DOOM AND DAGGERS: A Grimdark Daggerheart Oneshot
A short but brutal Action-Horror Oneshot set in a custom campaign frame that acts as a prologue to the events of my Doom and Daggers campaign.
Free
Details
Once / Wednesday - 1:00 AM UTC
Apr 22
Session Duration / 3.5–4.5 hours
0 / 5 Seats Filled
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About the adventure
CAMPAIGN FRAME This oneshot was designed to showcase my Custom Campaign Frame for Daggerheart, which focuses on Grimdark Gothic Aesthetics and Homebrewed Rules that introduce Survival Horror and Action Horror Mechanics to the game. Doom and Daggers was inspired by the following works of fiction: Darkest Dungeon, Berserk, Bloodborne, Resident Evil, Evil West, and Doom. The Premise: The Pestilence has claimed this land, and those who could not fight or flee now suffer fates far worse than death. Those who succumb to the Pestilence become nightmarish monsters spawned from the darkest depths of their souls, and they become hellbent on spreading their rot and disease through wrack, ruin and violence. Thus, true heroes are a dying breed... replaced by those who are unchained by the laws of morality; and those who are driven by less virtuous desires, such as wealth, power, forbidden knowledge, and revenge. So it is you who takes on these accursed lands when none other of sane mind would dare, and it is you who will face the horrors beyond the fragile comforts of our havens. It is you who will face Doom and Daggers. THE ONESHOT This free oneshot acts as an introduction to my Doom and Daggers paid Campaign. In this oneshot you will choose 1 of 9 pre-gen characters to play as, and then join a party of mercenaries who have been hired to venture out into the Accursed Lands to carry out a difficult and highly dangerous contract. Grave Robbing. The oneshot begins with the party halfway to their destination, and the journey thus far has already taken its toll on your minds and bodies... And with only a handful of Provisions at your disposal, some tough decisions will need to be made - and fast, because in Doom and Daggers, danger lurks within every shadow. This quest will highlight some of the features and custom content that will be included in the full campaign, such as: - Mechanics and rules that increase difficulty, tension and horror. - Nightmarish adversaries and environments. - Maps and props made in Inkarnate Pro. - Audio mixes to set the scenes.
Game style
Combat Heavy
Tactical / Crunchy
Game themes
Meet the Game Master
5.0
(34)
Less than a year on StartPlaying
15 games hosted
Highly rated for: Creativity, Teacher, Rule of Cool
Average response time: Under 1 hour
Response rate: 100%
About me
I'm ready to roll some dice, so let's get a party together and make a collaborative story! I'm Keenan Bothma, I've been DMing for the past 10 years and I absolutely love game design, creative writing and nerds doing nerd stuff. It all started as a teen, hopelessly obsessed with D&D, begging friends to play with me. Of course, no one else would take up the mantle of DMing, so I gave it a try and discovered a lifelong hobby along the way.
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
In this Beginner Oneshot, you will be choosing 1 of 9 Pre-Gen characters, ranging from all 9 of the core classes in Daggerheart. These characters have been maticulously crafted to fit the grimdark aesthetics of the game. Players who are new to Daggerheart or TTRPGs in general will be able to get right into the action as characters who were inspired by various works of dark fantasy.
What to expect
Preparing for the session
Once you have signed up for the game, make sure you do the following: - Download Discord and create a free Discord account. - Create a free Roll20 account. - Create a free Demiplane account. - Have a good microphone (Cameras will not be used) Once we have enough players for the session to become active, you will be sent an invite to the Discord channel where you can choose your pre-gen characters and discuss your picks with your party.
What Keenan Bothma brings to the table
- Custom maps. - Custom adversaries and environments. - Custom mechanics and homebrewed rules. - Audio and ambience. - Over 10 years of DMing experience.
Homebrew rules
A Doom and Daggers campaign includes several Homebrew Mechanics to ratchet up the tension, horror, and difficulty of the game. Below are some sneak peaks at the mechanics that would be included in a full campaign. Only some of these mechanics may be showcased in this oneshot. EXTREME DAMAGE ON CRITICAL HITS When a PC or an Adversary rolls a critical success on an attack or spellcast roll, the damage dealt may spill over into the Extreme Damage Threshold. The Extreme Damage Threshold of any creature is always two times its Severe Damage Threshold. TAG TEAM HOPE SHARE To combat the higher difficulty introduced through the new mechanics in this campaign frame, PCs will be able to share the 3 Hope cost when initiating a Tag Team Move with an ally. RESOLVE CHECKS When a PC is put into a terrifying situation their Resolve might be Checked by the GM. To make a Resolve Check, the PC must roll their Duality Dice and add their current Hope as a modifier to the roll. Failure on a Resolve Check will result in different consequences based on how much Fear the GM currently has. The PC may need to mark Stress, lose Hope, or give Fear to the GM. DEATH'S DOOR In a Doom and Daggers campaign, PCs can no longer use the default Death Moves in Daggerheart. Instead, whenever a PC marks their last hitpoint they will enter Death's Door, which is a downed state in which they are unconscious and have little to no control over their character, depending on the circumstances. While on Death's Door, the PC must keep track of their Save Difficulty which starts at 10 + their Tier, and it increases by +1 at the end of any Player's Action. Any ally within Melee Range may end their spotlight to stabilize a downed ally. Any amount of healing will also stabilize a downed ally before any of the hitpoints are cleared. Stabilizing will allow the downed PC to make their Death's Door Save and reveal whether they have accumulated any Scars. If they are lucky, they will be miraculously unscarred, and if they are very lucky they may just recover on the spot. PROVISIONS AND HAVENS This world is unforgiving. Short and Long Rests are sparse and costly. To use Short Rest Actions, the party must spend Provisions. Not only that, Provisions can only be restocked by finding them on adventures or by buying them at Havens. A PC may only carry a number of Provisions equal to their Tier +1. INFLICTIONS Whenever a PC gains one or more Scars, roll 1d6 against their total number of scars. If the result is equal to or less than their total number of scars, they gain an Infliction that is tied to the Scar or Scars that prompted the Infliction Roll. Inflictions are longterm negative flaws that the PC must carry with them until they are able to clear the Scar or Scars that the Infliction is tied to. However, every Infliction does include a silver-lining that can be used strategically if the PC leans into their newfound flaw.
Equipment needed to play
Internet
Computer
Microphone
Platforms used
Safety
How Keenan Bothma creates a safe table
At the start of the game we will take about 30 minutes to introduce ourselves, go over our lines and veils, and go through a brief tutorial of Daggerheart for newer players. At any point during the oneshot you may ask for a 5 minute break if it is needed. At the end of the oneshot I like to stick around for an extra 15 minutes or so to debrief with my players, get feedback and just talk about the game.
Content warnings
Safety tools used