I’ve just posted the first play report from my ACKS ‘Sundered Empires’ campaign. This post is actually a bit out of date, as I’ve written 6 play reports so far and have them ‘in the hopper’ so to speak.
Basically I’m running a group through a homebrew world I’ve been using for campaigns for almost 20 years, with a few adjustments for ACKS of course. And I’m using B2, naturally.
More to come soon!
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/03/25/sundered_empires_play_report_1/
That sounds fantastic! Thanks for sharing the story so far.
The Auran Empire campaign began with B2 as well, and the very first encounters our PCs had were with the guard goblins and the ogres - reading your play description sounds is eerily familiar. Although it sounds like your group did MUCH better than ours did. Our party soon became known as “the Bloody Band” because of their outrageous casualties.
That’s hilarious! I don’t know what it is about the group, but in (I think) 8 sessions, they’ve lost only one hireling (to a wight). Though they did almost lose another one to a poison trap tonight. I don’t pull my punches or anything, and roll the dice out in the open but I think a mix of luck, Healing Proficiency, and overwhelming number of party mooks have kept them safe. Granted, they are more like a small military unit than an adventuring party!
Here is session 2’s report. Another trip to the Caves, but waaaaaay less successful this time!
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/sundered_empires_play_report_2/
Next Play Report is up!
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/04/04/sundered-empires-play-report-3/
Next session is up:
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/04/21/sundered-empires-session-4/
Great session report!
It's gratifying to read that the players have adopted military style formations. The players in the playtest campaign did the same, suggesting its an emergent property of the rules.
Are the players operating in a "sinkhole of evil"? Your text seems to suggest so (with the zombies rising and so on) but you didn't make it explicit if so.
Yes, the ruins of Dalagar are a Sinkhole of Evil. I’ve not really decided the exact level. I’ve been considering buying Barrowmaze to flesh it out. Also a slightly higher level version of The Lichway is hidden away there and I’m taking a page out of Grognardia for it’s significance.
Of course, they don’t know that yet. They are probably going to head for the Lichway this next session (if they can pick up the leads).
A bit more on the background of my setting.
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/views-on-the-sundering/
Newest Session Report…and the first fatality!
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/04/29/sundered-empires-session-5/
Awesome! Given the tough foes they are facing (ghouls and wights) I'm amazed they didn't lose more characters.
What is everyone's class and level at this point?
Honestly it’s been a surprise to me too! But I roll the dice in the open and let things fall as they do. The are a verge cautious group for sure. I did forget Cleaving with the wight but frankly that just makes them too scary!
I think only one of them was level 2 in this session and everyone else was first.
Classwise the group varies from session to session but in general we have:
Alfric-dwarven vaultguard
Long Tom-Bladedancer
Kanen-Tal-cleric
Arakhe-Bladedancer
Lucian-Even nightblade (player rarely can play though)
Plus a number of mainly fighter hirelings though they’ve picked a mage and warden hireling as well.
Recently though it won’t show for a few session reports they’ve been joined by a witch and a Nar (Thrassian) Gladiator…a true monster in melee!
Three cleric-types, a nightblade, and no mages or thieves. Fascinating group structure! The high number of clerics must be helping survive against all the undead madness.
One of the things I've noticed, broadly speaking, is how popular the bladedancer class. It's as if everyone has always secretly wanted to play lightly armored clerics with swords, but no one knew it.
I noticed that too! We had two in the first session and I certainly find them very fascinating. My world doesn’t have the sex restriction which probably increases their appeal.
Interestingly the players were all till first level in by this point so the clerics weren’t really keeping them alive as it were. It’ll b interesting to see how the plethora of clw works going forward.
New Playreport is up:
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/05/05/sundered-empires-session-report-6/
A bit about how mage’s guilds work in my setting:
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/05/07/the-mages-guild/
Great stuff. I like how you've integrated mages into your setting.
Thanks! Yeah I’m quite happy with how the mages turned out. The nice thing about the post apocalypse setting is ignore lets me justify something I had in the setting (the guild) and explore it’s history. Soon up, magical corruption and chaos warps.
More stuff on the campaign’s background. Some Artifacts!
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/05/13/artifacts-of-ahlyen-blades-of-the-elder-war/
Newest Session Report:
http://micahblackburn.wordpress.com/2012/05/16/sundered-empires-session-report-7/