| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Antariuk |
Posted - 08 Jun 2012 : 21:35:42
Hey guys,
So I am planning a FR game for a group of four players, two of them not familiar with the setting at all. Now the center of the campaign as of right now will be a dungeon crawl through Undermountain when the group reaches 5th or 6th level. My plan is to do this the "Wicked Way", after an idea by John Wick presented here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsnvANYBRWo&feature=plcp
The idea is that the players are brainstorming for all the cool things they want to have in the dungeon, which can be everything like a monster they always wanted to fight, a terrain feature like a dungeon level half-flooded with lava, or an underground inn where you can rub shoulders with the intelligent denizens of the underdark without getting your face eaten off.
Everything they come up with is true (for now) and is rewarded with a number of bonus dice, likely d6, which will form a party pool that can be accessed during game whenever the players feel like they need to spice up their dice results.
Now during the brainstorming, every 5-10 minutes I (as GM) get a complication point. I can use these points to corrupt something the players came up with, to make things uncertain again. Maybe the hydra they descripted now has an undead template or whatever.
I am not that familiar with FR lore, especially with Waterdeep and Undermountain. I have the FRCS, the Players Guide, and City of Splendors. City of Splendors gives me some trouble, because I find the book to be very cumbersome to read when you just want to browse for ideas. Due to the nature of the dungeoncrawl, I am not planning to stay true to the canon when it comes to Undermountain. It still will be created by Halastar and company, and the Yawning Portal will be access point No.1, but I intend to be very relaxed about anything else.
Right now I am browsing through the Return to Undermountain article series in the Wizards archives, because I think will be very useful for me when I need to actually craft a dungeon out of the player's ideas.
So, finally, my question to you: what ressources would you recommend me to check out?
I am not familiar with all the old-school and 2E supplements, so please point me to anything useful. I also read reviews for Expedition to Undermountain, but I'm not sure how useful it really is, since I will only be able to use pits and pieces of the information.
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| 9 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Antariuk |
Posted - 16 Jun 2012 : 16:57:45
Thank you, I'll read up on that. |
| Eilserus |
Posted - 15 Jun 2012 : 18:34:25
The country of Rashemen is ruled by witches called the wychlaran, universally female. I'd check into that, seems to fit the bill nicely. I don't believe there's much more to go on as a Realms basis other than that country, so if they prefer to play a male, it would be wide open. You could easily have them hail from the far south or even the Savage Frontier north of the Waterdeep area.
With regards to spells, the wychlaran commune with spirits of the land and other elemental types. No real deity that I'm aware of, just a force of nature or a balance I believe. |
| Antariuk |
Posted - 15 Jun 2012 : 18:21:44
Since its 90% sure we'll use Pathfinder, one of my players is interested in playing a Witch (from the Advanced Players Guide). Now he keeps asking me about interesting choices for his patron in the context of the FR universe. A witch's patron is like a mysterious force that grants the witch extra spells and may be the entire reason for her to develope spellcasting abilites in the first place. Any ideas on this? I'm kinda lost, because we both agree that simply referring to he FR pantheon, Mystra aside, is cutting too much into divine territory. |
| Eilserus |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 03:14:10
Halaster loaded Undermountain with monsters and lots of traps of all types. Then there's bands of monstrous humanoids, drow and other underdark races, cultists of various dark gods, Halaster's apprentices and other spellcasters, and rival adventuring groups to name a few that are trying to loot/explore or even settle portions of Undermountain. Pretty much anything you want to add or create could easily be added to Undermountain's halls.
There's no teleporting, dimension door etc into or out of Undermountain due to certain wards and spells Halaster has erected. Unless a person happens to discover a gate leading into or out of the dungeon. I think one of the greatest fears would be getting dumped off in the dungeon from a gate and having no idea how to get out. ;) |
| Antariuk |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 02:36:57
Thanks guys, I will try to get a look at this Ruins of Undermountain set, and Volo's Guide to Waterdeep really sounds like the kind of supplement I hoped City of Splendors to be, so I think I'll put that on my list as well.
What do you guys say would be important or maybe even archetypical features of Undermountain that should just be there, no matter what? I don't think my premise is spoiled of there are a few cornerstones that act as sort of a framework for the player to put their ideas within. |
| The Sage |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 01:51:33
Further sources [including some of those already mentioned] are noted below:-
quote:
Escape From Undermountain
FR1 Waterdeep And The North
Faiths and Avatars (Ibrandul's corpse reference)
Ruins of Undermountain I
"If You Need Help --- Ask The Drow!" [Dragon #176]
Ruins of Undermountain II
City of Splendors [boxed set]
"I Sing A Song By The Deep-Water Bay" [Dragon #211]
The Lost Level
"The Reports From Undermountain" [Dragon #227]
Maddgoth's Castle
Iakhovas' Attack on Waterdeep
The Great Modron March
Stardock
Skullport
Elminster In Hell
Dawn of Night [Erevis Cale Trilogy, Book II]
City of Splendors: Waterdeep
Return to Undermountain [web articles]
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| The Sage |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 01:48:42
And though it's a 4e resource [with significant post-Spellplague application] there are portions of Halls of Undermountain which can be, and are in fact still, relevant to pre-Spellplague adventures set in or around Undermountain.
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| Eilserus |
Posted - 08 Jun 2012 : 23:12:19
Pretty much agree with Wooly. The 2E Ruins of Undermountain boxed set was an excellent resource. If you're lucky you can probably snag a copy on Ebay for 20 bucks or so.
There's a dark pirate port called Skullport on the third level of Undermountain. There's also a 2E book titled Skullport too that details out alot of NPC's and factions in there area, a very handy resource to have also. Skullport has also been featured in a few older era Dragon Magazine issues too, but I can't remember the exact ones. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 08 Jun 2012 : 22:19:17
The first and most essential source is the Ruins of Undermountain boxed set, from 2E. Also from 2E, there was a second boxed set, Ruins of Undermountain II, though I don't care for that one nearly as much as the original.
There were also 3 Dungeon Crawl modules, Stardock, Maddgoth's Castle, and The Lost Level. And there were a couple articles in Dragon Magazine, too, though your best best is to track down Ruins of Undermountain. It's a personal fave of mine. 
I, personally, found Expedition to Undermountain to be rather underwhelming.
As for Waterdeep itself, the 2E book Volo's Guide to Waterdeep is hands-down the best source. In my opinion, it's one of the best books of Realmslore we've ever gotten. It gives a great "on-the-ground" feel for the city, and makes it come alive like nothing else published. |
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