Background: Asmodeus has defeated the Abyss. The
eternal blood war is over. His power has now become as that of a God and
he has cast the Abyss to the farthest reaches of the planes.
Though he is still trapped in his prison of hell. It is
feared that it is just a matter of time before he escapes. Some of the
Gods try to prepare for this eventuality. But with their own internal
strife, few of the Pantheon or their more wise followers believe there
is any hope should hell be unleashed.
Or is there? Whispers speak of another power. A Power
greater then hell. A Power that once forged hell. A power that is
returning. Some say that it is He who was returning in these days of
need, to cast down Asmodeus again should he ever escape. Some say it is a
successor, a great general of He Who Was's armies to once again do
battle with his old foe. Some say it is the talk of fools. Some say it
is blasphemy.
But things are happening. Things that suggest a great power at work. A great Power preparing.
A new Order of Devas has gathered together. Drawn
together by ancient memories, long forgotten even by their transcendent
selves. Surfacing unbidden. They refer to themselves as "They Who Were"
and have been gathering forces to themselves for reasons they do not
even know. But they bide their time and while they bide they make war
with whatever devils and devil worshippers they can find.
But these are not the only orders appearing for no
purpose. Across the planes mercanaries are being hired by an unknown
force, paid to come when called. But called for what they never know.
Even stranger is what they are paid with. Not gold but ancient artworks,
artifacts, weapons and promises of power. Their standing orders are to
protect the divine, destroy the forces of Asmodeus and to wait until
they are called to action. Under the Banner of the Unveiled" What this
'unvieled' means no one knows. But there are whispers that the Unveiled
is an army of demons of light. From the deepest depths of the Abyss.
These rumors are scoffed at for being ludicrous.
No connection is made between these two groups. Until
something happens to cause a stir among both orders and the rest of the
planes. Upon every notice board, within every tavern, on every such
location in every city, to the rural villages to the great cities, to
being nailed to the doors of hermits to slipping into the deepest most
hidden laboratories of wizards. A note appears. Each note is identical
in every way. Written on the same common looking paper with the same
common looking ink. With the same Elegant hand writing. And with a trace
of demonic, Celestial and infernal power to it.
It reads "Do you wish to help destroy the forces of
hell once and for all? If so please sign your full name at the bottom.
Then leave the note where you found it.
Signed, Ruficel, Supreme Commander of the Unveiled and Steward of They Who Were"
Players: You will be made up of Adventures that did
sign your name on that dotted line. When you did, nothing happened. The
note just stayed there, untaken. Unread. Weeks passed, perhaps you had
forgotten about the note. But then suddenly a man came to you. Doesn't
matter where you were, walking along the street, in the middle of a
battle. Flying high in the air or swimming beneath the seas. Suddenly he
was just there. He smiled, traded some pleasantries. He was a handsome
man, extremely well groomed and well bred, dressed in the most expensive
of fineries, tall, lithe, with intelligent eyes and a commanding
demeanor. Eventually however he introduced himself. He was Ruficel. And
he was glad you accepted his offer. And if you were still willing then
he would tell you how you can help destroy Asmodeus and his devils.
He gave you a map, on it was the location of a ruined
temple. At the entrance you would meet others of like mind. Who also
signed their name. And it is at that time he will appear again to you
and give you your mission proper. But for now know that the army has
been prepared and is ready for war. Buts its generals are no where to be
found. You will find the generals and when you meet up with your
allies, he will tell you the location of the only general he has yet
discovered. From he must the rest be found.
You should be someone with a vested interest in
destroying Hell. That is the only character requirement as far as
background goes. If you want you can be part of either they who were or
the Unvieled. We will be using character themes and starting at level 1.
If no theme fits and you are part of either the unveiled or They who
were, I do have some rough custom themes that can be applied.
Important notes on my DMing style.
1.I am very, very, very good at strategy and tactics.
And rather then hold myself back, instead each encounter will be treated
as if its 1 level higher then it actually is. That means if you fight a
level 1 encounter you will get XP as if its level 2.
2.I am a purely by the ear DM. I don't prepare maps or
dungeons and instead make it up all as I go. That means my maps will
mostly be just scribbles. But it also means I can be flexible and won't
have to railroad.
3.I LOVE skill challenges. But I do them differently. I
often incorporate them into battles for instance. Typically though I'll
give you a list of possible primary rolls. But I'll accept any roll you
can RP out. And give rewards and successes accordingly.
Speaking of rewards and successes. If you fail a skill
challenge you will still get full XP and associated loot roll. Though
the latter at a penalty usually. However my skill challenges tend to
come with other consequences if you fail. Sometimes it may just mean you
have to fight rather then talk your way out. Other times you may end up
with an injury. Injuries work like diseases.
Initial State: The Target's leg is broken but splinted.
-2 to speed. -1 to healing surges- The injury has worsened and the
splint isn't working. The target is slowed -2 to healing surges.-The leg
has become badly infected and can't be moved, target is immobilized -3
to healing surges.
An ally's healing check can be used as the primary roll
to improve a condition, with other allied healing and the target's own
endurance assisting. With failed checks causing -1. However only the
target's endurance can actually cure a condition.
However bad this may be, rewards for successful skill
challenges are big. Usually meaning a bonus to your lot rolls. Succeed a
lot at skill challenges and you may find yourselves well ahead in terms
of money and gear. Fail a lot and you'll be looking like a bunch of
mummies.
4.I never look something up during a campaign. And
forbid players from looking up something during their turn. If I have to
I'll make a quick ruling to move things along. And afterwards we can
check. If my ruling gave an unfair advantage to me you'll get a bonus to
make up for it. However don't use this as a way of cheating. I will
check, especially if something seems funky to me. And the punishments
can be dire if you have been getting an unfair advantage.
5.I won't be using skype, just the in game services. I
also will probably not be getting on the mic. I like stuff relevant to
the game all typed down so it can be quickly reviewed and doesn't get
lost.
6.On occasion my work or rain may force me to miss a
game. We can try to play catch up later, However you will always be
informed of this asap usually well in advance. For instance in two weeks
I have a night job for a week preventing me from DMing.
7.Nobody with a timezone that forces them to play
during their sleeping hours. Sorry but I've just been burned too many
times by Europeans and Eastern Europeans insisting they can hack it then
just falling asleep every game.
8.Its been a while since I've DMed so I will likely have a relearning curve.
I'll likely be adding more to this as it occurs to me.