UTSS's Night Below

A missing mage...

A ruthless band of kidnappers..

A sinister conspiracy...

Designed by Carl Sargent and released in 1995, Night Below is an epic dungeon-based campaign designed to take players from 1st level through 10th...and beyond. The adventure starts in the small frontier region of Haranshire, which is really nothing more than a collection of villages and hamlets bound only by their common geographic area. The heroes will find themselves wandering about the countryside, pulling odd jobs and defending themselves from the random threat, all while becoming embroiled in a darker, more sinister plot to save the surface world from the denizens and evils of the Underdark.

Originally released for the 2nd edition ruleset for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, this particular game has been updated and slightly refreshed so that it can be told and played using the 5th edition ruleset. Encounters have been changed, monsters and enemies have been updated, new threats have emerged. But the core of the adventure remains the same, and the final outcome should still see our adventurers win out and save the day.

The Basics

While I have a dedicated thread in the forum related to the rules, I'll give a bit of basic information here. A taste. Something to make you say "That sounds like what I'm looking for"...or, perhaps, to make you say "That doesn't sound like me at all". Set the stage, if you will.

Ruleset:  D&D 5th 2024 - Edition
Allowed Books:  PHB, Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide, Xanathar's Guide, Tasha's Cauldron, Forgotten Realms Player Guide 
Starting Level:  1st. 0 Experience Points.
Starting Hit Points:  Maximum for whatever class you choose.
Starting Equipment:  Whatever you get for your background/class or take the gold and buy what you want.
Backgrounds:  Use backgrounds from 5e (2014) PHB, or any official 5e sources. Choose ability adjustments and a 2024 Origin Feat that make sense for your background.

Notes: You will all be from, been living in, or otherwise connected to Haranshire. We will develop connections and relationships together for your character and NPC's in the area. You do not need to do any research, please don't, I will guide us, but this is a series of small towns in a pastoral valley so keep that in mind when you get to building.

We will use both Roll20 and Discord once the game has begun. I am no Roll20 expert but we just need simple battle maps which I should be able to handle! While we will have OOC threads here, I find that having the ability to message in a discord chat helps keep us all together and gives us a place to chat about anything as a group even when we are away from our computers.

House Rules: I use a few, go check them out as well as my thoughts behind their use.

What I Expect From Players

First and foremost, commitment. This campaign is designed for the long haul, and I fully intend to see it through. We are talking about a campaign that, were we sitting around a table, could take a year or more. Here in PBP, we will easily hit 1-2 years of playing time, and the likelihood of going over that is high. So please, I ask that you only apply if you are fully committed to sticking it out until the very end.

Secondly, I expect a solid post rate, to the tune of 2-3 times per week. During combat, that post rate will skyrocket to no less than daily. Weekends are always the exception! A lack of posting in a play-by-post game is a death knell; games die when there is no engagement. So please make sure you understand the level of posting I wish to hold people to. If you fail to meet this mark, you will absolutely find yourself dropped, and I do not wish to drop people from the game. Please let me know if you have anything that might preclude you posting, vacation, illness, etc...

To add onto that last paragraph, do not consistently wait for someone else to post. Please just post up! If you wait for someone else, and they are waiting for you, nothing happens. And then see the above about the post rate and what happens if that starts to falter. Things can far more easily be intertwined after the fact than getting the game back on track.

Finally, I expect this to be a safe, fun, easy-going space for everyone involved. We are here to have fun, and I fully expect the group to be engaged, happy, fun-loving, and invested in being here. There will be mature themes, but we will stay safely within Myth-Weaver's guidelines. Please contact me directly if there are any issues with the game, myself, or another player before it becomes something we cannot correct.

What You Can Expect From Me

I will work my tail off to help make this game as amazing as possible, and tell the best story we can tell! Every decision will come from a place of 'what is best for the story' every time. That may be callous at times, or break the game rules at others, but it will always be as fair as possible and err toward a fun and exciting story.

I will make every effort to keep things moving for us all, and post as often as I am expecting you all to. If there is every a reason for a slowdown or if I am vacationing or some such, I will communicate that to you all.

Finally, you can expect me to cultivate this space to be safe and open for all players. Everyone is welcome, provided they are cool and here to have fun. I don't care who you are, what you do, where you live. If you are here to play a good game and have fun doing it, you are more than welcome.

Final Thoughts

This campaign is a slow burn in places and is very much a sandbox at times. It is not a drag you along line adventure, that will lead you by the nose down the tracks. I want to roleplay and enjoy the setting. I want to see character development and interaction between the players. We need a group that wants to tell a story and not play a video game. I hope we can do that and I will be vocal if we lose sight of that, but don't worry there will be plenty of combat and shiny, shiny loot!

The application period for this game is open until Friday December, 5th 2025. No later than Monday, December 8th, 2025, I will select the group that gets to start this campaign off. If your character is not finished and reviewed by that time, you cannot be considered. And no, I will not make exceptions for extensions to this period. You are either finished or you are not.

I will be selecting 5 characters to start this romp off with. If you ask me what I think you should create to better your chances to get selected, I'll simply say "It's your character; create what you want to play".

If you have any questions, please ask in the OOC thread in the forum. Sending me a PM will only get you a response of "Please ask in the forum". I want everyone to have the benefit of the answer.

Please do not request membership for the game. I will send invites out at the end of the application period, and any requests to join the game will be denied.

With all of that said, come on in and poke around! Read the rules, and get to creating a character!