Three Years of Adventuring: Honoring the Player Characters

Last night was my last D&D session for my game here at college.  I'm honestly extremely sad about it.  I didn't realize it until about 3 hours into the session and by that time the huge baddy that had been the influence of the whole campaign was dead.  

The thing that made this the best game ever was the way the PCs balanced each other out by the time my game ended.  Here, I would like to pay homage to who was at my last session, and how they've grown.

Torrin was the one multiclassing PC in the game, and luckily this wasn't because of munchkining.  Okay, not completely.  Torrin was a Chaotic Good Rogue/Ranger/Shadowdancer.  He was introduced to the party by a very powerful NPC, and as soon as he got in he helped the party release an ancient god from her prison.  Torrin was really good at sneaking around things, and helped the party get info and treasure.  He had some good luck with the deck of many things the party encountered, and was the only one to escape a research facility alive and in tact.  The guy playing Torrin was a very good sport about being a campaign with a lot of undead, considering all his sneak attack bonuses were lost.  Torrin's epilogue: he's taking over the gang he infiltrated for the Cornwellian Kingdom (the one the party worked for the entire campaign) and trying to make it a good bunch of unlawful drug sellers and pimps.  Good luck with that, Torrin!

Illiana was a Half-Elf Ranger who was looking for the human side of her family when she was recruited, around the same time Torrin was.  Her main objective was to kick Yuan-ti butt, and boy did she ever!  Great archer, and also found the best way to implement spies: talking to animals.  She helped the party find out a lot of information, and always had a lot of spirit.  Also played by the calmest person in the group, which helped somewhat considering she was helping my counter four rowdy nerd guys.  Illiana's fate after the campaign was to keep on pushing the Yuan-ti back away from her homelands, with the assistance of the Cornwellian Kingdom now that she's earned a lot of respect.  I'm sure they're scared of you now, Illiana!

Tyberius was a political man from day one.  After seeing that the Vidrigez Kingdom wasn't recognizing his genius, he joined the good guys as their resident Cleric (Half-elf Lawful Neutral Cleric of St. Cuthbert to be exact) and rebelled against the country who didn't treat him with the respect he felt he deserved.  Because of his aid, the facility that had damaged the rest of the PCs so much was peacefully taken over, and the heal spells were a plenty.  Although Tyberius was a man of action, he did take a couple of months off after Queen Elish promoted him to the Councilmen of Religion for the Cornwellian Kingdom.  He established political ties, and even got married to the best housewife one could ever wish for.  Tyberius was helpful in keeping some reason in the party, although that didn't stop him or anyone else from having a little fun.  He now continues his position in the Cornwellian Kingdom, with the added benefit of having his former boss as a pet rabbit at home.  Gotta love that baleful polymorph, eh Tyberius?

Zenal was the resident psionic, a Xeph Telepath.  With the ridiculous amount of power points at her disposal, Zenal was always ready to raid someone's mind for information.  She had been with the group since day one, where the blessed NPC Danacia explained to her and her compatriots the late King's situation and need for aid.  Although the kingdom was wary of psionics, she was able to earn their trust and taught them a bit about it.  Zenal became a bit of a loose cannon over time, but she kept things lively with encouraging band practice and asking villains inappropriate questions with her psychic powers.  She was an essential team member when it came to retrieving information, though she occasional would throw off her plans when asking a warforged if it needed some sleep.  She continues to work for the Cornwellian Kingdom with their elite team of female spies.  Keep them on their toes, Zenal!

Grey was played by someone who was able to creatively bend the will of the 3.5 rules to his advantage, and I enjoyed watching it.  Grey had originally been from the Vidirgez Kingdom until the racist Half-elf rulers kicked his human family out rather violently.  He signed up in the beginning along with Zenal and some of the other players, partially in hope of finding his lost brother.  Unfortunately is brother had been converted to a half-golem, and there was no turning him back.  Grey then proceeded to aid the Cornwellian Kingdom against his homeland, and gained a lot of political prestige by name alone.  Being one of the few people that saw Queen Elish as a person, and not a unwelcome heir to the throne or a woman in the wrong position of power, he soon found himself in love with her, and had promised by the time the conflict was ended the two would be married.  Having been the one to kill the former King of Vidrigez in a battle right outside the castle of the Cornwellian capital, he's following through on his promise to her, and still staying active in the local politics.  Hope y it's good to be King, Grey.

I also can't forget some people who we met and left on the way:

Lelania, who was a Elf Druid with a firey attitude.  Standard trick was turning into a bear, and it was a pretty good trick.  Now in control of a Duchy in Vidrigez, she's helping establish some order in a place that used to be run by slavery and violence.

Dave, a Rogue who just didn't know how to keep his ass out of trouble.  Was helpful from time to time but also proved to be a liability, especially when he stole swords in the same kingdom he was working for.  The Queen punished him to being a tester of the local university's potions.  Dave's brain is a bit fried now.

Bumpledock was the first cleric to serve the party, and was a Gnome Cleric of Kord who would keep a sword a size too big for him in Kord's honor.  Because of his help in releasing an ancient god, Kord rewarded Bumpledock with the ability to actually raise that sword. Bumpledock served the party well until the facility mysteriously took him, making the party wonder where he was, until finally they found out that he had died but had been brought back by Kord to serve him.

It's obvious how much I'm going to miss this campaign.  Maybe I'll "re-run" it from the beginning if anyone wants to invest the time in it back in Chicago, but we'll see.