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Just finished my read-through of the AE version and I'm ready to run this fine product for my group (once they're ready, that is.) But I've ran into yet another 'bumpy' area that I'm considering modifying before we get too deep into things.
I'm trying to find a working relationship between Karzoug and Lamashtu. This is what got me thinking about it:
Note that while Ceoptra herself is in fact an oracle of the House of Divine Consumption, these priestesses are clerics of Lamashtu—for now, Ceoptra suffers the worship of the Demon Queen by these clerics, but the harridan plans someday to enforce a conversion of these lamias to the official religion of Xin-Shalast. Since such a conversion would result in the loss of the lamias’ clerical powers and spellcasting ability, Ceoptra has been forced to constantly delay these plans for conversion until Karzoug has returned and she has time to retrain them.
The problem here is that Lamashtu is a HUGE part of Nualia's background and is the patron for all the Lamia's except Ceoptra.
It kind of makes sense that Karzoug intended for them to convert, and I suppose it is plausible that he never found a good time to orchestrate it, but why tolerate it now.
In Nualia's contingency section it suggests that she might pledge herself to Karzoug, and to me this makes no sense. She's Wrath, first and foremost, not Greed. Plus Karzoug has no love for Lamashtu. And he was at war with the Wrath faction to the point of nearly destroying it. There are even hints that he succeeded in doing so just before the cataclysm.
Anyway, how does this shore up? Any ideas?
Karzoug doesn't believe in any god. He believes in himself and his own power. I could see him upon returning to the world deciding he'll go to the Starstone and ascend and be utterly confident he'll succeed. He allows these other faiths, but they're nothing to him. Just a means to his end of regaining his power.
Nualia might pledge herself to him because while she's wrath... she could learn she was poisoned by that wrath. When the Well woke... it caused her to flip out. Thus she realizes she wants to align herself against the opponent of Wrath because he's more powerful (he's waking first)... and it gives her a chance at revenge against the PCs.
Nualia's contingency section suggests that because it keeps her involved in the campaign, there's really nothing deep to look for there.