I also enjoyed this song. D&D taught me to fight monsters, I just didn't watch my tropes enough - the hero I grew up with is now the monster I need to fight.
When attempting to combine caravan rules into the Kingdom rules from Kingmaker, I discovered a HUGE problem: one BP is equal to 400 trade goods on the caravan scale. Mind you, 1BP buys the entire starting caravan, plus goods, so I think it's still a sound concept. But how long does the caravan take to gain 4k gp? If I'm reading the other threads properly, about a year or so. So please help save me from a brain embolism; I've already stopped caring about where in the world the corrupt lumber baron is (for the cheaper goods). I've already stopped worrying about economy in a Colonization (computer game) level accuracy; if something's a decent amount of work for me, my players aren't going to want to do it. But my main question is: where are the profits in a caravan, or in trade between kingdoms at all? Copper is mined in Kopperkroft, refined in Janderhoff, and the goods are sold in Korvosa, so there must be some kind of profit in moving stuff about the world...
While I am not a fan of Record of lodoss wars, it still had the best looking Dark elf I had ever seen. AHA! Shalelu has been killed, and replaced with a DROW! The artwork makes it clear that drow have bigger boobs than normal elves. Search her backpack for the disguise kit. Actually, I think that many fantasy artists have trouble distinguishing between "possible romantic interest" and "porn star".
Honestly, use an idea from one of my GMs. The campaign started sandbox, but due to "poor returns" (us not realizing some of the "junk" we'd collected was worth more to specialists than on the general market), we decided to start our own trade caravan. The "goods" system seems to be for generic trade goods. Thread, colored ribbons, foodstuffs and live chickens, pots and pans - the sort of stuff that every villager will need, but there isn't a DEMAND for. Your profit comes from specific planned stops. Wood to the lumber mill, lumber to the carpenters, furniture to the growing settlement, et cetera. In our case, we were taking pearls from our costal city all the way through six months of wilderness adventures to a remote desert kingdom, and bringing back silks and spices. This is how you make profit from the trip across Linorm and the Crown of the World, by bringing RARE Varisian goods to the markets of Minkai. Along the way, we discovered several "local treasures" (jars of aloe lotion and bolts of spider silk come to mind). And there were some products we got just knowing they were dead weight until we got to a capitol. We were running out of space, and I think we at one point declined to pick up bandit weapons and armor because they "weren't worth their weight". Was it adventuring? Not at all? Did we have fun doing it? Absolutely. But if you NEED adventure, consider letting the PCs find trade items during their adventuring. But on the subject of traders: I have an EVIL idea, and one that should appeal to your players. LET TRADERS GAIN XP from being with the caravan, awarded as goods are traded. Make it clear to players from the outset that traders INITIALLY aren't worth a lot, and show them a SAMPLE progression of feats that make them more profitable. You'd be amazed at the ideas players will come up with to customize "their" trader's profits. At the end of the AP, having a series of master merchants, each able to lead their own caravan, players will have a sense of accomplishment, rather than fury at having to "tolerate" a bunch of useless mouths and slowed travel. And if you want to run one-shots, let the PCs hear rumors of a place just a day off their planned route. Do they swerve the caravan a day off course to explore some ruins? How do they secure the caravan while they're away? Guards and guard animals aren't cheap, and they increase consumption. (OTOH, the joy our group had when our first guard cleared second level was worth the extra pay. It was cheaper under that GM to hire low levels and raise them than to just hire experienced people out of the gate, another idea.) But generally speaking, make the caravan something the PCs GROW rather than something they just have, and it may spark your player's interest. Make clear to them that by default, the caravan barely pays for itself, BUT with effort, it can produce profits. If only some of your players are interested in this, either blue book it or have separate sessions just for the "caravan players". The caravan rules, like the kingdom and mass combat rules, are good starting points for a system that with just a little more effort makes a pleasant game in its own right. Think of it like the "dramatic contests" from SpyCraft - it's not required, but if your players show interest, it's a good framework for the action to take place in, and most players appreciate that there are rules for what they want to attempt. Just be careful - if your group is considering selling Ameiko and Shelelu into slavery for the additional profits, then you've taken the AP off the rails. Not a problem for most groups, but thought I'd mention it before ending the post.
Human. You can be whatever you want. Besides, I have the most RP experience at being human. :)
Nah, I imagine it like a sooty, dirty Egypt. Lots of water and life near the river, and almost nothing off it. (Well, more than that, with all the nasty Cinderland predators, and the animals for them to munch on, and the plants - but I never saw the river as any reason to ignore the "ash-tundra" feel what I've read about the Cinderlands has given me.
Any who can help: Ran across a reference to Runelord Sorshen becoming immortal. The only reference I can find is that she was the Runelord of Lust. I recall her having been done in by the succubi that she summoned to her section of the Runewell. Can anyone add anything extra? Thanks in advance for your time and effort.
So in one instance, the sorcerer is able, in a more limited manner, to do something the wizard cannot? I'm not seeing this as a bad thing. |
