The Darkest Dawn: Gritty Dark Fantasy Journey from Level 1 to 20

Creating your character

You’re welcome to use DnD Beyond to build your character—but it’s not required. All I need is a complete, finalized PDF of your character sheet before Session 0. We’ll be using the 2024 5e ruleset (Rules as Written) for character creation. You can use any official published D&D 5e material that’s compatible with the 2024 ruleset. Homebrew is allowed, but it must be submitted and approved in advance. If you’d like to use something custom, send it my way before building it into your character. By Session 0, I expect everyone to have their character fully built and ready to go. I’ll review each sheet, ask questions, and help align everyone to the setting and each other. That said—if you’d prefer I build your character for you, I’m happy to do that too. Just let me know and I’ll handle it. Backstory will also be a part of character creation! I'll be providing a PDF download of the setting so that all players can weave in some backstory. Since this world is very open ended, I expect most players will probably 'create a lot of stuff for the world' as they create backstories. This is awesome and I encourage it! Storage for Character Sheets: All character sheets must be hosted on a cloud so that we can link and pin them in the discord. Google Drive can work for this!

Preparing for the session

You'll need a Discord account, and you'll need to sign in to Owlbear Rodeo. But aside from that... you should be good to go! We use mostly theater of the mind and voice chat over discord. For combat and some space-particular scenes, we'll use Owlbear Rodeo as the VTT.

What The GM Philosopher brings to the table

You can expect a cinematic, immersive storytelling experience. I use character voices to bring NPCs to life and stream lowkey ambient music through Owlbear Rodeo to keep the tone grounded and focused. Combat is tactical, deadly, and played on a grid in Owlbear Rodeo. Expect fights to be intense, often gritty, and always meaningful. I embrace the Rule of Cool—if you come up with something creative that makes physical sense and doesn’t break the game, I’ll find a way to make it work. That said, we do lean on Rules as Written as our baseline for consistency. I run tight sessions with minimal distractions, and I expect the same from my players. Turn down the lights, grab your headphones, bring your snacks, and get ready to enter a shared world where every choice matters and the stakes are real. This is collaborative storytelling at full power.

Homebrew rules

Tone & Purpose I run with a set of gritty, cinematic house rules that make the world feel real, dangerous, and alive. These aren't about punishing players—they’re about making your choices matter and giving weight to the story you’re helping tell. Flanking Flanking grants advantage—for everyone. If you and an ally outmaneuver a foe, you’ll be rewarded. But enemies can flank too, so watch your positioning. Potions Drinking a potion takes a full action. No quick sips mid-sword swing. Use them wisely or lean on your team. Critical Hits Critical hits mean double the dice rolled—not just double the total damage. If your attack lands, you roll all the damage dice again. It’s more dramatic, more fun, and just feels better. Lingering Injuries Lingering injuries are real. If a crit hits you above half HP, it might break a bone. If you’re below half HP, it could sever a limb. Broken bones won’t heal from a Cure Wounds, short rest, or even one long rest. You’ll need at least Lesser Restoration. Severed limbs require Regenerate. A severed head means instant death—no saving throws. A severed torso equals instant death with saving throws. (The head and torso are included on my 'limb' chart.) Death & Spirits Death isn’t always the end. If your character dies, you can choose for their spirit to linger. Coming back will be possible—but difficult. It may require a long quest, a costly ritual, or the mercy of something old and powerful. If you’re willing to walk the long road back, the story will make room for you. Failing Forward Fail forward is possible. If you miss an attack or flub a check but come up with a creative, logical idea that would still impact the situation (like granting an ally advantage), I may allow it. Not guaranteed—but cleverness earns chances. Morale Tracking Morale matters. I’ll be tracking player character morale behind the scenes. Music, rest, love, and camaraderie can raise it. Hunger, injuries, cold, and loss can drag it down. If morale drops too low, you may suffer exhaustion, penalties, or other consequences. Romance, bonds, and meaningful victories can help restore it. Inventory Precise inventory is expected. Track your gear—arrows, rations, coins, spell components. If it’s on your sheet, it exists. If not, it doesn’t. Passive Perception Passive Perception only matters when I call for a check. When I do, you can choose to use your passive score instead of what you rolled (whichever is better). Otherwise, if no check is called, you don’t notice anything—stay alert. Philosophy These rules aren’t about crunch—they’re about consequence. This world is brutal, but it rewards creativity, teamwork, and guts. If you’re ready to play bold, play smart, and play for keeps, you’ll thrive here.

How The GM Philosopher creates a safe table

Player safety and emotional comfort are key pillars at my table. This campaign explores dark, intense, and morally complex themes, but it should never do so at the cost of anyone’s real-world well-being. That’s why we’ll be using a Lines and Veils document—shared via Google Docs and pinned in our game’s Discord channel. It’ll be pre-filled with my baseline boundaries, and we’ll go over it together during Session 0. You’re encouraged to suggest additions or changes, and anything added will be honored without question. We also use X, N, and O tools during play. These are handled in the main discord thread, and are encouraged at any point. You're also encouraged to speak them out loud at any point. Those tools are always active, and I’ll always respond to them without question or delay. After heavier sessions, I’ll do check-ins via Discord or private message to make sure everyone’s doing okay. We’re here to tell a powerful story together—but real people always come first. To set clear expectations from the start, here are some of my non-negotiable boundaries: Hard Lines (Always Forbidden): - Sexual violence of any kind. This includes non-consensual acts or threats, even thematically. - Sexual content involving children, in any form. - Out-of-game harassment, bullying, or bigotry of any kind—racist, sexist, homophobic, or otherwise. - In-game bullying by players. Targeting another PC with lethal violence, manipulation, or harassment is not allowed, even in-character, unless fully pre-discussed and agreed upon by all involved. Veils (Handled Off-Screen or With Caution): - Sexual or romantic scenes will be veiled (fade to black) when they occur. - Torture may be roleplayed if it serves a story purpose, but if it crosses into gratuitously cruel or overly graphic territory, we fade to black. - Graphic Gore & “Gore-Core” Content: Descriptions of violence, blood, and injury are present (e.g., severed limbs, broken bones, blood-soaked floors), but they stop short of torture-porn or “gore-core” levels of detail. Think R-rated action or horror, not Saw or Hostel. We fade to black before it becomes gratuitously gruesome. - Other heavy themes such as loss, trauma, grief, and corruption may appear—but we’ll always prioritize emotional safety and pull back when needed. If something comes up during play that you weren’t expecting and it feels off, uncomfortable, or upsetting, speak up. You never need to explain or justify why. My job as GM is to build trust, protect that trust, and create a space where everyone can be brave, vulnerable, and immersed—without ever feeling unsafe.