Hurricanes in your Game World?

[Teemu]

In Eberron, I'd assume that House Lyrandar takes care of any possible hurricanes threatening places like Sharn. It's probably costly and only a few members of the House are able to do it (with dragonshard focus items, of course), but it should be doable.

 

[mythusmage]

Waterdeep is a northern port on the west coast of the continent. Cold water, which puts the kaboosh on hurricanes.

Sharn is a temperate port on the south coast of the continent. Warm water, which helps hurricanes. Tropical depressions take shape in the waters between the continent just south of Sharn's and the one east of it, grow into tropical storms and then (occasionally) hurricanes and come wondering in the waters between Sharns continent and the southern and (again, on occasion) land at Sharn.

Now Sharn is an inland port. Which means any hurricane is going to lose a lot of power before arriving. Still, Sharn will get a lot of rain and wind. Which means Sharn's towers are well built, and probably reinforced by magic. Hurricanes also give one a possible rationale for the towers.

Back way long ago Sharn was established during a time when hurricanes in the area were stronger than they are now. The first settlers started building towers to get above the flood waters. When climate changed and hurricanes declined in potency the urban understory was established.

(Wizards, you can reward me for this idea by making a donation to mythusmage (at) mythusmage (point) com at PayPal. )

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

A DM in a prior game had an alternate earth where elves had created (through a magical misstep) a permanent magical hurricane that roamed the Mediterranean, disgorging undead from its storms whenever it hit land...

 

[TemplarSaint]

My group got hit by three hurricanes last year, so I don't think they want to deal with one in the game, but I have to admit the idea has been strong with me. Seeing how my neighborhood looked made me think about that kind of damage in the game.

 

[The_Fan]

I've never had a hurricane in-game, but I do have it on my summer weather table for Sharn.

I think the rules are all there: Torrential rains, floods, and hurricane-force winds (with the occasional tornado-force gusts) could do some serious damage. I also think something of that much power would be beyond House Lyrander or any other group to really control, particularly since it's listed as requiring a miracle to avert.

Anyway, this will probably be covered in more detail in Stormwrack.

 

[Warehouse23]

Hurricanes can be great fun for nautical campaigns. Nothing puts the fear of God in players like pirates to windward and a terrible storm bearing down fast. A storm lets you drive players to whatever safe harbor ("hurricane hole") is nearest by. Then, when the storm begins to calm, horrible things can come out of the forest....

 

[Clueless]

I'd think the druids or wizards involved in defending the area would more than likely take more of a 'hole up and wait' approach to dealing with it. But a force wall (a BIG one) up as a shield around the city and let it blow over. From a druid's point of view - simply dissipating a storm that size would cause as much damage as anything else. Storm = rain = water = crops. All the city really needs is protection against storm surge and wind.

 

[Teemu]

I also think something of that much power would be beyond House Lyrander or any other group to really control, particularly since it's listed as requiring a miracle to avert.

House Lyrandar has Stormhome. I think protecting one city from a hurricane is not that big of a deal.

 

[mythusmage]

House Lyrandar has Stormhome. I think protecting one city from a hurricane is not that big of a deal.

How many hurricanes or typhoons have you been through? The closest I've ever come was when I was an embryo in my mother; when my father was stationed on Guam. Mom told us of those days; of forests being torn up, of buildings tossed through the air. You are talking of teratons of tnt. Even the most puissant of epic dweomercrafters can handle, at best, mere kilotons. A wizard deals with power. A hurricane is power.

Stop a hurricane? No. Destroy a hurricane? Not hardly. Divert a hurricane? Now there's an idea. But to do that requires more knowledge of how weather works than most wizards will ever possess.

Get the gods involved? Might work, but it would require someone more potent than a local storm god such as Enlil or Thor. For you are talking after all of a weather system that could swallow Iraq entire, and have room left over for Syria and Iran.

 

[Dagger75]

In a game I had a high level druid summon one on the neighboring kingdom cause they insulted him.

But also living in Florida I don't need them in my game.

We had a joke a while ago. From an old White Wolf game the Technocracy had stopped all the Hurricanes from hitting Tampa/orlando area cause that was there base of operations. The Werewolves kept trying to summon them but would always be foiled by the Mages. Last year and apperently this year they are winning.