Ghostwriter wanted, inquire within (Armidale out)

[Serpentine]

The next part of the campaign I'm running will consist of roaming around trying to find the bits of map that an Indiana Jonesesque explorer has left around the place, as noted in his journal. The party will be given the journal, and I thought it'd be a neat idea if they could have it, in their hands, to actually read through, rather than just a bunch of dot-points or something. I'm not really up to it myself - it'll be hard enough to make myself plan the rest of it and draw up the maps - so I thought I'd put it to the talented folk of the Playground as an exercise in writing.
I would give the person all the details I want included, the important things that'll happen, any setting-specific background needed, etc, and they would fill in the details and the like, with a reasonable amount of artistic freedom, I think.
It wouldn't be a day-to-day journal, as I'm thinking that he'll sort of write a dramatic introduction before he goes off to explore something specific, leave the book somewhere safe, then write a dramatic summary of what happened and what he found. It also wouldn't go back all that far: I'm thinking he'll have done his usual thing, as above, before going into a cave or something, then found himself in the Underdark and then on a whole new continent, leaving his old journal behind. Thus this one would start with an account of his journey through the Underdark and then his adventures in this new land, which would be the important stuff. All in all, it might have, say, 6ish major entries and maybe another 4ish secondary ones.
This isn't anything truly crucially important - if I have to I can just give a summary or whatever, but it just would be really nice to have. The way this game is going, you'd probably have at least a month to write it.
So, anyone interested?

[Hoplite]

How big are you thinking?

I am vaguely interested, but would first like to know how much you expect. 3 pages of text or more like 8....:smalleek:

[Serpentine]

I would say... Probably at least half a page per entry, but it'd be flexible. He would be the sort of guy who writes books about his exploits, but by that same token it would be reasonable to suppose that he'd just sketch out a quick summary to be filled out to book-size later.

Also, incentives: Um... I'd owe you a favour?

[Hoplite]

I will think about it, I have it extremely bussy for the next two weeks or so, so you better keep searching for someone else, but if you don't find anything I might be in a good (read creative) mood and help you out.

[Blayze]

I am *definitely* interested. Will see about throwing together a sample. As long as you provide me with the information you want me to include, I'll see about surrounding it with explorer-esque stuff for them to read through.


Also, incentives: Um... I'd owe you a favour?

Excellent!

[rubakhin]

I could totally do that. I used to do things like this when I was a kid, I went through this Jules Verne/H.G. Wells/etc. phase at the appropriate age. And I could get it done quickly since I have pretty much unlimited free time at the moment.

[Serpentine]

Great! I'll start putting stuff together in the next couple of days. Honestly, I don't have much of it yet <.< There's the temple of a trickster god, but that'll be the last entry and it'll be the before-entry, cuz it'll be the one that kills him (they'll find his decayed/ing corpse squashed under a big round boulder, arm stretching out for an awesome hat that's just out of reach :smallbiggrin:). There's one other I have in mind, a raptoran ruin from another game that never got used, but it was constructed nearly entirely from random encounter tables so it'll need some work... Damn, I really need to get cracking on this damnable game. Ugh... The order in which you'll be writing will probably be the opposite of the order in which the party will go >.<

Hey, I could use some inspiration for some of these, and seeing as one or more of you will be writing it I may as well ask you guys whether there's anything you'd like to write about... Here's some background:
This fellow, probably a gnome, is an archaeologist/explorer.
He has obtained a magical map somehow (didn't think about that, but it probably doesn't have to come up anyway) of the Underdark that links the Gensia continent (Europe, Egypt, generally "old world") to the Mahandia continent (North and South America, "new world"). The magic part is that it's in layers or segments: One has the physical features, one has dangers and creatures, one has towns and features of civilisation, one has the labels, that sort of thing. You need to put them all together, one lying on top of the other, to get all the information.
During his journeys, this fellow loses the pieces of the map, one by one. One he bargains away for his life, one maybe he gambles away, one is stolen by some sneaky creature, one he had in the pocket of the jacket that got eaten by the purple worm, that sort of thing (the last one will either be on his corpse in the trickster's temple or will have been left, along with his journal, with a friend he made in this new world. Maybe both).
I think four layers would be about right, which means I still need 2-3 interesting explorable places for him to lose them. Hmm... There will be American Indian-style tribes of centaurs around... Maybe he could have left one with them, meaning the party will have to track them down and probably bargain with them somehow? Ah-ha! Progress!

[Blayze]

Information! Great! I'll take that and work with it, Serp. Gonna see what comes out of this brain. For now however, here's something I threw together just now to get a feel for this sort of thing.

Journeys with Myself
The Autobiography of Fiddeus von Parfenhouser, Master Explorer and Adventurer
Volume LIX - Adventures in the Underdark
Primary draft copy (Original)

http://www.yousendit.com/download/R3oxQndBNDQzeUxIRGc9PQ

[Serpentine]

Heh, I'll give a lot more information later (I do need it to work with the story, and to a lesser extent the map I'll draw, after all <.<). That's a very excellent start, though :smallbiggrin: Uncertain as of yet whether it's the style I'm wanting, but cool nonetheless.
Don't rush me people, I haven't even got the adventure worked out yet! :smalleek:

Hmmm... If I use that name, he'll probably be from the Eas somewhere, rather than the Peninsulai or the islands I haven't named yet as he was going to be... Works alright though, the party speaks Eas anyway.

A disclaimer I should've had at the start: I'll probably go through and edit some things, if that's okay with people, just to check style, facts, tiddly things. Anything bigger than that I'll talk to the writer about.

[Blayze]

I'll keep going with this, then. And as for rushing you... Well, let's just say I'm a fast writer and Fiddeus von Parfenhouser is an awesome guy. Really. He says so himself.

Anyway, are you going to do the "aged paper" routine of taking an iron to the sheets of paper after you've printed it out? ;)

[Serpentine]

Possibly. Do it for yourself, if you want, but like I said I don't really know yet exactly what I want. I kinda like the idea of bits of it being in book-form... Is it alright with you if I give Rub the go-ahead to have a go too if he wants? If I get it all worked out properly, you could split it up between you and lighten the load a bit.

[Blayze]

Sure! It's a writing exercise for me, if nothing else (And I can cannibalise this stuff for my own use as well).

[Serpentine]

Great! I don't want you going to all this effort just for me if I end up not using it or wanting something different ^_^

[Ashtar]

As an aside, for old paper effect, the best effect I've seen was using coffee on the sheets of paper and then drying them in the oven. It makes them look really old...

I'll be following this ^^

[Blayze]

Ah, I forgot to ask. Is there anything you want to include as a part of this explorer's personality and/or actions? I ask this because Fiddeus has just slaughtered a village full of Deep Gnomes ("They were expecting a fop, anticipating a helpless noble because of my appearance and mannerisms. Fools! Fiddeus von Parfenhouser wields a warhammer!") after they welcomed him in and then attempted to kill him when his guard was down.

On the plus side, he found that map you mentioned. Fiddeus is proving to be quite the *******.

[Serpentine]

Uh... Not that sort :smalleek: Explorer, cataloguer, archaeologist, collector of knowledge and curios. Not a fop, able to hold his own in a fight (probably Wizard/Rogue or somesuch), but one more likely to live with the Deep Gnomes for a while, note down some interesting facts, then sneak off in the middle of the night with their sacred beholder statue. For his attitude to killing and the like, I guess think Indiana Jones? Will do it when necessary, preferably without being noticed, but not likely to go around slaughtering villages :smalleek:
Just a quick note of what I've got so far for the Underdark specifically: Vampires above-ground (but that might not make it into this journal), mindflayers and drow below-ground. A very large and organised mindflayer society with a thriving slave trade (we'll deal with that later...). Possibly some mention of the vampires dealing with the mindflayers (bit of foreshadowing...). A den of Beholders... That's about all I've got so far. Deep gnomes will be an occasional thing, say the odd outpost or a few families in another species' city, rather than a prominent feature.

As an aside, we'll be put on this quest by his male catfolk lover :smallamused:

I'll try not to let you down, Ashtar :smalltongue:

[Blayze]

More information? Clarifications? My God, it's like Christmas! Not a mass murderer? Damn. Well, time to edit then. :D

[Serpentine]

Mostly just bumping cuz I still need this thread <.< Here's some of what I've got so far, though, in chronological order mostly maybe:

Underdark: Mindflayer society, drow outposts, maybe 1 or 2 drow towns, roaming driders, beholder nest (large), probably a ravine or two and a few rivers (various sizes), a sea or lake.

Raptoran Ruins: The entrance/exit to the Underdark (the opening of a crevice allowed entry/exit), roamed by drider and possibly drow scouts - occasional scuffles - and various other creatures, including a nest of harpies (if I recall correctly). First piece of map lost (he'll probably have them scattered about his person, so if he loses one thing - say a boot or a beltpouch - he won't have lost them all). Injuries/illness obtained here or in the Underdark.

Centaur Tribe: North American style. Discover him outside the Raptoran Ruins. Barters for his care using various items, including a piece of map.
(game note: Party will have to first find this tribe, then try to barter for it. Centaurs will ask party to obtain a breeding pair of "4-legged half-centaurs", from a herd of wild horses guarded by a feral Druid)

[something]: Yeah, I'm blank on this one. Any ideas? Suppose the above-mentioned Druid could've gotten one somehow...

[something 2]: Not sure whether a second will be necessary. Any other ideas?

Trickster's Temple: Will meet his doom here, so journal will only contain hearsay and how he came to hear it - probably the catfolk Wizard he meets, and grows affectionate for, in the Library of the City of Beasts. The temple of a presumed-dead Trickster god, full of deadly puzzles and deception. It's said the god collected treasures that could be powerful when handled properly and terrible when not, and offered similar boons.



Rubakhin: If you still want to have a go, I'd love to read some work.

[Dallas-Dakota]

Trickster's Temple: Will meet his doom here, so journal will only contain hearsay and how he came to hear it - probably the cat-muffins he meets, and grows affectionate for, in the Library of the City of Beasts.
Here, fixed it for you.

[Blayze]

Now that truly would be the Underdark.