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Designing the lizardfolk inhabited Valley of Dread?
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<blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7553172" data-attributes="member: 20323"><p>My six players are headed to the Valley of Dread sometime in late February/March (or thereabouts). They're currently 6th-level, but will be 7th/8th by the time they reach the valley, and are a savvy and detail-oriented group who seem to enjoy an even balance of combat, exploration, and interaction. The Valley will probably be a 2-3 session arc.</p><p></p><p>The Valley of Dread is a roughly 6,000 sq. mile region of Chult that's painted in very broad strokes as being inhabited by lizardfolk tribes. Even having <a href="https://www.dmsguild.com/product/220608/Return-of-the-Lizard-King" target="_blank">Return of the Lizard King</a> (DMs Guild Adept adventure), there's not a lot of detail.</p><p></p><p>How would you design this "jungle"* region? And how would you differentiate the various lizardfolk tribes? </p><p></p><p>Or, if that's too big of an ask, what resources would you recommend?</p><p></p><p>----- ----- -----</p><p></p><p>Here's a quote from <em>Tomb of Annihilation</em> about the Valley of Dread:</p><p></p><p>[SECTION]<strong>Valley of Dread.</strong> Explorers entering Chult from the east are likely to trek through this passage, which is contained by the windworn Sky Lizard Mountains to the north and the jagged Sanrach Mountains to the south. The valley of dense jungle is well named; it's a stomping ground for dinosaurs of all kinds. It's also home to savage kingdoms of lizardfolk ruled by heartless lizard kings and queens.[/SECTION]</p><p></p><p>And here's a map of the area with 10-mile hexes:</p><p>[SBLOCK=Map]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/sxUI5YO.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />[/SBLOCK]</p><p></p><p>My group is heading there because one of the players is running a lizardfolk PC from the region; he was a shaman who used to receive visions from Semuanya to guide his people, but lost them after a traumatic event. Now, a warmongering tribe of lizardfolk led by a Lizard King is taking over the various lizardfolk tribes and preparing to go on the warpath against neighboring settlements. The PCs are trying to stop this & figure out what robbed away the lizardfolk PC's visions. The player of the lizardfolk is a self-admitted fan of dungeon delving.</p><p></p><p>I started a "vision board" to help with my brainstorming...</p><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/i25w9u2.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p><em>EDIT: I tried looking for details in older editions, but discovered that (AFAICT) the "Valley of Dread" was created for 5e's Tomb of Annihilation adventure. I found no earlier references.</em></p><p></p><p>[SBLOCK=Searching for references to the Valley of Dread] <ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Though it's hard to make out details, it seems from <a href="https://www.sageadvice.eu/2018/11/25/the-original-forgotten-realms-map/" target="_blank">Ed Greenwood's original map</a> there was no demarcation for "Valley of Dread."</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The "Valley of Dread" was not referenced in the 1990 <em>Forgotten Realms Atlas</em> (by Karen Wynn Fonstad); instead the general region is referenced as The Chultengar.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The AD&D2e <em>FRM1 The Jungles of Chult</em> followed suit in 1993, no reference to "Valley of Dread", instead describing the general region as The Chultengar.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The <em>3rd edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide</em> makes no reference to the "Valley of Dread", though it does include lizardfolk in Chult's demographics (60% humans, 20% goblins, 10% lizardfolk, 5% wild dwarves, 4% pterafolk).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The <em>4th edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide</em> (2008) includes no references at all to that section of jungle. It's simply unlabeled on the map.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Thus, AFAICT, the first time "Valley of Dread" was used seems to be 5e's <em>Tomb of Annihilation</em>.</li> </ul><p>[/SBLOCK]</p><p></p><p><em>EDIT EDIT: I realize that "jungle" is an imprecise term, and I've been reading @famoushippopotamus' <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/DnDBehindTheScreen/comments/6acd7t/guide_to_the_jungle/" target="_blank">Guide to the Jungle</a> on Reddit explaining more accurate terminology. I use "jungle" initially because that's how it's described in the sourcebook.</em></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Quickleaf, post: 7553172, member: 20323"] My six players are headed to the Valley of Dread sometime in late February/March (or thereabouts). They're currently 6th-level, but will be 7th/8th by the time they reach the valley, and are a savvy and detail-oriented group who seem to enjoy an even balance of combat, exploration, and interaction. The Valley will probably be a 2-3 session arc. The Valley of Dread is a roughly 6,000 sq. mile region of Chult that's painted in very broad strokes as being inhabited by lizardfolk tribes. Even having [url=https://www.dmsguild.com/product/220608/Return-of-the-Lizard-King]Return of the Lizard King[/url] (DMs Guild Adept adventure), there's not a lot of detail. How would you design this "jungle"* region? And how would you differentiate the various lizardfolk tribes? Or, if that's too big of an ask, what resources would you recommend? ----- ----- ----- Here's a quote from [I]Tomb of Annihilation[/I] about the Valley of Dread: [SECTION][B]Valley of Dread.[/B] Explorers entering Chult from the east are likely to trek through this passage, which is contained by the windworn Sky Lizard Mountains to the north and the jagged Sanrach Mountains to the south. The valley of dense jungle is well named; it's a stomping ground for dinosaurs of all kinds. It's also home to savage kingdoms of lizardfolk ruled by heartless lizard kings and queens.[/SECTION] And here's a map of the area with 10-mile hexes: [SBLOCK=Map][img]https://i.imgur.com/sxUI5YO.png[/img][/SBLOCK] My group is heading there because one of the players is running a lizardfolk PC from the region; he was a shaman who used to receive visions from Semuanya to guide his people, but lost them after a traumatic event. Now, a warmongering tribe of lizardfolk led by a Lizard King is taking over the various lizardfolk tribes and preparing to go on the warpath against neighboring settlements. The PCs are trying to stop this & figure out what robbed away the lizardfolk PC's visions. The player of the lizardfolk is a self-admitted fan of dungeon delving. I started a "vision board" to help with my brainstorming... [img]https://i.imgur.com/i25w9u2.png[/img] [I]EDIT: I tried looking for details in older editions, but discovered that (AFAICT) the "Valley of Dread" was created for 5e's Tomb of Annihilation adventure. I found no earlier references.[/I] [SBLOCK=Searching for references to the Valley of Dread][list][*]Though it's hard to make out details, it seems from [url=https://www.sageadvice.eu/2018/11/25/the-original-forgotten-realms-map/]Ed Greenwood's original map[/url] there was no demarcation for "Valley of Dread." [*]The "Valley of Dread" was not referenced in the 1990 [I]Forgotten Realms Atlas[/I] (by Karen Wynn Fonstad); instead the general region is referenced as The Chultengar. [*]The AD&D2e [I]FRM1 The Jungles of Chult[/I] followed suit in 1993, no reference to "Valley of Dread", instead describing the general region as The Chultengar. [*]The [I]3rd edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide[/I] makes no reference to the "Valley of Dread", though it does include lizardfolk in Chult's demographics (60% humans, 20% goblins, 10% lizardfolk, 5% wild dwarves, 4% pterafolk). [*]The [i]4th edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide[/I] (2008) includes no references at all to that section of jungle. It's simply unlabeled on the map. [*]Thus, AFAICT, the first time "Valley of Dread" was used seems to be 5e's [I]Tomb of Annihilation[/I].[/list][/SBLOCK] [I]EDIT EDIT: I realize that "jungle" is an imprecise term, and I've been reading @famoushippopotamus' [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/DnDBehindTheScreen/comments/6acd7t/guide_to_the_jungle/]Guide to the Jungle[/url] on Reddit explaining more accurate terminology. I use "jungle" initially because that's how it's described in the sourcebook.[/I] [/QUOTE]
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