Dragonlance Dragonlance Adventure & Prelude Details Revealed

Over on DND Beyond Amy Dallen and Eugenio Vargas discuss the beginning of Shadow of ther Dragon Queen and provide some advice on running it.

Running a Session Zero for Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

When starting a new adventure, it's a good idea to get on the same page as your party. Here's how to run a session zero for the upcoming Dragonlance adv...

www.dndbeyond.com

This epic war story begins with an invitation to a friend's funeral and three optional prelude encounters that guide you into the world of Krynn. Amy Dallen is joined by Eugenio Vargas to share some details about how these opening preludes work and some advice on using them in your own D&D games.

There is also information on the three short 'prelude' adventures which introduce players to the world of Krynn:

• Eye in the Sky -- ideal for sorcerers, warlocks, wizards, or others seeking to become members of the Mages of High Sorcery.
• Broken Silence -- ideal for clerics, druids, paladins, and other characters with god-given powers.
• Scales of War -- ideal for any character and reveals the mysterious draconians.

The article discusses Session Zero for the campaign and outlines what to expect in a Dragonlance game -- war, death, refugees, and so on.

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[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Free will, within the context of DL, is freedom to choose. It is not freedom from consequence, it is not freedom from Old Testament style judgment.

Freedom to choose, is Good. Its probably one of the most basic 'Goods' in existence. Takhisis doesnt want choice, she wants obedience and worship. The Priesthood of Istar had resorted to Thought Police, this was discussed several pages/days ago. They had, by all accounts become Evil, but were also trying to WIPE OUT Evil.

They were warned. They lost their powers. They kept going. Messages went unheeded. The true faithful were brought up, and as discussed to the very end here, the 'flood event' happens.

This should all make sense to, not AGREEABLE, but at least be understood from a certain theological world view.

And, importantly, if you are dead you don't have the freedom to choose. And the "warnings" were vague omens that never actually said anything and could have been interpreted in hundreds of different ways.

 

[Scribe]

And, importantly, if you are dead you don't have the freedom to choose. And the "warnings" were vague omens that never actually said anything and could have been interpreted in hundreds of different ways.

Yes, hence the 'Divine Judgment' aka 'Flood Event' aka Cataclysm. This wasnt 'you screwed up once, we are dropping a mountain on you'. It was repeated, consistent, failure.

Heck, I bet if we went back and looked over the material, that the Kingpriest had 3 chances in at least one publication as a reference point.

Vague omens, is again right up the alley of how Gods operate.

When the Priesthood is losing power, that should be a pretty massive Red Flag.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Vague omens, is again right up the alley of how Gods operate.

Sounds like an abusive relationship. They make vague hints at something, refuse to say what it is, and then punish you for not guessing correctly.

When the Priesthood is losing power, that should be a pretty massive Red Flag.

Except in a fantasy world, where it can be interpreted in hundreds of different ways. I've seen similar plot hooks for tons of homebrew adventures. "The magic stopped working" is such a common trope that it has its own TV Tropes page with hundreds of listed examples. It's a red flag that something is wrong or different. Not necessarily "we sinned, the gods are punishing us, and we need to repent".

 

[Scribe]

Sounds like an abusive relationship. They make vague hints at something, refuse to say what it is, and then punish you for not guessing correctly.

Except in a fantasy world, where it can be interpreted in hundreds of different ways. I've seen similar plot hooks for tons of homebrew adventures. "The magic stopped working" is such a common trope that it has its own TV Tropes page with hundreds of listed examples. It's a red flag that something is wrong or different. Not necessarily "we sinned, the gods are punishing us, and we need to repent".

My man, we both left the religion, for reasons.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

My man, we both left the religion, for reasons.

Yet you still defend the Cataclysm.

 

[darjr]

Cataclysm smataclysm. They withheld their power and perspective and overlordship away from Krynn for thousands of years (thousands, right?)!

How many innocent people who had nothing to do with the pre-cataclysm suffered that otherwise wouldn’t have?

 

[Scribe]

Yet you still defend the Cataclysm.

Within the framework and context of the setting and the inspirations and reference material of the creators.

Yes, I can understand how they came to write it.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Within the framework and context of the setting and the inspirations and reference material of the creators.

Yes, I can understand how they came to write it.

I understand it. I just don't support it's misuse of D&D's alignment system. Like I said earlier, I would have no problem with it if the setting said that "Good and Evil" were just labels made in world that don't actually mean what those words mean in D&D.

 

[Scribe]

I understand it. I just don't support it's misuse of D&D's alignment system. Like I said earlier, I would have no problem with it if the setting said that "Good and Evil" were just labels made in world that don't actually mean what those words mean in D&D.

OK, we are getting somewhere.

It was also discussed that the definitions of what "Good" would be as per the PHB, are not incompatible with the Gods of Dragonlance.

 

[Eubani]

A question that has not been answered that could make sense of the cataclysm is what rules and limitations are the gods working under? From memory the gods of DL since their creation had some pretty hefty restrictions placed on them with large unavoidable penalties. Takhisis being imprisoned in the Abyss after the First Dragon War is an example. If memory serves there was restrictions placed on them not just a whole but also as individuals and as groups (based on alignment). Could the poorly made omens and messages be the best that the good gods could manage due to the very nature of the gods and the rules that govern their existence and their divinity? This then shifts the blame to nature of the world and its overgod.