Hosting A Game: Welgaia

[Leviathan]

Hi. I'm new to Fantasy Grounds but It looks like a fun group. I am going to be getting the software pretty soon and I was thinking about trying to host a game not long after. The idea of this game is that it will play just like D&D rules (I don't know what edition is used mostly here, let me know). The world will be one of high fantasy but in a largely water filled world. Sort of like Legend of Zelda Wind Waker. Most of civilization thrives on the islands left after a large flood. If anyone is interested in playing post on this thread and if you want to PM me with character ideas thats cool as well. I welcome anyone to play this game and I am looking for a max of 6 people for this game. Thanks and I hope that this game will be lots of fun!

[Bronsonortiz]

I might be interested. I would say use 3.5 rules as most are familliar with it, not everyone has tossed out their 3rd ed. stuff and moved to 4th, and those that are using 4th have probably converted from 3rd, and thus still know the rules if they wish to join your game. Let me know when your a little closer to running the campaign. What timezone, days ect. Will it be more roll or role play? Live chat via 3rd party chat server or strictly text; I kinda like text. It slows the game down a bit but allows for a higher level of role play.

[MikeParham]

I might also be interested, depending on the day/time. I am Eastern US, and have games already on Thursdays and Saturdays. Looking for something during the weekday eves.

[l1wolf]

I may also be interested in 3.5 depending on day/time and such. Eastern time Tuesday or Wednesday evenings would be best.

[Leviathan]

Ok so I guess I will be likely doing a 3.5 ruleset. I am also looking to have this be a game that his more focused on roleplaying. Not to say that there wont be some epic combat but I just like a more personal focus to really flesh out the characters and help the players get into the game. If text will help this then I would like to do that. Is there a system in which we could have speech but a controlled speech where I could allow players to talk to just me or the players as a collective? If there is such a system please tell me how to set it up. I am also Eastern time and I could do this game on a weekday evening if everyone is game. Once again just to reiterate if you have character ideas just PM me and I will let you know what I think about it. P.S. As a DM I am partial to characters will a well developed backstory and personality etc.

[MikeParham]

Our Thursday group is a very roleplay oriented bunch, and we make use of my Teamspeak server for voice communications both OOC and IC, with the mix depending upon the group and DM's preferences. I would offer up access to my server to this group as well. My Saturday group is a live event hosted at my house, also very roleplay intensive.

I do tend to play melee types, and enjoy the combat aspect of the game as well, and I tend to make very detailed and rounded characters, as I like to play with groups that will be around for a bit. Our live group has played together well over ten years.

To get a feel of how we play, feel free to visit our wiki site (I am Kajisi):
https://vabchd20teaclub.wikidot.com/

[Leviathan]

Thanks a lot Mike for allowing access to your Teamspeak server. Also for everyone's knowledge I am as of now planning to host these games probably on tuesday evenings around 7pm EST. Let me know if this is good or if modifications are required.

[MikeParham]

Tuesdays at 7 sounds just great for me!

I'll send you a PM with my email addie information, and as we build a list of players, at some point send out that list with emails, and I'll pass everyone the access to the TS server.

In the meantime, is there anything you can tell us to get us started on character design/development? Particularly any restrictions and house rules ( I can get very, very creative when let totally unleashed :) )

[l1wolf]

I have a few concepts but I would also like to know guidelines before I get started.

[Leviathan]

Well I can give everyone a brief explanation of the world and some restrictions etc. This world is known as Welgaia. It was once a large and thriving landmass that had very advanced technologies called collectively as the Potentia Animus. This is an age long gone. For unknown reasons there was a large flood that devastated the land and only those who had fled to the mountaintops survived this catastrophe. The present day is several hundred years later and society has begun to rebuild. Many people do not leave their islands but there are those brave few who sail the seas. From time to time relics of the later named "Laurus" age are found from time to time and are intensely studied so that they may be replicated and used. There is a unique system in this world as far as beliefs. The people of Welgaia all believe (because it is true) that there is a great cosmic force that guides everyone's lives and everyone is born with a duty. This system of obligation to the world is called Regnum Somnium. When someone dies if they have completed their duty then they are rumored to go to paradise. If someone dies without completing their duty then they are trapped in this world as a wandering spirit until their duty is completed by someone else. This is possible because when someone dies and they haven't completed their duty they leave behind a crystal called a Recordatio. Someone can take this crystal and bring it to a well versed priest and obtain its information but in doing so is then obligated to take on that person's duty. It is actually quite difficult to know one's duty explicitly as it is never clearly stated but it is rumored that there are some people who can read the Regnum Somnium and find exactly what one must do. In this world there are gods/spirits that are revered and worshipped. The three primary dieties are the Spirits of Water, Wind and the Moon: Alkyone, Garuda, and Tsuki respectively. Although these spirits exist they are worshipped almost more like a cultural thing but the Regnum Somnium is more like an overbearing religious order. For example the "church" of the Regnum Somnium is called the Contineo. There is no existing organized body for spirit worship. Hope this helps everyone. If you have any questions or anything let me know.
Also as far as establishing backstories and stuff, you can make up the name of your own island you are from and stuff like that I haven't finished with the world map yet anyway. Send me any ideas you may want to use and I will let you know what I think.

[MikeParham]

Very nice, and a good place to start from. Any particular culture types that are noteworthy (for good or bad) in your world?

Next thing I need to know deals with Race/Class restrictions, 3.5 book options...etc. Then I for one will be all set.

Re's, Mike

[Leviathan]

Ok here are some of the cultures of Welgaia.

A majority of the population of Welgaia is human. Most humans live on the only surviving continental landmass, Novus Mundus. Which is supported above the seas by a very large Potentia Animus which is made up of several large columns called collectively as the "Servo". Novus Mundus is strictly governed by the Contineo. In the center of Novus Mundus lies the capital of human civilization, Domus. In this large city is the Iunctio which is the central "church" for the Contineo. Domus is governed by a King who is appointed by a Council of Priests. Humans also live on the surrounding islands and there is less control in these areas and spirit worship is also more commonly practiced in these places.

Elves are extremely against the Contineo. Spirit worship is a tradition that was first an elven custom but was later adopted by others. The Elves are against the idea of a large overbearing concept that traps people in obligations and they like to live more freely. The Elves primarily live on isolated islands and also there is one original area of Elven habitation that exists. This area is called the Hayashi. Even among the elves that do not live there it is only treated as a rumor and in other cultures it is a myth. The Elves from Hayashi have a strict policy of not letting in outsiders and also not allowing its residents to leave, if one does leave they are branded as a traitor and are unallowed back inside.

Dwarves do not have one central place to call home but are one of the most diverse races. Most humans and even fewer elves, halflings, gnomes etc. take to the seas. Dwarves are the most common travelers of the high seas. After the floods came and destroyed the underground civilizations of the dwarves they had to create a new life. Many have taken to piracy but others are simply merchants of mercenaries looking for work. Dwarves are mostly uninterested in the religious aspects of Welgaia and are more motivated by material wealth. This creates a bit of a perception of dwarves as being greedy but they are still admitted into both human and elven areas fairly easily.

Gnomes are found frequently in human towns and are very interested in the exploration in the uses of potentia animus. Many of them work in human cities studying these machines. Because of their close ties to humans many gnomes also are close to the Contineo. Gnomes are welcome in human society but are seen in a bit of a mysterious light. Many humans are marveled at their ability to tinker with the potentia animus.

Halflings are more commonly found in the islands surrounding the Novus Mundus. They are highly uninterested in the ideas of the Contineo. Not in the way that elves are opposed but they just want to live a simple life and many of them are farmers or fishermen that live quiet and happy lives. Although of the main rumors of halflings are their great affinity for brewing and also for story telling. There are some greatly rich halfings who have created a great recipe for alcohol and are great masters of trade. Halflings and dwarves get along very well as they have similar ideals.

As far as half-orcs and other races that are generally disliked by most races, this is still true in Welgaia. As far as playing any of them I would recommend against it as their situation is complicated and I don't want to spoil some of the game. If you are very motivated to play another race let me know and I can give you some pointers.

As far as classes are concerned. Any race can play any class but some are a bit more restricted than others. For example Elves are very unlikely to be paladins because paladins are exclusively in service to Regnum Somnium. If you can think of a way that your backstory can fit your choice then let me know I can make exceptions.

[MikeParham]

Hiya Lev,

Working on a back story, but just wondering how many folks you have found and if you know when/if you will be obtaining the FG application?

[Leviathan]

Hey sorry for the long delay. I know of at least one person who will be playing i know him from outside of game. Other than that i have not had anyone certain they will play. I should be getting the software this weekend, sorry for the delays again. Anyone who is interested in playing PM me a character idea and I will let you know what i think. This is important as I have to have time plan in your characters into the story! Once I have a solid group between 4 and 6 I will begin play.

[Raznok193]

quick question, what lvl character will we be playing at the start?

[l1wolf]

Along with starting level and how we are doing characters stats, I have another question. Could we be expect to be spending most of our time on ships and water or what will the ration of land to water be? (need to know if swim skill should be a high priority)

[Leviathan]

Well I was thinking we could start at maybe lvl 5 so that your characters can have some experience but aren't too powerful yet. As far as the land to water ratio goes: there will be a lot of maritime adventuring but a majority of the time your time at sea will just be getting from one island to another. Swimming would be an important skill as there are many dangers at sea and your vessel may not always be able to withstand the forces of nature and or enemies.

[MikeParham]

Sent you a PM with my character concept. How would you like for us to determine stats, perhaps a point system?

[Leviathan]

I think we should do a buy system for stats. Standard 3.5 D&D rules should be fine. If anyone has a problem with this or a better idea then let me know.

[MikeParham]

If your are referring to the system on page 169 of the DMG, which campaign category are we to use (25, 28, or 32)? otherwise, I've always liked the straight and simple 80 point/assign as wish method.

[l1wolf]

I always preferred rolling with point buy as backup.

[Leviathan]

I think we should use a standard point but system. Every stat starts at 8 and you get 25 points. Instructions are found in DMG pg 169

[taliom]

I would love to play this game, only issue is I can't do tuesdays. My best days are Thursdays and Wednesdays. I got a buddy that would join if it was Wednesdays as well. If you decide to change or add a day in the future please let me know for as I previously stated I would love to play this game, the whole water-world idea sounds so interesting. P.S. I'd be playing a Transmutation wizard that earns his living by accompanying vessels to help defend agaisn't pirates.

[MikeParham]

While I cant do Weds or Thursdays, only Mondays and Tuesdays due to other commitments, I would not want to be the one holding up your game.

If for everyone else those days work best, and enable you to get started with a full group, by all means change, and I'll just wait till the next opportunity comes about. ;)

Re's, Mike

[l1wolf]

I will have to back out of interest due to new requirements. So that will be another person who was advocating Tues gone.

[Raznok193]

Tuesdays or wednesdays work for me, but i would rather do tuesdays

[Leviathan]

This puts me in a weird situation. I will be playing with the software this week and trying to get a feel for how it works. I will figure out by the end of the week which day we will be playing regularly. I am thinking that later this week we will be playing a short fun game just to help me get used to the system. I will post a time when I have decided on one. As far as characters go, I would like all those interested to send me a backstory concerning their character and I will give you feedback. Raznok is the only one who has sent me a full story so far so I am looking forward to hearing from you. I am probably going to be deciding which day we play based on the characters made. Ex. If the more dedicated players with better stories are more concentrated amongst people who are available on tuesday then we will play then; so make them well. Remember I am a DM who loves RPing and rewards good backstory.

[Leviathan]

I was fooling around with the system and I am having trouble getting it to connect. I run the test and it tells me that I am failing the connection test. If anyone has any ideas as to why this is happening please help me out.

[taliom]

Are you behind a router? if so you must go into the router settings and open port 1802. I noticed that resetting your router connection can sometimes repair the problem, but you must have port 1802 open for any of it to work. Also I dont mean turning the router off I mean go into the router settings and doing it there. Enabling your firewall to accept incoming connections must be done as well.

[Leviathan]

Ok so tuesdays are going to be the official play days for this campaign. Hopefully I will be able to work out any bugs in my setup this weekend and then if you guys are ready we could start playing next week. Sometime this weekend I will be sending PMs to the couple of people who have sent me backstories and this message will contain basic information concerning where your character is at the moment etc.

[MikeParham]

Are we still set for tomorrow at 7pm eastern as the first session? If so, please let us know what you would like for us to have prepared ahead of time. Also would be nice to know just how many players we have, and if they have headsets/microphones for teamspeak (if the game will be using voice chat). For the setup session I would highly recommend using voice, even if we are not planning to use it much when in character.

Re's, Mike

[Leviathan]

Yea lets go for 7 tonight. I can be ready around 6ish if you want to start getting things set up.

[MikeParham]

Need for you to send out the login information :)

[Leviathan]

Just so everyone knows this game has been put on hiatus for an undetermined amount of time due to connection troubles. When everything is working I will try to revive the game.