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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Najo" data-source="post: 663781" data-attributes="member: 9959">Rant about the Dark Sun DragonWarning - Spoilers regarding the Dark Sun novels!There is one thing I want to get off my chest about Dark Sun <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />A rant I have with the novels (and the revisied setting): The same party IMC (with 7 PCs of levels 16-18; 2 clerics, 1 wizard and 1 psionicist, rest fighter/ rouge types) who witnessed the dragon (see previous post) went on to infiltrate the templars in the city state of Urik with the assitance of the Veiled Alliance (PCs did this on their own accord, even though they were continueousily warned by allies not to). They eventual faced Hamanu (Urik's sorcerer king) in his own sanctuary and using a small portion of his high level spells, powers and magic items, Hamanu was able to kill them in under 10 rounds and they all died a horrible death as their minds and bodies were destroyed by a demi god (level 21 dragon) essentially. In the novels Borys is killed in one round by a single level 18 gladiator (with a magic sword made to slay the dragon). But the lame part is Borys should have easily been able to do what Hamanu did to my players (Borys is a level 30 dragon = level 20 wizard + level 20 psionicist + level 10 dragon, basically a level 50 character wereas Humanu is level 41). All borys had to do was cast high level spells, which as a defiler cause pain and nausea in living creatures within a certain radius, while Rikus climbed up the wall or as he jumped onto Borys nose, then proceed to destroy Rikus with psionics or magic. All the end fight in the book consists of is a mul (half dwarf) jumping off a wall, landing on the 50' tall dragon's nose and stabbing it with a sword, then this black goo comes out of the wound and spreads over the dragon's body, eating him alive. That ending always made me mad how they sold the dragon out so quickly, there isn't even a real fight and the dragon dies without doing anything. Aside from the dragon's sand blasting breath, 10th level spells and psionic powers and near invulnerabitly, the creature is literally able to suck the life out of creatures with its assortment of psionics, spells and from side effects of its defiling. This single event completely ruined the novels for me (which the forth book in the series is fantastic) and it took the power of the setting away. The dragon was never meant to be fought directly by the PCs (or at least shouldn't be until they are rivals in power after a LONG campaign), it was there more as a vengeful and mysterious power that everyone fears and makes yearly offerings and sacrifices to. Everything in the damn tyr region fears this creature, including the assorted sorcerer kings (demi gods in their own right) who supposedly created him.  In fact, in the 2nd book of the series Rikus goes to war with the City State of Urik using an entire army made from thousands of ex-slaves and is forced to retreat back home. His army almost takes the city, but then Humanu shows up and basically does to Rikus and his army what Sauron does to the elves and men in the opening scenes of LOTRs: Fellowship of the Ring. Borys (the Dragon) should have had Rikus killed before he even got off the wall. Really lame to have the most powerful creature on Athas (a virtual "God") go down with one hit (in the nose at that) from a impressive but mortal gladiator who is essentially a third of the dragon's level and no where near its capabiltites in power. Ok rant over. I feel a little better now.Nate</blockquote>

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