Our Very First Episode!! YAY!!!
If you are not familiar with what a Session Zero is for tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGS), it is generally used by game masters and players to build characters (if not done earlier), start the process of crafting character backstories, and discuss various topics about the game itself, such as "table rules," and various things that are "no go's" for the players that should be avoided in game.
Myth Keeper's Opening Topics
As this episode will be serving as our Session Zero, there are a few housekeeping topics we want to run through. This is so that our amazing Champions will understand the world and mythology that they are stepping into, and so that our wonderfully sexy and incredibly generous fans will be able to fall in love with the world and characters they will be rooting for.
Let's start with some quick rules that we'll be using during this campaign. We'll be utilizing all of the standard rules set out in the Dungeons & Dragons 5E game system. But, we will also be using a number of "table" rules to help enhance the famous Rule of Cool. For those who don't already know, the Rule of Cool is any action or decision taken by the Myth Keeper or a Champion which goes against the standard rules, but is so cool and serves the story so well, that we just have to let it happen.
We will be utilizing the Critical Success / Critical Fail rule and, yes, I do have some fun things planned for both sides of the equation. This rule will apply both during combat encounters or on the various Ability Checks and Saving Throws, to include Death Saving throws.
In terms of Potions of Healing or other edibles, ingesting it yourself can be done as either an Action or a Bonus Action. But feeding a Potion or any other kind of edible such as Goodberry to someone else, will require you to use your Action.
During combat encounters we will be using the Flanking rules which allows a Champion to roll their attack at Advantage if a party member is on the other side of the opponent directly opposite them. Just keep in mind that the bad guys get to do this as well.A final rule that I will discuss right now, is that each and every session, instead of the Myth Keeper being the only one to hand out Inspiration Dice to Champions who do cool things, there will be a pool of 4 Inspiration Dice that the players can award to one another. Once those 4 Inspiration Dice have been awarded, there won't be any more given during that session. And those Inspiration Dice must be used during that session, they won't roll over to the next session.
There will be other "house" or "table" rules that the Champions can utilize, but I didn't want to bore you all with a list of rules.
In games like this, it is entirely possible for Champions to begin a romantic relationship with other party members or even some of the NPCs. In situations like this, I highly encourage the Champions to have fun with it and follow the relationship wherever it might lead. But when it comes to possible sexual situation in-game, I'll let it progress until a certain point and then there will be a fade to black.
In terms of violence, it is highly likely that there will be plenty and that it may come in several forms, and we will strive to keep them fun and only utilize them to tell our joint story. But there are a few things that will remain off the table such as acts of violence against children, scenes of rape, or the in-progress act of torture. There will be other scenarios that might occur that may be added to the list, but just know that we will do what we can to avoid turning this game from a fantasy adventure into a horror show.
I suppose y'all are probably wondering what separates Myths of Gaea apart from all of the other Dungeons & Dragons game worlds. Well, here's the short and simple of it.
In a lot of Dungeons & Dragons games, the world and mythology is based on a lot of fictional mythologies and histories that are, at best, only lightly influenced by some of our world's ancient mythologies while also taking place on a fictional planet somewhere out in the universe.
Myths of Gaea, on the other hand, takes place on an alternate reality version of our very own planet Earth, also known as Gaea by the ancient Greeks. We are also utilizing the actual mythologies that were developed by the ancient Greek and Celtic cultures. This means that during our games you might come across the likes of Zeus, Athena, Aphrodite, Dionysus, and Hades from Greek mythology, as well as Danu, Lugh, Arawn, Brigit, and the Morrigan from Celtic mythology. You will also get to encounter creatures like Pegasus, unicorns, centaurs, dragons, the bansidhe (banshee), and maybe even the cute and cuddly three-headed Cerberus. We might even get to visit mythical locations such as Mt. Olympus, Tir na nOg, Hades, and maybe even the lost city of Atlantis. Nothing is off the table when it comes to our planet's ancient mythologies, but we will always endeavor to remain true to the actual mythologies and legends that we explore in this game.
So, without further ado, let's take a trip 42,000 years into the forgotten annals of history.
Let the Game Begin
Myth Keeper:
"It took more than four billion years for the planet to form. For the land to separate itself from the sea. For atoms to form cells which eventually gave rise to plant life and living creatures. For countless numbers of creatures to be born, live, die, and become forgotten memories of the past."
"But it has only taken two-thousand years for sentient, self-aware lifeforms to emerge from the retreating ice and glaciers as the Great Freeze finally came to an end. Two-thousand years for those lifeforms to develop into communities, develop agriculture and animal husbandry, create civilizations and kingdoms, and learn to understand the differences between gods and devils, good and evil, friend and foe."
"For most, the world is still brand new. But for some, only the outside world is still young and barbaric. And for an even smaller few, the eons and epochs have been merely a single skip of a rock on a pond galaxies wide."
"As we close in on the present year, 1,975 years After the Great Freeze, or AGF for short, we find ourselves on the island continent of Haeslios, one of several continental landmasses on this great planet. Haeslios, the homeland of the ancient guardians against the possible tyranny and corruption of the gods who created them. These ancient guardian dragons, Frisayna, The Eternal One, being chief among them, were instrumental in negotiating the development of the Council of Emerald; a roundtable of rulers from the 22 kingdoms, dynasties, and empires of the continent of Haeslios."
"As we dig deeper, we uncover Cragminster, the capital city of the Bregalla Empire led by the young Empress Teffania Aphra, and the current Seat of the Council of Emeralds. Among the thousands of citizens of this great city, we find a number of individuals who are about to discover just how not alone they truly are in this unforgiving world."
"To the adventurers and Champions of this modern age, welcome to the hidden and forgotten pages of history."
"Welcome, to the . . ."
The Story Thus Far
Seven strangers, each with their own purpose and each with a healthy dose of curiosity and adventure seeking, have arrived here in Cragminster, the capital city of the Bregalla Empire.
A noisy confrontation drew six of these strangers to a horse stable near the Stone Gate of the walled city. Through a curious turn of events, this confrontation produced something a reunion between old acquaintances named Freya and Saoirse.
But as the crowd continued to grow, a flying centaur, named Greer, being thrown through the stable's wall was more than enough to interrupt the burgeoning reunion. The centaur, a dear friend once thought dead.
The thrower, a huge minotaur with six horns, named Tunrahg the Cruel. The one responsible for killing the centaur a few years earlier. And in the clutches of Tunrahg, a helpless Githzerai, friend to Arius, one of the gathered strangers.
After a brief and extremely aggressive conversation, Tunrahg charged at Greer who was pulled out of the way just in the nick of time by Freya and another stranger named Ambellina, and nearly trampling another stranger named Gray who was just curious about what was going on.
Without stopping, a chase through the streets of Cragminster ensued, but before these six strangers could take up the chase, a seventh, named Val, climbed from Greer's shadow. Each, for their own reasons, took up the chase after Tunrahg the Cruel. During this chase, each of these seven individuals did what they could to either slow, or stop Tunrahg's escape.
After several twists and turns through the streets of the city, and several interesting attempts to stop Tunrahg, Freya managed to lasso one of his horns and yank him to a stop. But before Tunrahg could slam the helpless Githzerai into his chest, activating a teleportation gem, a short note covered in blood fell from the hand of the captive. And this is where we rejoin the adventure in progress.
What happened in Session 1?
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