Pathfinders and Kingmakers, gather ’round the tale-telling fire and witness the history of our fantastic and final Campaign of the Month winner of 2026, “Sylvangarde” by astrounicorn. It is a saga begun in the ancient age of 2012, shared with family and friends, and spun by a sorceress of stylish storytelling. Make way to the Riverlands and join us on a long-running, fun and funny adventure!
~ We would love to hear a little about you and your gaming group — who you are, what you’re into, creative projects you’re involved in, and how you got into gaming.
I can’t even begin to answer who I am, sorry, I just keep hearing the caterpillar from the cartoon Alice in Wonderland: “Who ARE You?!?” lol.
When not running games, or planning to run games, I paint minis and write puzzle story books for kids.
I began gaming as a DM. I had a story idea for a book, actually, and a friend recommended that we play out the scenario. I fell in love with helping the group craft their story and we’ve never looked back. We play a combination of in person and virtual meetings, twice a month when possible.
Our current group is myself (Diana), my husband (Ryan), our two best friends (Mary Beth and Will), my sister (Tyler) and my mom (Tammy).
~ Why did you choose Pathfinder for this campaign and why did you focus on The Riverlands?
My husband, actually. We began roleplaying with D&D 3.0, then 3.5, then Ryan went out and bought all of the Pathfinder stuff, so I agreed to do our next campaign there. Our campaign is loosely based on the Kingmaker Adventure Path from Paizo, which takes place in the River Kingdoms. I love the area’s connection to the fae, it appeals to my sense of whimsy.
~ Sylvangarde has adventure logs dating back to 2012 — that’s phenomenal! The back-and-forth letters between characters from the older section were especially good, and the Sylvangardian Newsletter seemed to be a great information-giving tool. How did the logs and the campaign itself develop and change over all those years?
I have always encouraged character logs (players get a hero point for each log entry), and the creation of the Sylvangardian was especially helpful to update players who missed sessions, or to refresh out memories when we went long stretches without playing. It is also a great way to poke fun at the characters, and to show the players how their character’s actions may be perceived by the world at large.
~ Some of the rule-mechanics you employ, like Hero Points, Hex-Improvements, and Downtime Activities, really seem to enhance the game beyond just standard adventuring. Which optional rules helped the campaign the most?
The Hero Points hands down are my favorite table rule. Players can gain them in a variety of ways, particularly creating character log entries, and acting in character while ignoring strategy or tactics (for example, a character with low int and wis failing a knowledge nature check to tell the difference between a cat and a skunk, then deciding to pet the ‘cat’, even thought the player believes it’s a skunk). The land improvements are a fun way to track the kingdom’s growth and visualize the physical changes that urbanization causes. Downtime Activities encourage thinking of their character’s day to day activities and hobbies, not just their martial moments.
~ As the Game Master, what have been the most interesting parts of the game so far, and (without giving too much away to your Players) what parts are you really looking forward to, next?
I really loved the initial founding of the kingdom and how the players melded such disparate elements (mostly human settlers from up north, ‘reformed’ bandits, kobolds and fey) into a cohesive national identity. The group will be going on a trip shortly, escorting Lord Mayor Melchior to the Outlaw Council for the first time. They will have much fun exploring more of the River kingdoms.
~ What moments during the campaign excited your Players the most?
My husband’s favorite time was a year when he and I were the only people playing, so he played Melchior, and we ran a series of adventures with him, his faithful vassal, and his love interest, a semi-feral elf. Their courtship was hilarious and full of mishaps that we love to rehash to this day. The rest of our current group recently helped a nearby town bond with a tribe of centaurs, which was so much fun.
~ And finally, as we always do, Obsidian Portal loves to ask if you have any tips, sage advice, or inspiring quotations to share for other storytellers and game-makers?
The only was to lose at table-top gaming is to stop playing. We will eventually finish Sylvangarde’s story, but we’ll never be done finding new stories to make. Having fun is the goal, and telling gaming stories between sessions keeps the fun alive.
I also have a small quote book that I maintain of the most hilarious or off the wall stuff a character or player says, and reading from that can pull any of us out of a funk (my favorite Sylvangarde quote is “Shut up and eat your toe!”)
As a DM, I consider nothing to matter more than our enjoyment of the game. It matters more than rules and more than they story I thought up. No story survives contact with the players, and that it a good thing.
Our thanks go out to astrounicorn and her family and friends for sharing “Sylvangarde” with us. We wish you all the best and look forward to reading more about the quests across Golarian. And we extend our thanks to all of our Campaign of the Month winners, nominees, and blog-readers this year who enjoy sharing their creations and seeing how games are played beyond our own tables and screens.
Soon, it will be time to vote for Obsidian Portal’s Campaign of the Year from our monthly winners, so keep an eye on your scrying devices for future announcements. And if you know of a worthy contender for Campaign of the Month in 2027 (even your own campaign), please let us know by posting in the Community Forums or reaching out through OP’s social media. Happy Gaming!
