D&Destiny Server Campaign: November Updates & Newsletter (Patreon)

Hello everyone! Time for your (maybe monthly?) server event update list and newsletter. We'll be covering changes to campaign mechanics, what's up next, and announcing the winners of last month's Iron Banner.

Hang On, What's Going On?

We're currently running an open-world, "MMO"-style Dungeons & Destiny campaign on the Velvet Fang Discord server. This campaign is free to join and includes many awesome activities and story missions you can partake in, not to mention an even better community to be a part of.

While the campaign is free to join, there are some aspects of it that are restricted to patrons only (any tier). These are:

• Role-play channels, to interact with other characters outside session.
• Downtime activities, to advance in various professions and learn new skills in between sessions.

If you're interested in joining the campaign, make sure to grab the appropriate role on our Discord server to get access to the public campaign channels. You'll then be able to read up on how to make a character, get them approved, and embark on your first session!

Any skill level welcome! We'll teach you the ropes and help you make your character, if needed.

We also welcome players of any age, young or old. Do note that while we try to keep content PG-13, we can't guarantee any rating due to the online/multiplayer nature of it. Parents are more than welcome to join and play with their kids.

The Story So Far

Previously, PCs struck out into the jungles of Venus to learn more about the Vex. What they found is as terrifying as it is promising: they found a way to reach the Vex homeworld, someplace called "The Black Garden." The Vanguard plans to strike at the heart of this place and destroy the Vex once and for all.

((You can watch our previous the action here on Twitch))

There's just one problem: the only known gate that leads to The Black Garden is located on Mars, in the Meridian Bay, a place that's long been occupied by the Cabal. And boy howdy, the Cabal are ruthless about maintaining their space. There's a reason this stretch of Mars is referred to as "the Cabal Exclusion Zone"—as in, if you're not Cabal, you better exclude yourself from thinking you can go there.

But Guardians of the Last City are on a victory streak, having taken down the House of Devils and a Vex gate lord. Along with the recent influx of New Lights into the Tower, Commander Zavala is convinced a tactical strike can weaken the Cabal enough to at least get a fireteam into The Black Garden, if not just outright uproot the Cabal from Mars entirely.

The Guardians of this universe stand at the doorstep of wiping out the Vex once and for all. Are you brave enough to take to the sands of Mars, fight past the Cabal, and be the one to claim victory for humanity?

While we're waiting to find out, here are some changes to the campaign's mechanics and backend:

Blueprint Changes

Blueprints are earned through downtime activities, and they're how Guardians can craft unique exotics not found anywhere else in-universe. Here's the November changelog for this feature:

• Blueprint documents got a facelift, and their upgrade costs were re-balanced.
• All blueprints can now be found here, negating the need for GMs to hand-deliver blueprint documents. This link is also in the SEG.
• Any future blueprints will be shifted into this folder as PCs discover them.
• Exotic equipment is now fully known after any three PCs complete the blueprint, instead of having to be from three separate players.

If You Were Working on a Blueprint...

Here's how to switch to your new blueprint document. All current blueprint projects much switch to the new blueprints.

• 1.) Refund your current blueprint completely. All spent glimmer, materials, etc. are returned to you at a 100% rate.
• 2.) Take note of your current telemetry benchmark.
• 3.) Download the new copy of your blueprint.
• 4.) Set your new blueprint's telemetry benchmark as equal to your old blueprint's telemetry benchmark.
• 5.) Purchase and obtain upgrades as normal. For most blueprints this will mean not much changes, but for some, you may have more or less upgrades than you did before.

Remember, telemetry is a benchmark, not a resource. It's raw data you accumulate while using the prototype equipment. You do not spend telemetry when upgrading your blueprints.

Iron Banner Winners

For the month of October, we had Iron Banner as a session and downtime option. PCs fought against each other and against a variety of NPC Guardians, some of which proved their dominance in one or two matches. But the overall winners of Iron Banner are—drumroll please...

1st Place Winners

⭐IT'S A FOUR-WAY TIE!⭐ Each of the following PCs earns 15,000 glimmer:

• Cajal Gev, played by The Radical Wooper
• Iradel, played by ThatWinterGirl
• Layr, played by Teal
• Rose (Dragosh Rossetti), played by Ronin Of Dreams

2nd Place Winners

⭐IT'S A TWO-WAY TIE!⭐ Each of the following PCs earns 10,000 glimmer:

• Lance Ars, played by The Curse Collector
• Tryptolmey Plume, played by the_allseer

3rd Place Winner

Holding 3rd place alone is ⭐Birdy⭐, played by Samozolio, who earns 5,000 glimmer!

Lord Saladin is incredibly pleased at the improvement Guardians made over the last few months. Considering just how good you're all getting, he might have to mix things up next time. Maybe call in a few friends to put some real pressure on this new batch of Guardians...

Iron Banner Weapons & Armor

The Iron Banner storefront will remain in the SEG for the purpose of smiths still working on gear, but in-universe Lord Saladin has left the Tower, taking his storefront with him. You cannot purchase anything from Appendix C until the next Iron Banner rolls around.

Foundry Matches Return

With the Iron Banner cycled out, Foundry Matches return. Represent your favorite weapon foundries to earn unique gear with the Enter a Foundry Match downtime activity.

October Stats

Everyone month we put together a quick little stat spread for interested players. Here's our October stats:

• Total Sessions: 19
• Origin Stories: 3
• Guardian Deaths: 0

At the end of our campaign year (December 1st), we'll tally up the whole year.

New Expression: Angler

We've added a new Expression to the list, the Angler Expression, and this is unlike any Expression you've seen before.

What Are Expressions?

Investing in the Vanguard, competing in the Crucible, building your own equipment, and so on are all means of expressing your character's personality. The Expression system is our means of tracking and rewarding these modes of expression in the D&Destiny New Light server campaign.

What is the Angler Expression?

Unlike other Expressions, this one is built for the players, not their characters. This is an Expression for players who want to put a little more effort into role-play during sessions. You, as a player, earn 30 EXP for this Expression when you complete a Fishing Spot card under the following role-play terms:

1.) You must speak in-character for the duration of the card, which must be at least 15 minutes of in-character role-playing.

This doesn’t need to be 15 minutes of straight in-character speaking. You can talk OCC to describe actions your character takes or facial expressions they’re going through.

You can also talk OOC to your GM or fellow players when going over logistical details, such as when resolving dice rolls or discussing what should happen next.

2.) When voicing your Guardian or Ghost characters, you should speak in a way that’s different from your normal speaking voice. It should be enough of a change that it’s more or less obvious you are speaking as a character, not yourself.

Your character’s voice doesn’t need to be consistent. You can retcon your character’s speaking voice if you realize something else suits them better, or for any other reason.

We aren’t looking for anything spectacular, we’re looking for an effort to differentiate your speaking voice from your character voice, even if that means all you do is put your hand over your mouth. In fact, speaking through a variety of everyday items can produce wonderful voice effects—give it a shot!

Tracking Angler EXP

EXP for this Expression is tracked on its own tab in the VF Server Event schedule, the Angle EXP tab. EXP is earned per-account, not per-character.

Why "Angler"?

Why not? Fishing is a favored past time of many, Guardians being no exception. And while you're waiting for a bite, why not role-play a little?

End of the Campaign Year is December 1st

Our campaign year ends on December 1st. All story missions and sessions will pause while our GMs take a break and celebrate the holidays. During this time you might see some one-shot, noncanonical sessions on the schedule. These might be wild or whacky sessions, such as throwing Guardians into Faerun, or sessions for other systems entirely.

The New Light server campaign resumes January 8th.

Looking to the Future

Here's some updates we're hoping to launch within the next 3 months.

• EDZ will become available as a patrol destination. The Dark Forest will not be accessible.
• Origin Stories has a planned overhaul & update. New locations + re-written/re-balanced original locations.
• Alien races become available as PC options after a Mars sidestory is finished. This also unlocks a 3rd character slot for the whole server.
• Ikora's Meditations, ways for players to replay past missions, will become available. This is a way for other players to experience one-time session mechanics in a way that is mostly canon-compliant.

That's All For Now!