Session One

Episode 1 Premise

The travelers just so happen to be caught in the midst of the commotion when the melding begins again. The Player’s Characters or “PCs” will arrive around the same time and they all end up at the local tavern. The PCs may already be a mercenary group working together, friends or even complete strangers.

Introducing Players

Based on their character sheets and origins you can describe how each individual found their way to the tavern.

Perhaps you describe how the wizard came to study the portals and the energies they emit.

Or how the knight came to offer his services to the local lord.

If you prefer a less in depth narration style you can instead use broad strokes, such as “you all end up at the one tavern in town by nightfall”.

Once you have the scene set and your characters gathered, you can prompt the players to introduce themselves and describe their character’s appearance and demeanor. Make sure to ask probing questions like “How is your character dressed? Are they visibly armed? Is there an air of magic about them? Can other magic practitioners see their arcane aura?

Allow the PCs to mingle with the patrons and interact with each other as their characters for some time before initiating the attack. A good rule of thumb is to make sure each player has had a chance to interact with the scene before moving on to the next one. 

Attack

Initiate the attack; The tavern is surrounded and attacked by a roving band of fearsome pests being corralled by cultists. These cultists are part of a cult called “Pinnacle” that worships the strange portals of the Melding, and have gone mad peering too deeply into one of them.

Strange sounds can be heard outside and a sense of unease comes over the tavern. 

Place the pests tokens or map indicators on the exterior of the tavern and have them slowly come in each round until they are noticed by the player’s characters or the tavern owner. The players can detect the intrusion of the pests on a DC of 12. The Tavern owner can detect the pests on a DC of 14. Perception or Investigation are the skills required to detect the invading pests. If 6 or more pests gain entry into the tavern before being detected you may initiate an Ambush with the pests on the occupants of the tavern. The pests may use their full Actions, Movements and Motions prior to Initiative being rolled. 

The cultists shout “The portals are open! The time has come!”

Monster Placement

Place 3 Cultists and the following Pest Type Creatures: 1 Acid Ooze, 1 Flying Serpent, 1 Spikenode, 1 Spider Horde, 1 Faker, 1 Giant Rat, 1 Giant Snail and 1 Thistlemaw.

Once the Ambush is complete or the pests are detected it’s time to Roll Initiative. Instruct all players to roll 1d20 and add their Initiative Modifier(Most players will only add their Dexterity Modifier). Do the same for the Pests and add their listed Initiative Modifier to the Roll. Roll 1 Initiative for each type of Pest, not each individual pest. Collect all of the results and write them down in any order; You’re just trying to get all the numbers recorded at this point. Then you will arrange all of the initiative rolls from highest to lowest. The Character/Pest Type with the highest initiative acts first, followed by the next lowest and so on. Once each character/pest type has taken their turns in the initiative the round ends, a new one begins and another Round(5 seconds of time) passes. You may rule that the pests attempt to flee when they are outnumbered by the Player’s Characters. 

Example Initiative

1st Combat Tips

• Try not to focus all of your creature’s, their attacks and their damage on one character. Distribute the damage to as many PC’s in the combat as possible, as evenly as possible.
• If the players are struggling with the combat, consider attacking some of the nearby tavern patrons instead. This small shift can allow them to recuperate and embolden them to fight in protection of others.
• If one or more of the PCs is doing exceptionally well in combat, consider focusing your attacks on that PC, essentially ignoring the first tip given in this list.
• Try not to clump up too tightly when arranging your creatures on the map, instead placing creatures at least 1 meter away from other creatures whenever possible. This prevents excessive loss of life from Area Spells and Abilities the PCs might possess.
• Remember to use your monsters Traits and Abilities and their Movement. Don’t spend the whole fight clumped up in the middle of the map with all of your monsters ARP Points full. When you are going to use a basic attack, check to see if that creature has any more devastating options. Don’t save it for later, fights go quickly in this system and you may not have a chance to use it if you wait.

Continuing the Story

Should the PCs prevail, they should be recruited by a local Lady or Lord after their first encounter in the tavern.  

The local Lady / Lord can be any one of 10 personalities: The Warlord, The General, The Dark Market Dealer, The Forest Dweller, The Hood, The Baron, The Arcanist, The Producer, The Engineer or The Magistrate. 

They seek to earn renown by saving the city from the monsters of the melding and want to form a militia known as the Riftguard. A special task force hand selected to defeat the dangerous creatures that threaten Portaland.

After the conclusion of the tavern battle, the PCs will be tasked with defeating a series of monstrous creatures coming from the portals surrounding the city.

The Lady / Lord should try to appeal to each individual character’s morals when having them make a request for their aid. The addition of the title of Riftguard can also be granted at this time.

The Lady / Lord should remind any hesitant characters that they will be well compensated and, better yet, they will save the city; earning them a place in history. 

Furthermore, since the Melding has already begun, leaving town is almost as dangerous as staying, as monsters from the various dimensions prowl around the city in every direction. They are urged to do this not only for their own survival, but that of the defenseless citizens of the city as well. Their aid and that of anyone else willing to risk life and limb may be Portaland’s last hope.