Rise of the Unthread! Nightfall's "Ask the Sage!" for Scarred Lands Q&A!

[Twowolves]

The Dragon Lands are very much modeled after feudal Japan, only the lords are dragons!

Asherak, like Nightfall said, is either nomadic desert tribesmen or ancient egpyttian/babylonian style, with rulers being some kind of avatar-pharoh type thing.

Termana is a war-shattered continent, which is about 1/4 jungle and 1/4 shattered wastes (or bayou). What's left is another romanesque dark dwarven military state, a ghoul king-ruled isle, a nation constantly at war with said ghoul king, a Calastian colonial area, and a handful of forsaken elf hedonistic, tragic lands, and a couple of human kingdoms.

No one has time for social experiments when they are either A) constantly fighting for survival, B) at war with their neighbors, or C) dying a slow cultural death due to sterility!

 

[jdrakeh]

No one has time for social experiments when they are either A) constantly fighting for survival, B) at war with their neighbors, or C) dying a slow cultural death due to sterility!

Hmm. . . I might need to abandon the Scarred Lands as my campaign setting of choice then. Something with a bit more freedom to explore socio-political situations suits me better, and you're pushing the setting as being very limited in that respect.

 

[Twowolves]

Hmm. . . I might need to abandon the Scarred Lands as my campaign setting of choice then. Something with a bit more freedom to explore socio-political situations suits me better, and you're pushing the setting as being very limited in that respect.

When you are behind the screen, you can do whatever you want with the setting. I'm not "pushing" anything, just giving my observations and opinions.

And frankly, I'm not sure why you'd want to use a fantasy role-playing game to explore those topics in the first place. I mean, where in fantasy literature does a socialist government play any kind of role? Most of the government types we know today didn't come around until relatively recently, the vast majority of the time it was kings and emperors, popes and tribesmen. In a post-industrial revolution world maybe, I dunno.

 

[jdrakeh]

And frankly, I'm not sure why you'd want to use a fantasy role-playing game to explore those topics in the first place.

Because I can and I want to? Do I honestly have to justify that to a total stranger?

I mean, where in fantasy literature does a socialist government play any kind of role?

Well, there's Vernor Vinge's Grimm's World, Jack Vance's Blue World (although that is technically more of a Theocracy) and Wyst: Alastor 1716, etc. It's not highly represented in fantasy, though examples of it do exist (particularly in sci-fantasy).

Most of the government types we know today didn't come around until relatively recently, the vast majority of the time it was kings and emperors, popes and tribesmen.

Fantasy isn't the same thing as our planet's real past history. That's a very narrow view of the genre. I think saying that fantasy can't be anything but a clone of medieval Europe is pretty unimaginative

 

[Twowolves]

Well, so much for offering what I thought was helpful advice about a setting I enjoy. In less than 3 posts you have accused me of "pushing" a setting on you, acted offended when I expressed confusion at your line of questions, and then accused me of trying to shoehorn other people's games into my own personal definition of "fantasy".


In the future, I'll be sure to dispense my helpful advice to people who don't insult me for my troubles.

 

[Nightfall]

Easy you two! Don't make me have to lock you away with Gubalen. That or have Chardun lay some serious smiting down.

JD,

You can certainly tweak Vesh to be more to your standards. We (Two wolves and I) are just commenting that such structures are uncommon in most of the genre of fantasy.

The Glamganjus might offer an alternative but that's only because the Teralia and gnomes tend to work together on occasion. (Course I still like a speared gnome slow roast on occasion... What?!)

Regardless while there is no "official" socio-political culture that is common to socialism, there some that can be tweaked that way.

 

[prchamb]

Here's something I've been pondering the last couple of days...

How would you modify the Druid spell list for each of the epochs? I'm thinking about Hrinruuk's epoch in particular, but it's a fun topic in general.

About three years ago I ran a session where my PCs found an item in a Slarecian ruin that transported them back in time to the Slarecian War (just a vision, of course). They took part in an assault by the forces of the titans and gods on a Slarecian stonghold (the ruins they were exploring). As this happened during the Epoch of Mesos, they witnessed a druid casting force spells. I put little thought into the spells other than using force spells as I knew the PCs would only be near the druid for 2-3 rounds.

Now, I'm about to run a side adventure from Dungeon magazine that will take the PCs into a demi-plane controlled by druids and filled with powerful animals and magical beasts. I'm thinking the history of the demi-plane as being created during Hrinruuk's epoch as a place for him and/or followers to hunt beasts a little too dangerous to let loose in the world, but which Hrinruuk quickly forgot existed. The druids attached to the demi-plane would not have been affected by subsequent epochs and would still have the druid spell list from the epoch of Hrinruuk.

I'm uncertain how to modify the spell list for Hrinruuk's epoch. For the slarecian dream, I only had to show off for a few rounds in front of lower level PCs. For this adventure, the PCs could choose to fight against multiple druids with access to level 9 spells. I don't want to just throw together a list without putting in some considerable thought.

 

[Nightfall]

My advice,

Hrrinnruk's profile includes the ability to hunt as well as control animals. Look at the Wizards/Sorcerer list in the Transmutation as well as Enchantment effects. Use those spells as a baseline and work from there. I also think you should probably cherry pick spells from the druid's list that are from those schools but not exclusively that. Basically find spells that increase damage, aid in senses, as well as spells that can transform people into animals or magical beasts.


I hope that was helpful, unless you wants a SPECIFIC spell list. Cause that will take a little time.

 

[Nightfall]

So anyone else want tips for making druids more "Titan-like" during different "Epochs"?

 

[Nightfall]

So I wait a few days...and then comes the Unthread!