Time of Unparalleled Darkness - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Time of Unparalleled Darkness

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
cassandra
Feb 20, 2008 23:04:10 Hello everybody!

I want to master the "Time of Unparalleled Darkness" campaign... has anybody made any expiriences with this campaign?
#2
sptjanly
Feb 21, 2008 7:45:34 There is published mod for this? Or are you just asking for peoples guesses on what the event is and how they have incorporated it into their games?
#3
highpriestmikhal
Feb 21, 2008 8:37:06 Wow. The ToUD. That's been an intense source of speculation since 2e. No one is quite sure what happens, likely because the developers themselves want to keep their options open. But what I seem to remember is that van Richten will return during this time, and even Hyskosa supposedly plays a part in the events. From the 3.x material I'm also guessing that Malocchio Aderre is freed from his prison to once more run loose, based on Azalin's comments in the Gazetteers and other subtle clues. Given how he could free darklords from their domains, that's a scary thought.

Then there's a rumor I've been hearing that the fifth and final sect of Ezra will be revealed and ultimately determine the final outcome. Given that a LN god should only allow LG, LN, and LE churches it seems quite odd that there is a N sect. This opens up the remote possibility of either a NG or NE sect; the ultimate alignment of which will determine what happens.
#4
sptjanly
Feb 22, 2008 18:37:21 The official return of van Ricten you say? Nice! I was just guessing when I popped him back into the mixed and it seemed to work out. Ultimately his age left him unable to help with the end event, but his appearance gave hope and that is what the character is all about.

Looking over the known history of RL I have seen mention that there is the possibility there was a similar world that came to an end before Borovia was pulled into the mists making it the first domain for the current world. So, like it or not, the RL as we know it is at a boiling point. With the overview of some of the world events HighPriestMikhal has mentioned that are expediting The Time of Unparalleled Darkness, it is only a matter of time before the world is wiped clean.

If I would place one visable figure it would be Azalin at the center of these RL events, or at least pulling a lot of the strings. Unlike most villains, his plans far exceed the comprehension of the inhabitants of RL. His scheming would make even the hardest drow matron mother second guess herself, once. Even though he has had major set backs, he continues to learn from mistakes and push ahead. He cares little for the consequences of the doomed world he will leave in his wake, but when the dust settles he will even have a slim chance of walking away intact. Even he doesn't fully understand the delicate fabric of reality his is cutting at. This is a huge gamble for escape by defying the over deitie(s) The Dark Powers, because he is not a god like Vecna was.

My only experience DM'ing a RL session was this specific apocalyptic event in correlation to a Forgotten Realms/Planscape game and sadly RL didn't survive... sort of. This is pure speculation on the event and many of the main npcs are created for other story lines with in a way all tie together for different reasons. A brief overview of the setting involves three games I have been playing in for about 7-9 years: one being a FR game set in 1372; a RL game set in 741; and the longest running is a home brewed Forgotten Realms pocket domain set in a timeless aspect that functions as a lock to RL in the Ethereal which started the whole concept way beyond the original intentions. Lastly my campaign set in the Year of the Rogue Dragons 1473 that has been running for about 3 years. All the games are not dependent of one another (We all have our secrets and interpretations since we are all players in one game or another), but over the years two of the three DM's have used material from the other to further our own campaign goals in which the Time of Unparalleled Darkness of RL is just ground zero for the multiverse.

This is how it has worked to my specific spin on it: RL is set in the deep Ethereal and is a prison world of sorts. This prison we all know and love has a few special occupants in bedded deep within it. An Elder God of Chaos and Evil (I use the world Evil carefully due to the fact that it isn't evil in the normal category, the destructive capabilities are far exceeding reason.) from the Far Realm and it's entire pantheon of similar, but lesser gods. Their goal is simple, consume. You could use a few names established such as Tharizdun, but beings like this have many names. They were imprisoned by an alliance of creator gods and their agents; one agent of note was the first and former angel Asmodeus. All of this happened before the historic signing of the Pact Prime Evil. The scope of these god's threat goes beyond this multi-verse, because they have destroyed countless other multi-verse dimensions. All have failed to stop them due to one reason: mortals have never been given a chance to advance to their true potential. Though the last destroyed parted with one important gift to the current, the nether scrolls. Which is a scientific approach to magic. Other minor technologies have been discovered as well from that age, but most are incomplete formulas and go beyond the current understanding of mortals. There are few refugees from this time that still remain alive today, and they have been nudging mortals and gods to prepare for the Darkest Hour with subtly, because if the agents of the Elder God would find them they would be elimintated.

The Elder God has made attempts to get out, hence the mention of a former RL; but was returned to his prison with a new safety precaution, a lock created by the mortal races of FR. The pantheons influence is beginning to seep out of the lock and recruitment of their own agents is gaining. Even Azalin has been given inspiration, though he is unsure of the ultimate source of information. He has countered the intelligence to make sure the Dark Powers are not again playing tricks with his ambitions; but it has been confirmed is not them and he has been stepping carefully ever since of gaining the knowledge that a great power has taken to his favor. Others of RL have heard the whispers of the Old One and as time goes on they are starting to listen very carefully.

Going by this it would make a power hierarchy of Dread Lord prisoners of RL:

the Elder God
The Pantheon
Gwydion
Azalin
and so on..

Now Gwydion is old enough to to have heard of or seen the Old One in action, and knows that it and The Patheon are the greater than he. Promises have been made to him that upon his release by a certain Dukar that will be freed from his Vistani wards of binding to Invidia with the assistance of Azalin; he must destroy the entire pocket domain and his return to the plane of shadow is guaranteed and he will be made a God in the Pantheon for his service to the Old One. This will result in the prison being damaged beyond repair and the ultimate destruction of the Multi-verse will be sealed unless the Old One is killed in a short window of time where it will be the weakest while amassing full power. To put it in other words, this is a prison riot to cover up an escape.

Well, there is just the tip of the ice berge of some my ideas and the ideas of many others that have collaborated through the years on what the Time of Unparalleled Darkness is in regard to as Ezra would put it, "The Grand Scheme of Things."
#5
cassandra
Feb 23, 2008 14:29:29 Well, thanks for all the ideas! There is no official publication for the "Time of Unparalleled Darkness". I was referring to one on the Homepage of the Fraternity of Shadows... http://www.fraternityofshadows.com/TheVault/TimeOfUnparrallledDarkness.pdf

And I wonder if someone used this module already because I want to use it in my group.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 cassandra Feb 20, 2008 23:04:10	Hello everybody! I want to master the "Time of Unparalleled Darkness" campaign... has anybody made any expiriences with this campaign?
#2 sptjanly Feb 21, 2008 7:45:34	There is published mod for this? Or are you just asking for peoples guesses on what the event is and how they have incorporated it into their games?
#3 highpriestmikhal Feb 21, 2008 8:37:06	Wow. The ToUD. That's been an intense source of speculation since 2e. No one is quite sure what happens, likely because the developers themselves want to keep their options open. But what I seem to remember is that van Richten will return during this time, and even Hyskosa supposedly plays a part in the events. From the 3.x material I'm also guessing that Malocchio Aderre is freed from his prison to once more run loose, based on Azalin's comments in the Gazetteers and other subtle clues. Given how he could free darklords from their domains, that's a scary thought. Then there's a rumor I've been hearing that the fifth and final sect of Ezra will be revealed and ultimately determine the final outcome. Given that a LN god should only allow LG, LN, and LE churches it seems quite odd that there is a N sect. This opens up the remote possibility of either a NG or NE sect; the ultimate alignment of which will determine what happens.
#4 sptjanly Feb 22, 2008 18:37:21	The official return of van Ricten you say? Nice! I was just guessing when I popped him back into the mixed and it seemed to work out. Ultimately his age left him unable to help with the end event, but his appearance gave hope and that is what the character is all about. Looking over the known history of RL I have seen mention that there is the possibility there was a similar world that came to an end before Borovia was pulled into the mists making it the first domain for the current world. So, like it or not, the RL as we know it is at a boiling point. With the overview of some of the world events HighPriestMikhal has mentioned that are expediting The Time of Unparalleled Darkness, it is only a matter of time before the world is wiped clean. If I would place one visable figure it would be Azalin at the center of these RL events, or at least pulling a lot of the strings. Unlike most villains, his plans far exceed the comprehension of the inhabitants of RL. His scheming would make even the hardest drow matron mother second guess herself, once. Even though he has had major set backs, he continues to learn from mistakes and push ahead. He cares little for the consequences of the doomed world he will leave in his wake, but when the dust settles he will even have a slim chance of walking away intact. Even he doesn't fully understand the delicate fabric of reality his is cutting at. This is a huge gamble for escape by defying the over deitie(s) The Dark Powers, because he is not a god like Vecna was. My only experience DM'ing a RL session was this specific apocalyptic event in correlation to a Forgotten Realms/Planscape game and sadly RL didn't survive... sort of. This is pure speculation on the event and many of the main npcs are created for other story lines with in a way all tie together for different reasons. A brief overview of the setting involves three games I have been playing in for about 7-9 years: one being a FR game set in 1372; a RL game set in 741; and the longest running is a home brewed Forgotten Realms pocket domain set in a timeless aspect that functions as a lock to RL in the Ethereal which started the whole concept way beyond the original intentions. Lastly my campaign set in the Year of the Rogue Dragons 1473 that has been running for about 3 years. All the games are not dependent of one another (We all have our secrets and interpretations since we are all players in one game or another), but over the years two of the three DM's have used material from the other to further our own campaign goals in which the Time of Unparalleled Darkness of RL is just ground zero for the multiverse. This is how it has worked to my specific spin on it: RL is set in the deep Ethereal and is a prison world of sorts. This prison we all know and love has a few special occupants in bedded deep within it. An Elder God of Chaos and Evil (I use the world Evil carefully due to the fact that it isn't evil in the normal category, the destructive capabilities are far exceeding reason.) from the Far Realm and it's entire pantheon of similar, but lesser gods. Their goal is simple, consume. You could use a few names established such as Tharizdun, but beings like this have many names. They were imprisoned by an alliance of creator gods and their agents; one agent of note was the first and former angel Asmodeus. All of this happened before the historic signing of the Pact Prime Evil. The scope of these god's threat goes beyond this multi-verse, because they have destroyed countless other multi-verse dimensions. All have failed to stop them due to one reason: mortals have never been given a chance to advance to their true potential. Though the last destroyed parted with one important gift to the current, the nether scrolls. Which is a scientific approach to magic. Other minor technologies have been discovered as well from that age, but most are incomplete formulas and go beyond the current understanding of mortals. There are few refugees from this time that still remain alive today, and they have been nudging mortals and gods to prepare for the Darkest Hour with subtly, because if the agents of the Elder God would find them they would be elimintated. The Elder God has made attempts to get out, hence the mention of a former RL; but was returned to his prison with a new safety precaution, a lock created by the mortal races of FR. The pantheons influence is beginning to seep out of the lock and recruitment of their own agents is gaining. Even Azalin has been given inspiration, though he is unsure of the ultimate source of information. He has countered the intelligence to make sure the Dark Powers are not again playing tricks with his ambitions; but it has been confirmed is not them and he has been stepping carefully ever since of gaining the knowledge that a great power has taken to his favor. Others of RL have heard the whispers of the Old One and as time goes on they are starting to listen very carefully. Going by this it would make a power hierarchy of Dread Lord prisoners of RL: the Elder God The Pantheon Gwydion Azalin and so on.. Now Gwydion is old enough to to have heard of or seen the Old One in action, and knows that it and The Patheon are the greater than he. Promises have been made to him that upon his release by a certain Dukar that will be freed from his Vistani wards of binding to Invidia with the assistance of Azalin; he must destroy the entire pocket domain and his return to the plane of shadow is guaranteed and he will be made a God in the Pantheon for his service to the Old One. This will result in the prison being damaged beyond repair and the ultimate destruction of the Multi-verse will be sealed unless the Old One is killed in a short window of time where it will be the weakest while amassing full power. To put it in other words, this is a prison riot to cover up an escape. Well, there is just the tip of the ice berge of some my ideas and the ideas of many others that have collaborated through the years on what the Time of Unparalleled Darkness is in regard to as Ezra would put it, "The Grand Scheme of Things."
#5 cassandra Feb 23, 2008 14:29:29	Well, thanks for all the ideas! There is no official publication for the "Time of Unparalleled Darkness". I was referring to one on the Homepage of the Fraternity of Shadows... http://www.fraternityofshadows.com/TheVault/TimeOfUnparrallledDarkness.pdf And I wonder if someone used this module already because I want to use it in my group.