| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| idilippy |
Posted - 12 Apr 2011 : 20:30:45
I've decided, a month or so back, to run the very intriguing Kingmaker AP in the Forgotten Realms. I eventually decided on southeast Tethyr as a location for the Stolen Lands and set the campaign in the spring of 1370, with Tethyr's civil wars over with and united under that new queen and El's old scribe. This gave me a plausible excuse for the existence of the Stolen Lands as an area of the country long left without direct rule due to the struggles in Tethyr.
Looking ahead I can see the campaign lasting years, even up to a decade or two in character, leaving me with an enjoyable dilemma. Faerun goes through a lot in the 1370's and 80's, monsters invade Amn, the Manshoon Wars happen, Evereska is attacked and Shade returns, the Rage of the Dragons happens, the Harpers split and Khelbern dies, Azoun dies in Cormyr, Sembia and Thay both get caught up in civil wars, Myth Drannor is retaken, and right in the area the players are at Tethyr gets invaded by Mintar, and that only goes up to 1375.
Now obviously lots of those things don't happen in Tethyr and won't be encountered by the players except as rumors spoken or worries the populace has. Also, I'm modifying a few things to better fit my version of Faerun, so Myth Drannor won't be completely retaken and Thay's civil war will work differently. Still, there is a lot going on and I want the Stolen Lands to feel like part of Faerun, with the characters affected by and noticing the troubles, not like it's own demiplane with no worries about the outside world.
To that end I'm asking for help, what ways would you suggest tying any of the events in Faerun during the 1370's or early 80's to a small kingdom in southeast Tethyr? For a couple it's obvious, Azoun passing and the events involving Myth Drannor are too far away to be anything but rumors, but for the Rage of Dragons or the troubles in Amn I feel the area should feel some affects, what do you think? |
| 3 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Bladewind |
Posted - 13 Apr 2011 : 12:29:46
Regarding the fighting in Amn against the Sothillisian Empire you might consider placing placards with "calls to arms" around the region. Amn needed all the military might the surrounding human kingdoms could muster to bring a stop to the hordes led by Sothilis, Murkul of Murannheim. The invasion of Mintar would likely have a similar effect.
Decisions of sending military aid are the bread and butter of political games, with far reaching repercussions and headache indusion tensions for budding rulers.
Assassinations or espionage missions might have predated the military conflicts. Moles within the court, sentencing guilty parties, procuring political or military allies, all are interesting events to beset a party of would be rulers.
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| idilippy |
Posted - 12 Apr 2011 : 23:18:38
I do, and thanks for keeping that link by the way! I never worried about getting all of those downloaded until my old laptop where they were stored died and I realized wizards had taken them down and my old bookmarked link didn't work. I'm sure it's going to be a lot of help once the PCs start kingdom building and I have them worrying about annexation by Tethyr or Calimshan and political dealings with those powerful nations.
I was more interested in how much of these events I should include and what impact events in Faerun should have on the campaign. I don't want the whole campaign to devolve into the PCs kingdom constantly being in trouble due to the Realms shaking events going on, but I also don't want to ignore the wonderful detail of the world around them and focus solely on the adventures in the AP, since I feel if I do that I might as well have set the game in Golarion, or Greyhawk, or anywhere but the Realms. I'm also looking for interesting ideas on incorporating these events. Adding a rampaging dragon for the PCs to stop is an easy way for the effects of the Rage of the Dragons to hit home, but how much should Shade's return, drow troubles, or the fighting in Amn, leak down to worry and affect the budding nation all the way south in the Forest of Mir? |
| Brimstone |
Posted - 12 Apr 2011 : 23:03:42
In my sig I have the Previous Edition Downloads link. It has Lands of Intrigue in PDF form. In case you dont have it! |
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