Actually, why didn't any of the champions defile the savanna during the Green Age as well?
The land was also reasonably alright once the Cleansing Wars finished as I think the Sunrise Sea still existed even. i think the next 1000 odd years and the Dragons rampage done the most damage to Athas. I always got the indication it was in the last 1000 years things got really bad a'la modern Athas. There were probably quite a few pockets similar to Saragar left at the end of the Cleansing Wars.
As for the Crimson Savannah maybe the Champion didn't know about it or it was even dangerous for them to go there. Being full of Kreen there was also no need for them to go there as the Kreen weren't targets of genocide.
Furthermore, I am under the impression that the Kreen reproduce at a rather prolific rate, so it would be possible for their population to recover after Borys wrecked things.
As mentioned before Saragar was concealed through various psionic protections, thus none of the Champions tried to ransack the area.
itf
It said in the original dark sun boxed set that Borys wanders over all parts of Athas. If this is true why did he never defile/terrorize Sarangar, or the Crimson Savanna of the Kreen races?
Actually, why didn't any of the champions defile the savanna during the Green Age as well?
Note where that information is coming from: the original Dark Sun boxed set. The Crimson Savanna and Saragar were not even dreamed of yet when the original set was created. Tim Brown mentioned (in an interview that used to be archived here, but I am not sure if it still is) that he had considered eventually revealing that the known world was surrounded by a vast Kreen empire on all sides, but it was never more fleshed out than that. The later designers went with that idea and created the Crimson Savanna. By the time that happened, though, Borys was already dead and nobody really had to worry about the revisionist history in that sense. The original concept of Dark Sun didn't take into account all of these additional locations that would later be added with the revised setting.
Note where that information is coming from: the original Dark Sun boxed set. The Crimson Savanna and Saragar were not even dreamed of yet when the original set was created.
Well, yes the only region mapped was the Tyr Region, but it said all of Athas, which would include areas that were not mapped yet, and Borys would have to defile at his whim. And the Savanna is a huge area of Athas, and a very very very desireable area for any defiler or dragon.
Well, yes the only region mapped was the Tyr Region, but it said all of Athas, which would include areas that were not mapped yet, and Borys would have to defile at his whim. And the Savanna is a huge area of Athas, and a very very very desireable area for any defiler or dragon.
The original boxed set also stated there was only one dragon as well. Go figure
The original boxed set also stated there was only one dragon as well. Go figure
No, it didn't. It says in the description of the Dragon of Tyr that whether he knows or not or other Dragons is unknown.
No, it didn't. It says in the description of the Dragon of Tyr that whether he knows or not or other Dragons is unknown.
What I'm getting at is that you can't hang on every typed word in an out dated campaign product. It may have been true at the time, but the campaign world, as well as its products, have evolved since the settings conception.
I thought that a great deal of thought and creativity on this board have been devoted to reconciling the contradictions TSR gave us with their Dark Sun products.
itf
I hear what you are saying prymusferal and sysane, but at the same time, doesn't it make sense to release gaming material that doesn't contradict your existing material?
I completely agree with you, as that was my point in the first place.
Well, yes the only region mapped was the Tyr Region, but it said all of Athas, which would include areas that were not mapped yet, and Borys would have to defile at his whim. And the Savanna is a huge area of Athas, and a very very very desireable area for any defiler or dragon.
You're missing the point entirely. The areas that you are referring to were not merely not mapped yet, they were not yet even envisioned in any way, shape, or form. Trying to apply standards from the original boxed set to materials that came much later--and were effectively made up as the ever-changing design team went along--is not often going to make sense, as it is revisionist history. Why didn't Borys defile those areas? Because as far as anyone (aka Tim Brown and Troy Denning) knew when the original boxed set that you refer to was written, those areas did not exist. It should be obvious that Borys cannot defile an area that does not exist. As for why it was not dealt with retroactively once the new designers created these areas, well, Borys was dead and they obviously saw no reason to attempt to reconcile the inconsistencies.
Another example of this revisionism that I addressed in a different thread was why the other Sorcerer-kings didn't just kill Kalak once they realized that a huge ziggurat almost identical to Kalid-Ma's was being constructed. The same kind of thing applies here: because when that part of the Dark Sun "story" was written, Kalid-Ma did not exist, so the SKs had no reason to react in such a manner. Sure, they did after Psionic Artifacts of Athas was written, but obviously the original material had been published long before that and was not going to take that into account.
Sure, we can try to apply some sort of rationale on our own, but it would be nothing more than an untestable hypothesis at best. For example: why didn't he defile the Crimson Savanna? He didn't want to. He has numerous trees of life, an immense garden and lush city-state of his own, and can store magical energy from all forms of life in his body (also according to the original boxed set). Why would he go to the Crimson Savanna if he doesn't even need to?
The Avangion could still be there, too, keeping a low profile........
that's possible too. It might explain the relative fertility of the region, even if it had been defiled. Since an Avangion can restore the land given enough time.
that's possible too. It might explain the relative fertility of the region, even if it had been defiled. Since an Avangion can restore the land given enough time.
A level 9 spellcaster can restore the land given enough time.
A level 9 spellcaster can restore the land given enough time.
In the 3.5 rules sure. But this stuff wasn't written for 3.5.
In the 3.5 rules sure. But this stuff wasn't written for 3.5.
Even in 2nd ed they had the restoration spell. It was in the original boxed set.
Replenish Land: You can reverse the effects of defiling magic. You can sacrifice an arcane spell to revitalize the area by increasing terrain type by one category in a 5 foot radius/spell level sacrificed (a defiled area becomes desolate).