Dungeons of Drakkenheim (With BG3 actions)

About the adventure

DRAKKENHEIM IS NO MORE. An eldritch storm of falling stars devastated the city on that woeful eve, leaving behind a meteorite that would have lasting effects. Fifteen years later, Drakkenheim is a dismal urban wasteland contaminated by otherworldly magic and haunted by hideous monsters. Fantastic wealth, lost knowledge, and powerful artifacts lie ready for the taking by adventurers brave or foolish enough to venture into the ruins. However, even those who survive the dangers of Drakkenheim may not return unmarked by its terrors! What fate will you find in the ruins, unfathomable power, immense wealth, fame and glory? Or like so many before you, will you become yet another tentacles horror stalking the ruins? *The campaign is the recently released module from the Dungeon Dudes, based on their 5th edition live stream campaign. *At the end of the campaign module, I am going to offer the group the chance to continue the campaign and explore the wider world of Drakkenheim using the resources in Sebastian Crowe's guide to Drakkenheim. *I am allowing some of the rules changes from Baldur's Gate 3! These include: -Shoving as a bonus action -Weapon actions -Dipping as a bonus action -Potions as bonus action -Throwing potions (as an action) -Short Rests= 5 min, max 2 per Long Rest (Long resting is MORE difficult in Drakkenheim!) *Characters will be created on D&D beyond, where I have all resources available to players. *I will be using a mixture of quality maps and tokens, some of these custom-made for the campaign by myself, but also from a number of top content creators such as Cze and Peku, Dynamic Dungeons. The setting of Drakkenheim diverges from the default assumptions of Fifth Edition in four key ways: * The gods are silent and distant. They don’t manifest physically nor speak with worshippers and do not interfere in earthly matters. Planar cosmology is mysterious and unknowable, but sages have still developed many conflicting (and wildly incorrect) theories. * Divine spellcasting powers aren’t granted by gods. Instead, clerics, druids, and paladins tap into sacred energies through devotion, meditation, and resolve. Violating one’s religious tenets won’t result in a loss of this ability, but a crisis of faith might. * Individuals can’t become wizards through study alone. The arcane magic of both sorcerers and wizards alike is borne in the blood, which may be harnessed via practice and study. The laws of the land bar arcane spellcasters from holding noble titles. * High-level NPCs and spellcasters are exceptionally rare in the wider world. Despite their few numbers, such people still have a profound impact on society. However, Drakkenheim has attracted an uncommonly high concentration of such individuals.

Additional Details

How to prepare

You need to sign up for the Forge, D&D Beyond, and Discord. You will then need to join my Discord server and add your character to the D&D Beyond campaign. You should read my house rules in the Discord! Most of these tune up underpowered abilities, or tune down overpowered abilities.

What I provide

Foundry VTT with a great number of modules installed. Drakkenheim is already fantastically illustrated, but I have taken this further with over 50 customer tokens for the Darkkenheim monsters and animations added to the existing maps. Most of the D&D content is available on my D&D Beyond campaign, anything missing will be added on request. A great deal of the Drakkenheim content has been added to my foundry setup, including automations, and if any player wishes to play a Drakkenheim specific class from Sebastian Crowe's Guide to Drakkenheim I will have this implemented for them on the books release.

Gameplay details

Drakkenheim portrays a dark fantasy world. We will have an open conversation at the start of the campaign to discuss their lines and veils. In support of this conversation, please note references to the following are common in this adventure: Violence, murder, blood, gore, cannibalism, and body horror. Degenerative mutations that cause physical disfigurement and madness/insanity. Rats(ratLINGS, omg, so many ratlings), spiders, insects, demons, undead, ghosts, and other monsters. Natural disasters, large-scale loss of life, civil war, displaced persons, and refugees. Moral ambiguity, social/political manipulation, religious zealotry and military nationalism. The campaign does not contain explicit sexuality, sexual assault, racial prejudice, systemic racism, homophobia, or transphobia. Any inferences to such are wholly unintentional. Any player is welcome to let me know if they have any triggers, or if any of the content is making them uncomfortable. We will always take breaks during the game, normally 2 small 5 minute breaks or 1 longer one. If you need to take a break, you should feel free to at any time. If anything in the game upsets you or starts to cause anxiety, you can send me a private message with just an "N" or an "X", I will call a break so that you can talk to me.

Content warnings

(none)

Safety tools used

Aftercare
Bleed
Breaks
Lines and Veils
Open Door
Session 0
X, N, and O Cards

How will character creation work

Player character creation Players should create a character of first level, however, progress to level 3 is intended to be very fast. Additional information on character creation can be found on my Discord server. But to summarise: *I allow players to use a slightly improved point buy/array, as per the Dungeon Dudes rules (17, 15, 13, 12, 10, 8) *I allow players to start with one of the following: a free feat or a Strix haven background. While I normally add flying races to this list, due to the nature of the adventure, player character ancestries with innate flight would both impact the feel of the campaign, and circumvent many of the challenges presented. Personal Quests A character’s core motivation for adventuring in Drakkenheim is represented by their personal quest. This is a specific individual objective for player characters to achieve during the campaign, but players need not reveal their personal quests to each other. When a character completes each step in their personal quest, they will recieve a personalised reward. Character Relationships The campaign begins with the player characters setting out on their first foray into the ruins, but how did they meet? Consider establishing a personal connection between two or more player characters, such as one of the following: ...siblings, cousins, or childhood friends. ...a shared origin, religion, or teacher. ...former rivals turned unlikely allies. ...one saved the life of the other. ...saw each other in a dream or vision.

Players can expect

• Find a game to join solo or search for a professional game master for you and your friends/coworkers/family.
• Book your session and wait for the Game Master to approve you.
• If you don't have a blast with your first game, your next game is on us.