It had been almost fifteen years since I even thought of those adventures. With the recent OGL situation, I spent a few hours listening to him try to glean information from these adventure, to extract lore he could use to produce newer content. A trip down memory lane... I reached out to him to talk about it and we agreed on a having an interview for his channel live on Twitch.
You can find the whole interview here on YouTube.
I had a lot of fun. I can't wait for the next one.
We will be going live on his Twitch channel February 9 at 1930 EST and go on for a while (could be the next morning).
Since he is involved in the Moonshae Isles for the Adventure League, like I was back in 2007-'10, I thought it would be fun to go back and revisit these adventures. I have like a millions things to say/ respond to based on his videos about the adventures. Many of the oddities he detected had reasons. Well I'm spilling the beans and all the juicy details.
Expect a LOT of information, laughs, and adventure ideas getting dropped. I'm pretty excited about it.
Join us February 9 1930EST for a great time! Ask any question you want.
I surprised myself earlier today. I was asked whether I was interested in writing the final Moonshae adventure for LFR and said no. There were a number of reasons I was tempted to do it: closing the “story arc” I promoted over the last few years, bringing a final adventure and an end to a quest whose story I enjoyed designing and thinking about.
Then, I went back and thought to myself what I would have to do: think and expand on a story, design combats, design encounter location, come up with magic items no one care about and spend hours working with a game system I dislike. I could’ve lived with all that and written an interesting adventure (I still think the storyline of the Giants is a good one that deserves a strong finish). But without the monetary compensation to go with it, I felt like I had other, better things to do. Some of my other writing projects are ramping up and I would definitely prefer to give those my time.
I hope the Moonshae guys find a dedicated fan to complete the adventure and the series. I know they will. I cannot be me.
JP
I am writing this entry to answer everyone at once. Ever since my announced departure from my position as a Writing Director, I received a number of email regarding my departure "Why are you leaving?" or "Who pissed you off this time?" being the two most common questions. So I decided to post it up here for everyone at once.
I have a strange personal habit. There are two albums I absolutely adore, yet every time I feel drawn to those two albums, I know something in my life is bothering and it is time for a change. The first one is Genesis’ Wind and Wuthering and the second is Marillion’s Clutching at Straws. Not that there is any specific lyric that draws my ear. It’s more of a mood thing. It’s one of those ethereal things that you just cannot explain. It just is. Though I used to consciously listen to them (particularly when I traveled in the metro or bus), I found myself looking at my Winamp playlist. And yes... There they were. The entire Wind and Wuthering and most of Clutching at Straws was there (minus one song).
BAM!
I had a sudden realization. Something had to be done. Something unconsciously was trying to tell me something. It was neither long nor difficult to find out what had to change. It was a decision I had been contemplating for some time.
It has been six years since I met with Daniel Mayrand in that small, freezing empty bar in Montreal and I had my start in the RPGA, and I got back into Dungeons and Dragons after a ten year hiatus. Six year later, everything has changed. It is one and a half edition later. The campaign that got me in is dead and gone. The faces have changed. My life has changed a lot (moved 3 times in that time, including a move to Colorado, three kids). The game remains.
During the Holiday season, I was sitting in my parent’s kitchen in Phoenix (AZ) looking at the tasks I had set before me: complete an adventure, make sure my storylines held the road, play with my three kids, play golf with my father and other writing projects. I found myself lacking the motivation to do either of the first two. I had no desire to write, edit or design a storyline anymore. At least, not with the tools I had before me.
That’s when I knew.
I knew it was time to move on. I thought I’d be annoyed, worried, angry or even sad. But far from it all, instead I found myself at peace with myself and my decision. I have been thinking about it for a while now but every time, I felt some pang of attachment pulling me back. But this time, I was so Zen about the decision that my lovely wife (Julie) even commented that I looked "oddly relieved".
So I came back to Colorado Springs with the firm intention of sending that email as soon as I got back. But life got in the way and I had to attend other things. I posted some of my thoughts on Facebook about my decision. My good friend Troy recommended that I give it an honest try. So I went to one of Lenny’s game days at Gamers’ Haven (my FLGS) and played what turned out to be the best LFR game I ever played (thank you Tena & table). That delayed the sending of my email a few days. But when I had to go back and put my nose to the grindstone, I found I could not, not with the enthusiasm and energy it deserved.
I told Lenny and Mike of my decision, two guys for whom I have the greatest respect. Their dedication and their enthusiasm for the campaign have pulled me through a lot for a long time. Two things I could no longer match or find support in. So I composed my email to Chris Tulach and Dru Moore and that was it. A few days later, everything was done. Email sent. Decision done.
Signed. Sealed. Delivered.
There it is. The inner and outer journey that led me to this decision. I see many interesting challenges ahead and have a calendar full of things I want to do and write. Pathfinder, Call of Cthulhu, miniature gaming and this little project of world-building I’ve been blogging about, I'm also open to writing for LFR/4e if anyone needs a reliable author. In fact as I write this, I am finishing work on BALD2-2 Broken Pride, an adventure I'm doing for my friend Otavio in Brasil, based on his original idea. Should be a nice departure from the usual crawl. I want to organize some special events locally.
That's it really. As a free man, I wish everyone in LFR the best of luck and to continue all their hard work for the campaign to make it better all the time. I leave with my head high, with a feeling of having accomplished as much as I could within the RPGA, but now its time for others to carry the torch. As is written in the Montreal Canadien's locker room (that's the Hockey Team) Nos bras meurtris vous tendent le flambeau (Our tired arms pass on the torch).
Most of Clutching at Straws and Wind and Wuthering is off my playlist now. Odd. As I write this, Marillion’s Made Again came on. I’ll leave you with the words from that great song. Fitting.
I have been here many times before
In a life I used to live
But I have never seen these streets so fresh
Washed with morning rain
Like the whole world has been made again
So, I’ll see everyone around the gaming table, where everything happens. The rest is just talk.
JP
Linda, my good friend posted the following reply on facebook.
I'm somewhat misquoted here, but you got the gist of it, I think. My main point was that, in a convention setting, most DMs and players will cut the skill challenge short so they can finish the module. The way most of the modules are written, you have to really have a synchronized team of players who know each others’ player strengths, player weaknesses, preferred combat tactics as well as character strengths and character weaknesses. That just doesn't happen in a convention setting and 4 hours is somewhat unrealistic for a group of relative strangers stumbling through a scenario.
In running LFR modules with no time constraint, I find that most of them are pretty satisfactory in a 4.5 - 5.5 hour setting. Plenty of time for effective skill challenges, role playing and combat.
Linda is quite right. People who don’t know each other tend to focus on number-crunching and showing off their powers/items instead of playing their character and make something fun out of them. They just focus on Finish. Finish. Finish. As though there nothing else of importance. That is part of the bad culture I mentioned. LFR’s culture minimizes the importance of story in favor of fights. Favoring dice rolls over interaction, clever thinking and creative problem-solving.
However, I have seen many DMs who took 5 and 6 hours to run adventures act the same way, cutting all but the fights and drag those on forever. That is not unique to LFR, but is something I have found in a number of RPGA games. Even LG often had that problem. The confines of a 4 hour time slot at a con are not a problem. The problem is that many feel that if they are not fighting, they are not doing anything and that they "don’t need to get involved in those boring parts." I, for one, usually like those "boring" parts.
The most important thing to do, as a player is: knowing what your character is good at and what he is not good at, and PLAY THAT! If you are the one who keeps talking put your points where your mouth is. Literally. If your play style is very quiet, don’t create a character that is fully decked out to interact. Do not limit your interaction with NPCs to “I have +12 Diplomacy. Tell me everything.” You are playing a *character*, not just a miniature on a game board, not just a series of stats on a sheet. Get into your role and have fun with it. When you do all the talking, you should be the one to make the rolls, not the guy next to you just because he has a bigger bonus.
In a home game setting, a DM usually tailors his adventure and encounters to his party. When a table plays together week-in, week-out, players quickly learn who is what and the strength of their fellow players. So a table that is big into socializing with the NPCs and one that is focused mostly on combats usually face different types of challenges.
Some of the recent LFR adventures (to cite them, DALE1-7 and DRAG1-7) all recommend the DM drop the skill challenges in favor of combat. What have the skill challenge been reduced to? A series of boring and useless dice rolls whose only goal is to fill an XP budget. If the powers that be have decided they are an XP-sink (aka "free XP"), then the questions to ask one are. Should we even bother to write them? Is it really worth wasting time writing non-combat stuff? Would it be better to simply have one more big fight or two smaller ones?
The culture is bad, what else can I say?
JP
The LFR culture is bad
I won’t go into too many details... It’s just, bad. I’ll focus on two points (for now).
NO MORE REPLAY
Kill the replay rule. Just kill it. Players usually try to be clever the first time, and rarely the second time, but by the third time, they merely roll dice and wait for their loot. Yes number of tables played has gone up, but the quality of play at those tables is somewhere at the bottom of the Abyss. But then again, *I* must be wrong, asking for a better level of gaming.
Want to see why I’m so much against replay? Run two tables of the same LFR adventure. One table is composed of players new to LFR and the other has half re-players. One table will try to be creative with the challenge. The other will roll dice.
Because of the padded stats, I doubt this will ever go away. However, I have taken a decision and I no longer run any adventure to re-players (I don’t DM anymore, except My Realms adventures); I do not burn then play and do not replay myself. Therefore, every adventure I play is fresh and exciting. I can only encourage others to do the same. Raise the level of the game.
"Get to the fights"While thinking about this post, I spoke to my friend Linda about this and she pointed out that many skill challenges are rushed by DMs and players alike just to be save more time for the fights. News flash people! Even if the leadership insist that D&D is only about the fights that is not true! If the game is just a series of fights, then I would recommend people stop wasting their time on some small skirmishes and graduate to real tactics and play war games. That way your turn will be longer and you will be able to move a number of creatures/ units.
The non-combat parts are where the story resides. It is why you would jeopardize your life for 5gp. I would assume that most NPCs value their lives more than you do yours. If you do not care about what is happening, that’s fine. But remember there are some people around the table who might be interested in those parts and their play experience is no less important that yours.
This mentality of dropping everything but the battles as "boring fluff" or "drop the role-play parts" really gets to me as it removes any chance of role-play. Many player who had experience in previous campaigns that try to get into LFR often comment how "simple" the adventures are because one of two players do not pay attention.
Do your thing and do not denigrate other peoples’ interest in the game. If you are sitting down just for the fight, wait for your turn to shine. This is D&D, you’ll get your fight soon enough.
Group Challenge vs. Individual Challenge vs. Mixed Challenge
The DMG talks about Group checks and individual checks but does not go into enough details. I offer the following break down and method of running.
A Group Challenge is when the entire party is involved in an activity at the same time. There is no time to assist each other. Each PC must make his check alone. Success and failure would be measured by the majority of PCs. Individual successes or failure would affect each PC independently.
For example a pursuit, if the PCs succeed, they catch their target. If they fail the quarry gets away. A PC failing the skill check may lose a healing surge. A PC who decides not to take part is deemed removed from the challenge and cannot take part any further.
An Individual Challenge is more akin to "usual" challenge. Here one PC is the primary roller and other possibly PCs assisting that PC. Success and failure is resolved upon that "single" dice roll. Penalties are applied either to all those involved or to every PC.
An example is an information gathering session where the PCs are looking for someone. They make the check and success or failure is assessed immediately.
A Mixed Challenge is, as its name implies, a halfway solution. Here the PCs need do two or more things simultaneously to be successful. Success requires both actions to be successful. I will admit that mixed challenges
Complex traps make good examples. The PCs are stuck in a deep pit. Every round, a random section of the wall slams the other side. To escape, the PCs must reach the lever just outside the trap. While some PCs climb out, the rest must try to avoid the walls. Success is measured as a whole. If the climber fails OR if the PCs at the bottom are getting beat up by the wall, the party is not in any better shape.
JP
There are a number of things I could see to fix skill challenges in LFR. I’m sure home-game DMs of 4e campaign do those things, and make them a valuable addition to their adventures, instead of the Xp sink they currently are. LG had what many people referred to as the OTA (Obligatory Thug Encounter) well LFR has the Filler Skill Challenge. It often has a reason to be there, but a quick DM text would usually achieve the same result.
When I first read about skill challenges, I saw them as a storytelling tool. Where the players could assist in telling how the story went. Simply by telling PCs "you need to get out of town, how do you do it?" Or "You must now find the jewel thief in the capital!" Most would begin to form plans and methods on how to accomplish this. In the days before skill challenges, it was common place.
I thought the two would be integrated together to form a coherent -and unique- story. I was *VERY* excited about them. But like most things with 4e/LFR reality came crashing down. It was not the case. Hard-cased, boxed text incrusted challenge whose result for success had about as much impact as rolling a ‘1’ on an attack.
This series of post will feature a number of ideas I have to make challenges more interesting and a better storytelling tool without breaking any of the rules!
In short, skill challenges have a lot of potential, and can be implemented in a number of ways. They should not be seen as an xp-dump or a "boring part", but as a great tool for storytelling. By varying the way you implement your challenge it can be all it promised to be, even in the strict confines of LFR.
JP
One of the things that really grind my gears when I play LFR is skill challenges. When 4e first came out, I thought they were the best thing in the game. They got me really excited because they provided an interesting way to present an encounter that focused on a character’s ability other than simple spells. I saw a lot of potential to write stories with that.
However, my illusions quickly came crashing down when I began actually playing in the campaign... Skill challenges, instead of being used as story elements, became an endless series of meaningless dice rolls.
The Skill-Shopping Challenge
DM: You must do X, here are the skills you can think of right off the bat.
PC: Okay, I’m +6 who is better?
To me this form of challenge is the most boring of them all and the type that is encountered most often. It turns a game that is already all about meta-gaming (which I don’t like) into a series of number crunching and meaningless dice rolls. This skill challenge is about as interesting as a page full of boxed text.
The problem here is a mix of DMs just not caring about the story and players who just want to maximize and show off their abilities without care for the story is usually the reason for this.
When you get to such a challenge, look at the players around the table. See how many are interested in what is happening and how many are already shopping for next skill to use once they know success/failure.
The No-Creativity Challenge
PC: I try to use my Bluff to trick the city guard into thinking I’m with the caravan that just left. < <Succeeds>>
DM: With your Bluff, you disguise yourself and manage to pass yourself as one of the guard.
This challenge is frustrating for a player because you try to come up with a creative use of your skill and your creativity is completely killed by a result that had nothing to do with what you were trying to do. Usually after one or two attempts at creativity, the challenge turns into a Skill-Shopping challenge.
This problem is usually on the DM’s shoulder. Although WotC wanted to have "DMs Empowerment" which they did not tell anyone what it meant or gave a few examples of what they meant until they told people what they could not do with that. That term is now rarely used anything and most DMs simply run-as-written and don’t even care.
The Endless Boxed Text
PC: < <Succeeds>>
DM: < <Begins reading boxed text about what the PCs found or learned>>
There is something about boxed text outside of introduction and conclusion that irk me, there is no surprise there. However, in a skill challenge, most of those text assume or dictate a PC’s action "you go here, do this, then that." And that is something I strongly dislike. While in the intro "you all head to the bar" and the conclusion "you go to claim your rewards", during the adventure it is MY time as a player to do what I want.
This problem rest half on the DM and half on the author.
The One Character Challenge
DM: You can use Arcana, Insight or Religion
PC: I’m sitting this one out! Call me when you guys are done!
Some skills are a LOT easier than others to come up with a reason to use: Arcana, Diplomacy and Religion are I believe, the most common skills found in skill challenges (Arcana is almost always there). This creates obvious focus on specific characters and leaves others in the background. Rogues are no longer any better than anyone at being skill monkeys. They are just like everyone else.
The problem here is on the author. Thinking of skill challenges that require the use of many skills is hard.
The Skill Challenge in an encounter
First off, let me tell you that not ALL of them are bad. Some make perfect sense and can really help the party, the adventure or the story. Those I am talking about here are those where a PC or three could attempt to do something while the rest of the party is fighting a monster. And as is the case in 99% of those encounters, killing the monster negates the need for the skill challenge. With rogues being the biggest damage dealers in the game, sending him/her to stop a trap is just a waste of time.
This type of thing I became aware some time ago when I wrote "The Sands of Time" for WotC back in June of ‘08. I had an encounter where the PCs were getting beat up to all hell by a trap AND attacked by monsters. The trap was just tearing the PCs to pieces and the monsters did keep them busy. I had a disable skill challenge which I thought was pretty nifty. When I ran the encounter, the PCs did argue that it was stupid for their rogue to spend her entire encounter trying to disable the trap. While perfectly valid, my encounter was flawed simply because it did not make any sense to them. I did argue (as I am wont to do), but they were right.
Another example, during this past weekend’s SPEC1-4 Ice Queen’s Crossing by Shawn Merwin, there was 1 example of such a bad challenge. The fight had a bunch of mooks moving forward and one blaster staying back and firing bolts of something at us (he had decent damage). Behind him there was a statue that fired blasts of energy (doing minor damage and possibly dazing us). Now we could’ve 1- killed the guy or 2- entered a skill challenge against the statue. Let’s sit back and examine this. We can beat up a guy with all of our abilities or split our resources and try to disarm a statue. On a failed check vs. statue something bad happens. On a failed attack, nothing happens. If I take out the guy, the statue is neutralized. Let’s see... touching the statue sound pretty stupid to me. It’s good to have the possibility in there but really there is no need to do so. Realistically, how many parties did he expect would spend time deactivating the statue while some guy attacks them?
This one is a more insidious and harder to figure out. While the author appears to be the one at fault, he is trying to provide option to the PCs in the encounter. Is the DM at fault? Not really, because he presents the encounter as written and if the PCs/NPCs do not play with the environment, then he should not force the environment on the PCs. Then the players must be at fault! Again, the players react to what is most threatening and when there are opponents moving on the field, they naturally focus on them.
There you have it... the most insidious of all skill challenge: the one that sucks and that is no one’s fault! Or maybe is that a little of everyone’s fault?
JP
Well it’s been a while since I posted something directly relevant to the Moonshae Isles.
I have sent in the first draft of MOON2-1 Darkness falls over Moray to Shawn for further editing and review. I do like the end-result a lot because the adventure does force the PCs to think a little more than usual in LFR. It also features a major decision point and ties to other adventures in LFR. No, I won’t say which ones.
I have been working together with Otavio from Baldur’s Gate on BALD2-1 Turning Point. Why? Because it is the finale of the “Fey Gates of the Sea of Sword” Major quest that is the first complete multi-regional quest in LFR (yeah for us & BG!). The other parts of the quest are BALD1-5 Lost Refuge and MOON1-5 Lost Love, both 7-10 and can start or continue the quest. It is an interesting finale with a nice epic feel to it. I strongly encourage you, if you can to play those 3 adventures in a short amount of time to do so. Yes, yes, I know the BALD1-5 is late, but that’s out of my control… it should be out any day.
Today I just sent in MOON2-2 Dark Lords of Oman, which is a 14-17 adventure (what we call P2). I can’t say much about it except that yes, there will be giants. This is also the first adventure where the “Fey Path” is offered for all-fey parties.
Year 2 in the Moonshaes has a over-arching plotline that encompasses MOON2-2, MOON2-3 and MOON2-4. MOON2-1 and MOON2-5 are assumed to be somewhat stand-alone.
JP
The first time that someone drew my attention to how stingy and ridiculous payment in LFR was, I was at Enchanted Grounds in Denver talking to my good friend Wes about LFR. Our diverging views about the game I always found stimulating. Wes was telling me how ridiculous he thought it was to have an employer send someone to Zenthil Keep with a payment of 10gp per PC. I was stumped and could only laugh with him at the idiots who would do such a thing.
For the record, my ork Gurbaz was one of those idiots who headed to Gentile Keep a few months later...
Later, I sat down to write a MyRealms adventure set in the Moonshae Isles, Wes’ words echoed in my mind. MYRE1-1 Blades for the Moonshaes includes a trip from Waterdeep to the Moonshae Isles for the sum of... Yes. Fifty gold pieces per PC! I kept thinking. Man, is that guy cheap! He sends people across hundreds of miles for 50 gold pieces each! I’d never do it!
I certainly understand that there is a certain level of suspension of disbelief but still... Once the adventure was complete, the question of payment kept annoying me. I thought of a few things: have the employer renege on his offer and pay less (that did not feel right), offer one lump sum (PC x 50gp, although that did sound better, it was still unsatisfying) and offer payment in gems. None of those solutions felt right.
I did not like it but found no way around it.
I was talking to someone at Gamers’ Haven who always wondered why coins were minted in anything but gold in D&D. He said that in his game, everything was counted in silver. Silver being more common and harder than gold was better suited for coins. Gold and the fact that it is very stable (does not tarnish or rust) was better used as to create items such as chalices, cups and other items. It was such a revelation! He was right! I wish I remember his name, but I don’t. Silver coins!
So I got back home and looked at my adventure... Using silver coins allowed me to offer the PCs the same amount of money BUT increase the number, and therefore the sound of the man’s offer. Thinking about it... Silver makes great coins, leaving the rich to surround themselves in gold items.
Now, I can see some of you going I’m still getting paid 50gp to travel that far! The answer is: yes you are. But it sure SOUNDS better to be paid 500 pieces of silver to do so. Having run my MyRealms a few times by now, the effect is very noticeable and those PCs who are of a more mercenary nature feel they get a good share! The reaction of all was very positive.
Why not copper pieces then? It would give a bigger number but frankly... copper pieces don’t cut it. When people would offer 5,000 copper pieces to do a task, the word "copper piece" gets stuck in your mind as "worthless". Copper pieces are the Rodney Dangerfield of D&D... They get no respect.
Silver pieces are a good compromise. They increase the number of the payment and are still seen as valuable. So from now on, future Moonshae adventures will offer payment in silver pieces! You'll get a lot more coin for your services!
JP
OurRealms has come and gone. OurRealms was an all-Saturday madness that brought together around 30 different players around a total of 9 full (and sometimes more than full) tables where 5 local DMs showcased their creations. The DMs were Rich Clark, Timmy! Creese, James Hicks, Linda Weygant and me. A particular shout-out to Linda who really saved my butt by coming up with her adventure at the last minute.
Between searching for lost treasures, exploring old mines and busting pirates, the vibe was very positive. Cries of "Everyone is bloody" and "Those are way tougher than regular adventures” were heard many, many times. Ahhhh music to an organizer’s ears… Nothing sweeter than the sound of PCs crying out in pain! Makes me feel all nice and fuzzy!
The games ran in the allotted time slots (which saved my own butt once) and players were on-time (for that, I commend you all for being on-time). Because of the very tight time-limits we had, timeliness was but one of my worries. Food was cheap and plenty.
Finally, I must thank Rob & Troy of the Gamers’ Haven for the venue. Much appreciated guys! And to Terri who closed the store and had to listen to the many tales of adventure… Thank you again.
So there it is… OurRealms is done… Maybe next year? We’ll see. Now I have to get back to editing…
Anyone who organized events bigger than a single table knows what I’m talking about: Pre-event jitters. Like a singer or athlete feels just before their performance or event, I am now a nervous wreck. You know, when you walked to the end of the 30ft diving platform and though you KNEW you should not look down, you did anyway. I am now standing on that platform looking down. I guess I should try and relax some, but I pride myself in associating my name to events now fondly remembered by people. Make it right, make it big, and make it awesome.
The jitters aren’t all bad. I mean they get me going. They are an extra jolt of adrenaline to keep me on my toes and trying to preview issues before they happen. I have always been a firm believer in the old saying "If you build it, they will come." and once again pre-registration have proven that there is interest in my wacky ideas.
Now is the time where the train is steaming full speed into the unknown and there is nothing you can do to stop it. The many pitfalls, obstacles and snags are still up ahead, but by now, things crash and burn OR jump over the obstacles. There is a certain serenity one feels when an event reaches that stage. A certain feel of release. I have prepared almost everything I need to the best of my ability. Things are now in the hands of the DMs and the players…
Under that blanket of calm is a teaming, bubbling sea of worry. Will all my GM show up? Will they all be on-time? How many walk-ins are we going to have? Will there be a lot of no-shows? Do I have enough sodas? What will the noise-level be like? How will people like the game day? Is every DM ready to go? Did they forget to mention something important? OH God, please don’t let me be that one guy who forgets to shower! (note to self: don’t be that guy) Note to reader: don’t be that guy. Do I have enough certs? Enough tracking sheets? Should I bring extra battle-mats? Should I bring pens & other writing implements and materials? Argh! So little time.
A poetic view to basically say “You’ve done pretty much all you could. Things go forward from now on for better or worse!” and "Plan for the worse, hope for the best…" Trying to be objective (which rarely am if you read this blog with any measure of frequency), I’m pretty sure that things will go off as well as they could.
In the end it is about mixing 2 things together: Gamers and Games.
Dear readers, I will see you on Monday.
JP
Well... it took me a good few weeks to sort out everything I needed to come up with the Year 2 Moonshae Storyline... Wasn’t it easy but finally, I got it going. I cannot take all the credit as I received valuable feedback from the authors of MOON2-1 though MOON2-5. I know, I know, the bonus round is not assigned yet, but I have no intention of not getting it. It is a matter of pride. After all, since I took over the plots/ storyline position in Tusmit in 2004, my region ALWAYS managed to come up with all of its adventures, and usually more.
The Moonshaes will not be that exception. The authors are all very anxious to start on this new year, as am I.
So looking at the adventures in front of me and not being able to come up with a final part for a major quest (through a Core or by working with another region), I tried to use my own posts as a guide.
Now before people go barking at the Globals or the other regions about not being willing to help, let me tell you this. Everyone I talked to was very willing to help but has prior engagements. Either the story I was trying to push did not suit them or they did not have adventures of a level-band to make things compatible. Still, we talked and exchanged ideas... Maybe in Year 3.
So back to the storyline! What do you do when you cannot continue on a story? Why... If comic books thought me anything (and they thought me a lot of stuff), is that when the future can’t be changed, change the past!
Okay... Now calm down...
Using my great powers of RetCon (RETroactive CONnection), I began to look back into previous Moonshae adventure for potential links. Since linking to past adventures is, I believe, the best way to create continuity, so I began to look... MOON1-1, MOON1-2, MOON1-3, all the way to MOON2-1 (which as we speak has been at HQ for over a month for review) and a strange pattern began to emerge. Not immediately obvious, but something that was hiding behind the obvious trees...
So I sat down and began to play with my web of storylines and ideas... Looked at my pool of authors and tried to come up with something that would surprise you (the players) more than a little...
So next year, we will have a major quest unofficially called "Giants of Oman" or "To Oman and back". The first part of the quest will be EITHER MOON1-3 Black Gold, MOON1-5 Lost Love, MOON2-3 Title TBA or even BALD2-1 Lost Hope (Working Title). So, in any one of those adventure you might get a reward that counts as the first part of the quest. MOON2-2 will really get you out there and have you confront the problem facing the Moonshaes. MOON2-4 is the culmination of the story.
I heard a lot of people saying that adventures in LFR had no bearing on the world. Well, this story WILL have an impact on the Moonshaes and YOU (the players) will get to be the ones who decide what happens! I always believed that LFR gains by imposing choices upon the players that cannot be resolved by a simple roll of the dice. Well be prepared to make a choice!
To give you a quick overview of the current plan, here is the breakdown of the adventure locations.
Finally, MOON2-2 and MOON2-4 will have the "elf-intro" that was discussed on the Moonshae Yahoogroup some time ago. I am quite interested in seeing how this play out. Yes, I know they are both high-level adventures. No, I will not change my plan because of that.
I would really like to set an adventure or two on Gwynneth in Year 3, but I need to wait and see what our level range will be before making any plans.
Again... everything I post is subject to change without notice (and most likely already has by the time you read this. It is intended to give all of you a small taste of what is coming down the pipe for us.
JP
This article is a sequel to Starting a module in the Moonshaes
Similar to starting an adventure, I like having an actual encounter to conclude of our modules. Like the intro, it allows me to expand on some themes and have many, clear and detailed section each with its own header. Yes, I’m a sucker for headers and easy to find information…
If the end of an adventure is simple and does not require much, there may not be a need for this encounter. If that is the case, then the conclusion can be tucked under the last encounter, like most other regions do. However, being a fan of good and more detailed ending, I find that to be a bit short. Many DMs seem to throw the ending at the players with a “you get paid and get the F**K out”. Because a number of Moonshae adventures take the PCs on different paths depending on decisions they made during in the game, copying the conclusion in a number of places makes the text clunky, hard to follow and, from an editing point of view, nearly impossible to update when you have to run through three or four encounters.
So, the Conclusion "encounter" exists for all those reasons. All the ending boxed texts and Epilog (if any) are kept in one place, all the rewards summary are held in one place and any last-minute instruction to the DM are given here... I STRONGLY encourage any DM running a Moonshae adventure to read those entries to prevent issues later on.
One of the reason I am so intent on having those section and making sure the DM follows them comes from one event in the LG days where only human or half-elf PCs could receive a wedding invitation into a noble family for their good deeds. All other races could not receive such a reward. I was surprised when this gnome player came to me and said "Wow I never thought I’d marry a human noble!" I hated having to tell him that he was NOT a noble and that he would have to cross off the reward. The player was annoyed at me and at his DM. Had the DM not give him that award, the player would not have been so annoyed.
Finally, adding a "conclusion encounter" is a good way to easily arrange information for the DM and advance some points of storytelling. But like any boxed text, keep it short, simple and to the point. By that time, most players are packing and begging for rewards and other goodies. Sad thing that good prose is often lost amongst paperwork and minute details (like player rewards).
A number of players have asked me about some of those bards since the MOON1-1. The presence of a bard or entertainer in an inn had more impact than we (Mike, Lenny & I) initially expected when we decided to have that “character” in the adventure.
The first encounter is when the PCs are drawn into the adventure itself. Yes, it does extend the adventure a little but it allows us to be able to expand upon the NPCs, what he knows and what he offers, AND we get to keep it all on one page (usually).
My goal is to provide the DM with the most amount of information in as few words as possible. With DME (DM Empowerment), I trust that each DM can fill in the blanks where needed. The bigger holes, I try to patch for him.
JP
