#the lords of mithral hall

[epiclad]

The Companions of the Hall

Chipped away at this over two months while working, so the going was pretty slow, but I finally finished it. A remake of one of my favorite pieces from back in the day.

Sometimes I still can't believe that I'm actually doing official art for WotC now (literal dream job), so I wanted to do this to show myself how far I'd come.

#the companions of the hall #drizzt do'urden #catti-brie #wulfgar #bruenor battlehammer #regis #guenhwyvar #the lords of mithral hall #my art #after doing this.... i suddenly feel like redoing all my older FR pieces...

[limpfisted]

WISHLIST: ANOTHER herbert sherbert weird kenjammin original questline based off the descent to avernus module!

TITLE: GASP! POLITICAL INTRIGUE! SPIES! DANGER! THE COUNCIL OF LORDS! AMN! OCS AND NPCS WE WRITE TOGETHER! THE ELECTION OF NOT ONE, BUT THREE DIFFERENT DUKES DURING THE TRIAL OF VANTHAMPUR. ESCANDALO….

REAL TITLE: a sprawling political campaign we write together based off various sources of dnd media.

TIMELINE: post-act 3 (duke ravengard verse.)

NOTE: this is WYLL-SPECIFIC, i also have ideas for vampire, githyanki, shar, mystea stuff….. but idk if yall wanna see that lol. if you want, you can steal these ideas for your own rps! would be fun, show me your rps!

RELEVANT DND INFORMATION:

amn is a city like baldur’s gate, but actually a nice place to live. theyre a lot newer, but they’re extremely powerful, and they HATE bg for stealing their business, they DON’T want them in the council of lords, n there are potential conspiracy plots and assaination plots alluded to potentially.they have a history of war with bg as well. amn is NOT in the council of lords, but they are an entire state apparatus

council of lords members:

Amphail: Lord Dauner Ilzimmer

Baldur's Gate: Grand Duke of Baldur's Gate and Marshal of the Flaming Fists Ulder Ravengard (now grand duke wyll ravengard.)

Daggerford: Duchess Morwen Daggerford

Longsaddle: Dowell Harpell

Mithral Hall: Queen Dagnabbet Waybeard

Mirabar: Marchion Selin Ramur

Neverwinter: Lord Protector Dagult Neverember

Silverymoon: High Mage Taern Hornblade

Waterdeep: Open Lord Laeral Silverhand (she was also the leader of the Alliance)[4]

Yartar: Waterbaron Nestra Ruthiol

baldur’s gate is ruled by the council of four. this was:

vanthampur: captured or killed after betraying elturel and ulder, her seat will be up for election either way

polmyer: largely lazy conflict averse old man

stelmane: killed, her seat will be up for election

ulder: wants to step down for his son, was deposed by gortash, is still the marshal of the flaming fists, but the seat may be open for election as wyll takes on the role during a period of martial law

there are hundreds of refugees out of the city gate

there is already not enough room for lesser nobles to have manors and estates in the upper city, some of the nobles are actually quite poor due to failing businesses

space and resources are not being properly allocated, there is a whole nature reserve for dusthawks, but this space could be used for housing or hunting

in general, nobles CANNOT be seen helping people, it is a sign of weakness, any support for the common people has to be veiled, including bids for electoral candidates. if a noble helps someone publically, they usually end up dead unless theyre really really smart or powerful

even if you are elected, there is so much red tape, it is honestly better to simply join a crew and protect ur community that way

elections include the votes of the common people

the watch only helps the nobility, and humilates and is violent towards commonpeople for the most slight of infractions

the flaming fist SUCKS except for ulder. so whats ulders fucking deal. he is the comissioner gordon of baldur’s gate, i guess

any incoming political ambassadors are interrogated thoroughly to check for spies, it sometimes takes hours at a time, they are Not Trusted

MY PREMISES:

vanthampur is on public trial, two seats are up for election, while wyll is grand duke under martial law

the lord alliance approves of wyll—to an extent, certainly more than gortash, to help him and solidify their allegiance, the lord alliance is coming to baldur’s gate.

in addition, an emissary from amn, who is NOT a spy, and their guard (who ARE spies and such that are there to sow discord and rig the election etc) have come

the cult/conspiracy of ansur has been formed, people who believe in the good of balduran and ansur and believe that the heroes that saved bg actually KILLED ansur have developed into a faction of detractors

tiamut cultists are fighting the remaining dead three cultists to get back tiamut’s hoard of coin, leaving people dead in the fallout

the guild is growing in power, scraping against local crews

the nobles mostly still believe in gortash or at least his vision for the future. some commoners do too. gortash is still a political prisoner, he longs to go back to working on the steel watch.

ulder is back in charge of the flaming fist, however, the people hate them now more than ever. ulder is also falling prey to BAPHOMET’s influence, and will need constant mental healing from the strain.

the refugees need homes and are constantly being preyed on, they do NOT have votes in the election, but they still deserve to be helped

OUR JOB:

make npcs, deal with all this shit!! will be FUN!

this will be A LONG-TERM TWO-PERSON COLLOBORATION, please like this post if you’re interested in doing something like this!

we do not have to ship. at all. platonic is fine. in fact, platonic is great, shipping is also great, but i want to do PLOTTY stuff! ty!

#ooc #wishlist #original quests

[radramblog]

AFR Precon Commanders

Look I literally did this last week, but also, I haven’t really thought about Magic since then, so I don’t have any particular ideas about what to write other than just another long list of cards. I had an idea for an Ebondeath dech tech, but I’m going to put that on the backburner for a day where I have a bit more time.

Besides, there’s a reason Set Reviews and the like are so popular among players. They’re fun to make, and they’re fun to read/listen/watch. And for whatever reason, WoTC has opted to give us effectively two full Commander sets this year, with AFC having just as many precons and almost as many new Commanders as the 2016 precon offering. So there’s a lot going on, and a lot to talk about.

With only 12 new cards to talk about this time, and them being actually designed for the format, I’ll try to spend a bit longer on each one. And the first one is….

Catti-brie of Mithral Hall

There’s a lot going on here for two mana. Catti-brie is Selesnya’s second Equipment Commander, with her compatriot Nazahn being a bunch more impact, but also triple the mana cost. This is besides the part where Nazahn is not that good outside of finding his absolutely bonkers hammer.

I think Catti-brie has a lot of potential. With the right build, she can get very large very quickly, and considering she costs two whole mana, that’s fairly impressive. With no ramp and just Grafted Wargear, she’s swinging for 6 commander damage turn 3, and only getting bigger from there- literally a 3-swing clock with the extra counters.

I literally cannot envision you ever using that last ability unless someone snipes her mid-combat. But you probably don’t need it? I like her either way. Bit awkward she releases the same day as fellow two mana Selesnya Commander that gets bigger for (deckbuild mechanic), Trelassara.

 Galea, Kindler of Hope

…eh?

Okay, so it Future Sights, but only for Auras/Equips, and it gets the Sigarda’s Aid ability for Equipment, which is kind of gross- you get the card and mana advantage at the same time there. As someone with a Gruul topdeck deck, I know that Green doesn’t really offer much to that pie, but I know Blue absolutely does- not gonna be super hard to manipulate and chuck the swords you want on top of the deck.

But like…eh? This commander doesn’t excite me. They’re obviously powerful, but I just don’t care that much. There’s nothing they do that other things don’t, you know? Bant already has topdeck in Amareth, Auras in the three commanders from the Bant Enchantress deck, and arguably Voltron in Rafiq. I guess this is Bant equipment, but…Rafiq………..

 Karazikar, Eye Tyrant

Goad is such a fun mechanic, and I’m so happy to see it every time. Not only does this basically Edric in Rakdos, it also helps you force the issue? Yeah okay, that’s a solid commander. 5 mana is awkward, especially since they can’t really swing in safely themselves that often. With that in mind, the tap ability is deceptively strong, especially combined with, say, Menace.

There are currently 372 Kardur, Doomscourge decks, which is way, WAY more than I expected. I’d imagine a lot of those are switching to Karazikar, considering it’s basically the same but better. Not that I ever really care for “just better” cards, but not everyone sees things the same way I do.

 Klauth, Unrivaled Ancient

What if we made Savage Ventmaw a legend? Okay, cool, but also we fixed it so you can’t go infinite. Wait no stop don’t put Ventmaw in the deck anyway noooooo-

Whoever decided this should have Haste deserves a raise, as the card would be nigh-unusable without it. As it is, this is going to basically let you doublespell constantly, especially if that first one has Haste. Ramp, Beaters, and X-Spells are going to abound. It’s hardly the most unique Gruul commander- Radha 2 exists, after all- but it’s still a solid one.

 Lorcan, Warlock Collector

I think I’ve played D&D with this guy before.

Lorcan is basically Grave Betrayal in the zone. Upside: Grave Betrayal is a bonkers card, and this doesn’t have the end step clause. Downside: 7 mana in the zone is huge, and the life cost will add up very quickly. Upside: Unironically the exile clause is good, since it means you get to effectively grave-hate with this guy. Downside: some good cards, like Marshland Bloodcaster, are Warlocks, and you don’t want to be exiling your own things.

Lorcan is probably a very fun commander, because Grave Betrayal is fun and cool. It’s probably not actually a very good one. I like it in the 99, though? Might pick one up for Gonti.

 Minn, Wily Illusionist

Okay I don’t care if this card is good it’s so fucking cool. Finally, Illusion Tribal! Get out your Krovikan Mists and Lords of the Unreal! Blue has no trouble drawing extra cards, even on your opponent’s turns, so she’s going to be pumping out a bunch of these tokens.

Oh, also that second ability is bonkers. It doesn’t say nonland, you can ramp with this! Very solid for a more permanent-based Blue deck. There are also just a bunch of random Illusions that this greatly benefits- Murmuring Mystic and Mordenkainen and Meloku all make tokens, and Draining Whelk and Fathom Seer have the type. Not a huge number of sacrifice outlets, but Drowned Rusalka is probably the best it has ever been here. Very interesting card.

 Nihiloor

Mx steal-yo-girl here is certainly a unique effect, but not the most interesting one. The second effect benefits Theft tribal, but not, like, well? Though I suppose ganking creatures is a strong enough effect already.

And yet, on this one it’s really awkward? Esper isn’t known for bigboy creatures, but that’s something this deck wants, apparently. It has a lot of potential, but also, there’s a huge amount of setup and a huge potential to get blown out, since blowing them up gives all opponents their guys back immediately. I like what they were trying to do here, but it’s a tad naff.

Prosper, Tome-Bound

Ah yes, the one everyone’s hyped about. And for fair reason, this card is cool as fuck. It’s a unique effect in the colour, and it’s both card advantage and ramp in one card, and it’s in Rakdos of all combinations? Also, it’s a Tiefling, so surely people are horny for him. There’s a good reason this is the most popular commander from the set, including the main set cards.

This is not the only cast-from-exile matters commander in existence- Laelia came out this year too, but she’s weaker and also not black. The extra colour adds a bunch more to this- theft effects mostly, but also more Cascade cards like Bituminous Blast, things like Dream Devourer, and fucking Valki babyyyy. Add in the black Artifact synergy and you’ve got a both flexible and powerful general.

 Sefris of the Hidden Ways

This is probably the only commander that’s going to see any play with the Venture mechanic, so get it while it’s hot. “From anywhere” is a huge line of text, and I suspect Syr Konrad is going to find his way into a lot of Sefris decks.

I’m sure there’s a combo this can do or something, but at the end of the day: Do you like the dungeon mechanic? If so, you’ll probably like this card. If not, you probably won’t. Also, since they are surely not going to make more Dungeon cards any time soon, and maybe never again, this deck is going to look very the same for a very long time.

 Stormvald, Frost Giant Jarl

Sheesh, Bant kinda lost out on this one. Storvald is so incredibly eh.

Ward 3 is, like, juuust on the edge of not really doing that much, where it makes removal cost 4-5, so it’s awkward, but you’re still going to do it if the target is threatening enough. What I’m saying is that it isn’t actually an especially good protective ability on your 7-drop, even if you are in Green.

Making creatures big is decent enough- I’m of the opinion that Gigantomancer is an underrated card, and this gives more colours for things to embiggen. Making things small is slightly less relevant, especially since your 7/7 commander and beater are likely to be crunching through most things anyway. The card is fine, but unexciting.

I like Bant well enough as a colour combination, but like, none of the commanders are my jam. Maybe one day.

 Vrondiss, Rage of Ancients

Iiinteresting. Look, let’s not beat around the bush, dice-rolling isn’t really a thing unless you’re silver bordered- yeah you could get a few of the better things in there, but you’re probably better off just playing ping effects. Pyrohemia this fucker up.

Enrage was a funky mechanic that didn’t actually get a commander, aside from just the Dino tribal ones. But now we have a proper one, and they’re a Dragon to boot. Also, this is probably the easiest its ever been to generate a bunch of Dragon tokens, so getting triggers from them is real easy, even if they are one-shot-pops. Keep in mind that doesn’t say Combat Damage, so Scourge of Valkas and Dragon Tempest are kind of a nonbo.

Gruul obviously already has Dragon Tribal options, but this is still a good thing to have around.

 Wulfgar of Icewind Dale

WoTC apparently decided to throw everyone a curveball on this one. Because from my recollection, everyone on r/custommagic assumed we’d get this effect at some point, now that technology like Panharmonicon exists, but they and I assumed it would be, you know, Boros. The colour combo that probably needs it more. Gruul, really? Come on Gavin, you’re a great dude but what the fuck is this.

Sigh. That’s not especially fair.

This combos with like half a dozen things to make mana and probably triple that to make damage. And there’s surely ways to draw cards, and blow things up, et cetera, et cetera. I’m just salty. This isn’t the note I wanted to go out on!

Fuck it, at least you can still double a Drakuseth trigger. But my Aurelia……..

#ramble #adventures in the forgotten realms #mtg #commander #edh #mtgafr

[alswrites]

Samantha Adams Octobrewfist - Dwarf Barbarian 

Samantha “Sam” Adams Octobrewfist was born Samantha Jewelsfjord. The daughter of blacksmiths, she grew up in Mithral Hall. Though she received an education, Sam would get into fights with her classmates, and sometimes the teachers. When she became an adult, Sam traveled through the mountains and routinely visited cities on the Sword Coast.

One day, Sam came to the Monastery of the Bronze Hammer and met monks comprised of various races. She helped with cleaning and beer brewing and would accompany the monks when they went into town to sell alcohol.

Although Sam was intrigued with martial arts, the monks knew Sam was not disciplined to study with them. One of the monks, an orc named Octobrewfist, taught Sam the ways of a barbarian. After the Octobrewfist passed away, Sam took his name as a way to honor him.

She left the monastery two months after Octobrewfist’s passing and became a bounty hunter, which led her to the city of Neverwinter. She will also accompany adventurers to tombs and ruins. During one of her first missions, Sam and her companions stopped Black Earth Cultists from controlling a town. She encountered the cult again when they attempted to steal Lord Nevermember’s treasure.

As Sam grew in strength, she received a visit from her orc mentor, who guided her on the Path of the Ancestral Guardian. When she rages in battle, she is assisted by past warriors from the Bronze Hammer.

Sam makes her home in Vellosk, though she will visit friends in Neverwinter. She lives in a small hut with her infant hook horror, Hops.

Adventures: Oubliette of Fort Iron, Map With No Name, Dead In Thay, Out Of The Abyss

#dungeons and dragons #d&d #gaming

[alswrites]

Samantha "Sam" Adams Octobrewfist - Path of the Ancestral Guardian Barbarian

Samantha “Sam” Adams Octobrewfist was born Samantha Jewelsfjord. 

The daughter of blacksmiths, she grew up in Mithral Hall alongside her kin. Though she received an education, Sam would get into fights with her classmates, and sometimes the teachers. Most of this stemmed from the bullying she received for her inability to grow a beard. 

When she reached adulthood, Sam traveled through the mountains and routinely visited cities on the Sword Coast. 

During one of her travels, Sam came to the Monastery of the Bronze Hammer and met monks of various races. She helped with cleaning and beer brewing and would accompany the monks when they went into town to sell alcohol. The monstestary became her new home.  

Although Sam was intrigued with martial arts, the monks knew Sam’s temper was better suited for other kinds of battle. One of the monks, an orc named Octobrewfist, taught Sam the ways of a barbarian. After he passed away, Sam took his name as a way to honor him, with her family’s blessing. 

Sam left the monastery two months after Octobrewfist’s passing and became a bounty hunter, which brought her to  Neverwinter. She accompanied a group of adventurers to a temple, stopping Black Earth Cultists in the process. She encountered the cult again when they attempted to steal Lord Nevermember’s treasure. 

As Sam grew in strength, she received a vision from her orc mentor, who guided her on the Path of the Ancestral Guardian. When Sam rages in battle, she is assisted by past warriors from the Bronze Hammer. 

Sam currently makes her home in Vellosk, though she will visit friends in Neverwinter. She lives in a small hut with her baby hook horror, Hops. 

#dungeons and dragons #d&d #gaming