The Ruins of Ramat - 0-level funnel

[Judge Perky]

OOC: Hello all, I am a friend of Dodd's, and Judge Perky has kindly allowed me to step in and handle fireinthedust's characters in his absence. I'll read back through al the posts to try to figure out how he was handling the various characterizations.. in the meantime, forgive me if the tone changes while I get the hang of it. Also, I've played a lot of RPGs and PbPs, but never done one for DCC (and I'm regrettably shaky on the ruleset). I may need a little guidance as we go...

OOC: Welcome, Chthonicthul! Yes, read up on where we are. Since you are new, why don't you take Xim and Marvin for starters, and the other guys will play 3 each.

[Chthonicthul]

OOC: Xim has infravision. Does he see heat signatures? Or is it just darkvision? I tried looking online, but I'm not clear on it.

And sure, Xim and Marvin sound great.

[Judge Perky]

Infravision: Halflings dwell in pleasant homes
carved from the sod beneath hills. As such, halflings
can see in the dark up to 30’.

Unlike many other RPGs, DCC RPG doesn't try to 'explain' infravision. Just think of it as magic see-in-the-dark vision. However, since the other members of the party don't have infravision, there are torches lit at the moment so Xim isn't able to see any differently from anyone else.

Since this is a "0-level funnel," characters don't yet have their full abilities. Right now, you're still just average joes, trying against all odds to put an end to the threat to your village.

0 Level
Some role playing games codify “game balance” in an abundance of character options. The DCC RPG takes an anachronistic approach to this concept by pursuing an even playing field through randomization rather than complexity. The character creation steps that follow generate a play style unlike anything you have experienced in the last twenty-odd years –provided you follow the steps precisely. Omit any element, and you’ll find that the process does not work. Here is why.

DCC RPG generates characters using what the author refers to as a “funnel.” First, each player generates at least two, and possibly as many as four, 0-level characters. It is critical that the characters be generated using the process as described: completely random ability scores, random occupation, random Luck modifier, and random equipment. Each player ends up with an assortment of characters who could potentially serve as several different classes.

The “funnel” takes place in 0-level play. During the first 0-level game, it is expected each player will lose some or most of his characters. When mere peasants and yeomen explore deadly dungeons, a high mortality rate is a matter of course. By the end of the first game, the players will be left with a motley crew of survivors, and this group of heroic
adventurers becomes the 1st-level party. Using this method of highly random character results, high mortality rates, and player choices as to which of their randomly-generated characters takes risks and which stays safe, you, the judge, will find you have a party of randomly generated characters in which the players have agency. There are essentially no opportunities for min-max play, and yet players find themselves attached to their plucky little serfs who have done such amazing deeds at low levels.

Their 0-level exploits will define them forever with great deeds completed at great risk.

Demi-humans at level 0: Characters whose 0-level result includes a demi-human race must advance in class as that demi-human. For example, a dwarven miner levels up as a dwarf. 0-level demi-humans are able to utilize select racial traits as follows: dwarves have infravision and a base speed of 20’; elves are sensitive to iron and have heightened senses; and halflings have infravision and a base speed of 20’. Refer to the dwarf, elf, and halfling class descriptions for more information on these abilities. 0-level demi-humans speak Common plus their racial language, with additional languages gained as they level up. Just as all characters gain improved abilities and, sometimes, additional languages when they reach level 1, demi-human characters polish their natural talents through adventuring.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Don't forget to update Xim's inventory to reflect that he is now carrying a short sword (1d6 damage) instead of a staff (1d4 damage). Also, welcome to the game!

[Judge Perky]

Ok, so you leave the dust-filled room through the northern exit, and after about 40' you reach another room.

It looks to be about 20' deep and 30' wide, and you are entering from the southeast corner of the room. There is a hallway that exits west in the northwest corner.

This room may have been the quarters of an important person. Stone shelves in the western wall and a few decorative statues are all that remain. On the northern wall, there is a large, faded mural of three white-robed men standing around a golden spear, which is set in a pedestal. They are beset by a host of demons and undead. Beams of light radiate from the spear, appearing to strike and slay the demons and the undead.

The pedestal looks a great deal like the one in the room you were in yesterday (was it really only yesterday?); the defiled room in which you encountered the powerful amorphous evil black creature that killed Ken Katcherman and Lyanna.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Right, and that room had a pedestal with a hole in it. Was the hole spear shaft sized?

[Judge Perky]

It could have been. You weren't able to get close enough to be sure.

P.S. The mural:

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[Max_The_Judge]

Red Robert: "Hmmm... I think this mural is suggesting that if we place that glowing spear into the hole in the room with the shadow monster then the beast will be banished. If only we had that spear!"

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: OK, maybe this mural is a clue suggesting we're getting close to the spear? If no one objects I say we press on in the same order we chose earlier. The three figures in the mural seem like they're not at all worried about the monsters around them. So in the very least finding the spear will allow us to search that room without getting murdered horribly by that monster. Also, Judge Perky, I'm really digging this funnel. Will we be able to play in future games you might want to run using any characters that happen to survive? That would be awesome! I'm mostly a Judge so I rarely get to play. I find that being able to play makes me a better Judge.

[Judge Perky]

Will we be able to play in future games you might want to run using any characters that happen to survive?

Survive? BWHAHAHAHA! We shall see... we shall see...

[doddwaco]

Jenkins agrees Red Robert. "Yes, yes! The spear is the key. Let us find this mighty spear. Onward, dear companions!"
Ragged Rob grunts in what be acquiescence.

[Judge Perky]

Ok, as I mentioned, there is a hallway that exits west in the northwest corner.

However, you discover that after 20', the hallway dead ends in a blank wall.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Search for secret doors?

[Judge Perky]

Sure, tell me what your character does.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Let's feel the walls. Everything is stone in here. A false door would likely be made of a different material or have a seam running along the wall. Honest John will look for those signs and whack the walls with the staff he got from Xim. To check for reverberations that might indicate another passage or hollow.

[Judge Perky]

Please give me an INT check.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Honest John rolls... 7

[Judge Perky]

He doesn't find anything. Just a blank wall. Anybody else want to try?

[Max_The_Judge]

Red Robert: "Move aside, kid! You've obviously never had to break out of a dungeon before."

OOC: Red Robert uses an arrow to probe for seams, irregularities, and loose stones. He rolls a 16.

[Judge Perky]

Red Robert notices some scratches around the edges of the wall, floor and ceiling, like the wall has moved back and forth at some point.

He gives it a good push. STR check please.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Red Robert rolls a 14.

[Judge Perky]

With a dull roar, the entire 10' x 10' section of wall recedes about 12", and then slides left into a deep groove on the side wall, revealing a corridor beyond.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Can we see anything beyond?

[Judge Perky]

You see a simple 10' x 50' hallway that leads to a door in the west.

[Max_The_Judge]

OOC: Chthonicthul & doddwaco, shall we?