Perducci
2010-03-19, 02:15 AM
Here's the setup. A friend and I don't like how infrequently our group gets together to play, so we decided to have a game with just us. The basic setup is that we each play intertwined solo-ish adventures. We alternate DMing for each other and kinda smash our ideas for the world together.
We both HATE full casters, so our world is a low-magic place. The sites and setting are made up on the fly. Mostly everything is improv. We each come up with a series of encounters or a mini-campaign and figure out how to somewhat logically mash 'em up.
I said loose in the title because that's how we play. We toss some rules to the wind for the sake of fun. The main houserules I can think of now-Multiclass freely, Create-a-Feat!, Rule of COOL.
An example of each-
Multiclass- My character has 4 different class levels...
Create-a-Feat!- my friends character has a Feat called Cool Moves. He wanted to give his solo rogue some combat ability. In a nutshell, he gets 2 TOB manuevers that he flips a coin every round for to determine which he can use.
Rule of Cool-being able to shove a fleeing enemy into a tree while running through a forest path as an attack for a quick an easy knock out.
The character's-
Norg(played by yours truly)
Draconic Water Orc. Barbarian1, Fighter1, Binder1, Cleric1. Norg is a NE seemingly lone orc in a land dominated by humans. He has taken it upon himself to re-establish an Orc Nation by personally reclaiming territory stolen by the human intruders. What constitutes stolen orc territory? Any ground Norg can see. He gets along fine with all races but humans. Bonded to animals because they don't judge.
Eldrin(Friend)
Half-elf. Straight rogue. CN. Free spirit. Eldrin travels about here and there stealing enough to get by...of course his view of what makes up enough to get by is insane. He manages to keep out of trouble mostly because he's so flaky. He bolts at the first sign of trouble. He's a natural peacekeeper. Very easily coerced.
The first session.
That little punk! or Seriously, Don't Kill Me!
Play begins with Eldrin spotting a very large orc stalking something through the forest carrying a huge sword. They spot each other and the orc erupts with a mighty. The Fluffy BUNNY!!! This scares the silly half elf. Eldrin throws up his arm and asks what's going on. The orc explains he's been trying to catch and tame a rabbit. He is certain he would have had it had Eldrin not spooked it. The orc begins getting angry and Eldrin offers to help him catch it. The orc is introduced as Norg. Ah, its fate.
A few rounds of searching later, Eldrin finds the bunny nibbling on some wildflowers and successfully sneaks up behind it. Unfortunately, the quick little ball of fur darts out of his hands when he tries to grab it. A short chase ensues. Norg crashes through the brush and jumps on it. The bunny is promptly squashed. A heated debate on who killed the rabbit fills the forest with shouting. Eldrin tries to use logic but is countered with an elaborate theory revolving around a very clever crushing of the rabbit's ribcage on Eldrin's part. Eldrin gets frustrated and promises to find the now shrieking orc another one. The local plantlife is demolished...
After an entire day of searching, our lucky rogue stumbles upon a small boy poking a stick into a hole and mumbling," Hewe widdle wabbit. Come on out." Well, what do ya know? Another person trying to catch a bunny. The two agree to work together to flush it out and into a crude snare trap set up. It works wonderfully, but the boy begins to beat the rabbit with a stick. Horrified, Eldrin rushes over to stop the boy. The bunny is bleeding all over and unconscious. A stubborn 4 year old and a frightened scoundrel begin to argue over the bunny's fate. It rapidly becomes the kind of jeering you could hear on the back of a school bus of 2nd Graders these days. Eldrin pulls a slick..."I'm rubber, you're glue...what's that over THERE?"...and snags the bunny and runs away while the child looks away.
GIVE ME MY WABBIT!!!
The child chases after...only to have them both stopped by a passing hunter. Eldrin is kicked in the shins several times by the still screaming child. The hunter gets a quick scope on what's happening and reprimands Eldrin for bullying a child. The boy gets his rabbit back and walks off going on and on about how yummy in the tummy rabbit stew is.
Eldrin mopes back to where the orc was and finds Norg sitting on a stump singing a crude song about his new pet and sharpening his greatsword. Once he finds out what happens, Norg jumps up and grabs Eldrin by the colllar and forcefully demands to be led to the boy. The duo head in the general direction the kid went and stumble upon a small village aptly named Villa.
Still holding his new "friend" by the shirt, Norg enters the town and gets some very strange looks. A few men rush to their houses. Norg reaches the first home and goes to smack the door open with his fist. His roll is a ridiculous high strength check. Pow. He punches a hole in the door. He pulls his fist back out and uses the door knob. A woman and her child cower in fear. "That him?" Eldrin says no. Next house. Same deal...only now he kicks the door off its hinges. No luck. By this time, a rag tag guard of simple farmer types has assembled around our heroes with simple weapons.
Several horrid rolls for them later, Norg is amused by their weak attack attempts. He lifts one of the men and throws him at the others knocking several over. They scatter to muster more force. Eldrin keeps his face pointed at a very interesting spot that remains somewhere between his feet this entire time.
They reach the third house and Norg rips the door off its hinges and props it neatly against the side of the building. A small family sits around a table. They all freeze in their motions. A slack jawed boy sitting at a table is identified as the kid from earlier by Eldrin. Norg walks over and leans in close to the terrified boy's face.
"WHAT did you DO with that RABBIT!"...a trembling finger points to a pot over a fire...the contents within are chopped up chunks of meat in a stew. Norg shrugs and lifts the pot. Without a word, he walks over to the boy and dumps the boiling liquid on the kid. Screaming. Scrambling parents. Eldrin cursing. The father rushes Norg only to have his skull crushed with the pot.
Outside, all of the village men have gathered. It's a tiny settlement. 12-15 men armed with crap equipment. Eldrin panics. Norg grabs his sword and cuts/bull rushes through the back of the crudely built home and begins to walk casually away. Eldrin is FLIPPING OUT and unable to form a phrase past,"WHY?...But...you...what...WHY?!!!??" Norg simply states that its a war and these things happen. Eldrin spots the armed villagers approaching angrily and heads into the woods.
Norg keeps walking until he gets hit a few times. Nothing but scratches really. He turns around and MASSACRES a dozen warriors without breaking a sweat. He's disappointed that a proper battle couldn't have been fought. Not wanting to waste the opportunity, we walks back into the now defenseless town. He quickly rounds up the women and children into the center of town and declares they have five minutes to pack and leave. Most people scurry to their homes and flee. MOST people.
One brave elderly woman stabs Norg in the neck with a kitchen knife.(It was a beautiful crit...and I still think she got some sneak attack damage in there). She easily does twice the damage all the village defenders did combined. Enraged, the massive orc grabs her frail body and breaks her arm over his knee. IN THREE PLACES. Norg really hates these uppity human types. What with their 'bonus feats' and 'skill points' and sense of owning all the land they settle on. The shattered woman is carried off with the others. Norg finds the scalded and burned child and gives him some...encouragement. "You'll grow strong on your hate. It will make crushing you fufilling later on."
With a sense of pride, Norg sets about making a crude orc-face flag. He plants it in the center of the town and loudly declares to no one in particular...THE ORCS WILL HAVE A HOME SOON AND IT BEGINS HEEEEERE!!!
AGH. It's late. That's maybe a fourth of the session. More to come...possibly.
We both HATE full casters, so our world is a low-magic place. The sites and setting are made up on the fly. Mostly everything is improv. We each come up with a series of encounters or a mini-campaign and figure out how to somewhat logically mash 'em up.
I said loose in the title because that's how we play. We toss some rules to the wind for the sake of fun. The main houserules I can think of now-Multiclass freely, Create-a-Feat!, Rule of COOL.
An example of each-
Multiclass- My character has 4 different class levels...
Create-a-Feat!- my friends character has a Feat called Cool Moves. He wanted to give his solo rogue some combat ability. In a nutshell, he gets 2 TOB manuevers that he flips a coin every round for to determine which he can use.
Rule of Cool-being able to shove a fleeing enemy into a tree while running through a forest path as an attack for a quick an easy knock out.
The character's-
Norg(played by yours truly)
Draconic Water Orc. Barbarian1, Fighter1, Binder1, Cleric1. Norg is a NE seemingly lone orc in a land dominated by humans. He has taken it upon himself to re-establish an Orc Nation by personally reclaiming territory stolen by the human intruders. What constitutes stolen orc territory? Any ground Norg can see. He gets along fine with all races but humans. Bonded to animals because they don't judge.
Eldrin(Friend)
Half-elf. Straight rogue. CN. Free spirit. Eldrin travels about here and there stealing enough to get by...of course his view of what makes up enough to get by is insane. He manages to keep out of trouble mostly because he's so flaky. He bolts at the first sign of trouble. He's a natural peacekeeper. Very easily coerced.
The first session.
That little punk! or Seriously, Don't Kill Me!
Play begins with Eldrin spotting a very large orc stalking something through the forest carrying a huge sword. They spot each other and the orc erupts with a mighty. The Fluffy BUNNY!!! This scares the silly half elf. Eldrin throws up his arm and asks what's going on. The orc explains he's been trying to catch and tame a rabbit. He is certain he would have had it had Eldrin not spooked it. The orc begins getting angry and Eldrin offers to help him catch it. The orc is introduced as Norg. Ah, its fate.
A few rounds of searching later, Eldrin finds the bunny nibbling on some wildflowers and successfully sneaks up behind it. Unfortunately, the quick little ball of fur darts out of his hands when he tries to grab it. A short chase ensues. Norg crashes through the brush and jumps on it. The bunny is promptly squashed. A heated debate on who killed the rabbit fills the forest with shouting. Eldrin tries to use logic but is countered with an elaborate theory revolving around a very clever crushing of the rabbit's ribcage on Eldrin's part. Eldrin gets frustrated and promises to find the now shrieking orc another one. The local plantlife is demolished...
After an entire day of searching, our lucky rogue stumbles upon a small boy poking a stick into a hole and mumbling," Hewe widdle wabbit. Come on out." Well, what do ya know? Another person trying to catch a bunny. The two agree to work together to flush it out and into a crude snare trap set up. It works wonderfully, but the boy begins to beat the rabbit with a stick. Horrified, Eldrin rushes over to stop the boy. The bunny is bleeding all over and unconscious. A stubborn 4 year old and a frightened scoundrel begin to argue over the bunny's fate. It rapidly becomes the kind of jeering you could hear on the back of a school bus of 2nd Graders these days. Eldrin pulls a slick..."I'm rubber, you're glue...what's that over THERE?"...and snags the bunny and runs away while the child looks away.
GIVE ME MY WABBIT!!!
The child chases after...only to have them both stopped by a passing hunter. Eldrin is kicked in the shins several times by the still screaming child. The hunter gets a quick scope on what's happening and reprimands Eldrin for bullying a child. The boy gets his rabbit back and walks off going on and on about how yummy in the tummy rabbit stew is.
Eldrin mopes back to where the orc was and finds Norg sitting on a stump singing a crude song about his new pet and sharpening his greatsword. Once he finds out what happens, Norg jumps up and grabs Eldrin by the colllar and forcefully demands to be led to the boy. The duo head in the general direction the kid went and stumble upon a small village aptly named Villa.
Still holding his new "friend" by the shirt, Norg enters the town and gets some very strange looks. A few men rush to their houses. Norg reaches the first home and goes to smack the door open with his fist. His roll is a ridiculous high strength check. Pow. He punches a hole in the door. He pulls his fist back out and uses the door knob. A woman and her child cower in fear. "That him?" Eldrin says no. Next house. Same deal...only now he kicks the door off its hinges. No luck. By this time, a rag tag guard of simple farmer types has assembled around our heroes with simple weapons.
Several horrid rolls for them later, Norg is amused by their weak attack attempts. He lifts one of the men and throws him at the others knocking several over. They scatter to muster more force. Eldrin keeps his face pointed at a very interesting spot that remains somewhere between his feet this entire time.
They reach the third house and Norg rips the door off its hinges and props it neatly against the side of the building. A small family sits around a table. They all freeze in their motions. A slack jawed boy sitting at a table is identified as the kid from earlier by Eldrin. Norg walks over and leans in close to the terrified boy's face.
"WHAT did you DO with that RABBIT!"...a trembling finger points to a pot over a fire...the contents within are chopped up chunks of meat in a stew. Norg shrugs and lifts the pot. Without a word, he walks over to the boy and dumps the boiling liquid on the kid. Screaming. Scrambling parents. Eldrin cursing. The father rushes Norg only to have his skull crushed with the pot.
Outside, all of the village men have gathered. It's a tiny settlement. 12-15 men armed with crap equipment. Eldrin panics. Norg grabs his sword and cuts/bull rushes through the back of the crudely built home and begins to walk casually away. Eldrin is FLIPPING OUT and unable to form a phrase past,"WHY?...But...you...what...WHY?!!!??" Norg simply states that its a war and these things happen. Eldrin spots the armed villagers approaching angrily and heads into the woods.
Norg keeps walking until he gets hit a few times. Nothing but scratches really. He turns around and MASSACRES a dozen warriors without breaking a sweat. He's disappointed that a proper battle couldn't have been fought. Not wanting to waste the opportunity, we walks back into the now defenseless town. He quickly rounds up the women and children into the center of town and declares they have five minutes to pack and leave. Most people scurry to their homes and flee. MOST people.
One brave elderly woman stabs Norg in the neck with a kitchen knife.(It was a beautiful crit...and I still think she got some sneak attack damage in there). She easily does twice the damage all the village defenders did combined. Enraged, the massive orc grabs her frail body and breaks her arm over his knee. IN THREE PLACES. Norg really hates these uppity human types. What with their 'bonus feats' and 'skill points' and sense of owning all the land they settle on. The shattered woman is carried off with the others. Norg finds the scalded and burned child and gives him some...encouragement. "You'll grow strong on your hate. It will make crushing you fufilling later on."
With a sense of pride, Norg sets about making a crude orc-face flag. He plants it in the center of the town and loudly declares to no one in particular...THE ORCS WILL HAVE A HOME SOON AND IT BEGINS HEEEEERE!!!
AGH. It's late. That's maybe a fourth of the session. More to come...possibly.