[OOC] Inn of the Last Home

[Elanir]

Laura Majere "Welcome, travelers, welcome! Close the door and leave your worries and the winter’s chill behind you. This is the famous Inn of the Last Home and all who seek to escape the cruel world outside are here just right. Just let me get you a tankard of our best ale and a generous helping of Otik’s spiced potatoes and the world will make sense just this once. Tika? No, my mother has passed away, may she rest in Paladine’s shadow. I am Laura, her youngest daughter. I have been told I have her eyes - and fiery disposition, so know that I will not be tolerating any funny business, not from you and not from anyone else! Wielding a skillet is a skill we Majeres have in our blood. You think I jest? You had better not find out. Take a seat and look around you. Do you see this corner next to the fireplace? It was here that the Blue Crystal Staff first showed its power. And this table? This is the exact place the Heroes of the Lance met for the first time after so many years. Heroes of the Lance… People called them that, though my mom and dad never really liked the name. They were just trying to do the right thing, you know? Much like you and me. Nothing special about that. It’s what every decent person would do. Ah, but I am rambling, just like dad used to do. It comes with the job, I suppose. I’ll just let you enjoy your drinks. Once you are ready, you might want to freshen up a bit in your rooms or, if you feel like it, share something about yourselves. I do wonder what brought you to our fair town, but I won’t pry. It’s bad manners. “People will talk when they are ready”, my dad used to say and I always follow my dad’s advice. Unless it contradicts my mom’s, that is. Or common sense. Yes, yes, I know, I am rambling again. I’ll leave you to rest. If you need anything I’ll be right over there pretending that I am not having an eye on you. Just give me a yell. Have a nice stay!"

Welcome! Despite appearances this is an OOC thread, I just thought I would let Laura Majere welcome you in the old-fashioned way. Please introduce yourselves and once you find some time take a look at the game’s subfolders. There is some basic information concerning house rules, the setting etc.

Each player has a thread of their own, so if something is meant for my eyes alone, that is where you can contact me. It’s much more practical than PMs.

Please add your application to the “nine heroes” thread (I shamelessly stole both the name of the song and its most iconic phrase) and start working on your character sheet. Once you are ready, just provide me with a link and I’ll have a look at it. I am still working on the setting-specific feats and weapons, not to mention the conditions that will raise or lower a character’s renown and piety, though I expect to have it ready within the next 24 hours or so.

Once all questions have been answered and all character sheets are ready, we can start with the actual game! I have written the first post a few weeks ago, so I am ready when you are.

Thank you very much for applying for the game - I really hope that this will be a campaign for us to remember - preferably fondly!

[Lazer]

Hi folks! I'm very much looking forward to exploring Kryn with you all!

[Begon Ugo]

So stoked for this game. Elanir is a story teller par excellence and I can’t wait to jump into his world. Will get to work on a sheet tonight!

[Tommyk382]

Hey everyone. I thought I would introduce myself (the player) just because I feel led to do so! I like to build relationships. If you guys want to share, that is awesome. Just because I am sharing details about myself, please don't feel pressured to share beyond your comfort level.

So my name is Tom, but online everyone calls me Tommy. I have been on the site a few years, played in several games, but mainly use RPGX as a way to connect with my brother, Nanovich. We used to play in-person, but being adults has changed that dynamic drastically and this was a good way to stay in contact consistently. I am currently only in one other game, Keep on the Borderlands (in 5e), run by that same brother.

Overall I consider myself to be reasonably laid-back. Simultaneously, I do take my commitments seriously, so I am really happy to be in a game with a group of committed players (and DM)! On the flip side, I do live a rather busy life, but nothing that complicates my RPGX posts (hence being in only 2 games... I refuse to overbook myself). I am an IT manager, I am married, and I own a house in Oregon. I have played DND since childhood (I remember making my first 2e character back in like 2001 to play with my dad, then having him kill that character in the first combat. Thanks dad!) and always loved Dragonlance. My dad read Dragonlance to my brother and I as bedtime stories. I remember in the 3rd grade every student had to read a chapter book and write a book report on it... I chose Dragons of Autumn Twilight lol!

I will be playing Tegan Uth William in this campaign. I tend to play relatively grounded characters. I like to play humans. I personally like the challenge of making interesting human PCs. Tegan is actually a revitalization of my favorite character (I understand that this character is a different character. I have no expectations of recreating my first character, but maybe explore an alternate timeline with the same basis). In my last IRL campaign (run by my brother, every Saturday for 4-6 hours over 2.5 years) I played Tegan, starting as a level 1 fighter and concluding the campaign at level 16. Tegan was the only original party member (total of 8) who had not died at least once to that point. In that homebrew world I actually designed a nation based on the Knights of Solamnia, but with a heavily faith based element.

I was thrilled when I saw this ad and am happy to have been accepted. A few notes on how I intend to play my character (I like to be transparent - I find it prevents future issues). Tegan is a Lawful Good alignment. He is definitely a common archetype (Captain America, Sturm, etc) or trope (cliche if you like), but I find that the reason those tropes exist is because people like them (insert "You start your campaign in an inn" here). While Tegan is definitely firm in his values and beliefs, I don't intend to be 'That guy'. I don't plan to be the paladin who smites his allies because they don't adhere to what he wants. Tegan definitely has a view on how he would like things to happen, he will definitely act according to his motivations, and he may dislike others acts. It will never devolve into PvP or serious conflict (unless someone is very clear OOC that they want to create a well understood, friendly, tension that is SOLELY IN GAME and I agree and we carefully craft an interesting narrative (I think of Sturm and Raistlin - opposite ends of the spectrum, but were successfully in a party together)). One thing that I enjoy about characters with flaws such as pride and naivety (Tegan's stated flaws; don't worry, I am sure he has more!) is that it really allows for character growth over time. I am a strong believer that your character should never start out as their 'perfect' self. If you don't have a flawed character, you don't have an interesting character (imo).

I hope that all bodes well with the team. I know with nine members, we will have a lot of different views, perspectives, plans, morals, etc. I really want to make it clear that I am all about a cohesive team, regardless of differences. Just because we have differences doesn't make us enemies at odds, it should be something that helps us grow.

One note - You ever know that guy who you text and if they do not instantly respond they (not purposefully) forget that the text ever existed and forget to text you back? I sometimes can tend to have that flaw (it's even on my character sheet!). I fully intend to be a long-term player in this campaign. If I ever have times where I am unable to post for some reason or another, I will do my best to inform the team. That does not mean that I will just disappear (barring the ol' bus accident...). If I am just being a knucklehead and forget to post because I read something while I was busy (or on mobile), then forget to do my post, I do not take offense at a healthy nudging. I accept my flaw and it helps me stay accountable. That being said, it likely won't come to that; again I just like to be transparent.

I am heading out to spend Easter with the family, but I intend to craft up my character sheet either tonight or tomorrow.

Sorry for the book...

Tom

[Lazer]

Good to meet you Tom! That all seems grand, looking forward to riling stiff ol' Tegan up.

Speaking of which, should any of us tie our characters together? Devari is the kind of gal who could very easily have got to know anybody, so I'm happy to say she joined up with any of the other characters before arriving in Khur.

Also, Elanir, one question for character creation; my background gives me proficiency in Disguise Kit and Forgery Kit and actually gives me a disguise kit to work with. My class gives me either a Diplomat's Pack (which is not at all Devari's kind of thing) or an Entertainer's Pack... which aslo includes a Disguise Kit. Any chance I could swap one of them for a Forgery Kit? It costs 10gp (sorry, steel) less so hopefully it will be okay.

[Elanir]

@Begon Ugo: Thank you for the kind words. I hope I manage to keep things interesting.

@Tommy: It’s so nice to get to know you a little! By the way, this game doesn’t start in an inn. Only the OOC thread does as a kind of homage to the original modules and the famous Inn of the Last Home.

@Lazer: Making connections between characters before the game starts can certainly give the party greater cohesion, though you don’t need to force it. If it comes naturally, then great. As for the forgery kit, go for it by any means. You may swap whatever equipment you want for anything else as long as the full price (in steel ) is taken into account.

[Black Jim]

Have you ever wondered how long something good can last? I used to do that all the time. Back in High School, I was involved in everything: Cross Country, Swim Team, Band, Orchestra, Choir, Student Government, Debate, Declamation, Science Club, Drama Club, Golf, NHS, and Boy Scouts. I was never good at any of them. I was never the best at anything. I never sucked at anything either. I was just good enough to make the varsity teams but never landed first string, first chair, or a starring role.

In my college years, I attended a prestigious private college where I pulled B's while getting involved with Campus Ministry, Knights of Columbus, and the exclusive audition choirs. I was in a band. I was high tenor in an acapella group that went on tour. I was accepted into Up With People but dropped out before going to their orientation in Utah. I discovered a social life that was "me" focused, the joy of too many beers, Single Malt Scotch, and ... oh, THAT's what girls are made of! After obtaining my degree, I spent the summer of '85 fishing the Irish Sea out of Dundalk, Ireland (Port Oriel, actually).

I entered working life as a pharmaceutical salesman with a company car, expense account, and worked in competition with supermodel peers who were hired because their stunning looks made everyone want to talk to them. Duluth Minnesota was the place for me back then! I never did anything special up there. (But check out Iron Will, the Disney dog-sled movie. I am an extra in the "start of the race" scene standing under the dog sculpture fountain. All my speaking lines are on the cutting room floor somewhere. And I'll mention one other highlight later) After 8 years of that, I went entrepreneurial and started my own business which I ran for 5 years and traveled the world, ending up in Southeast Asia where I met the woman that would become my wife. I speak English well and understand spoken and written French and Spanish without being able to carry on a successful conversation in either language. Indonesian, a smattering of Thai and Korean round out my language skills.

When I decided that I could love someone more than I cared about myself, I married her, moved back to the USA, went back into pharmaceutical sales, spat out three mix-raced kids, got divorced and got the kids because she just wanted my money and her boyfriend, got fired, opened my own financial business as a single dad, went bankrupt, broke my back in a car accident in early 2016 and was briefly paralyzed, caught Covid-19... twice, lost the business and now I sell furniture. I am old...er.

Throughout all of that, I have played all the versions of D&D except 2.0 (which was universally hated). I played AD&D in a one-night, demo game with Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson in Duluth Minnesota sponsored by The Dragon Magazine back in 1986 for a Blackmoor one-off. I own a lot of Forgotten Realms content and extensively played 3.5 then Pathfinder, and now I'm starting into 5e. I joined DnD Online in 2012? to play a character in my best friend's game here "End of The World as You Know It". Since then, I have contributed garbage and gold to several campaigns and I look forward to gaming with all of you!

Just remember that I hit my head hard in that accident 6 years ago and forgive me for anything that seems to be sub-par, aloof, disconnected, rude, abrasive, misogynistic or beautiful.

Xihue is alien to these lands. He dosn't know much about the DragonLance or the Heroes. He has no history with the local cultures or with the races that populate them. His home is similar to ancient mongolia and he knows humans, a wild version of the elves, and monsters of the grasslands, mountains, and the Great Lake of Fire. I hope you enjoy him.

[Elanir]

@Black Jim: Just WOW! That is one life that is meant to be made into a novel - or film. Perhaps one day?

As for your contributions, as far as I can tell it’s much more gold than garbage.

Glad to have you here.

[Hayar]

Hello everyone! I'm amazed to be here but grateful!

That was a really neat decision post, Elanir!

I have been playing these games for a long time but I am looking forward to getting back into the swing of online games with this one. Dragonlance is so very quintessential d&d to me so it feels like going back to the beginning.

Kaylen doesn't have a history outside of the mountains and Khur, but I would be happy to come up with some recent connection, Lazer and everyone.

Nine players. Wow!

Thank you for having me along on this adventure!

[Mindsiege]

Hi everybody, I'm so very happy about this gaming opportunity and the character cast that was chosen (and that my character is part of it)!

I've only discovered DnD a few years ago, but I've been burning for reading, gaming, storytelling, and immersing myself in different worlds far before I fell in love with the hobby. Since then I've gotten sucked into as many games as I can physically handle, but getting back into a game with Elanir was certainly very high on my list, so it's awesome that it worked out. I'm very excited about my new character and after reading everybody else's applications, this game is such a promising seed for a bountiful story!

[Elanir]

@Hayar, Mindsiege: Welcome! So glad to have you here.

[Noquarter19]

I'm very humbled to be chosen, and I look forward to playing with all of you for a long time.

I'm NoQuarter19 (Ben), and I live in Maine, USA. I'm 35, married with a son and a very hairy cat. I work as a medical laboratory technician on 3rd shift, so 1 am EST is my lunchtime for reference. I had to take an abrupt break from the site last fall, mostly due to my own hubris. I was in a lot of games and it got to the point that with all the overtime I was working (hooray coronavirus), I didn't have enough time to dedicate. I have no plans to repeat history (this will be the last game I join until another one ends, or so help me I will get an embarrassing avatar as punishment).

It's been a number of years since I read a Dragonlance novel, the last series I remember reading was the Twins trilogy, so just like Aric, I am not proficient with history. But I'll do my best to make him be an interesting character, and I hope you all enjoy my contributions to the game.

And of course, thank you again Elanir for taking a chance on me.

[Mindsiege]

Just a quick question that everybody is probably interested in: How exactly are we doing equipment?

Apologies if that was mentioned somewhere and I just missed it.

[Elanir]

You get standard equipment for background and class, but may swap anything for something else “selling” it for full price.

[Hayar]

Just to make sure, Common (Ergot) is not a free extra proficiency, right? For example, most races will start with Common (Ergot) and their racial language?

I'm just making sure it isn't free, allowing for a regional language as well.