D&D Essentials, Session 1

Half the session was taken with the players rolling up characters. Bryan is playing an eladrin wizard named Dayereth Dawnfire, Sam a dwarf knight named Harlok Shieldbearer, Brian a dwarf stormpriest named Falin Thrall, and Scott a human rogue named Mr. Grimes.

The story begins as they so often do at the Sturdy Mug Tavern, a famed dwarf ale-house in the town of Threshold, along the Northern border of the Kingdom of Karameikos. Harlok, Thalen, and Mr. Grimes are seated at a table drinking fine brew, eyeing the Dwarf wench Clover Peaches, and ignoring the “Weezer and Ned Experience,” two local watchmen who moonlight as troubadours at the tavern.

While relaxing, they are approached to take on two seemingly separate missions. Thalen Thrall’s immediate superior in the church, the High Priest Throngil Cloudgatherer, asks Thalen and his friends to stop bandit attacks along the King’s Road between Threshold and Whartston Hall, a walled village 25 miles to the north. He also asks Thalen to investigate possible Shadowfell activity in the area. He mentions that the heroes should talk to Baron Padraig in Whartston Hall, who may have more to offer as to information concerning the bandits. The eladrin Dayereth offers to join the party as they are heading north. He states that his teacher, the archmage Andarriel, is working on a spell to close gates to the shadowfell, but he needs certain components to accomplish this. The first component is the heart of a white dragon. He shows the others a magic compass that points to the heart of the nearest white dragon. Substantial rewards are offered and money changes hands. Mr. Grimes purchases a horse at Muleskinner Joe’s Mystical Mules! (and horses), and the heroes leave town.

After an uneventful afternoon and evening on the King’s Road, the heroes stop at the Three-legged Unicorn, a fortified inn, where they hear more stories of attacks on merchants to the north. Especially talkative is a Halfling cloth merchant named Julius Winterbottom, who was not attacked but knew several merchants who were. He and Mr. Grimes spent much of the evening discussing cloth, and Julius sold a bolt of red velvet to Dayereth, who immediately changed it to green velvet.

The next morning, the heroes continue on their way to Whartston Hall. A couple hours into their journey, they hear the sounds of battle on the road ahead. Mr. Grimes spurs his horse to investigate. Reaching the crest of the hill, he sees two carts on the road, with several people laying face down by them. Off to the right he hears several whistles and badly imitated animal noises. Leaving the road, he gets off his horse and sneaks through the woods to discover where the noise is coming from.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group, seeing the scene below, rush down the hill to investigate, weapons drawn. One person by a cart begins to slowly rise. Harlok asks, “What’s going on here?”

The man slowly rises. “Only,” he says, drawing a longsword, “your deaths! Attack!” The man hits Harlok with a savage blow, but Harlok returns the favor and wounds the man with his great axe. The man’s visage changes into a creature none of the characters recognize.

Suddenly, several kobolds rush out behind boulders along the road and attack the heroes. One hits Harlok from behind and another engages Thalen in combat. A kobold slinger hits Dayereth with a bullet. The eladrin retaliates with a freezing blast that obliterates two kobolds.

Meanwhile, a larger kobold emerges from the wood near Mr. Grimes hiding place. He barks an order at the kobolds.

What will happen next? . . .

Living Traveller Campaign

Check this out:

http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/living-traveller.php

Basically our characters could be part of 'the world' of traveller, very cool....

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Because you asked for it I've added a hit counter to the lower right section of the blog.

Need a Healing Potion?

Ever needed a healing potion in real life? Well, now thanks to the folks at Jones Pure Cane Soda, you can carry one on you at all times! Check out these limited edition Dungeons and Dragons inspired sodas:

http://www.myjones.com/limited/wizards

I couple of the names seem weak... Sneak Attack? That's the best you can do? Really? And I'm majorly bummed that the Dwarven Draught is non-alcoholic. But overall, they are very cool and the themes are very appealing. How cool would it be to whip out a healing potion and gulp it down at the gaming table the next time your character drinks one? Lets see you do it in a round six seconds while moving thirty feet like you expected your torchbearer to do in your last gaming session! Chug, boy, chug!

Colonial Gothic Episode 3

Episode 3, October 6, 2010

As the Heroes slept a fire raged in the Tavern. The Preacher awoke first to a heavy smoke filling the room. Waking his friend they then woke Erich and the Doctor. The Doctor went downstairs to find the common room in flames and no way to make it to the front door while the rest of the Hero's broke open the other rooms to save the other guests. Finding all the room empty the Hero's then made their escape out various windows.

In front of the tavern they were met with several of the towns people that were making a wasted effort of getting water out of a well to bucket it onto the inferno. In a few hours it had burned itself down to being contained in the stone Tavern walls. It was then that the Minister Jacob arrived. The owner of the tavern went right to him and was saying some hasty words in Germany as rest of the town stood listening. The Doctor made out that they believed that the strangers had brought demons upon the Tavern and they were responsible for the building burning down. The Doctor was quick to interject and say that they didn't do it but the Minister then told him and the crowd that the Heroes did indeed have satanic papers, as admitted to himself by the Preacher himself. And that those very same papers that they brought into a good Christan home were the most likely cause of the fire. It was here that the Heroes realized that they were encircled by angry townspeople. The Preacher offered to burn the document but instead he was grab by two men as a third ran up with a barrel of tar. The Preacher prayed for God to deliver him from the trial of being tared and feathered. At this Erich clubbed one of the townsmen that was holding the Preacher while Brian punched the other. This was all as the Doctor put his pistol to Minister Jacobs head and demanded that everyone stop.

The tar bucket was put down and the ladies with feather pillows dropped them to the ground. The Doctor explained that they did indeed have a paper like the Minister said but that they were there to root out evil and punish it. They then burnt the paper they had found with Jeremiah Knots belongings. The townspeople then cleared them a path out of town and the doctor apologized to the Minister for holding a gun to him and told him it was not loaded anyway. With that the Hero's ran out of town.

Once they got out of sight of the crowd they cut into the woods and made their way back to the church. Getting the keys and a candle with holder from the shack that was the parsonage they entered the church. The light of pre-dawn made the cut glass window behind the altar glow. This window was of an angel and devil intertwined in battle. Searching the church they found a trapdoor in the isle. Taking candles from the altar they climbed down into the cellar.

The ladder lead to a small room with a packed dirt floor they lit their candles and opened the only door in the room. Within was a dead man on one of the two operating tables that were in the laboratory. The man had been dead for some days because his skin had started to turn dark green. Looking around by candle light they found a model skeleton in the corner along with many types of medications, most being for the preservation of flesh. Finding a book on a counter brought the skeleton in the corner to life and Brian stood amazed as it reached for Erich shoulder. After quite a long scuffle they killed the skeleton.

Hearing footsteps above them the Preacher put his ear to the trap door and heard Minister Jacob talking. "Search the place. Who knows what they've done to our sanctuary or how long they've been among us. Check under the runner, there in the isle!" With that the Preacher grabbed the door ring to keep it from being open while all the rest of the Heroes hung onto him to help. The ring on the trapdoor finally broke and the townspeople started to pry it open. Trapped in the cellar Brian spent a Faith Point and found a escape tunnel leading to the parsonage.

Outside the parsonage, strange book in hand, they could see townspeople milling around the church. They then decided they needed a distraction so they could burn down the church to cleanse the evil below it. With that they went through the woods back to the empty town. They then started several of the homes on fire and escaped back into the woods to head for the church.

The townspeople had left the church to save their home and the Heroes set to starting the church on fire. As they worked Minister Jacob arrived on his horse. From a distance he cursed them and wove his hands in the air as the Doctor and Erich loaded their rifles. Brian drew his saber and charged after the villain. Once the Heroes rifles had been loaded they couldn't get a shot of because the villain and Brian were in melee. As this transpired the Preacher kept attending the fire as a hand broke out of a grave behind him. As the villain tried to escape his horse tripped throwing him from the saddle (Erich spent a Faith Point) and Brian engaged him again. Striking the villain down the zombie fell dead into the Preachers fire. In the pockets of the Minister they found several Pennsylvania notes and a cross used in Satanic rituals. Tossing the Ministers body onto the burning church fire they took to walking back to Yorktowne.

In Yorktowne the Heroes were welcomed by the Proprietress of the White Hall Inn. After a restful night sleep they were met by the minister of the Moravian church who asked them to join him at his church, if they would. At the church he blessed them and offered communion and told them that he was following what had become of the Knots boy and wanted to know what happened in Franklintown. they described the basics and told him that there were some fires and he got them to tell him about the villain and the laboratory below the church. The minister then told them that they should take the book to Mr. Franklin, in Philadelphia for him to review and then he told the hero's that he himself knew of and used magic for the good of God and if they wished he would train them as they wish.

Here we ended for the evening.

Colonial Gothic Episode 2

Episode 2, Sept 27th, 2010

Questioning the printer the Heroes found that Jeremiah Knots mother had died the year before and that he spoke of missing her all the time. Asking about the printed paper the printer says he remembers it. Just a few days ago a minister named Mathew Smith from Franklintown came in and wanted 5 copies of a page as quick as possible. He was quite busy so he allowed Jeremiah to do the work. After that he never came to work again.

As dusk came the Heroes searched the area around the White Hall Inn expecting the mad man to come back there that night. Drawn to the back of the Inn by a franticly barking dog the Hero's found that the dog cornered what looked like dead bird. The bird was missing a wing and much of its flesh and feathers but was flapping and making hissing sounds while its eyes glowed bright red. At this the Preacher (Scott) bared his bible at the bird. He then declared it an abomination in the eye of the Lord and smashed it with his silver cross. As he struck it is died instantly steaming and burning where the cross touched it. The Doctor then ran into the Inn and got a mason jar and put the dead bird into it. The doctor then dissected the bird, in his room, and found that he he believed it to have been dead for quite a few days. Most likely it died from a attack from a cat other such animal day before Jeremiah copied the page for the minister. Believing that the bird was not possessed by any type of demon the Preacher and he brunt the dead bird.

That night they took shifts watching for the mad Jeremiah. Finding he got away and those awake went and got the rest of the Hero's to help corner Jeremiah. They saw him at the door to the First Presbytrian Church doing something to the sign on the church. The Preacher told Erich to shoot him if anything happened. As the doctor ran to catch him Jeremiah bolted and Erich took a shot hitting him in the arm as he ran away. Chasing him down they managed to knock him out. Carrying him back to the Inn they were confronted by townspeople that wanted to know what the ruckus was and why there was shooting in the night. Getting away from them they made it back to the Inn and went past the proprietress and a patron as they went through the common room. Up in the room they treated him and found that all he would do is repeat 'Oh God" and 'Mother, mother, oh God'.

A hard knock came at the door and the militia had come to take away the mad person. The Hero's were told that Jeremiah would be held over night, tomorrow there would be a trial at noon and the next day he would be sentenced and they should be there.

The next day at the trial the Printer was there and translated all that was said. The court was headed by two lawyers in powdered wig and 2 common people, to protect the interest of those that didn't know law. Th court heard the Hero's account and then the priest of the First Presbyterian asked that he be burnt as a witch for he spread deification all over the sign of the church. The printer also told of the boy life and what he knew of his past. The following day here were more people there and many were calling for the boy to be burnt. The court decided that the boy would be taken to Virgina to the Public Hospital for Persons of Insane and Disordered Minds. since the Hospital is in Virgina and most people there speak English the court charged the Hero's to escort Jeremiah to the hospital. They would be paid for their time and they would be allowed a week or 2 to prepare for their trip if they so desired. Seeing no way out of it they accepted and said that they would do it in 2 weeks.

The Heroes then headed to Franklintown to find the minister that had the paper copied. In Franklintowns the first church they came to had two newly filled graves. Looking them over they saw that both of the grave makers had a old Hebrew symbol on them that was meant to be used on people that were buried without knowledge of their names in order to keep them from rising from their graves. It was also a symbol know in the catholic church too but rarely know in this modern age of reason. As there looked over the graves a Minister came out of the church and introduced himself as Jacob Helisin a minister from a church down the road. When asked about Father Mathew Smith he said that he was away for a few weeks and he was tending his flock while he was away.

The Preacher stayed and quested Jacob Helisin while the rest of the Heroes walked to the tavern and found a room. Jacob told the Preacher that Smith usually lives in the small shack behind the church and he would be welcome to look over the place and even stay there if he needed to. With that Jacob bid him goodnight and walked away. Looking throw the shack the Preacher found the shack was well ordered with only a bible and four books on middle eastern bible treaties that would belong to a well educated minister. Hidden in the bed he also found the keys to the church.

Here's where we stopped for the night.

Atomic Highway RPG Open Game - 10/23

Comic Store West will be hosting a RPG day on October 23 to celebrate the release of GAMMA WORLD. The Keystone Gaming Society will be holding a gaming session of ATOMIC HIGHWAY on this day. Sign-up at the store today before all of the available spots fill up.