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Looks like Marc let slip a bit of his true nature...
Demons AND Cultists! Since I'm actually trying my hand at DMing a game now ...
Either way, twice as many hive cities seems entertaining to me. "Ha, ha," the players think. That's a funny idea the DM has. Your players' mileage may vary. Then you realize the DM is serious.
All PDFs sent to the Day 11 and '2nd to last' Day 12 winners.
This was fun. Would have another go at it next year if I'm on these boards at the right time.
Congratulations to all the winners! And losers who became winners :P Thanks again to taig for organizing this and making it a fun activity. To Sqwonk, PM me with your publisher of choice from the list taig had in his OP. A brief list of products you own from them (if feasible) would also be helpful to reduce duplication (don't worry, I'll PM you before I send it). You can also put in a note for preferred type of book (rules, adventure, setting, etc.) because I know some people don't use certain types of supplements (ex: never using published settings or adventures, etc). I try to send you something nice along the lines of materials you prefer, but hopefully maintain some element of surprise.
Congrats, Changing Man. PM me with the product you want and I'll send it to the handle/account you PM me with. If I don't catch your PM before I turn in for the night, I'll be roaming around these forums during the evening tomorrow. Thanks to taig for putting this together. Funny about that roll off. Has a double matched 20 (or any number) happened in a roll off before?
Good luck everyone! For my own devious purposes, I hope the winner selects something I'm not aware of, so I can be reminded to pick up a copy for myself as well. The discovery of new, interesting material is half the fun.
Always play the game as if you've won. It's how the high rollers do it, for them betting 'real monies' games. Then again, they're probably all gambling addicts. So disregard that last bit.
Up for another person taking up a day? How about natural 11* (or closest to it plus/minus roll off) for the 11th day? Have the winner PM me and I'll gift them a PDF of their choice according to the rules Taig outlined in this thread (publishers listed or those who offered at the set limit in the OP). Just someone who enjoys 3PP stuff immensely and tries to support them whenever I can. *Actually have a character who has one trick and rolling 11 has made the character contribute meaningful a surprising number of times. This is for those characters. To help make the final day (the 12th day) more epic than it is, I'll also like to add to the holiday haversack. Anyone who rolls a 2 (or second to dead last, with roll off as there can only be one) will get a random PDF gift based on their choice of publisher (as those listed in this thread). That is the winner picks the publisher, I'll gift them a PDF from that publisher's products (don't worry I'll clear it with the winner first in case of duplication in their library). 'Cause 2s, causing non-critical, less memorable failures since ... forever.
Going by the World-Eater theme, I would put the emphasis on the Campaign Settings involved over the idea of 3PP collaborating or backing to supporting popular 3PPs. Third party publishers have collaborated before on Kickstarters, I don't expect the KS outcome to be different in this case, even if it's nominally a bigger project because it seems each 3PP only has a small part to play in the AP. Really the draw of this project is the promise of an Planescape or Spelljammer inspired epic romp through some of the more recognizable 3PP settings that are Pathfinder Compatible. Deliver on that concept and the project can tap into the crossover potential. Conversely, what of 3PP who aren't known for a particular setting or even a barebones implied setting offered in adventures, there are those who focus more on offering player options and monsters over settings and adventures. Their involvement in this is not as strong a draw. While they can still contribute, they wouldn't have a "star" milieu to present for the AP (or put it another way, a World to place before the Eater). If the non-setting'ed 3PP were to develop a setting specifically for this AP, then that doesn't hold the same draw as a 3PP with an established setting, unless the 3PP is already well established and has an existing strong demand from their fanbase to produce a setting along their style and strength. With the existing settings, while it is nice for the PCs to visit them as a sort of sight-seeing day tour, there isn't a true cross-over unless elements start to bleed over between worlds. Traditionally in the comics inspiring this World-Eater concept, when worlds cross-over, it's a big mashup between heroes and villains. The PCs stand in for the super heroes (but it would still be nice to see some other familiar faces from the settings interact across the veil of worlds). You would need villains and monsters to cross over. The latter is easily done because most monsters are under a shared license. However, the bigger draw is villains who cross-over and then setting IP is involved. That may be more difficult to work out, both from the logistical perspective and from a writing perspective. What I'm saying is, this is beyond the scope of Infinite Crisis (IP all controlled by one company). This is more like Amalgam Comics or a true cross-over between different companies (aka Marvel & DC). As fans, it is more gratifying to see Dr. Doom invade Thermyscira or Lex Luthor trying to obtain vibranium from Wakanda*, compared to if both companies decided to invent the "Megamaster" (insert random generic ultra villain) who is trying to invade both settings and each world goes about dealing with this new threat entirely self-contained with no input other than a handful of outworlders helping out. *Meanwhile the Guardians of the Galaxy are delayed by Angela... wait... Also, even if villains cross-over, the villains of a setting may have a very different style or even magic/technology level compared to the world they arrive in. That will have to be ironed out. Their motivation would also have to be determined. If Midgard's Master of Demon Mountain arrives on NeoExodus, his goal is probably to get back to Midgard as his primary motivation is the proliferation of a setting specific bloodline in Midgard (and if NeoExodus is an entirely different world void of this bloodline, what use is it to him) and his powerbase is strongly tied to Demon Mountain. There are workarounds of course, but things to consider. On the other hand, using Baba Yaga is free, but I wouldn't call Baba Yaga a Midgard villain. It would be like if DC suddenly used Thor, but not the Marvel Thor. That's cheating. As for the organization of the Alpha, Delta, Omega adventures with the 3PP settings as side-treks, this seems to push the 3PP settings out into the fringes. What worlds will be the focus of the Alpha/Delta/Omega adventure? If some of them are new worlds created for this AP, then their fate and/or destruction will hold less impact. If they are established settings, some players might not like them and what if they want to skip the Delta adventure if it's set in Midgard, but the group things Midgard is too plain vanilla for their tastes. Or maybe they hate kobolds and gearforged and Midgard is a cardinal sin. What if NeoExodus is the Delta and is scripted to be consumed by the World-Eater, but the group are NeoExodus fans, they just failed in saving the setting they liked the most. Sure they might save all the others, but they've let their homeworld be destroyed. Same applies for the Alpha and Omega. What if the group wants to start from a particular setting, how does the Alpha figure into it. Will there be a prequel adventure for each setting involved, etc. Perhaps you've all these logistical issues figured out. Then that's great. If not, then please use the time to first determine how much of each setting will be intermixing into this formula. I feel the success of this project lies in striking the right balance between involving the settings. Too little and it becomes a cross-over in name only; too much and some might gloss over chapters. Create too much new stuff for the main adventures and we're back to cross-over in name only. Not to sound negative. I really would like to see this get off the ground, but at the same time, hope it arrives in a format capable of addressing some of the unknowns mentioned above.
Fortunately (?) due to my Kickstarter habit, I've backed many 3PP projects and have an abundance of products over the last few years. Instead, my list leans towards picking up some of the Paizo stuff I've missed, the entire Occult sub-line being foremost among them. If it turns out how I think it will, I have plans for Occult magic. As for 3PP I'm usually more inclined towards settings and at the top of my list are settings and supplements I've missed for various reasons. Thunderscape
Also, some of the Dreamscarred non-psionics classes. I was a fan of the 3E inspirations for those subsystems and really like the concepts as updated to Pathfinder. Is Path of War and Akashic Magic done yet? I haven't been following the projects closely and lost track of progress.
I stayed up late reading the PDF, and despite having early backer access to several chapters combined with what I *inhaled* that night I'm barely a third of the way through the book. Also, despite having work the next day, I regret nothing! However, to answer your question, I did see extensive explanations on Leylines and their application to the titans' Great Web, with the included rules (which may have been expanded from the original set in the MCS, but I have to do a comparison to be sure, I haven't had the chance to use them myself). The designers will probably come by shortly to give you the more precise answer. So, yes, Leyline rules included. Even has a chart of effects and backlash.
So, how about 'em monsters.
—A few other fun details: the Four Horsemen finished their Southlands responsibilities along with the other designers and the Southlands book is off to print! Also, I am designing the crunch for a cool resource for part of the Midgard setting: the Grand Duchy of Dornig. Really looking forward to the Dornig book.
And I'm bandishing a contract at an Elder God of Gaming. Anything could happen (or I might just get squished!) :) No thing of light ever resulted from such dealings.
Magic of Incarna is a cookbook! I joke, but it does remind me of the commercials for chain restaurants with the Awesome Voice-over Guy (tm) talking about steaks (as in carne asada). Incarnum took a root concept and gave it an appropriate sounding (latin-ish) fantasy name. The original Magic of Incarnum got the point across well enough. Incarna doesn't quite have the same ring. Love the ideas being discussed.
Was just looking something up in the Midgard CS, then remembered I had the Zobeck Gazetteer and the Players Guide to the Crossroads. Ended up browsing through those sources for a good couple of hours even after I found what I was looking for.
The PDF was distributed to the KS backers yesterday. 'Twas a most awesome Christmas present. One could say mind-blowing.
While you could read the plain text files for content to get it out of your system, I can understand wanting to see it in near finale layout format in all its glory. Catch 22.
It's like a sequel. Good news indeed.
Mostly just going to echo some suggestions from other posters above:
Mythic sounds very fitting for the premise. Looking forward to it.
I'm sure I'm missing the Bestiary, the map, or something... :: Places bundle in portable hole ::
Update #13 "Kobold Press has teamed up with Dreamscarred Press to provide a Kickstarter-exclusive classic crossover! We are offering you a chance to see 11 psionic powers written up as Vancian magic spells and to see 12 intriguing new spells from the Deep Magic sourcebook turned into psionic powers, including Mythic psionic powers. The resulting Resonance Generator PDF will also include a section on reskinning psionic powers into a mana system for arcane spells. This 8-page PDF will be provided free of charge to all backers who support both the Psionic Miniatures Kickstarter at $10 or higher and the Deep Magic Kickstarter at the $15 level or higher. The PDF will ship in January, 2014, and will not be available elsewhere." I recall Wolfgang answered the question in the main KS comments. The two projects will compared their roster of backers. Anyone who meets the criteria will qualify for the crossover perk. They'll know.
Regarding Forgotten Realms elves, people seem to take all the wrong impressions from them. It's true their history is full of hubris and folly, but so is the history of dwarves or other races and especially humanity. Humans in the setting in particular have some of the greatest screw-ups, Netheril, Imaskar, etc. Each race or group paid for their arrogance (including virtual extinction for the Netherese and Imaskari ethnicities), getting knocked down a few pegs only to climb up again. For elves and dwarves they were kind of on their way out in the 2e and 3e era, that's how far they fell from their previous dominant positions. Also, the folly of the elves is used to highlight that when the stereotypical arrogant elves were in charge, their empires have a tendency to fall. Myth Drannor was at the height of power in the reign of the Coronal who welcomed humans, dwarves, halflings, gnomes and other races into the kingdom, but after he passed (and his heir died) did the elven leadership not cooperate with the other races and Myth Drannor fell. Some elves fought besides the other races trying to preserve the kingdom, but they couldn't succeed with the divisiveness. Same thing for the Crown Wars, different tyrannical elven dynasties going at it, gobbling up smaller elven kingdoms into mega-empires, then it all fell when they escalated the violence and dark magic with the other side. Been some years since I've followed FR lore, but I recall the leadership who perpetuated these massive wars are not looked upon in a positive light by mainstream elves of the setting. Except for the dark elves who became drow and embraced it. It's interesting how the history meant to reflect upon these issues with some measure of complexity (for a fantasy setting) is instead reduced down and taken as a baseline stereotype for the entire race as a default.
They're also great for a colorful morsel of setting development, going back to what Eric Hinkle said above about NPCs having lives too. They could be heirlooms, treasure that spawns other adventures, musty dangerous tomes in a forsaken library, or as a set of notes passed down from student to student in an arcane college (how I came to realize the potential of the UC spellbook when I saw a game designer use one that way). Spellbooks are more than the sum of their individual spells, they tell a story of the person or persons who put them together.
Sad to see the movie under-performing here. The media latched on to the story of an expensive domestic flop of colossal proportions in the news cycle and it doesn't matter if the international receipts puts it closer to even. I saw it this weekend and thought it decent enough. It certainly deserves a sequel more so than many other movies that became franchises. Top of my head, Clash of the Titans was terrible, in my opinion, although I'll have to admit Wrath is looking much more interesting if just for the titans and what they can do. Sorry, getting off topic. |