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  1. - Top - End - #1
    Pixie in the Playground
    Join Date
    Apr 2018

    Default Lil bit of homebrewing

    So I've been asked to dm for the first time ever and I've been playing dnd for a few years now. I've gotten to know quite a bit about 3.5 so i said yes. Unfortunately i didnt quite realize the rabbit hole of creativity i jumped into.

    The campaign setting will be based almost entirely on a mysterious island that the characters end up shipwrecked on after a massive storm strikes on their way there. think of the island as a sort of Australia sized skull island. the outsized bottom section where the group lands will be dense jungle/rainforest filled to the brim with scary creature such as dinosaurs cause thats fun. after the characters awaken on the beach the will be told by an unknown divine presence that they are on the island because they are recognized as promising adventurers and that they are being trusted to save the world.

    so far i have 4 players. i okayed a little pathfinder so one is an ifrit sorcerer. a new player chose apostle of peace (not sure how i feel about it for a new player). another new player wants to be a rogue. and the fourth player has plenty of experience wants to be either a warlock or warpreist. i have decided to do a little homebrewing to make the characters feel a little special in this campaign by giving them unique leveling paths. kind of like a video game as they make accomplishments. for example, the rogue may have a shadow tree that as he accomplishes things via being sneaky, it levels up and gives him interesting new abilities like skyrim.

    this will definetly be an epic level campaign so any advice to help me come up with these trees or keep things stream lined would be appreciated.

  2. - Top - End - #2
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Crake's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2011

    Default Re: Lil bit of homebrewing

    These "trees" already exist, in the form of feat trees. Just give the players bonus feats when they accomplish things, and let them decide how they want to spend them.

    If you're going epic though, you may want to look into epic destinies. Maybe homebrew some of your own?
    World of Madius wiki - My personal campaign setting, including my homebrew Optional Gestalt/LA rules.
    The new Quick Vestige List

    Quote Originally Posted by Kazyan View Post
    Playing a wizard the way GitP says wizards should be played requires the equivalent time and effort investment of a university minor. Do you really want to go down this rabbit hole, or are you comfortable with just throwing a souped-up Orb of Fire at the thing?
    Quote Originally Posted by atemu1234 View Post
    Humans are rarely truly irrational, just wrong.

  3. - Top - End - #3
    Bugbear in the Playground
    Join Date
    Jul 2014

    Default Re: Lil bit of homebrewing

    Trying to DM an epic level game as your first endeavor is probably a bad choice.

  4. - Top - End - #4
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    BardGirl

    Join Date
    Feb 2017

    Default Re: Lil bit of homebrewing

    Are they starting off as Epic or will eventually become Epic as they reach level 21?

  5. - Top - End - #5
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    BardGuy

    Join Date
    Jun 2012

    Default Re: Lil bit of homebrewing

    There's a variant rule in Unearthed Arcana that suggests prerequisite actions for feats. If you want actions to dictate which feats or abilities they unlock, this might be an option you'd like to consider.

    Aside from that, I wouldn't recommend beginning your first campaign at epic levels. I've linked an article to a couple of friends who were talking about running their first game, and the article recommends that a first-time DM use a pre-made adventure module instead of creating their world from scratch. Run the game for no longer than three sessions, and then scrap it. This is for a number of reasons, but chief among those is for the DM to develop his storytelling style and for the players to learn how to interact with said style before they go into a more serious setting. Using a pre-made module takes a lot of pressure off of you to create an imaginative and unique world, and knowing that you're going to scrap the "trial game" after three sessions takes a bit of pressure off of the players to make viable long-term characters as well.

    Also, the skull island thing is a bit cliched. Personally, I'd recommend something along the lines of...

    "You awaken on an island, and in the distance you see a mountain. It towers above the jungle below, its sheer sides likely too steep to scale. Twisted rock slopes upward around one side towards the back, possibly all the way up to the wide plateau at the top. On the near side of the plateau there is a massive narrow spire, which reaches up from the cliffside to split the clouds. The more you look at it, the more it looks like the Hand of God offering an obscene gesture to you and your companions. You fear that the shipwreck has stranded you on the fabled Bird Island."

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