Having Trouble Running a DL campaign - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Having Trouble Running a DL campaign

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
damaja
Feb 21, 2007 20:02:37 I love the world, the settings, the heroes, everything, always have. I think Krynn and the Dragon Lance setting is by far the mosst exciting, dynamic setting EVER. I have read the chronicles probably 8 times hehe. Reading the books I just get that feeling to where I feel as if I could sit there and read forever. Very few books can do that for me.

I have always wanted to run a campaign in Krynn, but the storyline is so "set" that it is either run the campaign that everyone already knows or run one to where you change the world to the point where it destroys the feel of the world.

My favorite timeline would have to be during the War of the Lance but how can you run this timeline and not have it the same as the books but at the same time not destroy the flavor and feel of the world?
#2
zombiegleemax
Feb 21, 2007 20:41:51 Well, the PC's don't have to play the Heroes of the Lance. You can have a chance to tell a new story with unsung heroes, a story within the story. You could even have occasional cameos of the Heroes of the Lance. The kender you bump into in a tavern who steals your pouch. Let them feel like they're part of the story, but separate in a way.
#3
leowar
Feb 22, 2007 5:39:55 You make a good point there leather_book_wizard.
As a DM, I also let my partymenbers live in the war of the lance periode.
I put my party right in the middle of the Dragonlance world. (every charakter has a little backgrond from his home land but that's it)
And when you make a good rolplay and let see them some aspects of other living creatures (like knight's, elfs, kenders, gully dwarfs, magic-users, draconians, ect.) they want to explore the world and they want to know what is happing in this world. So I don't put them right in the middle of the war, but I try to let them be a part of the world, that means that if the want to stay alive the will have to fight for it. Some of my partymenbers wound to become a knight, others want to do the test of high sorcery.
#4
zombiegleemax
Feb 22, 2007 7:40:12 If you get Dragons of Autumn, they have suggested ways for you to play your own characters in the modules rather than the Heroes of the Lance, they do a pretty good job at it as well.
#5
damaja
Feb 22, 2007 20:29:59 I understand all that but what I am trying to get across is that ok so I have my players play there own characters inisde the War of the Lance and do there own little adventure inside the Adventure. In the end everyone still knows what the ending is going to be. There is no suspence, no surprise, no unknown factor because everyone knows who lives and who dies and how the war ends.

If I go as far as killing someone different or letting one who dies like then it changes the entire story and it kills the storyline etc etc etc

see my point?
#6
zombiegleemax
Feb 22, 2007 21:04:56 Then don't play during the War of the Lance.
#7
damaja
Feb 22, 2007 21:11:07 any time frame I play in, it is still a storyline. Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms neither have storylines as does Dragonlance. It doesnt matter when within the timeline I run a campaign, the storyline is still there. I am trying to find a way to change the realm around without killing the flavor of the world.

Maybe it is simple to you, but for me it has been an aggrevating area for me for a long time. In Greyhawk the timeline I ran I had the world in a huge Greyhawk war, not like the story has, but my war engulfed the entire world, 70% of the kingdoms on the world were gone. Nyrond, Furyondy were the 2 major good nations, Great Kingdom and Iuz were the two evils, the Free Lands of the City of Greyhawk formed into a nation. The Dwarves retreated into there mountain city, the elves closed there borders. etc etc and none of that killed the flavor because there was no story set in stone with that world.

If I even tried to do that with Krynn, you can imagine what would happen to the world, it would end up crap. There is no way Krynn could be reshaped like that or anything similar to that on that size of a scale else it would kill the flavor of the world and ruin what is special about Krynn in the first place.

THAT is my problem
#8
zombiegleemax
Feb 22, 2007 21:27:40 The Legends of the Twins campaign supplement has rules for alternate timelines. You could use those.
#9
zombiegleemax
Feb 22, 2007 23:21:59 You dont have to follow the established time periods.
#10
wolf72
Feb 23, 2007 14:09:05 It's like the SWRPG ... you might have to rewrite some of the history and outcomes.

Keep some events static, they don't change just the players (pun intended) ...

change other things (*cough* Sagaedition *cough*)
#11
damaja
Feb 23, 2007 15:53:26 hmmm a friend at work was talking to me about this. He suggested maybe having the heroes in the regular timeline of the War of the Lance and have em step through a portal, or have something happen to where they end up in an alternate timeline where the world of Krynn is not so Krynn-like anymore.

might be interesting.

suggestions for alternate timelines anyone??
#12
zombiegleemax
Feb 23, 2007 16:27:10 Can't think of any good ones..
Maybe one where the Kingpriest of Istar actually became a god, via the Portal to the Abyss?
#13
zombiegleemax
Feb 26, 2007 22:18:13 Let us know how your hypothesis goes?
#14
zombiegleemax
Mar 10, 2007 17:02:41 I'd love to play in a setting where the Summer of Chaos never happened...

4th Age had such cool potential: we never really did get to see the showdown between the various Knights, the void left in Raistlin's wake was barely filled, political and military repositioning all over Krynn - why did they need to throw in sorcery and mystics? [Rant over]

The main benefit I can see from running a campaign in this time setting is that most of the big WotL characters are largely out of the picture (either semi-retired, fully retired, dead, or somewhere in the Abyss), but there's still plenty of threats. Perfect breeding ground for some new heroes.

Interestingly, in Towers of Sorcery there is a remark somewhere that travelling to the future prior to the Chaos Wars leads to a time when Takhisis had *not* stolen away the world. Methinks a Kender/Gnome might be needed for a bit of alteration... :D
#15
zombiegleemax
Mar 10, 2007 17:42:35 I believe that time was called the Age of Dragons. I think that there is more info on it in the Legends of the Twins book.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 damaja Feb 21, 2007 20:02:37	I love the world, the settings, the heroes, everything, always have. I think Krynn and the Dragon Lance setting is by far the mosst exciting, dynamic setting EVER. I have read the chronicles probably 8 times hehe. Reading the books I just get that feeling to where I feel as if I could sit there and read forever. Very few books can do that for me. I have always wanted to run a campaign in Krynn, but the storyline is so "set" that it is either run the campaign that everyone already knows or run one to where you change the world to the point where it destroys the feel of the world. My favorite timeline would have to be during the War of the Lance but how can you run this timeline and not have it the same as the books but at the same time not destroy the flavor and feel of the world?
#2 zombiegleemax Feb 21, 2007 20:41:51	Well, the PC's don't have to play the Heroes of the Lance. You can have a chance to tell a new story with unsung heroes, a story within the story. You could even have occasional cameos of the Heroes of the Lance. The kender you bump into in a tavern who steals your pouch. Let them feel like they're part of the story, but separate in a way.
#3 leowar Feb 22, 2007 5:39:55	You make a good point there leather_book_wizard. As a DM, I also let my partymenbers live in the war of the lance periode. I put my party right in the middle of the Dragonlance world. (every charakter has a little backgrond from his home land but that's it) And when you make a good rolplay and let see them some aspects of other living creatures (like knight's, elfs, kenders, gully dwarfs, magic-users, draconians, ect.) they want to explore the world and they want to know what is happing in this world. So I don't put them right in the middle of the war, but I try to let them be a part of the world, that means that if the want to stay alive the will have to fight for it. Some of my partymenbers wound to become a knight, others want to do the test of high sorcery.
#4 zombiegleemax Feb 22, 2007 7:40:12	If you get Dragons of Autumn, they have suggested ways for you to play your own characters in the modules rather than the Heroes of the Lance, they do a pretty good job at it as well.
#5 damaja Feb 22, 2007 20:29:59	I understand all that but what I am trying to get across is that ok so I have my players play there own characters inisde the War of the Lance and do there own little adventure inside the Adventure. In the end everyone still knows what the ending is going to be. There is no suspence, no surprise, no unknown factor because everyone knows who lives and who dies and how the war ends. If I go as far as killing someone different or letting one who dies like then it changes the entire story and it kills the storyline etc etc etc see my point?
#6 zombiegleemax Feb 22, 2007 21:04:56	Then don't play during the War of the Lance.
#7 damaja Feb 22, 2007 21:11:07	any time frame I play in, it is still a storyline. Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms neither have storylines as does Dragonlance. It doesnt matter when within the timeline I run a campaign, the storyline is still there. I am trying to find a way to change the realm around without killing the flavor of the world. Maybe it is simple to you, but for me it has been an aggrevating area for me for a long time. In Greyhawk the timeline I ran I had the world in a huge Greyhawk war, not like the story has, but my war engulfed the entire world, 70% of the kingdoms on the world were gone. Nyrond, Furyondy were the 2 major good nations, Great Kingdom and Iuz were the two evils, the Free Lands of the City of Greyhawk formed into a nation. The Dwarves retreated into there mountain city, the elves closed there borders. etc etc and none of that killed the flavor because there was no story set in stone with that world. If I even tried to do that with Krynn, you can imagine what would happen to the world, it would end up crap. There is no way Krynn could be reshaped like that or anything similar to that on that size of a scale else it would kill the flavor of the world and ruin what is special about Krynn in the first place. THAT is my problem
#8 zombiegleemax Feb 22, 2007 21:27:40	The Legends of the Twins campaign supplement has rules for alternate timelines. You could use those.
#9 zombiegleemax Feb 22, 2007 23:21:59	You dont have to follow the established time periods.
#10 wolf72 Feb 23, 2007 14:09:05	It's like the SWRPG ... you might have to rewrite some of the history and outcomes. Keep some events static, they don't change just the players (pun intended) ... change other things (cough Sagaedition cough)
#11 damaja Feb 23, 2007 15:53:26	hmmm a friend at work was talking to me about this. He suggested maybe having the heroes in the regular timeline of the War of the Lance and have em step through a portal, or have something happen to where they end up in an alternate timeline where the world of Krynn is not so Krynn-like anymore. might be interesting. suggestions for alternate timelines anyone??
#12 zombiegleemax Feb 23, 2007 16:27:10	Can't think of any good ones.. Maybe one where the Kingpriest of Istar actually became a god, via the Portal to the Abyss?
#13 zombiegleemax Feb 26, 2007 22:18:13	Let us know how your hypothesis goes?
#14 zombiegleemax Mar 10, 2007 17:02:41	I'd love to play in a setting where the Summer of Chaos never happened... 4th Age had such cool potential: we never really did get to see the showdown between the various Knights, the void left in Raistlin's wake was barely filled, political and military repositioning all over Krynn - why did they need to throw in sorcery and mystics? [Rant over] The main benefit I can see from running a campaign in this time setting is that most of the big WotL characters are largely out of the picture (either semi-retired, fully retired, dead, or somewhere in the Abyss), but there's still plenty of threats. Perfect breeding ground for some new heroes. Interestingly, in Towers of Sorcery there is a remark somewhere that travelling to the future prior to the Chaos Wars leads to a time when Takhisis had not stolen away the world. Methinks a Kender/Gnome might be needed for a bit of alteration... :D
#15 zombiegleemax Mar 10, 2007 17:42:35	I believe that time was called the Age of Dragons. I think that there is more info on it in the Legends of the Twins book.