The Age of Magic Approaches Its End While Kingdoms swell and wane in the World of Oliviae, The Age of Magic is dying. The Kingdom of Chain occupies a dominant seat at the global table of powers thanks to its technical prowess, particularly in marine trade and travel. Many would perpetuate the idea that these developments in technology ought be solely accredited to the Gnomish Corps of Chain Engineers, however there is far more than meets the eye when examining what fuels these innovative machinations. Lindauson, a fledgling nation, struggles to maintain the independence they so desperately fought for just shy of a century ago. A number of provincial farms have fallen under a blight that threatens to choke the life from the land itself. While some provinces suffer, others thrive, and as the eve of elections approach several suspicious fingers have begun pointing. Empires are not free from political turmoil either. Politically the Corumese Empire is controlled by a patriarchal emperor, whose successor is their first-born son. Each emperor selects seven advisers, one of which is only consulted in the event of a tied decision. While the emperor will always come from the royal family, nobility are desperate to become appointed as the immensely powerful 7th adviser. On the heels of an adviser's passing, nobles and guild heads alike have begun vying for a spot on the council all feigning ignorance to the unexplained circumstance surrounding Adviser Naboru's death. Rumors of dark or demonic magics flourish across the Eastern continent, growing wilder with each retelling. Terrified peasants congregate in the cities, abandoning their farms with no explanation. Others simply disappear. Unseen forces tug at the strands of fate, before we find ourselves centered on a few loose threads soon to find themselves inextricably intertwined. Campaign Information Game: D&D 5e Date: Weekly on Thursdays Time: 6:00 to 9:00PM CST VTT/VOIP: Roll20 with voice chat via Discord [must have a working mic with acceptable quality] Experience level: All are welcome, but you must be serious about knowing your character's story and mechanics Payment: $10 per player per session via PayPal Roll20's required payment disclaimer: "This game will require payment to the Game Master at a rate of $10 per player per session via PayPal. Roll20 is not responsible for any payment transactions and cannot enforce any private arrangements." Character Information Characters start at Level 3 Attributes are determined by a 27 point-buy system All published material [PHB, Xanathar's, Tasha's, etc.] content is allowed Fixed HP or Reroll 1's for HP maximum DM Information I've been running D&D and other TTRPGs for years, and have spent about one year developing the world that this campaign will be set in. I invest a lot of time out of game in watching and reading guides online pertaining to being a better GM, and I welcome all criticism and input in order to give everyone at my table a fun and memorable experience. I hate the DM vs. PC mentality that some DMs have, and while I want the party to succeed there is no such thing as plot armor in my games. The only victories worth having are those that were hard-fought. No Railroads. There are threads to tug around mysteries you may find worth unraveling, but that will be for you as a party to decide. The characters in the party will occupy the vast majority of the unfolding plot, and as such you will get out what you put in. That means the more involved in character creation you get, and the more I have to work with, the greater the depth of your character's potential story. Check the Rules-Lawyering. There are going to be times where in the heat of battle certain rules or facets therein won't be fully adhered. The point of this campaign is to have fun telling a collaborative story with people who are all invested in that story, and the rules serve as a means to make tension and maintain balance. If I have to make a call on the fly, we roll with it and move the story forward until next session. The Story Is About The PCs! I can't state this enough. I will be taking the seeds you give me from your characters and planting them throughout my world to be discovered by the party as you explore and adventure across the Eastern continent. We will start somewhere that makes sense depending on what characters you all decide to create, however there are no 'invisible barriers' preventing travel. PPS Information There are so many roadblocks in the way of finding a worthwhile RPG experience, many of which are magnified in the current VTT environment. Most free-to-play games are plagued with issues: poor attendance/drop-outs, unprepared players and/or DMs that selfishly waste the time of the rest of us at the table, filling out application after application just to be rejected or ignored or accepted into a group where the aforementioned problems end up killing your campaign. The idea behind putting up a pay wall is simple: player and DM buy-in. With a paid session you are saying that your time and entertainment is worth investing in and you get the assurance that everyone else at the table feels the same. For me, as the DM I have a social and now financial obligation to provide a player-driven, entertaining, and worthwhile experience with the incentive to produce more. How Do I Join? This is an essentially new campaign, though we have had 2 introductory sessions. One player dropped so you will be picking up in the middle of an adventure. The party is still in the getting-to-know-each-other phase so your character won't stick out, and we will work together to fully integrate you into the party without issue. If you'd like to join, go ahead and post here or send me a message but make sure you follow this format: Your tag on Discord: Can you make it weekly on Thursdays at 6pm CST? How likely are you to be late?: Do you have a good microphone that you know works consistently?: Do you understand that the game costs $10 per session via PayPal?: Briefly describe what you're looking for from this campaign: Your overall D&D/TTRPG experience: Provide a few details about your 3rd level character idea(s) such as name, class, race, and backstory.: