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Uzzy
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
618 Posts |
 Posted - 30 Mar 2010 : 03:24:50
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So, as I'm sure some people on here know, the new Adventure Path from Paizo is currently being released, and it's a sandboxy 'Forge your own Kingdom' type adventure, which looks pretty good. I've been thinking about what game to run in the next academic year for my local university group, and this adventure path, set in the Forgotten Realms, sounds ideal to me. However, I didn't want to put it in the obvious place, the Border Kingdoms. Rather, my idea was to put it in the Forest Kingdom, Cormyr herself.
The plan would be this. Immediately following the War of the Devil Dragon, northern areas of Cormyr were under the control of rampaging orc bands and bandits, and with the government focusing on rebuilding the heartlands, gave adventuring parties permission to go and re-establish some sort of control over the region, in the name of the crown. Naturally, my group would be one of those parties. The adventures themselves speak of bandits being funded by another nation, which in my game can easily be replaced by a mix of Sembian and Zhentarim interference. Given the power vacuum just following the War of the Devil Dragon, I can quite easily have other cultish groups involved and needing to be sorted out by the PC's, who'll eventually become nobles over the area.
So, thoughts on my idea? I'd need a few good maps of Northern Cormyr, so if anyone has one, it'd be muchly appreciated. 
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Darkmeer
Senior Scribe
USA
505 Posts |
Posted - 30 Mar 2010 : 07:08:28
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I was thinking the Stonelands, given the history and open book with Azoun openly stating anyone who can tame it can have it (or something close to that). Mind you, with Azoun dead, and the rest of Cormyr in disarray, your idea is great as well.
I'd try one of MarkusTay's maps of Cormyr to see what you can do. If you can find it, I think there's a good map of Cormyr that MarkusTay wrote up (find it with a Google Search).
Here is that map
Mind you, it's a DM's Only map... But you get the idea.
Also found on MarkusTay's DA account:
Blank Cormyr |
"These people are my family, not just friends, and if you want to get to them you gotta go through ME." |
Edited by - Darkmeer on 30 Mar 2010 07:11:06 |
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Cleric Generic
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
565 Posts |
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Uzzy
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
618 Posts |
Posted - 30 Mar 2010 : 13:08:20
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| I had originally thought about putting them in the Stonelands, but, well.. it's not exactly the most profitable area to be around. I suppose I could give them the choice of Stonelands or the countryside to the east of Tilverton. |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3290 Posts |
Posted - 30 Mar 2010 : 13:39:56
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I would use a Dale. |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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Cleric Generic
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
565 Posts |
Posted - 30 Mar 2010 : 21:09:03
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| What year were you thinking of setting the game in? If it's some time after the Shades have started terraforming Anauroch then you could have the stonelands sprouting more or less freakish and mundane vegetation as appropriate. As for profitable resources, I'd imagine the stonelands have all sorts of mineral wealth, perhaps giant insect shells are valuable in civilised Cormyr? |
Cedric! The Cleric Generic and Master of Disguise!
ALL HAIL LORD KARSUS!!!
Vast Realmslore Archive: Get in here and download everything! http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/archfr/rl
2e Realms book PDFs; grab em! - http://poleandrope.blogspot.com/2010/07/working-around-purge.html |
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Uzzy
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
618 Posts |
Posted - 30 Mar 2010 : 22:15:13
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| I would be using the adventures in Kingmaker more as inspiration, and adapt them to work in a less forested area. Though I suppose the idea of terraforming would work. I'm sure plenty of magic from the War of the Devil Dragon, in addition the Shade's influence could change the make up of the area. |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 31 Mar 2010 : 16:04:39
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Uzzy, do you recall the locales featured in Ed's novel STORMLIGHT, on the eastern verges of Cormyr? Vales hard up against the mountains, among rolling wooded foothills, described in detail in the earliest year of this thread here at the Keep, I believe...if you postulate thriving trade through the border dales from Sembia, it can fit the Kingmaker path (which Ed has been involved in the design of, BTW) very well. Just add a new river, rising in the mountains and flowing down the eastern side of Cormyr to the sea. If you have Cormyr's reach and rule in this region attenuated due to the Forest Kingdom concentrating on politics (thronestrife jockeying?) around Suzail and Marsember, it allows you to duplicate the "lawless but with a trading code" atmosphere of the River Kingdoms...whilst avoiding the devastation of Tilverton (which can be a source of floods of new monsters, as they wander south out of the wilderlands, discover NOTHING to feed upon in blasted Tilverton, and came much farther south than they otherwise would).
What say?
love,
THO |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3290 Posts |
Posted - 31 Mar 2010 : 16:21:19
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Nice. |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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Uzzy
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
618 Posts |
Posted - 31 Mar 2010 : 17:14:02
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| Hmm. That does mean I could have the PC's retake Firefall Keep and have that as a base of operations. I'll have to look through Stormlight again (never a bad thing, I love that book) but that does sound like a great place to put it. Thanks THO! |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 31 Mar 2010 : 18:28:03
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My pleasure, Uzzy!
And I'm hoping a plea on my part to Sage or Wooly (hello, boys! Yoo-hoo! Over here!) will yield up to us the relevant years and pages of this thread wherein Ed went into more detail about Firefall, et al . . .
(And then, of course, we can always ask Ed for more.)
love,
THO |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 01 Apr 2010 : 02:44:43
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Ah, thank you! That's beautiful. I must poke around the halls a bit more, rather than just visiting the forum. My apologies for not seeing this earlier.
Sage, you know how to make a gal feel welcome...
Ahem.
(Sorry, Lady K. Nothing cheeky meant.)
love,
THO |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
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bitter thorn
Learned Scribe
USA
184 Posts |
Posted - 13 Apr 2010 : 03:50:56
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quote:
Originally posted by Uzzy
I had originally thought about putting them in the Stonelands, but, well.. it's not exactly the most profitable area to be around. I suppose I could give them the choice of Stonelands or the countryside to the east of Tilverton.
Uzzy, I haven't read the AP, but Cormyr claims the Marshes of Tun also, but that might be too uncivilized for your setting. |
"Nobody listens to the Ranger!"
Our groups are all sticking with 3.X classic Realms. |
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Uzzy
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
618 Posts |
Posted - 18 Aug 2010 : 23:59:24
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Right, I've got a few things down about how to run this. Figured I'd share them.
Starting in Uktar, 1371 DR, the adventuring party will get commissioned to go to Firefall Keep and clear it of any orc presence, then make safe the surrounding area for merchant travel through the Tilver Gap from both the Dales and Sembia. After they clear the keep, they will nominally be rulers of it and responsible for the surrounding area, and will get more aid, though limited, from Cormyr. Cormyr herself has mostly retreated to the centre, given Alusair's fears of conspiracies designed to unseat Azoun V from the Throne (Fire Knife activity would have helped with this), and a great deal of overstretch after the disaster of the Goblin Wars.
The main town in the area will be Tilver's Crossing, a rather quickly thrown up town built around a safe crossing point into Cormyr, having greatly expanded during/after the Goblin Wars with refugees and merchants trying (and failing) to get into (or out of) Cormyr proper. As such, there would be a variety of people there, many with loyalties elsewhere. (I'm thinking it should have a Casablanca feel, with people from all over and at least some Harpers/Zhentarim loyalists). Adding to the confusion would be a small Thayan Enclave that appeared virtually over night just outside the town, though it appears legit, with papers signed by the former Lord of Firefall Keep allowing them to build there, though dated two days before the disappearance of the former Lord.
Most of the early play will involve the PC's clearing out the Keep and rebuilding it, then establishing some measure of control over the town. They will have to deal with various brigands and Mountain Orcs raiding, as well as a roaming band of rather infamous Purple Dragon deserters, rumoured to be in league with the Zhents to raise mischief. The real problems will come in Myrtul, 1372, with the destruction of Tilverton bringing the Shades into play, as well as leaving the PC's alone, given Cormyr's retreat to Castle Crag, essentially abandoning the land around Tilverton. While away from Cormyrian aid, this would give the PC's an opportunity to take control over the rather large stretch of land ranging from the Stonelands to Firefall Keep. |
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Kingmaker in Cormyr
