The Tale of Groaning Dust: A Household Chronicle
A devouring malice grows within the foundations of The House, threatening to upend a fragile peace. Root out the threat before it's too late!
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SYSTEM
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LANGUAGE
EXPERIENCE
AGE
$20.00
/ Session
Details
Bi-weekly / Tuesday - 8:00 PM UTC
Session Duration / 2–4 hours
Campaign Length / 1–10 Sessions
1 / 5 Seats Filled
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Meet your party members
1/5
About the adventure
The journey of a lifetime begins with a teeny tiny step. In the Regency-inspired wonderland of Household, players take on the role of Littlings, tiny folk whose entire world exists within the walls of a long-abandoned countryside manor. It's Bridgerton meets The Borrowers, with healthy doses of political intrigue and pulpy adventure! This beginner-friendly chronicle might take players from the cosmopolitan city of Cinderhall within the fireplace, across the Great Dust Desert of The Basement, and within view of the fabled Dendronous (a tree that fell through the wall in days long past). A mysterious and ever-quickening tremor wracks every nation in The House, threatening the tenuous peace in the aftermath of the First Household War. With old tensions inflamed and cataclysm looming, the little folk are in dire need of heroes...which is where you come in!
Game themes
Meet the Game Master
5.0
(6)
5 years on StartPlaying
Highly rated for: Storytelling, Knows the Rules, Creativity
About me
Hey there! I’m Steve (he/him) — actor, writer, arts educator, and full-time enthusiast for all things storytelling. When I’m not on stage, on set, or in the classroom, you’ll find me building worlds, voicing wild NPCs, and helping players tell the kinds of stories you remember for years. My background as a professional actor (SAG-AFTRA/AEA) and theater educator means I know how to bring characters to life, keep a group engaged, and make sure everyone gets their "main character moment." Whether you're brand new to TTRPGs or a seasoned dice slinger, I’m here to make sure you feel confident, creative, and part of the story from the jump. What You Can Expect at My Table: -Big character energy, memorable voices, and lots of improv -A no-pressure, "there are no wrong answers" environment -Rules explained without making it feel like homework -A focus on collaboration, creativity, and actually having fun -Flexibility to match your group's preferred vibe and playstyle -Smooth, easy-to-use Virtual Tabletop (VTT) setup If you like story-driven adventures with heart, humor, and a touch of chaos, you’re in the right place. Let’s roll some dice and tell some unforgettable stories together!
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
As this is a system which will be new to most players, we'll handle character creation during a free session 0, using pdf character sheets and the sourcebook's recommended stat generation methods. That said, coming in with an idea is always welcome! The world is heavily Regency/ Belle Epoque coded, so anything from a brigand road bandit all the way up to a noble aristocrat is fair game as a starting point.
What to expect
Preparing for the session
You should have accounts on Discord for chat and voice, as well as Roll20, which is what we'll use on rare occasions for battlemaps.
What Steve brings to the table
Rulebooks and reference docs for the system and world. Ambient music. Character voices aplenty! Digital battlemaps on Roll20, as appropriate, though this system is considerably more able to handle abstracted distances in situ. Combat and daring escapes will be largely taking place in theater-of-the-mind. Lots and lots of system knowledge and improv training, for a great blend of RAW and RoC. We're all here to have fun, and I'm very adaptable to various play styles.
Equipment needed to play
Internet
Computer
Microphone
Platforms used
Safety
How Steve creates a safe table
We'll go over safety tools in Session 0, but we'll make use of Lines and Veils, a pre-campaign questionnaire, The X Card, and optional post-session wrap discussions for aftercare. It should be broadly stated that while we're going for an overall light and swashbuckling tone, the world is a post-modern take on beloved Regency period dramas in which social class plays a broadly important tropic role. Outright racism and bigotry are off the table, especially as they present in our own world, but world-mapped xenophobia and classism may be a part of the world-building. Very open to discussing relative comfort levels and adjusting to player preference. Also, a lot of the monsters in the game are real-world animals but scaled to monstrous size against the Littlings. So if bugs or snakes or other critters are a phobia, please let me know so I can find alts!
Content warnings
Safety tools used