The Introduction

Welcome everyone!

This campaign began at the start of 2024 and ran until the end of last year, where I chose to take a break after a climactic event at session 50. Now that we're back and grabbing a few new players, I figured it was time for another session 0... or I suppose a session 50.5.

So here we are!

Just to note before we start: going forward, this campaign will be split into two parties. I imagine that one group will be Bobo, Emilie, Kory, and Anna, and the other group will be Evan, Daniel, Gabe, and Hannah Claire. Hopefully, this means that scheduling will be easier, since there will be less people per session. More on this later.

Throughout this session, please be welcome to chime in with comments, suggestions, or complaints about anything discussed. Remember that the primary goal of this campaign is for everyone to have fun, so if there's anything that you'd like to contribute to make it more enjoyable, especially for yourself, please feel free to bring it up, no matter how small or large it is.

We'll be going over campaign expectations first, then re-introducing the world of Aoterra, before moving onto house rules & clarifications and then finally, creating your character (or refreshing yourself on your existing character).

The Expectations

LotES is a roleplay-heavy, epic-fantasy campaign centered around a party of heroes who must rise up against a terrifying, world-ending threat amidst a complicated, political, and sometimes emotional situation. The tone and genre may shift around at times - from horror to whimsical, emotional to badass, realistic to off-the-wall, and from action to political, but at its core, this campaign is about a group of misaligned, often flawed characters that must overcome their individual obstacles during the course of the story in order to join together against a looming, eldritch threat.

Player characters should have backstories that are intertwined with the overarching story and/or environment, often causing problems or introducing NPCs that may affect the direction of the campaign. By the end of the campaign, these backstories should be visited and resolved (to a degree) by the party, while other characters in the party should be simultaneously invested in each others backstories.

That being said, there are some topics I'd like to go over to help us make this campaign fun for everyone. I heavily encourage and would appreciate your input and opinion on these topics, so please do not hesitate to speak up if you have any concerns. My opinions are ultimately only suggestions, and I certainly don't mind changing the way I DM if we find a better solution.

Also, I understand that some of these topics are considered nitpicking, so take them with a grain of salt; at the end of the day, we're just a group of friends shootin' the shit and having fun playing a game.

In general, I believe D&D is best played when everyone at the table is putting in the same amount of effort, creatively or not, to make the experience better. That means for most of these topics, I ask that you think about how you can personally improve your own play and if we can do anything to support that.

Finally, as we don't have a whole lot of time today, we'll try to keep discussions of each topic under 5 minutes.

Out of Game

This section is for above-table expectations, or "meta" discussions.

Distractions

Generally, my stance on being distracted during gameplay has gotten more lenient because I know there are inevitably moments in D&D when things just aren't as interesting, and your attention can easily drift off (i.e. when it isn't your turn in combat). All I ask is that you do your best to pay attention, and please at least give the session a chance, instead of immediately pulling up a game or video on the side. As long as you do this, I don't mind if you end up being distracted, though I'll gladly try to pull you back in if it becomes apparent that you are.

I also completely understand if you have a project or homework due, or you just can't put 100% into the game. Just try to let us know before the session so we know what to expect.

How do you guys feel about distractions? While they're probably unavoidable, what can we do to mitigate distractions?

Unrelated Conversation

During the game, I'd like to limit out-of-character conversations or quips that have nothing to do with the current scene. While it's totally fine to crack jokes and talk about the game, I don't encourage veering off into IRL conversations or things that have very little to do with the session. When this happens, expect me to steer the conversation back to the game. IMO, the less we break immersion, the more creative you can be when interacting with the story.

How should we handle unrelated, out-of-character conversation?

Attendance

Oh boy. Full disclosure: this is a big one for me.

IMO, the worst part about being a DM is spending hours of your free time prepping for a session that doesn't happen - or much worse, that you expect to happen but half of the players aren't there 30 minutes into the session.

We all know that shit happens, and emergencies can very easily destroy any plans you have. We're busy people.

But real emergencies don't happen every week (unless you've angered the gods) and even then, I would love it if you could try to show up in some way, if possible.

If it's unavoidable that you can't make it, I still ask that you at least notify us before the session so that our time isn't wasted waiting for you, or I'm not cramming prep for a session that won't even happen.

Also, if someone is absent, and we decide to keep playing, I tend to keep that character fully involved, unlike how the mist works in Bobo's CoS, because...

A) I don't have an immersive, in-world explanation for them to get Thanos-snapped periodically
B) It breaks verisimilitude for them to constantly disappear and reappear, especially if your character is attached to their character
C) Combat has to be rebalanced every time someone disappears/reappears and I don't got time for that

How should we treat player absences? Do you think we're too lenient or too strict with it? Are you okay with how I plan to treat player absences? Do you accept that your character could potentially die while you are absent from the session?

Taking Notes

Though it's not required, I encourage you to take notes. This half of the campaign will probably get more political, and sometimes missing details will bite you in the ass, so making sure you recall things is potentially paramount to your success. I will try to take notes as if I were writing a general summary of the campaign, but if you want to retain some of the finer details, it would be a good idea to have at least one note-taker in your party.

How do you feel about notes? Is there anyone who wants to take notes?

In-Game

This section is for in-game concerns - things associated with the actual gameplay.

Dice Rolls

No unannounced dice rolls. This is where you roll the dice off-rip, without telling us what the roll is for, and then say something like "I just rolled a 20 to jump over the gap". It can be used to "cheat", because if you had gotten something lower you might not have decided to jump the gap.

We'll also be using "secret rolls" in some instances. This means that only I will know the result of your roll, and depending on how well you rolled, you might get true or false information. (For example, if you rolled history to remember the password to enter a special cult, you might misremember and end up incriminating yourself.)

Side note: if you accidently rolled advantage or disadvantage when you were supposed to roll straight, we'll just use the first roll as official.

Thoughts on unannounced dice rolls? Secret rolls?

Spotlight

Sometimes, we can accidently give player(s) too much spotlight or screen time, to the point where other players might not get to do anything for an extended period of time, which can be frustrating and/or unfun. It can also be hard to take the initiative to involve yourself in the scene when other players are constantly talking, especially if you're naturally quiet.

I believe we should aim to avoid this and try to include everyone as much as possible. If you notice that someone hasn't really been able to provide input for a while, I ask that you try to invite them to the conversation, or do something in-game to place them in the scene. I will be doing the same.

Alternatively, if you feel like you've been talking too much or forced to fill the silence, it could be a good idea to just let the silence go, because another player might just be waiting for an opportunity to speak.

Do you guys find this problematic? Any other ideas how to avoid this?

Metagaming

I've said before that I don't like metagaming, but I think I've changed my mind on that. Metagaming is fine, as long as it doesn't inhibit your ability to roleplay. I tend to think of it as just a personal preference nowadays, but I'm curious to hear your opinions.

Does it break your immersion/inhibit your fun? To what extent should we allow metagaming?

Pacing

In general, I think that a faster pace correlates to a better session. At least, I personally despise sessions where I walk away thinking "What did we even do for 4 hours?". This is even more important to me now that our lives are getting busier and busier, and we have less time to play.

To remedy that, I have some suggestions I'd like to go over one by one.

• Less talk, more do.
  • Sometimes, we end up talking about our plans for a long-ass time before we end up acting, and then those plans completely fall apart within the first 2 rounds of combat anyway. This isn't to say that you shouldn't have a plan, but I feel like we could easily cut down the time spent planning.
  • I'd like to suggest that at some point when we feel like we've been talking for too long, either me or another player can invoke the "Law of Do Something", at which point we must move on with the story, no matter what plan we've made or haven't made.
  • Thoughts?
• In combat, make sure to plan ahead.
  • Plan your turn before I call on you so that we're not waiting for you to decide.
  • In addition, make sure you understand how your character works; read your abilities, feats, weapons, etc. and understand how to use them. I will be calling out whoever's "on deck" so that you have a bit of a heads up, but you can also use the turn tracker to know when you're up next.
  • That being said, I understand if something messes up your original plan and you gotta readjust.
  • While I won't be forcing any time limits on you, I will start to pressure you to make a decision if you're taking too long.
  • Thoughts?
• Less HP, more damage
  • The enemies in this campaign tend to have higher damage output and lower health pools. This is to help combat go by faster, so that combatants aren't sitting around slapping each other for 2 hours. However, this also means that you will take heavier hits, sometimes doing more than half your HP in one attack. Knocking them out before they can attack and/or negating their ability to do damage will be paramount.
  • Crowd control, proper planning, and other utility could prove more useful than usual
  • Thoughts?
• No meaningless in-depth descriptions
  • I will only narrate enough so that your imagination and/or the visuals can do the rest of the work. For example, you don't need to know how the rat king's teeth look under the lantern light, you probably already have a good idea.
  • If you want more details, you should simply ask me, and I will give you more.
  • In fact, asking me for details and interacting with the environment will often be the key when investigating things - do so often
  • Thoughts?

Player vs. Player

PC disagreements can be great for representing character arcs and personality conflicts, but I believe these disagreements should almost always be repairable. Try to roleplay in a way that encourages compromise and leads each party member to an understanding by the end of the campaign.

(e.g. Your PC despises goblins, but your party member is a goblin. You should plan for a way that your PC will eventually warm up to that goblin, despite their bias.)

At some point, if your character would seriously and intentionally turn your weapon against the party, I would ask that you allow me to take over your character, at least until they return to the party peacefully.

Also, please avoid making a 'loner' character. D&D is a social game, so if all your character does is sit in the corner spinning their daggers and mumbling about some vague dark past that they have, we're not going to be the only ones suffering. Create characters that mesh well together. Talk to each other while you're thinking about your character's personality. This is where involving your character with another PC is very helpful. On the other hand, don't pressure other players to play certain races or classes. Party fit is important, but it shouldn't limit your class and race choices.

What do you think about PvP? Is it fair to ask that PC disagreements be repairable? How do you know if you accidently made a loner character?

Ethical Concerns

This section has some sensitive topics, so let us know at any time if you're uncomfortable talking about these things.

We originally talked about these topics 2 years ago, and here's the gist of what we decided:

• No sexual assault whatsoever
• No self-harm whatsoever
• Sexual themes should be behind closed doors (don't elaborate)
• While racism or slavery may exist in the world, the PCs shouldn't "practice" it

Some additional topics to go over:

• Attraction between PCs and/or NPCs
• Representation of different sexual orientation and gender identities
• Is it okay for other characters to be attracted to and approach your character?

AI Usage

Since the beginning of this campaign, I used generative AI art for a lot of NPCs and backgrounds. Since then, the ethicality and discourse around AI has gotten worse, and I understand there's a level of apprehension and negativity surrounding it.

Personally, I am against AI because of what it means for our future and replacing jobs, as well as current the economic effect and rampant theft of real artists. It steals human creativity and uses it for profit, while devaluing the hard work and talent of people that came before it.

However, I cannot deny how useful it is in a homebrew campaign like mine, where finding assets online that fit the specifics that I need is nigh impossible and subsequently drawing it myself to a standard that I'm satisfied with takes way too long. Also, the art in my campaign is usually only meant to provide you with an estimation of the actual thing, the rest of the work should be done in your imagination.

Ultimately, I don't need to use AI art in this campaign, but it definitely helps cut down prep time while giving an adequate result. I am personally ok with it because we're not making any sort of profit from this game, but if you guys have a problem with it, I can ditch it from here on out.

How do we feel about this?

And we're done!

Remember that you can always let us know if anything discussed here makes you uncomfortable in the future, and we can always adjust as we play.

Practicalities

Campaign Length

The campaign will go at least another 20 sessions, capping out at 50. We will probably go to around level 12. This means we'll probably play for around another year, based on the rate we were playing before.

Scheduling

As mentioned before, we'll be splitting the campaign into two groups. I plan to run each group once a week on different days based on their availability. Since we have less people and less conflicts per group, this should mean that it'll be easier to schedule.

Player Absence

If players are absent from a session, when should we cancel it? When 2 people are absent?

Playstyle

Linear or Sandbox?

This campaign is somewhere in the middle, because it will result in the party inevitably fighting the BBEG and resolving the main conflict of the world, but everything leading up to that ending is completely up to you. However, one thing to note is that your characters should be deeply tied to the direction of the campaign,

Game Balance

Going into the second half of the campaign, combat should be less frequent. There will be an emphasis on bigger dangers, rather than everyday threats. As such, travel will be less of a focus and more hand-wavy, as player characters should now be strong enough to travel without real danger.

However, when combat does happen, it often will be dangerous and deadly. Player death is a real possibility, especially when intelligent enemies are trying to kill you, rather than just fighting. Expect bloodthirsty enemies to target one player and fight with no regard for your life. Furthermore, since we're running with lingering injuries, each combat will feel deadlier, and your characters will be more hardened with injuries with each battle.

That being said, the death of your character might not spell the end of them, especially if you have the means to revive them! In this world, magic is very prevalent, so the possibility of revival is very real, even more so now that you're becoming more powerful.

But whenever possible, it may be a good idea to avoid combat!

Additional Discussion

Let's pause here for now. Is there anything you want to bring up from what's been said so far? Anything that we missed? Any questions about campaign expectations?

The Setting

Click below for an introduction to Aoterra!

World Introduction

We will be spending the majority of our time in Viranna Isle and the Everwealth Cluster.

In-depth Historical Timeline of the World

The Rules

We will be sticking with the D&D 5e 2014 system for this game.

That being said, here are the home rules and some clarifications we'll be running with.

Flanking

You can get a +2 bonus when flanking with another teammate. Just know that to gain this bonus you have to be directly opposite of your teammate, and you can only set up a flank with one other creature. You can’t flank creatures with more than one line of sight (for example, a beholder).

Massive Damage

We will be using massive damage, system shock, and lingering injuries. When a creature takes damage from a single source equal to or greater than half your hip point maximum, it must succeed on a DC 15 constitution saving throw or suffer a random effect determined by a roll on the System Shock table in the DMG. If it fails its constitution saving throw by more than 5 (if it rolls under 10) it must also roll on an expanded lingering injuries table. If a lingering injury does not make sense in context of the situation, it may be molded to fit or even voided completely by the DM.

Secret Rolls

As mentioned above, these rolls are made when the player shouldn't know the result of the roll. For example, making an insight check shouldn't let you know if you read someone correctly - you should just read someone and you might be right or wrong. Also, death saves will be rolled secretly by the player so that only the DM and the player know the results, but not the party.

Healing Potion

You can use your bonus action to drink a Potion of Healing. You can also use it as an action. When you use it on yourself as an action, it automatically uses the max roll of the potion. For example, a 4d4 health potion would give you 16 HP if drank with an action. However, this does not apply to feeding it to another person, which uses the default rules (you must use an action).

You must use your action for all other types of potions regardless.

Inspiration

In the first half of the campaign, we tried to use a homebrew inspiration system, but I don't think it worked particularly well, so I'm going to fall back on a much less complicated rule.

Everyone gets one inspiration. At any time during the session, you can award an inspiration to another player who does not have inspiration.

Creature Hygiene

Creatures get dirty over time. After 1 day of travel without bathing or an equivalent activity, creatures are considered dirty. After a week of travel, creatures become very dirty. After a month of travel, creatures become filthy and are at risk of health problems. If creatures are not traveling, it takes double the time. In civilization, especially rich neighborhoods will treat creatures differently depending on how dirty they are.

Falling

I'm introducing something called the Hard Fall save and the Tumble check.

Hard fall save. When you take damage as a result of falling 30 feet or more, you must make your choice of a DC 10 Constitution save or a DC 15 Dexterity save or suffer the max damage from the fall. On a success, you take the damage as normal.

Tumble check. When deliberately falling from a height of under 60 feet, you can roll a Dexterity (acrobatics) check as a reaction to attempt to roll with the fall. On a success, the damage you take from falling is halved, and you do not have to make a Hard fall save. You may not take this reaction if you are falling unintentionally. Below is a table detailing the DC of the tumble check:

The Characters

Let's get to talking about your characters!

Before we go into the new characters, let's quickly introduce our existing characters...

The Usual Suspects

Barris Blackbane - Tiefling Druid (played by Daniel)

Cavassin Devaugh - Human Fighter (played by Bobo)

Greyson Meadowkiller - Human Gunslinger (played by Kory)

Lorianna von Ravenwood - Human Bardadin (played by Gabe)

Oswald Fourchenault - Human Gunslinger (played by Evan)

Let's work together to recap the story so far now...

Summary!!

Creating your Character

Questions

Here's a list of questions that I'm requiring you to answer. You can put the answers in the same document as your backstory and send it to me.

• Why does your character adventure?
• How/when might your character get along with the party?
• What are your character's strengths?
• What are your character's flaws?
• What does your character like?
• What does your character fear/dislike?
• What are your character's goals?
• How would you like your character to change throughout the campaign or what problem would you like to resolve by the end of the campaign?

These questions are here so that I can get a good gauge on your character and also to make sure you're not disappointed when something that you wanted to have happen never happens.

Ability Scores

We'll be using the usual method for this campaign, with some added stuff at the end. Roll your 6 stats like usual and keep it if you have two 15s or higher. Then, navigate to this point buy calculator, and input your scores. You can adjust the minimum and maximum score under Custom Rules. If your final score is under 27, you can add points until you get to 27. Finally, you can trade 2 ability points from anywhere for 1 ability point. You can only do this once.

Alignment

No evil alignments... unless you talk to me first. But make it discreet.

Homebrew

All official content is allowed, including Matthew Mercer stuff. I have also homebrewed some classes and feats for this campaign, which are detailed at the end.

However, I will be disallowing other homebrew classes and races for this campaign. I will generally allow other homebrew stuff, or you can add minor tweaks and reflavors to an official class or race. However, you have to ask me about it first.

Vehicle Proficiency

In any background, you will have the option to switch land/water vehicle proficiencies with air vehicle proficiency, since Aoterra has airships and other vehicles capable of flight. In special cases, I will allow multiple vehicle proficiencies if the backstory calls for it.

Virannan Lifestyle

Adventurers

Viranna Isle is home to some of the most notorious adventuring guilds in all of Aoterra. They exist as a place for adventurers to find work, get licenses for various activities, and to socialize and network with others. The kinds of requests that the guild receives ranges from finding a lost cat to taking down a dangerous drake who may be terrorizing a mountain pass. In general, adventurers are well-respected across the isle, and many commonfolk hire them for protection on the road. They are seen as free-spirited individuals that aren't tied down to any single ideology or duty. As a result, they're usually seen as risky hires by the upper-class—their loyalty is not as reliable as servants. Some adventuring guilds are private, and some are run by the government.

Factions

Currently, the anti-tech movement called "Fight the Tech Age," or FTA (sometimes called Fuck the Tech Age) has grown into a large organization dedicated to fighting corruption within the tech industry, especially with regards to pollution, deforestation, and other harmful side-effects of industrialization. On the other side, The Parliament and its ministries, especially the Ministry of Justice, continue to shut down FTA incursions, labeling them as terrorists. Caught in between this feud are the commoners, adventurers, and those who are simply getting by.

Gunslinger Class

https://www.worldanvil.com/w/aoterra-rubbydukky/a/gunslinger-article