I've been working for a long time on an adaption for DS to 3.5 I'ld be happy with. Now that that's finally done, I'm trying to find some good adventures to run for DS. I have all the original modules, and most of them aren't very good, IMO.
On the other hand, I've heard good things about such things as Age of Worms, Shackled City, and Red Hand of Doom.
Mechanical adaption is easy, but it's hard to find stuff which fits in thematically with DS. The idea of a DS city-state asking PCs to help against something is ridiculous. Adventures which have PCs fighting off a demon invasion goes against DS themes as well. Long dungeoncrawls and excusions into the underdark all are no-nos as well.
So the question is: has anyone successfully found a long adventure which is suitable for Dark Sun?
Typical Plots for a Dark Sun Campaign.
1) Revenge against the slavers (you start out as slaves and are freed by raiders during transport, work your way into power with a slave tribe and kill your former masters)
2) Destroy the rival merchant/templar/noble/elf tribe. (This works just like a thieves guild campaign)
3) Go make contact with XXX and report back. Try to set up trade negotiations. (Send them to a far of place (Lost Cities of Kurn and Eldaarich, Celik in the south, the Pterran cities in the Hinterlands) and have them start negotiations -- usually with a don't kill me please)
4) Kill a SK. (umm.... yeah....)
And these are basics. With the exception of 4, all of them can be at any level of play, and are good things to make a name for your self with. Then, you can move on to other things, like quests for Advanced Beings, or Exploring the Kreen Empire or Dead Lands, or whatever else.
Just my 2 bits
We encountered all sorts of things and it ended with a huge battle with a water drake. we scavanged the drake and returned to the town and told them of the lake. using the drakes hide to create large waterskins. the town found its new water source, and was able to transport large quantities of the life giving liquid.
not all dungeon crawls deal with drow.:D
We're playing Dungeon#125 - 3 faces of evil. Its an adventure with evil clerics of Vecna, Erythnul and Hextor. Of course they don't fit in Athas, so I've changed to evil elemental clerics. Together they found a way to summon an evil creature through the Gray channeling an elemental conduit.
The stone mine was set at South Ledopolous (for the bridge). And of course change the mechanics and specific points/npcs.
It's easy and time saver.
Tarlyn Veladorn.
Are you the same Tarlyn Veladorn as the DS Brasil message group?
Hi, Bruno.
Yes, I am.
Daniel Holthausen Nunes AKA Tarlyn Veladorn.
Welcome to the boards! :D
Oh yes, we're worse than the Brown Tide!
Yes, we are...
BTW, congratulations about the excelent job at athas.org. Your commitment is impressive, and the releases are even better.
Tarlyn Veladorn
...but I seriously disagree that "any" adventure can be a DS adventure.
Dark Sun, is at it's core, post-apocalyptic D&D. As such, it needs to deal with post-apoc themes: survival, protecting those who matter to you, striving towards as much prosperity as you can find, and maybe MAYBE making the world a slightly better place to live in before it goes even further to hell.
As such, adventures of "save the city" don't fit in very well. Why? Why save the city? Or an adventure of "prevent an ancient god from destroying the world" reduces the sense of culpability of the players and the people of the world.
Additionally, Dark Sun adventures do well to avoid certain D&D tropes: dungeoncrawls, dragon attacks, demon armies amassing on the outer planes. These are the things of normal D&D, but reduce the distinct flavor of a Dark Sun game.
SO, a good Dark Sun adventure has to avoid these things. Thri-Kreen invasion? Perfect! It's alien, but of this world. Rhulani uprising. Excellent! Part of the beauty of these is the moral greyness... the invaders may not be evil, but it's them versus us, and "we" have to defend the only thing we have left - the lives we're scratching out.
Sorry to go off-topic...
...but I seriously disagree that "any" adventure can be a DS adventure.
I understand that "any" or "every" adventure fits in DS campaign, but "mostly" can be modified to this purpose. You can use then as a base adventure and change if is needed.
As such, adventures of "save the city" don't fit in very well. Why? Why save the city? Or an adventure of "prevent an ancient god from destroying the world" reduces the sense of culpability of the players and the people of the world.
Additionally, Dark Sun adventures do well to avoid certain D&D tropes: dungeoncrawls, dragon attacks, demon armies amassing on the outer planes. These are the things of normal D&D, but reduce the distinct flavor of a Dark Sun game.
That depends...e.g.:
* dungeoncrawls could be used in a plot of ancient history of Athas (blue/gren age knowledge/artifacts/magic, undertyr, iron/obsidian mines, etc);
* about dragons, some adventures can be changed by Drakes, or even a SK (that discovers a slave camp)
SO, a good Dark Sun adventure has to avoid these things. Thri-Kreen invasion? Perfect! It's alien, but of this world. Rhulani uprising. Excellent! Part of the beauty of these is the moral greyness... the invaders may not be evil, but it's them versus us, and "we" have to defend the only thing we have left - the lives we're scratching out.
That's it!!! use this ideas in a pre made adventure. Like I said before it's a save timer (maps, traps, encounters - all can be relocated in DS way);)
Sorry go off-topic
Tarlyn Veladorn