The Ancient Way - A Basic D&D Adventure - Character and Adventure Creation
Welcome to The Ancient Way, a Dungeons and Dragons solo Actual Play using the 1983 version of Basic DND. I picked these up on eBay not long ago and I was shocked by how well they were written and edited.
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| Love this Basic set. It is well worth checking out! |
This campaign will also use the Game Master's Apprentice deck as my oracle to generate ideas and almost everything else I need. It's a pretty cool system, and well worth checking out!
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| Awsome oracle deck. Worth checking out! |
As for how I'll play the game. I'm going to create three characters and then create a scenario for them to go through. I have absolutely no idea what the world will be like or who the characters will be. I have created a theme, as I'm using a rules system that is older than I am, the theme for this campaign will be 'Ancient'.
Alright, let's get started! I'm going to carefully crack open my copy of the basic set and start making a character.
Character #1:
The Basic DND rules give a great step-by-step guide for character creation. It all starts with ability scores. You roll 3 D6 in order and take those stats. Wish me luck!
Strength - I get 14, which is a very good start for this character. Maybe a fighter or a Dwarf? Could even be a halfling.
Intellgence - A 10. Not bad. Could be an elf even with those scores.
Wisdom - A 13! Wow, this character is doing great.
Dexterity - A 5. My luck ends. This character can't be a halfling and would not make a good thief.
Constitution - A 11. A good score. Dwarf is still in the mix, or a Fighter.
Charisma - A whopping 17! That's a great score.
Class:
Look when I started this I said to myself I really wanted a Dwarf party member. I think I have a charismatic leader of the party here! In Basic, race is class, meaning Dwarf will be my class here.
My dwarf has 7Hp, which is a good roll of a D8. They start with 110 gold. My Dwarf wears plate armour and has a sword and shield.
Okay, now who is this dwarf? A random name I like is Merrick. And his alignment will be neutral. So what was Merrick's past? I'll pull some random cards. For the location I get Fortress, for catalyst, I get religious persecution, and for virtue I get honesty.
Combining that, Merrick was born in the great Dwarven fortress of Karrak-Duun. Merrick was part of the minor nobility and served as a captain of the fortress guard. He uncovered, by accident, some dishonesty by the Dwarven clergy and before he could bring it to light he was framed for a crime and cast out of the fortress! He has been wandering ever since, picking up odd jobs to get his belly full of drink and food.
Alright on to character #2!
Abilities go first.
Strength - I get 10. That's average, and not bad enough to prevent them from being anything.
Intellgence - A 7. Well can't be an elf and probably won't be a good magic-user.
Wisdom - A 9. Not fantastic at all.
Dexterity - A 14! That is a good number. Maybe a Thief or a Halfling?
Constitution - A 13. Not bad at all. It looks like a Halfling.
Charisma - An 8. Not good again.
Yes, I think this character will be a halfling and not a Thief. HP is d6+1 for 6 HP. They start with 50 gold and use it to buy a short bow, some arrows and other things. No armour, so this halfling better stay safe!
The Halfling will be named Alberich and he will be lawful. For Alberich's story, I pull Rally for location, Wounds Fester for catalyst, and Humily for virtue. To combine that I'll say Alberich was a normal Halfling when their village was attacked by a tribe of orcs. As a normal member of the town, Alberich rallied with the militia to repel the invaders. They were holding the line when a poisoned arrow hit the halfling Chief and the militia routed. Alberich blamed himself for not doing more and vowed to find a new village for their tribe to live in.
And now time for Character #3
Strength - I get 14, which means it will be another strong character.
Intellgence - A 7. Not very intelligent and cannot be an elf.
Wisdom - A 16! That's a good score. Maybe a cleric?
Dexterity - A 14. Some good roles here.
Constitution - A 10. Decent.
Charisma - And 15 which is good.
Ok, this character should be a cleric for sure! I'm even going to reduce Charisma and dexterity by 2 each to give this cleric 2 more in Widsom. The cleric has 3 HP and 120 in gold to start. With that gold, I'll go all out and buy plate armour, a shield and a mace. Along with a holy symbol. Sadly a cleric doesn't get any spells at level 1 (kinda lame)!
Alright, the Cleric is named Portia. For her backstory, I have Archives for location, Mad rantings for catalyst, and honesty for virtue.
Portia was a cleric of Bright Star. One day while studying the archive late at night, she came across a senior cleric named Regan. Regan did not notice Portia and was deep in study over a black book. Suddenly he began ranting insane blasphemous. Portia took this to the elders of her order but they did not believe her and acting with Regan's instruction they cast her out of the order.
Well now we have our three adventurers, it's time to bring them together and start the journey!
Now how do Merrick the Dwarf, Alberich the Halfling and Portia the human Cleric meet up and decide to party together, and what is the challenge they need to overcome?
Catalyst is a Letter from a lawyer, the location is a cafe, and the item involved is a magic sphere, a fire symbol, the name Bowers, and finally an unseen presence. What an interesting set of things to work with.
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"Ah welcome, welcome! Do try the cakes, they are absolutely delicious. You may be wondering why I brought you three here. My name is Alexander Bowers, lawyer to our liege lord, Madam Helen of Alsense. I know what you are thinking, why you three when I could easily employ Madam's house guard or hire mercenaries? The truth is, I need something found that should never have been lost."
Merrick stares at this human intently and without emotion. Alberich quickly starts eating cake as Portia makes a quick blessing over the table before picking up a small treat.
"I see you are unsure about this and I understand. I would also be unsure if a random lawyer approached me with such a task. What if I say there is a hefty payment for the successful accomplishment of the task? I can promise land and titles."
Speaking through a mouth full of cakes, Alberich asks, "Land? How much?"
"Enough for a small community to thrive in, my Halfling friend. Now would you like to hear more?"
"Speak more, law-scribe," Merrick says.
"Very well. A magical sphere of some importance to Madam Helen has gone missing. We suspect it was taken by a Mr. Robert Iris, a former member of Madam's household. If it is in fact Mr. Iris, it would have likely been taken to his home village in the Abberant Mountains. Go to Mr Iris's village, retrieve the sphere and you will be rewarded greatly. Any questions?"
"This magical sphere, is it evil in some way?" the soft voice of Portia asks.
"Uhh no I don't believe so. It has the power of flame I am told but not evil, no."
"I accept your deal law-scribe. Let us sign these contracts and be off to find this Mr. Robert Iris." Merrick says.
Alexander Bowers produces contracts and the three sign.
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Let's find out a bit more about this realm of Alsense. I'm using the GamesMaster's Apprentice deck for all of this. I get mountains, so it is a mountainous realm. Next, I get discover, so there are vast tracks of this land yet to be discovered. I get pacify. A recent war was fought against the Orc tribes in the region to pacify them and stop their raiding.
For the ruler Madam Helen, I get temperance as a virtue. She is known to be 'good and proper at all times'. As a vice I get envy. She is envious of the greater realms in the lowlands and she aims to become better than them.
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Alright! I think we have everything we need to have an amazing adventure! Tune in next week for the start of the quest.
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