Similar to the classic books Choose Your Own Adventure, Before the Storm starts a single character on their path to becoming a hero. It uses two to three options at each path, connects those choices to how the game of Dungeons & Dragons runs, and then rolls a d20 to see if you succeed or not.
There are five different characters, which seem to be the same options as the pre-generated characters for the current Starter Set – Dragons of Stormwreck Isle (at your local game store or DnD Beyond).
Weaving a familiar and simple pick-your-path story with the D&D mechanics is an excellent introduction to what D&D is. People unfamiliar with role-playing games should catch on fairly quickly. The cycle of the D&D process is pretty simple.
Action is described
You make a choice
Does it succeed?
What happens next
That fits a simple computer program easily.
What makes role-playing with a real person so much more interesting is that the stopes for Choice and What Next aren’t confined to pre-programmed options. They’re up to the people at the table, together.
What else makes D&D special is that, unlike Before the Storm, is that it captures that idea that a diverse group is vital to succeeding in life. Everyone has different strengths, different weaknesses. By working together your group is more than the sum of its parts.
Before the Storm is strongly recommended for people who think – I want to play Dungeons & Dragons but don’t know how.
The trope that starts nearly every Dungeons & Dragons campaign is “So, you meet in a tavern.” Which is fitting. For most campaigns start with a diverse group of characters who don’t have strong connections throughout the group. They are a cross-cultural, cross-class, cross-Class, cross-everything group that wouldn’t meet at most places in the medieval-Renaissance-ish fantasy world that is D&D.
But the tavern, via the trope, has become a third place. It’s not home (though it often becomes that). It’s not work (though it often becomes that). It’s the place between. And these places between are frequently where subcultures within a society connect.
Various cultures have had different third places. For modern America it is now the coffeeshop and used to be bowling alleys. In the Ottoman Empire in the classical age had its cafes, where philosophy, music and political debate occurred.
In New England during the American Revolution public houses were the gathering point, for many at that time the first place was a co-located home with work and the second were churches.
The Greeks gathered on the steps of temples. Finns and Russians gather in bathhouses.
Sporting venues have been third places, before they became economically stratified. Travelling carnivals and festivals can be a third place.
No matter the type of third place, it tells you a bit about the culture.
Using third places as a character backstory tool
When creating a PC think about the place where you mingled with peoples unlike you. Where did your dwarf first meet an elf? Where did your farmer first meet a noble? Where did your follower of Lathander meet an unbeliever?
This decision will help tell you about your own history.
It will connect them to a place and associated behaviors that aren’t mechanics, but are fuel for the social pillar. Their own stories about a trip to watch a great debate between philosophers, a visit to the library, or the type of ale they enjoyed at the pub are stories that add more depth to the shared story that is D&D.
Adventurers have the place where they sleep (a cave, a cove, an inn), the place where they work (dungeons), and the places where they spend time meeting strangers with odd quests. Once they start their adventure they have the third place that was cross-cultural communication when they were growing up and now the place between — and that’s up to the whole party of different peoples.
Using third places as a world building tool
Dungeon Masters generally are more active in creating the world. There are a few ways they can use third places in that world.
Collect each players’ third places in your notes. Give them the opportunity to revisit them in new lands.
Start the campaign at the typical third place for the origin culture of the campaign. “So, you meet on the steps of the temple.”
When the group comes to a new land and looks for their comfortable third place (the tavern) demonstrate how that locale is different from their expectation and what the unfamiliar culture would use as their non-stratified place that welcomes outsiders.
Use maps of abandoned third places to show how different the older ages were from the one in which you campaign.
Have an NPC name-drop their favorite third place. This can show how they are familiar to most of the group, or different. Each NPC can have their own place, they should!
Have two third places in the same town share similarities but still be unique beyond their name. Maybe the Rusty Clam is a working pub and the Silver Nail is for the merchant class — and yet the players are welcomed at both.
These are flavor elements, but flavor is story in D&D. And story is what tables build together, usually because Dungeons and Dragons is now our third place.
Fantasy sports can be a fun way to add depth and cultural to a campaign world. One of my players in Uprising & Rebellion is playing a character from Mehmd and invented the sport of Goltoppa. He adapted some of the cultural touchpoints from the hidden empire, placing them into the common state of the game and has asked for it to be featured in a session soon. The character in question is not a Goltoppa player or coach.
The game is played on an open, flat, dirt field, generally free of rocks & debris, that is 360 feet long by 144 feet wide. The field is split lengthwise down the entirety of the center into 72 feet wide halves, and crosswise at 120 feet intervals. These six resulting areas are marked off with white paint borders. Particularly enterprising/wealthy teams have been known to pay to have the sections magicked to different colors. Straddling the centerline at each end of the playing field is a netted goal, 9 feet wide by 3 feet tall. One narrow end of the field is to be facing North, indicating the “head” of the field. Three referees patrol the playing surface to control the action during the run of play.
Players:
Goltoppa is played by two opposing teams, consisting of 9 starting players on each side. Teams are permitted to ‘dress’ 3 bench players for each contest, to be subbed into the game in the event of injury. Players may not be subbed into the game for strategic reasons or in the event of a player’s expulsion from the contest. A player’s uniform shall consist of a sleeveless tunic, belted at the waist & extending to mid-thigh, in the primary color of one of the six teams currently representing the league’s six social strata: Noble (violet), Military (red), Religious (white), Artisan (gold), Farmer/Fisher (green), Merchant (blue). Note that players are recruited to represent these strata, and need not be members of them. Additionally, players shall wear sandals that wrap up around their calves, with linen padding over their shins. Each team dresses one Left & Right “Slasher,” designated by a black sash that goes diagonally from either left or right shoulder to opposing hip, with the shoulder covered indicating which side of the field they may patrol. Players may wear short pants as well.
Play:
The game is played in two 36 minute halves. At the start of the game, a coin toss determines initial possession, which begins via kicking a ball onto the field from a position to the left of the goal which the possessing team is defending. The ball is traditionally made from a treated cow’s stomach filled with air, or a leather ball of approximately the same size . There are no goalies; all players may attempt to kick the ball toward or away from the goal, or to a teammate. Additionally, each team’s Slashers are allowed to catch the ball on the fly in their hands and run with it to the border of whichever section of the field they currently occupy, at which point they must kick the ball themselves unless trying to place the ball in the opposing goal. A Slasher with possession of the ball may be leg tackled by the opposing team. A successful leg tackle means the Slasher must kick the ball to a teammate (only) from the spot of the tackle. Tackling with one’s arms, striking a Slasher above the waist, or attempting to strip the ball from a Slasher’s hands by a player other than an opposing Slasher is not allowed. A ball that goes out of the field of play results in a change of possession, with the new possessing team kicking the ball into the field of play from the sideline spot where the referees determine the ball crossed out of the field.
Scoring:
A score happens whenever the ball is put into the net during the run of play, A ball kicked into the net scores 2 points; a ball placed into the net by hand scores 5 points.
Penalties:
Rough Play: Arm tackles; deliberate leg tackles of a non-Slasher; headbutts; intentional hands to the face or back of an opponent – Offending player off the field for 3 minutes.
Stripping: An attempt to pull the ball from the hands of a Slasher by a non-Slasher – Offending player off the field for 3 minutes.
Catching: Non-Slasher making deliberate contact with his hands to the ball, especially with an effort to control the ball – Offending player off the field for 2 minutes.
Scooping: Slasher attempting to pick the ball up off the field, rather than catching it on the fly. This includes a ball that bounces before being caught – Offending player off the field for 1 minute.
Offsides: Slasher maintaining possession of the ball beyond the area of the field where he caught it, or crossing from his designated half of the field – Change of possession from the spot; no kick to inbound the ball needed.
Belligerence: Fighting; intentional physical contact/intimidation toward a referee – Offending player ejected.
Playing Goltoppa at the table
There will be a series of contested checks to determine scoring. These will use the Tool Sports: Goltoppa and have a few skills that can connect to them.
My first thought is a way to generate scoring similar to what is described by JayDubTheGamer would be to have five contested checks by half. That’s a lot of rolling, but provides some variety of results and capability of multiple players participating.
Winning a check by 1-5 results in two points. Winning a check by more than 5 results in 5 points. Winning a check by more than 10 results in seven points and winning by 15 or more is good for nine points.
Losing a check by less than 5 results in two points for your own team. Any natural 1 means that you have given up a five-pointer or have committed a foul, rolling their next challenge at Disadvantage. Any natural 20 means that you have scored a five-pointer.
This should generate scores that look a bit like early 20th century American football or current rugby.
Applying skills
Acrobatics and Athletics will be the most used skills, most frequently connecting to Dexterity and Strength. It would also make sense for someone in a coaching position to use Intelligence with one of those and for a character playing the captain to use Charisma.
I would allow up to one role to use Deception in order to get away with a foul. That team would have Advantage on the next check, but if they lose that roll their next roll would be at Disadvantage.
An example:
Violet team
Blue team
Score
13
7
Violet 5: Blue 0
16
20 (natural)
Violet 2: Blue 7
9
15
Violet 0: Blue 5
12
12
Violet 2: Blue 2
4
15
Violet 0: Blue 7
1st half
9 points
21 points
2
9
Violet 0: Blue 5
20 (natural)
7
Violet 12: Blue 0
14
11
Violet 2: Blue 2
18
6
Violet 7: Blue 0
3
9
Violet 0: Blue 5
2nd half
21 points
12 points
FINAL
30 points
33 points
Yes, that’s ten rolls for a non-combat encounter. Which feels like a bit, but the descriptions are at most two sentences, show the shifts in momentum, and feel like watching a sport when including those descriptions especially around the nat 20s.
In the World of the Everflow all dragons have hoards. At this point of Uprising and Rebellion the group has met those that hoard books (paper dragons), jewels and fine art (jaculus), animal companions (black dragons) and strife (blue dragons).
Heading towards the final faceoff with the great wyrm blue dragon there’s a desire to connect the size of the hoard in that Wyrm’s sphere of influence to its power – subsequently allowing actions by the players to reduce the hoard.
This will be done by combining the Legendary Resistance and Legendary Action pools. Legendary Resistance will still be a use and lose item while Legendary Actions will be regained at the start of the dragon’s next turn. A pool of physical objects will symbolize the size of the pool. This will represent the intelligence the group learns about the Wyrm.
The Wyrm watches the d20 rolls
The Blue Wyrm currently resides in the mayor’s palace, having thrived off the strife caused by the rebellion and the Mayor’s corruption. But the heroes have shown that their rebellion is built on hope, a less stratified society and a city capable of trade again. Now just three dragons stand in the way of freedom, possibly.
Things the characters could do to reduce strife;
Healing, feeding Kirtin-on-the-Lake’s residents
Freeing animal companions bound to Shadow and Darkness, the two black dragons
Increasing trade of desired goods within the war torn city
Establishing a popular governance path after the Mayor’s abdication
Reducing the size of the 7th Fleet encampment outside of the city
Teaching utility cantrips
I’m certain the party will surprise me with other ideas.
Things that can increase strife;
War with the 7th Fleet
Teaching more attack cantrips
The Mayor reclaiming the seat of government
Open battle in the streets
They will again surprise me with ideas that create a less peaceful city.
The Wyrm is going to start with five legendary points in the penultimate session for this story arc. The session will be split between the plan to pick the territory of battle (palace, tunnel, cave) and preparations that could include reducing the Wyrm’s power.
This tweak to the standard rules should connect a social session to the grand combat ending the Wyrm’s arc.
Tucked in the back corner of the underground portion of the Temple of the Lords of the End is an office space. The last dual head clergy were two halfings, so the office has two halfing-sized desks with chairs. The chamber is packed with bookshelves, cabinets, decorative wall coverings and, like the main chamber has some damage from a Tunneling Nightmare.
There are also a couple secret doors.
1 – This secret door (DC 15) is to a small safe that contains gems and ingots. The interior is free from dust and it looks as if one ingot is new (DC 10, History or Culture(Sheljar).
2 – One of the bookcases has a book-handle secret door system. It can be found with a DC 20 check. Behind that case is access to the alcove to one of Sheljar’s former ruling families, one that dedicated itself to Oun and Obscon rather than Quar. That chamber no longer has any remains.
We’re nearly done with the Temple of the Lords of the End. These two gods have a five chamber space that will be covered over three total entries. At this point there have been no monsters, but several hints that the Tunneling Nightmares, supposedly gone for several years, are active once again.
Also, the remains that should be around are not.
Maybe the death cult and the Necromancer were working together.
I’m doing Lore 24, an attempt to write small lore elements daily in the year 2024. Each element will be something that’s come up in play or will come up in play within my homebrew World of the Everflow — there will be actionable threads for PCs to grab onto and advance the story.
