Welcome to heroic fantasy in a D&D 5e world setting beloved by many. Allow GM soulhack to welcome you to Candlekeep, the greatest library in all the realms of Faerun. Discover the secrets of such a place, honoured by the Gods of the realms, as the GM guides two separate parties through worlds of high adventure in his most intriguing campaign, Candlekeep Mysteries.
First off, feel free to tell us about the person behind the GM screen. Where are you from? What do you do aside from gaming? Alter Egos? Life partners? Family? Where can we interact with you on the internet
I live in Northern Europe, in the middle of Sweden, having found my way back to my roots in the town where I was born and raised. A large part of my family lives here as well, having moved back from cities just recently. I currently have two children which I am already teaching the magic of tabletop games.
What inspired you to set your campaign in the Library of Candlekeep? How integral is the library and the deity, Oghma, Lord of Knowledge, to the adventures you run?
I was intrigued to see it featured as an official quest-like book, Candlekeep Mysteries, with no obvious connection to each and every adventure inside. While I had my own emotional ties to the place through the old Baldur’s Gate series, it also felt natural to use Candlekeep as a headquarter of sorts. In combination with my own love for libraries and magical castles such as Hogwarts, alongside the deep lore provided by Ed Greenwood and others, it felt like an awesome place for a whole campaign.
Regarding deities, we introduced the rule of Piety (which was officially featured in Mythic Odysseus of Theros), and most of our players have chosen others listed on our campaign site than the Lord of Knowledge himself. He is, however, featured in many NPCs and gatherings within the library.
How long has the campaign been running and what made you choose Dungeons and Dragons 5e as a game system?
We have been running this campaign for roughly a year now. D&D 5th edition has simply been the favoured rule set for a good amount of time. We all like other RPGs and boardgames, but for some years now, content has been so richly transferred into 5e which makes it easy to roll with. Also, having a mutual good understanding of the rules makes all players viable for switching the DM role between different adventures in the official book.
Navigation throughout the site is very easy, with good tools for getting around. Does this encourage your players to use it more? How interactive are your players with the SITE you have created?
I have always tried to make interactive campaign sites on Obsidian Portal on previous campaigns I have completed there. This time, I just went all into it and wanted it to both to look interesting, and for me to be able to navigate the site easily for myself. I knew most of my players wouldn’t delve into all the lore gathered in the Wiki – but I found myself pulling it up on a big screen beside our gaming table, switching pages as the players interacted with different NPCs in Candlekeep or lingered around any of the sites, taverns and rooms featured there. Players followed with interest and got more and more invested.
One of the players even re-made parts of the lore on the site, and has actively been adding magical items and NPCs from when he was a DM at one adventure. He has also written a few adventure logs.
One of our players answered this question with the following:
“I don’t put in half of what others might, but I’ve found the site very useful and easy to navigate. Our GM is very good at updating lore, characters (NPCs and useful information related to the campaign, as well as both recaps of previous sessions as well as those that are coming up!”
There is great artwork throughout the site. The logo itself is particularly intricate. Tell us more about where and how you go to find these things? And how important are they to your campaign?
The artwork was gathered from 3rd party publishers, official D&D lore and hours of search on Pinterest. The artists I would like to mention the most are cartographer Marco Bernardini and Bob Greyvenstein, both vital producers to the amazing product “Elminster’s Candlekeep Companion” that is available on the DMsguild.
Your main WIKI is all in English but the Adventure Logs are in Swedish. Why the difference?
Historically, I have leaned into using the most established language that is available regarding most of the lore, simply because reading about descriptions, even if it is in another language – creates a sense of immersion itself.
However, we do most of the role-play at the table in Swedish, so I have been experimenting using translated transcripts from the lore, describing things in Swedish instead, with positive impact of the overall flow and immersion of our games.
That said, I also have 2 different groups of players present on the site. One English speaking group playing online, and one IRL group of old friends playing around a table.
There are 11 Players listed in your Front Page. Do these players all play at the same time? If so, how do you organise your play? Tell us more about how you run your sessions.
As mentioned, there are currently two different groups playing in the same campaign location. One being our group of 6 childhood friends in Sweden, whom I play with 1-2 sessions each and every other month for years. The other being with 4 old friends from a roleplaying corporation in EVE Online, playing a sort of “play by post” using digital tools such as Discord and Avrae bot with D&D Beyond integration.
While I haven’t gotten there yet, I plan on integrating the two groups in their respective stories in different ways (gossip, hearing of their different achievements, walking past each other at important locations etc.).
How long have you been using Obsidian Portal? What brought you to the site and what keeps bringing you back?
I have been a member of Obsidian Portal since 2015, creating may first campaign there at that time. I have created and run 6 other campaigns since then, and been a player in a few selected others. What keeps bringing me back is the special way of keeping track of all things regarding a RPG campaign, and help bringing it alive.
If you had to pick just one thing, what would you say Obsidian Portal helps you with the most?
Being a portal to a creative world for me to enter and build fantastical worlds whenever I want to, with and without my friends.
What would you say is the biggest highlight of your game so far (please also provide images and links if possible)?
One of the players wrote this to me in response to this question, and I think he nailed it:
“One of the coolest things about this campaign has been experimenting with rotating dungeon masters. It’s been great watching fellow players stretch their creative wings while running an adventure, and it’s given us the chance to see our regular dungeon master in a player role. We’ve learned that when a dungeon master becomes a player, they create characters that are just as lively and detailed as entire worlds they’ve made.
Not to mention the use of Discord to sometimes play out combat encounters and handle downtime activities in-between real life sessions. It’s been a really fun way to mix things up that we hope to continue.”
Personally, I also love the feeling of playing with two entirely different groups (both in-person and digitally/VTT) that thematically are in the same place. It fuels the creative fire of imagination within me in that the world is alive and breathing as it gives the illusion of things are playing out simultaneously.
Okay, as a last question, we always ask for the GM’s “pearls of wisdom”. What GM insights can you offer the community this month?
Put in the work for yourself. Being a GM is sometimes hard work, but remember that as long as you feel enjoyment in the creative process – you are on the right track. Your players’ excitement is not your sole responsibility, it is everyone’s, and especially, oneself.
That’s all for this month folks! Don’t forget to head on over the the OP forums to nominate your favorite campaigns for our next Campaign of the Month!
