#Not 20: D&D and Necromancy

[wackyart]

Some DND prompts for you

(Because I'm an idiot with too many ideas and cannot complete them all so there you go friend :D )

The players are hired by a wealthy noble to investigate strange occurrences happening in their family's ancestral home. The noble suspects that something sinister may be lurking within the walls of the old mansion. And as they walk around the property, they find a stone memorial, with a statue of a young woman, not over 20 years old, with a black fresh rose in her hand, as if someone had just put it there. You read the small poem and realize this is the daughter of the family, thinking she might be the ghost haunting the mansion. But why would this young lady haunt her family, leaving deep scratches on the wallpaper, screaming in the dead of the night, letting lanterns explode in their faces, and even let a small bell ring constantly, in a rhythm that makes your head hurt...

The players are tasked with retrieving 5 powerful magical artifacts from a dangerous dungeon, but they soon realize that they're not the only ones after it. A rival adventuring party is also on the hunt, and the players must race to get the artifact first. And in this rival party, all of your players realize the people composing this party are none other that people from their past. Ex partners, ancient best friends, and even a brother/sister who has been missing for years... And as the moonlight shine upon them, in the darkest part of the cave, you see their real appearances. Corpses, zombies, and dead eyes staring right back at you. They explain to you that they need all of the 5 artifacts to complete a spell, spell that coud bring them back from the land of the dead. Is your party helping them, letting feelings rise back to the surface, or is your party even more determined to get their artifacts first, thinking that what is dead should stay dead.

The players are sent on a diplomatic mission to negotiate a treaty between two warring factions. However, tensions are high and the negotiations quickly become complicated as the players uncover secrets and hidden agendas on both sides. They realize a third party is staying neutral during this battle and as they come to try to ask them for help, they realize that the third party is actually far away to the point where they have to travel via a portal. And as soon as they step out of the portal, they realize that they went back in time, and that there's a crack in the timeline. Two cities are exactly the same, one is just stuck in the past, on repeat and her existence is the thing that caused the conflict. They have to eliminate one of the two towns, but this stuck city is actually peaceful and the people are living as amazingly as possible. The other being the one constantly looking for a fight. Will they chose to save the stuck peaceful one, and by choice looking for a solution to "unstuck" it, or will they save the one looking for constant conflict but in agreement with the timeline ?

The players are approached by a mysterious stranger who offers them a large sum of gold to retrieve a powerful cursed item from a dangerous location. However, as they journey deeper into the forest, they begin to question the stranger's true motives... Because the person holding said cursed item, tells you that the person you've mentioned actually died 20 years ago, during a necromancy spell who backfired.

The players are hired by a small village to investigate a series of disappearances that have been happening in the area. As they uncover clues, they discover that a group of goblins have been kidnapping the villagers and taking them to a hidden cave system. The cave can be found deep into a dark forest but once the players arrive, after all the incidents along the way, they come to face a bloodshed. The Goblins are all on the ground, bloody and battered and none of them are alive. Your players must pick up the pieces and clues to find who did this, and most importantly, who kidnap the Goblin's prisoners.

The players are shipwrecked on a deserted island and must find a way to survive until they can be rescued by the person that sent them there to retrieve a chest full of gold and treasures. However, they soon discover that the island is not as deserted as they first thought, and they must fight for survival against dangerous creatures and other castaways, only to find out that the other castaways were part of a previous party, sent exactly for the same reason as you and by the same buyer. They explain to you they have been looking and searching for weeks and that no one ever came for them. They also tell you that a roaring creature roams around the land on every full blood moon, always hunting and and eating one person from the party each and every time.

The players are called upon by a powerful mage to enter an alternate dimension and retrieve a powerful armor. However, the alternate dimension is full of dangers and strange creatures, and the players must navigate its bizarre landscape to find the artifact, facing someone they thought they had killed some time ago. They also realize that this magical land has the power to bring back recently deceased person and your party sees one of their friends, the shop keeper, they couldn't contact just a few days ago, that promised they had something that might help them in this quest. But there is a problem: Once brought to this land, all the memories are erased and your friend has no memory of you and the magical knowledge they had. You have to travel through the land to bring them their memories first in order to have them help you get the armor.

The players are hired by a group of merchants to protect their caravans as it travels across a dangerous wilderness. However, they soon discover that the merchants are not as innocent as they seem, and they must decide whether to continue to protect them or turn against them once they discover they have Drow elven children hidden in the floorboards of said caravans. They seem to be unconscious or sleeping, and you have to react. Either you say nothing and let them here, waiting to see where the caravans are headed, or you interrupt the travel right here and there to save them, and by so, negociating or killing the "merchants".

The players are recruited by a powerful dragon to retrieve a powerful magical item from a group of treasure hunters. However, as they delve deeper into the treasure hunters' lair, they realize that they may have bitten off more than they can chew as they see rests of a previous party, bones displayed in various symbols and dried black blood forming runes one member of your party knows all too well....

The players are hired by a veteran of the Royal Guard. The man has been expelled, thrown into a cell, the villageers claiming he killed the entire army of guards, by himself, in just a few weeks. His weapon matches with the wounds, his footprints have been found and they even saw him at night, killing the last one. The guard offer you a bounty of 50 000 gold to save his head and prove his innocence, in just a month, right before his execution by hanging. Will your party help the man or the villageers ? You have to chose between washing his name and the guilt associated to it or prove even more that he is the culprit of such horrible crimes, and then condemn him to hanging.

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dnd homebrew #dnd writing #dnd writing prompts #writing #writing prompts #fantasy #fantasy fiction #fantasycore #dark fantasy #high fantasy #epic fantasy #beginner writer #writing inspiration #dnd 5e homebrew #dnd stuff #ttrpg

[greaseonmymouth]

It is not 7 am anymore but top 5 books read this year? 😄

I have read 44 books so far this year and most of them were very good so I don't know how I'm supposed to pick just 5 :'''D

in reverse chronological order

THE DEATH I GAVE HIM - EM X. LIU

this is an utterly unhinged locked room sci-fi murder mystery retelling of Hamlet in which Horatio is an AI and he and Hamlet have a deeply co-dependent and sexual relationship. This book is exactly the kind of thing tumblr would eat up with a spoon, so tumblr pls get on this. The basic plot is: a deeply depressed and suicidal Hamlet (Hayden) is working on a formula that can make one immortal. He is obsessed with beating death. Then his dad is murdered and the labs go on lockdown and more people die because *gestures* Hamlet is Hamlet even when his name is Hayden, and Horatio the AI does his best to keep Hamlet alive and also be a voice of reason except he's too biased. By happenstance I had read this Hamlet/Faust crossover fic (Hemlock & Wine) before reading this book, and in this fic Hamlet is obsessed with necromancy and Horatio is trying to save him. it set the mood nicely. 

You know how in Hamlet everyone dies and at the end Horatio is the only one alive with Hamlet dead in his arms? What if I told you in this book it's reversed?

WILD AND WICKED THINGS - FRANCESCA MAY

Dark, witchy, historical fantasy - set after WW1 on a fictional island off the Yorkshire coast, very 20s glam with a dark undercurrent. Witchcraft is banned, but Annie is a witch. when her father dies she inherits his house on Crow Island and goes over there to sort that out and rents a house next to what turns out to be a Den of Iniquity, not just because of the lavish parties with illegal (magical) substances but because it's queer. Then follows a dark plot involving a blood debt and necromancy and power hungry men (well, one power hungry man) and fragile old and new relationships and dark secrets and also Annie and Emmeline get accidentally magically bonded to each other (but also are in love/lust with each other) and look, I could not stop reading. 

DRAGONFALL - L.R. LAM

listen I LOVE dragon books and I've read and loved everything L.R. Lam has written so when I heard an epic dragon fantasy was coming? I WAS STOKED. this is the first in I think a trilogy and it ticks all my boxes:

sentient dragons with their own history, language, society, etc

sexy dragons?? i didn't realise i needed sexy dragons until I read Aliette de Bodard's Dominion of the Fallen trilogy or the Invisible Library series by Genevieve Cogman, but hey. SEXY DRAGONS

queernorm world! our second protag Arcady is nonbinary and uses any pronouns, thank u for your service L.R. Lam

very cool world building and magic system 

BETRAYAAAALLL 

I can't wait for book 2

PORTRAIT OF A THIEF - GRACE D. LI

look this post will explain everything. suffice to say: pretentious college students steal priceless art.

THE BEAUTIFUL ONES - SILVIA MORENO-GARCIA

This is a kind of historical romance but it's fantasy and it doesn't follow conventional romance novel structure (I was SO nervous it wouldn't end happily because I didn't know what to expect from the narrative I was being given, but THANK GOD IT DID). it's very fantasy of manners. it makes a lot of pointed commentary about colonialism and colourism. it's absolutely lush. I love this book a lot, it was so engaging and gripping. the characters are allowed to be flawed and assholes and complex and weak and kind - it's very similar to sprawling historical/saga books with a large cast of people with conflicting wants and needs and scheming and tragedy and love and all that, but distilled into a neat compact package focusing on three people. It's not a long book, it's quite a slim volume for what it is, but it's perfectly paced so you don't notice that you're not actually reading a 900 page family saga.

other standalones I read this year that I think are WELL worth reading:

CAMP DAMASCUS - CHUCK TINGLE

YOU MADE A FOOL OF DEATH WITH YOUR BEAUTY - AKWAEKE EMEZI

YELLOWFACE - R.F. KUANG

HONOURABLE MENTIONS GO TO:

two series I read this year that I also absolutely loved

THE SEVEN DEVILS DUOLOGY - ELIZABETH MAY & L.R. LAM

you know this post right?

[image id: post by worflesbian on july 4 saying 'sci fi is when women in tank tops are covered in grease and sweat and are shouting at people and racing against time to save lives' reblogged by leafcrunch on july 13 with a screenshot addition of the tag #half a jumpsuit!!! you forgot half a jumpsuit!!!!']

this is that series. it is rebels in space overthrowing an evil space empire. it's all the worst bits of imperialism and colonialism and patriarchy distilled into one evil empire and all the best bits of firefly and star wars distilled into the rebellion. there are cool scifi science bits. this would be amazing as a two season series by competent tv makers, it's very cinematic in scope, but the characters are what give this life.

THE WINTERNIGHT TRILOGY - KATHERINE ARDEN

this is a family saga of a kind, set in medieval Russia during a time when Russia was being Christianised. I don't know how to explain this series because it's so complex and so rich. There is a main character - Vasya - but other characters also get POV sections. the first book takes quite a while before we even get to Vasya in 'the present' so to speak, this is a trilogy that isn't afraid of taking its time to tell a story. Vasya is a witch who can see/communicate with Russian 'folklore' spirits, these spirits are fading with the coming of Christianity. There is an unhinged priest, the winter king Morozko whom Vasya has an intense relationship with, Vasya's brother (a monk, based on a real person), Vasya's sister (married to the Tsar, a real person), and just...god, I don't know. I loved everything about this trilogy, the way it humanised historical figures, the way it didn't demonise either the folklore spirits (who are allowed to be non-human beings devoid of human morality! so refreshing) or the Christians, but rather conveyed how a time of upheaval like this had to have been very scary and tumultous. an absolute treat.

I did also read the entire Charm of Magpies series by KJ Charles including the spinoffs, which I really enjoyed.

#books #book recommendations

[curls101]

Tav Questions - Ralxire Edition

LIST

Listen, this is just for me lol. This is Ralxire Xarmus, he's a Teef Necromancer and an absolute greasy nightmare who I ADORE

Why did you pick the race you did for your Tav?

I am trying to play at least one character of each race in BG3 to see all the custom stuff. I'd tried to make a few Teefs and none of them were really clicking. Ralxire was my latest attempt and I adore him even though I have a LOT of teefs with red skin and black hair. He could be my first DnD character's burnout cousin. But I don't care he's perfect

Why did you pick the class you did for your Tav?

I was DYING to play a Necromancer in this game. I really love the idea of it being the "bad" or "evil" wizard, especially on a good aligned character? I think it's a class that says a lot about the character straight away. Dedicating your life to decay and undeath is not something you do if you're not profoundly weird in a lot of ways

What is your character’s moral alignment?

Probably Chaotic Neutral. He's been growing more towards Chaotic Good into act 3, but if you're romancing 'Star, you're never really getting onto the Good line of the chart.

How did you choose your Tav’s name, if you gave them a unique one?

I thought it sounded like a stage magician! I wanted a lot of harsh sounds (in actual DnD he'd be a feral tiefling, so I wanted something with a demonic twinge), but ultimately he picked his own name and picked something a kid would think was cool. I wanted it to feel like a name a ye olde snake oil salesman would use. Hense: Ralxire Xarmus

What are your character’s strongest and weakest stats (strength, charisma, etc)? 

Strongest is INT 20. Weakest is either CHA or STR (from my memory)

 What is your Tav’s origin story? 

I'll try to keep this *so* short

Street kid in Baldurs Gate. Orphan. The whole deal. Met his "sister" Oriana (made by @ms-scholars-gown-bnoc ) and joined a gang. Kept that up untill they were teens, when Oriana was "rescued" by a noble family who gave her a proper home. A little sad, Ralxire stayed - throwing himself further into his self taught wizardry - stealing what arcane supplies he needed. Established himself as a necromancer for hire. Then Oriana came back. Decided the toff life wasn't for her. So they went back to their old ways then.... Mindflayers.

That's as short as I can physically get it without going super into Ralxire's terrible dating decisions

 What was the most significant moment in your Tav’s origin story? 

Oriana leaving. Ralxire has a real protective streak and her leaving left him alone for the first time?? Ever??? It made him have to establish himself and he did that TERRIBLY. That's how he managed to become a greaseball asshole, and unfortunately also a very good necromancer. It isn't significant for good reasons, but significant nonetheless.

 What deity, if any, does your character worship? 

He respects Mystra from a distance, but you're not going to catch him saying grace.

What is your Tav’s biggest priority or goal?

It's gone through some revisions. Since the ship, it's been to restore his old powers and retrieve his old spellbook. That's a constant. Unfortunately, he's also started doing this insane thing called "caring for people"? Crazy. He'll do anything for Astarion - even want him to be better than he is. Hell, he'll become better than HE is for 'Star. Or Oriana.

He's trying, okay?

If your Tav didn’t become an adventurer, what else would they be doing?

NECROMANCY :D

What is your Tav’s most used weapon or spell? 

In canon, it's probably Animate Dead or Necrotic touch. In practice, I think it's actually Haste, because I'm a filthy support wizard and I cannot be stopped

What is your Tav’s favorite school of magic/weapon type?

You got one guess.

How does your Tav fight in a combat situation?

More in the mix than your average wizard! He's not formally trained and a little scrappy - a solid handful of his spells are extensions of his claws. He'll be in the mix, throwing out what he can while concentrating on some support spell that makes Oriana into an absolute monster. Paladins, man....

 Does your Tav know any other languages besides Common? 

Infernal, Abyssal and probably a handful of the Primordials? Contrary to the way he acts and behaves, he is actually smart

 If your Tav could/does multiclass, what other class would they choose?

I feel Sorcerer is cheating somehow.... But I truly cannot imagine him multiclassing. Being a wizard is so much of who he is? His life would be a lot more convienient if he was a sorcerer tbh.

Which of the companions does your Tav trust most?

 He does trust Astarion. He does. But also it's gotta be Halsin. There's no world it isn't Halsin. Either that or La'zel, because she's always gunna have Oriana's best interests at heart.

Which of the companions does your Tav distrust most?

In truth, this was ALL of the companions in Act 1. Ralxire doens't trust easy. I'm going to cheat my way out of this by saying Jahira and Minsc, just because they're newest.

 Who is your Tav’s biggest rival?

Mystic Carrion. Well, he's the biggest FINANCIAL competition. They run the same grift. The true answer is probably Cazador, for obvious Astarion reasons

 Who is your Tav romancing, if anyone?

Astarion. Also Halsin, when they're feeling spicy. But 'Star is the love of his damn life, because he has terrible taste and I love that for them

If you’re romancing anyone, why did your Tav fall for them? And why did that character fall for your Tav?

Not even joking: They're both as bad as each other

Astarion obviously moved on Ralxire for manipulation reasons. I'm not going to give Mr No Wisdom the credit of thinking he saw through that. But there's something to nefarious company. Ralxire is a little more cutthroat than his sister. He's had a bad time since she left. So it's nice to feel his defensive impulses (and frequent fits of just sarcastic and mean comments) are appreciated by someone. They would often be at the back of the group, muttering, judging and getting up to crime. They weren't good like everyone else. The rest was inevitable

 If you’re romancing anyone, who fell first and who fell harder?

Oh, Ralxire. This is the stuff that makes me insane, actually. So Ralxire's not a complete idiot. He knows his taste is bad. He knows guys like 'Star don't stick around. So he falls early - but he has NO illusions about it ever being reciprocated. He sees it as a flaw in himself - that deep down, under all the nastyness, he's still so so loving and caring, despite his best efforts. He doesn't expect 'Star to feel anything at all. He's waiting for him to move on.

Fortunately, Astarion falls like a meteor when he does.

 How does your Tav act around their crush?

Completely normal. See above. He's just a taaaad more protective in ways that will likely go unnoticed by most

 What is your Tav’s favorite moment they’ve had with their lover?

When Astarion told him he wanted their relationship to be real. When he levelled with him about the realities of his attractions. Because it was such a sigh of relief for him. He didn't have to pretend to care less - to pretend he was happy with only having sex. Astarions issues with intimacy were something they could work through - and 'Star wanted to work through it WITH him. As a team. It was the best.

 What is your Tav attracted to? What are their turn-ons and turn-offs? 

Terrible men is his type. If a man is transparently bad for him, Ralxire is all about it. But there has to be some kernel of goodness or they don't get to sleep over.

 Does your Tav have any biases against other classes or races? 

Of course, traditional Sorcerer vs Wizard beef must be observed. Especially because Oriana is part Sorc. Sibling rivalry is no joke.

 What is the most prominent color in your Tav’s color scheme?

Red and Black the whole way down. Sometimes I'll throw in some blue for contrast

 What is their sense of humor like?

Driest sarcasm in the west. The kind where you think they're not joking, just being an asshole out of nowhere. When he's around family, he is partial to a dad joke but he wouldn't be caught dead making one

 What is your Tav’s guilty pleasure?

I think in reality, Ralxire would indulge in every vice availble to man, but he wouldn't be guilty about it. I think he reads nonfiction for fun. I think he uses the mending cantrip to fix his friend's clothes while they're asleep. I think he really likes fancy food and deserts. That's the stuff he'd feel guilty about.

 How easily offended are they? How do they act when offended?

My man has a temper and takes most things as a direct insult to his pride. He has an ego that could eclipse the sun. There's a lot of snarling and exhaling smoke through the nose. There's a lot of saying the first insult that comes to mind. There's a lot of just blurting out the most hurtful shit you can think of as a reflex.

He's... not great at keeping friends. He's working on it.

 How does your Tav react when someone insults their friend/partner?

TIME FOR VIOLENCEEE

As I've said, Ralxire is BIG TIME protective. He's normally chill letting everyone else handle things, but if someone starts squaring up or targeting Oriana or 'Star? Violence.

 How does your Tav dress for different occasions, like very fancy situations?

Ah, Ralxire's nightmare. He's a street rat - he's never been anywhere remotely fancy. If Astarion doesn't dress him, he'd wear the tackiest, most Look I Have Money getup he could steal. Ralxire is not blessed with drip

 How did your Tav get their scars, if they have any?

Oh boy. Ralxire does have facial scarring. Yes, he did it himself. Yes, it was a choice that he then tatted over AND grew facial hair. His lower jaw is a disaster

 What is your Tav’s relationship with their family?

Blood family is nonexistant. Oriana is his closest thing. They've had...bumps. But Ralxire doesn't really care about that. He defends what he has

 What is your Tav’s opinion on nobility and authority?

No respectable lower city kid LIKES either. Ralxire is no exception. Sorry, Wyll

 How does your Tav react to wearing the Wavemother’s robe? How do they react to their partner wearing it?

I can't remember if this is how we discovered Ralxire has an incredible ass BUT HE REALLY DOES. He'd be down - Ralxire has absolutely no body shame at all. He wears a harness to relax. There's a naked statue of him at camp. He doesn't wear underwear. He's nasty as hell and everyone else has to deal with it.

'Star or Halsin wearing it would go exactly the way you think it would.

 What is your Tav’s favorite type of environment? Like in a tavern, a library, out in the wilderness, underground, etc.

Lower City favoured terrain. Taverns, dirty sewer hideouts, nasty waterfront warehouses. Places that aren't too nice make him feel....out of place. Halsin is helping with that, on the nature front. Though, a necromancer is only ever going to be so comfortable in nature

 What would your Tav’s Zodiac sign be?

My brain said Scorpio reflexively, but unfortunately I think he's inherited my Aries sun / Taurus moon combo.

 What is their favorite season?

Autumn. Cool. Everything is dying. It's in his colour pallet. What more could you want?

 Where in the world does your Tav want to visit the most?

I think he'd do a big city tour. Waterdeep, Neverwinter.... I think he'd seek out cool magic places. He does love Baldur's Gate secretly though

 What is the biggest mistake your Tav ever made?

Looking into Litchdom because "it's what Necromancers do"

 What animal best represents your Tav?

Impulse said Rat and I think that's maybe correct? A giant rat. The biggest rat you've ever seen.

 What flower/tree/plant best represents your Tav?

It's too easy to say Corpse Flower? I do think it's apt, actually. Massive for seemingly no reason. Smells bad. Obsessed with dead and decaying things. Looks like a massive dick

 What does your Tav smell like? 

Embalming fluid, probably.

 What song best represents your Tav?

Bonus for Ralxire x Astarion from my playlist for them

 What would be your Tav’s favorite music genre?

There is no world in which Ralxire would not have the worst drum and bass you've ever heard blaring 24/7 irl

 What role would your Tav play in a highschool AU? (nerd, jock, bully, goth, etc)

Dropout/Burnout with bonus He's Secretly Smart trope

 What is the most important item your Tav has?

His spellbook. Really, any book he gets his hands on. But his old and new spellbooks really contrast who he was with who he is now. Like, sure, his old one has Finger of Death in it. But now he has buffing spells! That he casts on other people! He learned spells to help others! Groundbreaking territory

 Where does your Tav feel most at home?

Lower City waterfront. The area of Baldur's Gate with all the monsters in it

 What is your Tav’s philosophy on life?

It would be something like "We're all getting fucked so we might as well enjoy it". He's got that optimistic pessimism going on

 Does your Tav think more with their heart or their brain?

He'd love it if it was his Brain. It would improve his life. Unfortunately he is only ever guided by his heart, his ego or his dick.

 What does your Tav want in their future? (domestic bliss, more adventure, a family, etc)

There was a time where he wanted to be immortal. Now, he mostly wants to give Astarion the best damn life he can until he's gone.

 What is your Tav’s worst fear?

The loss of what little he has - mostly his family

 Is your Tav easily tricked or deceived?

Not necissarily - but he is EASILY swayed by flattery.

 If your Tav was granted a single wish, what would it be?

More wishes. The wish spell in his spellbook. Some loophole bullshit like that

 How does your Tav feel about keeping secrets, both their own and others?

Sure, why not? You've got your reasons and I've got mine.

 How would your Tav react to a love confession?

If it was unrecipricated, it would be the best day of his life. He'd be so happy because he's been given a gift. If reciptrocated, see above answer about Star

 What are your Tav’s biggest insecurities?

Ralxire is more insecurity than man. He is insecure about how much he cares, primarily. Again, he's all ego. A lot of work goes into preserving that

 What decision would your party have to make in order for Tav to consider splitting off from the group?

Honestly, I think the fact I couldn't think of anything is telling. But he does have a soft spot for his fellow teefs. I think if they'd murdered the tiefling refugees, he'd have quitely slipped away the night after

 What is your Tav’s favorite food?

Anything insanely filling. Curries. Stews. That sort of thing. Most of his diet is unfortunately alcohol though

 How generous is your Tav, especially to those they don’t know?

Almost 0%. Maybe a little if you catch him being sentimental

 If an evil character told your Tav that they wanted to change and help them, would they believe it?

Not on your life. Ralxire mistrusts the nicest people on earth

 What meme describes your Tav the best?

I've somehow forgotten every meme ever made by mankind. Maybe....

What does your Tav want to be remembered by?

Outside of existing fondly in the memories of the people he loves, I don't think Ralxire cares much about being remembered.

 What Tarot Card best represents your Tav?

The Chariot (reversed) or The King of Wands (reversed)

 What would be your Tav’s major in college?

I actually answered this here

but tldr Ralxire would be working towards a PHD in Biology or Pathology

 Does your Tav consider themselves a hero, villain, victim or something else?

I think he would rather obstain. Though a bit like 'Star, there's something really funny about considering him a hero even a little bit

 How good is your Tav at giving advice? How good are they at following it themselves?

Good and terrible respectively

 How does your Tav get along with each party member?

Gale - > Inherent Wizard Rivalry is a big barrier here Wyll - > Too good to be true, for Ralxire. He's coming around Lazell - > She loves his sister and that's enough for him Astarion - > See any other answer. Loves more than anything Halsin - > The only grounding force he's ever had and he needed it SO MUCH. Adores sharing him with 'Star. Adores their strange, haphazard relationship. Adores how much he's not his usual type. Karlach - > Banter buds Shadowheart - > They hated each other for no clear reason, but now they bully each other with some affection in it

 What are your Tav’s other hobbies?

He will read anything at all - but likes Philosophy because it's structured arguing.

 (Free Spot: Ask any question you’d like!)

Ralxire's favourite way to end a day is to cuddle the shit out of Astarion while he reads aloud. 'Star gets to listen to his voice rumble and 'Xire gets to play with his hair. Astarion pretends to fall asleep, then Ralxire bundles them both up. Perfection

#This took me so fucking long dude #tav oc #longpost #Spotify #Youtube

[thecreaturecodex]

Runclus Malevol

“Druid” © Vladimir Matyukhin, accessed at his ArtStation here

[The last of my menagerie of Malevols for now. My PCs never encountered Runclus, but were definitely tempted to explore the Indoornesse when they found the portal. Maybe some day.]

Runclus Malevol CR 12 NE Humanoid This humanoid figure is clothed in flowing robes and leather armor. He wears an elaborate crown of leather and bone, all but obscuring his face.

Runclus Malevol, the Man of the Woods, is the most powerful living Malevol, although “living” has an asterisk in this case. Runclus is one of Aristide’s children, and he has died and been reborn repeatedly—whenever he survives long enough to become very old, he ritually kills himself and is reborn into a young body. Runclus has lived 23 lives so far, and this latest body is actually close in appearance and build to his original. Still, he typically conceals his form with flowing robes and a great mask, the better to cast doubt on whether he is alive or dead, both or neither.

Runclus is usually found in the Indoornesse, a pocket dimension accessible primarily through Castle Xyntillian’s extensive basements. Runclus knows other paths in and out, and uses them to collect up a cadre of sinister druids, and to introduce new monsters into the ecosystem. Once these monsters have been thoroughly vetted in the Indoornesse, some of them move up into the Castle grounds proper. Runclus is a devout follower of Lamashtu. He has successfully converted several of his family members to the worship of the Mother of Monsters.

In combat, Runclus typically uses his spells to inflict debilitating diseases or curses on enemies before killing them outright. Although he is a decent melee combatant in his own right, he rarely fights hand to hand unless bolstered with spells, having used his wild shape, or both. Runclus does not fear death in combat, as he has died before; if he is slain, however, he pivots to a more cautious strategy, and remains hidden until his many lives ability has recharged.

Runclus Malevol CR 12 XP 19,200 Human male druid (reincarnated druid) 12 Init +5; Senses Perception +15 Defense AC 18, touch 12, flat-footed 17 (+1 Dex, +1 deflection, +6 armor) hp 109 (12d8+48) Fort +13, Ref +7, Will +16; +4 vs. death effects, energy drain, necromancy Defensive Abilities cheat death, many lives Offense Speed 30 ft. Melee +1 falchion +12/+7 (2d4+4/18-20) Ranged masterwork sling +11/+6 (1d4+2) Special Attacks wild shape (4/day, Diminutive to Huge animal, Large plant, Large elemental) Spell-like Abilities CL 12th, concentration +18 (+22 casting defensively) 3/day—excruciating deformation (DC 19) 1/day—major curse (DC 21) Spells CL 12th, concentration +18 (+22 casting defensively) 6th—greater dispel magic, mass bull’s strength (D), plague storm (DC 22), transport via plants 5th—aspect of the wolf, baleful polymorph (DC 21), death ward, rest eternal, righteous might (D) 4th—flame strike (DC 20), freedom of movement, spell immunity (D), spike stones, strong jaw 3rd—cloak of winds, fungal infestation (DC 19), greater magic fang, poison (DC 19), protection from energy, rage (DC 19, D) 2nd—barkskin, bull’s strength (B), flame blade, frigid touch, lesser restoration, stone call, tree shape 1st—cure light wounds (DC 17), enlarge person (DC 17), faerie fire, longstrider, magic stone, speak with animals (x2) 0th—detect magic, light, mending, purify food and drink Domain = Strength (Ferocity subdomain) Statistics Str 14, Dex 13, Con 16, Int 10, Wis 22, Cha 8 Base Atk +9; CMB +11; CMD 22 Feats Combat Casting, Craft Wand, Ectoplasmic Spell, Martial Weapon Proficiency (falchion), Improved Initiative, Natural Spell, Vermin Heart Skills Diplomacy +6, Handle Animal +10, Knowledge (nature) +13, Knowledge (planes) +8, Knowledge (religion) +7, Linguistics +4, Perception +15, Sense Motive +14, Spellcraft +11, Survival +17 Languages Abyssal, Aklo, Common, Druidic, Necril, Sylvan SQ blessing of Lamashtu, exceptional resources, nature bond (domain), nature sense, trackless step, wild empathy +11 Gear helm of the dark druid (mitre of the hierophant and headband of wisdom +4, cursed [Will DC 19 when worn or alignment shifts to neutral evil]), +2 wild leather lamellar armor, +1 falchion, belt of constitution +2, ring of the ram (25 charges), ring of protection +1, cloak of protection +2, pearl of power (1st level), hunter’s tree fort, feather step slippers, wand of cure moderate wounds (50 charges), wand of greater animal aspect (50 charges), scroll of sunbeam, masterwork sling with 20 bullets, unholy water (x3), carved wood and ivory statuettes worth 616 gp Special Abilities Blessing of Lamashtu (Ex/Sp) Runclus Malevol can take the Strength domain and the Ferocity subdomain for his nature’s bond. He also gains excruciating deformation as a spell-like ability usable 3/day, and major curse 1/day, using his Wisdom as his casting stat. These bonuses plus his exceptional resources grant him +1 to his CR. Cheat Death (Ex) Once per day, Runclus may reroll a save against a death effect, energy drain, or necromancy effect before the result of the roll is revealed, or reroll a failed stabilization check while dying. He must take the result of the second roll, even if it is worse than the original roll. Many Lives (Ex): If Runclus Malevol is killed, he may automatically reincarnate (as the spell) 1 day later. The reincarnated druid appears in a safe location within 1 mile of his previous body. At will for the next 7 days, he can sense the presence of his remains as if using locate object as a spell-like ability. If he is killed during these 7 days, she remains dead and does not reincarnate. The many lives ability does not function if the reincarnated druid is slain by a death effect. A reincarnated druid cannot be raised from the dead or resurrected, though he can be reincarnated. Mysterious Stranger (Ex) Runclus Malevol adds +6 to the DC of Sense Motive, Diplomacy, and Knowledge checks to learn about him. Resist Death’s Touch (Ex) Runclus gains a +4 bonus on saving throws against death effects, energy drain, and necromancy effects, and on stabilization checks when dying.

#runclus malevol #druid #castle xyntillian #pathfinder 1e #npc

[saelrum]

YOU OLAY DND⁉️

Y E S. Our newest session has just ended, actually

We manage an English speaking club and our main DND session has been running for half a year now, on Pathfinder. We have played almost 25 sessions, but it's not even half of the whole plot)

The story takes place in a medieval fantasy-steampunk-magepunk kinda world with rich history.

In short, this is a story of an extremely diverse group of adventurers. They all have their own problems in life, but some shared missions made them into pretty good friends and earned their team a name.

In long....

Well, as you asked for the plot, let me tell you the current story))

The name of our campaign is "The Lesser Evil".

The world experiences major changes now - an ongoing conflict takes place between The Hegemony of Arvil and The Coalition.

Hegemony is a magocracy built on necromancy. It is really modern for the current age, but most of the nearby countries consider them to be villainous because of their dark magic and because their ruler is a lich. (In actuality, Hegemony hasn't done anything bad at all... for now)

About Coalition I don't know too much, but dark rumors are going around that they've been experimenting on humanoid creatures, turning them into abominations.

There are also Neutral Grounds (they just don't want to take part in war), Great Elven Empire (those racist bastards think they're above everyone else and probably eat other humanoid creatures...) and Frēolond (northern country with little to no technology that's been stuck between two warring factions)

Characters from our party were mercenaries at first (called themselves SRG - standing for Some Random Guys), but then they managed to recommend themselves for the higher-up in the Hegemony and now have a mission from him - to get to a specific town. Which.... Was supposed to be our first major mission, but we decided to travel to other places and found FAR more trouble for ourselves and still haven't gotten there. But we fought dragons, destroyed crimelords, uncovered ancient ruins, worked alongside the 20 lvl mage, found some friends, went to a mascarade ball, lost all of our possessions..... And half of our team.... Good stuff :"D

On our last adventure we've got separated into two groups, because half of our party was stolen by some pirates, with our ship, and crashed in a forest xd. The other half is looking for them now

Also, were going to have a RAID BOSS for FOUR parties very soon! Can't wait for it tbh

If you have more specific questions I can probably answer them, as I plan on posting more things about this campaign here.

It has a high probability to be turned into an actual animated/book series, so I'm not sharing all the details not to spoil the plot, only some brief or common information

For now, have some arts connected to it)

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dnd art #dnd story #dnd the lesser evil #digital art #sketch #original character #question answer #TLE #TLE lore

[risenocs]

Marta | D&D | Original Canon

Other Verses

Basics

First Name: Mantra

Last Name: N/A

Alias: Marta

Age: 27

Race: Tiefling (Bloodline of Mephistopheles)

Class: Wizard (Necromancer) (Level 8)

Skills: Arcana, History, Investigation, Insight

Alignment: True Neutral

Background: Sage

Languages: Common, Infernal, Elvish, Dwarvish

Stats

Strength: 10 (+0)

Dexterity: 12 (+1)

Constitution: 14 (+2)

Intelligence: 20 (+5)

Wisdom: 14 (+2)

Charisma: 10 (+1)

Life

Mantra grew up in a village just outside of a large city

She didn’t have very many friends since most kids her age thought she was weird because of her morbid interests and hobbies

Thankfully, she did have one friend, a half-elf nicknamed Sunny, who always stood by her side no matter how grossed out she was with Mantra’s interests

When Mantra was 12, Sunny unfortunately died in a house fire supposedly caused by an accident involving candles being knocked over onto flammable materials in the building

Mantra was utterly devastated when she learned of Sunny’s death, and for a little while genuinely didn’t accept that her friend was dead, but when the funeral happened she was forced to face reality

She became obsessed with finding a way to bring her only friend back to life and studied for years about magic in the city her village was near, going so far as to get permission to read books in restricted sections of libraries to learn about Necromancy (of course she never told anyone that), but unfortunately never found anything more than ways to reanimate a body and speak to the dead

Until one day (age 25) she learned about a book holding secret knowledge of how to bringing the dead back to life, not simply reanimate the body them but resurrect the person

Without hesitation she left home to search for the book, not giving any word of warning to her family or teachers about what she was doing

It took about a year and a half for Mantra to find the book, and once she found the books she immediately returned to her hometown to attempt resurrecting Sunny

She went at night, in an attempt to hide the fact she was practicing necromancy, to Sunny’s grave and dug up her corpse to cast the spell

Unfortunately, she wasn’t quite powerful enough to cast the spell completely and was found by a group of towns folk (including her parents) who had heard someone sneaking through town to the graveyard

She tried her best to talk her way out of the situation, to tell them she wasn’t doing anything wrong, but no one would listen to what she had to say, not even her parents, and the small mob chased her out of town

When she tried to go back to her hometown or even the city, she was chased away and called a monster for practicing necromancy

So, now she travels the realm alone, going by a different name and trying to get stronger so she can try again to use the spell that resurrects a person

Appearance

Height: 5’5” (a little over 167cm)

Weight: 130lbs (a little under 59kg)

Note: These images are from the character creater in BG3

Personality

MBTI: INTJ (this is my own assessment and may change)

Mantra tends to keep to herself, trying to avoid any unnecessary attention, turning a blind eye when seeing people in need. However, if someone asks for her help she will give it.

Despite how much she tries to avoid unnecessary attention, she dooes tend to bring it upon herself due to her naturally curious nature

Doesn’t open up to people at all due to the fear of being shunned and abandoned again

Her mind, to put it simply, is very frail and she always seems to be teetering on the edge of a mental breakdown despite how calm she may seem

Relationships

Parents: When she was younger, she had a wonderful relationship with her parents and they even supported her interests in magic. However, after the incident of trying to bring Sunny back to life, her parents turned their backs on her along with the rest of her hometown.

Sunny: Her best and only childhood friend. The two were inseparable and did everything together even if the other didn’t like it. Mantra was and still is devastated by her friend’s death.

#risenocs.marta.D&D #original character #d&d character #d&d oc #risenocs.marta

[celestialholz]

What's an interesting yet not very well known Forgotten Realms fact that you would like to share?

Hello, dearest anon. I'm about to do to you what I've done to many people over the years and deeply disappoint you 🤣 I'm not especially familiar with the D&D setting outside of BG3 - I actually play WFRP in some of my spare time.

But in lieu of a Forgotten Realms fact, a handful of BG3 facts you may not know and that I think are very interesting, learned from my three and a half playthroughs. :)

1. Minthara's battle phrase 'sussun egg oloth' is Drow for 'light slays darkness', which is funky and appropriate for a paladin who has been exiled from her Underdark hometown. This is also written on Isobel's tomb - and Aylin is the source of both Ketheric's immortality and, potentially, his downfall.

2. Astarion's Persuasion check to stop him ascending is literally half of Shadowheart's not to kill Nightsong, provided you have to use her Persuasion check anyway. Which is absolutely wild to me.

3. A Storm Sorceror using Chain Lightning on a Wet target with Destructive Wrath and the Killer's Sweetheart auto-crit will do 320 damage in one turn if it isn't saved, assuming a 'normal' hit - i.e. lack of resistance/not being vulnerable.

4. Gortash's name is a play off the theme of radiance, hence his crossbow doing Radiant damage when he's my favourite bastard. :) His Hellfire Watcher-in-chief also carries Gontr Mael, the legendary longbow of this game that also does Radiant damage.

5. Gale is the only one of the tadfools whose guardian has a specific gender - he refers to them as she/her.

6. There's a second Dark Amethyst for the Necromancy of Thay in Mystic Carrion's basement.

7. There's a really cool axe behind the Illusion door in Sorcerous Sundries, but only if you destroy the door.

8. If you take one of the Drow twins in Sharess' Caress with you upstairs and Minthara is your partner, she will threaten to kill them if your sordid act goes ahead. Ignore her and go anyway, and Initiative will roll the second you speak to them in their quarters. (On god this is the funniest shit I've seen in a game crammed full of really funny shit.)

9. On arriving in Baldur's Gate, if you speak to a romanced Gale he'll tell you he's happy to support you if you're finding city life a bit overwhelming. This is supremely cute.

10. The Light of Creation doesn't stun you if you're naturally immune to Lightning.

11. An Embrace Durge can be targeted successfully by Hold Monster, even in humanoid form.

12. The Sunwalker's Gift doesn't work on console. My githyanki and dragonborn disapprove.

13. Ketheric's Netherstone is pink, the colour of feminity and adoration - presumably because he turned to the darkness after losing two women he loved.

14. If given free choice, even as a Selûnite Shadowheart will choose to kill her parents in the House of Grief.

15. Lorroakan keeps the best staff (and arguably the best robe) in the game in his basement, and uses a reasonable variant of both himself instead. A delightful showcase of his incompetence.

16. In Balanced, the Steel Watch are weak to lightning, and default Durge is a Storm Sorceror. This one's just fun. :)

17. Tactician Raphael has 865 health. Ew.

18. If you fight Gortash whilst the Steel Watch are still active, and try to give yourself an easier life by Arcane Locking the door to the three Watchers outside so they can't help, when the fight starts all three of them will be inexplicably surrounding Gortash.

19. You can pickpocket Withers. And he does not care how many times you fail it.

20. If you're struggling with the House of Grief fight, a Light Cleric can dispel magical darkness up to four times in the fight with the Amulet of the Devout.

:)

#fun facts with celestial #bg3 #ask #answered

[i-can-even-burn-salad]

Magic Inspiration Tag

I was tagged by @writingmoth <3

And I am gonna tag @verkja and @starlit-hopes-and-dreams and @dont-touch-my-soup if you want to!

Rules—share the inspiration/s for the magic system in your WIP

That's a very good question. I have a rather soft system that I just make do whatever I need in the moment. After letting this tag game rot in my drafts for ages, I think it's mostly video games.

Elemental magic (fire, earth, air, water)

Healing magic (gotta have a healer)

Necromancy (just for the aesthethics™, no raising dead)

Illusions and glamour

The games I play most (elder scrolls, guild wars, some jrpgs) contain a couple of those. Mechanics as well. The games I enjoy most have a slowly replenishing mana pool, so that's kinda how it works. Enchanting objects/objects with magical properties are also a common thing.

Fun fact: In so many games, water = healing, which really fucked me over once I moved a tiny bit away from the game concept :D

There's probably many other sources as well, but I can't remember. I read a lot and I played a lot and some parts of it are 20 years old.

#salad-tag

[finleyforevermore]

Just wondering but what is your opinion of necromancy in fiction becouse

Here’s my pitch

Sad scruggly man like in his 20 live animals. One day a bird flys into his door as he is opening it and it breaks its wing. He try’s all he may but the bird dies from its injuries. He is so devastated that he then spend the next 2 year researching into resurrection magic. He finds that he could not revive the bird because he is to broke and is not a believer in a god of life. That leads to him for the next 6 years researching necromancy. Finally he takes the skeleton of the poor bird and revives it. From the ground a cracking can be heard as green flames raise up and I use a small green flame in the skeleton birds ribs reviving it. The man is so happy that he hold the bird up and let it leap off the fly. The bird try’s by nature but of course without winds falls. The wizard distort spends the next year into researching rune craft to carve wind runes into the bird bones. Finally many years latter the man has grown older and looks a little more pale but happily walks over to his window and lets a bird that died so many years ago fly once more.

Now tell me. What is your opinion of necromancers

I love your concept, King!!! :D

Your idea of a necromancer sounds very sweet! I love em! ^^

#immortal/king! 💫

[kvothbloodless]

Alright, who wants to help me check something for one of my WiPs? Trying to make sure this character's actions are seen the way I intend, since my sense of morals is definitely more utilitarian than the average

Poll, are the character's actions in the following scenario:

A) Totally correct, even if they're obviously distasteful. She did nothing wrong.

B) Probably the best option, since it was likely for the greater good, but jesus fuck that's fucked up, something's probably wrong with her

C) It's understandable that she'd do this but it wasn't worth it, and its not tolerable/forgivable

Or

D) What the fuck she's a monster

Vastly oversimplifying the situation but

So the character is one of the leaders in a war. The enemy's main army (numbering somewhere around 10,000ish) is approaching that outnumbers her sides army (a little over 2,500ish) by a good bit. Her castles stores are running low and supply lines are stretched. Theyre unlikely to win a direct fight, especially if theyre having to do it while going on rations, but they have a chance (say a 20-30% chance of winning), especially since some of her side's soldiers are undead. Then she manages to captures a decent sized group of enemies (~1,000) in a trap and they surrender. Theyre brought back to the fort. Most of them are career soldiers but a few are conscripts.

She disarms them and whatnot, and they plan to keep them locked up, but realize that they cant afford to feed that many more people. If they keep them, theyll run out of food even while rationing long before reinforcments arrive, and the war will be lost. If she lets them go, theyll just join up with the main army and then theyll Definitely be fucked.

Not seeing any other acceptable options, she has them killed in cold blood, then uses necromancy to raise all their corpses as soldiers, letting her side win the war.

Her side is definitely morally better, but not like, clear-cut Good. The enemy is the traditional fantasy absolute monarchy, and has a strong church which outlaws and demonizes necromancy, while her side is a weird mishmash of a constitutional "monarchy" thats really more of a ruling council, with one of the council members being democratically elected. Also, that country allows and utilizes necromancy on a mass scale, which results in a significant improvement in quality of life for most people, which would disappear if the other side takes over.

Feel free to just reblog/reply with the letter, but I also wouldnt mind any comments

#thanks in advance! #pulling hares #my writing #morality

[nebulous-apocrypha]

7, 14, 19, 20, 38, B?

wheelofnames dot com has spoken and it is elias hours! here we go now.

7. What triggers nostalgia for them, most often? Do they enjoy that feeling? - his hometown's famous for a strong-smelling citrus fruit that grows in abundance there; it's popular on the mainland, especially in the city he lives in, so it's also exported to there in abundance. its scent triggers a lot of nostalgia for him, which he doesn't enjoy at all, since he'd really prefer to leave his hometown as far behind as possible.

14. What animal do they fear most? - i've answered this for him before, but the answer remains the same: horses. he's so scared of horses. it's because of the hooves, and the strength, and the quickness, etc.

19. What is their favorite number? - he's fond of most multiples of 5, but especially 10. he thinks it's a nice round number. ten fingers, ten toes, ten rungs on the ladder that leads to his attic.

20. If they were asked to explain the difference between romantic and platonic or familial love, how would they do so? - he'd start off with a somewhat academic explanation, then pause halfway through with the realization that he had no idea what he was talking about. after some awkward, thoughtful silence, he'd try and explain the definitions of each; eventually he'd be forced to admit that he'd only really ever experienced the latter, which was how he distinguished it from the former.

38. What memory do they revisit the most often?  - most definitely the memory of him being kicked out of the institute he studied in for practicing necromancy. it's been three years since then and he revisits it practically every day. he dreams about it often. at this point it's less memory and more myth, given how much his perception of the event has been warped over the years.

B) What inspired you to create them? - i don't remember exactly what it was, but something that had wizards in it (possibly d&d or ffxiv?) had me thinking about wizards. then that started me thinking about necromancers, which eventually led to elias!

#inquiries answered #ask game #oc: elias

[kaypeace21]

Theories for s4 .

May be wrong but whatever XD I will mention movies said to inspire s4 as well. Also throwing in some of my crack theories in the small chance they're right. This will be just a quick rundown of ideas. I will also briefly discuss leaks, merch etc so just warning you now. To not read-if you don't want to see that.

- Eddie may die . he has a skull with lighting on it (on his d&d book). This is probably hinting he dies in the (lightning filled) upsidedown. Billy had a skull tatoo before he passed away, ( so it has precedence) . Eddie may distract the bats with his guitar (inhibiting their echolocation) and sacrificing himself to protect the others. maybe another hint he dies is how bob died and was a vampire for Halloween (vampires = bats /un-dead).

- satanic panic is alive and well, and false rumors about the hellfire club(being linked to chrissy or others de*ths spread). S3 foreshadows the satanic panic (and it's historical ties to d&d). In the 80s (on 20/20) was literally a "news report" claiming d&d was correlated to :Satanism, witchcraft, necromancy, m*rder,  being gay (rolls eyes the homoph*bia of conflating that with the others), and many other things. The gang probably first gets involved to clear eddie and Co.

- I feel like we will hate Jason and Freddie. My guess is Freddie with his school newspaper and Jason with his popularity help spread the satanic panic and witch hunts. Their names are probably from the villains in the freddy vs Jason franchises . Which is why I think we will dislike them. Also maybe a weird coincidence but in friday the 13th: Jason and the heroine chris were enemies. Despite in st, jason/chrissy dating. Could just be an Easteregg but maybe Jason is a jerk of a bf to chrissy. We also have nancy and Freddie working on the newspaper- and given how elmstreet is inspo. Freddie and nancy probably don't get along. Similar to freddy kreuger and nancy thompson -in elmstreet.

- appears like max and Co break into the counselor's office. My guess is: they look at the psych notes of the missing students for leads . Maybe that's where the drawing of the creel house comes in? Chrissy or someone else may have had nightmares of the house before they're attacked by vecna. The ripped drawing is also a callback to nancy finding the ripped photo of the demogorgan and later investigating it. So the drawing probably is what causes robin and nancy go to pennhurst (mental hospital) ,in addition to the creel house.

- already explained 2 possible theories for vecna. Skip this bullet point if you want to avoid leaks. Ok so if leaks are true. My theory is then ...henry creel, later peter ( who maybe changed his name to start fresh ) worked at hnl as a guard. And prob had powers and became vecna when trapped in upsideown. Since vecna is based on freddy k... St's vecna's backstory is probably based off the freeddy k comics. Freddy was a boy with ab*sive (step) dad, he was bullied because his dad was in an mental asylum (victor). He later becomes a dream-monster who targets kids with similar ab*sive backgrounds to himself. Explaining why the monsters targeted: Will, el, billy, max, chrissy etc. The clock immagery of the monsters- may be correlated to the m*rders and the cursed creel clock). maybe it's like a metaphor for being stuck in the past ( to the creel m*rders)? "Wanting to turn back the clock" to a better time. Vecna also makes dreams based on peoples' fears, secrets,etc. And s1-3 made direct references to Alice in wonderland/wizard of oz (which have dream worlds). And if vecna is a ruler of the upsidedown it could explain why the upsidedown monsters already mirrored the fears of el, hopper, and the byers boys in s1-3. Silent hill is st inspo: the alternate version of the town (silent hill) is filled with monsters and they reflect the tra*ma of various towns people. This alternate version of silent hill was first made by an ab*sed psychic kid . Apparently Peter can also manipulate minds /memories too which mirrors the mindflayer's ability to do so. And I already explained this , plus the alternative crack theory that could be connected to the creels in part 2: about a time paradox/loop-Here.

- there's most likely a lot of infighting in the government and that is shown via sullivan's team attacking the cali/owen's base. People think the sbp gang save her. But I think its more likely she uses the fighting between gov agencies as an opportunity to escape and head to Hawkins... maybe even hitchhike like s2.And she only reunites with sbp later. I also think el may have shaved her own head trying to "turn back the clock" to a time when she had powers while in the lab. She may try anything to regain her powers and help her friends. A few movies involve a character having a breakdown and cutting their hair (most likely El). She probably gets her powers back when in the sensory tank (called nina). Since  the hnl-pre teaser has the opera song sung by nina - and the character NINA had  repressed memories- El may recollect something before her powers reactivate (probably involving the lab massacre). In assasains creed: a character also sees their repressed memories/ past while in a water tank . Also I think it’s interesting that creel can mean ‘fish trap”. An nina can mean “enclosure of fish"” (and el is stuck in a tank like a poor fish in an aquarium). :(

- vecna forces El to have a vision of the rainbow room. The inception totem is a  and eye imagery of El/vecna is a hint of this. What may be weird is the person playing chess looks like Will. But could be a coincidence. However it is weird that when max enters a vecna dream- the grave of billy changes to William. Or the fact the creel clock also says "williams". link here

- I do wonder if jonathan and Will have vecna flashbacks of their pasts as well ,in part 2. Especially regarding lonnie. Because some s4 movies have trippy dreamscapes - one film "the cell": involves a dream memory of an ab*sive, h*mophobic father hurting his young son. Bill and Ted's bogus journey: teen turns into little kid, chased by giant rabbit monster, told he's a horrible big brother, is harassed by older relative (in dream flashback)- reminds me of jonathan, etc. Also some trippy swing flashbacks - in "terminator 2 " and " enter the void" (so mike or Will?). I agree with 0aurelion-solo theory that Will's true sight may let him eventually see past the illusions/break the code (of the dream) like Alan turing. Because in d&d truesight allows you to see past illusions.

- the fake name used for filming s4 was "ocerat", an anagram for tareco- in d&d he's a "wizard hunter". He believes the world would be a better place if he could k*ll all wizards.  He often would st*lk his victims for weeks and try to isolate them to attack them. He obviously isn't a fan of El (a mage). But... is sullivan's group just getting rid of the byers cause they know too much? Why not be subtle and make it look like an accident *like what they did to Hammond? Barb? Etc? Are they unaware El isn't there? If sullivan's crew attack the base and house at the same time: that would ring alarm bells for me, that something else is going on. Maybe the sbp crew doesn't realize sullivan is after them for other reasons. I mean will is a "wizard" -could be a part 2 twist. And since Utah (suzie's house) is between California and Indiana. It appears the sbp crew is going to Indiana maybe to warn their friends they are in the "eye of the storm". A monoply card claimed suzie would help them find el... but idk if it will be that simple ... maybe they learn El isn't even at the base anymore. And or ...

- crack theory: I still think there's a strong chance suzie and her family may be spies and working for the gov. May betray the sbp gang initially. Theory and reasoning here. If not her- I do wonder if there is some other betrayal or spy. It's a common theme in the s4 films. Even the s4 videos store has a movie poster about a undercoverspy gf , and another film poster about basketball. 

- hopper's imprisonment probably has parallels to el's time in the lab (especially cause irl: soviets experimented on soviet prisoners in the "psychic armrace" ). But in the show they use the soviet prisoners to train and weaponize the demogorgan. If what david said is true: We probably see flashbacks of vietnam ,his dad,sara. Along with possibly solitary confinement in the prison etc. I think vietnam/prison scenes may be pretty messed up if in the show (just from the s4 movie selection). Historically the usa also did questionable experiments on vietnam soldiers as well. So his time in the war (buzzcut , being trained to be a weapon) probably echos el's time being in the lab , and being trained to become a weapon/experiment.

- also not sure if it's symbolic or something else. We see a Russian doll at the creel house. And in the st mobile game Victor's favorite food is a Russian dish borscht. So is it just simple easterggs, are they of Russian descent - or is there some type of parallels/symbolism we will see later on in the season relating to the creels and the soviets. Perhaps all 3 storylines: lab , creels, and soviets are all linked via experimentation gone wrong.

-the creels probably will have parallels to: the byers and  el (which we’ve already seen),  along with max , maybe chrissy and her ab*sive mom. And I think I heard Eddie had an ab*sive dad too. So there may be parallels there as well...

- Max seems to be having nightmares connected to vecna- before they realize it’s supernatural in origin. She obviously is grieving and vecna’s pursuit of her probably is a metaphor of survivor’s guilt , tra*ma , etc. It’d be interesting and cool if Max and Nancy bonded over this commonality (since they both suffered through it). Wouldn’t it make sense for Nancy to be super protective of a red-head after what happened to Barb? Not sure if they’d do it- but it’d be nice if Nancy was like a mentor-friend to Max. 

- Lucas’ pursuit of basketball and popularity echos how steve who was on the basketball team and learned popularity is over-rated. And being your authentic self is the best thing to do. I think Lucas’ is still very loyal to his friends even when on the team. But is initially torn. And quickly sides with his friends. Hopefully he gets some good characterization like s2. 

- I think Hopper may escape on his own, he also may use fire as an escape method. We saw in the trailer- an explosion in a snow covered place. We already see hopper using a flamethrower etc. Also, there's little evidence for it ... I just worry the joyce/murray's rescue mission won't go as planned. It could. It just seems ... too easy tbh. I kind of wonder if joyce is stuck in russia at the end of s4.because of a st comment of hers. Plus, their plane literally crashed so...

- I still wonder if in part 2: Will and el are captured at the end of the season by brenner (where he may have restarted his program at pennhurst mental asylum ). Or maybe Will goes with Lonnie and El goes with Brenner. Especially if joyce is m.ia. Mkultra historically did experiments in mental asylums. Lucas made a joke in s1 ,  that el is from pennhurst (foreshadowing?). There's movies where questionable guardians, dead beat dads etc- got custody. Plus s4 films where psychiatrists do unethical supernatural experiments on patients.

-crack theory: I still wonder if chrissy's death will be faked (and they find her in water like Will). And at the end of the season it's revealed she's at pennhurst (where Brenner may have restarted his program). Theory and reasoning here. Ofcourse 50/50 chance she may be another Heather but we will see.

-kali may return in s4 part 2 or s5. It was foreshadowed: Kali also wants to take down Brenner and suggested to El they work together to do so. Maybe they team up again?Not to mention in a season exploring El's past: why not bring back Kali? Or maybe in s5 she helps the gang rescue El- if El's in need of rescuing. Plus, in s4 bts: there was a pic of a guy that looked very similar to axel (Kali's friend ) in Hawkins.

- not really a theory but alot of s4 films have plays, musical numbers, drawings, etc foreshadow huge plot points later. So obviously we will pay attention to the d&d game and anything similar for foreshadowing.

- alot of s4 films have a boy or boys be bullied due to h*mophobia so I feel like given how Will has been bullied in the past he may also be bullied similar to el (just for different reasons).especially after the Alan Turing project. Ofcourse mike and Robin may be bullied for similar rumors? But more likely Will , just given the fact he has a history of being bullied. Also a few films , the boy snaps and beats up the h*mophobic bully or the bullied kid snaps and attacks the bully over very very messed up jokes about him and his family. Whether it happens is hard to say. It may happen in s5 or 4 . Who knows.

- I think jonathan is struggling alot and argyle helps him. Maybe , and hopefully, we get more insight on Jonathan's character and past because of it.

- based on the s4 films: the byers dinner scene is either going to be cute or dysfunctional as heck.  Maybe be related to Will’s b day? We already know the creel dinner doesn't go as planned - could be a loose parallel??

- part 1: most of the canon couples breakup /or struggle in their relationships. Part 1 probably has ambiguous byler scenes too. And Part 2 m*leven and others may break up.

- crack theory I hope is wrong and probably won't happen. elmstreet dream warriors is said to inspire s4. In that film nancy tompson (who nancy wheeler is based on) is killed in a dream by freddy k (who vecna is based on) specifically after doing an investigation at a mental hospital -correlated to a character named Kirsten (chrissy?). I feel like the duffers love Nancy too much to do this(nor do this to any other original main). She's my favorite girl in the show so I'd be really upset If it happened tbh. Probably have nothing to worry about. But just in case.

- and who is in front of the car on fire... honestly there's so many possibilities. Fire was first associated with Will.But has frankly been associated with various other characters since then. So it could be theoretically anyone. Heck... there's 2 s4 films that have someone (In a dream world) burn alive the fake-dream- version of their ab*sive relative. for all we know it's simply a vecna dream. Could be Will or a different victim of vecna? Or just something more realistic we wouldn't expect . Of course could be the more obvious predictable choice - since el has messed up cars before ,using her powers in s1 . We will just have to wait and see.

- 8 minute clip that was on youtube-skip if you haven’t seen it. we also saw the parallels between the m*rder scenes: with victor creel (at the house) and el (at the lab).  We have shots of both El and Victor’s backs (as they stare at a window) and bodies are at their feet. It also reminds me of how Will’s back is shown as he stares at a window (while possessed). It Appears el/victor  were either  possessed during these events. For example when Will was possessed he also caused a massacre at hawkins lab-which could be a parallel to El. Or maybe victor/el were tricked by vecna/henry/peter into seeing things that weren't there- and thus hurt innocent people. Some leaks say- el didn't do anything and she was just framed. But I'm not sure tbh. It's possible. I think it'd make more sense if it was one of the former explanations- just based on what's in the clip (el smiling after wards). But again we will see.

#stranger things #el hopper #will byers #jim hopper #max mayfield #nancy wheeler #mike wheeler #jonathan byers #joyce byers #lucas sinclair #steve harrington #robin buckley #kali prasad #eddie munson #dustin henderson

[fem-blade-adept]

For those few people who actually read my OC stories that I post, I wanted to actually write this up for those that care. It’s fairly well known that my OC’s are all D&D concepts and I wanted to go into more detail about them. Also, keep in mind, most of my OC’s severely break the Level Cap on D&D because they’re OC’s so keep in mind that they are broken as fuck. @ebevkisk

OC D&D Breakdown

Petra Naverrian

Class:

Cleric-Blood Domain Level 20

Wizard-Bladesinger Level 15

Fighter-Battlemaster Level 15

Proficiencies:

Dexterity

Wisdom

Constitution

Intelligence

Dump Stat:

Strength

Lyria Peregrine

Class:

Druid-Circle of the Moon Level 20

Ranger-Gloomstalker Level 15

Proficiencies:

Dexterity

Wisdom

Charisma

Dump Stat:

Constitution

Emily Cordalith

Class:

Monk-Way of the Long Death Level 20

Proficiencies:

Dexterity

Constitution

Dump Stat:

Charisma

Aerin Curridan

Class:

Barbarian-Path of the Zealot Level 20

Fighter-Echo Knight Level 15

Proficiencies:

Strength

Constitution

Dexterity

Dump Stat:

Wisdom

Verity Xanderia

Class:

Sorcerer-Pyromancy Level 20

Fighter-Champion Level 15

Proficiencies:

Intelligence

Charisma

Dexterity

Dump Stat:

Constitution

Haley

Class:

Artificer-Battle Smith Level 20

Fighter-Gunslinger Level 15

Proficiencies:

Intelligence

Dexterity

Charisma

Dump Stat:

Strength

Marasenna

Class:

Dragon

Proficiencies:

Dragon

Dump Stat:

Dragon

Ascella Ylteryn

Class:

Wizard-Necromancy Level ???

Proficiencies:

Intelligence

Wisdom

Charisma

Dump Stat:

Strength

Bonus:

Petra’s Sister (you’ll meet her soon)

Class:

Rogue-Mastermind Level 20

Wizard-Illusion Level 20

Proficiencies:

Intelligence

Charisma

Dexterity

Dump Stat:

Wisdom

#petra naverrian #lyria peregrine #emily cordalith #aerin curridan #verity xanderia #haley the tiefling #marasenna purveyor of nightmares #ascella ylteryn

[steampoweredstrawberry]

I have this idea for a horny bard D&D character (I haven't played one yet, so I'm allowed at least one), but I want him to be a washed up rockstar whose minstrel troupe gained fame when he was a young adult, but then he fell into drugs/alcohol/fame got to his head and the bandmates decided to kick him out. He's now a bit older (for human age spans, found fame in his 20's, is now in his 30's), still washed up, but he's clinging to spite and is planning a big comeback. He's also a bit delusional about how famous he was and constantly insists that the people asking the brave adventurers for help simply want his autograph or something. The plan would be to multiclass into warlock with his patron being a hot archfiend lady whom he is definitely into (and they might conceive a child together because I have an idea for another D&D character who is just his tiefling daughter who isn't musically gifted like dad and mom isn't her patron so she can't rely on nepotism, so she learns necromancy to raise up her own backing band).

[gentrychild]

Hello! Question no.10& 11!! Please 😊

Already answered 10. :D

11. Do you believe in the old advice to “kill your darlings?” Are you a ruthless darling assassin? What happens to the darlings you murder? Do you have a darling graveyard? Do you grieve?

Yes, it's a rule I live by. I often write things non chronologically (there are scenes I have written 20 chapters in advance) to get a feel of what I want and when I reach those scenes... Often, they don't match the story anymore. So they have to be rewritten.

And also, there are scenes that just... don't want to work with the story. So I have to remove them. Even if I spent a week writing them. It's either that or never finishing the chapter.

But it hurt! So despite being a darling assassin, I am not ruthless. I lovingly bury all my darlings in shallow graves, always know where they are, and when the occasion present itself, I dig up their rotting bodies, necromance the hell out of them, and use them for either other chapters or other fics!

#weird questions for writers

[thedragonagelesbian]

Luc Surana D&D Character Sheet

this felt like a mistake. but, like, a very fun mistake. a cute mistake. the kind of mistake that might bat its eyelashes at you and give you a VERY disarming smile to convince you that it is, in fact, a REALLY good idea

...so, in that regard, it’s quite like luc himself

@hexblooddruid​ (sorry this is a long one i have a lot to say)

Some notes:

i decided to go shadar-kai for subrace for Maximum edgy goth elf vibes and free short-range teleport

i adore the lyceum scholar background, it felt much more appropriate than sage with a feature specifically about getting access to libraries & arcane resources, as well as the option to take persuasion proficiency. how else was my boy supposed to get his silver tongue?

speaking of, i also did something i didn’t do for cyrus or dru which is i took a first level feat: skill expert, grabbing proficiency in intimidation and expertise in persuasion. given that backgrounds having feats is all but codified for oned&d i didn’t feel too bad about this.

the really fun stuff tho is in this weird fucking triple class: base wizard, druid for all the rest of his levels (litany against making the level 20 build today), and the worst most pointless blood hunter dip ever.

this was by far the hardest dragon age character to port to d&d by sheer virtue of the fact that the magic systems, especially the part of the magic system that luc specializes in in dragon age, aren’t compatible. spirit magic and blood magic, the core of luc’s builds and things that are DIRECTLY adjacent to each other in dragon age, aren’t even things in base d&d

it was easy enough to pick necromancy wizard as a base, since that checks at least the animate dead box, but i also knew i didn’t want that to JUST be a wizard since... a huge part of his arc is precisely that he doesn’t do circle magic well. (also i hate to say it but thats simply too much modularity im not going thru all those spells)

when i set out, i even thought i was going to make him a charisma caster-- maybe a spirit bard or a wild magic sorcerer or even a fiend warlock. but none of the flavor or abilities felt quite right for where luc draws his power from, which is the interplay between life & death, spirit & matter, the fade & the physical world

...and then i remembered. the unpublished unearthed arcana circle of twilight (aka death) druid.

i dont think luc thinks of himself as particularly wise, but you need some kind of wherewithal to deal with spirits as often as he does, and the additional necromancy flavor is perfect, AND i can get healing spells through the druid spell list (and charm person. have we talked about how weird it is that charm person is on the druid spell list)

that just left the blood magic bit of things.

there are a lot of classes that make for good one-level dips, whether for mechanics or flavor or both. cleric. warlock. sorcerer. fighter. yknow what doesnt make for a good one-level dip??? fucking blood hunter. you dont even get a fighting style at level 1.

but luc can’t not have blood magic. he’s not luc if he doesn’t have a  troubling apathetic streak toward self-destruction, and blood hunters are rather grey warden-esque, aren’t they? a monster to fight a monster, a dangerous joining ritual shrouded in secrecy...

(and you know armor & shield proficiency never hurt for a base wizard...)

coming together, then, the three classes create a really exciting parallel to his narrative arc: beginning with wizard in the circle, joining the grey wardens and taking the blood hunter dip, and finally meeting morrigan and experimenting with other, more intuitive forms of magic from there

popping in vital sacrifice for extra blood magic and tough for extra blood, and then i realized that both necromancer & twilight druid have heal-on-kill abilities. to regenerate the blood. i don’t know how this would actually play in-game, i worry it may be too situational or rely too much on fighting crowds of low level enemies (all the more ironic for luc lacking AoE spells both in d&d and in dragon age) BUT. conceptually. i think it’s fucking delightful.

the other hard thing was picking spells bc. again. spirit spells don’t exist and i tried not to take elemental spells for my damage spells. in addition to the wizard spells featured (which skew more toward entropy than spirit tbh but what can i do at this point), the notable druid spells are charm person, hold person, moonbeam, and wither and bloom, and when he gets to level 5, dispel magic.

#luc posting #im so scared tumblr has done something rlly weird with my list so we'll see how the formatting goes..........