D&D In Another World - Village of New Beginnings

[Rizban]

You step out of your room and find yourself in a small hamlet straddling a river and surrounded by thick woodlands.



You stand on a wooden patio nestled against a L-shaped building in the center of town, clearly a roadhouse or inn of some sort. One by one, other individuals wearing identical sets of clothing and equally uncertain looks step out of the building, joining you on the patio.

You don't immediately see anyone else nearby.

Spoiler

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Each of you arrives in whichever order you post. First to post is the first to emerge from the building.

[Thokk_Smash]

From one of the doors emerges a short, lithe humanoid that looks like a bipedal armadillo. He is wearing, of course, a long tunic of coarse fabric, but his skin itself seems to have some kind of transparent sheen to it as he moves. He stretches in the sun...and seems to finally realize something about himself.

"Wait, why am I so short??" he cries, looking between himself and the doorframe with a look of despair. "Dammit, I hated being a shortstack." His tail lashes out behind him, knocking into the doorframe and spooking him. "Oh, right, new appendage. This'll take some getting used to...but where the hell am I?"

[Jeriah]

A redhead in her early twenties emerges from the building, quickly leaping out of the way of the little armadillo man's tail thump.

"Oi, watch it there. You almost thumped me a good one."

The girl appears to be a normal human and is wearing an outfit that's very similar to Earth sportswear, including a pair of comfy looking sneakers. The tank top is a bright, solid teal color, which perfectly matches the accent color of her shoes. She bounces casually on the balls of her feet like a trained athlete doing a light warmup as she glances at her surroundings.

"So, uh... Dude guy, do you know if there's a tutorial or starter quest or something around here? I mean, I don't see a giant exclamation point over your head, so I'm guessing you're not the quest giver..."

Spoiler: The Girl

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[Thokk_Smash]

The svelte armadillo-man gives an apologetic look to the redhead. "Sorry, sorry. You know as much as me. I just finished chargen, I don't even have equipment. Where'd you get that outfit, anyway?" He sounds jealously surprised as he curls and stretches out his tail as if curling a dumbbell. He also starts stretching, his arms across his chest, tilting at the waist, as if getting used to his new body. "This VR sh*t just gets better every year, eh? Never played as an armadillo before."

[Aracor]

A well-dressed man steps out of a door. He's a little shorter than average, dressed in what looks like a durable leather outfit, carrying a big quarterstaff, and wearing a backpack and a ring on his finger. He appears to be human.

He's got dark hair, near black, brown eyes, and looks tan. He's kind of unassuming - seems like the kind of person who would be fun to sit down and have a beer and a chat with.

Huh. Are there a bunch of people joining the game at the same time? Hi, everyone! Oh, cool! We start in a town? That's helpful!

He waves.

Spoiler: @Rizban

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He'll try to do an Inspect on the other characters that he can actually see.

[Thundercracker]

Letho

A bald male character with brown eyes, who looks like he picked the default for all appearance options, steps onto the patio. He is wearing a roughspun tunic and not much else.
"Hunh, I didn't expect to be starting with other people, that's kind of cool," he says.

"Name's Letho. I have no idea about any starter quests, but I think we were all lumped together for a reason," Letho says, "I wouldn't be surprised if there are other hamlets with other players starting out at the same time, just like us."

[Aracor]

Logan nods to Letho.

I mean, this is a beta - that usually means there's a fairly limited player pool to draw on. But who knows, right?

I have to comment about the character creation passage. What the <Insert profanity here> was THAT! I chose a representative, and it turns out that they are the literal gods of this...realm in some way. Or at least that's what he claimed.

He starts a minute as he realized that he's not being very polite.

My name is Logan. How's things?

[Thokk_Smash]

The armadillo-man seems to laugh at Logan's mention of a beta. Somehow the thought of it seems laughable to him, although he doesn't say any reason for his mirth. He quickly looks at the sole female in their group so far and Logan with a frown. "How did you two get so much sh*t? All I got were the clothes on my back and a crappy footlocker that would break if I opened it too hard."

He does seem to realize his rudeness, and straightens out. "I'm Avery. Nice to meet you all."

[Aracor]

Well, I took a feat. Mercantile Background. So I have some really basic equipment (my room had the same as yours), but I'm hoping the long-term benefit means I'll have an advantage as far as selling stuff.

He gestures at his better clothing and quarterstaff.

I've also got some leather armor in my backpack. It doesn't particularly help me.

He hesitates one last time, then speaks once more.

What race ARE you? he asks Avery.

[Thokk_Smash]

"Bah, I didn't have time to look through a thousand feats," Avery grumbles. He looks at Logan askance. "I'm an Armad, or I guess an Armad-Errant technically. Tier 2 race and all that. I'm an armadillo-man, basically."

[Aracor]

Wow, that's really cool! I wasn't even offered that one. What kind of character creation process IS this? Everyone gets different stuff?

There were a LOT of feats. Honestly I just fell back on favorites from the tabletop game. And I still hope that the primary benefit works correctly, because the starting equipment isn't a huge factor.

[Rizban]

He'll try to do an Inspect on the other characters that he can actually see.

At the time that you attempt this...

The armadillo person:

Inspect
Avery Riley

The human:

Inspect
Reina Redtide

They also instantly become aware that you have used Inspect on them via a pop up and an inherent awareness of your location.

Inspect
Logan Sharpe has [Inspect]ed you

[Thundercracker]

Wow, that's really cool! I wasn't even offered that one. What kind of character creation process IS this? Everyone gets different stuff?

There were a LOT of feats. Honestly I just fell back on favorites from the tabletop game. And I still hope that the primary benefit works correctly, because the starting equipment isn't a huge factor.

Letho

"I have faith it'll all balance out eventually," Letho said. He looked around at the hamlet.
"How long do you think we should wait to see if anyone else shows up?" he asked.

He tried to check his status.

[Aracor]

I'm thinking we should at least look around a bit and meet back here. Five minutes or so to look around town? We should try to find a place to bind our hearthstones.

[Thundercracker]

I'm thinking we should at least look around a bit and meet back here. Five minutes or so to look around town? We should try to find a place to bind our hearthstones.

Letho

“Yeah let’s do that, meet back here in five to link up with any other new players,” Letho said.

Spoiler

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while he is in his own, Letho will see if there’s any way to use his remaining boons to further improve his class.

[In4Dimensions]

From one of the buildings emerges a hulking, 7 foot orc--with glasses. His massive frame causes him to bump his head into the doorframe as he walks out, to which he responds with a small mutter of annoyance. He then looks around the plaza, observing the others. Ah, so you all are the other beta testers? What'd you think of char gen? he asks in a friendly tone of voice.

[Thundercracker]

From one of the buildings emerges a hulking, 7 foot orc--with glasses. His massive frame causes him to bump his head into the doorframe as he walks out, to which he responds with a small mutter of annoyance. He then looks around the plaza, observing the others. Ah, so you all are the other beta testers? What'd you think of char gen? he asks in a friendly tone of voice.

Letho

“I’m going to have to go through it a few times to decide whether I like it or not,” Letho said, “Name’s Letho, by the way. Me and a few others starting here were about to look around for a few minutes before coming back here to see if any other players spawn. Wanna come?”

[In4Dimensions]

Letho

“I’m going to have to go through it a few times to decide whether I like it or not,” Letho said, “Name’s Letho, by the way. Me and a few others starting here were about to look around for a few minutes before coming back here to see if any other players spawn. Wanna come?”

"Sure thing. Nice to meet you, Letho; the name's Charlie. What's your current build? I'm assuming we're all level one at the moment." As Charlie says this last bit, he raises his voice somewhat, clearly intending for it to be heard by everyone present.

[Thundercracker]

"Sure thing. Nice to meet you, Letho; the name's Charlie. What's your current build? I'm assuming we're all level one at the moment." As Charlie says this last bit, he raises his voice somewhat, clearly intending for it to be heard by everyone present.

Letho

"Well, I thought I'd be by myself, so I went with a warlock," Letho said, "stand off, blasty blasty all day long. Not sure how well that'll work with a group but I'll figure something out. You?"

[In4Dimensions]

Letho

"Well, I thought I'd be by myself, so I went with a warlock," Letho said, "stand off, blasty blasty all day long. Not sure how well that'll work with a group but I'll figure something out. You?"

“Artificer and Vizier. It’s kinda like a gestalt, except that I only get the chassis of the Artificer. Speaking of which…” his voice trails off as he reaches behind him, “this is my rat; in this expansion, apparently, Artificers get a mechanical animal companion. I haven’t given him a name yet.”

[Aracor]

Hi, Charlie! I'm Logan. At this point, I'm a brawler. I'll get access to some divine magic as I level up.

[Deadguy]

Thassia Player: Deadguy Spoiler: OOC: Checks Show Active Effects

The door of one of the many 'starter' houses opened, and a serpentine figure slithered out. She closed the door after coiling her tail completely outside. Once she was sure it was secure and wouldn't fall off the hinges, she turned to take stock of her surroundings.

[Thundercracker]

Thassia Player: Deadguy Spoiler: OOC: Checks Show Active Effects

The door of one of the many 'starter' houses opened, and a serpentine figure slithered out. She closed the door after coiling her tail completely outside. Once she was sure it was secure and wouldn't fall off the hinges, she turned to take stock of her surroundings.

Letho looked over his shoulder.
"Oh hey, looks like one more rolled in," Letho said, "heyo, we're all starting at the same time, going to check out this little village and then come back here, want to come with?"

[Deadguy]

Thassia Player: Deadguy Spoiler: OOC: Checks Show Active Effects

Looking at the large group gathered in front of the buildings, she nodded slightly to the invitation.

”Thank you. That sounds like a good way to start learning about the area.”

[Jeriah]

The armadillo-man seems to laugh at Logan's mention of a beta. Somehow the thought of it seems laughable to him, although he doesn't say any reason for his mirth. He quickly looks at the sole female in their group so far and Logan with a frown. "How did you two get so much sh*t? All I got were the clothes on my back and a crappy footlocker that would break if I opened it too hard."

"Don't know what to tell you. Maybe the devs just like us more? Did you try flirting a bit? That usually works pretty good," she says with a wink.

He does seem to realize his rudeness, and straightens out. "I'm Avery. Nice to meet you all."

"Yo, I'm Reina."

Well, I took a feat. Mercantile Background. So I have some really basic equipment (my room had the same as yours), but I'm hoping the long-term benefit means I'll have an advantage as far as selling stuff.

He gestures at his better clothing and quarterstaff.

I've also got some leather armor in my backpack. It doesn't particularly help me.

He hesitates one last time, then speaks once more.

What race ARE you? he asks Avery.

"Nice plan, Logan. If you've got any extra armor or weapons, maybe you could share with your party?"

From one of the buildings emerges a hulking, 7 foot orc--with glasses. His massive frame causes him to bump his head into the doorframe as he walks out, to which he responds with a small mutter of annoyance. He then looks around the plaza, observing the others. Ah, so you all are the other beta testers? What'd you think of char gen? he asks in a friendly tone of voice.

"Dude, that was really cool. I hit Representative and ended up convincing the guy to rage quit his job. Wasn't on purpose though..."

The door of one of the many 'starter' houses opened, and a serpentine figure slithered out. She closed the door after coiling her tail completely outside. Once she was sure it was secure and wouldn't fall off the hinges, she turned to take stock of her surroundings.

Reina jumps back.

"Gah! Snakes... why'd it have to be snakes?"

[Aracor]

Ha! Indiana Jones reference - nice!

In answer to your question? Yeah. I'll gladly toss the quarterstaff I'm carrying here, and leather armor, to someone else who can use it. I can threaten unarmed, and the armor will keep me from using ki. The rest is mostly stuff like an everburning torch, rations, and this signet ring.

[Rizban]

DM

Spoiler: Image

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As one of you moves to leave, an older villager comes strolling up, a pensive look clouding his face.

"Ho there! You lot new here? Seems you are. Seems. You. Are!"

He grins as he slowly takes a look at each of you in turn, clearly appraising you but not seeming to use any special abilities to do so.

"Welcome to New Beginnings, an humble town with a long paste of welcoming new arrivals! We don't normally get so many at once, but you're welcome as can be!

Name's Ephraim, chief elder of New Beginnings. If'n you need anything, just ask!"

[Deadguy]

Thassia Player: Deadguy Spoiler: OOC: Checks Show Active Effects

The serpent dipped her head toward the elder man.

”Thank you for the welcome. As you’re used to new arrivals here, I assume you get asked the same questions quite often. Where can we bind our hearthstone is my initial inquiry.”

[Rizban]

DM - Ephraim

He shrugs casually and replies, "Ah, no, no [Hearthstone] I'm afraid. See, New Beginnings is whatcha might call a [Starter Town] for you new arrivals to the Realm. Yeah, see, you're 'sposed to learn the basics here, but..." he shrugs again. "If you can't survive here, well, you probably just ain't suited to surviving elsewhere neither. Best that we, uh, reallocate those resources where they'll do some good. Yeah?"

He kicks aimlessly at a small pebble near his feet before taking a deep breath and continuing.

"So, there's a low-level [Dungeon] just past the north gate here and a [Goblin Camp] to the southwest, both of which can get you some combat experience. The [Dungeon] doubles as a [Mine] and the [Goblin Camp] is surrounded by some good [Herb] and [Reagent] gathering locations, both of which can get you some Profession experience. There's some tougher fights upstream, and if you take a boat, there's some good fishing downstream, albeit also with some tougher monsters.

There's some folks 'round town who might can give you a [Quest] or two, but don't expect too much. We're pretty self sufficient, seeing as you can't leave the valley and come back. Out the southeast gate is a new [Farm] where you can get some good farming experience, and there's a few other professionals 'round town what could give you a job.

You can stay here at the [Inn], at a cost of ten copper per night, or you can seek lodging elsewhere. No loitering though. If'n you can't find a proper place to sleep, you'll have to rest outside the walls and deal with all that entails or just go without proper rest."

He scratches at the stubble on his chin and gazes off into the clouds.

"Seems like there was something else I was 'sposed to tell ya...

Oh! Right! Minimum party size is two. You can wander 'round town alone, but you can't leave through the gates or take any quests if'n you're solo.

Oh! One last thing! You've got one month of [Head Start] time, after which you've got to leave the [Starter Town] and venture out into the Realm proper. Time's already started, so get those parties formed and get out there!"

[Aracor]

That's some useful information - thanks! So we leave here and we just...can't come back? Where's the demarcation? How can we tell where the point of no return is? I'm sure we'll all want to make sure we don't leave anything behind.

Is there a maximum party size? Or just the minimum?

Spoiler: OOC

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Logan will also Inspect Ephraim to see what kind of information it gives him about NPCs.