CollectorOfMyst

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@Fuzzybootz I'm not Lovejoy, but I'm sure she won't mind.

discord.gg/q4XzV3f

I, the Demon King, Will Summon My Own Damned Heroes!

Scott

---

As Lear began to walk away from them, Scott immediately began to jog after him. “I’m aware that I’m weak, sir. It’s, ah, nothing new. Pixies aren’t usually very strong in our books, either.”

When the man mentioned Geir and Mirabelle, Scott nodded for a moment. Then a thought came up. “And do you plan to tell them? About us... being summoned? I really don’t know how this works. I could hide, maybe. That way you could break it to them cleanly, or you could-” He cut himself off. He was rambling. “I- um- sorry.”

His face turning red, Scott looked down at his feet. They were absolutely filthy, he realised. Well, of course, they were. He had been running barefoot this whole time, and he certainly hadn’t washed up since… well, since he was born. He idly wondered over the state he was in, and how he might go about fixing that. A shirt and shoes would be nice, at least.

“And, uh. To answer your question...” he mumbled into his chest. “Nobody can really say if demons exist or not. Monsters, too. Or if they used to exist but don’t anymore. Our gods are... mostly distant, I think. Some people don’t believe in any of it, but a lot of people do or want to. But the idea of demons and a lot of other monsters... they’re usually used by parents to convince their children to not do bad things.”

It was at that point that Miiba started to run around him and Lear, expressing her excitement at having a friend. That really did confirm it, then. She was childlike, even though Scott was probably around the same age as her in this world. A small smile appeared on his lips as she approached him.

"Mira nice. Geir angry. Lear say mean well, so Miiba just be Miiba, nothing more can do. Miiba want be friends too, but no think they want to be friends... not with gob. Or not yet anyway...Miiba no know,"

“Well, ah - I’m sure the two of them will come around eventually.” Scott told her. “Some people are just... wary of strangers.”

As he passed through the gate, ushered in by Lear, the pixie looked back over his shoulder at the forest.

“With good reason, usually.”

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

@The Harbinger of Ferocity Sorry, bud. You're outnumbered. 😅 You make valid points, but it's a lot easier to manage things.

To all; when you join the server, @ me, and I'll give you a role especially for you; it'll make private messages easier to handle.

discord.gg/2BACPag

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

@Tangletail@Vertigo@Eleven I will say, there should be a brief bit of collaboration on your guys' part. It'll be your choice whether or not you guys engage the enemy, and how you'll go about doing this.

There's another thing I want to bring up, and that's a Discord server. @Lucius Cypher@The Harbinger of Ferocity, you two can weigh in, too. It can be trying, at times, especially since we've fallen into a slow, but comfortable pace. It would mean I'd be more easily reachable, and it would help with inter-party dynamics if you guys can discuss things like that. It would be text only, but the majority of the IC would remain on here.

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

Your pieces said, and your determination renewed, you set out into the night, keeping to shadows and alleyways. There is a collective flinch every once in a while, when Magdar stumbles into a barrel, or when Vaal stubs his toe on an uneven flagstone, but you draw no attention.

Linan is leading the way, Cuth, Magdar and Cassandra on her heels. She is about to turn a corner when Magdar's hand shoots out and grabs her.

"Careful." he mutters.

He points out onto the street, where two taller figures and one shorter one are emerging from a house ahead. It could be a family but for the gleaming scimitars, one held by each of the taller two. The third has a curiously humped back, and it is carrying some sort of bag or sack with it. They pass a burning oil lamp, and their faces are illuminated for a brief moment.

New Enemy!

A human man and an elven woman, both garbed in leather armour. Behind them is a kobold... or, as Vaal would call them, an Urd. Winged Kobold.

They do not seem to be aware of your presence but they are in your way.

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

@Tangletail@Vertigo@Eleven Since I'm assuming that you're all going to say yes, please could each of you roll a stealth check.

Cassandra - 21
Sebastian - 9
Surina, Tarya and Artus - 16
Magdar, Linan and Cuth - 4
Rhaeyla - 11
Caw - 18
Vaal - 5

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

Sebastian looks over at his sister and then back at Magdar. The dwarf nods, before walking outside. He straightens, before turning to the room at large.

"Well, our course of action is clear, then. We have to reach the keep before they close the gates."

"What about the other townsfolk?" Linan asks.

"If we come across a group, we'll bring them with us, but that's not a priority." His eyebrows meet. "There might be an entire company between here and there. We can't afford to be spotted, and if we are, we can't afford to engage."

"Coast is clear!" Magdar calls, despite having walked back to the door.

Cassandra walks over to her twin and hugs him. He whispers something in her ear, and she whispers back. The druid then looks over at Rhaeyla, Caw, Surina, Magdar and Vaal. "We... we appreciate all you've done, but truly, if you do not wish to stay, then you must go now. We have reached Greenrest; your job is complete."

Surina shakes her head. "Maybe it is, but it isn't safe, here. I would bring shame to my clan if I left you now."

Magdar reaches to his belt and takes out his axe. "And if you don't mind my saying, but there's going to be a lot of fighting tonight, inside a castle or not. That's a speciality of mine."

Cuth stands up, testing how much weight he can put on his injured leg. It seems stable. "Will we be able to keep up with you?" he says, looking at his children.

"I can carry them." Surina offers. She looks down at them with a smile - somewhat reptilian, but comforting nonetheless.

"And I'll stick with mom and pop." Magdar adds.

Eyes turn to Rhaeyla, Vaal, and Caw.

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

@Tangletail @Vertigo @Eleven Any of you got a post planned, or should I move on?

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

@Lucius Cypher@Tangletail Let it not be said that I restrict my players too harshly ;P

(D&D 5E) The Tyranny of Dragons, Part 1; Hoard of the Dragon Queen

@Lucius Cypher Hello there.

Let me start by saying that UA is not allowed.

Hmm... well, while I'm not opposed to the idea of a winged tiefling, there is the standard ol' thing of 'unlimited fly speed at early levels' especially since there may be a few characters who want to fly themselves. However, the winged tiefling is a valid option in most cases (and I'd love to see what comes of the aasimar-tiefling interaction. You are, after all, opposites. And I am a sucker for those dynamics). Maybe replace the 5th level darkness with the fly spell? Let's talk about it. I might just decide not to make changes anyway.

Hexblade is allowed - but it's got to stay relatively within the canon. We're playing in the Forgotten Realms, so your patron will be a Shadowfell entity. What their pact is with you? We'll talk. For gear, I guess there's no harm in letting you start with an axe - this will cost you the default light crossbow. Presuming you take Pact of the Blade, you'd get it at third level free of charge anyway.

I do allow monster races, and yes, the orc will have the intelligence penalty. If the spell specifies that a melee weapon attack must be made against the target, then yes, reach will apply for the purposes of determining the first target - you could not cast flame blade on someone ten feet away from your original target.