Welcome to Arcanauts

I haven’t played D&D in quite sometime.  The last time I met with my old group was over a year ago before jobs and transferring to different schools ultimately put an end to our sessions.

Pfft.  Real life.

But in the last few months I teamed up with fellow Twentysiders from Shamus’ blog and, after much waiting and preparation, we have finally begun our own game last Saturday.  A group of eight people, in an original setting, with custom rules on a system most of haven’t played (most of us are 3.5-ers and we’re trying our hand at 4th Edition), over the internet.  Oh and did I mention it’s our game master’s first time, well, game mastering?

Mild sparring, roleplaying,

mystery and ghosts.

What are combat-heavy systems?

I DON’T EVEN KNOW.

 

Magical disasters,

runaway wizards,

doppelsgangers,

and lizard cows.

WELCOME TO ARCANAUTS!!!  😀

So who are, or what is, Arcanauts?  The short answer is to imagine The Lord of the Rings or some other “swords and sorcery” setting in outer space.  In a society where you have magic that can do practically everything, how would that society evolve?  What technology they have or not have?  Imagine a world where wizards are your scientists and engineers.  Ships, faster-than-light travel, and terraforming planets are all accomplished by magic.

Our DM has set up a blog for everything Arcanauts.  Setting info, mechanics, session logs, the works.  He’s turned out to be a really fantastic world builder!

Here’s the About page.  If you wish to meet the fellowship, look here.  My character is the noble dwarf warrior, Knostil, Son of Knare, Son of Schnauze, wielder of the great Durante, Lord of Dwarrownase!  Some of you may recognize that name from Middle-earth Network’s very own LotRO Quest.

The work and coordination put in by our DM is without a doubt equal parts excellence and insanity.  Said DM is a resident of New Zealand.  Our cleric (the dragonborn, Zasahl Melandro), is in the Netherlands, one of our Rogues, Lachlan, is in Australia, and the rest of us are, fortunately, in a fairly concentrated area in the United States.  Are meeting times are every Saturday/Sunday, depended which side of the globe you’re on.

• 9am Sunday (GMT+12) – Time Pyradox (DM)
• 4pm Saturday (GMT-5) – The Specktre (Knostril, Dwarf Fighter/me)
• 7am Sunday (GMT+10) – Ranneko (Lachlan, Human Rogue)
• 4pm Saturday (GMT-5) – Aldowyn (Aladraian, Eladrin Psion)
• 11pm Saturday (GMT+2) – Jarenth (Zasahl, Dragonborn Cleric)
• 4pm Saturday (GMT-5) – JPH (Julie, Halfing Rogue)
• 3pm Saturday (GMT-6) – Krellen (Cassie, Human Artificer)
• 4pm Saturday (GMT-5) – Desgardes (Crias, Watersoul Genasi Warden)

We use the virtual tabletop website Roll20.net.  To read a brief summary of the Arcanauts first session, read here.  Several months of preparation on the part of our DM went into this, and it’s very exciting to finally get the game rolling!  I can’t wait for the next session!

Knostril didn’t do much this session.  He, Cassie, and Julie, being residents of the colony, escorted the other player characters at the request of the Duchess until all of us were sent to save the “lizard cows”.  The afore mentioned confusion at the game start was that it wasn’t entirely clear what we were all suppose to be doing at first.  Fortunately, things got smoothed out fairly quickly.  It was a very role-play heavy session with lots of set-up for our first run as all our characters got to know each other in-game.