The Vast in the Dark | Grim Fantasy Sandbox Exploration Campaign

Creating your character

Character creation occurs before the session proper and can be done as part of or after Session Zero. Players can use any stat generation method, although rolled stats must be public. Characters can choose ancestry and background options from the 2014 PHB, XGE, and TCE. The game will largely use a modified version of the 2014 5E rules. 2024 content and changes will be considered on a case-by-case basis. That said, anyone who awakens in the Vast is a blank slate and does not yet have a class or any levels, with only barest traces of who they are and where they came from remaining. They must seek out someone, somewhere, or something to provide further training or development, not all of which is strictly level-based nor synchronized; characters grow in strength and competence individually rather than leveling all at once at set milestones or experience values, and can gain in strength and ability in ways other than making their level go up.

Preparing for the session

Players should be prepared to join the Discord server with access to a mic and headphones in a setting that won't disturb other players. Ideally they should have a way to allow them to access Owlbear Rodeo, the browser-based VTT we'll be using, though interaction, exploration, and combat will mostly be in abstract or theater of the mind style with Owlbear Rodeo used to facilitate and clarify when needed during play. While players are welcome to create and track their characters using any digital tool or character sheet they like, there are extensive changes to experience/leveling, health/exhaustion/death, inventory management, and spellcasting mechanics that can make wrangling a character on a standard site like D&DB something of a hassle. A spreadsheet-based character tracker template is available for use as-is or to be personalized and adapted as desired, but creating a bespoke character sheet is encouraged. Owlbear Rodeo has an inbuilt dice roller, but players can use whichever dice rolling tool, or real dice, as they choose. I trust my players to keep their rolls honest, since they really only cheat themselves of the game's thrill and challenge by fudging numbers. If you need any additional assistance, let me know and I will help you as best I can.

What F H brings to the table

When players join this game, they gain access to the Discord server we'll be using, as well as links to the Owlbear Rodeo and Syrinscape rooms we'll be using to facilitate play and add suitably gloomy ambiance to the session. This campaign is for players looking to shake up the D&D norm with a slow-burning, open-world experience that rewards careful planning, thoughtful use of resources, and goal-oriented exploration. Curious players who are newer to the game are still welcome but this is by no means a standard D&D experience. If later on there is interest in transitioning this to a West Marches style I am open to that change! While the base rules and the way to resolve encounters and events are those of 5E D&D, I make use of game oracles, Yes/No Fate Charts, and other tables to generate specifics of locations and persons as players show interest in them. The story, setting, characters, and items will sometimes be as surprising and unexpected to me as to players, so fans of improvisational storytelling will feel right at home, as will players who find satisfaction in charting their own course through a hostile alien landscape. In the spirit of improvisation, PCs will need to make use of whatever items, knowledge, abilities, or classes they unearth in this chaotic place. Do not expect to easily pursue a specific "build" for your character, min-max, or powergame. At the end of the day, it's up to individual groups of players to decide how they want to engage with the game world and what they hope to accomplish. If they want to go out and kick monster butt in search of lost artifacts or treasure, great! If they'd rather play politics or move up in social rank with various guilds or factions, also great! The Vast is vast, and so long as those in it set out with goals in mind, they will find what they seek.

Homebrew rules

Each round combat initiative is rerolled for each side using a d6, to better simulate the shifting chaos of the battlefield. Characters can act in any order starting on their side's initiative, alternating turns among sides in combat until everyone has gone. Characters do not die in the Vast, but gradually lose their fortitude and eventually see their very selves eroded. Inventory management and capacity is abstracted and streamlined. Characters have a base number of inventory slots based on their Constitution, with each item they carry taking up one slot Spell slots do not exist, with magic instead being fueled by a pool of energy characters draw upon that is replenished when resting in the same way as health. A Google document with a complete list of house/homebrew rules and how they operate mechanically, as well as additional setting truths, is available for players to reference when they sign up.

How F H creates a safe table

The Vast is an unsettling place and there will always be a dark/horror vibe, even if only in the background, but it's supposed to be the thrilling and fun sort of scary, not one that causes real distress or sets off triggers. If there is any specific content you as a player absolutely do not want to see, please let me know, whether it's during Session Zero or anytime afterward. I have an open-door policy, and if something ends up being a bit much for you in the course of play, let me know so I can dial it back or move on. Players can always step away during sessions for bio or if something comes up.