========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 10:43:08 CEST Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Max Monas Subject: Help needed (and appreciated) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Hello people, after discussing a possible influence of Ravenloft Dark Powers on parts of Karameikos and Glantri, I have another question. I am looking for an artifact which is powerful to open a gate to this dreaded dimension. I have come with the following: This artifact was made by pure coincidence. I am following the story line in College of Wizardry, in which it is said that in order to stop a fallen Immortal (from the Shadow Elves) some powerful mage summoned a being with the help of an ancient language, which is lost to the people today. It only exsist in 5 lores, which this mage has written in order to save this (magical) language for generations to come after him. Anyway, this language is needed to destoy this artifact, but that is besides the point. During this summoning, something sucked up the surge coming from the mage. This created the artifact powerful enough to open a portal to the dimension where the create was summoned from (Ravenloft). My question is: Could you please help with the properties of this artifact. I don't have a clue. The only thing I know so far is that it drives people mad and is shifts the allignment of people who come into contact with this thing (could be as simple as a stick) to evil. I hope to hear from you with ideas. Thanks, Max ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 19:30:49 +1000 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: =?iso-8859-1?q?Geniac?= Subject: Mail system and Threshold's old mill MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit G'day everybody... first-timer to the list here.. :) I was also thinking about mail systems.. I've come up with another little scenario that will make the players and characters grit their teeth and scream "damn you, Bargle!" at the end. The scenario hinges on the existence of physical postmen, so I made up Messengers. I haven't instroduced them yet.. lucky this topic popped up so I can maybe get a better idea before I do so. Here's what I have typed up about Messengers so far.. A Messenger is a man hired to deliver messages to somebody. Messengers are known to have the fastest and strongest horses in all of Karameikos, save the Duke's personal Guards. For a large surplus fee, they can go to a wizard for you and have them detect exactly where the intended receiver of a message currently is, within a reasonable distance. You're not sure how far the marvellous idea of Messengers has spread from Karameikos and Thyatis, since you haven't seen any since leaving home. Messengers travel light, to aid in speed of delivery of their messages. They often wear only leather armour, and the bare minimum of weaponry and equipment; usually only one sword, but that one sword is as good as several average swords such as the type a low-level adventurer might use. For identification, Messengers display a large Karameikos coat-of-arms on their cloak, and a smaller coat-of-arms of the town they're from on their chest piece. About Threshold's old mill... On page 3 of the Explorer's Guide from the Karameikos: Kingdom of Adventure box, there's a watercolour of Threshold, painted from the north end of Fogor Isle. In the painting, there's a building in the foreground with a waterwheel on the outside. Would this be the old mill? Geniac _____________________________________________________________________________ http://movies.yahoo.com.au - Yahoo! Australia & NZ Movies - Find out what's on at the local cinema with Yahoo! Movies ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:51:06 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Caroletti Subject: Giant Sluts MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit AAAAAARGH!!! I just found out that Morphail and Aaron Allston did a very similar mistake... and this raises interesting ideas about Aaron's nature... To understand what I'm saying (no, the Stalker hasn't cast "feeblemind" on me...I did 17 with my saving throw) read Aaron's interview on the Tome!!!! Iulius Sergius Scaevola Captain of the XXth Cohort Port Lucinius, Thyatis ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:51:09 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Caroletti Subject: Re: A most modest question... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Thyatophiles and Alphatiaphiles will never, ever resolve this conflict, so > it's an ongoing cold war between Stalker and our Legionnaire. > > Of course, the whole thing is moot, since Alphatia was the one that sank > into the sea... > > Ethan I think this sort of posts is the one that most attract the eyes of warlike creatures who only wait for the war to break out once again. But this time, I will keep silent, it's no need in starting the fighting just after you have been hit on the head by other MMLers because you fight too often. 8-) Hey, I just was struck by a sudden thought. What if the Immortals had tried to give us a hint? Alphatia gets the HW, and we get the OW. Naah. Ridiculous. Oh, and please allow me my two lires (they are really not worth much!) on the Stone to Flesh matter. But if objects become stoned, what about an adventurer's undershirt, or other underwear? And the armor, and all the rest...Stone to Flesh would be a really hard exercise for the companions of the petrified friend. First, they must take away the clothes hoping not to break the "flesh" of the statue (probably there are more "layers"- armor, clothes, flesh, body organs). The difficulty would be not lesser than a medieval surgery operation, and probably more (I read of some surgery in the 1500 on battlefields, here in Italy, that makes you horrified at the thought...who the H*** are E.R.!!) and it could also provide a good time for creative players (while less creative would probably end up chunking an arm of their friend from the frustration). With some luck, a character could find himself without a finger or a toe. Luck? I didn't mean it, I'm... I'm not a DM...no....noooooooooooooooo! [sounds of frustrated PCs in search of a DM to kill] Tin! Tin! Slash! Szack! [sounds of fighting] Iulius Sergius Scaevola Captain of the XXth Cohort Port Lucinius, Thyatis BTW: Beau: excellent take! Did you read my "Sarcastic Mystara" files? ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:51:12 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Caroletti Subject: Re: Collosal Cave? -> Other Text Adventures (not reallyOT) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Before the players arrive, though, a band > of dwarves somehow makes it through the Shires (I'm thinking they'd come by > sea, actually) Dwarves coming by sea? You must be joking! Come on, be serious. How did they get there? 8-) Iulius Sergius Scaevola Captain of the XXth Cohort Port Lucinius, Thyatis ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 14:18:11 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Re: Collosal Cave? -> Other Text Adventures (not reallyOT) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Dwarves coming by sea? You must be joking! Come on, be serious. How did they > get there? 8-) > Perhaps using some of their earth travelling Rockships? They could be ferrying dwarves and materials into an out of the way cavern until they have enough to launch the attack. Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 08:07:10 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Yarbrough Subject: Re: Collosal Cave? -> Other Text Adventures (not reallyOT) In-Reply-To: <3966F990.E2FDA573@tin.it> MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:51 7/8/00 +0200, Caroletti wrote: >> Before the players arrive, though, a band >> of dwarves somehow makes it through the Shires (I'm thinking they'd come by >> sea, actually) > >Dwarves coming by sea? You must be joking! Come on, be serious. How did they >get there? 8-) Minrothadder dwarves? I suppose they could have snuck in through the tunnels of the Great Underground Empire ... BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:10:57 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? Interesting that this should come up now, as I've recently (like, thursday and friday) been pondering the postal system of Thyatis (some initial thoughts include deliveries 4 times a day in the City of Thyatis, much like late renaissance through 19th century London, and 1 time a day elsewhere), but have been trying to come up with an "exotic" delivery system that isn't just the same, bland, boring "well, it's done by magic" cop-out. For longer-distance "deliveries" of messages (only) I'm going with a Heliograph, but I still need a fast (very fast) method of delivering small packets and personal notes (I.E. a postal/mail system), both with "local character" (in the City of Thyatis) and long distance (throughout the Empire or at minimum the "Known World" part of Thyatis). If anyone has any inovative ideas on how this might operate, please let me know. Btw, *some* magic involved would be ok, but I'd prefer something more creative than a "system of *poofing* messages with magical teleportation gizmos at certain locations" - we'll leave that kind of basic thinking to the Alphatians. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 12:54:56 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Alan Shutko Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? In-Reply-To: Evil Genius's message of "Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:10:57 -0400" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Evil Genius writes: > For longer-distance "deliveries" of messages (only) I'm going with a > Heliograph, but I still need a fast (very fast) method of delivering > small packets and personal notes (I.E. a postal/mail system), both > with "local character" (in the City of Thyatis) and long distance > (throughout the Empire or at minimum the "Known World" part of > Thyatis). I'd offer a few ideas. First, there are _no_ fast delivery methods which cross national boundaries. If you want something delivered to Glantri and you're in Thyatis City, you hire a party to get there as fast as they can. I'd probably put together a few loose courier services for letters and small packages based around merchant guilds. Probably all Darokinian and Minrothaddian merchants suppliment their income by a membership of their national postal guild, where they'll carry packages over their standard trade routes. You drop a package off at a local office in major trade cities, or find a merchant from the guild elsewhere, and they'll take it to the closest place to the destination they plan on getting. At which point, they'll drop it off at the office and another merchant will pick it up and take it further. This is, of course, very slow. Within nations with an organized mage guild, messages can be passed from one guild office to another over the clairvoyance/clairaudience channels they use for normal correspondance. You'd deliver your message (text only) to a guild member, they'll pipe it to the destination. There's no privacy in this approach, so people using this a lot develop codes to conceal their communications (similar to telegraph codes IRL). There might be some links with other mage guilds, but those would be highly dependant on the political situation. Glantri has an intricate organization with a licensed monopoly, that organizes messages over other private transports. They have agreements with the Mover's Guild, Merchant's Guild (and secretely the Temples of Rad) to have messages and packages carried parasitically over the other groups' normal operations. It's similar to the merchant guild setup above, but much more efficient because the Message Consortium has access to the schedules of the other guilds and can route things optimally (taking advantage of any teleportation moves happening at the time). For the right price, you can get same-day delivery anywhere in the country. Thyatis probably has a pretty good communication system, used mostly by the military and the rich. It may also accept messages from commoners, but they all get lumped in a bag somewhere and carried when people get around to it. Any large city probably has a postal/courier service of some type, similar to Sherlockian London. I'm sure Alfheim has deals with the local flora and fauna to exchange messages. (All of this is off the top of my head... I could work something more detailed up if people are interested.) -- Alan Shutko - In a variety of flavors! 125 days, 22 hours, 56 minutes, 40 seconds till we run away. 94% of the women in America are beautiful and the rest hang out around here. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:14:39 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Yarbrough Subject: 5Shires setting and adventure; feedback wanted MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable OK, it seems I'm cursed with scheduling issues; at the last moment, only one of my players was able to even make it to the Five Shires filler adventure, which was replacing our Karameikos campaign for the moment. Since I've got an extra week to tweak it, I was hoping for some help from the list. The adventure is the Diablo II Quickstart adventure adapted to Mystara, although since I love, love, love the "Diablo II: The Awakening" supplement, I'm still using the Diablo monsters. I just came up with a way to do Lovecraft IMC using a long-ago Ylari madman. The setting takes the brief description of Leafkindle, Seashire from the "Five Shires" gazetteer and expands it. The map, of course, is available online at http://www.wizards.com/diabloii/ Feedback is greatly appreciated. I'm getting an Arabic translation done to get a better "Ylari" name for the Charred Book ... -- LEAFKINDLE Leafkindle, Seashire is a quiet and pleasant village in the heart of the Five Shires. It sits at the meeting point of three roads from Highshire, Seashire and Heartshire and within a grove of shade trees, which in autumn blaze with color. Only about 200 hin, along with a few dozen elves and a handful of humans live in the village, and the Belnose, Mouldwalk and Proudstride clans are renowned farmers, producing some of the best farm produce in the Shires. The grove of trees that surrounds Leafkindle is distinct from the light woods to the south, the Skunkwood, and is separated from it by a mile or so of rolling hills, the center of which is the vineyard-covered Rose Hill, the clan stronghold of Clan Proudstride. Beyond Rose Hill, in the Skunkwood, is said to be the gathering place of several hin Masters, secretive and powerful guardians of the Shires. Like much of the Five Shires, this is an area beloved by its visitors and in addition to the native hin and elves, several human wizards have retired to the area, although they tend to stay out of sight. Although the town boasts an inn and two guesthouses, its lone tavern, the Duskymoot, is located just outside of Leafkindle proper, on the road south to Deepmoss. The Duskymoot Leafkindle's lone tavern, the Duskymoot, is set back from the road to Deepmoss, nestled within an obscuring thicket of trees and honeysuckle vines in high summer. The tavern has a thatched roof that gets somewhat green and mossy during the summer. Its inset windows are deeply shaded by the roof and surrounding trees, crickets and cicadas buzz day and night and the whole setting has a great air of intimacy and security. The whole is lightly dusted with pollen from the surrounding trees much of the year, which is where the tavern got its name. Those inside the tavern are a mix of local farmers, visiting traders and a sprinkling of adventurers here visiting the retired adventurers and hin Masters in the area. Patrons expect privacy and get it, although everyone is expected to join in during the regular singalongs of traditional hin anthems. The tavern charges average prices for its wares, except for locally produced wines, ciders and brandies, all of which are offered at discount and are pushed heavily by the staff and patrons. Visitors would do well to sample the Proudstride Rose Red or cherry wine, Mouldwalk brandy, or Belnose cider if they don't want to offend the local residents. FERN MOULDWALK Lawful Good female hin bartender Fern Mouldwalk has worked at the Duskymoot tavern in Leafkindle since she was old enough to carry a tray without spilling the contents. She's an attractive hin, slim with long curly fair hair and twinkling green eyes and typically wears a dark green skirt with a hem embroidered with flowers and a white blouse. She's known for her quick wit (Intelligence 15) and charm (Charisma 14). She is interested in little in life beyond working at the tavern - which her aunt Petunia owns - raising her three children and collecting horrible, corny jokes from travelers, which she inflicts on her customers mercilessly. Fern's something of a flirt, with a particular fondness for elves, but means nothing by it, and is very loyal to her husband, Colin. Although she doesn't gossip maliciously, she still knows about nearly everything that goes on in Leafkindle. In recent years, she's taken to greeting customers and people on the street with knock-knock jokes. Sample knock-knock jokes: "Knock knock." "Who's there?" "Wood." "Wood who?" "Wood you like anything to drink?" "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Butcher." "Butcher who?" "Butcher loving arms around me!" "Knock, knock."=20 "Who's there?"=20 "Rude interrupting cow."=20 "Rude interrupting c =85"=20 Fern, interrupting: "MOOOOO!" BALTHO PROUDSTRIDE Lawful Good male hin merchant and fighter 3 Baltho Proudstride is a farmer and sometime importer living on the Proudstride clan holdings where was born in Leafkindle, Seashire. With one major exception, he fits the clich=E9 of what a halfling looks like in the minds of outsiders: He's plump with a double chin, has curly brown hair and sideburns just beginning to get salted with gray hair, wears a large straining embroidered vest with a gold watch chain glittering across his large belly (connected to a gnomish pocket watch that is more of a conversation piece than actually reliable) and is invariably barefoot, with a bush of curly brown hair on his right foot. His left leg below the knee, though, is a wooden peg. He lost the leg in Ethengar when a business deal turned out to be a front for banditry, and he made his way back through the Broken Lands with only a stump. By the time he made it into Darokin, it was too late for even regeneration, if he could have afforded it. He doesn't mind the stump, now, as "it just goes to show there are them that should be fooling about in foreign lands, and them that should stay at home running the shop." His yallara ending prematurely and traumatically, Baltho threw himself into the family business of watermelons, and gamely tries to make sure the farm produces the biggest and most flavorful melons in the Shires. But his heart still yearns for adventure, against his more practical side (which includes his lower left leg). As a result, he's taken to financing a "little hobby of an import/export business" on the side. The more extreme the objects being imported and exported, the more excited he is about them, with the result that he ends up dealing with very dangerous objects and people more often than he should. What Baltho doesn't realize is that he's actually the victim of a curse: Having defaced a relic sacred to Alphaks for its gemstone eyes, he's two years through "seven years of sorrows." Invariably, his schemes bring more pain and misery on him and those around him, and it's getting to the point where all his regular employees have been killed off, mutilated or simply scared off. Never greatly blessed with wisdom (Wisdom 8), Baltho is capable making his schemes seem plausible by dint of his compelling personality (Charisma 17) and thus ends up with plenty of willing agents and the agents he has to hire to get the original agents out of trouble. As a reluctant farmer and an armchair adventurer, Baltho knows far more than he'd like about watermelons and finds escape in his books, having become an accomplished linguist. He understands many of the languages of the Known World - although his ability to read them often outstrips his ability to speak them - including Thyatian, Ylari, Elven, Dengar and Makai. While Baltho will tell non-hin that he likes them and their company, the truth is that he's much more comfortable with his own people, especially when there's trouble, as hin are more reliable in his experience and he hates the idea of other folk coming to the rescue of "halflings." He tolerates what he sees as the inevitable condescension of other races, grinning along at their pats on the head, but becomes a much more serious businessman and ex-adventurer when he's alone with hin. He employs humans when he has to import something out of Glantri - working through a hired intermediary in Darokin - but otherwise employs hin adventurers and sea captains exclusively when he can manage it. All this import/export business and his curse means Baltho is well-known to the Sheriffs and Krondar, and there are few major cities in the Known World where he doesn't know someone. Baltho has become somewhat superstitious about his leg stump: Apparently, earlier in the day before it was severed, his leg had begun to ache, and now, he feels that any pain in his stump is a warning of trouble. -=3D- Goldaun 15, 1013 Baltho meets the adventurers at the Duskymoot tavern at the south end of Leafkindle. His latest acquisition, an infamous Ylari book on the lower planes, was supposed to be delivered from Glantri City over a week ago. The book, simply called "The Charred Book" in Thyatian, is by the Ylari necromancer known as Abu Hul, who was slain by Suleiman Al-Kalim himself in 859 for horrors so shocking, only one sealed record exists of his extensive crimes. The book allegedly carries a curse that has killed most of the people who have come in contact with it, but Baltho foolishly agreed to obtain it for a reclusive wizard living in Ierendi. Something has happened to his go-between, a lady swashbuckler from Darokin named Portia Mauntea. He's done some checking, and she left Shadowgates a week ago, although the one witness Baltho has been able to scare up claims she saw Portia leaving the road that runs east-west between Shadowgates and Leafkindle and head south into the woods. She hasn't been since. Bandits were reportedly active in the area around the same time, and Baltho is worried. More alarming is that travelers have begun reporting strange creatures on the road since then, chasing traders and even dragging screaming ponies off into the shadows of the forest. Baltho is reluctant to get what's inevitably coming from him from Sheriff Joam Astlar (again), and hopes to resolve this situation and report it to the Krondar afterwards. Portia is, in fact, laying under a tree about four miles from Leafkindle, dead, the book open in her lap. She was gored horribly after discovering the book acts as a gateway to a small demiplane established by the book's author for his studies. The buildings and mazes on the other side are filled with summoned demons who have been frantic for escape for over a century. One small group of them found a means to turn several pages into a gateway linked to their set of rooms. A large bloodstone, which they have to keep fed with blood sacrifices, powers the link. They've made some preliminary excursions out of the book to see where they are, but their brilliant plan has fallen apart somewhat, as their location is clearly not anywhere they can simply sneak into and disappear. The book cannot be shut while the bloodstone is powered up, and the demons - lead by a Fallen One shaman - are reluctant to do so, having no idea when a mortal will again wander into their demiplane and give them the means to conduct blood sacrifices. To that end, they've kidnapped a whole band of merchants and are holding them inside. The adventurers will encounter a trio of scavenger demons in the woods near Portia's body. They will attack the adventurers, but the third one will race off through the trees to Portia's body and climb into the book once the other two die. Scavengers (3): AC 8; MV 18; HD =BD; hp 4, 4, 3; THAC0 20; #AT 3; Dmg 1d2/1d2/1d3 (if both front claws hit, both back claws hit for the same damage); SZ S; ML 10; INT semi (2); AL LE; XP 15; D2:A/67 The only way to end the threat is to climb into the book, free the hostages and destroy the bloodstone. By the time the characters return the book to Baltho, his conscience will have made him contact the Krondars, and they in turn will have contacted Astlar, who will take custody of the book. (Hin masters will place the book inside a circle of protection inside a sealed vault. Not a perfect disposal method, but close enough.) Once the book has been sealed away, Baltho will be chastened, but will be true to his word and reward the characters. Of course, it may only be a reward from his way of thinking: He hands over a rusty key ring containing the keys to Wit's End =85 -=3D- THE CHARRED BOOK This grim book is two feet on a side, with covers of black charred wood with reinforced steel edges. The front cover is inlaid with a barbed and twisting rune apparently carved from a single piece of bone. The book was formerly shut with a locking mechanism, but that has seemingly been wrenched away at some point. The pages within are stiff, and made of some sort of tanned hide. The text is written in Ylari, and describes one of the layers of Hell, along with descriptions of its denizens, with finely detailed drawings in black ink. Specific rituals are outlined, allowing a summoner who knows the ensnarement spell to summon specific demons, as well as details on how to create circles of protection. The book includes the following spells: summon swarm, summon shadow and ensnarement. It also contains information on summoning the following demons (all from the "Diablo II: The Awakening" AD&D supplement): acid beast, bloodhawks, fallen ones, fiends, goat demons (flesh clan), hellhounds, hidden and scavengers. A ritual is also given to summon succubi, but it is flawed, and the summoner will have no power over the summoned succubus if the ritual is enacted as written. This was Abu Hul's revenge on those who would use the book after his death. The book is also a gateway to Abu Hol's demiplane, Zulma, and a ritual to summon any of the hundreds of demons trapped within, or to open a gateway through the book to the Zulma, fills the last pages of the book. By default, an ensnarement spell cast as directed in the book will actually summon a demon from within Zulma. The standard version of ensnarement is actually on the same page, but hidden by illusionary script. Zulma is an enormous sandstone fortress in the Nithian style. It is apparently completely sealed, with no windows or doors to the outside anywhere in it, save those select gateways opened by the possessor of the book to which it is linked. Of course, the demons trapped within have found they can open one-way portals in the Ethereal Plane to lure travelers in. Sure, it requires the bloody sacrifice of one of their fellows, but after over 150 years of captivity, they don't really care. The gateways last for one day per hit dice of the being sacrificed in the grim abattoir of Zulma. Without the means to open a gateway out of Zulma, the demons remain trapped: No mortal means of plane shifting or teleportation works inside the demiplane and even blink spells into solid rock simply kill the caster instead of shifting them into the Ethereal. Also within Zulma (which means "darkness" in Ylari), all sources of light have half their effect, both darkvision and nightvision do not work and all light-producing spells shed both half their normal light and last only one minute per level of the caster. The lack of visibility doesn't seem to impair the demons who dwell there, of course. The book also has numerous curses laid upon it, all of which affect the last person to have read the book (and understood it, either by use of comprehend languages or by knowing Ylari). Darkness surrounds anyone who reads the book and the last person to have read the book will find all light sources (including light and continual light spells) give off half their normal light when the reader is within 10 feet of them. Sunlight and moonlight work as normal, but sunlight hurts the eyes of the victim, causing all their rolls to be made with a -1 penalty. Protection from evil and protection from evil 10' radius spells no longer work for the last person to have read the book, and if they memorize the spell, they will find that it refuses to stay in their memory - something they won't discover until they try to cast the spell. Furthermore, magical healing and bless spells will not work on the last reader of the book and the last reader of the book cannot be raised, resurrected or reincarnated. Most ominously, the demons trapped within Zulma can affect the surroundings around the book. In one room of Zulma is a blood-red pool that acts as a permanent magic mirror spell centered on the book. In at least one other room is a bloodstone that, when given a sacrifice of human blood, will force open the book for one day per level of the victim sacrificed, allowing the demons within to come and go as they please. Fortunately, the bloodstone room is simply an antechamber to the rest of the sanctum, and the rest of the demiplane can be prevented from flooding out when the gateway is opened =85 at least at first. Only by dissolving the demiplane of Zulma can the book be destroyed. -=3D- THE ANTECHAMBER OF ZULMA 1. Bloodhawk nest The door is made of stone, set in an ancient stonework frame. It hangs about halfway open, revealing nothing but darkness within. It's extremely dark inside, and even swinging the door wide open doesn't help much. The characters will need to ignite one of their torches to light up the room, and even then the light barely spills into a 20-foot circle, leaving much of the chamber in darkness. When the characters enter the first chamber, they stumble into a nest of Bloodhawks. "The putrid smell of death and decay fills this dank chamber. Crazed screeching echoes off sandy stone walls. You step in a puddle of gore on the cobblestone floor, and then a rush of wings erupts from the shadowy corner and two demonic vultures swoop toward you, their razor-sharp talons extended menacingly." The Bloodhawks' nest is in the top right corner, and they quickly cross the room to attack. There are two Bloodhawks in this room. Bloodhawks (2): AC 8; MV 3/24; HD 2; hp 7, 7; THAC0 19; #AT 1; Dmg 1-6; SZ M; ML 8; INT semi (2); AL LE; XP 65; D2:A/53 There's a door on the left-hand wall that seems to lead deeper into the complex. There's a nest composed of decayed flesh and fur in the far corner, and a half-eaten hin lies on the floor beside the nest. The nest contains body parts and other foul matter. As the characters watch, another Bloodhawk starts to form within the nest. To keep the creatures from returning, the nest must be burned to ashes. If not, another Bloodhawk forms, and it attacks the characters before they leave the room. It has the same stats as the other Bloodhawks. The door is locked. A character will have to bash it open. 2. A short corridor "Something large seems to be moving around beyond the door ahead. You also hear a constant, powerful growling that sounds a lot like the rumble of thunder." 3. The Hellhound The thunderous growl comes from the large Hellhound that occupies this room. It starts out in the far left corner of the chamber. It's a large-headed reptilian creature that's red-skinned and about seven feet tall. As soon as the characters open the door, it breathes a bright ball of lightning that rushes forward. "A bright light from across the room rushes toward you. It appears to be a crackling ball of electricity, and before you can react it's on top of you!" The ball of lightning strikes the front line of characters. If they were marching single file, then the character in front bears the brunt of this attack - 2d6 of damage, half if a successful save versus breath weapons is made. Marching two abreast, characters take a single die of damage each, half if the save is made. "A great red reptilian beast, lightning crackling around its oversized head, stands in the chamber's far corner. It seems that the lightning ball came from the creature itself! You also spot four hin who appear to be from a merchant caravan. They seem to be unconscious but alive. The creature roars, showing great rows of sharp teeth. Then it charges, rushing toward those still reeling from the electrical discharge." After his initial breath weapon attack, the Hellhound fights with his bite only. Hellhound (Misshapen): AC 8; MV 9; HD 2; hp 9; THAC0 19; #AT 1; Dmg 1d6; Special attack: Lightning ball 2d6, save for half damage; Special defense: 20% immune to lightning; SZ L; ML 13; INT low (5); AL LE; XP 120; D2:A/60 After the characters defeat the Hellhound, they spot the door leading out of this chamber and the four unconscious merchants. None of these hin have been hurt badly, and the characters can wake them up if they try. The merchants warn that small demons have the rest of their companions trapped in a room deeper in the complex. The merchants won't accompany the heroes. Instead, they'll head outside if the heroes let them. There is nothing else in this room. 4. The corridor of doors=20 This corridor ends in three closed doors. There's a door on each wall at the far end of the corridor; one on the right, one on the left, and one straight ahead. There's a trick to this corridor. It involves the three doors. The door on the right side of the corridor opens easily. Behind this door is a blank, stone wall. If the characters release the door, it swings shut. The door straight ahead to the shrine opens without problem. The door on the left side of the corridor is locked and can't be opened by force. Unfortunately, that's the way the characters have to go, so they're going to have to figure out how to open it. To open this door, the door on the right must be open. A character can hold it open, or they can wedge something in the doorway to keep it from shutting. 5. The shrine "A sense of safety and well-being surrounds you when you step into this small chamber. A shrine occupies one wall, while a door across the chamber seems to lead deeper into the complex." The shrine restores all lost hit points to good-aligned beings once every 24 hours. The door on the far wall opens upon a collapsed corridor. Tons of rock and stone fill the passage, effectively blocking it off. The heroes can't move the rubble, no matter how hard they try. This is a dead end. The demons refuse to enter this room, although the Fallen One shaman can cast spells into the room. 6. The bloodstone "Torches illuminate this chamber, but there's also a crimson glow coming from the far side of the room. There, jutting from the wall itself, is a heart-shaped crimson stone with lines of obsidian shooting through it. It seems to pulse with an inner glow, and thick red liquid drips from its two open arteries. "You also spot four captive hin. They seem to be alive but unconscious, and they are tied to stakes set against the right-hand wall. "Finally, you see a crowd of small, horned demons dancing maniacally in the center of the chamber. One of them, slightly larger and better dressed than the others, directs the ceremony. He hefts a stone goblet filled with the red liquid, raises his voice in a language you don't understand, and splashes the liquid at his captives. The other demons stop dancing and turn toward you, raising their crude swords to battle." There are six Fallen One demons: four in the square containing the monster symbol that is closest to the entry door, and two in the far square containing the monster symbol. (See the map, area 6, for placement.) A Fallen One Shaman leads this group of demons. It starts in the far square with the two lesser demons. The demons are in the middle of a sacrifice to keep the gateway to Mystara open and are preparing to sacrifice four first level halflings to do so. The Fallen Ones fight to the death. As many as three of the demons can team up to fight a single halfling. Fallen Ones ("Enraged") (6): AC 10; MV 12; HD =BD; hp 3, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2; THAC= 0 20; #AT 1; Dmg 1d4; SZ S; ML 17 (2 if the shaman dies); INT low (5); AL LE; XP 7; D2:A/56 Fallen One Shaman ("Enraged") (1): AC 9; MV 12; HD 1; hp 5; THAC0 19; #AT 1; Dmg 1d6; Special attack: 1d6 fire bolt once a round, save for half; Special defense: raise dead on adjacent Fallen One once a round; SZ S; ML 14 (2 if the shaman dies); INT average (9); AL LE; XP 35; D2:A/56 When the shaman dies, the bloodstone, which he is linked to by the ritual the Fallen Ones were performing, will shatter into feather-light ruby shards, a cloud of bloody mist escaping and evaporating. Huddled at the base of the bloodstone, four hin merchants are alive, although bound and much the worse for wear. The door on the far wall leads out of Zulma, emerging on another page of the book (this is a one-way egress point). The door on the left-hand wall has been barricaded by Fallen Ones, who seek to keep the other demons from preying upon them. If the barricades are removed, the characters feel icy evil emanating from below, and notice that their light barely penetrates the gloom. Sounds from below make it appear that something has noticed the light, before an eerie silence comes over the stairwell. Smart characters at this point will rebarricade the door and run! BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 14:27:52 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Neal Subject: Update to short stories page MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit http://www.geocities.com/bgbuff400/shortstory.html This is an update to the short stories page for those who are interested. feed back is welcome. bgbuff@tecinfo.com Kill your enimies and only your friends are left. "unknown" ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 00:09:28 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: A most modest question... Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Fri, 7 Jul 2000 10:43:28 SteelAngel wrote: >> how comes that we can manage to have some 1500 e-mails about "Thyatis vs >> Alphatia: who is the tougher one?" and nobody (4 or 5 mails) seems to be >> interested in debating the effects of a "Flesh to Stone" spell? > >Thyatophiles and Alphatiaphiles will never, ever resolve this conflict, so >it's an ongoing cold war between Stalker and our Legionnaire. > >Of course, the whole thing is moot, since Alphatia was the one that sank >into the sea... > And yet we are still the superior force! And so the cold war, and the endless debates, shall ever after continue... ;) - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 00:24:50 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: A most modest question... Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Fri, 7 Jul 2000 07:17:10 Beau Yarbrough wrote: > Yep. I don't own DotE, and probably won't be getting it since only half >the material would be any good in my campaign. Heretic! :) Actually, this book is some of the best material ever written for Mystara, I think. We may discuss it, but it's usually because the empires are far too great for the set to do them justice - particularly Alphatia, of course :) If you got this boxed set, I'm sure you wouldn't regret it! (snip) > > Just so everyone's (un)happy: > In Alphatia, they'd use the Dispel Magic to reverse a Flesh to Stone >transformation. Oh, I see. So *that's* why Stone to Flesh doesn't work for me... Thank you very much :) > In Thyatis, they'd use Flesh to Stone to reverse a victim of a medusa. > Really? I thought they'd just use it as a paperweight, or perhaps in their catapults... ;) > In Rockhome, they'd put the victim up as a statue. > No doubt :) > In Glantri, they'd carve the words "loser" into the victim's forehead >before restoring him. Why not in Alphatia? I even think that in Blackheart they'd remove the head before casting Stone to Flesh - oh, sorry - that's Dispel Magic, here. When that doesn't work that'd grab a commoner and cast Flesh to Stone on him, and then remove other body parts before returning him to "normal" ;) > In the Five Shires, they'd make the victim into a birdbath for the garden. > Or as a scarecrow! > In Karemeikos, the Traladarans and Thyatians would break the victim down >the middle and each try restoring their own halves independently. > Assuming, of course, they can decide which part is which. > In Darokin and Minrothad, they'd charge money to look at the victim, >although no one would have any idea what the Minrothadder was saying. > Maybe not the words, but certainly the meaning: "Pay me" is pretty international I'd say :) > In Ierendi, they'd get around to solving the problem after their post-luau >nap. Unless, they have some more pressing business to attend to... Like rearranging their sock drawers. :) > In Alfheim, they'd ... oh, never mind. Ahem, no comment. > In the Northern Reaches, they'd sing a lot of songs about the victim and >accidentally smash him when someone got a bit drunk on mead. > Yes, if they can hit the right one... > And in Hule, they'd say he'd always been a statue, infidel. > Of course. What else would they say? They rarely say sentences that do not include the word 'infidel' at all! - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 00:41:32 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Stone to Flesh - Equipment Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Fri, 7 Jul 2000 11:37:03 David S. Leland wrote: >At 02:21 AM 7/6/00, erewan laubgaenger wrote: >now a thought!!! >what is happen if a creatue with an artifact becomes to stone??? >after that the monsters/PC destroy the statue?? > >[...] > >and the item? >can sombody destroy artifacts in this way? >if magical items are not affected, then the spell will become more >common. > > I'd argue that an artifact will NEVER be turned to stone, except >perhaps by Immortal magic, in which case it would be very temporary, >the artifact being just as indestructable while petrified, and so the >only point being to prevent use of the artifact for a few rounds, >turns, whatever. For other magic items I can think of 3 equally >reasonable options: > >1) All items turn to stone. (Simple) >2) Items have a % chance of turning to stone, inversely related to >how many plusses or plus-equivalents they have. (Someone else >suggested this already) >3) Items in very high contact with the person (e.g. rings, armor) >turn to stone with the person but ones with a smaller area of contact >do not (e.g. shields, weapons, staves). This is kind of arbitrary >but if you imagine a statue that has been sculpted and decked out >with stuff to look extra cool, I can see a real sword and shield >being put in the statue's hands, etc., while stuff like armor and >rings would be too hard to put on and so would be sculpted. > There is yet another possibility. Magical items are not turned to stone - ever - althought they are hidden beneath a layer of stone. This layer can be broken and the items taken from the victim without damaging the victim in a way that would later cripple him if he is returned to flesh (although he may have a scratch or even a wound that bleeds in that place). Just a thought to, hopefully, make life a little easier for DMs out there... - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 01:11:06 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Giant Sluts Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:51:06 Caroletti wrote: >AAAAAARGH!!! >I just found out that Morphail and Aaron Allston did a very similar >mistake... >and this raises interesting ideas about Aaron's nature... > What makes you think it was a mistake? I always had my doubts about those two myself... :) >To understand what I'm saying (no, the Stalker hasn't cast "feeblemind" >on me...I did 17 >with my saving throw) I already told you that my preferred spell is Programmed Amnesia. Now, why can't you remember that? ;) >... read Aaron's interview on the Tome!!!! > Already did - I'm sure we all did. Shame that he never got to write that 'Alphatia sinks' trilogy, as I'm more than certain you'll agree :) - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 20:30:08 EDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Magister Mystaros Subject: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Well, I'm not too sure how the debate went with the list on converting Mystara to 3E, as I was waiting to see for myself what 3E was like and thus avoided, for the most part, the entirety of that discussion. Now however I can say unequivocally that I am fully, 100% converted to the idea of using 3E with Mystara. Fortunately, as Marketing Guru at a game distributor I have been privy to more 3E information than most (save the playtesters themselves). In fact, just this last week at our offices I was able to RUN a 3E demonstration game, having had access to a pre-press version of the 3E Player's Handbook for several weeks (and no, I can't reveal anything at this time; the best info on the web is at Eric Noah's 3E site). The game, in a word, is beautiful. It is what D&D SHOULD have been all this time. It is streamlined and simplified, but NOT, I repeat NOT thusly "dumbed-down" as many believe. Strangely enough I felt it was closer in system and style to Classic D&D in many ways than to AD&D. And, most applicable in the case of Mystara, while 3E offers unlimited opportunities for character types and combinations, it has also been designed so that the individual DM is, in no uncertain terms, final arbiter of what is allowed in his or her own campaign. As some of you may have noticed I haven't posted much of anything to the list lately... the reasons for this are twofold. First, my job hasn't given me the time to do much writing; I even missed my article for the Tome of Mystara :( And second... even if I had the time, I am waiting for the release of the first three 3E books (PHB, DMG and MM). For, once I do start writing for Mystara again, it will be in 3E. For I am a convert, 100%. James A. Mishler Magister Mystaros Mystara Lives! Check out the excellent Official Mystara Website: http://dnd.starflung.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 02:14:12 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sat, 8 Jul 2000 20:30:08 Magister Mystaros wrote: (snip) > >The game, in a word, is beautiful. It is what D&D SHOULD have been all this >time. It is streamlined and simplified, but NOT, I repeat NOT thusly >"dumbed-down" as many believe. Strangely enough I felt it was closer in >system and style to Classic D&D in many ways than to AD&D. And, most >applicable in the case of Mystara, while 3E offers unlimited opportunities >for character types and combinations, it has also been designed so that the >individual DM is, in no uncertain terms, final arbiter of what is allowed in >his or her own campaign. > >As some of you may have noticed I haven't posted much of anything to the list >lately... the reasons for this are twofold. First, my job hasn't given me the >time to do much writing; I even missed my article for the Tome of Mystara :( >And second... even if I had the time, I am waiting for the release of the >first three 3E books (PHB, DMG and MM). For, once I do start writing for >Mystara again, it will be in 3E. For I am a convert, 100%. > That's good for you. I, however, am much more skeptical. I started out being very excited about 3e, but as more information became available about it, I liked it less and less... :( We haven't discussed 3e here much, and I'm reluctant to begin because I've already gotten into big fights because I voiced my opinions elsewhere - I wouldn't want that to happen here. There are a few things I really dislike about 3e. 1. Magic system. This is just the same as the always - no change! This is a huge disappointment in my book, because flexibility is still lost to D&D. I would have thought that they would, at the very least, have included an optional spell point system similar to the one in Spells & Magic (which doesn't work too well either, btw), but nope - not a thing! Is there something wrong with the system we have now? No, but it is pretty boring IMNSHO. The thing is that it rewards people for always choosing the same old universal spells (anyone ever played a session where all the wizard knew they would use Detect Undead more than Magic Missile and actually memorized spells to reflect that?). While the old system is easy, it does have the flaw that we see unusual spells very rarely. Not, for as the DM, that makes the game easy, because no wizard or priest ever casts a spell I don't know forwards *and* backwards, but it makes for pretty dull spellcasting I think... 2. Spellcasting provokes Attacks of Opportunity. Despite claims to the contrary, nobody has yet managed to remove my fears that this rule will utterly ruin the game for most spellcasters, and particularly wizards. For those of you who don't know, this rule states that if a wizard begins casting a spell, then all enemies within melee range of that wizard will get a free attack against him. I do agree that the rule makes sense in some cases, but I fail to see how it can avoid dooming the wizard when all he wants to do is use his Dimension Door or Teleport spells to escape. I hate this rule and I refuse to play in any game that uses it! Period. Yes, those are strong statements, and you may call me a biased wizard-lover for making them - go ahead. I *do* love wizards :) and besides: I've already been called far worse :( Now, some may say that I can just change those rules IMC, and then play anyway. Sure, I can, but there wouldn't be much for me in playing 3e then. I already have 60+ pages of house rules for my 2e Player Option campaign, and a primary reason for my initial enthusiasm about 3e was to get rid of all those annoying house rules - even though they were mine! Now, however, I can see that I will have to write at least as many rules to make 3e fit with my ideas of D&D, and then there's not much point in bothering at all... :( Just the thoughts of a frustrated skeptic... Delete them before you become infected :) - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 03:02:43 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > If anyone has any inovative ideas on how this might operate, please let me know. Btw, *some* magic involved would be ok, but I'd prefer something more creative than a "system of *poofing* messages with magical teleportation gizmos at certain locations" - we'll leave that kind of basic thinking to the Alphatians. > How about having cadet members of the Retebus Air Fleet being seconded to various outposts. Helping them to learn discipline and the lay of the land before they receive their commissions by flying the mail could be a part of training. Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 23:20:50 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Mischa E Gelman Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000707163558.007e73a0@lby3.com> MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII > Oh, that I could. I can't find a copy on eBay that isn't ragged (and yet, > oddly, described in "good" condition, as though most people are pleased > with books with covers that are coming off, have random highlighter > markings on them and have pages missing "with photocopied versions > paperclipped inside" Did you check at the online gaming stores? They tend to very honest with their quality ratings. > > Here's a possibility for non-confidential correspondence: someone > >who owns a Scroll of Communication pair could make a living by having > > Que? Is this from a D&D source I don't have? The Companion Boxed Set. One person writes on one of the pair of scrolls and the message appears on the other scroll, as long as they're on the same Plane. A very handy and practical use of magic. - Mischa We're going to have to debunk the myth that Africa is a heaven for black people - especially black women. We've been the mule of the world there and the mule of the world here -- novelist Alice Walker ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 23:32:19 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Yarbrough Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? In-Reply-To: MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 23:20 7/8/00 -0400, Mischa E Gelman wrote: >Did you check at the online gaming stores? They tend to very honest with >their quality ratings. I haven't found any of the stuff I want in-stock at the online game stores I've checked. (And I've checked a bunch.) In some cases they do have a good selection of other stuff, though. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 09:22:00 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Rob Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit > 1. Magic system. This is just the same as the always - no change! This is a huge disappointment in my book, because flexibility is still lost to D&D. I would have thought that they would, at the very least, have included an optional spell point system similar to the one in Spells & Magic (which doesn't work too well either, btw), but nope - not a thing! Is there something wrong with the system we have now? No, but it is pretty boring IMNSHO. The thing is that it rewards people for always choosing the same old universal spells (anyone ever played a session where all the wizard knew they would use Detect Undead more than Magic Missile and actually memorized spells to reflect that?). While the old system is easy, it does have the flaw that we see unusual spells very rarely. Not, for as the DM, that makes the game easy, because no wizard or priest ever casts a spell I don't know forwards *and* backwards, but it makes for pretty dull spellcasting I think... Got to disagree with you here :) I dont think people do select standard spells (they dont around here anyway). I myself have used Detect Undead a fair bit :) The spell system shows the games tactical roots I think. It also encourages a thinking mage, who has to plan ahead, rather than someone who can just knock stuff up on spec. And from a totally different angle, letting a wiz cast whatever he wants whenever makes the mage far, far too powerful. Flexibility is power, and that gives the mage unsurpassed flexibility, assuming he has put his spellbook together with a degree of competence. > 2. Spellcasting provokes Attacks of Opportunity. Despite claims to the contrary, nobody has yet managed to remove my fears that this rule will utterly ruin the game for most spellcasters, and particularly wizards. For those of you who don't know, this rule states that if a wizard begins casting a spell, then all enemies within melee range of that wizard will get a free attack against him. I do agree that the rule makes sense in some cases, but I fail to see how it can avoid dooming the wizard when all he wants to do is use his Dimension Door or Teleport spells to escape. I hate this rule and I refuse to play in any game that uses it! Period. Yes, those are strong statements, and you may call me a biased wizard-lover for making them - go ahead. I *do* love wizards :) and besides: I've already been called far worse :( Well, in AD&D at the moment, if a spellcaster is within arms reach of just about anyone, hes in deep trouble. One swift wrestling attack later, and the mage is on the floor in a full nelson before he can say "Die". (And no, stoneskin doesnt stop wrestling according to Skip :). I know nothing of the 3E rules (I am actually very skeptical of 3E myself, but for other reasons than the ones you cite) but this does seem perhaps a little harsh, mind, but without having actually read the rules I cant really give an opinion on it. Say that I reckon that if a fighter gets within arms reach of a mage, the mage is dead unless he has Contingency or something similar, and that is a good thing. > Now, some may say that I can just change those rules IMC, and then play anyway. Sure, I can, but there wouldn't be much for me in playing 3e then. I already have 60+ pages of house rules for my 2e Player Option campaign, and a primary reason for my initial enthusiasm about 3e was to get rid of all those annoying house rules - even though they were mine! Now, however, I can see that I will have to write at least as many rules to make 3e fit with my ideas of D&D, and then there's not much point in bothering at all... :( Well, I'm coming from the "what is 3E going to give to me" angle. Everyone I DM for is pretty well happy with 2nd ed, and so there isnt really a rules issue. However... a) I like psionicists b) I like wild magic c) I run on the Savage Coast, with araneas, rakastas, lupins and tortles d) And the Red Curse of course e) and some pretty specific kits (ok, you can duplicate some of them - eg feats like Weapon Finesse instead of a Swashbuckler kit, but it aint the same. And stuff like the Inheritor?) To remedy all this (especially the first three) I'm going to need a whole slew of new rules and a big pile of paper. And for what? Its all unnecessary as far as I can tell. Maybe things will improve when later supplements come out, but then that means that I am looking at �100 worth of gaming books and a long wait before 3E will work for me. Why should I bother with that? (Its not even like the threat of not having any more supplements in earlier editions bothers me, because running Red Steel there will never be any supplements anyway). >From another angle, a few things about 3E I find very worrying/annoying. This stuff on feats for example, from what I have seen this stuff could be so horrifically abused by players (and in my experience, if something can be abused, it will be abused). And the return of the assassin class as well, that was better off dead and buried. And this "huge change in the combat system" is just swapping a - for a + in the equation for calculating what you need to hit a given AC (ie, it is a con). There is good as well as bad, and I'll buy the books anyway to form my own opinion, but what I think will be likely is that I may steal some of the rules from 3E to put into 2nd ed, unless it truly is a work of genius. Cheers Rob ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:32:10 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: jason o'brien Subject: Re: Regretful Exit MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > First Leroy leaves the Admin Seat, then Valerya leaves...my Ixion! Shall the > Alphatia > sprout out from the Sea? > no. when etienne destroys something it stays that way. though it is sad to see someone else having to leave. bye jennifer, hurry back mortus. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:33:14 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: jason o'brien Subject: Re: Regretful Exit MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > everything may happen, the immortals have gone mad, they even let our soccer > team win the european championship...i guess the force was with us.... > Ettienne again ;-) mortus. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:37:51 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: jason o'brien Subject: Re: Hi everyone MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Hello Mystarans! > > I'm David Leland, an erstwhile member of the list returning to the > fold after more than 2.5 years away welcome back david, has it really been that long since you were last here. mortus. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 15:56:56 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: jason o'brien Subject: Re: A most modest question... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > > Hi, > > I've got a question: > > how comes that we can manage to have some 1500 e-mails about "Thyatis vs > > Alphatia: who is the tougher one?" and nobody (4 or 5 mails) seems to be > > interested in debating the effects of a "Flesh to Stone" spell? > > > > I find it hardly believable. Probably I have a very uneven opinion about > > what's interesting/useful to debate on a mailing list. Do I? > > > > Thanks for your opinion. Also for the Admin's one. > > Cheers, > > > > Federico personally i treat it as a total conversion to stone ,all items magical or otherwise. if the players debate this i usually point to hollywood movies as examples, and state that the abilities and spells whilst based on myth are also loosely based on these movies. mortus. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 12:06:25 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? Alan Shukto wrote: >> I'd offer a few ideas. << Most of what you said was good. A couple comments on a few points: >> First, there are _no_ fast delivery methods which cross national boundaries. << I'd agree with that, if only because of good "atmospherics" (if there's no difference in how messages are handled across borders, IMO it tends to make everything to same-o). >> Within nations with an organized mage guild, messages can be passed from one guild office to another over the clairvoyance/clairaudience channels they use for normal correspondance. << Yah, I was trying to stay away from the obvious magical short-cuts, leave those to the less creative (Alphatians and their ilk). >> Thyatis probably has a pretty good communication system, used mostly by the military and the rich. It may also accept messages from commoners, but they all get lumped in a bag somewhere and carried when people get around to it. << You're confusing Thyatis with barbarous areas like Karameikos and Glantri, though: there are no "commoners" in Thyatis, there are "Citizens", and anyone with the $$$ to send a "priority message" would be able to do so (so you're half right in one sense - distinction would be on the basis of having the money, but bringing up a social distinction like "commoner" is misleading). However, for our purposes it wouldn't matter much, because we're largely concerned (I think) with how PCs might send or recieve messages within a campaign. There is probably stuff anagolous (but *not* identical) to various "classes" of mail (parcel post, priority, express), with escalating costs. But unfortunately you described the general, but I was looking for specific "how" (this is also important, because knowing how messages & packages are delivered allows. . .well, lets just say "creative ideas for intercepting them" - again, the stuff adventurer types will have to cope with). Paul George Dooley had a good idea on that score, though. I'd add to that another nuance, though: perhaps *some* members of the Knights of the Air (who are "part time" military or auxilliary/reserve, but then must also do something when they're not "weekend warrioring") might be involved in postal/messanger duities (not nessissarily all in the government postal service, though: there could be "Imperial Express"/"Imperial Parcel Service", private fast message/package service consortiums. If one goes with the theory, expressed some time ago, that not all members of the KotA are Thyatian and some live in/operate in other countries, then some of these "private" orgs might be trans-national, or they might be anyhow - but that would go against the idea Alan expressed regarding no fast international message services). >> Any large city probably has a postal/courier service of some type, similar to Sherlockian London. << I was thinking along those lines, myself. But, as usual, the best idea is one I came up with myself: I'm thinking of a system along the lines of those old "pneumatic tubes" that were used in old buildings to send messages to other offices in the same building, but on a "Fantastic" scale (a city-wide system), using magic (elemental-driven? - minor elementals or some similar thing to cause the air to propell the messages?), running underground across the city. Very poor areas would have few, if any, or many broken/inoperative tubes, other areas would have at least one "in" and "out" tube per building (one would then pick up whatever messages one recieves like one does in an appartment complex, kind of), but most poor folks probably aren't sending and recieving that many messages anyhow (could they read them if they did? Some civilized Mystaran countries seem to have fairly good literacy rates for pre-modern societies, but still that probably doesn't mean the lower classes read ! ! and write very frequently). Other buildings (wealthier areas, government buildings, commercial buildings that do a lot of communicating) would have multiple tubes, and possibly even "internal" tube systems for "inter-office" messages. Anyhow, that's what I came up with to solve my own problem. Add to that Paul's "air mail" idea, heliographs, and some fast courier ships, plus the usual boring/common/easy-to-think-of magical methods, and one has a fairly "robust" postal system throughout a national zone at least. As you said, "international mail" is probably more sluggish and less well developed. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 17:05:47 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: jason o'brien Subject: Re: Collosal Cave? -> Other Text Adventures (not reallyOT) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > > Before the players arrive, though, a band > > of dwarves somehow makes it through the Shires (I'm thinking they'd come by > > sea, actually) > > Dwarves coming by sea? You must be joking! Come on, be serious. How did they > get there? 8-) > cursed? ;-) mortus. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 09:23:04 +0000 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara Comments: Authenticated sender is From: Mike & Rebecca Harvey Subject: Re: New to Mystara In-Reply-To: <006501bfe3df$cde7dcc0$6232140a@friendlynet> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT jdaly wrote: > Half-elves weren't forbidden to Mystara. But they didn't have any special > benefits either. While this stemmed from the fact that elves were not just > a race but a class as well, the world grew around the concept and it became > pretty integral. It should be remembered, however, that while the > existences of half-elves was specifically denied in Alfhiem (Note: > "denied". I was always suspicious that the elves were protesting a bit too > much) they were specifically included in the Savage Coast writeups that > Bruce did. The nation of Yavdlom, as described in CoM, is comprised entirely of half-elves (mingling the Sheyallia clan with the Tanogoro). Mike ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bing@iccom.com (formerly mike@cs.pdx.edu) Mike Harvey HTTP://www.iccom.com/usrwww/bing/home.html Beaverton, Oregon ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:17:26 EDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Lord Deldain Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit << Well, I'm not too sure how the debate went with the list on converting Mystara to 3E, as I was waiting to see for myself what 3E was like and thus avoided, for the most part, the entirety of that discussion. Now however I can say unequivocally that I am fully, 100% converted to the idea of using 3E with Mystara. >> Since I only recently got into Mystara, I hadn't even considered using any 2e settings for my 3e games. I was planning on running a world of my own design, or possibly borrowing for various book-based worlds such Earthsea. However, I'm really open to the idea now, and I have pretty much decided to make Mystara my default world for 3e games. << The game, in a word, is beautiful. It is what D&D SHOULD have been all this time. It is streamlined and simplified, but NOT, I repeat NOT thusly "dumbed-down" as many believe. Strangely enough I felt it was closer in system and style to Classic D&D in many ways than to AD&D. >> I couldn't agree more. I happened to get to look at an advanced copy at Dragon*Con and I was totally blown away. I should probably mention that I was already set to get the PHB, no matter what, back when I first heard about 3e was coming out. However, I still had my doubts about the system until I read though the PHB and was amazed at how well-written and functional it is. The next day I put in my pre-order for all three of the core books. Needless to say, I'm dying to start running a 3e game. << I am waiting for the release of the first three 3E books (PHB, DMG and MM). For, once I do start writing for Mystara again, it will be in 3E. For I am a convert, 100%>> I can hardly wait. ;) - Deldain P.S. - Just for anyone who is interested, you can pre-order the 3e books fairly cheap at dragonscroll.com. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:48:23 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons > >On Sat, 8 Jul 2000 20:30:08 Magister Mystaros wrote: >(snip) Myself, I'll reserve judgement until I see it. Personally, I don't think I'll switch to 3e from OD&D, simply because I'm comfortable with the system I have (RC + GAZ series + Dragon + house rules), and I know it inside and out. None of my players (those who are aware of the upcoming change, at any rate) are all that enthusiastic about converting, either. If it turns out that 3e has some interesting rules changes, then we'll see.... Geoff -- Geoff Gander, BA 97 Cartographer/Game Designer/Government Peon Carnifex Loremaster au998@freenet.carleton.ca : www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/2091 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:59:36 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? James wrote: Other buildings (wealthier areas, government buildings, commercial buildings that do a lot of communicating) would have multiple tubes, and possibly even "internal" tube systems for "inter-office" messages. Neat idea! What would happen if some bureaucrat dropped an inordinately thick wad of memos* into one of the tubes, resulting in a "paper jam"? Would there be a little squad of tiny golems who would patrol the tube system in search of blockages? Just a thought, Geoff *Possibly a memo, in triplicate, plus requisite background materials and briefing notes, requesting a meeting with the leader of the Imperial Resource Allocation and Planning Committee - Letter Openers and Dinnerware Secretariat, on the subject of requisitioning a new soup tureen to replace the one that was cracked last Thursday after the annual Vanya's Day Dinner. -- Geoff Gander, BA 97 Cartographer/Game Designer/Government Peon Carnifex Loremaster au998@freenet.carleton.ca : www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/2091 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 20:16:48 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Marco Fossati Subject: R: Re: [MYSTARA] Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I'm also not too much happy for the 3E D&D. I read something about it on Dragon Magazines and it seems to me that D&D, after being put into a cauldron with some strange liquids, has been trasformed into something that doesn't give me the same feelings. First of all I've never iked the options released by TSR few years ago. I read them but I refuse to put them in my campaigns. To add more for the few I've already read I don't like the new clerical spells-system and , IMHO, there are added too many new rules that, if on a side they can better complete the game, on the other side they can ruin it. AD&D's strength were its relatively easy rules and semplicity in running the game. An handful of house rules used to work well to solve some oddities in the rules (I made, during the years, a lot of them). Simply my fear is that in order to gain even more players, who are even more pretending, it could be lost forever the high playabilty typical of the 2E AD&D. It remains to me the hope my foreseeings are false. However I probably will buy the new books, for completeness, but it's also very probably I'l continue to play with 2E rules. Cheers, Marco Fossati ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 11:18:55 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: <00a301bfe97e$c2728760$9a01a8c0@rob> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 01:22 AM 7/9/00, Rob wrote: Got to disagree with you here :) I dont think people do select standard spells (they dont around here anyway). I myself have used Detect Undead a fair bit :) The spell system shows the games tactical roots I think. It also encourages a thinking mage, who has to plan ahead, rather than someone who can just knock stuff up on spec. And from a totally different angle, letting a wiz cast whatever he wants whenever makes the mage far, far too powerful. Flexibility is power, and that gives the mage unsurpassed flexibility, assuming he has put his spellbook together with a degree of competence. Presumably this is the point of adding a sorcerer class, to allow the option of either a tactical spellcaster with more spells knowable and more to cast in a day, but who has to prepick them (wizard), or an on-the-fly spellcaster with fewer spells knowable and fewer to cast in a day, but who can cast anything known at any time (sorcerer). I don't know the mechanics yet, of course, but in principle in seems a fine way of trying to make different people happy, and there's no reason a DM can't rule that in his/her campaign world, all magic-users (in the OD&D sense) are wizards, or all are sorcerers. I've been toying with the idea of having human magic be wizardly and elven magic sorcerous, given elves' inherent magical nature. It would perhaps add more flavor and distinction (along with things like the Alfheim spell list), and would dovetail nicely with Alfheim references to elves needing to learn magic from humans to get spells not on the Alfheim list past 5th (I think) level (spell level, not caster level). Elves could be ABLE to learn wizardly magic, but they would normally develop as sorcerors unless they were enculturated by humans or decided specifically to do it that way. A great example in Mystara would be elves in Glantri, who may have decided to pursue wizardly magic to fit in better and to be able to make use of the Great School and all sorts of great facilities and knowledge that apply most directly to wizardly magic. On the other hand, as I might have mentioned in an earlier post, I think the Seven Secret Crafts powers might be suitable for a "prestige class" that works like sorcery rather than wizardry, since those powers are considered innate and not memorized as spells. Well, in AD&D at the moment, if a spellcaster is within arms reach of just about anyone, hes in deep trouble. One swift wrestling attack later, and the mage is on the floor in a full nelson before he can say "Die". (And no, stoneskin doesnt stop wrestling according to Skip :). I know nothing of the 3E rules (I am actually very skeptical of 3E myself, but for other reasons than the ones you cite) but this does seem perhaps a little harsh, mind, but without having actually read the rules I cant really give an opinion on it. Say that I reckon that if a fighter gets within arms reach of a mage, the mage is dead unless he has Contingency or something similar, and that is a good thing. (This was in reference to casting provoking attacks of opportunity, AOO). I don't think it's as harsh as you suspect because in 3E spellcasters don't get spells automatically ruined when hit but do have to make a "Concentration Check" penalized by the amount of damage they take. I think this is pretty fair and realistic without too much complication. One could argue that losing your spell whenever you get hit, even if by a scratch (1 hp) is too harsh, and that saying you can wave your arms around and safely cast right in the face of a fighter ready to lop off your arms with an axe is too generous. AOO and concentration checks seem to balance out. Of course if you want the simplest, fastest combat possible, this isn't the way to go. Magus Coeruleus / ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ \ < David S Leland ~|~ dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu > | PhD Candidate ~|~ 858-534-9754(lab)/-1128(fax) | < UCSD Cog Sci ~|~ cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland > \ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ / ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 14:49:33 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Neal Subject: another update MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I've put up part three to the story of Ist the minotaur and his travels in Skothar. the url is: http://www.geocities.com/bgbuff400/shortstory.html any feed back is welcome. thanks, Neal Rise above the waves son, but don't rise to high. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 12:56:51 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Yarbrough Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: <00a301bfe97e$c2728760$9a01a8c0@rob> MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable At 09:22 7/9/00 +0100, Rob wrote: >And from a totally different angle, letting a wiz cast whatever he wants >whenever makes the mage far, far too powerful. Flexibility is power, and >that gives the mage unsurpassed flexibility, assuming he has put his >spellbook together with a degree of competence. And anyone hot to play a wizard who doesn't have to memorize spells ahead of time can play the new 3E sorcerer. That's what he's there for. >I know nothing of the 3E rules (I am actually very skeptical of 3E myself, >but for other reasons than the ones you cite) but this does seem perhaps a >little harsh, mind, but without having actually read the rules I cant= really >give an opinion on it. Say that I reckon that if a fighter gets within= arms >reach of a mage, the mage is dead unless he has Contingency or something >similar, and that is a good thing. More importantly, people can only make one attack of opportunity a round, I believe, and that means in a confused melee, they may have well already used their attack on someone else. And, of course, any idiot wizard within arm's reach of multiple opponents is in trouble already. >Well, I'm coming from the "what is 3E going to give to me" angle. Everyone >I DM for is pretty well happy with 2nd ed, and so there isnt really a rules >issue. >However... > >a) I like psionicists The psionics book is one of the first things coming in 2001, I believe. And they're making a lot of noise about making psionics "fit" better than it has into the regular game. >b) I like wild magic I suspect the chart will be nearly identical for 3E wild magic. And, again, the 3E Forgotten Realms book is the big news (from the perspective of WotC) in 2001. >c) I run on the Savage Coast, with araneas, rakastas, lupins and tortles Since any race can now be any class, what's the problem? Hell, some of the above may even make it into the new Monster Manual. >d) And the Red Curse of course The Red Curse was always a fairly balanced add-on. Why do you need 3E rules? The free conversion booklet out now talks about standardization of distances and effects, and you can do one of three things because of this: 1) Ignore it and keep the Red Curse as is. It'll work just fine. 2) Adapt the Red Curse by tweaking the effects to match how other effects of the same sort (missile weapons, armor spells, et cetera) work in 3E. 3) Wait around for the inevitable conversion that someone else will do. The "Dragon" is apparently going to have a bunch of articles like this in the next 12 months. Someone, maybe you, is going to get a nice little thank you check for doing the conversion work at some point. >e) and some pretty specific kits (ok, you can duplicate some of them - eg >feats like Weapon Finesse instead of a Swashbuckler kit, but it aint the >same. And stuff like the Inheritor?) Other than the Inheritor and the Al-Qadim kits, I suspect most people will be able to duplicate most kits pretty quickly. (OK, not the GKoM Glantrian mage or the Complete Wizard's Handbook witch, but the former's not much used as far as I can tell, and the latter will likely show up in the "Dragon.") And instead of using huge kits to basically introduce new classes as were done in 2E with Al-Qadim and the Red Steel inheritors, the new DMG will have guidelines on making new classes, which is what should have been done with all the above in the first case. >To remedy all this (especially the first three) I'm going to need a whole >slew of new rules and a big pile of paper. And for what? Its all >unnecessary as far as I can tell. Maybe things will improve when later >supplements come out, but then that means that I am looking at =A3100 worth= of >gaming books and a long wait before 3E will work for me. Why should I= bother >with that? (Its not even like the threat of not having any more= supplements >in earlier editions bothers me, because running Red Steel there will never >be any supplements anyway). Huh. To me it looks like 3E will bring immediate real improvements to the game. My players and I are salivating over being able to dump a lot of clunky stuff from the core 2E rules. House rules are all well and good, but few of them have been playtested by thousands of people (I forget the exact number of playtesters ...) over 12 months or more. >>>From another angle, a few things about 3E I find very worrying/annoying. >This stuff on feats for example, from what I have seen this stuff could be >so horrifically abused by players (and in my experience, if something can= be >abused, it will be abused). And the return of the assassin class as well, >that was better off dead and buried. And this "huge change in the combat >system" is just swapping a - for a + in the equation for calculating what >you need to hit a given AC (ie, it is a con). No, it's really not. It greatly speeds play, it speeds TEACHING the game, and creates new ranges of power for characters (i.e., no longer will 20th or even 36th level fighters be able to hit the toughest opponents in the game almost automatically, as armor classes for such extreme beings can scale up forever and ever, amen). And if you don't like the assassin (or the paladin, or the sorcerer, or the barbarian, or dwarven mages), don't let them into your campaign. My campaign won't be having any halfling or dwarven wizards any time soon, although I've already lifted many of the class restrictions, where appropriate. (I have players running halfling druids and bards, for= instance.) >There is good as well as bad, and I'll buy the books anyway to form my own >opinion, but what I think will be likely is that I may steal some of the >rules from 3E to put into 2nd ed, unless it truly is a work of genius. Whereas I forsee dumping all of my 2E stuff almost immediately, save for selected 2E spells and monsters that aren't yet part of 3E. I'll convert those and happily eBay the rest of my books for a tighter, cleaner, more smoothly running new operating system. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:07:23 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Yarbrough Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: <4.3.2.7.1.20000709105854.00b85e30@cogsci.ucsd.edu> MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:18 7/9/00 -0700, David S. Leland wrote: >On the other hand, as I might >have mentioned in an earlier post, I think the Seven Secret Crafts >powers might be suitable for a "prestige class" that works like >sorcery rather than wizardry, since those powers are considered >innate and not memorized as spells. Oooh! I hadn't thought of that, but you're right! (I was more focussed on hin Masters at the moment.) BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 18:17:26 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? Mystara wrote: >> Neat idea! << Thanks >> What would happen if some bureaucrat dropped an inordinately thick wad of memos* into one of the tubes, resulting in a "paper jam"? << Well, first off that possibly couldn't be done quite like that, because all messages would have to go into cannisters of some certain size (those of you who go to banks with drive-up windows that use similar tubes would know sort of what this would entail), though likely not quite the same. There would probably be more internal space, because I envision they'd open at the ends (with caps) rather than with the opening in the middle, and thus would be suitable for message scrolls. The canisters would have to have the same circumferance, but lengths could probably vary somewhat. However, jamming the tubes (either accidentally or on purpose) would be a good way to interfier with message traffic. . . >> Would there be a little squad of tiny golems who would patrol the tube system in search of blockages? << Probably not golems, but something along those lines (some sort of construct and/or creature) - and this is why having the tubes operate via some sort of bound minor elementals would be better than a "simple" enchantment - the elementals might be tasked with, in addition to "just" whisking the messages along, clearing bockages and, in cases where they can't clear the blockage themselves, reporting the obstruction to "maintanance" crews (which could consist of tiny constructs, or whatnot). Such blockages would still cause, of course, delays in message delivery, which might be useful for both adventurers and their enemies. . .I.E. a message gets delivered late, forcing the party to operate with great time constraints, or whatever. I'm sure creative DMs can come up with plot twists and the like. Also, such tubes might create inovative uses for Reduction-type spells (shrink the party town to small size, crawl into a tube, and *whoosh*). ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 15:17:18 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Mnemae Longstride (was Re: [MYSTARA] Mail in the Known World?) In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed I find this thread on mail very interesting, and wanted to share yet another idea (not for mail service, per se, but related). Warning--this is kind of long (then again, I'm generally quite verbose)... Meet Mnemae (neh-may) Longstride, a woman famous for her amazing, seemingly limitless memory for what is told to her. She makes her living by travelling from city to city receiving and delivering messages verbally. In a small country, this could be on foot. If you want it more cosmopolitan you can upgrade to a horse, or further to a flying carpet or flying mount. Teleport makes sense but is too easy and boring, and because of the speed, makes the memorizing aspect less impressive. Mnemae charges a standard price for publicly announced messages, based on the distance between cities/towns. She comes walking (or riding) into your town, announces her arrival in the town square, and calls out the time next morning when she will deliver the messages. She stays at an inn overnight while the news of her arrival spreads. The next morning, she recites the messages like a town crier, and anyone knowing/hoping they have a message for them, or wanting to have one delivered, stands around in a crowd waiting. A popular custom is for friends or relatives to send messages with a humorous component that may poke fun at the recipient, since it is known that others (particularly peers and other family) will be present when the messages are delivered. Mnemae then accepts new messages. While this service is largely a form of entertainment and known to many, very few people know that for a more substantial fee, Mnemae will personally deliver a message to someone in private. She sometimes makes these personal deliveries after the general ones, but more often she dons a disguise before arriving in town and distributes private messages first, then reenters the town as per normal and gives general messages. This is to foil attempts at tailing her after the general announcements to see to whom she's delivering private messages. Especially among the more powerful and wealthy clients who use the private delivery method, she is renowned for her Neutrality and noninvolvement in political affairs of any sort, and is trusted not to reveal information to others. Some give her messages in codes and riddles, more to keep others from getting information out of her than out of fear that she may sell out. Furthermore, she seems to have a natural resistance similar to that conferred by a Medallion vs. Crystal Balls and ESP or other magic item, such that tracking her or prying into her mind magically is next to impossible, increasing customer security. Clients like the fact that there is no physical evidence of any message. Many people speculate that she is a magic-user of some sort, or that she has some sort of gimmick (even as simple as writing down the messages in private soon after she receives them), but the truth is that she is just a normal human (or nonspellcaster at least, perhaps a low-to-mid level thief/rogue) with an "audiographic memory." The immunity to magical probing could be the result of some blessing, having an ancestor of some strange race, or even part of the same natural gift that gives her the amazing memory. As the DM, you are under no obligation to explain to your players--stranger things happen. PCs may be familiar with Mnemae from seeing her receive and deliver messages at the center of their town. Perhaps they have sent or received messages from her in the past. Here's an adventure hook: a detective/rescue mission where Mnemae turns up missing. A client wants to know what happened to her because he paid her to deliver a very important coded message. It turns out she's been kidnapped and some villain is keeping her prisoner and interrogating (i.e. torturing) her until she reveals the message, which contains information that will play into his dastardly plans. Because of her immunity to magical interrogation, it will take time to get the information out of her. The PCs must hurry! When they rescue her, they learn that the original sender is missing or has been killed in an attempt to capture or interrogate him, and now Mnemae is the only one known to know the message. She accepted a Geas which prevents her from transmitting her message in any manner other than verbally to the recipient (i.e. can't write it down or tell anyone else), so the PCs must escort her to her destination quickly before she forgets enough details of the intricately-coded message that it becomes "ruined." All along the way, thugs and assassins attempt to recapture or kill her, and party must defend her at all costs. When she is finally rescued and the message delivered, the content of that message may lead into your next adventure... Magus Coeruleus / ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ \ < David S Leland ~|~ dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu > | PhD Candidate ~|~ 858-534-9754(lab)/-1128(fax) | < UCSD Cog Sci ~|~ cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland > \ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ / ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 23:56:25 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sun, 9 Jul 2000 09:22:00 Rob wrote: >> 1. Magic system. This is just the same as the always - no change! This is >a huge disappointment in my book, because flexibility is still lost to D&D. >I would have thought that they would, at the very least, have included an >optional spell point system similar to the one in Spells & Magic (which >doesn't work too well either, btw), but nope - not a thing! Is there >something wrong with the system we have now? No, but it is pretty boring >IMNSHO. The thing is that it rewards people for always choosing the same old >universal spells (anyone ever played a session where all the wizard knew >they would use Detect Undead more than Magic Missile and actually memorized >spells to reflect that?). While the old system is easy, it does have the >flaw that we see unusual spells very rarely. Not, for as the DM, that makes >the game easy, because no wizard or priest ever casts a spell I don't know >forwards *and* backwards, but it makes for pretty dull spellcasting I >think... > >Got to disagree with you here :) I dont think people do select standard >spells (they dont around here anyway). I myself have used Detect Undead a >fair bit :) >The spell system shows the games tactical roots I think. It also >encourages a thinking mage, who has to plan ahead, rather than someone who >can just knock stuff up on spec. > >And from a totally different angle, letting a wiz cast whatever he wants >whenever makes the mage far, far too powerful. Flexibility is power, and >that gives the mage unsurpassed flexibility, assuming he has put his >spellbook together with a degree of competence. > I agree with that. I allow a bit more flexibility than the standard rules, but wizards still have to memorize spells - if they don't memorize a spell in advance, they can't cast it! However, I do allow people to memorize more spells than they end up casting. If a wizard memorizes Magic Missile and prepares it for casting three times IMC, it still counts only as one spell for purposes of memorizing, but as three for purposes of how many he may cast. The net effect is that he can memorize more spells, but not be able to cast them unless he sacrifices other spells to power it. That gives him a little flexibility, but he still can't just cast whatever he wants all the time, and he can memorize all his spells only if he has few in his books... >> 2. Spellcasting provokes Attacks of Opportunity. Despite claims to the >contrary, nobody has yet managed to remove my fears that this rule will >utterly ruin the game for most spellcasters, and particularly wizards. For >those of you who don't know, this rule states that if a wizard begins >casting a spell, then all enemies within melee range of that wizard will get >a free attack against him. I do agree that the rule makes sense in some >cases, but I fail to see how it can avoid dooming the wizard when all he >wants to do is use his Dimension Door or Teleport spells to escape. I hate >this rule and I refuse to play in any game that uses it! Period. Yes, those >are strong statements, and you may call me a biased wizard-lover for making >them - go ahead. I *do* love wizards :) and besides: I've already been >called far worse :( > >Well, in AD&D at the moment, if a spellcaster is within arms reach of just >about anyone, hes in deep trouble. One swift wrestling attack later, and >the mage is on the floor in a full nelson before he can say "Die". (And no, >stoneskin doesnt stop wrestling according to Skip :). > I agree 100%, which is exactly why I think this rule is totally uncalled for - that part of the game works fine already, so why change it if it ain't broke? :) >I know nothing of the 3E rules (I am actually very skeptical of 3E myself, >but for other reasons than the ones you cite) but this does seem perhaps a >little harsh, mind, but without having actually read the rules I cant really >give an opinion on it. Say that I reckon that if a fighter gets within arms >reach of a mage, the mage is dead unless he has Contingency or something >similar, and that is a good thing. > For the fighter anyway. I wouldn't want to play the wizard who just wants to teleport away with the body of one of his fallen comrades just so he can resurrect him later in 3e, though... >> Now, some may say that I can just change those rules IMC, and then play >anyway. Sure, I can, but there wouldn't be much for me in playing 3e then. I >already have 60+ pages of house rules for my 2e Player Option campaign, and >a primary reason for my initial enthusiasm about 3e was to get rid of all >those annoying house rules - even though they were mine! Now, however, I can >see that I will have to write at least as many rules to make 3e fit with my >ideas of D&D, and then there's not much point in bothering at all... :( > > >Well, I'm coming from the "what is 3E going to give to me" angle. Everyone >I DM for is pretty well happy with 2nd ed, and so there isnt really a rules >issue. >However... > >a) I like psionicists I don't. >b) I like wild magic I don't. Sorry. >c) I run on the Savage Coast, with araneas, rakastas, lupins and tortles >d) And the Red Curse of course >e) and some pretty specific kits (ok, you can duplicate some of them - eg >feats like Weapon Finesse instead of a Swashbuckler kit, but it aint the >same. And stuff like the Inheritor?) > >To remedy all this (especially the first three) I'm going to need a whole >slew of new rules and a big pile of paper. And for what? Its all >unnecessary as far as I can tell. Maybe things will improve when later >supplements come out, but then that means that I am looking at #100 worth of >gaming books and a long wait before 3E will work for me. Why should I bother >with that? (Its not even like the threat of not having any more supplements >in earlier editions bothers me, because running Red Steel there will never >be any supplements anyway). > I haven't run any Red Steel stuff yet, although I might some day, as I do have the boxed sets. I guess it never really appealed to me that much... I like that there's a part of Mystara quite different to the Known/Old World (certainly not a copy), but I'm so sure I'd like to game in it... >>From another angle, a few things about 3E I find very worrying/annoying. >This stuff on feats for example, from what I have seen this stuff could be >so horrifically abused by players (and in my experience, if something can be >abused, it will be abused). Actually, that's one of the things I was looking forward to. It may be wide open for abuse as you suggest, but I just can determine that yet. The whole skill and feat system sounds good to me though. > And the return of the assassin class as well, >that was better off dead and buried. Well, I guess it depends a great deal on how that class works. Not much has surfaced about the assassin so far. I don't like the rumors about assassins having spells, but they are still just rumors, and besides, I could just outlaw that class as I intend to do with the sorcerer (which I dislike too, judging from the rumors). > And this "huge change in the combat >system" is just swapping a - for a + in the equation for calculating what >you need to hit a given AC (ie, it is a con). > This is true, but have you tried the new system? We started using it IMC several months back, and, yes, it was confusing... for about 30 minutes! After that, we never looked back! This is *so* much easier to work with, and is the one thing that I love in the new system - why we didn't do this years ago is totally beyond me :) >There is good as well as bad, and I'll buy the books anyway to form my own >opinion, but what I think will be likely is that I may steal some of the >rules from 3E to put into 2nd ed, unless it truly is a work of genius. > To tell you the truth, I doubt I'll be able to resist the urge to buy at least the PHB when it comes out, but it depends on a lot of things. Another thing is that I sense a rather 'elistist' opinion from WOTC about this whole 3e project. For instance, after 3e comes out, all 2e stuff is banned - nothing will printed in either Dragon or Dungeon. This is just one example, though :( - Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:18:03 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sun, 9 Jul 2000 11:18:55 David S. Leland wrote: > (massive snip) > > (This was in reference to casting provoking attacks of opportunity, >AOO). I don't think it's as harsh as you suspect because in 3E >spellcasters don't get spells automatically ruined when hit but do >have to make a "Concentration Check" penalized by the amount of >damage they take. I think this is pretty fair and realistic without >too much complication. One could argue that losing your spell >whenever you get hit, even if by a scratch (1 hp) is too harsh, and >that saying you can wave your arms around and safely cast right in >the face of a fighter ready to lop off your arms with an axe is too >generous. AOO and concentration checks seem to balance out. Of >course if you want the simplest, fastest combat possible, this isn't >the way to go. > Allowing a wizard to still cast his spell if a minotaur or even a Thyatian (not much difference in my book :) ) *is* too generous! Note that while I confess to being a wizard-lover, I still say that it's too generous for the wizard! My problem with this is that the rationale behind the AOO rule is that spellcasting is so complex and demanding that the wizard must focus all his concentration on it and thus drop his guard. Well, okay, but it is, apparently, *not* so complicated that he cannot cast even if a minotaur is hitting him in the head with an axe ???? The logic escapes me completely! Another problem with this is that it is far too unbalancing for high-leveled wizards - a low leveled wizard will almost always lose his spells and might just as well just lie down and die right away, while the really experienced wizards with ultra-high concentration scores can likely keep their concentration even if six or seven minotaurs are beating them into a pulp! If the DM uses these rules, I shudder to thing what happens when a group of 6th-8th level characters run into a lich! :( - Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:39:29 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Rob Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit >a) I like psionicists The psionics book is one of the first things coming in 2001, I believe. And they're making a lot of noise about making psionics "fit" better than it has into the regular game. Yes, I've heard... what I've heard doesnt inspire me much though. It sounded like they intend to try and include psionics in their Universal Magic System rather than have it separate, which kind of invalidates the whole point of having it exist at all. And of course this is doubtless another twenty quid heading TSRwards. >b) I like wild magic I suspect the chart will be nearly identical for 3E wild magic. And, again, the 3E Forgotten Realms book is the big news (from the perspective of WotC) in 2001. Yet another book to buy... the cost of this conversion rises by the day. Not to mention a gap of at least a year before the stuff I need comes out (two wild mages in the party, it will be tough running for them without knowing the rules for it....) >c) I run on the Savage Coast, with araneas, rakastas, lupins and tortles Since any race can now be any class, what's the problem? Hell, some of the above may even make it into the new Monster Manual.7 Races do have their own rules quirks though, even in 3E. Just different rules quirks from AD&D. Any way, you would still have to do something to convert them, make stuff up. >d) And the Red Curse of course The Red Curse was always a fairly balanced add-on. Why do you need 3E rules? The free conversion booklet out now talks about standardization of distances and effects, and you can do one of three things because of this: 1) Ignore it and keep the Red Curse as is. It'll work just fine. 2) Adapt the Red Curse by tweaking the effects to match how other effects of the same sort (missile weapons, armor spells, et cetera) work in 3E. 3) Wait around for the inevitable conversion that someone else will do. The "Dragon" is apparently going to have a bunch of articles like this in the next 12 months. Someone, maybe you, is going to get a nice little thank you check for doing the conversion work at some point. Maybe, but its hassle. I've got a book here already with rules that work fine. Do I really want to bother converting stuff over? 3E would have to be pretty damn incredible for me to bother, frankly. Its not like I'm intensely dissatisfied with 2E or anything. (If I was I would be more enthusiastic). I have heard nothing about 3E that makes me think I absolutely must incorporate this stuff into my campaign... >e) and some pretty specific kits (ok, you can duplicate some of them - eg >feats like Weapon Finesse instead of a Swashbuckler kit, but it aint the >same. And stuff like the Inheritor?) Other than the Inheritor and the Al-Qadim kits, I suspect most people will be able to duplicate most kits pretty quickly. (OK, not the GKoM Glantrian mage or the Complete Wizard's Handbook witch, but the former's not much used as far as I can tell, and the latter will likely show up in the "Dragon.") And instead of using huge kits to basically introduce new classes as were done in 2E with Al-Qadim and the Red Steel inheritors, the new DMG will have guidelines on making new classes, which is what should have been done with all the above in the first case. Well, you could make new classes in 2E so thats nothing new... As far as I see the 3E stuff wont be dissimilar to kits ultimately. A kit just gives you a few bonus proficiencies 3E will do the same thing, the difference being there are no kits per se, just a big selection of nifty abilities for you to pick and choose. My problem with that is that that approach is potentially wide open to abuse. I would rather you couldn't just pick anything you wanted, but you had a template with fixed abilities with a bit of leeway for the rounding out (ie a kit). I would have rather they did something like the Warhammer careers system. Warhammer had a lot of flaws, but they could have got around that with some imagination. The idea of having a career path was cool. Of course, starting off as a rat catcher wasnt so good, but everyone has to start somewhere :). >To remedy all this (especially the first three) I'm going to need a whole >slew of new rules and a big pile of paper. And for what? Its all >unnecessary as far as I can tell. Maybe things will improve when later >supplements come out, but then that means that I am looking at �100 worth of >gaming books and a long wait before 3E will work for me. Why should I bother >with that? (Its not even like the threat of not having any more supplements >in earlier editions bothers me, because running Red Steel there will never >be any supplements anyway). Huh. To me it looks like 3E will bring immediate real improvements to the game. My players and I are salivating over being able to dump a lot of clunky stuff from the core 2E rules. Well like what? House rules are all well and good, but few of them have been playtested by thousands of people (I forget the exact number of playtesters ...) over 12 months or more. I've just heard all this before, hence my scepticism and failure to be impressed. I remember when 2E came out, with similar fuss, and vast hours of playtesting time devoted to it. As I only had a couple of 1st ed books at the time, it wasnt a big deal. (and D&D books live forever, I still use the Gold Box now :). >>>From another angle, a few things about 3E I find very worrying/annoying. >This stuff on feats for example, from what I have seen this stuff could be >so horrifically abused by players (and in my experience, if something can be >abused, it will be abused). And the return of the assassin class as well, >that was better off dead and buried. And this "huge change in the combat >system" is just swapping a - for a + in the equation for calculating what >you need to hit a given AC (ie, it is a con). No, it's really not. It greatly speeds play, it speeds TEACHING the game, and creates new ranges of power for characters (i.e., no longer will 20th or even 36th level fighters be able to hit the toughest opponents in the game almost automatically, as armor classes for such extreme beings can scale up forever and ever, amen). Well, I'll grant you this one, it probably makes it easier to the teach the game. But really as far as I'm concerned (continuing my selfish angle of why I should pay �100+ for this) it doesnt make a great deal of difference to me whether I start at 20 and count down or start at 1 and count up... And there is no reason why you cant go down as far as you want just like 3E can have ACs at 50+. (In fact, using WotI, a Hierarch Immortal usually has an AC of around -40 IIRC). And if you don't like the assassin (or the paladin, or the sorcerer, or the barbarian, or dwarven mages), don't let them into your campaign. My campaign won't be having any halfling or dwarven wizards any time soon, although I've already lifted many of the class restrictions, where appropriate. (I have players running halfling druids and bards, for instance.) Ahh man, I hate that. Having to go through a book and vet it before you give it to the players... And I can imagine the arguments now I am going to have with one player of mine who is just obsessed with hit men and assassin types.... *groan* >There is good as well as bad, and I'll buy the books anyway to form my own >opinion, but what I think will be likely is that I may steal some of the >rules from 3E to put into 2nd ed, unless it truly is a work of genius. Whereas I forsee dumping all of my 2E stuff almost immediately, save for selected 2E spells and monsters that aren't yet part of 3E. I'll convert those and happily eBay the rest of my books for a tighter, cleaner, more smoothly running new operating system. Well, as far as I can see, it isnt going to be tighter or cleaner. Its going to involve effort when converting it, its going to involve yet more effort getting used to what has changed from previous versions. (Not to mention the price tag on all of this). I always did sympathise with those who still use 1st ed AD&D for similar reasons (they liked it, they were happy with it, they failed to see the point of spending their hard earned on something they didnt actually want or need). As I said, if there is something truly marvellous about this, and the initial grief of converting is going to be worth it, then excellent. But I've had my ear to the ground on the subject for some time, and I have yet to hear anything that really stuns me with its innovation/excellence/gaming possibilities, and nothing that is worth my hard earned as well as the time involved sorting it out. I guess I am somewhat bitter that I will probably end up having to buy it, simply because there is no choice if I want to ever use a TSR release ever again, and that this is going to cost me �100+ for something I don't really want (and will not even do what I want it to do without modification anyway). Lets hope its good, and my cash is not wasted, as I will be buying it anyway. Cheers Rob ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 16:56:31 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 04:18 PM 7/9/00, The Stalker wrote: Allowing a wizard to still cast his spell if a minotaur or even a Thyatian (not much difference in my book :) ) *is* too generous! Note that while I confess to being a wizard-lover, I still say that it's too generous for the wizard! Did you mean if you get HIT by a bull-headed oaf or a Minotaur? (Just kidding, Thyatophiles; I have no east coast - west coast rivalry going). So are you agreeing with this part or saying you think there should be NO chance of a spell working if hit at all? I'm not sure what your argument is. My problem with this is that the rationale behind the AOO rule is that spellcasting is so complex and demanding that the wizard must focus all his concentration on it and thus drop his guard. Well, okay, but it is, apparently, *not* so complicated that he cannot cast even if a minotaur is hitting him in the head with an axe ???? The logic escapes me completely! Again, I'm confused as to what your position is. The idea is that someone gets a free attack against you (AOO) if you drop your guard to cast when they are in your face. If you get hit when you try to cast, whether because of an AOO or because of an attack occurring at the same time as casting (because they had initiative and readied their action to strike when you cast) you have to make a concentration check modified by damage for the spell to work. What is the contradiction/paradox/inconsistency here? Another problem with this is that it is far too unbalancing for high-leveled wizards - a low leveled wizard will almost always lose his spells and might just as well just lie down and die right away, while the really experienced wizards with ultra-high concentration scores can likely keep their concentration even if six or seven minotaurs are beating them into a pulp! If the DM uses these ru! les, I shudder to thing what happens when a group of 6th-8th level characters run into a lich! :( To my knowledge (impartial at best), concentration checks are not modified by level. They are modified by intelligence, I think, and yes in 3E you can raise your stats, but only 1 ability point per 4 levels, so I don't think it's going to be that much of an issue. Even if higher-level casters DO get bonuses to concentration rolls based on level, it would still be difficult for them make because the roll is negatively modified by the amount of damage sustained. Higher level M-Us will have more hit points and will be taking larger amounts of damage from tougher opponents, which means their concentration rolls will actually be HARDER than for the lower-level guys if rolls aren't modified by level. Magus Coeruleus / ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ \ < David S Leland ~|~ dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu > | PhD Candidate ~|~ 858-534-9754(lab)/-1128(fax) | < UCSD Cog Sci ~|~ cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland > \ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ / ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:57:54 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Rob Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > I agree with that. I allow a bit more flexibility than the standard rules, but wizards still have to memorize spells - if they don't memorize a spell in advance, they can't cast it! However, I do allow people to memorize more spells than they end up casting. If a wizard memorizes Magic Missile and prepares it for casting three times IMC, it still counts only as one spell for purposes of memorizing, but as three for purposes of how many he may cast. The net effect is that he can memorize more spells, but not be able to cast them unless he sacrifices other spells to power it. That gives him a little flexibility, but he still can't just cast whatever he wants all the time, and he can memorize all his spells only if he has few in his books... Wow! someone agrees with me? (mustn't let it go to my head :) > I agree 100%, which is exactly why I think this rule is totally uncalled for - that part of the game works fine already, so why change it if it ain't broke? :) Twice in one day? *swoon* > >a) I like psionicists > > I don't. Ahh, this is more like it :) > >b) I like wild magic > > I don't. Sorry. Excellent, I'm back in the real world now :) > I haven't run any Red Steel stuff yet, although I might some day, as I do have the boxed sets. I guess it never really appealed to me that much... I like that there's a part of Mystara quite different to the Known/Old World (certainly not a copy), but I'm so sure I'd like to game in it... I think the Savage Coast is pretty well unique in all the TSR settings. Thats not to say that it is automatically good, but it certainly is a breath of fresh air amidst the (fairly standard) fantasy settings. > >From another angle, a few things about 3E I find very worrying/annoying. > >This stuff on feats for example, from what I have seen this stuff could be > >so horrifically abused by players (and in my experience, if something can be > >abused, it will be abused). > > Actually, that's one of the things I was looking forward to. It may be wide open for abuse as you suggest, but I just can determine that yet. The whole skill and feat system sounds good to me though. Well, we shall see. Some of those feats sound awfully reminiscent of the dark days of Unearthed Arcana though, and the mere thought of UA usually sends me running and taking cover for fear of an attack of munchkinitis. > > And the return of the assassin class as well, > >that was better off dead and buried. > > Well, I guess it depends a great deal on how that class works. Not much has surfaced about the assassin so far. I don't like the rumors about assassins having spells, but they are still just rumors, and besides, I could just outlaw that class as I intend to do with the sorcerer (which I dislike too, judging from the rumors). Well, I'm with you on here. But IMHO if I have to start going over it and banning certain classes (sorcerer and assassin would be the first two) than I might as well not bother getting the game at all. If you have to fiddle with the core rules that implies a certain fundamental disagreement. > > And this "huge change in the combat > >system" is just swapping a - for a + in the equation for calculating what > >you need to hit a given AC (ie, it is a con). > > > > This is true, but have you tried the new system? We started using it IMC several months back, and, yes, it was confusing... for about 30 minutes! After that, we never looked back! This is *so* much easier to work with, and is the one thing that I love in the new system - why we didn't do this years ago is totally beyond me :) Maybe it is. I'm not saying I have any misgivings about adding instead of subtracting, as far as I'm concerned thats an irrelevance. But after having all this stuff coming out in the early days ("They have got rid of THAC0 in 3E! Finally a decent hit roll system!") and finding out that all they have done is this, I feel more than a little cheated. Storm in a teacup. > >There is good as well as bad, and I'll buy the books anyway to form my own > >opinion, but what I think will be likely is that I may steal some of the > >rules from 3E to put into 2nd ed, unless it truly is a work of genius. > > > > To tell you the truth, I doubt I'll be able to resist the urge to buy at least the PHB when it comes out, but it depends on a lot of things. Another thing is that I sense a rather 'elistist' opinion from WOTC about this whole 3e project. For instance, after 3e comes out, all 2e stuff is banned - nothing will printed in either Dragon or Dungeon. This is just one example, though :( Well, yeah, IMO you have no choice really to buy at least the PHB. If only to finally find out and pass judgment with book in hand rather than upon hearsay, but also because, as you say, with them banning previous stuff you really have no choice assuming you want to understand the next Dragon article. I dont know. From what I have heard its not really like D&D any more. Its a game for the modern era where White Wof games are played. Things like flexibility are the watchwords now, whether or not it leads to rampant munchkinism, which in my experience flexibility inevitably does. Cheers Rob ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 17:25:57 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: <4.3.2.7.1.20000709164305.00b86670@cogsci.ucsd.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed Just a note, since I hear a lot of people gumbling about buying 3E when they don't think they'll like it, just to see: while there may be no substitute for the complete book, there IS a *LOT* of information available free at Eric Noah's Unofficial 3E page http://www.rpgplanet.com/dnd3e/ I've been keeping up with it for fun and based on it I've decided buying the PHB is worthwhile to me, and probably even trying to use the system. But I'm not trying to convince anyone of that. In fact, I'd suggest you NOT buy ANYTHING until you check out this site in case it becomes blatant from it that you don't want to waste your money. Magus Coeruleus dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 01:48:32 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sun, 9 Jul 2000 16:56:31 David S. Leland wrote: > (snip) > Again, I'm confused as to what your position is. The idea is that >someone gets a free attack against you (AOO) if you drop your guard >to cast when they are in your face. If you get hit when you try to >cast, whether because of an AOO or because of an attack occurring at >the same time as casting (because they had initiative and readied >their action to strike when you cast) you have to make a >concentration check modified by damage for the spell to work. What >is the contradiction/paradox/inconsistency here? > The contraction is that they claim that spellcasting is complex, but still allow spellcasters a chance to do it even thought they're being hit. They shouldn't even get a chance for that. In short, this rule is imposed to 'restore' game balance, but I'd be more happy if they left it as it always was... A concentration skill is fine, but it should be used like this IMNSHO. (another snip) > > To my knowledge (impartial at best), concentration checks are not >modified by level. They are modified by intelligence, I think, and >yes in 3E you can raise your stats, but only 1 ability point per 4 >levels, so I don't think it's going to be that much of an >issue. Even if higher-level casters DO get bonuses to concentration >rolls based on level, it would still be difficult for them make >because the roll is negatively modified by the amount of damage >sustained. Higher level M-Us will have more hit points and will be >taking larger amounts of damage from tougher opponents, which means >their concentration rolls will actually be HARDER than for the >lower-level guys if rolls aren't modified by level. > Well, when I mentioned that Elminster or Gandalf would die if surprised by a group of trolls under these rules, I was told by 3e playtesters that guys like those would be so tough in 3e that it would probably be almost impossible to break their concentration no matter what! While I presume that level might not factor into the concentration skill directly, a wizard could still improve upon it as he becomes more experienced, and naturally a wise wizard would, as he *needs* his spells to survive! But that just makes it worse because it forces the wizard to devote the skill points he earns as he progresses (or whatever they are called) to a continued improvement of his concentration skill. If the player doesn't like that, the argument is "we don't force you, but it's a good idea if you want to cast any spells!" Okay, so that may not be how it works, but it is the impression I'm getting :( - Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 02:04:47 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:57:54 Rob wrote: (snip all that annoying agreement :) ) > >I think the Savage Coast is pretty well unique in all the TSR settings. >Thats not to say that it is automatically good, but it certainly is a breath >of fresh air amidst the (fairly standard) fantasy settings. > Oh, I agree (aargh! Again!). I just prefer the more standard fantasy feel, and Mystara was always 'my' campaign. Mystara is also more interesting because we don't have all those awful-good-and-righteous against all those evil-evil-selfish-no-redeeming-qualities types of FR. Greyhawk actually isn't too bad either IMHO, but naturally I like Mystara best of all :) (snip of more agreement!) > >Maybe it is. I'm not saying I have any misgivings about adding instead of >subtracting, as far as I'm concerned thats an irrelevance. But after having >all this stuff coming out in the early days ("They have got rid of THAC0 in >3E! Finally a decent hit roll system!") and finding out that all they have >done is this, I feel more than a little cheated. Storm in a teacup. > Oh, I see. Yes, WOTC's hype is rather sicking IMNSHO too. As somebody said quite mockingly on DND-L, "... And it'll cure Cancer too!" :) I mean, it's just a new version of the game, nothing earthshattering... > >Well, yeah, IMO you have no choice really to buy at least the PHB. If only >to finally find out and pass judgment with book in hand rather than upon >hearsay, but also because, as you say, with them banning previous stuff you >really have no choice assuming you want to understand the next Dragon >article. > Exactly :( Sure makes you wonder what would have happened if TSR had tried this stunt in '89 when 2e came out, doesn't it? (Scary thoughts, indeed!) :) >I dont know. From what I have heard its not really like D&D any more. Its >a game for the modern era where White Wof games are played. Things like >flexibility are the watchwords now, whether or not it leads to rampant >munchkinism, which in my experience flexibility inevitably does. > Well, I agree and disagree (happy now? :) ). I agree that something D&D is missing from 3e. I can't put my finger on what it is, but I definitely feel that way. But on the other hand, the game *had* to be revised now! I just don't think WOTC did as good a job of the revision as they would have us all believe... :( - Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 02:09:33 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sun, 9 Jul 2000 17:25:57 David S. Leland wrote: >Just a note, since I hear a lot of people gumbling about buying 3E >when they don't think they'll like it, just to see: while there may >be no substitute for the complete book, there IS a *LOT* of >information available free at Eric Noah's Unofficial 3E page > >http://www.rpgplanet.com/dnd3e/ > >I've been keeping up with it for fun and based on it I've decided >buying the PHB is worthwhile to me, and probably even trying to use >the system. But I'm not trying to convince anyone of that. In fact, >I'd suggest you NOT buy ANYTHING until you check out this site in >case it becomes blatant from it that you don't want to waste your >money. > Thanks for the consideration, but I actually know Eric Noah's site quite well already, and I really appreciate the awesome amount of work he does to gather information on 3e, even though I don't care so much for the sound of 3e myself. But I've been aware of his site for a *very* long time now. In fact, I had the honor of being the first person to make him aware that WOTC had named Shawn Stanley's site the official site for Mystara :) - Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 21:11:17 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Mischa E Gelman Subject: Re: New to Mystara In-Reply-To: <200007091623.JAA28801@smtp.zzz.com> MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII > The nation of Yavdlom, as described in CoM, is comprised entirely of > half-elves (mingling the Sheyallia clan with the Tanogoro). Well, humans with elven blood. They possess the same abilities as humans, not elves, and see themselves as the former (despite numerous elvish elements in their culture). Or, as Nyanga put it, "We make de tasty stew of elves hee'." - Mischa The purpose of human life is the life beyond this world - to return to G-d. The life of this world has value only to the extent that it points to G-d. - Seyyed Hossein Nasr ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 18:25:36 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 05:48 PM 7/9/00, The Stalker wrote: The contraction is that they claim that spellcasting is complex, but still allow spellcasters a chance to do it even thought they're being hit. They shouldn't even get a chance for that. In short, this rule is imposed to 'restore' game balance, but I'd be more happy if they left it as it always was... A concentration skill is fine, but it should be used like this IMNSHO. Used like what? Did that part of your post get sucked into the Vortex Dimension? ;) Well, when I mentioned that Elminster or Gandalf would die if surprised by a group of trolls under these rules, I was told by 3e playtesters that guys like those would be so tough in 3e that it would probably be almost impossible to break their concentration no matter what! While I presume that level might not factor into the concentration skill directly, a wizard could still improve upon it as he becomes more experienced, and naturally a wise wizard would, as he *needs* his spells to survive! But that just makes it worse because it forces the wizard to devote the skill points he earns as he progresses (or whatever they are called) to a continued improvement of his concentration skill. If the player doesn't like that, the argument is "we don't force you, but it's a good idea if you want to cast any spells!" Okay, so that may not be how it works, but it is the impression I'm getting :( I think you're right that while level may not directly help, there are skills to improve concentration checks. I think this makes sense since, as I said, at higher levels M-Us will take more damage and have larger negative modifiers on the checks. I understand your position a little better now but I still don't see how your views cohere. On one hand you're saying that you don't think M-Us should get any chance to cast a spell if hit. But then you're arguing that he's forced to spend skill points to improve concentration because he needs it to survive. Clearly, the player can either 1) spend the skill points on other things, so that getting hit ruins his spells most of the time (as it is now); or 2) sacrifice opportunities for other skills by spending points on a skill or skills that assist concentration checks. Not purchasing concentration-related skills shouldn't make the M-U much if any worse off that the current no-chance system. Magus Coeruleus dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 20:28:13 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > What would happen if some bureaucrat dropped an inordinately thick wad of > memos* into one of the tubes, resulting in a "paper jam Remember that scene in "Brazil" where the office of Information Retrieval suffers just such a malady! Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 21:46:19 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? Mystara wrote: >> Remember that scene in "Brazil" where the office of Information Retrieval suffers just such a malady! << Yes. That was different from a "jam", though - that was a "flood" of messages (or, IIRC, the same message kept poping into his tube). BRAZIL is so great, everyone should watch it. 8-) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 19:04:41 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed I wasn't trying to scoop you or anyone, and my mention of the website was not directed at you in particular. In fact it was intended for those who might not know about it. I'm glad you've found it impressive, too. And thanks for making Noah aware of the Mystara site. At 06:09 PM 7/9/00, The Stalker wrote: Thanks for the consideration, but I actually know Eric Noah's site quite well already, and I really appreciate the awesome amount of work he does to gather information on 3e, even though I don't care so much for the sound of 3e myself. But I've been aware of his site for a *very* long time now. In fact, I had the honor of being the first person to make him aware that WOTC had named Shawn Stanley's site the official site for Mystara :) Magus Coeruleus dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 03:28:25 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Yes. That was different from a "jam", though - that was a "flood" of messages (or, IIRC, the same message kept poping into his tube). > I'm not aiming to start anything ,this time ;^), but wasn't it caused by him actually jamming a bit of pipe into both the send and recieve parts, so that the messages which were coming to him just went straight through? This pipe got jammed up and inflated then exploded. > BRAZIL is so great, everyone should watch it. 8-) > I may have reached supersaturation level with it though :^( BTW has anyone seen a fleet of personnel transporters I've apparently misplaced? ;^) Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 04:20:46 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Ericall the Aristocrat MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I was toying with the idea of our bumbling buddy Ericall being involved in some sort of weird cult scam, then thought "Hold on, he's actually capable of becoming a paladin/avenger/crusader in OD&D", and can't remember if it's been raised before. If it has please will someone direct me as to where, if not I've got a "bit of politics to discuss", as Lenin (before overthrowing the Tar) is reputed to have said to Allen Welsh Dulles (later head of the CIA) when he asked for a meeting. Dulles went and played tennis instead. There may be a moral in that somewhere!Even if it isn't true. ;^) Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 01:11:46 -0300 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: =?iso-8859-1?Q?Andr=E9?= Martins Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Geoff Gander wrote: > James wrote: > > Other buildings (wealthier areas, government buildings, commercial buildings that > do a lot of communicating) would have multiple tubes, and possibly even "internal" > tube systems for "inter-office" messages. > > Neat idea! > > What would happen if some bureaucrat dropped an inordinately thick wad of > memos* into one of the tubes, resulting in a "paper jam"? Would there be a > little squad of tiny golems who would patrol the tube system in search of > blockages? With elemental powering the message system as someone suggested and with gnomes behind its building, I can think imagine a few problems happening from times to times. You know, like the tubes been sent at very high speeds at random times, possibly hurting anyone who is unlucky enough to be in the way of the "bullet". In Serraine, some gnomes have even considered using one of these tubes as a way to send small probes outside the atmosphere, or as some sort of weapon. Other possibilities include someone having his hands sucked by the thing. "Cut the tube! Fast! Before the thing takes me to inside it!" And of course, and more commonly, your message would be delivered to the wrong place. If you are a PC, that wrong place will certainly be the last person in Mystara who should ever see the note you are trying to send. Andre Martins ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:04:37 EDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Mike Gillen Subject: New Comer MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hello! I am a new comer to the list! I just called to say hi, and to raise a question, ever notice how insanely large Alphatia is? I mean, I did some measurements, and her are some interesting conversions: The Known World (From Sind to Thyatis to Heldannic Territories) is roughly half the size of europe. Alphatia mainland is the size of Europe The Alphatian Empire is the size of Africa...in other words, if Mystara was earth, Alphatia would take up 20% of the land mass of the world. A tad large...especially for a now floating island... ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:23:51 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Meet the Burrowers: Klarkaszh the Corrupter Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Okay- think I've finally got this to the point it's ready for public consumption. Wasn't quite sure where to place the power levels, so I just made guesses based on similar creatures as far as HD, Dmg ratings, etc., while trying to keep them on a par with lower level Immortals. Let me know what you guys think about them, and any suggestions, etc, welcome! "Annals of the Great Burrowers" by Wastoure At the dawn of human civilization on Mystara, the Immortal Hierarch of Entropy, Thanatos, embarked upon a plan to create minions capable of wreaking mass havoc and destruction upon the world of mortals. With his own powerful magicks, combined with the otherworldly and otherdimensional workings of other cosmic entities, Thanatos created a powerful assortment of monstrosities indeed. These he unleashed upon the interior of Mystara, that they might conquer the so-called "Hollow World" and use it as a base of operations from which to spread their contagion across the face of the world. These creatures, collectively known as the Burrowers, actually encompassed a wide range of species. Some of them, such as the near mindless Annelids, still roam free today. Their effectiveness as forces of Entropy are greatly reduced, however, without the guidance of their overlords, the Greater Burrowers, who have all been incapacitated by the Spell of Preservation cast thousands of years ago by the Immortal caretakers of the Hollow World. As the Burrower presence predates the existence of most civilizations, there has been very little information about the individual identities and functions of the Great Burrowers. What follows is the information I have pieced together over many years, from societal myths and legends (many of which resulted from distant contact with the minds of these powerful creatures), ancient texts from the Empire of Selhomarr, and my own communions with several of the Great Burrowers. Chapter 1: Corruption History: Before his ascension, Klarkaszh was a kopru- an amphibious creature of great intellect and evil, distantly related to the reptilian Carnifex. Like most of his kind, Klarkaszh was decadent and cruel, delighting in the torment and abuse of his human servants. He was noted for his tendency to manipulate his charges into turning on one another, in exchange for favors granted. He prided himself on his keen understanding of human nature, and preferred to use psychology rather than his own innate powers of domination to turn mankind against one another. Klarkaszh was a reigning Chronarch in the kopru empire at the time of its destruction. When the Immortals buried the cornerstone of kopru might, cutting the Chronarchs off from one another, individual kopru struggled in vain to maintain control over their holdings. As he watched his kingdom going down in flames, Klarkaszh was approached by Thanatos, who brokered a deal. "Swear allegiance to me," whispered the Hierarch of Entropy, "and I shall give you power enough to fight the Immortals themselves!" Seething with anger and thoughts of revenge, Klarkaszh agreed, and was whisked away from his crumbling dominion, where he was subjected to endless magickal rites and bargains with alien powers. His ascension had begun, and he was to join the ranks of several others who had been similarly recruited by Thanatos. Klarkaszh was given the epithet "Corrupter" and his abilities to influence and manipulate the minds of mortals were greatly enhanced. He was deposited in the Sea of Rax, and charged with destroying the civilization of Selhomarr. He took to his quest with relish, remembering stories of the conflicts between the ancient carnifex and the Lhomarrians of the outer world. Klarkaszh assaulted the fledgling empire both physically- attacking their navies from the sea, sending armies of sea creatures against the mortals- as well as in more insidious ways. He often used his power to assume humanoid form, and go among the Selhomarrians, spreading his corruption. At the height of his powers, he had several mortal identities well established in places of political influence. The most telling account of Klarkaszh's might is found in an ancient Selhomarrian legend. It speaks of a servant sent by the Immortals- it is unclear whether this servant was mortal, or a fledgling Immortal. Upon arriving in Selhomarr, it began an intensive investigation of the corrupting influence on that empire, and even combatted publicly several lesser Burrowing creatures- servitors of Klarkaszh. Eventually, the servant managed to discover the identity of his true foe, and confronted Klarkaszh in the Bay of Lokam. There, the Corrupter unleashed his most potent ability- his enhanced Domination power- and turned the servant of the Immortals into his own personal plaything, unleashing it on Selhomarrian society for a brief, destructive time, and then sending it back to Pandius to attack its masters. When the Immortals cast their Spell of Preservation, Klarkaszh was immediately and dramatically affected, like the rest of his Great Burrower brethren. His body liquefied, becoming a vast, bubbling, putrescent mass that floated off into the Sea of Rax. His powerful mind was paralyzed, though the barest fraction of it may still reach out and touch the minds of lesser mortals still. Its present whereabouts are unknown, though tales occasionally reach the ports of seafaring nations- such as Antalia- of attacks by vicious, mutated sea creatures, floating fleshy masses, and crews suddenly mutinying with no prior indication. DM Notes: Klarkaszh the Corrupter Sphere: Entropy Status: Exalted Power Points: 300 Anti-Magic: 60% AC: 0 HD: 25 (120 hp) MV: 30' (10') Swimming: 300' (100') Attacks: 4 tentacles or dominate or spell Damage: 2d4 or charm or by spell No. App.: 1 (Unique) Save As: MU36/IM5 ML: 10 AL: C St: 18 Dx: 15 Co: 13 In: 30 Wi: 16 Ch: 25 Klarkaszh appears as a giant (25' tall) kopru- two large eyes and a sphinctered, tentacled mouth. A large fin runs from the center of his forehead to his lower neck. Like other kopru, His lower body ends in three fluke like tails, though they lack the customary ripping claw at the ends. Instead of arms, Klarkaszh has four long, powerful tentacles (two per shoulder socket). His epidermis is completely transparent, revealing ropy white and purple muscles and inner organs. Combat: Klarkaszh's four tentacles can reach opponents up to 10' away, though he may not attack more than two targets at the same time. Each tentacle is covered by dozens of sharp, jagged claws, which rip into victims for 2d4 points of damage each. If a victim is hit by two tentacles in the same round, he is considered ensnared, and will be pulled to Klarkaszh's mouth for a bite attack (3d4 damage) on the next round. In order to break free, both Klarkaszh and the victim must make a strength check on 1d20- whoever succeeds the roll by the greatest amount is the victor in the battle of strength. Klarkaszh may also use his power points in order to create magical effects, though he forsakes any physical attack during the round in which he does so. He may duplicate any of the standard effects usable by an Immortal of Entropy (Gold Box DM's book, inside back cover). He may also use his power to affect the duration and range of said effects (as per Gold Box Player's book, p. 16). If using the Wrath of the Immortals rules, Klarkaszh may spend TP to cast any number of spells per day, as a standard Immortal may (p. 59 of WotI Book One). He casts spells as a 36th level magic user. Like all kopru, Klarkaszh is naturally more magic resistant than most creatures, and the enhancements he received upon his ascension increased this ability to its current levels. He has a natural Anti-Magic of 60%, and he makes his saving throws as either a 36th level Magic-User (against mortals) or a 5th level Initiate (against Immortals). It may only be affected by weapons of +2 or greater enchantment. Perhaps his most devastating attack is his enhanced Domination ability. He may use this attack in lieu of other attacks in any given round. Mortals must make a saving throw versus death ray (at a -6 penalty due to Klarkaszh's great charisma) or else become completely devoted and obedient to the Corrupter. The victim's thoughts and memories become known to Klarkaszh, and he may control up to 10 mortals at once (with no range limitations). The domination may be broken by a dispel magic spell (cast against a 36th level effect), or by the death of Klarkaszh. Victims may make another save after 6 months, to attempt to break free. A victim who is unaffected by the domination may never be affected again (although Klarkaszh may use other techniques- such as a charm spell- to achieve similar results). As an exalted being, Klarkaszh's domination ability can even affect Immortals. The victim of such an attack must make a saving throw versus mental attacks, but at a +4 bonus to the roll. If unsuccessful, the effects are as noted above, but the Immortal may make a new saving throw at the beginning of each week. Klarkaszh may only control one Immortal at any given time. ----- Andrew "Cthulhudrew" Theisen Aspiring screenwriter, actor, and gadabout jsmill@wans.net "The greatest trick Doug Henning ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Keyser Soze ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 08:28:51 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Rob Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Just a note, since I hear a lot of people gumbling about buying 3E > when they don't think they'll like it, just to see: while there may > be no substitute for the complete book, there IS a *LOT* of > information available free at Eric Noah's Unofficial 3E page > > http://www.rpgplanet.com/dnd3e/ Yeah, I know, I've been looking at it... I'm not arguing from a point of ignorance you know ;) Cheers Rob ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 08:38:23 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Rob Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > I think you're right that while level may not directly help, there > are skills to improve concentration checks. I think this makes sense > since, as I said, at higher levels M-Us will take more damage and > have larger negative modifiers on the checks. I understand your > position a little better now but I still don't see how your views > cohere. On one hand you're saying that you don't think M-Us should > get any chance to cast a spell if hit. But then you're arguing that > he's forced to spend skill points to improve concentration because he > needs it to survive. Clearly, the player can either 1) spend the > skill points on other things, so that getting hit ruins his spells > most of the time (as it is now); or 2) sacrifice opportunities for > other skills by spending points on a skill or skills that assist > concentration checks. Not purchasing concentration-related skills > shouldn't make the M-U much if any worse off that the current > no-chance system. *snip* You know, given all this debate on wizards getting disrupted, I think I would rather stick to 2E on this subject as well. If a wizard doesnt want to be disrupted in 2E, he has to be tactical and use spells with a short casting time. Evards black tentacles is an asskicking spell, but with a casting time of 1 round during which anybody present gets a chance to poke him, you arent going to be using that one very much. Its also amusing when the opening move between archmages is a volley of casting time 1 spells like magic missile :) This concentration thing sounds like just the sort of thing I was on about when 3E is filled with skills which could be abused. Such a rule has taken out all the tactics of spellcasting. In 3E it seems like your archmage may as well go for the meteor swarm every time. In 2E he cant do that.... And once again I fail to see what is simple or streamlined about this whole rules issue. Attacks of opportunity? Concentration checks? In 2E its an initiative roll, either you beat him or you dont, with a bit of tactics possible through use of different weapons and different spells. It sounds like in 3E you are already adding at least two more rolls and another reference to a character sheet to resolve the same thing - and for what? How exactly does this benefit the game, make it more playable? It doesnt. Cheers Rob ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 10:13:44 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Caroletti Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit > > > As I said, if there is something truly marvellous about this, and the > initial grief of converting is going to be worth it, then excellent. But > I've had my ear to the ground on the subject for some time, and I have yet > to hear anything that really stuns me with its innovation/excellence/gaming > possibilities, and nothing that is worth my hard earned as well as the time > involved sorting it out. > > I guess I am somewhat bitter that I will probably end up having to buy it, > simply because there is no choice if I want to ever use a TSR release ever > again, and that this is going to cost me �100+ for something I don't really > want (and will not even do what I want it to do without modification > anyway). > > Lets hope its good, and my cash is not wasted, as I will be buying it > anyway. > > Cheers > > Rob Well, my two liras on the matter. I will probably never buy a 3E book. Since 1996 I have bought only 4 xD&D products, and two of them were CM6 and M1 D&D adventures. My own imagination, plus this list and the sites mainteined by you guys are all that I need. I think rules are really not important for a campaign. They only need to be equilibrate, with no advantage given to a class, a race or to players rather than monsters. I use a set of home-made rules built around OD&D using Player's Option (??? Yes, it's true), with the adding of some extra-class. Anyway, I care only for the setting, and this may well be appearant from my works on the list, on the Tome and on my site. I give a damn what system is used, as long as the setting is good. Period. 3E won't change my life. The things are always gonna stay the same: if the DM is good, if the setting is entertaining, every rule system will fit (ok, if the rule system is marvelous or real ...zzonga, then the game will lose something, but only an idiot uses a system he hates). 3E is going to change things only because it will be an universal standard to understand products. And I believe, from what I see, that nobody will have problems to understand things (at least, not too much) even not buying the stuff if they buy a new product for 3E. I managed to use AD&D books for years without owning PHB and DMG, I have Dark Sun products without having Dark Sun, and the same goes for Ravenloft. I surely won't give my bucks to TSR/WotC, and you know why? Because in 2004 we will have 3E New Options, in 2006 4E, in 2009 something else. They are there for business. If we really wanted to give a bang to Mystara, we should create our own rules, and then write stuff only with our own rules, and make them avaliable from the Internet. Smash the system with the song! (Peter Hammill) Iulius Sergius Scaevola Captain of the XXth Cohort Port Lucinius, Thyatis ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 04:25:33 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: George Hrabovsky Subject: Re: Meet the Burrowers: Klarkaszh the Corrupter MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Andrew, this is really some good stuff. I had a run-in with a minor burrower in a previous campaign. It was really, really bad! George ----- Original Message ----- From: "Andrew Theisen" To: Sent: Monday, July 10, 2000 2:23 AM Subject: [MYSTARA] Meet the Burrowers: Klarkaszh the Corrupter > Okay- think I've finally got this to the point it's ready for public > consumption. Wasn't quite sure where to place the power levels, so I just > made guesses based on similar creatures as far as HD, Dmg ratings, etc., > while trying to keep them on a par with lower level Immortals. Let me know > what you guys think about them, and any suggestions, etc, welcome! Much really good stuff snipped. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 12:49:36 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Agathokles Subject: Re: New Comer MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable >=20Hello!=20=20I=20am=20a=20new=20comer=20to=20the=20list!=20=0D=0A=0D=0A= Welcome=20:)=0D=0A=0D=0A>=20I=20just=20called=20to=20say=20hi,=20and=20to= =20raise=0D=0A>=20a=20question,=20ever=20notice=20how=20insanely=20large=20= Alphatia=20is?=20=20I=20mean,=20I=20did=0D=0Asome=0D=0A>=20measurements,=20= and=20her=20are=20some=20interesting=20conversions:=0D=0A>=20The=20Known=20= World=20(From=20Sind=20to=20Thyatis=20to=20Heldannic=20Territories)=20is=0D= =0Aroughly=0D=0A>=20half=20the=20size=20of=20europe.=0D=0A>=20Alphatia=20= mainland=20is=20the=20size=20of=20Europe=0D=0A>=20The=20Alphatian=20Empir= e=20is=20the=20size=20of=20Africa...in=20other=20words,=20if=0D=0AMystara= =20was=0D=0A>=20earth,=20Alphatia=20would=20take=20up=2020%=20of=20the=20= land=20mass=20of=20the=20world.=0D=0A=0D=0AYes,=20but=20the=20sinking=20o= f=20Alphatia=20mainland=20helped=20restoring=20the=20balance,=0D=0Aat=20l= east.=0D=0A=0D=0A>=20=20A=20tad=0D=0A>=20large...especially=20for=20a=20n= ow=20floating=20island...=0D=0A=0D=0ADoes=20the=20floating=20continent=20= create=20an=20artificial=20night=20(eclipsis)=20on=20the=0D=0AHW=20surfac= e?=20If=20so,=20how=20long=20does=20it=20last?=0D=0A--=0D=0A=0D=0A=09Giam= paolo=20Agosta=0D=0A=0D=0A=0D=0Aagathokles@libero.it=0D=0Aagosta@fusberta= .elet.polimi.it=0D=0Ahttp://digilander.iol.it/agathokles/index.htm=0A=0A= ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 06:36:51 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Neal Subject: another update feedback MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks Mike and Rebecca I haven't gotten a chance to change the first story's layout yet but I did not use that in 2 and 3.( thanks to havard). but I do appreciate your time in helping me to make it better. Neal ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 14:50:13 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Marco Fossati Subject: Re: New Comer MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ----- Original Message ----- From: Agathokles To: Sent: Monday, July 10, 2000 12:49 PM Subject: Re: [MYSTARA] New Comer Does the floating continent create an artificial night (eclipsis) on the HW surface? If so, how long does it last? Alphatia moves eastward (spinward) along the equator, doing 12 orbits in a year. The diameter of the shadow is 1,559 miles and it runs to a speed of 17.7 mph. The shadowfall in any area lasts for 3 hours 15 minutes and 30 seconds. Cheers, Marco Fossati ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 09:54:22 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: Meet the Burrowers: Klarkaszh the Corrupter Andrew, this is top-notch material here! :-) Encore! Encore! Geoff -- Geoff Gander, BA 97 Cartographer/Game Designer/Government Peon Carnifex Loremaster au998@freenet.carleton.ca : www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/2091 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 09:32:55 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Ron Rogers Subject: Re: Meet the Burrowers Content-Type: Text/Plain; Charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit MIME-Version: 1.0 (WebTV) Hey Andrew; Was this Great Burrower named after Clark Ashton Smith, who wrote the Averoigne stories and also a few Lovecraftian stories IIRC. CronoCloud (Ron Rogers) Knight of the Square Table http://members.tripod.com/~CronoCloud/index.html Member of the Knights Knoble http://knightsknoble.cjb.net ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 10:46:26 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? >> With elemental powering the message system as someone suggested and with gnomes behind its building << Who said gnomes behind its building? I certainly didn't. I (personally) was envisioning it as a commo system in the City of Thyatis (and, possibly, more fantastically, beyond), built by Thyatian engineers. Not that there wouldn't be problems, of course. >> I can think imagine a few problems happening from times to times. You know, like the tubes been sent at very high speeds at random times, possibly hurting anyone who is unlucky enough to be in the way of the "bullet". << The tubes aren't big enough for "normal" sized creatures (including gnomes or halflings) to fit into - at most they'd be 6" in diameter, and probably more like 4" in diameter or even smaller. Rats, mice, and other small "critters" could fit into the tubes, as could beings subject to Reduction magic - but yes, there's a reason why I recomended they (reduced PCs, for instance) hop into one of the cannisters and "ride" rather than simply try to "walk" the tube, for precisely such reasons. Rats and other "critters" getting into the tubes on their own would be rare at best, but people might put 'em in on purpose for whatever reason. >> In Serraine, some gnomes have even considered using one of these tubes as a way to send small probes outside the atmosphere, or as some sort of weapon. << Wouldn't work that way, because the "propulsion" is internal to the tube itself. It's not like this is a cannon or something. It's not intended as a weapon or a means to circumvent restrictions on, say, gunpowder artillery on Mystara. At *best* such a tube, jury-rigged as a weapon, would have a range of 1/2/4 and do 1d4+1 damage, IMO. But it would be unwieldly as hell (it's a long tube), so one would be far better off with a crossbow. >> Other possibilities include someone having his hands sucked by the thing. "Cut the tube! Fast! Before the thing takes me to inside it!" << Doesn't have the force/strength to suck off an arm or suck in a full-sized creature. Though there's always the "yah, if you're dumb enough to put your arm in it, lets weed out the gene pool and eliminate you" factor I guess. It's made for propelling small message packets weighing no more than 2-3 lbs (at most), not for 120 or even 30 lb beings. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 10:55:45 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Mail in the Known World? >>I'm not aiming to start anything ,this time ;^), but wasn't it caused by him actually jamming a bit of pipe into both the send and recieve parts, so that the messages which were coming to him just went straight through? This pipe got jammed up and inflated then exploded. << Oh, yah. 8-) I think we were thinking of different scenes, but I remember that one now, too. > BRAZIL is so great, everyone should watch it. 8-) > >> I may have reached supersaturation level with it though :^( << Well I guess I'm "lucky" then. I haven't seen it in *years*. that and Repo Man. So I'm not sick of it. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 11:27:06 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: SteelAngel Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: <3f.73805ae.26992190@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Sat, 8 Jul 2000, Magister Mystaros wrote: > The game, in a word, is beautiful. It is what D&D SHOULD have been all this > time. It is streamlined and simplified, but NOT, I repeat NOT thusly > "dumbed-down" as many believe. Strangely enough I felt it was closer in > system and style to Classic D&D in many ways than to AD&D. And, most > applicable in the case of Mystara, while 3E offers unlimited opportunities I completely agree. I got my hot little hands on the D&D3 conversion manual, and all the chnges are for the better! In fact, it could easily be used as a reverse conversion manual from AD&D2 to oD&D. I'm so excitied about D&D3, as it really returns to it's roots, dropping all of the moronic (IMHO) AD&D conventions (18/** strength, restricted classes, etc..). It opens up the strength table, in fact it even looks like the Immortal's table! Any monster race can be a character class! I can import my sphinx from PC2! This isn't so much the third edition of "Advanced" D&D, it's the second edition of "Old" D&D. Ethan ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 11:32:28 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: SteelAngel Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: <00a301bfe97e$c2728760$9a01a8c0@rob> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE > I am looking at =A3100 worth of gaming books=20 Yet again, the british have the market cornered on bad puns.=20 Ethan - who just saw Chicken Run.=20 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 16:57:42 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Ethan - who just saw Chicken Run. Clucky Basket! ;^) Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 17:40:27 +0000 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Agathokles Subject: Re: New Comer MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Marco Fossati wrote: > > Alphatia moves eastward (spinward) along the equator, doing 12 orbits in a > year. The diameter of the shadow is 1,559 miles and it runs to a speed of > 17.7 mph. The shadowfall in any area lasts for 3 hours 15 minutes and 30 > seconds. And is the shadow deep enough to be considered "night", or it's just like a partial eclipsis? -- Giampaolo Agosta agathokles@libero.it agosta@fusberta.elet.polimi.it http://digilander.iol.it/agathokles/index.htm ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 16:02:24 EDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Jim Bobb Subject: Re: New Comer MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 7/10/00 3:57:47 PM Eastern Daylight Time, agathokles@LIBERO.IT writes: << And is the shadow deep enough to be considered "night", or it's just like a partial eclipsis? >> that's roughly 440 miles smaller than the continental US. I'd say it's large enough and long enough to provide the longest spot of darkness in the Hollow World and it could be called 'night' after a few minutes if passing overhead and plunging you into the darkest part of the day you'll ever see. Jim ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 23:00:47 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Caroletti Subject: Re: Meet the Burrowers: Klarkaszh the Corrupter MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I hope to make this wonderful Andrew stuff available at the Nightmare Project Site as soon as possible...really good stuff...tasty, somehow 8-) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 22:13:37 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Phillip Jones Subject: Re: Stone to Flesh - Equipment MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Here's another weird question: What happens if you cast "Animate Dead" on a > person who has been turned to stone? Do you get a Living Statue? A Stone > Golem? If the stoned person had several magic items, this sort of thing > could produce a unique servant creature with interesting properties, plus > give the PCs an interesting dilemma: how do you defeat the statue without > hurting it, and then restore it to life? As the stones victim is not actually dead, an Animate Dead wouldn't do anything. However, being turned to stone does pose some other interesting possibilities. At what point would the person's mind give way to insanity, and what form of insanity would this take? Would the person's natural AC be lowered because of his/her skin retaining a stone like quality to it? How long would somebody live whilst stone? The reason I am asking is that my players have just decided, after 4 game years, to go back and unstone one of their former comrades who fell victim to a medusa, and I got a feeling that he's going to be more than a bit ticked off at the amount of time his been waiting around. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 14:25:08 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Stone to Flesh - Equipment In-Reply-To: <008d01bfeab4$45bb9f40$6881fea9@phil> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 22:13 07/10/2000 +0100, Phillip Jones wrote: >As the stones victim is not actually dead, an Animate Dead wouldn't do >anything. However, being turned to stone does pose some other interesting >possibilities. At what point would the person's mind give way to insanity, >and what form of insanity would this take? Would the person's natural AC be >lowered because of his/her skin retaining a stone like quality to it? How >long would somebody live whilst stone? The reason I am asking is that my >players have just decided, after 4 game years, to go back and unstone one of >their former comrades who fell victim to a medusa, and I got a feeling that >he's going to be more than a bit ticked off at the amount of time his been >waiting around. Oooooh, LOTS of story possibilities there ... I'm not sure he'd be conscious of time's passage, though. At least, that's how I've always played it. And four years is a lot of time for stone, if it's outside. A harsh winter may mean their not-so-dear buddy has developed some major cracks. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 14:44:49 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Stone to Flesh - Equipment In-Reply-To: <008d01bfeab4$45bb9f40$6881fea9@phil> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 02:13 PM 7/10/00, Phillip Jones wrote: As the stones victim is not actually dead, an Animate Dead wouldn't do anything. However, being turned to stone does pose some other interesting possibilities. At what point would the person's mind give way to insanity, and what form of insanity would this take? Would the person's natural AC be lowered because of his/her skin retaining a stone like quality to it? How long would somebody live whilst stone? The reason I am asking is that my players have just decided, after 4 game years, to go back and unstone one of their former comrades who fell victim to a medusa, and I got a feeling that he's going to be more than a bit ticked off at the amount of time his been waiting around. Very interesting, indeed. I've always thought of flesh-to-stoned (hehe) victims as being in a sort of stasis, so that they do not age or experience anything while petrified. If this were the case, however, one could very easily see people INTENTIONALLY having themselves petrified and then re-fleshed many years later, so they could experience the future, or escape justice. Imagine that: there's a death warrant out on you and you don't want to spend the rest of your life running. So you pay a wizard to cast flesh to stone on you, hide you in his dungeon, and arrange for someone (a young apprentice, a descendant, whatever) to cast stone-to-flesh 50 or 100 years later, when everyone involved may have forgotten about you (or died). Wizards could capture monsters or beasts and get them really really hungry and angry, then cast flesh-to-stone and have the statues placed in strategic places and either cast stone-to-flesh or have some contingency or other triggering spell in place restore the monster when intruders come by. An interesting way to freak your campaign out would be to have an encounter in which the entire party gets flesh-to-stoned, and then "wake up" many many years later when someone defeated the great great grandchild of the original evil wizard and restored the "family heirloom" statues. The PCs could have to readjust to the new time period, or may seek some form of time travel to keep it from happening or just to return to their general time period. Fun for the whole family! Magus Coeruleus / ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ \ < David S Leland ~|~ dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu > | PhD Candidate ~|~ 858-534-9754(lab)/-1128(fax) | < UCSD Cog Sci ~|~ cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland > \ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ / ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 22:50:50 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sun, 9 Jul 2000 18:25:36 David S. Leland wrote: >At 05:48 PM 7/9/00, The Stalker wrote: (snip) >>A concentration skill is fine, but it >>should be used like this IMNSHO. > > Used like what? Did that part of your post get sucked into the >Vortex Dimension? ;) > It seems to me that in 3e the concentration skill is used to allow wizards to cast spells even though they take damage during combat. I don't think that's fair. If a wizard has a particularly high concentration skill score, then what chance will the poor fighter have to prevent him from casting that devastating spell? I do think, however, that a concentration skill was long overdue, but I would have preferred it to be used differently. In fact, I wouldn't have minded if wizards had to roll such checks every time they cast a spell, because spellcasting *is* difficult and requires much concentration. That would, of course, have required a complete a revision of the game, though, because the game in not balanced that way... That chance was here now, but WOTC didn't use it. Perhaps that was because they didn't want to 'slaughter holy cows', but I think they slaughtered so many (new multi-class system, no level limits, any race any class, etc.) that one more wouldn't have mattered... >>Well, when I mentioned that Elminster or Gandalf would die if >>surprised by a group of trolls under these rules, I was told by 3e >>playtesters that guys like those would be so tough in 3e that it >>would probably be almost impossible to break their concentration no >>matter what! While I presume that level might not factor into the >>concentration skill directly, a wizard could still improve upon it as >>he becomes more experienced, and naturally a wise wizard would, as he >>*needs* his spells to survive! But that just makes it worse because >>it forces the wizard to devote the skill points he earns as he >>progresses (or whatever they are called) to a continued improvement >>of his concentration skill. If the player doesn't like that, the >>argument is "we don't force you, but it's a good idea if you want to >>cast any spells!" Okay, so that may not be how it works, but it is >>the impression I'm getting :( > > I think you're right that while level may not directly help, there >are skills to improve concentration checks. I think this makes sense >since, as I said, at higher levels M-Us will take more damage and >have larger negative modifiers on the checks. I understand your >position a little better now but I still don't see how your views >cohere. On one hand you're saying that you don't think M-Us should >get any chance to cast a spell if hit. But then you're arguing that >he's forced to spend skill points to improve concentration because he >needs it to survive. Clearly, the player can either 1) spend the >skill points on other things, so that getting hit ruins his spells >most of the time (as it is now); or 2) sacrifice opportunities for >other skills by spending points on a skill or skills that assist >concentration checks. Not purchasing concentration-related skills >shouldn't make the M-U much if any worse off that the current >no-chance system. But you're forgetting that Attack of Opportunity rule. I don't mind that wizards are in trouble when cornered - they are in the game now, and that's the way it should be, because that is usually the only way the PCs can defeat high-level enemy wizards, but my main problem is that the poor wizard won't get to cast his Dimension Door or Teleport to escape anymore, because by the time he tries to, he will likely be surrounded by four or more enemies waiting for him to drop his guard... - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 23:24:37 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Rob Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > But you're forgetting that Attack of Opportunity rule. I don't mind that wizards are in trouble when cornered - they are in the game now, and that's the way it should be, because that is usually the only way the PCs can defeat high-level enemy wizards, but my main problem is that the poor wizard won't get to cast his Dimension Door or Teleport to escape anymore, because by the time he tries to, he will likely be surrounded by four or more enemies waiting for him to drop his guard... Well, it depends when the wiz goes for it. As soon as a hostile gets within arms reach and is capable of hitting him (no fire aura or anything nifty like that up) the mage should be teleporting out IMO or activating that contingency. Ideally he should be out before anyone gets within arms reach, but that may not be possible. Waiting until he's been rugby tackled and has a smelly dwarven sock rammed into his mouth is too late :) Cheers Rob ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 15:41:55 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: <003401bfeabd$a3145340$9a01a8c0@rob> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 23:24 07/10/2000 +0100, Rob wrote: >Well, it depends when the wiz goes for it. As soon as a hostile gets within >arms reach and is capable of hitting him (no fire aura or anything nifty >like that up) the mage should be teleporting out IMO or activating that >contingency. Ideally he should be out before anyone gets within arms reach, >but that may not be possible. > >Waiting until he's been rugby tackled and has a smelly dwarven sock rammed >into his mouth is too late :) 'xactly. I don't think, in practice, that much will change about most wizards and their life expectancy. MAYBE they'll all get a bit jumpier and flee sooner. But having grown up on Conan novels, that seems the way it ought to be, actually. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 15:43:06 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 02:50 PM 7/10/00, The Stalker wrote: [...] I do think, however, that a concentration skill was long overdue, but I would have preferred it to be used differently. In fact, I wouldn't have minded if wizards had to roll such checks every time they cast a spell, because spellcasting *is* difficult and requires much concentration. That would, of course, have required a complete a revision of the game, though, because the game in not balanced that way... That chance was here now, but WOTC didn't use it. Perhaps that was because they didn't want to 'slaughter holy cows', but I think they slaughtered so many (new multi-class system, no level limits, any race any class, etc.) that one more wouldn't have mattered... I've often considered this as well, some sort of roll to make sure your spell goes off properly. I tried it once, with the premise that when a wizard first learns a spell, his success roll is very hard to make, and as he uses it more and learns more, it becomes easier. I think it would be easy to use concentration checks for such a thing. In fact, I'd suggest that if you think being able to make a concentration check to avoid having a spell ruined when hit makes life too easy for a wizard, that having to make a check (though easier) every time he casts even when he's NOT hit, would make balance it out to make it fair. Not arguing a point, though, just a thought. [...] But you're forgetting that Attack of Opportunity rule. I don't mind that wizards are in trouble when cornered - they are in the game now, and that's the way it should be, because that is usually the only way the PCs can defeat high-level enemy wizards, but my main problem is that the poor wizard won't get to cast his Dimension Door or Teleport to escape anymore, because by the time he tries to, he will likely be surrounded by four or more enemies waiting for him to drop his guard... We could argue forever about whether this is fair or not. Clearly I like the idea of AOOs (I used them from Combat and Tactics even when I was using mostly OD&D), and you do not. I like the idea of wizards being more threatened by proximal opponents, but having a chance to still cast successfully if hit. You prefer for them not to be any more threatened by proximal opponents than if they were fighting with a dagger, but for any hit to disrupt a spell. In the balance of things I think both systems are fine and will make life just about as hard/easy for wizards, but the choice will definitely change the tactics they should use. Relative to 2E, 3E makes wizards safer when they keep their distance and less safe when they are close to opponents. Magus Coeruleus dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 23:49:21 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Stone to Flesh - Equipment Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Mon, 10 Jul 2000 22:13:37 Phillip Jones wrote: >> Here's another weird question: What happens if you cast "Animate Dead" on >a >> person who has been turned to stone? Do you get a Living Statue? A Stone >> Golem? If the stoned person had several magic items, this sort of thing >> could produce a unique servant creature with interesting properties, plus >> give the PCs an interesting dilemma: how do you defeat the statue without >> hurting it, and then restore it to life? > >As the stones victim is not actually dead, an Animate Dead wouldn't do >anything. However, being turned to stone does pose some other interesting >possibilities. At what point would the person's mind give way to insanity, >and what form of insanity would this take? Would the person's natural AC be >lowered because of his/her skin retaining a stone like quality to it? How >long would somebody live whilst stone? The reason I am asking is that my >players have just decided, after 4 game years, to go back and unstone one of >their former comrades who fell victim to a medusa, and I got a feeling that >he's going to be more than a bit ticked off at the amount of time his been >waiting around. > Hmmm. I always assumed that victims of Stone to Flesh (or other forms of petrification) simply enter a state of suspended animation and don't realize what's going on around them, as they are, sort of anyway, asleep... Perhaps they sense a few things intuitively, but that would be all. But it's an interesting question - I never thought of that before, although I think I will handle it as I always have IMC (and besides, people rarely stay petrified for long IMC anyway). - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 21:07:46 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: Meet the Burrowers In-Reply-To: <13176-3969DE97-10315@storefull-295.iap.bryant.webtv.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 09:32 AM 7/10/00 -0500, you wrote: > >Was this Great Burrower named after Clark Ashton Smith, who wrote the >Averoigne stories and also a few Lovecraftian stories IIRC. Yeah, you got me. :) Had the darnedest time trying to come up with names for these guys, then I hit on the idea of just manipulating some famous Cthulhu mythos authors (Well, for Klarkaszh anyway). CAS used to do similar things with Cthulhu "gods" (Zathoqqua, instead of Tsathoggua, etc.). Got another of these bad boys coming up here pretty quick... ----- Andrew "Cthulhudrew" Theisen Aspiring screenwriter, actor, and gadabout jsmill@wans.net "The greatest trick Doug Henning ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Keyser Soze ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 21:15:55 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: Meet the Burrowers: Klarkaszh the Corrupter In-Reply-To: <396A397F.ACC74297@tin.it> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:00 PM 7/10/00 +0200, you wrote: >I hope to make this wonderful Andrew stuff available at the Nightmare Project >Site as soon as possible...really good stuff...tasty, somehow 8-) Heh. I've already got two Burrowers planned who have more... definitive... connections to the Nightmare Dimension than Klarkaszh. May be a bit on those guys though- I've had Klarkaszh and this next upcoming guy on the planner for a while, so they're the most developed. Anyway, for the record, I've got these two guys, the two Nightmare guys, and plans to give more details on the "Towers" of Soth and Sekhaba and the Cipactli in the Azcan lands. Other than that, no further plans for Burrowers... well, maybe one or two now I think of it... More to come! ----- Andrew "Cthulhudrew" Theisen Aspiring screenwriter, actor, and gadabout jsmill@wans.net "The greatest trick Doug Henning ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Keyser Soze ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 21:57:34 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Meet the Burrowers: D'resh the Destructor Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Here's the next one. This guy ties in with the soon to be upcoming Hutaaka Gazetteer (I should have my stuff completed soon, Mischa! :) The dinosaurs at the end I based off of rules in Dragon Magazine #187. The Dilophosaurus evidently appears in the Monstrous Compendium 3, which I don't have, so I used the info in #187 and combined it with the general rules on dinos in the Rules Cyclopedia. Again, comments/criticisms/compliments welcome! Chapter 2: Destruction History: Popular lore would have it that direct interference upon the Prime Plane is not tolerated by the Immortals at all, and violators are prosecuted to the fullest extent of Immortal law. Immortal law, however, would seem to be a vastly mutable thing, subject more to the whims of the governing Hierarchs than to an independent, codified body of tenets, as one might suppose. When the outer world nation of Lhomarr was destroyed by the carnifex of Y'hog, many millenia past, the Immortals willingly violated their policy of non-interference for perhaps the first (but certainly not the last) time. Almost unanimously, they combined their powers to deliberately cause the sinking of the carnifex island of Y'hegg- T'uhath, trapping its inhabitants, and condemning them to a slow, torturous, and inevitable demise. Note that I say "almost" unanimously. As seems to be usual in Immortal affairs (from the information I have gathered), there was dissension amongst the ranks. Such opposition came both from the Spheres of Entropy as well as (perhaps surprisingly) the Spheres of Matter and Thought. Yet perhaps the most insidious act of civil disobedience came from the one Immortal who everyone thought would be the most vocal opponent of the destruction of the carnifex, yet who surprisingly said not a word- Thanatos, Hierarch of Entropy. Perhaps the Dread Lord knew the futility of attempting to gainsay the actions of the other Immortals, incensed as they were by the carnifex' show of might. Perhaps He foresaw that the destruction of the carnifex would better further his own nefarious plots- speculation is an endless exercise in futility. Whatever his motive, Thanatos stole into the city of Y'hog shortly before the inevitable decision to destroy the carnifex. He appeared before D'resh K'ha, a powerful carnifex warlord. Commander of several mighty legions, D'resh K'ha had singlehandedly led the carnifex of Y'hog to many victories over the Lhomarrians. He was known for his carnal prowess and a tendency to challenge Lhomarrian generals to single combat before their massed opposed armies. Thanatos greeted the warlord, and described to D'resh the coming horrors of the end of his civilization. The mighty warrior was outraged at the Immortals' cowardly tactics, that they wouldn't even allow the carnifex to fight for their right to live unmolested by the cosmic beings. He readily agreed to leave Y'hog with Thanatos that very night, swearing his allegiance to the Dread One. It would be several decades before Thanatos' plans to create the Great Burrowers would come to fruition, but eventually D'resh underwent the process of ascension, like others before him, and became endowed with mighty powers and the epithet "the Destructor". He was charged with gathering a vast army with which to destroy mortal civilization on Mystara. He would be the commander of the Burrower land forces, and was deposited in the heart of the World Spine mountains, there to begin his task. For many centuries, D'resh led his powerful thunder lizards against the Brute-Men inhabitants of the Hollow World, driving the pitiful proto-humans before him, till there were none left outside of the valleys around Lake Menkor. It was at this time that the Immortals cast their Spell of Preservation, paralyzing all the Great Burrowers, and ending their reign of terror. The Destructor was frozen in his tracks, his final roar of agony shattering the lands around him, and blasting his mighty army to pieces. Today his skeletal remains rest at the heart of the broken lands in the Hutaaka Valley, providing a home to the vicious Wolflings that inhabit that place. All around him are the corpses and skeletons of thunder lizards, as D'resh's influence draws the weak and dying reptiles to his place of rest, that they might die in peace, or fall prey to the Wolflings. DM Notes: D'resh the Destructor Sphere: Entropy Status: Exalted Power Points: 200 Anti-Magic: 40% AC: -10 HD: 35 (215 hp) MV: 90' (30') Attacks: 1 bite/1 tail or Trample or spell Damage: 4d6/3d6 or 4d8 (Trample) or by spell No. App.: 1 (unique) Save As: F36/IM1 ML: 11 AL: Chaotic St: 65 Dx: 10 Co: 50 In: 16 Wi: 12 Ch: 18 D'resh appears as a gigantic carnivorus dinosaur, similar to a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Measuring 100' from head to tail, D'resh stands approximately 25' high and weighs around 15 tons. He has a shortened snout, and his mouth is filled with dozens of serrated teeth. His body is covered in chitinous armored plates, and his powerful tail ends in a spiked ball, like an ankylosaurus. Two blood red bony spines run the length of his body, from head to tail. Like most bipedal dinosaurs, the Destructor walks on his two powerful hind legs, using his tail as a counterbalance. His forearms are much more developed than a standard Tyrannosaur, and each bears four claws and an opposable thumb, and can be used for manipulating tools and objects. Red and black stripes cover his massive form in stylized patterns. Combat: The Destructor's first act in combat is usually to summon additional assistance (if he is alone- see table below for summoned followers). He may do this simply by concentrating, though he usually does so in conjunction with a tremendous Roar (identical to the Howl ability on p. 69 of the Wrath of the Immortals Book One.) For those who don't own this resource, the Roar causes anyone within 180' of the Destructor to make a saving throw (vs. Mental Attacks for Immortals, or vs. Rod/Staff/Wand at a -2 for mortals). Failure to save means the victim must flee in terror for 3d6 rounds. After this first maneuver, D'resh often likes to attempt to Trample his opponents, crushing them beneath his massive weight. He will also attack with a vicious bite attack and a swipe of his powerful tail. Like a Tyrannosaurus Rex, D'resh can swallow man-sized opponents on an attack roll of 19-20. Swallowed opponents take 2d4 points of damage each round they are trapped within the Destructor's belly. The Destructor may use his Power Points to cast spells from the Entropic Immortal list (on the inside back cover of the Gold Box Immortal DM's guide). If using the Wrath of the Immortals rules, he may spend TP to cast any spell any number of times per day as a standard Immortal (p. 59 of Book One). He usually does this only if hard pressed by opponents, and he tends to favor magicks that enhance his own or his followers combat abilities, as opposed to offensive magicks. Special Followers: Select one type, and roll to determine the number appearing. Followers will appear within 1-4 combat rounds. References in parentheses refer to either the Hollow World Boxed Set Adventure Book (HW) or the Rules Cyclopedia (RC). 1 Tyrannosaurus Rex (HW, RC) 1-2 Allosauruses (HW) 1d8 Dilophosaurs (see below) 1d10 Velociraptors (see below) 3d10 Pisanosauruses (HW) Velociraptor AC: 6 HD: 3+3 (M) (15 hp) MV: 150' (50') Sprinting: 210' (70') Attacks: 2 foreclaws, 2 rear claws, 1 bite Damage: 1d2 (x2), 2d4 (x2), 1d6 No. App.: 2d6 Save As: F3 ML: 11 TT: Nil Int: 4 AL: N Thac0: 16 XP Value: 50 Terrain: Forest, Jungle These 6' tall carnivores hunt in packs, and attack with speed and cunning. Like some great cats, they may sprint for short distances at great speeds, though they may only sustain this speed for 3 rounds before tiring. If both front paws hit a victim in the same round, the rear claws strike at +2 to hit. Velociraptors are cunning hunters, and may set up ambushes and feints, such that opponents receive a -1 to surprise rolls. Dilophosaurus AC: 4 HD: 4 (L) (16 hp) MV: 120' (40') Attacks: 1 bite or spit Damage: 1d3 + poison or special No. App.: 1d6 Save As: F2 ML: 8 TT: Nil Int: 2 AL: N Thac0: 16 XP Value: 75 Terrain: Jungle These carnosaurs reach up to 10' in length, and have yellow and black spotted bodies and a pair of red and black striped crests atop their heads. Though they have weak jaws and claws, they have poisonous glands with which to compensate. Bitten victims must save vs. poison or die in 1d10 rounds. The dilophosaur may also spit this poison up to 20' away, though its virulence is reduced. Victims must save vs. poison or else suffer 1 hp damage for 1d10 rounds, and blindness. If the poison is washed off, the damage stops at once, but the blindness will not wear off for 1d4+1 hours. ----- Andrew "Cthulhudrew" Theisen Aspiring screenwriter, actor, and gadabout jsmill@wans.net "The greatest trick Doug Henning ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Keyser Soze ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 23:55:12 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Interesting Tidbit Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Just saw this on Eric Noah's Third Edition page: Jim Butler says More OOP Stuff on the Way: "We have plans to release all of the older material from all of the other campaign worlds at some point in the future. I don't have an ETA for you yet, though..." I'm assuming this means Mystara stuff, too. Sounds cool, as I know they'd been going back and forth about it a bit lately. Anyway, good news for those of us who don't have access to all that old stuff (Me, I'm hoping they rerelease B9: Castle Caldwell and Beyond, and B5: Horror on the Hill. Can't seem to find those anywhere...) OT: Anyone going to see the X-Men movie this weekend? ----- Andrew "Cthulhudrew" Theisen Aspiring screenwriter, actor, and gadabout jsmill@wans.net "The greatest trick Doug Henning ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Keyser Soze ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 12:43:57 CEST Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Max Monas Subject: Rumours (?) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Hi people, I have a question about rumours. I would like to know how you deal with rumours about places, people, events etc.. At the moment I think a good idea would be to have 4 layers of rumours (please comment on this). 1st layer would be known rumours. Things everybody knows but maybe not everyone believes. For example, the Night of Fires. I do have a questions about this, namely do you tell your PCs this or do you let them find in play. I mean, sometimes rumours are just known, but I can't imagine me telling the players: "Well, your characters know: This and this about him or that place." How do you deal with this? 2nd layer would be rumours that are not so wide known. I could imagine using these types of rumours in play. For example, that the PCs walk into a tavern and they overhear something, or they just pick up pieces of a conversation. Could you tell me how you deal with this? 3rd layer would be rumours that are coming close to secrets. They would have to do some deep invastigation before they heat things like this. Maybe that would find a diary or a report of someone. I think this would be not overheard, unless they decided to sneakup to deliberatly overhear a conversation. 4th layer would be plain secrets. They would have to pay someone to find something out or they would have to do lots of trouble to find out what things are about. Number 3&4 would follow from 2. I mean, they could overhear something, what they think would be insignificant, but they come across time and time again and they decide to look into the matter. Please comment on this and if you use rumours differently could you tell me how? I am asking this, because I would like to make good use of rumours and their effects, but, as I wrote above, I don't want to just sit them down and tell them "your character knows this and this", but I wouldn't know how to do it differently if it would be something that they probably would have know since childhood. I cannot have those characters walking around in the world without certain things they know. Another of these examples would be if they know about the existence of Immortals. I am they only one has read WotI (of course), but they would know these facts since childhood. It is not "realistic" to have them find out about Immortals (if you want them to know about them ,that is) to have them find out when they are 18 years old and speak to a priest, for example. They have basic knowledge on things but how do you get that across? Hope to read from you soon. Regards, Max ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 08:00:06 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Alan Shutko Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: Andrew Theisen's message of "Mon, 10 Jul 2000 23:55:12 -0700" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Andrew Theisen writes: > Me, I'm hoping they rerelease B9: Castle Caldwell and Beyond, and > B5: Horror on the Hill. Can't seem to find those anywhere...) I wish I knew that a few years ago, when I had a couple extra copies (I'm ashamed to say I cut one up for ease of reference). -- Alan Shutko - In a variety of flavors! 123 days, 3 hours, 35 minutes, 50 seconds till we run away. "I am Ahnold of Borg. You wimpering girly-fellows vil be assimilated." ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 11:35:48 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: John Calvin Subject: Re: Mnemae Longstride MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii David S. Leland writes: >> Meet Mnemae (neh-may) Longstride, a woman famous for her amazing, seemingly limitless memory for what is told to her. She makes her living by travelling from city to city receiving and delivering messages verbally. In a small country, this could be on foot. If you want it more cosmopolitan you can upgrade to a horse, or further to a flying carpet or flying mount. Teleport makes sense but is too easy and boring, and because of the speed, makes the memorizing aspect less impressive. << Wow! This is great stuff. I really like the feel of this NPC. I can easily see her flying through the country side on a carpet (especially for a high level campaign), but she could just as easily be used for a low level campaign as well. Thanks for posting this! ===== Rule #65. If I must have computer systems with publically available terminals, the maps they display of my complex will have a room clearly marked as the Main Control Room. That room will be the Execution Chamber. The actual main control room will be marked as Sewage Overflow Containment. from "A Guide to Becoming an Evil Overlord" by Peter Anspach __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail � Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 12:53:27 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: John Calvin Subject: Re: Rumours (?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Max Monas writes: >> 1st layer would be known rumours. Things everybody knows but maybe not everyone believes. For example, the Night of Fires. I do have a questions about this, namely do you tell your PCs this or do you let them find in play. I mean, sometimes rumours are just known, but I can't imagine me telling the players: "Well, your characters know: This and this about him or that place." How do you deal with this? << I try to do as much of this as I can during character creation. It's not possible to cover everything that a character would know at creation, but you can get quite a bit in... especially if you have good players who ask questions about their past. Another thing that I sometimes do is to copy or make photocopies of sections in the Players and DMs guides of the various Gazetteers, and hand those to the appropriate players. It's then up to the players to read through the material. >> 2nd layer would be rumours that are not so wide known. I could imagine using these types of rumours in play. For example, that the PCs walk into a tavern and they overhear something, or they just pick up pieces of a conversation. Could you tell me how you deal with this? << Usually in a bar or tavern, the PCs may pick up bits of information, but will never get the whole story simply by eaves dropping. If something catches their ears, then they must role-play out the rest of the conversation...or role-play just to get into the conversation, as it were. Another way to do this is to have some patron of the party (someone who hires them to do a job, or for whom they work - like government officials) to give them this information directly. Information like this is never complete...if it were then there would be no need for the PCs after all. I think I know where you are going with this since we have talked about your campaign a little bit. I would check out an article in Tome #3 by Geoff Gander about secret orginizations in Mystara, if you haven't already. Darn good material with lots of ideas. >> 3rd layer would be rumours that are coming close to secrets. They would have to do some deep invastigation before they heat things like this. Maybe that would find a diary or a report of someone. I think this would be not overheard, unless they decided to sneakup to deliberatly overhear a conversation. << Yup, I agree. After getting their initial information (via layers 1 and 2, as you have described them), all other information must be gathered by role-playing. Again, handouts work great for books and scrolls. That way the players feel like they actually discovered the information (by reading your handout) instead of having the DM tell them directly. Handouts take a little more time to prepare, but if the information is important to the campaign, then I think it is worth it. I also use stuff that I find on the web. If you find something that you like, and it fits your campaign, then make a local copy (modify what's needed) and print it out for your PCs to find in some treasure trove. Once again Geoff has written some good material for this purpose - especially if you plan on using the OBs, but so have others. History articles are great for this. Aaron Nowack wrote some for Darokin, Harri Maki and Kit Navarro have some great stuff for Glantri, Jacob Skytte wrote up some Northern Reaches info, Jenn has various articles floating around on several countries....man there's a lot of stuff out there. Most of it can be found at dnd.starflung.com. >> 4th layer would be plain secrets. They would have to pay someone to find something out or they would have to do lots of trouble to find out what things are about. << This is very similar to #3 above. Don't forget about false rumors, and don't be afraid to plant rumors way in advance of when they are needed. >> Number 3&4 would follow from 2. I mean, they could overhear something, what they think would be insignificant, but they come across time and time again and they decide to look into the matter. Please comment on this and if you use rumours differently could you tell me how? << That's how I do it. >> I am asking this, because I would like to make good use of rumours and their effects, but, as I wrote above, I don't want to just sit them down and tell them "your character knows this and this", but I wouldn't know how to do it differently if it would be something that they probably would have know since childhood. I cannot have those characters walking around in the world without certain things they know. << Sometimes there is just no other way to do it. This kind of thing feels more natural if done during character generation, but like I said above, you can't cover everything at that time. It's a little more awkward to pull a player aside well into the campaign and tell them that "Oh by the, your character knows such and such..." Sometimes you can handle these things during play. Say that you mention some holiday that is coming up. If your players ask you about that specifically, then you can tell them what their characters would know. This is another good reason for handouts. Some characters won't know information that others will. A Shadow Elf is unlikely to know about Dwarven holidays for example. During play I would give the Dwarf character that information, and if the elf character is curious about, he can get it form the dwarf (if the dwarf feels like sharing it). It's nice to be prepared with several handouts before starting a game session. If characters ask the right questions they get the appropriate handout. Sometimes they may not get one at all. This will keep them guessing as to what you have going on. Remember, a stack of paper does not need to be for immediate use...it can always be something that you as the DM, "are just working on". >> Another of these examples would be if they know about the existence of Immortals. I am they only one has read WotI (of course), but they would know these facts since childhood. It is not "realistic" to have them find out about Immortals (if you want them to know about them ,that is) to have them find out when they are 18 years old and speak to a priest, for example. They have basic knowledge on things but how do you get that across? Hope to read from you soon. << This is a touchy subject. I deal wih it like this: PCs know about the immortals, but not "what the immortals are." In a sense, they can be treated just like gods. This gets tricky because many immortals (like Halav) are still famous for deeds they commited while still mortal. Once again a handout is helpful. These should be not be generic, but instead tailored for each character. It can consist of as little as a couple of paragraphs about the character's history. "When you were young, your mother took you the the Temple of Halav. As you grew up though, you began to admire patrons of the Thyatians such as Vanya." After that you can tell them all they need to know about the Traladaran and Thyatian pantheons. They'll have to learn about the other immortals on their own. Hope that this helps. John ===== Rule #65. If I must have computer systems with publically available terminals, the maps they display of my complex will have a room clearly marked as the Main Control Room. That room will be the Execution Chamber. The actual main control room will be marked as Sewage Overflow Containment. from "A Guide to Becoming an Evil Overlord" by Peter Anspach __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail � Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 21:46:44 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: DM Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Andrew Theisen wrote: <> Well, it would be a great news were it not for the fact that Eric prolly forgot to mention that these OOP will surely be available on WotC's site.. but by payment. Basically it will be like a common pay-per-view, from what I've gathered listening to S.K. Reynolds's explanations on D&D 3rd Ed newsgroup. Every item will have a small fee, you pay it via internet, and then you get the access code to download it to your HD. It will not cost as much as a printed original, but it will cost something, and it will not be printed, of course (you'll have to print it down if u want). No real info on the schedule these releases will follow, however. DM Senior Editor of the Mystaran Almanac First Officer of U.S.S. Unicorn "You don't stop playing because you grow old: you grow old because you stop playing!" Visit Marco's Mystara Homepage at: http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Dungeon/2967 Join the Mystara Webring at: http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Dungeon/2967/mystring.html Join the Starfleet Academy at: http://gioco.net/startrek (Italian RPG PBEM) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 15:52:33 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000711214644.008311a0@racine.ra.it> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 21:46 07/11/2000 +0200, DM wrote: >Well, it would be a great news were it not for the fact that Eric prolly >forgot to mention that these OOP will surely be available on WotC's site.. >but by payment. Basically it will be like a common pay-per-view, from what >I've gathered listening to S.K. Reynolds's explanations on D&D 3rd Ed >newsgroup. Every item will have a small fee, you pay it via internet, and >then you get the access code to download it to your HD. >It will not cost as much as a printed original, but it will cost something, >and it will not be printed, of course (you'll have to print it down if u >want). Hopefully they'll get some Mystara stuff out before that happens; since they've done B3, EX 1 & 2 and now "FR: The North" so far. Put up a few gazetteers (Glantri or Rockhome would be my first choices)! BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 18:44:50 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Neal Subject: interesting tidbits MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Which site has these on it? Or will have these downloads on it? ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 01:02:51 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Rumours (?) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Tue, 11 Jul 2000 12:53:27 John Calvin wrote: >Max Monas writes: > > >>> >1st layer would be known rumours. Things everybody knows but maybe not >everyone believes. For example, the Night of Fires. I do have a questions >about this, namely do you tell your PCs this or do you let them find in >play. I mean, sometimes rumours are just known, but I can't imagine me >telling the players: "Well, your characters know: This and this about him or >that place." How do you deal with this? ><< First of all, I would like to thank you, Max, for putting rumors into such easy-to-use categories. I'm not good at such things myself, so it'll be most useful to me. > >I try to do as much of this as I can during character creation. It's not possible to >cover everything that a character would know at creation, but you can get quite a bit >in... especially if you have good players who ask questions about their past. >Another thing that I sometimes do is to copy or make photocopies of sections in the >Players and DMs guides of the various Gazetteers, and hand those to the appropriate >players. It's then up to the players to read through the material. > I've actually made Player Guide to both the Known World nations and the Immortals. Much of the facts are there for the Immortals, except that some things have been left out. For example, the players won't know that Tubak, the lawgiver in Ethengar, is actually Ixion. They might find out, but it'll take some doing. The things that I mention are pretty much facts, and I probably put more stuff in there than the common character would know, though only because it would be fairly easy for the character to discover the information anyway. >>> >2nd layer would be rumours that are not so wide known. I could imagine using >these types of rumours in play. For example, that the PCs walk into a tavern >and they overhear something, or they just pick up pieces of a conversation. >Could you tell me how you deal with this? ><< > >Usually in a bar or tavern, the PCs may pick up bits of information, but will never get >the whole story simply by eaves dropping. If something catches their ears, then they >must role-play out the rest of the conversation...or role-play just to get into the >conversation, as it were. > Actually, I try to avoid those taverns as much as possible... They are just too much cliche these days. Mostly I use them only to give the PCs an impression of how the common people feel... For example, IMC the meteor struck recently and formed the Great Crater in Darokin. The PCs weren't in Darokin, however, because they were in space changing the meteor's path so that it wouldn't hit Darokin City! It crashed and killed many people, so when they got back to Mystara they were surprised to find that the spirits were actually rather good in the various taverns. Why? Because the meteor hadn't destroyed Mystara. It had caused great devastation, but Darokin and Mystara itself had survived, and people were pleased about that (in Darokin City anyway). I also like to make light-hearted role-playing in taverns. Recently I used the typical tavern-visit to use some of Giulio Caroletti's "Sarcastic Mystara" jokes - it was quite amusing I assure you. I fully recommend it :) (snip) >>> >3rd layer would be rumours that are coming close to secrets. They would have >to do some deep invastigation before they heat things like this. Maybe that >would find a diary or a report of someone. I think this would be not >overheard, unless they decided to sneakup to deliberatly overhear a >conversation. ><< > >Yup, I agree. After getting their initial information (via layers 1 and 2, as you have >described them), all other information must be gathered by role-playing. Again, handouts >work great for books and scrolls. That way the players feel like they actually >discovered the information (by reading your handout) instead of having the DM tell them >directly. >Handouts take a little more time to prepare, but if the information is important to the >campaign, then I think it is worth it. > >I also use stuff that I find on the web. If you find something that you like, and it >fits your campaign, then make a local copy (modify what's needed) and print it out for >your PCs to find in some treasure trove. Once again Geoff has written some good material >for this purpose - especially if you plan on using the OBs, but so have others. History >articles are great for this. Aaron Nowack wrote some for Darokin, Harri Maki and Kit >Navarro have some great stuff for Glantri, Jacob Skytte wrote up some Northern Reaches >info, Jenn has various articles floating around on several countries....man there's a lot >of stuff out there. Most of it can be found at dnd.starflung.com. > You're too modest, John. You forgot to plug your own stuff and your own site :) I recommend that you use stuff like John's "Catastrophe Myths" or similar material, Max. It's excellent. And it works well as red herrings, if you know what I mean. I have some PlaneScape stuff, so the last time we played and the PCs got to the observatory of the castle they were in, they found not only a map of Mystara's stars (has anybody done somthing like that BTW?), but also a map of the planes of existence. My players immediately jumped to the conclusion that I was going to put them through some Planescape stuff soon (I'm not, incidentally), but I let them think so, of course :) >>> >I am asking this, because I would like to make good use of rumours and their >effects, but, as I wrote above, I don't want to just sit them down and tell >them "your character knows this and this", but I wouldn't know how to do it >differently if it would be something that they probably would have know >since childhood. I cannot have those characters walking around in the world >without certain things they know. ><< > >Sometimes there is just no other way to do it. Sad, but true. It works better if done during the course of role-playing, but there is no way you can avoid this. Just tell the player 'actually, you know so-and-so quite well', if you need to... > This kind of thing feels more natural if >done during character generation, but like I said above, you can't cover everything at >that time. It's a little more awkward to pull a player aside well into the campaign and >tell them that "Oh by the, your character knows such and such..." > To say the least... >Sometimes you can handle these things during play. Say that you mention some holiday >that is coming up. If your players ask you about that specifically, then you can tell >them what their characters would know. This is another good reason for handouts. Some >characters won't know information that others will. A Shadow Elf is unlikely to know >about Dwarven holidays for example. During play I would give the Dwarf character that >information, and if the elf character is curious about, he can get it form the dwarf (if >the dwarf feels like sharing it). It's nice to be prepared with several handouts before >starting a game session. If characters ask the right questions they get the appropriate >handout. Sometimes they may not get one at all. This will keep them guessing as to what >you have going on. Remember, a stack of paper does not need to be for immediate use...it >can always be something that you as the DM, "are just working on". wickedly> > There is also another effect you gain with handouts. Often players tend to forget that the DM is not just being DM, but also everybody else. That means that if you as DM, assuming the role of some NPC, tell them something, then they think that you're telling them this as the DM - not an NPC. This is true even if you're telling them that what you're saying is something in a book or a letter. There are two ways to avoid this: If the NPC is actually there, then speak in character and have the PCs do the same - that'll clue them in to the fact that this is not the DM speaking, because the DM, in the capacity of DM, never speaks in character. Another way to do is to give them handouts. For some reason, they question these more than if you just tell. I have use this to great effect when I give them a handout and then spend half-an-hour denying everything it says - the results of such manipulation are most satisfying ;) - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 17:28:14 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 08:00 AM 7/11/00 -0400, you wrote: >Andrew Theisen writes: > >> Me, I'm hoping they rerelease B9: Castle Caldwell and Beyond, and >> B5: Horror on the Hill. Can't seem to find those anywhere...) > >I wish I knew that a few years ago, when I had a couple extra copies >(I'm ashamed to say I cut one up for ease of reference). D'OH! So you're the one who's been snatching them all up... ;) Actually, I've seen B5 at the Dragon's Trove every now and then. B9 on the other hand... I remember seeing it in the stores ages ago, when they were still putting modules out and thinking it looked interesting, but never buying it. And now I regret that decision... ----- Andrew "Cthulhudrew" Theisen Aspiring screenwriter, actor, and gadabout jsmill@wans.net "The greatest trick Doug Henning ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Keyser Soze ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 21:35:06 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Kar Ess Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Well, don't know if you're REALLY interested in Castle Caldwell, but there is apparently one for sale here. http://www.earthsea.com/tsr1mod.html actually quite a few things --- Andrew Theisen wrote: > At 08:00 AM 7/11/00 -0400, you wrote: > >Andrew Theisen writes: > > > >> Me, I'm hoping they rerelease B9: Castle Caldwell and Beyond, and > >> B5: Horror on the Hill. Can't seem to find those anywhere...) > > > >I wish I knew that a few years ago, when I had a couple extra copies > >(I'm ashamed to say I cut one up for ease of reference). > > D'OH! > > So you're the one who's been snatching them all up... ;) > > Actually, I've seen B5 at the Dragon's Trove every now and then. B9 on the > other hand... I remember seeing it in the stores ages ago, when they were > still putting modules out and thinking it looked interesting, but never > buying it. And now I regret that decision... > ----- > > Andrew "Cthulhudrew" Theisen > Aspiring screenwriter, actor, and gadabout > jsmill@wans.net > > "The greatest trick Doug Henning ever pulled was convincing the world he > didn't exist." - Keyser Soze > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail � Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 22:12:47 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: <20000712043506.27670.qmail@web125.yahoomail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 09:35 PM 7/11/00, Kar Ess wrote: Well, don't know if you're REALLY interested in Castle Caldwell, but there is apparently one for sale here. http://www.earthsea.com/tsr1mod.html actually quite a few things Not criticizing you for providing the info, but those prices are ridiculously high! They do have quite a selection, but if one's willing to keep checking and waiting, other places have much better prices. I can't believe someone paid $60 for DA1! Makes me wonder how much they buy D&D modules for... dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 22:15:09 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000711214644.008311a0@racine.ra.it> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 12:46 PM 7/11/00, DM wrote: Well, it would be a great news were it not for the fact that Eric prolly forgot to mention that these OOP will surely be available on WotC's site.. but by payment. Basically it will be like a common pay-per-view, from what I've gathered listening to S.K. Reynolds's explanations on D&D 3rd Ed newsgroup. Every item will have a small fee, you pay it via internet, and then you get the access code to download it to your HD. It will not cost as much as a printed original, but it will cost something, and it will not be printed, of course (you'll have to print it down if u want). Not that I'm suggesting or condoning this behavior, but what would keep people from illicitly sharing/trading these things after they've downloaded them. I can't see them making that much money off of it. Magus Coeruleus dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 22:19:53 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Mnemae Longstride In-Reply-To: <20000711183548.18016.qmail@web1202.mail.yahoo.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed At 11:35 AM 7/11/00, John Calvin wrote: David S. Leland writes: >>Meet Mnemae (neh-may) Longstride [...] Wow! This is great stuff. I really like the feel of this NPC. I can easily see her flying through the country side on a carpet (especially for a high level campaign), but she could just as easily be used for a low level campaign as well. Thanks for posting this! Thanks for the positive feedback :) Please let me know if you come up with any related ideas or do anything with it. Magus Coeruleus dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 09:48:38 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Caroletti Subject: Tome: A Problem Comments: cc: Jennifer Guerra MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I have tried to contact Jennifer Favian Guerra, but it seems impossible...could anyone try to do this for me, forwarding this message to her address? I have very important things to say concerning my last Tome article. Iulius Sergius Scaevola Captain of the XXth Cohort Port Lucinius, Thyatis ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 02:35:14 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Richard Andrew Walters Subject: Darokin MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I'm looking for as much information as possible about Darokin. I will joining a strawberryJAMM campaign shortly and am looking for info. I've already spent a great deal of time surfing the webring and I have the Gazateer atm -- Richard Walters waltersb@sfu.ca Home (604)291-6226 CSSS Vet. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 06:32:55 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Kar Ess Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Well, I don't shop there, I shop here http://www.titan-games.com/ prices are much better. I just assumed the person really wanted one, and it was the cheapest I found. --- "David S. Leland" wrote: > At 09:35 PM 7/11/00, Kar Ess wrote: > Well, don't know if you're REALLY interested in Castle Caldwell, but > there is apparently one for > sale here. > http://www.earthsea.com/tsr1mod.html > actually quite a few things > > Not criticizing you for providing the info, but those prices are > ridiculously high! They do have quite a selection, but if one's > willing to keep checking and waiting, other places have much better > prices. I can't believe someone paid $60 for DA1! Makes me wonder > how much they buy D&D modules for... > > dleland@cogsci.ucsd.edu > cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail � Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 10:23:26 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Darokin Mystara wrote: > I've already spent a great deal of time surfing the webring and I have the Gazateer atm << Well, that's probably the best information. As for whatever "extra" stuff someone might make up about Darokin, it could be cool but might not apply to the Darokin in Jenni's campaign, so it would be in the category of rumors at best and possibly misinformation. So you'll probably end up learning about Darokin while your character does, in the campaign. Not all Darokins are the same. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:29:16 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Postal sevices in the Known World and beyond MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The mention of Darokin in another post got me thinking about Darokinian Hauliers & Lettercarriers (DHL) a group of Merchants who use there special abilities of Ignore Road and Quicken Pace to move the mail about. It probably began as individual houses doing it with their own stuff but with the formation of the DDC there became a need for movement of national information, and international too, and some clever guy realising he had room left in the wagon agreed to take some mail too. I know it's a bit basic at present, but thought I'd send it before I forgot the idea. Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 10:38:47 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Neal Subject: interesting tidbids MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit thanks Kar Ess ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 11:04:50 CDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: William Hillard Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Actually, they did rerelease those modules, as well as a few others, in a book called In Search of Adventure a few years back. I think they reprinted B1 through B9 in order to make an entire campaign, and they tweaked it so that it is set in Karameikos instead of the places the modules were set in before. ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 09:33:51 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Where do Mystarans go when they die? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" I had a major NPC -- Nicodemus Majoh, for those of you keeping score at home -- die in my campaign recently, and realized that with the Immortals-based cosmology, I had no idea what's supposed to happen to Mystarans after they die. (Presumably this is covered in WotI.) Is there a heaven and a hell for them? Does it vary by religion? Should I just use the default AD&D cosmology of the outer planes? For my campaign, I had the PC and NPC clerics in the Church of Traladara make some noises about Nicodemus "standing at Halav's right hand" and such, but it'd be nice to know what the official stance is, since the player playing the young cleric in the party is interested in doing the character right. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 09:38:04 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:04 07/12/2000 CDT, William Hillard wrote: >Actually, they did rerelease those modules, as well as a few others, in a >book called In Search of Adventure a few years back. I think they reprinted >B1 through B9 in order to make an entire campaign, and they tweaked it so >that it is set in Karameikos instead of the places the modules were set in >before. The Lost City of the Cindiceans was moved to Karameikos? The mind reels. B1-9 goes for high, high prices in online auctions, even for tattered copies. Is it really that nice? BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 13:14:08 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Alan Shutko Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: Beau's message of "Wed, 12 Jul 2000 09:38:04 -0700" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Beau writes: > The Lost City of the Cindiceans was moved to Karameikos? The > mind reels. No, that one was in Ylaraum, I think. B1-9 put all the adventures in a framework, wired together with rumors at different places and various jobs the party could take on. > B1-9 goes for high, high prices in online auctions, even for tattered > copies. Is it really that nice? Well, I like my copy. It's more Mystara oriented than most of the original adventures were, gives locations, and hooks them together (as mentioned above). OTOH, it cuts out some material from the original adventures... Horror on the Hill lost most of the outdoor encounters, and Keep on the Borderlands lost some stuff too. -- Alan Shutko - In a variety of flavors! 121 days, 22 hours, 23 minutes, 30 seconds till we run away. E = MC ** 2 +- 3db ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 11:25:15 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "Jenni A.M.Merrifield" Subject: Re: Darokin Content-Type: text/plain Mime-Version: 1.0 On Wed, 12 July 2000, Evil Genius wrote: > > Mystara wrote: > > I've already spent a great deal of time surfing the webring and I have the Gazateer atm << > > Well, that's probably the best information. As for whatever "extra" stuff someone might make up about Darokin, it could be cool but might not apply to the Darokin in Jenni's campaign, so it would be in the category of rumors at best and possibly misinformation. > > So you'll probably end up learning about Darokin while your character does, in the campaign. Not all Darokins are the same. Thanks for giving him the standard Caveat James. :-) However, I directed Richard W. here because I wanted him to be able to ask various questions about Darokin on his own terms and there really isn't that much "on the web" (compared to, say, Alphatia or Thyatis). Part of the reason he wants to learn about Darokin is that his character is probably going to be from there, somewhere near Darokin City. I've also suggested he consider being an apprentice of the DDC [for various plot reasons] So, anyone who wants to offer their comments on these topics is encouraged to do so. If anything out and out contradicts something I'm planning, I'll speak up. Jenni A. M. Merrifield -=> strawberryJAMM <=- -- Jenni A. M. Merrifield -=> strawberryJAMM <=- strawberry@jamm.com _______________________________________________________________________ $1 million in prizes! 20 daily instant winners. AltaVista Rewards: Click here to win! http://shopping.altavista.com/e.sdc?e=3 _______________________________________________________________________ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 11:26:17 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "Harvey, Michael" Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" >> B1-9 goes for high, high prices in online auctions, >> even for tattered copies. Is it really that nice? > > Well, I like my copy. It's more Mystara oriented than most of the > original adventures were, gives locations, and hooks them together (as > mentioned above). OTOH, it cuts out some material from the original > adventures... Horror on the Hill lost most of the outdoor encounters, > and Keep on the Borderlands lost some stuff too. To elaborate a little further: I organizes the B series modules into three different "story arcs", designed to flow in a natural way from one module to the next. They also included short interludes between the modules which provide additional plot structure and motivation, and sometimes tie in with Karameikan NPCs. I like the story arcs feature; running all 9 modules in sequence wouldn't work because characters levels would rise beyond 3 before reaching the end. By stringing a short series of 2-3 modules together, it is easy for the GM to run a party up to 4th level or so and go on to Expert level adventures. Providing three separate arcs is enough material to start three campaigns without repeating anything. B1 was left out entirely. It is suggested as an optional side-trip for one of the arcs, but all that is provided is the dungeon map. To me the most interesting part of B1 was the backstory and the tricks and traps in the dungeon, but none of that is included (probably because it was a do-it-yourself). B2 does not include the Keep/Town, nor the wilderness encounters and map, but the dungeon is complete. B3 is fairly complete, IIRC, but of course the original (green) module really didn't include much more than a dungeon. B4 has the core dungeon levels 1-4, but leaves out the "extended" dungeon levels and also the underground cavern with the city. The extended dungeon levels are no great loss IMO, but the city seemed to me to be the whole point. Oh well. I don't have B5-B9 as standalone modules so I can't comment on how complete they are. One of the modules (B9?) was actually a collection of short adventures, and some of these were left out, while others were used as interludes. However, none of the others was totally left out the way B1 was. I like it. It was easier than tracking down all the individual modules, and I like the story arc feature. As a single book it is also convenient as reading material or a reference when you need some quick inspiration. (Not that the B1 series was all that inspiring, but there were a few good ideas...) OTOH now I *want* to get all the other modules, to see what I missed, and because the module format is easier to use in a game than the book format (ie, it lays flat and has detached maps on the inside of the cover). FWIW I think nearly all the original module art was left out. I picked up a somewhat battered copy for $45 or so and have no regrets. I don't think I'd want to spend more than that unless it was a pretty nice copy. Mike ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 13:45:09 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: George Hrabovsky Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit There is a form of limbo where people go when they die. They wait there until those who are coming for the dead person come for them; these are the servitors of the Immortal and they take the dead to the appropriate place. This was described in one of the Voyages of the Princess Ark. This was Part 27 of the tale, "To Death and Back." You can find it on page 45 of Champions of Mystara, Heroes of the Princess Ark. It is also in Dragon #180. Hope this helps, George ----- Original Message ----- From: "Beau" To: Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2000 11:33 AM Subject: [MYSTARA] Where do Mystarans go when they die? > I had a major NPC -- Nicodemus Majoh, for those of you keeping score at > home -- die in my campaign recently, and realized that with the > Immortals-based cosmology, I had no idea what's supposed to happen to > Mystarans after they die. (Presumably this is covered in WotI.) > Is there a heaven and a hell for them? Does it vary by religion? Should I > just use the default AD&D cosmology of the outer planes? > For my campaign, I had the PC and NPC clerics in the Church of Traladara > make some noises about Nicodemus "standing at Halav's right hand" and such, > but it'd be nice to know what the official stance is, since the player > playing the young cleric in the party is interested in doing the character > right. > > BEAU > http://www.LBY3.com/ > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. > ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 14:53:04 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: SteelAngel Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000712093351.007d3a30@lby3.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > Is there a heaven and a hell for them? Does it vary by religion? Should I > just use the default AD&D cosmology of the outer planes? Err. Ahh.. That topic is not broached in WoTI, in fact it isn't really broached anywhere, that I canthink of, except for an episode of the Princess Ark, when one of the main characters died. He was sent off to this wierd limbo-realm, that looked like the real world, but your currency was your soul, and other rather depressing thoughts. Ethan ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 21:48:19 IDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Eyal Fleminger Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed There was a Dragon article detailing the afterlife in Mystara in issue 180. It also appears on Thibault's site (www.mystara.com.bi; look in Limbo in "Rules") >From: Beau >Reply-To: Mystara >To: MYSTARA-L@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM >Subject: [MYSTARA] Where do Mystarans go when they die? >Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 09:33:51 -0700 > > I had a major NPC -- Nicodemus Majoh, for those of you keeping >score at >home -- die in my campaign recently, and realized that with the >Immortals-based cosmology, I had no idea what's supposed to happen to >Mystarans after they die. (Presumably this is covered in WotI.) > Is there a heaven and a hell for them? Does it vary by religion? >Should I >just use the default AD&D cosmology of the outer planes? > For my campaign, I had the PC and NPC clerics in the Church of >Traladara >make some noises about Nicodemus "standing at Halav's right hand" and such, >but it'd be nice to know what the official stance is, since the player >playing the young cleric in the party is interested in doing the character >right. > > BEAU > http://www.LBY3.com/ > >******************************************************************** >The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp >Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp >To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM >with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 14:55:42 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: SteelAngel Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000712093804.007dac20@lby3.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > The Lost City of the Cindiceans was moved to Karameikos? The mind reels. > B1-9 goes for high, high prices in online auctions, even for tattered > copies. Is it really that nice? Cycindea wasn't moved. It was placed in Ylaruam. ::looks at his tattered copy, bound with duct tape, and practically worn through cover from years of use:: If a copy is tattered it means it's been loved.. I'd never sell mine, it was my first D&D supplement past the red box. Ethan ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 12:02:35 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: <20000712184819.18214.qmail@hotmail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 21:48 07/12/2000 IDT, Eyal Fleminger wrote: >There was a Dragon article detailing the afterlife in Mystara in issue 180. >It also appears on Thibault's site (www.mystara.com.bi; look in Limbo in >"Rules") Thanks, guys. It sounds like the AD&D outer plane cosmology, with the addition of a waiting place is the way to go. So I got it right enough. The good news is that means I can read Planescape stuff for more inspiration, since it's apparently compatible. Now I just have to find out where the Immortals all dwell, but that's in WotI ... right? (Some of them are easy if not: Zirchev lives in the Beastlands, duh.) BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 15:45:12 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Alan Shutko Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: Beau's message of "Wed, 12 Jul 2000 12:02:35 -0700" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Beau writes: > It sounds like the AD&D outer plane cosmology, with the addition of a > waiting place is the way to go. So I got it right enough. Anyone have an alternative to the AD&D outer planes? I really don't like them for some reason... maybe the underlying sameness they give to most AD&D campaign worlds. Mystara is different, and I want something different for the afterlife. -- Alan Shutko - In a variety of flavors! 121 days, 19 hours, 51 minutes, 4 seconds till we run away. Love IS what it's cracked up to be. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:01:15 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: SteelAngel Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000712120235.007d2840@lby3.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > Now I just have to find out where the Immortals all dwell, but that's in > WotI ... right? (Some of them are easy if not: Zirchev lives in the > Beastlands, duh.) WoTI is not compatible with AD&D cosmology. Your best bet to find out where the Immortals live relative to that cosmology is to loof though Warriors of Heaven. Ethan ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 22:04:31 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: David Burtin Organization: K.A.O.S. Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Only 4 of the five adventures from B9 are in In Search of Adventure. The missing one is The Abduction of Princess Sylvia. David William Hillard a �crit : > Actually, they did rerelease those modules, as well as a few others, in a > book called In Search of Adventure a few years back. I think they reprinted > B1 through B9 in order to make an entire campaign, and they tweaked it so > that it is set in Karameikos instead of the places the modules were set in > before. > ________________________________________________________________________ > Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 13:04:21 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 16:01 07/12/2000 -0400, SteelAngel wrote: >On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > >> Now I just have to find out where the Immortals all dwell, but that's in >> WotI ... right? (Some of them are easy if not: Zirchev lives in the >> Beastlands, duh.) > >WoTI is not compatible with AD&D cosmology. How so? I've seen mentions of references to the Immortals living on the "upper planes." Are they different from the Outer Planes? >Your best bet to find out where the Immortals live relative to that >cosmology is to loof though Warriors of Heaven. Even the Immortals of Entropy? BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:44:39 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: SteelAngel Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000712130421.007d11c0@lby3.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > How so? I've seen mentions of references to the Immortals living on the > "upper planes." Are they different from the Outer Planes? Upper Planes? Never read that. The Immortals live on the outer planes, but canonically, not on the AD&D outer planes. The D&D multiverse is arrayed as such: Prime Plane - Universe sized plane surrounded by the Ether Ethereal plane - Universe sized plane that is an exact mirror of the Prime, surrounds and flows through the prime. Elemental Planes (4) - connected via wormhole to the prime through the Ether. Astral Plane - the Universe sized spherical shell that seperates the Inner (Prime,Elemental, Ethereal) planes from the outer planes. Outer Planes - An infinite number of planes beyond the Astral. The outer planes are of any shape, size and composition, and are created and destroyed as the Immortals see fit. There are five major home planes of Immortals, each corresponding to one sphere of power - Matter, Energy, Time, Thought, and Entropy. All Immortals have their home plane on one of the Outer planes, though they do not have to be one of the major home planes, in effect, an Immortal can simply create a home plane and move there :) Dimensions (I call them realities, but you will have to see my treatise on that at Stan's site: http://dnd.starflung.com/mystmult.html ) are other realities. They lie above and below the normal multiverse, much like a stack of plates. Each reality has a set of inner planes, arrayed in the same way as the normal reality, but the outer planes are not the same. Each reality has its own Immortal Hierarchy. Ethan ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 13:54:46 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "Harvey, Michael" Subject: WotI questions MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" I am considering picking up a copy of Wrath of the Immortals for my fledgling campaign, but I have a few questions first. We've only done one session so far and I haven't said anything about what year it is yet. I'm using GAZ1 and was thinking about starting in 1000, but now I'm thinking maybe I should move the start date back to 997 or 998 to allow time for characters to gain levels and do some foreshadowing. I am planning an epic conflict and realized that WotI fits perfectly as a side-effect of the larger conflict. 1. I have the PWA 1 and 2, and I like the day-by-day chronicle of events; does WotI have anything like this? 2. What years does WotI cover? 3. Does X4/X5 occur during the events of WotI? (I want to run these) 4. Roughly what level should characters be at the beginning of WotI? 5. Does WotI serve as a replacement for the old Immortals set? I was thinking about picking that up too, but don't really want to waste my money. 6. Are there any gazetteers that I really SHOULD have to run WotI effectively? Thanks, Mike ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 13:58:35 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 16:44 07/12/2000 -0400, SteelAngel wrote: >The Immortals live on the outer planes, but canonically, not on the AD&D >outer planes. The D&D multiverse is arrayed as such: > >Prime Plane - Universe sized plane surrounded by the Ether > >Ethereal plane - Universe sized plane that is an exact mirror of the >Prime, surrounds and flows through the prime. > >Elemental Planes (4) - connected via wormhole to the prime through the >Ether. > >Astral Plane - the Universe sized spherical shell that seperates the Inner >(Prime,Elemental, Ethereal) planes from the outer planes. All of that is, more or less, the same as it is in AD&D. There are minor differences -- quasielemental planes, the appearance of the Ethereal -- but they're fairly trivial and can be chalked up to location issues. "Oh, sure, the Ethereal looks a little different when you get over near Mystara. And you have to go to a third plane to get from there to the Quasi-elemental planes ..." >Outer Planes - An infinite number of planes beyond the Astral. The outer >planes are of any shape, size and composition, and are created and >destroyed as the Immortals see fit. There are five major home planes of >Immortals, each corresponding to one sphere of power - Matter, Energy, >Time, Thought, and Entropy. All Immortals have their home plane on one of >the Outer planes, though they do not have to be one of the major home >planes, in effect, an Immortal can simply create a home plane and move >there :) Hmm. Apparently, the new 3E Manual of the Planes will be flexible enough to support such things. But there's five main sphere-related planes? Hmmm, hmm, hmmm. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:18:05 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: George Hrabovsky Subject: Planes MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Here is the structure of the multiverse that I use in my game: 1) Prime Plane By mutual agreement between the Immortals (despite not infrequent attempts by just about everyone to bend the rules) there is no direct Immortal power used in the Prime without the direct approval of all hierarchs. This is the plane where most of the game takes place. 2) Ethereal Plane This surrounds the Prime Plane and is either the place where psychic powers manifest, or it is a lower realm of the astral plane. Nobody is sure which is true. One thing is known by some scholars, it is here that psychic powers work through this plane. Access between the ethereal and Prime planes is easy for psychics and trivial for magicians. 2-a) Elemental Planes These are planes that exist within the Ethereal and it is thought that they were created by powerful beings called elemental kings. Each kingdom is thought to have existed as a separate plane at one time, but over the ages similar planes have collected together to form four primary planes: Air, Earth, Fire, and Water. The individual kingdoms now constitute worlds within these planes, and pure dilute forms of the element form the spaces between the worlds. 2-b) The Dreamworld This is where the consciousness goes when someone has a dream. Skilled dreamers can manipulate the reality of this world and influence the dreams of others. Powerful dreamers can cast out emanations of dream into other planes, thus influencing reality. This is NOT the dimension of Nightmare! 2-c) Limbo A shadowy place where people go when they die. It is possible to rescue people from this land. This may only be accomplished by powerful magicians, priests, or shaman. Servants of the Immortals come here to bring the faithful dead to their final resting places (usually the home planes of Immortals). Greater undead can be found here too, looking for servants and slaves... 3) The Astral Plane This is the plane where magic manifests itself. It is always night here, with stars filling the sky. Each star is a wormhole through which the traveler can cross into outer planes. 4) The Outer Planes These are the homes and/or creation of the Immortals. They are diverse and the rules of existence in them may be very different from that of the Prime Plane. 5) The Dimension of Nightmare Beyond the 11 diemsions of the Prime Dimension is the Dimension of Nightmare. Nightmare also has 11 dimensions but they are not all the same as those of the Prime. Beings from Nightmare are horrifying to behold, the only known beings are the Malfera, the Nuckalavee, The Brain Collectors, and the Burrowers (corrupted by Thanatos, and thanks to Andrew for reminding me of them). 6) The Vortex Dimension Nothing is known of this even by the Immortals, other than it is the place where Blackballs come from. Hope you like this... George ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 00:31:15 IDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Eyal Fleminger Subject: Re: WotI questions Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed >1. I have the PWA 1 and 2, and I like the day-by-day chronicle of events; >does WotI have anything like this? > >2. What years does WotI cover? WOTI does not cover the years day-by-day; rather, it only provides events happening at specific times in the years 1004-1009, which the DM should expand into adventures > >3. Does X4/X5 occur during the events of WotI? (I want to run these) > X10 happens during WOTI, so X4/X5 should also occur then. Note that you may have to change some details (especially in X10), since those modules were originally written with a different time period in mind >4. Roughly what level should characters be at the beginning of WotI? > The first adventure in WOTI is designed for characters of around level 3 (IIRC). >5. Does WotI serve as a replacement for the old Immortals set? I was >thinking about picking that up too, but don't really want to waste my >money. WOTI replaces the gold box set with a more simplefied format. >6. Are there any gazetteers that I really SHOULD have to run WotI >effectively? None of the Gazetteers are strictly required, though DOTE and the Hollow World boxed set would be very useful. Other than that, it depends which of the events you run as adventures. ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 14:56:39 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "Harvey, Michael" Subject: Re: Planes MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" George Hrabovsky wrote: > 2-c) Limbo > > A shadowy place where people go when they die. It is > possible to rescue people from this land. This may only > be accomplished by powerful magicians, priests, or shaman. > Servants of the Immortals come here to bring the faithful > dead to their final resting places (usually the home > planes of Immortals). Greater undead can be found here > too, looking for servants and slaves... I like the "rescue" idea, and it gives me a thought: what if clerics have to travel in spirit-form to Limbo in order to bring someone back from the dead? They'd need to go there and locate the person, then wait for the immortal servant to come. While they wait, they may be confronted with bizarre encounters with other dead souls, nightmare beings, fiends, etc. When the immortal servant arrives, the cleric must do battle for the soul; if the guardian wins, the cleric is sent back in a weakened state (if weakened to the point of death, the cleric remains in Limbo until a servant comes for *him*). If the cleric wins, the guardian must allow the dead soul to return to life. This could form the basis of a mini-adventure, and the possibility of defeat would make clerics reluctant to case "raise dead" frivolously. "Resurrection" could go a step further and call the person back from whatever is beyond Limbo, a much more involved task (and the person may not *want* to return). This would imply that a "gate" spell or other magical means might be used to rescue departed souls, and might make it possible for non-clerics to make the attempt. Perhaps it is possible to "escape" from Limbo as well. There are hidden rifts between Limbo and the dimensions of dream and nightmare, and a soul whose work is not finished can find its way back to the mortal realms as a ghost or other undead. Passing through the nightmare realms usually leaves a soul deranged, which explains the antisocial behavior of most ghosts. Others become trapped in nightmares or dreams and appear to loved ones in that way. Likewise, a defeated cleric may attempt to escape in this way. Just some strange thoughts... Mike ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 17:25:22 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: George Hrabovsky Subject: Re: Planes MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Indeed, in my campaign those (very few) people who have the power to resurrect must travel to Limbo (if soon enough after death), or even to an Outer Plane to find the dead! George ----- Original Message ----- From: "Harvey, Michael" To: Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2000 4:56 PM Subject: Re: [MYSTARA] Planes > George Hrabovsky wrote: > > 2-c) Limbo > > > > A shadowy place where people go when they die. It is > > possible to rescue people from this land. This may only > > be accomplished by powerful magicians, priests, or shaman. > > Servants of the Immortals come here to bring the faithful > > dead to their final resting places (usually the home > > planes of Immortals). Greater undead can be found here > > too, looking for servants and slaves... > > I like the "rescue" idea, and it gives me a thought: what if clerics have to > travel in spirit-form to Limbo in order to bring someone back from the dead? > They'd need to go there and locate the person, then wait for the immortal > servant to come. While they wait, they may be confronted with bizarre > encounters with other dead souls, nightmare beings, fiends, etc. When the > immortal servant arrives, the cleric must do battle for the soul; if the > guardian wins, the cleric is sent back in a weakened state (if weakened to > the point of death, the cleric remains in Limbo until a servant comes for > *him*). If the cleric wins, the guardian must allow the dead soul to return > to life. This could form the basis of a mini-adventure, and the possibility > of defeat would make clerics reluctant to case "raise dead" frivolously. > "Resurrection" could go a step further and call the person back from > whatever is beyond Limbo, a much more involved task (and the person may not > *want* to return). This would imply that a "gate" spell or other magical > means might be used to rescue departed souls, and might make it possible for > non-clerics to make the attempt. > > Perhaps it is possible to "escape" from Limbo as well. There are hidden > rifts between Limbo and the dimensions of dream and nightmare, and a soul > whose work is not finished can find its way back to the mortal realms as a > ghost or other undead. Passing through the nightmare realms usually leaves a > soul deranged, which explains the antisocial behavior of most ghosts. Others > become trapped in nightmares or dreams and appear to loved ones in that way. > Likewise, a defeated cleric may attempt to escape in this way. > > Just some strange thoughts... > > Mike > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. > ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 19:07:47 EDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: TDRandall@AOL.COM Subject: Alternate cosmologies - WAS: Where do Mystarans go when they die? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Alan Shutko pondered with regard to Mystara: > Anyone have an alternative to the AD&D outer planes? This is all IIRC, since the appropriate books are currently packed away..... Depending on how far you want to go back, the gold immortal boxes gave each immortal their own plane out on the astral. Each floated separately within the astral with no connection between others unless altered by the immortal in some way (connecting it to another plane then removing the connections to the Astral, etc), and each might have a different number of dimensions within it (magic was explained as having at least one more dimension accessible then could be perceived, and immortals were fully four dimensional creatures). In such an example, a worshipper could eventually be escorted to the home plane of the immortal. In the Wrath of the Immortals set, it seems like there were fewer planes, and although each plane had sufficient dimensions to it, the physics of the place might be vastly different. But it seems here that the immortals shared home planes, although I don't remember if it was separated by pantheon, by sphere of power (matter, energy, time, etc.), or by initiate/sponser connection. It's nice to resurrect and recycle some old ideas. Enjoy! Tony ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 01:42:36 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Phillip Jones Subject: Re: Planes MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > > I like the "rescue" idea, and it gives me a thought: what if clerics have to > travel in spirit-form to Limbo in order to bring someone back from the dead? > They'd need to go there and locate the person, then wait for the immortal > servant to come. While they wait, they may be confronted with bizarre > encounters with other dead souls, nightmare beings, fiends, etc. When the > immortal servant arrives, the cleric must do battle for the soul; if the > guardian wins, the cleric is sent back in a weakened state (if weakened to > the point of death, the cleric remains in Limbo until a servant comes for > *him*). If the cleric wins, the guardian must allow the dead soul to return > to life. This could form the basis of a mini-adventure, and the possibility > of defeat would make clerics reluctant to case "raise dead" frivolously. > "Resurrection" could go a step further and call the person back from > whatever is beyond Limbo, a much more involved task (and the person may not > *want* to return). This would imply that a "gate" spell or other magical > means might be used to rescue departed souls, and might make it possible for > non-clerics to make the attempt. Nice idea, but I remember reading somewhere (the Companion Rules I think) that death for high level characters becomes more of an inconvenience that a major problem. Whilst I don't particularly subscribe to this way of thinking, I can see its point, as many of the creatures that high level PCs would face could kill a character very easily. I would also assume that that most 10th level clerics would get flattened by the Immortal Servant that arrives to claim the dead persons soul, and many higher level clerics would definately think twice before embarking on such a quest (bearing in mind that its their spirit that travels into Limbo, thus leaving their magical items behind, weakening the cleric considerably), and of course, what would the cleric do if the Immortal Servant turns out to be a minion of the same Immortal the cleric serves? What I have done in my campaign, is when a cleric casts a Raise Dead type spell, his spirit goes to his patron Immortal and appeals for the dead person to be restored to life. At this point, the Immortal either approves or declines the appeal, weighing in factors like the dead persons alignment, the good/bad deeds that he/she has performed during his/her life, whether the dead person worships an Immortal that is currently in conflict with the clerics Immortal etc.etc. If the cleric gets past this stage then the Immortal will then send an Immortal Servant to either Halls of the Dead or the home plane of the Immortal that the dead person worships and and asks to speak with the dead person in question (to see if that person wants to return to life). If the person worships an Immortal (and is therefore on that Immortals home plane), every time the dead person chooses life over the bliss of the Immortals "heaven" (for the lack of a better word), that person will drop in his/her status when he/she finally returns to the Immortals bosom. What about those who do not worship Immortals??? As their souls reside in the Halls of the Dead, you might think that there is no penalty for them to return to the lands of the living, but this is not so. Every time a dead person from the Halls of the Dead chooses to return to life, their spirit takes one step towards becoming an undead creature (for are not the undead supposed to be souls cling to life even in death??). As for spells like the magic user spell Recarnation, as this requires a piece of flesh of the dead person to be cast, the magic "homes in" on the dead persons soul and carries the soul back to the land of the living. Of course, the dead person could resist, in which case the spell would fail, but if not - well, the same rules apply regarding the dead persons final status in the after-life. OK, I know it seems rather complicated on the surface, but I find it worth it, and my players certainly think twice before accepting a Raise Dead.!!! :) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 21:21:21 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: George Hrabovsky Subject: Re: Planes MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In my game the only distinction between a priest and a mage is where they derive their power from. Priests have far more power than mages, but they can only use it when their Immortal approves, period (no chance of using priestly powers for personal gain without permission on the spot). Mage's are allowed to heal or whatever, assuming they have the requisite knowledge. This relates to the planes discussion in the following way: 1) Priests who have resurrection type powers can only use them on followers of their religion. This only works when their Immortal allows. The priest travels to the home plane (or the plane where the dead arrive) and petitions for the dead. There must be an overridingly good reason for this or the Immortal will become annoyed. "Because it's a party member," is not good enough. 2) Mages who have the power may use it. They go to Limbo or the appropriate Outer Plane, or they send a spirit bound to the task to do so. Some may make bargains for the life of the dead. This is a difficult and dangerous task, since spirits or Immortals could become angry at the mage. 3) Shaman may travel to Limbo or the Outer Planes and engage in spiritual combat with the denizens there for the right to take the soul of the dead back to their body. I use a game system of my own design and its mechanics, while entirely consistent with the world of Mystara are NOT like D&D. It is a skill-based system, not a class/level-based system. You can find some of the details of the game at http://borigon-online.homepage.com George ----- Original Message ----- From: "Phillip Jones" To: Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2000 7:42 PM Subject: Re: [MYSTARA] Planes > > > > I like the "rescue" idea, and it gives me a thought: what if clerics have > to > > travel in spirit-form to Limbo in order to bring someone back from the > dead? > > They'd need to go there and locate the person, then wait for the immortal > > servant to come. While they wait, they may be confronted with bizarre > > encounters with other dead souls, nightmare beings, fiends, etc. When the > > immortal servant arrives, the cleric must do battle for the soul; if the > > guardian wins, the cleric is sent back in a weakened state (if weakened to > > the point of death, the cleric remains in Limbo until a servant comes for > > *him*). If the cleric wins, the guardian must allow the dead soul to > return > > to life. This could form the basis of a mini-adventure, and the > possibility > > of defeat would make clerics reluctant to case "raise dead" frivolously. > > "Resurrection" could go a step further and call the person back from > > whatever is beyond Limbo, a much more involved task (and the person may > not > > *want* to return). This would imply that a "gate" spell or other magical > > means might be used to rescue departed souls, and might make it possible > for > > non-clerics to make the attempt. > > Nice idea, but I remember reading somewhere (the Companion Rules I think) > that death for high level characters becomes more of an inconvenience that a > major problem. Whilst I don't particularly subscribe to this way of > thinking, I can see its point, as many of the creatures that high level PCs > would face could kill a character very easily. > > I would also assume that that most 10th level clerics would get flattened by > the Immortal Servant that arrives to claim the dead persons soul, and many > higher level clerics would definately think twice before embarking on such a > quest (bearing in mind that its their spirit that travels into Limbo, thus > leaving their magical items behind, weakening the cleric considerably), and > of course, what would the cleric do if the Immortal Servant turns out to be > a minion of the same Immortal the cleric serves? > > What I have done in my campaign, is when a cleric casts a Raise Dead type > spell, his spirit goes to his patron Immortal and appeals for the dead > person to be restored to life. At this point, the Immortal either approves > or declines the appeal, weighing in factors like the dead persons alignment, > the good/bad deeds that he/she has performed during his/her life, whether > the dead person worships an Immortal that is currently in conflict with the > clerics Immortal etc.etc. If the cleric gets past this stage then the > Immortal will then send an Immortal Servant to either Halls of the Dead or > the home plane of the Immortal that the dead person worships and and asks to > speak with the dead person in question (to see if that person wants to > return to life). If the person worships an Immortal (and is therefore on > that Immortals home plane), every time the dead person chooses life over the > bliss of the Immortals "heaven" (for the lack of a better word), that person > will drop in his/her status when he/she finally returns to the Immortals > bosom. What about those who do not worship Immortals??? As their souls > reside in the Halls of the Dead, you might think that there is no penalty > for them to return to the lands of the living, but this is not so. Every > time a dead person from the Halls of the Dead chooses to return to life, > their spirit takes one step towards becoming an undead creature (for are not > the undead supposed to be souls cling to life even in death??). > > As for spells like the magic user spell Recarnation, as this requires a > piece of flesh of the dead person to be cast, the magic "homes in" on the > dead persons soul and carries the soul back to the land of the living. Of > course, the dead person could resist, in which case the spell would fail, > but if not - well, the same rules apply regarding the dead persons final > status in the after-life. > > OK, I know it seems rather complicated on the surface, but I find it worth > it, and my players certainly think twice before accepting a Raise Dead.!!! > :) > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. > ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 03:03:40 CDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: William Hillard Subject: Re: Interesting Tidbit Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Actually, yeah it is that nice. :) I wouldn't give my copy of it up for anything. Though, in the book the Lost City wasn't actually in Karemeikos, but in the desert just north of the border (you get there by magic carpet, gettting back is your own problem). The campaign starts in threshhold and eventually, no matter which of the three possible routes you take to get there (!) you wind up in Specularum, where the party becomes involved in one of the secret societies there. My copy is about to fall to pieces, but I keep it together if nothing else than I love it so much. :) ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 11:18:28 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: SteelAngel Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000712135835.0079eec0@lby3.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > "Oh, sure, the Ethereal looks a little different when you get over near > Mystara. And you have to go to a third plane to get from there to the > Quasi-elemental planes ..." Which is why I consider the AD&D cosmology to be a seperate reality. Mystara is in one reality, and the AD&D worlds are in another. It clears up all those nasty "does Mystara have a crystal sphere?" and "Why are there no Drow on Mystara" issues. ^_^ > But there's five main sphere-related planes? Hmmm, hmm, hmmm. Yes, those are the home planes for most of the lower-level Immortals of that Sphere. Higher level Immortals would have their own planes, IMHO. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 11:50:20 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Evil Genius Subject: Re: Darokin Jenni A. M. Merrifield wrote: >> However, I directed Richard W. here because I wanted him to be able to ask various questions about Darokin on his own terms and there really isn't that much "on the web" << Ahh, ok. >> Part of the reason he wants to learn about Darokin is that his character is probably going to be from there, somewhere near Darokin City. I've also suggested he consider being an apprentice of the DDC [for various plot reasons] << Well, lets see here. First another thing from what could be called my "endless stream of useless advice" - specific questions about this or that ("what is life like in the Streel river valley?" "Does Darokin City have suburbs?" and the like) are probably going to provoke more response than a huge general category ("Please tell me what you know about or imagine Darokin to be like"), because that seems so daunting. People usually discuss discrete/modest topics at length ("Postal systems of the KW"), and only usually talk about broad topics when they're (or, rather, "we're") debating "X vs. W". Anyhow, to get started, I'll give my own impressions on the two examples I raised, but in reverse order: 1) Does Darokin City have "suburbs", or, if you prefer to not make it sound too modern, "Exurbs". Yes. I'd imagine there are numerous villages and even towns near Darokin City (not on the map) that the character could hale from. Many of these might engage in specific activities (meat rendering/slaughterhouses that supply the city, tanneries, etc, plus general agricultural-related, small villages/homlets based around orchards, vinyards, and gardens for vegetables, plus places devoted to prepairing wool after sheering in the first steps of the process before sending it off to the textile mills of the city. Lots of water mills along the Streel, remember). There's also, definately, country estates of the wealthy merchantile Houses (not just the "Big 8", but the "lessers" as well) - such families would no doubt have both a mansion in the city and a house in the country (within half a day's ride). The character could have grown up on one of these - depending on the nature of the campaign, he might be a scion of one of the major houses (a younger child, nephiew or niece of the master of the House, or whatnot), a member of a "lesser" house, or even the son or daughter of a member of the household staff. 2) Life in the Streel River Valley: the above "answer" covered parts of that, or at least one can gleen probabilities based on it (the various "industries" et al imply certain working conditions and sources of livelyhood). The wealthier families would have grand estates, others would have humbler but (considering the generally high standard of living in Darokin) still decent homes, all likely clean and well maintained, painted (think 16th & 17th century Holland, probably), etc. Near Darokin city roads would be good (cobblestones), and there isn't really a class of "ground-down peasants, serfs, and slaves", though there could be indentured servatude (the character himself might be indentured, or might have just "graduated" from indenturship and is now in training to the DDC, or his father, younger brother or sister, or other relative might be serving a particularly grim - not nessissarily cruel but possibly unpleasant - indenturship, and one of the character's campaign goals mi! ! ght be to scrape together enough loot to "buy out" the indentureship contract and thereby free the relative in question from drudgery.) Hopefully that'll help, or at least help get a discussion started. Any direct, specific questions, just ask 'em. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 09:40:35 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:18 07/13/2000 -0400, SteelAngel wrote: >On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > >> "Oh, sure, the Ethereal looks a little different when you get over near >> Mystara. And you have to go to a third plane to get from there to the >> Quasi-elemental planes ..." > >Which is why I consider the AD&D cosmology to be a seperate reality. >Mystara is in one reality, and the AD&D worlds are in another. It clears >up all those nasty "does Mystara have a crystal sphere?" and "Why are >there no Drow on Mystara" issues. ^_^ Well, the Drow issue is easy: They don't live here. Mystara doesn't have Kender, either. And the crystal sphere thing ... well, it's an example of why the experiment of having two *D&D competing lines was a little silly. Most fantasy systems don't have one set of rules and cosmology for space travel. Two is frickin' silly. I don't use either set of rules -- they simply aren't relevant to any games I'd want to play -- but I don't see how the cosmologies can't support the idea that not all the prime material worlds are inside spheres in the phlogiston or whatever; surely there can be full universes on seperate parallel prime planes. If not, well, poo on that cosmology. Like everyone else, I grab what I like and ignore what I don't care about or care for. For my purposes, it's possible to streamline the inner planes nicely. (Nightmare Realm of D&D = Far Realm of AD&D ... they both even have brain collectors!) The outer planes are going to take more work, though ... >> But there's five main sphere-related planes? Hmmm, hmm, hmmm. > >Yes, those are the home planes for most of the lower-level Immortals of >that Sphere. Higher level Immortals would have their own planes, IMHO. Hmmmm. I need to get a copy of WotI and the upcoming Manual of the Planes before I make any decisions about how it'll all me IMC. I'm not sure it'll be an issue for a long time, although I would like to sort it out, in case my group decides to run a Planescape game, which I would like to be compatible with our Mystara ones. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 17:50:42 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Thu, 13 Jul 2000 11:18:28 SteelAngel wrote: >On Wed, 12 Jul 2000, Beau wrote: > >> "Oh, sure, the Ethereal looks a little different when you get over near >> Mystara. And you have to go to a third plane to get from there to the >> Quasi-elemental planes ..." > >Which is why I consider the AD&D cosmology to be a seperate reality. >Mystara is in one reality, and the AD&D worlds are in another. It clears >up all those nasty "does Mystara have a crystal sphere?" and "Why are >there no Drow on Mystara" issues. ^_^ > Well, I like to put Mystara in the AD&D cosmology simply because I feel it gives me more options. I love Spelljammer, and when my campaign recently got to the point when the Master was kicked out of Darokin (1006 AC) and the meteor was about to strike, I used the Spelljammer rules to play the 'Wildspace' adventure, having the meteor be 'The Hive' or 'The Ravager' in the adventure. Worked quite well... Even though the PCs couldn't stop it from hitting Mystara (which actually makes more sense to me!) - they could only divert it a little so that it didn't hit Darokin City (where it was originally headed) or Glantri City (where it was headed towards after some Alphatian 'interference' - they were helped by other Alphatians, though!) As for the Drow, I don't think it would not be that unusual not to have them. IIRC there are Drow only in the Forgotten Realms and Greyhawk campaigns anyway. I'm pretty sure they aren't in Dragonlance (where 'dark elves' are actually exiled elves, I think), Ravenloft, or Dark Sun, and I doubt you'd find them in Birthright either, though I'm less sure... Well, it's just my take on it anyway. I just use AD&D because it gives me more options, and I wouldn't want to limit myself... - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 10:06:54 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 17:50 07/13/2000 +0100, The Stalker wrote: >As for the Drow, I don't think it would not be that unusual not to have them. IIRC there are Drow only in the Forgotten Realms and Greyhawk campaigns anyway. I'm pretty sure they aren't in Dragonlance (where 'dark elves' are actually exiled elves, I think), Ravenloft, or Dark Sun, and I doubt you'd find them in Birthright either, though I'm less sure... At one point, there were Drow in Ravenloft, although with all the shakeups over the years, though, I don't know if that's still true. And, frankly, when they made the leap from Oerth to other worlds, that sort of annoyed me. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 22:36:16 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Phillip Jones Subject: Re: Planes MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > I use a game system of my own design and its mechanics, > while entirely consistent with the world of Mystara are NOT > like D&D. It is a skill-based system, not a class/level-based > system. You can find some of the details of the game at > > http://borigon-online.homepage.com > > George Thanks. I'll check it out. :) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 12:07:22 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "[Iulius Scaevola]" Subject: Nightmare Update MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Ok, I just finished another update at the Dark Portal, the Nightmare Project Home Page. I uploaded Andrew`s Burrower files and made some minor change...nothing significant apart that. I am strenuously working to finish an article myself (Hello, Federico! I am working on it...) while studying my Mathematical Analysis I (exam the 27th) and Physical Experimentations I (exam the 2nd of August). ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 08:30:49 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: Only you can say no to Drow Beau wrote: > > At one point, there were Drow in Ravenloft, although with all the shakeups over the years, though, I don't know if that's still true. > And, frankly, when they made the leap from Oerth to other worlds, that sort of annoyed me. > I suppose it's things like this which made me decide that, IMC, Mystara was, is, and always will be a Drow-free zone. Geoff -- Geoff Gander, BA 97 Cartographer/Game Designer/Government Peon Carnifex Loremaster au998@freenet.carleton.ca : www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/2091 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 11:13:54 -0300 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Tzimisce Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi Mystarans! > Like everyone else, I grab what I like and ignore what I don't care about >or care for. For my purposes, it's possible to streamline the inner planes >nicely. (Nightmare Realm of D&D = Far Realm of AD&D ... they both even have >brain collectors!) What is this Far Realm from AD&D? Thanks in advance, Tzimisce ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 09:15:47 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Only you can say no to Drow In-Reply-To: <200007141230.IAA05162@freenet10.carleton.ca> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 08:30 07/14/2000 -0400, Geoff Gander wrote: >Beau wrote: >> >> At one point, there were Drow in Ravenloft, although with all the >shakeups over the years, though, I don't know if that's still true. >> And, frankly, when they made the leap from Oerth to other worlds, >that sort of annoyed me. > >I suppose it's things like this which made me decide that, IMC, Mystara >was, is, and always will be a Drow-free zone. To be fair, circa D3, they were a pretty cool bunch but the more that was discussed about them and the more Forgotten Realmsy they got, the worse it was. And, of course, all the would be RA Salvatores out there wanting to play good half-drow, drow or whatever characters haven't helped their cause. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 09:16:47 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: Where do Mystarans go when they die? In-Reply-To: <013101bfed9f$afdde0c0$931cf2c8@catabroc> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:13 07/14/2000 -0300, Tzimisce wrote: >> Like everyone else, I grab what I like and ignore what I don't care >about >>or care for. For my purposes, it's possible to streamline the inner planes >>nicely. (Nightmare Realm of D&D = Far Realm of AD&D ... they both even have >>brain collectors!) > >What is this Far Realm from AD&D? An alternate multiverse where the mind flayers, brain collectors (!) and aboleth come from. Basically, it's the Chthuluverse, with crazy physical laws and the rest. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 13:17:06 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Yeah, it's clearly inspired by Darth Maul, but 3E is going to feature a sword-like weapon with a blade at both ends: http://wizards.com/dnd/3E_Weapons_0700.asp This is a weapon that I'm inclined to restrict and keep a fairly exotic weapon. I'd really like to have it be something from a certain region only, so that when a warrior from ______ shows up, it's all the more memorable because of the wild weapon he fights with. Any thoughts as to who might develop such a sword? BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 14:23:49 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000714131706.007ea1c0@lby3.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 01:17 PM 7/14/00 -0700, you wrote: > > Any thoughts as to who might develop such a sword? First guess? Possibly an Ochalean weapon, or (maybe more appropriately) a Myoshiman weapon. Otherwise, I'd say it could perhaps come from further east- one of the Skothar nations (perhaps Chung-Eun, which IIRC is supposed to be the MChina... well, another MChina, anyway). Something like that- an exotic weapon from far distant lands. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 17:35:37 EDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Master's Pawn Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit How about those fabled Mantis-men or 'Mantids'from Izondia. Could be it's Herathian in origin (best used by those with multiple limbs) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 23:57:15 +0200 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Thibault Sarlat Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit I'll take it for my skothar project!!! thanks as a side note i would like to ask to anyone who had regular mails from me due to discussions or project develloping that i had to format my hard drive so i lost most of your adresses. you would all be kind to send them to me again, just a blank mail to allow me to update my new adress book. thanks Andrew Theisen a �crit : > At 01:17 PM 7/14/00 -0700, you wrote: > > > > Any thoughts as to who might develop such a sword? > > First guess? Possibly an Ochalean weapon, or (maybe more appropriately) a > Myoshiman weapon. > > Otherwise, I'd say it could perhaps come from further east- one of the > Skothar nations (perhaps Chung-Eun, which IIRC is supposed to be the > MChina... well, another MChina, anyway). Something like that- an exotic > weapon from far distant lands. > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 15:43:04 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000714142349.007cca50@pop.wans.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 14:23 07/14/2000 -0700, Andrew Theisen wrote: >First guess? Possibly an Ochalean weapon, or (maybe more appropriately) a >Myoshiman weapon. > >Otherwise, I'd say it could perhaps come from further east- one of the >Skothar nations (perhaps Chung-Eun, which IIRC is supposed to be the >MChina... well, another MChina, anyway). Something like that- an exotic >weapon from far distant lands. These lands are in "Champions of Mystara?" BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 15:43:28 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 17:35 07/14/2000 EDT, Master's Pawn wrote: >How about those fabled Mantis-men or 'Mantids'from Izondia. Could be it's Herathian in origin (best used by those with multiple limbs) That's a thought ... BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 16:46:52 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "Harvey, Michael" Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Beau wrote: > Andrew Theisen wrote: > >> First guess? Possibly an Ochalean weapon, or (maybe more >> appropriately) a Myoshiman weapon. >> >> Otherwise, I'd say it could perhaps come from further east- >> one of the Skothar nations (perhaps Chung-Eun, which IIRC >> is supposed to be the MChina... well, another MChina, >> anyway). Something like that- an exotic weapon from far >> distant lands. > > These lands are in "Champions of Mystara?" Ochalea is in "Dawn of the Emperors" Myoshima (the moon Rakasta) is in "Champions of Mystara" Bellayne (the earth Rakasta) is in "Red Steel / Savage Coast" Chung-Eun I've never heard of before. It's not in CoM or DotE. Champions contains: Sind Graakhalia Slagovich Yavdlom (on Thanegia Isle) Mukuru (on the serpent peninsula) Various savanna and jungle regions 8-mile trail maps of the above Also: Overview of developing new regions for Mystara Airships of various designs (including deckplan maps and color paintings) The moons & adventuring in space Mike ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 16:57:00 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <4148FEAAD879D311AC5700A0C969E8907BC569@orsmsx35.jf.intel.c om> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 16:46 07/14/2000 -0700, Harvey, Michael wrote: Thanks, btw, for the rundown. >Champions contains: > Sind > Graakhalia > Slagovich I know a bit about this from the Red Steel boxed sets. And Sind is MIndia, of course. What's Graakhalia? > Yavdlom (on Thanegia Isle) A theocracy, I know. What's it like? > Mukuru (on the serpent peninsula) What's it like? > Airships of various designs (including deckplan maps and color paintings) > The moons & adventuring in space Do many people use these rules? BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 16:59:04 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Subject: Coffee? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Joshuan's Alamanac lists several countries as coffee importers, but no country as coffee exporters. Where's it coming from? Tea, which is also listed, has both import and export. Frankly, I LIKE that Mystarans smoke tobacco (at the very least) and drink coffee and tea. Fantasy versions of the same always seem to be a lot of effort for something that doesn't need it, and as Mystara lines up to a lot of real world cultures, this allows easy drop-in cultural details, like the Darokinian caravan leader who's developed a taste for thick Ylari coffee. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 17:34:47 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: "Harvey, Michael" Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Beau wrote: > >Champions contains: > > Sind > > Graakhalia > > Slagovich > > I know a bit about this from the Red Steel boxed > sets. And Sind is MIndia, of course. What's Graakhalia? A vast "underdark" region beneath the Plain of Fire, which lies in the desert between Sind and the Black Mountains. The region is inhabited by elves and "good" gnolls who live in harmony as a mixed society. Some special areas like the fungus caverns, the scorpion men, the lava pits, etc. During the Hulean invasion, vast numbers of humanoids were sent into Graakhalia to gain control of the region. > > Yavdlom (on Thanegia Isle) > > A theocracy, I know. What's it like? Black skinned people with pointed ears (mixture of Tanagoro and Elven blood), intolerant of elves. They are ruled by Seers who knew that WotI was coming before it happened. The population is divided into "those that matter" (ie the seers know that they will have a major impact on history) and "those that don't". Knowing something about the future gives them a very fatalistic outlook, or at least thats the impression I got. They completely dominate the tropical island of Thanegia, southeast of the Serpent Peninsula, southwest of Sind, and north of Davania. > > Mukuru (on the serpent peninsula) > > What's it like? Um, I've only skimmed it so far, but here are some highlights: - Black human race who have a sort of "lost civilization" in the jungle. Reminds me of a tarzan movie, or Zimbabwe. - Tame elephants and triceratops - Protected by powerful magic, and the entire country is surrounded by a "wall" of "guardian trees" - Lost of leisure time; daily arena games featuring elephant riders and triceratop riders playing polo > > Airships of various designs (including deckplan maps and > color paintings) > > The moons & adventuring in space > > Do many people use these rules? I don't know. I just got CoM about a week ago myself, mostly for the geographic content. However I really like some of the designs for flying ships and zeppelins, and they might make an appearance in my campaign at some point. Though I'm not sure I want entire sky navies... The jungles of the serpent peninsula are interesting, with vast mangrove swamps and stuff. Mike ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 19:47:12 -0500 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: George Hrabovsky Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit How about Myoshiman barbarians... George ----- Original Message ----- From: "Beau" To: Sent: Friday, July 14, 2000 3:17 PM Subject: [MYSTARA] The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara > Yeah, it's clearly inspired by Darth Maul, but 3E is going to feature a > sword-like weapon with a blade at both ends: > http://wizards.com/dnd/3E_Weapons_0700.asp > This is a weapon that I'm inclined to restrict and keep a fairly exotic > weapon. I'd really like to have it be something from a certain region only, > so that when a warrior from ______ shows up, it's all the more memorable > because of the wild weapon he fights with. > Any thoughts as to who might develop such a sword? > > BEAU > http://www.LBY3.com/ > > ******************************************************************** > The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp > Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp > To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM > with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. > ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 02:38:26 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Fri, 14 Jul 2000 13:17:06 Beau wrote: > Yeah, it's clearly inspired by Darth Maul, Actually there is a precedence for this in AD&D, that predates Episode I and Darth Maul by several years. I don't know if anybody else have these, but if you do, try looking at the early issues of the AD&D comic book and pay attention to the centaur warrior (from FR...) named Timoth Eyesbright (!). In the early issues he used just such a sword on several occasions... (courtesty of Useless AD&D Facts Inc.) :) > but 3E is going to feature a >sword-like weapon with a blade at both ends: > http://wizards.com/dnd/3E_Weapons_0700.asp > This is a weapon that I'm inclined to restrict and keep a fairly exotic >weapon. I'd really like to have it be something from a certain region only, >so that when a warrior from ______ shows up, it's all the more memorable >because of the wild weapon he fights with. > Any thoughts as to who might develop such a sword? > > BEAU > http://www.LBY3.com/ > - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 21:39:13 EDT Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Jim Bobb Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 7/14/00 6:56:01 PM Eastern Daylight Time, lby3@LBY3.COM writes: << >How about those fabled Mantis-men or 'Mantids'from Izondia. Could be it's Herathian in origin (best used by those with multiple limbs) That's a thought ... >> Here's a flash, the earliest D&D picture of a two-bladed sword is in the Dungeons & Dragons boxed introductory game, and it is being wielded by a charging Centaur. Just another option for ya! Jim Bobb ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 02:41:54 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Fri, 14 Jul 2000 15:43:04 Beau wrote: >At 14:23 07/14/2000 -0700, Andrew Theisen wrote: > >>First guess? Possibly an Ochalean weapon, or (maybe more appropriately) a >>Myoshiman weapon. >> >>Otherwise, I'd say it could perhaps come from further east- one of the >>Skothar nations (perhaps Chung-Eun, which IIRC is supposed to be the >>MChina... well, another MChina, anyway). Something like that- an exotic >>weapon from far distant lands. > > These lands are in "Champions of Mystara?" > Chung-Eun is a land currently under development by the Skothar group of the Mystaran Almanacs (of which I'm a member myself!). I think there's something about it on Jenn Merryfield's site, but I'm not so sure... Besides, that might change since it's under development. - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 02:45:43 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: The Stalker Organization: Angelfire (http://email.angelfire.mailcity.lycos.com:80) Subject: Re: Coffee? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Fri, 14 Jul 2000 16:59:04 Beau wrote: > Joshuan's Alamanac lists several countries as coffee importers, but no >country as coffee exporters. Where's it coming from? Perhaps it was from mainland Alphatia, meaning that it's now lost to Mystara after Alphatia sank... Don't you all miss us a lot more now? ;) > Tea, which is also listed, has both import and export. > Frankly, I LIKE that Mystarans smoke tobacco (at the very least) and drink >coffee and tea. Fantasy versions of the same always seem to be a lot of >effort for something that doesn't need it, and as Mystara lines up to a lot >of real world cultures, this allows easy drop-in cultural details, like the >Darokinian caravan leader who's developed a taste for thick Ylari coffee. > Actually, I agree. These kinds of details are overlooked far too often IMHO. It may not be important to the PCs and their adventures, but it is important details for trade-nations like Darokin or Minrothad, and it can be the springboard to interesting adventures, which, for once, is not about magic! - The Stalker Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 19:14:55 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000714154304.007d53f0@lby3.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 03:43 PM 7/14/00 -0700, you wrote: >At 14:23 07/14/2000 -0700, Andrew Theisen wrote: > >>First guess? Possibly an Ochalean weapon, or (maybe more appropriately) a >>Myoshiman weapon. >> >>Otherwise, I'd say it could perhaps come from further east- one of the >>Skothar nations (perhaps Chung-Eun, which IIRC is supposed to be the >>MChina... well, another MChina, anyway). Something like that- an exotic >>weapon from far distant lands. > > These lands are in "Champions of Mystara?" Myoshima is the Japanese Rakasta nation on Patera (the invisible moon) and has some information in CoM. For more info on it, there's some history that I came up with on Shawn's site, which is mostly based on actual Japanese history (although I've got several revisions that I've been meaning to add in- some of it based on Sharon Dornhoff's excellent work on the other moon.) As for Chung-Eun and Skothar- there's nothing canonical as yet. It was a net project that got started some years ago, but never completed. My understanding is that they've been attempting to get it underway again. There might be some info on Shawn's site. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 19:16:00 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <396F8CBB.6F3BB817@club-internet.fr> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:57 PM 7/14/00 +0200, you wrote: >I'll take it for my skothar project!!! thanks > >as a side note i would like to ask to anyone who had regular mails from me >due to discussions or project develloping that i had to format my hard drive >so i lost most of your adresses. >you would all be kind to send them to me again, just a blank mail to allow me >to update my new adress book. >thanks Say Thibault- while you're at it, I've got some thoughts that might pertain to the MOrient project, based on stuff I've done about the Pateran rakasta, and their interactions with the Ochaleans and Sindhi, so drop me an email if you're interested! ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 19:20:17 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000714165700.007e00f0@lby3.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 04:57 PM 7/14/00 -0700, you wrote: > I know a bit about this from the Red Steel boxed sets. And Sind is >MIndia, of course. What's Graakhalia? It's an underground nation below the Plain of Fire that is populated by Gnolls and Sheyallia elves. Currently their nation is supposedly decimated, but by my count (based on info in the PWAs) they still have several thousand members- something in the 15-25,000 range, IIRC, so I feel they've still got a decent presence there. I did a writeup on the Dusanu and placed them in the same region as well. And they will probably turn up somewhat in the upcoming almanac. >> Yavdlom (on Thanegia Isle) > > A theocracy, I know. What's it like? Sort of a mixed Jamaican/African nation (not sure which African nation would best be representative of them, offhand). Ruled by a theocracy of seers with minor divination abilities (see into the future). >> Mukuru (on the serpent peninsula) > > What's it like? Don't know about this one. I think he might have been referring to the Mugumba mud-dwellers (humanoid beavers) or else the Karimari people (pygmies). ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 19:21:49 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: Coffee? In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.20000714165904.007d55a0@lby3.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 04:59 PM 7/14/00 -0700, you wrote: > Joshuan's Alamanac lists several countries as coffee importers, but no >country as coffee exporters. Where's it coming from? Gargona and some other Davanian nations might be some recent exporters of coffee. Ierendi and/or some of the Thanegian isles as well. Possibly Yavdlom and the Pearl Islands, too. ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 19:24:44 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Andrew Theisen Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <000d01bfedf6$37025260$8b39abd0@tds.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 07:47 PM 7/14/00 -0500, you wrote: > >How about Myoshiman barbarians... Myojo Katamura, rakasta samurai, says: "Myoshimans are no barbarians. Our culture and civilization goes back further than many so-called 'modern' human nations. We are a very civilized and progressive culture. I am offended by your comment. You have insulted my honor, and the honor of my ancestors. Defend your life, human scum! Aii-yaa!" :) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 19:29:22 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Yarbrough Subject: Re: Coffee? In-Reply-To: MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 02:45 7/15/00 +0100, The Stalker wrote: >Actually, I agree. These kinds of details are overlooked far too often IMHO. It may not be important to the PCs and their adventures, but it is important details for trade-nations like Darokin or Minrothad, and it can be the springboard to interesting adventures, which, for once, is not about magic! It also makes for more interesting NPCs. Instead of drinking mead (as if most players even know what that is, or what it tastes like), the kindly old wizard can offer the PCs tea and a rare treat brought by travelers from a foreign land known as "hot cocoa." Instantly, the players get a better idea of who this guy is, and they also are drawn into the game more by their own sense memories. BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 03:33:06 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Re: Coffee? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Joshuan's Alamanac lists several countries as coffee importers, but no > country as coffee exporters. Where's it coming from? Looking in my copy of gaz 11 (Darokin), I see that Thyatis is probably exporting coffee from Tel Akbir since there is a negative modifier (i.e it's cheaper) on the mercantile table for sale and purchase price. As is Ylaraum from Jaboor, and in Minrothad from Minrothad for the same reason (gaz 9 Minrothad). Mind you this is information now up to 15+ years out of date depending on current year in your campaign. BTW Joshuan's does list Minrothad as a coffee exporter (p192). Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 03:40:36 +0100 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Paul George Dooley Subject: Re: Coffee? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Joshuan's Alamanac lists several countries as coffee importers, but no > country as coffee exporters. Where's it coming from? Forgot to add Yavdlom from PWA 2 & 3 in my previous on the subject. Hamlet I, v, 166. Words to live by? Paul ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 23:45:48 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: Coffee? Beau wrote: > > Joshuan's Alamanac lists several countries as coffee importers, but no >country as coffee exporters. Where's it coming from? IIRC, Yavdlom is described as being a coffee producer. If we parallel Hule with the Ottoman Empire, then it would also be a coffee producer - in fact, I seem to remember an episode in VotPA where Haldemar grumbles about "grainy Hulean coffee". Traditional Turkish coffee (at least the type I've tried) is so thick with ground coffee beans you can almost chew on it. I would also imagine that coffee could be produced in the Thyatian Hinterlands (and much of coastal northeastern Davania - between the Hinterlands and Kastelios). Geoff -- Geoff Gander, BA 97 Cartographer/Game Designer/Government Peon Carnifex Loremaster au998@freenet.carleton.ca : www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/2091 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 23:57:18 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: Coffee? Beau wrote: > It also makes for more interesting NPCs. Instead of drinking mead (as if >most players even know what that is, or what it tastes like), the kindly >old wizard can offer the PCs tea and a rare treat brought by travelers from >a foreign land known as "hot cocoa." In an earlier adventure IMC, I had the PC run into a bizarre gnome who had devised this wonderful treat known as "banged grains" (ripping it right out of Terry Pratchett's Discworld, I know, but sometimes good ideas are too hard to pass up) - essentially popcorn. He pushed a little cart all around the town, which contained a steam-powered portable stove and a large pot in which he made his wares. The racket it produced scared away many a potential customer, and when he wasn't shovelling coal into the tiny furnace to keep the heat on, he was running the risk of an explosion due to the pent-up pressure. Still, for only 2 sp per bag, some of the players thought they couldn't go wrong. ;-) Geoff -- Geoff Gander, BA 97 Cartographer/Game Designer/Government Peon Carnifex Loremaster au998@freenet.carleton.ca : www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/2091 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 00:00:32 -0400 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara Beau wrote: >> Mukuru (on the serpent peninsula) > > What's it like? I think he might have been referring to "Ulimwengu" - that is the isolated, Mystaran version of a sort of cross between old Zimbabwe and a "bushmen/pygmy" culture. Geoff -- Geoff Gander, BA 97 Cartographer/Game Designer/Government Peon Carnifex Loremaster au998@freenet.carleton.ca : www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/2091 ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 23:20:46 -0700 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara From: Beau Yarbrough Subject: Popcorn (was coffee?) In-Reply-To: <200007150357.XAA17176@freenet10.carleton.ca> MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 23:57 7/14/00 -0400, Geoff Gander wrote: >In an earlier adventure IMC, I had the PC run into a bizarre gnome who had >devised this wonderful treat known as "banged grains" (ripping it right >out of Terry Pratchett's Discworld, I know, but sometimes good ideas are >too hard to pass up) - essentially popcorn. He pushed a little cart all >around the town, which contained a steam-powered portable stove and a >large pot in which he made his wares. The racket it produced scared away >many a potential customer, and when he wasn't shovelling coal into the >tiny furnace to keep the heat on, he was running the risk of an explosion >due to the pent-up pressure. Still, for only 2 sp per bag, some of the >players thought they couldn't go wrong. ;-) HA! Do you have a quickie write-up on this guy? BEAU http://www.LBY3.com/ ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 23:35:19 +0000 Reply-To: Mystara Sender: Mystara Comments: Authenticated sender is From: Mike & Rebecca Harvey Subject: Re: The 3E two-bladed sword and Mystara In-Reply-To: <200007150400.AAA17490@freenet10.carleton.ca> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Geoff wrote: > Beau wrote: > > >> Mukuru (on the serpent peninsula) > > > > What's it like? > > I think he might have been referring to "Ulimwengu" - that is the > isolated, Mystaran version of a sort of cross between old Zimbabwe and a > "bushmen/pygmy" culture. Oops, you're right. I misremembered (and it would probably look if I took D&D stuff to work with me... ;-) Mike ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bing@iccom.com (formerly mike@cs.pdx.edu) Mike Harvey HTTP://www.iccom.com/usrwww/bing/home.html Beaverton, Oregon ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp Find Local Players: http://nafsasp.wizards.com/Registries/TSR/Welcome.asp To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message.