Q&A about War of the Burning Sky

[Thornir Alekeg]

If the adventures are 'linear' in any way, it's that there are secrets which are revealed over the course of the campaign, and certain objectives that drive the larger events of the war. In general, a given adventure isn't about winning a single battle, but rather doing those things that will help turn the tide in the favor of your side: get the secret information to the resistance; stop a plot to devastate the allied side with a magical attack, gain the allegiance of a nation in order to hold back an enemy army; recover an artifact that will let you strike at your enemy's heart; kill the heart.

It is a common assumption in adventure series that, if the PCs were supposed to get the macguffin in adventure 1, they have it in adventure 2. If they failed, adventure 2 makes no sense and requires major reworking by the DM if it is to be used. So, if the party were to fail in one of the Burning Sky adventures, would it require changing later adventures to compensate, or are they written so that the effects of earlier failures are explained in later adventures, or are the effects of failure felt on the larger scale, but do not directly impact the later adventures?

I'll take a look at the GMs campaign guide when I get home tonight and download it. Thanks.

 

[Morrus]

It is a common assumption in adventure series that, if the PCs were supposed to get the macguffin in adventure 1, they have it in adventure 2. If they failed, adventure 2 makes no sense and requires major reworking by the DM if it is to be used. So, if the party were to fail in one of the Burning Sky adventures, would it require changing later adventures to compensate, or are they written so that the effects of earlier failures are explained in later adventures, or are the effects of failure felt on the larger scale, but do not directly impact the later adventures?

I'll take a look at the GMs campaign guide when I get home tonight and download it. Thanks.

Failure is accomodated - actions can effect later events. It's kinda cool.

 

[Morrus]

First: throroughly enjoying the Campaign so far. Kudo to everyone involved.

My question is (hopefully) a simple one:

Is there a "Default" pantheon of Deities for the campaign?

For instance, I noticed in Adventure 1 ("Scouring of Gate Pass") that Torrent is listed as a Cleric of a "Water Deity".

Is it expected that most people will place her under the purview of Obod-Hai (who seems to be the most applicable deity from the core book)?

Or is there some "other" Pantheon expected to be in use?

The general idea is to make it as setting neutral as possible (thus the area map can be inserted onto your own world map; it's a region, not a world). So we haven't predefined deities - you can use whatever you want. Certainly the core deities can be used if you wish.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Failure is accomodated - actions can effect later events. It's kinda cool.

Hmmm, now I am pretty close to being sold on this. As I said, I'll take a look at the free downloads tonight at home.

Then, if the wife gets one of the jobs she's interviewing for so that we have money that won't be needed just to pay the bills, I'll probably get a subscription.

 

[Goddess FallenAngel]

It is a common assumption in adventure series that, if the PCs were supposed to get the macguffin in adventure 1, they have it in adventure 2. If they failed, adventure 2 makes no sense and requires major reworking by the DM if it is to be used.

Just to expand a bit on Morrus' response - I'm running a group through the adventures right now, and adventure 2 has sections explaining what happens if the PCs failed to get the macguffin from adventure 1. I was quite pleased to see this, myself.

 

[RangerWickett]

Is there a "Default" pantheon of Deities for the campaign?

To expand on what Russ said, while there isn't a default pantheon, there is a sort of local mythos that is a backdrop to some of the events, dealing with primordial spirits that once resided in the region. Four elemental entities show up in the backstory of the adventures, and indeed I noticed that the early adventures each have their own 'element' affinity.

The Indomitable Fire Forest of Innenotdar (fire)
Shelter from the Storm (water)
The Mad King's Banquet (earth -- read the adventure and you'll notice an emphasis on 'land')
Mission to the Monastery of Two Winds (air)

But yeah, the gods are all flexible, though I suppose in some settings where gods are rigidly defined, some clerics might have impossible domain combinations.

 

[RangerWickett]

It is a common assumption in adventure series that, if the PCs were supposed to get the macguffin in adventure 1, they have it in adventure 2. If they failed, adventure 2 makes no sense and requires major reworking by the DM if it is to be used. So, if the party were to fail in one of the Burning Sky adventures, would it require changing later adventures to compensate, or are they written so that the effects of earlier failures are explained in later adventures, or are the effects of failure felt on the larger scale, but do not directly impact the later adventures?

I'll take a look at the GMs campaign guide when I get home tonight and download it. Thanks.

In part, the burden is upon the GM to present events outside the adventures themselves as more or less optimistic depending on how the PCs have done. If they screw up at the end of the 3rd adventure, well, one would think that the whole plot would be derailed because the bad guys managed to destroy the resistance in its infancy. But you can still run the rest. The heroes just become some of the few people who survived, so now they have to work without back-up.

With only a few exceptions, the adventures each take place in geographic locations distinct from the others. This has the benefit of providing a grand scale to the action, plus it means that if the heroes really just massively screw up, the rest of the campaign isn't derailed. I mean, they will feel ramifications, but just because France got captured by Germany didn't stop the British from still fighting.

 

[Wycen]

Wow. The art for Festival of Dreams is splendid.

 

[Voadam]

In my home campaign the group is 16th level and on a planar quest that will take a while (more than a year in an e-mail game). Back home there is a civil war in a theocratic empire and possible outside evil armies waiting to spring after the civil war was set up.

Will any of the last three modules be applicable to such a war situation for 17th level characters to come back to?

 

[RangerWickett]

In my home campaign the group is 16th level and on a planar quest that will take a while (more than a year in an e-mail game). Back home there is a civil war in a theocratic empire and possible outside evil armies waiting to spring after the civil war was set up.

Will any of the last three modules be applicable to such a war situation for 17th level characters to come back to?

Well, with proper adaptation, I'm sure they could. Adventure 10 is basically a delve into the underdark to discover a secret, so it's not directly attached to the war, but rather a sort of 'secret mission.' Adventure 11 involves a 'magic super weapon' that heroes have to stop. Adventure 12 is taking out the main villain in a place from which she draws power, which might not fit your campaign. Still, take a look when they come out.