Introductions - The Characters And The World

When we first started playing Dungeons & Dragons on Zoom back in early 2020, I doubt any of us thought we’d still be going strong over a year later.  But here we are, the same five 40-somethings (with two soon-to-be 50-somethings) looking forward to Wednesday nights the way we did Friday nights when we were kids.  Because while Saturday night’s alright for fighting, Wednesday’s are for D&D, the perfect way to pass the midpoint of yet another in a never ending string of workweeks and get on that downhill stretch to the weekend.  

 

We started with 1^st level characters, most of us either never having played before, or not having played since the first Bush presidency.  But over the course of ten months or so our intrepid DM Tristen whipped us into shape.  By the time we hit 5^th level he felt it was time to, quite literally, drop us into hell.  My first D&D blog was about our play in Baldur’s Gate:  Descent Into Avernus, telling the story of our four characters as we battled the infernal hordes.  The good news is that the so-called Defenders of Phandalin were successful in returning the city of Elturel back to the Material Plane.  The bad news is that all campaigns come to an end, and our now 14^th level characters were ready for a break. 

 

So what to do?  Well, I asked (and at times maybe begged, and maybe even groveled) if everyone was open to a new campaign with new characters, this one a 100% homebrew concept that I’d been toying with for a few months.  Ultimately I got their agreement – hopefully they won’t regret having given it.  As of the time of this introductory post they’re already six sessions (three hours each) into the new campaign, their characters developing and advancing rapidly as they go from encounter to encounter.  

 

One of the downsides of weekly homebrew sessions is that you need new material frequently.  The good news is I got a bit ahead of the game – so I probably have another six or seven sessions already written.  But as I watch how the group interacts with this new world, often in every unexpected ways, I realized how much I missed blogging about the game.  Which brings us to here – the first every post on Paloma and the Sexy Boys.  

 

So who are Paloma and the Sexy Boys?  Good question!  Below is an intentionally brief introduction.  They didn’t know anything about one another when they first met (with one notable exception described below), so you, dear reader, are in the same boat.

Jahnas Bloodcruise (Player – Norberto)

 

Jahnas is a triton monk.  As a triton he’s every bit as comfortable on land as he is in water… and he’s uncomfortable wearing a shirt or shoes in either environments.  Plus he’s blue, so there’s that.  If the party has a moral compass, it’s probably Jahnas.  His righteousness may also make him the most likely to be “accidentally” shot from behind by a crossbow or a chromatic orb. 

 

Did I mention he’s blue?

Modi (Player – Tristen)

 

The high elf wizard Modi is as comfortable with his sword as he is with magic, which makes sense because his father has been the sword-fighting instructor for the VanCleef clan for generations.  While adept with the weapon, Modi’s true passion is dance, and he and Vim used to travel Töfraland as the duo Mikeal’s Pence, Vim playing percussion while Modi danced.  They weren’t always well received, and when Modi’s father caught wind of his son’s wanderings he was called home attend to the family business.

 

Incredibly intelligent and dexterous, Modi lacks both common sense and social skills.  Most people are inherently uncomfortable around the elf for reasons he doesn’t entirely understand, but accepts.

Paloma (Player – Holly)

 

Paloma is a once-in-a-generation rarity, a tabaxi with a black puma appearance.  It is said she was born during an aurora storm, which is the source of the sorceress’ weather magic.  

 

She’s not so sure about this strange group she finds herself associated with, but she was called to perform a duty for her people, and she’ll fulfill it.  That doesn’t mean she won’t be rolling her eyes at all the nonsense happening around her.

Vim Shalen (Player – Andy)

 

Vim grew up traveling the continent with his father, an event promoter who put on Summer Brawl events that went from town to town.  The carnival-like atmosphere was perfect for the handsome and personable bard, giving him the street smarts that made up for his obvious deficit in actual intelligence.  

 

Vim and Modi performed together for a season under the name Mikael’s Pence, Vim playing percussion on his shield while Modi strummed the lute and danced.  The duo were convinced of their own greatness even in the face of often mocking crowds.  When Modi’s father called him back home Vim was crushed, but now they’re reunited and it feels so good…

Gnomey Rockdodger (NPC)

 

The party is rounded out by a personable druid gnome, Gnomey Rockdodger.  Gnomey is quick to accept a drink but also has a bit of an edge… and a secret…

So that’s the cast of characters, kids.  Below is a bit more about the world in which they live.

Töfraheimur (Magic World) is about the size of Pluto.  To put it in perspective, if you laid a map of the United States over the planet, the US would basically cover the entire surface.

There are two continents, Töfraland and Vondurland, which are roughly equal in size.  The two continents are separated on one side by the Barrier Islands (aka “The Band”), a string of island that runs from the northern pole to the southern pole.  Many of the Barrier Islands are actively volcanic, though many others are now geologically stable.  The area of water between the two continents in which the Barrier Islands lay is the Barrier Sea.  On the other side of the continents is the Vatnsgröf, a deep-water ocean that is almost devoid of any islands or land.  There are polar ice caps at either end of the planet’s axis.

 

Töfraheimur has a 24-hour day and rotates around its sun once every 310 days.  The calendar is broken down into 10 full months of exactly 30 days each, and two transitional festival “months” of five days each.  The two festival months encompass the summer and winter solstices, the actual day of the solstice falling in the third day. Töfraland celebrates these two festival months as holidays.  The climate is generally moderate and Earth-like.

 

The Barrier Sea is shallow, depths rarely going deeper than a few hundred feet.  While there are tides, the waters here are relatively stable.  Storms occur, especially in the spring and fall, and these can disrupt shipping.  The true depths of Vatnsgröf are unknown, but it is incredibly deep.  Massive rogue waves are not uncommon, nor are incredible storms that will easily destroy even the most robust ship.  It is also home to an array of sea monsters, the largest of which are said to be hundreds of feet long.  Shipping is safe along the coasts, but only a fool would try to sail from one continent to the other across the Vatnsgröf.  Most who try are never heard from again.

 

It is said that magic is “in the air” in Töfraheimur, and this is true.  In fact the people of the world have never learned to harness other means of generating power as they discovered ways to store packets of naturally occurring magic to provide energy.  All but the dimmest individuals are able to create at least small magical effects, such as casting light or a tiny flame from the tip of a finger.  However, only a few can truly harness the magic that surrounds them.

Töfraheimur has a written history that goes back two thousand years, though it is said the elves and dwarves may have tomes that date back further.  For much of that time the races battled one another, and even themselves, for power and control.  Empires rose and fell, some lasting hundreds of years, others perhaps a decade or two.  

 

The current year is one of great celebration, as it will mark the 500^th anniversary of the Council of Töfraland, based in Unity on the west coast.  The council was formed when the five main races of the continent (humans, elves, tabaxi, gnomes, and tritons) formed a ruling body.  With one representative from each race, the council serves to govern Töfraland, settling disputes as needed.  Currently the humans are ending their 10-year leadership of the Council, after which they will turn over the gavel to the elves for the next decade.  While each race has an ancestral homeland that is still the center of its own identity, the races mix freely across the continent.  However, don’t think this means the entire land is civilized – it’s not.  The races have their strongholds, but many monsters exist across the land, and sometimes bands of goblins, orcs, and hobgoblins will come together under a charismatic leader and wage war.  When that happens the council marches forth its multi-racial armies to destroy the threat.

 

The same cannot be said of Vondurland, often referred to colloquially as simply “The Crucible”.  To say that it is untamed would be an exaggeration.  There are certainly rulers there, though they tend to rule with an iron fist.  It is a land where might makes right.  The people of Töfraland have old maps of Vondurland, and much of the coastal region is fairly well known, but the stripping of natural resources and unrestrained use of magic has made some areas unknowable.  From time to time a warlord will become powerful enough to launch a full-scale attack against Töfraland, but they have always been successful in repelling the invaders.  The last such attack was 97 years ago, and many with long memories say that history tells them another is immanent.

 

The Barrier Islands act as a bit of a middle ground for the two continents.  Trading centers dot the islands, as do secret pirate bases and habitats to strange and wondrous creatures.  A handful of islands are ruled as tiny nations of their own, though they seldom cause trouble – there’s too much money to be made in trade.

 

Artificers and wizards tap the magic that permeates the world and use it to power machines, particularly for transportation.  While most land transportation is still horse-driven, there are vehicles ranging in size from two to eight wheeled and powered by magic batteries.  These are common in the larger cities, and even in smaller towns and villages they aren’t rare.  Small boats may also use magic power, though the larger ones use sails, as magic storage capabilities aren’t robust enough for larger vessels.  Some small dirigibles exist as well, though these are quite rare.  A small number of magic portals facilitate travel between the major cities.

As mentioned above, a council of five races rule Töfraland.  However, there are a few other races co-existing on the continent.

 

The Council Races

 

ELVES – Elves have lived in various parts of Töfraland for longer than anyone can remember, and they can be found on any part of the continent.  Their ancestral home is Amon Dur, a beautiful city nestled in the southern mountains.  

 

GNOMES – Gnomes trace their roots to the southern island off of Töfraland, which is still their homeland.  The island and its main settlement share the same name – Finster.  Gnomes are less common on the main continent that the other races, but they are far from rare.  

 

HUMANS – Humans can be found almost everywhere on Töfraland, and are by far the most populous race.  They don’t have a specific homeland per se.

 

TABAXI – The tabaxi homeland is in the southeast forest of Töfraland, where they have established a permanent settlement called, simply, Tabaxi.  There are many small nomadic tribes of tabaxi, primarily up and down the eastern half of Töfraland.

 

TRITON – The aquatic triton have their above-water home on an island off the northeast coast called Aquavelva.  They have undersea settlements as well.  Triton are perhaps the least common of the main races, along with gnomes, though it is not at all unusual to find them in any coastal settlements.

 

Non-Council Races

 

DWARVES – The dwarves have a tendency to keep to themselves in their northern mountain stronghold of Rockfall.  They have fought alongside the Council races many times when great enemies rise up, but they do not participate formally in the alliance.  It is still quite common to see dwarves in the towns and cities of Töfraland, and even in positions of civil and military authority – but those are choices made by individual dwarves, not as part of a collective political or military strategy.

 

DRAGONBORN – A small number of good aligned dragons reside on Töfraland, and these will usually have a small retinue of dragonborn followers and retainers.  Their numbers are quite small.  While not part of the Council, dragonborn emissaries will often work with Council leaders on issues of great importance.  Of all the major good aligned races, dragonborn are the most rarely seen and are generally viewed by the populace with mild suspicion.

So that's about it - you know as much as these kids did when this campaign started.  Are you ready?