RPGdonts

Most of my gaming over the last 30 years or so, has been playing Dungeons and Dragons 2E. Yes I know 2E was not perfect and had its problems but it worked well for our group and playing style. We had a larger than normal gaming group about 12 people total. Such large group made combat and RP take a little longer but over all I think it went better than expected. We would play every other week for about 8 to 12 hours at a time. The problem with 12 people in the group was that game days ended up a party with good friends than just game night. Let me tell you a little about the process we used and one of the best times I ever had playing a odd concept.
Typically we would start with the DM giving us an overview of the next campaign and what kind of party we should think about making. At this point we would brainstorm as a group on character concepts and back story’s. When that was done we would roll our stats using 4 sets of 4d6 tossing the lowest rolls. We would then pick the set best suited to how or what we wanted to play. A lot of the guys would pick odd concepts or sub-par stats just for roll play value. It always made for interesting campaigns and party interactions.

Concept Example: A apprentice mage who failed to grasp anything above cantrip (Lvl 0) and alike spells. He was then kicked out of mage guild to became a street Charlton Magician (Thief).

After the talking with the DM about concept ideas he would always have some “Bonuses” to add to our builds. His “Bonuses” where always a double edged sword and you always had to read the fine print before saying yes.

• This build would need to have minimum stats to become a mage and also a thief
• Did not have to Multi-class but -10%exp
• Must spend Skill points in both Thief/Mage skills only (Mage as 1.5 to 1)
• 3 times a day with successful spellcraft rolls I could cast 0 lvl spells
• Ability to use mage items with successful spellcraft checks. Failing a spellcraft check roll 1d10 on a chart for random effect

None of the “Bonuses” was a deal breaker to me since most would make for some great roll play material. I was also given 2 magic items, a wand of illusion with 20 charges along with a magic ring. This ring allowed me to telepathically communicate with my brother. (Who was a high level mage and my sponsor into the mage guild.) The ring would also allow my brother to take partial control of me allowing me/him to cast identify on our party’s items. This was going to be fun, I could us this knowledge to make some gold and help me the party. Using hindsight Getting the magic items was a real surprise since magic items never came up during my talk with our DM. With that said, I wasn’t going to turn down the “Gifts”.

I Knew playing a “Mage” who really was thief was going to have its ups and downs.
The Down side: Not allowing the party or Players at the table to know that I was really not a “Mage” was not going to be easy.

The Upside: As the only “Mage” in the party I got first pick of all the loot (It was a thief’s dream)
When we started this campaign everybody was level 1. As months and months of gaming sessions passed making it to level 6 or 7 my little secret was still safe but all of that was about to end. My downfall was my brother and the DMs cursed “Gifts” magic items. The wand was made so only he could recharge it and he did so at highly inflated prices. Remember that “Upside” we had talked about? Guess what I had to sell just to pay my brother? Yep all the really cool magic items I got first pick on. I ended up selling most just keeping my wand recharged and my secret safe but it was the ring that played the largest part in my fall from grace.

See our group was charged with defeating an evil necromancer who was trying to take the kingdom for his own. Every time we thought we had him trapped, he would always escape and stay one step ahead of us. This went on until some events happened and we were able put the puzzle together figuering out that the Evil Necromancer was really my brother. I then put two and two together and worked out my brother was using the ring to get our location and read my thoughts. It was at this point I knew I had to spill the beans in real life and in game and it was not going to be easy. Long story short after dropping the bomb for the rest of that night about every few minutes or so, you would hear someone at the table say “No F*cking way! I don’t believe it”

Playing in this gaming group I had some the best games, friends and times all rolled into one that I think I will ever have. the sad part of this story is our group went from playing every two weeks to just once, or if lucky twice a month. Then the day came when members started moving away never to be replaced. Lastly came the days when people just stopped trying to play or even talk to each other. Now slowly one by one I lost touch with my friends in the group and since then my gaming has been mostly nonexistent at best.

I have told you this story to give you a few words of advice. What ever your game of choice is take chances, have fun and enjoy the time with your friends. Try mixing it up a little with new games, don’t sell your soul to one edition or game. One last thing you should always remember “Beware a DM’s bearing gifts!” but don’t turn them down you might not have as much fun.