Month: Aug 2024

Glendor Woodtusk

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Tonight I wanted to go back to testing my Openlegend RPG character flow that I started with Ci’ara Stormbringer then I created Vimbol Forgeblow and tonight I continue to expand my Open Legends party with one more member, Glendor Woodtusk. Now there are some stereotypes here that may not gel well but despite her short comings Glendor is a devout and trusted member of the party.

So let’s grab a coffee tankard, sit back and meet Glendor Woodtusk, the Bridge Breaker.

Glendor Woodtusk

Glendor Woodtusk – Created in Nightcafe.

Background

Glendor wasn’t always a righteous knight riding to the defence of others. No for a long time there she was set on pillaging and taking what she deserved, might makes right after all in her tribe and she served the mightiest warlord around. During one expedition to a human settlement her and the tribe attacked with such ferocity that the humans could put up nearly no resistance as the orcs swarmed through their streets.

They had little in the way of wealth, weapons or equipment they could use but they had food and man younglings that would make excellent slaves. “Bring me those whelps, if they resist kill one to show them that we mean business” the chief had said as Glendor strode off with her axe in hand.

As she kicked down the door to a church and she reached for the first kid to get them moving a thin wisp of a man ran at her and hit her in the face with a chair. “Leave those children alone. The light of the Morning lord protects them!” called the man, a monk by his attire. So shocked by the mans attack on her did she not realise what was happening until the chair smashed on her face, her tusk coming lose from her jaw.

As she raised her axe in rage and prepared to split the mans torso in half the sight of this tiny man standing protectively in front of the children, and the children clinging to his weakling made her hesitate. A warmth spread across her shoulders as the morning light rose against her rough brigandine mail and she had a moment where did not wish to harm these humans. The weak were preyed upon for as long as she had known and even the humans she had encountered before today frequently let their fellow weaklings get butchered by her people.

But today the sight of the weakest man she had seen protecting those weaker than himself gave her pause. As a shadow loomed in the doorway and a coldness crept along her back she turned and snarled at who dared take her warmth away. Blood trickling down her chin she spat the metallic taste from her mouth and looked at one of the raiders. “These humans are not to be touched.” she called.

“You hit your head, the chief said get em’ so you grab the humans and bring them out. Or are you too stupid to do that?” said the larger male orc. He stopped grinning when the battle-axe she was carrying spun through the air and punctured his chest. As the orc fell to the ground the other raiders from the outside saw a female orc bathed in radiant sunlight standing over the corpse of her clan mate, blood dripping from the axe she wrenched from his chest.

Glendor earned her name that day as she fought against her own people in the protection of the weak. The illiterate orc defended civilisation and weaklings because for once she saw that it was the right thing to do.

Abilities

Glendor is still and orc, that is plain and simple, and with the righteous fire that bellows within her and emboldens her own presence on the field she is a terrifying entity to see in combat. Her ability to invoke fear, demoralise and even provoke the most head strong of opponents is something truly mystical to watch before she brings her orcish strength to bear and separates limbs, cracks skulls and sends enemies flying.

Banes

  • Demoralised
  • Fear
  • Provoke
  • Stunned
  • Nullify

Boons

  • Bolster
  • Heal
  • Regeneration
  • Restoration
  • Aura (Bolster/Demoralised)

Feats:

Her allies cant help but be inspired by how she dives headfirst into combat in the service of the Morning Lord, protecting others with her bulk and determination. However she is also hard to kill due to her orcish nature and her swings will send enemies flying across the battlefield from the sheer force of her attacks.

  • Inspiring Champion I
  • Diehard
  • Overpowering Strike

Perks and Flaws:

Not the best with words she generally uses force to get what she needs in service of her objectives, which is normally Protecting those weaker than her (which is most people) or serving the patron that showed her the light. It is in these pursuit of these actions that she finds the inner strength to continue to fight on even when death has her in its grasp and she fights with renewed courage.

Perks:

  • Brute
  • Courageous

However she she doesn’t tend to think past “protect the weak” and “service the Morning Lord” and will charge headlong into battle calling out the name of her patron as she rushes ahead without a plan. Sometimes its not for lack of trying but simply that her comrades keep forgetting that she cant read or write and so when they write the plan down, leave her notes, or try and silently indicate what the plan is she loses patience.

Flaws:

  • Brash
  • Illiterate

Attributes:

Strong and a force to be reckoned with her orcish nature comes out first and foremost followed by what the Morning Lord has helped her to harness.

  • Will 2
  • Creation 2
  • Protection 2
  • Fortitude 3
  • Presence 4
  • Might 5

Links and downloads

Glendor Woodtusk

Glendor Woodtusk Character Sheet_ Open Legend RPG _ HeroMusterDownload

Thanks for dropping by tonight. Glendor Woodtusk is the third in a party of 5 that is taking shape for an Open Legends experiment that I am looking at currently. Again I used my process to really hone in on what I want to achieve when creating a character and it seems to work well, able to create a character in a fraction of the time of when I used to when first experimenting with Openlegend RPG.

Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another end-of-week Zine and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Silver Sparrows Curse

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This week we look at the Silver Sparrows Curse, more to the point the cursed object that was brought into the hall of the Silver Sparrows guild. This item as well as providing glimpses of the buried past also corrupts the area in which it rests and forces other discontented spirits into the material plane to do its bidding. Or so it is thought to do so.

So let’s sit down, grab a coffee as we roll into tonight’s encounter!

Silver Sparrows Curse

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The Animated Tome lays in wait and appears to provide the holder, or those around it, with knowledge that benefits them. However what it seeks is a place of significance where it can harness the latent and residual magical energies nearby to bring other malicious spirits who are yet to pass on into the plane of existence and to, hopefully, create more latent magic so it can feed. Once fed these animated items normally try to rip its own spirit out of the book it resides in to live once more.

Animated Tome – created in Tetra-cube

The animated tomes greatest ability is the locus of animation where the cursed book can bring other objects to life to protect it, and more importantly, hopefully coax more magic to be used in order for it to harness. Unless this time it will lay inert and wait for the animated objects to either bludgeon its targets to death or create more after its regained some of its magical strength.

Animated Object – created in Tetra-cube
Animated Armor – created in Tetra-cube

A fun one this week where the main creature isn’t something that attacks you directly but one that creates creatures to fight on its behalf. Don’t forget that we have more nights to come for this weeks adventure with this week ending in the creation of the end of week Zine. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Silver Sparrows Guild Hall

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The Silver Sparrows Guild Hall started off as a back room in a tavern, now its a bustling place where messengers come to take a load off, rest their feat and stay a night, or two. It’s become a known establishment where people also will stay, if they are liked well enough by the guild, and rarely does anything go astray or wrong while within the walls.

For a while we have had encounter maps but this week I wanted to change it up a bit. This week we’re going back to theatre of the mind! So let’s sit back, grab a warm coffee (or something stronger) and rest up in the Silver Sparrows Guild Hall!

Silver Sparrows Guild Hall

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Silver Sparrows Guild Hall – Created in Nightcafe

The hall itself is more than 90 feet deep and sixty feet wide with several small rooms up stairs used for guild members, or guests, to rest for the night. Down stairs a small bar services dozens of tables who have the luxury of comfortable stools and chairs at well made tables.

It is well lit with expensively crafted windows that sing of the guilds prosperity and renown. There mezzanine above the general hall has smaller more intimate chairs where people could discuss business with clients or each other if they wanted to have a more private word.

However unlike the other rooms and seats on the raised section of the hall the guild masters office is located by itself. For a long time it was always open with no door to allow messengers and clients to directly approach the guild master with requests. Recently the door was reinstated and only those with appointments can see the guild master, a mean-eyed assistant stops people who are not on the list at a little desk and chair near the entrance to the guild master.

The guild masters room does however share a walkway that loops around to the other side of the building so its not hard to move around the second level. To get between the two layers, normally, you could take the stairs located at the sides of the long hall to the alternate layer.

Thanks for joining me for different map night this week with theatre of the mind really taking over for this weeks encounter. Don’t forget to join me again tomorrow for the encounter and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Guildmaster’s Journal

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This week is all about discovery of information and where else to find information than in a book, the guildmaster’s journal to be exact. However, finding the journal is the least of the parties worries – what to do with it and how is the hard part.

So let’s grab a coffee, grab our glasses and get ready to read our way into tonight’s adventure!

The Guildmaster’s Journal

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The Guildmasters Journal- created in Nightcafe.

Something about Bastions story didn’t make sense particularly around how the information of a dead man came to light years after it was buried. As they moved through the guild they could see Kilt talking with some members down stairs, drinking and laughing. It had been an impressive week for him and the guild as they had quickly expanded with some perfectly times contracts.

However as they moved up stairs something caught their eye, the door to the guild masters room was open. Inside the room was a large wooden desk, a well made chair, a cabinet that held a few glasses and half empty bottles of a alcohol. On the large desk was a journal, two lit candles that didn’t appear to expire and a handful of coins.

As they looked over the journal they watched as the words on the journal started to etch itself onto the page. On the page was information of all the other guilds, the nobility and the merchants and information that could be useful for someone in the guildmaster’s chair. Flicking through the pages the start of the journal told a terrifying picture, the story that Bastion had revealed to the party as the reason for him resigning as the guild.

The hallway started to get noisy as it appeared that Kilt and a few members of the guild were returning to their quarters in the guild building.

Thanks for joining me tonight for another night of adventure expansion. Don’t forget to come back each day this week as I continue to grow this adventure. As I continue to expand each night you don’t want to miss out on what’s being created. So don’t forget to come back night and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Bastion Sparrow

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The Silver Sparrows were formed by previous guild master Bastion Sparrow who spent most of his adult life in upholding the values of the guild. But what would cause such as devoted and driven man to give it up to someone who had only just joined the guild?

Let’s sit down at the bar, grab a coffee and ask the man himself!

Bastion Sparrow

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Bastion Sparrow – Created in Nightcafe.

As the party retired back to the Crispy Basilisk, their inn for the night, they walked though the gathered tables looking for a place to sit. Finding a table that looked mostly vacant they approached the table but before they reached it a familiar man sat down with a tankard of ale and a small book. Bastion Sparrow.

As bastion sat down he looked up. “You are the adventurers who were at the guild today so I won’t need to introduce myself. But I find myself at a loss which is not a good look for a guild master. Well a retired guild master that is.” he said looking mournful at his book.

After sitting down and talking to Bastion the party found out a bit more about him. He started the guild as a way of supporting his growing family. He was not a warrior but had some skill with a blade, he wasn’t quite skilled enough to work in the trades in the city and so he did what he had done as a child, delivered messages. Soon he was doing well enough for himself that his name, B.Sparrow, had grown a reputation behind it and more people were requesting for just him to deliver the messages of the city at the cost of a silver.

But when other cities started to approach him asking for work he had to grow and expand and so the Silver Sparrows was created. “And that’s where I made a mistake.” he punctuated his confession with a sigh. “I ran into some trouble with a few guilds who wanted to cheat me out of the pay that the guild was earning, started roughing up my people and tarnishing my reputation. So I made a deal with someone I thought was a friend. Next thing I knew the threats, ambushes and issues disappeared. I thought it strange at first but then the bodies started to appear and my friend was caught as the cause behind it.”

“I had to do what was right for the Silver Sparrows, for my family and the families of the men and women who worked for me. So I let them take the fall for it. It turns out that someone else, somehow, knew about this and I got a letter threatening to expose me for it unless I resigned and appointed the newest, member to take my position. It turns out that a few people had resigned recently so the newest member was that Kilt Retcher. A mystery really.” he paused to take a long drink from his tankard.

Thanks for joining me tonight to find out more about Bastion and what is happening with the Silver Sparrows. Don’t forget to come back each day this week as I continue to expand the adventure here and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Peaceful Coup

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A bit of a simple one this week with the peaceful coup of the Silver Sparrows guild. If the guild founder stepping down as guild master and nearly the newest member of the guild stepping into the role sounded suspicious those present in the guild hall didn’t appear to think so. Well, that was after the new guild masters rousing speech that is.

So let’s grab a coffee, make a toast and let’s cheer on tonight’s adventure!

When the change of guild masters happens normally it’s the cause of death, age, illness or recognition of prowess. However, for the Silver Sparrows, a guild of primarily messengers and scouts the guilds master resigned and appointed one of the most unlikely guild members to take over.

The ripples of this decision cast spread wide and rapidly the suspicion that foul play was afoot spread. But the new guild master started to rapidly change how the guild was run. Within days the guild was more profitable and was getting more contracts and jobs than before. However, the young new guild master had shown the biggest change from being incompetent and unreliable not two weeks ago to being in charge of the fastest growing guild in the city.

The Peaceful Coup

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Addressing the guild – created in Nightcafe.

The guild master Bastion had called for all guild members to gather in the courtyard. As he stood in front of them he looked across all the members gathered. “My friends, visitors and clients. I have an announcement that I need to share with you.” he paused to look around. “Effective tonight I am stepping down as guild master. Kilt Retcher will be stepping into the office of guild master after careful consideration from me and he will take over tomorrow morning. It has been a good decade with the Silver Sparrows but I must step aside.”

As he moved away from the balcony the chatter, hushed conversations and loud calls of outrage echoed upwards as Kilt stepped forward in his normal attire, fancy gilded robes. “I wish.” he stopped, his voice commanding attention like it hadn’t before. “My first wish is for the very best for Bastion Sparrow. He has been the guiding light for many of us, myself included. But I can only wish him the best for his future now that he has chosen to step aside.”

“My second wish is that I can serve you like you will serve the guild. The Silver Sparrows is going to be the biggest guild in the city.” he stopped and looked down at everyone. “The next few months will be different times but with us all working together we will succeed. So follow me into the future where the Silver Sparrows truly rule the roost!”

After a moment the others clapped, cheered and toasted, their outrage of Bastion’s resignation lifted in an instant as if forgotten as if water under a bridge. However not everyone was convinced as the taint of magic, that familiar tingle as it touched on those in the room left a sliver of doubt in their minds.

A start to this weeks adventure that I promise wont be all talk and message delivery. I will be expanding this adventure daily as we continue onwards so don’t forget to come back each day and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Lost Vault

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This week I continued with the creating a shortened Zine, something that fits on a single A4 sheet of paper with just enough information to set the scene, plot and hook with some NPCs sprinkled through that it could be used in any system.

I think its still working well so without any further waiting I present The Lost Vault, in the short format, as a fun one-shot to assist GMs when they need a night out of the books whether you run Pathfinder, Open Legends RPG, D&D or any other RPG System.

There is references to the blog nights which are D&D centric (regarding Friday night’s Stat-blocks) but this adventure can be used system agnostic more so than my regular Zines. As always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube provides the stat-blocks for many of my D&D creatures.

So I hope you enjoy this weeks adventure, The Lost Vault, and that your rolls are made with advantage.

The Lost Vault

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Midfern Keep Ruins – Created in Nightcafe.

Midfern keep was a sight to see as the wagon that the party rode on with the others crossed over the crest of a hill. The keep was surrounded by sundered mountains that rose like jagged teeth from the earth itself. Several rivers ran through the ravine that these pillars of rock created. The keep was bustling as they approached and it looked like one building had been repaired and housed most of the workers currently. 

The keep would have been majestic in its prime and even now they could only wonder why the elves had left it in the first place. Surely the stories of the great evil being locked within its walls were just that, stories.

The wagon stopped in front of the restored hall and a rough looking mercenary strode towards them. “Weclome, you can call me Carben and I work for Marcell and run this operation here.” he spoke with a commanding voice that spoke of years in the military. “For those who are new, if you’re here as a mercenary you work under me. You do what I say and we all walk away richer and with all our limbs intact. For those who are here with no experience with a sword, you also take orders for me but Marcell will direct you where to go. Listen to us, follow the rules and we all walk away richer. Any questions?”

Marcell looked up from her book at the new recruits walking towards her. “Welcome to Midfern Keep. We have one job here, for those who can manage a blade you are in charge of ensuring the safety of every single person here. We have already encountered a few hostiles in the area who want to contest our claim and I have an inkling that there will be defences other than traps that guard the main vault.” She paused looking at the obvious non-warriors.

“Speaking of traps, for those who are proficient in locating and disarming traps you are up now. We have found the entrance to the next room and I suspect that like the last few rooms it is trapped.” she paused. “For everyone else, you move rubble and call out if you find anything. Work in teams with an assigned guard and expert. Work smart not hard ladies and gentlemen as beyond the gate to the final vault are riches that will make kings and queens blush. If you find something, send someone to get me, Marcell, and I will be there to decide the next step forward. Understood?” Carben saluted her which caused a ripple of salutes from several others amongst the party.

PDF adventure – The Lost Vault

The Lost VaultDownload

Thanks for joining me today for another Zine this year. This is a condensed version of the Zine, but I hope the format works and is good to look at! Please feel free to leave comments if this format is appealing – so make sure to grab a copy of the PDF.

Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it.
I hope you don’t miss a thing so come back daily in the coming week and year. This is so you can experience the creation of the next adventure as it evolves and shapes out. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Vimbol Forgeblow

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Tonight I wanted to go back to testing my Openlegend RPG character flow that I started with Ci’ara Stormbringer a little while back and expand this Open Legends party with one more member, Vimbol Forgeblow. Now while other dwarves may prefer a more direct approach and leave the sneaking around for elves and halflings Vimbol is not above such behaviours as infiltration and stealth. In fact he is quite proficient at it!

So let’s grab a coffee, sit back and meet Vimbol Forgeblow, the shifty stonecaller.

Vimbol Forgeblow

Vimbol Forgeblow – Created in Nightcafe.

Background

Vimbol trained as a mason despite his parents best wishes. The Forgeblow family were always smiths and while Vimbol showed prowess like the rest of his brothers and sisters he tired quickly of this work. It was by chance that while he was in a hurry to finish mending a pick that he damaged the stonework of the forge. Fear took over and as he frantically tried to conceal the damage he did to the forge the pressure, heat and adrenaline took over and he melded the stone back into shape.

His father had seen him. Instead of being furious of the improper care given to his families craft he helped his son meet with some elders of the dwarven clan and these wise men and women confirmed the fathers suspicions. That Vimbol was stonecaller, a mage of some power who could meld stone more easily than a master smith could meld steel.

The years of training, the rigorous lessons and then the menial work only proved one thing to Vimbol. His powers made him better than those he was serving. In his lamentation he dove into ale and after years of over drinking off and on the job he found himself in a bit of a pickle. Needing a lot of gold fast he used his powers to shift thin layers of stone onto his skin to form a cloak that blended him into the walls of the vault and he made out with the biggest heist that the clan had ever suffered.

But in doing so he fled his family’s forge and his home, paying off his and their debts and he began to use his skill at melding stone to his body to get into places no respectable stonecaller would have considered before his time.

Abilities

Vimbol specialises in Alteration magic, generally specialising in stone but he has some small affinity for using it for camouflage. He is also lethal due to his ability to go largely undetected but doesn’t like seriously hurting any one and would rather silence one or two people instead of having to take out the entire barrack of guardsmen.

Banes

  • Blinded
  • Silenced
  • Disarmed
  • Persistent Damage

Boons

  • Transmutation
  • Absorb Object
  • Concealment
  • Aura* Concealment

Feats:

His strikes are lethal, accurate and over short distance he can out pace many other warriors. However his true skill lies with infiltration and the ability to go undetected.

  • Lethal Strike I
  • Silencing Strike

Perks and Flaws:

Being on the run from his clan for a number of years has left him with a few contacts that can help him get by. But he is always observant for people who may be watching, tracking of following him as a dwarf once burned is slow to forgive.

Perks:

  • Fugitive
  • Observant

Sadly his addiction to alcohol has left him a large drinker. He has built up a small tolerance to hit but its not often that you don’t see him without a drink. But his skill at what he does, ne’er-do-welling, seems to counter act the fact that he is frequently drunk whilst working. This has made him a very proud and even arrogant person who thinks that even while drunk he is more than a match for the sober rogues, thieves and cat burglars out there.

Flaws:

  • Addiction
  • Proud

Attributes:

Born a natural stonecaller he had to work hard to train his hands and mind in more subtle and agile movements than the forge. He is not as strong as normal dwarves but he is still resilient and wilful.

  • Fortitude 1
  • Perception 1
  • Persuasion 1
  • Will 2
  • Deception 2
  • Logic 3
  • Alteration 4
  • Agility 5

Links and downloads

Vimbol Forgeblow

Vimbol Forgeblow Character Sheet_ Open Legend RPG _ HeroMusterDownload

Thanks for dropping by tonight. Vimbol Forgeblow is the second in a party of 5 that I am taking through this process to really solidify my ideas. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another end-of-week Zine and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Senkuku

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This week our fast, quadrupeds that have endangered our parties comrades is called the Senkuku. This creature has several features that resemble both a bat and a large cat and it likes to play with its prey. But these creatures are born from curses from jealous gods, those who seek to insight chaos in the domain of their fellow divine peers.

So let’s sit down, grab a coffee as we roll into tonight’s encounter!

The Senkuku

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The body of a large, muscular cat with large ears, pushed in pig-like nose and large fangs the Senkuku isn’t exactly going to win any beauty contests. Its size, about that of a horse, will surprise people with how nimble it is and how quickly it can move to take down its prey. Malicious by nature it aims to curse its prey and over the cause of a few hours those who submit to the curse will transform, painfully, into one of its kind.

But while not a disease like Lycanthrope its believed that a malicious deity created these beings as a way of spreading their influence where it shouldn’t belong. It can’t be removed as a disease but it can however be removed by the remove curse spell as long as its used near a place of divine influence – such as a church or temple.

Senkuku – created in Tetra-cube

The Senkuku while not the most intelligent is wise enough to know when to get out before its too late and it rarely hunts alone. Preferring to use its allies as bait each Senkuku delights in the tourmented looks of its own kind as they realise that they are the ones being used as bait, and in turn knowing that it could just as easily be itself.

A bit of a short one tonight but a new creature with some borrowed inspiration from other stat-blocks was on the menu this week. Don’t forget to come back this weekend for the end of week Zine and as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Entrance to the Church

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The entrance to the Church of Kelemvor is where we find this weeks encounter taking place as the same creatures that attacked the party have made their way to the sleepy village they stopped in. However, they are lot alone as the priests of Kelemvor put aside their differences to defend their flock, well what remains of it.

Last week we had an encounter above lava, this week we have it in the rain and darkness of pre-dawn. So let’s sit back, grab a warm coffee and roll through tonight’s map!

Entrance to the Church

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Entrance to Kelemvors Church – Created in Inkarnate

The church to Kelemvor sits a little bit away from the rest of the village. Some houses are near by the Church but for the most part the area around it is urban landscape. A few lanterns struggle in the wind and rain and the braziers near the church steps flicker. But beyond that the light if very poor quality and more difficult for anyone without darkvision to see what is happening in the village.

There is actually about seven layers of texture paints for the ground here. A stone undertone, dark ground, grass, cobblestone, dirt, darker dirt and a lighter shade of the ground (not to mention some shadow). The art assets are pretty standard this week with nothing shocking or new but the aim was to create something that was effective, semi-urban and still gave me room to play with natural settings which is what I enjoy the most.

Thanks for joining me for another map making night. Don’t forget to join me again tomorrow for the last piece of the puzzle and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe