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Message: <blockquote data-quote="(un)reason" data-source="post: 6237811" data-attributes="member: 27780">Dragon Issue 351: January 2007part 4/6Cham Fau and the white tiger monastary: Since asians in fantasy campaigns are stereotyped as being more spiritually enlightened and in touch with the universe, this is one place where the locals know about the World-Serpent Inn. They aren't particularly friendly to anyone coming out though, having dealt with more than a few Oni making trouble from that source. This is made more troublesome by the fact that the area around is regulated by a strict bureaucracy that'll be a real pain to navigate without the proper ID and papers, especially if you don't speak the language. So while the dangers here may not be as obviously lethal as Athas, or as idiosyncratic and intractable as Krynn, you will not have an easy time as blundering gajin, and your challenges will be social as often as physical. Still, if you want monk training, there are few better places to go, and plenty of monsters to slay and magical items to find. You just have to try to comport yourself with humility and learn to communicate properly if you want to stick around safely. The Gatetown of Ecstasy: Since Planescape is constantly engaging in cross-universe shenanigans, especially Sigil and the Outlands gate-towns, this is another place that's fully aware of the world-serpent inn and ready to welcome anyone arriving through it. Ecstasy can always do with a few more mixed-alignment residents to make sure it doesn't slip into Elysium. It only got a 2 page profile in the primer to the outlands, so they can give all the old info and more without it feeling redundant as well. The map is in full colour and more detailed, there's more named NPC's, and they add a bunch of rumours and adventure hooks which are equally applicable whatever edition you're playing under. It's a good vacation spot, and you shouldn't have too much trouble getting back if you stay here a while, but there's also enough challenges that more fighty sorts won't feel like third wheels. Whether you're a clueless berk or an old hand at planewalking, there's something nice for you here. The shadows of Sithicus: Now here's an article that entirely justifies it's place in the magazine, unlike the creature catalogs that had Ravenloft monsters that had already been printed for 3e. The White Wolf Ravenloft books couldn't mention Lord Soth by name, and so had to engage in awkward circumlocutions in their coverage of Sithicus. Here, they can just go for it, and that more than excuses adding another relatively easy way to escape Ravenloft to canon. Welcome to the only Ravenloft domain apart from Darkon with a significant demihuman population. With Soth gone, it's now ruled by a psychotic dwarf werebadger who's set up a concentration camp, and has no qualms about arbitrarily throwing anyone challenging him in it. Of course being Ravenloft, he's not really in control, having to contend with both the true darklord in the shadows, and her pervasive manipulation and guilt trips, and The Blessed Knight, a heroic reflection manifested from Lord Soth's memories, which wanders the land doing knight-erranty things and providing a ray of hope to the population. (that just makes the terror all the more horrible when <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> does hit the fan) So Ravenloft being compartmentalised into lots of little pieces, each with their own distinct brand of horror makes this an easy job for the writers, able to focus on one place and not worry about PC's wandering beyond it's bounds. You can run, but you can't escape unless you play it smart. The ecology of the isle of dread: And now for something a little different. Most ecologies here simply examine one creature in relative isolation. But the whole point of an ecology in the real world is that there is a food chain and whole complicated web of interactions between species, and if you affect one you have knock-on effects on everything else. While this doesn't go quite that far, it does cover a wide range of the islands inhabitants. That old standby from the original adventure of the Loco weed consuming berserk anklyosaur is revisited, with a new pathos. (never thought I'd say that. ) Best of all, it's nearly all IC fiction again, for the first time in ages (april fool article notwithstanding.) I think I can definitely say now that I prefer it when the ecologies interact with the creature, showing as well as telling, giving a sense of genuine danger, and not revealing everything as incontrovertible fact. So this manages to be both a cool bit of writing in it's own right, and a double nostalgia kick. Two thumbs up.</blockquote>

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