|
5 people marked this as a favorite.
|
Just to let people know I am making a new Fan Magazine dedicated to alternate visions of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. Each one unique to the person that created it.
Here are the issues released so far.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 1.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 2.
Here is the tumblr blog if you want to follow any updates
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Tumblr Blog..
I am still looking for other people to contribute, so if you once loved the Forgotten Realms and want to share your campaign setting with other people then by all means contact me (I'm dazzlerdal both here and at candlekeep).
Glad to see this here too! I first saw this little project on Candlekeep and got excited ever since. I ran an alt-Realms a ways back (and might do a follow up campaign.) In short, most of the 3e canon still happened, the PC Games are canon, anything late 3.5 and over didn't happen, and we have around 40 years of fanon lore. If I dig up some notes, I'll see what I can craft with it.
Well i'm glad you are interested. I'm wondering whether to invite people over to Tumblr for discussions about the articles to generate further interest (since i note it has a chat feature).
I may be adding in a new article entitled "Mad Market" which would allow people to just submit a single magic item or a trap or a feat or other random submission that isnt big enough for an entire article on its own.
And just to iterate again, anyone can submit their own ideas, if you have a unique spin on anything realms related and you want to let others know about your idea then just get in touch.
I intend to gradually do a rewrite of all the major events of the 3rd/3.5 edition era so that some of them make more sense (Two Wulgreths?) and actually allow people to take part in those events.
I reckon everyone has their own idea on how the return of the archwizards or the rage of dragons should have been handled so why not share those ideas and help get people interested in the Forgotten Realms once more.
I have a Pathfinder gaming blog on tumblr (Daemons & Deathrays), if that's what you mean. Once I have some free time, I'd be more than happy to contribute somehow.
Also, I noticed a slight typo... I meant to say almost 7 years of fanon lore. Everything late '07 and beyond was ignored by the lot of my group and beyond. Also, we slightly made the setting drift a little towards Eberron (in terms of cultural shaking events, impact of near-global warfare, and early industrialized magic/technology becoming more prominent)
Well i can entirely understand you leaving out events beyond 2007. It got really annoying having places destroyed by munchkin artefacts and then rebuilt in a single day with other munchkin artefacts, or having major npcs killed and then brought back to life (or died and then stayed dead when a ton of major plot lines revolved around that one character). The villains and heroes in certain events did not behave at all in accordance with their stated personalities. And dont even get me started on what happened to the Phaerimm.
But thats just me. Either way, i'll be writing many articles dealing with the RSE's to present them as optional campaign arcs that will be different to the canon. Sammaster will not be destroyed, the ghazneths will not exist, the return of shade will not involve ridiculous weave/shadow-weave meta plot (or two wulgreths), and everything should be plotted so that the PCs can get involved and indeed take centre stage for the events.
Whats the point of having a campaign world if all the PCs get to do is clean out cellars filled with rats while the chosen or the gods themselves run around saving the world all the damn time.
I think we should take the realms back to the days when the timeline was filled with events such as "1363 DR: A group of adventurers deal with xyz".
Contribute whenever you can, it can be absolutely anything realms based, a song, a recipe, an npc, a settlement writeup. Big or small, it doesnt matter, as long as it helps breathe life into the realms. And i will make sure to look you up on tumblr (especially since i have absolutely no idea what i'm doing with it)
And I have now added a twitter feed and facebook page for those that use them (although I really it is the first time I have ever used twitter or tumblr.
Here are the issues released so far.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 1.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 2.
Here is the tumblr blog, twitter feed, and facebook page if you want to follow any updates
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Tumblr Blog..
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Twitter Feed
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Facebook Page
And if anyone wants to get involved just let me know on the various links or come over to candlekeep and message me (dazzlerdal).
You can contribute your own articles or if you would rather help out in other ways then I am always looking for people to help me develop my own version. Currently I am working on the Old Empires, I have just had a go at rewriting Set, and I am now working on a campaign arc for the Mulhorandi Conquest of Unther which is proving to be a challenge so any help would be appreciated
I hate Forgotten Realms, but I have always been in favor of Dms making the world their own. I enjoy hat I have seen so far with the exception of the inclusion of 4th ed elements.
Freehold DM wrote: I hate Forgotten Realms, but I have always been in favor of Dms making the world their own. I enjoy hat I have seen so far with the exception of the inclusion of 4th ed elements. Well i'm glad you have enjoyed the read. Issue 3 will be available at the end of the month, with more Bloodstone Lands goodies, then i am moving onto the Old Empires.
I too am anti 4th edition (except for a few of the mechanics and the idea of primordials which could be excellent if used properly). I assume your reference to the 4th edition elements is the return of Abeir. I personally feel the idea of the return of Abeir was sound and could have been really good if it had been implemented properly (as an additive rather than a destructive element).
I was never fond of the original extra continent of Maztica, it was too similar to the real world and had very little influence on Faerun. So it occured to me that if the continents were seperated millennia ago (as the story goes), then there would be no Maztica.
And if the new continent came back because the goddess of magic was killed then it should have reappeared way back in history when the goddess of magic died the first time.
Then taking a few more stray bits of lore from various sourcebooks i tried to build up my own image of what this new continent was like.
Volo's Guide to the Western Heartlands mentioned a vast mountain range where the coast now lies and that beyond it was the home of the phaerimm and sharn. Using that and the reason for the separation of the world (a war between primordials and the gods (and the lesser charges).
So i came up with a continent that was the home of huge primordial creatures where the creator races had almost no presence. Then if the tearfall caused the separation that must have meant dragons were on Laerakond as well, and since there are hints that orcs arrived way before elves in the history of Faerun (brought by the fey) i started to build up this individual picture of a land filled with sleeping primordials ruled by huge dragons and filled with orcs and humans.
The new Laerakond i am building in the project for inclusion in the 1370s timeline is entirely my own creation using hints from existing sourcebooks. I have not referred to the 4th edition campaign setting in anyway because i just couldnt stomach reading it to be honest. I intend to give each area a general overview with a mention of some of the major inhabitants, and then focus on more specific localised bits (such as the settlements). Issue 3 will feature an article on the Barrier Mountains of Laerakond with a primordial inspired by one of my favourite animated films.
I have also tied this Laerakond strongly into Toril's past to give it a more relevant impact on the setting as a whole.
If you dont like 4th edition then i agree with you, but the Laerakond i am creating is actually nothing to do with the 4th edition version, its just an alternate look at what might have happened if 4th edition had never existed (what a lovely dream that would make).
Anyway, thanks for your thoughts, and especially thanks for reading it even though you dont like the forgotten realms. If there are any bits you particularly like then let me know and i will make sure to keep adding more of them.
Here are the contents for Issue III
Deities With a Difference: Tiamat
Ryan Rahuba Presents: Shifters – A Racial Description
Alternate Dimensions Focus On: Damara – Higenzi the Witch
When is a House Rule Not a House Rule: Skills
Deities With a Difference: Bahamut
The Bloodstone Lands Adventure Path: Episode 2
Alternate Dimensions Focus On: Damara – Order of Fallen Princes
Laerakond: The Barrier Mountains
Rulesword: Trimming 3rd Edition One Step at a Time
Alternate Dimensions Focus On: Damara – The Bloodfeathers Lineage
The Knights Below: Adventure Path – Episode 3
The Knights Below: Campaign Journal
This Issue ends the look at the Bloodstone Lands with a focus Tiamat and Bahamut, a feature on the main antagonist of Damara's history, as well as a new organisation and a look at the entire Bloodfeathers lineage.
I am doing a brief intro into each article on Tumblr, Facebook, and Twitter. And once the issue is released then i will do another focus on each article and go through the inspiration for the work (citing sources for information) and how i came up with the alternate version.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue III is now available.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 3
This issue signals the end of my focus on the Bloodstone Lands and a shift towards the Old Empires.
If you have any feedback (positive or negative although constructive is most helpful) then please let me know.
The download is available from Candlekeep, Piazza, Enworld, WoTC, and Tumblr so you shouldnt have any trouble getting a copy.
If anyone wants to get involved or have an article included then by all means get in touch.
A snippet of one article from issue 4.
This article focuses on the Mulhorandi-Untheric pantheon that were merged together by continuing the development of the Mulhorandi conquest of Unther.
This new much stronger pantheon should be able to better resist the Faerunian pantheon and should now be able to properly contest for worshippers in Chessenta.
Rollcall of the Gods
Anhur: War, Battle, Conflict, Thunder, Rain, the Sky, Weather, Storms, Lightning
Bast: Hedonism, Sensual Fulfilment, Lust, Excess, Cats, Pleasure Seekers, Festhalls
Enlil: Unther, Law, Order
Geb: The Earth, Miners, Minerals, Mines
Gilgeam: Madness, Physical Prowess, Undeath
Hathor: Childbirth, Motherhood, Fertility, Children, Music, Dance, Poetry, Fate
Hoar: Revenge, Retribution, Poetic Justice
Horus-Re: The Sun, Rulership, Kings, Life, Mulhorand
Isis: Magic, Marriage, Rivers, Love, Good Magic
Marduk (Bahamut): Good Dragons, Metallic Dragons, Wisdom, Enlightened Justice
Nanna Sin: Protection from Evil, Defence, the Moon
Nephthys: Grief, Wealth, Trade, Commerce
Osiris: Harvest, Nature, Agriculture, Underworld, Death, the Dead, Justice
Sebek: Hazards, Crocodiles, Werecrocodiles, Wetlands
Set: Darkness, Evil, Desert Storms, Drought, Snakes, Murder, Destruction, Rot, Predators, Carrion, Betrayal, Evil Magic, Ambition, Poison
Thoth: Knowledge, Learning, Neutral Magic, Scribes, Science, Engineering, Secrets, Invention
Tiamat: Evil Dragons, Chromatic Dragons, Greed, Rebellion
Just thought i would add another teaser from issue 4, and one of my reasonings why the capital of Mulhorand is called Skuld (meaning city of shadow).
Matet and Semktet: The gods of the Mulhorandi, Untheric, and Akanic pantheons all travelled to Toril in separate space barges constructed in a joint effort between their most skilled gods. The Akanic pantheon travelled in the Galley of the Gods as constructed by Enki. The Mulhorandi pantheon travelled in a great war galley named Matet and led the way for the three space barges using the artefact known as the Beacon of Light.
The Matet means “Light of the Stars” in the Mulan language, and it was a wondrous sight to behold. A huge metallic galley filled with armaments and defences enough to take on any threat they encountered in the void above. It was also blessed with an intelligence all of its own and possessed the ability to repair itself of the damage it sustained.
Travelling through the great void was not without its own trials, and the pantheons faced centuries of peril and epic adventures. Along the way their spacecraft suffered much damage so that once they reached the planet Toril their vessels were but a shadow of their former glory.
The Muhorandi vessel was renamed Semktet (“Shadow of the Stars”) as it neared it’s destination it passed through a dark nebula that had once been the home of Shar long ago. Something within this nebula infested the barge giving it a dark and evil personality of its own, the ship’s form changed to a simpler, plainer, shadowy vessel more befitting its new name.
Upon reaching Toril the Mulan gods liberated their people and set them free wandering the land for a new home. Unwilling to leave Semktet behind, the Mulhorandi gods dragged it across the plains for miles before settling on the eastern shores of the Alamber Sea.
There they thrust Semktet deep beneath the earth and set atop it Re’s great tower with the Beacon of Light atop it so that Semktet would be forever under guard. Unfortunately great tragedy struck the Mulhorandi over the years, Re was killed in the Orcgate Wars, and the Beacon of Light was stolen from its sentinel position.
Now Skuld, the City of Shadow is in danger of becoming closer to its name than the inhabitants could imagine.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 4 is available here
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 4
The contents of the issue are as follows.
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Old Empires - Mythology
The Adventures of Aytros Falconwing: On The Run (Part 1)
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Mulhorandi-Untheric Pantheon
When is a House Rule Not a House Rule: Skills
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Old Empires – A History of Akanu
Deities With A Difference: Gilgeam
The Bloodstone Lands: Adventure Path - Episode 3
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Old Empires – An Alternate Timeline
Deities With a Difference: Tchazzar
Rulesword: Trimming 3rd Edition One Step at a Time
Laerakond: The Sea of Fire
The Knights Below: Adventure Path – Episode 4
The Knights Below: Campaign Journal
Enjoy, and as always please feel free to leave any feedback you may have or ask any questions.
If you want to get involved then let me know. It doesnt matter how big or small your contribution is, a single magic item, an NPC writeup, a short story, a new organisation, a regional overview. If you have homebrew realmslore that you want to get out there to people then let me know.
For those of you that have been waiting. Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 5 is now available.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions: Issue 5
The list of contents is as follows
Dragons of the South: Alasklerbanbastos “The Great Bone Wyrm”
Welcome to the Jungle: The Magic of Maztica
When is a House Rule Not a House Rule: Skills
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Old Empires – A History of Thay
The Bloodstone Lands: Adventure Path – Episode 4
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Old Empires – A Modern Timeline
Deities With a Difference: Set
Laerakond: The Hundar Isles
Rulesword: Trimming 3rd Edition One Step at a Time
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Church of the Dark Lady
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Conquest of Unther Campaign
The Knights Below: Adventure Path – Episode 5
The Knights Below: Campaign Journal
I'm proud to announce the addition of Jon Hild's Maztica related articles to the magazine entitled "Welcome to the Jungle", starting off with the pluma and hishna magic schools for 5th edition.
As always if anyone wants to get involved with articles of their own, or proof reading, or artwork, or any other skills they have then I would be glad of the help.
If anyone has any feedback that would also be greatly appreciated. In particular I'm looking for feedback on "The Conquest of Unther Campaign" article as I hope to write more articles for RSE's that until now have been spectator events only. In particular I'm looking for ideas on the layout and content and what information is helpful or not.
If anyone wants to contact me about any of the above then PM me with your email address and we can talk.
Well thankyou very much for the compliment, i'm glad you like it.
I love the Forgotten Realms, but canon material has been rather lacking in quality for the past few years.
So i'm trying to get people to get involved and to come up with something better.
As always big business cannot be trusted to protect intellectual property (they are so focused on preventing piracy and protecting their profit margins that they miss the damaging effects they have on the brand by publishing substandard material). In an absence of products i want to buy i'm hoping the fans will produce things themselves of far higher quality.
Plus i have far too much free time at work and spend almost 8 hours a day writing alternative versions of canon events in fictional settings.
If anyone fancies getting involved or wants to work collaboratively on articles then by all means get in touch.
|
1 person marked this as a favorite.
|
As much as I hate 4th ed(and the Realms in general), I can't help but to like The Brotherhood of the Griffin, I hope you fold them and their exploits and history into your take.
Well i cant say i know anything about the Brotherhood of the Griffon, but from a brief look at them they seem to be a mercenary company operating out around the Old Empires and Unapproachable East region.
I can have a look at an organisation writeup but i cant guarantee that you will like what I do with it.
For ideas from the future timeline i tend to take the brief outline (eg mercenary company riding griffons) and then everything else is new. I might even make them evil or a tool of the Thayans.
If you send me your email address i can send over a draft of whatever i come up with.
|
1 person marked this as a favorite.
|
I'll post a bit on them here later. They are most definitely not evil, but they have their origins in Thay as a result of the end of the 3.x/beginning of 4.0 storyline. I strongly suggest you check them out- they were the ONLY reason I was interested in 4th ed during a very very brief period of time.
Freehold DM wrote: I'll post a bit on them here later. They are most definitely not evil, but they have their origins in Thay as a result of the end of the 3.x/beginning of 4.0 storyline. I strongly suggest you check them out- they were the ONLY reason I was interested in 4th ed during a very very brief period of time. Anything about the Brotherhood of the Griffon yet, I'm polishing up issue number 6 and another Old Empires organisation wouldn't go amiss.
Dazzlerdal wrote: Freehold DM wrote: I'll post a bit on them here later. They are most definitely not evil, but they have their origins in Thay as a result of the end of the 3.x/beginning of 4.0 storyline. I strongly suggest you check them out- they were the ONLY reason I was interested in 4th ed during a very very brief period of time. Anything about the Brotherhood of the Griffon yet, I'm polishing up issue number 6 and another Old Empires organisation wouldn't go amiss. will respond to your email tonight. Sorry about the silence was at a con this weekend.
No problem, i've been looking after the kids all last week so havent had the time to open a sourcebook or even think about writing something.
Well no email yet, however i discovered that members of the brotherhood of the griffon appear to have a familiar like bond with their griffons (i originally assumed it was only the protagonist Aoth that had such a bond).
I have now worked the bond into the back story (although the bond is not exclusive to griffons). I've also got some of their deeds worked out beginning with the invasion of Unther and then moving into Chessenta. So if anyone wants to use them in the 1360s and 1370s era then hopefully the article will give a good grounding for the Brotherhood as an organisation
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 6 is now available. Release of the issues will have to slow down for a while so i can work on more articles (Netheril is the next area of focus)
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions: Issue 6
The list of contents is as follows.
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Old Empires – The Scribes’ Guild
The Bloodstone Lands: Adventure Path – Episode 5
Welcome to the Jungle: Races of Maztica
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Dragon Empire of Unther
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Brotherhood of the Griffon
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Science of Divinity
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Time of Dragons
Laerakond: The Sea of Corynactis
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Chessenta – The Empire of Tchazzar
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Free Republic of Unther
The Knights Below: Adventure Path – Episode 6
The Knights Below: Campaign Journal
Again there is another fantastic article from T.J.Hild about Maztica, and in the future there might be some collaboration between myself and T.J.Hild on areas of Maztica.
As always if anyone wants to get involved with articles of their own, or proof reading, or artwork, or any other skills they have then I would be glad of the help.
If anyone has any feedback that would also be greatly appreciated, and finally if anyone wants to contact me about any of the above then PM me with your email address and we can talk.
Interesting. Must look into this when I'm not at work. :)
-TimD
I leapt right into the brotherhood of the Griffon article and I have to say I like it. It's not the heroic organization in modern day fr, but a true mercenary troupe, started by a cunning jerk and still a potent force in the world today. I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to work with you on it, work and day to day hassles just wouldn't allow for it. But I love this and I hope to work with you on something in the future.
Freehold DM wrote: I leapt right into the brotherhood of the Griffon article and I have to say I like it. It's not the heroic organization in modern day fr, but a true mercenary troupe, started by a cunning jerk and still a potent force in the world today. I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to work with you on it, work and day to day hassles just wouldn't allow for it. But I love this and I hope to work with you on something in the future. Its not a problem, I actually enjoyed doing the writeup and if you hadn't mentioned it I would never have known it exists.
I figured it could be as heroic or mercenary as you like. The Realms like the real world is full of shades of grey, so Valus might sign a wing of the Brotherhood to fight in a war against the remains of Unther, or in Thay's conquest of the Alaor.
The point is that while they are fulfilling that contract they can be upstanding, honourable, loyal, heroic. Its something I tried to get across in the Deeds section where I mentioned that after the failure of their conquest in Unther they escorted the slaves from Greenfields across the Plains of Black Ash, the mountains and the Maerthwood to safety, that's pretty heroic for a group of mercenaries.
And since they are also contracted to do adventuring work that can also be pretty heroic, such as saving a village from marauding monsters or a rogue dragon, etc.
Any other ideas you get by all means let me know and i'll see what I can do.
TimD wrote: Interesting. Must look into this when I'm not at work. :)
-TimD
Well I hope you enjoy it, let me know what you think, what you like, what you don't, and if you have any ideas or want to get involved im always open for collaboration.
Went off on a complete tangent for issue 7 and im collaborating with someone else on some Maztica related articles for his netbooks and the Alternate Dimensions fan magazine.
So far there is a writeup for Qotal, a race article on the beastmen of Maztica, and a writeup for the Cult of the Viperhand.
I might even do an alternate version of Qotal and Zaltec where their roles are reversed (Qotal is bad, Zaltec is evil), and if I can get enough ideas then I'm thinking of doing the Jaguar Knights and Eagle Knights as organisations.
If anyone has anything else they'd like to work on together then let me know.
Netheril is still a work in progress but there is a lot of material to work through.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 7 is now available.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions: Issue 7
The list of contents is as follows:
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Maztica
The Watch Lineup
Welcome to the Jungle: Cult of the Viperhand
Deities With a Difference: The Masked Lady
Deities With a Difference: Qotal
Welcome to the Jungle: Maztican Beastmen
Welcome to the Jungle: The Jaguar Knights and Eagle Knights
Deities With a Difference: Zaltec
There are a few articles created from a collaboration between myself and Seethyr of Candlekeep. The Masked Lady was developed with considerable help from Irennan of Candlekeep. Finally The Arcanamach of Candlekeep has provided a writeup of a recurring villain from his own campaign.
As always if anyone wants to get involved with articles of their own, or proof reading, or artwork, or any other skills they have then I would be glad of the help.
If anyone has any feedback that would also be greatly appreciated, and finally if anyone wants to contact me about any of the above then PM me with your email address and we can talk.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 8 is now available.
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions: Issue 8
The list of contents is as follows:
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Kazgoroth the Beast Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – The Druids of Moonshae Deities With a Difference: The Earthmother
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – The Dynasties of the Ffolk
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – The Heralds of the High King
Deities With a Difference: Grond Peaksmasher
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – An Alternate History
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – The Cults of Fury
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – The Greystone Pack
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles - High Lady Ordalf Moonshayl
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – The Banshrae
This series of articles is very much a reinvention of the Moonshaes, removing the novel events in favour of a much more interactive version of the return of Kazgoroth (which will be revealed in issue 10). Hopefully it will act as a teaser for issues 9 and 10. As such it is only partially compatible with the canon Moonshae material and for issue 9 i will be releasing an alternative Moonshae sourcebook that expands on the life, the geography, and other things pertinent to the Moonshae Isles.
As always if anyone wants to get involved with articles of their own, or proof reading, or artwork, or any other skills they have then I would be glad of the help.
If anyone has any feedback that would also be greatly appreciated, and finally if anyone wants to contact me about any of the above then PM me with your email address and we can talk.
Damn good to see this again. Truly made my day!
Excellent stuff, just commenting that people do read and enjoy this stuff. Haven't used any of it in a campaign yet but there's a lot to like.
Well i'm glad people are enjoying it. If you have any questions about any of it then just let me know.
I'm hoping to document a Moonshaes campaign with all this stuff charting the return of Kazgoroth, his attacks against the people of the isles, and ultimately his defeat (and of course there will be a twist at the end).
It will start 1345 DR and end 1375 DR so its quite long from a timeline point of view, but that just allows for lots of things in between to happen,
Oh and just in case anyone wants to go looking. There is a minor easter egg hidden in this issue about the secret identity of one of the characters presented therein.
Everything you need to find it is in the issue so you dont need to know anything about the Forgotten Realms.
Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
How much of this history is drawn from Living City? I saw my old stomping grounds of Raven's Bluff mentioned there.
If you are referring to Iyrauroth then the history surrounding him and the Annasherion is taken from tiny snippets across various sourcebooks (including the City of Ravensbluff, Elminsters Ecologies - the Thar one, Grand History of the Realms, Moonsea, Mysteries of the Moonsea, The Ruins of Zhentil Keep, Dragon 170 - Monument of the Ancients, and a few others like Arcane Age Cormanthor).
I started by working on the history of Thar and then noticed Iyrauroth's or an unamed black dragon's continued appearance at random events that had a significant impact on the history in the Moonsea region (Ologh's death, Northkeep and even a stray mention of a black great wyrm in city of ravens bluff during the war).
So i tied all the history together and came up with the idea of him being a behind the scenes manipulator and empire builder.
This history was later reinforced in two Forging the Realms articles written by Ed Greenwood about Embrurshaille and Iyrauroth so i went with it and he became my first alternate article.
Almost everything i wrote is based on canon events that i have maybe interpreted in a different way. I try never to change the base event that occurs (so keeps still get destroyed, people still die), merely what occurs surrounding and involving that event (the best example of this is issues 4, 5, and 6, where i created an entire 3rd empire in the Old Empires region by reinterpreting the source of events).
Reading the Iyrauroth article again nearly a year on i'm not entirely happy about the way i made the link between Iyrauroth and Amber Thoden but without more canon info it was the best i could come up with the info i had and i didnt want to make Iyrauroth appear too omnipotent.
I have to admit i havent read or used any of the RPGA material, but the City of Ravens Bluff is one of my favourite sourcebooks.
Unfortunately i'm not a very good record keeper and so dont usually note down where i got my sources from (they are all from sourcebooks, Dragon, Dungeon, Polyhedron, Ed, Eric Boyd, George Krashos, etc), but if you want i can go over my notes and find them for you?
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions Issue 9 is now available
Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions: Issue 9
Issue 9 Contents
Alternate Dimensions Presents: The Moonshae Isles
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Callidyrr
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Corwell
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Dwarvenhome
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Gnarhelm
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Korinn Archipelago
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Moray
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Norheim
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Norland
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Oman
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Snowdown
Alternate Dimensions Presents: Moonshae Isles – Myrloch Vale
Appendix #1 - Complete Timeline
The contents are fairly straightforward, there is a single article for each region of the Moonshae Isles covered as this issue is intended to be an alternative sourcebook for the region. The information in Issue 8 should completely compatible with Issue 9, and its intended use was to supplement and expand the regional information.
As always if anyone wants to get involved with articles of their own, or proof reading, or artwork, or any other skills they have then I would be glad of the help.
If anyone has any feedback that would also be greatly appreciated, and finally if anyone wants to contact me about any of the above then PM me with your email address and we can talk
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Still hate fr, tho....
Freehold DM wrote: WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Still hate fr, tho....
Well thanks for the Woooo, although I can't understand why anyone would hate FR. Its a huge sandbox with a variety of different flavours. It has a complex and evolving history (the future is a bit murky i'll admit, at least in recent years). It has tons of detail. And best of all it can be as complex as any real life situation.
However that being said I do hate some things about FR.
I hate the novels. They are someone elses story and version of events, which is fine, but I hate that they automatically become part of the world and use up all the best plot hooks and npcs, and then at the same time all permanent effects are undone almost immediately (ruins rebuilt, people brought back to life, etc), and don't get me started on the deus ex machina (it would seem someone somewhere built an artefact to solve every problem that would ever occur and every villain that would ever arise, and then left it lying around).
I also hate the god nonsense that has been creeping in since 2e. It would appear that super powerful, immortal beings devolve in maturity the more power they accumulate so that gods behave like 3 year old children squabbling over toys. Even worse is that metaphysical beings are able to be poisoned, captured, wounded, slain etc, despite the lack of a body.
And so that's why I do these little reinvention projects. Novel events get rewritten so people can run them as campaigns for their players to take part. And the deities get rewritten so they are distant power sources (after all if you were a super powerful god why would you talk to an insect that wanted you to solve all its problems all the time).
Of course that's just me, and if you don't like it, hopefully though you like it a little bit more than before.
All i need to do now is write the campaign detailing Kazgoroth's return and the fight against him
I hate fr because it killed literally every other campaign setting and the npcs are obnoxious, as are the fans. I love the work of Paul s. Kemp and Richard Lee byers, and will read anything by them. That said, I really, really like what you have done here and I would like to proofread/edit your stuff.
Freehold DM wrote: I hate fr because it killed literally every other campaign setting and the npcs are obnoxious, as are the fans. I love the work of Paul s. Kemp and Richard Lee byers, and will read anything by them. That said, I really, really like what you have done here and I would like to proofread/edit your stuff. Well I would love for someone to proof read my stuff (I warn you my grammar is really, really bad though).
And if you have any ideas of your own that would be even better (two heads are better than one).
I'll message you later and we can talk shop (I'm working on the Kazgoroth campaign and a Netheril sourcebook rewrite, so theres plenty to do).
Well this isn't quite the next issue of Forgotten Realms Alternate Dimensions but it is how I will be continuing to present alternative takes on regions and periods of the Forgotten Realms.
It's now on the DM's Guild to hopefully get it out to a wider audience.
Here is Netheril: The First Age. An alternative take on the first age of the greatest and most mysterious human empire of northern Faerun. I will continue to evolve this work through the other ages of Netheril so in the works is the Nether Age.
Although I have been tied up by various jobs, it's still damn good to see you pursuing this.
Well despite getting a new job and having much less free time, it would appear i have caught the creative bug and cant stop (althougg that doesnt necessarily mean i have any talent for it, much like vogon poetry).
Since WoTC have pretty much ceased all support of the Forgotten Realms setting i am determined to use whatever avenues are available to me in order to provide my own support.
Dazzlerdal wrote: Well despite getting a new job and having much less free time, it would appear i have caught the creative bug and cant stop (althougg that doesnt necessarily mean i have any talent for it, much like vogon poetry).
Since WoTC have pretty much ceased all support of the Forgotten Realms setting i am determined to use whatever avenues are available to me in order to provide my own support.
I've avidly devoured your Moonshae focused editions of alternate dimensions. Douglas Nile's first novel had such great originality that the way the setting devolved in the later novels was a terrible bummer. The way you seem to have created a more complex setting where the plot is not "used up" in one fell swoop is magnificient!
Have you ever completed the campaign you had in mind for issue X? I would love to see it when you do!
|
1 person marked this as a favorite.
|
Apologies yboxman, I appear to have not been notified about your post so here is a very late answer.
I never did complete the campaign because I burned out on the Moonshaes and got distracted by Netheril.
Then my new job meant I couldn't devote 8 hours a day to creating stuff and so had to stop.
I did however work out a rough timeline of events and even a twist ending which I can spoil for you if you wish (just let me know).
I will return one day to the Moonshaes but I have morphed my Alternate Dimensions project again and here it is.
After trying out the DM's Guild I decided it wasn't for me. PDFs and version control had been a major bottom ache and I disliked that once I posted my work I was no longer entitled to post it anywhere else.
So I have now decided to move onto a website format (so I can mess around with html) and so I only have to update something once if I change my mind.
Its a wordpress site and I'm a bit new to it but I'm working on the Old Empires at the moment to rebuild and build upon what I started way back in issue 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. Some of the pages are blank as I was trying to figure out the menu's but I'm working on one page or another of it for about 2 hours every day.
I now have details on the Old Empires taking shape (specifically Unther, TiaMa'at, Dalath at the moment) as well as a rule system (ARRGS) to accompany the alternate version of the Realms.
I'm not sure which of the links work below (so please let me know which is more useful for accessing it). It may also require a wordpress login to access (but I'm not 100% certain if that is correct).
https://alternaterealmsblog.wordpress.com/
https://wordpress.com/read/blogs/125303490/posts/2
I would appreciate any feedback people have on the new format or any of the ideas. I will continually update things as I go along. And once the Old Empires are finished it will probably be back to the Moonshaes (I was never quite happy with how I did Snowdown)
Went on a bit of a rules drive today. I finished Classes today
Only 3 classes available that cover the range of roles for players; experts, magic users, and warriors.
Each class has a variety of options that can be chosen at each level and should allow a player to mould his character into whatever he wants.
Experts cover those characters that focus on skills.
Warriors are obvious.
Magic Users cover anyone that wishes to cast spells. The only distinction between the traditional cleric and wizard is the spell list they have available.
I'll be adding Themes in another section that add make much more specialised options available and basically allow a character to choose a kit or a prestige class (by being able to select these weird options if they want).
The idea is that every character will be unique if the player wants it to be. No more pigeonholing players into a particular role, you can take what you want and mix it up how you wish to make whatever character you like.
For my version of the Realms, less classes makes it easier to detail (I don't have to spend hours thinking about what classes a character has, only the role he fulfils). I also won't be making every priest a spellcaster (they don't even need the Magic User class - just have knowledge about Religion). Likewise not every Sage will be a Magic User, they are just knowledgable individuals. Finally not every fighter will be a Warrior, an Expert makes a fairly good Warrior, and most NPCs will actually just be a 1st Level human (or other race) and possess no class beyond their Race (you can advance your Race as a class).
This page is under the ARRGS Rules section. Races next.
Any comments or feedback on how easy it is to read and understand would be great.
Working on Shussel now.
The big secret here is that the church of isis is secretly infiltrating the church of shussel (which was desperately short of manpower following Gil-Geamesq executing all the senior priests decades ago).
It may not be a big secret for adventurers from elsewhere but in Unther it is a big deal and is probably punishable by death (everything is usually punishable by death or enslavement in Unther).
https://alternaterealmsblog.wordpress.com/shussel/
|
