Subject: MYSTARA-L Digest - 15 Jun 2003 to 16 Jun 2003 (#2003-157) From: Automatic digest processor Date: 17/06/2003, 17:00 To: Recipients of MYSTARA-L digests Reply-to: Mystara RPG Discussion There are 8 messages totalling 283 lines in this issue. Topics of the day: 1. HackWurld release? 2. X10 - Red Arrow, Black Shield 3. X10 - Red Arrow,Black Shield - Miissing info! SPOILERS! 4. ideas on the haunted mansion in Glantri City 5. lupin questions (3) 6. Nightmare dimension ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp The Mystara Homepage: http://www.dnd.starflung.com/ To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2003 15:16:27 +0200 From: =?iso-8859-1?q?Havard=20Faanes?= Subject: Re: HackWurld release? --- Magister Mystaros : > Unfortunately, Gen Con is a month earlier than > normal this year (July > instead of August), so there is no way it would have > made it to the show > anyway. There might be some blue sheets to look at, > though, but that is up > to the guys at Kenzer. Too bad, especially now that it turns out that I will be at GenCon (wahoo!) aslong as I am allowed into the country. (The battleaxe in by backpack might be a problem...) Would definately be nice to get a sneak peek at some of the Hackworld blueprints... :D Havard ______________________________________________________ Få den nye Yahoo! Messenger på http://no.messenger.yahoo.com/ Nye ikoner og bakgrunner, webkamera med superkvalitet og dobbelt så morsom ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2003 09:59:28 -0400 From: Chris Cherrington Subject: Re: X10 - Red Arrow, Black Shield > > From: Mark Alexander Bertenshaw > > Thanks a lot for clarifying this issue. I didn't know that this was used in > any other modules. > > Am I the only person with a misprinted copy of X10? > I remember an old issue of Dragon actually republishing the city flow chart, including the "fixes". I don't know where I saved that one, it also included a very detailed list of wandering animals for trappers and hunters. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2003 12:02:39 -0700 From: David Keyser Subject: Re: X10 - Red Arrow,Black Shield - Miissing info! SPOILERS! > > > Actually, with D&D 3E, two years for 16 levels is slow. > > Hmm. Literally only started looking at 3E. This seems *wrong* - in my > previous games, I don't think anybody got beyond 10th level! ;-) > When WoTC redesigned D&D for 3rd Edition, they surveyed gamers and found that the typical campaign length is one year for players real time. So they designed 3rd Edition to take you more or less from level 1 to level 20 in one year. Now that could mean 6 months or 40 years of game time depending on intervals between adventures, but 3E D&D by default has much faster progression for players than previous versions. > > > > If you examine the adventure, the Master's defeat seems ridiculously > > > contrived. Whilst on diplomatic business in both Alfheim and the Five > > > Shires, the players just happen to come across a part of the artifact > they > > > require. And when Laran appears, they just happen to be in pursuit > distance > > > of the third part of that artifact. Ok - I know that "the Immortals" are > > > involved, but this is too much! > > > > > > > It is clear that the Master and his Immortal backers are trying to keep > the > > artifact out of meddling hands. It isn't a coincidence that the artifact > pieces > > are in the hands of spectres, or that the red dragon just recently took > over > > the elven tomb. It was the Master's method of protecting the pieces until > > he could reach them himself. > > He didn't have them to start with. Part of the plot involves him using the > PCs to recover the dagger *for him*. The only other explanation would be > that the other immortals put them there. But then you have to wonder why > they didn't find a more direct way to give them to the PCs. Answer: the > module would be over without any fighting at all. > I know that the module has the Master thank them for bringing him the dagger, and act as if he wanted them to recover it for him, but this always struck me as at least partially bluff and lie. While the players get no indication of how to use it, putting them, the dagger and the other item that links the Master to the world all in the same place would not be ideal. Having him pick up the items at his leisure and keeping them seperate would be better. One other thing to mention, WotI did suggest/add that the Master supplemented his forces with troops from Sind for his initial attacks, but then pulled them when attacked by one of the nations from the Champions of Mystara box set. This would mean you could have him use Sind troops to overrun those forts. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2003 12:42:55 -0700 From: David Keyser Subject: Re: ideas on the haunted mansion in Glantri City Alex Benson wrote: > > > Are you speaking of Solvan Manor in the Noble Quarter? If so, I had it > involved in my M-PS project. That project basically introduced Planescape races, > creatures, and plotlines to Mystara. Alot of it had to deal with the relationship > (or lack of) between Mystara and the multiverse and the role of Immortals as > opposed to gods. > That is exactly what I was talking about. Those are some good ideas, it is too bad you lost that info on the hard drive, did any of it make it onto the starflung website? I don't like mixing Planescape with Mystara, but there are some cool themes from Planescape that can fit Mystara cosmology without too much trouble, and the Blood War is one of them. Dave ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2003 13:49:41 -0700 From: David Keyser Subject: lupin questions I will be adding a lupin PC from Ochalea to my campaign soon, and I have a few questions that came up as I looked over the printed materials on lupins. First, our lupins colorblind? I couldn't find anything, but I may have overlooked something. The concept that the country of Renardy is full of colorblind lupins doesn't seem to fit. I like the idea of lupin history and origin being shrouded in mystery. In my campaign, the lupins of the Known World have been relatively isolated from each other, but are vaguely aware of their close neighbors. The nation of Renardy is a rumor and legend in the Known World, although a few traders in Minrothad may be aware of it. The other question is how did lupins get so scattered? I don't recall if the Hutaakans were created by the Nithians, or if they were found independently and absorbed into the Empire, but it is clear that they had colonies where the Nithians had colonies. For the Known World, the gnoll invasion of Hutaakan lands meant some Hutaakans fled to other lands, including Ochalea. Lupin breeds began to diversify as Hutaakans intermixed with gnolls, foo-dogs, blink dogs, etc. The lycanthrope virus which created werewolves may also have had an effect, although that came after Hutaakan civilization rose and fell. On the Savage Coast, a similar process occurred. When Bruce Heard's article on lupins came out, how many people used lupins in the Known World? Which is admittedly a significant retcon except for Glantri. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2003 14:42:33 -0700 From: Joe Kelly Subject: Re: lupin questions I use Lupins in my campaign. They hail from Renardy and are diplomats in = Freeport which is situated in Ierendi.=20 For Lupin Intrigue I use Montaigne plot lines from the 7th Seas series.=20 JK Wolf ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2003 19:56:09 -0700 From: Ramses Ramirez Subject: Re: Nightmare dimension Actually, not even a scan would be necessary but just a small explanation giving the extra details of the Nightmare Dimension (or even the Vortex) that the Gold Box has that WoTI neglected would be all I need. Lancer "grail_quest@excite.com" wrote: If I remember correctly, the skimpy data on the Nightmare Dimension is on the one page in the DM guide monster section under the Malfera. If someone can scan that page for you, I think that's all you need.There may also be a reference in the Creature Crucible, under the Brain Eater or something like that. Again, I've sold all my stuff, but the monster entry may also refer to the creature as a "Neh-Thalggu"? Hope this helps. --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? SBC Yahoo! DSL - Now only $29.95 per month! ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 17 Jun 2003 08:41:30 +0200 From: Giampaolo Agosta Subject: Re: lupin questions David Keyser wrote: > I will be adding a lupin PC from Ochalea to my campaign soon, and > I have a few questions that came up as I looked over the printed > materials on lupins. > > First, our lupins colorblind? I couldn't find anything, but I may > have overlooked something. The concept that the country of > Renardy is full of colorblind lupins doesn't seem to fit. Indeed, it is not likely that they are racially colorblind: the effect on their clothing would be too evident to be ignored in the written material. Anyway, there is no canon info on this. > The other question is how did lupins get so scattered? I don't recall > if the Hutaakans were created by the Nithians, or if they were found > independently and absorbed into the Empire, but it is clear that they > had colonies where the Nithians had colonies. The Hutaakans were created by Pflarr, during the Nithian Era, and were active in the Nithian colonies. > For the Known World, the gnoll invasion of Hutaakan lands meant > some Hutaakans fled to other lands, including Ochalea. Lupin breeds > began to diversify as Hutaakans intermixed with gnolls, foo-dogs, blink > dogs, etc. The lycanthrope virus which created werewolves may also > have had an effect, although that came after Hutaakan civilization rose > and fell. Not all Lupins descend from the Hutaakans, though. It is pretty clear from the Dragon Magazine article that the lupin stock is not so much related to Hutaakans or gnolls. Also, the more wolflike lupins came originally from the Yazak Steppes, where the Hutaakans never arrived. A race of prehistoric "lupins", the aardovai, was postulated, IIRC by Rotipher, a few years ago. > When Bruce Heard's article on lupins came out, how many people > used lupins in the Known World? Which is admittedly a significant > retcon except for Glantri. Lupins in the Known World are common only in Glantri, Thyatis and the Northern Reaches, somewhat less common in Ylaruam and Darokin, and definitely rare elsewhere, IIRC. Therefore, the retrofitting should be easier if your campaign was set in, say, Karameikos, Rockhome or Ierendi. -- Giampaolo Agosta http://digilander.iol.it/agathokles ------------------------------ End of MYSTARA-L Digest - 15 Jun 2003 to 16 Jun 2003 (#2003-157) ****************************************************************