Rule #2: Nothing you do should interfere with another players fun.
Rule #3: You must agree to open and honest communication without fear of repercussions. If there is a problem or a misunderstanding, we talk about it together as a group and like adults. You must also agree not to lash out at someone for speaking their mind and raising their concerns.
Rule #4: The Sourcebooks, then Sage Advice, then DooM, determine the rules. During the session, if there is time to look up the rule, we will. If there is a life-or-death scenario in progress, we will make time to look it up. Otherwise, DooM will decide and write down the topic to be researched later, after the session or during a break.
Rule #5: Bribing the DM will get you a lot. But not that.
Character Progression
Experience
Earning EXP – Players earn Experience in 3 ways. Progressing Main Quest, Side Quests and Killing Monster.
Progressing the story awards extra experience if players solve problems in unexpected and impressive ways.
Exploration of side quests can earn bonus experience after their completion. Each quest awards a fair amount based on how difficult it is. (This difficulty is based on challenge ratings and length.) There are three kinds of Side Quests: World, Fortress, and Character.
World: People need help in the kingdom and their problems are unrelated to the plot. Helping them earns rewards in experience and payment.
Fortress Quests improve your fortress and what it can offer you. These quests also award experience, but notably less than World or Character.
Character Quests are centered around the backstories of the player characters. These quests are available only after their character hook has been dropped. (A notable event) and may have sensitive timelines attached to them.
I have made a note in the campaign outline of suitable places to drop these quest hooks. Pursuing a character quest will never put the Main Plotline at risk.
Killing monsters earns experience as long as your character survives the first round of combat without dying. You must roll initiative for an encounter to award experience.
Chases do not count towards experience awards, despite initiative being rolled.
Milestones
Milestone progression would focus on the progression of the main Story and of the Character arcs. Playing this way will include multiple time skips that would otherwise be filled with the option to do Side Quests.
Level-up
PCs level up after a long rest in a safe location. This can be their fortress, a town, a magnificent mansion, or a tiny hut.
Leveling up (usually)requires a minimum of 24 hours of downtime
Multiclass Levels
In order to take a level in a new class characters must find someone who has at least 5 levels in that class to train them and spend 1 week in downtime training. After this 1st level, they may level up as normal.
Player, Behavior, Game Behavior & DM Expectations
Alcohol – I don’t care if players drink as long as they do not allow themselves to become too drunk to play. We are all adults, so pace yourselves. Please keep in mind that I am sober and don’t drink. I don’t have fun when those around me become drunk because it makes me uncomfortable.
Pot. Smoke up. But stay functional. That’s all I ask.
Cellphones & Digital Devices – Real life comes first. So, if your phone rings or you get a text reply, but let us know before you go, and if possible, avoid it during combat.
Player Attention – We are all sitting at our computers where distractions are everywhere. But try and stay focused. Taking notes helps me accomplish this and its why I do it. I suggest the same to you all. Truthfully however as long as you do not delay the game especially in combat. Being a little distracted is okay. However, don’t ask to be caught up when it comes to your turn to act or role play. That takes away from others, and it won’t happen. I’ll just skip over you until you’re ready to play. (I know that is a harsh way of putting it, but I tried to write that a few times and that’s the only way I could make sense of it)
Disruptive topics – We get together and play DnD to spend time with friends. Talk about whatever you want to. But when I call attention to the group so we can play, drop the topics. That’s what our breaks are for.
Unannounced dice rolls – Only roll the dice when prompted to do so. Tell me what you want to do, and I will call for the role. This gives my brain a few seconds to decide on the DC but also allows me to give my attention to one thing at a time and not split between players all trying to so something at the same time.
Dice rolls against one another - Dice rolls aren’t allowed to be used to settle in-character arguments. It is something that’s allowed sparingly, but only under the DM’s guidance, or only when prompted by the DM.
Player Vs Player – Never allowed. Don’t fucking try to kill one another. You can spar and have fun and role play in character. But settle things with words and not violence or petty game decisions. Magical interstellar space Githyanki Police will arrest your characters and place them in a zoo as a display for your specific species.
PC Secrets - Are players allowed to keep in-game secrets from other players? - YES! Especially if they are related to backstory. Does not apply to DM.
Expectations, Types, Goals & Diversity
I expect each player to make an honest attempt to be a part of the role-play aspect of the game. I don’t want any, I’m just here to kill shit players, and murderhobos and all that jazz.
Your characters must have their own motivations and drives but must also prioritize the progression of the plot. You are a team working together. Make it work.
Player Discomfort – We may agree to something in Session 0 that when it plays out in game either isn’t working or is something that was not okay, but the player didn’t know that when they agreed. In such a case we refer to Rule #3.
Player Agency – Your characters are your own. Your ability to solve problems is your own. You can retire a character any time you want to and bring them back anytime you want to. You play your character however the hell you want to, provided it is in line with the rules established in this session 0 document.
Game Balance & Fairness - The world is alive. There are parts of it you should not venture into until you are ready. Though the main storyline and side quests will be tailored to you, with fair challenges and rewards. The rest of the world is not. If you decide to travel into the mountains where an Ancient Red Dragon resides, he isn’t going to take kindly to it, and he has an ample supply of ketchup.
Spotlight Sharing – Everyone, every session should get their 15 minutes in the spotlight. (Not an actual 15-minute mind you.) If you have been the showrunner for a bit, consider taking a step back. I will also try to direct the focus around the table, so everyone gets a chance. But I am not perfect.
Meta-knowledge
Monsters: Some things are considered to be so widely known that everyone knows it. Some people may even argue it. But words gets around. Troll don’t like fire. Vampires hate garlic. People swallow ten spiders in their lifetime while sleeping. Flies only live 24 hours, and zombies can eat you without teeth and can survive having their heads chopped off. If you aren’t sure ask.
Other Players: If the rogue rolls low to sneak that doesn’t give you the option to suddenly roll to see them do it because you know they had a low role. If the historian botches a history check, don’t ask to roll because you know it was a natural one. If you want to roll for something decide before others roll and you see the results. If the roll fails, we move on without that history check. You’ll have to find the information somewhere else. This rule applies everywhere not just in these examples.
MinMaxing – I don’t like optimized characters. I don’t like characters who can do it all and always succeeds at everything they do. I don’t like the unkillable badass who absorbs damage like a sponge. Real people have flaws and areas where others shine brighter than them. So should the characters. You can optimize your characters, but it has to make sense. Sorcerer Paladin so you can constantly have spell slots for smites is not fun. Sorcerer born into a highly superstitious family who sent him to live in a monastery as an acolyte where he learned to serve his goddess and became a devout worshipper only to have his powers awaken after his training and send him on a path of adventure to quell the raging tide of power within him. Cool as fuck.
Character Party fit - That 'loner' character, the edge lord in the corner. HE’S MY NPC, YOU CAN’T BE HIM/HER/THEM. This is a social game. You can be the strong silent type but be an active member of the team. You can even be the goth emo kid who your mom told you to be nice to, as long as you are a part of the team and participate in more than just combat on your turn or running off to do your own thing.
Murder Hobos – If I put your characters at an unfair disadvantage on purpose without talking to you about it first, and then had my NPCs rob you for your gear and money or be killed you would call me an unfair DM. My shopkeepers, my guards, my lords and ladies, my peasants and farmers and beggars and children are all my characters. Treat them like you want me to treat your characters.
The DM
This may be a review for most of you. But some of you have never played under my DM style.
DM Style – This is a Homebrew Setting with homebrew rules specific to it. (Covered later). I like to keep things in the realm of reality while still enjoying the fantastical. I want you to think out of the box and do crazy things and I will let you try. (I once had a group that launched their Dwarven monk via catapult onto the back of a dragon so he could grapple its wings and ground it for battle.) But some things just can’t be done. If I think it is within the realm of possibility, however unlikely I will let you roll for it. But somethings I will simply say there is no way that would work. If it is something that might or definitely will kill you, I will ask you. “Are you sure you want to do that?” It’ll be your only warning.
Player Absences – Rule #1. But let me know as soon as you can. If we have absences that is okay. But if we can’t get at least 3 players, I won’t feel comfortable running the game that day. Instead, we might do a one-shot or play some other games like jackbox or whatever. We meet at a regular time on Saturdays (Sundays if you are Australian) so try and keep that day open.
Partners and Spouses/Family Responsibilities. These fall under rule #1 but try and have a conversation with them letting them know that you have a standing weekly commitment to some friends. Ask them for advance notice so that when stuff comes up, you can give notice to the group. That’s all I ask.
Player Narrative Authority – Much of this world is a blank canvas. Major Cities have been detailed, but many of the smaller towns have not. Where are you from? No, really, where? I need to write it down. I want players to each to leave their own footprints in the world. Some of you have already contributed to it as I write this, and I hope that all of you will have done so by the end of the game.
DooM's Pet Peaves
Turning down in-game music. Or listening to your own music while mine is playing. I have downloaded several albums and paid for them all. Yes, I paid for them. I then listened to every track and sorted them into playlists to help create an emotion or mood in the game. I don’t care if you turn it to a comfortable listening level but please don’t turn it off and just ignore it. It is one of the tools I use to keep your attention. If you would rather listen to something else I assume you’d rather be doing something else.
Telling someone else how to play their characters. This really bothers me. Some people like damage and others like to try and play support characters. Some people might want to keep their magic a secret in character. So they won't use a spell until they trust the party. You can ask and seek understanding for choices someone makes, but don’t tell them they are doing it wrong or suggest a different way to do it. Lastly don’t ever make someone feel bad about a choice they made. If the Wizard didn’t take Fireball, so what? Who cares? It isn’t your character.
Ethic Concerns & Topics
Preface
This part will cover mature topics which may or may not trigger people, it is not my intention to do so. This is in fact here to avoid accidentally triggering players, by bringing these out in the session-0 discussion. They can be discussed and should be discussed in a mature respectful manner.
Gender – Gender is fluid in this setting. Men and Women are treated equally. A rowdy barman might still try and swat at the barmaid's bottom as she passes by, but she’s just as likely to break his front tooth in with the beer mug. Stereotypes do exist, but there is no gender role at play, except in Royal Families, where the firstborn Male inherits the throne. It is however seen as tradition and was not instituted as a way to control women as it was in the real world. There is no stigma about gender in the setting. You can be him or her or it or whatever pronouns you choose. However, players will mess it up, and we will forget, and it will happen a lot. So, let’s not try and correct each other at every turn. It’s a new concept for some people, myself as DM included.
Attraction & Sexual Orientation – Love is love sex is sex. Monogamy applies solely to marriages in Royal Families, and even then polyamorous or open relationships exist. The King and Queen might be married but it's not considered uncouth for them to stray from the marriage bed. Long as everything is kept honest. Nobody cares who is doing whom. This setting has never known any restrictions on who can love one another. There is no sexual stigma (related to gender/sex) here.
Rape, Sexual Assault – Everything I said above goes out the window for rape or bestiality (not furry stuff). That brings the Interstellar Githyanki I mentioned earlier, and your ass is kicked out of the game.
Racism, Prejudice – Okay, this exists but is limited to specific areas. Half-Orcs, Tieflings, and Dragonborn. While racism and prejudice exist, there is no discrimination present. Someone might not like Half-Orcs or be wary of them, but they don’t have "no orcs allowed" signs and so on.
Half-Orcs were recently legally accepted as people (this is specific to Tal'Erich). Because of their heritage and the fact that Orcs are an evil race without question. (For setting reasons you literally cannot play an Orc because they are all evil) Half-Orcs however have been the source of stigma for years. Debates on whether or not they were free of the powers that make Orcs evil have recently been ended, and they were found to be equal to the other civilized races. That being said, they are still occasionally treated with disrespect.
Tieflings are descended from fiends. It wouldn’t make sense for them to be completely trusted. Stigma once again with this race. They often live in the slums of town however and struggle to make ends meet through legal methods.
Dragonborn prejudice is limited to Stonemire, a human capital long at war with neighboring dragons. The Dragonborn people are not in league with the dragons directly except on individual bases, but much like the Orcs, Dragons are seen as evil, and Dragonborn are therefore given a wide berth.
Slavery – Okay so slavery does exist, but only the evil bad monster races do it. Go and find them and kill them. Yeah. Civilized people don’t do it. But like Lizard Folk and Yuan-ti do…. I mean they see humans and elves and pretty much everyone else as food though, not as people. So there’s that.
General Mechanic Homebrew Rules
Healing Potions: Players can choose to use either a bonus action or an action to take a healing potion. Taking the bonus action causes the potion to function as written, healing a rolled amount based on the potion type. However, taking a healing potion as an action heals for the total possible amount.
Rise from prone: 10 feet instead of half.
Condition Drunk: Advantage against fear effects, Disadvantage on ability checks and saving throws. Can be removed by any ability, spell, or effect that neutralizes poison. Once removed, grants the Hungover condition.
Condition Hungover: As poisoned condition but fades after 1d4 hours. Cannot be dispelled or cured non-magically
Natural 1 on an attack roll: Provokes an attack of opportunity from each creature adjacent to you. This AOO does not cost a reaction.
Inspiration
Snacks – If you Doordash/Uber/Postmates me some food you will totally get inspiration and probably more than that as I am easily bribed.
Gaining Inspiration – You can earn inspiration for being honest about making a mistake on something, (i.e forgetting that you had used a resource once already) By acting in character even to your detriment, by bringing joy to the whole group through an in-game interaction and by helping other players with things, especially those trying to learn the game.
Tracking Inspiration – Track your own inspiration and be honest. Each player gets a max of two inspiration points at a time. These never expire.
Spending Inspiration – You can use inspiration to re-roll your D20 roll after you’ve seen the roll, or to give yourself Advantage on a roll.
Advantage, Disadvantage & Ability Checks
Stacking – Positives and negatives from the same source type do not stack. As per RAW. This means that you don’t get a double advantage and the disadvantage cancels the advantage.
Temporary Hit Point value takes the highest amount granted, not the most recent. If you have 4 and you later get granted 3, then you have 4.
Giving Aid – If you want to "Help" a player with a Skill check you must be proficient in the skill thus granting Advantage.
Multiple Attempts – You can make multiple attempts on a skill check, provided that there is no immediate threat in doing so. However, if you fail a check by 5 or more, there will likely be a consequence that removes the option for a skill check. A rogues lockpick might break off in the lock, rendering unlocking the door impossible for example. Though this doesn’t stop you from breaking it down instead.
Crits
Critical Hits – Foundry handles this for us. But in short, roll twice as many dice and add them together.
Critical Fumbles – Rolling a 1 is only considered a fumble on an attack roll and provokes an attack of opportunity from any adjacent enemy. This rule applies to players and enemies.
Critical Success – Natural 20 on attack rolls are automatic hits and critical hits. 20’s on a skill check do not automatically succeed, failure does not incur any penalties. For example, a natural 20 to disarm a trap that isn’t high enough to succeed doesn’t instead set it off.
Sneaky
Stealth – You can hide and move provided you start and finish your move behind cover. Or in shadows, or something. You can’t hide in plain sight - unless you have that feature. When you hide in combat enemies that know where you were get advantage to try and find you if you haven’t moved afterward. So I suggest rogues that you move after your bonus action to another hiding spot.
Unseen Attacker – The attacker is unseen if it’s stealth check was higher than the passive perception of the intended target. If the stealth check was lower than passive perception, even if the target failed their active perception check, they are considered on alert. In either case as long as the target has not actively seen the attacker the attack has advantage.
Hidden/Hide Action – If a character uses its stealth skill to hide behind cover and their stealth check is higher than the passive perception of a seeker, they are considered hidden. If the passive perception of the seeker is higher than the stealth check of the character, they will be given an active perception check to find the character against the original stealth check.
Invisibility – RAW you are impossible to detect without the aid of magic or a special sense and you can be detected by tracks you leave or sounds you make. Attack rolls against you have disadvantage and your attack rolls have advantage.
Traps – Traps exist, some I make up and some are taken from other adventures and experiences. Some are from the books, and some aren’t. You can disable traps after you find them, not before. Investigation checks allow you to find traps. Though perception checks might help you see something that is out of place.
NPCs/Creatures
Group Initiatives – Each creature that enters combat rolls its own Initiative unless specified in its description.
Vendors - Most NPCs vendors will sell items for a price based on supply and demand. If there is only one health potion it will cost more than it would in another shop or town.
Other Creature rules
Mind Control: Creatures that charm you or dominate you such as vampires will give you a command, it's up to you as the player to interpret that command. Other than direct mind control puppeteering, you will be in control of your character's rolls. This doesn’t apply to possession, however.
Loss of Body parts: If you think it would be cool for your character to lose an eye or something tell me. I’m not going to decide that for you and start chopping off limbs. It takes away player agency and can change your vision of the character. Which I don’t want to do.
Lycanthropy (All Forms)
This one is a struggle. There are ways to remove the curse in game through temple services, but they may charge a fee. If you become a lycanthrope (any form) we will play using the following rules.
Fighting the Curse: Your alignment does not change, and you retain your character. The curse can be removed at any time, but you may have a few instances where you transform and lose control if you can’t afford it right away.
Embracing the Curse (Evil Alignment Forms): Your alignment shifts, as you lose yourself to the curse. Your character becomes an NPC under my control, who can be saved later. However, having given over to the curse those trying to save you will have to undergo a special ritual to change you back.
Magic Items
Attunement/Identify – The player must use Identify to learn the properties of a magic item. Identify does not work on legendary items or artifacts. Identify does not reveal the presence of curses unless cast using a spell slot of a level above first. The spell slot level required depends on the curse. This works similarly to dispelling magic.
Magic Resize – Magical armor, trinkets, and the like change size to accommodate their wearers after they have been attuned.
Other magic item rules
Magic items can be destroyed. Sometimes it is easier than other times. Sometimes it can cause bad things to happen. Fire for example. This isn’t always the case but it's often thought best to just not try to destroy magic things.
Spells & Spell Effects
Additional/Customized spells – Published spells are allowed, but for sources like Ravnica or Eberron check with me first.
Spells Vs Environments – Fire spells don’t work underwater or where there is no oxygen, and ice will melt in fire. Though conjured by magic unless the spell description says to, elemental magics act as normal in environmental situations.
Spell Abuse – Spells work the way they are written, and while you can get creative, they must stay within the confines of the spell. Using Biggby’s hand to dig a grave for example makes perfect sense. Using Biggby’s hand to wield a sword isn’t what it was intended to do, so it wouldn’t work. Either find the spell that does what you want or makes it up and I’ll look at it.
Spell Casting & Material Components – I’m pretty lenient here. If it costs money, you need to have it. If you invest in a spell focus, then you can compare the cost of your focus to the cost of the spell component. If the focus is worth more than the component, you can use the spell without the component. However, any spell that consumes its component requires that specific component.
Death, Resurrection, Resting
Death – You can only die by the rules as written. There are little to no instant death effects in my games. When they happen, they are rare and typically pertinent to the quest line you are on. If a character dies, we will use Matt Mercer’s resurrection rules to determine if they are able to be saved.
Unconsciousness: Unconsciousness in combat just translates to being out of the fight. When you have the Unconscious condition in combat you are not technically unconscious in that you are aware of the world around you if you choose to be. (You might decide that you DID get hit that hard and pass out for example) Aside from this RP change Unconsciousness still functions the same way as RAW.
Last Words: Should you fail a third death saving throw or one of those bastard orcs keeps shooting you with arrows while you try and buy the hobbi-----I mean halflings time to escape and you die, then you are out of the fight and treated as dead. Once combat is over Aragor- I mean the ranger can run over and you can deliver your last words as you reestablish your friendship and make the other players cry. Then, and only then do you die. Revivify still works on you in combat, and resurrection spells work right away after your last words if you choose to take them. If you get the chance to say some last words to someone, and they participate in your resurrection ritual, then they have advantage on any checks they make to bring you back.
Resurrection – Dying is exhausting. When you come back from death you will need to recover. You will have 5 points of exhaustion on the day you are revived (2 if revivify was used) that go away one at a time after a long rest. You can still act and do downtime activities that are considered light activities during regular hours.
NPC Death Rules - Players get to come back over and over again until they fail their resurrection check. NPCs can only be revived 1 time. They have weaker souls than players.
Resting Rules - RAW
Mercer's Death Rules
The spirit must be willing to be resurrected. Ex: A PC who killed himself/herself intentionally might not be willing to come back from Limbo.
If a character is dead, and resurrection is attempted by a spell or spell effect, with longer than 1 action casting time, a resurrection challenge is initiated.
Up to 3 members of the party can offer to contribute to the ritual via a contribution skill check.
The DM asks each of them to make a skill check based on the form of their contribution.
With the DC of the check adjusted to how helpful/impactful the DM feels the contribution would be.
After all the contributions are completed, the DM then rolls a SINGLE, FINAL resurrection success check with NO MODIFIER.
The BASE DC for the final resurrection check is 10, increasing by 1 for each previous successful resurrection that the PC has undergone (signifying the slow erosion of the soul's connection to the material world).
For each successful contribution skill check, this DC is decreased by 3, whereas each failed contribution skill check increases the DC by 1.
Players must keep track of how many times they have been brought back if they have been resurrected, increasing the BASE DC of the resurrection check.