Eberron 'Spillover' Adventure...

Post/Author/DateTimePost
#1

uratoh

Mar 11, 2006 6:37:56
I was debating epic level or near it questing and it struck me the similarities between the Mournlands and Ravenloft's domains...so I thought perhaps a high level adventure might revolve around 'spillover' of Ravenloft into the Mournland...I was wondering, what things would be most likely to simply wander in? They don't all have to be high level threats...even a Goblyn or two is something...different from the norm, and might indicate problems.
#2

gotten

Mar 12, 2006 7:58:35
I was debating epic level or near it questing and it struck me the similarities between the Mournlands and Ravenloft's domains...so I thought perhaps a high level adventure might revolve around 'spillover' of Ravenloft into the Mournland...I was wondering, what things would be most likely to simply wander in? They don't all have to be high level threats...even a Goblyn or two is something...different from the norm, and might indicate problems.

I don't know how to put this into Eberron, since I'm not that familiar with this world. The essence of Ravenloft revolves around gothic stories, so think of all types of undead (ghosts and vampires being the most interesting), werecreatures. Add gothic castles, evil humans with sinister secrets, family curse, etc.

Joël
#3

rotipher

Mar 12, 2006 10:04:55
Apart from the superficial fact that they're each surrounded by mists, there's really not a lot of similarity between the Mournland and Ravenloft. The Ravenloft setting is very much a character-driven one -- the personalities of villains are absolutely critical to its environment and plotlines, as adventure-themes and the landscape itself (literally!) are products of their flaws and yearnings -- whereas the Mournlands are, for the most part, an uninhabited post-apocalyptic wasteland. Even those threats that *do* appear in the ruins of Cyre (renegade warforged, living spells, etc) are too inhuman in their psychology to make good "Ravenlofty" villains.

Frankly, I suspect the Eberron products' consistent use of the term "dead-gray mists" as a description may, consciously or not, be an attempt to set the Mournland border *apart* from the Mists of Ravenloft, in the minds of older gamers. The Mists of the Ravenloft setting, in contrast to those of the Mournland, are almost alive.
#4

moonslayer

Mar 29, 2006 8:45:39
I've been doing some considering on taking my group into Ravenloft from Eberron (probably into Darkon). They are a pretty diverse group racially so it seemed like a good place to start. My one hitch is trying to decide what the response to the one Warforged in the party should be (other than "AAAAAAIIIIIIIIEEEEEEE!!!!!!!"). I'm thinking the outcast rating would be pretty high and most natives would have the bejeebers scared out of them, but that seems a little simplistic after the first few games. Any thoughts on the average Ravenloftian's psychology towards sentient statues would be (Other than Mordeheim, who would be slobbering over himself to take the Warforged apart)?
#5

dwarfpcfan

Mar 29, 2006 9:52:54
I've been doing some considering on taking my group into Ravenloft from Eberron (probably into Darkon). They are a pretty diverse group racially so it seemed like a good place to start. My one hitch is trying to decide what the response to the one Warforged in the party should be (other than "AAAAAAIIIIIIIIEEEEEEE!!!!!!!"). I'm thinking the outcast rating would be pretty high and most natives would have the bejeebers scared out of them, but that seems a little simplistic after the first few games. Any thoughts on the average Ravenloftian's psychology towards sentient statues would be (Other than Mordeheim, who would be slobbering over himself to take the Warforged apart)?

More then anything the golem aspect of Ravenloft role-playing is the center of a warforged character in Ravenloft. The questions of existence, creation, life and souls should be adressed frequently. Plus Ravenloft is the place for a requiem, a deep personal realisation of his inner nature leading to either downfall or enlightment.

Regarding to reaction of the world. I follow the AAAAAIIIIIIIIEEEE!!!!! path. Ravenloft folk are paranoid, scared and superstitious to the extreme. while Darkon is certainly one of the places where magic is the most accepted, people still fear magic and the unatural. Rather the folk of Darkon are enlightened enough to know that magic is not inherently evil. Rather magic in the wrong hands is evil. Now golems and constructs are known as dangerous and destructive, thus even in Ravenloft, constructs should have a very difficult time...

Now my question is what would Azalin do about such an advanced construct ? and for that matter, what about artificers ? Certainly, Ravenloft's mastery of magic is but dust compared to the arcane mastery of Eberron...
#6

zombiegleemax

Mar 30, 2006 9:09:34
The Outcast rating of a warforged, as you say, would be astronomical, but - in the denying minds of humans - simple denial would probably be a fairly common response. "Why does this lunatic never remove his armor? How rude!" Presented with ineffable proof of the lack of a human inside the warforged, John Q. Ravenloftian would likely round up the rest of the torches-and-pitchforks crowd and go in for a good old-fashioned lynching.

That said, IMC, an Eberron character crossing into Ravenloft is almost - but not quite - as likely as a d20 Modern or Star Wars character making the same transition. It'd be like using motor oil as an ingredient for meatloaf - they just don't mix. ::edit:: Same with Epic level adventuring. If your PCs can routinely eat Darklords for breakfast, there's no reason for the Mists to allow them to be there. Again, that's my campaign.
#7

rotipher

Mar 31, 2006 7:25:56
For most regions of Ravenloft, I'd agree that people would find a warforged PC extremely frightening. While the average hick peasant from the Southern Core probably has no idea what a "golem" is -- the Created aren't especially common except in Lamordia, and don't get as much popular attention as monsters that actively *eat* people -- such ignorant folk may interpret the warforged as something comparably scary, like a ghost- or fiend-possessed suit of armor.

OTOH, in the Renaissance areas of the Core, a more sophisticated witness might assume the warforged PC is some kind of clockwork device, along the lines of the wind-up toys and odd labor-saving gadgets which many of Darkon's gnomes manufacture. If so, they might treat the warforged as a curiosity, assuming that he's the store-bought property of another PC. So long as they think the warforged is under another PC's control, they'd disregard him as an individual, assuming that he has no free will and crediting his deeds (or placing blame for his crimes) upon his presumed "owner". It'd be up to the player if the warforged chooses to take offense at this treatment: presumably he was the property of a military force at one time, so whether or not he objects to "playing along" in the role of "clockwork servant" could determine how easily the warforged can cope with the Renaissance domains.

If, OTOH, the natives of such domains believe that he's gone "out-of-control" and poses a danger to lives or property, they'd not hesitate to destroy him. He's just a malfunctioning machine, after all....