This game will require payment to the Game Master at a rate of $10 USD per weekly session via Paypal. Roll20 is not responsible for any payment transactions and cannot enforce any private arrangements. There will be no charge for Game 0, and a refund (minus Paypal Fees) will be offered if you do not wish to continue after Game 1. I'm looking for 3-5 players to join this game, although I may have a few already interested. I'm a very experienced DM (22 years as of 2020) looking to begin the module The Sunless Citadel from Tales From the Yawning Portal , and follow it with The Forge of Fury , which will begin in remote village called Julkoun in Forgotten Realms. I'm aiming Session 0 to be on Monday, February 3rd of this year, assuming a weekday night would work for everyone. I'll start each game at 5 :00pm PST , and each game will last 4-5 hours . I have a lot of experience teaching D&D 5E to new players. Game Zero will be free to anyone who wants to join and build characters, and we'll run the beginning of the adventure as well. If anyone wants to come in for a later game I'll treat that as an introductory game as well (meaning it will be free for that player for that game). This campaign will tie into some of my other campaigns set in Forgotten Realms, and they may influence each other based the player's actions. I keep a detailed timeline of events in each game. I encourage a lot of roleplaying and voice acting, but I also like a lot of tactical combat (50/50 split). For good roleplaying I give 1-3 points of inspiration for a long game (6-9 hours) or 1 point for roleplaying for a short game (3-5 hours), which I keep track of in an inspiration pool (which can be used between games if you come into a second game – up to 30 points). I'll be using illustrated maps for this adventure, which includes the village of Julkoun, any random encounters and for the dungeon crawl. If you would like to join my game, you can find the LFG listing here: <a href="https://app.roll20.net/lfg/listing/192195/the-sunless-depths-of-fury-and-thunder" rel="nofollow">https://app.roll20.net/lfg/listing/192195/the-sunless-depths-of-fury-and-thunder</a> Intro to the Adventure The village of Julkoun lies off the beaten path within the Delimbiyr Vale, a lightly settled land many miles east of Waterdeep, named after the Delimbiry River from the south of the High Forest, then west out to the Trackless Sea. Julkoun is about halfway between Daggerford to the southwest and Secomber to the northeast, home of the Jester's Pride (ranked by the great Marco Volo as a fine inn) and a small shrine to Chauntea. For the twelfth summer in a row the people of Julkoun have paid a local goblin tribe for a single, mysterious apple, which is rumored to cure diseases and heal all wounds to those who eat it. Meanwhile, the few travelers who visit the town tell horrible stories about of giants roaming the hills and attacking villages across the North. Lastly, a group of mercenaries arrived in town weeks ago, intent on exploring some old ruins up in the hills called the Sunless Citadel, but have not returned in over a month. Now, for reasons that the simple folk of Julkoun can not fathom, a second group of adventurers forms one lonely evening at the Jester's Pride, not long after coming into town... The World of Forgotten Realms Forgotten Realms host numerous continents, most predominantly the expansive lands of Faerun. Most of the nations and city-states across the Realms share similarities to their Earth based counterparts. Cormyr is a feudal kingdom, not unlike medieval England; Mulhorand lies in the far eastern desert, where great and ancient pyramid stands; and then there's Amn: an expansive nation that has colonized the western coast of Maztica to bring exotic wonders and the wealth of the Newfound World to its capitol. Most people are good aligned in Faerun, although out in the backwater lands, such as the Delimbiry, just as many are more neutral. However, isolated towns and cities in remote places are said to be controlled by organized groups of evil men, cabals of dark wizards and in one case, with Thay, an entire nation of powerful wizards who are bent on conquest. Forgotten Realms is a land interconnected with schemes from various factions, be it the meddling Harpers, the nefarious Red Wizards of Thay, the Arcane Brotherhood of Luskan, the Torches of Berdusk or even infamous Cult of the Dragon. Many a mercenary may secretly be working for one organization or another. The gods of the realms have their temples littered across the Realms as well. Over a dozen temples stand in Waterdeep, and a small shrine to Chauntea, the goddess of agriculture and motherhood, stands in Julkoun. Everywhere one goes one can hear legends about when the gods were made to walk the Realms in mortal form, how an order of paladins of Tempus (god of battle) are fighting against the giants in the far north, or most close to home, how the Morninglow Tower (Daggerford's temple of Lathander - god of the sunrise, springtime and athletics) has been sending its priests into the lost depths of the world to bring light where it hasn't been seen in centuries. About the DM My name is Andrew James Woodyard and I've been DMing since 1998. I started my first campaign when I was in high school, running a very loose 2E adventure campaign. I graduated to 3 rd Edition and 3.5, then continued to run a very roleplaying heavy 4 th Edition game. My 4E game at the time attracted players who would ordinarily only play Pathfinder and other 3E systems, mostly because I wasn't totally focused on combat. I have since embraced 5E as my core system. I prefer a good mix of roleplaying and tactical combat, with a strong emphasis on voice acting. I grant players a pool of inspiration as a house rule. Players can earn between 1-3 points of inspiration per game, and can pool up to 30 points (which I allow to be used across all my games if you're playing in more than one). I'm a very lenient DM, and I tend to allow a lot of class/race/alignment combinations (although I'd prefer a good background for a weird combo character or an oddball race). Although I will set up an adventure/locale for player characters to explore, I like to give my players a lot of choices, to hand you the reigns of what direction the group wants to go. Generally, I prefer to give you several solid directions by the end of the game, where in the next game I will have finished material ready to follow up on the direction the group decided on prior. Most of my games have been in Forgotten Realms, although I have run a few in Planescape, Greyhawk and Dark Sun. I keep detailed timelines of all my games, and I give players the opportunity to effect events long term in my games. Some of my campaigns have collided with each other and effected each other, with adventurers that took place a decade or two ago still leaving their mark on games I'm running today. Professionally, I'm a trained Illustrator (I received my BFA from California State University Fullerton in 2017 and I'll be completing my MFA, also in Illustration, at the same university in May of this year). If you've played in Forgotten Realms then you may have seen my regional maps of Anchorome, Maztica, Dark Senora and or Lopango, or maybe my city maps of Yartar or Mirabar. I also do character illustrations, portraits, landscapes, battle maps, as well as sequential art for commission. I'm also a regular contributor on DMG, where I publish many of my older adventure, new classes, feats (I put the first packet of new feats up right after the site was launched and it still sells well), monsters and other supplements. I've run extensive games in Undermountain, and have detailed nearly half the rooms of the first level of the mega-dungeon (which can be found in several PDFs on DMG). Why should someone Pay to Play and RPG? I send a lot of time developing, writing, researching and adding illustrative elements to my games. In the case of a module, I try to flesh out the material laid out, to make the world seem real, not unlike a fantasy novel. In recent years I have been running both current and old edition modules, and have gotten to the point where the only way I can afford to run any additional games is to take time off from my illustration work to run a paid game in order to make up the difference. I do run a few other personal games with a close group of friends as well, and I'm not against bringing in good players into some of those games (free of charge if the chance arises and the situation would work), on top of the professional games that I run. There's a lot I can offer that less experienced DM's can't: I research all the modules and settings that I place my games in. I want Forgotten Realms to feel like the rich, immersive, insanely detailed setting that Forgotten Realms is, and I want Greyhawk to feel as grim and feudal as it is supposed to feel. When I reference things like the Old Skull Inn, the Lanceboard Room or the village of Hommlet, then it's because I want you to know that you're playing in a game where those famous places exist and if need be you can go there. I produce original content, even if I'm running a module. A lot of times this may be the introduction of a new type of monster, NPC, or if the group wishes to travel to a new local then I'd produce a traveling adventure that feels like your characters are on a journey: complete with weather conditions, the rations you eat, run down inns you stay at, and travelers you meet on the road. I use unique voices for NPCs and creatures that you encounter. Not every orc is just some pig-headed, dumb brute (some are). Some have high pitched voices, while some others are oddly friendly. On more than one occasion a seemingly hostile giant turned out to be a cheerful fellow, although just as many may be domineering and brutal. I set up all the logistics of my game ahead of time: scheduling adventurers, planning each game session, and dealing with game issues between players. Even if a campaign ends and the story line is complete then I prefer to find ways to continue with a group of characters. Most campaigns don't last beyond 10 th level or so, but I've managed to piece together higher level characters from many different parties into new bands that have continued on to new, often perilous adventurers. I use dynamic lighting for my games and prep ahead of time where difficult terrain lies in game, as well as other terrain features that groups can interact with. I also have encounters set up ahead of time so you don't have to wait for me to build them during the game. I keep myself available to communicate as often as I am able with my players, and to work with players who may have issues making it to a game, or issues with other players. If you have to miss a game, for example, I would prefer to write in a valid reason why your character isn't there. That way the next time you play I can reintroduce you to the game, and it doesn't seem like you just missed something big for no reason, as your character probably had something important to do in the meantime. I understand and can take constructive criticism. You may not agree with every rule I have, every idea I come up with, or with every decision I make in game, but I'll listen to any issues you have with my DMing (preferably after a game). Keeping that in mind, I don't just bend to what any random player thinks, but I do consider their opinions on how to run a better game. I welcome a diverse group of players from all walks of life. I do not allow racist, sexist, trans/homophobic, or kink-shaming behavior in my games. I have my own opinions about politics and religion, but I don't try to sway my players on either side or bring anything like that up in games. If players wish to discuss such issues I prefer they do so after a game. I will only allow people to play in my games who show respect to each other, and respect me as a DM as well. Players who are hostile or aggressive to other players or to me will not be allowed into future games. This game will require payment to the Game Master at a rate of $10 USD per weekly session via Paypal. Roll20 is not responsible for any payment transactions and cannot enforce any private arrangements. There will be no charge for Session 0, and a refund (minus Paypal Fees) will be offered if you do not wish to continue after Session 1. I do also accept tips as a DM if you're feeling generous. I put a lot of energy into my games so a few extra bucks to buy an energy drink or two goes a long way :)
