I started a new job a little over four months ago and, entirely coincidentally of course, I haven’t posted or worked on anything on github in over four months. Last summer and last year in general was a big sprint for personal projects and hobbies. I got a lot done but also got a little burned out.

But it’s (February) 2018 and time to get back on the horse! I have the first homebrew of the year ready for bottling tomorrow and it’s the first candidate for a batch we’re brewing for a friends’ wedding. Recipe here!

There’s a new project that has me really excited: I’m DMing a Dungeons and Dragons group at work. A couple coworkers and I were talking about podcasts and other nerdy media and naturally my favorite live D&D podcast (#TheZoneCast) came up. They said they’ve always wanted to play and I’ve always wanted to DM. We got it going and have a group of 9 who hop in and out of the party.

We’ve had three encounters and couple bookkeeping sessions to create characters and level up. I think it’s gone pretty well so far. Every session goes longer than I plan– including one 5 hour marathon encounter one Wednesday evening. The players just keep getting more into it and that pumps me up.

There are a few logistical quirks with having a group of 9 characters. The party hasn’t and likely won’t ever be consistent, so we’ve been starting and ending each session at a home base– an inn in Neverwinter called The Winter Rose. This is actually pretty nice since it bookends each adventure and gives the characters a familiar place to get to know. Another problem we’re still working on is how to share loot and info with characters who might not have been there for a previous session. We’ll figure it out.

And now, a little overview of the adventure so far.

Our story begins as many do in the Forgotten Realms, at an inn. Our heroes find themselves sharing a beer, perhaps their first together, when a half-orc approaches them and asks to join their party for the last day of travel to Neverwinter. They accept and head out the first thing the next day. Their new companion was not as friendly as (some of them) expected and led them into an ambush. Our heroes were victorious and made it to Neverwinter with a mysterious elven cloak and shiny black gemstone embedded in lockbox used as bait.

The gang then came across a looted merchant cart in the canals of Neverwinter. Follow a trail of goblins, they clear out a sewer lair led by a bugbear named Klarg and free a knight of the Protectorate named Sildar.

When the Protectorate tries to send a reward to the inn where the gang is staying, the knight is attacked by a mob of freedom-fighters. Our heroes (mostly) help the knight, Giles, and fend off the attackers. As a reward, they are given Sildar’s Protectorate-issued magical dagger.

More adventure (and possibly scheming by our heroes) awaits!