Mouseferatu said:
Indeed, a fantastic final issue, and a magnificent end to the best of the three Adventure Paths to date.
I have only one tiny, itty-bitty complaint about the final adventure...
I toyed with putting in a section that talks about "What happens if the PCs fail?" but in the end decided against it, in favor of including a more robust "How to continue the events of Savage Tide into a new, Epic campaign" section instead, something that we didn't really do well in the previous Adventure Paths but that our readers made clear that they wanted.
My take on what happens if the PCs fail, though, and what I would have included had I the room in that already packed issue: [sblock]If Demogorgon's plan to trigger the savage tide is not stopped, he drives nearly three dozen Material Plane cities into madness and ruin. Although this isn't the "end of the world," it certainly is the "end of civilization" as suddenly the smaller settlements of the world become the keepers of civilization. Savage creatures have short lifespans, and within a few weeks of the savage tide, most (if not all) of them have died to their own insanity, leaving behind empty cities. The task of repopulation becomes a race between the smaller towns and villages of the world and the monster races who no doubt lust for these once-grand locations. As for Demogorgon, his transformation into a one-headed demon lord doesn't quite catapult him into divinity... but it does make him the most powerful demon in the Abyss. He loses his dual action powers, but advances by 20 HD (according to the guidelines for advancing demon lords in Fiendish Codex I and Dragon #359). His gaze weapons merge into one combined gaze attack. He quickly gains command over several other layers like the Blood Shallows and Ilsidahur's Realm, then turns his attention to his enemies. Orcus and Graz'zt receive the brunt of his wrath, and are forced to contemplate an alliance between themselves simply to survive; Graz'zt's triple realm is sundered back to one plane, and Orcus retreats to Everlost and loses control over much of his layer as well. Malcanthet works feverishly to restore her status with Demogorgon, and is in large successful even if she's forced to abase herself before the new and more powerful lord and allow him greater influence over Shendilavri. Charon, ever inscrutable, retreats to the Styx and ignores the repurcussions. Gwynharwyf and the other eladrins withdraw even more fully from Abyssal matters, focusing instead on preventing incursions into their realm rather than taking the fight to the Abyss now and then. In a few hundred or thousand years, Demogorgon eventually assaults Obox-ob on Zionyn, but finds that the Prince of Vermin is more powerful than Demogorgon anticipated. The battle shakes the Abyss to its foundations, and when Demogorgon emerges, beaten, from the pit of Zionyn, he has reverted to his familiar two-headed incarnation. The cycle of power struggles on the Abyss returns to a stalemate once again. ALTERNATELY: Demogorgon could defeat Obox-ob, absorb his power, and become a godling.[/sblock]
