D&D Gamer

Question. What about Pathfinder? You're not really learning a new system. Pathfinder is to 3.5e, what 3.5e was to 3e. So pretty much the same with a few adjustments to make the characters less squishy and better balance the game against power creep, as well as a better CR and xp system. Is this an option you might be interested in?

Yeah - there's not much of an adjustment there. That'd be fine.

Pathfinder sounds okay, count me in as well

Ok, had my initial brainstorming session. See if any of these ideas wobble your sausage.

CSI: Waterdeep. Two specialist investigators solve crimes beyond the capabilities of the regular watch. Think buddy cop style, the X and Y detective Agency. Likely to be a murder.

Lost in the Abyss. When the portal they used to enter closes behind them, a team of explorers must find a way home.

Ninja Assassins . As the evil Lord InsertName conquers more and more land, two ninja are sent to infiltrate a local occupied village and assassinate the frontline general. Low magic, eastern vibe.

Prison Break. Rightfully or wrongfully imprisoned, plan your escape by observing guard patterns, performing favours to acquire objects to hide away, etc. Might take me a while to set up given the intricacies.

The Enemy of my Enemy. Two rival houses (think Montague and Capulets) are attacked simultaneously and the male scions of each are kidnapped. A member of each house must work together in an uneasy alliance to get to the bottom of it.

False Idols. The citizens of a nearby village have begun worshipping a talking dog who claims to have connections to InsertGod. As members of the church of said god, you have been despatched to investigate this potential heresy.

Arachnophobia . A local village has petitioned for help from your guild after being attacked by giant spiders for the last 3 weeks. Early efforts to fend off the spiders were successful but the situation is worsening. Get to the bottom of it.

Drow-ning in Debt. Members of a drow house in financial difficulties are invited on a hunt with a rival house of higher standing. Clearly they are meant as fodder but can they turn the tables, disposing of a powerful rival under the guise of an accident and secure themselves some much needed funding? Drow characters, obviously.

That's everything for now but if there's nothing there that leaps out of you lemmee know and I'll come up with more. If you have any suggestions of your own feel free to leave em.

A variant of Arachnophobia could be fun, or Lost in the Abyss

here's a wacky idea that came to me whilst watching the Jungle Book: play as a group of druids permanently stuck in animal form in a remote jungle, and have to find a way to undo it (or to complete an objective)

Nothing really jumps out at me, but nothing there I would refuse either.

Cmdr Maxwell wrote: ↑Mon Aug 09, 2021 12:51 am here's a wacky idea that came to me whilst watching the Jungle Book: play as a group of druids permanently stuck in animal form in a remote jungle, and have to find a way to undo it (or to complete an objective)

Considered this "play as the familiars/companions" idea before but it would work better with a group imo and even better if playing as existing familiars from a campaign, eg imagine playing as Mr Eddington and Murderbeak. XD

I'll have another brainstorm during this week and see if I can come up with anything more appealing.

fair enough

check out my one shot idea tab, I'll be putting some ideas down there as well for reference

Brainstorming round 2. More to come next week.

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Mungo's Multiplanar Delivery Service.
Whatever a customer orders, MMDS will travel literally through Hell and high water to deliver.
Based loosely on an idea from Malazan: Book of the Fallen.

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The Last Crystal.
It is said that whomsoever gathers the seven crystals of Lumina will have any one wish granted before they are scattered once more to the dark recesses of the globe. King Julian has spent the last five years acquiring them and now only one remains to be found. He is unlikely to be the only one tracking it down.

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The Real Jim Brady.
The two of you awake in a wizard tower. Evidence of a battle abounds with destroyed potions and equipment all around. It soon becomes apparent that you appear identical and both have amnesia. Only one of you can be the real wizard, Jim Brady. But which one? And who or what is the other?

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Forgotten Tomb.
The recent drought has completely drained Mirada Lake, revealing an entrance to a long forgotten tomb. Quite a few people have already gone down and few returned. Those that did bore minor trinkets and tales of great riches and deadly traps.
Classic dungeon crawl.

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Bridge Over Troubled Waters.
The twin towns of East Swiftbrook and West Swiftbrook are, unsurprisingly, on opposite banks of the River Swift. One lies within the territory of Duke Cordoba, the other in the territory of Duke Ishtar. Disputes between the Dukes have led to hostilities within the populace and the King has dispatched two "negotiators" to settle the disputes, one way or another, at a peace conference.
Political focus.

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The Sorcerer's Apprentice.
The mage Bibendius has accidentally turned himself into a goat. The spell won't wear off for 24 hours and Bibendius has many important meetings. Can his apprentice(s) step into his shoes and complete his itinerary for the day without revealing his master's embarrassment?
Wacky style, blagging, subterfuge, etc...

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Earth.
After 3 years of steadily increasing blight causing crop failures and pestilence, the people of Melmond have finally discovered the root cause. A lich has awakened and is now raising the dead. The town has sent for specialised assistance.
Undead focus.

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Fly you Fools.
The war with Galeria reaches its conclusion. As the King falls, a last group of rebels flee the palace, intending to smuggle the young heir to safety, lest the Korin dynasty be permanently ended.
Sneaky, subterfuge.

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Field Exam.
The final exam for entry into the prestigious Shadow Hand rogues' guild takes place in pairs, at night, across the entirety of the city of Deepdale.
Sneaky roguey stuff.

I know I said next week, but came up with a good 'un at work.

Bucket List.
Your good friend, the bard Belaphon, is getting married. Yes, finally settling down after all these years. As part of what he is calling "The greatest stag do of all time", Belaphon has a list of crazy antics to complete while he still has the freedom to do so. Start a bar fight, Swing from a chandelier, kiss a nymph, steal from a dragon, the list goes on. Belaphon has the wealth and time to have preplanned this with teleports on standby if needed, even planar jaunts, all while the ale flows freely.
Probably starts in Waterdeep.

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Also, there's always the option of running Hollow's Last Hope, the first part of (Kingmaker?), an actual pre-existing Pathfinder module which I've heard is pretty good.

These all sound good. Maybe you should be putting these creative juices into your book instead - lol

:P Thanks. It's the quiet summer lull at work right now so it's ideal for doing things like this between customers. Not so easy to write a book between customers as they ruin the train of thought tho. For that I need free time at home, which is at a premium at the moment. I will get back round to it, perhaps over winter.

As for these ideas. My plan is to come up with one more set if I can. Then if there's nothing that instagrabs you, I'll get you both to pick your three most favourite options and I'll roll randomly between them?

Oof, well, so much for that lull. What a week. Here's what I managed to cobble together.

The Wendleton Witch.
Strange events have been occurring in Wendleton. The villagers suspect a witch among them. Suspicions are rising and a pair of witchfinders have been despatched to ferret out the truth.
Investigative focus.

The Manticore.
A manticore has taken up residence in Gelgon forest. Track and kill the beast.
Monster hunt.

They Mostly Come at Night.
The coastal town of Kalam is attacked by seabound raiders during the night. Repel the raiders, rally the defences, save survivors, etc...

Acquisitions Incorporated.
As prospective franchisees for Acq Inc, Omin Dran is sending you off on a Field Assessment Exercise (or FAE). Not Omin himself, of course, he's far too busy for that. Instead he sent Walnut to furnish you with your mission and the necessary paperwork to complete, which will be examined by Omin personally.
Acq Inc style game, comedy focus.

The Deep Frontier.
A group of forward settlers set up an outpost to later establish a colony. Prospect for valuable minerals while dealing with any other problems the settlement may face.
Dwarves only, subterranean setting.

That's it for my ideas, so pick 3 faves and offer them up to the dice gods, cos I'll be rolling among them.

I'm putting up 4.

Bucket List
Fly you Fools
Forgotten Tomb
The Manticore

My preferred list of 3 are:

Uno) The Deep Frontier (cos dwarves)
Dos) Forgotten Tomb
Tres) The Manticore

I'll let Grodech select the one we play out of Manticore and Forgotten Dungeon, I'm happy with either

Ok, here is some Democracy.

Option 1. I flip a coin between Manticore and Forgotten Tomb as they are on both lists.
Option 2. I roll between the available options (1d5).
Option 3. I roll between the available options (1d7) with the full list so those two have a higher chance of being selected?
Option 4. Grodech chooses between the two.

I was elected to lead, not to read. Option 4!

Let's do forgotten tomb then.

Ok. I will commence working on Forgotten Tomb.

What do we fancy level wise. 4th?

Probably, if we're going to survive very long.

agreed on 4th level.

Grodech, what class are you wanting to play? I don't mind going rogue, for the trap finding and disabling.

Charon, I have to ask: bouncy balls, yes or no? xD

Good question. A tomb would seem to imply the need for a cleric, but I'm not very adept at playing one. Or maybe a Ranger with an undead favored enemy. What do you think?

Not had much experience playing with a cleric in either 3.5e or 5e so I can't really say. Definitely need something with an arcane or divine component, along with proficiency in knowledge (history, arcane, the usual stuff). Seeing as it's only the two of us, we can't cover all the bases but may as well try and cover as many as we can. I'd be less inclined to bring a barbarian than a wizard or cleric.

To that end, I'm looking at gish classes. Magus could be a good one (which feels akin to a duskblade in 3.5e). Investigator as well, which is akin to a factotum in 3.5e with some minor differences (to which I have ample experience and research of haha). It does have the ability of trapfinding and disable traps like a rogue, has extracts which are effectively spells as potions (in simple terms), plus other useful tricks.