The Great Guild

Adventure Awaits!

Welcome to Dicesongs and the Great Guilds. If this is your first time here, don’t let all the reading deter you from learning how to improve your game and your characters. The Guilds are here for your benefit as a tool and inspiration. Trust me, I am a GM.

You probably have a lot of questions. What is Dicesongs? What are the Guilds? How do I use this and is it useful? To my character? In the game? Is it free? Can I use it in my adventures? Do I have to be a member of a Guild? What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen Swallow? All great questions.

Essentially using your brain and problem-solving is the greatest tool that is vastly underrated during gameplay. If you’re one of those players who rely on the luck of the dice as a deciding factor keeping your character alive…think again. You are better than that.

Do I have your attention? Good. Then let us begin… 

©Geoffrey Schumann. Not for resale. Permission is granted to print this document for personal use only. 
Symbol for The Great Guilds

Which guild do you honor?

Symbol for The Great Guilds
Symbol for The Great Guilds

Which guild do you honor?

Enlightenment

education

Where do I learn?

experience

What have I learned?

evolution

Who am I becoming?

The Great Guilds

The Great Houses

House Gravan-Myrwinia

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The Artisans Guild

The Smiths, Masons, and craftsmen from every trade.

Symbol for Guild House Gravan-Myrwinia

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House Dwallow-Ghyrnathop

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The Assassins Guild

They work from the shadows to do what needs to be done.

Symbol for Guild House Dwallow-Ghyrnathop

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House Wh-Hhae-Urthedth

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The Bards’ Guild

All of the legends and lore combined into verse and song.

Symbol for Guild House Wh-Hhae-Urthedth

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House Crono-Mog-Roshuth

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The Fighters Guild

Training, combat styles, challenges met in the arena.

Symbol for Guild House Crono-Mog-Roshuth

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House of Holy Rollers

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The Judges Guild

The judges, jury, jailors, and executioners.

Symbol for Guild House of the Holy Rollers

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House of Chla-Drothrow

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The Healers Guild

Clerics, Apothecaries, Tenders, Healers…Your content goes here.

Symbol for Guild House Chla-Drothrow

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House Sdrathozth

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The Mages Guild

The art, research, study, light and dark.

Symbol for Guild House Sdrathozth

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House Fallowmeer

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The Navigators Guild

Map makers, guides, borders, cultures, explorers.

Symbol for Guild House Fallowmeer

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House Alkozomier

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The Thieves Guild

There is a code of honor among thieves known only to them.

Symbol for Guild House Alkozomier

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Unveiling the Great Guilds

Dicesongs offers a truly unique and immersive experience, that can elevate any tabletop or virtual adventure to new heights. Situated within the expansive world of Ertha, Dicesongs provides a boundless sandbox where your imagination knows no limits. At the core of this extraordinary adventure lies the presence of the Great Guilds. More on this a little further down…

Character enrichment

The Great Guilds are the beating heart of Dicesongs, carefully crafted to enrich your character’s journey in ways you’ve never imagined. Each Guild is a dedicated sanctuary, housing a wealth of knowledge, concepts, and ideas that can add depth and complexity to your role-playing experience, these Guilds are an invaluable resource waiting to be explored.

A wealth of opportunities

The Great Guilds aren’t just for players; they offer a treasure trove of opportunities for GMs as well. These Guilds serve as an expansive catalog of complex NPCs, ready to be seamlessly integrated into your campaigns. Imagine the possibilities of crafting adventures where admission to these prestigious Guilds becomes the ultimate prize, adding an extra layer of motivation and excitement for your players. One could treat the Great Guilds as a spice rack, ready to add flavor to what you already have, or are planning to create.

 Your character’s backstory

As a player, the Great Guilds offer you the unique opportunity to instantly infuse your character’s backstory with depth and history. Each Guild provides a distinctive narrative backdrop that can help shape your character’s identity and motivations. Whether you seek a path of honor, intrigue, or arcane mastery, the Guilds have something to offer every adventurer. And for those who relish the complexity of multi-class characters, Dicesongs allows your character to be a member of multiple Guilds, creating a rich tapestry of skills and lore.

Into the boundless

Welcome to ‘Ertha,’ a playground that stretches across the conceivable and inconceivable. From navigating through realms terrestrial, aquatic, and celestial, your tales intertwine with various aspects of Ertha’s vast universe. Navigate through physical realms, magical dimensions, alternate realities, and the untapped terrains of the dreaming world. Dive deep into the vast realms of Ertha, where your narrative unfurls amidst legends and myths, aligning with ageless tales sculpted by the sagacious Great Guilds.

Theater of the Mind

While GMs lay the foundation by crafting the environment, it’s the players who truly evolve the story. The Dicesongs experience places players in an open-world sandbox teeming with unexplored wonders, civilizations waiting to be rediscovered, and artifacts lost to the unfathomable depths of time.

Empowerment tools

Dicesongs equips every GM, with intricate tools for crafting elaborate plots and arcs. Whether delving into adventures or weaving short Æsopian tales in between, the GM Tools cater to all, maintaining narrative continuity and sparking the theater of the mind, and you can treat what you find here as an overlay onto your current games. Dicesongs operates as a neutral gaming system, introducing an additive mechanism to your existing game, freeing you from being bound to a singular gaming engine, while unveiling paths to unique, and often unanticipated adventures. Thus, every curiosity becomes a guide, leading your path toward hidden gems and unexplored horizons.

An epic journey awaits

Dicesongs transcends the conventional boundaries of tabletop gaming. It’s not just a game of chance; it’s a grand odyssey where every decision breathes vibrant life into your narrative. This captivating experience weaves together elements of Theater of the Mind, Epic Storytelling, and traditional dice mechanics, creating a tapestry of storytelling like no other. What sets Dicesongs apart is the promise that each story is a unique masterpiece, never to be repeated—a fleeting moment, akin to a Mayfly’s existence.

Unearthing forgotten history

Dicesongs unfolds in the Fourth Age, a time rich with buried and forgotten history from the preceding ages. The backstories of these eras lie within Dicesongs, waiting to be unearthed by intrepid adventurers. As you journey through Ertha, you’ll encounter the echoes of bygone heroes and the legacies they left behind. Yet, the true allure lies in the opportunity for your characters to pick up the mantle, becoming heroes or villains of the Fourth Age, leaving an indelible mark on the world’s narrative.

The uncharted dreamscape

One of the newer and most intriguing concepts in Dicesongs is the exploration of the Dreamscape. When your characters rest, do they dream? Within the enigmatic Dreamscape, a realm rarely ventured into, lies another layer of mystery and adventure waiting to be uncovered. This ethereal dimension adds a surreal and captivating dimension to your character’s journey, where reality and dreams blur, and the boundaries of imagination stretch further than ever before.

Ertha’s world of wonder

Ertha is a world ripe with mystery, action, adventure, and drama. It’s a realm where the heroes of ages past share the stage with those who will rise to become the heroes or villains of the Fourth Age. Every corner of Ertha is a treasure trove of untold stories, and Dicesongs invites you to embark on a quest of unparalleled excitement and discovery.

In Dicesongs, your choices shape your destiny, and every adventure, every tactic, and every quest is a precursor to an epic waiting to be written. It’s a journey into the unknown, a voyage into the realms of the mind, and a testament to the boundless creativity that tabletop gaming can offer. Welcome to the ever-evolving world of Dicesongs, where each moment is a story, and each story is a legend in the making.

Launching the adventure

Starting the Dicesongs adventure encapsulates a symphony of chance and decision. Players, for instance in a party of three, each roll one dice, the lowest roll determining who commences the journey. Subsequently, they continue to roll to decide the starting hemisphere, North or South. Another roll of the dice establishes the initial compass heading, and another roll pinpoints the starting locale on Ertha’s map. Finally, the GM rolls to uncover the final details, marking where the party will embark on their adventure, and so, the game unfolds. Each roll is a step towards ensuring every adventure, whether a standalone game or an ongoing campaign, blossoms from a distinct origin.

Leveling by Merit

Dicesongs stands out by revolutionizing character progression. Gone are the days of tallying up experience points, which often reduces players to mere number crunchers, overshadowing the real essence of role-playing. This traditional method often burdens GMs making them feel more like accountants than storytellers. Dicesongs introduces a refreshing alternative: Leveling by Merit. Don’t worry, There’s still experience being gathered, it is just applied differently.

This innovative system invites both players and their characters into a narrative-driven realm. Every choice, and every action, adds depth to your shared story, creating a world where every strategy and every quest becomes a part of a grand epic. The past experiences of your character do more than just form memories; they shape future interactions, and decisions, and open up endless possibilities. It’s about living in the moment, realizing that today’s choices craft tomorrow’s tales. In the article Leveling by Merit, here’s a preview of the criteria that could influence a character’s growth:

Technical Mastery, Dedication, strategic Application, Knowledge Quest, Moral Character, Physical Prowess, Emotional Resilience, Leadership and Mentorship, Challenging Trials, and a Competitive Spirit…

And there’s so much more. From exploring intricate personal story arcs, fostering interpersonal relationships, and navigating moral dilemmas, to building communities and innovating within the game world. Every aspect is a chance for growth, a chance for merit.

What sets this system apart is its integration into the game’s narrative fabric. Each progression isn’t just about gaining power but also about adding depth to the character’s story, relationships, and their impact on the Dicesongs world. Every interaction and every decision becomes a meaningful stitch in the grand tapestry of the campaign.

In essence, with Dicesongs, leveling up becomes a deeply personal journey, an intertwining saga of challenges faced, relationships forged, and legacies built. This holistic approach promises a gaming experience where players are not just participants but co-creators of a vibrant, evolving world.

Your chronicle awaits

Embark, explore, and weave your legend within Dicesongs, where every tale animates the world, and every choice propels you into untapped domains. Allow the tapestry of adventure to weave your epic amidst the boundless realms of Ertha, where your next chapter in Dicesongs awaits with bated breath. With every word, a hidden realm; with every tale, a new horizon. Bypass the conventional and become the legend you’re destined to be.

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Guilded Words

©Geoffrey Schumann. Not for resale. Permission is granted to print this document for personal use only. 

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