Various factors have come together and I have moved the entire campaign over to Mystara. It just made some things fit better.
I knew I wanted to get the player to I1 Dwellers of the Forbidden City, though a couple of obstacles were in the way. First, they were really not high enough level yet. Second I have had on the mainland of a fairly generic D&D/Eurocentric area. No jungles in sight.
That's when I had an idea. I pulled out my tired, true and very worn copy of X1 The Isle of Dread!
This gave them an excuse to get to a tropical area AND gave them some much-needed adventuring along the way to level up.
Of course, it was at the moment I took the above picture that I realized that both adventures had been authored by David "Zeb" Cook! The same David Cook as in the Expert Game author and the author of the next adventures in the Second Campaign.
I knew at some level the authors were the same, but I never thought about it save for mentally commenting on the similarities and how well they work with each other. I am simpling placing the Forbidden City in the central plateau of the Isle of Dread.
It is not an original idea, nor even an uncommon one:
- RPG.net: Placing other adventures on the Isle of Dread
- Dragonsfoot: Expanding "Dwellers of the Forbidden City"
- GITP: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?505197-Isle-of-Dread-Adventures
I wish I had given this more thought to be honest!
Right now the characters are mapping the interior of the island in a good old-fashioned hex crawl. Two characters so far have been hit with "jungle sickness". In fact, the poor wizard was hit with sea sickness and jungle sickness for so long that she has had four (in game) days of disadvantage rolls.
After this the characters are going to go south to a dessert for both the Desert of Desolation series and the Lost Tomb of Martek series. The Lost Tomb of Martek of course by David Cook.
I just have not figured out how I want to do them. I will likely go in this order:
- I3 Pharoah (levels 5-7) (5e Conversion)
- I4 Oasis of the White Palm (levels 6-8) (5e Conversion)
- I5 Lost Tomb of Martek (levels 7-9) (5e Conversion)
and
- X4 Master of the Desert Nomads (levels 6-9) (5e Conversion)
- X5 Temple of Death (levels 6-10) (5e Conversion)
But have not really figured out the narrative I want for them.
In any case it is going to be fun!
I'm a fan of all these adventures. I think it's awesome you've found a way to use them together.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, I would find it very difficult to replace the central plateau of X1 with the Forbidden City, the ancient temple and kopru caverns are so neat, as is. Plus the denizens of the Forbidden City (especially Horatio and the yuan-ti) are too "sophisticated" (in terms of culture and motivation) to be relegated to a lost island in the middle of the ocean.
Is your campaign set in Mystara? Or are you using your own world? Just curious.
Mystara + Oerth, Mystoerth.
ReplyDeleteI am moving the Kopru to closer to the shore. Love those guys.
Sounds fun!
ReplyDeletePersonally, I have no problem with the city in the center of the island. It's a good pulp trope of the once-advanced society surrounded/cut-off by savagery (and now descending itself). But I'm glad the kopru are appreciated, too.
Oh, and I didn't do Martek. That was Tracy.
David "Zeb" Cook
Thanks so much for stopping by!
ReplyDeleteYes. Tracy and Laura Hickman are old friends here at the Other Side. I didn't mention them specifically since I have talked about them before with these adventures.