What is this? Living Ptolus is an open, somewhat sandbox style game that uses a heavily houseruled variant of Pathfinder. Our game has multiple DMs sharing the burden of running the game, meaning that we actually get a chance to play in our own shared creation. Please check out our Wiki for more specific information on the game setting and many house rules:
Living Ptolus Wiki.What is the game setting?The game is set in Monte Cook's Ptolus. This is, in my opinion, the best game setting ever designed and released for the D&D ruleset. This is the game setting that was used to playtest the 3rd edition ruleset, so pretty much
everything can be found here.
When does this game meet? What's the format?This is a Map Tool game that is run by multiple DMs, and we don't use voice chat. Games are scheduled by DMs, and we typically run five or more games each week. Games typically meet on weeknights at 8pm or 9pm EST. We also have a regularly running 1pm EST session on Wednesday and an 11am EST session on Saturdays.
Our Map Tool server runs version 1.3b87 and the information is:
Living Ptolus (Open Recruiting)
no passwordYou're welcome to stop in any time you like if you have questions or just want to observe.
How would you describe the mix of hack and slash to pure RP?My personal opinion is that if you didn't like some hack and slash, you wouldn't be playing D&D. We tend to run a bit heavy on the combat at times, but we've also got our share of puzzles, and there's a lot of opportunity to flesh out your character.
There's no linear 'save the world' plot arc for you to progress through here. A DM has an idea for a game or series of games, and he rolls with it, letting the players shape the stories in their own unique ways. For instance, in one recent game, the party came across a hot shipment of stolen drugs and had to decide what to do with it. It played out like a scene from Reservoir Dogs.
You guys run a lot of games, what happens if I can't show up for all of them?That's fine with us. You can show up whenever you feel like it. We're usually pretty relaxed about allowing folks to come in late or leave early, too.
How many players do you allow per session here? This is nuts!Each DM can set his own ground rules on player limits. Personally, I've run with 11 characters before, and I'd probably draw the line at 12. Typically we have between 6 and 8 characters for any given session. The more, the merrier.
Can I have more than one character?Yes. When your character hits 7th level, you can make a new character. You can't play them both at the same time, but you can swap back and forth whenever you feel like it.
You guys have a lot of house rules. What is this Heroic Advancement stuff?Characters of 1st-6th level are pretty normal in our game, but once you hit 6th level, advancement gets a little bit different. Hit Dice, BAB, Saves and Skill Ranks cap out at 6th level, and high level spellcasting now has significant restrictions. See the
Advancement and Leveling page on our wiki.
How do Prestige Classes work here?Prestige classes are now feat chains that give a character Prestige Class features rather than class levels. We've ripped apart the entire Prestige Class system in an attempt to make it much more appealing for the players. To get an idea of what Prestige Classes look like in our campaign, check out the
Prestige Classes wiki page. How do I get started here?Check out the Introduction page on the wiki, take a look at the Ptolus Player's Guide (it's free!) and get an idea for what this setting is all about. Then hit up the
Character Creation page.
Do you allow X, Y, or Z?Stick to the Pathfinder Core Rulebook and Feats posted on the wiki. Anything outside of the Core Rulebook, unless it's pre-approved and listed on the wiki, requires DM approval. Typically, we approve stuff when it's reasonable and fits within our system. If we say no, we have a reason for it --
and we mean it.Wait, am I reading this right? There's no XP? Just gold?That's right. You buy everything, including levels and feats, with gold.
Doesn't that mean that I can level up just by crafting stuff and selling it to other players?Yep. You can train other players in feats, teach them prestige classes, or craft items for them, and then take whatever money you charged them and apply it to anything you like -- including class levels. You've just got to be able to find a buyer.
Can a 3rd level character group with a 15th level character? How does that even work?Yes, and it works surprisingly well. Because our system caps PC Hit Dice, BAB, and Saves at 6th level, it's actually possible for lower level characters to join, survive, and contribute on expeditions launched by higher level characters. Obviously, the risk is going to be higher if you're taking on stuff of interest to the experienced and powerful, but so are the rewards.
What is this about the game happening in real time?One day in the real world equals one day in the campaign world. If it's going to take your character ten days to craft a magical item, then it takes ten days in the real world for that item to be crafted.
This seems like a pretty deadly game. I don't want to die!Our format tries to hearken back to the D&D days of yore, to some extent. Back then, characters were expected to die rather often, and their players would either have them raised from the dead or simply roll up new characters. We go by that same philosophy here.
Of course, in Pathfinder, the penalties for being raised from the dead are pretty negligible, so getting your character killed really isn't any reason to punch your monitor.
You guys use too many house rules! I want to play a by the book game!We're running with this unusual format because, quite frankly, it's the only way we can stand to play D20 anymore. This system allows us to do something that's fresh and a little unusual with a system that is, to put it bluntly, stale and utterly broken. For one thing, fighters are actually
good in this system.
