Category: Agora Core

Non-Player Character Profile

Name: Gretz
Race: Human
Location: The Tanin’s Camel Inn
Episodes: 1 (Series 1, episode 2)
Appearance:  Middle-aged, rough features although his modest clothes are clean and kept in good condition.  He has an oily voice and long dark tangled hair that is balding on top.

Personality: Private, helpful but without any innate charm.

Background: Gretz and his wife took over the Tanin’s Camel after the previous owner disappeared. Being the only other staff on the premises they continued to run the place and their ownership has never been challenged.   They did however board up the previous owner’s bedroom, which was discovered to contain a passage to a Well of Souls
underneath.  Unfortunately, this was not discovered in time to prevent two guests from developing strange behavioral changes and his wife from developing large cat whiskers on her face.

Strengths:  Shrewd and can keep things close to his chest.

Weaknesses:  Not a charismatic individual.

What Happened: Gretz tended to the party who were in the employ of Elstan.  He caught them in the barricaded master bedroom, having also damaged three paintings.  He couldn’t persuade them to leave and stop them exploring the entrance to the well but he was reimbursed for the three paintings.

Chance of recurring in future episodes:  Medium. He still runs the inn, so it depends on the party’s  movements.

Non-Player Character Profile

Name: Lanier the Merchant
Race: Human
Location: The docks of Nis-Ton
Episodes: 2 (Series 1, episodes 1-2)
Appearance:  Tall, strong and a little overweight.   He wore travel clothes of fine quality silk and a turban and gave the appearance of being both rich and efficient.
Background: Lanier Whilst Elstan provided the money, Lanier provided the business and administrative acumen that Elstan lacked.  He was loyal and completely trusted by Elstan; so much so that he balanced the accounts and had access to all the funds.

Strengths:  Focussed and strong.

Weaknesses:  Lacking in diplomacy and patience.

What Happened: Lanier hired the party to protect their cargo.  He was impressed by their fighting prowess when they defended the cargo against orcs, but was betrayed in his trust when they attacked him in his bedroom at the Tanin’s Camel.  Lanier was then thrown, unconscious into the Well of Souls.

Chance of recurring in future episodes:  Low. He is not technically dead, but if they encountered the person once known as Lanier he would seem quite different.

Character Portraits used:
60 Terrible Character Portraits for Creative Commons Release by ‘A Terrible Idea’

Non-Player Character Profile

Name: Elstan the Merchant
Race: Human
Location: The docks of Nis-Ton
Episodes: 4 (Series 1, episode 1-4)
Appearance:  Serious-looking with thin facial features and smartly dressed.

Personality:  He looks down on those he feels are beneath him, and is calculating.

Strengths:  Business savvy and rich.

Weaknesses:  A mixture of blunt honesty and small-mindedness could upset some.

Background:  Elstan made his name in trading through hard work adding ports to his trading route.  DaNis is a recent addition and although small is worth a visit during gatherings such as the Mid-Nis festival, where although the inhabitants are relatively poor, he had managed to make a good profit on less fashionable items.

What Happened:  He asked his fellow merchant, Lanier, to recruit some labourers to move and protect their cargo on the journey to Mid-Nis.  He heard them murder Lanier and so he sent a message to the guards of Mid-Nis to ask for their arrest.  At their impending trial, they escaped their cells and murdered him.

Chance of recurring in future episodes:  Nil.  He’s not coming back after that fight.

Player Character Profile

Name: Long Vernal

Played by: Rob

Race: Human
Sex: Male

Class: Barbarian

Strengths: Strength

Weaknesses: Charisma

Background: Outlander. I ran 25 miles to warn the clan of an orc horde. I’d do it again.

Ideals: It is a person’s responsibility to make the most happiness for the whole tribe.

Bonds: I suffer awful visions of a coming disaster and will do anything to stop it.
Flaws: No room for caution, live life to the full.

Additional Notes from Player: Long Vernal, from the Clan of Badenoch, a settlement in a natural basin about 540 square miles of it. It consists of almost entirely beautiful mountainous country, many hills exceeding 3,000 feet, and contains in the forests of Alder, Drumocher, Gaick and Feshie some of the best deer country in the region. The clan comprises of 300 males and females whom frequently battle the elements and the occasional hordes of Orc. Their symbol is of a stag crushing an orcs head which is tattooed on a clan member’s chest at an early age. The clan leader is called Angar Lupin whom is rumoured to be a werewolf! Long Vernal was thrust into exile after a particular nasty attack from an Orc horde. The Clan was butchered and scattered in all directions. Long Vernal believes his leader is still alive, as he appears in Long’s dreams. The search continues…

Development during series 1: This contains a spoiler alert… Long followed his clan instincts loving the wide plains and outdoor adventure and detesting enclosed, unnatural spaces. His high energy and lack of room for caution meant that he got into more scrapes than any other member of the party. He encountered more visions of his clan leader, Angar Lupin, in the build up to the ‘Summit’ and saw the ground swallow him up. This turned out to be an apt vision for Long himself and yet even at the end, his heart leaped to freedom from his damaged body.

Character Portraits used: 60 Terrible Character Portraits for Creative Commons Release by ‘A Terrible Idea’

DM Note #4b

Dealing with Death

This refers to Episode 4, Confined: Part 2 of Agora Core.

So,
a certain event happened to one of the party in this episode… you can hear it in all its glorious, gory and somewhat hilarious details.   I should say up front that the player involved took it all really well, which was a relief.

I have to say that I’m a fan of the new Death Saving Throws used in the 5th Edition of Dungeons and Dragons.  The ‘3 strikes (failed throws of 10 or under on a d20) and you’re out’ approach gives a sense of drama and also provides comrades a chance to revive the fallen player.

But if this doesn’t happen – if the dice gods are not kind and allies are busy elsewhere – what happens when the Player Character (PC) actually dies?

I have played in games where the PCs do die – indeed, in one-shot roleplays high-stakes and player vs player conflict makes it inevitable, but when the game is longer there is a lot of player investment in a character and it’s not a good feeling to lose the character, for the character sheet to be metaphorically and sometimes literally torn up.

On the other hand, what if your character comes back from the dead?  What if they are given another life, or the Dungeon Master (DM) tweaks events in the player’s favour?  To me that cheapens the drama, like playing a computer game in cheat-mode.  The roleplay may not be the same for the players either after such an event if they
feel they are effectively immortal.

So how can a balance be struck between giving the player a fair chance of survival without potentially damaging the authenticity of the roleplay experience?

This is how it was managed when Laura Bailey’s character Vex’ahlia died in Critical Role episode 44.  The DM Matt Mercer combines the Revivify spells their cleric used with a group-assisted roll.

It seems fair that in order to avoid death to a PC there has to be a price to pay, either in gold or through effort in  order to bring the player back to the land of the living. Such a gift has to be earned for the rules to be bent in the player’s favour.  If death cannot be negotiated with, then they players could always try to direct approach and go to the realm of the dead (the underworld sometimes also known as Hades or Hel).  A mission could be attempted to bring the person back such as with Orpheus and Eurydice.

Finally, in considering roleplay authenticity and loss, there is a blog entry by Will Wheaton where he describes the events of Aeofel’s death as part of the Acquisitions Incorporated roleplay series.  On this event, Will says “I’m happy that I stayed true to Aeofel’s beliefs and played him the way I wrote him.”

DM Note #5

Rules for Horse Riding

This refers to Episode 5 Agora Core: Escape.

The conclusion of the episode involves the party trying to escape on horseback.  Pevel’s attempt has to be a series highlight.

This leads me onto today’s topic.  How do you decide how capable a Player Character (PC) is at riding a particular creature?

In version 3.5 on Dungeons & Dragons, there was a Ride skill, and so the simple way to determine if you could successfully ride a creature was for the player to roll a d20 and add their Ride skill number to the total.  If this was equal or higher than the Difficulty Class (DC) total that the Dungeon Master (DM) decided on, then the player would have succeeded.  If not, the player failed to complete the task, in this case, ride a horse.

In the 5th edition (5e) of Dungeons & Dragons there is no such thing as a Ride skill and no set way of determining
the skill according to the Player’s Handbook. Instead there are a series of ability-based skills that PCs can be proficient in – proficiency is a bonus number added to particular skills.  Here is how I applied the ability-based
skills to this task.

As the horses were no familiar with the players, they had to see compatible they were, in other words, how comfortable the horses were being handled by a PC.  I used the skill Animal Handling (a Wisdom-based skill) for this.  However, even if a horse is comfortable around a PC, that doesn’t make the character agile enough to be a rider.  So the second roll I believe the players should do is an Athletics check (a Dexterity-based skill) to see if they could
successfully get onto the horse and balance whilst the horse moves.   Both these challenges can be done against a Difficulty Class determined by the DM.   If the PC and creature have a history together I wouldn’t ask for a check to be made as the rider and horse already have this level of understanding and ability.

This was my solution to this challenge.  In the finale (episode 5) to Series 1, I just got the players to roll animal handling as we were running short of time.  To further save time, there were two levels of Difficulty to the rolI – 15 or above to start riding in 1 round (6 seconds) and 10 or above to start riding in 2 rounds (12 seconds).  In the case of Pevel his desperate second attempt was more desperate and needed a swift move, so I got him to make an additional Athletics Check as well to pull it off.

So how do other DMs and groups work out their riding skill?  Let me know.

This is the end of the DM Notes for Series 1.  I hope you’ve enjoyed the content and found some of them useful.  Stay tuned for Series 2 later in the summer.

Player Character Profile

Name: Ikki
Played by: Ralph

Race: Aarakocra

Sex: Female

Class: Monk

Strengths: Dexterity and Flight

Weaknesses: Intelligence

Background: Outlander. I’m driven by wanderlust that led me away from home.
Ideals: Change, life is a constant change and we must change with it.

Bonds: My family is the most important thing in my life, even when they are far from me.

Flaws: Violence is my answer to almost any challenge.

Unique features: Being an Aarakocra makes Ikki very unique outside of the mountains. But it’s not just her hawk headed appearance and talons, it’s also her wings, which allow her to fly up to a distance of 50ft every turn (6 seconds).

Additional Notes from Player: On starting the campaign Ralph had the idea of creating an Aarakocran Pro Wrestler, inspired by a picture on the web. A goal Ikki mentioned would be to defeat the Undertaker at Summerslam.

Development during series 1: So far Ikki has been very much the outsider looking on and resolving disputes with violence, which is very much in line with her background. She is also receiving visions of an impending Trial of the Talons, a fight to claim an Aarakocra partner that links her fate to that of her family as it was her sister who instigated it.

DM Note #4

Reordering and Recycling

This refers to Episode 4, Confined: Part 1 of Agora Core:

In DM Note #2 I mentioned that the players actions and decisions took the plot in an unpredictable direction and set things in motion that meant it would be impossible for them to visit the town of Mid-Nis unless they were disguised or seeing it through the bars of their prison cells.  This meant that for me as a Dungeon Master (DM) many plot elements would go unused and also more work was needed to prepare for the next episode.

Fortunately for me, we were missing a few players in Week 3, so I made more of the remaining journey to Mid-Nis and that provided more time for creating and setting up scenes and characters online in Roll20.

The prison cell was a brand new section which would make use of the town guards (already created). The part which was recycled or re-appropriated was the Non-Player Character (NPC) known as Belstogley. Belstogley is a barbarian and is the current fighting champion of the Mid-Nis Festival of the Clans and was meant to be in the ring defending his title against brave Player Characters (PCs) should they dare to fight.  However, with that plot highly unlikely, another chapter in Belstogley ‘s life was being written in.  It turns out that this hardy fighter also liked his drink and occasionally got himself into trouble.

The interaction between the players and Belstogley made me very glad that I did this.  Sure, it wasn’t what was originally intended, but it is the players who dictate where the plot goes and not the DM.  Of course, just because he is working with them, doesn’t necessarily mean that the NPC is a suitable party member.  Fortunately, Belstogley did manage to provide the party with some useful information about the guardhouse.

Belstogley will make another appearance in Part 2 of Episode 4.

 

Player Character Profile

Name: Orix Crota
Played by: Finn

Race: Human
Sex: Male

Class: Wizard

Strengths: Dexterity and Intelligence

Weaknesses: None

Background: Criminal. The best way to get me to do something is to tell me I can’t do it. I don’t pay attention to the risks in a situation. Never tell me the odds.

Ideals: Freedom. Chains are meant to be broken, as are those who would forge them.
Bonds: I’m guilty of a terrible crime. I hope I can redeem myself for it.

Flaws: If there’s a plan, I’ll forget it. If I don’t forget it, I’ll ignore it.

Development during series 1: Orix lived up to his chaotic neutral alignment, sometimes trying things just to see what would happen. His curiosity has brought him both good and bad results. The visions he experienced as the ‘Summit’ approached were of his college days when he helped expel a fellow mage student, Vian by getting him into trouble. Could this be the terrible crime he feels guilty of? In the visions he say Vian approach the mysterious Mara Society in the north with some apprehension.

Character Portraits used: 60 Terrible Character Portraits for Creative Commons Release by ‘A Terrible Idea’

DM Note #3

Visions

This refers to the third episode of Agora Core:

I spoke briefly in #1 about characters having backstory and how in Agora Core, the players were allowed to create their own.  In part 2, the characters experienced visionary dreams which they could partly manipulate if their minds were alert enough.  This was the first time that I tried to interact with their backstory.  Based on the information they provided, I could work some information in that either shed light on a past experience or about events that will happen soon.  A good example of visions in roleplay is in Titans Grave, and also Critical Role.

It is hard to say how much the players digested of this information because they were in the middle of a mission at the time.  The cause of the visions themselves is a longer plot arc that is playing out in the background for now but it provides a way to give the players insight.

  • Will Orix go after Vian, the boy who he had helped to expel from magic college?
  • Will Ikki be visited by his kind and have to face the Trial of Talons?
  • Will Hector face an assassination attempt for having stolen a precious medallion?
  • Will Long ever find his leader and prevent a disaster from befalling his clan?
  • Will Nomo be tempted to visit the site where he was attacked and burned by an orc and where he witnessed a monk burying an artefact?
  • Will Pevel overcome the demons of his childhood and be able to face conflict head on?

This is what the visions were for; to ask questions of the player characters and see if they pay heed to the warning of thing to come or want to pursue an answer for themselves.