Stephen's D&D Page

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About D&D

Dungeons & Dragons is a role playing game by Wizards of the Coast.

Role playing games differ from many other games in that one person, the Game Master, tells a story and the other people get to play characters in this story. The result is a unique kind of game, where the players get to interact with each other and with the world and story that the Game Master has put together for them.

Role playing games have gotten a bad reputation due to a few individuals whose bad habits got them into the news and dragged these helpless games along with them. D&D is not a game about devil worshiping or about killing. It's a game about story telling. Just as there can be good and bad movies and books, there can be good and bad stories told in games. Don't judge the game based upon a few individuals. That is just like saying a documentary movie on The Discovery Channel is evil based on the existance of a movie like Friday the 13th!

My stories emphasize heroic acts, and the triumph of right over wrong. I enjoy playing because I get to tell or be part of a story, and because I get to spend time with friends in a social atmosphere. As with any game, the goal is to have fun.

Game Worlds

Every story has to have a setting. Although there are many pre-built game worlds out there, I have usually preferred to play in a setting that is of my own design. I can then mold the world to fit my story.

Lantyr

This game world was created in 1997 because my old game world was just not inspiring new stories after 12 years. Lantyr is a world of magic, politics, strange peoples, and danger.

Magic is commonplace in people's lives. For example, the town carpenter has a hammer of true striking. Powerful items are still rare, but creative uses for magic are plentiful.

Politics drive many stories in this world. I've modeled the world on fuedal Japan, but have used the more familiar European titles. Barons, Counts and Dukes rule. Rank is important. Greed for power makes information valuable. Spies and schemes are everywhere.

The people are diverse. Travel from one barony to another may yield a completely different populace. Centaurs and Minotaurs form strong communities.

And the world itself is dangerous. The same magic that people find useful has made the world untamable. The Wilds are rife with creatures and the ruins of previous attempts to tame them.

Short World Description Text (Dec 1997)

The Known World

The Known World has just one continent. It is dominated by a human empire, but Dwarves and Elves have fairly large populations as well. Halflings are less common and Gnomes are barely known at all.

The world is fairly low on magic and high on realism. It's a gritty kind of fantasy world. Adventurers come into town tired, dirty, and hungry.

Map of the Known World PDF (Aug 1992)

Lantyr Campaign Notes

Many of the adventures in the Lantyr world have been run with Alpha-Z (pronounced Alpha-Zed) as the background. Alpha-Z is an organization of adventurers for hire.

Overview of "Amulet" Team Dec 2007

#A1: Introduction
The group joins Alpha-Z. Summary Mar 2007

#A2: The Murder of Maury Miller
The group solves the mystery of a pyromanic scarecrow. Summary May 2007

#A3: Dragon's Delve
They rescue a dragon and a dwarven half-king. Summary July 2007

#A4: Ssscaly Thingsss
They get involved in the affairs of lizard men and a demon. Summary Dec 2007

Overview of Alpha-Z Group Two Jan 2003

#T1: No Experience Required
The group goes through "boot camp". - Oct 2002

#T2: A Way With Words
The effects of bad gnome poetry on kobolds is explored. - Nov 2002

#T3: Rudwilla's Stew
The group delivers a peace treaty to some bugbears. - Dec 2002

#T4: Redcap's Revenge
The difficulty with handling a Redcap is dealt with. - Jan 2003

#T5: (Name Unknown)
The group seeks to resolve problems in a town with a big undead problem. - 2003

#T6: (Name Unknown)
The group goes into the desert to resolve some political issues and gets itself into hot water. - 2003

#T7: (Name Unknown)
The group encounters a Nightmare. - 2003

Overview of Alpha-Z Adventures Feb 1998

#Z1: The Plight of Cirria
The group rescues a kidnapped dragon from a cloud castle. - Sept 1997

#Z2: The March Heir - Chet Erez
The group is hired to find a missing sword, upon which the future of the earldom rests. Summary Nov 1997

#Z3: Thunder Hill
The group is sent to uncover a murder conspiracy and finds themselves on alien ground. Summary Dec 1997

#Z4: Thunder Hill
With a different play group. The group is sent to uncover a murder conspiracy and finds themselves on alien ground. Summary Feb 1998

#Z5: (Name Unknown)
The group finds itself on an island that is really a giant turtle. - 1998

#Z6: Trip to Quanac
The group seeks information in a rock wizards' enclave. - 1998

#Z6: A Tangled Web
Varcus is kidnapped and the team comes to the rescue. - 1998

Overview of Lantyr Adventures June 1997

#L1: The Vinyard Vales
The group saves a town from locusts, lizard men, and a vengeful mage. - June 1997

NorCal Campaign Notes

This campaign was run for some friends in the Silicon Valley area. The complete adventures for this group are chronicled. I took the time to write all of these up because we had some large breaks in gaming and a lot of NPCs to track.

This campaign took place in the Known World.

Overview of NorCal Adventures Apr 1995

The NorCal Characters Dec 1993

The players in a silly pose JPEG Aug 1994

#N1: The Stolen Power
The group recovers a stolen book and makes an enemy. Summary July 1992

#N2: Moor Tomb Map
The group follows a map in search of treasure. Summary Mar 1993

#N3: Guardians of the Tomb
A Dwarf joins the group. On the road they encounter some bandits and an odd tomb. Summary Apr 1993

#N4: The Crypt of Istaris
The group rescues a town from being blown up by their old enemy. Summary May 1993

#N5: Dark Tower of Calibar
The group discovers some secrets in an evil tower. Summary Aug 1993

#N6: The Dwarven King's Court
The group saves the Dwarven king from himself. Summary Mar 1994

#N7: Beyond the Glittering Veil
The group crosses through a portal to stop an invasion of Shadows. Summary May 1994

#N8A: Raiders of the Plains
The group hunts some bandits to recover a stolen box. Summary July 1994

#N8B: Revenge of an Old Enemy
The group rescues Rhodan's mother. Summary July 1994

#N9A: To Bite the Moon
The group spends a day as Gnolls. Summary Feb 1995

#N9B: Deception Pass
The group reclaims a Dwarven fortress from a band of Ogre Magi and their pet Dragon. Summary Apr 1995

One Shot Campaign Notes

This group was formed in order to run non-campaign adventures. These are all one or two nighters run in the Known World.

Overview of One Shots Dec 1993

#O1: The Pit
The group finds and cleans out an evil temple. - Nov 1992

#O2: The Ghost of Mistmoor
The group helps a baron reclaim his manor house from some ghosts. - Mar 1993

#O3: Serpents of the Sands
The group helps dig out of nest of Yuan-Ti. - Dec 1993

Worthy Party Campaign Notes

This is the campaign I ran while attending Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. This campaign was run in the Known World.

Overview of Worthy Party Nov 1989

#C1: The Keep at Koralgesh
The group explores a long, lost keep. - Mar 1989

#C2: The Moor Tomb Map
The group follows a map in search of treasure. - Apr 1989

#C3: Ring of Confusion - S. D'Angelo
The group gets involved in a war between the Theives' and Assassins' guilds. - May 1989

#C4: Wards of Witching Ways
The group shipwrecks on an island, and bad things happen. - Jun 1989

#C5: The Crypt of Istaris
The group saves a town from being blown up. - Nov 1989

New Party Campaign Notes

This group was formed to try a second campaign when the Pastemakers group splintered. These are all run in the Known World

Overview of the New Party Sept 1989

#W1: The Stolen Power
The group recovers a stolen book. - Aug 1989

#W2: The Moor Tomb Map
The group follows a map in search of treasure. - Sept 1989

Pastemakers Campaign Notes

The longest campaign I ran in southern California was with a group that called themselves the Pastemakers.

This campaign created and shaped the Known World.

Overview of Pastemakers July 1995

The players in a silly pose JPEG June 1989

#P1: Eddistone Point
The group helps reclaim a signal tower. - July 1988

#P2: The Keep at Koralgesh
The group explores a long, lost keep. - Aug 1988

#P3: Roarwater Caves
The group is tricked into fighting some Xvarts. - Dec 1988

#P4: Wards of Witching Ways
The group shipwrecks on an island, and bad things happen. - Jan 1989

#P5: The Crypt of Istaris
The group saves a town from being blown up. - June 1989

#P6: Tallow's Deep
The group weeds out a Goblin nest. - July 1989

#P7: Chadranther's Bane
The characters get small for a while and come out of it to find time has passed. Summary Dec 1989

#P8: The Elves of Allindel
The group takes on a Mind Flayer after it wipes out and Elven community. Summary Aug 1994

#P9: School of Nekros
The group stops a school of necromancers. - July 1995

Other Campaign Notes

I've run a number of other adventures. Some notes follow.

Overview of Other Adventures July 1991

#I: The City Beyond the Gate
The group jumps to London 1985. Summary Aug 1985