4th Ed intro: Races

With the into of the PH2 there are now 13 playable classes. Each class gets +2 to 2 abilities and most have racial powers that you can use in battle.
Dragonborn: Born to fight, dragonborn are a race of wandering mercenaries, soldiers, and adventurers. Long ago, their empire contended for worldwide dominion, but now only a few rootless clans of these honorable warriors remain to pass on their legends of ancient glory.
Dragonborn gain a bonus to attack when they're hurt, are able to heal themselves better than other races, and are able to breath fire, acid, lightning, or expel a poisonous cloud.
Dwarves: Carved from the bedrock of the universe, dwarves endured an age of servitude to giants before winning their freedom. Their mighty mountain fortress-cities testify to the power of their ancient empires. Even those who live in human cities are counted among the staunchest defenders against the darkness that threatens to engulf the world. Dwarves are more resistant to poison, not slowed by heavier armor, and are harder to push around.
Eldarin: Creatures of magic with strong ties to nature, eladrin live in cities in the twilight realm of the Feywild. Their cities lie close enough to the world that they sometimes cross over, appearing briefly in mountain valleys or deep forest glades before fading back into the Feywild.
Eldarin gain training in an additional skill, gain a bonus to will defense, and can teleport in the middle of combat.
Elf: Wild and free, elves guard their forested lands using stealth and deadly arrows from the trees. They build their homes in close harmony with the forest, so per- fectly joined that travelers often fail to notice that they have entered an elven community until it is too late.
Elves are able to raise the senses of their allies who are close, more through difficult terrain with ease, and re-roll missed attacks.
Half-Elf: Descended from elves and humans, half-elves are a vital race in which the best features of elves and humans often appear.
Half-elves are born diplomats and able to make allies around them more diplomatic, they are also able to use powers from other classes.
Halfling: Halflings are a small race known for their resource- fulness, quick wits, and steady nerves. They are a nomadic folk who roam waterways and marshlands. No people travel farther or see more of what happens in the world than halflings.
Halflings are harder to frighten, harder to hit when distracted, and if they are hit they can make their enemies re-roll their attack.
Human:Of all the civilized races, humans are the most adapt- able and diverse. Human settlements can be found almost anywhere, and human morals, customs, and interests vary greatly.
Huamns gain a bonus feat and are trained in an additioal skill, they also gain an additional at-will power and gain a bonus to all defenses.
Tiefling: Heirs to an ancient, infernal bloodline, tieflings have no realms of their own but instead live within human kingdoms and cities. They are descended from human nobles who bargained with dark powers, and long ago their empire subjugated half the world. But the empire was cast down into ruin, and tieflings were left to make their own way in a world that often fears and resents them.
Tieflings are able to better hit enemies who are hurt, have resistance to fire, and gain a bonus to attack and damage to enemies who have hit them.
Deva: Deep in the recesses of memory, devas recall what they once were: immortal servitors of the gods of good, spirits who chose to bind themselves to the world in mortal flesh. For millennia, their souls have been reborn to wage an endless war against the forces of darkness. Most devas are fiercely commit- ted to the cause of good, because they fear what they might become if they turn to evil: A deva whose soul becomes corrupted risks being reborn as a rakshasa.
Deva gain a bonus to defenses against creatures who are hurt, resitance to radient and necrotic damage, and able to add 1d6 to any roll they don't like.
Gnome: In the Feywild, the best way for a small creature to survive is to be overlooked. While suffering in servitude to the fomorian tyrants of the Feydark, gnomes learned to hide, to mislead, and to deflect and by these means, to survive. The same talents sustain them still, allowing them to prosper in a world filled with creatures much larger and far more dangerous
than they are.
Gnomes can make sounds come from nowhere, stay hidden when combat starts, able to see through illusions, and able to turn invisable for a short while.
Goliath: Goliaths are mountain-dwelling nomads who see life as a grand competition. Their scattered bands have never been major players in the politics of the lowland world, but they have wandered the mountain ranges of the world since the primordials first shaped the peaks and valleys. Tall and massive, goliaths revere the primal power of nature and use it to enhance their own strength
Goliaths are have a will like the mountain itself, are extremely powerful athletes, and can turn their skin to stone making enemies attack merely bounce off them.
Half-Orc: An obscure legend claims that when Corellon put out Gruumsh’s eye in a primeval battle, part of the savage god’s essence fell to earth, where it transformed a race of humans into fierce half-orcs. Another story suggests that an ancient hobgoblin empire created half-orcs to lead orc tribes on the empire’s behalf. Yet another legend claims that a tribe of brutal human barbarians chose to breed with orcs to strengthen their bloodline. Some say that Kord created half-orcs, copying the best elements from the human and orc races to make a strong and fierce people after his own heart. If you ask a half-orc about his origin, you might hear one of these stories. You might also get a punch in the face for asking such a rude question.
Half-Orcs are able to gain hit-points when they become hurt, move faster when charging, and can do extra damage when they hit an enemy.
Shifter: Shifters are fierce hunters strongly influenced by their animal nature. Though they can’t fully change shape as their lycanthrope ancestors can, shifters do become more bestial during the heat of battle, calling on the primal power of the beast within.
Shifters can either do more damage and gain regeneration when hurt, or can gain bonus to AC and reflex defenses and move faster, both of which depending on what kind of shifter you are.

Intro to 4th ed rules: Classes

Ok so I figured I'd post some basic rules and major changes to 4th ed from 3.5, I plan on doing this in a few posts. This one will be about classes.

Each Class has a role, this is kinda of where they fit in the party, and what they're good at. Controllers, Defenders, Leaders, and Strikers
Controllers deal with large numbers of enemies at the same time. They favor offense over defense, using powers that deal damage to multiple foes at once, as well as subtler powers that weaken, confuse, or delay their foes
Defenders have the highest defenses in the game and good close-up offense. They are the party’s front-line combatants; wherever they’re standing, that’s where the action is. Defenders have abilities and powers that make it difficult for enemies to move past them or to ignore them in battle.
Strikers specialize in dealing high amounts of damage to a single target at a time. They have the most concentrated offense of any character in the game. Strikers rely on superior mobility, trickery, or magic to move around tough foes and single out the enemy they want to attack.
Leaders inspire, heal, and aid the other characters in an adventuring group. Leaders have good defenses, but their strength lies in powers that protect their companions and target specific foes for the party to concentrate on.
Clerics and warlords (and other leaders) encourage and motivate their adventuring companions, but just because they fill the leader role doesn’t mean they’re necessarily a group’s spokesperson or commander. The party leader—if the group has one—might as easily be a charismatic warlock or an authoritative paladin. Leaders (the role) fulfill their function through their mechanics; party leaders are born through roleplaying.

With the introduction of Player's Handbook II that brings the number of character classes up to 16. They break down into their roles like this:
Controllers: Wizards, Druid, Invoker
Defender: Paladin, Fighter, Warden
Striker: Ranger, Rouge, Warlock, Avenger, Barbarian, Sorcerer
Leader: Cleric, Warlord, Bard, Shaman

Some of the Player's Handbook II classes, can be tailored to fit a secondary role if it picks certain feats, and powers.

Power Source:
Every class relies on a particular source of energy for the “fuel” that enables members of that class to use powers. The four power sources associated with the classes are arcane, divine, primal and martial.
Arcane: Drawing on magical energy that permeates the cosmos, the arcane power source can be used for a wide variety of effects, from fireballs to flight to invisibility. Warlocks, Bards, Sorcorers and wizards, for example, use arcane magic. Each class is the representative of a different tradition of arcane study, and other traditions exist. Arcane powers are called spells.
Divine: Divine magic comes from the gods. The gods grant power to their devotees, which clerics, avengers, invokers and paladins, for example, access through prayers and litanies. Divine magic excels at healing, protection, and smiting the enemies of the gods. Divine powers are called prayers.
Martial: Martial powers are not magic in the traditional sense, although some martial powers stand well beyond the capabilities of ordinary mortals. Martial characters use their own strength and willpower to vanquish their enemies. Training and dedication replace arcane formulas and prayers to grant fighters, rangers, rogues, and warlords, among others, their power. Martial powers are called exploits.
Primal: Primal powers draw on the innumerous spirits of the wild. Some primal powers are more overtly magical than others, but they all draw on the spirits of nature that pervade the worlds and, to come extent, the exho plane known as the Feywind. Primal powers are called evocations, because primal characters evoke primal spirts to make attacks and effect the world. Some characters channel primal spirits through their bodies in order to transform themselves and make their physical attacks more powerful. Other characters evoke primal spirts to create external effects.

These are just a few things to think over if you wanna roll up a new 4th edition character.

4th ed

I downloaded the 4th ed books and been thumbing through those. Yes it is an extremely simplified version that focuses much more heavily on combat as opposed to role playing, but it looks like it could be fun, it looks like it could be fun and alot more casual. Only problems are I'm not 100% on some things, I'd like to find an experienced 4th ed DM to run me through a short campaign/night to help me solidify a few things but I'm sure we could also hash it out with lots of book checking and jazz. Also the average party size is 5 as opposed to 4, i could proubably write campaigns for 4 or less but since I have campaign books I think i'd be alot more enjoyable to have fully fleshed worlds and professionaly written campaigns and encounters. Also the Player's Handbook 2 just came out today (got the DL) which expands playable races to 13 and playable classes to 16. That's a total of 208 race/class comibnations! Waaaaaho!
Thoughts?
Does anyone still check this even?

Spring Break

So who'se in town for spring break? Who would be down for playing during spring break? Let me know and I'll finish up one of the two half done campaigns I've got. Post or txt me and I'll post for you.

Welcome fellow guildmates!

The Blackwood company is very pleased to welcome two new guild members. The first is Cadwallader III, an Aasamir Favoured Soul and Durgan Randlelfisson, the Dwarf Bard. Lemmy was kind enough to accompany each of them on a week's stay at the Academy.

Academy Misadventures.

Tired of sitting around twiddling their thumbs, Hammerbeard, Lemmy, and Wagnor decided to travel to the Capital City Silkstone to keep their skills sharp at the new Adventuring Academy. Lemmy, tired from their long journey decided to turn in as soon as the team arrived, but Wagnor and Hammerbeard were eager to get their feet wet and head off for the Battle Wing. The assistant behind the director's desk quickly pointed them towards a room, and when they entered the battle area, the Staff Wizard summoned a mighty Ogre. Wagnor outstretched his hand and sapped the brute's strength with a Ray of Enfeeblement spell, without it's strength and with Hammerbeard's ancestral training against giants, it was able to only land one hit, before Hammerbeard chopped off his toes and the beast vanished in a puff of white smoke. After a hearty breakfast and a lazy afternoon the team set off for the Skill Wing to test their mettle. The director lead them to a room in which they were told there were 7 targets in the room behind foliage. Their job was to spot and hit the target before their allies did. It was a fierce bout but Lemmy edged out the competition on the last target. The team decided they had time for one more fight before dinner, so they headed back to the Battle Wing and Hammerbeard enthusiastically told the assistant that the team wanted to fight a dragon! The Staff Wizard was more than happy to summon a Very Young Green Dragon, that gave the team more than a challenge. Out of spells Wagnor decided to join the fray and though his dagger ripped the beast's wing it turned to him and expelled a line of corrosive gas from it's mouth, the Wizard was unable to dodge the breath weapon and fell to the ground unconscious. Hammerbeard slew the beast and a team of healers quickly revived the fallen Half-Orc. The team went down to the mess hall and enjoyed a lavish dinner before returning to their room. Another day's adventureing complete.

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Ok so it looks like we're going to play again on Thursday night. Nate gets out of class at 10. If we have enough people to play we can do a real adventure as opposed to Academy stuff. Comment if you can/want to play Thursday night.

If you haven't made a char yet also comment with when you're free and we'll roll you up like a big ol burrito.

The Academy

Down time between adventures? Feel like you need to hone your skills? Want to meet other adventures from every corner of the map? Come to The Academy! Our facilities are free to all adventuring guilds who have registered with us. Test your mettle against a large variety of monsters and villains, test your wits in our puzzle rooms, compete against other adventurers on our grand stage, or step into the arena and compete to be the strongest adventurer in all the land! Parties of 2 to 8 can sign up for a week long stay at the academy during which they can do as much as they can handle!
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Ok so I'm setting up the academy so that if you want to play but I don't have something written up you can get together and do quick one shot encounters. This is a good way to gain experience and maybe a little gold. All I need from you guys is who all is in the party and what night/time you want to play. So long as your chars aren't already on an adventure or in the academy with another party we can jam out as long as possible.

This will also be good in case you fall behind experience you can catch up with a few sessions in the Academy, or if you want to make a new char and test out somethings.

I'm working on a new adventure and it should be up soon so keep your eyes peeled. Also, I've been trying to aggressively expand the guild, a lot of prospective people, but so far no one new. I'll post if that happens. Keep your eyes peeled. Remember first four to respond will play when a new adventure is put up and from there we can decide what night would be best for all involved.