Question for the conversion of AP2 to FR. Is Kyuss still to be used? or is he being replaced by something else? Couldnt find referance to it in the conversion notes but i may just be blind and not reading it right.
Cheers SC
SC,
In the Overload (big web enhancement), Dungeon offers that Jergal is trying to become an over-god in the Realms conversion, not Kyuss. The Ebon Triad is Bhaal (dead), Myrkul (also dead), and Bane (used to be dead) with Jergal, following an ancient plan to become the Lord of the End of Everything...
But choose whatever is appopriate for your campaign.
Kyuss is still being used in the Realms conversion. There's a "god behind the god" so to speak, in that Kyuss is acting in accordance with an ancient plan of Jergal.
I'm not trying to be mysterious, just cautious. I've got the plot worked out, but I need to see the later versions of the adventures to make sure I keep it consistent.
In general, you should be able to play the adventures "as is", only there will be an additional behind-the-scenes plot in the Realms version.
--Eric
Hey if its not too late for any of you that are still fiddling with making this work in the Realms some ideas occured to me. One of my hangups is likely just my own background, i.e. as a player in a Greyhawk game years ago, I know that Kyuss is intrinsically part of Greyhawk cannon, and I have a hard time dropping him into the Realms. While I would use everything else that Eric has proposed in his Realms conversion, I think that I would make this alteration.
Instead of Kyuss, how about a Mulhorandi pharoah that was at one time the avatar of Set. When he died, he refused to go to the afterlife, and gathered a small cult to elevate him to demigod status. To make himself immortal servants, he developed beetles (rather than worms) that burrow into the skin and create super zombies. The beetles are very small, and difficult to see.
Ashahg-Seti would be the demi god in questions, and he is seeking to become even more powerful by unleashing his power, and in the later adventures, the huge worm things that serve Kyuss could instead be gigantic beetle juggernauts. The spawn of Kyuss would be the children of Ahshahg.
Dragotha could be replaced by the following dragon. Realithrandoviran was a blue dragon that was sacred to the Cult of Tiamat in Unther, but years ago fell out of favor when he came into conflict with Tchazzar, and fled. He ran afoul of a chamber full of Ashahg's beetles, and Ashahg's spirit converted him into a dracolich instead of one of his zombies.
Ashahg could still have been entombed within the black spire that Kyuss was, this time by the Mulhorandi, who did not destroy him outright becuase he still has a spark of Set's power within him.
All good suggestions, KnightErrantJr. I think this would be a great idea for a home campaign.
One constraint I'm operating on (other than having to do this only a few steps ahead of all of you) is that Paizo really doesn't want me swapping out monsters, etc. The idea is to adapt the Adventure Path to the Realms, not rewrite the Adventure Path. That said, I might do it occasionally for a single monster (such as my proposal for a replacement lizard king in the conversion of Blackwell Keep, if that survives the editor's axe).
While changing the little green worms to beetles is certainly a cool idea, doing so would force me to change something significantly later if, for example, an author used a variant Kyuss worm in giant form. (I'd have to replace it with a giant beetle, which probably changes tactics, etc.)
Although I haven't seen Spire of Long Shadows yet (having just finished conversions for Hall of Harsh Reflections and The Champion's Belt), my understanding is that it lies near the city of Cauldron in a jungle setting. I think the best place for Cauldron is on the northern slopes of the Sanrach Mountains, between the city of Narubel (mentioned in Serpent Kingdoms and shown on the south shore of the Shining Sea in the Forgotten Realms Atlas) and the city of Samargol.
Getting back to my main point, I don't think Kyuss is a bad fit for the Realms. Originally (1e) spawns of Kyuss were a "generic monster" which could have appeared in the Realms as easily as Greyhawk. I think Kyuss works well as a major bad guy in the early (pre-Mezro) history of Chultans, about which we know very little, but I hope to explore in these conversions. I'm setting him up to be a mortal proto-Chultan who found something interesting down in the Jungles linked to Jergal that set him on his path. Why does Jergal, a Netherese god, have a legacy down in the Jungles of Chult? I have an idea, but I don't want to spill it until I see the Spires of Long Shadows adventure and make sure it works. Of course you could go stare long and hard at the picture on page 26 of Prince of Lies ...
--Eric
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Hiya!
I like the idea of Kyuss being a mulhorandi-type person. Maybe Thayan ...
I have to be honest, I've mangled AP1 into my own Realms home campaign, but I couldn't have done it until the whole thing was published. Hopefully, by the time we get on to the Age of Worms, it will be all out there.
Thanks for your help and conversions, Eric! Even if your playground is somewhat limited!
Eric, I completely understand. Like you said, I am more tailoring this to fit someone's home campaign that might be a bit more willing to swap out beetles for worms and Kyuss for something else. I have really liked your ideas so far, and as I said before, had I not played in Greyhawk and gotten that feeling as a player that Kyuss is definately Greyhawk, I likely wouldn't have any drive to replace the creepy bugger.
Keep up the good work, and definately don't take any of my suggestions as critisism. I have loved your ideas so far, and I think your whole idea of a "Cult of the Ascended Lovers" to replace Wee Jas was downright inspired.
Hmm . . . undead in Chult . . . is Ras Nsi anywhere around?
Just to put a different spin on things but might Dendar the night serpent fit in to the age of worms?
Interesting question. One idea that comes to mind is that Kyuss in the Realms is actually a divine variant of Dendar the Night Serpent. Lashonna's fortress actually lies beneath the Peaks of Flame beneath the Jungles of Chult, encompassing the portal that leads to Dendar's realm. I think this might change the final adventure significantly, but that wouldn't be too much work (reuse stat blocks) or be too much of a change (it's the last adventure anyway). If the PCs fail, Dendar/Kyuss emerges and swallows the sun, ushering in the Age of Worms / End of Everything.
--Eric
Hmm . . . undead in Chult . . . is Ras Nsi anywhere around?
This is an interesting idea. I'm not sure how it might fit, but I'll certainly keep it in mind. Perhaps Ras Nsi discovered bits of Kyuss's legacy centuries after Kyuss had vanished?
--Eric
Dragotha could be replaced by the following dragon. Realithrandoviran was a blue dragon that was sacred to the Cult of Tiamat in Unther, but years ago fell out of favor when he came into conflict with Tchazzar, and fled. He ran afoul of a chamber full of Ashahg's beetles, and Ashahg's spirit converted him into a dracolich instead of one of his zombies.
Is Realithrandoviran a new invention? If so, I might suggest that he be replaced by Askle ... (sp?), mentioned briefly in Cult of the Dragon (2e) in the sidebare on "Other Dracoliches."
Also, this would mean that Lashonna could be replaced by that vampiric green dragon mentioned in Threskul in the FRCS (3e).
--Eric
Heh heh, sorry about taking so long to reply, I just returned from my honeymoon yesterday. Yes, he was a new invention of mine, and I should have perused my copy of Cult of the Dragon to see if anyone fit the bill. I was just brainstorming off the top of my head. Thank you Eric, you have given me a few more things to research with your counter brainstorming, lol.