For those of you who read the Savage Tide outline, can you tell me if the series ever returns to Sasserine once the party heads off to Farshore?
Aside from the affiliations (which I could add in on a case-by-case basis) and the Vanderboren family, is there anything that would be lost from the Path if I replaced Sasserine with a city more familiar/comfortable to my group?
I'd hate to alter the homeport only to find out a key point of foreshadowing from the backdrop was lost when they return home for a later adventure.
Thanks.
For those of you who read the Savage Tide outline, can you tell me if the series ever returns to Sasserine once the party heads off to Farshore?
Aside from the affiliations (which I could add in on a case-by-case basis) and the Vanderboren family, is there anything that would be lost from the Path if I replaced Sasserine with a city more familiar/comfortable to my group?
I'd hate to alter the homeport only to find out a key point of foreshadowing from the backdrop was lost when they return home for a later adventure.
Thanks.
Its not written that the players return to Sasserine after they leave for Farshore, but as a DM, that could eb up to you and the players.
But from looking at the overview and adventures so far, No they do not return, which is a shame.
I made Sasserine "Port Regal" in the lhazaar princecipalities for my Eberron STAP, so hopefully if not much use comes from it in the STAP, it'll be ready for any future adventures.
I tend to do this with a Lot of City things I find in dungeon/dragon and 3rd party supplements, my players always appreciate the maps!
Until last week I was completely unaware that there had been an overall STAP summary one magazine before the series began. I purchased the first one in the STAP and began my subscription but it can be difficult now and then when I don't know what will happen down the road a little. Is there any way someone can post a summary or is there going to be a halfway point summary update?
I'm happy to post a shorter summary than the one which appears in issue #138. I'll start with the sixth adventure, since that's the first one I don't already have the issue for:
[u]SPOILERS AHOY[/u]
Adventure 6: The Lightless Depths
Chasing the source of the shadow pearls used by the Crimson Fleet, the PCs discover the true masters of the Isle of Dread - the koprus - and become involved in their subterranean war with the aboleths.
Adventure 7: City of Broken Idols
The PCs invade the heart of the kopru's power on the mesa atop the Isle of Dread, only to find an aspect of Demogorgon enthroned there. Defeating the aspect puts a stop to the production of shadow pearls, but the Crimson Fleet already possesses many in their home base of Scuttlecove.
Adventure 8: The Serpents of Scuttlecove
Lavinia Vanderboren has already gone to Scuttlecove to investigate rumours of her brother's revival, and when the PCs arrive they learn that she has already been abducted to Demogorgon's realm of Gaping Maw. Since the only way the PCs can stop the Crimson Fleet from unleashing the Savage Tide across the world is to disrupt the activation ceremony there, they must steal an artifact that will allow them to sail their own ship into the Abyssian Ocean as Vanthus Vanderboren does.
Adventure 9: Into the Maw
The PCs locate Vanthus and Lavinia within Gaping Maw, defeating Vanthus once and for all and saving his sister from a ritual that will transform her into a half-fiend. In the process, the PCs learn as much as they can about Demogorgon and his layer, and that they must consult the former demon queen of succubi, Shami-Amourae, to learn how to stop the ceremony.
Adventure 10: The Wells of Darkness
The PCs travel to the Wells of Darkness, a prison layer wherein Shami-Amourae is confined, enduring a dangerous journey through the Abyss and making deals with the succubus "warden" Red Shroud and Shami-Amourae herself to learn what the deposed demon queen knows.
Adventure 11: Enemies of My Enemy
The PCs prepare for their assault on Gaping Maw by seeking assistance from Demogorgon's foes - both fiendish and celestial - as well as weaking the demon lord directly by capturing key lieutenants and supplies.
Adventure 12: Prince of Demons
If the PCs did well in the previous adventure, persuading Demogorgon's foes to launch attacks in concert with their own and depriving him of some of his resources, they'll face a weakened, if still formidable, Prince of Demons. If they did poorly, well, he'll be that much more powerful . . .
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Sounds more or less right; there's been a few changes to how the plot unfolds here and there (Lavinia no longer acts so stupid that she goes to Scuttlecove alone to find her brother, for example, in "Serpents of Scuttlecove"), but it's close enough to give you an idea of where things are going.
Excellent! Thank you both, very exciting. And the change in Lavinia's actions is a good one too.
And the change in Lavinia's actions is a good one too.
I agree. I have been running Lavinia as niave, but smart; sort of a "fool-me-once" character. She is not feared, but she is respected.
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And the change in Lavinia's actions is a good one too.I agree. I have been running Lavinia as niave, but smart; sort of a "fool-me-once" character. She is not feared, but she is respected.
Yeah; her character has certainly developed into a really strong role. It felt wrong that she'd make a dumb mistake and run off on her own to "save" her brother, who she hates too much to save. Now, don't get me wrong; she still ends up in Scuttlecove (and later somewhere much worse), but it's not becasue she did something stupid like go out alone on a thunderstormy night with a lantern to try to find out what was making that eerie howling sound...
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hmmm, thats interesting. I had forgotten that the summary referenced Shami-Amourae, whereas so far in the AP Malcanthet seems to be shaping up as the entity that gives the party clues to defeat Demogorgan's plans. I wonder if this is a deliberate change, or if Shami-Amourae is still going to play a part down the track?
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hmmm, thats interesting. I had forgotten that the summary referenced Shami-Amourae, whereas so far in the AP Malcanthet seems to be shaping up as the entity that gives the party clues to defeat Demogorgan's plans. I wonder if this is a deliberate change, or if Shami-Amourae is still going to play a part down the track?
The Malcanthet angle is one that pretty much came into the AP entirely at the hands of its authors. I'd not origianlly envisioned a big role for her in Savage Tide, but as it works out, she might be the 2nd most important demon lord in the campaign.
Shami's still got a key role, though. It's pretty complicated, as all things concerning succubi tend to get.
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The Malcanthet angle is one that pretty much came into the AP entirely at the hands of its authors. I'd not origianlly envisioned a big role for her in Savage Tide, but as it works out, she might be the 2nd most important demon lord in the campaign.Shami's still got a key role, though. It's pretty complicated, as all things concerning succubi tend to get.
I'm sure it is - and as it should be! Thanks for the response James.
So thats interesting, Malcanthet and Shami Amourae seem to have similar goals here - almost on the same side. Or are they? (Im keeping in mind your "pretty complicated" comment...)
You could always return to Sasserine for side trek adventures. As soon as the party mage gets Teleport you are no longer confined by long sea born travel.
If a PC's family heritage is linked to one of the two demons which would be better fit, cause me less headaches down the line, etc. Shami-Amourae or Malcanthet?
I already have a cleric getting his powers from Dagon (not that he knows this).
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Slight threadjack . .
I've got a player who has the Godsight feat from Lost Empires of Faerun and I immediately said that he didn't know from which power it came. (Couldn't imagine what the Mulhorandi gods were interested in on the Isle of Dread, couldn't think of anything between them and Demogorgon, couldn't resist an open plot-hook!)
I'm leaning towards it being from one of those two, Shami-Amourae or Malcanthet. Any suggestions are more than welcome. There hasn't been much input from the "good gods" mentioned in the AP yet so that's what I'm left with :)
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Malcanthet's probably the better choice, because Shami's been locked up for so long that she really hasn't had a chance to meddle with much at all. Plus, Malcanthet's influence in the adventure path will continue to the end, whereas I'm not sure how much past Wells of Darkness Shami will make it.
You could always return to Sasserine for side trek adventures. As soon as the party mage gets Teleport you are no longer confined by long sea born travel.
So by 'Tides of Dread' they could be making trips back home. I'll make sure to have a side trek ready for them if they do, but I was mostly concerned with what details of Sasserine re-occur later in the campaign. If they're not scheduled to return there involving the AP, I've a little more leeway in changing some things to suit my players' tastes and not worry about deleting something that becomes important later.
In other news, thanks for the Path summary. Without the issue that summary appeared in, I've been kind of in the dark about where it's all going.