For Valor
Campaign Introduction
Themes
Primary theme: Heroism in the face of danger or moral decay; reclaiming noble intentions from a corrupt past.
Secondary themes will be tailored to the Player Characters.
Structure
Conflict
While most of Valor is safe and secure, monsters prowl in the more secluded areas, diplomacy between the free nations is always in flux, and the rot of the Raithar Empire still taints Valor's ancestry and the land itself.
Components
Hooks
The Player Characters are newly inducted to the Valorian Knights. Each may be drawn by something different: glory, wealth, honor, even necessity. Whatever brought them, they are now on the path that Valor Ascendant has set for them; their destinies await.
In the Hands of Fate
There will always be things out of the players' control, both for good and for ill. At the start of each day, a Greenreading may be taken to foretell the coming weather, portend chance encounters, and measure the party's fortune.
Stakes
Life, Limb, and Livelihood
The Player Characters are now pledged to the Valorian Temple and will need to answer for their actions to their Squadron Commander, the Wing Captain, the Flight Commander, and on up the chain of command. If they do well, they may be promoted to the aerial ranks and given gryphons of their own.
Heroes Wanted
Excellent role-playing or character moments may be rewarded by Hero Points. These can then be spent to do perform some heroic action not generally covered by the rules.
If they do poorly or act against the values of the knights, they may find themselves relegated to the dirty, dangerous, unpleasant missions that no one else wants to do.
Relations
Protagonists
The Player Characters
The knights recognize the value of varied skillsets and perspectives, so the only restriction on the histories of the Player Characters is that they must have been raised in Valor. The playable races for this campaign are human, faun, dogfolk, or goblin. See the Demographics section of the Valorian Knights article for information on the barriers that dogfolk and goblins may encounter.
(Sphinx and Naga are off-limits as Player Characters, both because there are few to no native Valorans of those species, and because they can't ride on gryphons.)
As rookie knights, the PCs have all been well trained in combat. All martial classes are available:
- Barbarian
- Fighter
- Monk
- Paladin
- Ranger
- Rogue
If a character has an animal companion, it must be one that will not impede their ability to travel by gryphon--essentially, it must be able to fly and/or be small and light enough to ride with the character.
Gryphon Mounts
If the characters are able to prove themselves as knights, they will be given gryphon mounts and trained in mounted combat. Though I will continue to refine the mechanics, I expect that these will be treated as Paladin mounts.
Don't Hurt the Kitties
For my own peace of mind if nothing else, gryphons will be semi-immortal in game. So long as their knight survives, a gryphon may be knocked unconscious or incapacitated, even severely wounded, but they will survive. This is meta-only, not to be taken for granted by the characters. While risks and consequences are necessary for heroism to be meaningful, I want to keep the costs in line with the tone of the game.
Neutrals/Bystanders
As Valorian Knights interact with people from all walks of life, the players can expect to meet characters in various positions of power, whether political or social. How they conduct themselves as knights will determine who becomes an ally or an enemy.
Campaign Spoiler- Holiday - Hunters Guild contact, expert tracker
- Aleyu Cormorant - Tea House proprietor, knows most of Albion
- Chance of Rain - Vice chair of the Astronomers Guild and most powerful wizard in Albion
Competitors
The players may well find themselves vying for favor and the best missions with other Wings of knights.
Backdrops
Locations
The Player Characters live in the barracks just withing the East gates of Albion and report to the The Valorian Temple. Albion is a bustling, vibrant location with all the amenities of a large city, including markets, craftspeople, and tea houses. While off-duty, the PCs will be able to explore and take advantage of these at will.
Headquarters
Organization
Mounts
Comments