| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Bocklin |
Posted - 02 Feb 2007 : 12:34:49
This time by Sean K. Reynolds. The third part of the FR "grand adventure" for 2007.
quote:
FR3 Anauroch is the final part of a three-part series of 160-page hardcover super-adventures set in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. It can also be easily played as a stand-alone high-level adventure. In addition to encounters, this book contains detailed source material on the land of Anauroch, home of ancient Netherese ruins and the Empire of Shade.
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=products/fracc/978078694
Bocklin
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| 30 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Amraz one arm |
Posted - 26 Oct 2009 : 13:45:13
Yeah like the bit of lore crunch here in there in the book, loved the windsung tower. Cause it was more role-playing then my players did in the entire adventure. But like Ashe, the players became just to powerful. With them plane shifting to Waterdeep constantly to buy and sell their goods.
Which is a sign that my players now to much about Faerun than I would like...
But hey to stop them from storming the twisted-towers. (30 banite priest be damned) I had to put a huge false image of a red-dragon on top of it. |
| Ashe Ravenheart |
Posted - 16 Oct 2009 : 13:59:51
I enjoyed running them for my group. But, like any published adventure/module, you need to be able to tweak things for your group to make it more enjoyable. For instance, the group I ran for fell into the 'Monty Haul' category, so I spent a lot of time in Shadowdale finding ways for them NOT to be able to fly off to Cormyr to sell their swag and upgrade their gear. Of course, this lead to the beginning of Anauroch being them going to Myth Drannor and hiring smiths and artificers to spend a couple of weeks getting them everything they wanted. And that, my friends, led to me needing to increasing the CR's of the rest of Anauroch's encounters. |
| Copper Elven Vampire |
Posted - 16 Oct 2009 : 05:45:30
Are these three modules any good at all? My group plays mostly elves and other non-human races, but I don't know how they would do with Cormyr and Shadowdale, let alone the last one.
Can I have some insight possibly? |
| Balabanto |
Posted - 25 Aug 2009 : 06:26:03
My biggest problem with Anauroch is the general lack of information on it's inhabitants other than Shades. They talk about the Bedine like it's taboo to talk about them, and didn't even bother explaining some of the other voodoo that went into this adventure, which barely made sense in the first place.
The worst part was that if you used material beyond the PHB, the master villains died to orb spells in less than two rounds. |
| The Sage |
Posted - 31 Jul 2009 : 05:25:03
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Purple Dragon Knight
quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
stuff
Forget the unexplained pyramids with maybe a lich in it and check out the Osirion Pathfinder Companion for some very well explained pyramids.
Or maybe stay on topic and discuss Realms material, since this is a Forgotten Realms forum. 
Or, alternatively, use the Osirion material to plot something out for the Realms. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 31 Jul 2009 : 03:55:37
quote:
Originally posted by Purple Dragon Knight
quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
stuff
Forget the unexplained pyramids with maybe a lich in it and check out the Osirion Pathfinder Companion for some very well explained pyramids.
Or maybe stay on topic and discuss Realms material, since this is a Forgotten Realms forum. |
| Purple Dragon Knight |
Posted - 31 Jul 2009 : 02:35:01
quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
stuff
Forget the unexplained pyramids with maybe a lich in it and check out the Osirion Pathfinder Companion for some very well explained pyramids. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 29 Jul 2009 : 18:29:42
Okay, we're getting into the area of assigning motives to WotC personnel. We need to shy away from stating anything as fact if there is no available concrete evidence. |
| Jakk |
Posted - 29 Jul 2009 : 17:55:22
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
quote:
Originally posted by Reefy
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
My fellow scribes and sages... can you spell A-S-C-O-R-E? I seriously suspect that we will finally discover the secret buried within those ominous pyramids...   
Ooh, you could be on to something there? Can anyone remember asking Ed about them and getting whacked with a NDA?
I remember him saying something like "We sure have liked to dance around this subject..." and THEN proclaiming that this subject is covered by a bright, shining NDA? (I am not 100% sure, though...)
Heh... yes, this is an old scroll, but it's just what I'm thinking about right now, and I wasn't active in the 'Keep when the scroll was originally posted. I was very much hoping something similar when I first heard about Anauroch. I think this mystery will remain unresolved in canon until Asmodeus and Mephistopheles need new hockey gear... H-E-*double* hockey sticks, after all...
Asgetrion: The purpose of NDAs in the Brave New Realms (TM) is to keep lore forever hidden from us, regardless of the status of their associated projects. Lore is irrelevant to the play of the game (which from their point of view is all about mechanics), hence Wizbro will not publish it.
The mystery of the thirteen pyramids of Ascore is something that very much needs to be resolved in canon. Maybe Ed can persuade Wizbro that a novel is in order, since there will be no further game products in 4E...  |
| bitter thorn |
Posted - 18 Feb 2007 : 18:22:45
I ask because I've only seen levels 4-8, IIRC, for the first one.
quote:
Originally posted by Kuje
quote:
Originally posted by bitter thorn
Have they stated the level ranges for the second two yet?
Well, we've been told that it'll take a group from level 1 to 20, so one could assume that the middle one would be mid ranges of levels and the last would be higher level to get everyone to 20th.
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| Kuje |
Posted - 17 Feb 2007 : 15:59:21
quote:
Originally posted by bitter thorn
Have they stated the level ranges for the second two yet?
Well, we've been told that it'll take a group from level 1 to 20, so one could assume that the middle one would be mid ranges of levels and the last would be higher level to get everyone to 20th. |
| bitter thorn |
Posted - 17 Feb 2007 : 15:19:10
Have they stated the level ranges for the second two yet? |
| Asgetrion |
Posted - 06 Feb 2007 : 00:36:27
quote:
Originally posted by Reefy
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
My fellow scribes and sages... can you spell A-S-C-O-R-E? I seriously suspect that we will finally discover the secret buried within those ominous pyramids...
Ooh, you could be on to something there? Can anyone remember asking Ed about them and getting whacked with a NDA?
I remember him saying something like "We sure have liked to dance around this subject..." and THEN proclaiming that this subject is covered by a bright, shining NDA? (I am not 100% sure, though...) |
| Reefy |
Posted - 05 Feb 2007 : 23:53:52
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
My fellow scribes and sages... can you spell A-S-C-O-R-E? I seriously suspect that we will finally discover the secret buried within those ominous pyramids...
Ooh, you could be on to something there? Can anyone remember asking Ed about them and getting whacked with a NDA? |
| Asgetrion |
Posted - 04 Feb 2007 : 23:24:51
My fellow scribes and sages... can you spell A-S-C-O-R-E? I seriously suspect that we will finally discover the secret buried within those ominous pyramids... |
| Ergdusch |
Posted - 04 Feb 2007 : 13:14:15
quote:
Originally posted by Reefy
quote:
Originally posted by MerrikCale
I thought they said from the get-go it was a three part series
They did, I think Ergdusch was just saying that he hadn't realised it.
Indeed, Reefy! I did not. That is, now that I have I am very intrigued to find out how exactly....
(On a side note: if the WotC product pages would provide links from one adventure of this 'series' to the others, it would make the intended connection much more obvious. But that might just be me... ) |
| Reefy |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 21:57:06
quote:
Originally posted by MerrikCale
I thought they said from the get-go it was a three part series
They did, I think Ergdusch was just saying that he hadn't realised it. |
| MerrikCale |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 19:44:11
quote:
Originally posted by Ergdusch
Now, it did not pass by me that the two adventures (Cormy and Shadowdale) are being published this year but what I have missed so far was that they were designed as a 'three-part series of hardcover super-adventures set', according to WotC.
I wonder how much they are actually linked with each other. Judging from the 'links' provided on the respective product pages - not at all!
I thought they said from the get-go it was a three part series |
| Ergdusch |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 16:26:26
Now, it did not pass by me that the two adventures (Cormy and Shadowdale) are being published this year but what I have missed so far was that they were designed as a 'three-part series of hardcover super-adventures set', according to WotC.
I wonder how much they are actually linked with each other. Judging from the 'links' provided on the respective product pages - not at all! |
| Jorkens |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 15:18:29
As much as I loved the idea of the SAGA system and the products themselves I could never get a safe enough grip on the rules to actually make use of the system.
I am still a bit weary of these adventures, especially because of the bombast of the titles. Sooner or later one of these is going to have wide scale consequences. Although it could be the fall of the whole Shade thing, which wouldn't bother me. Time will show though. |
| Asgetrion |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 11:34:03
quote:
Originally posted by KnightErrantJR
Unless they plan on doing a Saga system version of Forgotten Realms (shudder)
Hey, I actually LOVED the Saga system!  It was innovative and ground-breaking in many ways, introducing a completely new resolution mechanic that was based on storytelling. It also gave the players more control over the fate of their characters, and featured the simplest and BEST magic system I've ever seen! (Ahem, alright, except in Ars Magica ;)
I have also read that this very system has inspired some of the finest indie rpg designers. |
| Bocklin |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 07:59:36
quote:
Originally posted by KnightErrantJR
Obviously there is a bit of hyperbole in the subtitles to the adventures. Unless they plan on doing a Saga system version of Forgotten Realms (shudder) I doubt they will be permanently "Tearing the Weave," so I doubt that the "world" will literally be "sundered." Plus, if you are going to do a three hardcover campaign arc, I would expect the stakes to be somewhat high, or else its kind of hard to justify the books.
That is true.
I mean, the title probably refers to what happens if the characters mess up. It's probably more what they have to prevent than what is actually happening. Would be my guess.
Bocklin |
| KnightErrantJR |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 04:03:39
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
quote:
Originally posted by KnightErrantJR
Obviously there is a bit of hyperbole in the subtitles to the adventures.
No kidding. In this case it's really the subtitle that has my eyes rolling.
I know everyone can figure this out, unless they think that the point of the adventures are to be the "Apocalypse Stone" for the Forgotten Realms, which I sincerely doubt.
I guess the point that I wanted to make, upon review, is that the titles are generally made by people that aren't the ones writing the adventure. I just worry that sometimes the content of the adventure/sourcebook, what have you is judged by a REALLY bad title that some focus group somewhere swears has "impact."
I still remember that Lords of Madness was suppose to be called Codex Anethema, and Stormwrack was suppose to be called Maelstrom, but because WOTC was worried that book sellers would be too confused about the content of the sourcebook based on the titles, they "simplified" them.
For my money Codex Anethema is the coolest sounding book you could come up with for aberrations, but hey, I'm not in marketing these days. |
| Arcanum |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 03:47:11
Though WotC website provides the “Anauroch: The Sundering of the World” title, the line on the cover image is “Anauroch: The Empire of Shade”.
It’s weird.
|
| Reefy |
Posted - 03 Feb 2007 : 02:02:52
quote:
Originally posted by KnightErrantJR
There is definately precedence in FR adventures to be "high stakes." The Twisted Rune kidnapped Halaster in the Undermountain adventures, and you have to save Tristan Kendrick in Halls of the High King. I don't mind high stakes . . . its the "let's change the status quo" bits that make me nervous from time to time.
Bingo. And in 3rd Ed, City of the Spider Queen is high level and for high stakes, but doesn't necessarily shake too much up.
Your point about discrepencies between the text and cover - it's not the only one, as I mentioned in one of the other threads, the subtitles don't match up. |
| MaxKaladin |
Posted - 02 Feb 2007 : 23:24:13
I realize there is a certain amount of hyperbole involved in these titles. I also expect that there will be a metaphorical 'sundering', so to speak. If there is anything I've learned recently from trying to figure out what all has changed in the last few years, it's that they're not afraid to have big events that affect signifcant chunks of the realms.
I suppose what actually brought the comment on was a conversation I had with a couple of my players last weekend. I was talking about all the things that had changed in the realms and was describing what had happened to Cormyr. By the time I got to the upcoming Cormyr module with it's title about 'Tearing the Weave', one of my players was laughing and shaking his head and the other one was giving me this skeptical 'and you want to run a campaign in this world' look. With that conversation fresh in my mind, I felt compelled to comment when I saw the "Sundering of the World" part.
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| Faraer |
Posted - 02 Feb 2007 : 22:55:39
It's the kind of bombast that Ed satirizes in the chapbooks Storm and Sylune like to read, and is distasteful and bad for the Realms whether or not the contents match the titles. But I ran out of ire about this and am waiting for the books. |
| Rinonalyrna Fathomlin |
Posted - 02 Feb 2007 : 22:50:38
quote:
Originally posted by KnightErrantJR
Obviously there is a bit of hyperbole in the subtitles to the adventures.
No kidding. In this case it's really the subtitle that has my eyes rolling. |
| KnightErrantJR |
Posted - 02 Feb 2007 : 22:25:49
Obviously there is a bit of hyperbole in the subtitles to the adventures. Unless they plan on doing a Saga system version of Forgotten Realms (shudder) I doubt they will be permanently "Tearing the Weave," so I doubt that the "world" will literally be "sundered." Plus, if you are going to do a three hardcover campaign arc, I would expect the stakes to be somewhat high, or else its kind of hard to justify the books.
There is definately precedence in FR adventures to be "high stakes." The Twisted Rune kidnapped Halaster in the Undermountain adventures, and you have to save Tristan Kendrick in Halls of the High King. I don't mind high stakes . . . its the "let's change the status quo" bits that make me nervous from time to time.
What I find interesting is that the text of the web page says its by Sean K Reynolds, but the cover art also credits Thomas Reid and Greg Vaughan. I'm starting to wonder about the author credits on a lot of books, because Eytan mentioned here at Candlekeep how much content he has in the Magic Item Compendium, but I've not seen his name on it . . . perplexing. |
| Snotlord |
Posted - 02 Feb 2007 : 21:51:55
Indeed. Good new everyone! |
