Shadows Over Eriador, Beginner Friendly One Ring 2e

Creating your character

You can create an original character using the origins available in the One Ring 2e system, or choose from several pre-generated characters. A one to one chat will allow me to walk you through creating a character and a free session zero will be arranged to discuss party options, ensuring a balanced party everyone can enjoy. No decision is final until after the first few sessions so you will have room to modify if you somehow made a big mistake. The game is based on the party over the individual so your character will be expected to fit into the lore of the region. Whether a messenger or a treasure hunter, everyone is looking to survive the close of the Third Age. One Ring is very user friendly for creating characters, there is a set point array depending on your race and skills based on your Calling (class). Heroic Cultures include: Bardings (the people of Dale in the east) Dwarf of Durin's Folk Elves of Lindon (or Rivendell) Hobbits of the Shire (or Bree) Rangers of the North Other cultures may be available from expansions, we'll keep it simple here. Characters will be set up on a PDF or printout given to you using the character sheets and transferred to Foundry to play online so you have a paper and online copy to work with. Characters must be at the age where they are an adult by their culture (Barding: 18, Dwarves: 50's, Hobbits: 33, etc). All in the character creation handout you'll be provided.

Preparing for the session

The game will be run on Foundry so no account will be needed. When you follow the game link, you'll find a player listing in your name with the password you provided, follow that to get to your character. Foundry provides the game maps and mechanics but if you want to roll manually, you just need a number of d6. Please run the game on a PC if possible, tablets and such can be more difficult to use with a virtual tabletop. Video chat will be held over Discord so a Discord account will be needed along with the appropriate headset/mic. A headset would be preferred for the sake of easy audio and if you have a noisy background, push to talk is a good option.

What Greg/Loonequine brings to the table

I will provide a patient and fun session focused on ensuring all players learn the mechanics as we go and get to enjoy the story and adventure in full. There are several NPC's in this setting that I will be portraying with voices and mannerisms. I love playing orcs and villains so expect me to get into the spirit with them. I'm not a pro voice actor but I will play with voices and encourage everyone to be comfy trying new or fun stuff. There is no pressure to put on a show, voices and accents are all optional and should not be expected to be professional standard, just fun. While a lot of my focus is on story and RP, I do enjoy combat and these will occur using the encounter system of One Ring. I like running cinematic combat focussed on RP and teamwork to make something fun and memorable. I will take some time to go over the stances and options that set this system apart, but if you choose to just swing that also works. It's your game, have fun! Player death is unlikely but there is plenty of opportunity to be wounded or suffer the growing malice of the Shadow. There are wargs and wolves in the game but killing blows and such will be brief with no sound effects or over the top descriptions of harm to animals, evil or otherwise. Music and sound effects will be used throughout to add to the scenes. Foundry's soundtrack can be adjusted on your end to balance the audio as you need.

How Greg/Loonequine creates a safe table

Red flag options will be provided through Foundry, Discord, and with an on camera option discussed. A pre-game document will be sent out asking for any Lines (Absolute No) or Veils (fade out and imply with a discretion shot) so it is up to you how the scenes are played. The first 10 minutes of gameplay will be spent ensuring safety tools are known and adhered to and everyone is on the same page for gameplay and character work. There should be no cause for PVP in this module, but if it happens both sides must consent to it. As described earlier, character flaws are all well and good, but discrimination and abusive behavior will not be tolerated. There will be no depictions of sexual assault or other inappropriate behaviour. Whispers to the GM through Foundry or Discord will be available to report poor behaviour or request breaks, no judgement. I want everyone to feel safe and to enjoy exploring Middle-Earth together.