[D&D 5e][LFP][18+] Looking for players for an experimental campaign!

(No longer accepting new players! Thank you!) The world of Somnium eludes all but the most knowledgeable of ancients. The greatest mystics and even scholars admit to its dream-like quality. It is as though something in the back of a universal mind remains forever elusive but always moving forward towards something more. What that end may be, if there is one, every vibrant soul down to each blade of grass sways to its eternal motion. Alone in my humble abode one would believe me to be in the middle of nowhere. Yet I contest that I have settled at the right place at the right time. I trust the stars and winds to bring forth the wanderers of old as they have done for all heroes before. Until that day may my hearth never extinguish, and my meals always be fresh. After all, is it not the beginning that we all look forward to? So, come my weary travelers, wounded healers, and abandoned saviors! Eat of my meals and rest by my fire! On a journey we must go to return what was forgotten! I call to you! Awaken! Open your eyes so that the world may make amends! So that the world may make amends... GREETINGS!  I am your potential future DM Passafist! For the next week or two I will be looking for 4-5 players for a campaign in a world conjured by my literal dreams with consideration for the players’ backstories. I find myself to have very vivid dreams very often to the point where I will be experimenting to see if I can base a campaign almost entirely off them. Do not worry though! You will be the heroes (or villains) of course! As a matter of fact, your backgrounds will heavily influence where I direct it (in addition to your ingame actions of course). Off the top of my head, I feel the campaign will likely be heavy in both RP and combat where appropriate. So, before I get into too much vague detail, let’s get a few important technical points out of the way.   TIME   I need to emphasize that my time is very limited due to school, work, friends, etc. Basically, I am a busy guy. That is okay though, it just makes the time where I am free to have fun that much more worth the effort! Thus, I will only be able to play on weekends. Additionally, I have other hobbies I prefer to keep up with. So even if I do get the busier parts of my schedule out of the way I still might have other things to do. So, if I could be optimal, I will aim for these sessions to be weekly. I will however leave the caveat that I may get slammed with work and school, so we may miss days occasionally. Due to these limitations it would be best if you think of these sessions not as your 'main' campaign (unless you are a very patient person in which case, bless you!). As for specific times, my time zone is US Est. I am free anytime on Saturdays and Sundays. Once the players are accepted, we will negotiate specific times. CONTENT Let’s just say that I do not shy from graphic content when it is necessary. I find this self-explanatory due to the graphic game D&D can become at times. 18+ recommended. MY EXPERIENCE So a few things. I used to DM a lot but have been on hiatus for a few years. So, I am still rusty. This is amplified by the fact that I am sort of running something I find experimental. The setting is not fully fleshed out. I will be adding to the world session to session. What we will likely find early on is that the world is fuzzy. As I start playing with the players and get to know their characters better, the world will basically build itself as far as I am concerned. Please forgive me if the campaign starts slow or awkward at first. I will be working to accelerate it as time goes on.   CAMPAIGN THEMES Here is a list of themes the campaign will be leaning towards. Forgive the seeming angst, but I tend to enjoy darker themes. Despite this, I do find my campaigns having a pretty decent amount of humor in them. Almost to the point where the humor seems out of place. I also just find humor in D&D in general inevitable. The main point I am getting at is that while the core of the campaign will contain more tragic themes, it is not all doom and gloom. Additionally, your backstory and such still influence what I run specifically (what sort of plots, locals, etc), but the overall feel of the campaign I will be leaning on the following… ·           Existentialism ·           Overcoming Odds ·           The Nature of Dreams (In this case, the reality of this world) ·           The Darkness Within Man ·           The Mysteriousness of Magic   MY INSPIRATIONS I feel it is also necessary to list my various inspirations since similar themes will likely appear in my games. Mind you, themes presented by your backstory and other info you provide will also be an influence on the game. These are just my fall back inspirations. Making characters with similar inspirations however may potentially lead to me adapting your character more easily to my DMing style. It may also increase your likelihood of me accepting you. ·           Dark Souls Series ·           Hollow Knight ·           The Legend of Zelda (Especially Majora’s Mask) ·           Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem. ·           Undertale ·           Shiki ·           Kino’s Journey (Original) ·           Lord of the Rings ·           Dante’s Divine Comedy ·           Various Greek Myths ·           The Bible ·           East Asian Folklore ·           H.P Lovecraft’s works ·           Carl Jung’s Works ·           Esoteric ideas such as astrology, tarot, alchemy, etc. ·           My Dreams ·           Various philosophers from many different fields. Primarily existentialist philosophers. ·           The art of Beksinski   CHARACTER CREATION Levels : Your character will start at level 1. I will do a solo session with you which will instantly level you to level 2 which will carry over to the main sessions with the group. Stats : We will be using 4d6k3 and place the stats wherever you want. Additionally, you can choose between your roll or point buy after you roll. Also, with rolling, you must have at least 70+ total score or you can reroll for free. Races : Just about any first or third-party race is allowed. Homebrewed races I am open to and will approve on a case by case basis. Classes : phb classes are all acceptable. Any classes or archetypes outside phb I will approve on a case by case basis. For sorcerers, I also have a bloodline inspired by Japanese yokai such as kitsunes or Tanuki from an older campaign I ran. If you would like details to let me know. Backgrounds : I allow backgrounds in a freeform way. You choose two skills and two tool/language proficiencies. Your background gear and background feature you will discuss with me in person since they will be custom to you. Starting Gear : You will roll for gold based on your class and buy your items. You can buy one adventurer pack. Backstory : I do not require one to write an essay, but I do expect some sort of backstory with effort since I will be leading the campaign based on players’ backstories. The world is not fleshed out but remember that this is a world inspired by dreams. You can make up whatever you want as far as where you are from and what your history is. I will make the world accommodate for this.   VOICE We will be using Discord for voice. You must have Discord and a microphone.   HOW TO APPLY 1)      Post your potential backstory or several backstories if you wish, in case you will be adapting your character choice to your party. You are not stuck to the backstory you post. 2)      Post what times on Saturdays and Sundays you would be available to do weekly games. Also post any times you would be available to do a solo session (read below for details).  Disclaimer : We may not always do main sessions weekly. It may become biweekly if I am busy. 3)      What sort of player are you? Do you enjoy being the face of the party? Do you prefer just min maxing and smashing monster face? Note: mechanic-wise, I highly recommend having a variety of characters of different classes since what sort of classes you are willing to play may influence me choosing you. I don’t want to have a party of all rogues or other similar shenanigans that may gimp the party mechanically. 4)      What sort of campaign are you looking to play? Specifically, what themes? Do you enjoy tragic stories? Do you enjoy just being a hero and kicking butt? This sort of goes hand in hand with your backstory influencing what sort of themes I focus on. IF ACCEPTED I will first PM for a one on one talk (Or one and x if you join with a group). This does NOT mean you are accepted. It is just to see if you are the kind of player(s) that would fit the game and that I would like to play with. After the one on one, you may be accepted. I will do this by PMing you a roll20 link. We will then talk about your character and schedule a solo level 1 session. Once this level 1 session is done, you will be level 2 and accepted into the party. Welcome to the game! Post below. I will be accepting 4-5 players within a week or two. Have at it!

1)      Post your potential backstory or several backstories if you wish, in case you will be adapting your character choice to your party. You are not stuck to the backstory you post. I have a few character ideas that all have different backstories. First is a Half-Orc Monk that was raised with his clan. During a scouting mission, he witnessed a nearby monastery. Watching the monks practice their art intrigued him, to the point where he mimicked the motions and felt his stresses lift. Wanting to know more, he abandoned his clan and requested to join the monastery.  It didn't take long for his clan to find him, raiding the monastery and filling him with conflict between his family and his art.  Another is a Half-Elf Draconic Sorcerer that was outcast  once his bloodline began to emerge, his friend and family thinking it a curse or disease and not wanting it to spread.  I've got tons more, but those are the first two that come to mind. 2)      Post what times on Saturdays and Sundays you would be available to do weekly games. Also post any times you would be available to do a solo session (read below for details).  Disclaimer : We may not always do main sessions weekly. It may become biweekly if I am busy.  I'm available anytime after 5:30PM EDT on either Saturday or Sunday. I'd prefer Sunday, as I do not have work the following day and I can play as late as needed. As for the solo session, like I said, I'm available most days after 5:30pm. If you choose me, we can talk about setting a time and I'll work to get it free. 3)      What sort of player are you? Do you enjoy being the face of the party? Do you prefer just min maxing and smashing monster face? Note: mechanic-wise, I highly recommend having a variety of characters of different classes since what sort of classes you are willing to play may influence me choosing you. I don’t want to have a party of all rogues or other similar shenanigans that may gimp the party mechanically. I enjoy roleplaying if I can mesh well with other players. I really enjoy the math of the game, minmaxxing to do as much damage as possible while still trying to be tactical. 4)      What sort of campaign are you looking to play? Specifically, what themes? Do you enjoy tragic stories? Do you enjoy just being a hero and kicking butt? This sort of goes hand in hand with your backstory influencing what sort of themes I focus on. I enjoy them all. Heroic stories with tragedy and fluff. Intermingling with PCs to form relationships that might cause even more emotion when campaigns or stories end. 

1)      Post your potential backstory or several backstories if you wish, in case you will be adapting your character choice to your party. You are not stuck to the backstory you post. The Elven Monk Zio once studied in the monastery of the Thunder Dragon with other pupils but grew bored of the teachings there and how cooped up the monastery was. He decided to leave the monastery after a couple years of training. Along the way on one stormy night he found a small far off town being attacked by goblins and with the help of other adventurers he managed to fend off the creatures and safe the townsfolk. It was then that he decided he would seek out his own path to enlightenment through adventuring. Alden was a human orphan who knew nothing about his parents. He grew up a with a relatively boring but safe life, always wondering what his purpose was. During his teens he worked at a local tavern called the Black Bucking Dragon, owned by an ex-adventuring dwarf named Dwogrim. Dwogrim noticed the spark in Alden's eyes whenever an adventurer came through and shared their stories, and thus he trained Alden to become a novice fighter and sent him on his way. Alden now travels to find himself and live a more exciting life. Most gnomes are jovial tinkerers and tricksters, but not the wizard Gaben. He was always the more quiet and reserved type of gnome, and who could blame him. He learned quickly at a young age that his magical affinities lie with necromancy, and that scared him and made him an outcast to his people. He was shunned even by his family. With all the judging eyes always staring at him, Gaben decided to leave his home and explore the world to see if he could use his necromantic magic for good. After all, recycling dead bodies could help prevent the living from joining them. At least that's what he wants to do, but this voice in the back of his head sometimes whispers other things... 2)      Post what times on Saturdays and Sundays you would be available to do weekly games. Also post any times you would be available to do a solo session (read below for details).  Disclaimer : We may not always do main sessions weekly. It may become biweekly if I am busy. All day until 8:00pm EST for both days. I am also available for solo sessions at that time and and Wednesday and Thursday from 5:00pm to 11:00pm EST. 3)      What sort of player are you? Do you enjoy being the face of the party? Do you prefer just min maxing and smashing monster face? Note: mechanic-wise, I highly recommend having a variety of characters of different classes since what sort of classes you are willing to play may influence me choosing you. I don’t want to have a party of all rogues or other similar shenanigans that may gimp the party mechanically. I am the kind of player who wants to explore the world set in front of them and interact with my players. It irks me whenever someone splits off from the party and has us sit there for an hour because it's a team game. I am able to create any sort of character and fill any role, the above three are just some recent character ideas I have had.  Recently I've been filling in the role of leader and decision maker for my other groups. 4)      What sort of campaign are you looking to play? Specifically, what themes? Do you enjoy tragic stories? Do you enjoy just being a hero and kicking butt? This sort of goes hand in hand with your backstory influencing what sort of themes I focus on. I've played many campaigns with many themes, however I enjoy the themes of heroism and exploration the most. There can be dark themes as well, and yes, who doesn't like being the hero and kicking butt? I do hope that we get to explore other people's backstories as well. And I am interested in seeing what secrets your world has to discover. Also I love that you're customizing the background features.

1.  Post your potential backstory or several backstories if you wish, in case you will be adapting your character choice to your party. You are not stuck to the backstory you post. Necromancer with a weak heart, born into a cult and learning all he knows in necromancy but due to his heart not wanting to harm the innocent or raise dead for evil purposes he was chased out and almost killed. Currently is hiding from the cult acting as a adventurer. 2.  Post what times on Saturdays and Sundays you would be available to do weekly games. Also post any times you would be available to do a solo session (read below for details).  Disclaimer : We may not always do main sessions weekly. It may become biweekly if I am busy. I am available any time on sunday, though keep in mind im in central time in America. 3.  What sort of player are you? Do you enjoy being the face of the party? Do you prefer just min maxing and smashing monster face? Note: mechanic-wise, I highly recommend having a variety of characters of different classes since what sort of classes you are willing to play may influence me choosing you. I don’t want to have a party of all rogues or other similar shenanigans that may gimp the party mechanically. I am a weird person, and im very clueless, i love to rp, but sometimes i say things that are silly and before i realize i said them its already out. I love people but i do have problems connecting sometimes. 4.     What sort of campaign are you looking to play? Specifically, what themes? Do you enjoy tragic stories? Do you enjoy just being a hero and kicking butt? This sort of goes hand in hand with your backstory influencing what sort of themes I focus on. I enjoy everything and everyone, i enjoy everything as long as its not a “kill as many player characters in a single session” 

Not sure if you're still accepting? 1)      Post your potential backstory or several backstories if you wish, in case you will be adapting your character choice to your party. You are not stuck to the backstory you post. So one, I've been thinking about a Changeling (maybe half breed?)  who was sold to the circus by her guardians (not parents) with the promise of being used for her changing abilities. However, rather than finding herself enslaved, she was suddenly with a group of people as strange as she'd always been. When they found out she didn't want to change for the show, they happily allowed her to be a regular performer with a visage up. Being treated as normal for the first time, she grew incredibly attached to the caravan of misfits and developed a love for performance, music and dance. Alas, good things never seem to last and one night, a group of drunk soldiers wrought havoc upon their show, killing patrons and her chosen family alike for participating in "illegal activity". After the mess cleared, she couldn't bring herself to stay with the shattered remains of the circus and set off on her own. (Thinking either a bard, or she went on and made a deal with a patron and became a warlock. Or maybe maybe a rogue) Also thinking about a shifter who grew up in a secluded village with only her own people. She was always warned that outsiders were dangerous and only caught glimpses of them at night when she would sneak out and watch some sort of trade. It wasn't until she was older that she finally realized something was off about her village. The more she asked questions about the outside world, the more she was shunned by her people and kept watch on. Craving freedom and adventure, she snuck out one night, following the humans she had always watched. However, on the road, a terrible storm struck, causing her to lose sight of the traders. Rather than being afraid, she felt more alive than ever before and chased after the eye of the storm, coming out the other side worse for wear, but with a new lease on life. (tempest cleric or maybe maybe a druid) Both are loose ideas and race/classes are pretty flexible.  2)      Post what times on Saturdays and Sundays you would be available to do weekly games. Also post any times you would be available to do a solo session (read below for details).  Disclaimer : We may not always do main sessions weekly. It may become biweekly if I am busy. The later the better. For the next three weeks I live in Korea, then I'll be moving back to PST. I'd generally say I'm free all day, but some weekends, probably starting in late September, I will be away judging speech tournaments. Saturday and Sunday after 6:30 PST is ideal for max availability in the long run. Solo session, I'm free most early afternoon/evening PST/EST, especially Friday/Saturday. A bit confusing because of the big time difference, but after this week my schedule is a lot more open.  3)      What sort of player are you? Do you enjoy being the face of the party? Do you prefer just min maxing and smashing monster face? Note: mechanic-wise, I highly recommend having a variety of characters of different classes since what sort of classes you are willing to play may influence me choosing you. I don’t want to have a party of all rogues or other similar shenanigans that may gimp the party mechanically. I generally don't play bold characters in terms of decision making, mostly because I would rather let everyone come to a consensus when possible. I'm also not a huge fan of min maxing because I think often it limits creativity with characters, which is the best part of DnD in my opinion, but I do also try to make my characters competent. I'd say I'm confident enough to have my characters push a party to do something when we're all just standing around unsure, but would rather play a voice of suggestion than leadership. Really can't stand too many "so uh....I guess we just drink at the tavern" moments. I really love lore, especially when a character's background plays into the main story, and hate it when others are constantly trying to be the spotlight. I like balance and story...and characters getting into dumb as shit situations.   4)      What sort of campaign are you looking to play? Specifically, what themes? Do you enjoy tragic stories? Do you enjoy just being a hero and kicking butt? This sort of goes hand in hand with your backstory influencing what sort of themes I focus on. Oh boy oh boy, I love watching characters suffer. It's that good "I hate this but I want more" kind of feeling. I think campaigns where the PCs just crush everything and nothing bad happens, there's no connection between the world and the characters, etc, are incredibly boring. I'm especially a fan of moral grey areas. The kind of situations that have you scrunching up because both choices are good and bad. However, I don't like when a campaign just constantly kicks the crap out of characters and everyone is miserable either. DnD is meant to be fun and there should be spaces for humor, successes and failures. Again, big on balance and variety here. The best campaign streams I've seen are ones where the characters and their backstories actually have an impact on the world. It's incredibly hard work, I'm sure, but I think managing to bring them together is brilliant. 

I hope your still accepting cause this sounds like it could be fun campaign and party. 1)     Post your potential backstory or several backstories if you wish, in case you will be adapting your character choice to your party. You are not stuck to the backstory you post. I really enjoy making backstories and DnD Characters so I chose 4 characters so that I could fit almost any party. ·        First, I wanted to make a Kenku Artificier, who dreams of lifting the curse against creativity that comes with his race. Specs (his name) was near blind at birth in a flock of Kenku that lived in the tower of their long-deceased master. Here his flock taught and studied the research of their former master. One day while visiting a nearby town he finds a Gnomish tinkerer who gifts him a pair of bifocals allowing him to see. Specs then began to sneak away to lessons with Gnome, learning how to be an artificier. One day Specs finds his masters workshop abandoned, and the Gnome mysteriously vanished. Specs is eventually sentenced to death from his flock who believe he had somehow gained creativity, and though he escaped, he is on the run from his flock. Now he constantly researches the art of invention from libraries and his old master’s notes, all while searching for away to one day defy the curse on his race and become a creative and successful inventor. ·        Secondly, I have an idea for a Kobold Rogue. Born into slavery he lived a harsh and abusive life. That is until a kind man took him in as a child. The man was a detective and hunted down twisted serial criminals and criminals. He was a kind man and gave him the kindness he never knew while as a slave and took him in as his assistant. While living as the detective’s assistant, he eventually witnesses the his masters/father’s death. Shaken, he flees. At first crushed, the Kobold knew he needed to solve his father/master’s death, and hunt down his killer. (I was thinking of playing him as an inquisitive rogue, hunting down killers and criminals) ·        Thirdly, I had an idea of a warforged paladin. His creator was mad scientist determined to bring the one’s who ridiculed them to their knees. The warforged was created to be a harbringer of destruction, and to destroy all those who opposed his creator. But the warforged began to grow a conscious and didn’t want to kill any living creature. Though he loved his “father” he was forced to run away, when he heard his father planning to kill every last person in a nearby town as a “test run.” The warforged fled the lab, and when he discovered the life of the paladin, he took the oath promising to protect the innocent from the evil of this world. ·        Lastly, I had an idea for a tabaxi bard, He was a gambling man, and loved to risk all his earnings (the little he had) on extreme odds, even though his luck was horrible. One day after being thrown out of another tavern and losing all his money, again, he was at the riverbank leading to the open sea, when he heard a mysterious tune. The tune came from a huge, aquatic like demon. The demon promised the gambler all the luck and riches in the world, for a price that can be determined later. Not one for turning down a good deal, the gambler accepted. The gambler went on to win all his bets, and becoming rich, and eventually he met a beautiful princess. The two fell in love, and on the day of the wedding they were about to say their vows, when the demon showed up to collect his debt. The demon determined to be “filled” swallowed up the guests, gifts, his riches, and eventually his bride. He then bid the gambler farewell; their deal complete. Losing his new luck, his riches, and the love his life, the gambler now travels the world telling stories and songs of the river demon, determined to find him again. 2)     Post what times on Saturdays and Sundays you would be available to do weekly games. Also post any times you would be available to do a solo session (read below for details).  Disclaimer : We may not always do main sessions weekly. It may become biweekly if I am busy. Saturdays and Sundays are perfect for me, and I can easily adjust my schedule to the times needed by the party. For the next 3 weeks I’m currently living in Korea but when I return to the States(PST) I’ll be completely free. If needed I can easily schedule a time when I’m free while in Korea for the interview and if you accept me, the solo session. It will most likely have to be on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday either early morning or late afternoon (time differences are weird lol). 3)     What sort of player are you? Do you enjoy being the face of the party? Do you prefer just min maxing and smashing monster face? Note: mechanic-wise, I highly recommend having a variety of characters of different classes since what sort of classes you are willing to play may influence me choosing you. I don’t want to have a party of all rogues or other similar shenanigans that may gimp the party mechanically. I really enjoy playing as support characters, but I have been wanting to experiment with other classes, so any class will do for me. As a player, regardless of class, I’m focused on trying to play my role in the party to the best of my ability and preventing other players from feeling overshadowed or left out. Each class can do specific things perfectly while being weak in other areas, as a player I hope to find the moments to help support everyone to have a moment where their character shines. I love learning about the creative quirks and backstory of everyone’s characters, and hopefully look forward to meeting the party. 4)     What sort of campaign are you looking to play? Specifically, what themes? Do you enjoy tragic stories? Do you enjoy just being a hero and kicking butt? This sort of goes hand in hand with your backstory influencing what sort of themes I focus on. I love an overarching story either developed by the DM or by the players interacting with the world. I think the idea of a major Big Bad showing up at the worst of times is a fun way to play, while offering a chance for the players to not feel railroaded into a single story and have chances to go on sidequest adventures, and really explore the world. I love exploration of both world, and character. I’m looking for a campaign with character development, and possibly character arcs. I love having an “end goal” for each character (if they want one) and an opportunity to reach that goal (or fail) in the far future, while the character continues to change because of the party and their adventures. If you’ll have me I look forward to exploring the world you created and the people in it.  

If you're still accepting here is my application! 1)  Post your potential backstory or several backstories if you wish, in case you will be adapting your character choice to your party. You are not stuck to the backstory you post. Luna was a halfling born into a wealthy family. Growing up was extremely rough and filled with prejudice. She was isolated, from everything. All she really knew was that her family was called " The Oathbreakers”, but she didn’t really understand what that meant or what they had done. What had she done? Her parents took their frustration out on Luna. They would lock her in her room without food, they would beat her, and her father would rape her. She turned to everything and anything that would give her solace from this reality. She started to steal alcohol from her parents, and ultimately try to hide from everything. She would also steal from stores for the rush and excitement of power it made her feel. One day however she found a couple of daggers and started playing around with them. It was fun to be able to feel powerful for a little bit, for the brief moments it happened. After a few weeks, her father had walked into her room while she was playing with the daggers. He started yelling and swung his right fist at her face. She quickly dodged and stabbed him in the arm. He let out a deafening scream and ran out the door. After seeing what she had done, she ended up running away from home that night. She ran so that she could be free and safe. She made it a few towns over and got taken in by a poor family. She spent her days walking around town and pickpocketing to survive. She ran into a band of thieves and they took her in as their own little protégé. "The Ram Rivers" taught her everything she would need to know in order to survive. During a daring heist however her comrades were captured by soldiers. She only barely managed to escape! She watched as they were publicly executed with tears streaming down her eyes. She walked out of the town to start a new life all the while thinking "Never again would she be so powerless! Never again would she let someone take what she cared about from her! Never again will she let a friend die!".    2) Post what times on Saturdays and Sundays you would be available to do weekly games. Also post any times you would be available to do a solo session (read below for details).  Disclaimer : We may not always do main sessions weekly. It may become biweekly if I am busy. Free all day on Saturday and Sunday and most week nights.  3)  What sort of player are you? Do you enjoy being the face of the party? Do you prefer just min maxing and smashing monster face? Note: mechanic-wise, I highly recommend having a variety of characters of different classes since what sort of classes you are willing to play may influence me choosing you. I don’t want to have a party of all rogues or other similar shenanigans that may gimp the party mechanically. I prefer being the slightly strange or weird character that actually will have a personality develop and twist over time. So mostly roleplay.  4) What sort of campaign are you looking to play? Specifically, what themes? Do you enjoy tragic stories? Do you enjoy just being a hero and kicking butt? This sort of goes hand in hand with your backstory influencing what sort of themes I focus on. High fantasy campaigns are pretty cool! Dragons ... need some dragons always. I love tragic stories... read my backstory. She is a chaotic neutral character so she could really fit into either a villian or hero party. She's kind of malleable right now!