The Sevenfold Realm

Creating your character

Backstory comes first — stats come second. The most important part of creating your character is building someone who fits naturally into the world and story we’re telling together. You’ll receive a world briefing document before Session 0 to help you design a character concept that feels grounded in the setting and connects with its themes. We’ll roll stats together during Session 0 using the 4d6 drop the lowest method. If your rolls don’t include at least two 15s, you get a full reroll. This keeps things fair while still letting fate have its say. No homebrew classes are allowed, but multiclassing is welcome if it fits your character’s story and development.

Preparing for the session

Before joining the game, there are a few quick setup steps to make sure everything runs smoothly: Create a free D&D Beyond account. You’ll be added to my campaign, where content sharing is enabled — giving you access to all official classes, subclasses, and options. Set up a free Roll20 account. This will be our virtual tabletop (VTT) for maps, combat, and visuals. Install the free Beyond20 Chrome Extension This links D&D Beyond and Roll20 so you can roll directly from your character sheet. Join our Discord server. This is where we’ll handle voice chat, announcements, and out-of-session discussion. Have a working microphone and camera. Cameras are required — seeing each other’s reactions helps make the game feel more personal and immersive.

What Stephen brings to the table

I run my games using theatre of the mind for roleplay and exploration, and tactical maps for combat. You can expect ambient music throughout the session to help set the tone and immerse you in the world — from tense battle drums to quiet tavern chatter. I follow the D&D 5e (2014) ruleset as a solid foundation, but I’m not bound by it. My goal is to keep the story flowing and the world believable, so I may make rulings that go against the book if it serves immersion or narrative pacing. Expect a balance of roleplay, exploration, and tactical combat, all grounded in a living world that reacts to your choices. My focus is on keeping things fair, consistent, and story-driven — where the rules support the adventure, not restrict it.

Homebrew rules

Things to know about this game. Behaviours, rules, and homebrew. Death is real, and it is likely. If you fight monsters, they will act like monsters. Creatures that hunt for food will try to kill you whether you are conscious or not. Enemies who want you dead will make sure you stay dead. A mercenary collecting a bounty will not walk away from an unconscious target. They will finish the job. There is one banned spell. Silvery Barbs. Drinking a potion is a bonus action. Falling unconscious has consequences. The first time you drop to 0 HP after a long rest, nothing special happens. You go down as normal. Each additional time you hit 0 HP before completing a long rest, you gain one Wound Marker. Each Wound Marker gives a minus one penalty to death saving throws. They stack. Only one Wound Marker can be removed per long rest. Magical healing does not remove them. I am human. The players are human. Mistakes happen. When I make a ruling at the table, it stands in the moment so the game can keep moving. We can talk it through after the session. I do not always follow 5e rules exactly. I will bend rules for players when it improves the experience, and I reserve the same right to increase tension and keep the game sharp. This is a sandbox. There are many things you can do and many threads you can pull. You will not be able to do everything. Choosing one path means leaving another behind. The world does not wait. If you ignore something or walk away, events will continue without you.

How Stephen creates a safe table

Before we begin, I’ll send out a Lines and Veils document so everyone can share what topics they want to avoid entirely and which can be referenced but not shown directly. We’ll review this together during Session 0, along with our expectations for tone, pacing, and table etiquette — making sure everyone feels safe and respected. I also provide regular feedback forms throughout the campaign so you can anonymously share what’s working, what isn’t, and anything you’d like adjusted. My goal is to keep the game enjoyable, inclusive, and responsive to the group’s needs.