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Thank you for your reply, Erik. I'll check again today to see if it's arrived, and keep checking daily. I really appreciate you guys' customer service, it's what keeps me coming back. I know I can rely on you guys if anything goes bonky. I will let you know if the original shipment does arrive. Cheers,
Hi there. This order was shipped out to me on January 30, and I still haven't received it. I have asked at my local post office, but they tell me that, without a tracking number, they can't do anything. usually stuff I get from you guys takes about two weeks. Can you check at your end what's the status of your order, and/or provide me with a number I can give to the Post Office here so they can look? Thanks.
Dumb question: are you making minis for all six adventures?Yes. :D Yay! I'm starting the AP with my group in January, so I'll get them as they come out.
This is awesome! CotCT is probably my all time favorite of the APs. As it turns out, I just got invited to DM a new group that's starting up, and guess what we're playing. Really looking forward to using these. Dumb question: are you making minis for all six adventures? I will review them as soon as I buy! Cheers, and many thanks for doing these! C
I just received an email advising me that this order has been processed and finalized for shipping. However, it's missing an item which I had included in the original order. The missing item is 1x Qin Game Master's Screen. I see no mention of it in the email about the order shipping, or in My Account page. Will it be shipping later, or has it been overlooked? Thank you in advance for your response.
when is this coming out in print again? I had it in my shopping cart yesterday and now it's showing as "unavailable... M
so, is this supplement like others in the line, crunch-light and fluff-heavy? I have really enjoyed "classic monsters revisited" and "guide to Korvosa" (running CotCT right now), and I fully intend to run Second Darkness, but since I've converted all my games to 4e (ducks preemptively), my interest on this supplement depends on how much of the material can be readily imported. So, could anyone who already has the supplement answer this one for me? roughly, what's the ratio of fluff-to-crunch in "Into the Darklands"?
fhtagn! I totally neglected checking this thread for too long... Arcesilaus, thank you for posting your take on Blood Veil. I don't have my rulebooks on me as I write this, but I'll check back and post again with my comments. At first glance it seems pretty good... Re: Skill Challenges in general. Last night I ran my group through "Meet the Mob" (one of the suggested encounter ideas in Part Two of EoA)...and it very spontaneously transformed into a Skill Challenge (spontaneously because I hadn't envisioned it as such)... I decided it would be an easy, level 1 challenge. The key skills were Bluff, Intimidate, Diplomacy, and Streetwise, and successful resolution implied breaking up the group that was threatening Amin Jalento. Failure meant that the group of thugs/angry citizens would attack the PCs.
I am glad to report my Skill Challenge "on the fly" worked out pretty well. I am enjoying those mechanics a lot. I hadn't thought of turning the encounter with Lavender into a skill challenge... hm. Another one for when I hit the books at home tonight. I'll post the "Meet the Mob" Skill Challenge to the Wiki when I finish actually writing it up. Cheers,
Congratulations, Jason. I just read this. Looking forward to it.
Actually, looking over the two threads with 4e conversions for CotCT, I realized something: no one has mentioned converting the disease, blood veil, which is so central to 7DtG... Has anyone taken a shot at it? How about the other diseases in the back of the 7DtG book? Since ability damage wasn't invited to the 4e party, I am a bit stumped on how to convert this aspect of the AP. as always, any help is greatly appreciated. C
yeah, I also intended to use the cards... When I first read the adventure, I had just read the section on Skill challenges in the DMG, and I remember thinking how similar-yet-original the chase through the shingles was --- kind of a "3.5 skill challenge"... I love the skill challenge system, so I decided that I would also use the Shingles chase as a model for designing future, unique skill challenges. M
I am about to start playing CotCT converted to 4e with my new group. @ Josia Knight: Thanks for this --- the conversions for the reefclaw and the boar are most useful. Do you have any details on the skill challenge for the drunken guard in part two? There was talk of more conversions going on in another thread, here. Here's what I have so far: Part 1:
Convincing Lamm's Lambs to rebel is a Lev 2 skill challenge, complexity 1, Primary skills Diplomacy and Streetwise (mostly because one of my players is a rogue that used to be a Lamm's Lamb, but I ruled that any character native to Korvosa AND trained in Streetwise can roll this one); also, if players use Bluff to gain combat advantage successfully in any of the combats involving the orphans, they grant a +2 circumstance bonus to the next Diplomacy or Streetwise check in the challenge. lamm's lambs - use human rabble I am substituting deathjump spiders for the drain spiders. Gobblegut is a visejaw crocodile (although I am considering adding at least one other croc, as per Arcesilaus's suggested modification in the other thread). For the otyugh in part 2, steelwhisper posted a fantastic (IMHO) encounter in the other CotCT 4e conversion thread, quoted below: Spoiler:
I also like the Harrow point uses proposed by scytale2: Spoiler:
I'll post more as I work my way through it. Cheers,
Hi there... I just wanted to congratulate everyone for the talent and creativity displayed here - great work, guys! @ Arcesilaus: How is your game going? have you squared off the PCs against the croc family, and if so, how did it go? @ Pop'N'Fresh, thanks for the skill challenge suggestion for Lamm's Lambs. @ scytale2: thanks for the Harrow Point uses, I'll use those. @ steelwhisper: great otyugh encounter! how many in your party, if I may ask? I just recently started running 4e and decided to bring the CotCT adventure path over with me to run for a new group I started. My party consists of six PCs (cleric, fighter, ranger, rogue, wizard, warlock). In our first session last week I got them through the beginning of the adventure (preludes, Zellara's home and the Harrow reading) and left them outside the fishery deciding what to do next; the ranger and the rogue had just decided to try the alleyway. I made two versions of the shark (whom I affectionately named Frieda), one elite and one standard (I tend to favor the former since it will be facing the PCs by itself). I offer them up to the masses, PEACH. Frieda the jigsaw shark Level 4 Elite Skirmisher
Initiative +6 Senses: Perception +9; low-light vision
Bite (standard; at-will)
Iron Jaws (standard; at-will)
Blood Fury (minor; encounter) * Healing
Alignment Unaligned Languages: -
---------------------------------------------------- Frieda the jigsaw shark Level 5 Skirmisher
Initiative +6 Senses: Perception +9; low-light vision
Bite (standard; at-will)
Iron Jaws (standard; at-will)
Blood Fury (minor; encounter) * Healing
Alignment Unaligned Languages: -
My other question right now is, has anyone done any work to convert the Reefclaws in EoA or the Nosferatu in 7DtG? Any help or suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Cheers,
Sebastrd, do you have a link to the thread on the WotC boards?Link Thanks. I read through and printed the relevant changes. It's looking pretty good --- I especially like the new healing infusion, I hope they come out with more uses for it, maybe acquired through feats (similar to the cleric's Channel Divinity). what I really need now is a group to play an Artificer in :P Sebastrd, have you incorporated any of those into the artificer you're playing?
Thanks for that. Yeah, 365, guys :P Sebastrd, do you have a link to the thread on the WotC boards?
It was in Dragon 364, actually. So, does anyone have any experiences with the Playtest version of the Artificer? I allowed it in my newly-started 4e campaign, but no-one has made one yet.
LOL, I guess you're right. However, it takes away the "damn, why didn't I memorize any ___ spells today?" factor from the equation. You either know you're prepared to deal with stuff, or you don't --- and that means that my 4e wizard is the most fun character I've had in a looong time. M
I'm going to echo what other people have said here already, but I honestly believe the following to be 4e's greatest strengths: 1) simplicity! In terms of DM prep time, basic rules needed to play (especially good since I teach the game to a lot of newbies these days), and a stremalined combat mechanic, 4e has made my life as DM incredibly simple. I am currently enjoying converting the Curse of the Crimson Throne into 4e for my newest gaming group, and I will second the assertion that it is quite easy to do so. 2) every player has something to do every round. When I first heard Mike Mearls say this in an interview (something about never having to see the crossbow-firing, out-of-spells 1st-level wizard again), I couldn't believe it, but I am glad they delivered. At-Will powers are fantastic. Which leads me to... 3) NO MORE VANCIAN CASTING!!! D&D is my favorite RPG and my hobby of choice for two-thirds of my life, but its "sad devotion to that ancient religion" has been my ongoing point of contention since I started playing (20 years ago in two weeks and still going strong, btw)... I spent a lot of time trying to come up with homebrews and going through alternate rules (spellpoints, anyone?) that circumvented Vancian casting. Whoever did away with that fat, bloated sacred cow has my undying gratitude... Now, my favorite innovation in 4e has to be skill challenges. I haven't had a lot of experience with them, but I like the concept and intend to tinker around with them a lot in my games. I realize that this is just putting a name to something that a lot of DMs probably already did, but it is fun to be reminded that not every obstacle you come across in D&D has to be beaten to a pulp (especially in a game that is so heavily oriented towards combat mechanics as 4e is). M
I think Shaman is widely touted as the likely candidate for the Primal leader... As to the Asian classes... my "spurious" thinking is that there might be some method to the publishing plans of the Spooky Wizard by the Coast; namely, I think we will see products loosely tied in with each other thematically, something like this --- 2009: Eberron and the primal power source in PHBII
I need it to be March now... M
where were the Inquisitor and Templar first seen? I remember the lineup from a post in ENWorld, too... I'll see if I can find it.Wow. OK, that all sounds quite resonable for the shaman. Here's hoping... the concept of a shaman is one of my favorites for translation into a fantasy milieu, but with one exception I've never seen it done quite right. [looks at calendar...] M
Thanks for that, David. so, no illusionist in PHBII. Other ideas?. Do you have a source for the shaman's "almost confirmation"?
Goliath (along with about half the stuff in my original post) was gleaned from here... the source is cited as being the WotC Spring 2009 catalog. Aasimar, eh? that would make sense, to complement the tiefling... I would hope they're as flavourful and evocative as the latter, tho. I could never get myself to play an Aasimar in 3e, eventhough I liked the concept. I've heard a lot about the Illusionist... I wonder if it is really as popular and noteworthy in their (WotC's) eyes, or if this is one of those places where WotC intends to throw a "new, never-before-seen" one at us. what other classes start with an "I"? Hm... I know I'd love to see a shaman class (done right for a change)... so, if you're right, mandisaw, we would have 4 primal-source classes, 2 arcane, and 2 divine. Any other ideas on possible candidates to fill the slots? What about martial? won't there be any new martial classes in the PHBII? M
I am trying to collect rumours/factoids/facts about this because I am dying to see it. :P Last I heard, the Sorcerer, Druid, and Barbarian were confirmed, the Bard was semi-confirmed, and there was some speculation going on in another (now defunct) thread about the rest of the races and classes in there. so, from that thread:
I've heard a pretty good argument for a shaman class showing up. Also, the Shifter has been confirmed from what I have heard. Has anyone else heard or read something else? What about races?
Lest any of our gentle readers from south of the border get the wrong idea, not all of Canada is barren wasteland - just the part east of the Rockies ;) Specifically, the interior of BC is a land of gumdrops and lollypops with happiness and sunshine always...Now if you'll excuse me, i have to go feed my polar bear. it's tied up outside the igloo.Understood. I'm just about done work, so I'd best go get the dogs ready to sled me back home... ah, memories of Canada... *sigh* As a guy who lived there for a while and had to leave (kicking and screaming), I can attest to the truth of all these statements. I miss my polar bear and my igloo. And the lollypops and sunshine always. Cheers to all Canadians!
The most recent (and most frustrating) experience of this I've had was my last character. She was a tiefling sorcerer that was fond of two things: fire and gold. I had her planned all the way to taking levels in a PrC from the Book of Eldritch Might called Embermage (more fire), and then a couple of levels of rogue to reflect her kleptomaniacal bent. The "special" prerequisite for the PrC is to be reduced to less than 0 hp by fire, and she kept making her reflex saves vs. everything fire-based that the DM tossed her way, much to my frustration. In the last level of a dungeon we were exploring, she dove for a treasure chest in an empty room before anyone could stop her, and she sprung a fireball trap that brought her down to -5, with the cleric right there to heal her the next round. success! Unfortunately, just as she levelled up, we finished the adventure and the DM announced that we would be making new characters... to play a 4e campaign. I am so leery of plotting out a character now...oh, and I switched DMs. ;)
Let's see... 1) Dark Sun
4) I haven't played in them yet, but I like the concepts of both Midnight and Ars Magica's "Mythic Europe"... I look forward to trying those out soon. That's about it. "standard" fantasy settings (such as Golarion, FR, Greyhawk, and so forth) have never really interested me... my default setting is a homebrew I've been working on for 17 years now, so every adventure I run starts out there...
I want to place an order for a printed book from the Paizo store, but am wary due to problems I've encountered shipping stuff to my country. I am wondering if anyone here has ordered stuff from Paizo into Mexico, who could share their experience with me. Also, if the people from paizo have had any feedback from customers in Mexico, or if there have been any problems, I'd appreciate that as well in order to better inform my decision. Thank you in advance. Cheers,
dude, belated congratulations and my sympathies. I used to play with a group that met every weekend for all of three years, and now not one of them will committ to even a single session. They're all too busy playing Magic (go figure)... Like others here, my best and most constant player is my wife. with her help, we have put a relatively stable group together. You're cordially invited, but you'd have to fly down to Mexico City every other week :P Good groups are hard to find, and even harder to maintain. In my experience, it is usually a small "core" of players (two or three) who are really committed and enthusiastic, who make a group last. It takes time to find enough people on the same "level"... I guess like many other things, it is a matter of patience. I've taught myself to play by post so I can keep my hobby alive, and am currently getting ready to take the plunge into Fantasy Grounds. I am excited about the prospect of playing with people who live far away... I find it is really enriching. Have you considered that option? Cheers and good luck with your games!
I want to add my thanks as well - there is much to be said that has already been said, so I'll try to be succinct. Dungeons and Dragons 4th edition is an entirely new game. It isn't the continuation (i.e., the "next edition") of an already existing product. The people at WotC told us to get ready to throw everything away and start over when this new product came out. thanks to Paizo, we don't have to. For that, I want to thank you first and foremost - you guys really understand, because you're gamers, too, that this game means something to those who play it besides "buying cool new stuff". We have a system that works. As previously noted on this thread, change is how we grow ... and we need to value and honor where we come from and what we've learned, and build upon what we have already achieved. the Pathfinder RPG does what WotC should've done to call their game a 4th edition of something that came before: work with what we already have, learn from what our collective experiences teach us and make the end result better for everyone. For that, thank you very much - the value of continuity adds to the worthiness of your "backwards compatibility" commitment. I don't mean to diss the effort of the people at WotC... I am sure that many people will come to the hobby and find their lives enriched, just like mine and many others' have been enriched by letting this game be a part of them, in whatever form. But thanks to paizo, the game can not only enrich the lives of those who come into the hobby anew (or throw everything away and start over) but it can continue enriching the experiences of everyone who loves this game of telling stories. So, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! and please let us continue working together to make this game the best it can be. M
I don't think that you could roll Use Magic Device into K:arcana, or Use Psionic Device into K:Psionics. I think that Knowledge skills represent highly specialized intellectual study and training, which is why it makes sense that these skills should come into play when recognizing other people doing what you were trained to do. However (and excluding the mechanics of the Artificer from the discussion for the present), UMD represents ingenuity in tinkering with arcane devices, teasing their powers from them in an act of bravado (hence it is so comically appropriate that it is a Cha-dependent skill), because you only make UMD checks when you couldn't normally cast the spell provided by the item (again, the idea of training is echoed)... decidedly *not* the same as learning from musty old books and practising intonations and rites endlessly in order to get them right. In this context, the knowledge skill represents a well-trained eye, while UMD is the curious, inexperienced kid saying, "I wonder what happens if..." Now, on the other hand, with the Magic-Psionics transparency rule in place, I could see UMD and UPD rolled up into a single Use Device skill...
Personally, I like it a lot (although I admit that I never thought of it before)... IMHO, it just makes (common) sense for it to be a skill, like Swim.
Wow, I just got here and I get the feeling that things are happening really fast, like, you blink and it's gone (or changed). I am glad the combat feats stayed under the name, albeit in a modified form. I think it is really cool to distinguish them from General Feats, if only to make Fighter bonus feats easier to pick out. To echo what some people have said here and in the other thread for this topic, there is always Monte's mighty feats for those of us who occasionally like to über-power our fighters, heheheh...
My thoughts *exactly*. Inspired by the Concentration controversy, and given as my homebrew campaign setting uses psionics heavily, my logical conclusion was exactly this. I am actually trying this out starting this weekend, rolling Psicraft into Knowledge:psionics and Authypnosis into Concentration (as someone suggested in another thread) to complete the changeover. count my vote for this idea, further feedback forthcoming as I try it out in my game.
Acupuncturist, specializing in Integrated Metabolic imbalance correction employing acupuncture, diet therapy, and lifestyle coaching; and Massage Therapist specializing in Myofascial Release and Craniosacral techniques. I have a second job doing freelance translation work. As I have often said in these forums (fond as I am of blowing my own horn), I write a lot (including my own Campaign setting), with the concommitant dream of getting it all published one day.
I have been looking for a place to "join the discussion" for days... can't really make up my mind as to where to start, so I'll just do it here. I apologize if my post derails the topic a bit. I just want to start off my participation here by saying "thank you" to everyone at Paizo. I know, I know, everyone has already been voicing their enthusiasm here and there, but I just got wind of this thing you're doing here, and I want to say that, IMHO, it is probably the best thing that has happened to this hobby of ours for a long, long time. Like other people here, I was not too excited about 4e. Heck, I wasn't thrilled at all to have to leave AD&D behind. I am an avid gamer, I have been so since I discovered the game at age 12. I write my own stuff for the games I run (and still hope to get published one day), and thus was understandably not-thrilled when WotC decided to tell people to "start from scratch" with 4e. My best friend and gaming buddy (who convinced me to switch to 3.5 just two years ago) is all over 4e and thinks that Pathfinder is "too little, too late", but I thoroughly disagree. I have the Alpha 3 document open in my computer since I got it, reading and re-reading the changes, additions, consolidations, and subtractions made to the game, and I can tell you that you've made me really love the 3.5 ruleset. The classes were bonky and just plain weird, and I never felt comfortable playing with them... your changes make me feel that this is what they were always meant to be, and I really want to play them now. The same goes for skills, feats, and spells... the love and intention of Jason and all the people working in this amazing project shine through, and although I am houseruling and modifying ever as I go reading (and will share my insights and experiences gladly in these forums), I feel much more "at home" with these changes than I ever did with the original rules. I am incorporating everything I can read through as of this weekend, when my current group next meets. I will probably even retroactively modify my players' characters to reflect the changes made to the fighter and rogue... (I am that excited)... So, without further ado, please count me in and aboard this project of yours as a staunch supporter. Thank you, paizo, for making me really want to play in a published world for the first time since Dark Sun. I will probably be subscribing to the Pathfinder adventure path soon, just to have a place to play sorcerers and wizards "the way they should have always been". Thank you, congratulations, and keep up the good, amazing, groundbreaking, game-loving work! Regards,
Amen, brother. I will send them an email, too, see what I find out and post my findings here. Thanks for posting this. One good thing leads to another, they say... Cheers,
Well, in my own defense, I just want to say I never watched the Clone Wars cartoon ;) I was concerned that the magical winter idea would probably cut too close to the n+1 settings in fantasy fiction that employ it, in one way or another. However and thanks to Erik Mona's criticism, I can honestly say that next time I write something like this, I'll make sure that I play such aspects up. A lot of what went into my decisions about how to present this material had to do with casting familiar elements in a different light, showcasing different relationships between races and their surroundings. Obviously I have a lot to learn in order to do this successfully. Thanks for the heads up about the Clone Wars, anyway, and good luck on round three. M
Congratulations to the top 16. I am also excited to see that some of my favorite entries made the cut. I have been honored to share this space with some truly creative and talented individuals. It has been my pleasure to learn from each of you through your submissions, comments, and from the judges through their intent and very accurate criticism. Good luck to you all! M
Hear, hear! I have been writing stuff (a copious amount, by my players' and friends' reckoning) for the last 17 years. A lot of it is RPG/D&D related. However, I am also quite shy when it comes to sharing it. Other than my gaming groups, I've never let the "grand public" see my stuff. This has been an awesome opportunity for me. It has taught me to be confident in my abilities and creative talent, and just the criticism of my Country entry has prompted me to rewrite a whole bunch of stuff I have into a more coherent, cohesive format. The biggest lesson I have learned so far is that, if you have an idea and are going to pitch it in, you should committ to it, rather than butressing it in meaningless, tangential details. Hey, who knows? someone else out there might *also* like it. I am also very thankful for the opportunity to share my ideas with peers. There isn't a very large gaming community where I am from, and most people in it have very "sectarian" ideas. I have a dream to one day be a writer: it is an old dream, one that I have beaten into a corner many times over the course of my life, yet it always comes back. Thanks to the support of some very fine people (chiefly my wife), I find myself in this community, surrounded by people who share my interest and love for RPG games, and I also feel ever so slightly closer to attaining that dream. So, I guess the most important thing I'm taking from this contest is this: even if I don't make it to the next round here, I'm certain that I will keep working towards becomeing a writer in this field, so watch out! cheers and good luck to everyone,
wow, I seriously screwed up. I made some crippling design mistakes, which reflect quite naturally in the way that other people have responded to my entry. Thank you, thank you, thank you Erik, Clark, and Wolfgang for your time and help in offering your criticism. I look at my submission in a whole new light, and I can't agree more. Especially thanks to Erik for taking the time to break it down for me, bit by bit. There are so many things that I understand better now about how to present a piece of writing. I will use this learning in subsequent writing projects. Gosh, I really wish I could rewrite it. If anyone wants to vote for my little country under the snows, I wholeheartedly appreciate it and thank them in advance. Just to answer the one comment that irked me, I didn't use all the mojo up in the origami book: I just played my own harshest critic ahead of time, and the result shows it. M
I really, really like this entry. Original without being over the top, complete and evocative. I love the were-elephants (having actually struggled with the idea for a race in my homebrew). Nicely done combination of crunch and fluff (true lycanthropes are prohibited from propagating their condition by infecting others by social taboos). I also like the idea of the new rulers sitting back comfortably and allowing people to do as they please as long as they get their dues. It is not clear, though, whether the Azul are the rulers, or the Were-elephants are, or if they are both the same thing (¿?) As for adventuring opportunities, I can see quite a few, and the fact that the Azul are not outright oppressive makes a political intrigue based campaign all the more, shall we say, "intriguing." I also like the potential for adventure involving the Ngata and the taboo against zombies. The pesky details, like the tagline of "under new management" and the inconsistency of the naming struck me as the weakest points of this entry. Also, here like in other entries, things seem to have settled into a pretty comfortable "business as usual", thus detracting from the sense of urgency for going there and having an adventure or three. The writing is a bit weak, and can be slightly confusing at times. Still, overall, one of the better entries I have read so far. Like Dungeon Grrl, I can and probably will wind up stealing stuff from this for my homebrew. Cheers on a good follow-up to the Nausea Pill, which I had amongst my favorites also. M
Erik, you have my sincerest admiration and good wishes for the next round, where I'm sure you'll be next. Good writing, good ideas, well done overall. I love primitive cultures with a shamanistic bend to them, as I posted elsewhere. I like it when someone takes a bit of uninteresting "filler" (like many monsters in published products) and turns them into something with depth and flavor, as opposed to just re-doing elves and dwarves for the umpteenth time. I personally have a difficult time imagining a PC hailing from this locale, but it is not implausible, so I join the chorus of others saying, "who the hell cares?" I would have liked the "Behind the Scenes" section to have a bit more meat, but you used the words well in adding a bit of description to the country. I don't know at this point if I'll vote for you (I have quite a few more to read), but if I may paraphrase Clark Peterson in another thread, you should keep doing what you're doing because it is truly you. My sincerest congratulations on your entry and your work. M
This would make a great world, with about 10000 more words to make room for detailed descriptions of the countries/cultures taken over by the Agregians, as well as those which were squashed for their unwillingness to submit. I agree with previous reviewers that this nods to real-world historical Rome a lot. That is actually one of my favorite periods in history, so I enjoy the ideas evoked by such a setting. there are some details that I feel could have been played upon a bit more to make it more conflict-ridden: first you hint at the fact that other humanoid races are the children of other gods; then there is the question of the curse of mortality... The DM secrets section is, I think, where this entry could really have shined. The Inquisition, man! Maybe something about renegades from a culture stamped out by the Agregians looking to bring about Agregia's downfall. In all, I can see there was a big idea here, one that was too big for 1000 words so only the barest bones could be laid out. I would love to see it as a fully fledged setting, though. Keep up the work. M
If I had to summarize this entry in one word, it would have to be "baroque". Kudos on the writing style. I like the historical, "ancient chronicler" feel of the piece, the quote at the beginning, the tone of despair and urgency that draws you in... I would love to read the novel. I like the Raksashas as antagonists, the Wytches (Ys for Is, I know, I know), but then it gets seriously out of hand. More than Beowulf meets Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, to me it feels like "Ravenloft Reloaded"... and the more I think of that, the more I see the anime, video-gamey feel to it that other people have been describing. There is a lot here, and yet there is very little that is useable for a D&D campaign, IMO. It doesn't make me want to play there, it makes me want to run out to the local video store and pre-order a copy. Congratulations on your work. I see that you have a lot of support from a lot of people, and I wish you the best in the voting. I agree with Clark: you have a lot of talent, and you are truly authentic in pursuing it and showing it to people. Keep it up! M
The best entry I've read so far. The writing is quite hard to plow through, but the concept is really well-thought out. It struck me that the Head is not really the ruler, as well as the issue that, if what the Dying God actually wants is to die, how do the priests trying to keep it alive do so? Regarding the fact that things seem so "close to the end" in Carnamach just makes things all the more exciting for me. I can totally see this setting as a place to bring PCs who have seen it all and done it all, and then throwing them a twist like having to restore the God to his former glory, while knowing that doing so will destroy the country utterly. Congratulations Christine for tackling such an undertaking as a non-native Enlgish speaker. Being in the same boat as you there, that alone would probably get you one of my votes. The fact that your submission is creative, well-thought-out and evocative seals the deal. Keep up the good work! M
I think the emphasis on the detailed government description and the first couple paragraphs of the description section put a lot of frankly sort of boring minutia up at the top of the entry, and that's probably a mistake. I suspect too much space here focuses on government, which is something that might be better elaborated upon in a format where you are not limited by such a brutal word count. If you think of the Rokugan setting for Oriental Adventures (I am sure there are other examples, and I am also aware Rokugan is more than just an OA setting), you bear some similarities I think these two quotes pretty much sum up my opinion about the shortcomings of this submission. On the upside, I enjoyed the writing. It was coherent, cohesive, and to the point. I also like the names you gave to stuff. I am sorry that you chose to give us so little about what goes on in Iolandis, because it would make for an awesome setting if it had a little more complexity. M
OK, disclaimer: I mean all my comments to be constructively critical. I respect and admire all my peers in the top 32 for their effort, and truly hope that this will be a fruitful learning experience for all of us, if nothing else. Further, I have decided to look at my entry last, so as to maintain a "neutral" view on everyone else's work, and analyze it on its own merit as opposed to in comparison to the criticism I get for mine. Steppenland: I have a thing for "barbaric", "primitive", nomadic cultures. It's just a whole different level of "mysterious"... I enjoyed the writing style, the way information was laid out, and the elements from real-world non-western cultures were all very well blended. Congratulations on your writing style and research. There are elements that I think would have contributed to making this setting a bit more intricate, hence opening up the gaps that allow PCs to filter in credibly. I don't particularly like the idea of slaves turned free living in opposition to the barbaric nomads... It would have been more evocative if the nomads were caught in the conflict of all nomadic societies: the pull of sedentary life and comfort once some of its members learn to live differently. A shamanistic cult of spirits (as opposed to organized worship of a single god) would also have contributed to making this setting more complex. In all a very good writing style, and some really good imagery, creating a vivid picture of a primitive setting. M
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