Submitting a Character: Basic Sheet
The Basic PC sheet is available through e-mail (that's fradventures@yahoo.com ) or in the Files section of the Groups page. I'll send it to you if you're not sure about signing up for mail just yet.You will need a word processing program that can handle .rtf file extensions to fill it out; if you don't have one, I'd happily recommend downloading Atlantis Nova, a freeware Windows program that takes up very little hard drive space. I use it myself, and have never had a problem.
If you open the file, you'll notice it leaves out a lot of important game information, including equipment, skills, feats and the like. For now these details are left to the final Advanced sheet, which I will e-mail to you once the character is approved and which has a Web page of its own (look for that under 'Advanced').
The only reason I've complicated things like this is to avoid having players do a lot of unnecessary work on PCs I'm not going to admit into the game (because they do not, for whatever reason, meet my minimum requirements for inclusion). At this stage, at least, I am most interested in finding people who can demonstrate a reasonable proficiency with English and a solid grasp of the genre; the clever apportioning of skill points can wait a bit.
You might be wondering why there is no place for your character's alignment on the sheet. This was done on purpose. I think alignments are only a really useful gaming idea when it comes to figuring out how to NPC monsters and such; in real life you hardly ever run into people who follow a strict or uncomplicated set of moral-ethical values. I'd much rather see you develop your character's unique politics, philosophy and personality in the 'Personality' section of the sheet than just hold you to a petty, predetermined code. Besides, I can usually figure out your PC's rough alignment just by reading about him...
Clerics ought to keep in mind, though, that their deity will have his own set of standards of behavior, and that breaking these rules will get them into trouble. And everybody should remember that I'm not looking for PCs (or players) who are out-and-out evil, or who invariably hack things to pieces rather than talk to them. Hacking things is okay, but who does it every time?
If you have WotC supplements you want to use beyond the Player's Handbook and the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, by all means do so. I don't allow Savage Species or psionics, but everything else is fair game; just be sure to make clear notes (i.e., the name and page number) so I can figure out how to judge the submission.
The following are instructions for filling out your sheet, with a few additional explanations of what I'm looking for. A lot of help can be found just by clicking on the online reference links I've scattered around the site, especially the stuff relating to the Realms and medieval history. And, as always, you should contact me if you need help (or an idea).
Once your sheet is finished, please send it in to fradventures@yahoo.com with a 'PC Sub' in the subject line. You can include a picture (.jpg or gif) of your character if you want, or a link to one on the 'net. And feel free to introduce yourself a bit! I look forward to meeting you!
Stats. You have 74 points to spend on the six stats (Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis and Cha). Use them as you like to formulate scores between 3 and 18. Since we use a point system instead of a random roll system, demihuman stat modifiers are replaced by demihuman stat requirements. In other words, if you want to play a non-human, you will need to spend a certain number of points on some attributes. These are as follows:
Demihuman races are discussed in detail in the FR Campaign Setting, but I've never really like them much, especially the elves (giant hands? blue skin? why?), so instead I'm partially reverting them back to the way they were described in 2nd edition AD&D's Complete Handbook series. Those of you in the know will remember these supplements as kicking complete ass, and anybody who has copies is free to grab ideas from them. For those of you without, I will set out the most important details.
Dwarves come in hill, mountain, and gully varieties. For the purposes of Arabel, dwarves will most likely be considered of the hill subtype, and in every respect resemble the entry set forth by the PHB. Dwarven women do not normally have beards in FRA, since nobody wants to play a girl with a beard. (Why was this ever a rule in the first place? Tolkien isn't going to sue anybody.)
Halflings can be hairfoot, stout, or tallfellow, with hairfoot by far the most common and also most resembling the PHB version. Stouts are slightly more dwarf-ish, and tallfellows slightly more elf-ish, but other than that don't vary much from the standard.
Elves can be grey, high, sylvan and grugach subtypes, which roughly correspond to Faerun's Sun, Moon, Wood and Wild elf varieties. The most common is the high elf or Moon elf, which fits the characteristics laid out for 'elf' in the PHB and should in every case be the player's choice for their PC. In FRA elves are not as tall as humans, and look a lot like the elves painted by Larry Elmore (in other words, they look like small, slender humans with terrific skin, and not like tall anime characters or something out of the X-Files).
Gnomes can be either forest or rock subtypes, with forest gnomes the norm in Cormyr. Forest gnomes are slimmer and darker than their mountainous breathren, and also a little more shy. They do not always have giant noses or funny clothes, though many do.
As stated previously, humans are easily the most common species in Cormyr, followed by halflings, dwarves, elves, gnomes and half-elves, in that order. Arabellan humans get along pretty well with demihumans, since the merchant traffic is pretty heavy and tolerance has become a requirement for peaceful trade. Keeping that in mind, I don't want more than two or three demihumans in the group, since none of them (with the exception of hairfoot halflings) are particularly overenthusiastic about living near the Big Folk, much less adventuring with them, and in any case elves and dwarves never seem to get along very well.
Class. All classes from the PHB are acceptable, including NPC classes -- except for Barbarian (since Cormyr doesn't have any). Everybody starts at 1st level, so I don't think we have to worry about Prestige classes yet. Pay special attention to the way classes are described in your FR Campaign Setting!
Since FRA is so stubbornly low-magic, Realms folk are most likely to be plain old fighters, rogues, experts and warriors than anything else. There are some points I ought to make about the region, however, and the kinds of adventurers it produces:
Clerics in Arabel are most commonly Tymoran, though Chaunteans, Selunites, and Lathanderians are also frequent guests of the city and maintain small chapels there as well. A few other good Powers have shrines scattered around, but in general these are attended only by a priest or two, and aren't important enough to produce adventurous acolytes. Demihumans have no large churches, but hold services in the homes of prominent community members, and maintain priests within the family. Druids are very rare given Arabel's pro-development business climate, so you'll have to get pretty creative in your background to play one.
Wizards must specialize in a school, though Sorcerers don't have to. There are all sorts of magic-users living quietly in Arabel, so don't worry too much about making up an appropriate teacher in your background.
Paladins in Arabel are usually Selunite or Lathanderian. Tymora is too loose a deity to need them, really, and Chauntea is too gentle.
You can use any obscure supplemental class kit you want (except for the miniatures stuff, because I don't have it), as long as you also identify where you're taking it from. I may need to consult with you a bit on this if I have trouble finding it, or if it demands too much adjustment on my part. Again, barbarians and the like don't fit with Cormyr, so try to keep your choices civilized. :)
Concept. This should be a nice one- or two-sentence description of your character that can boil down her most important qualities. It doesn't need to be terribly complex; "A shy and uncoordinated young cleric of Chauntea," for example, would suffice. This is for the Cast page, and will help me assemble a suitably balanced party.
Age. Your PC doesn't have to be young, but since she's just starting out, you'll need to come up with some good reason why an older character has decided to take up the adventurer's mantle. You'll also want to devote a little more thought to how you'll be spending your skill points, since I'm asking that skills be accounted for in the background.
Appearance. Please describe how your PC would look to the casual onlooker in as much detail as possible, including how they dress, how they carry themselves, their mannerisms, usual expression and so on. Some attention should be paid to realism, here; fabulous haircuts aren't normally found on medieval peasants, and 1st level characters aren't usually all that intimidating (anyway, they shouldn't be). Cormyreans have perhaps better and more fashion options than your average Faerunian, and are generally more hygenic, but don't go crazy (unless you're an elf and impossible to muss!).
Personality. Please describe not only your PC's disposition but also his or her quirks, fears, politics, personal habits, or anything else you can think of that will help us understand their motivation for adventuring. Try to stay away from characters with evil tendencies, or are incapable of working with others effectively, since they won't fit in with the others; psychopaths, power-mongers, and lawless antiheroes may make up the majority of people on the road, but remember that you're supposed to be a good guy (and likable). If you insist on making a naive or mustachioed scoundrel or something like that, try to avoid the kind that constantly harrasses women or insulting other party members, since trolls like to eat them especially (at least in my Realms they do!). Thanks.
Remember that to some degree I will use this in place of a regular alignment entry when handling XP and determining whether or not you are keeping in character
Background. This is probably the single most important entry on your sheet, since even more than your PC's physical or psychological description it will help me assess your writing (and role-playing) abilities. Backgrounds can be as long as a page or so, and should be written in narrative or serial style; in other words, you can write it as a life story or as a post demonstrating who your character is and where she comes from.
In writing your background, pay some mind to what kind of skills and feats you would choose in the event that your sheet is approved. I would like to know not only what they have learned but how and from whom they learned it -- and why. Feel free to make up whatever supporting characters, including friends, family members, patrons, allies, or enemies you like; doing so will help me understand where the PC is coming from and where he is going. I may need to adjust some of these details in the event that they greatly depart from historical possibilities available to citizens of Cormyr, or of Arabel.
Remember that Gondegal was Lord of the city only five years ago, and that a lot of people suffered under his eventful (if very brief) rule, including in particular noble families who remained supportive of Azoun. This is not to say that I require your PC to feature a recent history including various horrors, i.e. rape, murder, robbery, etc. or that PCs who have suffered some of these indignities are more interesting or appropriate than ones with relatively positive, benign, or even functional lives and histories; on the contrary, if too many people send me war orphans or torture victims I will probably go ahead and commit DM suicide. That said, even comfortable middle-class artisans suffered more in medieval times than they do now (or did even a hundred years ago), and things like formal education, endless good health, and social welfare can be very difficult to come by, even in cosmopolitan kingdoms like Cormyr.
Also remember that if your character is beginning at the very start of the game, he or she should have some connection -- no matter how distant -- to Elmdaerle sufficient enough to warrant a summons to the Smoky Skull. Elmdaerle is a bespectacled old scholar and elected Guildmaster of the Society of Naturalists, and enjoys a good reputation among the research community of several Cormyrean cities, including Suzail. He has done some limited study of magic (not nearly enough to warrant an apprentice) but his chief claim to fame lies in the study of plants and animals, especially (though not limited to) the species native to the Forest Kingdom. He sets great store on learning and proper science, and is likely to have contacts among the more respectable wizards, nobles and merchants of Arabel, up to and including Aldolphus the Sage, a close personal friend of Azoun.
PCs can know Elmdaerle through any number of circumstances, including family friendship, services rendered (he is very interested in herbology and medicinal plant life, and frequently prescribes herbal treatments himself or makes recommendations to the city's religious communities), employment (adventurers, particularly rangers and rogues, are sometimes hired by the old man to find and/or acquire rare or unusual plants or creatures), social circles (Elmdaerle is unusually outgoing for a scholar, and enjoys interacting with important political, economic and social figures), or perhaps just mere happenstance. He is easy to talk to, gets along well with young people, and is often willing to tutor the promising but disadvantaged student in subjects as divers as healing, languages, wilderness lore, natural history, or gnomish culture (which he is very interested in). PCs can even be related to Elmdaerle somehow, if there is no other way to link with him.
He has called a few of these young folk together -- in the midst of winter, no less -- to discuss the possibility of a business arrangement. This arrangement, of course, will certainly involve a significant amount of travel and, furthermore, a low probability of violence (at least, he hopes so), and he will have assured all the PCs that they will be accorded fair and just compensation for all services rendered. The details will be presented at the meeting, after which the PCs can choose to take him up on the offer or pursue other avenues of interest.
While we're on the subject of choices, try to include some information that will clarify for me what your PC's life goals and future plans entail. This kind of thing is vital to the organization of a long-term campaign, since without it I can not make the kinds of plot adjustments and options necessary to realistically keeping the character's interest. As an anecdote, I remember joining a Greyhawk campaign last year and trying to run a cleric PC in it who was extremely devoted to the God of Justice. She was a fun character, but it soon became clear that the party was only really interested in crawling obscure dungeons, and that this cleric was going to have a hard time drumming up the party's support for missions offering any greater or farther-reaching social importance. She did not fit in with the style and substance of the campaign, and should never have gotten involved in it. It was particularly painful because the DM was a terrific writer and supportive of undertaking a larger narrative.
I bring this up as an illustration of how games eventually go wrong if, for whatever reason, the DM is unable to shape the campaign around the players. I want my adventurers to fit together as well as possible, with individual strengths and weaknesses balancing each other, and with characters who do not just stumble through every job offered to them. While great big Dragonlance-style stories are sort of impossible to conduct in pbem, given the occasional disappearance or frustrating inactivity of important group members (including the DM), it doesn't seem unlikely that at one point or another I will try to pull events in the direction of a particular character or include elements of a character's background into the story. I find this a much more satisfying way of conducting D&D than just running you all through module X and hoping it'll make sense to include everybody. Often it will not make sense, and I hope you all make real, democratic choices in that case instead of just following whatever dumb path I set down in front of you. Keep me guessing! I certainly intend to do the same to you!
The Basic PC sheet is available through e-mail (that's fradventures@yahoo.com ) or in the Files section of the Groups page. I'll send it to you if you're not sure about signing up for mail just yet.You will need a word processing program that can handle .rtf file extensions to fill it out; if you don't have one, I'd happily recommend downloading Atlantis Nova, a freeware Windows program that takes up very little hard drive space. I use it myself, and have never had a problem.
If you open the file, you'll notice it leaves out a lot of important game information, including equipment, skills, feats and the like. For now these details are left to the final Advanced sheet, which I will e-mail to you once the character is approved and which has a Web page of its own (look for that under 'Advanced').
The only reason I've complicated things like this is to avoid having players do a lot of unnecessary work on PCs I'm not going to admit into the game (because they do not, for whatever reason, meet my minimum requirements for inclusion). At this stage, at least, I am most interested in finding people who can demonstrate a reasonable proficiency with English and a solid grasp of the genre; the clever apportioning of skill points can wait a bit.
You might be wondering why there is no place for your character's alignment on the sheet. This was done on purpose. I think alignments are only a really useful gaming idea when it comes to figuring out how to NPC monsters and such; in real life you hardly ever run into people who follow a strict or uncomplicated set of moral-ethical values. I'd much rather see you develop your character's unique politics, philosophy and personality in the 'Personality' section of the sheet than just hold you to a petty, predetermined code. Besides, I can usually figure out your PC's rough alignment just by reading about him...
Clerics ought to keep in mind, though, that their deity will have his own set of standards of behavior, and that breaking these rules will get them into trouble. And everybody should remember that I'm not looking for PCs (or players) who are out-and-out evil, or who invariably hack things to pieces rather than talk to them. Hacking things is okay, but who does it every time?
If you have WotC supplements you want to use beyond the Player's Handbook and the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, by all means do so. I don't allow Savage Species or psionics, but everything else is fair game; just be sure to make clear notes (i.e., the name and page number) so I can figure out how to judge the submission.
The following are instructions for filling out your sheet, with a few additional explanations of what I'm looking for. A lot of help can be found just by clicking on the online reference links I've scattered around the site, especially the stuff relating to the Realms and medieval history. And, as always, you should contact me if you need help (or an idea).
Once your sheet is finished, please send it in to fradventures@yahoo.com with a 'PC Sub' in the subject line. You can include a picture (.jpg or gif) of your character if you want, or a link to one on the 'net. And feel free to introduce yourself a bit! I look forward to meeting you!
Stats. You have 74 points to spend on the six stats (Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis and Cha). Use them as you like to formulate scores between 3 and 18. Since we use a point system instead of a random roll system, demihuman stat modifiers are replaced by demihuman stat requirements. In other words, if you want to play a non-human, you will need to spend a certain number of points on some attributes. These are as follows:
- Dwarf PCs must have a minimum Constitution score of 10 and a maximum Charisma score of 17.
- Half-elf PCs must have a minimum Dexterity score of 10 and a maximum Constitution score of 17.
- Halfling PCs must have a minimum Constitution score of 10 and a maximum Strength score of 11.
- Elf PCs must have a minimum Dexterity score of 12 and a maximum Consitution score of 16.
- Gnome PCs must have a minimum Wisdom score of 10 and a maximum Strength score of 11.
Demihuman races are discussed in detail in the FR Campaign Setting, but I've never really like them much, especially the elves (giant hands? blue skin? why?), so instead I'm partially reverting them back to the way they were described in 2nd edition AD&D's Complete Handbook series. Those of you in the know will remember these supplements as kicking complete ass, and anybody who has copies is free to grab ideas from them. For those of you without, I will set out the most important details.
Dwarves come in hill, mountain, and gully varieties. For the purposes of Arabel, dwarves will most likely be considered of the hill subtype, and in every respect resemble the entry set forth by the PHB. Dwarven women do not normally have beards in FRA, since nobody wants to play a girl with a beard. (Why was this ever a rule in the first place? Tolkien isn't going to sue anybody.)
Halflings can be hairfoot, stout, or tallfellow, with hairfoot by far the most common and also most resembling the PHB version. Stouts are slightly more dwarf-ish, and tallfellows slightly more elf-ish, but other than that don't vary much from the standard.
Elves can be grey, high, sylvan and grugach subtypes, which roughly correspond to Faerun's Sun, Moon, Wood and Wild elf varieties. The most common is the high elf or Moon elf, which fits the characteristics laid out for 'elf' in the PHB and should in every case be the player's choice for their PC. In FRA elves are not as tall as humans, and look a lot like the elves painted by Larry Elmore (in other words, they look like small, slender humans with terrific skin, and not like tall anime characters or something out of the X-Files).
Gnomes can be either forest or rock subtypes, with forest gnomes the norm in Cormyr. Forest gnomes are slimmer and darker than their mountainous breathren, and also a little more shy. They do not always have giant noses or funny clothes, though many do.
As stated previously, humans are easily the most common species in Cormyr, followed by halflings, dwarves, elves, gnomes and half-elves, in that order. Arabellan humans get along pretty well with demihumans, since the merchant traffic is pretty heavy and tolerance has become a requirement for peaceful trade. Keeping that in mind, I don't want more than two or three demihumans in the group, since none of them (with the exception of hairfoot halflings) are particularly overenthusiastic about living near the Big Folk, much less adventuring with them, and in any case elves and dwarves never seem to get along very well.
Class. All classes from the PHB are acceptable, including NPC classes -- except for Barbarian (since Cormyr doesn't have any). Everybody starts at 1st level, so I don't think we have to worry about Prestige classes yet. Pay special attention to the way classes are described in your FR Campaign Setting!
Since FRA is so stubbornly low-magic, Realms folk are most likely to be plain old fighters, rogues, experts and warriors than anything else. There are some points I ought to make about the region, however, and the kinds of adventurers it produces:
Clerics in Arabel are most commonly Tymoran, though Chaunteans, Selunites, and Lathanderians are also frequent guests of the city and maintain small chapels there as well. A few other good Powers have shrines scattered around, but in general these are attended only by a priest or two, and aren't important enough to produce adventurous acolytes. Demihumans have no large churches, but hold services in the homes of prominent community members, and maintain priests within the family. Druids are very rare given Arabel's pro-development business climate, so you'll have to get pretty creative in your background to play one.
Wizards must specialize in a school, though Sorcerers don't have to. There are all sorts of magic-users living quietly in Arabel, so don't worry too much about making up an appropriate teacher in your background.
Paladins in Arabel are usually Selunite or Lathanderian. Tymora is too loose a deity to need them, really, and Chauntea is too gentle.
You can use any obscure supplemental class kit you want (except for the miniatures stuff, because I don't have it), as long as you also identify where you're taking it from. I may need to consult with you a bit on this if I have trouble finding it, or if it demands too much adjustment on my part. Again, barbarians and the like don't fit with Cormyr, so try to keep your choices civilized. :)
Concept. This should be a nice one- or two-sentence description of your character that can boil down her most important qualities. It doesn't need to be terribly complex; "A shy and uncoordinated young cleric of Chauntea," for example, would suffice. This is for the Cast page, and will help me assemble a suitably balanced party.
Age. Your PC doesn't have to be young, but since she's just starting out, you'll need to come up with some good reason why an older character has decided to take up the adventurer's mantle. You'll also want to devote a little more thought to how you'll be spending your skill points, since I'm asking that skills be accounted for in the background.
Appearance. Please describe how your PC would look to the casual onlooker in as much detail as possible, including how they dress, how they carry themselves, their mannerisms, usual expression and so on. Some attention should be paid to realism, here; fabulous haircuts aren't normally found on medieval peasants, and 1st level characters aren't usually all that intimidating (anyway, they shouldn't be). Cormyreans have perhaps better and more fashion options than your average Faerunian, and are generally more hygenic, but don't go crazy (unless you're an elf and impossible to muss!).
Personality. Please describe not only your PC's disposition but also his or her quirks, fears, politics, personal habits, or anything else you can think of that will help us understand their motivation for adventuring. Try to stay away from characters with evil tendencies, or are incapable of working with others effectively, since they won't fit in with the others; psychopaths, power-mongers, and lawless antiheroes may make up the majority of people on the road, but remember that you're supposed to be a good guy (and likable). If you insist on making a naive or mustachioed scoundrel or something like that, try to avoid the kind that constantly harrasses women or insulting other party members, since trolls like to eat them especially (at least in my Realms they do!). Thanks.
Remember that to some degree I will use this in place of a regular alignment entry when handling XP and determining whether or not you are keeping in character
Background. This is probably the single most important entry on your sheet, since even more than your PC's physical or psychological description it will help me assess your writing (and role-playing) abilities. Backgrounds can be as long as a page or so, and should be written in narrative or serial style; in other words, you can write it as a life story or as a post demonstrating who your character is and where she comes from.
In writing your background, pay some mind to what kind of skills and feats you would choose in the event that your sheet is approved. I would like to know not only what they have learned but how and from whom they learned it -- and why. Feel free to make up whatever supporting characters, including friends, family members, patrons, allies, or enemies you like; doing so will help me understand where the PC is coming from and where he is going. I may need to adjust some of these details in the event that they greatly depart from historical possibilities available to citizens of Cormyr, or of Arabel.
Remember that Gondegal was Lord of the city only five years ago, and that a lot of people suffered under his eventful (if very brief) rule, including in particular noble families who remained supportive of Azoun. This is not to say that I require your PC to feature a recent history including various horrors, i.e. rape, murder, robbery, etc. or that PCs who have suffered some of these indignities are more interesting or appropriate than ones with relatively positive, benign, or even functional lives and histories; on the contrary, if too many people send me war orphans or torture victims I will probably go ahead and commit DM suicide. That said, even comfortable middle-class artisans suffered more in medieval times than they do now (or did even a hundred years ago), and things like formal education, endless good health, and social welfare can be very difficult to come by, even in cosmopolitan kingdoms like Cormyr.
Also remember that if your character is beginning at the very start of the game, he or she should have some connection -- no matter how distant -- to Elmdaerle sufficient enough to warrant a summons to the Smoky Skull. Elmdaerle is a bespectacled old scholar and elected Guildmaster of the Society of Naturalists, and enjoys a good reputation among the research community of several Cormyrean cities, including Suzail. He has done some limited study of magic (not nearly enough to warrant an apprentice) but his chief claim to fame lies in the study of plants and animals, especially (though not limited to) the species native to the Forest Kingdom. He sets great store on learning and proper science, and is likely to have contacts among the more respectable wizards, nobles and merchants of Arabel, up to and including Aldolphus the Sage, a close personal friend of Azoun.
PCs can know Elmdaerle through any number of circumstances, including family friendship, services rendered (he is very interested in herbology and medicinal plant life, and frequently prescribes herbal treatments himself or makes recommendations to the city's religious communities), employment (adventurers, particularly rangers and rogues, are sometimes hired by the old man to find and/or acquire rare or unusual plants or creatures), social circles (Elmdaerle is unusually outgoing for a scholar, and enjoys interacting with important political, economic and social figures), or perhaps just mere happenstance. He is easy to talk to, gets along well with young people, and is often willing to tutor the promising but disadvantaged student in subjects as divers as healing, languages, wilderness lore, natural history, or gnomish culture (which he is very interested in). PCs can even be related to Elmdaerle somehow, if there is no other way to link with him.
He has called a few of these young folk together -- in the midst of winter, no less -- to discuss the possibility of a business arrangement. This arrangement, of course, will certainly involve a significant amount of travel and, furthermore, a low probability of violence (at least, he hopes so), and he will have assured all the PCs that they will be accorded fair and just compensation for all services rendered. The details will be presented at the meeting, after which the PCs can choose to take him up on the offer or pursue other avenues of interest.
While we're on the subject of choices, try to include some information that will clarify for me what your PC's life goals and future plans entail. This kind of thing is vital to the organization of a long-term campaign, since without it I can not make the kinds of plot adjustments and options necessary to realistically keeping the character's interest. As an anecdote, I remember joining a Greyhawk campaign last year and trying to run a cleric PC in it who was extremely devoted to the God of Justice. She was a fun character, but it soon became clear that the party was only really interested in crawling obscure dungeons, and that this cleric was going to have a hard time drumming up the party's support for missions offering any greater or farther-reaching social importance. She did not fit in with the style and substance of the campaign, and should never have gotten involved in it. It was particularly painful because the DM was a terrific writer and supportive of undertaking a larger narrative.
I bring this up as an illustration of how games eventually go wrong if, for whatever reason, the DM is unable to shape the campaign around the players. I want my adventurers to fit together as well as possible, with individual strengths and weaknesses balancing each other, and with characters who do not just stumble through every job offered to them. While great big Dragonlance-style stories are sort of impossible to conduct in pbem, given the occasional disappearance or frustrating inactivity of important group members (including the DM), it doesn't seem unlikely that at one point or another I will try to pull events in the direction of a particular character or include elements of a character's background into the story. I find this a much more satisfying way of conducting D&D than just running you all through module X and hoping it'll make sense to include everybody. Often it will not make sense, and I hope you all make real, democratic choices in that case instead of just following whatever dumb path I set down in front of you. Keep me guessing! I certainly intend to do the same to you!
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