The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions

[Malkavian Grin]

I have many different scenarios to play out within the Dying Lands. However, a good deal of them are separate from one another, like mini-campaigns. Some can be stitched together into an amalgamation of them all in a greater journey.

But I'm not deciding what horrible fate awaits you. THAT'S YOUR CURSE TO BEAR.

Please vote for the scenario that you are most interested in playing first and then leave a post saying why (and why some other ones might interest you too). There's a good chance we'll get through several adventures so don't feel limited by this choice; this is just for me to setup stuff ahead of time.

You are a Crusader. Many were brought in forcefully to pay off a debt, others heeded the call of treasure, while some were just avoiding the gallows. Perhaps you are a cannibal looking for some free leftovers, or maybe you were just indoctrinated into the order from birth. Whatever your case, the Crusade is now your cause. Your life begins and ends in the Vapor. Protect your gas mask with your life; it's worth more than you and is twice as useful.

(This campaign takes place exclusively within the Valley of Unfortunate Undeath. Once you join the Crusade, there's no turning back. Luckily, there's plenty to do until the End of the World. )

 

 

The sun disappeared behind a black disk long ago. Months, maybe years--nobody remembers. Now, a comet plows across the sky, leaving behind a trail of bloody pieces. The people of Galgenbeck are confused, incited, whipped into a frenzy. So many innocents dangle from the trees. The stench of decaying bodies lures the ravens and worse. You are called to the GREATEST CITY THAT EVER WAS--will you heed the call and uncover the truth?

(This campaign takes place exclusively in the city of Galgenbeck. However, if you manage to solve the riddle of what is happening, the campaign turns into the STANDARD campaign below until the End of the World.)

 

You are a prisoner, sentenced to undeath. Whether you deserved it or not, this is your fate, beneath the city of Schleswig, in the Grøbe. The once powerful King Fathmu IX has fallen on desperate times, and a bad habit has turned the debtor's prison into a nightmare ruled by the KEEPER. You better hurry before the zombification sets in!

(This campaign takes place exclusively within the Grøbe prison dungeon. However, if you manage to make it out, the game turns into the STANDARD campaign below until the End of the World--but good luck getting that far.)

 

You are free to do as you see fit in the STANDARD campaign. Any kind of story can and will be told here. Not only do I have published areas to visit, but there is a dungeon generator. This will be a big sandbox for you to play in, and then die in. You investigate what you want, leave behind what you don't, and pray to see another dawn. This would be the closest thing to a "regular" game (I've made modifications and am using some optional rules).

(This campaign will take place across anywhere and everywhere in the Dying Land...until the End of the World)

 

[Dixi]

Vote the last one since it can lead to any above.

[GaryD20]

Vaults of Torment gets my vote. Mörk Borg is already a hellscape of a setting. But, a prison in Mork Borg? Holy crap! Could you imagine? They all sound good though. Plus, if I've read everything correctly, the first three all lead into the STANDARD game. Good times!

[Malkavian Grin]

33 minutes ago, GaryD20 said:

Vaults of Torment gets my vote. Mörk Borg is already a hellscape of a setting. But, a prison in Mork Borg? Holy crap! Could you imagine? They all sound good though. Plus, if I've read everything correctly, the first three all lead into the STANDARD game. Good times!

Galgenbeck Sacrifice and Vaults of Torment can both lead to the STANDARD game. Bone Heart Crusaders cannot because once you join the crusade, you're stuck there doing it until the End of the World; Once you you join the crusade, there's no getting out.

Yeah, the debtor's prison is no joke. And in Vaults of Torment the Grøbe gets worse than normal.

[Dixi]

Can not you desert? As a group and then get straight... to some other campaign?

Anyway, I am not against any other campaign, just thought the last can be the beginning of any. So, consider my vote as a neutral voice.

[Malkavian Grin]

6 minutes ago, Dixi said:

Can not you desert? As a group and then get straight... to some other campaign?

Anyway, I am not against any other campaign, just thought the last can be the beginning of any. So, consider my vote as a neutral voice.

You can certainly try.

The crusade happens in the Valley of the Unfortunate Undeath, which happens to be full of toxic gas. You (and others) are sent into the Vapor as it's called with a somewhat fragile gas mask. You explore hex-crawl style starting off from the main camp at one entrance to the valley (the other entrance is on the other side which leads to Bergen Chrypt--treacherous mountains).

So, you could try to explore in one direction, turn, and then turn again to try skirting the camp. Or you could try going through the camp to the edge, but that's where the recruitment area is. It could be possible to slip your way past, but with the amount of people showing up from one direction, you're going to be awful sus walking in the opposite direction--especially if you get recognized. I doubt they'll treat deserters nicely.

Maybe there's someone you could pay off with enough silver? Maybe someone can smuggle you out?

Honestly, I'm not going to say no. I'm going to say that the odds don't favor you, but I am willing (and standing by with popcorn) to let you try! I think that's the heart of OSR games--trying against the odds. :)

And nope, too late, you already voted! 😜 (kidding)

[Dixi]

Oh, it was a mere curiosity 🙂 Though, an escape from a military camp sounds quite interesting. Obviously, we all hope to play every campaign here, the question is just the order.

[TheObsoleteMan]

Great to see this up and running! Thanks for putting so much work into everything, @Malkavian Grin, the forums look awesome!

As for the staring scenario, I voted for the Elder Scrolls--er, I mean, Vaults of Torment. While I'm perfectly happy to go in any direction, and think it would be great to simply wander the effed up world of MB, it's probably best to have everybody start with some sort of shared goal (ie, a prison break). If we all survive, we can continue on in jolly cooperation of staving off the End of the World for another day!

[XQbitor]

Heya! Long time lurker, first time writer. Looking for greener pastures from another pbp site and found this little gem. 

Looking forward to this game as it incorporates three things I like: rules-lite rpg, scandinavian-sounding names and heavy metal! Looking at the Skin-Walker so far. Character thread will be up soon-ish 😉

[Malkavian Grin]

12 hours ago, TheObsoleteMan said:

Great to see this up and running! Thanks for putting so much work into everything, @Malkavian Grin, the forums look awesome!

Thank you for the kind words, and you are very welcome. It's a project of passion, so I turned it into a work of art rather than just some text. Admittedly, I may have gone too far with it...

1 hour ago, XQbitor said:

Heya! Long time lurker, first time writer. Looking for greener pastures from another pbp site and found this little gem. 

Looking forward to this game as it incorporates three things I like: rules-lite rpg, scandinavian-sounding names and heavy metal! Looking at the Skin-Walker so far. Character thread will be up soon-ish 😉

Welcome to the 'Weave! I did that same thing about 15ish years ago. Been on MW ever since. Love this place.

Hopefully you roll some good stuff--I know how bad it feels to be like "Oh, I guess I won't make a melee character right now." LOL (but that's why I put in rules to pump up your abilities in-game).

Looking forward to what you put together.

[Dixi]

Um... Question. Should we start in prison (so far it looks like we will), would we keep weapons/armour/stuff?

[Malkavian Grin]

4 hours ago, Dixi said:

Um... Question. Should we start in prison (so far it looks like we will), would we keep weapons/armour/stuff?

Nope!

But still roll it. Your gear would have to end up somewhere and you could possibly retrieve it once the game begins. Vaults of Torment is not one I've played through yet, so I don't know exactly what all happens. I glanced through it but figured everyone would want Bone Heart Crusaders, so that's the one I'm most versed in. Oh well.

[XQbitor]

I seem to have trouble rolling dice on this site. Could someone please instruct me how?

 

7 hours ago, Malkavian Grin said:

You bring up a good point.

I don't usually go this route, but this game is just gross/horrible/evil enough that I think I need to check with people where their boundaries are. I'll work on that.

 

You could implement the true and tested Veils and Lines rule besides MW's policies. Veils when you want certain themes blurred out in the posts and Lines which absolutely can't be crossed.

[TheObsoleteMan]

@XQbitor for dice rolling, you need to click the dice icon at the top right of your post, which will open a menu at the bottom of the post, where you can select various dice to roll. There are various ways of rolling dice, but the easiest is to use the dice wizard (the little wand icon) and just input the number of dice you want to roll beneath the corresponding icon (you'll see a bunch for d20, d12, and so on).

[Dixi]

The most important thing to know about dice is that you roll them AFTER you made the post. Then you can safely edit your text any way you like.