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1 year ago ::
Apr 12, 2012 - 9:01PM
#21
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Date Joined:
Oct 17, 2007
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My guess is that RotU is supposed to be the transition RSE that gets the Realms from 4ed to 5ed (IE. explains why things are different "It's the Drow's fault!"). I don't expect another long timeline jump, but an invading army from underneath all of Faerun (with demonic allies) seems able to do pretty much whatever the devs want it to do.
'I have had players complain about having extra rares in a pack. I’ve had players complain about getting free things. I have had players complain because they liked something “too much”.' - Mark Rosewater's Twitter, May 7th, 2013
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1 year ago ::
Apr 23, 2012 - 3:24AM
#22
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Date Joined:
Aug 15, 2007
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HAND OF KARSUS!  
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1 year ago ::
Apr 23, 2012 - 3:08PM
#23
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I am trying my hardest to not count my behirs before they've hatched (and so trampled all the chickens), eaten the farmer and gone rampaging across the countryside...
...but how is this going to work? I mean it seems to be intertwined with the Encounters program. Is what happens in Encounters games (or the greater proportion of them, like LFR was) canonical? Will the ultimate result of RotU be set in stone beforehand? Or will it be subject to the outcomes of the games?
As a transition RSE it gives me the fear. The denizens of this board know my feelings on the More Dangerous Realms... now it is going to become even more so?
My approach to the NPCs of previous editions. Spoiler:
Show
I always saw the High Level NPCs as shepherds of the Realms not its defenders. Making sure that not too many sheep were lost as they milled around (as they are wont to do) and bringing on the young'uns into the job. In that way a shepherd never has time to go and hunt down all of the wolves but is pretty dashed effective at keeping them away from the sheep when they rear their heads. "It was a puzzle why things were always dragged kicking and screaming. No one ever seemed to want to, for example, lead them gently by the hand." - Terry Pratchett
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1 year ago ::
Apr 23, 2012 - 3:35PM
#24
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Encounters is set in stone. The only thing that can get the party of the rails is a TPK.
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1 year ago ::
Apr 23, 2012 - 9:28PM
#25
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Date Joined:
Oct 17, 2007
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More info from Rule of Three: "Deep in the Abyssal darkness of the Demonweb Pits, the goddess Lolth is spinning a web of deceit, treachery, and ambition. Her goal is to seize control of arcane magic—a position that has lain vacant since the death of Mystra a hundred years ago. To facilitate this grasp for power, Lolth sent a prophet—Danifae Yauntyrr—to all the cities of the drow. Danifae is a fallen priest, a scoundrel, a seductress, and—if history is any guide—an avatar of Lolth herself. Danifae whispered to the leaders of all the great drow houses, spurring them to gather ancient power to aid Lolth's ascent. The drow are scouring the world for primordial relics (pieces of a dead or sleeping primordial), seeking out the remains of great wizards, gathering artifacts once sacred to Mystra, and fighting for control of magical locations on the world's surface. As the drow gather arcane energy and channel it to Lolth, her power grows. Her web extends to cover most of the world, forming a Demon Weave to replace the sundered Weave that Mystra maintained—a new fabric of arcane magic. With that, the priests and wizards who serve Lolth have access to greater power than ever before, and their task becomes to use it. Across the surface world, Lolth's servitors draw on the Demon Weave to create shrouds of darkness that cover league upon league of surface lands. Under this pall of darkness, the drow can move and fight freely during what would normally be daylight hours. With this aid, they can complete Lolth's transformation and bring the world to ruin."
www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4...
'I have had players complain about having extra rares in a pack. I’ve had players complain about getting free things. I have had players complain because they liked something “too much”.' - Mark Rosewater's Twitter, May 7th, 2013
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1 year ago ::
Apr 24, 2012 - 8:19AM
#26
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Some of the related products look interesting to me: the two Dungeon Tiles sets (The Urban Underdark, Castle Grimstead) and the map pack (Vaults of the Underdark) in particular. I can always use more maps to put on the gaming table and the dungeon tiles have been a staple of my game for years now.
Not sure what the D&D Fortune Cards (Drow Treachery) are all about, but I think I'll give it a look.
That aside, I suppose we shouldn't be surprised WotC is playing up the "who will try to replace Mystra?" angle.
I wonder if we're going to see Lolth duke it out with Asmodeus (he who at Azuth) in the near future?
The Forgotten Realms: It's an ugly baby, but damnit it's our ugly baby.
WotC, please don't wreck the Forgotten Realms a third time in order to introduce the latest version of the D&D rules.
Give us back 3rd Edition's Magic Television concept instead.
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1 year ago ::
Apr 24, 2012 - 9:13AM
#27
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Hmmm...
Lolth has Eilistraee "inside" her. E did have a chosen in common with Mystra. I wonder if this will lead to the birth of a new Eilistraee-Mystra goddess of magic and explain the return of traditional spell casting (in 5e).
Resident Socialist and Undying Troublemaker
Martyr of Section 1, 2 and 4
Original Troll of the House of Trolls
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1 year ago ::
Apr 24, 2012 - 10:55AM
#28
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Date Joined:
Jun 15, 2004
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Will the ultimate result of RotU be set in stone beforehand?
Yup (making those events effectively canonical). As such, this seems like a normal "save the world" scenario (with the PC's expected to be successful). However, since it's running across three seasons of encounters, I'd be dissapointed if WotC didn't use such a massively long event to explain any changes coming in 5e.
Hmmm...
Lolth has Eilistraee "inside" her. E did have a chosen in common with Mystra. I wonder if this will lead to the birth of a new Eilistraee-Mystra goddess of magic and explain the return of traditional spell casting (in 5e).
That sounds like an excellent speculation. Haven't they've been hinting for awhile at the return of Mystra?
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1 year ago ::
Apr 24, 2012 - 3:46PM
#29
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Date Joined:
Feb 16, 2008
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Here's Some information for your minds from the Rule of Three 04/24/2012:  What's the deal with the Rise of the Underdark campaign?
The Rise of the Underdark is a story theme that kicked off this year at PAX East, similar to what we did with Neverwinter last year. The Rise of the Underdark storyline is a series of interconnected stories, adventures, and products all related to the same storyline. I asked James Wyatt to give us an idea of what the story looks like, and he said:
Deep in the Abyssal darkness of the Demonweb Pits, the goddess Lolth is spinning a web of deceit, treachery, and ambition. Her goal is to seize control of arcane magic—a position that has lain vacant since the death of Mystra a hundred years ago.
To facilitate this grasp for power, Lolth sent a prophet—Danifae Yauntyrr—to all the cities of the drow. Danifae is a fallen priest, a scoundrel, a seductress, and—if history is any guide—an avatar of Lolth herself. Danifae whispered to the leaders of all the great drow houses, spurring them to gather ancient power to aid Lolth's ascent.
The drow are scouring the world for primordial relics (pieces of a dead or sleeping primordial), seeking out the remains of great wizards, gathering artifacts once sacred to Mystra, and fighting for control of magical locations on the world's surface.
As the drow gather arcane energy and channel it to Lolth, her power grows. Her web extends to cover most of the world, forming a Demon Weave to replace the sundered Weave that Mystra maintained—a new fabric of arcane magic. With that, the priests and wizards who serve Lolth have access to greater power than ever before, and their task becomes to use it.
Across the surface world, Lolth's servitors draw on the Demon Weave to create shrouds of darkness that cover league upon league of surface lands. Under this pall of darkness, the drow can move and fight freely during what would normally be daylight hours. With this aid, they can complete Lolth's transformation and bring the world to ruin.
Additionally, you'll be able to participate in the story through three D&D Encounters seasons (Web of the Spider Queen, Council of Spiders, and War of Everlasting Darkness), play in organized play events at GenCon (Dawn of Nightchampionship adventure), PAX Prime (The Sun Never Rises adventure), and local game stores (with two Lair Assault challenges—Spiderkiller and Kill the Wizard). Products tied to the Rise of the Underdark campaign include RPG books (Into the Unknown: The Dungeon Survival Handbook, Menzoberranzan: City of Intrigue), two Dungeon Tiles sets (The Urban Underdark, Castle Grimstead), a map pack (Vaults of the Underdark), D&D Fortune Cards (Drow Treachery), the Dungeon Command skirmish board game's Sting of Lolth faction pack, and online content in Dragon issue #413 and Dungeon issue #204. There are also several novels related to the storyline, including War of the Spider Queen Volumes 1 & 2, Charon's Claw by R.A. Salvatore, and ebook exclusives: Sword of the Gods: Spinner of Lies by Bruce Cordell, Prince of Ravens by Richard Baker, Skein of Shadows by Marsheila Rockwell and Spider and Stone by Jaleigh Johnson. Find out more at DungeonsandDragons.com/drow
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1 year ago ::
Apr 24, 2012 - 4:24PM
#30
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Well, after reading that bit, any interest I had in this just evaporated. Definitely not my cup of tea.
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