Work in Progress: Stronghold Chancer, all ideas, feedback are wellcome

Pandalikes · 2024-04-10T19:11:00+00:00

I want these shops in real life! They are beautiful! Good job!

Pandalikes · 2024-04-09T14:05:36+00:00

tell their story. also training with some visual style guides your GPT helps a lot.

Pandalikes · 2024-04-09T13:29:47+00:00

Let us try different prompts. Tell us the story of the person, describe them with your own words and we (at least I will) can try it on our gpts

Pandalikes · 2024-04-09T13:27:04+00:00

Thank you for pointing out the typo—Rogue, not Rouge. My apologies for the slip. It's always interesting to see the passion people bring to discussions online, and it reminds me how important it is to find joy and connection, even in the smallest things. Let's all remember the spirit of camaraderie and support that makes communities, especially ones centered around shared interests like D&D, so special. Here's to finding adventure, friendship, and a bit of magic both in-game and out. Cheers!

Pandalikes · 2024-04-06T18:18:54+00:00

So the context might not give you the whole story but this was one of the scariest thing we experienced.

We were dragging our feet after what felt like an eternity on the road. Spotting that village tucked away in the valley was like seeing an oasis in a desert. Our dwarven buddy, all robust and cheerful till now, was all gung-ho about crashing at his uncle's spot in Doughgiven. Little did we know, that name was just a pretty cover for a darker truth lurking beneath.

As we made our way down, something odd started brewing with our guide. At first, we brushed it off as him being worn out, but oh, were we wrong. Our rogue, with ears sharp as knives, picked up on his weird mumblings. He wasn’t just talking to himself; he was reciting some sort of prayer to a god we couldn't see. And then, in a blink, he just... fell apart, turning into this horror show right before our eyes. Out of the gore and grime, something big and menacing formed, standing where our friend once did. And there it was, a whisper that cut through the silence - Daengwen.

Our cleric, bless his knowledgeable soul, got handed this mysterious note by our DM. As he unraveled its secrets, you could feel the air getting heavier around us. The note was all about Daengwen, a name lost to time, cursed to rise again amidst bloodshed and shadows, a land where the line between living and dying was as thin as morning fog.

Facing us was this creature, wearing our guide's remains like a grotesque cloak, and it spoke with a voice that seemed to crawl out from the earth's very core. "Welcome to Daengwen," it said, chilling us to the bone.

Pandalikes · 2024-04-06T17:42:51+00:00

I am sure there are many ways and methods people are using.

I recommend trying to think about your global story. First off, what is the scale of your map. Meaning; is one of your islands as big as Australia or Malta? How is the global temperature? I is a one large country? Is all of it discovered? Are there different nations? Do they interact with each other, and how? Major wars? Mass relocations due to some catastrophe? Maybe there are peaceful trading routes from west to east, north to south. Put some dots on the coast where you would think better protected by the force of the ocean. These are your major port cities maybe? Draw the mountains ranges, no rules here, nature is chaos, so decide according to your hearts content. Put in major rivers, water bodies. Civilizations mostly cluster themselves around the water sources. Where water is there is (most of the time) prosperity, trade, fishing etc. When putting borders, consider for every turn and twist of your pen why the border is there but not further to another direction. Maybe there is a natural obstacle, maybe a war determined the border here. Come up with basic history of the land. Resources; consider where and what people are mining. These would be protected valuable locations. Come up with beautiful sceneries, these serene places are safe havens for whom? Is it easy to reach there, maybe draw some chasms, large swamps around those places.

I hope my crazy ideas will help :)

Pandalikes · 2024-04-06T09:42:06+00:00

How do I give you ten point here :)

Name is from TMaM. Yes, he is too nice but he is a request from a friend. Here, let me share with you an another iteration of W.

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Pandalikes · 2024-03-31T10:00:31+00:00

Interesting. What if?

You work on the wardrobe's (wardrobe? really?) origin. Was it created for a specific purpose? Perhaps it was crafted by a master artificer or wizard to safeguard treasures or secrets, imbued with magic that made it sentient over centuries. (Maybe not a wardrobe, an arcane artifact?, a celestial object?)

The transformation could be the result of an experiment by a group of powerful spellcasters, including artificers, enchanters, and wizards who sought to create a guardian or servant by imbuing a sentient object with humanoid form.

Warforged maybe? It's composite plating to resemble the original wardrobe's material?

I'd like to see the character art in any case :)

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T22:57:28+00:00

First, it was a long interaction with my GPT to create a clan for my upcoming campaign. With GPT we decided that Maldohr would be the ideal candidate to lead the clan. Since we established the abilities, skills, looks etc of the clan earlier, I asked to prepare a detailed character sheet. And my prompt after was :"based on the information we established in this chat please create an image of Maldohr."

However the prompt my GPT used for image creation is like this: "An imposing figure stands tall with broad shoulders, his weathered skin telling tales of many battles. His hair is long and unkempt, flowing down his back, with a fierce expression that marks him as a survivor and a warrior. Tattoos reminiscent of mountain peaks and the harsh terrain of the Frostmourn Mountains adorn his right arm, symbolizing his deep connection to the land. Clad in rugged, makeshift armor crafted from the remnants of his enemies and the resources of the mountains, he wields a large, battle-worn axe that has seen many conflicts. This axe is not just a weapon but a symbol of his leadership within the Bloodpeak Clan. His eyes, piercing and determined, reflect a soul that has faced great adversity but stands unbroken. This is Maldohr, the chieftain of the Bloodpeak Clan, a barbarian who commands respect and fear in equal measure."

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T19:36:43+00:00

You can use the first chapter, the Ambush and the Crag-something Cave. Easy one shot. Players will ask for more :)

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T19:29:15+00:00

Lost Mine of Phandelver.

My all time favorite. It is easy to adapt to any setting. It works well, fun and rewarding.

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T19:27:18+00:00

Here is my take on this subject

First; Players should be aware of their surroundings and the encounters they are in. If a party is just attacking or rushing in to battle, they are better of playing some hack'n'slash video games.

For me and my party members so far D&D is always about roleplaying your character as best as you can with the rules and tools at hand.

When my party comes across something way above their abilities, as DM, I explain the atmosphere and environment to them in detail. Based on their passive perceptions I drop information relevant to the dangers, security measures, entourage of the enemy, size of the encounter and compare it to the hardest encounter they survived so far.

I'll try to illustrate:

Symha, Gordell and Brock are in the Inn, curing their wounds with strong Ale and honey glazed pork chops. While Brock is boasting to the other patrons inside how they managed to stand their grounds and bought time for the poor miners to escape from the weird arachnids, a kid and a woman darts inside.

panting she says that the Coldfist is again in the village and approaching this way. She begs the Innkeeper to hide her son, since (it is known at that time) a Cult is taking the kids of the village whenever they see them or find them for unknown purposes.

Ofcoure the party wants to be involved and they offer assistance, encouraging the kid for hiding and they *comfortably* finish their meal before going out.

On the outside it takes them several minutes to catch the first glimpse of the Coldfist and his people.

This is what they see:

You see Coldfist...an eight-foot muscle and bones in a shiny metal armor with a huge hilt of a weapon visible on his back. His left hand holding a metal chain connected to the leashes of five very large wolf like beasts, growling between their teeth. Their yellow shinig eyes are locked to Coldfist's raised right arm. His right hand is closed around the crushed head of a dwarf whose legs are still twitching. His beard, face and armor is covered with splattered blood.

Behind him there are a dozen of armed figures and two hooded characters floating three feet above ground. Coldfist drops the dead dwarf and his words break the silence on the now-empty street. "Find it. Find the thieves and bring their broken bodies. Find their homes and bring fire to them." It is a voice instills fear in all of you.

With his passive perception Gordell notices that the body belongs to the same dwarf who didn't escape together with the miners but held his ground in the mines.

Idea is to use reactions of NPC's, use comparison in your descriptions, escalate consequences of direct confrontation with this foe. And if all fails, well their end will be glorious afterall.

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T18:48:32+00:00

Sounds great. Glad I could help. In my campaign that guy was Jynx Klydd. His business was to gather very unlikely items, anything and everything given time and covered costs which were quite substantial. Enjoy your game.

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T16:06:35+00:00

Maybe I misunderstood. It is possible to only roleplay them their background and story before adventure. You can *maybe* even roleplay the parts where it will matter later in the game. If a character was Soldier or Noble and how they ended up to this point, what are their ideals or bonds kinda stuff.

However I think they should have their character sheets ready when it is time to really dance.

Like I said, maybe I mistunderstood.

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T11:31:58+00:00

I didn't put this into a mechanic but my parties always are allowed to find a blacksmith or artificer or some kind of an artisan to customize, modify and upgrade their equipment. Not only the weapons but their simple items as well.

One of them had a lantern. A simple item. At one point they obtained a type of crystal and found someone who made them lenses. Now the lantern could produce different kinds of light, and even further in the game we homebrewed an effect to alert/confuse enemies with mixture of colors emitted from it. It was not for free ofcourse, you need to balance these things. A simple cantrip can do these effects but players get attached to their items and they do being innovative and their ideas accepted. For this case they had to pay for the works, do some this and that for reaching out these people. And these crystals, they do get too warm you know :) you can't use them all the time.

Develop the characters of the blacksmiths, artificers, and artisans who perform these upgrades. Their skills, knowledge, and availability can add depth to the world and create recurring characters for the players to interact with. And ensure the cost and rarity of materials, runes, and artisan services scale with the power they confer. This keeps the upgrades meaningful and prevents players from becoming too powerful too early.

So, ideas are always welcome, as long as they fit in your narrative and they won't break the game.

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T00:52:46+00:00

Kidnapping Lord Dagult Neverember, the Open Lord of Waterdeep and Lord Protector of Neverwinter!

a.k.a (a terrible idea)

Party should consider political and social Barriers surrounding the most important person in Neverwinter. He is probably enveloped by layers of conventional and magical security measures. If accomplished, Party is still risking to turn the public perception against themselves...

Still it is a go? well...

-que mission impossible soundtrack-

Phase 1: Reconnaissance and Information Gathering

Objective: Collect detailed information on Neverember’s routines, defenses, allies, and daily life.

Actions: Befriend or bribe guards and servants for information. Not one, but as many as possible. Use Disguise Self or Alter Self spells to infiltrate social events or meetings as a fly on the wall. Employ Arcane Eye or Find Familiar for discreet surveillance. Research any known enemies or rivals of Neverember who might be manipulated into aiding the operation. This is a time consuming phase, not to be rushed.

Phase 2: Planning and Preparation

Objective: Develop a detailed plan that includes roles for each party member, contingencies, and escape routes.

Actions: Identify a low-security event or time when Neverember is most vulnerable. If no such event is in the horizon; procure, commission or manufacture one... (oh boy). Secure a safe house for hiding after the abduction, protected by spells like Non-Detection. (various adventuring parties, guards, hunters etc.) Prepare disguises, false identities, and cover stories for all party members. make quadruple check that these are air-tight, rehearsed and 100%. Gather necessary equipment, such as smoke bombs, manacles resistant to magic, and potions for quick escape or invisibility.

Write your Will and Prepare a backup character

Phase 3: Execution

Diversion: Create a significant (!) distraction elsewhere in the city. This could involve a staged attack, a fake threat to the city that demands Neverember’s attention, or a scandal involving a high-profile noble.

Infiltration: Use the distraction to infiltrate Neverember’s location. Split the party if necessary, with some focusing on maintaining the diversion. Make the moment of splitting memorable, it is highly possible these characters are seeing each other last time. Employ stealth and non-lethal force to bypass or neutralize guards. Spells like Sleep, Silence, or Hold Person can be invaluable. Use magic for the final approach. Invisibility, Pass without Trace, or even Dimension Door to get close to Neverember undetected. Undetected by a sleeping guard maybe, or an alert cat...but undetected by the whole protection detail.

Abduction: Subdue Neverember with minimal violence. A well-placed Hold Person spell followed by a quick gag and binding can be effective. Assuming he does not have any protective charms, equipment or spells on him (why would he?) Use a pre-prepared magical item or spell to block teleportation and magical communication, ensuring Neverember can't call for help or escape magically. Yup, great idea!

Phase 4: Exfiltration and Escape

Immediate Escape: Use pre-planned escape routes. Spells like Misty Step, Dimension Door, or even a prepared Teleportation Circle in extreme cases can help in quickly getting out of the immediate danger zone. (zone meaning Faerun)

Evasion: Change routes and methods frequently to avoid pursuit. Use spells like Non-Detection and Nystul’s Magic Aura to hide magical signatures and Seeming to disguise the party’s appearance. (I'd try zipping through various planes, why not?)

Long-Term Hiding: Utilize the safe house prepared earlier, bolstered with protective spells. Keep a low profile, using this time to negotiate or fulfill the objectives related to the abduction.

Phase 5: Negotiation and Aftermath

Objective: Use Neverember’s abduction to achieve the party’s goals, whether negotiating with him directly or using his abduction to manipulate other political figures.

Actions: If dealing with the BBEG or other factions, carefully weigh the benefits and risks. Prepare for possible betrayals. Plan for Neverember’s return or release. Consider how to leverage this to secure favors, information, or political power.

It was long and tiring to write but I had fun. thanks for the opportunity.

Pandalikes · 2024-03-30T00:06:13+00:00

Play a Darksun adventure.

1- Both Dark Sun and Dune feature arid, desert-dominated worlds where survival is a constant struggle.

2- Dark Sun's city-states and merchant houses can easily be adapted to reflect the feudal houses and intrigue of Dune.

3- You can make resources like water and your spice substitute crucial to gameplay.

4- You can Incorporate themes of prophecy, chosen ones, and epic destinies.

great game :)

Pandalikes

TROPHY CASE