1 - Is silt flammable?
2- What color is Agafari wood?
3- Since the 3e "Manual of the Planes" does not mention quasi- or paraelemental planes, when converting to 3e, what do you do for Silt clerics, Sun clerics, Magma clerics, etc.?
4- Does anyone think that "surfing" in the Last Sea is just a little stupid for Athas?
1 - Is silt flammable?
Nope. First, its too dry. Second, its really just powerdery dirt that was once on the floor of the ocean.
2- What color is Agafari wood?
I don't think its ever been mentioned, but I tend to give it the similarities of red mahogany as far as color and density. Sort of a brownish red color.
3- Since the 3e "Manual of the Planes" does not mention quasi- or paraelemental planes, when converting to 3e, what do you do for Silt clerics, Sun clerics, Magma clerics, etc.?
What specifics are you needing converted? The Athasian inner planes never corresponded to the original Manual of the Planes/Planescape inner planes anyhow. The planes though hold very little by way of mechanics necessary to convert.
4- Does anyone think that "surfing" in the Last Sea is just a little stupid for Athas?
While I won't speak for everyone, I simply thought it was absurd. I have yet (to my knowledge) see someone else's opinion to the contrary. I'm sure someone out there likes the idea, at least in part.
Originally posted by Cyrus9a
Does anyone know or have any suggestions on the following questions:
1 - Is silt flammable?
I always thought od silt to be similiar to quicksand so I would think no- you can not burn it. However, once wind blown and such, I would expect it to be a tough burn but maybe.
2- What color is Agafari wood?
I always invisioned it as crimson / black
3- Since the 3e "Manual of the Planes" does not mention quasi- or paraelemental planes, when converting to 3e, what do you do for Silt clerics, Sun clerics, Magma clerics, etc.?
Athas.org breaks all of this down on their site. From there- improvise as best you can.
4- Does anyone think that "surfing" in the Last Sea is just a little stupid for Athas?
It's as bad as the nude sun tanning that was there also. A last ditch attempt at sales or to generate interest I suppose. Very lame in my mind.
1 - Is silt flammable?
No: Silt is (further) dried mud. The fine sands of Mars are similar in texture to the Sea of Silt, in my opinion: grains much finer than those of sand. Think of it as "fluffy sand" and you have it about right.
2- What color is Agafari wood?
I'll go with Mach on this one: I always figured it would be a deep red, similar to mahogany.
3- Since the 3e "Manual of the Planes" does not mention quasi- or paraelemental planes, when converting to 3e, what do you do for Silt clerics, Sun clerics, Magma clerics, etc.?
Mach got that one: what, specifically, are you trying to convert? Largely, just treat them as elemental clerics but substitute Earth, Air, Water, or Fire with Sun, Silt, Magma, or Rain.
4- Does anyone think that "surfing" in the Last Sea is just a little stupid for Athas?
A while back, Hawaii was series of islands all under different kings. Kamehameha decided that he wanted all the islands unified under one flag, so he rowed over to the other islands and took control of them. On Oahu, the fighting started on the beach and worked its way up the jagged, volcanic mountains. When they reached a cliff at near the top, Kamehameha's army kept driving and over the opposing army went, down to the rocks below. I've stood on that cliff and it's pretty impressive, even with concrete stands and tourists snapping pictures.
My point? Just because you surf, doesn't mean you're a hippy.
If you want to take a different view, check out "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley. In it, the population is controlled by their flamboyant lifestyles. People may surf in Saragar to simply forget how horrifying their lives are under a trio of demented, immortal, all-powerful, all-seeing mindlords. No, I don't think surfing is particarly stupid, in this case.
quote:2- What color is Agafari wood?
I'll go with Mach on this one: I always figured it would be a deep red, similar to mahogany.
I always thought it had a blueish tint... can't remember at the moment where I read that...
Ah: Ivory Triangle, p.69: The blue agafari tree is among the most striking of the plants in the Crescent Forest.
What specifics are you needing converted? The Athasian inner planes never corresponded to the original Manual of the Planes/Planescape inner planes anyhow. The planes though hold very little by way of mechanics necessary to convert.
I have thought about dumping all quasi- and paraelemental planes in favour of an "Inner Transitive Plane" and still stay within the general 3e idea. In this transitive plane the two energy planes and 4 elemental planes would mix. I was really wondering if this would still work for the non-pure elemental clerics.
I may be mistaken but I thought the 2e inner planes matched Athas inner planes.... I'll have to look into that....
I am not super-familiar with the Mind Lords of the Last sea expansion, but i definitely feel it is a little to much, nude sun bathing and the like. (what a great place for sun clerics!
)If you want to take a different view, check out "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
Definately a great book, and one that captures a good feeling of benevolent oppression that you find in Saragar.
SQUARK bait
I would like to think that maybe two or three of them (SKs) teamed together to create the half-giants and eventually they spreadout. If this were the case, what SKs teamed together to create them?
Maybe Farcluun had a sister?
Originally posted by Cyrus9a
The only official thing I can find on the creation of half-giants is in the Campaign Setting. It states that HGs were created by the SKs at the beginning of the Age of the SKs as soldiers.
Always thought it was some wizard that created them and not any of the SMs?
Who knows, heh.
I may be mistaken but I thought the 2e inner planes matched Athas inner planes.... I'll have to look into that....
Nope. They're far more 'travel friendly' than their standard counterparts.
The standard plane of fire for example, is a mass of nothing but flame, a giant plane of infernoes with only the slightest smattering of other elements; but even those other elements get burned away rather quickly. One cannot even survive the plane without magical assistance of some kind. Death comes almost instantaneous to the unprotected.
The Athasian Elemental Plane of Fire though is mostly safe. One can travel there without the need for magical protection since its a place where fire is prevalent, but not all-encompasing. There would be fiery clouds rolling across the skies, perhaps large pits of flame spewing from cracks in the ground, or even entire rivers of fire coarsing along meandering paths. All in all though, its not just a massive place of flame.
The same general guidelines hold true for the other elemental and para elemental planes of Athas. The plane of water requires no special spells to avoid drowning on the prime substance of the plane. Simply being there grants an inate ability to breathe and swim there (even for kreen who otherwise would not be able to swim at all).
Although they are not given anything more than a cursory description, the rule of thumb should be that no one venturing into the para/elemental planes requires any magical aid in order to survive there or move around. Hence, even on the plane of air one can fly and glide about (almost) as well as the natives.
Originally posted by NytCrawlr
Always thought it was some wizard that created them and not any of the SMs?
The story in DS2 is a bit more specific about their origins than the story in DS1. It's still pretty vauge though.
Aside from passing squarks, shargs, shquids, octosharks, and so on, waves are also caused by wind. I've never been there, but I'm betting the Salton Sea is not in a windy area (if I'm wrong, so be it). The winds whipping across Saragar could be much more severe.
Which brings up the point: How many player groups have actually been to Saragar? My players heard the rumors and assumed I was walking them into a belgoi nest or something. WHERE they would get such a thought, I have no idea.
The area has constant wind. Near sundown, the waves start changing from ripples to small 1' waves (boat wake). Here is a picture of the sea when I went hiking during the late afternoon (I had to go alone, nobody would come with me.
They all sat in the shade bause it was 100+F out, perfect hiking weather!http://www.iownjoo.com/freeimghost/MarcusMagnus/Salton Sea southern end.jpg
I was going to create a thread with some of my cool pictures I took of the trip, however, I think I might start a website for Dark Sun visualizations.
I have even been on the Great Lakes, which are three times of size of the Last Sea. The waves there are not even big enough to surf.
Very true. Even during a pre-winter storm (the time when the waves are at their highest), Lake Superior's action was nothing that I would have dared take a board out on. I'd say the crests got no more than six feet in height and had an origin less than 60 feet out. Not much to catch on to. A body board would pick up a little, but not a full fledged surfboard. You'd be eating the sand before you were able to stand up all the way. And yes, it is a pretty windy area at times, especially before winter. Never actually been to a high salt lake, so I can't attest to the oder.
I had never thought of the real worl analogy in regards to the Saragar surfing. Thanks. Just gives me more ammunition for shooting down any hope my players may have of joining the surfer druids and just chillin on da shore fo' da e-z life.
Lastly, I've run 3 small scenarios into the Saragar region.
Should anyone be surprised? The only thing we're missing is some pot and hallucinogens.
But for the record, I'm not changing any of the canon in my game. I'll just have to try extra-hard to get my players to appreciate Saragar.
A lot of ancient societies also did drugs, but they were usually part of some religious ceremony. Drugs do fit in Dark Sun. After a hard day at the field, wouldn't you want to relax and chew on some cocaine leaves to dull the pain?
I don't think TSR could get the best and brightest to work on their worlds. Afterall, if a talented writer just graduated college, he's not going to want to work creating D&D books, unless he is an out of touch gaming geek, or so. They probably added surfing to attract a younger crowd that would eventually be Dark Sun fans.
Very true. Even during a pre-winter storm (the time when the waves are at their highest), Lake Superior's action was nothing that I would have dared take a board out on.
Not to mention the Great Lakes are freezing cold all year round. I'll never get back into one.
The Dragon's Crown map shows a gray square on Morghaz, indicating a ruin, that it names Haakar.
But it is named Akarakle in the booklet. Not to mention that when the PCs meet the secret master of the place, they don't go «Right dude, you're that guy the place is named after...far off! ».
Haakar is a long forgotten name, so should be reflected in the map. Must be a design error. Somehow the map dosen't match the content.