HOME | DD

Description

Would you believe none of my players played Exile or Avernum? This is the introductory cutscene for our most recent one-shot campaign wherein the players are tasked to retrieve a peculiar jewel either through the gladiatorial arena or through other means. My players don't know about the twist ending though~

A dull drone buzzes in your ears.

The day once thought impossible is now before you. You grasp your bag from the wagon as your companions do the same. In the distance you see an old man wearing his treasured task robes, they are old and faded with age–and patched more than a dozen times–but its formality and status are only enhanced by its wear. He stands abreast two knights adorned in similarly accomplished armor and beckons you over.

You follow him and the knights through the vast thicket of cavewood, marching quietly behind. You and your cohorts arrive at a clearing, a hot red glow juxtaposed to the cool blue-green of the luminescent fungus that surrounds you emanates from the far cliffs. The group nears the entrance. Your footsteps do not echo despite their subterranean conditions–no, unlike you, they are engulfed by it.

A loud thrum echoes through your head as you enter the archway, the air is static and full of tension. The cave walls give way to chiseled brick and mortar, the natural curves yield to man's sharp edges. The old man takes you to a circular room with a rounded roof, a raised stage is in the center. He whispers in tongues to his gnarled staff and raises it into the air. With a tap and a flash of light, the stage explodes into a cacophony of fiery chaos and static.

There it is standing before your very eyes, crackling with a violent, untamed energy. It snaps and fizzles and its brilliant crimson light is overpowered solely by the roaring hum that is only amplified by the hard, hewn stone walls. Then, as quickly as it started, it ends. Your ears ring with pain, your eyes blinded by power. You stumble in the darkness of your own mind.

Your eyes adjust and the ringing stops and you see a tranquil window to another place. Lush with green ferns and sprinkled in rainwater, the old man steps away and looks at you expectantly.

The silence is deafening.

A cold darkness surrounds you.

You rise to your feet and clutch closely your tattered cloak, shivering as you do. Only now, standing in this insidious quietude, do you notice something; it's very cold down in Avernum. You cannot believe you spent the last ten years of your life in this squalor. This thought, however, galvanizes you; hundreds upon thousands of people leave their destinies in your hesitant hands. You look back into the blackness one last time.

The old man opens his mouth, but words fail him. For what can he say? Empty promises of safety? A guarantee for success? No. You and he both know of your monumental task. You and he know that all who were sent to Avernum are failures, utter rejects, and the sum of the Earth. You have nothing to lose.

And everything to gain.

You take your first confidant stride out through the portal-your first step in defiance to the King- and all your senses are assaulted. The grass and mud squish pliantly beneath your boots and a cool breeze wafts scents of sweet nectar through the living air. Animals, both familiar and alien, rustle the leaves around you. Wandering amidst the darkness, sounds of crickets and cicadas sing into the night sky.

The night sky. You feel your eyes relax in a way you haven't felt in years. There is no ceiling, just the truly endless heavens above. Each twinkling star is a reminder that this is reality. Gazing into the sky, you lose yourself completely. You don't even notice the bruising coming from the east. Glorious Lucifer, the Morningstar, peaks his head above the horizon.

The sky turns a golden orange and the environs which surround you reveal themselves. Lush foliage, tall trees, and brilliant flowers surround you in every direction. Your deprived eyes can barely comprehend the vividity of the colors. It's splendor is both breath-taking and gut-clenchingly terrifying. It is truly an awesome sight to behold.

Behind you lies a small stone wall with engravings shaped like a portcullis, undoubtedly this is the keystone for the portal. You place your hand on the stone. It's warm and makes the hair on your arm stand, but all too quickly, it fades. The life you led for the last ten years is sealed shut.

Ten years.

The last time you were thrown out of your life, the last time you had to start over from scratch, the last time you had to say goodbye to everyone you knew was ten years ago. The situation feels eerily familiar. But this time where there was once death and despair, stands only life and ambition. You stride out into the sunlight.

A warm radiance embraces you.

Description

Would you believe none of my players played Exile or Avernum? This is the introductory cutscene for our most recent one-shot campaign wherein the players are tasked to retrieve a peculiar jewel either through the gladiatorial arena or through other means. My players don't know about the twist ending though~

A dull drone buzzes in your ears.

The day once thought impossible is now before you. You grasp your bag from the wagon as your companions do the same. In the distance you see an old man wearing his treasured task robes, they are old and faded with age–and patched more than a dozen times–but its formality and status are only enhanced by its wear. He stands abreast two knights adorned in similarly accomplished armor and beckons you over.

You follow him and the knights through the vast thicket of cavewood, marching quietly behind. You and your cohorts arrive at a clearing, a hot red glow juxtaposed to the cool blue-green of the luminescent fungus that surrounds you emanates from the far cliffs. The group nears the entrance. Your footsteps do not echo despite their subterranean conditions–no, unlike you, they are engulfed by it.

A loud thrum echoes through your head as you enter the archway, the air is static and full of tension. The cave walls give way to chiseled brick and mortar, the natural curves yield to man's sharp edges. The old man takes you to a circular room with a rounded roof, a raised stage is in the center. He whispers in tongues to his gnarled staff and raises it into the air. With a tap and a flash of light, the stage explodes into a cacophony of fiery chaos and static.

There it is standing before your very eyes, crackling with a violent, untamed energy. It snaps and fizzles and its brilliant crimson light is overpowered solely by the roaring hum that is only amplified by the hard, hewn stone walls. Then, as quickly as it started, it ends. Your ears ring with pain, your eyes blinded by power. You stumble in the darkness of your own mind.

Your eyes adjust and the ringing stops and you see a tranquil window to another place. Lush with green ferns and sprinkled in rainwater, the old man steps away and looks at you expectantly.

The silence is deafening.

A cold darkness surrounds you.

You rise to your feet and clutch closely your tattered cloak, shivering as you do. Only now, standing in this insidious quietude, do you notice something; it's very cold down in Avernum. You cannot believe you spent the last ten years of your life in this squalor. This thought, however, galvanizes you; hundreds upon thousands of people leave their destinies in your hesitant hands. You look back into the blackness one last time.

The old man opens his mouth, but words fail him. For what can he say? Empty promises of safety? A guarantee for success? No. You and he both know of your monumental task. You and he know that all who were sent to Avernum are failures, utter rejects, and the sum of the Earth. You have nothing to lose.

And everything to gain.

You take your first confidant stride out through the portal-your first step in defiance to the King- and all your senses are assaulted. The grass and mud squish pliantly beneath your boots and a cool breeze wafts scents of sweet nectar through the living air. Animals, both familiar and alien, rustle the leaves around you. Wandering amidst the darkness, sounds of crickets and cicadas sing into the night sky.

The night sky. You feel your eyes relax in a way you haven't felt in years. There is no ceiling, just the truly endless heavens above. Each twinkling star is a reminder that this is reality. Gazing into the sky, you lose yourself completely. You don't even notice the bruising coming from the east. Glorious Lucifer, the Morningstar, peaks his head above the horizon.

The sky turns a golden orange and the environs which surround you reveal themselves. Lush foliage, tall trees, and brilliant flowers surround you in every direction. Your deprived eyes can barely comprehend the vividity of the colors. It's splendor is both breath-taking and gut-clenchingly terrifying. It is truly an awesome sight to behold.

Behind you lies a small stone wall with engravings shaped like a portcullis, undoubtedly this is the keystone for the portal. You place your hand on the stone. It's warm and makes the hair on your arm stand, but all too quickly, it fades. The life you led for the last ten years is sealed shut.

Ten years.

The last time you were thrown out of your life, the last time you had to start over from scratch, the last time you had to say goodbye to everyone you knew was ten years ago. The situation feels eerily familiar. But this time where there was once death and despair, stands only life and ambition. You stride out into the sunlight.

A warm radiance embraces you.