This is going to feel like a bit of cross-posting, but I didn’t get the responses I was hoping for in the general discussion so thought I should get a bit more specific.
In summary, I’m looking to compress the three current Adventure Paths into one grand story line. Instead of spending 20 levels trying to solve one global problem, the group will take mini-paths and get the satisfaction of saving the day multiple times.
The goal is to start them out in Shackled City. By level 8, though, they should have defeated that plot and be on the cusp of discovering a prophecy about the apotheosis of a lich-god named Kyuss. Notice that the grand threat is toned down a bit to mach the party’s level, as they’ll need to defeat Kyuss by level 14 so they may move onto Savage Tide.
Because I have to squeeze 20 levels of Adventure Pathing into 7 levels, I’m looking for the experience of others who have played or run the series for inputs on what events were critical to the basic story and those scenes that were just too good to cut and should go in regardless.
For instance, while Whispering Cairn is one of the greatest campaign kick-off adventures ever, the Wind Dukes and their cairns don’t forward the story of Kyuss any. Both WC and Gathering of Winds will be cut from this arc.
With that in mind, can anyone share some specifics about the series’ true high points, low points, and mission-critical events as they played out at your tables?
While you’re at it, I invite you to my parallel discussion about the Essential Shackled City over here:
I think all of the adventures are quite good and have thoroughly enjoyed every one of them. That said, If you're going to cut out 'The Whispering Cairn' and 'A Gathering of Winds', you could probably do without 'Encounter at Blackwall Keep' as well. While a great adventure, it advances the Kyuss plot very little other than some appearances at the end. Also, Ilthane the Black is tied to 'A Gathering of Winds' and 'EaBK', so you'd "kill two birds with one stone".
Penultimate Kyuss modules include (and this might make a good starting point) 'The Champion's Belt', and 'The Spire of Long Shadows', with the modules after that all slightly dealing with aspects of Kyuss, building up to the final fight. Scaling would not be required for those two modules, but the ones after that get a little tricky. I encourage what you're trying to do, but I don't think a CR 16 Dragotha or Kyuss will inspire any awe or dread in your players. Then again, who knows where the savage tide will wash, and there may be opportunities in that campaign to insert Age of Worms villians in the later modules. Good luck!
I agree with Rakshaka, Champion's Belt and Spire of Long Shadows are must plays. After that, you could get away with just The Prince of Redhand and lead into Dawn of a New Age, unless you want to use Dragotha and then you're looking at toned down, condensed versions of LoLR, Kings of the Rift and Into the Wormcrawl Fissure.
Essential Age of Worms: Prince of Redhand.
A controversial pick, for sure. This module doesn't nessesarily "further the story" per se, but it is arguably the best module of the AoW AP, and one of the best modules in a long time.
I agree with every single one of you. The AoW endgame is the real meat of the Path, and that doesn't really kick off until Spire of Longshadows. Because I like the unique gladiator premise of Champion's Belt, it's been my plan to start the series with that and let their discovery under the arena lead to them investigating the prophesy.
So yes, Champ's Belt, Spire, Prince of Redhand (at least the political party part), Library, Lords of the Rift, Wormcrawl, and New Dawn. By the end of that, my group should be around level 14, perfect for finding themselves rulers of a country.
Mind you, to meet their lower level, the threat of Kyuss (whose name will surely be changed) will be watered down a bit. Instead of being a living god, he'll be a lich or something who discovered a path to godhood but was trapped before he could finish his apotheosis. In a New Dawn, the party's will be facing a powerful lich on the cusp of godhood rather than fighting a minor god.
Another caveat is that I'll be pruning heavily from these adventures to speed up play and slow xp gain. Is there anything specific from any of the adventures in AoW that you think I should make sure I keep, either for plot-essential or just sheer fun?
At the moment, I am currently doing the same thing.
Combining the SCAP, AoW, & STAP into one giant massive campaign, i'm currently adjusting and linking modules together and interlinking as much as possible to blend all three paths together!
As they are written from a similar standpoint it is proving to be a little easier than I first thought! I am replacing Place names and certain npc's etc, to fit Eberron as that is the world we are using for it, as well as changing Major villains etc, to entrapped demon lords from the demon vs dragon wars, with various groups lookign to release them.
I've taken on board all the conversion notes and other pieces of information, for all 3 campaigns as well as extra articles!
I don't think you shoudl go to the effort of breakign it down into Levels specific to each PATH, but rather to blend them into one giant PATH, with many branches for player choice!
They may view the savage tide as more a threat than the caged wrights, and the caged wrights could be enlisted into assisting against the age of worms etc! Not for a second do i think this is not a massive undertaking, but I appluad you for battling it as Have I.
I'm just seemign to spend a lot of time, subsituting various npc's/monsters for eberron specific ones!
As they are written from a similar standpoint it is proving to be a little easier than I first thought!
Are you doing them in series or overlapping? It sounds like you're doing it as a kind of tree format where you give them the start of each one and the players have to choose which lead to follow up on. Now THAT sounds like a lot of work.
In any case, I'd be interested in hearing some of the ways you're interlinking the Paths. For example, in my MegaPath, I'll be combining elements of Alhaster with Sasserine. The characters will end the Age of Worms section of my campaign as rulers of the city which will serve as their springboard into Savage Tide straight from their own domain.
I'm just seemign to spend a lot of time, subsituting various npc's/monsters for eberron specific ones!
Afraid I don't know much of anything about Eberron. My game world of choice is the no-longer-published Scarred Lands, so I know what you're going thru trying to convert to a different game world. The cheat I've been using is the realization that it's my campaign and I can say how powerful the creatures are. I don't stress about finding an appropriate CR monster to replace one I need to remove from the adventure, I always have the option of saying it's a Khorvairean Blink Cat (or whatever) but continue to use the stats for the displacer beast as printed in the adventure.
With a little juggling, this can go the other way too. I have to do a lot of level adjusting to fit things into my mini-Path. I expect my players to confront Kyuss (or his replacement since I'll likely change the name) at level 14-ish. Rather than try to create stats for a CR 16 version, I can just flip thru my monster books and find a CR 16 lich, devil or other appropriate critter to wear the Kyuss mask for that battle.
Champion's Belt is awesome, but it really doesn't add much to the over-arcing plot. You could probably lose Kings of the Rift, too -- instead of finding out *where* Dragotha's phylactery is, just have the prize in Library of Last Resort be *the phylactery*.
Encounter at Blackwall Keep can go, too. Not sure if that's even relevant for what levels you're running, but yeah. There it is.
To think that none of your players are ever going to be able to enjoy any of the complete adventure paths, since you'll have given away all the main plots ... the horror ... the horror ...
To think that none of your players are ever going to be able to enjoy any of the complete adventure paths, since you'll have given away all the main plots ... the horror ... the horror ...
Don't worry. By the time my group finishes this multi-Path campaign, Dungeon will be half way through "AP6: Shattered Oerth."
Mind you, to meet their lower level, the threat of Kyuss (whose name will surely be changed) will be watered down a bit. Instead of being a living god, he'll be a lich or something who discovered a path to godhood but was trapped before he could finish his apotheosis. In a New Dawn, the party's will be facing a powerful lich on the cusp of godhood rather than fighting a minor god.
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As a suggestion, you could drop Kyuss to a 15th-16th level wizard or cleric with the Worm that Walks template, that would bump him up to CR 18-19. This would keep the BBEG of the Age of Worms a ...well, "wormy" villain. You will need the Epic Level Handbook for the Worm That Walks template but I don't think you have to be epic level to use it.
In regards to monsters/npc's its not so much altering stats and cr or finding fits, but makign them suitably eberron! Changing out tieflings for dolgaunts and similar things?
Just make the campaign a better fit overall! Give it that nice flavour!
As for the three paths, what I'll do is try and get things into a semblance of legibility rather than my messy thoughts and notes! Let you have them in word or similar format.
But how i've been structuring it is the same but different to yourself.
I'm using all three adventure paths, but instead of sperating into level brackets and chapters, i'm merging them all together!
Some of the adventures are mostly elements rather than used, due to nature of eberron! changing the wind dukes for Dragons etc, as fits the campaign.
But the overall arc, is still the same for all three adventures! but names/npcs are changed, its mostly set in Q'barra and Lhazaar principalites, both of which from the normal eberron write up fit quite well.
As for the major cities, I'm mixing and blending, Alhaster/scuttlecover etc, etc, all the plots/npcs remain at the CR they should be.
plot wise it all links to the old demon vs dragonw ars of ancient past and the trapped demon lords.
The savage tide is set to awaken and release a trapped demon lord.
The SCAP is the same but in aa different format, the marked as I call them are aberrant dragonmarks, who have set keys and abilites within the dragon prophecy to either release a set od demonic lords or the ability to destroy them, deppending on hwo they are used.
Kyuss is in effect the Blood of Vol, with dragotha, beign a dragon guarding an ancient city in q'barra, who just so happens to have Demogorgon's equialent trapped beneath?
so they all entwine and mesh together, and often groups conflict with each other in the path?
But its the players choice on what and who they wish to focus upon and save the world in certain ways?
Or to see if they inadvertantly save the world without realising it!
In a nut shell that is anyway!