Treasure Quests WTF?!

[thundershot]

Okay, I'm using FFE's "Treasure Quests" book, and the format is a great one. The spiral binding, and having the maps, stats, everything on a two page spread. The treasure is over-doing it, but it fits with something I'm doing, so it's perfect right now.

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However, I think the writer of the adventures and the artist of the maps spoke two completely different languages, and didn't understand a word of what each other said. The numbers don't match the maps. Sometimes the numbers match the map, but don't match the text of the room. Sometimes you get a stat block of a creature that's not the creature there.

Granted, I'm not an idiot, and after about 10 minutes, I can figure most of them out. But for crying out loud, where in the hell do the maps of the second adventure connect? The one that involves Sledge the Giant. He appears in 2A and 2D, but I have no idea where these two areas relate to each other, much less the abaonded dragon's lair, or FARMER BROWN'S HOUSE! Right in the middle of the Giant's home! I was hoping for some kind of... connectivity without having to make a map myself (I stink at maps).

So anywho, I decided to skip it and go to number three. A nice abandoned fortress. Ooo... Once again... the maps won't connect!! In area 3A, spot #3 says there's a door to the southeast that leads to the kitchen. Um... no, the only door to the SE leads to the CHAMBER OF DEATH! That sure as hell isn't the kitchen in link 3B! Naturally, I wasn't surprised to find that the other areas made no sense as well.

I've dug through FFE's site and found no resolution or errata to this. What would have been REAL nice is a map for the entire nation that these adventures seem to crawl across.

The book could have been SO much better with this same format, only, you know... coherent to an average person.

Anyone else have any clues to help me with these problems? I'm terrified to read the rest of the book. I'm dizzy enough as it is...

Thanks!
Chris

 

[Talvisota]

I so TOTALLY agree. I think a 5 year old put that together. It is really discouraging to find a product like this that sells and know that you yourself, a non-publisher dude, could do much better. Why should I buy anything else from FFE again with this to go on?

And what is up with the HOARDS of treasure? Orcs with 60-100gps each?!?!

I couldn't even finish reading it. Check out the scale of the city maps, where, if I remember correctly, each square is a mile or something. The city would be the size of a small country.

That said, the concept is right on. Perhaps a real company like Necromancer Games should clone it.

Sorry I couldn't help, just sympathize.

 

[Buttercup]

I agree. I will never purchase another of their products again. If they can't bother to proof read their stuff before sending it to market, then I can't bother to give them my money.

 

[thundershot]

Unless they provide a MAJOR web supplement for this baby, I'm pretty much done with FFE. It's going to take a lot of extra work on my part in order to have the adventure playable.

The over-abundance of treasure, however, is easily rectified. Probably the easiest of every problem. However, it just happened to work into the plot of the kingdom that the PCs have entered. Very very wealthy indeed....



Chris

 

[ThomasBJJ]

Glad to say that the only money FFE got from me was for one issue of Campaign magazine (which was so-so).

I almost bought Dungeon World, until found out it was FFE. Then I decided to wait for the reviews, and sure enough, I skipped that one. Another FFE bullet dodged.

 

[Crothian]

I almost bought Dungeon World, until found out it was FFE. Then I decided to wait for the reviews, and sure enough, I skipped that one. Another FFE bullet dodged.

I haven't got anything by them. Their first book, the Rings thing, I almost got till I saw the price then I decided to wait for a review. I'm glad I did. It's a shame to keep hearing that they have so many problems with their products. I don't know anything about the company (do they even post here?) but I like to have them release something good for people to enjoy.

 

[thundershot]

I guess the thing that bugs me the most is that this kind of book (a hardcover of linked mini-adventures.. not to mention the spiral binding!) is a wonderful concept. It's exactly what I want pertaining to adventures...

Note to other publishers: Making books similar to this (maybe without the expensive binding) with a particular theme such as Oathbound, Dragonstar, Scarred Lands, Rokugan, etc is a perfect way to get a hardcover quality book and many adventures for people to utilize all at once. I'd buy 'em, at least. Maybe another company could do it RIGHT.


Chris