#half orc and dragonborn however? a little harder

[tavpreciation]

i think. i have a good backlog now. woooooooooooooooo

now to obsess over my own tavs and learn to draw them

[novantinuum]

that fantasy au concept is so interesting! it has such a cool emotional core with neat worldbuilding while still staying true to the spirit of the show, and just seems to... idk how to put it but it Works?

a aaa thank you ;w;

i have a metric butt load of ideas for it, some of them being:

-Lots of typical fantasy creatures like elves, dwarves, dragonborn, gnomes, orcs, etc etc etc alongside humans

-The visual aesthetic of the larger cities is strongly victorian steampunk. This is a world right on the edge of technological revolution, and as a result, oftentimes magic and those who perform it are kinda left behind and ignored in lieu of new inventions and ideas.

-Magic is something all denizens of this fantasy world can learn if they put their minds to it enough- but there are definitely some people who have an innate closer connection to the magical aspect of this world and have an easier time with it. This often runs through family lines- i.e. if a parent is a powerful witch, for example, their child will also have an innate inclination towards performing powerful magic.

-All the magic in this world is really personalized. Each individual will have an inclination towards a few types of magic that speak towards their personality and heart. It’s kinda... soul magic? So when I said the eldritch beings Rose was once a part of consume people’s souls, they’re basically feeding on pure magic. 

-Rose is, of course, secretly an eldritch horror disguised as an elf. She’s like... super long-lived? She’s been around for hundreds upon hundreds of years in this world, far beyond the normal lifespan of elven folk. However, she flies under the radar and is never really questioned because everyone just assumes the immense power of her magic is what’s keeping her alive. She deals very deeply in eldritch magic, and also boasts considerable healing/restorative powers. She’s still alive when Steven is born, and is loving as a mother, but... she tends to be very reclusive, and starts to keep him at arm’s length the older he becomes. (see: she’s super stressed and distracted about trying to find a way to save this realm when her ward fails in a few years.) This may be an AU, but Steven still gotta have mommy issues. 

-Pearl is her first love, the elven woman she fell for when she first came to protect this world. Rose has granted her long life, afraid to see the people she loves die. Pearl is a skilled fighter and mage, able to show others impeccably accurate visions of her memory in a cloud of smoke, conjure an illusionary version of any item she’s seen, and even summon light soldiers to cover her.

-Garnet is another early friend she made, during that initial fight against the eldritch beings trying to consume this plane of existence. Garnet has also been granted the power of long life. She is a clairvoyant seer who can see potential paths of the future, but while she uses this power she temporarily goes blind as she accesses her “third eye,” so to speak. As a result, this is a magic she must use wisely, outside immediate dangers. Haven’t decided what fantasy people she’s of.

-Amethyst is a young human girl these three came into care of much later, someone without a home to call her own. She’s scrappy, and is adept with forming illusions and shapeshifting. Her magic is very handy in conflict with distracting and disorienting others, and is also fun for cheap tricks to get a laugh. These days, it’s a rare day she’s NOT in some shapeshifted form.

-Greg is a human, and he’s absolutely a bard :D Most of his magic he actually learned from Rose, as his parents didn’t allow him to seek out magic training when he was a kid under their thumb. 

-Connie is a human who lives in one of the larger cities of this world with her parents, and she quite literally ran into Steven in the streets one day... which eventually lead to them striking up a close friendship and their stories intertwining. She’s always wanted to study magic, but as of late, with all the technological revolutions, texts on it are becoming harder and harder to find. Magic is becoming something that is more often only passed down within families... something unfairly insular. Neither her mother or father are innate magic users, so she has no one to teach her. No one, that is... until she met Steven and his family. Steven... who is the son of the literal most AMAZING sorceress who ever walked this world.

She is a quick learner, and over time picks up some mid-level telepathic abilities- which allow her to poke into people’s inner thoughts at will. She also becomes adept at scouring information- magically soaking up words in a book like a sponge, and at sensing hidden sources of magic many others cannot. She trains with Pearl as a swordfighter, as well. 

-Steven... genuinely believes he is a half-elf for most of his childhood. His mother is an elf, of course, and his father a human. He’s got pointed ears like his mom, and shares her natural magical aptitude. However, since he is actually half-eldritch instead, there’s a lot of very, very subtle, unusual physical quirks about him he doesn’t know to mask, some of which are:

His eyes shimmer with little pinpricks of light occasionally, almost as if an entire galaxy were encapsulated within them. This only happens when he’s feeling very strong emotions. It’s not something anyone would notice unless they were looking for it.

Sometimes... rarely... when you look at him close, it’s as if for a brief glimmer of a moment his form feels off. Like something’s missing, or your sight is somehow glitching. Like there’s something about him you can’t quite see.

He doesn’t feel warm to the touch, nor does he feel cold. The closest description of sensation I could make for what someone feels when making contact with him is like... TV static.

If you know him long enough, eventually you’ll grow to recognize a slight dissonant harmony within his voice. It’s very subtle, but always there.

These quirks are things Rose shares, but knowingly masks. Every single day she doesn’t tell him the truth about her origins is a day she fears these quirks will grow so strong it’ll put him in danger, but what’s even more dangerous is the thought of having to burden him with her secret, and... likely have to deal with the fallout of everyone discovering that she’s lied about what she is for all this time.

Steven’s magic is heavy on abjuration. He’s very adept at summoning barriers and shields and at casting all sorts of defensive spells. He can also bring plants to life, but this is incredibly draining for him earlier on in his magic training. He’s got a bit of healing ability, although nowhere near his mother’s, and he’s also a strong empath. As his power grows, so too does the strength and longevity of his shields and creations. However, along with that, his empathic abilities become so powerful that he often finds himself overwhelmed by the emotions of people around him. He’s largely unable to just “turn it off,” and thus prefers to stick to peaceful, secluded areas rather than trundle through highly populated areas all the time. Music is a really good diversion for him when he feels too overwhelmed by everyone’s emotions.

-At some point, Steven and Connie come to question Rose’s secrecy, and pry into what she’s doing a bit... Connie attempts to use her telepathy to peek into her surface thoughts, and... hoo boy, that’s not a super wise move on Connie’s part, because Rose can feel this girl picking around in her mind. The two of them get into big trouble, as Rose is terrified at people discovering her true identity at this point, at people learning about the truth and then pressing into her dangerous world. While she doesn’t intend to be, Rose gets kinda... scary when she’s upset. Don’t upset her.

[welcometoels]

Session Eleven - Slathiel

And so, our adventurers completed their quest for the four items of power, and returned them to the entity known as Slathiel, as promised.

Or did they?

Something about this being rubbed certain party members up the wrong way.  This, combined with the close personal connection each of them felt to one of the items, gave them pause.

Thus, a plan was hatched - each party member would speak to some of the friends they had made in town, and gather a little posse to speak to this so-called Slathiel - that way, if everything suddenly went wrong, they would have strong support in the ensuing battle.

Kadis makes the first move.  Stepping into Jackie & Clutchstraw’s, he has a friendly chat with Drow artificer Aberron - who, understandably, still has a lot of questions.  Kadis fills him in as best he can, and Aberron - after a quick consultation with his brass owl, Dominique - agrees.

Oddsock takes a more direct approach.  Storming into the Dogwood Trading Post (Presented By Himself), he invites Jackie Face to come out and play.  Jackie, though, has business in mind - specifically beer business.  The market research has gone swimmingly, with the new hoppy brew going down especially well with the hard-grafting carpenters in town - in particular with the man who took the lead on building the Potions & Artifices shop: a man they refer to fondly as Jackies’ Hammer.

After agreeing that this would make a fabulous name for the beer, Oddsock gives Jackie Face a few more details about the upcoming fight.  Face becomes uncharacteristically quiet, muttering under his breath about company values, teamwork and synergy, in a way the Dog finds strangely familiar.  Suddenly, Jackie Face disappears into a large box of miscellaneous armour parts in the corner, and promises to see the team outside shortly.

Talion heads over to the Jaunty Skinner to speak to his new buddy and nighttime companion Freginald Biceppe.  Being very well disposed towards both fighting and Talion - his two favourite things to do - Freginald needs very little encouragement to join the fray, and pledges his two meaty fists to the party’s cause.

On the other side of the pub, Julius finds Gyder at the bar with the latest in a line of foaming ales, and X at a nearby table, idly doodling couches with a distracted look on her face.  Gyder has a new haircut - trimmed almost to the skin at the sides and back, with a asymmetrical fringe.  It is the kind of cut that would look spiffy on an Elf, but serves mostly to accentuate the severity of her face.  This may have been the point.

Julius approaches both with a panicked entreaty for help.  X yelps and quickly hides her drawings, before asking what is wrong.  After a brief, stuttering rundown of the situation from the Otter, X immediately agrees to assist, and turns to Gyder.  The Half-Orc drains her ale in one swallow - game on.

Out in the town square, as everyone gathers, new companion Batch 38 Unit 12 is standing in conversation with Aberron Clutchstraw.  The Helpforged cleric is going into extensive detail regarding their inner workings, while the Drow stands agog, in rapt attention.

Suddenly, from the Trading Post door, there appears a strange contraption: Half of a suit of armour, with raccoon faces peeking out from the neck and wrist holes, mounted on a unicycle.  Jackies Left and Right clutch a katar and tea tray respectively, while Jackie Face shouts commands at Jackie Bottom’s madly pedalling feet.  Jackie Middle is in there somewhere, doubtless horribly warm at the heart of the hastily-assembled Mecha-Jackie.

Standing in the deepening dusk and watching with a sense of bemusement as this all take place, Slathiel now commands attention.  An agreement was made, a quest given and accepted, yet no items of power have yet been presented.  Folding their six golden arms and flapping their wings, Slathiel requests them once again.

It is now that the party begins to ask questions that had been festering since their first encounter - specifically about who Slathiel is, and what they need the gems and lanterns for - but Slathiel is not in an answering mood.

Talion laments his lack of a Detect Good & Evil spell, and 38/12 - helpful by design - twists the spell focus on their chest to the left, lighting up several magical runes imprinted on their body.  With a wave of their hand, the verdict is announced:

“This entity before us is... Evil.”

With that, Slathiel’s demeanour changes.  Unfolding their mighty ruby wings and taking flight up to the roof of the Jaunty Skinner, their form too begins to alter: The six golden arms merge into two thick, grey, scaly limbs, their height increases and their head widens, with a mouthful of sharp teeth and two cruel eyes glaring down at the gathered people below.

The creature hunches forward on the roof, turning its hands about in arcane gestures. “I gave you the chance to do what I asked,” it says, “but you have chosen death.”

From its scaly hands it shoots a Fireball, straight at 38/12.  The Helpforged dodges the worst of the blast, but Kadis and Aberron are less fortunate, finding themselves close to death.

Worse still, Dominique is hit full force by the flames, and is shattered to pieces - a pile of broken brass and a single bright gem lying where the owl once was.

38/12 does their best to apply healing, while X dashes over to assist and Aberron, recovering from the loss of Dominique, conjures up an Eldritch Cannon to imbue those nearby with bonus health.  The Jackies make a decent fist of pedalling in roughly the right direction, whilst buffing themselves with the Power of Commerce.

Deeper into the fight, those that can fire projectiles do so, to varying levels of success.  Kadis dashes round to the side of the inn with the intent to scale it, and Julius cast Faerie Fire on Slathiel, lighting it up like a festive tree.  Having achieved this, he transforms into a giant Wolf Spider, and begins to climb the front of the pub.

Slathiel, infuriated by this affront, descends, in order to bring the fight to the party.  Freginald takes this as his cue, and makes with the fancy footwork and fists to the face.  Talion lends his rapier to the fray, Gyder strides forth with her greataxe, and X conjurs up a spiritual weapon to assist.

Julius, abandoning the wall plan, drops his spider form and brings up a Moonbeam of radiant energy upon Slathiel, while Aberron moves in to support, Oddsock makes ready with Blasts both Eldritch and Searing, and the Jackies roll out in entirely the wrong direction.

Kadis, hearing the decent of Slathiel around the corner, attempt to jimmy open one of the Jaunty Skinner’s windows, with little success.  He does, however, attract landlady/mayor Tiatha Rowe’s attention, and asks her to fetch a lantern from the wall and bring it to him.

As all of this goes on, a terrible shout is heard from the south.  The figure that appears is familiar, but somewhat worse for where - green-scaled Dragonborn in dirt-covered robes, with a ragged sword wound at his throat.

As he charges in, he shouts after the monk who took his lantern.  The body may be Graindude, but the voice is pure Aberraton Mortesque.

He is a distant concern for now, out on the edge of town.  There are more pressing matters, such as the giant lizard who is now bearing down on Freginald, to terrible effect.

Fortunately, 38/12 is on hand to provide healing, while X lets rip with a Guiding Bolt.  Talion and Gyder cut away as Julius’ Moonbean shines down, and the Jackies nearly make it to the battle.

Back inside the Skinner, Tiatha has reached the window and hands a torch out to Kadis, along with a request that he try and keep the fight out of her pub.  This request becomes harder to fulfil, as Barty appears from the back.

Seeing the carnage on his doorstep, something changes inside the affable Gnome.  He pulls out his meat cleaver and carving knife, bellows several nautical oaths into the air, and charges forth with the rage of a sea storm.

Slathiel rears away from this new attack, and launches its fury at Freginald once again.  Undeterred, the brawny fighter hammers a fist straight into its jaw, smashing its head with furious vengeance and showering the inn’s chef with gore - which he loves.

And Lo!  What sight do we see here?  Losing control of the unicycle once again, the Jackies charge, by accident more than design, straight into the advancing corpse of the reanimated Graindude.  They set about his rotten head and shoulders with bites, jabs and tea tray slaps.

As this furious (and inadvertent) melee ensues, Kadis puts into action his torch plan.  Sharpening the unlit end, he channels his apple-lobbing skills and smashes the torch in the direction of the corpse... and misses completely.

Another fine plan foiled by the Dice Gods.

Fortunately, his friends are on hand with less convoluted fighting styles, and before long the revenant falls under fist, axe, rapier, raccoon, cutlery, magic blasts, and a final scourging strike from the Moonbeam, showering everyone with rotten Warlock.

Finally, quiet falls over Dogwood square.  Barty goes to draw a bath, and Aberron picks up the gem that used to be Dominique, promising to remake her better than ever.

The others simply stagger about, congratulating each other on a fight well fought, before becoming silent.

The whole world becomes silent.  Then, it begins to fade from view, and nothing can be seen, heard or felt around our party of four.

The round red gem and silver lantern rise from their keepers, and float in the air, joined in this negative space by the blue gem and green lantern.  As they float, they begin to dance in a slow circle above the party’s heads.

And then a voice.  A slow, calm, pleasant voice.

“Well done.  You were very good, very entertaining, wonderful to watch.  You were not fooled by that creature, and you have forged a beautiful bond as a party.

“We will meet again, I’m sure, elsewhere in this world.  But for now, I will leave you with a gift.”

The gems and lanterns begin to change form in the space above their heads.  The blue gem shrinks into a perfect blue pebble, and attached itself to Julius’ necklack, next to Pa McGinley’s charm; the green lantern becomes a small black and green egg, and sets itself next to Kadis’ cursed idol; The silver lantern flattens itself into something that could be a plectrum or a silver dragon scale, and hangs beside Talion’s jagged onyx charm; and the red gem becomes a gleaming red bottle cap, which hangs on to Oddsock’s leather tunic, at his neck.

Finally, the remains of Slathiel swim into view, and a perfect golden gem emerges from its skull.  This too undergoes a transformation, into a tiny golden gear, which lands in Kadis’ hand.

“There is one more,” says the disembodied voice.  “Make sure this gets to them.”

The world then rushes back into view, but not quite as it was.  The dusk sky is subtly different in colour - more vibrant than before - and way off to the south stands a tall spire.

It is completely unfamiliar to Oddsock, though Julius may once or twice have seen it on the far horizon, and Kadis and Talion will have heard tales of it - the tallest tower in Els.

It is Barty, though, who speaks.

“Monthend Spire,” he says, his voice filled with awe.  “Now I know where we are.”

[paigesturning]

Race in 5e: Who Is at Your Table?

I had to write an argumentative essay for one of my classes this semester. I was really into the idea I had, and gave it a shot! I think this might be one of the best pieces I’ve ever written.

Word count: 2995 TW: Discussions of race science, orientalism, and references to white supremacist rhetoric

Writing is difficult, and it’s even more difficult to write collaboratively. This applies to TTRPG as much as it applies to novels. Sure, the DM could simply railroad the players into sessions of combat, lock them into a certain path, or make their other options so terrible that they simply must go the way the story is leading, but it’s bad practice. After all, though it’s not a traditional story, written down in book form for distribution, TTRPG relies on the interplay between the DM’s idea for what should happen in the story, and the players’ ideas. Unlike writing a book, however, TTRPGs rely on another influence, rather than just the set of people who have agreed to tell a story. There’s always at least one other person in the situation, who might be completely unknown to the DM and players. I refer, of course, to the game designer. TTRPGs have far more freedom than video games, but the decisions made by the game designer have the same amount of weight in both mediums. In Skyrim, for example, this looks like a prioritization of combat mechanics over puzzle solving mechanics or relationship mechanics. Though both are implemented in the game, there’s not nearly as many options in playstyle for relationships, or variation in puzzle types, for it to be considered a romance game, or a puzzle game. In TTRPG, the influence of the designer is often far less apparent. In 5e, your character can do basically whatever they want so long as the other people at the table agree that it’s something they want to interact with. However, with some exception, you will not be able to run a game set, for example, in real-world Chicago or on a transport vessel in space. Players tend to be locked into a fantasy setting. Like Skyrim, 5e is a system that prioritizes combat in a magical, pseudo-European medieval setting. It’s a mix of mechanics, and built-in worldbuilding that can allow us to come to this conclusion - each spell, if it doesn’t explicitly add or remove hit points from a target, changes the rules for when and how combat can happen, and each class is described in their flavor text in high fantasy terms, often opening with the examples of ways each one can be useful in combat. True as all this may be, it is, at its core a neutral thing, and I find myself blessed to occasionally be at the tables of others as a game designer and homebrewer. All games must make assumptions about the kind of game players want, and must do their best to fulfil those expectations, the same way a speaker might attempt to predict the thoughts, previous knowledge, and counter-arguments of their audience. However, in 5e, there lies a certain set of assumptions that I personally find troubling, and in fact in need of some serious reworking. The way that race functions in 5e represents an old-fashioned way of viewing the world. In the most direct terms, yeah, it’s kinda racist. Therefore, the assumptions 5e makes in their race system, represented in mechanics that both promote archaic ways of thinking and force the narrative in directions the players and DM may be uncomfortable with, means that it is time to either dramatically change the way race works, or pass over the system entirely.

When a DM is preparing to start a new game of 5e, one very good place to start is the Dungeon Master’s Guide, or DMG. In it, theoretically, are the tools for DMs and players alike to better understand exactly what the game they are playing looks like. In many ways, it’s a behind the scenes look at what goes into planning a session. For example, each “encounter”, or a portion of the game in which the players fight enemies or find ways around them, there’s a bit of calculation which can tell you what enemies will be appropriate for your party size and level. However, in a new game, before even doing that, you should go to the beginning of chapter 1, on page 9. It lists the assumptions the rules make about your setting, which is a helpful tool for anyone attempting to rectify the base rules with a far-out, high-concept world. They are as follows: “Gods Oversee the World”, “Much of the World is Untamed”, “The World is Ancient”, “Conflict Shapes the World’s History”, and “The World is Magical”. On paper, that’s all you need to know (though it might be worth noting that on page 43 the book contradicts this and gets more specific about what sort of multiverse is required to support the rules). These are five basic rules anyone can follow, rules that most people working to create a fantasy setting would have followed anyway, especially in such a combat-focused system. However, in the Player’s Handbook, (abbreviated as PHB) there are additional assumptions about the setting you’ll be playing in, most notably in the section on the different races that appear in 5e. For starters, each race has a small box that explains how the other races in the game are likely to view them. Taken from page 37, when the book is discussing how Gnomes (a small race of humanoids with large heads and thin limbs) think about their place among other races, “It's rare for a gnome to be hostile or malicious unless he or she has suffered a grievous injury. Gnomes know that most races don't share their sense of humor, but they enjoy anyone's company just as they enjoy everything else they set out to do.” They give no explanation for why gnomes tend to be “Good”, in terms of 5e’s morality system. Perhaps this isn’t an oversight, and instead they are allowing you to fill in the blanks yourself? Do the gnomes perhaps have free healthcare, while some others do not? 

I am of course being facetious. I am certain the creators didn’t think quite so far ahead, and instead just wanted to paint a picture of the world they envisioned. It’s not some great sin of design, of course, to do this, and I will admit I am guilty of it in my own design. However, this is just one of the smaller examples of 5e making decisions for the DM and the players. Unlike some other portions of the rules, that brief note can be ignored with little to no need for creating a replacement. You could just as easily scribble the note out of the book, and leave a black sharpie stain where it once sat. Unfortunately, there are other decisions made about race that are much harder to ignore without a level of homebrewed (or player-created) mechanics. For example, a little later, on page 43, the book tells you about the specific mechanical benefits that half-orcs get. Two in particular stand out to me as disturbing. The first, Menacing, means that “You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill”. The other is Savage Attacks, which reads “When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon's damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit”. There is no way in which these cannot be seen as narrative decisions on the part of the creators. Exactly what is it about an orc’s presence that would mean it is more intimidating than any other person? One could surmise that, perhaps they are much larger than most people, or that their rarity means that people are not used to their size and tusks. Perhaps I only speak for myself, but I do not often find myself intimidated by people who look different from what I am used to. The explanation the rules provide is that full-blooded-orcs are barbaric raiders, who wantonly destroy and kill, and are considered evil. Why is it, however, that there’s an entire group of people, people with thoughts, feelings, social structures, who can produce viable offspring with members of other groups of people, that the book deems evil? I submit that, in the minds of the creators, there is some sort of orientalist mystique behind the savage barbarian, one that is physically superior, and yet is still no more than fodder to be torn through by the heroes of the story. This isn’t even the worst example of racism built into the game, but to explain this next portion, I will need to explain a concept. 

At its base level, phrenology is, as per the Encyclopedia Britannica, “the study of the conformation of the skull as indicative of mental faculties and traits of character, especially according to the hypotheses of Franz Joseph Gall”. Gall, born in 1758, measured the heads of his colleagues, convicts, and people in asylums, in order to determine traits such as intellect and potentiality for criminal behavior. As with many things invented in late 18th century Europe, this practice was used to fuel European imperialism. The article Of ‘Native Skulls’ and ‘Noble Caucasions’: Phrenology in Colonial South Africa, by Andrew Bank, explains very quickly that “The leading proponents of the new discipline almost uniformly adapted their science of the brain to issues of racial differentiation”. I assume that from here it isn’t difficult to see the direction I am heading with this. Elves, Tieflings, Humans, and Gnomes are given bonuses to Intelligence. Dwarves, Humans, and Elves are given bonuses to Wisdom. Elves, Half-Elves, Humans, Tieflings, Dragonborn, and Halflings are given bonuses to Charisma. Of the races present in the PHB, Half-Orcs are the only ones that don’t get any bonuses to the so-called “Mental Stats”. Physical stats, on the other hand, include Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution, and Half-Orcs get bonuses to Strength and Constitution. In mechanical terms, this leads to a fairly good balance. The other classes serve as either well-rounded jacks-of-all-trades, or are specialized for certain casters, or help fit an archetype of dexterous fighter/caster combinations, while the Half-Orcs are specialized for non-caster tanks, such as the Barbarian or the Fighter. This makes narrative sense as well; if Half-Orcs are raised by the orcish side of their family, they are far more likely to be brutal in martial combat, trained to fight and kill anyone who might have supplies or treasure for them. 

However much this might “make sense”, I have to ask why this was an addition to the game. I see three possible answers, and by my approximation, they are likely to all be true. The first is that the creators wanted more narrative control than they let on. The second is that they needed those stats to be stand-in numbers to represent various types of spellcaster and are simply ignorant to their implications. The third is that the creators simply find race science unobjectionable. Earlier, I suggested that the game designer joins the players and the DM at the table, through their work. At my table, ignorance and suggestions that some races are simply more intellectually powerful than others is not tolerated, and I should only hope you feel the same way. 

At this point, you’re thinking so loud that I can practically hear it, even in the past. “Ignorance isn’t tolerated? What if the ignorant person in question is willing to change, and well-meaning?”, but if this is what you were thinking, I say with the deepest respect that you’re being just a touch too literal. Of course, if I’ve sat down and agreed to play with someone I know, I am willing to go over why what they said made me uncomfortable. TTRPG is a dialogue, one where the players and the DM must negotiate, not battle, for the story they want to tell, and where everyone must speak up when something happens that makes them upset. The difference between a literal player’s presence and the game designer’s figurative presence is that there is no arguing with a book. In some ways, it’s easier to change a book’s mind. Simply write your own rules, and move on, there’s no need to debate an actual person. You may also be thinking that 5e simply utilizes the mechanics of previous editions. While that is technically true, what is the point of creating a new edition if you can’t change things moving forward? And what’s more, each of my criticisms can be moved onto 1e. The biggest criticism I expect against my argument however, isn’t any of this. Obviously, only one of the races in 5e is human. Nothing in 5e indicates that one race of human is significantly better or worse than any other race of human, and so surely it can’t be racism. Again, you may be thinking a little too literally. In the world supposed by 5e, each race is seen as a person, and (depending on the setting and narrative your group constructs) has the same rights to freedom and life, and yet some are just more mentally skilled than others as soon as they are born. How often in reality do the dregs of society say something along the lines of “it isn’t that I think [members of a certain race] aren’t people or should be enslaved, it’s just that I think that white people are inherently smarter” to make an effort of sounding more reasonable? It isn’t that I think the races in 5e are 1:1 parallels to real-world racist stereotypes. Instead, it’s a matter of philosophy, race-based pseudoscience, and ideology that makes 5e (and previous editions) racist, without major rules upheavals. 

However, in some cases, it would require such an overhaul of a system that it isn’t worth it. Most people would look at the rules for 5e’s races and pale at the thought of changing it completely. Do you get rid of stats completely? Do you select whatever stats you want by yourself? Perhaps you instead get certain bonuses when you select your class, rather than your race? These are all possibilities, and I have played games that utilized some of these options. Aside from the strength of reducing the amount of racism in 5e, it also increases the amount of choice a player has when creating their character. It isn’t unheard of to have a dwarf that uses Dexterity and Charisma as it’s primary abilities, but it is poorly optimized in comparison to the options of Half-Elf or Tiefling, and though it takes a bit more work than just handing a player the PHB, I believe it is worth it in the end. There’s no shame in admitting defeat, though. It’s not every day that I feel like fixing another person’s game, and I design games. And I do it for fun. It is the talent I am blessed with, and my lifelong burden. I understand not wanting to put in the effort. However, my suggestion isn’t that you walk away from TTRPG forever, scorned by the problems in 5e, never to roll a die again. Instead, it might be worth your time looking into other systems of play. Whenever I recommend a system to someone who has only played 5e and is looking for a similar aesthetic, I always turn them toward my personal favorite, Dungeon World (abbreviated as DW). DW is, in many ways, the game that I thought I was playing when I first started playing 5e. Looking through the PHB, it seems very comprehensive to incoming players. But to go back to the example of Skyrim, there’s a suggestion when you start it for the first time that you are about to enter a world of endless possibility, only to be shoehorned into a game that directly prioritizes combat. Dungeon World, while it has far less comprehensive rules for combat, one of its biggest strengths is that it has far fewer rules in general. That isn’t to say that it’s harder to follow. Instead of having intense, complicated rules for combat, every moment in the game is subject to “moves” in which, when you say that your character is doing something, the GM - Game Master, in contrast to the Dungeon Master of 5e - can tell you that the outcome is uncertain, and that it might be difficult. When this happens, you roll two six-sided dice, and the game provides very comprehensive rules to help you resolve it. When you choose a race, you get one extra move and nothing else - an option easily alterable, if one finds it uncomfortable. Blades in the Dark, a similar fantasy system, resolves roles in a similar manner, once again, with a much lesser emphasis on violence, and a much stronger emphasis on magic heists. It’s races have no mechanical benefit, and can be completely ignored if so desired. 

Creating a system is difficult, I know. Playtesting aside, it’s a combination of finding something special that you want to create, deciding what the players will be looking for, and editing draft after draft. It’s also difficult, both logistically and emotionally, to kick someone out of a campaign. It’s my belief though that a line should be drawn when someone in the game insists on adding not only social, but biological inferiority to characters of certain races. It’s a privilege to have your work at someone else’s table, and it’s a privilege that can be revoked. Once again, playing 5e isn’t some ethical failing, or mortal offence. However, it is worth evaluating what changes can be made to 5e’s race system, and if it’s worth it to you to not switch to another system. If you have found any of this compelling, consider your other options. In addition to what I’ve already mentioned, there are designers out there who can bring you into space, cities filled with dark magic and/or under control by cosmic monsters, or honey conventions where there are a few bears trying to steal stuff. Next time you get the urge to roleplay, just consider what I’ve said here, and think about who you’re inviting to your table.

Bibliography

LaTorra, Sage, and Adam Koebel. Dungeon World. 1st ed., The Burning Wheel, 2012.

Harper, John. Blades in the Dark. Evil Hat Productions LLC., 2017.

Works Cited

Mearls, Mike, and Jeremy Crawford. Player's Handbook. 5th ed., Wizards of the Coast LLC, 2014.

Mearls, Mike, and Jeremy Crawford. Dungeon Master's Guide. 5th ed., Wizards of the Coast LLC, 2014.

“Phrenology.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/topic/phrenology.

Bank, Andrew. “Of 'Native Skulls' and 'Noble Caucasians': Phrenology in Colonial South Africa.” Journal of Southern African Studies, vol. 22, no. 3, 1996, pp. 387–403. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2637310. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.

[cryptidcalling]

I’m updating some stuff about Acre!! I’ll make a more in depth post eventually, but here’s a simple list. 

-He’s no longer just elf! Instead he’s half elf (on his mother’s side) and half Fae (on his father’s side).

-His name is  Acre bc It’s supposed to kinda represent how he’s one with the land. 

-I’m giving him more scars! Originally he only had one, but with the life he’s lived it would make sense he’d have way more. 

-He can, in fact, swim! However, due to trauma, he’s terrified of getting into water. I’m not sure if you remember the story I wrote forever ago where Acre fell into the river, but it’s basically that repeated many times over until he learned to swim. His father didn’t teach him so much as force him to learn (he would save him before he drowned, but Acre came close more than once).

- The reason he struggles so much to access his magic is because of him being a half species. His elf magic and his Fae magic are conflicting sources, so it’s harder to summon it. He could with training and practice, but he’s had nobody to teach him. 

-Speaking of teachers, I should mention Acre’s friends! Or, more accurately, future friends. I’m still working through many concepts for Acre’s story, but since he was originally a DND character I’ve always liked the idea of him having a party. He functions mostly as the mysterious loner until he finally learns to bond with them. At first it’s because they’re mostly strangers he doesn’t trust, but once he gets to the point where he trusts them his anxiety kicks in. He feels scared that he’s been too distant from the party for too long, so nobody actually wants to be friends with him anymore. He starts to do more work to prove how useful he is, because the anxiety turns into a fear that they’ll kick him out if he stops being useful. He tries his best to bond with them, but his upbringing and anxiety leave him pretty socially inept. 

 This party consists of: 1: A half-orc named Rhogan! He’s around Acre’s age. He dislikes Acre a lot at first because he and Acre struggle most to communicate. When Acre does things to try and befriend Rhogan, he typically will mistake them for threats or passive aggression because Acre doesn’t talk to him or explain himself directly. For example; Acre will leave dead grouse or rabbits near his seat around the campfire (Acre has one too, but he never sits because he doesn’t think he’s wanted). Acre does this to be friendly. He’s hunting for Rhogan. Food is important to surviving and staying healthy, and it’s hard work to get. However, while Acre sees this as ‘leaving food for Rhogan’, Rhogan sees it as ‘the little creep is leaving dead animals around me.’ Eventually, they do come to understand each other.

2: A Firbolg named Fen! He’s a gentle giant and the party’s healer, and quickly takes up a fatherfigure role for the entire party. Acre, who has zero positive older role models, doesn’t trust him at first. But it doesn’t take him long to get really attached to Fen. He’s the first one Acre trusts enough to open up to, and thus is the first party member to see Acre as the vulnerable young man he is instead of some mysterious highly skilled archer. 

3: Aurora is a dragonborn scholar and sorcerer! I haven’t decided her exact area of expertise, but she’s bubbly and highly intelligent. Acre admittedly intimidates her a lot, but she ends up helping to fill him in on a lot of societal stuff. She’s the party’s link to high society, having served as a sorceress under royalty, and has a lot of kindness and professionalism. She’s not really used to adventuring, but she’s trying her best and learning a lot.  

4: A changeling named Dria, Dee for short, who is Rhogan’s bestie and also a badass B! She’s essentially Rhogan’s Dakota, teasing him and knowing how to read him when others can’t. She’s mostly indifferent towards Acre at first. She thinks he has no interest in being close with the group, so she doesn’t spare him an extra thought. However, she definitely takes up an older sister role in his (and Rhogan’s) life. She pities him, especially when he trusts her enough to tell her about Juniper. She honestly kinda hates Juniper, and wants to fill the sisterly role Acre clearly desperately relies on while actually fulfilling his emotional needs. She doesn’t take any shit, but also cares a lot for the entire party. Fern is the soft and gentle dad friend and she’s the “touch my kids get your ass beat” mom friend.  

5: Dakota eventually!! He, like El, joins later. However he joins up bc Acre is on his hands and knees B E G G I N G him to come with pretty please with a cherry on top. 

6?: Eledwin possibly!! El is canon to the story universe, but I haven’t decided if he joins the party or if he’s just a minor character. 

-Basically, Acre goes from being “that creepy weirdo” to “Our little weirdo.” He’s the youngest person in the party in terms of mental age and development. Fae and elves live way longer than other species, but in terms of common age he’s still the youngest. Barely an adult, since 21 is the common age of adulthood in this world. They all grow to care for him a lot, just like they care about everyone in the party.   

-I’m really debating between this found family Acre has and Acre’s grandparents! The grandparents aren’t nearly as developed, but I still like the idea of Acre finding biological family that loves him. I’m thinking maybe I’ll have the whole party get homes in the village where the grandparents live so then I don’t need to pick. However, I know that it’s rather redundant to have both when they fill the same role. I’m also thinking that maybe I’ll just have them be two separate universes. One has the whole party, one just has Dakota and adds the grandparents. This is also the one I’d use for RPs and stuff. Less character dynamics to manage, and Acre has more growth to do with the RP partner’s characters that he hasn’t done with the party.

[radramblog]

A recap of a D&D One-shot: The B-Team

This is a little bit late, frankly, since the one-shot in question took place quite some time ago. But it’s pseudo-sequel is upcoming, and I’ve been building a character for that, so.

The B-Team was a very cool and good one-shot that turned into a two-shot because things kinda just kept going on for a bit, and that’s okay because we were having fun. It was the first D&D (or tabletop in general, excluding TCGs) I’d played in quite a while, since nobody’s campaigns had spare space and it’s not like I feel experienced enough to DM my own one.

It was also heavily inspired (I believe) by a movie I haven’t seen, so until it was literally spelled out for me I had no idea about that. Oops. Anyway.

I’m not sure this is going to be the most interesting content, but this is also going to nudge my memory about the setting and such, which is relevant for one shot two, so. At the very least, my mates who read this and weren’t there can get a rundown, even if it’s a little late.

We did so much crime.

The B-Team opens with our titular party returning to Huckston (a city I had assumed was spelled differently) from a job for local mob boss Seamus Greenleaf, a halfling sorcerer whose accent was as silly as his name implied. Dude was basically an extremely dangerous leprechaun. Said job involved the retrieval of a ring whose name I forgot but basically just gives regenerative immortality.

Our party was comprised of 4 members, each with a very particular set of skills that probably would have worked a little better if we’d communicated better beforehand. We had Prissy, a Half-Elf Courtesan and Wizard who was theoretically the party face but more importantly a nigh-untouchable Bladesinger, Vael, a Human Circle of the Shepherd druid who is likely single-handedly responsible for getting that subclass softbanned from our tables for just spamming rats and bears everywhere and making keeping track of things a pain, and Stitches, a Half-Orc Rogue who had to take up the tank/melee role even though their class was not suited to it, because the rest of the party was casters.

And then there was my character, Parri. A Kobold Artificer/Alchemist, who I’d essentially flavoured as someone who digs through dumpsters to find usable components to do the grossest possible magi/science possible. I’d deliberately taken spells that were less useful than they were flavourful- this snappy mans is very likely to have Grease handy since he’s probably rooted around in a nasty restaurant bin, he’ll have Heat Metal (a spell I didn’t realise was as good as it is) since that would be a useful tool for making things to hold dangerous ingredients, and y’all know he’s taking Acid Arrow. Actually, you get that one for free as an Alchemist anyway, so.

Parri was…interesting to play, to say the least. I’m sure people complain a lot about this sort of thing, but his accuracy with spells was frustrating at best. Alchemical Savant, on the other hand, was an excellent little boon that made sure said spells were dealing some sexy damage. I probably goofed up when I took Cantrips- Poison Spray was solid enough, but Mending was something I’m pretty sure I never used- while it makes sense for someone going through garbage to want to fix up the things they find, we did a lot more breaking than we did fixing. Parri was also a major Critical magnet, including on the opening turn of the final battle, so he spent a lot of time healing himself with various abilities.

Artificer is also a class I will probably wait a while before going back to, because it has a lot of little tinkering going on, appropriately enough. By level 9, where we ended the campaign, he had a sizable pile of spells with 3 levels, the Magical Tinkering ability to basically have a bunch of little things that do semi-useful stuff, 6 infusions- basically self-made magic items, with a huge list to pick from and 3 active at a time, the ability to make tools at will, two randomised Experimental Elixirs every long rest, that also give temporary HP, the ability to cure statuses and diseases pretty much at will, and the extremely useful Flash of Genius feature for yourself and allies. Added onto the Kobold stuff of Grovel, Cower and Beg (an ability that, despite being nutso bonkers, I literally Never Used), there was a lot to keep track of, and I’m much more keen to go back to something a little simpler.

These 4…adventurers? Would show up to Greenleaf and hand over the ring, only to discover that it was not the ring they had assumed it was, or at least, it didn’t seem to work. Assuming we, his loyal hench-group, were trying to screw him, he sicced his boys on us, forcing us to flee to safe haven, and attempt to make a next move.

Each of our characters had a person or group we knew in the city who could help (I deadass don’t remember Vael’s one, though), and as a team now being hunted by the largest gang around, we were hunting for options. Stitches had family working in the docks, who fortunately knew a guy who could promise us safe passage the hell out of dodge- and considering the circumstances, that seemed like the best idea if we wanted to keep our lives. His fee, however, was well beyond our price point, so our goal was, in fact, to get rich quick. For our lives.

And that’s just what we did, using the only thing we knew best: Crimes. Using Prissy’s contact- a hole-in-the-wall bar she used to work at (or at least, she knows the owner), we had ourselves a relatively safe base to work from for a few days, from which we could sneak off to the city’s underbelly- literal in this case, since it was in the sewerage- and find jobs of Questionable Repute to do. Lucrative, but dangerous. We took a couple contracts, bought some shit from Parri’s contact (Black Market Magic Items!), and got to work.

It is worth noting that, of course, our travel was not particularly free, as the price Greenleaf put on our heads was astronomical. So just about everywhere we went, we were met with someone or another trying to kill us for a reward. This was a great excuse to have Lots of Fights, but it meant that our resources were somewhat limited. Everything from goblins to fully trained Dragonborn warriors and tamed Drakes was on our ass, and fortunately, we survived each encounter.

The first job we took was pretty much the reason the game was extended to a second session- the assassination of a major noble pretty much turned into a murderous heist movie scene. With the noble in question being a sleazeball, it’s not like we really minded (Parri was evil-aligned anyway). It ended up a surprisingly involved plan, with Vael shapeshifting into a rat and Stitches doing Rogue Shit in the background to keep things moving, Prissy doing what courtesans do best and stab people to death in bed, and Parri disguising as a waiter, doing not a great job of it, but eventually enabling the escape by causing a distraction in the form of setting loose the noble’s pet Lion (via melting the chains, because subtlety is dead) and fleeing in the ensuing chaos. It was kind of a blast to put together, though particularly nerve-wracking- especially because if anything went wrong, or the set-lion-loose plan failed, Parri was in the middle of a room with many, many guards.

But it did go right, and the Lion even got to survive, after shrugging off a spell or two from the wizards guarding the place, so we got paid, called it a night, and called it a day in game because it was like 6 or something at this point I think.

After a week (or two?), we reconvened for the second part of what was now the B-Team two-shot. Our objective of Get Gold was not fully completed, but we’d gotten the majority of our funding sorted, so our next job would be something a bit easier and safer. As it turns out, that job would be Bullying Shopkeepers for Protection Money, something that made me vaguely uncomfortable IRL but hey, it’s only game.

Over the course of this job, we threatened a local blacksmith, a potion-seller (Parri made off with a brew or two), and a small local Goblin gang named the Green Mongrels. While this particular altercation turned violent, Prissy had just picked up Fireball, so you can guess how that one went. Two of the gang’s three leaders ended up so much dust on the ground, let alone the grunts, and the final one surrendered, which was appreciated. Especially since it meant we had a couple extra spell slots for the fight on the way back, being the one with the aforementioned tamed drakes.

Cash in hand, it was now time to get ourselves smuggled out of dodge, levelling up in the process. We actually levelled a few times over the course of the campaign, an accelerated pace mostly because it’s a short thing so it doesn’t really matter, and because levelling is both fun and lets the GM throw harder things at us.

Our attempt at escape was somewhat thwarted, as upon reaching the shore and farewelling our now quite rich trafficker, we were ambushed by our final foes. Because of course, if there was a B-Team, there would of course be an A-Team. This was a pretty interesting idea for a fight, a squad of four deliberately mirroring our own- A Goblin Artificer on the Artillerist stream, a Rogue preferring bows to swords and spending most of their time peppering us with arrows while stuck to the side of a cliff, a Druid that turned themselves into a monster rather than summoning like ours did, and a Wizard who’s class I don’t really know but boy did he like Counterspells.

This was a long, and protracted, and kind of brutal fight that took a lot out of the group, and I’m pretty sure more than one person (and by that I mean more than Parri, because he got shot right in the face for a crit immediately) was downed over the course of it. But eventually, the Rogue was knocked off the cliff enough times, the Wizard was downed and drowned, the Druid ran out of things to transform into, and the Artificer got taken apart with extreme prejudice.

But it didn’t seem to be over. As we were scrounging the bodies, someone attacked Stitches, and it was unclear whom or from where. We assumed it was the Wizard having somehow survived, as he’d been walking on water and thus his body ended up in the depths- couldn’t find it. Parri casts detect magic, and one very dead Wizard was found.

And a very suspicious Necromantic signature coming from Vael.

Turns out he’d had the reviving ring the whole time, and it was driving him completely mad. A final fight ensued, arguably our biggest damage dealer, currently unable to die, against the remainder of the party. And it was similarly brutal.

The tech ended up being for our not particularly strong characters to have to get close enough to pry the ring off his fingers so that they could actually become cold and dead. This was somewhat complicated by Parri getting very quickly downed by bats and bears, and Stitches being actually killed by such. After some healing and teleportation thanks to Prissy, however, we were just able to not only get the ring and finally put Vael down, but Parri, having recently learned Revifify and acquiring a jewel to burn on it, managed to un-kill Stitches.

Betrayal is a great way to make the closing moments of an adventure particularly memorable, I think.

Put mostly together, the ring and bodies disposed of (no-one holding on to this fucker anymore, ideally), 3/4ths of the B-Team wandered off into the sunrise, to restart their lives anew somewhere else. I like to imagine Parri opened a potion shop somewhere, but who knows if any town would actually suffer a Kobold long enough for him to do so.

And that was the campaign. It was a lot of fun, though it had been so long since a previous tabletop adventure that I don’t really have a lot to compare it to. The table seemed to get along well enough (I mean we were all friends beforehand, so der), aside from some somewhat awkward pauses.

And considering the sequel to this campaign is coming, with different characters and the same people (now significantly less stressed out since the Uni break is here), I’m extremely excited to get back into it. I have a new extremely small man to play as, and I couldn’t be happier to bring him to the table. Just…not as many nonsense abilities this time.

[nancronomicon-blog]

Information - Sokoya

I was given a prompt by my Pathfinder DM to write about one of my characters doing surveillance work and gathering information in order to advance her goals. She’s got a while to go before she can accept the role that fate wrote for her, but everyone has to start somewhere.

-------

Sitting on a flat building's rooftop, Sokoya carefully counted out the amount of coin in the small bag she kept on hand. It wasn't everything she had of course, and she doubted that Wrathcatcher would stab her if it was incorrect at first. So long as the total wound up correct, the elf was likely to be satisfied. Still, there was something to be said for not making missteps in her investigation. It had taken months of denial and desperation for Sokoya and Rav to come to the conclusion that there was little hope of the amalgam that they currently are to make it back just yet. Once they were stronger, that might change, but they were stuck for now. So, the two had quickly decided that if this was their life now, they would accept it and react accordingly. If the world required them to save it, they had best get started. The first step would be to find out any notable events in the area, and to find out all they could about the history of the world that didn't match what Sokoya was told.

It was slow going at first. After all, Mourning Ridge aside, not a lot of the common folk were inherently willing to trust a drow on the surface. Sokoya didn't blame them, but it did result in a few tricky situations. The first time she had ventured into a major city, she had been nearly arrested on the spot. The local guard had immediately tried to knock her out, and it was only because of Rav warning her in her head that Sokoya had managed to dodge the strike. Her mind--or rather, their shared minds--kicked into overdrive with the sudden stress, and for once she felt connected to her former time based abilities once again, as things seemed to slow to a crawl. The two of them agreed in their hyper-conscious state to flee rather than making it worse by fighting back, so they quickly darted down a few alleyways, getting lost soon enough.

A small smile formed on Sokoya's features as she recalled the memory. It had started off poorly, but the next moment had introduced her to an ally that she would come to count on quite a bit in the coming weeks. Sokoya had nearly collapsed against a wall, struggling to maintain her body's synthesized state for a moment with herself so winded from running through the city. She could still hear the guard out there, looking for the drow that had dared to intrude into the city. Her keen ears had already heard rumors spreading, and she was quickly beginning to give up hope of escaping that day. The quiet sound of footsteps approached, and she gritted her teeth, ears low as she forced herself to stand back up as she reached for her knife.

The footsteps stopped a few steps away and Sokoya acted quickly. She couldn't keep running, and getting caught now was unacceptable. Tuning Rav out for a moment so she could focus, Sokoya had pivoted on one foot, practiced movements carrying her dagger from her waist into a thrusting motion at the person behind her. Her target had been surprised at first, but reacted nearly as fast, and Sokoya's vision blurred for a moment before she found her face shoved roughly against the wall of the alley, held firmly by a hand and the cold feeling of her own dagger's blade pressed against her neck. She hadn't even fully seen the person's movements, and in her dazed state she could barely think of more than the fact that she should have been faster than most guards.

"Not too shabby, really, but kind of predictable," came the quiet voice behind her. "Now I'm going to let go, and let's see if you can avoid trying that again, yeah? I'm not here to arrest you." The person pulled away from her, and Sokoya carefully turned around, staring down the other. At first she paused, thinking the other was another drow, before she caught on soon enough. There were traces of drow heritage to be sure--a red tint to the eyes, skin a bit more grey than most elves, hair a bit lighter--but the person in front of her was clearly a surface elf. That didn't help her nerves at all, really. Especially not now that she was disarmed.

"Not from around here, are you?" The elf asked with a small smile, half mocking and half genuine. The smile soon faded however, as a small commotion outside signalled the guard was getting closer to searching this area. The elf gave a small jerk of their head towards further in the alley before quickly heading off in that direction, and Sokoya saw little reason to not follow. The alternative was waiting for the guard to catch her, after all. The elf soon led her to a concealed hatch in the alley wall, completely hidden if you weren't looking for it. They slipped inside and Sokoya followed after just a brief hesitation, the elf closing the hatch after the two of them. The inside was a dark passage, lined with stone and with very little light.

"I think you might've set the record for the quickest someone set off the guard, friend. You definitely made our job harder today, too. The guard's looking everywhere for you. From what we heard though, you didn't do much, huh? Bunch of racist pricks, really. Name's Wrathcatcher, by the way," the elf said, idly looking over Sokoya's dagger before back up at the drow. In the dim light of the passage, the elf's eyes were glowing, and Sokoya knew hers were as well. "...Sokoya, Sokoya Yulijalil Ra'riithel," she replied after a short time, and awkwardly extended her hand. Wrathcatcher had saved her, and especially after she attacked them, being polite seemed the least she could do. The elf didn't shake her hand, just passing her the dagger back after a few short moments. Sokoya paused, before putting it away, a silence falling over the two as Wrathcatcher looked her over.

"So, Soko, tell me. What's a drow doing on the surface, anyway? I mean I get enough shit for being partial drow, so I can only imagine it's worse for you. The way I see it, though, you're causing us a bit of trouble either way, since you're stirring up the guard and now you know about this passage here. So I'm thinking.....you join us, or at least become a client of ours, and maybe we don't tell the guard where you are, and help you out. What do you say? Street rats like us gotta stick together, hm?" Wrathcatcher said as Sokoya stared for a few moments, the drow and dragonborn in her head quickly debating on if this was a good idea. Eventually, she nodded.

She had told Wrathcatcher the gist of her situation--or at least, the parts about information gathering--and the two had worked out a partnership from there. Wrathcatcher and their friends, who Sokoya very quickly learned made up a successful thieves guild, would keep ears out and find out information for her, as long as Sokoya could keep coin heading their way. They also set Sokoya up with some documents about nearby cities and the like and the sort of people to avoid both because of her race or because they were corrupt enough to warrant a warning. It wasn't a relationship of boss and employees of course, so much as mutual respect because of the need to survive. It was almost like being back home with Misery and her grandmother, really. A bunch of people on the more unfortunate side of things banding together to make it through the world.

"Hey Soko, something on your mind? You look pretty pleased," came a voice from behind her, making Sokoya jump in surprise at first as she looked behind her. It seemed every time they met, Wrathcatcher was getting better at sneaking up on her, and she still didn't have a chance at catching their reflexes without her time powers, either. They still wore a small grin, though Sokoya had come to learn that behind that mask was a sharp mind analyzing every interaction, always on the lookout for danger. It was how her friend had come to survive so long, after all. 

"Just remembering a fool with a knife," Sokoya replied calmly, turning to face Wrathcatcher fully. She held the bag of coins up, shaking it a bit to let them clink against each other. "The usual amount. Anything new to report? How're your friends doing?" She asked, before tossing the bag over. Wrathcatcher snatched the bag out of mid-air and tossed it back and forth between their hands as they weighed it and thought things over. After a short time, they pocketed it and shrugged. 

"Things have been a bit quiet lately, Joleyne's been crying that her newspaper's going to die out if things keep up like this," Wrathcatcher said. Sokoya opened her mouth to protest the lack of news, but the elf cut her off. "Hey now, have I ever disappointed you? Don't answer that. Penwriggle's been teasing that he's got another book that's being published, but more to the point he's been getting a bit more cozy with the captain of the guard. It'll be nice to have one of our people on the inside, and for now I can tell you the guard's being criticized for how it's handling the races around. There's some town a few days out that I guess has a bunch of adventurers joining it and most are tieflings, apparently. It's making things more awkward for the guard, so it might just be safe for you to explore the city on your own after a while."

Wrathcatcher paused, looking a bit uncertain before continuing. "There's also a new person of interest out west. Calls themselves 'Avast 88th Sea'. I think they're a bit of an ass, but they're a sailor's apprentice. The guildmaster's brought them in as one of us, and they're a pretty nice connection to the sea and beyond. On that note, apparently there's been a lot more raider activity across the sea. Not sure if it's headed in this direction yet, but it's at least getting closer to their ports. Rumor is that it's just as much humans and the like as it is goblins and orcs. Kind of weird to hear about them being organized like that. Oh, and there's apparently supposed to be some nobility coming through town in a few weeks. Said something about visiting that town--Mourning Ridge?--while visiting too. Might be a good idea to pay attention to that, as long as, you know, you don't mention knowing anything if anything of theirs goes missing," Wrathcatcher said with a wink. Sokoya frowned, none of this was really anything she could act on. It would be nice to visit the city properly, though. Still, it was better than nothing. If she really could visit the city before too much longer, she could expand her information network, at the very least.

"Well, keep some ears out for me, would you? I'll see you again next week, yes?" Sokoya asked, gathering her things as she got ready to head off. Wrathcatcher put a hand out though to stop her, taking a bag from their shoulder and holding out a small package bound in parchment. Sokoya looked at it, then up at Wrathcatcher questioningly. 

"The boss said to give you this, said 'consider it an offer'. It's a bunch of coin and information that I didn't have," Wrathcatcher said, and Sokoya stared for a moment longer. She had been asked multiple times to join the Guild, and each time turned them down, but never had they given her anything beyond information. "Soko, babe, we're not dumb. We know you're not staying in town--guard's too full of racist pricks for that, and you're too healthy to be hiding out in the woods. Mourning Ridge's the closest town to us, so we know that's where you're probably from," Wrathcatcher said, their smile replaced with a more serious look now. "That's fine and all, but remember that we've got your back if you ever need it, yeah? As far as we're concerned, you're one of us street rats. That being said....If you wanted to do us a favor and do for us in Mourning Ridge what we do for you here, we could probably just drop the whole payment thing entirely. You don't have to join the Thieves' Guild entirely, and we're not really asking you to steal anything, just....give us another branch to our network, yeah? Just some information. Think on it at least, will you?" They said, before heading towards the nearby ladder to the alley.

"And....Soko, you don't have to say yes, we can keep things the way they are now, but if you ever want to be part of the family properly, just let us know. If nothing else, we work for clients, but we protect our family," they said, before slipping out of sight down the ladder as Sokoya clutched the package tighter.