BigFreekinGoblinoid
First Post
Wormwood said:
He said *like* the Dark Ages, not *from* the Dark Ages.
LOL LOL ! Good Stuff. So did you watch the game tonight? Go Eagles!
Searching for a Brutal, and Harsh Setting.
- Thread starter ReignofGeekaos
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LOL LOL ! Good Stuff. So did you watch the game tonight? Go Eagles!
Mouseferatu
Hero
Man. The thread's gotten this far, and there's still no sign of Nightfall?!
You're falling down on the job, brother. Much longer, and I'm going to have to pimp the Scarred Lands instead, and you're going to be getting a stern letter from the union.
You're falling down on the job, brother. Much longer, and I'm going to have to pimp the Scarred Lands instead, and you're going to be getting a stern letter from the union.
Scott814thmpco
First Post
Hi-
My best suggestion is this: pick up a pad of paper and write your own harsh and brutal dark age campaign.
Scott
My best suggestion is this: pick up a pad of paper and write your own harsh and brutal dark age campaign.
Scott
jester47
First Post
The quickest way to put me to sleep is to talk about oathbound. Bastion has a tendancy to overwrite, and premise is too Chronicles of Narnia for me. You will be forever changed sounds like some hippy talking about how acid affects you. The book is sizeable and good for self defence.
A setting is what you make of it. Greyhawk can be harsh and unforgiving, as can FR or any other for that matter. It all depends on what, you, the DM emphasise. Pump up the plauges and disease. Give magic a sort of sinister trade-off feeling. Make things seem old. Make cursed items more common. Make the good guys still seem out of whack and make them fight each other. Nothing makes somthing dark in a world when two bastions of good go to war against each other. Thats all you have to do. Make Elminster sinister in some respect. "Last bunch that HE sent on a mission didn't come back. He had to clean up the situation himself. By then it was waay out of hand and even now its still a mess. Make your forests dark, your deserts harsh, and your seas rough. Use the weather. When it rains it pours, when its cold it freezes, when its hot its HOT. Have evil members of commonly good races. If there are good drow running around, why not have an evil surface elf? Fill it with futility, like that game with the heads that pop up. If you want a conan feel set it in an arid area near deserts. Thats all you have to do. The world doesn't really matter, its what you make of it and how you present it that makes a setting seem brutal and harsh.
Aaron
A setting is what you make of it. Greyhawk can be harsh and unforgiving, as can FR or any other for that matter. It all depends on what, you, the DM emphasise. Pump up the plauges and disease. Give magic a sort of sinister trade-off feeling. Make things seem old. Make cursed items more common. Make the good guys still seem out of whack and make them fight each other. Nothing makes somthing dark in a world when two bastions of good go to war against each other. Thats all you have to do. Make Elminster sinister in some respect. "Last bunch that HE sent on a mission didn't come back. He had to clean up the situation himself. By then it was waay out of hand and even now its still a mess. Make your forests dark, your deserts harsh, and your seas rough. Use the weather. When it rains it pours, when its cold it freezes, when its hot its HOT. Have evil members of commonly good races. If there are good drow running around, why not have an evil surface elf? Fill it with futility, like that game with the heads that pop up. If you want a conan feel set it in an arid area near deserts. Thats all you have to do. The world doesn't really matter, its what you make of it and how you present it that makes a setting seem brutal and harsh.
Aaron
Patrick-S&S
First Post
Wormwood said:He said *like* the Dark Ages, not *from* the Dark Ages.
Hey, I resent that!
Actually this really made me laugh right out even though I am a 100% Hârnfan. I wouldn't recommend Hârn to this guy though. Too dark and gritty probably and it has no drow and the like. Stick with something else (dunno what though).
Nightfall
Sage of the Scarred Lands
mouseferatu said:Man. The thread's gotten this far, and there's still no sign of Nightfall?!
You're falling down on the job, brother. Much longer, and I'm going to have to pimp the Scarred Lands instead, and you're going to be getting a stern letter from the union.
Sorry Ari. I had to first, Take a nap, then, get up, and get my butt driven over to the gaming house. where, [insert sarcasm] (surprise surprise) We didn't game. Even AFTER I've written 25 characters, AND made them all SL worthy. So now I'm here. The Union is just to have to accept I can't be EVERYWHERE at EVERYTIME.
That said, if you want a Dark Ages time deal, let me say, you got a baragin in Scarred Lands!
We have lost cultures, a struggling continent trying to rebuild from a tragedy of Greek-Romanesque proportions. We have gods that interact with their followers but allow them leeway since they know they must be viligant against the return of their Forebears, the Titans. Not quite gods, these beings of natural force and uncaring power, the Titans were those that created many of the things now present in the Scarred Lands. But the Gods rebelled, knowing that their attitude would undo their followers, and thus the gods themselves. And through it all, the players try to survive in a land torn by religion, uncivilized lands, and even that of good versus evil. But good and evil are relative terms. After all, the Titans were a part of the natural order of things...so some druids say. But they are heretics anyway. Others, like clerics of Madriel, goddess of mercy, healing and redemption, say we must defend against such restoration of the Titans, as it will only cause more suffering. Who can say who is right? But I, the Sage know one, thing to be ultimately true. Once you come in here, you'll not be leaving any time soon.
This not to disrespect the other viable alternatives. Patrick was kind enough to let me come by, even though those Harnites are pretty uptight!
Oathbound, is also a good setting and I applaud Jim Bulter's crew for doing a great job with it. I certainly like to play there. But while all these are good alternatives, I think the Scarred Lands has some unique and interesting things to offer the average DM and even the average player. We have astrology rules, rules for alchemy and even viable alternatives to using Psionics in a world that is torn between the issue of Divine and Titan. This and more makes for a very compelling place in my view. Plus you're not limited to just ONE continent. If you tire of Ghelspad, there's always the savage jungle lands of Termana, home to the Charduni, dwarven followers of the god of Slavery and War, Chardun, the Great General. It is also home to the Dark Carnival, a place of madness, pleasure and soul numming darkness. Here rules the Jack of Tears, the Mormus, a clown as cruel as he is humoruous. The Blood Bayou is a dangerous place for the unwary and the foolish. Then there's Asherak, a place supposedly untouched by the Divine War, where much of land is educated...perhaps in ways not even considered or welcomed in the lands of Ghelspad. Finally there's Fenrilik, a forboding land of ice and snow. Where strange and fell things lurk amongst the blocks of ice, but there's still life there. Anyway, that's my sales pitch for now. I hope that you'll consider the Scarred Lands.
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