So after a year of debating, my sisters settled on Wardens of Wildwood for their first RPG adventure path, as it most resembles the classic LotR fantasy tropes they are familiar with.
(I’m almost positive the later won’t prove strictly true, but whatev’s)
But because it starts at level 5, I suggested we do Rusthenge first to build up our characters level-wise, and get some experience while the consequences are less severe.
Which leads me to my question: what adventure backgrounds should our characters use? Rusthenge or Wardens of Wildwood?
My initial thought was the latter but then I wondered if our party would be encumbered in the first adventure we lacked players that have some of benefits given players via Rusthenge’s own backgrounds. Having someone able to read Thassilonian would be useful for the first adventure- not so much the adventure path
How does this work?
Creative Director
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If a GM has the full campaign plotted out and knows what published adventures and Adventure Paths they're going to use, I think it's probably the most logical to go with backgrounds from the first adventure being played...
...but I think a better solution would be to be open about the plans. Tell the players "We're going to play Rusthenge and then move on to Wardens of Wildwood" so that they know what they're going to play even though their characters don't, then make available for choice at the start of the campaign the custom backgrounds for both.
A trickier one that would take you more time would be to offer both, but to customize them all so that they work thematically for both adventures. Probably don't need to do much more than adjust the flavor text but still... that's more work.
If a GM has the full campaign plotted out and knows what published adventures and Adventure Paths they're going to use, I think it's probably the most logical to go with backgrounds from the first adventure being played...
...but I think a better solution would be to be open about the plans. Tell the players "We're going to play Rusthenge and then move on to Wardens of Wildwood" so that they know what they're going to play even though their characters don't, then make available for choice at the start of the campaign the custom backgrounds for both.
A trickier one that would take you more time would be to offer both, but to customize them all so that they work thematically for both adventures. Probably don't need to do much more than adjust the flavor text but still... that's more work.
That’s helpful. Admittedly this will be their first campaign (and my first in a long time) so we’ll prob have to rely pretty heavily on GM advice.
In terms of explaining how our characters got from one side of Avistan to the other, could we just have our characters join the pathfinder society faction, use their fast-travel options (maze, tapestry, etc.) and become hired for the Greenwood Gala that way? I calculated it out, and travelling from the Ron Archipelago to Verduran Forest will take several months by ship.
So, we don’t need to worry if the first adventure gives us
specific ?lore/skills, or specific languages (Thassilonian) unlikely to be relevant later?
(Assuming there isn’t some secret Thassilonian ruin or wizard in WardoW) *knock on wood*
then make available for choice at the start of the campaign the custom backgrounds for both.
I missed this part in my first readthrough. I like this idea. I told em of the plan, and it makes sense for them to be able to pick the background from the two adventure products.
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Creative Director
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I missed this part in my first readthrough. I like this idea. I told em of the plan, and it makes sense for them to be able to pick the background from the two adventure products.then make available for choice at the start of the campaign the custom backgrounds for both.
Also, as the GM, you should keep an eye on the choices the PCs make and then adjust things in the adventures to keep those choices feeling relevant. Like, for example, if you have several players pick up Thassilonian for the first part, consider having some Thassilonian-speaking elements in the second part.
ALTERNATELY: You could have the "long travel between locations" when the PCs relocate be something that mostly happens off-screen, and use that window as an opportunity to give the players a chance to do some free retraining. Their PCs know where they're going, I assume, so they should be able to take advantage of the overland trip to prepare.
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| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
If a GM has the full campaign plotted out and knows what published adventures and Adventure Paths they're going to use, I think it's probably the most logical to go with backgrounds from the first adventure being played...
...but I think a better solution would be to be open about the plans. Tell the players "We're going to play Rusthenge and then move on to Wardens of Wildwood" so that they know what they're going to play even though their characters don't, then make available for choice at the start of the campaign the custom backgrounds for both.
A trickier one that would take you more time would be to offer both, but to customize them all so that they work thematically for both adventures. Probably don't need to do much more than adjust the flavor text but still... that's more work.
That’s helpful. Admittedly this will be their first campaign (and my first in a long time) so we’ll prob have to rely pretty heavily on GM advice.
In terms of explaining how our characters got from one side of Avistan to the other, could we just have our characters join the pathfinder society faction, use their fast-travel options (maze, tapestry, etc.) and become hired for the Greenwood Gala that way? I calculated it out, and travelling from the Ron Archipelago to Verduran Forest will take several months by ship.
So, we don’t need to worry if the first adventure gives us
specific ?lore/skills, or specific languages (Thassilonian) unlikely to be relevant later?(Assuming there isn’t some secret Thassilonian ruin or wizard in WardoW) *knock on wood*
Careful. The (wild)wood might knock back.