Odds and ends

[Anastasia]

This could be fun. Maybe we're refugees from some sort of apocalyptic cataclysm and we band together to scour the planes for a way to fix things/undo it/take revenge/stop it happening to others. Happen across our Throne of Bhaal style pocket-plane or Ancient city ship or whatever early on and use it for our base as we go forth doing this or that.

That works as an idea. I'll throw another one in: Insert power/god/faith charges you with the fortress and go seek out worthy warriors and aides to bolster their forces. With the state of the planes, recruitment is always at a premium. Alternately, perhaps the moving fortress uses some magic on the group to compel them to gather people for an unknown reason or otherwise beseeches them?

[Corwin]

I'd want to see a clearly defined and eventually achievable goal rather than something vague, and I'd very much want to have my free will to work towards it than being coerced.

[Anastasia]

I'd want to see a clearly defined and eventually achievable goal rather than something vague, and I'd very much want to have my free will to work towards it than being coerced.

Okay, that would rule out being coerced by the fortress at the least.

[Corwin]

Much as I loathe Stargate Universe it's the execution that sucks. The basic idea has plenty of merit. There's an ancient ship that keeps on traveling on its own, and it makes periodic stops at various places. The people on it have the goals of surviving, trying to learn more about the ship to control it and of going home.

[Anastasia]

Much as I loathe Stargate Universe it's the execution that sucks. The basic idea has plenty of merit. There's an ancient ship that keeps on traveling on its own, and it makes periodic stops at various places. The people on it have the goals of surviving, trying to learn more about the ship to control it and of going home.

With a basic planar setting and mid-high levels, a simple traveling ship isn't going to keep the PCs from going home. They're gonna shrug and cast Plane Shift, find a portal or otherwise get their asses home. It would need a reason they're sticking with the ship.

[Ebiris]

Yeah, I don't really care to have some dude tell us to go be recruiters for his army. If it's something left to individual characters that happens to coincide - one wants to restore their homeland, another wants to kill whatever attacked it, another wants to figure out how the BBEG pulled it off, etc... that can all entwine together for us to be allies as we go forward while still allowing for disparate origins and concepts, and it gives us more to do than simply recruiting dudes. Gathering artifacts and sources of power, plumbing forgotten depths for ancient lore, all that stuff just as much as gathering allies to our cause.

[Anastasia]

Yeah, I don't really care to have some dude tell us to go be recruiters for his army. If it's something left to individual characters that happens to coincide - one wants to restore their homeland, another wants to kill whatever attacked it, another wants to figure out how the BBEG pulled it off, etc... that can all entwine together for us to be allies as we go forward while still allowing for disparate origins and concepts, and it gives us more to do than simply recruiting dudes. Gathering artifacts and sources of power, plumbing forgotten depths for ancient lore, all that stuff just as much as gathering allies to our cause.

Right. Whatever works for you guys for motivation. Are you thinking more of a Prime Material homeland or something more exotic in the planes?

[Anastasia]

If this is going to be a planar game, I'd like to encourage non-standard races. I'm thinking of banning raw humans and encourage you guys to take races with +1 to +3 LA or some such. Does the idea have traction at all?

Edit: If we use gestalt again this is admittedly a lot more manageable.

[Corwin]

Make planar travel 'lost magic' that only the ship and a select few have (and the ship is controlling on its own)? It's not like portals have to exist in every variant of D&D being run.  >_>

I think it would probably be better if there was a mutual goal for everyone. I'm thinking of Suiko V and 'save the princess, stop the villain' sounds like more fun to me than just banding together with others, because that's always assumed to be a temporary alliance until one of the disparate goals is achieved.

[Ebiris]

Could be anything I guess. With Suikoden yeah I was basically thinking of that sort of D&D prime style fantasy land, but that's just what I pictured not a necessity. Basically we all have a home, something terrible happens - it's conquered by an immortal godking dude, it's overrun with far realm monsters, horrible things from outer space land and enslave everyone, everyone is afflicted with some massive primal curse... whatever, it's a plot device to get us moving and ultimately aim to overcome.

[Ebiris]

Playing exotic races is cool, too.

[Anastasia]

Make planar travel 'lost magic' that only the ship and a select few have (and the ship is controlling on its own)? It's not like portals have to exist in every variant of D&D being run.  >_>

I admit that I'm thinking of the Balmuria multiverse here, doubly so since I asked you guys to list what you guys liked in the game. Having  Simmer as an NPC when you're in Fire, running into signs say Latha going by or whatever would be nice and build on what we've already done.

It's why I'm thinking more along the lines of a strong reason to go along with and stay with the fortress.

I think it would probably be better if there was a mutual goal for everyone. I'm thinking of Suiko V and 'save the princess, stop the villain' sounds like more fun to me than just banding together with others, because that's always assumed to be a temporary alliance until one of the disparate goals is achieved.

The exact motivations are up to you guys as long as they work and you guys band together well. It should be something consuming and inspiring, something you aren't going to leave behind or just view as a job.

[Ebiris]

I think it would probably be better if there was a mutual goal for everyone. I'm thinking of Suiko V and 'save the princess, stop the villain' sounds like more fun to me than just banding together with others, because that's always assumed to be a temporary alliance until one of the disparate goals is achieved.

Ideally that's what spending months/years adventuring together changes so that the cruel assassin who just wanted to kill the whatever that killed the only person he ever loved might actually care about furthering the goals of his new friends even after accomplishing that. As PCs we do have a tendency to work hard for each other's benefit after all.

[Corwin]

Dune: I don't really want to do this in the B multiverse. Gestalt would make it more fun. Races-wise, I'd like to play something savage species-style on one side of the build rather than have an ECL.

Eb: I'm somewhat skeptical of this but open to seeing it happen.

[Anastasia]

All of this obviously pends Merc and Yuth adding their own 2 cents. That said, what I'm tentatively looking at is:

Level 13-16, the exact level chosen by the PCs.

Gestalt.

Normal !rollchar.

All Balmuria 2 house rules roll over pending review.

Humans banned, nonstandard races encouraged. I'm thinking from the range of +1 to +4 LA, depending on the exact template or creature. I may frown at an elf, but a half celestial elf with an interesting story may get approved. Talk to me about concepts, I know enough to where I can help make an idea into a mechanical reality.

Aim for competent but not overpowered. I'd favor you guys using sorcerers and favored souls over clerics and wizards when possible.