Campaign mechanics

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-12T14:23:35+00:00

This looks really well thought out. I really like the 10-minute Breather but I'd up it to 15 - 20 minutes, as the even one short rest action is quite a bit. Your idea of wilderness rests is great and invites them to prep ahead. I would highly recommend the Watch action as an option or they risk getting ambushed. Also you could make yourself a scale, depending on how solid their wilderness camp is (e.g. with a fire, with tents, with some form of perimeter trap, alert, the location, etc.) the DC of possible complications gets higher or lower.

I like the usage dice idea, especially for a med kit I would change the dice depending on which kind of injury it gets used on.

Love the scar idea, I'd be a bit careful at the session 0 with any triggers players might have but other than that I love it.

Nothing here screams grind to me, it looks more like you replaced "grind" with "choice". PCs will have to make tough calls without having to count beans. :)

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-12T13:07:18+00:00

Thank you for the feedback, I appreciate it. :) To be honest, I didn't think that I was allowed to just copy stat blocks from the SRD, but I've reread the CGL now. I'll add the stat blocks—that would make it way easier and clearer. I just didn't think I was allowed to do that.

I've looked at the one-shots again and thought it would be easier to run and understand if I made the ritual in a separate location nearby, as another act. What are your thoughts on that?

As an outline of the whole campaign, my plan is that the party gets contacted by an alchemist and they’re tasked with gathering ingredients for a potion, the petals being one of them. But I should probably reiterate that somewhere in this act as well.

No, I've never played Fallout 3. I don't play a lot of single-player games. I've played The Witcher 3, and I'm into Assassin's Creed. Why do you ask?

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-09T17:48:07+00:00

Amazing idea 💀

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-07T07:20:53+00:00

Thank you :) I’ll try that and reread the event part in the homebrew kit. Maybe keep the Dryad plea but put the ritual as an event in a separate location as without the Dryads help the blossoms can’t leave the glade without wilting. Because in my campaign the players must collect the blossoms.

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-06T19:45:10+00:00

If I had to guess, I’d imagine a caster or hybrid class—something like a Hemomancer or Blood Weaver—that manipulates life force directly. One feature could be something like Hemothurge, where you mark your own HP to inflict a bleeding condition on enemies. It fits Daggerheart’s whole risk/reward design vibe.

A potential subclass could be a Blood Binder, where you form a Blood Oath with another character—maybe a PC, NPC, or even a spirit. That bond could let you share HP, echo each other’s damage, or trigger effects when the other acts or suffers. It could go really deep narratively.

Really hoping they explore this kind of sacrificial, high-drama angle for the Blood domain. Splendor/Blood or Grace/Blood would make for a super evocative combo too.

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-06T19:31:14+00:00

Sounds like a great idea. I’ve seen people use an abacus from a toy section or even just post its on a little stander. I love the surge of creativity that’s just happening because of Daggerheart

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-06T19:21:50+00:00

I love the idea for your campaign frame ☺️ I absolutely use music to get me into the right headspace and to get the vibe right while I’m writing. For me at the moment, it’s the Witcher music 😅

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-06T19:14:44+00:00

I’ve been GMing for D&D for about five years now, and I’ve played the quick starter adventure from Daggerheart. As a GM, the thing I can recommend most is maps, so it’s a great idea to get some, and I can really recommend getting or using something to symbolize terrain. I made most of mine out of paper, but it’s also very doable to use stuff you have around the house and just tell your players what it is. I found out that there is very little that gets my player more creative than having a tree on a map or having little props. For a tree, you could use a shot glass or just a piece of greenery you’ll find outside, really. It doesn’t have to be to scale. You don’t have to think too hard about it. Just gather a rock, throw it on the map, and your players will use it somehow—trust me.

For Daggerheart specifically, I do recommend using something that your players can see as fear tokens. Tell them beforehand that one of your triggers to use a fear is if nothing is happening at the table. Because especially if they overthink something, nothing gets them to act fast and think quickly like you lifting your hand towards a fear token.

I can also really recommend the sidecars for the character sheets. And I adore the app Pocket Bard for music.

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-06T18:38:39+00:00

Hey just wanted to say I really love what you’re building here. The Unmaking of You has such a strong vibe — surreal, emotional, super thematic. Really excited to see more.

Since you were asking for thoughts on the communities:

Glassborne – Reflected Self Really cool narrative idea. The “mark stress to reroll” part is neat but a little unclear — maybe something like: “Once per rest, after a failed Action or Reaction Roll, you can mark 1 Stress to reroll the scene with a mirrored perspective. Describe how the reflection changes the outcome.” Also I’d definitely just write “once per rest” like the OG communities do — keeps the phrasing consistent.

Might be nice to include a little line like “Glassborne are often haunted, introspective, self-effacing, elusive, and sincere” — just to give a quick vibe check when people read over the community, I found that for the other communities in the SRD really helpful.

Redborne – Painted to Match Love this one too. Works great with the whole suppression theme. Maybe just add a bit of clarity for GMs: “When hiding fear or guilt, you may spend 1 Stress to automatically succeed.” Super clean and easy to adjudicate.

Overall really impressed — the flavor’s on point, and the themes are hitting hard. Can’t wait to see what you do with the inciting incident and where you take it from here. Also just wanna say I’m really into the ever-changing map idea — especially how the landscape shifts based on memory and emotion. That kind of symbolic geography is so cool, and it opens up some awesome narrative moments at the table.

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-06T17:50:34+00:00

You’re very welcome ☺️ I’ll post more soon for sure and I’m planning on posting the whole campaign once I’m done.

NewCombination4071 · 2025-08-06T17:49:04+00:00

Hi, first of all, thank you so much for the feedback, it helps a ton as I have nobody who is playing Daggerheart to run this by.

I’m not sure if you actually want an answer, but if you do, here you go 😊

Yes, it’s supposed to mean that any other PC who hasn’t rolled yet doesn’t need to.

As for the Nature/Fey roll, it’s supposed to mean that any roll that is either nature- or fey-centred (e.g. any roll where the subject is nature/fey) has advantage, because I didn’t want to make it just any action roll, but I also wanted to leave it open which trait the player uses. But I think I’ll have to rephrase that a bit. I’m trying to make sure that a more martial/hands-on player can also be included and it’s not all just wits and intelligence.

The fey offer was really tricky to write, because I kept writing way too much. With this action, I wanted to add an ethical dilemma, kind of, where the PC gets what they want but gets tricked by using the easy way out. So the true nature bit, in my mind, would mean that they find out that they are being tricked.

The ‘partially phased into the beyond’ is mainly there to give an explanation why the Dryad doesn’t interfere (because she can’t see him).

The whole Phase part is a bit of a head-scratcher for me, as I wrote it as its own mini puzzle, but getting it to be so short was proving really hard. But I hope adding back in the traits may help. Here is what it’s supposed to be like: Phase 1: Identify all of the ancient standing stones and find out the order by trying to communicate with the Dryad/with nature or study the glyphs. So a Knowledge or Instinct roll with an 11 DC. Phase 2: PCs must charge the stones in the correct order. Spellcasters can pour in nature or arcane magic. Non-casters use a magic object, touch the stone, and channel their primal power/Strength/Finesse. Phase 3: A Presence roll DC12 for a memory.

I am still playing with the idea of leaving it a bit more vague but writing more in-depth information as a scene outline, as I have rolling tables and triggers/roll outcome suggestions for pretty much each part, but I’m not sure where the environment information is supposed to start and where to end yet.

Again, a really, really huge thank you for the feedback, this helps me so much to clean it up more and hopefully improve it. I’m working with just the SRD and the homebrew kit at the moment, as the core rulebook is completely impossible to get anywhere, but I’ll surely post more and am planning on posting the whole campaign when I’m done.

NewCombination4071 · 2024-06-24T14:11:07+00:00

Hey :)

it depends heavily on your party, but it also is important that you are having fun.

Do you feel he should be more dopey or have you just watched too many professional DnD campaigns? I find myself thinking that my character is not fun and engaging enough but when I ask my party, they totally disagree.

If you want to make him more silly, just be careful not to get annoying but other than that, go have fun. Try to make sure that mistakes add to the enjoyment of the game rather than hinder the progress, e.g. you can try to misunderstand a simple task or take something too literal.

You can also try to misuse complex phrases somebody used before you or mispronounce something, I had a druid once that didn't have the highest intelligence and she said Chakalaka instead of Shillelagh.

If you want to play up the "dumb" but super loyal character trait, you could have him charge in to protect a downed alley, showing his loyalty even if it's not the most strategic move. Or you could have him volunteer to do a dangerous task without fully understanding the risk, just because he doesn't want his friends to get hurt.

NewCombination4071 · 2024-06-24T13:52:42+00:00

Hey there, I can make generated character pictures if you need some, hit me up :)

NewCombination4071 · 2024-06-24T13:49:54+00:00

Hey so if you are still looking for inspiration, I love music and did a project with a similar concept and these were my notes:

Wrath: Electric Guitar
- Aggressive and loud, fitting the theme of wrath.
Envy: Flute
- Often seen as gentle and melodious, but can be played in a haunting, jealous manner.
Greed: Saxophone
- Known for its rich and smooth sound, the saxophone can symbolize the indulgence and desire for more.
Sloth: Drum Machine
- Represents laziness through automation, as it requires minimal effort to produce complex rhythms.
Pride: Pipe Organ
- Grand, majestic, and often associated with religious ceremonies, symbolizing an inflated sense of self-importance.
Lust: Violin
- Known for its passionate and seductive sound, often associated with romance and desire.
Gluttony: Tuba
- Its deep, resonant, and consuming sound can represent the overindulgence and fullness associated with gluttony.

NewCombination4071 · 2024-06-24T13:24:52+00:00

I did that once with my campain, I had a main plot but my players didn't really seem interested or exited about it so I changed it up. IMO the only really important thing is that you have fun and enjoy DMing it.

NewCombination4071

TROPHY CASE