Mr. Smith Goes to Wargate-ton!

Sunday the 1st of May, 2011 - Mr. Smith will be starting his first campaign here at the Wargate, so don't miss the festivities that night!  It's sure to be an awesome game, and I for one am so STOKED my head is about to pop right off my body.  He dropped us a line to go over the proceedings:

Palladium FRPG: Upon an Oaken Throne

     This is Smith and I will be taking you on an adventure in the Western Heartlands of Forgotten Realms. We begin at Castle Daggerdale where our heroes have been summoned before Members of The Harpers, Randal Morn, and Elminster himself. What drives the Zhents to their evil ends? What other forces are at work in The Dales? Throughout our adventure we will try to uncover threats and keep our homeland safe.

     We made characters over the last two weeks and I believe we have a very powerful, well rounded party. Some of you will find my style different from some GM's. I want to have fun and create an enjoyable experience for everyone. Any dispute in rules that cannot be easily resolved we will come to a common agreement to continue the adventure with minimal interuptions. Everyone will have thier turn and things like good ideas - even if unsuccesful - will help you gain levels in my game. Please try to be at Dave's and ready to go by 6 P.M. Sundays. Aside from any tabletop battles that may run long I would like to start by 6:30 to 7:00 and run until 10:00 to 10:30.

     Palladium is without a doubt my favorite RPG system. It has stood the test of time and is versitile and realistic. My adventures will be in depth and entertaining.  It has been 10 years since I last ran an adventure and I must it's been a long time coming. Over the summer I hope you enjoy my series of fantasy adventures and look forward to a Robotech adventure to follow for the fall and winter months.

Shawn will be hosting a fajita dinner tomorrow night for everyone involved, so if you're quick you might get to them before I do.  Many thanks to Mr. Smith for jamming out some adventures in the Forgotten Realms.  His enthusiasm is as high as ever, and his tenure as GM promises to be filled with plenty of awesome Palladium jazz.

As for me, I'd better be going to the hospital - I'm totally OVER STOKED at the moment!

Spirit Magic at the Draft Tournament!

We had a blast Thursday night out at Jerry's spot, where we decided to have our draft tournament.  Plenty of parking and room for notorious deck building and general plotting of Magic mayhem.

This tournament was crazy right from the get-go, as many folk weren't very familiar with the block, but we had a ton of fun.  When it came down to it, some of the more experienced players actually fared worse than the relative newcomers!  In fact, not a single player went home in defeat - everyone won at least a pack!  I think this is a clear sign that the club is beginning to benefit from the constant battle!

My friends are here to see you.

I was really pleased with how well we acclimated to the old format.  There were cries of "WTF?!" all over the place as players looked through the draft packs and discovered spells for the first time, often with abilities they didn't really know all the repercussions for.  The decks that took shape were surprising.

The big winner was Mark Mark, who totaled all three of his opponents (including me).  His Green / White deck was mostly mortal monks, backed  up by some powerful kami and support spells.  I drafted Blue, same as Matt - who deserves special mention as not only is he a newcomer to Magic, but it was also his first competitive tournament!

It was a grim and bloody day.

Everyone got at least one match, making this the first time all eight players drew from the prize pool!  That is, it was quite a balanced dust up,  with more than one awesome story for the books.  This has cemented our resolve to do these "backdrafts" - the next one is coming soon!

Our next draft will be New Phyrexia, at the Captain Video Invitational.  More on this soon.  For now, lets just say we plan to show our appreciation to our contributing members in a very real way, very soon.

Until then, keep your katana strapped and at the ready, and draw steel as soon as you reach the Wargate!

What Lies Below!?

The Darkmoon Vale

It is the Age of Lost Omens.

The old empire of Azlant has fallen beneath the ocean.  The god Aroden is dead, somehow destroyed on the eve of his deific return to the world over one hundred years ago.  Ruined civilizations dot the globe. In the lands that border the Inner Sea, a sense of exploration and discovery is driving civilization forward from the precipice of oblivion.

This is Golarion, the world of the Pathfinder Chronicles.

You will venture forth, into the Age of Lost Omens, to the continent of Avistan, in the country of Andoran, on the northern side of the Inner Sea.  There we find our group of intrepid heroes traveling through the land known as the Darkmoon Vale, where strange things are afoot.

Darkwood is a magical hardwood that is prized and rare.  It is something very important to the people of the Vale, and the Lumber Consortium whose influence is felt througout the entire area.  There are two towns of note: Olfden and Falcon's Hollow.  Olfden is a larger town, and Falcon's Hollow is a rustic backwater on the edge of the woods.

Numerous cutyards line the trees, and the Lumber Consortium estimates there may be twenty or so years before the entire forest has been destroyed.  However, a large number of factors are beginning to slow down production...  

Wide Overview

The Valers (natives of the Darkmoon Vale) divide the land into three areas:  the Uplands in the south, Lowlands in the middle and the Highlands in the north.  The most important part of the area is the Darkmoon Wood, which  is the largest concentration of the fabled darkwood in all of Andorhal.  It was once part of the Arthfell Forest, but the constant logging over years and years separated them by miles.

To the North, the Vale is bordered by the mighty Five King's Mountains, the ancestral home of the dwarfs.  Foothills in the Highlands border the Vale and Five King's and lead to the volcano called Droskar's Crag.  The volcano has been largely dormant for quite some time, but is always burning ash and steam whenever it is beheld upon the horizon.  To the South is the Elberwick Rise, a large, rising plateau upon which sits most of the Arthfell Forest.

Darkmoon Plain is the largest area of the Vale, and is also called the Lowlands.  The place is ridden with geological activity such as geysers, mudpots and other such events.  The activity happening below the earth near the volcano means that most of the events on the surface are irregular, but quite common.

The area's largest river, the Foam, is ridden with rapids, waterfalls and alligators.  There are but two fords and a single ferry (at Falcon's Hollow) to cross the foam, and no boat can negotiate the nasty rapids upon the tormented waters.  The area's waters are the main danger, but certain sorts of nasty creatures such as naga and other aquatic monstrosities see a golden opportunity for lairs in this area.

In the east, the Wolfrun Hills are made up of series of rocky, rolling rises that are topped with trees and rimmed with basalt.  There are tons of wildlife in the area, including pack animals such as the (you guessed it) wolves that plague the area.  The monster-ridden peaks of the Aspodell Mountains to the west mark the tenuous border between the kingdoms of Cheliax and Andoran. This mineral rich area is patrolled vigorously by the Aspodell Rangers, who work to clear out the beasts that infest the land.

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Bignutt's time as GM is over for now, but that doesn't mean the adventure is over!  

We'll be giving him a short break from the mad responsibilities of Game Mastering for the rabid gamers here at the Wargate, but what's happened to our brave adventurers?

We'll be picking this game back up when his time comes around again, and he's left us with a doozy of a cliffhanger!  When we begin anew, the game will pick up where we left off for several months of Pathfinder action!

Angbornh, Boris the Beautiful, Brother Mentok and the rest are beneath the ruins in the forest, searching for the remaining children.  The impression they have is not good - the children were to be sacrificed to the worthless and conniving god of the kobolds.  The party is strong, and it's members won't rest until they see justice done.


There are questions that need to be answered.  Why are the werewolves helping the kobolds?  Which evil god do the kobolds truly worship - could it truly be the dwarven god of toil and suffering?


Can our warriors act fast enough to prevent a tragedy, and perhaps avert a supernatural disaster?

Only time will tell!