This is truest to the world of the Greenwold, a land filled with races both civilized and uncivilized, and a history reach in strife and struggle. Your beginning, in this tale, is that of a simple caravan guard--one of many, who through chance and circumstance can become something more. There are plenty of secrets hidden about the Civilized and Uncivilized Peoples of the Greenwold, but the biggest could just so happen to land in your lap with the help of a friendly old gnome. If you accept, that is...
A story of intrigue and history awaits you, as long as you are open to it. The truth of the end to the Dragon Wars and the grudging dragon territories that remain. An Oath to Bind a group together, as war brews beneath the surface and dragons become active once more. What will you Swear to Uphold, and what path will you take as you unearth the secrets of the Greenwold?
This campaign comes from the Dungeon in a Box, and it is not my first time running it but it will be the first attempt I have made for it as a play-by-post. I'm coming back to play-by-post as I've got an otherwise full schedule and cannot commit to another VTT, Theater of the Mind, or in-person game at this time, but I can reply to posts in forum threads when available. I would like for this campaign to continue, and hopefully reach its end, as the story of the Secrets of the Greenwold is actually quite an interesting one, and blends rather nicely into the other Greenwold associated campaigns and oneshots by Dungeon in a Box that I have run.
Rules:
Try to post a reply at least once per week. More is nice, but at least once is all that is required.
Be polite.
If you have an issue with another player that you cannot resolve on your own, talk to me. Game is meant to be a safe space to explore and play.
Tell me your hard no's on content, please. While Secrets does not necessarily hit on harsher topics like you might, I still want to make sure I can properly curate the experience for you.
State your interest and character ideas, please. More details of the world of Greenwold can be found below. If you like roleplay, hints at political intrigue and war, and mysteries based in a forgotten history this is definitely a good game for you. There is a healthy amount of combat to whet the more violent types as well, although combat is not the end all be all of events. I am looking for at maximum 6 players, at minimum 4 players. We start playing when we hit the minimum. The play thread will be created once I have got the minimum.
The Greenwold is a homebrew world created by Dungeon in a Box. A lot of the lore is sparse stories and myths, with more than enough open room to modify as necessary. There is hope that some more comprehensive details about the deities of the world with the impending release of the full, revamped campaign this year, but until then I am working under the details I've modified as necessary. The world of the Greenwold is mostly civilized, although there are pockets of "uncivilized" locations such as the Tanglebrier Wood, and the Starless Mire. Your party will start in the small, crossover town of Mara to the north of the Tanglebrier Wood, along the Long Road, the main trade route between Greenwold and the rest of the continents.
There are four great cities that work to maintain power and keep themselves together with the wild lands that surround them, with aide from the wizards of the Alabaster Academy. They've kept this status quo since the ending of the Dragon Wars nearly a thousand years prior, and the start of the modern era. What caused the dragons to finally seek some measure of peace and not war with each other has been forgotten, but it is remembered that four heroes were at the forefront of that confrontation. These devastating fights between the dragons before peace was finally achieved and remained (two such great Dragon Wars happened before this seemingly everlasting peace) is part and parcel why these four cities work together, even as they also work against each other.
The Four Major Cities
Grayhaven, which is the major port and your destination. It is ruled by a monarchy, it's current ruler being a 12 year old Queen inaugurated a year prior. Most of Grayhaven is run by the Nobility in the interim with their leader being Duke Dain Graymoore. This is the biggest melting pot of peoples around, and tends to hold the largest celebrations. However some xenophobia remains even in Grayhaven, especially against Tieflings, and Half-Orcs.
Slew, ruled by its Merchant Princes. It is ostentatiously wealthy, and also filled with abject poverty--there is no in-between. Slew is a literal floating city, built in one of the largest harbors imaginable, just to the south of Grayhaven. It is also one of the last largest cities before the Starless Mire, from where swamp-witches and mystics often travel.
Stonefast is the primary home of both dwarves and humans, situated to the north, just outside of the mountain range the Highland Reaches which has the largest population of dwarves. Stonefast is settled in what once was a distant outpost in an area teeming with Orcs and Giants. While the city is amazing itself, it is the network of mines below the city where it really shines.
Thile is the last of the four cities, an island settled in the middle of the great Stoney River to the east. It was founded, and still is the primary home, of halflings and gnomes in the Greenwold. These days it works as a militaristic and mercantile force both. Nearly all the halflings in the Greenwold come from "the isle" (that is, Thile) and is a land of rolling hills and long riverbanks. The reliance on rivercraft has made its people the premier boatman as it is a land without bridges. The only one on, or off, of Thile is by boat.
Races of the Greenwold
There are plenty of people in the Greenwold, although you will mostly see Dwarves, Elves, Halfings, and Humans -- specifically you can find Stonefast Dwarves, Tanglebrier Elves, Riverborn Halflings, and Humans from Grayhaven, Stonefast, and Slew. These particular races have their own unique spin and attributes. DM me if interested in creating a character so I can forward the appropriate information. Additional races that do not have a unique subrace to Grayhaven include Drow from the Blazing Isles, a small population of Gnomes often found from Thile, and the rare Half-Orc, Tiefling, and the even rarer Dragonborn.
A new, completely unique race to the Greenwold is known as Mousekin, which has come out of unlucky cursed adventurer in the Tanglebrier Wood. They resemble an oversized, bipedal rodent and are very adept at being unseen. If you wish to play a Mousekin, DM me for their race and subrace information.
The Gods of the Greenwold
Other Gods can exist within the Greenwold, but its primary pantheon that has followers are as follows:
God of Time, Gideon the Old - Domain: Knowledge (rumored to be deceased)
Goddess of Destiny, Mirrah the Reflectionist - Domain: Arcana
God of the Dead, Greaf the Patient - Domain: Death/Grave
God of Fire, Torht the Quick - Domain: Forge
Goddess of Lore, Andgyt the Studious - Domain: Knowledge
Goddess of Music & Magic, Krihana the Joyous - Domain: Arcana
God of Birth, Beran the Seven-Souled - Domain: Life
God of the Sun, Baeldor the High - Domain: Light
God of Forests, Eard the Tall - Domain: Nature
Goddess of the Ocean, Scur the Wrathful - Domain: Tempest
God of Thieves, Stalian the Dark - Domain: Trickery
God of War, Dreor the Red - Domain: War
Goddess of Valor, Ellendaed - Domain: War
God of the Elves and Stars, Lunae - Domain: Nature/Light/Twilight
God of the Dwarves and Mountains, Dwrang - Domain: Forge
God of the Halflings and Harvest, Tilthar - Domain: Nature
God of the Gnomes and Prosperity, Glenglean - Domain: Trickery
Father of Dragonkind, Ahur the Adamant - Domain: Forge/Order
FAQ
What Level does this start at? Secrets is intended to go from Level 1 to Level 10 by the end of the campaign, with its sister campaign Fate of the Greenwold taking the party from Level 10 to Level 20
Discord Use The intent is to play in an IC thread on DDB. I do have a discord server synced with Avrae that can be used for OOC and dicerolls of players prefer, as well as handouts and maps for encounters. If player preference leads to play moving to Discord I am not against that. Conversely if player sentiment or available leads toward leading forums, then we will keep everything otherwise on DDB unless specified.
Campaign & Dungeon Master Subscription I have a DM Sub on DDB with campaign sharing enabled, and a campaign created. I have a majority of the supplemental books available on this platform as well.I will provide a link to the campaign by DM to interested parties.
Dicecloud / External Character Sheets I will accept these as long as I can view the character sheet.
Ability Scores / Dice Rolling How these are done will be determined by the group playing. I tend to run with majority rules, so majority will decide if we use standard array, point buy, or rolling for stats. Dice rolling is acceptable in the character sheets as long as they are a part of the campaign, otherwise unless majority rules dice rolls would be done in the thread.
Hombrew Content This entire campaign is a homebrew content by Dungeon in a Box. This means there are homebrew monsters, homebrew races, homebrew items, etc. They have a forging system to create your own magical items and there is a "boons" system depending upon your choices as well. The "boons" are a pool the whole party can choose from and range from things like: once per day a party member can roll a nature check with advantage.
Additional homebrew content is allowed, but after discussion.
Definitely interested with that description! Pretty much everything you've described is what I like in a campaign. The posting rate is easily doable along with the rest of the requirements.
Since we're starting out caravan guards I'm assuming we'll be starting low level, right?
I favor playing Warlocks (Fiend Patron) and Rogues (Phantom) and usually play Humans. I'm fine with doing either class so if I get accepted and another player has a strong preference to one I'll do the other. I love playing face characters (especially ambitious ones) and thrive in social/political campaigns.
Based on the information you've posted my current character idea is a Human from Slew who was desperate for any chance to escape poverty and so ended up taking the job as a caravan guard the moment it was offered to him. He figures that once the job ends he'll be at Grayhaven where he can find work (but the adventure will mean he sticks with the party instead). He's ambitious, willing to do whatever it takes to climb the ladder (even make a deal with a Fiend if my character ends up being a Warlock), but loyal to his fellow party members and he has lines he won't cross.
By the way do you have the necessary books/subscription on this site for players to have access to all play material or would it be alright to create a character sheet on Dicecloud for those of us who haven't purchased them?
I am so wanting to play in a non forgotten realms dnd game. Takes me back to the earlier years of playing 5e when there’s not a lot of officially published adventures yet.
For the speed, once a week is super doable. I will be able to post more often (once per day) if the other players and the DM also responding at least once per day.
In theme of nostalgia, I would like to go back to basic. I want to play a fighter, probably a half-elf since we’re starting near Tanglebriar woods. I would like to reskin/rethemed samurai as some sort of elven fighting style with archery and curved sword fighting if it is allowed.
Thank you everyone who has made a comment so far! I will be answering questions and updating the initial post with some FAQ's going forward!
@ Masqueraider
Yes the campaign is designed to start at level 1 and go to level 10 by the end of Secrets. A follow up campaign titled Fate of the Greenwold which takes place in a close to direct following of Secrets takes the party fro level 10 to level 20. Depending upon player preference I am willing to adjust the campaign to start with characters as high as level 3, although the start is designed for 4 characters at level 1.
Slew is located south of Grayhaven, with Mara (the city you are to meet the caravan in) is located toward the North East. It is easy to have picked up a job as a caravan guard previously that may have taken you from Slew to Mara if you don't mind your character taking a rather convoluted way to Grayhaven! For a human from Slew you would start with three additional proficiencies (Performance, Deception, and Disguise Kit) alongside your class/background proficiencies. If you happen to have any overlap, I am comfortable allowing one of those to become Expertise.
I do in fact have the Dungeon Master subscription and a campaign prepared on DDB, as well as access to almost all available content on this platform. I think I'm only missing some of the books from the past year and a half or so? If you wish to make character's on dicecloud as long as I can view the sheets I am happy with that, too!
@ Raptor_Jesus24
The intent is for the game to be played in an IC thread on DDB forums, but I do have a discord server for dnd games that is set up with Avrae. It can be used for dice rolls and OOC chat if people prefer, or if there is enough interest I can also run the game entirely from there.
@ AFlix
I like the idea and would be very happy to let you run a fighter as a rethemed samurai of some sort, certainly!
The Slew Human proficiencies line up well with what I had in mind for my character (mainly getting Deception) so that works out great. Would those be in addition to or instead of Standard/Variant Human traits? If it's instead of I'll probably stick with a Variant Human since it works for my planned build better.
If it's alright I'll wait on fully fleshing out my character's backstory until if I get picked since I like to find ways to have my character mesh well with the rest of the party.
As for character creation I prefer creating characters on Dicecloud since it's easier for me to create and edit a character on it while still having their stats be easy for a DM to read so thank you for allowing that.
The proficiencies would replace the single proficiency and feat of Variant Human would give you or you could keep the feat but lose one of the proficiencies from Slew (instead having 2 prof + feat). The three proficiencies would otherwise be in addition to Standard Human.
Hello! This looks interesting, and I’d be happy to join another PBP.
now about possible character ideas… I would really probably need to play as some character that isn’t a warlock or monk, my two most played classes. But then again…
My first idea would be a way of the shadows monk who grew up in the slew.
but as I am writing this another idea came to mind, more detailed this time, being a tiefling noble born to a human family, who was basically kept indoors for their entire life for the family’s fear of the secret they have a tiefling child getting out. They would then escape and become an adventurer, seeking to see the world. They would probably be either a sorcerer, a rogue, or a bard. Sorcerer could be wild or shadow due to their infernal heritage, rogue could be simply because of the whole quick wit and that sort of stuff (although it’d be kinda weird if they knew thieves cant then, but I’ll workshop it) and bard is a class I could come up with a reason for later, who knows! Those are just some basic ideas I have.
now one very important thing, I don’t have access to Discord, if that becomes a problem.
Having access to discord is technically not required as discord use would be determined by you the players if it was warrented. I can easily create an OOC thread / turn this into the OOC thread instead for OOC / Planning to work with the IC thread. Your character ideas a very interesting! If you run with a nobleborn you would be looking at coming from one of the main four cities. Grayhaven has some heavy xenophobia against Tieflings and Half-Orc's specifically, but you will find similar sentiments in each of the four cities to varying levels.
Alright! Forgot to mention specifically but I imagined they were from Greyhaven.
and if masqueraider goes for rogue, (assuming we all get chosen to be part of the game) I will likely go bard, maybe eloquence or glamour. Either way I’ll likely become the party healer, which I can probably fill if I need to. (Again, if I am chosen to be part of the group)
oh and in case this is important to you, I’ve been playing D&d 5e for upwards of 4-5 years at this point, own most of the books irl, and have a pretty good grasp of the rules! I also love roleplay and telling stories, and I love campaigns focused on characters as well as the main plot.
Honestly I'm happy to accommodate all levels of experience, but thank you for the information! I tend to be a DM who runs more "rule of cool" over "RAW" when I DM. I'm mostly gathering interest tonight and will DM potential players in the morning tomorrow.
Thank you for allowing me to play around with that. I do see a bit of similarities between elves fighter and samurai, they use longbows and long curved blade in battle. Let me know how we roll the stat, would it be point buy or would it be rolling etc?
FYI, my preferred dice rolling style if you would do pbp here in the forums, is to roll it in our ddb character sheet and state whatever we roll there on the post. rather than manually roll with the forum dice. The dice log can be seen by everyone anyway. It saves so much time by doing that.
Other than that if you prefer to use Avrae and Discord I’m all for it too.
Also if it is okay, could you DM me some info regarding Tanglebriar elves since my character is from around there. Thank you.
I'm interested in this. The commitment you are asking for is a bit lower than is typical as most others ask for once a day which really becomes once every couple of days during the campaign. I wonder if engagement will hold if you ask for even less.
I have a wide range of different characters that I would like to play and I would prefer to select the character while in discussion with the rest of the players. This way I can be sure that the party is a little bit more balanced and the character can fit in better. I have no problem to come up with a fitting backstory to whichever character I play ultimately.
Examples are: - A Lycanthrope Bloodhunter that comes from a lineage with troll blood and turns into a pseudo troll instead of another beast, - A wildfire druid that theorises about the origins of magic and becomes an arcane cleric, to master the three pillars of magic at the same time - A fun artificer who had been ported accidentally to the world from Ravnica during a freak accident in one of their experiments was forced into a pact with a Dao as a byproduct of the accident and searches a way back (for him and the Dao) - A Glamour Bard who tries to keep his crew motivated and inspired - A Blood Cleric that begun to study Wizardry, especially the school of Blood
I typically run by majority rules in things like dice rolling, stats, etc. Once I have narrowed down the interested parties / offered spaces we will discuss such endeavors. I don't see an issue rolling in the campaign / sheet, personally.
@ cyreon
I ask for a minimum of once per week as I've had games too easily peter out at once per day, and even once per every few days. It is easy for people to get caught up in work, so the minimum is stretched for that reason. Realistically I expect people to post anywhere between once per day, to every few days. This number can also be adjusted based upon what the party thinks they may be able to commit to, with the singular week being a fallback if times are difficult / busy.
@ Furujiru
How ability scores will be handled is by majority rules. Essentially I will ask players if they wish for point buy, standard, or roll scores and we will go with the majority on that. For creating characters and base rules of the game Official and Legacy books on the platform and off the platform are acceptable as long as if it is a book I do not own I am able to read through what is there. 3rd party content is acceptable after discussion.
There are technically no limitations to what you wish to be, merely the above listed races are the ones most commonly seen in the cities. If you wish to play a unique race such as a centaur, that is fine, but be aware you might get some really weird looks. If you play a monster race, you might get a lot of distrust.
The Darkness and Adventure domains -- honestly as I sad in the main post the information we have about the Gods of this world are sparse with the Lore. The last time I had to list out the Gods themsleves was when I was working on a Pathfinder port, so there might be some weird phrasing or I added things in from Homebrew that I was interested in at the time. The Adventure domain is definitely an old homebrew domain -- I'll change that out for something more fitting here in a moment given Ahur -- but the Darkness domain was an older domain out of 3e/3.5e that I missed. I'll change that domain to fit better with the 5e domains available. Tempest/Storm are the same, that's part of the Pathfinder port thing so I'll remove that.
This entire campaign setting is technically homebrew, so there are homebrew monsters / npcs and items that will show up in the campaign, as well as we shall call them boons based upon the choices you as a party makes which is entirely homebrew. I am accepting of other homebrew elements as well after discussion.
Your all good! I made the initial post late for me, so I knew there was going to be things I missed when trying to compile all of the information I did have. I fully anticipated having to correct some information, so that's what I did, lol!
Great things come from small beginnings.
This is truest to the world of the Greenwold, a land filled with races both civilized and uncivilized, and a history reach in strife and struggle. Your beginning, in this tale, is that of a simple caravan guard--one of many, who through chance and circumstance can become something more. There are plenty of secrets hidden about the Civilized and Uncivilized Peoples of the Greenwold, but the biggest could just so happen to land in your lap with the help of a friendly old gnome. If you accept, that is...
A story of intrigue and history awaits you, as long as you are open to it. The truth of the end to the Dragon Wars and the grudging dragon territories that remain. An Oath to Bind a group together, as war brews beneath the surface and dragons become active once more. What will you Swear to Uphold, and what path will you take as you unearth the secrets of the Greenwold?
This campaign comes from the Dungeon in a Box, and it is not my first time running it but it will be the first attempt I have made for it as a play-by-post. I'm coming back to play-by-post as I've got an otherwise full schedule and cannot commit to another VTT, Theater of the Mind, or in-person game at this time, but I can reply to posts in forum threads when available. I would like for this campaign to continue, and hopefully reach its end, as the story of the Secrets of the Greenwold is actually quite an interesting one, and blends rather nicely into the other Greenwold associated campaigns and oneshots by Dungeon in a Box that I have run.
Rules:
State your interest and character ideas, please. More details of the world of Greenwold can be found below. If you like roleplay, hints at political intrigue and war, and mysteries based in a forgotten history this is definitely a good game for you. There is a healthy amount of combat to whet the more violent types as well, although combat is not the end all be all of events. I am looking for at maximum 6 players, at minimum 4 players. We start playing when we hit the minimum. The play thread will be created once I have got the minimum.
The Greenwold is a homebrew world created by Dungeon in a Box. A lot of the lore is sparse stories and myths, with more than enough open room to modify as necessary. There is hope that some more comprehensive details about the deities of the world with the impending release of the full, revamped campaign this year, but until then I am working under the details I've modified as necessary. The world of the Greenwold is mostly civilized, although there are pockets of "uncivilized" locations such as the Tanglebrier Wood, and the Starless Mire. Your party will start in the small, crossover town of Mara to the north of the Tanglebrier Wood, along the Long Road, the main trade route between Greenwold and the rest of the continents.
There are four great cities that work to maintain power and keep themselves together with the wild lands that surround them, with aide from the wizards of the Alabaster Academy. They've kept this status quo since the ending of the Dragon Wars nearly a thousand years prior, and the start of the modern era. What caused the dragons to finally seek some measure of peace and not war with each other has been forgotten, but it is remembered that four heroes were at the forefront of that confrontation. These devastating fights between the dragons before peace was finally achieved and remained (two such great Dragon Wars happened before this seemingly everlasting peace) is part and parcel why these four cities work together, even as they also work against each other.
The Four Major Cities
Grayhaven, which is the major port and your destination. It is ruled by a monarchy, it's current ruler being a 12 year old Queen inaugurated a year prior. Most of Grayhaven is run by the Nobility in the interim with their leader being Duke Dain Graymoore. This is the biggest melting pot of peoples around, and tends to hold the largest celebrations. However some xenophobia remains even in Grayhaven, especially against Tieflings, and Half-Orcs.
Slew, ruled by its Merchant Princes. It is ostentatiously wealthy, and also filled with abject poverty--there is no in-between. Slew is a literal floating city, built in one of the largest harbors imaginable, just to the south of Grayhaven. It is also one of the last largest cities before the Starless Mire, from where swamp-witches and mystics often travel.
Stonefast is the primary home of both dwarves and humans, situated to the north, just outside of the mountain range the Highland Reaches which has the largest population of dwarves. Stonefast is settled in what once was a distant outpost in an area teeming with Orcs and Giants. While the city is amazing itself, it is the network of mines below the city where it really shines.
Thile is the last of the four cities, an island settled in the middle of the great Stoney River to the east. It was founded, and still is the primary home, of halflings and gnomes in the Greenwold. These days it works as a militaristic and mercantile force both. Nearly all the halflings in the Greenwold come from "the isle" (that is, Thile) and is a land of rolling hills and long riverbanks. The reliance on rivercraft has made its people the premier boatman as it is a land without bridges. The only one on, or off, of Thile is by boat.
Races of the Greenwold
There are plenty of people in the Greenwold, although you will mostly see Dwarves, Elves, Halfings, and Humans -- specifically you can find Stonefast Dwarves, Tanglebrier Elves, Riverborn Halflings, and Humans from Grayhaven, Stonefast, and Slew. These particular races have their own unique spin and attributes. DM me if interested in creating a character so I can forward the appropriate information. Additional races that do not have a unique subrace to Grayhaven include Drow from the Blazing Isles, a small population of Gnomes often found from Thile, and the rare Half-Orc, Tiefling, and the even rarer Dragonborn.
A new, completely unique race to the Greenwold is known as Mousekin, which has come out of unlucky cursed adventurer in the Tanglebrier Wood. They resemble an oversized, bipedal rodent and are very adept at being unseen. If you wish to play a Mousekin, DM me for their race and subrace information.
The Gods of the Greenwold
Other Gods can exist within the Greenwold, but its primary pantheon that has followers are as follows:
FAQ
What Level does this start at?
Secrets is intended to go from Level 1 to Level 10 by the end of the campaign, with its sister campaign Fate of the Greenwold taking the party from Level 10 to Level 20
Discord Use
The intent is to play in an IC thread on DDB. I do have a discord server synced with Avrae that can be used for OOC and dicerolls of players prefer, as well as handouts and maps for encounters. If player preference leads to play moving to Discord I am not against that. Conversely if player sentiment or available leads toward leading forums, then we will keep everything otherwise on DDB unless specified.
Campaign & Dungeon Master Subscription
I have a DM Sub on DDB with campaign sharing enabled, and a campaign created. I have a majority of the supplemental books available on this platform as well. I will provide a link to the campaign by DM to interested parties.
Dicecloud / External Character Sheets
I will accept these as long as I can view the character sheet.
Ability Scores / Dice Rolling
How these are done will be determined by the group playing. I tend to run with majority rules, so majority will decide if we use standard array, point buy, or rolling for stats. Dice rolling is acceptable in the character sheets as long as they are a part of the campaign, otherwise unless majority rules dice rolls would be done in the thread.
Hombrew Content
This entire campaign is a homebrew content by Dungeon in a Box. This means there are homebrew monsters, homebrew races, homebrew items, etc. They have a forging system to create your own magical items and there is a "boons" system depending upon your choices as well. The "boons" are a pool the whole party can choose from and range from things like: once per day a party member can roll a nature check with advantage.
Additional homebrew content is allowed, but after discussion.
Current Party (6/6)
Interested / Interviewing
Current:
Secrets of the Greenwold - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Historic:
Dawning - A Homebrew Campaign - DMTomb of Annihilation - DM
Dragon Heist of Waterdeep - DM
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Definitely interested with that description! Pretty much everything you've described is what I like in a campaign. The posting rate is easily doable along with the rest of the requirements.
Since we're starting out caravan guards I'm assuming we'll be starting low level, right?
I favor playing Warlocks (Fiend Patron) and Rogues (Phantom) and usually play Humans. I'm fine with doing either class so if I get accepted and another player has a strong preference to one I'll do the other. I love playing face characters (especially ambitious ones) and thrive in social/political campaigns.
Based on the information you've posted my current character idea is a Human from Slew who was desperate for any chance to escape poverty and so ended up taking the job as a caravan guard the moment it was offered to him. He figures that once the job ends he'll be at Grayhaven where he can find work (but the adventure will mean he sticks with the party instead). He's ambitious, willing to do whatever it takes to climb the ladder (even make a deal with a Fiend if my character ends up being a Warlock), but loyal to his fellow party members and he has lines he won't cross.
By the way do you have the necessary books/subscription on this site for players to have access to all play material or would it be alright to create a character sheet on Dicecloud for those of us who haven't purchased them?
Will this be on discord
I am so wanting to play in a non forgotten realms dnd game. Takes me back to the earlier years of playing 5e when there’s not a lot of officially published adventures yet.
For the speed, once a week is super doable. I will be able to post more often (once per day) if the other players and the DM also responding at least once per day.
In theme of nostalgia, I would like to go back to basic. I want to play a fighter, probably a half-elf since we’re starting near Tanglebriar woods. I would like to reskin/rethemed samurai as some sort of elven fighting style with archery and curved sword fighting if it is allowed.
Thank you everyone who has made a comment so far! I will be answering questions and updating the initial post with some FAQ's going forward!
@ Masqueraider
Yes the campaign is designed to start at level 1 and go to level 10 by the end of Secrets. A follow up campaign titled Fate of the Greenwold which takes place in a close to direct following of Secrets takes the party fro level 10 to level 20. Depending upon player preference I am willing to adjust the campaign to start with characters as high as level 3, although the start is designed for 4 characters at level 1.
Slew is located south of Grayhaven, with Mara (the city you are to meet the caravan in) is located toward the North East. It is easy to have picked up a job as a caravan guard previously that may have taken you from Slew to Mara if you don't mind your character taking a rather convoluted way to Grayhaven! For a human from Slew you would start with three additional proficiencies (Performance, Deception, and Disguise Kit) alongside your class/background proficiencies. If you happen to have any overlap, I am comfortable allowing one of those to become Expertise.
I do in fact have the Dungeon Master subscription and a campaign prepared on DDB, as well as access to almost all available content on this platform. I think I'm only missing some of the books from the past year and a half or so? If you wish to make character's on dicecloud as long as I can view the sheets I am happy with that, too!
@ Raptor_Jesus24
The intent is for the game to be played in an IC thread on DDB forums, but I do have a discord server for dnd games that is set up with Avrae. It can be used for dice rolls and OOC chat if people prefer, or if there is enough interest I can also run the game entirely from there.
@ AFlix
I like the idea and would be very happy to let you run a fighter as a rethemed samurai of some sort, certainly!
Current:
Secrets of the Greenwold - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Historic:
Dawning - A Homebrew Campaign - DMTomb of Annihilation - DM
Dragon Heist of Waterdeep - DM
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
@Terrakitten
The Slew Human proficiencies line up well with what I had in mind for my character (mainly getting Deception) so that works out great. Would those be in addition to or instead of Standard/Variant Human traits? If it's instead of I'll probably stick with a Variant Human since it works for my planned build better.
If it's alright I'll wait on fully fleshing out my character's backstory until if I get picked since I like to find ways to have my character mesh well with the rest of the party.
As for character creation I prefer creating characters on Dicecloud since it's easier for me to create and edit a character on it while still having their stats be easy for a DM to read so thank you for allowing that.
@ Masqueraider
The proficiencies would replace the single proficiency and feat of Variant Human would give you or you could keep the feat but lose one of the proficiencies from Slew (instead having 2 prof + feat). The three proficiencies would otherwise be in addition to Standard Human.
Current:
Secrets of the Greenwold - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Historic:
Dawning - A Homebrew Campaign - DMTomb of Annihilation - DM
Dragon Heist of Waterdeep - DM
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Hello! This looks interesting, and I’d be happy to join another PBP.
now about possible character ideas… I would really probably need to play as some character that isn’t a warlock or monk, my two most played classes. But then again…
My first idea would be a way of the shadows monk who grew up in the slew.
but as I am writing this another idea came to mind, more detailed this time, being a tiefling noble born to a human family, who was basically kept indoors for their entire life for the family’s fear of the secret they have a tiefling child getting out. They would then escape and become an adventurer, seeking to see the world. They would probably be either a sorcerer, a rogue, or a bard. Sorcerer could be wild or shadow due to their infernal heritage, rogue could be simply because of the whole quick wit and that sort of stuff (although it’d be kinda weird if they knew thieves cant then, but I’ll workshop it) and bard is a class I could come up with a reason for later, who knows! Those are just some basic ideas I have.
now one very important thing, I don’t have access to Discord, if that becomes a problem.
@ TheFriendlyArchfey
Having access to discord is technically not required as discord use would be determined by you the players if it was warrented. I can easily create an OOC thread / turn this into the OOC thread instead for OOC / Planning to work with the IC thread. Your character ideas a very interesting! If you run with a nobleborn you would be looking at coming from one of the main four cities. Grayhaven has some heavy xenophobia against Tieflings and Half-Orc's specifically, but you will find similar sentiments in each of the four cities to varying levels.
Current:
Secrets of the Greenwold - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Historic:
Dawning - A Homebrew Campaign - DMTomb of Annihilation - DM
Dragon Heist of Waterdeep - DM
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Alright! Forgot to mention specifically but I imagined they were from Greyhaven.
and if masqueraider goes for rogue, (assuming we all get chosen to be part of the game) I will likely go bard, maybe eloquence or glamour. Either way I’ll likely become the party healer, which I can probably fill if I need to. (Again, if I am chosen to be part of the group)
oh and in case this is important to you, I’ve been playing D&d 5e for upwards of 4-5 years at this point, own most of the books irl, and have a pretty good grasp of the rules! I also love roleplay and telling stories, and I love campaigns focused on characters as well as the main plot.
@Terrakitten.
I'd prefer the feat (they help personalize characters) so I'd probably give up the Thieves Tools proficiency.
Oh and I forgot to mention, I've been playing 5E from the start and have over a decade in experience in PBP generally.
@ TheFriendlyArchfey
Honestly I'm happy to accommodate all levels of experience, but thank you for the information! I tend to be a DM who runs more "rule of cool" over "RAW" when I DM. I'm mostly gathering interest tonight and will DM potential players in the morning tomorrow.
Current:
Secrets of the Greenwold - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Historic:
Dawning - A Homebrew Campaign - DMTomb of Annihilation - DM
Dragon Heist of Waterdeep - DM
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
@ Terrakitten
alrighty, sounds great!
@Terrakitten
Thank you for allowing me to play around with that. I do see a bit of similarities between elves fighter and samurai, they use longbows and long curved blade in battle. Let me know how we roll the stat, would it be point buy or would it be rolling etc?
FYI, my preferred dice rolling style if you would do pbp here in the forums, is to roll it in our ddb character sheet and state whatever we roll there on the post. rather than manually roll with the forum dice. The dice log can be seen by everyone anyway. It saves so much time by doing that.
Other than that if you prefer to use Avrae and Discord I’m all for it too.
Also if it is okay, could you DM me some info regarding Tanglebriar elves since my character is from around there. Thank you.
I'm interested in this. The commitment you are asking for is a bit lower than is typical as most others ask for once a day which really becomes once every couple of days during the campaign. I wonder if engagement will hold if you ask for even less.
I have a wide range of different characters that I would like to play and I would prefer to select the character while in discussion with the rest of the players. This way I can be sure that the party is a little bit more balanced and the character can fit in better. I have no problem to come up with a fitting backstory to whichever character I play ultimately.
Examples are:
- A Lycanthrope Bloodhunter that comes from a lineage with troll blood and turns into a pseudo troll instead of another beast,
- A wildfire druid that theorises about the origins of magic and becomes an arcane cleric, to master the three pillars of magic at the same time
- A fun artificer who had been ported accidentally to the world from Ravnica during a freak accident in one of their experiments was forced into a pact with a Dao as a byproduct of the accident and searches a way back (for him and the Dao)
- A Glamour Bard who tries to keep his crew motivated and inspired
- A Blood Cleric that begun to study Wizardry, especially the school of Blood
|| Myrla - Wood Elf Rogue - After the Fall || Oriace - Halfling Bard - Dragon Heist || Trystane - Trollblood Lycanthrope - Vecna || Taiga - Genasi Fighter - Looking for Group || Riyphou - Loxodon Druid - Secrets || Tez - Half Elf Artificer - Looking for Group || Valerian - Pallid Elf Rogue - Wildnis || Zelaerys - Halfling/Celestial Divine Soul - NWN || Kesili - Human/Dhampir Monk - Witchwood || Trystane (main/gestalt) - Gestalt Trollblood - DOOM ||
Sounds interesting. I just have a couple of questions pertaining to character creation:
- What to do about ability scores: standard, point buy or roll?
- Do we use the official books as they are available in DnDBeyond, both current and legacy?
- Related to the previous: any limitations regarding characters in terms of race, class, background, etc? (aside from the races already mentioned)
- Gods: what are the Darkness and Adventure domains? You mention Tempest/Storm: are these the same?
- Is there any homebrew involved and how much?
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
@ AFlix
I typically run by majority rules in things like dice rolling, stats, etc. Once I have narrowed down the interested parties / offered spaces we will discuss such endeavors. I don't see an issue rolling in the campaign / sheet, personally.
@ cyreon
I ask for a minimum of once per week as I've had games too easily peter out at once per day, and even once per every few days. It is easy for people to get caught up in work, so the minimum is stretched for that reason. Realistically I expect people to post anywhere between once per day, to every few days. This number can also be adjusted based upon what the party thinks they may be able to commit to, with the singular week being a fallback if times are difficult / busy.
@ Furujiru
How ability scores will be handled is by majority rules. Essentially I will ask players if they wish for point buy, standard, or roll scores and we will go with the majority on that. For creating characters and base rules of the game Official and Legacy books on the platform and off the platform are acceptable as long as if it is a book I do not own I am able to read through what is there. 3rd party content is acceptable after discussion.
There are technically no limitations to what you wish to be, merely the above listed races are the ones most commonly seen in the cities. If you wish to play a unique race such as a centaur, that is fine, but be aware you might get some really weird looks. If you play a monster race, you might get a lot of distrust.
The Darkness and Adventure domains -- honestly as I sad in the main post the information we have about the Gods of this world are sparse with the Lore. The last time I had to list out the Gods themsleves was when I was working on a Pathfinder port, so there might be some weird phrasing or I added things in from Homebrew that I was interested in at the time. The Adventure domain is definitely an old homebrew domain -- I'll change that out for something more fitting here in a moment given Ahur -- but the Darkness domain was an older domain out of 3e/3.5e that I missed. I'll change that domain to fit better with the 5e domains available. Tempest/Storm are the same, that's part of the Pathfinder port thing so I'll remove that.
This entire campaign setting is technically homebrew, so there are homebrew monsters / npcs and items that will show up in the campaign, as well as we shall call them boons based upon the choices you as a party makes which is entirely homebrew. I am accepting of other homebrew elements as well after discussion.
Current:
Secrets of the Greenwold - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Historic:
Dawning - A Homebrew Campaign - DMTomb of Annihilation - DM
Dragon Heist of Waterdeep - DM
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
I was more asking about the mechanics of the Adventure and Darkness domain but okidoki. Thanks for answering.
So first a character concept then before rolling the stats. I'll brainstorm something and get back to this thread at a later time.
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
@ Furujiru
Your all good! I made the initial post late for me, so I knew there was going to be things I missed when trying to compile all of the information I did have. I fully anticipated having to correct some information, so that's what I did, lol!
Current:
Secrets of the Greenwold - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Historic:
Dawning - A Homebrew Campaign - DMTomb of Annihilation - DM
Dragon Heist of Waterdeep - DM
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - DM | Recruiting Thread | Campaign Thread
Thanks for the clarification. Let me know if you need anything else from me. Easiest would be by PM but I'll keep taps on this thread, too.
|| Myrla - Wood Elf Rogue - After the Fall || Oriace - Halfling Bard - Dragon Heist || Trystane - Trollblood Lycanthrope - Vecna || Taiga - Genasi Fighter - Looking for Group || Riyphou - Loxodon Druid - Secrets || Tez - Half Elf Artificer - Looking for Group || Valerian - Pallid Elf Rogue - Wildnis || Zelaerys - Halfling/Celestial Divine Soul - NWN || Kesili - Human/Dhampir Monk - Witchwood || Trystane (main/gestalt) - Gestalt Trollblood - DOOM ||