Admin, OOC, and Launch Discussion

But alas, the bitch is one.

omg, y'all. Did you ever think, in all of your expectations about what you might end up seeing in Dark Thrones, that you would ever hear J writing the stresses and anxiety of broken households, abandonment, and paternity confusion, from the perspective of a pre-pubescent girl?!
I know that I sure didn't! (but also not sure why I thought all of this would just work out without me having to potentially tackle this section of the reality for the NPC!?).

Geez, of all the drama and familial stress in regular life, and here I am pouring into dark fantasy drama and familial stress. Writing multiple women characters!!! WTF. Ugh...Exhausted...

Reminder to self: create cold, simple, stark NPCs with no background for Episode 2. Think 1st Ed AD&D: AC, HP, THAC0, loot carried - That's it!!

On that note, one of the greatest lines in the history of all movies.

Omfg... I just watched the clip.

"What if this is as good as it gets?"

Great movie. I still laugh at Helen Hunts nipple scene.

Y'all, just ran a live game sesh last night in Dark Thrones setting. I've historically operated this setting about 450 years in the future from the story we have here, so it is Dark FUTURE Thrones I guess. Was pretty cool though. Down in Arkkadia. You guys would have been happy with the bloody scenes I think. Small coastal jungle villages, dealing with scary Arkkadian bokurs (witch doctors), effort to overthrow a Gaeirmundi foreigner barbarian who has taken over a holy site in a secluded mountain camp. Tribal warfare in the jungle. Huge attack by a froghemoth in a river pool near a waterfall, freakin crazy. Great to me that the characters, though far away now, originate from the Jeres/Danneinkiff area where you guys operate. Yuorics and Danneins (in the heavy blend of those 2 cultures that exists in the future) still exporting to tear shit up in hostile foreign lands! They just have better boats to get around in now. Haha!

Yo it would be so badass to run a Dark Thrones real game together live.
I know it will never happen, but if it did it would be badass.
Are we still working on the 2022 Dark Thrones Convention in Vegas for Episode 9? Who is Project Manager on that again?

You should make a Dark Thrones campaign guide and sell that shit.

I'd buy it, and I'm pretty sure other people would too.

"DO YOU LIKE CONAN? DO YOU LIKE ONLY PLAYING THE BARBARIAN CLASS IN D&D5e? THEN THIS IS THE CAMPAIGN GUIDE FOR YOU."

On topic of live games, can't help but share this too. Haha - full disclosure on my alter-ego accommodation of high-magic and gaudy commercialism.

I'm running another live game sesh on Saturday, a revival Episode of a campaign set in the Drow city of Menzoberranzan!



"...you'd rather see me in the pen than me and Lorenzo rolling out in Menzo!..." (at time 0:59)

Am I still right to think that everyone in the universe who plays D&D knows about Drizzt and Menzo?

Bros, I ran a freakin highly detailed highly committed Campaign in Menzo for about 9 months last year and it was a total blast for the whole crowd involved!
Players had awesome characters. A real variety of styles but all definitely imbedded in the Drow culture. The stress and tension of the game was thick because of all the danger and deception.
It is in an alternate timeline that I penciled out, departs from the Forgotten Realms Drizzt-vantage-point story beginning at an alternate ending of the book Siege of Darkness which was the last book in that series that I ever knew. I had the old box set of Menzo from 1992 and actually landed a cool purchase of a newer product from a used book store. The Menzo: City of Intrigue book is something I actually have enjoyed a great deal.

Before I kicked off Dark Thrones on GP, I briefly contemplated the possibility of starting up an alternate history Menzo game. Decided against it for multiple reasons, but one of them was because I didn't want to go up against a bunch of all-pro nerds who knew so much about the canon history of all that scene and would be disappointed by my (mis)management of it.

Still though, it has been great fun for the crowd that doesn't know any better. Upcoming sesh is going to be a badass total house open warfare scene: gamebreaking out-of-control magic, secret order monks, a half-drow half aasimar ranger who has light powers, poison, crazy grid maps (with Pathfinder cardboard pawns), two-axe fighting style drow barbarian/fighter (Ox, my younger son knows how to build a character in the right class and style no matter what the setting), back stabs, phase spider cavalry, chitines unleashed, NPC betrayal during the battle. Moderate to high risk of character death during the neighborhood reunion sesh if they don't come correct - (No one gets off easy just because there has been some IRL downtime! Haha!)

Are y'all surprised or disappointed to hear that I'm not one-dimensional? FUCK OFF!!!

Hahah. Love it.

I missed the boat on FR novels and just within the past year read the Dark Elf trilogy. I started reading when I was prepping to do the 5e module Out of the Abyss. I love the Underdark and I love the Drow culture and tension that race brings.

Screw one dimensional. Although I prefer low fantasy, changing it up is good. I ran some Menzo back in the day, had the boxed set etc. Good times.

Dark Sun was real good shit too. Had a hint of an edgy sci-fi feel with the psionics.

Dark Sun rocked. I had that boxed set at the time don't know where it is now. Ran 1 campaign in that setting back in mid 90s.
They sold that as a hardcore gritty setting and I think it delivered. Truly it was a real Sword and Sorcery. Still heavy doses of magic and supernatural, but it has a desolate brutal feel to it, not epic fantasy. And you are right come to think of it: it did feel sort of sci-fi too.
They should definitely revive that in 5e, and I bet they will.

Hardcore, desolate and brutal... most definitely.

Haha. Is Players' Club stuck?

Hey, y'all.

I'm going to let the Ep 1 Skills Challenge sit for today and possibly Saturday. But either Saturday or by Sunday for sure, I'm going to post up the last few rolls directly, working from character sheets. That will be DM rolling on entries that could be of no real consequence, but could be detrimental. So of course would prefer PC rolls.

So, Jabes and CB, do what you can to get on and post up if you are interested.
If no response, I'll be moving my posts along this weekend while I have some free time to frame up for next week.

As mentioned previously, I think we are right at the end of Ep 1, but what kind of end will it be? We'll find out shortly.

After that, my mind is on Ep 1 final close-down, setting up some Admin and After Action Review (AAR) forums, explaining transition plans, and discussing an Episode 2 future for Dark Thrones: Remnants.

Yo, fellas. Heard from Jabes by PM, he asked that I pass along his well wishes to the crowd.

He got hit in a bad way IRL this week, with his girlfriend having to undergo emergency surgery. Damn.

Jabes, we're pulling for you, bro. Sorry to hear about the scare; best wishes on a speedy recovery. Catch up with you later after the smoke clears, no pressure here from this leisure and entertainment program.

Shiiit man.

Sorry to hear that Jabes.

Damn. Best wishes Jane's for her to get well.

Jabes, sorry to hear. Hoping for a quick recovery for her!

Thanks, guys! There was a chance it could be cancer. But I've now been told it's not. Whew! I have time to kill now when in the hospital, may be able to post when she's asleep. I gotta tell you, this site has helped keep me sane during some pretty tough times in the past!

J, that was a stellar and dope translation of our skill checks to narrative interpretation. Really cool. Enjoyed the hell out of reading it.

I'm not surprised, but I wasn't expecting that. Always cool to see that our leveling upgrades count. Love it.

Yeah man that was a great read!
Fighter abilities reset too, yeah?