J. Ghendar is heading this up, but other folks' ideas are welcome.
To quickly overview, Landfall is an Alphatian backwater town north of the Heldann Freeholds on the Kamminer Bay. Governed by Lernal the Swill, the half-brother to King Ericall of Norwold, it is ruled by the criminals ("You will never see a more wretched hive of scum and villany. We must be careful.")
Thieves are clearly the focus of the project, so if anyone has any special twists to the class, let us hear it.
The project will also cover the larger Bay area north of Heldann to the entrance into the Wyrmsteeth.
We may need a city mapper, if anyone is willing.
-OldDawg
I haven't seen any info (canon or otherwise) about when Landfall was established. Does anyone have an idea or theory
Landfall, isn't that a rather presumptuous name? Kinda like Lief Eriksson and his NewFound Land?
Maybe This is the oldest Alphatian city in the world? It just never really prospered (until recently, and then not ligitimately).
Roger
Landfall, isn't that a rather presumptuous name? Kinda like Lief Eriksson and his NewFound Land?
Maybe This is the oldest Alphatian city in the world? It just never really prospered (until recently, and then not ligitimately).
Roger
maybe I'm just misremembering but isn't Landfall where the Alphatians coming to Mystara originally made landfall? I wouldn't say that was too presumptuous, better than Craterville.
One question: I haven't seen any info (canon or otherwise) about when Landfall was established. Does anyone have an idea or theory.
According to CM1, Oceansend is "much older than either Alpha or Landfall".
According to CM1, Oceansend is "much older than either Alpha or Landfall".
Maybe Oceansend was a pre-Alphatian town. And Landfall should be the place Alphatians ships made landfall...
Somethink like San Salvador and Colombus...
), but i'll try and offer some ideas here:One thing a gaz about a Thief city needs is factions. I think someone (OldDawg?) mentioned Gangs of New York being a possible source of inspiration for the gaz and I like that idea.
One interesting idea we could steal from that movie was the conflict between established gangs and newcomers. If we want to go all the way we could even have the Alphatians dominate the Old Gangs with established areas and codes of honor and have newcomers be immigrants from the Isle of Dawn if we want "real Irish" gangs. Other ethnic divides might be more appropriate depending on how the project developes.
I also think the city should have a non-criminal nobility/aristocracy who are usually probably under the control of the gangs through bribery, blackmail etc. Lernal the Swill is an exception ofcourse, since he makes alliances with the strongest gangs at any time, thus keeping himself in power.
I would also like to see the Rake class revisited for this gaz if possible, for more respectable rogues. The Thief class might also be adressed, perhaps taking into the account some of the criticism raised by Agathokles among others? Also, it would be cool to see rules for Elf, Dwarf, Halfling, Lupin and Rakasta thieves... And maybe Half-Orcs?
Just tossing out some ideas.
Håvard
One question: I haven't seen any info (canon or otherwise) about when Landfall was established. Does anyone have an idea or theory.
According to the PWAs ('Landfall' entry in PWAI and other pages), Landfall was estabilished around AC935, so it's a relatively young town. I would rather trace its origins back to an Heldanner village which has grown into a chaotic city thanks to immigration, instead of making it an Alphatian colony (also becouse, if it was, the Thyatians and the Ostlanders would have burnt it to the ground or occupied it several times... ).
Moreover, you can find MANY interesting informations about Landfall in the novel "Rogues to Riches" (which is set in AC1010).
According to the PWAs ('Landfall' entry in PWAI and other pages), Landfall was estabilished around AC935, so it's a relatively young town..............
Moreover, you can find MANY interesting informations about Landfall in the novel "Rogues to Riches" (which is set in AC1010).
Thank you. That's some useful info.
Instead of changing the Thief class, I would touch-up the Rake as havard suggested, but I would also create a Street Thug varient. The Street Thug would have less a focus on stealth and more on intimidation, street fighting, cheap shots, etc...
If you don't belong to a faction, you should live every second in fear of those that do, since you don't have any protection. If you do belong to a faction, you always need to watch your back before another faction sticks a knife in it. The rich will buy whatever protection they can, and legitimate government and police can do little to stop day-to-day violence (due to corruption and lack of manpower), but if things get too far out of hand they can bring out the militia to quell the troublemakers.
According to the PWAs ('Landfall' entry in PWAI and other pages), Landfall was estabilished around AC935, so it's a relatively young town. I would rather trace its origins back to an Heldanner village which has grown into a chaotic city thanks to immigration, instead of making it an Alphatian colony (also becouse, if it was, the Thyatians and the Ostlanders would have burnt it to the ground or occupied it several times... ).
In my Ghyr stuff, I have the "legitimate" founding date of Landfall as 937 AC, when the Alphatians officially take charge of the place. Prior to that, it was just a shantytown for pirates, rogues, scoundrels, prostitutes, bootleggers and all that sort of chap (of course, things really don't change all that much when the Alphatians take over, they just sort of give it a minor whitewash).
It's also the location of the Thieves' Guild that Dahnakriss founded, IMC.
The Minrothad Gazetteer refers to cells that operate in faraway harbours. They help the Minrothadian Harbour Agents, spy for Oran Meditor and are always on the lookout for opportunities to take over the local scene.
There could be a Minrothadian Agent who is fuelling frictions in the local criminal scene. On the other side are the local crimelords who control Lernal the Swill. Alphatian Agents might be helping the factions, hoping to keep the city in chaos (This would be a good Thyatian naval outpost after all.)
I divided the dominant guild (which incidentally was also from Danakhriss's guild!) into three sections: slave traders, smugglers and muggers. There isn't much production in Landfall, so most of the booty should come from trade that is considered illicit in surrounding lands and from leeching on the ships that stop to replenish supplies and do repairs in the city.
So the visiting sailors should be wary unless they want to find themselves abducted and sold to an Alphatian or Thyatian slaver. Traders have to pay for protection in order to keep their cargo safe.
Anyway, one important thing to decide when you are writing Landfall is: does the city have any important products of its own? Or is it more like Tortuga, a safe haven for pirates and other outlaws? Or does its position on the northern sea lanes make it a necessary yet risky stop? (There is a sea lane that follows the shores of Isle of Dawn, but that region is full of Ostlander settlers who have a taste in pirating?)
The last alternative is the most lucrative if one wants to create a good background for a "Thieves' City", as the constant sea trade is a source of income.
The Pandora's Box
Artefact of Enthropy
Power(100pp): Summon insect plague (Specific/flea (1 mile radius))
Power active while box is open.
Plague: Fleas become virulent and unleash a plague if the box is not closed every 99 years.
Activation Cost: User must sacrifice 1,000,000gp worth of wealth to trigger the box open.
I would also like to see the Rake class revisited for this gaz if possible, for more respectable rogues. The Thief class might also be adressed, perhaps taking into the account some of the criticism raised by Agathokles among others? Also, it would be cool to see rules for Elf, Dwarf, Halfling, Lupin and Rakasta thieves... And maybe Half-Orcs?
I suppose the rules for SE with Thieving skills could be used for demihuman and goblinoid characters. Lupins, Half-Elves and Rakasta use the human classes (they are races, not classes), IIRC.
However, it would be good to collect (and revise where nedeed) all the OD&D Thief-related rules (Thieves, non-human thieving skills, subclasses such as Rake and Bard).
A simple (IMO) revision proposal for the Thief class could be as follows:
1) Move to d6 hit dice
This gives some more HPs at low level, but the overall effect is not that large -- at higher levels, on average, it will make around 15% more HPs. Still, a good boost for low level thieves.
2) Redistribute skill points so that the Thief has the standard basic allocation + 100 freely distributable points at first level, plus 20 freely distributable percentile points at each level beyond first. This causes the Thief to have significant skill at low level (a Thief focusing on stealth could get a 65% on both MS and HS at first level), and preserves the Thief at high levels (actually, the total skill points decrease slightly).
The numbers chosen also allow to move to a d20-based resolution (divide everything by 5), if desired.
I suppose the rules for SE with Thieving skills could be used for demihuman and goblinoid characters. Lupins, Half-Elves and Rakasta use the human classes (they are races, not classes), IIRC.
Using the system below, I'd say Thief skills taken as General skills begin at 15% and increase by 5% per extra slot taken. Thieves who take the general skill increase their ability by 5% (not 15). The exception is Climb Walls which begins at 70%.
However, it would be good to collect (and revise where nedeed) all the OD&D Thief-related rules (Thieves, non-human thieving skills, subclasses such as Rake and Bard).
I agree, that is a great idea. These should include:
* Dragon Magazine: Robrenn issue with the Bard Class
* DotE: Rake Class
* DDA1-2: Revised Rake Class (dodge ability added)
* Gazetteers featuring Thief abilities as General Skills
Anything else?
A simple (IMO) revision proposal for the Thief class could be as follows:
1) Move to d6 hit dice
This gives some more HPs at low level, but the overall effect is not that large -- at higher levels, on average, it will make around 15% more HPs. Still, a good boost for low level thieves.
Works for me. Ofcourse that might mean you'd want to boost Rakes and Bards similarly or even more so.
2) Redistribute skill points so that the Thief has the standard basic allocation + 100 freely distributable points at first level, plus 20 freely distributable percentile points at each level beyond first. This causes the Thief to have significant skill at low level (a Thief focusing on stealth could get a 65% on both MS and HS at first level), and preserves the Thief at high levels (actually, the total skill points decrease slightly).
The numbers chosen also allow to move to a d20-based resolution (divide everything by 5), if desired.
Here is a quick and dirty version not too far from yours:
All skills begin at 0%, except C/W which begins at 70. Thieves get 100 points to distribute between abilities and then 20 points from there on. Thieves actually lose a few points on this deal, but are compensated by the added flexibility. DMs can still use the table from the book if they don't feel like distributing points for their NPCs.
More stuff I'd like to see:
* More detailed rules for building a Thieves Guid ala Dominion Rules.
* An alternative to Theves Guilds for Rakes and Bards
* Guild Machine: A system for running Street Wars between Guilds based on the War Machine.
*Ways for Thieves to use their Thief abilities do avoid ESP, Crystal Balls and other magic user nastyness at higher levels.
Actually for the last one I have a few ideas:
Find/Remove Traps: Find and remove magical traps and other magical effects placed on locations
Open Locks: As the passwall spell
Move Silently: As Non-detectiom (AD&D spell)
Hide in Shadows: As invisibility
Climb Walls: Spider Climb, or even Matrix Style running on walls providing a +5 bonus to AC and Attacks for one round.
Pick Pockets: You may have already stolen your opponents weapon or any one other item before the combat started.
Hear Noise: Detect invisible.
These abilities are usable once per day +1 per every 10% above 100% the Thief posesses in that Thief Ability.
Havard
Using the system below, I'd say Thief skills taken as General skills begin at 15% and increase by 5% per extra slot taken. Thieves who take the general skill increase their ability by 5% (not 15). The exception is Climb Walls which begins at 70%.
Actually, for individual skills it's better to keep the standard progressions, IMO.
And anyway, needing extra slots would be too much -- to get 50% you'd need 8 slots, which is really too much, considering that there is a large amount of other skills that a character might need and skill slots are few.
I agree, that is a great idea. These should include:
* Dragon Magazine: Robrenn issue with the Bard Class
* DotE: Rake Class
* DDA1-2: Revised Rake Class (dodge ability added)
* Gazetteers featuring Thief abilities as General Skills
Anything else?
Uhm, can't think of anything else.
Works for me. Ofcourse that might mean you'd want to boost Rakes and Bards similarly or even more so.
I think a similar boost would apply. Rakes could get extra combat ability in the form of the dodge ability and/or an attack bonus when using rapiers, sabres and daggers/main gauches.
Bards would be boosted with minor magic abilities (or Bardic magic might be reserved for a Merchant-like class) or other typical bardic powers (music, extra general skill slots, obscure lore, or taunting/curses for a more celtic bard).
Here is a quick and dirty version not too far from yours:
All skills begin at 0%, except C/W which begins at 70. Thieves get 100 points to distribute between abilities and then 20 points from there on. Thieves actually lose a few points on this deal, but are compensated by the added flexibility.
I think they lose close to 100 points, because the increase in OD&D is higher at lower levels. IMO it's a bit too much -- the added flexibility is good, but 100 points less means basically that they can't use one ability.
* An alternative to Theves Guilds for Rakes and Bards
Bardic colleges could go for Bards. Fencing schools (a la Savage Coast) could be organizations for Rakes, but in general Rakes are similar to Fighters and share the same types of organizations and interests.
* Guild Machine: A system for running Street Wars between Guilds based on the War Machine.
*Ways for Thieves to use their Thief abilities do avoid ESP, Crystal Balls and other magic user nastyness at higher levels.
I think Guilds are usually small enough that Street Wars can be dealt with using the standard combat rules, or a set of skirmish rules.
Ways for Thieves to avoid scrying could be a good addition at high levels, indeed, possibly as standard skills used with a major penalty (like -100%).
Your ideas for the application of the skills seem sound to me.
Talitha: the lady of murders and egoism would have a place in this city of thieves, representing the darker side of the city. Posibly having a known temple?
Masauwu: Again an entropic whos interest is spelled out in the city. This immortal would have a known temple, prominently placed in the city, I would suggest.
Loki: same reasons as Masauwu, plus he's one of the Norse immortals (playing on his homefield). Again probably having a temple in the city.
Asterius: Merchants and thieves, check. Known temple.
Korotiku: Rakes and pirates, check. Known temple.
Tyche: Lady luck, would be worshipped in the gambling halls throughout the city. Known temple.
Valerias: well.... here her darker sides are expressed.
My (suggested) 2 cent
Anyway, one important thing to decide when you are writing Landfall is: does the city have any important products of its own? Or is it more like Tortuga, a safe haven for pirates and other outlaws? Or does its position on the northern sea lanes make it a necessary yet risky stop? (There is a sea lane that follows the shores of Isle of Dawn, but that region is full of Ostlander settlers who have a taste in pirating?)
I'd say that Landfall doesn't have much in terms of local production -- mostly subsistence farming and fishing.
OTOH, it would act as a market for stolen goods, visited by the Ostlander and Helskirian pirates and goblinoid raiders from the Mengul Mountains, as well as the main trading hub for Essuria, Denagoth and the regions north of it (I place Ghyr right north of Essuria, so that would make Landfall the main port for Ghyr, in modern times).
The idea of a Minrothaddan agent stirring trouble is quite good, as is a connection within the local guild and the guild in Ghyr.
Talitha: the lady of murders and egoism would have a place in this city of thieves, representing the darker side of the city. Posibly having a known temple?
I'd say an hidden temple rather than a known one -- this Immortal is quite aggressive, and overt worship might cause direct intervention by one of the neighbouring powers (the HK, for example).
Masauwu: Again an entropic whos interest is spelled out in the city. This immortal would have a known temple, prominently placed in the city, I would suggest.
Loki: same reasons as Masauwu, plus he's one of the Norse immortals (playing on his homefield). Again probably having a temple in the city.
Loki is certainly well known among the local Northmen -- Landfall could even be a centerpoint for his cult in the Antalian lands (Norwold/Heldann/Northern Reaches).
As for Masauwu, I'd assume a major temple could be introduced, probably under the guise of the Ambassador (the name Masauwu adopts in the Savage Coast), which is less threatening than his own.
Asterius: Merchants and thieves, check. Known temple.
Korotiku: Rakes and pirates, check. Known temple.
Tyche: Lady luck, would be worshipped in the gambling halls throughout the city. Known temple.
Valerias: well.... here her darker sides are expressed.
These could well be worshipped through a local branch of the Church of Thyatis, together with a few of the Norse powers -- except that the local Church of Thyatis would bear little resemblance to the Thyatian one, being definitely more chaotic.
GP
I'd say that Landfall doesn't have much in terms of local production -- mostly subsistence farming and fishing.
OTOH, it would act as a market for stolen goods, visited by the Ostlander and Helskirian pirates and goblinoid raiders from the Mengul Mountains, as well as the main trading hub for Essuria, Denagoth and the regions north of it (I place Ghyr right north of Essuria, so that would make Landfall the main port for Ghyr, in modern times).
Farming and fishing is pretty much what i was going for for (legitimate) local production.
Landfall will be a known (if not officially acknowledged) haven for pirates, thugs, and other ne'er do wells (unoffically supported and encouraged by Lernal). It will also be a place where you can get just about anything on the black market.
What could the various world powers want to smuggle through Landfall? What would the empires try and interdict?
Throw in some bounty hunters, and spy vs spy, and your lucky if the only thing that get's you is the street gang.
-OldDawg
What could the various world powers want to smuggle through Landfall? What would the empires try and interdict?
Well, Landfall is at the crossroad between Thyatis, the HK and Alphatia -- it's no wonder that it would become a smuggler haven: secret documents, Alphatian spellbooks, political refugees from the Heldannic Territories, ancient relics from Essuria could all be smuggled to or from Landfall.
The Shadowlord of Denagoth might collect texts on the dark arts of necromancy, and smuggling them through Landfall would be easier than crossing Wendar.
Zzonga and similar drugs might be traded from warm regions to the colder areas, and all the major powers would like to stop such trade (or encourage it in the direction of their opponents).
Stolen goods might need to be smuggled to other regions where they can be sold with a patina of legitimacy.
The Shadowlord of Denagoth might collect texts on the dark arts of necromancy, and smuggling them through Landfall would be easier than crossing Wendar.
Why stop at texts, why not have the city's darker guilds supply the necromancers with "raw material"... :evillaugh
Why stop at texts, why not have the city's darker guilds supply the necromancers with "raw material"... :evillaugh
Because corpses are common enough in Denagoth ;)
Of course, less common materials (necromantic or simply spell components) could be smuggled as well.
Wyrmsteeth. Mandrakes.
Mandrakes are Thieves. If Wyrmsteeth has any interest in Landfall they would send Mandrakes to infiltrate some of the Thieves Guilds wouldnt they? Or maybe there is a Brotherhood of the Drake composed entirely of Mandrakes?
Wyrmsteeth could be interested in getting magical items from Alphatia and other nations to pile up in their hoards and they could be interested in hiring assasins to take care of would-be Dragonslayers...
Mandrakes are Thieves. If Wyrmsteeth has any interest in Landfall they would send Mandrakes to infiltrate some of the Thieves Guilds wouldnt they? Or maybe there is a Brotherhood of the Drake composed entirely of Mandrakes?
Great connection, Havard! I really hope this idea is incorporated into the project.
The smuggling aspect would be a very good thing to detail; it's something that I can envision in my mind but have difficulties in playing it out on a large scale in-campaign. Perhaps someone with actual gaming experience with this subject could help put it in the gaz.
Good thoughts in general though by everyone.
One of the factions is controlling Lernal. Not by magical means of anything that fancy, but good old fashioned ample supply of alcohol and other drugs. The common perception in Landfall might be that Lernal is the godfather of it all, or at least is turning a blind eye to criminal activities and getting a piece of the cake.
But it is more like turning both eyes to the bottle and not bothering with the boring details of the town. His "advisors" seem to do a good enough job.
Mandrakes are Thieves. If Wyrmsteeth has any interest in Landfall they would send Mandrakes to infiltrate some of the Thieves Guilds wouldnt they? Or maybe there is a Brotherhood of the Drake composed entirely of Mandrakes?
An entire Brotherhood could be too much -- Landfall is a large city, but probably not enough to hold more than a small clique of Drakes.
On the other hand, Landfall could be the meeting point or base of a more widespread Brotherhood of Drakes (all the Fairie Drakes, not necessarily Mandrakes only), similar in outlook and philosophy to the Friends of Freedom/Chaotic Sisterhood of the Savage Coast.
The rest of the town is a warren of multistory wooden dwellings that lean over the narrow filth strewn streets and alleys until they touch and merge.
Here humanity is crammed into the tight wooden buildings and diseased alleys with a bad case of lice.
Yet Landfall is more than a Thieves guild by the Sea.
Its single subterranean aquaduct (a stone cut escape tunnel that just happened to flood one spring) feeds fresh mountain meltwater strait into the public fountain at the base of the Governors wooden mansion.
Landfall has grown from humble beginnings and a few of the buildings were here before the exodus carried this group of less than desirable Alphatians to these distant shores. Infact the community has actually grown. Lost in this nest is Pandora's Box. The Town has grown from a few buildings by the Sea to over two thousand.
Pandora's Box (MK2)
Description: An unusual artefact, it is all to easy to open and costs a fortune to close yet it has unleashed the most terrible of plagues (civilization) u[pon the world.
Artefact of Enthropy
Power(100pp):
Building (2xwoodform/varient)-every night the box causes to be built a three story dwelling of 20'x20' ground coverage.
Feeding the Box: The box steals coins from across the town. one coin here and there to continuously recharge for each night. Every night it steals a thousand gold pieces (they simply vanish) and places some new wooden building in some tight fitting location that is more inconvenience that benifit.
Plague upon plague: The box must be closed every 99 years or it will unleash a plague (the last was fleas and lice a current problem in Landfall, before that it was Lycanthropy during the settlment of Thyatis City) To stop the box it must be fed 1,000,000gp.
*Dragon Magazine: Robrenn issue with the Bard Class
* DotE: Rake Class
* DDA1-2: Revised Rake Class (dodge ability added)
* Gazetteers featuring Thief abilities as General Skills
* Mandrakes
Throwing out concepts, here:
* smuggler
* pirate
* bounty hunter (good for all classes)
* assassin/cut throat
* thief-acrobat/catbuglar
* troubleshooter
* spy
* consiglio
Fighters can get
* street brawler
* enforcer
Cleric
* raven (holy assassin)
What about magic-users, or demi-humans? What kinds of twists can we put on these classes?
Just keep throwing ideas out, it all get's boiled down later.
-OldDawg
What about magic-users, or demi-humans? What kinds of twists can we put on these classes?
Arcane Thieves - that either steal other arcanists power/spells etc or use new spells to emulate mundane thieves.
For elves (and possibly gnomes/halflings) there's the fighter-thief class for sidhe (PC1) that could be adapted.
With all these thieves around, who could you trust more than a dwarven bodyguard or trap designer (not really a pc option though).
Regards
Gary
It seems only fitting that the Mystaran "wretched hive of scum and villainy" have a Mystaran "Jabba the Hutt" behind some of the illegal activities.
It seems only fitting that the Mystaran "wretched hive of scum and villainy" have a Mystaran "Jabba the Hutt" behind so of illegal activities.
I like this idea!
I recently converted the wurmling from the Savage Coast MC and given its description and activities, I would like to suggest that at least one of the Landfall criminal gangs be controlled by a wurmling.
It seems only fitting that the Mystaran "wretched hive of scum and villainy" have a Mystaran "Jabba the Hutt" behind some of the illegal activities.
I definitely agree. Note that, given the Wurmling need for a vast territory, it's almost impossible not to have one of them in any major region: in the Savage Coast, there can't, IMO, be more than one -- the canonic one in Eusdria is right in the middle of the Coast.
One other was placed in control of the Bleak League, the Hulean crime syndicate, in Christian Constantin's (excellent) writeups of that empire.
One could possibly be the puppetmaster behind Thyatis' major thieves' guild (the Shadow Hand, IIRC).
A fourth could well be located in Landfall (probably a younger one, given Landfall's short history and the presence of many factions).
There are no Wurmlings allowed in the Gaz F Norwold setting. Whatever the merits of having a worm-ish race, there is no reasonable justification for their insertion in this region. (I also have problems with their abrupt Savage Coast inclusion).
We can still have a fat guy sucking on a hooka, eating frog-fixin's ;) , but Prince Joffa's got to be human or another race reasonably inserted.
No Jawas or Rhodians or Ugnaughts, either- just Hooten goblins, Hettfjall hobgoblins, and really ugly halflings :P
However, there will be a "Kessel Run" albeit run in more than 12 parsecs (
)What else, could proxy? Yetis as wampas? orcs as the Aqualish (Walrusman)? .....
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays,
-OldDawg
What else, could proxy? Yetis as wampas? orcs as the Aqualish (Walrusman)? .....
You could use the Darfellan if you want a Walrusmen analog. They're a pretty cool race, and would certainly fit the setting with an appropriately Cyclopedic conversion.
Otherwise, if you want to go with the Landfall/Mos Eisley comparison, there is certainly the "evil Empire" controlling aspect (Alphatian overlords) and you could even have a "rebel" twist as Thyatian agents conspire to gain the town for their own empire.
I know you said no jawas, but maybe there are gnomes in the northlands who wander and trade in technology/magic (heck, there's even a precedent of sorts in CM5's Earthshaker! with gnomes in a giant mechanical contraption in Norwold).
Tusken Raiders... hm. Frost giants are a bit too far north generally, but maybe the Cryion could fit that role?
The more I think about this, the more I like it. I was kind of against the idea of Landfall as the "most wretched hive of scum and villainy" in Mystara- I prefer Ne'er-do-Well or some of the innumerable Sea of Dread ports for that role (Cove Harbor, Crossbones, Alcove Island, West Portage, Caerdwicca), but the tundra/desert analogy actually works pretty well for Landfall.
You could have a small port for skyships there.
I know you said no jawas, but maybe there are gnomes in the northlands who wander and trade in technology/magic (heck, there's even a precedent of sorts in CM5's Earthshaker! with gnomes in a giant mechanical contraption in Norwold).
LOL, indeed
Tusken Raiders... hm. Frost giants are a bit too far north generally, but maybe the Cryion could fit that role?
Too arctic, IMO.
The more I think about this, the more I like it. I was kind of against the idea of Landfall as the "most wretched hive of scum and villainy" in Mystara- I prefer Ne'er-do-Well or some of the innumerable Sea of Dread ports for that role (Cove Harbor, Crossbones, Alcove Island, West Portage, Caerdwicca), but the tundra/desert analogy actually works pretty well for Landfall.
You could have a small port for skyships there.
Ne'er-do-well is another good setting for a fringe of empire Mos Eisley, with even a better climate for a Wurmling (you could have one there controlling a vast sea-based network, and battling against underwater Kopru crimelords).
From the Landfall perspective, the de-powered Jedi-niche is filled by members of the Order of White Drakes (so for them, the evil empire is Thyatis).
Obviously, drawing complete analogues (like the Aqualish) was meant more tongue in check than a true game plan. Still, tis the season for light fun. And SW isn't the only thing to mine for inspiration. The James Bond films and novels work for the spy-vs-spy, as does Austin Powers
The Man with the Golden Crossbow
From Alphatia, With Love
The Thyatian Who Loved Me
Octo-wussies (a very weak group of 8 thief-acrobats)
Trollraker
Fireball
On Her Majesty Eriadna's Secret Service
The Hollow World is not Enough
You Only Live Twice Your Constitution Score
The Living Day of Dread
Shag'ed Rhoten - interplanar metamorph of mystery
I'll stop now before this gets any more embarrassing :embarrass :D :embarrass
-OldDawg
Landfall: Alpha, Alphatia, Helskir, Heldann, Heldannic Order, Thyatis, Glantri, Minrothad, perhaps even Denagoth and Ghyr
West Portage/East Portage: all of the Isle of Dawn nations plus Thyatis and Alphatia. I think of this as more Checkpoint Charlie intrigue.
Ne'er-do-Well: Thothia, the Alatians, Bellisaria, Night Dragons, Pearl Islands, Ochalea, and the empires
Crossbones: Thyatis, Minrothad, Karameikos, Ierendi, Shires, and Darokin. More of a criminal hub than a place of international goings-on, but it serves the local regional position in this way.
A large international cast doesn't seem to fit for Alcove Island and Caerdwicca. They seem to me to be just home ports for pirates. I've blanked on where Cove Harbor is, so I can't comment on that one. Among these lesser ports of hiding, some folks in Alphatia flee to the Yannifey Chain.
It seems that thieves are back in the spotlight officially. The Complete Scoundrel is a new book by Mike McArtor and F. Wesley Schneider, due January. This might be a good tie-in for Mystara articles in Dungeon and Dragon dealing with Landfall. (Hint, Hint)
-OldDawg
I've blanked on where Cove Harbor is, so I can't comment on that one.
Cove Harbor is in the Minrothad Guilds- it's a mid-sized privateer/pirate town, well concealed on one of their islands near a volcano. It seems to be a more major port of call than Alcove, certainly, and possibly Crossbones (which came later, and frankly seemed a bit unnecessary to me, given the existence of Cove already).
Roger
Gaz 1: Iron Ring (slavery, murder, kidnapping)
Veiled Society (racketeering)
Kingdom of Theives (larceny)
Gaz 2:??
Gaz 3: ELF, FAERY, ??
Gaz 4: ??
Gaz 5: Shadowelf moles
Gaz 6: The Thorns (agitators of elves), ??
Gaz 7: ??
Gaz 8: ??
Gaz 9: ??
Gaz 10: None
Gaz 11: ??
Gaz 12: Silver and Gold Dragons (spies - brataks)
Gaz 13: ??
Gaz 14: none
DotE: Shadow Hand (piracy, smuggling, larceny), ??
PC1: ??
PC2: ??
PC3: ??
PC4: ??
Much appreciated any holes anyone can fill
-OldDawg
Gaz 3: ELF, FAERY, ??
ELF and FAERY are more rebellion/terrorist groups than Thieves' Guild.
There are other similar groups -- the Boldavian Liberation Front, the Free Fundamentalist Farmers, etc.
However, Glantri has a true Thieves' Guild (the Fellowship of the Pouch, a branch of the Darokin Thieves' Guild), an assassin's guild (Guild of Thugs, IIRC), plus the Beggars' Court and the Sisters of the Private Houses, both of which have their share of thieves. The People's Spellcasters Company is also a group of mages-thieves, and several other organizations, like the Merchant's Consortium and the United Artists Guild, can serve as havens for rogues and/or bards.
Gaz 4: ??
Ierendi has pirates more than thieves. Several ships, coves and captains are mentioned. Hanni, proprietor of the Mage Marine and Highland Marine, is also the leader of a Thieves' Guild quartered in tunnels below the Mage Marine.
Gaz 6: The Thorns (agitators of elves), ??
There is also the Underside, led by Morur Blackheart, a group of sociopathic dwarves. These are more thievish than the Thorns, who are more of a club of elf-bashers.
Gaz 8: ??
Plenty of pirates in the Shires, plus a Thieves' Guild in Port Shireton, The Fingers. Several pirate captains are also mentioned.
Gaz 9: ??
Privateer Guild, Thieves' Guild and the Blue Eels (secret service). All of these are part of the Minrothad government, but act as thieves/pirates/spies outside the Guilds.
Gaz 11: ??
The Darokin Thieves' Guild is mentioned in GAZ3 as the parent of the Fellowship of the Pouch.
The DDC is also partly espionage agency (as is Duchess Olivia Karameikos' network of agents from GAZ1, BTW).
Gaz 13: ??
The Second Shadow (double dealing spies).
PC1: ??
PC2: ??
PC3: ??
PC4: ??
Top Ballista has the Grey Front, IIRC, an organization of the chaotic races of Serraine (Nagpa mostly). In Undersea, the Kopru are the main criminal group.
There are several werewolf secret societies in PC4, all based in Glantri.
That's all, more or less.
GP
A little of the information made it into the Heldann gaz but you might find some more info that could be put into this one.
Cheers,
LJ.
26/40 pages in second to final edit, other 12/40 in third from final edit (Adventure section, Player's Manual).
Probable release is Monday June 25. I have to push back a week because of a chance to work with Peyton Manning :D
Thanks for everyone's contributions on the project. I'm really happy with the way this one is shaking out.
-OldDawg
Probable release is Monday June 25. I have to push back a week because of a chance to work with Peyton Manning :D
Thanks for the update Old Dawg, only a week to go fingers crossed.
Regards
Gary
36/42 in last to final edit, 6/42 in second to last
Regional Map finished, Landfall Map 60% finished, cover painted but not yet mocked up
[Note final edit here means spellcheck, reread for consistency, and add watermark and castle trim]
ETA late 6/27
-OldDawg
I put together the various maps from the GAZ F line and added the trail map of the known world by Thorf. I had to size the trail map at 40% and with trial and error, got the maps to fit together. I put it on the wall and took pictures for everyone here...enjoy!!!
I DROOL with envy!!! I want that on my wall!!
I think I would like to try something like this myself. Can you give some more details on how you did this? What is the actual size of each individual map?
Hmmm....
actually it would be nice to have a computerized mega map as well. I know OldDawg put out an under construction type map like that. Does anyone still have it? This is the sort of thing that should have come as a poster sized map with a Mystara boxed set...
Havard
Hmmm....
actually it would be nice to have a computerized mega map as well. I know OldDawg put out an under construction type map like that. Does anyone still have it? This is the sort of thing that should have come as a poster sized map with a Mystara boxed set...
Havard
I combined all of Thorf's Known World and Isle of Dawn maps in to one but the file was so huge that my PC had tremendous difficulty handling it. I don't remember off-hand how many mega-bites it was, but it was a lot!
I copied all the Gaz F maps and Thorf's maps to Adobe Acrobat. I did the new maps at 100% and the trail map at 40%. I started at 50% and worked my way down using Wendar as a guide. Basically I have about 10 copies of the Wendar map portion :D .
About 5 years ago I copied Geoff Gandar's Davina maps and added hex paper to it and drew in Brun and part of Skothar.
That is incredible! What I really like about what you've done is that you've made it very easy to place Ghyr and the Western Alliance in relation to Denagoth et al. I had a rough picture in my mind, but this really helps.
Geoff
First, Hugin, dude, that is freaking awesome! [You'll see the reason for that phrase choice in the up coming gaz ;) ] It reminds me of when I was a kid in the 80's doing the same thing with the official 24mph maps. (Oh my parents hated that :D
I believe I have a composite 24mph map of the Idrisian Sphere in some degree of completeness that I posted a while back, but it's nice to have a comparison with the Known World nations.
Second: as of Thursday, 5:30PM, there are about 3 pages left to do. Maps (2) are done, watermark is planned, and cover mock-up and castle coloring remain to be done.
Unfortunately, the same thing that has been plaguing me all semester (travel) is back again. Physically, I will not be able to PDF the gaz until Thursday next week.
So everyone will have to be satisfied with the following teases:
* Three complete adventure paths: for criminal, thief-hunter, and spy
* Rules for making thieving more difficult or more interesting (possible stunts)
* Rules for running guilds in line with dominion rulership
* more criminals than you can shake a stick at, from pirates, smugglers, and the criminally insane super-villains to mobsters, crossbow-wielding vice-workers and corrupt guardsmen to legit groups like dockhand unions, protection services, and tomb-raiders
* In depth coverage of the town, including a color and BW version of a fine-scale map (to save on printing)
* suggestions within the existing rules for roguing up the other classes, and optional rules for the use of thief skills
* advanced options and substitutions for the thief base class
-OldDawg
I was going to post it on imageshack but at 9Mb it's too big! So if anyone can suggest where to host it or how to get it onto Pandius I'm happy to donate it.
I also have a combined set of Thorf's 24m/hex maps linking Alphatia through to the Arm. I'll put that up wherever too.
Cheers,
LJ.