Shaylin Moonborn was the first with all of the fainting and what have you. Instead of having her go into some kind of trance and mouth all of the riddle out; I had her go into the trance and write it out for the heroes.
I love the errata that they put out for the module but the Solamnic Knight talks too much, I mean the encounter is off the chain but he blabs too much(And for no reason it seems.). He seems overly valiant.
The module as a whole is amazing, but I just want to know did anyone else find themselves cutting some of the drawn out speeches, or descriptions in half ?
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and i think the herald should be much cooler than that.
my friend told me that i was turning Dragonlance into Boringlance =)
and i think the herald should be much cooler than that.
Oh word ? My group definitely hates when I sit there trying to read off the entire boxed sections that are written up in the KoD. One in particular, that I know I am going to shorten, is Chapter 3: The Shattered Temple, when Neran meets the Betrayer and dies along with him. That section is waaaaaay too long.
They would be asleep by the time I finished reading it.
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All of those flashbacks were done in my group as "You see "this", you see "that" and then "this" happens."
So basically you did not read it out as a story(Which is the way it is written.) ? When my players get there I am going to have each character experience the flash-backs in a personal way(As if that character were there.), rather than reading it like some kind of storybook.
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When I first started the module, I'd paraphrase and cut certain parts out because I felt the boxes were too long and drawn out. Many times after I'd finish, I'd look up to see them all raptly staring at me, waiting for me to continue. One time one of them even went to the extent to say "That's it? Keep going!"
Once I started reading out the entire boxed sections, they really started to get into what was going on. I've since been told that the main reason they love the DL setting so much is because they feel they are actually *in* the books; apparently reading sections off like that only perpetuates that feeling.
Different strokes for different folks, I guess? :D
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It adds to the role playing IMO. Granted, I agree that some text does need to be shortened at times and lengthened at others.
My players actually get into the box text. When I read I make sure I pause after key or dramatic parts which allow the PC's to comment or react.
It adds to the role playing IMO. Granted, I agree that some text does need to be shortened at times and lengthened at others.
That is one thing I hate about long boxed text. The players cannot react within the text; they have to wait 10 minutes while you read them a storybook. My players want full interaction within the game; so I find myself having to break down the text alot.
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I can see where your coming from with thinking some of the passages are over the top, because some of them are. I guess it just depends on the whim and preference of the playing group whether they like it from the book or paraphrased.
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My players never really rolled their eyes at the text or anything. Usually I was playing it fast and loose and even though I would read the speeches fairly word for word I would try hard to make it not sound like I was reading.
One amusing note is the Shattered Temple. I took to ending the flickers by saying "And like that *snap my fingers* it's gone." in a stressed whisper. The first flicker left a lot of blank stares, but once they understood them they were enjoying them. Even got a "Aw no ghostly scene?" when they'd find an empty room. Course they were fully expecting one flicker not to be fake... which constantly caused them to be on edge.
Anyway that amusing note I mentioned earlier. The flicker in the secret armory.... I got carried away with that one. The one with the Clerics of Kiri-Jolith gearing up for battle and the elder cleric gives the young cleric a pep talk. For some unknown reason, when I started talking for the elder cleric I fell into a scotish accent (most of my voices are off the cuff, I only 'practice' extremely important NPCs or interesting encounters... like the Oracles of the Oaisis) as the peptalk keeps going I just keep getting louder, and louder. Till I'm nearly yelling my head off... I realize I sound like Mel Gibson from Braveheart... consiquently I finished that little peptalk by screaming "FREEDOM!" at the top of my lungs... then whispered my "And like that *snap* it's gone." My players are staring at me for half a second before they all fall into halarious laughter. Not that this was a bad thing, it was a joke and ment to be funny. By the time they left the Shattered Temple they said it was their favorite Dungeon Crawl ever.
As for boxed text - my players throw things at me if I read any of that out, so I usually limit it to description and then engage with the players as I would with any other NPC. Boxed text shouldn't be considered a requirement - it's there as a guide.
Cheers,
Cam
I never actually used the flckers in Hurim, as my players went back in time and actually lived through the events.
As for boxed text - my players throw things at me if I read any of that out, so I usually limit it to description and then engage with the players as I would with any other NPC. Boxed text shouldn't be considered a requirement - it's there as a guide.
Cheers,
Cam
I agree with you there; as I was saying before my players in particular want something that they can interact with during my games. They do not want bed-time stories.
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Seems to be working okay so far, though the players don't understand what "Altruistic and curious" groups are supposed to do!
It's worse for me, since I'm DMing online in a chat. For important stuff I prepare it ahead of time, but really I got tired of too many Prophets. People just walk up to players and tell them stuff! So I ditched the Herald, and have cut back some other stuff as well.
Seems to be working okay so far, though the players don't understand what "Altruistic and curious" groups are supposed to do!
Yes, one thing I have to say is that the herald is very corny. I can't see how he serves to enhance the world of DragonLance at all. He is such a generic old windbag.
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Yes, one thing I have to say is that the herald is very corny. I can't see how he serves to enhance the world of DragonLance at all. He is such a generic old windbag.
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I wouldn't be surprised that the Herald is more than what he appears to be. And I don't mean Astinus/ Big G either.
I never actually used the flckers in Hurim, as my players went back in time and actually lived through the events.
Nice touch, that seems a little better the flashes of "what was." I wouldn't have even thought of that because I'm somewhat burned out by "Time Travel" tactic. Why?
Well, I blame Star Trek. At lest when H&W use time travel they do it well. Indeed they've used it only a few times in DL that I can remember. Unlike Trek writers who've used it so much that is now beyond cliche'.
Sorry. Im back now.I never actually used the flckers in Hurim, as my players went back in time and actually lived through the events.
As for boxed text - my players throw things at me if I read any of that out, so I usually limit it to description and then engage with the players as I would with any other NPC. Boxed text shouldn't be considered a requirement - it's there as a guide.
Cheers,
Cam
Could you explain how they got sent back in time ?
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Could you explain how they got sent back in time ?
Hurim was a bubble in time, held there by the power of the gods after the Betrayal. Chemosh wanted his servant out, so that he could continue his work in the present. The only way to accomplish this was to send somebody in to replace him in the bubble. Knowing the heroes had a half-kender with them, he sent half of the party's souls directly into the time bubble, leaving their physical bodies behind. The other half went looking for their companions' bodies in the ruins of Hurim while their timelost friends found that they were occupying bodies of people back in pre-ruined Hurim.
Chemosh had set up a chain of death, which worked like this: if an opponent killed one of the bodies a PC soul was in, the PC soul would immediately jump into the body of the killer. This would continue on and on until the Betrayer killed a PC, which sent the Betrayer's soul out of the bubble and into that PC's physical body in the present. The PC was then trapped in the body of the Betrayer back in Hurim.
The PCs learned of their body-jumping abilities during the ogre attack, which was a huge battle involving ogres, ogre magi, slaves, Hurim temple guards, and more. One PC would run into a unit of ogres, get killed, take over the body of the killer, turn on the other ogres, get killed, turn on the others, and so forth until the ogres either caught on (which was not usually the case) or were wiped out.
Eventually, they broke into the Temple, encountered the Betrayer and his elite guards, and one PC (the Kagonesti barbarian) let herself be killed, figuring that she could thwart the Betrayer that way. Instead, she ended up being stuck back in time, while the others returned using the power of the shard of light and the miniature Godshome bowl in the basement of the Temple.
The Betrayer is now running around in the present in the body of a Kagonesti elf woman. Somewhat odd, but there it is.
Cheers,
Cam