In reply to Zenphar (msg # 27):

Interesting -- thanks for taking the time to pass that along, Zenphar.

Think I have things just about there... just need equipment.

I need to choose spells and a few other little things but I'm out most of the day today.

Zenphar, this will be my first wizard in 5e (I've played plenty in 2nd and 3rd). I'm taking lucky, I think, which should give a good amount of screwing around with rolls as we gain levels.

Yup; sheet is ready for the review, GN.

I really like "Lucky" as a Feat. I've taken it a number of times, and found it to be the proverbial Swiss army knife of Feats -- very handy in lots of different situations.

I might have gone with it this time around, had that +1 to Strength for Tegan (which bumped him up to an 18) not been so bright and shiny. :)

Good luck with your 5e wizard! :)
This message was last edited by the player at 16:00, Thu 27 May 2021.

In reply to Elaria (msg # 30):

I once played a halfling diviner wizard.  They can really mess with the dice.

Just letting everyone know.  I will be going over the character sheets this weekend and should be ready to start on Monday.

So you have an idea of when I will be active, I am in Australia (GMT +10).

Sooo... what time is for you, GN, right now?

It's almost 4pm for me here

8:00 am here.

In reply to GN (msg # 34):

Thanks for the heads-up, GN. I'll look forward to getting under way early next week.

For everyone's future reference, I live in the U. S. Eastern Time Zone. We currently have Daylight Savings Time in effect, so I am at GMT-4 (that morphs into GMT-5 during the winter).

However, I am a bit of a night-owl whenever I have the opportunity, so I will oft-times be around when more reasonable folks are abed. :)

I work in a cubical on my computer all day. So I'm checking RPOL every half hour or so. I work, check RPOL, work check RPOL. Does that make me a professional gamer?

Weekends are harder for me to post, but I can usually follow on the weekends.

Thanks for running the game.  I'm looking forward to getting going.

Also in the US here, and my post times will vary quite a bit. Some days I'm popping on almost constantly, other days I'll check in when I can. Weekends are a bit tougher, but I can usually get a post in as needed.

I'm excited to experience this campaign and see where it goes! Old-school module updated for the 5th edition rules I've come to enjoy so much. Should be a blast. :)

I'm east coast US. I usually post during my work day and early evening.

East Coast US here, too.

Edit: I post when I can during the week; often during lunch, sometimes before bed. Weekends are generally otherwise busy.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:22, Fri 28 May 2021.

I'm west coast Canada - Pacific time, -7 UTC right now, -8 UTC in winter.

I am on RPOL basically everyday - evenings on work nights and a couple of time usually on weekends.

Haha, Time zones are weird. I am GMT+8, so a lot closer to the GM in time. I tend to post during my evenings.

I am at UTC-5, I check throughout the day but my schedule is erratic and there are days when I can only post in the evenings.

If I might, I'd like to engage in a bit of early meta-gaming for the sake of harmony.

My half-orc is a fighter with an acolyte background. I thought something like a guard for the priest-shamans of an orc tribe would work, particularly since the orc cults are pretty martial in nature.

But that would be "Acolyte of Grummsh".

And we've got a fair few elf types in the party. And a stumpy dwarf. :-D

The personality I have in mind for him is as a very circumspect and thoughtful (16 Wis) type who's aware his history and continued veneration of Grummsh's precepts of strength and fearlessness will cause him trouble in the wider world, if he's belligerent. He's not interested in rubbing it in your faces that Grummsh is awesome and Cory-Lathie is a twerp; he's interested in being strong and fearless. He's not evil; he doesn't hate you just because you're [insert pejorative elf stereotypes here]; but he's sure the strength and fearlessness of orcs will carry them to victory. And besides, fighting is fun.

But he's also trained to guard. He's a Fighter, not a Barbarian. On this adventure he'll be more than willing to protect you because a) that's his job, and b) he's stronger than those he's protecting.

So the metagame question for you all is:
What do you need from me behavior-wise at the outset of the adventure to allow my PC to adventure with you long enough to establish a working relationship and build trust despite Ukhtusk persisting with his worship of Grummsh?

A lot of it will depend on the initial game hook for Thromm. Currently, he has little on his mind other than hunting down a certain goblin tribe. Who you worship and how you do it means very little to him. How pointy your ears are or your teeth also matter little to him. Only his goal.

That said, Thromm probably fits the image of strong and fearless pretty well... though Tromm follows the ways of Hanseath, dwarf god of beer and barbarians. So, he fights with more passion than skill and brews a mean batch of ale.

We might just get along.

What's Ukhtusk doing out in the wide world instead of defending his shaman?

Got knocked out during a fight and woke up disarmed, chained, being taken to imprisonment/slavery/execution. Never did find out since [unlikely event] let him make his way to Luskan. From there, regular job on the guard for a while, then took ship on commission to the Keep on the Borderlands.

Nthanda is in a similar position being a chaotic good drow.  She doesn't worship Lolth, or really believe that any god deserves worship, so who you choose to worship or revere is none of her concern.  Actions speak louder than words.  If Ukhtusk has proved his valor and reliability, that is enough for her.

Do we start out as a group, knowing each other already?

Roland isn't too picky about who he fights along side of. He was scout in a small mercenary company. He left the company... well, there were reasons. Any how, he left his previous company and made his way to the borderlands looking for work.

I'm sorry, Ukhtush, I know that doesn't help answer your question.

I haven't thought much on Drusilia's religious thoughts, but my usual go-to, when the character doesn't draw me elsewhere, is an attitude of respecting and trying not to anger the various gods without truly dedicating myself to any of them. Drusilia's curiosity could mean asking questions about worshipping Gruumsh while working with elves. Then you could explain those views a little in character, to the extent you'd want to voice them.

I guess it comes down to how our group forms, and if we know each other already. I think the simplest general answer is to work together nicely before stressing whom you worship.

"Great job in that fight!" "Yes, thank Gruumsh!" "Wait, Gruumsh? He approves of protecting elves?"

But Drusilia will probably just take you at your word to start. She's naive enough (9 wisdom) to not be too suspicious.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:56, Fri 28 May 2021.

Wait a second, there's a difference between big folk?

Elaria nominally worships Baervan Wildwanderer and definitely doesn't support any abuse toward raccoons but she would say the same for any small forest animal.

She does believe in the interconnectedness of existence and that the tapestry of existence can be altered by pulling the right strings. The paths can be seen by listening to the music of the universe. To know what will be one must understand what is in as much detail as possible.

What was the question again?

Ooo, shiny hoppy bunny...

In reply to Ukhtusk (msg # 45):

One of Tegan's "official" Traits (listed on his Character Sheet) is "I am willing to listen to every side of an argument before making my own mind up."

Thus, I do not see him shaping up to be an old-school, "everything is either black or white . . . and oh, by the way, everyone tainted by Orcish blood is almost certainly on the dark side of the scale" sort of judgmental paladin.

Plus, Tegan's background is the Suzail City Watch (Suzail being the capital of Cormyr -- hence, a big city), so he most likely ran across all types of people -- good, bad, and indifferent -- during his term of enlistment, and he would have learned that one cannot always tell a book by its cover.

Assuming that Ukhtusk does not wear his worship of Gruumsh on his sleeve, Tegan will begin by watching him  closely. Probably after a while, provided that Ukhtusk does not eat any babies in the meantime, a fireside conversation between the two might be in order. :)
This message was last edited by the player at 21:12, Fri 28 May 2021.