Game Info:
This game is going to be a D&D 3.5 game based in my own made up world called Islania. Map will be scanned into the game later on, but for now is not important. For all intense and purposes this functions like the world of Greyhawk, but it is instead my world. So when coming up with character backstories feel free to drop Greyhawk city names or make up your own.
Banned Classes:
Because of the nature of this game, and the fact that it is 85% Dungeon Crawls, please do not apply with the following classes. Bard, Druid, Monk, and Paladin
Allowed Books/Sources:
Character Creation
Note for Application
I am not going to tell you how to apply and what kind of character fluff you should have. Know that I am looking for characters with personalities, abilities and flaws. These are normal people, who became adventures and have spent their whole life trying to get into the Wastelander's Guild. So somewhere in your application I want a couple sentances to a paragraph about why you joined the WG and what you expect to get out of it. I will except getting stinking “Scrooge McDuck” rich as an execuse.
Now I will except up to 6 people in this campaign max. Which means I will only except 2 people of the same class. I am look for diversity and the ideal dungeon crawl group of people. So while a party of 6 Rogues would look cool on paper and be swell for bypassing traps, it would end up getting you a TPK 7 times out of 10. The following is my ideal party lineup.
I do not need to see a character sheet for a completed application. It is a bonus however and if comes down between you and someone else with a character sheet, then they will have a slight edge. However it is not required. After everyone is accepted into the game you will have 2 days to get your characters ready and then game will start. If everyone is ready and I approve their sheet, we will start sooner.
Final note. I don't want any in party fighting. So no evil alignments, and if your going to be C-N, play it smart. Do not use it as an excuse to play Chaotic-Stupid, or have a Knights of The Dinner Table Hackmaster character in a D&D game. All of your characters have been training together the last month and have became fast friends. Your supposed to work together as a team and get rich, level, or die trying as a team. I don't know want to see anyone hurling some one down the stairs, or checking for traps and then lie about it, so the person walks through and gets impaled.
First Mission
Your team is freshly out of training and ready to tackle on their first mission. Your sent on what is supposed to be an easy mission and clear out some old abandoned ruins that have been cleared out for the last 10 years by numerous adventurers and Dungeo Delvers before you. You have a secondary objective other then the standard explore, catalouge your findings, and map out the dungeon. That is to find and rescue one Drak Barrows, if he is still alive. You are told that Drake Barrows is a 18 year old man with dark black hair, and bright green eyes. He wears his family crest of a golden griffon on his yellow and green Tuni, and he is a local Roadwarden protecting the nearby hills and fields from Orc Raiders and Bandits. He was last seen taking shelter in the old ruins on his way across the borders to Tumbleweed. Tumbleweed is a small Village, barely more then a thorp, 10 miles south of the Ruins. Drake was suppost to report in 2 weeks ago but never showed up.
Another team of Wastelander's was dispatched 4 days ago as a retrieval unit. They are higher levels then you and more skilled. But they too should of arrived by now. The name the retrieval team goes by is, “Crimson Hawke”.
Any more info about Stonekeep and the surrounding area of the Cargaria lands will have to be roleplayed and found out in game. Let's just say as a GM, I allow auto succcess for people with a certain number of tanks in knowledge skills. Maps, Images, and other important info will be on the forums as recruitment progresses.
FAQ and Notes
Can I play a Factotum or another Character Class from the allowed source books other then the PHB? No Factotum's or any other classes besides the classes in the Player's handbook. I am merely using Dungeonscape as a guide for skills, feats and equipment, because I only have it on pdf and am not too familiar with the book in real life. Brushing up on it though and will come into play much later on in terms of game play, dungeon crawls, and class progression.
UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE
PDF of the Homebrew Character Class has been attached. Look in the character creation section.
House Rules and Tools of the Trade Forum has been updated. You want to pay attention to these threads as they pertain to character creation and once you're excepted, to game play and posting.
Game Description:
Wastelander Guild
A guild of intrepid adventurers and dedicaded dungeon delvers, tomb robbers, trap specialist, Underground Rangers, and Fighters wishing to test their mettle flock to this guild. The guild is an established guild along the Cargarian Empire and is backed by the Emperor himself. The guild's main purpose is to explore and document uncharted caverns and then report back to the guild once the area has been documented and mapped. Why trust a rumor, or some lousy adventuring party with pretend locksmiths and trap specialist when you can hire the Wasteland Dungeon Delvers to do it for you? Lost a stolen heirloom, or your daughter has been kidnapped and brought to the goblin's lair? No problem we can get back within a week. We even have clerics of Pelor, and other religions to help us on our missions. Each member of the guild has been trained for at least a month on practice dungeons, and other secret Wastelander training methods before they're sent out on real missions. While Rogues tend to be the most common class suited to this type of work, many other classes with the exception of Barbarians, Bards, Druids, and Paladins often find themselves seeking employment with the guild. The guild does reward characters with any and all magic items they find in the dungeons they explore, but the characters do have to give 50% of all coin back to the guild. This is the reason why the guild has no annual payment, upkeep or equipment rental. You need to requisition a new item for a mission, go ahead and get it.
__________________ Trying Harder To Play Better UPDATE:If I had a cure headache spell, I would never stop casting it.
I'd just like to point out that from a mechanical perspective it makes sense to include bards in the list of available classes. Since we're all going to be ground with a Dungeon Dweller we'll all share many of the same features. These include things like a minimum BAB of average and a minimum 4+ number of skill points (unless you decide to play an idiot). Another feature that we're all getting is Trapfinding. With everyone having trapfinding a 4+ mods, even a fighter could have maximum ranks in search and disable device and be just as good at finding traps as a rogue. Particularly since we are in a dungeon crawl this means that rogues lose about half of their effectiveness to the party. Sure they can still sneak attack and have kick-ass skills but that's all they have going for them anymore. They even have trap sense co-opted by our forced other half. Hell, a high Int Wizard could have as many skill points as a rogue and still have his arcane might to make him more dangerous to boot. There are two high skill point classes in the PH that aren't rogues, Rangers and Bards. Sure, rangers are still very useful and I have nothing bad to say about them. But Bard and Rangers are the only two skillful classes in the books you've allowed that don't have half their class features rendered useless by gestalt overlap.
Flavorfully, I think you should look at the individual character before making a generalization about bards. I think it might be fun to have an old, dishonorably-discharged coot who thinks he's still a general on our side. The tactical experience would be nice and we could laugh at him when he tries to tell us what to do.
Gavin-
The only restriction I have on alignments is what is stated in the Ad, of no evil alignments. I want this to be a good nature, enjoyable fun game. The only other qualm is the usual if you're playing a cleric got to be within one step of your deity, unless you choose to worship an alignment instead of a deity (Rules in the forum). So feel free to be as creative as you want with your character, and make what you want. I apologize for not being able to accommodate you with your bard. I will also state this for the record again. No one is in charge of the adventuring party. Their is no party leader, unless as a group you guys decide you have to absolutely can't live with out, have one. Pretty much any profession and lifestyle can fit in with the classes I have set there.
ImbolcTwentyTwo-
No bards, they don't fit the setting and mechanics wise we don't need them. I would have to change the bard class like I always do in my table top settings so they're more realistic. I don't wish to do that here, because I simply don't see a purpose for them in this game. Your looking at this from a mechanical base way too much. It is a roleplaying game and your talk is bordering on power gaming. I will be making variant rules to some of the classes, and changes to better suit my needs and the campaigns needs. A rogue is going to be way different then other classes and they don't lose out on their abilities, but rather get enhanced by the Delver progression. It is all about character flavor, history and story of what you were before joining the guild and what you want to accomplish while in the guild. You are also young fresh starting level 1 adventures. Gavin's concept does not make sense for a level 1 character. Even an old grizzled veteran would be at least a level 3 warrior if nothing else. I am sorry this displeases you so but there will not be any bards playing in this adventure. If you still wish to make a character I will be glad to see what you come up with.
-Shane
Okay Sorry if I came off like a power-gamer, that's not me at all. I was just pointing out some of the mechanical issues I perceived. If they hadn't come to your attention before, hopefully they will be there now. I would just like to say that you need to house-rule in the Dungeon Delver's ability progression adding on and not replacing that of the rogue. It states in the Gestalt rules that characters with two classes that provide the same abilities accrue at the rate of the class that gains them faster.
I really don't wish to cause any strife and generally I don't argue with my DMs. must have had a momentary lapse in my manners, sorry. As for a grizzled veteran being level one: there's always energy drain But seriously, I'm not going to press the matter. I wasn't really planning on playing a bard anyways, I'll probably go for... Barbarian? Fighter? Cleric? I've never played a Cleric and I kind of want to try. Besides, how could I pass up the chance to make up scripture when the promised Saw-style awfulness starts happening?
No worries Imbolc I am not upset. I just want you to realize that this game is more roleplay then mechanics, like a 70/30 split. I also don't want to be beaten to death over the Bard issue LOL. I do love it when players bring up good points and I respect you from it. But the mechanics you mentioned were already in my mind when I decided to ban them with the setting. I will be giving the Rogue a couple of additional perks since the Dungeon Delver class gives a lot of things the Rogue has. For one thing I am increasing the skill points from 8 to 10 a level.
I want Rogues to maintain their status as the skill hounds. I will also be giving them some other minor abilities. Still working out the mechanics.
-Shane
"Your computer will eventually experience disaster. Like viruses, spyware or electro cancer."
- Puppet Master
My apologies too all my current games for slow posting rates. Posts whenever mentally capable.
"Your computer will eventually experience disaster. Like viruses, spyware or electro cancer."
- Puppet Master
My apologies too all my current games for slow posting rates. Posts whenever mentally capable.
Hmmm. that is a pretty limited set of books... I usually like a little bit more, you know... agency as a player.
Like for example... you seem to think that there is an ideal party, and it implies people aren't going to multiclass for some reason. To me, that's like, 'whuh??' cause with the books limited to that extent, the best 'non-magical melee tank' option is a multiclass option.
I mean, with limited book availability (mostly the SRD is your source of the main stuff...), there are limited amounts of effective fighting styles... eh. I don't think I want to cede this much control to the DM...