| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Lady Fellshot |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 05:45:48
Out of curiosity, has anyone here ever used a natural disaster (ie flood, earthquake, wildfire, tsunami, etc.) as a adventure device? Either the actual event itself or the resultant aftermath?
I've debated both earthquake and wildfire games before (but not together) and I thought I would ask. |
| 17 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Jamallo Kreen |
Posted - 13 Nov 2007 : 21:02:36
Not a problem. I'm always ready to discuss the high price of orange juice. As Hal said to the boys on Malcolm in the Middle, "This stuff doesn't grow on trees, you know ... oh, wait ... it does...." Or words to that effect.
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| AlorinDawn |
Posted - 09 Nov 2007 : 17:50:49
Great info Jamallo Kreen! Thanks for sharing. |
| Jamallo Kreen |
Posted - 08 Nov 2007 : 21:43:17
Following up on Richard Pett's suggestion in "The Ecology of the Kraken" (Dragon Magazine 334, Aug 2005), I read Out of the Deeps (England title: The Kraken Wakes), written by John Wyndham in 1953, his first novel after The Day of the Triffids. Bearing in mind that it was written more than half a century ago, the book's climax, "Phase Three," is an eerily prescient look at the results of the melting of the polar ice caps. Since the Shadovar wrought a similar commotion, the book is well worth reading even if parts of it are a bit dated (a Stalinist-thinking USSR still exists in Out of the Deeps), Wyndham's predictions of global flooding are spot on with what we are seeing now.
Since our national orange juice supply was disrupted by frosts in California this year, the following paragraph seems very prescient:
quote:
The average Californian was not greatly worried by a rise of a couple of inches in the tide level; he had been much more delicately stricken, Something was happening to his climate. The average of his seaboard temperatures had gone way down, and he was having cold, wet fogs. He disapproved of that, and a large number of Califonrians disapproving makes quite a noise.
The same paragraph might well be applied to the druidic strongholds on the Amn-Tethyr border -- they realize something's up because they are acutely sensitive to the local climate, but it might take a year or two for other areas of the Realms to realize that something is going on. I definitely favor having "coming events cast their shadows before," so I'd have the PCs become aware of such a situation, perhaps casually and off-handedly, and then as a global flooding campaign progressed, make it obvious even to the Fighter in the party that something is very wrong with the climate in Faerun (or wherever).
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| Jamallo Kreen |
Posted - 07 Nov 2007 : 19:10:01
One of the nastiest natural disasters to throw at players is mazuku (Swahili for "bad wind" or "bad air"). Check out this newspaper article for details: http://news.independent.co.uk/world/africa/article74178.ece . And here's the transcript for PBS's program, "Volcano Under the City": http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/3215_volcanoc.html.
Mazuku is carbon dioxide. Period. It can accumulate in large underwater "clouds" in volcanic lakes, and an earthquake or landslide can disturb it and cause it to rise out of the water, where it quickly kills everything which breathes. The volcano itself needn't be particularly active -- just leaking CO2 into still water is sufficient to allow mazuku to build up.
Apropos of volcanoes, the most dangerous on a continental or planetary scale is the "super-volcano," of which there are several examples on Earth, the most famous being the crack from which Krakatoa keeps rising (which may have caused the global collapse of Classical cultures when it erupted in about 543 CE), but including Long Valley and Mono Lake in California: http://lvo.wr.usgs.gov/hazards/index.html. (Did someone say "Lake"? Uh oh....) The Siberian Traps are an enormous complex of volcanoes in Siberia (duh!) which are credited with causing the Permian Extinction Event, the massive apocalypse which wiped out at least 75% of all life on Earth. Have your PCs sacrificed to Kossuth and Grumbar recently? Mwahahahaha.... 
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| tauster |
Posted - 01 Nov 2007 : 19:46:18
The single worst geographic location your party wants to encounter environmental hazards is the *drum roll* underdark.
- Earthquakes can be hell on earth, but imagine being in a tunnel or cave at that time!
- The same with floods: aboveground, you can always climb on a roof, a tree, a large rock, or use your flying carpet etc. Down there, not much can save you from an onrushing wall of water completely filling the tunnel to the surface...
- Bad air. Sounds boring? It isn't - at least not in a cave or tunnel! Watch your players faces when they realize the meaning of their candle's or torches going out!
In short: When adventuring in the underdark, small environmental hazards can quickly become more challenging than full-blown natural desasters aboveground. Read "Underdark" (among others) for more inspirations. And since it's almost impossible to teleport out of harm's way down there, even higher level- parties can be challenged. |
| AlorinDawn |
Posted - 29 Oct 2007 : 21:17:09
I've used them all over the years save an earthquake. Flooding being the most common. One thing you should use afterwords is the aftermath, disease, crops being ruined, famine, inflation, increased predators, etc to give the event soem additional impact.
I've used a druidic circle burning the woods to promote regrowth as a nemisis for the PCs, I've made PCs protect their resources in floods whilest whisking their friends and families off to safety, then returning to help set things right.
Hope that helps
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| Dalor Darden |
Posted - 29 Oct 2007 : 18:18:12
Simply taking away food from a party is an awesome way to get at them! Suddenly finding that your rations are infested by grubs...and if those are Rot Grubs, that makes it even more fun! |
| Jamallo Kreen |
Posted - 29 Oct 2007 : 17:48:11
quote:
Originally posted by Lady Fellshot
Out of curiosity, has anyone here ever used a natural disaster (ie flood, earthquake, wildfire, tsunami, etc.) as a adventure device? Either the actual event itself or the resultant aftermath?
I've debated both earthquake and wildfire games before (but not together) and I thought I would ask.
I had a killing winter in my campaign, which took the wind out of the sails of those players who didn't want to cooperate and join the party and play nice -- if they persisted in going it alone, they quickly ran out of money and were tossed into the street to freeze to death. (The frozen corpse of an NPC who almost made it to Waterdeep also provided a way to introduce a Heward's Handy Haversack and some long-term campaign clues.)
The PCs (with a couple of hundred of their closest friends) are now travelling through Thesk in the wake of the Tuigan, and they're finding that the land has been stripped bare of almost everything edible by humanoid or beast. Famine is going to come soon, without a doubt. The PCs found the tower of a dead (but possibly Epic level when alive) wizard and decided that the most valuable treasure in the tower was a cellar full of food and wine. Priorities quickly change when you are in a campaign in which all of the gold in Toril won't suffice to provide grazing for your horse and food for yourself....
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| Bladewind |
Posted - 28 Oct 2007 : 01:10:32
I am planning to use a volcanic eruption. 20d6 damage when immersed in lava. Free meteorswarm spells. The works.
Another killer is the pyroclastic stream, a cloud of searing debris and superheated noxious gas rolling from vulcanosides with speeds of 150 m/h.
Sinkholes can be fun devices to change scenery. Nothing more terrifying than a changing of the center of a city into an abyss. |
| Lady Fellshot |
Posted - 27 Oct 2007 : 19:50:37
I've considered using the aftermath of an urban fire or earthquake to introduce a location to a player party. After all, how a community reacts to such events can give them all kinds of clues as to general alignment, prosperity, organization etc.
The wildfire senario I have went something along the lines of a fireball spell cast in a dry windy region speads and comes roaring up at the party. I tend to try to base natural disaster games on some of the worst stories I've ever heard regarding the type of disaster and see how the party manages. |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 16:04:53
Tsunami that hit Bezantur, I used in a story, but not an encounter. I've seen a few instances where volcanic eruptions have been used in modules. |
| Ergdusch |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 15:19:25
quote:
Originally posted by Halidan
I've used large scale fires a couple of times. One was a raging wildfire on the plains north of the Moonsea. The other was an urban fire in the Sembian city of Yaughnn. 60% of the city was destroyed in a combination of two old Dungeon adventures - it was GRAND!!!!!
I've also used blizzards on a number of occassions, with the players either being caught in one or having to travel through one to accomplish a mission.
Ha! Fires in urban city districts! That trikes a memory. I was once part of a long time campaign during my years as active player. Somehow our party figured that it would be a perfect idea to safe ourselvs, kill our enemies and even move onward the adventure's plot if we set things aflame. Carpets, trees, barns, anything! The worst outcome was a city being destroyed to 40% by a fire we set only to cover a pity theft or some such thing! Had to flee that place afterwards of course as we were charged with arson. Who wanted to stay in that wracked city anyway? How great the life as adventurer can be! |
| Halidan |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 14:44:17
I've used large scale fires a couple of times. One was a raging wildfire on the plains north of the Moonsea. The other was an urban fire in the Sembian city of Yaughnn. 60% of the city was destroyed in a combination of two old Dungeon adventures - it was GRAND!!!!!
I've also used blizzards on a number of occassions, with the players either being caught in one or having to travel through one to accomplish a mission. |
| Alisttair |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 14:14:22
I only had my players end up in a Tornado killing most of them off once. |
| Ergdusch |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 13:40:29
I once used an earthquake! It was somewhat in my early dming career and therefore not very well thought through. However, I still like my ideas back than... the characters had to fend of critters coming out of the sewers and caverns located below Asbrawn, IIRC. As endless as the caverns were the monsters that creeped out of the many gaps and clefts that were caused by the natural disaster. The Red Cloaks were unable to deal with all threats at themselves. So what was more needed than a local band of adventurers to handle the situation. Back than I had my troubles explaining this unusual event.... |
| Jorkens |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 06:43:19
I think I used a forest fire years ago to give a sense of panic. That would be the nearest thing, but I cant remember much of it though. As a plot device I think natural disasters could be a good one, plenty of hooks can come from such a happening.
Looking back I am actually a bit surprised that I have never made more out of this. Thanks Lady, I will make a note of this for later ideas. |
| Charles Phipps |
Posted - 26 Oct 2007 : 06:39:30
I once had a massive flood as a set game piece.
The town was being attacked during it and the players had to brave the raging rapids to rescue people while demons marched through.
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