornings today opened with a heavy fog settled upon the the shoulders of Morgan's Ford. Though the air is cool, the bite of winter is long gone, and a hunger grows in your belly.

A chance for you all to ask questions, and me to post campaign notes.

The Rise
In days long past the land of Lokk was a wild untamed realm, full of myth and peril. The scattered human settlements were fragile and weak, each warring with each other constantly, yet none gaining the upper hand. In time one rose from among the many petty warlords and forged a great nation out of might and magic. His name was Kurdran, and as his nation grew so too did his power. Those who would not bow to his rule would fall to his blade, and in time even the elven and dwarven nations paid heed to his immense power. One by one his enemies knelt before his arcane might until his empire stretched from ocean to ocean.

The continent of Lokk saw untold prosperity during Kurdran's long reign. War drew to an end - wooden towns grew to stone cities, the monsters of the wild were destroyed or driven into the furthest corners of the land, roads were built allowing trade across the realm, and commerce flourished. Each race and clan played their part - the dwarves shared their skill in stone and metalworking, the elves lended the powers of magic, the horsemen of the western plains brought animals of untold beauty to the eastern realms, the sages of the four towers spread their knowledge of engineering and science, even the halflings offered their green thumb. All was idyllic.

The Fall
Yet stability is not meant to last forever. Though long lived, Kurdran was not immortal, and after ruling for 250 years he passed one night in his sleep, though the cause was never determined. During his many years Kurdran sired over a hundred children, and though they shared their father's lust for adventure and excitement, none seemed to be gifted with his supernatural longevity. Still, when Kurdran passed, twenty-two legitimate heirs were known to exist in Lokk, and seventeen of them gathered quickly in the capital to settle the matter of succession.

The Inheritors War lasted for the next fifteen years, during which the nine launched assault after assault at one another. With each successive battle, the Empire was torn further asunder. Once great cities were reduced to ruins, the continental trade routes utterly collapsed, dwarves and elves retreated into their ancestral lands, chaos cast its cloak over Lokk. Three of the five Inheritors that fled in advance were hunted down and murdered, while four of those that fought for supremacy fell to either battle or assassination. In the end, the Inheritors grew tired of war and with no clear victor they agreed to an uneasy truce, fracturing the once mighty Empire into five nations.

The Aftermath
Though the war was over each of the Inheritors was paranoid of an attempt on either their life or their throne by the other four. They each consolidated their forces back toward their capitals, protecting those villages and towns nearest their centers of power while giving only nominal protection to those settlements further out. Though each technically held one fifth of the fallen Empire, broken and battered by years of war not a single kingdom held even a shred of Kurdran's might. With this weakness, the wild things returned.

Left to fend for themselves, most of the forgotten towns and cities in the "no man's land" between the realms withdrew their allegiances to any nation and became independent city-states or banded together with other nearby settlements to form small defensive pacts. Those few that still claimed loyalty to a crown often did so out of honor, but gained little in return. The past twenty-three years have not been kind.

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Concept
I am looking for four to six players interested in engaging in a fun, friendly game that will blend role play, puzzles, combat, and mystery into a grand storyline. The game will evoke a modern feel while having a nostalgic influence. I am looking for players whose goal is to create a dynamic and engaging character that will play well in an evolving storyline, not simply the most min/maxed set of statistics for monster killing. Additionally, I request that you be able to post at least once a day during the week (obviously life gets in the way at times, please just let me know). As for my part, I will work to give each and every player a chance to shine and enjoy their character. I consider gaming a cooperative experience where the GM and the players work together to tell an epic tale.

If you are still interested, read on -

The game is set in a realm of my own creation. The game will begin in the small backwater town of Morgan's Ford, a forgotten remnant of the shattered Empire, on the great continent of Lokk.

I hope to start game play by 3/24, earlier perhaps if a solid party is assembled sooner. Good luck!