The Sundering of Ystrand

Creating your character

All D&D 5E books with the 2014 ruling can be used. Homebrew might be used for character creation but should be consulted prior to playing so as to be on the same page. Stats are to be rolled. Each player will roll 4d6 keeping only the 3 highest results per roll. Repeat this process 8 times and keep the highest 6 results. When calculating Hit Points for level ups roll the die and if you get less than the average on the die roll, you may use the average. Characters will start at level 2. I suggest using D&D 5E fillable character sheets, that you will send to me via Discord only so that I can then load them into Roll 20 where we will be rolling our dice.

Preparing for the session

We will be using Discord to roleplay with webcams on (if possible) and roll 20 for the sheets and the rolls. We might use Tabletop Simulator if all of us have it and feel comfortable playing in it.

What Mateo brings to the table

I do voices for certain characters not all of them. I center on roleplaying as well as some tactical combats but you are free to roam and interact with the world as you see it fit. I follow the rule of cool more than rules as written. You might encounter Monsters with Stat blocks different from the ones on the Monster Manual (mainly to avoid metagaming or if it fits the narrative, for example a skeleton covered in runes could explode upon death). I tend to do wacky and absurd comedy rather than serious fiction, rarely we will play a campaign similar to LOTR. I tend to use music to highlight certain portions of the narrative. I will be sharing my screen whenever I want to show you the map or something similar. Feel free to bring your own material (drawings of your character, and so on). Lonewolves will rarely be well received in the game (there is a difference between a well roleplayed lonewolf and an edgelord, I bet you know the difference).

Homebrew rules

The destiny mechanic: Whenever a player fails a roll they get 1 destiny point that can go either to the player pool or the party pool. These can also be then traded for some bonuses that would alter the narrative in the player's favor. (Note that some particular rivals may be able to wield destiny as well). Both pools reset to 0 with every short or long rest. There is a cap of 5 Destiny points for player pool and 10 for party pool. Player actions: 1 Point: Have advantage on next attack roll. Add +1 to next saving throw. You can move an extra 10 ft of movement. 2 Points: You deal an extra die of damage on your attack (can be consumed after your attack lands) Regain your reaction. Gain advantage on your next saving throw. 3 Points: Get an extra action. Automatically succeed on a saving throw. Do not provoke opportunity attacks. Party actions: 1 Point: Everyone gets a +1 on their next ability check. 2 Points: Everyone gets a +2 on their next ability check or saving throw. 3 Points: An interesting NPC appears in the next roleplaying opportunity. 4 Points: An acquaintance appears and assists in any way possible (without risking their life) 5 Points: During your next dream, the party gets a crucial insight regarding an NPC that you know of or have seen recently (these dreams are as if you could watch one of their flashbacks). Homebrew magic items will be brought to the game by me :)

How Mateo creates a safe table

On a session 0 we will go over all that we will not allow on the narrative. Those topics will be avoided at all costs. I tend to use a "Cut to" mechanic. Whenever a player wants to describe or suggests their course of action in a manner that would trigger any other player or myself. I just cut to the result without narrating. Example: "A character wants to torture an NPC for some information. So cut to they told you everything you wanted to know. Or they died without telling you anything." This will not be the only safety at play. At any point in the game, any player can ask to stop because something is triggering them or DM if they don't feel comfortable saying it out loud. I will then pause the narration and pick up after a few minutes in another moment of the story. At the end of every session I will engage with the players asking how are they feeling and if they need to get something out of their chest. Also, my DMs are open at all times so if a player does not feel comfortable expressing how they feel to all the table they can do so in private with me. The idea is for everyone to have fun without harming the others.