It's a character building experience.
Last Saturday we reached a milestone. The Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition campaign that's been going on for at least two, probably more like three, years wound up. It was mostly a dungeon crawl; to be honest, I think we all forgot who had hired us to clear these ruins and why.
But a good time was had by all, and after some discussion, we've decided to keep playing D&D. But as several of us expressed interest in playing different characters, we're going to move into a different campaign in the same setting, the Forgotten Realms. It's a good setting, having been updated regularly and having a very different feel from other standards like Greyhawk or Dragonlance. Tolkein with a hint of Leiber and Howard.
As this was my first time actually gaming in literally decades, and obviously my first go with D&D's 5th edition, I decided to play an easy character class, one with minimal bookkeeping. There had been an aborted run at a campaign set in Ravenloft which ended in a Total Party Kill (TPK) where I had played a Fighter. Looking at my options for a good character to play while learning the ropes, I settled on the noble Barbarian. Barbarians really have one mode: go nuts and kill things. Just what I wanted!
Thus was born Digenis Fiendsbane, the noble if pantless warrior of the Great Worm Uthgardti. He was a hell of a lot of fun to play, learning how to use the combat system and my class special abilities. I had to reign back at times, because while I might be fairly smart, Digenis was of average intelligence and wisdom. Along with the running joke about my lack of trousers, I had fun coming up with "battle cries" that always seemed to reflect the out of game conversations we'd have. My last cry was "AC/DX has become a travesty and they should hang it up! RARRR!"
As an aside, the entire campaign was played on roll20.net, an online virtual tabletop that is really nifty. The game master lives in Michigan, we have one player from Norway, and of course me out here in the San Francisco Bay Area. Being able to connect, usually seamlessly, with players literally on the other side of the planet is just astounding to me. If you are looking to game and lack a local group, I highly recommend Roll20.
Digenis has gone back to his people, resplendent in his new pants. I think that makes him chief or something, the books don't touch on that subject. I'll miss the raging lunatic, and I'm sure Al, our GM, will pull him out if we wander near Uthgadt lands. But now comes the time to design a new character. A daunting process as it was agreed that we'd start where we left off in terms of experience. So we'll all be writing up 12th level characters. There's one player who said she might keep her current Wizard, but everything else is in the blender.
So I've decided to share the process. I'll be posting daily updates on the design process, and soliciting comments. Sounds fun, right?
Please clap.
OK, start at the beginning. Having played a half-elf barbarian, I want something versatile. Combat and magic. Something with an interesting story behind it. This gives me a couple of options . . . Bard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin, Ranger (although if I wanted to play a Ranger, I'd use the magic-free variant published in Unearthed Arcana), and Warlock.
Looking at my options, I find myself drawn to the Warlock. These are people who have made a pact with a being of immense power. In return for their service, the warlock gets impressive arcane abilities. These bonds or with otherworldly figures like a powerful Sidhe, an Archdemon, or a Lovecraftian monstrosity. I like that there is an obligation to serve, even if the call only comes rarely. It's a good motive for an adventuring life, as you sent here and there to do often inexplicable things for an impenetrable intelligence.
Digging further, I see there is an Otherworldly Patron known as the Hexblade. A being from the Shadowfell, possibly the Raven Queen herself, has marked you for service. This works for my concept because a Hexblade is also a warrior along with being an arcane spellcaster of some power. So I can both cast spells and swing a sword. Nice. Included in the Hexblade write up is the tidbit that Hexblades can use their Charisma modifier instead of Strength when making attack and damage rolls. Since Charisma should be a Warlock's best stat, this fits in perfectly.
Off to a good start! Tomorrow I'll build my characteristics and do more work on my background.
But a good time was had by all, and after some discussion, we've decided to keep playing D&D. But as several of us expressed interest in playing different characters, we're going to move into a different campaign in the same setting, the Forgotten Realms. It's a good setting, having been updated regularly and having a very different feel from other standards like Greyhawk or Dragonlance. Tolkein with a hint of Leiber and Howard.
As this was my first time actually gaming in literally decades, and obviously my first go with D&D's 5th edition, I decided to play an easy character class, one with minimal bookkeeping. There had been an aborted run at a campaign set in Ravenloft which ended in a Total Party Kill (TPK) where I had played a Fighter. Looking at my options for a good character to play while learning the ropes, I settled on the noble Barbarian. Barbarians really have one mode: go nuts and kill things. Just what I wanted!
Thus was born Digenis Fiendsbane, the noble if pantless warrior of the Great Worm Uthgardti. He was a hell of a lot of fun to play, learning how to use the combat system and my class special abilities. I had to reign back at times, because while I might be fairly smart, Digenis was of average intelligence and wisdom. Along with the running joke about my lack of trousers, I had fun coming up with "battle cries" that always seemed to reflect the out of game conversations we'd have. My last cry was "AC/DX has become a travesty and they should hang it up! RARRR!"
As an aside, the entire campaign was played on roll20.net, an online virtual tabletop that is really nifty. The game master lives in Michigan, we have one player from Norway, and of course me out here in the San Francisco Bay Area. Being able to connect, usually seamlessly, with players literally on the other side of the planet is just astounding to me. If you are looking to game and lack a local group, I highly recommend Roll20.
Digenis has gone back to his people, resplendent in his new pants. I think that makes him chief or something, the books don't touch on that subject. I'll miss the raging lunatic, and I'm sure Al, our GM, will pull him out if we wander near Uthgadt lands. But now comes the time to design a new character. A daunting process as it was agreed that we'd start where we left off in terms of experience. So we'll all be writing up 12th level characters. There's one player who said she might keep her current Wizard, but everything else is in the blender.
So I've decided to share the process. I'll be posting daily updates on the design process, and soliciting comments. Sounds fun, right?
Please clap.
OK, start at the beginning. Having played a half-elf barbarian, I want something versatile. Combat and magic. Something with an interesting story behind it. This gives me a couple of options . . . Bard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin, Ranger (although if I wanted to play a Ranger, I'd use the magic-free variant published in Unearthed Arcana), and Warlock.
Looking at my options, I find myself drawn to the Warlock. These are people who have made a pact with a being of immense power. In return for their service, the warlock gets impressive arcane abilities. These bonds or with otherworldly figures like a powerful Sidhe, an Archdemon, or a Lovecraftian monstrosity. I like that there is an obligation to serve, even if the call only comes rarely. It's a good motive for an adventuring life, as you sent here and there to do often inexplicable things for an impenetrable intelligence.
Digging further, I see there is an Otherworldly Patron known as the Hexblade. A being from the Shadowfell, possibly the Raven Queen herself, has marked you for service. This works for my concept because a Hexblade is also a warrior along with being an arcane spellcaster of some power. So I can both cast spells and swing a sword. Nice. Included in the Hexblade write up is the tidbit that Hexblades can use their Charisma modifier instead of Strength when making attack and damage rolls. Since Charisma should be a Warlock's best stat, this fits in perfectly.
Off to a good start! Tomorrow I'll build my characteristics and do more work on my background.