The Canon discarded, the Adventure set free

[Willis]

I'd like to see your overall campaign notes, for what it's worth.

[Rocmistro]

I think it's a very cool idea. The trick here is that you need to know your audience (players) and what you can get away with. In my IRL life, this would fly, no question. One of their key concerns about playing TOR was being shackled to canon. Like you, I let them know that all bets were off, and I proved it when I killed off Aragorn and let one of them start to take on the role/purpose of Aragorn. They were energized, though the campaign died due to other reasons (my brother was lured away by the call of rock-stardom...he joined a crappy bar band).

Then again, a simliar thing happened in a PbP group that I play with, and they are more Tolkien-canonites than my IRL group. Although I did not go into that campaign with the intention of killing Aragorn, it happened, and I don't think it was a positive overall effect on the group.

[zedturtle]

Then again, a simliar thing happened in a PbP group that I play with, and they are more Tolkien-canonites than my IRL group. Although I did not go into that campaign with the intention of killing Aragorn, it happened, and I don't think it was a positive overall effect on the group.

While I'm firmly in "we're telling the truth behind the canon version of events" camp, I think I'd be up for these sorts of games. I'd probably prefer up front warning; but the shock factor has a certain appeal as well.

Plus everyone knows that Aragorn was anachronistic insert by later chroniclers; Sam was the Athelas-using, dual wielding badass of the actual Fellowship.

[Glorelendil]

Then again, a simliar thing happened in a PbP group that I play with, and they are more Tolkien-canonites than my IRL group. Although I did not go into that campaign with the intention of killing Aragorn, it happened, and I don't think it was a positive overall effect on the group.

While I'm firmly in "we're telling the truth behind the canon version of events" camp, I think I'd be up for these sorts of games. I'd probably prefer up front warning; but the shock factor has a certain appeal as well.

Plus everyone knows that Aragorn was anachronistic insert by later chroniclers; Sam was the Athelas-using, dual wielding badass of the actual Fellowship.

From what I understand, it was agents of cults founded by Sam who actually did the editing of the chronicles, in order to prevent future readers from discovering the truth about their leader.

[DavetheLost]

With my local group canon has never been an issue. I am lucky to get players who have even seen the PJ movies once, never mind actually read the books.

This is definitely double edged. On the one hand I don't have to worry about players who argue every tiny bit of Tolkien lore. On the other hand I have players who think of every thing in D&D terms rather than Middle Earth terms.

[Elmoth]

Been there, seen that, Dave. And my players are supposed to be well read Tolkien people. Theoretically at least. They ahve a good notion of the main events, cjharacters and vdevelopments of the stories, but once they sit at the table they seem to forget the books and look at the red box on the shelf. MERP and high school roleplaying did that to us, I guess. They have a really hard time moving from the "kill everything" approach and moving to a more travel and encounter-centric approach.

[Finrod Felagund]

My favourite era has always been the 2nd age. You have simple human cultures in Rhovanion, northern Eriador, Vales of Anduin and the White Mountains. There are still plenty of Elves in Eregion, Lindon, Mirkwood and Lorien plus wandering companies elsewhere. Numenoreans in Lond Daer and Tharbad, Entwives in the Brown lands, and a huge Dwarf city in Moria. Southern Eriador is covered in Woods, and Sauron is stirring in Mordor! Plus it's not been that long since the true Elder days so there are spirits and lesser Maiar a-plenty.

I've always thought that there could be great adventures in this environment.

[Falenthal]

My favourite era has always been the 2nd age. You have simple human cultures in Rhovanion, northern Eriador, Vales of Anduin and the White Mountains. There are still plenty of Elves in Eregion, Lindon, Mirkwood and Lorien plus wandering companies elsewhere. Numenoreans in Lond Daer and Tharbad, Entwives in the Brown lands, and a huge Dwarf city in Moria. Southern Eriador is covered in Woods, and Sauron is stirring in Mordor! Plus it's not been that long since the true Elder days so there are spirits and lesser Maiar a-plenty.

I've always thought that there could be great adventures in this environment.

++++1.

Always thought the Second Age was underused.

[Dedicemancometh]

I just don't have the bandwidth to collate and format distributable adventures. So I'll just summarize:

Adventure #1: At the Sign of the Dancing Dormouse. "The Doormuster," as it's affectionately called, is a smallish establishment not quite half the size of the Prancing Pony. The chief proprietor is Barrelman Burlybung, a cheerful malcontent, if ever there was such.

A group of adventurers gathers at the bar and, after introductions, prevent a couple of unruly ruffians from beating up Lob and Fob, Burlybung's busboys, just for kicks. Constable Chuggers -- a wee bit off his hobby horse on the Angfaulith Ale -- notices the good deed, and between pickled eructations asks the party to go see about a pointy-hatted old man asking for daring-doers in the "Sullenies" (Bree quarter, more properly called the sullen alleys, though hardly anyone uses that term anymore)

On the way to the Sullenies see the inquiring old sage, the part is jumped in an alley by the recently bested ruffians -- who have acquired allies -- the whole lot turn out to be Brigands from the South. They send the brigands running. But it turns out the pointy-hatted old man had been watching the whole fracas (from a hidden vantage point) with interest.
He introduces himself to the party as Gandalf the Grey and says he got a mission of great importance to assign to willing adventurers. The party agrees to be those adventurers, they are now a Fellowship (let them pick Fellowship Focus, here).

Adventure #2: You’ve Got Mail. Gandalf wants the fellowship to check on his old friend, Bilbo Baggins, in the Shire. However, Bilbo has become quite a recluse since returning from The Wild, and the party can only gain access to him if they gain the approval /confidence of Mayor Wálo Whitfoot (Will Whitfoot’s father) of Michel Delving. Gandalf leaves them to attend to other business, and they travel to Michel Delving.

There, old Wálo [easy Encounter] immediately redirects them to stem the emergency facing Postmaster Polo Proudfoot: four of his best Pony-pelasters (a Hobbitish title for mounted mail delivery person) have all gone missing after a drinking binge at the Bird and Baby. And it is MATHOM’MUS DAY! (A Shire Holiday whence everyone sends their ten closest friends their ten least favorite mathoms along with cream cakes.) Proudfoot is in a pickle! So the adventurers take his ponies (“Polo-ponies”, ha!) and spend the day rushing like mad to deliver the mathoms.

The postal delivery mini-game: This was a mini-game I devised, vaguely inspired by the mail quests in LoTRO. Knowing that it was a lot of rolling, I launched into it with energy and speed, emphasizing all the disappointed Hobbits, feeling friendless because no one sent them any mathoms. Kept it moving like a galloping pony! A lot of humor and mock desperation combined with a fast patter kept it exciting, not a roll-grind. Use your best jokes and puns here.

P.S. - I ran each PC through a single round before going to the next PC (even though, story-time-wise, everyone was out on the routes simultaneously). You could try moving to the next PC after every travel roll, like a board game, and come up with rules for when they pass/meet on the routes, but I went with expedience. YMMV

Per PC, three rounds of:

• 1) Randomly roll a number of packages to deliver on success die (1-6)
  2) Randomly roll a destination for each package on feat die
  • (G) Michel Delving
    1 Hobbiton
    2 The Hill
    3 Stock
    4 Frogmorton
    5 Budgeford
    6 Little Delving
    7 Waymeet
    8 Tuckborough
    9 Oatbarton
    10 Woodhall
    (S) Needlehole
  
  
  3) Determining the best way to go in order to hitting all the stops on their route AND GET BACK TO MICHEL DELVING (it is a loop-route).
  4) Run the route:
  • a. Keep a running tally of Delivered Mathoms, by PC
    b. To get to the next stop (node on the map) make a Travel roll vs TN for the connecting road (as per color code on attached map):
    • i. Failure: some hazard must be overcome, or PC does not progress to next stop. All hazards were TN 10 – easy; this is the Shire after all – everything should be amusing, annoying at most.
      • (S) Failure, plus a Sauron means that, tragically, the mathom is damaged beyond repair (shattered, fell in mud, into the drink and washed down to the Brandywine, etc.). PC considers this stop removed from their route and can revise their route going forward accordingly.
      ii. Success: PC makes it to next stop
      
      iii. Great Success:
      • 1. PC progresses TWO stops on his route OR
        2. PC progresses the usual one stop, but is able to offer one other PC assistance (one extra die on ONE travel roll; obviously to be used later by that assisted PC during their turn)
      iv. Extraordinary Success:
      • 1. PC progresses THREE stops on his route OR
        2. PC progresses TWO stops, but is able to offer one other PC assistance (one extra die on ONE travel roll; obviously to be used later by that assisted PC during their turn)
        3. PC progresses the usual one stop, but is able to offer one other PC assistance (TWO extra die on ONE travel roll; obviously to be used later by that assisted PC during their turn) [No further permutations of the two extra die were allowed, like assisting TWO other players with one die once, or one player with one die twice across two different travel rolls. YMMV]
    c. Getting to a stop, or even passing through, means that the Mathom for that destination has been delivered! (In other words, if the PC can progress two or three stops, there is no need to prematurely end at a delivery stop; they can keep going and still have made the delivery.) Increase the running tally of “delivered Mathoms” for the PC by one.
  5) All PCs gain 1 Treasure Point per 2 delivered Mathoms (round up). Polo pays handsomely for saving Mathom’mus Day!
  
  6) Add +1 Tolerance in the upcoming Hamfast “Hammy” Gamgee Encounter for each Mathom delivered to Hobbiton or The Hill. (He is young and not nicknamed “Gaffer” yet.)
  Subtract -1 Tolerance for every Mathom that was supposed to be delivered to Hobbiton or The Hill, but destroyed by a Hazard episode.

If the encounter goes well with Hammy, as it should, he should get the party access to Bilbo. On the off chance that the character’s somehow put off Hammy, they’ll have to help out someone else in Hobbiton before they can see the resident of Bag End. Don’t have material for that; you’re on your own. But anyway, once the PC’s gain access, that’s the episode that has the first really big “OH, SNAP!” moment. Described in the next installment.

[Terisonen]

My favourite era has always been the 2nd age. You have simple human cultures in Rhovanion, northern Eriador, Vales of Anduin and the White Mountains. There are still plenty of Elves in Eregion, Lindon, Mirkwood and Lorien plus wandering companies elsewhere. Numenoreans in Lond Daer and Tharbad, Entwives in the Brown lands, and a huge Dwarf city in Moria. Southern Eriador is covered in Woods, and Sauron is stirring in Mordor! Plus it's not been that long since the true Elder days so there are spirits and lesser Maiar a-plenty.

I've always thought that there could be great adventures in this environment.

++++1.

Always thought the Second Age was underused.

It was also very much less documented than the first or the third age...