In which Brian talks the DND talk. And walks it. Also dance.
A few months ago, we gave up decided to put our D&D game on indefinite hiatus. After some time, we decided to try out the latest edition of Dungeons & Dragons: the 5th edition.
Our new campaign titled “Steps to Horizon” is now DM’ed by Tyler while I am the one who does all the hard work “Deputy DM”.
Our new adventure began in a forest clearing . . .
Note: Please ignore the fact that this session was played about a month ago.
Alycstair examined the pack of supplies near the still-roaring fire. They were waterlogged. Azai examined a sword left carelessly on the ground while Lo-Kag picked up an unused torch.
“Why would someone leave all this here? What happened?” Alycstair wondered aloud. After walking for an hour underground, he had been relieved to see the fire at first. Now, it unnerved him.
Yes, I know this is horrendously late. I have a ton of excuses, but my Bluff skill isn’t high enough to get by with them. Just read on and hopefully the feelings of resentment and disappointment will melt away . . .
Azai sat perfectly balanced on the ship’s railing as he meditated on the previous day’s events.
Yesterday morning, Alycstair had recovered enough from his wounds to explain his unique form to the group. “Explain” is an exaggeration: Alycstair didn’t know what he was, but the half-serpentine body was his true and preferred form. Azai and Rapha continued to trust their companion, but Lo-Kag grew more suspicious. Regardless, the party had to continue their mission to find the Tablets of Fate.
The weight of the bookshelf pinned the pirates underneath. Captain Partinosus wondered what kind of books the old man had that could be so heavy. The large, rock-like creature bent down and snatched Partinosus’ hat from his head.
“It seems you have not learned your lesson,” Lo-Kag said. He adjusted his new prize as he spoke.
D&D is back in session and a day late! This week was quite different however. With life being what it is, I decided not to spend hours preparing material and instead, did my best to improvise.
Since fall classes are starting and I don’t want to suffer death by to-do list Due to upcoming developments in my professional life, I will be DM-ing the Godsworn campaign every other week instead of every week not counting this week since I just came back from a vacation all weekend and haven’t worked on any Godsworn stuff at all.
The next session will be two weeks from now, on September 3rd if I survive!
WALK THE PLANK
Captain Bronzebeard, the pirate captain, struggled against his bonds, but no amount of squirming seemed to loosen the rope that fastened him to the ship’s mast. The party and the crew that captured him had just finished stripping his ship clean. Rapha was the last one to jump off the pirate ship and back onto the Westgate one. Smoke–-real smoke this time–billowed from the pirate ship as fire engulfed it. It sank to the depths, lost to Procan’s locker.
“Those filthy land lubbers,” thought Captain Bronzebeard, “They’ll pay…”
Azai, Lo-Kag, and Rapha gathered around their captive. Alycstair had gone below decks in a sour mood after the others had stopped him from throwing the captive overboard. Captain Bronzebeard looked each of them in the eyes.
“So what is it ye want with me?” said Bronzebeard.
“Tell us everything you know about Pirate Isle.” Rapha answered.
Unfortunately, I just didn’t get around to preparing materials as well as I usually do for D&D sessions. On top of that, the PC’s began exhibiting some problematic/difficult behavior for me to handle as a DM. I had to rely heavily on what improvisation skills I had, and the result, in my opinion, was a bit lackluster.
“The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” -Robert Burns
TANGO DOWN
The rasping voice startled Rapha, but the ranger did not hesitate for a moment longer. Once more, he looked over his shoulder to confirm his allies’ positions. Lo-Kag, fulfilling his role as guardian, led the party, with his lighter-shield held high. The sorcerer Alycstair followed behind with the tattooed Azai beside. A torch floated above Azai’s hand, held aloft by the psion’s telekinetic powers.
Judging their distance with experienced quickness, Rapha knew his allies’ light would not reveal him. Silently, he slipped into the storehouse, his felt footpads muffling his steps. Being an elf, his eyes were especially sharp. Even the faintest hint of light allowed him to see, and after climbing a nearby crate, what he saw was a ragged woman standing in the center of the storeroom. She smelled of fecal matter and spoiled meat.
Continue reading D&D Session 2: The Best-Laid Plans of Mice and . . . Spiders?
Everyone arrives on time to play, which is a welcome surprise. We spend about half an hour getting everyone set up and acquainted with the system. As I mentioned in a previous post, we are using Roll20.net for its online virtual tabletop capabilities. We have all played together before and are all familiar with Roll20.
