Scarred Lands: Ask the Sage [New and Improved!]

[HonJull]

Is there a list somewhere of what the different contries and/or major cities import/export? I've seen some of them in a few of the books, but not in others. Am I missing it, or is it not there? =)

 

[Trickstergod]

Is there a list somewhere of what the different contries and/or major cities import/export? I've seen some of them in a few of the books, but not in others. Am I missing it, or is it not there? =)

Both the Ghelspad and Termana softcovers and hardcovers should have that information for their respective continents. It's part of the government rundown - the ruler, population, etc, and the imports and exports should be in there. A few entries might give a bit more detail beyond that if you're looking for more, but other than the one sentence line per country or city-state, you're not likely to find much.

 

[Nightfall]

Yep. There aren't a lot of them but SLCS: Termana and SLCS:Ghelspad have the most for each country and city-state in each place. So far though I don't know if all the regional suppliments have it, but I know Calastia, Hollowfaust and Mithril have it. Hope that was helpful.

(wonders if maybe I should get Trick to have his own thread considering he answers questions too! )

 

[JoeGKushner]

Hi, I did the Asaatthi subraces... I don't know how it appears in the book, but the intent was to provide tweaks from the standard. That is, assume 3 racial hit dice. Apologies for lacking feats and skills, but again, assume the standard. There were some tight space constraints, so I tried to be as economical as possible. CR shouldn't be tremendously different, though I'd adjust the misbred CR modifier to race +1 (I had set it as +3, which is silly), and a CR of 2 for the Lowest ones.

My estimation was that similar spellcasting levels stack. That is, normal Asaatthi + 5 wizard levels casts as an 8th level wizard, though only has 1 bonus feat and 5 levels toward a familiar.

Well those are pretty bad strikes against the book. It's 120 pages, 8 pages less than Player's Guide to Rangers and Rogues, and the same price. I'm afraid that tight space constriants, especially considering the huge gaping white space with the prestige classes, just doesn't really sound too satisfactory.

 

[Nightfall]

Something you'd take up with the production people, Joe. The writers, developers and editors just work with what's given. Not their fault if the guys doing the layout and other aspects of production don't do their jobs. Not saying this to mininize your feelings but there you are.

But hey you DID get input from two the writers so that has to be some kind of plus!

 

[JoeGKushner]

Hearing from two of the authors is a plus. I can understand there being 'space restrictions' but if you look at the book, it doesn't appear that there are any space restrictions on size or layout.

Maybe I'm just getting grumpier as I get old or just more picky as there is so much material out.

1. This book is overpriced page wise compared to other SSS books.

2. The books overall utility is dimisnished due to having to own the Creature Collection revised for the normal hit dice, feats, skill points, base attack,etc... of the varaints.

3. There is way too much white space in the book towards the end.

4. The whole all purpose d20 feel is not there. Almost anywhere you look, the heavy hand of the SL setting is upon them ranging from where they live being influenced by the Divine War to how they live, being heavily influenced by their worship of Mormo. It's a SL book.

5. This doesn't count the fact that none of them have level adjustments as opposed to just effective character levels and none of the subraces have a CR.

6. As humanoids, each encounter has to be customized and there aren't any real examples of various strengths of asatthi from low to high.

Maybe it's just feeling less satisfied with SL books in general. Faithful and Forsaken isn't looking too good, didn't like that Penumbral Pentagram bit, the Creature Collection Revised still had some issues and still used that dog ugly art. I like SL but these books are starting to pushing my buttons the wrong way.

 

[Trickstergod]

Hearing from two of the authors is a plus. I can understand there being 'space restrictions' but if you look at the book, it doesn't appear that there are any space restrictions on size or layout.

Maybe I'm just getting grumpier as I get old or just more picky as there is so much material out.

...

Maybe it's just feeling less satisfied with SL books in general. Faithful and Forsaken isn't looking too good, didn't like that Penumbral Pentagram bit, the Creature Collection Revised still had some issues and still used that dog ugly art. I like SL but these books are starting to pushing my buttons the wrong way.

Well, at the very least, you're not alone in your diminishing satisfaction. For me, it was first drifting towards aspects of D&D that just never jived with me, such as psionics, that I can at least acknowledge other folk like, and then just bland to poor writing to go along with the consistently bad mechanics. There's also the recent references in a couple of books to templates or monsters that didn't show up in the books which they were supposed to show up in, and still haven't made any appearance yet.

I don't have a personal problem with Scarred Lands specific setting books, though. However, I do have a problem when they go around claiming they're useful for any d20 campaign, when they're not, like the recent Player's Guides, and apparently the asaatthi book as well (which makes a similar claim). False or just mistaken advertising doesn't exactly endear me.

As it is, the only Scarred Lands book that catches my interest for the coming year would be the Edge of Infinity, and even then, I'm assuming it will be bad, but will give it a chance in the hopes that it's not.

Ahh well.

Gripe, gripe, gripe, badger, badger, badger,...badger, badger, mushroom, mushroom...

 

[Nightfall]

Trick,

Hopefully you'll enjoy Edge. I know I'm looking forward to it.

Joe,

Like I said, I understand where you are coming from but I do believe the layout people are getting a little lackidasical for many people. I would like to point you could make the followers of another snake cultists besides Merusauk. Perhaps Set or someone similar. I will agree that needing CC Revised is a let down but not a major one. (Well maybe.) But I do agree with your 6th point, there should have been one but there wasn't. However we'll just have to see how it goes.

 

[ruemere]

Well, at the very least, you're not alone in your diminishing satisfaction. For me, it was first drifting towards aspects of D&D that just never jived with me, such as psionics, that I can at least acknowledge other folk like, and then just bland to poor writing to go along with the consistently bad mechanics. There's also the recent references in a couple of books to templates or monsters that didn't show up in the books which they were supposed to show up in, and still haven't made any appearance yet.

I'm a little more optimistic than that. First of all, most of the books published until now must've been produced under severe stress of looming 3.5 version of d20 system. From what I know, all creatures in the most recent Creature Collection (the Third One) were originally submitted as 3.0 critters. The amount of work needed to convert CC Revised, all player guides, CCIII, Faithful and Forsaken and CS Termana is staggering. No wonder then, that errors appeared and web enhancements were delayed.

Hopefully, the people at SSS are a bit less tired now and they have more time to perfect things (who knows, perhaps the reason for the delay of PG to Monks and Paladins was the amount of final touches Joe and his crew were putting). Anyway, I am tremendously happy with CCIII and I am eagerly awaiting new stuff.

As for the other books. Well, I can live with them. They are not enough important (including player guides) to significantly influence my campaign.

Regards,
Ruemere

 

[Dark Jezter]

Heya Nightfall.

Care to tell me what life is like for a horse nomad of the Kelder Steppes? For my character background, I'm including a period where he dwelt for a time among the horse nomads, and wish to know about them.