LFPs(6) - NEW 5e Curse of Strahd Campaign - 3rd Sunday/month, 2pm-8pm EDT

[pacio49]

My name is Adam, I'm a long time DM, and I am announcing the start of a 5th Edition D&D Curse of Strahd Campaign to begin on Sunday, August 18th and continue through the end of the adventure.

The game will run with 6 players. It is free, and I have the Ultimate license so Demo versions of FG can play, but here are my expectations for anyone selected to play at the table:

Rules
#1. Adults only, age 18+ to play. I'm from NYC, I curse, it's our local culture. I try to minimize it, I don't intend to offend anyone with my language, but I do slip up from time to time, so understand that coming into this. We use F-bombs and 'G-D' like other people say 'hello'. It's our culture. (I literally never even knew 'G-D' was considered a curse at all until a Southern co-worker finally had enough of us Yanks and our 'filthy' mouths. It was a revelation to many in the workplace that it was even considered cursing at all. Honestly.)
#2. The game will be live streamed on Twitch and/or YouTube. By applying you consent to participating in this live stream without compensation or reserved rights to sharing your voice, character concept, images, etc. with the internet. You also understand that I am not charging you to play in the game, so if by some miracle we end up attracting a following and monetizing the livestream, you recognize by agreeing to play that all profits go to me as compensation for my time DMing. This is non-negotiable.
#3. Rules Lawyers work with me, not against me. I certainly appreciate those knowledgeable of the 5th edition rules and specifics. I've been DMing since the 80's when I was Will the Wise from Stranger Things S1 without the Upside Down abduction. I've seen every version except 4e which I skipped, and at my age it's hard to remember sometimes what the -current- rules state.
#4. DM is the final arbiter of the rules. Don't worry, I tend to play fair and try to be consistent, and I clearly list the House Rules in the 'Notes' panel with shared notes so the party can refer back there at any time, and so can I. But I reserve the right to veto or retcon if necessary any past decisions, though I prefer not to.
#5. Two strikes and you're out. Uncivil conduct to your party members or myself, absence with less than 48 hours notice, not being logged in or attempting to at the 2pm EDT start time without 24 hour prior notice, leaving early, refusing to actively participate, or disrupting the fun of the group is a strike. Once is a warning, twice and you lose your seat to someone else. We only play once a month, so please be courteous and mindful of the group's experience.
#6. This is a welcoming game. LGBTQ members welcome. All gender identities (including women, and I hate that I have to say that) welcome. No politics discussed in the game, but understand I'm from NYC and am proudly Liberal, so if that offends you, seek elsewhere. Racist, sexist, anti-LGBTQ insults or continued use of slang is grounds for losing your seat immediately, so don't do it. Get along, and keep it story focused, and we'll all have fun, which is the entire point.
#7. Be creative. Be engaged. Participate. Be patient with me and with each other, and we'll all have fun. Which is the entire point.
#8. ALL EXPERIENCE LEVELS WELCOME. If you've never played before, apply anyway. If you were there with Gygax from the beginning, apply. If you work for WOTC and just need to blow off steam... apply.

Still with me?
GOOD!
Because that's the heavy stuff and I like to get it out of the way in the beginning.

The Curse of Strahd is a vampire/magical Transylvania-esque setting and the adventure is designed to run from Level 1-10. I've never played in Ravenloft myself, just bought the FG expansion, so I'll be learning over the next month myself. Don't worry, that's plenty of time.

How to Apply
There are 6 seats around the virtual table. Applications will be open from now until August 2nd. There will be 6 players in the Starting Roster. I will announce the starting Roster on August 4th here on this topic.

Reply to this post with the following:
• Your mundane world name
• Your preferred pronouns/gender identity
• Your level of D&D or Tabletop RPG experience - None, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Expert. Advanced and Experts are expected to help newer players come up to speed and make good character decisions/get into the swing of things more for everyone's enjoyment.
• Your level of FG experience, same ranks. Advanced and Experts will be asked to help with the mechanics of the VTT system.
• Your time zone/general region of the world you will be playing from
• Some interest or hobby, skill or passion of yours from the outside world to start the getting to know you process

You must also include:
• Your character concept. Race, class, future class specialization, name (but that can change), gender (also mutable), any plans on multiclassing and to what, preferred weapon(s) or spells, your background, etc.
OR
• If you are new to D&D 5e, describe what kind of storybook character you would want to bring to life, a little of their style, if they fight, cast spells, heal, etc. If it helps, point to a character from a book or film you would like to be LIKE, but know that you will expect to (and realistically have to) develop your own unique character.

• A short bit about your character's history. It's okay if you don't have much in the way of details, just provide some idea of the kind of environment you grew up in. Try to list one major memory from your Childhood, one from your Adolescence, and one from your Apprenticeship. This means you need to make some choice about whether you were formally trained in a school, learned from individuals on your own as you went along, or if you ended up being trained by one mentor/master who taught you the ropes.

• IF you are experienced in D&D settings, decide please which world you come from. No one will start out coming from Ravenloft/Barovia. You can be from anywhere in the Sword Coast, canon Faerun from 5e times, the city-sprawling plane of Ravnica for those who know it, or, if you wish, a 'magical' version of Medieval or Low Renaissance earth if you wish it (this helps new players ground their experience in something more familiar).

I'll make the selection weighing both sections.

CONTINUED IN FIRST POST

[pacio49]

Setting Notes
The Curse of Strahd is a unique campaign because it is a Romantic Gothic Horror.

Not 'kissy kissy'/rom-com romance. Classical "Romantic". Think Dracula by Stoker, Frankenstein by Shelly, the poetry of Byron or Poe.

It's the original source for where we get the modern term 'goth' from. Original recipe emo, tortured souls, desperate heroes trying not to prevail but simply not to succumb to the forces of darkness. Twisted villains. Recent pop cultural reference would be the series "Penny Dreadful", as it combined much of the Gothic literary figures of note into one. Werewolves, vampires, revenants, tormented commoners, haggard witches, blood magic, etc.

This adventure is a little unique in that it can only end in a few ways. The second-easiest way is to defeat Strahd, the vampire lord of Castle Ravenloft. The ACTUAL easiest way to end the module is for everyone in the party to die. Normally I work as DM to ensure that the party works together from start to finish and builds a sense of camaraderie. In Strahd, it certainly is wisest for you to bond tightly and remain so, but as a DM, once you get past, say, 4th level, your fate as a party depends upon the choices you make as an individual. Strahd is himself an active foe within his realms, and he will certainly be looking to divide and conquer as best he can. (Remember... generally either Strahd dies, or the party dies. Your pick.)

Alignments
The only 'forbidden' player alignment in this game is Chaotic Evil. Lawful Evil characters are possible. Neutral Evil characters are possible. Chaotic Neutral with Evil tendencies characters are possible. BUT... if you antagonize your fellow party members, don't be surprised if after 4th level they turn on you and deal with what they perceive to be the most immediate threat in their midst to the party success over Strahd.

Because of this, in your character description, do NOT list your intended alignment.

Changing your mind
There is opportunity to make revisions to character concept after gaining 2nd, 3rd, and 4th level.
At 2nd it can be a complete makeover - anything and everything, pending DM approval.
At 3rd you can adjust either class OR race but not both, specializations if you had one from 1st or 2nd level, skills/weapons/spells.
Upon earning 4th, you can change your Specialization if things aren't working out exactly, or skills/weapons. Then you're locked in.

If you have any questions, post them for me separate from your application. Once the Roster is chosen, I'll work with you back channel to adjust and refine things for the initial session. Again, no experience is necessary.

House Rule on Spells/Melee Attacks
Frequently, experienced gamers lapse into a kind of shorthand. They'll simply announce "My character casts 'magic missile'" and start rolling damage dice. Flat. Systematic. And yes, it's a convenient shorthand among experienced players. I ask that you put a little more into it than that. Same thing with melee attacks. Take a little time and decide just what it looks like to everyone around you when you swing your broadsword and miss, or hit, or crit. Feel free to use poetic names like in the Wheel of Time where battle stances were described with suggestive names. "'Heron wading in the rushes' pose meets 'Willow in a thunderstorm' with a clang of steel before Heron wading strikes home on the riposte, opening a gash in my foe's flesh for 6 points of slashing damage." Two spellcasters who cast the same spell will be trained from different styles of casting, and the special effects might look entirely different. "I mutter the arcane words of power which form writing in glowing blue runes in the air about me. The runes wheel about my head, once, twice, and on the third time form into arrows of blue energy that fly suddenly to my target as three darts of magic missiles, doing a total of 8 points of damage."

Spellcaster, healer, skulking rogue, martial artist, or martial weapons fighter, don't just say it... describe it. Characters who do so consistently earn Inspiration. Others do not. (That's a good thing, for newbies.)

Still with me all the way down here?
Great! I look forward to reading your applications!

Post away, and let your creativity be your application. Third Sundays of the month starting in August, from 2pm - 8pm Eastern (GMT -5). Live stream will be publicized when details are finalized.

Strahd can't wait to eat you. Er, meat you. I mean, meet you.

[WildKnight]

This sounds absolutely amazing.

Edit: Since you're streaming this, do you require players to have a webcam?

[Sindustry]

Personal / Experience Questions
Your mundane world name: Brandon
Your preferred pronouns/gender identity: He/Him/His
Your level of D&D or Tabletop RPG experience: I'm somewhere between Intermediate and Advanced. Happy to help where I can!
Your level of FG experience: So far, very minimal. However, I'm actually watching some YouTube videos trying to figure it out because I might run some of my own games. This would help me get more familiar with the software.
Your time zone/general region of the world you will be playing from: I'm from New York (EST Timezone).
Some interest or hobby, skill or passion of yours from the outside world to start the getting to know you process: I'm an avid RPer and video gamer. I also enjoy dates with my wife, particularly those that include our two Shih Tzus!

D&D Questions
Your character concept. Race, class, future class specialization, name (but that can change), gender (also mutable), any plans on multiclassing and to what, preferred weapon(s) or spells, your background, etc.
I usually like to play a support style character with an interesting flaw. This would be my first experience running a module, and I'm not entirely sure what the setting of Strahd is other than dark. I'm presenting two character concepts because I'm not sure if monster races are acceptable in the setting. I'd also be willing to adapt based on group composition, if need be (I make character personalities that are fun, I'm not as tied to the class):

Male Kobold Land Druid named Slopp with no plans to multiclass. In his life, he had a chance encounter with some sort of Fey that inspired Slopp to strive toward good/noble causes. Slopp was cast out by his kin for actively looking to be selfless (at the expense of his brood). Since then, Slopp has traveled throughout the land trying to make a difference where he can. He's had a difficult time working toward this goal because most of the civilized races actively despise Kobolds. If any of the other players would be interested, I'd like to try to tie Slopp to them narratively so that they could potentially have a vested interested in integrating him into society. Slopp would have a low intelligence score, be illiterate and potentially talk in broken Common (e.g.: "It's okay! Slopp fix this!").

Male Human (not Variant because I personally dislike that option) War Wizard named Evander Everwind with no plans to multiclass. Evander is a round and clumsy oaf of a Wizard, born into nobility without any political prowess or noteworthy characteristics. His parents have "sent him on a spiritual journey" to get him away from their social circles. He fully believes he's pursuing his destiny, but is essentially entirely incompetent. With this character, I would flavor anything noteworthy as pure chance or an accident. For instance, if a monster attacks him and misses, I might roleplay that he stumbled back and fell, therefore dodging the attack. He might say something to the effect of, "Oh, oh oh! I know! I'll cast Fireball!" when I actually intend to cast Web. So mechanically, he'd be playing a well-rounded Wizard focusing on control, but comedically would never intend to do what he does. I chose War Magic for this because it's a generalist school, not for the flavor of him being tactical or calculated.

A short bit about your character's history.

Slopp: Slopp would have met some Fey creature when he was young. Perhaps this creature helped him fend of bullies or something to that effect. Regardless, the Fey creature would have left a lasting impression on Slopp and helped him learn about Druidic Magic. From there, if another player was interested, I'd love to have Slopp have nursed one of the other PCs back from the brink of death some point in their history. If nobody is interested in that, I can easily leave that part out. However, if another player IS interested in that, I'd like to work with them to come up with a few fun things our characters had done in the recent past that could potentially be eluded to during play (like those scenes from movies where the actors say something like, "Like that time in Vegas?").

Evander: Evander would have fond memories of growing up with his siblings. His little sister is near and dear to him because she was always kind to him even though his mother and father were not. Evander bounced around from tutor to tutor until finally being trained by a wise, but eccentric Gnome Wizard (name TBD). That tutor would have helped Evander get a general grasp on magic before Evander's parents sent him out into the world.

IF you are experienced in D&D settings, decide please which world you come from.
I'm not very experienced with the D&D worlds. I've always found Ravnica interesting, but I'd probably have both of my characters start out in a generic D&D world. I believe Faerun would fit the bill. I could do more research on that before the game, if needed!

[khavi]

Reply to this post with the following:
• Your mundane world name: Christy
• Your preferred pronouns/gender identity: Female Pronouns (Her/She)
• Your level of D&D or Tabletop RPG experience - None, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Expert. Advanced and Experts are expected to help newer players come up to speed and make good character decisions/get into the swing of things more for everyone's enjoyment.: Probably intermediate? I'm happy to help wherever I can.
• Your level of FG experience, same ranks. Advanced and Experts will be asked to help with the mechanics of the VTT system.: Intermediate to Advanced - I've only played D&D using Fantasygrounds, so I'm very familiar with the program and happy to help.
• Your time zone/general region of the world you will be playing from: I hail from Nevada, so Pacific Timezone for me.
• Some interest or hobby, skill or passion of yours from the outside world to start the getting to know you process: I love roleplaying games and writing - I spend almost ALL of my free time doing both.


• Your character concept. Race, class, future class specialization, name (but that can change), gender (also mutable), any plans on multiclassing and to what, preferred weapon(s) or spells, your background, etc.:
I'm hoping to play a female half-drow bard(Lore) named Shynt'lara A'Daragon. No plans to multiclass (as I LOVE playing bards) - she focuses mainly on debuffing enemies (Bane is one of my favorite spells, followed closely by Dispel Magic) or buffing party members, but she'll take some AOE spells, just in case. She's a people-person and prefers trying to talk her way out of trouble rather than fight.

• A short bit about your character's history: Shynt'lara is a travelling bard and proud member of "Spellsong's Emporium of Exceptional Entertainers". She was born on the road and raised by this group of dramatic and eccentric individuals, leading her to be quite dramatic and eccentric herself. Her childhood memories are of travelling to different towns and cities along the Sword Coast and watching the amazing people around her perform amazing feats that she hoped to one day do herself and she came to believe that's how everyone lived. It wasn't until she was a bit older that she realized her lifestyle wasn't the norm, but rather than envying those who spent their lives setting down roots, she revelled in the life of a traveller and in her training as an entertainer. It was after a volatile exchange with the troupe's leader(and her "father" figure), Rhagor "Spellsong" Drachedandion that Shynt'lara basically ran away from her family, determined to prove herself a capable adventurer (as her family had been before retiring into the life of travelling performers).

• IF you are experienced in D&D settings, decide please which world you come from: Shynt'lara's family travelled along the Sword Coast, so she's visited many of the larger towns and cities. She separated from her family shortly after they arrived in Neverwinter.

[Morbius Shade]

• Your mundane world name: The super unique name of Chris, which is short for Christopher, meaning "bearer of Christ"...which sorta stinks, when it belongs to an Atheist.

• Your preferred pronouns/gender identity: Him/He

• Your level of D&D or Tabletop RPG experience: Over 20 years of D&D both playing and running.

• Your level of FG experience, same ranks. Somewhat new to the online thing, but quick to learn.

• Your time zone/general region of the world you will be playing from: Atlantic Time Zone, 1 hour ahead of you.

• Some interest or hobby, skill or passion of yours from the outside world to start the getting to know you process: I love playing board games, started migrating towards ones with story and narrative. Realized that I longed for the days of old where I would use my fingers for calculating what I needed to hit.

You must also include:

• Your character concept. Race, class, future class specialization, name (but that can change), gender (also mutable), any plans on multiclassing and to what, preferred weapon(s) or spells, your background, etc.
Jerren Meadowbrook. Male Halfling Barbarian wielding a warhammer. Going into Zealot and perhaps multiclassing into Fighter. Jerren appears as a sturdy, average height Halfling. The spryness of youth has left him. Now middle aged, his dark brown curly hair shows streaks of silvery grey.

• A short bit about your character's history:
Jerren Meadowbrook had always been strong. At least for a Halfling. He had a comfortable and happy life as a traveling strongman in a circus caravan. The roads of Faerun provided much for him, his wife and young son. "Twice the strength, but half the man!" read his poster on the marquee. He paid it no mind. When he was younger, he recalled being called half a man, he took pause then, not to make a witty, chipper retort, but a pause of anger...Jerren was indeed different from his kind. Now approaching his middle years as an entertainer, the ridicule he faced was replaced with awe. One night, camped along the north road travelling from Yartar to Silverymoon, the caravan was set upon by a Drow raiding party. Jerren and his wife were taken. His son, too young and small to be of any value, was shot by a crossbow and killed in front of them. Jerren does not remember much that followed. Only a rage that took him, and the lifeless body of the Drow lying beneath him. He remembers being struck by a magical force, and being left for dead, but he defied death. In his dreams, he was approached by a beautiful woman bathed in light. She offered him life, and the revenge for the death of his son and the taking of of his wife. He accepted, and she pointed the way he was to go. When he awoke amongst the ruin, he found whoever was not taken, was killed. Near death, it was his will alone that moved him forward. One step at a time.

• IF you are experienced in D&D settings, decide please which world you come from. No one will start out coming from Ravenloft/Barovia. You can be from anywhere in the Sword Coast, canon Faerun from 5e times, the city-sprawling plane of Ravnica for those who know it, or, if you wish, a 'magical' version of Medieval or Low Renaissance earth if you wish it (this helps new players ground their experience in something more familiar). The winding roads of Faerûn.

[Sindustry]

Both of your characters seem really interesting! I’d love to see how you both get on in game since there is implicit conflict between the two!!

[Morbius Shade]

Oh, there will be fireworks I can imagine. His feelings towards Drowkind may prove...troublesome.

[FuzzyBunny]

Reply to this post with the following:

• Your mundane world name
William

• Your preferred pronouns/gender identity]
not sure what that means. most people just call me dude

• Your level of D&D or Tabletop RPG experience - None, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Expert. Advanced and Experts are expected to help newer players come up to speed and make good character decisions/get into the swing of things more for everyone's enjoyment.
That is also hard to say. I started playing P&P/table top games back in the 60s, and D&D original box, then got into vid games so only did P&P games every few years, got into BattleTECH, MechWARRIOR, Shadow run, and others off and on through out the 70s and 80s, Played a bunch of P&P lesser know games like WOT and Gerps, then got back into D&D, starfinder 4 years ago

• Your level of FG experience, same ranks. Advanced and Experts will be asked to help with the mechanics of the VTT system.
New to it, but am a fast learner

• Your time zone/general region of the world you will be playing from
MST -6 (the game would be noon, 12 pm for me)

• Some interest or hobby, skill or passion of yours from the outside world to start the getting to know you process
I like crafting. every thing from paper crafts (which is not origami) to leather working.

You must also include:
• Your character concept. Race, class, future class specialization, name (but that can change), gender (also mutable), any plans on multiclassing and to what, preferred weapon(s) or spells, your background, etc.
Revised ranger beastmaster, halfelf, Chance (Athren) Fatespinner, (I rng gender) Don't see the point of Multiclassing unless you are stock ranger then you would have to , to be useful. Longbow/long sword. My background or Chance/Athern's? Folk hero.

[pacio49]

This sounds absolutely amazing.

Edit: Since you're streaming this, do you require players to have a webcam?

Nope. The stream will be mostly just the FG interface within a frame, and I'll turn on and off my webcam as necessary. Since I currently am restricted to only one monitor, I'll be using the hard copy of the book and notebooks to run the DM portion of things so y'all don't have to "look away" from the DM notes which would otherwise stream as well! Good question.