Eliminating the divine power source?
- Thread starter Korgoth
- Start date
Jack Colby
First Post
I like the idea and think it would work out fine. I'm going to try the game as-is first, but once I'm used to it you can bet I'll try the same thing. I may even go with the "rituals only" option some have discussed.
2eBladeSinger said:
On Undead... I see them as a staple of S&S! I would leave them as is. There will still be spiritual things and souls. Basically, my idea would be that the real god or gods either does/do not get involved in the workings of men, or act so subtly that only the faithful are aware of it (and the unfaithful would explain away as mere chance). On the other hand, you have any number of false gods with associated dark cults working to recruit followers, amass powers, and pull off stunts like the villains were trying at the end of the Hellboy movie (that's how I would interpret an ultimate Star Pact ritual, btw). It wouldn't be all Cthulhu, of course... you'd have the usual suspects, including your spider and snake cults too.
For Religion rituals... there actually aren't too many listed in the Heroic tier, are there? I might use them on a case-by-case basis. "Speak with Dead" certainly sounds appropriate, though some dead might be unaccessible for some reason, whereas others might be lonely and all too ready to hold discourse with the living.
I'd throw in a bit of technology, too. I like the Illithid fluff from LoM and conceive of them as a futuristic race. It wouldn't be flashy, sparkly technology. More like weird, clunky, croaking devices out of Lynch's Dune.
As far as the "Abominations" like the Tarrasaque go... they're still ancient weapons. But who were the Primordials (or First Ones or Ancients)? Perhaps beings of great power (like the Star Dwellers), perhaps one or more species that predate the current stock of races (like reptile dudes of some sort), perhaps merely great magicians. That would be a setting mystery.
cdrcjsn
First Post
2eBladeSinger said:
I ran a 4e mod recently eight times for a convention that had a tough undead encounter in it. Most of the groups used pregenerated characters that came with the mod and had a cleric. One of the tables though wanted to use the KotS pregen characters and played with a warlord instead of a cleric.
The fight was slightly tougher, but not unduly so. I don't think there's anything to worry about by taking clerics/paladins out. Undead encounters just turn clerics into a controller for one round and clerics/paladins into strikers against radiant vulnerable foes.
In any case, like others said, they're not the only classes with powers that have the Radiant keyword.
Boarstorm
First Post
Now I'm forced to contemplate a War of the Souls idea (from Dragonlance) -- where clerics are unheard of... at least until a wandering (evil) deity happens upon the campaign world and creates an army of converts.
Suddenly paladins and clerics appear leading an invasion force, intent on forcibly converting the world.
Has potential.
Suddenly paladins and clerics appear leading an invasion force, intent on forcibly converting the world.
Has potential.
Blackeagle
First Post
This is a big part of why I've been looking forward to 4e. Clerics and Paladins are going the way of the dodo bird in my homebrew.
Raduin711
Hero
Irda Ranger said:Oh, you mean Iron Heroes?
But it wouldn't be Sword & Sorcery without some caster class. I think the Warlock is perfect for it too, fluff-wise. You can also refluff the Wizard to be more Warlocky if you want a Controller.
eh... you could still do sword and sorcery with no playable casters. The quintessential Sword & Sorcery story is Conan, and casters are pretty much universally villainous in those.
Raduin711 said:
True. Although having PC casters is fun because you can dangle so many mystical carrots out in front of them, some of which carrots grow tentacles or explode without warning.
"Why yes, your research at the Library of Stones reveals that the ritual you seek does in fact exist. It is detailed in a book called the Testaments of Carnamagos. Wanna track that baby down?"
Eldorian
First Post
Nifft said:
Akiro isn't Howard's Conan. In Howard's stories, I can think of only one sorcerer off the top of my head that wasn't a villain trying to kill Conan. And that sorcerer wasn't a nice guy, still. Also, sorcerers in Conan often use things like concealed needles with rare and deadly poison as often as summoning demons, so they're not so flashy as arcane casters in DnD. And priests were almost uniformly powerless (well, other than politcally), or experts in "mummery", ie, sorcerers. Btw, this is one of the things that ticks me off about Age of Conan, which I'm kinda playing. Magic and the supernatural are way too common. 7 of the 12 classes use magic, and I've fought several demons on my way to level 10 (out of 70 levels).
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