DM_Vairė
10-08-2008, 14:53
The premise:
Nearly two decades before the present, the heroic warrior, Balin — second in command under Thorin at the Battle of Five Armies and illustrious commander thereafter — led a company of dwarves on a desperate mission to the depths of Khazad-dum to fight back the orcish hordes that had overtaken it and reclaim the Great Halls of Durin from the darkness under which it had fallen. Superior strength and unfailing courage led to early victories, and Balin ruled there as Uzbad Khazaddumu, “Lord of Moria,” for five triumphant years. It wasn’t until orcs returned with overwhelming force to engage Balin’s company at the Battle of Dimril Dale that Balin and his dwarves met their tragic end.
But not all. Unknown to the history books, a single fighting unit was delayed on its way to battle — so that the devout of Aule among them might gather blessed weapons from a separate storeroom — and that diversion ultimately spared them from their demise. But it sentenced them instead to these many years trapped inside Moria — with all hope of escape blocked by overwhelming opposition. Now, each day for “Balin’s Remnant” is a battle for survival amidst the harshest enemy occupation. One wrong step would mean their discovery and annihilation. And yet, their abiding sense of honour requires that they seize what opportunities they might to carry on their tenuous guerilla resistance.
The opportunity:
I’m looking for players who would be willing to commit to play characters on a near-weekly basis in an ongoing series of DM-sponsored events that chronicle the struggles for survival of this (hypothetical) company of dwarves trapped within Moria — a desperate remnant of Balin’s glorious, but all-too-short-lived, return.
We’ll roll up characters to be used exclusively for these events — you’ll NOT have the latitude to use them outside these events, nor to develop them independently of these events. I'd like to start everyone at level 10 or 11 (determined by a roll of the dice), and your options for classes will be sorely limited — you must choose from base classes of fighter, cleric, or paladin, with the additional option to take levels of dwarven defender if you meet its requirements. You will be supplied from Balin's own fine armoury, and while some items may be in short supply, you'll have full latitude to put items as appropriate in the hands of those of you most capable to use them.
With each event (held at a weekend time TBD by consensus), you’ll be faced with a unique challenge — an enemy threat to be dispatched, an ancient relic to be recovered, critical supplies to be gathered, evidence of other survivors to be explored — and 90 minutes to complete it.
I expect it to be an interesting experiment in roleplaying — with a fun balance of strategy and tactics and of character development and battle-frenzy. I expect to lay some early groundwork over the next week, giving folks opportunities to settle in with the upgrade to v1.69, but soon thereafter I’ll want to start scheduling actual event dates and times.
But the very first order of business? I’d like to assess interest in this rather unusual formula. Would those who have an interest and likelihood to participate please respond below, or to me by PM or e-mail (dm.vaire@gmail.com)?
Thanks!
Nearly two decades before the present, the heroic warrior, Balin — second in command under Thorin at the Battle of Five Armies and illustrious commander thereafter — led a company of dwarves on a desperate mission to the depths of Khazad-dum to fight back the orcish hordes that had overtaken it and reclaim the Great Halls of Durin from the darkness under which it had fallen. Superior strength and unfailing courage led to early victories, and Balin ruled there as Uzbad Khazaddumu, “Lord of Moria,” for five triumphant years. It wasn’t until orcs returned with overwhelming force to engage Balin’s company at the Battle of Dimril Dale that Balin and his dwarves met their tragic end.
But not all. Unknown to the history books, a single fighting unit was delayed on its way to battle — so that the devout of Aule among them might gather blessed weapons from a separate storeroom — and that diversion ultimately spared them from their demise. But it sentenced them instead to these many years trapped inside Moria — with all hope of escape blocked by overwhelming opposition. Now, each day for “Balin’s Remnant” is a battle for survival amidst the harshest enemy occupation. One wrong step would mean their discovery and annihilation. And yet, their abiding sense of honour requires that they seize what opportunities they might to carry on their tenuous guerilla resistance.
The opportunity:
I’m looking for players who would be willing to commit to play characters on a near-weekly basis in an ongoing series of DM-sponsored events that chronicle the struggles for survival of this (hypothetical) company of dwarves trapped within Moria — a desperate remnant of Balin’s glorious, but all-too-short-lived, return.
We’ll roll up characters to be used exclusively for these events — you’ll NOT have the latitude to use them outside these events, nor to develop them independently of these events. I'd like to start everyone at level 10 or 11 (determined by a roll of the dice), and your options for classes will be sorely limited — you must choose from base classes of fighter, cleric, or paladin, with the additional option to take levels of dwarven defender if you meet its requirements. You will be supplied from Balin's own fine armoury, and while some items may be in short supply, you'll have full latitude to put items as appropriate in the hands of those of you most capable to use them.
With each event (held at a weekend time TBD by consensus), you’ll be faced with a unique challenge — an enemy threat to be dispatched, an ancient relic to be recovered, critical supplies to be gathered, evidence of other survivors to be explored — and 90 minutes to complete it.
I expect it to be an interesting experiment in roleplaying — with a fun balance of strategy and tactics and of character development and battle-frenzy. I expect to lay some early groundwork over the next week, giving folks opportunities to settle in with the upgrade to v1.69, but soon thereafter I’ll want to start scheduling actual event dates and times.
But the very first order of business? I’d like to assess interest in this rather unusual formula. Would those who have an interest and likelihood to participate please respond below, or to me by PM or e-mail (dm.vaire@gmail.com)?
Thanks!