The greatest empire of the Age of Dreams was called Ozymandium. Named for it's founder, Ozymandius, King of Kings, its influence spread over a third of the globe on several continents, it lasted for several centuries under his rule, but upon his death, fell apart completely under his warring successors. While much evidence describes the culture as it expanded, the capital and core lands of the empire were destroyed on the Night of Green Fire, a magical cataclysm at the height of the Succession Wars. All that remains is the hellish landscape of the Blasted Desert. Many have sent expeditions based on rumors, but no one has ever returned with believable results.

Now, after millennia, the only surviving memory of this land is a plinth supporting a massive foot and ankle, bearing the words, "I am Ozymandius, King of Kings, Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair!" This is all that remains of a massive statue and gateway that greeted travelers on the main thouroughfare to the capital." Beyond it now, only the blasted desert awaits.

GLORY! RICHES! FAME! FORTUNE!
Lord Professor Higgens Von Smoot is looking for brave and hearty souls to accompany him on a quest to fulfill his life's work, and rediscover Selara, the lost capital of the Ozymandium Empire!
He will prepay you in gold to help you prepare yourself for this arduous trek, and even put up insurance money for your next of kin in case we don't come back!
Please inquire in person at the Wise Manticore tavern, weekday afternoons.

I'm looking to run a homebrew exploration heavy D&D 5e game on the forums.  Posting will be basically daily.

If you are interested, please apply by responding in thread with the following info:

Character Name:
Race:
Gender(Pronouns if they aren't obvious):
Class:
Background:
Character Summary: (A couple of sentences describing who they are and what they do. Not really looking for long backstories or physical descriptions.)
Campaign Hook: (Please choose one of the options listed below.)

Campaign Hooks:

1. Academic:  You are an advanced student at the University that Lord Professor Von Smoot teaches at... or perhaps at a rival or an allied school.
2. Adventurer: You have been on the road a bit, and are accustomed to the crazy things that can happen out there.
3. Financier: You are the child or employee of one of Von Smoot's backers, going along to make sure Von Smoot stays on target.
4. Gloryhound: You want to wind up in the stories and think this is a good way to get there.
5. Mercenary: This is a paycheck worth the hassle and risk. That's all.
6. Scion of Ozymandius: You believe your family legend that you are descended from an Ozymandian royal house... or even Ozymandius himself
7. Antagonist: You want the mission to fail.  This is a very special case, if you actually want to do this, pick a cover hook and PM me.
8. Other: Have a really good idea that isn't covered, but can explain how it differs in a sentence? Try me.

Character Creation notes follow.

1st Level, standard equipment or rolled gold in thread.

Ability scores, Point Buy or 4d6,drop the lowest, (Re rolling ones will disqualify you.), If you dislike your roll you can go default array.

Hit Points FIxed, milestone leveling.

All legal D&D Beyond stuff is cool. except Blood Hunters and Gunslingers.

YOU DO NOT NEED TO CREAYE YOUR CHARACTER TO APPLY!

Sounds fun! I have an interesting (I hope!) character concept in mind for this.

First, the rolls: 12 12 17 15 17 15

NAME: Mal
RACE: Normal Human
CLASS: Warlock (Celestial Patron)
BACKGROUND: Pirate
SUMMARY:  Almost a prodigy, Mal was enjoying life, rapidly making a name for himself as a pirate... before a shipwreck led to him re-examining his situation, and accepting the patronage of a celestial (he always figured it would be a fiend.) He now finds adventure while following his patron's guidance in order to help the cause of good and the right--although he usually has his own way of going about it.
HOOK: Other - While Mal is no cleric (and wouldn't want to be one,) he trusts his patron's judgment. So when his patron said that ensuring the success of this mission was critical to the cause of good and bringing prosperity back to the land, Mal stepped up to help--no questions asked.
STATS: STR 18, DEX 16, CON 16, INT 13, WIS 13, CHA 18

Sounds interesting. 

I'll throw my hat to this one.

Rolls: Ability scores: 8 13 10 9 10 11

Name: Rasen Khulen

Race: Variant Human

Class: Fighter

Background: Inheritor

Summary: Rasen, the youngest son of six, wasn't really interested in the silk trade his family was invested since five generations. He used to spend more time playing with his friends and, when he grew up, at the local tavern. His father grew tired of him and threw the proverbial towel. Nothing seemed to interest his younger son. Until the death of the grandmother, the one who always paid attention to him. the tensions with his father and sibilings escalated until he decided to go on his own in the world. 

Hook: Mercenary

Quote from FrandalSilvereyes >>

 

Rolls: Ability scores: 8 13 10 9 10 11

 

Ew.  Ability scores: 12 17 14 10 15 12 You can use these if you want.

Quote from Charwoman_Gene >>

Quote from FrandalSilvereyes >>

 

Rolls: Ability scores: 8 13 10 9 10 11

 

 

Ew.  Ability scores: 12 17 14 10 15 12 You can use these if you want.

 Thanks! I will!!

Here are the rolls...

2

Quote from DragonDenn >>

Here are the rolls...

2

  Well that did not work, give it another try...

Ability scores: 12 12 11 9 12 17

Name: Davis
Race: Custom Lineage
Class: Fighter
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Background: Mercinary
Backstory:

Davis is easy-going and friendly, apt to sit down and have a drink with someone at the bar rather than seeking out adventure or trouble. He has to pay the bills though, so has hired on here as the pay seems worth the risks involved. Maybe he can retire after this one last job.

Ability scores: 13 13 14 9 7 14

Character Name: Talia Veltharis 

Race: Dhamphir (Half Elf in appearance)

Gender(Pronouns if they aren't obvious): She, Her

Class: Warlock (Undead)

Background: Noble

Character Summary: Talia is the child of a vampiric elf and a human noblewoman. While she has only had very limited conta to with her father she has been told tales of his ancient life where he claims to have been alive during the time when Ozymandius was still among the living. Granting her a touch of his power to survive, Talia was sent to go with the professor once her father learned of the expedition.

Campaign Hook: Scion of Ozymandius: You believe your family legend that you are descended from an Ozymandian royal house... or even Ozymandius himself

Character Name: Talib
Race: Tortle
Gender(Pronouns if they aren't obvious): He/Him
Class: Bard - College of Lore
Background: Archaeologist
Character Summary: A dedicated student of antiquity, Talib is a loyal student of Lord Professor Higgens Von Smoot. His patience and attention to detail have made him a fantastic archaeologist, albeit his fixation can sometimes border on the uncanny and he has been known to ignore dangers to his health when on the brink of discovery, whether forgetting to eat and sleep or even ducking arrows or side-stepping traps if necessary. He loves to ramble and lecture about everything he has learned and hopes to one day establish a museum and library dedicated to educating any and all who wish to know more about the world's history.
Campaign Hook: Academic

For ability scores, I would likely go with Point Buy.

202214191620

Something went wrong with that so I'm going to re-roll ability scores without dropping ones

Ability scores: 10 16 11 17 12 14

Quote from Rynn_Elocin >>

Ability scores: 10 16 11 17 12 14

Name: Sefara Athyri

Race: Air Genasi

Class: Ranger Hunter

Backstory: 

Sefara grew up in an outpost town located in the mountains. Once old enough her parents started training her to follow in their footsteps. They were part of a group of guards, known as the Mountain Guardians, who patrolled between outposts, keeping monstrosity’s and other creatures from crossing the mountain range and rampaging through the towns and cities beyond. She had never once heard of anything breaking past the Guardians, but attacks seemed to be coming more and more frequently. One day, the creatures did break through. They demolished two towns and one city before Sefara’s squadron finished them off. She is considered a hero for driving the creatures back over the mountains, but she never saw her accomplishment as a victory. She saw it as a failure. The creatures should never have made it that far. Now, she believes that simply guarding against attacks is not enough. There must be a reason for the creatures existence they must have come from somewhere. If she can find the source, she can stop them for good.

Campaign Hook: Other: Sefara believes that taking on this endeavor could provide some answers about the creatures origins.

Got some good responses so far, Gonna keep recruiting open till Friday.

Ability scores: 8 8 16 8 17 13

Name: Kelkor Mörjan (he/him)

Race: Half Orc

Class: Bard (college of swords)

Background: Charlatan 

Summary: Kelkor is the man that can get you what you want, as long as you can pay. He runs a smuggling ring in many of the cities, transporting rare and illegal magical supplies and potions to the highest buyer. He built his organisation from the ground up using his charm and forming connections with the right people over the years. Many people believe him to be a dim witted half orc, and he uses this to his advantage when forming deals. He comes across as a pleasant man who always seems to know what to say to make people listen but deep down he only cares for himself. 

Hook: Mercenary : Kelkor wants to join the mission to find and “gather” artefacts and treasures he can sell off in his network. He doesn’t have much interest in the history of the city or the mission they are sent on. However, he knows that this group of adventures is his best chance to get to Selara so he is pretending to be a mercenary to keep a close eye on them, at least for the moment. Kelkor decided to personally go on the mission, mostly because he was bored and wanted to see if he still has his talents. It’s been a while since he was in a proper fight.

Ability scores: 17 16 9 18 8 12

Character Name: Qybronn Su'kuar

Race: Half-Elf

Gender(Pronouns if they aren't obvious): Male (He/his)

Class: Warlock

Background: Acolyte

Character Summary: Qybronn was once an Acolyte studying at a temple, but was thrown out for studying beyond the permitted curriculum and questioning the temple's teachings. He then joined the university to try to further his studies there in a more open environment. (Chaotic Good). He would a utility- and illusion-focussed caster, so no Fireball.

Campaign Hook: Academic

Character Name: Aaliyah of the sands
Race: Yaun ti pureblood
Gender(Pronouns if they aren't obvious): Female, she/her
Class: Druid
Background: Hermit
Character Summary: Aaliyah dedicated her life to taking care of the desert and its wildlife after her home was nearly destroyed by drought and sandstorms. Her hardship created in her the sense that nature is far more powerful than any god or celestial, so she left the temple of Seth she used to serve and dedicated herself to serving nature. (Blond hair, warm beige skin, tattoo of a snake along one arm). 
Campaign Hook: Adventurer: You have been on the road a bit, and are accustomed to the crazy things that can happen out there.

Ability scores: Point buy

Character Name: Crulsits
Race: Goblin
Gender(Pronouns if they aren't obvious): He/Him
Class: Rogue
Background: Noble
Character Summary: Protege of a large family banking conglomerate, Crulsits Kobblepotter has long been searching for a way to make a name for himself within the family and impress his elders. Further, although they are newly wealthy, his family is often snubbed by others in high society. Crulsits has convinced the elder council to make a bid to back the Professor's exhibition both to earn personal fame and glory, but also to bring respect to his family in the eyes of the upper echelons of local power. If chosen, he is going to count every copper and oversee every expenditure to make sure this trip turns a profit. 
Campaign Hook: Financier: You are the child and employee of one of Von Smoot's backers, going along to make sure Von Smoot stays on target

This looks like good fun. I'm hoping there is still room.