EBERRON. Historians say the land is dying, drying up. The ancient wars have left all signs of the old civilizations disintegrated and buried. And when the land heaves up a relic of the past, beckoning adventurers from all directions like a queen ant, these are no more than death throes. Indeed, in a short time the land will die, the people will change, and the name Eberron will be lost along with the wisdom of the ancients. A thousand years, give or take.
Of course, when one realizes the historians are Elves, suddenly the "fleeting" wanderlust and search for glory don't sound so bad. In fact, there are rumors of an ancient underground temple, uncovered by the shore of a huge lake in the eastern kingdoms. Does it call to you, that which lies below?
Welcome, @Dreadus, @liorhaiby. Stay a while, and listen.
This is a placeholder for the rules and setting post of WHAT LIES BELOW. I know I said Faerun at first, but I prefer Eberron because Fantasy Steampunk > Fantasy. While I get the rules and various other information together, you are encouraged to think about what kind of character you want to make.
I WILL ADD MORE STUFF BUTT THIS SHOULD GET YOU STARTED.
Of course, when one realizes the historians are Elves, suddenly the "fleeting" wanderlust and search for glory don't sound so bad. In fact, there are rumors of an ancient underground temple, uncovered by the shore of a huge lake in the eastern kingdoms. Does it call to you, that which lies below?
Welcome, @Dreadus, @liorhaiby. Stay a while, and listen.
This is a placeholder for the rules and setting post of WHAT LIES BELOW. I know I said Faerun at first, but I prefer Eberron because Fantasy Steampunk > Fantasy. While I get the rules and various other information together, you are encouraged to think about what kind of character you want to make.
empty lol
- This game is Freeform, which means we are not rolling anything.
- Despite this, some character abilities will have numerical or pseudo-numerical values to them (Such as Basic/Advanced/Master, etc).
- Your characters will gain abilities and strength as the adventure goes along.
- Regardless of your character's proficiency in something, everything can be attempted, and everything can fail. Note this when attempting an action. If your character cannot fail something, it will be mentioned.
- The amount of time a single post takes is very flexible. Sometimes there will be specific conditions that remove some of this flexibility. Combat is a good example - A round is roughly 6 seconds in proper tabletop. We will be more free than that, but that is the guideline.
- Some NPCs can be controlled by you to improve narrative. Some things that you cannot do with NPCs without my approval:
- Post length: You are encouraged to write expressionate and descriptive posts, as far as the current situation allows. I would say no mega-long flashbacks in the middle of the road, but I trust you guys to use common sense.
- METAGAMING: Is where your character uses information that they don't have access to but you somehow procured outside of game. Your ability to resist metagaming will ultimately set the quality of the narrative - if you will be able to limit your actions to what your character knows, my posts will include things happening behind their backs. It will make the whole story better, and give you more confidence. Additionally, depending on your class choices, some things will be obvious to one of you and hidden from the other. I prefer not to go to lengths and private-message half the post. Another type of metagaming is playing a personality that does not fit the character sheet - classic examples of this are eloquent barbarians with 6 or 8 Intelligence, confident wizards with 8 Charisma, brilliant strategist fighters with 8 Wisdom, etc. This is what the Personality part of your character sheet is for: Understand how your ability scores limit you, and put it to action. In the beginning, I am going to assume there will be ZERO metagaming, so everything will be revealed.
- Despite this, some character abilities will have numerical or pseudo-numerical values to them (Such as Basic/Advanced/Master, etc).
- Your characters will gain abilities and strength as the adventure goes along.
- Regardless of your character's proficiency in something, everything can be attempted, and everything can fail. Note this when attempting an action. If your character cannot fail something, it will be mentioned.
- The amount of time a single post takes is very flexible. Sometimes there will be specific conditions that remove some of this flexibility. Combat is a good example - A round is roughly 6 seconds in proper tabletop. We will be more free than that, but that is the guideline.
- Some NPCs can be controlled by you to improve narrative. Some things that you cannot do with NPCs without my approval:
-> Reveal information not yet available that is important to the main storyline
-> Fight for you or otherwise endanger themselves in a way that isn't typical to them
-> Give you free combat gear
-> I will probably think of other stuff.
-> Fight for you or otherwise endanger themselves in a way that isn't typical to them
-> Give you free combat gear
-> I will probably think of other stuff.
- Post length: You are encouraged to write expressionate and descriptive posts, as far as the current situation allows. I would say no mega-long flashbacks in the middle of the road, but I trust you guys to use common sense.
- METAGAMING: Is where your character uses information that they don't have access to but you somehow procured outside of game. Your ability to resist metagaming will ultimately set the quality of the narrative - if you will be able to limit your actions to what your character knows, my posts will include things happening behind their backs. It will make the whole story better, and give you more confidence. Additionally, depending on your class choices, some things will be obvious to one of you and hidden from the other. I prefer not to go to lengths and private-message half the post. Another type of metagaming is playing a personality that does not fit the character sheet - classic examples of this are eloquent barbarians with 6 or 8 Intelligence, confident wizards with 8 Charisma, brilliant strategist fighters with 8 Wisdom, etc. This is what the Personality part of your character sheet is for: Understand how your ability scores limit you, and put it to action. In the beginning, I am going to assume there will be ZERO metagaming, so everything will be revealed.
- Characters are to be loosely based on D&D 3.5ed, simply because it is easier for me to keep track of balance.
- Character abilities should be on par with a level 3 PC. You have been adventuring for some time, but not for long.
- When I say loosely based, I mean that any and all books and expansions can be used for inspiration, but the end result should look like a person. It is highly unlikely that a 'person' would spend all their days chopping at trees to give that one swing a proverbial "+1 to attack". Still, remember you're making adventurers, so combat, survival in harsh environments, and problem-solving skills are highly encouraged.
- Your character sheet should have the following sections:
-> Race (All races of LA+0 are allowed. If you want LA+1, you better have a damn good sheet to go along with it.)
-> Appearance (Build, face, how the guy moves, etc)
-> History/Biography (Where was he born? What did he do as a kid? How did he become an adventurer? What kind of skills did he learn and where?)
-> Personality (This is to make it easier to keep track of what kind of person your character is. Even if you want to play yourself, you'd best put down a few words about it.)
-> Class (This can be anything. If you imagine your character spending a third of his time chopping wood, a third praying in temples, and a third stealing stuff, then Disciple of the Badger God of Douchebaggery is fine. Just make sure the Bio has enough explanation).
-> Ability Scores (Strength/Dexterity/Constitution/Intelligence/Wisdom/Charisma, scores from 1 to 5, where 1 means Pathetic and 5 means Totally Impressive. If compared to tabletop, I'd say 1 is 8 and 5 is 16. You are not allowed to have anything higher or lower, for now. This is to make it easier for me to understand how non-ability actions should work. Assume you start with 3 on all stats and are free to move the points around. Raising a score to 5 costs 2 points.)
-> Skills (Best separated into combat and noncombat. If you choose to have only combat abilities, it will come and bite you in the ass).
-> Feats (Like skills, but very situational.)
-> Special Ability (This is a storyline hook. Make up something weird and very mildly useful, like having flowers open when you pass them, or having the ability to put the exactly right amount of salt in soup)
-> Equipment (Assume you have standard adventuring gear, including all the normal weapons you want, + one Masterwork item and one simple Magic item equivalent of +1 in tabletop)
- Character abilities should be on par with a level 3 PC. You have been adventuring for some time, but not for long.
- When I say loosely based, I mean that any and all books and expansions can be used for inspiration, but the end result should look like a person. It is highly unlikely that a 'person' would spend all their days chopping at trees to give that one swing a proverbial "+1 to attack". Still, remember you're making adventurers, so combat, survival in harsh environments, and problem-solving skills are highly encouraged.
- Your character sheet should have the following sections:
-> Race (All races of LA+0 are allowed. If you want LA+1, you better have a damn good sheet to go along with it.)
-> Appearance (Build, face, how the guy moves, etc)
-> History/Biography (Where was he born? What did he do as a kid? How did he become an adventurer? What kind of skills did he learn and where?)
-> Personality (This is to make it easier to keep track of what kind of person your character is. Even if you want to play yourself, you'd best put down a few words about it.)
-> Class (This can be anything. If you imagine your character spending a third of his time chopping wood, a third praying in temples, and a third stealing stuff, then Disciple of the Badger God of Douchebaggery is fine. Just make sure the Bio has enough explanation).
-> Ability Scores (Strength/Dexterity/Constitution/Intelligence/Wisdom/Charisma, scores from 1 to 5, where 1 means Pathetic and 5 means Totally Impressive. If compared to tabletop, I'd say 1 is 8 and 5 is 16. You are not allowed to have anything higher or lower, for now. This is to make it easier for me to understand how non-ability actions should work. Assume you start with 3 on all stats and are free to move the points around. Raising a score to 5 costs 2 points.)
-> Skills (Best separated into combat and noncombat. If you choose to have only combat abilities, it will come and bite you in the ass).
-> Feats (Like skills, but very situational.)
-> Special Ability (This is a storyline hook. Make up something weird and very mildly useful, like having flowers open when you pass them, or having the ability to put the exactly right amount of salt in soup)
-> Equipment (Assume you have standard adventuring gear, including all the normal weapons you want, + one Masterwork item and one simple Magic item equivalent of +1 in tabletop)
In proper tabletop, ability scores define what a character is innately good at, without training. If he trains in a certain skill or task, his ability scores will always complement it, making him transcend other characters with the same training. Here is what the ability scores do in my game:
STRENGTH
DEXTERITY
CONSTITUTION
INTELLIGENCE
WISDOM
CHARISMA
In this game, the ability scores will be rather hard to change, so plan well. Also, if nothing else in your character sheet, I expect your character's personality to be heavily based on the ability scores. I have yet to meet someone who played low wisdom, charisma or intelligence well. Are you up for the challenge?
By the way, I do actually believe in minmaxing. It should be done properly though, and I will call you out if you don't.
STRENGTH
This is the ability that defines the raw, physical power of the character. Their ability to control their body and their movement when under a heavy load, be it a large pack or being hugged to death by an ogre. Their ability to make use of fast and short bursts of strength, such as sprinting, jumping or charging. The definition of body over matter - this ability allows a character to break things with his own hands, be it ropes, doors, or other people. A strong character will be less burdened by a melee weapon they are not used to employing - indeed, they might be as effective with a battle hammer as they are with a tree log, assuming they had no training in both. The ability to attack effectively with a weapon rises with strength, as long as that weapon is heavy enough.
DEXTERITY
This ability defines everything that is coordination. Accurate movements, silent running, well aimed attacks to weak spots, all are affected by dexterity. A character with high dexterity may be able to dodge blows while standing on slippery ice, or roll quickly to a standing position after falling off a roof (assuming they don't break their head). Such a character may quickly step out of a trap they accidentally triggered, or dodge a surprise attack from around the corner. Melee weapons made for critical attacks that bypass defense, such as daggers and rapiers, benefit from dexterity. All ranged weapons benefit from this ability, but heavy bows may penalize one's aim if one's strength is too low. Hand to hand fighting that focuses on hitting weak points also benefits from this, though it requires special training to be effective. It is a somewhat animalistic ability, sharpening one's reflexes as well as senses.
CONSTITUTION
Players are used to thinking about constitution as "That HP ability", and I would like to change that. Constitution doesn't only set the amount of attacks one can take before fainting, especially in games that have no HP number like this. To put it simply, constitution is one's ability to survive, to adapt to harsh environments, to resist pain, hunger, lack of sleep, weather and more. One may even use this ability for combat, purposely ignoring an attack to make use of an opening his enemy wouldn't otherwise have. Constitution sets one's resistance to stun effects (even magical ones) and to disease, and sets the recovery rate from wounds. It also defines one's ability to function under physical stress for long amounts of time.
INTELLIGENCE
Intelligence is the ability to learn things, gain knowledge, and apply it. It defines one's analytic abilities, to understand new information quickly and break it down to useful rules. It defines one's memory and ability to reach conclusions based on a large amount of information gained at different times. This ability enhances any kind of research, be it looking for clues in books or searching for a key in a cluttered attic. Because of the nature of Arcane Magic, it also enhances spell effects (As they require research and application to prepare), amount of spells known and the most complicated spell one can learn that is within their power to use. Battle tacticians use intelligence to analyze countless previous battles they have studied, and make decisions on the spot. Some swordsmen rely on their brains and muscle memory rather than strength, their attacks perfected to the most effective physical form by rigorous training. Learning languages, sciences, or crafts is also governed by intelligence.
WISDOM
Wisdom is the ability to perceive the world, understand what is perceived and act upon it. It is more an ability of one's senses than of their body- but less how 'sharp' their senses are and more how quick they are on the uptake that something doesn't fit. It allows reading facial expressions and slight intonation changes to understand the true intentions of one's rival. It lets the character read between the lines of everything in the world, allows them to quickly notice things that deviate from the picture their mind expects them to see. It bestows upon the player a deep, intuitive understanding of the world's works, even on topics they are not expert in. Because of the nature of Divine Magic, wisdom enhances the effects of Divine spells, and the amount of divine energy one can exert without resting. This ability allows one to make quick decisions on the spot by perceiving the situation, rather than studying it. Some warriors rely on the understanding of their body and the body of their opponent, rather than strength or reflexes. Their attacks target weak points that are both physical and psychological, weakening their opponents in more ways than one. These combat styles are rather exotic, and require devotion of body and mind to be effective.
CHARISMA
The dump stat, because it doesn't affect combat at all, right? Hey, I'm not judging. You are free to drop your charisma to 8. Just remember this:
Charisma is not good looks. It is not flowing hair, six pack, chiseled chin. It is not bright blue eyes, long eyelashes or big bouncy boobs. Charisma is presence. It is confidence. It is the aura one radiates when entering the room. Charisma is a stranger's wish to trust you, even though they've met you an hour ago and you're asking the impossible. Charisma is bending others to your will by words alone. A huge barbarian warrior is scary because he is huge and barbarian, sure. But his ability to intimidate, that is make someone think they will hurt him if he doesn't do what they say, is not based on any of that. Because intimidation is based as much on believing the intimidator will hurt you if you disobey, as on believing the intimidator will not hurt you if you do what they say. Charisma makes one want to follow someone who's horrible to them, for reasons one can't explain. It is what makes you stop in the middle of the street, your head swiveling to follow a woman in shy, somber clothes but with an aura that threatens to burst out of the seams of reality. Because of the nature of Sourcery and other magic that requires direct control over otherworldly energies, Charisma directly affects spell power of sourcerers, who gain their power from magic in its purest form, and warlocks, who gain their power from demons.
Charisma is not good looks. It is not flowing hair, six pack, chiseled chin. It is not bright blue eyes, long eyelashes or big bouncy boobs. Charisma is presence. It is confidence. It is the aura one radiates when entering the room. Charisma is a stranger's wish to trust you, even though they've met you an hour ago and you're asking the impossible. Charisma is bending others to your will by words alone. A huge barbarian warrior is scary because he is huge and barbarian, sure. But his ability to intimidate, that is make someone think they will hurt him if he doesn't do what they say, is not based on any of that. Because intimidation is based as much on believing the intimidator will hurt you if you disobey, as on believing the intimidator will not hurt you if you do what they say. Charisma makes one want to follow someone who's horrible to them, for reasons one can't explain. It is what makes you stop in the middle of the street, your head swiveling to follow a woman in shy, somber clothes but with an aura that threatens to burst out of the seams of reality. Because of the nature of Sourcery and other magic that requires direct control over otherworldly energies, Charisma directly affects spell power of sourcerers, who gain their power from magic in its purest form, and warlocks, who gain their power from demons.
In this game, the ability scores will be rather hard to change, so plan well. Also, if nothing else in your character sheet, I expect your character's personality to be heavily based on the ability scores. I have yet to meet someone who played low wisdom, charisma or intelligence well. Are you up for the challenge?
By the way, I do actually believe in minmaxing. It should be done properly though, and I will call you out if you don't.
empty lel. But soon full with a practical example of how to use the above rules. I am not going to put much effort into Biography since I don't really care, but you are encouraged to do your best.
I WILL ADD MORE STUFF BUTT THIS SHOULD GET YOU STARTED.