Session Zero - The Celestial Awakening

Session Zero | Verdant Valley Reborn

 

The suns tremble, the stars fall again, and the world of Eldurim prepares for a reckoning long foretold.

 

---

 

The World of Eldurim

Session Zero Introduction

Welcome to the story. Welcome to The Celestial Awakening.

A fully homebrew Dungeons & Dragons campaign set in the world of Eldurim, where every stone, storm, and breath of magic was forged from imagination and myth. This is not a prewritten module or a guided path, this is a living story, built from your choices and broadcast live on Twitch and YouTube for all to witness. What you say, risk, and become will be part of the chronicle forever.

You’ll step into a world trembling on the edge of catastrophe. The twin suns dim, the constellations shift out of true, and whispers spread of an Heir who may hold the key to salvation or ruin. The first movements of the Starfall are beginning, and your arrival in Riverleaf could decide whether Eldurim endures… or burns.

Every session you play becomes part of the legend. Every choice you make leaves its mark on the stars.  

---

 

The Legacy of the Starfall

Long ago, heroes rose to prevent a cataclysm: the Last Starfall. They failed. Shards of a shattered celestial body rained upon the land, each fragment warping reality itself. From the chaos emerged the Eclipsion Shard, a relic of immense power, capable of rewriting the laws of magic. The heroes’ defeat fractured kingdoms and faiths, and centuries later, the skies burn once more. Scholars call it the Celestial Convergence; prophets name it the Starfall. The suns flicker, the ley-lines surge, and dreams ignite with strange light. The end, or renewal, approaches.  

---

 

The Verdant Valley & Riverleaf

In the heart of Eldurim lies the Verdant Valley, a cradle of life and latent power. Fed by the Silverrun River and encircled by the misted highlands, its beauty hides instability, fields that bloom overnight, rivers that hum like tuning strings, and forests that whisper in tongues long dead.   The town of Riverleaf stands at the valley’s heart, a trade hub between the Kingdom of Thalanir and the Marches of Vareth. Once serene, it now trembles as the skies fracture above it. Rumors of a falling star to the east spread panic. Farmers report crystalized crops; merchants swear their shadows act against them. Riverleaf will be the first to witness the return of the Starfall.  

---

 

Forces in Motion

The world beyond the Valley teeters on chaos. The Dragonborn Rebellion threatens the southern empires, the Trade Wars cripple economies, and strange plagues haunt the Half-Orc clans of Gar’Rok. Amid this unrest rises a new terror: Grimnar Bloodbane, the exiled shadow-elf and master of the Dreadstalkers. His followers hunt the Eclipsion Shard, believing its power will make him a living god.   Whether Grimnar seeks dominion or damnation, all paths converge upon Riverleaf. The valley will become the fulcrum on which the fate of Eldurim turns.  

---

 

The Laws of Eldurim

• Pervasive Magic: Magic is a natural force, as constant as gravity. Ley-lines, runes, and enchanted flora power civilization and war alike.
• Divine & Supernatural Presence: The gods are real and active; avatars, miracles, and curses are woven into daily life.
• Altered Physical Laws: Gravity bends, storms think, and islands drift. The land itself is alive.
• Enhanced Psionics: Dreams, memory, and telepathy shape politics and prophecy.

To live in Eldurim is to walk the line between miracle and madness.  

---

 

The Peoples of Eldurim

Eldurim thrives on diversity and conflict. The Eldari humans lead fractured kingdoms of faith and ambition. Elves safeguard the mystic forests of Eldara. Dwarves carve wonders beneath Khazir’s peaks, mining veins of living crystal. Dragonborn from Drak’Thor seek redemption through fire and battle. Gnomes, Halflings, and Half-Orcs barter strength, harvest, and invention. Tieflings and Shadowfolk endure prejudice even as they wield magics others fear. Each people senses the same omen: the falling stars will not spare anyone.  

---

 

The Campaign Framework

Starting Level: 1
Ability Scores: Rolled (4d6 drop the lowest)
Leveling: Experience Points
Short Rest: 4 hours of safety
Long Rest: 8 hours in secure conditions (Starfall zones may distort rest and time)
  Tone of Combat: Balanced, tactical and cinematic, emphasizing teamwork and creativity.
 

House Rules

• Critical Success & Failure: Uses Nord Games: Critical Rolls – Boxed Set (5e RPG Storytelling Cards). Natural 1s and 20s draw from the deck to create vivid, narrative-driven consequences, boons, setbacks, or environmental shifts that deepen immersion.
• Inspiration: Awarded for embodying ideals and advancing the themes of Legacy, Unity, and Sacrifice.
• Rest Rules: Short Rest = 4 hours, Long Rest = 8. Corrupted areas may cause temporal or dream anomalies.
• Death & Resurrection: Standard 5e, but resurrection near Starfall anomalies risks fractured memory or altered timelines.

  Playable Species: Dragonborn, Drow, Dwarf, Elf, Githyanki, Gnome, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Halfling, Human, Tiefling.
Playable Classes: Barbarian, Bard, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard, Artificer (*TCoE*).
 

---

 

Table Expectations & Playstyle

The tone of Verdant Valley Reborn is cinematic and serious, blending mythic wonder with emotional realism. Rating: Soft R, mature themes, stylized violence, and moral consequence, never gratuitous.
Schedule: Weekly sessions, remote with Roll20, World Anvil and Twitch support.
  Retcons are reserved for genuine miscommunication or DM error. Player-vs-player conflict requires consent and narrative justification. Every player deserves moments of spotlight and story influence.  

In Eldurim, every choice echoes through time. The stars remember what mortals forget.

 

---

 

The Hook — A Letter from The Stargazer

The stars have begun to move against their nature. The twin suns no longer burn in harmony, and the veil between heaven and earth thins with each passing dawn. These are not mere omens of weather or war, they are warnings. Something ancient stirs within the firmament. The songs of the constellations have changed their rhythm, and in their silence, I have seen the shadow of what is to come. The balance is breaking, and the one who was hidden, the Heir, is no longer beyond reach.

Forces gather to claim what must not be taken. I have watched the signs and delayed this reckoning for as long as I could, but my strength alone will not suffice. You are being called, whether by fate, faith, or fear. If you still serve the light of La and Tho, or simply the will to stand when others fall, find haste to the town of Riverleaf amongst Verdant Valley. Time wanes, and with it, the safety of all things living.

When you arrive, seek not a name, but a purpose.

The Stargazer

---

The Starfall has begun.   From the north marches Grimnar Bloodbane's Dreadstalkers, and from the heavens descends the Eclipsion Shard. In the center of it all stands Eldurim, and should the gods I pray, still hear my words, you.   Will you flee, fight, or uncover the truth buried within the falling light?  

---

 

The Chronicle Begins

The suns tremble. The sky breaks. And history gives the world one final chance to get it right.