For a Fistful of Pennies "People wearing blades at their hips and armor at their shoulders love to tell you why their lives are scite. They are right, obviously, but never for the reasons they blather on about. It’s always “My ma was killed by bandits” or “my house was burned by skrael” or “I felt it was the right thing to do.” All are answers to the same question: “Why are you willing to shove a knife through a gullet for a handful of coppers?” And all the answers come down to: “I had no choice.” But there’s always a choice, isn’t there? Eight centuries ago, the first Free Company sank their armored boots into the Kingless Shores. They weren't the first, as the vast graveyards of empires and the barbarian hordes that occupied them showed. And they certainly weren't the last, as waves of the desperate, the oppressed, and the avaricious joined them, from here and from across the sea. They wandered the ancient windswept coast, raiding, lackeying, conquering, and building as they trampled this bitter soil. They are hated, loved, and hated again. A new Company is forming in Erendhon. It will not the first Free Company nor the last. But what a Free Company sows and reaps? There's always a choice." Introduction For a Handful of Pennies* is an immersive campaign designed not (necessarily) to be an adventure to save the world but rather an intimate, personalized experience for a small group of players seeking a tight character-driven story. Roleplaying and exploration take center stage as we follow your Free Company through a rich world inspired by 1st Edition AD&D’s Forgotten Realms and the book Name of the Wind. The GM I am Jed, an 8 year veteran of roleplaying. I started with Star Wars Saga Edition, played in an AD&D campaign, spent college playing Pathfinder, and have been playing 5e since it was in the beta stages. I’ve DMed for 7 of those years offline and online. I draw and develop games as a contract dev in my off time. What to expect? - You can expect a relatively somber campaign that’s structured episodically. The overall tone is going to depend on what you want, but I tend to lean towards intimate stories. You are likely not here to save the world. You are playing as adventurers and sellswords, but not necessarily heroes. Yet. -There will be well fleshed-out NPCs with a life of their own. -There will be hand-drawn maps, illustrations, and voice acting. - This campaign will be structured so that at the end of every two months we’ve gone through an arc and then we decide if and when we want to continue. - The game’s feel is designed to play like a mixture of an old-school map exploration game but centered around the personal journeys instead of dungeons. Expect encounters to be fast and combat to be lethal. The best option may not always be the sword. - There are going to be two equivalents of “session 0”. The first is a short one for each player in which I arrange a time to talk to each player individually and listen to their character pitch. I will then shop around for ideas to fully inmesh the character within the setting. The other one is going to be an introductory session, in which we sort out the party’s relationships with each other. - I will foster a player culture of collaborative story-telling, as I do with all my games. I will highly encourage use of text RP channels to further develop character dynamics. - You can expect not only an inclusive player space but also an inclusive narrative space. You can play any gender, sexuality, or social class you want **as long as you are respectful of the people you are depicting.** - Expect curveballs. Tons of narrative curveballs. - Game time is **probably to be Tuesdays** at 7 CST, but liable to change if there’s a day that works better. - Session 0 proper is free and every succeeding session is 10 dollars/per person via paypal. If we cancel as a group, you won’t pay that session. Why is it paid? The money is partially there to insure attendance and ensure I’m getting people who have read this and want to be involved, but it’s also because I spend an inordinate amount of time preparing for sessions, particularly because of how personal I try to keep them. It’s a significant time investment that is hard to justify when I’m also a contract game developer. I want to maintain a high standard of quality. What do I expect? - Be respectful of other players: - Be on time or text me if you’re going to be late. - Be mature about issues of sexuality, gender, and race out-of-character. - Avoid talking about politics (as defined by modern political figures, specific real-world policies, and your pet socio-economic order). This is a hard one for everyone, especially me, but it’s a necessity. If you want to use a relevant social issue in your character, talk to me privately and we’ll go on a case-by-case basis. - Avoid monopolizing time. Your rule of thumb should always be well-paced conversations. - Be willing to talk in-character and often. - We’ll have breaks to talk OoC in the beginning, middle, and end of the session. If you have a joke or a quip, it goes straight to text. Note: I’m bad at ignoring and I may even laugh. - When we are in the early stages of planning, bring a theme or set of themes you want to explore with your character. Examples include: Grief, Belonging, Inheritance, Acceptance, etc. - Make a compelling reason or personal flaw why you have been rejected by society and have to be an adventurer. - I don’t expect you to be experienced with D&D at all or be an expert RPer but always try to do your best and if you come to a dilemma, try to make the most interesting and consistent decision to your character. House Rules? - Bring one or two character concepts; PHB races and the Sword Coast Adventurer’s guide races are allowed and all classes/archetypes except psychic. PHB Ranger is banned in favor of the Revised Ranger. - Roll 3d6 and assign stats as appropriate. If you roll average, note that it shouldn’t be crippling in this kind of game. If you roll way below average (multiple stats below ten and no stats higher than 12 is an example), I will allow one reroll. - Narrative and fun will trump rules. - I will likely veto any character that would be considered straight chaotic evil in other games. - We’re starting at Levels 3-10. We're looking for up to four more players but we'll run with a smaller number. The listing is here. Post that you are interested and I'll get you started: <a href="https://app.roll20.net/lfg/listing/220361/for-a-handful-of-pennies" rel="nofollow">https://app.roll20.net/lfg/listing/220361/for-a-handful-of-pennies</a>