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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Bendris Noulg" data-source="post: 356545" data-attributes="member: 6398">Re: Re: Re: The Black Company CampaignIt's not of limited scope.  If anything, the fact that this sort of play is perceived as outside the normal bounds and intent of D&D is rather indicative of 3E's perceived limited scope.But here's the contradiction: By having Clerics, you've already established an environment that greatly differs from the source material, especially since granting spells is by far more influential than any BC god ever was.  After all, Divine Spells are, in and of themselves, proof of a deity's existance, while in the BC books, the actual existance of deities is not only doubtful, it's rather unlikely.Consequently, since surgery isn't as dependable as Healing magic, what are folks like Croaker doing for a living?  Seems he'd be far less important and influential to Company affairs being that his services aren't especially needed beyond that of Yoeman, which anyone capable of reading, writing and performing basic math can do.Now, the last time I browsed your site (and I'll go take another look if you indicate that this changed), it was stated that several FRCS elements were in play, including spells and Prestige Classes.  Now, you say you're only using gods, and that they're "distant" and such, and that's fine.  But I'd be just as concerned about the effect of Psionics and the Archmage Prestige class as I would be about Divine Spells.Some sensibility in using the Mongoose material on Demonology, especially since that material can be tweaked to reflect Shadow Mastery, but I'd question Acolyte of the Skin and True Necromancer.I understand that you're looking to achieve the standard playing style of 3E in the BC setting, but the question is: Why bother if your changes are going to make the only similarity between TBC books and the campaign be the names?  After all, couldn't WotC had just released a map and new monsters and said, "Here's Wheel of Time", or done similar and said, "Here's call of Cthulu."  No, because these settings and genres required specific alterations to the mechanics in order to be what the names indicate that they are.Your site doesn't indicate such a thing; It indicates FR with a different map and history.  I'm not saying it isn't a good game or that it's not fun for you and yours, but if I am asked what sites out there are good for Glen Cook fans to visit, your's isn't one of them.  It's got too many qualities of otherness about it comparible to the difference between the two Planet of the Ape movies.As was already indicated, I don't run a BC campaign, but I have developed rules to obtain a similar feel; A short summary of the rules is about a page or so back, but I'll list some of the goals originally set forth that have been accomplished while maintaining playability.1. Godless.Divine Magic appears in only two forms: Druidic and Shamanistic.  In both cases, the energies involved are more related to fantastical sciences than divine intervention.  Clerics and Paladins are a non-factor, although some PClasses (which favor Experts more than any other class) also manage to tap into the "faith science" that exists.2. Grim and HarshSome rules are in place that impose limitations on characters, keeping out the super-heroics which proliferate 3E and thus generating what I call the "real people" effect typical of the Black Company series.3. Military ActionEffort continues in the development of mass-combat rules.  While we are using Mongoose's system as a base, we've found that it's not the kind of rules-set you actually want your PC in the middle of, and are thus adjusting accordingly.4. Low MagicAnother 3E proliferation is the abundance and addict-like dependance on magical spells and items.  This need for magical buffers and trinkets has been trimmed to less than 1/10th the standard amount.The end result is a setting where Skills like Profession, Craft and Knowledge are just as important (if not more important) than Spot, Listen, Jump, etc., where political intrigue is just as dangerous as a dusty crypt, where monsters (when they do appear) are vicious and deadly, where death is almost always permanent (but less likely since storyline and plot, not combat, are the focus), and magic, while rare, is often the key to power, and thus made difficult to obtain and hard to master.In other words, in the same niche as The Black Company.Going back to look at your work, it's seen that you've done just the opposite: Focused on individual characters over military action, brought deities and their magic into the equation, permited the occurance of D&D "super-heroics", and boosted the magic level to Core standards.I'd have to say, while you're using the Black Company name, my setting seems far closer to the spirit.  If I were to address the option of actually running a BC campaign, I'd simply have to trim some fat from my rules.  You're rules, on the other hand, can't even be considered a suitable reference since they are already so divergent from the source material.Actually, a strict interpretation of the books would have the PCs:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Partially responsible for the fall of Beryll.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Squash a revolution against the Empire.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Expand that Empire as far as Juniper.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Lead and win a revolution against said Empire.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Cast Limper and the Silver Spike into a bottomless void.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Devestate the Shadow Masters, including the destruction of no less than three major cities.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Eliminate all of the religious leaders of the Dahli and place the royal family in complete control.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Run a para-military guerilla/terrorist revolt against Soulcatcher.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Put-down a wanna-be goddess.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Destroy the most influential trade center in the South.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Re-establish guardianship over what's essentially a transient plane.</li> </ul>Sounds rather influential to me, and most of it can be done by judicial use of the Leadership Feat and long-term tactical planning.That's a commendable effort to a degree.  I gotta say, though, that I wouldn't really appreciate your changes.  The inclusion of several things (especially the high levels of magic) would turn me off from the game rather quickly, since it wouldn't "feel" like a Black Company game.  No offense intended, just the facts of the matter.</blockquote>

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