Ash & Steel: A Candela Obscura Campaign (Beginner Friendly)
A dark force spreads through steel corridors and shadowed alleys of Newfaire. Do you have what it takes to face the nightmares?
$15.00
/ Session
Details
Bi-weekly / Sunday – 6:00 PM UTC
Campaign Length / 5–20 Sessions
2.75–3.25 Hour Duration
1 / 5 Seats Filled
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About the adventure
A beginner-friendly Candela Obscura campaign through several interconnected stories. Learn to play the game or return to the haunted streets of Newfaire to face new challenges. A strange sickness seeps through the veins of the city. Workers vanish from construction sites. Miners descend into madness. Children age overnight. Somewhere deep within the hum of generators and the flicker of gaslight, something otherworldly is awakening. In this interconnected campaign, your Circle of Candela Obscura investigators will confront a growing pattern of occult phenomena tied to the rise of industrial expansion. Each assignment draws you deeper into a conspiracy where human ambition has pierced the veil between worlds and something has started to bleed through. You’ll explore haunted mines, decaying tenements, secret laboratories, and the heart of a city trying to forget its sins. The clock is ticking. The lights are flickering. Will you rise to the call?
Game style
Roleplay Heavy
Rule of Cool (RoC)
Theater of the Mind
Game themes
Meet the Game Master
5.0
(3)
Less than a year on StartPlaying
Highly rated for: Inclusive, Rule of Cool, Teacher
About me
How long have I been in love with RPGs? I watched the '80s D&D cartoon when it was airing, I spent my childhood wearing the print off my dad's Dragon Magazines, and some of my core memories are getting to stay up late on Friday nights, watching my parents and their friends play D&D and Traveller and falling deeply in love with collaborative storytelling. I played a bunch as a kid and then life got in the way for many years, but I started playing regularly a year or two before COVID and I've been running my own campaigns -- first monthly, then weekly, then a few overlapping -- for five years now. I love these games, I love the community, and I love offering up a welcoming table for people of all experience levels to learn and play. On the DM spectrum, I'm probably closer to Matt Mercer than Brendan Lee Mulligan but I love them both. If you like dark fantasy, weird magic, moral complexity, and the feeling that you’re the main character in a great novel or TV series, I think we’ll get along just fine.
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
We will create characters together during our session zero or pre-game discussions on Discord. Players will not need anything more than the free Candela Obscura quickstart guide and character sheets, both of which I will provide.
What to expect
Preparing for the session
You will need an internet connection and mic. Webcams are preferred but not required if players prefer to stay "cams off." We will use Discord for video/voice chat and pre-game discussions and Owlbear Rodeo (a Virtual Tabletop) for maps, handouts, and music where needed. I will provide the Quickstart Guide and character sheets, but minimal prep will be needed beforehand. We'll create our characters and Circle together during the Session Zero and the game is best learned by jumping in and playing it!
What GM David brings to the table
We'll dive into a beginner-friendly adventure that will move at a slower pace so we can answer questions as we go, then increase to a brisker pace as everyone learns the game and the story's tension increases. We'll be focused on a mostly "theater of the mind" role-play focused experience enhanced by music and visual handouts to help immerse you in the world of Newfaire.
Equipment needed to play
Internet
Computer
Microphone
Platforms used
Safety
How GM David creates a safe table
We will discuss lines and veils either in session zero or privately via chat. I will share the Monte Cook RPG Consent Checklist. XNOs can be spoken aloud or you will be able to drop a color-coded card onto the VTT screen. We will debrief after to discuss stars and wishes. We will run an open door table, so if you need to step away, just let me know -- we can also pause for a brief break if needed.
Content warnings
Safety tools used