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32-591: Dead Gods is composed of two adventures which revolve around the theme of death and resurrection of a god: "Out of the Darkness" and "Into the Light". Each adventure can be played separately, although the two plots can be woven together by the Dungeon Master . "Out of the Darkness" consists of nine chapters. Long ago, Orcus the tanar'ri lord of the undead had grown fat and inattentive towards his realm in

64-408: A broad category of action games, referring to a variety of games that are driven by the physical actions of player characters. The term dates back to the golden age of arcade video games in the early 1980s, when the terms "action games" and "character games" began being used to distinguish a new emerging genre of character-driven action games from the space shoot 'em ups that had previously dominated

96-509: A god. Kiaransalee had sent two of her drow followers to bury his powerful artifact , the Wand of Orcus , in an unreachable vault of stone on the plane of Pandemonium . In his search for his Wand, Tenebrous used the Last Word to slay Primus, the lord of the modrons , and using Primus's form he began using the modrons to search for his Wand. When the modrons discovered the two drow who had buried

128-621: A group of player characters for the player to choose from, allowing the player to control one of them at a time. Where more than one player character is available, the characters may have distinctive abilities and differing styles of play. A player character may sometimes be based on a real person, especially in sports games that use the names and likenesses of real athletes. Historical figures and leaders may sometimes appear as characters too, particularly in strategy or empire building games such as in Sid Meier 's Civilization series. Such

160-488: A larger number of player characters to choose from, with some basic moves available to all or most characters and some unique moves only available to one or a few characters. Having many distinctive characters to play as and against, all possessing different moves and abilities, is necessary to create a larger gameplay variety in such games. Similarly to MOBAs, hero shooters emphasize pre-designed "hero" characters with distinctive abilities and weapons that are not available to

192-654: A player character is more properly an avatar as the player character's name and image typically have little bearing on the game itself. Avatars are also commonly seen in casino game simulations. In many video games, and especially first-person shooters , the player character is a "blank slate" without any notable characteristics or even backstory . Pac-Man , Crono from Chrono Trigger , Link from The Legend of Zelda , Chell from Portal , and Claude from Grand Theft Auto III are examples of such characters. These characters are generally silent protagonists . Some games will go even further, never showing or naming

224-413: A player typically creates or takes on the identity of a character that may have nothing in common with the player. The character is often of a certain (usually fictional) race and class (such as zombie , berserker , rifleman , elf , or cleric ), each with strengths and weaknesses. The attributes of the characters (such as magic and fighting ability) are given as numerical values which can be increased as

256-532: A realistic continuity of events. In effect, the Dungeon Master controls all aspects of the game, except for the actions of the player characters (PCs), and describes to the players what their characters experience. Regular Dungeons & Dragons groups consist of a dungeon master and several players. The title was invented by Tactical Studies Rules (TSR) for the Dungeons & Dragons RPG , and

288-690: A side-scrolling playfield. Examples include beat 'em ups like Kung-Fu Master and Double Dragon , ninja action games like The Legend of Kage and Shinobi , scrolling platformers like Super Mario Bros. and Sonic the Hedgehog , and run and gun shooters like Rolling Thunder and Gunstar Heroes . "Character action games" is also a term used for 3D hack and slash games modelled after Devil May Cry , which represent an evolution of arcade character action games. Other examples of this sub-genre include Ninja Gaiden , God of War , and Bayonetta . Fighting games typically have

320-517: A thorough understanding of the game rules. Since the inception of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons system in 1977, these rules have been contained in three hardbound books: the Player's Handbook , Dungeon Master's Guide , and Monster Manual . Many other rulebooks exist as well, but these are not required for conducting the game. The DM is responsible for narrative flow, creating

352-567: Is being given a mission briefing or debriefing; the player is usually addressed as "general", "commander", or another military rank. In gaming culture, such a character was called Ageless, Faceless, Gender-Neutral, Culturally Ambiguous Adventure Person, abbreviated as AFGNCAAP; a term that originated in Zork: Grand Inquisitor where it is used satirically to refer to the player. Character action games (also called character-driven games, character games or just action games) are

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384-420: Is typically designed as a type of decision tree that is followed by the players, and a customized version can require several hours of preparation for each hour spent playing the game. The DM serves as the arbiter of the rules, both in teaching the rules to the players and in enforcing them. The rules provide game mechanics for resolving the outcome of events, including how the player's characters interact with

416-404: Is using it in an attempt to foment a war between some of the city's factions in revenge for the death of his wife. The player characters must uncover Fiord's plot in order to resolve the matter and prevent the war. Dead Gods was published in 1997, and was written by Monte Cook , with cover art by rk post and interior art by rk post, Adam Rex , and Josh Timbrook . Dead Gods was ranked

448-609: The Abyss . The minor demipower Kiaransalee , drow goddess of vengeance, conspired against Orcus and slew him, supplanting his realm and position and even banishing his name across the planes. Orcus’ corpse lay dead on the Astral Plane for some time, until he began to stir in the not-so-distant past. His form changed to become thin, small and shadowy, but rather than being truly restored to life he had become an undead god much less powerful than before. Orcus eventually disappeared from

480-465: The arcades in the late 1970s. Classic examples of character action games from that period include maze games like Pac-Man , platformers like Donkey Kong , and Frogger . Side-scrolling character action games (also called "side-scrolling action games" or "side-scrollers") are a broad category of character action games that were popular from the mid-1980s to the 1990s, which involve player characters defeating large groups of weaker enemies along

512-426: The "Dungeon Master". Player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC ) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not controlled by a player are called non-player characters (NPCs). The actions of non-player characters are typically handled by

544-460: The 14th greatest Dungeons & Dragons adventure of all time by Dungeon magazine in 2004, on the 30th anniversary of the Dungeons & Dragons game. Dungeon Master In the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) role-playing game , the Dungeon Master ( DM ) is the game organizer and participant in charge of creating the details and challenges of a given adventure, while maintaining

576-541: The Astral and chose a new name for himself: Tenebrous. He sought to gain revenge on everyone in the multiverse, and raised his former demonic servants as undead called visages to gather information to aid in his vengeance. He returned to an old base of his, a fortress on the Negative Energy Plane , and on the plane of Arborea he found a magical force called the Last Word which was potent enough to slay even

608-500: The Light" consists of three parts, and takes place in the city of Sigil . Many years ago, the last worshippers of a dead god brought the pieces of his body from the Astral Plane to Sigil and used the body to construct a monument of five standing stones. Some time later, when the significance of the monument had been forgotten, adherents of another religion built a temple around the standing stones; in time, this religion died out and

640-503: The Wand, Tenebrous began making preparations to take back the Abyss. The player characters must follow the clues to discover Tenebrous's scheme and keep the Wand away from him long enough for the power of the Last Word to consume him; if they succeed, the characters must then stop one of Orcus's followers from reviving his corpse on the Astral Plane yet again, to conclude the adventure. "Into

672-535: The enemy, one PC soaks the statue in water, while the second uses his cone of cold breath to freeze the water. At this point, he appeals to the DM, saying the water expands as it freezes and shatters the statue. The DM might allow it, or roll dice to decide. In the above example the probability roll might come up in favor of the players, and the enemy would be shattered. Conversely, rules do not fit all eventualities and may have unintended consequences. The DM must ultimately draw

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704-412: The game itself in video games, or according to rules followed by a gamemaster refereeing tabletop role-playing games . The player character functions as a fictional, alternate body for the player controlling the character. Video games typically have one player character for each person playing the game. Some games, such as multiplayer online battle arena , hero shooter , and fighting games , offer

736-556: The game play style different. Characters can learn new abilities or augment existing ones over the course of a match by collecting experience points. Choosing a character who complements the player's teammates and counters their opponents opens up a strategy before the beginning of the match itself. Playable characters blend a variety of fantasy tropes, featuring numerous references to popular culture and mythology . In both tabletop role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons and role-playing video games such as Final Fantasy ,

768-455: The game world. Although the rules exist to provide a balanced game environment, the DM is free to ignore the rules as needed. The DM can modify, remove, or create entirely new rules in order to fit the rules to the current campaign. This includes situations where the rules do not readily apply, making it necessary to improvise. An example would be if the PCs are attacked by a living statue. To destroy

800-413: The gamer progresses and gains rank and experience points through accomplishing goals or fighting enemies. In many sports games , player characters are often modelled after real-life athletes , as opposed to fictional characters. This is particularly the case for sports simulation games , whereas many arcade-style sports games often have fictional characters instead. A secret or unlockable character

832-408: The genre or style of the game, such as the "Keeper of Arcane Lore" from Call of Cthulhu and the "Hollyhock God" from Nobilis . The Dungeon Master (DM) assumes the role of the game master or referee and describes for other players what they perceive in the imaginary world of the game, and what effects their actions have. That person is responsible for preparing each game session, and must have

864-544: The line between the creative utilization of resources (e.g. firing wooden arrows into a dragon, then using a spell that warps wood at a distance) and an exploit (e.g. "horse bombing" - using a non-combat spell that creates a temporary mount, several dozen feet above an enemy). In the Faiths and Pantheons Dungeons & Dragons campaign, the Faerunian Overgod Ao answers to a superior entity, insinuated to be

896-420: The other characters. Hero shooters strongly encourage teamwork between players on a team, guiding players to select effective combinations of hero characters and coordinate the use of hero abilities during a match. Multiplayer online battle arena games offer a large group of viable player characters for the player to choose from, each of which having distinctive abilities, strengths, and weaknesses to make

928-449: The player character at all. This is somewhat common in first-person videogames, such as in Myst , but is more often done in strategy video games such as Dune 2000 , Emperor: Battle for Dune , and Command & Conquer series. In such games, the only real indication that the player has a character (instead of an omnipresent status), is from the cutscenes during which the character

960-475: The scenario and setting in which the game takes place, maintaining the pace and providing dynamic feedback. In storyteller role, the DM is responsible for describing the events of the D&;D game session and making rulings about game situations and effects based on the decisions made by the players. The DM can develop the adventure plot and setting in which these PCs participate or use a preexisting module . This

992-401: Was forgotten too. This church stood vacant for centuries until bought by a wealthy man named Cruigh Manathas, who ordered his workmen to tear it down. The workmen disappeared one day – unknown to all, they had been absorbed into the standing stones, as were those who came to investigate what happened to the workmen. Secretly, a fighter named Argesh Fiord has been in control of the situation and

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1024-448: Was introduced in the second supplement to the game rules ( Blackmoor ) in 1975. To avoid infringement of trademarks by the publishers of Dungeons & Dragons , and to describe referees in role-playing genres other than sword and sorcery , other gaming companies use more generic terms, like Game Master (GM), Game Operations Director (a backronym of GOD ), Judge, Referee or Storyteller . Some use more esoteric titles related to

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