Another Casual Multiplayer Magic Format

Respawn Magic:

http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/sf/27

Erdran Slashing-Fox's Journal Part 1

The Outset

Day 1 - Morning

We will set out today to look for our old friend and mentor Douven Staul. He was searching for a dragon tomb somewhere to the northeast and though he’s an experienced adventurer, with a keen eye for danger in the real world, he went to explore a tomb… Why anyone would go into a deep dark hole in the ground where nothing natural lives is beyond me. I have no explanation but that human’s tend to be rather odd at times. He has been gone now for three months, and his usual forays are much swifter. I fear the worst, as do my companions. I pray the earth mother keeps him safe.

Day 1 – Evening

We were set upon today by some filthy kobolds… they were quite easy to fell as usual, until their older cousins arrived. They were not so gentle, and though we prevailed, even our strongest fighters Gene and Korrok were looking rather haggard by the end. The latter seemed to really enjoy the fight, reminds me a bit of a wolverine that one...

We reached the town of Winterhaven this evening, and have checked in at the local inn. Only one man, Eilian the old, seems to remember Douven, they are apparently old friends. Eilian the old hasn’t seen him for several weeks though, and said that last he saw, Douven left to the southwest on his search for the tomb. He drew us a map as we all had a drink together. There was also a strangely surly elf woman, she would not speak to us, but didn’t start at the sound of his name. I suspect she knows nothing, but it is odd for her to be so unpleasant to a fellow elf… After my drinking companions Aegis, Korrok and the old man finished our ale, we set out to find the blacksmith and town shopkeep. Their shops closed, Franz none the less decided to use his magics to awaken the shop keep. He does not seem to know anything either.

Day 2 – Morning

Sleep did not come easy with Franz screaming all night in the next room. Maybe I can find some willow bark for him tomorrow, that may bring us all a more restful sleep tomorrow. The blacksmith knows nothing, and in the light of day, the shopkeep still does not remember our mentor. We will follow southwest and hope to find more of his trail.

Day 2 – Afternoon

Good earth mother, I must have been groggy from my poor sleep. I did not even notice the attack until they were right on top of us. They quickly surrounded and savagely attacked Aegis. Gene, Korrok and I rushed to his side but the kobolds were strong and tenacious, and it took us too long to fight through. Zalamin and Franz poured their powerful magics into the beasts, but they were slow to relent. Aegis was hurt and knocked out, and it was all Korrok could do to help Aegis cling to life while trying to beat back the beasts. When their leaders came out from behind another set of rocks, they too began to assail us with magic. All appeared lost, until Franz managed to pull off a tricky sleep spell, and managed to put their leaders to rest, to let us push the kobods from their unrelenting attack on Aegid the cleric. With the melee nearly finished, I managed to slip aside, and with the aid of a rain of arcane energy from Franz managed to slay their wizard before he rose. We then quickly finished off the soldiers, and together hunted down and quickly finished their witch doctor. Korrok seems to be an strong healer, and with his help Aegis looks like he will make it through. Everyone was injured in the battle, and we will likely have to rest a while before we can go on. Aegis says that the kobolds bear the symbol of a demon lord, and as they usually serve dragons, or live near them, I wonder how they are connected to our friend’s disappearance. Aegis wishes to perform funeral rights… I’ll help him gather the wood to burn their unpleasant corpses so their decaying stink doesn’t mar these woods.

It's "Role" playing! Not "Roll" playing!

For those of us who are new or just struggling with the idea of playing a character outside of yourself, visit some of these sites:

http://rpg.ashami.com/
http://zioth.com/roleplay/PersonalCode.txt
http://zioth.com/roleplay/characterBackground.htm
http://www.frontiernet.net/~jamesstarlight/Development.html
http://www.helium.com/knowledge/22729-tips-for-roleplaying-your-character
And any of your own findings (post on the comments)

Don't be intimidated by the amount of information, just take some tips and try to develop your own style and purpose.

Monday's Game

In preparation for Monday's game please do the following:

1) Make sure your character is 100% complete. You should be ready to sit down and play as soon as you get in.
2) Bring your dice to the game.
3) Bring any additional materials that can make our session go smoother (ie. power cards, ritual cards, an appropriate miniature for your character).

If at all possible, please have some background on your character, specifically, his/her relationship to the other members of the group. I've given you some starting points but you may have had something specific you wished to be the focus for your character. Remember the party is supposed to be a cohesive whole. Let's try and make it that way. It would also be beneficial if you familiarize yourself with some of the combat rules.

Also, feel free to bring snacks and drinks for us to share ;)

(I may have homework for the arts and crafters as well as the writers amongst us as well!)

D&D Character background

To help you out with some general character and setting background:

Your characters have spent much of their time in the walled town of Fallcrest, located in the center of the Nentir Vale. It is one of the largest towns in the vale and is situated between the Cloak Wood and the Moon Hills along the Nentir River. Fallcrest has a prominent shipping industry and exports timber, leather, fruit and grain. It has connections with the dwarf town of Hammerfast, where it gets iron goods and the small town of Winterhaven. Fallcrest is not well traveled but occasional foreigners can be found trading in the markets. There are several inns and taverns in the town. Fallcrest is very much like a medieval fantasy town, but in disrepair.

Outside the town you will find a variety of ruins of the old Nerath empire destoryed by the Bloodspear orcs nearly a century ago. The countryside is dotted with abandoned forts, manor houses and other forgotten buildings. Terrain is generally clear but there are large areas of hills in the north-central part of the vale. Rivers drain into the southern Witchlight Fens. Dragonborn and Eladrin are not native to the area, but dragonborn are sometimes seen as hired guards of caravans. Eladrin were present long ago but have abandoned their manor houses after the war with the orcs. Human, halflings and dwarves are the most numerous races in the area.

Your characters are seeking news of their old mentor, a man named Douven Staul. He left three months ago after uncovering a map depicting a dragon's tomb in the region around Winterhaven. Douven Staul is an explorer of old ruins have had trained you for a life of adventure. You fear the worst and have set out along the King's Road to Winterhaven to investigate.

For more information on the Nentir Vale and the town of Fallcrest those of you with access to the Dungeon Master's Guide can skim through Chapter 11, Fallcrest.

Scheduling of D&D and Magic

There has been a suggestion of alternating playing Magic and D&D every other week or D&D two weeks in a row then Magic. I propose that we play D&D first before deciding on anything. To be honest, this is the first thing I've been excited about in a long time and I am anxious to see how it goes. I would like to devote to it the attention it deserves. That said, Magic kicks ass so yeah...

Perhaps in planning when we have Magic games we should set up a game idea. Like "2 weeks from now come with a tribal deck, no elves or goblins." or " Vanguard, next Monday". This will allow people to search out appropriate decks, cards (or packs for limited 'events'). If we mix it up enough we'll also get exposure to a ton of cards we normally wouldn't have. Consider things like block week for a block nobody played (like Time Spiral, it's most likely still available places).

In addition, we have an assortment of other games available to play as well (Arkham Horror, Killer Bunnies, I'm sure somebody has Catan, etc.) that we should play every once and awhile.

Casual Magic and Magic House Rule #1

Here's the "official" list of popular casual formats for magic:

http://www.wizards.com/Magic/TCG/Resources.aspx?x=mtg/tcg/resources/formats-casual

I've played a few of them. Some require more effort than others (see: Commander/Elder Dragon Highlander), while others are limited formats. It might be a good idea to formalize something at times.

Magic House Rule #1: Proxies

Currently, I propose that proxies be banned except for situations such as "I had three Xs, so I proxied the fourth". Gold bordered cards are fine by me. Uber-decks constructed of 80% proxies aren't fun :(

Power Cards

D&D 4e power cards are available here:

http://www.enworld.org/forum/4351249-post718.html


You can print out the powers you have on one sheet to make it easier for you to see what you can do. Or cut 'em out and what not.

Testing...Testing...

Welcome!

Our 4e D&D game will officially start on the 16th of February. However, tomorrow we will make characters and learn the new rules, as well as set up any other administration things we need to. There's a small chance my 4e books will arrive in time for the session, otherwise we will have to haul out the laptops.