A Thought

I was thinking one day and came up with a simple adventure we could play if you guys are interested. It would be a simple, first level adventure, with the chance to expand into something bigger if it takes off. 

Alright so here's the idea.

There's a plague that is spreading among the outskirts of an empire. Farmers and simple village folk are quickly falling ill, eventually vomiting blood before passing on. They refuse to rest, however, and rise to attack any living thing within reach. If this plague is allowed into the heart of the empire, who knows what could happen?

With this thought in his mind the elderly Count Holint has called upon those willing and able to find the cause of this plague and eliminate it. He is willing to offer a reward if needed but feels that surely the just men of the empire will rise to the occasion.

So that's the idea. Again, the game would be a simple 1st level game using the 3.5 edition of D&D. Also, it would only use the races and classes and so on from the PHB. This is to simplify the character creation.

Previously... on D&D 4E

Dramatis Personae:
Akhre - male Dragonborn Ranger
Deinos - male human, former king of Pikespire (deceased)
Elwood the Crazed - male Dragonborn Fighter
Haerax - male Lizardfolk, Locust smuggler and idiot (deceased)
Rodrago - male human Rogue
Sterling - male human, steward of Pikespire Keep
Thannis - male Eladrin Wizard
Vierda - female human, Locust smuggler
And some other dudes whose names escape me

Act the First
Deinos is myseriously dead and our heroes are hired to help fulfill his last wish - to be buried in the ancestral tombs. However, the tombs have not been used in quite a while so it is their job to go clean the place up.

Inside, they encounter some Goblins as well as a mysteriously wounded Purple Worm. Upon arriving at the tombs themselves, they find an abandoned campsite as well as the remains of some letters. The scraps make mention of Deinos, Sterling - the current steward of Pikespire Keep, and something called Locust. They recall that Sterling has been acting strange, but that may be due to the stress of being the new de facto ruler of a reasonably-sized city.

Part B
Our heroes return to Pikespire an quickly learn of a drug called Locust from Sterling who is acting very calmly all of a sudden. Immediately grasping the connection, they decide to aid the guards in tracking down the traffickers. Radrago does some stuff. Than Elwood does some other stuff. I can't remember whether Thannis did anything or not. Then Akhre did some sleeping and was mysterious.

They go to one of the major trade checkpoints in the city and quickly spot a set of carriages carrying what look to be drugs. Thannis tosses a fireball at it, but instead of releasing the drugs, two Barghests burst out while a robed woman and a hulking Lizardfolk attempt to escape in the chaos.

Thannis, Akhre, and Elwood fight off the Barghests, protecting the crowd because the guards suck. Meanwhile, Rodrago is all "screw this" and doggedly chases down the two criminals. After an admittedly pretty cool chase scene, he manages to capture the Lizardfolk but the woman manages to escape.

No drugs are found in the carriage, leading our heroes to suspect foul play. They do find a map that reveals its contents upon being burned. It has several underground areas of Pikespire specially marked and it has a note telling Vierda to lay low until the funeral.

Day Three
Our heroes do some digging. Elwood contacts a Kobold and offers him a job as a guide to the underground areas of the city. Rodrago looks into setting up a guild. Thannis drinks while Akhre watches.

They are eventually led to an abandoned inn/gambling house. After making their way past a few puzzles and traps, they descend below the surface of Pikespire into a series of caves which appear to be a criminal hideout.

They enter a lavish room, more lavish than you'd think a den of thieves would be. But the doors slam closed and three beings appear before them. The place is evidently guarded by a Carnage Demon and two Imp-like demons. Our heroes take down the creatures but the encounter reinforces the idea that if the criminals have made some sort of deal with the devils, then things might not be all they appear to be.

The PCs go up to the door and are just about to open it. Meanwhile, above ground, a good chunk of the city as well as a substantial amount of the military begin the funeral procession.

And what the hell. If you have the means, knock yourself up a level to 4th. You'll need it.
-------

I am unavailable Friday evening over this break, but that's really it.

Soapbox - Thanksgiving 2: Cornucopia of Vengeance

Arright. We'll all be in town around the weekend of Thanksgiving, with myself arriving on Wednesday of that week. As the last thing we all played with everyone together was my SAME game, I assume it is everyone's wish to play Ace of Spades' 4th Edition game.

If you're up to doing it, this post can serve as a place for you to provide any pertinent information regarding the game. That is, again, if you feel it necessary. Just edit whenever you have time.

I, for one, would like a recap. I'm aware of my character's ambitions, but I forget the extent to which we'd gotten into the service of the state, and what our next move was going to be or if we'd even decided on one...

____

[Placeholder.]

Soapbox - Breaking News

Fallout 3 is worth every cent.

That is all.

___

Alright, I guess I'm not done yet. 

I've worked on the character sheet for SAME, but it's still not to the point I want it. 

"What?" you ask? "I thought you'd re-done it already." 

Yes, that is correct. However, things I make can always stand to improve or be improved.

I'll be heading back home soon, probably next week (November 8th.) I would like to play some games; if you guys have ideas, I'm all ears. 

I've started a new campaign here with the same group from last year sans one member, using the Lord of Roads prompt. It's been a success, I suppose. If you guys are interested I can wax more on the subject, but I won't waste your time or patience with it.

On the subject of games, I hope that around Thanksgiving we might be able to find time to play either Alex's game or mine, seeing as [I would hope] Bryan might be around to join us. If you have pressing information regarding such a scenario, either in favor of or against, please present such.

Bang Bang

So as I was peruzing my channels on the tube I happened apon one of my favorite films, Tombstone. And it got me a thinking about a favorite subject of mine, the Wild West. So I was storming up some things here and ther you know, so I thought I'd see if you guys were even interested. Basic concepts are below. Ther's more a stweing but these are just a few.

- A few young law men break onto the scene of a gunslinging town and are out to make a name

- A brash set of bandits robs a train and are now on the run

- Them darn indians are causing problems and some boys are sent to take care of them

- After a rough night of drinking a group of bandits (the Pcs) find themselves locked up

Soapbox - Updates

ARTLESS:

First off, I've gone through and edited some of the pages on the site, though some unfinished portions are still in their working stages. Some of the pages I worked on are Agartha>Religion (upload, basically porting over the wisemen post) Agartha>Agartha and the Planes (minor edits and a short blurb), and SAME Information (reworked some things, uploaded edited sheet.) I'm going to re-tool the site's structure so that important pages can be accessed quickly, like the SAME stuff or your character pages. At the moment, it takes a couple clicks, and there's only one page that links them.

At present, I'm a bit busy with schoolwork, but I'm working on the writeup for the continents and sub-continents, and I'm looking to finish the Religions section soon. I'm still not done with the new character sheets, but what I've got left for it should be relatively quick to do. After that is finishing the Magic page, and then uploading other sections I'm still roughing out.

If you have matters you want to speak about, edit this post or comment.

EDIT: Link to possible games for the weekend: Here.

Fitting the Peices IV

Orcs:
The orcs of Kelba are indeed a unique breed. They possess a greater understanding of the world and use their brains along with their might. Mighty warriors of fierce regard, these people also excel in the worlds of commerce and politics. Their skill has allowed them to build a vast empire of sorts, their cities are grand and full of skilled craftsmen. Most of the Kelborian coast is theirs and they are arguable the most powerful race to live on Kelba. Their trade ports and skilled warriors have won them much, however their inner politics can always turn for the worse. The Orcish clans are known for being underhanded and two-faced.

They stand about 7ft tall, without slouching. Their frames are broad and muscular with heavy torsos, and thick, broad shoulders. Long, almost boar-like tusks protrude from the bottom of their gaping jaws, and a small set of red eyes burn in their skulls. Their hair is thick and dark or entirely nonexistent. Although they may appear savage they are indeed very intelligent.


The Clans:

Clans are large groups of orcs with a particular belief held common by all members within the clan. Although a clan can be of many tribes sometimes it is merely one very large tribe. Here are the three prominent clans in orcdom now.

Clan Eye Gouger:
The last of the founding to clans to still hold power after the dragon wars, the Eye Gougers are a militaristic clan. They are a throwback in beliefs , using might more than wits. They war with the ogres in the southeastern stretch of orcish influence. Over the years they have culled the ogre numbers so only minor tribes remain. Even now they sharpen their axes to eliminate the rest of the ogres within their domain. It is this clan that has spilled the most blood out of all the remaining clans, and they aren't done yet. Under orders from the Gouger himself they have taken Olde Ingston, a fortress left in ruin, and have began to reconstruct it. They have also taken over the orcish trade town of Tempest, slaughtering all who would not join their clan. They sit poised, waiting for their chance to strike further inland.

Clan Iron Guts:
Largest of the ruling clans, Iron Guts have made their name in trade and subterfuge, using the old knife in the back if they can't acquire what they want with gold. They are the schemers and politicians of the orcs. Due to this they hold the orcish crown jewel, the trade city of Black Well. Largest and most grand of the trade cities, Black Well has contact with more outsiders than any other orc port. Due to this their craftsmen are the finest, their skill refined with trade. However when the council senses a threat this mercantile goliath can become just as deadly a force as the Eye Gougers. Be wary if you anger one if this clan, a knife in the dark won't be far behind.

Clan Stone Fist:
Perhaps the most beset of the clans, they suffer constant raid from Gahl and his ogres to the west. To the east lies Clan Iron guts looking to assimilate all their power will let them. They hold the aptly named city of High wall and have been known as survivors and defense specialists. They have felt the pains of the brief ogre occupation and it has left them bitter. When Iron guts refused to aid the beleaguered clan they had to rely only on themselves. Only recently was their High Marshall found dead killed, by Iron gut assassins. Truly they are entering a bleak time.