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Dungeons of Drakkenheim - 3rd Party Review
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<blockquote data-quote="Sparky McDibben" data-source="post: 9146542" data-attributes="member: 7041430"><p>It felt less like a copy/paste and more like the designers took an interesting premise and then ran with it. Like, yes, there are five factions battling for delerium in a city lost due to a meteor, but they've added in so much to that base that it feels like a significant departure from the original work. </p><p> </p><p></p><p>Ask and ye shall receive, friend!</p><p></p><p>Alright, folks! Now we're into Chapter 3: Factions!</p><p></p><p>There are five base factions in Drakkenheim:</p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Hooded Lanterns - </strong>A royal corps of soldiers and rangers seeking to retake the city of Drakkenheim</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Queen's Men -</strong> A loose confederation of bandit gangs and thieves' syndicates operating under the direction of the Queen of Thieves</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Followers of the Falling Fire -</strong> A straight-up cult that uses delerium in their religious rituals</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Knights of the Silver Order -</strong> A group of paladins and clerics with a nasty track record of mage-hunting</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>The Amethyst Academy -</strong> Mages who want to keep mining delerium because it can be used in all manner of magical whatsits</li> </ul><p></p><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/Npk8XOB.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p style="text-align: center"><em>"Stop! I am arresting you for sartorial crimes too varied to be easily described!"</em></p><p></p><p>These factions are arranged in the classic five-pointed star, with each faction being opposed by at least two others. To further complicate things, each faction has at least two goals, relating to control of Drakkenheim and delerium, as well as others that may relate to things further inside the Haze. </p><p></p><p>Each faction has at least two major NPCs and a host of minor NPCs that you can use in play, along with a detailed faction history, along with about two dozen potential missions that the faction can send the PCs on. These are often pointing at adventure sites inside Drakkenheim, which we'll get to later, but they're a good way to direct your players to already-prepped content. </p><p></p><p>Finally, we have Boons, which is what they can do for the PCs, and Strike Teams, which detail what a typical faction agent group might look like. And then after <em>that</em> we get Schemes, which are what the faction might do to the PCs as the PCs piss them off. Snub the Amethyst Academy and they'll put you under magical surveillance. Then they'll start funding rival adventuring teams. And if you <em>really </em>irritate them, they'll sic an invisible stalker on you (which will strike at the worst possible time).</p><p></p><p>And you get all of this for all five factions. Moreover, the factions aren't just introduced upfront and then left aside, they're present in every adventuring site, every major campaign action, every delve. Literally anything the players do will put them between at least two, and sometimes up to five, factions. All of these factions have irreconcilable goals, outsized personalities, and major problems with each other. </p><p></p><p>This is some of the best faction design I've seen outside the OSR - it gets a little bloated at times, but it feels like the writers are trying to err on the side of giving you more than you need. Well done.</p><p></p><p>After that, we get chapter 4: Emberwood Village. Emberwood is basically a gold-rush town. It used to be a farming village, but when the meteor fell, the land got contaminated. Nothing will grow there now, but because the town's outside the Haze, it's a suitable home base for the PCs. It's also the only village for a week's travel in any direction from Drakkenheim.</p><p></p><p>Because Emberwood Village relies entirely on trade (they can't grow their own food), everything here is pricy as hell. Think Tokyo prices. Food costs five times as much as normal, water is priced like alcohol (because it's more precious than booze), and any weapons or armor cost twice as much. Need something exotic? It costs five times as much and takes 6d6 days to come in (because they have to special order it). Anything you're selling is worth half the listed price.</p><p></p><p>Delerium is also worth half the listed price, but can only be traded to three key NPCs in town. These three NPCs have stats, and are a <em>nasty</em> surprise for the PCs if they try violence instead of reasoned discourse. For example, one of them is a <strong>gladiator</strong> with a dozen <strong>veterans</strong> for security, plus magic locks and glyphs on his gear. Another is a <strong>djinn</strong> with two <strong>gorgons</strong> to pull his cart. </p><p></p><p>Ouch. </p><p></p><p>One theme that runs through this chapter is that these folks are canny survivors. No discounts unless you earn them. No deals, no freebies, and if you piss them off, they'll just stop trading with you. There's no game, no way to live off the land, and no way for the players to make what they need to survive, so if the PCs get cut off by enough merchants in town, they're effectively done. </p><p></p><p>That might be worth calling out or highlighting if your players get heated with the bartender who's stubbornly refusing to discount their drinks. Personally, I kind of like this approach of having NPCs refusing to be walked over, but it comes with some risks. </p><p></p><p>Also in Emberwood Village, you can find a lieutenant from each faction. If the PCs seek them out, they're skeptical, and ask the PCs to prove they can survive in the ruins before they talk business. </p><p></p><p>Overall, this is a good starting town. Plenty to highlight desperate folk on the edge of survival, and plenty for the PCs to mess with. </p><p></p><p>One thing I would have loved to see is a carousing table for the town. I tend to find in megadungeon campaigns that what happens in town is what tends to develop or drive adventure, and everything here points right back toward the city. That can get a little dull, and having a carousing table to both burn your PCs money and introduce them to more activities is always a good thing. </p><p></p><p>Good work, solid execution. Not perfect, but leagues ahead of their 5E competitors. Well done!</p><p></p><p>Join us next time, friends, when we dive into Chapter 5: Exploring Drakkenheim!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Sparky McDibben, post: 9146542, member: 7041430"] It felt less like a copy/paste and more like the designers took an interesting premise and then ran with it. Like, yes, there are five factions battling for delerium in a city lost due to a meteor, but they've added in so much to that base that it feels like a significant departure from the original work. Ask and ye shall receive, friend! Alright, folks! Now we're into Chapter 3: Factions! There are five base factions in Drakkenheim: [LIST] [*][B]Hooded Lanterns - [/B]A royal corps of soldiers and rangers seeking to retake the city of Drakkenheim [*][B]Queen's Men -[/B] A loose confederation of bandit gangs and thieves' syndicates operating under the direction of the Queen of Thieves [*][B]Followers of the Falling Fire -[/B] A straight-up cult that uses delerium in their religious rituals [*][B]Knights of the Silver Order -[/B] A group of paladins and clerics with a nasty track record of mage-hunting [*][B]The Amethyst Academy -[/B] Mages who want to keep mining delerium because it can be used in all manner of magical whatsits [/LIST] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/Npk8XOB.png[/IMG] [CENTER][I]"Stop! I am arresting you for sartorial crimes too varied to be easily described!"[/I][/CENTER] These factions are arranged in the classic five-pointed star, with each faction being opposed by at least two others. To further complicate things, each faction has at least two goals, relating to control of Drakkenheim and delerium, as well as others that may relate to things further inside the Haze. Each faction has at least two major NPCs and a host of minor NPCs that you can use in play, along with a detailed faction history, along with about two dozen potential missions that the faction can send the PCs on. These are often pointing at adventure sites inside Drakkenheim, which we'll get to later, but they're a good way to direct your players to already-prepped content. Finally, we have Boons, which is what they can do for the PCs, and Strike Teams, which detail what a typical faction agent group might look like. And then after [I]that[/I] we get Schemes, which are what the faction might do to the PCs as the PCs piss them off. Snub the Amethyst Academy and they'll put you under magical surveillance. Then they'll start funding rival adventuring teams. And if you [I]really [/I]irritate them, they'll sic an invisible stalker on you (which will strike at the worst possible time). And you get all of this for all five factions. Moreover, the factions aren't just introduced upfront and then left aside, they're present in every adventuring site, every major campaign action, every delve. Literally anything the players do will put them between at least two, and sometimes up to five, factions. All of these factions have irreconcilable goals, outsized personalities, and major problems with each other. This is some of the best faction design I've seen outside the OSR - it gets a little bloated at times, but it feels like the writers are trying to err on the side of giving you more than you need. Well done. After that, we get chapter 4: Emberwood Village. Emberwood is basically a gold-rush town. It used to be a farming village, but when the meteor fell, the land got contaminated. Nothing will grow there now, but because the town's outside the Haze, it's a suitable home base for the PCs. It's also the only village for a week's travel in any direction from Drakkenheim. Because Emberwood Village relies entirely on trade (they can't grow their own food), everything here is pricy as hell. Think Tokyo prices. Food costs five times as much as normal, water is priced like alcohol (because it's more precious than booze), and any weapons or armor cost twice as much. Need something exotic? It costs five times as much and takes 6d6 days to come in (because they have to special order it). Anything you're selling is worth half the listed price. Delerium is also worth half the listed price, but can only be traded to three key NPCs in town. These three NPCs have stats, and are a [I]nasty[/I] surprise for the PCs if they try violence instead of reasoned discourse. For example, one of them is a [B]gladiator[/B] with a dozen [B]veterans[/B] for security, plus magic locks and glyphs on his gear. Another is a [B]djinn[/B] with two [B]gorgons[/B] to pull his cart. Ouch. One theme that runs through this chapter is that these folks are canny survivors. No discounts unless you earn them. No deals, no freebies, and if you piss them off, they'll just stop trading with you. There's no game, no way to live off the land, and no way for the players to make what they need to survive, so if the PCs get cut off by enough merchants in town, they're effectively done. That might be worth calling out or highlighting if your players get heated with the bartender who's stubbornly refusing to discount their drinks. Personally, I kind of like this approach of having NPCs refusing to be walked over, but it comes with some risks. Also in Emberwood Village, you can find a lieutenant from each faction. If the PCs seek them out, they're skeptical, and ask the PCs to prove they can survive in the ruins before they talk business. Overall, this is a good starting town. Plenty to highlight desperate folk on the edge of survival, and plenty for the PCs to mess with. One thing I would have loved to see is a carousing table for the town. I tend to find in megadungeon campaigns that what happens in town is what tends to develop or drive adventure, and everything here points right back toward the city. That can get a little dull, and having a carousing table to both burn your PCs money and introduce them to more activities is always a good thing. Good work, solid execution. Not perfect, but leagues ahead of their 5E competitors. Well done! Join us next time, friends, when we dive into Chapter 5: Exploring Drakkenheim! [/QUOTE]
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