| Playing | |
| Next Game Will Be | 1577581200 |
| Total Players Needed | 15 |
| Game Type | Role Playing Game |
| Frequency | Non-Recurring (One-Time) Game |
| Audio / Visual | Voice only |
| Primary Language | English |
| New Players are Welcome | Yes |
| Mature Content(18+) | Yes |
| Pay to Play i | No |
| Pick Up Game i |
Yes
The person running this game has chosen to make it available for any player to join. Please remember that your safety and comfort are always paramount on Roll20, so you may always choose to leave if this group does not work for you. |
This adventure begins in Undermountain and ends below Skullport.
Players can choose to fight in Xanathar's Fighting Arena, Explore Undermountain, Waterdeep - or all the above.
Mommy, Where do intellect devourers come from?
I'm not your mommy, I'm an Illithid.
You came out of that spawning pool right there after I did a maneuver like this:
Nihiloor grabs a manacled man who screams into his ball gag - while the mind flayer's tentacles wrap around his face and throat until a pop! is heard - the breaking of a seal.
Nihiloor grabs onto the manacles for support as she drinks in the delicious noise of fresh memories entering the collective through her as she drains the brain of all its fluids and lovely moments of terror.
She then reaches into her tentacled face and pulls out the brain tissue itself - she holds it in front of the intellect devourer and says:
See - completely drained and ready for fresh instructions.
You like instructions, don't you?
The quadripedal brain nodded its "head" excitedly.
Nihiloor nonchalantly tossed the new brain in the brine and ordered the manacled body to be sent off for recycling by an unseen servant.
We will operate as intellect devourers who operate other creatures like puppets. The Xanathar has certain objectives in Undermountain that require constant vigilance. No one is getting to level 2 on our watch.
This game will focus on certain agents within the Xanathar crime syndicate. We run Undermountain and the fighting arena in Skullport.
Everyone talks about this fight club.
Players begin by making their character pitch to the group and introducing themselves to the game.
Your characters will find themselves outside the Yawning Portal.
They have left their place of comfort and want to explore Undermountain.
Don't go alone.
This workshop will help players learn how to inhabit their character by developing a place of comfort and a want. We begin with exploring the world of Waterdeep, DR 1492 "The Year of Three Ships Sailing". The Characters will decide as a party how to proceed within the City of Splendors. Players can go from random strangers on the internet to immersed in character within 3 rounds.
Most classes, races, class features, and spells from the Core Rulebooks, and the following books are permitted:
My table is supported by the players.
We will teach you everything you need to know to get started using Roll20 without getting bogged down with technical hurdles. Most importantly, you will understand why you need anything that appears on your sheet.
We will offer you help in creating a backstory that introduces a place of comfort and a want.
Introducing yourself and your character to a group is challenging. We can teach you techniques that will give you confidence to present yourself in the best light possible.
We run a ton of games that are never listed on Roll20. Established players participate in open world games that happen between scheduled campaigns.
The established players here are committed and have a stake in the game. The way this table operates solves a number of problems that affect game play between random people on the internet. I can achieve immersion within 3 rounds.
Playing in one shots are fun, but they should not be the way to go all the way to level 20.
Every game at my table is woven together in story and world. All of my big bads are active at all times in my games. Our stories are such that players with two characters have shown up in the same game with competing interests. And they would have to wait until another session to find out how it all happened to their opposing character. It can only happen at a table that is consistent.
Games and campaigns use Milestone leveling in order to tie character development to the story. Milestone advancement uses a declared set of points(say, 20) that must be achieved in order to advance in level. At the end of significant encounters, the group is allowed to roll a die based on the significance of the encounter. Some encounters are a d4, d2, or d20 - which would signify that the next level is near! This system allows the players to see progress and measure the weight of specific encounters as they approach the next milestone.
My campaigns are all Narrative Driven Campaigns. The characters are protagonists who drive the story forward through their actions. Every module, game and session has been custom designed as a challenge for the players present. Major changes are made to plot points and monsters are homebrewed to challenge the characters' specific set of skills. I write my campaigns using the Marvel Method. I keep certain things separated even when I am writing on my own. Everyone in my games starts out in the same place. We can go anywhere from here.
The Preface to the Player's Handbook by Mike Mearls sets the stage for what D&D can be. The style of game that I run at my table has been built on these promises. "To play D&D, and to play it well, you don't need to memorize every detail of the game, or master the fine art of rolling funny looking dice." What's best about the game could be as simple as being able to see a group of people sit around a table and have a conversation in character, in a world that they understand. My free game is dedicated to creating that space as a way to begin any game that I play at my table. I see no reason to cram people into my dungeon holes if they cannot participate in a conversation. I pay for my table, and I pay for everything that I use on it. I built this world, and I did it to teach the basics of D&D. Right now, the biggest failure that I see is reflected in what one of my players said regretfully, "No one talks anymore, they just...." He was right. My lowest bar is deadly. I have a checkbox in my notes next to players names that goes off unticked all the time. "participates in a conversation" doesn't seem like a difficult bar, but it catches the most of the worst out of all my criteria.
My philosophy for Dungeons and Dragons is less like Tolkien and more like Princess Bride. I also have a healthy dose of Time Bandits thrown in (because Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Monty Python - the opening sequence shows the universe appearing on a grid... ).
I care about creating epic adventures. I care about helping every player achieve their vision for their character. I care about creating a world that we can all dream of. I do everything I can to create an environment that supports everyone involved.
I approach the game using tools I learned in film school (SIU, Cinema & Photography 2014). Everything that happens before we start recording a session is pre production. I use the same tools I used to deconstruct Akira Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress (1953, Tohoscope) to develop my encounters. Every D&D game should feel like a vignette from a film.
I am a Dungeon Master with a film degree. Dan Harmon's Story Circle concept is a useful way to apply Joseph Campbell's Hero with a Thousand Faces theory to TTRPG.
Dan Harmon, Writer of Rick and Morty, Community, and HarmonQuest has developed a theory that he applies in his writing.
1:) A character is in a place of COMFORT
2:) But they WANT something
3:) So they go somewhere WEIRD
4:) ADAPT to it
5:) They GET what they wanted
6:) But they have to PAY
7:) They RETURN
8:) Having CHANGED
This is a Supported Table. My table is supported by the players via Patreon -Dr Frank's Profile. I offer free games and an open world through the Character Creation Workshop. The workshop allows us to do character creation and maintain narrative continuity within all games. This process also allows us to overcome the awkwardness of introducing a new player in the middle of a campaign. Everything works much easier when people are given the chance to get to know each other during a fake drinking contest. And arm wrestling.
If any of my players detect anyone promoting other discord servers at my table, they will be required to immediately pay for the session. The cost will be $15 and an apology to the table. We are looking for consistent players. I pay for Roll20, I pay for all of my licenses and I pay my own bills. My players are not interested in joining a free gaming cult that bounces around from game to game. I run a consistent table made up of players who HATE the kind of players who normalize this behavior. If you identify as the kind of person who feels entitled to wasting other players time, please do not apply.
I offer Co-DM services for Dungeon Masters who want to run games on Roll20. We use every tool at our disposal in the games that we run at my table. My minigames are as important as the games that Undermountain uses to build itself. I can pack a lot of information onto a GM layer. I have a style, and I can help you express yours.
Your character is leaving the known and heading into the unknown. There are loads of handouts and information about Waterdeep in the game and in the Discord server.
The instructions here are simple.
A backstory needs two narrative beats:
a place of comfort
and a want.Everything else is up to the writer. Something led your character to this place. If the rest of the players have taken the time to write a backstory, I will not offer an equal seat at a table to a player who chooses not to participate in a narrative driven campaign. The word protagonist means to play the first part; to take the first action. I will give players the ability to take this action, but it begins with their backstory and what led them to the world that they find themselves in. Players who won't write a backstory may be NPCs, as long as they follow directions well.
Most of the time that I hear this question, the player is actually asking to play an anti hero. They want to play someone dark and brooding. If a player wants to be Guts from Berserk, they are going to have to commit to serious character development. I will develop entire campaigns around this concept. A show like Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul have story arcs that take the characters through complex changes based on how they deal with the challenges that they are struggling against. That process isn't easy, simple, or something that can be done in a single session. Playing a proper anti hero requires coordination and buy in from everyone in the campaign.
If a player wants to play an evil character, I have games that have been developed from big bads from our campaigns. Players can play as Undertakers, a gang of failed actors who run a circus in Undermountain. Players can play as Goblins who run a bizarre bazaar in Undermountain. Players can operate markets outside the Yawning Portal and in Skullport.
Regardless, any character developed in this game will have to stand up to the scrutiny of the other players. We are not into generic fantasy clichés, and we offer solid critique as a practice.
In addition to the Roll20 Code of Conduct that you have already agreed to by joining Roll20, by applying to this game, you also agree to follow all of the rules that are laid out in this document.
I take complaints from players seriously. Anyone who ruins another person's experience will have a very short life at my table. Anyone who tries to create a contest between player and DM will be silenced on Discord immediately. Anyone who uses woman as a pejorative will be ridiculed quickly.
Cricket - Darts
This classic game has been re-imagined in D&D. This game is incredibly competitive and gets the dice rolling. Also, wild magic surges happen that might turn everything upside down.
Drinking Contest
This seemingly silly game enforces an important concept in role playing. The player begins with a toast, rolls a con save, and then reacts to the results. Players who understand this game learn to stop throwing dice at a DM before being asked. It also gives players a chance to practice playing their character in a confused state.
Arm Wrestling
The arm wrestling contest that we run is a multi step challenge that uses disadvantage and advantage to set the difficulty between contestants. This creates an intense game of player vs player.
Fishing Contest
The fishing contest allows players to create a story that utilizes 3 skills to accomplish a task. Then the characters eat their winnings.
Newspaper game
In order to earn renown with the Newspaper guild, characters can sell 100 newspapers to argumentative citizens of Waterdeep. We look up contentious issues and take three opposing issues on two different newspapers. Between the arguments of the citizens, the characters compete for newspaper sales.
Food Fight
Any combat in the Yawning Portal had better be non-lethal and a declared contest. A declared contest begins with using the issues from the newspaper game to get established players cranked up and ready to declare a contest. The game uses skill checks and random non lethal weapons.
Dinosaur Race
This race allows the players to choose a dinosaur and run in an unchained race. Anything can happen and usually does.
Pickpocket the Cult of People Who Give People Dirty Looks - in the park
This game teaches players how to properly break line of sight to hide, how to stealth, and how to use distraction to get advantage at sleight of hand checks. And how to deal with intimidation checks.
Wanted! These people are worth 500 dragons, hunt them down and catch them
This is my longest running game.
Boaty McBoatface
Load the Ballista!!!! Fire the Ballista!!!
Hunt down pirates, board their ship and take over their shipping lanes. Find the hidden island and get resources for the gang's health potion facility. Find a way to take over the Black Blade and Bloody Boar and run your own fight club.
(This isn't a minigame, it's the what the current homebrew game is up to.)Gambly games
We have working versions of Roulette, Craps, Dinosaur race betting, and Queen's Quick Call. Queen's Quick Call is a d6 version of Texas Hold em that Matt Mercer used in Critical Role once. We also make bets on characters who go into Undermountain, because Ed Greenwood told us to.
We will run these games before running a rando encounter or one shot of adventures we have available here at my table. The first few sessions that a player participates in will help them get to know people at the table in a way that makes it easy to get to know each other.
If two players want to schedule a one shot, I will work with them to organize a game. I run games full time and have time slots available throughout the week.
The Xanathar
We operate as intellect devourers who operate other creatures like puppets. The Xanathar has certain objectives in Undermountain that require constant vigilance. No one is getting to level 2 on our watch. This game will focus on certain agents within the Xanathar crime syndicate. We run level 1 and the fighting arena in Skullport.
Everyone talks about this fight club.
The XanatharShake Down! The Dungeon of the Mad Mage
Convince adventurers who venture into Undermountain to pay a small price for the opportunity to see a grand show. A three ringed circus! You have been able to decorate the Hall of Heroes to look like the entrance to an amazing spectacle of a Circus. If the adventurers appreciate freedom, beauty, truth and love, they should be able to pay a little coin to enterprising entrepreneurs like yourselves.
Shake Down! The Dungeon of the Mad Mage
The Ruins of Undermountain
Durnan will allow lower level adventurers access to Undermountain for a price. The adventurers usually come back in a few hours, drunk and demanding that they need more beer to heal themselves. This version is a living dungeon and is based on all versions of Undermountain. I use the old school grid maps along with detailed battle maps for certain rooms. Everyone who goes into this dungeon effects it in certain ways. This dungeon is alive and is building itself as we explore it.
The Goblin House
Somewhere behind a stage in Undermountain, there is a green door. Your party was given instructions for safe passage to this place in order to pay a ransom for a deed that was stolen by the Goblins.
The Goblin Run
Face off on a massive battle field encounter with different rules than normal. It might be a hellscape where you are forced to live over and over, seeing multiple copies of your dead bodies when you "respawn". You wonder if you can use your dead body for cover, and as you dive for it, you find out that it works. gross. big battlefield with two sets of armies that get more powerful as you fight them. this is an incredible battle simulator that uses Greyhawk Initiative and multiple sets of enemies that are being operated by competing DMs. The GM runs the game while the DMs run the monsters. Nil Bog Boh.
This game happens here.
Big Boss Big Boss Battles
Face off with big boss battles from modules we have already run. Relive old battles with new friends using our Helm of Virtual Reality here in the guild tower.
This game happens here.
Druid's Grove
Druid's Grove is a hidden gem in the Obsidian Bay world. Characters have to travel back to Obsidian Bay in order to find Druid's Grove. It used to be right around the corner from the Welcome Wench, but that was before the move to Waterdeep.
The Snout of Omgar
Volo says "Do NOT go to Chult!", but the more he talks, the more you want to go to Chult.
Go to the Snout of Omgar and tour the beautiful Dangwaru. (all inclusive)Mordenkainen's Fantastic Adventure
Play as Mordenkainen the Mage at 12th level, Bigby the Necromancer, Riggby the Cleric and Yrag the Fighter. These were all Gary Gygax's own characters, reset for 5e.
This dungeon was originally designed for the members of the Lake Geneva Tactical Studies Association back in 1972 -1973.
These long term campaigns have all run for over 3 months. Some have reset into the current game setting of Waterdeep recently.
Reng's Game
Reng's Game is focused on combat. The goal of the game is to get as many hammers dropped on the party as possible. The group has transformed from a gang of Battle Master fighters with darkness behind them to a flying, teleporting gang of warriors who defend a town on the frontier.
Waterdeep: Dragon Heist
All three of these campaigns re-started when Waterdeep: Dragon Heist was released. Each of the groups have attained wildly different goals and have aligned themselves with different factions. The businesses that they run are all different, demonstrating the incredible variation available in the module.
Waterdeep: Dragon Heist & Undermountain
Seeking applicants:
Tuesday Dragon Heist & Undermountain
Thursday Dragon Heist & UndermountainRun your game NOW!
It only takes two players to get a campaign started. Once I have a core group to support the game, we can run a Worldbuilding Session 0 for a campaign. This session will allow us to establish the parameters for the entire campaign. We plan everything from level 0 to level 20, Campaign setting, Homebrew rules, everything. My players have as much control over their games as I can possibly give to them. Right up to the moment where the meta ends, and the game begins....
Worldbuilding
Do you want to be a GM, and run your own games? I can give you the tools that you need. I have a year long headstart and a full time commitment to successful campaigns to draw from. You can start building your world and testing the pieces of it before you get started with a complete campaign. Undermountain is a dungeon that allows the campaign to build it as it goes. You can build your entire campaign using the same kind of logic that Ed Greenwood baked into his modules and his books. I have maps, encounters, strategies, tactics, goals, implementation, session management, sage advice and the experience that comes from doing something well.
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