A heretical call for help! - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

A heretical call for help!

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
zombiegleemax
May 14, 2006 9:24:24 Please bear with me, as I know the following idea is heresy to many hardcore Dragonlance and Dark Sun purists.

I am GMing for an old-time gamer (the man's in his late 50s, and has played fantasy roleplaying games since they first came out), who is blissfully unaware of Dark Sun, an old TSR setting he knows only the name of and nothing else. Right now I am running him through a Dragonlance 3.5 game, but as he's played almost every setting before, but not Dark Sun, I thought I would surprise him by moving his character to Athas permanently.

(Before anyone asks, "Well, why didn't you just play Dark Sun from the start? The answer is, I only found this out two days ago. And as for, "Why don't you just stop playing DL and start playing DS?", the answer is, because he's had GMs do that to him countless times before, so I thought this is the best way to introduce him to a new campaign setting, and keep playing the same character.)

Right now he's playing a 3rd-level cleric (of Zivilyn)/2nd-level rogue elf, and the "supporting cast" of NPCs he controls in battle consists of a 3rd-level wizard/1st-level White Robe human, a 4th-level mariner human, and a 4th-level dwarf fighter. All are good-aligned. The game is set during the opening year of the War of the Lance, and Silvanesti has just fallen to the Dream.

My idea is is that they discover a magic item that'll send them to Athas, and bind them there, but I don't want it to be some random encounter with a cursed item. My idea is, is that the Wizards of High Sorcery discovered Athas some 200 years ago, and discovered the horrors arcane magic have inflicted upon that cosmology. So, they invented a device to send renegades there and bind them there, wqith bindings so strong only a god of Divine Rank 0 or higher can undo. (And as Athas has no gods, this pretty much means permanent exile.)

I'm not wanting the party to be exiled purposely by the Conclave, yet at the same time, I don't want them to go by total accident, either. I want the trip to happen at 10th-level, and I want it to be a permanent, one-way trip.

--can anyone give me some ideas? NB
#2
wolf72
May 14, 2006 10:02:22 they've got to be sent there to retrieve something ... now this something could really really help the planet of Athas out. So now they have to fight others who aren't so evil, but trying to save their planet.

how would you maintain the cleric spell/magic user spells? ... would each spellcaster receive a special medallion of faith that served as a personal conduit for their respective deities/moons?
#3
darthsylver
May 14, 2006 12:42:50 Have a psionic using person teleported to Ansalon, and then runs into the party. The White Robe wizard (which I don't see how as a 4th level character) reports this new "magic" (psionics) to the orders who then send the party on a "scouting" mission to Athas to discover if it is a threat to Krynn and to find out as much as possible about this new magic and the world & people it comes from. As the party cannot possibly find out everything about the world they are there until the orders either summon them back or the DM (that's you) figures they have learned enough for a detailed report.
#4
zombiegleemax
Jun 07, 2006 18:51:09 What impact would leaving the influences of Solinari have on wizard if he/she went to Athas?
#5
wolf72
Jun 08, 2006 17:25:45
What impact would leaving the influences of Solinari have on wizard if he/she went to Athas?

have a magic item that continually links the character with Solanari (ala medallion of faith?)
#6
zombiegleemax
Jun 08, 2006 17:27:05 Medallions of faith are for clerics
#7
theredrobedwizard
Jun 08, 2006 21:57:20 Ala means "like". It'd be like a medallion of faith, but not a medallion of faith.

Also, I think it's an original idea. Just watch out for the defilers.

-TRRW
#8
wolf72
Jun 09, 2006 18:40:17
Medallions of faith are for clerics

yeah what TRRW said ...

all I meant was that the wizard could get some sort of magic item (divine even) as a gift from the 3 Moons. It wouldn't be much of an artifact, only having the power of connecting the wizard to the moons ... I take part of that back, It would be a huge artifact for any plane hopping WoHS

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 zombiegleemax May 14, 2006 9:24:24	Please bear with me, as I know the following idea is heresy to many hardcore Dragonlance and Dark Sun purists. I am GMing for an old-time gamer (the man's in his late 50s, and has played fantasy roleplaying games since they first came out), who is blissfully unaware of Dark Sun, an old TSR setting he knows only the name of and nothing else. Right now I am running him through a Dragonlance 3.5 game, but as he's played almost every setting before, but not Dark Sun, I thought I would surprise him by moving his character to Athas permanently. (Before anyone asks, "Well, why didn't you just play Dark Sun from the start? The answer is, I only found this out two days ago. And as for, "Why don't you just stop playing DL and start playing DS?", the answer is, because he's had GMs do that to him countless times before, so I thought this is the best way to introduce him to a new campaign setting, and keep playing the same character.) Right now he's playing a 3rd-level cleric (of Zivilyn)/2nd-level rogue elf, and the "supporting cast" of NPCs he controls in battle consists of a 3rd-level wizard/1st-level White Robe human, a 4th-level mariner human, and a 4th-level dwarf fighter. All are good-aligned. The game is set during the opening year of the War of the Lance, and Silvanesti has just fallen to the Dream. My idea is is that they discover a magic item that'll send them to Athas, and bind them there, but I don't want it to be some random encounter with a cursed item. My idea is, is that the Wizards of High Sorcery discovered Athas some 200 years ago, and discovered the horrors arcane magic have inflicted upon that cosmology. So, they invented a device to send renegades there and bind them there, wqith bindings so strong only a god of Divine Rank 0 or higher can undo. (And as Athas has no gods, this pretty much means permanent exile.) I'm not wanting the party to be exiled purposely by the Conclave, yet at the same time, I don't want them to go by total accident, either. I want the trip to happen at 10th-level, and I want it to be a permanent, one-way trip. --can anyone give me some ideas? NB
#2 wolf72 May 14, 2006 10:02:22	they've got to be sent there to retrieve something ... now this something could really really help the planet of Athas out. So now they have to fight others who aren't so evil, but trying to save their planet. how would you maintain the cleric spell/magic user spells? ... would each spellcaster receive a special medallion of faith that served as a personal conduit for their respective deities/moons?
#3 darthsylver May 14, 2006 12:42:50	Have a psionic using person teleported to Ansalon, and then runs into the party. The White Robe wizard (which I don't see how as a 4th level character) reports this new "magic" (psionics) to the orders who then send the party on a "scouting" mission to Athas to discover if it is a threat to Krynn and to find out as much as possible about this new magic and the world & people it comes from. As the party cannot possibly find out everything about the world they are there until the orders either summon them back or the DM (that's you) figures they have learned enough for a detailed report.
#4 zombiegleemax Jun 07, 2006 18:51:09	What impact would leaving the influences of Solinari have on wizard if he/she went to Athas?
#5 wolf72 Jun 08, 2006 17:25:45	What impact would leaving the influences of Solinari have on wizard if he/she went to Athas? have a magic item that continually links the character with Solanari (ala medallion of faith?)
#6 zombiegleemax Jun 08, 2006 17:27:05	Medallions of faith are for clerics
#7 theredrobedwizard Jun 08, 2006 21:57:20	Ala means "like". It'd be like a medallion of faith, but not a medallion of faith. Also, I think it's an original idea. Just watch out for the defilers. -TRRW
#8 wolf72 Jun 09, 2006 18:40:17	Medallions of faith are for clerics yeah what TRRW said ... all I meant was that the wizard could get some sort of magic item (divine even) as a gift from the 3 Moons. It wouldn't be much of an artifact, only having the power of connecting the wizard to the moons ... I take part of that back, It would be a huge artifact for any plane hopping WoHS