Ruins of Drakehold

About the adventure

For centuries, the continent of Drakehold was run by a council of Elder Dragons. When war inevitably broke out between the factions, it was at a scale never before seen. The whole continent was ruined; fires raged, toxins spread, and the common folk were used as pawns. The war abruptly ended five years ago, when mysteriously all of the dragons in this plane of existence apparently vanished – all dragons, that is, except the unborn. And in these last five years, those eggs have begun to hatch. As our game begins, the heroes have been living at a remote mountain campsite, The Grove, with 50 other survivors. Players will be part of the hunting party that protects and supplies The Grove. To the north is toxic desolation from which no explorer has returned, but to the south is a massive, dangerous valley that still teems with life, ruins, and secrets.

Additional Details

How to prepare

You'll need a webcam, a mic, and to have your character sheet ready to send to me in a format I can read. We will use Owlbear Rodeo as our VTT, and Zoom to chat with each other. Please read the rules ahead of time, and know what your character can do in a round.

What I provide

This game will be on a VTT, so we will use the dice there. Please send me a jpg that you'd like to represent your character, or I can find one for you if you aren't picky. My personal style during this campaign is to let the players talk - I often streamline encounters to get to what matters, so if you aren't comfortable role-playing extended conversations, that's fine. You can just make the appropriate roll and tell me what you're trying to accomplish. I will often do the same, as it speeds things up and keeps the game on track. Nobody wants to hear another player haggle for 20 minutes - that's a roll and we move on. Some conversations just can't be skipped, but it's on me to know the difference.

Gameplay details

We're all adults, and generally speaking R-rated jokes are fine. However, this campaign won't feature any rape or child-death, and if there's anything else you'd like to be taboo, let me know. Session 0 goes over basic rules and expectations, history of the Grove and the world at large. There will be plenty of opportunity for role-playing and plenty of opportunity for combat, though the majority of potential combat encounters can be resolved without combat. There will be some puzzles of sorts and mysteries to solve, as the campaign has a handful of long-term goals for the party to resolve before the campaign will be complete. These can be handled in essentially any order the party sees fit. After the second session, the party will be very free to explore the world as they see fit. For the most part, we will follow basic 5e rules. Don't worry about material components for 1st-4th level spells. If you barely fail a Dex, Con, or Str saving throw (by 1 or 2), you can announce that you push yourself to succeed, but it will come at a small penalty (you fall prone, or lose an action, or use up inspiration; whatever makes sense in that moment). Some magic items, such as weapons or armor, will not resize for a new user. Some will. My flanking system is this: if you attack an enemy from behind, and they don't see the attack coming, you will have advantage. You can attune to magic items by spending time with them, and that will let you figure out what they do - you'll need to cast Identify to avoid the cursed ones though. There will be cursed items; there will be a lot of magic items in general. This means that NPCs will have and use them as well! But treasure will be generous, and sometimes home-brewed.

Content warnings

(none)

Safety tools used

Breaks
Lines and Veils
Session 0

How will character creation work

Characters begin at level 2; any class is fine; and any common or exotic race is fine - except no Dragonborn, and no evil characters. Standard array for stats, and spend your standard starting money on equipment because there is no greater society or economy left. Please have your character ready before the session starts. I'd like to have a copy of your character sheet by the time we begin. Make your character as strong or as social as you want; any build works. Make the hero you want to be playing. If you want to play something else, we can retire your current PC and switch you to something else very easily.

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.