Come have a chat with RavenWerks creaters, Taylor and Mikaela, in their next installment about DnD. Today we talk about scenarios that made our DM’s say WTF, what our dream DnD crossovers are, and what we would like to try in future characters.
[Taylor] Hi! Welcome to RavenWerks Guild Talk. This is our second installment. We are once again talking about DnD. Kind of continueing off of our last conversation. Really quick in case you haven’t seen one of our videos before… we’re your hosts. My name is Taylor.
[Mikaela] Mikaela!
[Taylor] and last time on guild talk, we were talking about DnD, it was about first experiences, first impressions, what we would and would change when we very first started playing DnD. This time Mikaela has come up with a couple more questions that are a little more forward looking; less so about out first experience itself. And before we get into that, I just want to bring up just as a quick plug, check out our website if you haven’t seen it before. We are still adding new product including our stickers, t shirts (like this little guy), and we will be at some markets and things like that. So, we are starting to do candles, that are more…
[Mikaela] Like witchy decor…
[Taylor] witchy decor. More like small batch, very intentional things and those will start to be going up on our website as well. Or we will start putting up on our schedule online when and where we are, so if you are a Washington local, Western Washington, come say “Hi”! Come check out our in person stuff. So, let us move on to the main thing.
[Mikaela] Yeah. That being said, as kind of a follow up on those last questions regerding first experiences and that, my first thing is for you to describe your favorite scenario that made your DM, or Dungeon Master, say kindo of WTF to a scenario that your party was supposed to deal with or that they laid out. Maybe not necessarily that you didn’t do what you were supposed to. Although that definitely certainly happens and can, but as far as like, just something that your character played that your DM look at you like you’re a couple watts short of a full lightbulb.
[Taylor] Or in my case, question whether or not I should be in a psych ward. So… uh… I guess I should preface this with: I almost always play a, some sort of chaotic nuetral rogue that tends to be more…
[Mikaela] A Kleptomaniac!
[Taylor] more on the creative side. They are not always kleptos. This one particularly was. And so, um, there was lots of situations where my fellow players would either pick me up and bodily move me from places because they could see me getting distracted by something they knew I was going to be like “Ah! Shiny!” And it did lead to some interesting situations. One of them in particular that I can think of is we were harvesting these plants out in the forest which, the DM did not see it going this way but, someone was purchasing them and then we realized it could be used as the DnD equivalent of cocaine. And then we started a drug ring and it was a whole thing. But while we were out there [collecting plants], we got attacked by a guy who was being sort of controlled/possessed by some higher fae entity that we never got answers on and he had this brand that was glowing that we did not know at the time was what he was being controlled through. It was shiny. We killed the guy in defense of ourselves. And I decided that I would cut it out of his neck and take it and keep it. And I put it in my pocket and I also had a habit of taming and keeping rodents and things so… my rat that was in my pocket and myself, because we had direct skin contact with it and were still around it, kind of got possessed by this fae thing. Then the had to [kind of] kill me and bring me back to life to get it out of me. It was a whole thing. There was other stuff. There’s been lots of things. But that’s the one that I think, the DM would was most like… why would you cut this off someones neck nad stick it in your pocket? Like it was very left field.
[Mikaela & Taylor] *Laughing*
[Mikaela] Fair. That is a fair response.
[Taylor] Like there’s other ones that he kind of *hhhhmmm* but he could logic through why it had popped into my head, where it’s like “oh! It’s shiny. Okay, you could grab this. I can see where you are going with it.” This one it was very much like “do we need to have a conversation meta? Like why did this even occur to you?” So yeah, I think that is my biggest one.
[Mikaela] Um, I think mine actually, and you may have heard, if you guys follow the blog, I did bring it up in a previous blog post because it is one of my favorite unconventional interactions. In my very very first DnD campaign, we were playing with Thomas’ (AKA Mikaela’s husband) brother and a couple of their friends and my brother in laws girlfriend was our DM. And we were supposed to be scaling to the top of this mountain and there was a temple that basically gave you access to the inside of, I mean it was the inside of a mountain, but it was essentially like a multi level dungeon, like, network of tunnels and we were looking for this group of dwarves that had been being, like, kidnapped and taken hostage. This was this thing with like possessing children. It’s a long story. But, on enroute to the top mountain, we came across a camp. A relatively large camp of goblins. And it was, it was implied that said goblins would be hostile and impede access to the top of the mountain. Which would usually lead to combat with said group, because, um, Thomas’ brother played a VERY enthusiastic paladin. Umm… But two of our party members were already at half health. It was our, it was Thomas’ and I’s very very first campaign so we were incredibly low level and it had been a rough day. So we used a combination of mage hand, my characters pygmy dragon (Pipsqueak), a little tiny frog totem that we had picked up in loot some place else, and a very good illusion to convince said band of goblins that one of our party was their god. And convinced them more or less to joyously through themselves off of a cliff as a blood tribute to us. Um, so, we didn’t get the experience points that we really needed to then help complete the rest of the dungeon so then technically it was creative but we also kind of stabbed ourselves in the foot.
[Taylor] And we had just been talking too… the frog totem thing reminded me that at one point I had to act out a thing that I did where I was in a frog hoody and I zipped it up and seduced a water elemental. So, umm, that one was more of a what the #*%$ for me though. I think he just really wanted to see me…
[Mikaela] He wanted to see how far he could push it.
[Taylor] Yeah. Me sexily ribbiting in a frog hoody.
[Mikaela & Taylor] *laughing*
[Taylor] Yeah. So… moving on to the next one. So, what is your dream DnD crossover and I’m not going to bring up the examples on here because I know Mikaela’s going to use a couple of them and one of them is kind of mine too sooo…
[Mikaela] Crossover. So like as far a, rather than playing just, like, standard DnD world or traditional homebrew. I mean, any of these would have to be homebrews, but as far as using other formats and like, fandoms and things that are out there… ummm… I have to put on the list Lord of the Rings. Because that is my all time high fantasy, like, cannon. Um, if we are going stereotypical, I want middle earth! But outside of that, my two favorites (ideas) are … if you know what the Fraggles are, and if you don’t, I’m sorry, I can’t help you. I… I want. It’s like the muppets but better and I think it would be hilarious to have a group of your friends have to create their own muppet. Not muppet but like Fraggle and knowing how they behave and, like, the zaney culture of the Fraggles. I think would ensue in some really great shinanigans.
[Taylor] I wanna be a Doozer.
[Mikaela] See! And I’m like I wanna be a Doozer! And another one, like silliness aside, short of the Lord of the Rings, my all time favorite book series is the Symphony of Ages. And if, again, if you haven’t read the Symphony of Ages, and haven’t heard of it, go find them. They are #&$^ing fantastic.
[Taylor] Yes.
[Mikaela] I think that that world crossover… The author, Elizabeth Hayden, has layered so much believable, authentic fantasy, but through the laws of fantasy realistic lore that I think there are some really cool class possabilities. I think there are some really awesome quest possibilities, just the end of the book series itself. There are so many upcoming problems that like, it could be thousands of years in the future and your parties problem could be to solve one of those ongoing issues.
[Taylor] Literally the whole thing.
[Mikaela] Umm, I think that there is so much potentialthere and it would be in some ways like my inner child high fantasy dream come true. So I think those for me are it.
[Taylor] The roots… Being in the roots of Sagia. (Mikaela agreeing) The whole thing. That would be like a whole arc all on it’s own. Totally different world.
[Mikaela] Yeah. [And] They have like some species crossovers so like instead of your traditional Elves, um, you would have to go, like, Lirin. But they still have got Firbolg. They’ve got like the Dracians.
[Taylor] I just think there would be a lot of really cool things.
[Mikaela] Yeah. There’s just so much you could pull from.
[Taylor] And like, some of the NPC’s that could be pulled that were, like, long living just, like, would be really fun as a DM.
[Mikaela] Part of the premise of the books without giving it away, is due to some weird worldbuilding situation stuff, there is a group of people that are bordering on immortal. And we are talking, like, an entire generation from all different species of people have this weird thing happen to them where they stop aging. So, like, there’s so much potential there.
[Taylor] I would want to do it like later, like after the book series, because it could be like…. anyways, I am digressing.
[Mikaela] *theatrical whispering* And like the book series ends like 2 or 300 years after the thing… *unintelligable mumble gestures as Mikaela tries to imply stuff*
[Taylor] I know.
[Mikaela] That last book really like, right in the %^&$ing heart.
[Taylor] I didn’t read the last one. I know you told… and I just don’t… cuz I would cry the whole time.
[Mikaela] Yeah… you would.
[Taylor] Yeah. But anyways… so, um, anyways. My own answer. Sorry we went down a little rabbit hole right there. My own answer, so one of her examples on here I am currently in. And that probably would have been my go to answer until, you know, I am already in it. One Piece! Because that’s a whole world! Like it’s an expansive world with multiple islands, different cultures. Like it’s very built out and very layered and Oda is a freaking genius so there’s like just so many different things to pull from. (Mikaela making faces because we do not share this fandom and she has to hear all my rants and soap boxes and lecture) Don’t get me started. Anyways, I’m a huge One Piece fan. I have been watching it forever. Umm…
[Mikaela] We will always disagree on this one.
[Taylor] Yeah. I know right. I have been watching One Piece for liek 20 freaking years now at this point. So um, and reading, and everything. Just… One Piece. So that would be a thing but obviously I am in a campaign currently and have been for a little over a year so, I am living out that lovely DnD fantasy at the moment. And then I really agree with the Fraggles. And without giving too much away because she’s in my campaign, I have managed to integrate that in there somewhere. But I am not going to tell them who and what they are so if she figures it out, great but, uh, concepts are in there. That is coming up. And then…
[Mikaela] *whisper* Just don’t make me kill Fraggles.
[Taylor] Just don’t mindlessly kill.
[Mikaela] That’s not me. Talk to Victor.
[Taylor] Talk to Victor. Yeah. You guys are going to have to reign the bard in. And then I actually really love the idea of a Harry Potter world BUT Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them. So, focusing less on Harry Potter and Voldemort and that. I mean you can like bring those up and, like, have that be cannon in that world. But, I would much rather go, like, slightly more Victorian, like somebody, like when they are figuring things out. Like in Harry Potter and you read those books and that, they, they, bring up all of these cannony, like, people in their history books…
[Mikaela] Well, especially with how long lived wizards are. There’s possability there. That could be fun.
[Taylor] So, I jsut feel like I would want to go more that route and make it a little more steam punky because they do have stuff, right?! Like the, um, (My brain just shut off and is rebooting) just some of the different machines and that they have. They are obviously magical based, not steam, but kind of going that route.
[Mikaela] But like technology meets magic crossover. They do have a fair a bit of that.
[Taylor] Yeah. Some of the real world world stuff but it’s kind of twisted a little bit. A little bit darker.
[Mikaela] And that would be cool because that gives you a fine blending of like, you’re in a weird way, your isekai world crossover fascination, where you get just enough of the real world to be able to pull from reality, like mundane reality.
[Taylor] Yeah. And she know’s I am a sucker for the isekai, like, falling into a different world concept anyways.
[Mikaela] That could, as much as I love Harry Potter, if you didn’t go stereotypical like, Harry Potter generation, they are all alive, and you are in that plot, then I think that could be super cool. Because, there is a lot of meta lore you could like pull from.
[Taylor] Yeah. Well even just like locations. Like you could still have, you know, Hogwarts etc. It’s jut like different people there because it’s… I would want to go prior to Harry Potter.
[Mikaela] Even like pre marauders.
[Taylor] Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Pre that. Very like, they are still figuring things out. Maybe even when the original house masters were there. Like Godric Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Slytherin, like, that would be a cool era to be in.
[Mikaela] I like how the only founder whose name you know is your own house. So… pbt!
[Taylor] I know the others (Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin). I do know the others, but he gets a pedestal.
[Mikaela] Okay.
[Taylor] Anyways.
[Mikaela] Fair.
[Taylor] And then…
[Mikaela] I think last question. I will let you interpret this to some degree because, I know you. Um… what character or type of character would you want to build or play next. It could either be like the type of characteryou have never ever played before or if you already have a specific character in your mind that you want to be able to build out and act.
[Taylor] Yeah. Cuz there’s cool ways to take somebody like, I don’t know, Darth Vader, and make a build around that. I would not, BUT… I mean I would but that’s not what I am going with this…
[Mikaela] DENIED!
[Taylor] No. I know somebody who is possibly doing that so I am not messing with that one. Um… so , I feel like I tend to go very dark, sassy characters. A little standoffish. I like going chaotic neutral and just, and I am really, really prone to, um, rogues. And that’s just because I find it easy to fall into that character.
[Mikaela] She likes to live vicariously through her DnD characters.
[Taylor] Just a little bit. And so, I would want to try something new. Something different. Maybe something a little bit more challenging. I feel like my current One Piece character, my closest class, since it’s a bit of a homebrew thing, would be kind of a druid. And I had considered do that. It’s very different for me and is a lot more difficult but I feel like I still have that somewhat snarky, dark character, like, character itself. Personality? And so I would want to…
[Mikaela] From what I have heard, yes, you are a murder doctor.
[Taylor] I am. Just a little bit and, like, I might hurt you. I might help you. I don’t know. And I do get really pissed at you and chop you up, I know how to stitch you back together so it’s fine. So, I feel like I would want to go, something… (*both of us laughing*) it’s fine as long as you don’t die. Um, I feel like I would want to go something that would be harder for me to play character wise. So, something bright and bubbly and heppy and go lucky… kind of like a fluffy carebear character. I don’t know that I know necessarily what class but I would just want to play with a character that would be very, like, difficult for me to stay in character. I feel like that would…
[Mikaela] You want a challenge. Okay.
[Taylor] A growth thing. Yeah. Something that’s a challenge.
[Mikaela] Well, a challenge for you. Hahaha. See, and this is where you can tell that, yes, we are related. We have some very different personalities because on the flip side of this question, most of my characters, as opposed to her chaotic chaotic…
[Taylor] *whispers* Chaos…
[Mikaela] have been lawful good with a very strict moral code. It might not be everybody else’s moral code but they HAVE a very strict moral code. Um, and I am more or less, a squishy in real life (side eye from Taylor… because this is half true) so I feel like all of my DnD characters have been things that’s first reactions have been to, um, hit first and ask later. Um, I think my next DnD character… I will take a two pronged thing with this because technically speaking, the next character that I would really want to build, I technically have. I just haven’t gotten to play him yet beacause it’s for her (gestures to Taylor) campaign that we are getting ready to start. Um, and the cahllenge with one is going to be that it is an adolescent-ish aged, 24 year old, perpetually mutated, magically stunted, pygmy dragon sorcerer and not only have I never played a magic weilder- I am usually a barbarian or a ranger- but als, if you know me, my nickname is motor mouth for a reason. And, he can’t talk. So I am going to have to figure out how…
[Taylor] I mean he can, just not in anythnig that the other players will understand.
[Mikaela] Yeah. Unless one of my party members happens to speak draconic or dwarvish through a weird twist of backstory, nobody will be able to understand me. And even then, he doesn’t have fully developed vocal chords yet because he’s still considered young, so he’s learning to telepathically communicate short blips of information. But for the most part, my chatty ass is going to be reduced to pantomiming…
[Taylor] *sarcastic rawr*
[Mikaela] *nervous laugh* … which will be fun. But outside of Pip, like, if I was going to create a brand new character, I’m going to say, if we are going with angle of Mikaela getting her Symphony of Ages crossover, I want to build the closest thing that I could to Grunther. Um, which in that book series is a half Firbolg, half Bengardian, like gienat behemoth of a worrior. But he’s also kid of like a natural protector. He is the “Ultimate Authority To Be Obeyed At All Costs” is what one character has named him. So I think I would do a half Orc, half Firbolg, but instead of – as much as he could be a tank- I think instead of building him as a barbarian or like a berserker, I would go cleric (or maybe Paladin?). Beecause, especially if we are taking place after the end of the Symphony of Ages story, I know where that series leaves off and then there would be so much room for my character to have to deal with the challenges of the stigma associated with Firbolg and those species still. And then, just get to constantly surprise the shit out people, which I think woujld be cool.
[Taylor] I loooove a good reaction from people. Like, even in an anime or that, like, part of the reason that I for a lot of the ones where it’s like the under dog, like whatever… and it’s such an overdone trope to some extent. But I will never not love it because I love when they pull something just out of left field and there’s such a good reaction to it.
[Mikaela] Well, and then you get the possability, at least with that character build, I would get the possability of like still being that terrifying, intimidating thing. So like with party interactions, my group would b e able to use that facade to scare the crap out of people and then physically I would still have the abiliy based off of just sheer size…
[Taylor] Intimidation rolls through the roof.
[Mikaela] …to, if I need to, pick somebody up and chuck ’em. But at the end of the day I could focus on being a nurturer and a healer and I’ve never gotten to play a cleric. And ironically, in every party I have ever played, we haven’t had a cleric so if somebody got injured, we were kind of “dude, you’re screwed.”
[Taylor] So that’s something I’d like to talk to in a future thing as well, with like character creation- is like, to some extent, your races, they already have bias’ against them. Maybe or maybe not depending on the world!
[Mikaela] For instance if you are a tielfing. Right?!
[Taylor] Yeah. And I love when you’ve got a character class, sometimes it can be annoying when they are completely the opposite (more like it isn’t believable) of like what that race would be. (insert a lot of um, like, like- because aparently I had a valley girly moment). You know what I mean?
[Mikaela] It’s unrealistic.
[Taylor] Yes. It’s unrealistic. You know some races tend to just be more dark and if you make them so they are super bubbly… but if there’s like some layer there, where they are super bubbly but they still retian some of the dark, you know what I mean? There’s like a fine line and I love that, being able to play with that.
[Mikaela] That’s why I’m excited to do- we have a blog post coming up about like, how to build a playable character DnD character and a believable one. Because there’s a difference- without us getting too much into a rabbit hole- there’s a difference between creating a cool character in your head and then being able to execute it.
[Taylor] Yeah.
[Mikaela] So…
[Taylor] And I love talking about character creation, even with NPC’s. Anyway’s… But I’m going to go down a rabbit hole because that’s what I do. So… mums the word.
[Mikaela] We’ll get that.
[Taylor] *literally just repeating what Mikaela said*
Um… *awkward pause* I think that was all three of our questions. I think, that’s the end of it. Don’t be a stranger, like I said. Check us out online. Check us out at market if you are local and…
[Mikaela] We will post the ones that are coming up so that you, you know, know ahead of time.
[Taylor] Yup. And if you haven’t notice, I have done a lot less of the, like, blog posts recently. Mikaela has been kind of chugging along with that, but you are about to see a little bit more of me on there again. So, uh, just keep an eye out.
[Mikaela] We have some exciting partnerships hopefully coming up soon that we’re, again mums the word at the moment, but like when the moment’s right! And hopefully things pan out, we will be able bring you some new stuff soon. And we are still kind of chugging along and kicking as far as like making career moves to really put us in a position to really kind of take this from grass roots growth to hopefully, like, really good trebuche launch.
[Taylor] Yeah. Well, and partnerships, we are talking products. We are talking maybe getting some people in here for interviews. Lot’s of good stuff coming up and ALSO… if, if, I don’t know if I mentioned at the very beginning, but part of our long term goal with our brick and mortar is to have a bar there. We did open up another instagram specifically, since I personally work as a bartender and now I do freelance bartending, so take a look at that too. It’s @ravenwerks.bartending, you can find it on our main instagram (@ravenwerks_guild) and there’s going to be a lot of tips and tricks, new recipes, and things like that.
[Mikaela] Yup! So, I think last notes are, do us a favor- Follow. Subscribe. And then if you have a moment and are feeling so inclined, in the comment section below, if you would do us a favor, I mean we would love to A. hear your answers to these things, because that’s part of the whole excitment with DnD, is that community and the connection. And you sometimes get some cool character ideas from people. But also, if there is a specific area of DnD, if you are looking to want to play and you aren’t sure where to start or you haven’t seen that blog post yet, if there are any particular questions that you would like answered, we love hearing those. It helps not only point us in the correct direction for future blog posts of beginner base line things that we can help you with, but also you may then get to see your question featured in a future video.
[Taylor] Yeah! Don’t be a stranger. Have a good one!
[Mikaela] Toodles!