Savage Tide AP not intriguing me

[Thorin Stoutfoot]

a vote for high level adventures

I'd like to see an AP 10-20, or 12-20, rather than 1-12 or 3-12. Low level adventures are easy, and there are plenty of sources for them. It's high level adventures that are difficult to design, build, and run. I feel that Dungeon doesn't adequately provide high level adventures.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'd like to see an AP 10-20, or 12-20, rather than 1-12 or 3-12. Low level adventures are easy, and there are plenty of sources for them. It's high level adventures that are difficult to design, build, and run. I feel that Dungeon doesn't adequately provide high level adventures.

Probably because, with three years of APs now, half of the year, the high level adventure slot (Dungeon tries to have a low, middle and high adventure in each issue) is taken up by the AP.

So 1-20 APs are contributing to the lack of high level adventures, ironically.

 

[GwydapLlew]

So 1-20 APs are contributing to the lack of high level adventures, ironically.

That doesn't make any sense. The high-level AP adventures /are/ high level and /can/ be run outside the AP. I could easily adapt any of them into an existing high-level game.

 

[Aloïsius]

Yeah, I definitely would like to see an AP that slows down the progression. The current AP's have the players advancing sometimes multiple levels in the course of one module.

Or break the AP in two or three seasons :

First season : level 1-6 : a low level campaign, that serve as an introduction, and allow the player to reach mid level in a matter of months (3-6).

Second season : level 7-12. The PC are now well established. A few years have passed. But things from the past, seemingly isolated events keep them busy. Something is happening, but they can't know what. This will allow them to reach high level in a matter of years (6-12).

Third season : level 13-18. The players are now among the mighty of th realms. And when the Ennemy show his ugly face, they are on the frontline of a terrible war, as generals, spy-in-chief, cardinals or royal wizards. Many great battles, raids, plots... This is a long, devastating, and probably desesperate war, lasting another few years (6-12). At the end of this season, the PC are the last heroes and the last hope of a whole realm (FR)/world(Eberron) depending of the power level of the campaign setting.

Conclusion : level 19-20. It's now time to face the big boss. This should be a rapid, fast paced, succession of epic adventures. Apocalypse is happening, the Sun is fading from the sky, the sea's water is changed in blood, the gates of hell are open... The PC have only a few days/weeks to save the world, or to allow a new one to be rebuild.

This way, when they reach 21th level, the wizard is not someone who was an apprentice one years ago.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

That doesn't make any sense. The high-level AP adventures /are/ high level and /can/ be run outside the AP. I could easily adapt any of them into an existing high-level game.

It does make sense: Anyone complaining that Dungeon doesn't run enough high level adventures has to be discounting the APs, since half of them, by definition, ARE high level.

So, since they, for whatever reason, don't want to run the later adventures of the Shackled City or the Age of Worms, they're kind of out of luck, since there's only one higher level adventure per issue. For half the year (or so), that's an AP.

I'm with you, personally: If I want a high level adventure, I'd have no problem repurposing an AP adventure.

 

[Crothian]

So, any actual thoughts on Savage Tides?

 

[Hussar]

How about:

1) APs aren't political statements, they're meant to be used. "Showing people how it's done" is better reserved for DMG3 or another sourcebook.

OTOH, a large segment of Dungeon IS devoted to "showing people how it's done". All those columns from game designers does put Dungeon in a teaching tool sort of place. If you're going to tell people how to run higher level games, why not also show them how to do it as well?

Dungeon and AP's have the advantage of being able to handle the transition from mid to high level and do it well.

2) There will be three to four 1-20 APs from Paizo out before this is an issue. I simply don't buy that more than a handful of people will have run four 1-20 campaigns by then and be itching for another one. Playing around with the level range and doing short sequel arcs to the previous APs would be a great idea instead.

Just because there are three AP's currently, doesn't mean that people have played any of them. STAP is my first, although I did play a few sessions of Shackled City. The idea that everyone will use every AP is perhaps not true.

The number of low and mid level adventures in print outnumber the number of 13th level+ adventures by a margin of about 4 to 1. Why should Dungeon cater to a bloated market? Why not pave the way to show people that there is actually life after name level?

 

[Pants]

As much as I like the idea of a 1-12 AP, I really like how the current and last AP's have really embodied 'D&D at nearly all possible spectrums of play.' While Epic rules may get sort of bent over the counter, the 'Core' D&D rules go up to 20 and I feel that an AP should really offer something for each level of play, despite what a fairly small minority may find more enjoyable (face it, Enworlders make up a fairly small part of the market).

So as cool as a 1-12 War-focused campaign arc may be, I'd much rather support another 1-20 campaign instead.

 

[mhacdebhandia]

Personally, I'm intrigued by the Savage Tide Adventure Path, even though I foresee some work to conform its planar aspects to Eberron.

 

[Acid_crash]

I want to see a AP set in a wasteland desert, not exactly Dark Sun but something else.